SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEF NHL 6/18/2021 Boston Bruins Florida Panthers 1215913 Bruins re-sign Anton Blidh 1215938 Despite leading Panthers’ massive turnaround, 1215914 NHL Players Show Massive Bergeron Respect In NHLPA Quenneville misses out on Jack Adams Award Poll 1215939 Panthers’ Bill Zito named finalist for general manager of 1215915 Can Jake DeBrusk’s relationship with Bruce Cassidy be the year fixed? What it could mean for the Bruins 1215940 Rod Brind’Amour beats Florida Panthers Joel Quenneville for Jack Adams Buffalo Sabres 1215941 Florida Panthers Bill Zito named GM of the Year Finalist 1215916 Kyle Williams, John Beilein among 12 new members of 1215942 Panthers 2020-21 Report Card: Jonathan Huberdeau Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame 1215917 Sabres goalie prospect Erik Portillo preparing to take over Los Angeles Kings starting job at Michigan 1215943 2021 NHLPA Players Poll – Doughty, Kopitar, Reverse Retro Jerseys mentioned Calgary Flames 1215918 Foreurs captain Pelletier finalist for QMJHL's MVP award Minnesota Wild 1215919 NHL award-winner Hodgson part of Calgary hero 1215944 Wild sign new affiliate deal with Iowa Heartlanders of community helping kids in sports ECHL Carolina Hurricanes Montreal Canadiens 1215920 Division championship earns Canes’ Brind’Amour NHL 1215945 Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry is the latest in a saga of coach of the year award NHL postseason toughness 1215921 Brind’Amour, Waddell talk Hamilton, Svechnikov and the 1215946 Fleury, Price take the spotlight as Knights to face the rest of the Canes’ to-do list Canadiens in Montreal 1215922 Carolina Hurricanes agree to new contract with coach Rod 1215947 Stu Cowan: Canadiens' Petry looks like a villain but plays Brind’Amour like a hero 1215923 ‘It was just a matter of time’: Hurricanes coach Rod 1215948 By the numbers: Canadiens' control of slot gives them Brind’Amour signs a 3-year contract — so what took so fighting chance lon 1215949 Canadiens Notebook: Habs now hold home-ice advantage in series Chicago Blackhawks 1215950 Montreal Canadiens' Marc Bergevin nominated for NHL's 1215924 Blackhawks management did not report 2010 sexual GM of the Year Award assault to police: report 1215951 Golden Knights at Canadiens: Five things you should 1215925 Should the Blackhawks re-sign Vinnie Hinostroza? know 1215926 Dougie Hamilton? Seth Jones? Nikita Zadorov? What 1215952 About Last Night: Bet on red! Habs win Game 2 in Jeff we’re hearing about the Blackhawks’ offseason plans Petry's return 1215927 Father and son Marc and Dylan Crawford bring old- and 1215953 ‘It just looks like hell’: What’s going on with the Canadiens’ new-school mentalities to Blackhawks coaching staff Jeff Petry’s ‘scary-looking’ eyes Colorado Avalanche New York Islanders 1215928 What an ideal offseason would look like for the Colorado 1215954 Lightning have it too easy in Game 3 Islanders’ loss Avalanche 1215955 Referee helps doom Islanders with phantom Adam Pelech penalty Dallas Stars 1215956 Islanders fall behind Lightning with Game 3 loss 1215929 Breaking down the markets for Stars defensemen Miro 1215957 Islanders’ Lou Lamoriello could make history with second Heiskanen, Jamie Oleksiak and John Klingberg NHL GM award 1215930 Streaming app to watch the Mavs, Rangers and Stars may 1215958 Islanders have go-to duo in Adam Pelech-Ryan Pulock include an outrageous price pair 1215931 Stephen Johns’ journey: His NHL career over too soon, 1215959 The ‘ungodly’ scenario Islanders can’t be baited into again former Stars defenseman skates for a cause bigger than h 1215960 This 2-1 deficit seems a bit more daunting for Islanders 1215961 Islanders lose a defensive battle in Game 3 as Lightning Detroit Red Wings take 2-1 series lead 1215932 NHLPA releases annual player poll: Detroit Red Wings 1215962 Physical battles between Islanders and Lightning are big don't rate in any category part of winning playoff series 1215933 Detroit Red Wings' NHL draft: Why taking center Mason 1215963 Islanders' Lou Lamoriello a finalist for GM of the Year McTavish makes sense again 1215934 Ted Kulfan's 2021 NHL mock draft 1.0: Will Wings mine 1215964 The Islanders want to keep winning. Nassau Coliseum Sweden or Ann Arbor for future star? already has. 1215935 Red Wings searching for assistant coach with ‘unique’ 1215965 Time for Oliver Wahlstrom? Takeaways from the power play ideas Islanders’ Game 3 loss to the Lightning 1215936 Why Red Wings feel good about young core of 1215966 Turning Point: Pelech Penalty, Point Goal Changes Game defensemen for Islanders 1215967 Rapid Reaction: Islanders Feel the Shock in Game 3 Loss Edmonton Oilers to Lightning 1215937 What comes next for the Oilers’ Jesse Puljujarvi? How 1215968 Barn Rockers: Islanders Fans Have Given Coliseum a comparable players performed from age 23 to 25 True Home-Ice Advantage 1215969 Lou Lamoriello Named Finalist for GM of Year Award as Isles Continue Cup Run 1215970 NYHN: Islanders Are Back Home for Game 3 With Series Tied & More Ottawa Senators 1215971 Rod Brind'Amour opts to stay behind the Carolina Hurricanes bench ... GM Don Waddell listening on Dougie Hamil 1215972 Marcus Hogberg makes his exit from the Senators official by signing with Swedish club Pittsburgh Penguins 1215973 Penguins A to Z: Kevin Czuczman is a better story than player 1215974 U mad, bro?: Steelers fans are fretting; Penguins fans are pushing back; Pirates fans are just fed up 1215975 NHL players vote Penguins' Sidney Crosby as one of league's most complete players 1215976 Fellow Players Weigh In On Crosby: Complete, Superstitious, Clutch 1215977 Fleury Laughs about Pranks, Reflects on Fleeting Career in Sportsnet Interview Seattle Kraken 1215978 Seattle Kraken mock expansion draft 7.0: What the 32nd NHL team may look like in October Tampa Bay Lightning 1215979 The Lightning have become the new standard for cool in the NHL 1215980 Lightning take series lead over Islanders on the road 1215981 Lightning come up roses with The Bachelor’s Matt James in attendance 1215982 Stanley Cup semifinal: Lightning-Islanders Game 3 live updates 1215983 Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy and Victor Hedman receive league honors from their peers 1215984 Lightning not ‘satisfied’ yet as championship pedigree shows in another road win Toronto Maple Leafs 1215985 Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews voted best goal scorer, most fashionable by NHL players 1215986 TRAIKOS: Despite a pair of bloodshot eyes, Montreal's "scary" looking villain was the hero in Game 2 1215987 TRAIKOS: NHL players say Auston Matthews is the league's best scorer — just not in Game 7 situations Vegas Golden Knights 1215988 Golden Knights face extra COVID restrictions in Canada 1215989 Golden Knights hosting watch parties for games against Canadiens 1215990 Golden Knights keep quiet on Chandler Stephenson’s status 1215991 Golden Knights adjust at center without Chandler Stephenson 1215992 ‘Ready to go in Montreal’: Golden Knights should move on from poor Game 2 1215993 Inside Golden Knights rookie Keegan Kolesar’s impressive development, from bubble taxi squad to first line fil 1215994 ‘It just looks like hell’: What’s going on with the Canadiens’ Jeff Petry’s ‘scary-looking’ eyes 1215995 Vegas Golden Knights Game Two Loss Raises Red Flags, Big Questions Websites 1215996 The Athletic / Seattle Kraken mock expansion draft 7.0: What the 32nd NHL team may look like in October 1215997 Sportsnet.ca / Lightning seize control of series with clinical performance in Game 3 1215998 Sportsnet.ca / Islanders in familiar place, but Lightning present tougher challenge 1215999 Sportsnet.ca / NHL’s Top 12 UFAs of 2021: Latest rumours, reports 1216000 Sportsnet.ca / AT LAST 1216001 Blackhawks refused to report alleged sex abuse of players to police: source SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129 1215913 Boston Bruins
Bruins re-sign Anton Blidh
Grinder could have a shot at fourth line
By STEVE CONROY | PUBLISHED: June 17, 2021 at 6:36 p.m. | UPDATED: June 17, 2021 at 6:39 p.m.
The Bruins re-signed forward Anton Blidh to a one-year, two-way contract worth an NHL cap hit of $750,000 on Thursday.
The 6-foot, 185-pound Blidh, 26, scored two goals with an assist in 10 games for the Bruins in 2020-21.
The Swedish-born left wing will have an opportunity to compete for a spot on the B’s fourth line, which could lose center/left wing Sean Kuraly to unrestricted free agency.
Blidh doesn’t possess a strong scoring pedigree but does bring a sandpaper element to his game. In 278 games with Providence, Blidh has notched 46 goals and 42 assists along with 247 penalty minutes.
Boston Herald LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215914 Boston Bruins
NHL Players Show Massive Bergeron Respect In NHLPA Poll
By Joe Haggerty
As one might expect, the core Boston Bruins players are among the most respected among their peers around the NHL.
It was proven out again this season with several Bruins ranking high in the 2020-21 NHLPA Player Poll. Nearly 500 players were surveyed on 14 wide-ranging topics with the majority of players interestingly in favor of the baseball-style multi-game series schedule that was adopted this season where NHL teams would play back-to-back games in the same city.
But the questions also veered into on-the-ice categories with players responding to several categories, including the “most complete player” where Sidney Crosby and Patrice Bergeron wound up in a tie for first place with 23.78 percent split of the first place votes among all players ahead of Aleksander Barkov, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon.
David Pastrnak ranked third behind Auston Matthews and Alex Ovechkin, and one spot ahead of McDavid, as the NHL’s best goal-scorer while Tuukka Rask finished in the top five for “best goalie” behind Andrei Vasilevskiy. Marc-Andre Fleury, Carey Price and Connor Hellebuyck.
Bergeron also finished tied with Andrei Vasilevskiy for fourth with the question: “If you need to win one game, who is the one player (any position) you would want on your team?” The only players ahead of No. 37 on the poll were McDavid, Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon.
The respect around the league shown for Bergeron shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody.
“He’s been one of our many leaders for years now. Now he just has the captain’s letter on his chest. He hasn’t changed at all,” said Tuukka Rask, during the B’s playoff run before it was cut short against the Islanders. “I think everybody knows what kind of player and a person he is, especially in a clutch game. He’s been our leader for many years. He hasn’t done anything out of the ordinary. I think he just wants to be himself, lead vocally and by example, and he’s done that all year and even in the playoffs.”
Pastrnak finished as one of the players with the “best shot” as he finished in the running with Alex Ovechkin, Auston Matthews, Shea Weber, Patrik Laine and MacKinnon as his peers. The flashy Bruins right winger also finished as the top vote-getter for the “most unique tape job” on his sticks and finished second behind only Matthews as “the most fashionable” player in the NHL.
Certainly, there is plenty of evidence as to why Pastrnak should have been tops in that category as well.
“I like fashion, you know.”
– David Pastrnak #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/gUNysG8b0A
— NHL on NBC Sports (@NHLonNBCSports) May 30, 2021
Perhaps most interesting about the survey is which Bruins player is not on there. Brad Marchand had arguably the best season of any member of the Perfection Line and should get heavy consideration for the Hart Trophy, but No. 63 didn’t show up anywhere on any of the categories when he’s been among the most prolific, clutch players across the entire league over the last five years. Regardless of how they finished in a player’s poll, both Bergeron and Marchand voiced to Boston Bruins management that they’d like to take one more run at the Stanley Cup next season given how many of their core guys are still at the top of their game.
All due respect to the NHLPA poll, that’s the only kind of popularity contest that the B’s leaders are concerned with winning these days.
Boston Hockey Now LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215915 Boston Bruins Buffalo. He was unavailable for the next six games after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
The variance in opinion has created friction between Cassidy and Can Jake DeBrusk’s relationship with Bruce Cassidy be fixed? What it DeBrusk. The left winger admitted being “pissed off” after being a healthy could mean for the Bruins scratch for the first time this season on March 9 against the Islanders. He scored the following game against the Rangers.
By Fluto Shinzawa Jun 17, 2021 It’s unknown where the relationship goes from here.
“It just felt like there’s a lot,” DeBrusk said of the negativity he experienced on all sides. “It’s one of those things where you could just Bruce Cassidy did not believe speaking with Jake DeBrusk after the feel it. Not really pointing out anyone. But the one thing I did learn is you season-ending Game 6 loss to the Islanders would have been a good obviously play for your teammates and the people in this room. That’s all idea. The feeling was probably mutual. I really look for now, is doing for it for the guy beside you.”
The Bruins coach trusts a cooling-off period will initiate a more productive Both parties want a mending of the fences. The Bruins need DeBrusk to dialogue. be a consistent goal scorer, forechecking presence, reliable defender and occasional penalty killer. DeBrusk is entering the second season of a “My conversations with Jake, I think, would have been too raw the day two-year, $7.35 million bridge deal. Better performance is required if he after,” Cassidy said on Monday. “The players had some time to wants the big payday he once expected. themselves. So we’re going to sit down this week, now that we’ve both digested a little bit of the season, and say, ‘OK, let’s find some common The wrinkle is whether DeBrusk fits in the Bruins’ plans. The first ground on where you see yourself fitting into this lineup and where I feel checkpoint is the July 21 expansion draft. One NHL source questioned you need to be better.’ And see if we can sort through some of the stuff whether the Bruins would use one of their seven forward slots to protect now that the season’s over. Sometimes in season, players are just going DeBrusk. to tell you what you want to hear at times. So it will be up to me to dig a little deeper with him so we can get to the root of, ‘OK, what’s going to “Don’t you think he’d be the one to expose?” the source asked. make you the best player?’” Even if the Bruins protect DeBrusk, he is not guaranteed a roster spot. DeBrusk fell well short of being at his best in 2020-21. Consider some of Much of that depends on how the Bruins proceed with Hall. The ex-Oiler the following: was one of DeBrusk’s favorite players when he was growing up in Edmonton. DeBrusk averaged a career-worst 0.36 goals per 60 minutes of five-on- five play, according to Natural Stat Trick. His previous low was 0.86 goals Both Hall and the Bruins want to continue their partnership. The left per 60 in 2019-20. winger said he is not looking to maximize his earnings. If Hall accepts an average annual value below Brad Marchand’s $6.125 million threshold, He had a worst-ever 5.4 all-situations shooting percentage. He shot he could be the Bruins’ full-time No. 2 left winger. 17.31 percent in 2018-19 when he scored 27 goals. That would push DeBrusk down to the third line. Even there, he would DeBrusk did not score a five-on-five goal until March 11, which was not be guaranteed ice time. He would have to battle with Nick Ritchie for Game No. 24 of the season. left-wing duties.
He lost his job as No. 2 left winger, first to Nick Ritchie, then to Taylor At right wing, which is not his natural position, DeBrusk’s competition Hall. would include Jack Studnicka, Karson Kuhlman and Oskar Steen. All are right shots and cheaper than DeBrusk. The fight would get even harder if He was a healthy scratch three times during the regular season and once Ondrej Kase is cleared to play and the Bruins bring back the restricted in Game 5 of Round 2. free agent. At times, Cassidy pointed out DeBrusk’s need to produce better second This is not where DeBrusk expected to be after his fourth NHL season. effort on forechecks and puck recoveries. On other occasions, he spoke Getting on the same page with his boss will be the first step toward about the desire to see DeBrusk more regularly in inside ice. revival. On April 27, prior to scratching him for two straight games, Cassidy The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 dropped the big one.
“We just need a higher compete level,” Cassidy said. “Every player’s at a different place in their career here. We just talked to him about the standard we expect him to play to. Everyone’s going to have an off night. But that’s the message. It’s not about individual stats. It’s about, ‘You need to help this team win.’”
This declaration aligns with Cassidy’s philosophy. He is more demanding of young players than veterans. Most coaches are.
Cassidy views players seeking full-time NHL traction as requiring more structure than those who have earned their keep. Cassidy, perhaps more than other coaches, is more willing to share publicly what he has addressed privately with players beforehand. How this sits with DeBrusk is unknown.
Perhaps the reason coach and player do not see eye to eye is the circumstances touching DeBrusk’s performance. Consider some of the following as well:
DeBrusk was asked to play right wing regularly. Cassidy has acknowledged DeBrusk is better on his strong side.
The 24-year-old, who is single, did not fare well under COVID-19 restrictions. He is a gregarious, approachable, life-of-the-party character. His personality shriveled because of the solitary nature of life away from the rink.
Just as DeBrusk was regaining his touch after six sleepy games to open the regular season, he suffered an upper-body injury. He missed the next five games. On March 18, DeBrusk scored the deciding goal against 1215916 Buffalo Sabres Tonsoline has more than 400 wins as a field hockey coach, more than 700 as an ice hockey coach and almost 400 in softball.
Meanwhile, the 1958 University at Buffalo football team will be the “2021 Kyle Williams, John Beilein among 12 new members of Buffalo Sports Spotlight Team” at the induction ceremony. The Bulls finished 8-1 in ’58, Hall of Fame won the Lambert Cup and declined an invitation to the Tangerine Bowl when the bowl committee denied two Black members of the team from competing. Mark Gaughan Jun 17, 2021 Buffalo News LOADED: 06.18.2021
Buffalo Bills great Kyle Williams and legendary basketball coach John Beilein are among the new, 12-member class for the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame.
The 2021 class will be the 31st to be inducted into the Hall of Fame since its inception in 1991 and brings total membership to 364. The class will be officially inducted at a dinner on Oct. 14 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center.
Two others from the major professional sports arena are among the inductees. They are former Buffalo Sabres defenseman and longtime beloved Sabres broadcaster Mike Robitaille, along with late Bills General Manager John Butler.
Williams, 38, made six Pro Bowls in a 13-year Bills career that ended in 2018. Beilein, 68, has more than 850 wins as a basketball coach in a career that started at Newfane High School and continued to Erie Community College, LeMoyne and Canisius College. Beilein led Michigan to Final Fours in 2013 and 2018.
Robitaille played in 382 NHL games for four teams, including the Sabres from 1971 to ’75. He was an analyst on Sabres broadcasts from 1989 to 2014. Butler, who died in 2003, helped build the Bills’ 1990s dynasty first as personnel director then as general manager from 1993 to 2000.
John Beilein, former Canisius College basketball coach, meets with the media prior to being inducted into the College’s Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019.
Harry Scull Jr./Buffalo News
The other members of the class are:
• Angela Coniglio, deceased, a four-sport star at Amherst High School. She went on to star in soccer at Nazareth College, and played professionally. She’s in the Nazareth athletics hall of fame.
• Deborah Dourlain, a record-setting swimmer at Orchard Park High School who went on to Division I success at Bowling Green and then earned Division III All-America honors at Rochester Institute of Technology. She also has had a distinguished career as an official in both softball and swimming.
• Gerry Gentner, deceased, who coached Williamsville South to three state championships in softball. He started his coaching career at Hamburg, leading it to a section boys soccer title. He compiled a 259-65 record as Williamsville South softball coach.
• Julie Gentner Murphy, the daughter of Gerry. She was a multisport All- Western New York athlete from Williamsville South who went on to become an All-American in both field hockey and softball at Cortland State. She coached softball alongside her father and then took over as Williamsville South head coach, earning a state title in 2014. She’s also a four-time Buffalo District golf player of the year.
• Ron Moscati, a Niagara Falls native who had an award-winning career as a photographer for both the Buffalo Courier-Express and The Buffalo News. A Moscati photo served as the inspiration for the statue of the Sabres’ French Connection, which sits outside KeyBank Center.
• William Russell, deceased, a youth hockey pioneer, director, coach and administrator from Bennett High School.
• Lamar Smith, the greatest sprinter Western New York ever produced, who starred at Bennett High School then went on to set records at Alabama and Buffalo State. Smith’s 100-meter time of 10.64 seconds still stands after 40 years, the longest-held record on the books for boys or girls in Western New York track and field. His 200-meter record still stands after 39 years.
• Pete Tonsoline, one of the winningest coaches in New York State high school history, with more than 1,500 victories, most of them at Iroquois. 1215917 Buffalo Sabres fame goaltender who did not play this season after undergoing open- heart surgery.
“I think what I really took away from that was like his work ethic,” said Sabres goalie prospect Erik Portillo preparing to take over starting job at Portillo. “He's working so hard, even at that age and he's basically like Michigan set for life. He’s still coming to work every day and really battling in practice and going really, really hard. I think that's something I really took away from that and that I could apply to this year. When I didn't get to Lance Lysowski Jun 17, 2021 play as much, I really made sure to stay on the ice as long as possible.”
Portillo’s exhaustive practice routine included position-specific drills with Wolverines assistant coach: Kris Mayotte, who recently left Michigan to Erik Portillo anticipated that he may spend more time watching from the become head coach at Colorado College. Portillo also received guidance bench during his freshman season at the University of Michigan. from Michigan player development coach Steve Shields, a former Sabres No matter what Portillo accomplished in the United States Hockey goalie with 10 years of NHL playing experience. League or his status as a draft choice of the Buffalo Sabres, he was Portillo would stay on the ice well after practice ended, facing shots from second on the Wolverines’ depth chart behind Strauss Mann, who was a talented roster that includes three players the Sabres will consider with named Big Ten Goaltender of the Year for the 2019-20 season. the first overall pick at the NHL draft next month: defenseman Owen Yet, Portillo never considered walking away from Ann Arbor, Mich., even Power, center Matthew Beniers and winger Kent Johnson. though playing such few games at 20 years old wasn’t the best plan for "He's really good," Shields said of Portillo. "I love him as a goalie and a his development. person. He's a gamer. Aside from the fact he has all the physical tools, “If I'm going to take the next step at the NHL level, you obviously have to the things he needs to improve on are all teachable in terms of save battle with the best in the world,” Portillo told The Buffalo News during a selection, skating, his work around the crease, tracking the puck. The recent phone interview. “When you’re in a sport where you’re not the first things you can't teach -- the competitiveness and ability to not be nervous guy, you really have to battle your way to earn games, and I think that’s -- he's got already. ... When you see that in a goalie, it's usually a really an important lesson to learn. (Michigan coach Mel Pearson) and I talked good sign. And if you combine that with the fact he's got the size and he's a lot about not running away." got that fire, it's only a matter of time for him to put it all together. It's not going to take him long." Portillo acknowledged that some days were more difficult than others. He was on the ice for 27 games with the Dubuque Fighting Saints the In addition to his work at practice, Portillo sent video clips of his progress previous season, when the USHL named him the league’s goaltender of to Sabres development coach Seamus Kotyk, who provided insight into the year. It wasn’t until the Wolverines’ 13th game of this season – two how the young goalie could succeed when his opportunity for game months and one day after their opener – that Portillo finally received his action arrived. first career NCAA start. The time came on Dec. 3, the Wolverines’ eighth game of the season, While game experience is a goalie’s greatest development tool, Portillo when Portillo entered in relief during a game at Penn State. His second had to take a different route to improving in the crease. He treated every appearance also occurred after Mann was pulled and it wasn’t until Jan. practice as if it were a game, following the same obsessive routine and 15 that Portillo received his first career start. approaching every shot as if it could be the difference between a win or Portillo stopped 19 of 21 shots during a win against Ohio State. He went loss. on to make 58 saves combined in victories over Notre Dame and Facing top competition every day – including seven teammates already Wisconsin. Michigan’s season ended abruptly when a Covid-19 outbreak chosen in the NHL draft and three others projected to go in the top 10 prevented the Wolverines from competing at the NCAA Midwest when the annual event is held virtually on July 23 – was enough to Regional in Fargo, N.D., but Portillo proved he could be the team’s long- further Portillo’s development. And with Mann preparing to sign his first term starter in goal. professional contract, Portillo is expected to take over as the Wolverines’ Across seven appearances, Portillo compiled a 1.67 goals-against starting goaltender in the fall. average and .935 save percentage. He’s not complacent, though. Portillo “Erik obviously came in and didn't play a ton off the bat, but he had a is still on campus at Michigan, continuing his on-ice work to prepare for good work ethic in practice and it was fun to learn from him,” said Mann. the net to be his next season. “We're obviously two very different goalies and mostly just because of “I won't take anything for granted,” said Portillo. “I'm coming in here, I'm our size. I'm 6-foot and he is 6-6, so that on its own kind of leads to very doing everything this summer to be as prepared as I possibly can be. I different styles. But with that, it was cool to learn from him and see some need to really focus this summer on getting better and then hopefully I things he did really well. And he's got an extremely bright future ahead of can get as many games as I possibly can. That's my goal for next him. … I know he'll have a great year next year. I have no doubt about season.” that.” Buffalo News LOADED: 06.18.2021 Portillo was already committed to Michigan when former Sabres General Manager Jason Botterill selected the prospect in the third round, pick No. 67, at the NHL draft in June 2019. Portillo went undrafted during his first year of eligibility in 2018 and spent the 2018-19 season with the under-20 junior team for Frolunda, the same program in Sweden that developed Rasmus Dahlin.
