sport-scan daily brief - Winnipeg Jets

Transcription

SPORT-SCAN
DAILY BRIEF
NHL 3/23/2014
Anaheim Ducks 739084
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Boston Bruins 739119
Bruins rally in 3rd period, win 12th in a row Bruins backup Chad Johnson offers a saving grace Game 71 preview: Bruins at Coyotes Bruins Notebook: Chad Johnson stellar when needed Dozen in the desert: Bruins rally to win 12th straight Bruins win 12th straight Our unsung heroes: Plenty of choices for Bruins 7th Player
award Buffalo Sabres 739093
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‘Conehead’ Conacher goes viral Lieuwen to start in goal against hometown team Sabres giving Lieuwen a ‘home’ start in Vancouver Sabres notebook: Canucks have plenty at stake Calgary Flames 739097
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Eberle back in for the Oilers; Westgarth adds some punch to
Flames Calgary Flames take on Edmonton Oilers in the final Battle
of Alberta of the season Keeping up with Flames' Joe Colborne and his family Flames snapshots -- Joni Ortio not feeling the Heat Carolina Hurricanes 739101
Dallas Stars Ducks' Hampus Lindholm, at 20, matures into a top NHL
rookie Ducks' Andersen passes Boudreau's test Hurricanes score 3 times in 2nd to top Jets 3-2 739118
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Detroit Red Wings 739123
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Chicago Blackhawks 739102
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Teuvo Teravainen draws raves from Jari Kurri Jeremy Morin has best chance yet to stick with Blackhawks Blackhawks’ Crawford riding hot streak Blackhawks making Teravainen feel at home Hawks confident Kane will be ready Keith putting together another Norris-worthy season 739109
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Tyson Barrie having fun at forward, but: “I’m a defenseman,
and that’s where I want to be” Dater: Let's bring on Avalanche vs. Blackhawks in NHL
playoffs Jean-Sebastien Giguere leaning toward retirement after
season Adrian Dater’s spotlight on Predators defenseman Seth
Jones Adam Foote and Sergei Krivokrasov helping U16 and U14
Colorado Thunderbirds to triple-A nationals Columbus Blue Jackets 739113
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Michael Arace commentary | Rick Nash gets told: You’re not
needed Rangers 3, Blue Jackets 1: That punch by Rick Nash might
ignite a rivalry Blue Jackets notebook: Rick Nash fights former teammate
Matt Calvert Blake Comeau not about to change his game after
suspension Jeff Seidel: A sudden, silent and tragic exit for Saginaw
Spirit's Terry Trafford Detroit 3, Minnesota 2: Red Wings on a 3-game win streak,
hot pursuit of playoff spot Young players' spark firing up their fellow Red Wings Detroit 3, Minnesota 2: Why the Red Wings won Saturday Wings Gustav Nyquist's prolific goalscoring prompts what-ifs Gustav Nyquist's hot hand gives Red Wings win over Wild Red Wings showing much determination to grind out wins
and earn crucial points (with video) Red-hot Gustav Nyquist scores game-winner in third period
as Red Wings edge Minnesota, 3-2 Detroit Red Wings look to snap four-game road losing streak
in first meeting with Minnesota Wild Red Wings got a lift when Niklas Kronwall returned; Darren
Helm might not play on back-to-back days Nyquist's goal gives Red Wings 3-2 win over Wild Edmonton Oilers 739135
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Colorado Avalanche 739108
Stars go down early to Senators, fight back to break losing
streak After recovering from concussion, Lehtonen not shying away
from contact Modano, Nieuwendyk, Turco, Lehtinen, Belfour, more play
together in charity game He said it: Players and coaches comment after Stars' 3-1 win
over Ottawa Saturday Facing desperation, Stars dig deep, pull out two critical
points against Ottawa Daley, Benn score in 3rd to lift Stars over Senators Jordan Eberle returns to the Edmonton Oilers lineup for tilt
against the Calgary Flames Flames torch Oilers 8-1 in Saturday night Battle of Alberta Edmonton Oilers head coach Dallas Eakins on bad loss,
jersey toss, water bottle toss & ‘resetting’ Edmonton Oilers blown out by the Calgary Flames Florida Panthers 739139
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RECORD PERFORMANCE: Jonathan Quick Sets Kings
Record for Wins in 4-0 Shutout of Panthers Jonathan Quick, Kings too much for Florida Panthers Jonathan 'too' Quick leads Kings past Panthers 4-0 Jonathan Quick leads Kings past Panthers 4-0 Quick sets wins record, Kings blank Panthers 4-0 Los Angeles Kings 739144
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Jonathan Quick becomes Kings' winningest goalie in 4-0
shutout Quick passes Vachon as Kings' winningest goalie March 22 postgame quotes: Darryl Sutter March 22 postgame notes With record win, Quick emerges as franchise torchbearer March 22 postgame quotes: Florida No major Brown update March 22 postgame quotes: Jeff Carter Minnesota Wild 739152
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Nyquist's goal gives Red Wings 3-2 win over Wild Ailing Red Wings get well against the Wild NHL Insider: Iginla's still a star Reusse blog: The Wild's brilliant marketing Kuemper, once solid in Wild net, has hit a rough stretch Wild's week ahead Postgame: Yeo says things not as bad as they seem Gameday preview: Wild at Detroit Wild notes: Rupp sees time ticking away Tom Powers: Take a breath, Wild fans, because it's different
this time Minnesota Wild: Penalty kill, other stats tell story in loss to
Red Wings Minnesota Wild: Charlie Coyle scores after promotion to
second line Montreal Canadiens 739164
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Leafs, Habs in playoff mode for pivotal meeting Opportunistic Habs deal Leafs playoff hopes serious blow Bourque, Murray back in Habs lineup against Leafs Canadiens hold on for win over Leafs About last night … Nashville Predators 739169
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Del Zotto’s ice time drops despite Predators’ hopes Preview: Predators at Blackhawks Predators’ Matt Cullen vents frustration with 4 points Predators find offense against Flames New Jersey Devils 739173
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Devils' Marek Zidlicky will be UFA after season; Want him
back? VOTE Devils: Ryan Carter takes part in morning skate; Tim Sestito
out Devils fans hate everything about the Rangers, but do Devils
players? Would Devils fans dare boo Martin Brodeur next season?
Goalie is prepared if it happens Devils' Damien Brunner told he'll play Saturday, then
surprised to see he's benched again Devils' scratch Damien Brunner: I was told I'd play against
Rangers Did Devils test Henrik Lundqvist enough? After Martin
Brodeur's strong game, Cory Schneider will start vs. Lea Jaromir Jagr on Devils' playoff bubble close to bursting: 'We
did this to ourselves' Henrik Lundqvist gets Rangers record 50th shutout, beats
Devils, 2-0 Studs and duds from night Devils' have one playoff door
closing on them Brunner surprised to be scratched again, but trying to stay
positive; Harrold welcomes baby daughter Carter happy to return in time to face Rangers; Bernier back
in; Gelinas, Brunner to sit Looks like Carter will play for Devils tonight; Brunner could
be healthy scratch again Playoff-hungry NY Rangers blank Devils Rangers edge Devils for third-straight win New York Islanders 739189
Don't expect Isles to roll over for a higher pick New York Rangers 739190
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Brassard's Third-Period Goal Lifts Rangers, 3-1 Lundqvist Breaks Another Record in a Key Win Rangers' Alain Vigneault: Henrik Lundqvist is our guy. If we
get in it's because 'Hank plays like Hank' Crushed Ice: Henrik Lundqvist excellent in Columbus, Derek
Dorsett adds energy, John Moore gets banged up, not Rick Nash, teammates still fired up after Rangers' emotional
3-1 win in Columbus; plus, an explanation of Nash Playoff-hungry NY Rangers blank Devils Despite reports, Sather says no retirement on tap Rangers edge Devils for third-straight win Carter: “Good chance” he’ll play vs. Rangers; Brodeur
hoping Devils’ fans boo Clarkson, too Diaz in for concussed John Moore, Carcillo in for Dorsett but
Rangers lineup still not set Diaz expected in for injured Moore tonight Rangers 2, Devils 0: Wrapping up Controlling rebounds, pressuring puck carriers work wonders
in postseason Henrik Lundqvist sets Rangers record with 50th shutout in
win over Devils Raphael Diaz fills in for John Moore, out with concussion
symptoms Rangers-Devils in review Rangers 2, Devils 0 … post-game notes Ottawa Senators 739207
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Senators fade in third as Stars win 3-1 Ottawa Senators make it six straight losses We just want the facts when it comes to Senators No. 1
goalie Craig Anderson's injury Ottawa Senators winger Bobby Ryan told coach will be fine Philadelphia Flyers 739211
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Flyers' Raffl signs extension; Kings next Flyers defeat NHL-best Blues, 4-1 Inside the Flyers: Couturier blossoms into shutdown
defender Flyers shake the Blues, run win streak to five If not for Roy, Berube might be coach of year Flyers get rid of the Blues for 5th straight win Red-hot Flyers roll right past the Blues Streaking Flyers' next challenge is facing Carter, Richards Flyers sign Michael Raffl to 2-year extension Flyers top NHL-best Blues for 5th straight win Flyers Notes: Giroux whistled for 4 penalties Flyers edge Blues, extend win streak to five Hartnell offers insight on Blues Phoenix Coyotes 739224
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Coyotes goalie Mike Smith on roll since Olympic break Phoenix Coyotes unravel in third period against the Boston
Bruins No time for Coyotes to dwell on loss to NHL's best team Coyotes can't keep Bruins from 12th straight win Pittsburgh Penguins 739228
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Penguins notebook: Vokoun playing in regular-season game
a possibility Penguins minor league notebook: Pressure on young
forwards to deliver Penguins' stars taking more penalties Penguins defeat Tampa Bay, 4-3 Evgeni Malkin admits game suffered after Olympics On the Penguins: James Neal's what-if season Vancouver Canucks 739277
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Sharks aim to carry momentum from win over Anaheim
Ducks Washington Capitals beat San Jose Sharks in shootout Capitals defeat Sharks in shootout Sharks hope to avoid emotional letdown vs. Caps Sharks proud of playoff streak, but want more In the Crease: Desperate Caps visit Sharks Sharks suffer hard-luck shootout loss to Capitals Instant Replay: Sharks stumble vs. Capitals, lose in SO St Louis Blues 739242
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Colaiacovo returns to Blues' lineup today; Leopold ready
soon Bluenotes: Blues seeking return to team strengths Blues stumble again in loss to Flyers Blues vs. Penguins preview Flyers top Blues 4-1 for 5th straight win Blues stumble against Flyers Tampa Bay Lightning 739248
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Bolts lose but still pick up points Lindback earns praise despite suffering loss Bolts Notes: Players should make award lists Lightning continue streak of failures against Pittsburgh, but
earn a point in 4-3 OT loss Lightning's Ben Bishop gets break from heavy workload Lightning Nuts & Bolts Lightning a good fit for Ryan Callahan so far Toronto Maple Leafs 739255
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Leafs, Habs in playoff mode for pivotal meeting Mirtle: Opportunistic Habs deal Leafs playoff hopes serious
blow Leafs activate Bolland, demote Holland, Ashton Maple Leafs penthouse-doghouse: Lupul shines, JVR goofs
up Dave Bolland getting back up to speed after long injury layoff Defensive deficiencies cost Leafs again in loss to
Canadiens: Feschuk Toronto Maple Leafs at New Jersey Devils: Sunday NHL
game preview Leafs and Canadiens square off at the ACC Dave Bolland likely a go for Leafs vs. Canadiens Gameday: Maple Leafs at Devils Canadiens defencemen P.K. Subban the new Alfie for Leafs
fans Maple Leafs desperately need Bernier back Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier stays day-to-day Toronto Maple Leafs’ Dave Bolland activated off injured list,
set to return against Montreal Canadiens Montreal Canadiens down Toronto Maple Leafs as goalie
James Reimer struggles again Two years after trade, Zack Kassian and Cody Hodgson
both yet to deliver Daniel Sedin is back while Kesler shrugs off his knee
problems Willes: Sunday’s celebration of Henrik Sedin honours a man
and hockey player of quiet grace and character Gallagher: Fans must share blame for bloated schedule,
poor games Washington Capitals 739270
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Alex Ovechkin riding 11-game even-strength scoring drought Capitals seek first win in San Jose since 1993 Jaroslav Halak sidelined by lower-body injury; Braden Holtby
faces Sharks Caps end San Jose skid with 3-2 SO win vs Sharks Websites 739281
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ESPN / Henrik Lundqvist blanks Devils, becomes Rangers
all-time shutout leader ESPN / Jonathan Quick sets Kings’ franchise wins record by
shutting out Panthers ESPN / Top Line: Rick Nash a smash in C’bus; NHL issues
apology; more links USA TODAY / Red Wings beat Wild, step back into playoff
spot Winnipeg Jets 739274
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Hurricanes up 3-1 on Jets WIN_Fatburger_Sponsorship_2014 Jets' playoff hopes take big hit with loss to Hurricanes SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129
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Anaheim Ducks
Ducks' Hampus Lindholm, at 20, matures into a top NHL rookie
Lance Pugmire
4:42 PM PDT, March 22, 2014
Earlier this month, as the Ducks unpacked in a Calgary dressing room, some
players began chiding rookie defenseman Hampus Lindholm about shirking
his "duties" as equipment bag unloader.
The good-natured Swede smiled and tried in vain to explain he'd done his
best to assist equipment manager Doug "Sluggo" Shearer, but had to get
skating.
The instant defined Lindholm, who two months after turning 20 has made
himself one of the NHL's top rookies by simply knowing his place.
"He's fortunate to have that mental makeup, because bad things happen out
there on the ice," said Scott Niedermayer, the Hockey Hall of Fame
defenseman and Ducks assistant coach who counsels Lindholm. "You just
need to get back out there on the next shift and do your job again."
The Ducks want someone to carry the load?
you're not used to it, but he doesn't want to miss optionals or take time off.
He's just cut a little tighter."
Defenseman Ben Lovejoy, who's been paired with Lindholm on the Ducks'
No. 1 defensive unit since Fowler got hurt, said there's been no coddling of
Lindholm throughout the season.
"If he wasn't a super-effective NHL talent, he wouldn't be here," Lovejoy said.
"He a top defenseman on one of the best NHL teams all year. Super-skilled,
amazing skater.
"This league has become all about speed and Hampus has elite speed, is
able to push the offense and defend top lines because of it. Everything
comes down to his skating."
That, and his nature.
Lovejoy said the Ducks view Lindholm affectionately as a kid brother whose
"ignorance is bliss."
For instance, Lindholm said he hasn't considered acquiring a fake ID or
drinking with the guys.
"I don't want to go into a U.S. prison," he said. "I heard it's rough in there."
Said Lovejoy: "Sometimes he doesn't know what's going on.
"I have to remind myself with him of when I was 20 years old, sophomore in
college, hanging out in frat basements, making stupid mistakes where no one
knew.
Here's what Lindholm has contributed: a plus-26 in goal differential on the ice
to rank just outside the NHL top 10; five goals and 21 assists, including four in
the past four games since top defender Cam Fowler suffered a knee injury.
"Hampus is playing in the best league in the world, with men, on a successful
team, and has fit in."
"I know if I made mistake after mistake, I'd be told to step it up, but that hasn't
happened, partially because I'm harder on myself than others [are],"
Lindholm said. "My goals are higher than others have for me. No matter what
they say, I've already put that pressure on me. I know what I can do out there.
I'm like that."
VS. FLORIDA PANTHERS
The Ducks made the now 6-foot-3, 200-pound Lindholm their first-round pick
(sixth overall) in 2012, and Coach Bruce Boudreau said the pimply kid told
team officials last year he aspired to crack the roster. Instead he played 48
games at minor league Norfolk.
Etc.: The Panthers are a possible cure for the Ducks' struggling power play
as they rank last in the NHL with a 75% penalty-kill unit. They added goalie
Roberto Luongo at the trade deadline; he played in the Panthers' 4-0 loss to
the Kings on Saturday.
Thanks to a productive camp and exhibition season this time, he made it, and
was paired with 33-year-old Francois Beauchemin until recently.
LA Times: LOADED: 03.23.2014
"Sometimes you play with a guy, it clicks," said Beauchemin, whose
mentoring of Lindholm has consisted mostly of just on-ice communication.
"There's still the matter of going against the very top players, learning their
tendencies. But in practice, he works hard. In games, he competes every
night. Has a lot of patience, keeps his head up, doesn't give pucks away for
nothing. It's working — far more goals scored when he's out there than
allowed."
One of those goals was Lindholm's own — his season highlight thus far —
when he slapped in the game-winner Dec. 23 at Washington to give
Boudreau a cherished victory over the Capitals, the team that fired him.
"You'd never know he was a teenager when the season started,"
Niedermayer said. "Younger players sometimes try to do too much and get in
trouble. I know I did that, too much jumping up [into the offense], putting the
team at a disadvantage.
"He has great timing, isn't thinking about his goal or points total. He's content
to do the little things in a game that for most defensemen it takes many years
to do."
That's a result, Lindholm said, of being raised by coaches — Boudreau
included — who applaud smart aggression.
"When I see an opening, I will go," Lindholm said. "You think of the score. Are
we down? Tied? Up some goals? I've seen others get disturbed by coaches
telling them, 'You go there [to the defensive zone] only.' Mine let me be who I
am."
Lindholm has denied that he's experienced the rookie wall as a player who
hadn't been in more than 50 games in a year and now is dealing with 82 plus
playoffs in the world's premier league.
"We threw him right into the fire. He was in all situations and kept excelling at
it, so we kept him there," Boudreau said. "Tough to keep up that pace when
SUNDAY
When: 5 p.m.
On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 830.
739085
Anaheim Ducks
Ducks' Andersen passes Boudreau's test
ERIC STEPHENS
March 22, 2014 9:59 p.m.
ANAHEIM – The game itself had all kinds of meaning. The goalie whostarted
it carried meaning as well.
For the first-place Pacific Division battle against San Jose on Thursday,
Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau sent Frederik Andersen into the noisy
cauldron that is SAP Center to defeat the Sharks instead of usual starter
Jonas Hiller.
The plan didn’t come to fruition as the Sharks rallied in the third period for a
3-2 victory. But the selection of Andersen instead of Hiller – the Ducks’ No. 1
goalie the last five years – raised eyebrows as the club tries to beat out San
Jose for the Pacific crown.
As the Ducks ready for Sunday’s important home game against Florida,
Boudreau made it clear that he wanted to see how Andersen would handle
an assignment with that much importance.
Andersen’s 37-save outing in the Ducks’ 2-1 win over the Kings in L.A. a
week ago no doubt emboldened Boudreau.
“This was probably a little more (bigger) because San Jose and us were tied,”
Boudreau said. “So I wanted to see, if there was a situation that arose, how
he could handle the pressure.
“To me, even though they got three goals, he was great in net.”
Boudreau then cracked that Andersen, who made 25 saves against the
Sharks, was “stopping shots from 10 feet out” that former Ducks television
analyst and former NHL goalie Brian Hayward “never would have stopped.”
All jokes aside, Andersen getting the start sent an unspoken message that
Hiller will have to work to keep his gig for the upcoming Stanley Cup playoffs.
Hiller will need to sharpen up in his upcoming startrs as he’s just 1-2-2 with
other subpar numbers (3.46 goals-against average, .876 save percentage)
since shutting out St. Louis on Feb. 28. And he knows it.
“I didn’t feel like I’ve played bad,” Hiller said. “I don’t feel I’ve played at my
best. It’s tough to play at your best every night. At the end, if you lose, you
always think what you can do better and you work on it in every practice.
“In the end, I know I want to play better. I know I can play better. And I’m
happy to still have a few games here until the playoffs starts.”
For Andersen, the start is another example of where he stands with the
Ducks after first making the now-traded Viktor Fasth expendable.
“I feel it’s nice to be trusted,” Andersen said. “It shows that Bruce is confident
that we have two good goalies. That’s nice.”
There is no goaltender controversy in Anaheim. Not yet anyway as Boudreau
readily volunteered that “Hilly’s our No. 1 goalie.”
But much like last season when Fasth pushed Hiller to earn the playoff starts
against Detroit, Andersen’s presence might now be doing the same to the
veteran.
“I think it’s key without putting any pressure on,” Boudreau said. “If he
struggles, then we always know we can go to the other guy and we will. We
don’t want to.
“When Jonas won 14 in a row there, you couldn’t put a pea by him. That’s
where we want him to be at again.”
NOTES
Center Nick Bonino returned to practice but remains questionable for
Sundayas he recovers from a bruised foot suffered when blocking a shot
Tuesday against Washington … Injured defenseman Sami Vatanen is
nearing availability and may stay in Anaheim rather than return to Norfolk
(AHL), where he originally suffered his lower-body injury.
Orange County Register: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739086
Boston Bruins
After Smith turned the puck over, Patrice Bergeron knocked it in from a crowd
in front of the Coyotes net for his 22nd goal of the season, the puck slipping in
just past the Coyotes goalie’s leg.
Bruins rally in 3rd period, win 12th in a row
Phoenix tied it when Brandon McMillan’s shot from close range bounced off
Rask and Shane Doan scored to make it 1-1 with 8:15 left in the first.
BOB BAUM
It was the first time in 11 games that the Bruins have allowed a first-period
goal.
March 22, 2014
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — For the first time in seven games, the Boston
Bruins actually fell behind.
It didn’t last, and the third-longest win streak in franchise history is still alive.
The Bruins scored three times in the third period, the go-ahead goal by
Shawn Thornton with 3:18 to play, and Boston won its 12th in a row, 4-2 over
the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday night.
The Bruins are two shy of the franchise mark of 14 straight set in the 1929-30
season. They also have the most points in the NHL with 103, two more than
Western Conference-leading St. Louis. The Blues clinched a playoff berth as
a result of Phoenix’s loss.
They managed their third-period rally despite the fact they were playing their
second game in as many nights.
‘‘Tonight in my mind, it showed a lot of our character,’’ Boston coach Claude
Julien said. ‘‘We needed to show a lot of character there in the third to come
back and we did. We did all the right things and we were determined to win
and it showed.’’
Jarome Iginla scored his 27th and 28th goals of the season for Boston, the
second into an empty net in the final seconds.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson had a spectacular goal to put Phoenix ahead 2-1 in
the second period. Shane Doan scored the other Coyotes goal on a power
play. The loss snapped Phoenix’s three-game winning streak.
Tuukka Rask, who did not play in Friday night’s win at Colorado, had 30
saves for Boston. Phoenix’s Mike Smith had 24.
The loss and Dallas’ victory left the Coyotes two points ahead of the Stars for
the final playoff spot in the West. Dallas has a game in hand.
Phoenix had a 2-1 lead just 39 seconds into the second period thanks to
Ekman-Larsson’s heroics.
He took the puck from his own blue line, then evaded two would-be
defenders, making a slick move that left Johnny Boychuk and Loui Eriksson
in a heap. Rask deflected the first shot, but Ekman-Larsson knocked the
rebound in as he sailed by the net.
‘‘I skated it up and I was looking for someone to pass to,’’ Ekman-Larsson
said, ‘‘but I didn’t see anybody so I figured I'd do it by myself.’’
It ended a streak of almost 411 minutes, more than 20 periods, that the
Bruins had never trailed. It was the first time in seven games that Boston
trailed.
The Bruins turned up their trademark tough, physical play in the final period.
‘‘They try to beat you 1-on-1,’’ Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said, ‘‘and we
didn’t win enough of those 1-on-1 battles at the right times, and it came back
to bite us.’’
Boston tied it at 2 when Zdeno Chara’s shot deflected off Iginla’s hip and into
the net 3:48 into the third period.
With much of the final period played in the Coyotes zone, Boston took the
lead when Daniel Paille shot from a difficult angle to the left of the net, but it
deflected off Thornton’s stick and got past Smith for the score — only the fifth
goal of the season for the Bruins left wing.
‘‘I'm glad it went in,’’ Thornton said. ‘‘Everyone had a lot of chances tonight
and it was a little bit frustrating for us until then. I mean, we were creating a lot
of stuff, but nothing was going in. Happy we got rewarded for some hard work
eventually.’’
Boston took the lead in a hurry in the opening period.
Notes: The Bruins won their seventh straight road game. ... Boston is 16-4-4
against the Western Conference. ... The Bruins’ last loss was March 1 at
home against Washington. ... The 12-game streak is third-longest in
franchise history. The Bruins won 13 in a row in 1970-71. ... Phoenix lost at
Boston 2-1 nine days earlier. ... Doan got his 20th goal, the 12th time in his
career he’s scored at least 20 in a season. ... A standing-room-only crowd of
17,468 watched the game.
Boston Globe LOADED: 03.23.2014
739087
Boston Bruins
Bruins backup Chad Johnson offers a saving grace
Amalie Benjamin
March 23, 2014
GLENDALE, Ariz. — With Tuukka Rask coming back from Sochi, Russia,
and a demanding March schedule in which the Bruins play 17 games, the
Bruins could have been in trouble. They could have overextended their
starting goaltender, a bad idea in the face of a potentially arduous playoff run.
Or they could have had to rely on an inconsistent backup, worrying every
time he was sent out to play.
Instead, the Bruins have Chad Johnson, who recorded his second shutout of
the season, stoning the host Avalanche, 2-0, on Friday night. It was the first
time that Colorado had been shut out this season.
With the win, Johnson improved his record to 16-3-1 with a 2.04
goals-against average and .925 save percentage. He is 10-0-1 in his last 11
decisions, having allowed two or fewer goals in nine of them.
Not bad for a backup.
Johnson, 27, came into this season with only 10 NHL games to his record.
He has appeared in 23 in this his first with the Bruins, and has done
everything the Bruins could have asked.
“I feel good,” Johnson said. “It’s just nice to feel like I did and help the team
win. My mind-set coming in was just to get in there and when I’m playing to
try and just help the team win and win as many games as I can and just be
there to try and help the team be in a position to win hockey games.
“It’s gone well so far, just want to try and keep it going for the guys.”
It wasn’t perfect Friday. Johnson allowed a few too many rebounds, pucks
that the Avalanche just couldn’t clean up. But as the Bruins did as a team,
Johnson also got better throughout the game, withstanding a five-minute 6
on 5 at the end of the game when Colorado pulled its goalie.
“To be in front of these guys with such good systems and a good D corps and
offensive players that want to play defense, too, it helps me out a lot and
helps the goalies out and our whole team,” Johnson said. “It’s fun to play in
front of our team when we’re so committed defensively. We’re out there to
win and we expect to win.”
Hamilton fired up
Dougie Hamilton played well on Friday night, helping the Bruins shut out the
potent Avalanche. It was his fifth consecutive game since sitting out against
Florida and Montreal on March 9 and 12. He added the primary assist on the
Bruins’ first goal, and the secondary assist on their second.
Hamilton picked up another assist Saturday night in the Bruins’ 4-2 victory,
helping on Jarome Iginla’s tying goal in the third.
“Factoring in goals is not surprising to me,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said.
“He’s got a good head and he sees the plays well, and great pass on that first
goal there. But defensively, like a lot of guys, he just got better as the game
went on. When he got into battles and he had to compete against some pretty
good players on the other side. They’re a young team and he’s a young
player, so it was a good challenge for him.”
It’s a team with a lot of speed, something that Hamilton said they anticipated
coming into the game, knowing the challenge ahead of them — and ahead of
him.
Being challenged, it seems, has affected Hamilton and the other young
defensemen. Being in the lineup is no longer a given, and Hamilton has taken
the messages from the coaching staff to heart.
“I think it was try to be more physical and I think it’s a different situation when
you know that there’s guys that are going to play,” Hamilton said. “I think
every game you kind of focus on trying to do your best so that you’re not out
of the lineup. Sometimes that can be tough, but sometimes good.
“Just for me, I think just trying to play more physical, especially with Johnny
[Boychuk] out the last couple games, getting some opportunities to play with
empty net and last minutes and stuff, where I didn’t really have that before, so
it’s a new challenge and it’s fun to be able to do that stuff.”
Boychuk, who hadn’t played since crashing awkwardly into the boards March
15, returned to action Saturday in Phoenix. He played 22:58, second behind
Chara (23:20), on the Bruins, with three blocked shots.
“You watch the team play and you just want to get out there and help them,’’
Boychuk said. “They were doing a good job, but it’s not fun watching the
game. I’d way rather be back on the ice. I’m glad that I’m back.
“I watched it — it looked absolutely terrible. I got a picture from Dougie
Hamilton, it looks like I’m a little ball trying to go through the boards. That’s
never a good thing. I’m just glad that everything’s OK with me and I’m back.”
Powerful numbers
The Bruins had outscored opponents, 47-17, in their 12-game winning
streak. Despite going 1 for 3 on the penalty kill, the Bruins have killed 31 of 34
power-play chances . . . The Bruins stayed the night in the Phoenix area and
were scheduled to fly back to Boston on Sunday. They host Montreal on
Monday at TD Garden.
739088
Boston Bruins
Game 71 preview: Bruins at Coyotes
Amalie Benjamin
March 22, 2014 05:21 PM
PHOENIX -- The Bruins are set to finish off the second game of a Western
Conference back-to-back, taking on the Coyotes at the Jobing.com Arena at
6 p.m. local time.
They have already done their part, clinching the first playoff spot in the NHL
on Friday night with a 2-0 win over the Avalanche in Colorado for their 11th
straight win. They'll try to make it 12 tonight, further extending their lead in the
East.
Boston has already beaten the Coyotes once during the streak, taking a 2-1
win on March 13 at the TD Garden.
Game time: 9 p.m.
TV/Radio: NESN/98.5 The Sports Hub
Records: Bruins 47-17-5, Coyotes 34-25-11
Projected lineups:
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Jarome Iginla
Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-Reilly Smith
Chris Kelly-Carl Soderberg-Loui Eriksson
Daniel Paille-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton
Zdeno Chara-Dougie Hamilton
Matt Bartkowski-Johnny Boychuk
Torey Krug-Kevan Miller
Tuukka Rask
Chad Johnson
Notes: The 11-game winning streak for the Bruins is their longest since a
13-game streak in 1970-1971. ... The team has earned a point in each of its
last 13 road games, going 10-0-3. That's their longest such streak since a
14-gamer in 1975-1976. ... They are now tied with the Blues for the league
lead with 101 points. Both teams have played 70 games, with St. Louis losing
earlier today. ... The Bruins have outscored their opponents 43-15 during the
streak, and have allowed two or fewer goals nine times. ... Boston has also
killed 29-of-31 power-play chances in that time. ... The referees are Gord
Dwyer and Mike Leggo. The linesmen are Jonny Murray and David
Brisebois.
739089
Boston Bruins
Defenseman Johnny Boychuk returned to the lineup last night after missing
three games with a foot injury. He skated 22:58.
Bruins Notebook: Chad Johnson stellar when needed
“It’s tough watching your team play. You want to get out there and help them.
They were doing a great job every night, but it’s not fun watching the game,”
said Boychuk.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
To make room for Boychuk in the lineup, Torey Krug was scratched.
Steve Conroy
Boston Herald LOADED: 03.23.2014
GLENDALE, Ariz. — It was hard to know what to expect from Chad Johnson
this season. The 27-year-old hopeful for the backup goalie position, signed
as a free agent on July 5, did not have the most impressive training camp.
With just 10 games of NHL experience, there wasn’t much of a book on him,
and there were times it was unclear as to whether or not he would be on the
team. Niklas Svedberg had outperformed him in September and could have
easily laid claim to the backup goaltending.
But in the end, the B’s went with the sound business decision — Svedberg
could be sent to Providence without having to go through waivers and
Johnson could not. It’s been paying off ever since.
Johnson has provided the Bruins with work about as good as you can expect
from a backup. Making his second consecutive start on Friday in Colorado,
he posted his second shutout and improved his record to 16-3-1 with a 2.04
goals-against average and .925 save percentage.
“It’s just nice to be able to get in here and help the team win,” said Johnson,
10-0-1 in his last 11 starts. “My mindset coming in was just to get in there
and, when I’m playing, just to help them win as many games as I can. . . . It’s
gone well so far and I just want to keep it going.”
Coach Claude Julien appreciates the professionalism Johnson has brought
to the job.
“It was pretty obvious at the beginning of the year — they were getting to
know each other, Chad was getting to know our system and everything else,”
he said. “It was a little different, but he’s found his game and he’s been really,
really good for us. Because of the way he’s played, it’s really allowed us to
give Tuukka the rest that you want to give your goaltender at this time of year.
I’m pretty impressed with how he’s handled his situation.
“He’s been ready all the time. It’s really important that Tuukka isn’t
overplayed and Chad’s allowed us to do that.”
Though the B’s have given up more good scoring chances than they’d like in
the latter part of their 12-game win streak, Johnson said it’s been a pleasure
playing with the B’s and in their system.
“I’m well rested. I play every week or every two weeks, and to be in front of
these guy with such good systems and good D-corps and players that want
to play defense, too, that helps me a lot, it helps the goalies out,” said
Johnson. “It’s fun to play in front of our team. We’re so committed
defensively.”
Hamilton rolling
Since being scratched for two games after the trade deadline, defenseman
Dougie Hamilton has played well. He’s plus-7 with four assists in the six
games since returning to the lineup, and was on the ice for much of crunch
time as the B’s were trying to run out the clock in Friday’s 2-0 win.
“I think I’ve tried to be more physical and you’re just focusing on doing your
best so that you’re in the lineup,” said Hamilton, who added another helper
on Jarome Iginla’s equalizer last night. “For me, I’m just trying to play more
physical, especially with Johnny (Boychuk) being out these last couple of
games and I’ve been getting some opportunities to play with empty nets and
the last minute of the game. I haven’t had that before and it’s a new
challenge. It’s fun to have that.”
Julien liked what he saw from Hamilton on Friday.
“Dougie factoring in goals is no surprise to me. He’s got a good head and he
sees the plays well. Great pass on that first goal,” said Julien, referring to
Patrice Bergeron’s first-period tally on Denver. “But defensively, like a lot of
guys, he just got better as the game went on. He got into battles and he was
competing against some pretty good players on the other side. They’re a
young team and he’s a young player, so it was a good challenge for him.”
Welcome return
739090
Boston Bruins
Dozen in the desert: Bruins rally to win 12th straight
Steve Conroy
GLENDALE, Ariz. — On most nights during the Bruins’ current winning
streak, they have been in control from start to finish and almost made the
victories look easy.
Last night’s game against the Phoenix Coyotes, however, was the exception.
The Bruins had to scratch and claw all night in a nasty, physical game, but in
the end they prevailed, thanks in large part to their four-line attack.
Jarome Iginla scored a gutsy goal, staring down the barrel of a Zdeno Chara
slap shot to deflect the puck home and tie it at 3:48 of the third period. Then
Shawn Thornton got the game-winner — his first goal since Jan. 28 — with
3:18 left in regulation with a deflection of a Daniel Paille shot. Iginla added an
empty netter and the B’s walked away from Jobing.com Arena with a 4-2
victory to post their 12th consecutive victory.
“It’s been fun,” said Iginla of the streak. “We go into each game with the same
approach. We know a lot of teams are trying to end it, too. We know how it is
on the other side.
“The Coyotes are a good team, they’re fighting to stay in the playoffs. . . . It’s
been a lot of good ways to win games and all different guys on different
nights. Tonight it was Thorty’s huge (game-winner) and his line had some
huge shifts before that. They had a great chance on every shift. I think in
games like, to be able to go to four lines, we got better chances as the third
went on.”
It was a challenge all the way, and coach Claude Julien was glad for it.
“We all look for those kinds of games right now,” said Julien. “We don’t want
anything easy, either. We want to get better as a team and those kinds of
games allow you to do that.
“Tonight in my mind, it showed a lot of character. We needed to show a lot
character there in the third to come back and win that and we did. We did all
the right things. We were determined to win and it showed.”
For the seventh straight game, the B’s scored the first goal when Patrice
Bergeron jammed home a rebound of an Andrej Meszaros shot at 3:18, after
Meszaros picked off a bad pass by Phoenix goalie Mike Smith.
But the Coyotes, just two points inside the Western Conference playoff
positions, turned on the gas and tied the game before the first period was out
when Shane Doan potted a rebound.
The hosts took the lead just 39 seconds into the second period when, with
Matt Bartkowski in the box for tripping, Oliver Ekman-Larsson blew through
Loui Eriksson at the blue line and followed up his own shot to beat Tuukka
Rask (31 saves).
It was the first time the Bruins found themselves behind since March 9 in
Florida, a span of over 410 minutes.
The B’s started to turn the tide midway through the second, spending more
and more time in the offensive zone. They got a couple of power plays which
the couldn’t capitalize on, but they started to re-establish their game.
And then on a 4-on-4 early in the third, Iginla evened it up with his 27th of the
year, earning kudos for the guts he showed hanging in there to try and tip
Chara’s blast. It appeared to go off his pants and in.
“I wasn’t moving to get it. I was just standing there and it hit me,” said Iginla.
“Just pure luck on my part, but it was a great shot by him trying to shoot
around me.”
Said Thornton: “I’m sure I would have had my eyes closed there. I’ve been hit
by one of those and it’s not fun.”
Thornton’s eyes were wide open at 16:14 when he deflected Paille’s shot
past Brown.
“I’m glad it went in,” said Thornton. “Everyone had a lot of chances tonight. It
was a little frustrating for us until then. We were creating a lot of stuff but
nothing was going in. I’m just happy we got rewarded for some hard work
eventually.”
Iginla then iced it with an empty netter, his eighth goal in six games and the
558th of his storied career. The one he scored before that pushed him ahead
of B’s legend and current traveling secretary Johnny Bucyk for sole
possession of 25th on the all-time goal-scoring list.
“I feel blessed to be on that list and to get a chance to play here with him. It
makes it more special,” said Iginla. “He’s been cheering me on all year. . . . It
is pretty cool, just a chance to get to know him.”
Predictably, Bucyk looked at Iginla’s milestone through Black and Gold
glasses.
“I’m happy for him,” said the Chief. “I told him as long he keeps scoring goals
for us, that’s all that matters.”
739091
Boston Bruins
Bruins win 12th straight
Steve Conroy
GLENDALE, AZ.--The Bruins captured their 12th straight victory Saturday
night, this time in come-from-behind fashion, scoring three goals in the third
period and beating the Phoenix Coyotes 4-2 at Jobing.com Arena.
Jarome iginla tied the game 3:48 of the third on a deflection of a Zdeno Chara
shot and Shawn Thornton got the game-winner with his first goal since
January 28 when he tipped a Daniel Paille shot past goalie Mike Smith. Iginla
added an empty netter while Tuukka Rask was excellent in making 31 saves
for the win.
It was a challenge from beginning to end, which was fine with coach Claude
Julien.
“We all look for those kinds of games right now,” said Julien. “We don't want
anything easy, either. We want to get better as a team and those kinds of
games allow you to do that. Tonight in my mind, it showed a lot of character.
We needed to show a lot character there in the third to come back and win
that and we did. We did all the right things. We were determined to win and it
showed.”
Iginla's first goal gave him 557 on his career, surpassing Bruins legend and
traveling secretary Johnny Bucyk for 25th on the all-time goal-scoring list.
“I feel blessed to be on that list and to get a chance to play here with him. It
makes it more special,” said Iginla. “He's been great. He's been cheering me
on all year, we've been joking back and forth. It is pretty cool, just a chance to
get to know him.”
Predictably, Bucyk looked at Iginla's milestone throgh Black and Gold
glasses.
“I'm happy for him,” said the Chief. “I told him as long he keeps scoring goals
for us, that's all that matters.”...
After missing three games with a foot injury, Joohnny Boychuk returned to
the lineup and skated 22:58. Torey rug was the healthy scratch.
739092
Boston Bruins
Our unsung heroes: Plenty of choices for Bruins 7th Player award
Stephen Harris
The Bruins Seventh Player Award has had, in our opinion, an erratic history.
Ostensibly, the award goes to the “player who performed beyond
expectations,” as voted by fans.
Many years the voters got it right, picking high-class role players such as Ed
Westfall, Don Marcotte or Steve Kasper. But many other times the folks
casting ballots somehow seemed to view the award as an MVP choice —
giving it to established stars like Cam Neely, Bill Guerin and Tim Thomas.
Last year the award went to Dougie Hamilton when many felt Daniel Paille,
for instance, might have been a more sensible pick.
The too-frequent failure of voters to recognize the intended spirit of the award
— honoring the darkhorse, the unsung hero, the rags-to-riches success story
— has lessened its value and prestige.
This year, more than at any time in recent memory, the Seventh Player
selection will be very interesting. Because the Bruins have four players who
would make splendid picks, all of them guys who truly have done more than
anyone could realistically have expected.
Hoped for? Yeah, maybe. But no one could have predicted six months ago
how good Reilly Smith, Carl Soderberg, Torey Krug and Chad Johnson
would be. Defenseman Kevan Miller has also stepped in and helped the
team. In many years, he’d have been a great Seventh Player winner. But his
impact hasn’t been quite as large as the other four — who have been crucial
in the B’s producing their most consistently good season in years.
• SMITH: This is a guy who had just three career NHL goals before this
season. He was the throw-in in the Tyler Seguin-Loui Eriksson deal last
summer and was by no means a cinch to make the roster coming out of
training camp. Yet he earned a spot on the second line, fitting in well at both
ends of the ice.
Despite his recent, well-chronicled 15-game goal-scoring drought, he’s had a
very productive year with 19-28-47 totals and a plus-20 rating heading into
Friday night.
Watching Seguin have an All-Star-calibre year in Dallas, and the
twice-injured Eriksson struggle at times, Smith’s performance alters the
perception of what might have seemed a very one-sided trade.
• SODERBERG: Frankly, the first impression made by the Swede when he
came aboard late last season was not good. He looked overweight, slow and
confused, and didn’t seem destined for a long career in Boston.
While Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon looms as the likely Calder Trophy
winner as rookie of the year, the 22-year-old Krug should garner enough
votes to earn a trip to Las Vegas July 24 as a finalist at the NHL awards
show.
• JOHNSON: The 27-year-old signed as a free agent last July and also
wasn’t guaranteed to make the team. But with his simple, square-to-the-puck
goaltending style, he’s proven to be maybe the most reliable true, backup
goalie the B’s have had since Ross Brooks went 16-3-0, with a 2.36 GAA in
1973-74. (In several years, the B’s had in effect two No. 1s — Tim
Thomas-Tuukka Rask, Andy Moog-Reggie Lemelin and Gerry
Cheevers-Gilles Gilbert.)
Johnson won 15 of the first 18 games he’s started, and in two of his losses,
the B’s played some of their poorest team defense this season. If he had a
few more games to qualify among the NHL leaders, he’d be seventh in GAA
(2.14) and 11th in save percentage (.921).
If we had to choose one of these guys, we’d probably lean to Smith. But any
one of the four would make a good Seventh Player. Just please fans, don’t
give it to anyone like Rask or Jarome Igina. Please think about what the
phrase “beyond expectations” means.
This week’s
B’s timeline
Tomorrow vs. Montreal, 7:35 p.m. — After losing the first two games between
the ancient rivals, the B’s hammered the Habs in Montreal 11 days ago and
would love to do it again in the teams’ final meeting this regular season.
Thursday vs. Chicago, 7:05 p.m. — The Bruins played strongly in Chicago
Jan. 19 before suffering a 3-2 shootout loss to the Blackhawks in the teams’
first clash since the Stanley Cup final. The talented and well-balanced Hawks
remain a potent offensive club, leading the NHL in goals.
Saturday at Washington, 12:35 p.m. — The Bruins have seen a lot of the
Capitals lately. The B’s played one of their poorest games of the last two
months and lost, 4-2, at the Garden March 1. Five days later, the B’s blanked
the Caps, 3-0.
Sunday at Philadelphia, 7:35, p.m. — In the lone prior game, the Bruins
embarrassed the Flyers, 6-1, on Jan. 25 in Philly, netting three PPGs and
getting two scores each from Zdeno Chara and Jarome Iginla. Philly is
making a strong late run.
A DownWard arrow on trade market
Two-and-a-half weeks past NHL trade deadline day, the traded player most
successful with his new team is . . . Ales Hemsky? In his first five games with
Ottawa after being acquired from Edmonton for a pair of draft choices, the
30-year-old winger posted 3-6-9 totals.
That’s quite a contrast to the fortunes of many bigger name players who
landed with new teams. For instance (totals at midweek):
• Martin St. Louis (Tampa Bay-to-NY Rangers): In eight games with the
Blueshirts, the aging St. Louis had posted just 0-3-3.
But he came back this season fit and strong and has radically changed
opinions about the player he is. Talk about unexpected improvement:
Soderberg (12-28-40 heading into the weeked) has been outstanding, and
the key to the Bruins having their strongest third line since at least 2010-11’s
Kelly-Rich Peverley-Michael Ryder trio.
• Dustin Penner (Anaheim-to-Washington): In eight games, the 247-pound
winger had 0-1-1.
Kelly, Soderberg and Eriksson might just be better.
• Marcel Goc (Florida-to-Pittsburgh): In seven games, the German center
had 0-1-1.
At 6-foot-3 and 216 pounds, Soderberg is strong on the boards, fearless in
taking pucks hard to the net and a brilliant passer who has set up numerous
easy goals with perfect feeds. He’s been a key to the B’s much-improved
power play, setting up Smith especially for about five in-close power-play
goals.
• KRUG: He may be one of the smallest players in the NHL, but he’s had a
big impact on the Bruins, especially the power play. He was heading into the
weekend with 14-23-37 totals, the third-highest goal total by a B’s rookie
defensemen (Ray Bourque, 17; Greg Hawgood, 16). This by a fellow who
had played three regular-season NHL games before this season.
The Bruins power play over the previous four seasons ranked 26th, 15th,
20th and 23rd in the NHL. But with Krug generating a team-high 18
power-play points, the unit was ranked No. 9 this season heading into the
weekend.
• Steve Ott (Buffalo-to-St. Louis): In 10 games, the chippy center had just
0-2-2.
• Andy MacDonald (NY Islanders-to-Philadelphia): In six games, talented
D-man has put up just 0-1--1.
Maybe the biggest winner was the St. Louis Blues, getting goalie Ryan Miller
from Buffalo. In his first nine games, Miller was 7-1-1 with 1.92 and .923. He
makes an already excellent team much better.
More On:
Boston Bruins
Torey Krug
Carl Soderberg
739093
Buffalo Sabres
‘Conehead’ Conacher goes viral
Mike Harrington
March 22, 2014 at 9:42 AM
VANCOUVER — Cory Conacher had not scored a goal in six games since
joining the Buffalo Sabres, but his drought was worse than that. Conacher
hadn’t scored in 2014, dating back to a goal Dec. 28 for the Ottawa Senators
against Boston. That was 27 games ago.
Coach Ted Nolan pulled him off the top line for Thursday’s game in
Edmonton, moving him with Cody Hodgson and Torrey Mitchell. Conacher
started the game pretty feisty, running over Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and then
getting into a pushing match with Ben Scrivens when the Edmonton
goaltender came to his teammate’s defense.
Conacher and Scrivens both got penalties but Conacher’s helmet got
damaged in the brief scrum so he briefly sat in the penalty box without one.
That’s against the rules, so one had to be brought for him.
Then it happened. A magic helmet? Sure seems that way.
Referee Rob Martell delivered Conacher a helmet from the bench belonging
to Sabres enforcer John Scott. With the TSN cameras focusing on him, the
5-foot-8 Conacher donned the huge headgear of the 6-foot-7 Scott, let out a
big laugh as the helmet just about covered his eyes and the image has
become a viral sensation.
Must have been some crazy powers in there because Conacher went on to
score his first two goals as a Sabre, powering Buffalo’s 3-1 win that snapped
an ugly seven-game losing streak.
“If you know John Scott, he’s that kind of guy,” Conacher said after the game.
“He’s a character guy. I wasn’t surprised he was the one to give me his
helmet. I’m sure I’ll get a couple pictures and tweets of me with that picture of
it three sizes too big.
“John Scott’s a character. I’m just lucky I didn’t have to play a shift in it.”
Scott is one of the biggest cutups in the Sabres’ dressing room so it was no
surprise to anyone around he volunteered his helmet. The image was named
the Worst Play of the Day by TSN in Canada and has been featured on
Yahoo and SB Nation, among notable websites.
“They needed a helmet and I wasn’t going to play so I just gave him mine,”
said Scott, who certainly wasn’t going to see the ice while the teams were
skating four on four.
Scott had a good laugh when told the gig had gone viral.
“Is it really? Well, he looked like a little kid in my helmet,” Scott said. “That
was funny stuff.”
Aside from that sight-gag, there was nothing funny about the 24-year-old
Conacher’s best game as a Sabre. The former Canisius College star showed
slick hands with a pair of tip-ins on shots by Jamie McBain and Hodgson.
“It’s been great coming here and playing the minutes I play,” said Conacher,
who was waived by Ottawa earlier this month. “It’s been a lot of fun. The
coaches show confidence in me and I just have to do the little things. As the
games have gone on, I’ve got that confidence to hold on to the puck a little
more, put more pucks on net. Maybe this is the game I needed to let the
floodgates open a little bit.”
As Nolan said, Conacher had lots of help from his linemates and from Scott
on his power-play goal. It was Scott who screened Scrivens on the McBain
shot, allowing Conacher’s tip from the top of the circle to whizz past the
goalie.
“I don’t think many goalies will be able to stop a puck with him in front of the
net,” Conacher said. “He’s a big man and you’ve got to give a lot of credit to
him for that goal, and McBain made a nice play on net and luckily I got a stick
on it.”
“We’ve worked on that in practice,” said Scott, who got the go-ahead from
Nolan to head to the net after other Buffalo forwards weren’t doing it in earlier
situations. “The goalies tell me which way to go and how to use my body to
my advantage so it wasn’t completely foreign. I tried to look at the goalie’s
eyes. He was looking one way and the puck went the other way.”
Conacher already had a 30-game goal drought with Ottawa that he ended on
Dec. 23 against Pittsburgh. When he fell into a second rut, the Senators gave
up on him. With Marcus Foligno in Conacher’s spot with Tyler Ennis and
Drew Stafford, the Sabres hope they can count on two offensive lines when
they play the Vancouver Canucks here Sunday night.
“Mitchell is a fast player like myself and he’s got some grit like myself. ...
Maybe I fit better with those two guys tonight,” Conacher said. “It was nice.
It’s definitely refreshing. I already had the monkey off my back one time this
year and it feels like it came off again tonight.”
Said Nolan: “They were buzzing all over the place making some plays.”
...
The Sabres took a CBA-mandated day off Friday and will practice today at
Rogers Arena. The game against the Canucks is a 5 p.m. local start on
Sunday, meaning it goes at 8 p.m. in Buffalo.
Buffalo News LOADED: 03.23.2014
739094
Buffalo Sabres
Lieuwen to start in goal against hometown team
March 22, 2014 - 6:34 PM
Mike Harrington
VANCOUVER -- Goaltender Michal Neuvirth is still less than 100 percent and
didn't practice today in Rogers Arena after doing so at full speed Wednesday
in Edmonton. So coach Ted Nolan is going to give British Columbia native
Nathan Lieuwen his dream assignment: A start in goal tomorrow night
against his favorite childhood team, the Vancouver Canucks.
"It's incredible. Obviously the past week has been a whirlwind for me but this
is pretty special," Lieuwen said after getting the word today. "They were my
team growing up so it will be cool to play in this building."
Lieuwen got his first NHL start Tuesday in Calgary and played well in a 3-1
defeat that saw him shut out the Flames for 38 minutes. He's from
Abbotsford, BC, which is about 40 miles from here and had yet to speak to
his family -- including three brothers -- about who will take over the
ticket-seeking duties. Somebody needs to because he'll be otherwise
occupied by the Sedin twins tomorrow.
"There's obviously gonna be a lot of emotions and a l ot of extra stuff that
could creep into my head," Lieuwen said. "But I've got to stay focused on my
process and what I need to do on the ice."
Nolan said Lieuwen, the Western Canada native, gets tomorrow's game and
Easterner Matt Hackett will go Tuesday in Montreal.
"It will be great for Nathan to play in front of his family and friends and his
home province," Nolan said. "He's a nice young man, well-mannered. He
works on his trade. That's how you win in this game I believe. You win with
good people and he seems to be one of the finest."
Nolan said the Sabres will keep the same lineup, which means Ville Leino will
stay as a healthy scratch. One line shift will see Matt Ellis joining Matt
D'Agostini and Brian Flynn on the third line with Nicolas Deslauriers going to
the fourth line with Zenon Konopka and John Scott.
The Canucks will be honoring Henrik Sedin prior to the game for playing in
his 1,000th career game last week in Winnipeg. Coach John Tortorella said
Daniel Sedin will return to the lineup tonight after missing nine games with a
hamstring injury suffered in the March 3 Heritage Classic in BC Place. Ryan
Kesler (sprained knee) said he was feeling better and could return. He has
been out since March 12.
The Canucks are currently five points out of the last playoff spot in the West,
pending Phoenix's game later tonight against Boston.
Click below to hear from Nolan and Lieuwen, as well as defenseman
Christian Ehrhoff on his second return to Vancover since joining the Sabres
in 2011.
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Buffalo Sabres
Sabres giving Lieuwen a ‘home’ start in Vancouver
Mike Harringon
March 23, 2014 - 12:02 AM
VANCOUVER — Buffalo Sabres goaltender Nathan Lieuwen knew what the
schedule said when the team summoned him last Sunday from Rochester
and told him to pack a suitcase for a long road trip.
Lieuwen is from Abbotsford, British Columbia, about 45 miles from
Vancouver. He went to many games as a kid in Rogers Arena, even had one
of those old black and orange Vancouver Canucks jerseys with the abstract
skate on the front.
But he also knew Michal Neuvirth was on the trip and practicing. As of
Wednesday’s workout in Edmonton, Neuvirth’s undisclosed lower-body
injury was improving and he was likely to get the start tonight against the
Canucks.
But Neuvirth has had some setbacks. He didn’t practice here Saturday and
coach Ted Nolan gave Lieuwen the word he wanted to hear: Tonight’s game
against his hometown team is his.
“It’s incredible,” Lieuwen said. “Obviously the past week has been a
whirlwind for me but this is pretty special. They were my team growing up so
it will be cool to play in this building.”
Lieuwen got his first NHL start Tuesday in Calgary and played well in a 3-1
defeat that saw him shut out the Flames for 38 minutes. When he spoke to
reporters here Saturday, he had yet to speak to his family – including three
brothers – about who will take over the ticket-seeking duties. Someone
needs to do that for the folks in Abbotsford, a city of about 123,000 that’s the
home of the Flames’ AHL affiliate.
Especially since Lieuwen will be otherwise occupied by the likes of
Vancouver veterans Henrik and Daniel Sedin tonight.
“There’s obviously gonna be a lot of emotions and a lot of extra stuff that
could creep into my head,” Lieuwen said. “But I’ve got to stay focused on my
process and what I need to do on the ice.
“I’ll do my best to not look at the back of their jerseys and just know what
team they’re on. One puck at a time. That’s what I keep telling you guys and
I’ll keep saying that because when I focus on that, that’s when I’m at my
best.”
Nolan said that with Lieuwen, the Western Canada native, getting tonight’s
game, Easterner Matt Hackett will go Tuesday in Montreal. So that rules
Neuvirth out until at least Thursday in Nashville.
“It will be great for Nathan to play in front of his family and friends and his
home province,” Nolan said. “He’s a nice young man, well-mannered. He
works on his trade. That’s how you win in this game, I believe. You win with
good people, and he seems to be one of the finest.”
The Sabres have been pleased with the work of both Lieuwen and Hackett
on their emergency recalls. Hackett won his first Buffalo start Thursday in
Edmonton, making 35 saves in a 3-1 win that snapped the Sabres’
seven-game losing streak.
“They’ve done a great job for us,” said Sabres defenseman and former
Canuck Christian Ehrhoff, who will play his second game here since leaving
to join the Sabres in 2011. “The goaltending position hasn’t been a question
mark for us all year and these guys have just stepped in and kept right up
with that.”
Lieuwen said he was particularly grateful to Nolan for giving him the chance.
“It means so much to me to get to play in this building and it says a lot about
Ted,” Lieuwen said. “Ever since I’ve been here, he’s been nothing but
supportive of me, encouraging me to play my game. Even after the Calgary
game, he said he was happy with me and he was proud of me and that’s
huge.
“Especially coming out of my first game, it was such a boost for me. It
motivated me. It makes me work harder and want to win a game for him
tomorrow.”
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Buffalo Sabres
One line shift Nolan made Saturday for tonight will see Matt Ellis joining Matt
D’Agostini and Brian Flynn on the third line, with rookie Nicolas Deslauriers
going to the fourth line with Zenon Konopka and John Scott.
Sabres notebook: Canucks have plenty at stake
Deslauriers has no points and a minus-5 rating in eight games with the
Sabres.
Mike Harrington
“You don’t want to give a young player too much too soon … he has 8 games
in the National Hockey League,” Nolan said. “It’s all about development.”
March 23, 2014 - 12:01 AM
VANCOUVER — The first two games of the Buffalo Sabres’ road trip were
against Calgary and Edmonton, two teams not close to the playoff race. The
dynamic will be quite a bit different tonight in Rogers Arena.
The Vancouver Canucks are in true desperation mode in their first year under
coach John Tortorella after entering the season with Stanley Cup aspirations.
They have just 10 games left and entered play Saturday five points behind
Phoenix for the final Western Conference playoff slot, pending the Coyotes’
game late Saturday against Boston.
The Canucks have made the playoffs in 10 of the last 12 seasons, getting to
Game Seven of the Cup final in 2011 before losing to Boston. They looked
golden this year after going 10-1-2 in December, but are just 9-19-3 since the
new year as the heat has squarely landed on Tortorella and General
Manager Mike Gillis.
The Canucks, of course, fell into a deep slump following Tortorella’s
six-game, 15-day suspension for trying to get to Calgary coach Bob Hartley
in the dressing room hallway at the Saddledome after the teams opened their
Jan. 18 game with a line brawl.
Vancouver has alternated a loss and win for eight straight games, no way to
make up any ground. With 10 left, they probably need to get 16-18 of the
remaining 20 points to have a chance.
“Every game. One at a time. Buffalo is our next one,” was Tortorella’s
word-thrifty analysis here Saturday. “Just trying to take each day at a time.”
Tonight’s game will feature a pregame ceremony to honor Canucks captain
Henrik Sedin for playing his 1,000th game during the team’s last road trip. His
twin brother, Daniel, returns to the lineup after missing nine games with a
hamstring injury.
“Lately we’ve been working extremely hard,” Daniel Sedin said. “I keep
thinking we’re going to get our share of wins. That’s all we can focus on. Win
our games and see what happens.”
Daniel Sedin said he’s looking forward to his brother’s ceremony.
“It’s good for him. We all know he’s been healthy throughout his career,”
Daniel Sedin said. “It’s going to be nice and hopefully that will get us up for
the game even more.”
Canucks forward and U.S. Olympian Ryan Kesler (sprained knee) said he
was feeling better and could return. He has been out since being injured
March 12 in Winnipeg. Starter Eddie Lack will be in goal tonight.
...
Tonight’s game will be the second back in Vancouver for Sabres
defenseman Christian Ehrhoff and center Cody Hodgson. Both played in
Buffalo’s last appearance here, a 5-3 win on March 3, 2012.
Ehrhoff said the Game Seven loss to Boston still haunts him. It seems to
have haunted the franchise as well. The Canucks have been first-round
losers the last two years, winning just one game.
“Pretty heartbreaking to look back at that. It will hang over me until I get a
chance to win the Cup,” Ehrhoff said. “Until that happens, it’s still going to be
a heartbreaking thing to look back at. It’s the toughest way you can lose.
Game Seven of the finals. It’s something you definitely carry with you.”
...
Buffalo’s 2012 victory here was notable for the fact it scored three goals in
the first 5½ minutes to knock Roberto Luongo from the game.
Ville Leino scored twice in the first 3:44 but won’t get a chance to duplicate
that outburst tonight. Leino, still without a goal while playing 50 of the Sabres’
70 games, will be a healthy scratch for the second straight game. Leino sat
out Thursday’s win in Edmonton.
739097
Calgary Flames
Mike Cammalleri-Mikael Backlund-Paul Byron
Curtis Glencross-Matt Stajan-Jiri Hudler
Eberle back in for the Oilers; Westgarth adds some punch to Flames
Kenny Agostino-Sean Monahan-Joe Colborne
Lance Bouma-TJ Galiardi-Brian McGrattan
March 22, 2014. 1
Pairings:
Kristen Odland
TJ Brodie-Mark Giordano
Kris Russell-Chris Butler
The hard-luck (and banged-up) Edmonton Oilers came to the rink Saturday
morning and found out some good news.
Testing a sore knee, Jordan Eberle reported to head coach Dallas Eakins
that he was good to go tonight versus the Calgary Flames. The slick winger
will resume his place on a line with centre Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Anton
Lander which could be bad news for the Flames considering in his 20 career
games played against Calgary, he has had eight goals and 11 assists.
Eberle had twisted his knee on Tuesday in a 5-1 win over the Nashville
Predators and had reportedly needed an MRI but Eakins had denied the
report. He had tried to test his knee prior to a 3-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres
on Thursday but couldn’t go.
Like the 26th-placed Flames — 28-35-7 —- the Oilers are in the National
Hockey League basement (29th with 59 points) and don’t have much left to
play for other than pride and job security.
So for Eberle to show he wants to return as soon as possible is a good sign,
said Eakins.
“We had a number of guys that have been playing hurt,” he said. “It would
have been so easy for them to say, ‘Oh well, we’re out of it. What am I
risking? Why should I play?’ I think that says volumes about the group in the
room now.
“They want to play … that’s huge for me.”
Back in for the Flames is LW Kevin Westgarth who will be playing the Oilers
in Edmonton for the first time since Westgarth was knocked out by Luke
Gazdic on March 1. Sitting out is RW T.J. Galiardi.
“We don’t look at this,” said head coach Bob Hartley of the last meeting
between the two clubs. “The kid, Gazdic, got him with a good one. Westy, it
doesn’t change his approach. We gave him a break (Friday against the
Predators) to get (Kenny) Agostino in. Tonight, we want Westy back.”
Also in for Calgary tonight is G Karri Ramo who missed the last 15 games
with a knee injury.
“It’ll probably take the first few minutes to get his timing back,” Hartley said.
“But with the way that he works, I have no worries.”
Oilers
Lines:
Taylor Hall-Sam Gagner-David Perron
Anton Lander-Ryan Nugent-Hopkins-Jordan Eberle
Matt Hendricks-Boyd Gordon-Tyler Pitlick
Luke Gazdic-Ryan Smyth-Ryan Jones
Pairings:
Martin Marincin-Jeff Petry
Andrew Ference-Justin Schultz
Oscar Klefbom-Mark Fraser
Goalies:
Viktor Fasth
Ben Scrivens
Flames
Forwards:
Ladislav Smid-Tyler Wotherspoon
Goalies:
Karri Ramo
Joey MacDonald
Calgary Herald: LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames take on Edmonton Oilers in the final Battle of Alberta of the
season
RANDY SPORTAK
Saturday, March 22, 2014 01:20 PM MDT
THE MAIN STORYLINE: It's the fifth and final meeting of the season in this
year's Battle of Alberta – OK, it's really not much of a battle – but fans can
hope the province's teams will be among the league's elite some day. The
visiting team has won all four meetings so far this season, but both of
Calgary's wins in Edmonton have come in overtime.
LINEUP NOTES: The Flames will switch in Kevin Westgarth for TJ Galiardi.
Westgarth's last game in Edmonton ended with a concussion in a fight with
Luke Gazdic.
Karri Ramo will be in net, his first game back since suffering a knee injury
Feb. 1 and first time facing the Oilers as a member of the Flames.
Goalie Joni Ortio was sent to the minors, a move made, according to the
team, because he was summoned on an emergency basis.
The Oilers will have Jordan Eberle back from a knee injury and he'll be back
on a line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Anton Lander.
Viktor Fasth will start in goal as Edmonton continues its rotation of its goalies.
LW Nail Yakupov (ankle) and LW Jesse Joensuu (ankle) and D Anton Belov
(oblique) are still out.
BURNING QUESTION: Will the Oilers rebound in a big way after losing to
last-place Buffalo on Thursday night and beat a Flames team that played last
night?
PLAYER TO WATCH: Oilers LW Ryan Smyth needs one more powerplay
goal to break Glenn Anderson's record of 126 man-advantage markers in
Oilers silks.
FAST FACT: The Flames have won three straight in Edmonton and 10 of the
last 13 encounters at Rexall Place.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “I've played almost every game (since returning from a
concussion). I'm not really feeling like I'm in the mercenary-type role. We're in
there to play hockey. We've been doing a pretty good job of it.” - Flames
Kevin Westgarth on any talk he's in the lineup simply to face Luke Gazdic
after their fight last game.
Flames Lines
FORWARDS
Michael Camalleri-Mikael Backlund-Paul Byron
Curtis Glencross-Matt Stajan-Jiri Hudler
Kenny Agostino-Sean Monahan-Joe Colborne
Kevin Westgarth-Lance Bouma-Brian McGrattan
DEFENCE
TJ Brodie-Mark Giordano
Chris Butler-Kris Russell
Ladislav Smid-Tyler Wotherspoon
GOAL
Karri Ramo
Joey MacDonald
INJURED: RW David Jones (shoulder), D Dennis Wideman (upper body), C
Markus Granlund (upper body)
SCRATCHES: LW Ben Hanowski, LW TJ Galiardi
Calgary Sun: LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Calgary Flames
“I couldn’t hit a curveball, so they quickly decided I was a pitcher,” chuckled
the humble Calgarian, who won two city championships in Calgary as a teen
before attending a U.S. junior college on a football scholarship.
Keeping up with Flames' Joe Colborne and his family
“I love baseball, football and basketball, so, of course, Joe plays hockey.
Hilarious.”
Eric Francis
Paul’s love for baseball rubbed off on Joe, who was a formidable pitcher
himself before having to choose between ballparks and rinks. Joe’s affinity
for hockey has rubbed off on Paul, as he bought part of the BCHL’s Nanaimo
Clippers.
Sunday, March 23, 2014 12:16 AM MDT
As highly-touted a prospect as Joe Colborne was when traded to Calgary last
fall, he knew the best he could hope for was being the second-most popular
Colborne in town.
Unless young Joe is able to cobble together a 25- or 30-goal season
sometime soon, his dear old dad will very likely remain the best-known
Colborne in Cowtown.
One of the most sought-out and successful oil and gas executives in town,
Paul Colborne has been big man on campus dating back to the ’70s, when he
was quarterback of the University of Calgary Dinos.
And his popularity has grown ever since.
“It’s incredible — he knows everybody,” Joe says with a laugh, when asked
about his father.
“Going out to dinner with the guys, people will just come over and say ‘I know
your dad through football,’ or ‘I know your dad through business.’ It’s like,
‘geez, can I go anywhere?’ ”
While growing up in Springbank, Joe knew his dad was a hard-working
businessman who left the house every morning before anyone else woke up.
But it wasn’t until he left home at age 16 for the Camrose Kodiaks of the
Alberta Junior Hockey League he realized how well-known his dad was.
“It’s funny, when I was in Camrose it just got to the point where people were
coming up to me in the street asking, ‘is your dad coming to the game?’ ”
smiled Joe, who was named Canadian Jr. A player of the year in 2008 before
he did a two-year stint at the University of Denver.
“They didn’t want to know about the team, but ‘is my dad coming.’ He’s
buying everyone drinks, and pretty soon he’s a bigger hit than I am. Same
thing happens in Denver — all of a sudden all these people are coming up to
me on campus asking about dad. I’m like, ‘what is he doing out there during
the game?’ He’s a people person. People just tend to flock to him, so it’s not
really surprising that, to this day, he has a big crew that keep in touch.”
“I would be really interested to see Joe throw a baseball — he’s 6-5 and 220
now, and I bet with that leverage he could throw serious heat,” dad said with
a smile.
“He ended up being a good player. I think he could have been a better
baseball player than hockey player. He had a great swing and could really
hit.”
Turns out ol’ Joe isn’t so bad at hockey either. And in virtually every city he
plays now as one of the Flames top young forwards, he is alerted via text that
more of his dad’s friends are watching and supporting him.
Like his father, Joe likes to dish out plenty of playful jabs, joking about how
his father has long lamented the fact the Dinos won a national title the year
after he left.
“Ha ha, ya, well … we had three great years,” said Paul, who was the
quarterback at the U of C for three years, starting in ’78.
“We went 6-2, 6-2 and 5-3 but we lost in the playoffs. I played two years junior
(with the Mohawks) and three years there, and by my third year, Greg Vavra,
who basically rewrote the Canadian record book, had replaced me as the
starter, and I said I’m probably not going to make a living in the CFL. So I
went and got my study habits back and got into law school.”
Almost a decade later, he took a stab at the oil patch and credits the lessons
learned as a young athlete for prepping him for the business world.
“I think it’s helped, for sure,” Paul said.
“I do believe the best part of athletics is teaching competitiveness and
learning to deal with disappointment. Everyone can deal with situations when
everything is going right, but being in a slump or losing streak and going out
the next day and dealing with it is the key. It teaches you the determination to
go forward.”
Joe says in his ultra-competitive household there’s only one thing left his dad
can still beat him at.
Anyone who knows Paul Colborne at all can easily see where Joe got his
engaging personality. A media darling already in Calgary where he can be
spotted daily shooting the breeze with reporters, Joe is making strides in the
popularity contest. With 10 points in his last 14 games, he’s starting to live up
to the potential Boston Bruins scouts saw when they drafted him 16th overall
in ’08.
“He’s still the old football ‘lifting weights guy,’ so he can still bench press a
ton,” smiled Joe, 24.
And with every goal, dear old dad is there in the stands cheering him on as
his biggest supporter.
“Tell him though that I said I can bench more than him now. That’ll rattle him.”
“I do like the social aspect to hockey and sports — to this day we get there
early for warmups,” Paul said over a warm coffee in a downtown cafe.
[email protected]
“It’s the people. There’s a group of us who watched the games and drink
beers in Camrose. In Denver, I’ve got a group of guys who would all stand in
their beautiful rink. They’re kind of young, crazy guys, and I just kind of
appended myself to the group.”
Most things Paul appends himself to tend to be quite successful.
In more than two decades of founding, flipping, growing and leading various
junior oil companies, he’s built a reputation and track record so stellar he sat
on 11 boards during a recent retirement of sorts before being appointed CEO
of Surge.
As a father, he and wife Janice have raised four exceptional kids who have all
played top-level university sports, with two of them playing pro (Joe in hockey
and Melissa in basketball in Germany).
As an athlete, he, too, got a taste of high-level sports. Following in the
footsteps of his father, who was a pitcher in the St. Louis Cardinals farm
system, Paul was a standout hurler.
“It’s the one thing I haven’t caught up to him in yet. It’s his last sliver that he’s
holding onto. I just about caught up to him at the end of the summer and he’s
starting to kind of lose it. Age is finally catching up to him.
Not to worry. You can bet one of Paul’s friends will tell him first.
www.twitter.com/EricFrancis
COMPETITION: IT'S IN THE COLBORNES
Not only is it one of the most athletic families in Calgary, the Colbornes may
also be one of the most competitive.
“Whether it’s cards or whatever, there’s usually a shouting match,” said Joe,
laughing when asked about Christmas gatherings at their Springbank
acreage.
“Pickup basketball games almost never finish, because someone is going
inside the house hurt. We have an old tractor shed — 50-by-60 feet or so and
smooth concrete. My dad put quite a bit of work in and made it a sport area.
It’s high enough you can shoot basketballs in. I have an NHL net in there, and
every summer, I go in and take shots. It’s a pretty cool set-up, but things can
get heated in there.”
Don’t think for a second because dad quarterbacked at the University of
Calgary or Joe is a 6-foot-5 forward for the Calgary Flames that the two men
of the house dominated the four females.
After all, everyone else in the family is or was a high-performance athlete as
well.
Sister Lauren played basketball at the University of Alberta and now works
for an oil company downtown.
Melissa played basketball at Yale before playing two years as a pro in
Germany. She is now going to law school at Denver University where Joe
also spent two years.
Claire, the youngest, recently transferred to the University of Calgary, where
she’ll play basketball next year. She spent her previous two years at the
University of New Brunswick, where she was the CIS rookie of the year two
years ago.
“Mom (Janice) is the runt of the family — she’s only 5-foot-9,” joked Joe, who
will obviously hear from mom about that comment for years.
“She was a pretty serious gymnast growing up, but she started to get too big
for being a gymnast, so she cut it out, but she’s probably the most
competitive one in the family. That’s where we all get it.
“We compete in everything — that’s our family. Whether it’s cards or driving
home, it’s going to be a race or a competition. That’s probably the reason
why we, as kids, have been successful — they taught us hard work and to
have a competitive nature.”
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Calgary Flames
thing. They do the dirtiest job in the business. The kid, Gazdic, got him with a
good one, but it doesn’t change our approach. He knows his job and parts of
his job, you take some punches. He took a good one.”
Flames snapshots -- Joni Ortio not feeling the Heat
For his part, Westgarth knows injuries are part of the policeman’s job
description.
RANDY SPORTAK
“You’re in there to hurt the other guy in some ways but you don’t want to see
him go down or get too beat up,” said Westgarth, who said Gazdic did contact
the team’s training staff to find out if he was OK after their scrap a few weeks
ago. “It’s one of the things we know could happen. We’re grown men and
play a violent sport. I think we do our best to keep the violence down in the
game, stuff that’s more dangerous, head hits and stick plays. It’s something I
take a lot of pride in, I’m sure he does, too. It’s a pretty great brotherhood.”
EDMONTON — The impression made by Joni Ortio on Calgary Flames
goalie coach Clint Malarchuk is simple.
“Composure. He played like a veteran. He played like a real pro,” Malarchuk
said of the team’s goaltender prospect who was sent down to the minors after
Friday night’s game.
It would be easy to assume the Flames reassigned Ortio as a result of him
surrendering four goals on 13 shots before being hooked in Friday’s 6-5 loss
to the Nashville Predators at the Saddledome.
Nothing could be further from the truth, says Malarchuk. He believes the
netminder, who serves as the backup for Abbotsford’s AHL tilt Saturday in
Hamilton, has a bright future, and so does Ortio, the 2009 sixth-round draft
choice who played in nine games before being sent to the Abbotsford Heat.
“In my conversation with him, I said, ‘You’re proving you’re an NHL goalie’ ”
Malarchuck said. “He says, ‘I am an NHL goalie.’ He’s very confident and not
cocky.”
Ortio’s assignment came as a result of Karri Ramo returning from a knee
injury that left him out of action for seven weeks. Unless he’s needed in
Calgary, Ortio will be counted on to carry the load for the Heat in their playoff
push.
It’s unfair to compare Ortio, who’ll turn 23 next month, to the now-retired
Miikka Kiprusoff, but since they’re both from Finland and have the same body
type, it’s an easy thing to do.
However, Ortio showed one trait of Kiprusoff’s during his stint, the
composure Malarchuk talked about.
Consider what could have affected him in his first few starts, but he battled
through.
First game: He surrendered an early goal to the Los Angeles Kings but keeps
the Flames in the clash all the way to the end.
Second game: Ortio keeps his focus despite the Ottawa Senators needing
more than nine minutes to fire a shot on goal and earns his first win.
Third game: Despite the lengthy ceremony to honour Joe Nieuwendyk, he
beats the New York Islanders.
Malarchuk, who loathes the thought of comparing Ortio to Kiprusoff, said he
saw the kind of mindset he likes when Ortio surrendered six goals in his first
game during the Young Stars prospects tournament three years ago in
Penticton. Then-Flames GM Jay Feaster was unsure how to view the
netminder, but Malarchuk was in the goalie’s corner after a quick
conversation.
“It was his first time in North America. I said to Jay, ‘This kid can play,’ ” he
recalled. “I talked to him and he said he knew he had to learn. I didn’t have to
pump him up. He was saying, ‘I get it. I know what I need to do and I can do
it.’
“It’s not an act. You know some athletes can say that and it’s an act. It’s not
an act.”
Off the glass
Guess we all saw that coming as soon as Flames head coach Bob Hartley
opted to insert Kevin Westgarth in the lineup.
Westgarth got his rematch with Luke Gazdic early in the game when they
dropped the gloves. The Flames winger was concussed last time these
teams met three weeks ago in a fight with Gazdic, but this meeting wasn’t
about retribution, more a case of Westgarth needing to get back on the
horse.
“My neighbour drove for 30 years and got in a car accident last night. He’s
driving again today,” Hartley said after the morning skate. “It’s the same
Both combatants acknowledged each other with respect after their scrap on
Saturday and could be seen chatting in the penalty box.
In the crease
It’s almost like a player wearing tube skates, but the Oilers’ Ryan Smyth, who
turned 38 last month, uses a wooden blade, which we believe has him alone
in the league, where most everyone uses the one-piece graphite sticks.
Some players do opt for two-piece sticks with graphite blades. “I tried last
year, tried most of the year, and it wasn’t successful for me. I only had two
goals,” Smyth said of using the weapon of choice around the league. “I’m not
recognized as a shooter. I’m a mucker in front of the net, pop them in that
way.” … So, if you’re wondering whether Hartley cares whether his team
finishes ahead of its provincial rivals, he’s not, simply because they’re both in
also-ran territory. “The Battle of Alberta for me, right now, doesn’t have too
much meaning. I know for the fans, it’s big. We’re two non-playoff teams, so
for me — my main goal — is to get my team in the playoffs, to get them in the
right direction to play good hockey. I know it’s gonna be a process, but, for
me, to finish higher than the Oilers in the standings or watch if the Oilers won
two night ago, I don’t do this. I’m focussing on my team right now.” … Back to
the Abbotsford Heat: Sven Baertschi is not only back from injury but with a
goal in Saturday’s 5-1 win over the Hamilton Bulldogs, he now has a
six-game point-scoring streak. Anybody else wondering whether he’ll get a
summons if the team needs a forward down the stretch?
739101
Carolina Hurricanes
Jordan Staal made it 2-1 when he went through Jets defenders and scored
over Montoya's blocker at 10:10 of the second while Slater was in the penalty
box for tripping.
Hurricanes score 3 times in 2nd to top Jets 3-2
Maurice said Winnipeg's first period was "about as good as we're going to
play," but Staal's power-play marker hurt.
March 22, 2014
"No doubt we got tight at 2-1," he said. "You could feel it."
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — Cam Ward grinned as he described how he felt like
a kid making some key saves in the Carolina Hurricanes' 3-2 victory over the
Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night.
Ward stole a pair of goals from Winnipeg's Bryan Little in the first period,
beginning with a pad save during a Jets' two-man advantage and then
displaying his quickness with a highlight-reel stick stop.
Little was about to fire the puck into a wide-open side of the net, but Ward
whipped out his stick and the puck hit the paddle.
"It was a fun save," Ward said with a chuckle after making 34 stops. "The
initial shot was in a position where I knew I was going to have to kick out a bit
of a rebound. Just out of pure desperation, I threw my stick out there and
made a save that brings you back to the ol' street hockey days as a kid.
"But Little, I think he got even with me scoring that second goal in the third
period, so it all evens out."
Jets coach Paul Maurice, who coached the Hurricanes for parts of 11
seasons, even tipped his hat to Ward.
"Cam Ward was the story of this hockey game," Maurice said. "He was the
best player on the ice."
The Jets had mounted a 9-0 advantage in shots on goal on the way to a 13-6
lead at the end of a scoreless first period. Ward then got some offensive help
from his teammates, as brothers Eric and Jordan Staal and Riley Nash each
scored within a span of 2 minutes, 53 seconds in the second.
Defenseman Andrej Sekera had a pair of assists for the Hurricanes (31-31-9)
to give him 31 on the season to go with 11 goals.
The Jets' Jim Slater scored his first goal of an injury-marred season 7:48 into
the second, but Eric Staal got the roll going 37 seconds later with his 17th
goal.
Little scored his 21st goal of the season for Winnipeg (32-31-9) 1:27 into the
third period.
Al Montoya stopped 29 shots while making his fourth straight start in net for
Winnipeg since Ondrej Pavelec went out with a lower-body injury. He's
expected to return to action next week.
"We came out firing," Montoya said. "Their goaltender played well. I didn't
make the saves I needed to make and at the end of the day that cost us the
game."
Maurice said Montoya was wrong.
"If a guy is clearly the reason you're in the hole, I'll get him out of the net
before that happens," Maurice said. "They get to this level thinking they
should stop everything. He will feel that because he's got a front-row seat to
the way the guy at the other end is playing, so it's magnified."
Carolina coach Kirk Muller said Ward's stellar play was inspiring for his
teammates.
"The guys knew that he was giving a great effort and he was keeping us in
there," Muller said. "They were like, 'Hey, we've got to surround him with
some better play here,' and, fortunately, we got timely goals. We played
better the rest of the game and it was a nice team effort for everybody."
Ward has battled through two injuries this season and was bumped to
backup for Anton Khudobin, who was in net for Carolina's 3-2 loss to Chicago
Friday night.
Winnipeg, which heads out on a five-game road trip beginning Monday in
Dallas, remains at 73 points. Heading into the game, the Jets were six points
back of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Jets were
coming off a 5-4 overtime win against Colorado on March 19. The loss to
Carolina was Winnipeg's 40th one-goal game this season and they are
18-13-9 in those outings.
The Jets, who were outshot 21-8 in the second, were working without
defenseman Zach Bogosian, who left in the period with an upper-body injury
that Maurice said isn't too serious.
It appeared Stuart tied it six minutes after Little's goal, but the goal was
waved off for goaltender interference as Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien
fell on top of Ward in the crease and was lying on his right arm.
