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SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEF NHL 11/9/2019 1160522 Ducks coach Dallas Eakins balancing team’s rest and 1160557 Avalanche to face Columbus in two-game series in work needs Finland next season 1160558 Avalanche defenseman Nikita Zadorov out indefinitely after taking puck to the face against Predators 1160523 Chess moves: Coyotes’ Nick Schmaltz putting offense on 1160559 And that makes five: Nikita Zadorov becomes latest to join display Avs’ growing list of injured players 1160524 Penalties, special teams bite Coyotes in loss to Blue 1160560 Avs injury list grows as Nikita Zadorov now out indefinitely Jackets 1160525 Neutral Zone: Barrett Hayton is staying, but it’s not as Columbus Blue Jackets definitive as it sounds 1160561 Blue Jackets, Colorado Avalanche will play two games in Finland in 2020 1160562 Blue Jackets 3, Coyotes 2 | 3-2-1 breakdown 1160526 Slow to start, Bruins succumb to lowly Red Wings 1160563 Blue Jackets use highlight reel to find motivation 1160527 Bruins to open 2020-21 season in Czech Republic against 1160564 Blue Jackets headed to Helsinki in 2020 for two games vs. Nashville Avalanche 1160529 Bruins lose to the last-place Red Wings 1160530 Bruins are headed back to Europe 1160531 Talking Points from Bruins' 4-2 loss to Red Wings: Boston 1160565 Detroit Red Wings get quick result from newcomer Robby suffers worst loss yet Fabbri in 4-2 win over Bruins 1160532 Zach Senyshyn finally getting his with Bruins, and so 1160566 Detroit Red Wings' Robby Fabbri scores twice in debut vs. far, so good Boston Bruins 1160533 Jake Allen imitated Tuukka Rask to provide Blues with 1160567 Detroit Red Wings to newcomer Robby Fabbri: Grab this insight during Cup Final opportunity 1160534 Bruins to open 2010-21 season in David Pastrnak's home 1160568 Game recap: Detroit Red Wings defeat Boston Bruins, 4-2 country 1160569 Instant impact: Robby Fabbri scores twice in debut, helps 1160535 Peer-to-peer network: 10 tips the Bruins staff have for Wings top Bruins youth coaches 1160570 'Excited to be here': Robby Fabbri looks forward to fresh start with Red Wings 1160571 Robby Fabbri scores twice in victorious Red Wings debut 1160536 Stockholm Scenes: City Hall, site of the Nobel Prize 1160572 Red Wings hope Robby Fabbri provides offense, helps banquet power play 1160537 Sabres game day: Looking for revenge against the 1160573 How to watch, listen and stream Detroit Red Wings vs. Lightning Boston Bruins 1160538 'A dream come true': Czech-Slovak Sabres fans cheer for 1160574 Fabbri scores twice in 1st game, Red Wings beat Bruins their team in Stockholm 4-2 1160539 abres' Rasmus Dahlin thrilled by first meeting with 1160575 Separating fact from feeling with the Red Wings Swedish legend Nicklas Lidstrom 1160540 Stockholm Scenes: Vasa Museum showcases warship's salvage, restoration 1160576 Oilers stick a fork in the 1160541 Swedish legend Nicklas Lidstrom on Rasmus Dahlin: 'He's 1160577 Oilers Adam Larsson is anxious for return to a mature player for his age' lineup 1160542 One lost forward, two steps back: Sabres stumble in 1160578 Edmonton Oilers among 's greatest teams Sweden and have a decision to make after Vladimir in new Ken Dryden book Sobotka’ 1160579 Taylor Hall reflects on his Edmonton Oilers past (and future?) 1160580 Edmonton Oilers Game Day: Taylor Hall and New Jersey 1160543 Flames anxious to stack up against champs Devils come to town 1160544 On After Hours, a prime chance to see inside David 1160581 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins shines, mad props for Leon Rittich's world Draisaitl and more to like as the Oilers beat the Devils 1160545 State of the Flames: An analytic dive into the 2019-20 1160582 What inexperienced defencemen like the Oilers’ Joel season so far Persson must do to gain their coach’s confidence 1160583 Lowetide: Oilers are closer to having an effective second line than a year ago, but few have noticed 1160546 Carolina faces Ottawa on 3-game slide 1160547 It ‘sucks to lose like that,’ but the new-look Hurricanes needed a reminder that nothing comes easy 1160584 After missing seven games, one of the Panthers’ top players is ‘going full speed again’ 1160585 ‘The misfits’: How the Florida Panthers found a pair of 1160548 3 things to come out of Blackhawks practice Friday, NHL defenseman at the bottom of the 2013 draft including Olli Maatta and Adam Boqvist having surprising s Kings 1160549 Film study: Blackhawks’ offensive-zone entries much 1160586 Kings look to avoid Canadian sweep in improved against Canucks 1160587 Meet Aidan Dudas, the tiny Kings prospect who just keeps 1160550 Patrick Kane, Andrew Shaw full of jokes after rare win overcoming 1160552 Jeremy Colliton enters crucial period of his Blackhawks 1160588 WAKING UP WITH THE KINGS: NOVEMBER 8 coaching tenure 1160553 Pittsburgh hosts Chicago after overtime victory 1160554 Kubalik eager to get off the sideline, back on the ice 1160555 Why Connor Murphy is the most valuable defenseman on the Blackhawks 1160556 Why it's important for Blackhawks to go on a run quickly San Jose Sharks 1160589 Wild's Zach Parise grateful for scoring chances, regretful 1160626 What Mario Ferraro, Pete DeBoer said about Dylan about misses Gambrell’s first pro fight 1160590 Wild-Arizona game preview 1160627 Sharks’ Pete DeBoer has no concerns about lawsuit 1160591 Wild Devan Dubnyk on 2-7-1 skid: ‘It’s not fun’ facing Evander Kane 1160592 Wild upset with officials after ’s five-minute 1160628 Sharks avert total collapse, but a much tougher test awaits major 1160629 Sharks' lack of killer instinct shows there's still work to be done 1160630 Sharks takeaways: What we learned in San Jose's crazy 1160593 Hickey on hockey: Finding time for Habs' rookies a 6-5 win vs. Wild challenge for Julien 1160631 Sharks' Evander Kane returns to game after nasty slash 1160594 What the Puck: Canadiens struggling to find an identity from Wild player 1160595 What Melnick Thinks: A reminder of a time when booing 1160632 What to expect in Evander Kane’s unpaid gambling debt the Bruins’ top defenceman meant something case 1160596 Carey Price can still steal games and that’s good because these Canadiens will need him to St Louis Blues 1160633 Blues notebook: A debut to remember for Fabbri in Detroit Nashville Predators 1160634 Preview: Blues at Calgary 1160597 Nashville Predators to play in , open NHL 1160635 Fellow Swede Sundqvist takes new Blue de la Rose under 2020-21 season in Czech Republic his wings 1160598 What the heck happened to the Predators in Denver? 1160636 (Updated) De la Rose begins his Blues' tenure on third line New Jersey Devils 1160599 Devils unravel in 2nd straight road loss to Oilers 1160600 Devils’ lines, pairings vs. Oilers (11/8/19) | Jesper Bratt 1160637 Kucherov scores, Lightning top Sabres in Sweden back as lineup gets shakeup 1160638 Lightning put together a complete game to beat Buffalo in 1160601 Devils prospects update: Ty Smith, Brett Seney, Tyce Sweden Thompson off to strong starts in 2019-20 1160639 follows other stars’ path from their shared 1160602 NJ Devils spectator hit by puck during 2017 game files hometown lawsuit against team 1160603 Devils come up empty vs. Oilers 1160640 The Leafs’ power play needs to change things up to find sustainable success 1160604 Isles closing in on being at full strength again 1160641 Saturday NHL game preview: at 1160605 10 snapshots from 10 straight wins: What we’ve learned Toronto Maple Leafs about the Islanders early on 1160642 Maple Leafs expect an offensive boost from the Marner-Tavares reunion 1160643 It’s time to drop the ‘fire Mike Babcock’ narrative. Now it’s 1160606 Why the Rangers’ inconsistency might be around for a about the players while 1160644 SNAPSHOTS: Maple Leafs vow to fix power play 1160607 David Quinn’s power-play shuffling paying off for Rangers 1160608 Scoring change credits Filip Chytil with winner for Rangers 1160658 Canucks recall defenceman Jalen Chatfield from Utica Ottawa Senators Comets 1160609 GAME DAY: Carolina Hurricanes at Ottawa Senators 1160659 Canucks notes: Vancouver trying to rewrite recent 1160610 SNAPSHOTS: Senators' Artem Anisimov back on the November history shelf and he could be awhile 1160660 Canucks fans' 'torture' started right away with legal battle 1160611 It's back to Anders Nilsson as Ottawa faces the over NHL entry Hurricanes 1160661 Name change: Burnaby 8-Rinks now called Scotia Barn 1160612 GARRIOCH: Nick Paul has finally found himself a regular 1160662 Jets 4, Canucks 1: Better effort, but Vancouver heads spot with the Senators home after turbulence on the road 1160613 Nichols: Why the Senators should think about trading 1160663 Canucks Game Day: Jets having a devil of a time, but Jean-Gabriel Pageau Hellebuyck props them up Philadelphia Flyers 1160614 Young Flyers have stepped up and energized team | Sam 1160645 Ryan Reaves ready to renew rivalry with Washington’s Carchidi Tom Wilson 1160615 Flyers rookie Carsen Twarynski talks shot and 1160646 Golden Knights’ VP of entertainment Jonny Greco steps ‘three-month training camp’ down 1160616 How Flyers' fourth-line carousel has continued with Andy 1160647 Golden Knights’ Cody Glass proving he belongs in NHL Andreoff called up, Mikhail Vorobyev sent down 1160648 Golden Knights Entertainment Chief Greco Leaving VGK 1160617 Joel Farabee on the verge of a milestone and more seem For New York likely 1160618 10 things: Flyers nearly waste strong effort vs. Canadiens but come through in OT; crushing injury for Samuel 1160649 Capitals’ penalty kill is excelling as it plays with controlled aggression 1160650 The Capitals look like a team intent on reclaiming the 1160619 Penguins’ Kris Letang ‘week-to-week’ with lower-body Stanley Cup injury 1160651 For Nicklas Backstrom, Hockey Fights Cancer Month is 1160620 Jared McCann, Penguins benefit from shaking up lines personal to his family 1160621 First Call: Penguins’ schedule eases up; Raiders’ win bad 1160652 ‘It was special’: Nicklas Backstrom weighs in on for Steelers; Stephen A. Smith’s huge contract connection between Capitals and Nationals 1160622 Alex Galchenyuk's search for elusive first as a Penguin continues 1160623 Penguins' Kris Letang 'week-to-week' with injury 1160624 Sidney Crosby gives his All-Star MVP car to a veteran 1160625 Veteran’s move: Why Sidney Crosby gave away the car he won as MVP of 2019 NHL All-Star Game Websites 1160664 The Athletic / Duhatschek Notebook: How NHL teams cope after losing a star to injury in a salary cap world 1160665 The Athletic / An early look at the top candidates for the 2019-20 Norris Trophy 1160666 The Athletic / USA Hockey stiffens penalties for racist, derogatory language 1160667 The Athletic / The beauty of a good night’s sleep can be elusive for many NHL players 1160668 The Athletic / Lights out: In the NHL, cigarette smoking has been virtually extinguished 1160669 The Athletic / DGB Grab Bag: Ranking that player survey, broken standings and Mike Keenan attacks a timekeeper 1160670 .ca / Oilers' win over Devils a product of depth players stepping up 1160671 Sportsnet.ca / Canucks plagued by penalties as losing streak vs. Jets continues 1160672 Sportsnet.ca / Eight NHL teams Taylor Hall could conceivably be playing for in 2020 1160673 Sportsnet.ca / What NHL goalies say about the league's first 'lacrosse-style' goal 1160674 Sportsnet.ca / Auston Matthews on pace to become Maple Leafs' next 50-goal scorer 1160675 Sportsnet.ca / Truth By Numbers: Breaking down David Pastrnak's crazy start to season 1160676 Sportsnet.ca / Next Gen Prospects: Maple Leafs' Nick Robertson excelling with Petes 1160677 TSN.CA / Five Takeaways: Canucks vs Jets 1160678 TSN.CA / The Friday Five: Montreal Canadiens have NHL's most balanced attack 1160679 USA TODAY / Nikita Kucherov's late hit knocks Vladimir Sobotka out of Lightning-Sabres game in Sweden Jets 1160653 Hellebuyck backstops Jets to 4-1 win over Canucks 1160654 A pinch of grit and a dash of speed 1160655 Survey says: these guys like Winnipeg 1160656 New-look Jets power-play ignites win over Canucks 1160657 JETS GAME DAY: Jets trot out new-look offence against surging Canucks SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129 1160522 Anaheim Ducks

Ducks coach Dallas Eakins balancing team’s rest and work needs

Four-day break gives players time to recover and provides a chance to practice on a few key aspects of their game

ELLIOTT TEAFORD

November 8, 2019 at 3:07 PM

IRVINE — When the Ducks reconvened for practice Friday morning at Great Park Ice, coach Dallas Eakins put them through a quick workout. Every drill had meaning. Every stride had a purpose. There was no sense having them skate in circles for no reason.

Fatigue became an issue during their loss Tuesday to the Minnesota Wild, when they built a two-goal lead but failed to preserve an advantage heading into the third period for the first time in nine games to start the season, falling 4-2.

It was the Ducks’ 17th game in their first 34 days, and their final contest before a four-day break between games that also included a full day off Thursday. Eakins didn’t want to push the Ducks too hard Friday, but he did want them working on important aspects of their game.

“We need to make sure we’re rested, but we need the practice time,” Eakins said.

What needs fixing? The Ducks’ power play was ranked 30th in the 31- team NHL going into Friday’s games around the league. It was only 4 for 42 (9.5 percent). By way of contrast, the Boston Bruins were No. 1 in the league with a 31.4 percent success rate (16 for 51).

So far, the four-day break has been good for the coaching staff, too.

“We’re revisiting all kinds of things as a staff,” Eakins said. “Here’s how we thought we could play. Are we accomplishing it? How does that look from this year to last year? Comparing certain stats, things like that. Are we moving in the right direction with our identity?

“It’s a great time where I touch base with every player individually.”

NHL teams often realize who they are and what they’ll become upon reaching the 20-game mark in the 82-game regular season. The 2019-20 Ducks are no exception, and Eakins and his assistants are asking questions and attempting to answer them this week.

“We’re starting to figure out what is working and what is not and who is working and who is not,” he said. “Do we need to tweak or change anything?”

GOALIE ROTATION

John Gibson has appeared in 13 of the Ducks’ 17 games. has played in five games. Although the Ducks’ schedule has been difficult to start the season, there have only been two sets of games on consecutive nights, which means Eakins has had to find starts for Miller.

Eakins said he would not play Miller only in back-to-back situations.

“We’ve kind of got a general number of games (for each),” Eakins said recently. “I’m always hesitant about games. It’s more about workload. I think a great instance of that is the Vegas game, where we struggled (in a 5-2 loss Oct. 27). John Gibson got put down for one game. He played two.”

How so?

“Just the workload in the (defensive) zone time,” Eakins explained. “It was nonstop on him. So you’ve got to be careful just going straight off games. We do have a number in our head for both of our goalies. We sat down with ‘Gibby,’ and ‘Millsy’ has a real good goal, too.

“You’ve got it, but then it’s a moving target. We’re not going to stick to it just because we talked about it. It kind of evolves as you go along. But the short answer is, no, we’re not just going to do this on back-to-back nights.”

Orange County Register: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160523 Arizona Coyotes game every night. That’s what you’ve got to do to be a good player in this league. Obviously it’s only been a month of the season, but hopefully I can keep up my play and not get too high or too low.”

Chess moves: Coyotes’ Nick Schmaltz putting offense on display Arizona Sports LOADED: 11.09.2019

MATT LAYMAN

NOVEMBER 8, 2019 AT 6:45 AM

GLENDALE, Ariz. — If one had made a wish-list over the summer of what the Coyotes needed to get into the playoffs this year, certainly more offense would’ve had to be at the top of it.

The addition of Phil Kessel was certainly expected to help that pursuit. But while Nick Schmaltz’s name wasn’t talked about as a key offseason addition — seeing as how he was on the team last year — his emergence on the Coyotes has been just as good as adding a player.

The forward only got in 17 games for Arizona after a trade from Chicago in 2018-19 before missing the rest of the season due to injury. And with 33 games with the Coyotes now under his belt, Schmaltz has 28 points for Arizona — a little shy of a point per game.

“He just brings another element to our team,” head coach Rick Tocchet said. “You’re always looking for that guy who can make something out of nothing. You figure you’ve got him and somehow he just comes out of a corner and finds those plays.

“Those elite guys can find players to put them in a Grade-A situation. Especially the last eight, nine games, he’s really found it.”

Schmaltz had 14 points the last 13 games and a three-game point streak going into Thursday’s game against Columbus. He assisted Derek Stepan on a game-winner on Monday in Edmonton and leads the Coyotes in both assists (10) and points (14).

“I think it’s like chess,” Tocchet said. “He knows when he’s going to get the puck. He knows what he’s going to do ahead of time. Sometimes you get a player, he gets [the puck], now he looks.

“[Schmaltz] kind of knows his next play before it happens.”

According to NaturalStatTrick, when Schmaltz is on the ice, the Coyotes get 59.62% of the high-danger scoring chances that occur. That’s the highest percentage of any player on the team. The Coyotes’ shooting percentage as a team is also the highest with Schmaltz on the ice.

“You’re always trying to improve on things,” Schmaltz said. “I think I can be a little bit better defensively and focus on faceoffs a little bit more. That’s a big key for puck possession, starting with the puck, especially in the offensive zone. But with the puck, I feel pretty good. I feel like I’m making good plays and still think I can shoot the puck a little bit more.”

That last item — shooting the puck more — was relayed to Tocchet, whose mannerisms following the question seemed to indicate he agreed. Tocchet then told an anecdote from the Calgary game on Tuesday in which, at one point, Schmaltz elected not to shoot on a good chance.

“He came up to me, he goes, ‘I know I should’ve shot that puck,'” Tocchet said. “But that’s something that, you know, if he shoots it another 10, 15% more, I think those are extra goals for him a year. For sure. Because he has a good shot.”

“He’s a high-end guy, right? He can make plays,” Tocchet later added. “You look at some plays he makes, ‘Wow!’ Sometimes you’ve got to be careful because now in your head, you’re thinking, ‘Oh, I can make plays.’ But there’s some times when you’ve got to shoot the puck. … A rebound here and there, your buddy will get the goal. It doesn’t mean you’re always going to score on your shot. It’s kind of the next play.”

Whether he shoots more or not is something he can work on. The hard part is solved: he has the tools to create offense. That’s been evident in his ability to dish the puck to others and set up several key goals this season.

Offense is nice. And it’s just what the Coyotes needed.

“I think I settled in pretty well in Chicago and found my game a little bit,” Schmaltz said. “But I think the biggest thing is just playing consistent every night. I think there was games where I was good and games where I wasn’t. That’s my biggest thing right now is just trying to play the same 1160524 Arizona Coyotes

Penalties, special teams bite Coyotes in loss to Blue Jackets

MATT LAYMAN

NOVEMBER 8, 2019 AT 10:31 AM

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Arizona Coyotes head coach Rick Tocchet admitted he thought his own team was the one shooting itself in the foot after its lost 3-2 to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.

“It’s just pissin’ points away,” Tocchet said. “We had Calgary up 3-1 and we had these guys, it’s 2-1. It wasn’t what Columbus was doing. It was shooting ourself in the foot.”

As Tocchet said, the Coyotes have blown a lead in back-to-back games. A lot of it came down to penalties, as Arizona took six penalties on Tuesday and four on Thursday, giving up three power play goals combined across those two games.

“Too many penalties, that’s the bottom line,” Tocchet said. “And it’s a lot of hooking and holding. Can’t win that way. Just dumb penalties.”

Penalties or not, Arizona’s game against Columbus on Thursday wasn’t a work of art. Columbus scored on a flukey bounce 0:14 in, but after Arizona outshot its opponent after a period of play, they failed to generate their first shot on goal of the second period until 8:04 into the frame (that one happened to result in a goal).

The Coyotes had a 2-1 lead, but gave it up on a power play goal and then later allowed the Blue Jackets to go up 3-2 when Kyle Capobianco blew the opportunity to clear a puck out of the zone. Instead, the puck landed on the stick of Oliver Bjorkstrand, who scored. That was the deciding goal on a crucial mistake.

Arizona got a late power play and had a 6-on-4 advantage with goaltender Darcy Kuemper pulled, but the Coyotes didn’t score. As Tocchet noted in the postgame press conference, Arizona has not been good at those 6-on-4 or 6-on-5 situations in recent years.

“We’re passing,” Tocchet said. “Somebody’s got to take the puck to the middle and shoot the puck. We keep deferring all the time, and when we do shoot, we shoot it wide and nobody’s in front of the net. It just, it wasn’t good. And I don’t know if that’s [because] we’re tired, I don’t know.

“We haven’t been a good 6-on-5 team since I’ve been here, and I don’t know — It’s starting to really bother me now.”

Then there’s the issue of the power play, which went 0-for-3 on the night and is now 0-for-11 the last three games.

“I don’t think we got enough second looks on ’em,” Nick Schmaltz said. “I think we were kind of one-and-done tonight. Didn’t really have any sustained zone time, and that’s when we’re at our best, we’re wearing teams out down low and cycling and working them when they’re tired.”

Carl Soderberg and Jakob Chychrun were the goal-scorers for Arizona.

Next up is Minnesota, who at 5-9-1 is at the bottom of its division. But Monday is the start of a back-to-back at Washington and at St. Louis, two very capable teams that will present different challenges for Arizona. And it’s not until Nov. 20 that the Coyotes get consecutive days off.

The “details,” as Tocchet often refers to them, need to be tightened up for a difficult stretch of the schedule up next.

LOOSE PUCKS

— The Coyotes were out-shot 33-32.

— Jordan Oesterle (upper-body), Jason Demers (lower-body) and Brad Richardson (upper-body) were all out of Thursday’s game. It sounded as though Oesterle and Richardson are close to returning.

Arizona Sports LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160525 Arizona Coyotes Chayka was in Russia and a handful of other European countries earlier this week to meet with the team’s European scouts and do some scouting. Sullivan is still scouting in Europe.

Neutral Zone: Barrett Hayton is staying, but it’s not as definitive as it “We try to get to Europe a couple times a year,” Chayka said. “We met sounds with some different players that we have some interest in, but all of that stuff is just future-looking and making sure we’re on track there. It’s good to get out and see those European scouts and spend some time there.” Craig Morgan Chayka declined to discuss the players he was scouting or the other Nov 8, 2019 countries he visited on a trip that was spent primarily in Russia, but Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Coyotes are one of

several teams interested in forward Alexander Barabanov, who plays for Barrett Hayton will play in his 10th NHL game — and many more this SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, a report that a source confirmed. season. He will not return to Sault Ste. Marie of the Hockey Barabanov, 25, has five goals and nine points in 22 games. He set League now that he has played No. 9. The first season of his entry-level career highs in goals (17), assists (29) and points (46) last season in 58 contract will kick in Saturday, or next week on the Coyotes’ three-game games. Barabanov is under contract through the end of the KHL season. road trip through Washington, St. Louis and Minneapolis. Goalie shuffle That’s what you wanted to hear, right — at least those of you who are not Greyhounds fans? OK, now pay attention because that is not how you In the span of about a week, goalie Adin Hill returned to the AHL’s should be framing the story. That’s now how the Coyotes are looking at Tucson Roadrunners from a leave of absence for personal reasons, the Hayton’s immediate future. Coyotes placed goaltender Erik Källgren on unconditional waivers for the purposes of terminating his contract (he cleared waivers Thursday), and “We’re not viewing it with these arbitrary numbers,” Coyotes president of they elevated Merrick Madsen from the team’s ECHL affiliate, the Rapid hockey operations John Chayka said Thursday. “Look, there are some City Rush, to Tucson, and they assigned Ivan Prosvetov to Rapid City. economic consequences for sure. We understand that. Not that those aren’t important consequences, but what’s mainly important is the Tucson GM and Coyotes assistant GM Steve Sullivan said Källgren player’s development and the team’s objectives. The nine-game mark, wasn’t happy with his situation as a seldom-used backup, so the Coyotes the 40-game mark or things like that, it’s really not the focus. It’s really granted his request. He will return to Sweden. just what’s best for him long term and what’s best for the team trying to get where we want to go.” As for the other moves, all Chayka would say at this point is that the Coyotes are “just trying to find as many development opportunities for Just as assistant general manager Steve Sullivan has said twice since our goalies to play and grow. This is a part of that plan.” the season began, Chayka reiterated that everything is still on the table with Hayton. He could be loaned to Team Canada for the World Junior Hill needs significant playing time. So does Prosvetov, so the decision to Championship in the Czech Republic next month. He could go back to send the latter to Rapid City, rather than splitting time with Hill in Tucson, Sault Ste. Marie later this season, or even after game No. 11. He could could accomplish that goal, but the Coyotes will have to secure sit in the press box for several more games this season as part of his Prosvetov’s playing time with the Rush. To date, Tyler Parks, who is not development process. a Coyotes prospect, has played six games — a fact that can’t please the Coyotes, given their affiliation. “Everything is an option,” Chayka said. “Nothing is off the table until he’s off the roster or the tournament (World Junior Championship) is being It also doesn’t solve the Eric Comrie problem. Since the Coyotes claimed played, but I wouldn’t say it’s a priority or something that we are even him off waivers from Winnipeg at the start of the season, he has considering at this stage. We don’t foresee any of that. practiced with the Coyotes but has not played. The Coyotes could assign him to Tucson for a conditioning stint, but that would only afford a short- “We feel like we have the depth and alternatives, so if he needs to take a term solution. half-step back or if he needs to play in a lower role, he can take half a step back to take a full step forward. He has done a nice job with that, The Coyotes know that if they place Comrie on waivers, he could be and he’s a mentally strong kid. If he’s not playing 18 minutes and first- claimed. It creates a difficult situation. unit power play — there are other players where I might get nervous Prosvetov, 20, continues to show promise in his first season of pro about what’s going on with their mentality — he’s still just happy to be hockey. He went 3-1 with a .944 save percentage and 1.98 goals-against progressing and working on his game every day. He’s a very process- average in four games with the Roadrunners. Hill is 4-1 with a 2.88 GAA oriented kid. Barrett is helping our team win hockey games, and we’re and a .908 save percentage. Madsen was 1-1 in two games for Rapid happy with his progress and where he’s headed.” City, including a 36-save win Wednesday.

Chayka knows there are many opinions about how the Coyotes should Gauging the Coyotes’ schedule bring Hayton along. Like Sullivan, he noted that the Coyotes have a lot more data at their disposal than others offering advice, but that doesn’t Among the many resources Hockey Reference offers are points make it a perfect science. percentage and strength-of-schedule options for every team. With teams playing different numbers of games and different schedules this early in “There’s a lot of managers you talk to and they all say that developing the season, the data points offer a deeper read on teams’ performances prospects is a stressful thing because there’s no right answer and there’s (both stats are explained on the website by simply hovering over that no ability to try things one way and then adjust and try things another,” he particular stats in the menu bar at the top of the standings). said. “Everything is unique and independent. After back-to-back losses, the Coyotes have slipped to a tie for fourth in “We talk a lot about it internally, but for me as a manager, it’s nice to be the Western Conference in points percentage. able to bring a prospect along that old slow and steady route. We don’t have to rush him. We don’t have to put him in situations where the They have played the third-most-difficult schedule behind Colorado and outcome of the game might be determined by that player. We’re afforded Dallas. The hot-starting Vancouver Canucks have played the easiest the opportunity to bring him along in what way we think is best no matter schedule. what. It’s a luxury.” Loose pucks What does that mean for the rest of the season? We’ll see. • The Coyotes power play hasn’t scored in its past three games, going for “Two injuries and he could be playing significant minutes, or I could make 0-for-11 in those three games. They had a six-on-four to end a 3-2 loss to three, four trades and all of the sudden there’s less opportunity for a lot of Columbus on Thursday that came up empty. players, including Barrett,” Chayka said. “We’ll see how things evolve and continue to shake out. At the end of the day, his play is going to “Somebody has got to take the puck to the middle and shoot the puck,” a dictate every decision, and so far his play has been really good.” frustrated coach Rick Tocchet said. “We keep deferring all the time, and then when we do shoot, we shoot it wide and nobody is in front of the Russian getaway net.” Nick Schmaltz, whom Tocchet singled out as perhaps the lone bright spot in the lineup Thursday, harped on some elements of the power play that were also missing earlier this season.

“We’re a little too much one-and-done,” he said. “We’re getting one look and then that next play after a rebound, you’ve got to control a puck and get them tired. I think if you can do that, you can make plays off of that, but if you miss the net or you don’t find the rebound and they clear it, it kind of kills the momentum.”

Two things have been noticeable of late on the power play. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is not taking charge up top the way he does when he is at the top of his game, and Clayton Keller is not showing poise with the puck on the half-wall on the opposite side from Phil Kessel. He has made some poor passes or poor decisions with the puck. You have to wonder whether Schmaltz might be a better permanent fixture opposite Kessel.

It also didn’t help Thursday that Kessel fired a couple of shots wide.

• Tocchet said center Brad Richardson (upper body) is close to returning to the lineup. If he does Saturday against the Minnesota Wild and everyone else is healthy, Tocchet will have to take a forward out of the lineup.

• The Coyotes assigned defenseman Kyle Capobianco to Tucson on Friday, a sign that either Jason Demers or Jordan Oesterle (or both) could return to the lineup.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160526 Boston Bruins Pastrnak’s doorstep lift of a Marchand feed. It looked like a guaranteed No. 16 for Pasta, but the alert Bernier gobbled it up with an alert gold glove. Good leather.

Slow to start, Bruins succumb to lowly Red Wings Boston Globe LOADED: 11.09.2019

Kevin Paul Dupont

November 8, 2019, 10:25 p.m.

DETROIT – They may be the new age Dead Wings, but they didn’t play that way here Friday night against the Bruins.

Ranked dead last in the 31-team NHL with a 4-12-1 record, the Wings made the most of a pair of Robby Fabbri power-play goals and Boston’s overall slow-to-percolate approach for a 4-2 win over the Bruins here at Little Caesars Arena.

The loss was the second in as many games for the Bruins, following their 5-4 loss to the Habs Tuesday night in Montreal. It’s the first time in 2019- ’20 that they have lost back-to-back games in regulation.

David Krejci and Torey Krug scored for the Bruins, who couldn’t rally to tie once the Wings broke a 1-1 deadlock in the first period with Fabbri’s first of two goals.

The Bruins, who are back to work Sunday night at the Garden vs the Flyers, generated a little more spark midway through the second period, but couldn’t fully buy their way back into the action.

Tuukka Rask vacated the Boston net for an extra attacker with about 2:00 remaining in regulation and Anthony Mantha stuck in an empty-net goal from along the left-wing boards with 1:28 remaining to go.

■ The Bruins started off on the right side of things, David Krejci cashing in their first shot of the night with only 1:09 ticked off the clock. His new linemate, Peter Cehlarik, set up Krecji in the middle of the right wing circle and he connected with a quick snap that beat Jonathan Bernier to the short side.

■ Brett Ritchie, struggling of late with an infected elbow, was a surprise scratch for the Bruins. He was penciled in to play on the fourth line, but he rode the far end of the press box for the night. Steve Kampfer dressed as a seventh defenseman, but by and large Cassidy spotted different forwards to play with Sean Kuraly and Chris Wagner on the fourth line.

■ Cassidy altered his D pairings slightly from the start, partnering team captain Zdeno Chara with Connor Clifton, and moving Charlie McAvoy over to a pairing with fellow BU alum Matt Grzelcyk. By the second period, he was using his more customary pairings.

■ Rare lack of discipline by the Bruins in the opening period, twice leading to minor penalties being called in their offensive zone, first to David Pastrnak (hooking) and then Brad Marchand (interference.). The Bruins killed the first, but newcomer Robby Fabbri connected on the second, pushing the Winged Wheels out to the 2-1 lead at 11:49. Nothing bugs coaches quite as much as players getting bagged on minors in their attack zone.

■ Another dumb penalty in the O zone, again by Pastrnak, only 0:28 into the second period set the stage for another power-play strike by Fabbri. Again it was Tyler Bertuzzi with the primary feed, leaving the Wings with the 3-1 lead.

■ The Wings acquired Fabbri earlier in the week from the Blues, one of many minor deals made by new Wings GM Steve Yzerman. Less than 22 minutes into his debut, Fabbri had two goals, equaling what he posted in 32 games for the Blues last season. He and Bertuzzi were regular linemates during their days together at OHL Guelph.

■ Midway through the second, with the Bruins still struggling to find their mojo, Marchand tried to jumpstart their dead battery and got into a tussle with Czech backliner Filip Hronek. Old school trick, but it appeared to work, with the Bruins plumbing some more emotion out of their well for the remainder of the period.

■ The Bruins closed within 3-2 with a power-play goal with 2:08 left in the second. Krug, working center point on the PP, closed to about 40 feet and launched a quick wrister that angled in by Bernier.

■ Bernier made his best stop of the night, a sparkler with 1:07 to go in the second, when he did the splits to cover the right post and gloved 1160527 Boston Bruins

Bruins to open 2020-21 season in Czech Republic against Nashville

Andrew Mahoney

November 8, 2019, 2:10 p.m.

The Bruins have begun their season outside of North America twice in the last decade, and both times the season ended in a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. They’ll be hoping for more of the same next year.

The announced Friday that the Bruins will open the 2020-21 season against the Nashville Predators at in Prague, Czech Republic, to headline the 2020 NHL Global Series.

The Bruins and Predators will complete their training camps in Europe, and each will play in an exhibition match against a European team. The Bruins will report to Mannheim, Germany, and play Adler Mannheim at SAP Arena, while the Predators will report to , Switzerland, and play SC Bern at PostFinance Arena.

“We have kicked off our season with international games twice in the past decade, and both times the trips have proved valuable for our team building, so we feel that this trip to Germany and the Czech Republic will be beneficial for our team,” said Bruins president Cam Neely.

“We are also looking forward to working with the NHL and the Nashville Predators to continue our collective efforts to grow the game of hockey in international markets.”

The Bruins previously played in Prague in the 2010 NHL Premiere Games, splitting a pair of contests against the Coyotes. They also played an exhibition game at the Odyssey in Belfast, Northern Ireland. That squad went on to win the Stanley Cup in June 2011.

Last season, the Bruins spent part of their preseason in China, where they faced the Calgary Flames in a pair of exhibition games.

Bruins forwards David Krejci and David Pastrnak grew up in the Czech Republic.

“Opening the season in Prague and Northern Ireland back in 2010 was a very special experience to share with my family, friends, and teammates,” said Krejci. “It was the start of a year I’ll always remember.

“Growing up in Czech, it was my dream to play in the NHL, so to be able to play in more NHL games in Europe means a lot to me personally. I think it’s great the league continues to grow the game and bring hockey to different countries all over the world.”

“I was very excited to learn that the Boston Bruins would be heading back to my home country to play in the 2020 NHL Global Series in Prague,” said Pastrnak. “I remember driving to O2 Arena as a kid to go see the Bruins play the Coyotes back in 2010 for the NHL Premiere games. The passionate fans and atmosphere were something I’ll never forget.

“I can’t wait to feel that energy again from the ice in Prague and Mannheim.”

Boston Globe LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160528 Boston Bruins could play the same way and just fill a spot. So I think it was just trying to survive in this game and move from level to level.”

The style comes with risk, and risk often can turn into big mistakes, but Bruins to open 2020-21 season in Czech Republic against Nashville Krug rarely gets caught on the wrong side of the puck, often able to negate mistakes because of his exceptional skating.

Kevin Paul Dupont “It’s a big part of my game today,” he explained. “Even when I make a mistake, I’ll go and try to make that same play the next time — November 8, 2019, 11:06 a.m. as long as it’s not egregious. Just try to be that guy that brings a swagger to a team.”

More and more, particularly at the youth and amateur levels, coaches are DETROIT — For the second time in three years, the Bruins next intolerant of risk-takers. USA Hockey in recent years has encouraged September will head overseas for a portion of training camp and then coaches to draw out player skill in small-area workouts, in hopes that the open their 2020-’21 regular season in the Czech Republic — home to drills will develop more creativity and encourage players and coaches not Black and Gold forwards David Krejci and David Pastrnak. to be as robotic, or system-driven, in games. Krug feels such creativity The NHL announced early Friday afternoon that four clubs, including the and risk-taking often is discouraged at the NHL level. Bruins, Predators, Avalanche, and Blue Jackets will open their seasons “I think it gets beat out of guys at this level, to be honest,” said Krug. across the Atlantic in the continuation of the league’s popular Global “Those guys that are bubble guys, trying to make it to the NHL. They are Series. in survival mode and trying not to make many mistakes. They don’t want The Bruins, who played two exhibition games in China in Sept. 2018, will to lose the trust of the coaching staff if maybe they’re just getting called face the Predators in Prague in what will be the season opener for both up to play in one game. Now all of a sudden they are playing it safer clubs. The Avalanche and Jackets will play their first game of the 2020- because they’re just trying to make it to the NHL, and trying to keep that ’21 season in Helsinki. spot. Then you see the impact guys, the guys that are fearless and they are trying things that maybe the normal guy wouldn’t. They end up being Neither Krejci nor Pastrnak, currently the league’s No. 1 goal scorer, the guys that make bigger impacts.” grew up directly in Prague, but both are proud Czechs eager to return home again to play while wearing their NHL colors. Tipped in?

“Growing up in Czech, it was my dream to play in the NHL,” noted Krejci, Krug was credited with Boston’s second goal, but the feeling in the who left Sternberk, Czechia, 15 years ago to begin play in the Boston room was that Krug’s shot was tipped in by Patrice Bergeron. League, just weeks after the Bruins selected him in the 2004 draft. “To be Look for a change in scoring. However, Pastrnak was credited with a able to play in more NHL games in Europe means a lot to me second assist on the goal. If the switch is made to Bergeron, Krug and personally.” Krejci will get the helpers. Pastrnak then would see his point streak snapped at 13 games . . . Coach Bruce Cassidy said there may be The Bruins played their season opener in Prague in 2010, losing to the another callup from AHL Providence if Brett Ritchie remains out with Coyotes, and finished the season by winning the Stanley Cup in illness prior to Sunday’s game vs. Philadelphia. However, both Par Vancouver, ending a 39-year championship drought. Lindholm and Joakim Nordstrom have been practicing of late, so one might be able to fill the void if necessary . . . If Krug’s goal is not awarded A face in the crowd that day at the O2 Arena in Prague: a 14-year-old to Bergeron, the Bruins will have had a goal from a defenseman in six of Pastrnak from Havirov, a village in eastern Czechia, very near the Polish their last seven games. Back liners only scored twice in the first nine border. games of the season. “The passionate fans and the atmosphere were something I’ll never Boston Globe LOADED: 11.09.2019 forget,” recalled Pastrnak. “I can’t wait to feel that energy again.”

The Bruins will begin their Sept. 2020 training camp in Brighton, per usual, then late in camp will move to Mannheim, Germany, some 50 miles south of Frankfurt along the Rhine River. Prior to shifting to Prague, they’ll face Adler Mannheim in an exhibition game at SAP Arena.

The Predators will camp down first in Bern, Switzerland, and play an exhibition game there before shifting to Prague.

A fearless game

No telling what team Torey Krug, an unrestricted free agent next July 1, will play for next year. But the favorite son of Livonia, a suburb just northwest of downtown Detroit, has an unabashed booster in Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill.

Blashill was coaching the USHL’s Indiana Ice when Krug reported there as an undrafted 17-year-old. Blashill personally recruited him.

“Torey’s one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached,” said Blashill. “One of the favorite people I’ve been around. He made our team out of camp. He was my first call after [the USHL] draft . . . he wasn’t drafted. He’s always played with a little bit of a chip on his shoulder, like he has something to prove. I think he still does. But he’s always had unreal swagger. He just goes out. You want to talk about playing fearless. He plays fearless. I thought he was the best Bruin last year in Game 7 of the [Cup] Final because he was fearless, but smart, too. He makes plays. He’s always done it and he continues to do it. I’m a huge fan of his.”

The 5-foot-9-inch Krug has talked often over the years about playing with a chip on his shoulder, in large part because, as a diminutive player, he felt he had to play that way for coaches to notice his game.

“Survival mode,” Krug said here late Friday morning, when asked what helped him develop his fearless style. “If I was scared to make mistakes, I wouldn’t make it to the next level — they’d just find a bigger guy who 1160529 Boston Bruins second, he gave the Wings a two-goal lead when he again beat Rask on a one-timer off a Bertuzzi centering feed for his second of the game.

At that point, anyone who’d watch the B’s this year was expecting some Bruins lose to the last-place Red Wings kind of push-back. Nothing came, for too long of a stretch. Finally, Marchand, responding to crosscheck in the back from Filip Hronek, dropped the gloves with the Czech defenseman, eventually wrestling the STEVE CONROY bigger man to the ice.

November 8, 2019 at 11:30 PM The B’s had a good shift immediately after the fight but then had to kill off another penalty, But the B’s got another PP when Valtteri Filppula tripped

Pastrnak. The B’s pulled to within a goal at 17:52 when, with Patrice DETROIT — The Bruins played with a certain swagger as they climbed Bergeron in front, Torey Krug’s shot from the blue line eluded Bernier. their way to the top of the NHL standings in the first month of the season It was very nearly a tie game when a loose puck squirted to Pastrnak at and it was fun to watch. the side of the net, but Bernier robbed him of his 16th of the year with a Now it might be time to inject a little humility to their approach. great glove save.

After putting in two uneven performances against Pittsburgh (a win) and But with the deficit down to just a goal, the B’s could only muster three Montreal (a loss), the B’s received a serious comeuppance when the shots on net in the third until the Wings ended it with an Anthony Mantha Detroit Red Wings, winless in 12 of their previous 13 games and mired in empty net goal. last place overall, scored three straight goals and hung on to beat the Boston Herald LOADED: 11.09.2019 B’s, 4-2, at Little Caesars Arena on Friday night.

David Pastrnak extended his point streak to 14 games — one was added after the game on the B’s second goal — but that was all for the Boston positives (though even that could come off the board if the goal is awarded to Patrice Bergeron, who was in front for Krug’s shot). Newcomer Robby Fabbri scored two goals in his first game as a Red Wing. It was also Tuukka Rask’s second straight loss, though he played better than he did in Montreal on Tuesday.

“Too many goals against,” said coach Bruce Cassidy of the 13 goals his team has allowed in the three games this week. “We’ve just got to do a better job there, and that’s goalie, D, right on out. We took three O-zone penalties and we threw one over the glass so we weren’t on our game in that area. Montreal, we had good discipline, I don’t think we had bad penalties, but that contributed tonight. But just defensively, I think we need to string together a good game where we’re rock solid and it doesn’t require to score a number of goals.”

At first blush it appeared as though this night would be as easy for the Bruins as the disparities in the two teams’ records would suggest.

The B’s got on the board at 1:09. Danton Heinen forced a turnover behind the Wings’ net, Peter Ceharlik grabbed the loose puck in the right circle and fed David Krejci a few feet away. Krejci simply beat goalie Jonathan Bernier over the shortside shoulder. It was a softy.

But as easily as the lead appeared, it evaporated almost as quickly when Dylan Larkin tied it up 1:22 later. The speedy Larkin was able to turn on Connor Clifton on the left wing but had to take the puck behind the net. Larkin went for the wraparound and, though he wasn’t able to tuck it, the loose puck off his stick hit Patrice Bergeron’s skate and past Tuukka Rask.

The Bruins then took the next two penalties and on the second one — an obvious Brad Marchand interference in the offensive zone — the Wings took the lead.

Robby Fabbri — the former Blue playing his first game in Detroit after being obtained from St. Louis earlier in the week — took a nice cross-ice feed from Tyler Bertuzzi and ripped it past Rask for the 2-1 lead at 11:49.

The B’s got one power-play but they weren’t able to cash in and went into the first intermission with a one-goal deficit.

Meanwhile, coach Bruce Cassidy was playing a little shorthanded with Brett Ritchie a late scratch due to illness. Steve Kampfer dressed in Ritchie’s place but did not play, with Cassidy instead choosing to double shift various forwards, including Krejci, Charlie Coyle and Anders Bjork.

“(Kampfer) wasn’t going to play forward,” said Cassidy, adding he was caught off guard by Ritchie not being able to go. “We were coming off a couple of days off, so I thought we were able to get some mileage out of forward group. It was his call on whether we needed to mix him in on the back end and he didn’t. At the end of the day I left it up to him.”

Things got immediately worse in the second period. David Pastrnak took his second penalty of the game and the third Bruin offensive zone infraction on the night.

The Wings had come into the game with the league’s 28th ranked PP, but the addition of Fabbri to it paid instant dividends. For at 1:30 of the 1160530 Boston Bruins Brett Ritchie was a late scratch on Friday night due to an upper body injury. He was replaced in the lineup by defenseman Steve Kampfer

Homecoming Bruins are headed back to Europe Torey Krug is in his seventh full season in the NHL, but it never gets old The B’s will open 2020-21 season against Preds in Prague coming home. He not only was born and raised in nearby Livonia, Mich., but he was coached in junior with the Indiana Ice by current Red Wings’ coach Jeff Blashill, who remains a big fan of Krug’s. STEVE CONROY “Torey’s one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached and he’s one of my November 8, 2019 at 7:27 PM favorite people I’ve ever been around,” said Blashill. “He came in as an undrafted player in the USHL and made our team out of camp. He was

our first call after the draft. He’s always played with a little bit of a chip on DETROIT — The Bruins are headed back to Europe to open next season his shoulder like he’s got something to prove and I think he still does. He and, given their history in overseas ventures, they’re not about to just has unreal swagger. He just goes out and he plays fearless. I complain about it. thought he was the best Boston Bruin last year in Game 7 in the Finals because he was fearless. But he’s very smart, too. He just goes out and When the B’s opened the season in Prague, Czech Republic, in 2010-11, makes plays. He’s always done it and he continues to do it. I’m a big fan they won the Stanley Cup. Last year it was in China and they finished of his.” one win shy of the Cup. This time, they’ll be headed back to Prague. Before opening the 2020-21 season against the Nashville Predators at That’s certainly not the first time Blashill has lauded Krug. But now, with O2 Arena, the B’s will finish training camp in Mannheim, Germany, and Krug scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, that will play an exhibition game against Adler Mannheim at SAP Arena. relationship with Blashill and his hometown take on an added significance as the hockey world wonders what Krug’s next step will be. “We have kicked off our season with international games twice in the past decade and both times the trips have proved valuable for our team Krug himself has stated over and over that he wants to stay in Boston building, so we feel that this trip to Germany and the Czech Republic will and would — within reason — take a little less to do so. But you’d have be beneficial for our team,” said Bruins President Cam Neely. “We are to think, if things can’t be worked out in Boston, Detroit would check a lot also looking forward to working with the NHL and the Nashville Predators of boxes for Krug. to continue our collective efforts to grow the game of hockey in Krug himself has put something of a moratorium on speaking about his international markets.” contract situation as things try to get worked out with the B’s. The B’s have two of the bigger Czech-born stars in the league in David Killing it Krejci and David Pastrnak. One thing the coaches in Providence have been incorporating into Zach “Opening the season in Prague and Northern Ireland back in 2010 was a Senyshyn‘s game has been penalty killing, and the speedy winger would very special experience to share with my family, friends and teammates,” at least seem like a natural for it. said Krejci, a native of Sternberk. “It was the start of a year I’ll always remember. Growing up in Czech, it was my dream to play in the NHL so “I’ve loved it. It’s just something different. I never did any penalty killing in to be able to play in more NHL games in Europe means a lot to me juniors. It’s something they’ve built into my game the last two years and personally. I think it’s great the league continues to grow the game and I’ve enjoyed it a lot,” said Senyshyn. “(Assistant coach) Ryan Mougenel bring hockey to different countries all over the world.” has helped me a lot down there. He’s very strict on his kill and it’s a lot of fun to learn that and maybe get a little bit of offense out of it as well.” Said Pastrnak, who grew up in Havirov: “I was very excited to learn that the Boston Bruins would be heading back to my home country to play in He’s been paired primarily with Brendan Woods. the 2020 NHL Global Series in Prague. I remember driving to O2 Arena as a kid to go see the Bruins play the Coyotes back in 2010 for the NHL “We’ve gotten a couple of two-on-ones, a couple of breakaways, which is Premiere games. The passionate fans and atmosphere were something nice. When you see all that extra room out there it’s nice to take off and I’ll never forget — I can’t wait to feel that energy again from the ice in put it in that extra gear,” said Senyshyn. Prague and Mannheim.” Powerful chemistry

The Preds will finish their training camp in Bern, Switzerland. Krug did discuss plenty of things, including the B’s lethal power play, Cehlarik gets a chance which went into Friday as the top PP in the league (31.4%). He agreed that personnel continuity has a lot to do with it, but they try to keep it Peter Cehlarik had not yet been able to distinguish himself in his first two fresh with Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and Pastrnak. NHL games this season. But against the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena, he was going to get as good an opportunity as he could hope for. “Our chemistry is years in the making, for sure,” said Krug. “That being said, we change things up all the time, even when things are clicking, With Jake DeBrusk unable to play because of a lower body injury, these guys want to try new things — both good and bad at times — but it Cehlarik was not only able to play in a top-six role with center Krejci, but keeps things interesting.” also on his natural left side. Boston Herald LOADED: 11.09.2019 “He’s played with David before. We’ve talked about if there was a top-six left wing injury that he’d be a good fit for there, more so than where we put him earlier (on the third and fourth lines). We want to reward the best player in Providence but I think this is kind of the best fit for him,” said coach Bruce Cassidy.

Cassidy said he wants better puck management from Cehlarik, who took a minus-2 in the B’s 7-4 win in Madison Square Garden a couple of weeks ago.

“He has to make the plays that are available to him, when they’re available to him, instead of forcing it in there. Sometimes you have to chip and chase,” said Cassidy. “I think Anders (Bjork) has learned that. All the guys who’ve stayed here have eventually learned that there’s a time to make a play and a time to advance the puck and go get it. That’s the biggest with Peter. And if there are plays there to be made, if he’s going to play up in the lineup, then play to his strength and make similar plays like he’s been doing in Providence. It’s obviously more difficult (here) but that’s what we’re asking.”… 1160531 Boston Bruins

Talking Points from Bruins' 4-2 loss to Red Wings: Boston suffers worst loss yet

Joe Haggerty

November 08, 2019 11:04 PM

GOLD STAR: Robby Fabbri scored a pair of power-play goals after the Bruins committed penalties in the offensive zone. In both instances, Fabbri was playing the bumper position in the slot and blasted away from the open spot once the Red Wings power play had worked the puck over to him.

Fabbri finished with the two goals on two shots in 13:15 of ice time, and it had to feel good for the Red Wings forward after he was traded yesterday from the reigning Cup champion St. Louis Blues. It sure felt like Detroit was getting the better of the deal before the two players started suiting up for their new teams, and now it’s already playing out that way just one game in for Fabbri. Both scoring shots from the slot were pretty good ones.

BLACK EYE: The top line took a couple of offensive zone penalties that led to power-play goals, and Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak all finished a minus-2 for the night in a loss where they weren’t at their best. It remains to be seen if Bergeron is going to get awarded the power-play goal that the Bruins scored at the end of the second period where it looked like he redirected a point blast from Torey Krug.

As it is right now, the Bruins only get a single assist from Pastrnak in the game as the Perfection Line has been effectively bottled up for long stretches in the last couple of games against the Red Wings and Habs. Still, the worst part of the entire loss was that the Bruins didn’t even seem willing to start playing dedicated, hard-working hockey until about 30 minutes into this game.

TURNING POINT: The Bruins scored the game’s first goal little more than a minute into the proceedings when David Krejci launched a shot past Jonathan Bernier, and perhaps they thought it was going to be all downhill skiing after that.

Whatever the case, they didn’t bring the proper intensity and effort to beat any NHL team and dug a 3-1 hole for themselves against a Red Wings team that’s been terrible over the first month plus of the season. About halfway through, they finally got the compete level up when Brad Marchand started stirring it up against the Red Wings, but it was too late by that point already down by a couple of goals.

Highlights: Fabbri powers Red Wings past B's

HONORABLE MENTION: David Krejci was pretty strong for the Bruins while not having much company on the roster in the loss. Krejci finished with the first goal of the game less than two minutes into the proceedings and was Boston’s only multi-point scorer in 18:22 of ice time. Krejci also finished with five shot attempts, a hit, a blocked shot and 9-of-17 face-off wins in providing enough offense from his No. 2 center spot. In fact, Krejci has been very good offensively since coming back from his upper- body injury and has been steadily providing offense even when he’s seen young guys like Peter Cehlarik and Danton Heinen on his wings like on Friday night.

BY THE NUMBERS: 4-1-0 – the record for the Red Wings against the Bruins in their last five games against each other while Detroit has been awful over the last few seasons.

QUOTE TO NOTE: “It was probably a tough one to watch from the stands. It’s tough when you’re chasing it, especially down by two goals.” –Tuukka Rask, on NESN about the Bruins 4-2 loss to the Red Wings where they didn’t get it going consistently.

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Zach Senyshyn finally getting his shot with Bruins, and so far, so good

Joe Haggerty

November 08, 2019 3:26 PM

If everybody is being honest, there hasn’t been a whole lot to be excited about in Zach Senyshyn’s game in his first couple of seasons in the Bruins organization.

The 22-year-old has averaged 13 goals and 25 points in his first two seasons in the AHL and hasn’t dominated at any point after being a first- round pick for the B’s in the stacked 2015 draft, along with Jakub Zboril and Jake DeBrusk. He was a surprise pick back on draft night four years ago ahead of more heralded players that have gone on to stellar NHL careers, such as Mat Barzal, Brock Boeser, Travis Konecny and Kyle Connor. Senyshyn hasn’t been able to help the NHL team much when they’ve badly needed a top-six right winger the past few seasons.

B's to open up 2020-21 season overseas

But maybe, just maybe, there’s a chance that Senyshyn can help the Black and Gold, after all. The young winger was awarded a second assist after a change in scoring in the Tuesday night loss and tripled his career NHL output with the two-helper game in his 2019-20 debut. Senyshyn also could have had a third assist because it was his pass that set up Charlie Coyle for what appeared to be a pivotal third-period goal that was eventually overturned by a coach’s challenge. The third line of Anders Bjork, Coyle and Senyshyn was lauded as the team’s best after the loss in Montreal.

“Senyshyn pretty much played with Coyle and Bjork all night. They were arguably our most effective line. They had a good game,” said Bruce Cassidy. “I thought he handled it very well. He gave us 11 solid minutes. He and Bjork were on the puck, getting on pucks and turning pucks over to get on the attack. He drew a penalty by going to the net and getting inside, and that’s something we’ve asked him to do with his speed and body position. That was a great example of that. He had a lot to do with a couple of goals by getting to pucks first.”

Certainly, Senyshyn is going to have to play better than his numbers have borne out in Providence the past few seasons and he’ll need to turn his swift skating ability and 6-foot-1, 192-pound size into more than simple, unrealized potential.

It looks as if he’s at least going to get that shot as the Bruins endure a wave of injuries to their forwards that have Joakim Nordstrom, Pavel Lindholm, Karson Kuhlman and Jake DeBrusk all on the shelf right now, and Senyshyn will get another look with Coyle and Bjork as a young, fast third line that was so effective against the Habs in their debut.

“Honestly, I felt really good out there. It’s pretty easy to play with a guy like Charlie Coyle and Anders Bjork, who really pushes the play,” said Senyshyn, who had two goals and three points in 12 games with the P- Bruins to start this season. “I’m just trying to take it one day at a time and show them what I’ve learned down there. The reason why I got here is by bringing some of those little things into my game and bringing my speed, which I’m naturally good at. I was focusing on playing to my strengths and trying to show them that I’m able to play that complete game.”

Senyshyn will get another shot against Detroit on Friday night and potentially on Sunday against the Flyers and that’s really he can ask for at this point in his still-very-young pro hockey career after an unspectacular beginning.

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Jake Allen imitated Tuukka Rask to provide Blues with insight during Cup Final

NBC Sports Boston Staff

November 08, 2019 2:08 PM

While St. Louis Blues goaltender Jake Allen didn't get to play in the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, he helped his team the only way he knew how...

By imitating Tuukka Rask.

B's to open up 2020-21 season overseas

"I'd try to act like Rask, skate like Rask, and try to imitate what he does that is different," Allen said, according to NHL.com's Kevin Woodley. "Just the way he holds himself and how low he looks, but his chest is forward and a lot of little things he does specific to his game. We'd go back on all the goals he let in, find tendencies, and try to imitate them to show guys a few clips that Dave could voice over and I'd be in net. ... We broke it down in very layman's terms, so I think everyone understood."

The whole idea of mimicking Rask was to provide the Blues with useful information beyond just watching video of the Boston Bruins goaltender.

"You're looking at guys that play completely opposite styles of game, sizes, techniques, gear," Allen said. "So, I said, 'Why don't we try to implement something where we can show the boys what this guy does compared to that guy and ways we can potentially score?' The optical illusion each of those guys have, that they look bigger than they are in certain positions, is different in the net and I think that's what we were trying to create from an understanding standpoint for the players. If it caused a goal or two in the playoffs, then we did our job."

Allen was a big part of the Blues' goaltending situation before arrived. Brayden Schenn and Ryan O'Reilly found it especially helpful -- as they are two of St. Louis' best goal scorers.

Schenn said he'd never seen anything like it, and it helped him understand Rask's tendencies. O'Reilly said it didn't make the series, but helped the team immensely in preparation for each game.

Through the first three rounds --17 playoff games -- Rask had a .942 save percentage, in the Cup Final it dropped to .912. While the team in front of him was solid defensively, they failed to tally goals when it mattered, particularly in Game 7.

So, it seems Allen's mimicry worked -- but it probably wasn't the reason why the Blues won the Stanley Cup. The B's did push the series to seven games, after all.

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160534 Boston Bruins

Bruins to open 2010-21 season in David Pastrnak's home country

NBC Sports Boston Staff

November 08, 2019 1:09 PM

The Boston Bruins will be doing a bit of traveling in 2020.

The NHL announced Friday that the Bruins will be headlining the 2020 NHL Global Series by opening the season in the Czech Republic against the Nashville Predators.

Both the Bruins and Predators will complete their training camps in Europe with Boston also set to travel to Mannheim, Germany to faceoff with SC Bern in an exhibition game.

B's President Cam Neely stressed the importance of team bonding on these long international trips.

"We have kicked off our season with international games twice in the past decade and both times the trips have proved valuable for our team building, so we feel that this trip to Germany and the Czech Republic will be beneficial for our team," Cam Neely said, according to NHL.com. "We are also looking forward to working with the NHL and the Nashville Predators to continue our collective efforts to grow the game of hockey in international markets."

The Czech Republic is where Bruins' stars David Krejci and David Pastrnak grew up, and they couldn't be more excited to be able to play in front of friends and family.

"Opening the season in Prague and Northern Ireland back in 2010 was a very special experience to share with my family, friends and teammates," Krejci said. "It was the start of a year I'll always remember. Growing up in Czech, it was my dream to play in the NHL so to be able to play in more NHL games in Europe means a lot to me personally. I think it's great the league continues to grow the game and bring hockey to different countries all over the world."

Pastrnak actually had the opportunity to watch the Bruins play in Prague in 2010, he's now excited to be a part of the action from a player's perspective.

"I was very excited to learn that the Boston Bruins would be heading back to my home country to play in the 2020 NHL Global Series in Prague," Pastrnak said. "I remember driving to O2 Arena as a kid to go see the Bruins play the Coyotes back in 2010 for the NHL Premiere games. The passionate fans and atmosphere were something I'll never forget - I can't wait to feel that energy again from the ice in Prague and Mannheim."

Pastrnak, who has 30 points (15 goals, 15 assists) through 15 games this season and Krejci, who has five points (one goal, four assists) through nine games, will headline the festivities in their native country.

This will be the third time Boston will play overseas -- the first since the team competed in the O.R.G. NHL China Games against the Calgary Flames in 2018-19.

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160535 Boston Bruins In some situations, the Bruins’ high forward is deployed to disrupt breakouts in the offensive zone. The risk is that the third forward can sometimes be beaten by a net-front pass to trigger a rush the other way. Peer-to-peer network: 10 tips the Bruins staff have for youth coaches Late in games, the high forward should not be as aggressive in sealing off exits.

“They might pass it underneath to him to a D that’s leaving the front of Fluto Shinzawa the net,” Dean said. So maybe our third man just locks the middle of the ice a little bit more. You don’t want to get passive. We talk about that a Nov 8, 2019 lot. We want to stay on our toes. We want to continue to pinch on pucks and keep pucks alive. But we don’t want to give up odd-man rushes.”

The Bruins’ annual coaching symposium, held Nov. 2 at Warrior Ice 6. Emphasize the value of off-ice warmups before games, practices and Arena, is one of the highlights of the local hockey calendar. It is a free lifting weights. By incorporating routines such as stretching, foam rolling, event, open to all coaches to receive their USA Hockey Level 2 or 3 butt kicks, shuffles, box jumps and medicine ball throws, players are at certification. less risk of injury when they hit the ice or weight room.

One of the best parts of the symposium comes in how the Bruins “Physiologically, what’s happening is you’re raising your body coaches share some of what they do and answer questions that apply to temperature,” Whittier said. “You’re moving fluid. You’re moving blood. lower levels. Bruce Cassidy, assistant coach Kevin Dean, assistant You’re preparing your body to receive high forces and to move faster. If coach Joe Sacco and assistant strength coach Ken Whittier addressed you just go from rest to working intensity, you’re going to be more attendees this year. predisposed to getting injured.”

Here are 10 of the tips the staff shared: 7. Train for speed when players are younger. According to Whittier, training for girls between the ages of 8 to 14 can most impact their 1. To enhance offensive spacing, take advantage of soft spots behind the speed. For boys, it’s ages 9 to 15. Whittier emphasizes short and net and inside the blue line. Modern defenses emphasize strength in explosive shifts on the ice, proper weight lifting technique, dynamic off- numbers. For net-front coverage, coaches preach collapsing in the slot. ice training and enough rest. For puck battles in one quadrant of the zone, coaches emphasize the flood by attacking with multiple players. “If you don’t capitalize on these windows, you might miss out on making a player faster,” Whittier said. “Unfortunately, the older they get, the In both situations, defenses have to compromise. They cannot deploy harder it is to develop speed.” personnel everywhere. So if a defense collapses, there will be room up high in the zone for the attacking defensemen or the third forward to 8. Emphasize strength after speed. Whittier pointed to Kevan Miller, one manipulate. If the attacking team wins a battle in the corner, there will be of the strongest players in the league. Miller is a self-made, late-blooming space available below the goal line to relieve pressure and switch sides. player who was never drafted.

“If we have a forward in the corner below the goal line, he knows “He likely isn’t that way because he was the strongest eighth grader on automatically that his teammate’s going right behind the net,” Sacco said. the planet,” Whittier said. “Instead, he had a really good strength and “We have some relief there. We can send it out to the weak side. We can conditioning program in high school and college. As a result, he’s as change sides. We can really make it difficult for their coverage. Because strong as we need him to be. But developing max strength can wait. You teams really like to flood. They like to converge on you.” want to introduce athletes to lifting properly and emphasizing form. But speed matters most.” 2. Station the weak-side defenseman closer to the near post. There are only six feet separating the near post and the far post. But in a bang- 9. Maximize practices. Ice time is not only precious, but expensive. As bang situation, it’s a lot of space to cover for a flat-footed defenseman. such, it’s a coach’s responsibility to squeeze as much learning as So if one defenseman is engaged in a wall battle with close-quarters possible into an on-ice session. Youth players improve the most during assistance from the center, the partner should be in net-front coverage practice, not in games when their puck touches are limited. near the strong-side post. “We put a tremendous value on our practice time,” Cassidy said. “My “If there’s a breakdown in the corner, they have a 2-on-1 coming out of recommendation, at any level, is make sure it’s on paper. Make sure, the corner,” Dean said. “You want your D there to put out that fire with your assistant coaches, that they’ve got the plan and structure relatively early. If you’re playing off the far post, it just takes too long to you’re going through.” get there. They’re going to get into the good ice before you can shut it 10. Positivity matters. Cassidy rarely addresses his players after a loss. down. Play on the strong post, and try to play between the puck and the net.” “I think everyone’s on edge,” Cassidy said. “Usually, you’re going to regret some things. So I stay out of there.” 3. Execute low-to-high movement quickly. If a down-low battle is taking place, the points are usually open. But it does an attacking team no good After a win, Cassidy doesn’t necessarily highlight the standout performer. if a forward brings the puck high methodically and brings along defenders He will leave that to his players. He will acknowledge a player who made en route to the point. an under-the-radar play: blocking a shot on a critical kill, for example.

“It can be tough if a forward recovers the puck below the goal line, starts “I’m in and out for a minute, minute and a half, try to send a positive skating up and they drag the whole team with them,” Dean said. “They message on what happened that day,” Cassidy said. “Or sometimes it’s drag the defense and they drag the forwards with them. They get to the not a negative message, but an area of improvement: ‘Hey, we got away top of the circle and give the puck to the defenseman. They’re not going with one tonight. We didn’t play the right way and protect the lead, but to have much time with it. If you go low to high, make it early. If that our goaltender saved us. Let’s make sure moving forward we’re mindful play’s available, don’t drag the whole team up and give it to the of that.’” defenseman. Make it early so the defenseman has some time to make the next play.” The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019

4. Activate the net-front defenseman on the rush. The Bruins regularly practice a 5-on-2 corner drill to promote rushes the other way. Once the strong-side defenseman wins the puck, the net-front partner should be the fourth man on the rush off the breakout.

“You don’t want to be No. 1 or No. 2 on the rush,” Dean said. “We try to get our defensemen joining late, finding soft areas of the ice.”

5. Soft-lock in the offensive zone in lead-protection situations. In theory, the Bruins don’t want to change their approach when they’re ahead late in games. In practice, teams sometimes cannot help but incorporate conservatism to protect leads. 1160536 Buffalo Sabres

Stockholm Scenes: City Hall, site of the Nobel Prize banquet

Mike Harrington

Sat, Nov 9, 2019

STOCKHOLM -- Kings. Queens. Presidents. First Ladies. Nobel Prize laureates. They've all routinely walked the same stately staircase I traversed with a small tour group here.

The scene was Stockholm City Hall, a massive building inspired by Italian Renaissance palaces but one that's oddly recent. It was built over a 12-year span (1911-23) by Swedish architect Ragnar Östberg. The staircase is in the Blue Room, where the famous Nobel Banquet takes place each year on December 10 to honor the prize winners honored nearby at the Nobel Museum. You can clearly see the staircase at the top of the photo above and in the video and photo below.

The first thing you notice about the Blue Room is, well, there's nothing blue about it. Lots of marble flooring, red brick and gold walls. Not a speck of blue anywhere. So of course, the tour guide was immediately interrupted with the what's-in-a-name question

The explanation was that it was supposed to be an open-air courtyard to the sky (as the adjoining part is), but that's not going to work half the year due to Stockholm's rainy, snowy weather.

In addition, architects were also going to have the brick work painted blue but opted against that as well because they liked its natural look. But since there was so much publicity about the construction of the massive hall in the newspapers of the day, the name "Blue Room" was already ingrained in the citizens' minds so it was simply kept.

The pipe organ at its roof is one of Scandinavia's largest, with nearly 10,000 pipes, but it's difficult to play because the huge hall creates a sound delay of several seconds.

The banquet is held in the Blue Room and then the guests, all of whom are decked out in formal attire, retire to the Golden Room for the annual Nobel dance. The Golden Room is sensational for its detail, with mosaics lining the wall depicting the history of Sweden. The Queen of Lake Mälaren sits on a throne on one mosaic looking over the rest of the world.

A trip through City Hall is similar to one through the White House, where each room has a specific name and function. While the building does serve as the city's centerpiece for meetings of its council, it's far more known for its function rooms, outdoor courtyard, giant observation tower (which is closed for the winter) and views of the water.

Two highlights: The Oval Room features 17th Century french tapestries and is one of the most popular wedding sites in the city. The Prince's Gallery is a long room that features a view of the lake through windows at one side and a painting of the same scene on the other.

The amazing nugget on the tour? Until this building was constructed -- remember, it only dates to the 1900s -- Stockholm didn't have a city hall. The capital of the country had offices scattered about the city and no central place to conduct business or functions. By the looks of things, they fixed that issue here quite nicely.

Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160537 Buffalo Sabres In the nets: Krueger was asked by Swedish media after Friday's game if he would consider using Linus Ullmark back-to-back and said the team is pondering its goaltending choice. But there's almost zero chance of that. Sabres game day: Looking for revenge against the Lightning It would mean Carter Hutton would go nearly two weeks between starts because the next game isn't until Thursday's visit by Carolina to KeyBank Center.

Mike Harrington The Lightning have already said they're doing with backup Curtis McElhinney, who is not off to the kind of start he had last year in Sat, Nov 9, 2019 Carolina. McElhinney is 1-1-2, 3.93/.899. That's a far cry from last year's numbers with the Hurricanes (20-11-2, 2.58/.912), when he was working under current Sabres coach Mike Bales.

Lots of snarl: For two teams that had not met in nearly nine months, Matchup: Buffalo Sabres (9-5-2) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (7-5-2) Friday's game was oddly chippy. The Kucherov hit probably ratcheted things up quite a bit, as did Rasmus Ristolainen's hard shot on Alex Where: Ericsson Globe, Stockholm Volkov (which earned an interference penalty). When: 1 p.m. EST (7 p.m. in Sweden) "It's great," Ristolainen said of the increased physical play. "It's a tough TV: MSG loss but it's a good thing we can play again tomorrow and make it better."

Radio: WGR 550 Milestone marker: will play in his 100th NHL game tonight. His first NHL goal came in a game at Tampa on April 6, 2018. STOCKHOLM -- The weather in Sweden was sunny and picturesque Mittelstadt has three goals this season but is like most of the Buffalo during the first three days of the Sabres' trip here, albeit very cold with forwards, with none over the last seven games. temperatures barely making it into the 30s. It was cloudy and drizzly on Thursday. Friday and Saturday have brought dark skies and heavy rain, No pregame work: Neither team is taking a morning skate. They will have a good backdrop for the Sabres' struggling offense, which is the major pregame media sessions beginning at 4:30 Stockholm time (10:30 a.m. reason the club is in a 1-4-1 slide since its 8-1-1 start. Eastern time). Stay tuned here for updates.

What's happened? Lots of things, and it would be wise for the Sabres to Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 try to reverse some of these patterns as soon as today's game.

Chasing the games: Sam Reinhart said, "you're searching for something there" when I asked him about the Sabres' sluggish starts of late after Friday's 3-2 loss, but there's no deep digging required here. The Sabres are suddenly chasing games night after night and don't have enough firepower to turn things around.

The Sabres have been outscored, 7-0, in the first period of the last three games and 13-2 in the opening 20 minutes of the last seven.

No need to look deep. The numbers are staring right at you. That's a trend.

"When the offense isn't going, that generates a little more pressure on you," Jeff Skinner said after Friday's loss. "When your offense is going, that doesn't seem as insurmountable. ... We have opportunities, we have to bear down. We have to find a way to get to the net and score some more goals."

The Wraparound from Sweden: Tampa Bay Lightning 3, Buffalo Sabres 2

Trend Two: The Sabres have nine goals in the last six games, not more than two in any of them.

Trend Three: They're getting no goals from large swaths of their lineup as Reinhart, Skinner and Jack Eichel have combined for nine of the last 13 scores in that seven-game stretch. The only other forward to score is Vladimir Sobotka, who is now injured.

Trend Four: The Buffalo power play -- which made the season early by going 9 for 21 in the first six games -- is in a 3-for-23 slide and is 0 for 7 in the last three games.

Trend Five: The Sabres had just 22 shots on goal in the game, the fourth time in five starts they didn't get to 30.

"Our offense definitely needs to desperately want to shoot more and create more pucks to the net," said coach Ralph Krueger, who is harping with his team about creating more net-front pressure.

"We'd like to generate a little bit more down low, off O-zone cycles," said Skinner. "You have to find way to get to the second and third (shots) and get some ugly goals because those are the majority of goals scored in the league."

Line shuffles: Krueger said after Friday night's game that Sobotka will not play tonight after he was victimized by a late low-bridge from Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov during the first period.

Evan Rodrigues, the lone spare forward on the trip, will move into the lineup and it will be interesting to see how the Sabres put together their lines because Rodrigues is unlikely to slot into the second line with Jeff Skinner and Marcus Johnson 1160538 Buffalo Sabres No, I want to live, I want to die in the North

"The start overall and standing there during the anthem was big for me, " said Sabres goaltender Linus Ullmark, one of five Swedes who played in 'A dream come true': Czech-Slovak Sabres fans cheer for their team in the game for the Sabres. "It was a very humbling experience. It was one Stockholm of those one-of-a-kind moments I'll always cherish for the rest of my life."

"That was probably one of the most special things I've experienced at a Mike Harrington hockey game," said Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman, a national hero who is the Lightning's lone Swede. "Hearing my national anthem Fri, Nov 8, 2019 before an NHL game. That was super-special. I was focusing on that flag and trying to keep my emotions in check."

As the players said, the Swedish anthem rates as the seminal moment of STOCKHOLM – They sat 14 strong in Section A15, Row 11 of the Friday’s activities. Wonderfully done. #Sabres #NHLGlobalSeries Ericsson Globe. A few hours before the Buffalo Sabres played a game in pic.twitter.com/bCAE3EpB0v Sweden for the first time in their history, the members of the Sabres CZ- SK Fan Club (that's Czech-Slovak) were in Austria, taking a flight here — Mike Harrington (@ByMHarrington) November 8, 2019 from Vienna. The anthems over, it was time to play hockey. Which was what everyone You didn't know there was such as thing as the Czech-Slovak Fan club? had come for, whether they were from The 716, from Florida, from parts Me either. elsewhere in the U.S. or from around the world.

They arrived in plenty of time for the 8 p.m. local time faceoff, even got That's the lure of these Global Series games. some pictures taken with the team at the Grand Hotel before the players boarded the buses to the arena. Once at the game, they came with full "It's like a dream, a dream," said Stach. "We are fans for 10-15 years. throats and full regalia and were a big part of a very different atmosphere Under Viktor's great work, we are able to be here to see our stars. Not all for an NHL contest. because of Hasek but several points but Dominik Hasek was the biggest one." Many had painted their hair in the red, white and blue colors of the Czech Republic. The leader, 23-year-old university student Viktor Maudr from "We have drums and we have crazy hair," Maudr said. "The City of Good Prague, carried a drum that he banged on to lead the cheers while Neighbors is in Buffalo. I have never been in Buffalo. Fourteen of us are wearing his 50th anniversary Victor Olofsson jersey. here to see the Sabres for one dream and I have another dream to see them in Buffalo one day." "We have so much passion for the Buffalo Sabres and it is a dream to be here to see them," Maudr said, talking rapidly but in English clear enough What were some of Maudr's thoughts after the game? to be deciphered through his accent. "A dream come true." "I think the anthem was great but not as big for us. We are from Czech Many of the group are Sabres fans because of Dominik Hasek, the and Sweden anthem wasn't so much for us," he wrote via Twitter direct greatest player to come from the Czech Republic. Many have liked the message. "Maybe the American anthem was bigger. You gear up every jerseys over the years or have joined on with their friends. night at 1 am to watch the game on TV. Eighty-two games and most of them are at 1 am. You watch it, listen to (KeyBank Center anthem There were Eichel jerseys. Dahlin. LaFontaine. Olofsson. Briere. In all soloist) Doug Allen singing. And now it really happened. Not with Dougie sorts of colors. In the slug, the goathead and the traditional navy and but still it was big moment. whites. "I think the best part was 2nd goal (by Reinhart in the third period). We "I love Olofsson," Maudr said. "I interviewed him a few years ago when I saw it exactly in front of our eyes. There was no referee obstruction. Pure met him with the fan club while he was playing for Frolunda (in the love. But the win tomorrow would be something else." Swedish elite league). I love his shot. It's from a different world." Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 Vaclav Stach, 33, was the one with the Daniel Briere jersey. And it was the red crossed swords alternate, circa 2003.

"He was my favorite player and the red Sabres jersey I really really like," said Stach, a Hewlett Packard product manager from Ostrava.

The group chanted "Let's Go, Sabres" and "Let's Go, Buffalo" in the concourse before the game. Maudr pounded his drum throughout. There were pockets of fans like that all through the arena rooting for both the Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Here’s hoping for better luck Saturday for my new friends from the #Sabres Czech/Slovak fan club. pic.twitter.com/xN6UV8MkJq

— Mike Harrington (@ByMHarrington) November 9, 2019

There was a buzz to the crowd you don't normally get in November.

"It was great. It had that European feel to it," said Sabres winger Sam Reinhart, who scored both goals in Buffalo's 3-2 loss.

The fans screamed for both sides when the players took the ice for warmups. Most arenas are empty during pregame drills. The Swedish national anthem was stirring, with most of the crowd singing along loudly. You find parts of the lyrics in English online and they're totally appropriate for what everyone in the Buffalo traveling party has seen here this week

I greet thee, most beautiful land upon earth,

Thy sun, Thy sky, Thy meadows green.

With God I shall fight for home and for hearth, for Sweden, the beloved native soil.

I trade thee not, for anything in a world 1160539 Buffalo Sabres "That's what I try to do, make it like another game," Dahlin said. "But Lidstrom, maybe Forsberg and those guys watching. I know it's a lot of pretty cool names. I'm just trying to focus on the game. Otherwise, I can't abres' Rasmus Dahlin thrilled by first meeting with Swedish legend play." Nicklas Lidstrom Lidstrom said Sabres fans need to understand that the 19-year-old is still learning to play a 200-foot game even as he faces top opponents.

Mike Harrington "But from what I've seen, he's been adapting so quickly to playing at the next level," Lidstrom said. "He showed that when he came three years Fri, Nov 8, 2019 ago to Frolunda to play in the highest league in Sweden. I think he showed last year stepping into the NHL with the big hype and I think he

responded real well. STOCKHOLM – Hockey Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom stopped by the "That's one impressive thing with Rasmus: He's been able to adapt so Buffalo Sabres' dressing room Friday morning to meet the teen dubbed quickly to being in new environments." "the next Nicklas Lidstrom." ••• Lidstrom, the Detroit Red Wings legend widely regarded as the best defenseman ever to come out of Sweden, chatted in Swedish with The Sabres offered an injury update Friday and there was no news at the Sabres prodigy Rasmus Dahlin for a few minutes after the team's NHL level, where Zach Bogosian remains out indefinitely after hip morning skate prior to its game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. surgery and Marco Scandella is listed as week to week with a lower-body injury. Coach Ralph Krueger said here earlier this week, however, that Lidstrom is working this weekend for Swedish television network Viasat the team expects Scandella back shortly after it returns to North America. and was introduced to Dahlin by broadcast partner Jonatan Lindquist, who has been around the Sabres many times prior to the 2018 draft and The injury bug is striking hard, however, in Rochester. Winger C.J. Smith since Dahlin joined the club. is now listed as out four to six weeks and defenseman Zach Redmond is week to week, both with lower-body injuries. Remi Elie (lower body) and Dahlin smiled broadly as he shook hands with Lidstrom for the first time. Dalton Smith (upper body) are day to day while Taylor Leier (shoulder) is "I was shaking. I felt like a child," Dahlin said after the meeting. "Yeah. listed as indefinite. That was cool. He's the best of all time. That's the guy." Smith has three goals and three assists in 12 games for Rochester while "First time I've met. I saw him play in Frolunda a couple years ago and Redmond, the reigning Eddie Shore winner as the AHL's top he's a mature player for his age," said Lidstrom, now 49. "He was that defenseman, has one goal and six assists in 11 games. Both were way two years ago when I saw him play. injured in a 6-0 win Nov. 2 at Utica. They started their time out of the lineup by missing Friday's game against Binghamton. "As a 17-year-old, he looked poised and mature. He looked hungry, willing to get up in the play, played with lots of enthusiasm. That's what ••• you see in today's game as well. And at 19 years old, he's still a young In a media gathering prior to the game, NHL Commissioner Gary player." Bettman announced the Global Series games for the 2020-21 season Lidstrom entered the NHL without any of the hype of Dahlin, getting and said the league likely would return to Sweden in 2021-22. selected in the third round at No. 53 overall by the Red Wings in the 1989 As for next season, Columbus and Colorado will meet in a two-game draft. He came to North America in 1991 and played 20 seasons for the series in Helsinki, likely in November. Boston and Nashville will open the Red Wings, retiring in 2012 as a four-time Stanley Cup champion, a season in Prague, with the Bruins finishing training camp in Germany seven-time Norris Trophy winner and the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as with a game against Adler Mannheim and the Preds going to Switzerland the MVP of the 2002 playoffs. to face SC Bern, the former team of captain Roman Josi. Lidstrom is fifth all-time among NHL defensemen in games played ••• (1,564) and sixth in points (1,142). He is the only non-North American in the top 15 in scoring among defensemen. Stockholm is playing host to its 11th and 12th regular-season NHL games this weekend, the most among all overseas locales. All Stockholm "I was 21 when I came in. There wasn't the hype," Lidstrom said. "I was a games have been played at Ericsson Globe. Following Stockholm are third-rounder. I wasn't ... looked upon as a superstar or a franchise player Helsinki (seven games), Prague (five) and Tokyo (four). when I came in. I came in with (Vladimir) Konstantinov, two young defensemen looking at the rebuilding of the Wings. Gothenburg is the only other Swedish city to stage an NHL game, when New Jersey beat Edmonton, 5-2, in last year's season opener. Current "It's different times now. Everything with social media and the coverage. Sabres center Marcus Johansson played for the Devils in that game. People know who you are. It wasn't like that at all when I came in during the early '90s. It's a real different world right now." •••

Dahlin has endured the Lidstrom comparisons for the last three years. With two of the four matchups between Buffalo and Tampa Bay coming While they're unfair at this point in Dahlin's career, Lidstrom said he's in Sweden, the teams will only play once in each other's home rink this enjoyed hearing them. season. The Sabres meet the Lightning in Amalie Arena on Nov. 25 while the Bolts come to Buffalo for a New Year's Eve game that will mark the "I take a lot of pride in being mentioned," Lidstrom said. "People are halfway point of the Sabres' season. looking at me as one of the strong good defensemen coming out of Sweden, so I feel proud about being mentioned like that, too." Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 Lidstrom said he also enjoyed the mountains of hype around Dahlin heading into last year's draft.

"It was fun. It shows a great credit for Team Sweden to still be producing a lot of hockey players, for it being a small country," Lidstrom said. "We're still able to produce a lot of good players, especially young defensemen as of late. Some real good, strong young defensemen and now we have a No. 1, a first pick overall, which is real impressive."

Dahlin, who procured around 30 tickets for family and friends, said he was trying to approach the games as he normally would. But he knows many former Swedish stars, such as Lidstrom and longtime NHL center Peter Forsberg, were expected to be in the building or watching on television. 1160540 Buffalo Sabres

Stockholm Scenes: Vasa Museum showcases warship's salvage, restoration

Mike Harrington

Fri, Nov 8, 2019

Editor’s note: Mike Harrington is in Sweden to follow the Buffalo Sabres’ trip for games against Tampa Bay on Friday and Saturday. He also will share some of his experiences on the trip.

When I visited with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman in August to discuss the Sabres' 50th anniversary season, he had an immediate recommendation for me during the team's journey to Sweden and it didn't involve a restaurant.

"There's a salvaged shipwreck there. It's unlike anything you've ever seen," Bettman said. "The Vasa Museum. Go there. It's spectacular."