The selection gave the Sabres another goalie for their prospect pipeline, fortifying a position that’s been a black hole for the organization since Ryan Miller’s departure in February 2014. Portillo, who turns 21 in September, proceeded to show that he could have a future in the NHL.
During the 2019-20 season, Portillo played in 27 of Dubuque’s 48 games, as he led the USHL in goals-against average (2.11) and ranked third in save percentage (.915). His season was cut short because of a minor back injury suffered in February, and the USHL halted play in March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Portillo went back to work as soon as restrictions were eased in Sweden. He began participating in professional skates at Frolunda’s facility, an opportunity to compete against Dahlin and Dallas Stars defenseman John Klingberg, among others. The most valuable experience, though, was to share the ice with Henrik Lundqvist, a 39-year-old future hall of 1215918 Calgary Flames
Foreurs captain Pelletier finalist for QMJHL's MVP award
POSTMEDIA NETWORK
Calgary Flames prospect Jakob Pelletier was up for a major junior hockey award Thursday.
The 2019 first-round draft pick was one of three finalists for the QMJHL’s most valuable player honour, the Michel-Brière Trophy.
Playing for the Val d’Or Foreurs, he led his team to a second-place finish in the overall standings, thanks to a stellar 28-3-2-2 record during the COVID-interrupted campaign. Despite suiting up for only 28 regular- season games, captain Pelletier notched a team-best 43 points, 30 assists, 15 power-play points and a plus-25 plus-minus rating. He was also a silver medallist with Canada at the 2021 World Juniors, during which he averaged a point-per-game.
But it was Charlottetown Islanders sniper Cedric Desruisseaux who was named MVP of the 2020-21 season after leading the QMJHL with 42 goals and 78 points in 40 games.
Pelletier, who was chosen 26th overall by the Flames two years ago and has likely played his last junior game, also faced off against Desruisseaux’s Islanders teammate Colten Ellis for the MVP award.
Calgary Sun: LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215919 Calgary Flames “We’ve had this ability to recruit really exceptional people who aren’t looking to create high-level hockey players. We have no interest whatsoever in creating NHL players — that’s not our goal. It’s wanting to NHL award-winner Hodgson part of Calgary hero community helping kids use the game to impact these kids’ lives away from the ice and just use in sports the ice as a place to learn lessons and learn perseverance and self- confidence.”
In winning this year’s O’Ree Award, Hodgson beat out two others he Todd Saelhof considers world-class hockey humanitarians.
Renee Hess with her Black Girl Hockey Club is “a real force when it comes to advocacy and giving a lot of people a voice in hockey.” Calgary is teeming with team players helping to make hockey fun for everyone. And Howard Smith with his Steel City Icebergs and Pittsburgh Warriors programs “has been giving back to his country his whole life and doing It’s not just Kevin Hodgson, who was recognized Wednesday by the NHL things with hockey in Pittsburgh for 20 years.” for his humanitarian efforts in the sport. Alongside the leaders from Calgary and Canada, they’re removing all the And it’s not only Dampy Brar, who was saluted with same honour — the barriers for kids who have been left behind in the game to help them Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award — last year. accomplish whatever they want in life. “There’s just a lot of people who get it here,” said Hodgson, in the hours “It just speaks to the way we look at hockey and the way that we believe after winning the 2021 O’Ree Award for his leadership in the cross- that it belongs to everybody who wants to play it,” Hodgson said. “Nearly country HEROS and SuperHEROS programs. everybody understands that hockey culture has to shift — we have to do “There’s obviously something in the water here that we want to do right, a better job of making the game inclusive and making it accessible and be leaders and want people to have something to follow,” continued welcoming to anybody who plays it. Hodgson. “There’s a lot of really good people here in Calgary that are “The reality is the game doesn’t belong to NHL players or high-level doing really good things with hockey and with other sports and doing players. It belongs to everybody who holds a stick and wants to call right by people who need it.” themselves a hockey player. I really feel the agents of change for hockey Hodgson offered up a few organizations that are driving inclusive culture are 6 and 7 and 8 years old who are just putting on skates for the initiatives on the city’s sports landscape. first time — that generation is going to address a lot of these problems and that organizations like ours are the ones setting them up for The Calgary Police Youth Foundation has its Power Play — a free, success.” weekly drop-in hockey (winter) and soccer (summer) program that engages youth ages 6 to 17 and their families who don’t have access to Calgary Sun: LOADED: 06.18.2021 those sports. Its purpose is to help foster trust and understanding between youth and police to diverse and marginalized Calgary communities.
Football-Hockey Link, launched by Calgarians Krista Taldorf and Marion Christensen, provides an introductory football and hockey program to up to 50 kids between the ages of 8 and 16 each year, focusing on integrating culturally diverse children by helping them feel more connected to their peers.
“There’s an adaptive ringette program, Ringette For All, that’s starting up this fall,” Hodgson said. “It’s sort of modelled after ours in terms of wanting to use the sport and wanting to provide it to kids living with disabilities that have kept them out of the game.
“And I have to say we’re very lucky to have the Calgary Flames Foundation — they’re a cut above,” continued Hodgson of a program that strives to improve the lives of kids through the support of health and wellness, education and grassroots sports. “What the foundation does here for Southern Alberta is next level. Groups like ours don’t get to do what we do without that.”
Hodgson’s HEROS has been a leader in the NHL’s Hockey is for Everyone network for more than two decades, helping more than 10,000 at-risk boys and girls find empowerment through the sport on and off the ice since 2000. HEROS serves a diverse group of kids, almost half of whom are new Canadians — including 1-in-3 being girls and 70% BIPOC — in 12 cities across the nation.
“The work that Kevin, Norm Flynn and the entire HEROS team have been doing for the past 20 years is remarkable,” said hockey legend O’Ree during the video ceremony Wednesday night to laud Hodgson. “HEROS has been a leader in the NHL’s Hockey is for Everyone network for decades. Kevin’s dedication has positively impacted thousands of children and their families across Canada, and his leadership has set a standard for how hockey program directors everywhere work in their communities.”
Hodgson also oversees SuperHEROS, which provides boys and girls living with physical and cognitive challenges with a safe and inclusive environment as well as an adapted on-ice curriculum.
“Even though we’ve got programs across Canada, we’re still very grassroots,” Hodgson said. “It’s myself and the founder (Flynn) working from our kitchen tables, and this year, we’re going to have over 900 kids across the country and more than 300 volunteers. 1215920 Carolina Hurricanes
Division championship earns Canes’ Brind’Amour NHL coach of the year award
BY STEVE WISEMAN
Rod Brind’Amour started Thursday with good news and ended it with more.
On the same day he signed a three-year contract extension to remain the Carolina Hurricanes head coach, Brind’Amour won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s coach of the year.
The NHL announced the award winner during Thursday night’s playoff game between the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders.
“This is a great honor to even be thought of in this category,” Brind’Amour said. “There’s not a coach in this league worth his weight that would say it’s about him. Winning this award is an organizational award, and I’m really proud to be accepting this on behalf of this organization.”
Carolina won the Central Division championship this season, compiling the third-most points in the league (80). It marked the first time the Hurricanes won a division title since the 2005-06 Stanley Cup championship team that Brind’Amour played on.
Earlier this month, the 50-year-old Brind’Amour was named one of three finalists for coach of the year, along with Florida’s Joel Quenneville and Minnesota’s Dean Evason.
Brind’Amour received 61 first-place votes while compiling 433 points in the voting, which was conducted by the NHL Broadcasters Association. Evason was second with 235 points, with 24 first-place votes, while Quenneville was third with 225 points, including 21 first-place votes.
“The athletes that I get to come in contact with every day, from (team captain) Jordan Staal on down,” Brind’Amour said, “we’ve got a great group here and I’m really proud to represent them.“
He’s the first coach in franchise history -- encompassing both the Hartford Whalers and Carolina Hurricanes years --to win the award.
“He’s done a tremendous job,” Carolina general manager Don Waddell said Thursday morning during a Zoom news conference to announce Brind’Amour’s new contract. “We truly believe we are headed in the right direction, so we’re very happy to get Rod signed on a long-term deal and we look forward to the next steps.”
News Observer LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215921 Carolina Hurricanes and Brind’Amour bristled at the notion that there was anything less than full commitment.
“A lot gets said, but here’s what I know,” Brind’Amour said. “(Dundon) Brind’Amour, Waddell talk Hamilton, Svechnikov and the rest of the wants to win. That’s the kind of guy you want to work for.” Canes’ to-do list ▪ Gardiner, Martinook health concerns — Like with any team completing an NHL grind, the Canes had a few players banged up to complete the BY JUSTIN PELLETIER year, including Jake Gardiner and Jordan Martinook.
“(Gardiner) is going through some MRIs done recently, it’s in discussion with him and the doctors regarding his next move,” Waddell said. “I don’t Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour’s new contract was really have an update other than he did an MRI the other day. Other than the hottest topic Thursday when he and general manager Don Waddell that, Martinook had his cleanup the other day. Other than that, I think answered questions from the media at last-minute news conference. we’re in pretty good shape going forward.”
But Brind’Amour’s new deal wasn’t the only thing discussed pertaining to ▪ Ongoing evaluation with an eye on team improvement — The process the future of the club, though it was a constant theme. for building next season’s team has already begun.
Amid repeated references to the culture to the team being a big draw for “We’re going through pro meetings, starting today for the next few days,” his return, Brind’Amour stressed that any player movement or addition Waddell said, “go through our team, go through seven unrestricted free would be made with an eye on that culture. agents, and we’ll go through the league, see what free agents are potentially going to be out there. We’re going to talk about the expansion “One of the other reasons I feel like I’m blessed, I do have a good draft. Now, it’s more all focused on players, how do we make our team relationship with Don,” Brind’Amour said, “and we talk about players … if better, which moves we need to make, which guys we need to sign. (a player) scores 30, but he doesn’t fit our group, that’s not a guy we’re Decisions will start happening in the near future.” really interested in, and I think that’s one of the things I love about the job I’m doing, is that’s the kind of relationship we have, and the ▪ One last comment on the Lightning and the salary cap — Waddell communication that we have that goes on. We’re trying to build a culture continued to take the high road with regard to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s here, we want 20 guys that get it, that fit, and if that guy doesn’t fit, we salary cap situation, having placed Nikita Kucherov on the long term IR, don’t want him. We’re getting close, and that’s pretty special.” only to have the superstar forward return for the playoffs.
Waddell and Brind’Amour also addressed the contracts of two of the “I don’t think it had an effect for any of our players at all,” Waddell said. Canes’ bigger offseason free-agent priorities: Dougie Hamilton and “Everybody’s aware of the situation, and they didn’t break any rules. Andrei Svechnikov. Whether those rules need to be looked at is something I’m sure will be talked about this summer. I’m sure they’d like to have their best player for Recently, the Canes gave Hamilton permission to speak to other NHL a whole season. He was able to have surgery and come back for the teams about his impending free agency, which officially kicks in July 28. playoffs. There are so many things that happen in the league that maybe “We’ve had discussions with Dougie, and with his representation,” some people don’t like, but those are the rules, and if they need to be Waddell said. “There’s a difference of opinion right now, so we said, we looked at, I am sure the powers that be will do that.” can either wait until July 28 (the start of free agency), and if we’re unable News Observer LOADED: 06.18.2021 to sign him, he can walk away for free. So we said, maybe if he finds out that there is something out there that makes sense, we can trade him, and pick up an asset, or we’ll have the opportunity to sign him.”
One thing Waddell made clear, though, is that the team likes Hamilton, and would welcome him back into the fold.
“We love Dougie,” Waddell said. “Dougie has been good for this franchise, and we’re certainly all hoping he comes back, but we also didn’t want to wait until July 28 to figure that out, so we got a little head start on it.”
Svechnikov is in a different scenario as a restricted free agent, coming off his entry-level deal. The Canes are able to give Svechnikov a qualifying offer. If he refuses that offer, other teams can sign him to an offer sheet, but the Canes will still have the ability to match that sheet, like what happened with Sebastian Aho two summers ago.
“We just had some discussions very recently,” Waddell said. “I think we’ll be talking every day. The goal from our end is to get him signed, make sure we don’t miss anything this summer and be ready for the start of the season. I think the goal on the other side is the same, it’s just negotiation. There’s no deadline.”
Hamilton and Svechnikov are veteran players with playoff experience, something Brind’Amour pointed out Thursday as a key element as the team continues to mature and chase its Stanley Cup dream.
“The margins are so tight,” Brind’Amour said. “Teams that win the Stanley Cup aren’t making mistakes, they’re comfortable when the game’s uncomfortable, and being able to stick with what you’re doing, and I think we got away from that a little bit.”
“We’re still a bit of a young group in a lot of ways,” Brind’Amour said. “Jordan Staal is a great leader, and he’s not a young guy, but the other guys are still kind of learning that, and from this year especially, we kind of learned that lesson.”
CANES HIGHLIGHTS
▪ Owner Tom Dundon wants to win — Waddell was adamant that the Hurricanes are committed to winning, beyond the financial bottom line, 1215922 Carolina Hurricanes “When you’re around the group and around Rod like I am you build a relationship, and you can sit down and talk about anything,” Waddell said. “We talked about everything you possibly can think about. And so Carolina Hurricanes agree to new contract with coach Rod Brind’Amour it’s just a matter of coming to a deal from a financial end. Obviously, Tom was very supportive of it and involved in and we talked early on that it was important to get the whole group done.”
BY STEVE WISEMAN News Observer LOADED: 06.18.2021
Rod Brind’Amour has a new contract that will keep him as the Carolina Hurricanes’ head coach.
During a news conference Thursday morning, Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell announced Brind’Amour has agreed to a three- year contract extension.
“Don and I talked throughout the year,” Brind’Amour said. “I thought we were on the same page. It was just a matter of time, really. He knew I wanted to be part of this and I knew he wanted me to be part of this, too. So we figured it out.”
Financial details of the contract were not disclosed.
Brind’Amour is a finalist for the NHL’s Jack Adams Award, which goes to the league’s coach of the year, along with Florida’s Joel Quenneville and Minnesota’s Dean Evason.
Brind’Amour, whose name has been linked to coaching vacancies that include the expansion Seattle Kraken, has led the Hurricanes to the playoffs in each of his three years as their head coach, including a Central Division championship this season. That was the team’s first division title since the 2005-06 Stanley Cup championship season when Brind’Amour was still playing for the Canes.
His $600,000 salary over the past three seasons made him one of the NHL’s lowest-paid head coaches. Gerard Gallant, hired as the New York Rangers head coach on Wednesday, reportedly will make $3.5 million a year on his four-year deal.
Brind’Amour said Thursday those numbers aren’t most important to him, though.
“I want to make a real good point here,” Brind’Amour said, “and that is that finances and money, that’s part of it. But I feel like I’m the richest coach in the league because I have a relationship with my owner and my GM that I don’t know that a lot of coaches have, to have influence on who they are picking up and who they are trying to keep. Then how many coaches can do their job where they live and where they are from and who has had a footprint on everything that’s gone on here over the last 20 years? I don’t know what kind of value you can put on that. I feel pretty fortunate to get to do that.”
Other NHL teams without a head coach are the Buffalo Sabres, Arizona Coyotes, Seattle and the Montreal Canadiens, who are still alive in the playoffs with interim head coach Dominique Ducharme behind the bench.
Waddell, though, knew Brind’Amour’s heart is in Carolina.
“Rod has stated very clearly that he wants to be a Hurricane,” Waddell said.
While admitting the “temptation” is always there and it’s hard to ignore what he called “outside noise,” Brind’Amour said he never considered leaving the Hurricanes for another coaching job.
“I would have a hard time thinking I could do the same job I’m doing here somewhere else, because this is a part of me,” Brind’Amour said. “You know, this place, I’ve been here forever.”
Though the deal had been discussed for months, Brind’Amour said final details involving the entire staff had to be worked out before it could be completed.
“We have a special group down here and for me to do this job, to the best of my ability, it’s important to have the right people around me,” Brind’Amour said. “I know, it’s down here. I know we have the great training staff, equipment, people, the coaches. So that’s why I think part of it took so long is a lot of people we had to figure out. So we’re at that point where we’ve pretty much done that.”
Waddell said the relationship he and Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon have built with Brind’Amour made this a fairly easy deal to complete. 1215923 Carolina Hurricanes owner and my GM that I don’t know if a lot of coaches get to have, to have the influence on who they’re picking up. And then I don’t know how many coaches can do their job where they live and where they’re from, ‘It was just a matter of time’: Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour signs a and had a footprint in everything that’s gone on here over the last 20 3-year contract — so what took so long? years.
“I kind of get his place right at the top of the food chain. The commitment that we have from (owner Tom Dundon), a lot gets said, but I know he By Sara Civian Jun 17, 2021 wants to win. And that’s the kind of guy you want to work for.”
The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell and coach Rod Brind’Amour took the podium together at PNC Arena on Thursday to announce the expected: The Canes have signed Brind’Amour to a new contract that will keep him in Raleigh. The deal, which has been the subject of increasing speculation recently, is for three years.
“Don and I talked throughout the year occasionally, and I thought we were on the same page,” Brind’Amour said. “It was just a matter of time, really. He knew I wanted to be a part of this, and I knew he wanted me to be a part of this too.”
If they were on the same page and it was “just a matter of time,” why’d it take so long?
There’s been much discussion of Brind’Amour wanting to make sure the rest of his staff was taken care of, and while that doesn’t necessarily mean there will be a 100 percent retention rate — staff members are allowed to pursue opportunities as they see fit — Brind’Amour confirmed Thursday that trying to keep as much of the group together and making sure they were paid fairly was a reason for the hold-up.
“We have a special group down here,” he said. “And for me to do this job to the best of my ability, it’s important to have the right people around me.
“We have a great training staff, equipment people, the coaches. That’s why part of it took so long — a lot of people we had to figure out. We’re at the point where we’ve pretty much done that, and again, it’s important for me to have the great people around. That’s why we have success down here. All the people that are working in everything — you go down the list — they’re all part of what we’re doing.”
Brind’Amour, a Jack Adams finalist, has taken the Hurricanes to the playoffs in each of his first three seasons at the helm — the only coach in franchise history to lead the team on three straight postseason runs. He has a 120-66-20 record, and his .631 points percentage is the highest in franchise history.
As a Canes player, Brind’Amour ranks second in career points since the team’s relocation to North Carolina, with 473 points in 694 games played. He captained the team to its only Stanley Cup back in 2006, setting a standard of effort and excellence in his playing career — then he never left Raleigh.
“I said it when I sat down here with Don three years ago — I would have a hard time thinking I could do the same job I’m doing here, somewhere else,” he said Thursday. “Because this is a part of me, this place. I’ve been here forever.
“Again, it’s more about the people that I get to come and work with every day. That wouldn’t be the case somewhere else. It just wouldn’t be. It’s special to me. When I had my end-of-the-year meeting with players, it might be something I didn’t mention here earlier, but that really solidified what this is all about and why I want to be here. We have a special group of players here. That’s something I didn’t want to leave.
“It just didn’t really ever enter my mind that I would leave because of what we have going on here. I want to see it through. We still have another level to get to, and that’s the mission.”
Brind’Amour has been one of the, if not the, lowest-paid coaches in the NHL over the past three seasons with a $600,000 salary. While a source confirmed he is getting a raise, it’s not yet clear what his new salary will be. It’s safe to assume it’s less than what a team like the Rangers, who expressed interest in Brind’Amour, or Kraken would be able to offer him. Considering that — and the length of contract negotiations despite both sides wanting the same thing — it was fair to ask if he’s happy with his contract.
“Obviously, yes,” he said. “I wouldn’t sign it if I wasn’t. I want to make a really good point, here. The finances and money, that’s part of it, but I feel like I’m the richest coach in the league. I have a relationship with my 1215924 Chicago Blackhawks
Blackhawks management did not report 2010 sexual assault to police: report
Former Hawks president John McDonough and current general manager Stan Bowman were among a group of Blackhawks executives informed in 2010 that former video coach Bradley Aldrich had sexually assaulted two players, according to a TSN report Thursday.
By Ben Pope Jun 17, 2021, 6:41pm CDT
A former Blackhawks player filed a lawsuit against the team in April for an alleged 2010 sexual assault. Jonathan Daniel, Getty
Blackhawks management was informed in May 2010 of the alleged sexual assault by former video coach Bradley Aldrich, according to a report Thursday by TSN, but decided not to report the incidents to police.
Former Hawks president John McDonough, current general manager Stan Bowman, current vice president of hockey operations Al MacIsaac and former skills coach James Gary were told by former skills coach Paul Vincent in a meeting at a California hotel that Aldrich had sexually assaulted two players earlier that season, TSN reported.
But the group of Hawks executives refused Vincent’s request to inform the Chicago police’s sex crimes division about the assaults, TSN reported.
A Hawks spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
One of the unidentified players who allegedly was assaulted by Aldrich filed a lawsuit against the Hawks in April in Cook County Circuit Court. The lawsuit claimed the player notified Gary after the alleged assault, but Gary “did nothing” and convinced the player that the players were culpable for the assault.
Aldrich “sent . . . inappropriate text messages,” “turned on porn and began to masturbate in front of [the player] . . . without his consent” and “threatened to injure [the player if he] . . . did not engage in sexual activity,” according to the first lawsuit.
Aldrich left the Hawks after the 2010 Stanley Cup championship and pled guilty in 2013 for a criminal sexual-contact incident at a Michigan high school. The victim of that incident filed a separate lawsuit against the Hawks in May for not reporting Aldrich’s assaults before he began volunteering at the school.
The Hawks said in a statement after the first lawsuit’s filing that they believe the allegations “lack merit” and that “the team will be absolved of any wrongdoing.”
The Hawks filed a motion Monday to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing the player did not exhaust all legal remedies before suing and that the Illinois statute of limitations on sexual abuse expired before the suit was filed.
The original lawsuit argued the statute of limitations did not begin until July 2019, when the player’s memories of the sexual assault were triggered, rather than in 2010.
Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215925 Chicago Blackhawks
Should the Blackhawks re-sign Vinnie Hinostroza?
BY CHARLIE ROUMELIOTIS
When Vinnie Hinostroza was acquired from the Florida Panthers ahead of the NHL trade deadline in April, the Blackhawks expected him to be a contributor in some capacity. But they probably didn't expect him to play as well as he did.
In 17 games with the Blackhawks, Hinostroza registered four goals and eight assists while averaging 13:34 of ice time. Only Alex DeBrincat (20) and Patrick Kane (17) had more points than Hinostroza (12) since the acquisition, and all 12 of his points came at even strength.
For reference, Hinostroza had zero points in nine games with the Panthers and legitimately started to question his future in the NHL, by his own admission.
"Obviously in Florida I wasn’t playing too much, I didn’t have a role there," Hinostroza said on April 17. "You think about being in the NHL and what it means and how you work your whole life to be here. For me, I just wanted to come in and be the hardest working player every day, whether it’s practice or a game, not taking being out there wearing a sweater every night for granted. It’s something I’ll never take for granted again."
Not only did Hinostroza's second stint in Chicago prove he still has what it takes to play at the NHL level, but he showed he can absolutely be an impactful player on a team if it’s the right fit. It’s why the marriage between Hinostroza and the Blackhawks has been successful, and it’s also why both sides should be interested in an extension.
Hinostroza, who's set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, is coming off a one-year, $1 million deal and previously played on a two- year, $3 million contract. It’s difficult to see him getting much more than that on the open market, given the financial climate that will see the salary cap stay flat for years to come.
A short-term extension between $1-1.5 million annually would be a win- win for both sides: Hinostroza stays in his hometown city, where he's played some of his best hockey, and the Blackhawks retain a spark-plug middle-six winger who can play anywhere in the lineup at a low cost. Call it a low-risk, medium-sized reward.
