Columbus Blue Jackets News Clips December 28, 2017 - January 2, 2018

Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 03: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets: Tortorella downplays, then stokes rivalry with Penguins PAGE 05: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets: Atkinson joins injured list; he and Wennberg out 4 to 6 weeks PAGE 06: Columbus Dispatch: Penguins 5, Blue Jackets 4, SO | Jackets fall after blowing lead PAGE 08: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Injuries give trio opportunity PAGE 09: The Athletic: Despite big break, golden chances, Blue Jackets find way to lose to Penguins PAGE 12: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Artemi Panarin’s scoring vital for team struggling with injuries PAGE 14: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Veterans’ mistakes costly vs. Penguins PAGE 15: The Athletic: The 'Ask Porty' mailbag, vol. 14: Time to make a trade? Primanti Bros. or Tip Top Kitchen? Tortorella's love of veterans PAGE 20: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets: Might Brassard make his way back to Columbus? PAGE 22: Columbus Dispatch: Senators 5, Blue Jackets 4 | Comeback stuns Jackets PAGE 24: The Athletic: Two nights later, Blue Jackets blow another two-goal lead, lose to Senators PAGE 27: The Athletic: Inside the Blue Jackets' postgame kepi tradition PAGE 29: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Sergei Bobrovsky’s recent play raises concern PAGE 30: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Zach Werenski back from injury, back with Seth Jones PAGE 32: Columbus Dispatch: Jackets lay an egg on New Year’s Eve PAGE 34: Columbus Dispatch: Lightning 5, Blue Jackets 0 | Lightning’s four-goal second period leaves Jackets reeling PAGE 36: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets notebook | Korpisalo buried under second-period onslaught PAGE 37: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | Nick Foligno moves up to top line PAGE 38: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets | John Tortorella: Don’t play safe, but play smart PAGE 40: The Athletic: 'Safe is Death' has died: John Tortorella pulls plug on Blue Jackets' aggressive style of play

Cleveland Monsters/Prospects PAGE 43: Cleveland Plain Dealer: Cleveland Monsters rocked by Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-2 PAGE 44: Cleveland Plain Dealer: Cleveland Monsters drop second to Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-3 PAGE 45: The Athletic: CBJ Depth Dive: Checking in on the Cleveland Monsters

NHL/Websites PAGE 47: Sportsnet.ca: 31 Thoughts: Is Letang’s situation too complex for an in-season deal? PAGE 54: Sportsnet.ca: NHL Power Rankings: New Year’s Resolutions Edition PAGE 57: Sportsnet.ca: 10 bold NHL predictions for 2018 PAGE 59: USA Today: Five young U.S. stars to watch at world juniors

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PAGE 60: The Athletic: First outdoor world junior game a success — at the expense of hockey PAGE 62: Sportsnet.ca: Jeff Glass finally joins his famous 2005 WJC teammates in the NHL PAGE 64: Sportsnet.ca: Canadiens shopping Max Pacioretty amid scoring slump PAGE 65: Sportsnet.ca: Bettman says NHL will never bring three-on-three OT to playoffs PAGE 66: TSN.ca: Dahlin living up to hype at WJC as consensus No. 1 pick PAGE 68: Sportsnet.ca: Down Goes Brown Weekend Wrap: Is Atlantic playoff race already over? PAGE 73: USA Today: Winter Olympics: 2018 Team USA men's hockey roster for Pyeongchang Games

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171227/blue-jackets-tortorella-downplays-then-stokes-rivalry-with- penguins

Blue Jackets: Tortorella downplays, then stokes rivalry with Penguins By George Richards – December 28, 2017

PITTSBURGH — NBC has dubbed Wednesday its “rivalry night”, yet isn’t broadcasting from PPG Arena tonight when the Blue Jackets take on the Penguins. NBC’s loss. Although Columbus coach John Tortorella feels the two teams need to play in the postseason a few more times to get that true hatred flowing, there’s little doubt something is brewing. “You can see it developing and, quite honestly, I don’t like the team,” Tortorella said Wednesday morning before the two Metropolitan Division rivals clash here for the second time in a week. “I say that not in a personal way, but it’s a team we want to beat. Maybe I’m defining that this is a rivalry, I don’t know. It’s a great building; we respect them, this is a great team we’re playing against. But you have to have a bit of an edge to play against them, and I think that’s how we’re going into it.” What don’t you like about the Penguins, coach? “Oh, a lot of things,” Tortorella said. “But I’m not going to get into that.” Last week’s game — won 3-2 in a shootout by the two-time defending Cup champs — had plenty of intrigue. And plenty of bad blood flowing. There were fights between the likes of Lukas Sedlak and Ryan Reaves, Nick Foligno and Evgeni Malkin while Sidney Crosby found himself in the middle of some scrums, as well. Expect more of the same after a three-day Christmas break? “I’m sure it will be, yeah,” Foligno said. “We’re obviously teams who have a lot of emotion toward each other so it will be a good game to get us back into the swing of things after Christmas.” Added Reaves: “They like throwing the body around and we have to play the same game. I expect it to be just like last time.” Lineup changes With Alexander Wennberg (back) and Cam Atkinson (foot) out for at least a month, the Blue Jackets are giving an extended look to Sonny Milano, Jordan Schroeder and Tyler Motte. Milano will open on a third line with Sedlak and Matt Calvert; Motte and Schroeder join Markus Hannikainen on the fourth. “It’s part of the league,” Tortorella said. “Injuries are part of the game, next man up. We’re going to go play.” For Milano, this is his chance to grab a spot on this team and run with it. Milano has played in 28 of the 37 games so far, but has spent more time in Cleveland than he would probably like. “This is pretty big,” Milano said. “Guys are missing so that’s more ice time for other guys. I’m just trying to get the best of it.”

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Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang will not play tonight. Werenski may return Friday Defenseman Zach Werenski (upper body) skated with his teammates on Wednesday but will not play. If he practices Thursday here in Pittsburgh, he could be back Friday in Ottawa or Sunday against the Lightning. “He’s day-to-day,” Tortorella said without adding anything more. Werenski declined to comment except to say he had fun in Michigan over the break.

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171226/blue-jackets-atkinson-joins-injured-list-he-and-wennberg- out-4-to-6-weeks

Blue Jackets: Atkinson joins injured list; he and Wennberg out 4 to 6 weeks By George Richards – December 28, 2017

Injuries are part of any hockey season. For the Blue Jackets, however, this is starting to get ridiculous. Columbus lost yet another top player to injury during Saturday’s win over Philadelphia as winger Cam Atkinson suffered a fractured foot that will require surgery. The team announced Atkinson will miss four to six weeks. The Blue Jackets also confirmed center Alexander Wennberg will miss extensive time after hurting his back in a 3-2 shootout loss at Pittsburgh last Thursday. Wennberg, like Atkinson, is expected to miss a month or more. The Blue Jackets’ injured list is starting to pile up. Columbus was already without center Brandon Dubinsky as well as defensemen Ryan Murray and Zack Werenski heading into the weekend. The good news: Murray has been skating and seems to be closing in on a return to the lineup; Werenski isn’t expected to be out long. The bad: Columbus will be without three of their top scorers for the next few weeks. Dubinsky, although off to a slow start this year, scored 12 goals with 41 points last season. He has three goals and 12 points this year. He has been out since breaking an orbital bone when getting punched in the face during a game against Edmonton on Dec. 12. Dubinsky is expected to be out until February. Wennberg led the Jackets in assists last season as he had a career-high with 13 goals and 46 helpers. Wennberg was starting to get his game back in gear of late, registering three of his four goals in the past eight games. Atkinson has led Columbus in scoring in each of the past two seasons and has six goals and 13 points this year. The Jackets haven’t announced any roster moves heading into Wednesday’s game at Pittsburgh although a combination of Tyler Motte, Jordan Schroeder and Sonny Milano are expected to rejoin the team from Columbus’ AHL affiliate in Cleveland. Dubinsky, Atkinson and Wennberg are three of Columbus’ highest-paid players; the trio account for $14.3 million of the team’s $69 payroll this season.

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171227/penguins-5-blue-jackets-4-so--jackets-fall-after-blowing- lead

Penguins 5, Blue Jackets 4, SO | Jackets fall after blowing lead By George Richards – December 28, 2017

PITTSBURGH — John Tortorella said before Wednesday’s game that he didn’t particularly like the Pittsburgh Penguins. Don’t expect his attitude on that subject to change any time soon. Tortorella’s squad held a two-goal lead on the Penguins midway through the third but ended up losing to the Penguins 5-4 in a shootout at PPG Paints Arena. It was the second shootout loss for the Jackets in this arena to that team in a span of a week. “We’re OK, getting ready to play our next game,” Tortorella said afterward. “We will take our point and get ready for the next game.” The Jackets never trailed until the final horn sounded on a two-round shootout. Having gone to a shootout the past three games, they went 0 of 2 against Matt Murray while Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby each scored for the Penguins to get the extra point. The Jackets got two out of four points in Pittsburgh yet lament they didn’t get the full four. “I felt like we just handed it to them,” captain Nick Foligno said. “I felt like we did enough to win, we just didn’t close it out. That’s a team, if you let them hang around, it will cost you. ... It’s disappointing for sure. That’s a team we’re going to be battling right to the end.” The Blue Jackets, down three of their key scorers because of injury over the past few weeks, scored twice in the first then got two goals from Artemi Panarin in the second and third as he gave the Jackets a pair of two-goal leads. The Jackets didn’t hold onto either of them. Panarin’s second goal of the night came with 9:58 left in regulation. Pittsburgh, which has won 8 of 11 against the Jackets dating to last season, fought back. Malkin made it a one-goal game on a power-play rebound with 5:36 remaining before Jake Guentzel took advantage of a defensive lapse — three Jackets players were behind the net — and scored unopposed from the right side with 1:40 remaining in regulation. Pittsburgh appeared to win it seconds into overtime when Crosby scored on a loose puck, but a league- initiated replay showed Brian Dumoulin interfered with Sergei Bobrovsky. After a lengthy video review — the Blue Jackets had already skated off the ice, the Penguins had begun celebrating — the goal was taken off the board and play resumed. As one may expect, the home crowd didn’t appreciate the call and neither did coach Mike Sullivan, who let the officials know of his displeasure. “It happened so quickly, but once you saw the replay, I don’t know what in the hell they were arguing about,” Tortorella said. “It was goalie interference. We had a chance ... we didn’t get it done.”

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Said Bobrovsky: “I play it in the moment, but on the video, you can see that he pushed me a little bit. I lost my balance and fell back.” The Blue Jackets had a rare overtime power play not long afterward and despite playing with four skaters to the Penguins’ three, they couldn’t put anything past Murray. “It’s tough, obviously, when you have a lead in a game you want to close things out,” said Boone Jenner, who gave the Jackets a 2-0 lead at 14:34 of the first. “We just have to try and do a better job of shutting those down.”

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171227/blue-jackets--injuries-give-trio-opportunity

Blue Jackets | Injuries give trio opportunity By George Richards – December 28, 2017

PITTSBURGH — With three of his top forwards out for the foreseeable future, Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella is waiting to see their replacements make a difference. Sonny Milano, Tyler Motte and Jordan Schroeder have been on the Cleveland Express this season, shuttling back and forth from the Blue Jackets to the minor-league Monsters. Tortorella wants to see all three stick it out with Brandon Dubinsky, Alexander Wennberg and Cam Atkinson out — but that is up to them. “This is a great opportunity for those guys playing in Cleveland,” Tortorella said Wednesday before a game with the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. “They don’t like being sent down. They think they can play here; OK, now show us. They’re going to get that opportunity and for an extended period of time. ... I have been looking for someone to take that spot on that fourth line. No one has stood up and said, ‘This is my spot.’ They’ll have a lot more opportunity to try and grab that.” Milano, 21, spent the first few months with the Jackets after scoring four goals in the opening three games. December has seen Milano come and go three different times. “Guys are missing and there’s more ice time for others. I have to make the most of it,” Milano said. Said Nick Foligno: “Sometimes opportunities present themselves in weird ways, and (Milano) has a great chance to play some minutes, be a part of this and get his confidence going.” Schroeder and Motte have seen more American Hockey League action this season than either would like, but it appears both will get extended minutes with the Blue Jackets. Both were recalled before Saturday’s game against Philadelphia only to be sent back after the game — then called up again Tuesday. With neither the Jackets nor the Monsters playing during that time, they were merely paper (and financial) transactions. Werenski not quite ready Defenseman Zach Werenski (upper body) skated with teammates Wednesday but did not return to the lineup. “He’s day-to-day,” Tortorella said. Werenski missed his fourth consecutive game after getting hurt Dec. 18 at Boston.

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https://theathletic.com/196482/2017/12/28/despite-big-break-golden-chances-blue-jackets-find-way- to-lose-to-penguins/

Despite big break, golden chances, Blue Jackets find way to lose to Penguins By Aaron Portzline - December 28, 2017

PITTSBURGH — Most of the Blue Jackets' players had filed off the bench, handing their sticks to the equipment staff on their way to the visitor's dressing room after the Penguins appeared to win on the first shift of overtime. But then John Tortorella and his assistant coaches started running the other direction, back to the bench, screaming “goaltender interference” and “it's getting reviewed.” The NHL's situation room initiated the review. “The Penguins were still having their celebration on the ice when we came back out onto the bench,” Blue Jackets left winger Matt Calvert said. “It was pretty weird.” Sidney Crosby's apparent goal only 23 seconds into overtime was disallowed, bringing a shower of boos from the crowd in PPG Paints Arena and giving the Blue Jackets' a second chance at victory. But it was a frustrating game for the injury-depleted Blue Jackets, who put it the work early to win but didn't seize the clutch moments late to hold off the veteran Penguins. For the second time in six days, Pittsburgh beat the Blue Jackets in a shootout, earning a 5-4 win. The Jackets led 4-2 until collapsing late in the third period. “We played well enough to win tonight,” Tortorella said, “but we did not make the final plays of the game. “We were in full control, too, at that point in time. We were playing a good third period.” The Penguins made it 4-3 on Evgeni Malkin's power-play goal at 14:24 of the third period and tied it on Jake Guentzel's goal with 1:40 remaining thanks to a massive defensive breakdown by the Blue Jackets. “They are a good team; they find ways, but I thought we just handed it to them tonight,” said Foligno, who took the blame for the breakdown that led to Guentzel's goal. “We did enough to win and we didn't close the game out. You let a team like that hang around and it’s going to cost you.” Artemi Panarin had his first two-goal game with the Blue Jackets, and Sonny Milano and Boone Jenner ended long goal droughts. But Pierre-Luc Dubois and Panarin both came up empty in the shootout Sergei Bobrovsky was not sharp. He stopped 33 of 37 shots, and allowed Malkin and Crosby to score in the shootout, which lasted only two rounds. This game did not follow the script many would have anticipated: the Blue Jackets are the youngest team in the NHL and they are gutted by injuries, with five prominent regulars out of the lineup. But that's not what led to their demise. They didn't play a smart final 10 minutes of regulation, and they didn't take advantage of two big breaks in the overtime. “Yeah, we're missing a lot of guys, but that's no excuse,” said Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones, who played 30:08. “We have guys in here who are capable of playing the game, able to pay our style.

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“That's a close game. You can say we should have won and we let them back into it late. It's more pressure on us individuals to be better.” On the first shift of overtime, Crosby trailed the play behind Brian Dumoulin, who pulled up in front of the net and appeared to make glancing contact with Bobrovsky, knocking him backward. Here's Bobrovsky: “I felt that I lost balance a little bit. I don’t know. It was in the moment. On the replay, you can see that I lose the balance and leaned back and couldn’t do anything.” Here's Dumoulin: “I didn't think so. Obviously, I didn't try to hit him at all. I was trying to put it in the net. After I tried to make that move, I stepped out to the side of the crease trying to make a play on the puck. I mean, he was the one kind of tied up with me. I was trying to get out of there. I think I did everything possible to get out of that situations and obviously, they thought different.” Here's Tortorella: “Once I saw the replay … I didn’t realize (because) it happened so quickly during the game. But once you see the replay, I mean, … I don’t know what the hell they’re arguing about after. It’s a goalie interference.” After getting their new lease on life in overtime, the Blue Jackets also had a 4-on-3 power play, but generated only one shot on goal — a 40-foot shot by Panarin. “We had so many opportunities to win, and that makes it tough,” Calvert said. “It's tough to lose a game like that in a shootout. “There are some memories against that team and that’s a hurdle we’re going to have to jump. As an athlete, that’s the adversity you have to get through. We’ll keep working, keep finding a way, try to get ourselves over it.” Notebook • Here's the official explanation from the NHL: After reviewing all available replays and consulting with NHL Hockey Operations staff, the Referee determined that Dumoulin prevented Bobrovsky from doing his job in his crease, in accordance with Rule 78.7 which states in part: “The standard for overturning the call in the event of a ‘GOAL’ call on the ice is that the Referee … determines that the goal should have been disallowed due to ‘Interference on the Goalkeeper,’ as described in Rules 69.1, 69.3 and 69.4.” • Milano hadn't scored since before Halloween (Oct. 21), but gave the Blue Jackets a 1-0 lead at 9:06 of the first. He made a strong play in the corner to control the puck, then centered it and was there for a rebound off Jones' shot. It's his sixth goal of the season. • Jenner made it 2-0. He hadn't scored since before Thanksgiving (Nov. 20) but beat Pittsburgh's Matt Murray to the near post off the rush for his fourth of the season. • The Blue Jackets announced just after puck drop that right wing Cam Atkinson had successful surgery to fix the broken bone in his right foot, suffered when he blocked a shot on Saturday vs. Philadelphia. • Not a good night on the dot for the Blue Jackets. They were 29 of 72 on faceoffs, but most crucially 0- for-6 on power-play faceoffs and 1-for-5 on penalty-kill faceoffs. • Jones' 30:08 is the most he's played since joining the Blue Jackets, the third-most playing time in his career. Here's a wild one: in the three career games in which Jones has played the most, his team has lost in a shootout in all three. • Just when you think you know what to expect … there were virtually no scrums and no nastiness between the two clubs, a distinct departure from the meeting just six days ago, when every whistle was followed by shoves and chops.