NOTES: Jordan Staal's power-play goal was the first the Jets have allowed at
home in five consecutive games. Winnipeg's penalty kill was ranked fifth-best
(84.8 percent) in the NHL heading into the game. ... The game was the
second of Carolina's 18 sets of back-to-back games this season. It plays two
more. Only New Jersey has more back-to-back sets this season with 22. The
Hurricanes so far are 9-8-1 in the first game of their sets and 5-10-3 in the
second game.
News Observer LOADED: 03.23.2014
739102
Chicago Blackhawks
brimming with confidence. Valtonen played Teravainen in every situation: full
strength, power play, penalty kill, key faceoffs and at the end of games.
Teuvo Teravainen draws raves from Jari Kurri
"He has a great stick and great vision so I believe he's going to be great,"
Valtonen said. "His hockey sense is unbelievable. I've never coached a
player like him before. He's a special one."
Chris Kuc
Chicago Tribune LOADED: 03.23.2014
9:11 PM CDT, March 22, 2014
Jari Kurri knows a thing or two about NHL centers.
The five-time Stanley Cup champion and member of the Hockey Hall of
Fame spent most of his stellar career skating alongside Wayne Gretzky, the
greatest center of all time. Together they formed one of the most prolific
tandems in NHL history while starring for the great Oilers teams of the 1980s.
Kurri spent the last year as general manager of Jokerit of the SM-liiga in
Finland and worked with and observed that team's top center, Teuvo
Teravainen.
That would be the same Teravainen who is set to make his NHL debut with
the Blackhawks — possibly as soon as Sunday night against the Predators at
the United Center.
"I can't compare him to Gretzky — it's unfair," Kurri said with a chuckle.
Lower expectations just a tad, Chicago.
But don't dismiss them as Kurri said the 19-year-old Teravainen is a rare
talent.
"With his skill level and the way he sees the game, the next big step is for him
to join the NHL," Kurri told the Tribune via phone from Finland. "With a team
like Chicago, with the talent they have already there, I think he will be a nice
fit for their lineup. We're all excited about that and waiting for him to get his
chance."
The Hawks' top draft pick (18th overall) in the 2012 NHL draft, Teravainen led
Jokerit in scoring this season with nine goals and 35 assists in 49 games. In
113 career games with the club from 2011-14, Teravainen had 33 goals and
60 assists and was named the league's rookie of the year after the '11-12
campaign.
Along with being the top scorer during the World Junior Championships when
he helped Finland capture the gold medal with two goals and 13 assists in
seven games, Teravainen brings an impressive resume to the NHL.
"He's one of those guys who loves to hang onto the puck and make passes,"
Kurri said. "If guys get open, he finds them."
Like both Hawks general manager Stan Bowman and coach Joel
Quenneville said Friday when Teravainen officially was assigned to the team,
Kurri called for patience to allow the teenager to continue to develop his
game.
"Players who come over from here, they need some time," Kurri said. "It
doesn't happen in one game or a few games. It's more that they start feeling
comfortable and get a chance to not worry about their games. It's a little bit of
a journey. It's about being patient."
That Teravainen has remarkable offensive skills isn't in doubt from anyone
who has seen him play. One main question surrounding him is whether he
has improved his defensive skills enough to be effective at the NHL level.
"People always talk about that part but I was surprised," Kurri said. "I
certainly had a chance to look at him closely and talk to our coaches about
that. He's not a guy who is going to push guys away — he's not the strongest
guy — but with his positioning and skill level and vision, he can position
himself to play defensively."
Regarding strength, Kurri said the 5-foot-11, 169-pound Teravainen "is
getting better. There's still some work to do in that way."
Said Jokerit coach Tomek Valtonen, who has instructed Teravainen for the
last four years: "He picked up his strength in the last 12 months. He has
realized he has to work really hard to get some muscle on his body."
Those questions aside and agreeing with Kurri that Teravainen needs to look
for his shot more, Valtonen gushed about the player, saying he "dominated
the league offensively" after returning from the World Junior Championships
739103
Chicago Blackhawks
Jeremy Morin has best chance yet to stick with Blackhawks
MARK POTASH
March 22, 2014 8:38PM
Once upon a time, Jeremy Morin was the 19-year-old future of the
Blackhawks.
Acquired in the trade that sent Dustin Byfuglien to the Atlanta Thrashers after
the Hawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, Morin was a big hit in prospects
camp as a rookie. He was impressive in training camp, was endorsed by
captain Jonathan Toews (among other veterans) as ready for the NHL and
nearly made the season-opening roster. With offensive skills you can’t
coach, it seemed like it was only a matter of time.
Four years later, Morin is on a yo-yo between Chicago and Rockford, still
trying to find his niche in coach Joel Quenneville’s system. In a bit of an ironic
twist, Morin’s latest opportunity came Friday, when the Hawks unveiled
another 19-year-old future star in Teuvo Teravainen. Maybe there’s some
value in being in the shadows.
Morin, who will turn 23 on April 16, was recalled from Rockford for the fourth
time this season. In 15 games with the Hawks in 2013-14, he has one goal
and four assists and is a plus-2.
‘‘Mo’s . . . really made some progress in his game, especially when he was
playing up here,’’ Quenneville said. ‘‘He had some purpose to his game. He
had some good energy, physically involved. He really had some good pace.’’
The Hawks seemed to be rewarding Morin for his perseverance as much as
for his productivity. Morin has responded well to each demotion and has 47
points in 47 games with Rockford. In his last 18 games with the IceHogs, he
had 15 goals and 10 assists.
‘‘He deserves a chance to play in the NHL,’’ general manager Stan Bowman
said. ‘‘He provides some offense and energy. He works hard. It’s hard for
young kids when they go up and down, but he went down and played great
for us. We’re very excited about that.’’
While some hot prospects fade as missed opportunities and poor timing pile
up, Morin seems determined to keep his star shining.
‘‘He’s been skating really well — the best I’ve seen him skate in four years
here — and competing real hard and being very opportunistic,’’ IceHogs
coach Ted Dent said.
Morin’s enthusiasm was evident in a short stint (6:52 of ice time) in the
Hawks’ 3-2 victory Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes. He had two hits in
his first shift and another big hit in a scrum after a Hurricanes penalty.
‘‘I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anxious to get back up here,’’ said Morin, a
first-round draft pick by the Thrashers (24th overall) in 2010. ‘‘It feels great to
be back out here. I’m excited about it. I think I definitely have more
confidence. I’m playing pretty well, having success in Rockford. I feel good
about my game right now. Hopefully, I can translate it to Chicago.’’
With Patrick Kane out for the rest of the regular season with a lower-body
injury, Morin figures to get what might be his best chance yet to establish
himself as a regular with the Hawks. He thinks he’s ready for that opportunity.
‘‘I feel really comfortable on the ice,’’ Morin said. ‘‘I’ve matured. I’ve gotten
stronger every year. I feel I’m skating the best I’ve ever skated. Obviously,
that helps your game out a lot. Hopefully, I can bring that up here and bring
some energy and good things will happen.’’
The alternative — a return trip to Rockford — isn’t that appealing. It can be a
tough drive to Rockford even if you don’t play for the Hawks.
‘‘Especially with construction,’’ Morin said. ‘‘It’s not too fun.’’
Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739104
Chicago Blackhawks
Blackhawks’ Crawford riding hot streak
Mike Spellman
Quietly, Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford has put together quite a stretch
recently.
Courtesy of 3 straight victories, including his 10th career shutout Wednesday
against St. Louis — Crawford is seventh in the league with a 2.21
goals-against average and seventh in wins with 28 despite missing a stretch
of 10 straight games with an injury.
“This is definitely his best stretch all year,” coach Joel Quenneville said of
Crawford, who has won four of his last five starts. “He started out OK, but
now, game in and game out, Corey is getting the job done for us.
“We like that stability and predictably that we’re getting from our goaltending.”
Walking the line:
Before Friday’s victory over Carolina, Andrew Shaw found himself getting a
little too familiar with the penalty box.
“I think I had four straight games (picking up a penalty), so I kind of have to
step back and focus on staying on the right side of that line,” said Shaw, who
successfully navigated away from the box Friday.
As long as the method Shaw employs to rectify the situation doesn’t take
away his aggressiveness, that’s just fine with coach Joel Quenneville.
“I think there’s a fine line that you’ve always got to march … I think you’ve got
to be aware of the way the game’s being called,” Quenneville said. “But I
don’t want to take that away from him because he is a different player, and
that energy that he brings is healthy for our team.”
Derby or bust?
Joel Quenneville will be going for a twofer Sunday night.
In addition to trying pick up a win in the Hawks’ rematch with Nashville,
Quenneville is hoping his star 2-year-old thoroughbred, Midnight Hawk, will
punch a ticket to the Kentucky Derby with a win in the $800,000 Sunland
Derby in New Mexico.
Though Midnight Hawk already has enough points to qualify for the Derby,
Quenneville hinted that it probably would take a win at Sunland to guarantee
a trip to Louisville. Post time for the Sunland Derby is 6:40 p.m. Chicago time.
Daily Herald Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739105
Chicago Blackhawks
Blackhawks making Teravainen feel at home
Mike Spellman
When a late-arriving Teuvo Teravainen finally hit the ice for Friday’s morning
skate, one by one many of his Blackhawks teammates subtly skated toward
him, welcoming him with words of encouragement in that hockey player kind
of way.
There was Marian Hossa, Jonathan Toews and fellow Finn Antti Raanta
sidling up to the 19-year-old, who was admittedly still a little bleary-eyed after
landing in Chicago just a few hours earlier.
Being the new guy on the team is never an easy thing, but being the new guy
coming in with such high expectations and joining a team jockeying for
playoff position is even more daunting.
“He’s so young that you hope he feels comfortable,” Ben Smith said. “That’s
the biggest thing for a guy so young.
“He’s a good player and he’ll do what he does. I’m hoping he doesn’t feel that
pressure, but I’m sure that will be addressed here. Someone will talk to him
and say, ‘Hey, just play your game. Enjoy what you’re going through.’ ”
For Smith, that someone was No. 10.
“I remember for me it was Patrick Sharp,” Smith said. “He’s kind of been the
guy; right from early on in training camp, he watched my first exhibition game
and came up to me and said, ‘Hey, you’re a good player. Keep working hard.
You have a future here.’
“That was nice to hear from a guy like that.”
Other than the enormous expectations being heaped upon Teravainen, there
were a couple of differences between his and Smith’s arrival in Chicago:
Smith wasn’t 19, and he wasn’t coming over from a different country.
“I was bit older, playing for my college team,” he said. “So for him, to
transition away from home it’ll be tough, but right away I saw Antti skate over
to him and say hello, so that’s going to help having someone from Finland
with him.
“It’s exciting for everyone here to see how he can do and hopefully adapt to
the North American game and do well.”
It looks like Teravainen will get his first shot at it either Sunday night against
Nashville or Tuesday when the Hawks host Dallas, depending on the whim of
coach Joel Quenneville, of course.
“It’s always tough. It’s up to that individual player to ask as many questions as
they can and learn from the coaching staff and the leaders to try and
understand the game plan and our team systems,” Sharp said. “But at the
end of the day, we’re just playing hockey.
“Teuvo has shown what he can do in the preseason, and I’m sure he has
confidence that he can play at this level and contribute.”
And if he needed one more piece of advice as he prepares to make his NHL
debut, here’s what Andrew Shaw would tell him: “Just have fun and work.
You’re going to be on the ice with some great players — just do what got you
here. Those are my words of wisdom.”
739106
Chicago Blackhawks
Hawks confident Kane will be ready
Barry Rozner
The math isn’t overly complicated for the Blackhawks.
The talk in NHL circles — and the Hawks’ locker room — is that Patrick Kane
has an MCL sprain of his left knee, and the team sees it as a three-week
injury.
The Hawks — like most NHL teams — don’t discuss particulars, saying it’s a
“lower-body injury,” but 1-3 weeks fits the Grade I MCL sprain timeline. The
Ducks’ Cam Fowler has an MCL injury, and the team announced he’d miss
3-5 weeks, probably a Grade II.
In any case, with the Hawks’ first playoff game about four weeks from the day
Kane was injured, the Hawks are optimistic he will be rested and ready to go
— and maybe even play a game or two before the postseason begins.
“If things go as planned,” said Hawks GM Stan Bowman, “he should be fine in
the playoffs.”
Kane was injured Wednesday night against the Blues when Brenden Morrow
fell on Kane’s left knee near the boards after colliding with Sheldon
Brookbank, and the Hawks played their first game without Kane on Friday
night when they defeated Carolina 3-2 at the UC.
It was hardly a masterpiece, but the Hawks came out with energy, somewhat
surprising when you consider the emotion spent in defeating the Blues only
two nights before.
“It can be a difficult game after you play at such a high level, and that’s not
taking anything away from Carolina at all. There’s a lot of talent there,” said
goaltender Corey Crawford, who was sharp in Friday’s victory.
“But that was like a playoff game the other night (against St. Louis), so it
would have been easy to take this game a little lightly. I don’t think we did
that. I thought our approach was really good.”
The Hawks started strong, outshooting the Canes 10-1 at one point in the
first. They finally jumped out front on Patrick Sharp’s 30th goal 3:09 into the
second, and Nick Leddy made a sweet play to set up Kris Versteeg for 2-0
Hawks lead with less than four minutes to go in the middle period.
“Then we took 6 penalties in a row, or a stretch of 6 penalties there,” said
Hawks coach Joel Quenneville. “It got them right back into the game.”
That was the only way for Carolina to get back in the game. The Hawks took
6 penalties in a 21-minute span starting 3:23 into the second, just a few ticks
after the Hawks had taken a commanding 2-0 lead against a team generating
very little pressure.
The Canes scored with 38 seconds left in the second and then tied it on a
5-on-3 early in the third, but Jonathan Toews — who took a pair of penalties
eight minutes apart in the second — scored on a short-handed break just 32
seconds later for the go-ahead goal, and that was enough for Crawford.
Despite the early burst, the Hawks were outshot 28-25 for the game, though
they gave up precious few chances in the last few minutes of the game,
playing most of it in the Carolina zone and dominating puck possession.
“I think we’re going to be able to look back on this game a few weeks from
now and remember how well we played in those last few minutes,” Crawford
said. “I’m not sure they had a shot the last five minutes (of the game).”
It was a terrific defensive effort, especially in light of the potential emotional
letdown following the St. Louis game. Offensively, the Hawks had enough
chances early that they could have led the game 5-0 in the first if they had
merely hit the net.
The rest of the game was not pretty because of self-inflicted wounds, but they
picked up 2 points against a struggling team. Besides, not every game is a
work of art and they survived the first contest without Kane.
They might get Bryan Bickell and Brandon Saad back Sunday, and Michal
Rozsival isn’t far away. Teuvo Teravainen is also likely to make his NHL
debut in the next game or two, though the Hawks are downplaying
expectations.
At 19, Teravainen is listed on NHL.com at 5-feet-11, 169 pounds, nearly
identical to what Kane was when he arrived as an 18-year-old rookie, but to
make the talent comparison is unfair to the kid.
He seems more like Marty St. Louis, in size and skill, but with a defensive
responsibility to his game, like fellow Finnish center Mikko Koivu, who is also
4 inches taller and 55 pounds heavier.
In time, Teravainen will provide the comps, perhaps someday creating
comparisons of his own, as Kane now does for any talented young player
who arrives in the NHL.
Teravainen also provides a distraction while the Hawks rehab Kane — and
get him ready for the first week of the playoffs.
739107
Chicago Blackhawks
Keith putting together another Norris-worthy season
March 22, 2014, 7:00 pm
Tracey Myers
Duncan Keith spoke earlier this year about how he’s possibly in the best
shape of his career this season. What he won’t speak of as much is how he
got to that point.
“I don’t like to give my training secrets out,” he said with a wry smile following
the Chicago Blackhawks’ 3-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday
night. While the defenseman stays mum on those “secrets,” there’s no
denying his game is once again in peak form.
Keith is putting together another Norris Trophy-worthy season, be it with his
consistent play or his impressive numbers. Let’s go with the numbers first,
which include 50 assists, tops among NHL defensemen and just five shy of
the career-best 55 he had in 2009-10, when he did win the Norris. Keith also
has five goals and is a plus-24.
But whether he’s putting up the offensive numbers or not Keith has been a
consistent presence again this season.
“He’s had some really good games and an outstanding season,” coach Joel
Quenneville said. “Offensively, he has play recognition with more patience at
the offensive zone, with the shot and getting action on it or tips. He had a
couple plays around the net where there were wide tips at the post. His
vision, he’s gotten better in that area, and his production reflects that as well.”
Gone are the days where Keith had to log about 30 minutes a game,
especially right after the Blackhawks broke up their 2009-10 Stanley
Cup-winning team. For two consecutive seasons (2010-11 and 2011-12),
Keith averaged a league-high 26 minutes, 53 seconds of playing time per
game. With depth back at defense, Keith is now playing 24:34. With the NHL
back to an 82-game season and with Olympics thrown in, that’s key.
So is that training regimen. Keith wouldn’t share specific details but said a
few tweaks and learning lessons through the years has helped.
“I think nutrition’s a big part of it. You get older and you realize how important
it is and how much it can help you,” he said. “I think I’ve been strict and
disciplined in my training and that’s helped in conditioning.”
Continued success and confidence doesn’t hurt, either. Jonathan Toews said
Keith’s great play at the Olympics, where the two won their second
consecutive gold medals with Team Canada, has also come back with him.
“He definitely carried in what he had during the Olympics, the confidence he
built in that tournament,” Toews said. “He’s a consistent player with so many
good things he’s doing; even if he’s not on the score sheet he’s doing so
much for our team. When he plays with energy and has that jump like he has,
he’s a noticeable player. He’s great defensively and can jump on the offense
as well.”
Keith is making the most of his minutes and is again a big part of the
Blackhawks’ offense. He’s also a big part of the Norris conversation once
again.
That is definitely no secret.
“The biggest thing for me is to try to push the pace out there and get our team
game going,” he said. “I feel like when I’m playing at my best, that gives our
team a better chance to win. I play a lot of minutes, so I want to be good every
night.”
Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 03.23.2014
739108
Colorado Avalanche
Tyson Barrie having fun at forward, but: “I’m a defenseman, and that’s where
I want to be”
Mike Chambers
Tyson Barrie played 17:26 as a third-line forward and power-play point
specialist in the Avalanche’s 2-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on Friday, and he
spent 19:03 on the ice in Wednesday’s overtime loss at Winnipeg, in which
he played right wing on the second line. The skilled and speedy defenseman
is fine with playing up front, but he’s excited to move back when John Mitchell
returns from a back injury. The Avs are also shorthanded up front because
P.A. Parenteau (knee, weeks away from returning) and Alex Tanguay (hip
surgery, out for the season) are unavailable.
Barrie, 22, continues to run the power play up top.
“It’s an experiment,” Barrie told me after Colorado absorbed its first shutout of
the season. “It’s a learning curve, but we got Mitchy (and Parenteau) out and
I’m a defenseman, and that’s where I want to be, but anytime the team needs
me to do something you have to step in and do your best.”
He added: “We’ll see what’s up for next game. You never know.”
Barrie said he mostly played forward in spring hockey growing up, but was
primarily a defenseman since age 10. He was a forward before that, but
became a little chubby.
“I was a little slower than everybody so I had to move back on D and I worked
hard to catch up,” Barrie said.
Imagine that. Meanwhile, no Avs practice today or Sunday. Back at work
Monday morning before flying to Nashville to play Seth Jones and the Preds
on Tuesday. Always a great trip when the NHL arena is 50 yards from the a
smorgasbord of the best live music in North America.
Denver Post: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739109
Colorado Avalanche
Dater: Let's bring on Avalanche vs. Blackhawks in NHL playoffs
Adrian Dater
03/23/2014 12:01:00 AM MDT
It's almost guaranteed: The Avalanche is going to play the Chicago
Blackhawks in the first round of the playoffs. It would take a unique set of
events to keep this matchup from happening.
In the new NHL playoff format, the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in each division
play each other in the first round. In the Central Division entering Friday, the
No. 2 Blackhawks would have hosted the No. 3 Avalanche. Some believe the
new format penalizes teams that have a better record than their counterparts
in the opposite division. Had the season ended Friday, however, the
Blackhawks would have finished fourth in the Western Conference and the
Avs fifth — and they still would have played each other, with Chicago having
home-ice advantage.
Colorado wing Cody McLeod (55) took a swing at Chicago defenseman
Sheldon Brookbank (17) in the first period. The Colorado Avalanche hosted
the Chicago
The new format probably doesn't change a whole lot. Fans will like it better in
the long run. It used to be this way back in the day. I don't know how many
times the Bruins played the Sabres in the old Adams Division first round, but
it was a lot. They met five times from 1982-93.
The new format makes more sense in one theoretical supposition: A better
rivalry is likely to have already existed between the teams in the same
division. It makes more sense in a business application too: It saves money
for teams in travel costs. It makes more sense in just a better product. No
more Detroit vs. Anaheim, San Jose or Los Angeles in a first-round series,
when the players were exhausted from traveling so far back and forth.
Realignment last year also helped eliminate these scenarios.
Colorado vs. Chicago in the first round would be a fun series that could
establish a rivalry that might come close to the great Avs-Red Wings
meetings of yesteryear. I expect some hate to emanate. I also like the new
format because teams have more time to game plan for each other. I can
guarantee the Avs already are thinking about how to beat Chicago, and vice
versa.
Let's not kid ourselves, though: The Blackhawks, despite going 0-4-1 against
Colorado this season, would have the upper hand. They're the defending
Stanley Cup champions and their captain is Jonathan Toews, who has won
two Stanley Cups and two Olympic gold medals since 2010 — and he's only
25. Teams that have won the big ones before don't care about
regular-season records once they're back in the playoffs.
It would be a huge upset if the Avs beat Chicago. Not that it can't happen, but
history suggests the Avs will have to learn how to win in the playoffs before
they actually do. Chicago wasn't very good the first couple of years with
Toews and Patrick Kane. Pittsburgh wasn't very good in Sidney Crosby's first
year, and so on.
Then again, the Avs might pull the upset. Kane is out because of a knee
injury, Corey Crawford is a beatable goaltender and Chicago's top players
have played a lot of hockey the past four years. They have to be mentally
tired, which is more of a burden than in the physical sense.
It's going to be fun around here again in a few short weeks, regardless.
We've seen a lot of the Blackhawks this season, and it's likely that we're
about to see them a lot more. Thanks to realignment and the new playoff
format, we'll keep seeing them a lot in the future.
Can't we just start the series now?
739110
Colorado Avalanche
Jean-Sebastien Giguere leaning toward retirement after season
Adrian Dater
03/23/2014 12:01:00 AM MDT
These are the final days for Jean-Sebastien Giguere in an Avalanche uniform
and, quite possibly, in any NHL uniform. The Avs have informed the
36-year-old goalie he's not in their plans for next season, preferring that
Swiss rookie Reto Berra serve as the backup to Semyon Varlamov in the
near future.
The Avs' only acquisition at the trade deadline was the 27-year-old Berra,
which could have created a tense situation in the dressing room. Here was a
proud, former Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe winner suddenly having to
share roster space with an unproven youngster. Giguere could have gotten
upset, and many might have thought it justified.
But Giguere doesn't want to go out an angry man. He has put his personal
feelings aside and will do what is best for the team, which includes sharing as
much wisdom as he can with Berra before he hangs up his skates.
"You could choose to be bitter and cranky, or you could choose to be a
professional and enjoy the time you have left. I want to take it day to day and
make the most of it," Giguere said. "It's not (Berra's) fault, and it's not my
fault. It's just the way it is. He's a great guy, so I have nothing bad to say
about him."
Still, Giguere said it stung a bit when he heard of Berra's acquisition. Had the
Avs suddenly lost all confidence in him the rest of the season? Would he
even be part of the team anymore? Those were questions going through
Giguere's mind when he sat down with Avalanche coach Patrick Roy shortly
after the trade for a frank discussion.
"It was an honest conversation, and sometimes honest ones aren't always
the easiest," said Giguere, who has 261 victories in his career, with a Stanley
Cup in 2007 with Anaheim and a Conn Smythe in 2003 with the then-Mighty
Ducks despite losing to the New Jersey Devils. "But it was a good
conversation in the sense that there was no secret as to where I stood, no
gray area. If anything, I appreciate the talk that we had, because a lot of
coaches sometimes tend to steer away from honesty, because it's not always
an easy way to go.
Patrick will tell you how it is, and sometimes as a player that's all you want.
You want to know how it really is."
To answer the question: No, Roy has not given up on Giguere. Roy said
Friday that Giguere will suit up as the backup goalie in the playoffs, not Berra.
One injury to Varlamov and Giguere would go back to being the Avs' best
hope for a Stanley Cup.
"We can certainly use his experience as a playoff goalie who has won a
Stanley Cup," Roy said. "He's been good for Varly all year, and they've had a
great relationship, and so I'm planning on using Jiggy as my backup."
That has softened some of the blow to Giguere's pride, and while he said he
has not decided to retire, he said he's leaning that way regardless what
happens the rest of the season. Giguere has part-ownership in a junior team
in Montreal, the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, and plans to return there with
his family when he's done playing. He knows that could happen in a few
weeks, but there is peace in his voice about the possibility.
"I've been very lucky and had a career better than I ever thought I would,"
Giguere said. "Even when I was a young adult, I never really felt like I was
good enough to play in this league. But I was always well-coached with
Francois Allaire. I owe him so much. And I played with some amazing
players. So it's been so far, up to this day, a great ride."
739111
Colorado Avalanche
Adrian Dater’s spotlight on Predators defenseman Seth Jones
Adrian Dater
When: The Avalanche travels to Music City for a game Tuesday against the
Nashville Predators, who almost certainly won’t make the playoffs this
season.
What’s up: Jones, drafted fourth overall by Nashville last year after a massive
buildup that many assumed would make him the top pick by the Avalanche,
isn’t part of the Calder Trophy conversation. But he’s only 19, with a bright
future.
Background: Jones spent a lot of his youth in Denver. He’s the son of former
Nuggets forward Popeye Jones. He played his junior hockey in Portland,
Ore., leading the Winterhawks to the Memorial Cup Finals last year. Portland
lost to Nathan MacKinnon and the Halifax Mooseheads.
Dater’s take: I haven’t received many e-mails in quite a while from Avalanche
fans complaining that the team drafted MacKinnon instead of Jones.
Forwards typically make better draft picks in the No. 1 slot than defensemen,
but Jones is going to be a good player in the NHL. Defensemen typically take
longer to blossom than forwards. But has Jones’ rookie season been
disappointing? Yes. His minus-23 rating is the second-worst among the
Predators (forward Eric Ny- strom is at minus-24) and among the worst in the
NHL.
739112
Colorado Avalanche
Adam Foote and Sergei Krivokrasov helping U16 and U14 Colorado
Thunderbirds to triple-A nationals
Mike Chambers
Former Avalanche defenseman Adam Foote, now the team’s defensive
coach, and fellow longtime NHLer Sergei Krivokrasov — who played 450
NHL regular-season games after being selected 12th overall by the
Blackhawks in the 1992 draft — are going to USA Hockey’s Tier I national
championships with the Colorado Thunderbirds.
Foote is a U16 assistant coach under former University of Denver forward
Angelo Ricci, who also is the Thunderbirds’ director, and Krivokrasov is the
head coach of the U14 team. Those teams will travel to Green Bay on April 1
and participate in the April 2-6 nationals of youth hockey’s highest level.
Foote son, Cal, plays on the U16 team, and Adam was head coach of the
T-Birds’ U13 team, with Joe Sakic serving as an assistant. Nolan Foote and
Chase Sakic were on that team, but nationals are not offered for that age
group.
Renowned Denver-based NHL agent Kurt Overhardt is also involved with the
T-Birds. His son, Alex, is captain of the U16 team. Also, DU recruit Troy Terry
is an assistant captain on the U16s.
Ricci’s U16 team in 2010 became Colorado’s first Tier I, triple-A national
champion. That team consisted of many players currently playing NCAA or
major-junior hockey, including DU’s Josiah Didier. The captain of that team,
Landon Smith, recently concluded an 43-goal league MVP season for the
Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the British Columbia Hockey League and is
heading to Quinnipiac.
Good luck to these hard-working kids!
739113
Columbus Blue Jackets
Michael Arace commentary | Rick Nash gets told: You’re not needed
team now that he is gone. They are tougher. They delivered that message in
a personal way last night.
Nash won the game, and good for the Rangers for that.
There are more to come, and they will be big, and not just for Nash.
Michael Arace
Saturday March 22, 2014 7:18 AM
Michael Arace is a sports reporter for
The Dispatch.
Columbus Dispatch LOADED: 03.23.2014
Through a lockout and a shortened season, through another half-season and
an Olympic break, Columbus has waited for this. Since July 23, 2012, Blue
Jackets fans have anticipated the return of Rick Nash, the Jackets’ all-time
leader in games played, goals, assists and points, the former face of the
franchise.
His greeting party was Sergei Bobrovsky, and Bob’s message was: “Get the
hell out of my crease.”
Nash had his ankles chopped out from under him. He had a goal waved off
after he ran through Bobrovsky. He had his stick tossed up the ice after a
whistle. He nearly touched off a line brawl, and he was goaded into a fight.
If George Matthews were calling it: “Rick Nash, as in slash.”
“Old-time hockey,” said Glen Sather, the Rangers’ general manager, as he
sauntered down the hall, smiling, after the game.
The Jackets wanted to make two statements on this night. They wanted to let
Nash know, up close and personal, that his former team had been
reconstituted. And they wanted two critical points. They went 1 for 2.
Former Jacket Derick Brassard scored the winning goal in the middle of the
third period, Carl Hagelin added an empty-net goal in the waning seconds of
regulation, and Nash’s
Rangers defeated the Jackets 3-1 in Nationwide Arena.
A standing-room crowd of 18,513 took it in, and the atmosphere was electric.
The Jackets’ roster is dotted with former Rangers, and vice versa. The two
teams are fighting for playoff bids in the Metropolitan Division. Third place
was the prize on the line, and the Rangers staked a temporary claim.
There was a lot of talk, in both locker rooms, that the two points were the
most-important thing. That is true. But this was about Nash, too. It was about
Nash not only in the stands, but on the ice. That much was plain from his first
shift.
In the fourth minute, Ryan Johansen checked Nash to the ice. In the seventh
minute, during a TV timeout, a tribute to Nash was shown on the big screen.
The fans gave him a standing ovation, and rightly so. This isn’t Jeff Carter
we’re talking about. Thanks for the memories.
Get out of Bob’s crease. In the 17th minute, Nash parked his rear a bit too
close to Bobrovsky’s mask, and Bob went Hextall. He put his paddle around
Nash’s ankles and shoved, and Nash went down in a heap, to better see the
welcome mat, one must presume.
Late in the second period, Nash roared in on Bobrovsky and roared right
through him. Nash’s momentum carried him into
Bobrovsky, and his knee dinged Bob’s head. Although the puck wound up in
the net, the goal was waved off, presumably because of the incidental
interference.
Nash lost his stick on the play. After the whistle, Bobrovsky appeared to hold
out the stick to Nash — and then knocked it away. Psych. That set off Nash.
He gave Bobrovsky a hearty shove, and it nearly ignited a battle royale.
“He had his stick in my gear, so I just pushed it,” Bobrovsky said. “It’s not my
stick. I did what I needed to do.”
Calvert lined up next to Nash for the faceoff to start the third period. Calvert
was chirping. He hooked Nash down. Nash held onto Calvert’s stick. Then,
they had at it.
“He took a cheap shot on our goalie, and we didn’t have a chance to respond
because the linesmen had stepped in,” Calvert said. “We stick up for each
other, and that was my chance, so I took it.”
The Jackets have established a wholly different identity in the past 12
months. Not only have they learned to win without Nash, but they are a better
739114
Rangers 3, Blue Jackets 1: That punch by Rick Nash might ignite a rivalry
Aaron Portzline
Saturday March 22, 2014 7:19 AM
Nationwide Arena became a theater of the surreal last night.
In a game with major playoff implications — that alone makes it unusual for
many fans in Columbus — the New York Rangers emerged with a 3-1 victory
over the Blue Jackets before a standing-room-only crowd of 18,513, scoring
three goals in the third period after the Jackets took a 1-0 lead.
But the third-periods goals won’t be what fans remember many years from
now.
Rick Nash, whose raw passion for winning often was questioned during his
10 years with the Blue Jackets, played his first game here since he was
traded to the New York Rangers two years ago, and he was barely
recognizable.
Once the “Welcome Back Rick Nash” message was played on the
scoreboard — Nash drew a standing ovation and more cheers than boos —
he became the focal point of a highly physical game, and by the end of the
night, he was booed whenever he touched the puck.
Is this really happening?
Nash nearly sparked a brawl in the second period after his second flare-up
with Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky led to Nash punching
Bobrovsky in the face. It spilled over into the third, when Nash fought Jackets
left winger Matt Calvert coming out of the opening faceoff.
Nash said Calvert vowed he was “coming at him no matter what,” and Calvert
called Nash — his former captain — “gutless” for his jab at Bobrovsky.
Bobrovsky could be seen smiling after Nash throat-punched him and the 10
players bear-hugged, and he was still able to smile in the dressing room after
allowing two goals on five shots in the third period.
For amid all of the mayhem, and despite the two lost points to a Metropolitan
Division rival, the Blue Jackets might have found what they’ve never been
able to sustain — a rival.
“I would say we’re creating that here, a tough, tough rivalry,” Bobrovsky said.
“And it’s so much fun. To play those games, it’s unbelievable.”
The Blue Jackets took a 1-0 lead at 1:12 of the third when Nick Foligno
picked off a careless pass by Rangers forward Benoit Pouliot in the Rangers’
zone. Foligno’s goal was his 18th of the season.
The Rangers pulled even only 44 seconds later when Derek Stepan’s shot
went off Jackets center Artem Anisimov to beat Bobrovsky.
Former Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard made it 2-1 at 11:31 of the third
when he scored from the side of the net off Bobrovsky’s rump.
The Blue Jackets got no help from their power play again — 0 for 3, and now
0 for 30 dating to March 4 — and lost a chance to tie it when Brandon
Dubinsky’s shot hit a post behind Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist and
skidded out to safety.
The win pushed the Rangers into third place in the Metropolitan Division and
tumbled the Blue Jackets to fourth place and the second wild-card spot.
The two clubs do not play again this regular season, but …
If they finished second and third in the Metro — Pittsburgh has long since run
away from the pack — they’d meet in the first round.
Whoo, boy.
“With all the former Rangers on our team and all the former Blue Jackets on
their team, it creates (a rivalry),” Blue Jackets coach Todd Richards said.
“And the way this game went, it added to it.”
739115
Blue Jackets notebook: Rick Nash fights former teammate Matt Calvert
Shawn Mitchell
March 22, 2014 7:18 AM
Former Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash had a pretty good idea of what to
expect when he made his return to Nationwide Arena last night.
There would be cheers. There would be boos. There would be playoff-race
hockey.
But Nash certainly didn’t expect to fight former teammate Matt Calvert near
center ice moments after the puck dropped to start the third period. The
fracas stunned and delighted both benches and a sell-out crowd.
It was Nash’s seventh fight in 11 seasons.
“I knew it was going to be a playoff atmosphere,” Nash said. “I wouldn’t
expect to push the goalie to start a fight, and then to have to fight myself. I
didn’t expect that.”
Nash, who is 5 inches taller and 26 pounds heavier than Calvert, said he had
to “own up to my end of the bargain” after striking Jackets goalie Sergei
Bobrovsky in the throat after crashing Bobrovsky’s net late in the second
period.
That involved dealing with Calvert’s response, which Nash said consisted of
“two cross checks to the head, the slew foot and the fact that he said he’s
going at me no matter what, (that) he doesn’t care. That’s enough to set me
off.”
Calvert said Nash made a “gutless move” by lashing out at Bobrovsky, who
had flipped Nash’s stick away from him after they collided.
Nash “had to pay for what he did,” Calvert said.
“He took a cheap shot on our goalie. I’m glad it happened. We stick up for
each other. The outcome was disappointing, but you have to move on.”
Nash said Bobrovsky took two whacks at him earlier in the game, one of
which knocked him off his skates.
Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist said he thought he might have to get
involved when the feud boiled over in the second.
“It looked like (Bobrovsky) had punched our guy,” Lundqvist said. “I wasn’t
sure what happened, but it looked like he was getting involved. I wasn’t going
to let it be six on five down there, but he skated away, and I skated away.
“Lucky him.”
Umberger out again
Jackets coach Todd Richards used the same lineup as he did in a 3-2 victory
over Montreal on Thursday, making R.J. Umberger a healthy scratch for the
second straight game.
The Jackets did not get a power-play goal for the eighth game in a row,
extending a season-long drought.
Umberger has eight power-play goals. No other Blue Jacket has more than
four.
Slap shot
Rangers defenseman and former Blue Jacket John Moore was knocked out
of the game after he took a crushing hit by Jackets forward Blake Comeau
midway through the first period. Moore returned in the second but did not
play in the third.
739116
Blake Comeau not about to change his game after suspension
Dan Kamal
MAR 22, 2014 1:56p ET
And the hits just keep on coming.
Yep, it's that time year in the NHL. Points are precious, and the games are
tougher to play. They're "heavier," meaning more body contact, and space is
harder to navigate. Players who don't normally play a very physical game are
having to adjust, whether it be in the battles along the wall or in the
high-traffic areas near the net in each zone. For Blue Jackets winger Blake
Comeau, though, this time of the season is just more of the same.
"I think I just have to play the same way," said Comeau. "I feel like I've been
playing pretty physical hockey all season. That's when I'm playing my best
hockey. That's when I'm engaged in the game and involved, is when I'm
playing physical hockey. Also, I think it gives my teammates some energy,
and a bit of a boost and some room for my linemates, so that's what I want to
keep doing."
That doesn't mean the Saskatchewan native hasn't been noticing the
increased physicality of the games being played over the past few weeks. He
knows it's part of the landscape now, as teams that are in -- or close to -- the
playoff mix battle to establish their turf.
"I think it's a little more tight-checking from every team and more physical,
especially the teams that are in the playoff race and the teams we're fighting
with for positioning in the playoffs," he mentioned. "I expect that's the way it's
going to be for the rest of the season."
Comeau has always been a physical player, and earlier this month, he found
himself in the "principal's office" after a hit on Detroit defenseman Brendan
Smith. The result of the NHL review of that hit was a two-game suspension
for the forward, the first in his eight-year NHL career. The sanction was a bit
of a surprise to Comeau, who felt he held up on the hit when Smith turned
into it at the last moment.
Tweets by @dankamal
"I think it was a combination of Brendan knowing I was coming, but when he
did turn, he put himself in a vulnerable position," Comeau explained. "When I
saw that, I let up a little bit more, and I felt like it could have been a lot worse.
"I take a lot of pride in not being a dirty player," he continued. "I play a
physical game and I had never been suspended before. I play hard, but I play
clean, and that's what I want to continue to do. I can't play with hesitation in
my game, or I won't be in the lineup very long. So I've got to continue to just
keep doing what I'm doing, playing physical, put what happened in the past,
and move forward.
"The suspension was an unfortunate thing, especially since I was just getting
back in the lineup and getting some momentum, and then having to go
through that. That being said, I'm excited to be back."
He's also excited to be battling again for the first playoff appearance of his
NHL career. Comeau has played over 400 games in the NHL, but has never
played for Lord Stanley's Cup. These games are a hint for him of what
playoffs at the highest level of hockey may be like. And, he admits, it's a lot of
fun.
"Oh, it is for sure," he smiled. "It seems as though it doesn't matter who you're
playing, whether you're fighting with someone for the playoff spot or you're
playing a team that's maybe a little farther back. The points are still really
important, and if you lose a couple of games in a row, and other teams win,
you can drop some ground that you've made up.
"So we don't want to let off the gas pedal; we want to keep playing the way
that we are, keep trying to continue to climb in the standings and take every
game like it's the most important one in the season."
These days, every game is exactly that.
foxsportsohio.com LOADED: 03.23.2014
739117
Dallas Stars
Stars go down early to Senators, fight back to break losing streak
Staff Writer
22 March 2014 05:19 PM
Trevor Daley and Jamie Benn scored third-period goals to help the Dallas
Stars rally for a 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
Dallas snapped a four-game losing streak (0-3-1) and sent the Senators to
their sixth consecutive defeat (0-5-1), tying Ottawa's longest skid this season.
Jordie Benn had two assists for the Stars. Cody Eakin had tied the game with
a second-period goal. Kari Lehtonen made 26 saves in his second game
since returning from a head injury sustained on March 11 inDallas' previous
victory.
Erik Karlsson netted Ottawa's goal in the first period.
Daley's goal, following a brief power play, came after Senators goalie Robin
Lehner stopped Colton Sceviour's shot. Dallas' Ray Whitney retrieved the
puck and passed it to Daley.
Jamie Benn reached 30 goals for the first time in his five NHL seasons.
He took a pass from Tyler Seguin at the top of the left circle and fired a shot
into the upper left corner of the net.
Leaner made 39 saves against Dallas, which had a 42-27 shots advantage.
Dallas outshot Ottawa 17-7 in the first period, but the Senators scored the
only goal.
Colin Greening made a pass from the top of the right circle to the high slot to
Erik Karlsson, who fired a shot past Lehtonen at 3:27.
Dallas failed to score on three power plays in the second but the Stars broke
through during 4-on-4 play with 4:53 left in the period.
Lehner stopped Valeri Nichushkin's attempt as he skated across the crease,
but Eakin poked the rebound out from under the goalie to tie it.
NOTES: C Shawn Horcoff returned for Dallas after missing four games
because of a broken finger. LW Erik Cole's streak of 269 consecutive games
played ended because of an upper-body injury. He is day to day. . Despite
their recent struggles, the Stars are 6-1-1 in their last eight home games.
They are 5-1 in games in which defenseman Daley has scored. . Seguin
extended his point streak to eight games (six goals, nine assists). . Ottawa
defenseman Karlsson has points in six consecutive games (two goals, six
assists). . In the teams' previous four games, they allowed 39 goals and 262
shots combined.
Dallas Morning News LOADED: 03.23.2014
739118
Dallas Stars
After recovering from concussion, Lehtonen not shying away from contact
MIKE HEIKA
22 March 2014 10:15 PM
Kari Lehtonen had some pretty good tests Saturday.
The Stars goalie, who suffered a concussion March 8 against Minnesota,
was bumped a couple of times by Ottawa players and ended up in a couple of
scrums as his teammates protected him, but said he had no concerns about
traffic around the net or the danger of suffering another concussion.
"No, not really, it's still the same game," Lehtonen said.
While Lehtonen has become a little more aggressive in defending the crease
throughout the season, he has naturally been a player who is not going to get
into a confrontation. He said that's especially important with the team
needing to gather as many points as possible.
"I try to stay calm, especially when the score is favoring us. If it was the other
way, I might do something," Lehtonen said. "It's nice that they're protecting
me and doing all they can, so I can focus on being a goalie."
Lehtonen stopped 26 shots Saturday after allowing five goals in his first
game back from the concussion in a 5-1 loss at Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
"I felt good in Pittsburgh, but the result wasn't good," he said. "I knew I
needed to keep focusing on every shift, every puck. Today, I got a couple of
good bounces, a couple of posts. The end result was really good, so I have to
be happy about that."
Stars coach Lindy Ruff said he sees Lehtonen as the same player who was
on an 8-2-2 run just a month ago.
"I'm going to treat him as absolutely normal," Ruff said. "He's been back for
two games and had a good practice in between them. It's full-go right now. It
looked to me like he was locked in today. He was focused and didn't pay a lot
of attention to a couple of bumps, and there are going to be a lot of bumps
along the way."
739119
Dallas Stars
Modano, Nieuwendyk, Turco, Lehtinen, Belfour, more play together in charity
game
MIKE HEIKA
22 March 2014 10:01 PM
After Saturday's game, the Stars held an alumni charity game benefiting an
Allen family recently involved in a tragic crash. While traveling to a hockey
tournament in November, James and Rebecca Stryker were killed in the
crash in Arizona, as well as 16-year-old son Travis. Austin Stryker, the twin
brother of Travis, survived.
Austin Stryker played in Saturday's game. Alumni players included Mike
Modano, Joe Nieuwendyk, Marty Turco, Jere Lehtinen, Ed Belfour, Bob
Bassen, Craig Ludwig, Stu Barnes, Jason Arnott, Greg Adams, Brent
Severyn and Landon Wilson.
Donations for the Stryker family can be made through the Stars Alumni
Association, and bids can be made on jerseys worn in the game at
dallasstars.com.
739120
Dallas Stars
He said it: Players and coaches comment after Stars' 3-1 win over Ottawa
Saturday
"It's been too long for me. It's nice to be able to chip in for the team and
relieve that top line. Sometimes the pucks aren't going in, but like I said to
chip in and help the team and get that tying goal was nice."
Stars defenseman Trevor Daley (http://bit.ly/1jgBTJS):
On today's win:
MIKE HEIKA
"This time of the year every win is important. We're kind of behind the
eight-ball but tonight put some smiles back on our faces."
23 March 2014 12:28 AM
On the tough play the rest of the season:
On getting the win:
"I think every game is going to be like that from here on in. Every team is
going for something if they're not playing for a playoff spot, they're for the
front of their jersey. No matter who we play it's going to be a tough game this
time of year, so we just got to be ready to go."
"I thought in the last two periods we started to really come around and skate
well. We missed some good chances early but I thought we stayed with it
and got a really solid night goaltending."
On looking forward to Monday's contest against Winnipeg:
On the aggressive play of the offense:
"Yeah same way they kind of took advantage of us, and it's our turn to return
the favor."
"I think the first goal was just an indication of that. I thought Val (Nichushkin)
did a terrific job of taking it to the net and (Eakin) hung around and found the
loose puck laying there. We had more plays around the front of the net and
more people there. We didn't get pushed outside as a team, I thought we
were determined to get inside and create some of those scrambles that are
pretty chaotic."
Senators head coach Paul MacLean (http://bit.ly/1gKJ5WH):
On the play of Lehtonen:
"I'm going to treat him as absolutely normal. He's been back for two games
and had a good practice in between them. It's full-go right now. It looked to
me like he was locked-in today. He was focused and didn't pay a lot of
attention to a couple of bumps and there are going to be a lot of bumps along
the way. It's desperation now as people go to the net hard. There's going
to be people falling into you and taking you out but it's going to be his job to
battle through that."
On the status of Erik Cole:
"He's day-to-day. He just suffered a little minor injury in the game and we
didn't know until this morning whether he'd be able to go. We'll get some
further tests on him tomorrow. It's kind of the same thing he was hampered
with early in the year."
On the play of the team when the score was tied after the first:
"It was a great test for our team. This is just playoff hockey now the rest of
the way. You're going to have to have the ability to come back. You're
going to have to have the ability to lead the game by a goal late and hold that
lead. You're going to need some big saves at crucial times. With the
number of games we're going to play in the number of days we have, there's
going to be some ugly hockey along the way. Goaltending may pick you up,
special teams can pick you up, different individuals will have to. It really is a
good test for us."
On the resilience of the Stars:
"Our team has answered almost every call this year. From the tough stretch
we went through in January to this little bit of a tough stretch. I thought we
deserved better in Philly but didn't get it. We've just got to stay with it and
got rewarded for that. I think, at different times, you're going to find out
about different individuals. Tonight I thought a big part of our defense was
(Goligoski), (Daley) and (Dillon) on the physical side. We're going to need
those guys as those are the guys we're going to rely on in all the key
situations."
Stars forward Cody Eakin (http://bit.ly/1jnwrAE):
On snapping the losing streak:
"That was huge, we needed it confidence and standings wise."
On playing in a tight game:
"Those are fun games and it's a good opportunity for us. We've been on the
losing side of a few games in the past week and it was good opportunity for
us to play the way we wanted to and put a couple in and get the two at the
end of the game."
On scoring to help out top line:
On the game:
"I thought overall I didn't think that was the case tonight. But we didn't do
enough to win the game either. So at the same time, we took five minor
penalties. We didn't turn the puck over as much but we end up not doing
enough to win. We didn't defend well enough."
On whether the team is desperate right now:
"Well I think you can't skate around hoping and praying that something is
going to go your way. Usually puck luck happens when you work with the
game day in and day out, day in and day out you tend to have puck luck. So,
for me, if you don't feel you don't have any puck luck, then you're not working
hard enough on a daily basis. And you shouldn't expect a break or something
to go your way unless you're out there doing the work. If you're not doing the
work on a daily basis then it's not going to happen."
On if there was a lack of work ethic today:
"Well, for me, I didn't think that it was that. For the most part of the game the
other team was very competitive. They were in the faceoff circle a touch
better than us and I think they had the puck more than we did. We defended,
I thought, too much. I'm not sure the shot count was right. I didn't think the
feel of the game was the way the shot count was, but maybe I'm wrong. I'll
have to look at it again. But for the most part I didn't think we defended or
played terribly, but at the end of the day we didn't play hard enough and didn't
play long enough to find a way to win the game."
Senators goaltender Robin Lehner (http://bit.ly/1gKIR20):
On the game today:
"It's very hard losing. It leaves a bad taste in all of our mouths, and right now
it sucks. I thought we had decent control, but then again when we went in to
the third I think they had a lot more push then we did."
Was there a better feel for you on the ice today?
"As I said this morning, I've been working on my game because it's been a
little down. I've been in a bad stretch. I kind of get too aggressive and move
too much. I'm just trying to go back and Watch video of when I had success.
At the beginning of the season and previous seasons and I don't move as
much. I tried to get back to that today. I felt a little better, but still it's tough to
lose."
On the first goal:
"Teams that deserve to get calls get the calls, and now we don't deserve to
get calls. But yeah, I don't think the first goal was a goal, but we're not going
to get the post-and-outs, and everything is going post-and-in for us right and
we put ourselves in that situation and it's just tough for all of us."
Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson (http://bit.ly/1hSFHeU):
On the game:
"Yeah, I think, obviously, we started pretty well. We got the lead but couldn't
really follow through until the end there and they had a couple of nice goals
there to finish it off. I think we battled hard and our competing level was there,
but unfortunately we just couldn't put, again, the puck in the net."
On the team not catching any breaks down the stretch:
"Yeah, I mean I don't know what it is and I think I've said it before. In sports,
once it starts rolling against you it's hard to stop it. As of right now it seems
like all the bounces we get doesn't really end up on our sticks, or if we get a
scoring opportunity we seem to hit the post or we just don't score. And
everything against us is pretty much going in the net. I think we played more
solid in the defensive zone today, and we didn't really give up any odd-man
rushes. And the ones they got they obviously scored on."
On the play of Lehner today:
"He played really solid for us and he made some really huge stops for us
when we needed him. And that's what we need our goalies to do and I think
today he really was there for us. And the goals that went in, there's not much
to say about them unfortunately."
739121
Dallas Stars
Facing desperation, Stars dig deep, pull out two critical points against Ottawa
MIKE HEIKA
22 March 2014 09:12 PM
Facing the possibility of falling further behind in the race for the final wild-card
playoff spot in the Western Conference, the Stars on Saturday rallied with
two goals in the third period and took a 3-1 win over the Ottawa Senators.
It was an important sign in a lot of ways.
One, the Stars stopped a four-game losing streak and pushed to 33-26-11
(77 points).
Two, Dallas received depth scoring in the form of goals from Cody Eakin (his
first in 10 games) and Trevor Daley (his first in nine games).
And three, the Stars got a solid performance from Kari Lehtonen in goal with
26 saves. It was just Lehtonen’s second start since suffering a concussion
March 8.
“It was a great test for our team,” Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. “This is just
playoff hockey now the rest of the way. You’re going to have to have the
ability to come back. You’re going to have to have the ability to lead the game
by a goal late and hold that lead. You’re going to need some big saves at
crucial times.”
Dallas had a 44-27 advantage in shots on goal and showed the kind of play it
displayed earlier in the season with puck possession and an advantage in
offensive zone time. The struggles of the three-game trip were pushed aside
for at least one game.
“That was huge; we needed it confidence- and standings-wise,” Eakin said.
“Those are fun games. We’ve been on the losing side of a few games in the
past week, and it was a good opportunity for us to play the way we wanted
to.”
The game easily could have gone the other way. Dallas been struggling to
score and has made a habit of making opposing goalies look good. Ottawa’s
Robin Lehner had recorded seven straight losses and had allowed five goals
three times in his previous four games, but he was spectacular against the
Stars. He stopped 17 shots in the first period and was on his way to pushing
the shutout through two periods when Eakin finally scored.
Valeri Nichushkin carried the puck to the front of the net in a 4-on-4 situation,
and Eakin swatted in the rebound at the 15:07 mark of the second period to
tie the score at 1-1.
“It’s been too long for me,” Eakin said. “It’s nice to be able to chip in for the
team and relieve that top line.”
Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin kept their scoring runs going, as Benn
contributed the third goal and Seguin assisted. Benn has seven goals among
13 points in the last 10 games, while Seguin has 10 assists among 16 points.
The game played out easier when Dallas was able to slip into a more
balanced attack. In addition, the players who had been frustrated offensively
never let up. They sent wave after wave at the net.
“I think the first goal was an indication of that,” Ruff said of Eakin’s tally off the
rebound of Nichushkin’s drive. “We had more plays around the front of the
net and more people there. We didn’t get pushed outside as a team. I thought
we were determined to get inside and create some of those scrambles that
are pretty chaotic.”
Ruff said he believes that kind of hockey is possible for this team.
“Our team has answered almost every call this year. From the tough stretch
we went through in January to this little bit of a tough stretch,” Ruff said.
“We’ve just got to stay with it and get rewarded for that.”
739122
Dallas Stars
Daley, Benn score in 3rd to lift Stars over Senators
Mar. 22, 2014
Staff Writer
DALLAS — Trevor Daley and Jamie Benn scored third-period goals to help
the Dallas Stars rally for a 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
Dallas snapped a four-game losing streak (0-3-1) and sent the Senators to
their sixth consecutive defeat (0-5-1), tying Ottawa’s longest skid this
season.
Jordie Benn had two assists for the Stars. Cody Eakin had tied the game with
a second-period goal. Kari Lehtonen made 26 saves in his second game
since returning from a head injury suffered on March 11 in Dallas’ previous
victory.
Erik Karlsson netted Ottawa’s goal in the first period.
Daley’s goal, following a brief power play, came after Senators goalie Robin
Lehner stopped Colton Sceviour’s shot. Dallas’ Ray Whitney retrieved the
puck and passed it to Daley.
Jamie Benn reached 30 goals for the first time in his five NHL seasons.
He took a pass from Tyler Seguin at the top of the left circle and fired a shot
into the upper left corner of the net. Seguin extended his point streak to eight
games (six goals, nine assists).
Lehner made 39 saves against Dallas, which had a 42-27 shots advantage.
Dallas outshot Ottawa 17-7 in the first period, but the Senators scored the
only goal.
Colin Greening made a pass from the top of the right circle to the high slot to
Erik Karlsson, who fired a shot past Lehtonen at 3:27.
Dallas failed to score on three power plays in the second but the Stars broke
through during 4-on-4 play with 4:53 left in the period.
Lehner stopped Valeri Nichushkin’s attempt as he skated across the crease,
but Eakin poked the rebound out from under the goalie to tie it.
Despite their recent struggles, the Stars are 6-1-1 in their last eight home
games. They are 5-1 in games in which Daley has scored.
The Stars were without Erik Cole, whose streak of 269 consecutive games
played ended because of an upper-body injury. He is day to day.
Star-Telegram LOADED: 03.23.2014
739123
Detroit Red Wings
Jeff Seidel: A sudden, silent and tragic exit for Saginaw Spirit's Terry Trafford
March 23,
Jeff Seidel
TORONTO — Roy Trafford stood about 15 feet from the casket.
His son, Terry Trafford, a center who played for the junior hockey team
Saginaw Spirit, killed himself after he was cut from the team. He was 20.
Dozens of people waited in a line that stretched out the door and down a
hallway. There were teammates, former teammates, former coaches and
opponents going back more than 10 years, waiting to pay their respects.
Around the room, several of Trafford’s old jerseys were on display; and
young hockey players stood in small groups, wiping away tears.
“I’m really confused by all of this,” Roy Trafford said. “My train of thought
keeps floating away on me.”
In February, Trafford was caught using marijuana in a team hotel on a road
trip. He was sent home and eventually kicked off the Ontario Hockey League
team for repeated violations of team rules. Studies have shown that drug or
alcohol use is linked to 50% of all suicides.
But it would be a mistake to assume that getting cut was the reason he
committed suicide. Suicide experts say that it is rare for a single life event —
like a job loss or, in this case, being kicked off a team — to be the single
cause of a suicide.
But the suspension did start a dramatic series of events that led to an
eight-day disappearance and a frantic search for Trafford in two countries
before he was found dead March 11 in an SUV in a Walmart parking lot in
Saginaw Township.
“When I first tried to make sense of it, I figured it was a lifetime of highs and
not enough lows, and no balance in there,” Roy Trafford said. “When
something bad happens, there is no safety net. You are free-falling; and
that’s the way it is. This was the first time he ever got kicked off a team. It was
the first time he couldn’t play on a team that he wanted to play on. It was just
a first time for this sadness.”
While Trafford’s friends and family are struggling to understand what
happened, Roy Trafford said that his son was depressed.
“He was never diagnosed, but it runs in my family,” Roy Trafford said. “I’m
kind of the king of depression, but it didn’t take me to the level that Terry was
in.”
Research has found that mental disorders and/or substance abuse have
been found in 90% of the people who take their own lives, according to the
National Institute of Mental Health.
“Nobody saw this coming,” Saginaw Spirit team president Craig Goslin said.
“If we had, we certainly would have reversed our course and thrown our
hands around him and gotten him some help and all that. Nobody, nobody,
nobody, from his former coaches to his friends to the players on the team to
the community in Saginaw, all the kids who know him well, nobody, nobody
saw this coming.”
Elite, high-caliber athletes are trained to act mentally strong, to play through
injury and block out pain, which creates a different kind of problem in a
situation like this.
The trait that makes a great athlete — to never show weakness — is the very
thing that might keep them from seeking help.
Behavior issues
Over the last four years, Trafford had broken several team rules. In late
February, Trafford was caught using marijuana. Spirit officials had grown
increasingly concerned with his behavior and sent him home to Toronto,
hoping he could work through his issues in a family environment.
“He got sent home to reconnect with his parents and get his head
straightened on,” Roy Trafford said. “He was to stay home until the Sunday
and then go back and he would get a sit-down with the coach and GM and
get his wrists slapped.”
At least, that is what the Traffords thought would happen.
While he was suspended, Trafford spent four or five days in Toronto with his
family.
On Saturday, March 1, Terry Trafford went shopping with his father, and
there were no signs that hinted of an upcoming tragedy. After the shopping
trip, Roy Trafford left both of his cell phones in his van. This would prove to be
a small detail that would prove significant because Roy Trafford later missed
an important phone call and text message from the Saginaw Spirit front
office.
“Over the period of time that he was home, additional behavior information
came to light to the team ownership, myself included, and the decision was
made that he was not to return at this time,” Gosslin said, declining to
elaborate.
Spirit general manager Jim Paliafito contacted Trafford’s agent and told him.
Terry Trafford was sitting at the kitchen table with his father, sending text
messages to his agent and the team GM, and he didn’t tell his father that he
had been cut, even though Terry Trafford told his agent that he had told him.
Terry Trafford hid it, just as he had hid his depression.
“Terry got really ticked off, which I found out the next day,” Roy Trafford said.
“Jim (Paliafito), the GM, told me. He said that Terry used some nasty
language on him about kicking him off the team. But (Terry) never told me
that this was happening. He was just sitting in the kitchen texting. And he
went to his bedroom and he was texting. He never told me that he had been
kicked off the team.
“He told (Paliafito) what a dastardly person he was for doing this to him.”
Trying to intervene
The next morning, Terry Trafford was up early. He left for Saginaw about 11
a.m. on March 2, acting like he was rejoining his team.
“We threw his stuff in the truck and away he went,” Roy Trafford said. “I came
in the house and maybe an hour later, I’m missing him.”
Roy Trafford realized he had left his phone in the van. Before he called his
son, he noticed that he had missed several phone calls and messages from
the Spirit front office, and he discovered that his son had been cut.
Roy Trafford texted his son immediately. “I said, ‘Turn around. Come home. I
know what’s happened.’ ”
Terry Trafford texted back. He was already 40 minutes west of Toronto and
wanted to continue to Saginaw.
Roy Trafford kept texting his son and tried to put a positive spin on it.
“This was a blessing in disguise,” Roy Trafford said. “He agreed. He didn’t
want to go back there next year. There was another team that was quite
interested in him. Me? I was leaning toward having him pack it in.”
Roy Trafford wanted his son to play college hockey. Or maybe he would play
in Europe.
“He spoke the same language as me on all of this,” he said. “That he was
going to get an early start on next year’s training and catch up on his old
training partners and get ready either for a university or his team next year.”
Trafford started playing for the Spirit in 2010. He had NHL-caliber speed but
wasn’t much of a scoring threat because he didn’t shoot enough. He played
54 games but had only eight goals and 24 assists, ranking 10th on the team
with 32 points. In 22 playoff games, he had just one goal for Saginaw.
But his speed was his strength, and that speed and skill certainly gave him
options for the future.
“This was just the beginning for him,” Goslin said. “He would have had one
more year left in our league. Whether that would have been with us or with
another team that would have been up to Terry, if he was going to change his
course of behavior. More than likely, that would have been with another
team. Our general manager voiced that to Terry and to his father that we will
find a place for him to play. Our general manager told us that he actually had
a team in the Central League that he could potentially play for right now. This
was just the beginning. That’s why it is so tragic and devastating.”
Final days
After returning to Saginaw on March 2, Trafford hung out with some of his
teammates in Saginaw. “He went to see his friends,” Roy Trafford said.
Roy Trafford and his son texted each other several times that night.
Roy Trafford said one of them read: ‘Tomorrow morning, I’m going to go grab
my equipment and then I’m gone.’ ”
“That’s it,” Roy Trafford said. “I never had another word. I just said, ‘OK, I’ll
see you when you come home.’ ”
Again, Roy Trafford didn’t see any warning signs that something horrific was
about to happen: “He wasn’t telling me, ‘I’m going to go to the arena and
pound the crap out of everybody in there.’ He didn’t tell me that kind of thing.
It was just ordinary conversation, that’s all it was.”
The next morning, on March 3, Terry Trafford went to the Dow Event Center
in Saginaw to pick up his equipment. Trafford acted respectful, thanking his
coaches.
“He met with our assistant coach, our head coach, our equipment manager
and our certified trainer,” Goslin said. “He had his exit physical. He was
helped by both our equipment manager and our trainer to pack his
belongings and said good- bye to the team personnel that he had met with. I
tried to reach him shortly after and was unable to.”
Roy Trafford added one more detail, which may or may not be significant. He
said that his son’s clothes were at the arena, the clothes he had left at the
Goslin residence, where he had stayed since September.
“I think that just was disastrous to see that,” Roy Trafford said.
He had been staying with the Goslin family since September.
“That was a good-bye kiss,” Roy Trafford said. “That wasn’t on his plan. That
would be in nobody’s plan.”
Terry Trafford packed up his stuff and drove away, and he seemed to
disappear. Both of this cell phones were turned off and there was no sign of
him.
Frantic search
When Terry Trafford did not return home from Saginaw on March 3, Roy
Trafford was worried. He thought: “We have a disaster on our hands here.”
The next eight days were agonizing and confusing. For a time they thought
he was in Canada, and they searched for him in Toronto. The family went on
a Canadian TV station, begging for his return.
“I just want my boy to come home,” his mother, Bev Trafford said, as she
cried with both hands over her face. “I texted him. I e-mailed him. ‘OK. Where
are you? We are all waiting for you. Give us a call.’
“Nothing in return. It’s like, everything has just vanished off the face of the
Earth. Nothing, in terms of connection, and that’s not like him.”
On the Toronto broadcast, Trafford’s girlfriend, Skye Cieszlak, became
emotional. “He didn’t know what his life was without hockey and he hated it,”
Cieszlak said. “And he asked me to run away with him, and I said, ‘Give me a
couple of months to save money and yeah, I’ll run away with you.’ ”
Then, there was a twist. Toronto police discovered that he had not returned
to Canada. There was a misunderstanding about what vehicle he drove
across the border.
On March 11, Terry Trafford was found dead in his vehicle in Saginaw.
“My impression on the whole thing is, he was dead within an hour or two after
leaving the area,” Roy Trafford said. “That was it. He drove down the street. If
you look over to the left, there is a clover leaf onto the highway that you take
home. If you turn right, you go into Saginaw, and he turned right. And he
wasn’t supposed to. He was supposed to turn left, onto the highway. And that
was it.”
No warning signs
Goslin said that he did not see any depression in Trafford.
“If we had seen any indication that he was depressed, we would have acted
on it,” he said. “Nobody saw any depression in him.”
Trafford had lived with Goslin and his wife, Karolyn, since September.
“We had all grown increasingly concerned with his behavior,” Goslin said.
“He needed some mentoring. We brought Terry in like Terry was one of our
own. My wife cooked meals for him; his friends stayed here. His friends ate
here quite often; it was weekly. Nobody ever anticipated this. We sat at the
kitchen table so many times, just talking, like families do.”
Goslin said that he and his wife had grown close with Trafford: “I was close to
him, but I feel so bad for my wife. She just walks around crying all the time.”
While Goslin’s heart was in the right place, bringing Trafford into his home,
trying to help him, it created a strange situation. How can a team president
reprimand somebody living in his own home?
“It was very hard,” he said. “Anybody who is raising a teenager understands
the dynamic of offering consequences. It’s one of the most challenging things
you can deal with, as a parent, or in this case, as a billet parent. You are
hoping that anything you do is for the betterment.”
Goslin described Trafford as “a good person; he was a good kid. He had so
much to give.”
And then, he broke down.
“Oh, I feel so bad for his family,” he said, choking up. “Our thoughts and
prayers go out to them.”
The Spirit postponed their March 12 game against Sault Ste. Marie, a game
that featured a photograph of Trafford on the ticket. When the team resumed
playing, the team chaplain traveled on the Spirit’s bus and the players wore
initials on their jerseys to honor Trafford.
“We don’t want Terry’s death to go in vain,” Goslin said. “We want to make
sure we can do all we can to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
A last salute
The funeral was held on Tuesday. Several players from Saginaw sat in the
two front rows at the funeral home. And when the funeral was done, these
young, talented, grief-stricken hockey players went outside and lifted their
sticks in the air, forming a tunnel.
The pallbearers carried the casket out of the funeral home, through that
tunnel, and a talented but troubled young man, who was blessed with NHL
speed and all the potential in the world, was laid to rest.
It’s so sad, so frustrating, it makes you want to scream.
Detroit Free Press LOADED: 03.23.2014
739124
Detroit Red Wings
Detroit 3, Minnesota 2: Red Wings on a 3-game win streak, hot pursuit of
playoff spot
March 23, 2014
Helene St. James
ST. PAUL, MINN. — The Red Wings continued to show they’re determined
to extend their playoff run, grinding away for their longest winning streak in
more than three months.
The Wings edged the Minnesota Wild, 3-2, Saturday at Xcel Energy Center,
surfacing in the last wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference after a week
that included victories over Pittsburgh and Toronto. It’s the first time since
Nov. 24-Dec. 1 that the Wings have won three games in a row.
“That’s what I like about our group the most, we’ve got some determined,
determined people,” coach Mike Babcock said. “We’ve got enough veterans,
and then we’ve got a whole bunch of kids that really compete hard.”
David Legwand and Brendan Smith each had a goal and an assist. Jakub
Kindl and Riley Sheahan each had two assists. Gustav Nyquist scored for the
fifth time in four games.
Jimmy Howard was tremendous for stretches, making a handful of saves in
the third period immediately after Nyquist had broken a 2-2 tie early in the
third period, and when the Wild got a power play with 3:27 to play.
“Howie played really good for us again, which is positive,” Babcock said. “We
had excellent specialty teams. We got a contribution from everybody. It was a
muddy track — I mean, there was no room for either team. It was check,
check, check, check. We found a way to get it done.”
The Wings had to close out the Penguins game with a penalty kill, prompting
Nyquist to joke, “Yeah, we’re talking about that on the bench, how to make it
more interesting. No, that’s the way it goes some times, but the killers the last
two games have done a great job killing those off.”
It’s easier to see the lighter side of things after such a winning week. The
Wings were 1-3 the week before, and now have a chance to go 4-0 if they
beat the Wild again tonight in Detroit.
“It’s just, go, go, go,” Niklas Kronwall said. “This is what we have to do.”
Kronwall scared his team when it looked as if he wouldn’t be going after
sliding headfirst into the boards in the first period, so when he came back
after it was 1-1, “It jump-started everybody a little bit to see him come out,”
Howard said.
Mikko Koivu made it 1-0 on a Minnesota power play when he ripped a shot
between Smith and Brian Lashoff, beating Howard cleanly. Smith replied 5
minutes later, when he collected Legwand’s rebound and threw a backhand
shot past Darcy Kuemper.
A sluggish second period picked up during special-teams play. Kindl shot the
puck toward the net from the half-wall, with Sheahan picking up the puck and
sending it into the paint for Legwand to redirect during a Detroit power play.
Howard was busy frustrating the Wild, especially Zach Parise, who wound up
with seven shots.
The Wings’ lead was leveled 15 seconds into the third period, after Johan
Franzen’s attempt to stop Charlie Coyle on a breakaway resulted in a penalty
shot. Coyle deked to his forehand, sending the puck into a half-open net.
Nyquist re-established the lead 5 minutes later, benefiting from another
strong shift by Sheahan. Smith put the puck in the net a minute later;
Babcock said it should have counted but it was waved off immediately
because of goaltender interference.
The Wings are down to a dozen games before the regular season ends.
739125
Detroit Red Wings
Young players' spark firing up their fellow Red Wings
March 23, 2914
Helene St. James
ST. PAUL, MINN. — As the young guys gain confidence, so have all the Red
Wings.
Gustav Nyquist contributed the game-winning goal and Luke Glendening
topped 18 minutes in helping the Wings top the Wild, 3-2, at Xcel Energy
Center.
Riley Sheahan had a big offensive game with two assists, and Tomas Tatar
was his usual spark plug self. Brendan Smith and Jakub Kindl had big days
on the back end, each contributing two points. Smith has played much better
since being paired with Niklas Kronwall two games ago, showing patience
with the puck.
“I don’t know if it’s because Kronner talks to him,” coach Mike Babcock said,
“but he seems to play better.”
Babcock said he didn’t think Sheahan was as good Saturday as previous
games, but it was framed as a compliment. “Sheahan is a big man who can
really play, so suddenly the expectation is different for him than the kid you
called up. You expect him to be on every day.”
Nyquist scored the winning goal after connecting on Sheahan’s kick-out
pass.
“Tats does a great job driving the other D down, and it’s his goal, really,”
Nyquist said. “I just shoot through him, I know he’s screening the goalie. I’ve
been getting some pretty good bounces out there. I just try to put the puck on
net as much as possible.”
The skill of Sheahan, Tatar and Nyquist has enabled the Wings to have a
steady second line even as the lineup is missing superstars Pavel Datsyuk
and Henrik Zetterberg.
“Our young guys are playing well for us, and I think their confidence is
growing, which is allowing everyone else to play with a lot more confidence,”
Jimmy Howard said. “The young guys are starting to believe in themselves
more and more.”
■WHEW: Kronwall missed about six minutes after sliding head-first into the
boards in the first period. “Got a little woozy, and you’ve got to go through all
the testing that you always have to do when anything happens,” he said.
“Cleared everything, and good to go.” Kronwall returned after it was 1-1,
bringing joy to teammates.
“I was like, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Howard said. “I thought he was
done. What a relief it was to see him come back over the boards.“
HELM RETURNS: Darren Helm returned after missing eight games because
of concussion. Babcock was unsure if Helm can play back-to-back games,
but Helm indicated he’d be OK.
739126
Detroit Red Wings
Detroit 3, Minnesota 2: Why the Red Wings won Saturday
March 23, 2014
Helene St. James
At Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minn.
■ IN THE FIRST PERIOD: The Wings were without Niklas Kronwall after he
slid into the boards after playing 1:41. Kyle Quincey went off for upending
Zach Parise at 5:07, and the Wild converted on the power play at 5:38, with
Mikko Koivu firing a shot between Brendan Smith and Brian Lashoff and past
Jimmy Howard. Ryan Suter went off for slashing at 10:26, and Smith used
the power play to collect David Legwand’s rebound and use a backhand for
the conversion to make it 1-1 at 10:34. Shots were 11-9 to Minnesota.
IN THE SECOND PERIOD: The Wings had one shot on Darcy Kuemper
when Tomas Tatar was called for hooking at 4:57. Howard made a good
save on a tip-in attempt by Matt Moulson. Daniel Alfredsson got the second
shot around 8 minutes in, firing from the slot to force a glove save. Jakub
Kindl tested Kuemper with 13 minutes left, sending a slap shot in from the
right side. Clayton Stoner went to the penalty box at 16:38. The Wings went
ahead, 2-1, at 17:24, when Legwand got his stick on the puck after Riley
Sheahan had sent it to the crease from the left side of the net. Shots were
19-17 to Minnesota.
IN THE THIRD PERIOD: Charlie Coyle was awarded a penalty shot after
being hauled down by Johan Franzen on a breakaway, and he scored 15
seconds into the period with a forehand shot after Howard had committed to
the left side of the net. Gustav Nyquist scored at 5:29. Smith put the puck into
Minnesota’s net at 6:30, but the goal was immediately waved off as officials
ruled Franzen had made contact with Kuemper. Kronwall went to the penalty
box with 3:27 remaining in regulation, but the penalty killers and Howard held
the Wild at bay even as Minnesota pulled its goaltender. Shots were 30-30.
UP NEXT: Tonight against the Wild at the Joe.
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Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings must enjoy playing against the Wild. They're 31-9-3-5
all-time against the Wild and 15-5-2-2 at Xcel Energy Center.
Wings Gustav Nyquist's prolific goalscoring prompts what-ifs
…The Red Wings did an excellent job stifling the Wild's top line of Jason
Pominville, Mikael Granlund and Zach Parise. It was the first time since
March 8 the line didn't score a point and second time since Feb. 4.
Ted Kulfan
"We didn't give them much," Howard said. "They've been dangerous."
St. Paul, Minn. – Sometimes it's fair to wonder what type of season Gustav
Nyquist would be having if he had begun the season in the NHL.
Nyquist continued his torrid pace Saturday scoring the tie-breaking goal in a
3-2 Red Wings victory.
Remember, Nyquist spent the first 21 games of the season in Grand Rapids
as the Red Wings were hamstrung with salary cap issues and having too
many forwards.
Since being recalled, he has a team-high 21 goals in 45 games, and since
Jan. 20 leads the NHL scoring 16 in that span.
"I've been getting some pretty good bounces," said Nyquist, who has five
goals in the last four games. "A couple of them have been pretty good
deflections. Obviously getting some great passes, too.
"I just try to put the puck on the net as much as possible."
Nyquist, skating on a line with Riley Sheahan and Tomas Tatar, has provided
added offense after the top line of David Legwand centering Johan Franzen
and Daniel Alfredsson,
Sheahan set up two goals (Nyquist's, and Legwand), as the Red Wings
continued to roll despite being riddled with injuries throughout the lineup.
"He's growing into a great centerman here," said Nyquist of Sheahan's
development. "He's heavy on the puck and real good in the faceoff zone and
makes plays."
The way the Red Wings have won three games this week against teams in
the playoff picture — Toronto, Pittsburgh, Minnesota — is a sign confidence
is growing.
"It's great to see guys stepping up," Nyquist said. "We've got on a bit of a roll
and responded well."
Narrow escape
Already decimated with injuries, the Red Wings averted another major one in
the first period.
Niklas Kronwall slid into the boards while battling for a puck with the Wild's
Mikko Koivu.
Kronwall slid neck and shoulder first into the end boards and appeared to
have either injured himself in that area, or possibly sustained a concussion.
He looked woozy skating off the ice, while being helped by the training staff.
But Kronwall only missed some shifts before returning later in the period.
"You have to be kidding me," said goalie Jimmy Howard, of his first reaction
upon seeing Kronwall go down. "The sort of way he went in, it didn't look
pretty. I thought he was done.
"But what a relief it was to see him come back over the boards. That
jump-started everyone a little bit to see him come (back) out."
Helm returns
Darren Helm returned to the lineup after missing eight games with
concussion-like symptoms.
"I felt all right, we'll see how the body feels tomorrow," said Helm, who
admitted it'll take a few games to get re-acclimated to the pace. "Everything,
the speed, the positioning, the lungs as well, it's going to take a few games
probably.
"I have to push myself each game and get better as time goes on.
"It's going to take a little while to get used to it again."
With Helm in the lineup, Teemu Pulkkinen was scratched.
Ice chips
…The Red Wings appeared to have a 4-2 lead in the third period but
Brendan Smith's goal was wiped out by a goalie interference call against
Johan Franzen.
"Our goal should have counted for sure, but I have the replay and they
(referees) don't," Babcock said.
Detroit News LOADED: 03.23.2014
739128
Detroit Red Wings
Niklas Kronwall slid awkwardly into the end boards early in the period,
appearing to hurt either his neck or shoulder, or possibly suffering a
concussion.
Gustav Nyquist's hot hand gives Red Wings win over Wild
After missing several shifts, Kronwall returned later in the period.
Ted Kulfan
"Just got a little dinged," Kronwall said. "I got up and was a little woozy and
you have to go through testing. But I got cleared and I was ready to go."
St. Paul, Minn. — They continue to get it done, probably beyond all reason.
The Red Wings are decimated with injuries, have a bunch of kids up from
Grand Rapids, yet continue to win and earn important points in the standings.
Saturday, it was the suddenly torrid Gustav Nyquist scoring in the third period
to break a tie and send the Red Wings to a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota
Wild.
Don't look now, but the Red Wings (33-24-13, 79 points) have won four of
their last five games (4-1-0) and moved past Columbus into a wild card
position in the Eastern Conference.
"It's good to see our young guys playing well for us," said goalie Jimmy
Howard, who earned the victory with 28 saves. "Their confidence is growing,
which is allowing everybody else to play with a lot more confidence.
"The young guys are playing more and more and they're starting to believe in
themselves a little bit more. It's a fun time of year. Not only do you see what
you have now, but the future looks bright around here."
What coach Mike Babcock likes is the competitive nature of this particular
group.
"We have a bunch of kids who really compete hard," Babcock said. "They're
doing what they're doing and that's all you can ask.
"That's what I like with this group, we have a lot of determined, determined
people. When I watch (Luke) Glendening, (Drew) Miller, or (Darren) Helm, on
the penalty kill, they're digging in and competitive and that stuff is contagious
for the whole group."
Nyquist scored his 21st goal at 5:19 of third period. Since being recalled, he
has a team-high 21 goals in 45 games, and since Jan. 20 leads the NHL by
scoring 16 in that span.
Nyquist took a pass from Riley Sheahan and whistled a shot from inside the
circle that beat goalie Darcy Kuemper.
"I just it put it on net and it was nice to see it go in," Nyquist said.
David Legwand and Brendan Smith added a power-play goal and assist, and
Jakub Kindl and Sheahan had two assists for the Red Wings.
Legwand's power-play goal at 17:24 of the second period broke a 1-1 tie.
It was Legwand's 12th goal, but second with the Red Wings since being
acquired at the trade deadline.
Legwand came cruising through the slot and one-timed a nice feed from
Sheahan at the side of the net.
But Minnesota's Charlie Coyle tied the game 2-2 just 15 seconds into the
third period on a penalty shot.
Coyle was dragged down by Johan Franzen driving to the net, earning the
call. Coyle then scored the tying goal, wrapping the puck around Howard for
his eighth goal.
But the Red Wings remained patient and were rewarded.
"It was a muddy track. There weren't a lot of chances for both teams, just
check, check, check," Babcock said. "We found a way to get it done. It was a
good win for our team and now we have to get ready for them tomorrow
(Sunday, 7:30 p.m. NBC Sports Network/97.1 ).
Smith and Minnesota forward Mikko Koivu traded first period power-play
goals.
A suddenly resurgent Red Wings power play converted on both opportunities
they had (four goals in the last four games).
The Red Wings escaped a potentially yet another damaging in the first
period.
739129
Detroit Red Wings
Niklas Kronwall slid awkwardly into the end boards early in the period,
appearing to hurt either his neck or shoulder, or possibly suffering a
concussion.
Gustav Nyquist's hot hand gives Red Wings win over Wild
After missing several shifts, Kronwall returned later in the period.
March 22, 2014 at 8:20 pm
"Just got a little dinged," Kronwall said. "I got up and was a little woozy and
you have to go through testing. But I got cleared and I was ready to go."
Ted Kulfan
St. Paul, Minn. — They continue to get it done, probably beyond all reason.
The Red Wings are decimated with injuries, have a bunch of kids up from
Grand Rapids, yet continue to win and earn important points in the standings.
Saturday, it was the suddenly torrid Gustav Nyquist scoring in the third period
to break a tie and send the Red Wings to a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota
Wild.
Don't look now, but the Red Wings (33-24-13, 79 points) have won four of
their last five games (4-1-0) and moved past Columbus into a wild card
position in the Eastern Conference.
"It's good to see our young guys playing well for us," said goalie Jimmy
Howard, who earned the victory with 28 saves. "Their confidence is growing,
which is allowing everybody else to play with a lot more confidence.
"The young guys are playing more and more and they're starting to believe in
themselves a little bit more. It's a fun time of year. Not only do you see what
you have now, but the future looks bright around here."
What coach Mike Babcock likes is the competitive nature of this particular
group.
"We have a bunch of kids who really compete hard," Babcock said. "They're
doing what they're doing and that's all you can ask.