The Commish and I might disagree on things like the NHL's playoff format and toenail challenges, but he nailed this one. Scandinavia's most visited museum is a sight to behold.

In the center of it all is the Vasa, the world's only preserved 17th century warship. The massive ship (230 feet long and 170 feet high) sank in Stockholm harbor on its maiden voyage in 1628 – and sat mired in the mud at the bottom of the harbor for 333 years. Seriously.

It wasn't until 1961 that scientists completed a five-year struggle to lift it out of the water intact and start a conservation process that continues today.

The Vasa is nearly 98% original, with the biggest changes being new metal bolts within the wood to keep the ship together that will not rust. Corrosion over time is the ship's biggest enemy. It only survived because the Baltic Sea does not have the heavy concentration of saltwater that would eat away at materials.

The ship sank because engineers failed to account for its top-heavy nature. It began to list in a strong wind and its gun ports were not closed, allowing water to rush in and eventually capsize it.

The ship has seven levels and views adjacent to the ship are available at numerous stops. Because of preservation efforts, visitors are not allowed on board. There are 12 different exhibitions around the ship to tell visitors about its history, the disaster that sank it, the efforts to raise it and the current efforts to prevent its deterioration.

One of the exhibitions replicates in full color the intricate statues that once adorned the Vasa. The actual sculptures remain mostly intact on the hull but in dark brown because they were under water for more than three centuries.

It took 12 years of examining microscopic color fragments to determine the color schemes of the sculptures. The finished products are one of the highlights of the exhibition, as is the 20-minute film reviewing the ship's history.

The museum is a pleasant walk through the Karlaplan neighborhood over a pedestrian bridge to the city island of Djurgarden. And it's easy to see why it's one of Stockholm's most visited attractions.

Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160541 Buffalo Sabres "I'm sure he's super excited to first of all be here and be here with his teammates. When you're playing in North America, it seems like you're far away from home," Lidstrom said. "You know people are watching on Swedish legend Nicklas Lidstrom on Rasmus Dahlin: 'He's a mature TV or following you online but now you're actually here. Now they can player for his age' watch you live."

Dahlin, who procured around 30 tickets for family and friends, said he's trying to approach the games as he normally would. But he knows many Mike Harrington former Swedish stars, such as Lidstrom and longtime NHL center Peter Forsberg, were expected to be in the building or watching on television. Fri, Nov 8, 2019 "That's what I try to do, make it like another game," Dahlin said. "But

Lidstrom, maybe Forsberg and those guys watching. I know it's a lot of STOCKHOLM — The teen often dubbed "The Next Nicklas Lidstrom" got pretty cool names. I'm just trying to focus on the game. Otherwise, I can't to meet the real one for the first time Friday morning in the Buffalo play." Sabres' dressing room at Ericsson Globe. Lidstrom said Sabres fans need to understand that this 19-year-old is still Lidstrom, the Hockey Hall of Famer widely regarded as the best learning to play a 200-foot game even as he faces top opponents. defenseman ever to come out of Sweden, chatted in Swedish with "But from what I've seen, he's been adopting so quickly to playing at the Sabres blueliner Rasmus Dahlin for a few minutes after the team's next level," Lidstrom said. "He showed that when he came three years morning skate prior to its game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. ago to Frolunda to play in the highest league in Sweden. I think he The Detroit Red Wings legend waited patiently with Swedish broadcast showed last year stepping into the NHL with the big hype and I think he partner Jonatan Lindquist while Dahlin finished an interview, and then the responded real well. two shook hands for the first time. "That's one impressive thing with Rasmus: He's been able to adapt so "I was shaking. I felt like a child," a smiling Dahlin said after the meeting. quickly to being in new environments." "Yeah. That was cool. He's the best of all time. That's the guy." Buffalo News LOADED: 11.09.2019 "First time I've met. I saw him play in Frolunda a couple years ago and he's he's a mature player for his age," said Lidstrom, now 49. "He was that way two years ago when I saw him play.

"As a 17-year-old, he looked poised and mature. He looked hungry, willing to get up in the play, played with lots of enthusiasm. That's what you see in today's game as well. And at 19 years old, he's still a young player."

On the Mount Rushmore of Swedish defensemen, there is Lidstrom and Toronto legend Borje Salming, both of whom were named to the NHL100 in 2017, which honored the league's all-time team.

Lidstrom entered the NHL without any of the hype of Dahlin, getting selected in the third round at No. 53 overall by the Red Wings in the 1989 draft (the Sabres took defenseman Kevin Haller at No. 14). He came to North America in 1991 and played 20 seasons for the Red Wings, retiring in 2012 as a four-time Stanley Cup champion, a seven-time Norris Trophy winner and the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the MVP of the 2002 playoffs.

Lidstrom is fifth all-time among NHL defensemen in games played (1,564) and sixth in points (1,142). He is the only non-North American in the top 15 in scoring among defensemen.

"I was 21 when I came in. There wasn't the hype," Lidstrom said. "I was a third-rounder. I wasn't ... looked upon as a superstar or a franchise player when I came in. I came in with (Vladimir) Konstantinov, two young defensemen looking at the rebuilding of the Wings.

"It's different times now. Everything with social media and the coverage. People know who you are. It wasn't like that at all when I came in during the early '90s. It's a real different world right now."

Dahlin has endured the Lidstrom comparisons for the last three years. While they're unfair at this point in Dahlin's career, Lidstrom said, he's enjoyed hearing them.

"I take a lot of pride in being mentioned," Lidstrom said. "People are looking at me as one of the strong good defensemen coming out of Sweden so I feel proud about being mentioned like that, too."

Lidstrom said he enjoyed the mountains of hype around Dahlin heading into last year's draft.

"It was fun. It shows a great credit for Team Sweden to still be producing a lot of hockey players, for it being a small country," Lidstrom said. "We're still able to produce a lot of good players, especially young defensemen as of late. Some real good, strong young defenseman and now we have a No. 1, a first pick overall, which is real impressive."

Lidstrom, who will be in a rinkside studio for Saturday's game, said he knows Dahlin is probably nervous heading into these games in his homeland. 1160542 Buffalo Sabres Reinhart’s second goal followed the down-low, O-zone blueprint.

DOUBLE DOSE OF REINHART! 

One lost forward, two steps back: Sabres stumble in Sweden and have a SAMSON GETS HIS SECOND OF THE GAME TO MAKE IT 3-2. decision to make after Vladimir Sobotka’s injury #NHLGLOBALSERIES PIC.TWITTER.COM/SDBNLTNXPC

— BUFFALO SABRES (@BUFFALOSABRES) NOVEMBER 8, 2019

John Vogl “That’s a result of how we wanted to play,” Reinhart said. “On both of our goals, we got in on the forecheck. We won our races, won our battles, Nov 8, 2019 and we got traffic to the net.”

It just hasn’t happened enough. The Sabres started 8-1-1 by being a STOCKHOLM — Results aside, the disturbing thing for the Buffalo balanced team that maintained possession. Now they look more like last Sabres is a return to form, one they know is unsuccessful. year’s squad.

The offense consists of Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart, Jeff Skinner and no “When we go up and forecheck and put pressure on them in their own one else. end, I feel like we’re winning pucks,” left wing Victor Olofsson said. “That’s when we can create a lot of scoring chances after that. We’ve got When Reinhart scored both goals in Friday’s 3-2 loss to Tampa Bay, it to be a little more on our toes.” continued a trend. Of the Sabres’ past 13 goals, nine have come from their big three. And of the remaining four goals, three have come from It certainly doesn’t help that Buffalo’s power play has disappeared. After defensemen. going 0-for-2 against Tampa Bay, it’s dropped to 3-for-23 in the past eight games. They know that’s not going to work. “The power play is actually the place where we get confidence for our “Defensively, we’ve learned and grown in a lot of ways, but offensively five-on-five game,” Krueger said. “Whether it’s scoring or not is not as that is a piece that we continue to work on,” said coach Ralph Krueger, important to us as that it’s firing the way it should be. We believe that who has noticed a drop-off in net-front pressure. “It’s something we need carries into the rest of our game. It is the catalyst of our offense, so we to stick with and be patient with. Those habits are still one of the areas of need to get it going.” growth here, the understanding of how you can get control of the offensive slot and what you need to do and the sacrifice that needs to Once again, the Sabres are struggling to get the puck toward the net. happen.” The power play was working when it used Reinhart down low and Skinner in the slot. They could move the puck to Olofsson or Eichel on Kreuger will continue to point out where Buffalo needs to get better, but the wings, getting the defenders moving to create space. he’s also going to add a shakeup to the forward group. He has no choice. “We need to start creating around the net,” Reinhart said. “Once we do Vladimir Sobotka, the only forward aside from Eichel, Reinhart and that, it usually starts to open for us. We’ve got guys that can find them. It Skinner to score in the past seven games, is likely out long term. He was was a little disappointing from that front.” wearing a walking boot/air cast on his right leg from the foot up past his knee after getting submarined by Tampa Bay star Nikita Kucherov. The disappointment has resulted in an 0-3-1 slide. Everyone knew it was Sobotka is definitely out for Saturday’s rematch at Ericsson Globe and coming — no team goes through a season without bumps — but getting will be evaluated when the team returns to Buffalo. out of it is imperative. The Sabres believe they know what to do. It’s also a matter of doing it with the right forward personnel. NIKITA KUCHEROV GOES LOW ON VLADIMIR SOBOTKA PIC.TWITTER.COM/OZXJIGT81R “Our offense definitely needs to desperately want to shoot more and create more pucks to the net,” Krueger said. “We were in their end in — BRADY TRETTENERO (@BRADYTRETT) NOVEMBER 8, 2019 opportune situations where we didn’t get the shots we needed to create more pressure on their net.” Krueger clearly didn’t like the officials’ decision not to penalize Kucherov. The unforgettable moment for members of both teams came before the KRUEGER TELLING THE OFFICIALS TO WAKE UP #SABRES50 puck dropped. Professional Swedish singer Molly Hammar unleashed a PIC.TWITTER.COM/KXHUA9YTAU rousing national anthem, one that featured the sellout crowd of 13,230 as — BUFFALO HOCKEY MOMENTS (@SABRESPLAYS) NOVEMBER 8, backup singers in a show of Swedish pride. 2019 .@BUFFALOSABRES OK THOSE ANTHEMS WERE WORTH THE “Without a call, their decision was it was a fair hit,” the coach said. “That TRIP ALONE! @NHL GLOBAL SERIES #STOCKHOLMSWEDEN was their decision and we need to move on whether we like it or not. PIC.TWITTER.COM/9BAOT3SZHC Everybody could look at that video and make their own decision on it.” — DAN DUNLEAVY (@DAN_DUNLEAVY) NOVEMBER 8, 2019 Evan Rodrigues is the only other forward on the trip, so he’ll step into the “That was probably one of the most special things I’ve experienced as a lineup Saturday. But general manager Jason Botterill has decisions to hockey player, hearing that before an NHL game,” Tampa Bay make when the team gets home. defenseman Victor Hedman said. “I was really focusing in on that flag He could call up winger Tage Thompson, who was leading Rochester and trying to keep the emotions in check.” with five goals and 11 points in the opening 12 games. Thompson is the As a starter, Hedman was on the blue line during the anthem. The top option from the minor leagues, followed by Jean-Sebastien Dea (five Sabres’ Swedish duo of Olofsson and goalie Linus Ullmark also started goals) and Curtis Lazar (three). C.J. Smith may have been next in line and relished the emotion. but is out at least a month with an injury. “It’s an unbelievable feeling just to hear the crowd,” Olofsson said. “We Or Botterill can reach outside the organization, something that’s been got great support from our Swedish fans, so it was a special feeling.” talked about. The Sabres have a surplus of defensemen. The Sobotka injury may force the GM’s hand, though he certainly wouldn’t be keen While the Sabres are stumbling, the Lightning hope they’re finding their about dealing from a position of weakness. stride.

No matter the personnel, the mindset has to change among the forwards. “We played a complete game,” forward Alex Killorn said. “We haven’t had that for a good part of the season.” “We’ve got a lot of skill off the rush,” Skinner said. “We’ve generated a lot off the rush. We’d like to generate a little more down low off those O- After dominating the NHL with a 62-16-4 record last year, the up-and- zone cycles. The D-men did a great job of getting pucks through, but they down Bolts are 7-5-2. They’re looking up at Boston, Toronto, Buffalo, did a good job of boxing us out. You’ve got to find a way to get to the Florida and Montreal in the Atlantic Division. They’ll still head back to seconds and thirds and get some ugly goals. We’ve got to work to find North America in sixth regardless of Saturday’s result, but back-to-back those.” wins would make the trip home easier. Two solid nights for Kucherov would also be nice. The reigning MVP opened the scoring Friday with just his second goal in 10 games.

LETHAL. #NHLGLOBALSERIES PIC.TWITTER.COM/YVTQDBYINC

— TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (@TBLIGHTNING) NOVEMBER 8, 2019

“That’s a world-class finish,” Tampa Bay coach said. “Not a lot of guys can do that, but he’s one of them.”

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160543 Calgary Flames “Hopefully, we can put our best foot forward and continue our solid play from last game because that is going to give us the best chance to win against a very, very good hockey team.”

Flames anxious to stack up against Stanley Cup champs Calgary Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019

Wes Gilbertson

November 8, 2019 5:13 PM MST

Coach Peters rips into Flames for poor play: 'You've gotta be able to make a ...

The Calgary Flames are coming off their most complete showing of the season.

Ideal timing.

Because next on their slate is Saturday’s date against the defending Stanley Cup champions from St. Louis.

The Blues are on a blitz too, arriving at the Saddledome on a six-game win spree.

“They’re a good team, so it’s going to be a good test for us,” said Flames fourth-line Mark Jankowski. “We obviously consider ourselves a top team, as well. We have to play our game. We can’t get too focused on the other team.

“I think if we play our game and we focus on ourselves, then we know we can play with anybody.”

This is a golden opportunity to prove it.

The Flames deserve full marks for Thursday’s 5-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils, but the detractors will point out that’s the sort of squad that you should beat up on.

The Blues certainly don’t fit that description.

“They have four lines and six D that can play, and they play the right way,” praised Flames alternate captain Matthew Tkachuk, who was back home in St. Louis when the Blues made ’s ‘Gloria’ the most popular song in Missouri last spring. “They’re big. They’re physical. They have playoff players. They’re hard to play against, frustrating to play against. They have a great goalie. And they seem to have all bought in to how they want to play there …

“And they’re probably the hottest team in the NHL.”

Gulp.

“That’s going to be a lot of fun,” grinned Flames coach Bill Peters after Friday’s practice at the Saddledome. “That’s a lot of juice — Saturday night, , against the defending Stanley Cup champions … ”

Peters laughs, his smile growing even wider.

“That makes for a pretty good day, doesn’t it? So let’s go out and play. Let’s have fun. We know what they’re all about. Everyone was able to watch them on their march through the playoffs. And early this season, they’re right back to work. I believe they’re 8-2 in their last 10 and have won six straight, so it’s a formidable opponent, to say the least.

“It’s a measuring stick, and it’s an awesome opportunity for us.”

An awesome opportunity … at a terrific time.

After a rollercoaster of inconsistency over the first month-plus of the 2019-20 campaign, the Flames feel like they’re finally finding their groove.

“I think that was our first game in a while where we played a full 60 minutes and felt really confident throughout the game that we were going to not only win the game, but play our game and come out with the result we wanted,” Tkachuk said of Thursday’s dismantling of the Devils. “And I think that’s exactly how we have to be confidence-wise to go into a game against probably one of, if not the best team, we have played this year. We have to be fully confident and firing on all cylinders if we want to have a chance (Saturday) night. 1160544 Calgary Flames “Even just a regular Hockey Night in Canada game — I don’t think a lot of those guys realize the magnitude of it,” Sigalet said. “I remember growing up with it. I was glued to it all night long. It started early in On After Hours, a prime chance to see inside David Rittich's world Vancouver, getting the Eastern game and it became a tradition in our family.

“He’s probably starting to realize it now, but at first, he probably had no Kristen Anderson idea. But that makes it kind of cool, too.”

November 8, 2019 5:00 PM MST If the Flames play at home on a Saturday night, there’s a good chance CBC or Sportsnet will be on — and that means that post-game, they’ll get

an earful of After Hours, regardless of who is on the show. Coach Peters rips into Flames for poor play: 'You've gotta be able to “Usually it’ll be on in the lounge,” said Flames forward Mark Jankowski. make a ... “It’s right after the game so we usually have it on the TV. You might just It has become part of a weekly ritual for Hockey Night in Canada viewers. catch a couple of lines here and there.”

It is also, in many ways, symbolic of the National Hockey League’s best English, clearly, is not Rittich’s first language being from Jihlava in the stories and a showcase of its biggest stars; its guests provide Czech Republic. entertainment, giving those that watch it a glimpse into the human side of It’s been a work in progress, considering he’s only been in North America the game. since the 2016-17 campaign when he played for Calgary’s American But for some NHL players, the significance is lost. Hockey League team — the Stockton Heat.

“I barely know what it is,” said Calgary Flames defenceman Rasmus But Rittich’s grasp of the language has improved, and that came across Andersson, innocently. during his first appearance on After Hours where he was flanked by Sportsnet’s Ryan Leslie and DeBrusk who quizzed him about many Andersson, of course, grew up in Sweden — so he can be forgiven — subjects including pre-game sodas, his desire to play his “lovely game,” but for many Canadians, where hockey is a religion and HNIC is church, post-save celebrations and video evidence of his pre-game ritual where After Hours is a can’t-miss program that follows Saturday night games on he asks a coach to shoot a few pucks directly at his head (seriously). CBC and Sportsnet. Usually, veteran broadcaster Scott Oake is the quarterback of the show along with Louie DeBrusk, taking turns asking “I didn’t think it was too painful,” Mark Jankowski said of Rittich’s debut their guest a series of interesting questions. last year. “He’s a personality. And his english is pretty good. I remember when we were both rookies the same year in Stockton and how far his And, like Andersson, Flames netminder David Rittich had no idea what english has come since that year has been pretty spectacular. It wasn’t the heck he was in for when he went on for the first time last November. painful, I don’t think.

He also had no idea who Scott Oake was — despite Oake having “He did a good job.” interviewed him on two separate occasions: once after his first career win in Colorado during the 2017-18 season and after his first career shut-out He’s also no wallflower and happy to laugh it up with his teammates, last year. which helps.

“They were talking about his rituals and shots to the head and all of the “He’s never been shy of his english,” Sigalet said. “He’s the first one to little quirks he has,” said Flames goaltending coach Jordan Sigalet. “He make fun of himself when he messes up a word. He’s a confident kid. I was really good on there. He’s obviously easy to talk to and a fun-loving don’t think he gets nervous. I think he enjoys it. I don’t see him being a guy. It’s good for him to do that. I think maybe people were questioning nervous guy in the media at all — he speaks his mind and it shows. I why he was on there instead of some of the other players we have. But think that’s why people like to talk to him — they want to get to know him he’s such a good story … I think people appreciated him after seeing him a little better.” on there.” The way he’s playing, too, has made him part of the conversation. Which is the idea of the show — to provide a different side of players. “I’ve always thought he is a really good goalie so I’m not very surprised Viewers will get a chance to see inside Rittich’s world again when he he’s having the year he’s having and I’m happy for him,” Andersson said. makes his second appearance on After Hours following the Flames’ “His english has come a long way. His first few months in Stockton, he clash with the defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues (8 p.m. barely talked to anyone because he didn’t really understand. MT, CBC, Sportsnet, , Sportsnet 1, Sportsnet 960 The Fan). “But he’s getting better and better and it’s fun for him.”

Rittich took a much-deserved rest and media-free day on Friday while the Calgary Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019 Flames hit the ice after Thursday’s dominant 5-2 win over the visiting New Jersey Devils. A mental break is a good thing, especially for a guy who is the team’s starting goalie at the moment.

Heading into Friday’s NHL action, the 27-year-old Czech goalie led the league in games played (15), games started (15), and was tied with Marc-Andre Fleury and Frederik Andersen for the league lead with nine wins. The man they call ‘Big Save Dave’ has been one of the reasons why the Flames are 10-7-2 and, prior to Friday’s action, sitting tied with the Edmonton Oilers for the Pacific Division lead with 22 points (although Calgary had played two more games than their provincial rivals).

It’s been a heavy workload for Rittich to start 2019-20, but it was what he envisioned in the summertime when inking a two-year contract extension with the Flames worth an average annual value of $2.75-million per season.

General manager Brad Treliving pointed out that Rittich has “taken a step every year.” He’s not wrong. This year is no different. Rittich’s progression and consistency has been one of Calgary’s most interesting angles in their topsy-turvy start to the season.

A good indication of that is his presence on After Hours as the producers determine prior to every show who would be a compelling guest; a story people are talking about. 1160545 Calgary Flames Together, these rates make the Flames a league-average, break-even team. Here’s another way of looking at it:

In this chart, teams are arranged according to their expected goal share, State of the Flames: An analytic dive into the 2019-20 season so far with the Hurricanes leading the NHL with a +0.5 difference between their rates of expected goals for and expected goals against. The colour of the bars shows the goals-for percentage (GF%) for each team — that is, Sean Tierney their share of 5v5 goal-scoring.

Nov 8, 2019 9 In this view, the Flames are a very middle-of-the-pack team, wedged into a tier that includes the Flyers, Capitals, Blue Jackets, and Oilers.

There are two takeaways from this company. First, the Flames rank 17th After last season’s 50-win, 107-point, Pacific Division–winning in the NHL in xG share, so middling results in the standings should not performance, the Calgary Flames looked poised to enjoy a long surprise very much based on their control of quality chances at 5v5. postseason run and years of continued success in the Western Second, looking at a sample of 15 or so games for NHL teams, results Conference. can stray very far from expectation. A great stretch of goaltending or a Then the Avalanche happened. run of hot shooting luck might boost a team like the Capitals or Oilers but, over the course of a season, it is reasonable to expect that actual results A new season is under way and, heading into Thursday night’s matchup will fall into line with expected results. against the Devils, the Flames had managed 20 points in the standings after 18 games. This comes on the strength of a 9-7-2 start, leaving the For the Flames, that would be about average. team sitting fifth in the Pacific division, 19th in the NHL with a .556 Finally, let’s take a quick look at game-by-game trends to see if there are standings points percentage, and stuck in the doldrums of a clunky some positive trends. opening stretch. With this somewhat middling start to the season, it’s a good time to check in on how the Flames are performing underneath the This chart shows each team’s game-by-game xG share, as an average wins and losses they’ve amassed so far. over time. Last year, the Flames controlled the share of quality chances (expected goal percentage on the y-axis) very often, only dipping below Here, we’ll take a look at the analytics trends behind the Flames’ start to the break-even line a few times throughout the course of the year. The the 2019-20 season and search for some glimmers of hope as the team managed a few dominant stretches of play as well, including a late schedule shifts into full gear. burst of quality share control leading into the playoffs before smacking Let’s get started. into the Avalanche en route to a 4-1, first-round ouster.

A cautious start with room for hope It’s still early, so trends are just beginning to form. But, so far this season, the Flames have yet to show the extra gear in controlling the flow of the The bedrock of advanced stats is Corsi, which measures all of the shots game that they flashed so consistently last season. Instead, the Flames a team takes (“Corsi for,” which includes those that miss the net, are have simply traded quality for quality at even strength, generating an blocked, hit a post, or hit the net) and all of the shots they allow (Corsi average rate of chances and allowing an average rate of chances against). By comparing shots for and against at even-strength, we get a against. They have briefly dipped below break-even over the past four good sense of the degree to which the team has controlled the puck. In games but not to a level to cause concern. hockey, knowing which teams are controlling the share of shots is the best way to predict future goal scoring, even better than examining past Instead, the Flames have the look of a team that is still hunting for a goal scoring. That’s because goals are rare events, so it’s difficult to sense of urgency in pushing the pace of play, relying on their deep core make predictions about the future by looking at past scoring. Teams take of talented forwards and puck-movers on defence to carry control of the an average of 55 shot attempts per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play and, game. So far, their results in the standings reflect this. because of that quantity of information, shot rates are our best indicator Advanced stats are a key part of understanding what we see when we of future performance. watch a hockey game. When a team controls the share of shots, we Okay, with that background out of the way, here’s how the Flames look know they are probably dominating the puck, keeping control in the so far this year. offensive zone and limiting opportunities against for their opponents. But we know that all shots are not created equal. So, we can turn to expected On the horizontal axis, we have each team’s rate of shots taken. Through goals to give us an even clearer picture of whether or not a team is 18 games, the Flames have averaged just under 59 shots for per 60 dominating high-danger play. minutes of 5v5 play. That rate is notably above league average, good for sixth-best in the NHL. Defensively, the Flames have allowed just over 55 While the Flames have demonstrated some ability to generate shot shots against per game, which is almost exactly league-average. All told, quantity this year, they have yet to distinguish themselves from average the Flames have a positive shots differential of about 3.6 shots per game, in terms of shot prevention. The team has also struggled to stand out in which should lead to better results than the -6 goal differential the Flames quality share, allowing chances against at the same rate that they create have seen so far this year at even-strength. chances and producing league-average results by both measures.

If the Flames are controlling puck possession, why are they seeing If the team’s talented offensive core doesn’t increase their pace of negative goal differentials? Is it just poor luck in a small sample of quantity and quality creation, the Flames are likely to keep producing games? average results in the standings.

It might be a little more than that. So far, their underlying stats suggest that this team is an average one. For now, the standings seem to agree. This chart works just like the first chart but instead features “expected goals” instead of shots. To calculate expected goals (xG), each shot that The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 a team takes is given a value based on the likelihood that the given shot would be a goal. Factors like shot distance, shot angle, shot type, rebounds and chances on the rush are used to give each shot a value. All of these values are then added up to see how many expected goals a team generates (league average is about 2.3 xG or so per 60 minutes of 5v5 play). The same calculations are done for all the shots a team allows to determine the rate of xG against. While there is some debate on the topic, there’s reason to believe that expected goals are an even better indicator of future goal scoring than just Corsi for and against.

In the chart above, was can see that the Flames’ xG performance is less positive than their Corsi share. They’ve posted 2.32 xG for per 60 minutes at 5v5 so far this year, while allowing about 2.29 xG against. 1160546 Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina faces Ottawa on 3-game slide

Staff Writer

NOVEMBER 09, 2019 03:06 AM

Carolina Hurricanes (9-6-1, fourth in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Ottawa Senators (5-9-1, seventh in the Atlantic Division)

Ottawa, Ontario; Saturday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Carolina will try to end its three-game losing streak when the Hurricanes play Ottawa.

The Senators are 3-5-0 in conference matchups.

News Observer LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160547 Carolina Hurricanes “What are you going to say after that? Bad game? You’d be stupid,” Brind’Amour said. “I’m happy because that’s the way it should look for me. I like the fact that we did pretty much everything we wanted to do. We just didn’t get the result.” It ‘sucks to lose like that,’ but the new-look Hurricanes needed a reminder that nothing comes easy Despite the result, last night showed that the Hurricanes have the right combination of skill and attitude to win consistently, it just hasn’t all come together at the same time yet. Previous losses had been concerning because Staal kept saying the team thinks things are going to be easy. Sara Civian This particular loss drove home how hard it is to win in the National Nov 8, 2019 Hockey League, even with the lacrosse goals and highlight-reel passes.

Brind’Amour, who we’re learning is excellent at coaching youngsters, We love sports for hundreds of reasons — some personal, some didn’t want to put the hammer down. collective, some we aren’t even fully aware of. So Lundqvist did it for him. One of the most universal feelings that keeps us coming back through As Jaccob Slavin said, “It sucks to lose like that,” and it also sucks to lose the heartbreak is the off-chance we’ll witness a once-in-a-lifetime these games that would make the end of the regular season less of a moment. constant heart attack. That’s why everyone’s still going crazy about that But the Canes needed to get this one out of the way to remember who lacrosse goal from last week. they are at their best — the famously unlucky team that says “screw your Everyone except head coach Rod Brind’Amour. luck.”

His team’s gone 1-3 since in a stretch where it should be racking up The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 points, and though he let his young star revel in his moment, it was still just one moment.

And the thing about moments is they don’t usually win games. The Hurricanes had been trying to create too many of these moments up until Thursday’s 4-2 loss to the Rangers.

Brind’Amour and captain Jordan Staal have been grappling with the newfound reality of their young, skilled roster — too much of the “cute” stuff. It’s a far cry from Brind’Amour’s inaugural season, in which he named the training camp teams Team Grit and Team Grind to set a certain tone.

“(Another reporter) mentioned something about (defensemen jumping into the rush) being a fine line, but to me, that is the fine line,” Brind’Amour told The Athletic. “You want to make sure you’re giving your guys the freedom to make plays and be creative because that’s how you get the most out of them, but there’s kind of that knowledge of when to do it and being a young group that’s where time and experience you learn that a little more. We’re learning the hard way a little right now. I certainly don’t want to put the hammer down because we’ve got some talented players and they really have to have the freedom to make plays or it’s counter-productive.”

So Brind’Amour isn’t panicking yet, and the Hurricanes thanked him for that with a game more in sync with his expectations Thursday.

According to Natural Stat Trick, at even strength the Hurricanes ended up with a 71.03 percent Corsi for, a 61-28 edge in faceoffs, 3.54 expected goals compared to New York’s 1.47, a 47-19 shot edge …

… we could keep going, but you get it.

They hilariously outplayed the Rangers and not-so-hilariously still lost.

“As long as you believe that’s the way we need to play, then you’re going to be fine. What you don’t want to have is guys doing their own thing, thinking that’s the way it’s going to get done. That’s what we have to guard against right now, thinking we have to do something different,” Brind’Amour said. “That’s the way it should look. The results will come if we play like that.”

There were several missed nets, sure, but the Canes also happened to run into God-tier level Henrik Lunqvist. He’s been known to perform well when in this position — per NHL.com’s Dan Rosen, Lundqvist is 54-23-8 with a 2.12 GAA, a .928 save percentage and nine shutouts in the 85 career sets of back-to-backs he’s started in.

That looks like this:

And this:

A top-five Hurricanes power play shift of the season, taking Erik Haula’s absence into consideration:

It took 31 shots to get one past Lundqvist, and the one that did the trick was an unsightly deflection from the slot.

This is all great news. 1160548 Chicago Blackhawks 3. Dominik Kubalik won’t be a healthy scratch against the Penguins. Colliton didn’t announce his lineup for Saturday’s game against the

Penguins in Pittsburgh, but it sounds like Dominik Kubalik will return from 3 things to come out of Blackhawks practice Friday, including Olli Maatta a one-game absence as a healthy scratch. and Adam Boqvist having surprising similarities Colliton said Friday that if the Hawks had been in a playoff game Thursday night against the Canucks, Kubalik probably would have been in the lineup. With a long season ahead and Kubalik’s play dipping, JIMMY GREENFIELD Colliton felt it was a good time to give him a break.

NOV 08, 2019 | 2:40 PM “He probably wasn’t surprised,” Colliton said. “But my pitch to him was: ‘Hey, you were one of our best players in the first 10 games. Let’s get

you back to that as quick as we can because we could use the help.’ We Here are three things we learned Friday during Blackhawks practice in need everyone.” advance of Saturday’s game against the Penguins in Pittsburgh. Dominik Kubalik dreamed of reaching the NHL. Little did he know his 1. Olli Maatta and Adam Boqvist have a lot in common. dream would come true in his native Czech Republic. »

Olli Maatta may not be an expert on Adam Boqvist, but their striking Kubalik, who has six points (three goals, three assists) in 14 games, similarities give Maatta valuable insight into what it’s like to be a teenager never played more than 57 regular-season games while playing trying to make it in the NHL. professionally in Europe, which was a factor in Colliton’s decision to sit him. But the physical part is just one aspect. Both are defensemen — that’s the obvious one. There are many more, though. Both were first-round draft picks. Both played junior hockey for “It’s probably more mental,” Colliton said. "It’s new to be in an 80-game the ’s Knights, and both made their NHL season. We’re not that deep into it yet, but just the load of games. We debuts at age 19. finally had that road trip and a cluster of games, and that can wear on young guys who aren’t used to that. Their birthdays are even a week apart, though Maatta is six years older. Boqvist was born on Aug. 15, 2000, and Maatta on Aug. 22, 1994. “First of all, it’s the best league in the world, so you’re under stress all the time. And certainly the team not having success, that wears on young “No wonder he’s such a good guy,” Maatta cracked. players. So we want to off him a little bit and remind him what a good player he is and what he needs to do to help us. And I think he will.” While Boqvist spent a month in the before joining the Hawks on Oct. 31, Maatta made the Penguins out of training Chicago Tribune LOADED: 11.09.2019 camp in 2013.

“Every day was a new day,” Maatta recalled. “You walk into it not really knowing what to expect. A little excited, a little nervous coming into training camp. Then you have the rookie tournament, now you have the best players from juniors. (Asking yourself) am I good enough now? How am I going to do now?"

Maatta said the key to competing against men almost twice his age who often had 30 to 40 pounds on him was confidence. That isn’t something Boqvist lacks, but doubt can creep in when bad games inevitably follow good ones.

“He’s good enough to play in the league,” Maatta said. “It’s just mentally he has to have the confidence to (overcome) that. That’s the thing every day. You go through ups and downs. I found that you can’t get too low when you go through those bad games and you can’t get too high when you have the good games. Hockey’s most importantly a mental game. You have to have the confidence to play the game at this level.”

Just as Boqvist has veterans Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Calvin de Haan and Maatta to show him the ropes, Maatta had Kris Letang, Rob Scuderi and Brooks Orpik to help him understand he wasn’t the first to make mistakes, to struggle during his first season and to fight through uncertainty that he belonged in the NHL.

“I had a bunch of older guys around me who had been around the league for a long time,” Maatta said. “You think you’re the only one going through it at that point, but everybody goes through it. It’s just having that confidence. It happens. You’ve just got to park it and leave it behind and get on with your game.”

2. Connor Murphy is getting closer to returning.

Defenseman Connor Murphy, who has been out since Oct. 22 with a groin injury, began skating this week and could be ready when he’s eligible to come off long-term injured reserve Nov. 16 against the Predators.

It’s apparent the Hawks miss Murphy, who has had trouble staying healthy the last two seasons. Since the start of last season, the Hawks are 29-20-9 with Murphy in the lineup and 12-21-6 without him.

“He got a couple days of skating in, but we want to make sure that he’s ready to go,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “We haven’t had much of him this year. It’s (only been) like five or six games, so he’s a pretty big piece of our team and our (defensive) corps. Our team performance is correlated to when he’s in the lineup, so we want to get him in and get him in for the rest of the year.” 1160549 Chicago Blackhawks

Film study: Blackhawks’ offensive-zone entries much improved against Canucks

After relying too heavily on ineffective dump-ins Tuesday against the Sharks, the Hawks worked in more carry-ins Thursday.

Ben Pope

Nov 8, 2019, 2:50pm CST

The Blackhawks maintained more possession against the Canucks thanks to smarter zone entries.

The Blackhawks’ concerted effort to improve their offensive-zone entries translated into tangible results Thursday against the Canucks.

In their 5-2 victory, the Hawks were able to carry or pass the puck into the zone more often than they dumped it in, leading to more possession, more shots on goal and more scoring chances.

That was a huge change from the game Tuesday against the Sharks, in which the Hawks were shockingly reliant on dump-and-chase methods. They overused the conservative approach to the extent that it essentially killed their offense.

Through the first two periods against the Sharks, the Hawks attempted 31 dump-ins — ultimately gaining possession on only seven of them — against 10 carry-ins, even though they gained possession on seven of those.

But through the first two periods against the Canucks, a film review revealed much different tendencies.

The Hawks attempted 27 carry-ins, gaining possession on 18 of them and producing at least one shot on 13. On the other hand, they attempted a relatively low 15 dump-ins, gaining possession on four of them and recording a shot on two.

That means the Hawks’ overall success rate on their entries rose from 34.1 percent to 52.4 percent, simply because they focused so much more on carrying the puck into the offensive zone.

Part of that shift toward carry-ins was surely part of the game plan, as coach Jeremy Colliton and the players alike had spoken about learning from the inefficiency against the Sharks.

But part of it also came from employing a more aggressive defense, forcing turnovers and transitioning quickly the other way. Such instances often make carry-ins easier because the opponent hasn’t had time to set up its defensive structure or neutral-zone trap.

That proved true against the Canucks, with the Hawks having a 62 percent success rate on entries after forced turnovers.

The Hawks’ dump-in rate did increase in the third period, but that was because they spent much of the last 20 minutes protecting a one-goal lead.

All in all, the shift in mentality and positive results Thursday should encourage more carry-ins moving forward.

Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160550 Chicago Blackhawks

Patrick Kane, Andrew Shaw full of jokes after rare win

Kane had expressed his fair share of frustration in recent weeks. But on Thursday, he was all banter.

Avery Yang

Nov 8, 2019, 9:10am CST

The Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane celebrates his third-period goal against the Vancouver Canucks Thursday at the United Center.

The Blackhawks haven’t been having much fun lately. A rough nine-day road trip with no regulation wins didn’t help lift any spirits.

But they welcomed their reprieve home on Thursday, beating the Canucks 5-2 on the backs of an unusually aggressive offense.

It was a decidedly different mood in the locker room afterward — far jollier than the melancholy that was October.

In a joint media scrum with Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw, the two longtime teammates toyed with reporters for several minutes by posing as one another. Shaw answered questions as Kane, and vice versa.

The skit elicited several cackles and some puzzled looks from the media gaggle assembled.

“You guys are out of your element,” Kane joked to reporters. “Going to have to question your performance. Seems like you guys are a little bit off.”

Kane had expressed his fair share of frustration in recent weeks. But on Thursday, he was all banter.

”It always helps when you’re winning,” Kane said.

Coach Jeremy Colliton said this sort of energy is a key to righting the Blackhawks’ ship.

”We’ve got to have some fun,” Colliton said. “These guys — all players — play better when they’re happy and they have some joy in their game.”

Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160551 Chicago Blackhawks

Patrick Kane, Andrew Shaw full of jokes after rare win

Kane had expressed his fair share of frustration in recent weeks. But on Thursday, he was all banter.

Avery Yang

Nov 8, 2019, 9:10am CST

The Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane celebrates his third-period goal against the Vancouver Canucks Thursday at the United Center.

The Blackhawks haven’t been having much fun lately. A rough nine-day road trip with no regulation wins didn’t help lift any spirits.

But they welcomed their reprieve home on Thursday, beating the Canucks 5-2 on the backs of an unusually aggressive offense.

It was a decidedly different mood in the locker room afterward — far jollier than the melancholy that was October.

In a joint media scrum with Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw, the two longtime teammates toyed with reporters for several minutes by posing as one another. Shaw answered questions as Kane, and vice versa.

The skit elicited several cackles and some puzzled looks from the media gaggle assembled.

“You guys are out of your element,” Kane joked to reporters. “Going to have to question your performance. Seems like you guys are a little bit off.”

Kane had expressed his fair share of frustration in recent weeks. But on Thursday, he was all banter.

”It always helps when you’re winning,” Kane said.

Coach Jeremy Colliton said this sort of energy is a key to righting the Blackhawks’ ship.

”We’ve got to have some fun,” Colliton said. “These guys — all players — play better when they’re happy and they have some joy in their game.”

Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160552 Chicago Blackhawks Colliton doesn’t have infinite security left, even if he still has some now. ‘‘We’re always making adjustments, whether it’s game-to-game or over a

period of weeks,’’ he said. ‘‘We evaluate how we’re playing and little Jeremy Colliton enters crucial period of his Blackhawks coaching tenure tweaks we can make. But all the teams are doing that, so I don’t think we’re any different.’’ Colliton doesn’t have infinite job security left, even if he still has some now. Chicago Sun Times LOADED: 11.09.2019

Ben Pope

Nov 8, 2019, 6:55am CST

Jeremy Colliton’s second season in charge hasn’t gone as planned so far.

In February, three months into Jeremy Colliton’s coaching tenure with the Blackhawks and around the peak of the team’s playoff push last season, center Artem Anisimov broke a 12-game scoring drought.

‘‘It’s always nice to see the puck go in,’’ a smiling Colliton said that night. ‘‘It gives you a little bit of life. You sleep a little better, your life is better, you’re better with your kids and your wife. Not unlike what it’s like as a coach when you win.’’

That moment now feels a planet away — and not just because Anisimov plays for the Senators.

Colliton is probably not sleeping too well right now. His family might be a little grumpy. His second season has veered off expected course, dropping his support among the fan base lower than thermometers around Chicago.

Even after their 5-2 victory Thursday against the Canucks, the Hawks remained near the bottom of the Western Conference with a 5-7-3 record, their fewest wins on Nov. 8 since 2005.

But to the dismay of the Twitter critics, Colliton hasn’t yet reached the end of his rope. His seat is warm but not scorching.

He coached only his 82nd career game — the equivalent of one full season — against the Canucks. Coaches are practically never fired after that short a time, especially when a significant portion of it exceeded expectations.

And if Colliton were to go, general manager Stan Bowman — who went to bat to hire Colliton and has received his share of vitriol in recent years, too — probably would have to go, too, launching an organizational fire sale. Hawks brass won’t leap into that impulsively.

Nonetheless, Colliton is entering a crucial period. He needs to right the ship before the season is completely lost. And to do so, he’ll need to learn some lessons from the failures of the first 15 games.

The Hawks must get back to the aggressive, fast-paced, transition-based offense that fueled their surge last spring. The low-risk, low-reward strategies they’ve employed lately, which culminated in a fruitless slew of dump-ins Tuesday against the Sharks, aren’t working.

Perhaps a higher neutral-zone press that forces more turnovers can be the middle ground between Colliton’s insistence on limiting opponents’ chances and the need to unleash the playmaking ability of the Hawks’ forwards.

‘‘If the team’s set up in their structure, then it’s going to be difficult to enter [the offensive zone] without chipping it,’’ Colliton said Thursday. ‘‘We’d like to create more situations where they’re not set up in their structure, whether it’s because you force a turnover in the neutral zone or in the ‘D’ zone or you can transition out of it.’’

A more consistent set of lines also could go a long way. Colliton’s strange rant in October, in which he insisted the line combinations didn’t matter, has been proved false recently. The long-awaited reunions of Dylan Strome with Alex DeBrincat and Jonathan Toews with Brandon Saad have rejuvenated all four guys.

And the players will appreciate that, too. Just look at wing Andrew Shaw’s complaint Thursday that consistency in ‘‘the layout of the lines just going into each period . . . just hasn’t been there’’ as evidence.

All told, a mentality more open to schematic changes — and maybe a bit less scheme, in general — might be necessary to save the season. 1160553 Chicago Blackhawks

Pittsburgh hosts Chicago after overtime victory

Staff Writer

11/9/2019 7:00 AM

Chicago Blackhawks (5-7-3, sixth in the Central Division) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (9-6-1, third in the Metropolitan Division)

Pittsburgh; Saturday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Blackhawks visit Pittsburgh after the Penguins beat New York 4-3 in overtime.

The Penguins are 5-3-1 at home. Pittsburgh is seventh in the NHL averaging 3.4 goals per game, led by Jake Guentzel with seven.

The Blackhawks are 1-4-1 on the road. Chicago has scored seven power-play goals, converting on 14.6% of chances.

The matchup Saturday is the first meeting this season for the two teams.

TOP PERFORMERS: Guentzel leads the Penguins with seven goals, adding six assists and totaling 13 points. Sidney Crosby has recorded 7 points over the last 10 games for Pittsburgh.

Patrick Kane leads the Blackhawks with 16 points, scoring five goals and registering 11 assists. Alex DeBrincat has three goals and three assists over the last 10 games for Chicago.

LAST 10 GAMES: Blackhawks: 3-5-2, averaging 2.3 goals, 4.1 assists, 3.4 penalties and seven penalty minutes while allowing 2.8 goals per game with a .923 save percentage.

Penguins: 5-4-1, averaging three goals, 4.7 assists, 2.7 penalties and 5.4 penalty minutes while giving up 2.2 goals per game with a .920 save percentage.

Penguins Injuries: Kris Letang: out (lower body).

Blackhawks Injuries: None listed.

Daily Herald Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160554 Chicago Blackhawks straight games. ... The Hawks will honor approximately 20 military and veterans awarded with the Purple Heart before the national anthem Sunday at the United Center.

Kubalik eager to get off the sideline, back on the ice Daily Herald Times LOADED: 11.09.2019

John Dietz

11/8/2019 3:26 PM

Transitioning from an overseas 50-game regular season to one with 82 games in the NHL can take its toll on some players.

Their mindset is different, even in early November.

"Last year after 15 games, we were already thinking if we were going to (be in) the playoffs," said Blackhawks forward Dominik Kubalik, who spent the last six seasons either in the Swiss-A or Czech leagues. "(Then) after Christmas in Europe you already know if you're there or not."

Kubalik is still getting used to the tougher NHL schedule -- as well as the ramped-up pace of play -- and it was for those reasons that coach Jeremy Colliton sat the 24-year-old during Thursday's 5-2 victory over Vancouver.

"It's the best league in the world so you're under stress all the time, and certainly the team not having success, that wears on young players," Colliton said. "We want to take that off him a bit and remind him what a good player he is and what he needs to do to help us. And I think he will."

Said Kubalik: "I knew the last two games (weren't) my best. We talked about it; coach showed me some clips. I've got to learn from it. Now I'm pretty excited to play again."

Kubalik's inconsistent play in the defensive zone during part of the recently completed four-game road trip was concerning. He looked nothing like the player he was in the first 10 games while paired with Brandon Saad and David Kampf on the Hawks' best defensive line.

Colliton broke up the trio and it seemed to affect Kubalik.

"Obviously when you're playing 10 games together, you're building the chemistry and you know what the other guy's going to do," said Kubalik, who has 3 goals and 3 assists. "And we've played together since the (Training Camp) Festival. It's been a long time. When there's a change in the lines, you've got to get used to it again."

Colliton expects to see a better, more motivated Kubalik against the Penguins Saturday.

Said Colliton: "My pitch to him was, 'Hey -- you were one of our best players in the first 10 games. Let's get you back to that as quick as we can because we could use the help.' "

Reunion time: Defenseman Olli Maata, who came to the Hawks in an off- season trade with Pittsburgh for Dominik Kahun, will face his former team for the first time Saturday. Maatta played in 362 games for the Penguins and helped them capture the Stanley Cup in 2016 and '17.

"Yeah, it'll be a little weird," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby told reporters Friday. "When you play with a guy for that long everybody knows each others' tendencies, so there shouldn't be any surprises.

"(He) doesn't give you much room out there; he's got a long stick. I'm sure he'll be tough to play against."

Murphy update: Jeremy Colliton is hopeful that Connor Murphy will be able to come off long-term injured reserve Nov. 16 when the Hawks are at Nashville. The Hawks are 2-2-2 with Murphy in the lineup and 3-5-1 without him.

"We haven't (had) much of him this year," Colliton said. He's a pretty big piece of our team and our D corps. I think our team performance is correlated to when he's in the lineup, so we want to get him in ... for the rest of the year."

Slap shots: Thursday's victory over Vancouver marked the first time the Hawks notched 2 power-play goals since Feb. 22 against Colorado. ... After scoring 1 goal in 52 games from Nov. 27, 2018, through Oct. 26, David Kampf has notched 3 in the last six contests. ... Duncan Keith, who saw 26:11 of ice time vs. Vancouver, has led the Hawks in ice time 13 1160555 Chicago Blackhawks

Why Connor Murphy is the most valuable defenseman on the Blackhawks

Charlie Roumeliotis

November 08, 2019 1:15 PM

Connor Murphy may not be the best defenseman on the Blackhawks, but he's certainly the most valuable.

The 26-year-old blue liner missed the first half of last season due to a back injury he suffered during an off-ice workout and has been sidelined for more than half of this season already because of a groin injury.

And you can't ignore the void he has left on the back end for the Blackhawks.

Since the start of the 2018-19 season, the Blackhawks are 29-20-9 with Murphy in the lineup and 12-21-6 without him. He isn't the flashiest player and won't light up the scoresheet — he's pointless in six games this season — but he's the most dependable defender the Blackhawks have, and they rely on him in many key defensive situations.

No defenseman on the Blackhawks has more defensive zone starts at even strength per 60 minutes (22.1) than Murphy, whose 66.7 percent defensive zone-start ratio on the penalty kill ranks second just behind Duncan Keith (66.9), according to Natural Stat Trick. Murphy was also among the NHL's defensemen leaders last season in quality of ice time against the opposition's top line, making his ice time average of 20:11 that ranks third on the team this season stand out even more because he's eating hard minutes.

The good news? Murphy has been skating on his own for the past few days and he's eligible to come off long-term injured reserve on Nov. 16 against the Nashville Predators.

The Blackhawks are hopeful that he'll be ready by then, and when Murphy does draw back into lineup, it should help provide some stability on defense in all situations.

"We hope so," head coach Jeremy Colliton said. "He got a couple days of skating in, but we want to make sure that he's ready to go. We haven't had much of him this year. It's like five or six games, so he's a pretty big piece of our team and our D corps. I think our team performance is correlated to when he's in the lineup, so we want to get him in and we want to get him in for the rest of the year."

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160556 Chicago Blackhawks

Why it's important for Blackhawks to go on a run quickly

Charlie Roumeliotis

November 07, 2019 11:40 PM

After going 1-2-1 on their four-game road trip, the Blackhawks returned to the United Center on Thursday against one of the NHL's hottest teams in the Vancouver Canucks and were desperately searching for a victory. They were also looking to put forth a strong 60-minute effort to feel good about it.

And they accomplished that.

The Blackhawks jumped on the Canucks early, outshooting them 14-3 past the midway mark of the first period and going into the first intermission with a 2-0 lead. The Blackhawks shut the door the rest of the way, knocking off the Canucks 5-2 behind Corey Crawford's 36-save performance for just their third regulation win of the season.

But now the Blackhawks need to put together a run to make up for all the ground they've lost by stumbling out of the gates. Why? Because over the last six seasons, 76 percent (73-of-96) of teams in a playoff spot at American Thanksgiving have gone on to secure a postseason berth.

With a victory on Thursday, the Blackhawks are now at 13 points and find themselves seven points out of the playoff picture. They've got a lot of work to do before Nov. 28.

"We've got to play the same way," Dylan Strome said. "... Going into Pittsburgh, it's a tough building to play in obviously, but we've got to find a way to get two points. We've got to start stringing some [wins] together. We got a few losses in a row, so only way to get that back is a bunch of wins in a row. I think we've got the guys in here to do it."

If the Blackhawks want to do that, they must start the same way they did against the Canucks. They controlled the pace of play, they took advantage of a power-play opportunity and they got terrific goaltending from Crawford all night long. Giving themselves a two-goal cushion early on was a nice momentum builder.

"We just got to start the game well," Alex DeBrincat said. "It's tough when you go down one or two goals right from the start. I think if we put pressure on them right away it's good for our confidence, hard on the other team, it gets them a little bit worried about it."

The Blackhawks will take it one game at a time, but they also realize where they're at in the standings and the importance of actually carrying their positive play into the next game.

"Certainly we would like to find a way to string two, three, four, five games together," Colliton said. "That's what we need to get some momentum going. But I think there were a lot of good efforts tonight and guys can have a positive feeling going into tomorrow."

How do the Blackhawks do that?

"I think this team, we have to skate," Colliton said. "When we skate, we're excellent. So however we got to do that, get our minds to the point we understand that's what we need to do to have success."

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160557 Colorado Avalanche

Avalanche to face Columbus in two-game series in Finland next season

The Avs lost twice to Ottawa in their first NHL Global Series appearance in 2017 at Stockholm, Sweden

MIKE CHAMBERS

November 8, 2019 at 3:00 PM

The Avalanche will be among four NHL teams to compete in the 2020 NHL Global Series, facing the Columbus Blue Jackets twice next fall at in Helsinki, Finland, the league announced Friday.

The dates of the two-game series and ticket information will be released later for the Avs’ games and the other Global Series matchup between the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators, a season-opening game for both teams at O2 Arena in Germany.

This will be Colorado’s second trip to the NHL Global Series. The Avs lost twice to the Ottawa Senators in Stockholm, Sweden, early in the 2017-18 season.

Denver Post: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160558 Colorado Avalanche

Avalanche defenseman Nikita Zadorov out indefinitely after taking puck to the face against Predators

Zadorov joins goalie Philipp Grubauer and forwards Gabe Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen and Colin Wilson on the injured list

KYLE FREDRICKSON

November 8, 2019 at 5:01 PM

A bounce-back Avalanche victory Thursday against the Predators was soured with the discovery that yet another player will be lost for significant time to injury.

Defenseman Nikita Zadorov took a puck to the face early in the second period on a Nashville power-play and immediately dropped to the ice. He was taken to the locker room and did not return.

“(Zadorov) got hit in the face with that shot and he’s gone to the doctor today,” coach Jared Bednar told reporters Friday after an optional morning skate. “I would say he’s out indefinitely. I don’t have all the details of his injury just yet. We’ll know more later today.”

Zadorov is the latest on a growing list of injured Avs that includes goalie Philipp Grubauer and forwards Gabe Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen and Colin Wilson. Colorado will recall a player from the AHL-affiliate Eagles before the team embarks on a five-game road trip next week, Bednar said.

Zadorov’s prolonged absence leaves a physicality void on Colorado’s back-end with his team-leading 28 hits in 15 games this season. The Avalanche host the Blue Jackets on Saturday night.

“The competitiveness and the physical play at and around the puck when you’re protecting the front of your net is important, and we expect all of our guys to be able to do that job,” Bednar said. “There is an aspect of Z’s game that we’re going to miss, there’s no question. He keeps opposing forwards honest in a lot of different situations on the rush and going into the corners. They can be a little tentative when he’s playing physical.”

Denver Post: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160559 Colorado Avalanche As expected, the Avalanche promoted one player from the Colorado Eagles in the AHL, opting for forward Jayson Megna. He has already played in four games with the Avalanche this season.

And that makes five: Nikita Zadorov becomes latest to join Avs’ growing The team could still call up a defenseman to bolster their depth over a list of injured players five-game-in-10-days slate against the , Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Minnesota Wild.

Veteran Kevin Connauton was already called up once this season Ryan S. Clark although he did not feature in any games. Connauton is more of a stay- at-home player who could be used to fill in for Zadorov on the penalty kill. Nov 8, 2019 There is also the possibility the Avalanche could go with Mark Alt or Anton Lindholm, who each made cameos last season.

Because what’s one more injury for the Colorado Avalanche at this point Calle Rosen, who came over in the Tyson Barrie-Nazem Kadri trade from in the season? the Toronto Maple Leafs, gives the team another puck-moving option. Rosen does have four points in seven games. Nikita Zadorov became the latest casualty of what is already becoming something of a brutal campaign that is not even 20 games old yet. The Or could this be an opening for Conor Timmins? The former second- defenseman is out indefinitely after being struck in the face with a puck round pick started the year with the Avalanche and played in two games Thursday in a 9-4 win against the Nashville Predators at Pepsi Center before being sent to Loveland to receive more minutes after missing 18 that snapped an Avalanche five-game losing streak. months recovering from a concussion. He has four points in nine games and has logged ice time in even-strength and special teams situations for Zadorov left the game early in the second period after sustaining the the Eagles. injury while killing a penalty during his eighth and final shift of the evening. The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019

“He got hit in the face with that shot and he’s gone to the doctor today,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said after the team held an optional practice. “I’d say he’s out indefinitely. I don’t have all the details of his injury just yet. We’ll know more later today.”

One thing is clear. Zadorov becomes the fifth player from the Avalanche’s opening roster over the last 16 days to sustain an injury that has kept them out of the lineup.

It all started Oct. 23 when star right winger Mikko Rantanen sustained a lower-body injury in a 3-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues at the Enterprise Center. Rantanen’s left ankle twisted in an unnatural position and he was ruled out days later. Bednar said earlier in the week there is nothing new on his status although he has been seen walking without a boot.

Then Oct. 29 happened. That was the day the Avalanche announced captain and star left winger would also be out for an indefinite period of time after being diagnosed with a lower-body injury. Bednar said Landeskog, who has been seen in a walking boot, was dealing with the injury over the team’s last two games before seeking a medical evaluation.

And if that was not enough? Veteran left winger Colin Wilson also got injured in practice that same day and remains shelved.

Finding solutions to replace Landeskog, Rantanen and Wilson prompted Bednar to shuffle the lines right as the Avalanche were in the infant stages of a five-game losing streak.

Even then? That skid also claimed starting goaltender Philipp Grubauer. He was diagnosed with a lower-body injury with the idea he would miss games versus the Predators and Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday. But he should be healthy for the team’s five-game trip that starts in Winnipeg and ends in St. Paul, Minn.

Now the Avalanche can add Zadorov to that list.

“It’s not easy but teams will go through it. Bad things usually happen in three’s, so, hopefully, we’re at six by now,” Bednar said with a bit of a sly grin. “I think you can’t worry too much about it as a coach. You have to move on to the next game. We got lots of guys who still want a lot of opportunities and they’re getting it now. With opportunity comes responsibility.

“We gotta keep ramping our game here and carving out wins. It doesn’t matter who’s in the lineup, no one’s going to feel sorry for us.”

Bednar said the plan is to use the team’s six remaining defensemen — Mark Barberio, Ian Cole, Samuel Girard, Ryan Graves, Erik Johnson and Cale Makar — in the game against the Blue Jackets. The fourth-year coach shuffled his pairings versus the Predators but opened the game with Girard skating next to Johnson while Graves was paired with Makar for the first time. Barberio began the night with Zadorov until the injury.

It is possible he could keep Girard with Johnson and Graves with Makar while going with a Barberio-Cole tandem to comprise the third pairing. 1160560 Colorado Avalanche

Avs injury list grows as Nikita Zadorov now out indefinitely

EVAN RAWAL

NOVEMBER 8, 2019

The hits keep coming.

The Avalanche held an optional practice on Friday, but the big news of the day came after practice when coach Jared Bednar announced Nikita Zadorov would be out “indefinitely” due to the injury he suffered from taking a puck to the face in Thursday’s blowout victory over Nashville.

While Bednar did not confirm the injury itself, sources have told DNVR that the big Russian blue liner suffered a broken jaw, among other work needed to his teeth.

“I don’t have all the details of his injury just yet, but we’ll know later today,” Bednar said to the media after the optional practice on Friday.

For now, the Avs will stick with their six healthy defensemen for the one game remaining on their homestand, which means Ian Cole will jump back into the lineup on Saturday. After that, the plan is for the Avs to call up either a forward or defensemen before they head out on their five- game road trip.

The big controversy from the play with Zadorov was the refs decision to not blow the play dead. Zadorov laid on the ice, with blood coming from his mouth, for several seconds before getting up, clearing the puck, and heading straight to the locker room. He laid on the ice for so long that Avs head trainer Matt Sokolowski jumped onto the ice to help him, only to have to jump off because the refs didn’t blow it dead.

I spoke to a player in the Avs locker room who believed the play should have been blown dead, citing that the health of the players should be the top concern, but they understand the refs have a tough job and the play moves quickly. Bednar agreed.

“I thought they should have blown it down right away,” Bednar said. “I’d like to see them just give it a couple of seconds to make sure he doesn’t go down and get back up, but once he stays down, you want to see them blow it. I know it’s a power play, but I think they’re instructed to just figure out the severity of the what the injury is, and if they think it’s bad, just blow it down.”

Beyond that, the Avs are a little dinged up all over their lineup, but Bednar doesn’t expect anyone else to miss time, including star Nathan MacKinnon, who was held out of the third period for precautionary reasons.

“I think he’s going to be fine,” Bednar said about MacKinnon. “I expect him to play tomorrow. We have a handful of guys who are knicked up and the rest is important.”

NEWS AND NOTES FROM PRACTICE

A pretty small group of players on the ice today, with the only guys skating being TJ Tynan, JT Compher, Tyson Jost, Cale Makar, Ian Cole, Ryan Graves, and Mark Barberio. Both Pavel Francouz and Adam Werner were on the ice as well.

Bednar has experience with Tynan in the past, having coached him in the AHL in the Blue Jackets organization, but he was happy with his play last night and said he’s largely not gotten a chance due to his size.

Bednar joked that “bad things happen in three’s, and hopefully we’re at six right now” regarding the injuries they’re dealing with to some key players early in the season.

The coach did not mince his words when it came to his goaltending on Thursday night, stating that the four goals didn’t have a lot to do with the defense. “I would say our goaltender didn’t have a great night,” he told the media. You don’t win many games while giving up four goals, so the Avs will need Francouz to be better against Columbus on Saturday.

BSN DENVER LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160561 Columbus Blue Jackets

Blue Jackets, Colorado Avalanche will play two games in Finland in 2020

Brian Hedger

Nov 8, 2019 at 5:36 PM

PHOENIX — They have a Finnish general manager and two Finnish players, and there are nine countries represented in the Blue Jackets’ locker room.

In other words, they are a perfect fit to be showcased in Europe as part of the NHL’s annual Global Series — which will happen next season in Helsinki, Finland.

The NHL announced Friday that Columbus will play two games there next fall at Hartwall Arena, facing off against the Colorado Avalanche, the Jackets’ next opponent Saturday at Pepsi Center in Denver.

“We don’t look for a player based on his passport, but it just so happens to be the case,” Kekalainen said of his international roster. “I’ve talked to a couple of the guys who are from Europe and they’re all excited.”

Dates were not released, but the Blue Jackets and Avalanche will meet up in the fall, after the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators open the season with a game in Prague, Czech Republic.

“We have a lot of guys from Finland, a couple guys from Sweden, so it would be awesome to go over there and see where guys are from and play NHL games over there,” defenseman Zach Werenski said earlier this week, before he learned about the Jackets’ 2020 trip. “I’ve heard good things about the NHL Global Series, so that would be cool if our team got a chance to do that.”

It will be the Jackets’ second time playing regular-season games in Europe, after participating in the 2010 NHL Premiere games in Stockholm, Sweden. They split those two against the San Jose Sharks.

“It’ll be great to bring our team there, where people are passionate about hockey and the National Hockey League, but the main thing is still the four points that are available for those two games,” said Kekalainen, who is from Tampere, Finland, and cut his teeth as a GM in Helsinki with both HIFK and . “That’s the main focus, but it’ll be a good change and be a good team bonding trip.”

Joonas Korpisalo and defenseman Markus Nutivaara are the Jackets’ current Finnish players. Nutivaara is from Oulu in northern Finland, while Korpisalo is from Pori in the southwest and came up through Jokerit’s junior levels.

The Blue Jackets also have forward Markus Hannikainen (Jokerit) playing for the . Their NHL roster has 10 European players, including three from Sweden plus rookie Alexandre Texier, who is from but spent the past two years playing with KalPa in Finland’s top professional division.

“Some of the guys probably haven’t been there and some have, but maybe haven’t seen some of the things the country has to offer,” Kekalainen said. “So, I think we’ll get a good opportunity to show what Finland’s all about.”

It will not be Kekalainen’s first taste of the NHL’s international flavor. As Jokerit’s GM, he hosted games at Hartwall Arena from 2009 to 2011. The most memorable was an exhibition game between Jokerit and the Anaheim Ducks in 2011, when Teemu Selanne played against his former Finnish team.

“That was a special excitement there because he’s a Jokerit product,” Kekalainen said. “He played hockey through all the junior levels in Jokerit, so that was a great event. So (were) the other ones, and so, too, will this one be in a year.”

Columbus Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160562 Columbus Blue Jackets “Nice to help out a little bit,” said Bjorkstrand, who has two goals in the past four games. “Obviously, we’re out there for a few goals against, but it’s nice to contribute and get a few goals-for too. You want to see the puck go in the net.” Blue Jackets 3, Coyotes 2 | 3-2-1 breakdown 3) Bemstrom breaks the ice

It was going to happen eventually, but rookie Emil Bemstrom was Brian Hedger beginning to wonder when his first NHL goal would arrive.

Nov 8, 2019 at 10:09 AM “I’m trying to get that out of my head, but of course, it’s still there because you want to score that first goal so much, so badly,” he said Wednesday.

“I mean, when you haven’t scored in some games and then you score, GLENDALE, Ariz. – It wasn’t their best performance, but it wasn’t the you feel more comfortable. It’s going to release all this, I don’t know ... Blue Jackets’ worst either. ghosts in your head.”

They had moments of brilliance, moments of head-shaking frustration Well, consider the ghosts exorcised. and everything in between Thursday night at Gila River Arena. At the end After getting a free lane on a late power play, Bemstrom entered the of it, though, the most important thing the Blue Jackets had was a hard- right-wing circle and took a look at the net. He fired a hard wrister that fought 3-2 win against the Arizona Coyotes to end a five-game winless forced Kuemper to make a difficult save, sending the puck over the net streak. and off the end boards. Bemstrom stayed after it, flipped a quick second They also had a little bit of their confidence back. shot at Kuemper from a bad angle and the puck deflected into the net off the goalie's body. “We don’t get caught up in talking too much about a losing streak,” coach John Tortorella said. “We’re just trying to get better every day. “I’ve been waiting for this for 15 games, so it’s been frustrating," Were we really good tonight? I wouldn’t say we were, but we found a Bemstrom said. "But I did it, so I’m happy with that.” way. We’ve got to get better in a lot of different areas. Individual players Two questions have to get better, but it’s good for them to get a result here. There’s been some games where we’ve lost this year (and) we didn’t get the 1) What happened in that first period? result. We got the result tonight.” It was a good start, all things considered, but the Blue Jackets couldn’t Despite losing a 1-0 lead and being outplayed in the first period, the maintain it after Nyquist's quick goal to start the game. Jackets stayed close thanks to goalie Joonas Korpisalo’s 31 saves and eventually tied it 2-2 on Emil Bemstrom’s power-play goal at 17:36 of the Scott Harrington’s tripping minor at 8:42 opened the door a crack and the second – scored off his own rebound. Oliver Bjorkstrand scored the Coyotes busted it down the rest of the period. Arizona outshot Columbus winner at 10:12 of the third, slamming the puck past Darcy Kuemper after 16-9 in the period, after initially being credited with a 20-9 edge, and the it fluttered to him through a pair of Coyotes defenders off a pass from Blue Jackets chased the puck most of the period. They were fortunate Pierre-Luc Dubois. Korpisalo was up to the task.

It took a 3-for-3 performance killing penalties too, including a late one in “The first five or six minutes were good, the rest of the first period, I don’t the third that gave the Coyotes a 6-on-4 advantage for the final 1:48 after know what was going on,” Tortorella said. “But we wound up playing a Kuemper left the ice for an extra skater. better second period and found a way to win.”

“A win like this … it lifts up the mood and gives you confidence,” 2) Did the power of positivity help? Korpisalo said. It’s big points here and we’ve got to feed off of it.” Rather than running through their usual gameday meeting at the morning Here is a 3-2-1 of the Jackets’ big win in the desert – three takeaways, skate, the Blue Jackets’ coaching staff changed it up. Knowing they had two questions and one more thing to know: a roster full of guys fighting a confidence issue in the offensive zone, Tortorella turned the video session into a highlight reel of goals the Three takeaways Jackets have scored the past couple years.

1) Korpisalo comes up big There were no critiques, no comments, nothing. It was just Blue Jacket goal after Blue Jacket goal, which they appreciated seeing. The idea was The Blue Jackets’ new No. 1 goalie showed why he earned that role. to boost the Jackets’ sinking confidence and it appeared to work when Aside from a juicy rebound in the first that Korpisalo kicked out to Carl Nyquist scored on the game's first shift. Soderberg for the Coyotes’ first goal, he was excellent. That didn't lead to a big outburst of goals, but patience and positivity Two of his best stops were against Michael Grabner, a speedy veteran helped the Jackets eventually grind out a victory that returned some of forward who had a pair of shorthanded breakaways turned away. The their swagger. first one, with 4:39 left in the second and the Coyotes trying to stretch their lead, was the most difficult. “Confidence is a big thing,” Tortorella said. “It’s an overused word. I think you can use that word with a lot of different words, but it’s here. It’s After sprawling out, Korpisalo just got his left arm out in time to stop a mental. And that’s what we’re trying to clear up. You hope some good backhand attempt. things happen. You hope that helps, but as a coach, we’re just trying to “I just see him coming down, fast guy, and (he) kind of got me there,” find other ways to get to that avenue.” Korpisalo said. “I tried to push, I lost my edge, so I can’t go all the way One more thing to know there. I got lucky it hit my arm. Just tried to get something in front.” Bemstrom said the puck from his first NHL goal will go to his younger The save on Grabner’s breakaway in the third was less dramatic but brother, Linus, who follows his career closely back in Sweden. more technically sound – a right pad save that stonewalled the shot cold. Korpisalo was named the game’s third star, but he was first rate. “He’s following me every game and supporting me every game,” Bemstrom said. 2) Top line comes through Columbus Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019 They were on the ice for the Coyotes’ goals, but the Blue Jackets’ new top line of Gustav Nyquist, Dubois and Oliver Bjorkstrand made up for it.

Nyquist had a goal and two assists, scoring 14 seconds into the game to make it 1-0, while Bjorkstrand finished with a goal, assist and two points. He also scored the winner at 10:12 of the third after a fortunate bounce off Dubois’ pass put the puck right into his wheelhouse for a close-range blast. 1160563 Columbus Blue Jackets Kukan, in particular, stood out in a 2-1 loss Tuesday to the Vegas Golden Knights. He was aggressive in the offensive zone and found Boone Jenner with a pass to set up the Blue Jackets’ goal.

Blue Jackets use highlight reel to find motivation “He’s made some really nice plays, some plays that surprise you, as far as how he sees the ice,” Tortorella said. “He’s progressed. He keeps progressing. Another guy that wants to play. Harry, the guy coming in, wants to play (too).” Brian Hedger Injury updates Nov 8, 2019 at 5:30 AM After being reinstated from injured reserve Wednesday, rookie forward

Alexandre Texier returned to action against the Coyotes. He played left GLENDALE, Ariz. — The morning meeting in the visitor’s locker room wing on the fourth line, skating with center Riley Nash and rookie Emil Thursday at Gila River Arena could have resembled the usual ones the Bemstrom. Texier missed four games. … Murray remains on injured Blue Jackets hold on game days. reserve because of a broken hand but is on the trip. He missed his fifth game since injuring the hand in a 7-4 loss Oct. 26 at Philadelphia and is Instead, a video montage of goals — actual Blue Jackets goals — played 12 days into a recovery process estimated to require three to four weeks. on a loop at the front of the room. There were pretty goals, gritty goals, lucky goals, important goals — just goals, in all sizes and shapes. Columbus Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019

Most important, they were all scored by the Blue Jackets, who went into a game Thursday night against the Arizona Coyotes saddled with a five- game winless skid (0-4-1) and five goals in the previous four games.

“As I’ve always said, you can’t peel the scalp up, turn it, push a button in the brain and say, ‘You’ve got confidence,’” coach John Tortorella said. “We’ve just got to try to help them. … We’re trying to help them feel good about themselves, not overanalyze. Try to give them an avenue to feel good about themselves.”

Hence the video, which was still playing goal after goal following the on- ice portion of the morning skate.

“It’s just a great tactic,” said captain Nick Foligno, who said he and others are guilty of pressing too hard to score. “It’s not like a big panic in here, like we’re never going to score again, it’s just nice to see some things that you were doing that breed success and breed goals in this league.

"When you’re fighting it a little bit, it’s easy to forget and hard to remember.”

Using Cleveland

A couple of years ago, the Blue Jackets took advantage of the proximity of the Cleveland Monsters, their American Hockey League affiliate.

Located a few hours up I-71 from Columbus, the Monsters can help NHL backup goalies stay sharp — starting with Joonas Korpisalo, who made the trip multiple times during the 2017-18 season as Sergei Bobrovsky’s understudy. Two years later, Korpisalo is the top goalie and rookie Elvis Merzlikins, who doesn’t need to clear waivers, was assigned to the Monsters on Wednesday to keep adjusting to smaller North American rinks.

Merzlikins will draw his NHL paycheck with a one-way contract, but that’s a small concession for getting him more experience. Matiss Kivlenieks was recalled from Cleveland to back up Korpisalo to start the trip, and goaltending coach Manny Legace headed to Cleveland to work with Merzlikins and fellow rookie Veini Vehvilainen.

“Korpi has earned the No. 1 goalie (role), and you have to try and get that No. 1 goalie into a flow as you play in these games here,” Tortorella said. “Perfect opportunity for us to let him run with it here a little bit, and the way the games stacked up in Cleveland, with Manny being there too, it worked out perfect to help (Merzlikins) in a process of trying to learn the North American game. So, it’s a really good thing.”

Pushing for more

Scott Harrington and Dean Kukan have caught Tortorella’s attention in a good way.

Harrington returned to the active lineup as Kukan’s partner on the third defense pairing against Arizona, as the Jackets’ usual seventh and eighth defensemen are needed with the usual second pairing of Ryan Murray (hand) and Markus Nutivaara (upper body) out.

“These are tough decisions now with those guys, and it’s just not always those two guys that are in the equation of who’s out and who’s in,” Tortorella said. “There’s a number of guys involved in our (defense) that we have to talk about when we’re deciding to put our six out.” 1160564 Columbus Blue Jackets Each team can bring 23 players (same as a regular NHL game), but they are allowed a third goaltender in case of injury.

“It will be just like a regular road trip, just a longer flight,” Kekalainen said, Blue Jackets headed to Helsinki in 2020 for two games vs. Avalanche already getting into tour guide mode.

“I can introduce the guys to a real sauna, which is not something you get too often in North America. We’ll have some time to do things as a team, Aaron Portzline have some fun and see the country. But we are going there to compete, first and foremost.” Nov 8, 2019 Jarmo said his father wakes up in the middle of the night in Finland —

currently seven hours ahead of Columbus’ eastern time — to check the DENVER — Jarmo Kekalainen’s father made his only trip to Columbus at NHL scores. the start of the 2015-16 season, hoping to watch the Blue Jackets win a “I got a text from him last night (after the win in Arizona),” Kekalainen few games with his son, the club’s general manager. said. “He and my mom (Elina) both follow it. My father-in-law was never a But Kari Kekalainen had to cut his trip short. The Blue Jackets started hockey fan, but now he follows the NHL all the time.” with a horrendous losing streak, Jarmo Kekalainen had to fire a coach Now he needs to see a win in person. (Todd Richards) and hire another (John Tortorella), and the mood in central Ohio turned dark quickly. The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 “That’s the year we started 0-8,” Jarmo Kekalainen said. “My dad left after five games and said he was never going to come back. And he hasn’t.”

But the Kekalainens will get a second chance to see the Blue Jackets win, and this time in their homeland.

The NHL announced Friday that the Blue Jackets and Colorado Avalanche would take part in the league’s 2020 Global Series, playing two regular-season games in Helsinki’s Hartwell Arena.

The dates aren’t known yet, but the games are expected to be played in early November. They will not be season-opening games, as when the Blue Jackets played against San Jose in Stockholm in 2010.

“I’m excited for the organization and the team and the players who have never been there,” Kekalainen said. “I talked to (forward) Gustav Nyquist (of Sweden) today, and he’s never been to Finland, which is kind of … it’s crazy.

“I talked to (defenseman) and he’s excited because his family is now closer by. It’s way easier for them to come to the game in Finland than it is to travel all the way to America.”

Kekalainen was born in Tampere and raised in Kuopio, but he was GM of both Helsinki-based clubs in Finland’s top league, IFK Helsinki and Jokerit. He’s a revered figure in Finland.

“Everybody follows the NHL there,” Kekalainen said. “The whole country is crazy about hockey, and the NHL is the best hockey in the world. I’m assuming tickets will be a hot commodity. It will be sold out in a very short period of time.”

The Blue Jackets currently have two Finnish players on the roster: goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and defenseman Markus Nutivaara, while frequent call-up Markus Hannikainen has bounced between AHL Cleveland and Columbus. The organization’s fourth goaltender on the depth chart is also a Finn, Veini Vehvilainen.

“When you’re from Europe playing in the NHL, you don’t see your family and friends too often,” Korpisalo said. “Having a chance to play in front of them in an NHL game, it’s pretty awesome.

“My grandparents … they’ve never seen me play live in the NHL. I’m really hoping I play in one of those games.”

The Blue Jackets made a quid pro quo with the NHL more than a year ago, Kekalainen said. If they agreed to go to China to play two preseason games, the league would give them a game in Finland.

The preseason games in China would have taken place two months ago, but they were canceled by the league over the late summer. The league kept its promise, however, by sending the Blue Jackets to Finland.

Buffalo and Tampa Bay are playing in Stockholm today and Saturday, so their itinerary is pretty close to what the Blue Jackets can expect, Kekalainen said.

They have a minimum of five days off before the first game, giving them time to acclimate to the time change, do some sightseeing, and get used to practicing in Hartwell Arena. The games will be played on successive days — a back-to-back — and then teams will return home with five days to get readjusted. 1160565 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings get quick result from newcomer Robby Fabbri in 4-2 win over Bruins

Helene St. James, Detroit Free PressPublished 10:30 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 1:33 a.m. ET Nov. 9, 2019

The Detroit Red Wings wanted to play with more of that “nothing to lose” mentality that ignited a winning streak down the stretch last season.

It has been mostly a miserable stretch nearly a quarter of the way into this season, but the Wings earned a reprieve Friday at Little Caesars Arena with a competitive performance against the Boston Bruins.

A 60-minute effort against one of the top teams in the NHL yielded a 4-2 victory that bumped the Wings to 5-12-1.

Special teams clicked, the Wings made plays, they hit. Jonathan Bernier came up with big saves. Newcomer Robby Fabbri scored twice on power plays, off passes from Tyler Bertuzzi. That plus a goal from Dylan Larkin built a two-goal lead that stood until Torey Krug scored with seconds left on a power play late in the second period.

A reckless penalty by Madison Bowey — slashing Brad Marchand — forced the Wings to play shorthanded again early in the third period, but they were able to stave off the league’s top power play. Anthony Mantha secured the win with an empty net goal with 1:28 to play in regulation.

Fine first

The Wings played winning hockey to emerge with a 2-1 lead after the first period. They didn’t melt when David Krejci scored 1:09 into the game. Larkin tied things up within two minutes (on a play that earned Bernier an assist), and then Fabbri did what he was brought in to do and scored — on a power play, no less, an area that has been a huge reason behind the Wings’ struggles. Bernier made five saves during a Bruins power play. In other words, special teams and goaltending delivered.

Fabbri makes favorable first impression

Fabbri, acquired Wednesday from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Jacob de la Rose, debuted on a line with Valtteri Filppula and Andreas Athanasiou. The Wings took a low-risk gamble on the 23-year-old forward in the hopes he could rekindle his career with them. He delivered in the first period, hammering a pass from Tyler Bertuzzi that eluded Tuukka Rask, giving the Wings a rare conversion with the man advantage (their power play ranked 28th in the NHL at 12.7% entering the game).

Fabbri showed off his shot again in the second period, scoring on another power play. It marked only the second time this season the Wings have converted twice in one game on man advantages.

Prime picks

The Wings’ lineup against the Bruins featured seven former first-round picks: Defenseman Mike Green (29th, 2004, Washington), goaltender Jonathan Bernier (11th, 2006, Los Angeles), defenseman Dylan McIlrath (10th, 2010, Rangers), forward Anthony Mantha (20th, 2013, Wings), forward Brendan Perlini (12th, 2014, Arizona), forward Dylan Larkin (15th, 2014, Wings), new forward Robby Fabbri (21st, 2014, St. Louis), and defenseman Dennis Cholowski (20th, 2016, Wings). Larkin led all forwards going into the game with 225 points in 335 career games, and Mantha was second with 150 points in 234 career games.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160566 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings' Robby Fabbri scores twice in debut vs. Boston Bruins

Chris Allen, Special to the Free PressPublished 9:45 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 10:53 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019

Acquired on Wednesday in a trade with the St. Louis Blues, center Robby Fabbri wasted little time making his reputation known in Detroit during his first game as a Red Wing against the Boston Bruins.

Brought in to spark more of an offensive effort, Fabbri did just that. Nearly 12 minutes into the first period, Fabbri one-timed a pass from Tyler Bertuzzi for a short-side power play goal, his first goal as a Red Wing.

But he wasn’t done. Not yet.

A minute-and-a-half into the second period, lightning struck again. On another pass from Bertuzzi, Fabbri clapped another shot past Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask to take a 3-1 lead.

Fabbri is the third 2014 first-rounder on the Red Wings roster (along with Dylan Larkin and Brendan Perlini). He was traded from St. Louis Blues on Wednesday in exchange for forward Jacob de la Rose, 24, a waiver pick-up from last fall. Fabbri totaled 32 goals and 41 assists in 164 games with the Blues.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160567 Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings to newcomer Robby Fabbri: Grab this opportunity

Helene St. James, Detroit Free PressPublished 1:20 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 2:34 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019

Dylan Larkin used to nod at Robby Fabbri, a little acknowledgement that came from being draft mates.

Now Fabbri is seated a few lockers away from him in the Detroit Red Wings’ dressing room at Little Caesars Arena. Fabbri is the latest former first-round pick acquired by the Wings as they try to resuscitate their season. He was drafted by the St. Louis Blues at No. 21 overall in 2014, nine spots after Brendan Perlini, who was traded to the Wings in October.

“Yeah, we’re gobbling up the whole draft,” Wings coach Jeff Blashill said after Friday’s morning skate. “I know we were high on Robby when he was being drafted — I know that just from talking to our scouts back then. I know we’ve been high on him at different times, listening to our pro scouts, over the years.

“We’re hoping we can get Robby back up to the speed he was when he first came in the league and had lots of success.”

[ Here's what Red Wings should expect from Robby Fabbri after trade ]

Robby Fabbri, right, fights Jordie Benn for the puck Oct. 17, 2019 in St Louis.

Fabbri is penned in to play Friday against the Bruins (7:30 p.m., FSD, NHLN) on a line with Andreas Athanasiou and Valtteri Filppula.

Fabbri, 23, produced 18 goals and 19 assists in 72 games as a rookie in 2015-16. His career was derailed by two anterior cruciate ligament tears in his left knee, but he said his knee is not an issue.

“Those were a couple years ago,” he said. “I feel great out there it’s not even in my mind when I am playing.

Question: Can Wings’ Jeff Blashill keep surviving these embarrassing losses?

“I’m just going to come in and do what I know I can do, do what I can to help this team and help contribute. I play fast, with some skill and high compete level.”

Fabbri had one goal in nine games with the Blues this season.

General manager Steve Yzerman flipped defensive forward Jacob de la Rose for Fabbri Wednesday. Blashill spoke on Thursday with two of Fabbri’s former coaches with the Blues, Ken Hitchcock and Craig Berube.

“I think there’s a belief that there is more in him,” Blashill said. “He needs opportunity. Like I said with Perlini, we have opportunity here. Now he has to grab it. We need more scoring — he can potentially provide that.”

Fabbri has connections in the locker room, having played junior hockey with Tyler Bertuzzi in Guelph, Ontario, and he knows Perlini and Larkin from the 2014 draft. Larkin, who went 15th overall to the Wings, said he has kept an eye on Fabbri; both started in the NHL in 2015-16.

“Anytime I play against a guy that I was drafted with, you always have a little nod,” Larkin said. “You always watch them. You know who they are just from playing with them or against them through the years. You definitely watch, them, yeah.”

Fabbri has good hockey IQ and has shown he can score at the NHL level. The Wings hope he can rekindle his career with them.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for him,” Larkin said. “He hasn’t played much. He’s been scratched and had some injuries and some adversity through his career. He’s going to get a great opportunity here and we are going to need him to be a big player for us. I know he has it in him, so I’m excited for him to show everyone.”

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160568 Detroit Red Wings

Game recap: Detroit Red Wings defeat Boston Bruins, 4-2

Detroit Free PressPublished 6:00 a.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 10:23 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019

Detroit Red Wings (4-12-1) vs. Boston Bruins (11-2-2)

When: 7:30 p.m. tonight.

Where: Little Caesars Arena

TV: Fox Sports Detroit, NHLN.

