Columbus Blue Jackets News Clips August 4, 2020

Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 02: Columbus Dispatch: Joonas Korpisalo rewards coach, Columbus Blue Jackets teammates with shutout in series opener PAGE 04: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets 2, Maple Leafs 0: Five takeaways PAGE 07: Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella sides with Liam Foudy’s talent in series PAGE 09: Columbus Dispatch: Michael Arace | Series opener provides welcome respite for Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 11: The Athletic: Stifled: Blue Jackets’ defense a key weapon in Game 1 win over Maple Leafs PAGE 14: Toronto Sun: Maple Leafs must find a way through Columbus' choking defence PAGE 16: The Athletic: Monday Morning Leafs Report: Matthews vs. Jones, questions on D, Andersen’s play

Cleveland Monsters/Prospects

NHL/Websites PAGE 20: The Athletic: The story behind Seguin, Reaves, Lehner and Dickinson kneeling for both anthems PAGE 23: The Athletic: DGB weekend power rankings: Yes, a playoff edition. Yes, based on one game PAGE 28: The Athletic: Inside the NHL’s frenetic return: All the action you couldn’t see on TV PAGE 35: Sportsnet.ca: NHL Weekend Takeaways: Defence frustrates Maple Leafs, Canucks PAGE 40: USA Today: Wild's Matt Dumba, the first NHL play to kneel during national anthem, will now raise his fist

1

Columbus Dispatch / Joonas Korpisalo rewards coach, Columbus Blue Jackets teammates with shutout in series opener By Brian Hedger – August 4, 2020

What a difference two weeks made. Just two weeks ago, Joonas Korpisalo was lit up by his teammates in consecutive scrimmages during the Blue Jackets’ playoff training camp. A day after yielding six goals in a 6-0 scrimmage loss, partly the result of his team’s sloppy play, Korpisalo was torched again for seven goals in a simulated game in the OhioHealth Ice Haus. Two scrimmages, 13 goals it was painful to watch. There was still time for Korpisalo to improve, of course, but at that point it seemed like Elvis Merzlikins was a lock to be the Jackets’ starting goaltender in the playoffs. "We’re certainly evaluating," coach John Tortorella said, two days after nixing a scheduled news conference that was supposed to follow the simulated game. "The scrimmage games are big for the goaltenders in evaluating them. We’re not thrilled about 13 goals, but it’s not … I mean … it doesn’t put you into a concern. I think we’ve got two really good goalies. We still have to figure out who’s going to start." Merzlikins faltered too, allowing an unsightly 11 goals during the Jackets’ final scrimmage of camp, two days before they hopped on a charter flight bound for Toronto and the quarantine "bubble" that’s currently their residence. At that point, it didn’t look like either of Tortorella’s goaltending options was ready, especially with a brisk five-game series on tap in the qualifying round against the high-powered Toronto Maple Leafs. What a difference two weeks made. Heading into Game 2 of the series this afternoon, the Blue Jackets are up by a game thanks to Korpisalo’s performance in Game 1 on Sunday night. He made 28 saves, posted the franchise’s first playoff shutout and became just the 14th goalie in NHL history the 10th since 1943-44 to record a shutout in his playoff debut. Also, his robbery of what looked like a sure goal off a one-timer by Toronto’s Auston Matthews late in the second period kept the game scoreless and instantly became one of the playoffs’ top highlights. "I felt pretty confident from the get-go, and I think the boys played really good in front of me, battling for me to see the puck," said Korpisalo, who was informed Saturday that he would start the game. "That was awesome. That was fun to play." Not bad for a guy who’d been torched in scrimmages a couple of weeks earlier, and who also had an All- Star season interrupted by a knee injury Dec. 29 at Nationwide Arena. After surgery to fix the meniscus damage, Korpisalo missed 24 games and watched Merzlikins thrive as the No. 1 goalie. Merzlikins had a league-high five shutouts between Dec. 31 and the premature end of the regular season March 12.

2

It felt like Korpisalo had lost his role at the Jackets’ top option because of his injury and Merzlikins’ talent, and the dual two-year contract extensions they signed in April appeared to cement it. Korpisalo signed for an average of $2.8 million a year, whereas Merzlikins got $1.2 million more per season. Merzlikins also stayed in Columbus during the league’s pandemic pause, getting engaged during a visit with Blue Jackets goaltending coach Manny Legace in Michigan (and then married), while Korpisalo headed back to Finland. None of it mattered, as it turned out. Korpisalo rewarded his coaches with a shutout Sunday night. What a wild two weeks it’s been. "It’s nothing we didn’t expect," defenseman Seth Jones said afterward. "Korpi’s a competitor, he’s a hell of a goalie and he made massive saves when we needed them … kept us in it. The save on Matthews was probably one of the best of the night, and we’re extremely happy for him. He’s come a long way."

3

Columbus Dispatch / Blue Jackets 2, Maple Leafs 0: Five takeaways By Brian Hedger – August 4, 2020

It was exactly how the Blue Jackets wanted it to go. Another playoff opener on the road, another dominant defensive performance and another victory to start a series somewhere other than Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets’ 2-0 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday night at Scotiabank Arena was similar to their opening wins the previous two years in Washington and Tampa. They got excellent goaltending, this time from Joonas Korpisalo instead of Sergei Bobrovsky, and their stifling defensive effort in the third period made Cam Atkinson’s clutch goal that period stand up as the winner. Alexander Wennberg added an empty-netter for insurance, Korpisalo polished off a 28-save shutout in his postseason debut and Columbus had yet another road victory to open the postseason. It was impressive, clinical and should set off alarms for the Maple Leafs, who are suddenly down 1-0 in a five-game series during the qualifying round of the NHL’s 24-team playoff response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second game is Tuesday in Toronto (4 p.m.), and the Blue Jackets can move one game closer to evicting the Maple Leafs’ from a quarantine "bubble" in their own city. Here are five takeaways: Korpisalo gets the nod After Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella revealed late Sunday morning that Korpisalo would start, defenseman Seth Jones was asked about it during a video conference with reporters. He couldn’t help but grin, thinking of something that was overshadowed by Elvis Merzlikins’ outstanding play after Korpisalo went down with a torn meniscus Dec. 29 at Nationwide Arena. "Both guys did a phenomenal job this year, and ‘Korpi’ started (the year) for us … and was an All-Star this year." Jones said. "I think a lot of people forget that, how great he played for us up to (the injury)." Indeed, Korpisalo earned a spot on the Metropolitan Division’s roster for this season’s NHL All-Star game in January. His play from early November until he was injured in a shootout against the Chicago Blackhawks – which shouldn’t have been necessary because of a clock error in overtime – was simply outstanding. The Blue Jackets won a number of games or earned points in losses primarily because of his play, which made Merzlikins’ excellence in his absence even more impressive. After struggling as Korpisalo’s backup, playing irregularly, Merzlikins suddenly looked like an All-Star himself. His numbers were even better, including five shutouts, and people started to forget about Korpisalo’s All-Star caliber play. "Both of them won a lot of games for us, stole a lot of games for us," Jones said. "They both played outstanding and were really the backbone of our team."

4

Korpisalo provided a strong reminder against the Maple Leafs, stopping all 28 shots he faced. That included a jaw-dropping glove save on Auston Matthews, but we’ll get to that in a minute. Korpisalo’s accomplishment should be put into perspective first. Against the NHL’s highest-scoring team in the final 47 games of the regular season, on the Leafs’ home ice, he was flawless. After backing up Bobrovsky for four years, patiently waiting, Korpisalo took full advantage of his chance to finally play in the NHL’s postseason. His shutout was the first in franchise history in a playoff game and Korpisalo became just the 14th goalie in league history to blank the opposition in his postseason debut. "I felt pretty confident from the get go and I think the boys played really good in front of me, battling for me to see the puck," said Korpisalo, who was informed Saturday that he would start. "That was awesome. That was fun to play." Flashing the leather Now we can talk about the save Korpisalo made late in the second period against Matthews, whose 47 goals in the regular season placed him third in the league scoring race – only one goal behind Washington’s Alex Ovechkin and Boston’s David Pastrnak. In short, the Blue Jackets’ goalie did the unthinkable. After William Nylander got the puck behind the Columbus net, he spotted Matthews standing alone between the face-off circles. His pass was perfect, Matthews quickly snapped at the right side of the net and then, seemingly out of nowhere, Korpisalo’s glove appeared to snatch the puck out of mid-air. A replay showed that bad ice affected the puck, causing it to wobble off Matthews’ stick and, potentially, stay low enough to zip right into the webbing of Korpisalo’s glove. That aside, Korpisalo made an excellent read and pushed his body over to his left just enough to glove it. After the whistle, his teammates got to their feet on the Blue Jackets’ bench for a standing ovation, clacking their sticks in approval. "That was just a reaction," Korpisalo said. "I saw (Matthews) was open in the middle, just a split second before (the shot), and I pushed over. Good shot and I tried to get something in front of it." Ice breaker Until Atkinson broke the 0-0 deadlock at 1:05 of the third, it felt like a game that might go to overtime that way. Toronto goalie Frederik Andersen matched Korpisalo save for save to that point and he’d also gotten some help from the posts and crossbar behind him. Atkinson changed the script, though. After David Savard sent a nice pass off the boards from the Columbus zone, Atkinson collected the puck with speed and darted up the right wing. He got off a wrist shot from the top half of the right circle before a defender intercepted him and watched the puck travel between Andersen’s arm and pad on the far side – ripping into the net inside the left post. It allowed the Jackets to breathe a little bit easier and eventually became the winning goal. Atkinson also added an assist on Alexander Wennberg’s empty-netter with 18.2 seconds left for a two-point game that pushed him ahead of former teammate Artemi Panarin for most career goals (eight) and points (20) in franchise playoff history.

5

Atkinson’s goal was his only shot on goal in two attempts. "I kind of knew where I wanted to shoot," Atkinson said. "I wasn’t really expecting it to go in, but it’s obviously one of those I’ll take. A goal like that gives me a lot of momentum and juice, and I started feeling a lot better about my game after that." They’re back Those wondering if a layoff of nearly five months might cause the Jackets trouble getting back into peak defensive form received a one-word answer to that question. Nope. After a "feeling out" process in the first 10 minutes of the game, followed by the Maple Leafs dominating puck possession in the Columbus zone, the Jackets quickly returned to form. Their quick sticks broke up plays, they blocked 18 shots, got into shooting lanes and also stayed "above the puck" most of the game, keeping enough players high in the offensive zone to prevent the Maple Leafs from turning the game into a track meet with odd-man rushes. "They’re a good offensive team and it’s certainly a point of emphasis, as far as how we play in our end zone," Tortorella said. "I thought we played in spurts through a lot of the game. Third period, especially when we have the lead, it just seems like there’s more concentration on being in the right positions." Those who prefer a lot of scoring complain about the Jackets’ defensive focus, saying it bogs the game down, but that’s exactly how they’re able to defeat teams like the Maple Leafs – whose roster is similar to the Tampa Bay Lightning team Columbus upset with a stunning first-round sweep last season. The Jackets also use their defensive system to create their own scoring chances, which they did Sunday night by outshooting Toronto 35-28 – including 27-17 in the final two periods. Every single Blue Jackets skater but one, Gustav Nyquist, finished with at least one shot on goal. Playing with bite The Jackets’ defensive focus usually has more to do with checks using their sticks rather than body checks. That changed against the Maple Leafs, who were outhit 37-26 and were knocked off a lot of pucks along the walls. Jones, in particular, stood out for his physical play – which is notable because he’s typically more focused on speed, skill and skating as a defenseman. Jones used his size (6 feet 4, 209 pounds) and strength to disrupt a number of plays in the defensive zone, finishing with a game-high seven hits. That included a couple of big ones on forward Zach Hyman and Matthews – who each absorbed four hits according to naturalstattrick.com, a site that tracks advanced hockey stats. Savard and Riley Nash were also credited with five hits each, as all but three Blue Jackets skaters finished with at least one. A night like that in the hits category often means the opposing team had the puck more often, but the game’s final numbers showed that wasn’t exactly the case. In fact, the Blue Jackets had one more even-strength shot attempt (59-58) and finished with eight more even-strength attempts when subtracting out blocked shot (48-40). Scoring chances and high-danger scoring chances were also a near even split outside of power-play time, according to naturalstattrick.com counts.