"That's what I like with this group, we have a lot of determined, determined
people. When I watch (Luke) Glendening, (Drew) Miller, or (Darren) Helm, on
the penalty kill, they're digging in and competitive and that stuff is contagious
for the whole group."
Nyquist scored his 21st goal at 5:19 of third period. Since being recalled, he
has a team-high 21 goals in 45 games, and since Jan. 20 leads the NHL by
scoring 16 in that span.
Nyquist took a pass from Riley Sheahan and whistled a shot from inside the
circle that beat goalie Darcy Kuemper.
"I just it put it on net and it was nice to see it go in," Nyquist said.
David Legwand and Brendan Smith added a power-play goal and assist, and
Jakub Kindl and Sheahan had two assists for the Red Wings.
Legwand's power-play goal at 17:24 of the second period broke a 1-1 tie.
It was Legwand's 12th goal, but second with the Red Wings since being
acquired at the trade deadline.
Legwand came cruising through the slot and one-timed a nice feed from
Sheahan at the side of the net.
But Minnesota's Charlie Coyle tied the game 2-2 just 15 seconds into the
third period on a penalty shot.
Coyle was dragged down by Johan Franzen driving to the net, earning the
call. Coyle then scored the tying goal, wrapping the puck around Howard for
his eighth goal.
But the Red Wings remained patient and were rewarded.
"It was a muddy track. There weren't a lot of chances for both teams, just
check, check, check," Babcock said. "We found a way to get it done. It was a
good win for our team and now we have to get ready for them tomorrow
(Sunday, 7:30 p.m. NBC Sports Network/97.1 ).
Smith and Minnesota forward Mikko Koivu traded first period power-play
goals.
A suddenly resurgent Red Wings power play converted on both opportunities
they had (four goals in the last four games).
The Red Wings escaped a potentially yet another damaging in the first
period.
739130
Detroit Red Wings
The teams meet again Sunday at Joe Louis Arena (7:30 p.m., Fox Sports
Detroit).
Red Wings showing much determination to grind out wins and earn crucial
points (with video)
The Red Wings got a power-play goal in each of the first two periods, after
Mikko Koivu’s goal on the man-advantage opened the scoring at 5:38 of the
first.
Ansar Khan
Smith backhanded in the rebound of a shot by David Legwand that hit the
post at 10:34 of the first. Legwand scored his seconds goal in nine games as
a Red Wing at 17:24 of the second, converting a nice backhand pass by
Sheahan (two assists).
March 22, 2014 at 7:24 PM
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Gustav Nyquist has been the NHL’s hottest goal-scorer
the past two months. Jimmy Howard is delivering big saves at key moments.
Veterans like Daniel Alfredsson and David Legwand have stepped up.
But after Saturday’s 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild at the Xcel Energy
Center, Detroit Red Wings coach Mike Babcock singled out the effort of a
group of grinders on another late penalty kill to demonstrate the
determination his team has played with these past few games. It’s the kind of
resolve this group must continue to show the final three weeks of the season
in its playoff push.
“That’s what I like about our group the most,” Babcock said. “We got some
determined, determined people.
“When I watch (Luke) Glendening, (Drew) Miller and Helmer (Darren Helm)
on the kill, they’re digging in, they’re competitive. That stuff is contagious for
our whole group.”
Winners of three in a row, the Red Wings (33-24-13, 79 points) are finding
ways to get the job done, when earlier this season they were squandering too
many points. They nudged one point ahead of Columbus for the final playoff
spot in the Eastern Conference.
“We need two points every night,” defenseman Niklas Kronwall said.
Nyquist snapped a 2-2 tie by snapping a wrist shot past goaltender Darcy
Kuemper off a rush at 5:19 of the third period. The Red Wings killed a holding
penalty on Kronwall with 3:27 remaining to seal the win.
“Real big for us,” Babcock said. “Howie played real good again, we had
excellent specialty teams and got contribution from everyone.
“It was a muddy track. There was no room for either team; it was check,
check, check. We found a way to get it done.”
Nyquist has scored a goal in four consecutive games (five during this
stretch), has an NHL-best 16 goals since Jan. 20, and leads the team with
21.
“Us Maine guys I guess know how to do it right,” Howard said of his fellow
University of Maine alum.
“Smitty (Brendan Smith) made a good pass to (Riley) Sheahan in the middle;
he made a great kick-out pass to me on the right side,” Nyquist said. “I tried to
cut the middle. Tats (Tomas Tatar) does a great job driving through, driving
the other D down.
“In the end, it’s his goal, really. I know he’s screening the goalie, I just tried to
put it on net.”
Nyquist chalked up his hot streak to “some pretty good bounces and
deflections.”
“Obviously, getting great passes, too,” Nyquist said. “Guess I just try to put
the puck on net as much as possible.”
Said Babcock: “He can shoot it. As those kids get more confidence they’ll
shoot it more.”
Johan Franzen was at the center of a couple of plays that didn’t go Detroit’s
way in the third.
First, he tripped Charlie Coyle, leading to Coyle’s penalty-shot goal that tied it
15 seconds into the period. Then, referee Dean Morton ruled Franzen made
incidental contact with Kuemper, nullifying a goal by Smith at 6:30 that would
have given his team a 4-2 lead.
In the end, it didn’t matter.
“We didn’t force anything,” Howard said. “We did a great job against their top
line -- (Mikael) Granlund, (Jason) Pominville and (Zach) Parise, didn’t give
them much; they’ve been so dangerous lately.”
“I thought (Jakub) Kindl (two assists) was real good on (the power play), slid
to the middle and opened up the flanks for us,” Babcock said.
The Red Wings got a scare at 4:01 of the first when Kronwall slid into the
boards hitting his head and shoulder. He returned later in the period after
passing concussion tests.
He’s a player this injury-ravaged team can’t afford to lose.
“We’re on a little bit of a roll,” Nyquist said. “Let’s keep this good thing going
into tomorrow.”
Michigan Live LOADED: 03.23.2014
739131
Detroit Red Wings
Red-hot Gustav Nyquist scores game-winner in third period as Red Wings
edge Minnesota, 3-2
Ansar Khan
March 22, 2014 at 5:01 PM
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Detroit Red Wings lost another lead in the third period
Saturday, but they weren’t fazed.
They beat the Minnesota Wild 3-2 at the Xcel Energy Center thanks to the
player who’s been leading their offensive charge over the past two months.
Gustav Nyquist scored the game-winning goal at 5:19 of the third period as
the Red Wings (33-24-13, 79 points) extended their winning streak to three
games.
David Legwand and Brendan Smith each had a goal and an assist. Riley
Sheahan had two assists. Jimmy Howard made 28 saves to improve to
10-3-2 all-time vs. the Wild.
This is the Red Wings’ longest winning streak since they won four
consecutive games from Nov. 24 to Dec. 1. They ended a four-game road
losing skid.
These teams wrap up their home-and-home series Sunday night at Joe Louis
Arena (7:30, NBC Sports Network exclusive).
Nyquist snapped in a wrist shot off a rush to snap a 2-2 tie at 5:19 of the third
period. It was his team-leading 21st goal, his NHL-leading 16th goal since
Jan. 20 and his fifth goal in the past four games.
An apparent goal by Smith at 6:30 was immediately waved off by referee
Dean Morton, who ruled that Johan Franzen made incidental contact with
goaltender Darcy Kuemper.
The Red Wings killed a penalty on Niklas Kronwall with 3:27 remaining in the
third period to preserve the win.
Charlie Coyle tied it at 2-2 on a penalty shot just 15 seconds into the third
period. He made a nice move at the net to score.
The shot was awarded after he was tripped by Franzen.
The Red Wings scored twice on the power play.
Legwand snapped a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal at 17:24 of the second
period.
Sheahan, at the net front, received a pass from Jakub Kindl and then
delivered a nice backhand feed past Ryan Suter to an on-rushing Legwand,
who fired a shot that Kuemper got a piece of but could not stop.
Kronwall avoided a serious injury after sliding into the boards and hitting
head/shoulder first four minutes into the game.
Kronwall stumbled after being tied up with Mikko Koivu. He was shaken up
and helped off the ice. But he returned later in the period after spending the
mandatory 15 minutes in the “quiet room” to make sure he didn’t have a
concussion.
The teams traded power-play goals in the first period.
The Red Wings seemed a bit shaken after Kronwall was hurt. Kyle Quincey
was called for interference and it took only 31 seconds before Koivu whipped
in a one-timer on a pass from Suter to open the scoring at 5:38.
Smith responded at 10:34, just eight seconds after a slashing call on Suter.
Off the draw, Legwand rattled a shot off the post. The puck pinballed a bit
before Smith slid in a backhand shot from a sharp angle for his fourth goal.
739132
Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings look to snap four-game road losing streak in first meeting
with Minnesota Wild
Ansar Khan
March 22, 2014 at 11:07 AM
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Detroit Red Wings look to snap a four-game road
losing streak today against the only team they haven’t faced this season, the
Minnesota Wild at the Xcel Energy Center (2 p.m., Fox Sports Detroit).
The Red Wings (32-24-13, 77 points) are coming off home victories over
Toronto (3-2) and Pittsburgh (5-4 overtime), but haven’t won on the road
since Feb. 27 (6-1 at Ottawa).
The Wild (36-23-11, 83 points) are seventh in the Western Conference. They
are 2-2-4 in their past eight games but 7-2-5 in their past 14.
Jason Pominville leads the Wild with 26 goals and 50 points. Rookie Darcy
Kuemper (12-5-4, 2.22 goals-against average, .923 save percentage) is
expected to start in goal.
“Their back end can really skate, think and move the puck,” Red Wings coach
Mike Babcock said. “Good group of forwards. They’ve got a good looking
team there. They always play with good structure. Mike Yeo does a good job.
It’ll be a good test for us. They added (Matt) Moulson at the deadline, (Mikael)
Granlund is coming into his own. They have a deeper team than what they’ve
had in the past so a good test for us.”
The Wild are 7-0-3 in their past 10 home games.
“They play tight,” Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard, who will start today,
said. “They got good forwards. That Ponimville, Granlund, (Zach) Parise line
seems to be carrying the mail for them right now. We’re going to have to find
a way to neutralize them.”
The Red Wings hope Thursday’s win, when Daniel Alfredsson scored with
0.4 seconds remaining in overtime, gives them some momentum.
“I liked that we worked hard, but we still gave up way too many opportunities,”
Babcock said. “We can’t be in the box as much as we were obviously. (Luke)
Glendening-(Drew) Miller and (Landon) Ferraro-(Cory) Emmerton did a real
good job up front for us (on the penalty kill).
“Our power play was a little more dangerous. We had puck possession which
was good to see, but we have to be better defensively than we were to have
success.”
The Red Wings are expected to get center Darren Helm back today. He
missed the past eight games with a concussion.
The Red Wings and Wild complete and a home-and home series Sunday
night at Joe Louis Arena (7:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network exclusive).
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Detroit Red Wings
Red Wings got a lift when Niklas Kronwall returned; Darren Helm might not
play on back-to-back days
Ansar Khan
March 23, 2014 at 12:21 AM
ST. PAUL, Minn. – As much as the Detroit Red Wings feared for teammate
Niklas Kronwall after he slid head-first into the boards Saturday, they couldn’t
imagine being without their best defenseman for any length of time.
They were relieved when he came back late in the first period. His return
even provided an emotional spark, they said, in their 3-2 victory over the
Minnesota Wild at the Xcel Energy Center.
“The way he went in it didn’t look too pretty,” goaltender Jimmy Howard said.
“I thought he was done (for the game). But what a relief it was to see him
come back over the boards. I think it jumped-started everyone to see him
come back out.”
Kronwall got tangled up with Mikko Koivu, fell down and hit his head and right
shoulder into the boards at 4:01 of the first period. He had to be helped off the
ice, but returned with a few minutes to play in the period.
Kronwall missed two games earlier this season with a head injury after being
checked into the boards by Colorado’s Cody McLeod on Oct. 17.
He said this time it wasn't as bad as it looked.
“I haven’t seen the replay, but I got a little dinged up,” Kronwall said. “A little
woozy and you got to go through all the testing that you always have to do
when something happens. They cleared everything and (he was) good to
go.”
Kronwall ended up playing 20:44.
“He’s a huge, huge part of this team,” center Darren Helm said. “Kind of the
anchor back there for us, big-time leader on this team. Not a lot of happy
guys when we saw him go down and come off the ice. But we definitely saw
the excitement when he stepped back on the ice and was good to go.”
Kronwall’s usual defense partner, Jonathan Ericsson (broken finger), is one
of several Red Wings out due to injury.
Babcock ponders whether to play Helm back-to-back
Helm played 12:06 in his first game back after missing eight games with a
concussion. He won 9-of-14 faceoffs and took two shots.
Babcock is debating whether to play him Sunday against Minnesota at Joe
Louis Arena due to conditioning concerns.
“I thought Helmer was good,” Babcock said. “Can he go tomorrow? I don’t
know the answer to that. We’ll see what happens. Sometimes when you first
come back, back-to-back is tough.”
The club reassigned forward Teemu Pulkkinen to the Grand Rapids Griffins
after the game. Since they have no extra healthy forwards, that would
indicate Helm will play Sunday, unless Joakim Andersson (broken foot) is
ready to return.
Helm is ready to go.
“We’ll see how the body feels in the morning,” Helm said. “Whatever
(Babcock) wants to do. I’ll do whatever it takes to help this team win. If he
doesn’t think I should go then that’s probably the case, but I felt all right.”
Helm is no stranger to returning from injury. This is the fourth time he’s done
so this season.
“It’s going to take a little while to get used to it again … just everything -speed, puck movement, positioning, lungs as well,” Helm said. “It’s going to
take a few games probably. Just got to keep pushing myself each game and
get better as time goes on.”
Helm centered a line with Cory Emmerton and Landon Ferraro.
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Detroit Red Wings
Nyquist's goal gives Red Wings 3-2 win over Wild
DAVE CAMPBELL
03/22/14, 5:32 PM EDT |
ST. PAUL, Minn. >> Gustav Nyquist’s third-period goal gave the Detroit Red
Wings a 3-2 victory Saturday over the Minnesota Wild, their fourth in the last
five games.
Jimmy Howard made 28 saves, and Brendan Smith and David Legwand
each scored on a power play for the Red Wings, who were in a 2-for-25
slump with the man advantage until getting goals on both of their
opportunities against the Wild.
Mikko Koivu gave the Wild an early lead, on a power play, and Charlie Coyle
tied the game on a penalty shot. But the Wild, clinging to a wild card spot in
the Western Conference race, fell to 2-3-4 in nine games since the trade
deadline.
Just 15 seconds into the third period, the Wild were right back in position for
one of those standings points that become so critical this time of the year and
cause fans — and presumably coaches and players, even though they’d
never acknowledge as much — to obsess over daily.
Johan Franzen, trailing Coyle on a breakaway, stuck his stick out to trip the
struggling young center. The penalty shot was awarded, not without
argument from Red Wings coach Mike Babcock, and Coyle put it to use with
a slick right-left move to fake out Howard and tie the game at 2. That was
Coyle’s second goal in the last 24 games.
The momentum didn’t last for the Wild, though.
Nyquist, who has an NHL-leading 16 goals in his last 22 games since Jan.
20, sent a snap shot between Jared Spurgeon and Ryan Suter that Wild
goalie Darcy Kuemper didn’t appear to see right away and let get past his
glove. The Red Wings thought they had another one barely a minute later
when Franzen was called for making contact with Kuemper before the puck
went in.
This was a rare afternoon start, to accommodate the first Big Ten hockey
championship game here in the evening. The Big Ten logo was still at mid-ice
from the semifinals the day before. With plenty of their red-clad fans in the
seats, the Red Wings did their best to make themselves at home.
Just as unusual was the schedule that had both teams due in Detroit for a
Sunday night rematch, cramming their only two matchups this season into a
32-hour window and making this an important weekend for each club’s bid for
the playoffs.
The banged-up Red Wings, missing star forwards Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik
Zetterberg plus now defenseman Jonathan Ericsson, moved into eighth
place in the Eastern Conference with 79 points. Columbus has 78 points.
Washington, on the West Coast for a game at San Jose late Saturday,
entered the day with 77 points.
The Wild, who have 83 points, have been in seventh place for a while with
Phoenix and Dallas chasing.
With Wisconsin taking on Ohio State, Suter and Wild teammate Dany
Heatley had strong interest in the Big Ten title game. Heatley played two
years for the Badgers from 1999-2001 and Suter, a Madison area native,
spent the 2003-04 season there before turning pro. ... Legwand was fined
$5,000 Friday by the NHL for butting Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin with the end
of his stick when they played the Penguins Thursday. ... Legwand has two
goals and five assists in nine games since he was acquired in a trade with
Nashville. ... Koivu ended a 13-game streak without a goal. In 10 games
since he returned from a broken right ankle, he has six points.
Macomb Daily LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Edmonton Oilers
Jordan Eberle returns to the Edmonton Oilers lineup for tilt against the
Calgary Flames
March 22, 2014. 12:49 pm
Joanne Ireland
Calgary Flames coach Bob Hartley wasn’t about to dress it up as another
installment of the old Battle of Alberta, not with his team in 26th place and the
Edmonton Oilers in 29th.
His intention, he continued, is fixed on the bigger picture and for his team,
that means teaching his players how to win games – no matter who’s across
the ice.
“Everyone knows how to play hockey. Does everyone know how to win
games? That’s what we’re trying to get to with our guys,” Hartley said.
Jordan Eberle is of a different mindset. He still looks forward to these
showdowns — particularly when they fall on a Saturday night.
“You find these games on the calendar,” said Eberle. “Anytime we play them,
you want to beat them.”
Eberle will return to the Oilers lineup after missing Thursday’s game against
the Buffalo Sabres with a bothersome knee. He’ll skate with Anton Lander
and Ryan Nugent Hopkins, while Tyler Pitlick moves down to play with Boyd
Gordon and Matt Hendricks (a line that might bear watching).
Philip Larsen, the seventh defenceman in the Buffalo game, will come out of
the lineup; Viktor Fasth will start in net.
“I’m ready to go,” Eberle said. “It was good to take a couple of days off and
get it back to where I feel like I can play.”
“You fully understand the value of the player when you’re looking him on the
bench and he’s not there,” said head coach Dallas Eakins. “I thought we
missed Ebs in the last game.”
The Oilers have taken six of a possible eight points in this season’s series,
which wraps up with tonight’s tilt.
“As a coaching staff, we’re already thinking about next year with the way we
approach this team and in meetings,” said Hartley. “We’re already talking
about next season but we do understand we have 12 games to go and we do
take them seriously. Everything we do, we’re doing it to win.”
Edmonton Journal: LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Edmonton Oilers
Stajan, who’s just returned after a leave in the wake of his baby tragically
dying, made a nice backhand on his penalty shot to make it 3-1. He had an
outstanding game, but Fasth wasn’t happy on the free shot.
Flames torch Oilers 8-1 in Saturday night Battle of Alberta
“You want to be there for the team. You want to help them stay in the game
and help them win and I don’t think I did that enough today,” he said.
Jim Matheson
On the stat sheet, almost nobody got off unscathed. Sam Gagner and David
Perron were -4, Hall, Fraser, Oscar Klefbom, Justin Schultz and Andrew
Ference were -3. Only Ryan Smyth escaped without being a minus player, a
quirk of fate more than anything as the goals kept coming and coming.
March 23, 2014 12:03 AM
EDMONTON - With the Calgary Flames running up the score Saturday night,
Edmonton Oilers’ goalie Ben Scrivens got mad when there was no way to get
even.
In the third period a disgruntled paying customer threw a jersey onto the ice,
and Scrivens tossed it back into the seats. He wasn’t into a save; he was into
scoring some points for the team logo, as soiled as it appeared in the wake of
an 8-1 loss — the most lopsided Flames decision ever here.
“You want to boo me, go for it, you want to jeer me, call me any name, you’re
entitled to that,” said Scrivens.
“You can spit on me for all I care, if I deserve it but you know what when I see
a jersey thrown out ... I’m from here. You’re not just disrespecting the people
in this room, you’re disrespecting the guys who wore the jersey before us. Al
the great guys who pulled that sweater over their head ... the Messiers and
the Gretzkys all took pride in wearing that jersey. Guys like Joey Moss every
day, the unsung heroes around the rink who pride themselves on that logo.”
“You’re a fan, you can do whatever you want, but when it comes to that logo,
that’s a sacred thing for us,” he said.
“Disheartening for me to see our fans treat it like that.”
True enough, and heartfelt stuff, but the fans are just as mad as Scrivens —
tired of seeing just 13 wins in 34 games at Rexall Place, tired of being 29th in
a 30-team league, and absolutely gobsmacked Saturday at getting crushed
8-1 by the Flames who haven’t scored this many goals in three years. Again,
this was the most one-sided Calgary win at Rexall Place. Ever.
Unbelievably, the Oilers scored first when Jeff Petry’s power play slapper
beat Kari Ramo 4 1/2 minutes in. Then Calgary got eight in a row.
The first five on Viktor Fasth, the last three on Scrivens. Only 31 shots and
eight goals. Admittedly some deflections, some shots off the iron and in, even
a penalty shot goal by Matt Stajan. Whatever, it added up a crushing setback
on national TV.
Former Oilers winger Curtis Glencross had his third career hat-trick. Stajan
had his penalty shot (the fifth successful one here in 18 tries in the Oilers
history) and helpers on all three Glencross goals. Mike Cammalleri, Paul
Byron and Kevin Westgarth had the others as the Flames turned a 1-1 game
after the 20 minutes into 5-1 after 27 minutes. In the crazy second period,
resignation mixed with frustration when Taylor Hall shook a water bottle and
it accidentally sprayed over coach Dallas Eakins and associate coach Keith
Acton.
“That stuff happens. Dallas and I have a great relationship,” said Hall.
“At times we get a little frustrated the way things are going and sometimes
you have to take a step back and realize that frustration is never going to
accomplish anything. Things happen in a game. He knows, he played the
game. Sometimes things boil over but I think we’re all good,” said Hall.
The game turned in five shots over three minutes and five seconds in the
second frame. Calgary scored on four of them. Cammalleri, then Stajan after
he was slashed by Mark Fraser on a breakaway and given the free shot, then
Byron and the first of Glencross’s three. Only Lance Bouma didn’t score in
those five shots on Fasth, before he got the mercy hook for Scrivens.
Cammalleri after Mikael Backlund got to a Matt Hendricks’s clearing attempt
and fed his teammate, then Stajan on a backhand, then Bryon on a 2-on-1
with Cammalleri, then Glencross off the iron and in.
Fasth had only given up five goals in 83 shots over his previous three starts
before exiting with five goals in 16 total shots in this one.
“Obviously I’d like to play better, we all feel that way in here,” said Fasth.
“You let in five goals, there’s always some you could have stopped, but I
have to go through it on video to see what I did wrong.”
“Things got away from us, some bad bounces. We unravelled a bit,” said
Hall.
Flat out, the Oilers came up with one of their all-time worst stinkers here. It
wasn’t their worst home loss. Remember that 10-2 beat-down Buffalo Sabres
put on them several years back? But, as much as Scrivens has a right to get
steamed at a fan for disrespecting the oil drop logo, this was not the first time
a jersey has sailed over the plexi and onto the ice this season. The fans are
tired of all the losing, and this is an Oilers team that’s been shut out five times
here this season and now this 8-1 kick in the gut.
ON THE BENCH: As expected, Westgarth tried to avenge a bad loss to Luke
Gazdic the last time the team’s met March 1. This time it was a first-period
draw. “I knew the first time I got out there, he’d probably come after me,” said
Gazdic. With Oilers’ winger Jordan Eberle (knee) returning after one missed
game, Steve MacIntyre may have to go back to OK City. He was up on
emergency recall. Farmhand Tyler Pitlick can stay because Nail Yakupov
(ankle) missed his third straight game ... Defenceman Anton Belov (oblique)
is ready after being out nine games, but didn’t dress as did Philip Larsen ...
The Flames scratched T.J. Galiardi to put Westgarth in on a fourth line.
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Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers head coach Dallas Eakins on bad loss, jersey toss, water
bottle toss & ‘resetting’
March 22, 2014. 11:26 pm
John MacKinnon
If the Oilers 8-1 loss to the Calgary Flames wasn’t rock bottom in an abysmal
season, no one really wants to find out where bottom is.
The Oilers gave up four goals on five shots in a span of 7:18 in the second
period, blowing open a 1-1 game with their provincial rivals and starting a
downward spiral that only ended at the final siren.
Along the way, head coach Dallas Eakins called time out to try to get his team
to regroup, reaming them out severely, in the bargain. That failed.
Eakins yanked staring goalie Viktor Fasth and inserted Ben Scrivens. That
didn’t work.
At one point, after a frustrated Taylor Hall came off the ice, and fired a water
bottle that exploded, dousing Eakins in the process. The head coach
towelled off, then had heated words with a clearly frustrated Hall. Then
Eakins benched his star left winger for four or five shifts. That proved
ineffective, also.
It was a three-jersey night at Rexall Place, as in three fans tossed Oilers
jerseys onto the ice surface, a sorry display that has been something of a
recurring theme this sorry season.
Scrivens scooped up the first one with the blade of his goalie stick and flung
the jersey right back into the stands. He also spoke passionately about that
moment after the game.
We had every bad bounce we could have, but they were well-earned.
Our execution level was the worst I’ve seen since we’ve been here, right from
Vik (Fasth) and I on out. As a team, we just go out-executed. There’s no
excuse other than they came ready and we were still hanging out in the room,
I guess. — Ben Scrivens
On and on the brutal moments cascaded down, along with the boos and
jeers.
By early in the third period, all the fans were waiting on was to find out who
would win the 50/50 take of some $66,000.
“Fif-tee-fif-tee, fif-tee fifee!” the chant went up. Sure enough, when the
winning number was drawn, later than normal, with just about four minutes
remaining, the exodus was on.
Scrivens begrudged no fan his or her anger, or disgust, but, as Eakins had
done earlier this season following a similar gesture by an irate fan, the
goaltender drew a line when it came to desecrating the Oilers jersey.
You know what, I always feel like, as a fan, you pay your money, you get
to do whatever you want. You want to boo me? Go for it. You want to jeer me,
call me every name, you’re entitled to that. You could spit on me, for all I care,
if I deserve it. But when I see a jersey thrown out on the ice — you know, I’m
from here, you’re not just disrespecting the guys in the room, you’re
disrespecting guys who wore this jersey before us, all the great guys to play
for this organization who pulled that sweater over their head, the Messiers,
the Gretzkys, they all took pride in wearing that jersey. You’ve got guys like
Joey Moss, everyday, the unsung heroes around the rink who pride
themselves on that logo. Like I said, you’re a fan, you get to say and do
whatever you want, call me whatever name you want, but when it comes to
that logo, that’s a sacred thing for us. It’s disheartening for me to see our fans
treat it that way. — Scrivens
After a promising stretch, when the Oilers went 10-4-3 over a 17-game span,
the club stumbled against Buffalo at home, losing 3-1 on Thursday night.
Then the complete faceplant on Saturday night against Calgary.
How low can they go?
Strangely, sadly, like many bad car wrecks, the public is appalled, yet cannot
look away.
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Edmonton Oilers
Robert Tychkowski
“You’re not just disrespecting guys in the room, you’re disrespecting guys
who wore this jersey before us,” said Scrivens. “All the great guys in this
organization who pulled the sweater over their head. The Messiers, the
Gretzkys... guys like Joey Moss, the unsung heroes around the rink who
pride themsevles on that logo. You’re a fan, you get to say and do whatever
you want, call me whatever name you want, but when it comes to that logo,
that’s a sacred thing for us. It’s disheartening for me to see our fans treat it
that way.”
THREE STARS
Edmonton Oilers blown out by the Calgary Flames
1. Curtis Glencross, CAL
What’s worse than losing to the 30th place team in on Thursday and then
being destroyed by Calgary two days later?
We’ll let you know when it happens.
In a season, and in an organization, where rock bottom is a
continually-sinking target, the Edmonton Oilers hit a humiliating new low
Saturday.
An 8-1, booed off the ice, sweater thrown over the glass, arguing on the
bench kind of low.
Instead of a passionate response after Thursday’s 3-1 loss to the Buffalo
Sabres, what a nationally televised audience saw instead was as big a
debacle as this once-proud joke of a franchise has served up in years.
“It’s pretty obvious how bad we played tonight,” said David Perron, after the
carnage at Rexall Place. “We’re obviously pretty frustrated. It’s pretty
embarrassing. I don’t think there’s much to be said, we all know how bad it
was.”
Scored his third-career hat trick.
2. Matt Stajan, Flames
A goal and three assists.
3. Mike Cammalleri, Flames
A goal and two assists.
Game Grades
Offence D
Defence F
Goaltending F
Power play D
Penalty kill D
At least the end came quickly.
Toughness D
The Flames scored four goals in 3:05 of the second period, forcing Edmonton
to play the last 30 minutes with its pants down, then added three more in the
third just for fun.
Effort F
“We could not recover, we tried everything and it just went deeper and
deeper,” said head coach Dallas Eakins. “That was the longest last 15
minutes of a game that I’ve ever been involved with. I apologize to the fans
who were here tonight who had to watch that. It was painful on the bench and
I’m sure it was painful in the stands.”
After going on a 10-4-3 run, the Oilers, in a span of 72 hours, look like a total
hopeless, heartless mess.
“There was a 10-minute span where we got out-worked, made some bad
decisions and it came back to bite us.” said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. “And once
we got down by a few goals, we let our guard down and they capitalized on
that, too.”
The embarrassments were many, starting with a second period in which the
Flames, who played the night before turn 1-1 after 20 into 5-1 after 40.
Mike Cammallari scored at 4:13, Matt Stajan at 5:20, Paul Byron at 6:00 and
Curtis Glencross at 7:18 to chase starting goalie Viktor Fasth.
It was as sudden as it was humiliating.
And it wasn’t over, as Calgary piled on in the third.
Glencross 4:50, Kevin Westgarth at 5:27 and Glencross again turned a bad
dream into a nightmare.
Then there were the sideshows.
Midway through the second, Taylor Hall fired a water bottle at the ground and
it exploded, showering Eakins and associate coach Keith Acton. Eakins lit
into Hall and didn’t give him another shift for 13 minutes.
“Dallas and I have a great relationship,” said Hall, putting out the fire before it
could start. “At times we all get a little frustrated with how it’s going and
sometimes you have to take a step back. I don’t expect anything more. We’re
all good.”
Eakins agrees.
“It’s an emotional game and in a game like that frustrations start to run high,”
he said. “That’s what it was. I’ve had bigger run ins than that with players this
year. If you’re not able to move on, you’ve got big problems.”
Midway through the third period, another fan threw another Oilers sweater on
the ice. This time Ben Scrivens threw it back over the glass.
Why Oilers loss
Things went south in a hurry in a three-minute span in the second period. The
Oilers gave up four goals in that span to turn a drama into a comedy.
Play of the game
Matt Stajan is awarded a penalty shot after being slashed by Mark Fraser on
a breakaway. Stajan goes in and scores then points to the heavens. Stajan
recently returned to the Flames following the death of his newborn son.
Big Fight
After being knocked out cold in their previous meeting, Kevin Westgarth
squares up with Luke Gazdic again in a spirited tussle. Talk about getting
back on the horse.
Up Next
Oilers host San Jose Sharks, Tuesday (7:30 p.m.) Rexall Place.
_ Derek Van Diest
Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Florida Panthers
-- Sean Bergenheim was back in the lineup after missing five games with an
undisclosed injury.
RECORD PERFORMANCE: Jonathan Quick Sets Kings Record for Wins in
4-0 Shutout of Panthers
"He was going to let us know when he was ready,'' Horachek said. "He came
off and had some opportunities. His line was the better line, had some shots
out there.''
George Richards
-- Horachek said backup goalie Dan Ellis would start for the Panthers Sunday
in Anaheim. Ellis has played once (lost in Tampa) since coming over from
Dallas in a trade for Tim Thomas on March 5.
SUNDAY: PANTHERS AT DUCKS
LOS ANGELES -- There was no beating Jonathan Quick on Saturday, just
like many days before it.
When, Where: 8 p.m.; Honda Center, Anaheim
Quick set he Kings' franchise record for wins Saturday afternoon with 24
saves in Los Angeles' 4-0 win over the Panthers at Staples Center.
TV/Radio: FSNF; WQAM 560
The MVP of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs, Quick picked up his 172nd win to
pass Rogie Vachon -- who held the record since 1978 without benefit of
shootouts much less overtime sessions.
Scouting report: Peter Horachek got his first win as Panthers coach back on
Nov. 12 as the Panthers upset the Ducks 3-2 in Sunrise. Anaheim has lost
two straight and six of the past eight.
“I wish I would’ve set the bar a little higher,'' Vachon said. "He’s playing great
and is going to set some incredible records before his career is over. He’s
going to set some records that I think no other goalie in the league will ever
touch.''
Miami Herald LOADED: 03.23.2014
The Kings outscored the Panthers 7-0 in their two wins this season as Florida
was shutout for the fifth time.
St. Louis and Los Angeles account for four of those shutouts.
The shutout was Quick's fifth this season and 30th of his career. Quick is now
within two shutouts of tying Vachon for the franchise lead in that category as
well.
"He was on top of his game. You could see he was feeling it,'' said Florida
goalie Roberto Luongo. "I don't know if we would have ever got a puck by him
tonight. It was one of those games where he sees everything. Even the ones
he didn't see he stopped.''
The Panthers offered a few challenges on Saturday but none bigger than a
Tomas Fleischmann shot with Florida trailing 2-0 in the second.
Fleischmann, who has been a victim of bad puck luck all season, had a wide
open net when he fired an odd-angled shot.
Quick's left arm shot though the air, however, his glove snapping the puck out
of the air and seemingly before it crossed the line. Hockey Central in Toronto
reviewed the play to see if Quick's glove went over the line, but his grand
larceny was rewarded with the save.
"He just robbed me,'' said Fleischmann, who has seven goals this season
and has had great scoring chances snuffed out by terrific saves all year.
"I saw and empty net and then all I saw was a glove. I wasn't happy about it.
It was a big game-changer today. We made it easy on him, our shots were
too far out. You can see he's one of the best goalies in the league. It was 2-0
and he made the save.''
Florida went down 2-0 in the opening period and watched the Kings make it
3-0 in the second not long after Fleischmann was robbed by Quick's glove.
And that was just about that.
"He's one of the best goalies in the league,'' coach Peter Horachek said. "It's
a big difference if it's 2-1 right there, then they go out and get the third goal.
It's a big difference, changes the momentum of the game.''
LONG TIME AGO
Luongo said he didn't recall the last time Florida won in Los Angeles
although, believe it or not, he was there for it.
Florida has lost five straight in L.A. since beating the Kings 5-2 on Nov. 27,
2002. Janis Hurme, playing in place of Luongo that night, earned first star
honors with 32 saves.
Florida, coached by Mike Keenan, got goals from Ivan Novoseltsev, Kristian
Huselius, Andreas Lilja, Sandis Ozolinsh and Viktor Kozlov.
"It's been a while,'' said Luongo, who won a few games in Los Angeles in his
eight seasons with Vancouver since leaving the Panthers in 2006.
"They're a good team especially in their building. They've won the Cup; they
know what they're doing.''
The series: Florida leads 11-10-3
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Florida Panthers
“They’re a good team, especially in their building. They’ve won the Cup; they
know what they’re doing.”
Jonathan Quick, Kings too much for Florida Panthers
• Sean Bergenheim was back in the lineup after missing five games with an
undisclosed injury.
Sun, Mar. 23, 2014
“He was going to let us know when he was ready,” Horachek said. “He came
off and had some opportunities. His line was the better line, had some shots
out there.”
George Richards
Going after it: Kings center Anze Kopitar, left, and Panthers center Nick
Bjugstad battle for the puck during the first period Saturday.
• Horachek said backup goalie Dan Ellis would start for the Panthers on
Sunday in Anaheim. Ellis has played once (lost in Tampa) since coming over
from Dallas in a trade for Tim Thomas on March 5.
Sunday: Panthers at Ducks
There was no beating Jonathan Quick on Saturday, just like many before it.
When/where: 8 p.m.; Honda Center, Anaheim, Calif.
Quick set the Kings' franchise record for wins Saturday afternoon by making
24 saves in Los Angeles' 4-0 win over the Panthers at Staples Center.
TV/radio: FSNF; 560 AM.
The MVP of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs, Quick earned up his 172nd win to
pass Rogie Vachon — who held the record since 1978 without benefit of
shootouts much less overtime sessions.
“I wish I would’ve set the bar a little higher,” Vachon said. “He’s playing great
and is going to set some incredible records before his career is over. He’s
going to set some records that I think no other goalie in the league will ever
touch.”'
The Kings outscored the Panthers 7-0 in their two wins this season. Florida
was shut out for the fifth time. St. Louis and Los Angeles account for four of
those blankings.
The shutout was Quick’s fifth this season and 30th of his career. Quick is now
within two shutouts of tying Vachon for the franchise lead in that category as
well.
“He was on top of his game. You could see he was feeling it,”' Florida’s
Roberto Luongo said. “I don't know if we would have ever got a puck by him
[Saturday]. It was one of those games where he sees everything. Even the
ones he didn’t see he stopped.”
The Panthers offered a few challenges Saturday but none bigger than a
Tomas Fleischmann shot with Florida trailing 2-0 in the second.
Fleischmann, who has been a victim of bad puck luck all season, had a
wide-open net when he fired an odd-angled shot.
Quick’s left arm shot though the air, however, his glove snapping the puck
out of the air just before it crossed the line. Hockey Central in Toronto
reviewed the play to see if Quick’s glove went over the line, and his grand
larceny was rewarded with the save.
“He just robbed me,” said Fleischmann, who has seven goals this season
and has had great scoring chances snuffed out by terrific saves all year.
“I saw an empty net and then all I saw was a glove. I wasn’t happy about it. It
was a big game-changer [Saturday]. We made it easy on him, our shots were
too far out. You can see he’s one of the best goalies in the league. It was 2-0
and he made the save.”
Florida watched the Kings make it 3-0 in the second on a Dustin Brown goal
not long after Fleischmann was robbed by Quick’s glove.
That was just about that.
“He’s one of the best goalies in the league,” Panthers coach Peter Horachek
said. “It’s a big difference if it’s 2-1 right there, then they go out and get the
third goal. It’s a big difference, changes the momentum of the game.”
LONG TIME AGO
Luongo said he didn’t recall the last time Florida won in Los Angeles,
although, believe it or not, he was there for it.
Florida has lost five in a row in L.A. since beating the Kings 5-2 on Nov. 27,
2002. Janis Hurme, playing in place of Luongo that night, earned first-star
honors with 32 saves.
Florida, coached by Mike Keenan, got goals from Ivan Novoseltsev, Kristian
Huselius, Andreas Lilja, Sandis Ozolinsh and Viktor Kozlov.
“It’s been a while,” said Luongo, who won a few games in Los Angeles in his
eight seasons with Vancouver since leaving the Panthers in 2006.
The series: Florida leads 11-10-3.
Scouting report: Peter Horachek got his first win as Panthers coach on Nov.
12 as the Panthers upset the Ducks 3-2 in Sunrise. Anaheim has lost
back-to-back games and six of the past eight.
Miami Herald LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Florida Panthers
Jonathan 'too' Quick leads Kings past Panthers 4-0
Harvey Fialkov, Sun Sentinel
8:01 PM EDT, March 22, 2014
LOS ANGELES
The last time the Panthers defeated the Kings in Los Angeles, Roberto
Luongo's backup Jani Hurme was in net for the 5-2 victory on Nov. 27, 2002.
Hurme went 1-9-1 the rest of the season and never played another NHL
game. Well, this time Luongo got the starting assignment but was unable to
pull a Hurme as the Kings and record-setting goalie Jonathan Quick rolled to
a 4-0 victory over the Panthers Saturday afternoon at a sold-out Staples
Center.
The Kings may be the third best team in California behind the Sharks and the
Ducks — Florida's opponent on Sunday to wrap up this four-game western
swing — but they still occupy the sixth playoff berth in the Western
Conference and still own the Panthers, after beating them for the ninth time in
the last 10 meetings.
Back on Oct. 13th when Kevin Dineen was still coaching and Jacob
Markstrom was still their goalie of the future, the Panthers lost 3-0 to the
Kings and former backup goalie Ben Scrivens. So the Panthers have been
shut out five times, twice by the 2012 Stanley Cup champions.
The Kings swept the season series (2-0), marking the first time in franchise
history the Panthers failed to register at least a point or a goal when they
played them at least twice.
Luongo (25 saves) certainly won't miss the Kings either. He's 0-3-1 against
them this year, with the first three losses while he was a Canuck.
"They're a big, physical team and got big bodies in front of the net banging
away on rebounds,'' Luongo said. "Pretty much what I've seen in the past.
[Quick] was on top of his game; you could see he was feeling it.''
Quick had 24 saves to register his fifth shutout and 30th of his career. His
172nd career victory surpasses Rogie Vachon — who was in the pressbox —
as the Kings' all-time winningest goalie.
With the Kings up 2-0, Quick's save of the day and perhaps season, came
during the Panthers power play in the second period when it seemed a
rebound to Tomas Fleischmann was destined for an empty net with a wicked
rising backhander.
However, Quick, as usual lived up to his surname, and made a diving glove
save that even Dodgers manager and former Gold Glove first baseman Don
Mattingly would've been proud of. The play was reviewed by Toronto, but the
no-goal ruling stood because Quick's speared the puck before the goal line
and his momentum carried him into the net.
"I think it got deflected by their player's stick, but I was hoping to goes in,''
Fleischmann said. "He just robbed me. I saw an empty net and the last thing
I saw was his glove. I wasn't happy about it. It was a big-game changer.
"We made it easy for him but you could see he's one of the best goalies in the
league.''
Either the 1 p.m. start, or arriving a half-hour late due to a traffic jam on the
highway caused by a man perched to jump from an overhang could've
accounted for another sleepy Panthers' start. Either way, for the second
straight game the Panthers were down 2-0 after the first period.
"It was mistakes, they get two goals. We outchanced them 18-13, they just
capitalized, they're stronger in the grind, not-fun areas,'' Panthers coach
Peter Horachek said. "They're a big, physical team … they got four strong
lines. We have to be better with mistakes in our own zone.''
At 11:03, Kyle Clifford's long slapper was kicked out by Luongo but center
Trevor Lewis pounced on the rebound for a 1-0 lead.
Just 13 seconds after a penalty on Sean Bergenheim expired, the Kings
maintained puck control as Lewis fed slumping center Mike Richards, who
snapped it in for his 10th goal.
At 8:54, the Kings took a 3-0 lead when Jarret Stoll's point-blank shot
caromed off the post right to captain Dustin Brown for a wide-open putback.
The Kings added a power-play goal at 11:59 of the third on Alec Martinez'
short-side wrister. The Panthers have given up a PPG in eight straight
games.
"There's hardly any rebounds, it's tough to get to the net and they have an
all-around great lineup,'' Panthers forward Scottie Upshall said. "It's a tough
building, they're in the hunt, fighting for position.''
With Bergenheim returning after a five-game absence, forward Garrett
Wilson was scratched.
Sun Sentinel LOADED: 03.23.2014
739142
Florida Panthers
Jonathan Quick leads Kings past Panthers 4-0
Harvey Fialkov,
11:57 PM EDT, March 22, 2014
LOS ANGELES
The last time the Panthers defeated the Kings in Los Angeles, Roberto
Luongo's backup Jani Hurme was in net for the 5-2 victory on Nov. 27, 2002.
Hurme went 1-9-1 the rest of the season and never played another NHL
game. Well, this time Luongo got the starting assignment but was unable to
pull a Hurme as the Kings and record-setting goalie Jonathan Quick rolled to
a 4-0 victory over the Panthers Saturday afternoon at a sold-out Staples
Center.
The Kings may be the third best team in California behind the Sharks and the
Ducks — Florida's opponent on Sunday to wrap up this four-game western
swing — but they still occupy the sixth playoff berth in the Western
Conference and still own the Panthers, after beating them for the ninth time in
the last 10 meetings.
Back on Oct. 13th when Kevin Dineen was still coaching and Jacob
Markstrom was still their goalie of the future, the Panthers lost 3-0 to the
Kings and former backup goalie Ben Scrivens. So the Panthers have been
shut out five times, twice by the 2012 Stanley Cup champions.
The Kings swept the season series (2-0), marking the first time in franchise
history the Panthers failed to register at least a point or a goal when they
played them at least twice.
Luongo (25 saves) certainly won't miss the Kings either. He's 0-3-1 against
them this year, with the first three losses while he was a Canuck.
"He was on top of his game; you could see he was feeling it,'' Luongo said of
Quick. "I don't know if we were ever going to get a puck by him.''
Quick had 24 saves to register his fifth shutout and 30th of his career. His
172nd career victory surpasses Rogie Vachon — who was in the pressbox —
as the Kings' all-time winningest goalie.
"He's going to set some records that I think no other goalie in the league will
ever touch,'' Vachon said. "The save he made in the second period coming
from one side to the other and grabbing it is something you'll rarely see in this
league.''
Vachon was referring to a save made by Quick with the Kings up 2-0 and the
Panthers pressing on a power play. A rebound to Tomas Fleischmann
seemed destined for an empty net with a wicked rising backhander.
However, Quick, as usual lived up to his surname, and made a diving glove
save that even Dodgers manager and former Gold Glove first baseman Don
Mattingly would've been proud of. The play was reviewed by Toronto, but the
no-goal ruling stood because Quick's speared the puck before the goal line
and his momentum carried him into the net.
"I think it got deflected by their player's stick, but I was hoping to goes in,''
Fleischmann said. "He just robbed me. I saw an empty net and the last thing
I saw was his glove. I wasn't happy about it. It was a big-game changer.
"We made it easy for him but you could see he's one of the best goalies in the
league.''
The Panthers arrived a half hour late to Staples because of a traffic jam
caused by a man perched to jump from an overpass, but they didn't blame
that for their sluggish start and 2-0 deficit after one.
"It was mistakes, they get two goals. We outchanced them 18-13, they just
capitalized, they're stronger in the grind, not-fun areas,'' Panthers coach
Peter Horachek said. "They're a big, physical team … they got four strong
lines. We have to be better with mistakes in our own zone.''
At 11:03, Kyle Clifford's long slapper was kicked out by Luongo but center
Trevor Lewis pounced on the rebound for a 1-0 lead.
Just 13 seconds after a penalty on Sean Bergenheim expired, the Kings
maintained puck control as Lewis fed slumping center Mike Richards, who
snapped it in for his 10th goal.
At 8:54, the Kings took a 3-0 lead when Jarret Stoll's point-blank shot
caromed off the post right to captain Dustin Brown for a wide-open putback.
The Kings added a power-play goal at 11:59 of the third on Alec Martinez'
short-side wrister. The Panthers have given up a PPG in eight straight
games.
"There's hardly any rebounds, it's tough to get to the net and they have an
all-around great lineup,'' Panthers forward Scottie Upshall said. …
With Bergenheim returning after a five-game absence, forward Garrett
Wilson was scratched.
Sun Sentinel LOADED: 03.23.2014
739143
Florida Panthers
Quick sets wins record, Kings blank Panthers 4-0
Los Angeles scored on three of its first 13 shots against Luongo, making his
seventh start since returning to Florida in a trade with Vancouver.
The Panthers, who have lost nine of their last 10 against Los Angeles, played
their first game at Staples Center since Dec. 1, 2011. They have dropped five
straight in the building since winning 5-2 on Nov. 27, 2002.
JOE RESNICK
NOTES: Quick missed 24 games because of a groin injury, returning to
action on Jan. 4. ... Brown sustained an upper-body injury in the second
period. ... The Kings embark on a three-game trip through Philadelphia,
Washington and Pittsburgh, trying to extend their five-game road winning
streak.
LOS ANGELES —
Palm Beach Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
Saturday, March 22, 2014
The only thing better than breaking someone's franchise record is being able
to talk about it with that player right after it happened.
That's what Jonathan Quick experienced Saturday when former Los Angeles
goalie Rogie Vachon walked into the Kings' dressing room to personally
congratulate him.
Quick earned his 172nd career victory — all in a Kings uniform — by making
24 saves and beating the Florida Panthers 4-0 for his fifth shutout of an
injury-hampered season.
"Rogie's given me a lot of support over the years and we've hung out a bit, so
it's great to see him here and continuing to show his support," Quick said.
"We've done a few interviews together in the past, and he's been to many
games. So it's great to have him around from time to time and hear him tell
old stories."
Dustin Brown, Trevor Lewis, Mike Richards and Alec Martinez scored for the
Kings, who completed their five-game homestand with back-to-back wins
after three straight one-goal defeats.
Quick is in the second season of a $58 million, 10-year contract extension he
signed in June 2012 — only 17 days after leading the Kings to their first
Stanley Cup title and winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
"I've been very fortunate up to this point in my career," he said with the
milestone puck sitting next to him on the opposite side from Vachon.
"Obviously, this is very special. But it's a short-lived enjoyment because we
fly to Philly this afternoon and play a game in two days, so your focus moves
on pretty quickly to that next game. It's a situation where you're always
caught up in the moment."
Quick has won 47 games that were decided in overtime or a shootout — a
luxury not afforded to Vachon, who played in 66 games for the Kings that
ended in ties. Vachon is one of five players to have his uniform number
retired by the club along with Marcel Dionne, Dave Taylor, Wayne Gretzky
and Luc Robitaille.
"It's wonderful," said Vachon, who finished his 16-year career with 355 wins
and was fifth on the all-time list when he retired after the 1981-82 season. "I
wish I would have set the bar a little higher for him. Unfortunately, I only
played like 6½ years here, and he's going to play maybe 15-20 years here
the way he's going. But that's fine. It's well-deserved, and he's going to set
some incredible records before his career is over that no other goalies
coming into the league will touch."
The toughest save Quick had to make came at 3:04 of the second period
during a Florida power play. He dove to his left at the last instant to glove a
short backhander by Tomas Fleischmann, who went for the short side after
defenseman Dmitry Kulikov's 60-foot slap shot took a hard carom off the end
boards.
"I've always liked his ability to move from one side to the other. He's
absolutely phenomenal," Vachon said. "The save that he made today in the
second period, coming from one side and going to the other like that, you
rarely see that in the league."
The shutout was the 30th of Quick's career, two shy of Vachon's franchise
mark.
"He was on top of his game tonight. You could see that he was feeling it," said
three-time All-Star goalie Roberto Luongo, who finished with 25 saves for
Florida. "I don't know if we were ever going to get a puck by him. It was one of
those nights where he sees everything. And even the ones that he doesn't
see, he finds a way to make the save."
The Kings recorded their 11th shutout, tying the franchise record set two
seasons ago. The total includes three each by Martin Jones and Ben
Scrivens, who blanked the Panthers on Oct. 13 at Sunrise, Fla.
739144
Los Angeles Kings
Jonathan Quick becomes Kings' winningest goalie in 4-0 shutout
"He was on top of his game tonight," Luongo said. "You could see that he
was feeling it. I don't know if we were ever going to get a puck by him tonight.
It was one of those nights where you can see that he sees everything — and
even the ones he doesn't see, he finds a way to make the save."
LA Times: LOADED: 03.23.2014
Lisa Dillman
6:43 PM PDT, March 22, 2014
Forget the torch passing.
Maybe there should have been the passing of a goalie stick when legend
Rogie Vachon and Jonathan Quick convened in the dressing room Saturday
afternoon after Quick became the winningest goalie in Kings history.
Quick made 24 saves in recording his fifth shutout of the season as the Kings
beat the Florida Panthers, 4-0, at Staples Center. Scoring for the Kings were
Trevor Lewis, Mike Richards, Dustin Brown and defenseman Alec Martinez.
They have twice shut out the Panthers this season.
The Kings got balance by tweaking some of their lines, and putting Richards
on the fourth line with Lewis proved beneficial. Richards scored his first goal
since March 6 at Winnipeg and Lewis had two points. But the Kings finished
the game without Brown as he left with an upper-body injury in the second
period after a collision with Panthers defenseman Dylan Olsen.
Brown was scheduled for evaluation in Los Angeles. The team left after the
game for Philadelphia and it is possible he could join them there later or
during the three-game trip if all goes well.
The Kings have won back-to-back games after a three-game slide and you
could say that Quick is compiling wins every way possible, of late. The 171st
victory of his career, tying him with Vachon, came in a shootout Thursday
against Washington. He passed the mark, hitting No. 172, with a shutout, the
30th of his career.
A nice round number.
"I wish I would have set the bar a little higher," Vachon said, smiling. "That's
fine. It was well-deserved. He's going to set some incredible records before
his career is over. He's going to play maybe 15, 20 years. So he's going to set
some records that I think no other goalie in the league, coming later, will ever
touch."
Quick, who turned 28 in January, laughed when asked whether he was going
to play 15 to 20 more years.
Said Vachon: "He's just a puppy."
It was a nice series of moments between the goalies. Vachon was the one
who turned a whole generation of Southern Californians into hockey fans at
the Forum in the 1970s, and Quick rewarded those aging boomers with a
Stanley Cup in 2012, via his most-valuable-player playoff performance.
Quick's first win in the NHL was in the 2007-08 season, a tough campaign for
the struggling Kings in which he was one of seven goalies to make an
appearance. He beat Buffalo, 8-2, on Dec. 6.
"Obviously, you're a lot younger then," Quick said, recalling the first win. "So
you're hoping maybe you get another start. What can you do to try to prove
yourself."
Said Vachon, joking: "Please don't ask me about my first win. I have no clue.
It's been like 50 years."
The shutout was highlighted by a candidate for save of the year. Quick
reached back and made an incredible glove save on forward Tomas
Fleischmann three minutes into the second period when the Panthers were
on the power play with the Kings leading, 2-0.
The play was reviewed and the call on the ice was upheld.
"I knew it was close just like the other night," Quick said. "Because it
happened so quickly, you're just trying to get a body part in front of it. I knew
it was close … got lucky there and able to keep it off the board. Even myself,
I was looking to see if it crossed the line."
Florida goalie Roberto Luongo, acquired by the Panthers from Vancouver the
day before the trade deadline, has 66 career shutouts and lauded Quick's
performance.
739145
Los Angeles Kings
Quick passes Vachon as Kings' winningest goalie
RICH HAMMOND
March 22, 2014 Updated: 7:46 p.m.
LOS ANGELES – The Kings drafted goalie Jonathan Quick in the third round
in 2005. How did they regard his potential? The next year, they drafted
another goalie, not just in the first round but with the No. 11 pick.
Quick’s early skeptics — there were many, and perhaps rightfully so — would
have been dumbfounded at the postgame scene Saturday: Rogie Vachon
with his right arm around Quick’s shoulders, crowning a new king.
With his 24-save shutout, Quick passed Vachon to become the Kings’
all-time winningest goalie, as the Kings easily handled the Florida Panthers
in a 4-0 victory in front of 18,118 at Staples Center.
``I wish I would’ve set the bar a little higher,’’ Vachon joked as he sat beside
Quick in the locker room. ``He deserves it. The way he’s going, he is going to
set some incredible records before his career is over. He’s going to set some
records that I think no other goalie in the league will ever touch.’’
Seven seasons ago, Quick was riding buses in the ECHL, the Double-A of
minor-league hockey. At the time, few observers thought he could be a
reliable No. 1 NHL goalie. Only the heartiest of optimists would have
predicted that Quick, at age 28, would be a Stanley Cup champion and the
Kings’ all-time winner.
Quick is a self-made man. No Kings player has more competitive spirit, on or
off the ice, than Quick, who won the job as the Kings’ No. 1 goalie in 2009
and gave the team no chance to take it away from him.
Quick has a career record of 172-115-31 since his debut in 2007. He also has
30 career shutouts, two away from tying Vachon’s team record.
``When you talk about wins, it takes 20 guys to win a game,’’ Quick said.
``Goalies are always kind of nominated to receive most of the celebration, as
far as wins and shutouts go, but it’s a group effort. It means a lot to celebrate
this with all the guys in the locker room.’’
There is a caveat to the wins record, one that Quick points out himself. Quick
has recorded 48 shootout and overtime wins, luxuries that Vachon didn’t
enjoy when he went 171-158-66 with the Kings from 1971-78.
Still, there’s little doubting that Quick is the most accomplished goalie in
Kings history. He showed why in the second period Saturday, when he
stopped the otherwise sleepy Panthers from getting in the game.
The Kings led 2-0, on first-period goals by Trevor Lewis and Mike Richards,
when Quick, flat on his stomach, gloved a point blank shot by Tomas
Fleischmann that was headed for the back of the net.
``It is something you will very rarely see in this league,’’ Vachon said of
Quick’s save.
The crowd gave Quick a standing ovation and the Panthers, essentially,
finished their work for the day. The Kings weren’t seriously challenged again,
and added goals from Dustin Brown and Alec Martinez.
Brown’s status is a concern, though. He took just one shift after his goal, nine
minutes into the second period, and left the game with what the team called
an upper-body injury. It was not immediately clear as to whether Brown
would travel with the team for its game at Philadelphia on Monday.
Richards’ goal, just his 10th of the season, broke a six-game pointless streak
and came after he got demoted to the fourth line. After Brown’s injury,
Richards moved up and took second-line shifts.
Orange County Register: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739146
Los Angeles Kings
March 22 postgame quotes: Darryl Sutter
March 22, 2014 4:51 pm
Jon Rosen
On whether it’s appropriate for Jonathan Quick to reflect back at this point of
his career:
For sure it is. I think he got there in a hurry, and he probably doesn’t get
because the offensive guys get the credit around here. But he probably
doesn’t get the attention that he should.
On whether Tanner Pearson has made progress during his most recent
call-up:
All those guys came back at the Olympic break, right? So they were
game-ready, playing.
On the new line combinations:
It was what I said yesterday. I was trying to get Mike on top of his game.
Trying to get Kinger on top of his game. Had a little luck. The leverage and
the luxury with Jeff to move him around – they’re pretty flexible, all those
guys, to be able to move guys around by position. It’s a lot easier at home.
Play young guys together and keep ‘em away from top guys, things like that.
Quite honest, how that translates out onto the road? We’ll see. I really don’t
even want to go very far with it, because it looked good early. You know
what? Cliffy and Lewie were really good, and Mike was sharp, and they kind
of gave us the jump every time that we needed it from ‘em.
On rising on the all-time wins list and passing Toe Blake:
We could be busing. Remember those days? We get to take the train this trip.
We’re going Philly-Washington. That’ll be fun.
On whether it was good to see Rogie Vachon:
Yeah, I thought it was the Godfather up on the screen there when they
showed him…HE looks good. You don’t see him very much because he’s
really not around, though. Being at the practice rink, you don’t see him very
often. I see his son, Nick, more than I see him.
LA Kings Insider: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739147
Los Angeles Kings
March 22 postgame notes
March 22, 2014 6:13 pm
Jon Rose
-With the win, Los Angeles improved to 14-9-3 all-time against Florida, a
record that includes a home mark of 10-4-0. The Kings have won nine of the
last 10 games against the Panthers, dating back to November 5, 2003.
-With his 172nd career win, Jonathan Quick passed Rogie Vachon as the
holder of the most wins as a Kings goaltender in franchise history.
-Quick posted his 30th career shutout on Saturday, which brings him within
two shutouts of Vachon’s club record 32.
-Los Angeles registered its 11th shutout of 2013-14 (Quick 5, Martin Jones 3,
Ben Scrivens 3), which ties the team record set in 2011-12.
-Quick is 8-2-0 in his last 10 games with a 1.39 GAA and .942 Sv%.
-By winning his 501st career game, Darryl Sutter tied Pat Burns for 16th
place on the all-time coaching wins list. By coaching the 1,028th regular
season game of his career, he tied his brother Brian Sutter for 17th place on
the NHL’s all-time games coached list. Sutter is 501-374-153 overall in his
career and 91-54-22 with the Kings.
-The Kings have won 40 games for the fourth consecutive season.
-Los Angeles outscored Florida 7-0 in the two-game season series.
-The Kings have killed 30 of the last 33 penalties, dating back to the third
period in Colorado on February 26.
-Los Angeles has allowed two goals or fewer in 47 of 71 games, posting a
36-5-6 record over that span.
-With his second period goal, Dustin Brown tied Mike Murphy for ninth place
overall on the Kings’ all-time scoring list with 194 career goals.
-Alec Martinez scored his ninth goal of the season, which leads Kings
defensemen. He has eight points (5-3=8) in the last 10 games.
-Trevor Lewis posted his 10th career multi-point game.
-With a first period goal, Mike Richards recorded his first point in seven
games.
-Drew Doughty’s 21:39 of ice time was his second lowest total of the season.
-The Kings won 34-of-56 faceoffs (61%). Among regular performers, Mike
Richards won 9-of-10, Anze Kopitar won 7-of-14, Trevor Lewis won 1-of-3,
Jarret Stoll won 9-of-13, and Jeff Carter won 8-of-15.
The Kings are currently traveling and will practice in Philadelphia on Sunday.
739148
Los Angeles Kings
With record win, Quick emerges as franchise torchbearer
Please don’t ask me about my first win. I have no clue. It’s been like 50 years.
I was wearing a mask then, a small one. [Reporter: You stopped someone a
breakaway your first game.] My first game ever… I stopped Gordie Howe on
the breakaway. It kept me in the league for 15 years. He doesn’t even know
who Gordie Howe is.
Quick, on what he has seen of Vachon’s playing career:
March 22, 2014 8:38 pm
Jon Rosen
For Quick, the 172 wins came over a span of 327 games played. For Vachon,
the 172 wins came over 389 total games, a remarkable accomplishment
given that games ended in ties after 60 minutes and the possibility of earning
wins in a shootout represented a farfetched science fiction story. The Kings
also varied in their level of distinction in the 1970’s, posting only one 40-win
season. The 2013-14 Kings team won its 40th game of the season against
the Panthers, a mark that has been reached four times in the last five
seasons. Los Angeles was on pace for 46 wins in the lockout-shortened
season of 2012-13.
“I wish I would’ve set the bar a little higher,” Vachon joked after the game.
“He’s well deserved. He’s playing great and he’s going to set some incredible
record before his career is over.”
By posting his 30th career shutout on Saturday, Quick also closed to within
two shutouts of Vachon’s club record of 32.
To read more about Vachon talking about the Kings teams he played for, and
what he sees in Jonathan Quick, I recommend my LAKings.com story from
two weeks ago: Rogie and Quick.
For more on a banner day in the history of Kings goaltending, and to learn
more about the relationship between Quick and Vachon, here are the quotes
and photographs from the team’s locker room after the game.
Rogie Vachon, on Jonathan Quick’s career:
It’s wonderful. Unfortunately, I only played like six-and-a-half years here, but
you know him. He’s going to play maybe 15 to 20 years the way he’s doing.
So he’s going to set some records that I think no other goalie in the league
coming later will ever touch.
Jonathan Quick, on what it meant to have Rogie Vachon at the game:
Obviously it’s very special. We’ve done a few things before in the past,
interviews and he’s ben to many games. It’s great to have him around from
time to time and see him and he talks about some old stories. The support
means a lot. But I think the biggest thing is obviously, like I said earlier, when
you talk about wins it the 20 guys it takes to win a game. The goalie is always
kind of nominated to receive most of the celebration as far as wins and
shutouts, but it’s a group effort and it means a lot that I’m able to celebrate it
with the guys in the locker room too.
Vachon, on his first impression of Quick:
His ability to move from one side to the other is just absolutely phenomenal.
I’d never seen that before. The save that he made today in the second period
coming from one side and going onto the other side to grab it, very rarely do
you see that in the league even now.
Quick, on being ready to play for 15 to 20 years:
I’m just taking it one game at a time. [Vachon: He’s just a puppy. He’s got
plenty of time.] Hopefully, I’m fortunate to have that kind of health and luck to
be able to play that long. But for now, we’re just taking it one game at a time.
Quick, on his first career win:
It was a blowout. I think we beat Buffalo like 8-2. I didn’t see too much work,
either. It was a good first game to get in there and get your feet wet and I had
a lot of support. [Reporter: You’re family couldn’t make the game because
they didn’t have enough notice, so you’re dad bought the NHL package to
see the game.] Yeah, that was seven years ago. I had been called up
because of an injury and I think it might have been J.S. Aubin who was the
guy that was healthy. So he played a couple in a row and they gave me the
second and didn’t tell me until the morning of. So my parents would be
coming from Connecticut, so they weren’t able to get out in time obviously but
it’s still special to be able to get the win in your first professional game.
Vachon, on the first win of his career:
I see clips, not full games. I see clips, highlights. There are a lot of them, so
I’ve seen those. [Reporter: What did you think when you saw those clips?]
Tremendously the game has changed. I think it is a big emphasis on team
defense. Before, it used to be the goalie had to make the saves and then five
guys might try to score. They rely on a lot more than the goalies nowadays.
You’re more of a six-man unit in your own end, so you’re all working together.
Obviously, like Luc was saying earlier, not the biggest guy but he’s able to
find the pucks and compete for saves.
Quick, on thinking about his career accomplishments:
It creeps in your mind a little bit. It’s a situation where you’re caught up in the
moment. We fly to Philly this afternoon. We play a game in two days, so your
focus moves on pretty quickly to that next game. Especially, now this time of
year where everyone is try to jump positions, the playoff push, things like
that. It’s a short-lived enjoyment because you have to get ready for the next
game in a hurry.
Quick, on if this accomplishment will mean more after he retires:
Yes, without a doubt. Even in the summertime where you have some time to
kind of decompress and look back on the year and really get a full
understanding of what you’re able to be a part of with the guys.
Quick, on what he does with the mementos form his career:
My parents have a lot of stuff and I have a lot of stuff. Just over the years,
being able to play on different teams, we’ve been very fortunate up to this
point in my career. You get a couple little things you hold onto and you put in
the attic and you get to show your grandkids when you’re a little older.
Quick, on his reaction to his first NHL win:
I think we flew out, not right after, but the next morning we were out of here
and we went to like Dallas or Chicago or somewhere. So it’s kind of the same
thing. Obviously, you’re a lot younger then, so you’re hoping that maybe you
get another start and what can you do to try and prove yourself. So it’s the
same thing. You’re caught up in the moment. You’re caught up in the ups and
downs of the season and you try to stay on track.
739149
Los Angeles Kings
March 22 postgame quotes: Florida
March 22, 2014 5:20 pm
James Nichelson
Roberto Luongo, on facing Los Angeles:
They’re a straight forward team, a big team, a physical team. They throw
some big bodies in front of the net and bang away at rebounds and stuff like
that, pretty much the same that I’ve seen in the past.
Luongo, on Jonathan Quick:
I mean he was on top of his game tonight. You could see that he was feeling
it. I don’t know if we would have got a puck by him tonight. It was one of those
nights where you can see that he sees everything. And the ones he doesn’t
see, he finds a way to make the save. It would be a tough one either way.
Luongo, on playing in Staples Center:
They’re a good team, especially in their building. They’ve won a cup. They
know what it takes to win. They’re a tough team to play against. You really
have to grind it out and play a patient game against them if you want to
squeak one out.
Peter Horachek, on getting off to a slow start:
I don’t necessarily think it was a slow start. It was mistakes that they got two
goals. We out-chanced them tonight, 18-to-13. We had better chances. They
just capitalized. They’re stronger in a lot of areas, in the grind areas, in the
not fun areas. They’re a big, physical team. They play well, play strong and
they have four strong lines. We’ve got to be better at, I think the mistakes that
we made in our own zone and the way we handled those. We gave them two
and we didn’t capitalize on any opportunities that we had.
Horachek, on Jonathan Quick’s save on Tomas Fleischmann:
Well that one and Bergenheim in the third period. There was a few of them
there. Some opportunities, Fleischmann on the power play and you see
Quick make the save again. That’s why he’s one of the best goalies in the
league.
739150
Los Angeles Kings
No major Brown update
March 22, 2014 5:07 pm
Jon Rosen
There wasn’t much of a post-game update on Dustin Brown, who played
seven minutes and 12 seconds before leaving the game with what was
announced in the press box as an upper-body injury. He did not play in the
third period. Brown scored the Kings’ third goal in the 4-0 win over the Florida
Panthers.
When asked after the game whether Brown would join the team on the
upcoming three-game road trip to Philadelphia, Washington and Pittsburgh,
Darryl Sutter responded that “We’re assuming he will,” and noted that the
team is flying out immediately after the game.
The injury isn’t a head injury, according to Lisa Dillman of the LA Times:
This is likely old news for the longtime followers of the blog, but I’ll write this
as a reminder – I can not report on things I see during team travel and in
situations in which other reporters do not have access, so don’t expect to
hear any Brown updates from the air.
Public service announcement over. Jeff Carter quotes, Florida quotes, zone
entries, videos, postgame notes notes and a story on Jonathan Quick and
Rogie Vachon will follow throughout the evening.
UPDATE, 5:45 p.m.: Elliott Teaford of the Daily News is reporting that Brown
suffered a chest contusion in the second period against Florida.
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Los Angeles Kings
March 22 postgame quotes: Jeff Carter
March 22, 2014 5:00 pm
James Nicholson
On skating on a line with Tyler Toffoli and Tanner Pearson:
It’s great. They’ve been playing really well for us the last couple weeks and
obviously that shows in minutes that they’re getting and the power play and
the penalty kill and all that. I was just talking with Luc there, we probably
could’ve had four goals in the first period. It seemed like they were just a
couple inches off. I thought it was real good. Hopefully it keeps going.
On Tanner Pearson getting to the puck:
We all knew that’s what he brings. It’s just a matter of him getting comfortable
and kind of fitting into his role I guess. He’s quick, he’s strong on the puck, he
makes good plays and we’re starting to see that now.
On playing center:
It is what it is. It’s been three years since I left there… It’s not a big deal really.
It’s a big game for both teams. They’ve been playing real well and we’ve
started to get things going here. It should be a lot of fun.
On Jonathan Quick’s save on Tomas Fleischmann in the second period:
Nice, very nice. A save of the year candidate probably. [Reporter: Except for
the one the previous game.] If he would have stopped the first shot the
previous game it would have been save of the year.
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Minnesota Wild
Nyquist's goal gives Red Wings 3-2 win over Wild
DAVE CAMPBELL
March 22, 2014 - 5:55 PM
night rematch, cramming their only two matchups this season into a 32-hour
window. ... With Wisconsin taking on Ohio State, Suter and Wild teammate
Dany Heatley had strong interest in the Big Ten title game. Heatley played
two years for the Badgers from 1999-2001. Suter, a Madison area native,
spent the 2003-04 season there before turning pro. ... Legwand was fined
$5,000 Friday by the NHL for butting Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin with the end
of his stick when they played the Penguins on Thursday. ... Legwand has two
goals and five assists in nine games since he was acquired from Nashville. ...
Koivu ended a 13-game streak without a goal. He and Suter share the team
lead with 32 assists.
Star Tribune LOADED: 03.23.2014
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Depleted by injuries, and maybe just due for a drop-off,
the Detroit Red Wings have found their remarkable 22-season streak of
reaching the playoffs in jeopardy.
Well, with 12 games to go, they are still in line for a spot.
Gustav Nyquist's third-period goal gave the Red Wings a 3-2 victory
Saturday over the Minnesota Wild, their fourth win in five games.
"The young guys are playing more and more and starting to believe in
themselves more and more," said Jimmy Howard, who made 28 saves. "It's a
fun time of year because you're seeing what we have, and the future looks
bright."
Brendan Smith and David Legwand each scored on a power play for the Red
Wings, who were in a 2-for-25 slump with the man advantage until getting
goals on both of their opportunities in this rare afternoon start. The Red
Wings also quieted the Wild's top line of Mikael Granlund, Zach Parise and
Jason Pominville, held without a point for the first time in eight games.
"For both teams it was a muddy track. There was no room for either team. It
was just check, check, check, check, check. We found a way to get it done,"
Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said.
The Red Wings, missing stars Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg among
others, moved into eighth place in the Eastern Conference with 79 points.
Columbus has 78.
Mikko Koivu gave the Wild an early lead with a power-play goal, and Charlie
Coyle tied it on a third-period penalty shot. But the Wild, clinging to a wild
card spot in the Western Conference, fell to 2-3-4 in nine games since the
trade deadline.
"We can't keep letting these points go to waste. We've got to come into every
game and play a solid 60 minutes," Coyle said, "It's coming down to the wire
here, and we've got to make the most of it."
The Wild, who have 83 points with 11 games remaining, are in seventh place,
slightly ahead of Phoenix. The first team below the cut, Dallas, has 77 points
but one more game left than the Wild.
Minnesota coach Mike Yeo, prepared for questions from reporters about the
recent slide, tried to stress optimism.
"We're a confident team, and we feel good about where we're going. We just
have to jump start things a little bit right now," Yeo said.
Just 15 seconds into the final frame, Johan Franzen, trailing Coyle on a
breakaway, stuck his stick out to trip the struggling young center. The penalty
shot was awarded, the first of Coyle's career. He used a slick right-left move
to fake out Howard and tie the game at 2. That was Coyle's second goal in 24
games.
The momentum didn't last for the Wild, though.
Nyquist, who has an NHL-leading 16 goals in 22 games since Jan. 20, sent a
snap shot between Jared Spurgeon and Ryan Suter that Wild goalie Darcy
Kuemper didn't appear to see right away and let get past his glove. The Red
Wings thought they had another one barely a minute later when Franzen was
called for making contact with Kuemper before the puck went in.
Nyquist, who leads the Red Wings with 21 goals in just 45 of the team's 70
games since being called up from Grand Rapids of the AHL, credited center
Tomas Tatar for creating space.
"He did a great job of driving the middle, and it's his goal really. All I did was
shoot," Nyquist said.
Quipped Howard: "Us Maine guys know how to do it right."
NOTES: The matinee was scheduled to accommodate the first Big Ten
hockey championship game. ... The teams were due in Detroit for a Sunday
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Minnesota Wild
Ailing Red Wings get well against the Wild
Suter was heated before sitting in the box and had some words for the refs
after Legwand hit the post and defenseman Brendan Smith backhanded the
rebound into an open net. Suter felt Darren Helm slashed his stick in half, not
the other way around.
Michael Russo
March 22, 2014 - 6:14 PM
These weren’t your grandfather’s Detroit Red Wings.
Nicklas Lidstrom and Tomas Holmstrom are retired. Pavel Datsyuk, Hendrik
Zetterberg, Stephen Weiss, Dan Cleary, Jonathan Ericsson and others are
hurt.
Yet Saturday afternoon, the young, desperate, injury-riddled Red Wings, who
were outside the top eight in the Eastern Conference, handed the Wild its first
regulation home loss since Jan. 14 with a 3-2 victory.
Gustav Nyquist, the Red Wings’ young Swedish up-and-coming star, scored
the winning goal 5 minutes, 19 seconds into the third period — five minutes
after Wild youngster Charlie Coyle tied the game on his first career penalty
shot 15 seconds into the period.
The Wild’s home point streak ended at 7-0-3. Since the March trade
deadline, the Wild is 2-3-4 in nine games and 1-1-4 in six home games.
The Wild and Red Wings close out the home-and-home series Sunday night
in Detroit.
Somebody lit a fire underneath Coyle on Saturday.
One day after Mike Yeo made clear he wanted more from the young Coyle
and fellow first-round pick nino Niederreiter, Coyle was so engaged in the
first half of the game, he was elevated back into a top-6 role by the middle of
the second period.
He opened the third period back on the right side of Matt Moulson and Mikko
Koivu, turned the opening faceoff into a breakaway and was tripped by Johan
Franzen. He was awarded a penalty shot and used a slick move to create an
open net to tuck home only his fourth goal in the past 35 games.
But the Wild would give the goal right back when Nyquist blew his 21st goal
by Darcy Kuemper. Nyquist is the NHL’s hottest goal scorer since Jan. 20,
scoring 16 goals.
The Wild drew a power play with 3:27 left but couldn’t tie the game.
Kuemper is showing signs of cracking. He has allowed three or more goals in
four of his past six starts, and in one of those other two, he became the first
NHL goalie this season to blow a 2-0 lead in a shootout.
Jimmy Howard made 28 saves, including a number of robberies.
With the score tied 1-1, the Wild controlled play and had the better of the
chances throughout the second period.
But Howard kept the Wild at bay. The Wild held the Red Wings to four shots
for the first 16 ½ minutes of the period, then defenseman Clayton Stoner,
after turning the puck over, took a high-sticking penalty.
David Legwand, the former longtime Nashville Predators center acquired at
the trade deadline, scored off a terrific setup by Riley Sheahan and not long
after Kyle Brodziak got handcuffed and turned over his clearing attempt at
the blue line.
Brodziak also lost the faceoff that led to Detroit’s first goal and was on the ice
for Nyquist’s goal.
Koivu, acknowledged and treated to an ovation in the first period for
becoming the Wild’s all-time leading scorer Tuesday, opened the scoring.
Koivu, who often seems allergic to shooting on the power play, got himself
into a shooting position and one-timed Ryan Suter’s pass for a 1-0 lead 5
minutes, 38 seconds into the game. Suter made a great play by saving
possession at the blue line and then weaving past penalty killer Drew Miller
before the pass.
For Koivu, it was his first goal since Dec. 27, snapping a 13-game drought.
But the Red Wings would score the equalizer almost five minutes later eight
seconds into a Suter slashing minor.
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Minnesota Wild
NHL Insider: Iginla's still a star
“It’s something that has been motivating him for a long time, and Boston has
rejuvenated him in a sense.”
NHL Short Takes
Tweet misinterpreted? Really?
Staff Writer
March 22, 2014 - 11:01 PM
Turns out Jarome Iginla’s demise was misreported. The former Calgary
Flames heart and soul was supposed to be all but finished, his illustrious
career tiptoeing to a conclusion because of legs and hands that were
showing signs of slowing.
But as a smiling Iginla told me hours before his habitual roasting of the Wild
last Monday, “I never thought I was done.”
Iginla, 36, signed with the Boston Bruins last summer, an unexpected union
because Iginla turned down a trade to Boston last season and chose to go to
Pittsburgh instead. The Bruins got the last laugh, sweeping the Penguins in
the Eastern Conference finals and then getting their man anyway in free
agency.
The Bruins, riding a 12-game winning streak and a 20-2-3 run in their past 25,
are the best team in the East and one of the deepest, most balanced teams in
the NHL. Like a perfectly tailored suit, Iginla has fit impeccably.
Playing on a line with Milan Lucic and David Krejci, Iginla leads the Bruins
with 28 goals and is a plus-32. Last week, his winning goal against Minnesota
was part of a string of three in four games.
Iginla, the all-time leading scorer against the Wild, is third among active
players with 558 goals and fourth with 1,164 points.
“It’s been a really fun year,” Iginla said. “All the way from the start of training
camp, it’s been a new experience. Different pressures, it’s been very
enjoyable to be winning as a team, to be battling for the top of the conference
for pretty much the whole year.
After a 3-2 loss to Detroit last week, Toronto Maple Leafs coach Randy
Carlyle said goalie James Reimer’s performance was just “OK.”
Agent Ray Petkau created a wildfire when he tweeted, “As is customary in
Toronto, when your team plays poor defensively game after game, you
blame your goalie.”
When all of Toronto’s hockey fandom assumed that was in response to
Carlyle’s critique, Petkau tweeted, “Apparently that last tweet needs
clarification. Notice it’s NOT directed at anyone in particular. It’s a general
observation. #BadTiming.”
Burnzie’s butt check
The San Jose Sharks are 10-2-1 since the All-Star break, and
defenseman-turned-forward Brent Burns has turned his game around since a
19-game goal drought.
Burns had a huge game against Anaheim last week, highlighted by his “butt
check” on Anaheim’s Corey Perry. Burns didn’t execute your old-fashioned,
prototypical hip check.
“It’s never taught that way,” coach Todd McLellan said. “He has his own
unique style. He backs that big truck in and finishes checks that way.”
The truth hurts
Philadelphia Flyers coach Craig Berube, who has led Philly’s impressive
turnaround since Peter Laviolette was fired, was asked how his personality
compared to former Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock: “Mine’s better,” he joked.
Wild’s week ahead
Sunday: 6:30 p.m. at Detroit (NBCSN)
Wednesday: 6:30 p.m. vs. Vancouver (FSN)
“I know the feeling on the other side when you’re battling for a playoff spot
and every game is do or die, or a four-point game. It’s a nice change to have
a different pressure, to try to better our own game as opposed to having to
watch other teams. I know how that feels. This is more fun.”
Thursday: 7 p.m. at St. Louis (FSN)
After snubbing the Bruins last season, Iginla still hears the odd joke from
teammates. At the start, Bruins fans didn’t know whether or not to accept
him, although that changed rather quickly.
Vladimir Sobotka, St. Louis
“Probably because they beat us [in the conference finals], and pretty
handily,” Iginla said, laughing.
Teammates have definitely accepted him.
“He’s pretty quiet,” forward Chris Kelly said. “We have enough guys that
spew. He just goes out and plays his game and plays hard and does
everything extremely well. He’s not just a scorer. He plays hard, he fights, he
blocks shots. He’s out there last minute when we’re up by a goal or down by
a goal. He’s one of the best all-around players of all time.”
And he’s an incredible influence on Boston’s youngsters. Monday morning
before playing the Wild, the first player on the ice for the Bruins’ morning
skate was Jarome Iginla.
“I’ve admired him for a long time, but sometimes you don’t really appreciate
somebody until you actually play with them,” said the Bruins’ Gregory
Campbell. “He’s been in hockey so long, yet he’s still hungry for so more. He
goes as far as taking his skates home so he can work on his shot. It rubs off
in the dressing room.”
Iginla knows people felt he was on the decline, but his philosophy is “every
year is a chance to prove yourself. I’m fortunate to be here in Boston because
I didn’t know if that could ever be the case.”
In Campbell’s mind, Iginla is the feel-good story in this year’s NHL.