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• Since the Blue Jackets routed Pittsburgh 7-1 last on Dec. 22, 2016, they are 1-1-3 vs. the Penguins.

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171228/blue-jackets--artemi-panarins-scoring-vital-for-team- struggling-with-injuries

Blue Jackets | Artemi Panarin’s scoring vital for team struggling with injuries By George Richards – December 29, 2017

PITTSBURGH — One big reason the Blue Jackets traded Brandon Saad to Chicago last summer was to get some much-needed scoring in the form of wing Artemi Panarin. They really need it now. Panarin scored twice Wednesday in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Both times Panarin scored, the Jackets took a two-goal lead. But both times, the Penguins came back. With three key forwards out of the lineup because of injury, the Jackets need to find scoring in all sorts of ways. On Wednesday, they got it from Sonny Milano, who has been up and down from the minors all month. They also got a goal from Boone Jenner, who snapped a streak of 16 games without a goal. Yet it was the goals from Panarin that should have been the difference-makers. “This is a big part of who he is,” coach John Tortorella said. “He had another good game, scored a couple of big goals for us.” Panarin, 26, has a way of scoring against the Penguins as he scored and had two assists against them as a member of the Blackhawks last season and has eight goals and 11 points against Pittsburgh in six career games. Last week against Pittsburgh, his goal with 3:46 remaining helped force overtime. The Jackets were missing that one player who could turn a game around last season, one reason general manager Jarmo Kekalainen went after Panarin. So far, he has been that sort of player. Panarin is tied with Zach Werenski for second on the team with 10 goals and has a team-leading 33 points. Playing alongside rookie center Pierre-Luc Dubois and Josh Anderson (13 goals), the Jackets have a top line they feel can do some damage. Panarin and his impressive skill set — including his strong skating and puck protection — is a big reason why. “He is doing everything he can to help us win,” Nick Foligno said. “It’s not him, we have to get some run support for him because he’s doing an unbelievable job for us offensively and defensively for us. He’s playing good hockey to help us win.” With Alexander Wennberg, Brandon Dubinsky and Cam Atkinson out of the lineup for the next month or so, the Jackets will need to scrap and grind out wins. No one in the NHL feels bad for the Jackets as man- games lost to injury pile up. Players such as Milano are going to need to help out as was the case against the Penguins. The Jackets scored enough goals to beat the Penguins — until they didn’t. Pittsburgh roared to life after falling behind 2-0 in the first period and dominated play for much of the game. The Blue Jackets struggled to get anything going save for Panarin’s goals. They cannot count on him to do all the scoring, but he’s probably going to have to do some of the heavy lifting for a while.

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“He has been great all season,” defenseman Seth Jones said. “He is doing it when it counts and is doing it in a lot of different ways for us.”

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171228/blue-jackets--veterans-mistakes-costly-vs-penguins

Blue Jackets | Veterans’ mistakes costly vs. Penguins By George Richards - December 29, 2017

PITTSBURGH — Not long after the Penguins scored the tying goal with 1:40 left Wednesday in a 5-4 shootout win over the Blue Jackets, coach John Tortorella was asked if his young team was simply taken advantage of by a more-experienced Pittsburgh team that seems to have its number.

Tortorella, once again, did not use the “youngest team in the league” excuse for a loss.

Mistakes that were made late in the game, he pointed out, came from some of his more trusted, veteran players. The Jackets, who had a two-goal lead three times, made the biggest mistake late in regulation.

Of the five Jackets skaters on the ice, three — defensemen Jack Johnson and David Savard as well as forward Nick Foligno — were behind the goal cage as an open Jake Guentzel took a pass and easily knocked in the tying goal.

“The mistakes weren’t made by young players,” Tortorella said. “We played well enough to win, but we did not make the final plays of the game. It was simple coverage, and it ends up in the back of our net.”

Foligno chased down Patric Hornqvist toward the end board and watched him fire off a pass to Guentzel.

Goalie Sergei Bobrovsky didn’t have much of a chance on the play.

“They have dangerous players,” Foligno said. “And they will make you pay.”

Pittsburgh, without a doubt, knows how to beat the Blue Jackets. Twice in one week the Penguins rallied from a third-period deficit to beat them in a shootout. Dating to last season and including four playoff wins, Pittsburgh has won eight of 11.

“There are some memories against that team and that’s a hurdle we’re going to have to overcome,” Matt Calvert said. “As an athlete, that’s adversity you have to get over. We’ll keep working, we’ll find a way.”

Slap shots Defenseman Zach Werenski, out the past four games because of an upper-body injury aggravated last week in Boston, took part in Wednesday’s morning skate and practiced Thursday in Pittsburgh but isn’t expected back Friday against Ottawa. ... Werenski and newly recalled defenseman Dean Kukan were the two healthy scratches Wednesday and skated together again Thursday.

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https://theathletic.com/197345/2017/12/28/the-ask-porty-mailbag-vol-14-time-to-make-a-trade- primanti-bros-or-tip-top-kitchen-tortorellas-love-of-veterans/

The 'Ask Porty' mailbag, vol. 14: Time to make a trade? Primanti Bros. or Tip Top Kitchen? Tortorella's love of veterans By Aaron Portzline - December 29, 2017

The Blue Jackets are down three prominent forwards and two prominent defensemen because of injury. They just suffered a tough loss to the Metro rival Penguins for the second time in six days.

With the holiday roster freeze now lifted, Jackets fans are now pining for action. Is a trade coming? Is it time to panic? Is Primanti Bros. on par with the Tip Top Kitchen? Why does Tortorella love veteran players unconditionally, but ask so much of the youngsters?

All of this and more in this week's “Ask Porty” mailbag! Thanks for all the questions. Enjoy!

mikemaurine (@DuluthMike)

When will the Blue Jackets be forced to make a move based on the Wennberg/Atkinson injuries? Do you think Motte/Schroeder/Milano are the answers? AP: Forced? Never. That would be reckless and inexcusable for a GM to treat this situation with a panicked move. Clearly, GM Jarmo Kekalainen is not going to go that route. He might make a move in the coming days, but it’s not going to be out of desperation or panic. With three key forwards and two key defensemen out of the lineup, the Blue Jackets basically are playing their fifth line (no, not their ardent supporters) and their fourth pairing. It’s not ideal. They might only survive, not thrive. But if you’re the GM, you can’t do anything rash in the next month just to get by. Are they still competitive with those three forwards you mentioned in the lineup? Absolutely. Can they be better? Oh, heck yeah. But GMs have to take the long view when everybody else can only see the end of their nose. They have to portray patience, even when there’s panic all around them.

Greg Burch (@theburch1225)

Is there a thought to breaking up Jones-Werenski now with all the forward injuries? With a team so desperate for offensive firepower, might it be an idea to have one of the “rovers” on the ice more often?

AP: It’s a question I asked Tortorella today in Cranberry, Pennsylvania, where they skated before heading off to Ottawa. (Just for you, Greg. Just for you.) I didn’t ask because of the forward injuries, though. I asked because Markus Nutivaara has looked pretty good on the No. 1 pair next to Seth Jones while Zach Werenski has been out injured. This goes back to a story we published a few weeks ago, asking if Jones and Werenski could be split up to help fortify the defense, or as a means to keep one of the two on the ice for 45-plus minutes per game. Tortorella said Nutivaara’s play next to Jones has given them a good look at some options in the future, but he was firm that Werenski and Jones will go back

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together again when Werenski is healthy. (He was insistent, too, that Nutivaara is staying in the top four.) So, there’s that for now. But keep an eye on this.

Mark Green (@Markin43214)

I thought Ryan Reaves caused mayhem, and a lack of focus by the Jackets. Not sure how the Jackets solve this problem, you?

AP: Reaves had an impact on the first game (Dec. 21), but I thought he was a non-factor in Wednesday’s game. It just wasn’t that physical of a game. Very few scrums or skirmishes. The Blue Jackets do not have anybody who can play that game, anybody who’s a heavyweight fighter. But most NHL teams don’t either now, and I don’t see the front office stepping out to sign a tough guy. I remember year one of the organization after the Jackets traded bad apple Krzysztof Oliwa to Pittsburgh and immediately signed this minor-league tough guy who was a no-name to just about everybody in Columbus. That guy was Jody Shelley. When Doug MacLean signed Shelley he made it known to him that he was coming up for his NHL debut when the Blue Jackets played Pittsburgh next, so that Shelley could fight Oliwa. Shelley called me back on my cellphone and I pulled off to the parking lot of Whole Foods on Lane Avenue to take the interview. It was awesome. I could tell there was something about this guy the city was going to love. I paraphrase, but he said something along the lines of … “I understand why I’m being signed, and it’s an obligation I intend to fulfill.” Shelley rocked Nationwide Arena that night and became a fixture in Columbus the following season. He’s still one of the most beloved players to ever dress in a game here. But the league has changed. I think the Blue Jackets would rather Pittsburgh be saddled with a player like Reaves — you’re playing with 11 forwards on some nights — than to try to match Reaves with a tough guy on their roster.

Shep (@T_E_O_)

Is there a rivalry hotter than the Blue Jackets-Penguins right now in the NHL? AP: There are many historically great rivalries — Boston-Montreal, Calgary-Edmonton, Rangers-Devils- Islanders, etc. — but what makes this so ferocious right now is that it’s in the nascent stages of something special. Sometimes you don’t recognize what’s coming until it’s on your windshield, and I think that was the 2013-14 playoff series. Now with two series together and the regular-season games being so charged, it looks like it’s on the way to being something special. The Blue Jackets have to hold up their end of the bargain now. If they keep losing to the Penguins, it won’t be a rivalry. They need to inflict heartbreak on Pittsburgh before it can really take off, but I suspect it will. Should be a fun next 10 years.

Neil Richard (@Nrichards67)

Ever see the World Juniors coming to Columbus? AP: Yes! And wouldn’t that be awesome? Columbus, led by the great Linda Logan at Greater Columbus Sports Commission, put in a bid for the World Juniors many years ago, but lost out to Grand Forks, North Dakota, where UND plays. A big reason given at the time was the lack of a second facility in which to play the games that won’t draw huge crowds. This is just another reason Ohio State needs to build a hockey rink for its hockey teams, a 4,000- to 5,000-seat arena. Canada and U.S. games will draw very well — Columbus is 6 1/2 hours from Toronto — but it’s the other games that can be a challenge. If you

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have a smaller rink for them to play in, it makes for a much better tournament. Buffalo has really struggled with attendance, and I’m sure the IIHF is not happy with that at all. It could be a hard sell to get another event in the States, but I think it would be awesome for the city. And, yes, if they ever get a secondary rink, I believe the city would try again.

Randy Souders (@Bess_Tess)

Any chance we see (Vitaly) Abramov after the World Juniors?

AP: I don’t see it. They can’t call him up until his junior season is finished in the spring, but he didn’t look anywhere near NHL ready in training camp. The future is super bright for this kid, but why reach down to major-junior when you’ve got guys at the AHL level who would be more prepared to play at the pro level?

Patrick Pepper (@patrickpepper)

Why does Tortorella put Milano on a checking line and Jenner on a second line? Jenner easily fills a third-line role, while Milano needs to be surrounded by top-6 talent.

AP: Only the great players can provide the identity to a line all by themselves. Otherwise, it’s the collective of the three, the elements each player provides, that defines the line. Right now he has Milano with Matt Calvert and Lukas Sedlak because Milano needs, in his opinion, solid defensive play and speed to help cover for defensive zone mistakes. Jenner, meanwhile, gives a little stiffness along the wall to that second line, with Foligno and Bjorkstrand. That’s what the lines looked like today in practice anyway. By the time this publishes, they could change again. Nothing, as you’ve noticed, is etched in concrete.

Leslie (@lfoxcbus)

Why does Torts trust veterans so much when they continue to screw up while youngsters carry the team? AP: It’s really a wonderful question, not only for its insightfulness but also its bluntness. He would appreciate it, too. It’s bang-on. He would acknowledge it’s a fault of his. In fact, he has acknowledged this. I think it’s how a lot of coaches are wired. If Milano made the read Foligno made Wednesday that led to the 4-4 goal, he’d be sent to Cleveland. Hell, he’d be sent to (insert name of ECHL affiliate). It’s like anything else, I suppose. It takes forever to prove yourself in this world.

John Conley (@JohnEConley)

Primanti Bros. or Tip Top Kitchen?

AP: Stop baiting me, John! This is a no-brainer. My review of Primanti Bros. puts me in the minority, I know, but the fries on a sandwich are a bit much, especially for the bread they use. The bread is weak. It renders the sandwich a big soggy pile of flavorless carbs, and the fries (subpar) are the star of the show. The first time I ate there a server suggested I use hot sauce to “flavor it up” and that stuck with me. He was right, sadly. This is never an issue at the Tip Top. The pot roast sandwich is a work of art, perfectly proportioned and delicious. It’s a caloric celebration, especially with the sweet potato fries.

Jonathan Barnes (@osubluejackets)

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I loathe the Pens. They always seem to win through one or two breakdowns that they instantly capitalize on, while the Blue Jackets can never seem to capitalize on breakdowns by the Pens. How do the CBJ get over this hump? AP: Well, Jonathan, I don’t know how else to explain, but there’s one word for it. Skill. The Penguins have two of the top-five players of their generation. Everybody knows (love or hate) Sidney Crosby, but Evgeni Malkin is an incredible talent. One player like Crosby can lift all boats, and the Penguins have two guys of that caliber. That doesn’t make them invincible, but it makes them damn hard to beat. The Blue Jackets need Sergei Bobrovsky to be Vezina Trophy-winning Sergei Bobrovsky against them, and he hasn’t done that in the playoffs (3-8-0, .889 save percentage, 3.73 goals-against average) or the regular season (11-6-4, .915, 2.68). They need other players (Artemi Panarin springs to mind) to be exceptional in big moments. They aren’t far away, and they’re getting closer all the time. But it’s a big hurdle clear.

Ron Lucus (@PoppaBurgundy91)

Do you think the team has a psychological hurdle they can’t clear when they play the Penguins? Every game, playoffs or not, it seems they can’t land the knockout blow, save for the 7-1 win last December. AP: Yes, absolutely. I like the way Calvert put it after the game, saying the Blue Jackets “have memories” against the Penguins that they need to get over. It’s a little brother-big brother thing, and the big brother always has a psychological advantage long after he’s lost his physical advantage. I think the talent gap between the two rosters has gotten close (see the answer to the question above), but it’s still profound. And the psychological advantage is evident. When the Penguins pulled to 4-3, you could feel it in the building.

Scott @MaskedClevenger

Given the big hole at center, is there any chance they’d call up Vigneault or Thurkauf to give them a taste and see how they’d fair? AP: A chance? Sure. But these guys don’t recall players just to see how they’d fare. I’m a little surprised Sam Vigneault hasn’t been given a taste yet, given how well he appears to be playing in Cleveland. He’s also a couple of years older than Calvin Thurkauf. Give this front office credit, they have done very well to let players spend the time they need in the AHL. Years ago, the first taste of success a player had in the minors was followed by a recall to the NHL. The way these guys operate is much healthier — the player comes up when he’s ready to play in the NHL, when he’s playing the correct way in the AHL. They haven’t rushed guys. They won’t start now.

Dylan Thompson (@Dylan_Thompson_)

Outside of Duvie Westcott and Grant Clitsome, is Seth Jones the best “D” we have ever had? The answer is yes, but I just wanted to type both of those names.

AP: Two of my favorite people, too. Druval “Duvie” Westcott played in Russia, Switzerland and Germany after his time in the NHL ended. Don’t forget, he beat the absolute tar out of Sean Avery (then with Detroit), perhaps the crowning achievement of his NHL career. Grant Clitsome was a pretty good player whose career was derailed by injuries. He loved the nickname we gave him — Red Stripe, because he was short and squatty like the beer — but mostly because it erased the unfortunate nicknames his name spawned. I have a funny story to share someday about the time the Blue Jackets drafted him.

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Craig Poeppelman (@poeppelman10)

How do they line up their practice facilities when traveling, like today in Pittsburgh?

AP: The schedule is done weeks and months in advance. On some occasions, they fly right after the game, but increasingly they’ve been staying over, skating and then moving on the next day. The Blue Jackets have an excellent manager of team services, Julie Gamble, who arranges all of their travel (the team plane, hotels, buses, ice time at rinks, flights for called-up players if the team is on the road, etc.) They schedule their ice time on the road and pay for it, along with the use of a dressing room, etc. How Gamble hasn’t pulled out all of her hair is beyond me, but she’s been with the club for a long time now.

Chris @FormerLeafsFan

Given this team’s penchant for celebratory hugs, how has the “PDA line” not caught on for Panarin- Dubois-Anderson?

AP: Not bad. I like Bread & Jam. But that had a worse launch than Betamax. I’m out of the line-naming business.