The potential mini wrinkle in the negotiations is the Seattle expansion draft.
The Blackhawks must submit their protected list of players by July 17 (the actual draft is on July 21). If Hinostroza is re-signed before then, the Blackhawks would have to include him on their list or leave him unprotected. The team would probably feel more comfortable getting something done after, but there’s a potential risk in waiting that long.
NHL free agency opens on July 28, seven days after the expansion draft, which means Hinostroza would then be free to talk to all 32 teams if he's without a contract at that point. But if both the player and the Blackhawks recognize the value in continuing their partnership, it would be wise to get it done before the frenzy.
"I think everyone can see that all these young guys came in and took major steps this year," Hinostroza said. "Even when I wasn’t with the team, watching NHL Network and watching some games you could just see how excited they are and how hard they’re working and the steps they took all year to get better every day. It’s great to see and I know every guy in there is still hungry. I know everyone’s going to have big summers and come back and take another step next year. ... I love this team and we have a great group here."
Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215926 Chicago Blackhawks But Zadorov is 26 and understandably is looking for his first big contract. His last three were short-term prove-it deals — a two-year, a one-year and a one-year — and a league source said he’s looking for some Dougie Hamilton? Seth Jones? Nikita Zadorov? What we’re hearing security. about the Blackhawks’ offseason plans The source said Zadorov’s camp is seeking five years with a $5.85 million average annual value (AAV). That’s surely too rich for the Blackhawks, so it’ll be interesting to see where negotiations lead. By Mark Lazerus and Scott Powers Jun 17, 2021 Zadorov has arbitration rights, and the Blackhawks don’t want it to reach that point.
Zadorov seeking a raise of that magnitude underscores the uncertainty of There were times during the Vegas-Colorado second-round series when this offseason. Agents are seeking pre-pandemic numbers, but general it was fair to wonder if the Golden Knights and Avalanche were even managers are operating with a flat cap and an unprecedented cash playing the same sport as the Blackhawks. The speed, the skill, the size, crunch. Something has to give. the depth — all of it underscored just how early in the rebuilding process the Blackhawks are. But don’t look for NHL players to take a cue from the NBA, where players routinely bet on themselves by taking short-term deals, looking to cash Returning to that level of play, and that level of relevance, won’t happen out even higher in a couple of years. That’ll happen only if the market overnight. But the Blackhawks feel they laid a solid groundwork this past forces their hand. As one non-Blackhawks executive pointed out, even season, and they know that the moves they make this summer will go a last offseason, the players who took short-term deals (such as Taylor long way toward deciding their long-term fate. Hall) did so only because they couldn’t find the long-term deals they The Stanley Cup will be won in about four weeks, followed by a whirlwind sought. week with the expansion draft (July 21), the entry draft (July 23-24) and Especially for those in their mid-to-late 20s, security remains every bit as the start of free agency (July 28). A lot can — and likely will — happen important as the dollar value. Sometimes more so. between now and then. “How often do guys several years into a long-term UFA deal think, ‘Man, I Here’s what we’re hearing so far. wish I’d done a shorter deal,’” the executive said. “And how often do they It’s no secret the Blackhawks could use a top-tier defenseman. The two think, ‘Wow, I sure am lucky I signed for a long-term deal’?” most notable defensemen expected to be available this offseason are The Blackhawks are talking to a lot of teams right now, but don’t expect Carolina’s Dougie Hamilton, who is set to become an unrestricted free much to happen until at least the expansion draft. agent, and Seth Jones, who reportedly wants out of Columbus. “There’s a ton of talk, but teams are still preparing themselves for the According to a source, the Blackhawks are going to explore adding expansion draft,” a source said. “Once that happens, there will be more Hamilton or Jones this offseason. movement.” “We like them both,” a source said. “Hamilton is more of an offensive The Blackhawks aren’t in a rush to re-sign their restricted free agents for defenseman. Jones is probably more of a two-way defenseman.” that reason, as well. They aren’t likely to bring them all back, and they The Blackhawks don’t plan to go all-in just to add Hamilton or Jones. could even lose one in the expansion draft. They realize their defense needs to improve, but they also aren’t going to The Blackhawks haven’t dismissed re-signing Vinnie Hinostroza, but he’s leverage their future to add one player. another player who will have to wait for an answer. The Blackhawks are In the case of Hamilton, the price will have to be right. Hamilton is likely going to see how everything unfolds in the next month. to ask for a long contract, and the Blackhawks understand that. It’ll come That also applies to Max Shalunov. His camp has been asked to be down to the cap number Hamilton seeks. If he’s looking for a deal like patient as the Blackhawks figure out their roster. Alex Pietrangelo’s, which was seven years with an $8.8-million cap hit, the Blackhawks will probably walk away. At a lower cap number, they’ll The Blackhawks have been making a point of adding size within their engage. system. It’s why they signed Cam Morrison and Mike Hardman as college free agents. It’s also why they recently signed Jakub Pour out of With Jones, it’ll depend on what the Columbus Blue Jackets ask for him. the Czech Republic. The 22-year-old Pour is 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline wrote recently that he thought the asking price for Jones would be high, but it would mostly be draft picks and “The biggest thing is probably his size and style of play,” a source said. prospects. One league source thought it would take at least a first-round “He’s physical and plays a direct game. He’s a lot like Mike Hardman. He draft pick, a second-round draft pick and a high-end prospect. has size and understands his role. He can be a complementary player and play up and down the lineup. As you see in the playoffs, those Another league source said Kirby Dach likely would have to be part of players are valuable.” any deal for Jones. The source believed Jones would be worth it, too. When Jones’ struggles over the past two seasons were brought up, the The Blackhawks haven’t ruled out drafting a goalie with their first-round source pointed to overuse and a weak supporting cast in Columbus. draft pick. They are high on Drew Commesso, whom they drafted in the second round last season, but that may not be enough for them to pass The big question: Would it really be any different in Chicago? on an elite goalie at No. 11. One of the biggest decisions the Blackhawks have to make this summer The Athletic’s Corey Pronman recently ranked goalie Sebastian Cossa is whether to re-sign defenseman Nikita Zadorov. The restricted free as the 10th-best player in the draft and goalie Jesper Wallstedt 11th. agent has been a polarizing figure among fans — and that’s putting it Both are possibilities for the Blackhawks. nicely — but he was mostly as advertised when Stan Bowman traded Brandon Saad to Colorado to get him. Zadorov was (mostly) sound The Blackhawks will hold their development camp remotely for a second defensively, provided the size and physical element the Blackhawks consecutive year. They considered having it in person, but it would have lacked and was always an adventure with the puck on his stick. A Bizarro been especially challenging for their European prospects to get to. Erik Gustafsson, if you will. The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 The arrival and extension of Riley Stillman give the Blackhawks similar, if less experienced and polished, attributes. So is there a future for Zadorov in Chicago? Regardless of whether they acquire someone like Jones or Hamilton, and depending on if Seattles takes Calvin de Haan in the expansion draft, the Blackhawks eventually need to clear some spots on the back end for the youngsters in the organization. On the other hand, there’s a sense in the organization that Ian Mitchell and Nicolas Beaudin, among others, could benefit from some extended time in a normal AHL season. So a short-term deal would probably appeal to the Blackhawks. 1215927 Chicago Blackhawks So everything was fine when Dylan decided to go into journalism more than a decade ago. First, he tried his hand at creative writing at the Capilano University in British Columbia. When that didn’t take, he Father and son Marc and Dylan Crawford bring old- and new-school transferred to the British Columbia Institute of Technology to pursue a mentalities to Blackhawks coaching staff career in television.
“I thought I was going to be on TV,” he said. “Once I started to hear myself and see myself: Nope.” By Mark Lazerus Jun 17, 2021 He quickly found his calling on the editing side. An internship at TSN led to a full-time job at the NHL Network in Toronto, where he was editing up to seven games at a time, splicing together four-minute packages that Jeremy Colliton hired Marc Crawford as an assistant coach two years went beyond just goals and big saves. But when NHL Network moved its ago to be the veteran voice he needed — a man with his name on the studios to Secaucus, N.J., Dylan was left behind. He got an internship at Stanley Cup, a man with 16 years of NHL head coaching experience, a Sportsnet, but he balked at the idea of starting all the way at the bottom man who had led teams in four leagues in three countries, a man who again after years of working his way up the ladder. was a head coach in the NHL when Colliton was just 9 years old. So Dylan turned his attention to his dad’s world and his dad’s old team. But when you hire someone with that kind of resume — someone who’s But he didn’t want to just get by on his dad’s name. He knew Matt 24 years older than you, no less — to be your underling, it can create a Meacham — now the Blackhawks’ video coach — through Quenneville, weird workplace dynamic, especially when you’re entering your first full and applied for Meacham’s old job as the head video coach for the season as an NHL coach of any kind. Colliton was wary of not deferring Binghamton Senators in the Ottawa organization. to Crawford, but there’s a certain natural acquiescence there that doesn’t exactly work in an NHL coaches room, even one designed to be as open But he did it under a pseudonym. Meacham knew who it was, of course. and freewheeling as Colliton’s. And so did the general manager. But the man ultimately doing the hiring, Binghamton coach Kurt Kleinendorst, never saw the name “Crawford” Fortunately for Colliton, the lowest-ranked member of the coaching staff when Dylan applied and interviewed. Marc didn’t know, either. quickly punctured any reverent aura Crawford had. He’d chirp Crawford, needle him, mock him, take shots at him, call him out for his lack of “I told the GM of Binghamton that I wanted to interview as someone else technological savvy and his, as Crawford puts it, “quirkiness.” with my credentials,” Dylan said. “Once he gave me the job, that’s when we told everyone who I actually was. I wanted to see if I could get it And he was pretty merciless about it, too. without having that last name on there.” “Someone else asks him for the exact same thing, and he’s the most That reminded Marc of when he hired his brother, Eric, to be a scout helpful guy in the world,” Crawford said. “ ‘What’s that, Sheldon when he was coaching the Canucks. His GM, Brian Burke, asked him (Brookbank)? You need something? Oh, yes, Sheldon. I’ll get that for one question: “Would you hire him if his name wasn’t Crawford?” Marc you. Yes, sir. Right away, sir.’ ” replies, “Absolutely, I would,” and that was good enough for Burke. How does the assistant video coach get away with it? Dylan quickly proved to be more than just a name. His unique He’s Crawford’s 31-year-old son, Dylan. background as a goalie and the son of a coach with the technological nimbleness of a television editor made him a valuable resource. And as any Millennial or Gen-Xer knows, dealing with a Boomer on a Meacham eventually brought him up to Chicago under Quenneville, and computer can test one’s patience. Colliton kept him when he took over.
“You try not to, but eventually it just kind of comes out,” Dylan Crawford Under both Kleinendorst and Quenneville, two old-school coaches from said with a laugh. “We lived together last year, too, so that probably just another era, Dylan’s job was clearly defined. They told him what to look added more animosity to it. We’re a young staff with Jeremy and for, and he’d go look for it. Colliton’s quite different. For one, the 36-year- Sheldon, and they’ve all got good ideas about how to use video; they’ve old, tech-savvy head coach does a lot of video work himself. been raised in video. Marc’s just a little bit learning on the fly when it comes to the video side of things. With him, he asks a couple more Colliton has talked in the past about the collaborative nature of his staff, questions. And maybe I’m a little too short sometimes.” how no one person is solely in charge of the power play, and no one person is solely in charge of the penalty kill. Everyone’s input is welcome. Marc’s fine with it, of course. In fact, he thinks it helps. And according to Marc Crawford, it really is that way. Yes, Colliton has his own office, and he’ll go in there to conduct a sensitive 1-on-1 chat “Jeremy told me last year that watching Dylan interact with me was really with a player, or have a discussion with Bowman, or just to get five quiet good because if I make a senior mistake or something, he gives it to me minutes to put his thoughts together before a meeting. But Colliton really good,” Marc said. “I think it made me a lot more approachable, mostly works in the wide-open bullpen of the coaches’ room. Marc quicker, to the rest of the staff.” Crawford, Tomas Mitell, Brookbank and Meacham each have their own Let’s clear something up: This isn’t yet another of those typical NHL desk, and Colliton usually sits at the open table in the middle alongside nepotism stories. Yes, this is the NHL, a league in which having the Dylan Crawford. And while Colliton’s clearly running the show, the six of same last name as somebody who once played/coached/managed in an them bat around ideas in a freewheeling environment. “A think-tank organization is all but a guarantee of employment. But this one’s atmosphere” is how Marc Crawford describes it. different. Dylan doesn’t speak up a whole lot, but he’s always listening. And if Dylan was here first. Colliton and Brookbank are discussing a certain breakout, or Crawford and Mitell are hashing out something on the power play, Dylan quickly OK, yes, part of the reason he got the job in 2018 was that he grew up will call up a relevant clip and put it on the screen. Anything you need — around Joel Quenneville, one of Marc’s close friends and colleagues a certain type of zone entry, a particular backcheck, a specific style of through the years. But Dylan was in Chicago before Marc was. In fact, forechecking, an individual hit or faceoff or scoring chance or dodged instead of asking Dad for a job, this was a case of Dad asking Son for bullet — Dylan and Meacham can have it on the board before the permission. When the Blackhawks approached Marc about joining sentence is even finished. Colliton’s staff two years ago this month, Marc told Stan Bowman and Al MacIsaac that he didn’t want his potential hiring to affect Dylan’s How? Well, that’s where those editing skills come into play. employment in any way. During a game, Meacham is live-editing the game, feeding clips and “We’ve already had Dylan sign off on it,” they told him. insight to players and coaches alike via the iPads on the bench and their laptops at intermission. When the final horn sounds, Meacham will have The funny thing is, Marc never wanted Dylan to get into hockey because close to 1,000 sortable clips — every breakout, every scoring chance, he knows all too well how cruel and indifferent a profession it can be. And every shot on goal. When the game ends, Dylan Crawford goes to work it’s particularly important to Dylan that he not be simply regarded as Marc adding even more detail — every clean entry, every botched entry, every Crawford’s son. Much like Stan Bowman always called his dad “Scotty” turnover, every takeaway. They also cut every player’s individual shifts around the office, Dylan calls his dad “Marc” at work, at home, in an so they can do their own studying. In fact, the clips already are available interview. on their phones by the time they start taking their gear off. Earning the trust of the players by providing them with not only the things they ask for sister is, he never really gave us anything for free. He came from a family but the things they didn’t even know they wanted is crucial in the life of a of nine and went through some hard times, and he had that work ethic video coach. that you’re never handed anything. He never wanted me to get into this business because he knows how hard it is. But I took that as a challenge, Younger players who grew up with this kind of granular detail interact and now we get to work together. Not a lot of people get to do that. I think with the video staff quite a bit. Older players interact less but demand we realize how fortunate we are.” plenty. The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 “It’s rare that a veteran guy would come to you and ask questions,” Dylan said. “But when Patrick (Kane) or Jonathan (Toews) or Duncan (Keith) asks for something, you’ve got to know your stuff, because the last thing you want to do is look dumbstruck when they come up to you.”
By the next morning, he’ll have rewatched the game all the way through two or three times, tracking every shift for all the data points Colliton demands. Meacham is at Colliton’s beck and call, focusing on pre- scouts, systems and special-teams tendencies. Dylan’s job is more analytical.
“He’s a data-driven coach, where he wants to see a lot of numbers and things that he values,” Dylan said. “That’s what switched over from Joel. I’m not cutting day-to-day meeting video now. I’m putting together more data packages for Jeremy. You’re looking through the video you’ve accumulated through the game, and my responsibilities are mostly entries and exits, clean and possession-driven plays and things like that. So I go through the game after it’s done and I’ll put together everybody’s numbers.”
Dad marvels at how his son’s eye for the game has evolved. Marc played six seasons in the NHL and has been coaching for more than a quarter- century, but in the thick of the action, his kid who never made it beyond Junior A hockey sees more than he does.
“He was watching three games at a time at NHL Network, marking everything, so he became so good at watching the game and seeing things,” Marc said. “He watches the game better than I do, and with a lot more detail. Then once I zone in on something, the expertise of the coaching staff becomes even greater. … They’re an integral part of the coaching staff. It’s such an important position because you’ve got to have trust in your video people that they’re going to find what you’re looking for, and mark what is pertinent. They have to have a great understanding of the game and of the head coach, what he wants and what he needs.”
Marc already has reached the heights of his profession, winning a Stanley Cup as head coach of the Avalanche in 1996. But Dylan is just getting started. Meacham is regarded as one of the top video coaches around, which is why Colliton kept him on staff after Quenneville was fired, so he’s likely not going anywhere anytime soon.
And Dylan doesn’t want to be an assistant video coach for the rest of his life. It’s worked out better than writer, television reporter and editor did, but it’s hardly his ceiling. Some video coaches go on to be full-blown coaches behind the bench, others go on to build teams in the front office.
But Dylan has his eye on another career path, one in which that keen eye he’s developed would serve him well.
“Right now, the goal is to be a head video coach somewhere,” he said. “Realistically, it’s not going to be in Chicago because there’s no reason that Matt Meacham shouldn’t be here for the considerable future. So most likely I’ll probably be using what I learned here to move on and get a head video coach job in the near future. The long game? I don’t know if being an assistant coach would be in my future. My uncles are in scouting, and one (Eric Crawford) is the head of pro scouting for Montreal. He’s what I really looked up to for my career path. He was the video coach for the Canucks when Marc was there. I think that career path is a little more realistic for myself.”
For now, he’s content to sit at that table in the middle of the Blackhawks’ coaches room, absorbing the accumulated knowledge of Colliton and his staff, chipping in his own thoughts, honing his skills as an editor and an analyst, and yes, ruthlessly making fun of his dad.
“I give it back some,” Marc protested.
Yes, being a Crawford helped — without his dad, Dylan wouldn’t have known Quenneville, wouldn’t have known Meacham, and likely wouldn’t have been in the NHL in his 20s. But it’s not just about the opportunities you get. It’s what you do with them.
“I look at how lucky I’ve been,” Dylan said. “I’ve been given an opportunity that a lot of people aren’t given through what my father was when I was growing up. But the best thing Marc instilled in me and my 1215928 Colorado Avalanche If Grubauer commands too much money, the Avalanche could look to the open market: Arizona’s Antti Raanta, Boston’s Tuukka Rask, Toronto’s Frederik Andersen and Buffalo’s Linus Ullmark are all set to become What an ideal offseason would look like for the Colorado Avalanche unrestricted free agents. The Avalanche could also trade for a goalie, perhaps someone like Arizona’s Darcy Kuemper, and hope their trade partner is willing to take on some of the contract. That could help with salary-cap maneuvering but would cost assets. By Peter Baugh Jun 17, 2021 4. Brandon Saad and the front office make the numbers work
This is a bit of a long shot if Landeskog comes back, but Saad, an The past few years, Colorado Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic has unrestricted free agent, had an exceptional postseason for the been in a position to add to his roster every offseason. Last fall, the team Avalanche, scoring seven goals, six of which came at even strength. acquired Brandon Saad from Chicago, for example, and took advantage He’s unafraid in greasy areas and knows what it takes to be successful in of the Islanders’ cap crunch to snatch Devon Toews. the playoffs, winning two Stanley Cups in Chicago. The outlook this summer is different. The Avalanche, now facing salary- Saad made $6 million this past season, and if the Avalanche re-sign cap constraints themselves, will look to maintain a Stanley Cup-level Landeskog and Grubauer and agree on a long-term deal with Makar, roster but likely won’t have the same flexibility to make big additions. they’ll have a tough time making room for a similar salary. The only route So, with that in mind, what’s the best that they can do to stay on track? would be trading or buying out other contracts on the roster to create Within the realm of reasonable expectations, here’s a best-case scenario space. One contract will head to Seattle and come off the books, and the for Colorado’s offseason: Avalanche could also look at clearing space by moving a contributor like Joonas Donskoi ($3.9 million), J.T. Compher ($3.5 million) or Nazem 1. Cale Makar signs a long-term deal Kadri ($4.5 million). All of those are valuable players, but the cap is going to lead to the Avalanche making sacrifices this offseason. At only 22 and fresh off a Norris Trophy-level season, Cale Makar will receive a massive payday, one that could set a standard for post-entry- If one or both of Saad and Landeskog leaves, the Avalanche will need to level contracts for elite young defensemen. It’s in the Avalanche’s best bring in left-wing depth. Mid-level pending free-agent left wings include interest to keep Makar in Denver as long as possible. But the Toronto’s Nick Foligno, Montreal’s Tomas Tatar and Tampa’s Barclay defenseman is good enough to bet on himself and could opt to pursue a Goodrow. shorter-term bridge deal. That could allow him to cash in when the salary cap goes up. That wouldn’t be the end of the world for the Avalanche; 5. Joe Sakic sticks with Nazem Kadri — and his gut pays off Makar would still be a restricted free agent at the end of a hypothetical Kadri’s hit on St. Louis’ Justin Faulk, which resulted in an eight-game three-year bridge deal, and it would lead to less of a cap hit for Colorado. suspension, ignited old conversations about whether the center can be If the parties do decide to pursue a long-term contract, Makar could counted on in the playoffs. He’s a quality player — someone who could reasonably demand north of $10 million per season. If he gets it, the have been a difference-maker for Colorado against Vegas. During the Avalanche will have to make sacrifices around the roster to stay under offseason, the Avalanche need to decide if he’s worth keeping or if it’s the salary cap, though ensuring Makar will be in an Avalanche sweater time to move on. They could leave him unprotected in the expansion for years to come is probably worth it. draft or look to move him in a trade, potentially for less-expensive depth forwards. But the best-case scenario would be that Sakic and coach 2. The captain comes back, and it doesn’t break the bank Jared Bednar get Kadri to make a real change in his decision-making, stick with him and this last playoff transgression was finally his last. With Colorado’s cap situation, there’s a real chance Gabriel Landeskog is wearing a different uniform next season. The Avalanche want him to 6. Pavel Francouz and Erik Johnson return healthy stay, and he wants to stay, but the numbers will be tight. Pavel Francouz was a trusty No. 2 goaltender in 2019-20, posting a .923 At 28, Landeskog will want a long-term deal, and he’s coming off a save percentage in 34 games, but he didn’t play a single game this season in which he averaged nearly a point per game. In an ideal world season. Colorado struggled to find a consistent replacement. Hunter for Colorado, he’d accept a lesser average annual value than he’d fetch Miska got a shot but didn’t show the consistency of an NHL goalie, so the on the open market to stay in an Avalanche sweater. team acquired both Jonas Johansson and Devan Dubnyk for help. Neither was a model of consistency — though Johansson had a solid Colorado would be wise to make its best offer before the expansion draft .913 save percentage — but having a reliable presence like Francouz to see if it’s enough for Landeskog. If he turns it down, it doesn’t mean he would be huge for Colorado. Sakic said at the trade deadline that he will walk, but the team might need to pursue other options. They could expects him back for next season. bring back Saad (more on that in a bit) or look at someone like Blues winger Jaden Schwartz, who played his NCAA hockey at Colorado Erik Johnson’s situation is a bit more complex, both because of his pricey College. But a potential Landeskog departure would leave both an on-ice contract ($6 million AAV for two more seasons) and because of his long and a leadership void and would force the Avalanche to answer tenure in Colorado. No current player has been with the Avalanche uncomfortable questions about who their next captain would be. longer.
In Colorado’s best-case scenario, Landeskog signs for a slight pay bump If healthy, Johnson (upper-body injury) can still contribute, but he’s also rather than a massive one, leaving the Avalanche with room to add an option when looking at whom to part with to create cap space. He has supplemental pieces around the roster. a no-movement clause, which will make a trade difficult, though he’s expected to waive it for the expansion draft. And even if the Avalanche 3. Philipp Grubauer remains on board at a reasonable price pursue a trade with clubs that Johnson would be OK with, those teams Philipp Grubauer had the best season of his career, posting a .922 save might not want to take on that big of a salary for an aging defenseman. percentage and a 1.95 goals-against average, and league general There’s another option: the cold business decision of buying him out. But managers voted him a Vezina Trophy finalist. The Avalanche had him that’s a tough way to part with a player who wears a letter and has meant signed for only a $3.33 million cap hit, and that will surely go up. Looking a good deal to the organization. Plus, Johnson would carry a $2 million at potential contract comparables, Calgary’s Jacob Markstrom signed a cap hit each of the next four seasons if he were bought out, rather than six-year deal with a $6 million average annual value after finishing fourth $6 million AAV for the next two. And with superstar Nathan MacKinnon’s in the Vezina race in 2019-20 with Vancouver, and St. Louis’ Jordan contract coming up in two years, having dead money on the cap is less Binnington, who won the 2019 Stanley Cup but had worse numbers than than ideal. Grubauer each of the past two seasons, got the term and AAV on an extension this season. In a perfect world, Johnson would come back, remain healthy and bring the Avalanche a needed big body and physical presence on defense. He Colorado offered Grubauer the chance to be the clear No. 1 for the first skated at a few morning skates toward the end of this postseason run, time in his career, and he thrived in the Avalanche’s system this season. but a return was never imminent before the Avalanche’s elimination. Perhaps, wanting to stay in Colorado, he’ll take a team-friendly deal. But that’s tough to count on. 7. A backup plan is put in place in case those injuries persist Bringing Johansson back on a cheap deal could make sense as insurance for Francouz, and a veteran goaltender like Dubnyk is another option. It could also help to have an extra defenseman with good size on the roster in case Johnson gets hurt again. But it’s important to find someone the team could trust in the playoffs; Patrik Nemeth, for example, was solid enough in the regular season but had a rough series against Vegas.