Radio: 97.1 FM (Red Wings radio affiliates).

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160569 Detroit Red Wings Helm, who was penalty-killing without a stick, and the screening Bergeron.

For Krug, who played at Michigan State, it was his 11th point in his last Instant impact: Robby Fabbri scores twice in debut, helps Wings top 11 games. Bruins Shortly after his goal, Bernier had his best stop of the night, stopping David Pastrnak point-black after a Red Wings giveaway. Pastrnak came into the game with an NHL-leading 15 goals. By Matt Schoch, Published 10:39 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 11:58 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 "I knew he was there," Bernier said. "Obviously I was late, and you want to make an easy save there, but I just tried to cover as much as possible and got the glove on it."

Detroit — With a few more nights like Friday, Robby Fabbri and the Red The line of Brad Marchand, Bergeron and Pastrnak were held scoreless Wings could be quite the match. at full strength by Bertuzzi, Larkin and Mantha.

Fabbri, a forward who was acquired in a trade from St. Louis on "That was our goal was to shut them down and not give them anything," Wednesday, had a pair of goals in his Detroit debut as the slumping Red Bertuzzi said. "I thought we did a pretty good job of that." Wings knocked off Boston, 4-2, at Little Caesars Arena. Bernier had never had two assists in a season, let alone one game. The Both of Fabbri’s goals were one-timers on the power play from the slot, pair of assists brought his 12-year career total to seven in his third win of and both were set up on centering passes by Tyler Bertuzzi. It was the season. Fabbri’s first multi-goal game since his only career hat trick on Dec. 28, 2016. It was also his fourth multi-goal game of his career and came on It was the league's first multi-point game for a goaltender since Rask did two shots. it on Oct. 16, 2016, and the third in Detroit's history, joining a pair of games by Jim Rutherford in the late 1970s. "The way we played from start to finish, the style that they played, it's a hard-working group," said Fabbri, who became the seventh player in Red Wings defenseman Filip Hronek had his first fighting major, getting franchise history to score twice in his Red Wings debut. "This two shots in on Marchand's body before the pesky center took him down organization is something I followed growing up, so to be part of this in the second period. organization and be connected to it, for now, is really nice." "I think that physicality brings emotion out," Blashill said, also singling out The Red Wings have won four straight against the Atlantic Division- the toughness of left wing Adam Erne. "It brings emotion to the building. leading Bruins, and the win snapped a four-game losing streak. The Red It's a positive thing for us, and we need to continue to do that to be Wings became the last NHL team to post double-digit points, improving harder to play against." to 5-12-1. Mike Green, who missed three games with an illness, and Frans Nielsen, Detroit came in 1-11-1 in last its last 13 games, as Dylan Larkin and who missed one game, returned to the lineup for the Red Wings. Anthony Mantha added goals, a team-leading 10th for Mantha into an Detroit, which had 32 shots, will host Las Vegas on Sunday. empty net. Detroit News LOADED: 11.09.2019 Jonathan Bernier made 26 saves and became the second different Red Wings goaltender to record two assists in one game.

Fabbri, who was acquired in exchange for center Jacob de la Rose, was immediately placed into the second line by coach Jeff Blashill. His line was centered by Valtteri Filppula with Andreas Athanasiou on the right side.

But Fabbri made most of his hay on the power play with Bertuzzi and Larkin, with Mantha on the point alongside defenseman Dennis Cholowski. Detroit came in 28th in the league with a 12.8% power-play rate, but went 2-for-5 on Friday.

Fabbri, a 2014 first-round pick, came in with one goal and a season-high of 11 minutes, 55 seconds of ice time in nine games with the Blues. He easily passed that with 13:15 of play on Friday.

It looked like more of the same early for Detroit, which moved into a tie for last place in the NHL with Ottawa, Minnesota and Los Angeles.

Boston scored 69 seconds into the game on its first shot, and Bernier’s shoulders slumped.

But just 92 seconds later, Larkin tied the game as his wraparound attempt bounced off goaltender Tuukka Rask and Patrice Bergeron. It was Larkin’s fifth goal of the season.

"That was a huge, huge thing," Blashill said. "It allows you to just keep playing. Momentum is a game is such a big deal.

"That goal allowed us to start even again."

Fabbri’s first goal gave the Wings the lead and his second, 90 seconds into the second period, put Detroit up 3-1. He appears to have a good connection with Bertuzzi, his former juniors teammate in Guelph where they two won an Ontario Hockey League championship in 2014.

"The power play was moving it well, which opened me up in the middle there," Fabbri said. "He made two great passes."

Added Bertuzzi: "It didn't take long for our connection to come back."

With just over 2 minutes to play in the second, Livonia’s Torey Krug made it a one-goal game. His power-play goal went through Darren 1160570 Detroit Red Wings Glendening knew something was wrong as soon as he blocked the shot in Ottawa.

“You have that feeling and you know it right away,” Glendening said. “But 'Excited to be here': Robby Fabbri looks forward to fresh start with Red it’s part of the job and part of the territory.” Wings It’s always difficult for any player to watch, and not play, but doubly difficult when the team is losing as much as the Wings have been lately.

Ted Kulfan, The Detroit NewsPublished 1:39 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 “I feel for the guys,” Glendening said. “I know they’re competing and I know you don’t get to this level without a desire to win and be the best.

“I try to be supportive as much as I can but I’m not out there, so I’m trying Detroit – Robby Fabbri is looking at this opportunity with the Detroit Red to be a good teammate and I know it’s frustrating, and they get tired of Wings much the same away as when he was drafted by St. Louis in answering the same questions about what has gone wrong and what 2014. needs to be fixed, but they’ll continue to work until we get out of this.”

It’s a fresh start, a new beginning. Ice chips

“The same mindset,” said Fabbri, who skated with the Wings for the first Defensemen Mike Green (illness) took part in the morning skate and was time Friday morning and was to be in the lineup against the Boston slated to return to the lineup after missing the last three games. Bruins. “I’m coming in here wanting to make an impact and contribute right away.” … The Wings were taking part in the NHL’s Hockey Fights Cancer Night Friday, including wearing a commemorative jersey for warmups. Fabbri, the Blues’ first-round pick that year (21st overall), was traded to the Wings Wednesday for Jacob de la Rose. Detroit News LOADED: 11.09.2019

Fabbri was slated to be on a wing Friday along with Andreas Athanasiou, on a line centered by Valtteri Filppula.

“I’m excited to be here,” Fabbri said. “I’m going to come in and do what I can do, and do what I can to help this team and contribute right away.”

The Wings are excited about the potential Fabbri has, and the low-risk gamble he presents.

Fabbri, 23, only played in nine games with the Blues this season, with one point (a goal), while averaging close to 10 minutes per game.

But Fabbri was an 18-goal scorer his rookie season (2015-16) in St. Louis, and had 15 points in 20 playoff games that season.

Then came back-to-back torn ACL surgeries, which caused Fabbri to miss one complete season, and he’s been slowly trying to get back to his pre-knee surgery days.

“I’m past those,” Fabbri said. “Those were a couple of years ago now. I feel great now. When I’m playing, I feel good.”

Coach Jeff Blashill mentioned Friday how the Wings’ organization has always been high on Fabbri going back to the 2014 NHL Draft.

“I know we were high on Robby when he was being drafted, just from talking to our scouts back then,” Blashill said. “We’ve been high on him at different times, listening to our pro scouts in our meetings. We’re hoping that we can get Robby back to speed, like when he first came into the league.”

Fabbri’s offensive capabilities, and the variety of ways he might be able to help offensively, stand out for Blashill.

“He’s been very good on the power play,” said Blashill, talking about how Fabbri and Paul Stasny worked well together in St. Louis. “He did a real good job there. He definitely has an skill set to be good on the power play.

"He's a smaller guy but he plays very hard and he has to get back to playing that way. When you’ve been hurt with the massive injuries he’s been hit with, you can be a little cautious, and it takes a little bit of time to get away from that. I’m hoping he can get back to playing as hard as he has in the past.

“He can give you scoring depth.”

Glendening mending

Luke Glendening (hand injury) has missed the last eight games but has begun the process to returning.

Glendening, who last played Oct. 23 in Ottawa, took part in Friday’s morning skate, although a return to game action might be another couple weeks away.

“It’s good to get back on the ice, for sure,” said Glendening, who injured his hand blocking a shot. “I’ve been skating the entire week, trying to move it in the right direction.” 1160571 Detroit Red Wings

Robby Fabbri scores twice in victorious Red Wings debut

Today 10:23 PM

By Ansar Khan

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings acquired Robby Fabbri hoping that with more opportunity he will help boost their offense and improve their power play.

He made a terrific first impression Friday.

Fabbri scored a pair of power-play goals as the Red Wings defeated the Boston Bruins 4-2 at Little Caesars Arena to snap a four-game losing streak.

Both of Fabbri’s goals were one-timers on passes from Tyler Bertuzzi, his former junior teammate at Guelph (OHL). Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha also scored for Detroit.

Jonathan Bernier made 26 saves for his first win since Oct. 10 and also contributed a pair of assists.

The Red Wings (5-12-1) competed harder than they have in several recent games, playing with an edge in one of their most physical performances of the season.

Larkin tied it at 1-1 at 2:41 of the first period with his fifth goal of the season, capping a near end-to-end rush with a wraparound attempted them deflected in off Bruins center Patrice Bergeron and past goaltender Tuukka Rask.

Fabbri followed with power-play goals at 11:49 of the first period and 1:30 of the second. The Red Wings’ power play entered the game ranked 28th in the NHL at 12.7 percent (7 for 55).

Fabbri had scored only one goal in nine games this season with the St. Louis Blues. The Red Wings acquired him late Wednesday night for fourth-line center Jacob de la Rose.

Torey Krug’s power-play goal at 17:52 of the second period cut Detroit’s lead to 3-2.

The Bruins had several good chances to tie it before Mantha’s empty-net goal sealed the outcome with 1:28 remaining.

The Red Wings started the night ranked last in the league in goals per game (2.1). They had scored only two goals in their previous three games and had been outscored 22-5 during their four-game slide. Going back further, the Red Wings were 1-11-1 in their previous 13 games, getting outscored 52-20.

The game got off to an inauspicious start for Bernier and the Red Wings when David Krejci scored on Boston’s first shot of the game at 1:09. He beat Bernier on the short side with a shot from the faceoff dot.

Michigan Live LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160572 Detroit Red Wings Here are the lines and defense pairs the Red Wings skated with Friday morning:

Tyler Bertuzzi-Dylan Larkin-Anthony Mantha Red Wings hope Robby Fabbri provides offense, helps power play Andreas Athanasiou-Valtteri Filppula-Robby Fabbri

Brendan Perlini-Frans Nielsen-Adam Erne Updated Nov 08, 2019;Posted Nov 08, 2019 Justin Abdelkader-Christoffer Ehn-Darren Helm By Ansar Khan Taro Hirose (no goals, five assists in 17 games) appears to be a healthy scratch.

DETROIT – Robby Fabbri was a frequent healthy scratch and didn’t get On defense: much ice time when he dressed this season for the St. Louis Blues. Patrik Nemeth-Filip Hronek But that’s the defending Stanley Cup champion, a team that’s leading the Dennis Cholowski-Dylan McIlrath Western Conference. Madison Bowey-Mike Green Fabbri will get ample opportunity with the Detroit Red Wings, who are last in the NHL. He’ll debut for his new team tonight when the Red Wings Alex Biega (extra) face the Boston Bruins at Little Caesars Arena (7:30, Fox Sports Detroit). In goal: “I’m just going to try to come in and do what I know I can do, do what I can to help this team and help contribute right away,” Fabbri said Jonathan Bernier (starting) following the morning skate. Jimmy Howard

“I play fast, I play with some skill and a high compete level day in and day Power-play units: out. Just try and bring what I’ve learned over the years over here.” 1. Bertuzzi (net front), Larkin (slot), Fabbri-Mantha (half walls), Cholowski The Red Wings acquired Fabbri, a 5-10, 190-pound center/winger from (point). the Blues Wednesday for center Jacob de la Rose. Fabbri, the 21st overall pick in the 2014 draft whose career has been set back by two 2. Perlini (net front), Filppula (slot), Hronek-Athanasiou (half walls), major knee injuries, had just one point (a goal) in nine games with the Green (point). Blues, averaging 9:42 in ice time. Michigan Live LOADED: 11.09.2019 “We have opportunity here, a clean slate, and now he’s got to grab it,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “We need more scoring, he can potentially provide that, so I look forward to watching him play.”

Fabbri will skate at right wing on a line with Valtteri Filppula and Andreas Athanasiou tonight. Blashill said Fabbri eventually could play center. He will be on the left half-wall on one of the power-play units.

“We’re hoping we can get Robby back up to the speed he was when he first came into the league,” Blashill said. “I talked to (his former coaches) Ken Hitchcock and Craig Berube yesterday. There’s a belief there’s more in him.

“Everybody I talked to said he’s certainly been good on the power play. They think he’s got an IQ and skill-set to be good on the power play.”

Fabbri, 23, had a solid rookie season in 2015-16 with 18 goals and 37 points in 72 games, followed by a strong playoff performance (four goals, 15 points in 20 games). He suffered a torn ACL midway through his second NHL season and has appeared in 41 games since returning (three goals, seven points).

“Prior to the injury he played very hard,” Blashill said. “He’s obviously a smaller guy but played very hard. He’s got to get back to playing that way. When you’ve been hurt with massive injuries, sometimes you can get a little bit cautious, so it takes a little bit of time to get away from that. I’m hoping he can play as hard as he has in the past and he can give you scoring depth.”

Fabbri said he’s completely past his knee issues.

“I feel great out there. It’s not even in my mind,” he said. “When I’m playing, I feel good.”

Fabbri and Tyler Bertuzzi were teammates for three seasons in juniors with Guelph (OHL). Fabbri also knows Dylan Larkin and Brendan Perlini as fellow classmates from the 2014 draft.

“I played against him as a kid growing up and he was always dangerous with the puck and he always had the puck on his stick,” Larkin said. “He was one of those guys, me being from Detroit, he’s from Toronto, you knew who he was and you knew going into the game that it’s Robby Fabbri, he’s going to make plays and he’s going to be a star out there. It’s cool to have that and be in the same locker room with him now. We’re pretty familiar with each other through events and just knowing each other through time.”

Tonight’s lineup 1160573 Detroit Red Wings

How to watch, listen and stream Detroit Red Wings vs. Boston Bruins

Posted Nov 08, 2019

By Lauren Williams

The Red Wings take a four-game losing streak into a home game against the Bruins on Friday night.

The Bruins, who lead the Atlantic Division and boasts one of the most formidable players this season in right winger David Pastrnak who currently leads the NHL in goals, points, power play goals, goals per game and points per game.

The Red Wings (4-12-1) and the Bruins (11-2-2) face off at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 8 at Little Caesars Arena.

Broadcast: Fox Sports Detroit

Live Stream: Fox Sports Go | Hulu | YouTube TV | fubo (free trial)

LISTEN

Red Wings Affiliates: Detroit (WXYT-97.1 FM/ 1270 AM); Ann Arbor (WTKA-1050 AM); Grand Rapids (WTKG-1230 AM); Kalamazoo (WQLR- 1660 AM); Saginaw (WSGW-790 AM)

Live Stream: TuneIn Radio

Stream Red Wings games live: fuboTV and Hulu + Live

Michigan Live LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160574 Detroit Red Wings

Fabbri scores twice in 1st game, Red Wings beat Bruins 4-2

BY PAUL HARRIS Associated Press 6 hrs ago

DETROIT (AP) — Robby Fabbri scored twice in his first game with Detroit and the Red Wings beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 Friday night to snap a four-game skid.

Fabbri was acquired from St. Louis on Wednesday night and quickly got his second and third goals of the season. Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha also scored for Detroit, and Tyler Bertuzzi had two assists. Jonathan Bernier stopped 26 shots and also had two assists.

The Red Wings had been stuck in a 1-11-1 rut, their worst skid since 2017-18 when they went 1-12-1.

David Krejci had a goal and an assist and Torey Krug also scored for Boston, which lost its second straight. Tuukka Rask made 28 saves.

David Pastrnak got an assist to stretch his career-best point streak to 14 games (15-16-31) for the Bruins.

Krug's power-play goal with 2:08 left in the second period pulled the Bruins to 3-2. He beat Bernier on a screened wrist shot from the point for Krug's third goal.

Mantha's empty-net goal with 1:28 clinched it. It was his 10th goal.

Krejci opened the scoring just 1:09 into the game when his innocent- looking shot from the left dot beat Bernier.

Larkin tied it just 1:32 later when his attempted pass from the side of the net went in off the skate of defenseman Zdeno Chara. It was Larkin's fifth goal.

Fabbri's power-play goal with 8:11 left in the first period gave the Red Wings a 2-1 lead. He scored on a one-timer from the inside edge of the left circle.

Fabbri's second goal, also a power-play effort, provided a two-goal edge 1:30 into the second period. He scored on a one-timer from the inside edge of the left circle for his third of the season.

NOTE

Boston F Jake DeBrusk did not play because of a lower-body injury and was replaced in the lineup by F Peter Cehlarik, who was recalled from AHL Providence on Thursday. ... Detroit D Mike Green returned after missing three games with an illness.

UP NEXT

Bruins: Host Philadelphia on Sunday.

Red Wings: Host Vegas on Sunday.

Macomb Daily LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160575 Detroit Red Wings Nov. 4 against Nashville, Detroit led 1-0 after a period and then fell apart completely, giving up four goals in the first eight minutes of the second period. At least one of those goals appeared to have been a stoppable shot. But once the damage was done, it was too late to matter. And as Separating fact from feeling with the Red Wings usual, it all happened at once.

Which brings us to Wednesday, Nov. 6, in New York. The Red Wings were playing fine — not great, but fine — when the Rangers struck first Max Bultman Nov 8, 2019 on a power play early in the second. Then the familiar snowball effect began. Chris Kreider scored a minute-and-a-half later, and then the Red Wings took another penalty and gave up another goal. It went from The text came in just before 11 p.m. Wednesday night — from an out-of- scoreless to 3-0 in a matter of four-and-a-half minutes. state friend who, I can only assume, had just gotten a push notification announcing the latest 5-1 Red Wings loss. That time, though, the Red Wings dug in and found some resolve. They scored quickly after the third goal, cutting it to 3-1, and appeared to be on What the hell is up with the Red Wings? he asked. the verge of getting back in the game when they secured a power play with plenty of time left in the third period. Then this happened: This friend doesn’t follow much regular-season hockey, so I’m pretty sure he hasn’t been watching the games. But unbeknownst to him, a whole lot CHEERS TO YOUR FIRST AS A RANGER, KEGGER. of people who have been watching every single night are asking the PIC.TWITTER.COM/JJV9VNOEI3 exact same thing about the Red Wings right now. — NEW YORK RANGERS (@NYRANGERS) NOVEMBER 7, 2019 They’ve lost four straight games by four or more goals. They’ve dropped 12 of their last 13 overall, and nine of those losses have come by at least To those who watched all that live and didn’t want to relive it, please 3 goals. Their goal differential is at minus-33 just 17 games into the forgive the rehashing. But it’s probably necessary to put everything in season. While almost everyone expected Detroit to struggle this season, one place to identify the core reasons this season has gone from the few expected it to look like this. expected kind of struggles, to this.

So, as one of the Red Wings’ worst skids in memory persists, it’s time we First, the Red Wings’ special teams have been dreadful. Their penalty kill dive into the weeds of what’s causing it. Because in explaining everything is at 66.7 percent for the season, which is not just low — it’s 6 that has gone into this losing streak, there’s no one simple way to sum it percentage points worse than the worst full-season PK% since at least all up. 2000.

The first point, underpinning everything, is the roster. In the lineup So how do you explain that? Well, if you trust the advanced stats, part of Wednesday night were four different defensemen who at various points it is indeed that the Red Wings are simply giving up tons of prime this season have been either Detroit’s seventh defenseman, or playing in chances. Their expected goals against per 60 on the penalty kill is 8.42, the AHL. (And that doesn’t include Dennis Cholowski, who has been a third-worst in the league as of Wednesday. healthy scratch for developmental purposes.) At forward, the Red Wings But third-worst is not worst, and it’s certainly not worst of the last 19 took the ice with one line accounting for 19 goals between them, and years. And, the team who is actually giving up the most xGA/60 on the then just three other forwards who had scored even one goal this kill this year is the New York Rangers, who entering Wednesday had an season. Those three players had six goals between them at puck drop, overall PK ranked … 21st, with a respectable 80.4 percent kill rate. and seven by the end of the night. Four of those were from one player. That’s where you see a theme of the Red Wings’ season start to emerge. So yes, the Red Wings are going into games overmatched from a talent They have been bad on the penalty kill. That’s a fact. But they are giving standpoint on most nights. Injuries to Danny DeKeyser and Luke up almost twice as many actual shorthanded goals per 60 (12.54) as the Glendening (two of their top defensive players), and Mike Green (who Rangers, who by this key metric should be doing equally poorly, if not quarterbacks one of their power-play units) surely haven’t helped, but the worse. That 12.54 number is also a shocking 49 percent worse than overall point is true when they’re healthy, too. The team just can’t afford Detroit should be doing compared to its own expected goals. to play many high-scoring games. Don’t confuse that for saying the Red Wings have just been unlucky, One of the things that’s been particularly interesting, though, is how often because it’s much more multifaceted than that. But it does look clear that the Red Wings have been able to play other teams tight for long they’ve caught some tough breaks in addition to their already poor stretches of games, only to get steamrolled for one specific spurt in which underlying results. everything falls apart. A watered-down version of that same theme emerges on the power play, Just look at some of these three- and four-goal losses and note when the where the Red Wings’ 12.7 percent success rate is really hampering their most damage has been done. overall offensive output. Overall, their 2.06 goals per game rank last in On Oct. 15 in Vancouver, the Red Wings held a 1-0 lead for most of the the league by a healthy margin, which makes sense: If you don’t convert first period. But with about two minutes left in the period, they gave up a the most dangerous opportunities you get, you’re going to struggle to goal, took a quick penalty to begin the second, gave up another goal, and score in general. Sure enough, the Red Wings are scoring the fourth- then allowed a third less than three minutes after that. One goal against fewest goals per 60 minutes on the man advantage, partly because quickly turned into three in less than six minutes of game time, and from they’re generating the second-fewest shot attempts per 60 in those there Vancouver sealed the deal with two more power-play goals. situations (again as of Wednesday).

On Oct. 17 in Calgary, the Red Wings fell behind but trailed just 2-1 after From the eye test, you can assign all kinds of reasons for that depending two periods. Early in the third, though, the Flames made it 3-1 and at that on the game, including trouble entering and setting up in the offensive point the Red Wings simply caved. They gave up another goal a minute zone, struggles to win faceoffs, and more. It’s been different on different and a half later, and then a third on the power play soon after. Another nights. But bottom line: There’s too much talent to not be getting more three-goal swing in less than six minutes. out of this group. And the fact the Red Wings haven’t is a big reason they’re here. On Oct. 22, the Red Wings were in control for much of the night, leading the Canucks 2-0 after two periods. But with Detroit on the power play, Taken together, then, special teams are one of the biggest culprits for Tyler Bertuzzi took a tripping penalty with one second remaining in the these disastrous last few weeks. If you take them out of the equation, the second period, evening things out to start the third and giving way to a Red Wings’ 48.91 percent expected goals for percentage at 5-on-5 Vancouver power play. actually ranks 22nd in the league. That’s still not “good” by any means, but it’s way more comfortable and understandable than their last-place See where is this going? The Canucks scored quickly on that power play position would suggest. in the third, and then seven seconds later they drew another penalty and scored again. It stayed that way for about nine minutes until Jake Meanwhile, their actual GF% at 5-on-5 is 37.50, substantially lower than Virtanen broke the tie, opening a familiar set of floodgates. The Canucks the underlying numbers suggest it maybe should be and second-worst in scored two more times in short succession — another three-goal swing in the NHL. As far as I can tell, there are two main likely causes for the six-and-a-half minutes. discrepancy: a little bit of luck, and another deeper (but more Here are a couple especially illuminating nuggets on what this season controllable) problem. has been like the majority of the time at 5-on-5. The Red Wings’ xGF% at 5v5 is 48.91 for the season, and their Corsi For % is 48.97. Their high- First, the luck. Detroit’s shooting percentage at 5-on-5 is a league-worst danger chances for percentage is 49.81. 6.06 percent. The league median this year is somewhere around 8.3. That means potentially up to a quarter of the shots that might normally be Last season, those figures were 44.54, 47.12 and 43.80, respectively. expected to go in for a given NHL team, haven’t for the Red Wings. That actually seems to imply progress. Some of that might be due to a lack of shooting talent on the roster, but probably not all of it (Andreas Athanasiou and his mere one goal being It’s certainly not easy to square all of that with the very harsh outcomes the prime example). The team 5-on-5 save percentage hasn’t been ideal, the Red Wings are experiencing on a nightly basis right now. Doubly so either, at .9068. That ranks seventh-worst in the league. when you add in the raw emotion of sports.

When you add up those two stats, you get a team’s “PDO” — often used But if you buy the numbers, it appears that Detroit’s problems may not be as a proxy for luck because the sum can generally be expected to settle quite as massive as they seem. They are real, they are serious and they at about 1.000 total. The Red Wings PDO is .967: third-lowest in the are not all easily solved. But they are pretty easy to isolate: They’ve been league. killed on special teams, caved in confidence-wise during specific times of adversity, and, yes, even caught a bit of bad luck. So, is the big takeaway that the Red Wings are just getting unlucky? Of course not! But teams who aren’t good can look even worse with some Make no mistake, this doesn’t mean the Red Wings haven’t been bad. rotten luck, and the Red Wings’ underlying stats at 5-on-5 suggest they That’s not the point here. But separating the facts from the feelings in this are not quite as bad as the results they’ve gotten. At least most of the mess, it’s fair to say they’re probably not this bad, either. time. Which brings us back to those spurts where Detroit can’t stop the The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 bleeding.

“You look at us on the ice, one thing goes wrong and we melt,” Dylan Larkin said Monday after the loss to Nashville.

Turns out, the numbers bear that out.

As measured by HockeyViz.com, the Red Wings seem to play their worst hockey (relative to league average) when they’re down one goal, based on the shots they take and allow at 5-on-5. Take particular note that “Down 1” is the only time in games they are giving up more danger than the league average defensively, and their woeful -34.3 percent offensive showing in that same circumstance.

What can the Red Wings actually do about that? It’s hard to find satisfying answers other than “find a way to win a game,” because losing has a compound effect in situations like this. It gets harder to break out of the funk the longer it continues.

“There’s no doubt that right now we’re a fragile team,” coach Jeff Blashill said Tuesday. “I mean, I could pretend and say that we’re not, but that’s bullshit. I mean, we are. But, now, we can control that. And that’s where we have to have a short memory. … Let’s find a way to do it right, shift-in and shift-out as much as possible, and then you hope at that point you get a win, you get rewarded for that. I know over the long (term), if you do it right, you get rewarded. You don’t always in the short term. We’ve just gotta make sure we’re able to keep our head above water.”

It’s fitting to close with Blashill here, because, as with any team that experiences this type of losing, his job (and job security) has been thrust into the spotlight. But what the players have made clear is that they don’t think this is an issue of coaching or “buy-in” in the locker room.

“It’s not the coaches,” Justin Abdelkader said, after affirming that the buy- in is still there. “It’s our group. The players in the room. We have to get the job done. We watch plenty of video of us not doing things the way we’ve done things when we’ve been successful. That’s not on the coaches. That’s on the players in here.”

“Blash comes to work every day and he preaches process, and no one questions him in here,” Larkin said. “He’s a dedicated guy. He’s done so much for us. So we’re not pointing fingers here. That’s what could make this worse. … It’s just executing. It’s wanting the puck on your stick. It’s going out there and making plays. You don’t see enough of that right now.”

“Talking with everyone here, the locker room isn’t the issue by any means,” Jimmy Howard said. “We’ve got a close-knit group here. I think everybody wants to do well for each other in this room, so we’ve just gotta look at ourselves in the mirror and figure out what individually we can do better.”

If you want to ignore those quotes out of skepticism that a player would throw a coach under the bus, that’s certainly fair. But it’s not particularly fair to ignore them and then simply assume the opposite instead.

That might not be a satisfying answer, especially with how much frustration this skid has caused, but it is largely reflective of what’s taken place over the last three weeks. There have been games where the Red Wings were simply beaten from start to finish (the 4-0 loss to Florida, for example) but not nearly as many as the game log indicates. 1160576 Edmonton Oilers REVERSE HIT: Jersey’s first pairing D Sami Vatanen went into the corner boards with

Chiasson seven minutes into the game and Chiasson appeared to swing Oilers stick a fork in the New Jersey Devils either a forearm or an elbow back at Vatanen, catching him in the face. He lay on the ice for 20 seconds (no penalty), went to the dressing room and didn’t return with presumably concussion-type symptoms. He played just five shifts (2:53). Jim Matheson, Edmonton Journal FROM ONE NO. 1 T0 ANOTHER Published:November 8, 2019 Hall, the first player taken in the 2010 draft, has tons of time for teenage Updated:November 8, 2019 11:02 PM MST teammate Jack Hughes, who was the first name called this past June. He had a quiet night against Oilers but he has nine points in 15 games.

The New Jersey Devils, playing back-to-back games, should have been “Tons of skill. He’s quick. he has great edges. When you watch him out infield practice for the Edmonton Oilers Friday after they tumbled to the there his skating is effortless. He has a chance to make a high-skill play Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues two nights earlier and the Devils at any time,” said Hall. played ball. “He obviously has a ways to go defensively — 18-year-old centreman, The Oilers had all their bases covered in the 4-0 win — a goal from Leon that’s the hardest thing in hockey to do. He’s doing a great job of trying to Draisaitl, who has a point in all but two of 18 games, an even-strength learn on the fly. And trying to learn in games where we have to win. He’s second-line rebound put-back from James Neal, Alex Chiasson with his playing in hard situations.” first of the season, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins picking up his third and fourth BACK AT WORK assists against the Devils in two meetings and to round it out, another deflection from role player Gaetan Haas. Oilers winger Josh Archibald returned to the lineup after being out two weeks with a broken foot. He had some kevlar protection on his skate. Oh, and a calm shutout by Mikko Koskinen, the fifth in his NHL career. “The best it feels is in my skate because there’s all that support. It’s The Devils, who only have two road wins, were even with the Oilers until pretty healed now so it’s nothing to worry about. Stopping and starting, Draisaitl got his 14th goal in the 22nd minute, tucking it through Cory everything is good, I’m explosive off both legs so I haven’t lost anything,” Schneider’s pads. Then Haas and Neal scored 66 seconds apart late in said Archibald, who did a nice job on the penalty-kill with Riley Sheahan. the second, and the Oilers rolled to their second regulation W in the last 10 games. This ’n that: Joel Persson, a healthy scratch last game against St. Louis and benched against Arizona Monday, came back and picked up his first “There were some guys who got on the board that were excited to do so. two NHL points — an assist on Draisaitl’s goal and his second-period The other three lines really had an impact with their work in the game. shot, pinballed to Neal on the doorstep…This was the second shutout for That was a good part of it being a team win,” said coach Dave Tippett. the Oilers with Mike Smith losing 1-0 in a shootout in Winnipeg. They So, now, they’re 11-5-2 as they head to Anaheim and San Jose on a rare were blanked 3-zip in Minnesota…Oilers GM Ken Holland didn’t go to mum’s road trip, two points clear of Calgary Flames and three up on Helsinki for the Karjala Cup to watch Jesse Puljujarvi because of Vegas and Vancouver in the crowded Pac8. personal reasons. Head of pro scouting Archie Henderson is there to get a read on Puljujarvi’s play along with training camp invite Anton “My mum (Marilyn, who is retired from a tax job for the Canadian Burdasov, captain of the Russian team…Tomas Jurco cleared waivers government) may have to stay for the rest of the month,” joked Chiasson. and is on his way to Bakersfield where he’ll wear No. 28. He didn’t play “I know she’s been pushing all summer for a mother’s trip. My dad’s had against San Diego Friday. five and she said, ‘Enough of that, it’s time for me.’ She was at the game tonight and I’m sure she’s had a few glasses of wine.” Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019

Hey, why not a few glasses of Merlot?

Her boy finally scored, not that she was all over that when she came in Thursday from Quebec.

‘We don’t talk hockey …i t’s different when I talk to my dad. He’s a lot more honest,” laughed Chiasson.

Draisaitl got the only goal the Oilers would need — his eighth in the last eight games (14th point) — sliding a breakaway chance through Schneider’s pads after a wonderful 100-foot-on-the-tape pass from Nugent-Hopkins.

“I see more assertiveness in him,” said Devils’ Taylor Hall. “I don’t think he’s riding shotgun with Connor (McDavid) anymore, I think he’s driving the bus sometimes and not afraid to take the game over himself. He’s always had the skill to do that, it’s probably just a confidence thing now, which is the case with a lot of players — you have the tools, everything is there, but it’s really having the confidence to take games over and I think that’s what you’re seeing.”

GOOD NEWS, BETTER NEWS

Haas escaped a serious injury when he lost his balance and slammed his left knee into the side boards seven minutes into the second. He hobbled off, missed a few shifts but was back to tip Matt Benning’s shot past Schneider for his second NHL goal. Both goals have come on deflections.

WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK:

The Oilers caught a break in the first when Koskinen took a shot in the chest, didn’t handle it cleanly and the puck dribbled behind him. reached around and tapped it in but referee Brad Meier had already whistled the play dead thinking the Oiler goalie had control of the puck. 1160577 Edmonton Oilers “It sucks to miss games but it’s better to miss early than right before the playoffs,” he said. “I’ve been trying to stay positive, working very hard off the ice so I’d put myself in position to be comfortable and ready to go (after some hard skating and battle drills),” he said. Oilers defenceman Adam Larsson is anxious for return to lineup Larsson, like everybody, has become a big Bear booster.

“Ethan’s been unreal, impressive to watch,” said Larsson. “He’s playing a Jim Matheson, lot of heavy minutes but you can tell he’s having fun. He deserves it.”

Published:November 8, 2019 When Larsson’s ready, he’ll move back into the top four, but maybe with old partner Oscar Klefbom because Tippett doesn’t want to break up Updated:November 8, 2019 11:03 PM MST Nurse and Bear.

The third pairing would be Matt Benning and Kris Russell with rookie Joel Edmonton Oilers assistant captain Adam Larsson played two periods on Persson and Brandon Manning as the 7/8. Persson could go to a broken leg in the season opener, which is equal parts brave and Bakersfield, if they see fit, for awhile, because he’s waiver exempt. He foolish, gusting more to being tough because that’s how hockey players signed when he was 24 years old, which means he doesn’t have to clear are wired. waivers for two years or up to 60 NHL games.

He missed his 17th straight game Friday when the New Jersey Devils, Bear has filled the defence hole admirably but the Oilers have missed the team that drafted him fourth overall in 2011, was in town. Bad timing, Larsson’s sometimes nasty, always hard-on-the-puck-carrier work habits. but that’s life. His coach Dave Tippett said Wednesday he’ll be ready in He learned those from Devils Hall of Famer Scott Stevens when Stevens two weeks, which would be somewhere on their five-game road trip, was an assistant coach in New Jersey. Frankly, he’s exactly what the starting in San Jose Nov. 19 current Devils are missing on their back-end.

Larsson shrugged at that medical update. Larsson, who lost 10 pounds over the summer with a different training regimen feeling he needed to get quicker not stronger, looked lean even “It’s coach’s decision, but I’m hoping a week and half,” he said. if sitting out has been eating away at him.

So, maybe their home game Nov. 16 against Dallas. If it’s then, that’s 20 Did he have to fight to not put weight on? games he’ll have been out. “You have to be a little more strict. First week (after the break), I just had “I want a couple of practices with the team and full contact, game salads. Kind of frustrating. Now I’m back (to testing out all the food situations,” he said. groups),” said Larsson.

The Quinn Hughes shot broke his fibula but not his spirit. Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019 “I think I’m ahead of schedule, but obviously it’s a bone that takes time to heal,” he said.

When the Vancouver rookie-of-the-year candidate’s snapshot caught Larsson late in the first period Oct. 2, he gutted it out for the rest of the shift, about 30 seconds, then for close to another 40 minutes. On the night, he played 22:19.

What was the rest of the Hughes’ shot shift and game like?

“Painful,” laughed Larsson, who turns 27 next Tuesday.

“Some shots you get the pain fades away on the next shift and the one after that but this time it stuck with me the rest of the game. At the end of the third I could barely skate.

“I had to skip the last two shifts.”

He could barely get over the boards, never mind hunt down Elias Pettersson.

The break was above the skate, more in the ankle area, apparently. Hughes is a far cry from, say, Shea Weber when he’s unloading a shot but it caught Larsson in the wrong spot.

“It wasn’t a bomb but I didn’t have any kind of padding on that spot. There’s not a lot of fat there, it’s just skin and bones. Probably one in 50 times you break it with a shot there,” said Larsson, who skated with his teammates at a practice for the first time Friday morning.

“I kept playing maybe because it was the first game of the year. There was a shift in the third where I got hit, not on the foot or leg, just a regular body-to-body hit … right then I knew there was something more going on,” said Larsson, who had played with Darnell Nurse during camp and in the first game with associate coach Jim Playfair saying he wanted them as his shutdown pair.

Is there any protection he could have been wearing to stop the puck impact? Skate guards?

“Now I’ll have to get more but you can put protection anywhere. I mean, you still want to feel good on the ice so you can play,” he said. So no body armour.

Being out in game one hurts, of course. But Larsson, who has watched Ethan Bear play splendidly alongside Nurse, says it could have been worse. 1160578 Edmonton Oilers depth of their achievement of winning year after year, a lot of the focus was on the Oilers.”

Bowman explains in the book how the Oilers, “their game was all attack.” Edmonton Oilers among Scotty Bowman's greatest teams in new Ken Being able to send Gretzky and Jari Kurri over the boards followed by Dryden book Mark Messier and Glenn Anderson it was impossible to match up with them for an entire game.

Bowman was particularly fond of Messier, whose mean streak reminded Derek Van Diest the longtime coach of and Gordie Howe.

Published:November 8, 2019 “One of the things that I found most interesting as he was talking about all three of them is that the way you played against them is not the way Updated:November 8, 2019 6:18 PM MST one would think you would play against them,” Dryden said. “Where you would just focus on them and take them on, mano a mano, and deal with it that way. Ken Dryden has led an interesting life as a goaltender, lawyer, politician, author and businessman, who is an officer “No, that’s not how you play against them. If you turn it into a personal of the Order of Canada. contest, the three of them will destroy you, because they love that contest and the Rocket and Messier have this point of explosion. Gordie Yet, Dryden wanted to tell the story of Scotty Bowman, the greatest Howe less so. Gordie was much more calculated and conscious than it coach in NHL history, and pursued the project for the better part of a was with Richard and Messier.” decade. In the chapter on the Oilers, Bowman talks of having to face Messier as Instead of writing a straight biography on the winningest coach in NHL head coach of the Buffalo Sabres just prior to a ruling being handed history with 14 Stanley Cups, Dryden decided to shift the narrative in his down to the centre for breaking the cheekbone of Calgary Flames most recent book entitled Scotty, A Hockey Life Like No Other. defenceman Jamie Macoun in an earlier game. Messier ran the game against the Sabres according to Bowman, scoring the tying and winning “Scotty’s is a story that had to be gotten down, he has lived a life that is goal in a 5-4 victory, and was then suspended the following day. unlike anyone else and it’s a life that nobody else will live again,” said Dryden, who is signing copies of the book Saturday (3:30–6 p.m.) at “It was that scary reaction whose depth you didn’t know that was different Chapters West Edmonton Mall. “He’s now 86 years old and has seen from others,” Dryden said. “But it might also have a greater depth that everything up close in terms of hockey for over 70 years and he you’re not even seeing at that moment and that’s part of what made it remembers everything. So the conversation had to be had, and the scary.” question was how to do it? Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019 “Usually what happens in something like this is that it becomes a catalogue of war stories and that’s fine and those stories are fun and they’re nice. But that’s not the essence of Scotty and that’s not the essence of the experience he has had in his lifetime.”

Instead of a chronological timeline, Dryden decided to get Bowman’s opinion on what teams he regarded as the best in NHL history and have those teams match up against each other in an elimination series.

Among the eight teams are the 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers, who captured the first of five Stanley Cups by dethroning the New York Islanders dynasty.

“I think it’s clear the kind of feeling Scotty had for them,” Dryden said. “It wasn’t like the New York Islanders where the pieces were added from one year to the next and the continuity of the team kept getting stronger and stronger and stronger.

“The Oilers were literally out of their league when they started as they moved from the WHA to the NHL. And then they were this fast-rising, this explosion in terms of the pieces coming together and in such a spectacular way and of a style of game that was consistent with the players and one that was just different than the NHL had experienced.”

Bowman talks with great admiration of the Wayne Gretzky-led Oilers who realized what it took to win walking past the Islanders dressing room following the 1983 final where they were swept by New York.

Bowman talks of the “live puck era” where average shooters were suddenly putting up superstar numbers and superstar goalies were suddenly like Swiss cheese.

Gretzky put up unthinkable offensive numbers, which will never be matched, the Oilers came together as a young group and revolutionized how the game was played led by head coach and general manager Glen Sather.

“It seemed as though it was the Islanders turn, but it was almost before their turn came to be realized when the Oilers were suddenly there,” Dryden said. “And for a couple of years as good as the Oilers were, it was almost more exciting to see how much better they were going to be the next year and the year after that.

“In some ways the Islanders were not getting their due for the kind of achievements they had because the Oilers were just this team that who knew how good they were? And who knew how good they were about to be? So instead of focusing on the champion and the Islanders and the 1160579 Edmonton Oilers Win some, lose some. Recent games are suggesting the Connor McDavid- and Leon Draisaitl-led Edmonton Oilers are human after all.

After a torrid start to the 2019-20 NHL campaign, the Oilers have lost Taylor Hall reflects on his Edmonton Oilers past (and future?) games they probably should have been in on and have won games they likely should have lost.

Considering the team is still getting very good goaltending, however, Robert Tychkowski from both Mike Smith and Mikko Koskinen — and that Draisaitl continues to play at the very highest NHL level alongside McDavid, plus we’re Published:November 8, 2019 seeing more secondary scoring — there is reason to believe these aren’t Updated:November 8, 2019 2:27 PM MST last season’s Oilers, which saw things go sideways come mid-December.

Hockey beat writers Jim Matheson and Rob Tychkowski join host Craig Ellingson to talk about the recent up-and-down, Jekyll-and-Hyde-type There was only one question (some) fans wanted the answer to: Would performances — both at home and on the road, from a bad loss to he ever play for the Oilers again? Florida at Rogers Place to a clunker in Detroit, a commanding win in Columbus and an unlikely OT win in Pittsburgh to a dominated home-ice Taylor Hall’s interview outside the visitors’ dressing room Friday lasted loss to Arizona. just over seven minutes and touched on everything from the state of the Oilers, the state of the New Jersey Devils, the emergence of Leon The deal for stay-at-home defenceman Adam Larsson stunned the Draisaitl and Hall’s own future in the National Hockey League. hockey world and rocked the Oilers dressing room.

But there was only one question (some) fans wanted the answer to: “There was an initial shock because he is a really good player and a first- Would he ever play in Edmonton again? overall pick,” said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. “The way we were trending, though, obviously not doing well, you kind of expected something to Time heals all wounds, and after almost four years apart, Hall and the happen. Oilers are far enough away from their uncomfortable divorce that a reunion isn’t an entirely bizarre suggestion. “There were a few of us (young players) in there — it could have been anybody. They made a decision on how to make the team better, and The 27-year-old winger couldn’t go there, of course, when asked point- they went with that. You’ve kinda got to just move on right away and blank if he’d rule out the Oilers if he gets to unrestricted free agency this remember that it’s part of the business. Not a fun part of the business, summer. He is still a Devil, after all, and it would be very bad form to start but still, you’ve got to get used to it.” dreaming out loud about playing for an opponent, no matter what the history. Now, four years later, Hall is approaching a fork in his career: the seven- year, $42-million contract he inked with former GM Steve Tambellini is “I haven’t even thought about it,” said Hall, who has always been upfront about to expire, and he can either re-up with the Devils or become an and accommodating with the media. “It’s too hard to rule out or in any unrestricted free agent and pick his destination. teams at this point.” He says he’s not pre-scouting any landing spots in the middle of Fair enough. But a return to Edmonton, even as a visitor, still gets the November. Not even this one. juices flowing. On both sides. “As players, we always know what towns are like and what coaches are “Yeah, it’s fun,” said Hall. “I didn’t get to play here last year (because of like, maybe what the culture in the room might be, what guys you’d want injury). It’s a hockey town, a town that I played six years in. I grew up to play with one day. But for me, I wouldn’t even be a free agent until here, had a lot of good times and made a lot of good friends. Definitely July, it’s a long time from now. My biggest priority is the Devils right now. coming back here is a lot of fun.” “Thinking about anything else would be cheating myself, it would be Hall is on the other side of the league now, but he can see from New cheating my teammates and it wouldn’t allow me to play the best I can Jersey that the Oilers are in a much different place than when he was which is really what I want to do.” here. A year ago, if you asked just about anyone in the league about coming to Edmonton, the answer would be ‘hell no.’ But Hall, like the rest Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019 of the NHL, sees life in the once-dormant program.

“A lot has changed,” he said. “A lot of different employees. The team is vastly different than when I played. That probably takes away some of the familiarity with the organization, but they’re doing great, they’re having a good year.

“I’m happy to see guys like Connor and Leon and Darnell Nurse doing really doing well. They deserve it. They work hard and I know they’ve been through some hard times here recently. So seeing them having success is good.”

Hall had his share of growing pains in Edmonton, too. He was billed a saviour when he came here, but with the organization in shambles and a core of young stars getting very little support on the ice, fans (and then- general manager Peter Chiarelli) seemed to focus on his warts instead of the qualities that would later earn him a Hart trophy as the league’s most valuable player.

Zack Kassian was Hall’s teammate on the 2009-10 Memorial Cup champion Windsor Spitfires team, and then again on the 2015 Oilers, and could see it wasn’t easy for him near the end.

“What was he, a 20-year-old who came in and gave it everything he could? An 18- or 19-year-old?” said Kassian. “At the end of the day, he was probably sick of losing, too. How many years did he go through losing? That’s not fun. Frustration crept in and he was traded.

“And when you get traded, I don’t care what anyone says, you’re sour. That’s how you feel as a competitor. It leaves a sour taste in your mouth.”

OIL SPILLS PODCAST: WHAT TO MAKE OF THE OILERS’ BLIP 1160580 Edmonton Oilers signing Wayne Simmonds and picking centre Jack Hughes with the first pick of this past draft.

SPECIAL TEAMS Edmonton Oilers Game Day: Taylor Hall and New Jersey Devils come to Oilers: PP 13-48, 27.1 per cent, second PK 45-54, 83.3 per cent, 13th town Devils: PP 7-50, 14 per cent, 23rd PK 34-45 75.5 per cent, 25th

SICK BAY: Jim Matheson, Edmonton Journal Oilers: Joakim Nygard (ribs), Adam Larsson (broken fibula) Published:November 8, 2019 Devils: Connor Carrick (broken finger), Jesper Bratt (upper body) Updated:November 8, 2019 6:00 AM MST Game Day Lines

OILERS (PROJECTED) New Jersey Devils at Edmonton Oilers Leon Draisaitl-Connor McDavid-Zack Kassian 7 P.M. TV: SPORTSNET. RADIO 630 CHED James Neal-Ryan Nugent-Hopkins-Alex Chiasson Five Keys to Game: Jujhar Khaira-Riley Sheahan-Josh Archibald 1. STOPPING THE BLEEDING Markus Granlund-Gaetan Haas-Patrick Russell Since a 5-0 start the Oilers are .500 (5-5-2), predictable because the early hot run comes in a league that preaches parity. They’ve won once Darnell Nurse-Ethan Bear in regulation time in their last nine games going back to Oct. 20 in Winnipeg with their strong 4-1 win in Columbus Oct. 30. Give them credit Oscar Klefbom-Joel Persson for scratching out points with their shootout loss against the Jets, an OT Kris Russell-Matt Benning loss against Arizona and their extra-time wins over Washington and Pittsburgh. They’re 10-5-2 so nowhere close to panic in the streets. Mikko Koskinen

2. WHERE’S NUGE? Mike Smith

They need their longest-serving player Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to drive a DEVILS (PROJECTED) second line and take some heat off Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl but RNH has struggled — rare for a guy who’s quietly gone about his Taylor Hall-Nico Hischier-Kyle Palmieri business and averaged 50 points a year the last five seasons. He’s ply Pavel Zacha-Jack Hughes-Nikita Gusev scored once, a PP goal against Philadelphia Oct. 16. He has four ES points on the season. He’s shooting (42 shots) but nothing’s going in Jesper Boqvist-Travis Zajac-Blake Coleman and, yes, he feels the pressure to help out the big dogs. Miles Wood-Kevin Rooney-Wayne Simmonds 3. LET GOOD TIMES ROLL Damon Severson-P.K. Subban Draisaitl and McDavid have scored 44 per cent of the team’s goals (21 of 48). Draisaitl, who has points in all but two games (1-0 shootout loss to Andy Greene-Sami Vatanen the Jets, 3-0 L in Minnesota), has 13 points over his last six games. He’s Will Butcher-Matt Tennyson second in NHL scoring with 29 points, 21 at even-strength. McDavid has scored in the game’s first three minutes the last two nights. He’s coming Mackenzie Blackwood off a seven-shot night against the Blues, the most he’s had all season. Cory Schneider 4. POUNDING PUCKS AT NET Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.09.2019 The Devils are giving up 3.5 goals a game and while young Mackenzie Blackwood seems to be coming on, veteran Cory Schneider hasn’t won a game and has a 4.71 average and .847 save percentage. Schneider’s play is mystifying. He’s only 33 but since 2016-2017, he’s had goal averages of 2.82, 2.93, 3.06 and this year’s rough start. In a 4-3 league where scoring is up, the Devils aren’t getting the consistent saves they need.

5. MORE SPEED IN LINEUP

Josh Archibald (foot) is ready to return and Joakim Nygard (ribs) is close. Both add foot speed to the forward group, Archibald in the bottom six, Nygard possibly on left-wing on the second line when he’s cleared for game action. The Oilers aren’t a slow team but in a very fast league, it never hurts to have guys who add that. Archibald can help the PK which has dropped to 13th and Nygard on the rush. Archibald has to get going five-on-five though. No points in his first eight games before breaking his foot in Winnipeg.

Big Match-up

TAYLOR HALL VS TEAM THAT DRAFTED HIM NO. 1

This will Hall’s 200th game for the Devils after he was traded for Adam Larsson. He has 196 points in that time. Hall, who turns 28 next Thursday, went into Thursday’s game in Calgary riding a six-game point streak and leads the Devils with 13 points in 13 games. He’s still the driver for the Devils, one of the NHL’s best left-wingers, but he’s having trouble scoring with only two goals. The bigger story is whether the Devils will be able to keep him before he hits unrestricted free-agency next July 1. They’ve tried to build around him by trading for P.K. Subban, 1160581 Edmonton Oilers (Draisaitl) can shoot. He works on a lot of different things in practice. He’s hungry. He wants to be the player.”

The returns of Riley Sheahan and Josh Archibald meant Draisaitl was Ryan Nugent-Hopkins shines, mad props for Leon Draisaitl and more to given a break from killing penalties on Friday. That resulted in his lowest like as the Oilers beat the Devils ice time of the season at 18:49, only the second time he played fewer than 20 minutes.

And again, that was an off night for the 24-year-old forward. By Daniel Nugent-Bowman Nov 8, 2019 “If his legs are not there, he can slow down the game to his pace,” Chiasson said. “He makes players around him play at his own pace. He’s for sure a top-10, maybe top-5 player.” There was so much chatter heading into Friday’s game about Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, his underwhelming offensive output and the pressure Chiasson pumped to get going he was putting on himself to produce. There hasn’t been much to like about Chiasson’s first 14 games. It even led to a passionate discussion on the most recent episode of The Athletic Edmonton’s Oil Can podcast between Allan Mitchell, Jonathan This week in particular, Tippett tried him with Draisaitl and McDavid Willis and me. against Arizona and came away displeased with what he saw. His best chance of the season came two nights later, but Blues netminder Jake Well, Nugent-Hopkins stepped up in a big way against the Devils, Allen robbed him with a glove save. chipping in two primary assists in a 4-0 win for the Oilers. It was perhaps his best game of the season. “It felt like for a stretch in the season, how am I gonna get my first one?” he said. “I just thought, ‘I have three (goals) right now. Let’s just go out “He’s one of those guys that we talk about that’s around some chances like I have three and go out and play.’ Now I have one. Now, I can go out but they’re either not going in for him or they’re not going in for his and play.” wingers,” Oilers coach Dave Tippett said. After having so much success early on last season and winding up with “Once some people start scoring around him, it looks like he starts 22 goals, he finally netted his first of the season. He called it a “step in getting some points.” the right direction.”

The first helper was a beautiful stretch pass that gave Leon Draisaitl a Tippett took it a step further. breakaway. The second one just as easily could have been his second goal of the season as he ripped a shot past Devils goalie Cory Schneider “You could tell there was a hunger around the net,” the coach said. “He that barely caught Alex Chiasson’s stick. was whacking and chopping at pucks and got to the net hard. The frustration got to the point where he wasn’t gonna be denied.” “For our line to get going and get some production going was definitely nice,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “Even if we don’t score, we want to be Chiasson’s goal wasn’t one of the highlight reel variety, a Nugent- creating chances and at least getting momentum for our team. We did a Hopkins shot glancing off his stick. But he reacted with a fierce punch better job of that.” through the air. He hopes that one opens the floodgates for him.

Nugent-Hopkins now has 11 points in 18 games. “It’s being at the right spot at the right time,” he said. “I feel like, so far this year, in a number of games it was almost like I was two seconds Respect for Leon ahead of the play or two seconds behind. Now, it finally feels like I have the timing. Devils sniper and former Oiler Taylor Hall had a wide-ranging media availability before the game and one of his standout answers pertained to “We’ve relied on two guys. We need more guys if we wanna be a team a question about Draisaitl. that’s more dangerous down the road.”

When asked what the biggest difference is in Draisaitl’s game, Hall Larsson eyeing return, pleased with replacement heaped praise on his former teammate. The Oilers are getting close to full health. Left winger Joakim Nygard is “More assertiveness,” Hall said. “I don’t think he’s riding shotgun with could be back as early as Sunday in Anaheim, with next week looking Connor (McDavid) anymore. He’s driving the bus sometimes and not more likely. afraid to take the game over himself. He’s always had the skill to do that. It’s probably a confidence thing now, which is the case for a lot of Defenceman Adam Larsson — a former Devil — skated for the first time players.” with his Edmonton teammates Friday after breaking his right fibula in the season opener. He said he hopes to be back in the lineup in a week and Draisaitl then went out and scored the winning goal over Hall’s Devils. a half, with two weeks probably being a conservative timeline.

It was a modest night — offensively and otherwise — by Draisaitl’s other- Larsson was in good spirits after the skate and looked at the silver lining worldly standards this season. The goal, however, was no minor feat as of getting hurt blocking a shot in Game 1. he tucked a deke through Schneider’s legs after Nugent-Hopkins sent him in on a breakaway. “It sucks to miss games, but I honestly think it’s almost better to miss early than closer to the playoffs,” he said. “I’ve been trying to stay He also had two great chances in close just past the 11-minute mark of positive this whole time. I’ve been working really hard off the ice. I put the third period with the second one hitting the post. myself in a position where I feel comfortable and I’m ready to go pretty soon.” The breakaway tuck pushed his team-leading goals and points totals to 14 and 30, respectively. He’s one point behind Bruins winger David The veteran blueliner was supposed to comprise half of the team’s shut- Pastrnak for the NHL scoring lead. down pair with Darnell Nurse. The Oilers are 10-5-2 without him and with Ethan Bear filling in alongside Nurse. As far as Chiasson’s concerned, it’s time for those around the league to take notice of Draisaitl if they haven’t already. Overall, Friday wasn’t one of Bear’s better outings. A misread by him led to the Devils’ best chance of the game, a first-period breakaway by Hall “I hope everyone’s seeing it,” Chiasson said. “In my opinion, the three that hit the post. The Oilers were out-attempted 22-20 at five-on-five in most underrated players in the league are Leon, (Aleksander) Barkov on the nearly 16 minutes he was on the ice. Florida and I thought that (Ryan) O’Reilly the other day on St. Louis was just deadly. He’s just a smart player. It was a rare blip from him though.

“All those guys are great players, but Leon’s got a lot more upside. When “Unreal,” Larsson said about Bear’s season. “It’s been impressive to he decides to play — big, physical, skating — his skill takes over. He watch. You can tell he’s having a lot of fun out there. He plays a lot of sees the play two or three plays before. He’s just as good a passer as minutes, a lot of heavy minutes. He deserves it. He’s been really good.” Nick Backstrom. Nick was the best passer I’ve ever played with by far. A banner night for Persson If it was a subpar night from Bear, it was anything but from Joel Persson.

After being benched during Monday’s overtime loss to Arizona and scratched for Wednesday’s defeat to St. Louis, Persson recorded two assists — his first two NHL points.

The first wasn’t much of a helper as Draisaitl and Nugent-Hopkins did most of the work on the first Edmonton goal. The second, however, was much more notable. The rebound from his point shot was deposited by James Neal for his 12th goal.

“It was fun to be out there again,” Persson said. “I obviously felt better than the last game.”

His performance helped regain some of his coaches’ trust.

“We were hoping for a bounce-back game,” Tippett said. “He moved the puck all right. He was efficient, not losing a lot of battles, being on the right side of the puck. He just did things simple. It kept him out of trouble.”

It was a special night for Persson. His mother Mari, father Jan and girlfriend Kijsa Lind were in attendance ahead of the team’s moms’ road trip.

“It’s fun to have them here to see my first points.”

Koskinen continues to shine

It’s hard to believe anyone truly had Mikko Koskinen posting six wins in his first nine starts with .927 save percentage and 2.18 goals-against average. That’s exactly where he’s at after his first shutout of the season.

“I’m trying to keep my game in balance every game,” Koskinen said. “It’s your guys’ job to write about how I play or not. I’m not too worried about that.”

Friday won’t be one of his tougher starts of the season as he had to make just 26 saves and faced seven high-danger scoring chances. The only one that seemed to give him any trouble was the Hall breakaway that hit iron.

“It was pretty close, but not close enough,” Koskinen said, dryly. “He’s a good player. I’m glad that one didn’t go in.”

“Other than that,” Tippett added, “he didn’t have to make outstanding saves. He was in position. He made the game look simple. That’s a strong game by a goaltender.”

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160582 Edmonton Oilers team. Only Matt Benning and Brandon Manning average less ice time among Oilers’ blueliners.

Oilers associate coach Jim Playfair oversees breaking these defencemen What inexperienced defencemen like the Oilers’ Joel Persson must do to in and helps decide who should play, how much and when. gain their coach’s confidence Although Bear is more than three years younger than Persson, Playfair said he has had a “leg up” because of his experience in North America.

By Daniel Nugent-Bowman Nov 8, 2019 Bear was a star in junior for the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds and had 18 NHL games on his resume from the season before last. His patience with the puck and positioning in the defensive zone have been boons to the Oilers, Playfair said. Joel Persson is first to get to a loose puck along the boards in the offensive zone, just ahead of Coyotes centre Carl Soderberg. Instead of Persson was coming in eyes wide open. He was playing what’s blasting it on goal or into the far corner, Persson tries to push it along the essentially amateur hockey in Sweden as recently as three seasons ago. wall and past his counterpart. Playfair didn’t want to overwhelm him early on with too much video or too That’s his first mistake. Soderberg blocks the attempt, corrals it and many lessons. gallops ahead. “You have to be realistic on the timeline it’s going to take to absorb that,” The second error is letting Soderberg fly by unfettered until he almost hits he said. the Oilers’ blue line. Video work has picked up though. Most of Playfair’s clips begin with the Persson nearly catches up with Soderberg by the top of the faceoff circle, play at the offensive blue line because he wants his defencemen to but the attacker brushes off the Oilers defenceman like a tiny bug and create offence and support the forwards. then rips a shot over goaltender Mikko Koskinen’s glove. When the puck is turned over, how do you position yourself to defend Persson hasn’t played another shift since that goal midway through through the neutral zone? Monday’s overtime loss to the Coyotes. He was benched for the game’s duration and scratched two nights later. When the play is arriving in the D-zone, what are you looking to accomplish as part of your coverage? “Obviously, they weren’t happy with the way I played,” Persson said. “I need to play a little harder, a little faster.” Monday’s gaffe provided a perfect teaching tool for Playfair to help Persson. Having Persson sit out isn’t meant to be long-term punishment. He’ll get many more chances to make amends. That first opportunity should come “The breakdown happened here, but let’s go back to the far blue line to on Friday when Persson is expected to draw back into the lineup against start our observation,” Playfair said. the Devils. “Me and Jimmy have a dialogue for a long time about things that I need The message from the coaching staff is clear. to work on,” Persson said. “I knew them already before I came here. It’s nothing new for me. It’ll take a little time. I’m a better player now than “The puck movement stuff, we need from him. But there’s also an ability when I came here. to defend and be adequate in our own zone that’s an important factor of the game,” coach Dave Tippett said. “He was struggling with that.” “I try to be better every day and work on details. It’s hard to do a lot from day-to-day. But if you can work on details, you’ll be a lot better in the By no means is Persson locked in the doghouse, but he’s still working to end.” fully win over his coaches’ trust – one of the most important aspects for a young defenceman. Playfair believes the base of a good defenceman is there, especially when Persson has the puck on his stick. Playfair said his passing abilities The Oilers have two rookie right-handed defencemen and how they’ve “will eventually become his calling card.” managed them – and how they’ve progressed – has been quite different. Until then, some tweaks need to be made before he can trust Persson to Ethan Bear has been one of the league’s pleasant surprises. He came play in key situations. into training camp without a guaranteed job and has been on the top pairing since the second game. The 22-year-old leads all NHL rookies in “What we have to get him to understand is the pace of play, the ice time and is fourth among Oilers’ regulars with a 51.2 Corsi For awareness of reading the rush and see how things are developing before percentage. they happen. And helping him recognize that it’s every day,” Playfair said. He’s been a big reason why the Oilers are 10-5-2. “We’re trying to get his pace pushed up.” Persson, on the other hand, was much more likely to make the team because of his age, 25, and his one-way contract status. He did so, but Trying to gain and keep confidence as a young defenceman is hardly it’s hardly been smooth sailing in his first North American season. new. How that rearguard fares depends in no small part to the length of leash he’s afforded. He missed the last week of the exhibition schedule and the season opener with a shoulder injury and sat out another seven games with a Curtis Leschyshyn was the No. 3 pick in the 1988 Draft and began his concussion after being rocked by Andrew Shaw in Chicago. He seldom NHL career that next season. It helped that the team he joined, the missed time while playing in Sweden due to being hurt. Quebec Nordiques, were a lousy outfit which meant that Leschyshyn was continually told to get back out there if he erred. The matchup against the Coyotes was his third game back after his return. Former star defenceman Guy Lapointe doled out the ice time and Leschyshyn, just 19, was rarely shortchanged. “He came off an injury, worked his tail off to get back in and there’s a little spike that goes with it. You haven’t done much for two weeks and “Any time he had any information to give me, I was always willing to then, all of a sudden, you’re getting thrown to the wolves,” Tippett said. listen and used it to become a better player,” he said. “There were a lot of “There’s a spike and then there’s a little drop from the workload he’s built growing pains and mistakes that were made, but they were patient with up on. The other night, I think we saw a real drop from him. me.”

“Hopefully now he’ll go back on that upswing.” Benning, Persson’s Oilers teammate, wasn’t afforded quite the same luxuries as Leschyshyn when he a rookie in 2016-17. He recalls the Although Persson’s exclusively played alongside stalwart Oscar Klefbom anguish of being scratched 10 times that season. He managed to secure through eight games, his responsibilities have fallen outside of a typical his spot in the lineup by season’s end – and appeared in 12 of 13 playoff top-four defenceman. His minutes have been sheltered with 62.5 percent games – but it was a long road to get to that point. of starts coming in the offensive zone. He doesn’t play on either special “There’s a learning period. How you build trust is consistency in your game,” Benning said. “You’re gonna make mistakes. So does the best defenceman in the league. As long as you’re consistently working hard and not making the same mistakes over and over again, that’s how you gain the coach’s trust.”

Still, something all rookie defencemen have in common – regardless of their status on the team – is what Leschyshyn calls “apprehension” about making a bad play or the wrong one.

That sentiment’s shared by Bear, even if he’s made few of them so far this season.

“You always have that,” he said. “If you’re not performing or making the next play – or keep making mistakes and turning it over – you’re always gonna have those feelings because they don’t think you’re ready.”

It’s easier said than done, but Bear’s mindset is to have a short memory and not carry a mistake forward.

Persson wants to get to that point, too.

“That’s the hard part to be a professional,” he said. “You learn every game – or at least I do – from different situations. It’s a fast game and you have to make decisions really fast. Sometimes it’s not going the way you want to.”

No defenceman wants to feel like he’s skating on eggshells, that one or two wrong moves will mean his butt’s stapled to the bench.

Watching more than four straight periods wearing either hockey gear or a suit and tie is far from ideal.

Playfair isn’t concerned, however, about Persson’s confidence being shaken.

“You put the work in to gain the confidence,” he said.

He’ll have to play harder and faster if he doesn’t want to sit out again soon. Doing that – and becoming a player the coaches can rely on – will take some time.

“Those are things I try to work on every day,” Persson said. “I know I’m not gonna do it overnight. I know there’s a process period. I need to have some patience. I feel the coaches have that with me.”

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160583 Edmonton Oilers Nugent-Hopkins faced elite opponents more than 40 percent of the time (as a second-line centre) in 2015-17, then fell to the mid-30s for the two seasons that followed. This season, the second line is facing top opponents 31 percent of the time (and outscoring them 3-1). It’s Lowetide: Oilers are closer to having an effective second line than a year impossible to say with certainty why the second line is getting easier ago, but few have noticed minutes. It could be Tippett’s desire to use Riley Sheahan’s trio as a shutdown checking line, or it might be the aforementioned attention to the

McDavid line by opposing coaches, or a combination. Either way, the By Allan Mitchell Nov 8, 2019 second line is getting more clean air and outscoring opponents in five-on- five situations.

Neal and the other winger The Edmonton Oilers entered the season top-heavy. The team’s top line featured two of the league’s most impressive offensive players and Neal has scored 11 goals in 17 games, including two game-winners this added Zack Kassian. The unit has been hammering opponents through season. His eight power-play goals are an exceptional total, and he’ll 17 games. At even strength, with multiple right wingers, Connor McDavid also be key to the second line’s even-strength scoring throughout the and Leon Draisaitl are outscoring opponents at five-on-five 19-8. It’s an season. There’s a sense Neal’s five-on-five performance has been poor, enormous advantage, but the team gives it all back when the other lines but the truth is he’s performed well on the No. 2 line. While playing five- jump over the boards. on-five with Nuge, Neal has scored 3-1-4 in 149:49 (1.60 points-per-60). Extrapolated over a full season, Neal could finish in the 14-to-15-goal Except, that isn’t quite true. range in five-on-five. Here are the most common No. 2 lines so far this year, via Natural Stat Trick: There are some signs, despite what you might hear, that the No. 2 line is holding its own against NHL opposition. Most often featuring Ryan • Neal-Nugent-Hopkins-Alex Chiasson: 59:31 minutes, 57.39 percent Nugent-Hopkins and James Neal, this line isn’t delivering prodigious goal Corsi, 55.56 shot differential, 2-2 goals totals but is having success. Is the success sustainable? Is there a third forward (aside from McDavid and Draisaitl) who could help improve the • Neal-Nugent-Hopkins-Tomas Jurco: 42:58 minutes, 56.41 percent numbers? Are the Oilers close to having an established second line at Corsi, 55.17 shot differential, 3-1 goals even strength? Jurco was placed on waivers Thursday, so he is unlikely to be patrolling Last season the portside any time soon. Chiasson was on the line with Neal and Nugent-Hopkins at practice on Thursday and might start there against Let’s start by agreeing that the main role of any line is to outscore the New Jersey Devils on Friday night. Chiasson is 0-2-2 in 71:28 with opponents at even strength. That’s the job. It is unreasonable to expect a Nugent-Hopkins (1.68 points per 60). Tippett might be waiting for Joakim unit of mortals to duplicate what McDavid and Draisaitl are doing, but a Nygard, who is close to returning, to come back from injury to add the good NHL team will have at least two lines that can outscore opponents Swedish winger to the line. consistently at even strength. Using Nugent-Hopkins as the proxy for the Oilers second line since 2015, we get these five-on-five results: Is this sustainable?

• 2015-16: 32-39 (-7) It’s my opinion that the second line is likely to increase the five-on-five goal-scoring rate. First, Nuge’s shooting percentage during those •2016-17: 35-40 (-5) situations is 9.42 over the three seasons prior to this one. He has 25 shots so far this season at five-on-five, meaning the expectation would • 2017-18: 40-35 (+5) be 2.3 goals. Second, the team is running without a true top-six winger to • 2018-19: 48-56 (-8) join the second line and has been auditioning various players so far this season. At some point, whether it’s a recall of Kailer Yamamoto, a trade • 2019-20: 8-4 (+4) for veteran Tyler Toffoli or Nygard emerging, the third There are many reasons (we’ll touch on the main ones) for the No. 2 line man on the line will likely begin to deliver more substantial production. having early success this season in outscoring its opponents, but for Why are people angry? now, it’s worth noting that the top two lines are +15 outscoring five-on- five. That’s progress. If we compare these totals to the Vancouver It appears a large portion of Oilers fans is increasingly outraged by Canucks (Elias Pettersson-Brock Boeser are +9, Bo Horvat-Tanner management’s inactivity in the trade market. A 5-1-0 start has been Pearson are even), the Oilers have an edge. The Oilers’ third and fourth followed by a 5-4-2 stretch, and fans can feel the season slipping away. lines remain an issue, but the second line is showing some identifiable We can argue about the team’s ability to stay in playoff contention now progress. through the trade deadline, but Oilers fans have earned the right to be unconvinced. Why is this happening? The frustration over the second line (and specifically Nugent-Hopkins not There are a few reasons for the early success of the second line, chief having scored an even-strength goal this season) will be solved as soon among them the reduction in minutes against elite opponents so far this as the goals start coming. Nugent-Hopkins scored 15 at even strength a season. I’m not sure why the No. 2 line is getting a bit of a breather season ago; this is an unusual slump. compared to previous years, although coach Dave Tippett mentioned last week that opposing coaches are line matching with extreme prejudice In the meantime, fans might have missed another positive trend this against the McDavid trio. That makes sense since the top line has been season. Along with the improved goaltending, the emergence of Ethan hammering opponents since the start of the season. More attention to Bear and the overall record, the second line is finding its way as a matching power versus power against the No. 1 line might mean less formidable unit. Small victories are big steps. If the line can sustain this attention to detail against the Nuge-Neal group. level of success, it represents one less problem to fix and increases Edmonton’s playoff chances. Using Puck IQ, and again Nugent-Hopkins as a proxy for the second line, we can compare the percentage of overall ice time against elites since The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 2015-16 to see how the heavy lifting by the second line has been reduced so far this season:

• 2015-16: 41.3

• 2016-17: 41.7

• 2017-18: 35.9

• 2018-19: 34.1

• 2019-20: 31.0 1160584 Florida Panthers

After missing seven games, one of the Panthers’ top players is ‘going full speed again’

BY JORDAN MCPHERSON

NOVEMBER 08, 2019 03:25 PM

It was three weeks ago that Vincent Trocheck weaved his way down the ice and slipped a puck past Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rine to secure the Florida Panthers’ shootout road win on Oct. 19.

The Florida Panthers’ second-line center hasn’t played a game since. A lower-body injury sustained earlier in that game had sidelined Trocheck for the past seven games.

His time on the bench appears to be over.

Trocheck was a full participant in practice Friday, and coach Joel Quenneville said the expectation is to have Trocheck in the lineup as the Panthers (7-3-5) begin a three-game road trip Saturday against the New York Islanders (11-3-1). The road trip continues Sunday against the New York Rangers (7-6-1) and concludes Tuesday against the Boston Bruins (11-2-2).

“I feel pretty good,” Trocheck said. “It’s nice to get out there and practice with the boys and feel that competitiveness again. I’m going full speed again. It’s fun.”

Trocheck, who had a goal and five assists through eight games before the injury, anchored the Panthers’ second line along with wingers Brett Connolly and Mike Hoffman before being sidelined. The 26-year-old also plays a big part on the Panthers’ power-play and penalty-kill units.

He looks like he’ll resume those roles once he returns.

“He’s a competitive guy,” Quenneville said. “He brings energy. He plays in all situations. He’s a solid guy in the middle. He was playing well before he got hurt. He adds a lot to the mix.”

And it adds an extra weapon to the Panthers’ high-octane offense. Florida ranks third in the NHL with an average of 34.9 shots per game and is fifth with an average of 3.60 goals per game.

The high scoring has played a large role in the Panthers picking up points in 11 of their past 12 games and going 4-1-2 in Trocheck’s absence.

“They’ve been playing phenomenal hockey while I’ve been out,” Trocheck said. “Obviously, the streak they’re on is great, and I’ve been cheering for them the whole way. Any time you go down, you want to see your team play well and keep that momentum going for when you come back.”

With Trocheck on the verge of returning, Brian Boyle moved down from the second line to the fourth line in practice on Friday, centering Colton Sceviour and Dryden Hunt.

Usual fourth-line center Noel Acciari is unlikely to play this weekend while tending to a lower-body injury.

Miami Herald LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160585 Florida Panthers “They showed me some loyalty, Dale has been great to me and the relationship with everyone is terrific. It has been a long road, a long journey, but all of those experiences are what got me here.”

‘The misfits’: How the Florida Panthers found a pair of NHL defenseman After floating around the minor leagues for the first few years of his pro at the bottom of the 2013 draft career, Weegar made his NHL debut at the end of the 2016-17 season and has worked his way into an everyday role with the Panthers.

Although Weegar was thought to be headed to a bottom-six role, when By George Richards Nov 8, 2019 training camp opened, he was in a top-four spot and has been there ever since. Lately, he and Ekblad have made up Florida’s top defensive set.

Not bad for one of the final picks in the draft, eh? SUNRISE, Fla. — Finding solid, reliable defensemen in the NHL is not the easiest thing to do. “I don’t want to say too many good things about him,” Tallon nervously joked this week, “because he’s going to cost us a lot of money. He is one Teams spend either high draft picks or millions of dollars in free agency hell of a seventh-round pick.’’ in hopes of finding guys who can play the position well enough to be in the lineup on a nightly basis. The road to Florida

The Florida Panthers have spent a good sum of money on the position Brown said he and Weegar bonded over being the two defensemen in and came into the season dedicating almost 40 percent of their salary that 2013 draft that no one in the organization really talked about. cap allocation (minus dead money) on defensemen. While McCoshen was considered one of Florida’s top prospects while at Florida has used first-round draft picks on Aaron Ekblad (first overall in Boston College with Matheson and Downing was getting a lot of attention 2014) and Mike Matheson (23rd in 2012); signed Keith Yandle to a at Michigan, the two guys taken at the bottom of the draft were seven-year, $44.5 million contract in 2016; and added Anton Stralman sometimes seen as spare parts who would perhaps one day become via a three-year, $16.5 million deal this summer. depth players in the minor-league system.

The Panthers are even retaining $562,500 of Jason Demers’ salary after Only they developed into much more. trading him to the Coyotes in 2017 — he had signed a five-year, $22.5 million deal with Florida a year earlier. Their paths to the NHL were not smooth, but for two guys picked at the bottom of the draft, no one would have expected anything different. Then there are Josh Brown and MacKenzie Weegar. The two players met at their first development camp days after the draft Neither player was a high-profile draft pick, nor were they signed to big- and joked about where they were taken. Brown went undrafted in 2012 money contracts as free agents. and said he was just happy to go somewhere in 2013.

Both, however, have become important pieces in Florida’s defensive “I got passed up and then had a pretty good year and had heard I could scheme — and at a bargain, for now. go as early as the fourth but maybe still go undrafted again,” said Brown, who made his NHL debut with the Panthers last January and made the In 2013, the Panthers held the second pick in the draft and were team out of camp. presumed to be leaning toward blue-chip defenseman Seth Jones. Instead, they took center Sasha Barkov. “I looked at coming to the Panthers as just another tryout and, yeah, I had a little chip on my shoulder. I wanted to show what I can do, and I Still needing defensemen to add depth to their system, the Panthers believed I belonged in this league eventually. The first-round guys maybe used four of their eight picks in that draft (more on that later) on get a little better look, but they deserve that. For the rest of us, we have blueliners. to fight for what we get.” In the second round, Florida got Ian McCoshen, then a fourth-round As the years went on, the two players kept in touch and soon were not selection was used on Michael Downing. only teammates at various camps the Panthers held but in their minor- In the sixth round, Florida used what was supposed to be its final pick on league system as well. Brown. Both players spent time in the AHL and lower-tier ECHL early on, but During the seventh round, though, scout Paul Gallagher persuaded GM neither player let their draft status or their place in the organization keep Dale Tallon to trade back into the draft. them down.

The Panthers sent their seventh-round pick in 2014 to Montreal for the “We developed a pretty strong friendship,” said Brown, whose locker stall rights to a seventh-round selection in 2013. They used it on Weegar. is next to Weegar’s. “We kind of looked at ourselves as the misfits, guys from the end of the draft. We grew pretty close over the years.” In retrospect, it looks like a pretty nice move. Over the past three seasons, Weegar has evolved into one of Florida’s most reliable The Panthers were impressed with the work ethic of both players. And defensemen. they both turned out to have a little bit of talent as well.

On Thursday, he played in his 142nd NHL game. The other three Tallon credited how hard the two players worked their ways up the defensemen Florida selected ahead of him (including Brown) have ladder. But he was also quick to point out the keen eye of his scout as combined for 110. well as coaches who aided in their development such as Bryan McCabe and Geordie Kinnear. McCoshen did not make the Panthers out of training camp and was traded last month. Downing has not made it to the NHL and is currently “It is vital you hit on players you draft in the first, second and third playing in Estero for the ECHL’s Florida Everblades. rounds,” Tallon said, “but to get players in the later rounds is extremely important to a franchise. Weegar is now a legitimate NHL defenseman. “To have a deep organization, you need good scouting and have the Not bad for a player who was stuck in Junior-B hockey as a 16-year-old mindset that everyone you draft is going to play for you. It does not with his mother driving him to games. matter if you’re taken in the first, sixth or seventh round. We want you to play for us, and (the late-round draft picks’) success is a collaborative “To be honest, I never thought I would be here,’’ Weegar said before the effort from a whole bunch of guys. It is important to show patience with Panthers’ 5-4 overtime loss to Washington on Thursday. players because that is how you develop a team.” “I know I was a seventh-rounder, but they traded to get that pick, right? Former sixth-round pick Josh Brown has a goal and an assist in 13 That was a nice feeling. It was nice to know they are not just picking games with the Panthers so far this season. (Robert Mayer / USA Today) random guys in the seventh round and that they wanted me. ‘A diamond in the rough’ After taking Brown with the 152nd overall pick in 2013, the Panthers Washington has won its past five games and has at least a point in each appeared to be done for the day. of its last 10.

Only Gallagher, the Florida scout, kept reminding Tallon of a player who Florida saw its modest two-game run come to a close, but the Panthers was available. They agreed the Panthers should try and grab him. now have points in 11 of their last 12 games.

That player was Weegar, a defenseman whom Gallagher and Tallon had “We’ll take points,” coach Joel Quenneville said, “but when you have a seen a number of times while scouting his junior team in Canada. two-goal lead at home and you’re in a really good spot and playing the right way … it’s probably as good as we’ve played for a stretch. That is a Weegar, you see, was teammates on the powerhouse Halifax good hockey team, but I think we got a little bit out of our game, losing Mooseheads of the QMJHL with Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan pucks and trying to do too much.” Drouin, high-profile players who would sandwich Barkov at the top of the draft. Barkov keeps going

As a result, a lot of scouts saw Weegar play even if they did not notice It may have taken a little time, but Barkov has got his scoring touch back him right away. as he got a goal for the third consecutive game. Barkov started without a goal in Florida’s first 12 games, the longest drought to start a season of “We watched him because we were going to Halifax to see MacKinnon his career. and Drouin,” Tallon said. “I am trying to shoot more, but I still could shoot a lot more, find ways to “Weegs was quarterback of their power play, so we saw him a lot. We shoot and make myself a threat,” said Barkov, who also had a secondary were like, ‘Who is this kid?’ and Paul had seen him, knew him. Good assist to give him 19 points in his first 15 games. move. Connolly gets half of what he wanted “Weegs has definitely earned his way into our lineup and into a regular shift with us. His attitude is terrific, he has great hockey sense, a lot of After leaving the Capitals as a free agent to sign with the Panthers in the nerve and gumption. He is willing to make plays. He has a lot of good summer, Brett Connolly sure would have liked a win Thursday. attributes.” He’ll have to settle for a goal. Weegar said he remembers going to breakfast with the Florida scout, and the two hit it off. Weegar said he and Gallagher, who was fired by the In the first period, Connolly set up in front of the net and deflected a long Panthers in the front office shakeup of 2016, have kept in touch over the shot from Stralman past Holtby to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead. It was the years. sixth goal of the season for Connolly.

“I owe a lot to him,” Weegar said. “He saw something in me and I will “It was a tough one to lose,” Connolly said. “We had it for most of the always appreciate that. I was a diamond in the rough, I guess.” night and for whatever reason we kind of let up in some areas and they found ways to score some timely goals. Weegar figured playing on a high-profile team like Halifax would bring attention, but it was up to him to do something with it. “They are a good team. Obviously, they have a lot of firepower. They play very structured, and they play very hard for each other. It was a Gallagher sure noticed him. good game all around, and I think we know now that … if we can play with that team, we can play with any team in the league.’’ “I just wanted to stand out to those scouts, and I caught one eye,” Weegar said, “and I guess that’s all I needed.” The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019

After three years in the minors, Weegar made it to the big leagues and does not plan on leaving for a while.

“I try not to think too much about where I am right now because I do not want to feel too comfortable, do not want to become satisfied,” Weegar said.

“Being a little scared every night that someone can take your job is a good thing. That is how I have played my whole career, playing like I’m going to take someone’s job. Now someone is going for mine. I know I am an NHL defenseman; the plan is to stick around for a long time.”

Panthers lose a wild one

The Washington Capitals came into Thursday tied for the league lead in points.

On Friday, they stand alone atop the NHL standings.

Thursday night, Washington fell behind 3-1 early in the second period but rallied behind a pair of goals from Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson to beat the Panthers 5-4 in overtime.

Wilson, who went to the box for a high hit on Sasha Barkov in the second, scored the game-tying goal 44 seconds into the third period.

The two teams went to OT with Ekblad’s opening scoring salvo stopped by Braden Holtby. Washington came flashing back up the ice and Wilson scored — just 17 seconds into the extra session.

“Of course we were disappointed. We felt like we could have won this game,” Barkov said. “But a couple of mistakes and a couple of lucky bounces for them and they won the game. They’re a good team, you’ve got to respect that. We have back-to-back games on Saturday and Sunday, so we just need to get ready for that.”

Florida trailed 1-0 after the Caps scored 25 seconds into the game but led 2-1 at the first break and then 3-1 on a Barkov goal in the opening minute of the second. The Panthers led 4-3 entering the third thanks to an Evgenii Dadonov power-play goal with 1:01 left in the second. 1160586 Los Angeles Kings

Kings look to avoid Canadian sweep in Montreal

By ANDREW KNOLL |PUBLISHED: November 8, 2019 at 11:30 am | UPDATED: November 8, 2019 at 12:51 PM

Although he operates on the ice and not the hardwood, Kings wing Tyler Toffoli has shown a knack for buzzer beaters.