6

Columbus Dispatch / Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella sides with Liam Foudy’s talent in series By Brian Hedger – August 4, 2020

They are prime examples of how young and fast the NHL keeps skewing. In a league that used to demand lineups filled with hardened veterans, two promising rookie forwards with scant pro experience sat on opposite benches Sunday night in Game 1 of a playoff series between the Blue Jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Liam Foudy, 20, made his postseason debut for the Jackets, while Nick Robertson, 18, got his first NHL taste of any kind with the Maple Leafs. "I’m not sure which one is best, as far as being young and stupid and not even knowing what’s going on around you when it comes to playoff hockey, versus a grizzled veteran that has been in it and played in some big games," said Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella, himself a grizzled veteran who has adapted to the league’s youth movement. "The experience is very important, but sometimes it adds a little more (weight) to that player. "I’ll err with the youth." So will Tortorella’s counterpart, Sheldon Keefe, a rookie NHL coach who played three seasons for Tortorella with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Keefe, who took over the Leafs’ bench Nov. 20 from former coach Mike Babcock, had no problem putting a young talent such as Robertson in his lineup. A second-round pick in last year’s draft, Robertson earned his way onto Keefe’s third line by using the speed and skill he showed in a 55-goal season with the Peterborough Petes in the Ontario Hockey League the same circuit as Foudy’s London Knights. "He’s a guy with a great skill set, (who) if he gets an opportunity, he can make a difference offensively," Keefe said last week. "The big thing is just the way he’s been able to work his work habits, the way he skates and the way he’s on the puck." That sounds a lot like Foudy, who opened eyes in February while making his NHL debut in two games as an emergency recall from the junior ranks. Coming straight from London, Foudy quickly proved that he wasn’t overmatched. He kept pace with NHL players, showed off his own wheels and helped the Jackets earn two points in overtime losses to the Lightning and Buffalo Sabres. Foudy also earned his first NHL point with an assist in Buffalo, nearly two years after the Blue Jackets selected him 18th overall in the 2018 draft. This time around, "It’s a lot different for me," Foudy said last week, before setting up the first goal in the Jackets’ 4-1 exhibition victory against Boston. "Before, I was just playing with London and got called up didn’t really know any of the systems or what to do. "Now, I’ve been here since the start of June. It’s helped me a lot getting to know the systems and everything, and in that sense, I think I’ll be a lot more prepared for this series." He and Robertson most likely found out how ready they were Sunday, gaining a firsthand feel for the fevered pace, increased intensity and brute physical nature of the NHL’s postseason.

7

It's long way from the OHL, but not quite the difference it used to be. Rookies with speed, skill and the nerve to handle pressure are getting more of these opportunities in the playoffs, and it doesn’t look like a short-term trend. Experience and leadership are also key, but there’s more room than ever for the young guns to skate. "I’m not afraid to put these guys into spots that are going to be crucial situations," said Tortorella, whose roster again featured a number of rookies this season. "We’ve lived in that world for a number of years now here, and I feel very comfortable with it … "(They) make some mistakes, but they don’t worry about it. It’s a double-edged sword there, as we talk about those two situations."

8

Columbus Dispatch / Michael Arace | Series opener provides welcome respite for Columbus Blue Jackets By Michael Arace - August 4, 2020

The Blue Jackets’ last regular-season game was Sunday, March 8, a 2-1 victory over the Canucks in Vancouver. Here in Columbus, it was a mostly sunny day and the temperature soared to 63 degrees. Spring was beckoning. Remember? I asked one of my lads. “I remember Stefan Matteau was playing top-six minutes,” he said. Ah, the lads. The Jackets were scheduled to play the Pittsburgh Penguins in Nationwide Arena on March 12. Then the world shut down. At the time, the Blue Jackets had lost 12 of their previous 15 games. They were treading water above the playoff line with inflatable arm floaties. They were savaged by injuries. Josh Anderson, Cam Atkinson, Seth Jones, Dean Kukan and Alexandre Texier were out long term. Joonas Korpisalo, Ryan Murray and Alexander Wennberg were just making their way back into the lineup. The team was the league leader with 418 man-games lost to injury. Stefan Matteau was playing top-six minutes. Then the world shut down, nearly five months ago. Lions don’t take that long to gestate. You could look it up. On Sunday night, the Jackets played their first official game in 147 days, or since the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything. They beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-0 in the qualifying round of what will become the Stanley Cup playoffs of 2020. In one corner of Scotiabank Arena, Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen watched with assistant GM Bill Zito, vice president for communications Todd Sharrock and director of team services Julie Gamble. They were among the very few people allowed in the building. The Jackets entered the Toronto bubble the previous Sunday. It’s a double bubble, really, with one sphere around a downtown hotel and the arena, and another sphere around BMO Field, home of Toronto FC, where there’s another hotel. “Friday was the first day we got to the other area of the bubble, out by BMO Field,” Sharrock said. “The field is available, and there were teams out there kicking soccer balls, throwing baseballs around, playing wiffle ball, cornhole, Frisbee. There’s a lakeside patio area with food and drinks. Shuttles run every 30 minutes.” Credentials are worn everywhere. Everyone is tested for the virus at least once a day. Most meals are served at a few designated restaurants within the bubble, or are delivered. If your special phone app doesn’t have a green light, you’ll be quarantined. Masks are to be worn at all times, with few exceptions.

9

There are 12 teams in the Toronto bubble in the East and 12 in the Edmonton bubble in the West. Each team has a traveling party of 52 people. Eight teams will be eliminated in the qualifying round, during which the series are best-of-five. The tournament proper is all best-of-seven. It will run into October before a Stanley Cup champion is crowned. Kekalainen spent the past four-plus months Zooming plans for next season, Zooming scouting reports, Zooming draft plans, Zooming his players, coaches and staff, Zooming with a sports psychologist. Then he got to Toronto. “We had a week to think about it here,” Kekalainen said. “The days were going slow. The Boston (exhibition game Thursday) was good, but playing a real game, that was fun. The butterflies in the stomach were different. “When the puck dropped Sunday night, I didn’t even realize there were no fans in the building. I was just as focused on my job as the players were on theirs. Everyone knows we need the fans ... but this was it, some real action. Hockey. It was awesome.” He also said, “I think we can play better.” The Jackets’ 2-0 victory is being portrayed as a shocking result by Maple Leafs fans who’ve never heard of Dean Kukan or had no idea of Ryan Murray’s quality. The Jackets imposed their will upon the Leafs, not unlike they did on the Tampa Bay Lightning in a first-round sweep last year. The Jackets took away space and sucked the life out of their opponent. One bad goal allowed by Frederik Andersen felt like a mortal blow which, on this night, it turned out to be. Although Auston Matthews was the best player on the ice, the one time he got a puck past Korpisalo, it grazed the top of the crossbar. The Leafs generated one shot on net over the last seven minutes of the game. “Everyone realizes this is a much shorter series and Game 1 is of huge importance,” Kekalainen said. “That’s how we approached it. Now, Game 2 is just as big. I like our team’s chances. We’re a good team, we play hard, we compete and believe in each other.” The Jackets are healthy now. Game 2 is at 4 p.m. Tuesday.

10

The Athletic / Stifled: Blue Jackets’ defense a key weapon in Game 1 win over Maple Leafs By Alison Lukan – August 4, 2020

From the minute the series was set between the Blue Jackets and Maple Leafs, the overriding narrative was clear. Which would be the stronger weapon: the stifling defense of Columbus or the elite offense of Toronto? The first hint of an answer came Sunday. As the final seconds ticked off the game clock, the Maple Leafs hadn’t sent a puck toward the net in 6:12 of play. Meanwhile, the Blue Jackets had put one of their own behind goaltender Frederik Andersen and added an empty-netter for a 2-0 Game 1 win. How did Columbus do it? Let’s dig into some of the core tenets of the team’s game plan and how they worked against Toronto. Thou shalt not pass Columbus’ systems aren’t a throwback to physical, shot-blocking denials of offense. The team will do those things, of course, but the deeper definition of its identity is grounded in a style that crosses all three zones and involves play from every skater within a five-man unit. The Blue Jackets want to make life hard for their opponents. They want it to be hard for them to get out of their own zone, and once they do that, they want it to be hard to move through the neutral zone. “Our game is based on reloading, getting above the puck and making other teams come 200 feet through us,” Seth Jones said. “When the team may start to get frustrated because they can’t get through the neutral zone two, three, four times in a row, then they start making more plays, and that’s what we feed off of. We feed off having good sticks, being really sound positionally, and then our forwards’ skills take over from there.” Should another team make it into Columbus’ zone, the Blue Jackets will let them fire away — but not from the most dangerous areas, especially middle ice. When the regular season ended, according to Evolving-Hockey.com, in five-on-five play, while the Blue Jackets ranked 21st in unblocked shot attempts against (40.69 per 60), they finished third-best in terms of limiting shot quality (2.14 expected goals against per 60). “We’re not concerned where (opponents) are getting their shots,” assistant coach Brad Shaw said. “(Our focus is more about) our ability to break plays up and limit the real, pure odd-man breaks and the real grade-A scoring chances.” We can see how effective the Blue Jackets were at locking down the ice below the hashmarks — including the low slot — in the regular season. (The blue sections mark areas where shots occurred at a rate below league average; red indicates areas where shots against occurred at a rate higher than league average.) And we saw it again against Toronto. Five-man units And all the while, the forwards are engaged in the commitment to this style of play just as much as the