8. Valuable veterans are re-signed or brought in
The Avalanche re-signed Jayson Megna to a two-year deal Wednesday, and he fills a role as a strong AHL presence who can fill in for NHL games. In terms of other Avalanche veterans on expiring deals, Pierre- Edouard Bellemare could be an option if he’s willing to take a bit of a pay cut. He’s a solid fourth-line player and a well-liked dressing-room leader. The Avalanche could also potentially attract Cup-chasing veterans willing to take less for a chance at the Stanley Cup.
9. The kids come to camp ready to play
There will be plenty of opportunities for new faces next season. Bowen Byram’s rookie season got interrupted by a high hit from Vegas’ Keegan Kolesar, which led him to miss the second half of the year, but the 20- year-old blueliner should have a chance to solidify a lineup spot next season. Alex Newhook saw playoff action, and the Avalanche will need the 20-year-old to move into a contributing role considering the players they will lose either to free agency, the expansion draft or trades to clear cap space.
Winger Sampo Ranta also made an impression on the coaching staff, getting in a pair of playoff games for his NHL debut, and should have a chance to make a mark in the regular season. And then there are prospects like Shane Bowers and Martin Kaut, both of whom are looking for extended NHL looks. Colorado can’t count on rookies being instant standouts like Makar was, but having young players who can fill in as a bottom-six forward or on a third defensive pairing would go a long way.
10. Talks start with Nathan MacKinnon about an extension
Every move the Avalanche make has to be made with an eye toward the summer after the 2022-23 season. That’s when MacKinnon enters unrestricted free agency. The Hart Trophy finalist has what’s arguably the most team-friendly contract in the league ($6.3 million AAV), which has given the Avalanche cap space to pursue additional moves.
Talks between the Avalanche and MacKinnon are more likely to heat up next offseason, rather than this one, but it’s time to get the ball rolling.
The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215929 Dallas Stars If a bridge is the way to go, it’s a question of how much higher Heiskanen is above Werenski and Co. $5.5 million? $6 million? $6.5 million? That’s the big unknown.
Breaking down the markets for Stars defensemen Miro Heiskanen, Jamie Others to watch this summer Oleksiak and John Klingberg The defense-a-mageddon is finally here.
For the last few years, it’s been understood that this summer’s class of By Matthew DeFranks 10:00 AM on Jun 17, 2021 CDT RFA defensemen would set the market for each other, just as the RFA class of forwards in 2019 did. (That was the class with Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, Mikko Rantanen, Brayden Point, Kyle Connor, Patrik This summer will be a big one for the Stars blue line, with a trio of key Laine, Matthew Tkachuk, Brock Boeser, Sebastian Aho, Clayton Keller.) contributors available to sign contract extensions. Player Signing Age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP Miro Heiskanen is a restricted free agent for the first time in his career, TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Jamie Oleksiak is an unrestricted free agent and John Klingberg is eligible to sign an extension now that he’s one season away from Miro Heiskanen 21 19:11 0.74 2:54 1:35 becoming a UFA. Cale Makar 21 18:14 1.42 4:09 0:55
The Stars have expressed public interest in retaining all three players Quinn Hughes 21 17:41 1.09 3:38 0:08 given the current makeup of the Dallas top four on defense, but — as always — it will depend on the numbers. The combination of big Rasmus Dahlin 21 17:23 0.74 3:06 0:06 contracts (Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn), plus a flat salary cap and upcoming extensions to Jason Robertson, Denis Gurianov and Jake The quartet of Heiskanen, Makar, Hughes and Dahlin will still impact Oettinger make cap management all the more important to Dallas. each other’s negotiations, but it will be interesting to see the length of each deal. Each of the three players fall into different markets despite their uniform status as a top-four defenseman in the NHL. Even after signing a goaltender and re-signing captain Gabriel Landeskog, the Avalanche might still have enough room for a long-term Heiskanen is the do-it-all young superstar looking for his first contract contract for Makar that keeps him in Denver for 5-8 more years. Buffalo after his entry-level deal. Oleksiak is the late-20s, second-pairing can ink Dahlin to an extended term, but only if Dahlin wants to lock defenseman that logs big 5-on-5 minutes, decent shorthanded minutes himself in with the Sabres for the long haul. and zero power play time. Klingberg is the offensive sparkplug that — opposite of Oleksiak — gets a ton of power play time and none on the Vancouver, which also has Elias Pettersson to re-sign, seems destined penalty kill. for a bridge deal with Hughes.
(Special teams time on ice is a bellwether for how a coach and Jamie Oleksiak organization views a player. If there’s a lot of penalty killing, he fills a When the Stars re-acquired Oleksiak from Pittsburgh in 2019, they could defensive role. Same with power play time.) not have scripted the next two years of development any better for the 6- Essentially, the Stars want to know what players with similar roles and 6 defenseman. He morphed from a rotational healthy scratch to a top- similar production got paid, and how they can get signatures on four defenseman, playing alongside Heiskanen for 82.2% of his 5-on-5 comparable deals. We’ve covered this topic here before, but what could minutes. contracts for Heiskanen, Oleksiak and Klingberg look like? The Stars picture Oleksiak as an ideal partner for Heiskanen, and held All stats are from Natural Stat Trick, and from the season prior to signing on to him at the trade deadline instead of dumping him for draft picks this their contract. summer. Whether or not the massive but offensively aggressive Oleksiak actually is the correct partner for Heiskanen is irrelevant, as long as the Miro Heiskanen Stars believe he is.
The first order of business for Heiskanen and the Stars is to figure out the While Dallas can re-sign Heiskanen at any time, they are best served term. Dallas GM Jim Nill previously said it would make sense for both waiting on Oleksiak. If he signs before the expansion draft on July 21, the sides to work towards a bridge deal, and it does. Stars would not be able to protect Oleksiak, Heiskanen, Klingberg and Esa Lindell. Free agency begins July 28. The Stars don’t have the cap space to sign Heiskanen to a long-term contract without hamstringing their efforts to improve in free agency this For contract comparables, you may not have to look further than summer. Heiskanen probably would rather sign a lucrative long-term deal Montreal, which employs both Ben Chiarot and Joel Edmundson in its top when the salary cap is actually going up, and when the Stars start to four. shed contracts like Benn’s in a few years. Player Signing Age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP If Heiskanen and the Stars are to do a bridge contract (one that is four TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Years Cap hit years or less instead of a long-term one that would buy out UFA years), there are a few precedents in the market. Jamie Oleksiak 28 18:24 0.81 0:09 1:31
Player Signing age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Years Cap hit Ben Chiarot 28 16:25 0.84 0:02 1:48 3 $3.5 million Miro Heiskanen 21 19:11 0.74 2:54 1:35 Marco Scandella 30 15:07 0.83 0:04 1:59 4 $3.275 million Zach Werenski 21 18:12 1.00 2:32 1:21 3 $5 million Brenden Dillon 29 16:43 0.68 0:02 2:09 4 $3.9 million Charlie McAvoy 21 18:03 1.29 1:34 1:17 3 $4.9 million Joel Edmundson 27 15:11 1.04 0:03 2:46 4 $3.5 million Mikhail Sergachev 22 16:09 0.90 1:52 1:08 3 $4.8 million Chris Tanev 30 15:07 0.81 0:05 3:24 4 $4.5 million Of Werenski, McAvoy and Sergachev, Heiskanen produces the least 5- on-5 offense. But he also shoulders the most responsibility, leading all of These are defensemen who play top-four minutes at 5 on 5, nothing on them in time on ice at 5 on 5, on the power play and on the penalty kill. the power play while also killing penalties and scoring at similar rates. Heiskanen also plays against other team’s best forwards and had one of Tanev (who undoubtedly benefitted from playing alongside Hughes the the best postseasons for a defenseman in 2020, putting up 26 points in year before he inked his deal with the Flames) may be the outlier as one 27 games as the Stars lost in the Stanley Cup Final. of the league’s most-used penalty killers, but his contract is nonetheless It’s also very possible that there’s a team out there that wants to pay useful. Klingberg like a true No. 1 defenseman. That means measuring up to Alex Pietrangelo ($8.8 million), Roman Josi ($9.059 million), Jared Oleksiak does eat up a few more minutes at even-strength, which adds Spurgeon ($7.575 million), Oliver Ekman-Larsson ($8.25 million) or John up across a full season and furthers his market value. Carlson ($8 million).
Others to watch this summer More clarity could also come this summer.
Oleksiak won’t be in the Alec Martinez class of defenseman free agents Others to watch this summer since he doesn’t score enough, but there are still two prime comps and three marginally useful ones. Dougie Hamilton will get all the attention as the top defenseman on the market, but Tyson Barrie could be the more apt comparison for Klingberg Player Signing age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP in terms of usage and production. TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Then, there’s next summer’s class, where Morgan Rielly is the closest Jamie Oleksiak 28 18:24 0.81 0:09 1:31 player to Klingberg and not names like Seth Jones and Darnell Nurse.
Derek Forbort 29 17:17 0.74 0:10 2:41 Player Signing age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/GP Ryan Murray 27 16:15 0.92 0:04 1:44 PP TOI/GP PK TOI/GP
David Savard 30 17:07 0.26 0:08 1:55 John Klingberg 29 18:13 0.93 3:10 0:11
Cody Ceci 27 15:13 1.23 0:04 2:31 Tyson Barrie 28 17:08 1.38 3:37 0:08
Brandon Montour 27 17:37 1.02 0:31 1:46 Morgan Rielly 28 19:05 1.03 2:55 0:26
Forbort and Murray each have similar usage to Oleksiak. In terms of raw Dougie Hamilton 27 17:04 1.15 2:59 1:28 points, the three players were also fairly close, with Oleksiak and Murray Seth Jones 27 19:44 0.81 2:14 2:02 at 14 points and Forbort at 12. Savard is older and doesn’t score, but might still earn top-four money while Ceci and Montour were each more Darnell Nurse 27 20:40 1.19 1:25 2:27 productive. +++ John Klingberg Dallas Morning News LOADED: 06.18.2021 Klingberg’s situation is a bit less urgent for both the player and the Stars, given that he’s still under contract for next season, but both sides have acknowledged there’s desire to keep Klingberg in Dallas.
The thing to consider with Klingberg — other than the market comps, which we’ll get to in a moment — is that he’s been severely underpaid on a team-friendly contract since 2015. His $4.25 million cap hit is consistently one of the league’s best values given the caliber of player Klingberg is.
After being underpaid (and welcoming his first child), Klingberg will want to get paid. There’s no fault in that at all, and it’s completely understandable and reasonable for Klingberg to want that for himself and his family. It’s just a matter of how that ticket would fit with Dallas.
Klingberg is often thought of as the Stars’ No. 1 defenseman because of his point production and top-pair status. But Dallas doesn’t use him as such. He doesn’t get those tough matchups (those go to Heiskanen) and he doesn’t kill penalties (unlike partner Esa Lindell). He’s an engine for the team’s 5-on-5 play and he walks the blue line on the power play as well as anyone in the NHL.
That said, there are not a ton of recent comps for offensive dynamos that play sheltered minutes. In fact, there might just be one: St. Louis’ Torey Krug.
Player Signing age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Years Cap hit
John Klingberg 29 18:13 0.93 3:10 0:11
Torey Krug 29 15:20 1.03 3:51 0:07 7 $6.5 million
If you go back a few more years, other examples arise, but contracts signed in 2016 (Keith Yandle) and 2017 (Kevin Shattenkirk) don’t reflect the current market value of players. It also doesn’t help that Yandle was a healthy scratch for Florida in the playoffs, and the Rangers bought out Shattenkirk.
Player Signing age 5v5 TOI/GP 5v5 Pts/60 PP TOI/GP PK TOI/GP Years Cap hit
Keith Yandle 29 16:27 0.98 2:39 0:03 7 $6.35 million
Kevin Shattenkirk 28 15:22 1.09 3:13 0:22 4 $6.65 million
Perhaps the $6.5 million AAV is cheaper than you expected for a player like Klingberg. 1215930 Dallas Stars Industry observers have wondered break point will finally prompt consumers to not only leave, but never to return.
We don’t know. So far no number has been too high. Streaming app to watch the Mavs, Rangers and Stars may include an outrageous price Perhaps Sinclair is floating this figure to see the reaction and will adjust accordingly. If there is enough outrage, it may drop that number.
Because $23 a month to watch the Rangers, Mavs and Stars feels BY MAC ENGEL JUNE 16, 2021 12:27 PM awfully high when you can spend half that for everything Disney has to offer.
Two of the great challenges of the last year have been how to properly Star-Telegram LOADED: 06.18.2021 wear a mask over your nose and mouth, and trying to watch the Texas Rangers, Dallas Mavericks or Dallas Stars game on your TV.
The battle between Sinclair Broadcast Group and the majority of the cable carriers and the “cord cutters,” has left hundreds of thousands of fans of the Rangers, Mavs and Stars unable to watch the games on the network formerly known as Fox Sports Southwest.
Renamed Bally Sports Southwest, all of those games that you missed will soon be available to you on a streaming app, for a price that you won’t believe.
According to a report in The New York Post, Sinclair is gathering money in an effort to launch a Bally Sports streaming app with a subscription price of $23 a month.
That would be the most expensive major streaming app available.
Now, here is the “fun” part: According to the Post, this $23 a month will only cover the “games in markets where it owns sports broadcasting rights, sources said.”
Bally Sports, via Sinclair, owns the broadcast rights to 42 teams, from MLB, NBA, NHL, WNBA to MLS.
But your $23 would not allow you to watch the teams carried on networks such as Bally Sports South, Bally Sports SoCal, etc.; instead, that $23 would cover the teams in your market.
By comparison, a standard subscription for Netflix is $13.99 a month. Hulu, without adds, is $11.99 per month.
Disney+ is $8 a month. A subscription that includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ bundles can be had at $14 a month.
HBOMax is $14.99 a month, without adds.
Sinclair hopes to make this app available before the start of the 2022 MLB season.
It’s worth noting that there is nothing the Dallas Stars, Texas Rangers, Dallas Mavericks or any franchise that signed a local TV broadcast rights agreement years ago with then Fox Sports can do about any of this.
There are always a buffet of reasons to be upset with the local teams, and this is not one of them. This is all on Sinclair looking to squeeze more money out of your wallet.
Sinclair acquired the 21 Fox Sports regional networks from Disney for $9.6 billion in August 2019.
Fans didn’t notice that. They noticed last year when the contracts between Sinclair and Hulu, YouTubeTV and most other cable carriers expired, and suddenly the games were gone.
You can still watch the local teams if you have DirecTV, Spectrum or TVMax, or much smaller carriers available in mostly rural areas.
Sinclair publicly said it simply wanted to charge a similar rate to the Hulus of the world, but in reality the plan was to launch its own streaming app.
The stunner is a potential price point that far exceeds a norm by other streaming services that offer a far larger menu.
In the last 30 plus years, sports and sports TV has done nothing but grow, while charging more for the product. Sports is entertainment, but it offers something that a TV show or movie cannot.
It’s the shared experience of watching a live event where the outcome has not been manipulated by an editor, director or producer. Plus, you can bet on this form of entertainment whereas you can’t put down a $20 on the Friends Reunion special. 1215931 Dallas Stars While Johns looked comfortable on the outside when he returned to the NHL in 2020, internally he was struggling. There were multiple times he thought his career might be over before that moment in the middle of the Stephen Johns’ journey: His NHL career over too soon, former Stars game against the Flames. defenseman skates for a cause bigger than hockey Some of the highlights on the ice immediately preceded or followed lowlights off it. When he first tried to return with an AHL conditioning stint, he was so nervous his heart was racing, and he thought he would never By Sean Shapiro Jun 17, 2021 be able to step on the ice. He somehow followed that up with the first four-point night of his hockey career, professional or otherwise. Later, he
scored against the New York Rangers with his parents in attendance, but ON THE ROAD IN RURAL OHIO — The intersection of Parsons and the next morning the excruciating headaches were so bad he thought he Whitehead roads is unremarkable. might have to retire at that moment.
Technically within Carlisle Township in rural Ohio, there’s farmland in Johns doesn’t regret returning, and those 21 games he was able to play each direction. A sign warns of a $500 fine for littering, but it’s hard to are a testament to his will, but also shouldn’t be used as the end-all, be- imagine anyone noticing if you did. all to his story.
This is the spot former NHL player Stephen Johns has chosen to treat a Johns says his story is more nuanced and expansive. What’s out there blister on his right foot, sitting on the tailgate of his black Chevrolet only scratches the surface, he says, outlining plans to share more of it in Silverado, a pair of rollerblades and the gold hockey helmet he wore at depth in the documentary he is filming during this trip across the country. Notre Dame sitting nearby. So far, just a few days into his trip, Johns has covered close to 40 miles a It just might be the most remarkable thing to ever happen here. The day, moving at an average clip of close to 12 miles per hour — with some intersection, however, is a fitting symbol of the journey on which Johns downhill bursts flirting with the 20-mph mark. has embarked as his professional hockey career has come to a close. Jeff Toates, a former Stars employee and a close friend, is trailing in the The recently retired former Dallas Stars defenseman is traveling across truck, flashers on warning motorists to use caution. the country, inline skating down country roads and through small towns, with plans to roll from his hometown of Wampum, Pa., to the West Coast, When another vehicle approaches, Toates honks the horn to warn Johns likely Oregon, by the middle of July. and they wave the driver a signal to pass. Most of the motorists honk in approval when realizing there’s a man in skates on the road. Others give For Johns, 29, it’s an opportunity to use his athleticism to raise friendly waves. The roads Johns is traveling typically don’t attract people awareness of issues that played a role in ending his career too soon. trying to get somewhere in a hurry. Johns has struggled with chronic pain and depression since 2018, This is the setup for most of the trip, with exceptions like Tuesday, where triggered by a hit on March 29, 2018, in a game against the Minnesota an additional driver is around to drive while Toates films for the Wild. The pain and post-traumatic headaches have become more documentary. manageable with time and different self-coping techniques, but the depression continued after he played his final NHL game in August 2020. Toates is a former Stars employee and one of Johns’ close friends. Roughly two weeks ago, Johns called Toates and asked if he wanted to Recently, Johns was asked what he liked to do for fun. He didn’t have an help document the journey. answer. During a particularly rough period in late May, Johns came across the music video for, “Live Before I Die,” by Mike Posner and “Right away,” Toates said about the decision to take part. “We also knew Naughty Boy, which features Posner walking across the country. that if this was something we were going to do we were gonna have to go quick.” The video changed Johns’ life, he says, and the question of “What do you want to do?” all of a sudden had an answer. Toates flew into Pittsburgh on Saturday. On Sunday, Johns posted on Instagram to officially announce his retirement from hockey and about his He wanted to do something to inspire others and to raise awareness planned journey. Monday morning, Johns was inline skating out of about the importance of mental health. He wanted to skate again. Across Wampum with an escort from the local fire department. the country without any preparation or planning. The skates Johns is using were fresh out of the box Sunday. No practice “It was crazy,” Johns said. “But it’s what I wanted to do. I had something I or break-in time; just lace ’em up and go. wanted to do.” Great for the initiative, bad for blisters and lace bite as Johns has been (Jerome Miron / USA Today) working in the skates as he nears close to 100 miles already traveled. While Johns’ retirement was only made public this week, he has known This is a journey for Johns where he knows that he’ll have left Wampum, his career was over since a very specific moment on Aug. 11, 2020. Pa., as one person and grown and changed by the time he reaches the The Stars were playing the Calgary Flames in Game 1 of a first-round West Coast. He believes he’ll be better for it, and in many ways it’s a series in the NHL bubble in Edmonton when Johns remembers looking clean passage as he tries to transition away from his life as a hockey up at the clock and seeing 5:13 remaining in the second period. player.
He couldn’t remember a single shift from earlier in the game. Even He’s become a mental health advocate in a sport where admitting worse, for the first time in his life, he was scared to go on the ice. weakness and asking for help goes against the machismo attitude typically associated with NHL dressing rooms. His Instagram messages “I had told myself if I was ever scared to get out there I was done,” Johns have been flooded with others reaching to share their story. It’s hard to said. “And that moment, I knew I was done.” keep up, but he plans to work his way through and work on building that network more in the future. On Tuesday, Johns also adopted the hashtag Johns went into the dressing room and called his mom, Noreen. She #MentalMiles on social media, encouraging others to join him in taking listened while he cried on the phone. He took off his ice skates and, to time for themselves, whether it be skating, walking or biking, and starting date, it’s the last time he’s worn ice skates. a larger conversation about what mental health means to each individual. Johns sat out all of the 2020-21 season and was placed on long-term On Tuesday, while taking a break to gas up the truck in Oberlin, Ohio, a injured reserve. It was a formality before the public retirement person came up to Johns and asked if he was in fact Stephen Johns, and announcement, officially capping a career that covered 167 NHL games they had recently seen his Instagram post. with the Stars over parts of four seasons. “Maybe I was always meant to be more than a hockey player,” Johns There are some facts that Johns now wants to make known about his said. “Maybe this is how I can have an impact.” return to the NHL in the latter half of the 2019-20 season. The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 “I was never really better,” Johns said. “I think that’s important for people to know. I was also never forced to play by the Stars and I’m grateful for that.” 1215932 Detroit Red Wings
NHLPA releases annual player poll: Detroit Red Wings don't rate in any category
HELENE ST. JAMES
Nearly 500 NHL players have spoken, and the Detroit Red Wings don’t rate with them.
The NHL Players Association released its annual survey Thursday, ranging in topics from favorites to fashionable — and, of course, the pandemic.
COVID-19 prompted the league to use a 56-game, intra-divisional schedule that split 31 teams into four geographical groups in 2021. The Wings played in the Central Division, with the Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning. Travel restrictions between the U.S. and Canada led to all seven Canadian teams forming the North Division.
WINGS IN NHL DRAFT: Why taking center Mason McTavish makes sense
That is not a scenario most players want to see carried forward. (The NHL already has nixed the idea, anyway.) The poll showed 68.2% of the 490 players who participated voted no, with 31.8% voting yes. On the other hand, 66.3% of players favored carrying forward a series-style schedule, rather than going back to traveling from city to city after one game.
The poll also revealed that 46.3% of players consider Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews the best goal scorer; 64.7% consider the Lightning’s Victor Hedman the best defenseman, and 54.1% consider the Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy the best goaltender. Matthews was also voted most fashionable, with 21.2% of the votes.
Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) tied for most complete player with 23.78%.
FEELING A DRAFT: Here are the players the Wings can't afford to lose to expansion draft
Asked to name the one player they’d want if they needed to win one game, 36.7% chose Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers). The poll was conducted in March and April, so before McDavid’s Oilers were swept in the first round. Crosby came in second, at 23%. Crosby was voted most superstitious, at 27.4%.
Chicago’s Patrick Kane was named by 49.5% of players when asked who the best stick handler is — almost double that of McDavid’s 25.8%. Boston’s David Pastrnak was named by 42.3% of players in response to which player has the most unique tape job. Dallas’ Jamie Benn, whose stick to Dylan Larkin’s neck during the April 20th game ended Larkin’s season, got 3.8% of votes.
The poll names four to six players per question, so for example, almost 10% of players voted for someone other than Matthews, Pastrnak, Alex Ovechkin or McDavid in respond to who is the best goal scorer. But it’s doubtful any Wings made the “other” list in any of the main categories — goal scorer, defenseman, goalie, shot, passer — given they don’t have a superstar on the roster.