While not on par with his 2017 overtime winner with 0.9 seconds left in Boston, Toffoli scored with 7.2 seconds remaining in regulation against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday to salvage a point for the Kings (5-10- 1), who fell 3-2 in overtime.

“Good for us to find a way to get a point,” Kings coach Todd McLellan told reporters. “Not so good on us to leave a point behind.”

The Montreal Canadiens (8-5-3) await the Kings for a 4 p.m. game Saturday as both teams look to rebound from overtime losses.

McLellan described Thursday’s loss as “an ugly game,” one in which blown coverage stung the Kings.

“Our net play wasn’t good. Often when you speak that way, you’re talking about your defensemen but our low forward didn’t do a very good job,” McLellan told reporters. “You could see that on both goals.”

Forward Trevor Lewis exited the game early with a lower-body injury, causing some impromptu reconfiguration of the Kings’ lines. At the end of the second period, top defenseman Drew Doughty experienced some apparent discomfort in his lower body but did not miss any shifts.

The loss to Ottawa was the Kings’ second on this three-game road trip, which will conclude Saturday in Montreal. The Kings will then have played in every Canadian city in the NHL this season. They played a season-opening trip in Western Canada in which they went 1-2. Later, they beat the Winnipeg Jets on an otherwise perilous tour through four Central Division cities, with three losses by a 15-4 aggregate score.

Although four Kings are tied for the team lead with four goals apiece, the Kings are the only NHL team without a five-goal scorer. Boston and Edmonton already have two double-digit goal scorers.

The Kings have lost six of their past seven games following their first overtime loss of the season. Next they confront a storied franchise in Montreal, which is in the thick of a competitive Atlantic Division race. After first-place Boston, two points separate four teams, including the Habs. Montreal lost in overtime to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday.

Forwards Brendan Gallagher, Jonathan Drouin and Tomas Tatar share the team lead with 13 points each in 16 games. Captain Shea Weber is a throwback defenseman who can intimidate opponents at either end with powerful checks and a booming slap shot. Goaltender Carey Price built a résumé that earned him the richest contract for a goalie in hockey history.

Kings at Montreal

When: 4 p.m.

Where: Bell Centre, Montreal

TV/Radio: Fox Sports West/iHeartRadio

Orange County Register: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160587 Los Angeles Kings “Quite frankly, his size has never been an issue since he’s been here in Owen Sound. If he gets hit, he gets up and continues on. He takes pucks to the net, he backchecks, he battles, so his size for me, I don’t see a lack of size. And I think has a lot of respect for him and I Meet Aidan Dudas, the tiny Kings prospect who just keeps overcoming can’t imagine they’re going to worry about his size because of what he brings and how hard he plays.”

While most players his size are asked to switch to the wing to By Scott Wheeler Nov 8, 2019 accommodate their size, Dudas remains at centre. Dudas has built his game around out-working everyone else. That way, every time he beats a bigger player he also silences a critic. KITCHENER, Ont. — Aidan Dudas isn’t your typical NHL prospect. “I try to be the hardest worker on the ice every game and every shift, and That’s true of the path he has travelled. Born and raised in Parry Sound, I think I kind of have that rep around the OHL now as one of the hardest Ont., a small town of a little more than 6,000 people on the shores of workers,” Dudas said. “I think that shows a lot of leadership on the ice.” Georgian Bay, Dudas didn’t play Triple-A hockey until he was 13 because the nearest team was more than 115 kilometres (or 70 miles) This fall, when Owen Sound needed to name a new captain, he was their away. choice, too.

It’s true in stature, too. On Thursday night, when Team OHL defeated “You only have to be around Aidan for a short period of time to know the Team Russia 4-1 in Game 3 of the CHL’s annual Canada-Russia Series, type of character that he really is. He buys into everything team, you Dudas was listed at 5-foot-8 and 168 pounds, making him the smallest watch him on the ice and he’s got an engine that is probably unparalleled player on either roster. The AHL’s listed him at an even in the league, and his teammates can gravitate to that,” DeGray said. smaller 5-foot-7 and 164 pounds when he made his pro debut a few “He works and works and works and then he works some more. He’s months ago. very well respected, he listens to what’s going on, he wants to win, he And it’s true in lived experience. When Dudas was 4 years old, his wants to play hard. He’s easily, as far as captaincy, the perfect candidate mother Penny passed away after an abrupt, four-month battle with ALS. to have.”

His story is one of overcoming each of those three things. Attack head coach Alan Letang says the off-ice leadership — the holding teammates accountable part of the captaincy gig — took some time. Despite joining that North Central Predators Triple-A team in Orillia a few years later than most, he closed out his final season with them as the It was hard, for a kid like Dudas, whom his coaches and teammates league’s player of the year and the ’s 10th overall attribute as funny, personable, outgoing and charismatic, to also become pick in the 2016 OHL draft. a voice of discipline — the leader who tells his friend to finish his workout. Dudas needed to do some maturing to get to where he is today, When he pulled his Team OHL jersey over his curly hair and onto his watching the examples set by Canadiens forward Nick Suzuki and fellow smaller shoulders on Thursday, it boasted a ‘C,’ signalling Hockey Kings prospect Sean Durzi. Canada’s belief in him as a candidate for the world junior team — and putting to an end questions of size. The on-ice leadership has always come a little more naturally. Letang credits him for his willingness to traffic areas on the ice — and lead with Standing in the bowels of the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium after Team his play. OHL’s morning skate and team photo, Dudas looks to the floor when asked about his mother, crediting his dad, Mark, an engineer, and “If you’re that size and you want to play on the perimeter, you don’t get a stepmom Debbie, a teacher who’d lost her first husband in a car whole lot done. He’s willing to go through the middle and go to the net. accident, for helping him overcome everything else. Sometimes, he’s like a pinball where he’s bouncing off guys,” Letang said. “It happened quick,” he says of his mom’s passing. “They’re (Mark and Debbie) always someone I can talk to if I’m down. They’ve helped me get Team Canada head coach Dale Hunter named Dudas the Team OHL to where I am.” captain after recognizing how vocal he was, and how much of a team player he has become, at the World Junior Summer Showcase. He says it has never bothered him. It has motivated him though. “He never stops. We’ve seen him quite a bit through the years here and “I don’t think it’s annoying. I think it’s good for me because everyone he’s a worker and he can score. He plays both ends of the ice and we knows I’m small but it gives me something to show people that I have this want a complete player,” Hunter said. weakness, but I can overcome it and become an NHL player one day,” he says. That strong summer showing spilled into an even more impressive start to the 19-year-old’s fourth OHL season, too. Through 15 games, Dudas “I think I’m a highly skilled forward who has a lot of offensive abilities and leads the Attack in scoring with 22 points. plays really well on the PK because of my hard work and my smarts. For a smaller guy, it’s not always easy to win puck battles on the wall, but I Attack assistant general manager and assistant coach Joey Hishon just have to keep getting stronger in my lower body.” called him — and his play — incredible. At the end of each week, when the Attack select a player of the week, Hishon said it has been “hard not When the Kings took him No. 113th in the 2018 NHL Draft, he’d just to give it to Aidan every time just based off of his work ethic.” come off a season where his 31 goals and 65 points ranked second and third, respectively, among all under-18 OHL forwards. The players he “And that’s not even talking about how many points he puts up,” Hishon trailed, fellow Kings draftee Akil Thomas and Hurricanes star Andrei said. “He outworks every single person on the ice every single night.” Svechnikov, were taken No. 51 and No. 2, respectively. Off the ice, Hishon credited Dudas for his constant positivity and the way Thomas, who competed against Dudas in minor hockey and has been he has balanced keeping the Attack loose while also remaining serious. his roommate at various Kings camps, has seen firsthand as an “What’s been most impressive for me is how well he’s been able to lead opponent and now as a Team OHL teammate that Dudas’ size isn’t this team off the ice and work hard every single day no matter what we’re preventative. doing,” Hishon said. “It’s a pretty cool dynamic to see a kid that age have “His size doesn’t really matter to the type of player that he is. He plays that maturity level.” big and he doesn’t back down from anyone,” Thomas said. “If there was Jordan Hill, Owen Sound’s other assistant coach, said there have been a time for a player like him, it would be right now.” so many impressive Dudas moments in his two and a half years behind If there were any doubters in Owen Sound, there aren’t anymore. that bench that he has stopped counting them. He went as far as to say that Dudas has become one of the best penalty killers in the OHL, “He’s heard it his entire life: ‘You’re undersized, it’ll be harder, it’ll be this, chalking it up to a combination of quickness, tenacity and “scary” it’ll be that.’ Maybe that’s the reason Aidan works so hard shift-in, shift- offensive ability that throws off opposing power plays. out,” Attack general manager Dale DeGray said. Dudas is also deceptively strong. “You wouldn’t think he’s as small as he is. He’s a strong kid,” Hill said. “I see him as a guy who can contribute anywhere. He really does get “He’s facing big defencemen every night that can push on him and lean momentum shifts anymtime you need him. He always steps up,” Hill said. on him. That’s where his smarts, his thinking away from the puck to get “He’s one of my favourite players. I fell in love with just how he was as a himself into positions where he’s not opening himself up to get hit, or to person, always in good spirits, always smiling, always wanting to get be elusive in the corners cutting back on these guys and they can’t match better.” him stride for stride.” Letang, who insisted Dudas is “100 percent a centre,” thinks the young Attack strength and conditioning coach Andy Player is consistently player has developed his defensive game enough to remain in the middle impressed with the work Dudas puts in each summer to add strength. as he progresses toward the NHL level. Both Playter and Hill pointed to Dudas as a kid who puts up more weight in the gym than you’d expect. “The way the game is trending, it’s not about being overly physical in the D zone, it’s about that anticipation, that quick stick where you’re stripping His style of play creates some challenges though. pucks. Even the bigger guys he can get into their hands, get underneath them, and steal pucks,” Letang added. “He has such high energy and he’s always go-go-go so a lot of our strategy is to try to maintain his weight as much as possible through the Hishon, a centre and first-round NHL Draft pick in 2010 who never quite rigours of the season. And with Aidan, there’s zero issue with him. He ‘made it’ (in part because he too was undersized), can relate to what’s does everything and more,” Playter said. “If he’s down a pound, he wants ahead for Dudas. to know what he can do. He’s inquisitive.” “It’s definitely a lot tougher, especially at the pro level where guys are so As the game changes, all of Letang, Hishon, Hill and DeGray agreed that much stronger and quicker down low in the defensive zone if he is Dudas’ game is built to succeed. playing centre,” Hishon said. “But he’s so smart and good positionally that I think that would be how he counters that. I don’t know what LA will Hill credited Dudas for his ability to slow the game down when it needs it, do with him at the next level, but I know that Aidan will be prepared for or to change pace and create separation with his quickness. whatever they throw at him.”

“The typical ‘small players can’t make it any more’ is a dying statement. Hill believes Dudas is “really close” to being a pro hockey player, in large He’s a guy that has made everything work for him just from his engine,” part because he has put in the time and remains extremely committed to Hill said. “He is nonstop working, every shift, every practice, he works on learning. Dudas will regularly ask to Watch video or review mistakes he his game, and he leads by example. That’s a big reason why he’s our made in the defensive zone. captain. He has worked and he’s seeing the results.” “In three years now I have seen him become so much better away from Though Letang said Dudas isn’t the kind of player who will win an end-to- the puck,” Hill said. “The responsibility of a centre, I know he’ll make that end race, he is often wowed by his first three strides. adjustment at the next level.”

“There’s no length-of-the-ice races any more anyways. It’s stops and If — or when — Dudas overcomes that next obstacle, those who know starts. The biggest thing for him is his anticipation and that he hunts him best know better than to be surprised. pucks all the time,” Letang said. “You can make up for a lost step or two just by your willingness to track pucks.” “He’s a guy that you almost have to like. You can’t not like Aidan Dudas. That’s the type of player and the type of person that he is,” DeGray Dudas didn’t actually know he’d been named Team OHL’s captain until finished. “I think it’s going to be hard to keep him out of playing pro Attack media relations coordinator Allan Gibbons turned to him at 1:30 hockey because he’s incredibly skilled and his passion is off the charts.” p.m. on Oct. 30. The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 “Honestly, they didn’t even give me a call,” Dudas says back inside the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium. “(Gibbons) got an email from the OHL saying they were going to name me captain at 2 p.m.”

He laughs.

“(Gibbons) said ‘Congrats.’ I said, ‘For what?'” Dudas says. “And he said, ‘Captain!'”

The first thing he did was text Debbie.

“I was like, ‘It hasn’t been announced yet but I think I’m captain, I’m not sure,'” Dubas says, taking a deep breath.

“It’s something you strive for your whole life and to get the opportunity to wear the ‘C’ is a huge honour for me. There’s a lot of guys who are leaders here and luckily I was the guy that got picked. It shows that they really like my game and my leadership. It’s a huge confidence boost for me going into the world junior camp.”

He hopes that world junior camp will be followed by a gold medal in the Czech Republic with Team Canada, one last playoff run in Owen Sound, and then a long career in pro hockey.

“The good thing about me is I can play a lot of roles. I’m not one- dimensional. I’m not just a power-play guy or a penalty-kill guy. They can use me on both. They can use me wherever they need me, if it’s a shutdown role or trying to chip in offensively,” Dudas says.

Thomas, who called Dudas the hardest working player on any team he’s ever played on, believes he deserves everything that comes his way.

“He’s like a second brother to me. He’s just a goofball. He likes to joke around, he likes to have fun, but he also takes hockey seriously. We’re kind of similar that way. He’s a beauty. I’m proud of him,” Thomas said. “He’s leading a good team in Owen Sound and a big part of the success they’re having is because of them. He earned this captaincy.”

Hill agreed, believing Dudas could be a penalty killer and energy guy for Team Canada. 1160588 Los Angeles Kings who celebrated his 20th birthday as a Black Ace in 2012. Not that it should be mistaken as more important than what he does on the ice, nor does it represent his in-game temperament, but his lightheartedness comes off well in a sport where it’s important to market any available WAKING UP WITH THE KINGS: NOVEMBER 8 personality, and the Kings’ digital team and external media have capitalized on that. Perhaps it’s anecdotal and just a symptom of walking

into a dressing room of a team that’s near the bottom of the standings, JON ROSENNOVEMBER 8, 2019 and perhaps it’s because he’s grown and matured, but I’m hoping we see more of that boyish and confident charm he’s always exuded. He’s in the final year of his contract on a team that won’t inflate his personal stats and is probably more likely to be traded than any other teammate. That UNCATEGORIZED uncertainty would make a lesser person itch. His inconsistent production On the outskirts of Montreal, at about 1:15 a.m., while in our vintage has made the Kings itch, at times. But in the long-term, are you really parlour car that a half-century ago doubled as the smoking lounge on betting against Tyler Toffoli? Or are you betting against the current long-distance trains through the Rockies, the conversation drifted version of Tyler Toffoli, one in which the team’s dearth of playmaking and towards the greatest sporting event any of us had ever attended. A skill puts a lower cap on his offensive ability? strong argument was made for the Indianapolis 500. What about LA Kings Insider: LOADED: 11.09.2019 Wimbledon? The USC-Texas Rose Bowl? In the end, there was little dissent. It was Thursday’s Kings-Senators game at Canadian Tire Center.

Single points need context, and this single point, absent of some five- game winning streak, isn’t very good. The LA Kings need wins and they need improvement, they need momentum and juju. They didn’t receive any great deal of that on Thursday. Maybe the needle moved forward in some areas, but I’m not quite sure what we learned about this team that we hadn’t sensed yet. When their forecheck wanes, they will get pushed back to the degree that they did in the second period and in moments of the third in which chipped pucks off the glass and lobs out of the zone were necessitated because they were getting cycled and hemmed in by a feisty team in a heavy game. Especially in the middle period, the Senators were winning most of the short-radius battles and demonstrating their strong work ethic, while the Kings were still in react- and-chase mode. There were gaps in coverage by both centers and wings that were mostly snuffed out by Jack Campbell as the last line of defense, while the dearth of playmaking and finishing ability has led to a 125-minute stretch in which they’ve recorded only one five-on-five goal.

Neither Adrian Kempe (13:12 5×5 TOI) nor Blake Lizotte (11:01 TOI), their second and third-line centers, have scored a five-on-five goal this season. There are a number of intriguing and versatile young centers at all levels of the organization. There’s Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Gabriel Vilardi with Ontario, the latter an uncertain commodity at this exact point. Rasmus Kupari is also with the Reign but is probably a touch more likely than the other two to ultimately be moved to wing. Akil Thomas can play center or wing and will permanently join the pro ranks at the end of his junior season. There’s Alex Turcotte, very much a center. But JAD, Gabe, Rasmus, Akil and Alex don’t exactly put the Triscuit crackers in our stomach, so to speak. Those players currently in Ontario aren’t going to be rushed. In the decision between “should the Kings recall their young prospects to fill holes” and “should the Kings remain patient and keep these players in Ontario,” they’re going to align more closely to the Reign option. They want these players developing chemistry and amassing games together, and while injury and potential roster turnover may require some juggling, I’m not expecting to see any real opportunities towards more permanent breakthroughs take place until after Christmas. We’re all kind of expecting them to really give a good, extended look at those young-to-young-ish players – anywhere from the MacDermids and Roys to Kempes and Amadios – in a wide swath of situations, mostly without kid gloves. Prior to Trevor Lewis’ injury, and for a while after it, Austin Wagner played a second line role. His third period off-target pass that nearly sprung Ilya Kovalchuk loose on a breakaway was a misfire. So it goes until he eventually makes that pass or loses a position battle to someone who does – and that’s not to single out a second-year depth skater when issues obviously run deeper. But before that next, younger wave crests, coaches and executives are in the midst of an important time in which they’re trying to accurately parse and evaluate which assets of this current group can be reliable players for them beyond the 2019-20 season.

It was good to see Tyler Toffoli score last night, it was good to look down at the end of the night and see he’d taken five shots. He’s played well in his career against Ottawa, even if a portrait of his game or Thursday’s game in general won’t hang in the Kings-Senators Louvre. (Why did we even build that?) He had two great chances in overtime, but Anders Nilsson made two great saves. We were awfully close to a Toffoli-themed Waking up with the Kings. Which I would’ve liked. There’s a good bond a number of us have built with Toffoli through the years. He’s grown into a man since his days as a smiling, cliché-spouting, well-meaning nice kid 1160589 Minnesota Wild “He’s frustrated because he hasn’t gotten scoring opportunities like he’s used to getting,” Boudreau said. “I said, ‘I know you didn’t score on the play and you’re thinking of the team because it would have tied the game at that point.’ But when we looked at the clips, he had four really good Wild's Zach Parise grateful for scoring chances, regretful about misses scoring opportunities last game. That’s more than he’s had in recent games. So I said, ‘Build off that.’ ”

With just four goals and one assist through 16 games, Parise is mired in By Sarah McLellan Star Tribune NOVEMBER 9, 2019 — 12:42AM what he described as one of the slower starts of his career. But he’s aware time is an ally.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – As he sat at his locker stall Thursday night long after “Keep trying to improve and get sharp,” he said, “and then when you get the rest of his teammates cleared out of the visiting dressing room in San those chances again, be ready for them.” Jose, winger Zach Parise replayed the chances he blanked on earlier Star Tribune LOADED: 11.09.2019 that evening.

He put four shots on net — tying his season high for a game — but the most memorable ones came with about 2 minutes, 25 seconds to go.

After picking the puck off the Sharks’ , Parise skated in alone on goalie Martin Jones and had an attempt from his forehand and then his backhand. But Jones’ right pad blocked both, helping to preserve a 6-5 goal-a-thon that ended in photo-finish fashion in San Jose’s favor.

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“That’s a situation there you want to be in with the game on your stick and unfortunately didn’t happen,” Parise said Friday after declining to comment in the aftermath Thursday. “It’s a tough spot to be in, but it’s also a spot you want to be in to get that opportunity.”

The miss wasn’t the only shoulda, coulda, woulda the Wild could point to.

Perhaps the most obvious what-if was the team’s four-goal collapse in the first period that emphasized the need for better readiness and an overall complete effort as the team detours from California to face the Coyotes on Saturday in Arizona.

“It’s just hopefully a lesson learned,” coach Bruce Boudreau said. “If you don’t come prepared to play and you dip your foot in the water waiting to see what the other team’s doing, you’re usually going to be in trouble.”

Of all the problems that have popped up amid a 5-10-1 debut, the first period hasn’t consistently been one of them.

Before Thursday, the Wild had been tagged for only eight goals in the opening 20 minutes — the fewest in the NHL. But it was a familiar issue — breakdowns in the defensive third — that was a catalyst for the letdown to the Sharks, who took over the Wild’s zone to capitalize four times on 12 shots.

But the Wild had most of the game to recover, and it almost did.

It’s fair to wonder if the team would have pulled off the rally if it wasn’t forced into penalty-kill mode after winger Ryan Hartman was hit with a slashing major and misconduct for his whack to the back of Evander Kane’s left leg in the third period with the score 6-4.

“Unless you’re a Sharks fan or you play for the Sharks, you think that might be a major,” Hartman said Friday after declining to comment Thursday. “But those are probably the only people that agree on that call.”

What made the ruling sting even more was winger Jason Zucker’s goal moved the Wild within one once the team was back to full strength.

Zucker was benched for much of the final 40 after being on the ice for three of the Sharks’ goals in the first.

“That’s the first time I’ve done that with him in four years,” Boudreau said. “Sometimes talking just isn’t good enough. You gotta send the actual message.”

Asked about the situation Friday following the team’s practice in San Jose after declining to talk the night before, Zucker said: “For me at that point, I’m there for my teammates. That’s all that matters.”

And while the Wild came close to negating the impact of that first period, resiliency that was admirable, the result set a disappointing tone that was visibly clear by the way Parise reacted to the outcome. 1160590 Minnesota Wild

Wild-Arizona game preview

NOVEMBER 8, 2019 — 10:24PM

Sarah McLellan

7 p.m. at Arizona • Gila River Arena • FSN, 100.3-FM

Spike in goals is welcome sight

Preview: The Wild’s four-game road swing continues Saturday with a stop in Arizona to take on the Coyotes. Through two games on this trip, the Wild has scored nine goals — including six in third periods — while going 1-1. Goalie Devan Dubnyk is expected to start vs. the Coyotes. He made 17 saves in relief Thursday in the 6-5 loss to the Sharks.

Players to WATCH: Since Oct. 20, Wild F Eric Staal is tied for fourth in the NHL with 13 points. Coyotes F Conor Garland leads Arizona in goals with seven. Former Wild G Darcy Kuemper boasts a 1.82 goals-against average and .937 save percentage.

Numbers: Wild F Mats Zuccarello is in the midst of a season-high five- game point streak. F Jordan Greenway has 15 hits in his past three games. Arizona has dropped two in a row after winning eight of its previous 10.

Injury: Wild D Greg Pateryn (core muscle surgery) is out. F Marcus Foligno (lower body) is questionable. Coyotes Ds Jason Demers (lower body) and Jordan Oesterle (upper body) are day-to-day. D Niklas Hjalmarsson (fractured fibula) and F Brad Richardson (upper body) are out.

Star Tribune LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160591 Minnesota Wild Marcus Foligno missed Friday’s practice with a lower-body injury. He suffered the injury in Thursday’s loss to the Sharks and is questionable for Saturday’s game against the Arizona Coyotes.

Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk on 2-7-1 skid: ‘It’s not fun’ Pioneer Press LOADED: 11.09.2019

By DANE MIZUTANI | PUBLISHED: November 8, 2019 at 4:34 pm | UPDATED: November 8, 2019 at 4:38 PM

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Nothing encapsulates goaltender Devan Dubnyk’s struggles this season quite like the 500th game of his NHL career.

The milestone moment after Thursday’s loss to the San Jose Sharks was more of an afterthought considering Dubnyk didn’t even start the game, and the decision to roll with backup Alex Stalock in an important game was more or less an indictment on Dubnyk’s play.

“We need wins,” coach Bruce Boudreau explained before the game. “We are going to go with what we think gives us the best chance to win.”

That obviously wasn’t the case; Stalock was lit up in the opening period, forcing Dubnyk into action. The Wild’s longtime starter performed admirably in relief, and it sounds as if he will get the nod for Saturday’s game against the Coyotes in Arizona.

If so, it will be yet another chance for Dubnyk to work his way out of the biggest slump he’s endured since coming to the Twin Cities — not that he’s been thinking much about his struggles.

“I know how I feel when things are good and when things are bad,” Dubnyk said. “It doesn’t feel like things should be where they are right now. I guess that’s why it’s frustrating. You feel like it shouldn’t be where it is.

“It’s not fun. It’s a lot more fun to be winning and to have success. You just remember that feeling and try to get back to it.”

It’s hard to look past Dubnyk’s stats this season: a 2-7-1 record to go along with a 3.64 goals-against average and .883 save percentage. Not that he’s been looking much at his numbers.

“You really don’t look at it,” Dubnyk said. “It’s something that is going to take a few games. Obviously, starting 0-5-0 is not ideal and it’s going to take a bit to get the numbers back to where they normally are. But it’s not really helpful to be staring at them every period, or after every game and hoping it goes up. You’ve just got to stick to it and be focused.”

No matter how bad it gets for Dubnyk, he always looks at the glass as half-full, maybe as a defense mechanism more than anything else; it’s almost as if admitting there’s a problem will make spiral into something much worse.

Plus, this isn’t his first rough stretch. When the Wild acquired Dubnyk from Minnesota in January 2015, he was the Coyotes’ backup. The year before, he had bounced from Edmonton to Nashville to the defunct AHL affiliate in Hamilton, Ontario.

The Wild were a second chance, and he dove in headfirst; in 39 games with Minnesota, he was 27-9-2 with a 1.78 GAA and .936 save percentage, helping the Wild make the playoffs and earning a six-year, $26 million deal with his new team.

“I know how I feel in the net,” Dubnyk said. “I’ve just got to continue to work and compete.”

Dubnyk, 33, insists it’s important not to start grasping at straws and change his game. He has played a decade in the league and knows what it takes to get back on track.

“I’m always working with (goaltender coach Bob Mason) and looking at video whether they’re wins or losses or whether things are going good or bad,” he said. “It doesn’t change now. I’ve just got to work to find a way to get out of it.

“It stinks. It’s not fun to go through it. But I’ve been around long enough and played enough that I trust myself and my game and know that it’ll start to get better.”

BRIEFLY 1160592 Minnesota Wild

Wild upset with officials after Ryan Hartman’s five-minute major

By DANE MIZUTANI | PUBLISHED: November 8, 2019 at 7:24 am | UPDATED: November 8, 2019 at 10:51 am

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Ryan Hartman uncharacteristically declined comment after Thursday’s loss to the San Jose Sharks and it was probably in his best interest to do so.

On the heels of a questionable five-minute major penalty that certainly affected the outcome of the game, Hartman probably figured he was better off not speaking on the issue, so as not to say something he might regret later.

Meanwhile, his teammates had no problem voicing their disdain about the slash Hartman gave winger Evander Kane midway through the final frame of a 6-5 loss.

“You watched the replay,” Eric Staal said. “I’ve played for a long time; that was a pretty common slash back in the day. I don’t think it’s a major. It is what it is. They called it.”

“I didn’t think that was a penalty,” Luke Kunin added. “I think that was pretty soft on his part.”

What exactly happened?

Well, with the Wild making a push to tie the game, Hartman and Kane got into it along the boards. That back-and-forth tussle ended with Kane delivering a run-of-the-mill crosscheck and Hartman responding with a retaliatory one-handed slash.

It likely would’ve stopped there had Kane not gone down like a ton of bricks. That prompted star defenseman Brent Burns to take a run at Hartman while Kane grimaced in pain on the ice.

Perhaps playing up the moment a little bit, Kane stayed down on the ice for more than 30 seconds before slowly making his way to the bench and, ultimately, down the tunnel.

That was enough for the officials to hit Hartman with a five-minute major and a game misconduct, a call t upheld after video review, much to the chagrin of coach Bruce Boudreau on the bench.

“They called it originally as a five-minute major and then they went back and looked at it and they still called it a five-minute major,” Boudreau said. “You guys watched it. You tell me.”

To make matters worse, Burns got off scot-free, and while Kane was assessed a two-minute minor, the Sharks still ended up with an extended power play that stymied any momentum the Wild had worked so hard to obtain.

“He did a great job of selling it,” Boudreau said. “Everyone thought he had a broken ankle and he missed one shift. That’s a good job by him to change the momentum.”

Pioneer Press LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160593 Montreal Canadiens Conn Smythe, the original owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, allegedly said he would give $10,000 to anyone who could turn Herb Carnegie white. In this memoir, Carnegie recalls how years later he spoke to , who said: “Herbie, you were born 25 years too soon.” Hickey on hockey: Finding time for Habs' rookies a challenge for Julien Carnegie replied: “No, the powers that be were not ready for me.”

I met Carnegie several times in Toronto, where he became a successful businessman who still found time to run an inner-city minor hockey PAT HICKEY, MONTREAL GAZETTE Updated: November 8, 2019 program and the Future Aces Foundation, which provided millions of dollars in scholarships across Canada. He also played golf at a high level. He won the Canadian senior championship twice, although there After years of viewing the centre position as a black hole, the future looks were events that were closed to him because of his colour. bright for the Canadiens with Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Nick Suzuki and Ryan Poehling. P.K. Subban’s father gave his son a copy of Carnegie’s book and P.K. said it served as an inspiration. Black players are common in today’s They are all first-round draft choices and natural centres and, while they NHL, but Carnegie’s book offers a look at a shameful part of the game’s bring different skills to the mix, they all possess the potential to thrive at history, and one man’s path to success. the NHL level. Montreal Gazette LOADED: 11.09.2019 The dilemma for head coach Claude Julien is to find enough ice time for each player to develop.

That challenge was brought into focus this week when an injury to Kotkaniemi opened a spot for Poehling, who started the season with the Laval Rocket. Poehling was installed at centre on the third line with Artturi Lehkonen and Paul Byron, although circumstances saw him play what amounted to fourth-line minutes.

Julien shortened his bench Tuesday as the Canadiens battled from behind for a win over the Boston Bruins.

On Thursday in Philadelphia, any idea of rolling four lines went out the window when the Canadiens were forced to kill six penalties. That meant Byron and Lehkonen had extra time on the PK, while Poehling sat on the bench.

In what amounts to a small sample, Poehling played well. He hit people, blocked shots and used his size, although he did struggle in the faceoff circle. But with Kotkaniemi set to return, the question is whether Poehling showed enough to stay in the NHL and, if he does play, what position will he play?

Prior to the Philadelphia game, Julien said Poehling is a better player at the NHL level than he is in the AHL.

Poehling agreed, noting the NHL is more structured and he’s surrounded by better players. But being a good fit isn’t enough of a reason to keep him in Montreal if he isn’t going to get significant minutes.

The Canadiens had to be creative when it came to Suzuki. It was obvious there was no room for him at centre and he became a right winger. He has joined Nate Thompson and Nick Cousins to form a fourth line that is dependable at both ends of the ice.

Julien could employ a similar strategy with Poehling or Kotkaniemi, but that might weaken the team in another area.

There will come a day when all three of the youngsters will be playing centre for the Canadiens, but that’s a season or two in the future. In the meantime, the task is to keep everyone busy and that might mean someone will be logging development time in the Laval.

Carnegie story worth revisiting

Before Willie O’Ree, there was Herb Carnegie.

O’Ree is recognized as the first black player in the NHL, but that honour probably would have gone to Carnegie if the NHL had a more enlightened attitude toward race during the 1940s.

Carnegie would have turned 100 on Friday and ECW Press in Toronto marked the occasion by reissuing his autobiography, A Fly in a Pail of Milk: The Herb Carnegie Story, with 30 per cent new material provided by his daughter, Bernice.

Carnegie and his brother, Ozzie, joined with Manny McIntyre to form an all-black line that dominated the Quebec Senior League during the 1940s, when the league was considered one step away from the NHL. One night, the trio led Sherbrooke to a 4-2 exhibition win over a Canadiens squad that featured Hall of Famers Rocket Richard, Toe Blake and Elmer Lach. The late Red Storey refereed many games in the Quebec league and declared: “The coloured line, as a line, could have played on any team, any time, anywhere.” 1160594 Montreal Canadiens slump, Ryan Poehling has yet to make an impact with the big club and Nick Suzuki has shown flashes of brilliance and just as many rookie mistakes. Interestingly, the rookie who looks the most assured out there is Fleury. What the Puck: Canadiens struggling to find an identity Montreal Gazette LOADED: 11.09.2019

BRENDAN KELLY, MONTREAL GAZETTE Updated: November 8, 2019

Sixteen games in, the identity of this Montreal Canadiens team is becoming increasingly clear. This is a hockey team suffering from split personality.

Some nights, they look amazing, like when they twice beat the Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues. Then you have a night like Thursday in Philadelphia, where they did their best imitation of one of the worst teams in the National Hockey League. In fact, I’d argue that during the past three games, the Habs have been living mostly on the mediocre side of that split personality.

They were downright brutal in Dallas Saturday night, looking mostly disinterested until Artturi Lehkonen rocketed in a beauty of a shot with just under four minutes remaining, but it was a meaningless goal given that the Stars were leading 4-zip prior to the goal. Sure, it was fun to beat the archrival Boston Bruins on Tuesday, but it was a wildly uneven game for Claude Julien’s squad.

They squandered leads of 3-1 and 4-3, and it looked like the Bruins went up 5-4 until the Toronto war room decided that Bruins forward Charlie Coyle was offside on the play, a decision they made after Julien called for a video review. The controversial decision is still generating talk around the league, with many suggesting it was dubious at best given how long it took the officials to make the call. Common sense dictates that if it’s that unclear, just go with the original ruling on the ice.

To further tarnish the Habs’ victory Tuesday, both goalies were awful. Tuukka Rask was as terrible as he usually is at the Bell Centre and you have to wonder why they didn’t start him the night before in Boston against the Penguins and have Jaroslav Halak face his former team Tuesday. It was also a night to forget for Carey Price.

The less said about Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers the better. All you need to know is that the Flyers threw 43 shots at Price and if the highly paid netminder hadn’t been spectacular, the Habs wouldn’t have made it to overtime. Then, after an award-winning performance, Price blew it in OT, stopping a shot from Sean Couturier and then letting it trickle into the net. It was that kind of night.

So there haven’t been many positives to take from this week’s Habs action. But on the upside, they are sitting just outside a playoff spot, tied with the Carolina Hurricanes. Both have 19 points, but the ‘Canes hold that final wild-card spot because they have one more win than the Canadiens.

So they’re still very much in the conversation and that’s probably where they’ll be for the entire season, battling for that last spot. The positive here is this team might not have any superstars but they do have character, which they showed in that thrilling comeback win in Vegas last week and in that roller-coaster game against the Bruins Tuesday. The character guys are mostly the usual suspects: Brendan Gallagher, Shea Weber, Jeff Petry, Phillip Danault, Max Domi and Nate Thompson. It’s also encouraging to see that Ben Chiarot, after a tough start, is starting to fit in, and it’s a blast to watch young Cale Fleury delivering some big hits.

On the downside, there’s the curious case of Tomas Tatar. I mean what the puck is up with this guy? He had two minor penalties Thursday and already has 20 minutes worth of penalties this season. Bizarre for a fellow who only had 34 minutes all of last season and it’s starting to really hurt the team, which happens to have a pretty poor penalty-kill unit.

You also have to worry about Price’s inconsistency. He was all-world in Philly — at least until overtime — and decidedly not so much on Tuesday against the Bruins. It’s early and he usually straightens things out but, until he does, he remains far from the upper echelons of the goaltending hit parade in the league.

Last but not least, I hate to say I told you so but I told you so. The kids have looked as uneven as the rest of the team and it just underlines what many of us have been saying: Habs management can hype the youth movement all they like, but you never know how young players will develop and how quickly. Jesperi Kotkaniemi has been in a sophomore 1160595 Montreal Canadiens They were, as coach and captain, two of the key elements in the Bruins Cup run of 2011 that helped break a nearly 40-year drought from the peak of the Orr era.

What Melnick Thinks: A reminder of a time when booing the Bruins’ top As I watched the tributes for both (1,200 NHL games for Julien, 1,500 for defenceman meant something Chara) I thought of how ironic it was that a future Hall of Fame Bruins defenceman who was booed every time he touched the puck at the Bell Centre finally, and grudgingly no doubt, earned the respect of mostly Canadiens fans in the building, many of whom stood and applauded the By Mitch Melnick Nov 8, 2019 same player who had been the biggest hockey villain the city has ever known.

I’m a Bruins fan. It might not be obvious to those who don’t know me. I Chara, already sweating profusely on the bench even though it was early had no choice, really. in the game, was clearly touched by the Canadiens’ decision to recognize him (a no-brainer) and the fans’ reaction to it. The fact that Now, don’t get me wrong. I was a Montreal Canadiens fanatic (so back Max Pacioretty is now 2,500 miles away in Las Vegas following a messy off). When the two teams met at playoff time and the Habs always won, I divorce from the team he had captained, likely cleared the conscience of was happier than Joaquin Phoenix prancing down the courthouse steps. Montreal fans to acknowledge one of hockey’s all-time greats. The site of But when the Bruins played anybody else, it gave me the totally guilt-free Pacioretty’s crumpled body on the Bell Centre ice after Chara ran him experience of rooting for another city. But it had nothing to do with into the stanchion (now curved glass as a result) on March 8, 2011 is a Boston. Eventually, I’d come to love the old town almost like it was my memory that is difficult to erase (if Chara didn’t intend to seriously injure own. But my strong feeling for the Bruins was all because of one player. Pacioretty then in the moment, he simply didn’t care. He should have been suspended). But, whether you learn the hard way or not, it’s not The first time I saw Bobby Orr I was 6 years old. I was watching with my healthy to hold a grudge. dad, as I usually did when he wasn’t out of town trying to sell aluminum siding to homeowners who didn’t need it. I didn’t know anything about the Chara wasn’t very good on Tuesday. The Habs were able to use their guy except he was very young, with a crew cut and always seemed to speed to jump on the Bruins early while taking advantage of an even have the puck on his stick. In fact, my initial emotion after seeing Orr for worse looking Tuukka Rask. But as the game progressed, after Montreal the first time was one of anger. I felt it was disrespectful for any player missed power play opportunities to put it away, the Bruins crawled back not named Jean Béliveau to wear No. 4. Or maybe it was just because in. They continued to attack in waves. It’s something to see, especially Orr looked so good wearing it, as opposed to some of the forgetful (for a from up close, how a Boston team that used to be known for its muscle 6-year-old Montrealer) players like Arnie Brown of the Rangers and and lunch pail work ethic has become one of hockey’s quickest teams Moose Vasko of the Black Hawks. from blue line to blue line.

I won’t ever forget seeing Orr for the first time not because of a goal he In Don Sweeney the Bruins have a very smart general manager. He scored or set up. I’ll never forget fans at the Forum booing him. Every recognized where the game was headed. But in order to get his team time he touched the puck. This was a brand new experience for me. back to the top of the NHL he had to fire his respected head coach. It’s Montreal fans didn’t boo in the mid 1960s. Béliveau had captained them not quite like watching Bobby Orr’s Bruins, but Bruce Cassidy has had to a Stanley Cup in 1965 (as he would again in 1966, 1968, 1969 and Boston playing the kind of pleasing, up tempo hockey that it is a must in 1971 before retiring a champ at age 40). today’s NHL since he replaced Claude Julien three years ago.

If there were moments when Habs fans had been angry with their team, I Here in Montreal, it’s been like watching a changing of the guard. When didn’t witness it. Julien replaced Michel Therrien for a second time, he stepped right into a time warp. Habs GM Marc Bergevin had positioned himself into win-now Keep in mind how young I was. It’s not like I was glued to our black and mode with the off-season acquisitions of Shea Weber, Alexander white television set for every game. I spent more time watching Batman Radulov and Andrew Shaw to go with 38-year-old Andrei Markov, who than hockey. Plus, we saw only two games a week and the mid-week was on an expiring contract. Julien’s Habs won a lot of tight, low-scoring (usually) Wednesday game was always joined in progress at 8:30 p.m., games after he took over. But it seemed clear they needed more help which was usually late in the first period. offensively if they were going to make a deep playoff run. Instead, So, I thought, this kid on the Bruins wearing Béliveau’s number must Bergevin brought in big bodies with virtually no offensive instincts – have done something to warrant that kind of reaction. Turned out he was Andreas Martinsen, Dwight King and Steve Ott – as if he was hoping for just too damn good for them. While the Canadiens of Orr’s rookie season a replay of what Julien’s Bruins did in 2011. Carey Price and Weber did of 1966-67 would head back to the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the their part in the opening round playoff series against the Rangers. But the Maple Leafs (with a decent enough No. 4 of their own named Red Kelly) hoped-for effect of the bigger bodies – winning battles and eking out a 2- the Bruins were not yet the Big, Bad Bruins. They were simply bad – 1 or 3-2 win – didn’t work as Henrik Lundqvist shutdown what little about to miss the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season. Orr’s arrival offence Montreal was able to generate. was about to transform them. But this was still the pre-Phil Esposito Following a lost season due to injuries and incompetence while losing Bruins. (Boston GM Harry Sinden was about to pull off one of the both Radulov and Markov to free agency and replacing them with Ales greatest heists in NHL history when he got Esposito, Ken Hodge and Hemsky and Mark Streit, Bergevin was at a crossroads. Fred Stanfield out of Chicago for Pit Martin, Gilles Marotte and Jack Norris.) While many called for his firing (my arm is in the air) he defiantly told me on the radio “I will fix this.” Prior to the start of last season even Claude But even as Orr was just starting his brilliant career that was hockey’s Julien had to admit to a drastic change when he proclaimed, “We’re in version of a shooting star (17 major trophies and two Stanley Cups in just the entertainment business.” nine full seasons) it was pretty obvious, even to a 6 year old, that he possessed natural talent that dwarfed any player on the Habs, including At least now there is hope. But as the Canadiens try to just get into the Béliveau. playoffs, their archrivals from Boston are trying to get back to the Stanley Cup Final and look poised to do so. They’re doing it with the kind of skill, So the booing was a sign of respect. It was a signal that fans of the style and, dare I say, élan that spoiled many of us back in the 1960s and greatest team in hockey knew that as lousy as Boston was, they had 70s. something that we all wanted. When the greatest player of all time was in Boston, not in Montreal. Perhaps it was spending a few hours over a couple of days recently with Scotty Bowman and Ken Dryden, but more likely the fact that for the first The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 time in my life I sat as a hockey fan at ice level for Tuesday’s Habs- Bruins game at the Bell Centre. A long-time listener named Paul Antoniadis, whom I had never met, invited the recently retired Mike Boone and myself to join him in his front row seats behind the net for the milestone matchup between the two rivals.

There was something almost perfect about Claude Julien and Zdeno Chara hitting an impressive target of career games on the same night. 1160596 Montreal Canadiens also a human “get out of jail” card. And goodness knows the Canadiens needed one, given all the crimes they committed against sound defence and fundamental hockey. They were lost in the fog at 5-on-5; Jeff Petry, despite 29 minutes of ice time, had a miserable first two periods; so, Carey Price can still steal games and that’s good because these unusually, did Phillip Danault’s line. More specifically the problem on that Canadiens will need him to trio was Tomas Tatar, who on the rare occasions he did anything, reliably did the wrong thing.

His two minor penalties in this game meant he now shares the league By Marc Antoine Godin Nov 8, 2019 lead for minor penalties taken by a forward, tied with Dallas’ Alexander Radulov (formerly of this parish). That’s not a leaderboard you want to be on. PHILADELPHIA – Carey Price is capable of some truly unique physical feats. For example, it’s possible for him to maintain a textbook butterfly After two periods Claude Julien had seen enough, installing Nick Cousins position while standing on his head. on Danault’s left.

He hasn’t regularly made the impossible possible since the beginning of “These are things we’ve talked to him about and that he has to stop,” the this season, of course; the Canadiens have managed to get through the coach said. “But it’s not just the penalties; he just wasn’t good tonight. He first 15 games of the schedule without having to depend on their star was losing his battles along the boards, it wasn’t his night and it’s part of goalie being the difference-maker on a nightly basis. A lot like last year, my job to make changes when that happens. It doesn’t change the fact really. he’s a good player, and we’ll probably put him back on his line, but it was a really difficult game for him.” But Price’s greatest value to the Canadiens — a flawed and under- powered team for his entire tenure as the team’s starting goaltender — It’s always possible to moan about dubious refereeing decisions, but the has come through his ability to keep a leaky vessel afloat while coaches fact is penalties tend to be the symptom of deficient play, not the cause. and players attempt to plug various leaks. In fact, penalties can draw a team into a vicious cycle; pulling out of it is not always straightforward. The team finds itself a man down because it’s The hope is that the game against the Flyers showed that Price can still not skating with enough urgency and is chasing the play – the root of the be that for the Canadiens. While Price wasn’t quite able to pilfer an problem – the next thing you know half the club is gassed from killing outright victory, he is absolutely the only reason Montreal emerged with a penalties and the other is cold from not having left the bench. And, point from a game in which they richly deserved to be blown out. whoops, the team is a half-step behind the pace. So it takes more penalties. The unspoken bargain in Montreal holds that the team will work toward weaning itself from its longstanding dependence on elite goaltending – In five of the six penalty-killing situations they faced against the Flyers, which, in fairness, it has largely succeeded in doing since the beginning the Canadiens had only themselves to blame. The only one they could of the 2018-19 season – and that in return, Price will yank the family plausibly complain about was the delay-of-game call in the third. jewels out of the fire on the nights when disaster strikes. If, by happenstance, Price and the team are able to simultaneously put Conversely, the Canadiens hadn’t exactly forced Philadelphia into together a run of games at peak efficiency, the belief (hope?) is it will be catching the referees’ attention; well, until the stick to Jonathan Drouin’s enough to get the team to the playoffs. face late in the third, which went uncalled. Some nights are like that.

But the Carey Price who imperiously turned away 40 Flyers shots, who The point is the Canadiens ended up fighting themselves as much or played a hermetically-sealed second period (and who completely flubbed more than they did the Flyers or the officials’ judgment. a simple Sean Couturier shot in overtime, there’s no point tip-toeing “If you’re talking about being on the penalty kill for the whole second around it) is the kind of Carey Price the Canadiens have not seen often period and for most of the game, then yeah, definitely,” Shea Weber said. enough in the early going. For evidence, we point to his start two nights “The penalty kill did a great job tonight, that’s one positive other than the ago, which saw the Boston Bruins leverage a couple of his miscues into fact that Carey stood on his head. It was good for our PK, but definitely a stirring comeback in a game the Canadiens were completely tough to get any momentum or anything going when half the bench is dominating. sitting there waiting for us to kill penalties the whole game.” At this point, Price is a buyer of time, because the Canadiens’ defensive The view from 10,000 feet reveals that the Canadiens’ overall game structure is still, well, under construction. In Philadelphia, it was once hasn’t been clean, let alone clinical since the road win in Arizona on Oct. again shredded to tiny bits by the opposition. There is cause for concern; 30. They managed to smuggle two points out of Vegas the next night according to NaturalStatTrick.com, the Canadiens are 25th in the NHL despite clearly being the second-best team on the ice. They did similarly when it comes to high-danger scoring chances against per 60 minutes. in Philadelphia. The needle hit empty in Dallas, then Price revealed he is, For perspective, it ended last season in 12th. in fact, human against the Bruins.

Despite this mostly being the same group of players, for whatever In short, they have taken five of a possible eight points despite not reason, this year they’re giving opposing teams unfettered access to the playing anywhere near their best. It’s not a winning strategy. When “Royal Road” – the imaginary line that runs out from the centre of the net there’s sand in the gears you don’t just hope it’ll shake out, proactive and bisects the slot. The Canadiens are still somehow one of the maintenance is required. league’s best teams in terms of controlling shots, but when they find That’s where Price comes in. The fact he can still hit Peak Carey Price themselves in a giving mood, they give generously. from time to time gives the club time to pop the hood and get this thing They’re spending too much time in their own end, and in turn, that means humming again. they’re getting in each other’s way; the result is zone exit attempts that The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 are as incompetent as they are ineffective. It’s not the sort of situation that’s beyond repair, far from it in fact, but it does need to be addressed immediately, given November’s schedule is packed with favourable matchups that could make or break their postseason ambitions.

There’s no need to reinvent anything; going back to what this team has shown it can do well would more than suffice.

From that standpoint, seeing Price do what he did in Philly can only be seen as reassuring. He’s not going to turn water into wine every night, but evidently his miracle-working suit still fits and he can turn in the type of dominant performance to which the hockey world has become accustomed over the past decade or so.

At last check, he was still the Canadiens’ best player, the one with the greatest influence on its success or failure. At Wells Fargo Center he was 1160597 Nashville Predators

Nashville Predators to play in Switzerland, open NHL 2020-21 season in Czech Republic

Juan Buitrago, Nashville TennesseanPublished 12:37 p.m. CT Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 12:38 p.m. CT Nov. 8, 2019

The Nashville Predators will open the 2020-21 season in the Czech Republic as well as play an exhibition game in Switzerland as part of the NHL Global Series, the National Hockey League announced Friday.

The Predators will complete their training camp in Bern, Switzerland, where they will play an exhibition game against SC Bern at PostFinance Arena.

The team will then open the upcoming season against the Boston Bruins at O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic.

“Starting the 2020-21 season in Europe will be a great new experience for our team both on and off the ice," Nashville Predators General Manager David Poile said in a news release.

"It will provide for some great team-bonding opportunities and will be super special for our Captain Roman Josi and fellow Bern native Yannick Weber. We are excited to share this once-in-a-lifetime memory with them."

Josi played for Bern’s Under-17 and Junior clubs before making his Swiss League debut with SC Bern in 2006-07. He went on to help the club win a league title in 2010.

Weber played three seasons with Bern’s junior club, winning a league title in 2005.

“It means a lot for our entire organization to get the opportunity to play games in the Czech Republic and Switzerland,” Josi said.

“It’s really great for myself and Yannick to get to play a game in Bern. Before coming to North America, Bern was the only team I had ever played for growing up, and I watched them play when I was little. I grew up five minutes away from their rink and it’s my hometown club – it’s going to be so special for me, and I can’t wait for the game.”

Game dates, broadcast and ticket information for the 2020 NHL Global Series and the 2020 NHL Global Series challenge will be announced when available.

Fans can register for updates and details at NHL.com/GSSwitzerland and NHL.com/GSCzechRepublic.

"We are elated to once again be selected for one of the League's marquee events," Predators President and CEO Sean Henry said in a news release. "Having this opportunity is a true testament to the City of Nashville and the passion of our fans, who are the best in sports."

The 2020 NHL Global Series marks the fourth straight year and ninth season overall that the NHL has traveled to Europe to play regular- season games.

Tennessean LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160598 Nashville Predators On a positive note, the Predators are certain to be better Saturday against the San Jose Sharks, because they can’t be any worse than they were Thursday.

What the heck happened to the Predators in Denver? “More of last game and less of tonight,” Duchene said, referring to the Predators’ 6-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Monday. “We’re a veteran team in here, and we know how to play the game the right way. Tonight wasn’t it. We’ll bounce back. We have to have a short memory, By Adam Vingan Nov 8, 2019 whether we win or lose. There will be things to learn from this game. I think it’s a good lesson, if you’re going to look for a silver lining.”

DENVER — Things were going so well. The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019

Despite being outplayed by the Colorado Avalanche from the opening faceoff, the Predators had a 3-2 lead in the first five minutes of the second period Thursday. , a pariah in Denver, soaked in the boos at Pepsi Center as the best power-play unit in the NHL celebrated another goal.

Then it all went to hell.

Thirty-one seconds later, Joonas Donskoi spun around and scored from the slot, the first of six consecutive goals for the Avalanche in what arguably was the worst period of hockey in Predators history.

“Yeah, definitely one of the worst, for sure,” Predators captain Roman Josi said after the Predators’ 9-4 loss. “You can’t give up that many goals. There was nothing from us. We got embarrassed. We can’t play like that. We obviously didn’t play well at all. I feel like we lost every battle. We didn’t compete. We get embarrassed out there.”

It’s easy to get caught up in hyperbole this early in the season, but it’s also important to acknowledge the multiple ignominious records set or tied by the Predators on Thursday:

The nine goals against were the most in franchise history.

The four goals against in a span of 2:21 in the second period were the fastest four goals allowed in franchise history, beating the previous record by 57 seconds.

The six goals against in the second period were tied for the most allowed in a period in franchise history.

“It’s embarrassing,” Predators forward said. “We’re letting a team score nine goals on us. It doesn’t matter what team we’re playing. Nobody should be able to do that. It’s our fault.”

To make matters worse, the Avalanche, who had lost five consecutive games, were missing Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen and Philipp Grubauer because of injuries. They became the third team in the past 20 years to score six goals in a span of eight minutes or less. (The league record for the fastest six goals scored by one team is held by the Montreal Canadiens, who did so in 4:24 on Dec. 6, 1982.)

That didn’t stop the Avalanche, who are among the best teams in the league in creating offense off the rush, from using their speed advantage to exploit the Predators’ transition defense when they found open ice.

There were few specific answers in the Predators’ dressing room. Peter Laviolette’s press conference lasted 30 seconds.

“Not good,” Laviolette said.

“I don’t think we were ready to play from the start,” Duchene said. “They were the better team. … We didn’t match their intensity. They had lost (five) in a row, and they knew what was at stake tonight. We had a chance to go up four points on them, and we weren’t able to do it. They were just more intense. They outplayed us top to bottom. We didn’t have many guys going tonight. It was an unfortunate effort by us. You’ve got to have a short memory in this game. There’s 82 regular-season games for a reason.”

As hard as it might be to not overreact, the Predators’ performance Thursday was an outlier. We are nearing the point of the season, though, when we can begin to draw meaningful conclusions from the Predators’ statistics.

From what we’ve been able to gather so far, they are a strong team, though they’ve benefited from some unsustainable percentages. (Even after their terrible loss Thursday, the Predators still have the second- highest PDO in the league at five-on-five, mostly a product of their league-leading 11.17 shooting percentage. It actually improved from 10.9 percent after they scored three goals on 18 shots against the Avalanche.) 1160599 New Jersey Devils

Devils unravel in 2nd straight road loss to Oilers

Updated 11:51 PM;Today 11:45 PM

By Chris Ryan

Things seemed to be going fine for the Devils. They trailed the Edmonton Oilers 1-0 more than halfway through the game, surrendering the lone goal on a Leon Draisaitl breakaway early in the second period.

Otherwise, they were generating more shot attempts and shots, and a potential goal by Nico Hischier was wiped out in the first period when a whistle blew before the center poked in a loose puck in the crease.

But then the wheels completely fell off the wagon.

The Oilers scored two goals in 66 seconds to enter the second intermission up by three goals, and they tacked on one more goal for good measure in a 4-0 victory over the Devils on Friday at Rogers Place in Edmonton.

Goalie Cory Schneider remained winless after his sixth start of the season, falling to 0-4-1. Schneider did not factor into the decision in his first start in the season opener to the Winnipeg Jets. He made 28 saves on 32 shots.

Oilers goalie Mikko Koskinen stopped all 26 shots he faced in the shutout.

Draisaitl’s opening goal came at 1:55 of the second period, when he beat Schneider with a backhander on the break.

And after the Devils saw Hischier’s goal called off and had Taylor Hall hit a post, the Oilers saw a generous bounce go their way on their second goal. A shot from the right point by Matt Benning hit the skate of Gaetan Haas in slot, and it redirected on net and past Schneider at 15:45.

James Neal piled on with the Oilers’ third goal, finishing a shot at the right post at 16:51.

The Oilers added a power-play goal from forward Alex Chiasson to cap off the scoring at 6:02 of the third period.

Vatanen injured

One of the issues for the Devils on Friday stemmed from playing with five defenseman for the majority of the night.

Sami Vatanen exited the game in the first period and didn’t return after receiving an elbow to the head from Chiasson on a check along the boards. Vatanen stayed on the ice for a few moments before slowly skating off under his own power and heading straight down the tunnel.

Next up

The Devils have one more game on their current road trip, where they are 2-2-0. They will play the Vancouver Canucks at 4 p.m. Eastern on Sunday in Vancouver before returning home to host the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.

Star Ledger LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160600 New Jersey Devils Mackenzie Blackwood saw 65 minutes of action, allowing three goals in the shootout loss to the Oilers. Mikko Koskinen allowed three goals on 31 shots faced.

Devils’ lines, pairings vs. Oilers (11/8/19) | Jesper Bratt back as lineup The Devils are 1-2-1 at Rogers Place and 3-2-4 overall against the Oilers gets shakeup since the 2015-16 season.

Star Ledger LOADED: 11.09.2019

Updated 7:23 PM;Today 7:09 PM

By Chris Ryan

Jesper Bratt will return to the ice after missing two games with an upper boy injury, and he’ll be among handful of changes in a lineup shakeup for the Devils.

Bratt, along with defenseman Mirco Mueller, will enter the lineup when the Devils continue their Western Canada road trip with a game against the Edmonton Oilers at 9 p.m. Eastern on Friday at Rogers Place in Edmonton.

Mueller will replace Matt Tennyson on the blue line, while forward Kevin Rooney will sit with Bratt entering the lineup.

Goalie Cory Schneider will also make the start after Mackenzie Blackwood started the past four games, including Thursday’s 5-2 loss against the Calgary Flames.

With Rooney out, the Devils needed to do some shuffling to have another forward move to center. Here’s how the Devils are expected to line up:

FORWARDS

Taylor Hall - Nico Hischier - Kyle Palmieri

Jesper Bratt - Jack Hughes - Jesper Boqvist

Blake Coleman - Pavel Zacha - Nikita Gusev

Miles Wood - Travis Zajac - Wayne Simmonds

DEFENSEMEN

Damon Severson - P.K. Subban

Andy Greene - Sami Vatanen

Will Butcher - Mirco Mueller

GOALIES

Starter: Cory Schneider

Backup: Mackenzie Blackwood

SCRATCHES

F: Kevin Rooney, John Hayden

D: Matt Tennyson

On IR: D Connor Carrick (broken pinky)

Plan your Devils road trip: Travel services at TripAdvisor, Cheapflights.com, Uber, Priceline, Expedia, Orbitz

Here are pregame notes via the Devils:

Tonight is the second and final regular-season contest between New Jersey and Edmonton. The Oilers defeated the Devils in a shootout on Oct. 10 at Prudential Center. The Devils went 1-3 on the penalty kill, and were unsuccessful on the man advantage (0-2).

Tonight concludes New Jersey’s fourth of 16 sets of back-to-back action. The Devils fell to the Calgary Flames last night. The club is 0-2-2 in first games, and look to improve their 1-1-1 record in second contests this season.

In the October matchup, Kyle Palmieri and Nikita Gusev tallied their second goals of the season against Edmonton. Blueliner Damon Severson chipped in with his first goal of the 2019-20 campaign. Connor Carrick, Taylor Hall, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt all picked up helpers in the contest.

Leon Draisaitl opened the scoring for the Oilers and notched the game decider in the shootout. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins leads Edmonton in points with two. Nugent-Hopkins picked up two assists in the fall tilt. 1160601 New Jersey Devils Clarke scored 23 goals in 55 games last season, so he’s well on pace to beat that mark. He’s seventh in points on Ottawa, which is expected to make a deep run after reaching the OHL Final last season.

Devils prospects update: Ty Smith, Brett Seney, Tyce Thompson off to Evan Cormier, G (Binghamton Devils, AHL) strong starts in 2019-20 2019-20 stats: 6 GP, 1-4-1, 3.39 GAA, .901 save percentage

Age: 22 Posted Nov 08, 2019 Drafted: 4th round, 105th overall in 2016 By Chris Ryan Cormier was demoted to the ECHL on Thursday after the Devils acquired veteran goalie Louis Domingue and added him to the AHL team. That will allow Cormier to continue to get consistent ice time while Domingue and While the Devils are well into their schedule, all of their prospects have Gilles Senn play in the AHL. also started their 2019-20 campaigns. Brandon Gignac, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Here’s a look at the updated stats for each Devils prospects, with some notes on the progress of many of them, including Ty Smith, Michael 2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 0 G, 3 A, 3 P McLeod, Nathan Bastian and the 2019 draft class. Age: 22 Joey Anderson, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Drafted: 3rd round, 80th overall in 2016 2019-20 stats: 13 GP, 2 G, 6 A, 8 P Gignac hasn’t quite found his scoring touch yet after leading Binghamton Age: 21 last season with 36 points. He had 12 goals in 66 games in 2018-19.

Drafted: 3rd round, 73rd overall in 2016 Arseni Gritsyuk, F (Omskie Yastreby, MHL)

After playing 34 NHL games last season, Anderson is one of a handful of 2019-20 stats: 20 GP, 11 G, 11 A, 22 P prospects with NHL experience playing in Binghamton. He played in only Age: 18 13 AHL games last season, where he had two goals and four assists. Drafted: 5th round, 129th overall in 2019 Introducing Devils Insider: Sign up for exclusive news, behind-the-scenes observations and the ability to text message directly with beat writers Gritsyuk has already surpassed his 2018-19 scoring total, where he posted 21 points in 30 MHL games. Brandon Baddock, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Jeremy Groleau, D (Binghamton Devils, AHL) 2019-20 stats: 10 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 P 2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 P Age: 24 Age: 20 Drafted: 6th round, 161st in 2014 Drafted: Undrafted Nathan Bastian, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Matthew Hellickson, D (Notre Dame, NCAA) 2019-20 stats: 13 GP, 2 G, 7 A, 9 P 2019-20 stats: 6 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 P Age: 21 Age: 21 Drafted: 2nd round, 41st overall in 2016 Drafted: 7th round, 214th overall in 2017 Bastian was one of the final cuts from Devils training camp, and he’s off to a fine start in his third pro season, posting nine points in 13 games. Mitchell Hoelscher, F (Ottawa 67′s, OHL) He’s consistently played on a line with fellow 2016 pick and former junior teammate Michael McLeod. 2019-20 stats: 16 GP, 12 G, 10 A, 22 P

Xavier Bernard, D (Charlottetown Islanders, QMJHL) Age: 19

2019-20 stats: 17 GP, 2 G, 4 A, 6 P Drafted: 6th round, 172nd overall in 2018

Age: 19 Hoelscher played a bit of a smaller role during 2018-19 when the 67′s were loaded up front. Now he’s taking advantage of being a bigger part Drafted: 4th round, 110th overall in 2018 of the offense. He’s 18 points shy of matching his total from last season.

Bernard is in his first full season with Charlottetown after being traded Josh Jabobs, D (Binghamton Devils, AHL) there midseason during 2018-19. He’s never been a major point producer in junior hockey — he had 25 points in 66 games last season — 2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 P so his numbers so far are on par with his usual output. Age: 23

Brady Cole, G (Fargo Force, USHL) Drafted: 2nd round, 41st overall in 2014

2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 3-4-1, 3.23 GAA, .894 save percentage Mikhail Maltsev, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL)

Age: 18 2019-20 stats: 4 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 P

Drafted: 5th round, 127th overall in 2019 Age: 21

Brady is expected to join Arizona State in 2020-21 for his first season of Drafted: 4th round, 102nd overall in 2016 college hockey. For now, he’s getting a decent workload in the USHL. Case McCarthy, D (Boston University, NCAA) Buy Devils tickets: StubHub, SeatGeek 2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 P Graeme Clarke, F (Ottawa 67′s, OHL) Age: 18 2019-20 stats: 9 GP, 7 G, 2 A, 9 P Drafted: 4th round, 118th overall in 2019 Age: 18 Michael McLeod, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Drafted: 3rd round, 80th overall in 2019 2019-20 stats: 13 GP, 3 G, 4 A, 7 P Akira Schmid, G (Omaha Lancers, USHL)

Age: 21 2019-20 stats: 6 GP, 2-2-1, 3.01 GAA, .891 save percentage

Drafted: 1st round, 12th overall in 2016 Age: 19

McLeod had no goals in 21 NHL games and six in 55 AHL games last Drafted: 5th round, 136th overall in 2018 season, so it’s encouraging to see him score a bit to start his second pro season. He’s probably never going to be a major goal scorer in the NHL, It’s still early, but Schmid hasn’t been able to match the very strong but he’s finding ways to put points in the AHL and stay ready for a numbers he posted in the USHL in 2018-19 (2.18 GAA and .926 save potential NHL call-up. percentage). He’ll likely settle down and improve as the season progresses, even if he doesn’t replicate those same gaudy stats. Danill Misyul, D (Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, KHL) Yegor Sharangovich, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) 2019-20 stats: 19 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 2 P 2019-20 stats: 12 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 P Age: 19 Age: 21 Drafted: 3rd round, 70th overall in 2019 Drafted: 5th round, 141st overall in 2018 Misyul got a brief stint in the KHL to end last season, and he’s spent all of the 2019-20 season there so far, which is encouraging for the young blue Colby Sissons, D (Binghamton Devils, AHL/Adirondack Thunder, ECHL) liner. 2019-20 stats:

Patrick Moynihan, F (Providence, NCAA) Age: 21

2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 P Drafted: Undrafted

Age: 18 Sissons played two AHL games before being optioned to the ECHL, Drafted: 6th round, 158th overall in 2019 where he’s getting more consistent playing time.

One of three USNTDP products taken by the Devils in 2019 — along with Gilles Senn, G (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Jack Hughes and McCarthy — Moynihan is off to a solid start in his 2019-20 stats: 5 GP, 2-2-1, 2.95 GAA, .894 save percentage collegiate career. Age: 23 Nikita Okhotyuk, D (Ottawa 67′s, OHL) Drafted: 5th round, 123rd overall in 2017 2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 0 G, 3 A, 3 P Even with Domingue in the picture, Senn will still get plenty of work in the Age: 18 AHL with a plethora of back-to-backs on the schedule. In his first pro Drafted: 2nd round, 61st overall in 2019 season, he likely won’t be ready for an NHL call-up if the Devils needed a goalie, hence the move to add Domingue. The most encouraging thing about Okhotyuk is that he’s playing right now. The defenseman underwent surgery for a broken finger prior to the Ty Smith, D (Spokane Chiefs, WHL) start of preseason and missed all of Devils training camp as a result. 2019-20 stats: 12 GP, 4 G, 5 A, 9 P He’s returned to appear in seven games so far. Age: 19 Nikola Pasic, F (Bofors IK, Swe-1) Drafted: 1st round, 17th overall in 2018 2019-20 stats: 17 GP, 5 G, 9 A, 14 P He’s not posting a point per game at this point of the season, but Smith Age: 19 already has four goals after scoring seven last season. At this point, his Drafted: 7th round, 189th overall in 2019 offensive production isn’t the thing to watch. When he plays for Canada at the World Junior Championships in December, it will be key to see him Nikita Popugaev, F (Adirondack Thunder, ECHL) controlling play in the defensive zone.

2019-20 stats: 9 GP, 0 G, 6 A, 6 P Blake Speers, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL)

Age: 20 2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 P

Drafted: 4th round, 98th overall in 2017 Age: 22

Popugaev is still on an AHL contract after returning to North America Drafted: 3rd round, 67th overall in 2015 from Russia in the middle of the 2018-19 season. Instead of playing a smaller role or getting scratched in the AHL, the Devils have him playing Marian Studenic, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) in the ECHL to give him more ice time in a lower-level league. 2019-20 stats: 9 GP, 2 G, 1 A, 3 P

Eetu Pakkila, F (Ilves Tampere, SM- Age: 21

2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 P Drafted: 5th round, 143rd overall in 2017

Age: 20 Aarne Talvitie, F (Penn State, NCAA)

Drafted: 7th round, 203rd overall in 2018 2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 3 G, 4 A, 7 P

Brett Seney, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL) Age: 20

2019-20 stats: 13 GP, 6 G, 5 A, 11 P Drafted: 6th round, 160th overall in 2017

Age: 23 Talvitie didn’t skate at development camp in July while still recovering Drafted: 6th round, 157th overall in 2015 from a torn ACL that ended his 2018-19 freshman season. Fortunately for the forward, he was ready to play in Penn State’s season opener, and Of the prospects with NHL experience in Binghamton, Seney is off to the he appears to have picked up right where he left off. best start. He already surpassed his 2018-19 AHL goal total (three in 26 games) and his 2018-19 NHL total (five in 51 games). Seney’s got some Tyce Thompson, F (Providence, NCAA) of the grit needed to play well in a bottom-six role in the NHL, and adding 2019-20 stats: 8 GP, 7 G, 7 A some production to that helps his cause in making a case for a call-up. Age: 20

Drafted: 4th round, 96th overall in 2019

Thompson hit the ground running as a freshman at Providence, where he is tied for the team lead in goals and second on the team in points.

Michael Vukojevic, D

2019-20 stats: 14 GP, 0 G, 6 A, 6 P

Age: 18

Drafted: 3rd round, 82nd overall in 2019

Reilly Walsh, D (Harvard, NCAA)

2019-20 stats: 1 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 P

Age: 20

Drafted: 3rd round, 81st overall in 2017

Harvard’s schedule started later than most collegiate teams, so Walsh has just one game played so far. His action will pick up in November.

Colton White, D (Binghamton Devils, AHL)

2019-20 stats: 13 GP, 0 G, 2 A, 2 P

Age: 22

Drafted: 4th round, 97th overall in 2015

Yegor Zaitsev, D (Moscow Dynamo, KHL)

2019-20 stats: 22 GP, 1 G, 3 A, 4 P

Age: 21

Drafted: 7th round, 205th overall in 2017

Fabian Zetterlund, F (Binghamton Devils, AHL)

2019-20 stats: 7 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 2 P

Age: 20

Drafted: 3rd round, 63rd overall in 2017

Zetterlund is back to full action after a knee injury ended his 2018-19 season last January. He’s got two goals early in his first AHL season.

Star Ledger LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160602 New Jersey Devils

NJ Devils spectator hit by puck during 2017 game files lawsuit against team

Tom Nobile, Published 4:28 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 | Updated 5:39 p.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019

A woman struck by a wayward puck at a New Jersey Devils game two years ago is seeking damages for injuries that left permanent scarring on her face, according to a lawsuit filed against the organization on Thursday.

The suit accuses the Devils of negligence for failing to install adequate safety netting around their rink at Prudential Center in Newark, “causing and permitting a dangerous and hazardous condition to exist.”

Jennifer Chewning, of Rutherford, had a fifth-row seat at a Nov. 7, 2017 tilt against the St. Louis Blues, when she was suddenly struck by the “hard, vulcanized rubber disk, weighing nearly half pound,” according to the lawsuit.

The injuries left her with “permanent and disfigured scarring” despite treatment from multiple plastic surgeons, according to the suit. She claims to have lost sight in her eye for an extended period, and was forced to miss work while paying out of pocket for medical expenses.

The Devils organization did not respond for comment. Attorneys representing Chewning could not be reached.

The NHL took steps in the early 2000s to implement mandatory safety netting above the glass behind both ends of the rink in all arenas. The initiative was prompted by the death of a 13-year-old fan, who suffered a skull fracture from a flying puck while watching the Columbus Blue Jackets in March 2002.

Chewning claims she won the ticket through a charity drive and was unfamiliar with NHL play. Her seat was shielded by plexiglass and nets, but still lacked “reasonable netting” along the sideboards that could have protected her, the suit states.

Regulation safety nets extend about 18 feet above the board glass behind each goal, according to the league’s website. But additional netting, according the suit, would have “no material impact on the play of the game, on spectator experience, or on the television viewing experience.”

Bergen Record LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160603 New Jersey Devils

Devils come up empty vs. Oilers

By Associated PressNovember 9, 2019 | 12:45am | Updated

EDMONTON, Alberta — This was a lost night for the New Jersey Devils.

Alex Chiasson had a goal and an assist and Mikko Koskinen made 26 saves as the Edmonton Oilers snapped a two-game losing streak with a 4-0 victory over the Devils on Friday night.

Leon Draisaitl, Gaetan Haas and James Neal also scored for the Oilers (11-5-2), who improved to 6-2-1 at home.

The Devils (4-7-4) have lost two straight.

“It’s a hard league and especially on the road you have to find your game early,” Devils forward Taylor Hall said. “Any kind of let up and a couple of bad shifts and it ends up in the back of your net.

“I thought we had some good sustained periods of time where we played well and probably maybe deserved a goal or two. But that can happen, especially on the road, especially against a team that are playing pretty dangerous right now and we didn’t seem to have an answer for that in the second period.”

There was no scoring in the first period, with the best chance going to New Jersey. Taylor Hall rang a shot off the post behind Koskinen on a breakaway with nine minutes left in the first.

Edmonton got on the board two minutes into the second period when Ryan Nugent-Hopkins sent Draisaitl in on a breakaway and he scored on a back-handed shot past Devils goalie Cory Schneider.

With his 14th goal of the season, Draisaitl extended his points streak to eight games. Oilers defenseman Joel Persson also picked up his first NHL point on the play.

The Oilers added to their lead with four minutes left in the second. Haas tipped home a shot from the point by Matt Benning.

Just 66 seconds later it was 3-0. Neal picked up the rebound off a shot by Persson in front and scored his 12th goal of the season.

The Oilers got a power-play goal six minutes into the third period as Chiasson tipped a Nugent-Hopkins shot past Schneider for his first goal of the season.

New York Post LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160604 New York Islanders

Isles closing in on being at full strength again

By Andrew Gross

Updated November 8, 2019 10:46 PM

The 10-game winning streak, the second-longest in Islanders history, is over, but what should not be forgotten is that it was achieved despite some significant absences in the lineup.

But as the Islanders look to extend what is now an 11-game point streak — they lost to the Penguins, 4-3, in overtime Thursday night in Brooklyn after bringing a three-goal lead into the third period — three key players are on the cusp of returning.

Defenseman Nick Leddy (lower body) and forwards Jordan Eberle (injured reserve/lower body) and Leo Komarov (injured reserve/neck and illness) returned to practice on Friday in East Meadow. It’s unclear whether any will play on Saturday afternoon when the Islanders face the Panthers at , but coach Barry Trotz said, “You might see them in warmups and we’ll go from there.”

The Islanders also recalled rookie forward Otto Koivula from their AHL affiliate in Bridgeport on Friday to again serve as roster insurance. That likely indicates that neither Eberle nor Komarov will be activated.

Forwards Matt Martin and Tom Kuhnhackl also are on injured reserve with lower-body injuries.

“Ebs, Leds and Leo are big parts of the team,” center Mathew Barzal said. “Everyone came together and filled roles, but at the end of the day, we know we’re a better team with Ebs and Leds and Leo back in our lineup. So it’ll be nice to have those guys back.”

Eberle returned to Barzal’s top line in practice, albeit on the left side with Anders Lee getting a maintenance day off. Komarov skated between wings Michael Dal Colle and Cal Clutterbuck with center Casey Cizikas also given Friday off for maintenance.

Trotz said he expects Cizikas and Lee to play Saturday.

Leddy rotated in with Johnny Boychuk, his usual defense partner, along with rookie Noah Dobson, who has played the last three games in Leddy’s absence.

Komarov has missed eight games, admittedly a longer stretch than he or the team anticipated as he dealt with the combination of a sore neck and the flu that went through the Islanders’ room. Eberle has been out for 10 games.

“You get back to skating with the guys and kind of feel part of the team, which is nice,” Eberle said. “The guys have been on a good run. It’s just nice to get back and feel their energy and get back into game shape.”

Regardless of whether the Islanders get any roster reinforcements against the Panthers, a key factor will be how they respond after Thursday’s disappointment.

Center Brock Nelson acknowledged there was some residual anger in the Islanders’ room on Friday after letting a three-goal lead slip away.

“Yeah, especially after the streak we had,” Nelson said. “It makes it harder knowing we let it slip. We have a mature group that will respond the right way. We’ve done that the last year and a half.”

This will be the last of three straight games at Barclays Center in a season-high four-game homestand.

Newsday LOADED: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160605 New York Islanders cannot slide to 2020-21, which it would have had he played fewer than nine NHL games and remained in the AHL all season.

So even if he goes down to Bridgeport and doesn’t return this season, his 10 snapshots from 10 straight wins: What we’ve learned about the ELC has already burned off the first year, and that for mostly fourth-line Islanders early on duty. Doesn’t seem terribly prudent.

No. 3 — Islanders 3, Jets 1

By Arthur Staple Nov 8, 2019 10 It was the Varlamov-Barzal show in Winnipeg. Varlamov held down the fort in a first-period onslaught, stopping 15 of 16 shots to keep the Isles in it long enough for Barzal to score twice in the middle period and send the streak to three. The streak is dead. Long live the streak. Brock Nelson and Barzal each played over 19 minutes at even strength It ended in rather dramatic fashion, with the Islanders blowing a three- on this night, with Derick Brassard and Leo Komarov getting limited third- goal lead in the third period and losing in an uncharacteristic bit of period action. Nelson took 34 of 63 faceoffs, including four in defensive overtime sloppiness. You have to go back to Dec. 27, 2014 in Buffalo to zone in the closing stretch with the Jets’ net empty. He won three of find the last time the Isles lost a game when leading by three goals after those, including the last one that led to Josh Bailey’s empty-net clincher. two, and that passes over a lot of other blown leads. So this isn’t likely to be a trend. This was a better representation of the “Islander hockey” that Trotz likes in just the second regulation win of the season, both coming against the Especially after a 10-game win streak that displayed all kinds of ways to Jets. pull out wins. There was a shootout win to get it started, a pair of OT wins and a 1-0 shutout. Twenty Islanders scored points in the 10 games, none No. 4 — Islanders 3, Blue Jackets 2 (OT) more than Mathew Barzal’s 10, and two goalies posted five wins apiece. That they reeled off 10 straight Ws while having 15 total power plays is With the Islanders already missing Eberle and Casey Cizikas, Komarov mind-boggling. fell ill and/or had a neck issue flare up after the morning skate, which started the Cole Bardreau era. The 26-year-old borrowed a suit jacket Here are 10 snapshots from 10 straight wins, the second-longest win from the Sound Tigers trainer, threw it on over some sweats and raced to streak in franchise history: the airport closest to Bridgeport, arriving in the arena in Columbus about 90 minutes before his NHL debut. No. 1 — Islanders 3, Panthers 2 (SO) Bardreau didn’t figure much in the final outcome, but gave Trotz a fourth Coming off a bit of a thrashing in Carolina 24 hours earlier to drop the center to work with. The hodgepodge bottom six and a pretty determined Isles to 1-3-0, Barry Trotz was looking for any sort of two-point night. He Columbus squad made for some hairy moments in the third period of a 2- got it primarily from Semyon Varlamov, who had been pulled from his 2 game, but the Isles found a way to get to OT and Nick Leddy fed start against the Oilers four days earlier after allowing four goals on 19 Nelson for another #Brocktober moment. shots through half a game. No. 5 — Islanders 4, Coyotes 2 Varlamov knew his adjustment to a new team would take time. Unfortunately, it was getting late early. Varlamov posted 35 saves The four-day layoff between this game and the previous one helped against Florida at the Coliseum, allowing a late tying goal from Evgeni Cizikas return and get the forward group back on track. Reuniting the Dadonov but nothing more, including three shootout stops. Matt Martin-Cizikas-Cal Clutterbuck trio allowed Trotz to keep a fourth line of Michael Dal Colle-Bardreau-Wahlstrom, with the idea of getting A little-known fact about Varlamov: He’s the best shootout goalie in the Derick Brassard going by moving him to the wing with Nelson and league. His .755 save percentage on 155 all-time attempts is best among Anthony Beauvillier. goalies who have faced more than 100 shootout tries since the league introduced the skills competition in 2005-06. Brassard had one point through the first eight games and, with the complete lack of power plays, wasn’t getting much opportunity to provide So it wasn’t a Rembrandt, but the Isles got one in the win column. offense. “The first five games I basically didn’t think about offense at all,” No. 2 — Islanders 3, Blues 2 (OT) he said. “I just wanted to make sure I had the system straight and tried to be where I needed to be.” The Columbus Day matinee against the defending champs was headed all one way for 54 minutes and change until a harmless-seeming wrist But the Islanders need everybody contributing, so Trotz moved the 32- shot from Brock Nelson snuck past Jordan Binnington and energized the year-old center to the right side. All it did was produce his first goal 85 Isles. Barzal, still stuck on zero goals well into game six of a season in seconds into this game at the Coliseum, the first of a five-game goal which he’s charged himself to shoot more, flung a puck from the side wall streak. that banked off Alex Steen and in with 26.5 seconds to play to get the “It’s such a tight, tight room here — there’s guys still here who I Isles a point. remember playing against with the Rangers,” Brassard said. “They At 1:13 of OT, Barzal set up Devon Toews to get the very modest win understand what this team is about and how we need to play. It’s streak to two games. amazing to watch, all the attention to detail. Being a part of it, you want to contribute on offense but you know it comes from the details.” In the locker room after the game, Barzal said it was “maybe the worst goal I’ve ever scored.” With a team-high six goals over the 10-game It was a very low-event game — the Islanders had just 29 5v5 attempts. streak and the benefit of hindsight, Barzal said Thursday that even the But the Isles got their key goals from Josh Bailey and Anders Lee to pull bad ones can help relax your mind. far enough away for five straight.

“Maybe that one took a little stress off me mentally,” he said. “That and No. 6 — Islanders 4, Senators 2 setting up Taser for the winner in OT, it really got the ball rolling for me A weird night in Ottawa. Trotz decided to go with 11 forwards and seven and for us as a team.” defensemen to get Noah Dobson into his first game in two weeks. Little This one also marked Oliver Wahlstrom’s NHL debut and he was a force, did the coach know his 11 forwards would be whittled down to eight at throwing his body around and getting in the middle of things when the one point in the second period, with Tom Kuhnhackl and Martin leaving rest of his teammates were getting pushed around by the heavyweight the game with leg injuries and Clutterbuck issued an iffy misconduct for Blues. some wrasslin’ and cussin’ with Ottawa’s Mark Borowiecki.

Wahlstrom is still without a point through nine games, which is significant Clutterbuck was angry at the Sens for not securing their bench door, for two reasons. One, he was down to playing 6:46 in Thursday’s game, which is how Martin got hurt — seriously, as it turned out, even though meaning he’ll almost certainly go back to Bridgeport when Jordan Eberle he came back to finish the third period. Trotz felt Ottawa was targeting returns, which could be as soon as Saturday but more likely next week. his remaining forwards, never more so than in the third when Brady Two, the nine-game plateau means that Wahlstrom’s entry-level contract Tkachuk started raining blows on Cizikas and somehow they both came away with matching fighting majors. This was also Nick Leddy Night. He delivered a burst-of-speed goal for The main thing this streak identified is that the Islanders have only one his first of the season, then a penalty-shot goal and nearly a hat trick in way to succeed, regardless of roster or opponent. It’s Islander hockey at the second, with his point shot glancing off Martin and in. its finest.

After the game, Trotz made it clear that there should be no more rumors The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 about Leddy being traded.

Got it.

No. 7 — Islanders 5, Flyers 3

Capping off three games in four nights — and now with two more vets sidelined, bringing the injured list up to four regulars — Trotz settled on a forward group of 12 with Ross Johnston in there comfortably. The big fella hasn’t played more than 9:23 in any of his eight games this season — Thursday was the first loss he’s dressed for — but he’s come a long way from chasing down Tom Wilson for a scrap as his only goal in a game a few years ago.

“It is nice to get that consistency and all you want to do is contribute when the team’s going well,” he said. He did that on this Sunday at the Coli, scoring off a nice feed from Bardreau to give the Isles a 3-1 lead in the first.

Johnston does produce. He’s got 11 points in 50 career games, a better scoring pace than he had in the AHL. He likely goes back to being a regular scratch when Komarov and Martin return, but he’s showed his worth to the team during this streak.