“He’s done so much for the game, especially in Canada and specifically in
Calgary,” Campbell said. “But sometimes you get stuck in the same pattern. I
think a new environment has been really good for him, coming here and
having the opportunity to have a fresh look on things and really have the
opportunity to chase his goal of winning the Stanley Cup.
Saturday: 8 p.m. at Phoenix (FSN)
Player to watch:
Overshadowed by David Backes, T.J. Oshie, Alex Steen, Alex Pietrangelo
and the Blues’ deep cast of great players, this hard-hitting forward always
seems to hurt the Wild in every facet.
VOICES
"He was a fan favorite. Little girls were pretty excited to see him play out
there, 15-, 16-year-olds. He looked so young, you know?"
New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, laughing, on former Devils captain
Zach Parise.
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Minnesota Wild
Reusse blog: The Wild's brilliant marketing
Patrick Reusse
March 22, 2014 - 4:28 PM
Minnesota was awarded an NHL expansion franchise on June 25, 1997.
There was an event at Aldrich Arena on St. Paul’s East Side on Jan. 23,
1998, when it was announced Wild had been selected as the team’s
nickname.
That still seems to have been a reach, until you consider that the other
finalists for a brand were the Northern Lights, Blue Ox, White Bears,
Voyaguers and Freeze.
The Wild hired three ambassadors a couple of days after the nickname was
announced: Neal Broten, Alana Blahoski and Karyn Bye-Dietz. The latter two
would go to work after helping lead the U.S. to the gold medal in the first-ever
women’s Olympic hockey tournament in February 1998 in Nagano, Japan.
The Wild counted 225 hockey arenas in Minnesota at the time and they set
out to put up large cardboard cut-outs of Broten, Blahoski and Bye-Dietz. The
trio made appearances at many of those arenas in the two years before Wild
would play a game, and if not, there were smiling cardboard faces selling the
team to the youth groups using those arenas.
On Saturday, the arena in St. Paul was bursting was once again with a
standing room crowd for a matinee with the Detroit Red Wings.
I was heading across the skyway 45 minutes before faceoff and it was a
stampede of 6 to 12-year-old kids in their jerseys, accompanied by Dad or
Mom, or more likely both, also in jerseys.
I’ve considered this to be a phenomenon since the Wild played its first game
in October 2000: the families of four, all bedecked in jerseys, and with the
younger kids basically skipping with joy as they headed toward the
entrances.
No pro team in Minnesota has been able to gain the loyalty of that family
audience over the length of a full season, as has the Wild. On Saturday, I
talked with Matt Majka, the Wild’s Chief Operationg Officer, about the
amazing reach the team continues to have into the youth hockey ranks.
“There was no family crowd for the North Stars … far from it,’’ I said.
Majka offered a reminder as what helped the Wild gain tremendous
momentum with families even before the first puck was dropped:
“One big break for us was that we were coming along when girls hockey was
starting to explode in the state. It went from a case of Dad bringing Johnny to
a game, to Dad and Mom bringing Johnny and Julie to a game.’’
Yes, and the brainiacs at the team’s infancy – including Majka, as a VP for
marketing back then – were smart enough to recognize that parents were
going to be as vulnerable to pleas to go to a Wild game from a young girl as a
young boy.
They captured all the momentum from that first Olympic gold with Blahoski
and Bye-Dietz on the payroll, as early, friendly faces of the franchise.
They also came up with the “State of Hockey’’ slogan that, as a brand … well,
let’s say that is had a bit more staying power and effectiveness than did
“United We Run’’ or “True Blue.’’
You’re telling those parents in Woodbury and Eden Prairie and points
in-between that the expense and the time used on having kids involved in
community hockey are worth it because the whole family is part of
something noble … part of making this the State of Hockey.
It’s brilliant.
And 15 winters after those cardboard cutouts of Broten, Blahoski and
Bye-Dietz appeared everywhere, the brand endures. The crowd on Saturday
was 19,176, over-capacity and the 29th sellout in 36 home games.
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Minnesota Wild
So, that means there has been a perceptible decline in the young man’s
play? Kuemper was asked how he’s dealing with life as a No. 1 goalie in the
stretch of an NHL season.
Kuemper, once solid in Wild net, has hit a rough stretch
“Great; it’s a lot of fun,’’ he said. “That’s why you’re here, to play. That’s the
only way to help your team win.’’
PATRICK REUSS
Bryzgalov figures to start Sunday night in the rematch with Detroit.
March 22, 2014 - 11:56 PM
“I haven’t heard,’’ Kuemper said. “If I get a chance to go back-to-back, I’m all
for it. Either way, Bryz or me, we got to go into Detroit and win a game.’’
Please do so … for the coach, if no one else.
Josh Harding was forced to give up his role as the Wild’s No. 1 goalie for the
game of Dec. 31, presumably due to complications with his multiple
sclerosis. Niklas Backstrom played four of the first five games of 2014,
winning three.
Darcy Kuemper started the middle game of that stretch. He made 39 saves in
40 shots and beat the Kings in Los Angeles. That was a major improvement
on his previous start of this season — a loss in Toronto on Oct. 15 in which
Kuemper gave up three goals on seven shots and was hooked.
The Wild went back to Kuemper for a game in Nashville on Jan. 12. He shut
out the Predators with 23 saves.
The consecutive outstanding performances for Kuemper were beyond good
timing; for the Wild they were season-saving.
Harding was out. Backstrom was having problems with a midsection injury
that eventually would cause him to be lost for the season.
At that point, Kuemper was going to have to get it done, or the Wild might be
tracking down Manny Fernandez to see what he was up to.
Kuemper started 16 games in a row. The only time off in a game from Jan. 12
to March 8 was when he was hooked in favor of Backstrom after giving up
four goals in Colorado on Jan. 30.
That would turn out to be Backstrom’s last action of the season.
Kuemper gave up four goals again in an overtime loss at Calgary on Feb. 1.
Was it panic time? Not for Kuemper.
The rookie came back to allow a total of six goals in five victories in a row
before and after the Olympic break. It was a streak that put the Wild in a
position that seemed to make a second consecutive playoff appearance a
foregone conclusion.
That streak took the Wild to the trade deadline. The need for veteran goalie
— just in case — was filled with the acquisition of Ilya Bryzgalov from
Edmonton.
Kuemper gave up four goals in Dallas on March 8, the first night that
Bryzgalov was available. On Saturday, Detroit’s Jimmy Howard made
several outstanding saves, Kuemper was only OK, and the Wild lost 3-2 to
the injury-ravaged Red Wings.
The Wild has lost five of Kuemper’s past six starts, and he’s allowed three
goals or more in four of those. Add in two losses in Bryzgalov’s three starts
and the Wild’s hold on a wild-card spot in the West is now six points over
Dallas.
Coach Mike Yeo took a long time to arrive for his postgame media session.
He came armed with a defense for anyone wanting to suggest the Wild was
engaged in a third annual end-of-season fade with him as a coach.
As a reporter not fully experienced in Yeo’s postgame ways, I have to say
that the coach came off as more paranoid over this March snag than was the
media in attendance.
After reeling off the good stuff, Yeo added: “I’m not saying everything is
peachy and glory …’’
I’m not sure, Mike, the guess is that’s not going to replace “peaches and
cream’’ as a popular bromide.
What did seem interesting was Yeo’s reaction when asked to assess
Kuemper’s play on Saturday, and as of late.
“I don’t know if it’s fair to evaluate him,’’ Yeo said. “That last goal, he could
have that one, maybe, but the other two … what is he supposed to do?
“I’m not saying he’s on top of things like earlier, but I’m not concerned. He
showed me in the past he can come back, and he will again.’’
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Minnesota Wild
Wild's week ahead
March 22, 2014 - 9:04 PM
Staff Writer
Sunday: 6:30 p.m. at Detroit (NBCSN)
Wednesday: 6:30 p.m. vs. Vancouver (FSN)
Thursday: 7 p.m. at St. Louis (FSN)
Saturday: 8 p.m. at Phoenix (FSN)
Player to watch: Vladimir Sobotka, St. Louis
Overshadowed by David Backes, T.J. Oshie, Alex Steen, Alex Pietrangelo
and the Blues’ deep cast of great players, this hard-hitting forward always
seems to hurt the Wild in every facet.
VOICES
« He was a fan favorite. Little girls were pretty excited to see him play out
there, 15-, 16-year-olds. He looked so young, you know? »
New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, laughing, on former Devils captain
Zach Parise.
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Minnesota Wild
Postgame: Yeo says things not as bad as they seem
Michael Russo
March 22, 2014 - 8:19 PM
Apologies for the late blog, but I needed to speed through my game story and
notebook and hustle to the airport for a 7 p.m. flight.
Greetings from the friendly skies.
One piece of news: Defenseman Clayton Stoner left tonight’s 3-2 loss to
Detroit with about five or six minutes left. He limped down the runway. I didn’t
see what happened, but Stoner’s been limping around the past three or four
days, has had a part of his lower body wrapped with ice the past few days
and probably aggravated it.
Either he didn’t make the trip to Detroit or is a question mark, but defenseman
Jon Blum didn’t play the third period for Iowa tonight and is being called up
(Remember, Keith Ballard is hurt). I think the plan was to call up Steve
Kampfer, but he actually got injured in tonight’s Iowa game.
Tonight’s loss to Detroit was so typical of the Wild. Play an even first period,
leave 1-1. Outplay Detroit in the second, leave down 2-1. Stoner turned the
puck over, then reacted by taking a high-sticking penalty. Kyle Brodziak
actually makes a great play to get a puck on the PK and promptly hands its
back to Detroit with a slow clear. Not long after the giveaway, David Legwand
scores a goal that Darcy Kuemper had no chance of stopping. Third period,
Charlie Coyle, who had a great game today, draws a penalty shot and ties
the game 15 seconds in by using the same slick move he used to win that
shootout in Winnipeg around Thanksgiving.
And five minutes later, Gustav Nyquist, the hottest goal scorer in the NHL
since Jan. 20 with 16 goals, makes a great play to skate through the Wild’s
defense before ripping a shot off the post and in.
Wild draws a power play late, can’t score on it and falls 3-2. It has now won 2
of 9 games since the trade deadline (2-3-4).
After the game though, I think Mike Yeo made a big mistake. He came to the
press conference ready to paint a rosy picture on what’s going on. He’s well
aware fans and media always pin late-season swoons on Yeo’s Wild. He’s
very sensitive to this analysis, especially since if you actually look at the
Wild’s history, late-season swoons preceded him.
Nevertheless, Yeo opened the presser with the statement: “We’ve got to find
a way to win that game.”
That opened the door for me to respond, “But you’ve got two wins in your last
nine. You’ve got to get some wins here, right?”
He responded, “How did I know that was coming?” and proceeded with a
two-minute soliloquy about how this is not another late-season stumble and
this is a different team and had some NHL-style math on a yellow sheet of
paper to show that things aren’t as bad as they seem.
“You could also say we’ve got a point in nine of our last 11 games,” said Yeo,
staring at a yellow piece of paper. “You could also say that was our first
regulation loss in 11 games at home (7-0-3 since Jan. 14). You could also
say that we’re 7-3-4 in our last 14 games. So, of course, are we sitting here
and saying that we’re completely on top of it? No, definitely not.
“There’s a lot of things that we have to do better. [Penalty kill] is number 1 on
our list. And finding ways to win a lot of these one-goal games. … We’re not
completely happy or satisfied, believe me. But at the same time, what I hope
is we don’t try to turn this into a big story of, ‘Oh no, here we go again.’
Because I can tell you that inside the room, we don’t have that feeling. I can
tell you that we’re a different team.”
Basically though, he turned the narrative of a tough loss game story into an
entire game story reminding folks of the late-season stumbles the past two
seasons and how what’s going on now should not be considered, “oh no,
here we go again.” I can honestly tell you, I wasn’t going this route with my
gamer until his spiel.
I just don’t know what he was trying to accomplish. Convince the fans?
Convince the media? Convince himself? Convince the players? If his
intention was to stop the outside noise of a potential late-season implosion,
to me, he made it a focal point, he made it the story.
And frankly now, he better hope his players prove him right.
We’ve written so much lately about young kids like Coyle and Nino
Niederreiter and how they need to step up. They did tonight. Niederreiter was
better. Coyle was tremendous, and in fact, to me set the bar about what he
can bring every single night. He was a force tonight and was elevated back to
the Matt Moulson-Mikko Koivu line because of it.
But Yeo has given tons of rope to veterans, especially Brodziak. Tonight,
Brodziak was on the ice for all three goals, losing the faceoff on Detroit’s first
power-play goal and turning it over before Detroit’s second.
We can all accept that despite the glorious chances Brodziak gets almost
nightly that he is not a scorer. But if you’re not going to score, you certainly
can’t be costing goals. His turnover in Boston three games ago led to the
Bruins’ winner in that game.
Dany Heatley, one game after being a minus-2 in New Jersey, had one shot
and was a non-factor.
The Wild needs more from those guys.
The Wild’s penalty kill is killing them lately. Yeo even volunteered that the
penalty kill is 68 percent over this stretch. Can’t win games like that, not when
you’re as offensively-challenged as the Wild continues to be.
The common theme is not winning draws and not getting clears when they
get the puck. Yeo said that needs to stop.
I thought the power play looked much better today. Mikko Koivu was even
shooting the puck for a change and scored a goal. Unfortunately for them,
they couldn’t score on the last one, but it definitely had a different look and
feel on the man advantage than it did in recent games.
Kuemper has given up three or more goals in four of his past six starts. In one
of those other two, he blew a 2-0 shootout lead. Hopefully he’s not cracking
here (there have been some stoppable goals allowed lately, like those goals
in the Edmonton game, the first goal in Boston, arguably the third tonight),
because again, the Wild doesn’t score enough to absorb average
goaltending.
Anyway, big game Sunday in Detroit. The Wild needs to rebound, to get
some W’s. But they’re going into a building where Detroit is 8-0-2 in the past
10 games since Jan. 20.
Yeo reminded again, that this is a team that doesn’t want to just eke into the
playoffs, they want to do damage once they’re there.
“We’re in a different spot, we’re a different team, we’re a confident team, and
we feel good where we’re going,” he said. “We just have to jumpstart things.”
Dallas is six points back now.
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Minnesota Wild
Gameday preview: Wild at Detroit
MICHAEL RUSSO
March 22, 2014 - 7:54 PM
6:30 P.M. at DETROIT • NBCSN, 100.3-FM
Preview: The Wild is 2-3-4 in its past nine games. The Red Wings have won
four of five overall and are 8-0-2 at home since Jan. 20. The Wild is 3-3 in its
past six in Detroit after winning only once in regulation in a stretch of 13
games there.
Players to watch: Wild C Mikko Koivu scored his first goal since Dec. 27 on
Saturday, snapping a 13-game drought. LW Zach Parise has no goals in the
past five games. D Ryan Suter has 32 assists, tied for the team lead. Since
Jan. 20, Red Wings F Gustav Nyquist leads the NHL with 16 goals.
Numbers: The Wild is 4-3-1 against Detroit over the past two seasons … The
Wild is 4-4-2 in the second half of back-to-backs and 14-11-4 against the
East. … The Red Wings rank second in the NHL with 341 man games lost to
injury.
Injuries: Wild F Jason Zucker (quad) and D Keith Ballard (groin) are out. Red
Wings C Stephen Weiss (sports hernia), LW Henrik Zetterberg (back), C
Pavel Datsyuk (knee), F Dan Cleary (knee), RW Tomas Jurco (ribs), F Justin
Abdelkader (leg), F Joakim Andersson (foot) and D Jonathan Ericsson
(finger) are out.
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Minnesota Wild
Wild notes: Rupp sees time ticking away
Michael Russo
March 22, 2014 - 11:41 PM
Every day the grizzly Mike Rupp shows up at the rink, puts on his gear and
practices with the Wild like every other player.
But every single game, Rupp knows the chance of him suiting up in that
same gear is minimal.
Rupp, 34, is basically out of sight, out of mind as the Wild’s 14th forward.
When the Wild has needed a forward for much of this season, the team’s first
option is usually to play its 13th forward or recall somebody from Iowa.
“I want to make sure that the door’s just not closing on me,” said Rupp, a
10-year veteran who could be staring at the end of his NHL career. “I’m not
content with doing what I’m doing, although I’ve spent a long time doing it.”
Rupp shows up every day intent on being a good teammate and not causing
problems. But hockey players want to play, so it’s getting tiresome having to
watch every game from the press box.
Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings, Rupp was a healthy scratch for the
15th consecutive game and for the 34th time this season. He hasn’t played
since Feb. 1, has played four games since Dec. 31 and 12 games all season.
Rupp missed the first 18 games of the season following offseason knee
surgery. There is no doubt he has slowed significantly, which is why coach
Mike Yeo hasn’t been using him.
But Rupp said, “I feel probably right now the best I felt in the past 2½ years,
so I obviously want to get in there.
“I enjoy being with the guys and … I’ve had teammates who dragged the
team down, and I don’t want to be that guy. But at the same time, it’s getting
to that time of year where you get that itch. I’m feeling healthy, so in my head,
I’m getting excited right now. Maybe some people wouldn’t understand that
because I haven’t played barely at all this year, but I’m excited.”
Rupp has talked to Yeo and told him “I just want to have the opportunity to
show that I can get the job done. I just want him to make sure that door’s
open for me still. I’m just going to keep going at it.”
Asked if he’s worried about finding a job next season, Rupp said, “I don’t
want to say, ‘Take it one day at a time,’ but it’s been such a tough couple
years. I finally felt like I was healthy last year and then I reinjured [my knee].
This year was always trying to get back to where I was and right now I feel
really good. But obviously, I haven’t had much of a résumé this season. I just
want to get that chance.”
Special teams slump
The Red Wings went 2-for-2 on power plays in Saturday’s 3-2 victory. The
Wild has given up seven power-play goals in the past nine games.
Saturday, Brendan Smith scored after Kyle Brodziak lost a draw. Brodziak,
also on the ice for Gustav Nyquist’s winning goal, turned the puck over on a
clearing attempt before David Legwand’s power-play goal late in a
second-period the Wild controlled.
“Both those penalty kills, we didn’t get a clear once and the first part of that is
winning faceoffs,” Yeo said. “We’ve got to start digging in on these draws.”
Etc.
• Defenseman Clayton Stoner missed the last six minute of Saturday’s game
because of an injury. With defenseman Keith Ballard (groin) also hurt, the
Wild recalled defenseman Jon Blum for Sunday’s rematch.
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Minnesota Wild
Tom Powers: Take a breath, Wild fans, because it's different this time
Tom Powers
03/22/2014 07:01:55 PM CDT
Oh no, here we go again.
"What I hope is that we don't try to turn this into a big story of, 'Oh no, here we
go again,' '' Wild coach Mike Yeo cautioned.
OK, sorry.
And actually there is no need to turn it into that. The Wild lost 3-2 to the
Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. They have two victories in their past nine
games. But that doesn't mean as much as it used to. In today's NHL, when
points are awarded for shootout losses, overtime defeats and good
sportsmanship, winning isn't all it's cracked up to be.
"It's a matter of perspective," Yeo said. "You could also say that we've got a
point in nine of our last 11 games. You could also say that was our first
regulation loss in 11 games at home. You could also say we're 7-3-4 in our
last 14 games.
The Detroit Red Wings congratulate Brendan Smith (2) on a goal as Marco
Scandella of the Minnesota Wild skates back to the bench during the first
period
"
The bottom line is that the Wild are going to be in the playoffs. Granted, they
are sort of sidewinding their way there. They are like a snake that slithers
side to side but still winds up in the general direction of forward. The Wild won
enough of their early games to put themselves in this position. Plus, Dallas is
in the toilet. Minnesota will never fall behind Dallas. So there is no need for
the Wild or their fans to stress out.
"Yeah, you don't want to play tight; you don't want to be stressed out about
things," Ryan Suter said. "But we have to play with some urgency."
The Wild have been doing exactly what they should be doing at this point:
beating the teams they should beat, losing to the teams they should lose to
and usually grabbing at least a point from everybody else.
Their remaining schedule is very tough, but they have enough of a cushion
that they can focus on what lies ahead. The idea is to gather momentum for
the postseason. And to fix the glitches, such as the current malfunctioning
penalty kill. This isn't the same situation as last season, when every point in
March was a white-knuckled necessity. This is much different.
"Big time," Yeo agreed. "We're trying to build for something. We don't want to
just make the playoffs. We want to do something in the playoffs. There is a
completely different feeling. We're not satisfied with just getting a few points
here and there. We're not satisfied with just being in a playoff position. We
want to be a team that every night goes out and dictates the game and
controls the play and we want to carry that momentum into the playoffs."
So it's already about the playoffs, and Yeo said people should be getting
excited about the possibilities instead of lamenting the current sideways
momentum. That's fair enough. But the Wild are not on top of their game right
now. And everyone would breathe easier if they could get a little something
going before the first round.
Saturday's game against the Red Wings was an interesting matchup. Injuries
have crippled the Wings this season, but they remain the most fundamentally
sound team in the NHL. They make fewer mistakes than anyone else. Mike
Babcock has them doing everything right. The question is whether that
attention to detail can overcome the current lack of depth. It did Saturday.
They desperately needed two points against the Wild and got them.
"That's a good, well-coached team," Suter agreed.
But it wasn't a tragic loss for Minnesota. Every year, every hockey coach
talks about how the victories in November count as much as the victories in
March. This year, the Wild are demonstrating that. They've had their ups and
downs but basically took care of business to where they are not fighting for
their playoff lives down the stretch.
The problem is that people are expecting the worst because that's what
they've gotten over the past couple of years.
"We're a different team," Yeo said. "We're a confident team, and we feel good
about where we're going. We just have to jump-start things a little right now."
Yes, they will be in the playoffs, likely as the first wild-card team. Even if they
slipped up terribly, they wouldn't slip below the second wild-card spot. So it's
about getting ready. Don't panic. Give them credit for relieving some of the
anxiety this time around. Then when the playoffs start, it will be OK for
everyone to get all jittery again.
Pioneer Press LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Minnesota Wild
But during a stretch with more losses than wins, Yeo was adamant that this
season isn't ending the same as the past two.
Minnesota Wild: Penalty kill, other stats tell story in loss to Red Wings
"We're in a different spot," he said. "We're a different team, we're a confident
team and we feel good about where we're going. We just have to jump-start
things a little bit right now."
Chad Graff
03/22/2014 06:55:10 PM CDT
Wild coach Mike Yeo was late to Saturday's press conference.
After another loss -- Minnesota's seventh in nine games -- Yeo spent time
scribbling stats on a piece of paper.
His goal was to show that the Wild's struggles this March aren't like last
spring, when the team fell from third in the conference to eighth in the final
month of the season, or like Yeo's first season, when the Wild went from first
in the West in December to missing the playoffs.
"I can tell you that inside the room we don't have that feeling," he said. "I can
tell you that we're a different team. Obviously, it's up to us to make sure that
we prove it. But what I hope is that we start getting excited about what's
coming. We're in the middle of a tough stretch, and we have to grind through
it."
His two-minute talk came after the Wild lost 3-2 to the injury-riddled Detroit
Red Wings on Saturday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center.
Again the Wild failed to capitalize on chances.
The Wild have won just two of their past nine games, though four of the
seven losses went to a shootout.
The recent struggles are a matter of perspective, though. Hence, the
statistics.
"You could also say that we've got a point in nine of our last (12) games," he
said. "You could also say that (Saturday's loss) was our first regulation loss in
11 games at home. You could also say that we're 7-3-4 in our last 14 games.
"Of course, are we sitting here saying we're completely on top of it? No.
There were a lot of things that we have to do better."
That starts by winning close games, which the Wild were good at early this
season. But of late, they haven't been able to close out games, even when
they battle back.
That happened again Saturday.
Fifteen seconds into the third period, Charlie Coyle drew a penalty shot and
scored to even the score at 2-2. But five minutes later, Gustav Nyquist, the
NHL's hottest goal-scorer, netted the game-winner past Darcy Kuemper.
"You think you have the momentum (after Coyle's goal), and they come back
and get a goal," Ryan Suter said. "(That's) a tough way to give one up, but it's
part of the game."
Eight of the Wild's past nine losses have come by one goal or in the shootout.
That's the bigger issue for Yeo, who said his team needs to improve on the
penalty kill to win those.
Yeo said the Wild's PK success rate is about 68 percent. A rate of about 82
percent is average.
Saturday, the Red Wings' first two goals came while on the power play, after
Mikko Koivu had given the Wild a 1-0 lead.
Detroit's first power-play goal came 12 seconds into the man-advantage. Its
second came less than a minute in. The Wild didn't clear their defensive zone
either time.
"No. 1 on the list for me is the penalty kill," Yeo said. "When you're losing
one-goal games and your PK is 68 percent, obviously you have to figure that
out. On the flip side, when we were winning a bunch of games, our PK was
on top of things. And this time of year with special teams you have to try to
find ways to be at least even."
The Wild converted on their first power play of the game but failed on the
ensuing two, including one with 3:27 remaining in the third period, which
provided a golden opportunity.
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Minnesota Wild
Minnesota Wild: Charlie Coyle scores after promotion to second line
Chad Graff
03/22/2014 08:44:06 PM CDT
After being told by Wild coach Mike Yeo to use his size more, Charlie Coyle's
physical play Saturday afternoon elevated him to the second line with Matt
Moulson and Mikko Koivu.
Yeo said he knew from Coyle's first couple of shifts that the power forward
was playing a much better game than in recent days.
During the second period, Yeo promoted Coyle from the third line.
"I loved it," Yeo said. "That's why he got put up there. You could tell right from
the first period when he was physical. I thought he should've drawn a penalty
with the big hit behind the net and they retaliated against him. When he's
physically engaged like that, he has a big presence in the game."
Coyle scored 15 seconds into the third period Saturday to tie the score 2-2.
He entered the offensive zone with speed, was tripped up and fell into Detroit
goalie Jimmy Howard and was awarded the first penalty shot of his career.
He faked a backhand and Howard bit before Coyle pulled it back to his
forehand and scored the game's equalizer.
It was just Coyle's second goal in the past 24 games and gave him eight on
the season. He recorded four shots on goal Saturday, second most on the
team behind Zach Parise's seven.
Kuemper slipping
For much of January and February, the Wild's Darcy Kuemper might have
been the best goalie in the NHL.
But Kuemper gave up three goals Saturday and now has given up at least
three in four of his past six starts after doing so just four times in January.
Except for the last goal, Yeo said he thought Kuemper played well Saturday
but admitted there is room for improvement in the goalie's game.
"I'm not saying that he's on top of things quite like he was at the beginning of
the year, but I'm also not concerned," Yeo said. "He's shown me that he's
able to bounce back from losses and a couple games where he's not quite on
top of it, and I think he'll do the same again."
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Montreal Canadiens
Gunnarsson – Phaneuf
Gleason – Rielly
Leafs, Habs in playoff mode for pivotal meeting
Gardiner – Franson
Reimer
James Mirtle
Canadiens projected lineup
Saturday, Mar. 22 2014, 1:23 PM EDT
Pacioretty – Desharnais - Vanek
Brière – Plekanec - Gallagher
The old rivals are back for one last meeting this season, playing out the
rubber match after splitting the season series two wins apiece.
The last meeting, that is, unless they meet in the postseason in a few weeks’
time.
Bourque – Galchenyuk - Gionta
Moen – Eller – Weise
Markov – Emelin
The struggling Toronto Maple Leafs play host to the Montreal Canadiens at
the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night, as they try to bump a four
regulation losses in five games streak that has suddenly threatened their
playoff hopes.
Bouillon – Subban
The good news is they could be buoyed by the return of centre David Bolland
after 56 games out of the lineup.
Globe And Mail LOADED: 03.23.2014
Coach Randy Carlyle called his return “probable,” and Carter Ashton was
sent to the Toronto Marlies to open a spot for Bolland to come off long-term
injured reserve for the first time since early November when a tendon in his
ankle was sliced by a skate.
If he plays, Bolland will be on a third line with Mason Raymond and David
Clarkson.
“I don’t know if I’ll limit his minutes,” Carlyle said. “We’ll see how the game
goes… With the addition of a Bolland, it gives you a little bit more depth
throughout your lineup. A veteran guy.”
“His experience speaks for itself obviously,” teammate James van Riemsdyk
added.
The Habs may well have a change at centre of their own, too, with youngster
Alex Galchenyuk expected to shift over to the middle and Lars Eller bumped
to the fourth line after they practised in that configuration.
Canadiens coach Michel Therrien wasn’t tipping his hand, however.
“Who says he’s going to play centre?” he asked.
The game’s biggest injury absence will continue to be that of Leafs netminder
Jonathan Bernier, who remains out with a groin strain and isn’t likely to play
in Toronto’s back-to-back games this weekend.
James Reimer, who had a tough start against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the
other team the Leafs are chasing in the Atlantic Division, on Wednesday in a
5-3 loss, is expected to fill in.
There are some parallels between the two teams in goal. Montreal is just
coming out of a tough post-Olympics stretch without starter Carey Price
where the Canadiens didn’t win in regulation in eight in a row.
Since Price’s return, however, they’re 3-1-0 and have built a three-point lead
over the sagging Leafs for third in the division.
A regulation loss on Saturday for Toronto would likely mean the Leafs are
going to be left playing for a wild card spot, as they’d trail both Tampa and
Montreal by five points with only 10 games to play.
That merely adds more intrigue to a matchup that is generally heated in any
circumstances.
“We all understand it’s a big game for both teams,” Therrien said. “It’s so
tight.”
“Every point is crucial at this point in the year,” van Riemsdyk said. “We’re
looking to clinch a spot so we’ve got some work to do.”
Leafs projected lineup
JVR – Bozak – Kessel
Lupul – Kadri – Kulemin
Raymond – Bolland – Clarkson
Bodie – McClement – Orr
Murray – Weaver
Price
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Montreal Canadiens
Opportunistic Habs deal Leafs playoff hopes serious blow
JAMES MIRTLE
The Leafs comeback was then muted when they were whistled for too many
men with four minutes to play, essentially killing their hopes of a late rally.
The damage in the standings was stark. Probability website
sportsclubstats.com had Montreal’s playoff hopes improving to 98 per cent;
Toronto’s fell to just 44 per cent.
The Canadiens, in other words, are now in the dance barring an
unprecedented collapse while the Leafs are very much back in the thick of
the dogfight, having let a comfortable seven-point cushion at the Olympic
break slip away entirely.
The Toronto Maple Leafs playoff hopes are beginning to come unglued.
“We still can play to a higher level,” Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said. “We
have to work equally as hard and clean up some of the mistakes we made.”
And the Montreal Canadiens were only too happy to be the team that made
their woes a little bit deeper on Saturday night.
“We’re still in a good spot,” Phaneuf said. “There’s no doubt about how hard
we worked all year to put ourselves into this spot.”
With a 4-3 win that included a wild third period and the trading of power play
chances in the third, the suddenly surging Habs have opened a five-point gap
on the Leafs that is going to be awfully hard for Toronto to close with just 10
games to play.
There’s doubt, however, whether that will be enough. The Leafs likely need
to win five or six of their final 10 games to get in, and several of those
remaining are difficult matchups.
The Ottawa Senators acquired Edmonton Oilers forward Ales Hemsky and
re-signed defenceman Chris Phillips on NHL trade deadline day. Captain
Jason Spezza says Hemsky has "good hockey sense" and hopes he fits in
with the team.
Not long after winning gold at the Sochi Games, Shannon Szabados was
helping out the Edmonton Oilers in net at practice. The two-time Olympic
gold medallist says she's available if the team ever needs her again.
The bigger problem for the Leafs is that the rest of the Eastern Conference
has caught up as they’ve lost four games – and five of their last six – in
regulation in a row. The skid has allowed Detroit, Columbus and Washington
to make up ground in the standings.
Toronto’s buffer after Saturday’s loss was down to just two points over ninth
in the East, and the Leafs can be bumped out of a playoff spot by Sunday
night entirely if they fail to gain a point in New Jersey.
Montreal, meanwhile, is basically playing for seeding, and a date with the
Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 1 looking more and more a sure thing.
“That’s a huge game,” Canadiens captain Brian Gionta said. “With them right
on our heels, it's a four-point swing.”
“We’ve got to pull ourselves out of it,” Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf said. “It’s
this group that’s going to get ourselves out of it. We’ve been close but close
isn’t good enough right now.”
Saturday’s loss was once again a tough start for the Leafs and netminder
James Reimer.
Making his fourth consecutive start in place of the injured Jonathan Bernier,
Reimer allowed two goals in the game’s first seven minutes as part of an
intense back-and-forth, five-goal first period.
As it has tended to, playing from behind then brought out the best in Toronto.
Joffrey Lupul and Tyler Bozak scored to quickly answer two early goals by
Habs' Max Pacioretty and Rene Bourque.
Montreal took a 3-2 lead with less than a minute to play in the opening frame
when Leafs defenceman Tim Gleason deflected a Gionta shot right past
Reimer.
That was the kind of night it was for both teams: A defence-optional track
meet where the last mistake lost the game, and that gaffe ultimately was the
Leafs’.
After Nazem Kadri tied the game on a Leafs power play to open the third –
hammering in a nice pass from behind the net from Lupul – Toronto’s ugly
finish started with one of two key penalties in the game’s final 11 minutes.
Despite his protestations, James van Riemsdyk took the first, a goalie
interference call on Carey Price, who said afterward that there was contract
to his head and he “thought it was a penalty, personally.”
It was a costly call, too, with Phaneuf unable to clear, Tomas Plekanec put a
wide angle shot short side on Reimer – the second ugly puck to beat him on
his second tough night in a row – for the winner as the penalty expired.
“Obviously they made a good play,” Reimer said. “I thought I gave myself a
chance, but it found a way through… It was kind of one bad bounce that
really decided the game. I think we can hold our heads high.”
On Sunday, they’ll get a desperate Devils team clinging to its own playoff
hopes, and Toronto will need to be a whole lot better than they were Saturday
to finally pull out a two pointer.
If they don’t, their playoff odds will shrink again.
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Montreal Canadiens
Bourque, Murray back in Habs lineup against Leafs
Stu Cowan
The Canadiens held an optional skate Saturday morning in Toronto before
facing the Maple Leafs (7 p.m., CBC, RDS, TSN Radio 690).
After the skate Canadiens coach Michel Therrien announced that forward
Rene Bourque and defenceman Douglas Murray will be in the lineup against
the Leafs, with Ryan White, Jarred Tinordi and George Parros being healthy
scratches. Carey Price will start in goal.
James Reimer will start in goal for the Leafs and it looks like centre Dave
Bolland, who has been sidelined since November with an ankle injury, could
play.
Here’s how the Canadiens lineup is expected to look against the Leafs:
Pacioretty-Desharnais-Vanek
Brière-Plekanec-Gallagher
Bourque-Galchenyuk-Gionta
Moen-Eller-Weise
Bouillon-Subban
Markov-Emelin
Murray-Weaver
Montreal Gazette LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Montreal Canadiens
Canadiens hold on for win over Leafs
PAT HICKEY
March 23, 2014 12:23 AM
TORONTO — Tomas Plekanec scored at 11:14 of the third period to give the
Canadiens a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night at the
Air Canada Centre. A Canadiens’ power play had just expired when
Plekanec beat James Reimer from a sharp angle. The Leafs had tied the
score at 3-3 when Nazem Kadri beat Carey Price on a power play at 2:49 of
the third period.
Where they’re at: With the win, the Canadiens remain in third place in the
Atlantic Division — and fourth in the Eastern Conference — with 85 points.
They are one point behind Tampa Bay, but the Lightning still hold a game in
hand. More importantly, Montreal opened a five-point lead over the Leafs and
remained six points up on the Detroit Red Wings.
Welcome back: Rene Bourque returned to the lineup after five games as a
healthy scratch and gave Montreal a 2-0 lead when he took a two-line pass
from Brian Gionta and he beat Reimer to the stick side at 6:52 of the first
period. Bourque also picked up an assist as Gionta put the Canadiens ahead
3-2 with 52.6 seconds remaining in the first period. The Canadiens got the
bounce on this occasion because Giona’s shot was wide, but it went in off
defenceman Tim Gleason’s stick.
Up and down: Max Pacioretty opened the scoring at 5:47 on a setup from
David Desharnais. It was Pacioretty’s 31st goal of the season. After Bourque
made it 2-0, the Leafs came back to tie the game on goals from Joffrey Lupul
and Tyler Bozak.
Maple Leafs’ ironmen: There were no goals in the second period but the
Leafs came close with two shots that hit the post. Dave Bolland, who was
making his first appearance since Nov. 2, hit the post in the 13th minute while
Morgan Rielly struck iron with less than three minutes to play in the period.
Injury update: The Canadiens lost another player when Lars Eller left the
game with a lower-body injury. Eller’s knee appeared to give way as he
turned awkwardly after a faceoff. Coach Michel Therrien said the injury was
day-to-day but the Canadiens have recalled Michael Bournival from a
conditioning stint in Hamilton.
Big draw: The attendance for the game was 19,789, the largest home crowd
in Maple Leafs’ history.
What’s next: The Canadiens play the Atlantic Division powerhouse Boston
Bruins Monday night at the TD Garden (7:30 p.m., TSN, RDS, TSN Radio
690) before returning home to play the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday.
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Montreal Canadiens
plus-2 in 10:13 of action. Mike Weaver, Murray’s partner, was also plus-2 and
blocked four shots.
About last night …
Francis Bouillon continues to play ridiculous minutes: 25:10 against the
Leafs. With Josh Gorges out, Therrien will continue to ride Frankie Boo,
who’d be the number 8 D-man on many teams – including Boston.
Mike Boone
The Bruins were 4-2 winners in Phoenix Saturday night – their 12th in a row.
You don’t want to be facing them as a wild card playoff team – but that might
be the best Toronto can hope for.
Your Montreal Canadiens have 10 games left in their regular season.
Six are on the road, starting Monday night in Boston.
Then Buffalo is at the Bell Centre on Tuesday
The Canadiens will face Detroit twice, and that should be interesting because
the Red Wings are in a desperate fight for a playoff spot.
As are the Leafs, who lost a heartbreaker to the Canadiens on Saturday
night.
Many of the broken hearts beat within the homer chests of our national
broadcaster.
I honestly don’t understand how anyone who isn’t a Toronto fan can watch
Hockey Night in Canada.
Ron MacLean and his fellow Leaf-blowers – none more egregious than
Glenn Healy – are doing more for bilingualism than Pierre Trudeau. Their
shameless homerism is motivating viewers to learn at least enough French
for comprehension of what Pierre Houde and Marc Denis are saying on RDS
hockey telecasts.
That’s what makes it so sweet when the Canadiens beat the Leafs, as they
have three tines in five meetings this season. Each loss brings funereal
gloom to the HNIC cheerleaders.
But enough about them. The Canadiens probably won’t face the Leafs again
until next season, when Sportsnet’s version of Hockey Night might offer up
a more evenhanded take on a great rivalry.
The Canadiens and Leafs conjured up a terrifically entertaining game,
refreshingly free of the goonery that has marred too many meetings between
these teams. Neither defence corps is the NHL’s best, which made for
extended puck possession in the offensive zones and lots of good scoring
chances.
Each team had 36 shots on goal. The Leafs had 23 shots blocked and
another 14 missed the net. The Canadiens also missed the net on 14 shots
and had 12 blocked.
That’s a lot of shooting, and it was fun to watch.
The difference was goaltending. With the score tied 3-3 in the third period,
Carey Price stopped the terrifying Phil Kessel on a breakaway. At the other
end of the ice, James Reimer was letting in shots he should have stopped …
like Tomas Plekanec’s winning goal.
I liked the reconfigured forward lines used against the Leafs.
Plekanec provided a calming influence and defensive coverage for Brendan
Gallagher and Alex Galchenyuk.
The David Desharnais line had another good night, but the revelation was the
Canadiens’ brand spanking new – in Game 70 – third line.
Back in the lineup after five games as a healthy scratch and playing with
fellow veterans Daniel Brière and Brian Gionta, Rene Bourque had a goal, an
assist and six shots on goal to lead both teams. Bourque worked hard on
every shift, and there were flashes of the talent that produced two 27-goal
seasons in Calgary.
Lars Eller looked good centring Dale Weise and Travis Moen on the fourth
line. But Eller sustained what looked like a groin injury on a faceoff, and his
night was over after 6:37 of ice time.
Michaël Bournival has been recalled from his conditioning stint in Hamilton.
He’ll likely centre Weise and Moen in Boston, where they’ll be facing the best
fourth line in the NHL: Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton.
Michel Therrien likely will stick with a winning lineup – which will disappoint
fans hoping to see more of Jarred Tinordi on the back end. Douglas Murray
scared the bejeebers out of Canadiens fans every time he was on the ice
against Phil Kessel, but the big lug had four hits, blocked five shots and was
• David Clarkson, signed through 2020: 15 shifts, 8:54, one hit, one shot,
minus-2.
• Some classy Leafs fans took to Twitter to rip James Reimer’s wife. That’s
sickening.
• The live game blog had 1,681 Comments. Oh, the playoffs are going to be
fun …
• Granted, the NHL isn’t the NFL. But how come the halftime and pre-game
football telecasts feature Hall of Fame former coaches and players while
HNIC gives us Glenn Healy and P.J. Stock?
739169
Nashville Predators
Del Zotto’s ice time drops despite Predators’ hopes
JOSH COOPER
March 22, 2014
CHICAGO – Predators coach Barry Trotz didn’t say much about Michael Del
Zotto when asked about the defenseman after Nashville’s 6-5 win at Calgary
on Friday.
But it’s hard to talk about a player who played just 3:13, even if that player did
have a dazzling assist.
“With seven defensemen, it’s hard on the rotation,” Trotz said. “He made a
great play. I think he only played about five minutes. He made a really good
play on the (Patric) Hornqvist goal. It’s still difficult to get seven (defensemen)
rolling through.”
Still, some questions are arising about a highly skilled player and the team’s
second-most-experienced blueliner and his overall usage on this road trip,
which concludes Sunday against the Blackhawks.
Del Zotto was a healthy scratch at Vancouver on Wednesday because he
was “not veteran enough to not compete for a spot,” Trotz said. That was
followed by limited ice time at Calgary.
When the Predators traded 29-year-old defenseman Kevin Klein to the
Rangers for the 23-year-old Del Zotto in late January, they knew they were
taking somewhat of a risk — with the potential for high reward.
Two seasons ago, Del Zotto flourished in New York, with 41 points in 77
games. Such an output probably would make him a top-five scorer with
Nashville this season.
Yet the 2008 first-round pick was a healthy scratch at times this season with
the Rangers, while Klein was a stalwart on Nashville’s defense corps.
Del Zotto is a pending restricted free agent, while Klein was signed for the
next four seasons at a very reasonable $2.9 million salary cap hit.
Still, the Predators believed they could pair Del Zotto (a left defenseman) with
first-round pick Seth Jones (right) for a number of years. In the past several
weeks, however, Jones was paired with Ryan Ellis, and Del Zotto’s results
were mixed. He had a minus-six rating in his three games before Calgary.
And by his low ice-time against the Flames, it appeared Del Zotto probably
would have been a healthy scratch again. Injuries to forwards Paul Gaustad,
Nick Spaling and Patrick Eaves, however, forced the Predators to go with
seven defensemen.
Before the game, Del Zotto didn’t want to say much about his situation: “You
never want to be out of the lineup. Just wait for the opportunity to get back in
and stay in.”
Del Zotto has obvious skills. He’s creative with the puck, an excellent skater,
and has a rifle of a shot. In just 3:13 of action against the Flames, his passing
skills were on display when he looked off the opposition and fired a cross-ice
pass to Hornqvist for a goal.
Still, it wasn’t enough for Del Zotto to merit more ice time, or much of a
compliment from his coach.
“It wasn’t a big enough sample,” Trotz said. “But the little sample he did play,
he looked fine and got an assist, so give him credit for that.”
Tennessean LOADED: 03.23.2014
739170
Nashville Predators
Preview: Predators at Blackhawks
JOSH COOPER
8:47 p.m. EDT March 22, 2014
When: 6 p.m. Sunday
Where: United Center (Chicago)
TV/radio: Fox-TN/102.5-FM
Predators keys: 1) Stay offensive: The six-goal effort against the Flames was
impressive, but it probably won’t be as easy against the Blackhawks. 2) Get
on the ‘D’: Nashville has given up 12 goals in three games of this road trip. 3)
Play tough:The Predators have two wins in three tries against the
Blackhawks this season, so this is a bad matchup of sorts for the defending
Stanley Cup champions.
Injuries: Predators F Paul Gaustad (upper body), F Patrick Eaves (lower
body) and F Nick Spaling (upper body) are day-to-day. Blackhawks F Bryan
Bickell (undisclosed) and F Brandon Saad (upper body) are questionable; F
Patrick Kane (leg) is out.
Next for Predators: 7 p.m. Tuesday vs. Colorado.
739171
Nashville Predators
Predators’ Matt Cullen vents frustration with 4 points
JOSH COOPER
1:59 a.m. EDT March 22, 2014
CALGARY, Alberta – After his four-point night in the Predators’ 6-5 win over
Calgary on Friday, forward Matt Cullen called this season the “most
frustrating season of my career.”
The Predators signed the 37-year-old Cullen to a two-year contract in the
summer to be a scoring center. But he had scored just one goal in 2014, and
six total, before putting in the game-winner on a deflection with 2:52 left in the
third period Friday.
“Yeah, it was nice to see it go in,” said Cullen, who also had three assists. “It
has been one of those seasons you can’t put your finger on it. Nice to have a
night like that and get the win. Would have been nice to have it sooner. Nice
to see one go in and go your way.”
Coach Barry Trotz said there were “some things I thought he could do a little
bit better” but was happy with Cullen’s offensive explosion.
“We signed him in the summer to give us a little bit of offense,” Trotz said. “It
has been a fairly dry year, but the last dozen games here maybe he can get a
little mojo moving forward.”
Jarnkrok helps: Forward Calle Jarnkrok produced in his first game with the
Predators.
The center, whom Nashville acquired in a deal for David Legwand from
Detroit at the trade deadline, notched an assist on Viktor Stalberg’s
second-period goal.
It was Jarnkrok’s first NHL point.
“He knows how to play the game,” Trotz said. “He has great puck
management skills, he makes good plays, he plays with pace, and when they
get into those one-on-one battles, he battles hard and wins those battles.”
Bartley’s first goal: When Victor Bartley fired a slap shot into the Calgary net
and jumped into the boards, it didn’t seem like his first NHL goal would be a
mere footnote in the game. But after the game in which 11 goals were
scored, the second-year defenseman still wore a broad smile for the play.
“I don’t remember what happened (after the goal),” Bartley said.
Bartley added that a teammate picked up the puck for him.
Pekka pulled: After a gaffe behind his own net led to a goal, the Predators
pulled goaltender Pekka Rinne.
It came after Rinne allowed four goals. Trotz said three of those goals were
not Rinne’s fault, and he made the move to jolt his team.
“In the back of my head, four was the number,” Trotz said. “It would catch the
attention of our team because we were a little loose defensively.”
Spaling, Eaves out: Forwards Nick Spaling (upper body) and Patrick Eaves
(lower body) did not play Friday. Nashville went with seven defensemen.
Forward Michael Del Zotto, who was a healthy scratch the previous game,
played just 3:13.
739172
Nashville Predators
Predators find offense against Flames
JOSH COOPER
March 22, 2014
The Predators have searched far and wide on this road trip for goals — from
the oil fields of Edmonton to the Pacific Ocean next to Vancouver — and
hardly found any. They finally did in the mountains of Calgary on Friday night.
The Predators blew two two-goal leads to the Flames but figured things out in
the third period to pull out a 6-5 win at Scotiabank Saddledome.
The Predators entered the game having scored just one goal on the road trip.
"It was a weird night. We'll take that without a doubt," defenseman Shea
Weber said. "Even though we kept letting them back in it and giving them
goals, we kept moving forward and getting goals on the other end. We
showed character that way."
The win keeps alive the Predators' faint hope to reach the postseason, but
after the three straight losses before Friday night's win, it's still a long shot.
Nashville (30-31-10) is nine points behind the Phoenix Coyotes for the final
playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Forward Matt Cullen netted the game-winner on a deflection with 2:52 left in
the third to put Nashville ahead 6-4.
The six goals scored were Nashville's most since Dec. 30 against the Detroit
Red Wings.
"You probably wouldn't expect going into tonight that there would have been
11 goals scored," Cullen said. "Both teams played hard, and both teams
have a lot of pride. It was an entertaining game, it was up and down. Probably
not the way either team would have drawn it up or preferred it to go, but nice
to see us get a few pucks in the back of the net."
739173
New Jersey Devils
Devils' Marek Zidlicky will be UFA after season; Want him back? VOTE
Randy Miller/
March 22, 2014 at 8:51 AM
NEWARK – While discussing sporting his Jaromir Jagr mullet during his
youth, Devils defenseman Marek Zidlicky offered no insight about his
thoughts about becoming an unrestricted free agent after the season in an
NJ.com article posted Friday.
Well, actually Zidlicky said that he won't even think about having a future with
the Devils or with another team until after the season because he's so
focused on winning games.
Zidlicky, who is earning $4 million this season, is a big part of a Devils' power
play that is ranked fourth in the league. He's also among the league leaders
among defensemen in goals and points, and is tied for second on the Devils
in hits.
On the flip side, the Czech is 37 years old and gets grief from some Devils
fans for taking a lot of minor penalties, his turnovers and being too offensive.
Star Ledger LOADED: 03.23.2014
739174
New Jersey Devils
Devils: Ryan Carter takes part in morning skate; Tim Sestito out
Rich Chere
March 22, 2014 at 10:36 AM
NEWARK— Ryan Carter took part in the Devils' morning skate at Prudential
Center as they prepared to face the Rangers Saturday night.
It appeared that Carter will play since he skated at left wing with Stephen
Gionta and Steve Berner. Damien Brunner skated as an extra and Tim
Sestito (head injury) did not take part in the skate
Martin Brodeur will be in goal for the Devils.
The Devils' morning line combinations:
Hernrique-Elias-Ryder
Ruutu-Zajac-Jagr
Clowe-Josefson-Zubrus
Carter-Gionta-Bernier
Brunner
Defense pairings:
Greene-Fayne
Salvador-Volchenkov
Merrill-Zidlicky
Gelinas-Harrold
739175
New Jersey Devils
Devils fans hate everything about the Rangers, but do Devils players?
Randy Miller
March 22, 2014 at 1:52 PM
NEWARK – There’s no debating how Devils fans feel about the Rangers.
They hate ‘em.
Always have, always will
But how do the Devils feel about their closest and biggest rival, one that plays
just across the Hudson River in Midtown Manhattan?
Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby has admitted he hates the Flyers,
and Philadelphia Flyers star Claude Giroux has talked about how he hates
the Penguins.
Is it the same for Devils players with the Rangers?
“Personally, I don’t mind any of the guys on the team because they’re
Rangers, but in a rivalry game, you always want to win more,” Carter said
Saturday before the last of five Devils-Rangers’ games this season.
Dainius Zubrus?
“I have nothing against the guys on the team. We’ve played them enough
that you kind of know them.”
OK, so the Devils apparently don’t hate Rangers star goalie Henrik
Lundqvist, hate the Rangers uniform, hate their logo, hate everything about
them.
“But you hate to lose against those guys,” Zubrus said.
OK, that’s something.
Here’s more: If the Rangers are in the playoffs, Carter says he’ll be pulling
hard for the other team no matter who it is.
“Oh yeah, for sure,” he said. “We’re in the same market, so if they have
success some of our fans might change. That’s a fact of the matter and you
want those fans on your side.”
“Multiple-headed monster’” is how Carter sums up this rivalry.
“One is geography,” he said. “You might have families where one family
member is a Rangers fan and one’s a Devils fan. That makes it passionate.
“The other thing is I think rivalries are rooted by playoff success and failure,
and the Devils have played well against the Rangers in the playoffs since I’ve
been here. Those playoff series, I think, sting fans and create a little bit of
passion there.”
Carter, who will play Saturday after missing three games with an upper-body
injury, was around in 2012 when the Devils beat the Rangers in the Eastern
Conference Finals in six games.
Overall, the teams have met six times in the playoffs, and while the Rangers
took four of the series, the Devils won two of the last three.
“I think for fans, a lot of it is bragging and talking trash to each other,” Zubrus
said. “The last time we both made the playoffs, we met up and were on the
luckier side of it.”
Devils fans like to brag that their team has been around only since the
1982-83 season and won three Stanley Cups. At the same time, they mock
the Rangers, who have been in existence since 1926-27, for having won just
four Cups overall and one in the last 74 seasons, the Mark Messier-fueled
championship in 1993-94.
Rangers fans counter with facts about their team’s 4-2 edge in playoff
meetings and that they fill Madison Square Garden while the Devils rarely fill
their building.
“There’s a lot of Rangers fans around New Jersey and a lot of times it’s pretty
much been 50-50 Rangers fans and Devils fans in our building,” Zubrus said.
“Then it’s almost like playing a semi-home game. I think our fans don’t like
that, and it’s understandable. I get the rivalry. I get that they’re so close to us.
I get all of those things.”
Devils coach Pete DeBoer didn’t get it until becoming part of it three seasons
ago.
“I didn’t know a lot about the rivalry,” the coach said. “I think until you live in
the community and you see how many Rangers fans and Devils fans there
are walking on the street side by side, in the same house sometimes …
When we played each other in the playoffs two years ago, I think that hit
home for me. You see how passionate how both sides got.”
The Devils have gotten the best of the Rangers this season, winning three of
four meetings, including both games at the Garden. But the one the Rangers
won was the one hockey fans around the world watched, the July 26 outdoor
game at Yankee Stadium.
That 7-3 loss still irks DeBoer, as his team was up 3-1 in the first period
before being blasted on a 25-degree Sunday in front of 50,105 fans.
“We beat ourselves that game,” DeBoer said.
The Devils will have a chance to issue a payback Saturday night, and they
need it as they’re chasing the Rangers and several other teams for an
Eastern Conference playoff spot. With 12 games to play, the Devils trail
Columbus by five points for the final wild card berth and they’re seven points
behind the Rangers for the last division spot.
The Rangers will be extra motivation for the Devils on Saturday.
“The atmosphere is always a little better in our building when the Rangers are
in than maybe when some other teams come in,” Zubrus said. “We feel that
and kind of feed off of that. As long as I’ve been here, we’ve always been
close in playoff races, so it’s even more so this time of the year.”
Zubrus has been around the block in his 17-year NHL career, as he played
for Philadelphia, Montreal, Washington and Buffalo before joining the Devils
in 2007-08.
“I’ve been part of a few good rivalries,” he said. “Pittsburgh-Philly was good.
The Rangers-Philly was good. When I was in Buffalo for a short period of
time, Buffalo-Toronto was good. Montreal-Toronto is a good rivalry."
So how does Rangers-Devils stack up?
“Is this the best?” he said. “It’s definitely right up there.”
It’s better than that for Carter, who has scored two of his five goals this
season against the Rangers.
“I haven’t been involved in one like this since high school,” he said. “It’s easy
to get up for these games. The Rangers have become the team I want to
most beat every year.”
739176
New Jersey Devils
Would Devils fans dare boo Martin Brodeur next season? Goalie is prepared
if it happens
Rich Chere
March 22, 2014 at 4:50 PM
NEWARK— Boos from bitter Devils fans filled Prudential Center Thursday
night every time Zach Parise’s name was mentioned or he touched the puck.
Clearly, fans continue to hold it against the Devils’ former captain for his
decision to leave the team two summers ago to sign with the Minnesota Wild.
But will the same thing happen if Martin Brodeur signs with another club this
summer and returns to New Jersey next season wearing a different jersey?
Brodeur, who’ll almost certainly test the market, is prepared for such a
scenario.
“It could happen. Hopefully I won’t get booed, but you never know,” Brodeur
told The Star-Ledger. “You hurt people sometimes who are really loyal to
their team. That’s part of it.
“There aren’t that many guys who left us and were cheered. Bobby (Holik)
was booed, Gomer (Scott Gomez) was booed, you name it.”
Brodeur somewhat jokingly said he hopes former Devils winger David
Clarkson is booed when he returns to Newark with the Toronto Maple Leafs
Sunday night. Like Parise, Clarkson left the Devils to “go home.”
“With any big free agent, you leave the team on a bad note. If you get traded,
it’s not as bad,” Brodeur suggested. “But when you sign somewhere as if the
grass is greener, people get more offended.”
Is Clarkson likely to hear the same booing Parise did?
“It shouldn’t be any different. Why should it?” asked Patrik Elias. “I was a little
surprised at the reception Zach got, honestly. I thought there were going to
be some cheers at least.”
Ryan Carter said the boos will probably be less intense for Clarkson.
“I know the fans liked Clarkie. He’s a good player, but I don’t know that he’s a
franchise player,” Carter said. “Zach is a franchise player, franchise money
with a new team. He was a first-round draft pick. Clarkie was an undrafted
free agent, signed and worked his way up. They’re a little different.”
Brodeur would be very different. Even if he left on his own accord, how could
fans boo the goalie that has won three Stanley Cups and set virtually every
goaltending record along the way?
”I don’t think it would happen with Marty because of what he has done and
because of the Cups,” Elias said. “Zach was in his prime and was one of the
prime players in the NHL. He was already the face of this franchise and he
was going to be the guy who took over the team for another 10 years or so.”
Elias, who has two years after this season left on his contract, said that if he
or Brodeur signed elsewhere it would be different.
“Marty and I are getting older. If that happens with Marty, it would be for
different reasons (than Parise),” Elias explained. “I’m not saying it’s going to
happen for either of us. It it did happen, something would have changed. I
probably wouldn’t be playing as much or I wouldn’t be happy with the
situation. That’s where Marty is. He wants to play more, so I think that’s
different.”
While there were some who did not welcome Scott Niedermayer back to New
Jersey when he returned with the Ducks, there were cheers.
“I don’t think Nieder got booed. And he’s the one that set us back big-time,”
Brodeur said of Niedermayer’s decision to sign with Anaheim as a free agent
in 2005.
Niedermayer turned down a five-year deal from the Devils for $7.8 million per
season and took four years at $6.75 million per to play with brother Rob in
Anaheim.
So, is Brodeur prepared to hear the boos if it does happen?
“Yeah. It would stink, but what are you going to do?” he said. “I’m here and I
get booed sometimes.”
739177
New Jersey Devils
Devils' Damien Brunner told he'll play Saturday, then surprised to see he's
benched again
Randy Miller
March 22, 2014 at 11:55 AM
NEWARK - Devils right wing Damien Brunner thought he was one of the few
players on his team who played well in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to Boston, then
was bummed out getting word he would be a healthy scratch for Thursday's
game against Minnesota.
On Saturday, the Swiss native showed up to Prudential Center for the Devils'
morning skate thinking he would be back in the lineup for Saturday night's
game against the Rangers.
Nope.
"We talked about it after the Boston game and they told me I'm in today, but
I'm not," he said. "I was surprised when I came in the dressing room this
morning. I thought I'm in. But it is what it is. It's not time to get mad right now.
Brunner was a minus-2 with no shots against Boston, but he liked how he
played.
"As a team we played a really bad game, especially the first 15 minutes when
we were outshot 16-2 or something," he said. "But personally I had a pretty
good game. I was skating the right way. I won most every battle in the corner.
But they had to change something."
Brunner says he's trying hard to concentrate on working hard to earn his way
back into the lineup instead of allowing himself to get frustrated.
"If you think about it too much it just (messes) up your head," he said. "Focus
on what you can do and that's to do the work on the ice, the extra stuff. ... I
focus on the extra skating, do the extra work in the gym and be ready
whenever they put me in."
Brunner signed with the Devils during training camp after having a decent
rookie season last year with Detroit in which he scored 12 goals and 24
points in 44 games. In Detroit, the Red Wings' up-tempo style seemed to fit
Brunner's game more because his strength is his speed and offensive
creativity. The Devils' style focuses on defense.
"We played with so much structure," he said. "There's not a lot of scoring
chances right now. We played more of a chip-and-chase, forecheck game
with no neutral-zone breakout at all. You know, sometimes it's tough to get
scoring chances. They were there (occasionally), but I missed a couple."
Brunner says he has no regrets signing with the Devils.
"It's good to learn (the Devils' system)," he said. "I look at this as a chance."
For the season, Brunner has 10 goals and 21 points in 49 games.
When Brunner struggles, he often talks to his long-time coach in the Swiss
League, former NHL forward Doug Shedden.
"We've texted a lot the whole season," Brunner said. "You want to play this
time of the year, but we need some wins here and I can't complain right now.
I gotta do whatever it takes to help the team."
739178
New Jersey Devils
Devils' scratch Damien Brunner: I was told I'd play against Rangers
game," he said. "I think we're going to need four lines tonight with the game
we're going to have to play."
The fourth line will be Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier.
Carter missed three games with an upper body injury.
Rich Chere
March 22, 2014 at 6:28 PM
"It's good to get Carter back, DeBoer said. "We're going to need that line's
energy and what they bring against these guys. They have a history of
playing well as a line against the Rangers and we need that tonight."
Bernier is back in after one game as a healthy scratch.
NEWARK — Devils winger Damien Brunner said he was told he would be in
the lineup Saturday night against the Rangers and was shocked to see
differently when he arrived for the morning skate.
"Like a lot of guys that haven't scored in a while, you carry that around,"
DeBoer said. "The elephant gets bigger and bigger. Sometimes you take a
step back. It's never for lack of effort with him. Hopefully he comes back in a
little refreshed and a little looser."
He said he was told after the team's loss to the Boston Bruins that he would
sit out the next game against Minnesota and then go back into the lineup.
***
"We talked about it after the Boston game. Then they told me I'm in today, but
now I'm not. So I don't know," Brunner said.
DeBoer was asked if he thinks Martin Brodeur gets up for games against the
Rangers more than others.
"I was surprised when I came in the dressing room this morning. I thought I
was in. But we have to win every game and that's the lineup they want to try
now. I'm going to be ready whenever they put me in again. It's not the time to
get mad right now. Just focus on the extra skating and extra work in the gym."
"What do you think?" DeBoer responded. "I think that's a pretty safe
comment, yeah.
Coach Pete DeBoer said Brunner would be a scratch, along with
defensemen Eric Gelinas and Peter Harrold, as the Devils went back to 12
forwards and six defensemen rather than seven D.
But Brunner, who will sit out his second straight game, was a bit baffled.
"After the Boston game it was tough to take," Brunner said. "As a team we
played a really bad game, especially the first 15 minutes. We were outshot by
a lot. But personally, I had a pretty good game. I was skating the right way, I
won almost every battle in the corner. But they had to change something
(after the 4-2 loss). We didn't score that game, so I guess they tried to find
some other line combinations and I was the odd man out."
In 49 games this season, Brunner has 10 goals. The Devils expected more
from the Swiss winger, who has no goals in his last four matches.
"We play with so much structure, there aren't a lot of scoring chances right
now that we create," Brunner suggested. "We play more of a chip-and-chase,
forecheck game with no neutral zone breakout at all. Sometimes it's tough to
get scoring chances. They were there, but I missed a couple.
"I had some really good games, even some games when I didn't score. I had
that long stretch in the beginning when I didn't score for 17 games. It was up
and down. When I finally got the jump going, the (knee) injury came.
"I worked really hard to get back and maybe overworked a little bit because it
caught up to me after one or two weeks and I got really tired. When I was
injured I never had one day off. Normally you get four days (off) a month, at
least. So that was kind of tough, but it helped me, too. After the Olympics, I
came back and I had good jump. Since then my legs are good."
He said it hasn't been difficult adjusting to the way the Devils play.
"No, it's just hard to create, or find the game rhythm because you stand
around more," he said. "You can't generate as much speed in a defensive
system."
Brunner insisted he did not make the wrong decision by signing with the
Devils.
"No. For me, it's good to learn. I look at this as a chance. I'm here to learn and
not to (complain)," he said. "It's okay. When you start to be frustrated all the
time and you're not happy with decisions, it's not good for you because it
(messes) up your work ethic. Then you're (angry) and you let your head down
and you're not going to be ready for the next game if you think like that."
He said he hasn't confronted DeBoer about why he is the odd man out.
"No. If you start questions and think about it too much, it (messes) up your
head more," he said. "Just focus on what you can do. That's the work on the
ice and the extra stuff in the gym.
***
DeBoer explained why the Devils will dress only six defensemen.
"I think the schedule, the Rangers are a four-line team team and the fact we
lost (Tim) Sestito early last game we really went to three lines early in the
"I have no doubt Cory Schneider tonight, if we threw him in there, would
recognize the significance of the game and the rivalry and would rise to the
occasion, too."
Brodeur started the outdoor game against the Rangers on Jan. 26, which the
Devils lost, 7-3.
"That outdoor game, I don't blame that on the environment," DeBoer said. "I
thought it was a great event. We beat ourselves that game and we can't do
that tonight. I think we know that."
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New Jersey Devils
Did Devils test Henrik Lundqvist enough? After Martin Brodeur's strong
game, Cory Schneider will start vs. Leafs
Rich Chere
March 22, 2014 at 11:31 PM
NEWARK— Henrik Lundqvist rewrote another Rangers goaltending record
when he passed Ed Giacomin with his 50th career shutout Saturday night at
Prudential Center, a 2-0 victory over the rival Devils.
Devils goalie Martin Brodeur and coach Pete DeBoer both complimented
Lundqvist, but wondered if he was tested enough.
“We didn’t do enough offensively to really challenge them," Brodeur said.
"We played a solid game. We wanted to get back from playing wide open
hockey for a while. Now I think in the last two games we’ve been playing the
kind of hockey we want, but when we do that it seems offensively we’re a little
challenged.
“We had a 4-on-3, a little 5-on-4. We had opportunities but we didn’t create
enough. We didn’t make Lundqvist work hard. He played well. He made the
saves he had to make, but there was not enough desperation for us.”
The Devils had 21 shots on goal.
“It’s one thing what you wanted to do. Another thing is what the other team
allowed you to do," Jagr said. "It was a very tight game, a one-goal
difference.
"It was a tough goal, too. I don’t know what the referee was calling. It didn’t
make sense to me. The guy was driving to the net. He wasn’t pushed or
anything. He hit our goalie, the referee put his hands up, they score and it’s a
goal. It doesn’t really make sense to me.”
Brodeur stopped 25 of the 26 shots he faced.
“He was fantastic," DeBoer said. "Both goalies were very good. I thought
Marty really gave us a big game.”
Cory Schneider will start against the Toronto Maple Leafs Sunday night at
Prudential Center.
As for Brodeur, he could not have played much better.
“It was a tough one. We played a good game out there. It was a chess match.
Just kind of a fluky goal was decisive in this game. It’s unfortunate,” Brodeur
said.
“It was a big game. The coach gives me the confidence and puts me in the
net. I really wanted to be the difference and I wasn’t. We lost the game.”
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New Jersey Devils
Jaromir Jagr on Devils' playoff bubble close to bursting: 'We did this to
ourselves'
Randy Miller
March 22, 2014 at 10:43 PM
NEWARK – Jaromir Jagr sat slumped at his stall in the Devils' dressing room
with his chin to his chest.
The future Hall of Famer wasn’t taking Saturday night’s 2-0 loss to the
Rangers well at all because another nail had just been pounded into a Devils’
coffin that is closing fast.
“We did it too ourselves,” Jagr grumbled in a soft voice. “We make mistakes
early in the season. We pay for it now.”
Jagr didn’t stop there. He mentioned hearing teammates talk about playing
hard after their seven shutout losses and the 13 times they’ve scored just one
goal. It sounded like those comments make him sick to his stomach.
“The whole season long the problem was scoring goals,” he said. “Everybody
was saying, ‘It’s a great effort. We work hard.’ That’s what you’re supposed to
do every night. That’s not a bonus. It should be automatic.”
Full effort or not, the Devils got no pucks past Rangers goalie Henrik
Lundqvist.
Jagr’s take there was interesting, too.
“One thing is what we wanted to do and the next thing is what the other team
allowed you to do,” he said. “We can have the (bleeping) best player in the
world and all the other teams are ready for us.”
Jagr doesn’t swear much, but he couldn’t help himself after this one.
Even the Rangers’ first goal – the only one until their empty-netter in the final
seconds – really ticked him off. Rick Nash scored it from the left-wing wall
with Devils goalie Martin Brodeur on his knees from a net crash by Rangers
forward Chris Kreider.
Jagr thought this opening goal 10:33 into the second should have been
waved off for goalie interference.
“It was a one-goal game, but it was a (bleeping) tough goal, too,” Jagr said. “I
don’t know what the referee was calling. It didn’t make sense to me.
“A guy is driving to the net. He wasn’t pushed or anything. He hit our goalie.
The referee put the hand up, then they scored and it’s a goal. It doesn’t make
sense to me. Nobody really pushed that guy to the net. That’s strange.”
He felt the same about a soft push he made early in the third on Rangers
defenseman Anton Stralman that sent him to the penalty box for
cross-checking.
“The funny thing is I got a penalty and I didn’t even know I got it,” Jagr said.
“You’re in the game so much. I was surprised I got called. Maybe I did it. I
don’t know what I did. There we some many bodies there, so many strong
guys. Sorry about that. A little push (and you get a penalty)? It’s tough.”
The Devils’ predicament is tougher. They’re six points behind Detroit for the
last Eastern Conference wild card spot with their season down to 11 games,
and the Red Wings have a game in hand. There also are two other teams
between them and Detroit – Columbus, which is five points ahead with a
game in hand, and Washington, which is four points ahead with 11 to play.
Jagr’s done his part and more. He’s 42 and leads the Devils with 60 points.
Jagr was asked if he still thinks his team should be a playoff team. Several
times he answered the same question earlier in the season with a positive
response. Not this time.
“I don’t look around,” he said. “It’s not my job. My job is to do the best I can for
the team. I try to give my 100 percent every night, no matter who is next to me
or behind me.”
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New Jersey Devils
Henrik Lundqvist gets Rangers record 50th shutout, beats Devils, 2-0
Rich Chere
March 23, 2014 at 2:19 AM
There is no denying it. The Devils are in serious trouble now, very much in
jeopardy of missing the playoffs for a second straight season and three times
in the last four years.
With 11 games remaining, it will take a miracle finish to pass at least three
teams and claim and postseason spot.
“We did it to ourselves,” right winger Jaromir Jagr said. “You make mistakes
early in the season and you pay for it now.”
If there is one glaring shortcoming of this team, it is the struggle to score
goals. Martin Brodeur was once again sensational, but the Devils couldn’t get
one past Henrik Lundqvist as they fell to the Rangers, 2-0, Saturday night
before a sellout crowd at Prudential Center.
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“All season long the problem was scoring goals,” Jagr said. “Everybody says
we work hard. That’s what you’re supposed to do every night, no? It’s not a
bonus. It should be automatic.”
The Devils were the victims of Lundqvist’s 50th career shutout, which broke
Ed Giacomin’s Rangers record of 49. The closest they came to scoring was
with 38.9 seconds remaining in the third period and the Rangers clinging to a
1-0 lead via Rick Nash’s second period goal.
Devils defenseman Andy Greene was in the box for tripping Nash with 2:03
left, so coach Pete DeBoer pulled Brodeur to make it 5-on-5. Travis Zajac
and Jagr both had jabs at the puck in the crease and the play was whistled
dead after Lundqvist slid back into the net.
“It was under him and he was in the net. You can’t tell. There was a good
chance it was behind the line, but when he’s on it and there is no view of the
puck, there’s nothing you can do about it,” Zajac said.
“I didn’t think they’d call it a goal just because you could see it under him. I
don’t think the ref had any view of the puck.”
The on-ice officials informed the NHL’s Situation Room in Toronto that the
whistle was blown because the puck was underneath Lundqvist in the
crease. It is not a reviewable play, so the referee's call on the ice stood.
“I knew where it was, on my left side,” Lundqvist said. “They were just
hacking and whacking and you never know where it’s going to end up. When
I saw them skating out of the zone, it was just a big relief, realizing we’re
winning this game.”
It wasn’t the only third period call that went against the Devils, who felt Jagr’s
penalty for cross-checking Anton Stralman (5:42) and Greene’s trip on Nash
(17:57) were dives.
“We have an embellishment call that we’ve been told repeatedly is going to
be made (called). I don’t know why hit wasn’t,” DeBoer said.
And then there was Nash’s goal at 10:33 of the second period. The puck
found its way into the net seconds after Chris Kreider tripped over Brodeur as
he cut across the front of the crease.
“Even now, I don’t know where the puck went,” Brodeur said. “I ran into the
guy (Kreider) who was trying to get the tip-in and by the time I recovered I
think the puck was in. I got turned around a little bit and lost sight of where the
play was. The (shot) didn’t hit me. I actually don’t know where it went.”
A delayed penalty was actually being called against the Devils.
“Their guy was going to the net and kind of took Marty out a little bit,” DeBoer
reflected. “I believe the referee was calling a penalty on us, which I didn’t
understand, for pushing him into Marty. I didn’t think that was the case.
“By the time Marty recovered from getting bumped into, the puck was in the
net.”
Should it have been goalie interference on Kreider, a game-changer and
maybe a season-changer since the Rangers’ second goal came from Derek
Stepan into an empty net with 7.8 seconds remaining?
“I didn’t see it so I can’t tell you if it was interference or not,” Brodeur said. “It’s
a guy going hard to the net and that’s what they’re paid to do. It was a little
fluky because I kind of lost my bearing after I got tangled up with him.
“It’s tough. We knew going into the break our margin of error is not going to
be too big. For every loss it gets smaller and smaller. What makes it hard is
everybody is winning.”
It was the ninth time this season the Devils have been shut out. With the
Flyers and Red Wings winning, their task became even tougher while the
Rangers moved nine points clear of their rivals.
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New Jersey Devils
Studs and duds from night Devils' have one playoff door closing on them
Randy Miller
March 22, 2014 at 10:21 PM
NEWARK – At least the Devils' getting-close-to-hopeless quest is a little
more clear after Saturday night's 2-0 loss to the Rangers:
They can stop looking at the division standings because that playoff door
now is all but mathematically closed.
The wild card?
Well, the Devils are just about on the respirator there, too, trailing Detroit by
six points with 11 to play. The Red Wings also have a game in hand.
As for the division, the Devils for sure aren't catching the Flyers or Rangers,
currently holders of the final two playoff spots. Philly has 83 points with 12 to
play, the Rangers have 82 points with 10 to play and the Devils have 73 with
11 to go.
Here are our studs and duds:
STUDS
1. MARTIN BRODEUR:: The only goal of the game before an empty-netter
with 7.8 seconds to go was a shot by Rick Nash from the left-wing boards in
which Brodeur was out of position after being crashed into my Chris Kreider.
Overall, Brodeur was the Devils' best player making two great saves and a
bunch of good ones to give his team a chance.
2. ADAM HENRIQUE: Henrique saved a goal midway through the second
period to keep it a 1-0 game with a sweeping backhand clear with the puck in
the crease and goalie Martin Brodeur out of the play.
3. TUOMO RUUTU: Ruutu had three shots and three hits in his first
Devils-Rangers game.
4. TRAVIS ZAJAC: Center made a nice move to create a first-period scoring
chance. He also won 17 of 23 faceoffs and had three shots on net.
DUDS
1. DAINIUS ZUBRUS: Winger was on the ice for the Rangers' game-winning
goal and was scoreless for the eighth game in a row.
2. JAROMIR JAGR: Jagr took an offensive-zone cross-checking penalty
early in the third, didn't get a great shot off on a first-period breakaway and
missed the net on two other good scoring opportunities.
3. STEVE BERNIER: Back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the
first time this season on Thursday, Bernier had no shots and his goal slump
stretched to 42 games.
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New Jersey Devils
Brunner surprised to be scratched again, but trying to stay positive; Harrold
welcomes baby daughter
Staff Writer
With only 10 goals and 11 assists in 49 games for the season, Brunner is not
having the season he hoped for when he signed a two-year, $5 million
contract with the Devils in September.
“Right now, we play with so much structure. There’s not a lot of scoring
chances right now that we create,” he said. “We play more of a chip and
chase, forecheck game with no neutral zone breakdowns at all and
sometimes it’s tough to get the scoring chances. They were there, but I
missed a couple.”
Brunner doesn’t believe it’s a matter of adjusting to the Devils’ system.
Damien Brunner arrived at Prudential Center for the morning skate today
thinking he was going to be back in the Devils’ lineup for tonight’s game
against the Rangers.
“No, it’s just hard to create and finding the game rhythm because you stand
around more,” he said. “Or it’s more you can’t generate as much speed as
you can in a different system.”
That was the plan he said he was told when he sat out Thursday night’s
game against Minnesota as a healthy scratch. To Brunner’s surprise, he
learned this morning he won’t be playing again tonight.
But don’t interpret that as Brunner saying he’d prefer to play in a different
style.
It will be the fifth time this season he’s a healthy scratch.
“We talked about it after the Boston game (a 4-2 loss Tuesday) and then they
told me I’m in today, but I’m not,” Brunner said. “So, I don’t know. But, we
have to win every game, and that’s the lineup they want to try tonight. I’m
going to be ready whenever they put me in again.”
As disappointed as he is to sit out again, Brunner sounds determined not to
get frustrated or let himself become a negative factor in the dressing room.
“I can look at it this way: If I would play good games every night, I don’t think
I would be out right now,” Brunner said. “But, it was surprising. After the
Boston game, it was tough to take. As a team, we played a really bad game,
especially the first 15 minutes. But, personally, I had a pretty good game. I
was skating the right way. I won almost every battle in the corners and they
had to change something. We didn’t score that game, so they tried to find
some other line combinations and I was the man out.”
That was the explanation Brunner received from the coaching staff when he
didn’t play Thursday. Still, he thought he’d get back in the lineup tonight. He
was looking forward to playing against his “best friend”, Raphael Diaz, who
will make his Rangers’ debut tonight.
“I was surprised when I came in the dressing room this morning. I thought I’m
in. But, it is what it is,” he said. “It’s not the time to get mad. Just focus on
whatever –skate extra or extra work in the gym and get ready (for) whenever
they put you back in.”
Brunner said it does no good to sit around wondering why he’s the one out of
the lineup and not someone else.
“If you start questions and thinking about it too much, it just (messes) up your
head more,” Brunner said. “Just focus on what you can do and that’s the work
on the ice and the extra stuff in the gym.”
It would be understandable if Brunner was frustrated with how his first
season with the Devils has gone. He started out well with three goals and two
assists in the first five games, but began to struggle after that and went 17
games at one point without scoring a goal.
Being a healthy scratch on Dec. 6 against Detroit – the team he played for
last season – seemed to be the turning point for him. He got hot right after
that, putting up four goals and an assist over a four-game span.
Just when it appeared he had found his game, Brunner sprained the MCL in
his right knee on a hit from Anaheim’s Mark Fistric on Dec. 20. Brunner
worked hard to get back after missing 14 games and had a goal and two
assists when he returned on Jan. 21 against St. Louis.
He has only one goal and four assists in 16 games since then, though. During
that stretch Brunner represented Switzerland at the Olympics and also
missed two games due a charley horse.
“I had some really good games, even some games where I didn’t score, and
that long stretch there at the beginning when I didn’t score for 17 games,” he
said. “But, it was up and down and when I finally got that jump going, the
injury came. I worked really hard to get back, maybe overworked a little bit
because it caught up with me after one or two weeks. Then, I got really tired.
When I was injured, I never had one day off and normally you get four days a
month, at least. So, that was kind of tough, but it helped me too.
“After the Olympics, I came back and I had good jump and since then my legs
are good.”
“No, no, no,” he said. “For me, it’s good to learn, too. I look at this as a
chance. I’m here to learn and not to (complain about) anything.”
***
Defenseman Peter Harrold and his wife, Casey, welcomed Friday a baby
daughter, who they named Emerson. Harrold said mother and baby are
doing well.
The Harrolds also have a 4-year-old son, Lincoln, and a 2-year-old daughter,
Adelaide.
***
The NHL corrected the error on the score sheet – which got carried over into
the league statistic – and gave Andy Greene credit for his assist on the first
Devils’ goal (scored by Michael Ryder). Thursday night. The official scoring
on the goal was changed during the first period, but a mistake was made on
the score sheet and Adam Henrique got credit for the secondary assist
instead of Greene.
That mistake was fixed for today’s statistics with Greene having one more
assist and Henrique having one fewer.
***
Here is the Devils’ complete lineup for tonight with the line combinations and
defense pairs from the morning skate:
Forwards: Tuomo Ruutu-Travis Zajac-Jaromir Jagr; Adam Henrique-Patrik
Elias-Michael Ryder; Ryane Clowe-Jacob Josefson-Dainius Zubrus; Ryan
Carter-Stephen Gionta-Steve Bernier.
Defensemen: Andy Greene-Mark Fayne; Bryce Salvador-Anton Volchenkov;
Jon Merrill-Marek Zidlicky.
Goaltender: Martin Brodeur.
Injured: LW Tim Sestito (head).
Healthy scratches: D Peter Harrold, RW Damien Brunner, D Eric Gelinas.
***
I will not be covering the game tonight. I’ve been battling a bug for the last few
days and haven’t been able to shake it, so I will be staying home tonight and,
hopefully, feel better for Sunday’s game.
I will put up a live post for tonight’s game, so you can still follow it here.
Bergen Record LOADED: 03.23.2014
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New Jersey Devils
him in there would recognize the significance of the game and the rivalry and
would rise to the occasion too.”
Carter happy to return in time to face Rangers; Bernier back in; Gelinas,
Brunner to sit
The Devils are 3-1-0 against the Rangers this season, but the one loss came
in their last meeting on Jan. 26 at Yankee Stadium. The Devils led 3-1 in the
first period, but fell apart after that and lost 7-3.
Staff Writer
DeBoer said that the game was played outdoors had nothing to do with the
outcome.