11

defensemen. The forwards backcheck, limit passing opportunities and protect the neutral zone as defensemen set up to limit breakaways or odd-man rushes. “Forwards are probably more important than the D when it comes to defensive play,” Jones said. “The reason is (and it’s not always talked about) when they are reloading and moving their feet, it makes our lives (as defensemen) a lot easier. It makes our reads a lot easier, and you’re playing in units of five. It can’t just be the forwards hanging back while the D stop everything.” Roving Columbus’ identity was never just about shutting down opponents. It was also about capitalizing on opportunities to regain control and create offense of its own. Not only do the Blue Jackets challenge other teams’ offensive movement, but opponents must also be mindful of what can happen when they lose possession. Players like Zach Werenski and Seth Jones aren’t prototypical defensemen in their coaches’ eyes. They’re rovers, and if they get the puck, they are going to try to burn you by creating chances of their own. “Playing offensively — it’s a part of our game,” Jones said. “Getting up (in the play) and creating is part of our defensive play, as weird as that sounds. As much as we can make other teams worry about especially Zach scoring with the puck and moving and skating, that works to our advantage. We always play at a certain tempo, moving our feet right from the get-go and being hard to play against.” That’s how the Blue Jackets want to play, and they dictated the style for much of Game 1. How did the team return to form so quickly? Many thought defensive focus would be more difficult to rebuild than offensive instinct (like that possessed by Toronto). The answer lies in the team’s preparation in returning to play. Training camp 2.0 Right out of the gate, a word you heard from head coach John Tortorella was “sprint.” This word wasn’t just about how to play, but how to tackle the preparation process. There wasn’t a lot of time, so it required a hyper-focus on how to play. “I think the way we practice really helped us engage in games,” said Cam Atkinson, who had a goal and an assist Sunday night. “Especially with our sticks — that’s all we harp on in video is having good sticks and checking properly. And that doesn’t mean you have to go out of your way to make a big hit. It’s putting yourself in position to break up a play or slow someone down or whatnot.” Camp drills first and foremost focused on re-establishing where players needed to be when they didn’t have the puck on their sticks. Scrimmages forced the use of proper structure and positioning. And while there was only one exhibition game, that provided the unpredictability and battle level that intrateam work doesn’t always capture. “Some of the elements of defense are hard to practice because there is a competitive level that you don’t often get to against your own teammates,” Shaw said. And in addition to the coaches’ program, the players took it upon themselves to be fully prepared. Once the Blue Jackets arrived in the NHL bubble in Toronto, Atkinson went to captain Nick Foligno and suggested the group talk about practicing the right way. Before the second practice, there was a team meeting where that message was delivered. The resulting practice was the best yet, Atkinson said, and by the time the team played its exhibition game, the pieces felt like they were coming together.

12

“When we played Boston, we started taking over and realizing ‘this is where I need to be, this is what I need to do, this is what I’ve always done that has made us successful,’” Atkinson said. “It’s not really pretty, but it gets the job done, and winning is way more fun when you play the right way.” Positive signs It is, of course, early. And with just two games completed since the team returned to play, we can’t yet know if what we’ve seen from the Blue Jackets is just a quick start or a sign of things to come for a sustained period. But despite the small sample size, if we look at what Columbus has done in terms of suppressing its two opponents’ offenses thus far, the results look promising. Columbus not only improved in terms of reducing shot quality against compared to what the team allowed in the regular season, but it also made each of its opponents take a step back compared to their regular-season averages. But there’s more work to do. Shaw mentioned going into the Toronto game that he’d like to see an improvement in transitional play, and this was on display when Columbus was hemmed into its own zone at times in Game 1, most noticeably at the start of the third period. “Sometimes your best play is your first play, and if you don’t take it, you don’t have another good play,” Shaw said. “(We want) puck carriers to do a better job of finding his options quicker and with a better sequencing that helps you get a little more out of every puck play.” Tortorella also referenced play coming in “spurts” against Toronto on Sunday. But, if the almost fully healthy Blue Jackets can keep up the level of play they’ve established, they could pose quite a threat to the Maple Leafs and other teams this postseason. “(Our style of play) is a mindset,” Jones said. “We take pride in playing that way for years now. It’s just a complete buy-in from all the guys that are playing. It’s not just defensive forwards or D-men or goalies, it has to be everybody that buys into the system, into doing the little things that create success. “Defense comes down to effort at the end of the day, and I think we all put the effort in, and we’ll be fine.”

13

Toronto Sun / Maple Leafs must find a way through Columbus' choking defence By Lance Hornby – August 4, 2020

The runway for the Maple Leafs to take off in their playoff series against Columbus hasn’t just shortened since Sunday, it’s in danger of being totally blocked — by a whole bunch of big Blue Jackets. And if Toronto can’t pick its way through them on Tuesday afternoon (4 p.m. ET), it will be in a near- hopeless situation trying to come back in the best-of-five playoff qualifying series. Working overtime to get pucks out of the zone through the forecheck of Columbus, then past its shot-blocking defencemen and, ultimately, goalie Joonas Korpisalo, the Leafs struggled through the third period down 1-0 before losing Game 1. They recorded no shots on goal in the final six minutes. “I don’t think anyone is panicking,” said winger Mitch Marner on Monday. “We have a lot better to show. The opportunities to get second chances weren’t there and we talked about that today, (it’s) something we have to do better if we want to keep going.” A few players — Auston Matthews among them — showed vexation late in the contest. Matthews fenced with defenceman Zach Werenski as he and blue-line partner Seth Jones bumped the Leafs’ leading scorer out of the way all evening. But it was a style the Leafs were expecting — and there’s lots Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe and his team can do at puck drop on Tuesday, still in possession of home-ice advantage and last line change. There’s the option of changing forwards, loading up one line with his three most skilled — and highest-paid — players in Matthews, Marner and John Tavares, if the opportunity arises. Usually linked only on power plays or right after a penalty kill, Keefe used the trio briefly at even strength midway through Game 1. They’d represent a more difficult challenge for the Jackets’ top shutdown pairing of Jones and Werenski. “It’s something I’ve looked at in different times throughout the game,” a coy Keefe said after practice. “But you do something like that (all the eggs in one basket) and it has an impact down the lineup (such as taking Matthews away from regular wingers William Nylander and Zach Hyman), and depth is important to us. Considering all things, we’ll see how the game goes and make decisions as we get moving.” Marner and Tavares welcomed the opportunity a super-trio could bring, but aren’t lobbying to make it a permanent set. “Keefer knows what he’s doing,” Marner said. “All our lines just have to be better, to get past their second layer. They play five tight (in their zone), we need to have backside pressure, tips, and compete a little more, as well.” Lack of grit was part of the problem for the Leafs in their past three opening-round series losses, particularly to Boston. But where the Bruins had their own “Perfection Line” of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak to make them a double threat, this edition of Columbus gets the job done with more starch than stars. The Leafs did get further into the Jackets’ zone and stayed there longer than Keefe expected before they ran into the wall of red, white and blue. The Leafs have invested a lot of time and effort into becoming a

14

harder team themselves. Had they taken the early third-period lead on Sunday, perhaps their checking specialists Kyle Clifford, Frederik Gauthier and Jason Spezza would have seen more ice instead of playing fewer than four minutes apiece at even strength. Keefe will likely come back with rookie third-line left winger Nick Robertson, who nearly scored on his first shift on Sunday before gradually getting neutralized, along with his teammates. With opening-night butterflies out of the way, the diminutive 18-year-old vows he’ll be better. One change for Tuesday appears to be Pierre Engvall in for Gauthier at fourth-line centre. A faster player, Engvall owes Keefe a lot, having parlayed a role with the Marlies into an NHL contract. Although the coach felt Engvall had an ordinary camp (partly because Robertson dazzled), he believes the Swede will respond if reinserted. Keefe insisted he didn’t read negativity in the eyes of his players at practice. “We’ve got to get more pucks inside on them, not get frustrated. That’s what their system is designed to do. But we’re not frustrated, we’re hungry to get back out there.”

15

The Athletic / Monday Morning Leafs Report: Matthews vs. Jones, questions on D, Andersen’s play By Jonas Siegel – August 4, 2020

Editor’s note: The Monday Morning Leafs Report is a weekly collection of quotes, observations, stats and notes. Stay tuned each week (and for a special Leafs Report the morning after every game in the postseason). The matchup that could decide the series between the Leafs and Blue Jackets is Auston Matthews vs. Seth Jones. OK, so it’s not just Jones. It’s Zach Werenski too — along with the Pierre-Luc Dubois-led Columbus top line. And it’s not just Matthews, but William Nylander, Zach Hyman and whoever else Sheldon Keefe chooses for duty with the Leafs’ best player. But make no mistake, Matthews is going to see a whole lot of Jones in this series. That much was clear Sunday night in Game 1. Matthews played about 22 minutes 5-on-5 in the series opener and about half of them came against Jones. And those minutes badly favoured Columbus. Consider that in the nine and a half minutes with Matthews, Nylander and Hyman on the ice against Jones and Werenski, the Leafs had an expected goals mark of 34 percent. There were only a pair of high-danger shot attempts in that mix, one of them presumably a missed tip from Hyman early on. Matthews had only one shot when he was on the ice against Jones. He finished with six shots total, though, tops on the Leafs. Jones, the fourth-place finisher in Norris Trophy voting in 2018, is almost the perfect opponent for countering Matthews. He’s about as big as him — 6-foot-4, 209 pounds vs. 6-foot-3, 220 pounds for Matthews. And unlike say, an aging Zdeno Chara in past playoffs, Jones gets around the ice as a 25-year-old to capably shadow Matthews. He has a long reach, too. “Well, it’s a tough matchup,” Keefe said. “I mean, you can’t forget Werenski in that equation also because he’s a great player.” The Leafs coach stressed that the Jackets tend to defend well as a group of five, but it’s the main objective of John Tortorella, his counterpart on the Blue Jackets bench, to get Jones and Werenski out there as often as possible against Matthews. There probably aren’t many pairs across the league better equipped than Jones and Werenski to match up with Matthews — who is so skilled and larger than most of his opponents even if he doesn’t always put that weight to use. Jones is more of a name than Werenski, but Werenski did finish third in Calder Trophy voting as a rookie in 2017, with the award won, of course, by Matthews and his 40 goals. Like Jones, Werenski also has the size (6-foot-2, 212 pounds) and mobility to track Matthews — and by extension, his current linemates, Nylander and Hyman.