No. 8 — Islanders 5, Lightning 2

More goals from the big boys — Barzal, Bailey, Lee, Brassard — but also a second straight game with a goal from Ryan Pulock.

Isles defensemen have nine goals through 15 games and a total of 35 points. Through 15 games last season, the defense totals were 4-19-23, led by Scott Mayfield’s 2-4-6. Toews, Leddy and Pulock each have two goals so far this season and Toews is among the top 30 defensemen in the league with nine points.

That was what the Islanders hoped for with Toews up for a full season. Getting seven points from Johnny Boychuk so far and six from Leddy — they combined for 0-4-4 through 15 games last year — is a huge bonus.

No. 9 — Islanders 1, Sabres 0

This was a classic Islander game: Brassard tossed one in with his back to the end wall 5:19 in, and then Varlamov, the crossbar and the Isles kept everything else out. One Islander, upon returning home, said to me: “Teams just hate to play us. Especially this early in the year. We were hard to play against most of last year, but not until later. Now we’re a real pain in the butt and it’s barely a month in.”

Leddy sat out with a lower-body injury so Dobson got back in on a regular turn to Boychuk’s left. He’s handled himself well the last three games, producing an assist and showing the calm of a much more experienced defenseman.

No. 10 — Islanders 4, Senators 1

Bardreau’s penalty-shot goal for his first NHL tally was the highlight here, as the Isles somehow had the same number of power-play goals as they did penalty-shot goals during the streak. This also was a performance driven by the energy lines. Clutterbuck scored his first in almost nine months off a scramble in front; on replay, it looked like he just flung it through some bodies in tight.

“Oh, no,” he corrected. “I knew where it was going. Chip shots — that’s something I know about.” Clutterbuck is a scratch golfer but his offseason back surgery curtailed his trips to the course. He had a shorthanded goal on Thursday, adding to his rep as a streaky scorer — he had only eight last season but three times scored in back-to-back games.

Thursday’s OT loss that surely should have been No. 11 on this list is definitely a stinger. The question is whether this lunch-pail team can put its work boots back on for Saturday’s matinee visit from the Panthers, the team that helped kick off this run. In short order, the Isles will get Eberle and Leddy back; possibly Komarov, Martin and Andrew Ladd after that.

So Bardreau and Wahlstrom will head back to Bridgeport. Johnston will go back to being an extra. Someone who’s had a regular turn may find himself on the side; Dobson, who’s been solid enough, will need to find room in the lineup another way. 1160606 New York Rangers New York Post LOADED: 11.09.2019

Why the Rangers’ inconsistency might be around for a while

By Brett CyrgalisNovember 9, 2019 | 3:03am

The sample size is big enough now to think that this is just about whom the Rangers are — they’re not as bad as their worst, and they’re not as good as their best.

For the youngest team in the league — have you heard that they’re young? — of course there are going to be extreme dips in play. And boy, have the Blueshirts taken some dips. Just in the past two weeks they have had losses against the Bruins and the Senators that were as ugly as one could imagine.

But in that same stretch, they beat the Lightning, they won at Nashville, and they had Henrik Lundqvist — have you heard that he’s not so young? — turn back the clock with two games in two nights that were absolute gems, especially the 45-save masterpiece in Raleigh, N.C., on Thursday night that pulled the Rangers from the depths of one of those awfully deep dips and carried them out for a 4-2 win over the Hurricanes.

It got the Blueshirts to 7-6-1, making them feel like they’re back in the mix as they took Friday off before Saturday’s outdoor practice at noon at Lasker Rink in Central Park. The team has actually won four of the past five and five of the past seven, but the shadow cast from those two losses shroud some of the good. And that type of inconsistency might not go away.

“We’re still finding our way as a young group,” coach David Quinn said Thursday night.

Maybe more encouraging is that the Rangers have been without their top-line center, Mika Zibanejad, for the past five games as he recovers from an upper-body/neck injury suffered on a reverse hit from Patrice Bergeron on Oct. 27. It’s possible he could come back for Sunday’s Garden matinee against the Panthers, but there really isn’t any rush.

Ryan Strome has stepped into the role centering the wondrous Artemi Panarin, who scored his team-leading eighth goal of the season Thursday on a slick feed from Strome that allowed the Rangers to escape the first period with a 1-0 lead after they had been out-attempted, 40-11.

“I think our line was probably one shift away from just going bananas on each other,” Strome said. “We just couldn’t really get in a rhythm — and then make a great play. You’ve got to be opportunistic in this league sometimes.”

Strome has been opportunistic since he joined the Rangers at the beginning of last year, coming over in a coup of a trade that sent Ryan Spooner to the Oilers. The 26-year-old Strome backdoored his way into getting the second-line center job on opening night when none of the three young centers — Filip Chytil, Brett Howden and Lias Andersson — could take hold in training camp. And he was the first one to get the call when Zibanejad went down.

Having been the Islanders’ first-round pick (No. 5 overall) in 2011, Strome has already seen a lot, and he knows that performances like Thursday normally don’t result in wins.

“You can call it whatever you want — we could barely get a puck out of our own zone,” Strome said. “It’s a tough back-to-back; we got in real late. But there shouldn’t be any excuses. We found a way to win, which is a big thing.”

Good teams find a way to win even when they don’t have their best, which is something the Rangers are still trying to figure out. Bad teams find a way to lose even when they hold control of games for long stretches, which is something the Rangers are still trying to eliminate.

But in the context of this organizational rebuilding, inconsistency was expected. The focus is still on the future. So for now, it seems like these Rangers are destined for a roller coaster — very high to very low, and in the end, just about even.

“In this league,” Strome said, “we’ll take [wins] any way we can get them.” 1160607 New York Rangers

David Quinn’s power-play shuffling paying off for Rangers

By Brett CyrgalisNovember 9, 2019 | 12:01am

The Rangers were agog over their first power-play unit early in the season. But since then, they have spread the wealth and seen results.

The man advantage got another goal, their third in the past two games, when the Rangers beat the Hurricanes, 4-2, in Raleigh, N.C., on Thursday night. Without top center Mika Zibanejad (upper body/neck) for the past five games, coach David Quinn has found himself juggling the units a little bit.

He moved Jacob Trouba off the point of the first group so that he could get into more of a shooter’s role on the second. That moved Tony DeAngelo to quarterback the top unit, but he was replaced there by 21- year-old Adam Fox for the past two games.

“It’s definitely an opportunity,” Fox said Thursday night. “A lot of skill players. The other unit had some big goals in the past two games. Tony can run a quarterback as good as anyone.”

The other goal came when a shot by Fox hit Ryan Strome in the back and went in Wednesday, their group rounded out with Kaapo Kakko, Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin. Overall, the Rangers’ power play is 11- for-50 (22 percent), good for ninth in the league going into Friday night’s games.

“I think a lot of guys have capitalized on their chances,” Fox said. “It’s obviously nice to get that opportunity there.”

The Rangers will practice at noon on Saturday at Lasker Rink in Central Park, up near 110th Street. The few seats are primarily for season-ticket holders, but the general public can watch from an adjacent hill.

Having gone 3-1-0 this month, the Rangers added to their NHL-best record in November since 2005-06 (114-58-11 over the span). Since 2015-16, they’re 41-16-2.

New York Post LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160608 New York Rangers

Scoring change credits Filip Chytil with winner for Rangers

By Colin Stephenson

Updated November 8, 2019 10:54 PM

About 11 hours after the puck crossed the goal line, the NHL officially made a change in the scoring of the Rangers’ third goal in their 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night, awarding it to Filip Chytil rather than Pavel Buchnevich.

Buchnevich did most of the work on the play, stealing the puck from Carolina defenseman Jake Gardiner at the top of the left-wing circle, then cutting across along the goal line to the slot, where he skated around goaltender Petr Mrazek and slid a backhander toward the goal.

Chytil, who was called up from AHL Hartford two weeks ago and who has settled in as the team’s second-line center, drove to the net and tried to nudge the puck across the goal line. Carolina defenseman Brett Pesce battled with Chytil, trying to clear the puck, but it appeared to slide across the line on its own.

Television replays were unclear as to whether either Pesce or Chytil touched the puck at all. If Chytil’s stick did, it may have been after the puck already was all the way or most of the way across the line.

The goal originally was credited to Buchnevich, unassisted, at 1:15 of the third period and gave the Rangers a 3-1 lead. The NHL tweeted Friday morning that the scoring had been changed, with Chytil getting credit for the goal and Buchnevich getting the assist. Sebastian Aho’s goal pulled Carolina within 3-2 at 15:58, and that made Chytil’s goal the game- winner.

Skjei was benched

When he spoke to reporters before Thursday’s game, Rangers coach David Quinn wouldn’t reveal which defensemen would be in the lineup, saying there were “a couple issues healthwise’’ and that the lineup wouldn’t be finalized until after warmups. Then Brady Skjei didn’t warm up and ended up not playing. Rookie Ryan Lindgren, who had sat out Wednesday night’s game, re-entered the lineup in Skjei’s place.

Asked after the game if Skjei was OK, Quinn said yes and added that he was a healthy scratch. Asked why, he said, “He needs to play better.’’

Lindgren was paired with fellow rookie Adam Fox on defense and both drew praise from Quinn. “They did a really good job,’’ he said. “I thought they were our best [defense] pair all night. They answered the bell a lot of ways; they defended well, they got us out of our end — there was a lot to like about those guys.’’

The first for Lemieux

Brendan Lemieux got his first goal of the season, deflecting in a shot from Tony DeAngelo on the power play at 18:04. It came 3 minutes, 32 seconds after a deflection by Carolina's Dougie Hamilton tied the score at 1-1. Quinn said it was a “huge’’ goal for the team. It was pretty big for Lemieux, too.

“Yeah, that feels good,’’ he said. “It’s good to finally get one. It’s been coming and, you know, you can say it all you want: ‘It’s coming. Keep going. It’s coming. Keep going.’ And when it finally goes [in], it feels good.’’

Newsday LOADED: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160609 Ottawa Senators Filip Chlapik-J.C. Beaudin-Jonathan Davidsson Defensive pairings

Thomas Chabot-Nikita Zaitsev GAME DAY: Carolina Hurricanes at Ottawa Senators Erik Brannstrom-Ron Hainsey

Mark Borowiecki-Dylan DeMelo Bruce Garrioch November 8, 2019 6:23 PM EST Anders Nilsson

Craig Anderson Ottawa Sun Sports Hockey Ottawa Senators Hurricanes’ lines Carolina (9-6-1) at Ottawa (5-9-1) Nino Niederreiter-Jordan Staal-Teuvo Teravainen Saturday, 7 p.m., Canadian Tire Centre, , TSN 1200 AM, Unique 94.5 FM Andrei Svechnikov-Sebastian Aho-Warren Foegele

THE BIG MATCHUP Ryan Dzingel-Lucas Wallmark-Martin Necas

Thomas Chabot vs. Dougie Hamilton Jamie McGinn-Eetu Luostarinen-Brian Gibbons

The Senators’ top player had 27:13 of ice time against the Kings on Defensive pairings Thursday, finished plus-2 and had three shots on net. Yes, Chabot was held pointless, but he plays big minutes and is such a smart player. He Jaccob Slavin-Dougie Hamilton just needs to contribute a little more offensive. As for Hamilton, he has Jake Gardiner-Brett Pesce led the Canes this season and is having a breakthrough year. The 26- year-old’s success just shows that patience is a virtue with young Joel Edmundson-Trevor van Riemsdyk players. Goalies FIVE KEYS TO THE GAME Petr Mrazek 1. Pick up where you left off James Reimer The Senators gave up a late goal to the Kings in the 3-2 OT victory Thursday night, but showed resilience by bouncing back and winning it in INJURIES the extra five minutes. Ottawa has competed hard under coach D.J. OTT: Rudolfs Balcers, Logan Brown, Colin White, Christian Wolanin Smith and if the players bring that to the table every night then they’ll give themselves a chance at having success. CAR: Erik Haula, Jordan Martinook

2. Nilsson returns to the net Ottawa Sun LOADED: 11.09.2019

It makes sense to go back to Anders Nilsson after he made 26 stops in the club’s victory over the Kings. He made some big stops to make sure the Senators were able to get the two points and he’s won his last two starts. A victory here before heading on the road again would be good for the Senators and their confidence.

3. Positive start to the series

This will be a rare two-game set against the Hurricanes that continues Monday night in Raleigh. Since the Senators are 14-30-4 lifetime on the road against the Hurricanes’ organization (that relocated from Hartford), a victory in Ottawa would be a good start. The Senators are 1-5-0 against Carolina in the last two seasons.

4. Pageau needs to keep rolling

Jean-Gabriel Pageau has embraced his role as a leader on this team and scored the OT winner against the Canes. He’s on a four-game point streak coming into this one, with 4-1-5 in the club’s last five games. Pageau is a smart player who is able to be in a shutdown role as well. Has emerged as such a valuable contributor.

5. Be strong on special teams

The Senators have had no shortage of opportunities on their power plays, but just don’t seem to be able to cash in. That’s why they’re giving players the chance to get the job done, but they have to improve with the man advantage. No complaints about their penalty killing because it’s been a strong area for the most part.

SPECIAL TEAMS

OTT: PP 7.4% (31st); 80.3% (19th)

CAR: PP 21.6% (13th); PK 79.7 (22nd)

Senators’ lines

Nick Paul-Jean-Gabriel Pageau-Connor Brown

Brady Tkachuk-Vladislav Namestnikov-Anthony Duclair

Tyler Ennis-Chris Tierney-Bobby Ryan 1160610 Ottawa Senators THE LAST WORDS Dorion, assistant GM Peter MacTavish and goalie coach Pierre Groulx

were in Syracuse on Friday night to watch the club’s AHL affiliate take on SNAPSHOTS: Senators' Artem Anisimov back on the shelf and he could the Crunch. Not only is it an opportunity to see Ottawa’s top prospects, be awhile they also got a chance to see where centre Colin White is at his recovery from a hip flexor injury. He has missed seven games with the ailment and was sent to Belleville on Thursday to suit up twice this weekend before re-joining the club in time to make the road trip to Carolina on Sunday. Bruce Garrioch The plan by coach Troy Mann was to play White on a line with Vitaly November 8, 2019 7:04 PM EST Abramov and Drake Batherson … The cameras caught winger Brady Tkachuk having a little scuffle with Los Angeles blueliner Drew Doughty on Thursday, but it had nothing to do with the captain’s history with Tkachuk’s brother Matthew in Calgary. The cameras caught Jonathan Artem Anisimov is being shut down by the Ottawa Senators. Quick bugging Doughty on the bench. “I haven’t seen it but I didn’t think it And he may not be back any time soon. was that big of a deal,” Brady said Friday … With Anisimov out for awhile, Vladislav Namestnikov has moved to centre between Tkachuk Less than 24 hours after scoring his second of the year in the club’s 3-2 and Anthony Duclair. He played in the middle against the Rangers and victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night, the Senators Smith liked what he saw. “He’s such a versatile player, he plays left, right centre was placed on the injured-reserve list by general manager Pierre and centre,” Tkachuk said. “We’re all guys with Hockey IQ and guys with Dorion on Friday because of a re-occurring groin injury and, as a result, a knack for the offensive side and take defensive pride too. If that’s the there’s no timetable for his return. way it stays, there’s good talent.” … It does appear winger Bobby Ryan While he suited up for two straight games after returning Tuesday night will return after being a healthy scratch against the Kings for the third against the New York Islanders in Brooklyn, Anisimov has been sidelined time in five games … Rookie forward Jonathan Davidsson played 4:56 in for eight of the club’s last 12 games. The Senators are going to give him his NHL debut Thursday and had two shots on net. Smith liked what he whatever time it takes to get fully recovered because it’s been difficult for brought to the table. both sides to have him in and out of the lineup. Ottawa Sun LOADED: 11.09.2019 “He hurt it during the game (Thursday) or felt it after,” Smith told reporters following the club’s half-hour skate in preparation for Saturday’s visit by the Carolina Hurricanes. “It just got more sore (Friday) morning. It’s unfortunate. It’s tough to get traction when you play one (game) and then you’re out for five. It’s what it’s, it’s the next guy up and we’ll go from there.”

Smith said the next time Anisimov plays he’ll be completely healthy.

“We have to make sure he’s 100%,” Smith added. “Come back, play a game, miss a bunch and it’s unfortunate for him we were on the road (for games), we didn’t have a lot of practises, so he was skating here by himself. We’ll make sure when he comes back next time that it’s a good four or five days of practice.

“Hopefully this doesn’t happen again.”

This is frustrating both sides and that’s why the decision has been made to try to get this fully healed so Anisimov can return and stay in the lineup..

“I’m sure he’s frustrated and wants to play,” Smith said. “Injuries are a part of the game and I’d like to have him in. You can’t worry about it. You’ve just got to say that somebody else is getting an opportunity. Without these injuries, Logan Brown might not have been up here this quick and showcase what he does or (J.C.) Beaudin.

“You’ve just got to go out there and play. There’s no excuses in the NHL.”

OFF THE GLASS

It’s been elusive for the Senators this season, but they’re hoping to find a little more consistency in their performance after the victory over the Kings on Thursday.

The club has four wins in its last seven games and now the challenge is to try to win two straight for the first time this season with the Hurricanes in town to start a series that will continue Monday night at PNC Arena in Raleigh.

“It was a solid effort. (Anders Nilsson) played great and we’ve had great goaltending all year,” said winger , who set up Anisimov’s goal in the second period. “For us, just good habits and continuing to form that identity of a hard working team that competes every night and is difficult to play against.”

The Hurricanes have lost three straight but they’re going to difficult.

“They’re one of the fastest teams in the NHL,” Ennis said. “They’ve got a strong (defensive) core and they just play with so much speed. They’re relentless, the put the puck on net and they shoot the puck a lot, they’re always out-shooting teams. It’s going to be a good test for us. We’ve just got to keep doing things we’ve been doing in this last stretch. 1160611 Ottawa Senators

It's back to Anders Nilsson as Ottawa faces the Hurricanes

Bruce Garrioch

November 8, 2019 5:24 PM EST

The Ottawa Senators are sticking with the hot hand.

Anders Nilsson will make his second straight start Saturday night with the Carolina Hurricanes in town at the Canadian Tire Centre.

Coming off a 26-save performance in a 3-2 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday at home, Nilsson will stay in the net to try to collect his third straight victory. He was also between the pipes for the club’s 6-2 win against the New York Rangers on Broadway Monday.

Nilsson appears to be back to the form that made him successful last season.

“He looks big,” coach D.J. Smith said Friday. “He looks confident. He works extremely hard in practice, and if you see him he’s a big guy that takes care of himself off the ice and he’s professional. It’s great to see guys who work hard get rewarded, but, for me, he looks confident.

“He’s just looked good. It’s not so much the wins and losses, it’s the save percentage. He looks like a goalie right now. It’s hard to be a starter in the NHL and go every day. Our guys are lucky because they can go back and forth and share it.”

Ottawa Sun LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160612 Ottawa Senators “D.J. has been really good to me and telling me what I have to do,” he said. “When I start trying to make a few extra plays, he tells me, ‘You know what your role is so get back to it,’ and he’s been awesome with me and rewarding me with ice time. Everything has been good and GARRIOCH: Nick Paul has finally found himself a regular spot with the everybody has been so good to me. Senators “I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity than I’m getting right now. I’ve been trying to find a way to stick up here. These last two years with Troy Mann taking me in and telling me what I need to do with D.J. telling me Bruce Garrioch what I need to do, it’s really helped me.” November 8, 2019 5:06 PM EST Sharing it with his parents, Ellwood and Melinda, after the game meant a lot.

Nick Paul is finally at home with the Ottawa Senators. “I definitely wasn’t expecting it,” Paul said. “Last year, being up two-and- a-half months and before, I just wasn’t expecting it to come that quick. It It took a while to get here, the road was long and difficult with plenty of caught me off guard. There was a lot of happiness and emotion. It was a ups and downs, but as the Senators celebrated a 3-2 overtime victory really nice moment and it was a really good feeling. This adds more to over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night at the Canadian Tire the fire.” Centre, coach D.J. Smith delivered the only news Paul has ever wanted to get in his career when he was told he could find himself a place to live. Ottawa Sun LOADED: 11.09.2019

For many players, being informed they can move out of the hotel and find a permanent residence in their respective NHL cities is meaningful. However, in the case of the 24-year-old Paul, it’s the first time it’s happened during his nearly five years in the organization, and this after he was sent down to the club’s AHL affiliate in Belleville after training camp.

Yes, the patience paid off for the Senators and the hard work finally paid dividends for Paul.

“It was awesome,” Paul said Friday. “I wasn’t expecting that. We came out with a big win and I was kind of caught off guard a little bit when (Smith) said to go get a house. It was a really nice feeling because I’ve been wanting to hear that for a little bit.

“To hear that is nice, but for me it doesn’t stop, it just adds more to the fire and I have to keep going here.”

The last remaining piece from the Jason Spezza deal with the Dallas Stars in 2013, Paul has spent parts of six seasons in the AHL. He has shown flashes of brilliance through the course of his career, but has just never been quite good enough to stay in Ottawa.

When he was sent down in the fall, it just felt like that was probably it for Paul and the Senators.

Smith told him what he wanted him to accomplish in Belleville, but even Paul wondered if he’d ever get back here again. Injury brings opportunity, and when the Senators went looking for help from their AHL affiliate, Paul was identified as a guy who had been playing well under coach Troy Mann since arriving back and he was given the chance.

As Smith noted, Paul has had to work hard to get here.

“When you’re a guy who’s been through waivers, pondered if you’ll ever play in the NHL or get another game even, and then get up and get some traction and then they tell you get to get a place, then at least you know you’re here for a little bit,” Smith said Friday.

“There’s no guarantees in hockey, but it’s a big thing. I’m sure when he got sent down this year he wondered if he would ever play another game, and he just kept working and here he is, he’s in a good spot.”

Smith said, perhaps, Paul got to Belleville and felt he had nothing to lose so he was able to free his mind of the pressures of trying to be an everyday NHL player.

“Maybe he just let go of the stress and says, ‘You know what? I’m just going to play hockey,’ ” said Smith. “Usually the guys that love hockey find ways to make it. They’re not playing for anyone else. Eventually they drop the pressure and just play.

“To me, he’s playing exactly the way I remember him in junior and probably the reason why he was drafted. When I watched him play in junior, he looked just like this. He worked every shift, he stayed above the puck, he made it hard on you. It takes a long time to find your game, and here he is and it looks like a niche here. Now the hard part is staying here.”

Paul is well aware he has to keep contributing the way he has to remain at this level. 1160613 Ottawa Senators injury recently opened the door for Logan Brown to get into some NHL games. Brown will have one year left on his entry-level contract next season and, to his credit, he played well in a top-six capacity before being felled with an injury of his own. Nichols: Why the Senators should think about trading Jean-Gabriel Pageau That’s an abundance of bodies.

And that is before even mentioning Josh Norris (or the possibility that the Senators could find themselves landing a centre at the top of the NHL Graeme Nichols Draft in the next year or two).

Nov 8, 2019 Belleville’s head coach, Troy Mann, recently appeared on TSN 1200’s In the Box where he was effusive in his praise of Josh Norris’ ability and

upside. When Jean-Gabriel Pageau was felled with an Achilles injury in training “Norris has certainly cherished that (increased ice time) in terms of where camp last year, it was understood it was going to take some time before he’s at. He’s a go-to player for us and I think he’s going to have a heck of he got back to playing at the level at which he and Senators fans had a season here for us. He’s certainly one of the bright lights for Ottawa become accustomed. down the line when he’s ready to make the next jump,” he said. After scoring four goals in his last four games, including Thursday night’s “Based off what I’ve seen after 10 games, I think there’s no reason why game-winning goal in overtime against the Kings, Pageau’s recent he can’t be a centre ice man (in Ottawa). Certainly, I can’t go on the offensive splash has not only curbed concerns about his health, but his record and say he’ll be in the two-hole or the three-hole, but if he winds production and performance has also drawn attention to his impending up in the three-hole in a top-nine role, I think you’re going to have a pretty unrestricted free agent status. good top three – whatever those first or second centremen are.” Pageau will turn 27 on Nov. 11, so his prime years are winding down. One of the solutions for the Senators is to move some of these bodies to Still, under normal circumstances, the Senators should be interested in the wing, but with young players such as Norris, Brown and White locking up Pageau with a three- to five-year contract — presuming that fighting for ice time and sharing similar upside, Senators management his next contract is not far removed from the $3.4 million in real dollars has to project forward and ask itself whether there is going to be room for that the Senators are paying him this season as part of the three-year, Pageau one to two years from now. $9.3 million pact he signed in July 2017. There is no easy answer. As a homegrown product who plays hard in every zone and contributes timely goals, Pageau personifies the kind of veteran the organization Even if the Senators decide to move Pageau to a contender to augment should be looking at keeping in the fold to help shape the next wave of the prospect core, like they should with Tierney, you don’t have to look talent. much further back than the 2011 trade deadline to realize that the high draft picks the Senators acquired then never materialized into productive On a young team that struggles with puck movement and defensive zone NHL players. coverage, Pageau plays the supporting style that D.J. Smith wants to see down low from his centres. The media attention currently putting pressure on the Senators to retain Pageau is intense. If that is the path management chooses, the This isolated impact visual from HockeyViz helps demonstrate just how organization will have the flexibility – and the need — to consider moving difficult the opposition is finding it to generate chances in front of the one of the younger centres. Ottawa net with Pageau on the ice at 5-on-5. White could certainly be an intriguing trade chip. Pageau is also an important special teams player for the Senators. He’s tied for the league lead with two shorthanded goals while leading all NHL Before inking his new long-term contract, there was a reasonable forwards with an average of 3:13 of shorthanded ice time per game. argument to be made that the Senators should have signed him to a bridge deal to have more time to analyze and safely project his upside – Looking at shot volume, the Senators have fared relatively well with especially after he spent most of the last season playing alongside Brady Pageau on the ice. Despite the Senators generating 49.49 percent of the Tkachuk and an elite two-way winger in Mark Stone on the team’s first shots (CF%) when Pageau is on, per Natural Stat Trick, the Senators are line. winning the greater percentage of the shot share when examining the unblocked shots (53.71 FF%), shots on goal (56.78 SF%), scoring White started this season on the first line with Tkachuk and his offensive chances (51.39 SCF%) and goal share (73.68 GF% and 58.42 xGF%). numbers elicited some cause for concern. A lonely goal and a single assist in his first eight games was not exactly going to satiate the masses Obviously Pageau’s bound for some offensive regression with the after signing his extension. Senators scoring on 12.39 percent of their shots when he is on the ice. As an individual, Pageau’s shooting at 15.38 percent at 5-on-5 this If there are reasons for optimism, they lie in the fact that he was dealing season. That’s almost double his career average of 8.14. with a hip flexor injury — and that the Senators shot a below-average 3.23 percent with him on the ice at 5-on-5. That number should rise for The Senators have a challenge when it comes to the decision on White when he returns. Pageau. It’s not a bad problem to have. And even if White’s offensive limitations keep him from achieving status There is absolutely no question that Pageau carries a ton of inherent as a true first-line centre, the reality of the Senators’ situation is that value to the Senators, but thanks to his recent surge, playoff-bound White should inevitably be passed on the depth chart by a more teams will inevitably be drawn to the same qualities that the Senators offensively inclined centre as the team takes steps toward contention. value. Fortunately, what White has demonstrated defensively this season is Having accrued a significant amount of depth at centre, though, the similar to the pattern shown by Pageau. Senators will not have room for them all. Although the possession metrics this season are middling, it is easy to Barring new contracts, Chris Tierney, Nick Paul, Filip Chlapik, and J.C. make an educated guess as to when White started playing with an injury Beaudin will remain under team control this summer should they receive thanks to his game log at Natural Stat Trick. qualifying offers. Each of these players has played NHL games this season. Game CF%

Although Artem Anisimov has another year left on his deal, any decision Oct. 2 @ TOR 53.85 to buy him out this summer should be an easy one in theory. However, for an organization that has no appetite for buying out players or Oct. 5 vs. NYR 55.56 awarding signing bonuses, there is no guarantee that happens. Oct. 10 vs. STL 51.35 Colin White, meanwhile, signed a six-year extension this past summer Oct. 12 vs. TB 69.57 that will pay him an average of $4.75 million per season. His hip flexor Oct. 14 vs. MIN 54.05

Oct. 17 @ VGK 25.81

Oct. 19 @ ARI 47.06

Oct. 21 @ DAL 27.78

If White’s defensive aptitude progresses and he proves he can help tilt the ice in the Senators’ favour while playing down the lineup, he could eventually give the Senators’ depth a dynamic that they have lacked in recent years. If you think that projection will hold true, it should give the Senators the flexibility to consider cashing in on Pageau’s value now.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160614 Philadelphia Flyers Especially Lindblom. Oskar Lindblom (5) opens the scoring on the odd-man rush!#FlyOrDie

pic.twitter.com/C84IBeqeMI Young Flyers have stepped up and energized team | Sam Carchidi — HD365 (@HockeyDaily365) October 25, 2019

A fifth-round steal in the 2014 draft, Lindblom has seven goals in 15 Sam Carchidi, games this season and has grown into a responsible two-way player who also plays on the power play and the penalty kill.

Vigneault was asked the other day about the reason behind Lindblom’s Oskar Lindblom is the oldest of six young Flyers who have made rapid development this season. significant contributions early in the season. “All coaching!” he cracked, drawing laughter from reporters. He’s all of 23 years old. Vigneault cackled loudly. In other words, there’s something refreshing going on in Flyerdom. “Did I answer your question?” he asked. Quite simply, the kids are all right. Actually, they are more than all right. Several of them have been carrying the team. Well-rounded player

There’s Joel Farabee, 19, the precocious right winger who has been Vigneault later elaborated on Lindblom. elevated to the top line and the No. 1 power-play unit. “As a coach, you’re looking to be able to trust your players. I can trust There’s Travis Konecny, 22, the electric right winger who goes into the him in a defensive situation,” Vigneault said, “and when we need a push weekend as the Flyers’ leading point producer and is tied with Lindblom and we need some offense, he does the right thing. He doesn’t cheat on for most goals on the team. the offensive side. He keeps playing the way you’re supposed to. He understands the percentages, so he’s a young player who in my mind There’s Carter Hart, 21, the poised-beyond-his-years goalie who has come along real well.” happens to be the Flyers’ most important player. “He’s just a goal scorer,” Konecny said of Lindblom, one of his linemates CARTER HART. 勞 (with Couturier) on what has been the Flyers’ best line. “You put him in the right situation and get him the puck, and he’s deadly anywhere in Speechless. pic.twitter.com/nAPaB61t7J front of the net. He just has that knack that some guys don’t have.”

— NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) October 10, 2019 “As a coach, you’re looking to be able to trust your players," Alain Finally, there are Ivan Provorov, 22, the Flyers’ top defenseman and a Vigneault (top, middle) says. player who seems to have regained his mojo after taking a step “As a coach, you’re looking to be able to trust your players," Alain backward last season, and Phil Myers, 22, the defenseman who was Vigneault (top, middle) says. recently recalled from the AHL’s Phantoms and looks like a keeper. Vigneault, whose team also has received contributions from Carsen Oh, and that list doesn’t even include Travis Sanheim, 23, who was Twarynski, a 21-year-old rookie winger, says he doesn’t understand the arguably the Flyers’ premier defenseman the second half of last season rap he took when he coached the Rangers. Some people believed he but has had problems staying on his feet (think Scott Hartnell) this year. didn’t trust young players

It also doesn’t include 21-year-old center Nolan Patrick, the No. 2 overall “At some point, someone is going to give me a list of all those young pick in the 2017 draft, who hasn’t played this season because of a players that I screwed up,” he said sarcastically. “… I’m not saying I’m migraine disorder. perfect, but I don’t know a lot of players who left my coaching, and our Even with Sanheim trying to find his footing (literally and figuratively) and coaching, who went somewhere else and became these great players. Patrick sidelined, the Flyers’ youngsters have climbed to the forefront. "I look at the Chris Kreiders. I look at the Derek Stepans, the Ryan “The league has changed. Young players have a mature game,” said McDonaghs , the Jesper Fasts, and I go on and on. All these guys when I Claude Giroux, the Flyers’ 31-year-old captain. “… Some nights, they are got to New York, they were the same as all these young guys [on the our best players and it’s fun to watch.” Flyers] and they’re all turning out to be pretty good players.

TRAVIS SANHEIM WINS IT FOR THE FLYERS IN “Sometimes there’s a perception,” he said of his reputation for preferring OVERTIME!#LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/gjg6YPHZ91 veterans. “Sometimes it’s right; sometimes it’s wrong. For me, it’s no big deal. I just have to do my job.” — HD365 (@HockeyDaily365) February 1, 2019 His young players on the Flyers are a big deal, and they are one of the Nice blend reasons his job looks safe for a lot of years.

Put these young players together with veterans such as Giroux, Sean Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 11.09.2019 Couturier (in his ninth season but only 26), Jake Voracek, James van Riemsdyk, Matt Niskanen, , Kevin Hayes, and Shayne Gostisbehere, and you can understand why there is reason for optimism.

“They haven’t surprised me,” new Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said about the team’s young players. “That’s one of the things Chuck [Fletcher, the general manager] had mentioned to me coming in here. My understanding of this young group was that they were on the upswing.

"None of those guys in my estimation have reached their prime; they’re working to be the best players they can be, and there’s still quite a bit of room for improvement. That’s positive for us, and the team should benefit from it.”

Entering the season, the Flyers needed their young players — all either drafted or, in Myers’ case, signed by former general manager — to keep blossoming if they were going to emerge as a playoff contender.

In the season’s first five-plus weeks, most of them have performed even better than expected. 1160615 Philadelphia Flyers The Flyers sent Misha Vorobyev to Lehigh Valley on Friday and recalled winger Andy Andreoff as fourth-line auditions continue. Andreoff, 28, was signed by the Flyers on July 1. He was a third-round pick of the Kings in 2011 and played in 159 games for them, the most recent in 2017-18. Flyers rookie Carsen Twarynski talks penalty shot and ‘three-month training camp’ Andreoff spent last season with Tampa Bay affiliate Syracuse of the AHL, scoring a career-high 26 goals in 75 games. He had three goals and four assists in 10 games this season for the Phantoms.

Ed Barkowitz, Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 11.09.2019

Flyers rookie Carsen Twarynski talks penalty shot and ‘three-month training camp’

It’s been a wild eight weeks or so for Flyers rookie Carsen Twarynski.

He went to training camp just hoping for a roster spot. He not only made the team, but Twarynski also got a surprise visit when his parents showed up to the opening game in Prague on Oct. 4. He scored his first career goal Oct. 12, but was demoted to the minors nine days later.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, but I’m just trying to focus day by day,” Twarynski said Thursday night after a win over Montreal.

The Flyers have won three in row heading into a difficult weekend doubleheader.

“Honestly, it’s kind of like I’m on a three-month training-camp kind of thing," Twarynski continued. "I’ve just got to keep working hard and doing what I’m doing on the ice: being simple, playing hard, shooting the puck whenever I can.”

He was recalled to the big club on Oct. 31 and not only did he find himself on the third line on Thursday night. but he also had a career high in ice time and was in the middle of the most entertaining play of the night. He was hooked by Shea Weber while on a breakaway.

So what does a guy do when he’s in his 10th career NHL game and has a penalty shot coming up against Carey Price, one of the game’s top goalies, in the third period of a tied game?

“I just went up to 'G' and asked him what he had on him,” Twarynski said matter-of-factly, referring to Claude Giroux. “Those guys study the goalies for shootouts. He said to try to go high, so I did. But he made a good save. I could have put it a little bit higher, maybe an inch higher. But he’s one of the best goalies in the world and made a good save on it.”

Carey Price stops Carsen Twarynski on the penalty shot.

2-2 pic.twitter.com/uakccAQxh4

— Here's Your Replay ḏ (@HeresYourReplay) November 8, 2019

Twarynski, who said he’s had one or two penalty shots in his professional career — including a goal last season for the AHL’s Phantoms — played 13 minutes, 48 seconds Thursday and tied for the game high with six hits.

He didn’t get an assist on the Flyers’ first goal, but he did the dirty work behind the net that led to defenseman Phil Myers’ ending up with the puck for a wrist shot that beat Price. Twarynski also got back to the front of the net to screen Montreal’s goalie.

“He’s a presence out there when he plays the power-forward game,” said Kevin Hayes, who centered the third line with Twarynski and Jake Voracek to mixed results. Hayes also had six hits.

“I think Hayes’ line can play better,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “I think both him and Jake have more to give to our group, and I know they are aware of it. Their intentions are real good and they’re going to find some chemistry. I like Twarynski on that line. I thought he was skating. I thought he was physical.”

It’ll be a working weekend for the Flyers, who will play at Toronto on Saturday and at rugged Boston on Sunday. The Maple Leafs have won three in a row, and the only team in front of them in the Atlantic Division is Boston.

“It’s good that we’re carrying momentum right now,” Twarynski said. “We’ve got a couple wins in a row. It’s a lot of fun in the locker room. It makes everyone’s confidence a little higher.”

Roster move 1160616 Philadelphia Flyers

How Flyers' fourth-line carousel has continued with Andy Andreoff called up, Mikhail Vorobyev sent down

Jordan Hall

November 08, 2019 1:20 PM

The Flyers have given their kids a chance.

Now they're ready to give Andy Andreoff a shot.

The Flyers called up the 28-year-old forward Friday and loaned Mikhail Vorobyev back to AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley. Head coach Alain Vigneault and general manager Chuck Fletcher clearly didn't think Vorobyev showed enough to stay with the Flyers as he was sent back to the Phantoms after one game.

The Flyers want more consistent energy in limited minutes from Vorobyev, a 22-year-old center who has played six games with the club this season. The 2015 fourth-round pick played fourth-line center Thursday, a position the Flyers have opened up for the taking through 15 games.

"Our fourth line played seven, eight minutes, they're important minutes," Vigneault said after Thursday night's 3-2 OT win over the Canadiens. "I thought that line tried to get pucks deep and tried to spend some time in the other end."

The Flyers have played seven rookies so far this season. Vorobyev, Carsen Twarynski, Connor Bunnaman and German Rubtsov have seen auditions on the bottom unit.

Andreoff will offer the Flyers experience and positional versatility. He has played 242 career AHL games and 159 in the NHL.

"A key to my game is just being ready to play any position," Andreoff said during training camp. "Wherever they throw me out.

"They play tough, they play hard. ... That's my type of game."

His game has a blend of skill and physicality. If anything, he'll understand what the Flyers are looking for on their fourth line. The team also won't mind if he's its extra forward, rather than carrying a younger prospect and sitting him.

With the AHL's last season, Andreoff scored 55 points (26 goals, 29 assists) and totaled 150 penalty minutes. Through 10 games with the Phantoms this season, he had seven points (three goals, four assists). Per Lehigh Valley radio broadcaster Bob Rotruck, Andreoff had been the Phantoms' most consistent forward.

Andy Andreoff is recalled to the Flyers and Misha Vorobyev returns to the Phantoms.

For my money, Andreoff has perhaps been the most consistent forward for Lehigh Valley.

26 goals last year with Syracuse.

159 career NHL games as a mostly fourth-line forward with LA Kings.

— Bob Rotruck (@BobRotruck) November 8, 2019

"He's a physical, competitive, team-oriented kind of guy," Fletcher said during training camp. "There are some different elements he brings. ... We feel he's clearly a guy who can play."

Andreoff or Michael Raffl will center the Flyers' fourth line. Both can play center or winger. If Andreoff plays and shows well in a tough back-to- back set on the road this weekend against the Maple Leafs Saturday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP) and Bruins Sunday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP), he could stick for longer than just a few games.

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160617 Philadelphia Flyers scratching the surface on their ability and their consistency that I feel that they can bring to their game. So it's our job with them with the right attitude, the right mindset, the right work ethic to get them to be the best that they can be.” Joel Farabee on the verge of a milestone and more seem likely The first impression Farabee has made since his call-up on Oct. 20 has been a good one and playing on the top line is an opportunity he knows he needs to run with. Dave Isaac “No, I definitely wasn’t expecting it this early in the season to be where I 10:36 a.m. ET Nov. 8, 2019 am,” Farabee said. “We’re winning right now so I’m definitely pretty happy. It’s awesome playing with those guys. They’re so skilled. They think the game at a high level. It’s really fun to just be on the ice with Joel Farabee will play his 10th NHL game Saturday night. So far he's them.” been a fit for the Flyers and is playing on their top line. Courier-Post LOADED: 11.09.2019 PHILADELPHIA — There’s not a chance the Flyers send Joel Farabee back to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms before they play in Toronto Saturday. The 19-year-old rookie has been one of their best players.

When he touches the ice against the Maple Leafs it will be his 10th NHL game, meaning his entry-level contract can’t “slide” to next season. He’s in the boat where fewer than 10 NHL games in his first season would keep his deal from counting against the 50-contract limit until 2020-21 (this was the case when the Flyers drafted Robert Hägg and he spent the ensuing season with the Phantoms).

It’s a small milestone. The next one, a bigger one, will be if and when Flyers general manager and president Chuck Fletcher tells Farabee to find his own apartment.

“I’m still in the hotel,” he said after Thursday’s 3-2 overtime win over the Montreal Canadiens. “It’s not bad now. We’ve got Carsen (Twarynski), Phil (Myers) and (Mikhail Vorobyev) Misha’s there now so at least I’ve got guys to go have dinner with, which is good. When I first came up it was just Sam Morin and Chris Stewart while he was waiting for furniture for his house. It wasn’t much outside the rink. Now it’s really good to hang with Carsen, Phil and those guys.

“It’s still in the back of my head that I can go down at any time. I think just trying to enjoy it while I’m here and help the team win.

“I don’t try to let it take up too much of my time. If I go back down, I go back down. While I’m up I’m gonna focus on what I can do to help the team. I don’t think I’m necessarily thinking about it while I’m doing my everyday stuff. It’s been a great experience.”

For now, Farabee is still living on pins and needles knowing that his NHL future this season is not certain. Not yet, anyway.

He’s playing on a line with James van Riemsdyk and Claude Giroux, getting top-line minutes and is on the power play. He has a skill set to be a good penalty killer too, but the Flyers haven’t used him there yet. He’s passed all their tests so far, though.

Thursday’s victory gave the Flyers an 8-5-2 start to the season, their best through 15 games since starting 8-4-3 in the 2011-12 campaign. Even back then, a rookie like Farabee wouldn’t have had such a big role.

Now the Flyers have several young players in prime spots like leading scorers Travis Konecny (seven goals, nine assists) and Oskar Lindblom (seven goals, five assists).

“I think the league has changed a lot, especially since I came in,” said Claude Giroux, whose rookie season was 2008-09. “I think young players have an impact more on the team and in the game. When I came in there was maybe one that was under 23 and was making an impact on the team. The league’s changed. Young players, they’re more developed, they have more of a mature game and they’re quicker, faster, stronger. You can see TK (age 22) and Oskar (23) and Joel’s playing well lately, being able to have that kind of help is a lot of fun.”

Fletcher said recently that his concern with Farabee isn’t the short-term — his skill is undoubtedly NHL ready now — but rather the long-term, 82- game season and the rigors of playing against much bigger players than Farabee faced as a freshman at Boston University last season playing only 37 NCAA games.

As a first-round pick in 2018, Farabee is going to be a big part of the Flyers. The only question was when that would start in the big league and the answer appears to be right now.

“I still think that all those young players, I still think there's a lot of room for growth and improvement,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “We're just 1160618 Philadelphia Flyers The problem wasn’t raw shot attempts; while on the power play, the Flyers averaged 87.93 per 60 minutes, which, while far from elite, isn’t devastatingly poor. The real issue was a lack of quality chances. In more than 11 minutes on the PP, Philadelphia managed just two scoring 10 things: Flyers nearly waste strong effort vs. Canadiens but come chances and 0.54 worth of Expected Goals. That’s too much perimeter through in OT; crushing injury for Samuel Morin shooting.

Granted, a lack of dangerous shots wasn’t the only problem. Van Riemsdyk pointed out after the game that he felt the power play wasn’t Charlie O'Connor especially efficient with zone entries, and that would help to explain the Nov 8, 2019 lower-than-average shot-attempt numbers. (On the season, the Flyers average 100.56 attempts/60 at 5-on-4.) But they still set up in their formation enough to score at least one goal. The Flyers just didn’t do a lot with their power play time, which proved to be a big reason this game After peppering Montreal Canadiens star goaltender Carey Price with 42 required overtime. shots over 60 minutes of play, surely more than one Philadelphia Flyers player looked skyward in anticipation of the looming overtime and 3. Provorov struggles on PP, Gostisbehere looks better thought, “How are we going to fool this guy?” When the Flyers hit the ice for their first power play opportunity, it With a fluttering, harmless-looking wrist shot off the tape of Sean appeared they’d made a tweak. Ivan Provorov was with “Coots’ unit,” as Couturier, apparently. head coach Alain Vigneault has called it, which meant Shayne Gostisbehere — a staple on PP1 until his recent move off the unit — was The Flyers largely owned the pace of play on Thursday night, back with Giroux and company. outshooting Montreal 43-24. But the Canadiens weren’t going quietly into the Philadelphia night, as they stormed back from a 2-0 deficit that felt But the “promotion” didn’t hold. When the Giroux unit re-emerged to start insurmountable to force overtime, until Couturier sent the locals home the second period to finish out the carry-over time from the initial power happy. Philippe Myers and James van Riemsdyk also scored, and Carter play, Provorov was again at the point. The coaching staff wasn’t ready to Hart made 22 saves to earn the win. Price was the tough-luck loser, abandon their current mix. stopping 40 Philadelphia shots in defeat. And it’s defensible: After years of producing essentially no value on the 1. Flyers avoid potentially crushing loss PP, Provorov has taken a step forward this season. Even before the move to play with Giroux, Provorov was scoring on the man advantage; The Flyers deserved to win this game. That’s a statement both the Flyers he’s at six power play points on the year, already a single-season high. and Canadiens would agree with — after all, one team doesn’t rack up a Maybe the power play is just starting to click for him, as it did for 43-24 advantage in shots on goal and a 6-0 edge in power plays by Couturier in 2017-18. accident. That takes a high level of territorial dominance, which the Flyers achieved, particularly in the first two periods. On Thursday, however, Provorov reverted to his old ways. Five-on-5 wasn’t the problem — he was his usual steady self and cracked the 60 Yet as Clint Eastwood’s character in “Unforgiven” said, “Deserve’s got percent mark in both Corsi and xG For Percentage. But on the power nothin’ to do with it.” Had the Flyers found a way to give this game away play, the 22-year-old blueliner had serious trouble handling the puck. despite their advantages in shots, attempts (54.30 percent Corsi For at Making passes, receiving passes, carrying the puck up ice — it was all even strength) and scoring chances (57.3 percent Expected Goals For at an adventure for Provorov. evens), it would have been crushing — especially going into two tough games this weekend versus the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins. Meanwhile, Gostisbehere looked far more comfortable on the Couturier unit. Ghost produced the power play’s best opportunity of the night on a “Yeah, I think so,” Sean Couturier said when asked if this would’ve been give-and-go with time running down in the second period. Gostisbehere a particularly devastating defeat. “Especially (with all the) special teams, was everything Provorov wasn’t on the power play — decisive, accurate power play (chances) that we couldn’t score (on). I think they were and dynamic. And while his 5-on-5 play wasn’t perfect, Ghost looked a bit struggling lately, too, on the PK. (Montreal entered the game ranked 30th more like his old, electric self, using his stop/start acceleration regularly in penalty kill efficiency.) It would have been frustrating.” to get in on the attack. The game almost did slip out of their hands. After Ben Chiarot took It’s fair to say that Gostisbehere has to earn his way back onto the Giroux advantage of a big rebound allowed by Hart in the second half of the power play unit. But it’s also highly likely that Ghost’s PP upside is higher second period, Montreal slowly found its legs. In the third period, the than Provorov’s — back in 2017-18, Gostisbehere averaged 7.0 Canadiens were the better team at 5-on-5, and even though they would Points/60 at 5-on-4, which ranked 14th in the league, and second to only hand the Flyers three fruitless power plays during the final 20 minutes of Morgan Rielly among defensemen. Ideally, the Flyers get that version of regulation, Shea Weber’s goal tied the game at 2. It had no right to be Gostisbehere back. Maybe last night was a step toward it. tied, considering the quality of play from both sides over the first 40 minutes. Yet the Canadiens had Price and, as the Flyers were reminded 4. Giroux line takes step forward on Tuesday, a standout goalie can be the great equalizer in any game. Through most of Tuesday’s game, the line of van Riemsdyk, Joel Eventually, however, Price cracked, allowing the relatively weak tally in Farabee and Giroux was just a tick off. They consistently seemed on the overtime to Couturier. It was a fortunate goal, especially considering the verge of putting together high-difficulty passing plays but just couldn’t netminder, but it still felt earned. Sometimes, deserve does have connect and read each other. Then, with time running down versus the something to do with it. Hurricanes, Farabee broke through with a highlight goal. Would the trio build off that play in their next game together? Sean Couturier celebrates with his teammates after scoring the game- winning goal in OT. (Eric Hartline / USA Today) The group absolutely did. While the line’s “goal” on the night really shouldn’t qualify as such — since it came immediately following a power 2. Power play not so powerful play, and with fellow forward Jakub Voracek still on the ice as well — but But how did the Flyers let Montreal get so close despite their early it wasn’t their only positive moment. JvR, Giroux and Farabee were dominance? It goes back to those power plays, which reflected buzzing all night, and basically didn’t allow anything remotely dangerous Philadelphia’s territorial edge and discipline advantage but also its to the opposition. It was territorial dominance: All three forwards finished biggest failing on the night. Six times the Flyers hit the ice with the man with more than a 95 percent Expected Goals share at 5-on-5, and the advantage, and six times they were kept off the scoresheet. Canadiens managed just 0.04 worth of xG against the line.

In fairness to the power play units, the team’s second goal came just six It’s an especially reassuring result because the last trio Giroux centered seconds after a Montreal penalty expired, with the Canadiens not fully — with JvR and Voracek flanking him — apparently failed to sufficiently reset after being a man down. But that was just one of six opportunities. impress Vigneault. Giroux acknowledged prior to Thursday’s game that Montreal kept handing Philadelphia chance after chance to break open he wasn’t certain that his move back to center would succeed, and that it the game, and the Flyers simply couldn’t oblige. remains a work in progress. “To be honest, I wasn’t too sure how I was gonna play, back at center,” aggressiveness that allowed him to excel in the AHL. However, one Giroux said. “I’ve been trying to be responsible, but at the same time, you aspect of Myers’ offensive game struggled to translate in his first taste of want to be able to produce, you want to be able to score some goals to the NHL: his ability to get his shots through traffic and on net. help the team win. It’s finding that balance.” In fact, just 37.3 percent of Myers’ shot attempts last season hit the net, This night didn’t result in production for Giroux — though he did pick up a which ranked a dismal 234th out of 243 defensemen who played at least secondary assist on JvR’s post-PP tally — but the responsibility was 300 minutes. Myers clearly needed to work on finding lanes and his absolutely there. If that holds, it’s fair to assume that a line with talented overall shot accuracy. That’s why it was notable Myers scored the first scorers will eventually start lighting up the scoresheet. goal of last night’s game on what can only be called a “seeing eye shot.”

5. Vigneault still wants more out of Hayes, Voracek Myers acknowledged afterward that he had been working on getting shots through from the point, and he’d actually focused on it recently. Shortly after Giroux acknowledged self-doubt about his return to the center position, Kevin Hayes entered the NBA locker room at the Wells “I was working with Angelo (Ricci, the Flyers’ skills coach) last practice, Fargo Center on Thursday morning and did some soul searching of his just catch-and-release, catch-and-release at the blue line after practice,” own. Myers said. “I think it’s about getting it off as quick as you can. And I think that goes with keeping it simple, shoot when you have the opportunity, “I think myself and Jake (Voracek) both need to be a little bit better than and I’m just trying to do that.” we have been these last couple games,” Hayes said. “We both know it. As veteran guys, we demand a lot from ourselves.” So far, so good. Since being called up, Myers has hit the net on seven of his 13 attempts, a 53.85 percent accuracy rate. That would have ranked While both players certainly aren’t lacking in pride, it wasn’t hard to 26th last season. Obviously, it’s an extremely small sample, but the early imagine Hayes and Voracek hearing that exact line of evaluation directly signs are positive. from their head coach. Much has been made of Vigneault’s willingness to “call out” the team’s veterans in the media, but those vets have made it Philippe Myers is all smiles after his first-period goal. (Eric Hartline / USA clear that when Vigneault tells reporters he wants more from specific Today) players, invariably he’s already communicated that message to them behind closed doors. This felt like Hayes echoing something he’d heard 8. Twarynski does the little things on Myers’ goal from his coach, an assessment with which he concurred. Myers’ goal was unassisted, but he didn’t score it without help. In So did the new-look Hayes line — with Carsen Twarynski at left wing in particular, Twarynski shined in the seconds leading up to the tally. Let’s place of Michael Raffl — step up as Hayes hoped it would? Well, the trio go through the entire sequence. wasn’t terrible, and certainly had moments of brilliance. Hayes, in First, Twarynski initiates the move up ice, surprising Ryan Poehling and particular, was strong on the puck, as usual. His best moment came in pushing the loose puck to Hayes. Then, Twarynski goes in hard on the the first period, when he created a 2-on-1 basically out of nothing. forecheck, and survives an along-the-boards puck battle with two But while the trio outshot Montreal at 5-on-5 (61.54 percent), it didn’t fare Canadiens, one of whom was the imposing Shea Weber. Then, after quite as well by quality-adjusted metrics (42.42 percent xG), and was on battling through another encounter with Weber and getting the puck into the ice for Chiarot’s quick-strike second-period goal. In other words, there the slot — in fairness, that part could have turned out poorly for was room for potential criticism, and Vigneault didn’t let them off the hook Twarynski if Poehling had cleanly received the puck — Twarynski moved after the game. into the netfront area, setting up a perfect screen to block Price from seeing Myers’ shot. One would think all that work should earn him a “I think Hayes’ line can play better. I think both him and Jake have more primary assist somehow. to give to our group, and I know they are aware of it,” Vigneault said. “Their intentions are real good and they’re going to find some chemistry.” Out of all the back-and-forth bottom-sixer call-ups, Twarynski has been the most consistently impressive. He even earned plaudits from For his part, Hayes remains confident the two will start truly clicking, and Vigneault, as the head coach remained critical of Twarynski’s new play both to their potential and in a way that satisfies the coach. linemates, Voracek and Hayes.

“I think we both are demanding a lot more from each other,” he said “I liked Twarynski on that line, I thought he was skating, I thought he was Thursday morning. “I think we’re gonna play with each other for a while physical,” Vigneault said. That qualifies as an endorsement, and one here, and hopefully tonight starts good chemistry.” assumes Twarynski’s work on the Myers’ goal played a big part in Vigneault’s perception of his play. 6. Line 4 still a work-in-progress Carsen Twarynski checks Artturi Lehkonen during the third period. (Eric Why was Raffl taken off the Hayes line? It wasn’t because Vigneault was Hartline / USA Today) dissatisfied with the veteran’s play, which he confirmed both on Wednesday after practice and Thursday morning. Instead, Raffl was 9. A rare high-flying first period “dropped” to provide extra support to the fourth line, which has become a revolving door of scratches and brief call-ups, as the Flyers desperately It’s no secret the Flyers have leaned heavily on a dump-and-chase style try to form a capable group of three. at 5-on-5 in 2019-20. While Vigneault has acknowledged that tendency might not hold forever, in the here and now, the team has elected to chip On Thursday, it was Raffl, Tyler Pitlick and new recall Mikhail Vorobyev, pucks behind its opponents and try to deploy an aggressive forecheck as who got his second crack at locking down a full-time NHL job this the preferred method of controlling tempo. In fact, entering last night, the season. But despite the new personnel, the results were largely the same Flyers had a Controlled Entry rate of just 36.75 percent, per my tracking. as recent games. The fourth line didn’t get scored on, but it created just 0.09 worth of Expected Goals at 5-on-5 while allowing 0.45 — good for a That’s why the first period was such a strange change of pace. Rather xG For of 16.12 percent — the type of performance Vigneault hoped than continue their dump-heavy preference, the Flyers showed little they’d avoid. trouble playing at a track-meet pace. For only the eighth time this season, Philadelphia cleared a 50 percent Controlled Entry rate, and for “The fourth line played seven to eight minutes. They’re important the very first time, it surpassed 60 percent, generating 18 controlled minutes,” Vigneault said. “I thought that line tried to get pucks deep and entries to 11 uncontrolled ones. And they did so without sacrificing their tried to spend some time in the other end.” defensive structure in the neutral zone; the Canadiens managed only a 44.44 percent rate of their own. It’s notable Vigneault used the word “tried” in describing their efforts. To stick with the movie quotes theme, here’s a classic from the philosopher Things returned to normal in the second period, as the Flyers had a Yoda: “Do, or do not. There is no ‘try.’” My guess is the Flyers have 30.43 percent Controlled Entry rate. But the opening stanza showed two similar sentiments regarding the fourth line’s showing in this one. things: Philadelphia is willing at times to play a carry-in heavy style, and it can control a game while playing it. 7. Myers gets his shot through 10. Another injury setback for Morin Philippe Myers showed real promise during his late-season debut with the Flyers in 2018-19. He flashed the skating ability and physical talent When the Flyers sent Samuel Morin down to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms that had made him such a highly touted prospect, along with the innate last week for a conditioning stint, the idea was to use the 14-day period to get him much needed playing time. General manager Chuck Fletcher and the Flyers planned for Morin to play in six AHL games, and once the conditioning period ended, the 24-year-old would return to the NHL club, ideally feeling more comfortable about his game and more prepared to play at a moment’s notice.

But after Thursday night’s news, it’s reasonable to worry if Morin will ever play in another NHL game.

An innocent-looking play on Wednesday night apparently was anything but; after a collision, Morin was diagnosed with a torn ACL in his right knee. It’s the same knee from his last ACL tear, an injury that left him on the shelf for 10 months. At the very least, he’s looking at a similar timeframe for recovery, and perhaps even longer, since it’s a tear of the same ligament in the same knee.

It’s never been clear where Morin — the 11th overall pick in the 2013 draft — fit into the Flyers’ long-term plans, especially with defensemen like Travis Sanheim, Robert Hägg and now Myers “jumping” him in the pecking order. But what’s always been clear is that Morin is a hard kid not to like. He’s a tireless worker who finds a way to end the day with a smile on his face. In other words, he’s the type of young player who is especially easy for fans to embrace.

Now, Morin faces another lengthy recovery timetable, and even in a best- case scenario, he won’t be cleared to play until long after he turns 25 in July. He’ll be at the midpoint of his 20s with just nine NHL games to his credit, and no proof that, even at full health, he’s good enough to be a full-time player in the best league in the world. It was already an uphill battle for Morin to crack the Flyers’ lineup this season and stick there. Now, he has to rehabilitate his knee again, hope that he returns with all of his mobility intact and then make another case for playing time, this time a year older. It’s a daunting road.

Samuel Morin, pictured during preseason, faces another long recovery process. (Eric Hartline / USA Today)

Vigneault acknowledged after the game it’s possible Morin simply chooses not to take that road. “Hopefully, he’ll want to put himself through this again and give himself another chance to play,” Vigneault said, implicitly admitting Morin might not want to go through the intense rehab that will be required just to give himself an increasingly slim chance of becoming a full-time NHLer. The odds, already long, now feel massively stacked against him.

But every Flyers fan — even those who have long been skeptical of Morin’s NHL potential — should be rooting for him now. If Morin chooses to pursue the type of rehabilitation that puts him back on the road to playing NHL hockey, the hope here is that he can beat the odds and achieve his dream. He’ll have put in more work than almost every player in the league to do so.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160619 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins’ Kris Letang ‘week-to-week’ with lower-body injury

JERRY DIPAOLA

Friday, November 8, 2019 7:27 p.m.

There is no definite timetable for Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang’s return from the lower-body injury he suffered Tuesday in Boston, but it will be at least a week.

Coach Mike Sullivan said Letang’s status is “week-to-week,” which is not a downgrade in the team’s eyes from what was previously diagnosed.

“We didn’t really give (reporters) a status (at the outset of the injury),” Sullivan said. “He was continuing to be evaluated.

“Obviously, we would like to have him back as quickly as we can. We’ll take each week as it comes, and I’ll update as we go.”

Letang has four goals and eight assists in 15 games. In his absence, rookie John Marino was paired with Brian Dumoulin on Friday in practice.

Maatta back at PPG

Sidney Crosby has known Olli Maatta since the former Penguins defenseman was 19-years-old.

But always as a teammate, never as an opponent.

That changes Saturday when the Penguins meet Maatta and his Chicago Blackhawks teammates at PPG Paints Arena. Maatta was traded to the Blackhawks for forward Dominik Kahun and a fifth-round draft choice in the offseason.

“It will be a little weird,” Crosby said. “When you play with a guy for that long (six seasons), everyone knows each other’s tendencies so there shouldn’t be any surprises there.

“He’s a hard guy to play against. He doesn’t give you much room out there. He has a long stick.”

Maatta has four assists in 15 games with the Blackhawks, and Kahun has three goals and four assists in 15 games for the Penguins.

Military veterans honored

Madeline Malizio was one of 10 military veterans honored by the team after practice Friday. She was pleased just to get one of the Penguins replica jerseys and an invitation to Saturday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks at PPG Paints Arena.

But Crosby had something else in mind for the single mom from Pittsburgh who is studying at CCAC to become a paralegal.

“We were walking, and he was just telling me how he heard about my story and he wanted to do something to help my situation,” he said. “I was confused. I couldn’t think what he could be talking about.”

It turns out Crosby gave Malizio, who didn’t have her own transportation until Friday, a 2019 Honda Passport. It’s the vehicle Crosby won as MVP at last season’s NHL All-Star Game.

“Sidney Crosby got me a car,” she said. “I felt weak in my knees. I felt speechless. I really don’t think there’s a word to describe how you feel in that moment.

“I guess he believed in me. This lifted a tremendous weight off my shoulders.”

Malizio served almost five years as a U.S. Army Specialist. She was injured in air assault drills at Fort Campbell, Ky.

Others from the Veterans Leadership Program who were honored include Army Specialist Tony Canzonieri, USMC Corporal Naseem Choudhry, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Patti Gerhauser and Michael Martin, Coast Guard Petty Officers and sisters Elaine and Nanette Jergons, Navy Lieutenant Amy Knight, Army Sergeant Summer Leahey and Air Force Tech Sergeant Nicole McAfoose.

Tribune Review LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160620 Pittsburgh Penguins “Sometimes, to split them up and put them on separate units, maybe tweeks the mindset a little bit and maybe we can spark something.”

Crosby said scoring chances have surfaced on the power play. Jared McCann, Penguins benefit from shaking up lines “They just haven’t gone in,” he said. “(Coaches) are just trying to find a way to get one in and hopefully get some momentum.

JERRY DIPAOLA “With different guys in different spots, maybe you react a little bit more instead of think. Sometimes, a different look helps that.” Friday, November 8, 2019 6:45 p.m. Tribune Review LOADED: 11.09.2019

Jared McCann didn’t score a hat trick in his first game with his new Pittsburgh Penguins linemates, but he did hit for the cycle.

McCann hasn’t been with the Penguins a full calendar year — that won’t happen until Feb. 1, 2020 — but when he joined Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust on the second line Thursday night, he had played with every forward on the team.

That includes former Penguins forward Tanner Pearson, who was McCann’s first linemate (with Patric Hornqvist) when he joined the team last season in a trade with the Florida Panthers.

Line changes are nothing new to anyone who has played a significant amount of hockey.

“If things aren’t going well, you need that spark,” McCann said. “We got that (Thursday) night.”

After the Penguins dragged a 3-0 deficit into the third period against the New York Islanders, McCann scored to start a rally that ended in a 4-3 Penguins victory, snapping the Islanders’ 10-game winning streak.

Rust scored twice, including the winner in overtime, and Malkin also put the puck in the net.

“It’s just the way the sport goes,” McCann said. “Sometimes, things aren’t clicking well. When you see a new guy on the wing or a new guy at center, it just kind of gives you a spark. I don’t know what the reasoning is behind it, really.”

McCann said his first strategic move while playing with Malkin was simple: “Try not to mess up.

“He’s obviously a really skilled guy, likes to have the puck and I’m just trying to create some space for him. That’s what makes an NHL player good, if you can play with anybody and have that chemistry.”

The new configurations move Alex Galchenyuk from the second to the first line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel.

“He has the ability to score goals,” coach Mike Sullivan said of Galchenyuk, who has 127 goals in eight years (none this season). “He’s shown that ability year in and year out in this league.

“We tried him for quite some time on Geno’s line, and we felt we’d make this change to see what happens. Obviously, Geno’s line had a great third period and Alex is a guy who has the ability to play with Sid and Jake. It’s something we’ve been talking about for a little while here, and we wanted him to get some games under his belt (with Malkin). If we didn’t feel as though it was going to work with Geno, this was a possibility or an option for us that we could potentially try.”

Rust said line changes are merely a way of life in the NHL.

“We have so many good players in here, and guys can move into so many roles and so many positions,” he said, “it just helps us be that much more dangerous.”

When will the next line change occur?

“You’d like to have things last as long as possible because that usually means things are going well,” Rust said.

Sullivan also may try to shake up the power play Saturday, moving Crosby and Malkin to separate units when the Penguins meet the Chicago Blackhawks at PPG Paints Arena. The team is stuck in an 0-for- 22 man-advantage slump its past 10 games.

“As a power-play group, when you’re not having success, there’s a tendency to squeeze sticks because these guys are proud guys and they want to contribute and help the team win,” Sullivan said. 1160621 Pittsburgh Penguins • There’s a big, yet off-the-radar, football game in Pittsburgh this weekend. Duquesne visits Robert Morris at 1 p.m. Saturday. Both teams are 4-0 in NEC play, tied for first place with Central Connecticut State.

First Call: Penguins’ schedule eases up; Raiders’ win bad for Steelers; The Dukes won the title last season, beating CCSU on the last weekend Stephen A. Smith’s huge contract of the season to claim the championship. RMU was 0-6 in the conference a year ago and has turned the ship around under coach Bernard Clark.

The Dukes won this regional rivalry a year ago, 48-24. TIM BENZ • A.J. Green’s comeback attempt in Cincinnati has been stalled. Friday, November 8, 2019 8:35 a.m. • Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson is sick and missed practice Thursday.

So when does the load get lighter for the Pittsburgh Penguins? • It appears Cris Carter is out at Fox Sports.

Maybe now. • Stephen A. Smith’s new ESPN contract is going to pay him almost $8 million a year. Over the last three games, the Penguins have faced Pacific Division- leading Edmonton, Atlantic Division-leading Boston and the New York • No one at MetLife Stadium can find the black cat that interrupted the Islanders, who were in the midst of a 10-game winning streak entering “Monday Night Football” game. their game Thursday. Tribune Review LOADED: 11.09.2019 And then Bryan Rust came along.

R.E.S.I.L.I.E.N.C.E. pic.twitter.com/iiHgJDye8N

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) November 8, 2019

That goal finished off a 4-3 overtime win for the Penguins.

Despite that weeklong gauntlet, the Penguins managed to get three of a possible six points. Now they face three teams this week that should allow them to catch their breath.

Up next is a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday. Then they have road games Tuesday and next Friday at the New York Rangers and the New Jersey Devils, respectively.

Chicago’s 13 points are tied for the second lowest in the Western Conference. Only Minnesota is behind them in the Central Division standings. The Rangers are 7-6-1 and in sixth place in the Metro Division with 15 points. New Jersey has 12 points, last in the Metro.

Those last two teams are a combined 5-7-5 at home.

As for Chicago, the Blackhawks only have 38 goals, the lowest total in the West. And they come to PPG Paints Arena with 1-4-1 road record.

One area where the Penguins desperately need to get better is the power play. Coach Mike Sullivan’s team went a 10th straight game without a power-play goal. Maybe one can come against one of these next three opponents.

Chicago’s penalty kill ranks 20th (80.0%). New York’s is 15th (81.1 %), and New Jersey’s is 26th (74.5%).

The Penguins have only six power-play goals. Only Ottawa and Anaheim have fewer (four). And they aren’t doing a good job of drawing penalties, with a lowly 28 power-play opportunities. That’s 28th out of 31 teams.

The Penguins better scoop up points while they can because the week after gets rough.

Toronto comes to town Nov. 16. Then they have back-to-back games against the Islanders. They host New York on Nov. 19 and go to Brooklyn again Nov. 21.

The Leafs are second in the Atlantic with 21 points, and the Islanders have 23 points, good for second in the Metropolitan.

Elsewhere …

• The Oakland Raiders won on “Thursday Night Football,” beating the Los Angeles Chargers, 26-24. That’s not great for the Steelers.

It’d be better to have the Chargers finish higher than the Raiders in the AFC West.

If the Steelers were to finish tied with the Chargers in the wild-card standings, they have a head-to-head tiebreaker over L.A., having beaten the Chargers earlier this season.

They have no such tiebreaker over Oakland, which improved to 5-4 and has an easy schedule remaining. As of now, Jon Gruden’s club has just one game left against a team that currently has a winning record (Kansas City, Dec. 1). 1160622 Pittsburgh Penguins The move certainly ignited Malkin’s line. There’s no question about that. Bryan Rust (two goals), Jared McCann (one) and Malkin (one), all scored in the third period and overtime. But for Galchenyuk — a 30-goal scorer as recently as 2015-16 — the search for the elusive first goal in Alex Galchenyuk's search for elusive first goal as a Penguin continues Pittsburgh continues.

Mike Sullivan has moved Galchenyuk to Crosby's line in an effort to “Obviously, he has the ability to score goals,” Sullivan said. “He’s shown spark him that ability year-in and year-out in this league. We tried him for quite some time with Geno’s line. We felt we’d make this change to see what

happens.” MIKE DEFABO Galchenyuk has both pedigree and raw ability. He was selected third NOV 8, 2019 4:34 PM overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2012 NHL draft. His wicked left- handed shot, especially, makes him a dangerous offensive player.

Now, he’s just waiting for a chance to show it. Alex Galchenyuk scooped up the bouncing puck in the slot and — with one slick flip of the wrist — backhanded it into the top corner of the net. “You could see that he’s working hard out there,” said Rust, his former linemate. “He’s getting his chances. … I think it’s only a matter of time In that brief moment, it looked like everything had come together at once. before the flood gates open for him.” Galchenyuk’s first goal in a Penguins sweater. Against Boston, one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. To complete an improbable Post Gazette LOADED: 11.09.2019 comeback win from a three-goal deficit.

A perfect moment … until it wasn’t.

The referee waved off all of that. That image, in some ways, sums up Galchenyuk’s first month-plus in Pittsburgh. He’s had chances, sure. But after dealing with a nagging lower-body injury that kept him out for two separate stints, he’s played in seven games and is still searching for his first goal in Pittsburgh.

Kris Letang takes a break during practice at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex Tuesday, Sept 10, 2019 in Cranberry.

Surely, he wishes that he could have produced more on the score sheet.

“Absolutely,” Galchenyuk said. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t.

“That’s how it works sometimes. I’m just going to stick to it and keep working. The first couple games, I didn’t really have too many chances. The last couple games, I’m generating more chances, which is a positive sign. Now I’m just focused on burying them.”

When he was acquired from Arizona in the Phil Kessel trade, the Penguins initially imagined that Galchenyuk would play in a tandem with Evgeni Malkin. Both speak Russian. Both are dynamic in their own different ways. Should work, right?

However, instant chemistry never really materialized. That’s at least partially because Malkin missed a month with a lower-body injury and Galchenyuk battled a nagging lower-body issue.

Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford told the Post-Gazette that initially Galchenyuk didn’t want to disclose the injury, as he was trying to make a good first impression with a new club. But after toughing it out to play in the first three games, the smartest decision was to sit out and get closer to 100%.

He returned to the lineup on Oct. 29 against Philadelphia and has tallied one assist in his four games back, bringing his season total to three points.

Sidney Crosby poses after winning the MVP award during the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game at SAP Center on January 26, 2019 in San Jose, California.

“When you come into a new team, I think the best way to fit in is to get into games and try to get some wins together,” Galchenyuk said. “You don’t want to come in, new environment, new team and not really play much [in the] preseason.

“That’s why it was huge for me to play the first couple games. But I decided I wasn’t too effective and needed to heal up a little bit. Now I’m just trying to find my game back and work hard.”

In an effort to add a spark during Thursday’s come-from-behind win over the New York Islanders, coach Mike Sullivan moved Galchenyuk from Malkin’s line to Sidney Crosby’s left wing. Sullivan said that it’s something that the coaching staff has discussed and had in its back pocket for some time.

“We wanted to get [Galchenyuk] some games under his belt,” Sullivan said. “If we didn’t feel as though it was going to work with Geno, this was a possibility.” 1160623 Pittsburgh Penguins “I’m just trying to complement them as much as I can,” McCann said. “Just be the guy who gets in the corners or who brings the physical presence or whatever I’ve got to do to help that line be better.”

Penguins' Kris Letang 'week-to-week' with injury The instant chemistry was obvious. Rust scored twice, McCann once and Malkin once to turn a three-goal deficit into a thrilling overtime win.

“He’s a guy who brings a lot of speed,” Rust said. “He’s also got a pretty MIKE DEFABO high skill level. That, combined with Geno, works really well. Geno works with guys who can play up and down the ice fast and create some space NOV 8, 2019 5:44 PM with him. The more we can do that, the more successful our line is going to be.”

The Penguins’ injury bug has reached their blueline. Power play shakeup splits Crosby, Malkin

Kris Letang, who left Monday’s 6-4 loss in Boston, will be “week-to-week” The Penguins power play slump has now reached double digits. with a lower-body injury, coach Mike Sullivan said on Friday. Pittsburgh hasn’t scored with the man advantage since Jake Guentzel buried one on Oct. 13 against Winnipeg, a span of 10-plus games and 23 The All-Star defenseman remained with the club in New York, as the two- opportunities. game road trip continued. Initially, the team said that they were continuing to evaluate Letang. Friday was the first time the Penguins In an effort to spark something, Sullivan shook up the units at practice on provided further details. Friday by separating stars Crosby and Malkin. The top unit featured Crosby, Galchenyuk, Guentzel, Nick Bjugstad and Juuso Riikola. The “Obviously, we’d like to have him back as quickly as we can,” Sullivan other unit included Malkin, Pettersson, Schultz, McCann and Dominik said. “That’s where he’s at right now. We’ll take each week as it comes Kahun. and I’ll update you as we go.” “Sometimes as a power play group, when you’re not having success, Sidney Crosby poses after winning the MVP award during the 2019 there’s a tendency to squeeze sticks,” Sullivan said. “These guys are Honda NHL All-Star Game at SAP Center on January 26, 2019 in San proud guys and they want to contribute and help the team win. Jose, California. Sometimes to split them up and put them on separate units tweaks the mindset a little bit. Maybe we can spark something.” When he’s on the ice, Letang is one of the NHL’s best (and most unique) defensemen. But that’s the problem: keeping him on the ice. Post Gazette LOADED: 11.09.2019 Letang has endured a long list of injuries throughout his career. Multiple concussions. A broken toe. Broken foot. Broken hand. An elbow infection. Groin and knee injuries. Numerous unspecified upper- and lower-body injuries. Most notably, he missed several months in the second half of the 2013-14 season after suffering a stroke.

If you add it up, Letang has missed more than 150 games over the last six seasons... and counting.

While the injuries are really no fault of his own, suffering another one is surely a disappointment for a team that’s already endured injures to six different forwards.

Letang was off to a hot start offensively, recording 12 points in the first 15 games he played. In his absence, impressive rookie John Marino stepped in to play on the top pairing with Brian Dumoulin during Thursday’s win over the New York Islanders.

The pairings remained unchanged at practice on Friday. Justin Schultz and Marcus Pettersson skated together on the second pairing. Juuso Riikola and Jack Johnson made up the third pairing.

McCann clicks in top-six role

Alex Galchenyuk practices at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex Tuesday, Sept 10, 2019 in Cranberry.

Back in junior hockey, Jared McCann had a nickname: “Chucky.” Yes, as in Alex Galchenyuk, his current teammate on the Penguins.

As the story goes, an equipment rep for McCann’s team was the same one that represented the , where Galchenyuk played before the NHL.

“He was always carrying around Galchenyuk sticks,” McCann said. “I was like, oh I want to try these out. I scored a hat trick my first game with it. I was like, wow, I can’t change back now.”

When his teammates saw "Chucky 27" on his stick, that's when the nickname started.

"Everyone started calling me Chucky," McCann said. "I was like guys this isn’t my stick."

Now, years after he tried out Galchenyuk’s stick, McCann took a shot at something else: Galchenyuk’s spot in the lineup.

In an effort to spark a comeback, Sullivan moved Galchenyuk up to play on the Sidney Crosby-Jake Guentzel tandem. McCann filled Galchenyuk’s void on the second line, playing alongside Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust. 1160624 Pittsburgh Penguins

Sidney Crosby gives his All-Star MVP car to a veteran

ADAM BITTNER

NOV 8, 2019 2:45 PM

Sidney Crosby is sharing the spoils of his NHL All-Star Game MVP honors as a salute to service this Veteran’s Day weekend.

The Penguins captain on Friday gave the Honda Passport Elite he won as part of the award to a veteran.

Crosby also presented the car he won at last year’s All-Star Game to one of the veterans!! More on all this tomorrow at 6pm on Pens Pre Game! - DP pic.twitter.com/7klPzSOiWP

— AT&T SportsNet™ PIT (@ATTSportsNetPIT) November 8, 2019

Crosby scored a total of four goals and notched four assists in leading the Metropolitan Division to victory in the four-team All-Star tournament back in January.

Apparently satisfied with his current transportation options, he gave the car away amid other team tributes ahead of the official Veterans Day Tribute for the game against Chicago on Saturday at PPG Paints Arena.

Post Gazette LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160625 Pittsburgh Penguins A few weeks ago before a game at Tampa Bay, Crosby met with 46 of the 70 living Medal of Honor recipients. Days later, while in Minnesota, he was still talking about some of their stories.

Veteran’s move: Why Sidney Crosby gave away the car he won as MVP One included a medical attendant tasked with dropping into a battle and of 2019 NHL All-Star Game treating fallen soldiers. As he recalled that tale, Crosby’s voice lowered and his lips pursed. A few seconds later, as if to break up the silence between him and a couple of reporters, Crosby lauded how “incredible” it was to meet that man. Rob Rossi Told “they don’t make ’em like that anymore” by one of the reporters, Nov 8, 2019 Crosby did not hesitate to disagree.

“They do,” he said. “You meet those people, and they’re all that way: Do It felt freezing in Pittsburgh on Friday. Storm clouds blocked out the sun. what they have to, whatever they’re asked. They don’t think anything of A thin coating of snow stuck to the grass. Wind gusted at up to 14 mph. it.

For early November, the conditions were harsh. “That’s special.”

For Madeline Malizio, the wait outside for public transportation from the As a kid in Cole Harbor, Nova Scotia, Crosby had school projects that Lemieux Sports Complex would actually have been a cold slap to the often focused on Canadian military veterans. His aunt worked at a face. After all, she had been invited by the Penguins to their practice veterans hospital, where he would talk with men and women who had facility along with nine other military veterans. served.

She had known tougher times than waiting for the bus in the cold, of He developed a curiosity for military strategy. He has taken a class on course. the topic and still educates himself by reading books. “The history of it” appeals to him, but Crosby said that learning about military history is A military kid, Malizio spent her childhood shifting around the country. probably his way of “showing appreciation” for the work and sacrifices of She mostly remembered moving from Florida to Pittsburgh and back and veterans. then joining the Army while in the Sunshine State. Stationed at Fort Campbell along the Kentucky-Tennessee border, Malizio, an Army “Knowing what they do, what they did, what it took,” Crosby said. “On top specialist, was injured in an aerial drill. She returned to Pittsburgh to be of that, I think the camaraderie and everything that comes with being in near her father, who works at the 911th Airlift Wing. the military — and, you know, early on having that personal relationship with some veterans, I think that’s probably made for a lifelong interest in Now a single mother raising 3 1/2-year-old Maverick, Malizio is a student them for me.” at the Community College of Allegheny County. She gets to campus the same way she arrived at the Lemieux Sports Complex: asking for a ride Crosby spoke Friday of Remembrance Day ceremonies from his or by the bus. childhood in Nova Scotia and a 9/11 memorial service when he attended Shattuck-St. Mary’s boarding school in Minnesota. He described And that was how she planned to head home Friday. welcoming Western Pennsylvania military families to the Penguins’ dressing room after morning skates. He declined to discuss specifics, but Only, Sidney Crosby would have none of it. not because everything had blurred together after all the years. Not long after meeting Malizio and her son after a Penguins practice, He reasoned that some things should remain private. Crosby walked them toward a garage that normally houses the facility’s Zamboni machines. Obviously, giving a veteran a vehicle isn’t one of those things. But after their time together Friday afternoon, Crosby tried to distract Maverick “We were basically walking and he was telling me how he heard about while the boy’s mother took an unexpected star turn in front of television my story and that he wanted to do something to help my situation,” cameras. Malizio said. “And I was a little confused. Like, I couldn’t think for a second. ‘What could he be talking about?’” The spotlight should be on a real hero, not somebody who just happens to be the world’s most famous hockey player. As the garage door opened, Crosby couldn’t keep from smiling. He asked Malizio to turn around. By this point, a screaming Maverick already had. Malizio arrived at Lemieux Sports Complex with the other veterans and When his mother did likewise, she “felt weak in the knees” and unsure of what to expect other than meeting some Penguins players. “speechless.” Instead, she and the other veterans were presented with customized jerseys — the same yellow ones the Penguins were to wear against the “I don’t think there’s really a word to put to it,” Malizio said. Chicago Blackhawks in Pittsburgh on Saturday night. Technically, Malizio’s Veteran’s Day gift — a red Honda CR-V — had Malizio and those veterans were given tickets to that game. When that never belonged to Crosby. He won a new car from Honda for being happened Friday, her thoughts turned to how she and Maverick would selected MVP at the 2019 NHL All-Star Game, but he never collected the get to PPG Paints Arena. Public transit runs on a limited schedule on prize. weekends, and that could have been a problem. No surprise there. Crosby arrived in Pittsburgh as a rookie in 2005 with a It won’t be one now. Malizio has Crosby’s car to get her and Maverick to black SUV. If he could, he would drive it to his eventual statue ceremony a Penguins game and anywhere else they need to go. at PPG Paints Arena. Bring on that early winter weather. She’s got this covered. Also, though, Crosby had figured when he won the vehicle from Honda that somebody else might actually need it. And, well, his famous patience The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 extends off the ice, too.

For Malizio, a somewhat new hockey fan, Friday provided a personal look at something Crosby’s done almost every game since joining the Penguins: He created something out of nothing, set somebody up, and came through in the clutch.

Crosby’s interest in the military — and especially his fondness for veterans — could easily go unnoticed. He would prefer not to discuss publicly the many times he has met veterans, either through the Penguins or on his own. Even Friday, he hesitated to have media present for his meeting with Malizio and Maverick; Crosby asked for media to observe from off to the side of the garage while he spent about 20 minutes walking around or sitting in the vehicle with Malizio and Maverick. 1160626 San Jose Sharks

What Mario Ferraro, Pete DeBoer said about Dylan Gambrell’s first pro fight

CURTIS PASHELKA

November 8, 2019 at 2:35 PM

SAN JOSE — Defenseman Mario Ferraro could be available to play Saturday, two days after a big hit from defenseman Matt Dumba knocked him out of the Sharks’ game against the Minnesota Wild.

Ferraro said Friday he was “a little sore, but recovering” after he was injured by Dumba’s hit in the second period of the Sharks’ 6-5 win over the Wild.

Ferraro was chasing after a loose puck in the corner to the right of the Sharks’ goal when he was hit shoulder first into the boards. Ferraro raised his left arm to help him brace for the impact.