Detroit News LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215933 Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings' NHL draft: Why taking center Mason McTavish makes sense
HELENE ST. JAMES
The Detroit Red Wings hold the sixth pick in the 2021 NHL draft, which is scheduled to be held virtually July 23-24.
The onus is on general manager Steve Yzerman and his inner circle to find a player who can help the rebuild. We aren’t likely to see the results for at least a couple of years — forward Filip Zadina, for example, was the sixth pick in 2018. Although he has become a regular in the lineup, there’s still a question as to how much of an impact he'll have in the long term.
Given how the pandemic affected hockey leagues across the world, scouting was limited over the past year — and that’s why the top 10 picks are hard to predict. Star Michigan defenseman Owen Power, though, is widely projected to go first overall.
THE BOTTOM OF THE ROUND: Here's where the Wings' draft pick from the Capitals falls
TAKING HIS TIME: Why Yzerman won't give a timeline on Wings rebuild.
So, rather than predict the entire top 10, we'll take a look at some leading candidates for the Wings to take at No. 6 as part of an ongoing series. First up ...
F Mason McTavish
Size: 6 feet 1, 207 pounds.
2020-21: Had nine goals and two assists in 13 games for EHC Olten in the Swiss League, plus two goals and five assists in four playoff games. Starred for Canada while winning gold at the World Juniors, where he filled in as captain and recorded five goals and six assists in seven games.
The buzz: McTavish, 18, recorded 29 goals and 13 assists in 57 games in 2019-20 with the Ontario Hockey League’s Peterborough Petes. (The Petes’ alumni include Yzerman, who recorded 91 points in 56 games in 1982-83, his draft season.) McTavish was placed in Switzerland’s second-highest professional league this season because of the pandemic.
THE OTHER DRAFT: Here are the players the Wings can't afford to lose to expansion Kraken next month
McTavish is a powerful, though not speedy, skater. He’s already big and strong, and is able to battle through checks to protect the puck and get into scoring positions. He’s a goal scorer, possessing a swift and accurate wrist shot and a heavy one-timer that makes him especially effective on power plays. He’s also effective at net-front at tipping pucks or pouncing on rebounds. He’s sound defensively, using his big body to force opponents to the outside and his stick to break up plays.
Why he makes sense: McTavish is a left-shooting center who can also play wing. The Wings’ future depth down the middle reads Dylan Larkin, Joe Veleno and Michael Rasmussen. Yzerman has noted multiple times the Wings need help at every position, but they are particularly short on centers in the farm system. If the Wings see McTavish as someone who can become a high-end NHL center, he’s a logical choice.
Detroit News LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215934 Detroit Red Wings ► 9. Vancouver Canucks: Mason McTavish, C, Peterborough (OHL). Vancouver could use defensive depth, but McTavish is too good to pass on. McTavish fits nicely to what Vancouver needs up front, a determined, Ted Kulfan's 2021 NHL mock draft 1.0: Will Wings mine Sweden or Ann two-way forward. Arbor for future star? ► 10. Ottawa Senators: Jesper Wallstedt, G, Lulea (Sweden). The Senators have a glut of fine prospects, but no potential goaltender like Wallstedt, who some scouts feel can be a game-changer. TED KULFAN | The Detroit News ► 11. Chicago Blackhawks: Chaz Lucius, C, USNTDP. There are several areas the Blackhawks could go, but Lucius is the type of offensive prospect Chicago needs. Detroit — The 2021 NHL Entry Draft will be unique in many ways. ► 12. Calgary Flames: Carson Lambos, D, Winnipeg (WHL). The Rarely, if ever, has a draft class entered the NHL with so many question Flames need some defensive depth organizationally, and Lambos seems marks surrounding it. like the type of player they like, playing with a bit of bite. Because of the pandemic, many junior (and some college) leagues in ► 13. Philadelphia Flyers: Cole Sillinger, C, Sioux Falls (USHL). Just the North America and Europe were severely impacted. type of mix of skill and grit the Flyers really like in their forwards. His dad The vast majority of the prospects eligible for the July 23-24 NHL Entry Mike was a longtime, productive NHL player after he was a first-round Draft — which again will be virtual — saw limited actual playing time, and draft pick by the Wings in 1989. the amount of scouting information on these youngsters is likewise slim. ► 14. Dallas Stars: Fabian Lysell, RW, Lulea (Sweden). GM Jim Nill So, the guessing game with this draft class is more prevalent than in any knows Sweden, and Lysell is the type of two-way talent the Stars need draft class, possibly ever. with age creeping into the lineup.
The Red Wings are picking sixth and 22nd in the first round, acquiring ► 15. New York Rangers: Matthew Coronato, RW, Chicago (USHL). The the latter from the Washington Capitals in the Anthony Mantha trade. The Rangers are likely to trade this pick before it happens. But if they stay players the Wings are projecting at those first-round spots are likely here, they'll be tempted to go with the goal-scoring Coronato. much different than who other teams around them might have. ► 16. St. Louis Blues: Corson Ceulemans, D, Brooks (AJHL). The Blues “More so this year than any other year, you're going to have vastly could use a bit of everything, and Ceulemans is the type of offensive different lists,” general manager Steve Yzerman said. “This one's going defensemen NHL teams are searching for. to be, maybe there will be more surprises than ever. Sitting at six, there's ► 17. Winnipeg Jets: Brennan Othmann, LW, Flint (OHL). Has skill, but multiple players we think will be there and we'll be excited about the also the grit to his game the Jets could use. The Flint Firebird product pick." isn’t big (6-0, 175), but plays fearless. There’s likely going to be several trades that will involve early first-round ► 18. Nashville Predators: Fyodor Svechkov, RW, Russia. The picks that will change the draft order, and numerous players could slide Predators could use more scoring potential, and Svechkov is regarded as or rise in scouts’ eyes before July 23. a legitimate sleeper prospect by some. But here in mid-June, let’s a first look at the 2021 NHL Entry Draft’s first ► 19. Edmonton Oilers: Brett Harrison, C, Oshawa (OHL). Harrison round: played in Finland this past season, and is the type of player who might be (Note: The Arizona Coyotes had to forfeit their first-round pick for overlooked by some. Has been able to score goals throughout his junior violating prospect testing policy.) career.
► 1. Buffalo Sabres: Owen Power, D, Michigan. If there were any doubts ► 20. Boston Bruins: Zachary L’Heureux, Halifax (QMJHL). The Bruins — and there weren’t many — Power’s performance during the men’s need quality prospects, and L’Heureux has been a big-time scorer in the world championships erased any. This is a safe, easy choice that will Quebec junior ranks. help the Sabres for years to come. ► 21. Minnesota Wild: Nikita Chibrikov, RW, Russia. The Wild were ► 2. Seattle Kraken: Matthew Beniers, C, Michigan. Two Wolverines go rewarded by selecting Kirill Kaprizov in 2015, and now find him a Russian in the top two picks. The expansion Kraken get the type of two-way, first- linemate with high-end potential. line center so rare to acquire. ► 22. Detroit Red Wings (from Washington): Sebastian Cossa, G, ► 3. Anaheim Ducks: Dylan Guenther, RW, Edmonton (WHL). The Edmonton (OHL). If the Wings have a chance to select Cossa, you’d Ducks had an abysmal offensive attack, so adding a player many scouts think they jump at it. Many scouts feel Cossa could go top-15. believe could turn out to be the best goal-scorer in this class makes ► 23. Florida Panthers: Aatu Raty, C, Finland. Projected to be top-5 in sense. this class some two years ago, Raty’s stock has fallen. But could the ► 4. New Jersey Devils: Luke Hughes, D, United States National Team Panthers instill confidence back into his game and get a major steal? Development Program. Nepotism? Sure, his brother Jack stars for the ► 24. Columbus Blue Jackets (from Toronto): Daniil Chayka, D, Devils, but Luke Hughes is an excellent player in his own right and the Russia. The Jackets like their Russian prospects, and Chayka has the Devils need defensemen. flair to be a nice future addition. ► 5. Columbus Blue Jackets: Simon Edvinsson, D, Frolunda (Sweden). ► 25. Minnesota Wild (from Pittsburgh): Zachary Bolduc, center, The Jackets are rumored in many trade talks, but if they stay here, Rimouski (QMJHL). At this point it’s more of a guessing game, but Edvinsson’s comparisons to Victor Hedman are difficult to pass on. Bolduc’s offensive production has been impressive. ► 6. Detroit Red Wings: William Eklund, LW, Djurgardens (Sweden). ► 26. Carolina Hurricanes: Sasha Pastujov, RW, Notre Dame. The Eklund simply appears to be the type of player the Wings like. Plays Hurricanes add to their collection of talented forwards in the organization. bigger than his size (5-10, 176), is improving rapidly, and is has elite skills (No. 1-ranked international skater by NHL Central Scouting). ► 27. Colorado Avalanche: Matthew Samoskevich, C, Chicago (USHL). Eklund compares favorably to Lucas Raymond, the Wings' top pick last Headed to Michigan, Samoskevich projects well with Colorado’s skilled year. forwards.
► 7. San Jose Sharks: Kent Johnson, C/LW, Michigan. The third ► 28. Semifinal-losing team with fewest points: Cameron Whynot, D, Wolverine off the board, Johnson gives the Sharks desperately needed Halifax (QMJHL). Especially if this is Montreal, Whynot would be a nice hope offensively. future addition to an older Canadiens’ defensive group.
► 8. Los Angeles Kings: Brandt Clarke, D, Barrie (OHL). The Kings have ► 29. Semifinal-losing team with most points: Simon Robertsson, RW, a plethora of forward prospects, and Clarke gives them a big-time Skelleftea (Sweden). Either Columbus (by way of Tampa Bay) or the prospect on the blue line. Excellent offensively, and underrated Devils (who own the Islanders’ pick) would love to add the hard shot defensively, a future top-pairing guy. Robertsson possesses. ► 30. Stanley Cup final-losing team: Francesco Pinelli, C, Kitchener (OHL). A crafty, elusive playmaker who would be a nice find for a Cup finalist.
► 31. Stanley Cup champion: Danila Klimovich, LW, Belarus. Klimovich is a project, but the reward could be worth it for a Cup-winning team.
Detroit News LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215935 Detroit Red Wings
Red Wings searching for assistant coach with ‘unique’ power play ideas
By Ansar Khan
The Detroit Red Wings are in the process of searching for an assistant coach whose mandate is clear: Help fix the power play.
The Red Wings’ power play this past season was the worst it has been in recent memory, converting at 11.4 percent and ranking second from last in the NHL. It was one of the main reasons the team struggled to score (2.23 goals per game, 30th in the league).
It prompted the club to part with assistant coach Dan Bylsma, who worked with the forwards and was responsible for the power play the past three seasons, during which time Detroit’s conversion rate of 15.2 percent ranked 30th.
But the problem goes back further. Previous assistant coaches Pat Ferschweiler and John Torchetti were replaced in large part due to an ineffective power play.
During Jeff Blashill’s six seasons as head coach, the Red Wings’ power play ranks last in the NHL at 16.3 percent.
“The power play’s an area that needs to be better and that’s not on any particular coach or any particular person,” Blashill said last month. “The guys on the ice have to do a better job and we’ve got to do as good a job as possible preparing them and giving them a plan that works.”
It has been a combination of issues, the most glaring of which has been entries. Too often they are denied at the opponent’s blue line and wind up chasing the puck down the ice. Even after many clean entries, they have lacked a shooting mentality and either failed to get pucks on net or the opposition cleared the zone after one shot.
Blashill said he is looking for different ideas.
“I would probably use the word tactician, especially a guy with an offensive kind of mindset, somebody that brings some different, potentially unique ideas,” Blashill said. “It’s hard to come up with things that are real different or unique in the game. That’s not necessarily how you win, but ultimately if there’s some fresh ideas, a different thought process from an offensive standpoint is something that we’d look at.”
This isn’t all about coaching. They also need better players, and they need the players they have to execute better.
Dylan Larkin had only goal and six points on the power play. Filip Hronek had 11 assists on the power play, but no goals. Anthony Mantha picked up only two power-play points (both goals) in 42 games before being traded, and his replacement, Jakub Vrana, while excelling at even- strength, managed only one point on the power play in 11 games. Other power-play regulars also struggled (two points in 30 games for Robby Fabbri, no points in 16 games for Dennis Cholowski).
“We have to do something different with our power play for sure,” general manager Steve Yzerman said after announcing Blashill’s extension last month.
“We need to add to our personnel to get the right fit, so our power play has a chance to be more successful, and also we need to do things a little bit differently than we’ve done -- the way we played, the spots players are put at, the way we bring the puck up the ice, it needs to be addressed.”
Blashill said it would take time to find the right assistant coach.
“Let’s do our due diligence to see what people might be the best fit, who’s interested in the job,” Blashill said. “There’s a number of really good coaches out there. We’ll go through a process. It’s not going to be anything quick. There’s nobody there that is ready to hire, and on their side, people have to decide if this position’s the right one for them.”
Michigan Live LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215936 Detroit Red Wings 2020-21: Farjestad BK (Sweden)
He has impressed in Sweden’s top men’s league the past two seasons (10 goals, 22 assists in 86 games). The Red Wings are high on their 60th Why Red Wings feel good about young core of defensemen pick in 2019, who has been described as a fluid skater and good puck- handler with good vision and a hard shot. He played for Sweden’s World Junior team and earned a spot on the World Championship team (didn’t By Ansar Khan appear in any games) in the same season.
Gustav Lindstrom
Moritz Seider dominates the spotlight as the Detroit Red Wings’ top Height/Weight: 6-2/190 prospect, a potential future star. Shoots: Right He is among a group of at least a dozen defensemen throughout the Red Wings organization age 23 or under who have various degrees of Age: 22 potential. 2020-21: Almtuna (Sweden)/Grand Rapids (AHL)/Detroit
Most are prospects, some of whom might not ascend to Detroit. One He won’t contribute much offense or make many flashy plays, but he can (Filip Hronek) is fully established at the highest level and others (Dennis be a steady, puck-moving, third-pair NHL defender. After starting the Cholowski, Gustav Lindstrom) have NHL experience. season on loan to Almtuna in Sweden’s second division, Lindstrom Defense is a position of depth and strength in the system. joined the Griffins and then played the final 13 games with Detroit, where he was a plus player (plus-1). He seems likely to be protected for the So, while general manager Steve Yzerman said the team will take the expansion draft. best player available with the sixth overall selection in the first round of the draft on July 23, regardless of position, perhaps the stockpile of blue Jared McIsaac line prospects will prompt the Red Wings to select a forward, or maybe a Height/Weight: 6-1/191 goaltender. Shoots: Left Here is a rundown of the Red Wings’ most promising defensemen/defense prospects age 23 and under (in alphabetical order): Age: 21
Seth Barton 2020-21: Grand Rapids (AHL)
Height/Weight: 6-2/185 His development has been slowed by surgery on each of his shoulders the past two years. After missing most of 2020-21 following left shoulder Shoots: Right surgery, McIsaac, who played one game for HPK (Finland), made his Age: 21 AHL debut, appearing in 10 games for the Griffins (no goals, two assists). The 36th overall pick in 2018 is a two-way player who moves the puck 2020-21: UMass-Lowell (Hockey East)/Grand Rapids (AHL) well and has a high compete level, playing a physical game. He played for Canada’s 2020 World Junior Championship gold medal-winning team. A good-sized, mobile, puck-mover who was described as a late bloomer when the Red Wings drafted him 81st overall in 2018, Barton made his Wyatt Newpower pro debut, appearing in four games for the Griffins in 2021 after three seasons at UMass-Lowell. Height/Weight: 6-4/205
Dennis Cholowski Shoots: Right
Height/Weight: 6-2/197 Age: 23
Shoots: Left 2020-21: Cleveland (AHL)
Age: 23 After four years at UConn, the undrafted Newpower signed an AHL contract with Cleveland last year and made his pro debut. He played only 2020-21: Grand Rapids (AHL)/Detroit 24 games (three goals, seven assists), but nine were against Grand Rapids and the Red Wings liked what they saw, signing him to a two- After splitting the past three seasons between Grand Rapids and Detroit, year entry-level contract on May 31. He has been likened to Boston’s Cholowski needs to show he is good enough defensively to maintain an Brandon Carlo. NHL job in 2021-22, when he no longer is waiver-exempt. The club’s top pick in 2016 (20th) has offensive skills and the ability to man the point on Donovan Sebrango the power play. He likely will be protected for the July 21 Seattle expansion draft. Height/Weight: 6-1/190
Filip Hronek Shoots: Left
Height/Weight: 6-0/183 Age: 19
Shoots: Right 2020-21: HK Levice (Slovakia)/Grand Rapids (AHL)
Age: 23 With the OHL season on hiatus due to COVID, Sebrango signed an amateur tryout contract with the Griffins and impressed as a teenager in 2020-21: Detroit a men’s league (31 games). He was the fifth pick from the Red Wings’ 2020 draft class (63rd overall) but the first signed to an entry-level deal. He earned the coaching staff’s trust at a young age, leading the team in Sebrango described himself as “tough, gritty, a little bit of the old-age ice time each of the past two seasons, playing in all situations. He was hockey in me and a kind of new-era offensive defenseman.” better defensively this past season, but there is much room for improvement. Both of his goals were empty-netters, but he led the team Moritz Seider with 26 points, playing all 56 games. Height/Weight: 6-4/207 Albert Johansson Shoots: Right Height/Weight: 6-0/168 Age: 20 Shoots: Left 2020-21: Rogle BK (Sweden) Age: 20 His decision to play in Sweden’s top men’s league after the start of the AHL and German League seasons were delayed due to COVID paid huge dividends. The Red Wings’ top pick in 2019 (sixth overall) took a huge step in his development, which will have him better-prepared for his NHL debut next season. He was named the top defenseman in the Swedish Hockey League (seven goals, 21 assists in 41 games) and the best defenseman at the World Championship (five assists in 10 games), where he led Germany to a spot in the bronze medal game, losing to the U.S.
Antti Tuomisto
Height/Weight: 6-4/194
Shoots: Right
Age: 20
2020-21: University of Denver (NCHC)
2020-21: A high-scoring defenseman in Finland’s junior ranks with a tremendous shot and good hands, he transitioned to North American hockey at the University of Denver this past season, playing in 24 games (two goals, nine assists). Detroit’s second pick in 2019 (35th), Red Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff described him as “a big body who can play both sides of the puck.”
Eemil Viro
Height/Weight: 6-0/171
Shoots: Left
Age: 19
2020-21: TPS Turku (Finland)
Viro was the sixth player the Red Wings drafted in 2020 (70th overall), but they signed him to a three-year entry-level contract fairly quickly last month, showing what they think of him. Red Wings director of amateur scouting Kris Draper, after drafting Viro, described him as a “character kid with real leadership qualities who plays the game the right way.”
William Wallinder
Height/Weight: 6-4/191
Shoots: Left
Age: 18
2020-21: Modo (Sweden)
The Red Wings used the first pick in the second round of the 2020 draft on this big, mobile, puck-moving defender. He is coming off his first full season in a men’s league, playing in Allsvenskan, Sweden’s second division, where he had a goal and five assists in 43 games. Yzerman described him as someone who projects as two-way defenseman who can log a lot of minutes.
Michigan Live LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215937 Edmonton Oilers grouping. Think of players such as Wayne Simmonds, J.T. Miller, Brayden Schenn and Tyler Bertuzzi.
This kind of player would be a dream come true for the Oilers. They’ve What comes next for the Oilers’ Jesse Puljujarvi? How comparable been looking for him for ages, going back at least as far as the drafts of players performed from age 23 to 25 the Kevin Lowe years. They signed Milan Lucic (years too late) to be this player, then signed Zack Kassian because he was the closest approximation on the roster. By Jonathan Willis Jun 17, 2021 Above-average scenario, age 23-25 scoring
GROUP GP G A PTS Two years ago — when Jesse Puljujarvi’s value was at its lowest ebb and with his relationship with the Oilers on the rocks — there were many Above average (average) reasons to be concerned about his major-league future. As he came off a 82 terrible year, most of his closest age-20 comparables were unimpressive. The exception was a late-blooming countryman, Teuvo Teravainen. 20
At 20, a Teravainen-level scoring career represented a best-case 26 outcome for Puljujarvi, and that’s still true. What’s also true is that it or something like it looks far more reasonable today than it did two years 46 ago. This is the right scenario for fans who want to take off the rose-coloured Certainly, there isn’t much gap between Teravainen’s scoring at 22 and glasses but still retain optimism for a productive outcome. It’s still a good Puljujarvi’s prorated full-season totals at the same age: group, featuring names like Adam Henrique, Nino Niederreiter and Lee Stempniak. PLAYER GP G A PTS The closest direct comparable in terms of size and physical game (and, Teravainen incidentally, draft position) is Andrew Ladd. Ladd won two Stanley Cups, first as a 20-year-old bit player on the 2006 Hurricanes, then as a 24- 81 year-old third-liner with the 2010 Blackhawks. Modern fans will think of 15 him as a two-way workhorse, but interestingly, he didn’t start killing penalties in the NHL until he was 23. 27 The next closest match in this group by size and physical game is 42 Nikolay Kulemin, who illustrates the problems with looking at a single number. By average scoring between the ages of 23 and 25, Ladd and Puljujarvi Kulemin are indistinguishable, though they went on to have very different 81 career arcs.
22 As outcomes go, this one’s still pretty good, even for a No. 4 draft pick. A second-line-ish winger with Puljujarvi’s rambunctious edge could be a big 15 component on a successful Oilers team.
37 Below-average scenario, age 23-25 scoring
Teravainen isn’t a close match for Puljujarvi stylistically. Teravainen is an GROUP GP G A PTS undersized, pass-first forward who can play any position and routinely figures into voting for the Selke and the Lady Byng. Puljujarvi is much Below average (average) bigger, arguably more of a shooter and basically matched Teravainen’s 82 hit totals for his entire Carolina career in 55 Oilers games this season. 18 That isn’t the main point. The main point is that Teravainen was a Puljujarvi-level scorer at ages 20 and 22. From the age of 23 forward, 20 he’s been a first-line-caliber one. 38 Teravainen isn’t the only impressive skater who pops up among Puljujarvi’s age-22 comparables. Between 2005 and 2018, Stathead In the first two scenarios, we’ve looked at assumed growth. That doesn’t Hockey shows that 76 forwards scored at a per-game clip comparable to always happen, and the average numbers for this third group basically Puljujarvi’s 0.45. That’s a nice big list and should give us a good handle stay at the same level during ages 23-25 that Puljujarvi scored at this on the range of potential outcomes. past season.
For ease of handling, let’s separate those 76 players into four 19-player There are still a lot of useful players in this group. The lowest-scoring scenarios: best case, above average, below average and worst case. forward of this set of 19 is Andrew Shaw, a third-line forward for two Cup- We’ll consider some individual examples, as well as the average scoring winning teams and a bunch of other good ones. totals for each group for three seasons, from the ages of 23 to 25. Many of these players hit our “winger with size and a physical game” Best-case scenario, age 23-25 scoring criteria. From Tanner Pearson to Scottie Upshall to Nick Foligno to Nick Ritchie to Josh Anderson, you have the kinds of skater that a contending GROUP GP G A PTS Oilers team could use, and that should probably be the takeaway here: Even if this is all Puljujarvi is as a scorer, he can still contribute as a Best case (average) quality member of Edmonton’s middle-six forward group. 82 Worst-case scenario, age 23-25 scoring 24 GROUP GP G A PTS 34 Worst case (average) 58 82 The perfect-world scenario includes names like Teravainen, Loui 12 Eriksson and Brad Marchand. These players represent the top of the top end, by scoring, and an extreme outer marker for Puljujarvi. 16
We should also note that none of those players has the size and physical 28 game of Puljujarvi, though that player type can also be found in this Has cheering for the Oilers broken you? Do you hate reading these Puljujarvi projections as a fan of an opposing team? Welcome to the doom and gloom.
Players with Puljujarvi’s approximate scoring profile sometimes regress into third- or fourth-line players. Other times, they even wash out of the league.
At the upper end of the group, the players are still fairly solid, and it’s less that they failed than that it took a while for their skill to manifest itself. Late-20s Jannik Hansen was a great middle-six option, and the same is true for late-20s Michael Frolik; that just doesn’t show in these numbers. At the far end of this extreme, we find players like Patrick Eaves, who scored 32 goals at 32 after a career spent mostly as a depth guy.
There are true end-of-roster types here, though. Current Oiler Devin Shore is a pretty good example of what they look like in their mid-20s. There are also true busts, like former Oiler (and 2012 No. 1 pick) Nail Yakupov.