16

“Well, he’s obviously an elite defenceman,” Hyman said of Jones. “He’s big and strong, can skate, plays well on the defensive side and the offensive side so (we) just (need to) try to make his life hard and go out there and battle against him.” Maybe it was no surprise that with last change in Game 1, Keefe increasingly sought opportunities for Matthews when Jones and Werenski weren’t on the ice. In the opening period, Jones was out there for all but one of Matthews’ 5-on-5 minutes. By the end of the night, Matthews saw almost as much ice time combined against the Jackets’ second and third pairs as he did the No. 1 pair. In fact, his best look of the night came against Columbus’ third pair of Ryan Murray and Dean Kukan. It was late in the second period when Matthews snuck into open space in the slot, took a pass from Nylander and fired dangerously at Joonas Korpisalo. The Leafs will have last change again in Game 2 on Tuesday afternoon so Keefe can certainly look for more opportunity to get Matthews away from Jones. But in Games 3 and 4, Columbus can lock Jones to Matthews’ side as much as they desire. “Obviously they’re great players as you saw,” Jones said of Matthews and company. “My job is to try to limit them.” Jones played almost 27 minutes in the opener to lead all skaters. Werenski was next, not far behind, with 25 minutes and change. Meanwhile, if it wasn’t evident already from the regular season, Keefe is going to lean hard on his top player. Matthews led the Leafs with 24 minutes and 38 seconds (his postseason career high of 27:49 came against Washington in 2017). Even with Jones following him around, Matthews was still, without a doubt, the Leafs’ best player in Game 1. In addition to the six shots, on eight attempts, Matthews also won 11-of-17 draws. It’s entirely possible, probable even that Matthews breaks through no matter who the Jackets throw out there. The Bruins did all they could to lock down Matthews in 2019, often deploying Patrice Bergeron against him, and still Matthews scored three even strength goals in seven games and added two more on the power play. He buried four goals in six games against the Capitals in the 2017 playoffs and was dangerous in 2018 against the Bruins, though only scored once in seven games. Matthews might topple the best Columbus has got. But given the attention he’s going to continue getting from the stingy Jackets, much of it from Jones and Werenski, it’s likely the Leafs will need the units not drawing quite the same level of scrutiny to get going. Above all, that means groups led by Tavares. The Leafs captain had Mitch Marner and Ilya Mikheyev by his side in Game 1 and though underlying numbers were just fine, the trio didn’t inflict much damage. Marner, especially, lacked his usual zip. Another player who wasn’t all that noticeable in the opener was Nylander. A 31-goal man during the regular season, the 24-year-old didn’t have a single 5-on-5 shot and just one overall. Might Keefe be inclined to swap the two wingers — reconnect Marner and Matthews and Tavares with Nylander — to spark some more offence and create more disturbances for Jones and Werenski?

17

Nylander and Tavares rocked together during the regular season, and it was Nylander and Mikheyev who seemed to forge a connection in Phase 3 last month. Regardless, the main draw of this series will be Matthews vs. Jones. Second pair questions What now for Keefe when it comes to the defence for Game 2? His team didn’t give up much to the Jackets in the opener, which had to have pleased him, but the pair he seemed most wary of before the series struggled. Over the 14 minutes that Morgan Rielly and Cody Ceci shared the ice, shot attempts were 23-9 for Columbus. Scoring chances were 11-2. Expected goals for the Leafs? 10 percent. Rielly and Ceci spent most of their night slugging it out in their own zone against the grit-and-grind game of the Jackets. Eight of the 14 draws the pair was one for were in the defensive zone, tops among the Leafs’ three pairs. They had just come onto the ice when Atkinson raced in and scored the first goal. Ceci also took both Leafs penalties. So, it didn’t go great. And Keefe had been experimenting throughout Phases 2 and 3 with Travis Dermott on Rielly’s right side. But promote Dermott, who played a solid 17 minutes in Game 1, and who plays with Tyson Barrie on the third pairing? It’s unlikely to be Ceci, another right shot. Rasmus Sandin is available, but he and Barrie struggled badly together during the regular season. Does Martin Marincin inspire any confidence? If not, the Leafs coach could always go back to his first instinct upon replacing Mike Babcock last November. Keefe was weeks on the job when he broke up Rielly and Ceci, then countering top lines, and hooked up Rielly and Barrie instead. That pair performed well by the numbers, predictably an offensive force, but had a hard time slowing down attacks. They seemed especially vulnerable to heavy cycling, which is what the Jackets do best on offence (albeit while scoring very little). Maybe the play is loading up those two in the offensive zone where possible and leaning on a Dermott- Ceci combo for D-zone starts after the top pairing of Justin Holl and Jake Muzzin. In light of all that, Keefe may want to give Rielly-Ceci one more go, at least initially in Game 2, and be prepared to pivot if the results remain poor. Leafs need their No. 1 to reign supreme Frederik Andersen put together a strong performance in Game 1. He was quiet in the net. He limited rebounds. He tracked shots. He made a brilliant left pad stop — stretching his left leg out — on Oliver Bjorkstrand late in the second period to keep the game even at 0- 0. When the puck squirted past Dermott at the offensive blue line a little bit earlier in that same frame, he calmly denied Eric Robinson. He also stopped Dubois early when the Leafs were a touch jittery. Andersen made 34 saves in all, many of them chucked at the net from deep by the Jackets. And yet, the 30-year-old was still the second best goalie on the ice. Korpisalo didn’t face as many shots — 28 total — but the quality of those shots was higher and he held firm.

18

Cam Atkinson’s game-winner, on the other hand, was one Andersen needed to stop. The shot flew under his blocker barely a minute into the third period. “His initial release looked to be a little bit higher,” Andersen explained, “obviously made a little mistake and that cost us a goal and eventually the game.” “I thought he did make some big saves for sure,” Keefe added. “Obviously he misread the one in the third there that got by him. But he kept them to one goal. He, as far as I’m concerned, did his job. We’ve gotta find a way to give him some help.” Seeing that version of Andersen had to be encouraging for the Leafs given his sketchy regular season this year and uneven playoff past. And more stability like that, in what’s bound to be an incredibly tight series, will give the Leafs a chance to keep it close. But the Leafs also need Andersen, with another year left on his contract, to finally better his counterpart in a series. It’s yet to happen over his first three playoff appearances with the Leafs.

19

The Athletic / The story behind Seguin, Reaves, Lehner and Dickinson kneeling for both anthems By Jesse Granger and Sean Shapiro – August 4, 2020

Tyler Seguin, Ryan Reaves, Robin Lehner and Jason Dickinson knelt for the American and Canadian national anthems before the Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights played their round-robin game at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Monday. “I want to start by saying that in no way am I trying to disrespect the flag or people who have fought for this country,” Reaves, the Vegas right wing, said after the game. “I have the utmost respect for people for everybody that’s gone over and fought and died. For the freedom of this country. “But at the same time, those people go across seas, go to war, and families are torn apart in these wars for the freedom of this country, only to come back and find out this country isn’t free for everybody. I think that’s where I’m coming from.” Reaves joined arms with teammates Alex Tuch and William Carrier during the national anthem before Thursday’s exhibition game. Afterward, he was asked if he considered kneeling, and he said “it was discussed.” “You know, I think we wanted to do something as a team,” he said. “For a lot of guys, kneeling isn’t the way they would want to show support. If we wanted to do something as a team, my big thing was I didn’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable. I know that if I said I wanted everybody to kneel, somebody — at least one guy — was going to feel uncomfortable. I didn’t want that. This was the best way to be able to include everybody in it. Have everyone comfortable with what we were doing.” In the 48 hours since that game, Lehner, the Vegas goalie, approached Reaves and told him he wanted to kneel with him during the anthem. “I actually came to Reavo and said I wanted to take a knee,” Lehner said. “We didn’t plan this together, we kind of just came at the same point and decided to do it together. I’m just happy two more guys in Dallas joined us. At the end of the day, it just starts there. It’s a symbolic thing, that we need to make some change. But it’s time to do more than just kneeling and find ways to actually do something.” The two consulted with Golden Knights coach Peter DeBoer as well as president of hockey operations George McPhee and general manager Kelly McCrimmon. “The guys approached me … and expressed how important it was to them,” DeBoer said. “Nothing but full support for their right to do that.” Neither Dickinson nor Seguin was in the starting lineup for Dallas, but both went to the Vegas blue line and knelt between Reaves and Lehner. Seguin said he’d given it a lot of thought in the previous 24 hours before he had a conversation with Reaves during warmups. Reaves told Seguin about some of the things he’d seen in the Dallas community and that during the anthems he and Lehner would kneel. He asked if Seguin wanted to join. Seguin said “absolutely” and went into the Stars dressing room and told the team what he planned to do.

20

“I told everyone there was absolutely no pressure to do anything, and then Dickinson grabbed me and he said he’d like to be part of it,” Seguin said. “I’ve got some people of color in my family. My dad comes from the islands (St. Kitts), and one of my uncles is Black,” Dickinson said. “It was easy for me, and it was a decision I’ve been thinking about since everything started and if I would do that.” Dickinson said he was nervous thinking about doing it on his own. “When Seggy said (he was kneeling) it was kind of a no-brainer for me,” Dickinson said. “I wouldn’t be alone doing it, and to support the cause and support my teammates it was a no-brainer.” Stars interim coach Rick Bowness said he was proud of both Stars players. “I think it’s great,” Bowness said. “I support them 100 percent. They’re men and they’re professionals, and they take a stand for what they believe.” Seguin has been a vocal supporter of Black Lives Matter since the death of George Floyd, telling The Athletic at the time that it “hit me so deep that I was angry.” On June 1, Seguin posted on Twitter that he was committed to listening and learning and that he had “this feeling now that I have a responsibility to do more.” The next day, he attended a prayer vigil for Floyd and a Black Lives Matter protest. Seguin has also been involved with St. Philip’s School and Community Center in south Dallas, a historically Black area, and created a Badges on the Blue Line program with a $50,000 donation that “pairs at-risk youth with law enforcement mentors who use hockey to teach valuable life skills.” Seguin said he would be involved in different initiatives in the future, one with the NHL and one he is spearheading in Texas. But kneeling during the anthem hadn’t been the biggest thing on his mind, he aid. “I was thinking more of what I can do in the community,” Seguin said. “My next steps were kinda gonna be after the bubble when we were in Dallas and the season going on and the fans (in the building). “So the anthem crossed my mind a little bit, but it was really when Reaves came up, it was an easy decision for me.” The players joined Minnesota’s Matt Dumba as the first NHL players to kneel during the anthem. The Wild defenseman gave a speech and then knelt before the game between the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday. Dumba has since raised his fist during both anthems and said he plans to do so for the remainder of the postseason. When Dumba knelt, he was alone. When he raised his fist Sunday, he was the only player to do so. “I think (when you see) Dumba leading the way there, you don’t want to leave him out to dry,” Reaves said. “That’s the whole point of this is we want to be united for the cause. When you see one of your brothers doing that, you want to support him. I’ve had conversations with Dumba before, and our views are pretty aligned.” Seguin was asked if that inaction by others affected his decision to kneel with Reaves.

21

“Yeah, there was some influence with that,” Seguin said. “Nothing against his teammates or anything like that. Everyone has their own choices, (and) I don’t think anyone doesn’t support him. But being two White guys to do what we did, I wanted to be part of the movement. There was an opportunity, I can’t say honestly I was gonna go out there on my own and take a knee, but with them having a Black player on their team and his beliefs and what I’ve said from Day 1, I’m going to back it up in ways that I can. That’s why I chose to support that, and I’m really proud of Dicky for standing up for what he believes as well.” After the game, Lehner addressed having a sticker supporting President Donald Trump on his mask back in 2017, saying, “I made a mistake once, putting the Trump sticker on my mask. It’s something I regret now, after seeing how divisive things have been. But at the end of the day, this is not politics, this is human rights. It’s not about politics.” Will the kneeling continue? “Tonight was a statement from us with what our actions were,” Seguin said. “I don’t know if we are going to do that every night. If there are other guys on teams or other Black players that are doing something, we’ll give our support, and that was our statement tonight. We’ll see what happens the next few games.” When Seguin was asked last week if he thought NHL players might make a statement, he said he wouldn’t be surprised if there were some good messages going out. Seguin didn’t play in the Stars’ exhibition game against the Nashville Predators on Thursday and was considered “unfit to play.” Whether or not the kneeling continues, Lehner stressed that the show of solidarity during Monday’s anthems was only a first step toward change. “At the end of the day, I love America, but there are a bunch of things that need to be corrected,” he said. “I think they have the power to do so, it’s just a willingness to do something about it. It’s time for Whites to step into battle with our brothers and sisters and make some change. Stop just talking about it and actually do something.”