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171229/blue-jackets-might-brassard-make-his-way-back-to- columbus

Blue Jackets: Might Brassard make his way back to Columbus? By George Richards – December 30, 2017

OTTAWA — Derick Brassard was drafted in the first round by the Blue Jackets and spent his first six NHL seasons in Columbus before being traded to the New York Rangers in 2013. Could he be headed back to Ohio? Brassard, who has another season left on the five-year, $25-million contract he signed with the Rangers before being traded to his hometown Senators in 2016, said Friday he didn’t want to talk about potential trades, that he’s “just focused on playing here, playing well for this team.” And while Brassard wouldn’t say whether the Jackets are on his modified no-trade list, he said he wouldn’t say no to Columbus. “Let’s say it it this way: I will play hockey anywhere,” Brassard said after the Sens’ morning skate at Canadian Tire Center in suburban Kanata. “I have good memories, but my job is to play hockey here. I’ll play anywhere. I wouldn’t refuse to go anywhere in the world or anywhere in the East. I have really good memories of playing in Columbus, we had a lot of fun. “We had some tough seasons, but I think it made me a stronger person, stronger hockey player. I remember some really good times there.” With Ottawa sinking in the standings and the Jackets obviously needing some depth at the center position, it’s natural Brassard’s name would come up in trade rumors. The Sens come into Friday’s game with losses in 16 of their past 19 games, and the rumor mill has already cranked up in trade-crazy Canada. Brassard said he has plenty of fond memories of his time with the Jackets and that he and Cam Atkinson remain the best of friends. Playing against the Jackets, even after being traded quite a few years back, still means something to him. “It’s my first team and there are really good people there who work for the organization, great fans, and I still have good friends on that team,” said Brassard, who has nine goals and 23 points in 35 games this season. “Yeah, it’s a special game, but we’re just trying to focus on winning a game here, play well. I wish them well. ... You look at them and it’s pretty cool to see, they have good prospects in the system and are well-managed and well-coached. “They have built a pretty strong organization. They are going to be one of the top teams in the east for a while.” Werenski or Kukan? The Jackets sent defenseman Gabriel Carlsson back to AHL Cleveland on Friday morning, meaning either Zach Werenski or Dean Kukan will line up against the Senators.

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Werenski has missed the past four games with what’s believed to be a shoulder injury; Kukan would make his season debut with the Jackets if he goes in. The two were the only Columbus players to take early ice in Ottawa on Friday morning. The Senators will start Mike Condon (2-4-4, 3.05 GAA) in net over starter Craig Anderson.

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171229/senators-5-blue-jackets-4--comeback-stuns-jackets

Senators 5, Blue Jackets 4 | Comeback stuns Jackets By George Richards - December 30, 2017

OTTAWA — Holding a two-goal lead against a team going nowhere, it appeared the Blue Jackets had this one.

Before long, however, the Ottawa Senators got a gift goal. Soon, a turnover led to the tying score. By the third, things simply spiraled out of control.

Ottawa, a team that had lost 16 of 19, scored four unanswered goals and beat the Blue Jackets 5-4 on Friday night.

The Jackets lost both games on this trip and coughed up a two-goal lead in each.

“It’s unfortunate the way it ended for us,” said defenseman Zach Werenski, who scored an empty-net, power-play goal with 31.8 seconds left to pull the Jackets within one.

“They got a few nice bounces and it was tied going into the third. We talked about how the next goal would be huge. We didn’t elevate our game and they did. It was not a great performance by us by any means.”

The Blue Jackets led 3-1 after Sonny Milano scored his second goal at 7:24 of the second period, one of three Jackets goals in 3:09.

Then, with 5:46 left in the period, Nick Paul threw up a soft shot from 30 feet out that hit goalie Sergei Bobrovsky’s stick and somehow slipped into the net to give the Senators life.

“If we can’t get our game back and get some sort of push because of that goal, there are major problems,” coach John Tortorella said. “Any goal, good or bad, gives a team a lift. That’s how you play in the NHL. You handle momentum; get it back on your side when you lose it, and we didn’t.”

With 1:08 left in the period, Matt Duchene scored a pretty goal after Jack Johnson lost a Tyler Motte pass in the offensive zone. Then came the third, when the Senators controlled things and scored twice in the first half of the period. Both goals came within 90 seconds of each other.

“It was one of those games where we scored enough goals to win,” Josh Anderson said. “We just have to find a way to maintain the lead and be smart about it. I know the (phrase Tortorella) uses is ‘safe is death,’ but we have to be smart and watch our turnovers. We had too many and they capitalized on it.”

The Ottawa comeback all but made Milano’s two goals — he has three in two games since coming back from minor-league Cleveland — a footnote.

Anderson also scored, his goal coming not long after former Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard tied the score at 5:42 of the second.

Milano’s first goal came a second after the Jackets’ third power play expired.

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Werenski did get one for the league’s worst power play in the closing seconds, but it wasn’t enough.

“A couple goals were uncharacteristic of us and now we just need to regroup,” Johnson said. “We knew they would be fighting tooth-and-nail the whole game and we put ourselves in a good position. Games like this happen, but it’s no excuse.”

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https://theathletic.com/198559/2017/12/30/two-nights-later-blue-jackets-blow-another-two-goal-lead- lose-to-senators/

Two nights later, Blue Jackets blow another two-goal lead, lose to Senators By Aaron Portzline - December 30, 2017

Two games, two blown two-goal leads. On Wednesday, the Blue Jackets suffered a bitter loss to rival Pittsburgh. On Friday, they went a step lower, with a disheartening defeat by struggling Ottawa.

If Wednesday's loss was hard to swallow, Friday's loss was hard to comprehend.

Josh Anderson and Sonny Milano (his second of the night) scored only 13 seconds apart in the second period to give the Blue Jackets a 3-1 lead, and an easy night in Canada's capital appeared underway.

The Senators had won three of their previous 19 games (3-13-3) and were coming off four straight losses.

“We're up 3-1. We're in a great position,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella fumed to reporters after the game. “And this goes south from there.”

For long stretches early this season, the Blue Jackets were surviving and winning despite their anemic offense because they played structurally sound defense and because goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was playing up to his old Vezina ways.

But the club has turned leaky defensively, and Bobrovsky has come out of the Christmas break in a funk.

“We were a little sloppy,” Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones told reporters after the game. “Just seeing the passes blowing up off each other's sticks. We just weren't sharp. It showed.

“We played a really good second period and they blew it at the end of the second with a couple of mistakes. It was kind of a weird game.”

The 3-2 goal allowed by Bobrovsky was horrific.

Senators forward Nick Paul, who last scored in the NHL two seasons ago, sent the puck wide of the net as he skated into the zone through the left faceoff circle.

Bobrovsky tried to swat it into the corner to his right, but swung too early and whiffed. Instead, the puck hit the inside of his paddle and was angled between his pads and into the net.

“If we can't get our game back and get some sort of push at that point in time because of that goal, then there are major problems,” Tortorella said.

It unraveled quickly.

Late in the second, Jackets defenseman Jack Johnson lost his grip on the puck heading into the Senators zone and watched the play turn the other way in an instant. Matt Duchene scored on a breakaway and it was 3-3.

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“We go into the third period tied,” Zach Werenski said. “We talked about that, the next goal is huge. We just didn't elevate our game and they did. It wasn't a great performance by us by any means.”

The Sens went up 4-3 early in the third when Mark Stone jammed twice at a puck Bobrovsky was trying to seal with his right skate. Stone's second attempt was successful.

Another odd-man rush by Ottawa — this time Josh Anderson was back defending, with Werenski way up ice — made it 5-3.

Tortorella would not single out Bobrovsky for criticism. He lumped him in with everybody else on the team for criticism.

“He falls under the same category as everybody,” Tortorella said. “I have concerns about a lot of people. It's not numbers. It's just the eyeball test as far as how they're playing.

“I'm not going to get in on ripping on Bob. That's not what I'm saying. But Bob's in with the group of players. We have 20 players that play the game, each and every night. Everybody's involved in this.”

On Wednesday, the Blue Jackets led 2-0, 3-1 and 4-2 before losing to the Penguins in a shootout. It was a bitter point.

Friday's loss wasn't as crushing because it wasn't against a rival. But it was uglier, and there was no loser's point to sweeten the bitter pill.

Notebook

• Milano had his second two-goal game of the season. Bank account, right?!? Nah. He played only 11:50, ninth-most among Blue Jackets forwards.

• Werenski had missed the previous four games with an upper-body injury. He was OK. He played 23:48 and had just one shot on goal. He tied for the team lead with three blocked shots.

• Werenski on his first game back: “It felt good. I don't think I played too good, but it felt good to be back out there and try to help the team. It was nice to get a goal there in the third to get my rhythm back and get some confidence.”

• The third-period goal padded Werenski's lead in goals among NHL defensemen. He now has 11, putting him ahead of Tampa Bay's Mikhail Sergachev, Nashville's P.K. Subban and Philadelphia's Shayne Gostisbehere, who each have eight goals.

• As promised, Tortorella reinstalled Werenski next to Jones on the No. 1 pair, but he continued to fiddle with the bottom two pairs. Markus Nutivaara, who had played next to Jones in Werenski's absence, settled in next to David Savard on the second pair, while Johnson slid down to the third pair with Scott Harrington. Johnson played only 17:10 over 18 shifts.

• Remember Bobrovsky's extended break at the beginning of December to work on parts of his game that the busy game and practice schedules don't allow? Joonas Korpisalo started back-to-back games — Nov. 28 and Dec. 1 — giving Bobrovsky an extended breather. Well, since that break, Bobrovsky's numbers: 4-6-2 with an .891 save percentage and 3.46 goals-against average.

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• D Gabriel Carlsson was sent back to minor-league Cleveland early in the day. D Dean Kukan remains with Columbus as the No. 7 defenseman while Ryan Murray remains out.

26

https://theathletic.com/198514/2017/12/30/inside-the-blue-jackets-postgame-kepi-tradition/

Inside the Blue Jackets' postgame kepi tradition By Alison Lukan - December 30, 2017

The NHL team in Columbus is called the Blue Jackets, but it’s a hat that’s become a special part of every victory.

Whether home or away, when the Jackets win, before the locker-room doors open to the media, a replica Civil War “kepi” hat is awarded within the team to the player of the game.

“You have your three stars of the game,” Matt Calvert said. “A lot of times the kepi goes to those guys, but not always. It gives guys that aren’t in the three stars, but who do something big for the team, a chance to get a little recognition of their own.”

Calvert, the longest tenured player with the Jackets, remembers when the kepi first showed up in the locker room three seasons ago. For the longest time, there was no award for player of the game that Calvert can recall. Then, about four years ago, a first attempt at a postgame award was a wrestling-type championship belt, but that didn’t stick.

And so, the idea of the kepi came about. Using a hat tied to the tradition of the Union soldiers of the Civil War, the same tradition that gave the franchise its name, seemed to fit the burgeoning Jackets’ culture just right.

Today, the kepi that gets awarded every night is the same hat from when the tradition started. It lives in the bench cabinet of the winning player’s stall until such time that it goes to the next deserving player after the next Jackets win.

If the team travels? The equipment staff is sure to tuck the kepi into the current owner’s bag of gear lest it otherwise be forgotten.

And when the team files into the locker room after securing a win, the player with the kepi pulls out the hat, makes a short speech, talks about the game, and hands off the kepi to the player he thinks most deserves it. There might be more than a few chants of “Speech! Speech!” before the recipient dons the hat and offers some remarks of his own.

Pierre-Luc Dubois won the kepi in the Jackets' home opener this year, a 5-0 win over the New York Islanders. It was the rookie’s first NHL game and marked the occasion of his first NHL goal.

“It feels good, it’s fun,” Dubois said. “Obviously everyone’s happy after a win and then you get that little bonus and it feels really good. The guys are amazing, they support me. To get the kepi — that makes you feel even better.”

Winning the kepi is the easy part of the equation. Awarding it is the hard part. It’s not something guys are thinking about while the game is going on, but as soon as that final buzzer sounds, if you’re the guy who has to give the kepi away, your mind is churning.

27

Sergei Bobrovsky and Joonas Korpisalo come away with the kepi a lot.

“It all depends on how the last couple kepis have gone,” Dubois said. “If a couple guys who score goals got the kepi the last games, a guy who played well on the penalty kill, or blocked a couple shots, or did things that not everybody sees but are as important as goals and assists (might get it).

“It really depends, if a guy scores a hat trick you can’t not give it to him! But, if it’s a 1-1 game, it might go to a big penalty-kill guy like Jack (Johnson) or Savvy (David Savard) for blocking shots. They deserve it just as much as the guy who scored the goal.”

And that’s what the kepi tradition is about. Calling attention to the things that matter but don’t always stand out to fans or media.

That’s not to say the kepi isn’t the source of a lot of fun, too. Joonas Korpisalo has joked the hat is too small for his head, but says it fits now. And sometimes finding the kepi after the award is a game in and of itself. While you're supposed to put it on for your speech, afterward, it’s been lodged in the shelves of a stall, left on the seat in players' lockers, and even stashed inside a pair of hockey pants after a game.

And while the content of any kepi speech is kept within the confines of the team itself, the best ones, according to Calvert, come from guys like Artemi Panarin who, while still learning English, always gives it his best shot.

“The speeches are very important,” Panarin said. “It makes everybody to be a part of the team and come together. Sometimes I don't understand everything that the guys say, but it's very important and as a result, it brings us closer together.”

And thus, the kepi travels around the Blue Jackets room, game after game, player to player. To date, no one has awarded it back to themselves two games in a row, “that would be selfish,” Seth Jones laughs.

“There’s games where you do something that goes under the radar that maybe fans or the media don’t see,” Calvert said. “Getting the kepi lets you know your teammates are proud of what you did, it’s a small thing but it’s something fun we can do at the end of the win.”

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171230/blue-jackets--sergei-bobrovskys-recent-play-raises-concern

Blue Jackets | Sergei Bobrovsky’s recent play raises concern By George Richards - December 31, 2017

OTTAWA — Seconds after the final horn sounded on the Senators’ 5-4 victory over the Blue Jackets on Friday, the Canadian sports network switched over to ESPN’s coverage of Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.

Most fans in Columbus probably changed the channel long before that — and few could blame them.

Friday was a tough night for the Jackets as they not only lost after holding a two-goal lead for the second consecutive game, but they didn’t look all that good in doing so.

Even when up 3-1 on the struggling Senators, something definitely was missing.

When Ottawa got a fluke goal on a soft wrist shot from Nick Paul that goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky misplayed and let get through, it opened the gates for the Senators to make their move.

And they did.

“You look at our last game and we were up a couple goals and found a way to lose it,” right wing Josh Anderson said afterward. “We scored enough goals to win here in Ottawa, but they capitalized on their chances.”

Coach John Tortorella said he wasn’t going to get into “ripping” Bobrovsky, but he said there was some concern with his recent play.

In the past two losses, Bobrovsky has given up nine goals.

“He falls into the same category as everybody,” he said. “I have concerns for a lot of people, the eyeball test on how they’re playing. Sure there’s a concern with Bob. ... I’m not going to get into ripping on Bob, that’s not what I’m saying. But Bob is in with 20 players who played the game and everyone is involved in this.

“I’m interested in seeing how guys handle this.”

Powering up Defenseman Zach Werenski said the Blue Jackets going scoreless on their first four power plays didn’t bother anyone on Friday — because they thought Sonny Milano’s first goal came while with the man advantage. Although Milano’s goal came because of the power play, it technically happened a second after the power play had ended.

So, Werenski’s power play goal with 31.8 seconds left was the only one the Jackets scored. “It’s nice to get one, but 6-on-4 doesn’t really feel like a power play,” Werenski said, noting Bobrovsky had left the net vacant. “It’s nice for the stat sheet, I guess.”

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171230/blue-jackets--zach-werenski-back-from-injury-back-with- seth-jones

Blue Jackets | Zach Werenski back from injury, back with Seth Jones By George Richards - December 31, 2017

OTTAWA — Seth Jones got his buddy back.

One of the top young defensive combos in the NHL was together once more on Friday night as Zach Werenski returned to the Blue Jackets lineup and was reunited with Jones.

The two defensemen have basically been partners since Werenski was a rookie last season.

Although there was speculation that coach John Tortorella might tinker with the defensive pairings because Jones and Markus Nutivaara were playing so well together, he quashed those thoughts and said when Werenski returned from injury that he would be going back with Jones.

“I haven’t had another D-partner since I came into the NHL. It has always been Seth,” Werenski said Friday before scoring the Blue Jackets’ final goal in a 5-4 loss at the Ottawa Senators.

“This is what I’m used to. I played with a couple different guys when he was hurt last year, but other than that, he has been my main partner since I got into the league. I’m comfortable with him and I think he’s comfortable with me. We work well together, have a ton of fun on the ice.”

A few weeks back, Tortorella was asked if he planned on splitting up his two high-end defensemen. Some surmised that the two could help the defense more if they were put with different partners, but Tortorella scoffed at the notion.

“I’m not splitting them up,” Tortorella said. “They determine too much of the pace of the game for us to split them. They control games for us.”

Tortorella said Jones and Werenski have no problem logging heavy minutes. In Werenski’s return Friday, the two skated on 28 shifts and both closed in on 24 minutes of ice time.

“I’m ready to play, ready to go,” Werenski said of not easing his way back into the lineup.

The success of the Jones-Nutivaara pairing, however, could give Tortorella and the Jackets pause. Jones said Werenski and Nutivaara are aggressive players who are great skaters and can move the puck, which made life a bit easier.

“The transition, at least for me, was pretty seamless,” Jones said of being paired up with Nutivaara. “I hope Nutivaara felt the same. We had some good minutes, I think we both enjoyed playing with each other because we both understood what we were trying to do. We didn’t surprise each other with anything.”

Jones joked before Friday’s game that he didn’t know who his defensive partner would be, although it seemed he had a pretty good clue he and Werenski were getting back together.

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“It’s nice having him back. We definitely missed him,” said Jones, who was the fourth overall pick by Nashville in the 2013 draft. Werenski was eighth in 2015 out of Michigan.

“Whether I’m playing with Zach or not, he’s a player who is going to make an impact. ... We have had some pretty good success so far. We’re not perfect, but at the same time, we’re aggressive and have similar styles.

“It’s a treat playing with him.”

31

http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171231/michael-arace--jackets-lay-egg-on-new-years-eve

Jackets lay an egg on New Year’s Eve By Michael Arace – January 1, 2018

As the ball drops in Times Square, the puck drops on Nationwide Boulevard. Football is fading, hockey season is gaining momentum, and the Blue Jackets are in a place to capture a wider audience. That is how the Columbus sports calendar works.

New Year’s Eve is like a second season-opener. Usually, it is a festive affair, but it was not Sunday night, when the Jackets were booed after the final horn sounded on a 5-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Half of the standing-room crowd of 18,878 was Ubered up before the postgame fireworks were set off in Nationwide Arena.