Ferraro came back to play one more shift after the hit at the 14:06 mark of the second period. But he didn’t play after the 15:51 mark when he was on the ice for Luke Kunin’s goal for the Wild that to cut the Sharks’ lead to 4-1.

“(Dumba) dumped the puck in and had some speed. We both had speed going in,” Ferraro said. “He came in pretty hard and just collided and went into the boards awkwardly. It is what it is. Part of the game.”

Ferraro said the hit didn’t affect his head and that he didn’t have to go through concussion protocol.

“I played the next shift and I felt a little sore, so I decided to try and recover,” Ferraro said. “I don’t think I would have really benefited the team. Was still sore, too sore really to compete at the highest level in the third. Didn’t want to hurt the team in any way.”

As Ferraro got up, Dylan Gambrell went to Dumba and the two dropped their gloves, although no heavy punches were thrown. The altercation began just as the Sharks started an odd-man rush the other way.

Ferraro said he appreciated what Gambrell did, adding, “that’s a good teammate, a good friend. Happy he stuck up for me. That’s when you know you’re close as a team. Means a lot to me as a player and a teammate. That was big time.”

“It was a great job by him, a young guy to show that type of character,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said. “Dumba’s a tough guy. I thought the whole group appreciated what he did there.”

The fighting major was Gambrell’s first as a professional. He also never fought at the University of Denver, but said he did get into some scraps in the USHL with the Dubuque Fighting Saints. Gambrell played with the team from 2012-2015, collecting 74 penalty minutes in the 2014-15 season.

“Any time there’s a cheap hit, you’ve got to stand up for your teammates,” Gambrell said. “So, gotta be there and everybody has their turn. Just kind of stepped in there to stand up for a teammate.”

Ferraro, a first-year professional, has played in all 17 Sharks games so far, averaging 15 minutes and eight seconds of ice time as a third pair defenseman. Gambrell, the Sharks’ fourth line center, has four points in 13 games and is averaging 10:30 of ice time per game.

▪ Sharks forward Melker Karlsson skated Friday and could return to the lineup for Saturday’s game. Karlsson has missed the last two games with an upper body injury he suffered in last Saturday’s game against Vancouver.

San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160627 San Jose Sharks

Sharks’ Pete DeBoer has no concerns about lawsuit facing Evander Kane

San Jose Sharks coach says he didn’t know about lawsuit that Evander Kane faces, adds he doesn’t get involved with players’ personal matters

CURTIS PASHELKA

November 8, 2019 at 6:19 PM

SAN JOSE — Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said Friday he didn’t know about the lawsuit that Evander Kane was hit with by a Las Vegas casino until it became public earlier this week and added he wasn’t going to get involved in a player’s personal matter.

“I don’t have any concerns,” DeBoer said. “When you coach in this league for 11 years, there’s a lot of personal issues behind the scenes that go on, in all kinds of different areas. So, that’s something that I really don’t get involved with, unless it affects what we’re doing in here. Obviously, it hasn’t been.”

The Las Vegas Review Journal reported Tuesday that Kane was being sued by The Cosmopolitan Hotel for unpaid gambling markers that he took out in the spring.

Per the Review-Journal, the hotel filed the lawsuit in Clark County District Court on Monday, alleging that Kane has not paid back $500,000 in markers the casino extended to him in April. The hotel is also seeking repayment of legal fees associated with the suit.

Court documents stated that Kane was extended eight credits of amounts between $20,000 and $100,000 on or about April 15. The Sharks were in Las Vegas at that time, playing the Golden Knights in the first round of the NHL playoffs. Game 3 of that series on April 14 and Game 4 was April 16.

Kane did not wish to comment on the report Thursday night after the Sharks defeated the Minnesota Wild 6-5.

Before Thursday’s game, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reported, and a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed, that the NHL is monitoring Kane’s situation but does not plan to launch an investigation or get involved.

Kane is in the second year of a seven-year, $49 million contract he signed with the Sharks in May 2018.

Entering Saturday’s game with the Nashville Predators, Kane leads the Sharks (6-10-1) with 10 goals and is third on the team with 15 points.

San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160628 San Jose Sharks That game, and the one against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday that closes out the homestand, will probably be a stronger indication of where the Sharks (6-10-1) stand rather than their wins Tuesday and Thursday.

Sharks avert total collapse, but a much tougher test awaits “We’ll take the four points. We need them right now,” Kane said of the wins over the Blackhawks and Wild. San Jose Sharks do just enough to beat Minnesota Wild,, now face the Nashville Predators on Saturday “We did a lot of good things in that game. Obviously there were some breakdowns, we got a little too comfortable in the second period after coming out 4-0. We did do some good things, but we’ve got to keep our foot on the gas.” CURTIS PASHELKA At the very least, the Sharks have beaten two teams they needed to November 8, 2019 at 5:33 am beat, as few observers have either Chicago or Minnesota making the playoffs this season. That’s perhaps no small accomplishment considering the way they were smoked 5-2 in Ottawa on Oct. 27, and in SAN JOSE — Logan Couture had a lighthearted response when he was Anaheim 3-1 on Oct. 5. asked about his goal in the first period of Thursday night’s game against the Minnesota Wild — one that ended a personal 13-game drought that The Sharks were thoroughly outplayed by Vancouver on Saturday in a 5- matched the longest of his NHL career. 2 loss. They’ll be tested in much the same way by the Predators, who remain tied for second place in the Central. “I think maybe Al Stalock maybe did me a favor over there,” Couture said of the Wild goalie and former Sharks teammate. “I texted him before the “We did that the last two games. We decided enough’s enough,” game, ‘I need one, buddy.'” defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic said. “You can have the best players, the most skilled players. If you work hard and do the right things, you’re Things were a little less cheery when discussing the rest of the game, going to get rewarded.” particularly the final two periods, when the Sharks, after taking a four- goal lead, were outscored by three goals and largely outworked at even San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 11.09.2019 strength by the last place Wild.

“Pretty self-explanatory, I think,” Couture said of the Sharks’ closer-than- it had-to-be 6-5 win at SAP Center. “Anyone that was a part of, or watched that game … there’s work to be done.”

Following a five-game losing streak, the Sharks pulled themselves off the mat this week with wins over Chicago and Minnesota, the Central Division’s bottom two teams.

But as far as alleviating concerns about where this team might be headed this season, well, that hasn’t quite happened yet.

A seemingly comfortable three-goal lead nearly disappeared in the final minutes Tuesday night against the Blackhawks, and Thursday against the Wild, the Sharks almost let a 6-2 lead evaporate over the final 20 minutes.

The Sharks did just enough to beat the Blackhawks 4-2, including scoring a late empty-net goal, then made just enough plays to squeak past Minnesota, as they improved to 4-4-0 at SAP Center this season.

Couture had a four-point night, the fourth of his NHL career. His final point came with 45 seconds left in the second period, as he set up Evander Kane’s power play goal that gave the Sharks a 6-2 lead. Tomas Hertl had scored with the man advantage with 2:56 left in the third for a 5-2 lead.

No one could have predicted at that point that Couture and Kane would be the ones on the ice for the final minute and a half of the third period, trying to help the Sharks protect a lead that had been whittled to one following even strength goals by Brad Hunt, Ryan Donato and Jason Zucker.

Only three late saves by Martin Jones, after he allowed three goals on three successive Minnesota shots, prevented a complete collapse.

“We didn’t sustain any time in their end. Kind of got back to what we were doing at the start, which seemed like we were waiting for a power play to get chances and score goals,” Couture said. “It did, luckily, that probably won us the game. those two power play goals at the end of the second.

“Just no o-zone time and just sloppy, sloppy play, really.”

Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said he wasn’t going to over-think the result, as the victory was just his team’s sixth in 17 games this season. Teams with big leads can have a tendency to sit back a bit. Teams that are trailing will always have their foot firmly on the gas pedal, trying to create offense.

“There’s some situations there we need to handle better, but I’m not going to get picky,” DeBoer said. “Wins have been hard to come by and we did enough to win a game. We’ll move on to the next one.”

That would be Saturday against the Nashville Predators, who will probably be a tad ornery after their 9-4 loss to Colorado earlier Thursday. 1160629 San Jose Sharks

Sharks' lack of killer instinct shows there's still work to be done

Chelena Goldman

November 07, 2019 11:04 PM

The Sharks essentially played two games on Thursday night.

The first took place within the first period of play against the visiting Wild, as San Jose dominated Minnesota and skated into the intermission with a convincing 4-0 lead. But the second was a complete 180-degree turn that took place over the next two periods, in which the Sharks nearly lost control of the game.

The Sharks held on to win, 6-5. But even with two straight victories, this team is aware that their early-season woes aren't completely in the rearview mirror. The ability to play a dominant 60-minute game is still a work in progress.

"I think anyone who was a part of or watched that game [knows] there's a lot of work to be done," Logan Couture said to reporters following the win.

Tomas Hertl agreed. "If we start like that, we have to play a whole 60 minutes," he added, "and don't even give them a chance to score. Just play the right way. We need it right now, every point."

Keep in mind, these comments are coming from a captain who tallied four points on the evening and an alternate captain who notched three. They're not tooting their horns after that close call of a contest. They want to be much, much better.

And Hertl is correct. If the Sharks are going to start a game with a 4-0 lead, they can't spend the next 40 minutes getting outscored 5-2. For that to happen, a team has to do a lot of things wrong after such a stellar beginning.

Couture could list all of them. "We didn't forecheck. We didn't sustain time in their end. Kind of got back to what we were doing at the start [of the season] where it seemed like we were waiting for a power play to get chances and score goals. And it did luckily, those two power-play goals at the end of the second. But just no o-zone time and just sloppy, sloppy play."

While the Sharks did get those two power-play markers in the second stanza, they also took four penalties. For a team that is battling to establish a better even-strength game, San Jose is still spending too much time in the box.

Who knows what got into the Sharks between the first and second periods. But they absolutely let their tally on the scoreboard dictate how they started the next frame -- and it resulted in Minnesota making a push.

"Sometimes, when you score four, you think everything will be easy," Hertl admitted. "But we still have to look at some details. Why they're scoring so easily after that."

Now, obviously, San Jose will take the two points and improve to 2-2-0 on the current six-game homestand. As Hertl said, the Sharks need every point they can get in order to dig out of the deep hole they put themselves in at the start of the season.

But if you're one of those fans that was cringing at the end of Thursday's game, you aren't alone. The Sharks will take the victory, but they still have to work on playing that full 60-minute game.

"We found a way to win this game," Timo Meier said. "But it wasn't pretty at the end."

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160630 San Jose Sharks

Sharks takeaways: What we learned in San Jose's crazy 6-5 win vs. Wild

Chelena Goldman

November 07, 2019 10:33 PM

As cheesy as it is to call the Sharks' victory Thursday night a "wild" win, that's an apt description.

San Jose jumped on the visiting Minnesota Wild early and held on to fend off the opposition’s late-game push to tally their second victory in a row, this time by a score of 6-5. But boy, did that one get dicey.

Here are three takeaways from Thursday's game.

Best period of hockey this season

There's no doubt the first period of Thursday's game was the most dominant the Sharks have played so far through the 2019-20 campaign. Captain Logan Couture scored the first goal of the night just 52 seconds into the contest, which was only the beginning, as San Jose played a confident and physical game and took a 4-0 lead before the first frame expired.

The Sharks didn't pile it on in the second period, nor were they as defensively sound. Luckily for San Jose, its league-leading penalty-kill unit kept the Wild from mounting too much of a comeback.

On that note ...

Still taking too many penalties

This isn't anything new. While the Sharks have the best penalty kill in the NHL, they are also one of the most penalized teams in the league -- and spending too much time on the kill not only ruins their flow at even strength, but also leads to too many mistakes.

Such was the case against Minnesota, as San Jose spent the vast majority of the second period with skaters in the sin bin. It clearly took the rhythm out of the Sharks' game and left room for the Wild to build momentum and score two goals.

If San Jose expects to carry steady momentum throughout a game, the number of penalties must be cut down.

Another crazy third period

After giving up two third-period goals in a span of 68 seconds in Tuesday’s win over Blackhawks, the Sharks did the same thing against the Wild, only this time it was a 74-second span.

Part of the blame falls on goaltender Martin Jones. Part of it falls on the team in front of him for not staying tight in the defensive zone. However you cut it, the Sharks need to do a better job of staying disciplined and finishing games strong so they don’t let should-be wins get away from them.

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160631 San Jose Sharks "Sometimes, when you score four, you think everything will be easy," Hertl admitted. "But we still have to look at some details. Why they're scoring so easily after that."

Sharks' Evander Kane returns to game after nasty slash from Wild player Now, obviously, San Jose will take the two points and improve to 2-2-0 on the current six-game homestand. As Hertl said, the Sharks need every point they can get in order to dig out of the deep hole they put themselves in at the start of the season. Brian Witt But if you're one of those fans that was cringing at the end of Thursday's November 07, 2019 9:55 PM game, you aren't alone. The Sharks will take the victory, but they still have to work on playing that full 60-minute game.

Just as the Sharks appeared to be turning a corner, they got a big lump "We found a way to win this game," Timo Meier said. "But it wasn't pretty in their throats. at the end."

San Jose was leading Minnesota 6-4 midway through the third period Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 Thursday night when Sharks forward Evander Kane was taken to the locker room after being slashed by Wild winger Ryan Hartman.

A major penalty on the Wild after cheap shot to Kane’s leg  pic.twitter.com/v5HueSsC04

— Sharks on NBCS (@NBCSSharks) November 8, 2019

Kane appeared to be in significant pain immediately following the slash, and required assistance to get off the ice. Hartman was given a five- minute major penalty and resulting ejection.

The Sharks didn't score on that power play, but Kane returned to the game shortly thereafter.

Kane scored San Jose's sixth goal of the night late in the second period, his 10th of the season and seventh on the power play. He has scored twice as many goals as all other Sharks players not named Tomas Hertl, who scored his sixth of the season also in the second period.

The Sharks essentially played two games on Thursday night.

The first took place within the first period of play against the visiting Wild, as San Jose dominated Minnesota and skated into the intermission with a convincing 4-0 lead. But the second was a complete 180-degree turn that took place over the next two periods, in which the Sharks nearly lost control of the game.

The Sharks held on to win, 6-5. But even with two straight victories, this team is aware that their early-season woes aren't completely in the rearview mirror. The ability to play a dominant 60-minute game is still a work in progress.

"I think anyone who was a part of or watched that game [knows] there's a lot of work to be done," Logan Couture said to reporters following the win.

Tomas Hertl agreed. "If we start like that, we have to play a whole 60 minutes," he added, "and don't even give them a chance to score. Just play the right way. We need it right now, every point."

Keep in mind, these comments are coming from a captain who tallied four points on the evening and an alternate captain who notched three. They're not tooting their horns after that close call of a contest. They want to be much, much better.

And Hertl is correct. If the Sharks are going to start a game with a 4-0 lead, they can't spend the next 40 minutes getting outscored 5-2. For that to happen, a team has to do a lot of things wrong after such a stellar beginning.

Couture could list all of them. "We didn't forecheck. We didn't sustain time in their end. Kind of got back to what we were doing at the start [of the season] where it seemed like we were waiting for a power play to get chances and score goals. And it did luckily, those two power-play goals at the end of the second. But just no o-zone time and just sloppy, sloppy play."

While the Sharks did get those two power-play markers in the second stanza, they also took four penalties. For a team that is battling to establish a better even-strength game, San Jose is still spending too much time in the box.

Who knows what got into the Sharks between the first and second periods. But they absolutely let their tally on the scoreboard dictate how they started the next frame -- and it resulted in Minnesota making a push. 1160632 San Jose Sharks While Kane has had no comment on the litigation, Cabot is curious how he will respond to the lawsuit.

“The next thing you are going to see if this goes forward is Kane’s filing of What to expect in Evander Kane’s unpaid gambling debt case an answer,” Cabot said. “The answer typically denies the allegations, but the thing to look at is if there are any counterclaims or affirmative defenses.”

Alicia Jessop It is through counterclaims and affirmative defenses that, outside of denying the allegations, Kane could avoid paying the $500,000 Nov 8, 2019 54 demanded by The Cosmopolitan.

“There are zillions of counterclaims and affirmative defenses available in The San Jose Sharks may have beaten the Las Vegas Golden Knights in this kind of case,” Cabot said. “I have seen every defense under the sun the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, but for Sharks forward from, ‘I paid it back,’ to ‘it wasn’t my debt,’ and ‘the markers were Evander Kane, his Vegas winnings may have been limited to the ice. forgeries.'” Earlier this week, Kane was sued by The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, If The Cosmopolitan is successful in the case, it will not only seek the which claims he owes the casino $500,000 in unpaid gambling debt from $500,000, but its attorney’s fees and court costs. Cabot says it also has during the playoff series. the right to collect interest. According to the lawsuit filed in Clark County, Nevada, on April 15 Kane As for when Kane will respond, that could take some time. As of executed eight credit installments with the casino totaling $500,000. The Wednesday afternoon, court records did not show that Kane had been Cosmopolitan claims Kane agreed to repay the debt, but despite served with the lawsuit. Once he is served, Kane will have 21 days to repeated demands, has failed to do so. The Cosmopolitan claims that respond to the complaint, unless service is waived, in which case he will none of the debt has been repaid and that it has incurred other costs, have 60 days. However, there is also a chance that Kane will not file an such as attorney’s fees. It is suing Kane for breach of contract, breach of answer to the lawsuit. the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, conversion and unjust enrichment. “The filing of the complaint may prompt either a settlement or even Kane’s payment of the debt, either of which would result in the complaint Those familiar with gaming debt collection law in Nevada are surprised never being served on Kane and not pursued in court,” said Sue this matter reached litigation. Schwartz, a Nevada licensed attorney. Anthony Cabot, who practiced gaming law for 37 years, wrote the original Regardless of the outcome of the case, some question how the 1983 Nevada bill that led to permitting the collection of gaming debts. allegations could have arisen, given that the NHL veteran signed a Because of how unpaid gambling debts are collected by casinos, it is seven-year, $49 million guaranteed contract in 2018. While the dollar rare that collection attempts reach litigation. valuation of Kane’s contract signals the plausibility he could repay a “Usually, casinos will make arrangements with individual customers as to $500,000 gambling debt if it is indeed owed, financial advisors indicate how much time they have to pay — it could be days, months or even trip- they would not advise even the wealthiest of professional athletes to to-trip,” said Cabot, the Distinguished Fellow in Gaming Law at UNLV accept gambling credits. William S. Boyd School of Law. “For most players, obtaining credits with casinos is relatively easy and, “Typically, even if a customer misses their payment date, it isn’t like the as such, can easily snowball out of control,” a financial advisor to casino is going to go after them. There is usually a process where the professional athletes who wished to remain anonymous said. “Easy casino asks them when they are going to pay and what’s going on. credit causes problems and should be avoided. Otherwise, a player could Typically the casino host or person at the casino who took care of the easily wake up one morning owing hundreds of thousands or millions of customer calls up and asks what is going on. If they need more time, dollars and not have any meaningful way to dig out of it.” they give them more time. It is a very casual, customer service-based Other financial advisors agreed. relationship. They work with the customer to work toward a solution, along with having that upfront arrangement of when they expect to be “I would advise players to avoid taking credits from casinos,” said Sterling paid.” Sullivan, a senior wealth advisor at Calamos Wealth Management, who represents a number of professional athletes. “As their financial advisor, I Kane’s case stands out to Cabot. wouldn’t be immediately aware of the fees and interest being charged in “Litigation is usually the last step,” Cabot said. “Almost all players who these deals. However, one could assume that borrowing the house’s get credit pay timely; they come back and are lifelong customers. It is money is going to be expensive, so I would absolutely advise against it.” only a small number of customers where the credit remains uncollected Kane is not the first professional athlete to be sued by a Las Vegas at the time when it is supposed to be paid.” casino to collect an unpaid gambling debt. In 2008, the Wynn Las Vegas Cabot does not represent either party in this case, but explains what sued former NBA player Charles Barkley, alleging he failed to repay leads casinos to file unpaid gambling debt lawsuits. $400,000 in gambling credits issued to him. Barkley settled the case.

“If at some point casino personnel decide they aren’t getting satisfactory Despite the legal and financial troubles gambling can cause, Sullivan cooperation on the payment, they will escalate it,” Cabot said. “There is a argued that financial advisors cannot advise professional athlete clients person at the casino in charge of casino collections. That is usually the to avoid it. next stop. They use their efforts to try to collect. It’s only after they get to “Typically, I talk to professional athlete clients about gambling as another a point where they think there is no further potential that they will either entertainment-type of activity, like going to the theater, a nice dinner or refer it to the Clark County attorney’s office for collection or send it to sporting event,” Sullivan said. “It shouldn’t overwhelm the budget. People outside counsel for collection.” say, ‘don’t bet what you can’t lose.’ That doesn’t sit well with me. If a Presently, the case against Kane is a civil matter. However, according to professional athlete enjoys rolling the dice, they shouldn’t bet what they Cabot, Clark County has jurisdiction to criminally prosecute unpaid can afford to lose, but rather, they should budget a certain amount for gambling debts under its bad check laws. “A number of years ago, bad entertainment purposes. You can’t tell someone not to do it, because that check laws were passed that if you go into any business and pass them is the last thing they want to hear.” a bad check, you can be prosecuted for bad checks,” he said. “They For NHL players like Kane, along with finding a trusted financial advisor, interpreted that and modified the law to reflect that gaming credit a number of services are available from the NHL and NHLPA. The joint instruments constitute a check. Therefore, if you pass a bad check or NHL/NHLPA Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health program offers marker at the casino, they can prosecute you under the back check law.” gambling education to players. Players who have issues with or are To date, the allegations against Kane do not include any related to the problem gamers can also seek help and treatment through the bad check laws and a criminal case has not been filed against him in Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health program. Clark County. In response to a request for comment, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas said, “As a matter of company policy, we do not comment on pending litigation.”

Requests for comment to the NHL were not immediately answered.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160633 St Louis Blues Kyrou had two assists in his season debut last Saturday for the Rampage.

It was the only goal of the game for San Antonio, which fell to 6-3-3 with Blues notebook: A debut to remember for Fabbri in Detroit a 3-1 loss to the Admirals.

St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019

Jim Thomas

CALGARY, Alberta — Speaking with Detroit reporters after the Red Wings’ morning skate Friday, Robby Fabbri described coming to his new team as a fresh slate.

“I did that as a 19-year-old coming in over there (to St. Louis), and I’m going to have that same mindset coming in over here,” he said. “I want to make a big impact.”

He did just that in his Red Wings debut Friday night. Fabbri scored a power play goal just under 12 minutes into Detroit’s game against visiting Boston. He scored again, also on the power play, 90 seconds into the second period.

As such, Fabbri became the seventh player in the long history of the Red Wings to score twice in his team debut, and just the second to do so over the last 34 years.

Boston has one of the top penalty-kill units in the league. Even after Fabbri got them twice, the Bruins ranked fifth in the NHL on the PK (86.7 percent). Both of his goals came from about the same area in the near slot, and the second one proved to be the game-winner in a 4-2 Detroit triumph. He was named the game’s No. 1 star.

Frustrated over a lack of playing time in St. Louis, Fabbri requested a trade last summer. After originally being told by Blues general manager Doug Armstrong to stay patient, Fabbri got his wish Wednesday night. In exchange for Fabbri, the Blues received Jacob de la Rose in the trade of young forwards.

“I talked to Ken Hitchcock and Craig Berube (Thursday),” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill told reporters in Detroit, referring to the Blues’ former coach and current coach. “There’s a belief there’s more in him.

“We have opportunity here, a clean slate, and now he’s got to grab it. We need more scoring. He can potentially provide that, so I look forward to watching him play.”

With Fabbri wearing jersey No. 14, his Detroit debut came with a couple of plum assignments: a spot on the Red Wings’ second line and a spot on the team’s first power play unit.

Fabbri played the first eight games for the Blues on the team’s third line this season, and then was a healthy scratch in eight of the next nine contests before Wednesday’s trade. His last game as a Blue came Oct. 27 — in Detroit.

His season high in playing time with the Blues was 11:55 on Oct. 10 in Ottawa. He played 13:15 Friday, including 4:08 on the power play.

D-men shuffle continuesBerube and his staff have yet to settle in with their defensemen pairings. During Friday’s practice at the Scotiabank Saddledome, things were switched up on all three pairings. They were Colton Parayko-Alex Pietrangelo, Jay Bouwmeester-Justin Faulk, and Carl Gunnarsson-Vince Dunn.

The only time Berube has gone into a game with those three pairings this season was five games ago against Minnesota at Enterprise Center. For the past three games, he has opened with Gunnarsson-Pietrangelo, Bouwmeester-Parayko and Dunn-Faulk.

One constant this season has been plenty of in-game switching on the blueline, so there’s no guarantee the Blues will finish Saturday’s game against Calgary the way they start.

“It’s going to be mixed at times,” Berube said. “There’s going to be times in games where we’re going to be moving guys around. A lot of it has to do with minutes, too. Match-ups, minutes. Getting guys their minutes and match-ups are a big thing.”

And in San AntonioPlaying in his second game since returning from kneecap surgery, Jordan Kyrou scored a breakaway goal Friday night for San Antonio in American Hockey League action against Milwaukee. 1160634 St Louis Blues

Preview: Blues at Calgary

Jim Thomas

When, where: 9 p.m. Saturday, Scotiabank Saddledome

TV, radio: FSM, WXOS (101.1 FM)

About the Flames

Calgary won 50 games and finished with 107 points last season for its first Western Conference regular-season title in 29 years. Next came a hugely-disappointing five-game exit in the first round of the playoffs to Colorado. This season the Flames (10-7-2) got off to a so-so start but have perked up lately, winning four of their last five contests including a 5-2 victory Thursday over the New Jersey Devils. They are 6-1-1 at home and Saturday’s game against the Blues is Game 3 of a four-game homestand.

St. Louisan Matthew Tkachuk leads the team in scoring with 18 points (nine goals, nine assists). But Elias Lindholm is the top goal-scorer so far, with 10. Johnny Gaudreau, aka “Johnny Hockey,” ended a 12-game goal drought with goals in both of the Flames’ last two contests.

David Rittich (9-4-2) has gotten most of the work in goal with a 2.74 goals-against average and .915 save percentage.

St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160635 St Louis Blues De la Rose, 24, was drafted by Montreal in the second round of the 2013 draft. He played 119 games in a period that spanned four seasons with the Canadiens, scoring eight goals and picking up 11 assists.

Fellow Swede Sundqvist takes new Blue de la Rose under his wings He began last season on injured reserve after suffering a cardiac episode during a preseason game with Montreal. Once he was cleared to play, the Canadiens placed him on waivers and he was claimed by Detroit on Oct. 17, 2018. Jim Thomas But later in the season (March 19), playing for the Red Wings at the New

York Rangers, de la Rose had to leave the game because of an CALGARY, Alberta — A few years back on the Swedish national junior accelerated heartbeat. He was hospitalized overnight and underwent team, Oskar Sundqvist, Jacob de la Rose — and oddly enough, surgery early last April. Calgary’s Elias Lindholm — were a trio of sorts. Buds. Bros. You know. “I’ve had no issues since I had the surgery or the operation there,” de la “We had a little group there,” Sundqvist said. “We were always way in the Rose told the Post-Dispatch. “That was obviously scary when it back of the bus together, listening to music. So we were hanging out happened, but I had a good summer and I haven’t felt it ever since.” quite a bit. We got to know each other there when we played some more De la Rose was cleared for play this season and appeared in the first 16 games on the national team together.” games for Detroit, registering one goal with three assists as the team’s De la Rose will renew acquaintances with Lindholm in Saturday’s 9 p.m. fourth-line center. contest with the Calgary Flames. As for Sundqvist, well, de la Rose will “I just rested a few weeks after the surgery and I was able to start be seeing quite a bit of his countryman as the newest member of the working out and kind of ramp it up as the summer went on,” he said. “I Blues. don’t even think about it anymore.” De la Rose arrived Thursday night in Calgary following the Wednesday As fate would have it, de la Rose was in New York again on Wednesday night trade that sent Robby Fabbri to the Detroit Red Wings. Sundqvist with the Wings playing the Rangers, when another life-altering took de la Rose out to breakfast Friday morning where he met many of experience took place — although nothing as serious as heart issues. his new teammates before practice. That’s where he found out he was traded. Sundqvist’s hospitality will continue back in St. Louis. “I didn’t really see it coming,” de la Rose said. “Coach (Jeff Blaishill) “He’s welcome to stay at my place,” Sundqvist said. “I asked him this called me like a half-hour before we were leaving for the game and told morning and it looks like he wants to crash for a couple nights. That’s me I wasn’t playing. He didn’t really say why, so I figured something was fine. Just make settling in a little easier.” up. And then eventually after the game I got the call that I was traded here,” he said. As for what’s happening on the ice, there will be no orientation period for de la Rose. He’s going right into the fire Saturday against the Flames. In After the Red Wings’ 5-1 loss to the Rangers, de la Rose flew back to a surprise, he will be on the third line centered by Tyler Bozak. He’s also Detroit on the team charter with his now-former teammates, grabbed expected to see penalty kill duty right away. some things, and it was off to Calgary and the next phase.

“Oh yeah, he’s gonna kill,” coach Craig Berube said. “I’m just excited to be here, and I’m gonna do my best to bring my game and see what I can bring to this team,” he said. For Bozak, it’s yet another new face. The veteran center may set a record for most linemates in one season if this keeps up. St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019

Bozak laughed at the thought, then provided a thumbnail of his new winger.

“Just from playing against him, ton of skill, big guy, works extremely hard,” Bozak said. “So that’s perfect for our wing. He’s good around the net. Can take faceoffs on my off side if I’m not doing well that night on that side.

“He can play center, so we got two guys that can play down low in the defensive zone. Hopefully he can gain some chemistry right off the bat here.”

That’s one of the reasons why Berube put de la Rose on the third line instead of Sundqvist — Bozak is easy to play with.

“Bozak’s really good with people and making people feel comfortable as a player,” Berube said. “And he does so many good things that he’s easy to play with. So that’s part of it.

“And the other part of it, I didn’t want to mess with that fourth line right now. They’re going good.”

So Sundqvist will remain with Ivan Barbashev and Mackenzie MacEachern, a line that has taken the first shift in every contest during the Blues’ six-game winning streak.

“It doesn’t matter for me,” Sundqvist said. “I’ll just play wherever. Wherever my name is on the line. We’re moving around quite a bit during the games, too, so you kind of never know who you’re gonna play with.”

De la Rose is a left-handed shooter, as is Sammy Blais. So who plays left wing and who plays right on the Bozak line?

“I think they’re kinda just ironing that out still,” Bozak said following Friday’s practice at the Scotiabank Saddledome. “We’ll figure out who’s more comfortable in what position. I think Blaiser can play on the right a little bit. So I think (de la Rose) is starting on the left but don’t quote me on that.” 1160636 St Louis Blues what I know I can do. Do what I can to help this team and help contribute right away.”

Fabbri told reporters in Detroit that he was past any knee issues: (Updated) De la Rose begins his Blues' tenure on third line “Those are a couple years ago now and I feel great out there. It’s not even in my mind when I’m playing and I feel good.”

Asked to describe his style of play, he said: “I play fast and with some Jim Thomas skill. High compete level day in and day out. And just try and bring what I’ve learned over the years over here.”

His initial reaction to his new teammates: “There’s definitely a lot of CALGARY, Alberta — The newest member of the Blues, forward Jacob speed on this team and skill as well. They’re a good group of young guys de la Rose, skated onto the ice shortly before 2:30 p.m. Central time at here that are all hungry and want to win and play hard, so I’ll fit in good Scotiabank Saddledome for his first practice. with that.” He promptly found himself on the team’s third line, skating with Tyler He played with Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi in junior hockey, and Bozak at center and Sammy Blais on wing. got to know Dylan Larkin and Brendon Perlini through the draft process. So not only has he gone from worst to nearly first in the current NHL Like Fabbri, Larkin and Perlini were first-round NHL draft picks in 2014. standings following Wednesday’s trade with Detroit, he’s moved up one “It’s like a fresh slate,” Fabbri said. “I did that as a 19-year-old coming in line. (He was a fourth-liner with the Red Wings.) over there (to St. Louis). And I’m gonna have that same mindset coming “I’m just excited to be here and I’m gonna do my best to bring my game in over here. I want to make a big impact.” and see what I can bring to this team,” said de la Rose, who was a FRIDAY’S LINES teammate with countryman Oskar Sundqvist on Sweden’s national junior team a few years back. (On the third line Blais and de la Rose, both lefthanded, are still working out who will play left wing and who will play right.) Detroit, which plays Boston tonight, is 4-12-1 for nine points, the worst record among the 31 NHL teams. The Blues, who play Calgary on FORWARDS: Saturday, are 11-3-3 for 25 points, second in the NHL only to Washington (27 points) entering Friday's games. Schwartz-Schenn-Thomas

Unlike Robby Fabbri, who went to Detroit in the trade, de la Rose didn’t Sanford-O’Reilly-Perron ask to be traded. Blais-Bozak-de la Rose “I didn’t really see it coming,” de la Rose said. “Coach called me like a MacEachern-Barbashev-Sundqvist half-hour before we were leaving for the game and told me I wasn’t playing. He didn’t really say why, so I figured something was up.” DEFENSEMEN:

De la Rose had played in the 16 previous Red Wings games. Parayko-Pietrangelo

“And then eventually after the game I got the call that I was traded here,” Bouwmeester-Faulk he said. Gunnarsson-Dunn After the Red Wings’ 5-1 loss Wednesday at the New York Rangers, de la Rose flew back on the Detroit charter with his now-former teammates, St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 11.09.2019 grabbed some things in Detroit and joined his new team Thursday night in Calgary.

The initial review from coach Craig Berube after Friday’s practice?

“Good. Just like we thought,” Berube said. “He moves well out there. He’s big. And his hands look decent.

“He’s gotta get games and get up to speed on how we play and do things. It’s not gonna happen overnight but hopefully he can get in there and give us a jolt right away. And he’ll be fine.”

Berube said de la Rose was placed on the third line for a couple of reasons.

“Bozak’s really good with people and making people feel comfortable as a player,” Berube said. “And (Bozak) does so many good things that he’s easy to play with. So that’s part of it.

“And the other part of it, I didn’t want to mess with that fourth line right now. They’re going good.”

FABBRI’S DEBUT

Meanwhile in Detroit, Fabbri was slated for the Red Wings’ second line and first power-play unit, pretty valuable real estate.

“I talked to Ken Hitchcock and Craig Berube (Thursday),” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill told Detroit reporters. “There’s a belief there’s more in him. . . .We have opportunity here, a clean slate, and now he’s got to grab it.

“We need more scoring. He can potentially provide that, so I look forward to watching him play.”

Fabbri, who is wearing jersey No. 14, obviously is looking forward to more playing time _ a commodity he found hard to come by in St. Louis.

“Everyone here has been welcoming,” Fabbri said Friday. “It’s a great facility here and I’m excited to be here. I’m just gonna come in and do 1160637 Tampa Bay Lightning

Kucherov scores, Lightning top Sabres in Sweden

Lightning 3, Sabres 2: Andrei Vasilevskiy’s 20 saves help lift Tampa Bay in the first game of Global Series.

Staff Writer

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Nikita Kucherov scored and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 20 saves to help the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 on Friday night in the first of their two regular-season games in the Swedish capital.

The sold-out games at Ericsson Globe are part of the NHL Global Series.

Alex Killorn and Yanni Gourde also scored for the Lightning.

Sam Reinhart twice for Buffalo. The Sabres have lost four straight.

Kucherov opened the scoring at 3:19 of the first period. Brayden Point sent a cross-ice pass that Kucherov swept in on a one-timer. The reigning NHL MVP has five goals this season.

Kucherov made his presence felt again later in the period when Buffalo forward Vladimir Sobotka needed assistance from his teammates to get off the ice after a hit from the Lightning star.

Killorn scored on a power play with 3:46 remaining in the period, tipping home favorite Victor Hedman’s slap shot from the blue line past goalie Linus Ullmark. Hedman, the only Swede on the Tampa Bay team, recovered from a lower-body injury in time to play.

Reinhart cut it to 2-1 with 4:17 left in the second, redirecting Rasmus Ristolainen’s wrist shot.

Gourde scored at 7:45 of the third, and Reinhart struck again with 8:30 to go.

It’s the third straight year — and eighth overall — the NHL has played in Europe to try to increase its local following in hockey-mad countries including Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic. The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 in their season opener in Prague on Oct 4.

NOTES: It was the 27th NHL regular-season game in Europe, 12th in Sweden and 11th at Ericsson Globe. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Friday the Boston Bruins and the Nashville Predators will open the regular season next year with a game in Prague, and the Colorado Avalanche and the Columbus Blue Jackets will play a couple of games in the Finnish capital of Helsinki. ... Vasilevskiy is 9-1-1 against the Sabres.

UP NEXT

The Sabres and Lightning complete the two-game series in Stockholm on Saturday night.

Tampa Bay Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160638 Tampa Bay Lightning to make too many big saves, the team kept the shots down in front of him, but he turned away 20 of the 22 he saw.

The power play scored on one of its four chances (Killorn tipped Lightning put together a complete game to beat Buffalo in Sweden Hedman’s shot). The Lightning took three penalties, only two created power plays and they killed off both. The team addressed its issues and did what they’ve talked about.

Diana C. Nearhos “It can’t just be one game, though,” Hedman said. “We have to make this a habit.”

Tampa Bay Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 STOCKHOLM — Victor Hedman starred at the Swedish flag, trying to focus and hold off some of the emotion. Hearing his national anthem sung in his native country before an NHL game, and with most of the crowd of 13,230 joining in, he was close to tearing up.

“That’ was probably one of the most special things I’ve experienced as a hockey player,” Hedman said after Friday’s 3-2 win over Buffalo. “The first three shifts were a little off for myself. Once I got settled, I got better.”

This whole experience was emotional for Hedman, just as he knew it would be. He said he was very into the atmosphere and sharing the win with cheering Lightning fans very special.

If a Florida city the size of Tampa suburb Town 'n Country had produced some of the world's greatest NFL players, you'd better understand the impact Victor Hedman's Swedish hometown has had on the NHL. #GoBolts @TBLightning https://t.co/FJgK0PBQKI

— TampaBayTimesSports (@TBTimes_Sports) November 8, 2019

Answering questions for almost four minutes, Hedman said the word special about six times and added in others like phenomenal and unbelievable.

Getting the win made the game so much better. The experience may be phenomenal but these games count. The Lightning played one of their best games of the season, bringing together the pieces they’ve been talking about.

“We played a pretty complete game,” forward Alex Killorn said. “And we haven’t had that for a big part of the season.”

The Lightning have been taking their game apart to put it back together again. They don’t want a whole new identity — they’re always good to be a fast, skilled team — but to tweak it to add more defensive responsibility.

On Friday, they showed that. Like they have done in the past, the Lightning possessed the puck much of the night. But this wasn’t the kind of offense that covers up your defensive issues. This was offense that came from the defense.

They exited the defensive zone quickly, moving the puck up.

Take the first goal. Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk saw an opportunity to put the Lightning on the rush. He rimmed the puck around the boards hard from behind their own net. It came up to Brayden Point, who carried it into the zone with speed and Nikita Kucherov advancing through the center of the ice. All Point had to do was slide the puck over and Kucherov finished the one-timer.

“That’s a world-class finish,” coach Jon Cooper said. “Great from Shatty to recognize that and wrap that around. Pointer throws that over to him and I have yet to see if that puck hit the ice and Kuch puts it in.”

It was a very Kucherov, and very Lightning goal. That first goal, 3:14 into the game, demonstrated that this team can be dangerous offensively and responsible defensively.

Another side of that is the forecheck, which created Yanni Gourde’s goal in the third period.

Winger Pat Maroon battled behind the net, using his size to wrap the puck around and through goaltender Linus Ullmark’s pads. It popped out to Gourde at the far post and he scored the eventual game-winner on the rebound.

“We chipped the puck in and we were really good on the forecheck,” Gourde said. “That’s something we’ve talked about a lot in the past. Our forecheck is our greatest asset and we have to utilize it”

The other important piece for the Lightning is goaltending. Nothing changes for Andrei Vasilevskiy with the tweaks to the system, but he has been inconsistent just as the team has to start the season. He didn’t have 1160639 Tampa Bay Lightning era had. They can compare, and give feedback and give them things to think about.”

Näslund returned to MoDo after his NHL career, something people in O- Victor Hedman follows other stars’ path from their shared hometown vik wonder if Hedman will do. Näslund played one more year there and then served as general manager from 2010 to 2014. With names like Peter Forsberg and Daniel and Henrik Sedin preceding Hedman to the NHL, Örnsköldsvik has a strong hockey history He said it isn’t a big deal for a NHL or former NHL player to walk down the street. It’s common to socialize with hockey players. That familiarity brings players like Hedman, who owns two homes there, back for the offseason and after their careers. It also means kids grow up knowing the Diana C. Nearhos NHL is a possibility.

Even with all of the history coming out of Örnsköldsvik, Hedman’s mother STOCKHOLM — Victor Hedman doesn’t usually get nervous before Elizabeth never predicted this trajectory for her son when he was young. games. Not anymore. But this week he felt some nerves. His father Olle was the equipment manager at MoDo for 20 years. Her older two sons were on track to play there (and Oscar still does). She This is not just any game. He’s playing an NHL game in his home expected the same for Victor. country. To see where he is now, not only playing in the NHL but headlining a “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to come back home and play with major event, is “overklig.” It’s unreal. the team that I’ve been a part of for more than 10 years,” Hedman said before arriving in Stockholm. “It’s going to be an emotional couple of Hedman wants to be to the next generation what the Sedins, Forsberg days.” and Naslund were for him. He hosts a hockey school each summer in Örnsköldsvik. Hockey is an expensive sport and it wants it to be available He never thought he’d be able to do something like this when he left to everyone. He wants the next Forsberg, the next Hedman to have Sweden as an 18-year-old to go play in the NHL. Hedman called this a chance. dream come true, but it’s one of those dreams you don’t know you have until it comes true. Playing in front of those kids, including his niece and three nephews (one sporting a Lightning blue and white cast on his broken elbow), this As a child, Hedman looked up to many NHL players and there are even weekend is part of what makes this experience special. more Swedes in the NHL than there were 15 years ago. Sweden has steadily narrowed the gap with Canada for most NHL players per capita. “We’re all proud of Victor,” Näslund said. “Not just our hometown but for Sweden in general. Taking his game to the level he has. He’s on a world- And Hedman ranks as one of the biggest Swedish stars in the league class level and he’s in the running for Norris every year. He’s not close to right now. being finished.”

Not only does he hail from a hockey country, but also one of the biggest Forsberg is the country’s biggest name, but Hedman is Örnsköldsvik’s hockey cities in Sweden. Örnsköldsvik, might have sent the most stars to latest and greatest. They’re all watching and rooting. the NHL per capita. It’s at least in the conversation. Tampa Bay Times LOADED: 11.09.2019 “It’s super special,” Hedman said of Örnsköldsvik’s legacy. “I think we have only 65,000 people in our community and we have all those players. The Sedin twins (Daniel and Henrik), (Peter) Forsberg, (Markus) Näslund, hall of famers, so that’s super special for me. I was lucky.”

Buffalo also has two players from O-vik, as the locals call it. Buffalo’s Victor Olofsson is from Örnsköldsvik. Sabres backup goalie Linus Ullmark was born in Lugnvik, about 45 miles south, but spent most of his Swedish career with MoDo, the Örnsköldsvik club.

The three of them account for about 100 fans making the 350 mile trip to Stockholm and that’s just the fans they know about.

“It’s an honor representing O-vik, for sure,” Olofsson said. “It’s cool being here with Hedman as well. We worked out together a lot. I’ve gotten to know him really well so it’s going to be special to play against him.”

Hockey fandom in Örnsköldsvik has followed its players. Colorado was very popular for Forsberg, arguably the greatest Swedish hockey player. When the Daniel and Henrik Sedin and Markus Näslund all played for Vancouver, the Canucks led the city. Now, most of Örnsköldsvik line up behind the Lightning.

O-vik’s NHL history goes back to Anders Hedburg, who signed with Winnipeg of the WHA in 1974 and then the Rangers in 1978. But it was the 1973 birth year that really broke through.

Forsberg and Näslund are the obvious big names, making it to the NHL in 1994 and 1993. Andreas Salomonsson and Hans Jonsson were also born that year and made it to the league by 2001.

“Some people say it’s the water, some say it’s the education system, some say it’s the leaders in MoDo,” said Adam Johansson, a reporter for Mittmedia in Örnsköldsvik. “But I think the guys that were born in ’73, they set the standard for coming guys. So the bar was very high for the next generation.”

There’s nothing like seeing someone like you do something to make you believe you can as well. With that list of players in the NHL, younger players had someone to point to, a model to follow.

“That’s a big factor,” Näslund said. “That goes back to Anders Hedberg. The next guys growing up, they had the same coaches as the guys in our 1160640 Toronto Maple Leafs “You know, I think the biggest thing is we're getting to know each other. I've said this a number of times, and I don't know if anyone believes it. But it is easier to play with people you know and over a period of time you get there. It appears the guys are starting to have fun having fun The Leafs’ power play needs to change things up to find sustainable together.” success With Matthews, Tavares, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and Rielly they have a highly skilled and expensive lineup that needs to excel on the power play. The millions don’t matter as much as the numbers do. MARTY KLINKENBERG In recent stretches, they have gone 1 for 24, 2 for 27 and now 3 for 33

with an extra player on the ice. They rank in the bottom third in the The Maple Leafs power play drew more boos, groans and grumbles than league in both power plays and penalty kills. Their special teams have cheers at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday. They trailed 1-0 in the third not been special at all. period despite the generosity shown by the reprobates from Las Vegas, Globe And Mail LOADED: 11.09.2019 who had been nabbed by the refs for hooking three times and interference and tripping once each. Toronto bumbled through those opportunities with an extra player much as it had often recently. Shots were botched. Passes were flubbed. Too much time was wasted as the Leafs tried to get out of their end.

Then the Golden Knights got caught at tomfoolery again – this time, a holding infraction on William Carrier – and the Maple Leafs received another man advantage with 13:16 left.

As a television timeout was taken, the potential to be ridiculed by a raucous crowd and suffer a tough loss loomed.

Behind Toronto’s bench, Mike Babcock tried to rally his nervous troops. At this point, the coach had done just about everything imaginable other than recite novenas to get the power play untracked.

“Come on, lighten up here, fellas,” Babcock told them. “Let's just go out there and breathe a little bit and do what we're supposed to do.”

Perhaps it was his words. Perhaps it was his timing. Perhaps the Maple Leafs were overdue. Soon after, Auston Matthews tucked a shot off the crossbar to tie the game 1-1. John Tavares then completed the 2-1 comeback with a goal 2:47 into overtime to end an exciting duel between goalkeepers Frederik Andersen and Malcolm Subban.

Andersen slid and slipped and snatched his way to 37 saves in Toronto’s team-high third successive win. Subban, a substitute getting a rare start, was nearly as good, stopping 35 of 37. Not even Marc-André Fleury, Vegas’s star netminder, could find much fault with that.

The victory improved the Maple Leafs to 9-5-3 after a shaky first month. The Philadelphia Flyers at home Saturday night and the Blackhawks in Chicago on Sunday stand between them and their possible first lengthy run of the season.

Anytime now, they are likely to suddenly score two or three when they have man advantages. It happens to teams every year. They go through droughts and then erupt. Largely, that is a matter of numbers and luck.

Something must change, however, for it to be sustainable. Opponents have begun to catch on to Matthews letting a wrist shot rip from the circle on the right side of the net. There has to be better movement of players and puck and a clearer plan of attack.

“We were a bit stagnant in the first two periods,” Matthews said after netting his team-leading 13th goal. “In the third, we pretty much said, ‘What do you have to lose?’ Let’s move around; let’s get the [guys on the] penalty kill thinking more.

“I thought we did a really good job with different guys going to different areas and reacting, playing off instincts. Not just drawn-up plays, but reacting off one another, using each other and making plays. We spread them out a little bit and we were able to score.”

It has been a good week for Toronto. Two close wins, a couple of days off and a bit of practice time. It can be seen in a lighter approach in the dressing room, with Cody Ceci and Travis Dermott poking fun as they pass around a Morgan Rielly bobblehead. With team president Brendan Shanahan suiting up to fire pucks at a practice goalie. With Zach Hyman’s laughter as he holds court in front of his stall and gets nearer to a return from knee surgery. They are 4-1-1 in their past six and about to head out on an extended trip. The pressure that comes along with having great expectations and playing mostly at home has begun to wear off.

“Our team's doing pretty good,” Babcock said this week. “We seem to be getting some traction and there is more juice in our group. 1160641 Toronto Maple Leafs

Saturday NHL game preview: Philadelphia Flyers at Toronto Maple Leafs

Mark Zwolinski

Fri., Nov. 8, 2019

SCOTIABANK ARENA

Faceoff: 7 p.m.

TV: Sportsnet

Radio: Sportsnet 590 The FAN

NEED TO KNOW

Top Gun II? This is a rematch of two teams who went 11 rounds in a shootout in Philadelphia last Saturday, which Toronto won on a goal by Andreas Johnsson. The Flyers have won both their games since then — over Carolina and Montreal — and are 6-3-1 in their last 10. They blew a 3-1 third-period lead against the Canadiens but Sean Couturier scored in overtime. The big stat from the game? The Flyers did not take a penalty for just the sixth time in franchise history. The fifth was against Toronto, Nov. 24 last year.

The baby bullies: The Flyers are being led by their youngsters. Travis Konecny, 22, is tied for the team lead with seven goals; Carter Hart, 21, is their No. 1 goalie; and Ivan Provorov, 22, is their top defenceman. They’re joined by forwards Oskar Lindblom, 23, and Joel Farabee, 19, and defencemen Philippe Myers, 22, and Travis Sanheim, 23.

That’s special: The Flyers entered Friday tied for 11th in power-play success rate (21.7 per cent), and were tied for fifth on home ice (28.6). They had drawn 60 penalties, the fifth most in the NHL. But they went 0- for-6 vs. Montreal Thursday ... Former Leafs winger James van Riemsdyk is seventh in team scoring with four goals and four assists in 15 games. He leads the team with 54 shots on goal.

Toronto Star LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160642 Toronto Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs expect an offensive boost from the Marner-Tavares reunion

Mark Zwolinski

Fri., Nov. 8, 2019

It has been only two games since John Tavares returned from a broken finger, but he and Mitch Marner obviously haven’t lost the game- changing chemistry they have shared for much of the last calendar year.

Tavares, who missed seven games, scored the overtime winner against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, off a terrific setup from Marner, suggesting the two might be ready to overcome a slow start. Tavares, who scored 47 goals a year ago, had just three before he was sidelined with the finger injury.

The Leafs could certainly use their production. They were sitting out of a playoff spot before winning their last three games and going 4-1-1 in their last six. And while there have been plenty of reasons for the up-and- down start — including Tavares’s absence — they remain a work in progress on a host of fronts: the power play, their play in and getting out of their defensive zone, their ability to play a physical game when necessary, and more.

A return of Tavares and Marner to their 2018-19 glory would be a big boost to Toronto’s offence and possession metrics, and they will get some help when the third member of their line, Zach Hyman, makes his 2019-20 debut, likely next week.

Tavares and Marner formed one of the league’s elite pairings last season. Tavares led the NHL with 33 even-strength goals, while Marner was first with 36 primary assists. They haven’t shown the same consistency this year. Marner has just two goals at even strength, Tavares has three. Marner has 1.2 offensive point shares, compared to a career-high 7.6 a year ago.

But they haven’t had Hyman on their flank yet.

“He is obviously relentless on the forecheck, putting pressure on the opponent,” Tavares told TSN earlier this week in describing Hyman’s strengths. “(It’s) his attention to detail all over the ice and just making the game easier, because he's in the right spots. He makes it tough on the opponent causing a lot of turnovers in all three zones and he's got a good stick around the net, knows how to get open and use his body.

“He just has a good sense of who we are as players and a good sense of his game and what makes him successful.”

The rejuvenation of the Leafs’ top line from last season should relieve some of the offensive pressure that Auston Matthews and his linemates, William Nylander and Andreas Johnsson, might be feeling. Nylander has just one multi-point game this season.

And the Leafs’ return to health — Tavares, Hyman and blueliner Travis Dermott, back for four games — should also help the defence. Toronto has relied on goalie Frederik Andersen to bail out the team too often. The Leafs have the 10th-highest shots against-per-60 figures (30.79), and the 10th-highest goals against-per-60 (2.42). The Leafs have surrendered 35 or more shots in six of their 17 games, and have allowed four or more goals in seven games.

Fortunately, Andersen has improved after his annual slow start, going 7- 0-2 in his last nine games.

Toronto Star LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160643 Toronto Maple Leafs It’s never Freddie’s fault. Except the last three playoff seasons the Leafs have gone out in the first round because the other team got better goaltending. When that stops happening, the Leafs will advance.

It’s time to drop the ‘fire Mike Babcock’ narrative. Now it’s about the Beyond Matthews, Marner and Andersen, there’s very good talent, but players still a great deal of inexperience. This season has to be about whipping this group to play at a higher level of intensity and grit next spring. Remember, the Leafs led the Bruins 3-2 with Game 6 on home ice last spring. They were almost there, and then Bergeron, Marchand and Damien Cox Tuukka Rask took over. Fri., Nov. 8, 2019 This Leafs team doesn’t have more talent than last year’s. It has young players with bigger contracts, less sandpaper and a lot of players competing for third- and fourth-line ice time. It’s not yet clear whether So the early-season Maple Leafs collapse that many local hockey Cody Ceci and Tyson Barrie are an upgrade on Nikita Zaitsev and Jake observers predicted would happen — the one that would lead to the Gardiner. dismissal of head coach Mike Babcock — hasn’t happened. And it seems unlikely that it will happen. But when this team digs in, as it did in allowing two goals against the last two outings, it shows signs of becoming a more formidable and complete Instead, Babcock’s steady hand guided the club through a tough October squad. That’s not because Babcock is coaching better, or Dubas is schedule and the absences of three key regulars, and the Leafs are managing better, but because a very young team is applying the very demonstrating through a 4-1-1 streak that they will once again be a team hard lessons learned about what is required to reach the next level. to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference. It doesn’t matter what Alex Ovechkin or Drew Doughty says about the The Babcock-on-the-edge narrative always seemed a concocted Leafs and what they need to do. It matters what this group, led by some business that started last spring when some media members decided to superb but very young players, can learn about what it takes to win, and make a stink over the ice time accorded Auston Matthews in Game 7 of how fast they can learn it. Toronto’s first-round series loss to Boston. Toronto Star LOADED: 11.09.2019 Matthews played 18:48 that night, while Mitch Marner (20:53) and John Tavares (21:19) played more. Instead of perhaps wondering what qualities Babcock saw in the games of Marner and Tavares that caused him to prefer them in that game, some chose to zero in on Matthews and his minutes as the most important point. The fact Matthews didn’t play well that night — and that Boston forwards Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand played less than Matthews — didn’t penetrate the analysis of those who wanted to make it a Babcock vs. Matthews thing.

GM Kyle Dubas, meanwhile, didn’t exactly help his coach by putting on the facade of a post-playoff evaluation for a few days before confirming that Babcock would return for the 2019-20 season. As if it was ever really in doubt. Dubas is learning on the job, but he’s not stupid.

His seeming hesitation, however, fuelled the speculation that, boy-oh- boy, if the Leafs struggled out of the gate this season, Babcock would surely be canned. Instead, here we are in early November and the Leafs are on a 101-point pace.

The Leafs have the most stable ownership they’ve had since Conn Smythe. They have a deep, strong management group headed by Brendan Shanahan. They have a head coach who picked up his 700th career victory on Thursday night, something only seven other NHL bench bosses have been able to accomplish.

We can debate where Babcock stands among current NHL coaches, but it’s indisputable that there’s nobody better available to coach the team right now. You may not love his demeanour or his style or whatever, but he’s the most detailed, driven and accomplished head coach the team has had in the post-expansion era.

It’s time to drop the Babcock-on-the-firing-line narrative and make this about the players. Everything else is in place. Top to bottom, Toronto has a talented, experienced hockey operation.

Now it should be about the players.

As we’ve seen the last two games, when Matthews and Marner decide to expend the same amount of energy defending as they do attacking, the Leafs have the ability to be a solid defensive unit that nicely augments an explosive offence. Babcock will play heck out of those two when they give him that type of game. Matthews played 22:39 against the Golden Knights on Thursday and Marner played 24:09.

They are huge talents, and have been positioned to succeed by this organization, given everything a player could need. And this team will get somewhere in the playoffs not when Babcock coaches better, but when Matthews and Marner mature and demonstrate they can truly be reliable, consistent 200-foot hockey players. Until that happens, this isn’t going to be as dangerous a team as it could be.

The same goes for Freddie Andersen. Until now, Andersen has been wildly praised when he plays as he should, like in a sturdy effort Thursday against Vegas. When he hasn’t played well, the defensive shield in front of him has usually been blamed. 1160644 Toronto Maple Leafs He and others have pointed to eight of the next 10 games being away as badly needed bonding time.

“We really haven’t gone on a road trip,” Marner said of one-game jaunts. SNAPSHOTS: Maple Leafs vow to fix power play “We’re all excited. The Halloween party definitely helped (acquaint a number of newer Leafs). As our team gets more time outside of the rink, we’ll be better.”

Lance Hornby Babcock hears more gregarious chirping in the room these days, helped no doubt by the team finally getting its record over .500. November 8, 2019 6:52 PM EST “I see more abuse, which I think that’s a great thing.”

POINT AND CLICK Their power play lately looks like a nest of lab mice scurrying in a maze. In his second game back after missing a few weeks with a broken finger, But the Maple Leafs insist if the scientific field has patience, they’ll find a it was very encouraging to see Tavares make seven shot attempts on way through. Thursday and have four hit the net, including the winning goal. The assist The Leafs were a late Auston Matthews’ snipe away from an 0-for-6 night on the Matthews’ marker represented the captain’s first multi-point game and likely loss against the Knights on Thursday, while a slump of 3-for-33 since Oct. 4. since a two-goal game against Minnesota nearly a month ago remains “Timing was a little better, handling the puck, all those things,” Tavares cause for concern. said. “The finger is continuing to get better. If I’m out there, I expect to With Matthews, Mitch Marner and John Tavares headlining the first unit play at a high level (not take it easy).” and William Nylander and new defenceman Tyson Barrie on the other, LOOSE LEAFS wasn’t this supposed to be the hammer for the Leafs’ offence? Toronto hoped to grow team toughness during the season to augment And wasn’t the hiring of Florida Panthers assistant Paul McFarland their fire wagon style, but have been physically tested a lot lately. “We’ve expected to reflect that club’s success with the man advantage? been in a lot of these (grind) games it hasn’t maybe been as fluid or Head coach Mike Babcock and his staff needed the second intermission pretty as it can be with our skill and our depth,” said Tavares. “But we and a TV timeout to finally get the group settled on Thursday night. have to continue to build our game. We’re getting (points) and that’s crucial” … The Leafs have played short-handed at least once in three “Go out there and breathe,” was his advice before Matthews finally consecutive overtimes, but killed the penalty in two of them and won … scored to stop the SBA crowd’s bellyaching in an eventual 2-1 overtime Thursday marked the sixth time a Matthews goal has tied the game for win. “Just lighten up fellas, do what you’re supposed to do. Toronto this season. The rest of the team has 12 … Toronto was charged with 18 giveaways on Thursday. “The biggest thing is we’re getting to know each other. I’ve said it a number of times — I don’t know if anyone believes that — it’s easier to Toronto Sun LOADED: 11.09.2019 play with people you know.”

The Leafs used to have a penchant for dropping pucks back to a rushing member of the unit to gain speed through the neutral zone to set up, but that now seems to involve a more complicated weave that throws off their pace, and making it easy for foes to dissect. Yet Marner denies they’re discombobulated, pointing to how better puck movement is once they gain the blueline.

“I thought we were getting good entries and that was a big goal. Mats has said it before, just keep moving it around with the skill we have. In the O- zone it’s going to screw up a lot of PKs. That’s what gave us our opportunity there, you had guys running all over the place. It helped having a guy with no stick (two Vegas players lost lumber on that shift), but we were moving the puck well and moving bodies around.”

Matthews, the team leader with four power-play goals, said the Leafs eventually found a relaxed mindset.

“In the third, we pretty much said, ‘what do you have to lose’? Let’s move around, get the penalty kill thinking more. We did a really good job of different guys going to different areas and reacting, playing off our instincts. Not just drawn-up plays, but reacting off one another. We spread them out a bit and were able to score.”

MAKING WAIVES

Forward Nic Petan’s latest drop through NHL waivers saw him moved to the Marlies on Friday, while defenceman Martin Marincin went unclaimed as well, but remains with the Leafs for now.

That still leaves Toronto one man to cut off the main roster to allow Zach Hyman back under the salary cap, but with Babcock saying Hyman won’t return until next week, that decision can be put off through the back-to- back games against Philadelphia and Chicago.

Though it has not been a work of art, the Leafs are in position for their first four-game win streak since Feb. 2-9 of last season — if they get past the Flyers at home on Saturday for a third straight SBA triumph.

“We’ve stood our ground, haven’t forced too many problems for ourselves,” Marner said of the week to date. “We’ve stayed above people, made it hard to get into our zone. (Versus Vegas) we did a good job supporting each other in the slot.” 1160645 Vegas Golden Knights Wilson did not participate in the Capitals’ optional practice Friday and was not available to the media.

“If he feels that something needs to be done, I’m more than willing to Ryan Reaves ready to renew rivalry with Washington’s Tom Wilson answer the bell. I think everybody knows that,” Reaves said. “And if he doesn’t think anything needs to be done and he wants to play hockey, we can play hockey.”

By David Schoen To that end, Reaves hopes a victory over the league-leading Capitals (12-2-3, 27 points) can be a springboard for the Knights, who have blown November 8, 2019 - 6:07 PM third-period leads in three of their past four.

The Knights were unable to hold the lead in Toronto on Thursday and lost 2-1 in overtime but have secured three of a maximum four points to start this four-game road trip. WASHINGTON — Ryan Reaves didn’t wink or make a sly smile or do anything else that would give off the impression he was trying to troll “At some point, there’s a tipping point where you have that one good Washington’s Tom Wilson. game against a good team that seems to bring everything together and then all of a sudden it starts clicking,” Reaves said. “I think we keep The Golden Knights’ rugged right wing genuinely meant the following coming out with the right intentions. We just have to finish, and comment: (Saturday) is going to be a good test.”

“To be honest, I feel like I might like Tom Wilson off the ice,” Reaves said LAS VEGAS REVIEW JOURNAL LOADED: 11.09.2019 Friday. “I don’t know him. I’ve heard some good things about him.”

Say whaaaaat???!!!

Reaves and Wilson have been two of the league’s toughest heavyweights since the latter entered the league in 2013 and have had multiple run-ins the past six seasons, including a memorable flashpoint that went viral from their most recent meeting in December.

But as they prepare to renew the rivalry Saturday when the Knights make their lone regular-season visit to Capital One Arena, Reaves provided a unique perspective on what makes it different than his feud with San Jose’s Evander Kane.

“It’s funny in hockey, you have rivalries on the ice where you look like you want to kill each other, and it’s true. On the ice, I absolutely do, for both those guys,” Reaves said following the Knights’ practice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. “But I’ve had rivalries in the (American Hockey League) before where I’ve fought a guy and gone out for beers with him after. That’s just how sports is sometimes.

“I’m sure we’re never going to be friends on the ice. I’m sure it’s not going to start (Saturday), but I think it is a little bit different with me and him than with me and Kane.”

Unlike his deeply personal conflict with Kane — Reaves has refused to comment on Kane’s pending legal issues with The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas —the battle with Wilson is more akin to two alphas trying to establish who is the neighborhood’s toughest dude.

“You can look around the league, and there’s not many Tom Wilsons or there’s not many Ryan Reaves, those types of players. Big, physical guys,” Knights coach Gerard Gallant said. “When they play their hard game, it’s tough to play against them and compete against them.”

Although they’ve fought only twice in the regular season, and not since 2014 when Reaves dropped the 6-foot-4-inch, 220-pound Wilson with a right hand to the ear, there have been several notable incidents.

During Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2018, Reaves was penalized for clocking Wilson in the face with a punch/cross-check as the Capitals’ enforcer skated over to protect a fallen teammate. The two targeted each other the remainder of the five-game series won by Washington.

But everything came to a head in the Knights’ 5-3 victory on Dec. 4.

In the second period, Reaves blindsided Wilson after he released a pass, knocking off his helmet. Wilson hit his head on the ice and suffered a concussion as a result.

Reaves was issued a five-minute major penalty for interference and a game misconduct, and one quote from his postgame interview quickly spread on social media.

“He was just looking at his pass and ran into a lion in the jungle,” Reaves said.

The next day, Reaves was widely criticized after he signed several pictures of the play that included the inscription “He ran into a lion in the jungle” for a Las Vegas-based memorabilia dealer. He apologized, and the pictures were destroyed, according to a Knights spokesperson. 1160646 Vegas Golden Knights

Golden Knights’ VP of entertainment Jonny Greco steps down

By David Schoen

November 8, 2019 - 5:56 PM

WASHINGTON — The mastermind behind the Golden Knights’ popular pregame show is leaving the organization.

Jonny Greco stepped down as vice president of entertainment and production to take a job with Madison Square Garden, the team confirmed Friday.

“We are excited for Jonny as he pursues this tremendous opportunity in his home state of New York,” team president Kerry Bubolz said in a statement. “We will miss his positivity, passion, innovation and the contagious enthusiasm he has for creating memorable experiences. Jonny was instrumental in helping build the world class in-game entertainment that our organization has become synonymous with.”

Greco, who was unavailable for comment, joined the Knights in April 2017 after five years with World Wrestling Entertainment as senior director, live event producer.

Prior to that, the native of Oneonta, New York, was the director of video production for the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers from 2004 to 2011 and manager of video production for the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2002 to 2004, claiming multiple industry awards along the way.

Greco’s production team earned acclaim during the Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018.

The extravagant pregame shows featured the Knights mascot vanquishing their series opponent, which notably included slicing an animated jet in half during the Western Conference Final against Winnipeg.

“He has been an outstanding leader and we have full confidence in our production team that the Vegas Golden Knights fan experience will continue to thrive, innovate and set the standard across all of sports after his departure,” Bubolz said. “Jonny will always be Vegas Born. We wish him and his family all the best on this new adventure.”

It’s a bet

Defenseman Nate Schmidt, who attended Minnesota, is pumped for Saturday’s football game between the undefeated Golden Gophers and No. 5 Penn State.

But he’s even more invested in the Big Ten hockey series between his alma mater and Michigan, where fellow defenseman Jon Merrill played for three seasons.

“Jonny Merrill and I have a nice little side wager,” Schmidt said. “No money, no monetary.”

When asked if he’ll have to wear a Michigan hat if he loses, Schmidt replied: “Maybe a little bit better. Might be some shaving of letters into the chest.”

Knights fight cancer

The Knights will host their annual Hockey Fights Cancer Night on Nov. 21, when they play San Jose.

The team will wear lavender Hockey Fights Cancer jerseys that will be auctioned to benefit organizations that help with early detection and/or screening for those who can’t afford it.

Defenseman Shea Theodore, who was treated for testicular cancer this summer, will serve as the team’s spokesperson for the league-wide initiative.

The Vegas Golden Knights Foundation will present a $75,000 check to pediatric cancer organizations alongside children from the Candlelighters organization.

LAS VEGAS REVIEW JOURNAL LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160647 Vegas Golden Knights “I think I have a lot more to give,” Glass said. “I think I show spurts of it throughout the game, there will be a couple of shifts, I just need to be more consistent in my game and play more dominant with how I know I can play. I think it’s only going to get better from here.” Golden Knights’ Cody Glass proving he belongs in NHL Glass has been a good fit in the VGK family off the ice as well.

The shift in hockey culture over the years may have played a role in his By Justin Emerson smooth assimilation. The rookie hazing and veterans chirping young players are no longer as prevalent. Pacioretty says he views Glass not as Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019 | 2 a.m. a rookie in need of mentoring, but as just another teammate.

“I have nothing to complain about,” Glass said. “They’ve been really Cody Glass was dubbed the future the second that Vegas took him with awesome to me and that’s something I really love seeing as a rookie the first draft pick in franchise history. Scoring in his debut against San coming in.” Jose in the season opener didn’t dampen the excitement, and a month The downside to Glass' promotion is the age difference. Not only is he into what should be a long career, Glass has looked every bit the player younger than most of the roster (the average age is 29), most of the team the Golden Knights hoped he would be. is married with kids. When the team is at home, as it has been for nine of “I think Cody knows he’s an NHL player now, so he’s just developing 15 games, the veterans spend time with their families. every game, getting better every game, getting stronger,” coach Gerard Although teammates often invite him over for dinner, those opportunities Gallant said. “But the biggest thing is for those young kids when they are limited. come in and play some games and they have some success, it’s the confidence level. His confidence is good and he looks like a dangerous “We’re coming up to a stretch here where we’re on the road more and it player every time he’s on the ice.” will be easier to go out with the guys,” defenseman Deryk Engelland said. “Guys like him, it’s a lot more difficult here at home when 95% of the Outside of his boyish face, there aren’t many indicators that the 20-year- team has kids and you’re at home with family and he’s one of the select old Glass isn’t an established NHL player. He’s listed at 6-foot-2 and 192 few that doesn’t have a family here.” pounds, right about league average. He’s got seven points in 15 games, seventh among league rookies. The NHL game hasn’t fazed him, As the Golden Knights embark on a four-game road trip starting tonight in although he conceded that playing against Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby Columbus, it gives Glass even more bonding time with teammates. He had him star-struck during warmups. also appreciates life on the road, with the comfortable air travel and luxury hotels. Last year with Portland of the , he Perhaps most important, the Golden Knights trust him. He started the was accustomed to long bus rides for road games. year centering Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty, and although he’s played on Cody Eakin’s wing since Eakin returned from injury, Glass is regularly “Here you fly out the day before, two days before, so that’s kind of a nice on the power play setting everyone up. twist,” Glass said. “I’ve been enjoying it so far here.”

“He’s just a confident kid that goes out there and sees a play and makes Glass, meanwhile, still lives in a hotel. Even though he can’t yet order a it, and more often than not, much more often than not, it’s the right play,” cocktail when the team goes out for dinner, it might be time for the Pacioretty said. “He gets better and better every game, and it’s only a budding star to go ahead and make that down payment on a home soon. matter of time before he’s going to be dominant in the league.” He’ll be here awhile.

Glass’ ability to distribute on the power play is his best attribute and LAS VEGAS SUN LOADED: 11.09.2019 among the best on the team. His best play so far came at home against Nashville on Oct. 15 when he drifted across the crease in front of Predators goalie Pekka Rinne. He then exchanged the puck with Paul Stastny, moved back in front of Rinne to set a screen and caught Mark Stone out of the corner of his eye.

He took Stastny’s return pass and, knowing Stone would move to the slot, dished him a no-look pass that Stone buried. All four Nashville penalty killers had Stone surrounded, but Glass found him in a tight window without looking up. Watch just how close Ryan Ellis (No. 4) comes to getting his stick on the puck.

Glass and Stastny have developed a strong chemistry with the extra man, also connecting on a goal in Pittsburgh on Oct. 19. Glass dumped the puck and while three Penguins converged, Glass moved to the center of the ice. Stastny saw the Penguins out of position, too, and stayed near the faceoff dot. Stone got the puck out of the boards, and it made its way to Glass, who found a wide-open Stastny for an easy goal.

Again, it’s Glass' speed in getting rid of the puck that makes the play work. Three Pittsburgh penalty killers went to the puck, but if Glass were a split-second slower, Jack Johnson (No. 3) would have broken up the play.

His 5-on-5 play hasn’t kept pace with his power-play prowess (three of his seven points). Part of that disparity is his linemates. In 38:28 of ice time with Stone and Pacioretty, Glass helped the Golden Knights get 56.9% of shot attempts, 57.5% of expected goals and 58.5% of scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Eakin and Glass have been together at 5-on-5 for 92:58. In that time, the Golden Knights have 41.4% of shot attempts, 41.4% of expected goals and 47% of scoring chances. In those instances, Glass has played right wing instead of center.

Granted, players will be better on a line with Pacioretty and Stone, and Stastny statistically has shined as their center. But it’s fair to wonder if Glass’ on-ice performance would improve with other linemates or if he played center. 1160648 Vegas Golden Knights

Golden Knights Entertainment Chief Greco Leaving VGK For New York

November 8, 2019

By Alan Snel

The Vegas Golden Knights’ Mr. Entertainment, Jonny Greco, is leaving the Knights for a new job in New York.

Greco, who had a formal title of vice president for events and entertainment, oversaw the Knights’ over-the-top, colorful pregame shows and off-ice fan entertainment programs.

The Golden Knights sent a statement from VGK President Kerry Bubolz about Greco leaving the Knights: “We are excited for Jonny as he pursues this tremendous opportunity in his home state of New York. We will miss his positivity, passion, innovation and the contagious enthusiasm he has for creating memorable experiences. Jonny was instrumental in helping build the world class in-game entertainment that our organization has become synonymous with.

“He has been an outstanding leader and we have full confidence in our Production Team that the Vegas Golden Knights fan experience will continue to thrive, innovate and set the standard across all of sports after his departure. Jonny will always be Vegas Born. We wish him and his family all the best on this new adventure.”

Greco is from a small upstate city named Oneonta in central New York state. Greco’s next stopin New York is part of a very diverse sports entertainment career for the much traveled entertainment producer/creator/designer. He worked for the Marlins in Major League Baseball as a producer/editor; the NHL Columbus Blue Jackets as video production manager; the NFL, NBA and Olympics on special events and the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers from 2004-11. And he has also spent time with the WWE.

Jesse Granger, who covers the Golden Knights for The Athletic, wrote in a Tweet that Greco was heading to Madison Square Garden.

Greco could not be reached for comment. The Knights declined to discuss Greco’ next job in New York.

In an August 2017 LVSportsBiz.com story, Greco talked about creating the colorful Golden Knights pregame shows and off-ice entertainment programs. The story includes a video of Greco discussing his VGK job.

LVSportsBiz.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160649 Washington Capitals was last season’s Phoenix team, which had 16 shorthanded goals. Calgary led the league with 18.

“I think we got it,” Arniel said. “As a coaching staff, we like what we are Capitals’ penalty kill is excelling as it plays with controlled aggression seeing. They are recognizing. We aren’t telling them go here or you shouldn’t go here. That’s the worst thing you can do on the ice as a player.”

Samantha Pell Specifically, the defensemen on the penalty kill have been a big boost, with Gudas and Siegenthaler the first ones over the boards. Arniel said November 8, 2019 at 11:34 AM EST the unit’s biggest asset is the ability not to use the team’s top players on the penalty kill all the time.

The Washington Capitals’ mentality on the penalty kill is fairly simple: If A prime example is John Carlson. If the Capitals are able to use players you catch a power play that is tired or has a sloppy pass and you get the such as Gudas, Siegenthaler, Michal Kempny and Nick Jensen on the chance to go, then go. Go and make it hard on the opposition by penalty kill most of the time, then Carlson is freed up to join the kill with anticipating the next play and use your aggressiveness and quickness to only 30 seconds to go. Then the Capitals are able to get their top line of your advantage. Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie over the boards when the kill is finished, and now they are part of the offensive rush, which is a But don’t forget, when you decide to go, to make sure you’re playing with good chance to catch some teams tired. controlled aggression. If the opposing power play is content with playing on the outside, know when to make your move. If they are creeping in, “We are in a better situation because we have more natural killers,” make the correct read and you’re given the green light to attack. Arniel said.

“We’ve done a good job at getting our looks and knowing the right time to Washington Post LOADED: 11.09.2019 attack and try to score and there are other times when we need to get our bodies off the ice and get fresh ones out there,” said Capitals assistant coach , who is in charge of the penalty-killing unit. “The guys have been very good in that department.”

While the Capitals lost penalty kill stalwarts Matt Niskanen and Brooks Orpik in the offseason, they found skilled penalty killers with Carl Hagelin, who was acquired at last year’s trade deadline; Garnet Hathaway; Radko Gudas; and Jonas Siegenthaler, who has a much bigger role. Siegenthaler, Gudas and Hagelin lead the team in shorthanded ice time, and the tweaks in personnel and the system have the Capitals’ unit clicking.

In 17 games, the Capitals’ penalty kill ranks eighth in the league at 85.7 percent. Since Oct. 29, the Capitals have killed off 15 of 17 power plays (88.2 percent). Through the same amount of games last year, the Capitals were ranked 28th in the leagueat 72.7 percent.

The improved efficiency began after the Capitals acquired Hagelin; the penalty kill ranked 13th in the league during the final 22 games of 2018- 19. Washington ultimately finished 24th in the NHL at 78.9 percent.

In the Capitals’ 5-4 overtime win Thursday against the Florida Panthers, the unit allowed only one goal despite being forced to kill off back-to-back penalties twice in the second period. The one tally finally came on the fourth kill of the night.

“It starts with the mind-set, guys that really want to kill and do it for the team and take pride in it, and I think it starts there,” Hagelin said. “Then once you start feeling good and the season rolls on, you need your goalie to make key stops on the PK and sacrificing your body.”

The Capitals entered last season seeking to be more aggressive on the penalty kill, but they soon realized at times that meant they were too aggressive, which ended up with opportune chances for opposing power plays. Arniel described the unit as “all over the map.”

“Just an all-out blitz all the time. It didn’t work so good for us at times last year, so we found a real good balance there,” Arniel said.

Players are better this season at making the correct reads, recognizing when they need to attack in “trigger situations” and also when to fall back if the opposition wants to stay on the edges. Arniel said he no longer tells his unit what to do on the ice; they’re doing it on the go.

For example, if opponents are coming below the hash marks, the defensemen know what they are supposed to do without thinking about it. If the opposing forwards are working up the half wall, the Capitals’ forwards understand how to cut that off as they anticipate the next play. The group has also put an extra emphasis on its shared clears shorthanded, an area Arniel said has vastly improved. Maybe a player doesn’t have a good look to shoot it down the ice, but he can bump it 10 feet to someone who can, which can lead to opportunities.

“As a group, we’ve done a better job at helping each other,” Arniel said.

The Capitals are tied for fourth in the league with three shorthanded goals. Arniel said a good example of a systematically sound penalty kill 1160650 Washington Capitals hamstring surgery and didn’t have much of a training camp. Let’s give him a pass until he has a few weeks to work his way back into form. He does have three goals and nine assists in nine games.

The Capitals look like a team intent on reclaiming the Stanley Cup Nick Jensen is the one concern at 45.9 shots-for percentage on the ice. Radko Gudas (48.7) and Dmitry Orlov (49.5) are still working on their chemistry so that bears watching. Jonas Siegenthaler (52.4) began the year with Carlson and has slid down to the third pair, but he’s making the By Brian McNally November 08, 2019 6:13 PM most of it. He’s a shot-blocking machine. Let’s see if this group can string together a few weeks of good health now that Kempny is back.

WASHINGTON — You might not have noticed and it is hard to blame Otherwise, the Capitals have done fine on special teams. Their 26.8 you. percent on the power play is a little high, but the goal was to become less predictable, still use their strengths and get back into the NHL’s top 10. The Nationals just had an October for the ages, winning D.C.’s first World Mission accomplished. The penalty kill was an area they needed to Series in 95 years. The Redskins are a soap opera. The Trent Williams upgrade. So far, so good at 85.7%, which ranks eighth in the league. saga is sad and embarrassing. The Mystics won their first championship in October, a goofy, lovable team with the best basketball player on the With seven games left before Thanksgiving – always a good early planet leading the way. benchmark which comes 24 games into the season – the Capitals are in position to force everyone else in the Metropolitan Division to chase them The team that started this era of sports good feeling in Washington flew as they go for a fifth straight division title. They have remained relatively totally under the radar. And that’s fine. The Capitals are exactly where healthy save for forward Richard Panik, who could return Monday. they want to be: In the mix for the Stanley Cup again. There’s a long way to go, but it’s a good place to be.

There’s no other way to look at it. A rough October schedule, with nine Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 road games and 10 against teams that made the Stanley Cup playoffs last season, proved no problem. The momentum has carried into November.

Heading into Saturday’s home game against the Vegas Golden Knights, a rematch of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final, the Capitals have the best record in the NHL. Let that sink in. They are 12-2-3. They are eight points ahead of Pittsburgh and Carolina and nine ahead of Philadelphia.

The New York Islanders had to go unbeaten in 10 games to even keep pace and they are still four points back of Washington. This start could not have gone better. Points are banked. The top players are all mostly rolling. The consensus was age might catch up to the Capitals. Alex Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie, Braden Holtby and Nicklas Backstrom are all over 30 now and John Carlson will join them in January.

Yet Ovechkin has 13 goals in 17 games and is on pace for 63 goals. Carlson has gone bananas with 26 points. He is on pace to shatter the single-season points record for a Caps’ defenseman (Hockey Hall-of- Famer Larry Murphy has 81 in 1986-87). Oshie is on pace for 38 goals and 58 points.

Shooting percentages matter and Oshie won’t sustain 27.6%. Does it matter? The Capitals have already banked 68 goals as a team. That’s 2009-10 territory when Washington led the NHL with 313 goals, a legendary team. Since the 2004-05 lockout, only last year’s Lightning have done better (319).

Now things didn’t go well for either of those teams in the playoffs. We won’t talk about that. But Washington, at least, is in a different place now. It has that elusive Stanley Cup. A large chunk of this roster proved it could blend that skill with relentless two-way, physical play. The Capitals aren’t trying to prove anything anymore. The banner has been hung.

Tom Wilson, 26, and Jakub Vrana, 23, needed to take a leap as the younger players in the top six just to take the pressure off the veterans. They’ve done it. Wilson hadn’t yet played a game at this time last season thanks to a long suspension. He has seven goals and seven assists already, including the OT winner at Florida on Thursday.

Vrana is at nine goals and five assists. Both players are on pace to set career highs in all categories. Wilson had 40 points (22 goals, 18 assists) and Vrana had 47 points (24 goals, 23 assists) last season. Shooting percentages will come down (19.4 for Wilson and 18.8 for Vrana), but the underlying stats are excellent.

Maybe you’d like to see Evgeny Kuznetsov (14 points) and Nicklas Backstrom (13 points) catch fire. But Kuznetsov has settled in after missing three games for an NHL-mandated suspension. If both players approach 70 points, that’s fine. Backstrom is off that pace for now. History says he’ll be fine.

You can nit pick. Braden Holtby’s numbers improved in goal as October flipped to November. But that .895 save percentage needs to keep rising and rookie Samsonov (.915) has been solid, but he’s also played six NHL games. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

The blueline remains a work-in-progress. Carlson has been productive, his partners not so much. Michal Kempny is trying to return from 1160651 Washington Capitals

For Nicklas Backstrom, Hockey Fights Cancer Month is personal to his family

By Julia Karron November 08, 2019 10:06 AM

November is the NHL's Hockey Fights Cancer Month, and players like TJ Oshie are already starting to grow in their mustaches for "Movember."

But for Nicklas Backstrom, Hockey Fights Cancer Month means even more to him, as his mother is a breast cancer survivor.

Backstrom explained to Rob Carlin and Michael Jenkins in the most recent episode of the Capitals Talk Podcast that his parents waited almost a month to tell him about his mother's diagnosis.

"Obviously it was tough," Backstrom said. "I remember that too, we lost against was it maybe (New York) Rangers round two, and I just remember my mom and dad kept (from) telling me before the round was over so I could just focus on hockey instead of getting that into my head while we were playing in the playoffs."

After the Caps lost to the Rangers, Backstrom's focus became helping his mom get healthy again.