22

The Athletic / DGB weekend power rankings: Yes, a playoff edition. Yes, based on one game By Sean McIndoe – August 4, 2020

I wouldn’t normally do this. A weekend power ranking in the playoffs, I mean. It never really made sense. The whole idea behind the weekly rankings is to try to crack the puzzle of separating the contenders from the also-rans and then, the hopeless bottom-feeders. By the time the regular season ends, we pretty much have our answers. The bottom of the standings are set, and while we don’t know who’ll win the Cup, we’ve at least narrowed the field down the 16 playoff-worthy teams. And once the first round starts, a lot of what we think we know gets exposed, so you may as well just enjoy the ride. So yeah, normally this would make no sense. But as you may have noticed, normal went out the window a long time ago. I don’t usually spend a long weekend in August nailed to my couch watching postseason hockey, but I just did that, and you probably did too. And I’m pretty pumped about it, so screw normal, let’s welcome the NHL back with a weekend power ranking. If you’re new to this feature, it typically runs every week during the regular season and has an impeccable track record of accuracy. It also usually comes with a disclaimer about how we’re trying to predict the future, not necessarily react to the past, and one or two games shouldn’t be enough to cause wild swings in the rankings. But in the playoffs, or whatever we’re calling this week, well … swing away, right? If there was ever a time to overreact to one game, it turns out that it’s August. The NHL just served up a weekend featuring upsets, highlights, multiple penalty shots, a few scraps, big injuries, several questionable hits and one suspension. We have one game to work with, it feels good to be back, let’s do this. Road to the Cup The five teams that look like they’re headed towards a summer November of keg stands and (socially distanced) fountain pool parties. Let’s start with a spoiler that probably won’t spoil much: My top five are all teams that are in the round robin. That only makes sense – they’ve all got a guaranteed ticket to the next round, while the play-in teams have to fight it out for their opportunity. Also, they’re the best teams, at least in theory, although that may not end up mattering much. By the way, we all agree that the round robin is a screwed-up way to determine seeding, right? I get that you want the games to matter so that everyone isn’t just going through the motions in glorified exhibitions, but we kind of just rendered the whole regular season meaningless. The right way to do it would have been to have the three round-robin games count towards the points the teams already had, so the Flyers could pass the Capitals without it being possible for the Stars to make up 12 points on the Blues in a week. Sorry Bruins, enjoy being the first Presidents’ Trophy winners in NHL history to be a four-seed. 5. Philadelphia Flyers – Beating a good Bruins team in a semi-meaningful game isn’t enough to move them past Boston on my list of contenders, but it does earn them a top-five spot, at least until teams like Caps and Stars get to play. I was leaning towards putting the Knights in this spot, but I’ll wait until I see

23

more of them. Well, more of them in a game, I mean, since I think I’ve seen that iPhone ad roughly 400 times already. 4. St. Louis Blues – They didn’t look great last night, but let’s look on the bright side: They played a bad game against an excellent opponent and were still 0.1 seconds away from earning at least a point. That’s the sign of a good team. Well, that and the whole “defending champions” thing. 3. Boston Bruins – At this point, we don’t know what’s going on with Tuukka Rask, but the indications are that it’s not serious. That’s good; seeing him get into a game would be better. The Bruins still have a week before worrying about Round 1, and while they’d probably like a higher seed than a lower one, I’m not sure it matters all that much to them. It sure didn’t look like it did yesterday. Still, they were my No. 1 team in the last rankings of the regular season, so I can’t drop them too far based on just one game. 2. Colorado Avalanche – Man they looked good, dominating the Blues for long stretches, including almost the entire first period. Nazem Kadri’s buzzer-beater was dramatic and a little bit ridiculous, and it matters because it cost the Blues at least a point and maybe two. But even without it, the finally-healthy Avs were the better team last night, and by enough of a margin that it has to be just a bit scary for the rest of the league. 1. Tampa Bay Lightning – They were my Cup pick when The Athletic asked for our predictions, and I didn’t see anything on the weekend that would change my mind. Granted, that’s because they didn’t play. Please enjoy this top ranking for a few more hours before they have a bad period against the Capitals this afternoon and I regret all my life choices. *Goals differential without counting shootout decisions like the NHL does for some reason. Not ranked: Any of the teams that won play-in openers, but let’s talk about them – It’s tempting to overreact to the play-in rounds and glaze over the round robin. The stakes are just so much higher. It’s even possible that the teams that survive will have an advantage heading into the next matchups, because the round-robin teams may need a game or two to ramp up their intensity. But with eight teams guaranteed their spot in the next round, I can’t make a reasonable case that any of the play-in teams deserve a spot in the top five, even if they looked great in their opener. We should still talk about them, though, because a few of them looked really good. The Islanders did it the Islander way, squeezing the life out of the Panthers with the sort of tidy defensive effort that would make Barry Trotz smile if he were capable of such a thing. The Wild did the same the Canucks, looking like a confident group in front of Alex Stalock and putting together a workmanlike win over a Canucks team that couldn’t match them. And the Hurricanes didn’t just beat the Rangers, they did it while looking like a team that had already ramped up the intensity to full-playoffs mode. I liked what I saw from the Flames a lot, and they’ve got a clear edge over a Jets team that’s already missing key pieces. For the record, while I hated to see Mark Scheifele go down, I didn’t think Matthew Tkachuk did anything dirty or premeditated, or really anything other than being part of a normal hockey play that went bad. Until Paul Maurice can share his magic camera angle that proves otherwise, that only he’s seen, that’s where we’re at. The Coyotes can’t be thrilled with giving up 40+ shots, but they got the job done and their best players looked dangerous even without Nick Schmaltz in the lineup. The Blue Jackets looked fantastic,

24

completely shutting down a Leafs team that’s supposed to have more talent. We’ll have some debate about how much of last night was Columbus being good and how much was the Leafs not showing up, but I’m not sure it matters — that’s exactly the game the Blue Jackets want to play, and they didn’t even make it look all that difficult. And then there were the two biggest stories, with the Habs and Hawks both pulling up stunning upsets, or at least as stunning as you can get in a league where any team can beat any other team at the best of times and nobody has played in four months. This isn’t exactly Miracle on Ice territory, but most of us picked the favorites, so let’s give credit where it’s due. Neither Chicago nor Montreal can say they fluked out a win on a hot goalie or lucky bounces either – they earned their wins, and their series leads. The Hawks looked just a little like the old days, thanks in part to some old(ish) guys and a record-setting rookie. The Habs relied on youth too, with the kids leading the offensive charge. Young or old, both approaches can work, but there’s still two wins to go. OK, great, good for all these teams that won. What about the team they beat? The bottom five The five teams that are headed towards the best lottery odds and lots of Alexis Lafreniere junior highlight reels. Huh. It’s the playoffs, but it turns out I didn’t have to change the italicized description for this section at all. Man, this has been a weird year. The focus here will be on the teams that are still playing, which means for the first time all season, we won’t have Detroit or Ottawa to kick around. Instead, we’ll clear out some space for a few new teams. In fact, I was surprised to go back and find that only two teams from this group of 24 cracked the bottom five at any point last year: The Wild, who made regular appearances throughout the first half, and the Blue Jackets, who were slumping and banged up when they briefly slipped into the fifth spot back in December before Elvis Merzļikins emerged to save their season. So yeah, it’s only teams that are still playing here. Specifically, we’re going to be focused on the teams that lost game one, because, in a short series, that first loss means a lot. But it doesn’t mean everything, so we’ll try not to panic here. (By the way, can we please stop quoting those stats about how overwhelmingly unlikely it was for teams that lost Game 1 to win a five-game series back in the 1980s? Those were all first-round series, and back then a typical first-round matchup was something like “the 130-point Oilers versus the only seven guys in Winnipeg who have their own skates.” Those stats don’t tell us much about how likely comebacks will be in the era of hyper-parity, so take them with a huge grain of salt. This has been a public service announcement.) 5. Toronto Maple Leafs – We could definitely swap in the Canucks here instead, for similar reasons. Both teams saw their high-flying talent get shut down, and Vancouver sure didn’t show much. If you want to use them here instead, by all means, go ahead. I’m going with the Leafs because of East-Coast bias. As we said above, were the Leafs bad, or were the Blue Jackets just very good? Here’s the thing: For this section, it doesn’t matter. If Columbus isn’t for real, it will catch up to them eventually, so we have to be careful about pumping their tires too much. If the Leafs are a good team getting outplayed by a better

25

one, well, too bad, they’re going home unless they can figure it out. Well, staying home, I guess. You know what I mean. We’ll see what happens. Virtually nobody picked a Leafs sweep, and while it’s a short series, it’s not single elimination. But short of a blowout or a trademark third-period collapse, it would be hard to find a game that would play into more narratives about this Leafs team. And they know it. They’re back at it tomorrow afternoon, so they can jump right back into the series. But if not, don’t worry, I’m sure fans and media will be cool about it. 4. Nashville Predators – Overall, they played a decent game, including firing 42 shots at Darcy Kuemper and almost coming back from a pair of three-goal deficits. Almost isn’t enough, though, and that first period has to be a concern. Maybe you chalk up some of that to Juuse Saros having some butterflies in his first postseason start, the opening goal was just a crazy bounce and he did manage to settle in after the third goal. As the old cliché goes, there were some things here that the Preds can build on. But they’d better do it quickly. 3. Florida Panthers – I spent the last few weeks touting the Panthers as a sneaky dark horse pick since I like their mix of a grizzled coach, veteran goalie and young legs throughout the lineup. Then I watched them get smoked by the Lightning in their exhibition game and shut down by the Islanders in the real thing. I’m not entirely off the bandwagon, but let’s just say I’ve noted the locations of the emergency exits. Saturday’s loss was close, and a bounce here or there could have sent it in the other direction. But the Panthers are struggling to create offense right now, and the Islanders are just about the last team you want to be playing when that happens because they know how to shut it down. 2. New York Rangers – They lost, they were outplayed, the powerplay was shooting blanks, they had a few guys get run over and their starting goaltender is hurt. Other than that, they’re off to a great start. 1. Winnipeg Jets – Disaster. It was one game, sure, as we’ve mentioned more than once. But it was one game where just about everything that could go wrong did. Start with the ugly injury to Mark Scheifele. We don’t have a prognosis yet, and in the days of “unfit to play,” maybe we won’t get one. There’s been some faint optimism about a surprise comeback, but at this point, it seems unlikely we see him again in the series, and maybe the tournament. And that means the Jets will have to try to go forward without anything approaching a No. 1 center. They may also have to do it without Patrik Laine, who hurt his wrist or arm after tangling with Mark Giordano. There’s more room for optimism there, but the injury was serious enough to force him out of the last 15 minutes of a game where his team was desperate for a goal, so it’s not insignificant. It all came in a loss that saw the Jets outshot 33-18 while generating few solid chances in close and getting outscored 1-0 on seven powerplays. There were some positives if you squint enough – they started well, and were close to holding their own at even strength – but not many. The Flames just looked like the better team. And if Scheifele and Laine are both out, they are. Paul Maurice will have his work cut out for him. Here’s hoping he’s got more in his bag of tricks than headline-grabbing sound bites about Tkachuk that nobody else seems to be buying. Distractions may be welcome right now, and maybe the Jets can rally around a villain, even one who didn’t do anything