The Lightning showed the Jackets what a real Stanley Cup contender looks like. If this was not embarrassing for the Jackets, it should have been. They skated a good 20 minutes and then headed back to Kanata.

The Jackets have played on New Year’s Eve every year since their inception, with just three exceptions. Prior to Sunday night’s game, the Jackets were 8-5-1 overall and 6-3-1 at home on New Year’s Eve. Their worst loss on New Year’s Eve was by a three-goal margin, which happened twice on Doug MacLean’s watch.

Last year, the Jackets celebrated New Year’s Eve in St. Paul with a 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild. Jackets fans remember that game. It was the first-ever meeting — in any major-professional sport — between two teams with winning streaks of 12-plus games. Three days later, the Jackets beat the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 in Nationwide Arena to push an historic winning streak to 16 games. Those were heady times.

Things haven’t been quite the same since. Here’s a stat: The Jackets were 46-23-9 (.647) in the calendar year of 2016. They were 46-34-7 (.568) in the calendar year of 2017. Are they regressing?

The fans, drunk with success 365 days ago, can’t understand the headache they are feeling this morning. The Lightning made their team look slow and indecisive. The Lightning — present owner of the league’s best record — does that to a lot of teams. But at home? On New Year’s Eve? After that thing in Kanata on Friday night?

The Jackets have the feel of a team that needs a shake-up. Fans are turning on players they formerly admired. Folks are pining for William Karlsson, as if he could’ve been the answer. Right now, even the goaltending looks faulty. The people in the stands want management to do something.

Here’s what flashes through my mind:

In recent years past, the Jackets celebrated late-season winning streaks when they should have been bent on tanking. That is a blunt way to put it, but it is an effective means of acquiring game changers.

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They could have had a shot at drafting a Connor McDavid or an Auston Matthews, or a Jack Eichel or a Patrik Laine.

Instead, they are left with a relatively shallow measure of elite, offensive talent. This is not necessarily crippling, but when Cam Atkinson, Alexander Wennberg and Brandon Dubinsky are out with injuries, the margin for error shrinks considerably, and teams with high-end talent can take it away altogether. That is exactly what happened Sunday night.

The Jackets are what they are, personnel-wise. They remain the youngest team in the league, and they have to grow into a real contender because they can’t trade their way into it. They’re a playoff team right now, and they have yet to play their best hockey. That’s not a bad thing.

Right now, they need to have more pride than they showed Sunday night, or Friday night — and that’s on the locker-room leaders, and anyone else who pulled on a jersey for the worst New Year’s Eve showing in franchise history.

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Lightning 5, Blue Jackets 0 | Lightning’s four-goal second period leaves Jackets reeling By George Richards – January 1, 2018

The Arena District was abuzz Sunday as a standing-room only crowd packed Nationwide for a hockey night on New Year’s Eve. Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets, the Tampa Bay Lightning drained the life out of the building with a dominating second period. Tampa Bay, the class of the NHL so far this season, scored four goals in the first half of the second period and cruised into 2018 with a 5-0 win over the suddenly struggling Jackets. As the Lightning rolls into the New Year with wins in 11 of the past 13 games, Columbus has lost its past three and heard boos as they came off the ice. Tampa Bay won all three meetings between the two this season and outscored the Jackets 7-0 in Columbus. “They smelled blood and we didn’t do anything right in that second period,” Jackets forward Nick Foligno lamented. “We were just whacking pucks away. We got it handed to us.” Backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo started Sunday and only had to make five saves in a scoreless first period. Then the Lightning woke up. “The first goal was their first chance of the game,” coach John Tortorella said. “Then it piled on us.” Tampa Bay outshot the Jackets 15-1 in the first 9:48 of the second period and took a 4-0 lead during that span. Ugly? Indeed. The Bolts kicked things off 1:22 into the second with Tyler Johnson scoring after Columbus failed to clear the puck out of its zone as Sonny Milano couldn’t handle a Markus Nutivaara pass along the boards. Soon afterward, Johnson scored again five seconds after a power-play chance ended. Johnson’s second goal came moments after Josh Anderson was stoned on a short-handed breakaway by Andrei Vasilevskiy. At this point, the Lightning — which leads the league with 58 points and a goal-differential of 51 (no one else is even close) — started circling Korpisalo. Tampa Bay tacked on two more goals (from Nikita Kucherov and Cory Conacher) within the next four minutes as the Jackets again struggled to get the puck out of their zone, and the Lightning was more than willing to swim with it on Columbus’ side of the pool.

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“It was more of what we did. We’re finding ways to lose right now,” Jackets defenseman Seth Jones said. “Mistakes, against a dangerous team like that, are costly. They’re the best team in the league for a reason.” The Jackets did open the third on a power play, but failed to get a shot off and so it went. Columbus’ last-place power play went 0-for-4 on Sunday after scoring at least one goal in six of the past eight games. Tampa Bay cashed in on one of its five power-play chances as Steven Stamkos’ slap shot midway through the third made it a five-goal affair. “We just lost ourselves,” Tortorella said. “When you lose a game like that, it’s always a concern. ... We’re going to go about our business. We’re not going to kick and scream and whine. We just have to stay together as a team.”

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http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20171231/blue-jackets-notebook--korpisalo-buried-under-second- period-onslaught

Blue Jackets notebook | Korpisalo buried under second-period onslaught By Steve Gorten – January 1, 2018

Joonas Korpisalo had to make only five saves in the first period on Sunday, but the second period was a nightmare for the Blue Jackets goaltender. The Lightning peppered Korpisalo with 15 shots in the first 10 minutes of the second while the Blue Jackets managed just one at the other end, and like Sergei Bobrovsky two nights earlier, he didn’t have any help. “Korpi gets thrusted in, and he earned his opportunity here tonight,” coach John Tortorella said. “We played really well in front of him that first period. Their first goal was their first chance of the game. Then it piles on us.” Said Korpisalo: “When they put up four goals, it’s pretty hard to come back from it. ... I just tried to battle through it and not let in goals so the team could bounce back, but we couldn’t do it.” Korpisalo finished with five goals allowed on 35 shots, after giving up only two goals in each of his previous four starts while stopping 119 of 127 shots (.937 save percentage). Tortorella said before the game that he had planned to start Bobrovsky on Sunday, but changed plans because “I just don’t think it’s good right now with Bob. ... And that’s not to run down Bob. It is just an honest assessment of where he is right now.” Bobrovsky gave up nine goals on 65 shots his previous two starts, and Tortorella expressed frustration that the Blue Jackets didn’t give him any assistance. Korpisalo could relate in the second period on Sunday. “We couldn’t get any attacks in the first 10, 15 minutes,” Korpisalo said. “We lost every battle, I think.” December to remember While the Blue Jackets struggled in December, left wing Artemi Panarin tied the franchise record for assists (13) and points (18) in a month, equaling Espen Knutsen (March 2001) for assists and David Vybrony (December 2006) for points. Linemate Pierre-Luc Dubois notched the second-most points (12) in a month by a Blue Jackets rookie, two fewer than Nikolay Zherdev (March 2004). He also tied Zach Werenski for third-most assists (eight) by a rookie after Zherdev (nine) and Ryan Murray, who had 10 in January 2014. Power outage The Blue Jackets were 0 for 4 on power plays and mustered just four shots on goal. They failed to score with a man-advantage for just the second time the past seven games. They were 5 for 22 (22.7 percent) in six games before Sunday. Slap shots Left wing Boone Jenner played in his 300th career game. ... Right wing Markus Hannikainen was struck in the face by a shot from the Lightning’s Alex Killorn at close range with a little more than two minutes left.

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Blue Jackets | Nick Foligno moves up to top line By George Richards – January 2, 2018

After being shut out Sunday night, the Blue Jackets had a new look at practice on New Year’s Day. Coach John Tortorella mixed things up during a 5-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning and kept them that way Monday as a top line that had been together for the past month or so was broken up. Nick Foligno, formerly center of the second line, should start Tuesday at the Dallas Stars on the right side of center Pierre-Luc Dubois and Artemi Panarin. “I enjoy playing with those guys, they’re obviously confident and skilled,” Foligno said. “They make plays. Hopefully they can help my game and I can help theirs.” Josh Anderson slides down to the second line, which is now centered by former wing Boone Jenner with Sonny Milano on the left. Jenner had played some center last month before going back to wing. “I’m excited to get back up the middle,” Jenner said. “It’s a different game at center, you see the game a lot differently. I have taken a lot of faceoffs lately, been taking shifts at center during games so it should be an easier adjustment.” Tortorella said after a lengthy practice Monday that he was just looking to get something going. “I think it could help Nick, could help a few people,” Tortorella said. “I’m not sure how long it stays. I just want to see something different.” Welcome back Zac Dalpe began 2018 with the Blue Jackets instead of minor-league Cleveland after being recalled Monday. He played in 10 games with the Jackets before being sent down in November. Tortorella said he wanted an extra forward and defenseman (Dean Kukan) before going on this upcoming two-game trip. “This is not anything I have not been used to in my career,” Dalpe said. “It’s status quo; I’m going to work hard and cliche it up, hope everything falls into place.” ... Markus Hannikainen was back at practice after leaving Sunday’s game late in the third period after taking a puck to the mouth.

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Blue Jackets | John Tortorella: Don’t play safe, but play smart By Steve Gorten – January 2, 2018

A few days ago, defenseman Zach Werenski said the Blue Jackets may live by the phrase “Safe is Death,” but perhaps safe isn’t all that bad. “We have to be smart,” Werenski said after a loss in Ottawa. It appears coach John Tortorella agrees. Tortorella took a sign bearing that slogan down from the locker room at Nationwide Arena before holding a lengthy and physical New Year’s Day practice on Monday afternoon. The Blue Jackets went for more than an hour as they got back to the basics of defensive play in an attempt to get back on the winning side of things. “We have to clean up some areas as far as chances coming our way and goals,” Tortorella said. “We need to stabilize the team.” The Jackets are down three of their top forwards due to injury and Tortorella acknowledged his team needs to play a smarter brand of hockey. They have lost their past three games. “I took the sign down because that’s not what we can be as a team right now,” Tortorella said. “A little bit has to do with personnel, but a little bit has to do with our overall play. We need to get back to our foundation, find structure. I don’t want to say play safer, just play smarter. The biggest thing for this team right now is for it not to lose its confidence.” Captain Nick Foligno, who moved up to the top line Sunday during a 5-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, said the physical practice did his team some good. “Let’s be honest, that’s where we haven’t been our best lately,” Foligno said. “It was nice to get a practice in where you can kind of hammer in those finer points.” Tortorella has been using the “Safe is Death” mentality since his days coaching the Lightning and says this may just be a temporary change in philosophy. The Jackets don’t want to become boring, but they also want to overcome this run of injuries. “The situation we’re in, we need to get our structure down defensively,” he said. The Jackets, Foligno pointed out Sunday night, haven’t been the same since last week at Pittsburgh. They had a two-goal lead on the Penguins midway through the third period but couldn’t hold it and lost in a shootout. After that game came a sleepwalking loss at Ottawa and then the Tampa Bay debacle. Foligno said the Blue Jackets need to get back on track in a hurry. “We played 58 great minutes against Pittsburgh and found a way not to win that game,” Foligno said. “We haven’t been ourselves since that game. If it’s because of that loss, we need to get over it. No one is coming to help us, no one feels sorry for us. The league keeps moving.” As for the “Safe is Death” sign, Tortorella didn’t put it in a dumpster.

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“I hope we can put that thing back up on the wall,” he said. “I told them I hated to take it down. I believe that’s the way you have to play in today’s game. But for now, it’s going into a closet. Hopefully it doesn’t get dusty in there.”

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https://theathletic.com/200188/2018/01/01/safe-is-death-has-died-blue-jackets-hope-less-risk-will- bring-reward/

'Safe is Death' has died: John Tortorella pulls plug on Blue Jackets' aggressive style of play By Aaron Portzline – January 2, 2018

An alarming sight in the Blue Jackets' dressing room on Monday: The sign that reads “Safe Is Death” was no longer hanging above the main entry door, but was instead leaned against the wall above the cabinets where stick tape is stored. John Tortorella's mantra, one he's carried from his earliest days as an NHL coach in Tampa Bay, has died, a casualty of the Blue Jackets' sloppy play of late. Tortorella took the sign down today when he addressed the team before they took the ice for the longest practice of the season — 1 hour, 15 minutes. “I just took it to another level today, taking the sign down,” Tortorella said. “That's not what we can be as a team right now. A little bit has to do with personnel, but a little bit has to do with just our overall play. “I think we need to get back to our foundation, our structure … I don't want to play safer, but play smarter. So we took the sign down.” The Blue Jackets have allowed 14 goals in their last three games and 39 goals in their last 10 games. One of the stingiest teams in the NHL since the start of last season is now 10th in the league, allowing an average of 2.78 goals per game. A 5-7-2 December — capped by a 5-0 thumping by Tampa Bay on New Year's Eve — has shaken the Blue Jackets' confidence and stirred doubts among the fans. “The two most important things for this team right now are not to lose confidence and to show up to the rink with the same enthusiasm they showed up with last December when we were going through a 16-gamer (winning streak) and nothing was going wrong,” Tortorella said. “It's hard to do, when you lose a couple of games the way we have, but you have to find a way. “It's a long day if you drag your ass to the rink because you got spanked and things are going right. It's hard to do when you're going through some of the ebbs and flows we're going through, but you have to find a way.” Here are some of the issues that are plaguing the Blue Jackets these days … Rover and rover again Tortorella has insisted that his defense engage offensively. He wants them to carry and pursue pucks deep in the zone as a way to create confusion for opponents. So far, the confusion seems mostly to be with the Blue Jackets. Every time a defenseman goes low, a forward must become a temporary defenseman, supporting the play to make sure the back door isn't left wide open. If that “read” takes more than a half-second, all hell breaks loose.

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It wasn't much of an issue vs. Tampa Bay on Sunday — the puck was always in the Blue Jackets' zone after the first period, thus, there wasn't much transition — but it's been a glaring problem in some of the Jackets' ugliest losses of the season. Edmonton. Boston. Ottawa. Tortorella insisted he still wants his defensemen jumping up in the play. To make Zach Werenski and Seth Jones “stay-at-home” defensemen would be to waste their considerable talent. But caution can't be simply thrown into the wind. In Wednesday's 5-4 shootout loss to Pittsburgh, the Blue Jackets — playing without Werenski — played a more conservative style with their blue-liners, and Tortorella liked what he saw. In a post-“Safe Is Death” world, you won't likely see two blue-liners below the hash marks. “It's not about playing it off the glass and keeping everybody back in a 1-4 neutral zone,” Tortorella said. “It's still about playing the game, but not taking it to the level where … “I think we're a good team when we're not playing safe. I think that's the way you have to play the game (in the NHL) right now, I really do. But the situation we're in, we need to get our structure down defensively, and that needs to be our main concentration. That doesn't inhibit our D getting up the ice.” Four significant injuries Good news: Defenseman Ryan Murray, who has been out more than a month with a back injury, should join the Blue Jackets soon to resume practice. Bad news: Centers Alexander Wennberg (back) and Brandon Dubinsky (fractured orbital bone), and right winger Cam Atkinson (broken foot), will be out at least another month, maybe longer. (Dubinsky watched practice on Monday from a few rows above the bench, his son on his lap.) Now, a cynic would point to the offensive struggles endured by Wennberg, Dubinsky and Atkinson this season and wonder just how much their absences truly mean. But it's profound, especially defensively. Both Dubinsky and Wennberg are very good checking centers. Dubinsky is an emotional lift and a highly competitive player, the guy who eats all of the pivotal faceoffs and gets most of the defensive-zone starts; Wennberg has been positionally sound and steady without the puck since the early days of his career. Those two, along with Atkinson, eat major minutes most nights, and they make smart decisions with the puck. When they're gone, you miss them. In the post-“Safe Is Death” world, look for fewer forwards flying the zone ahead of the puck. “It's about the puck,” Tortorella said. “It's about getting the puck out from 5 feet inside your blue line. You watch what happened when Sonny turned one over, we have two guys outside the zone. We can have one. We can't have two. “The structure away from the puck … we need to buckle down. We need to reinvent ourselves as far as stabilizing us and just getting our foundation down.” As Bob goes … It seemed a curious move at the time. Even though goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky wasn't injured or struggling, the Blue Jackets opted to sit him for two starts so that he and goaltending coach Ian Clark could work on issues that needed more time than the game and practice schedule allowed. Tortorella has banned Clark from speaking to the media, and Bobrovsky never likes to get too specific talking about his game, so we don't know what the issues were/are.

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But Bobrovsky hasn't been the same since his rare respite. He's 4-6-2 with an .891 save percentage and 3.46 goals-against average. Certainly, some of Bobrovsky's woes are owed to the massive breakdowns in front of him. He faced more breakaways and odd-man rushes in December than he did in October and November combined. Perhaps a more conservative style of play with and without the puck will make life easier on Bobrovsky and backup Joonas Korpisalo, who was under assault Sunday against the Lightning. Tortorella said the sign will be stored in a closet until the Blue Jackets get back to health … and confidence. “I hope we can put that thing back up on the wall,” Tortorella said. “I told them today, I hate taking it down, because I believe that's how you have to play in today's game. “BUT THE SITUATION WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW, IT'S GOING TO GO INTO THE CLOSET AND, HOPEFULLY, IT DOESN'T GET TOO DUSTY IN THERE. HOPEFULLY, WE CAN PUT IT BACK UP HERE SOON.” Notebook • The No. 1 line is no more. Artemi Panarin is still next to rookie Pierre-Luc Dubois, but Nick Foligno is now playing on the right side. Josh Anderson is down on the No. 2 line now with left winger Sonny Milano and center Boone Jenner. Yes, Jenner is back in the middle and Foligno is back on the wing. The other lines are Matt Calvert – Lukas Sedlak – Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Tyler Motte – Jordan Schroeder – Markus Hannikainen. • Hannikainen took four stitches on the outside of his lip and six on the inside to close a cut sustained on Sunday when he was struck in the mouth by a puck on a clearing attempt. “My mouthguard perfectly protected my teeth,” Hannikainen said. “It was perfect. I don't think about lucky, but I'm glad I wear a mouthguard, and I actually keep it in my mouth, not just chew it.” • You have to love hockey players. Hannikainen was struck with just a couple of minutes left in the game. And here was his concern. “A lot of blood. I didn't want to bleed out there on the ice. There's two minutes left in the game and it takes 10 minutes to clear that off the ice. I just wanted to skate off really quickly.” • The Blue Jackets recalled F Zac Dalpe from minor-league Cleveland on an emergency basis. He'll be the 13th forward and Dean Kukan the seventh defenseman on the Jackets' upcoming road trip to Dallas and Denver.