Left wing Ryan Carter will be back in the Devils’ lineup tonight against the
Rangers after missing the last three games with an upper body injury.
Right wing Steve Bernier also will be back in after being a healthy scratch for
Thursday’s 4-3 overtime win over Minnesota.
Right wing Damien Brunner and defensemen Peter Harrold and Eric Gelinas
will be the healthy scratches as the Devils go back to dressing six
defensemen after playing with seven Thursday night.
The Devils are 5-1-0 when dressing seven defensemen, but that forces them
to overplay some forwards and it’s understandable they don’t want to do that
with the team playing its third game in four nights Sunday against Toronto.
As reasons for going with six defensemen, Devils coach Pete DeBoer listed,
“The schedule, the Rangers are a four line team.
“With the fact we lost (Tim) Sestito (elbowed in the head) early last game, we
really went to three lines pretty early in the game,” DeBoer said. “I think we’re
going to need four lines of guys tonight for the game we’re going to have to
play.”
Getting Carter back and putting Bernier back in allows DeBoer to reunite his
fourth line of Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier.
“It’s good to get Carter back,” DeBoer said. “We’re going to need that line’s
energy and what they bring against these guys. They’ve got a history of
playing well as a line against the Rangers and we need that tonight.”
Carter, who scored two goals in the Devils’ 3-2 win over the Rangers on Nov.
12 at Madison Square Garden, definitely wanted to play in this game, but
said it just worked out that he was healthy enough. He missed the Dec. 7
game at the Garden (a 4-3 Devils’ OT win) with a sprained MCL in his right
knee.
“These games are tough to miss,” he said. “They’re fun to play in. That really
didn’t play a factor. It was a timing thing.”
Carter admits he enjoys these rivalry games.
“It’s a big game,” he said. “These are usually big games. In terms of rivalry
and passion I haven’t been involved in one like the Devils-Rangers since
probably high school. They don’t carry as much meaning, but the rivalry was
intense then and it’s just easy to get up for these games.”
Bernier, who has not scored in his last 41 games, was a healthy scratch
Thursday for the first time this season. DeBoer hopes that sitting out a game
might help Bernier.
“Like a lot of guys who haven’t scored in a while, you carry that around and
the elephant gets bigger and bigger,” DeBoer said. “So, sometimes I think
you take a step back. It’s never for lack of effort with him, but, hopefully, he
comes back in a little refreshed and a little looser.”
“You just take a step back and clear your head,” Bernier said. “Now tonight
it’s a new game and a new opportunity to help the team win and a new
opportunity to show that I deserve to be in the lineup.”
***
Martin Brodeur will start in net for the Devils tonight against Henrik Lundqvist
for the Rangers. Cory Schneider said he has been told that he will start
Sunday against Toronto, but also said it’s always possible that could change.
(Brodeur has not started back-to-back games this season, so it seems the
odds are against that.)
DeBoer said it’s “a pretty safe comment” that Brodeur gets up for the games
against the Rangers and that is among the factors that were discussed in
deciding to start him tonight.
“We throw a lot of things in that mix when we’re making those decisions,”
DeBoer said. “That’s definitely one of the things we talk about, but that’s not
the be all and end all. I have no doubt that Cory Schneider tonight if we threw
“That outdoor game, I don’t blame that on the environment,” DeBoer said. “I
thought it was a great event. We beat ourselves that game and we can’t do
that tonight. I think we know that.”
***
DeBoer said he “didn’t know a lot” about the Devils-Rangers rivalry before his
first season as the Devils head coach in 2011-12.
“I think (you don’t know) until you live in the community and you see how
many Ranger fans and Devil fans there are walking the streets side by side
(and) in the same house sometimes,” DeBoer said. “When we played each
other in the playoffs two years ago, that really hit home for me when you see
how passionate both sides got. So, I didn’t realize the rivalry until we lived in
the community and experienced it firsthand.”
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New Jersey Devils
him in there would recognize the significance of the game and the rivalry and
would rise to the occasion too.”
Carter happy to return in time to face Rangers; Bernier back in; Gelinas,
Brunner to sit
The Devils are 3-1-0 against the Rangers this season, but the one loss came
in their last meeting on Jan. 26 at Yankee Stadium. The Devils led 3-1 in the
first period, but fell apart after that and lost 7-3.
Staff Writer
DeBoer said that the game was played outdoors had nothing to do with the
outcome.
Left wing Ryan Carter will be back in the Devils’ lineup tonight against the
Rangers after missing the last three games with an upper body injury.
Right wing Steve Bernier also will be back in after being a healthy scratch for
Thursday’s 4-3 overtime win over Minnesota.
Right wing Damien Brunner and defensemen Peter Harrold and Eric Gelinas
will be the healthy scratches as the Devils go back to dressing six
defensemen after playing with seven Thursday night.
The Devils are 5-1-0 when dressing seven defensemen, but that forces them
to overplay some forwards and it’s understandable they don’t want to do that
with the team playing its third game in four nights Sunday against Toronto.
As reasons for going with six defensemen, Devils coach Pete DeBoer listed,
“The schedule, the Rangers are a four line team.
“With the fact we lost (Tim) Sestito (elbowed in the head) early last game, we
really went to three lines pretty early in the game,” DeBoer said. “I think we’re
going to need four lines of guys tonight for the game we’re going to have to
play.”
Getting Carter back and putting Bernier back in allows DeBoer to reunite his
fourth line of Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier.
“It’s good to get Carter back,” DeBoer said. “We’re going to need that line’s
energy and what they bring against these guys. They’ve got a history of
playing well as a line against the Rangers and we need that tonight.”
Carter, who scored two goals in the Devils’ 3-2 win over the Rangers on Nov.
12 at Madison Square Garden, definitely wanted to play in this game, but
said it just worked out that he was healthy enough. He missed the Dec. 7
game at the Garden (a 4-3 Devils’ OT win) with a sprained MCL in his right
knee.
“These games are tough to miss,” he said. “They’re fun to play in. That really
didn’t play a factor. It was a timing thing.”
Carter admits he enjoys these rivalry games.
“It’s a big game,” he said. “These are usually big games. In terms of rivalry
and passion I haven’t been involved in one like the Devils-Rangers since
probably high school. They don’t carry as much meaning, but the rivalry was
intense then and it’s just easy to get up for these games.”
Bernier, who has not scored in his last 41 games, was a healthy scratch
Thursday for the first time this season. DeBoer hopes that sitting out a game
might help Bernier.
“Like a lot of guys who haven’t scored in a while, you carry that around and
the elephant gets bigger and bigger,” DeBoer said. “So, sometimes I think
you take a step back. It’s never for lack of effort with him, but, hopefully, he
comes back in a little refreshed and a little looser.”
“You just take a step back and clear your head,” Bernier said. “Now tonight
it’s a new game and a new opportunity to help the team win and a new
opportunity to show that I deserve to be in the lineup.”
***
Martin Brodeur will start in net for the Devils tonight against Henrik Lundqvist
for the Rangers. Cory Schneider said he has been told that he will start
Sunday against Toronto, but also said it’s always possible that could change.
(Brodeur has not started back-to-back games this season, so it seems the
odds are against that.)
DeBoer said it’s “a pretty safe comment” that Brodeur gets up for the games
against the Rangers and that is among the factors that were discussed in
deciding to start him tonight.
“We throw a lot of things in that mix when we’re making those decisions,”
DeBoer said. “That’s definitely one of the things we talk about, but that’s not
the be all and end all. I have no doubt that Cory Schneider tonight if we threw
“That outdoor game, I don’t blame that on the environment,” DeBoer said. “I
thought it was a great event. We beat ourselves that game and we can’t do
that tonight. I think we know that.”
***
DeBoer said he “didn’t know a lot” about the Devils-Rangers rivalry before his
first season as the Devils head coach in 2011-12.
“I think (you don’t know) until you live in the community and you see how
many Ranger fans and Devil fans there are walking the streets side by side
(and) in the same house sometimes,” DeBoer said. “When we played each
other in the playoffs two years ago, that really hit home for me when you see
how passionate both sides got. So, I didn’t realize the rivalry until we lived in
the community and experienced it firsthand.”
739186
New Jersey Devils
Looks like Carter will play for Devils tonight; Brunner could be healthy scratch
again
Staff Writer
The Devils are on the ice for their morning skate at Prudential Center in
preparation for tonight’s game against the Rangers.
Left wing Ryan Carter is among those participating and said Friday there’s “a
good chance” he’ll play tonight after missing the last three games with an
upper-body injury.
Carter is back in his usual spot at left wing on the fourth line with Stephen
Gionta and Steve Bernier. Bernier was a healthy scratch for Thursday’s 4-3
overtime win over Minnesota as the Devils went with seven defensnemen.
Right wing Damien Brunner appears to be the extra forward. It would be the
second game in a row for him as a healthy scratch.
Peter Harrold is back for today’s morning skate after missing Friday’s small
group practice for “personal reasons.” Harrold is paired this morning with
rookie defenseman Eric Gelinas. That would appear to be the extra defense
pair.
Left wing Tim Sestito is not out there after being knocked woozy by an elbow
to the head from Minnesota’s Nate Prosser Thursday night. He is the only
player on the Devils’ active roster not skating.
Martin Brodeur will start in net for the Devils against Henrik Lundqvist for the
Rangers.
The breakdown of the players skating this morning:
Forwards: Tuomo Ruutu-Travis Zajac-Jaromir Jagr; Adam Henrique-Patrik
Elias-Michael Ryder; Ryane Clowe-Jacob Josefson-Dainius Zubrus; Ryan
Carter-Stephen Gionta-Steve Bernier. Extra: Damien Brunner..
Defensemen: Andy Greene-Mark Fayne; Bryce Salvavdor-Anton
Volchenkov; Jon Merrill-Marek Zidlicky; Eric Gelinas-Peter Harrold..
Goaltenders: Martin Brodeur, Cory Schneider.
739187
New Jersey Devils
Playoff-hungry NY Rangers blank Devils
Pat Leonard
Sunday, March 23, 2014, 1:26 AM
Henrik Lundqvist knelt in his crease with his arms raised at the Rock
Saturday night, celebrating both a 2-0 win over the Devils and his
franchise-record 50th career shutout.
His triumphant pose represented more than that, though. It showed the
playoff-hungry Rangers were feeding off the emotion of Friday’s win in
Columbus rather than being drained from it, willing themselves to a third
straight victory behind former All-Star defenseman Marc Staal, who said after
logging 45 dominant minutes across two nights that he felt “fresh.”
“Every point could be the difference right now,” Lundqvist (21 saves, one
assist) said of the tight Eastern Conference playoff race, where the Rangers
(82 points), third in the Metropolitan Division and sixth in the East, have 10
games to clinch a berth. “It’s gonna be until the end here, until the last game,
so a lot of it is going to be about how we push each other and approach every
game as a must-win.”
Rangers celebrate Rick Nash’s second-period goal as they top Devils.
Howard Simmons/New York Daily News Rangers celebrate Rick Nash’s
second-period goal as they top Devils.
Lundqvist has been the constant pushing his teammates recently, including
on Tuesday when he got frustrated with lazy third-period defensive play
during an 8-4 rout of the Senators. Saturday night against the Devils, the
Blueshirts’ blue line redeemed itself and set the tone from the start by limiting
New Jersey to five first-period shots.
“I’ve been in this situation enough times with the Rangers that you’ve just got
to keep winning,” said Staal, who was a punishing presence in the corners. “It
seems like you could win five in a row and all of a sudden lose one and you
might be on the outside looking in. So your focus has to be to win every
game.”
Rick Nash, Friday’s catalyst in Columbus, once again took center stage by
scoring Saturday’s game-winner 10:33 into the second period. He caught
Martin Brodeur (25 saves) by surprise with a left-wing wrist shot after Derek
Stepan’s pass through the slot had skidded through a screen by Chris
Kreider (assist).
Then Stepan sealed the game with 7.8 seconds remaining on, of all things,
an empty-net power play goal, the Rangers’ first tally on the man advantage
in five games (1-for-17). There was hope for the anemic power play, though,
as deadline acquisition Raphael Diaz brought smart passing and a
right-handed shot to the mix in his debut replacing John Moore (concussion
symptoms).
Still, Lundqvist owned the moment, even in a game in which he didn’t face
frequent shots. He eclipsed Ed Giacomin’s record with his parents in the
stands, having flown in from Sweden. That included denying Jaromir Jagr on
a highlight-reel first period breakaway sequence and stopping Travis Zajac
during a frantic scramble at the Blueshirts’ net with 38.9 seconds to play.
“It’s sometimes easier to focus on the right things when the game is more
important, because you don’t allow yourself to think about the end result,”
Lundqvist said. “You think about the process, and how you get there.”
New York Daily News LOADED: 03.23.2014
739188
New Jersey Devils
Rangers edge Devils for third-straight win
Brett Cyrgalis
March 22, 2014 | 10:33pm
It felt like a playoff game, and that’s because it basically was.
There were two desperate teams at Prudential Center on Saturday night,
both led by bold-named goaltenders, both of them garnering love and hate
from the split crowd throughout.
And in the end it was Henrik Lundqvist outdueling Martin Brodeur, yet again,
leading the Rangers to a 2-0 win.
“Hank’s the guy and points are hard to come by,” coach Alain Vigneault said
before Lundqvist recorded career shutout No. 50, passing Eddie Giacomin
and taking over atop the last remaining meaningful franchise goaltending
record. “If we’re going to get in — everybody is winning right now — if we’re
going to get in, it’s because Hank plays like Hank.”
All Lundqvist needed was a strange sharp-angle goal from Rick Nash
midway through the second period, and he did the rest carrying his team to
their third in a row and their fourth in the past five. Even as the Devils hacked
away, with Travis Zajac and Jaromir Jagr getting chances in the waning
seconds and Brodeur out of the New Jersey net, Lundqvist shut them down.
Derek Stepan finished things off with an empty-netter with 7.8 seconds
remaining.
The Rangers (39-29-4) were coming off a rousing 3-1 win in Columbus on
Friday night, a game that allowed them to leapfrog the Blue Jackets and into
second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils (30-28-13) had
squeaked a 4-3 overtime win over the visiting Wild on Thursday night,
keeping their scant playoff hopes alive, still six points back of the final
wild-card playoff spot before the game began.
The Rangers took a quick hold of the game 10:33 into the second period
when they came flying down the ice on a rush, the puck going from Derek
Stepan on the right wing towards the crease, where Chris Kreider was
crashing the net. He bumped Brodeur on his way passed, and the puck found
it’s way to the far hash mark, where Rick Nash didn’t hesitate in firing one
back on net, beating the unsuspecting Broduer for a 1-0 lead. Although the
Devils had some chances, that’s the way the period ended, them finishing the
first 40 minutes without a goal and 11 shots on net.
The first 20 minutes were rife with physicality and action presumed for these
rivalry games, and both goaltenders did all they could in keeping in a
scoreless opening frame. First it was Lundqvist’s turn on stage, making a
jaw-dropping stop on a Jagr breakaway halfway through, stretching his right
pad out in a show of terrific athleticism. Nearing the end of the period,
Brodeur answered with two big-time saves on Marc Staal, both of them done
with his goalie stick held upside after it had been knocked out of his hand.
Of course, these two New York-area netminders already have a storied
history, which includes the Eastern Conference finals from two seasons ago,
the series that Brodeur and the Devils won in six games before going on to
lose to the Kings in the Stanley Cup finals. Over 40 regular-season
head-to-head matchups, Lundqvist has the edge with a 25-9-6 record, a 1.78
goals-against average, a .928 save percentage and five shutouts.
New York Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
739189
New York Islanders
Don't expect Isles to roll over for a higher pick
March 22, 2014 7:52 PM
ARTHUR STAPLE
It's about this time of year, in this type of season the Islanders are having,
when fans start chattering about the loaded "T" word: Tanking.
As in, losing games to obtain a better draft position. It's a common discussion
on message boards and Twitter as Isles-watchers pore over possible draft
slots and whom the team might take.
Of course, that word is forbidden in every locker room. No coach or player
discusses it or even thinks it. If you've got a roomful of guys willing to roll over
in the final dozen games, those guys won't be around to play alongside that
No. 1 or No. 2 overall pick.
So even after Tuesday's 6-0 shelling by the Wild, there was and is no sense
of surrender. Jack Capuano and his coaching staff put the players through a
rigorous practice on Wednesday and another one on Friday to remind the
current Islanders that there are still things they need to show before this
disappointing season ends.
"I think we got the message," Matt Martin said. "It wasn't so much the score
[on Tuesday], it was the way we played those last two periods. We have to
play for one another in here these last 12 games."
Islanders general manager Garth Snow, Jack Capuano and the coaching
staff have plenty of evaluation time over this last stretch, with the Isles
battered by injuries and in need of rookies to fill spots. Lubomir Visnovsky is
out again with an upper-body injury, possibly opening another defense slot
for a Bridgeport call-up.
Not that veterans have any reason to relax. Snow has plans to wheel and
deal at the June 27 draft, armed with as many as eight picks in the first four
rounds. There have been enough underachievers among the veteran group
that some of those Islanders could be moved out this summer.
The Islanders sat in 27th entering Saturday's games, just two points from
29th. The Sabres appear to have 30th locked up, thus giving them the best
chance to win the draft lottery.
Snow has until June 1 to notify the Sabres whether the Islanders are sending
this year's first-round pick to Buffalo to complete the Thomas Vanek deal or
deferring the pick to 2015. All indications are the Islanders are keeping this
year's pick.
But that still doesn't mean the Isles will deliberately field a lousy lineup to
make that pick as good as possible. On April 10, though, the Isles visit the
Canadiens, who will send a second-round pick to the Islanders if Montreal
makes the playoffs to complete their Vanek trade.
With a game in Newark the following night, fully expect Anders Nilsson to
start in goal in Montreal.
That's not tanking. It's common sense.
Czuczman trying to relax
Kevin Czuczman's NHL debut didn't feature a result to remember, but the
newly signed defenseman took it as a positive.
"I just need to tell myself to relax and keepi playing. I think I was worried too
much about where I was and where I was supposed to be," he said. "It's still
hockey. That's what I need to keep telling myself."
Czuczman played 20:06, fueled primarily by Brian Strait leaving with a
broken hand in the first periods. The 23-year-old out of Lake Superior State,
who signed as a free agent with the Islanders last week, will get plenty more
nights of heavy minutes in the last 12 games given the injuries on defense.
That should allow him to catch up to the pace of the NHL game.
"The biggest difference to me was the speed that guys come with through the
neutral zone," Czuczman said. "In college, one or maybe two lines have that
speed. Here it's all four lines."
The end of the black jersey
The Islanders' much-discussed (most often maligned in those talks) black
third jerseys will make their 24th and final appearance on Sunday at the
Coliseum. The jerseys were introduced in the 2011-12 season and have not
exactly been good-luck charms.
The team is 7-11-5 wearing the black alternate jerseys the past three
seasons, though that isn't far off from the Isles' overall home record during
that span, as they are 37-47-17 at the Coliseum since the introduction of the
sweater.
Even though the Stadium Series third jerseys are far more popular with fans,
the Islanders are 0-3-0 in those so far. That alternate jersey will be the third
jersey now. NHL guidelines stipulate that teams can change alternate jerseys
every three years.
Newsday LOADED: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739190
New York Rangers
Brassard's Third-Period Goal Lifts Rangers, 3-1
Nick Foligno scored for Columbus, 7-2-2 in its last 11 games. Bobrovsky
made 29 saves.
Continue reading the main story
Continue reading the main story
Staff Writer
MARCH 21, 2014, 11:12 P.M. E.D.T.
After two scoreless periods, Columbus took a 1-0 lead when Foligno
intercepted Benoit Pouilot's pass and scored his 18th goal of the season with
a wrist shot from the high slot at 1:12.
Just 44 seconds later, the Rangers countered when Ryan McDonagh carried
the puck along the back wall and then fed Stepan for his 14th goal.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — It wasn't the Columbus homecoming that Rick Nash
envisioned.
In the end, though, he said it worked out fine.
Derick Brassard and Derek Stepan scored third-period goals, and Henrik
Lundqvist made 25 saves to lead the New York Rangers to a 3-1 victory over
the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night.
"I knew it was going to be a playoff atmosphere," Nash said of his return to
Columbus, where he starred for nine seasons before asking to be traded. "I
wouldn't expect to push their goalie to start a fight and then to be in a fight
myself. But the two points were huge. That's what we needed."
Nash, the Columbus franchise leader in goals, assists and games, was given
a standing ovation during a video tribute in the first period. He ended up
vilified after a second-period, two-handed shove up high on Columbus goalie
Sergei Bobrovsky.
"They gave me my standing ovation. It means a lot," said Nash, who still has
a residence in Columbus. "They love their Blue Jackets. We talked (before
the game) about it being half boos and half cheers. Then it was 90 percent
boos. But we got the points, so that's what mattered."
Nash said his shove of Bobrovsky was justified because the goalie had
whacked at him a couple of times in the first period and then had knocked his
stick aside as he went to pick it up.
The Blue Jackets disagreed.
"He took a cheap shot at our goalie," said Matt Calvert, who fought Nash at
mid-ice 12 seconds into the third period. "He had to pay for what he did. It
was a gutless move."
On a rush, Nash muscled the puck into the net after making contact with
Bobrovsky. The goal was disallowed due to goalie interference.
As Nash went to get his stick, Bobrovsky picked it up with his stick and then
dropped it as Nash reached for it. Nash then hit Bobrovsky high with both
hands, touching off five two-man scuffles and sending Nash to the box for
roughing.
Brassard, who played his first five NHL seasons with the Blue Jackets, broke
a 1-1 tie with a nifty goal with 8:29 remaining.
He corralled a pass along the back wall from defenseman Anton Stralman,
who had two assists, and flipped the puck between his legs to the doorstep.
Brassard then pivoted and jammed a shot in off Bobrovsky's pad.
"I was just trying to put the puck in front of the net," said Brassard, traded to
New York in the Blue Jackets' deadline deal for Marian Gaborik a year ago. "I
caught him off guard. I was just happy to put it in."
Carl Hagelin added an empty-net goal for the Rangers, who moved two
points ahead of the Blue Jackets in the tight Metropolitan Division and
Eastern Conference playoff races.
Lundqvist called it "the biggest game for us this year."
Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said both teams were emotional.
"It was like a playoff game," he said. "There was a lot of chippiness out there.
Everybody was fighting for every inch, and we found a way to win the game."
Both teams came in with 78 points, the third most in the Metropolitan. The
Blue Jackets have played one fewer game.
Lundqvist was energized by watching Nash tangle with Bobrovsky and then
Calvert.
"I got really fired up. I got mad," he said of watching Nash trade punches with
the much smaller Calvert. "I thought, 'We're beating this team now. There's
no way we're losing.'"
That set the stage for Brassard's go-ahead goal. Lundqvist turned away
several prime scoring chances in the final moments.
"There were lots of things I liked about this game," said Columbus coach
Todd Richards, whose team had won 3-2 on Thursday night in Montreal. "I
was disappointed by the result, but I thought our guys in tough circumstances
played a hard game. They were physical, they stood up for each other. It
wasn't easy and we were right in it all the way to the end."
By the end, of course, every time Nash touched the puck most of the crowd of
18,513 was booing loudly. Quite a difference from the opening minutes —
and the days before he asked to be traded — when they stood and cheered
him.
"It was a great game, a lot of fun," Nash said. "But I'm definitely glad it's over."
NOTES: Former Columbus RW Derek Dorsett was a late addition to the
Rangers lineup in place of Daniel Carcillo, who was a healthy scratch. ... The
Rangers are 6-5-1 since the Olympic break, 18-10-2 in 2014. ... The Rangers
had been in Columbus since early Wednesday morning. ... New York D John
Moore left after a hard check from Blake Comeau. He returned, but will be
re-evaluated on Saturday.
New York Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739191
New York Rangers
49-32-5, with 15 ties in addition, and Brodeur has three Stanley Cups in his
two-decade career, the Rangers just one during that span.
Lundqvist Breaks Another Record in a Key Win
“It was a big game,” said Brodeur, who made many superb stops in one of his
best outings of a disappointing season. He added, “I really wanted to be the
difference, and I wasn’t tonight.”
JEFF Z. KLEIN
What did he think of being part of so many games in the Devils-Rangers
rivalry?
MARCH 22, 2014
“They’re fun,” he said. “But right now it’s not about having fun.”
SLAP SHOTS
NEWARK — Two great goalies based on each side of the Hudson River,
Martin Brodeur and Henrik Lundqvist, met for probably the last time Saturday
night, and once again Lundqvist skated away the winner.
Afterward, Lundqvist clomped into his dressing-room stall, sat down heavily
and let out a mighty sigh of relief.
“It’s a great feeling,” he said, sweat streaming down his face. “This was such
an important game.”
It was another classic goaltending duel, but this time, the consequences
were especially heavy. With the 2-0 victory over the Devils, the Rangers
remained in control of an Eastern Conference playoff spot with 10 games left
on the schedule and more or less crushed any remaining hope the Devils
had.
“We might as well do it in one week so I don’t have to talk about it,” Lundqvist
said of breaking another record, smiling as he accepted congratulations.
The victory was the Rangers’ fourth straight in road games, and it improved
their record away from home to 23-13 — the second-best mark in the N.H.L.,
after St. Louis’s.
Rick Nash scored a sneaky goal midway through regulation, the game’s only
goal until Derek Stepan scored into an empty net with eight seconds left. The
Rangers outshot the Devils by 27-21, blocked 14 shot attempts and forced
the Devils to shoot wide or high another 13 times.
On Friday, the Rangers won an emotional game, 3-1, at Columbus, one of
their closest rivals in the playoff race. That game was the first back in
Columbus for Nash, who starred for the Blue Jackets for nearly a decade
before he was traded in 2012.
On Saturday, Brodeur and the Devils were undone by Nash’s 23rd goal of the
season, which broke a deadlock at 10 minutes 33 seconds of the second
period.
The play started with Stepan trying to feed Chris Kreider, who was cutting
into the crease as Devils defenseman Mark Fayne gave chase. Kreider
missed the pass but fell or was pushed into Brodeur, who became tangled
with Fayne.
As Brodeur was trying to right himself, the puck slid to Nash, who was
standing along the left-wing boards. Nash wristed the puck toward the net
and found the open side as Brodeur was still trying to get square.
“I took a peek first, and I saw he wasn’t back yet,” Nash said. “He’s a great
goaltender, difficult to score on, so you have to shoot everything at the net.”
Brodeur said: “I can’t tell you if it was interference or not, but Kreider was
going hard to the net. That’s what they’re paid to do. It was a little fluky
because I lost my bearing after I kind of got tangled up with him.”
Jaromir Jagr, disappointed by the loss, which left the Devils 6 points out of a
playoff spot with 10 games to play, said of the goal, “I don’t know what the
referee was calling.”
Jagr added: “He hit our goalie. The referee put the hand up, then they scored,
and it’s a goal. It doesn’t make sense to me. Nobody really pushed that guy to
the net.”
The Devils got one of their few clear chances on Lundqvist with 39 seconds
left in regulation and the score still 1-0. Lundqvist lay down to keep the puck
out as Jagr, Travis Zajac and Adam Henrique hacked away, trying in vain to
force it in.
Stepan scored into an empty net soon after.
Brodeur, 41 and a free agent at the end of the season, has suggested in the
last couple of months that he will not be back with the Devils next season. If
that is the case, his career record with the team against Lundqvist will end at
15-21-5. But his career mark as a Devil against the Rangers would be
Rangers defenseman John Moore, who was hurt Friday at Columbus, did not
dress because of concussion symptoms, Coach Alain Vigneault said. His
place was taken by Raphael Diaz, who played for the first time since he was
acquired from Vancouver at the trade deadline. Diaz played 4:06 of the
Rangers’ 5:55 on the power play.
New York Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739192
New York Rangers
Rangers' Alain Vigneault: Henrik Lundqvist is our guy. If we get in it's
because 'Hank plays like Hank'
Rich Chere
March 22, 2014 at 5:19 PM
NEWARK— With back-to-back games, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault might
have considered starting goalie Cam Talbot against the Devils Saturday
night.
But that wasn't in his thoughts.
"I think right now it's safe to say it's on a game-to-game basis. Hank's the guy.
Points are hard to come by," Vigneault said. "Yes Cam (Talbot) has played
real well for us, but Hank's our guy and if we're going to get in, it's because
Hank plays like Hank."
Vigneault said defenseman John Moore will not play because of "concussion
symptoms. He'll be evaluated ion a daily basis." Raphael Diaz will play in
Moore's place.
Derek Dorsett developed as stomach flu early Saturday afternoon and also
will not play. Vigneault said two other players are questionable with "some
little issues."
Daniel Carcillo will play instead of Dorsett.
739193
New York Rangers
Crushed Ice: Henrik Lundqvist excellent in Columbus, Derek Dorsett adds
energy, John Moore gets banged up, notes on Rangers' win
In my opinion, Vigneault is referring to how Dominic Moore’s play has slipped
a bit recently. Carcillo didn’t have a terrific night in Ottawa, either. Still,
Vigneault is no longer comfortable playing a line of Carcillo-Boyle-Dorsett like
he did in a recent loss in Philadelphia, and Moore really is an effective player
who shouldn’t come out of the lineup easily.
LESS OF MOORE IN NEWARK, PERHAPS
Pat Leonard
COLUMBUS – There was Rick Nash’s terrific performance and storyline, and
then there was the rest of the game – the most exciting tilt of the Rangers’
season to date – which included a ton of notable turns and sequences and
performances.
Henrik Lundqvist, for example, may have been required to make only 25
saves, but almost all of them were difficult due to the Blue Jackets’ incessant
crashing of the Rangers’ net and Columbus’ impressive shooting accuracy
from the points.
“It felt like they were on top of me almost every shot,” said Lundqvist, who
also will start Saturday night in Newark against the Devils. “They had
someone bumping into me, but you kind of like it. It’s that feel of it’s an
important game, it’s physical, and it just makes you realize you have to work
really hard and fight through screens, and obviously the rebounds are huge.
You have to make sure you put them in the right place. They’re a good team.
They have good speed.”
BREAKING DOWN RICK NASH'S BIG GAME, HIS PHYSICAL PLAY, &
THE DISALLOWED GOAL
Lundqvist set the tone of his fantastic performance with a stunning left pad
save on former teammate Brandon Dubinsky’s one-timer from the low slot
fewer than four minutes into the match. He made 10 saves in the decisive
third period, beaten on Nick Foligno’s wrister 1:12 in after a horrific turnover
by Benoit Pouliot passing backwards across the defensive zone.
Foligno then almost beat Lundqvist again with under 10 minutes to play,
when former Ranger Artem Anisimov won a corner battle against Dan Girardi
and fed a pass in front. The Blue Jackets forward deked in close around
Lundqvist’s left pad but was too far behind the net and could only tuck the
puck off the post – not around it and in.
“I was playing deep and I was just waiting for a shot,” Lundqvist said of that
scare. “In my mind, there’s no way he’s gonna try to go around me because I
was so deep in the net, so I went down for a shot and he made a good move.
He almost got me there. But obviously because I was so deep it was hard for
him to get around and put it in. (I got) a little lucky there.”
Lundqvist also uttered his quote of the year when asked how close he’d been
to skating to the other end of the ice during the late second-period melee at
Columbus’ net. After all, Lundqvist did skate to the Rangers’ blue line before
returning to his net.
“It looked like (Bobrovsky) punched our guy (Nash). I wasn’t sure what
happened, and he was getting involved,” Lundqvist said. “I’m not gonna let
them be six-on-five down there, but he skated away and I skated away. If the
other (goalie) gets involved and they have more guys going at it, I guess I
have to do something. I didn’t have to tonight, so…” He paused: “Lucky him.”
DORSETT HANDLES MINUTES AND HOMECOMING IN BIG WAY
Derek Dorsett played his best game in recent memory, logging 10:49 in a
surprise start over healthy scratch Dan Carcillo. Dorsett took a near-run at
Dubinsky early, stirring the pot, played effectively and physically on the
forecheck and in the neutral zones, and later in the game when Nash was in
the penalty box, coach Alain Vigneault felt comfortable enough to put Dorsett
in Nash’s place for several shifts on the wing of Derek Stepan and Chris
Kreider.
GAME STORY: NASH, RANGERS OVERPOWER JACKETS, 3-1, IN
PLAYOFF-LEVEL VICTORY
“I thought Dors in the last couple of practices had looked smoother if you can
say that about him,” Vigneault said. “He looked quicker on the ice. He had
been working extremely hard, and I thought in (Tuesday’s 8-4 win in) Ottawa
that Dom (Moore)’s line had a so-so game, and I just decided to put Dors
instead of Dan. Boyler and Dom both kill penalties, and I decided to keep
those guys in – even though Dan, out of the three wasn’t probably the worst
player there (in Ottawa). Tonight they played a better game, and Dors played
a good game for us.”
Blue Jackets left wing Blake Comeau initiated the bad blood Friday night,
crunching former Jacket and current Rangers defenseman John Moore’s
head into the boards as he bent over to play the puck 11:29 into the first
period. A groggy Moore skated slowly to the bench, sat out the rest of the first
period, returned to play six shifts in the second, and did not return for the
third.
Moore was walking around normally in the hallway in his suit after the game,
but Vigneault said the young defenseman would be “re-evaluated.” Deadline
acquisition Raphael Diaz, therefore, could make his Rangers debut Saturday
night in Newark against the Devils.
CENTERS OF ATTENTION
Derek Stepan’s goal 44 seconds after Foligno’s to tie the game at 1-1 was a
one-time shot that luckily deflected off Blue Jackets defenseman Dalton
Prout to beat Bobrovsky. Still, he got the shot off and it was a mammoth goal
for the Blueshirts, set up by the dominant Ryan McDonagh.
(Honestly, it’s an entire other story in itself, but in addition to McDonagh’s
assist to Stepan and his near-assist on Nash’s waved-off goal, McDonagh
also made a full ice skate of the puck early in the game that simply had
everyone just watching him skate – quite a player.)
Another center, Derick Brassard, of course wrapped home the game-winning
goal 11:31 into the third period. So that made for two major tallies by
Blueshirts centermen in this playoff-type atmosphere.
There may be a major concern down the middle, however: Brad Richards
may have had six shots on goal, and he did help set up a power play chance
for Stepan that Stepan somehow missed wide. Still, Richards’ line was the
only Rangers trio not able to consistently compete at a high level, and his
skating is once again becoming an issue.
On one sequence, his inability to take the extra stride to clear an errant but
extra-effort play from Marc Staal in the defensive corner, led to the Blue
Jackets keeping the puck in the zone, taking a shot that knocked Lundqvist’s
stick out of his hand and generating several more chances on the shift before
an eventual clear.
Oh, and Martin St. Louis has not scored a goal in 11 games: his final two with
the Lightning and his first nine with the Rangers. It’s bound to happen
sometime, one would think. Right?
POWERLESS
Stepan should have had a power play goal, but he missed a feed from Nash
and Richards wide, and the Rangers hung an 0-for-4 collar on the man
advantage. Vigneault tinkered a bit with his units again, but nothing worked.
The Rangers are two-for-28 on the power play since acquiring St. Louis and
six of their last 54.
BEN THERE, DONE THAT
Pouliot, who had returned to New York Tuesday night to witness the birth of a
baby daughter, surprisingly dropped the gloves and fought Jackets left wing
Derek MacKenzie in Friday’s first period. Pouliot’s tussle was the first
Rangers fighting major since John Moore’s Jan. 12 scrap with Philly’s
Brayden Schenn. It was just Pouliot’s fifth fight of his NHL career, and his first
since squaring off against Andrew Ference, then of the Boston Bruins, on
April 25 of 2013 as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, according to
HockeyFights.com.
PLAYOFF PUSH
The Rangers (80 points, 11 games left) reclaimed third place in the
Metropolitan Division, and they now lead Saturday night’s opponent, the rival
Devils (73 points, 12 games left) by seven points in the standings. New
Jersey has a 1-3-0 record in its last four games and seems out of the playoff
picture despite not having been mathematically eliminated. Still, the Rangers
would rather not make this interesting with a regulation loss at the Rock.
New York essentially is one of six teams battling to clinch four available
Eastern Conference playoff spots, including the Columbus Blue Jackets (78
points, 12 games left), the Philadelphia Flyers (81 points, 13 games left), the
Detroit Red Wings (77 points, 13 games left), the Washington Capitals (77
points, 11 games left) and the Toronto Maple Leafs (80 points, 11 games
left).
EXTRA QUOTES
Nash on Bobrovsky’s slashes to his legs, leading to their second-period
altercation: “It’s part of the game. He’s an emotional guy. He’s trying to get
his team into the game. I’m trying to get my team into the game. It’s hockey.”
Nash on whether this was a playoff-type game: “Big time. I thought they
brought a great game tonight. They were passionate. They were all over the
ice, they played a hard style. Credit to them, but we showed up and got the
job done.”
Nash on whether this game meant more for Rangers than two points: “I think
we came off momentum in Ottawa. From Ottawa we wanted to tighten things
up defensively.”
Lundqvist on the frantic second half of the third period protecting a late,
including a late scramble: “There were a couple close calls. I think they had
one really close right before we scored the second one and then in the
crease there. You just hope for the best. I got caught and I wasn’t sure if I
should move or just stay down, and then i guess you just kind of wait for a
reaction, from us or from there, and then you see the puck get cleared and it’s
a huge relief. It’s such an important game for us and for them, so to come out
with two points is huge.”
Nash’s line of the night when describing what the Jackets did to fire him up:
“Did you guys see that?”
Vigneault’s succinct characterization of what Rangers showed in the win:
“Mental toughness.”
Vigneault on Foligno’s goal and the response: “It’s a great shot, but we fought
right back, scored right away, Brass got a big goal. He had some big
opportunities before that, was able to bury that one, and both teams knew
what was at stake. It was a playoff game, a lot of chippiness out there,
everybody fighting for every inch, and we found a way to win the game.”
739194
New York Rangers
Rick Nash, teammates still fired up after Rangers' emotional 3-1 win in
Columbus; plus, an explanation of Nash's disallowed goal
“We didn’t get caught up in the storylines,” McDonagh said. “There’s a lot of
guys with this (Blue Jackets) team being their former team, and there’s a lot
of storylines to write about, but you can ask any one of those guys, they
maintained their focus and did their job physically and really tried to
compete.”
Pat Leonard
“(Nash) was competing hard,” McDonagh added. “He wasn’t falling into the
trap (of the moment) … It’s a great sign that a leader of our team can just go
about his business, play hard and get some momentum on our side.”
COLUMBUS – Rick Nash was as much of a sight to see after Friday’s
emotional 3-1 win at Nationwide Arena as he was during the physical
60-minute affair.
Nash’s adrenaline was running high in the locker room as he excitedly
recounted his impressive – and in many ways refreshingly uncharacteristic –
performance against his former team. A specific frequent topic of
conversation was Nash’s fight 12 seconds into the third period with Blue
Jackets winger Matt Calvert.
Calvert had retaliated for Nash’s double-fisted shot to the head of Columbus
goalie Sergei Bobrovsky late in the second period, jostling with the Rangers
right wing right from the faceoff to start the third. One Columbus reporter
naively asked Nash what had caused him to drop the gloves.
“Probably the two cross-checks to the head, the slew foot, and the fact that
he said he’s going at me no matter what. He doesn’t care,” Nash said. “Did
you see it?” he added, repeating the phrase frequently to clarify instances
that had set him off and fired up his teammates.
Friday’s Nash was an uncommon sight, but he certainly looked more like the
player that GM Glen Sather – who made the trip to Nationwide Arena –
thought he had traded for in July 2012. Defenseman Dan Girardi said Nash’s
teammates knew this type of fight existed in the big fella, even if he doesn’t
drop the gloves often.
“He doesn’t really fight that much, but he’s such a big body and he takes the
puck to the net hard and wants to get in those dirty areas,” Girardi said. “It’s
just great to see him not really taking crap. The goalie hits his stick away.
He’s not gonna just stand there and let it happen. Off the draw there,
Calvert’s in his grill and he does a great job. That’s the type of player he is:
He’ll do anything for the win. He did his job tonight, and the rest of the guys
followed suit.”
Derick Brassard, another ex-Jacket and the game-winning goal scorer, put it
plain and simply: “When he fought in the third period, our whole bench was
standing up, and I think it gave us a boost.”
Henrik Lundqvist was as entertaining as he’s been all season describing his
reaction to Nash’s fight.
“I can only speak for myself, but I got really fired up. I got mad. I’m like, ‘We’re
beating this team now,” Lundqvist said. “There’s no way we’re losing, if
they’re gonna fight our guy. Nasher was playing a great game, a physical
game. You could tell he was on tonight. so it was fun to see and I got fired up.
I’m still kind of mad about it. He had to fight, but he did a great job for us.”
Coach Alain Vigneault was pleased with Nash’s effort and also disgusted that
Calvert had been able to whack away at Nash with no extra penalty minutes
to show for it.
“I thought Nasher played a real strong, competitive game tonight,” the coach
said. “He could have had a goal, and they should have had a penalty when
he got that penalty. Their goaltender clearly pushed his stick when he was
trying to pick it up. That’s why he was a little upset. Then when he fought, I
mean, I don’t know how many free whacks you can get at a player, but
probably anywhere from five to 10, and both players get seven minutes. So at
the end of the day you’ve got to fight through that stuff. He did. The most
important thing is the win.”
Nash understood and accepted that he was required to fight after hitting
Bobrovsky, but he said the goalie deserved it for two whacks to the back of
his legs in the first period and for pushing his stick away in the second.
“You’ve got to own up when you do something like that,” Nash said of
Bobrovsky, “and I had to do the same thing. I pushed him. I had to own up to
my end of the bargain.”
Defenseman Ryan McDonagh lauded the Rangers’ entire team, led by Nash,
for not getting too caught up in the game’s stage but, rather, embracing it to
their advantage.
Nash said of how the game matched his expectations: “I knew it was gonna
be a playoff atmosphere. I wouldn’t expect to push a goalie to start a fight and
then have a fight myself. But the two points were huge. That’s what we
needed.”
He had appeared to score the game’s first goal on that drive to the net that
resulted in the scrum with Bobrovsky, hooked and tugged by Blue Jackets
defenseman Jack Johnson as he drove in and slipped the puck under the
goalie’s pads and in.
The official, however, ruled there had been “incidental contact” between
Nash and Bobrovsky in the goaltender’s crease on the play – initiated by
Nash – and ruled it “no goal.” The NHL’s rule on incidental contact is that the
play is not reviewable once the on-ice official makes his judgment call live
during play.
The official has the option of counting it a “good goal” if he determines during
the live play that a defender caused the contact between the offensive player
in the goalie. So, in this case, the referee could have ruled Johnson had
caused Nash’s contact with Bobrovsky and that, therefore, the goal would
have stood.
Here, actually, is the NHL’s official phrasing on how that goal could have
counted:
“If an attacking player has been pushed, shoved, or fouled by a defending
player so as to cause him to come into contact with the goalkeeper, such
contact will not be deemed contact initiated by the attacking player for
purposes of this rule, provided the attacking player has made a reasonable
effort to avoid such contact.
However, once he ruled the goal did not count due to “incidental contact” on
the live play, the NHL’s Toronto review booth did not have the authority to
review or, therefore, overturn the call.
That just made for an even more intense game, which ramped up in emotion
even before the puck dropped, according to Nash.
“When did the emotion ramp up? Probably when we landed on Wednesday
in Columbus,” Nash said with a giddy smile. “It was a great game. It was a lot
of fun. But I’m definitely glad it’s over.”
Nash was booed when he first touched the puck. He received a standing
ovation during an early first-period video tribute. Then he was booed the rest
of the night, and much more loudly and frequently after hitting Bobrovsky.
He heard all of it, but he didn’t take it personally – not after the game,
anyway.
“I was booed right from when I grabbed the puck, but I still love the Columbus
fans,” Nash said. “I stay true to what I say. I appreciate that, because they’re
passionate. They love their hockey. I wouldn’t expect anything else. They
gave me my standing ovation and the video. That means a lot. I’m thankful
for that. And they love their Blue Jackets. We had talked about it might be half
boos, half cheers. I think it was 90% boos, But we got the points. That’s what
matters.”
739195
New York Rangers
Playoff-hungry NY Rangers blank Devils
Pat Leonard
Henrik Lundqvist knelt in his crease with his arms raised at the Rock
Saturday night, celebrating both a 2-0 win over the Devils and his
franchise-record 50th career shutout.
His triumphant pose represented more than that, though. It showed the
playoff-hungry Rangers were feeding off the emotion of Friday’s win in
Columbus rather than being drained from it, willing themselves to a third
straight victory behind former All-Star defenseman Marc Staal, who said after
logging 45 dominant minutes across two nights that he felt “fresh.”
“Every point could be the difference right now,” Lundqvist (21 saves, one
assist) said of the tight Eastern Conference playoff race, where the Rangers
(82 points), third in the Metropolitan Division and sixth in the East, have 10
games to clinch a berth. “It’s gonna be until the end here, until the last game,
so a lot of it is going to be about how we push each other and approach every
game as a must-win.”
Rangers celebrate Rick Nash’s second-period goal as they top Devils.
Howard Simmons/New York Daily News Rangers celebrate Rick Nash’s
second-period goal as they top Devils.
Lundqvist has been the constant pushing his teammates recently, including
on Tuesday when he got frustrated with lazy third-period defensive play
during an 8-4 rout of the Senators. Saturday night against the Devils, the
Blueshirts’ blue line redeemed itself and set the tone from the start by limiting
New Jersey to five first-period shots.
“I’ve been in this situation enough times with the Rangers that you’ve just got
to keep winning,” said Staal, who was a punishing presence in the corners. “It
seems like you could win five in a row and all of a sudden lose one and you
might be on the outside looking in. So your focus has to be to win every
game.”
Rick Nash, Friday’s catalyst in Columbus, once again took center stage by
scoring Saturday’s game-winner 10:33 into the second period. He caught
Martin Brodeur (25 saves) by surprise with a left-wing wrist shot after Derek
Stepan’s pass through the slot had skidded through a screen by Chris
Kreider (assist).
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Then Stepan sealed the game with 7.8 seconds remaining on, of all things,
an empty-net power play goal, the Rangers’ first tally on the man advantage
in five games (1-for-17). There was hope for the anemic power play, though,
as deadline acquisition Raphael Diaz brought smart passing and a
right-handed shot to the mix in his debut replacing John Moore (concussion
symptoms).
Still, Lundqvist owned the moment, even in a game in which he didn’t face
frequent shots. He eclipsed Ed Giacomin’s record with his parents in the
stands, having flown in from Sweden. That included denying Jaromir Jagr on
a highlight-reel first period breakaway sequence and stopping Travis Zajac
during a frantic scramble at the Blueshirts’ net with 38.9 seconds to play.
“It’s sometimes easier to focus on the right things when the game is more
important, because you don’t allow yourself to think about the end result,”
Lundqvist said. “You think about the process, and how you get there.”
739196
New York Rangers
Despite reports, Sather says no retirement on tap
Larry Brooks
March 22, 2014 | 12:36pm
It happens every spring. There’s a story from somewhere (or maybe from
nowhere) that this is going to be it for Glen Sather, the Lion of Winter who has
been an NHL general manager since 1980. That this is going to be the year
Sather is going to step down, or take a step back and smell the roses.
There were whispers reported earlier this week from a credible news outlet in
Edmonton that this indeed would be that year, just as there were reports last
season out of Boston that Sather would relinquish his day-to-day duties as
Rangers GM while retaining his post as club president.
It is beginning to look like Daniel Alfredsson’s defection to Detroit has had a
similar impact on the Senators as Mark Messier’s escape to Vancouver had
on the Rangers in 1997, leaving a club behind and adrift without its leader.
The Senators are the league’s most disappointing team. The toughness,
edge and swagger that complemented the club’s talent are gone. Ottawa has
become just another easy team to play against — almost a welcome respite
for an opponent.
By the way, one year remains on the contracts of both Jason Spezza and
Bobby Ryan in advance of 2016 unrestricted free agency.
You knew the moment it happened that the Rangers were going to miss
Brandon Prust, just as you knew they did the right thing by declining to match
Montreal’s four-year, $10M free agent offer, and now two years later, you
know you were correct on both counts.
Of course, it is true that Mike Richter, who won 301 games for the Rangers,
did not have the advantage of the shootout Henrik Lundqvist has had in
recording the 302 victories (and counting) that has put him atop the franchise
leader-board.
Someday, the story will be true. But not this time. Not, at least, according to
an individual who ought to know.
But Ed Giacomin, who won 266 games for the Blueshirts, did not have the
advantage of overtime back in his day when, and you had to be there, chants
of “Eddie … Eddie … Eddie” rocked the house like none before or since.
“Everybody retires sometime, but I’m not intending to step away or retire from
anything this year,” Sather told Slap Shots on Friday in Columbus, Ohio. “I
don’t know how stories like this keep coming up, because I haven’t said
anything to anybody about retiring. … One day, yes. But not now.”
So how many more victories would Giacomin have posted? How many more
for Richter, who was as good in one-on-ones as anybody who ever played
the game (and just ask Pavel Bure)?
For better or worse — and some teams have done much better and others
have done much worse since Sather took control of the Rangers’ operation in
June 2000 — there is no chief executive in sports operating with greater job
security. Garden owner James Dolan makes that clear every time he gets the
chance.
So Sather is one of those fortunate individuals in life who will get to go out on
his own terms. And though he may be 70 and one year removed from
successful prostate cancer surgery, Sather is not about to end his term as
GM.
“There comes a time where you do think about your lifestyle and maybe
some of the things you might do if you weren’t doing this job,” he said. “But
that’s not where my thoughts are now. I’m working to build this team into a
Stanley Cup winner. That’s my priority. That’s what I’m focused on. … I’m not
thinking about stepping back, or a change in my title or in my responsibilities.”
There isn’t a more charming rascal in the game than Sather, who is doing it
his way in a hockey world that barely is recognizable from when he took
command of the Oilers’ front office 34 years ago … and counting.
Because, said this Lion of Winter, this winter won’t be his last running the
Rangers.
Sources report Candy Canes’ owner Peter Karmanos Jr., is expected to
order a tightening of the belt in Carolina next season following this season in
which his team — middle of the pack in payroll — will miss the playoffs for the
fifth straight season and seventh time in eight years since winning the Cup in
2006.
Kirk Muller’s fate behind the bench is unknown. Gentleman GM Jim
Rutherford may not be back after 20 years of running the show for the
Harford/ Carolina franchise.
Carolina will look to deal Cam Ward, though with the surfeit of goaltenders on
the market, one wonders what team will go in on a chronically injured
30-year-old with two seasons at $6.3 million per remaining on his contract.
Oh, and Ward has a no-trade, so though he certainly will be amenable to a
deal after having been supplanted as No. 1 by Anton Khudobin, he will hold
veto power regarding a destination.
Eric Staal has a no-trade and so does Jordan Staal, and really, if budget is
going to be a concern, how viable or attractive a destination will the
Hurricanes appear to Marc Staal when he ponders the possibility of 2015 free
agency?
Beyond that, with Eric currently due to hit free agency in 2016 following the
expiration of a contract under which he earns $8.25M per, it might be time to
ponder the scenario under which the elder Staal brother comes to Manhattan
rather than the younger going to Raleigh.
Where oh where, is Ford Frick with his asterisk when you need him?
739197
New York Rangers
Rangers edge Devils for third-straight win
Brett Cyrgalis
March 22, 2014 | 10:33pm
Rangers can't dwell on Nash's homecoming amid playoff battle
It felt like a playoff game, and that’s because it basically was.
There were two desperate teams at Prudential Center on Saturday night,
both led by bold-named goaltenders, both of them garnering love and hate
from the split crowd throughout.
And in the end it was Henrik Lundqvist outdueling Martin Brodeur, yet again,
leading the Rangers to a 2-0 win.
“Hank’s the guy and points are hard to come by,” coach Alain Vigneault said
before Lundqvist recorded career shutout No. 50, passing Eddie Giacomin
and taking over atop the last remaining meaningful franchise goaltending
record. “If we’re going to get in — everybody is winning right now — if we’re
going to get in, it’s because Hank plays like Hank.”
All Lundqvist needed was a strange sharp-angle goal from Rick Nash
midway through the second period, and he did the rest carrying his team to
their third in a row and their fourth in the past five. Even as the Devils hacked
away, with Travis Zajac and Jaromir Jagr getting chances in the waning
seconds and Brodeur out of the New Jersey net, Lundqvist shut them down.
Derek Stepan finished things off with an empty-netter with 7.8 seconds
remaining.
The Rangers (39-29-4) were coming off a rousing 3-1 win in Columbus on
Friday night, a game that allowed them to leapfrog the Blue Jackets and into
second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils (30-28-13) had
squeaked a 4-3 overtime win over the visiting Wild on Thursday night,
keeping their scant playoff hopes alive, still six points back of the final
wild-card playoff spot before the game began.
The Rangers took a quick hold of the game 10:33 into the second period
when they came flying down the ice on a rush, the puck going from Derek
Stepan on the right wing towards the crease, where Chris Kreider was
crashing the net. He bumped Brodeur on his way passed, and the puck found
it’s way to the far hash mark, where Rick Nash didn’t hesitate in firing one
back on net, beating the unsuspecting Broduer for a 1-0 lead. Although the
Devils had some chances, that’s the way the period ended, them finishing the
first 40 minutes without a goal and 11 shots on net.
The first 20 minutes were rife with physicality and action presumed for these
rivalry games, and both goaltenders did all they could in keeping in a
scoreless opening frame. First it was Lundqvist’s turn on stage, making a
jaw-dropping stop on a Jagr breakaway halfway through, stretching his right
pad out in a show of terrific athleticism. Nearing the end of the period,
Brodeur answered with two big-time saves on Marc Staal, both of them done
with his goalie stick held upside after it had been knocked out of his hand.
Of course, these two New York-area netminders already have a storied
history, which includes the Eastern Conference finals from two seasons ago,
the series that Brodeur and the Devils won in six games before going on to
lose to the Kings in the Stanley Cup finals. Over 40 regular-season
head-to-head matchups, Lundqvist has the edge with a 25-9-6 record, a 1.78
goals-against average, a .928 save percentage and five shutouts.
739198
New York Rangers
Carter: “Good chance” he’ll play vs. Rangers; Brodeur hoping Devils’ fans
boo Clarkson, too
Staff Writer
Left wing Ryan Carter said he felt “pretty good” after participating in the
Devils’ small-group practice this afternoon at Prudential Center.
Carter has missed the last three games with an upper-body injury he
sustained in last Friday’s 5-3 loss in Florida. He tried to give it a go in
pre-game warm-ups the next night in Tampa Bay, but could not play.
played Adam Henrique 22 minutes-plus last night. That’s great when he’s
fresh. If you do that again tomorrow night, what are you going to have left on
Sunday.
“So, that’s the decisions we have to wrestle with every day.”
With the team desperate for wins, the first inclination might be to think only
short term and do what is necessary as far as player ice time to win that
game that particular night. DeBoer said some advance consideration has to
be given, though, to the next game.
“The priority, obviously, is to win tomorrow night,” DeBoer said. “But, what
you’re weighing is, is it that much of an advantage to dress 7 D to wear down
your forwards to maybe not give you the opportunity to win the next night?
We’re not looking much past getting a win tomorrow night, but you have to
put some thought into the decisions you’re making.”
***
“I aggravated an old injury and it needed a couple days to calm down,” Carter
said.
DeBoer said he was unaware that Thursday’s win was his 200th as an NHL
head coach (103-107-36 with Florida and 97-74-29 with the Devils).
Carter said he underwent an MRI, which “showed nothing major, which was
good news.”
“Someone told me that after the game and I think 199 of them have been
one-goal games,” he said, laughing. “Let’s put it this way – they haven’t been
200 easy ones, I can tell you that.”
Carter sounded hopeful that he can play in Saturday night’s game against the
Rangers at The Rock.
“I’d like to,” he said. “I think there’s a good chance. Barring no setbacks, I
can’t see a reason why I can’t.”
***
Zach Parise made his return to Prudential Center Thursday night for the first
time since leaving the Devils to sign with Minnesota as an unrestricted free
agent. On Sunday night, it will be David Clarkson’s turn when the Maple
Leafs visit The Rock for the first (and only) time this season.
Clarkson left the Devils to sign a seven-year, $36.75 million contract with
Toronto as an unrestricted free agent last summer. Like Parise, Clarkson
signed with his hometown NHL team.
Parise was booed every time he touched the puck Thursday night.
Goaltender Martin Brodeur would like to see his good friend, Clarkson,
receive similar treatment.
“I hope so. Get him rattled a little bit,” Brodeur said. “It will be interesting to
see. That’s another guy that was really a favorite here. It’s another guy that
went home. So, a pretty similar situation. So, we’ll see. I think Zach would
have been a bigger effect on the direction of our hockey club compared to
Clarkie, maybe.
“I don’t know if that’s the case, but I hope they’re all over him a little bit.”
Brodeur will start Saturday’s game against the Rangers, so it would appear
he will not face Clarkson again. Cory Schneider played in both games the
Devils played in Toronto earlier this season (both shootout losses).
Brodeur has yet to play on back-to-back days this season, but, when I asked
him today about not facing Clarkson again, he didn’t say definitively that he
won’t play Sunday.
“We’ll see,” Brodeur said. “We’ll see.”
Brodeur also mentioned to me Friday that there was an “outside chance” he’d
play against the Maple Leafs (before I knew he was starting against the
Rangers), so, perhaps, it is possible that he could start again Sunday if he
played really well Saturday.
***
After Thursday’s 4-3 overtime win over the Wild, the Devils are 5-1-0 in
games in which they dress seven defensemen. DeBoer is still reluctant go
with seven defensemen consistently, though, particularly when the team is
playing back-to-back games—as it does this weekend.
With Tim Sestito having to leave Thursday’s game in the first period after
being elbowed in the head by Wild defenseman Nate Prosser, the Devils had
to play the rest of the game with only 10 forwards. In the overtime game, that
meant some heavy ice time for some of the forwards such as Adam Henrique
(22:18), Travis Zajac (21:41), Jaromir Jagr (21:00) and Patrik Elias (20:51).
“We won again last night with a fresh group with seven D,” DeBoer said. “I
think it depends on the circumstances. We’re playing three games in four
nights here. There’s going to be a toll on your forwards at some point. We
DeBoer’s 97 wins with the Devils tie him for third in team history with Brent
Sutter, behind Jacques Lemaire’s 276 and Doug Carpenter’s 100.
***
There were be no supplemental discipline for Prosser for his elbow to
Sestito’s head. Prosser received a five-minute major and a game misconduct
on the play.
If you’re interested, here’s a previously-released video from the NHL’s
Department of Player Safety explaining the rules/penalties concerning
defensive contact to the head. It applies to this particular incident because
Sestito was moving in to hit Prosser, who got his elbow up and made contact
with Sestito’s head.
739199
New York Rangers
Diaz in for concussed John Moore, Carcillo in for Dorsett but Rangers lineup
still not set
Staff Writer
First, the news that’s been expected ever since John Moore could not return
to Friday night’s 3-1 win at Columbus after having his head knocked into the
boards in the first period by Blake Comeau: the defenseman is out with
concussion symptoms.
So Raphael Diaz will make his Rangers’ debut 17 days after being acquired
from the Canucks for a fifth-round pick at the trade deadline.
Meanwhile, Dan Carcillo goes back in the lineup for Derek Dorsett, who
played an effective 10:49 against the Blue Jackets - just his fourth game in an
11-game span since returning from a broken left fibula - but who came down
with a stomach virus this afternoon.
Also, two unnamed Rangers, per coach Alain Vigneault, are questionable
with “bumps and bruises, boo-boos we like to call them in French,” that will be
tested during the warmups.
Vigneault said John Moore will be “evaluated on a daily basis.” Diaz will be on
the third pair with Kevin Klein. Both Diaz and Klein shoot right-handed so
Diaz will play on the left side for the first time.
As for the expectations for Diaz, who has a goal and 12 assists in 52 games
with the Canucks and Canadiens, “He’s been playing in the league for a
couple of years, the information that we’ve got from Montreal and from
Vancouver was that he’s a safe, effective defenseman that can make a first
pass and help out on the power play. I’m not sure I should say unfortunately
for him but he’s going to play the left side, a side for him that he’s never
played before. We need to find out if he can play that position so that’s where
he’ll replace Johnny today and we’ll see how he does. As a player though,
players have to be versatile, you have to be able to play more than one
position and hopefully he can and we’ll find out tonight.
“I think with a skilled defenseman, one side or the other isn’t an issue,”
Vigneault added. “The best example I could give you is Mac (Ryan
McDonagh) during the Olympics. He’s played the left side, we were looking
for a right-handed D and all of a sudden we turn on the screen on the
Olympics and he’s playing the right side. A skilled player can play both sides
and Diaz is supposed to be a skilled player and we’ll see what he can do
tonight.”
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New York Rangers
Diaz expected in for injured Moore tonight
Staff Writer
There will be no official word from the Rangers until coach Alain Vigneault
addresses the media later this afternoon prior to tonight’s game against the
Devils at Prudential Center, but offensive-minded defenseman Raphael Diaz
is expected to/will make his Rangers’ debut for John Moore.
The Devils certainly believe Diaz is in the lineup. So does Diaz.
Actually, after the sequence in Friday night’s 3-1 win at Columbus, it would
be a shocker if Moore was able to play on the third pair. He was plastered into
the boards, appearing to hit his head, by the Blue Jackets’ Blake Comeau,
struggled to his skates and struggled to the bench. He went to the Rangers’
room briefly, returned to the Rangers’ bench but did not play the rest of the
first period.
Moore did play six shifts in the second period before - according to Vigneault
- trainer Jim Ramsay made the decision to hold Moore out of the third period.
Vigneault did say Moore would be re-evaluated today and, while not
specifying the injury, mentioned shoulder as a possible body part. Moore was
seen walking through the Rangers’ room after the game but the way he hit
the boards, it’s easy to wonder whether this might be a head injury.
Diaz, 28, has one goal and 12 assists in 52 games for the Canadiens and
Canucks. The Rangers acquired Diaz from Vancouver for a fifth-round pick at
the trade deadline on March 5.
Despite his penchant for joining the rush, Diaz does have 107 blocked shots
this season.
Diaz skated with Marc Staal at practice at Columbus on Thursday so it
wouldn’t be surprising to see those two paired to begin tonight’s game.
For the Devils, Martin Brodeur will be in net, giving everybody (almost most
certainly) one last chance to see a Brodeur-Henrik Lundqvist matchup.
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New York Rangers
“It was my first game, my first game on the power play,” Diaz said. “The guys
helped me right away before the game. Martin (St. Louis) came to me and
talked to me how we’re going to play. It helps you a lot to know what to expect
Rangers 2, Devils 0: Wrapping up
“I tried to find right away the rhythm, my first shift, try to go on the attack as
well, move your legs,” Diaz added.
Andrew Gross
“Klein asked me which side I want to play,” Diaz said. “I say I always play the
right side but it doesn’t matter. He can choose the side. He was really nice.
He said, ‘Go ahead you play on right and I play on the left.”
The word of the game was grinding. Or milestone. As in, Henrik Lundqvist
sets a franchise record for the second time in three games, this time the team
mark for regular-season shutouts with his 50th, snapping a tie with Hall of
Famer Eddie Giacomin.
Vigneault said he “liked” Diaz’s first game with the Rangers. He also liked
having three right-handed shots on the power play in Diaz, Girardi and
Stepan.
He’s already passed Mike Richter for the franchise record for regular-season
wins. Tonight’s victory came him 304.
Here’s the game story from The Record.
The Rangers gave a gritty defensive effort and came away with a critical
(there’s that word again) 2-0 win over the Devils to bolster their playoff
chances while all but squashing the last iota of hope the Devils might have
had.
In short, this is the type of game the Rangers will have to play over their 10
remaining regular season games and, if successful through that, in the
postseason.
“It was definitely a grinding type game from both teams, there wasn’t a lot of
room,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “The first period our goaltender made two
key saves: (Jaromir) Jagr on the breakaway and (Travis) Zajac down the
middle. He made to big saves. what we did was kept grinding away, found a
way to score a big goal in the second period.”
That would be Rick Nash’s shot over Marty Brodeur’s glove from the left wall
at 10:33 of the second period.
Nash had four shots, tying for a game high with Jagr and Derek Stepan.
But Nash did not rank tonight’s game as high in terms of his performance as
Friday night’s 3-1 win at Columbus, in which he didn’t score but was
hyper-engaged physically, including a fight with Matt Calvert and retaliating
against goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for The Bob not playing nicely with Nash’s
stick.
“Last night I had a good night, tonight was a little shaky,” Nash said. “I had a
couple of turnovers. The first period we got away with a lucky one. We’ve got
to be more ready and now all these games are playoff style. It was a good
defensive effort. They had some good looks but all credit to Hank, he was
really good again. He made some huge saves when we needed to. He
deserved the shutout. It’s a great feeling. We had a real emotional game
last night. Another one tonight. The best part is the fans. I love scoring on the
road and hearing cheers.”
The Devils had a potential equalizer waved off with 38.9 seconds remaining
in overtime with Jaromir Jagr crashing the crease. A video review upheld the
no-goal call.
The Rangers are off on Sunday before hosting the Coyotes.
Lastly, from the Rangers:
- Tonight’s contest concluded the final back-to-back set on the Rangers’
regular season schedule. New York posted a combined record of 15-10-1 in
back-to-back games this season, including a 9-4-0 (6-1-0 on the road) mark
in the second game of the set. Henrik Lundqvist has started on consecutive
days 69 times in his career, posting a record of 42-20-7 with a 2.09 goals
against average, .929 save percentage, and seven shutouts in the second
game.
- The Blueshirts’ penalty kill was 1-1 (2:00) in the contest, and is now 26-27
(96.3%) with four shorthanded goals in the last 10 games.
- Henrik Lundqvist posted his fifth shutout of the season with a 21-save
effort and added a power play assist, improving to 28-22-4 overall with a
16-9-0 mark on the road this season. The shutout was the 50th of his career,
moving him past Eddie Giacomin into first place on the Rangers’ all-time
regular season shutouts list. Lundqvist has held opponents to two goals or
less in 16 of his last 23 games (16-6-1, 1.96 GAA, .935 Sv%, 3 SO), and is
6-2-0 with a 1.63 GAA, .945 Sv%, and two shutouts in his last eight contests.
The Rangers’ franchise leader in wins and shutouts passed Olaf Kolzig into
sole possession of 25th on the NHL all-time wins list with 304 career
victories, and is tied with Chris Osgood for 26th on the NHL all-time shutouts
list. The assist was Lundqvist’s fourth of the season, which ties his
career-high for a single-season and moves him into a tie for first place among
NHL goaltenders in assists this season.
- Lundqvist has faced-off against Martin Brodeur in 41 career regular
season games, posting a record of 26-9-6 with a 1.74 GAA, .930 Sv% and six
shutouts in those contests, and is 25-11-3 with a 2.03 GAA, .923 Sv% and
eight shutouts in 39 games against the Devils since 2007-08.
- Derek Stepan registered two points, including a power play, empty net
goal and an assist, to extend his goal/point streak to three games (three
goals, one assist). He has recorded a point in 11 of the last 13 games,
registering 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) over the span. His power play
goal in the closing seconds of regulation was his 50th point of the season,
marking the second time in his career Stepan has reached the 50-point mark.
His second-period assist also marked a new career-high for assists in a
season (35). Stepan now leads the team with 35 assists and 50 points this
season.
Lundqvist also described his stretching save on Jagr’s first-period
breakaway.
- Rick Nash notched the game’s opening goal at 10:33 of the second
period, and registered four shots in 17:54 of ice time. He has tallied three
goals in the last three games, and leads the team with 23 goals this season.
The goal was also his eighth game-winning goal of the season, which marks
a single-season career-high.
“He has such a long reach,” Lundqvist said. “When he went right, I tried to go
with him with my pad. When he went back, I tried to stretch as much as I
could.”
- Chris Kreider tallied an assist and logged 9:53 of ice time. The assist was
his 20th of the season, and he has now recorded two assists in the last three
games.
The Rangers’ defensive effort was impressive considering there was a new
cog in the machine, with Raphael Diaz making his Rangers’ debut with John
Moore suffering concussion symptoms following Friday’s game at Columbus
thanks to Blake Comeau’s first-period check.
- Ryan McDonagh registered a power play assist to extend his point streak
to three games (one goal, two assists), and was credited with two shots and
three hits in a game-high, 25:08 of ice time. He has recorded nine points (four
goals, five assists) in the last 11 games, and has logged 25:00+ of ice time in
each of the last six games. McDonagh is now one point shy of 100 career
NHL points.
“I knew where it was, on my left side,” Lundqvist said. “They were just
hacking and whacking and you never know where it’s going to end up.”
Diaz, acquired from the Canucks for a fifth-round pick at the March 5 trade
deadline, made his Rangers’ debut paired with Kevin Klein.
Diaz blocked two shots and took one in 16:20, including 4:06 on the power
play.
Both Klein and Diaz are right-handed shots and despite Vigneault’s plan to
play Diaz on the left side for the first time in his career, Klein approached him
before the game and said he would take the off-side.
- Raphael Diaz was credited with two blocked shots and logged 16:20 of ice
time while making his Rangers debut. He was acquired by the Rangers from
Vancouver on Mar. 5 in exchange for a fifth round pick in the 2015 NHL Entry
Draft. Diaz became the tenth player to make his Rangers debut this season,
joining Benoit Pouliot, Jesper Fast, Justin Falk, Cam Talbot, Dylan McIlrath,
Conor Allen, Dan Carcillo, Kevin Klein, and Martin St. Louis.
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New York Rangers
Controlling rebounds, pressuring puck carriers work wonders in postseason
With 10 games to go, a look back. In the previous six seasons, the Rangers
have averaged 13.3 points in the final 10 regular-season games. In all but
2009-10, they made the playoffs.
2012-13 7-3 14 points(2 OT wins, 1 SO win)
2011-12 6-4 12 points(1 OT win, 1 SO win)
March 22, 2014 11:18 PM
2010-11 6-3-1 13 points(1 SO loss, 1 SO win)
STEVE ZIPAY
2009-10 7-1-2 16 points(1 SO win, 1 SO loss, 1 OT loss)
2008-09 5-4-1 11 points (1 SO loss)
In the spirit of all the March hoopla, one way to scan the Rangers defensive
landscape as they head down the stretch is to recall Pat Riley's mantra: "No
rebounds . . . no rings."
2007-08 5-1-4 14 points(3 SO losses, 1 SO win, 1 OT loss)
In other words: battle.
You haven't read much about the Hartford Wolf Pack in this space lately, but
the news is: They're not making the AHL playoffs. After 61 games, they are
14 points out of the final spot. J.T. Miller (35 points in 33 games) likely will be
added to the Rangers roster at the end of the season.
Not that the Blueshirts have reverted to the bruising, block-shots-or-sit orders
of former coach John Tortorella.
But the concept sketched out by assistant coach Ulf Samuelsson of
attempting to double-team puck carriers in the zone and clearing pucks out of
danger with quick sticks and shorter passes has taken hold.
If executed consistently, it can provide a path to advancing in the postseason
in the changing NHL, although the Rangers appear to be a little shy of a
contender's depth and size on the blueline.
Henrik Lundqvist, of course, and his backup, Cam Talbot, have to be first in
line in controlling shots. On Friday in Columbus, for instance, after Lundqvist
kicked numerous attempts out of danger, he said: "It felt like they were on top
of me on almost every shot; you have to work hard to fight through screens,"
he said, "and the rebounds are huge. You have to make sure you put them in
the right place."
To be sure, there have been speed bumps. Earlier in the week in Ottawa,
some Blueshirts were lost in the ozone, and the Senators scored four goals.
"We wanted to tighten things up defensively," Rick Nash said after Friday's
grinding 3-1 victory in Columbus. "We knew they were the type of team that
gets all their offense from the middle."
This is not to insinuate that the Grade-A shutdown pair of Dan Girardi and
Ryan McDonagh, both signed to long-term deals, haven't played physically
or blocked shots. As of Saturday, Girardi had 156 blocks, McDonagh 120.
Girardi also was in the top 10 in the NHL in hits with 170.
Beyond that, Marc Staal, who will be in the final year of his contract next
season, has rebounded from his eye injury and hopes to have a Girardi-like
extension hammered out this summer. And although he has been solid
defensively and had two assists in the key win over Columbus, Anton
Stralman's numbers have slipped. Stralman, an unrestricted free agent, said
there haven't been any substantive talks about a new contract.
Kevin Klein started slowly on the third defense pair, but the trade with
Nashville on Jan. 22 has been a plus for the Rangers. Michael Del Zotto
hasn't scored a goal in 19 games with the Predators and was a healthy
scratch last week.
The certainties end there. Both general manager Glen Sather and assistant
general manager Jim Schoenfeld have long maintained that entering the
playoffs, a team needs to have eight defensemen ready.
Should John Moore, who left the Columbus game with an upper body injury,
be unable to return to form, the options are skilled but slight Raphael Diaz,
who was acquired at the trade deadline from Vancouver, and Justin Falk,
who has played 20 games, but none in 2014.
Down in the minors, the only defenseman who would seem to fit into the
puck-moving system is 6-2, 210-pound Conor Allen (5-21-26 in 60 AHL
games).
So the question is: Is a faster pace and smart puck management enough to
fend off heavier attackers and sustained net presence (Example: Boston, a
team in which the road to the Eastern Conference finals likely will go
through)? The Rangers don't have boatloads of size up front, either.
In the end, as the saying goes, defense wins championships. A few goals
from Rick Nash and Martin St. Louis this spring wouldn't hurt, either.
End game
Prospect report
There are bright spots emerging in the lower ranks. With 50 goals and 99
points for the Quebec Remparts, Anthony Duclair, 18, is a finalist for MVP in
the Quebec Major Junior League. Adam Tambellini, another third- round pick
last June, has 17 goals and 39 points in 31 games for the WHL's Calgary
Hitmen.
739203
New York Rangers
Henrik Lundqvist sets Rangers record with 50th shutout in win over Devils
March 23, 2014 1:07 AM
STEVE ZIPAY
NEWARK, N.J. -- After a draining win in Columbus on Friday night, the
Rangers finally beat the Devils indoors this season. A strong defensive effort,
goals by Rick Nash and Derek Stepan, and Henrik Lundqvist's
franchise-record 50th regular-season shutout produced a 2-0 victory
Saturday night at the Prudential Center.
Nash, who played a passionate, driven game but didn't score in the Rangers'
3-1 victory during his homecoming in Ohio on Friday, gave the Rangers a big
goal in the second period Saturday night. Stepan, who assisted on Nash's
game-winner, iced the victory with an empty-netter with 7.8 seconds left.
The Devils had won three of four against the Rangers this season, with the
only loss outdoors at Yankee Stadium.
With his fifth shutout of the season, Lundqvist passed Eddie Giacomin and
earned his 28th victory of the season. He made 21 saves, and two of them in
the first period -- stretching out his right pad on Jaromir Jagr's breakaway and
denying Travis Zajac alone in the slot -- set the tone.
Lundqvist, who had passed Mike Richter for career wins in an 8-4 victory
over Ottawa, was pleased to set both records in the same week "so I don't
have to talk about it anymore," but he cited the need to move forward in the
final 10 games of the season.
It was the fourth straight road victory for the Rangers (39-29-4) -- who lead
the league in road wins with 23 -- and gave them 82 points. But they didn't
gain any ground on the Flyers, who are in second place in the Metro Division
with 83 points, have won five straight and have two games in hand.
"We're still in a position where we're fighting for our lives," said Lundqvist,
whose parents flew in from Sweden to see the game. "We just have to keep
pushing ourselves and have the mind-set that every point could be the
difference right now. It's going to be until the last game. We have to approach
every game like a must-win."
After a scoreless first period, the Rangers had a flurry of chances in the
second. Chris Kreider missed wide on a rush and Martin Brodeur stopped
Mats Zuccarello in the slot on an odd-man rush.
Then the Rangers broke through. Stepan's wide pass curled around to the
left side, where Nash shot high with Brodeur down after Kreider bumped him
cutting across the crease. The goal, at 10:33, was his 23rd of the season.
The Devils almost tied the score early in the third on a wraparound by Andy
Greene, but Lundqvist got a piece of the puck with his left skate.
The last opportunity for the Devils came with 38.9 seconds to go. Lundqvist
was on his back on the goal line, but the puck was under his pad in the
crease, as a video review confirmed.
"It was definitely a grinding-type game," coach Alain Vigneault said. "Our
blue line was very good.''
It was Lundqvist's third game in four nights, but Vigneault appears content to
ride the hot hand next week. "Hank's the guy. Points are hard to come by,"
Vigneault said before the game. "Cam [Talbot] has played real well for us, but
everybody's winning right now. If we're going to get in, it's because Hank
plays like he has."
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New York Rangers
Raphael Diaz fills in for John Moore, out with concussion symptoms
March 23, 2014 1:22 AM
STEVE ZIPAY
NEWARK, N.J. - The Rangers' defense is a little thinner with John Moore
sidelined by concussion symptoms, but for one night at least, Raphael Diaz
filled the hole.
In his Rangers debut, Diaz, 28 -- acquired from Vancouver at the trade
deadline for a fifth-round draft pick -- played 16:20 with one shot on goal and
two blocked shots, was a plus-1 and added a new twist to the power play in
4:06.
Diaz, who like third-pair partner Kevin Klein, is righthanded, said Klein told
him to stick to the right side to feel more comfortable and that he would
switch.
"Give [Klein] a lot of credit," coach Alain Vigneault said. "I liked what they did
and I liked what we saw on the power play. Having three righthanded shots
gave us a different look. We had some pretty good opportunities in the third
period."
The power play went 1-for-3 -- Derek Stepan's empty-net goal with 7.8
seconds left -- but has only three goals in the last nine games, so Diaz, who
has five goals and 38 assists in 135 NHL games, likely will have another
opportunity Monday night against the Coyotes at home. He is the 10th player
to make his Rangers debut this season.
Moore, who had played in 69 games and recently was on the point of the
second unit of the power play, was injured on a hit by former Islander Blake
Comeau in the first period in Columbus on Friday. He played one shift in the
second period but was kept off the ice in the third. "He'll be evaluated on a
day-to-day basis," Vigneault said.
Blue notes
Henrik Lundqvist was credited with his fourth assist on Stepan's
empty-netter. Chris Kreider, on Rick Nash's goal, and Ryan McDonagh, on
Stepan's, also had assists . . . Fourth-liner Derek Dorsett was out with
stomach flu and was replaced by Dan Carcillo . . . Ryan Haggerty and Justin
Falk took warm-ups for two players with minor ailments -- whom Vigneault
did not name -- then were healthy scratches.
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New York Rangers
Rangers-Devils in review
Staff Writer
Before we start on last night’s game, I wrote a column about a relationship
Ryan McDonagh has forged with a local kid and former high school hockey
player, Gino Mangiafridda of Pelham, who was paralyzed in a motorcycle
accident.
Click here to see it.
Thoughts:
1) I honestly would not have been surprised if the Rangers failed to follow up
that gritty game in Columbus with another. But they did. Granted, the Devils
weren’t as physical as Columbus was on Friday, but that’s a big team and
there were certainly enough skirmishes and confrontations, and the Rangers,
again answered the bell … which has kinda been out of character for this
roster. So high marks.
New York Rangers v New Jersey Devils2) Henrik Lundqvist. Gotta ride him
now. There’s too much at stake, and again, there’s no reason in the world to
not trust Cam Talbot, but Lundqvist is their guy, and throughout his career he
has thrived down the homestretch playing game after game after game. His
shots-faced total wasn’t particularly high, but he made several spectacular
saves, especially in the first period, on Jaromir Jagr’s breakaway, Dainius
Zubrus alone in the slot and Travis Zajac, who went around Martin St. Louis
and Dan Girardi.
3) And while plenty of people had plenty to say about his breaking Mike
Richter’s wins record, about Richter having all those ties that Lundqvist never
had because of the stupid gimmick they sometimes hold after hockey games
end, well, then the one he set last night—50 shutouts, one more than Eddie
Giacomin’s long-standing franchise record—is as legit as they get. Doesn’t
matter. By the time he’s done he will have lapped everybody.
space for himself in front. Laughable stuff. His linemates were a mixed bag.
Derek Stepan played a really strong game, I thought, before the
empty-netter. Chris Kreider had some rugged shifts, and his driving to the net
caused the Nash goal (and was going to draw a penalty before Nash scored),
but his shifts were limited. Maybe because he doesn’t play special teams or
4-on-4, or sometimes late in a one-goal game. I don’t know.
9) Martin St. Louis. Still without a goal. Even missed the empty net at the end.
I think his teammates need to seriously stop trying to force passes to him and
just play. I still say that, with 10 games left, if he has a little spurt of offense,
it’s going to be a major contribution. Couldn’t ask for a better time than now
on a team that still has trouble scoring most nights.
10) With John Moore out, possibly for a lenghty spell, you’d have to guess
that Diaz is going to get a good look. I didn’t mind his game at all, especially
on the power play. But you don’t make long-term judgements based on one
game, or a few. I did think that, especially early on, Kevin Klein looked
uncomfortable, to say the least, moving over to the left. But Klein has played
well lately. So we’ll watch that.
11) I wonder why Alain Vigneault would even bring up the fact that two
unnamed guys were injured even though both ended up playing after testing
it in warmups … except that he was asked about lineup changes and maybe
he’s too honest a guy to get caught in what could be construed as a fib. I
applaud him for that.
12) It’s ironic that Jagr, in his prime, would rather shave his head with a
cheese grater while chewing on aluminum foil than play in that kind of
system. And now here he is, honestly, playing better than he’s played since
his 50-goal season, and maybe one of his top two or three seasons since he
was in Pittsburgh. And still guys try to poke check him. So foolish.