26

intentionally. We all know how these things work, and a coach has to do what he has to do. But Maurice will need more than accusations. It was one game. But it was just about the worst one possible, and the Jets are in trouble. Not ranked: The Penguins or Oilers – Bad weekend to be a five seed. But as I said in the intro, no panic. Yet. Concern? Yeah. The Oilers didn’t look good at all on Saturday, coughing up six goals against a Blackhawks team that still has key pieces of multiple Cup wins and looked far more poised once things heated up. The Penguins were better, but couldn’t find enough plays to knock off a feisty Canadiens team that hung around long enough to steal the opener. Let’s start out west. If anything, this was the nightmare scenario for Edmonton, basically the game you’d have scripted if you wanted to generate “same old Oilers” headlines. The defense was shaky. The goaltending was awful. The special teams were a mess. And the big guys got their points but didn’t play the sort of end-to-end game they needed. So are the Oilers toast? No, for three reasons. First, Dave Tippett made the wrong call in net by going with Mike Smith, and that won’t happen for Game 2. Second, they still have the best player in the world and the probable MVP, and while it’s hard for your game-breakers to break games where you give up a half-dozen goals, in the closer games to come, they can be difference-makers. And third, Game 1 aside, they’re still the better team. Not the more experienced team, and that matters, but they were 11 points and seven spots in the standings ahead of the Hawks. Meanwhile, the Penguins largely outplayed the Canadiens and fought back from a 2-0 deficit only to lose in overtime. The game didn’t quite follow the script we expected in a Montreal win – Carey Price was good, but he didn’t steal it – and maybe that’s a concern. The Penguins are certainly beatable, especially after an up-and-down season. But like the Oilers, the Penguins are the better team here, and unlike Edmonton, they actually showed it for long stretches. Will that be enough, for either team? Not necessarily! It’s a five-game series, and they’ve already lost one, so the odds are against them. If the Pens or Oilers lose Game 2, they’re in deep trouble. But if they don’t, they’re back even and I’ll still call them the favorites. I wouldn’t necessarily say the same about the teams that made the bottom five list ahead of them. Besides, even in the most unpredictable postseason ever, what are the odds that both the Oiler and Penguins would lose in the play-in round? (Thinks a little bit.) And drop into the draft lottery. (Furrows brow.) Where a generational star forward is available. (Looks up in horror.) Oh no. Forget Bruins/Lightning or Avs/Knights, the ultimate showdown ahead might be the Pens and Oilers in the draft lottery. Hockey gods help us all.

27

The Athletic / Inside the NHL’s frenetic return: All the action you couldn’t see on TV By Dan Robson and Scott Wheeler – August 4, 2020

EDMONTON AND TORONTO — Lukas Staron peeks through the tiny holes in a blue barrier that stands between him and the NHL. The two-year-old, with long blonde bangs, wears a blue Connor McDavid T- shirt — matching the orange one his father, Pat, has on. The father and son do their best to make out the shadows that pass by on the other side of the barrier in downtown Edmonton. They stand just a few feet away, but in some ways, are farther from the stars than NHL fans have ever been. The Staron family has come to Rogers Place about two hours before the Edmonton Oilers’ first meaningful game since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the season — and shut out fans from the rink for the foreseeable future. A fabric fence, marked with white decals that read “Stanley Cup Playoffs 2020” and “WESKATEFOR: A BETTER FUTURE,” wraps around the bubble, which has been set up to keep the players and staff participating in the NHL’s return to play isolated from the outside world. In the past, the Oilers’ Ice District would already be streaming with fans heading to local restaurants and filling the area with pregame spirit. But the streets are quiet. The Starons are the only ones here. “It’s different,” Pat Staron says. “Life is different right now.” His wife, Stacey, pushes a stroller carrying their week-old infant. Pat picks up Lukas and puts him on his shoulders. The two McDavids together still can’t see the action beyond the fence. That action started hours ago on this, the first day of the NHL’s official return to the ice after this five- month pause. It’s the beginning of what — pandemic willing — will be a two-month sprint to declare a Stanley Cup champion under historic circumstances. With 24 teams split between Edmonton and Toronto, this unprecedented experiment will be made at a frenetic pace, featuring many moving parts and unexpected challenges. On this day alone, NHL staff, players, team staff, broadcasters and auxiliary staff will each play an essential role in making the return to play machine work. A single day of hockey in the bubble sees five games in two cities, with hundreds of people involved in each. Matt Dumba, the Minnesota Wild forward, takes the microphone to check the sound ahead of one of the most important speeches in hockey’s history. It’s Saturday morning. Game day. The last check before the machine starts churning. As a member of the Hockey Diversity Alliance and a Black player on a team representing the state where George Floyd was killed by police, Dumba will soon address the need to end systemic racism in society at large, and within hockey specifically, on live television. The ceremony has been planned for a couple of weeks. Earlier in the week, Dumba met with Steve Mayer, the NHL’s Chief Content Officer, to discuss the plans. But the NHL doesn’t know exactly what he plans to say. Wearing a black hoodie bearing the letters HDA, for Hockey Diversity Alliance, Dumba shares a brief 30-second snippet of his speech to test the microphones. But he saves the rest for the live event.

28

The arena is already busy with people going over final measures ahead of the first game of the Western Conference’s qualifying round, between the Edmonton Oilers and the Chicago Blackhawks. Among the first people to arrive at the rink are those who have been tasked with bringing the games to everybody on the outside. A broadcast crew from Sportsnet — made up of about 35 full-time employees and veteran freelancers from across Canada — is staying in a satellite bubble at the Matrix Hotel. They took their daily COVID-19 test and were dropped off by Bruce, their shuttle bus driver, by 9:50 a.m. at Rogers Place. They are one of two crews in Edmonton that will alternate days, producing up to three games a day. They will spend the next two months living in the bubble, producing a world feed of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the league’s broadcast partners. (NBC’s crew is producing the world feed in Toronto). Mark Askin, one of the senior producers in charge of the world feed, is unfazed by the busy schedule. “We know what we bargained for when we took the assignment,” he says. “It’s absolutely awesome.” Each member of the crew takes their place inside the two broadcast trucks — an extra one is required to adhere to physical distancing measures — and at the 40 cameras and various technical positions throughout the arena. Each of them wears a mask throughout the day, including during the games as they talk to each other constantly. They will work in conjunction with Mayer and his NHL team. This morning is the culmination of weeks of frantic planning and work. Mayer sits in a suite converted into a broadcast booth at center ice, where he and John Bochiaro, the NHL’s senior director of event and game presentation, call the in-game show — deciding what is displayed on the eight massive screens they designed to enhance the experience of watching a game without fans. The screens have been built to pump out visuals for each team throughout the rink. Mayer and Bochiaro run through a last-minute rehearsal of the opening presentation, taking particular care to iron out all of the details of a pregame presentation, which will aim to address the devastation of COVID-19 and pay tribute to human triumph during the pandemic in a video that has been in the works for two weeks — fine-tuned until the final version was sent in from New York early this morning. A couple of hours before game time, McDavid and his Oilers teammates filter across the walkway, which reaches over 104 Avenue from the JW Marriott hotel to Rogers Place. Every Western Conference team that has returned to play now lives in the brand-new Marriott or adjacent Sutton Place Hotel, to which the NHL has given a $100,000 WiFi upgrade to make sure players, known to enjoy gaming, are content. The Oilers are staying at the Marriott. (A few of the team’s executives live in the condo units above the hotel, but have moved into rooms within the Marriott to be part of the bubble). Before getting dressed to play, each of the Oilers heads to the arena’s corridor where testing stations are set up in a manner that resembles voting booths. Today, the Oilers occupy their regular Rogers Place dressing room, while the Chicago Blackhawks dress in one of five other rooms. Over the next week, teams will cycle through all six rooms, as they would at a minor league hockey tournament. (In the third game of the best-of-five series, the Blackhawks will be the home team and get to use the Oilers’ usual home dressing room).

29

An hour before puck drop, two blocks away, a lone man dressed in blazer decorated with Oilers logos and a matching facemask, stands at the corner of 104 Avenue and 101 Street holding up a sign that reads: “The Excitement is Back in Edmonton.” Blair Gladue, known locally as Superfan Magoo, tries to drum up energy amongst the passing cars, which offer scattered honks in support. “The world stopped in a split second. It just goes to show that you have to appreciate everything that you have in life. And most importantly you have to appreciate hockey …” He steps back and raises his Oilers flag high in the air, waving it. “Because it’s back!” he thunders. “Whoo!” Blair Gladue, aka Superfan Magoo, is one of the only Oilers fans out ahead of the team’s first game. (Dan Robson) Meanwhile, in Toronto, the Carolina Hurricanes have just beaten the New York Rangers 3-2 to kick off their qualifying round series. It’s the first of three games that will be played at Scotiabank Arena today. The carousel of personnel in and out of Scotiabank Arena has already started, as staff and media tasked with working the first game make way for those who will work the second. The media and arena staff, who aren’t formally part of the player bubble, rotate in and out through gates that usually welcome fans. The media gate has moved from a stairwell that descends into the bowels of the arena to a second-floor entry to keep the players clear of any potential infection. Two security staff wipe down trays and open bags. One stands, tall and large, through the security scanner’s open frame. One of the security members is new on the job. He wears red, instead of black, but he has already memorized his new schtick. “No new coughs, shortness of breath, chest pain, fever, chills, sinus congestion, runny nose, sore throat, loss of smell? No nausea, vomiting or diarrhea?” he rattles off, like a family physician, before taking each new guest’s temperature to make sure they don’t have a fever. When he gets the answers – and the temperature — he’s looking for, he says “perfect” and turns to the next guest. Between games, Scotiabank Arena’s typical amenities show only half signs of life. Beer fridges sit illuminated and fully stocked but no one stands in front of them. Just one women’s and one men’s bathroom remain open per level. As does one concession stand, staffed by only a single cashier. To limit the number of people in the building, nobody is making hot food, so the menu is prepackaged, the monitors are off, and there are no cooks. At ice level, arena staff work quickly to drill new holes for the metal stakes that hold the nets to the ice. Staff pose for pictures, handing their phones to one another. The staff and player entrances are on the ground floor and concourse levels. Inside the staff entry point, which runs out into a now-blocked-off portion of Maple Leaf Square, there are piles of boxes and medical equipment waiting to be opened and used. In place of security, there are