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Cleveland Monsters rocked by Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-2 By Staff – December 29, 2017

GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan -- The Cleveland Monsters jumped ahead early but couldn't hold on and lost to the Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-2, in an American Hockey League game at Van Andel Arena. It was the first of a two-game home-and-away set as the two teams play Saturday at 7 p.m. in Quicken Loans Arena. The Monsters scored the first two goals of the game, but then watched as Grand Rapids scored five straight for the win. The Monsters have now lost 12 of their last 14 games to fall to 9-14-3-2 on the season. Grand Rapids improved to 12-15-1-4. The Monsters took a 1-0 lead just 22 seconds into the game on a goal by Alex Broadhurst, then made it 2-0 when Carter Camper scored at 9:08 of the first period. But then Grand Rapids took over, scoring one goal in the first and three in the second to take a 4-2 lead after two periods. The Griffins goals were scored by Dylan McIlrath, Matt Puempel, Matthew Ford and Eric Tangradi. Tangradi, who also had an assist, scored again in the third period to complete the scoring. Matiss Kivlenieks started in goal for Cleveland and stopped eight of 11 shots before being relieved by Ivan Kulbakov, who stopped 14 of 16. The Griffins Jared Coreau stopped 26 of 28 shots. Colum-bus shuttle: The Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday assigned defenseman Gabriel Carlsson to the Monsters. Carlsson appeared in six games with the Monsters earlier in the season. He's played in 14 games with Columbus. ... Earlier in the week, the Blue Jackets recalled defenseman Dean Kukan and left wings Sonny Milano, Tyler Motte, and Jordan Schroeder. Cleveland then recalled left wing Bobby MacIntyre from the ECHL's Jacksonville IceMen. Up next: The Monsters host Grand Rapids in the Q on Saturday at 7 p.m. to close out the 2017 portion of the schedule. ... The Monsters open 2018 with seven straight road games, beginning Tuesday at Rockford, then at Chicago on Wednesday.

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http://www.cleveland.com/monsters/index.ssf/2017/12/cleveland_monsters_drop_second_1.html#inc art_river_index

Cleveland Monsters drop second to Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-3 By Staff – December 30, 2017

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Monsters surrendered their first goal 31 seconds into the game and lost to the Grand Rapids Griffins, 5-3, for the second time in two nights Saturday in an American Hockey League game at Quicken Loans Arena.

The Monsters' loss, their 13th in 15 games, dropped them to 9-15-3-2, in seventh place in the AHL Central Division. Sixth-place Grand Rapids improved to 13-15-1-4. Reflecting the turbulence of shifting rosters in the AHL, the two cellar-dwelling teams were also winners of the last two Calder Cup championships.

Colin Campbell at the half-minute mark and Evgeny Svechnikov at 10:47 scored for Grand Rapids in the first period. Dominic Turgeon notched two in the second frame. The second came in the final minute of a bizarre seven-minute power play that had Cleveland's Brett Gallant charged with instigating, fighting and misconduct, but no Griffins player sent to the box.

Carter Camper put the Monsters on the board at 15:38 of the second period with his team-leading 7th goal, assisted by Nick Moutrey and Cameron Gaunce.

The Griffins went up 5-1 in the final frame on a power play goal by Matt Puempel, but Cleveland cut the margin on goals at even strength from Miles Koules (7) and Zac Dalpe (1).

Mattis Kivlenieks (4-9-2) took the loss in net, stopping 19 of 24 shots. Tom McCollum (4-7-3) saved 32 for the win.

The Monsters whiffed on two power plays and killed two of Grand Rapids' four chances.

Attendance at the Q was 15,117, the season's largest.

Next up, the Monsters open a seven-game, 12-night road trip at 8 p.m. Tuesday against the Rockford IceHogs in Illinois.

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https://theathletic.com/200168/2018/01/01/cbj-depth-dive-checking-in-on-the-cleveland-monsters/

CBJ Depth Dive: Checking in on the Cleveland Monsters By Alison Lukan – January 1, 2018

As the calendar turns to a new year, we wanted to look north up I-71 and gather a quick profile of the Cleveland Monsters, currently home for 16 Jackets prospects playing in the AHL. For a team with a lot of youth to develop, there’s been a lot of learning going on this season. Twenty- nine games into a 76-game season, the Monsters (9-15-3-2) sit at seventh in the Central Division. “They graduated a number of prospects over the past year or so,” NHL.com AHL correspondent Patrick Williams said. “This is something of a transition period, prospects-wise, for Cleveland.” Let’s look at where the Monsters stand in all elements of the game. Offense The Monsters have struggled to get the puck in the net this season. According to prospect-stats.com, they are fifth in the league in shots for percentage in all situations (52.36) but they rank 25th in goal differential (-14) and last in shooting percentage (7.51). Coach John Madden has mentioned on many a night that the Monsters out-chanced their opponent, but couldn’t outscore them. “They're the kind of team that has to grind out every win,” Williams said. “But the nature of the AHL schedule makes that a difficult path. With the way the schedule is, there are nights when a team just needs to be able to rely on skill.” The Monsters also have been challenged by the reality that their top players head to Columbus as needed. At present, four of the team’s top-10 players in terms of points per game this season are with the Blue Jackets: Sonny Milano, Tyler Motte, Jordan Schroeder and Dean Kukan. But there are some bright spots for a team in the young talent that is developing. Madden said center Sam Vigneault (6-6-12), playing his first full year of professional hockey, has shown to be responsible, smart and brings a strong defensive side to his game. And forward Calvin Thurkauf (5-3-8), who is working on developing consistency in his game, is a “big strong kid, he goes hard to the net, and plays in the tough areas,” Madden said. Defense Defensively, the Monsters have been solid, Williams said. The bigger issue has been allowing the first goal in a game, which puts the pressure on the team to play catch-up. Williams also said the team should expect more from offseason veteran additions like Andre Benoit, whom Williams describes as “a proven high-end AHL defenseman.” Gabriel Carlsson recently rejoined the Monsters, which should offer some bolstering of the blue line, and add to some of the individual talent Madden has noted this year. Rookie Ryan Collins, who is learning the ropes of fighting his way into the lineup, is coming along nicely in his coach’s eyes. “He wants to be a really good player,” Madden said. “He has the right attitude and abilities. He can skate for a big guy and moves laterally really well.”

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And while Kukan (1-11-12) is with the Blue Jackets, he’s led Monsters defensemen in scoring and has helped back up the team all year. “Kukan has been our most consistent defenseman,” Madden said. “He’s shooting the puck a lot more, he’s finally got himself using his feet. He skates the puck out of trouble, he can take control of the game with his speed, vision and elusiveness.” Goaltending Minding the net has been an adventure for the Monsters this season. Veteran Brad Thiessen is currently out with a lower-body injury, so rookie Matiss Kivlenieks has jumped into a larger role backed by call-up and fellow rookie Ivan Kulbakov. With both netminders in their first season out of the USHL, Madden believes his goalies will get better with time and seasoning but this is a time of working through the lessons of playing at the AHL level. “Matiss is young and he’s working really hard,” Madden said. “He started really good. The grind got to him (a bit), but he’s someone that will keep moving along, and within a year or two we’ll be talking about him (much like Anton Forsberg and Joonas Korpisalo).” Overall, the upcoming weeks and months will provide a staunch test for the Monsters if they hope to get back into the top four in their division and fight for a playoff spot. A tough January lies ahead that sees the Monsters playing four of their 13 games on the road. And as Williams notes, March presents a brutal schedule with 16 games in 31 days. “We’ve just got to find a way to play hockey,” Madden said after the Dec. 30 game. “Every guy out there knows that as long as another guy has his back, and we’re all doing the right things together, things will turn around.” Notes • On Dec. 26, the Jackets recalled forwards Tyler Motte, Jordan Schroeder and Sonny Milano along with defenseman Dean Kukan from Cleveland. On Dec. 29, defenseman Gabriel Carlsson was assigned to the Monsters. • Kale Howarth returned to the Trail Smoke Eaters after the holidays. He had left the team in November to concentrate on his studies per the team website. In two games this weekend, the 20-year-old had two goals and one assist, putting him at second overall in team scoring this season (17-26-43). • In IIHF World Junior Championships news, in three games with Team USA, defenseman Andrew Peeke has one goal and one assist. Vitaly Abramov has played four games for Team Russia and has one goal to date.

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/31-thoughts-letangs-situation-complex-season-deal/

31 Thoughts: Is Letang’s situation too complex for an in-season deal? By Elliotte Friedman – December 28, 2017

Growing up in Toronto, it wasn’t unusual for Shawn Badali to be surrounded by star power. “Wayne Gretzky would park his Ferrari in our garage,” he said Tuesday with a laugh. “Not a lot of kids got to say that. There was another time I walked into the house, and there’s this huge guy lying on the couch. I remember thinking, ‘How tall is this guy?’ My dad said later, you didn’t recognize Mario Lemieux?” “Dad” is Gus Badali, who, as an agent, represented Gretzky, Lemieux, Paul Coffey and Steve Yzerman early in their careers. “The thing you noticed was the top players were exceptional on and off the ice,” Shawn Badali continued. “Gretzky especially was a down-to-earth guy. The way he treated people on the sidelines, those who were quote-unquote ‘not as important,’ who couldn’t do anything for him. He treated them so well, asked them questions, talked to them.” Shawn didn’t follow his father into the business. He wanted less travel, a career that would allow him to spend more time with a future family. He studied kinesiology as an undergraduate at York University, added a teaching degree from Roehampton University in London, England, then returned to North America for a Masters in Education from Harvard. He started his teaching career in Boston, where he also resumed playing hockey. “I loved skating,” he says. “I loved hockey. I actually wanted to be a goalie, but my dad said, ‘No way.’ I’d basically retired. That’s when I picked it up again.” In 2005, Badali took a job at Muirhead Public School in Toronto. Now 45, he has spent much of the last 12 years working in Muirhead’s unique Kindergarten Intervention Program. Let him explain: “I work with at-risk kids. But I found that with older kids, it was more difficult to make an impact than with a younger age. It’s small class for children with behavioural issues. At that age, parents are guessing what is causing those issues. Is it a learning disability? Is it ADHD? Autism? We try to create a safe place to learn about them for a couple of years. What’s the engine driving this kid to have so much difficulty in a school setting?” “I never thought I would have done this or enjoyed it,” Badali continued. “But to see the benefits, to see the joy in parents seeing their kid the way they thought they’d see them…” Badali doesn’t really finish the sentence, but, then again, he doesn’t need to. Before he got to Muirhead, another teacher created a skating program. He’s continued it, trying to get each student from Grades 1 to 5 on the ice at least three times per school year. For most of them, it’s their first time on skates. Until this year. As the calendar turns to 2018, no one’s had the opportunity yet, thanks to a shortage of skates and helmets. “We are not going to run the program until everybody can go,” Badali said.

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Contributing to the shortage is the fact that Muirfield’s enrolment increased with 75-plus Canadian refugee claimants. “Never mind skating,” Badali said, “some of them have never even seen snow before. To get them gloves and snowsuits is a journey, but I consider this part of the education of what it is to be Canadian. It is worth putting the effort into giving these students the exposure. Who knows if hockey will grow with them, but you know it won’t grow without planting seeds.” I gave Badali contact information for the NHL’s Hockey is for Everyone initiative and the NHLPA’s Goals and Dreams Foundation — both excellent programs – but if you have an extra helmet and/or skates (that’s all he is looking for) and want to drop it off/send it, the address is: 25 Muirhead Rd, North York, ON M2J 3W3. “I heard one of the special education kids say last year, ‘This is the greatest day of my life,’” Badali said. “Many of their parents are not familiar with the world of skating, but because they are included, it is a great social equalizer. These kids look forward to it.” Let’s help them get back out there. 31 THOUGHTS 1. In 1957, my father, who had just turned 18, worked on a Canadian National Railway engineering crew near Lake Waskesiu on Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan. There was a restaurant/bar on the premises, and, during the summer, Johnny Bower ran it. Bower played much of the previous season with the AHL’s Providence Reds, appearing in the final two of his 77 games as a New York Ranger. Approaching 32, he was one year away from his life-changing Toronto tenure. Bower was already very popular in his home province. Everybody knew him, liked him and was proud of him. (My dad liked him, too, even though Bower wouldn’t serve him illegally — the drinking age was 21 at the time.) Eventually, the rest of the country found out what the Land of the Living Skies already knew. In the phenomenal Hockey is a Battle, published in 1970 by Punch Imlach and Scott Young, Imlach explains that when he signed Bower he was actually trying to snare a minor-league sniper named Guyle Fielder. Fielder rejected the offer when they met in Seattle, and, on the way back, Imlach stopped in Saskatchewan to get Bower. That turned out … reasonably well. Later in the book, Imlach waxes poetic about his respect for the goalie, who he called “The world’s greatest athlete. I’ll defend that against anybody.” There was always a question about how old Bower really was, and Imlach revealed one conversation where he actually saw a birth certificate. The Leafs coach/GM told him, “If you were born in this day here that you’re telling me, you had to be overseas with the First Division, in 1939, when you were 13. And in the Canadian Army I know they were stupid but they were not that stupid.” Bower put the paper back in his wallet. Imlach said he never saw it again, adding, “I don’t care about his age anyway; in his prime he was the world’s greatest athlete, and whether he was 30 or 50 didn’t alter that.” 2. While Dave Keon was the Maple Leafs’ standard-bearer for on-ice performance, Bower was the most beloved player in franchise history. Fans loved him. A cursory Google search found three times in the last 10 years where the crowd serenaded him in Happy Birthday. Curtis Joseph tweeted out a photo of Bower alongside several of his Toronto goaltending

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descendants — including Felix Potvin, Mike Palmateer and Joseph himself. James Reimer’s wife April tweeted one of the Hall-of-Famer and her husband. A couple of years ago, a friend who works at Scotiabank said Bower remained one of the most popular celebrity requests at corporate events. And, if you ever had the pleasure of shaking hands with him, you noticed how enormous his hands were. Massive. Toronto’s next home game is Jan. 2 vs. Tampa Bay. I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with. 3. One very intriguing name has surfaced out of Pittsburgh: Kris Letang, who won’t play Wednesday against Columbus and is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Letang’s got four years left at $7.25 million. The theory is that the Penguins need to free up cap space, and they did win without him last season. The other thing to remember is that GM Jim Rutherford is fearless, unafraid to make an informed gamble. It hasn’t been an easy season for Letang, who selflessly took ownership for a critical mistake in Pittsburgh’s final pre-Christmas game, a 4-0 home loss to Anaheim, but there is not a ton of concern about his ability. He’s good, and everyone knows it. What makes this tricky is his health history — which includes a stroke and concussions, among other injuries. Letang’s seen several doctors/specialists outside the Penguins’ prism, so you’d have to assume any interested opponent would want access to that information. Therefore, the big question is going to be: Is this too complex for an in-season deal? 4. Not surprisingly, there was a lot of Montreal conjecture after Letang’s name was reported. I could see a trade match and do believe the Canadiens are on his list of clubs he can go to. Adding him means they would have almost $27 million per season tied up in Karl Alzner, Letang, Jeff Petry and Shea Weber for the next three seasons (barring other moves). Petry’s contract would be the first to expire, in July 2021. That’s a lot of financial concentration on the blue line. 5. I always wonder about Detroit whenever a top defender is available. 6. I think there is also concern in Pittsburgh with the toll so much hockey has taken on Carl Hagelin. He’s a tough competitor, but no one has played more playoff games since 2012. (The total is 112, 11 more than Brian Boyle.) Add that to 453 regular-season games, the Olympics and the World Cup over that span, it’s a lot. 7. Sounds like Arizona is working to find Anthony Duclair a fresh start. At 22, have to think someone takes a shot. 8. I worry about writing this kind of sentence because things change and it blows up in my face, but it doesn’t seem like there’s an Edmonton-Ottawa match for Mike Hoffman – curious to see if a Carolina or a St. Louis looks at him. 9. Doug Armstrong’s deserved post-Christmas gift is a four-year extension with the St. Louis Blues, with a club option for year five. GMs without contracts for next season (that we know of): Jim Benning, Chuck Fletcher, Ken Holland and Lou Lamoriello — although I believe Brian MacLellan is on this list, too. If Seattle gets any kind of conditional franchise over the next several months that is going to be a coveted job.