If a field of comparables stretching from Teravainen at one end all the way down to Yakupov at the other leaves you feeling frustrated by the lack of a clean and simple answer, all I can say is that hockey’s like that. Development is an individual process, and it’s healthy to embrace the uncertainty.
What we can do is consider likelihoods. The profile of the comparables above is much more impressive than it was two years ago. That list, too, included Teravainen and Miller and Foligno, but those three were at the very top of a group of players mostly made up of less-impressive names. The list we’re looking at today has improved to such a degree that Foligno-level scoring has gone from a best-case scenario to a below- average outcome.
Put another way, the median scoring outcome has gone from Brian Sutherby two years ago to Colin Wilson today. The reasonable expectation has gone from “can play in the NHL” to “can spend years in a top-six role.” That’s exceptional progress.
One last point: That progress reflects well on almost everyone involved.
The list includes Puljujarvi, who might have been truant but didn’t stop working on his game. It includes his teammates, who (mostly, anyway) have been publicly supportive. It includes a coach who stuck by him and gave him opportunities even early on when the results weren’t there.
Finally, it includes general manager Ken Holland. Holland deviated from the emotional “we want players who want to be Oilers” approach espoused by so many of his predecessors in favour of the cold logic that Edmonton would do better by waiting out Puljujarvi than it would by trading him for Julien Gauthier or someone similar. It’s an atypical response for an NHL GM, and it’s certainly not normal for an Oilers executive.
It’s been two years since Puljujarvi asked out of Edmonton. Mostly, this kind of story has ended badly for the Oilers. This one is on the verge of being the exception to the rule.
The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215938 Florida Panthers Weegar even transformed into a star after years as an afterthought for a series of Panthers teams with horrific defenses. Florida had nearly a dozen newcomers playing critical roles — many castoffs or unproven, Despite leading Panthers’ massive turnaround, Quenneville misses out unheralded rookies — and at least half had career years. on Jack Adams Award Despite all the newcomers, the Panthers opened the year on an eight- game point streak and were the last team to lose a game in regulation in the 2020-21 NHL season. Florida set a new franchise record for goals BY DAVID WILSON per game and allowed just 2.70 goals per game after giving up 3.33 last season.
The Panthers finished the regular season with the fourth most points, Joel Quenneville has led one of the NHL’s most extreme turnarounds in sixth best goal differential and tied for the third most wins. Still, they his two seasons with the Florida Panthers and it made him a finalist for finished only second in the Central Division and fell in the opening round the Jack Adams Award, but a Central Division nemesis is taking home of the 2021 Cup playoffs the defending-champion Tampa Bay Lightning, the award, instead. which finished the year tied for eighth in points and fifth in wins. Rod Brind’Amour is the winner of the Jack Adams Award after leading The Florida Panthers hired Bill Zito as the team’s new General Manager the Carolina Hurricanes to their first division title since 2006. He beat out on September 2, 2020. His offseason moves have helped contribute to Quenneville and Minnesota Wild coach Dean Evason for the award. Still the team’s strong start. Panthersvision no Panther has ever won the Jack Adams Award, which is given annually to the NHL’s best coach, and Quenneville joins Doug McLean and BARKOV, ZITO FINALISTS FOR AWARDS Gerard Gallant as finalists for Florida to come up short. Quenneville, who won the award in 2000 with the St. Louis Blues and was a finalist in Barkov and Zito could both win trophies this weekend for their 2013, is still looking for his second win. performances this season.
Congratulations to 2021 Jack Adams Award winner, Rod Brind'Amour! Barkov is up for the Selke Trophy, which is given annually to the league’s #NHLAwards pic.twitter.com/SYNMZJcRJe best defensive forward, and Zito was named a finalist for the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award on Thursday. — NHL (@NHL) June 17, 2021 The NHL will announce the winner of the Selke Trophy on Friday, and Brind’Amour’s Hurricanes were the biggest stumbling block for Barkov is up against Vegas Golden Knights right wing Mark Stone and Quenneville’s Panthers this year and gave the coach the only blemish on Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron. The league will announce the his resume. Florida had a winning regular-season record against every winner of the Jim Gregory Award on Sunday, and Zito is up against Marc team they played except Carolina, which won 6 of 8 against the Panthers Bergevin of the Montreal Canadiens and Lou Lamoriello of the New York and ultimately them beat out for the No. 1 seed in the Central. Islanders.
Florida finished second in the division and drew the Tampa Bay Lightning Miami Herald LOADED: 06.18.2021 in the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs, and fell in six games to the defending champion.
It was still a historic season in Broward County and a massive leap forward for a historically moribund franchise. The Panthers hadn’t been to the postseason since 2016 before Quenneville took over ahead of the 2019-20 NHL season and had only been to the traditional 16-team Stanley Cup playoffs five times in their history before this year.
In Quenneville’s second season as coach, Florida set a franchise record for points percentage and tied a team record for goal differential despite the shortened schedule.
Quenneville, who has the second most wins in NHL history, is still trying to become only the ninth coach in history to win the award twice. Despite leading the Chicago Blackhawks to three Stanley Cups in the 2010s, Quenneville never won the award while coaching the Blackhawks.
This breakthrough season was really a two-year project for Quenneville. The Panthers hired him as coach in 2019 and former general manager Dale Tallon touted it as “a new era, a new beginning.” After Florida missed Stanley Cup playoffs for three straight years, Quenneville took over a perennially underachieving roster and turned the Panthers into one of the best teams in the league.
Florida finished the 2017-18 NHL season with a .524 points percentage, then fired former coach Bob Boughner. Less than 24 hours later, the Panthers made Quenneville its 12th coaching hire since 2000 and the coach has improved Florida’s points percentage in each of his two years, first lifting it to .564 in the 2019-20 NHL season and all the way to .705 this year.
Quenneville took the Panthers to the postseason in his first year, although it was only because the league expanded the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs to 22 teams because of the COVID-19 pandemic. After Florida lost in the qualifying round, Quenneville was open with his displeasure about how his debut season went.
The Panthers fired Tallon a few days later, hired general manager Bill Zito as his replacement and continued to retool to give Quenneville a more complete roster. In Quenneville’s second year, Florida finally became the sort of team he expected.
Center Aleksander Barkov took the leap to stardom and is now a finalist for the Frank J. Selke Trophy. All-Star left wing Jonathan Huberdeau put together perhaps the best season of his career. Defenseman MacKenzie 1215939 Florida Panthers
Panthers’ Bill Zito named finalist for general manager of the year
By MALLORY SCHNELL
In his first season with the Florida Panthers, general manager Bill Zito has been named a finalist for the 2020-21 Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award.
The NHL award is presented “to the general manager who best excelled in his role during the regular season.” The Panthers went 37-14-5 and had a franchise-record .705 points percentage, finishing second in the Central Division.
Marc Bergevin of the Montreal Canadiens and Lou Lamoriello of the New York Islanders are also finalists for the award.
After being named the team’s general manager on Sept. 2, 2020, Zito immediately made signings that strengthened the franchise.
The additions of forwards Anthony Duclair (10-22-32), Patric Hornqvist (14-18-32), Carter Verhaeghe (18-18-36) and Alex Wennberg (17-12-29) added much more scoring depth across the board for Florida. Ryan Lomberg (2-2-4) led the team in penalty minutes with 67.
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On the defensive end, Gustav Forsling, Radko Gudas and Markus Nutivaara gave the Panthers more security on defense with the season- ending injury of star-defenseman Aaron Ekblad. Gudas led the team in hits with 250 and had the second-most blocks with 72. (behind MacKenzie Weegar, 83) Forsling had 42 blocks and 30 hits, while Nutivaara had 13 blocks and 35 hits.
Zito continued to improve Florida’s roster at the league’s trade deadline, acquiring forwards Sam Bennett (6-9-15 in 10 games) and Nikita Gusev (2-3-5 in 11 games) and defenseman Brandon Montour (2-2-4 in 12 games).
NCAA stars Matt Kiersted and Spencer Knight were also important signings by Zito. After Kiersted’s four years at the University of North Dakota, Zito signed him to a two-year, entry-level contract on April 1. After his sophomore season at Boston College, Knight, the 2019 first- round draft pick for the Panthers, was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract on March 31, 2021.
The winner of the award will be announced on Monday during the pregame of Game 5 between the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning on NBC Sport.
Zito would be the first rookie GM to win the award. Former Panthers’ GM, Dale Tallon, was a runner-up for the award in the 2011-12 season.
Sun Sentinel LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215940 Florida Panthers The three-time Stanley Cup winning coach of the Chicago Blackhawks won it in 2000 while coaching the St. Louis Blues.
A few days before the 2018-19 season came to an end, Quenneville — Rod Brind’Amour beats Florida Panthers Joel Quenneville for Jack who had been fired by Chicago in the early stages of that season — had Adams agreed in principal to take over the Panthers from Bob Boughner.
The day after Florida ended that season, Boughner was let go and By George Richards Quenneville finalized his contract with the Panthers.
Quenneville was introduced the next day.
After a season in which his Florida Panthers set a franchise record for “I believe this team is close to winning,’’ Quenneville said then. “I was points percentage and were two points away from winning the Central fortunate, luckiest guy in the world when I walked into the Chicago Division title, Joel Quenneville was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award situation there, a team ready, sitting on go to win, I feel the same here for top coach during the 2021 NHL season. now.”
On Thursday night, it was announced Rod Brind’Amour — whose The Panthers did not live up to their preseason hype last season Carolina Hurricanes beat out the Panthers in the Central — won in a vote although the year came to a premature end in March due to the by the NHL Broadcasters’ Association. Coronavirus.
Brind’Amour was named on 115 of the 129 ballots and got 61 first-place When things picked back up in the summer, Florida was eliminated from votes for 433 points. its qualifying series by the Islanders in four games.
Dean Evason of the Minnesota Wild received 24 first-place votes and This year, the Panthers did not have a whole lot of high expectations 235 voting points to edge Quenneville (21 first-place, 225 points). outside the organization but they got off to a great start and appear to be a team which will be a contender for years to come. Quenneville was vying to become the first Florida coach to win the Jack Adams; Gerard Gallant finished second to Washington’s Barry Trotz in To me, there are a lot of good coaches out there and I am so biased, but 2016. I can legitimately make the argument for Joel as coach of the year,” Zito said. In his second season with the Panthers, Quenneville led Florida to a 37- 14-5 (79 points) record. “The new faces alone tip the scales. It has been truly remarkable what he has done this year.” Florida’s 37 wins ranked tied for third in the NHL as the Panthers went 20-5-3 at home and 17-9-2 on the road. Sasha Barkov, the captain of the Panthers, is a finalist for the Selke Award which will be announced on Friday night. Subscribe to FHN today for coverage of your Florida Panthers all offseason long Florida Hockey Now LOADED: 06.18.2021
The Panthers got off to a great start, opening the season on an eight- game point streak (6-0-2) and seven-game road point streak (6-0-1).
Florida was the final team in the league to lose a game in regulation (Feb. 7) and the final team to lose a game in regulation on the road (Feb. 20).
Down the stretch, the Panthers went 13-2-0 in their final 15 home games and tied their season-high six-game win streak heading into the playoffs.
I think for a confidence standpoint, the players know the coach believes in them and he just lets them play,’’ said Florida general manager Bill Zito, who was named one of three finalists as the NHL’s GM of the Year on Thursday morning.
“It has been great. It has been a fascinating learning experience for me. The wisdom, the magic … his ability to put players in positions to succeed, to coach them, to push them to get the effort out of them and get the skill out of them was amazing.
“This and we didn’t have much of a training camp, no exhibition games, he had a new GM, new players, dealt with Covid. All coaches faced the same challenges, but I don’t think many faced this kind of turnover and had to evaluate them all in such a short period of time. Then he plugged them in and they all succeeded.
“It’s unbelievable what he has managed to do.”
Before the award was announced, Quenneville credited his team’s front office and the Florida players for the team’s success in an interview with NHL Network.
”To me, getting this nomination is really what the organization has done in the last year,’’ Quenneville said. “I think Bill Zito coming on board did a great job of adding staff and adding some really nice pieces to our team. There were significant contributions from Carter Verhaeghe, Hornqvist came in … our compete level across the board is what you want as a coach.
“Everything falls into place when you know the standard of expectations between everyone — your linemate, your defensive partner — are all playing the right way falls into place rather easily. That’s fun to be around.”
Quenneville has only won the Jack Adams once. 1215941 Florida Panthers
Florida Panthers Bill Zito named GM of the Year Finalist
By George Richards
To the surprise of no one, Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito has been named one of the three finalists for the Jim Gregory GM of the Year Award.
Zito was joined as a finalist with Montreal’s Marc Bergevin and Lou Lamoriello of the New York Islanders.
The Panthers named Zito their new GM in September after the contract of Dale Tallon was not renewed.
Zito, the former assistant and associate GM of the Columbus Blue Jackets, quickly went to work rebuilding the Florida roster around the likes of Sasha Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Aaron Ekblad and Sergei Bobrovsky.
By the time he was done, the Florida lineup had been transformed; going into the playoffs, the Panthers were running out 10 players who were not with the team last year.
Zito’s first big move came weeks into his tenure as the team’s new general manager, trading defenseman Mike Matheson and forward Colton Sceviour to Pittsburgh for Patric Hornqvist.
At the draft, Zito brought in Anton Lundell with the No. 12 pick.
During free agency, Zito signed Alex Wennberg, Anthony Duclair, Carter Verhaeghe, Ryan Lomberg and Radko Gudas.
Of all the moves Zito and the Panthers made during the offseason — and, throughout it — only a couple did not pan out. The majority did, however, and the Panthers ended up placing second in the Central Division a point back of the Carolina Hurricanes.
“I’m going to give Bill all the credit for doing what he had to do,” said coach Joel Quenneville, who will be a finalist for the league’s coach of the year award.
“He kept me informed every step of the way. We had some input, but at the end of the day, Bill was the guy pulling the trigger and doing the work and figuring it out.
“But he gets the credit for these acquisitions that have been outstanding. It has been a good first year for him. He has done a lot of great things.”
In other award news, Quenneville is up for the Jack Adams Award which goes to the NHL’s Coach of the Year; that will be announced tonight.
Barkov is a finalist for the Selke Trophy for the top defensive forward in the league and that will be announced on Friday.
Florida Hockey Now LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215942 Florida Panthers With Huberdeau’s skillset that makes his linemates better paired with Lundell’s ability to get into the right areas and shoot the puck, helping the Finnish forward learn the NHL game may be Huberdeau’s next Panthers 2020-21 Report Card: Jonathan Huberdeau challenge.
Key Stats
June 17, 2021 by Colby Guy Regular Season: 20 goals (T-30 in the NHL, 2 on FLA), 41 assists (T-8 NHL, 1 FLA), 61 points (T-11 NHL, 1 FLA) in 55 games played.
Playoffs: 2 goals, 8 assists, 10 points in six games played. The 2020-21 season was business as usual for Florida Panthers superstar Jonathan Huberdeau. The Quebec-native had his third Fun Fact: Huberdeau’s 19 power-play assists tied him for 5th in the entire consecutive season at over a point-per-game pace, registering 20 goals NHL. and 61 points in 55 games this year. His 61 points had him tied for 11th Final Grade: A+ in the NHL while his 41 assists were the eighth-most in the league. Huberdeau was far and away one of the best players that the NHL had to Huberdeau’s unique, combined skillset of playmaking and goal-scoring offer in the 2020-21 season. He was a huge part of the Panthers’ makes him one of the best players the NHL has to offer. He had the successful campaign that saw them return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for second-best season of his spectacular career statistically, as he was on the first time since 2016. an 82-game pace of 29 goals and 90 points. The Hockey Writers LOADED: 06.18.2021 What Huberdeau Brought to the Table
The best thing about Huberdeau is that no matter who you put him on a line with, he always finds a way to make whoever he plays with better. This is where a lot of the Panthers’ success came from this season, as the superstar winger has actually spent most of his ice time away from captain and fellow superstar Aleksander Barkov.
Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers Oct. 17, 2017 (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
According to Dobber Sports, Huberdeau spent 32.6% of his ice time on a line with Alex Wennberg and Patric Hornqvist. In the 329 minutes he spent on that line, Huberdeau helped Hornqvist match his 2019-20 points total of 32 in eight-fewer games, and saw Wennberg flourish to a career high of 17 goals during the shortened season. He simply makes his linemates better.
After the trade deadline, Huberdeau saw himself on a line with newcomer Sam Bennett, who had just four goals and 12 points in 38 games with the Calgary Flames. In the 10 games since he became Huberdeau’s centerman in Florida, Bennett tallied six goals and 15 points.
All of these stats correlate to one thing: Huberdeau’s playmaking has been making whoever he plays on a line with a better player. He’s dangerous with the puck and draws the defense towards him, then he’s able to bait the defender over to him and beat them with whatever tricks he has up his sleeve.
On this play in particular, Huberdeau splits the defense between Victor Hedman and Jan Rutta, and draws both of them over to the side he’s on to open up the slot for Owen Tippett. He then is able to get the pass off between the two Lightning defenders with an absolutely beautiful spin-o- rama to feed that puck to Tippett, who pots the goal.
These are the types of plays that Huberdeau has been making all season, and it worked wonders for the Panthers. There are a short list of wingers in the NHL who are able to make their linemates better the way Huberdeau does, and this season, he showed us why he ranks near the top of that list.
What to Look for Next Season
With Huberdeau wrapping up one of the best seasons that a Panthers forward has ever had, there’s not much he can improve. However, there is another challenge that could await him in the 2021-22 season.
With 19-year-old centerman Anton Lundell in the fold after Florida signed him to his entry-level deal on Sunday, June 7, Huberdeau has a chance to help the Panthers develop another franchise cornerstone. If Florida decides to pair the two together, look for the 2020 first-round pick to develop into a favorite for the Calder Trophy next season.
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Oilers Could See Keith Yandle as This Year’s Tyson Barrie 1215943 Los Angeles Kings More than two-thirds of players voted in favor of keeping series scheduling, meaning multiple games in the same city, while more than two-thirds of players voted against keeping the regional divisions. Neither 2021 NHLPA Players Poll – Doughty, Kopitar, Reverse Retro Jerseys came as much of a surprise. The series scheduling allowed for mentioned substantially fewer flights, and substantially more rest for the players on the road, which was a major plus, something you’d think the NHLPA might push for more of. The regional divisions were likely more about playing only seven opponents than the actual configuration of the By Zach Dooley divisions themselves. By the time we hit the sixth Kings-Wild meetings in three weeks, I’d have voted the same way. I think we can all agree that it will be nice to see a wider array of opposition, and the return of an 82- Good Morning Insiders, and Happy Thursday! game schedule, in October.
This morning, the NHLPA released its annual players poll, in which more LA Kings Insider: LOADED: 06.18.2021 than 500 players from around the league voted amongst their peers on a variety of different categories, ranging from on-ice performance to off-ice personality to jersey style.
This season, the Kings had two players who received consideration around the league, as well as a shout out to their Reverse Retro jerseys, thought of as one of the best by the men wearing it, and skating against it.
NHLPA Players Poll Link
Best Defenseman
Sounds as though the bulk of NHL players did not watch TSN last summer! Drew Doughty finished fourth in the poll, to be labeled as one of the league’s top blueliners as is custom with these types of surveys. Doughty received 2.73% of the vote, placing below just Victor Hedman, Cale Makar and Roman Josi. Doughty has been voted in the Top 4 in each of the last four seasons, revealing that those who play in the NHL have a ton of respect for the Kings number-one defenseman.
If anything was disappointing in this poll regarding Doughty, it’s that the off-ice categories where he is always mentioned weren’t posted this season. Doughty was a regular in the best (and worst) trash talker and funniest player categories, and as a jest, was voted for the best bromance with Matthew Tkachuk last season. As one of the league’s best personalities, Doughty is always mentioned in those types of categories, but there weren’t any in this season’s poll.
Most Complete Player
Crosby, Bergeron, Barkov, McDavid, MacKinnon, Kopitar……Nottttt a bad list to be on.
Most complete player is a good category for Kopitar, and it was one of the categories that had a high “other” percentage, meaning lots of players received votes. The two-time Selke Trophy winner has long been lauded as one of the best all-around players in the NHL, and that perception is clearly shared by not only the fans and media, but the players on the ice as well. Kopitar’s 200-foot game is well recognized, and his offensive abilities were rewarded this season as he cracked the 1,000 point mark in Arizona in May.
Every season, Kopitar is mentioned in this category or a category like it. In 2018-19 and 2017-18, Kopitar was included in the Top 5 of the “most difficult to play against”, and again when that category was limited to forwards. Kopitar has also been voted by his peers in the best team player category in the past, though that was also not an option this season.
One of those situations where everyone, regardless of role, knows that Anze Kopitar is a great all-around player.
Reverse Retro Jerseys
The players have spoken and the Kings Reverse Retro Jerseys were ranked as the second-best in the league. Trailing only Colorado’s nod to the Quebec Nordiques, the return of the forum blue and gold, combined with the 90’s era logo, was a big hit amongst the players on the ice. This seems to match up with the public perception as well, with the Kings sweater ranked in several Top 5 lists when the jerseys originally came out back in the last offseason.
Schedule
It was not Kings specific, but it was interesting nonetheless to see the players’ opinions on the hypothetical continuation of regional divisions and series scheduling. Well interesting yes, but not necessarily surprising. 1215944 Minnesota Wild
Wild sign new affiliate deal with Iowa Heartlanders of ECHL
Located in Coralville, Iowa, which is about 4 1/2 hours from St. Paul, the Heartlanders will allow the Wild to streamline their player development.
By DANE MIZUTANI | PUBLISHED: June 17, 2021 at 12:57 p.m. | UPDATED: June 17, 2021 at 3:42 p.m.
After operating a minor-league affiliate in Des Moines, Iowa, for the past six years, the Wild are growing their brand south of the border. On Thursday, the organization announced a multi-year deal with the Iowa Heartlanders of the East Coast Hockey League that will begin with the 2021-22 season.
“We are thrilled to announce a new ECHL affiliation agreement with the Iowa Heartlanders,” Wild general manager Bill Guerin said in a release. “We look forward to being a part of the Heartlanders’ inaugural season and helping grow the great sport of hockey while also having the opportunity to develop players at both the AHL and ECHL level in Iowa. This is an exciting day for our organization.”
Located in Coralville, Iowa, which is about 4 1/2 hours from St. Paul, the Heartlanders will allow the Wild to streamline their player development. The organization can now send top prospects to either the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League or the Heartlanders of the ECHL.
“We are excited to enter into this affiliation agreement with the Minnesota Wild and their AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild,” Heartlanders president Brian McKenna said in a release. “We share the Wild’s vision on player development and look forward to being a link in the development chain and helping prepare prospects for promotion within the system.”
Pioneer Press LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215945 Montreal Canadiens defence as Vegas launched a late-in-the-game charge that came one goal short of forcing overtime.
“It was good to see him back and the way he played,” Montreal head Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry is the latest in a saga of NHL coach Dominique Ducharme said. “He’s a gamer. When you get in critical postseason toughness games, he’s at his best.”
The 33-year-old Petry has been a late bloomer in hockey, an American college player who signed with the Edmonton Oilers and bounced Roy MacGregor between the minors and NHL. In 2015, the Oilers traded him to Montreal for a second-round draft pick and a conditional fifth-round pick. Each year
he improved until, in the shortened 2021 season, he was scoring at an Montreal's top-scoring defenceman in the regular season, Jeff Petry, impressive .78 points a game. right, returned to action after missing two games with dislocated fingers, Petry’s defence partner Joel Edmundson said Wednesday that Petry playing a central role in the team's Game 2 win. “has been our best defenceman all year, so obviously, when you miss a Stephen R. Sylvanie/USA TODAY Sports via Reuters guy like that, you want him back as soon as you can.”
One touch of the television remote flips you between two games, both As for the eyes, Edmundson said, “His eyes have looked like that for a involving speed, passing, shooting and goals – yet they could not week now. It’s kind of scary – but I don’t think it affected him tonight.” possibly be more different. Canadiens goaltender Carey Price agreed Petry is “scary-looking. But In the Euro 2020 soccer tournament, every brush is an assault, every he’s obviously a big part of our team and played a big game for us tumble demands writhing and grimacing in pain, the injury so severe that tonight.” the downed player may never walk again. He will need to play big games again Friday and Sunday back home in In the Stanley Cup playoffs, playing hurt and not complaining is as much Montreal. Perhaps this time he can be the superhero, as opposed to the the culture of hockey as diving is in the culture of soccer. villain his children slay.