30

medical professionals, draped with yellow gowns, who rotate in and out of makeshift testing centres divided by black curtains. It’s one of the hottest days of the year, clocking in at 29 degrees Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) without the humidex. But the temperature outside may not even be the NHL’s biggest maintenance challenge during August hockey. Inside Scotiabank Arena, it’s freezing, as the rink and its staff work overtime to keep the ice cool. Back in Edmonton, the Oilers and Blackhawks line up around the centre-ice circle for the pregame ceremony, each team arching around one side. After a video tribute to people who have made a difference in health care and social justice through the past few months, Dumba walks onto the ice beneath the words End Racism displayed on the scoreboard and WeSkateFor: Black Lives and Hockey Diversity Alliance on the screens just above the ice. He takes the microphone and speaks from his heart, challenging listeners to help fight against systemic racism. “I know firsthand as a minority playing the game of hockey the unexplainable and difficult challenges that come with it,” Dumba says. “I hope this inspires a new generation of hockey players and hockey fans. Because Black Lives Matter. Breonna Taylor’s life matters. Hockey is a great game, but it can be a whole lot greater, and it starts with all of us.” As the American national anthem starts to play, Dumba takes a knee, while the Oilers’ Darnell Nurse and Blackhawks’ Malcolm Subban stand beside him, each with a hand on his shoulder. Afterward, Dumba rushes to join his Wild teammates at practice at Terwillegar Community Centre, about 20 minutes away. They watched his speech on television and almost all of his teammates greet him with a hug when he arrives. In Rogers Place, the puck drops less than a minute after the anthems finish. The sounds of sticks and skates fill the arena, which feels hollow without fans in attendance. Standing in a makeshift broadcast booth next to swanky luxury suites and the Oilers’ ownership box, Sportsnet’s Chris Cuthbert does his best to fill his call with the energy of the game. He settles into the rhythm — but also makes sure to tell those watching from home just how much they’re missed. Cuthbert spent a day writing out his game notes for his first broadcast of the playoffs and then took another look again in the morning, before going to air with the finely-tuned details. He caught a mistake, having accidentally written Erik Gustafsson into the Blackhawks third pair, even though he plays for Calgary now. Because broadcasters are not part of the NHL’s bubble, Cuthbert and Sportsnet partner Louie DeBrusk, remain separated from the rest of the television crew in Edmonton. They operate with a small staff on- site while taking direction from Sportsnet’s team working in a studio in Toronto. In the booth, the pair stand about a dozen feet apart, due to health and safety measures. With a couple of exhibition games behind them, they’ve managed to get used to each other’s visual cues, despite the unusual distance.

31

Chris Cuthbert spent an entire day preparing his notes for the first game of the playoffs. (Courtesy of Chris Cuthbert.) When the puck drops in Toronto between the Florida Panthers and the New York Islanders on Saturday afternoon, one notable in-arena element has changed. After playing all of the Toronto exhibition games in a nearly silent Scotiabank Arena, the NHL decided to pipe the crowd noise heard on broadcasts into the rink. That decision was made following a test run during the final game in the Edmonton exhibition schedule, between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Arizona Coyotes. The experiment received positive feedback from the players. The league has hired what Mayer describes as two “audio suite nerds” for the job of controlling the simulated cheers. In Toronto, the title belongs to Matt Scoppidge. In Edmonton, it’s Jeff Kozak’s job. Both staffers exist in the bubble level of the NHL’s in-arena operation and they’re armed with menus of crowd noises that they adjust, live, to elevate things like a big hit, or a shot from the slot. They use the sounds of different arenas, from the din of fans to in-game action, which comes from EA Sports. The two new audio mixers — and the sounds they produce — exist separate from the audio picked up by microphones scattered throughout the rink to catch player chatter or skate blades. Each team’s goal horns are operated separately, as well. Eager for feedback, Mayer says he makes it a habit to have discussions with each of the teams after every game. Even with the added noise, though, it doesn’t take the Panthers-Islanders game long to sound different — to sound off. When Mike Matheson delivers a high hit to Johnny Boychuk, sending him to the dressing room early in the second period, the post-whistle antics play out the same as they normally would for the players. They scrum, the captains gather at the penalty box while the referees review the hit, and the music continues to play like it would in any other game. But the ambient crowd noise, in a game where the Islanders were the designated home team, doesn’t change. The low murmur of the fake audience remains, even after a hit that appears to trigger the concussion protocol. No boos rain down as they would from Nassau Coliseum or the Barclays Center when it’s decided that the hit will only result in a two-minute check to the head call. Mayer admits it’s a work in progress. “We felt from watching the first two games that guys are going to generate their own energy but I also imagine months from now, the Stanley Cup Final is being played in silence? That felt weird,” Mayer says. “Some teams may like it and some teams may not. We’re keeping our minds wide open with what’s good, what’s bad and how to make it better. So let’s gave it a try. We’re not doing it for the fans in the arena, we’re doing it for the players.” The sheet of ice itself may prove to be the bigger challenge, though.

32

Three games a day still means seven and a half hours of use, plus each game’s warmups, which are permitted to run as long as 16 minutes apiece. The staff spends much of their hour and a half between games focusing on the few inches of ice that extends out from the boards. That’s the ice that takes the most damage from skate blades in board battles. The crew scrapes, and squeegees, and scrapes again and then they shovel, ever so slightly. This happens before and after the Zambonis do their tours. During the third game of the day in Toronto, between the Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins, the ice looks choppy, the shine of a fresh flood fading faster with each period. In a tie game, Conor Sheary is awarded a penalty shot with 3:03 left in the third. On his way in on Carey Price, the puck skips onto its edges twice. In overtime, a second penalty shot of the game is awarded to Jonathan Drouin — and the puck rolls onto its edge as he carries it from his forehand to his backhand. When Jeff Petry finally finishes the day’s hockey with a curl-and-drag wrist shot with six minutes left in overtime, the Canadiens bench explodes once more, the players scrambling to leap over the boards and rush to Petry. A short time later, as Canadiens head coach Claude Julien wraps up his postgame availability, via Zoom, the crowd noise that filled the rink abruptly stops and those who remain in the stands laugh at the sudden switch. An already empty building begins to empty out, as staff make their way out into the darkness of Toronto’s downtown streets. More than 12 hours have passed since the games began in Toronto. In Edmonton, the Oilers have little time to wallow in a 6-4 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. They have to pack up their things and leave the dressing room almost immediately. The Oilers trainers load the team’s gear into a cube van and transport it to the Terwillegar Community Centre, ready for practice the next day. Arena staff are on the ice before it’s cleared, peeling advertisements off the boards, revealing new banners underneath. With multiple broadcast partners and markets, there are many sponsors to please. So Safeway becomes Budweiser. Esso becomes a Heinz Ketchup bottle. Down in the broadcast trucks, the crews take a small break ahead of the evening’s game between the Winnipeg Jets and the Calgary Flames. Some grab lunch at one of the food trucks in a courtyard within the bubble at the Westin. Cuthbert heads back to his hotel to make lunch for himself. He accidentally closes his eyes for 20 minutes and falls asleep. Players start arriving about two and a half hours before the game. Gene Principe, one of the Sportsnet reporters on-site, conducts pregame interviews through a screen with players. Ahead of the Jets game, he chats with Mark Scheifele. Earlier in the week, Scheifele was settling into life inside the bubble by playing basketball, including several games of 21 against teammate Andrew Copp. “I dusted him three games straight,” he said. Then he played Adam Lowry and Josh Morrissey and took the wins again. “Maybe there will be some 2-on-2 matches with other teams soon, and it will get intense,” he said. “But we’ll see.”

33

The Saturday night tilt between the Jets and Flames is heated from the drop of the puck, with players much more audible throughout the rink. The conversation grows especially heated when Matthew Tkachuk collides with Scheifele against the boards near the Flames blue line. As Scheifele lays on the ice, Flames captain Mark Giordano asks the referees to get him a stretcher. Jets defenseman Nathan Beaulieu skates over to his teammate as he tries to get up. “Scheif,” he says. “Stay down.” Jets coach Paul Maurice hurls expletives from the bench, saying that Tkachuk’s hit was intentional. After the game, a 4-1 win for Calgary, the ice crew rushes back out to quickly change the ads for the next days’ game. Cuthbert does his final hits and catches a ride back to his hotel with DeBrusk. Down in the broadcast trucks, each member of the crew sanitizes their station with wipes. Askin puts his headset in a plastic box so it doesn’t get mixed up with the one that his partner, Paul Gris, will use when he takes over as producer the next day — when the whole production starts again, with three games on the schedule in Edmonton. The crew boards their shuttle bus, which gets them back to the hotel around midnight. Day 1 is done. There are just two months to go.

34

Sportsnet.ca / NHL Weekend Takeaways: Defence frustrates Maple Leafs, Canucks By Rory Boylen – August 4, 2020

The first weekend of meaningful hockey in nearly five months did not disappoint. We had high-scoring games, we had defensive battles, we had physical games, we had controversial hits, a suspension (or two, we’ll see), highlight-reel goals and some incredible saves. It’s almost like it never left. And we don’t have any time to come up for air. With the first Saturday and Sunday of NHL action in the books, we don’t have long to analyze before games continue at noon Eastern on Monday. Here, then, are our weekend takeaways. From the Stanley Cup Qualifiers to the Stanley Cup Final, livestream every game of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, blackout-free, on Sportsnet NOW. EXPERIENCE VS. YOUTH One of the storylines coming into these playoffs centred on who would thrive under these unusual circumstances: fresh young legs, or experienced teams with plenty of preparation time. After the first couple of game days, this is still inconclusive — there are good examples of both sides starting strong. In the eight qualifying series, teams with a higher combined total of career playoff games had a 4-4 record in Game 1; the two round robin games were also split 1-1 through the weekend. On the youth side, there were a number of strong performances. Chicago’s Dominik Kubalik jumps out here, as he became the first rookie in NHL history to log three points in the opening period of his playoff debut, and also the first player in league history to register five points in his first post-season appearance. But a veteran on Kubalik’s own line was also a rejuvenated force as Jonathan Toews showed the composure of a captain who’s won multiple Stanley Cups. The 32-year-old led the Hawks in CF% at 5-on- 5 (85.71), was second to Kubalik in shots for percentage (90.91) and expected goals for percentage (91.93). Chicago outshot the Oilers 10-1 when Toews was on the ice as that line played a crucial role in limiting Connor McDavid at even strength — though he, too, still managed three points overall. In Game 1 of Montreal-Pittsburgh, the Canadiens jumped to a shocking 2-0 lead not because of goals from Brendan Gallagher, Jonathan Drouin or Max Domi, but rather Nick Suzuki and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, the latter of whom was relegated to the AHL late this season and hadn’t played an NHL game since Jan. 27. But on the other side, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin still managed to control the shot advantage when on the ice and the Penguins recovered from a two-goal deficit to force overtime (which they ultimately lost). The real difference in Game 1 was truly Carey Price, another veteran who played like a younger version of himself. That’s exactly what the Penguins feared about this format when they drew the Habs in a short best-of-five.