"They waited like, two-three weeks, maybe even a month to tell me until my season was done," Backstrom recalled. "I mean on top of the playoff loss, you get that, but honestly it was one priority, to get her healthy."

Since then, Hockey Fights Cancer Month has been something Backstrom identifies with even more now that he has a personal connection to the disease.

"I think the whole concept of NHL doing this (Hockey Fights Cancer Month) and us as players, we're all supporting it," Backstrom noted.

"I think it's too common now in the world we live in. It's shown up friends, families, yeah everyone knows someone that's going through it. So I mean I think it's such an important subject that we gotta talk about, and we gotta help out, we gotta do everything we can to make this a better place for us so we don't have to worry about cancer anymore. But obviously that's the way it is right now, we gotta do our best to stick together and work through it."

The Caps will celebrate Hockey Fights Cancer Month on November 23 when they take on the Vancouver Canucks. In addition to donning lavender jerseys, Backstrom will wear purple skate blades to honor his mother.

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160652 Washington Capitals

‘It was special’: Nicklas Backstrom weighs in on connection between Capitals and Nationals

By Ryan Wormeli November 07, 2019 3:48 PM

The comparisons were inevitable. Local team, coming off several terrific regular seasons defined by postseason failures. Early struggles within the year, and whispers that the window was closed for good. A hot streak. A few elimination games. A wild postseason ride. The first title.

The 2018 Washington Capitals and 2019 Washington Nationals will forever be linked thanks to their similarities and, of course, their championships.

Longtime Capital Nicklas Backstrom spoke with NBC Sports Washington in an exclusive interview about the link between Washington, D.C.’s victors.

“I think it’s important,” Backstrom explained. “We’re both locals, and I think teams need that. Get a little spark from each other, get helped out...there’s nothing bad about it if they feel our support. I mean we feel their support all the time. I think it’s just a positive thing. And it looks like it helped.”

The postseason runs for each team were remarkably similar, even coming down to which games were won. In the Eastern Conference Final, the Caps won the first two games on the road, then lost the next three, only to come back and win the final two games to take the best-of- seven series.

The Nationals, of course, followed the same pattern in the World Series.

It wasn’t just the championships that brought the two franchises together, but their entertaining celebrations as well.

“When they came in there we just saw how happy they were,” Backstrom said while describing the Nats’ appearance at a recent Caps game. “and I was thinking about our Cup run, how we celebrated, how happy we were after.”

The Nats’ antics received a seal of approval from Backstrom and the Capitals.

“And I honestly say they did a good job partying too,” Backstrom continued to many laughs. “I think they felt a little pressure from us, but I gotta say when they took their shirts off on the Zamboni that was money. It’s just fun too, to talk to those players about the games. They were telling us their experience and like you’re thinking ‘oh yeah, that’s exactly what I felt too.’ Doesn’t matter what kind of sport it is, it’s the same mentality...I couldn’t keep my eyes off them.”

The shared experience culminated with a cathartic moment for Nationals and Capitals fans everywhere, with the two teams singing “” in unison.

“That was great, that was special,” Backstrom said. “Playing that song, all of us were just holding each other, it was special, that’s for sure. I mean being able to celebrate with them, what they’ve been through, kind of the same scenario as us. To be able to share that with them after our game, that was special.”

The most accurate quote of the interview is Backstrom’s last, four words that perfectly encapsulate how the nation’s capital felt about both franchises breaking through 16 months apart.

“And everyone loved it.”

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160653 Winnipeg Jets other fivesome included Connor, Mark Scheifele, Nikolaj Ehlers, Andrew Copp and Josh Morrissey.

"That was good to see the guys go out there first and hem them in, they Hellebuyck backstops Jets to 4-1 win over Canucks could have easily had one. Draw one right after and get rewarded. That was definitely a big point in the game," said Wheeler.

Winnipeg continued to come on strong after Roslovic’s goal, and took the Mike McIntyre lead exactly five minutes later when Connor made a nifty zone entry and took a shot on Demko, who kicked out a juicy rebound right on to Posted: 11/8/2019 9:40 PM | Last Modified: 11/8/2019 11:13 PM Scheifele’s stick. The No. 1 centre’s sixth of the year on a slick deke gave Winnipeg a 2-1 lead.

An incredible toe save on Elias Pettersson. A breakaway stop on Jake The Jets dominated the middle frame, outshooting the Canucks 19-9. Virtanen. And a miraculous goal-line glove grab on Bo Horvat. Hellebuyck’s robbery of Pettersson, Virtanen and Horvat in the third Take a bow, Connor Hellebuyck. The man continues to leave opponents period kept the Jets in the lead. Off the ensuing faceoff following the shaking their heads in amazement and frustration. His latest performance Horvat save, old friend Tyler Myers, who signed with Vancouver in the came Friday night at Bell MTS Place as the Winnipeg Jets beat the summer, bobbled a puck at the Winnipeg blue line and a streaking Vancouver Canucks 4-1. Connor burst in on a breakaway, beating Demko to give the Jets breathing room with just over six minutes to play. Hellebuyck made 32 stops and definitely saved his best for the last period, with three highlight-reel stops that came with his team clinging to "I don’t know if you want to call it a TSN turning point but I think there a one-goal lead. might be some thought there," Hellebuyck.

"Helly was outstanding when we needed him to be. He’s stood tall for us As for the goal, Connor’s sweet moves had the whole Jets bench in awe. all year. Any time he has a bad game or gets challenged, he comes back "Those hands are special. He’s definitely found something there with that and plays outstanding hockey. It’s my favourite part about him," said little move. Get him alone and he’s got a lot of confidence right now," said captain Blake Wheeler. Wheeler. Winnipeg improved to 9-7-1 and has points in six of its last eight games "He’s been a guy that’s been a goal scorer at a high level his entire life. (5-2-1), while Vancouver dropped to 9-5-3. For him, the missing piece was confidence. Give him a little bit of Jets head coach Paul Maurice shuffled the lineup for the game, hoping to confidence and get him some opportunities in tight, he’s definitely got the find some signs of offensive life after a recent stretch where scoring has hands to put it in the net. He’s a very special player." been tough to come by. While it was far from perfect, there were some Adam Lowry sealed it with an empty-net goal, his first point of the encouraging signs — even if they took a while to arrive. season. It was the most unselfish play you’ll ever see, with Perreault "I thought we came out with a lot of energy, a lot of fire in our step. passing to Lowry, who initially gave up the easy goal by sliding the puck Maybe it was the lines, maybe guys just had a lot of energy. I thought we to Copp on the doorstep and then getting it right back. played well, I thought we played a team game and we got better as the As part of the juggled lineup, Wheeler shifted from his usual spot at right game went along," said Hellebuyck, who is showing off his Vezina wing on the top line to centre the second unit with Ehlers and Roslovic. Trophy-finalist form of two seasons ago. Scheifele was in the middle of a line with Laine and Connor. Joona Luoto "I thought we had a spark, good jump. We were working together as a made his NHL debut, playing on a fourth line with 19-year-old David team, there was no one man trying to do it all himself. It was a good team Gustafsson and fellow Moose call-up Logan Shaw. The third win." line was Perreault, Copp and Lowry.

After a scoreless, rather sleepy opening period, it looked like it might be "Everybody can play with anybody, pretty much, on the team. We’ve more of the same for a Jets team coming off a frustrating 2-1 shootout been pretty familiar with a lot of the guys and we switch it up quite a bit. loss to the New Jersey Devils and with a Vancouver team that played the There’s no foreign players, nobody’s first time playing together. I think we night before in Chicago. When J.T. Miller gave the visitors the lead early read off each other. Specifically for our line, I think we all can make in the second period, you could feel the collective sigh of "Here we go plays, But that’s not our starting foundation. We’ve got to take care of our again," from many in the crowd. own zone and move quick, that’s where we get our success," said Connor. Jets defenceman Dmitry Kulikov lost his man, Miller, in front of the net, and the Vancouver forward had the easy tap-in after a great pass from The four-game homestand continues Sunday afternoon with the Dallas Troy Stecher. Stars paying a visit. Puck drop is 1 p.m. The Jets wrap things up Tuesday night by hosting the Colorado Avalanche. But then came a pair of back-to-back power plays, which helped Winnipeg grab some momentum. Although the first attempt came up Winnipeg Free Press LOADED 11.09.2019 empty with Horvat in the box for tripping, the Jets spent the entire two minutes in the Canucks’ zone and did everything but score. They immediately drew another minor, this time to Jay Beagle for holding, and their work in the offensive zone paid off.

Jack Roslovic scored at 11:54 of the middle frame on a great individual effort, deking through traffic, firing a shot on goalie Thatcher Demko and then burying the rebound to tie the game. It was Roslovic’s third goal of the season.

"I think we had two minutes of zone time there, a couple great looks. That’s what you want on a power play, you want to get momentum for your team. And we certainly did that. We got another one right away and the other unit was just as effective. With the way they were moving, too, they were able to bury it," said forward Kyle Connor.

Wheeler drew an assist, his first power-play point of the season. That’s noteworthy, considering it took 17 games to get one after he recorded 33 last season — 10th-best in the NHL.

His helper came on a new-look unit in which Wheeler, Roslovic, Patrik Laine, Mathieu Perreault and Neal Pionk were grouped together. The 1160654 Winnipeg Jets "The biggest thing is his work ethic. You watch him every shift and he just doesn't stop, and that's his mindset. He stood out at camp for doing all the right things. He plays his position, blocks shots, goes hard for pucks," said Shaw. "You want to make your mark on the third or fourth lines, it's A pinch of grit and a dash of speed all the little things that make a difference.

"I hope he realizes — and I've talked to him as well about it — but sometimes those little things like blocking a shot or chipping the puck out Jason Bell don't look like much, but for coaches and an organization they go a long Posted: 11/8/2019 8:03 PM | Last Modified: 11/9/2019 12:08 AM way."

Luoto is a year older than Laine and they played together as youngsters growing up in Tampere. Laine was drafted second overall in 2016 and Winnipeg Jets' Joona Luoto knows just what kind of player he is. stepped immediately into the NHL from of the SM-Liiga, while Luoto joined the same Finnish pro club that fall and played for three Joona Luoto has never experienced an identity crisis as a hockey player. seasons. The Finnish-born forward understood quite early on the qualities he'd They're living together in Winnipeg, along with Laine's mother, Tuija. need to demonstrate in order to develop his game, turn the right heads and, ultimately, earn a living. "We've been friends for many years. He's been really grinding his way to the NHL and always one of the hardest-working guys. He played bottom- Wisely, he's made no attempt to reinvent himself in his first professional six minutes but I never heard him complain, so that tells you what kind of season in North America. guy he is," said Laine. "It's pretty unbelievable and it's great for me, too, "Of course, there were guys who were scoring like (Sidney) Crosby and as a friend." (Alex) Ovechkin, but I figured it out that I wasn't like those guys. I'm more Luoto had never seen an NHL regular-season game live, so he was deep like a grinder, going different ways at high speed, and that's more my in the fray for his first. game," Luoto said Friday morning, hours before his NHL debut with the Winnipeg Jets. "It's a 27-hour flight and I was always in Europe," he said

"Just keep those legs going and battle hard and protect the puck and Ville Heinola made quite the impression in Winnipeg but has decided to make plays. I like to play hard all the time. I like to give all that I got on head home. the ice, that's my game." The 18-year-old defenceman, who made the Jets roster out of training Luoto is the fourth Winnipeg skater to suit up for his first-ever NHL game camp just months after being drafted, is returning to Finland and will play this season, joining defenceman Ville Heinola, centre Dvid Gustafsson for Lukko Rauma of the Finnish Liiga for the rest of theseason. and winger C.J. Suess. Heinola has a clause in his three-year, entry-level contract that allows Luoto was promoted Thursday from the of the AHL. In him to return home instead of remaining in the AHL with the Moose. The nine games under Moose head coach , the 22-year-old undisputed surprise of training camp, Heinola had five points (1G, 4A) in undrafted winger had three assists. eight games for the Jets this season and added an assist in three games with the Moose. "Just keep those legs going and battle hard and protect the puck and make plays. I like to play hard all the time. I like to give all that I got on The Honkajoki, Finland product made his NHL debut and recorded his the ice, that's my game." first point (an assist) on Oct. 3 in New York against the Rangers. He scored his first goal Oct. 8 against the Penguins in Pittsburgh. – Joona Luoto He won a gold medal with Finland at the 2019 world junior championship It might well be an extended stay as the Jets have four forwards out long and will likely play a major role at this year's tournament in the Czech term — Bryan Little (perforated eardrum, vertigo), Mark Letestu (illness), Republic. Mason Appleton (foot) and Gabriel Bourque (lower body). Winnipeg Free Press LOADED 11.09.2019 So, Patrik Laine's childhood friend, signed to a three-year, two-way contract in mid-June, received the call from the big club and, at 6-3, 192 pounds, was expected to offer some physicality on the left side on a fourth line with Gustafsson and Logan Shaw — two guys who also started the year in the minors.

Luoto stood out at Winnipeg's development camp in late June, at times looking like a man against boys, and followed up with a solid training camp, showing some strong skating and a willingness to fight for pucks.

The jump to the NHL came much quicker than he'd envisioned.

"Actually, I wouldn't believe that I am here now. I thought it's going to take me a long time to change my game to the North American style, the smaller rink. But it was a good thing to know that I could play and there was really nothing different than back home," said Luoto, who was afforded plenty of opportunity to impress in the pre-season, suiting up for five games, scoring once and adding an assist.

"The biggest thing is his work ethic. You watch him every shift and he just doesn't stop, and that's his mindset. He stood out at camp for doing all the right things. He plays his position, blocks shots, goes hard for pucks."

– Logan Shaw on Joona Luoto

"I got a good training camp. I got here and didn't have to stress about anything, I just came here and played hockey and I think I've played pretty good. Of course, this is what I've been working on, and now it's here and I'm really excited."

Shaw, 27, who has 182 NHL games under his belt split between the Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks and Montreal Canadiens, said his young linemate with the gritty style gained the immediate respect of his Moose teammates. 1160655 Winnipeg Jets It has come to our attention we went an entire week without mentioning our favourite NHL mascot.

That’s simply unacceptable, and so we present to you a double dose of Survey says: these guys like Winnipeg Gritty in an attempt to make amends.

(Truth be told, it’s Mike who’s borderline obsessed with the furry orange freak, while Jay simply tolerates it all) Posted: 11/8/2019 1:18 PM First up is some comedy, with Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas being the target as he’s repeatedly interrupted during his Hockey Night In Canada stand-up. Ever feel like you just can’t get clean, no matter how hard you scrub? Must be a Winnipeg thing. The shaving cream at the end was a perfect touch.

We say that, of course, with tongue firmly planted in cheek. Earlier this Then, Gritty showed there’s a softer side to go with all the shenanigans. week in an ESPN poll of 50 NHL players, the Manitoba capital was listed It all began with a letter from a little boy. as the NHL city they least enjoy visiting on the road. Dear Gritty, "It's always cold," one player said. "Tough rink to play in. It's just dirty — you walk around the city and feel like you need to wash your face after I love you, Gritty. My name is Jack Patrick Callahan. I am three years old. you go outside. So nothing about it is very exciting." I am from Charlottesville, Virginia. I am in the hospital in Philadelphia. I want to be you for Halloween. I want a Gritty cake for my birthday, too. Another said, "Winnipeg is just depressing. You don't even want to leave My birthday is October 30th. I love you. Where are you from? What food the hotel to get a cup of coffee." do you like to eat? I am your biggest fan in the world, and I love you."

For the record, Mike and Jay are very proud to call Winnipeg home. Turns out Jack Callahan is battling a rare form of cancer, and his We’ve raised our families here and carved out terrific lives, while incredible story is beautifully documented here. maintaining the Dump & Chase corporate offices in the heart of the city. As you can see, Gritty (and the Philadelphia Flyers organization) made This weekly installment is dedicated to all the wonderful men, women this a birthday Jack would never forget. and children who make Winnipeg great, every day, in their own special way. If we could, we’d shake the hands of each and every one of you – It’s a dream most hockey fans probably have – to one day have an as long as you washed up first. accidental run-in with a superstar player, but we don’t imagine anyone draws up a scenario quite like this. Pre-game warmup Mark Sousa was driving his car the other day when he got into a bit of a You either love them, or love to hate them. There doesn’t seem to be any fender-bender. It turns out the other man behind the wheel of a Porsche middle ground among Canadian hockey fans when it comes to the was none other than Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak. Toronto Maple Leafs. After exchanging particulars, Sousa and Pastrnak then did what most As Mike discovered this week on his return flight home from Las Vegas – people involved in a crash do – pose for selfies. which took him on a long and winding route through the centre of the hockey universe – even flight attendants can’t resist poking fun at 37,000 Good on Pastrnak for being a good sport. feet. Third period Booking a Vegas to Winnipeg flight that includes a pit stop in Toronto Hockey fans worldwide are aware of the remarkable career Teemu tonight wasn’t my best work. And going from pacific time to eastern time Selanne carved out on a pair of blades. Now, it looks like the Finnish to central time, on the same day we turned the clocks back, is trippy! Flash is pretty deadly with a blade putter. Won’t be quitting my journalism career to become a travel agent. The former sniper went on the Rich Eisen Show recently and However, it was worth it to hear the flight attendant just announce demonstrated his prowess on the short grass… er, carpet. He was faced “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the home of the 1967 Stanley Cup with five putts of varying lengths and, well, judge for yourself how well the champion Toronto Maple Leafs.” former Jets 1.0 mega-star fared. However, regardless of where you stand on the Leafs, we suggest you’ll This is the second time this season we’ve featured a Selanne segment be huge fans of how they handed a situation that came to their attention on D&C and we’re crossing our fingers and toes there will be more to regarding a young boy whose birthday party was a bust. come. Things we’d love to see the 49-year-old do? In no particular order: Jay says the coolest thing he did while playing hockey was knock in the Carpool Karaoke (preferably Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC); Celebrity Fishing tying goal for the Gateway Blades on a goal-mouth scramble with 10 (the hunt for Northern Snapper); and, Dancing with the Stars (busting a seconds left in regulation time against the rival N.K. Cobras in the 1978 move with Flashdance actress Jennifer Beals). city final. Sadly, the Blades succumbed in triple-OT. And he vividly recalls You’ve all heard of unsportsmanlike conduct. Well, allow us to introduce the moment the kid-who-shall-remain-nameless broke his heart. A pox on you to sportsmanlike conduct. his house… In the "win-at-all-costs" mentality of pro sports, it’s rare to see a genuine Mike’s coolest thing? When he was eight and played for the Gateway act of honesty emerge when a referee blows a call. Flyers at the dearly departed Winnipeg Arena, the team hired a videographer and play-by-play guy to do a game and each player Face it, the natural reaction is to skate away, smirking, knowing you’ve received a VHS copy, which is still kicking around his folks’ house just got away with one. somewhere. He was the goalie, and he let in a softie. That wasn’t the case this week with former NHLer Jakub Kindl, who Shout out to the Gateway Recreation Centre. appeared to get hauled down during a game in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. The referee’s hand went up, and his opponent was headed to the Hot dogs. Popcorn. French fries. Pretzels. These are some of the staples sin bin. of the arena dining experience, regardless of which rink you may find yourself in. But wait! Kindl apparently couldn’t live with himself, knowing what really happened, and immediately protested the call, explaining that he had But a Montreal Canadiens fan took things to a disturbing new level the actually fallen on his own. other day when cameras caught her snacking on…a tub of mayonnaise?! The penalty was waved off: one that would have put Kindl’s team on the We have so, so many questions. Although we’re not sure we want the power play in the late stages of a tie game. answers. A strange sight indeed. Second period Overtime When Tyler Myers said goodbye to the Winnipeg Jets this summer, no one knew he was actually leaving to join the circus.

OK, we kid. In fact, by all accounts Myers has been a valuable addition to the vastly improved Vancouver Canucks and is meshing well with fellow veteran defenceman Alex Edler on the club’s top pairing.

Winnipeg hockey fans will get a chance to see him in action tonight when the Jets and Canucks collide at Bell MTS Place. No doubt the home side has some kind of salute prepared for Myers, who played parts of five seasons in a Jets jersey.

But back to the big top theme and some inadvertent clowning around by the towering blue-liner, who’s silly pratfall Tuesday night resulted in the winning goal for the visiting St. Louis Blues during three-on-three overtime.

And set to music, this sequence goes from pretty good to pure gold.

The Hockey Gods!

Sure, it was no laughing matter for Myers and the Canucks, particularly goalie Jakob Markstrom who was so angry at being hung out to dry that he swung his goalie stick with enough force to ring the bell on a sledgehammer game.

Shootout

Playing 1,000 career games is a major milestone. And doing it with the same franchise is an even bigger accomplishment.

Anaheim Ducks captain hit the mark last week, and the franchise pulled out all the stops to honour him.

The tribute video, narrated by his four children and including their adorable drawings, should go directly to the Hall of Fame.

Getzlaf was also mic’d up for the occasion, and you can hear the referees, linesman and even members of the Chicago Blackhawks congratulating him during the game.

"I’m uncomfortable," Getzlaf jokes with teammates as the fans at Honda Center later give him a standing ovation.

Great stuff.

What is it about Washington and championship celebrations.

The Capitals raised the bar when it came to Stanley Cup wins, embarking on a summer-long party after winning it all in the spring of 2018.

And now the Nationals appear poised to try and top their hockey neighbours after capturing the World Series last month.

Members of the baseball team were recently honoured at a Capitals home game, and it’s pretty clear they were having a hell of a good time,

Pace yourself, boys. You have a long winter ahead of you.

Winnipeg Free Press LOADED 11.09.2019 1160656 Winnipeg Jets when he robbed Horvat at the side of the net with his glove in the third period.

“I don’t know if you want to call it a ‘TSN Turning Point’ but I think there New-look Jets power-play ignites win over Canucks might be some thought there,” said Hellebuyck, who has posted a save percentage of .920 or better in 10 of 13 games played this season.

After the ensuing faceoff, Connor stole the puck from Tyler Myers, who Scott Billeck made his return to the Jets for the first time since leaving as a free agent this past summer. Published:November 8, 2019 Connor sprinted in all alone on Demko, put his patented backhand-to- Updated:November 8, 2019 10:41 PM CST forehand deke on him and made it 3-1 at 13:35.

“Those hands are special,” Wheeler said. “He’s definitely found The Vancouver Canucks must not have known what hit them after they something there with that little move. Get him alone and he’s got a lot of gifted the Winnipeg Jets their first power-play opportunity of the game confidence right now.” around the midway point of the second period at BellMTS Place on Lowry would add the empty-netter for his first point of the season. Friday night. “If they counted them in warmup I’d take it,” Lowry said. “I don’t care how For a team that came into the game sporting the third-ranked penalty-kill, they come, to be honest. I’m glad it didn’t take until Game 30. It’s always surely they must have felt confident they could hold their own against the nice to get it out of the way.” 22nd-ranked Jets power-play, even coming in on the second half of a back-to-back after losing in Chicago the night before. Demko made 31 saves in a losing effort.

Instead, Winnipeg’s floundering man-advantage proved to be the turning The Jets have beaten the Canucks in 12 of their past 13 meetings, point in a 4-1 win. including nine straight.

“We go back to that original idea of putting everybody in the spots they’re HEINOLA HEADING HOME good at,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice said. One of the Winnipeg Jets’ brightest young prospects will spend the rest Friday morning’s skate for the Jets was labelled as optional on the team’s of this season in Finland. schedule. Recently, they have been forgoing the tradition altogether for the most part. But on Friday, save for a few, all were out on the ice. And The team announced that Ville Heinola has elected to return to Finland, there was a reason why. enacting a clause in the three-year entry-level contract he signed this past summer that allows him to do so during the first year. The team trotted out two new power-play units, spreading a wealth of weapons over both of them in hopes of sparking the firepower they The 18-year-old defenceman will return to Lukko Rauma in Finland’s top possessed. pro league, where he is under contract for one more season.

“We shuffled around a bit,” said Blake Wheeler, who moved to centre for Heinola had an incredible training camp for the Jets, ultimately earning a the game in Bryan Little’s absence. “This morning, in the pre-game, we roster spot after he improved on his game throughout the pre-season. were snapping it around pretty good. Got the guys in some good spots Heinola played eight games with the Jets this season, scoring his first on the power play.” NHL goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins while adding four assists. When Bo Horvat tripped Wheeler in the middle frame, Winnipeg got to His goal made him the first player born in 2001 to score a goal in the test drive the new rides. The top unit — consisting of Mark Scheifele, NHL. Kyle Connor, Josh Morrissey, Andrew Copp and Nikolaj Ehlers — set the tone. Heinola was sent down to the Manitoba Moose last weekend while the Jets were amid their three-game road trip on the west coast. In three For the entirety of Horvat’s minor, the Jets snapped the puck around the American Hockey League games since, he had one assist. Canucks zone. They got their chances but couldn’t pop one in. But with Vancouver gassed when Horvat emerged from the box, Patrik Laine was Heinola said last week that he would have to talk things over with his held by Jay Beagle and the second-unit got its chance. agent to find the best decision for his future this season.

“That’s what you want on a power play, you want to get momentum for “We need to be sure,” Heinola said. “The Manitoba Moose is a really your team,” Connor said. “And we certainly did that. We got another one good option. It’s good to play here. Their system is pretty much the same right away and the other unit was just as effective. With the way they as the Jets, so that’s good.” were moving too, they were able to bury it.” The young blueliner is likely to suit up for Finland at the world junior Laine, along with Blake Wheeler, Mathieu Perreault, Neal Pionk and Jack hockey championship which begin on Boxing Day in the Czech Republic. Roslovic picked up where the first unit left off and did them one better, with Roslovic putting himself on the highlight reel with a fine individual Heinola won a gold medal at the 2019 WJC with Finland, recording a effort that tied the game 1-1 at 11:54. goal and an assist in five games before getting injured.

“That was good to see the guys go out there first and hem them in, they A native of Honkajoki, Heinola was drafted 20th overall in the first round could have easily had one,” Wheeler said. “Draw one right after and get of the 2019 NHL draft this year. The Jets acquired the pick from the New rewarded. That was definitely a big point in the game.” York Rangers in the deal that sent Jacob Trouba to the Big Apple.

J.T. Miller had opened the scoring five minutes earlier for the visitors. Imagine, for a moment, that Friday was your first time seeing an NHL Dmitry Kulikov was caught gliding around the Canucks net and, when the game live. Jets defenceman got back into the play, he had the best seat in the Then, imagine, what it would be like if that was also your first NHL game house to watch Miller score unimpeded just a few feet away in front of played. Connor Hellebuyck. That was Joona Luoto’s reality on Friday night in Winnipeg. That power-play goal seemed to shock the Jets into a higher gear. As has become a trend this season, the Jets went down by a goal and had Luoto, called up by the Jets on Thursday following the news that Bryan to fight their way back. Little would be sidelined indefinitely with a head injury after taking an errant puck to the head on Tuesday, made his NHL debut with the Jets in They’d take a 2-1 lead at 16:54 of the second when Connor’s shot was a fourth-line role at left wing against the Canucks. saved by Thatcher Demko, but the juicy rebound found Scheifele’s stick. “This is what I’ve been working on and now it’s here and I’m really Hellebuyck continued his personal trend of churning out solid efforts in excited,” Luoto said after taking the optional morning skate. goal, stopping 32 of 33 shots he faced. The most important of those was The Jets signed Luoto as a free agent this past summer out of the Finnish pro league and, after an impressive training camp, he was sent down to the Moose. In nine games in the AHL, he has three assists.

By all accounts, Luoto has picked up the North American game quickly, which has been a bit surprising to the man himself.

“I wouldn’t believe that I am here now,” he said. “I thought it’s going to take me a long time to change my game to the North American style, the smaller rink. But it was a good thing to know that I could play and there was really nothing different than back home.”

For head coach Paul Maurice, Luoto’s callup came for two reasons.

“One, he’s a lefty and we needed a (left winger). The second is he had a really good camp,” Maurice said. “We’re not that far off camp, that’s my memory. I want to be able to see him do that in a National Hockey League game.”

Luoto has been able to pick the brain of fellow Finn Patrik Laine, whom he lives with. Both are good buddies, with their friendship dating back several years.

“I played with him in junior for many years,” Laine said. “We’ve been friends for quite many years already. I knew him real well and we were good friends when we played together. After that, I kind of went with the players older than me, he kind of stayed with his same age group.”

Laine said how Luoto has arrived in the NHL is a testament to who he is as a person.

“He’s been really grinding his way to the National Hockey League and always been one of the hardest working guys and always played the bottom-six minutes but never heard him complain,” Laine said. “That just tells you what kind of guy he is. If a guy like him from Finland who’s been grinding his whole life can make it to the NHL, it’s pretty unbelievable and it is great for me as a friend.”

Were any words of encouragement shared?

“He’s been living with me so we’ve been talking a little bit about that, too,” Laine said. “He’s been playing pro hockey for years already so he kind of knows what it’s all about. I’ll probably tell him something. But just enjoy it. You’re going to play your first game once and it’s pretty great for him.”

Winnipeg Sun LOADED 11.09.2019 1160657 Winnipeg Jets Forwards J.T. Miller-Elias Pettersson-Brock Boeser

Tanner Pearson-Bo Horvat-Adam Gaudette JETS GAME DAY: Jets trot out new-look offence against surging Canucks Josh Leivo-Brandon Sutter-Jake Virtanen

Tim Schaller-Jay Beagle-Loui Eriksson

Scott Billeck Defence

Published:November 8, 2019 Alex Edler-Tyler Myers

Updated:November 8, 2019 7:00 AM CST Quinn Hughes-Chris Tanev

Jordie Benn-Troy Stecher

Vancouver Canucks at Winnipeg Jets Goalies

Thursday, 7 p.m., BellMTS Place; TV: TSN3; Radio: TSN-1290 Thatcher Demko

THE BIG MATCHUP Jacob Markström

New-look lines vs. Canucks neutral zone defence WINNIPEG JETS

Winnipeg’s new-look forward lines have a total of one practice together Forwards and will be tasked with trying to solve one of the league’s stingiest defensive teams. The Canucks have allowed just 35 goals against so far Kyle Connor-Mark Scheifele-Patrik Laine this season, fourth-fewest in the NHL. A big part of their defensive Nikolaj Ehlers-Blake Wheeler-Jack Roslovic success has come from the work put in by their goaltenders, but they’ve made it easier on them by allowing the 10th fewest number of shots per Andrew Copp-Adam Lowry-Mathieu Perreault game. That stems from Vancouver’s ability to disrupt opponents in the neutral zone, allowing them to force turnovers and turn a defensive Joona Luoto-David Gustafsson-Logan Shaw situation into a quick-strike counter-attack. The Jets will have their hands Defence full. Josh Morrissey-Tucker Poolman 5 KEYS TO THE GAME Dmitry Kulikov-Neal Pionk Hellebuyck show Nathan Beaulieu-Carl Dahlstrom If someone asks how in the world for the Jets have an 8-7-1 record despite all of their injuries and off-ice distractions, just point them to Extras pairing: Anthony Bitetto-Luca Sbisa Connor Hellebuyck. Despite a lacklustre blue line and an offence that hasn’t found its stride yet, Hellebuyck has an incredible .930 save Goalies percentage (.942 at five-on-five). Furthermore, Hellebuyck has a league- Connor Hellebuyck best goals-saved above average of 7.82, just more proof at how good he’s playing as Winnipeg’s last line of defence. Laurent Brossoit

Demko mode Injuries

With Jacob Markstrom getting the call on Thursday against the Chicago Canucks: F Micheal Ferland, F Antoine Roussel, F Tyler Motte Blackhawks, Thatcher Demko will be called upon in the second half of a Jets: F Mason Appleton, F Mark Letestu, F Bryan Little F Gabriel back to back for the Canucks. Demko has been a rock as the No. 2 in Bourque, D Dustin Byfuglien (suspended) Vancouver, sporting a 4-1-0 record in his five starts this season (Markstrom has 11). Demko owns an impressive .938 save percentage Special Teams (.941 at five-on-five). POWER PLAY Myers returns Canucks: 21.9% (11th) Some will point to Tyler Myers and his gaffe which saw him take out his other two teammates in overtime a few nights back, allowing a 3-on-0 the Winnipeg: 15.4% (22nd) other way and the game-winning goal not long after. But Myers has been PENALTY KILLING better for Vancouver than most thought he would. He’s playing 21:36 per night and has a CF% of 56.56%, with an expected goals percentage of Canucks: 88.7% (3rd) 54.99%. Winnipeg: 70.6% (28th) PK powerhouse Winnipeg Sun LOADED 11.09.2019 The Jets have had a tough run of luck on the power play lately, with just two goals in their past 23 attempts with the man-advantage. It hasn’t helped that some of the teams they’ve played have had some of the best penalty-killing units in the league. That will once again be the case against the Canucks, who have the third-ranked PK operating at 88.7%.

Forge ahead

Bryan Little’s injury was ugly and tough to watch for fans and players alike. Nikolaj Ehlers, who took the shot that ended up hitting Little in the head, struggled to get back into the game mentally. Everyone on the Jets bench was worried. A couple days on, Little seems to be doing OK given the circumstances and the Jets need to put the ordeal behind them to focus on the task at hand.

GAME DAY LINEUPS

VANCOUVER CANUCKS 1160658 Vancouver Canucks

Canucks recall defenceman Jalen Chatfield from Utica Comets

SCOTT BROWN

Published:November 8, 2019

Updated:November 8, 2019 4:49 PM PST

The Vancouver Canucks have called up defenceman Jalen Chatfield from the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League.

The 23-year-old Chatfield, who has not hit the scoresheet once in 11 games with Utica this season, will add some insurance on the Canucks’ blue-line with Chris Tanev questionable for Friday’s game in Winnipeg (5 p.m., SNETP).

Tanev suffered an upper body injury in Thursday’s 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. If he’s unable to play Friday, it’s likely that Swedish defenceman Oscar Fantenberg will take his place and make his regular- season debut against the Jets.

Vancouver is also carrying spare blue-liner Ashton Sautner, who has played just one game this season.

Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160659 Vancouver Canucks

Canucks notes: Vancouver trying to rewrite recent November history

ED WILLES

Published:November 8, 2019

Updated:November 8, 2019 4:01 PM PST

Filed Under:

WINNIPEG — Depending on your point of view, the Vancouver Canucks are either a 9-4-3 team that has earned points in eight of their last nine NHL games, or a team that has won once in its last four outings while scoring two goals or less in three of those contests.

Heading into Friday night’s game in Winnipeg against the Jets, the Canucks firmly believe they’re the former. In these, as all things, it’s a matter of perspective.

“I don’t think we were very good (in a 5-2 loss against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday), but, overall, we’ve been pretty damn good,” said head coach Travis Green.

“We didn’t come out like our normal selves (against the Blackhawks),” said defenceman Tyler Myers. “It’s going to happen throughout the year. I thought we got back to moving our feet a little bit more (later in the game). But we know it wasn’t our best game. We have to respond (against the Jets).”

Which is the first time in a while the Canucks have said that.

In Chicago, Green’s team surrendered a 1-0 lead in the game’s first eight minutes and the Canucks outshot 15-3 through the first 12 minutes. From that point, they were chasing the game and when the Hawks, who had been struggling mightily, potted power-play goals late in the first by Andrew Shaw and again in the third by Patrick Kane, the Canucks were on their way to their first regulation loss since Oct. 19.

But Thursday was also part of a trend that should have their attention. In Anaheim a week ago, they dropped a 2-1 overtime decision to the Ducks. Earlier this week it was a 2-1 overtime loss to the Blues at Rogers Arena. Yes, there was an impressive 5-2 win in San Jose between those two games but the Canucks also lost defenceman Chris Tanev on Thursday with an upper-body injury.

Tanev was seen in the Canucks’ locker-room after the game with no apparent signs of an injury. If you’re familiar with the Canucks’ recent history, you’re aware November has been a troublesome month.

“We’ve got to focus on our game,” said goalie Jacob Markstrom. “We’ve been doing that in the early part of the season. We have to do that in November.”

“I think we’ll respond with a game (in Winnipeg),” Green said. “As a player when you don’t play well you don’t want time between games. That’s the beautiful thing. We get to play again (tonight).”

Friday’s game will be Myers’ first in Winnipeg since he signed a five-year, US$30-million deal with the Canucks this summer.

Myers spent five-plus seasons with the Jets but if he’s emotional about this return to Winnipeg, he does a good job of hiding it.

“No more than any other (team),” he said, when asked if he’s followed the Jets this season. “I keep an eye on the standings for every team. I know a lot of the guys over there and know what kind of guys they are. That’s really the difference.”

Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160660 Vancouver Canucks off the names of lawyers they have available to do battle with the WHL and it sounded longer than their protected list.

“Hell, they don’t need Gilbert Perrault. Their No. 1 pick in the amateur Canucks fans' 'torture' started right away with legal battle over NHL entry draft should be a 50-goal-scoring college grad with a degree in corporate law and a minor in chicanery. All this will stop, of course, when the Canucks begin drafting players June 10 and 11 in Montreal.

PAUL CHAPMAN “Put names and bodies inside those kelly green, royal blue and white uniforms and you couldn’t distract hockey fans with a wrestling match Published:November 8, 2019 between Coley Hall and Joe Crozier with the loser to leave town. Updated:November 8, 2019 5:00 AM PST Fortunately there was time after the struggle down from the heights of corporate structure to talk honest to Orr hockey talk with (coach) Hal Laycoe on the priorities in building a winner.

As the Vancouver Canucks celebrate their 50th season in the NHL, we “‘Everything starts with a goalie,’ Laycoe said. “Lester Patrick said once are exploring the top moments in franchise history. that goalkeeping is 75 per cent of the game and no one’s come along yet to prove him wrong. ‘Then the centres, then defencemen, then wingers, We’ll look back on the most pivotal, memorable, exhilarating and in that order.’ challenging moments over the years and look at how they shaped the history of the franchise. “And, naturally there had to be some brief reference to Laycoe’s alleged ultraconservative philosophy as practised so diligently in the good years We’ll also feature some of the original work from Canucks beat writers in Portland. Winning record or not, it is a tag that follows him around and and columnists over the years, from Jim Taylor and Hal Sigurdson to if he doesn’t find it irritating it is best damned tiresome. Tony Gallagher, Ed Willes and Jason Botchford. “Laycoe has a phobia, he cannot stand to see pucks go into his net. If From the very beginning, Canucks fans have felt tortured. While there positional hockey is conservative, I suppose he’s guilty but in the long have been so many great moments that we’ll get into throughout the lean years ahead for the Canucks, checking might be the only way out. season, there has always been a sense the franchise has faced more Given a choice, I’d take a few conservative 1-0 victories to bunches of challenges than most of their NHL brethren. exciting 7-3 defeats. There’ll be enough of those anyway.” In examining our files to see what it was like when Vancouver was Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 granted a franchise, the deal was hung up in a legal battle between Medicor, the original owners of the team, and the WHL, which wanted money for the loss of the Vancouver market to their league.

On May 22, 1970, Province columnist Eric Whitehead wrote:

“The Vancouver Canucks management, who would love to shuck everything else and just get on with the job of getting the fans a hockey club, can’t. Having been skivvied to the tune of $6 million for an NHL franchise that was considered grossly overpriced at $2 million just two years ago, the owners are now being dunned for a $1.2 million payment by the Western Hockey League.

“This is the WHL price tag put on the price of indemnity for the loss of the Vancouver entry. The Canucks are countering with an offer of $500,000 plus placement of their current WHL franchise elsewhere, preferably Calgary. That, from here, and it is said from the NHL office, sounds like an eminently fair arrangement, maybe too fair.

“But, of course, nothing nowadays is too fair or fair enough or even close to fair when there is a chance to thumbscrew for an extra dollar or two. Or three. The world is money-mad, and sport, which began as something for fun, just isn’t that anymore. It is in fact right up front at the madhouse frothing at the mouth.

“TV deodorant commercials that show America how to stop wetness have established the giddy guidelines to the big fast buck for sports promoters. Their hirelings have gotten wise and they are now gouging the promoter. The pro sports fan, faced with maybe a $3 or $4 ticket tops a few years ago is now slapped for seven or eight.

“There are still exceptions to the gimme-gimme-or-I-won’t-come set, but they grow fewer and fewer. Folks like Walter (Babe) Pratt in particular still remembers who they really are or what they were. Occasionally when the cause is right, they’ll give something back.

“But the breed is dying out. They are mostly of an age when there was still fun in sport. There is very little left nowadays. The name of the game is Greed. Capital G.”

And of course, the inimitable Jim Taylor, then of The Vancouver Sun, brought his own style of cutting wit to the issue of a city being granted a big-league franchise only to see the legal wrangling bury the lead.

“I liked hockey better when it was my team against your team and not my lawyers versus your lawyers. Fifteen minutes into the Vancouver Canucks’ press conference yesterday the room was so thick with red tape you could barely cut through to the coffee.

“Every second word was indemnification, every other figure the $2.2 million the WHL says the Canucks must pay to get free or the $500,000 the Canucks have offered. At one point Medicor’s Lyman Walters rattled 1160661 Vancouver Canucks

Name change: Burnaby 8-Rinks now called Scotia Barn

SCOTT BROWN

Published:November 8, 2019

Updated:November 8, 2019 2:12 PM PST

Burnaby 8-Rinks, which has been a hub of hockey for decades in Metro Vancouver, has a new corporate partner and a new corporate name.

Scotiabank and Canlan Ice Sport, which operates Burnaby 8-Rinks, announced Friday that the facility has been renamed Scotia Barn.

In addition to the naming rights, Rink 2 will also be named Scotiabank Rink — and Scotiabank will have exclusive title sponsorship of both public skating and Winterfest programs, as well as Scotiabank community programming and events throughout the hockey season, such as Scotiabank Girls HockeyFest in March.

Built as four-rink complex in 1972, the complex was expanded to eight ice sheets during a major upgrade in 1995.

Along with hosting youth and adult recreation hockey, figure skating and public skating, Burnaby 8-Rinks has also served as a practice facility of the Vancouver Canucks.

Scotiabank says new Scotia Barn signage will go up later this year and a community celebration will follow in early 2020.

A spokesperson for Canlan Ice Sport says the naming-rights agreement with Scotiabank is for 10 years, but they declined to reveal the financial details.

Burnaby 8-Rinks is not the first iconic sports facility in Metro Vancouver to receive the Scotiabank branding. In 2010, Nat Bailey Stadium, home of the Vancouver Canadians, was renamed Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium after the bank purchased naming rights at the now 68- year-old baseball park.

Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160662 Vancouver Canucks J.T. Miller opened the scoring for the Canucks early in the second with his eighth goal of the season.

Elias Pettersson started the play off the rush in the Canucks’ end and Jets 4, Canucks 1: Better effort, but Vancouver heads home after Brock Boeser eventually picked out Troy Stecher with a cross-ice pass. turbulence on the road Miller deflected Stecher’s diagonal pass behind Hellebuyck.

The Canucks outshot the Jets 13-9 in the first period.

ED WILLES “I like our game a lot more than I did in (Chicago),” Green said.

Published:November 8, 2019 Baertschi makes his debut

Updated:November 8, 2019 10:22 PM PST Sven Baertschi made his first start of the season, playing on a line with Bo Horvat and Jake Virtanen. The line produced 10 shots in the game and Baertschi was in the middle of a good scoring chance for Pettersson early in the third. WINNIPEG — In their two-game swing through Chicago and Winnipeg, the Vancouver Canucks accomplished something they haven’t done “Not bad,” Green said of Baertschi’s game. “He had his looks.” since the first two games of the NHL season. Baertschi, of course, cleared waivers before the start of the regular They lost back-to-back games in regulation time. season and was sent to Utica where he had 10 points in seven games with the AHL Comets. Here’s what we learned from Friday’s 4-1 loss to the Jets at Bell MTS Place which dropped the Canucks’ record to 9-5-3: The slick Swiss forward was recalled more than a week ago.

Better effort comes up short “It’s always a dose of reality when you go through waivers,” Green said before the game. “You feel bad for guys and I felt bad for him. We had to After an off night in Chicago, the Canucks responded with an improved make hard decisions. You never like to see guys go through hard times effort but had the game taken away in the second period and couldn’t but that’s part of the NHL.” beat Jets’ hot goalie Connor Hellebuyck in the third. Myers returns to Manitoba Bo Horvat had the Canucks best chance in the final frame but failed to get the puck over an outstretched Hellebuyck with six minutes left in the Myers played his first game in Winnipeg after signing a five-year, US$30- game. million deal with the Canucks this off-season. Myers spent five-plus seasons with the Jets. Shortly after that superb save, Kyle Connor stole the puck from Tyler Myers at the Jets’ blueline and beat Thatcher Demko on a breakaway. “It’s a little weird but I’m excited,” Myers said before the game. “I’ve got a lot of friends over there. We’ll put that hold on for 60 minutes and I’ll say Jake Virtanen also had a clean look earlier in the third when the score hi to them after the game. was still 2-1 and the Canucks squandered a late power play without producing a scoring chance. “I have a lot of good memories playing in Winnipeg, stuff I’ll never forget, but I’m excited about this new chapter.” Adam Lowry added an empty-netter for the Jets. The Jets honoured him with a brief video near the end of the first period. “I’d like to have that one back,” said Horvat. “He made a heckuva save off me. If I bury that one it’s 2-2. It’s frustrating but I thought we did some Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 really good things tonight.”

That sentiment was echoed by Canucks’ head coach Travis Green.

“That game could have gone either way,” Green insisted. “There are probably games earlier we would have won with that kind of game or get a point. That’s the ebbs and flows of he NHL.”

Jets ‘juiced’ on power play

The Jets erased a 1-0 Canucks advantage with a dominating second period, outshooting the Canucks 19-9 while taking the lead with a pair of goals. Mark Scheifele gave the Jets the lead when he picked up a rebound on Connor’s shot on a play that started with Tanner Pearson’s turnover in the neutral zone. Earlier, Jack Roslovic scored on the second of back-to-back Jets’ power plays when he converted his own rebound.

Those power plays changed the complexion of the game, according to Green.

“Give them credit,” said Green. “They got a lot of momentum off the power play. They got a little juice off it. I thought for seven minutes the game was going their way. Then in the third period we had our looks.”

Just before Roslovic’s goal, Canucks’ defenceman Chris Tanev blocked a Patrik Laine slapshot and had to be helped off ice. The veteran blueliner missed a handful of shifts but was back before the end of the period. Thursday in Chicago he missed the final two periods of a 5-2 loss with an undisclosed upper-body injury.

“The leg went numb for a bit,” Tanev said. “I came in, saw the doc and he gave me the green light. It’s hockey. Everyone does it.”

Well, not everyone.

“Nothing (Tanev) does surprises me,” Green said. “He’s a warrior. He has to be hurt really badly, something broken to keep him out.”

Miller nets eighth goal 1160663 Vancouver Canucks A couple days on, Little seems to be doing OK given the circumstances and the Jets need to put the ordeal behind them to focus on the task at hand.

Canucks Game Day: Jets having a devil of a time, but Hellebuyck props GAME DAY LINEUPS them up CANUCKS

Forwards POSTMEDIA NEWS J.T. Miller — Elias Pettersson — Brock Boeser Published:November 8, 2019 Tanner Pearson — Bo Horvat — Adam Gaudette Updated:November 8, 2019 5:00 AM PST Josh Leivo — Brandon Sutter — Jake Virtanen

Tim Schaller — Jay Beagle — Loui Eriksson Vancouver Canucks vs. Winnipeg Jets Defence 5 p.m., Bell MTS Place, TV: TSN3, SNETP; Radio: SNET 650 AM Alex Edler — Tyler Myers THE BIG MATCHUP Quinn Hughes — Chris Tanev New-look lines vs. Canucks’ neutral zone defence Jordie Benn — Troy Stecher Winnipeg’s new-look forward lines have a total of one practice together. Goalies: Thatcher Demko, Jacob Markström They will be tasked with trying to solve one of the league’s stingiest defensive teams. Before their game in Chicago on Thursday night, the JETS Canucks had allowed just 35 goals against this season, fourth-fewest in the NHL. Forwards

A big part of Vancouver’s defensive success has come from the work put Kyle Connor — Mark Scheifele — Patrik Laine in by their goaltenders, but they’ve made it easier on them by allowing Nikolaj Ehlers — Blake Wheeler — Jack Roslovic the 10th fewest number of shots per game. That stems from the Canucks’ ability to disrupt opponents in the neutral zone, allowing them Andrew Copp — Adam Lowry — Mathieu Perreault to force turnovers and turn a defensive situation into a quick-strike counter-attack. The Jets will have their hands full. Joona Luoto — David Gustafsson — Logan Shaw

FIVE KEYS TO THE GAME Defence

1. Hellebuyck show Josh Morrissey — Tucker Poolman

If someone asks how in the world do the Jets have an 8-7-1 record Dmitry Kulikov — Neal Pionk despite all of their injuries and off-ice distractions, just point them to Nathan Beaulieu — Carl Dahlstrom Connor Hellebuyck. Despite a lacklustre blue-line and an offence that hasn’t found its stride yet, Hellebuyck has an incredible .930 save Extras pairing: Anthony Bitetto — Luca Sbisa percentage (.942 at five-on-five). Goalies: Connor Hellebuyck, Laurent Brossoit Furthermore, Hellebuyck has a league-best goals-saved above average of 7.82, just more proof at how good he’s playing as Winnipeg’s last line SICK BAY of defence. Canucks: F Micheal Ferland, F Antoine Roussel, F Tyler Motte.

2. Demko mode Jets:F Mason Appleton, F Mark Letestu, F Bryan Little F Gabriel With Jacob Markstrom getting the call Thursday against the Chicago Bourque, D Dustin Byfuglien (suspended). Blackhawks, goaltender Thatcher Demko will be called upon in the SPECIAL TEAMS second half of a back-to-back for the Canucks. Demko has been a rock as the No. 2 stopper in Vancouver, sporting a 4-1-0 record in his five Power play:Canucks: 21.9% (11th), Winnipeg: 15.4% (22nd). starts this season (Markstrom has 11). Demko owns an impressive .938 Penalty killing:Canucks: 88.7% (3rd), Winnipeg: 70.6% (28th). save percentage (.941 at five-on-five). Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.09.2019 3. Myers returns

Some will point to Tyler Myers and his gaffe that saw him take out his other two Vancouver teammates in overtime a few nights back, allowing a 3-on-0 the other way and the game-winning goal not long after. But Myers has been better for Vancouver than most thought he would. He’s playing 21:36 per night.

4. PK powerhouse

The Jets have had a tough run of luck on the power play lately, with just two goals in their past 23 attempts with the man-advantage. It hasn’t helped that some of the teams they’ve played have had some of the best penalty-killing units in the league. That will once again be the case against the Canucks, who have the third-ranked PK operating at 88.7 per cent.

5. Forge ahead

Bryan Little’s injury was ugly and tough to watch for fans and players alike. Nikolaj Ehlers, who took the shot that ended up hitting Little in the head, struggled to get back into the game mentally. Everyone on the Jets’ bench was worried. 1160664 Websites space, but you’re going to need the room when the player’s healthy and activated again,” Treliving said. “So it’s hard to say, ‘Joe Smith has left the lineup; he’s at $5 million; now I’m going to use the $5 million elsewhere.’ Well, at some point, Joe Smith’s going to be back. So, it’s not The Athletic / Duhatschek Notebook: How NHL teams cope after losing a just as simple as saying, ‘I’m going to take his room and use it, because star to injury in a salary cap world you’re going to need it back.’

“Then, when you talk about a star player – you can fill in whatever name you like here – you’re not filling that from outside. You’re just not. If By Eric Duhatschek Nov 8, 2019 you’re a deep team and you’ve lost a player, you rely on some other guys to fill the void a little. You’re not going to turn to one player to do it. You’re just going to need a little bit more offensive production from throughout Injuries happen to every NHL team every season and there is a familiar the lineup. script that general managers read from when they occur – and especially when they occur to difference-makers on the team. “The biggest thing I find is, especially if it’s a good team, you can survive the one injury; it’s the next one that gets you. If you get a second or a They begin by telling you Player X can’t be replaced – for this exercise, third injury, that’s when your depth really gets challenged.” let’s call Player X Vladimir Tarasenko of the St. Louis Blues, who underwent shoulder surgery in October and will be re-evaluated in five The other thing that changes internally is a team’s approach, Treliving months. Theoretically, it’s a devastating blow to the Blues’ hopes of said. If you’ve lost a top offensive player, the goal is still to go out and try defending the Stanley Cup championship they unexpectedly won this to win every night, but maybe instead of aiming for a 4-3 or a 3-2 win, past June. now you tighten up defensively and try to grind out a 2-1 victory. The reality is, you don’t even need to replace all those missing goals if you Generally speaking, you can tell how serious an injury is the more succeed in knocking your goals-against average down. And usually, the specific a team gets when reporting its details. When it isn’t just labeled player coming in for an offensive star tends to bring greater defensive upper or lower body, day-to-day or week-to-week – the sort of vague awareness to the lineup, which may allow a team to muddle through. generalization that has crept into the vocabulary and tells you precisely nothing – then you know it’s bad. “So, two things happen,” Treliving said. “One, as a team, you’re trying to give up a little less. And the other thing is, you’re giving other players Tarasenko was the Blues’ goal-scoring leader last year with 33 and more opportunities. I have yet to meet a player who says, ‘give me less finished second on the team in points behind Ryan O’Reilly. to do that.’ All players want more. And everybody does get a little bit more opportunity when you lose a top offensive player. At some point, they may miss him, even if it hasn’t happened yet. The Blues have powered right through the Tarasenko injury and are showing “If you look back in history, you can find a way. A couple of years ago, we no signs of a Stanley Cup hangover. St. Louis’ win over Edmonton on lost Johnny Gaudreau for 12 games because of a broken finger. That’s a Wednesday was their sixth straight victory and they currently sit atop the huge loss for us. But we found a way to survive. But if we’d lost another Western Conference standings. Tarasenko’s spot on the line with Jaden top player at the same time, it would have been tough. Because – say Schwartz and Brayden Schenn has rotated among a handful of different what you want – you can’t replace the top guys. You can’t find them. players, but the latest to get an audition is Robert Thomas, who had such There’s a reason they make what they make. And you don’t replace a good playoff for the Blues last spring, but was off to an up-and-down them.” start this season. The Blues also lost forward Alex Steen for a month or more with a high You might have thought that Tarasenko’s absence would have finally ankle sprain, coming out of their game against the Oilers. With Jacob de given Robby Fabbri a shot at a top-six role on the team. But when Blues’ la Rose coming in from Detroit in exchange for Fabbri, there’s a decent coach Craig Berube opted not to play Fabbri up the lineup, even though chance he’ll get a chance to play right away. The Blues also have a there was a possible opportunity there, it pretty much marked the end of couple of youngsters with an offensive upside – Jordan Kyrou and Klim the line for him in St. Louis. The Blues gave Fabbri his wish – to get a Kostin – apprenticing in the minors, who they deemed weren’t particularly fresh start elsewhere – by trading him to the Detroit Red Wings, who suited to play a bottom-six role on the team. need all the help they can get. (More on Fabbri in a moment). At some point, during Tarasenko’s absence, both will likely get a look to So that’s St. Louis. see where they’re at in terms of their respective development arcs. One thing’s for sure. The 18:23 in nightly ice time and the 2:55 in nightly The other side of the coin is Colorado, which steamed out of the gate 7- power-play time Tarasenko gobbled up last year will now go to someone 1-1 – and then lost Mikko Rantanen and then Gabriel Landeskog. That’s else. two-thirds of their top line and since their exits, the Avalanche have looked absolutely lost. In the first five games without the due, Colorado So far this year, the Pittsburgh Penguins had to survive almost a month went 0-4-1 before rebounding with a wild 9-4 victory over the Nashville without Evgeni Malkin and the Toronto Maple Leafs went three weeks Predators on Thursday night to staunch the bleeding, at least without John Tavares. Both teams made it out the other end because of temporarily. their overall depth up front – and in Pittsburgh’s case, because Sidney Crosby practically willed them to victory during Malkin’s absence. In the old days, a key injury or two almost always guaranteed that the GM grapevine would start to buzz. When the salary cap didn’t govern Key injuries create issues for teams, internally, but also in terms of their spending so precisely, teams were far more inclined to consider adding public messaging. What most GMs want to say (but believe they can’t) is short-term replacements, especially if an organization had deep pockets. that in a league with so much balance, the loss of too many critical That is no longer the case. pieces can be the difference between just making or just missing the playoffs. “There are 13 teams in LTIR right now,” Calgary Flames’ general manager Brad Treliving explained. “You’re got more than half the league Many times, an off year or a bad year for a team can be traced to a run of – 19 teams with two-and-a-half million or less in cap space, so if you’d injuries to key personnel. Two years ago, with Taylor Hall leading the like to make a deal, the money’s got to work. way (MVP season), the Devils were 44-29-9 and earned a playoff spot. Last year, without Hall for 49 games, and without Nico Hischier, Kyle “That’s the most difficult thing right now – even if you wanted to trade Joe Palmieri and probably most critically Cory Schneider for stretches of the Smith for Bill Smith, in a lot of cases, you have to try and make it dollar season, they were 31-41-10 and finished last in the Metro and second- for dollar. There are so many teams who are either at their budget or at last in East. It was more than just Hall, but his absence – after driving the limit in terms of cap space.” play so effectively the year before – proved to be devastating. He was Even more problematic, according to Treliving, is that even if you free up irreplaceable. Other than Blake Coleman, who scored 22, no one on the enough of the necessary cap space to make a deal by placing a high- Devils produced more than 20 goals. salaried player on LTIR, it doesn’t necessarily mean you should Nor do injuries always translate exactly into man-games lost either. immediately go out and spend that extra dough. There is an ethic in the sport in which players play hurt. Teams make the “With those injuries, depending upon the timeline, if a guy is out long distinction internally between playing hurt and playing injured. Nobody term, but he’s coming back at some point, yeah, you may have the LTI should (and rarely does anymore) play injured. If you’re injured, you can risk further damage by playing through an injury, which makes no sense further 15-point improvement the next year, to get them to 93 points and – not for the player and not even for a team that has a lot of money first place in the Norris Division. invested in these players; and thus, has a vested interest in keeping them safe and healthy. Demers had better years after that – and won a Stanley Cup with the 1993 Montreal Canadiens – but he never won the Jack Adams again. It’s But then there is playing hurt, which is more than just a slight semantic an odd trophy that way. distinction. Players will tell you; once the season gets well underway, almost everybody is dealing with some minor physical problems. You Only one man has ever won it three times – Pat Burns, who did it with come back from a hand injury and you probably never really get full use three different teams over the course of his career. Scotty Bowman, who of it back in-season. The thinking is that’s what caused Jaden Schwartz is the all-time winningest coach in NHL history, only won it twice. Joel to struggle so much to finish around the net last year after he came back Quenneville, who will likely be only the second coach after Bowman ever from injury (only 11 regular-season goals) before getting it going in the to win 1,000 games, has only ever won it once. playoffs. Week after week, Schwartz just got incrementally healthier – Al Arbour, the great Islanders’ coach, won it in 1979, just before the and then happily, at the right time of the season for the Blues, he started Islanders won their first Stanley Cup, but never won it again in the next to find the back of the net again. five years when they won four championships and then lost the 1984 final Overall, it’s been an eventful start for the Blues, the defending Stanley to Edmonton. It means Quenneville and Arbour have the same number of Cup champions, who sit three points clear of Edmonton and Calgary in Jack Adams awards as Orval Tessier, Bobby Francis, Bill Barber and the overall conference standings. others, whose NHL coaching careers could be described as far more short-lived. Other than the Pittsburgh Penguins (in 2016 and 2017), no team has been able to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons for going on The current reigning Jack Adams winner is the Islanders’ Barry Trotz, two decades now. The plus here is that if the Blues can muddle along who has won it twice now in the past four years. Last year, with the without Tarasenko — which they should be able to do — and if his Islanders, he oversaw a dramatic defensive turnaround, in which New recovery moves along at a reasonable rate, then maybe he’s back by the York went from the highest to the lowest goals-against average in the end of the season. The problem with Tarasenko’s prognosis is the way it league. was framed. It’s not that he’s necessarily back after five months. It’s that In 2015-16, Trotz led the Washington Capitals to a 56-18-8 regular- he’ll be re-evaluated after five months. There’s a difference. season record, for an eye-popping 120 points. Few outside of the As the Blues proved last year, all you need to do is get into the playoffs Islanders’ inner circle thought they could duplicate last year’s amazing with a reasonably talented team and then, if it breaks right for you, 103-point season and yet, up until Thursday night, when they blew a anything can happen. three-goal lead and lost in overtime to the Pittsburgh Penguins, they had won a season-high 10 games in a row to climb to second place in the Minor trade of the week Metropolitan Division. The formula didn’t change and other than a few roster tweaks (Semyon Varlamov in for Robin Lehner), the roster didn’t Regular readers will know that I am constantly fascinated by minor change much either. trades, in which one team gives a slumping or underperforming player a chance to get a fresh start elsewhere, once it becomes clear that he is To get a sense of Trotz, you only need look at how he handled the loss – stale in his current situation, or stuck in a moment he can’t get out of it. gave up a big lead, lost in overtime, still salvaged a point, but it ended a 10-game win streak. Some coaches would lose it under those So, Robby Fabbri. circumstances. Trotz was just measured and solid. Trotz is an effusive, Fabbri’s been on the radar ever since his junior career with the OHL detailed postgame speaker, but you could boil down last night’s soliloquy Guelph Storm and a turn in the spotlight at the 2015 World Junior to fewer than 10 words. tournament when Canada won a gold medal. A former first-round draft “That’s not like us,” Trotz said. “We’ll just learn from that.” pick, Fabbri’s professional career has been undermined by a series of knee operations that followed a successful first NHL season (37 regular- Bryan Little is a big loss season points in 72 regular-season games, but most impressively, 15 points in 20 playoffs games for a Blues team that lost in the Western When Nathan Beaulieu returned to the Winnipeg Jets lineup this week, Conference final). after recovering from an injury suffered in training camp, it meant the Jets have now dressed 10 different defensemen already this season. This, of People sometimes forget that that was the moment – in the 2016 course, is a reaction to two developments: One, the decision by Dustin postseason – when it appeared as if Fabbri was taking the next step, Byfuglien, on the eve of training camp, not to report, but to ponder his only to have his career descend into a series of injury-related ups-and- future. Two, the departures, via trade or free agency, of three other downs. Whenever a trade like this occurs, you look for threads and the defensive mainstays from a year ago (Jacob Trouba, Tyler Myers and most obvious one is the Guelph connection with the Red Wings’ Tyler Ben Chiarot). Bertuzzi. Bertuzzi is 11 months older than Fabbri and was drafted one year before him, but the two of them overlapped three years in Guelph. Since the beginning of the season, the Jets have been tweaking and Presumably, if the Red Wings were trying to get a sense of who Fabbri experimenting and trying to settle on a starting six on the blue line. But is, they would have plumbed Bertuzzi’s knowledge about his former just when it appeared as if they would finally get a consistent lineup teammate. together, along comes another injury to center Bryan Little. Little missed the first nine games of the season recovering from a concussion, but he Earlier this year, the Ottawa Senators took on Vlad Namestnikov when was an immediate difference-maker upon his return – five points in seven he got stuck too far down the Rangers’ depth chart to do New York any games, including the overtime winner in the outdoor game against good. Namestnikov is up to 10 points in 13 games and has been a good Calgary – and gave the Jets another forward that could play in the top fit on a Sens team that really needed an offensive boost. The same logic six. is likely at play in Detroit. Fabbri’s size and occasionally suspect defensive awareness made him not such a great fit in St. Louis coach But then Little suffered a perforated eardrum and vertigo after taking a Craig Berube’s system. Detroit, looking to bolster its top six forwards, Nik Ehlers shot to the head in a game earlier this week. Little was held in could afford to take the chance that a change of scenery could give the hospital overnight and then released. There is no definitive timeline Fabbri’s career the necessary liftoff. Sometimes, the sort of major knee for his return. But in his absence, coach Paul Maurice is turning to a surgery Fabbri underwent twice prevents you from ever getting quite familiar Plan B – and shifting Blake Wheeler to center in the interim. back to what you were before. But the only way to find out for sure is to Wheeler did the same thing two years ago during an extended injury put him in the lineup and see where it goes. absence by Mark Scheifele. Wheeler is by nature a playmaker, not a The miracle work of Barry Trotz scorer – his 71 assists were third in the NHL last season, behind Nikita Kucherov and Connor McDavid – and so maybe, by shifting him to the Only once before in NHL history has a coach ever won back-to-back middle, the Jets can get him unstuck a little. Thus far this season, Jack Adams awards, which is given annually to the coach “adjudged to Wheeler has just eight points in 16 games. For now anyway, Wheeler will have contributed most to his team’s success.” It happened to Jacques line up between Ehlers and Jack Roslovic, while the new No. 1 line Demers with the 1987 and 1988 Red Wings. Demers oversaw a Detroit features Scheifele between Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine. team that went from 40 to 78 points in a single year- which is often the single biggest factor in coach of the year balloting – and then produced a And finally … How quickly has Mark Stone risen to the ranks of favored players in Vegas? Consider that one of 2019’s most visible pop culture stars is a sports gambler from Las Vegas named James Holzhauer, who won 32 consecutive matches on the quiz show “Jeopardy” and $2.462 million in earnings earlier this season, the second-highest total in the program’s history. Holzhauer returned to the show this week to appear on the annual tournament of champions show and had an interesting anecdote to tell Alex Trebek, the host. Holzhauer’s fame from his “Jeopardy” appearance was so great that the Vegas chamber of commerce presented him with the key to the Las Vegas strip, which according to Holzhauer, “doesn’t actually open anything.

“But I went to a ceremony at the Welcome To Las Vegas sign and I decided to wear some local color, so I wore a jersey of my favorite player on the Golden Knights. There were all these European (tourists) lined up to take pictures of the sign, and they’re like, ‘who is this guy?’ They had no idea what was going on.

“So, they Googled me and the name on my jersey and found, ‘oh it’s Mark Stone, the hockey player.’”

Stone, of course, only arrived in Vegas at the 2019 trade deadline, or just a few months before Holzhauer made his dramatic Jeopardy run. So far anyway, Stone remains ahead of Holzhauer in career earnings, after signing an eight-year, $76 million contract extension with the Golden Knights.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160665 Websites rate, which is above one point-per-60 as it has been for his entire career, though a lot more goals have gone in than usual. It’s not how often his team scores when he’s on the ice, which has been around 0.3 extra goals-per-60 relative to his teammates for three years straight. It’s not his The Athletic / An early look at the top candidates for the 2019-20 Norris ability to drive play, as he’s been around 56-to-58 percent expected goals Trophy for four straight seasons, though his 60 percent this year would be the highest of his career. In fact, it’s not even that he’s cleaned up his penalty

troubles, as his penalty differential is as bad as ever. By Dom Luszczyszyn Nov 8, 2019 No, it’s mostly the same ol’ Dougie (with perhaps a touch of better goaltending behind him), only this year he’s actually been given a chance to show what many who have paid attention to his underlying numbers The Norris Trophy race is always one of the most fiercely debated topics have seen for many years: that Hamilton is not only a legitimate No. 1 in any given season. Often it boils down to points, plus-minus, team defender but an elite one at that. The lack of respect for Hamilton’s strength, reputation or sometimes, whose “turn” it is. abilities from several NHL organizations — being traded twice in his career already and low ice-time (he’s averaged around 20 minutes every Defensemen are one of the most difficult positions to evaluate as it’s year) — always felt counter-intuitive to what actually happened whenever difficult to gauge how much they bring to the table on offense, how to he stepped foot on the ice. He has a way of tilting the ice that few others weigh that against their defense, which is difficult to gauge, as well as in the league share – doing most of his damage on offense – and he’s judge how much they’re responsible for there team’s success too. It’s a consistently shown to do that against the opposition’s best too. Now, he’s balancing act, which is what often makes the choices so controversial. finally getting minutes requisite of that ability. For the past decade there’s generally been a list of usual suspects vying Perhaps more puzzling is that he’s long shown that he’s one of the for the prize, but with a lot of them starting slow, on teams in rough game’s best offensive defensemen (he’s 10th in 5-on-5 points-per-60 shape, or just plain falling off, it’s left the race wide open for some fresh over the last five years and first in expected goals for RAPM over the last faces to make their presence known. They may not win it or even finish in three years) and rarely deployed as such on a top power play. That’s the running, but for now, they’re at the top of the class. changed this year by sheer force of will after he and the second unit Whose turn is it this year? Through 15 or so games, these are the three excelled and turned themselves into the first unit scoring 11.4 goals-per- (well, four) that stand out, doing so for mostly similar reasons: by 60, of which Hamilton has a point on 69 percent of. providing massive value on the back end in out-scoring and out-chancing He’s even playing a role on the other special teams unit this season, a opponents heavily, mostly through their offensive instincts. big step forward in turning into an all-situations stud leading to an John Carlson, Washington Capitals average of 23 minutes per night. That’s a career high and closer to the usage he’s deserved for years now. It’s been a big season already for 17 GP, 25:29, 8-18-26, plus-one penalty differential, 50 percent xG, 67 Hamilton who is being trusted more than ever. That’s made all the percent goals difference in his perception as a very worth early Norris candidate, even Game Score: 1.46 if under the surface it’s the same ol’ Dougie.

Just when you think he might slow down, Carlson has another big night Ryan Ellis, Nashville Predators scoring three points including an assist on the game-winner while 16 GP, 22:59, 3-13-16, plus-two penalty differential, 59 percent xG, 68 dominating play at 5-on-5. Not only is he simply running away with the percent goals scoring lead among defensemen (up by nine points), he’s among the very best among all players, currently in a tie with Connor freaking Game Score: 1.48 McDavid for points with 26 on the season – in just 17 games. Roman Josi, Nashville Predators That’s insane, and while the Norris race shouldn’t be decided by points 16 GP, 24:18, 5-12-17, minus-four penalty differential, 58 percent xG, 64 scored, it’s very hard to ignore just how vital Carlson is to Washington’s percent goals attack. The Capitals score 4.4 goals-per-60 with him on the ice, a number that decreases mightily with either of the other pairs and so high that the Game Score: 1.29 team doubles up on goals with him on the ice. The team’s expected goals rates aren’t much to write home with Carlson on the ice, but by now Of course, it’s a defenseman from Nashville, the factory for superstar we should all know that Washington is impossible to measure using defensemen. The question is, which one? those tools, especially offensively. His vision from the back end adds Aside from a rough outing for the whole team in Colorado last night, it’s another layer to that for a team that finds its success from making the been an absolutely sensational year for Nashville’s top pair. Both Ryan goaltender have to move. Ellis and Roman Josi are off to career-best starts, carrying each other to Carlson is as dynamic and smart as they come on the blue line, a terrific new heights, and that makes deciding between the two a very tough playmaker with strong puck skills that brings the best out of the team’s decision. Both have been more than worthy so far of being in cadre of offensive weapons. At the end of the day, it’s about out-scoring consideration. your opponent and while that may not come from staunch defensive play The Predators’ offense has been flying high this season and that has a when Carlson is on the ice, it’s more than made up for with his offense. lot to do with the play of their top pair. When on the ice together, It’s the new NHL where the name of his position is a misnomer and the Nashville is scoring 4.7 goals-per-60 en route to out-scoring opponents best “backs” rove the ice without boundaries, taking risks when 19-10. They’re controlling 58 percent of the expected goals share, a big necessary. It’s for the greater good and Carlson is exemplifying that to a step-up from previous seasons, and that’s not just because of their tee this season. offensive prowess. On defense the duo is elite, allowing just 1.75 Carlson will likely slow down from his fiery 125-point pace after a very expected goals against per 60. That’s while playing tough minutes too special start and finish around 80 points for the year. If that’s where he which is no easy feat. What makes Ellis’ season extra special, in this ends up, out-scoring opponents by a heavy margin along the way, it’ll be case, is that he does it while playing a clean game, somehow earning a hard to look away from his total value – even if a lot of it comes on plus-two penalty differential on the season. offense. He’s the front-runner for now. This is an incredible two-way duo, with both unsurprisingly being capable Dougie Hamilton, Carolina Hurricanes puck-movers leading to some very strong early results. It helps to have another stud beside you to accomplish all that (not to mention a lot of 16 GP, 23:00, 7-10-17, minus-six penalty differential, 60 percent xG, 57 time spent with the team’s top forwards) and that could hurt each player’s percent goals chances, but that also does a disservice to how well they’ve been individually. Both are playing at a point-per-game pace right now and are Game Score: 1.29 massive catalysts towards the team’s attack and play in transition. Dougie Hamilton is off to the best start of his career and is finally looking Defense has always been a focal point of the Predators and even in that like the defensemen many thought he would be when he was selected context, the team’s top pair is looking mighty special to start the year. ninth overall in 2011. What’s changed? It’s not really his 5-on-5 scoring Other names to keep an eye on

Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers: Has nine points in 14 games despite limited power-play time and has been a beast under a new coach territorially. The 57 percent expected goals rate is the highest of his career and he’s doing it at both ends of the ice. Ekblad’s 1.96 expected goals against per 60 is among the lowest marks in the league.

Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars: With John Klingberg struggling to start the season (and now injured), Heiskanen has stepped up, delivering excellent two-way numbers to lead the team’s regulars in expected goals and actual goals. Those are in relatively tough minutes too, and Heiskanen is thriving as one of the early leaders in defensive impact. Like Ekblad, the lack of power-play time hurts his scoring totals.

Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning: Once Ryan McDonagh joined the Lightning, Hedman’s burden was lessened a bit, but he’s back to playing tougher minutes this year with numbers that are a big step up from previous years. While the rest of the Lightning defense is struggling in the new season, Hedman is still as strong as ever with a 56 percent expected goals rate. Leading the Lightning back to the top of the league could be a slam dunk for his candidacy.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160666 Websites And the hateful language is evident at all levels. Wayne Simmonds was the focus of racial taunts in 2011, when a fan threw a banana on the ice during an exhibition game. Red Wings prospect Givani Smith, then a junior hockey player with the Kitchener Rangers, required a police escort The Athletic / USA Hockey stiffens penalties for racist, derogatory in May 2018 after he received “online threats and racist taunts from fans.” language According to Smith, it only reinforced to him the lack of diversity of the sport.

By Katie Strang Nov 8, 2019 “It’s definitely tough as a young player,” Smith told The Athletic’s Max Bultman. “Especially as an African-American player, if you’re a different

skin tone, you know you’re not like everyone else out there. It’s obvious It was bad enough that Darren Brown-Hall’s teenaged son was subjected that I’m black and playing against a bunch of white people playing to racial taunts and abuse during an amateur hockey game in Western hockey. Just to hear that … from other people and it’s not even related to New York in January. The then-17-year-old Roshaun Brown-Hall was hockey. It just makes you look down on yourself as a human. There’s no harassed by an opposing team, who made “monkey” noises when he need for that in the game.” touched the puck and called him a “monkey.” Lea Ann Raymo had to witness a similarly ugly incident at a tournament But the inaction that resulted only compounded the problem, making it last spring involving her own two sons, who are multiracial and play seem as if the Multiple Organizations House League of the Western New together on a PeeWee team in the Detroit area. Her oldest son, age 11 at York Amateur Hockey League didn’t take the egregious actions seriously. the time, was jostling with an opponent when things went awry. The opponent called her son “a fucking foreigner” and her son punched the In fact, the incident didn’t garner national headlines until a few months opposing player in response. later, when Darren Brown-Hall, frustrated that discipline was being dragged out and no resolution had been reached, went to the local Both kids were tossed from the game and the tournament. Parents from media. The result? One USA Hockey official resigned and the league’s their team were up in arms, and her youngest son was upset and shaken playoffs were canceled. by what transpired.

Darren Brown-Hall described the whole process as “heartbreaking.” When Raymo talked to her son about the incident after the game, he explained to her that no referee heard it and so he knew he had little “I was upset because it really wasn’t handled,” Darren Brown-Hall told choice in terms of recourse. She too described the episode as The Athletic. “Had it been handled, we wouldn’t have been in this “heartbreaking.” A big part of that was that her son, not even yet a situation.” teenager, felt he had to take matters into his own hands because he wasn’t being otherwise protected. Darren Brown-Hall hopes that recent action by USA Hockey means that another parent won’t be in the same position. “As a kid, he knew he would not have any support on the ice,” Raymo said. Last week, USA Hockey announced in a letter to all of its members that, as a result of receiving “reports of disturbing incidents involving racial and Both of her sons endured micro-aggressions in the sport before, but this other derogatory slurs,” the organization was issuing a directive that was the most overt example of racism they had to face. The tournament anyone “assessed a penalty under Rule 601.(e.3) will now receive an director apologized but explained that, because no referee had heard it, automatic match penalty, in lieu of the game misconduct penalty that there was little that can be done. currently exists, and shall be immediately suspended until a hearing is conducted by the governing USA Hockey affiliate or junior league.” This is why, in theory, the change in penalty seems like a significant difference. But in practice, it may be difficult to enforce. And Raymo The mandate, which stiffens penalties against racial and derogatory believes the approach has to extend beyond just the match penalty language, was borne out of a growing concern about the number of component. incidents involving verbal abuse and slurs. USA Hockey executive director Pat Kelleher hopes it serves as an effective deterrent and a clear “I agree that it’s an important statement that (USA Hockey) is taking a message that this sort of language will not be tolerated. stronger stance but it’s really not enough. There needs to be something more done that’s proactive (rather) than just punitive,” Raymo said. “We know that we’ve had some incidents of racial language or hateful “There need to be changes at a systemic level.” language or discriminatory language and we can’t have that in our game,” Kelleher said. “Now, as the youth hockey season got going, I She suggested sensitivity and cultural competence training for coaches, won’t say there was one incident or something, but we saw some reports officials and players alike, as well as the need for the national governing and it’s been something we’ve been discussing about how we can make body to address the overall homogeneity of the sport by examining who our game more inclusive and just felt this would be a very proactive, has access to the sport — geographically, socioeconomically and more. public step for us.” It’s not just players that are experiencing racism, either. Kelleher declined to say specifically how many incidents the organization Mark Imasa, a youth hockey coach in Detroit who is black and Filipino, was aware of; but the early returns on the youth hockey season revealed said that it has become almost an inside joke among his coaching staff to the issue was concerning enough to prompt a swift change. note the frequency with which his two assistants, who are both white, are How pervasive is racist and derogatory language? approached under the assumption that one of them is the head coach, not Imasa. He can be the only one of the trio wearing the team jacket and California Amateur Hockey Association president and executive it will still happen. committee chairman Tom Hancock, who deals with all complaints that fall under Rule 601 (e.3) in the state, said that he reviews at least a couple of Imasa said he is also frequently subjected to credentialing — people these each month; most are for homophobic language. Hunter Arey, a wanting to know where he played, his previous coaching experience and USA Hockey-certified official who works in the Columbus, Ohio, area, whether he’s gone through the USA Hockey certification program. (The said he’s only directly handled one incident in 17 years of a racial slur; program is required by all coaches to complete.) that doesn’t mean those don’t get used, but he notes that kids can be It’s not entirely unexpected for him, given his exposure to racism as a deliberate about their timing. He suspects a lot more goes on once his young person of color playing a largely-white sport. Imasa grew up in back is turned. Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and played for both Lahser High School and on “You’re not going to rob someone in front of a cop,” Arey said. the club team at UM-Flint in college. He still remembers vividly the abuse he was subjected to when they’d have a road game against Fraser. There have been plenty of high-profile incidents of racism and derogatory Opponents would call him the N-word and, though he didn’t appreciate language at the youth hockey level in recent years. The taunts involving the full meaning of the slur, he knew how vile it was. Brown-Hall’s son was one. There were also publicized incidents in Michigan and Maryland. In April 2019, The Athletic reported about 15 It is a difficult feeling to articulate for someone that has not been on the players and three coaches from an L.A. Jr. Kings team who were receiving end. suspended for a video that appeared to show some players using anti- semitic language and hand gestures. “The N-word was that powerful. It has such a strong history; even as a ensure that this recent development is just one of many of a multi- young person, it hurt a lot,” Imasa said. “When you’re not protected by pronged plan to make the game safer and more accessible to everyone. adults from stuff like that, it really isolates you. You’re already isolated from something like that, to not have teammates and adults come around That’s what Raymo is hoping to see, rather than a hollow rule change to (help) you, to try to shield you, it becomes incredibly lonely and it that simply addresses punishment and none of the broader systemic hurts. issues at play. She said:

“Because you already feel like that, an outsider, and (for someone) to “I’d like to see that as only the very first step at changing the culture.” use the most hurtful thing they can come up with — they know it’s very The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 powerful; that’s why they use the word — makes you feel more isolated. It hurts.”

Some players don’t ever want to return to those rinks, Imasa said. Visibility and representation was something he didn’t witness in his days as a young hockey player. Now, the demographics at the top levels are changing, with more and more non-white players making it to the NHL, and yet attitudes and language have remained somewhat similar, he feels.

“As an adult, it’s incredibly frustrating that it’s still happening and that it doesn’t seem like the needle has moved that much on this,” Imasa said.

Imasa also wonders about the practicality of the enforcement. Most obviously, it only applies to cases in which racist language is heard directly by an official. And absent micing every player up, that’s likely to let a lot of invective go undetected.

“I have to hear somebody say it,” Arey said of the operating procedure. “We go straight to kicking (a player) out of a game if we do hear it. When a player or a coach tells us this language has been used, we go over to warn the other coach. If I do hear it – and it’s not my rule, it’s USA Hockey’s rule – that guy is gone, and he’s sitting out the next game, too.”

Hancock, in his duties at CAHA, said his organization had been assessing extra discipline in the form of a match penalty in these events for the past 10 years. When the verbiage in the rule changed to include other discriminatory speech, there was more difficulty in interpreting the boundaries of the rule’s enforcement.

He wonders if that may still be an issue now, with regional affiliates allowed to determine on their own what they deem to be offensive language.

“I think it’s a great message sent by USA Hockey because it ratifies what we’ve been doing in California for over 10 years,” Hancock said. “But the application is a bit difficult because the instruction to officials and affiliates is not specific to just racial language.”

There is another gaping element to address. The same organization that is aiming to crack down on racist language is the one that hired John Vanbiesbrouck into a high-ranking executive role, despite the fact that he was famously fired and assessed a large fine for calling now-Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley a racial slur while he was the general manager and coach of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in the Ontario Hockey League.

When he was hired in May of 2018 as the assistant executive director of hockey operations, Vanbiesbrouck said he was “extremely sorry” for it and that it was not “who I am.” Still, it was a jarring decision to hire him in such a position and one that clearly complicates any effort to promote diversity and inclusion within USA Hockey’s ranks.

How does USA Hockey reconcile this glaring issue?

“We look for an education and a path back for players if they use poor language, if they use racist, hateful, discriminatory language. We’re talking about an educational component and a path back,” Kelleher said. “We’re talking about a situation that was certainly very difficult for all involved. But there’s been, again, a forgiveness and a path back as we go through that. In the use of this language we have to try to educate, because it’s a societal issue and we can try to make that through hockey.”

Daley, according to reporting by The Athletic’s Craig Custance, was “livid” about the hire. He has not publicly commented.