13) Amazing, too, that the two teams that had the most success
pre-lockout(s)—Detroit and New Jersey—still get away with all that
calf-roping.
Games that matter today:
Columbus at Islanders (1 p.m.), Toronto at Devils (7), Minnesota at Detroit
(7:30).
*************************************
4) The Rangers are defending again. They defended against Detroit on that
Sunday afternoon. They stunk up the entire joint, if not the East Coast, in the
game at Carolina. They had two breakdowns in the loss in Minny, a solid win
in Winnipeg, a loss to San Jose that might have been their best game this
month, that silly, ugly no-defense win in Ottawa, and now back-to-back
beauties. So, really, it’s more than a little three-game winning streak. It’s not
what Boston and Philly are doing, but it’s going to be plenty good enough if
they keep it up the last 10. Nearly halfway through the game, the Devils had
six shots on goal.
My Three Rangers Stars:
New York Rangers v New Jersey Devils5) I didn’t get why, though, some
Rangers, especially on the power play, kept on trying to skate through the
Devils at the blue line, as if they’d never ever played against the Devils
before, ever, or weren’t aware of the way the Devils play. I thought their first
power play stunk, didn’t move at all, like a Mike Sullivan Special. And forget
about faceoffs to open power plays. Puck goes right out. On the power play
early in the third, with Raphael Diaz on the point, I thought they had much
better movement and some good looks. Ironically, Derek Stepan’s
empty-netter counts as a power-play goal, their first in nine games.
1. Henrik Lundqvist.
6) Brad Richards looks like he needs a maintenance week. Or two. Or month.
Looks just like the end of last season. I know, he had some chances to score
goals, and he can still shoot it. But that’s all he’s giving now. He’s slow again,
doesn’t do much at all in the defensive end, and since the power play has
dried up, well, that was kind of his saving grace the first three quarters of the
season. Seriously, maybe a rest would be beneficial at this point. Just to see
if it helps.
7) Again, this game wasn’t nearly as nasty as the night before, but it was a
game for big boy pants again. Benoit Pouliot took a run at Jon Merrill, Ryan
McDonagh exchanged slashes with Steve Bernier, Daniel Carcillo and Brian
Boyle were in a fracas, Mats Zuccarello took one and gave one to Martin
Brodeur (who embellished, of course). Better late than never.
New York Rangers v New Jersey Devils8) Daily Nash-O-Meter. Hey, he was
not as dynamic as he had been Friday, but he was still better than he’d been
before Columbus. Even made some defensive-zone plays. Got slew-footed
by Bernier, very dangerous play. No call, of course. And when Nash did draw
a penalty go Andy Greene, the Devils cried that he took a dive. They did the
same when Jagr blatantly cross-checked Anton Stralman trying to create
1. Henrik Lundqvist.New York Rangers v New Jersey Devils
2. Rick Nash.
3. Derek Stepan.
*************************************
Kenny Albert’s Three Rangers Stars:
2. Rick Nash.
3. Derek Stepan.
4. Raphael Diaz.
Rockland Journal News: LOADED: 03.23.2014
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New York Rangers
Rangers 2, Devils 0 … post-game notes
22 March 2014, 10:52 pm
Staff Writer
Team notes:
The Rangers concluded a three-game road trip with a 2-0 victory
over the New Jersey Devils tonight at Prudential Center. Henrik Lundqvist
turned aside all 21 shots he faced to become the franchise’s all-time leader in
shutouts with the 50th of his career. New York has now won four of their last
five games, including four straight on the road.
The Blueshirts have posted a record of 39-29-4 overall (82 pts),
including a 23-13-0 mark on the road this season. Their 23 road wins leads
the NHL, and is one shy of the franchise record for road wins in a season.
The Rangers and Devils have been separated by two goals or less
in 18 of their last 26 meetings.
The Blueshirts have registered points in 19 of their last 28 games
against the Devils (16-9-3), and are 25-11-4 overall (13-5-2 at home; 12-6-2
on the road) against the Devils since 2007-08.
Tonight’s contest concluded the final back-to-back set on the
Rangers’ regular season schedule. New York posted a combined record of
15-10-1 in back-to-back games this season, including a 9-4-0 (6-1-0 on the
road) mark in the second game of the set. Henrik Lundqvist has started on
consecutive days 69 times in his career, posting a record of 42-20-7 with a
2.09 goals against average, .929 save percentage, and seven shutouts in the
second game.
The Rangers allowed two goals or fewer for the 43rd time in 72
games this season. The Blueshirts improved to 33-10-0 when allowing two or
fewer goals in a game this season. The Rangers have also held opponents to
two goals or fewer in 21 of 36 road games this season, including 20 of their
last 31 away from MSG. New York has posted a 19-2-0 record when allowing
two or fewer goals on the road this season.
The Blueshirts’ penalty kill was 1-1 (2:00) in the contest, and is now
26-27 (96.3%) with four shorthanded goals in the last 10 games.
The Rangers out-hit the Devils, 25-20, in the contest, and were
credited with 14 blocked shots. The Blueshirts had seven players register two
or more hits, led by Benoit Pouliot’s four hits, and had 11 players record at
least one blocked shot.
New York won 29-56 faceoffs (52%) in the contest, led by Brad
Richards 9-12 (75%) from the faceoff circle.
Player notes:
Henrik Lundqvist posted his fifth shutout of the season with a
21-save effort and added a power play assist, improving to 28-22-4 overall
with a 16-9-0 mark on the road this season. The shutout was the 50th of his
career, moving him past Eddie Giacomin into first place on the Rangers’
all-time regular season shutouts list. Lundqvist has held opponents to two
goals or less in 16 of his last 23 games (16-6-1, 1.96 GAA, .935 Sv%, 3 SO),
and is 6-2-0 with a 1.63 GAA, .945 Sv%, and two shutouts in his last eight
contests. The Rangers’ franchise leader in wins and shutouts passed Olaf
Kolzig into sole possession of 25th on the NHL all-time wins list with 304
career victories, and is tied with Chris Osgood for 26th on the NHL all-time
shutouts list. The assist was Lundqvist’s fourth of the season, which ties his
career-high for a single-season and moves him into a tie for first place among
NHL goaltenders in assists this season.
Lundqvist has faced-off against Martin Brodeur in 41 career regular
season games, posting a record of 26-9-6 with a 1.74 GAA, .930 Sv% and six
shutouts in those contests, and is 25-11-3 with a 2.03 GAA, .923 Sv% and
eight shutouts in 39 games against the Devils since 2007-08.
Derek Stepan registered two points, including a power play, empty
net goal and an assist, to extend his goal/point streak to three games (three
goals, one assist). He has recorded a point in 11 of the last 13 games,
registering 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) over the span. His power play
goal in the closing seconds of regulation was his 50th point of the season,
marking the second time in his career Stepan has reached the 50-point mark.
His second-period assist also marked a new career-high for assists in a
season (35). Stepan now leads the team with 35 assists and 50 points this
season.
Rick Nash notched the game’s opening goal at 10:33 of the second
period, and registered four shots in 17:54 of ice time. He has tallied three
goals in the last three games, and leads the team with 23 goals this season.
The goal was also his eighth game-winning goal of the season, which marks
a single-season career-high.
Chris Kreider tallied an assist and logged 9:53 of ice time. The assist
was his 20th of the season, and he has now recorded two assists in the last
three games.
Ryan McDonagh registered a power play assist to extend his point
streak to three games (one goal, two assists), and was credited with two
shots and three hits in a game-high, 25:08 of ice time. He has recorded nine
points (four goals, five assists) in the last 11 games, and has logged 25:00+
of ice time in each of the last six games. McDonagh is now one point shy of
100 career NHL points.
Raphael Diaz was credited with two blocked shots and logged 16:20
of ice time while making his Rangers debut. He was acquired by the Rangers
from Vancouver on Mar. 5 in exchange for a fifth round pick in the 2015 NHL
Entry Draft. Diaz became the tenth player to make his Rangers debut this
season, joining Benoit Pouliot, Jesper Fast, Justin Falk, Cam Talbot, Dylan
McIlrath, Conor Allen, Dan Carcillo, Kevin Klein, and Martin St. Louis.
Rockland Journal News: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739207
Ottawa Senators
GAME FILE
WHY THEY LOST
Senators fade in third as Stars win 3-1
Wayne Scanlan
March 22, 2014
The Senators couldn’t match the Stars energy and urgency in the third
period, as the home team scored a pair.
CHEERS
That this merciless season is nearly over.
JEERS
DALLAS– Playing for a playoff position didn’t work out, and now playing for
pride has come up empty.
What next for your Ottawa Senators? Playing out the string, apparently.
Call it six straight games with out a win for the Senators, after they fell 3-1 to
the Stars Sunday afternoon.
The Senators last tasted victory two weeks ago to the day, in Winnipeg on
March 8.
It would help if they could catch a break. His team ahead 1-0 in the second
period, centre Kyle Turris clanked a shot off the far post, a bounce that might
have made a difference in the end.
“In sports, once things start rolling against you, it’s hard to stop it,” said
defenceman Erik Karlsson.
Senators goaltender Robin Lehner knows the feeling. Lehner, who started
each of the past five defeats, had a decent outing as the Stars outshot
Ottawa 44-27, but again came up on the short end.
Like the Senators of a couple of weeks ago, the Stars are playing for their
playoff lives. They started the day four points out of a wild card position at the
drop of the puck, and could hardly afford a loss to Ottawa if they are to have
any hope of reaching the playoffs in the wild Western Conference.
Yet, this was also their first game at home after a three-game (all losses)
road trip, and it took them half a period to find their legs. By then, Ottawa had
a 1-0 lead.
Cody Eakin tied the score 1-1 with less than five minutes remaining in the
second period. Following a net drive by Valeri Nichushkin, Lehner thought he
had the puck underneath as he lay flat on the ice, but Eakin found it and
tapped it in.
The goal came as a relief to the American Airlines Center crowd of 16,714,
many of whom were booing the Stars inept power play (0-for-4 through two
periods and 0-for-5 overall).
Trevor Daley gave Dallas the lead – the Stars first of the afternoon – at 4:52
of the third period, the culmination of a barrage of chances in front of Lehner.
Daley took a Ray Whitney pass from behind the net and beat Lehner high to
the stick side.
Naturally, it wasn’t long before Ottawa’s break-don’t-bend defence gave the
Stars a greater comfort level, as Jamie Benn converted a 2-on-2 passing play
with Tyler Seguin for a 3-1 Stars lead. Erik Karlsson was late getting to Benn,
who beat Lehner with a perfect shot.
In happier times (ie. The first period), it figured the Senators offence would
start from a certain member of its defence, namely, Karlsson. Off a line rush,
Karlsson took a Colin Greening pass and blasted a slapshot past Stars
goaltender Kari Lehtonen, who was leaning the other way.
With his 19th goal, Karlsson matched his own career high as well as the
franchise record of Steve Duchesne, from the 1996-97 season.
“I was lucky my stick didn’t break until my next shot,” joked Karlsson.
Defensively, Karlsson had his adventures, especially trying to contain
Nichushkin, who wheeled around No. 65 at will.
After a string of rough outings, Lehner gave the Senators just the sort of start
they needed, holding the Stars off the sheet for the first 20 minutes despite a
17-7 shot advantage for the home team. Lehner’s best save came off Jamie
Benn, when Lehner was down and out but caught Benn’s backhand shot.
Late in the third period, Senators winger Bobby Ryan crashed heavily in the
end boards and left the game favoring his right side, perhaps his hip. Ryan
was trying to check Eakin, but was bumped in return and slid into the boards
at high speed. His condition will be updated Sunday.
To Ottawa having to play another game without starting goaltender Craig
Anderson in uniform. Wouldn’t it be nice if the Senators fessed up about the
nature of Anderson’s injury? Is it a concussion? Watching Anderson practice
but not play takes us back to 2006 when Dominik Hasek looked sharp in
practice but would not declare himself ready to play in the Stanley Cup
playoffs against the Buffalo Sabres. Ray Emery was the young goalie left to
face the fire then. This time, it’s Lehner.
WEIRD STAT
While Tyler Seguin gets raves for his offence, he had nine points in his
previous six games compared to 11 points in six games for oft-criticized
Senators centre Jason Spezza. While Spezza was held off the sheet
Saturday, Seguin set up the Stars’ third goal to give him 73 points on the
season.
Ottawa Citizen LOADED: 03.23.2014
739208
Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators make it six straight losses
Don Brennan
Saturday, March 22, 2014 05:59 PM EDT
DALLAS - The Senators were deep-sixed Saturday afternoon in the Lone
Star State.
So were the post-season hopes of even their most ardent supporters.
Ottawa’s losing streak reached a half dozen games as they suffered a third
period let down that led to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Dallas Stars.
The Senators have to win each of their remaining 12 games to get to 93
points, which should be enough to get them into the playoffs.
But right now it’s looking like they may never win another.
This game story turned from one about goalie Robin Lehner regaining his
confidence with a strong performance to another disappointing collapse.
Goals 2:06 apart early in the third period by Trevor Daley and Jamie Benn
broke up a 1-1 game and put the Stars en route to the end of their own losing
streak, which was at four games.
Daley’s came at the 4:52 mark off a pass by Ray Whitney, who was standing
behind the Ottawa net. Previously, the Stars had been buzzing around the
Senators net but were unable to get a shot away until Daley fired a high wrist
shot to the back of the net.
Benn’s 30 goal of the season was off a perfect wrist shot past Erik Karlsson
and high off the stick side post.
The Senators lost winger Bobby Ryan later in the third when he crashed into
the defensive end boards after trying to track down Cody Eakin. Ryan was
favouring his right leg as he was helped to the dressing room. He did not
return.
The Senators penalty killers survived shorthanded situations, while Ottawa’s
power play was 0-for-3.
Lehner stopped 41 shots while Kari Lehtonen made 26 saves for Dallas.
Lehner kept the Senators in the game stopping all 17 shots he faced in the
first period while his teammates put just seven pucks on the Dallas net.
One of those Ottawa efforts was Karlsson’s 19th goal of the season 3:27
after the opening faceoff.
The play started in the defensive zone when Chris Neil plastered Aaron
Rome along the boards. Off an ensuing 3-on-2 rush, Colin Greening slid a
pass to Karlsson, who one-timed a slap shot behind Kari Lehtonen.
The Senators survived three consecutive minors in the second, but couldn’t
get past a 4-on-4 situation late in the period. With Jared Cowen and Cody
Ceci the two Senators defencemen on the ice, Valeri Nichushkin stepped out
from the corner but couldn’t get his shot past Lehner. While the big goalie
appeared to have the puck smothered (again), Eakin spotted it, poking home
a shot to tie the score at 15:07 of the period.
It was the 27th shot on goal for the Stars.
Neil had two fights on the day, a first period scrap with Rome and one late in
the third with Ryan Garbutt.
Ottawa Sun LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Ottawa Senators
We just want the facts when it comes to Senators No. 1 goalie Craig
Anderson's injury
the Stars gained at least some momentum from their power play. "When you
give up that many power play opportunities, it's tough," said Neil, who fought
twice but never left his team shorthanded. "We talk about keeping our
penalties down to three or less. Do the math, that's not what we want to
accomplish. They're stick penalties, or (guys) not even involved in the play,
some of them. Those are tough to kill."
THINGS I THINK I THUNK
Don Brennan
DALLAS - It's quite possible the rising questions about Craig Anderson's
character would be put to bed by somebody coming clean on his injury.
Instead, we are left to believe a 'stinger' has kept the No. 1 goalie out of the
line up for five games already -- and now at least two more going forward -which has prompted experts on social media to diagnose Anderson as 'soft.'
That's a little harsh, of course. None of them know what Anderson has been
dealing with since leaving the Nashville game Mar. 10 after being bumped by
teammate Milan Michalek. Nobody knows because the team, like others in
the NHL, is vague on injuries, treating them as state secrets.
In his one conversation with reporters since his disappearance, Anderson
made it clear that any discomfort he was feeling over the shot he took on the
shoulder from Shea Weber had pretty much subsided.
So he's missing all these crucial games down the stretch because of the
Michalek bump? Do stingers normally keep players out of action for more
than two weeks or, as one reporter put it, is this a 'humdinger of a stinger.'
There has to be something more to it.
For his part, coach Paul MacLean was sure Anderson would be ready to play
Mar. 15 in Montreal -- back when the Senators season was still salvageable.
Now it appears the earliest he'll return is Mar. 28 for what will be meaningless
home game against Chicago.
"He skated again this morning, which is a positive sign," MacLean said before
Saturday's game against the Stars. "He's scheduled to skate again (Sunday).
He's progressing, so we'll see where it goes (Sunday)."
MacLean is waiting for team athletic therapist and Anderson to tell him the
recovery period is over, the goalie is 100%.
"Right now it looks like, if he's just practicing, he won't be playing in Tampa
Bay (Monday)," said MacLean. "He might be able to back up in Florida
(Tuesday). So I'm not sure when we can actually play him in game. It might
be not until next week.
"As soon as we can get him back is what we're looking for, looking forward to
it."
The way things have turned out in his absence, it really doesn't matter
anymore. Anderson should just take the rest of the season off so he's ready
to go in October.
STARTS AND STOPS
Erik Karlsson's first period goal was his 19th of the year, which ties his career
best and equals a franchise record for defencemen. "It's always nice to score
and hopefully I can score a few more by the end of the year," said Karlsson,
who leads all NHL blue liners with 65 points. "Greener (winger Colin
Greening) just gave me a perfect past and I just had to direct it the right way.
I was lucky the stick didn't break until the next shot." ... In the game's second
minute, Stars winger Antoine Roussel put Milan Michalek over the boards
and into the Senators bench with a big hit. A couple of seconds later Michalek
wore a big grin on his face as he watched the replay on the video board ...
Aaron Rome wasn't very happy with the big hit he took from Chris Neil
leading to Ottawa's goal. Lined up against Neil in the faceoff circle on his next
shift, the stars winger challenged the Senators tough guy to a fight. In this
case, Rome fell in much less than a day.
BETWEEN PERIODS
When the Senators and Stars last played, back on Nov. 3, Dallas rookie
Valeri Nichuskin was 18 years old and played a starring role. He also ended
Anderson's night by colliding with him in overtime. Anderson was taken off
the ice on a stretcher. Saturday, the now 19-year-old Nichuskin played
another strong game. He didn't bowl anyone over but he did walk around
Karlsson a couple of times ... The NHL's most penalized team was at it again,
as the Senators took five minor penalties. They managed to kill them all, but
Just when we were trying to figure out if it was a case of the Senators penalty
killers being really good or the Stars power play being really bad, folks in the
crowd of 16,714 chipped in with their opinion. They booed when the Stars
couldn't' get untracked with Bobby Ryan serving Senators fourth minor,
during which Dallas had zero shots ... MacLean, who didn't think his team
was terribly outplayed, wondered about the shot count that showed Dallas
finish with 44 and Ottawa 27. He may be on to something. The Stars were
credited with their 17th shot of the first about a second after the buzzer went
to end the first. The puck was flipped in from very close to the centre ice dot
... The hospitality provided by the Dallas Stars media relations department is
unmatched, as are the Dallas Stars cheerleaders
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Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators winger Bobby Ryan told coach will be fine
Don Brennan
DALLAS - Bobby Ryan's injury may not be as bad as it looked.
When the Senators winger crashed hard into the defensive zone end boards
late in the third period Saturday, it was at full speed. Ryan was in agony as he
lay on the ice for about a minute, before being helped to the dressing room.
He appeared to be favouring his right side, with a leg, ankle or hip issue.
After the game, however, Ryan told coach Paul MacLean he'll be fine.
"We're not sure," MacLean said when he was asked by reporters for an injury
update. "It's kind of something that's up in the air. It's not something that's
definite. It's just a re-aggravation of something, and we'll see how it is
Sunday."
Ryan did play 25 shifts that totalled 16:10 of ice time, during which he was
one of the most used penalty killers.
He did not, however, have a single shot on goal, or even one that was
blocked.
The four-time, 30 goal scorer only has one in his last 10 games, leaving him
with 23 on the season.
If Ryan can't play Monday in Tampa, it's believed the Senators will call up
either Matt Puempel or Mark Stone. Puempel, who has yet to play his first
NHL game, has 24 goals (including a team high 13 on the power play) and 14
assists in 61 games.
Stone has 15 goals and 22 assists in just 34 games.
739211
Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers' Raffl signs extension; Kings next
Sam Carchidi
March 22, 2014, 6:24 PM
Rookie forward Michael Raffl signed a two-year extension, the Flyers
announced after their 4-1 win over St. Louis (see story) on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Austrian will be paid a total of $2.2 million.
Raffl, a speedy player who is also strong along the boards, spent a lot of the
season as a left wing on the Flyers’ top line, but more recently he has
centered the fourth line. He has also contributed significantly on the
penalty-killing unit, which has killed 26 of the last 27.
In 57 games, the 6-foot, 195-pound Raffl has nine goals, 21 points and a
plus-2 rating.
They’re baaack. For the first time, the Kings’ Jeff Carter and Mike Richards
will play together at the Wells Fargo Center against the Flyers on Monday.
Breakaways. The Flyers’ five-game winning streak is against teams with a
combined .690 points percentage….Claude Giroux, Brayden Schenn,
Wayne Simmonds, Scott Hartnell and Jake Voracek each had two
points…..St. Louis lost for just the second time after scoring first; the Blues
had been 38-1-5…Zac Rinaldo had seven hits….Andrew MacDonald
blocked five shots…..Goalie Steve Mason (32 saves) on notching his 30th
victory of the season: “Any time you win, it’s a team thing, so I’m not going to
take any of the credit. You just try to do your job, and right now we’re rolling
along nicely and the wins are coming.”It’s a stat, but it’s a team stat, so it’s a
good job for the team.”
Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 03.23.2014
739212
Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers defeat NHL-best Blues, 4-1
Sam Carchidi
March 23, 2014, 3:01 AM
The Flyers, the team that got its coach fired after three games and had the
worst start (1-7) in franchise history, continued their remarkable turnaround
Saturday afternoon.
They defeated the best-in-the-NHL St. Louis Blues at the Wells Fargo
Center, 4-1, and increased their winning streak to a season-high five games.
St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock is right: The Flyers are a scary opponent
these days.
"We looked at this four- or five-game stretch as a big measuring stick, to see
how we do against some of the best teams in the league," said winger Scott
Hartnell, mindful the winning streak includes victories against NHL powers
Pittsburgh (twice), Chicago, and St. Louis. "We've played some of our best
hockey, and it's exciting that everyone is blocking shots, everyone is
competing, everyone is out for the win instead of a nice play . . . and we want
to keep this going."
Brayden Schenn scored what proved to be the game-winner, and Steve
Mason (30-16-6) made 32 saves as the Flyers improved to 12-2-1 since Feb.
1.
Jake Voracek, set up by the sizzling Claude Giroux (two assists, six-game
points steak), gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead by scoring from the left circle with 4
minutes, 19 seconds left. Wayne Simmonds added his 24th goal, an
empty-netter, with 2:54 remaining.
With the Flyers clinging to a 2-1 lead, Mason made a pair of spectacular
saves on Derek Roy from the doorstep while St. Louis was on a power play
with a little over nine minutes left.
The Flyers killed all six penalties - Claude Giroux was assessed four minors and they have been successful on 26 of their last 27 kills.
"We probably needed a little more discipline tonight," said defenseman
Braydon Coburn after his team was outshot, 33-19. "But Mason is playing
unreal. When there's breakdowns, he's just made some ridiculous saves."
Hartnell (power play) and Schenn scored second-period goals to give the
Flyers a 2-1 lead. Hartnell's 19th goal, scored from the slot after a feed from
Voracek, tied the game at 1 after 57 seconds of the second.
With 6:36 to go in the second, Schenn and Simmonds worked a give-and-go
that helped give the Flyers a 2-1 lead.
Simmonds poked the puck away from a St. Louis player in the neutral zone
and fed Schenn, who returned a quick pass to the winger on the left side.
Ryan Miller stopped Simmonds' shot, but Schenn knocked the rebound past
the goalie.
"I just yelled for the puck, and Schenner made a great play to me," Simmonds
said. "I just tried to put it off Miller's pads for Schenner to come in because I
didn't have much of an angle, and it worked perfectly."
After being outplayed in the first period - "it felt like they had seven guys on
the ice," Voracek said - the Flyers controlled the second.
"We were getting pucks in deep and establishing our forecheck," Schenn
said. "And when we do that, we get our scoring chances."
In the first period, winger Steve Downie smashed his face into St. Louis's
Kevin Shattenkirk and left the game; Giroux hit the left post on a power play;
and Andrew MacDonald lost a puck battle in the offensive end and it
triggered a shorthanded Blues goal as Jaden Schwartz finished a
two-on-one.
But things turned around. Just like this intriguing season.
Breakaways. The Flyers signed winger Michael Raffl to a two-year extension
worth a total of $2.2 million. . . . Mason has a 1.50 goals-against average and
.948 save percentage in his four starts during the win streak. . . . he Flyers
alternated Raffl and Zac Rinaldo on Downie's third-line spot. Downie will be
reevaluated Sunday. . . . The Flyers host Los Angeles on Monday, the first
time Jeff Carter and Mike Richards have faced the Flyers together at the
Wells Fargo Center.
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Philadelphia Flyers
As for his unkempt beard, Couturier says it has more to do with his
superstitious nature.
Inside the Flyers: Couturier blossoms into shutdown defender
"I started it around Christmas and we started winning again - and I was
scared to shave it," he said. "When I eat, it kind of bothers me, so that's the
only thing."
Sam Carchidi
Asked if the beard put fear into the players he was defending, Couturier
smiled.
March 23, 2014, 1:10 AM
With his shaggy, mountain-man beard, the Flyers' Sean Couturier looks and
fits the part: a menacing defender who, more frequently than not, shuts down
some of the NHL's top centers.
Or, as someone on Twitter so aptly called him: the Wolf of Broad Street.
Couturier, 21, deserves consideration for the Selke Trophy, given to the
league's best defensive forward. He won't come close to winning it because
the award has morphed into a reward for a forward who is dominating both
ways, and Couturier's offense is still in the growing stages.
That said, he is opening eyes around the league for the way he has shut
down players such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jonathan Toews.
Couturier and linemates Matt Read and Steve Downie are usually assigned
to defend an opponent's top unit.
For the season, the line had a combined plus-3 rating entering Saturday,
despite facing opponents' most dangerous forwards.
Couturier has "good natural instincts," said New York Rangers scout Doug
Risebrough, a former Calgary head coach who spent 13 years as an
agitating NHL forward, helping Montreal win four Stanley Cups. "Today, they
try to teach that part of the game and guys can acquire a good understanding
defensively, but he's pretty young and it seems to come naturally and he
knows how to position himself.
"The role of that player is not just to check, but to contribute offensively, and
he can do that, too, at some point," Risebrough added.
Some of the top Selke contenders this season include Chicago's Toews (27
goals, 65 points entering the weekend), Boston's Patrice Bergeron (20 goals,
48 points), and St. Louis' David Backes (23 goals, 49 points). All are more
offensive-minded than Couturier, who has 10 goals and a career-high 35
points.
"You've got to be able to play both sides of the puck nowadays to probably
win that award," Flyers coach Craig Berube said.
The 6-foot-3, 197-pound Couturier is dominant on the defensive side, "and
he's growing offensively," Berube said. "In time, I think it's going to be where
it needs to be. It's a matter of maybe being a little quicker around the net,
shooting pucks, getting more pucks to the net."
"He has good size and he uses his size well," said Risebrough, a former
general manager in Calgary and Minnesota. "The one thing you don't want
from a defensive player is penalties. You don't want the guy who [in order] to
defend, ultimately causes penalties. He has good strength. And it doesn't
really show all the time because it's not a stat, but in stick battles, some of
that is a component of strength, and in his case he's only going to get
stronger."
Couturier, the eighth overall selection in the 2011 draft and a player who had
consecutive 96-point seasons in juniors, says he gets a bigger kick scoring
goals than preventing them, but he understands his primary job.
"In the role I have, I try to take pride in my defense and shutting down
opposite lines," Couturier said. "I think as a line, we need to focus on defense
first, and try to create some offense off the other team's line trying to cheat."
In his first year in juniors, Couturier was coached by Guy Boucher, who
helped mold him into a defensively responsible player. Boucher later
coached Tampa Bay and was known for his 1-3-1 trap.
"He always emphasized the defensive side of the game," Couturier said,
"and I learned a lot from him."
Couturier, whose father, Sylvain, played briefly in the NHL, sees himself as a
20- to 25-goal scorer down the road. "Maybe when I get more chances on the
power play, or more offensive chances, I'll produce a little more, but right now
I'm not really worried. We have a great team and I'm just glad to help the
team win."
"I'd like to think so, yeah, but I don't want the tough guys coming at me,
either," he cracked.
739214
Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers shake the Blues, run win streak to five
Jake Voracek finally put it away with 4:19 to play and Simmonds added an
empty-net goal with 2:54 remaining.
Said coach Craig Berube: “This team has got good character. We’re really
playing like a team right now. That’s why we’re successful.’’
Contract extension for Raffl
7:15 pm, Sat Mar 22, 2014.
Wayne Fish
PHILADELPHIA — Killer schedule? What killer schedule?
Maybe the pundits have it backward. Maybe the Pittsburghs, Chicagos and
St. Louises should start circling games against the Flyers as red-letter dates.
After dispatching the NHL-leading Blues by a 4-1 margin on Saturday
afternoon at the Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers have done away with three of
hockey’s heaviest hitters en route to a five-game winning streak.
In the process, the Flyers have moved to within three points of Tampa for the
No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Saturday’s game was a lot closer than the final score might indicate but once
again the Flyers played stingy defense in the stretch to secure the win.
After Brayden Schenn broke a 1-1 tie at 13:24 of the second period, the
Flyers had to really grind it out to keep St. Louis’ big bodies from getting to
Steve Mason.
But when the defense broke down, Mason once again came to the rescue,
just as he did in Tuesday night’s overtime win against the Blackhawks.
It’s safe to say the way the Flyers are playing right now, they fear no team.
“We’re really confident right now,’’ said Wayne Simmonds, who chopped
down a Chris Porter pass for the lead-in to Schenn’s goal past Ryan Miller.
“Every night we come to the rink, we expect to win.
“I don’t think it matters who we’re playing . . . we’re in a tough stretch now and
we have to continue to play the way we’ve been playing.’’
He’s right. The Flyers get their old pals — Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Justin
Williams — and the rest of the Los Angeles Kings here on Monday night and
then visit the Rangers in New York on Wednesday.
“We looked at this last four- or five-game stretch here, this would be, I guess,
a big measuring stick for us to see how we would do against some of the best
talent in the league,’’ said Scott Hartnell, who pocketed a power-play goal at
0:57 of the second period to erase a 1-0 deficit.
“I know we’ve played some of our best hockey and it’s exciting that everyone
is blocking shots, everyone is competing. We’re hard to play against.’’
Mason once again rose to the occasion. In one sequence with 9:02 to play
and the game still tied, he stopped Derek Roy twice from point-blank range
during a St. Louis power play.
“Yeah I think we’ve proven that we’re a good hockey club,’’ Mason said. “We
just beat the number one team in the NHL. That’s something to be proud of.
But everyone in this dressing room realizes that this is going to be a long
grind to finish out this year. Beating good hockey teams along the way is
definitely a good sign.’’
The Flyers didn’t get off to the quickest of starts this game, allowing a
shorthanded goal by Jaden Schwartz at 6:23 of the first.
After that, Philadelphia settled down.
“Guys just started to work,’’ Mason said. “Sacrificing bodies . . . that’s a big
team over there. A big strong team that can really wear the guys down and
throw some big hits and our guys just keep going right back at them.
“In the third period, we got up a couple goals and guys are still sacrificing
their bodies making big blocks. It’s the character that the guys are showing
right now that are winning hockey games.”
Even though captain Claude Giroux took four minor penalties among the
Flyers’ 20 minutes overall, the penalty kill unit blanked St. Louis on all six
tries.
“I was a little late on those pucks,’’ Giroux said. “Have to move my feet better.
The PK did a good job to save me. They're the best team in the league right
now so for us to be able to save that 2-1 lead, it’s great.’’
Rookie winger Michael Raffl received a two-year contract extension on
Saturday. The contract will pay the 25-year-old Austria native $1.1 million per
year.
Raffl, an undrafted free agent who signed with the Flyers in 2013, has
registered nine goals and a total of 21 points in 57 games with a plus-2.
Downie injured
Steve Downie was injured in a collision with the Blues’ Patrik Berglund and
did not return to the game. Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said
Downie has an upper body injury and will be re-evaluated on Sunday.
Downie suffered a concussion back in November and needed two nights in a
Philadelphia hospital to recover. The Flyers have a spare forward on the
roster (Jay Rosehill) or they can call up someone like Ty McGinn for Monday
night’s game against Los Angeles.
Burlington County Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Philadelphia Flyers
He’s pretty much a lock to take home the Adams. But Berube rates at least a
trip to Las Vegas at the league awards dinner. After all, the Flyers took a
gamble on the Alberta native and so far it’s paying off.
If not for Roy, Berube might be coach of year
Regulation/OT advantage: Going into Saturday action, the Flyers stood third
in the Eastern Conference in non-shootout wins.
Saturday, March 22, 2014 4:24 pm
This is a key number because it is the second tiebreaker in the standings
when the season comes to an end.
Wayne Fish
PHILADELPHIA – If not for the remarkable work of Colorado’s Patrick Roy,
the Jack Adams Trophy for coach of the year might be headed to
Philadelphia.
With so many teams so packed together (only seven points separate the
second- and eighth-place teams in the East), there’s bound to be a tie
between a couple teams when the season is over.
Although it doesn’t count as a tiebreaker, the Flyers’ non-shootout win
percentage is among the best in the NHL.
The Flyers’ Craig Berube has done some amazing stuff with a team that
stood 0-3 and was in chaos when he took the controls, so he deserves
consideration as a finalist for the award.
A total of 35 of their 38 victories have come in regulation or overtime. Only
Boston (46 of 48) has a better percentage in the East and only Anaheim (43
of 45) and Colorado (41 of 44) are better.
One could also make a case for Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper and Detroit’s Mike
Babcock because of injuries to their rosters, but both those teams weren’t
coming from as bad a place as the Avalanche or Flyers.
Since succeeding Peter Laviolette, Berube has changed the culture in
Philadelphia. Practices are more up-tempo and losses aren’t dwelled upon.
Many thought the Flyers’ season was pretty much dead in the water after the
team began 1-7. But there was a never-say-die attitude that began to grow.
Since then, the Flyers are 37-18-7.
Apparently the Flyers have been won over by Berube’s low-key,
expect-accountability approach.
He says it’s not a new philosophy.
“I haven’t really changed,’’ Berube says. “Even through tough stretches, I
preach the same thing all the time. I’m pretty straightforward with the guys. I
think they know what I’m all about now.
“It starts in practice. We practiced fast. We started practicing fast and an
up-tempo game and we’re starting to play like that. I think that’s the key. I
really do. I think our skating has improved so much and just our puck skills,
our control with the puck and making plays. That’s the game.’’
Berube agrees with the premise that having spent almost seven years as an
assistant coach, he was better equipped than an outsider to step in during
the season.
“I think a lot of them knew me and I knew them,’’ Berube says. “It makes it
easier with the transition part. I’m pretty black and white with everyone.’’
Berube’s commanding presence alleviates much of the need for drama in the
dressing room. Not much yelling or screaming required.
“I don’t really see anything in that,’’ Berube says. “If I’ve got to yell and
scream at a guy because he’s not working hard, not competing hard, I think
we need to talk about moving him. That’s basically what it boils down to.
“You’re going to make mistakes out on the ice. Everyone does. If he makes
one, you tell the guy what he did wrong, how to improve it, if he needs some
help or whatever and that’s it. Guys have to work hard and compete hard to
play. If they don’t do that, they probably aren’t going to play very much.’’
Berube eats, sleeps and breathes hockey, so the added workload of being
the guy in charge doesn’t bother him a bit.
“I think I understood what my role was and what I had to do,’’ he says. “It’s
obvious you have a lot of things on your plate, but I don’t mind that. I like to
work and I like being busy. That’s part of it all, I think.’’
Scott Hartnell implies that Berube is a team-first coach.
“He played over a thousand games in the NHL so you have the respect right
off the get-go,’’ Hartnell said. “I think he wanted to build a team, it’s all about
the team, not the player.
“He’s instilled that in us. When guys get off the page, he’s there to snap you
back in line. We’ve done a good job following his lead.’’
Roy, also in his first year as an NHL head coach, has pulled off a minor
miracle by taking last year’s cellar-dwelling Avalanche to a top five slot in the
West.
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Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers get rid of the Blues for 5th straight win
Saturday, March 22, 2014 3:15 pm
Wayne Fish
PHILADELPHIA -- The schedule keeps putting big teams in front of the
Flyers and they keep knocking them over.
After recent wins over Pittsburgh and Chicago, the Flyers put another notch
in their guns on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center with a 4-1 win over
NHL-leading St. Louis.
Brayden Schenn's goal at 13:24 of the second period broke a 1-1 tie and sent
the Flyers to their fifth straight victory.
Steve Mason picked up the win in goal for the Flyers.
Scott Hartnell scored a power-play goal for the Flyers at 0:57 of the second
period to erase the Blues' 1-0 lead.
Schenn scored after Wayne Simmonds intercepted a Chris Porter pass and
turned back toward the St. Louis net. Simmonds sent a shot off goalie Ryan
Miller, which went back to Schenn for the goal.
Jake Voracek added an insurance goal with 4:19 to play. Simmonds scored
an empty-netter after goalie Ryan Miller was pulled for a sixth attacker.
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Philadelphia Flyers
Red-hot Flyers roll right past the Blues
Rob Parent
03/22/14, 6:12 PM EDT
PHILADELPHIA — Through a variety of official hurdles Saturday, most
supplied by model whistleblower Francois St. Laurent, the Flyers and the St.
Louis Blues managed to play a game worthy of two true Stanley Cup
challengers.
That the Flyers are not only competing in games like these but winning them
shows how far they have come this season.
Behind a balanced scoring effort and a rock-solid third period by goalie Steve
Mason, the Flyers took down the NHL-leading Blues, 4-1, at Wells Fargo
Center.
Scott Hartnell, Brayden Schenn, Jake Voracek and Wayne Simmonds
shared the scoring chores on this day for the Flyers, and Claude Giroux
added a pair of assists that were uncharacteristically overshadowed by
something he didn’t do ...
He failed to get on referee St. Laurent’s good side.
So Giroux was whistled for four minor penalties on a day in which the teams
combined for 18 minor infractions, the Flyers gaining an edge (10-8) in that
department, too.
“I’ve got to do a better job of not taking penalties,” Giroux said. “Four
penalties is not acceptable. Personally, I’m pretty frustrated with myself. But
the (penalty kill) did a good job to save me. I’m pretty thankful for them.”
That should be a given with the Flyers, who have been pretty steady in their
ability to have their penalty kill not only keep them on an even keel ... but
change games.
As the Blues went oh-for-6 on this day, there was another occasion to
celebrate that.
“They did a real good job,” coach Craig Berube said of his penalty killers.
“They did a good job up ice and just reads in zone and shot blocks and all the
little things they do when you’re killing penalties.”
Also helping out was Mason, who in making 32 saves saved his best for the
last period. Certainly opposing coach Ken Hitchcock noticed.
“We were really good in the first and then didn’t outwork the goalie in the
third,” ex-Flyers mentor Hitchcock said. “You’re down 2-1 and have the
chances you get in the third period, you have to outwork the goalie. I thought
his level of compete was harder than ours in and around the net area and we
couldn’t get the second and third chances that we probably needed to. We hit
a lot of goal posts and crossbars but I don’t think we had the second and third
chances as the game wore on that we did in the first period.”
Maybe the Blues were simply worn down by the frustration that built with
every power play chance. If anything, St. Laurent’s overly officious use of his
whistle all afternoon long only seemed to make the Flyers more determined
than ever to beat another premier opponent, this one being a Blues team
(47-16-7, 101 points) that entered with the best record in the NHL.
The victory was a season-high fifth straight for the Flyers (38-25-7, 83
points). Five in a row against NHL big boys Pittsburgh (twice), Chicago,
Dallas and St. Louis?
“Yeah,” understated coach of the year candidate Berube said, “we’re getting
there.”
“You could see the schedule we had coming up. It was pretty heavy: a lot of
games, a lot of great teams,” Brayden Coburn said. “It’s cliche, but it’s a one
game at a time approach. And (Berube) keeps telling us we’re a good team
and we can beat anybody if we bring our A-game.”
The Flyers probably deserved nothing more than a B-plus against the Blues,
but because of Mason and the penalty kill, that was more than enough. But it
was the Blues who jumped on the board first via some aggressive penalty
killing.
It was unintentionally set up by Steve Downie, who didn’t think to look up in
time before skating right into Patrik Berglund’s back. Downie hit Berglund’s
shoulder pad face-first, and promptly left with a suspected concussion.
What that did was put Zac Rinaldo on the third line, and he immediately
contributed with a fine acting job that St. Laurent saw as a Barret Jackman
tripping penalty.
On the ensuing power play, Andrew MacDonald ran into trouble deep in the
St. Louis zone and the Blues broke back 2-on-1, with Jaden Schwartz
scoring a shorthanded goal at 6:23.
The Flyers couldn’t get that goal back before the intermission despite another
power play opportunity ... and stayed just a goal down despite two Giroux
minor penalties on the same play.
“We had 16 or 18 minutes or something like that in penalties and I don’t think
we want to do that to ourselves,” Hartnell said of the Flyers’ top-line penalty
taking. “But hats off to our penalty killers.”
It was on a Flyers power play, however, that they got the game tied. Voracek
made a nice look instead of a quick shot, and he found Hartnell alone in the
slot, and he beat Ryan Miller just 57 seconds into the second for 1-1.
Then the fine forechecking team of Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds
began to gear up. It was Simmonds with a great backcheck turned steal in
the neutral zone, then he worked a give and go that saw Schenn slam a shot
past Miller at 13:24 to give the Flyers a 2-1 lead.
Mason would be called on to protect it through a few Blues power play
chances late in the second and into the third period. A couple of pucks went
off posts, then with just over nine minutes left, he flat out robbed Derek Roy
on consecutive shots that could have been tying goals.
Finally, Giroux let out any frustration he might have built in the penalty box
with a tenacious forecheck into the St. Louis zone. He got the puck to
Voracek, who drilled a shot inside the post with 4:19 left in regulation for an
insurance goal.
No whistles were heard.
Delaware County Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739218
Philadelphia Flyers
Streaking Flyers' next challenge is facing Carter, Richards
Rob Parent
03/22/14, 8:11 PM EDT
PHILADELPHIA — The Flyers’ eye-opening run through what is supposed to
be the most challenging part of their schedule continues Monday with a game
against a couple of old friends.
For the first time since Paul Holmgren’s dramatic double trades in the
summer of 2011, former franchise building blocks Mike Richards and Jeff
Carter return to Philadelphia with the Los Angeles Kings.
“Might be pretty weird for them,” said Braydon Coburn, one of only four
current Flyers who were active teammates of Richards and Carter during a
2010 postseason run to the Stanley Cup finals. Ray Emery played that
season but was inactive for the playoffs.
“They were here for so long, and we have a lot of great memories, obviously,
with those guys,” Coburn added. “It’s going to be fun playing those guys.
They’re great players and it’s a good challenge.”
While the Kings don’t seem to be much removed from the team that won a
Stanley Cup in 2012, there have been troubling times here and there.
Richards, the former Flyers captain so much a part of that Los Angeles
championship run, was demoted last week to a fourth line. He scored a goal
in a 4-0 win over Florida Saturday, but has just 10 goals and 40 points in 71
games. On the other hand, Carter had a very nice showing for Team Canada
in the Olympics, and despite missing 10 games led the club with 24 goals
through Friday.
Claude Giroux, just a budding leader in that 2010 playoff dash, expects both
of them to bring their best back to Philly.
“They did a lot of good things for our organization, and personally I respect
them a lot,” Giroux said. “It’s going to be a good game. They’re a good team,
we’re aware of that. When we played them in LA (a 2-0 Flyers win Feb. 1), we
got the win but I think they kind of took it to us.”
Maybe so, but there’s no question the Flyers gained momentum off that
victory. Starting with that game, the Flyers have gone 12-2-1. And counting.
•••
It wasn’t announced until everyone had left the building, but the Flyers signed
Michael Raffl to a contract extension Saturday. It’s for two years and a total of
$2.2 million, which even though he’s a rookie is a real bargain.
Raffl has bloomed into a responsible defensive player and penalty killer, and
when given the chance is still an offensive threat. He’s been playing a lot of
fourth-line center, but now has a chance to show his scoring prowess
because third-line winger Steve Downie is likely out for a while.
Downie has a suspected concussion after skating face-first into the shoulder
pad of the Blues’ Patrik Berglund. Downie will be re-evaluated Sunday.
•••
Wayne Simmonds had another typical work day in the 4-1 win over the Blues
Saturday. Outworked the opposition, forechecked ferociously, scored a goal,
set up another...
Asked by an admiring media member how he could be so strong on the puck
despite having “the skinniest legs in the world,” Simmonds skipped several
beats then said: “I don’t know if they’re the world’s skinniest. There’s
probably some animals that have skinnier legs than me.”
Delaware County Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739219
Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers sign Michael Raffl to 2-year extension
March 22, 2014, 5:15 pm
Staff Writer
Michael Raffl has nine goals and 12 assists this season. (AP)
The kid from Austria is going to be around a few more years after all.
Michael Raffl agreed to a two-year, $2.2 million contract with the club
Saturday after the Flyers' 4-1 win over the Blues (see story). His cap hit is
$1.1 million.
The 25-year-old Raffl has been a very effective and very cheap acquisition
for the Flyers. He signed a one-year contract worth $792,500 last May with
the Flyers out of Europe.
He’s shown versatility by moving up and down the Flyers lineup and gives
them needed speed on the wing and is responsible defensively.
Offensively, Raffl has potted nine goals and 12 assists in 58 games this
season.
Raffl has good speed and can also play a strong defensive-minded game.
He's played on all four of the Flyers' lines this season and has excelled on the
penalty kill.
Raffl, who represented Austria at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, didn't make
the Flyers' final roster out of training camp. He played two games in the AHL
with the Adirondack Phantoms before he was called up and never sent back.
739220
Philadelphia Flyers
It was the kind of play Berube was looking for in the first period.
Flyers top NHL-best Blues for 5th straight win
“It was a broken play in the neutral zone,” Simmonds said. “I kinda chipped it
to [Schenn]. He took it, blew past [Barret] Jackman and I ended up skating
around the other side of Jackman and yelled for the puck.”
March 22, 2014, 5:45 pm
Ryan Miller made the save on Simmonds, but the rebound went right to
Schenn for the eventual game-winner.
Staff Writer
“We knew with back pressure they would turn over the puck,” Schenn said.
“Once we started doing that, we started creating some turnovers and got
odd-man rushes and got chances.”
BOX SCORE
Mason had some key saves in the third period on both Steve Ott and Derek
Roy. The latter got a few shots off in the paint with 9:02 left with Mason on his
back, picking off one shot in mid-air.
They have now gone 5-0-0 against four of the best teams in the NHL -- teams
with a combined record of 166-76-38 and a .660 win percentage.
Saturday's victim -- and the third Central Division opponent of the week -happened to be Ken Hitchcock's St. Louis Blues, the No. 1 club in the league.
“Two or three whacks at it,” Mason said of Roy. “It was kind of a weird shot
that got through. I was able to kind of just reach back and just keep swatting
at it.
And the Flyers dusted them, 4-1, at the Wells Fargo Center with a rather
emphatic second and third periods of committed play (see Instant Replay).
“Big saves and I was able to hold it down and then we got the goal shortly
after that. [They were] saves that needed to be made.”
So when will people start referring to the Flyers as the best team in the
league?
Mason has won 30 games now and during this 5-0 whitewash of Pittsburgh,
Chicago, Dallas and St. Louis, he has 1.50 goals against average and .948
save percentage. Twenty-seven of his wins have come over the last 43
games.
"We're coming, we've beaten a lot of good teams here lately," coach Craig
Berube said. “We’ve beat some real good teams next week. It doesn’t end.
It’s going to be tough down the stretch.
“Our team is getting to where we need to get to to be really successful. We
have to keep working and keep things in check … I don’t really care about
what anybody thinks. We know where we are and where we’re trying to get
to.”
That would be the playoffs as the Flyers have a five point lead on Columbus
in the Metropolitan Division and three-point edge on the Rangers, who play
Saturday night.
This one was about two teams who check and hit and the Blues -- the Flyers
suggested -- were better at it than they anticipated, which may be why the
Flyers got thumped around in the opening period and were fortunate to trail
just 1-0.
Jakub Voracek, who finally gave Steve Mason (32 saves) some breathing
room at 15:41 in the third period to give the Flyers a 3-1 lead, said it felt like
the Blues had seven players on the ice every time a Flyer touched the puck in
the first period.
“They were everywhere,” Voracek said.
So much so, St. Louis ruined all four of the Flyers' power plays that period
and scored shorthanded to really rub it in.
“They have heavy sticks out there,” Claude Giroux, whose personal
frustration resulted in him taking four penalties in the game -- two each in the
first and second periods. “One of the best teams we’ve played who win a lot
of battles. If we didn’t bear down, we were going to lose.”
That is what Berube told his club before the game and between periods, too.
“We had to be heavier because they’re a heavy team that checks you and are
on you,” Berube said. “They’re big. I thought we lost battles in the first period
in our end. On the breakout and on the forecheck.
“We didn’t take the body on the forecheck or stop them. We went in and not
hope, but you have to be physical to play this team and we did that in the
second period.”
That’s what turned it around.
“We didn’t skate the puck out,” Hitchock said of his Blues. “It was a difference
in the hockey game, but I think the bigger difference was that our level of
determination in the offensive zone isn’t what it’s going to need to be to beat
great goaltending. We’re going to have to find a way to get to a much higher
level of compete in the offensive zone.”
The Flyers began the middle period on the power play and Scott Hartnell tied
it in the first minute, driving to the slot and taking a tough pass to handle from
Voracek for his 19th goal.
Twelve minutes later, Wayne Simmonds -- heavy on the backcheck -- picked
off Chris Porter’s outlet pass, wheeled around and began a new rush back
into the Blues’ zone with Brayden Schenn.
“He played really well and it’s every night,” Giroux said of Mason. “Every
night.”
Even when his team hasn’t, which is another sign that the Flyers are
becoming a very good hockey team that people might begin to notice.
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Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers Notes: Giroux whistled for 4 penalties
March 22, 2014, 7:00 pm
Tim Panaccio
Claude Giroux is the Flyers' unquestioned leader on and off the ice. He’s their
captain. He leads by example.
Saturday, however, Giroux admitted his example might not have been the
very best to follow. He took a season-high four penalties -- two in the first
period alone -- in the Flyers' 4-1 win over the Blues (see story).
Those calls were courtesy of referee Francois St. Laurent, who simply would
not swallow his whistle and let the two teams play for much of the game.
There were 18 penalties called in the game, 10 against the Flyers.
“You know what, I was a little late on those pucks,” Giroux said. “I’ve got to
move my feet better. When I move my feet, I won’t get into trouble like that.
Obviously, I was frustrated. That can’t happen.”
Did the officials over-officiate what became a terrific hockey game?
“Nah, I got to do a better job of not taking penalties,” Giroux replied.
“Penalties are not acceptable and personally, I’m pretty frustrated at myself.
The PK [penalty kill] did a good job to save me, so a big thank you to them.”
Flyers coach Craig Berube didn’t necessarily disagree with Giroux, either.
“Too many penalties in the end and we deserved them,” Berube said. “I’m not
sure on all of Giroux’s penalties, but some of the others were penalties.”
Jakub Voracek was whistled for a closed hand on a puck in the third period.
“You can’t pick a puck up with your hand,” Berube said. “Or trip a guy from
behind. That’s a penalty.”
Win streak
The Flyers have won five straight for the first time since late in the 2011-12
season (March 1-10).
Giroux streak
His point streak is now at six games. He has a goal and nine assists for 10
points. For the month of March, he has five goals and 12 assists for 17 points
in 10 games.
First for St. Louis
The loss was the Blues' first in regulation when leading after the first period,
and just their second regulation loss of the season in games where they’d
scored first. Heading into the game, St. Louis was 26-0-3 when leading after
the first period and 38-1-5 in games where they’d scored first.
Downie injury
Steve Downie will be re-evaluated Sunday after appearing to concuss
himself on the first shift when he looked behind and collided with the Blues'
Patrik Berglund. The Flyers wouldn't say whether he had whiplash or
concussion symptoms but judging from his demeanor on the ice, it would
appear to be the latter.
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Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers edge Blues, extend win streak to five
Mar. 22, 2014 4:28 PM
Dave Isaac
streak to six and marked the fourth time in his last five games that he had
multiple points.
Although the Blues tried to make a last-ditch effort, the Flyers outmuscled
them. After a faceoff win, the Flyers went up the ice and Simmonds scored on
an empty net with 2:54 left to give the Flyers a sigh of relief.
The victory gives them 83 points, padding their status in second place for the
time being. The New York Rangers, with 80 points, play against the New
Jersey Devils Saturday night.
Courier-Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
PHILADELPHIA — Perhaps their toughest week of the season, the Flyers
couldn’t look ahead to their next opponent. Once they had reeled off four
straight wins, all against teams in the playoff picture, the next test was the
NHL’s first 100-point team, the St. Louis Blues.
The fast, physical Western Conference team wasn’t enough to stop a Flyers
win streak. The Flyers stymied a powerful Blues team and won 4-1 for their
fifth consecutive victory.
The Blues’ speed was evident from the start as St. Louis came out flying.
They applied a ton of pressure early and goalie Steve Mason was there to
shut the door in the early going.
At 4:30 of the first period, the Flyers went to their first power play. Special
teams were a common thread throughout the day as referees Jean Hebert
and Francois St. Laurent called the game as if they were working on
commission. Instead of getting back in the game, the Flyers found their first
deficit.
Andrew MacDonald had pinched into the St. Louis zone to try and set up a
play and when his shot was stopped by Ryan Miller, the Blues darted the
other way on an odd-man rush. Kevin Shattenkirk passed to Jaden Schwartz,
who found the back of the net.
It appeared as though St Louis was going to have their way with the Flyers,
but Philly held them at an arm’s length for the rest of the first period and killed
a four-minute power play for the Blues.
Meanwhile, the Flyers were down a forward. Steve Downie was lost 45
seconds into the game when he turned into Patrik Berglund and rammed his
head into the Blue’s shoulder. He did not return to the game with what the
team called an upper-body injury.
The Blues committed their fourth penalty of the game in the waning seconds
of the first stanza, a Vladimir Sobotka hooking minor. Fifty-seven seconds
into the second period, the Flyers made them pay. Jake Voracek found Scott
Hartnell in the slot for his 19th goal of the season.
Hartnell’s tally highlighted a good game for the winger and seemed to turn
the tables, allowing the Flyers to pace the game for the rest of the period.
The Flyers were physical, took five more penalties in the period,
With 6:36 left in the period, the Flyers beat Miller again. Wayne Simmonds
forced a rare Blues turnover in the neutral zone and came flying in and made
the initial shot on Miller. The rebound went to Schenn, who put his 18th goal
of the season up high on Miller.
“I knew Schenner was driving so I wanted to get it off his pad,” Simmonds
said. “Luckily it worked out perfectly.”
For a team that’s not usually good in the second period, the Flyers played
perhaps their best middle stanza of the season, outscoring the Blues by two
and holding them to nine shots (and none on the power play). Of course, the
period couldn’t formally end without St. Laurent calling another penalty. He
called Claude Giroux for his fourth minor of the day, a hooking penalty as
players jostled in the faceoff circle.
The Flyers began the third period with their entire first line in the sin bin,
Hartnell and Voracek each in for roughing. For a lot of the final period, the ice
was tilted toward the Flyers’ end. Thanks in part to power plays, the Blues
owned the shot total in the third, including having the first eight of the period.
With 9:02 on the clock and the Blues on their fifth power play, Mason made
his best saves of the game. First he stopped Derek Roy first with his left pad
then again with his glove when Roy tried to put the rebound home. Mason
ended the game with 32 saves in all.
With 4:19 left, the Flyers got their insurance goal on their second shot of the
period. Hartnell forced a turnover and passed the puck to his captain. Giroux
drew two Blues to him and passed to his left to an open Voracek, who went
high on Miller for his 19th goal of the season. It extended Giroux’s point
739223
Philadelphia Flyers
Hartnell offers insight on Blues
• MacDonald getting comfortable: Now that he’s played seven games in a
Flyer uniform, Andrew MacDonald is starting to get the hang of things in
Philadelphia. Five of those seven games were wins, which is among the first
differences between the Flyers and his old team, the New York Islanders.
Mar. 22, 2014
“Obviously everything’s a lot better when you’re winning,” said MacDonald,
an unrestricted free agent to-be. “It makes a big difference. Any time you’re
putting minutes in and you’re winning, you feel like you’re contributing.”
Dave Isaac
Courier-Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
VOORHEES — It’s been more than two years since the Flyers played the St.
Louis Blues, so long that Scott Hartnell employed a few of his buddies in the
Western Conference for scouting help.
“They said they’re big, they’re physical, they play like a team,” Hartnell
reported back. “I think they manage the puck really well. They never turn the
puck over.”
Check the NHL standings for confirmation and the Blues are the best team in
the NHL with 101 points. They’re a different beast than that which the Flyers
have beaten in recent games.
The Blues are third in the league averaging 3.16 goals per game, yet they
don’t have one player in the top 30 in the NHL in scoring. Sounds like Sean
Couturier’s shutdown line may have multiple assignments against a deep
team that has scoring threats on every line.
“They’re well balanced,” Couturier said. “I think they have three or four lines
they can roll and be dangerous. As a team, we’ll have to be ready and be
ready to compete.”
Couturier’s unit has been the Flyers’ defensive weapon, but coach Craig
Berube wants all his lines to play good defense. After all, everyone will have
to play that side of the game if the Flyers are going to make the playoffs and
be successful.
“You can’t have any people not showing up and competing hard,” Berube
said. “Any team, you can’t have that.”
Berube and his players are trying the tough-love approach this weekend.
Even though the Flyers beat the Dallas Stars 4-2 Thursday, the coach said
after the game that the effort wasn’t good enough.
Through four straight wins, tying a season high, the Flyers are trying to
improve. If they can beat St. Louis and former Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock,
they’ll see it as another step in the right direction. If they win today, it will likely
be because they stepped up their effort from Thursday.
“The way they play, they’re tough to play against,” Jake Voracek said.
“They’re a big, physical team. They play good defense under Hitch. We’ll
have to battle a lot harder than we did (Thursday) to win.”
They’ll have to play more responsible team defense, too. Jamie Benn, the
Stars’ captain, controlled the pace of the game Thursday on a top heavy
Dallas team with only one real big threat of a scoring line. The Blues have
three or four. It might be a busy afternoon for goalie Steve Mason.
“They don’t have that one player that’s gonna put up points every night, but
they have a committee of players that come to compete every single game,”
Mason said. “That makes it extremely difficult to play against them. They
have 100 points already. They’re gonna be well-suited for a long playoff
drive. This is gonna be a good test for us.”
• Flyers sign Hägg to entry-level deal: A bit ahead of schedule, 2013
second-round pick defenseman Robert Hägg is coming over to North
America from his native Sweden.
Hägg, 19, agreed to terms with the Flyers on his entry-level contract and will
report to the Adirondack Phantoms Tuesday to play out the final 15 games of
the AHL schedule on a tryout.
“He progressed to the point where it sort of came up right before World
Juniors that there were some options open up for us,” GM Paul Holmgren
said. “We moved forward with it and reached an agreement.”
Don’t expect to see Hägg in a Flyers uniform next season, though. He still
has a lot of developing to do.
“I don’t want to rule anything out, but to me, that’s a stretch,” Holmgren said.
“I guess you never say never. To have him over here in North America is
good for Robert and good for the Flyers as well down the road.”
739224
Phoenix Coyotes
TV/radio: FSAZ Plus/KTAR-FM (92.3).
REMAINING REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE
Coyotes goalie Mike Smith on roll since Olympic break
Tuesday, March 25 at 4 p.m.
Coyotes at Penguins
Sarah McLellan
1:03 a.m. EDT March 23, 2014
TV: FSAZ
Thursday, March 27 at 4 p.m.
Coyotes at Devils
Coyotes goalie Mike Smith turned 32 Saturday, but it wouldn't be surprising if
he felt a little older than that.
Smith made his 11th straight start against the Boston Bruins, which ties the
second-longest streak of games he's ever played consecutively in his career.
Last season, Smith rattled off 15 starts in a row from Feb. 1 to March 4.
TV: FSAZ
Saturday, March 29 at 6 p.m.
Wild at Coyotes
TV: FSAZ
"He's in a rhythm right now that he feels real comfortable playing," coach
Dave Tippett said. "We'll try to manage his practice time, but he feels good
with his game right now and wants to play."
Tuesday, April 1 at 7 p.m.
And why wouldn't he? Smith entered the game against the Bruins with the
second-highest save percentage in the league since Feb. 1 among goalies
who've played at least 10 games with an impressive .937 showing.
TV: FSAZ Plus
The Olympic break seems to be one of the leading catalysts for this surge.
Although Smith traveled to Sochi to represent Team Canada, his action was
limited to the practice ice as he was the squad's third netminder.
Coyotes at Kings
"Being around that atmosphere, practice a little bit but not have that mental
challenge of preparing for games every second day and he came back, he's
refreshed," Tippett said. "He's played very well since then."
The Coyotes defensive play in front of Smith has also been a factor. In the 12
games since the break, the Coyotes have allowed two or fewer goals seven
times. Their shots-against have been 30 or fewer six times in that same span.
"As a group, we're playing better defensively," Tippett said. "We tried to put a
focus on that coming out of the Olympic beak and some of our practices
there. We've done a better job of just cutting shots down, cutting chances
down, playing a better defending game throughout our lineup."
No big deal
This is the first season of the new playoff format which has a pair of wild-card
spots up for grabs in each conference. Those teams will join the top-three
finishes in each division to fill out the playoff picture.
The change hasn't had too much of an effect on the Coyotes, who are
counting on one of those two wild-card berths to punch their ticket to the
postseason.
"You're vying for a playoff spot," Tippett said. "The format is a little different,
but every day when you look at the standings, you know exactly where you
stand and where you gotta get to. That part isn't that much of a change,
really. You just want one of those top eight spots."
Ice chips
Saturday's game was the 1,100th of defenseman Derek Morris' career. He's
the seventh active defenseman to reach that milestone, and 537 of those
games have come in a Coyotes uniform.
— It's unclear whether or not defenseman David Schlemko will accompany
the team on its upcoming three-game East Coast road trip. Schlemko is
currently sidelined with a lower-body injury after blocking a shot with his left
foot.
"He may travel, but I don't foresee him being a player any time soon," Tippett
said.
— Prospect Tyler Gaudet nabbed a trio of awards in the Ontario Hockey
League's Western Conference Coaches Poll for the 2013-14 season. Gaudet
was recognized as the conference's most improved player, best defensive
forward and best penalty killer.
Up next
Coyotes at Rangers
When: Monday at 4 p.m.
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York.
Jets at Coyotes
Wednesday, April 2 at 7:30 p.m.
TV: NBC Sports Network
Friday, April 4 at 7 p.m.
Oilers at Coyotes
TV: FSAZ
Coyotes at Blue Jackets
TV: FSAZ Plus
Thursday, April 10 at 5 p.m.
Coyotes at Predators
TV: FSAZ
Saturday, April 12 at 6 p.m.
Sharks at Coyotes
TV: Channel 3
Sunday, April 13 at 6 p.m.
Stars at Coyotes
TV: FSAZ
Arizona Republic LOADED: 03.23.2014
739225
Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix Coyotes unravel in third period against the Boston Bruins
"That's part of their identity of that team," Tippett said. "They try to beat you
one-on-one and we didn't win enough of those one-on-one battles at the right
time and came back to bite us."
Report
Key player: Bruins winger Jarome Iginla scored twice.
Sarah McLellan
12:53 a.m. EDT March 23, 2014
Key moment: The Bruins went ahead 3-2 in the third on a redirect from
winger Shawn Thornton at 16:42.
Key number: 30 Saves by Bruins G Tuukka Rask.
Three straight wins gave a much-needed facelift to the Coyotes playoff
hopes and their morale but if they thought prolonging this roll would be easy,
they were wrong.
One bad period sunk them the last time they challenged Boston, and that
lesson rang true in their second crack.
Three third-period goals capped off a 4-2 come-from-behind win for the
Bruins Saturday in front of 17,468 at Jobing.com Arena to push their win
streak to 12 while halting the Coyotes' modest run.
"We let them hang around," captain Shane Doan said. "Their goaltending
played well and gave them opportunities in the third period. We didn't play as
well as we did in the first. Give them credit. They found ways to win a game.
They've been doing it a lot lately."
Despite the loss, the Coyotes maintained possession of the final wild card
berth in the Western Conference (79 points) but had their lead trimmed to two
points after the Dallas Stars won earlier in the day.
That margin of error in the standings is just as slim as the one that exists in
the game. The Bruins used a pair of redirects to find the tying and go-ahead
goals in the third period before burying an empty-netter to cap off the
comeback.
"They just kept chipping away," coach Dave Tippett said. "They got a couple
goals that redirected and found their way in."
The Coyotes muscled out a 2-1 lead after going toe-to-toe with the Bruins'
intensity and physicality through the first half of the game. The Bruins scored
first when center Patrice Bergeron poked in a loose puck at 3:25 of the first
period after a failed clearing attempt by goalie Mike Smith.
But the Coyotes evened it up when Doan roofed a rebound over goalie
Tuukka Rask at 11:45 of the period for his 20th goal of the season – the 12th
time he's reached the plateau in his career.
View from the press box: Local silver medalist Lyndsey Fry was at center ice
before the game for a ceremonial puck drop. Fry became the first Arizona
native to win an Olympic medal the Winter Games when she and Team USA
grabbed silver in women's hockey. The Coyotes ownership group wants to
help grow the game at the grassroots level in the Valley, and honoring Fry
was a nice reminder of some of the players the state has already successfully
bred.
Up next
Coyotes at Rangers
When: Monday at 4 p.m.
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York.
TV/radio: FSAZ Plus/KTAR-FM (92.3).
REMAINING REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE
Tuesday, March 25 at 4 p.m.
Coyotes at Penguins
TV: FSAZ
Thursday, March 27 at 4 p.m.
Coyotes at Devils
TV: FSAZ
Saturday, March 29 at 6 p.m.
Wild at Coyotes
TV: FSAZ
"I thought our energy was good, and we were winning some one-on-one
battles the first period," Tippett said. "It looked like we had a lot of jump in our
legs the first period."
Jets at Coyotes
They scored again only 39 seconds into the second period when
defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson put on a dazzling display of individual
skill.
Wednesday, April 2 at 7:30 p.m.
He led the attack into the Bruins zone and after tucking the puck past winger
Loui Eriksson to break in alone, Ekman-Larsson gobbled up his own rebound
and buried it past Rask.
TV: NBC Sports Network
"I was looking for somebody to pass it to, and I didn't see anybody so I just
figured I would do it by myself then," Ekman-Larsson said.
TV: FSAZ Plus
Coyotes at Kings
Friday, April 4 at 7 p.m.
Oilers at Coyotes
TV: FSAZ
But the Bruins had plenty of pushback. The Coyotes were on a power play
early in the third when center Antoine Vermette took a hooking penalty. The
Bruins capitalized four-on-four when winger Jarome Iginla got a piece of a
Zdeno Chara shot at 3:48.
"Maybe push the game to 3-1 with the power play, and we turn it over and
take a penalty and boom the four-on-four goal goes in right after that," Tippett
said. "That's a key play in the game."
Thursday, April 10 at 5 p.m.
The Bruins pressure continued to come in waves, and they made it 3-2 when
winger Shawn Thornton tipped a Daniel Paille shot from the corner with 3:18
remaining past Smith, who finished with 24 saves.
TV: FSAZ
"You usually get what you deserve," Tippett said. "We didn't win enough
battles down low. Their defensemen had a lot of shots at the net, and that
comes directly from losing battles down low. That goes low to high, and it
comes back at your net."
Sharks at Coyotes
Iginla scored an empty-netter with 32 seconds left to sweep the Coyotes. The
Bruins used a pair of first-period goals to beat them 2-1 March 13.
Stars at Coyotes
Coyotes at Blue Jackets
TV: FSAZ Plus
Coyotes at Predators
Saturday, April 12 at 6 p.m.
TV: Channel 3
Sunday, April 13 at 6 p.m.
TV: FSAZ
Arizona Republic LOADED: 03.23.2014
739226
Phoenix Coyotes
No time for Coyotes to dwell on loss to NHL's best team
Craig Morgan
MAR 23, 2014 12:53a ET
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- It's fair, even necessary to talk about some of the factors
that led to the Bruins' come-from-behind 4-2 victory over the Coyotes on
Saturday at Jobing.com Arena.
When you're in a battle for a playoff spot, any lost opportunity -- any lost
points -- are hard to swallow.
"There's things we can learn from this game," coach Dave Tippett said.
But these were special circumstances because, right now, the Bruins are a
special team.
Boston was supposed to be a little travel-weary after playing Friday night in
Denver. But when Bruins entered the third period trailing 2-1 -- their first
deficit in two weeks, a stretch of 20 periods -- there was no sign of fatigue, no
sign of quit.
Jarome Iginla redirected Zdeno Chara's point shot to tie the game early in the
third period, and Shawn Thornton redirected Daniel Paille's bad-angle shot
for the game-winner in a period in which Boston was able to sustain pressure
in the offensive zone.
"We don't want any easy games. We want to get better as a team, and this
kind of game allows you to do that," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "It
showed a lot of character in the third to come back and win that. We did all
the right things. We were determined to win and it showed."
It may be of little solace to Coyotes fans, but the Bruins have been doing this
to everyone during their stunning 12-game winning streak -- two shy of the
franchise record set in the 1929-30 season.
"They're a big, heavy team that plays the right way," Tippett said. "They
challenge you with their work ethic and they challenge you in one-on-one
situations. They find ways to win games."
To beat the Bruins requires letter-perfect execution. The Coyotes had plenty
of positives to point to Saturday night. Captain Shane Doan cashed in on a
rebound of Brandon McMillan's shot to tie the score at 1-1 midway through
the first period, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson dazzled the standing-room-only
crowd of 17,468 by undressing Boston's Loui Eriksson at the blue line before
walking in on goalie Tuukka Rask to score his 12th goal of the season on his
own rebound.
"I was looking for someone to pass it, to but I didn't see anybody, so I just
figured I'd do it by myself," Ekman-Larsson said.
But Doan admitted getting caught up ice on Iginla's game-tying goal, and the
Coyotes lost a lot of one-on-one battles as the game progressed.
Those mistakes and deficiencies will be discussed as the team embarks on a
three-game trip to New York, Pittsburgh and New Jersey, but the
overwhelming sentiment after this one was to spit it out and move on. The
schedule does not afford the luxury of dwelling on the past.
"There's no time for that. We're going on a hard road trip here," Tippett said.
"You've got 11 games left. You've got to do whatever you can to get as many
points as you can if you're going to get in.
"We get our heads up and let's go. No time to be down right now."
foxsportsarizona.com LOADED: 03.23.2014
739227
Phoenix Coyotes
Coyotes can't keep Bruins from 12th straight win
Phoenix tied it when Brandon McMillan's shot from close range bounced off
Rask and Shane Doan scored to make it 1-1 with 8:15 left in the first.
It was the first time in 11 games that the Bruins have allowed a first-period
goal.
foxsportsarizona.com LOADED: 03.23.2014
MAR 22, 2014 11:42p ET
Staff Writer
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- For the first time in seven games, the Boston Bruins
actually fell behind.
It didn't last, and the third-longest win streak in franchise history is still alive.
The Bruins scored three times in the third period, the go-ahead goal by
Shawn Thornton with 3:18 to play, and Boston won its 12th in a row, 4-2 over
the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday night.
The Bruins are two shy of the franchise mark of 14 straight set in the 1929-30
season. They also have the most points in the NHL with 103, two more than
Western Conference-leading St. Louis.
They managed their third-period rally despite the fact they were playing their
second game in as many nights.
"Tonight in my mind, it showed a lot of our character," Boston coach Claude
Julien said. "We needed to show a lot of character there in the third to come
back and we did. We did all the right things and we were determined to win
and it showed."
Jarome Iginla scored his 27th and 28th goals of the season for Boston, the
second into an empty net in the final seconds.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson had a spectacular goal to put Phoenix ahead 2-1 in
the second period. Shane Doan scored the other Coyotes goal on a power
play. The loss snapped Phoenix's three-game winning streak.
Tuukka Rask, who did not play in Friday night's win at Colorado, had 30
saves for Boston. Phoenix's Mike Smith had 24.
The loss and Dallas' victory left the Coyotes two points ahead of the Stars for
the final playoff spot in the West. Dallas has a game in hand.
Phoenix had a 2-1 lead just 39 seconds into the second period thanks to
Ekman-Larsson's heroics.
He took the puck from his own blue line, then evaded two would-be
defenders, making a slick move that left Johnny Boychuk and Loui Eriksson
in a heap. Rask deflected the first shot, but Ekman-Larsson knocked the
rebound in as he sailed by the net.
"I skated it up and I was looking for someone to pass to," Ekman-Larsson
said, "but I didn't see anybody so I figured I'd do it by myself."
It ended a streak of almost 411 minutes, more than 20 periods, that the
Bruins had never trailed. It was the first time in seven games that Boston
trailed.
The Bruins turned up their trademark tough, physical play in the final period.
"They try to beat you 1-on-1," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said, "and we
didn't win enough of those 1-on-1 battles at the right times, and it came back
to bite us."
Boston tied it at 2 when Zdeno Chara's shot deflected off Iginla's hip and into
the net 3:48 into the third period.
With much of the final period played in the Coyotes zone, Boston took the
lead when Daniel Paille shot from a difficult angle to the left of the net, but it
deflected off Thornton's stick and got past Smith for the score -- only the fifth
goal of the season for the Bruins left wing.
"I'm glad it went in," Thornton said. "Everyone had a lot of chances tonight
and it was a little bit frustrating for us until then. I mean, we were creating a lot
of stuff, but nothing was going in. Happy we got rewarded for some hard work
eventually."
Boston took the lead in a hurry in the opening period.
After Smith turned the puck over, Patrice Bergeron knocked it in from a crowd
in front of the Coyotes net for his 22nd goal of the season, the puck slipping in
just past the Coyotes goalie's leg.
739228
Pittsburgh Penguins
Penguins notebook: Vokoun playing in regular-season game a possibility
(2005-06), Ryan Malone (2003-04), Aleksey Morozov (2003-04) and Jagr
(1998-99). … Craig Adams appeared in his 276th consecutive game, tying
him with Nick Harbaruk for the third-longest streak in Penguins history. Ron
Schock (313 games) and Jordan Staal (303) are the only players in franchise
history with longer streaks.
Tribune Review LOADED: 03.23.2014
Chris Adamski
While allowing that Tomas Vokoun possibly could appear in one of the
Penguins' final 12 regular-season games, coach Dan Bylsma said the
veteran goalie is still experiencing soreness and indicated the Penguins are
preparing for Marc-Andre Fleury and Jeff Zatkoff to be their postseason
goalies.
Vokoun has not played this season since the discovery of a pelvic blood clot
in September. He has been practicing with the Penguins for a month.
“Tomas has been progressing in terms of his health,” Bylsma said. “With the
ramp up in practice and number of shots he's taken, he has dealt with some
general soreness to that level, but he's not at the point where he's ready to
play a game yet. Hopefully we'll possibly work him back to that as we wind
down here.”
Bylsma termed the likelihood that Vokoun gets into a regular-season game
over the final three weeks as “a mere possibility.”
When asked if it was a priority to get Vokoun into a game prior to the
postseason, Bylsma didn't give an answer suggesting that preparing Vokoun
for the playoffs was a priority.
“We're working toward Marc-Andre getting 65 games or so, and Jeff also
carried a lot more workload in this heavy month of March.,” Bylsma said.
“There's not a three-goalie rotation.”
Fleury has played in 55 games, Zatkoff 17. Twelve regular-season games
remain.
Powerful power play
After spending much of the season holding the NHL's No. 1-ranked power
play, a recent slump had dropped the Penguins into a tie for the league lead
heading into Saturday.
A 3-for-6 performance against the Lightning vaulted them back up.
“We can't score every game, of course, and a couple games we didn't score,”
center Evgeni Malkin said. “Today, we played so much better.”
The Penguins were limited to three power-play goals in their previous seven
games. That dropped their conversion percentage to 23.9 — the same as
Washington's. After a 4-3 overtime win over Tampa Bay, the Penguins' rate
was 24.6 percent.
Malkin and Sidney Crosby each had a goal and two assists on the power play
Saturday. James Neal had a power-play goal in overtime. Defenseman Matt
Niskanen also had a power-play assist. The only player on the No. 1 unit to
get shut out of the scoresheet was Chris Kunitz, who is tied for second in the
NHL in power-play goals.
“You watch the five guys that they roll out there,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper
said, “it's not just class — it's world class.”
Assisting greatness
Zatkoff assisted on Crosby's second-period goal for his first career NHL
point. The other assist went to Malkin.
“That's a ‘Stop and watch Geno do it all,' ” Zatkoff said. “I'll take my name on
a scoresheet, though, with Geno and Sid.”
Widening the lead
When the game ended Saturday, Crosby had 94 points (34 goals, 60 assists)
and held an 18-point lead in the NHL scoring race.
The most recent time a player won the Art Ross Trophy by as wide a margin
was Jaromir Jagr in 1998-99. Jagr had 127 points for the Penguins; NHL
runner-up Teemu Selanne had 107.
Tip-ins
James Neal's overtime goal Saturday gave him three this season, tying a
franchise record he shares with Colby Armstrong (2006-07), Crosby
739229
Pittsburgh Penguins
Penguins minor league notebook: Pressure on young forwards to deliver
Jonathan Bombulie
WILKES-BARRE — The Penguins' lack of prospect depth at forward is on
display in Wilkes-Barre this season in an interesting way.
Young forwards aren't scoring much. The Baby Pens' top-six scorers up front
have at least three years' pro experience and were acquired via trade or free
agency. The leading scorer is 35-year-old Tom Kostopoulos.
But when young forwards score, the Baby Pens win.
When at least one of the team's eight first- or second-year forwards scores a
goal, the Baby Pens are 18-2-3. When they're held scoreless, the team is
16-18-5.
It's a stat that puts pressure on the young forwards to produce, which isn't
necessarily a bad step in their development.
Jayson Megna, with 26 NHL games this season, is the most accomplished of
the bunch. He has nine goals in 22 AHL games this season. Rookie Anton
Zlobin and sophomore Tom Kuhnhackl have had their moments — both had
eight goals heading into this weekend — but haven't been consistent.
Second-year pros Dominik Uher, Bobby Farnham and Adam Payerl are
known more for their physicality than their scoring. Rookies Cody Sylvester
and Carter Rowney have been with the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers for most of
the season.
“We need the younger guys to get into that act,” coach John Hynes said. “It's
something we've discussed as a team. When you get later into the season,
we feel we have real quality veteran players, and those guys have been the
core of our team throughout the year to carry us to where we are at this point,
but you need to have some secondary guys coming up.”
On the mend
Zach Sill has returned to practice for the Baby Pens, wearing a red,
no-contact jersey two months after he needed surgery to repair a skate-blade
cut to his left arm.
The gritty, 25-year-old center expects to be back in the lineup before the end
of the regular season.
“I hate the red jersey. I hate what it signifies,” Sill said. “But it is nice to be out
there with the guys.”
Where he left off
Chuck Kobasew, waived and sent down by the Penguins at the trade
deadline, carried a five-game, nine-year AHL scoring streak into this
weekend.
Kobasew hit the scoresheet in his last three games of the 2004-05 lockout
season with the AHL's Lowell Lock Monsters, spent the next eight seasons in
the NHL, then scored goals in his first two games with the Baby Pens last
weekend.
“That's what we expected from him, but he delivered,” Hynes said.
Hard to figure
Matia Marcantuoni, the Penguins' fourth-round pick in the 2012 draft, was
expected to join the Baby Pens on an amateur tryout contract this weekend.
A 6-foot, 189-pound center, Marcantuoni is an interesting prospect. The
Penguins like his speed and energy and see him as a bottom-six difference
maker someday.
His stats, however, are unimpressive. He had 15 goals, 32 points and a
minus-30 rating in 54 games for the OHL's Kitchener Rangers this season.
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Pittsburgh Penguins
Penguins' stars taking more penalties
David Golebiewski
The Penguins have suffocated opponents in short-handed situations in
2013-14, killing penalties at the second-best clip (86.2 percent) among NHL
teams. And, on the whole, the Pens have played a disciplined brand of
hockey, cutting their average penalty minutes from 11.7 per game during the
strike-shortened 2012-13 season to 10.6 minutes in 2013-14. The club has
been more lax with penalties during the New Year, though — and their
high-scoring stars are among those spending more time in the box.
The Penguins averaged less than 10 penalty minutes per game during the
fall, well below the 11.1 NHL team average this season. But that figure spiked
to nearly 14 minutes per game in early 2014. Beset by injuries and perhaps
fatigued by the extra ice time, the Pens' normally stellar penalty kill proved
mortal in January and February (73.6 percent kill rate, compared to the 82.1
percent NHL average).
The PK has received some well-deserved rest so far in March.