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10. One of the reasons Armstrong’s had success in St. Louis is that he’s put together a really strong staff. You assume he’s going to try and keep as many of them as he can. Martin Brodeur was interviewed in Buffalo before Jason Botterill got the job, and he’s going to be a GM someday if he wants to be. Another more unknown entity, who has a good reputation among his peers, is Bill Armstrong, who runs the Blues’ draft. 11. Blues coach Mike Yeo said Wednesday that Jay Bouwmeester may practice Thursday. That’s huge for St. Louis. There was concern his injury could be much more serious and long-term than many of us realized. 12. The NHL would like to announce its 2017-18 European schedule over the next few weeks, and there are some intriguing options. Edmonton let it be known it would like to go to China, but with Leon Draisaitl on the roster, Germany appears more likely. Nico Hischier has New Jersey on Switzerland’s radar. I’ve heard Boston, Calgary and Washington as possibilities for China or Europe. The Bruins make sense for China because they’ve had players make summer trips to that country for a few years. You could send the Capitals almost anywhere. So there are a few puzzle pieces, but to those of us on the outside, the picture isn’t yet clear. 13. I do think Ottawa’s post-Sweden results have made a few teams nervous about participating. Whether or not you believe in cause-and-effect in this case, GMs are a superstitious lot. 14. We’re going to find out in the next few weeks if it’s sabre-rattling or something more serious, but there are rumblings several players don’t want to go to the all-star game because they’re still upset about missing the Olympics. I used the word “boycott” in one conversation, but one agent said that was taking it too far “at this time.” Feelings on the topic are still very raw, however. Don’t forget the NHL can suspend if a player who avoids all-star doesn’t miss a league game. Something to keep an eye on. 15. If it does happen, a suggestion for the three-on-three event: Put together a team of all Tampa Bay Lightning. They’re hosting, and their play dictates large representation. Have Jon Cooper coach and stack the roster with Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, Vladislav Namestnikov, Ondrej Palat, Brayden Point, Mikhail Sergachev, Steven Stamkos, Andrei Vasilevskiy and/or whoever else the organization wants. Can’t imagine the home fans would hate it. 16. Chris Johnston reported last week that Team Canada will announce its Olympic roster Jan. 11, which gives Hockey Canada six days to sort out taking a couple junior-age players after the World Juniors are completed. There were rumblings a few professionals on two-way deals might ask out of their contracts to compete in South Korea, especially if the NHL is not in their immediate future. One possible case was Colorado’s Joe Colborne, but he has battled a concussion and appears unlikely. Too bad, and best wishes in his recovery. 17. Quote of the Week comes from Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen, asked if there’s any kind of sophomore slump for Zach Werenski: “I don’t think he knows what that is.”

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18. Before Werenski went down with an injury and missed a couple of games last week, Kekalainen said he agreed with coach John Tortorella’s decision to keep Seth Jones and Werenski together — even as the rest of the blue line went through some struggles. “Those two play 25 minutes and solve a lot of problems,” Kekalainen said. “Before Ryan Murray was hurt, we liked how he and Markus Nutivaara were playing. Jack Johnson and David Savard weren’t where they have been in the past, but we are confident they will get back there. I thought it was a good decision.” 19. Injuries never come at a good time, but the Blue Jackets suddenly are hit hard. Both Cam Atkinson and Alexander Wennberg are out a few weeks. Wennberg appeared to be re- discovering his feel after a very difficult start. “He was getting his confidence back,” Kekalainen said. As for Atkinson, a good player having a nightmarish season, it might actually help him to reset and restart. Asked if the player felt the pressure of his new contract, Kekalainen answered, “Before, everyone asked if he felt pressure because he was playing for a contract, so I don’t know which one it is.” 20. I like interviewing Kekalainen. He’s pretty blunt. I think Columbus could be good enough to win it all. He does, too, but is there anything he looks at with his team and says, “We need this if we are going to get there?” Answer: “Yes.” Q: “Uh, what would that be?” A: “I’m going to keep that between myself and our organization.” 21. Anonymous quote of the week comes from a Western Conference coach, who said, “Once Connor McDavid starts shooting on the power play we’re all dead.” Edmonton’s man advantage is 22nd — up a little from last week — but it’s the one area where McDavid hasn’t exerted full dominance. In his 163-game career, he’s got nine power-play goals. Alex Ovechkin leads with 42 over that span, Jamie Benn and Wayne Simmonds follow with 34. Not only that, but McDavid’s taken only 54 extra-man shots in 118 games the last two seasons — 102nd among all NHLers. “I shouldn’t tell you this,” the coach said, “But it makes them easier to defend.” At some point it’s going to change. You can tell the storyline annoys him as McDavid gave quite the stink-eye to Sportsnet sideline reporter Gene Principe when Geno asked him about it during a pre-game bench interview last Saturday. (Sorry, Gene. That was the studio’s fault.) 22. Anaheim shows up on Edmonton’s schedule for the first time next on Jan. 4. There is no one who brings out the best in Draisaitl more than the Ducks: Twenty-one points in 12 games last season, including the playoffs. He hasn’t been the same assertive, aggressive player in 2017-18, and as the Oilers charge into the playoff race, they know they need him to get back there.

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23. Edmonton’s hoping it found a diamond-in-the-rough late in the 2017 Draft. Seventh-rounder Philip Kemp (208th overall), was the final defenceman cut from the Team USA World Junior roster. No guarantees, but that was a good showing for him. 24. You’ll remember a few years ago that Edmonton tried to sign one of the two Vladimir Tkachyovs — this one out of QMJHL Moncton. The NHL voided the contract, saying he was still draft-eligible. He went back to the KHL in 2015 and has been there ever since. A couple of weeks ago, his team, Vladivostok Admiral, announced it couldn’t afford to pay his contract (among others) and he became a free agent. I think there was some NHL interest, but he decided to stay in Russia. His North American saga keeps him on my radar from time-to-time, curious to see if he will ever come back. There’s some doubt he’s more than an AHL player right now and a desire to see him try that league first may have made his decision much easier. 25. Jets head coach Paul Maurice said Wednesday that he hopes to have Dustin Byfuglien back next week. Winnipeg’s very much in the race with Connor Hellebuyck’s improvement. To give you an idea of how much he’s improved and how important he is, the Jets give up 1.2 more goals per game when he isn’t playing. As a team, they’ve gone from 27th in 2016-17 to a tie for 11th this year. 26. A lot of the Calder love surrounds Mathew Barzal, Brock Boeser, Clayton Keller and Sergachev, all deserving, but watch for the Charlie McAvoy acolytes. They’re out there, making themselves known, especially as Boston rises in the standings. 27. A major reason for the Bruins’ surge? Patrice Bergeron–Brad Marchand–David Pastrnak have outscored opponents 10-0 in almost 200 five-on-five minutes. Overall, it’s 22-4, with two of the goals against coming shorthanded and the others being empty netters, I think. 28. Colton Point gets the start for Team Canada’s World Junior clash Wednesday night against Slovakia. Philadelphia prospect Carter Hart cemented his grasp as No. 1 with an opening-game victory over Finland, but this is a big opportunity for Point, who was a long shot to make the team before the season. Point’s goalie coach is Michael Lawrence, a Canadian who works with Lugano in Switzerland. As NHL clubs add more goaltending expertise to their organizations, Lawrence is a name to watch. He also works with Michael DiPietro, who was Canada’s final cut at the position. 29. Last Wednesday the NHL closed a lengthy pursuit of Stephanie Vail, whose online GIF work through the Twitter handle @myregularface made her an essential social media follow for hockey fans. There were failed conversations a couple of years ago (which involved different people than now), but I don’t think the idea of hiring her truly went away. You can follow her work through @NHLGifs, but she has also been given a “central dropbox” where teams can pluck her stuff and post it on their own feeds. The reason I mention Vail is this: People ask all the time about getting into hockey or into the media. The greatest advantage this generation has is the ability to give yourself a voice. We didn’t have this kind of mass communication when I was 10, 15, 20 or 25. I strongly believe that the right people are always watching. Always. You are constantly being evaluated, whether you recognize it or not. Remember that. 30. Rich Sutter told a really good Ron Caron story last week during an intermission of the Montreal- Calgary broadcast.

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Sutter said Caron didn’t want his team playing at home right before Christmas break because he thought it was harder to concentrate around family. So he would always try to get them on the road. It kind of worked in Sutter’s final St. Louis season (1992-93), as the Blues tied (remember ties?) Minnesota 2-2 after three straight home losses. Much of the evidence, however, is Caron overthought this. In 1991 they lost 5-2 in Chicago after 4-0 and 6-2 home victories over San Jose and the Islanders. In 1990, the Blues’ last two pre-Christmas games were at home, a 3-3 tie with Washington and a 5-0 bashing of Chicago. This doesn’t change Caron’s status as one of the funniest people reporters ever dealt with. 31. I grew up in Toronto, but everyone in our city knew Irv Weinstein. “It’s 11 o’clock, do you know where your children are?” He delivered it with a presence, after the best news theme ever, ABC’s Eyewitness News. He was actually Buffalo’s, but many southern Ontarians knew him better than their own anchors. Forty years ago, I wanted to deliver a newscast like Irv Weinstein did. R.I.P.

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/nhl-power-rankings-new-years-resolutions-edition/

NHL Power Rankings: New Year’s Resolutions Edition By Luke Fox – December 28, 2017

The only thing that may go to waste quicker than best-laid plans is that gym membership you purchased on Jan. 1. (Aren’t those automatic monthly withdrawals a treat?) But that doesn’t stop us from setting out a course for betterment in these last hazy, lazy days of December. We’re all full of spiced nog and ideas. The sugarplums and Nintendo Switches once dancing in our heads have been replaced by cleanse recipes and abdominal crunches we may never complete. So it is in that same forward-thinking spirit, we offer up our NHL Power Rankings: New Year’s Resolutions Edition. As always, teams are ranked in order of their current 2017 awesomeness. The write-ups focus on a 2018 goal for your favourite club. 1. Tampa Bay Lightning We resolve to keep our foot slammed on the gas pedal, finish the job we came painfully close to completing in 2015, and make Luke Fox look super smart for picking us to win the 2018 Stanley Cup. 2. Vegas Golden Knights We resolve to avoid the temptation to sell off James Neal for a first-rounder and David Perron for a second-rounder, and instead make noise in the playoffs and become the greatest hockey-mad surprise party since Nashville circa 2017. 3. Nashville Predators We resolve to not let the healthy return of Ryan Ellis to our D core — which features three 20-point scorers — throw off our chemistry but rather enhance it and make us the Western Conference favourite. 4. New Jersey Devils We resolve to get off our wallet and use some of our $14.1 million in salary cap space to make sure we end our five-year playoff drought and take our high-flying Cinderella squad as deep into the night as our slippers will carry us. 5. Washington Capitals We resolve to be eliminated after the Pittsburgh Penguins. 6. Los Angeles Kings We resolve to re-sign Drew Doughty on July 2. 7. Boston Bruins We resolve to continue our winning ways (four in a row, baby!), sneak up from behind on Toronto and swipe home-ice advantage in Round 1 of an opening-round Atlantic playoff series sure to give Leafs Nation violent fits of anxiety as they think back to 2013.

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8. St. Louis Blues We resolve to make the playoffs for a seventh straight season. 9. Winnipeg Jets We resolve to win a dang playoff game for the first time in our second life. 10. Toronto Maple Leafs We resolve to modify Mitch Marner’s ice time so that it more closely aligns with his value to the team. The kid ranks second in points and 12th in average time on ice. 11. New York Islanders We resolve to use the Belmont Park arena deal and soon-to-be Calder winner Mathew Barzal as leverage in the John Tavares negotiations. See! There is a future here. 12. New York Rangers We resolve to acquire centre depth before the trade deadline passes us by. 13. Minnesota Wild We resolve to get our coach, Bruce Boudreau, a Game 7 victory. 14. Columbus Blue Jackets Honestly, we know you have a Power Rankings to read here, but there’s no point in dissecting our resolutions at this point. 15. San Jose Sharks We resolve to rent Joe Thornton to the highest bidder on Feb. 26 and give everyone who must work 12 hours that day something real to talk and write about. 16. Dallas Stars We resolve to sneak into the playoffs as The Hot Team You Don’t Wanna Face in Round 1. 17. Chicago Blackhawks We resolve to let someone else have a turn at playing outdoors in 2018-19. 18. Calgary Flames We resolve to be more truculent. 19. Philadelphia Flyers As starving as we are for a long-term No. 1 franchise goaltender, we resolve to not get too excited about how awesome Carter Hart is and rush him into the big leagues until he’s good and ready. 20. Pittsburgh Penguins We resolve to blow up our future by trading for Matt Duchene and Evander Kane in a desperate three- peat bid. 21. Edmonton Oilers We resolve to qualify for the Western Conference wild card during the season’s final weekend, even if it means Connor McDavid plays 38 minutes a night from here until April.

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22. Carolina Hurricanes We resolve to quit blaming our coaches and goalies and actually bring in a couple of elite forwards, even if that means we need to stop hoarding all the good young D-men. 23. Anaheim Ducks We resolve to stop letting John Gibson and Ryan Miller cover up our mistakes. Maybe averaging 35 shots against per game isn’t how you win hockey games. 24. Colorado Avalanche We resolve to build a worthy team around Nathan MacKinnon and not let a bona fide star go to waste. 25. Montreal Canadiens We resolve to find Carey Price the type of goal support he deserves. (Note: We have eight years to fulfill this resolution.) 26. Florida Panthers We resolve to dig up the receipt for that Spacey in Space hoodie and return it. 27. Vancouver Canucks We resolve to save up all of our puck luck and cash it in at the NHL Draft Lottery this spring because building a team around Brock Boeser, Bo Horvat and Rasmus Dahlin sounds like good business. 28. Detroit Red Wings We resolve to quit pretending we’re only two good weeks from hopping back in the race and go for the scorched-earth approach that helped turn Toronto and New Jersey around quicker than most thought possible. 29. Ottawa Senators We resolve to pick a lane: either invest in raises to Mark Stone, Erik Karlsson and Matt Duchene, or sell while these core players still have real value. 30. Buffalo Sabres We resolve to live in the moment and enjoy the world junior tournament, because it may be a while before a hockey championship is won on our ice surface. 31. Arizona Coyotes We resolve to trade Oliver Ekman-Larsson. He deserves to play for a winner.

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/10-bold-nhl-predictions-2018/

10 bold NHL predictions for 2018 By Luke Fox – December 29, 2017

Trades, trophy winners, contract decisions, and the results of the Stanley Cup final: There’s almost no sense watching the year 2018 in hockey unfold, because we have all your answers here. Here are 10 bold predictions for the coming year: 1. Erik Karlsson will be traded Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk already believes he’s overspending on player salaries with a $68-million payroll. According to Kyle Turris, Melnyk did not wish to match the six-year, $36-million contract Ottawa’s former No. 1 centre signed with Nashville. The salary cap is heading north, which spells juicy raises for foundational Sens like Mark Stone, Derick Brassard, Matt Duchene, Cody Ceci and Karlsson. Despite management requesting his yes-trade list, we’d be shocked if hockey’s best defenceman was dealt before the 2018 deadline, but at this point we’d be just as surprised if he plays out his full deal in Ottawa. A free agent in 2019, Karlsson deserves and wants top dollar. Even if the budget Sens are willing to give him, say, $90 million, would they have enough scratch left over to surround him with a contending roster? 2. The Maple Leafs will re-sign James van Riemsdyk and rent a defenceman Gradually, our opinion on the fate of impending UFA JVR in Toronto is shifting. Here’s why: The salary cap is going up significantly (an estimated $3 million to $7 million) for 2018-19; Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov appear increasingly likely to walk with young, hungry forward talent behind them; neither Mitchell Marner nor William Nylander are scoring at a rate that will demand cap-crippling pay bumps; and van Riemsdyk’s net-front goals will be difficult to replace. Increasingly, we can see JVR — the most coveted winger on the market — taking a slight discount in exchange for term to stick with a familiar contender. ALSO: It won’t be a bona fide No. 1 like Oliver Ekman-Larsson, but GM Lou Lamoriello will go out and find a trustworthy defender or two by Feb. 26. 3. The Vegas Golden Knights will disappoint you at the trade deadline but not in the post-season We’ve seen enough of a sample size of the Pacific to predict that Vegas has a better chance of winning the division than tumbling out of the race altogether in an expansion year. That means not selling their coveted UFAs — James Neal, Jonathan Audy-Marchessault, David Perron — and (gasp) potentially using some of its $8.1 million in cap space to lock down home ice in Round 1. We predict they’ll win a round, which will do wonders for fan interest and franchise health. 4. Three Canadian teams will make the playoffs Toronto and Winnipeg are our safest bets to head to the spring dance. We don’t see Montreal (can’t score) or Vancouver (can’t stay healthy) as viable third options. The odds are long for Edmonton and

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Ottawa, but we like their rosters too much to read them their rights just yet. That said, we’re calling the Calgary Flames the third Canadian 2018 playoff team, squeaking in with a wild-card berth. 5. Shea Weber will become the Montreal Canadiens’ next captain When it becomes apparent to the Habs’ front office that they have failed to build a playoff roster, pieces will be moved, and the biggest one will be captain Max Pacioretty — who will thrive in a change of scenery. Unlike last time Montreal had a vacant ‘C,’ there will be no need for a player vote. Weber will inherit Pacioretty’s letter. 6. The Nashville Predators–Tampa Bay Lightning Cup final will go seven games We’re in for a thrilling Stanley Cup final in 2018, and for the first time in three years it won’t involve Pittsburgh. Once Ryan Ellis returns, the Preds’ defence will be the deepest and scariest in the league — if it’s not already. Tampa will have the easier path to the final, arriving with fewer injuries and Steven Stamkos on a mission. Andrei Vasilevskiy will out-duel Pekka Rinne in a Game 7 to remember, and in 2032 they’ll build a statue of a Cup-hoisting Stammer next to the one of Dave Andreychuk outside of the Tampa barn. 7. John Tavares will sign an eight-year extension in New York before July 1 Buoyed by ownership’s efforts to secure a new rink at Belmont Park and the Islanders’ excellent on-ice performance this winter — boosted by the ascendance of young studs like Mathew Barzal — Johnny T re-ups on the Island and deprives fans of must-see TV during free-agent frenzy. (Bonus prediction: Jordan Eberle will score more playoff goals in one year as an Islander than he did in seven as an Oiler.) 8. Edmonton will be announced as host of the 2019 All-Star Game Seven years later, the NHL’s mid-season party will return to Canada as a delayed housewarming gift from the league to the Oilers for building a shiny new rink. Imagine the cheers when Connor McDavid shatters his own fastest-skater record on home ice. We also predict that Calgary will be super jeally. 9. Ken Holland will part ways with the Detroit Red Wings The NHL’s second-longest-tenured general manager won’t be sticking around for the Red Wings’ rebuild. Holland has yet to sign a contract extension, leading us to believe a shake-up would benefit both the executive and the club. We’re not predicting Holland will be fired. Rather, he’ll part amicably in the off- season and become a top candidate for another empty GM seat. 10. Connor McDavid will win the scoring race but not the Hart Trophy Ten points or fewer separate 2017–18’s top scorer from its 15th-ranked scorer. You can have the field; we’ll take McDavid. Since recovering from his myriad illnesses, Edmonton’s saviour has looked unstoppable. Other than Anze Kopitar, McDavid also gets more ice time than any other Art Ross Trophy threat. However, we see McDavid’s Oilers falling shy of the post-season, and conventional voting dictates that the Hart goes to a playoff-bound star. That’ll be Tavares, when Stamkos, Vasilevskiy and Nikita Kucherov split the Tampa vote.