Unlike the Vanbiesbrouck hire, which understandably wrought uproar, USA Hockey’s hiring of Stephanie Jackson as director of diversity and inclusion was seen by many as a major coup. Jackson brings a terrific reputation to the organization and came highly recommended by NHL executive Kim Davis, who heads up the league’s inclusion and diversity efforts. Kelleher said Jackson has been spearheading efforts out in the field to educate local leadership and build out programming efforts to 1160667 Websites Teams seldom skate in the morning on the second of back-to-back games and, if they do, it’s almost never mandatory. But Tortorella said he received pushback when he first instituted the blanket rule because players are creatures of habit. (The Jackets now skate in the mornings The Athletic / The beauty of a good night’s sleep can be elusive for many before games if they were off the previous day.) NHL players Even when teams hold an optional morning skate and star players aren’t on the ice, it’s common to see them at the rink fiddling with their sticks or shooting the breeze with teammates or trainers. By Daniel Nugent-Bowman Nov 8, 2019 Players are usually on the ice before 10:30 a.m. when a game is at home

and 11:30 on the road. That means coming to the rink much earlier – Before his head hits the pillow, Sam Gagner goes through a mental sometimes at the expense of sleep. checklist to make sure everything is in perfect order. “You learn how to play tired,” says former NHLer Jason Chimera, who He starts with a cold shower, which activates the parasympathetic last played in 2017-18. nervous system (sometimes called the “rest-and-digest system”), which The two most prominent ways to counteract mid- or late-day fatigue is allows for optimal rest and recovery. the afternoon nap or a stimulant like caffeine. If he’s on the road and in a hotel room, the Edmonton Oilers’ Gagner Chimera considers himself naturally energetic but relied on his share of reaches for the thermostat and adjusts it to either 66 or 67 degrees coffee, he said. Most people enjoy a cup or two. Khullar warns about Fahrenheit. Those temperatures are probably a bit low for comfort for his overconsumption. wife and three kids, so he has a fan blowing when he’s at home. Added benefit: white noise. “Is it a habit or is it actually helping you?” he asks. “If you’re needing a heavy dose of caffeine consistently to temporarily improve your He’ll make sure the room is as dark as possible, take a whiff of lavender performance, then that’s probable not a great long-term strategy.” – another parasympathetic nervous system booster – and crawl under the covers. That’s when the earplugs go in and the eye mask slides A nap is preferable. It all leads back to the overarching question Khullar down. Gagner is finally ready for la-la land. poses: “How can you get as much sleep as possible?”

“If you can try to get into a routine where you’re doing the same things NHL teams have been taking sleep patterns more seriously in recent before bed every night, that always helps,” he says. years.

Gagner takes his nighttime procedures seriously. He’s constantly looking When Oilers GM Ken Holland was the assistant manager with Detroit in for tips to improve the quality of his shuteye and won’t hesitate to try the mid-1990s, the Red Wings were in the Western Conference. Team something from fitness and health expert Ben Greenfield’s podcast if the practice for years had been to fly back to Detroit at the end of a West host offfers an intriguing recommendation. Gagner’s trainer Andy Coast trip so players could enjoy a full day at home with family. O’Brien, for instance, suggested he spray himself with cold water, a move that paid immediate dividends. But Holland and his colleagues eventually realized that they and the players weren’t getting the benefits of the day off. The sun had almost “Generally, when you’re waking up in the middle of the night, it’s because risen when the Red Wings would return to Detroit from the Pacific time your body temperature is rising,” Gagner says. “That’s why I try to get zone. That day would be a write off. cold before I go to bed and keep it as cold as I can. It helps me to stay asleep.” “There’s got to be a better plan than this,” Holland thought.

Like most professional athletes, NHL players criss-cross the continent, “It’s like being on a red eye. When you’re flying on a red eye, the next enduring the sport’s demanding physicality and its rigorous travel day – maybe even for two days – you’re wacked up a bit.” schedule. Late nights turn into early mornings, so maximizing sleep Red Wings management decided it was better to spend another night in opportunities is key. a hotel, hopefully get a full night’s sleep and travel in the morning. They’d Gagner might get eight hours of sleep after an off day; other nights he’ll spend the day in the air but would be home in time for dinner. be lucky to get half that. The Blue Jackets joined the Red Wings in the Central Division when they But proper rest is one of the best ways to ensure peak performance, both entered the league in 2000. Chimera, a former Oiler, got to experience physical and mental. And everyone’s got their own way of achieving it. that hectic travel from 2005 to 2010.

The overriding message to athletes from a doctor who studies sleep, “That was worse than Edmonton,” he says. “We had a plane that couldn’t mood and anxiety disorders is simple: “Make sleep a priority,” says Dr. make it all the way. We had to stop halfway.” Atul Khullar medical director of the Northern Alberta Sleep Clinic. Moving to the Eastern Conference in 2013 eased the Red Wings’ and “Get as much as possible by any means necessary,” he says. “You Blue Jackets’ travel schedules, shifting them from the top tier to the wouldn’t starve yourself before a game. So why would you sleep deprive bottom rung in the league in terms of total miles traveled. There were yourself?” other benefits, too.

Khullar is also an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of “It’s not only the trips. How many of our games started body clock time 9, Alberta and he’s consulted with the Oilers and Canada’s Winter Olympic 9:30, 10, 10:30?” Holland says. “You’re playing into the middle of the team. He says stars in other sports – LeBron James, Tom Brady, Roger night.” Federer – prioritize getting eight or nine hours of sleep a night. Holland’s Red Wings figured out their ideal rest and recovery methods by Those athletes have all stayed remarkably healthy and have dominated trial and error. “It’s more of a science now,” he says. “There’s more well into their 30s (or, in Brady’s case, his 40s). information.”

“The more you sleep, you can add years to your career because you get The Canucks were viewed as industry leaders when Mike Gillis was injured less,” Khullar says. “You talk to guys and they feel better; they general manager a decade ago. The organization commissioned a health play better.” and safety expert and had him track players’ sleep patterns to help learn when they were able to perform at their peak. He’d like to see all NHL teams abolish the morning skate so players don’t have to wake up early on game days when they’re already going to be up These days, the Blackhawks are tracking their players’ brainwave late. Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella tried to stop the ritual three changes and wake patterns through NuCalm, which involves them years ago, saying “it doesn’t make any sense” that his players had to wearing a disc on their left wrists. The system, which includes music and come to rink just once on practice days but twice on game days. an eye mask, delivers electromagnetic frequencies to the body to help the brain interrupt adrenaline and cortisol release. A 20- or 40-minute “That’s probably the worst thing they can do, sleep-wise,” Khullar says. power nap is supposed to feel like a two-hour siesta. The feedback offered has some value, but Khullar says there’s still much Oshie may have a point. Although the Oilers will log the most miles of to learn. any NHL team this season, being in Mountain Time Zone does have its benefits. “Sometimes you use it and you come out of it and you feel a little bit groggy,” Blackhawks winger Drake Caggiula says. “I haven’t mastered “I find it easier in Edmonton than when I was in Vancouver just because when to use it.” of that one hour,” Gagner says. “It’s never a three-hour swing with the time zones.” Brendan Perlini, who was traded from Chicago to Detroit in late October, has long been a frequent flyer and has adapted to changing time zones. Getting to sleep after a game can be challenging. In the best-case scenario, a team is amid a homestand and players drive home to sleep in Perlini was born in England and until he was 11 lived in Guildford, 40 their own beds. But it’s often hard for someone to simply flip the switch kilometres southwest of London, when he and his family moved to off after a hard-fought game. Oilers blueliner Darnell Nurse told The Canada. Trips across the Atlantic Ocean were made at Christmas and for Athletic last season it’s common for him to stare at the ceiling until 3 a.m. summer vacations. because he’s unable to sleep.

So, when the Blackhawks traveled to the Czech Republic to open the The same issue may befall Russell. season, Perlini knew exactly how to acclimatize. After the plane took off, he ate a meal as quickly as possible, waited 30 minutes and then slept “Depends if I play good or not,” he says, half jokingly. for the duration of the flight. He did the same thing on the return trip and said he was unaffected by the travel. “It’s one of those things where you have the high from the game and you’re trying to calm down and get to sleep because you have practice or It’s the shorter jaunts that pose more of a problem for him. another game the next night. If you fight to try to get to sleep that’s usually when you can’t sleep.” As detailed by The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus and Dom Luszczyszyn, Pacific Division teams log the most air miles because they have longer That’s sometimes where sleeping aids come into play. One Western flights even to their closest rivals. Conference player says he knows sleeping pills are an issue for some of his peers. Perlini knows this all too well because he started his NHL career with the Coyotes in Arizona. He found that tough enough. Being in Chicago was Khullar says sleeping pills should be used as a last resort, although they worse, Perlini says. can be helpful – on occasion – if transitioning between time zones.

Chicago is centrally located, so the Blackhawks make more quick trips – “If you’re needing a sleeping pill more than once a week, something’s one or two games – sometimes across multiple time zones. Perlini’s wrong,” he says. claim is supported by Lazerus and Luszczyszyn’s data, which show Central Division clubs make the most flights. Perlini read “Sleep” by Nick Littlehales and said it helped him understand ways to access more melatonin, a hormone that regulates the sleep- It’s tough to get your body clock adjusted that way, Perlini says. wake cycle. He blacks out the room and unplugs from electronics before he goes to bed. “When I was in Arizona, we would come (east) and we knew we were gonna be on the road for four to five games,” he says. “You can get “Looking at a screen is basically like you’re looking at sunlight,” he says. adjusted to the time change. When you’re at home, you’re at home for “I try to do it as if I’m a caveman. A caveman never had a phone, three or four games.” internet, any of that stuff. They woke up with the sunrise and went to bed when the sun set. I try and do it that way. In the winter, when it gets dark One recommendation to combat those quick trips is to not even try at 5 or 6, I try to dim the lights the later it gets in the day to recreate adjusting your body clock. Khullar says an option is to stay on Central dusk.” time and tell yourself a road game against the Avalanche, for instance, starts at 8 p.m. rather than the 7 p.m. local time. Now 30 and in his 13th year of pro hockey, Gagner has learned how to get a good night’s sleep. “Now, that’s not always possible,” Khullar says. “It comes down to each individual player understanding their body clock.” “It’s a balancing act,” he says. “You’ve gotta make sure you’re up for the game. You have a ton of adrenaline and then the game ends at 9:30, 10 By comparison, Pacific Division teams routinely have extended trips that o’clock. You’d like to get to bed at a decent hour, but it’s hard to wind last more than a week. The Oilers’ first road trip this season lasted eight down. There’s a lot going on in your mind as well. days. They played four games, three in New York and New Jersey that required very little travel. “I think I’ve become better at it as the years have gone by.”

“You know where you’re gonna be and you can adjust,” defenceman The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 Oscar Klefbom says. “The body feels good after a while.”

“You’re home more, but when we go out on our long road trips, that’s potentially the best time to get your rest,” says defenceman Kris Russell, who has a 2-year-old daughter, Bray. “You skate later on the road for pregame, so that’s an extra hour.”

Russell has played his entire 800-plus game career in the Western Conference though.

“Maybe I’m fooling myself,” he says, laughing.

Capitals winger T.J. Oshie has split his career in St. Louis and Washington. He didn’t have any kids when he played for the Blues and now has two girls – and a boy on the way, expected in March. While it’s harder to rack up sleep hours now, Oshie insists the travel in Washington isn’t much better than St. Louis.

“Miles-wise it looks different, but I feel like I still get home at the same time as I did when I played in St. Louis,” he says. “Everyone thinks the East travel is unbelievable. That’s true if the Islanders are playing the Rangers or you’re already close. But when you’re getting on a plane, you still have to go to the plane, wait for the plane to load. You still have to wait for them to do all their checkups and stuff. Then you have to go to your car. You’re a half hour from the airport before you’re home.

“It’s not as easy … as everyone tries to make it seem.” 1160668 Websites Association. “The more efficient you are at getting oxygen into the bloodstream, that’s the Olympic athlete versus the high school football player.”

The Athletic / Lights out: In the NHL, cigarette smoking has been virtually According to Rizzo, lung capacity usually peaks by the early to mid-20s, extinguished the band occupied by stars such as Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon.

“During that time, the lungs have developed to the point where they have Fluto Shinzawa Nov 8, 2019 the capacity and ventilation ability to move air in and out that can sustain the normal activity and strenuous activity of an athlete,” Rizzo said.

“Assuming the lungs are normal at that point and time, not compromised Bruce Cassidy was in the clouds. Long before he was the coach of the by smoking, air quality, air pollution, and there are no symptoms of any Bruins, he had gotten the call as an 18-year-old to travel to Los Angeles lung restriction or obstruction by any impairments, they have the ability to from Peterborough, Ontario, to play in his first career NHL game. function at the level of a pro athlete.”

Once-in-a-lifetime excitement did not dull the growling of his stomach. The cold air inside the rink can tax a player’s breathing. The NHL recommends arena temperature to be between 60 and 64 degrees. Ice Cassidy bought an airport hot dog. As usual, he dressed it with ketchup. temperature is around 24 degrees. Cassidy did not consider how his culinary choice would coincide with his decision to bring just one pair of pants — the ones he was wearing. “Air temperature does play a role in how the lung can be affected,” Rizzo said. “When you start to exercise or do any kind of activity, you pick up Of course, Cassidy dripped ketchup on his dress pants. The stain did not your breathing rate or depth of breathing. You increase the volume you come out, no matter how hard he tried to scrub it away. move in and out in a minute. That starts to cool and dry out our airways, especially if the air is already cool and dry. In cold-weather environments, Upon arriving in Los Angeles, the car he was expecting wasn’t there. rinks as well, the cold air has to be warmed by the body as it starts to Cassidy blew his pocket money in the hotel gift shop for a dress shirt that come in. The airways start to dry out a little bit. That triggers a reaction in — he hoped — might match his cowboy boots. When he reported to the the airways that leads to inflammation. They start to tighten and narrow. bus for transport to the game, Cassidy discovered he would be sharing it That leads to coughing and symptoms similar to asthma.” with his bosses, not his peers. The players had taken an earlier bus. Adding cigarettes to the equation can compromise breathing even more. For all the oddities accompanying his NHL debut on March 11, 1984 — There are variables, such as genes and frequency of smoking, that make the Blackhawks lost to the Kings, 4-3 — that are vivid in Cassidy’s one athlete’s reaction to cigarettes different from another’s. memory, the 54-year-old Bruins coach remains just as struck by what he saw and smelled after the first period. But in general, smoking triggers inflammation in the airways. They become narrower and congested. A hockey player’s ability to transport During intermission, Cassidy went to the bathroom. About six of his air becomes more limited. teammates were there smoking cigarettes. Cassidy had never seen anything like it. “Most athletes who perform at this level,” Rizzo said, “understand they don’t want to have the added insult of tobacco limiting those airways.” Washington’s Evgeny Kuznetsov tested positive for cocaine at the 2019 World Championships and was suspended from international competition Times have changed for four years by the IIHF. The NHL suspended Nashville’s Austin Watson for alcohol abuse. Mario Lemieux used to smoke cigarettes. Denis Savard and Steve Larmer would fire up at intermission. Al Iafrate would light his cigarettes Cigars are always lit during Stanley Cup celebrations. Smokeless with the same blowtorch he would apply to his stick. tobacco regularly peeks out over players’ lips. Vaping and marijuana might be more prevalent than before — the former because of its recent If today’s NHL players are smoking at similar rates, they are doing a introduction, the latter because of greater legal and cultural acceptance. good job of hiding their habits. Informal conversations did not reveal the identities of any in the league who smoke during the season. Martin But 35 years after Cassidy entered a smoke-filled bathroom at The Havlat, who last played in the NHL in 2015-16, would light up underneath Forum, the notion of a similar scenario occurring today is laughable. the TD Garden stands, according to a source with first-hand knowledge.

“Back in the day,” Bruins forward Joakim Nordstrom mused with a laugh. “I don’t even understand it, to be honest,” Bruins defenseman Torey Krug “It just amazes me how they were able to, at this level too. I’ve tried once said. “Any time I’m even around smoke, I feel bad. So I can’t imagine or twice. But I can’t even take one inhale.” actually inhaling it and having that affect your performance.”

How smoke affects athletes This might reflect the overall decline in smoking. According to Rizzo, between 30 to 40 percent of American adults smoked at one time. It is Every 60 seconds, the average person breathes in and out about 12 to down to between 14 to 20 percent. Federal regulations on marketing 15 times. This translates to about 5 liters of air exhaled per minute. cigarettes to younger consumers have turned smoking from a cool The average hockey player, in comparison, can exhale as much as 100 activity to something less acceptable. Everybody knows that cigarettes liters per minute in the heat of action. are dangerous to your health.

During an NHL shift, a forward, for example, could find himself sprinting “Maybe our generation had so many relatives die from lung cancer, after a puck. He could fight with a 220-pound defenseman for ownership throat cancer, things that have come from cigarettes that it wasn’t even a of said puck. If he loses the battle, he has to backcheck furiously to thought,” Krug said of smoking. “It’s never crossed my mind.” retreat to a defensive position. If the puck gets trapped in his defensive Within hockey, the decline in smoking might have more to do with the zone, a 45-second shift can tumble over the one-minute threshold, emphasis on performance. Players hire personal trainers during the putting the player deep into the red zone. offseason. Gluten-free and plant-based diets are no longer exceptions. All this effort depends on muscles receiving as much oxygen as rapidly Organizations track workload, sleep and recovery. as possible. An NHL forward requires a finely tuned respiratory system, As fragile as job security has become, players are not willing to heart and lungs working in synch. compromise the work they have put in elsewhere by picking up a Depending on the situation, the player might have only two line changes’ cigarette. worth of recovery time before his coach requires his services again. “Not with just cigarettes and tobacco, but with food and nutrition in Bruins center Sean Kuraly estimated that after a taxing shift, he might general, the way that guys work out in the summers, it’s different now need two minutes of recovery time before he can roll back over the than what it used to be,” Nordstrom said. “A lot has changed with the way boards and perform well. Kuraly focuses on his breathing to drop his guys are eating and doing anything, I guess, to put yourself in the best heart rate back down in the shortest amount of time possible. possible position to perform well.” “Based on the demand of exercise, muscles are demanding more The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 oxygen,” said Dr. Albert Rizzo, chief medical officer of the American Lung 1160669 Websites another Washington team winning their first title and turning to Ovie and friends for guidance. And then it happened. And it was spectacular.

The third star: The Capitals and Nationals – When your pre-gaming is The Athletic / DGB Grab Bag: Ranking that player survey, broken literal pre-gaming. standings and Mike Keenan attacks a timekeeper THEY DID IT

The first star: The Capitals and Nationals – These two teams need to be By Sean McIndoe Nov 8, 2019 best friends forever.

Maybe we can get a third part of this ongoing series someday when the city’s next championship is earned by the NFL’s Washington ha ha ha We got a look inside the NHL world this week when ESPN published OK let’s get serious. their annual players’ poll. As always, the results ranged from dull to mildly surprising to jaw-dropping to enraging. So today, let’s rank the responses Trivial annoyance of the week from the least infuriating to the most. When the NHL announced the rule changes for the 2019-20 season, No. 8 + 9: The two questions about visitors’ locker rooms. most of the attention went to the ones about replay. That made sense – it had been a big issue during the playoffs, so people wanted to see how It’s an interesting question, although I’m not sure any of the answers are the league would address it. (As it turns out, the changes were fine but all that shocking. Finding out that Washington has prison showers is not as good as they could have been.) neat, I guess. It’s a mild surprise to see that players seem to like Vegas room, since I doubt any of them have ever been sober enough to know But there was another change that the league slipped in, and it’s one we they were in it. highlighted at the time: The first tiebreaker would no longer be regulation and overtime wins (ROW). Instead, the league would go by regulation No. 7: Do you have a burner Twitter account? wins. That was a good idea, because it gave teams a small incentive to actually play for the win in regulation rather than shut it down and wait for An intriguing 32 percent say they do. But from the sounds of it they only the loser point fairy to visit. use it for boring stuff like golf scores, as opposed to slagging their own team. A special shoutout to the one player who said “I’ve never logged The NHL got this one right. Should they move even further, maybe going on to Twitter in my life.” And they say pro athletes can’t be role models. to a 3-2-1-0 system someday? Sure, but we can still appreciate it when they make baby steps in the right direction. That’s what happened here. No. 6: The road cities they dread most. We said it at the time and we’ll say it again here: Good job, NHL. This is just a polite way of asking players where they’d least like to play, So, uh … why do most of the standings pages out there still list ROW? and I’m all for it. We get the usual suspects like Winnipeg, Buffalo, Edmonton and Ottawa, although Calgary is a mild surprise. Otherwise, Go check the standings on your favorite site, and chances are you’ll still the answers here are pretty standard, although bonus points to the player see ROW listed instead of the new RW tiebreaker. Sportsnet still has it. who hates Winnipeg because “you walk around the city and feel like you So does TSN. You Americans aren’t doing any better with ESPN. For need to wash your face after you go outside.” Wow. If you live in what it’s worth, The Athletic’s standings page doesn’t get into tiebreakers Winnipeg, feel free to move this one all the way up to No. 1, because I’m at all, so we’re kind of off the hook, if only because we didn’t even try. But pretty sure that’s a way worse putdown than knocking the parks or the the major sites that do list them are all currently using the wrong one. WiFi. That’s weird, right?

No. 5: Would you play for Seattle in Year 1? Stranger still, even the official NHL site didn’t have it right when the season started. They’ve been listing ROW all season long, and only Only 60 percent of the players said yes, and it’s kind of adorable that added a new “RW” column over the last few days. It’s there now, but most of them think they’ll have any choice. here’s what the standings looked like a week ago. No. 3 + 4: The two questions about recreational drug use. I’m not sure if I should be glad the league got it right ahead of everyone The players are largely indifferent on punishment, and don’t seem to else or criticize them for having their own standings page wrong for a think there’s a widespread problem. Or maybe more accurately, they’re month and then trying to sneak in a fix without anyone noticing. Maybe smart enough to say that publicly. As Katie Strang reported this week, it’s both. the drug story goes deeper than the players might like to admit. In the end, none of this is a big deal – it’s not like the tiebreaker matters No. 2: Do you have Gritty fatigue? right now, and as best I can tell the actual standings were always being calculated correctly. It’s just kind of amusing that the NHL made a smart A stunning 28 percent say yes. Look guys, I thought I’d be right there rule change, then everyone kind of forgot about it over the course of the with you. As I wrote a few weeks ago, Gritty still being funny after a year summer. is a bigger upset than the Blues’ Cup run. But he absolutely is – I mean, come on – and I will not stand for NHL players giving him anything less Obscure former player of the week than a 100 percent approval rating. We had some fun with nicknames this week, including one of my all-time And that brings us to the worst answer of the survey … favorites: Red Light Racicot. It’s just such a devastating name for a goaltender, and I still think the fact that it stuck was a big reason why No. 1: Would you feel comfortable doing a national ad campaign? Racicot didn’t last in the NHL. There’s no coming back from that.

Oh you delicate little babies. A full 36 percent of players said no to this And it led to a reader question: Is “Red Light” Racicot the most brutal question. Note that it’s not even asking if they’d want to be in a nickname ever slapped on a player? I think it might be. But he’ll get some campaign, just if they would be comfortable. And we still have over a competition from this week’s obscure player: Steve “The Puck Goes-in- third of these guys saying no, because they want to fly under the radar or ski” Buzinski. avoid being chirped or, as one player put it, “I don’t really want to put myself out there like that.” Good lord. You’re in the entertainment Buzinski was a tiny goaltender, listed at just 140 pounds, who plied his business, gentlemen. We all criticize the NHL for its awful marketing, but trade in the ’30s and ’40s, including playing the better part of a decade maybe it’s not entirely the league’s fault. with the Indians in the SJHL senior league. He wasn’t really good enough to crack an NHL lineup back then, as the dawn of the The week’s of comedy, Capitals/Nationals edition Original Six era (and lack of full-time backups) meant that jobs for goalies were exceedingly scarce. But that changed, briefly, in 1942 when the Yeah, we’re doing this. Rangers came calling. Their roster, which won a Cup just a few years Remember how much fun we had last year with Drunk Alexander earlier, had been torn apart by the war, with several players enlisting in Ovechkin and friends, and how it felt like we’d never truly be able to the military including starting goalie “Sugar” . So they called recapture that because even if the Caps won another Cup, it’s never Steve Buzinski. quite like the first time? Apparently we forgot about the possibility of That 1942-43 Rangers team wasn’t the worst they’ve ever had; that He also traded insults with Bruins coach Mike Milbury. I’m not sure who came the next year, when the 1943-44 squad became quite possibly the won the exchange, but it was Mike Keenan and Mike Milbury trading worst team in NHL history. But the 1942-43 version certainly wasn’t something, so I’m going to assume they both lost. good. And Buzinski didn’t help matters much, as he appeared in nine games and was lit up to the tune of a 5.89 goals-against average. To this Van Hellemond tries to take the blame in that same article, which is day, that remains the third worst career GAA for any NHL goaltender who notable only because it’s a reminder that NHL referees used to talk to the played at least nine games. media when they screwed up. Sure glad we got rid of that, and now we just get a tweet from the league that everything is fine and no mistakes So you can see where he got the nickname from. There’s some dispute were made. over whether anyone actually called him “Puck Goes-in-ski” during his career; it doesn’t really feel like a 1940s moniker, and one version of the By the way, this might not even have been the worst call of Andy Van story says that Stan Fischler came up with it decades later. That might be Hellemond’s career. Also, he once threatened to a libel suit when a for the best, since the poor kid had a tough enough time playing behind comic strip called him evil. And that wasn’t even the strangest thing he that Rangers team. But despite his lackluster NHL career, Buzinski did was ever slandered in. The guy had an interesting career. get to make some history alongside another famous nickname – on Nov. As far as I can tell, there was no further fallout over this incident. I don’t 8, 1942, one of the pucks that went-in-ski was the first goal of Rocket think Keenan was fined for either his charge across the ice or his Richard’s career. postgame comments. He did demand an investigation, claiming that “the Classic YouTube clip breakdown NHL is a laughingstock for this,” but it doesn’t seem to have gone anywhere. But the controversy probably did push the NHL toward A few weeks ago I wrote about how disorienting it can feel for modern- adopting replay review for time disputes, which came in shortly after. day fans to watch old 1980s and ’90s NHL clips on YouTube. If you’re a regular reader of this section, I’m guessing most of that didn’t apply to And that’s it for today’s clip. Lessons were learned, everyone vowed to you. You’re a veteran of the old-school clip game. do better in the future, and nobody in Boston screwed up the timing of the end of something by several seconds ever again right up until Brad That said, I included a video in that post that I’ve always meant to break Marchand got tired in this year’s final. down in this section. This seems like as good a week as any to do it. The Athletic LOADED: 11.09.2019 So it’s Oct. 27, 1991, and the Hawks are in Boston to face the Bruins. It’s been a tight game, one that saw Chicago take a 3-0 lead early in the third, only to have the Bruins storm back to take a 5-4 lead on the strength of three unanswered goals in the final minutes. Well, maybe unanswered. I’ll explain.

We join our clip in the immediate aftermath of what seems to be the Hawks scoring the tying goal. Dirk Graham has pounced on a loose puck and shoveled it into the net with just a few seconds remaining. Or were there? The officials have huddled up and they’ve ruled that time had expired.

We immediately get a replay that shows that no, time hadn’t expired, and it wasn’t even all that close – there seem to be about three seconds left when the puck goes in. Damn those coulombs, they’ll get you every time.

The referee is Andy Van Hellemond, and he’s saying that he saw the green light that signaled the end of regulation go off before the red light signaling a goal. That’s basically the goal judge’s call, since he’s the one who triggers the red light, although the timekeeper has a say in this too. They’re all ruling it no goal.

Gee, I wonder if Mike Keenan will handle this situation with patience and grace, said no hockey fan ever.

Yep, as our replay ends we cut to a shot of Keenan reacting to the situation the way any rational person would: By charging across the ice to fight the timekeeper. His players are restraining him, but at one point he gets some decent height on an attempt to scale the glass. I did not see Keenan being a guy with a pro-level vertical leap. Life is full of surprises.

The best part of all of this is that the main guys holding Keenan back, and thereby keeping him from getting a lifetime suspension and/or going to jail, are Keith Brown and Stu Grimson. You know a situation is bad when a guy called The Grim Reaper is playing peacemaker.

By the way, Grimson does a much better job of holding Keenan back than the coach could do with the roles reversed a year later.

There was no replay back then, so this call actually ended up standing and the Bruins won the game. You guys know my stance on replay – it almost always sucks – but I think we can all agree that “Did the puck cross the line before time expired?” is a pretty good use of it. Especially when the answer is “Uh, yeah, by like three seconds, what are we even doing here?”

As impressive as Keenan’s meltdown is here, he was in even better form immediately after the game. That’s when he delivered quotes like: “(The timekeeper) should be fired. They cheated here tonight. I don’t like people who cheat,” as well as “I’m going to have the whole group of off- ice officials hired by Harry Sinden investigated.” Angry coach Mike Keenan was the best. Look, it’s not too late to hire the guy for one more run. Come on, San Jose, what do you have to lose? 1160670 Websites .926. Put that next to Mike Smith’s identical .926, and this tandem is far, far out pacing the kind of success predicted when the season began.

"He’s just solid," said Tippett, who has masterfully swapped his goalies in Sportsnet.ca / Oilers' win over Devils a product of depth players stepping and out, just in time for the next guy to give him a solid start. "(Koskinen) up has good practices before his starts. He was just in position and made the game look simple. That was a strong game by a goaltender. He was positionally sound and right in tune with the game and got rewarded with the shutout." Mark Spector | November 9, 2019, 1:51 AM The goaltending hasn’t waivered for Edmonton, an area that will go a

long way towards becoming a playoff team. EDMONTON — Alex Chiasson picked his mother, Marylin, up from the If the support scoring hangs around, well, that’s a whole new ballgame. Edmonton International Airport on Thursday, as the mothers of the Oilers players arrived for a California "Mom’s Trip" that begins with a game in Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 Anaheim Sunday.

Marylin made a living with a calculator when she worked for the federal tax department. When it comes to zero goals in 14 goals for her boy Alex, of course, she’s never been one to count.

"That’s the special relationship I have with my Mom," said Chiasson, 29, who busted his slump with a goal and an assist in a 4-0 win Friday. "Honestly, we don’t really talk about hockey. If I need advice, or we just need to chat, I know she doesn’t care about my goal scoring or things like that. She’s just there to pick me up and make me feel good about myself."

It’s a long drive in from the airport here. Chiasson is lucky it wasn’t a Dad’s trip.

"I know it’s different when I talk to my Dad," he laughed. "He’s a lot more honest."

This was the game Chiasson has been waiting for since early October, like that bus that never seems to arrive on a minus-23 Edmonton winter day. The big Montrealer had 22 goals last season, and although few people expected he would pot 20 again, the Oilers are counting on 12-15 at least.

Well, until he got a stick on a Ryan Nugent-Hopkins wrist shot, deflecting a puck behind beleaguered Devils goalie Cory Schneider, Chiasson had been starving for that first one. And getting frustrated, we might add.

And then his Mom came to town, and he scored.

"She might have to stay for the rest of the month," he said.

"You could tell there was just a hunger around the net," head coach Dave Tippett said of Chiasson’s game. "I think the frustration had just gotten to the point where he just wasn’t going to be denied. That is a good sign. If you look at it, he is a guy who usually scores in streaks, so hopefully that is a good sign of things to come."

The Oilers have been absolutely begging for some support scoring behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, neither of whom were required for post-game interviews for the first time in who-knows-how- long. On Friday, Nove. 8, it finally arrived.

Better late than never.

"Your best players are going to be your best players in this league," said Chiasson. "But I’ve said this time and time again: when you have guys on any given night coming in and pulling on the rope, that’s what is going to make this team dangerous."

When the puck goes from the stick of Kris Russell over to third pairing partner Matt Benning, whose shot is deflected home by a fourth-line centre named Gaetan Haas, you have virtually defined depth scoring.

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James Neal, who had gone three games without, scored his 12th in 18 games. Draisaitl also buried as breakaway on a bullet pass from Nugent- Hopkins, the Oilers best player on the night with two assists. McDavid had just a lonely second assist — the kind of team effort that has been sorely missed on a team that is so often carried by the captain and Draisaitl, two of the NHL’s Top 4 scorers going into action this weekend.

And just in case anyone forgot about the goalie, Mikko Koskinen recorded his first shutout this season, beefing his saves percentage up to 1160671 Websites were moving pretty good. But we’ve had games we’ve played like that and won by three or four goals. Tonight just didn’t go our way.”

“We played a good hockey game,” Canuck defenceman Troy Stecher Sportsnet.ca / Canucks plagued by penalties as losing streak vs. Jets said after setting up J.T. Miller’s goal that made it 1-0. “The second continues period, it seemed like they took a lot of momentum off their power play. It’s unfortunate because when you kill a two-minute penalty like that and spend the entire time in your zone, you definitely feel like you gain momentum on the bench. When you take (another penalty) right away, Iain MacIntyre | November 8, 2019, 10:56 PM right after, it’s kind of a shot in the foot.”

Jay Beagle was whistled for holding 16 seconds after Horvat’s tripping WINNIPEG – If the Vancouver Canucks are as tough mentally as penalty ended. Tanev went down on the first power play; the rest of the defenceman Chris Tanev is tough physically, then losing back-to-back Canucks on the second. road games against the Winnipeg Jets and Chicago Blackhawks won’t be “Teams are going to lose back-to-back games throughout a season,” a problem. Stecher said. “It’s not often that that doesn’t happen. We just have to Everything is new to this rebuilt Canucks team. That October success, rebound as a group and get ready for Sunday.” yielding an 8-3-1 record, was new. And so is losing two games in 27 The Canucks face a quick turn-around, opening next week’s four-game hours, as well as the sudden market correction on offence that has seen home stand with a Sunday afternoon game against the New Jersey Vancouver manage just five goals over four of its past five games. Devils. The Canucks lost 4-1 on Friday to the Jets, who seem to be getting their It was the seventh-straight game for which the Canucks have had to game in order after a chaotic series of events, on the ice and off, over the travel. last two months. Their power play is 2-for-19 in November and, really, other than the But beating the Canucks is one of the lifestyle benefits here. Miller-Elias Pettersson–Brock Boeser line, plus Jake Virtanen, the whole There are two certainties when Vancouver comes to Winnipeg, and they team has gone cold offensively. aren’t death and taxes because the players don’t hang around long As they chartered home late Friday, the Canucks seemed in a very enough for either. The guarantees are frigid weather and a Jets’ win. different place than when they returned from California six nights earlier Occasionally, it’s not too cold. after a triumphant 2-0-1 trip in which they outplayed all three opponents. The Canucks have lost seven straight games in Winnipeg over five-and- In Winnipeg, Vancouver was outshot (35-33) for the first time in 11 a-half years and have been outscored 22-5 in that time. It hasn’t been games. close, even if Friday’s game was. “I think we all know good teams are going to face adversity,” Demko said. The Jets turned the game in the second period when the Canucks took “It’s not going to be daisies the whole season.” back-to-back penalties, which allowed Winnipeg to generate tremendous Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 pressure and momentum and turn a one-goal deficit into a 2-1 lead with goals five minutes apart from Jack Roslovic and Mark Scheifele.

The best player on either team was Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck, whose 32-saves included a desperation reach-back stop on Bo Horvat when it looked like the Canucks’ captain was going to tie the game with about six-and-a-half minutes remaining.

On the next faceoff, Kyle Connor knocked the puck off former teammate Tyler Myers, rocketed in on a breakaway and beat Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko on a forehand deke to make it 3-1 at 13:35. Adam Lowry added an empty-netter and the Canucks returned home empty- handed.

Their hot streak is gone. Their offensive surge has ceased. At least they’re still relatively healthy because Tanev, whose leg was nearly amputated on that first Winnipeg power play when he blocked Patrik Laine’s one-timer, somehow got himself off the ice on one foot, then miraculously returned a few minutes later on two.

When people debate Tanev’s value to the Canucks, and whether the team should trade him before he becomes an unrestricted free agent after this season, they should consider his value to teammates – the example he sets – on nights like this and when things are challenging.

“It’s hockey; everyone does it,” Tanev claimed afterwards, a red welt visible on the outside of his right knee. “I just felt bad for the other three guys out there on the ice. We’re killing a penalty and we only have four guys out there, and then I can’t move out there, so we have three after that.”

When Tanev dipped his right leg in holy water and returned to the ice late in the second period, he immediately stuck his left leg in front of Josh Morrissey’s shot.

Tanev’s survival act should have inspired teammates. Tanev deserved to win Friday even if the Canucks didn’t. But Vancouver, having played poorly in Thursday’s 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks, couldn’t beat an upgraded opponent and, specifically, a better goalie in Hellebuyck.

“Last night was definitely the one game of the year we look back on and we really didn’t play that well,” veteran centre Brandon Sutter said. “Tonight, we rebounded really well. We did a lot of things we liked. (The Jets) were pretty sharp, especially the second half of the game. They 1160672 Websites If we take Hall’s summer comments at face value, we do have to at least wonder if he’ll see the Devils as a team that fits his priorities. New Jersey may yet turn around and look much more like a playoff team and there’s obviously some exciting young players in place. But a quick ascension is Sportsnet.ca / Eight NHL teams Taylor Hall could conceivably be playing not a given. for in 2020 Colorado Avalanche

I’m just going to leave this here as the most “fun” possibility as far as Rory Boylen | November 8, 2019, 1:30 PM potential landing places go for Hall.

The Avalanche meet the criteria of being a team that’s as safe a long- term playoff bet as you can get. And while some roster trimming may When Taylor Hall was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in have to happen for them to be able to afford Hall on a market-value 2010, he was to be the centrepiece of a rebuild that would put them back contract via free agency, they should be able to engage in that chase — on the Stanley Cup track. When Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was added as a as long as that market doesn’t rise to Artemi Panarin/Mitch Marner levels. first rounder the year after, the long-term hope was even brighter. When Nail Yakupov was added first overall in 2012, it’s fair to say there was Right now, Colorado is projected to have $24.3 million in cap space this more pessimism in the air (though hope remained). summer and its most important expiring contract may be Nikita Zadorov. Andre Burakovsky (RFA) could count there as well, but if it became a Few could have predicted that Hall would be traded out of Edmonton choice between Burakovsky and Hall, I think we all know how that’d turn before his first post-entry-level contract with the team expired, and out. without a single playoff game on his hockeydb page. In the three full seasons he’s spent in New Jersey, he got to the playoffs once and As we see with Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog out of the lineup, played five games. Colorado still struggles with forward depth. Nazem Kadri, Joonas Donskoi and Burakovsky have been good additions to combat that, but Now all the talk around Hall is about what’s next. Scheduled to be an taking a big swing on Hall would take the emerging Avs into the unrestricted free agent next summer, Hall laid his intentions out there last stratosphere. Paying Hall, say, $9-10 million would make him the highest summer. And he sure sounds like a guy who will at least hear out anyone or second-highest paid player on the team though, so that’s a dynamic who wants to propose to him during the free-agent negotiating period in we can’t overlook. June. But this is also why they could afford Hall in the first place. Nathan “You want to play on the best team possible, and I’ve played nine MacKinnon is making just $6.3 million for another three years after this seasons in the NHL and only won one playoff game. You want to be on a one and Rantanen is just starting his six-year pact. It could become an team that’s not only a playoff contender but a playoff contender every issue to manage all this when Landeskog and Philipp Grubauer become year,” he said at the NHLPA’s golf tournament last summer. UFA eligible and Cale Makar becomes RFA eligible in 2021. But the cap Taylor Hall was asked, if he gets to unrestricted free agency, would is also expected to rise by then — and, as the Winnipeg Jets are showing he rule the Edmonton Oilers out? us this season, maybe teams shouldn’t be shy to act aggressive and take a home-run swing when they know a Stanley Cup window is open. “Haven’t even thought about it. It’s too hard to rule out, or in, any teams at this point.” You never know when it’ll slam shut.

— Mark Spector (@SportsnetSpec) November 8, 2019 And for that reason, unlike most other teams on this list, the Avalanche may even make sense to be players for Hall on the trade market this “I only have so many more years left in this league, and so many more season, should the Devils try and move him prior to February’s deadline. chances to win a Stanley Cup. It hasn’t even come close yet, so I kinda wanna make up for lost time, but at the same time you wanna be smart “They’re a legit contender, they’ve got a lot of assets,” Elliotte Friedman with everything that’s going on.” said about the Avs. “I do think, if Hall is available, I do think they’d be a team that’d look at him, but I think a lot of teams would look at him.” Hall also cited John Tavares’s decision to leave the New York Islanders via free agency as something that could change the landscape. Where Edmonton Oilers we were surprised by Tavares’s decision, we should be less so about Look. This is probably unlikely to happen. And the Oilers are certainly not Hall if he gets into late-June unsigned. in a position to move future assets to acquire Hall in a mid-season trade. So it’s not unfair to think about the possible jerseys Hall may be wearing But should he become available on July 1, would Hall’s former team have when the puck drops on the 2020-21 season. It may be that he stays in interest in bringing him back? They’d be crazy not to. New Jersey, but just about every team in the league should be interested Hall is exactly what this year’s Oilers are missing — a play-driving, in adding him. offensive winger who can lead his own line. Hall would either be an With that in mind, we’re taking a look at some teams that could incredible addition next to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (whom he spent most of conceivably be a fit for Hall when he signs his next contract. his time alongside in the first go-around), or make for one heck of a duo with Connor McDavid. That would also allow the team to confidently Senior Writer Ryan Dixon and NHL Editor Rory Boylen always give it move Leon Draisaitl to his own line. 110%, but never rely on clichés when it comes to podcasting. Instead, they use a mix of facts, fun and a varied group of hockey voices to cover For now, Edmonton is projected to have around $20 million in off-season Canada’s most beloved game. cap space, though Darnell Nurse’s extension will cut into that. But if it means they have a chance to bring in Hall, the Oilers should have no New Jersey Devils fear to let just about anyone else go (Kris Russell’s contract expires in 2021 and would have to go). Some ELC’s could potentially be inserted Let’s start off with the Devils who, for now, have the best chance to get (Evan Bouchard, Kailer Yamamoto) and help keep overall costs down. Hall’s signature on a long-term contract since he’s on their roster and they’re the only team that could ink him for eight years. They have the But, bringing in Hall could lead to some other tough choices. Nugent- cap room, made the complementary roster moves last summer to try and Hopkins himself is UFA eligible in 2021 and if he wants too much of a ramp up towards being a playoff team and are probably more motivated raise, his time with the team could expire. Perhaps it means trading him than anyone to figure this out. You can’t write off the Devils so early in for parts that help fill out the roster with depth. And, of course, a long- the season. term solution in net is still required.

But a slow start that puts them at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division Maybe the Oilers would be top heavy, but this is a star-driven league has at least complicated things. Had the Devils started strong, it’d be a where you have to lean on your big-money, big-minute players and try to much more optimistic outlook right now. But they’re 4-6-4 and Hall had a find value below them. Between McDavid, Draisaitl, Neal and maybe couple of frustrating incidents on home ice recently: calling out the fans even Nugent-Hopkins, plus some of the prospects on the horizon, Hall for booing in a one-goal game, and following a goal with a hand-to-the- could ironically be the piece that puts Edmonton in position for sustained ear celebration that he later played down. success… right? Vancouver Canucks Remember, Florida took a swing at signing Panarin last summer, so Hall should motivate them to do the same in 2020. It’s just, the overall team Right now, Canada’s western-most team looks ahead of schedule. They history here may not be so inspiring for someone looking for secure have an elite offence, a top 10 defence, and their goalies have both been playoff involvement. rock solid. Sure, they may not win the Western Conference this season, but they sure seem to be exiting a rebuild quickly. Pittsburgh Penguins

Now, the most important contract Vancouver is going to have to deal with Talk about being top heavy and filling out a roster with cheaper talent, the is Elias Pettersson’s in 2021 — and he seems to be in line to go over an Penguins have used this formula to great success before. As long as $11 million AAV. Anything that puts that at risk cannot be considered. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are on this roster, GM Jim Rutherford Beyond that, the Canucks have some inflated contracts on the books should be pushing hard to win as many Stanley Cups as possible. given to complementary pieces that could ultimately scuttle any dream of attempting to woo Hall. The Penguins have nearly $23 million of projected cap space this summer. Goalie , an RFA, may be the most expensive re- Loui Eriksson is making $6 million through 2022. Tanner Pearson, Sven sign of all the expiring deals here, but there’s nothing too onerous. If it Baertschi, Micheal Ferland and Jay Beagle come in at over $13 million means Hall is a possibility, Alex Galchenyuk will be easy to release into combined. Some, or all, of those would have to be shed to have any the UFA market. hope at snagging a fish this big from the UFA market. You have to think this would be an attractive landing spot for Hall. He’d But, especially if the Canucks make the playoffs this season, they’ll have play with either Malkin or Crosby and join a team that’s won multiple to be feeling very confident that someone like Hall could really ignite this Stanley Cups, and will be as motivated as anyone to do it again in the thing. next few years. The Penguins have gotten used to managing around big contracts (including overpays) and icing competitive rosters around their San Jose Sharks two future Hall of Famers.

Depending on how the rest of this season plays out, the Sharks may not Hall would come at a higher cap hit likely, but would basically replace fit the bill as a contender for the first time in ages, but they could Phil Kessel, who was moved out last summer. potentially have the room to bring Hall in — and San Jose has been an attractive landing spot for players before. Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019

The Sharks have nearly $17 million in projected salary cap room this summer, but a good chunk of that is likely committed to , who is in line for a hefty raise after taking a one-year deal last summer. The Sharks would have to do some cap gymnastics to fit in Hall, but aside from Labanc, all the rest of their most important players are locked in for a while.

As noted above, having stars in the lineup is the most important factor towards earning the “contender” designation. San Jose could go all-in on that approach if they expand on the star power already in place by bringing in Hall to build a top-six forward unit that would rival anyone’s.

Calgary Flames

Here’s a wild and crazy idea that would take the Battle of Alberta to new heights in the modern age.

Projected to have more than $22 million of cap space, the Flames do have some contracts of their own to take care of, including four important defencemen. Those deals will eat up most of that money. But, assuming Michael Frolik won’t be back, could sending out Sam Bennett’s money clear enough room? Or maybe you don’t re-sign TJ Brodie.

Calgary’s top line has been hot and cold so far, but was a strength in their run to the Pacific Division title last season. It’s the offence behind it that’s sometimes lacking. Again, adding Hall would round out a terrific top six.

Still not convinced they’d have the necessary cap space to get this done? How about this for extreme, way-out-there speculation: what if the Flames finish well under expectations and decide it’s time to move on from someone like Johnny Gaudreau? Could he bring back futures or cheaper pieces to add to the immediate roster that clears enough cap space to bring in Hall as a replacement? Just a thought, based on nothing other than the idea Gaudreau is a New Jersey native, and Hall — though more injury prone — would be an upgrade.

We’re dreaming up some wild things here.

Florida Panthers

The Panthers probably fancied themselves as a playoff contender after bringing Sergei Bobrovsky in, but so far that hasn’t come to fruition. Unless something changes here, Hall wouldn’t be interested in a perpetual playoff miss.

But, it is worth pointing out that Florida is 6-1-3 in its past 10 games and Bobrovsky hasn’t even found his legs yet. If he does, we could still have a dangerous team on the rise here. Florida has nearly $18 million in projected cap space this summer and a bunch of mid-level contracts to re-sign, plus two big ones to consider in Evgenii Dadonov and Mike Hoffman. The former is likely a must-keep, but not re-upping the latter’s $5.187 million may put them on the road to get Hall. 1160673 Websites coming around and taking a full swing at us, that’s something different. But so far it’s just a little tap on the mask, it doesn’t hurt us.” – Ottawa’s Anders Nilsson

Sportsnet.ca / What NHL goalies say about the league's first 'lacrosse- “It’s not a high stick – it’s a skill play. If a guy has the wherewithal and style' goal skill to pull that off, good for him. I’m sure he’s practised that 100 times, probably more. If you can pull that off in a game all the power to you. I’ve got no problem with it.

Sportsnet Staff November 8, 2019, 10:27 AM “There’s nothing illegal about it right now. He’s well within his rights to do it. I don’t see any reason to take it out of the game – it makes it exciting.”

– Calgary’s Cam Talbot When Andrei Svechnikov tied last Tuesday’s game against Calgary 1-1, “It was a good play, but if someone is going to hit another player to the he made NHL history. For the first time the “lacrosse-style” goal (aka The face it’s two minutes. He hit my face and then he put puck in the net and Michigan Goal), made famous by Mike Legg in 1996, was successfully it’s a good goal. This is a point for me. It was a sick move by him, he introduced to the NHL. Though it had been attempted before, no one had earned it – great for him. But we have to figure out, OK – if the puck goes ever converted on the play. in clean, no worries. But if we are going to slash goalies right to the face “How do you defend that? I don’t know,” the posterized David Rittich said before the puck goes in, that’s a question for the NHL.” – Calgary’s David after that game. “Good play. Smart. Sick, sick move by him. I don’t know Rittich what I can say about it. I have to see it on video and see what I can do “Yeah, you know, you could get slapped in the face pretty hard [smiles]. better.” But let’s see. It hasn’t happened too much.” – Vegas’s Marc-Andre Fleury It left every NHL fan in awe and hopeful this could be a new way the “No, I wouldn’t mark it [as a dangerous attempt]. I mean, maybe some league’s star players could attack the net in search of goals. But it also guys think so, but if we take a 100-mile-an-hour slap shot in the face and opened up a question of legality. it doesn’t hurt, then a stick to the mask like that won’t do anything. I get it, The jumping off point for that was the fact Svechnikov’s stick had to hit like, with the eyes and stuff with the blade. But I guess we’ll cross that David Rittich in the mask to complete the attempt. Though not against bridge. We’ll see. I don’t think it’s that dangerous.” – Los Angeles’s Jack the NHL’s rules — which allow “accidental contact on an opponent if the Campbell act is committed as a … follow through of a shooting motion” — the point How do you defend a shot like this? was raised that this could be a worthy discussion to have as it relates to player safety. No one wants to remove offence from today’s game, but if “You slash his stick. Or, get it before it gets to the net. You’ve got to get a goal requires an attacker’s stick to be up in a goalie’s face, should that the puck off his stick before he gets an opportunity to sling it in there. I be OK? think it’s happened once in my whole career. Where a guy actually tries it, and doesn’t get blown up.” – Mike Smith “I think it’s definitely worthy of a conversation as everything is, I think, that’s regarding health — especially for your head and the brain, I think “I think you just try to cover up as much as possible with your arm and it’s worthwhile,” Toronto’s Frederik Andersen said on Hockey Central this your shoulder, depending on if you have the time to get your blocker up week. “I’m sure we’ll see a trend of more guys trying to do [lacrosse-style or not. That was pretty impressive how little space there actually was [on goals] in the next little bit. Svechnikov’s goal against Rittich]… it was very close to his head, I think there was just enough room for a puck to go by there.” – Frederik “I definitely think if sticks are flying around the head, I think it’s worth Andersen having a discussion, at least.” You can try to knock the puck off their stick before they get to the net. But So with a few more days to think about it, we wondered what some other you don’t really want to extend yourself (behind the net). If you can, you goalies would have to say about this, so Sportsnet’s reporters from could also bring your (catching) glove across, kind of beat him to the post across Canada asked players at the position a couple of questions about and stop it that way. – Thatcher Demko the NHL’s hottest new goal style. Not sure, back in the day goalies were on their feet a bit more. Now, Do you have a thought on this idea that the lacrosse-style shot could be they’re on their knees more. It’s such a low percentage play that you’re too dangerous (with sticks up near goalies’ faces) and that we should better off playing the percentages. The only thing you can do is maybe have a conversation about whether this type of move should be legal or force the guy, pressure him, because I mean it’s pretty tough to do even not? in practice, when there’s no pressure. The guy in Carolina had time to flip “I can think of half a dozen times you get hit in the head with someone’s it on to his stick and then bring it out…so take away time and space. Be stick during the game, whether it’s accidental or whatever. It’s not like the aware of your surroundings and that old adage – expect the unexpected. player is two-handing you in the head. And I do have a helmet on — a – Craig Anderson stick in the head isn’t as bad as someone’s elbow, a fist or (a 100 m.p.h. It’s pretty tough because they tuck it just under the crossbar. You have to puck). be really tall to get your shoulder up there (while on your knees). You “It’s a unique play that doesn’t happen very often. When it does, you’ve almost have to lean in with your head, and you don’t want to stand up, just got to tip your hat.” – Edmonton’s Mike Smith. either, because then the puck just trickles down and goes in five-hole or something. So it’s tricky to defend. There are more and more skill guys “I don’t think there’s really much you can do about it. There are sticks able to do it and it’s something us goalies have to be aware of when they around us every game. We’re getting hit every game, so I don’t really have the puck behind the net. – Anders Nilsson have an issue with that move.” – Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko “Throw your head against the crossbar [laughs]. That’s pretty much it. “I think it’s awesome. It’s creativity. I think we first saw it about 10 years That’s the only place he’s looking to put it unless he’s going all the way ago, The Michigan Goal. It’s creative. For the guys who can do it, it’s a around you. I thought Ritter had pretty much everything covered, he just highlight reel no different from a guy skating coast-to-coast through five put it between his head and the post – there’s isn’t much else you can do guys. It’s a skill that happens every once in a while and when it does you as a goaltender. It’s a frustrating goal to allow because there’s really make a big deal of it. I think it’s kind of a cool feature of the game. nothing else you can do.” – Cam Talbot

“I think more guys are going to try it, if they get time. The more they do it, “It’s a tough one [to defend]. I think maybe if you move your feet, you the coaches and the goalies will get a bit smarter and figure out how to have a better chance of covering the top part. But then he goes five-hole, defend it if it becomes a common theme. As of right now, it’s so rare, tip right, because you’re standing up. So maybe your D comes along and your hat to the guy and put him on the highlight shows for the month.” – slashes his stick or something. That’s probably the best way to do it.” – Ottawa’s Craig Anderson Marc-Andre Fleury

“Honestly I don’t mind it. I think it’s entertaining for the audience, it brings “You know what? I think Filip Forsberg tried it during our home opener. more attention to the game. If guys are skilled enough to pull it off at But our defenceman [Sean Walker] did a good job playing it well. He game speed, it’s up to us goalies to stop the puck. I mean, they’re not came back to knock it off his blade before he could pick it all the way up. slamming the stick at us, it’s a little tap in, but maybe if guys started But it’s a tough play. I mean, it’s hard to defend as a goalie or player just because it happens so quick and there’s so many skilled guys in the league who can do it. Like, I’m pretty sure [Auston] Matthews almost had one. It’s scary. You just gotta be ready for it now, you know? That’s a good play.” – Jack Campbell

— With files from: Mark Spector, Wayne Scanlan, Eric Francis, Iain MacIntyre and Luke Fox.

Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160674 Websites "I mean I didn’t really get it all," Matthews said after the game. "I kind of shot it back into him. It was still a heck of a save, but I wasn’t able to get the puck up. I mean he’s so athletic, so he gets his pad over.

Sportsnet.ca / Auston Matthews on pace to become Maple Leafs' next "I just couldn’t raise it. Credit to him, that’s a really good save." 50-goal scorer Pastrnak predicted before the season that Matthews would win the Hart Trophy as MVP. He should also be in the race for the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal-scorer — although Ovechkin, currently on Chris Johnston | November 8, 2019, 4:38 PM pace for a ridiculous 405 shots, and Draisaitl will be awfully tough to beat.

At minimum, we could be watching a season that ends up in the Maple Leafs record book. No Toronto player has scored more than Rick Vaive’s TORONTO — John Tavares got within arm’s length of hockey’s magical 54 goals from 1981-82 and only Dave Andreychuk and Gary Leeman scoring number last year, falling three goals shy of becoming the fourth have joined Vaive with 50-goal years for the franchise. man in Toronto Maple Leafs history with a 50-goal season. Matthews has all of the tools needed to join them. Still, Tavares isn’t even the most dangerous shooter in his own dressing room. He’s seen Auston Matthews score 55 times in the 92 games he’s "He has an unbelievable shot and skillset and he can find the soft spot played since they became teammates and speaks with reverence about [on the ice], you know?" Pastrnak said last month. "Every time he’s 100 his ability to beat goaltenders clean. per cent healthy he’s showing that. I just think he’s a hell of a player."

"You get Matty inside the dots, there’s no better shooter you want in that Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 spot," said Tavares.

That Matthews has started this season with 13 goals in 17 games barely even seems to have registered as noteworthy in Toronto. It speaks to the incredibly high standard the 22-year-old has set for himself that this seems normal.

Matthews is the NHL leader in goals per hour since entering the league three-plus years ago and appears destined to take his production to another level in 2019-20. In fact, now that he’s seeing an uptick in ice time and creating more shots, the Leafs centre looks like a good bet to chase the 50-goal milestone himself.

Of course, the usual caveats apply.

A fully healthy season — or something very close to it — are required to reach a summit only Alex Ovechkin and Leon Draisaitl have visited since 2012, and Matthews has missed 34 games over the last two seasons with shoulder, concussion and back issues.

But there’s nothing holding him back now and Mike Babcock is giving Matthews 19:47 on average per game — a significant bump from his 18:33 last season. That helps explain his jump in shots on goal from 3.69 to 3.88 per night, which puts him on pace for 318 over an 82-game season.

Were Matthews to convert at his career rate of 15.8 per cent on that many shots, it would give him exactly 50 goals.

The way he’s scored over the first month of this season suggests his hot start is relatively sustainable, too. Matthews is generating the third-most slot shots in the league behind Ovechkin and Kyle Connor, according to SportLogiq, and has scored more goals from that area than everyone but NHL points and goal leader David Pastrnak.

There hasn’t been much luck in the pucks he’s buried, either.

The shot he beat Malcolm Subban with on Thursday night was eerily similar to the one he rifled past Joonas Korpisalo in Columbus during the first week of the season. If he gets an open look from a high-danger area, look out.

It doesn’t even matter if the goaltender is square, set and anticipating it.

"The release. It’s a quick release," said Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. "He changes it up, too, it doesn’t matter if he goes high glove or low blocker. It’s still coming as quick towards you. He’s good at hiding it sometimes before he releases it."

Matthews is still trying to add some new tricks to his arsenal after spending the summer working on a one-timer. He’s now being used on his offside on the power play, which puts him in great position to hammer away at a cross-seam pass, but it’s only resulted in a couple of the goals he’s scored so far.

Call it a work in progress.

His one-timer hasn’t yet proven to be nearly as accurate as his wrist shot — as evidenced by the ‘Grade A’ opportunity he was unable to get past Jonathan Quick during Tuesday’s game against Los Angeles. That’s the kind of look we’ve come to expect him to bury with ease. 1160675 Websites Barrie’s high danger scoring chance differential doesn’t look too hot, it’s just team average, but most of that is due to lack of offence created. So, is Barrie doing less offensively? Let’s take a look over a wide sample.

Sportsnet.ca / Truth By Numbers: Breaking down David Pastrnak's crazy For starters, it looks like Barrie really took a step forward in terms of his start to season offensive involvement at 5-vs-5 in 2016-17, but that’s a little misleading because in 2015-16 there is no accessible zone entry data, so there’s nothing showing up for him there in an area of his biggest strength.

Andrew Berkshire Overall, Barrie has been very consistent for the last three previous seasons, with last season being his most impactful one offensively on the

back of really pushing play in the slot for a defenceman. It’s about time we talk about David Pastrnak, right? I mentioned him in This season there is a significant drop off, but the bigger issue is where short form recently, but the guy is scoring two points per game this that drop off is happening. Barrie’s play has fallen off in two areas season, split evenly between goals and assists, and if you were to just specifically; he’s no longer pinching down into the slot and creating delete his power-play scoring entirely, he would still be scoring more than offence by acting as a fourth forward, and he’s not carrying the puck to a point per game, and tied for 13th in league scoring. That’s a crazy level attack off the rush nearly as often as he’s used to doing. of production that we’ve got to break down a bit. You might recall when I broke down the Leafs’ strengths and SPOTLIGHT PERFORMANCE weaknesses so far this season, I noted that the Leafs have been The strange thing about Pastrnak this season is when you look at the attacking off the rush far less than in recent years, and that has hit Barrie rates at which he’s putting up quality plays, he’s not blowing the doors off in passes off the rush, controlled entries, and offensive zone dekes. the league in any specific situation. He looks good by those metrics, don’t Sign up for NHL newsletters get me wrong, but there’s nothing specifically that shows up as Pastrnak being better than everyone else that’s driving results like these. Get the best of our NHL coverage and exclusives delivered directly to your inbox! It isn’t until you look at season totals in all situations that you see the portfolio of offensive dominance Pastrnak is treating us to. The lack of offence generated by Barrie off the rush is systemic more likely than a specific problem with him since the whole team is playing Looking at Pastrnak’s plays ranked against every other forward in the differently, but the sticking to the perimeter in the offensive zone is a league this season, you get the complete picture of the multi-tool threat weird one. he is out there. He’s top-10 in the league in scoring chances, scoring chances on net, shot attempts, chances off the forecheck, completed slot Either Barrie is being told to take fewer risks in the offensive zone, or he passes, and completed offensive zone dekes in all situations. On top of isn’t comfortable taking those risks yet, because he hasn’t been a player that he’s top-30 in rush chances, cycle chances, and passes off the rush. that has been more cautious with age, by any means.

Obviously when he’s averaging two points per game, a large percentage The lack of risk does appear to have come with the benefit of Barrie’s on- of that production is going to be good fortune in a small sample size that ice defensive numbers looking pretty stellar, but that could simply be a can’t be sustained, but Pastrnak is a player who keeps raising the bar product of playing with a solid defensive partner like Jake Muzzin as well. each season he plays. The 23-year-old has increased his goal and point totals each season he’s been in the NHL, including somehow topping 80 I think there’s lots of room for Barrie to be more free to create here, and points last season in just 66 games, so yet another career year shouldn’t the Leafs need some more push offensively of late. be a shock, it’s a trend for him. Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 One of the biggest reasons he’s able to continue outpacing his own best performances is all the varied ways he’s able to attack opponents. Pastrnak can beat you equally well with his shot, with his passing, or with his deking, which makes him incredibly hard to predict for defenders, forcing more space for himself, which really only makes him more dangerous since he has two linemates who happen to be among the best in the league as well.

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Even when you look at Pastrnak without the puck, he’s constantly winning battles in the offensive zone, recovering the 44th-most loose pucks of all forwards, so he’s keeping plays going on top of being the one of the league’s best offensive catalysts. Outside the offensive zone, he’s become quite the transition player as well, adding new options for the best line in the league to move the puck. Not very fair to everyone else, but he is a heck of a talent.

THE QUESTION

This week Steve Dangle couldn’t hold back any longer, he had to talk about the Toronto Maple Leafs. Specifically, Tyson Barrie.

“What the &%$# is up with Tyson Barrie? How has he been so bad? What’s changed for him?”

I’ve received a few questions about Barrie on Twitter as well, and in a way I get it, he’s been held without a goal after hitting 14 each of the last two seasons. He’s also made some very obvious defensive miscues, but that was always to be expected. Overall, Barrie leads all Leafs defencemen in Corsi for percentage at 57.3 per cent, and he’s been on the ice for the fewest passes to the slot against of any Leafs defender, the biggest defensive weakness the team has. 1160676 Websites Senior Writer Ryan Dixon and NHL Editor Rory Boylen always give it 110%, but never rely on clichés when it comes to podcasting. Instead, they use a mix of facts, fun and a varied group of hockey voices to cover Canada’s most beloved game. Sportsnet.ca / Next Gen Prospects: Maple Leafs' Nick Robertson excelling with Petes He calls the whole draft process “weird” and had hoped to be picked by Toronto.

Robertson is closest with his brother Jason, a Dallas Stars prospect, and Ryan McKenna | November 8, 2019, 1:26 PM says they often play video games with one another and live together in the summer.

“We talk about everything, basically. We’re literally two of the same Family ties are important to Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Nick people,” Robertson says. “We like the same things, we talk the same Robertson. way, we joke around and stuff.” From his father Hugh, to mother Mercedes and four siblings, they don’t Robertson’s on-ice success has caught the attention of USA Hockey, like to be separated. Between Nick and his brother Jason’s budding which invited him to its summer showcase. He feels he performed well at hockey careers, they’re limited to keeping in contact every day over the the event and has the World Junior Championship on his radar. phone. “When camp comes in December, I’m definitely going to try and prove Nick Robertson says his family helped make him the happy and positive myself and get a spot on the team,” he says. “Much closer to making it person he is today. than I was in the summer when there was 40-plus guys.” “I think my family shaped me into who I am and also the birth aspect also Wilson said Robertson’s determination is what sets him apart from other shaped me,” he said in a phone interview. players and his tireless mentality rivals that of Maple Leafs captain John Shortly after Robertson was born three months pre-mature in September Tavares. 2001, his father had a life-altering decision to make. “I’m sure he will achieve his goals. There’s no respite with Nick,” Wilson His son’s lungs weren’t opening up fully and two previous steroid shots says. weren’t doing the trick. Doctors gave Hugh one more option: try a Here are 10 other prospects who have impressed of late: medicine they didn’t know much about and possibly save his newborn or face potential death. Alexis Lafreniere (2020 NHL Draft eligible)

He went for it. Current team: Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)

“Fortunately it worked out for the best and I think that shaped me to who I Stats: 18 GP | 12 G | 31 A | 43 PTS am as a person, just being happy and not taking anything for granted,” Robertson says. It’s tough to ignore the season Lafreniere is having so for the Oceanic. He’s doing everything he can to show he’s the best player available to go “You never know what could have happened that day, where I would be No. 1 next spring at the draft. now, but definitely grateful for the outcome.” On jase… mais après 17 parties : The Maple Leafs picked him in the second round of the 2019 draft and he’s spent this season prospering with the Ontario Hockey League’s Rimouski – 2004-05 Peterborough Petes. Sidney Crosby 12-26-38 He entered weekend play with 19 goals, tying him for the most in the Dany Roussin 11-14-25 league. Add in nine assists and his 28 points have the left winger tied for sixth in OHL scoring. Marc-Antoine Pouliot 9-9-18

Robertson credits his success this season to confidence and dealing with Total : 32-49-81 less stress than last year when he had the draft and rankings to worry about. Rimouski – 2018-19

But he credits his life success to his family after a difficult first year as an Cédric Paré 21-22-43 infant. From the risky drug, being in intensive care for three months, Alexis Lafrenière 12-31-43 contracting pneumonia and not being released from the hospital until U.S. Thanksgiving, there was a lot to deal with and overcome. Dmitry Zavgorodniy 13-23-36

“I think it definitely kind of shaped me into the person I am,” Robertson Total : 46-76-122 said. “Just being versatile, being resilient and not really … not being affected by anything thrown at me.” — Mikaël Lalancette (@MLalancetteTVA) November 1, 2019

On the ice, Petes coach Rob Wilson expected the five-foot-nine, 164- Owen Tippett (FLA – 2017 1st round) pound Robertson to break out this season. Current team: Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)

He says Robertson is the hardest worker in the gym, first and last off the Stats: 13 GP | 6 G | 5 A | 11 PTS ice and will shoot pucks until his arms fall off. After Tippett’s cup of tea in the NHL at the start of the 2017-18 season, “If there is a kid in junior hockey and on any team that’s more focused he’s been working his way back ever since. Some thought there was a than Nick, I’d love to meet him because I would say he’s probably the chance he’d start this year with Florida, but turns out that’s not the case. most focused kid that I’ve dealt with,” Wilson says. Instead, he’s almost a point per game player in the AHL.

Robertson was born in Pasadena, Calif., and moved to Michigan with his Philip Tomasino (NSH – 2019 1st round) family when he was nine years old. The move meant he would be better showcased in hockey and his drives to the rink also decreased Current team: Niagara IceDogs (OHL) significantly from one hour in Los Angeles to 10 minutes. Stats: 18 GP | 10 G | 15 A | 25 PTS “It wasn’t good on the way there because you wanted to sleep but on the way back it was close,” Robertson recalls. Tomasino has carried the load for a weaker IceDogs team this season and showed why Nashville used its first round selection on him last June. When the second day of June’s draft in Vancouver came around, he had He had a six-point night against Kingston in early October — three goals, a feeling he was on the the Maple Leafs’ radar. He missed parts of five three assists — but has been held scoreless in four-straight. weeks in his draft year after tearing a ligament in his wrist, but still had 27 goals and 28 assists in 54 games. Cole Caufield (MTL – 2019 1st round) Current team: Wisconsin Badgers (NCAA)

Stats: 8 GP | 8 G | 3 A | 11 PTS

Caufield has kept the prospect spotlight on himself after a stellar start to his NCAA career where he leads the Division One circuit in goals through eight games.

Cole Caufield's nation leading 8th goal pic.twitter.com/taVZz665PZ

— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) October 31, 2019

Dustin Wolf (CGY – 2019 7th round)

Current team: Everett Silvertips (WHL)

Stats: 9-4-0 | 2.07 GAA | .938 SV%

Surprise, surprise. Wolf is once again leading the WHL in save percentage early on this season after finishing atop the category after the 2018-19 campaign. My colleague Mike Shulman wrote a feature on Wolf’s desire to prove his small stature won’t make or break him.

Thomas Bordeleau (2020 NHL Draft eligible)

Current team: U.S. NTDP

Stats: 14 GP | 8 G | 5 A | 13 PTS

The U.S. under-18 national team development program made history at last year’s NHL Draft with 17 players selected. Bordeleau, whose father Sébastien formerly played in the NHL, leads the way in scoring so far for the USNTDP this season.

Quick wrists from Bords to finish that wrap!

: Thomas Bordeleau

: Landon Slaggert pic.twitter.com/rlCcR167op

— USA Hockey’s NTDP (@USAHockeyNTDP) September 29, 2019

Tyler Wall (NYR – 2016 6th round)

Current team: UMass-Lowell (NCAA)

Stats: 6-1-2 | 1.63 GAA | .946 SV%

Alexandar Georgiev may be the Rangers’ goaltender of the future, but Tyler Wall is showing positive signs of becoming another good prospect in net. The Leamington, Ont., native has one shutout in nine games this season in the NCAA with the seventh-best GAA and second-best save percentage.

Arthur Kaliyev (LAK – 2019 2nd round)

Current team: Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL)

Stats: 18 GP | 19 G | 17 A | 36 PTS

Kaliyev is a goal-scoring machine this season and leads the OHL in scoring with 36 points while tying with Robertson atop the goals leaderboard. He posted a four-goal game against Erie in mid-October.

Nils Höglander (VAN – 2019 2nd round)

Current team: Rögle BK (SHL)

Stats: 12 GP | 3 G | 1 A | 4 PTS

Speaking of lacrosse-style goals, how about this one below from Höglander in the SHL. This is also an impressive feat as Höglander earned SHL goal of the year honours last season. He had a solid 2019 world juniors for Sweden despite being bounced from the tournament in the quarterfinals and could be a key winger for them this year in the Czech Republic.

Pavel Novak (2020 NHL Draft eligible)

Current team: (WHL)

Stats: 16 GP | 10 G | 10 A | 20 PTS

Novak is off to a strong start to his North American hockey career. He’s has six multi-point games and recorded his first career WHL hat trick last week for the 2020 Memorial Cup hosts.

Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 11.09.2019 1160677 Websites Jets, Edler played 9:57 of the second period alone and was on the ice for both Winnipeg goals in that period. He also played 8:46 of the third period when the Canucks were down and pressing for the tying goal. After the game, Travis Green acknowledged that the Canucks are aware TSN.CA / Five Takeaways: Canucks vs Jets that Edler's heavy workload: "We've talked about it. It's easier said than done. This is a guy that is a handful to play against. He plays against top

lines. He plays the power play and he plays the penalty kill -- and he's Jeff Paterson good at it. We do talk about it and monitor it. If you asked Alex he doesn't want to play any less, that's for sure." Of course, no player wants to see his ice time reduced. But the Canucks made a conscious decision in the off-season to overhaul their blueline and now have a deeper group of TAKEAWAYS defensemen than at any time in Travis Green's tenure as head coach. It's 1) The Vancouver Canucks were better in Winnipeg on Friday than they up to the coaching staff to find ways to back Edler's time off a little and were 24 hours earlier in Chicago. However, there are no prizes in the utilize the abilities of those around him a little more. As you'd expect, National Hockey League for silver linings or moral victories. The bottom Edler feels he's up to the significant challenge of logging top minutes line is the Canucks have lost back to back games in regulation for the even at 33-years of age: "I feel good and I'm not going to complain about first time since their first two games of the season after following up playing too much. I worked out all summer, I feel I'm in good shape and Thursday's 5-2 loss in the Windy City with a 4-1 setback in Winnipeg. sometimes there are circumstances you can't control, so I'm just going to Playing on the road for the ninth time in their last 12 outings, the Canucks keep playing." Playing big minutes for the seventh time in 12 nights, actually had decent energy in a first period in which they outshot the Jets Edler looked a little run down on Friday in Winnipeg. And you can 13-9, but couldn't solve Connor Hellebuyck. Effort wasn't the issue for the understand why. Less might be more when it comes to his usage moving Canucks on Friday. Getting pucks past the Winnipeg netminder was. In forward. Chicago, despite registering 38 shots, the Canucks didn't really test 5) Bell MTS Place has been an absolute house of horrors for the Corey Crawford. But that wasn't the case with Hellebuyck. Elias Vancouver Canucks. And, really, the Jets have been the team's biggest Pettersson, Jake Virtanen and Bo Horvat all had quality scoring chances nightmare when it comes to mismatches in terms of a single opponent. in the third period when the score was 2-1. Horvat had the best of the After Friday night, Winnipeg has now won nine straight games against bunch but couldn't convert from in tight with Hellebuyck sprawled on the the Canucks. The season series is one-sided. The scores in the games goal line. Just nine seconds after the Canuck captain was denied, Kyle are generally that way, too. It was 4-1 on Friday. That continues a Connor raced away and beat Thatcher Demko on a breakaway to extend troubling trend for the Canucks who have now lost eight straight in the the Jets lead and effectively seal the hockey game. Manitoba capital and have been outscored 27-9 over that stretch. The 2) The game, to me, felt in some ways like the Canucks season opener last seven times as the visitors, the Canucks have not scored more than in Edmonton. They did a lot of things well, but watched the Jets best one goal -- and have been shutout twice. This is a warning: the Canucks players capitalize on their opportunities. Mark Scheifele put Winnipeg in return to Winnipeg on January 14th. front 2-1 late in the second period and then Connor left his mark on the TSN.CA LOADED: 11.09.2019 hockey game in the third. The Canucks were left talking about chances while the Jets were celebrating goals. Winnipeg gained momentum with a second period power play in which the puck did not leave the Vancouver zone for a full two minutes. The Jets didn't score on that opportunity. But moments later got another power play and this time they cashed in when Jack Roslovic worked his way to the front of the net and beat Thatcher Demko. In a five minute span, it went from 1-0 Vancouver to 2-1 Winnipeg and while the Canucks didn't go quietly, they were unable to rally. JT Miller scored for the second night in a row -- his team leading eighth goal of the season -- but he needs some help. Jake Virtanen in mop-up time in Chicago is the only other Canuck forward to score in the past three games. That's not a recipe for success and a suddenly silent offense is one of the main reasons the Canucks have just one win now in their past five outings (1-2-2).

3) Chris Tanev is a warrior. Canucks fans already knew that, but that notion was underscored yet again on Friday. After leaving Thursday's game in Chicago with an upper body injury late in the first period -- Tanev said after Friday's game he wanted to return to action against the Hawks, but the doctors at United Center wouldn't permit it -- he again was forced to seek medical attention during the Jets game. Already a surprise participant on Friday night due to the events 24 hours earlier, Tanev blocked a Patrik Laine slap shot with his lower leg on one of Winnipeg's second period power plays and was completely immobilized as play went on around him. "It sucks," Tanev said post-game about being unable to help his teammates as they tried to adjust on the penalty kill. As Tanev struggled, so too did the PK eventually giving up the 1-1 goal. Tanev gives the Canucks everything he has. His commitment to the team and to putting himself in harm's way on the regular is commendable. But Canucks fans know how this story goes. So far Tanev has managed to appear in all 17 games for the hockey club this season, but it just feels like these nights and the compressed schedule are starting to take a toll. It seems inevitable that one of these games, Tanev will be forced to leave and won't be seen again for weeks. There is only so much the body can take and there are warning signs Tanev, who turns 30 next month, is nearing his limit. He'll play if he can because that's the kind of guy he is, but he's taking a beating again and only the second week of November.

4) With Tanev missing time again on Friday, Alex Edler shouldered an enormous workload yet again. Edler finished the game in Winnipeg playing a team-high 25:58 -- nearly a full minute higher than his season average -- after logging 27:15 the previous night in Chicago. There is just no let up. Last weekend in Anaheim he played a season-high 30:25 and followed that up with 29:18 of ice in San Jose the next night. Against the 1160678 Websites The 100 PIM Club 2013-14 - 33 players

2014-15 - 16 players TSN.CA / The Friday Five: Montreal Canadiens have NHL's most balanced attack 2015-16 - 17 players

2016-17 - 14 players

Frank Seravalli 2017-18 - 7 players

2018-19 - 6 players

Let’s dive right into another edition of the Friday Five, where we’re It seems like a couple players want to take a run at those marks. League serving up some quirks, quips and questions from around the NHL this leader Nikita Zadorov (37 PIM in 15 games) of the Avalanche is on pace week: for 202 minutes. Islanders’ bruiser Ross Johnston, who leads the league with six fighting majors, has 33 minutes in just eight games. 1. There’s the Habs, then the Hab-Nots Meanwhile, the Avalanche might have a leading Lady Byng candidate on Here’s a not-so-bold claim: The Montreal Canadiens have the most their blueline: rookie defenceman Cale Makar has the most points of any balanced attack in the league. The Habs have scored the fourth-most player (15) without a penalty minute. goals (57) in the NHL – as many as the Maple Leafs, despite playing one fewer game – yet they don’t have a single scorer in the Top 50. Brendan Lady Byng candidates, they are not. Gallagher and Jonathan Drouin are tied for the team lead and are 58th. 4. That’s four minutes, coach According to TSN Research, the last team to finish in the top five without a scorer in the Top 50 was the New York Islanders in 2003-04. They What a brutal stretch for the Colorado Avalanche. After an 8-1-1 start, the scored the fifth-most goals (237) but their two leading scorers, Oleg Avs dropped five in a row (0-4-1) before Thursday’s win over Nashville, Kvasha and Trent Hunter, each had 51 points, tied for 73rd in the league. where they set a franchise record with six goals in an eight-minute span.

Montreal is on pace to have six 20-goal scorers and they already have 15 Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog are already listed as week-to- players with multiple goals this season. week with injuries. Then starter Philipp Grubauer went down, before Nathan MacKinnon and Zadorov left Thursday’s win early. (MacKinnon’s They’re more or less the opposite of the Edmonton Oilers, who have just exit was precautionary, the team said.) six scorers with two or more goals. Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid have combined for 21 goals, while the rest of the Oilers’ lineup has To add insult to injury, coach Jared Bednar became the first to be hit with combined for just 26. a double-minor penalty for two unsuccessful coaches challenges in the same game on Tuesday night. By the Numbers: Canadiens' statistics this season Turns out, Bednar apparently didn’t know that the stakes would be upped The Montreal Canadiens have generated some interesting statistics so for a second incorrect challenge under the new rule, as cameras far this season. The Habs are fourth in the league with an average of captured him asking assistant coach Ray Bennett: “Why is that four 3.67 goals scored per game, but are 20th in goals against, averaging 3.2 minutes?” per game. SportsCentre went By the Numbers to break down Montreal's start to the season. Colorado coach said why is it 4 minutes  pic.twitter.com/YZ0wk00WnT 2. Shaky Sergei in South Florida — Tanner H (@thethucks) November 6, 2019 When is it time to worry about Sergei Bobrovsky? We’re barely seven weeks into a seven-year, $70 million contract, but Bob is off to a shaky In case you’re wondering, we checked with the NHL: the penalty doesn’t start with the Florida Panthers. His save percentage is in the seventies, continue to increase for a third unsuccessful challenge. It’s just another as in an unsightly .878. His even-strength save percentage is down to double-minor penalty. It would be amazing theatre though if an additional .850. two minutes were tacked on, or it was doubled to eight minutes.

Bobrovsky has particularly struggled with high-danger shots. Yes, he’s Two other coaches have challenged twice in the same game this season, seeing the fifth-most high-danger shots against (83), but his save after previously being limited to one challenge per game. Detroit’s Jeff percentage on them ranks 31st (.771) among 39 eligible goalies, Blashill flirted with the four-minute penalty, but overturned a goal on the according to NaturalStatTrick.com. Carey Price has seen the second- second challenge on Nov. 2. Chicago’s Jeremy Colliton went 2-for-2 on most high-danger shots (91) and he’s saved .890 of them, the sixth-best both challenges against the Flyers on Oct. 24. percentage. NHL: Predators 4, Avalanche 9 But it’s still too early to sound the alarm on the two-time Vezina winner. Joonas Donskoi scored his first career hat trick, Nathan MacKinnon had He’s streaky. Last year, he had a 20-game run from mid-November to a goal and three assists before sitting out the third with an upper-body mid-January with an .893 save percentage. He bounced back and was injury. Cale Makar and Ryan Graves each added a goal and two assists the best goalie in the NHL from March into the playoffs. for the Avalanche, who snapped an eight-game home losing streak to However, with 6.16 goals scored per game this season – the most since Nashville dating back to Jan. 8, 2016. the first post-lockout year in 2005-06 – team save percentages across 5. Barry for back-to-back Jacks? the league have suffered. Four teams are .880 or worse: Florida (.880), Detroit (.879), San Jose (.878), New Jersey (.872) and Los Angeles Read an incredible stat and verified it: The New York Islanders are a 48- (.867). No team in the salary cap era has finished below .884 in a 2-3 under coach Barry Trotz when scoring three or more goals in a season. game. They’ve been lights out, able to lock it down like almost no one else. Well, until the Penguins erased a three-goal deficit in the third 3. Death of the 200-PIM Player? period on Thursday night. In this, the 45th anniversary of Dave ‘The Hammer’ Schultz’s record- Still, after a 10-game winning streak with an Islanders team that setting season of 472 penalty minutes in 1974-75, it’s fair to wonder if seemingly everyone overlooked – yet again – to make the Stanley Cup we’ll ever see another player hit 200 penalty minutes in a season. playoffs, is it too early to be talking about Trotz for another Jack Adams It seems unlikely. Steve Downie is the last NHLer to break the 200- Award? minute mark in a season, racking up 238 for the Pittsburgh Penguins in No one has won back-to-back Jacks since Jacques Demers in 1987 and 2014-15. 1988 with the Detroit Red Wings. Perhaps more impressively, Trotz could Even the number of players reaching 100 minutes in a season is dying be just the second three-time winner of coach of the year, joining Pat out. It’s dwindled from 33 in 2013-14 to just six last year: Burns, and making three in the last five years. I don’t have a vote for the Jack Adams, but here is what my way-too- early ballot would look like (in order) if the season ended today:

Barry Trotz, N.Y. Islanders

Ralph Krueger, Buffalo

Dave Tippett, Edmonton

Craig Berube, St. Louis

Travis Green, Vancouver

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USA TODAY / Nikita Kucherov's late hit knocks Vladimir Sobotka out of Lightning-Sabres game in Sweden

Mike Brehm

The Buffalo Sabres will be down a player in Saturday's rematch with the Tampa Bay Lightning after Nikita Kucherov injured Vladimir Sobotka with a late hit.

Sobotka had fired the puck into the Lightning zone during the first period of Friday's 3-2 win in Sweden. Kucherov, last year's league MVP, went down low to deliver a hip check, and Sobotka flipped over him and hit the ice.

The forward had to be helped off the ice and didn't return. He was spotted wearing a walking boot that went above his right knee, The Athletic reported. Sabres coach Ralph Krueger said Sobotka was out for Saturday's game and would be re-examined on Monday.

Kucherov, who scored the opening goal in Friday's game, led the league with 128 points last season and won the Hart Trophy (writers' MVP vote) and the Ted Lindsay Award (players' vote).

He was suspended for one playoff game for a boarding infraction against Markus Nutivaara in Game 2 of the Lightning's shocking four-game sweep by the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Krueger argued with the referees about the lack of a call and was overheard shouting, "You've got eight eyes" in reference to the four on- ice officials.

But he chose his words carefully after the game.

"It’s something I can’t control, the decisions that are being made," he said. "They didn’t commit one way or the other. Obviously without a call, their decision was it was a fair hit. … We need to move on, whether we like it or not. Everybody can look at that video and make their own decision on it."

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