There are moments in spring hockey that take on legendary status. And then he can head once again for Vegas, with a clear-eyed vision of Bobby Baun not only played on a broken ankle in the 1964 playoffs, but what has to be done if Montreal is to continue on. scored a crucial overtime goal in the final to propel his Toronto Maple Globe And Mail LOADED: 06.18.2021 Leafs to a Stanley Cup victory. Nearly a half-century later, it was Boston Bruins centre Gregory Campbell blocking a slapshot from Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2013 Eastern Conference final. The shot broke his leg and sent him sprawling to the ice, yet he got back to his feet and finished his shift.
Wednesday night in Las Vegas, key members of the Montreal Canadiens defence looked like they should have been waiting in emergency rather than protecting a lead that ended with a 3-2 victory over the Golden Knights. It was a must-win situation that left the semi-final series tied at one game apiece, with the teams now in Montreal for Games 3 and 4.
Team captain Shea Weber, slashed on one or both thumbs, is thought barely able to hold his stick, yet never complains, never even talks about his injuries.
The team’s top-scoring defenceman in the regular season, Jeff Petry, returned to action after missing two games with dislocated fingers. In a freak accident, his glove had become stuck in a photographers’ hole in the Plexiglas. He played wearing a specially reconstructed glove and was a major factor in the Canadiens’ victory.
“They don’t win this series if he’s not in the lineup,” Hockey Night in Canada’s Kevin Bieksa said before it was announced that Petry would be returning earlier than expected.
In fact, there was some confusion right up to game time as to whether he would be playing. When the team tweeted out its lineup during the warm- up, he wasn’t listed. But later, when the NHL published the official lineup on its media website, he was.
Shortly after the game began, a camera caught a close-up and, instantly, it was not Petry’s fingers that fans were talking about: it was his eyes.
According to Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas, Petry is suffering from “bilateral subconjunctival hemorrhage.” During Thursday’s media availability, the fiery red eyes of Petry commanded the opening question. The condition, Petry said, is “all related to the incident” that broke his fingers, but he wouldn’t elaborate any further on that.
His wife, Julie, he said, had warned their young boys that their father’s eyes were now blood red. “They didn’t want to look at me,” he said. And so, he devised a game in which he played the villain and they the superheroes who subdue the red-eyed villain.
“That got them a little relaxed,” Petry said.
He did not play the villain Wednesday night, but he did play the pivotal role expected of him. He had Montreal’s first shot on net. He assisted on Tyler Toffoli’s goal that put the Canadiens ahead 2-0. He blocked Vegas shots and had just short of 21 minutes of ice time. He knocked Golden Knights players down, none of whom writhed in pain, and was critical on 1215946 Montreal Canadiens Both Fleury and Price have had their share of luck and, in Price’s case, heartbreak. Wednesday’s victory was his first in the Stanley Cup semi- finals. It matters not that players throughout the NHL regard him as the best at his craft; until now, the teams with which he has played in Fleury, Price take the spotlight as Knights to face the Canadiens in Montreal have had too many flaws to go all the way. Montreal On Thursday, the Canadiens’ Marc Bergevin was named one of the three finalists for the award that is given annually to the NHL’s top general manager. Several moves by him in the past year paid off as the club Marty Klinkenberg eliminated the Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets.
Bergevin acquired six Stanley Cup champions through trade or free Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens looks on against the Vegas agency since September, including wingers Tyler Toffoli and Corey Perry Golden Knights during the second period in Game Two of the Stanley and centre Eric Staal. All have been excellent in the postseason. Cup Semifinals during the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena Although Vegas is only completing its fourth season, its lineup is also on June 16, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. loaded with former Stanley Cup winners. Alex Pietrangelo, who won one as the captain in St. Louis, scored both of the Golden Knights’ goals in Like so many other Canadiens fans, François Legault offered an online Game 2. salute to Carey Price late Wednesday night. The Quebec Premier thanked the Canadiens goalie, referring to him as “Jesus” after his There is no mistaking however, where the spotlight will fall as the series monumental effort in a 3-2 victory over the Golden Knights. progresses.
Price certainly was Montreal’s saviour as his overachieving team evened “It’s a great matchup,” DeBoer said of the opposing goalies. “I don’t think its series in the Stanley Cup playoffs at one win a piece. they look at it as Fleury against Price. It’s our group against their group and both goalies are a big part of each team. After one of Price’s 29 stops, Alec Martinez and Ryan Reaves of Vegas looked confused. Both peered up at the video screen on the scoreboard “I’m anticipating both guys are going to be great every night and games to confirm what they thought they had or hadn’t seen. It was the type of are going to be decided by other factors.” magic that Siegfried & Roy performed at the Mirage for years. Fleury stopped 20 of 23 shots on Wednesday. The only one he possibly Martinez was bearing down on the Canadiens net and merely had to flip misplayed was Byron’s backhand on the breakaway. To complain about a puck in from a few feet away to cut Montreal’s lead to 2-1. Fans inside it is like grousing that Mike Trout only hit a fly ball to the warning track in T-Mobile Arena rose as they anticipated a goal. The shot may have his last at-bat after hitting back-to-back homers in two previous plate caromed off Price’s right hip or pants leg or perhaps it was willed away appearances. by telekinesis, but it suddenly skittered overhead instead. Not even the Fleury came out of the net hoping to poke the puck away from the replay could explain exactly what happened. onrushing Byron, only to have it flipped over him. “I was using all of my extremities,” Price said mysteriously. He is a man “I regretted that decision as soon as I made it,” Fleury said. “I made up of so few words and so many saves. my mind too early. I shouldn’t have done that.” Paul Byron scored on a breakaway after that to put Montreal up 3-0 in Fleury, who grew up in the Montreal suburbs, is looking forward to the second period, a deficit just too large for Vegas to overcome. returning to Quebec for the next two games. Habs draw even with Golden Knights in Stanley Cup semi-final series “It will be nice,” he said. “I haven’t been back since last season before the after Game 2 win quarantine. It’s always a building that’s fun to play in.” The combatants renew acquaintances at the Bell Centre for Games 3 Everyone else should be just as excited. It’s two of the game’s most elite and 4 on Friday and Sunday and what looked improbable just a few days netminders matching their skills and wits. ago now seems within range. Despite a 4-1 thumping in Game 1, the Canadiens could head back to Las Vegas next week with the series “That’s what you want to see in the series,” said William Karlsson, a hanging in the balance. centre for Vegas,. “They are two great goalies. I’ve watched Price on TV this season and it has been a joy to watch, and I’ve had front-row seats There are more than a few members of each team that could play a role to watch [Fleury] these last couple of years. in the outcome, but none more significant than Price and Marc-André Fleury, his immensely talented counterpart with the Golden Knights. Both “It’s great to see the goalies bring a lot of show to the show.” are future Hall of Famers, and each is playing as if the clock has been turned back 10 years. Globe And Mail LOADED: 06.18.2021
Price, 33, has spent his entire career in the NHL with Montreal and is still seeking his first Stanley Cup. Fleury is 36 and attempting to win another Cup with Vegas to go along with the three he already earned in Pittsburgh.
Both have dazzled in the first two meetings, with Price stopping 55 of 61 shots for a .931 save percentage, and Fleury 48 of 52 (.923). Price withstood a barrage of pucks over the final minutes to secure Wednesday’s triumph, while Fleury stopped a handful of dangerous attempts at the beginning of Game 1 that kept the Golden Knights from falling behind.
That both have been outstanding is not a surprise, especially to Peter DeBoer. Before he became the head coach in Vegas, DeBoer watched Jaromir Jagr and Martin Brodeur from behind the bench in New Jersey and Joe Thornton in San Jose. All are certain first-ballot Hall of Famers.
He said there are big similarities between them, Fleury and Price.
“These guys have more money than they’ll ever spend in their lifetime,” DeBoer said this week. “They play because they love everything about the game, from showing up at the rink to practising, to travelling, to hanging out in the room.
“When you have done it for 20 years and show up with a smile on your face and say, ‘I want more,’ you are a rare breed. It is not an accident.” 1215947 Montreal Canadiens the injury was to the bottom hand on his stick. Petry said his hand felt good on Thursday morning.
“It responded well after a game,” said the defenceman, who logged 20:47 Stu Cowan: Canadiens' Petry looks like a villain but plays like a hero of ice time, had two shots, picked up an assist and was plus-1. “For me, it’s just a matter of I didn’t do too many battles in practice, so it was kind Defenceman didn't want to get into details about his bloodshot eyes but of taking things on the fly and seeing what worked, what didn’t and did talk about how his wife prepared their sons for his new look. overall I felt good. I have to use my skating ability, and the physical play might be a little different and using my stick, using my legs to get through
the games and to play. That’s something that I think always my best Stu Cowan Montreal Gazette asset is my legs, my skating ability, so just focusing on doing that and closing quickly.”
Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme called Petry “a gamer” and Maybe they can put a hockey villain in the next James Bond movie. added he’s a player who’s always at his best in crucial moments and in big games. Petry proved that again with his solid performance in Game He could look exactly like Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry did in Game 2. 2 of the Stanley Cup semifinal series against the Golden Knights Wednesday night in Las Vegas. The Canadiens won the game 3-2 to Petry didn’t want to get into any details about his eyes Thursday, only even the best-of-seven series 1-1 heading into Game 3 Friday at the Bell saying the condition was related to his hand injury. But he did talk about Centre (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM). how his wife prepared their three young sons for the first time they saw their father with his bloodshot eyes. Before Game 2, the big question was whether Petry would be able to return to the lineup after missing Game 1 because of what is believed to “My wife gave them a warning and they came in and didn’t want to look be two dislocated fingers on his right hand. Once Game 2 started, with at me and decided that I would be the villain and they would be the Petry playing, the bigger question became what the heck happened to superheroes and we started playing,” Petry said. “That got them to relax his eyes? and feel a little bit more comfortable now.”
Petry’s eyes were freakishly bloodshot and photos and memes of him The Canadiens looked a lot more comfortable in Game 2 with Petry back started popping up all over social media. His wife, Julie, took to on the blue line. Instagram to explain what happened. Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021 “No, it’s not pink eye,” Julie wrote. “No, it’s not a reaction to an injection, anti-inflammatory or pain medication. Look up subconjunctival hemorrhage. Pretty bad case of it due to what he’s gone thru last week. So, that should be that. Keep on with the memes, tho, they are making me laugh!”
Here’s how the Mayo Clinic describes the condition on its website:
“A subconjunctival hemorrhage occurs when a tiny blood vessel breaks just underneath the clear surface of your eye (conjunctiva). The conjunctiva can’t absorb blood very quickly, so the blood gets trapped. You may not even realize you have a subconjunctival hemorrhage until you look in the mirror and notice the white part of your eye is bright red. A subconjunctival hemorrhage often occurs without any obvious harm to your eye. Even a strong sneeze or cough can cause a blood vessel to break in the eye. You don’t need to treat it. Your symptoms may worry you. But a subconjunctival hemorrhage is usually a harmless condition that disappears within two weeks or so.”
Jeff Petry’s eyes looked like something out of a horror movie pic.twitter.com/HtKrzyIONH
— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) June 17, 2021
Sunday will mark two weeks since Petry suffered his hand injury on a freak play at the Bell Centre. Petry was being checked by the Winnipeg Jets’ Paul Stastny in Game 3 of the second-round playoff series when his right hand got stuck in the hole in the glass that is cut out so photographers shooting the game can put their camera lens through it. Petry missed Game 4 of that series, as the Canadiens completed the sweep, and Game 1 against Vegas. He was a game-time decision for Game 2.
“It’s come along,” Petry said about his hand during a video conference from Las Vegas Thursday morning before the Canadiens flew back to Montreal. “It just was something that I needed to get time. Talking with the doctors, getting a timeline and coming up with what made sense, but what was, I guess, realistic. I tried to push through and see and try more and more things in practice to see if they would be comfortable or manageable and for me it was just a matter of when I felt like I could play without hurting the team is when I gave the coaching staff and the trainers my opinion and my want to get in the lineup.”
Petry out of the game with an upper-body injury after getting his finger caught in a camera hole pic.twitter.com/iUoFvO5LEa
— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) June 7, 2021
Petry wore a special glove on his right hand designed by Patrick Langlois, the Canadiens’ assistant equipment manager, that provided extra padding while still allowing him to handle and shoot the puck since 1215948 Montreal Canadiens The Golden Knights’ puck movement and layers of screens in the offensive zone might change the overall look of expected results if accounted for properly, but we also have to add those factors for the Canadiens. What we can say is that despite the Golden Knights By the numbers: Canadiens' control of slot gives them fighting chance dominating puck possession overall in the series, the Canadiens have maintained ownership of both the slot and the inner slot, which bodes Creates an advantage for Habs in expected goals, where they’ve well. outpaced the Knights at 5-vs-5 and overall through two games, which was unexpected. This series is still an uphill battle for the Canadiens as Vegas is the toughest challenge they’ve faced and injuries are mounting, but it’s about
time this upstart team starts getting some respect. Andrew Berkshire Special to the Montreal Gazette Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021
After the Canadiens’ hot streak to start the season ended, head coach Claude Julien was fired and weeks passed without much improvement in their play, how many people — outside of the most optimistic fans — could have expected this remarkable playoff run?
The Canadiens finished 18th in the overall NHL standings, so any skepticism about their post-season success is warranted, but it’s time for even critics to give them credit.
There are a lot of folks making excuses for the Canadiens’ opponents, and there have been some fortunate breaks for Montreal. John Tavares’ scary injury in Game 1 against the Maple Leafs might have changed the course of the series, and the same goes for Mark Scheifele taking himself out of the Jets series, or Dylan DeMelo and Jake Muzzin getting injured. In Vegas, Chandler Stephenson is out day-to-day, and refrains of “another lucky break” rain down on social media.
If you look only at injuries to opponents, of course things appear tilted, but the Canadiens have battled through adversity. Carey Price and Phillip Danault were coming off concussions to start the playoffs, and Shea Weber and Brendan Gallagher are playing with hand injuries. Meanwhile Jeff Petry is playing with dislocated fingers and Jake Evans is still out with a concussion.
And few mention that the Canadiens’ co-leader in points in last year’s post-season, Jonathan Drouin, is on a personal leave.
So the narrative that the Canadiens have had all the luck in these playoffs while their two cornerstone defencemen are playing with hand injuries and two of their best offensive forwards are injured or unavailable, rings extremely hollow when scrutinized.
And after two road games against the monstrously talented Vegas Golden Knights, the idea that the North Division was just bad and the Canadiens had an easy road is also starting to fade a little bit.
The Canadiens have earned a split on the road and stolen home ice advantage through two games against the heavily favoured Golden Knights, but how have they fared when we look at the underlying numbers?
By volume metrics, the Canadiens have struggled quite a bit. They had a strong Game 2 but after a hot start in Game 1, the defence struggled mightily to move the puck without Jeff Petry for the final 40 minutes. However, despite the fact the Golden Knights have controlled nearly 60 per cent of the unblocked shots at 5-vs-5 hockey, the Canadiens have maintained a sizable advantage in high danger chances, blocking the Knights out from the net front. This might sound familiar because this is Shea Weber’s defensive style; bend but never break.
The Canadiens’ control of the slot area has in turn created an advantage for them in expected goals, where they’ve outpaced the Golden Knights at 5-vs-5 and overall through two games, which was unexpected.
The fact the Canadiens have maintained overall control of the slot and the high danger area — and even increased their advantage when accounting for special teams — is especially impressive when you consider that the Golden Knights have been awarded nearly five times the power-play time so far.
There are issues with public expected-goal models, most notably not accounting for passing. The Golden Knights, especially in Game 1, were able to move the puck through the slot repeatedly for cross-crease one- timers that beat Price a couple times, but he made several miraculous saves on others. For example, according to Evolving-Hockey’s location- based xG model, Alec Martinez’s one-timer goal in Game 1 was given an 8 per cent chance to score (0.08 xG), when it was much more likely to be about 40 per cent or higher. 1215949 Montreal Canadiens Shortly before puck drop, the Canadiens updated their tweet announcing that Petry would play.
“He was confident he was going to play, but we needed to talk to the Canadiens Notebook: Habs now hold home-ice advantage in series doctors, we needed to have the green light and after the morning skate they wanted to make sure everything was fine after warmup,” Ducharme "We’re in a good position, but there’s lot of work to do still," Dominique said. “So there’s no game there. Jeff wanted to play if he could Game 1, Ducharme says as his team returns to Montreal for Games 3 and 4. but you gotta also work with the medical staff and making sure also that he cannot injure himself more or make it worse. So there are a lot of
things. It was not playing a game; it was just making sure that everything Stu Cowan Montreal Gazette was fine and was cleared by everyone, and that was what we needed to do.”
Petry is believed to have suffered two dislocated fingers on his right hand The Canadiens now hold home-ice advantage with their Stanley Cup when he got it caught in a hole in the glass at the Bell Centre used for semifinal series against the Golden Knights becoming a best-of-five after photographers during Game 3 of the second-round playoff series against the teams split the first two games in Las Vegas. the Winnipeg Jets. Petry missed Game 4 of that series as the Canadiens completed the sweep and also missed Game 1 against the Golden Games 3 and 4 will be Friday and Sunday night at the Bell Centre and so Knights. will Game 6 next Thursday, if necessary. The Canadiens will be able to have 3,500 fans at the Bell Centre for those games, which all have 8 p.m. When Petry met with the media Thursday morning he said he knew he starts, after the Quebec health ministry increased the maximum for was going to play in Game 2 all along. indoor and outdoor venues from 2,500 this week while loosening some COVID-19 restrictions. “Yeah, I did,” he said. “I told them in the morning that I wanted to play and everything felt good. It was down to seeing how it responded after Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme said the team went to Las pushing it a little bit harder after morning skate and for me showing up to Vegas with the objective of winning at least one game. They lost Game 1 the rink, showed up at my normal time knowing that it felt good and I was by a 4-1 score on Monday before winning Game 2 by a 3-2 score on very likely to be playing.” Wednesday. Petry logged 20:47 of ice time and picked up an assist along with two “We lost the first game, but we wanted to make sure we rebounded and shots and was plus-1. left here tied 1-1,” Ducharme said Thursday morning in Las Vegas before the Canadiens flew back to Montreal. “We’re in a good position, but Merrill also returned to the lineup in Game 2, logging 12:52 of ice time, there’s lot of work to do still. That said, we’re going home and it’s good to after missing the previous seven games with an undisclosed injury. Brett have some more people in the Bell Centre. It’s certain that we’d like to Kulak and Alexander Romanov were made healthy scratches to make have a full building like it was here, but it’s not the same reality (in room for Petry and Merrill. Montreal). “We all want to contribute, we all want to be in the lineup every night, but “We want to be playing the perfect game,” the coach added. “I think it’s we’re also all committed to winning as a team and team success,” Merrill really important in a playoff round like this to build up your game and be said. “I think we’re all professionals and we understand that when the better from one game to the other, and I thought we did that against team does well it’s good for all of us. So it’s competitive. We all want to Toronto (in the first round). We did that against Winnipeg (in the second be in there, but whoever’s name is called we’re ready to go and step in round) and we want to do the same thing here where we take what we do and do whatever it takes to get this team a win.” good and duplicate that the next game, but also challenge ourselves to Forward Jake Evans is the only Canadiens player still on the injured list be better on little things. I think, again, we have done a lot of good things as he continues to recover from a concussion suffered in Game 1 against last night, but there are things that we can do better, and we’ll talk about the Jets. Evans was still wearing a non-contact jersey for Wednesday’s it and we’ll be better next game.” morning skate in Las Vegas. Canadiens defenceman Jon Merrill said it will be exciting to to return Jeff Petry s’adresse aux médias via Zoom en direct. home and play the next two games at the Bell Centre. Jeff Petry is addressing the media live via Zoom.#GoHabsGo “I know I read there’s gonna be a few more fans in the building back in https://t.co/FD1pMzYfnX Montreal, so we’re all excited to get back there and play in front of those fans and even though it’s not as many as here (in Las Vegas) I think that — Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) June 17, 2021 they’re going to be amped up and ready to go and it’ll be buzzing in there.” Special glove
Both games in Vegas had more than 17,000 fans at T-Mobile Arena. Petry wore a special glove on his right hand for Game 2 with extra padding that was designed by Patrick Langlois, the team’s assistant “This team is dedicated, it’s bought in, it’s together right now,” Merrill equipment manager. said. “Really happy with a big win last night and it’ll be a fun plane ride home today and we’ll hope to build on that going into Game 3.” “Pat, our trainer, he’s an equipment engineer,” Petry said. “You tell him what you need and you tell him what you want and he’ll find a way to get 7 hits it done. It took him no time to get that done and we played around with a couple different minor tweaks, but we got it to where I was comfortable 6 blocked shots with holding the stick and with enough padding to protect everything. I’ve 24 minutes of ice time got to give props to him for coming up with this so quickly.”
What a performance by the captain. #GoHabsGo Petry, who is a right-hand shot, uses his right hand on the bottom part of pic.twitter.com/1lCynRoSV3 his stick.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) June 17, 2021 When asked if he would have played in Game 2 if it had been a regular- season game, Petry said: “It’s hard to tell. Obviously, in a regular part of No gamesmanship? the season you can always take a little bit more time to take care of yourself and make sure that everything heals. But it is the playoffs. It is Ducharme insists there was no gamesmanship involved in the very late the most important time of the year. With any injury that you’re dealing decision to put defenceman Jeff Petry in the lineup for Game 2. with, you’re trying to cut the timeline down and get out there as quick as After Wednesday’s morning skate, Ducharme said it would be a game- possible.” time decision on whether Petry would be in the lineup after he had Canadiens captain Shea Weber is also apparently dealing with an injury, missed the previous two games with an injury to his right hand. After the which was reported to be ligament damage in his left thumb. pregame warmup, the Canadiens tweeted out their game roster and Petry’s name wasn’t on it. “He’s a guy that’s battled through injuries the last couple of years, and to see the competitiveness and his wanting to be on the ice …,” Petry said about Weber. “There’s guys on our team, other teams that are dealing with injuries and this is the time of the year that it’s important to get out there and play through it if you’re able. It’s obviously the biggest time of the year, so I wanted to do everything in my power to get back and to get back as quickly as I could.”
Au Québec, nous sommes prêt(e)s pour du hockey ! Prêt pour le retour du hockey mineur, prêt pour le prochain match des @CanadiensMTL !
Vous avez été plusieurs à nous parvenir des vidéos toutes plus originales les unes que les autres. MERCI!
Êtes-vous prêts? pic.twitter.com/IF7fdX9ZWw
— Hockey Québec (@HockeyQuebec) June 14, 2021
The fourth line?
The Canadiens are now 9-1 in the playoffs and have won eight straight when they score the first goal of a game. In Game 2 against Vegas, it was Joel Armia who put the Canadiens on the board first at 6:12 of the first period.
Armia has been a force in the playoffs while playing on the fourth line with Corey Perry and Eric Staal. Armia is tied with Tyler Toffoli for the team lead in playoff goals with five and also has three assists in 13 playoff games. Perry has 3-5-8 totals and Staal has 1-6-7 totals.
“I don’t know if it’s a fourth line,” Ducharme said. “I think we can call it Staalsy’s line and they’ve been great for us. The way they protect the puck, they give a lot of momentum to our team. They’re giving other teams heavy shifts. They’re hard to play against, they protect the puck really well and they get rewarded with big goals. So I like what they do for our team and those guys are experienced at the same time. So I think they’re going to keep having a good impact on our game.”
.@catbtoffoli and @sarahabyron’s phones must have been blowing up last night. #GoHabsGo | @scotiahockey | @RONAinc | @FordCanada pic.twitter.com/twpfjrbrVU
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) June 17, 2021
PK on a roll
The Canadiens’ penalty-killers killed off both Vegas power-plays in Game 2 after killing off all four Golden Knights power plays in Game 1. The Canadiens have now killed off 21 straight power plays over the last nine games and have a league-best 91.9 per cent success rate in the playoffs.
The Canadiens went 1-for-3 on the power play in Game 1 with Cole Caufield scoring the team’s only goal of the game with the man advantage. In Game 2, the Golden Knights didn’t take any penalties.
“They were clean last night,” Ducharme said while appearing to bite his lip. “They were really clean.”
The Canadiens power play is clicking at 20 per cent during the playoffs.
Series schedule
Here’s the rest of the schedule for this series:
Game 3: Friday, June 18, at Montreal, 8 p.m.