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https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/hockey/juniors/2017/12/28/team-usa-world-juniors-nhl- mittelstadt-bellows-brown/986845001/

Five young U.S. stars to watch at world juniors By Kevin Allen – December 29, 2017

Team USA (1-0) plays Slovakia today (8 p.m. ET, NHL Network) at the world junior championships in Buffalo, N.Y. The United States beat Denmark 9-0 in the opener Dec. 27. With the Americans on a quest to win back-to-back gold medals for the first time in their WJC history, here are five U.S. players to watch as the tournament progresses: Casey Mittelstadt, University of Minnesota: His two-goal performance in the Americans’ victory against Denmark was particularly appreciated by local Buffalo fans. Mittelstadt was Buffalo’s first-round pick last June, and the Sabres have the notions of a one-two center combination of Jack Eichel and Mittelstadt dancing in their heads. He owns 17 points in his first 19 college games. He’s not long for the college game. Logan Brown, Windsor Spitfires (OHL): One reason why Ottawa Senators fans don’t fear a freshening, or mini rebuild, of the roster is that the Senators have a cache of young talented prospects. Brown, son of former NHLer Jeff Brown, is among them. Logan is a beastly 6-6, 220-pound center who is dominating the OHL with 13 goals and 24 points in 15 games this season. Kieffer Bellows, Portland Winterhawks (WHL): The son of former NHL standout Brian Bellows, Kieffer is a New York Islanders first-round pick who has inherited his father’s scoring touch. Bellows, a left wing, continued his strong season with a pair of goals against Denmark. He boasts 19 goals and 40 points in 31 games for Portland. Brady Tkachuk, Boston University: Because he’s the son of former NHL star Keith Tkachuk and brother of the Calgary Flames’ Matthew Tkachuk, you can be assured that Brady plays a feisty, skilled game. He’s projected to land in the top five of next June’s NHL draft. Because this is a tournament usually dominated by 19-year-olds, Tkachuk may not have starring role at the WJC. But he will be noticeable. Quinn Hughes, University of Michigan: Plenty of buzz about Hughes’ potential to land in the top seven of the draft. No one is concerned that he’s only 5-9 because he is an artful, puck-moving defenseman. He can motor up the ice on the rush. Had two assists in the USA’s first game. He has 10 points in 16 games at Michigan. His younger brother Jack, a forward, is viewed as a candidate to go No. 1 overall in 2019.

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https://theathletic.com/198275/2017/12/30/first-outdoor-world-junior-game-a-success-at-the- expense-of-hockey/

First outdoor world junior game a success — at the expense of hockey By Sunaya Sapurji – December 30, 2017

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — In the end, USA Hockey got what it wanted. The outdoor game went off — seemingly — without a hitch. Team USA also got a 4-3 shootout victory over Canada to boot. There was a constant barrage of snow and the integrity of the ice was a disaster. The integrity of the tournament? The IIHF? That's questionable, too. Seeding at world junior tournament is based on the previous year's finish. Since the U.S. and Canada finished 1-2 in Montreal last year, they should have been in different groupings. By regular seeding, Canada should have been Group B with Russia, but the IIHF made an exception — with the blessing of the 10 member countries — to put them in a pool together for the sake of the outdoor game. New Era Field has a capacity of 71,857 for football and when the first NHL Winter Classic was played here, more than 71,000 showed up for it. During a sit down with a handful of media members last November, long before any of the tickets had been released, IIHF president Rene Fasel spoke about the possibility of filling the stadium with 70,000 world junior fans. The announced attendance for the outdoor game was 44, 592 and the seats that weren't covered by large swaths of tarp were full, which hasn't been the case for the rest of the tournament. And they were full throughout the whole game — not many, if any — left. The fans, an equal mix of Canadians and Americans, were raucous, making it an amazing atmosphere. The game broke the IIHF attendance record for a single game at a world juniors and it probably made a lot of money, which, really, was the whole point of this exercise. This wasn't some exhibition friendly or a regular season contest in an 82-game schedule. It was an important game in short tournament where they give out medals and it means something internationally. In his post-game interview U.S. coach Bob Motzko — in a strange attempt to be complimentary — said the following: “I thought it was great for hockey. You take out the importance of the game for a world junior tournament — when I was shaking hands with the coach (Canada's Dominique Ducharme) I said, 'It's too bad it wasn't an exhibition game' and didn't have that meaning because supporting the sport in our country, that played out great. Great job by USA Hockey.” For the most part, the players said they enjoyed the experience despite the fact they could barely see the puck at times, let alone carry it at full speed. Passes were slowed by ruts and snow, which was carried off in wheelbarrows and trashcans during frequent stoppages in play. As a hockey game, it was an abomination. “When they were shovelling the snow, you could almost make a fort,” said Canadian captain Dillon Dube. “It was terrible,” said Canadian defenceman Victor Mete of the ice conditions.

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“It was tough. You had all the snow coming on to your visor, so even when you're trying to get it off the towel is wet so it's just smudging. There were a lot of snow banks … (stoppages) that are supposed to take two minutes took at least 10 minutes. Sometimes (the puck) got stuck inside the snow so you're kind of just carrying a snowbank with you on your stick.” Mete said the game would have been much different if it had been played indoors. “It would have been a more structured game for sure,” said the Woodbridge, Ont., native. “Here we were just getting up the boards and whoever makes the first mistake is getting the best scoring chance. I think if it was an indoor rink it would have been more structured and more of an actual game than kind of like this.” Money has become such a motivator at this tournament in North America of late that it's not surprising hockey would be sacrificed to make a buck. The last time the tournament was held in the U.S. it was here in Buffalo. It was the first and only time USA Hockey turned a profit on a world juniors. This time around? It's a much tougher sell. For starters, the main reason for the success of 2011 were the thousands of fans from Canada that poured across the border and bought tickets. At that time the Canadian dollar was basically at par versus today's 80 cents on the greenback. There was also a newness to the tournament — since it had never been held so close to Toronto and the surrounding areas before. Since then it's been in Toronto and Montreal twice (2015, 2017) and both times tickets were priced so high that there were a number of empty seats (especially in Montreal). USA Hockey failed to learn from their cross-border cousins when they started selling their cheapest packages at $650 U.S. The top package was priced $1,550 U.S. Tickets for Canada's game against Denmark on Saturday, where the Canadians can clinch first place in Group A with a win, are available at the box office for anywhere between $30-$110. Tickets for the European countries can be had for $10 at the box office or $6 on StubHub. The best seats for the gold medal game are being sold for $225 a ticket. Some Buffalo-based reporters say anecdotally that prices at the concessions are somewhere between a dollar and 50 cents more than what you'd find at Sabres games. The outdoor game was a first for the world juniors. If it proves profitable enough — like most other outdoor games — chances are there will be more on the horizon, even if it's at the expense of the hockey.

61 http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/jeff-glass-finally-joins-famous-2005-wjc-teammates-nhl/

Jeff Glass finally joins his famous 2005 WJC teammates in the NHL By Mark Spector – December 30, 2017

EDMONTON – Sidney Crosby. Ryan Getzlaf. Patrice Bergeron. And Jeff Glass. “I was 19, and I was ready to make the NHL and play a long career,” said Glass, a rare name off that famous Canadian roster from the 2005 World Junior Hockey Championships that isn’t a household name in Canada. “After all these years I’m more than ready. But at 19? I was ready to take on the world, and I had a lot to learn still.” Canada’s goaltender Jeff Glass celebrates a win over Russia during the gold medal game of the 2005 World Junior Championships. (Jonathan Hayward/CP) Shea Weber. Mike Richards. Andrew Ladd. Jeff Glass. It was a lockout year. The team widely recognized as the best ever iced by Canada at a World Juniors. They cleaned up in Grand Forks, N.D., then walked into the National Hockey League, almost en masse. “It’s been a long road, but I’ve learned a lot along the way,” Glass said. “I’ve really enjoyed the path. It’s been different than most.” Canada’s goaltender Jeff Glass (centre) is congratulated by teammates Jeff Carter (left) and Corey Perry (right) at the 2005 World Junior Championships. (Jonathan Hayward/CP) Dion Phaneuf. Jeff Carter. Brent Seabrook. Glass. Finally, like all those World Junior teammates, Glass can call himself an NHL player. Just a few days after the passing of NHL legend Johnny Bower, who established himself as a Maple Leafs starter at the tender age of 33, Glass made his NHL debut at age 32, beating the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 in overtime. “It’s something I’ve always dreamed of but never thought it would actually come true,” he said after the game, a Canadian storybook unfolding on a sub-Arctic night in Northern Alberta, parents Glen and Jane, wife Allie and two-month-old daughter Lucy in the stands at Rogers Place. After seven seasons in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League, and another seven in the minors on this side of the pond, Glass was informed he would start when the Chicago Blackhawks’ plane touched down in Edmonton after a 5-2 loss at Vancouver the night before. He would open the game by thwarting Connor McDavid on a semi-breakaway, then best Leon Draisaitl, who was in alone. He stopped 30 of 31 Oilers shots through two periods, and was only beaten by a deflected puck and second rebound chance that forced overtime, where Patrick Kane’s deadly dangle gave Glass the precious ‘W’ that had evaded him for so long. Glass made 42 saves and was, of course, named the game’s first star.

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“Give him credit. He’s waited his whole life for this,” said Oilers head coach Todd McLellan. “He had a hell of a game.” Glass was literally watching the Canada-USA World Junior game Friday afternoon before his pre-game rest, a window back to a time when everyone figured he’d be the next great Canadian goalie. He was drafted by Ottawa, but fell in behind Brian Elliott, Martin Gerber and Ray Emery. Before long, Glass was on his way out of Binghamton and on a plane bound for Kazakhstan and Baris Astana of the KHL. There, Glass began to put the “journey” in journeyman. Once, when playing in Siberia, it snowed for 45 consecutive days. “Felt like it was never going to stop,” said Glass, a Calgary kid who now speaks some Russian. “By no means am I fluent. I call it emergency Russian. If I’m ever in trouble I can probably talk my way out of it.” He’s had a few call-ups, but never got to play in a game until Friday. Funny, eh? A guy gets the football pulled away as often as Glass has, and he names his first-born Lucy. Would he change a thing about his career? “Not for a second, I would not,” he said. “The experience I had overseas was great. On the ice, off the ice, I matured as a person. It really taught me a lot about what’s important to me and what I valued. Where I wanted to be. “After spending so much time over there I really wanted to give this one more shot. To prove to myself if I could do it. If there was still something there.” Seabrook, his old World Junior roomie, sat across from Glass in the visitor’s dressing room at Rogers Place. It was career NHL game No. 960 for Seabrook. “We all had the dream of going to the NHL and playing long careers,” Seabrook recalled. “I was looking across the room at him, and it didn’t seem like he was nervous. He’s 32. I guess he’s played a lot of hockey.” On Sunday night the Blackhawks play in Calgary, and Glass is almost sure to get the start. His first NHL start in the city he grew up in, a good decade after most of us figured it would come. “Sometimes it takes a change of scenery, or for me, a couple of years in Russia,” he shrugged. “It doesn’t come easy that’s the lesson I learned. “It doesn’t come easy.”

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/canadiens-shopping-max-pacioretty-amid-scoring-slump/

Canadiens shopping Max Pacioretty amid scoring slump By Emily Sadler – December 31, 2017

December has not been kind to Max Pacioretty. The Montreal Canadiens captain hasn’t scored since Nov. 30 and has just four assists to his name this month as the team continues to look for answers on offence. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos believes Pacioretty’s days in bleu, blanc et rouge could be numbered. “We know that Marc Bergevin, general manager of Montreal, is actively shopping Max Pacioretty,” Kypreos said during Saturday’s Headlines segment on Hockey Night in Canada. “While an eventual trade may include draft picks and prospects, it’s been clear to other teams that Bergevin’s top priority is moving him for a top goal-scorer back — preferably a younger one than the 29-year-old Max Pacioretty.” If you’re looking for a timeline, there might not be one. Kypreos pointed to Colorado Avalanche GM Joe Sakic, who waited months (and months, and months) before finally getting what he deemed a reasonable return for Matt Duchene as part of a three-way deal with Nashville and Ottawa. “We do know how long Joe Sakic waited to move his top scorer in Matt Duchene. There is a sense that Marc Bergevin will not settle on this, and if he doesn’t get what he wants by the trade deadline (Feb. 26), he might be willing to wait for the NHL draft in Dallas [in] late June,” Kypreos said. Pacioretty, consistently a 30-goal scorer, has just eight markers through 39 games this year. The Canadiens’ scoring woes are clearly weighing heavily on all involved, but especially on the captain — and especially in a hockey-crazed market that demands answers. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman shared some of his insight into how that pressure might be affecting Pacioretty’s performance. “I just was talking to a couple of general managers about this — ‘what do you see in Pacioretty?’ and things like that — and one of them specifically pointed to a lot of the quotes that Pacioretty has had lately and the way he sees it is, he sees a guy who’s struggling as a player,” Friedman explained. “He’s got one goal in 20 games, the team is struggling, obviously, they’re out of a playoff spot. And he sees it as he’s the captain of the Canadiens, he feels he is responsible to come up with some sort of answer for the media, and he is just grasping at straws to try to provide reasons for why he and the team aren’t going very well. “And [the source] thinks that one of the reasons, as Nick said, the price is so high is that they know if [Pacioretty] goes somewhere where he doesn’t have to deal with this everyday and he can just worry about playing hockey, he might just take off,” said Friedman. “And that’s the way he sees it: Pacioretty is simply trying to find answers where there may not be any.”

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/bettman-says-nhl-will-never-bring-three-three-ot-playoffs/

Bettman says NHL will never bring three-on-three OT to playoffs By Emily Sadler – December 31, 2017

As we’ve seen over the course of the NHL’s Centennial Celebration this past year, a lot can change in 100 years of hockey. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman joined Hockey Central Saturday to talk a little hockey history as well as how the game has — and will continue to — evolve as we embark on the next century. “It’s really more about being willing to respect the game for what it has been and what it is,” Bettman said. “Obviously the game has changed. When you think back to Lester Patrick and the changes that he innovated almost 100 years ago, whether it was changing on the fly or offsides or numbers on uniforms. Those are the types of things that we need to continue to understand, not to change the game for the sake of changing the game, but we’re constantly monitoring everything that’s going on in the game, looking for trends. “We went to sudden-death overtime, we went to a shootout, we’ve modified four-on-four to three-on- three,” Bettman continued. “We want to do the things that are true to the game but also evolve with the game, particularly as the players have gotten bigger and faster and even more skilled than they ever were.” Of course, there are limits to that change. Take three-on-three overtime, for example. It has been one of the most thrilling parts of professional hockey since its introduction to the NHL at the start of the 2015- 16 season, but will it ever hit the post-season? “The answer to that is no,” Bettman said. “We don’t use the shootout in the playoffs, even though you can win an Olympic gold medal in the shootout. We, and again, I guess this is a question of degree, but we’re trying to maintain the core essence of our game and have it be relevant and entertaining. And so we like the game the way it is. Maybe you tweak things here or there.”

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https://www.tsn.ca/dahlin-living-up-to-hype-at-wjc-as-consensus-no-1-pick-1.955895

Dahlin living up to hype at WJC as consensus No. 1 pick By Frank Seravalli – January 1, 2018

BUFFALO, N.Y. — One year ago, Nico Hischier used the World Junior Championship to propel him down the track toward No. 1 overall. That train left the station long before this year’s tournament for Sweden’s Rasmus Dahlin, the consensus No. 1 pick for June’s NHL Draft. The hype surrounding Dahlin had reached a fever pitch, but he’s lived up to every bit of it in Buffalo. The silky skating Swede entered Sunday’s final day of preliminary round action tied for the lead in scoring with six points – as a 17-year-old defenceman in a tournament typically dominated by 19-year- olds. Dahlin can match Hischier’s output from last year with one more point. Four of Dahlin’s tournament-high six assists are primary Scouts from all 31 NHL clubs have soaked in his every movement in Buffalo. Fans in Arizona, Buffalo, Ottawa, Detroit, Montreal, and Vancouver will ring in the New Year with dreams of Dahlin. Hard to blame them. Dahlin isn’t just a generational talent. He is a franchise defenceman in the making. “Rasmus Dahlin is to a franchise what McDavid and Matthews have meant to the Oilers and Maple Leafs,” TSN director of scouting Craig Button said. “He is to defencemen what those two guys are to centremen. He is a No. 1, elite defencemen who can play in the NHL right now. Right now.” While Team Canada will wait until Jan. 11 to formally decide whether to use major junior players, Dahlin could become the first player to jump from World Juniors to the Olympics in just a few months since Eric Lindros did it in 1992. Lindros, then 18 and already drafted No. 1 overall by the Quebec Nordiques, parachuted into the World Juniors and collected 10 points. He then re-joined the Canadian Olympic team and netted 11 points to help Canada to a silver medal. U.S. Olympic hopeful Ryan Gunderson leads the Swedish Hockey League in scoring by defencemen and has played against Dahlin in the two seasons since he burst into the top men’s league as a 16-year-old. “It’s hard to even explain his potential,” Gunderson said Saturday. “I can’t think of anyone to compare him to because his skating is so good. It’s insane. He cuts back on a dime, keeps his speed with his glide. He skates like Scott Niedermayer, but he’s more dynamic. And he has hands like Pavel Datsyuk.” The name game has been a fascinating dynamic for Dahlin. He has been compared to everyone from Erik Karlsson to Nicklas Lidstrom in Sweden – heady praise considering the nine Norris Trophies between them. “He is half Karlsson, half Lidstrom,” said TSN’s Ray Ferraro, who has seen Dahlin play about 12 or 13 times now. “He defends like Lidstrom and skates like Karlsson. He’s more physical than both. He’s not afraid to step up and make an open-ice hit.” Even Lidstrom himself has chimed in, telling hockeysverige.se that he sees Brian Leetch in Dahlin.