35

In Toronto, 18-year-old Nick Robertson became the first rookie to make his NHL debut in the post- season since Jarome Iginla in 1996, then came so close to converting his first goal. Though Columbus was the slightly more inexperienced group of the two teams, its veteran-like approach — structure, suffocating defence and a dedication to stick through it — preached by their veteran coach won out as the Blue Jackets shut out the Leafs’ intimidating offence completely. A rookie may lead the playoffs in scoring right now, but this storyline is still developing and it may take all week to sort out. GOALIE CONTROVERSIES? As some NHL teams put a greater emphasis on goalie tandems instead of heavy-usage starters, a number of them came in with questions about who should get the first look in the playoffs. The decisions made by coaches in the first weekend came with…mixed reviews. Mike Smith over Mikko Koskinen: Dave Tippett’s choice to go with the 38-year-old Smith over 32-year- old Koskinen, even though the latter had better numbers this season, was somewhat surprising. Even midway through last week Smith was the expected starter by most, given his long relationship with Tippett, but when Koskinen got the start in the exhibition game and played well that assumption started to turn. Koskinen was, after all, the better of the two on the season with a .917 save percentage, 2.75 GAA and 18-13-3 record (to Smith’s .902, 2.95 and 9-12-6). Tippett said it “wasn’t a goaltender problem” in Game 1 and he’s certainly right about that — Smith made a number of nice saves and, outside the first goal against, it’s hard to put the blame on him. Edmonton was outshot 27-17 and outscored 3-0 at 5-on-5 in Game 1 and only members of the bottom- six forward group had a positive shot share at evens. This, against a Chicago team that was one of the worst defensive units all season. That’s where the real problem was for the Oilers. Still, Tippett rode the hot hand in goal all season long and that was not Smith in Game 1. We’d be shocked if Koskinen didn’t get the nod Monday night. Juuse Saros over Pekka Rinne: Hindsight is 20/20 here as Saros was easily the better of the two Predators netminders this season and the presumed starter by most. Still, turning away from a goalie who had started 89 consecutive playoff games for your franchise and led them to a Stanley Cup Final will prompt some second-guessing if it doesn’t lead to a win. Outside of the first period, Nashville actually carried most of the momentum in Game 1, outshooting Arizona 25-10 at 5-on-5 in periods two and three. But the first period was rough enough. The Coyotes scored the first three goals of the game, all within the first 15 and a half minutes, and a late charge wasn’t enough for the Predators to overcome it. Saros had a good game overall, but the first goal he let in especially stung — it was a weird and strange one that he can’t be blamed for, but boy, Rinne probably would have had it just because he’s six-foot-five (to Saros’ five-foot-11). It’s not clear who will start Game 2, though we should note that analytics writer Andrew Berkshire presented an interesting case as to why, perhaps, Rinne could see a rebound in play if he gets a chance in these playoffs. How long of a leash does the younger goalie have in such a short series? Matt Murray over Tristan Jarry: Like Edmonton’s situation, this was an example of the coach going with the more experienced netminder over the one who played better on the season. Leading up to Game 1, all signs were pointing to Murray getting the nod as both the GM and head coach hinted at it, but it was

36

still a bit of a head-scratcher when he got the call. Jarry was so good this season, and seemed better positioned to be able to steal a game, if necessary. And it was in Game 1. Murray didn’t lose the Penguins that game, but Suzuki’s goal to put Montreal up 2-0 was a tough one and an example of where Jarry may have given them an edge. The Penguins are sticking with Murray in Game 2. Cam Talbot over David Rittich: This time the coach went with the goalie who had the hotter hand at the pause and it worked out, though even Talbot mentioned that his workload wasn’t the most demanding in Game 1. “You can’t say enough about how well we played in our D-zone,” Talbot said. “I didn’t have to make a ton of Grade-A saves tonight. The guys in front of me backchecked hard, we always had a third guy high, we took away a lot of their speed on the rush and really gave nothing in the middle of the ice except for their goal.” By the numbers, Winnipeg had six more high-danger chances at 5-on-5 than did the Flames, but Calgary clearly carried the game and outshot Winnipeg 33-18. The Mark Scheifele injury was a real turning point and a major storyline this weekend — but Talbot’s contribution shouldn’t be downplayed here. He was as solid and steady as he had to be and the right call for the nod. Joonas Korpisalo over Elvis Merzlikins: Less of a “controversy” here, though Merzlikins seems to have the higher ceiling. The fact is that Columbus’ defence did most of the heavy lifting in Game 1 (more on that later), but Korpisalo was faced with a few glorious Leafs scoring chances and shut the door when he needed to. He became the first goalie to get a shutout in these playoffs and the second over the last 81 years to record a shutout in the opener of a best-of-five. WHO WAS THE BEST, AND THE WORST, OF THE ROUND ROBIN TEAMS? We only had four of the eight top seeds play over the weekend, so very small sample size here… The best: Colorado Though the round-robin games — being played to determine seeding in the first round — didn’t have the same intensity level of the do-or-die qualifiers, the Avs’ effort against the defending champs is to be commended. A 16-4 shot advantage in the first period led only to a 1-0 deficit against a hard-checking team and it wasn’t until the third period that Colorado got on the score sheet. Philipp Grubauer was rock solid, and Nathan MacKinnon was his usual bull-in-a-china shop. Nazem Kadri, however, reminded us that as long as he doesn’t cross a line he can be a real impact playoff player. He led all players with six shots on goal, the last of which came with 0.1 seconds on the clock and led to the latest regulation goal in NHL playoff history, The worst: Boston Bruins Look, we’re not at all panicking about this team yet. The Bruins have proven to us time and again that when push comes to shove, they’ll be the ones doing the pushing and shoving. But their first game against Philadelphia was not a playoff effort. The Bruins held the shot advantage but were not their usual physical selves. There was an edge and intensity that was missing in their 4-1 loss. Tuukka Rask, named unfit to play, was missing from the lineup and so backup Jaroslav Halak filled in — it wasn’t his fault they lost but Boston could have used another save or two.

37

We expect Boston to get better as we go along, and to be an entirely different team next week when their first best-of-seven begins. Still, with so many unknown factors in this unusual tournament, watch them closely in their second game, against Tampa Bay on Wednesday. VANCOUVER, TORONTO OFFENCES STYMIED BY SUFFOCATING DEFENCES “Defence wins championships” is one of those cliches that doesn’t always come to fruition these days. Sure, better-structured teams generally perform more consistently in the playoffs, but it’s not as though offensive teams can’t win a series. But Sunday night Minnesota and Columbus showed their more flashy opponents why playoff hockey is different. Starting with the Blue Jackets, they made it impossibly hard for the Maple Leafs to get any chance in the middle of the ice. Keeping opponents to the outside was a key in their path to upsetting Tampa Bay in last year’s playoffs, and was also how the Islanders swept aside Pittsburgh in 2019. Now, in a shorter series, it’s going to be that much more difficult for the Leafs to figure a way through and win three of four games. G1P2 Note: Leafs spent the bulk of the period trying and failing to "get the corner," as you see in the first two clips. Bigger point, is they're playing well, but struggling to get the inside against an extremely sound CBJ defence. pic.twitter.com/ZtCOsugJih Columbus outshot Toronto 30-25 at 5-on-5 and the high-danger opportunities were split, so you may be asking why this was such a decisive factor for the Blue Jackets. Well, if Toronto is going to win this series it’s going to be because they overwhelm with offence. The Leafs were the fifth-best team in the league at creating high-danger opportunities this season, where Columbus ranked 29th. It’s not good for Toronto to simply be even with them here. John Tavares and Mitch Marner combined had two 5-on-5 shots in Game 1 and, when the time crunch was on, the whole Leafs team failed to earn even one shot attempt in the final six minutes of regulation. Vancouver was likewise slowed by Minnesota’s rope-a-dope. As the game went on, the scales tipped more and more in the Wild’s favour, including a third period where Minnesota held a 9-3 shot advantage at 5-on-5 and also completely shut down the Canucks at the most crucial point in the game. If there was a silver lining for the Canucks, it was that Elias Pettersson was easily their best player. One of the “things to watch” in this series was how the superstar would handle the more physical brand of playoff hockey, and if his small frame could be pushed around. But he was their most impactful player by a long shot, as the Canucks controlled over 61 per cent of the 5-on-5 shots when he was on the ice. Brock Boeser, Tanner Pearson and Bo Horvat all had a negative impact here and need to find a way to generate more in Game 2 before it’s too late. SCHEIFELE’S INJURY POTENTIALLY DISASTROUS…BUT MAYBE NOT? It didn’t take long for Matthew Tkachuk to become the centre of everyone’s attention in these playoffs. In the first period, Tkachuk tried to finish a check on Scheifele and the awkward collision with the board left the Jets’ top centre on the ice writhing in pain. He was helped off with what looked like a devastating injury and didn’t return. Scheifele is doubtful for Game 2, but when head coach Paul Maurice and forward Adam Lowry addressed the media again Sunday, it sounded a little more optimistic that — maybe, just maybe — Scheifele could return at some point.

38

The official results from Sunday’s visit with a specialist are not public yet, though Lowry mentioned that Scheifele joined his teammates for dinner after the game and was generally upbeat, trying to keep their focus on Game 2. Maurice talked about a previous injury Scheifele had to battle back from. “He’s frustrated, he’s angry,” Maurice said. “But the smile I got out of him … anyway he rolled his ankle in the last year and a half and I didn’t think he was going to play, and he had I believe 20 points in the next 11 games, so I told him to keep that in mind.”

39

USA TODAY / Wild's Matt Dumba, the first NHL play to kneel during national anthem, will now raise his fist By Chris Bumbaca – August 4, 2020

The first NHL player to kneel in the name of social justice, the Minnesota Wild's Matt Dumba says he didn't mean any disrespect with his actions on Saturday. Dumba dropped to one knee for the "Star-Spangled Banner" before the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks played each other in the first game of the Western Conference qualifying round. Before doing so, the 26-year-old delivered an impassioned speech on racism and acceptance in the sport while wearing a Hockey Diversity Alliance sweatshirt. "I know why I knelt and it wasn’t a sign of disrespect by any means," Dumba said on a conference call with reporters Sunday, according to Sportsnet. "It was to shed light on the people who’ve lived through injustice and oppression, especially in my home state of Minnesota." Malcolm Subban of the Blackhawks and Darnell Nurse of the Oilers, both Black players as well, placed their hands on Dumba's shoulders while he knelt. Dumba's lone regret, he confessed, was not remaining on a knee for the Canadian national anthem, "O Canada." "There needs to be a lot of light that has to be shed on what is happening in Canada and the oppression First Nations have felt for hundreds of years," he said. "I have First Nations and Aboriginal families that have lived it and I was disappointed looking back on it." Going forward, Dumba will no longer be kneeling and will instead raise his right arm in the air — for both anthems. "Something that I can stay consistent through," he told reporters. "Talking with (teammate J.T. Brown), if you’re not on that starting lineup you might be on the bench and if I take a knee on the bench you might not see me." Three years ago, Brown, who was on the Tampa Bay Lightning, raised his first during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racism. And prior to the Wild's 3-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday, Dumba was in line with a fist toward the sky.

40