Game 4: Sunday, June 20, at Montreal, 8 p.m.
Game 5: Tuesday, June 22, at Las Vegas, 9 p.m. x-Game 6: Thursday, June 24, at Montreal, 8 p.m. x-Game 7: Saturday, June 26, at Las Vegas, 8 p.m. x-if necessary
Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215950 Montreal Canadiens The Jim Gregory Award has been presented annually since the 2009-10 season and no Canadiens GM has won it. Lamoriello was the winner last season.
Montreal Canadiens' Marc Bergevin nominated for NHL's GM of the Year Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021 Award
This is his third time as a finalist for the award in his nine seasons as the Habs' GM.
Stu Cowan Montreal Gazette
Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin might want to wear his lucky red suit again when the NHL hands out its awards at the end of the season.
The league announced Thursday that Bergevin is one of three finalists for the Jim Gregory Award as the top GM for the 2020-21 season. Lou Lamoriello of the New York Islanders and Bill Zito of the Florida Panthers are the other two finalists.
This marks the third time Bergevin has been nominated for the award since taking over as GM of the Canadiens in 2012. NHL general managers and a panel of NHL executives, print and broadcast media vote for the Jim Gregory Award at the conclusion of the second round of the playoffs with the top three vote-getters being named finalists. If the voting had been done at the end of the regular season, it’s pretty certain Bergevin wouldn’t have been a finalist.
“This nomination makes me very proud, especially since it was voted by my peers,” Bergevin said. “I want to recognize the remarkable work of all the members of the organization, coaches and players, who dealt with an extremely difficult schedule with such professionalism and who have made personal sacrifices to ensure the success of the club. This recognition is theirs as well. I’d also like to congratulate Lou and Bill for their nomination.”
Bergevin had a busy offseason last year, adding Jake Allen, Joel Edmundson, Tyler Toffoli, Corey Perry, Josh Anderson and Michael Frolik to the team while spending right up to the NHL’s US$81.5-million salary. cap. Allen, Edmundson, Toffoli, Perry and Frolik all have Stanley Cup rings and Bergevin added another Stanley Cup winner before the trade deadline when he acquired Eric Staal from the Buffalo Sabres.
The Canadiens got off to a fantastic start this season, going 7-1-2 in their first 10 games before things started to fall apart. Head coach Claude Julien and associate coach Kirk Muller were fired when the Canadiens had a 9-5-4 record, replaced by Dominique Ducharme and Alex Burrows. A week later Bergevin fired goalie coach Stéphane Waite, replacing him with Sean Burke.
After Joël Armia tested positive for COVID-19 in late February, the Canadiens were forced to play their final 25 regular-season games in 44 days and they were winless in their last five games before the playoffs, going 0-3-2 to finish fourth in the all-Canadian North Division with a 24- 21-11 record. But with a healthy team and a week off before the start of the playoffs, the Canadiens were able to eliminate the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games in the first round and then swept the Winnipeg Jets in four games, advancing to the Stanley Cup semifinals for the first time since 2014.
The Canadiens are seven wins away from their first Stanley Cup since 1993. Their semifinal series against the Vegas Golden Knights is tied 1-1 heading into Game 3 Friday at the Bell Centre (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM).
Bergevin wore what has become his lucky red suit for Game 7 against the Maple Leafs and Game 4 against the Jets.
“The guys we brought in, sometimes it does work, sometimes it doesn’t work,” Bergevin said before the start of the semifinal series. “But we knew we were bringing guys with character. Like I mentioned to our team in our first meeting in Toronto before the season started … these guys who won Stanley Cups they were not brought in here by accident, but by design. I think it’s paying off now. We have some young kids, but we have some strong leadership that have been through the battles of winning a Stanley Cup.” 1215951 Montreal Canadiens
Golden Knights at Canadiens: Five things you should know
Tyler Toffoli isn't the only Montreal Canadien riding a streak.
Pat Hickey Publishing date:Jun 17, 2021
Here are five things you should know about Game 3 of the Montreal Canadiens-Las Vegas Golden Knights best-of-seven Stanley Cup semifinal series at the Bell Centre Friday (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN-690 Radio, 98.5 FM).
Home-ice advantage: One of the keys to success in the playoffs is to win a game or two on the road and the Canadiens accomplished that with a split of the first two games in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights were the dominant team in Game 1 with a 4-1 victory, but the Canadiens bounced back Wednesday with a 3-2 win. The split gives the Canadiens the home-ice advantage for the series with three of the remaining games scheduled for the Bell Centre. Quebec health authorities have raised the cap on attendance from 2,500 to 3,500.
Canadiens on a streak: Tyler Toffoli was Montreal’s leading scorer in the regular season and he’s also leading the way in the playoffs. Toffoli scored his fifth playoff goal Wednesday and extended his consecutive- game points streak to eight games. He has five goals, including two game-winning tallies, and five assists in that run. But Toffoli isn’t the only Canadien riding a streak. Cole Caufield showed great awareness as he set up Toffoli in the high slot and he has points in four consecutive games and five of the past six games. Caufield earned a reputation as a goal-scorer in the USHL and the University of Wisconsin but he has displayed great vision on the ice and uses his skating and stick-handling abilities to make strong entries and create space.
Danault an essential worker: General manager Marc Bergevin should be putting together a new contract offer for centre Phil Danault, who is living proof that offensive numbers aren’t always a measure of a player’s value. Danault hasn’t scored a goal in the playoffs and has only two assists, but he has made his contribution by shutting down the opposition’s offensive players and winning key faceoffs. In this series, his line has limited high- scoring wingers Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty to a combined five shots on goal and no points. He won 17 of 28 faceoffs Wednesday and logged 20:42 of ice time.
Timing is everything on faceoffs: The Golden Knights have the best faceoff record in the playoffs but the Canadiens had the edge in each of the first two games. But, as coach Dominique Ducharme noted, the Canadiens have made a habit of losing defensive zone faceoffs, which have led to four of the six Vegas goals. It happened on both Vegas goals Wednesday. Nick Suzuki, who won nine of 17 faceoffs Wednesday, lost draws after the Canadiens were guilty of icing and Alex Pietrangelo made the Canadiens pay with a pair of goals.
Mind the outside: The Canadiens defence likes to push the opposition to the outside and will often concede shots from long range. But they may have to the rethink that strategy. With Pietrangelo’s brace Wednesday, the defence has accounted for five of the Golden Knights’ six goals. While the defencemen have been loading up from the outside — they combined for 18 shots in Game 1 and 13 Wednesday — Vegas has made it difficult for Carey Price by piling bodies in front of the net. On Pietrangelo’s first goal Wednesday, there were three Vegas players and two Montreal defencemen impeding the goaltender’s vision.
Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215952 Montreal Canadiens After getting outshot 12-4 in the previous period, Vegas had 10 shots to Montreal’s four in the second. And yet it was Montreal who briefly had the frame’s only goal when Paul Byron picked up a loose puck at the blue line off a Jesperi Kotkaniemi chip, skated it in and placed a backhander About Last Night: Bet on red! Habs win Game 2 in Jeff Petry's return over a sprawling Fleury to make it 3-0.
The Montreal Canadiens evened their third-round playoff series against Paul Byron in all alone to make it 3-0 Canadiens! #ItsOn the Vegas Golden Knights with a 3-2 win Wednesday night. pic.twitter.com/ySvztCe1zn
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 17, 2021
Erik Leijon Special to Montreal Gazette The three-goal lead was short-lived. Just over a minute later, Vegas won an offensive zone draw and sent it back to Alex Pietrangelo, who wired it
through traffic and past Price to make it 3-1. It’s how the second period The Montreal Canadiens hung on to win 3-2 and even their third-round ended. A skirmish along the boards between Corey Perry, Eric Staal, series against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2 on Wednesday. William Carrier and Ryan Reaves with time winding down only increased Carey Price weathered an offensive onslaught in the second and third the tension further as both squads returned to their dressing rooms. period, making 25 of 27 saves (and 29 total) in the victory. Alex Pietrangelo through traffic! The Golden Knights are on the The Canadiens opened the game with a Sin City sleight of hand worthy board.#ItsOn pic.twitter.com/OnRp7k2y0o of Penn and Teller. After announcing their starting lineup, they quickly — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 17, 2021 amended it to include Jeff Petry in Brett Kulak’s place. It caught everyone by surprise. Even more shocking was Petry’s appearance coming onto In the third period, the Canadiens hung on while the Golden Knights the ice. pressed. Headstrong Alex Tuch missed two chances bolting down the sides with speed, looking up in frustration both times. At the other end, Bruh. pic.twitter.com/IPpdH1wlGc Nick Suzuki deked out the Vegas defender one-on-one and got two shots — BobbyLotsOfNumbers (@TheReplayGuy) June 17, 2021 on Fleury. After an icing by the Habs, Vegas found themselves with yet another all-important offensive zone draw. They won it, sent it back to In addition to the red eyes, Petry was also sporting a four-fingered glove Jonathan Marchessault, who found Pietrangelo moving toward the net. in his return to the ice after missing the last two games. The eye doctors Pietrangelo received the pass and scored his second of the night to pull in the house concluded it was a subconjunctival hemorrhage, but it’s his team within one with just over five minutes remaining. supposedly rare to get it in both eyes. He wasn’t the only returning Hab: Jon Merrill came back from his unknown injury to replace Alexander Pietrangelo makes it a one-goal game! #ItsOn Romanov in the lineup. For the Golden Knights, top line centre Chandler pic.twitter.com/f84VUHBLIz Stephenson was an unexpected scratch. — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 17, 2021 The Habs got off to a similarly fast start as in Game 1, only this time it led A former Hab turned astute analyst Mike Johnson has seen this play to movement on the scoreboard. After hard work down low by the fourth before… line, Joel Armia was the recipient of a bouncing puck from Joel Edmundson. Armia finished in the open net to make it 1-0. How many times do the Habs need to see that faceoff play run to Pietrangelo before the left winger just hangs in slot to take passing lane ICEBREAKER! away? The @CanadiensMTL have the early lead. #GoHabsGo | #StanleyCup — Mike Johnson (@mike_p_johnson) June 17, 2021 pic.twitter.com/HxFTCqlIeM Just before pulling the goalie, Mark Stone had a wide open net backdoor, — NHL on NBC Sports (@NHLonNBCSports) June 17, 2021 but a diving Toffoli intercepted the pass to protect Montreal’s lead. With under five minutes remaining in the first, the Habs added to their Behind the Habs net with time running out, William Karlsson cross- lead. After an icing, the Habs won the draw. The puck went back to Petry checked Edmundson into the boards. The defenceman went down and on the blue line, who patiently found Cole Caufield nearby. The rookie drew a whistle, but no penalty was called. In the final seconds, Weber showed some patience of his own in finding Tyler Toffoli, who didn’t get stood tall for his team, using his stick to deflect a centring pass to all of his one-timer, but it was enough to fool Marc-André Fleury to make Karlsson, then blocking a shot by Pietrangelo with his hand. The it 2-0. The Toffoli/Caufield combination is starting to make history: Canadiens gave up 17 shots in the third period, but managed to skate Toffoli’s eight-game playoff point streak is behind only Guy Lafleur and away with the 3-2 victory. Price is now 9-4 in these playoffs, besting his Larry Robinson (both at nine) in franchise history, while Caufield is only previous win total of eight in 2014. the second 20-year-old in team history to have points in four straight The Canadiens return home with the series tied. They’ll play in front of playoff games (Shayne Corson did it in six). 3,500 on Friday and Sunday. Although the number pales in comparison Caufield Toffoli = to the nearly 18,000 at T-Mobile Arena, there was an audible Montreal contingent rooting them on in Vegas, including a certain Hall of Fame The @CanadiensMTL mean business in Game 2. #GoHabsGo | baseball player: #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/DO9X5P1cK7 Let's bring it home here in the third period, guys. Enjoying the game with — NHL on NBC Sports (@NHLonNBCSports) June 17, 2021 the family, cheering on my favorite hockey team. #gohabsgo@CanadiensMTL pic.twitter.com/nyG1hLevT0 The strong first period was a continuation of their previous rounds and a reversal of Game 1 against Vegas. The Habs have outscored their — Tim Raines (@TimRaines30) June 17, 2021 opponents 12-3 in the first period in 14 games so far in these playoffs. With last night’s win, the Habs are 6-0 when leading after the first and 9-1 The Habs will need to be rock solid at home (see what I did there) for the when scoring first. Four shots in the first also tied a season-low for the next two games. The Liveblog commenters noticed there were no Golden Knights. penalties called against the Golden Knights. What gives?
Vegas came on strong in the second. Max Pacioretty was sent in alone 3. “Great win! Now back home to take care of business. Karlsson on a stretch pass and rang one off the post. Then Alec Martinez thought deserves 5 games for that hit from behind on Eddie! C’Mon REF! Make he had scored on Price, but the goalie actually slid across to make the that call! GHG! IN CAREY WE TRUST!” -Alex Polidoro last-second stop. 2. “Don’t know about you, but this Vegas pre-game show is ridiculous. Carey Price. That's it. That's the tweet. #ItsOn Just too much.” -Denis Pelletier pic.twitter.com/fZcvsNWBms 1. “Gutsy road effort. They found a way to steal one there, but at this — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 17, 2021 point all that matters is the W. Really was not easy, but they did it. Ridiculous the refs didn’t call a penalty against Karlsson for that Edmundson hit. 0 penalties against the Knights tonight.” -James Toth Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.18.2021 1215953 Montreal Canadiens “It has no effect whatsoever on the functioning of his eyes,” he said. “He will see. The vision will be unaffected. His eye movements will be unaffected. It really is no issue.”
‘It just looks like hell’: What’s going on with the Canadiens’ Jeff Petry’s There was still the potential for it to become an issue for the father of ‘scary-looking’ eyes young children, though.
“Kids were at school when I came home,” Petry said, as relayed by The Canadian Press. “(They) didn’t want to look at me and decided that I By Sean Fitz-Gerald Jun 17, 2021 would be the villain and they’d be the super heroes and we started playing.
“That got them to relax and feel a little bit more comfortable.” More often than not, Dr. Patrick Tracey said the scenario unfolds like this: A patient wakes up and makes their way to the mirror, where they notice Fans celebrate hockey players who skate with stitches in their face and their eye has suddenly, and inexplicably, turned an unsettling shade of aches in their bones. Why was there such a commotion over the state of red. his eyes?
They call his office in a panic. “It’s just the psychology of your eyes, and how important your vision is to you,” said Tracey. “If you suddenly look in the mirror one day, and the “They come in,” he said, “and sure enough, it’s just a subconjunctival whole half of the white part of your eye is beet red, then you’re thinking, hemorrhage.” ‘What on earth is happening here?’” The term found its way into the spotlight — an unsettling red spotlight — It could happen to a football player, he said, if an opponent’s finger on Wednesday night when Montreal Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry slipped through their facemask and poked them in the eye. In hockey, it returned to the ice for Game 2 of his team’s playoff series with the Vegas could be caused by a high stick — though the consequences of that Golden Knights. The focus was supposed to be on his injured right hand, could be much more severe. but it landed instead on his eyes. “If I look at the players on the ice, and I look at the position of those They were both a deep blood red, a look possibly made even more visors, they’re up so high — their eyes are not protected,” said Tracey. “I dramatic by the bright lights of the arena. Television cameras relayed the really worry about that. And my god, if I was the owner of the team, it’s Images, and social media shuddered. Goaltender Carey Price — a man just basic workplace safety.” who chooses his words carefully — called the eyes “scary-looking.” A Sportsnet reporter on the scene relayed word of the diagnosed And a subconjunctival hemorrhage? hemorrhage. “It just looks like hell,” he said. “But it doesn’t really pose any problem.” Tracey is an optometrist who works with the Toronto Argonauts, and has a background with both the San Jose Sharks and then-Oakland Raiders. The Athletic LOADED: 06.18.2021 He said the condition is not nearly as frightening as it looks or sounds.
JEFF PETRY'S EYES ARE LEGITIMATELY BLOODSHOT PIC.TWITTER.COM/LHB73LOJOT
— OMAR (@TICTACTOMAR) JUNE 17, 2021
“If you happen to break a little blood vessel on the white part of the eye — and if it bleeds — it just spreads,” he said. “It’s like putting ink on a flat surface and then putting a piece of plastic on top of it. It will just spread underneath it.”
He chuckled.
“It looks like something out of a horror movie,” he said. “But it’s pretty innocuous and not really an issue.”
Petry did not offer much insight during a conversation with reporters. The 33-year-old missed Game 1 of the best-of-seven Stanley Cup semifinal series with an undisclosed hand injury. He caught his right hand in the glass — in a cutout meant for a photographer’s lens — in Game 3 of the previous series, a sweep of the Winnipeg Jets.
His wife, Julie, addressed his eyes on social media. In a post on Instagram, she wrote it was not due to allergies, fatigue or the result of a “couple nights in Vegas.”
“All related to his ‘upper body injury,’” she wrote. “But let me tell you he looks a lot better than he did a week ago.”
Depending on just how much bleeding was involved, Tracey said the condition will tend to settle down with help from gravity. He said the blood would eventually be absorbed into the surrounding tissue and that the red would fade, likely turning light yellow before returning to normal.
A person could take a week or two to completely recover.
“We see it in elderly people who may be on blood thinners and who maybe strain too hard when they’re on the toilet, or they sneeze too hard or cough too hard,” he said. “If you’re sick to your stomach and you retch, that sudden pressure surge can break a little blood vessel on the eye.”
Tracey, who practises out of Queensway Optometric Centre, in Mississauga, Ont., said the hemorrhage does not cause pain. He said it would not impede a player’s vision on the ice. 1215954 New York Islanders “We gotta keep putting the puck to the net,” Casey Cizikas said. “That’s when you get the chances and the second opportunities.”
In addition to the photographer’s first period defense, for example, the Lightning have it too easy in Game 3 Islanders’ loss Isles got help on their goal from the same lucky corner boards. A fortunate bounce on a Greene dump-in allowed Cizikas to retrieve the puck behind the net and feed Martin in front.
By PAT LEONARD Then a Lightning defenseman tried to tuck the puck under Vasilevskiy’s pad for a whistle, and that’s when Clutterbuck “just shoveled until it went
in.” The Tampa Bay Lightning probably weren’t expecting the photographers Martin insisted the quick Lightning answer for the final score didn’t get to get in on the Islanders’ home ice advantage Thursday night, but this is the Isles down. Nassau Coliseum in its final NHL season. “We’re a veteran team,” he said. “I think we try to brush off anything that Anything goes. comes our way... We’re always gonna play with confidence because we The Lightning were leading and buzzing in the offensive zone late in the believe we’re a good team.” first period when the referee stopped play and pointed to the corner But while there was some atmosphere here on Thursday, with Jets guard boards. A cameraman had poked his lens too far through his allotted slot and new Islanders celebrity fan Dan Feeney chugging beers and and interfered with the puck. slamming the cans on his head to get the 12,978 going, the magic and Tampa agitator Patrick Maroon skated on for the ensuing faceoff and the consistent intensity were missing. gestured toward the corner in frustration. Maroon was greeted by about Two straight losses now have followed the Isles’ dominant Game 1 road 30 middle fingers from the fans above. victory. They have Saturday night at the Coliseum to take it up a notch Unfortunately, the Islanders on the ice didn’t give the Lightning as hard of and stop the bleeding before it’s too late. a time in a 2-1 Game 3 loss that didn’t feel that close. New York Daily News LOADED: 06.18.2021 The Isles didn’t dial up consistent playoff intensity until midway through the second period, led by forwards Kyle Palmieri and J-G Pageau.
And though Cal Clutterbuck jammed home a Matt Martin rebound to tie the game at one apiece at 17:01 of the second, the Lightning’s Brayden Point answered at 19:40 through a crowd of bodies just as a Tampa power play expired.
The Isles generated some quality third-period chances, but Leo Komarov couldn’t finish two on the doorstep, and the Islanders failed to register a single shot on Andrei Vasilevskiy for the final 1:47 that Semyon Varlamov was pulled for the extra attacker.
“They’re Stanley Cup champions. They’ve been in these situations,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said of the Lightning. “We tried. We just have to get more pucks, get inside. We had some chances and made some key saves. I thought we were pretty good defensively, as well. A lot of what they got, I thought we gave it to them.”
Trotz wasn’t referring to the game-winning goal from Point off a Victor Hedman rebound. The Lightning’s preceding power play had been earned on a questionable interference call against Adam Pelech drawn by Nikita Kucherov.
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“I didn’t think there was much there at all,” Trotz said of the penalty.
But the Lightning had too easy of a time in the first period, including Yanni Gourde’s goal at 10:05 to open scoring, when Blake Coleman outworked Isles defenseman Noah Dobson to his own rebound behind the net and threw one off Nick Leddy’s skate in front to his teammate.
On the day that the Isles’ Lou Lamoriello was named a finalist for the Jim Gregory Award as the NHL’s top GM, his deadline acquisition Palmieri was terrific.
But Brock Nelson’s line with Josh Bailey and Anthony Beauvillier got absolutely nothing going, putting just two shots on goal all night.
“I thought we had four lines for parts of the game but not all the game,” Trotz said.
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And though top center Mathew Barzal was buzzing on the puck most of the night, the Lightning were able to calmly back up and mostly keep the puck in front.
Barzal had one glorious chance late in the second period off a pass from Andy Greene and either missed the open net or grazed the post.
Only when Palmieri, Martin and the bottom six forwards crashed the net with the puck and their bodies did they make life hard on Vasilevskiy. The Islanders actually outshot Tampa, 28-25, but it didn’t feel that way. 1215955 New York Islanders “We’re going to keep firing pucks at the net, that’s when we get our chances and get the second opportunities,” said Casey Cizikas, whose fine game included a hard-work assist on the Clutterbuck goal. “We’ve got to find the way to get it past the first guy.” Referee helps doom Islanders with phantom Adam Pelech penalty The Islanders for the most part clamped down on the Point line in this game that resembled a Big 10 Woody Hayes-era cloud of dust game. Kucherov did not have a lot of space. Neither did Ondrej Palat. Steven By Larry Brooks June 17, 2021 | 11:44pm | Stamkos, the target of, well, Barnyard chants, was held in check.
But the home boys just couldn’t find any space. The Lightning were You can’t make it up. unyielding. Even when the Islanders were able to get onto the attack, they couldn’t create. They couldn’t generate off the rush. For the most Except that one of the fine referees working Thursday’s Game 3 of the part, they couldn’t make accurate passes to even generate a rush game. Stanley Cup semifinals at the Coliseum did just that. It was like the traffic on the Northern State.
Eric Furlatt made up a make-up call late in the second period, whistling Barzal had a 24-11 edge in five-on-five attempts while on the ice but Adam Pelech off the ice for an arbitrary interference infraction after the could never quite tee it up. His 79.9 percent expected goals for casts defenseman had briefly become entangled with Nikita Kucherov away doubt on the worth of the stat, but the Islanders did have zone time with from the play. It’s the kind of interaction that happens a dozen times a No. 13 on the ice. And the Identity Line did its job, repeatedly getting to game. the front.
But at that point, at 17:38, the Lightning hadn’t had a power play. The But the Anthony Beauvillier-Brock Nelson-Josh Bailey unit, the one that Islanders had one. So Furlatt consulted his game-management guide the team had leaned on the last two playoff seasons, suffered for the and sent Pelech off just 37 seconds after Cal Clutterbuck had banged second straight game. The Islanders need more from Beauvillier, who one in off one of the match’s thousands of goalmouth scrambles to bring Trotz said “needs to fight for more inches.” They also need more from his team level at 1-1. Kyle Palmieri.
“I didn’t think there was much there, at all,” head coach Barry Trotz said. The Islanders went toe-to-toe with the champs. They were hanging in. “But you’ve got to fight through those things, and we did. It was just the They were even late in the second. few seconds at the end.” You couldn’t make it up. The Islanders did kill it off, but it was only four seconds after Pelech gained his work release and could join the play that Brayden Point found But then Furlatt did. a loose puck in front while falling to the ice and somehow snaked it New York Post LOADED: 06.18.2021 through Semyon Varlamov at 19:42 for the 2-1 lead that held until the final buzzer.
The Islanders are a no-excuse team. Trotz did not pound the podium and, unsolicited, blurt out his opinion of the penalty. He was asked about it late in the Zoom session. The call did not necessarily cost the Islanders the game, for who knows if they would have been able to produce a second goal against Tampa Bay’s defensive wall even had the match continued into the weekend.