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“I think Rasmus Dahlin has incredible potential,” Lidstrom said. “The one I’m thinking about is Brian Leetch … he dared to go up with the puck and take advantage of his speed and take ice when there. He has a self confidence that is evident when playing.” Dahlin would become just the second Swede ever to go No. 1 overall since Mats Sundin broke the barrier as the first European in 1989. Victor Hedman went No. 2 in 2009; Karlsson was 15th in 2008. Karlsson weighed just 160 lbs. when he was drafted. Dahlin is 6-foot-2 and already pushing 190 lbs. Scouts in Sweden say Dahlin is well ahead of where Hedman, Karlsson and Lidstrom were at the same age in their development. That has left some to wonder whether they’re seeing a player who has simply just matured earlier than everyone else, or if he is the real deal. That’s where some of the scouting bias comes in. See a player so many times and you begin to pick apart the faults in his game rather than seeing the big picture. It’s a problem not many scouts are having with Dahlin. “There’s really nothing to not like about him,” said one NHL scout on Saturday, whose team is in the Dahlin sweepstakes. “His skating is so effortless that sometimes you watch him, especially in a tournament like this one, that he almost seems bored or disinterested. That’s not the case. His head is always up, the puck is on his stick more than its not, and he is seeing the game develop about three seconds faster than anyone else on that ice.” It’s almost easy to forget that Dahlin is still just 17. He netted a goal and an assist last year as a 16-year- old, the same age McDavid and Sidney Crosby were when they first appeared. “I think there’s almost been some fatigue when talking about ‘generational’ this or ‘generational’ that with all of the players over the years,” the scout said. “But Dahlin is every bit as good – in a position that’s even harder to find.”

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http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/goes-brown-weekend-wrap-atlantic-playoff-race-already/

Down Goes Brown Weekend Wrap: Is Atlantic playoff race already over? By Sean McIndoe – January 2, 2018

Every Monday, Sean McIndoe looks back at weekend play in the NHL and the league’s biggest storylines. You can follow him on Twitter. Opening faceoff: Division by zero This is a weird question to ask before the season has even hit the halfway mark, but we’ll ask it anyway: Is the Atlantic Division playoff race already over? There’s a case to be made. The Tampa Bay Lightning are the league’s best team, and are holding a 10- point lead for first place in the division. That’s not insurmountable, but it’s pretty darn comfortable, especially when every other division is within three points. We can already pencil the Lightning in for the division’s top seed. While we’ve got that pencil out, we might as well go ahead and add the Bruins and Leafs in second and third. We don’t know the order there yet, with the two teams tied (although Boston has three games in hand), but the two teams seem locked into those two spots. If so, that gives us our first playoff matchup, although we may not know for a while who’d have home-ice advantage. That leaves five Atlantic teams to work with, and man, what a mess the rest of the division is. The Senators just spent the week dropping a pair of crucial games to the Bruins by a combined score of 10-1, leaving them 16 points back of the third spot. We said that the Senators’ performance against Boston would tell us a lot about the team, and it’s fair to say we didn’t learn anything good. And if you’re keeping track, we’re now into the “disgusted fans throw their jerseys on the ice” portion of the meltdown in Ottawa. (See video at the top of this page). The Canadiens are in slightly better shape in terms of the standings, sitting 12 back of Boston and Toronto, but they might be even more of a mess off the ice. Word emerged over the weekend that the Habs are actively shopping captain Max Pacioretty, whose goal-scoring streak continued in a 2-0 loss on Saturday. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reported that Marc Bergevin’s “top priority is moving (Pacioretty) for a top goal-scorer back — preferably a younger one.” Makes sense. Teams are probably lining up to move a young guy who scores goals for an older one who, for now at least, doesn’t. Bergevin aggressively shopping Pacioretty during Max’s worst goal slump in his career is the most Bergevin thing ever. Asset management is just abysmal. — Andrew Berkshire (@AndrewBerkshire) December 31, 2017 The Red Wings aren’t good, although they’ve been marginally better than expected. The Sabres remain a mess. And that leaves perhaps the only team with a shot at making things interesting: The Panthers, who’ve won five straight to climb back to within nine points of third in the division. That’s still a long way to go, but compared to the other teams in this turtle derby, at least it’s a shot. Of course, the top three isn’t necessarily the only route to the playoffs for the Atlantic’s bottom five, who could also get in through a wild-card spot. In theory, that’s a more realistic target, with the last spot currently held by the Islanders with 44 points. But that means passing more teams, including the surging

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Hurricanes and oh yeah, the two-time defending champion Penguins. If you believe that Pittsburgh will sort things out and get back into the race one way or another, that eats up another spot. Add it all up, and the odds don’t look good. Three sites that try to project playoff chances – Money Puck, Hockey-reference.com and Sports Club Stats – all think the Panthers are still in the hunt, with odds ranging from 17 to 24 per cent. Montreal and Detroit are in worse shape, the Senators range from 0.7 to 3.5 per cent, and the Sabres are basically off the board. Meanwhile, all three sites see the Lightning and Bruins as virtual locks, and only Money Puck has the Leafs at less than 90%. And if anything, those projections may be underselling the disparity, since they’re based on the assumption that teams stay the course with the current rosters. With two months until the deadline, at some point the Atlantic’s also-rans will have to throw in the towel and start shipping out veterans for future assets, which will lower their odds even more. And if the Metro’s wild-card teams start loading up – remember, we’re told the Penguins are about to make big changes – then the wild-card door may slam shut too. All in all, the outlook is bleak for the majority of an entire division. That’s not supposed to happen in a league that pushes hyper-parity above all else, but here we are. Nothing is locked in, and we won’t see any mathematical clinching scenarios for a long time, so for now we can put that pencil away. But the way things are going, it won’t be long before we need some ink. Road to the Cup The five teams that look like they’re headed towards Stanley Cup favorite status. 5. St. Louis Blues (24-15-2, +15 true goals differential*) – After eight straight weeks in the top three, they’re wobbling. They’ve lost seven of 10, although they did manage a solid win over the Hurricanes on Saturday. 4. Vegas Golden Knights (26-9-2, +26) – I held out as long as I could. More below. 3. Washington Capitals (24-13-3, +8) – Impressive wins over the Bruins and Devils reclaimed top spot in the Metro, and erased some of the bad taste from a three-game losing streak. 2. Nashville Predators (23-10-5, +20) – The depth up front will get a test now that top scorer Filip Forsberg has gone on the IR. While there’s no timetable on his return, the IR designation means he’ll miss at least a week, and it sounds like it could be longer. 1. Tampa Bay Lightning (28-8-2, +50) – Make it 10 straight weeks at No. 1 after last night’s impressive 5- 0 win over the Blue Jackets. (*Goals scored minus goals allowed, without counting shootouts like the NHL does for some reason.) And there it is. A belated welcome to the top five, Golden Knights. Like many things Vegas-related, we’ve been living in denial about this for weeks, even months. We pretended it wasn’t happening. We hoped it would just go away on its own. But it hasn’t, and now it’s time to hit the grudging acceptance stage. The Vegas Golden Knights are good. Not just “good for an expansion team” or “good compared to what we expected,” but flat-out good. By last week we were ready to tap out on our anti-Knights stance, and they followed that with road wins over the Ducks and Kings to take top spot in the Pacific. Then they closed out the weekend by badly out- skating and outplaying the Maple Leafs yesterday afternoon. Hello,

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The Vegas Golden Knights have been excellent, are trending up, dominate shot-share and xG share, and do an excellent job of limiting quality against. pic.twitter.com/MYjQUqMIyR — Sean Tierney (@ChartingHockey) December 31, 2017 Does any of this make sense? Not really, no. It’s certainly not following any scripts. Coming out of the expansion draft the Knights had stocked up on defencemen, but their plan to trade blueliners for other assets hasn’t really worked out. They looked solid in goal, but that was before they were hit with a ridiculous batch of injuries at the position. The forwards seemed deep, but there wasn’t the sort of front-line talent that other teams had, and this is supposed to be a league driven by the top tier of players. Add it all up, and the Knights looked like they’d avoid the kind of first-year faceplant that so many other expansion teams have executed, but that was about it. Instead, they’re among the league’s very best. And maybe more amazingly, if some time traveler from 2018 showed up to tell you that the Knights were far better than expected, you’d have probably assumed they were doing it by clutching and grabbing and boring opponents to death. Instead, the Knights are skating teams into the ground. If anything, maybe you make the case they should be even higher on our list, given that they’re sitting second overall in the league. Maybe they should. But remember, this ranking isn’t meant as a snapshot of right now – it’s the teams most likely to win the Stanley Cup in June. They’re certainly in the running right now, but let’s see whether the fabled “Vegas flu” holds up in the playoffs, or whether the Knights’ nearly insurmountable home-ice advantage fades when visiting teams are coming in more focused. Or maybe that’s just another excuse, one that we’ll have to sheepishly abandon down the road. It wouldn’t be the first time with these guys. But for now, they’ve kicked down the door to the top five. We’ll see how far down the list they can make it as the season wears on. Road to the lottery The five teams that look like they’re headed towards watching Rasmus Dahlin highlights and playing with draft lottery simulations. 5. Vancouver Canucks (16-18-5, -19) – Sure they’ve had only one regulation win in their last 11, but at least they have Brock “The Bruiser” Boeser. 4. Montreal Canadiens (16-19-4, -22) – Make it four straight losses, featuring a combined three goals scored. I think we can all agree that the answer here is trading your best veteran goal-scorer. 3. Ottawa Senators (12-17-8, -26) – After Saturday’s loss, Mark Stone told reporters that the Senators’ top players are “cheating.” 2. Buffalo Sabres (10-20-8, -41) – We’ll nudge them out of the bottom spot for the first time in a month, if only because they’re about to take centre stage. More on that below. 1. Arizona Coyotes (9-27-5, -52) – Look on the bright side, Coyotes – you’re one of two teams to have officially hit the halfway mark, which means you’re closer than just about everyone to having this season be over. Ten years ago today, the Sabres hosted the Penguins at Ralph Wilson Stadium for the first-ever Winter Classic. Coming five years after the only other regular season outdoor game, the Classic was viewed as a major question mark heading in, with plenty of whispers that the concept wouldn’t work. Instead, by the time Sidney Crosby had scored the shootout winner as a gentle snow fell over the proceedings, hockey fans were hooked. The NHL, a league that had always been reluctant to try new things, had a hit on its hands.

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Ten years is a long time. When it comes to the Classic, it feels even longer. Monday the Sabres will be back for another Classic, this time “hosting” the Rangers at Citi Field. (The game is in New York, but the Rangers can’t be considered the home team in any game outside of Madison Square Garden due to a tax loophole.) And outside of Buffalo and New York, there doesn’t seem to be all that much buzz for this year’s game. That’s been a trend lately, with TV ratings for the annual game dropping for years south of the border. Some of this is just the novelty factor; the Winter Classic was unique back when it was the only outdoor game of the year, while now there are three or four each season. In hindsight, jamming the 2014 calendar with six games seems like a momentum-killing mistake. This year’s matchup certainly doesn’t help, pitting a middle-of-the-pack Rangers team against a Sabres squad that may be the league’s worst. The world junior tournament got the jump on the NHL this year, hosting a game of its own on Friday in the very same stadium used for the 2008 game, so the Classic may not even be the biggest outdoor game of the weekend. It’s certainly not going to be the talk of the town in Buffalo Monday. But while all that is working against this year’s game, there seems to be something bigger going on here. There’s a growing cynicism about outdoor games creeping into a large portion of the fan base and media, and it’s not totally undeserved. After 10 years of watching outdoor hockey, we can all admit that while the visuals are often still phenomenal, the actual games usually aren’t very good. The ice isn’t great, wind and glare can impact the action, and the whole thing usually results in choppy, uneven action. The fans are freezing. And at times, you find yourself just hoping the two teams can get to the final horn without anyone getting hurt. Maybe this is where the Sabres and Rangers come in. If they can conjure up some of that old magic today and deliver a game worthy of the spectacle, maybe some of the cynicism will fade. Even if it’s only temporary, it would be fun to recapture some of that excitement we had watching Crosby skate in on Ryan Miller all those years ago. The Sabres should be inspired, at least, since this is probably the last meaningful game they’ll play all year. The Rangers just need the two points to hang in the wild-card race, so they’ll probably take an ugly win. Recent history suggests that’s exactly what they’ll get. But every now and then this league can surprise us, so here’s hoping today is one of those days. Quick shifts: 10 more notable moments from around the league •The weekend’s best story came on Friday night, as 32-year-old goaltender (and 2005 WJC hero) Jeff Glass finally made his NHL debut after well over a decade toiling in Europe and the minor leagues. He earned the win, helping the Blackhawks top the Oilers in overtime and earning the game’s first star honours. •The Oilers’ climb back to the playoffs hit another snag with an embarrassing 5-0 loss to the Jets. Edmonton is playing better lately, but isn’t gaining ground, and is running out of time. •That Jets win moves them ahead of the Predators and Blues and into first place in the Central. They’ve won three straight, and get the Sabres twice in their next four. •The Flames snapped a three-game losing streak with a much-needed win over the Blackhawks. Mark Giordano got the overtime winner. •In other Calgary news, Eddie Lack’s post-Canucks tour of the league continues, as the Flames sent him to the Devils for Dalton Prout in a weekend deal. Both players will be assigned to the AHL.

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•Scrap of the weekend: Matthew Tkachuk and Ryan Kesler were not kidding around. •Hey, at least you probably had a better weekend than this guy. •Six players have already hit the 20-goal mark. As we all predicted, two of them are Anders Lee and William Karlsson. •Islanders’ coach Doug Weight lived the employee’s holiday dream yesterday when he was told he could go home early. •Finally, enjoy today’s Winter Classic followed by a night off from NHL hockey. It will be the last one until the all-star break, as the schedule picks up with a dozen games tomorrow.

72 https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2018/01/01/winter-olympics-team-usa-mens- hockey-roster-pyeongchang/994244001/

Winter Olympics: 2018 Team USA men's hockey roster for Pyeongchang Games By Kevin Allen – January 2, 2018

One-time 48-goal scorer Brian Gionta, a collection of other former NHL players and the son of a Hockey Hall of Famer highlight the U.S. Olympic roster announced Monday by USA Hockey at the Winter Classic. The 2018 Games next month in Pyeongchang, South Korea, will mark the first time since 1994 that active NHLers have not played in the Olympic Winter Games. “People may not know all of our players, but we think fans will get to know them quickly, because they are exciting to watch,” U.S. coach Tony Granato told USA TODAY Sports. Chris Bourque, the son of Hockey Hall of Famer Raymond Bourque, is another important player. Chris is 31 and has long been a standout in the American Hockey League. He boasts 11 goals and a league-best 39 points in 35 games for the Hershey (Pa.) Bears this season. He is eligible to play because he's on an AHL-only contract. "We are so proud of our son Christopher on being named to the USA hockey team... there’s nothing better than representing your country. We will be there by your side for this unforgettable experience," tweeted the elder Bourque, who played internationally for Canada, including in the 1998 Olympics. The Americans chose to go with an experienced team, made up primarily of players who are standouts in European professional leagues. Mark Arcobello leads the Swiss League in scoring with 39 points in 33 games. Other U.S. choices Garrett Roe and Broc Little rank fourth and 11th, respectively, in that scoring race. “We have a competitive team,” Granato said. “Russia will have some name players, but this tournament is expected to be wide open. You just need to play your best hockey, and it’s the coaching staff’s job to make sure we do that.” The U.S. defense will include former NHLers Matt Gilroy, James Wisniewski, Jon Blum, Noah Welch, Bobby Butler, Chad Billins and Bobby Sanguinetti. Also on defense: Swedish League defenseman Ryan Gunderson. Other forwards include Kontinental Hockey League standouts Brian O’Neill and Ryan Stoa, former NHLers John McCarthy and Jim Slater and German League standout Chad Kolarik. Before NHL players started going to the Olympics, it was an American tradition to use younger stars. Mike Ramsey played one season at Minnesota before he became part of the 1980 Olympic team, and Eddie Olczyk and Pat LaFontaine played for the 1984 team as teenagers. Ryan Zapolski, who plays in the KHL, is the USA's top goalie selection. But the Americans opted not to tap Buffalo Sabres prospect Casey Mittelstadt,19, who has been impressive in the ongoing world junior championships. NHL scouts thought another junior-age player, 19-year-old defenseman Adam Fox, might make the team. But he was not among the choices.

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"We know our top younger players can play at this level. Look at what Auston Matthews has in the NHL," Granato said. "We have talented junior players, and we had a lot of discussion of about those players before we made our decision." The college players selected include Ryan Donato (Harvard), Troy Terry (Denver), Jordan Greenway (Boston University) and Will Borgen (St. Cloud State). Drawing from the considerable talent in the KHL, Russia is considered the gold medal favorite. The Americans believe they have the talent to be a medal contender, although they didn’t perform well using some of these players at the recent Deutschland Cup. In three games, all losses, the Americans were outscored 12-4.

74 https://theathletic.com/200168/2018/01/01/cbj-depth-dive-checking-in-on-the-cleveland-monsters/

CBJ Depth Dive: Checking in on the Cleveland Monsters By Alison Lukan – January 1, 2018

As the calendar turns to a new year, we wanted to look north up I-71 and gather a quick profile of the Cleveland Monsters, currently home for 16 Jackets prospects playing in the AHL.

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