In the box
Month PIM/Game
October 9.7
November 9.3
December 11.5
January 13.1
February 13.8
March 8.8
NHL Avg. 11.1
Source: ESPN.com
With top penalty killer Paul Martin shelved by a broken hand and the playoffs
less than a month away, the Penguins need to avoid giving opponents the
man advantage. Sharpshooter James Neal, who served a five-game
suspension earlier this season for kneeing Boston's Brad Marchand in the
head, especially needs to keep his cool.
Neal's physical style has helped him net the sixth-highest points per game
total (1.11) in the game, but he's also spending far more time in the penalty
box.
Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz, first and 30th respectively in points per
game, also are racking up more penalty minutes. Evgeni Malkin isn't drawing
the ref's ire more often this season, but he joins Neal in the one penalty
minute per game club.
Stars sitting
2013-14 2012-13Player PIM/G PIM/G Diff.
James Neal 1.02 0.65 +0.37
Sidney Crosby 0.58 0.44 +0.14
Chris Kunitz 0.9 0.8 +0.10
Evgeni Malkin 1.00 1.16 -0.16
739231
Pittsburgh Penguins
Penguins defeat Tampa Bay, 4-3
March 22, 2014 5:08 PM
Shelly Anderson
The Penguins beat Tampa Bay for the ninth time in a row, 4-3, today at
Consol Energy Center as James Neal scored a power-play goal at 1:27 of
overtime.
The Penguins took a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 5:29 of the second
period.
Evgeni Malkin charged down the left side from his own end and set up a
one-timer blast by Sidney Crosby, who was near the top of the right circle.
Goaltender Jeff Zatkoff got an assist, his first NHL point.
Tampa Bay tied it, 1-1, also on a power play. Valtteri Filppula, in the right
circle, one-timed a cross-ice feed from Steven Stamkos at 16:44 of the
second period.
Stamkos broke the tie when he scored on a rebound at 8:17 of the third
period, giving the Lightning a 2-1 lead.
Malkin scored on a rebound, another power-play goal, to pull the Penguins
into a 2-2 tie at 11:07 of the third period.
Malkin struck again for his second goal and third point when he scored on a
short-range backhander for a 3-2 Penguins lead at 16:43 of the third period.
Ondrej Palat pulled Tampa Bay into another tie, 3-3, at 18:38 of the third
period when he got around Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta and fought off
a poke-check attempt by Zatkoff.
The Penguins have another afternoon game tomorrow, at home against St.
Louis.
Post Gazette LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Pittsburgh Penguins
"I'll take my name on a score sheet with [Malkin] and Sid."
Tip-ins
Evgeni Malkin admits game suffered after Olympics
March 23, 2014 12:00 AM
Shelly Anderson
Evgeni Malkin had gone three games in a row with no points, and he
admitted Saturday that his malaise dated to host Russia failing to medal at
the Sochi Winter Games.
"I didn't play well after the Olympics," Malkin said.
He had a breakout game Saturday with two goals, two assists and an
all-around dominant performance in the Penguins' 4-3 overtime win against
the Tampa Bay Lightning at Consol Energy Center.
The key was a pep talk from fellow Penguins center Sidney Crosby.
"I talked with Sid a little bit," Malkin said. "He helped me a lot. He can
understand my problem -- we lost -- and he supported me and helped me.
"After we talked, I felt so much better and I started to play better."
Perhaps it was paying it back, then, when Malkin's first point of the game
came when he set up Crosby on a power play for the game's first goal.
Vokoun clock ticking
Time is running out on getting goaltender Tomas Vokoun into a Penguins
game.
"Just a mere possibility at this point in time," coach Dan Bylsma said.
Vokoun has been out all season after having a procedure to dissolve a blood
clot in training camp. He has been off of blood-thinners and working out or
practicing for several weeks.
"Tomas has been progressing, is progressing in terms of his health," Bylsma
said. "With a ramp-up in practice, number of shots he's taken, he has dealt
with some general soreness. But he's not at the point where he's ready to
play a game yet. Hopefully, possibly working back to that as we wind down"
the season.
In addition, Bylsma said the team wants to stick with No. 1 goaltender
Marc-Andre Fleury and rookie backup Jeff Zatkoff, who started against
Tampa Bay.
"We're working toward Marc-Andre getting 65 games or so, and Jeff also
carrying a lot more workload in this heavy month of March than he has earlier
in the year when it was spaced out a little bit more," Bylsma said.
"There's not a three-goalie rotation."
Fleury is expected to start today against St. Louis in what would be his 56th
game. Including today, the Penguins have 12 games left in the regular
season.
Vokoun, 37, went 13-4 as Fleury's backup a season ago, then stepped in as
the starter in the playoffs when Fleury struggled. Vokoun is eligible to
become an unrestricted free agent after this season.
First point
Zatkoff didn't just get a win against Tampa Bay to improve to 12-4-1; he also
got his first NHL point when he got an assist on the opening goal of the game.
"I didn't have to do much," Zatkoff said.
The Penguins were on a power play when Malkin backtracked to the
Penguins end to retrieve the puck. Zatkoff came out from the crease to get to
the puck first, setting it up for Malkin so that he didn't have to break stride as
he turned and went the length of the ice before setting up a one-timer by
Crosby.
"I saw they were trying to go for a quick change, and [Malkin] was coming
back with a lot of speed, so I just tried to get to it, cut it off so he didn't have to
go all the way back," Zatkoff said. "He just turned up, went end-to-end and
made a great pass to Sid. You put it in his wheelhouse like that, he's going to
finish it.
Forward Josh Archibald, a Hobey Baker finalist after ranking second in the
NCAA with 29 goals for Nebraska-Omaha, signed an amateur tryout contract
with Penguins affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey
League. He was a sixth-round Penguins draft pick in 2011. ... Portland
defenseman Derrick Pouliot and Edmonton goaltender Tristan Jarry were
named first-team all-stars for their Western Hockey League conferences.
Pouliot, a Penguins first-round draft pick in 2012, also is a nominee for the
WHL defenseman of the year. Jarry, a Penguins second-round draft pick in
2013, is nominated for WHL goalie goaltender of the year. ... Penguins
winger Jussi Jokinen had an assist to reach 50 points for the fourth time in in
his career. ... Forward Craig Adams played in his 276th game in a row, tying
him for the third-longest ironman streak in Penguins history.
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Pittsburgh Penguins
The Penguins have a clear edge in home games -- and were 18-2-2 in their
previous 22 before facing Tampa Bay Saturday -- but will face a pretty
formidable lineup of Western Conference powers at Consol Energy Center.
On the Penguins: James Neal's what-if season
The Blues, Kings and Blackhawks all are legitimate threats to claim the
Stanley Cup this spring.
March 22, 2014 8:15 PM
Boston, meanwhile, should face some good tests on the road from the likes
of the Flyers and the Wild, but away games haven't particularly troubled them
so far in 2013-14; Boston went 19-10-3 in its first 32 away games.
Dave Molinari
The week ahead
This is not, on several levels, the kind of season James Neal was expecting
to have.
Or wanted, for that matter.
There surely was nothing on his to-do list last September about sitting out 23
of the Penguins' first 67 games, including Nos. 2-16 after logging less than
four minutes of ice time in the regular-season opener Oct. 3.
Later, there would be a five-game suspension for intentionally kneeing
Boston's Brad Marchand in the head, as well as a single-game absence in
mid-January and the two he sat out last weekend because of a concussion.
Can't be easy for a guy to get into a rhythm when he's moving in and out of
the lineup, especially when the linemate with whom Neal has such an
obvious chemistry, Evgeni Malkin, has missed 11 games himself.
None of which coincided with any of the games for which Neal was unable to
dress.
So perhaps it's even more impressive than it might seem at first blush that
Neal put up 22 goals in his first 46 games, which projects to 39 over a full,
82-game season, even though he took a seven-game drought into the
Penguins' game against Tampa Bay Saturday.
And it is pretty compelling evidence that Neal has the potential, under more
favorable circumstances, to be a 50-goal man in some future season.
"I'd like to think so," he said recently. "Going into this year, in your head, you
want to have that as a realistic goal. Every hockey player wants to score 50
goals in the NHL.
"It goes out of your grasp when you miss 20 games at the start of the year.
That was tough."
Defenseman Matt Niskanen, Neal's teammate in Dallas before they were
traded to the Penguins for Alex Goligoski in 2011, believes it's a realistic
objective.
"The potential is there," he said. "That would be quite an accomplishment.
That year he scored 40, he had a few streaks where it seemed like everything
he shot went in.
"You can call it luck, but it's funny how some of the same guys always get
lucky. He'd have to have a really good year, he'd have things go his way, but
he could do it."
The stretch drive in the East
If Boston persists in cobbling together double-digit winning streaks like the
one it took into the weekend, there won't be much reason to assess what's
left on the Bruins' schedule.
Or, for that matter, that of the Penguins', since it would require a complete
implosion for them to drop any lower than second place in the Eastern
Conference standings.
Nonetheless, the Penguins still have a mathematical possibility of overtaking
Boston and claiming the No. 1 seed in the Eastern playoffs, so here's a look
at the home-and-away opponents remaining for both clubs:
PENGUINS
Home (8) -- St. Louis, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Chicago, Carolina, Detroit,
Philadelphia, Ottawa.
Away (4) -- Columbus, Winnipeg, Minnesota, Colorado.
BRUINS
Home (4) -- Montreal, Chicago, Philadelphia, Buffalo.
Away (7) -- Washington, Philadelphia, Detroit, Toronto, Minnesota,
Winnipeg, New Jersey.
Today: vs. St. Louis ... The Blues were a viable threat to win the Stanley Cup
before they added goalie Ryan Miller. Having him on the payroll hasn't hurt
their chances any.
Tuesday: vs. Phoenix ... Perhaps the Coyotes' talent is underestimated every
year. Or maybe coach Dave Tippett really is that good at consistently getting
the very most his players have to give.
Thursday: vs. Los Angeles ... The Kings won't rise any higher than third place
in the Pacific Division, but their team defense is as stingy as any in the NHL.
Friday: at Columbus ... Clawing their way into the playoffs would be a huge
step in the rebuilding of the Blue Jackets.
739234
San Jose Sharks
Sharks aim to carry momentum from win over Anaheim Ducks
David Pollak
03/22/2014 01:05:58 PM PDT
SAN JOSE -- The Sharks say they're plenty motivated to avoid any emotional
letdown when they face the Washington Capitals on Saturday night after the
high-profile win over the Anaheim Ducks 48 hours earlier that boosted them
into first place in the Pacific Division.
"Let's face it," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said, "if we don't perform well
tonight and don't live up to our end of the bargain, whatever we did two days
ago doesn't matter anymore."
The Sharks could clinch their 2014 playoff spot as early as Saturday night
and it will be their 10th in a row -- a streak second only to the Detroit Red
Wings in the NHL.
Players reflected on that after the morning skate.
"It builds up pride in that commitment the team has," Patrick Marleau said.
"When new players come in they know what's expected of them. That bar is
set -- you're a team that's always in the playoffs and you have to bring it every
night and do the things that it takes to be a winning team to get in the
playoffs."
Captain Joe Thornton reflected on the past, but looked forward when it came
to the decade of playoff presence that goes back to 2003-04,
"It's a model of consistency," Thornton said. "Ownership and management
definitely deserve a pat on the back, but we've got bigger and better things
we want to accomplish here this year. It's just not about tonight, but a couple
months down the road."
Antti Niemi will be in goal for the Sharks who are facing a Washington team
battling for an Eastern Conference playoff spot. Highly motivated, the
Capitals have had more success on their California trip than most teams,
beating the Anaheim Ducks and losing in overtime to the Los Angeles Kings
before coming to San Jose.
"We're in a position where we can't lose," said Washington superstar
Alexander Ovechkin. "Lose and it can cost us the playoffs. This group of guys
understands that."
Ovechkin leads the league with 46 goals, but the last five have come on a
power play that is tied for best in the NHL with a 23.9 percent success rate.
Ovechkin hasn't scored at even strength since Feb. 27.
The Sharks know the danger he represents though as Washington's lone
goal in a 2-1 shootout loss to San Jose on Jan. 14 was by Ovechkin at even
strength.
"Obviously he shoots the puck, and his ability to shoot the puck is uncanny,"
Thornton said. "He's just so powerful. He just bulldozes his way through
things, and just a complete power forward."
San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739235
San Jose Sharks
Holtby was an unexpected starter for Washington after Jaroslav Halak
developed a lower body injury. It was his first start since March 6.
Washington Capitals beat San Jose Sharks in shootout
Sharks forward Raffi Torres missed his seventh game with general soreness,
much of it in his surgically repaired right knee. Tyler Kennedy and Matt
Tennyson were also scratches for San Jose.
David Pollak
MONDAY'S GAME
03/22/2014
Sharks (46-18-8) at Calgary (29-35-7), 6 p.m. CSNCA
San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 03.23.2014
SAN JOSE -- Players and coaches call it puck luck, and it worked against the
Sharks on Saturday night.
The only two shots that got past San Jose goalie Antti Niemi bounced off his
own teammates as the Sharks dropped a 3-2 shootout decision to the
Washington Capitals that forced San Jose to postpone its playoff clinching
for at least another 48 hours.
"Sometimes it doesn't go your way," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said. "Not
much we can do about it. You play 82 games, you're going to have some of
those bounces."
Washington won the game on a pair of shootout goals by forwards Evgeny
Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom. Patrick Marleau was the only Shark to
score in the skills competition as Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski each
missed against Capitals goalie Braden Holtby, a surprise starter.
But the two goals that forced the game into overtime and then a shootout
each caught Niemi by surprise, the first when a clearing attempt by Justin
Braun hit Matt Nieto's skate and caromed in the opposite direction, the
second when a shot by Chris Brown ricocheted off both Nieto and Dan Boyle.
Capitals forward Eric Fehr was credited with the first goal, while Patrick
Marleau and James Sheppard scored for San Jose. The shootout loss ended
a string of seven straight San Jose victories in the one-on-one competition
and also reversed a trend for Washington, which had lost its last five.
The Sharks realized that bad bounces weren't the only reason they came
away with only one point.
"Two strange goals, but we really didn't have too much sustained time in their
zone," Sharks captain Joe Thornton said. "Their 'D' were quick to close on us,
and they were hard on pucks. They're a desperate team."
With the two points, Washington stayed in the thick of the Eastern
Conference playoff race.
McLellan was concerned before the game that his team might suffer an
emotional letdown, having invested so heavily in that 3-2 victory over the
Anaheim Ducks that moved the Sharks into first place in the Pacific Division.
But afterward, he seemed satisfied with his team's effort.
The Sharks fell behind midway through the first period when a shot by Fehr
wound up just outside the crease, and Braun's defensive move went awry at
11:25.
A turnover behind his own net by Washington defenseman Mike Green
helped the Sharks tie the game with just 5.6 seconds remaining in the first
period. Nieto came away with the puck, and while Holtby made the initial
save, the puck ended up on Marleau's stick, and he found an opening for his
30th goal of the season.
Neither team scored in a second period with the Sharks coming closest when
Marty Havlat snapped off a 47-foot shot that hit the right goal post.
San Jose took its first lead of the night at 5:07 of the third period on a strong
solo effort by Sheppard, who blocked a shot, then broke down the ice all
alone for a backhand shot that beat Holtby through the five hole.
But the Capitals came back to tie the game at 12:30 when rookie Brown
scored his first NHL goal on a shot from the slot that sneaked past Niemi after
bouncing off the two Sharks.
The Sharks had a chance to win the game in regulation when Capitals
superstar Alexander Ovechkin took a minor penalty for high-sticking
Marc-Edouard Vlasic. But Holtby managed to stop the four shots that
reached him.
The loss was San Jose's first at home to the Capitals since Oct. 30, 1993 -- a
two-decade span that saw the Sharks go 11-0-0 with one tie.
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San Jose Sharks
Capitals defeat Sharks in shootout
Ross McKeon
11:51 pm, Saturday, March 22, 2014
The Sharks' clinching party was delayed Saturday night.
Nicklas Backstrom and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored in the shootout as the
Washington Capitals won 3-2 at SAP Center on a night when two points in
the standings would have given San Jose a 10th straight Stanley Cup playoff
berth.
Instead, their one point enabled the Sharks to take a three-point lead over
idle Anaheim in the Pacific Division and left them three behind the Boston
Bruins in the race for the President's Trophy.
"We probably should have won the game, but we didn't," captain Joe
Thornton said. "We just have to continue getting points. With 10 games left,
every point is going to be important from here on in."
It was a particularly frustrating night considering that both Washington goals
in regulation deflected in off San Jose defensemen. The Sharks rallied from
an early one-goal deficit only to permit the game-tying goal late in the third
period. And after going on a power play with just over two minutes left, San
Jose failed to convert despite keeping its No. 1 unit on the ice for the entire
advantage.
"They got a couple of lucky bounces on those goals you don't usually see,
especially in a (2-2) game," Sharks forward James Sheppard said.
"Sometimes that happens."
Sheppard scored his third goal of the season on a breakaway at 5:07 of the
third period to give the hosts a 2-1 lead. A whirling attempt by Washington's
Jason Chimera from the boards struck Sheppard in the skates, and he raced
in alone before beating Capitals goalie Braden Holtby with a backhand shot
between the pads on the Sharks' first shot of the period.
But the Capitals scored their second goal off a Sharks defender to tie it at
12:30. Tom Wilson separated Scott Hannan from the puck behind the goal,
and Dustin Penner passed out front to Chris Brown, whose first NHL goal
caromed off Dan Boyle and past Antti Niemi.
"It was just one of those nights puck bounces were not going our way,"
Sharks rookie forward Matt Nieto said.
Washington had the only five shots of overtime.
In the shootout, Patrick Marleau was the only Shark to score.
San Jose outshot Washington 16-6 during a scoreless second period in
which the hosts dictated play mostly, but couldn't take advantage on the
power play.
The Sharks piled up seven shots on two power plays in the first eight minutes
of the period. In addition, Martin Havlat rang a drive off the goal post late in
San Jose's second 5-on-4. Washington came into the game with 14 straight
penalty kills over its past four games.
The Sharks scored with 5.6 seconds left to escape with a 1-1 tie in the
opening period. Nieto intercepted a pass by Mike Green and fed Marleau for
his 30th goal of the season.
A miscue by the San Jose defense earlier in the period allowed the visitors to
score first. Justin Braun turned the puck over behind the net, allowing the
Capitals to cycle before Eric Fehr eventually put a soft shot on Niemi, who
made a right pad save. But Braun's clearing attempt ricocheted off Nieto's leg
and into the goal at 11:25. Fehr was credited with his 12th goal.
San Francisco Chronicle LOADED: 03.23.2014
739237
San Jose Sharks
Sharks hope to avoid emotional letdown vs. Caps
March 22, 2014, 12:30 pm
Staff Writer
The Sharks re-claimed first place in the Pacific on Brent Burns' game-winning
goal against the Ducks. (USATSI)
Programming note: Capitals-Sharks coverage starts tonight at 7 p.m. with
Sharks Pregame Live, only on Comcast SportsNet California
SAN JOSE -- The Sharks’ win over Anaheim on Thursday was as emotional
a victory as the club has had all season. Several players said the battle for
first place in the Pacific Division was the biggest game of the season, and the
way they won – scoring two third period goals to turn a deficit into a lead –
only added to the sense of triumph afterwards.
Duplicating that passion against the Capitals could be difficult, as
Washington isn’t exactly a heated rival. But, it will probably be necessary, as
the Caps are fighting for a playoff spot and are 3-0-1 in their last four games.
“If you lose tonight, Thursday’s game means nothing,” Joe Thornton said.
“We realize how big these points are, and we realize how big a game tonight
is for those guys over there.”
Todd McLellan said: “Let's face it, if we don't perform well tonight and don't
live up to our end of the bargain, whatever we did two days ago doesn't
matter anymore. We've already started this homestand with a bit of a letdown
against Florida (a 3-2 loss on Tuesday) where we didn't play well enough for
most of the game to give ourselves a chance to win. Now, Washington, on
the other hand, they'll be hungry.”
San Jose will have to continue to do something it’s done well all season, and
stay out of the penalty box. The Sharks have been shorthanded just 187
times, a league low.
Washington’s power play enters ranked second in the league, but lately it’s
been scorching hot. The Capitals are 14-for-38 over the last 12 games (36.8
percent), and have at least one power play goal in five of the last seven
games. Alex Ovechkin leads the league with 20 power play goals, and
Nicklas Backstrom’s 39 power play points is also tops in the NHL.
The Sharks penalty kill allowed a power play goal to Anaheim on Thursday,
ending a streak of 15 straight kills over the previous six games.
“Their power play alone can win them games,” McLellan said. “They move
the puck so well, they’ve got trigger men all over the place on that power play,
and if you spend a lot of time in the penalty box, no matter how good your
penalty kill is, they’ll eventually get one by you. That’s a huge, huge factor for
us.”
Thornton said: “They’re deadly. Just stay disciplined and stay out of the box
is going to be one of the keys tonight.”
Washington has not won a game in San Jose since Oct. 30, 1993, going
0-11-1 over that span. Overall, the Caps have lost 18 of their last 19 to the
Sharks, including a 2-1 San Jose win in a shootout at Verizon Center on Jan.
14.
***
Antti Niemi will oppose Jaroslav Halak in net. Halak, who went from the Blues
to the Sabres to Washington this season, will be making his eighth straight
start.
In seven games with Washington, Halak is 4-2-1 with an impressive 2.13
goals-against average and .935 save percentage.
Niemi leads the league with 35 wins, tying his career high, and is 4-0-1 with a
1.75 GAA and .938 SP career vs. Washington.
739238
San Jose Sharks
Sharks proud of playoff streak, but want more
March 22, 2014, 12:15 pm
Staff Writer
Programming note: Capitals-Sharks coverage starts tonight at 7 p.m. with
Sharks Pregame Live, only on Comcast SportsNet California
SAN JOSE -- The Sharks are on the verge of making the postseason for the
10th straight season, and it could become official as soon as Saturday night
when they host the Capitals.
The magnitude of that feat isn’t lost on the one player who has been here for
all of them, Patrick Marleau.
“It builds up pride, and [shows] the commitment that a team has,” Marleau
said. “When new players come in, it’s expected of them. That bar is set that
you’re a team that’s always in the playoffs. You have to bring it each and
every night, and do the things that it takes to get in the playoffs.”
Captain Joe Thornton is in his ninth season with the Sharks, joining the club
early in 2005-06, one season into the streak which was interrupted by the lost
lockout season of 2004-05.
Thornton said: “It’s a model of consistency. Ownership and management
definitely deserve a pat on the back, but we’ve got bigger and better things
we want to accomplish here this year. It’s just not about tonight, but a couple
months down the road.”
Thornton and the Sharks, of course, have yet to make an appearance in the
Stanley Cup Final in franchise history. Todd McLellan, who has never missed
the postseason in 19 years of coaching at various levels and in different
positions, will have taken the Sharks to the playoffs in each of his six seasons
here.
He’s more focused on playing until late May and early June, than making a
big deal out of just qualifying.
“Just getting there, getting to the race and to the tournament isn't what we set
out to do,” he said. “Obviously, finishing it is the ultimate goal. But, to get
there 10 years in a row in a cap-type league where it's tough to win every
year, is a remarkable feat. Obviously, Detroit doing it for many more years is
the measuring tool, but for us to be able to do that, we're proud of that, of
course."
The Red Wings have been in the playoffs for 22 straight seasons, including
when McLellan was an assistant coach there from 2005-06 to 2007-08.
Detroit is currently one point out of the final wild card spot in the Eastern
Conference.
739239
San Jose Sharks
Marcus Johansson – Jay Beagle – Alex Ovechkin
Evgeny Kuznetsov – Nicklas Backstrom – Troy Brouwer
In the Crease: Desperate Caps visit Sharks
Jason Chimera – Eric Fehr – Joel Ward
Dustin Penner – Chris Brown – Tom Wilson
March 22, 2014, 9:45 am
Karl Alzner – John Carlson
Staff Writer
Jack Hillen – Mike Green
Dmitri Orlov – Patrick Wey
The latest
Jaroslav Halak
Sharks: The Sharks moved into sole possession of first place in the Pacific
Division with a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday. Joe Thornton
and Brent Burns scored third period goals to erase a 2-1 deficit and give San
Jose its 11th win in the last 14 games (11-2-1). San Jose will visit Calgary
and Edmonton on Monday-Tuesday next week, and will then play five of its
final eight regular season games at home, where it is 26-5-4.
Braden Holtby
Capitals: Washington is in danger of missing the playoffs, sitting one point
behind Columbus for the final wild card spot, but is 3-0-1 in its last four
games. The Capitals are wrapping up a tour of California, after beating
Anaheim on Tuesday, 3-2, and losing in a shootout to the Kings on Thursday,
2-1. To say Washington’s power play is hot is an understatement – it is
14-for-38 in the last 12 games (36.8 percent).
Keep an eye on…
Sharks: Joe Thornton. His three-point effort a bit overshadowed by Brent
Burns’ game on Thursday, the Sharks captain is once again tied with Sidney
Crosby for the league lead in assists with 58. He set up Patrick Marleau’s first
period power play goal for his first point on a man advantage since Jan. 20.
Thornton has three goals and 10 assists in 12 games after the break.
Capitals: Evgeny Kuznetsov. The highly touted prospect made his NHL
debut on March 10, and has five assists in his first six games. He has yet to
score his first goal, although he converted in the shootout against the Kings
on Thursday. The Russian native was Washington’s first round pick (26th
overall) in 2010.
Vitals
Sharks
Goals per game: 2.94 (7th)
Goals-against per game: 2.32 (4th)
Power play: 16.1 percent (22nd)
Penalty kill: 84.5 percent (7th)
Capitals
Goals per game: 2.78 (14th)
Goals-against per game: 2.86 (22nd)
Power play: 23.9 percent (2nd)
Penalty kill: 81.4 percent (18th)
Probable lines
Sharks
Joe Pavelski – Joe Thornton – Brent Burns
Patrick Marleau – Logan Couture – Matt Nieto
Marty Havlat – James Sheppard – Tommy Wingels
Tyler Kennedy – Andrew Desjardins – Adam Burish
Marc-Edouard Vlasic – Jason Demers
Scott Hannan – Dan Boyle
Matt Irwin – Justin Braun
Antti Niemi
Alex Stalock
Capitals
Injuries/Scratches
Sharks: Tomas Hertl (right knee surgery) and Raffi Torres (right knee) are
out. Brad Stuart (upper body) is questionable.
Capitals: Aaron Volpatti (upper body), Mikhail Grabovski (sprained ankle),
John Erskine (upper body) and Brooks Laich (groin) are out.
Season/All-Time series
Washington has not won in San Jose since Oct. 30, 1993, going 0-11-1 over
that span.
San Jose won the only earlier meeting this season, 2-1 in a shootout, and is
17-1-0 in its last 18 games against the Capitals. The Sharks are 22-9-0
all-time vs. Washington, with one tie.
Quoteable
“We’ve still got a long way to go before playoffs start, and a lot of points out
there we need to get still.” – Logan Couture
739240
San Jose Sharks
Sharks suffer hard-luck shootout loss to Capitals
March 22, 2014, 11:15 pm
Kevin Kurz
SAN JOSE – It’s impossible to pinpoint any single area of the Sharks’ game
that was below par in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Capitals on Saturday night at
SAP Center.
The power play went 0-for-3, but the top unit looked strong, and generated
several good opportunities in the closing minutes of the third period with Alex
Ovechkin in the penalty box.
Antti Niemi allowed two goals, but could not be faulted for either one, as they
both deflected off of Sharks bodies in what can only be considered bad luck.
Offensively, the Sharks outshot Washington 36-25, and defensively the
penalty kill remained sharp as a tack, and has now allowed only one goal in
its last eight games. Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom had hardly any impact
on the game.
Sure, the Sharks failed to clinch a playoff spot and a share of the overall
points lead in the Western Conference, but after Thursday’s emotional win
against Anaheim, their effort and execution against an improving Capitals
team was nothing to be ashamed of.
“Did we accomplish what we set out to do? Score-wise, we didn’t, but did a lot
of things that we talked about before the game,” coach Todd McLellan said. “I
thought we played pretty solid defensively against a pretty good offensive
team. They like to run-and-gun, and go after you. The goals were just puck
luck. Sometimes it doesn’t go your way.”
James Sheppard, whose third period goal gave the Sharks their first lead of
the night, said: “They got a couple lucky goals. Those bounces you don’t see
too often, especially two in one game.”
Sheppard’s breakaway conversion was the highlight of the night for the home
team. The current third line center has two goals, eight assists and a +8
rating in his last 14 games after failing to hold down a spot on the active
roster for the first half of the season.
He snuck a backhander through Braden Holtby, breaking a 1-1 tie about five
minutes into the final frame. The play started in his own zone, though, when
he blocked a Jason Chimera shot near the blue line.
“They were trying to swing it to the net, luckily [got] in front of it and just had
some momentum to get down the ice,” Sheppard said. “Luckily, I got it
through his five-hole.”
McLellan said: “[The key to that] is being in the shooting lane and
backchecking to the right spot, and willing to get hit with the puck and go the
other way. That gives you a sense of what coaches look at, and even what
his teammates look at. They’ll look to the blocked shot, and then the goal.”
Chris Brown tied it on a puck that deflected off of Matt Nieto and Dan Boyle
with 7:30 to go in regulation. In the first period, Eric Fehr was credited with a
goal when Justin Braun tried sweeping a puck out of the crease, but right into
Nieto’s leg and in the net.
Nieto generated the Sharks’ first goal with less than five seconds left the first
period, taking advantage of a bad Mike Green turnover and making a strong
move to the blue paint that resulted in Patrick Marleau’s 30th marker of the
season. That tied it at 1-1.
“As for the bounces, those are unfortunate,” Nieto said. “These kind of things
happen so fast, you can’t really react to them. I thought we played solid.”
The Sharks still lead the NHL with 10 shootout wins, but saw their string of
seven straight tiebreaking wins come to an end. There was some satisfaction
with earning their 100th point in the standings, though, now three ahead of
idle Anaheim.
“We played well,” Joe Thornton said. “We probably should have won the
game, but we didn’t. We’ve just got to continue getting points. With 10 games
left, every point’s going to be important from here on in.”
739241
San Jose Sharks
Instant Replay: Sharks stumble vs. Capitals, lose in SO
Marleau reached the 30-goal plateau for the seventh time in his career. He
has eight goals and five assists for 13 points in his last 14 games.
The Sharks iced the same lineup that they did against Anaheim.
Up next
March 22, 2014, 9:45 pm
Kevin Kurz
The Sharks visit Calgary and Edmonton on Monday and Tuesday.
San Jose has 10 games left on its schedule, five each at home and on the
road.
Tags:
SAN JOSE – Chris Brown’s goal in the third period tied it, and the
Washington Capitals went on to a 3-2 shootout win over the Sharks on
Saturday night at SAP Center.
The Sharks would have clinched a playoff spot with a win, after Phoenix lost
in regulation to Boston earlier in the night. They managed to move three
points ahead of Anaheim for first place in the Pacific Division, but the idle
Ducks now have two games in hand.
Washington won in San Jose for the first time since Oct. 30, 1993 (1-11-1).
James Sheppard’s one-man effort gave the Sharks their first lead early in the
third. The forward blocked a Jason Chimera shot just inside his own blue line,
and raced ahead with an unobstructed view of goaltender Braden Holtby.
Sheppard went to his backhand and slipped it through Holtby’s five-hole at
5:07 for his third goal in 57 games.
A pinballing puck off of the stick of Brown tied it with 7:30 to go in regulation.
Playing in his 14th career game, Brown’s shot from the slot hit Matt Nieto and
then Dan Boyle before finding the goal.
Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom scored in the skills competition for
the Capitals, with Backstrom’s goal the decider. The Sharks had won their
previous seven straight shootouts, while Washington had dropped five in a
row.
The Sharks had a chance to take the lead late in the third when Alex
Ovechkin went off for high-sticking Marc-Edoaurd Vlasic, who seemed to be
a target all night. Holtby held the fort during a dangerous Sharks power play,
forcing overtime with some good saves on a pair of Logan Couture attempts.
San Jose’s penalty kill remained effective, denying the Capitals on three
power plays. Washington entered with the league’s second best power play
percentage, and had scored 10 man advantage goals in its last nine games.
The Sharks gifted Washington a 1-0 lead. Antti Niemi stopped Joel Ward’s
shot with his right pad, and Justin Braun was in position to clear it out of the
crease. Instead, Braun shot the puck into Nieto’s leg, and it deflected into the
open cage at 11:25. Fehr was credited with his 12th goal.
Nieto helped generate the tying goal late in the first, when Matt Green turned
it over to him behind the Washington net. Nieto wheeled the puck around to
the front where Holtby sealed off the post, but Patrick Marleau popped in the
loose puck with less than six seconds remaining. Marleau’s goal was his 30th
on the year.
San Jose won the first meeting of the two teams, 2-1 in a shootout on Jan.
14. The Sharks finished with a 21-7-4 mark against Eastern Conference
teams, including 10-3-3 against the Metropolitan Division.
Special teams
After scoring one power play goal in each of their last two games, the Sharks
had three opportunities with a man advantage, and did not convert. The
Capitals were also 0-for-3.
San Jose has killed off 19 of the last 20 power play chances against over the
last eight games.
In goal
Niemi was credited with 23 saves on 25 shots, and could not be faulted on
either of Washington’s goals.
Jaroslav Halak appeared set to start the game for Washington, but he
instead acted as backup after a reported lower body injury. Halak had started
the previous eight games for the Capitals after a trade with Buffalo.
Holtby made 34 saves.
Lineup
Top Stories, SAN JOSE Sharks, Washington Capitals, NHL, Kevin Kurz,
instant replay
739242
St Louis Blues
Michael Raffl-Adam Hall-Zac Rinaldo
Defensemen
Colaiacovo returns to Blues' lineup today; Leopold ready soon
Kimmo Timonen-Braydon Coburn
Nicklas Grossmann-Mark Streit
Jeremy Rutherford
Luke Schenn-Andy MacDonald
Goalie
PHILADELPHIA • Defensemen Carlo Colaiacovo will be back in the Blues'
lineup today against Philadelphia, marking only the fifth time he'll suit up in
the team's last 30 games.
Steve Mason
In his last outing, Colaiacovo scored his first goal of the season in a 3-2
shootout win over Minnesota on March 9.
FRIENDLY FOES
"I've liked his game," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We've got to see if he
can handle it endurance-wise. But one thing about Carlo, he really moves the
puck and we're playing against teams that are hard on the forecheck — these
next two teams — so we need people who can transition it quickly and we
want to give him a go."
The indication from Hitchcock was that Colaiacovo could play in today's
game against Philadelphia and Sunday's game against Pittsburgh. But the
Blues will also have Jordan Leopold ready soon.
Leopold was set to return from a high-ankle sprain last Monday against
Winnipeg, but he came down with the flu.
"I got home from Nashville and on the ride home, after we landed, it hit me
like a ton of bricks," Leopold said. "I had 102 (degree) fever and I was in bed
for two straight days."
Leopold obviously did not travel to Chicago with the Blues Wednesday. The
team was off Thursday, but he was on the ice for Friday's practice. He's ready
to play when the coaching staff calls on him.
To say the least, it's been a trying season for Leopold, who missed 26 games
with a hand injury that required surgery, 10 with a high-ankle sprain and two
more with the flu.
"You can't make this up," he said. "It's funny because many years ago when I
played in Colorado, I had the same thing, injury after injury. When I was
ready to come back, I ended up getting pneumonia. It's like deja vu for me.
It's completely frustrating. I can't hide that fact."
In other lineup changes today, Chris Porter and Magnus Paajarvi will replace
Maxim Lapierre and Brenden Morrow.
***
BLUES' PROJECTED LINEUP
Forwards
T.J. Oshie-Alexander Steen-David Backes
Jaden Schwartz-Vladimir Sobotka-Patrik Berglund
Magnus Paajarvi-Derek Roy-Steve Ott
Dmitrij Jaskin-Chris Porter-Ryan Reaves
Defensemen
Jay Bouwmeester-Alex Pietrangelo
Barret Jackman-Kevin Shattenkirk
Carlo Colaiacovo-Roman Polak
Goalie
Ryan Miller
***
FLYERS' PROJECTED LINEUP
Forwards
Scott Hartnell-Claude Giroux-Jakub Voracek
Vincent Lecavalier-Brayden Schenn-Wayne Simmonds
Matt Read-Sean Couturier-Steven Downie
***
Today will mark the Blues' first game against Philadelphia since October
2011. The clubs might not be familiar with one another, but the coaches are.
Flyers coach Craig Berube played for Hitchcock in Kamloops of the Western
Hockey League in 1985-86. He played for him again in 1990-91 when
Hitchcock was an assistant coach with Philadelphia. In 2006-07, they worked
together when Hitchcock was the head coach of the Flyers and Berube was
head coach of the Phantoms, the team's top American Hockey League
affiliate.
Asked this week by reporters to compare his personality to Hitchcock's,
Berube quipped: "Mine's better."
***
ODDS & ENDS
• The Blues are 3-0-2 in their last five games against Philadelphia. Their
team's last loss to the Flyers in regulation was Dec. 17, 2005.
• Blues goalie Ryan Miller, who will be today's starter, has faced Philadelphia
once this season. While with Buffalo, he allowed three goals in a 4-1 loss on
Nov. 21.
• Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux, who has 15 points in March, has one
assist in four career games against the Blues. They are the only NHL team
he has not scored a goal against.
• On Friday, the Blues announced the signing of defenseman Petteri
Lindbohm to a three-year, entry-level contract. Lindbohm, 20, was drafted by
the club in the sixth round (176th overall) in 2012.
St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 03.23.2014
739243
St Louis Blues
Bluenotes: Blues seeking return to team strengths
Jeremy Rutherford
PHILADELPHIA • Two areas of strength for the Blues this season were a
no-show again Saturday in a 4-1 loss to Philadelphia.
The Blues have had one of the league’s top five-on-five offenses, and they’ve
also possessed one of the more productive power plays this season.
But excluding an empty-net goal by David Backes against Winnipeg last
week, the Blues have only one five-on-five goal in their last three games.
Meanwhile they’ve netted just one power-play goal on 13 chances in their
last three games, including zero for six on Saturday.
“Our level of determination in the offensive zone isn’t what it’s going to need
to be to beat great goaltending,” Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. “You’re
going to have to find a way to get to a much higher level to compete in the
offensive zone. That shows up on the power play, too. There’s too many
pucks getting turned over on the power play. We’re getting outworked by the
penalty killers. Then we’re getting outworked by the goalie.
“I think we got lots of zone time, but not at the level we need to if you’re going
to get into a playoff series and expect to outwork somebody who’s playing
well in goal.”
Jaden Schwartz, who led the Blues with a career-high seven shots Saturday
and scored the team’s lone goal shorthanded, said the team hasn’t been
consistent enough at even strength.
“I think we’re aggressive in pursuing, but we’re not doing it for 60 minutes,”
Schwartz said. “There’s lapses where we’re not doing it.”
Trailing 2-1 in the third period, the Blues’ power-play unit had three
opportunities to tie the game but couldn’t convert.
“Who knows if we score a couple of those on the power play, make it 3-2,
maybe the momentum is different,” Backes said. “But the little daylight gives
them tons of hope.”
LINEUP CHANGES
Hitchcock indicated that he might alter the lineup this weekend, looking for
speed and puck pursuit against Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. He did so on
Saturday, swapping in Magnus Paajarvi and Chris Porter for Brenden
Morrow and Maxim Lapierre.
In his first action after missing three games with an upper-body injury,
Paajarvi played 10 minutes 36 seconds against the Flyers.
“(Friday) was a really good day for me, so I said I was ready after practice,”
he said.
Morrow’s healthy scratch was his second in five games; it was the first for
Lapierre, who missed 10 games earlier this year due to injury and a
suspension.
TOO MANY PENALTIES?
Although there were 18 minor penalties called in Saturday’s game, Backes
believed there could have been more.
“Not criticizing the refs, but it seems like those guys are already getting into
that playoff mode where they’ve got two teams that are heavy and physical
(and) they want the players to decide the game,” he said. “We need to be
able to play with those hard physical teams with not so many penalties
called.”
BLUENOTES
T.J. Oshie, who blocked a shot with his right hand in the third period but
returned to the game, appeared to be OK afterwards. ... In addition to Morrow
and Lapierre, defensemen Ian Cole and Jordan Leopold were healthy
scratches on Saturday.
739244
St Louis Blues
Blues stumble again in loss to Flyers
Chris Porter was attempting to pass the puck through the neutral zone,
moving it ahead to teammate Ryan Reaves. But Simmonds intercepted the
dish and headed back the other way, eventually putting a shot on Miller’s
pads.
The long rebound caromed to Schenn, who beat Miller easily for the
go-ahead goal with 6:36 remaining in the second period.
Jeremy Rutherford
PHILADELPHIA • The Blues were aware of the degree of difficulty in their
four-game road trip, but this might be more than they expected.
The visitors fell 4-1 to the Philadelphia Flyers in a Saturday matinee at the
Wells Fargo Center, dropping to 0-2 on the trip.
The Blues broke out of a scoring slump that saw them shut out in Chicago on
Wednesday in the first game of the trip. But despite outshooting Philadelphia
33-19, they had only a shorthanded goal by Jaden Schwartz to show for their
day against the Flyers.
“It was a big goal at the time,” Schwartz said.
But Scott Hartnell and Brayden Schenn helped Philadelphia overcome a
one-goal deficit with a pair of second-period goals and Steve Mason
preserved the lead with some third-period theatrics in net, leading the Flyers
to their fifth straight victory.
The Blues still clinched a playoff spot, when Phoenix lost to the Boston
Bruins late Saturday night.
But they had an opportunity to stamp their playoff ticket themselves as late as
midway through the third period when they trailed Philadelphia 2-1.
Surviving a scare when T.J. Oshie headed to the locker room but returned
after blocking a shot with his hand, the Blues put some pressure on the
Flyers with nine minutes left in regulation. But Mason came up with a dandy
leg save on Schwartz and denied Derek Roy on two follow-up attempts.
“I thought (Mason’s) level of competition was harder than ours in and around
the net area,” Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. “We hit a lot of goal posts and
crossbars, but I don’t think we had the second and third chances as the game
wore on that we did in the third period.”
Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek answered with his 19th goal of the season with
4:19 remaining and, after the Blues pulled goalie Ryan Miller with three-plus
minutes to play, Wayne Simmonds added an empty-netter with 2:54 to play.
The victory continued a stretch in which the Flyers have beaten Pittsburgh
twice, Chicago and now the Blues.
“They’ve beat a lot of good teams in the recent past,” Blues captain David
Backes said. “They made no mistake when they had the lead ... they took it to
us.”
A game that figured to be hard-checking started out fast-skating, but it didn’t
take long for the feistiness to emerge. Barret Jackman tripped up the Flyers’
Zac Rinaldo, leading to the first power play of the game.
The Blues’ penalty-killing unit had erased 24 of the last 26 man-advantages it
had seen — allowing two in Wednesday’s loss to Chicago — but the group
did better than erasing the infraction on Jackman.
Schwartz and Kevin Shattenkirk went on a shorthanded 2-on-1 break and the
winger received a slick centering feed from the defenseman, leading to
Schwartz’s 22nd goal of the season just 6 minutes 24 seconds into the game.
It was Schwartz’s second shorthanded goal in 2013-14, the fourth for the
year for the Blues, and the 11th allowed by Philadelphia — tied for most in
the NHL.
Saturday’s game featured 18 minor penalties, and the last one of the first
period led to the only power-play goal of the game, which turned out to be the
game-winning goal.
Vladimir Sobotka was called for hooking Hartnell with seven seconds left in
the period, and then 57 seconds into the second period Hartnell knocked in
his 19th goal of the season for a 1-1 tie.
The second period started off poorly for the Blues and continued that way as
Philadelphia built its first lead of the game, 2-1, on Schenn’s 18th goal of the
season.
“We made a mistake,” Hitchcock said. “We didn’t skate the puck out. So it
was the difference in the hockey game.”
The Blues couldn’t catch up in the third period, despite several chances.
“I think overall, it’s not a bad game for us ... obviously better than Chicago,”
defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said. “The goals we gave up — breakdowns in
our own end — I think we’ve got to find ways when someone makes a
mistake to pick them up.”
Added Backes: “(The Flyers) seem to have hit that playoff stride already and
that’s something that we’re striving to get to, so that we’re playing every play
like it could be the difference in the game or not.”
739245
St Louis Blues
Blues vs. Penguins preview
Jeremy Rutherford
When • Noon today
Where • Consol Energy Center
TV, radio • FSM, KMOX (1120 AM)
Blues • The Blues dropped to 0-2 on their four-game road trip after a 4-1 loss
in Philadelphia Saturday. The Blues traveled to Pittsburgh, where they’ll play
their second consecutive afternoon game, against the Penguins. The Blues
are 1-0 against Pittsburgh this season, winning 2-1 on Nov. 9 at Scottrade
Center. Kevin Shattenkirk and Ryan Reaves scored the goals and former
goalie Jaroslav Halak earned the win. New netminder Ryan Miller is
expected to get a break today, which means the Blues will turn to backup
Brian Elliott. His last start was a 3-2 shootout win over Minnesota on March 9.
Penguins • Pittsburgh will also being playing an afternoon game for the
second straight day. The Penguins hosted Tampa Bay on Saturday, picking
up a 4-3 victory over the Lightning to improve to 19-2-2 in their last 23 home
games. Evgeni Malkin had two goals against Tampa Bay — Nos. 22-23 —
and now has four goals and six points in his last two games. Backup goalie
Jeff Zatkoff started in goal and picked up the win, meaning Marc-Andre
Fleury will likely be in net against the Blues. Fleury has a record of 7-1
against the Western Conference this season.
Injuries • Blues — D Jordan Leopold (flu), questionable; RW Vladimir
Tarasenko (hand), out; Penguins – D Paul Martin (hand), D Kris Letang
(stroke), RW Chris Conner (hand), LW Pascal Dupuis (knee), RW Beau
Bennett (wrist) and G Tomas Vokoun (blood clot), out.
739246
St Louis Blues
Flyers top Blues 4-1 for 5th straight win
March 22, 2014
Staff Writer
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Flyers have gone from a team fighting
for a playoff spot to one of the NHL's most dangerous contenders.
Scott Hartnell and Brayden Schenn both scored in the second period, and
the Flyers rallied to beat the Western Conference-leading St. Louis Blues 4-1
on Saturday for their fifth straight win.
Jakub Voracek and Wayne Simmonds added goals in the third period, and
Steve Mason made 32 saves to help Philadelphia improve to 12-2-1 in its last
15 games and maintain its hold on second place in the Metropolitan Division.
"I think we showed the league we can play with everyone and we can beat
everybody," Voracek said. "It's going to give us some more confidence."
St. Louis' Jaden Schwartz opened the scoring 6:23 into the game, finishing a
2-on-1, short-handed opportunity after taking a feed from Kevin Shattenkirk.
Schwartz's wrist shot from close range went under Mason's glove.
The Blues again missed a chance to secure a playoff spot. One point would
have made St. Louis the first Western club to qualify for the postseason.
Ryan Miller made only 15 saves and lost for the second time since being
acquired by the Blues from Buffalo on Feb. 28. Miller was beaten 4-0 by
Chicago on Wednesday in a game in which he was pulled after allowing four
goals on 27 shots. He is 7-2-1 with St. Louis.
The Blues went 0-for-7 on the power play.
"Our level of determination in the offensive zone isn't what it's going to need
to be to beat great goaltending," St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We're
going to have to find a way to get to a much higher level of compete in the
offensive zone."
The Flyers dominated the second period when they erased a 1-0 deficit.
Hartnell tied it 57 seconds in when he finished from right in front of the crease
after a cross-ice pass from Voracek.
Miller appeared to try to stop the pass and was caught slightly out of position.
Hartnell fired a wrister high into the open side of the net.
Schenn put Philadelphia ahead 2-1 when he scored off a rebound with 6:36
left in the period.
Simmonds took the initial shot after receiving a pass from Schenn. The
rebound went right to Schenn, who put a backhander high over the sprawling
goalie.
"(Simmonds) hit me in a good spot trying to go through my arm, and it pops
up (to Schenn)," Miller said.
Mason preserved Philadelphia's one-goal lead with a pair of strong saves on
Derek Roy with nine minutes remaining during a power play. Schwartz took
the initial shot, and the rebound went to Roy, who was stopped by Mason's
pads on his first attempt and the goalie's glove on the second.
"I was able to reach back and keep swatting at it," Mason said. "Saves that
needed to be made."
Voracek provided a cushion when he beat Miller high to the stick side with
4:19 left. Hartnell stole the puck along the boards, fed it into the right circle to
Claude Giroux, who passed it the open Voracek.
"We're really playing like a team right now and that's why we're successful. It
really is," Flyers coach Craig Berube said. "We're coming. Our team is getting
to where we need to get to to be successful."
Simmonds sealed Philadelphia's latest win when he scored into an empty net
with 2:54 remaining.
"We're proving we're a good hockey team," Mason said. "We're beating the
teams that, come playoff time, you're going to have go through to get to the
ultimate goal."
Flyers winger Steve Downie was lost for the game with an upper-body injury
after a collision with St. Louis' Patrik Berglund early in the game.
Downie had his head turned when he skated into Berglund near the boards at
center ice. Downie missed four games this season after sustaining a
concussion during a fight on Nov. 2. The Flyers said he would be
re-evaluated on Sunday.
Giroux had four of Philadelphia's 10 penalties. His eight penalty minutes
matched one-quarter of the total (32) he had this season before Saturday.
NOTES: St. Louis LW Magnus Paajarvi returned after missing three games
because of an upper-body injury. The Blues remained without D Jordan
Leopold (ankle) and RW Vladimir Tarasenko (hand). ... It was the first
meeting between the teams since Oct. 22, 2011, when the Blues won 4-2 in
Philadelphia. They will meet again on April 1 in St. Louis. ... After playing with
a plain white mask in his first nine games with St. Louis, Miller unveiled a
music-themed mask on Saturday. ... Blues RW T.J. Oshie, who entered with
a team-best 54 points, went to the locker room with 11 minutes remaining
after blocking a slap shot from Simmonds but later returned. . The Flyers
announced after the game that LW Michael Raffl signed a multiyear contract
extension.
Belleville News-Democrat LOADED: 03.23.2014
739247
St Louis Blues
Blues stumble against Flyers
The visitors dropped to 0 for three on the power play in the period. They
made a change to their lines, flipping wingers Berglund and Paajarvi, and
registered nine shots in the period, but would have been described as
scoring chances.
JEREMY RUTHERFORD
The Blues led to 22-16 in the shot department after 40 minutes, but the Flyers
scored on two of theirs, opening a 2-1 lead Brayden Schenn's 18th goal of
the season.
PHILADELPHIA — The St. Louis Blues were aware of the degree of difficulty
in their four-game road trip, but this may be more than they expected.
Chris Porter was attempting to pass the puck through the neutral zone,
moving it ahead to teammate Ryan Reaves. But Simmonds intercepted the
dish and headed back the other way, eventually putting a shot on Miller's
pads.
The visitors fell, 4-1, to the Philadelphia Flyers in a Saturday matinee at the
Wells Fargo Center, dropping to 0-2 on the trip.
The long rebound caromed to Schenn, who beat Miller easily for the
go-ahead goal with 6:36 remaining in the second period.
The Blues broke out of a scoring slump that saw them shutout in Chicago
Wednesday in the first game of the trip. But despite outshooting Philadelphia
33-19, they had only a shorthanded goal by Jaden Schwartz to show for it
against the Flyers.
The Blues fell behind 2-1 and couldn't catch up in the third period.
Scott Hartnell, Brayden Schenn helped Philadelphia overcome a one-goal
deficit with a pair of second-period goals and Steve Mason preserved the
lead with some third-period theatrics in net, leading the Flyers to their fifth
straight victory.
The Blues came up short in their second bid to clinch a playoff spot, but they
still had a chance to do that later Saturday night following the results of other
NHL action. The team's next chance to clinch it on the ice will be Sunday
when they play in Pittsburgh.
The Blues still had a chance to win Saturday's game against Philadelphia,
trailing 2-1 midway through the third period.
Surviving a scare when T.J. Oshie headed to the locker room but returned
after blocking a shot with his hand, the Blues put some pressure on the
Flyers with nine minutes left in regulation. But Mason came up with a dandy
leg save on Schwartz and denied Derek Roy on two follow-up attempts.
Jakub Voracek then answered for Philadelphia with his 19th goal of the
season and, after the Blues pulled goalie Ryan Miller with more than three
minutes to play, Wayne Simmonds added an empty-netter for the final score.
After Blues coach Ken Hitchcock indicated he make lineup changes this
weekend to insert more speed, the head coach swapped in Chris Porter and
Magnus Paajarvi against the Flyers and took out Brenden Morrow and
Maxim Lapierre.
A game that figured to be hard-checking started out fast-skating, but it didn't
take long for the feistiness to emerge. Barret Jackman tripped up the Flyers'
Zac Rinaldo, leading to the first power play of the game.
The Blues' penalty-killing unit had erased 24 of the last 26 man-advantages it
had seen - allowing two in Wednesday's loss to Chicago - but the group did
better than erase the infraction on Jackman.
Schwartz and Kevin Shattenkirk went on a shorthanded 2-on-1 break and the
winger received a slick centering feed from the defenseman, leading to
Schwartz's 22nd goal of the season just 6 minutes, 24 seconds into the
game.
It was Schwartz's second shorthanded goal in 2013-14, the fourth for the
year for the Blues, and the 11th allowed by Philadelphia - tied for most in the
NHL.
The Blues had another shorthanded 2-on-1 in the first period Saturday
involving Vladimir Sobotka and Oshie. Flyers captain Claude Giroux did
everything he could to prevent a goal this time, holding and hooking Sobotka.
There was no goal, and a four-minute double-minor against Giroux was
negated seconds later by a charging call against Oshie.
The last call in a penalty-filled first period came against Sobotka for hooking
Hartnell with seven seconds left in the frame. And this time, the Flyers'
power-play unit did convert, with Hartnell knocking in his 19th goal of the
season for a 1-1 tie just 57 seconds into the second period.
The Blues' Patrik Berglund had a chance to clear the puck out of the zone,
but couldn't do so, and then he left Hartnell unattended in the slot. In addition
to Berglund's miscues, Miller was out of position when attempting to make
the save.
The second period started off poorly for the Blues and it continued that way,
as Philadelphia built its first lead of the game.
Belleville News-Democrat LOADED: 03.23.2014
739248
Tampa Bay Lightning
Bolts lose but still pick up points
Erik Erlendsson
March 22, 2014 at 04:48 PM
PITTSBURGH — Tampa Bay’s point streak lives on, even if the winning
streak ended.
James Neal scored 1:27 into overtime to give Pittsburgh a 4-3 victory against
the Lightning.
Valtteri Filppula, Ondrej Palat and Steven Stamkos would score for Tampa
Bay while Anders Lindback stopped 25 shots.
Evgeni Malkin scored twice and added two assists while league leading
scorer Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist. Jeff Zatkoff stopped 21 shots
for Pittsburgh. The Penguins scored three power play goals.
The Lightning now have points in eight consecutive games (5-0-3) to
maintain a hold on second place in the Atlantic Division.
The second period was a bit of a different story as the Penguins had control
of the puck, won 19-of-26 faceoffs and had Tampa Bay backing up into its
own zone through most of the session. It helped that Pittsburgh was able to
get the lead early in the period to take advantage of a Tyler Johnson hooking
call at 4:32. Evgeni Malkin would collect a puck in his own end and generated
speed through the nuetral zone without being slowed down. As he raced into
the Lightning zone, drawing the attention of three Tampa Bay defenders,
Malkin zipped a pass back to an open Crosby at the top of the right circle for
a one-timer that beat Lindback to the near post at 5:29.
The Penguins continued to mount the pressure, aided by a pair of power play
opportunities, and nearly took a two-goal lead when Chris Kunitz was alone
at the top of the crease for a quick redirect that was stopped by Lindback at
14:07. Marcel Goc would then take an interference call to negate the power
play and eventually put Tampa Bay on its second man advantage opportunity
of the game.
After some passing around the zone, Victor Hedman slid a pass over to
Stamkos at the left circle. Stamkos would fake the one-timer, which drew the
attention of the Pittsburgh defenders, before sliding a pass cross ice to an
open Filppula for a one-timer into the open side of the net at 16:44 for his
24th goal of the season, setting a new career high.
Tampa Bay had a 3-on-2 rush in the final minute of the period, but Zatkoff
made a sliding stop on Alex Killorn’s shot with 25 seconds remaining to keep
the game tied heading into the second intermission.
The Lightning came out in the third looking like the same team from the first
period, making crisp passes, battling for plays in the offensive zone. That
work paid off when Teddy Purcell protected the puck high in the offensive
zone to find Radko Gudas at the right point. Gudas would slip a wrist shot on
goal where Killorn got a piece of the rebound before Stamkos slammed the
puck past Zatkoff at 8:17 for Tampa Bay’s first lead of the game on the 20th
of the season for Stamkos.
But the lead did not last long as Malkin would draw a slashing call on Killorn
at 10:33 for the fifth power play chance of the game for Pittsburgh. Crosby
would find Matt Niskanen in the slot with the rebound going right to Malkin at
the side of the net for an open chance to tie the game at 11:07. Lindback
would keep it tied with a stop on Crosby, who got in alone behind the defense
at 13:01.
Pittsburgh would capitalize on a rare mistake by Tyler Johnson, who had a
chance for an easy clear coming out of the zone, but instead put the puck on
the stick of Jussi Jokinen who quickly fed Malkin, who was left open down
low, for a backhander that found the top corner with 3:17 left in the period.
Palat would rescue Tampa Bay in regulation, rushing into the Penguins zone
to split the Pittsburgh defense, then with Zatkoff going for the poke check,
Palat lifted the puck into the top corner to tie the game with 1:22 left in the
third period.
Tampa Tribune LOADED: 03.23.2014
739249
Tampa Bay Lightning
Lindback earns praise despite suffering loss
Erik Erlendsson
March 22, 2014
PITTSBURGH — Playing time for G Anders Lindback has been few and far
between in recent games.
Some of that is based on the play of No. 1 G Ben Bishop, some of that is from
Lindback’s play when he has been in net.
So in some ways, getting the start against Pittsburgh was an opportunity for
Lindback to gain confidence in himself as well as from the coaching staff in
the event he’s called on down the stretch or in the postseason. His stat line
from Saturday’s game against the Penguins – four goals allowed on 29 shots
in a 4-3 overtime loss – won’t accurately reflect his performance.
“I was really happy with the way our goaltender played,’’ Lightning head
coach Jon Cooper said. “You want your goaltender to give you a chance to
win and I thought he gave us a chance to win. The box score is going to say
he gave up four, but I can’t sit here and say that any goaltender would have
had any of those (goals), they are big time plays.’’
The setback, however, dropped Lindback’s record to 5-12-2 with a 3.26 goals
against average and .878 save percentage, which is last in the league among
goaltenders with at least 20 appearances. And though he is used to sitting for
prolonged periods of time while serving as the backup to Pekka Rinne in
Nashville for two seasons, he knows that when he gets the chance to play he
has to perform.
“I know that I have to take advantage of the few chances that I get, and
unfortunately I didn’t win today,’’ Lindback said. “With the way (Bishop) has
been playing it’s hard for me to get in there. So each opportunity to play is an
opportunity to prove myself. It’s important.’’
And even if others were offering Lindback a pat on the back for Saturday’s
effort, he didn’t want to say it was something he felt he could build upon.
“It’s not a win, it’s not winning and I didn’t do my job,’’ Lindback said.
Turning heads
LW Ondrej Palat continues to impress down the stretch as the rookie came
through in the clutch late in Saturday’s game with the tying goal with 1:22 left
in regulation to help get the game to overtime. And he did it in spectacular
fashion, racing up the ice with the puck, splitting between D Olli Maata and
LW Chris Kunitz before cutting to the net and lifting the puck over G Jeff
Zatkoff.
“He got us a point, that was pretty clutch,’’ C Valtteri Filppula said. “He’s fun
to play with and fun to watch.’’
Palat saw the opportunity to catch the Penguins’ players coming on during a
line change and charged his way up the ice.
“I saw their D was back and didn’t have a lot of speed, so I just went around
him,’’ said Palat, who has points in seven of the past eight games.
New heights
Filppula picked up his 24th goal of the season on Saturday, sending a
one-timer off a feed from Steven Stamkos for a power play marker,
establishing a new career high originally set in 2011-12 with Detroit.
“You always want to play better than you have in years before,’’ Filppula said.
“And if things are going well, you are going to have points, so that’s nice.’’
Heating up
C Steven Stamkos picked up a goal and an assist on Saturday to give him
four multi-point games in the past six games and has six goals and nine
points in that same span. With his goal on Saturday the team captain
reached the 20 goal mark for the sixth consecutive season, and hit the mark
this year in his 26th game of the season after he missed nearly four months
with a broken leg.
Nuts and Bolts
Tampa Bay scratched D Keith Aulie, D Mark Barberio, RW B.J. Crombeen
and RW Nikita Kucherov. ... Recently signed C Cody Kunyk was officially
added to the roster and listed as a scratch on Saturday. The free agent from
the University of Alaska-Fairbanks is expected to join the team ahead of
Monday’s game against Ottawa. ... Tampa Bay has a power play goal in four
consecutive games. ... The Lightning allowed three power play goals in a
game for the fifth time this season, twice to Pittsburgh.
739250
Tampa Bay Lightning
Bolts Notes: Players should make award lists
Staff Writer
March 22, 2014
PITTSBURGH — With the regular season dwindling down and the playoff
races heating up, award voting will soon begin.
The Lightning should be prominent in the eyes of the voters when the ballots
are sent out, with several candidates likely to be recognized for their success
in helping lead Tampa Bay to unexpected success this season.
Here’s a look at who should be in the running for individual awards.
Jack Adams Award (Coach of the Year): This trophy is generally handed to
the coach who leads a team not considered playoff caliber into playoff
contention. Often, it goes to a coach who guides a team through troubled
waters and overcomes the odds. Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper fits the bill
on both counts.
The Lightning finished 28th last season, made few changes over the summer
— major changes were addressed during the 2012-13 season — and were
on their way to being a surprise team in the first month of the season.
But then Steven Stamkos broke his leg on Nov. 11 and was lost for nearly
four months. Tampa Bay hardly missed a beat and even challenged Boston
for the Atlantic Division lead late into January. Then came the drama
surrounding former captain Marty St. Louis, who demanded a trade to the
New York Rangers, which was accommodated on March 5.
All Cooper has done is lead a team full of rookies through all obstacles, and
the Lightning are in second place in the Atlantic with 11 games to play.
Patrick Roy will also get strong consideration for leading Colorado into the
playoffs, and it should be a two-man race for the Adams, which is voted on by
the NHL Broadcasters Association.
Vezina Trophy (Top goaltender): No goaltender has really been
head-and-shoulders above anybody else this season, so the race should be
relatively close. Though Ben Bishop’s numbers have slipped in recent
games, he ranks in the top five in four main categories for goaltenders —
wins, goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts — and he has
set a franchise record for victories. Others in the running likely will be
Boston’s Tuukka Rask, San Jose’s Antti Niemi and possibly Pittsburgh’s
Marc-Andre Fleury. The award is voted on by NHL general managers.
Calder Trophy (Rookie of the Year): Tampa Bay has two strong contenders
in center Tyler Johnson and left wing Ondrej Palat.
Palat entered the weekend leading rookies in plus/minus, was second in
points and assists and was tied for third in rookie goals. Johnson entered
Saturday second in goals (one behind Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon), third
in scoring and third in plus/minus among rookies. Johnson also is second
overall in the league with four short-handed goals and five shorthanded
points, while Palat has four short-handed points.
MacKinnon, the first overall pick in the 2013 draft, is considered the
front-runner, but Palat and Johnson have garnered enough attention to be in
the conversation. Others who could garner votes include Pittsburgh
defenseman Olli Maatta and Boston defenseman Torey Krug . The award is
voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
General Manager of the Year: Steve Yzerman was a finalist for the inaugural
award in 2010 and should gain some recognition again. His acquisition of
Bishop, the hiring of Cooper and the addition of center Valtteri Filppula
through free agency have gone a long way to helping the Lightning get to
where they are in the standings. Add in the fact that he managed to navigate
through the difficult St. Louis situation and, only able to negotiate with one
team, come away with a first-round pick, a conditional second-round pick and
Ryan Callahan.
As one person told me, Yzerman should win the award just for pulling off that
deal. The award is voted on by team general managers and a panel of NHL
executives, broadcasters and print media.
Hart Trophy (MVP): It’s difficult for a goaltender to enter this conversation,
and no goaltender has won since Jose Theodore in 2003, but Bishop should
warrant consideration for carrying a heavy load in net this season and
carrying the Lightning through the Stamkos injury. The Hart is probably
Sidney Crosby’s to lose, but Bishop could wind up being a finalist. The award
is voted on by the PHWA
739251
Tampa Bay Lightning
Lightning continue streak of failures against Pittsburgh, but earn a point in
4-3 OT loss
Saturday, March 22, 2014 4:20pm
Staff Writer
PITTSBURGH — James Neal kept Pittsburgh's winning streak over Tampa
Bay intact with the game-winning goal 1:27 into overtime as the Penguins
edged the Lightning, 4-3, on Saturday.
Evgeni Malkin scored twice in the final 8:53 of regulation and added two
assists, including one on the deciding goal. With the Penguins on a 4-on-3
advantage in the extra frame thanks to a too many men on the ice penalty,
Malkin sent a pass down to Neal in the right circle, and Neal beat Anders
Lindback with a one-timer to the far side.
The Penguins converted on 3-of-6 power-play chances and have now beaten
the Lightning nine straight times. Jeff Zatkoff made 21 saves, and Sidney
Crosby recorded a goal and two assists for the Metropolitan Division leaders.
Tampa Bay's Ondrej Palat scored with 1:22 left in regulation to force
overtime, while Steven Stamkos had a goal and assisted on Valtteri
Filppula's second-period tally.
Lindback gave up four goals on 29 shots as the Lightning had their five-game
winning streak snapped.
Each team scored on the power play in the second period, with Crosby
finding the back of the net off a one-timer from Malkin at 5:29 and Filppula
sneaking one inside the goal post off a cross-ice feed from Stamkos at the
16:44 mark.
Tampa Bay took its first lead 8:17 into the third when Stamkos crashed the
net and stuffed in a loose puck under Zatkoff's pads.
The lead lasted all of 2:50, as Malkin chipped in a rebound at a sharp angle
on the man advantage.
Malkin gave the Penguins a short-lived lead with 3:17 left in the third as Jussi
Jokinen intercepted a pass at the blue line and fed the uncovered star
forward in front of the net. Malkin steadied the puck on its edge, and with his
back turned towards Lindback, backhanded one over the goaltender's left
shoulder and into the right corner.
Palat single-handedly forced overtime when he skated into the offensive
zone, split a pair of defenders, avoided Zatkoff's poke check and scored on a
wrister with 82 seconds showing.
Game notes: Zatkoff earned his first career NHL assist on Crosby's goal …
Filppula has an eight-game point streak and surpassed his career-high goal
total (24) previously set in the 2011-12 campaign for Detroit … Tampa Bay
last beat the Penguins on Nov. 17, 2011.
Tampa Bay Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739252
Tampa Bay Lightning
Lightning's Ben Bishop gets break from heavy workload
Damian Cristodero
PITTSBURGH — There was a good debate last week between Lightning
coaches before allowing G Ben Bishop to play back-to-back games
Wednesday and Thursday against the Maple Leafs and Senators.
But with no practice Friday or today, and with Anders Lindback in net
Saturday against the Penguins, Bishop got three days of rest and recovery.
He could use it, too. Bishop's 55 games entered Saturday tied for third
among league goalies. He has allowed at least three goals in eight of his past
nine starts and still is dealing with a painful right wrist. Even Bishop said, "It's
going to be nice to sit back and relax a little bit."
Coach Jon Cooper brushed off questions about fatigue in his No. 1 goalie,
preferring to talk about Bishop's body of work, which he called "remarkable."
Bishop entered Saturday tied for second in the league with 34 wins, sixth with
a 2.17 goals-against average and fourth with a .927 save percentage.
There also were late saves in the 5-3 win over Toronto and the 5-4 win over
Ottawa that overcame any prior bad goals, Cooper said: "You can look at it
two ways. You can be mesmerized by the numbers and say they're inflated or
you can say he made big saves with under five minutes left to save the game.
That's the save I'm looking for."
"I want to do better," said Bishop, who has a 2.96 GAA and a .896 save
percentage in his past nine games. "I want to do better for the guys,
especially when they're scoring goals. I don't want to make them close
games. But right now just coming up with timely saves in the third period is
going to make the difference."
PROVING GROUND: Between his injured ankle and the Olympic break,
Lindback played only his third game since Jan. 13, a tough spot for a player
trying to prove he is a reliable backup while auditioning for next season. "The
way we're playing and the way (Bishop) is playing, it's hard for me to get in
there," Lindback said, "so every game is a huge opportunity for myself."
Lindback (5-12-2 with a 3.26 GAA and a .878 save percentage) allowed four
goals on 29 shots in the 4-3 overtime loss to the Penguins, three on the
power play, one off a bad turnover. And James Neal's winner was a bullet
from in close. "I can't say any goaltender anywhere would have had those,"
Cooper said. "You want your goaltender to give you a chance to win, and he
gave us a chance to win."
LIGHTNING KILLER: With two goals and two assists, C Evgeni Malkin —
who was in on every goal Pittsburgh scored against Tampa Bay — has 16
goals, 31 points in 26 games against the Lightning. "He moves well and has a
lot of skill," Tampa Bay C Valtteri Filppula said. "He makes plays and can
shoot. He doesn't have a bad thing in his game."
ODDS AND ENDS: The Penguins swept the season series 3-0 while going
7-for-14 on the power play. … Newly signed C Cody Kunyk, out of the
University of Alaska-Fairbanks, is expected to join the Lightning on Monday.
… Forwards B.J. Crombeen and Nikita Kucherov and defensemen Keith
Aulie and Mark Barberio were scratched.
739253
Tampa Bay Lightning
Lightning Nuts & Bolts
Damian Cristodero
Animal lover
We all know the story of how Lightning coach Jon Cooper went from
Michigan attorney to NHL coach. But did you know it was acting as defense
attorney in an animal cruelty case that prompted him to quit?
"Everyone has a right to be defended, and I was doing my job," he said. "But
at that point I really didn't believe what I was doing and the cause I was
fighting for. I eventually got out after that."
Cooper said his love of dogs was not the basis of his consternation: "There
were just things that weren't right about it." Still, know that he keeps the
ashes of his cremated Maltese, Gretzky.
Self-examination
Last week was interesting for ex-Lightning coach John Tortorella, who
admitted he had not been the most cooperative interview subject in previous
visits to the Tampa Bay Times Forum and he might have been wrong for that
attitude. What got into Tortorella? Circumstances.
Now the coach of the Canucks, he was in Tampa on Monday — thanks to
accommodating scheduling by the Lightning — for the 10th anniversary
celebration of the team's 2004 Stanley Cup championship.
"I've been criticized a little bit in here that I haven't really acknowledged when
I've been in here other times," Tortorella said. "I was not going to make that
mistake again because I owe that to the team. This organization did this for
us, the '04 team. It's a first-class group, and I'm honored to be part of that. It's
a true story: You do walk forever. In the last little while … I felt that."
Quote to note
"My dad. Growing up he always tried to instill in me and my brother that no
matter what you're doing, if you're on the ice or doing work in the yard, do it at
your best. That's always been something that stuck with me."
RW Ryan Callahan, on the source of his work ethic
Number of the day
7 Winning goals this season for newly acquired free-agent forward Cody
Kunyk of the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, tops in the nation
739254
Tampa Bay Lightning
Lightning a good fit for Ryan Callahan so far
Damian Cristodero
It's been a little more than two weeks since the Lightning traded captain
Marty St. Louis to the Rangers for Ryan Callahan, and in the short term,
anyway, Tampa Bay has gotten the better of the deal.
Callahan has two goals, including a winner, and five points in nine games
and is plus-5 with an average 19:34 of ice time. St. Louis has zero goals and
three assists in 10 games with New York and is plus-3 with an average 19:56
of ice time.
Like St. Louis, Callahan, a right wing, plays in all situations. But Callahan
plays with a gritty edge St. Louis does not.
"That kid knows how to play the game below the dots," coach Jon Cooper
said, "and we just haven't had a ton of those guys wheel through our
organization."
"He's been great for us," captain Steven Stamkos said. "You don't really
know what to expect when a guy comes into a new situation. We knew the
type of player 'Cally' is, but you don't know until you play with him and you
see every shift and at every practice how hard he works.
"He's a competitor, and he wants to win. He fits into the mold Cooper wants
our team to play perfectly."
How Callahan fits — in Cooper's system and the locker room — will go a long
way toward determining whether the potential unrestricted free agent signs
with Tampa Bay.
General manager Steve Yzerman struck the right tone with Callahan's camp
by not pressuring the player into immediate negotiations, preferring Callahan
first get a sense of the organization, the Tampa Bay area, the coaching staff
and his new teammates.
Rangers owner James Dolan went on a New York radio station last week and
said Callahan's reported demand of between $6.25 million and $6.5 million a
year for six years would have hamstrung the organization. But Callahan's
agent has said Florida's lack of state income tax means players can be willing
to play for less.
So, back to comfort zone.
Callahan said his transition has been fairly seamless: "It's been pretty quick.
The guys welcomed me, and everyone was great. After the first couple of
days, I felt pretty comfortable in the room, off the ice and on the ice, too."
In New York, on the other hand, the talk is of St. Louis pressing.
Considering he was negotiating only with the Rangers, Yzerman did well to
get Callahan as well as a first-round draft pick in 2015 and a second-rounder
this year that will become a first if New York reaches the Eastern Conference
final .
It's been a short-term win for the Lightning and might be a long-term one as
well.
739255
Toronto Maple Leafs
Gunnarsson – Phaneuf
Gleason – Rielly
Leafs, Habs in playoff mode for pivotal meeting
Gardiner – Franson
Reimer
James Mirtle
Canadiens projected lineup
Pacioretty – Desharnais - Vanek
Brière – Plekanec - Gallagher
The old rivals are back for one last meeting this season, playing out the
rubber match after splitting the season series two wins apiece.
The last meeting, that is, unless they meet in the postseason in a few weeks’
time.
Bourque – Galchenyuk - Gionta
Moen – Eller – Weise
Markov – Emelin
The struggling Toronto Maple Leafs play host to the Montreal Canadiens at
the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night, as they try to bump a four
regulation losses in five games streak that has suddenly threatened their
playoff hopes.
Bouillon – Subban
The good news is they could be buoyed by the return of centre David Bolland
after 56 games out of the lineup.
Coach Randy Carlyle called his return “probable,” and Carter Ashton was
sent to the Toronto Marlies to open a spot for Bolland to come off long-term
injured reserve for the first time since early November when a tendon in his
ankle was sliced by a skate.
If he plays, Bolland will be on a third line with Mason Raymond and David
Clarkson.
“I don’t know if I’ll limit his minutes,” Carlyle said. “We’ll see how the game
goes… With the addition of a Bolland, it gives you a little bit more depth
throughout your lineup. A veteran guy.”
“His experience speaks for itself obviously,” teammate James van Riemsdyk
added.
The Habs may well have a change at centre of their own, too, with youngster
Alex Galchenyuk expected to shift over to the middle and Lars Eller bumped
to the fourth line after they practised in that configuration.
Canadiens coach Michel Therrien wasn’t tipping his hand, however.
“Who says he’s going to play centre?” he asked.
The game’s biggest injury absence will continue to be that of Leafs netminder
Jonathan Bernier, who remains out with a groin strain and isn’t likely to play
in Toronto’s back-to-back games this weekend.
James Reimer, who had a tough start against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the
other team the Leafs are chasing in the Atlantic Division, on Wednesday in a
5-3 loss, is expected to fill in.
There are some parallels between the two teams in goal. Montreal is just
coming out of a tough post-Olympics stretch without starter Carey Price
where the Canadiens didn’t win in regulation in eight in a row.
Since Price’s return, however, they’re 3-1-0 and have built a three-point lead
over the sagging Leafs for third in the division.
A regulation loss on Saturday for Toronto would likely mean the Leafs are
going to be left playing for a wild card spot, as they’d trail both Tampa and
Montreal by five points with only 10 games to play.
That merely adds more intrigue to a matchup that is generally heated in any
circumstances.
“We all understand it’s a big game for both teams,” Therrien said. “It’s so
tight.”
“Every point is crucial at this point in the year,” van Riemsdyk said. “We’re
looking to clinch a spot so we’ve got some work to do.”
Leafs projected lineup
JVR – Bozak – Kessel
Lupul – Kadri – Kulemin
Raymond – Bolland – Clarkson
Bodie – McClement – Orr
Murray – Weaver
Price
739256
Toronto Maple Leafs
Mirtle: Opportunistic Habs deal Leafs playoff hopes serious blow
JAMES MIRTLE
Mar. 22 2014, 11:55 PM EDT
The Leafs comeback was then muted when they were whistled for too many
men with four minutes to play, essentially killing their hopes of a late rally.
The damage in the standings was stark. Probability website
sportsclubstats.com had Montreal’s playoff hopes improving to 98 per cent;
Toronto’s fell to just 44 per cent.
The Canadiens, in other words, are now in the dance barring an
unprecedented collapse while the Leafs are very much back in the thick of
the dogfight, having let a comfortable seven-point cushion at the Olympic
break slip away entirely.
The Toronto Maple Leafs playoff hopes are beginning to come unglued.
“We still can play to a higher level,” Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said. “We
have to work equally as hard and clean up some of the mistakes we made.”
And the Montreal Canadiens were only too happy to be the team that made
their woes a little bit deeper on Saturday night.
“We’re still in a good spot,” Phaneuf said. “There’s no doubt about how hard
we worked all year to put ourselves into this spot.”
With a 4-3 win that included a wild third period and the trading of power play
chances in the third, the suddenly surging Habs have opened a five-point gap
on the Leafs that is going to be awfully hard for Toronto to close with just 10
games to play.
There’s doubt, however, whether that will be enough. The Leafs likely need
to win five or six of their final 10 games to get in, and several of those
remaining are difficult matchups.
The Ottawa Senators acquired Edmonton Oilers forward Ales Hemsky and
re-signed defenceman Chris Phillips on NHL trade deadline day. Captain
Jason Spezza says Hemsky has "good hockey sense" and hopes he fits in
with the team.
Not long after winning gold at the Sochi Games, Shannon Szabados was
helping out the Edmonton Oilers in net at practice. The two-time Olympic
gold medallist says she's available if the team ever needs her again.
The bigger problem for the Leafs is that the rest of the Eastern Conference
has caught up as they’ve lost four games – and five of their last six – in
regulation in a row. The skid has allowed Detroit, Columbus and Washington
to make up ground in the standings.
Toronto’s buffer after Saturday’s loss was down to just two points over ninth
in the East, and the Leafs can be bumped out of a playoff spot by Sunday
night entirely if they fail to gain a point in New Jersey.
Montreal, meanwhile, is basically playing for seeding, and a date with the
Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 1 looking more and more a sure thing.
“That’s a huge game,” Canadiens captain Brian Gionta said. “With them right
on our heels, it's a four-point swing.”
“We’ve got to pull ourselves out of it,” Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf said. “It’s
this group that’s going to get ourselves out of it. We’ve been close but close
isn’t good enough right now.”
Saturday’s loss was once again a tough start for the Leafs and netminder
James Reimer.
Making his fourth consecutive start in place of the injured Jonathan Bernier,
Reimer allowed two goals in the game’s first seven minutes as part of an
intense back-and-forth, five-goal first period.
As it has tended to, playing from behind then brought out the best in Toronto.
Joffrey Lupul and Tyler Bozak scored to quickly answer two early goals by
Habs' Max Pacioretty and Rene Bourque.
Montreal took a 3-2 lead with less than a minute to play in the opening frame
when Leafs defenceman Tim Gleason deflected a Gionta shot right past
Reimer.
That was the kind of night it was for both teams: A defence-optional track
meet where the last mistake lost the game, and that gaffe ultimately was the
Leafs’.
After Nazem Kadri tied the game on a Leafs power play to open the third –
hammering in a nice pass from behind the net from Lupul – Toronto’s ugly
finish started with one of two key penalties in the game’s final 11 minutes.
Despite his protestations, James van Riemsdyk took the first, a goalie
interference call on Carey Price, who said afterward that there was contract
to his head and he “thought it was a penalty, personally.”
It was a costly call, too, with Phaneuf unable to clear, Tomas Plekanec put a
wide angle shot short side on Reimer – the second ugly puck to beat him on
his second tough night in a row – for the winner as the penalty expired.
“Obviously they made a good play,” Reimer said. “I thought I gave myself a
chance, but it found a way through… It was kind of one bad bounce that
really decided the game. I think we can hold our heads high.”
On Sunday, they’ll get a desperate Devils team clinging to its own playoff
hopes, and Toronto will need to be a whole lot better than they were Saturday
to finally pull out a two pointer.
If they don’t, their playoff odds will shrink again.
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Leafs activate Bolland, demote Holland, Ashton
Kevin McGran
Sat Mar 22 2014
Dave Bolland is back.
The Maple Leafs activated Bolland of the long-term injured reserve list in time
for Saturday night's game against the Montreal Canadiens.
The third-line centre missed 56 games since suffering a severed tendon on
the outside of the ankle on Nov. 2 in Vancouver. He had six goals and four
assists in 15 games prior to the injury.
In related moves, the Maple Leafs dispatched forwards Carter Ashton and
Peter Holland to the AHL Marlies.
Goalie Jonathan Bernier remained day-to-day with a sore groin. Backup
Drew MacIntyre was expected to accompany the team on its road game
Sunday in New Jersey.
Toronto Star LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Maple Leafs penthouse-doghouse: Lupul shines, JVR goofs up
Kevin McGran
Sun Mar 23 2014
With the Maple Leafs now in free fall — that’s four games in a row without a
point after a 4-3 loss to Montreal, tied for their worst stretch of the season —
it seems even players doing well can do little right. So we’ve got a fairly
packed doghouse. But it’s not like the penthouse is empty.
PENTHOUSE: Joffrey Lupul. The forward had a goal and an assist and he
had this aura about him that said: “Enough already.” He got his 20th of the
year on a one-timer that briefly tied the game 2-2 in the first, and he set up
Nazem Kadri early in the third to make it 3-3.
The Leafs need Lupul to turn his game around. It was his first goal in six
games. The team can’t rely on the top line the rest of the way.
DOGHOUSE: James van Riemsdyk and Jake Gardiner. Hate to do this,
because they’re otherwise playing well. But van Riemsdyk took a goalie
interference penalty — he really doesn’t need to steamroll goalies in the third
period of tied games — that led to Montreal’s game-winner.
It was officially an even-strength goal, but came as time expired with van
Riemsdyk in the box. Not only does it hurt the team to take a penalty, but
when van Riemsdyk does it, it robs the team of one of its best penalty killing
forwards.
As for Gardiner, again, a strong game. But some kind of brain camp sent him
over the boards when the Leafs already had five skaters and were pressing
to tie. Six skaters on the ice is too many and a penalty like that with less than
five minutes to go is a momentum killer.
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Dave Bolland getting back up to speed after long injury layoff
Rene Johnston
Dave Bolland saw his first NHL action since November, playing about nine
minutes for the Leafs in a loss to the Canadiens.
By: Kevin McGran Sports Reporter, Published on Sat Mar 22 2014
It was a less than triumphant return for Dave Bolland and the Maple Leafs.
Bolland, who’d missed 56 games due to a torn tendon near his ankle, made
his long-awaited return to the Leaf lineup in a 4-3 loss Saturday night against
Montreal.
Not that the loss was Bolland’s fault — in fact, he played as well as could be
expected of a player who’d missed more than half a season.
“That first shift was the hardest,” Bolland said afterward. “Getting my timing
and figuring things out. You have to get used to it.
“My heartbeat was beating a bit too quick.”
Bolland played a total of 9:01, mostly with David Clarkson on his wing. He
won eight of nine faceoffs and delivered three hits.
“When I came back, I knew I had to be ready,” said Bolland.
Bolland will accompany the team to New Jersey on Sunday for a game with
the Devils. Jonathan Bernier will not, as the team tries to end a four-game
losing streak and hold on to a playoff spot.
“We’ve just got to play our game, get the puck deep,” said Bolland.
His return is a relief of sorts for coach Randy Carlyle, who’ll have a reliable
veteran option at centre in key defensive situations — but only after Bolland
gets up to speed. He didn’t kill any penalties.
“I used him sparingly. I thought he’d be able to play around 10 minutes, and I
felt he did that,” said Carlyle. “I don’t think you can expect anything more from
guy who hasn’t played in (nearly) 60 games.
“It’s a long haul back. I think he will get better. (Sunday) will be a tough game
with the back-to-back and having to travel. But that’s why he did the extra
laps and the extra work prior to this.”
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Defensive deficiencies cost Leafs again in loss to Canadiens: Feschuk
James Reimer simply wasn’t good enough on Saturday. Max Pacioretty’s
ice-breaking goal was a softie. So was Rene Bourque’s wrister that beat
Reimer to his eternal weak spot — high glove — a little more than a minute
later.
Dave Feschuk
The Leafs were no pushovers. Bolland’s gutsy work in his first game in
precisely 20 weeks was promising, if it had to be fuelled by adrenaline. The
home team battled back. And they took some heart in that.
Sat Mar 22 2014
Toronto’s must be the chaos theory of NHL game plans. If you’re as
disorganized and unpredictable as you are talented — well, maybe it’ll be
next to impossible for the opposing team to pre-scout your schtick.
Maybe there’s something to that; the smart folks at the Sloan analytics
conference were talking about a similar phenomenon in the over-coached
world of pro sports just last month. But as for the blood-smelling opponents
currently making Toronto appear over-matched in this late-season Eastern
Conference playoff race?
As Saturday night’s 4-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens showed, those foes
seem to be pointing out that Toronto’s defensive deficiencies aren’t so easy
to paper over when Jonathan Bernier isn’t in the blue ice saving the season.
More and more we’re coming to understand that last year’s veneer of
defensive respectability was as much of an anomaly as the 48-game
lockout-shortened schedule. Last year, the Leafs were a mid-pack defensive
team. They gave up an average of 2.67 goals against, 17th in the league.
They had a penalty kill that was among the NHL’s best.
But this year, despite a big goaltending upgrade in Bernier, they’re back to
being one of the league’s more decrepit defensive sides. Of the bottom 12
defensive teams as measured by goals against per game, only the Leafs
found themselves in a playoff spot heading into Saturday’s game.
Their hold on that spot — which barring a hard-to-fathom turnaround will be a
wildcard spot, setting up a first-round matchup with either the Bruins or the
Penguins — got a lot more tenuous after their fourth straight regulation loss.
They’re now less than a 50-50 proposition to even make the postseason,
according to one probability web site.
Why? Maybe because Toronto’s 3.04 goals against average this season
harkens back to another era — the Ron Wilson one. Two seasons ago, when
Randy Carlyle took over for Wilson for the meaningless stretch run, the Leafs
gave up an average of 3.16 goals against (29th in the league). A year before
that they were 24th at 2.99. A year before that: 29th again at 3.21. A year
before that: 30th at a whopping 3.49 goals against.
Blame the coach, if you like. But a good swath of this roster, especially the
big-dollar portion, has been around for a good chunk of that run. And it’s not
exactly a stretch to suggest that — defensive-focused additions like Dave
Bolland aside — there remain plenty of Maple Leaf players who define
themselves more by their offensive numbers than their defensive reputation.
Even the Leafs’ most promising pair of defencemen — and Morgan Rielly
and Jake Gardiner showed electrifying flashes when they both pinged the
iron off impressive rushes in Saturday’s second period — are best known for
their offensive thrust.
In a lot of ways, Saturday was too cruel to the Leafs. If Bernier’s in, they win.
In other ways, it was another untimely loss that fit a season-long pattern.
They were happy to trade glorious chances. They were not always as happy
to trade in the kind of detail work that often wins tight, playoff-type NHL
games.
Montreal wasn’t much better on that latter front, mind you. Just as Phil
Kessel’s sloppy turnover and the Toronto first line’s slow backcheck led to
Montreal’s first goal, it was P.K. Subban’s poor clearing attempt and sub-par
one-on-one defence that allowed Kessel to skillfully set up the Tyler Bozak
goal that made it 2-2 late in the first frame.
That kind of flip-flopping is great theatre — one of Brian Burke’s “three pillars”
was a commitment to entertaining the paying throng, defensive lapses be
damned. And for much of this season, the Leafs figure they had found in
Bernier the antidote to their hard-side-of-the-puck ineptitude. Sadly for the
club, Carlyle confirmed after Saturday’s game that the No. 1 goaltender won’t
be making the trip to New Jersey for Sunday’s game against the Devils.
Groin trouble persists.
“Until he’s 100 per cent, he’s not available to us,” Carlyle said before the
game.
“We weren’t panicking,” Carlyle said. “We just basically knuckled down or
beared down and played more as a team.”
They had their share of tough luck, too. James van Riemsdyk also clanged
iron on a late chance. The Brian Gionta goal that made it 3-2 for the visitors
was something of a fluke — it deflected off the stick of Toronto defender Tim
Gleason and found a corner. And again, they didn’t give up; Joffrey Lupul’s
beautiful feed to a goal-mouth-parked Nazem Kadri set up the Toronto
power-play to make it 3-3 early in the third frame.
But to quote Carlyle’s favourite refrain — “Again...” — the Leafs still gave up
36 shots against, right on their league-worst season average. And they
couldn’t keep the puck out at a key moment. Tomas Plekanec scored on a
net-side one-timer with less than nine minutes left to make it 4-3. Again, it
was a shot that a slightly sharper goaltender slides across and stops. The
goal was Reimer’s 15th against in four starts for the injured Bernier — that’s
3.75 a game — and he nearly got there.
“I feel like it’s a tough bounce,” Reimer said of the goal. “Obviously they made
a good play to put it through the seam but I thought I gave myself a chance
either way. It just found a way through.”
Superior teams find a way. The Leafs still have 10 games to show that their
way can work well enough. While Carlyle noted that the rest of the league is
ratcheting up the intensity, Saturday marked the sixth straight game his team
started slowly enough to give up the opening goal.
In other words, since another game plan is too much to ask, the Leafs need
to find another gear, and pronto. As Subban was saying before the game:
“You can’t just flip the switch on for the playoffs. You have to be preparing for
that grind.”
Grinding isn’t widely seen as their thing. This is how Drew Doughty, the best
player on the best defensive team in the league, described the Leafs’ first line
a while back: “We know they play one-dimensionally out there. They’re
gonna look for turnovers at all times, they’re going to cheat to get
breakaways. We know exactly what to expect. They’re fast. They bulldoze
the net.”
He might as well have been talking about the second line, too. Speed is
great. Bulldozing’s tremendous. But having your best players scoffed at as a
band of offence-obsessed cheaters? It might not be in anyone’s recipe for
perennial NHL stability.
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs at New Jersey Devils: Sunday NHL game preview
Andrew Francis Wallace
CRUNCH TIME
It’s make or break time for New Jersey, seven points out of a playoff spot
heading into Saturday night’s game against the Rangers. “We have 12 Game
7s” was the way Jaromir Jagr put it.
HURTING
Rugged forward Tim Sestito missed Saturday’s game with a head injury.
Ryan Carter, who missed three games with an upper-body injury, returned to
face the Rangers.
NET OUTLOOK
Leafs fans might not see the legendary Martin Brodeur in the New Jersey net.
Brodeur started Saturday night, which means Cory Schneider will likely get
the nod.
WILD BUNCH
New Jersey’s overtime win over the Minnesota Wild this past week was
labeled a turning point for their playoff hopes. Michael Ryder, who hadn’t
scored in 10 weeks — a span of 24 games — finally broke that drought with a
goal vs. Minnesota.
OLD SCHOOL
Patrik Elias, the New Jersey veteran, had three assists in the Wild game and
tied Paul Kariya for 84th all-time in that category with 587. Jagr had 23 goals
heading into Saturday’s game, not bad for the 42-year-old forward. His
career total of 704 was four behind Mike Gartner for sixth in NHL history.
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Leafs and Canadiens square off at the ACC
Mike Zeisberger
TORONTO - For a regular season game, it doesn’t get much bigger — or
better — than this.
Start with the Montreal Canadiens versus the Maple Leafs, hockey’s most
storied rivalry.
For a pinch of spice, add in P.K. Subban, who seems to be poised to inherit
Daniel Alfredsson’s long-time tag as being Public Enemy No. 1 among those
in Leafs Nation.
For the coupe de grace, consider that the Habs sit just three points ahead of
the Maple Leafs in the logjam for playoff positions in the eastern conference,
pretty much making this a “must-win” for Toronto. Both teams have 11 games
remaining.
The stage will be the Air Canada Centre on a Saturday night, with a national
television audience watching on Hockey Night in Canada.
And don’t forget that goalie Jonathan Bernier (groin) while forward David
Bolland (ankle tendon)will make his long-awaited return.
Enough storylines for you?
To repeat: for a regular season game, it doesn’t get much bigger — or better
— than this.
And for all things Leafs-Canadiens, join the Toronto Sun’s live chat from the
Air Canada Centre at 6:45 p.m. eastern on Saturday night — just about 20
minutes before the puck is dropped.
Toronto Sun LOADED: 03.23.2014
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Dave Bolland likely a go for Leafs vs. Canadiens
Dave Hilson
TORONTO - The long-awaited return of Dave Bolland appears finally to be
here.
While Maple Leafs coached Randy Carlyle played coy for a quick second
saying “who” when asked about the status of the injured centre, he finally
gave the information everyone wanted to hear.
“Bollie is actually having an assessment done right now, and I would say he’s
a probable for us for tonight,” the coach said after his team’s gameday skate
at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday morning.
“He has progressed along over the last three weeks to a point where he feels,
and the doctors feel medically, that he’s close to 100% ready and we just
have to make a decision on the last assessment here in the next two hours.”
That must come as a huge relief for the struggling Leafs, who have been
patiently waiting for Bolland to return from a severed tendon in his left ankle
that has seen him sidelined since Nov. 2. He was originally slated to get back
into the lineup after the Olympic break, but he re-aggravated the injury during
practise.
Bolland, who has only played in 15 games this season (six goals, 10 points,
plus-4) before going down with the injury while playing the Canucks in
Vancouver, was an integral part of the Leafs getting their season off to a
good start and his return will be welcomed against the Canadiens at home on
Saturday night.
“I don’t want to put too much emphasis on him specifically,” Carlyle said,
“because the player hasn’t played in 60 games and it’s a lot to ask of him to
come back in and be where he would have been coming out of training camp
and playing with our hockey club early in the season.
“Again, we are looking for people to step up and Bollie has been a true
professional since the time he’s been here and obviously his time in Chicago,
winning two Stanley Cups and making a contribution there. So we have to
think it’s a positive for our group and if our younger players and our older
players can feed off his energy that would be a huge bonus … With the
addition of a Bolland, it gives you a little more depth throughout your lineup, a
veteran guy, and it kind of slots people more into where we had envisioned
them at the beginning of the year.”
Toronto (36-27-9) sits fourth in the Atlantic Division, with 80 points in 71
games, three points behind third-ranked Montreal (38-26-7), which has
played the same number of games. The Leafs hold a 2-1-1 edge in the
season series and are looking to either shore up their tenuous wildcard
position or climb back into a top-three ranking in the division.
To make room for Bolland, the Leafs sent Carter Ashton to the AHL Marlies.
The forward will be available to play for the Marlies when they host the
Milwaukee Admirals at Ricoh Coliseum this afternoon.
Ashton, 22, has three assists and 19 penalty minutes in 31 games with the
Leafs this season.
It seemed as if something was afoot on the status of Bolland and/or injured
goalie Jonathan Bernier when Carlyle made the media wait about 15 minutes
more than usual before coming out to give his post-skate presser.
The news on Bernier wasn’t quite as good, however, as Carlyle said the
goalie still wasn’t 100% and continues to be “day-to-day.”
“Until he’s a 100%, he’s not available to us,” Carlyle said of the team’s top
’keeper, who participated in the morning skate and has been practised
Friday.
That means James Reimer will be in net once again as the Leafs try to end a
three-game slide and gain some ground on their division foe in the fifth and
final meeting between the two teams this season. Reimer has a career
record of 5-3 and .919 save percentage against Montreal.
After the game, Toronto heads to New Jersey to take on the Devils. If Bernier
is still not ready to go, Marlies callup Drew MacIntyre could see his first NHL
start.
“I expect a building that’s going to have a lot of emotion, a lot of energy, two
teams that are going to play extremely hard for the points that are available,”
Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf said of the game against the Canadiens. “We
have to be composed and keep our emotions in check, because as a player
there are a lot of emotions when you are preparing for the game. It starts right
in the morning, you know who you are playing, what the points mean and
where you are at in the standings. So it’s about us being prepared, we don’t
want to be over-excited. We want to be even-keeled. We have to go out there
and execute the game plan we have in place that we feel gives us the best
chance to win because we’re playing a team that we know how they play, we
know what to expect and there’s that rivalry there.”
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Gameday: Maple Leafs at Devils
Terry Koshan
Sunday, March 23, 2014 01:21 AM EDT
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS at NEW JERSEY DEVILS
Sunday, 7 p.m., Prudential Center
TV: Leafs TV
RADIO: TSN 1050 AM
FIVE KEYS TO THE GAME
Similar circumstances
The Maple Leafs will have to forget they might be tired after playing the
Canadiens at home on Saturday night, but will consider the Devils played at
home as well, versus the Rangers. Neither club, presumably, will have tons
of energy. A patient approach might work best.
Establish a presence
The Leafs have not done that on the road much recently, going 3-3-2 away
from the Air Canada Centre since the Olympic break. After taking six of eight
points in their initial four road games, the Leafs have just two points, a win in
Los Angeles, in their past four on the road.
Shootout plans
If the Leafs have to go to a shootout, they should not be discouraged. The
Devils are the lone NHL team (0-8) with a win in the skills competition this
season, while the Leafs are 9-4.
68 reasons to be aware
Jaromir Jagr defines ageless wonder. At 42, Jagr leads the Devils with 60
points, easily his best output since returning to the NHL from the KHL in
2011. Wish the Leafs' defence well. Jagr is almost impossible to knock off the
puck, especially in the corners.
Take out the killers
Try to draw Devils defencemen Bryce Salvador and Anton Volchenkov into
taking penalties. Why? The two anchor the top penalty-killing unit in the NHL.
Entering play Saturday, the Devils were even better at home than they were
overall, clicking at 89.6% on the penalty kill.
THE BIG MATCHUP
David Clarkson vs. Devils' defence
You figure Clarkson would love to have an impact in this game, his first
contest in the Prudential Center since signing with the Leafs last summer.
For Clarkson to influence the outcome, he will have to be hard on the
forecheck and create misery in front of the Devils' net. If he is in that mood,
New Jersey's defencemen could have their hands full.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Toronto -- PP 20.4% (7th), PK 78.3% (28th)
New Jersey -- PP 20.8% (3rd), PK 87.0% (1st)
SICK BAY
Toronto -- G Jonathan Bernier (groin) is day to day. D Paul Ranger (neck) is
out.
New Jersey -- LW Tim Sestito (head) is out.
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Toronto Maple Leafs
“Actually he pretty much gets booed in most arenas we play in,” Canadiens
teammate Brendan Gallagher said. “He feeds on it, too. He uses it as
motivation.”
Canadiens defencemen P.K. Subban the new Alfie for Leafs fans
According to Gallagher, what you see from Subban on the ice is what you get
behind closed doors in the dressing room.
Mike Zeisberger
“He’s always saying something, cracking jokes, things like that.”
Sunday, March 23, 2014 12:03 AM EDT
Of course, there was the incident earlier this season when the Habs had a
“Bad Suits Day” in which players were asked to wear ugly duds. Even under
these bizarre circumstances, Subban ended up being the centre of
conversation.
For those Maple Leafs fans who lustily jeered P.K. Subban on Saturday night
— not to mention every other time he has stepped on to the Air Canada
Centre ice wearing the rival bleu blanc et rouge colours — the kid from
Rexdale has some food for thought for you.
Truth be told, Pernell Karl Subban probably ranks just behind Daniel
Alfredsson as your most despised opponent, with the gap closing as
Alfredsson closes in on retirement. Subban knows it, too. As a boy who grew
up watching Alfie razzed on each visit to Toronto during those famed Battle of
Ontario clashes against the Ottawa Senators, Subban now understands
first-hand what it feels to feel the wrath of Leafs Nation.
But here’s the thing: Keeping all that in mind, Subban wants to know what
your reaction would be if he one day found himself wearing blue and white.
“Yes, I know,” Subban chuckled Saturday when asked by the Sun if he was
aware he is becoming ‘the new Alfie’ in these parts. “But here’s my thing. You
always have to put it the other way. If I ever ended up playing in Toronto at
some point in my career, what would it be like then? Would they still boo me?
I don’t know if they would or not.
“That’s because what he wore couldn’t be considered a suit,” Gallagher said.
“It was more like pajamas.”
If Subban is the source of so many yuks among his teammates, why does he
raise the ire of Toronto hockey fans so easily?
For a start, consider the events of Jan. 18 that took place at the Air Canada
Centre.
On that particular night, the bitterness oozed over in the Leafs’ 5-3 victory
over the Habs. And, the spotlight, to no one’s surprise, was on Subban.
After enraging the Ottawa Senators earlier that week with a jersey-tugging
goal celebration — a move that Don Cherry called “absolutely ridiculous” —
the defending Norris Trophy winner then irked the Leafs by taunting their
bench after scoring a first-period goal.
Two periods later, James van Riemsdyk responded by mocking Subban’s
theatrics after the Leafs left winger scored the game-winner with about five
minutes left in the third period.
“I mean, to me, (being booed) is a compliment. For me, as a player who
prides himself on trying to have an impact on my hockey team and having an
impact in every game that I play, they’re taking that into account. And being a
guy from Toronto, and playing for the Montreal Canadiens, it’s a natural
reaction for them.”
When it comes to Subban’s so-called theatrics, he has received no shortage
of criticism in his young career.
Subban’s parents still live in Rexdale. He himself has a condo in downtown
Toronto. And in the summer when he’s back in town, people here recognize
him. In a puck-crazed city such as Toronto, you would expect nothing less.
“I don’t think I’m the only guy in the NHL that does it. I know you have to
respect your opponent but when big goals are scored in big moments, it’s
hard to control yourself sometimes.”
In those instances, he said the locals are relatively polite. Relatively
speaking, of course.
Fair enough. But what about his claim after being drafted by the Canadiens in
2007 that, after he one day led the Habs to a Stanley Cup, he would take
hockey’s Holy Grail back to Rexdale and parade it in front of Leafs fans?
“Are people rude to me? Not really,” Subban said. “There are times when I’m
in Toronto in the summer and walk into a restaurant, I’ll hear people start
going: ‘Go Leafs Go,’ that type of thing. And I find that funny.
“Hey, I don’t view celebrations as hot-dogging or showboating,” he said “I
view it as expressing emotions. You look at other sports. All athletes do it.
Know this Toronto: P.K. Subban has backed off that statement.
“They’re passionate fans. Passionate fans are everywhere in Toronto and
Montreal. They’re always fun to be around. And I have the privilege of being
able to interact with them. I think it’s pretty cool.”
“This is my hometown,” he said. “When I first started out my career, I was
swinging around a number of different things. I probably won’t be swinging
those things around now that I’ve been in the league for a while and have
learned a few things.
You know what else is cool? P.K. Subban spent some of his childhood days
decked out in a Leafs jersey. Honest.
“I definitely might have something — something small for family and friends
— if we win the Cup. But I’m thinking way, way, way too far ahead.”
“My sister had a Doug Gilmour jersey and I would wear it sometimes,”
Subban admitted. “Growing up in Toronto, I became a Habs fan because my
dad (Karl) was a huge Habs fan. But growing up in Toronto, you always have
a special place in your heart for your hometown team.”
Leafs Nation would agree.
It just so happens that, as we are standing outside the Habs dressing room
Saturday, the sister in question, Natasha, is standing just a slapshot away,
waiting for P.K. along with several other family members.
There was no complaining, no antics, no showboating, no whining about
being a healthy scratch.
“Yeah, I remember him wearing it,” Natasha said. “It was a No. 93. I
remember getting it at Westwood Arena.”
Is the jersey still kicking around? What about photos of young P.K., decked
out in Gilmour colours? How would that pic look splattered all over the home
page of his recently opened website, pksubban.com?
“There are probably photos of it,” he chuckled. “And I think that jersey
probably is still around somewhere in my basement.
“Mats Sundin. Doug Gilmour. Cujo. Felix Potvin. I was a fan of all those
players. That’s why it’s pretty special to play in these types of games. I mean,
it’s Canadiens versus Leafs.”
With P.K. playing the role of villain whenever he takes the ice in his home
town.
When they aren’t busy booing him, that is.
P.K. COUNTING HIS BLESSINGS
All the concerns the P.K. Subban-bashers had when the Habs defenceman
was picked for the Canadian Olympic team proved to be non-issues in Sochi.
In the end, Subban should have been there. Why wouldn’t you want the
defending Norris Trophy winner on your team?
“For me, I always focus on things that I can control,” Subban said. “I can’t
control things like lineups, especially in that situaion.
“All you can do is try to represent your team and your country the right way,
and try to be a model citizen. As a Canadian citizen, it’s your duty to
represent and honour your team, your family and your country the right way.
I tried to look at the value of doing that. And, in the end, everything about the
Olympics was a positive experience.
“I would have liked to opportunity on that stage to play more, sure. But at the
end of the day, it’s still positive and I got to walk away with a gold medal. At
the age of 24, to be able to say you’ve won a gold medal, a Norris Trophy and
you’re among the best players in the league — well, someone told me in the
past four years I’ve generated more offence and collected more points than
any other defenceman in the league — those are all positives I take away.”
As for the perception in some circles that he might be a disruptive force,
Subban said those rumours aren’t coming out of Montreal, a place he loves
to live and play.
“I have zero problems with the media in Montreal, zero problems with the
fans in Montreal,” he said. “I can leave my house in Montreal every morning.
I know guys who played in Montreal who didn’t like to leave their house, who
didn’t like to go out to restaurants there. I do that regularly. I have never had
any issues with fans, media, anyone in Montreal. They’ve treated me better
than I expected to be treated in the first place.”
STAYING POWER
With his contract up for renewal this summer, P.K. Subban is in for a big
payday.
And, given his druthers, he hopes it comes out of the wallets of the
Canadiens owners rather than any other of the league’s 29 teams.
“I’ll tell you this right now: My goal coming into the NHL was to help the
Montreal Canadiens win a Stanley CUp. It still is,” Subban told the Sun on
Saturday.
“If I’m not a Montreal Canadien, it won’t be because I don’t want to be there. I
have every intention of being there, playing my entire career there.
“If it doesn’t happen, it’s because it’s a business and not because I don’t want
to be there.”
Subban is expected to be looking for a long-term deal at $8-million plus per
season, which is understandable when you are the defending Norris Trophy
winner as the league’s top defenceman.
739266
Toronto Maple Leafs
Maple Leafs desperately need Bernier back
Rob Longley
TORONTO - The long-awaited return of rugged forward David Bolland
couldn’t come at a more crucial time for an increasingly desperate Maple
Leafs team.
And now the other big question: When will goaltender Jonathan Bernier join
him in the lineup to help salvage a season rapidly slipping away?
A week and four consecutive losses after chasing down home-ice advantage
for the opening round of the playoffs seemed like a reasonable goal,
suddenly getting any spot is turning into a massive challenge.
And if the Leafs are going to have a reasonable shot at returning to the
post-season for a second consecutive spring, it’s likely going to take
significant contributions from both players.
First to Bolland, who had a successful get-his-feet wet game on Saturday
after missing 56 contests with a severed tendon near his left ankle. It will take
a few more nights for him to get up to his most effective, however, and the
way things are going, the Leafs best hope that when the moment arrives, it
isn’t too late.
As for Bernier, coach Randy Carlyle said after Saturday’s 4-3 loss to the
Habs that the team’s No. 1 goaltender will not be making the trip to New
Jersey for a Sunday night date with the Devils.
So what now? Does James Reimer get another start? As has been his way
lately, he was “just okay” on Saturday, letting in a second goal to the Habs’
Rene Bourque that he should have had and a bad-angle game-winner to
Tomas Plekanec that cannot be given up at such a crucial point in the game
and season.
Earlier in the week, it seemed prudent not to rush Bernier back so that he
would be at full health entering the playoffs. Say what you will about Reimer’s
efforts, the team plays better defensively in front of Bernier. Now they might
need him back in the net just to have a shot of getting there.
Game On
Bolland generally looked good — taking and making hits and making the
clever plays that Carlyle can rely on so heavily. Officially, he logged 16 shifts
with a shade over nine minutes of ice time, just what the coach planned for
him. “I felt great, pretty good with everything that was going on out there,”
Bolland said. “The first shift was probably the hardest — getting the timing
and figuring things out there. The heartbeat was a little too quick.” ... Carlyle
figures the toughest test will be Sunday in Jersey on the back end of
consecutive games. After that, the Leafs are hoping they’ll have a strong
resemblance of the player that helped them to such a strong start. “I think
he’ll get better,” Carlyle said. ... The Leafs didn’t take a penalty until 9:14 of
the third, a goaltender interference call on James van Riemsdyk that looked
to be marginal contact. Not in the eyes of the guy on the receiving end,
however. “He interfered with me,” said Habs goaltender Carey Price, who
was busy enough on the night while facing 36 shots. “He made contact with
my head. That’s a penalty.” ... Speaking of Price: Phil Kessel and van
Riemsdyk could have only dreamed of getting as close to the Team Canada
goaltender a month ago in Sochi as they did last night. Van Riemsdyk was
credited with a team-high five shots while Kessel registered three and had a
nifty assist on Tyler Bozak’s 16th of the season ... With that goal, Bozak is
two shy of a season-high.
More Score
No denying the entertainment value when these two squads play on a
Saturday night — it has been that way in every such meeting this season.
Pretty sure that both coaches would rather see at least a shred of defence
played, especially at this time of the schedule ... Those who witnessed it live
were part of some minor Air Canada Centre history — the announced crowd
of 19,789 was a record for the Leafs, including regular season and playoffs ...
Carlyle almost lost it at the 15:44 mark of the third when his
comeback-minded team took a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty ... The gifts
just kept on coming as the Leafs gave up the first two goals, the sixth
consecutive game they surrendered the opener. On the first, a turnover feet
away from Carlyle and the Leafs bench, Kessel barfed up a soft, ugly
turnover right on to the stick of David Desharnais, creating an odd-man rush
that resulted in a Max Pacioretty blast past Reimer ... On the second, David
Clarkson was the culprit in the offensive zone. As a result, Bourque was able
to blow by Jake Gardiner at the Habs blueline and take a stretch pass from
Brian Gionta for a near breakaway and a two-nothing lead just 6:52 into the
game ... Tough luck for the Leafs with 53 seconds remaining in the first
period when a Gionta shot that was clearly going wide was deflected behind
Reimer by Tim Gleason ... Reimer would have liked to have the second goal
back, a Bourque shot that went under his glove arm with the goaltender
barely moving in reaction ... Predictably, Don Cherry weighed in on the
Reimer saga during Coach’s Corner: “The kid has lost all confidence in
himself,” Grapes opined ... This style of hockey won’t play well in three weeks
or so but for the second consecutive game the Leafs were involved in a first
period that “featured” five goals. In each, they were on the down end of a 3-2
score ... When he dresses, Colton Orr is part of the lineup in name only.
Through two periods, he had just three shifts and 2:32 in ice time ... Prior to
Nazem Kadri’s power-play goal to tie it up early in the third, the Habs had
killed off 25 consecutive penalties ... Veteran NHL official Gerg Kimmerly
worked the 1,000th contest of his career and was honoured in a pre-game
ceremony.
739267
Toronto Maple Leafs
Gallagher has always been a thorn in Toronto's side. Entering play Saturday,
he had scored eight power-play goals against the Leafs in his short career
with the Canadiens.
Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier stays day-to-day
ASHTON AWAY
Dave Hilson
To make room for Bolland, the Leafs sent Carter Ashton to the Marlies.
Ashton was in the lineup Saturday afternoon as the Marlies lost 5-1 to the
Milwaukee Admirals at Ricoh Coliseum.
TORONTO - Jonathan Bernier hasn't played a game since leaving Toronto's
road contest against the Los Angeles Kings on March 13 after the first period
with a groin pull.
After the morning skate Saturday, it's not much clearer when he will return.
While the Leafs had some good news in that long-injured centre Dave
Bolland was back in the lineup at the Air Canada Centre against the Montreal
Canadiens, Toronto coach Randy Carlyle said his team's top 'tender was still
"day-to-day."
"He's been skating but he still has some issues as far as he's not 100%, so
until he's 100% he's not available to us," Carlyle said.
Bernier was on the ice for the gameday skate, as he was Wednesday before
the Leafs lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning, and he also practised on Friday
for nearly 90 minutes, but it seems he's not quite ready for game action.
What all this means is that with James Reimer starting against the Habs, it's
possible Marlies callup Drew MacIntyre could get his first NHL start on
Sunday against the Devils.
When asked if MacIntyre would be making the trip to New Jersey with the
team, Carlyle responded: "We only have two choices, one's MacIntyre, do
you have another one for us?"
BOLLAND BANTER
Much of the talk after the gameday skate turned to having Bolland back after
he missed 56 games because of a severed tendon in his left ankle.
"We are looking for people to step up and Bollie has been a true professional
since the time he's been here and obviously his time in Chicago, winning two
Stanley Cups and making a contribution there. So we have to think it's a
positive for our group and if our younger players and our older players can
feed off his energy that would be a huge bonus," Carlyle said. "With the
addition of a Bolland, it gives you a little more depth throughout your lineup, a
veteran guy, and it kind of slots people more into where we had envisioned
them at the beginning of the year."
The return of Bolland, who had four goals and 10 assists in the 15 games he
played before being injured, should be a boost to the Leafs as they try to claw
their way back into a top-three spot in the Atlantic Division.
As for Bolland getting back into the swing of things after such a long absence,
his teammates didn't think it would take too long.
"It's the same for every player," centre Nazem Kadri said. "The first couple of
shifts you have the jitters and you just want to keep it simple and make sure
you're not turning the puck over, then as the game goes on you start to feel
better and are able to make some plays."
Added winger James van Riemsdyk: "Obviously you can practise as much as
you want but the game is always a little bit different. But I think for a guy like
him, he's got a lot of experience, so I think the adjustment period will be a bit
quicker for him. I think it's more just getting back in the flow of things, whether
it's hitting someone or maybe getting hit, or getting a shot on goal."
PLAYOFF PUSH
Montreal Canadiens coach Michel Therrien praised diminutive forward
Brendan Gallagher after his team's skate at the ACC.
Despite his generously listed 5-foot-9 frame, Gallagher is a physical player
who always wreaks havoc in front of opposing netminders.
"Gallagher, he has one way to play, it's going hard to the net," Therrien said.
"He's a small kid, but he plays a big game, so he has a lot of respect form our
club. Every time there's a big game, he's always at his best."
With the Leafs this season, the 22-year-old Ashton had three assists and 19
penalty minutes in 31 games.
739268
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs’ Dave Bolland activated off injured list, set to return
against Montreal Canadiens
Stephen Whyno
March 22, 2014 6:21 PM ET
TORONTO — Randy Carlyle stepped up to the microphone and knew the
question about Dave Bolland’s status was coming.
Canucks are at a crossroads with Tortorella, Gillis
“Who?” Carlyle said with a laugh. “Bolly is actually having an assessment
done right now and I would say that he’s a probable for us for tonight.”
Before game time, probable became more than likely as the Leafs activated
Bolland off long-term injured reserve, paving the way for his return Saturday
night against the Montreal Canadiens.
Bolland missed 56 straight games since suffering a severed tendon in the
back of his left ankle Nov. 2 when he was cut by the skate blade of Canucks
forward Zack Kassian.
“He’s progressed along over the last three weeks to a point where the
doctors feel, medically, that he’s close to 100% ready,” Carlyle said.
To make room for Bolland and his cap hit, the Leafs sent winger Carter
Ashton to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies early Saturday afternoon and then
centre Peter Holland later on.
Bolland was not made available to speak to reporters Saturday. When he
addressed his status after Friday’s practice, the 27-year-old centre said that
“hopefully something clicks” that allows him to feel ready to go.
“A few weeks ago when you sort of had the little doubts of when this was
going to go upwards and when things were going to start getting positive, we
were getting a little doubtful,” Bolland said. “But things are getting up there
and things are working. It’s been the little things in the gym that have helped
this get stronger.”
Now that he has the green light, it’s full speed ahead. Bolland is expected to
centre the Leafs’ third line between Mason Raymond and David Clarkson.
That would mean Bolland is likely not to play 19 minutes 30 seconds like he
did in his final full game before getting injured, but Carlyle doesn’t know if
he’d limit his ice time.
“We’ll see how the game goes,” Carlyle said. “Obviously you’d like to get
more people involved the hockey game. Everybody talks about a four-line
game. Four lines this, four lines that but we haven’t been really went that
mode.
“We’d like to be able to do that on a more regular basis. With an addition of a
Bolland it gives you a little bit more depth throughout your lineup with a
veteran guy and it slots people more into where we envisioned them at the
beginning of the year.”
The lineup the Leafs envisioned and had at the start of the year also included
goaltender Jonathan Bernier, but the Laval, Que., native won’t be ready to
dress against the Habs. Carlyle said Bernier is still experiencing problems
relating to his groin injury.
James Reimer, who did not take part in the morning skate, will make his
fourth straight start. Drew MacIntyre is expected to serve as his backup.
National Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
739269
Toronto Maple Leafs
Montreal Canadiens down Toronto Maple Leafs as goalie James Reimer
struggles again
Michael Traikos
March 22, 2014 9:46 PM ET
TORONTO — Call it a slide. Call it a slump.
Dallas Stars hand Ottawa Senators sixth straight loss
Whatever word you want to use, the Toronto Maple Leafs have made life
very difficult for themselves. The team, which lost 4-3 to the Montreal
Canadiens on Saturday, has now dropped four straight games in regulation.
And while they currently remain in a wildcard playoff spot, their grip on the
seventh seed is slipping fast.
“We’re still in a good spot,” said Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf. “Obviously,
we’ve slid a little bit because of not winning games. But we’re still right there.
Tomorrow’s a huge game for our team, but we’re going to stay upbeat.
There’s no time to feel sorry for ourselves. We have to go and refocus and
get ready for tomorrow, because they’re two huge points.”
With 10 games remaining, Toronto heads into New Jersey on Sunday sitting
in seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings. The Leafs are only
one point ahead of the eighth-place Detroit Red Wings and two points ahead
of ninth-place Columbus, with both teams having played two fewer games.
James Reimer, who has now lost his last eight starts, said there is “a healthy
sense of urgency.” But the players are not panicking, even though this slump
is coming at the worst time possible. The Leafs have never lost more than
five straight games this season. And even then, the team managed to pick up
two points in the process because of overtime.
For that reason, the loss against Montreal was difficult to swallow.
A week ago, Saturday night’s game against the Canadiens might have been
billed as a battle for home-ice advantage. At the very least, it offered up a
potential playoff preview. But with the win, Montreal moved five points ahead
of Toronto and one step closer to facing Tampa Bay in the first round.
“That one stings,” said Mason Raymond. “You can call it whatever you want,
but at the end of the day we’re not getting the two points. A loss is a loss.”
Dave Bolland, who had missed more than four months and 56 games, made
his long-anticipated return to the lineup on Saturday. But it was the absence
of Jonathan Bernier, who missed his fourth straight game with a groin injury,
which affected the Leafs the most.
Reimer, who has not won a game that he started since Jan. 21, struggled
once again. He allowed two goals on his first six shots, as the Leafs spotted
the Canadiens a 2-0 lead in the opening six minutes of the game.
For Toronto, it was nothing new. Only three teams have allowed more goals
in the first period than the Leafs this season.
“Maybe it’s just something that’s going on right now,” Reimer said of the slow
starts. “I think maybe we have to be a little sharper at the start, me included,
because it’s tough coming back.”
Reimer, who was twice beaten on his glove side, probably should have
stopped both goals. But then again, he probably should not have faced either
shot to begin with. Phil Kessel turned the puck over in the neutral zone on the
first goal, while the second came on a partial breakaway.
Still, it was another poor start for Reimer, who has allowed 15 goals in the
four starts since Bernier got hurt. And while it would not have been surprising
if the struggling goalie were pulled, the team tried to rally behind him.
“The margin of error in these games is now so close that one bounce or one
misplay or one unfortunate mistake cost us a point,” said head coach Randy
Carlyle. “That’s the message after the game. We can still play to a higher
level.
“We worked hard. We have to work equally as hard and clean up some of the
mistakes we made. We turned the puck over in the neutral ice and it comes
back to haunt you. We made a mistake on a turnover on the penalty kill and it
comes back to haunt you. Those are difference makers in the game.”
Midway through the first period, Joffrey Lupul scored his 20th of the season
to make it 2-1. About seven minutes later, Kessel redeemed himself for his
earlier mistake by intercepting a pass at the side of Montreal’s net and then
feeding Tyler Bozak to tie the game.
The Leafs, however, could not escape the period without giving up yet
another goal, this time on a Brian Gionta shot that redirected off Toronto’s
Tim Gleason with 53 seconds remaining to put Montreal up 3-2.
Reimer, who was given the Bronx cheer by the Montreal fans in the building,
settled down in the second period. And at 2:49 in the third period, Toronto
tied the game again when Nazem Kadri took a pass in front of the net from
Lupul and scored on the power play.
The Leafs went the first 40 minutes without taking a penalty, but midway
through the third period James van Riemsdyk got called for goaltender
interference on a play where he appeared to be shoved from behind. The
somewhat controversial penalty proved to be costly, with Tomas Plekanec
beating Reimer as he stumbled while trying to slide across and stop a
backdoor pass one second after the power play ended.
“It’s disappointing. It’s a disappointing loss for our team,” said Phaneuf. “You
have to turn the page. There’s no looking back on today. Tomorrow’s a new
day.
“We have to pull ourselves out of it. It’s this group that’s going to get us out of
this bind. We’ve been close, but close isn’t good enough right now. We know
we’re going to get out of it. We just have to find a way and it’s got to come
tomorrow.”
National Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
739270
Washington Capitals
Alex Ovechkin riding 11-game even-strength scoring drought
Katie Carrera
March 22 at 6:31 pm
SAN JOSE, Calif. – There were multiple times at even strength Thursday
night in Washington’s eventual 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings where the
puck was a place the Capitals want to see it – on the stick of Alex Ovechkin
with enough time for the star winger to get a shot off.
But despite a handful of opportunities where Ovechkin was presented with an
opportunity to do what he does best and put the puck in the back of the net,
the 28-year-old was just off the mark. Such has been the case for Ovechkin
lately.
While Ovechkin has scored two power play goals in the past four games, the
league’s leading goal scorer hasn’t converted five-on-five in 11 games, a
stretch that dates back to Feb. 27 at the Florida Panthers, the Capitals’ first
game back from the Olympic break.
“Just the situation when we have position in the zone, I have to find open
space,” Ovechkin said. “It’s hard right now, everybody play one-on-one
basically. Especially against my line they put more pressure on me,
five-on-five they don’t give me any freedom so I have to find the rebound or
find the open space.”
Of Ovechkin’s 46 goals, 20 have come five-on-five and he leads the Capitals
in that category. But Washington has struggled to score consistently at even
strength all season, and when Ovechkin isn’t able to make a dent five-on-five
for this long of a stretch it is a noticeable absence.
For the first two games of this trip, Ovechkin has skated on a line with Marcus
Johansson and center Jay Beagle, who is usually on the third or fourth lines.
Ovechkin was scheduled to start Saturday’s contest in San Jose there as
well.
It’s an unorthodox combination stemming from multiple motivations. From
making the Capitals top lines tougher for opponents to match up against by
splitting Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, to adding a more direct defensive
sensibility to the unit – Ovechkin hasn’t been on the ice for an even-strength
goal against the past two games after being on for seven in the previous five
games combined — and forcing Ovechkin to take a straightforward offensive
approach rather than searching for a perfect setup.
“Beags is just relentless, not thinking about the pretty play and I think that’s
good for Ovi and Jojo to get that in their games sometimes,” Coach Adam
Oates said. “Every once in a while you have some tic-tac-toes and you get in
a habit of looking for that. You’ve got to get some dirty goals as well.”
Ovechkin hasn’t played with Beagle much over the course of his career but
downplayed the adjustment required on his part to work with a more grinding
center as opposed to Backstrom.
“Everybody knows the skill of Backy and Beags is different but – I think he’s
more faster than Backy and he can create chances by his work ethic,”
Ovechkin said, adding that the only difference is how much he focuses on
making plays in and around the net. “I have to go to the net. Sometimes when
I play with Backy I have to find the spot close to him so he can give me puck
and I can shoot.”
While Oates said he doesn’t see the winger forcing plays to try and score at
even strength, Ovechkin acknowledged that when he has chances like he did
in Los Angeles – such as as a wide-open look on an odd-man rush on which
he missed the net and a play where he drove to the front of the net but
couldn’t get a shot off before Jonathan Quick poked the puck away — he
needs to make the most of them.
Oates attributes part of Ovechkin’s even-strength dry spell to simple realities
of the league at this stage as teams become more diligent in their own zone
while fighting for a playoff spot and because the Capitals are playing some of
the more tight-checking teams in the league, who will limit reigning Hart
Trophy winner’s opportunities.
“You play stingy teams you’re not going to get a lot,” Oates said, “And scoring
goes down as the season goes along.”
Washington Post LOADED: 03.23.2014
739271
Washington Capitals
Alzner-Carlson
Hillen-Green
Capitals seek first win in San Jose since 1993
Orlov-Wey
Halak, Holtby.
Katie Carrera
Sharks
March 22 at 4:32 pm
Joe Pavelski-Joe Thornton-Brent Burns
Patrick Marleau-Logan Couture-Matt Nieto
SAN JOSE – The last time the Capitals won here, Alex Ovechkin was 8 years
old, Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” was at the top of the
Billboard charts, Bill Clinton was in the first year of his presidency and the
Shark Tank – now called the SAP Center – had been open for less than two
months.
On Oct. 30, 1993, Peter Bondra, Craig Berube, Keith Jones and Mike Ridley
scored as Washington captured a 4-2 win over the Sharks. In 12 visits to
Northern California since then, the Capitals have failed to come away with a
victory.
The Capitals are 4-20-1-2 in the 27 meetings with San Jose since that
contest, with each of the victories coming in Washington. They haven’t
beaten the Sharks anywhere since Oct. 15, 2009.
“We haven’t had too much success here,” John Carlson said. “They’re a
good team an intimidating team. I think they play a good style for their rink
and once you get that personality and recognition to the rink being a tough
place to play, teams come in here and go, ‘Uh oh, we’ve got to face the
Sharks at home.’ We’ve seen it at home I think sometimes for us. But for us
it’s the perfect time to come in here because there’s no time for let downs,
excuses. There’s no time but for anything but our best.”
While the Capitals have played well in the first two games of this California
trip they have eased into the contests somewhat, finding a better rhythm and
flow to their game as it progresses. Coach Adam Oates knows if the Capitals
are going to leave San Jose with a win, though, they need to be on their
game from the opening puck drop. The Sharks are 26-5-4 at home and
33-3-5 when scoring first this season.
“I felt that the last two games we played pretty good games and I would say
that as the game went along we got stingier and played better,” Oates said.
“We can’t afford to wait to the second period tonight. You’ve got to do it from
the first shift.”
A large part of finding any success against the Sharks is handling the
pressure from their top six, which is more two first lines than a first and a
second with Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Brent Burns on one and Patrick
Marleau, Logan Couture and Matt Nieto on the other.
“We still have establish getting them on their heels a little bit, wearing them
out in their own end,” Oates said. “If you let Thornton have an easy game and
never have to play in his own end he’s going to bury you. Marleau, Couture
they’re guys that want transition, they want one and done in their own end.
We need to make them think it’s going to be a long night playing defense.”
>> The Capitals continue to roll with Jaroslav Halak, who will make his eighth
consecutive start Saturday night in San Jose. He’s 4-2-1 with a .935 save
percentage and 2.13 goals-against average. Antti Niemi, who is 35-14-6 with
a 2.34 goals-against average and .914 save percentage.
>> The Sharks will be without defenseman Brad Stuart (upper-body injury)
for the 13th straight game tonight and forward Raffi Torres will miss his
seventh with a lower-body injury.
>> On an unrelated note, the Capitals signed 2010 fifth-round draft pick
Caleb Herbert to a two-year, entry-level deal that begins next season.
Herbert, who played the last three years at Minnesota-Duluth, will report to
the AHL’s Hershey Bears on a try out agreement for the remainder of this
year.
Projected lineups for both teams
Capitals
Johansson-Beagle-Ovechkin
Kuznetsov-Backstrom-Brouwer
Chimera-Fehr-Ward
Penner-Brown-Wilson
Tommy Wingels-James Sheppard-Marty Havlat
Adam Burish-Andrew Desjardins-Mike Brown
Scott Hannan-Dan Boyle
Matt Irwin-Justin Braun
Marc-Edouard Vlasic-Jason Demers
Antti Niemi will start, Alex Stalock will back up.
739272
Washington Capitals
Jaroslav Halak sidelined by lower-body injury; Braden Holtby faces Sharks
Katie Carrera
March 22 at 10:27 pm
Updated: SAN JOSE, Calif. – Jaroslav Halak was scheduled to make an
eighth consecutive start Saturday night as the Capitals wrapped up their
three-game California road trip, but because of what the team will only
describe as a lower-body injury he was on the bench as backup against the
Sharks.
With Halak sidelined, Braden Holtby made his first start since March 6 at
Boston and made sure the Capitals continued their recent trend of picking up
points despite the switch. Holtby finished with 34 saves and stopped two off
three Sharks he faced in the shootout to support Washington’s 3-2 shootout
victory at SAP Center.
“It was a challenge. I obviously don’t want to go too long without starting but
we’ve been playing very well lately so it hasn’t been an issue,” Holtby said. “I
was given the opportunity to start tonight and I wanted to be there for the
guys like they’ve been playing the last little while.”
It was Holtby’s 18th start since Dec. 1 – he started 22 in the first two months
of the season — as the Capitals have rotated through various goaltending
options in the past several months searching for stability. Halak’s arrival
brought the latest lull in his workload as Coach Adam Oates leaned on the
28-year-old, who is 4-2-1 with a .935 save percentage and 2.13
goals-against as a Capital.
Holtby appeared to settle into the contest as it progressed and both San Jose
goals – Patrick Marleau’s followed a turnover by Mike Green and James
Sheppard’s came on a clean breakaway — were the product of breakdowns
in front of him.
But when Holtby was at his best against the Sharks was after Chris Brown’s
goal tied the contest. He handled a late push from San Jose that included
seven shots and several waves of pressure including a power play when Alex
Ovechkin went off for high sticking with 2:18 remaining in regulation.
While going long stretches without game action isn’t something Holtby
prefers, he believes he found a way to handle it better this time around.
“I thought I did a better job preparing for this one than in the past so it was
better in that aspect,” Holtby said. “The last little while I felt pretty good in
practice, been seeing the puck well….We know what’s going on here, Jaro’s
been playing great. I’m just trying to stay sharp if I get called upon.”
As for Halak, Oates gave the indication that his injury is not serious.
“He’s ok. I think he could come back and play Tuesday [against Los
Angeles],” Oates said. “Just wasn’t feeling 100 percent.”
Halak didn’t take part in Friday’s practice in San Jose, but the team said it
was simply a day off for the veteran netminder. Halak participated in the
morning skate at SAP Center Saturday and pre-game warmups as well but
appeared to be moving gingerly in the latter session.
739273
Washington Capitals
Caps end San Jose skid with 3-2 SO win vs Sharks
JOSH DUBOW
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Nicklas Backstrom scored the winning goal in the
shootout to lead the Washington Capitals to their first win in San Jose in more
than 20 years, 3-2 over the Sharks on Saturday night.
Eric Fehr and Chris Brown scored in regulation for the Capitals, who had lost
11 times and tied once since winning their first game at the Shark Tank on
Oct. 30, 1993. This is only Washington's second win in its last 19 games
overall against San Jose.
Braden Holtby made 34 saves in his first start since March 6 in place of the
banged-up Jaroslav Halak.
Patrick Marleau and James Sheppard scored for the Sharks, who missed a
chance to clinch their 10th straight playoff berth. Antti Niemi made 23 saves.
Evgeny Kuznetsov put the Capitals ahead in the shootout when he scored in
the opening round. But Marleau tied it in the third round before Backstrom
beat Niemi for the winner.
The Capitals had lost five straight shootouts while San Jose had won seven
in a row in the tiebreaker.
The Sharks appeared poised to clinch the playoffs when Sheppard blocked a
shot by Jason Chimera early in the third period and then scored on a
breakaway against Holtby to put San Jose up 2-1.
But the Capitals got the equalizer when they got a fortunate bounce with 7:30
remaining. Dustin Penner took the puck from Scott Hannan behind the net
and fed Brown, whose shot deflected off defenseman Dan Boyle and past
Niemi for his first career goal.
The Sharks lost two of three on this homestand, beating Anaheim in a
showdown for first place in between losses to Washington and Florida - two
Eastern Conference teams out of playoff position. San Jose is three points
ahead of the Ducks in the Pacific Division although Anaheim has two games
in hand.
The game was more crucial to Washington's playoff hopes. The Capitals
have earned points in five straight games to tie Detroit for eighth place in the
East with 79 points. The Red Wings have two games in hand.
The Capitals jumped on top with help from a lucky bounce and a strong
forecheck. Jason Chimera got the puck away from Logan Couture along the
boards to set up Fehr for a shot that was blocked. Justin Braun tried to clear
the puck out of danger, but it hit teammate Matt Nieto in the leg and bounced
into the net for a goal credited to Fehr.
Nieto helped the Sharks tie it in the closing seconds of the period when he
put a wraparound attempt on net following a turnover by Mike Green. Holtby
made the save on the initial shot, but Marleau knocked in the rebound
following a scramble for 30th goal with 5.6 seconds remaining.
NOTES: Marleau has seven career 30-goal seasons. ... The Capitals have
as many wins (two) in the Cow Palace, where the Sharks played their first
two seasons, as they have at the Shark Tank, which opened in 1993-94. ...
This game finishes a stretch where the Sharks played 13 of 14 games
against the Eastern Conference. They won't play the East again this season
unless they make the Stanley Cup finals.
Washington Times LOADED: 03.23.2014
739274
Winnipeg Jets
Hurricanes up 3-1 on Jets
Tim Campbell
Posted: 11:24 AM
WINNIPEG — Some kind of lineup boost appears to be in play for the
Winnipeg Jets tonight.
The Jets meet the Carolina Hurricanes at 6 p.m. at the MTS Centre (CBC,
TSN1290) and could have forwards Dustin Byfuglien (lower body) and Jim
Slater (lower) and defenceman Zach Bogosian (upper) all back in action.
The trio missed Wednesday night’s home game against Colorado but all
three were on the ice for this morning’s game-day skate downtown and
coach Paul Maurice sounded optimistic they’ll be able to play.
"The three, Byfuglien, Bogosian and Slater, felt good this morning so we’ll
schedule them as players and we’ll make other players available if they need
to be ready," the coach said.
"My expectation right now is that all three will be in."
Though they did defeat Colorado here Wednesday with six regulars out of
the lineup, the boost in manpower can’t hurt the Jets in their hour of need. At
73 points and with 11 games remaining, they trail the eighth-place Phoenix
Coyotes by six points in the Western Conference hunt for playoff spots.
Tonight’s game is a once-a-season promotion event —bobblehead night.
Byfuglien bobbleheads go to every fan in attendance.
"Is that today?" Byfuglien said this morning, adding no hype to the occasion.
"I didn’t really pay attention. I did see some boxes but I wasn’t sure. I’m just
glad to be back."
Byfuglien, who has missed only one game, Wednesday’s, all season,
admitted he’s seen the bobblehead doll but didn’t have much to say on
whether it’s a true likeness.
"I have seen one, a little while ago. But I haven’t paid too much attention to it.
It is what is. It’s a bobblehead," he said.
Byfuglien has had a hot stick in recent games with six goals in his most
recent six games and 19 on the year.
"It’s a long season," he said. "There are bumps and bruises down the road. I
do the best I can and try to help the team as much as possible."
Maurice also said today that goalie Ondrej Pavelec, out since March 14 with
a lower-body issue, skated again today for a third straight day and is being
targeted for a return next week.
"He’s getting better," Maurice said. "Nothing’s changed with him. He’s not
going tonight and he’s getting closer and we’ll see how he is for the Dallas
game (Monday)."
Al Montoya will be in goal tonight against the Hurricanes, who are at 69
points after dropping a Friday night game, 3-2, in Chicago.
With the better health of the three players in question for tonight, the Jets this
morning returned centre John Albert to the AHL's St. John's IceCaps. He
played one game for the team during this NHL recall.
Winnipeg Free Press LOADED 03.23.2014
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Winnipeg Jets
WIN_Fatburger_Sponsorship_2014
Paul Friesen
Saturday, March 22, 2014 11:41 PM CDT
The fans didn't like the call, and Jets head coach Paul Maurice agreed with
them.
Mark Stuart's apparent goal 7:29 into the third period would have tied
Saturday night's game at 3-3, but the official immediately waved it off, ruling
Dustin Byfuglien had interfered with Carolina goalie Cam Ward.
The replay showed Byfuglien falling into Ward in the goal crease.
"On the video, for me, it's a good goal," Maurice said. "He gets tripped. That
traffic is going to happen. Loktionov comes in with his stick and leg and
knocks him on his butt."
The Jets couldn't get another one past Ward, even though they out-shot the
Hurricanes, 14-5, in the final frame.
"We have all the momentum... we could maybe pull that one out in regulation
if that one counts," Blake Wheeler said. "You'd like to see some video come
into play there, if at all possible."
By NHL rule, the play was not reviewable.
"I thought Buff kinda just fell," Stuart said. "And then he just kind of lay there.
He got in his way. But from what Buff told me he just fell and just lay there. He
didn't really push or anything."
The officials told the Jets Byfuglien went into Ward on his own.
"They said he went in there on purpose and made contact," Bryan Little said.
"It almost looks like he lost his balance a bit. It was kind of accidental. I'm sure
he didn't go there with the intention of running over the goalie."
Winnipeg Sun LOADED 03.23.2014
739276
Winnipeg Jets
Jets' playoff hopes take big hit with loss to Hurricanes
But losing their nerve is what ultimately will spell the unofficial end of the
playoff chase.
They got it back in time for a furious third period.
“If we’d played like that for 60 minutes, we definitely would have came out on
top,” Little said.
Paul Friesen
There was nothing wrong with the first 20 minutes, either.
March 22, 2014 11:38 PM CDT
Conversely, the only member of the ’Canes to show up was Ward.
And what of his counterpart in the Jets goal?
Al Montoya Winnipeg Jets goaltender Al Montoya kicks out his pad on a
chance for Carolina Hurricanes centre Manny Malholtra during NHL action at
MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Man. on Sat., March 22, 2014. Kevin
King/Winnipeg Sun/QMI Agency
Al Montoya took on a good portion of the blame in the nearly deserted
dressing room.
A hot goalie, a controversial call and three minutes or so of the worst hockey
the downtown rink has seen this season.
“I felt good, other than five minutes there in the second period,” Montoya
said. “I don’t know what it was. At the end of the day, I hold myself
responsible.”
Put it all together and you’ve got another dagger in the Winnipeg Jets’ playoff
hopes.
This looks like the wound that’ll take the life out of the beast.
With 10 games left, including a wickedly difficult five-game road trip though
the NHL’s Wild West, beginning Monday in Dallas, the Jets might actually
have to go undefeated the rest of the way.
The first and third goals, he said, were on him.
Blame Montoya all you want, but if you’re going to hang the Jets’ backup
goalie then you’d better leave plenty of rope for teammates.
Maurice didn’t call a timeout after the third goal to settle down his netminder.
Looked more like a public scolding, directed at a team folding under the
pressure.
And even that might not be good enough.
Montoya got little help in a second period that saw Carolina register 21 shots
to the Jets’ eight.
But this is what happens when you’ve frittered away enough points over the
first 72 games.
Some will blame the stripes for the goal that wasn’t.
The latest two, a 3-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, was equal parts bad
luck and bad play.
“Cam Ward was the story of this hockey game,” Jets head coach Paul
Maurice said, post-game.
Yes, and no.
Ward was sensational, making the kind of saves he made in leading Carolina
to a Stanley Cup championship in what seems like a lifetime ago.
His lunging, stick save on Bryan Little in the first period was save-of-the-year
material, and left the Jets centre looking to the heavens for an answer.
“That’s probably the biggest save anyone’s made on me in my career,” Little
said. “It was probably bugging me for a better part of the game, to say the
least.”
But the Jets got the all-important first goal, anyway.
When Jim Slater added to the celebration of welcoming his first child into the
world by scoring his first goal of the season, the Jets should have been off to
the races.
Instead, they let the Hurricanes, who’d played a tough game in Chicago 24
hours earlier, off the hook.
Because 37 seconds after Slater’s goal, Eric Staal scored on a scramble to
tie it.
Then Slater took a tripping penalty, and the Hurricane quadrupled in force,
blowing the Jets away like a cardboard beach house with three goals in less
than three minutes.
“They get the lead and the whole bench kind of gasps,” is how Little
described it. “Because of the importance of the game. You get behind right
now and it kind of feels like the end of the world.”
Just when you thought the Jets had found a way to handle some adversity,
they cave.
“That can’t happen,” Mark Stuart said. “This time of the year, especially.
You’ve got to regroup right away, during the game on the bench.”
Instead, the Jets froze. Skating in deep sand, they watched as Carolina
played.
“No doubt we got tight at 2-1,” Maurice said. “You could feel it. There’s a
portion in a game the other team’s going to get theirs. And you need to hold
then... there is some experience involved in doing that.”
Maurice lamented the 14 lost faceoffs, too.
But Dustin Byfuglien did interfere with Ward on Mark Stuart’s apparent tying
goal.
It was a judgment call that was hard to argue with, at least from a
non-partisan viewpoint.
You might get some of the those calls, but you won’t get them all.
And when you’ve left yourself no wiggle room, they’re magnified.
Leaving your playoff chances microscopic.
Winnipeg Sun LOADED 03.23.2014
739277
Vancouver Canucks
“But we have to find some people who can ... You’re only as good as your
surroundings.”
Two years after trade, Zack Kassian and Cody Hodgson both yet to deliver
For his part, Hodgson said he’s grown significantly this year. At least he’s
done something this season.
JASON BOTCHFORD
“I’ve matured in a lot of ways,” Hodgson said. “I’ve learned to play with
different types of linemates.
“I’ve been sliding around the lineup. I’ve really enjoyed my time in Buffalo so
far, and for the next six years too.”
Two years after trade, Zack Kassian and Cody Hodgson both yet to deliver
Vancouver Canucks' Zack Kassian, right, celebrates his goal against the
Pittsburgh Penguins with Chris Higgins, left, and Kevin Bieksa during third
period NHL hockey action in Vancouver, B.C., on Tuesday January 7, 2014.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck ORG XMIT: VCRD128
Zack Kassian mused it would be years before people stopped comparing him
to Cody Hodgson.
Turns out, all it took was Nicklas Jensen.
The Danish rookie has not only captured the hearts of Canucks fans with his
three goals — it doesn’t take much these days — he has done something
Kassian sure hasn’t been able to do.
He has won over John Tortorella.
While Jensen was preparing to play with the Sedin twins against Buffalo,
Kassian was answering questions about why he hasn’t got that same
opportunity.
“I think I’ve progressed over the season, but I still think I’ve underachieved,”
Kassian said.
Tortorella was asked to address why he’s so willing to trust Jensen so quickly
while refusing all season to show the same faith in Kassian.
“(Jensen’s) awareness is above where I’d thought it would be,” Tortorella
said. “Him and Zack are two different players. I don’t want to compare them
because I’d have to be critical of one, and that’s just not fair.
“But with Jense, he’s stepped in and he immediately made an impact,
offensively and he’s not hurting us terribly away from the puck.”
Wonder which one he’d have to be critical of if he compared them?
Maybe Kassian hasn’t met lofty expectations some had of him in the
summer. But he has 11 goals, and has been deployed this season almost
exclusively in defensive roles.
His offensive zone starts — 42% — are the third lowest on the team. His
power-play time is virtually non-existent — 37:57 total for the season. Just
like his shifts with the twins.
It’s a point Kassian drove home when he thought he was being asked to
compare himself to Hodgson.
“We’re in two different situations with our hockey teams,” Kassian said. “He’s
putting up a lot of points, but obviously I’m in a checking role.”
A third-line checker is not exactly how Kassian was pitched when the trade
went down two years ago. But then, it was considered a marquee deal.
Now? Well, it’s lost a lot of its sizzle, from either side’s point of view. The
question is no longer who won the trade? It’s who lost the trade least?
Hodgson has just 36 points, and has spent most of the year proving he is not
a No. 1 centre. In fact, in three recent games he wasn’t even a centre after
head coach Ted Nolan moved him to the wing on the team’s second line.
Hodgson said Saturday he planned to go out with some of his old Canucks
teammates for dinner where he’d find out what has gone wrong in Vancouver
this year.
But they could easily be trying to find out what has gone wrong with him.
Nolan did underscore the reality that it’s probably unfair to judge Hodgson
this year, when the roster looks like it was specifically designed to tank the
season.
“You realize certain players are gifted in certain areas,” Nolan said of
Hodgson. “Cody is one of those guys, that if you get him within 10, or five feet
of that net and they’re going to go in.
Oh ya, that contract. After a decent lockout-shortened season, Hodgson
signed a six-year, $25.5-million deal. It looks huge now, because he’s
struggled. But if you really believed he was a first-line centre, and he showed
he was, it would have been peanuts.
There are those in NHL circles who are convinced he wanted a six-year deal
because there were still lingering concerns about the health of his back,
which was an ongoing topic for a couple of years when he was still with the
Canucks.
Back problems or not, it’s remarkable that two years after the trade, Kassian
still can’t get off the third line and Hodgson still can’t stay on the first.
Vancouver Province: LOADED: 03.23.2014
739278
Vancouver Canucks
Daniel Sedin is back while Kesler shrugs off his knee problems
March 22, 2014. 3:33 pm
Jason Botchford
Daniel Sedin Daniel Sedin is back while Kesler shrugs off his knee problems
Daniel Sedin believes the Canucks need to win eight of their final 10 games
to make the playoffs.
On paper, none of them will be much easier than Sunday’s game against the
Buffalo Sabres.
Daniel will be back in the lineup, playing with his brother Henrik and Nicklas
Jensen, who scored three goals and is getting the star treatment locally
because of it.
Ryan Kesler is still a question. His knee buckled during practice Saturday. Or
did it?
He stormed off the ice after his knee gave out, but later claimed everything
was fine and he left only because he had to use the phone.
OK, then.
The Sabres are the only team in the NHL the Canucks have an advantage
against offensively.
Buffalo ranks 30th in the league, scoring just 1.86 goals a game. The
Canucks are 29th with a 2.32 goals per game average.
That shows you just how inept this Buffalo team is.
They are led, kind of, by Cody Hodgson, who has just 36 point this season.
In net, the Sabres are starting Nathan Lieuwen. The Abbotsford native is
starting only his second NHL game.
The Canucks are countering with Eddie Lack.
Who else?
739279
Vancouver Canucks
Burnstein has also been responsible for keeping Henrik upright through his
679-game ironman streak, the sixth-longest in NHL history, which ended this
season.
Willes: Sunday’s celebration of Henrik Sedin honours a man and hockey
player of quiet grace and character
“People don’t know what he went through,” Burnstein says. “They have no
idea. I feel a part of Hank’s journey. You take pride in that.”
Ed Willes
He’s not the only one. Jon Sanderson is Burnstein’s assistant and Brian
Hamilton is O’Neill’s assistant, and they share in the affection and regard for
the twins. Sanderson’s first year with the team was 2000, which was the
Sedins’ first year.
March 22, 2014 2:32 PM
VANCOUVER — As the strength and conditioning coach of the Vancouver
Canucks, Roger Takahashi has been working with Henrik Sedin and his
brother Daniel for the better part of 11 years.
Over that time he’s watched the twins morph from third-line NHLers into bona
fide stars. He’s watched them transform themselves physically through a
gruelling, uncompromising workout regimen which allowed them to exploit
their singular on-ice talents. He’s also watched the way they’ve handled
themselves when things changed; when they stopped being objects of
derision in this city and around the NHL and became two of the game’s most
celebrated players.
Takahashi was asked if he had a story which revealed the essence of the
Sedins.
“I’ve thought about that,” he said. “And this is the thing that stands out for me.
They never played in the minors. That can change a lot of people. I’ve seen
guys come up, play a few (NHL) games and they change. It’s the old
one-year, 10-year thing (an old hockey adage: been in the league for one
year, act like they’ve been in it for 10).
“But that’s not them. They were the same guys in ’03 (Takahashi’s first year)
as they are now. They want to stay in the background and they do a lot of
things for a lot of different people, so the stories really don’t come out. And I
think that’s the biggest story about them: the non-story.”
But that will change a bit this weekend.
On Sunday the Canucks will fête Henrik for playing his 1,000th game with the
franchise, which is how it should be for a player and a man who’s come to
mean so much to this team and this province. We’ve watched him grow up in
front of us; watched he and his brother evolve from uncertain, unsteady kids
to All-Stars who represent the best qualities in sport.
They’ve done this, not by playing to the cameras or carefully constructing
their public image, but rather through the sheer impact of their work ethic and
their own values. Day in, day out, they show up to work and do the right
things the right way. Day in, day out, they exert the max effort, and if things
don’t go their way, the solution will be found in more work.
We’ve all seen this over the years, but there’s also a group within the
Canucks who’ve had a front-row seats for the Sedins’ journey. They are the
trainers, the equipment managers, the strength coaches who are with the
twins every day, who’ve come to know them as friends and colleagues away
from the glare of the spotlight.
As you might have guessed, they’ve seen the same thing we’ve all seen. But
in their cases, it’s all meant just a little more.
Pat O’Neill, for example, has been with the Canucks as an equipment
manager since 1988. His first contact with the Sedins came after the ’99 draft
when then-GM Brian Burke told O’Neill to prepare jerseys 22 and 33 for
Daniel and Henrik because they were the second and third picks of that draft.
“When I did meet them, they were probably the quietest, most polite hockey
players I’ve ever met,” says O’Neill. “And they still are, although they’re not
as quiet. It’s hard for me to tell you about the respect they treat us all with.”
That’s something Mike Burnstein knows about. The Canucks’ head trainer
was there for the Sedins’ first Canucks training camp in Stockholm in 2000,
and still wonders at what he saw then and what he sees now.
“We still laugh about that,” Burnstein says. “I thought, ‘This is the second and
third overall picks?’ It was a hard training camp. Crow (then-Canucks head
coach Marc Crawford) was really pounding the guys. It was pretty clear the
brothers had a way to go.
“I always think about that, seeing where they’re at now and all the hard work.
It’s been 14 years. When you see someone grow from a teenager to an adult
with a family of their own, it’s something special.”
“I didn’t really know what I was doing and they didn’t know what they were
doing,” says Sanderson. “It was like kids in kindergarten. Fourteen years
later, they’re exactly the same people.”
Well, not exactly. Sanderson reports the twins now fill out their own NCAA
brackets and take part in the team’s Masters pool.
Hamilton, for his part, joined the Canucks from the B.C. Lions at the start of
the 2002-03 season when the twins were still struggling to find their way. He
said two of their biggest early supporters were Markus Naslund and Trevor
Linden, who “never got down on them.” But one of the most influential voices
belonged to Mats Sundin in his half-year with the Canucks.
“He came in here and said right away, those guys are unbelievable hockey
players,” Hamilton says. “That helped them, but I think it helped the people
around them, too. They just took off after that year (Henrik would win the Hart
and the Art Ross the next season).”
That, at least, was on the ice. Off the ice, Hamilton tells a different story about
Henrik. About six weeks ago, the Canucks were in Toronto in their last game
before the Olympic break and Henrik was out of the lineup with a rib injury. As
it happened, Hamilton’s wife Corine and five-year-old daughter Ashley were
on the trip.
“He grabbed Ashley and took her on a tour of the hotel,” says Hamilton. “He
showed this five-year-old girl the pool and the gym and all around the place. I
was thinking, that doesn’t happen every day in professional sports, where
you get a big star doing something like that and that’s just a fraction of who
they are.
“People ask me about them all the time, and it’s hard to pinpoint why they’re
such great people. There isn’t one thing. They’re just who they are.”
And that’s who we celebrate on Sunday.
739280
Vancouver Canucks
Gallagher: Fans must share blame for bloated schedule, poor games
TONY GALLAGHER
March 22, 2014 5:35 PM
Sorry to do this to you, but think back to that game between the Canucks and
Predators Wednesday night.
It was a hideous display of the sport for a lot of recognizable reasons and it
takes a detailed look to find who might really be to blame for such a show.
There was certainly enough blame to go around. Remember the Canucks
had played on Monday night in Tampa and flown across the continent the
next day and the Preds had played the previous night in Edmonton where
they lost to the Oil. The result was two exhausted teams pawing at each
other, stopping only for Nicklas Jensen to roof a shot when a puck that had
been knocked off Henrik Sedin’s stick ended up on his forehand about 30
feet from the net. It was the highlight of the night and in fact, other than a
couple of Eddie Lack saves, the only highlight.
The initial response is to blame the league. Why should they schedule two
teams to play under such circumstances? Well the answer to that is the fact it
was an Olympic year and to take 16 days off in the middle of the season, play
the full 82 games of a regular season and still finish hockey before the middle
of July, it’s necessary to scrunch a lot of games in.
A similar initial response is also to feel sorry for the players. They are the
ones trying to play a hockey game without any energy and to entertain their
fans when they’ve been doing all the travel and putting in the miles with all
the jet lag symptoms that such travel brings. But hold on here. They are just
as much to blame for this as anyone else, if you think about it. They are the
ones — not the owners — who were most mad keen to play the Olympics
with NHL players. They are the ones who insisted this break in the middle of
the season be taken. And while it wasn’t them who directly insisted the
season still be 82 games, they were certainly not vocal if they were saying
behind the scenes, ‘we’ll take less if the schedule is reduced’. The players
are all getting their full salaries so they are certainly benefiting from all the
games being played and so are the owners as a group.
While it’s money calling the tune, you can’t blame the Vancouver Canucks
organization directly, even though they were essentially hosting the event.
Even if the Canucks as a team wanted to stop this nonsense, they would
have to get the approval of other owners and the players, neither of whom
would be likely to consent. So while the Canucks have one of the owners, he
would be virtually powerless to stop it himself, even though he wouldn’t want
to because he is getting his money, too.
Clearly, it’s the almighty dollar calling the tune but here’s where it gets tricky.
Who is providing these dollars? Why, it’s you of course, the hockey fan, one
way or another. You are either buying tickets or watching on television and
either way you are providing the money which motivates the people with the
power to put an end to these dreadful mockeries of the sport.
That’s right. In essence, hockey fans are bringing this nightmare onto their
own doorsteps by repeatedly buying tickets in Olympic years when they
know this compressed schedule will wreak havoc with the entertainment
value of the product they are purchasing. As long as the fans keep buying the
tickets, the owners will keep instructing the league to keep scheduling that
way and the players will have their pockets lined to the point where they’ll be
willing to play.
Surely, we in the media play some diabolical role in all this too, but not until
somebody says no to them at the box office will the people who run things get
the message. At that point, these hideous displays of the game at the NHL
level might finally come to an end.
Nobody is saying the schedule will ever be perfect. That’s not going to
happen. It’s better during the standard NHL season but those guaranteed
dreadful affairs you can predict will still happen with regularity as long as
they’re playing 82 games.
So next time you’re watching two clearly exhausted teams play and looking
for someone to blame, don’t forget to glance in the mirror.
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ESPN / Henrik Lundqvist blanks Devils, becomes Rangers all-time shutout
leader
ike McMahon
New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist recorded his 50th career
shutout in a 2-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils, moving him ahead of Ed
Giacomin on the franchises all-time shutout list.
The record-setting shutout is also the third of the season for Lundqvist, who
made 10 of his 21 saves against Devils in the third period.
Just four days ago, Lundqvist surpassed Mike Richter on the all-time
franchise wins list with 302.
“King Henrik” is in his ninth NHL season, all of them with the Rangers, who
drafted the Swedish netminder 205th overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. At
32 years old, Lundqvist has a Vezina Trophy (2012) and recorded 30 wins in
seven straight seasons before the 2012-2013 lockout prevented him from
making it eight.
ESPN LOADED: 03.23.2014
739282
Websites
ESPN / Jonathan Quick sets Kings’ franchise wins record by shutting out
Panthers
Mike McMahon
With a 4-0 victory over the Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings goaltender
Jonathan Quick surpassed Rogie Vachon on the franchise’s all-time wins list
with 172.
Quick, 28, eclipsed the mark in 62 fewer appearances than Vachon, who did
not have the benefit of overtime or shootouts to reach 171 victories. Vachon
still holds the team mark with 32 career shutouts, though Quick notched his
30th blankin in the record-setting win.
Vachon, the Kings goalie from 1971-1978, was in the house on Saturday to
witness the Connecticut native notch the record-setting win:
Drafted in the third round (72nd overall) in the 2005 NHL Draft out of Avon
Old Farms, Quick went on to star at UMass-Amherst and has spent all of his
seven-year career in L.A. and has a 172-115-31 NHL record.
Since taking the reins in net for the Kings in 2008-2009, Quick has three of
the top four single-season win totals in Kings history and played a vital role in
the team’s 2012 Stanley Cup title, bringing home the Conn Smythe as playoff
MVP after going 16-4-0 with a 1.41 GAA and a .946 save percentage. His
knack for for making big plays has endeared him to L.A. fans, and was on full
display against the Panthers.
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ESPN / Top Line: Rick Nash a smash in C’bus; NHL issues apology; more
links
Allan Muir
An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:
• A chippy, emotional contest between the Rangers and Jackets last night
demonstrated that the NHL has unofficially moved into playoff mode.
• A goalmouth fracas revealed Rick Nash in all his scrapping, battling glory. If
61 can bottle up some of that emotion and unleash it down the stretch, the
Blueshirts will be tough to beat.
• Here’s something you don’t see every day: the NHL has apologized to a
team for a blown call that may have cost them the game. Good on ‘em. It was
the right thing to do.
• Bobby Ryan lacks a no-trade clause. Jason Spezza could be tiring of the
whipping-boy role. Craig Anderson has a ready understudy in Robin Lehner.
With change needed and room for flexibility, could the Ottawa Senators be
headed for a massive roster overhaul this summer?
• Patrick Roy went rogue last night in an effort to tie up the game against the
Bruins. His bold plan didn’t work, but how great is it to see a coach more
intent on scoring than worried about being scored upon?
• Ken Campbell lays out the challenging economics facing the Bruins and
speculates how they might impact the team’s ability to re-sign Jarome Iginla.
• Chuck Gormley says a point earned or lost tonight in San Jose will decide
whether or not the Capitals make the playoffs. Pretty bold call there.
• St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock says this team will be a bear in the playoffs.
I’d agree. They’re going to be a chic pick to go far once everyone starts
making their postseason predictions.
• A Penn State player didn’t think twice about sacrificing part of his season to
save a life. Just an amazing story.
• Minnesota coach Mike Yeo is shaking up his lines in an effort to light a fire
under these two players. Amazingly, neither of them is Dany Heatley.
• This guy really seems to be enjoying this Chicago/Carolina scrum.
• Come back, Strombone! All is forgiven!
• What would the NHL standings look like without the tie-breaking magic of
the shootout? There’d be a shake-up in the Presidents’ Trophy race, for one.
• A few recent wins over league lightweights should not disabuse anyone in
Vancouver of the notion that their team is done for the year and is headed for
a significant overhaul.
• Anyone else looking forward to a couple games like this this spring?
• The devotion of Winnipeg’s fans is the envy of the league. So when will
management commit to giving them a team worthy of their love?
• The Leafs may–or may not–get Jonathan Bernier and Dave Bolland back in
the lineup tonight, but whenever the duo returns from IR it will be huge.
• Easily the greatest set of goalie pads, ever. So where’s the mask?
• Now this is a beautiful moment.
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USA TODAY / Red Wings beat Wild, step back into playoff spot
Helene St. James
7:24 p.m. EDT March 22, 2014
3-22-14 red wings wild
SAINT PAUL, Minn. - The Detroit Red Wings continued to show they're
determined to extend their playoff run, resolutely grinding away for their
longest winning streak in over three months.
The Wings edged the Minnesota Wild, 3-2, today at Xcel Energy Center.
David Legwand and Brendan Smith each had a goal and an assist. Jakub
Kindl and Riley Sheahan each had two assists. Gustav Nyquist scored for the
fifth time in four games.
BOX SCORE: Red Wings 3, Wild 2
It's the first time since Nov. 24-Dec. 1 that the Wings have won three games
in a row. The two points -- coming after victories against Toronto and
Pittsburgh earlier in the week -- got the Wings back into the last wild-card
spot in the Eastern Conference, at least for a day.
Jimmy Howard was tremendous for stretches, making a handful of saves in
the third period immediately after Nyquist had broken a 2-2 tie early in the
third period, and when the Wild got a power play with 3:27 to play in
regulation.
The Wings emerged from the first period tied and unscathed, despite an early
scare when Niklas Kronwall slid into the boards and left for about 6 minutes.
During his absence, Mikko Koivu made it 1-0 on a Minnesota power play
when he ripped a shot between Smith and Brian Lashoff, beating Howard
cleanly. Kronwall came back during the Wings' celebration of Smith's goal,
which saw him backhand in Legwand's rebound from down low midway
through the first period.
MORE: Check out the new headgear for Miller, Halak
A penalty killing stretch aside, the Wings didn't play the second period like
they wanted to break the tie -- they averaged a shot every five minutes or so,
none of them particularly challenging for Darcy Kuemper. Howard was much
busier, making stops on Suter and Matt Moldson and Zach Parise, the latter
of whom tried with a short-range shot with five minutes to go. It wasn't until
their second power play that the Wings struck again. Kindl shot the puck
towards the net from the half-wall, with Riley Sheahan picking up the puck
and sending it into the paint for Legwand to redirect.
The Wings' lead was leveled 15 seconds into the third period, after Johan
Franzen's attempts to stop Charlie Coyle on a breakaway resulted in a
penalty shot. Coyle deked to his forehand, sending the puck into a half-open
net. Nyquist re-established the lead 5 minutes later, benefitting from another
strong shift by Sheahan.
The teams meet again Sunday in Detroit.
--------------Helene St. James writes for the Detroit Free Press, a Gannett property.
USA TODAY LOADED: 03.23.2014

sport-scan daily brief - Winnipeg Jets

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