CAROLINA HURRICANES - downloads.hurricanes.nhl.comdownloads.hurricanes.nhl.com/clips/clips011519.pdf · That invisible barrier that rookies in the NHL inevitably encounter, physically

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NEWS CLIPPINGS • January 15, 2019

‘It’s the NHL. Games just keep coming.’ Is Canes rookie Andrei Svechnikov hitting the wall?

By Chip Alexander

Is Andrei Svechnikov hitting the wall?

The proverbial wall, that is. That invisible barrier that rookies in the NHL inevitably encounter, physically and emotionally.

Svechnikov has been in the Carolina Hurricanes’ lineup since opening night. The Russian forward, the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, has gotten a lot of ice time and been constantly tested as opponents gauge both the 18-year-old’s skills and his toughness -- a blindside hit by Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals comes to mind -- while probing for weaknesses in his game.

A year ago, with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League, Svechnikov played 44 games in the regular season, missing a chunk of games with a wrist injury. He now has played the first 45 games for the Hurricanes, at the highest level of hockey.

“It’s the NHL. Games just keep coming,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said.

And the wall?

“I think every young guy hits it at some point,” Brind’Amour said. “There’s some ups and downs in his game for sure and we’re talking about that. You’ve got to manage that. I know one thing, being there myself, you have to show confidence in them.”

Svechnikov shrugs off the notion that the wear and tear of the NHL season is beginning to creep in and have an effect, saying Monday, “No, physically I feel great.”

But his offensive production has slowed significantly. Svechnikov has 11 goals, tied for second among NHL rookies, but the last came New Year’s Eve against the Philadelphia Flyers. The last of his eight assists came in the Dec. 14 game against the Capitals.

He now has gone 11 of the past 12 games without a point, including all seven in 2019.

“It’s a long year and when you come in it’s just a grind,” said Canes forward Jordan Martinook, who has played something of a big-brother role for the rookie. “And especially what we’re in now, playing a ton of hockey. For you to be able to mentally bring yourself to that level of play every night, I feel it takes more than 30 or 40 games to have the mindset you have to be ‘on’ every night.

“He still is impactful in games, still skating well, but I feel like sometimes he’s almost trying to do too much. If he’s not involved with the score sheet he might be trying to make that one extra play. We don’t want to take his skill set away from him but there are times when there might be an easier play to be made.”

Another problem: Svechnikov has a proclivity for taking too many penalties. His 21 minor penalties and 42 penalty minutes lead the Canes and are second among NHL rookies.

“It’s just crazy,” Svechnikov said. “I feel bad for that.”

Brind’Amour said the two have talked at length about how to resolve the penalty issue although conceding, “Not very well, apparently, because he keeps on getting them. I think the more we talk about it the worse it gets.”

In the Dec. 27 game against the Caps, Svechnikov was about to step out of the penalty box when the puck was being played just outside the open door. He instinctively reached out his stick and touched it -- another penalty for interference. All he could was turn around and sit down for another two minutes in the box.

In last week’s road game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Svechnikov was called for slashing in the second period, then for hooking in the third with the Canes holding on to a 1-0 lead against the league’s best team. The Canes killed off the first penalty, but Tampa Bay tied the score on a power play after the second.

Later, a slashing penalty on the Canes’ Greg McKegg resulted in another Tampa Bay power-play score as the Lightning went on to win 3-1, ending the Canes’ five-game winning streak.

“The momentum just flipped, like a switch,” Brind’Amour said of the penalties.

Brind’Amour said Svechnikov’s defense often has been that the other team is doing the same things, getting the stick up on him, and no penalties are called.

“And it’s true,” Brind’Amour said. “But rookies don’t get those (calls). He has to understand that part of it, that he can’t get away with anything.”

Svechnikov said Monday he has gotten the message and does understand, saying, “I must keep my stick down.”

Through the season Martinook, 26, has tried to keep Svechnikov loose but also focused and on-point. Playfully bang him to boards in practice, in warmups. Maybe babble some Russian at him in the locker room. Pump him up in games.

“I’m a rookie and when he sees I’m down a little he’s like, ‘Hey, Svech, let’s go, do your job,’” Svechnikov said, smiling. “He’s a high-energy guy.”

No one questions Svechnikov’s energy or work habits. He was out early Monday before practice as Brind’Amour helped him on his shot release, and stayed late with forward Warren Foegele taking more shots.

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Martinook said his objective with Svechnikov remains a simple one, saying, “When he’s smiling he’s playing loose and playing like he can. When you’re an offensive guy and

struggling to put points up, you’ve still got to come and have fun. I want to keep him there so he can take off again.”

Canes’ John Forslund named NC sportscaster of year

By Chip Alexander

Carolina Hurricanes TV announcer John Forslund does part of the pregame show in the booth before an NHL game played between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Dallas Stars at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C. on March 12, 2015. Forslund has been the TV voice of the Hurricanes for over 20 years. Chris Seward [email protected]

Raleigh

Hey, hey, whaddya say, John Forslund has a big award coming his way.

The Carolina Hurricanes play-by-play announcer has been named the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year by the

National Sports Media Association, it was announced Monday.

Forslund is in his 24th season as the TV play-by-play man for the Hurricanes and his 28th year overall with the franchise. He joined the Hartford Whalers in 1991 as public relations director and became the TV play-by-play man in the 1994-95 season, moving to North Carolina when franchise was relocated in 1997 and renamed the Carolina Hurricanes.

Forslund also works nationally televised games for the NBC sports network.

Forslund spent seven seasons handling broadcast duties for the American Hockey League’s Springfield Indians from 1984-91. He was the winner of the 1989 Ken McKenzie Award, given annually to the top publicist/announcer in the AHL.

State of the Canes: The curse of the bounces and the team that keeps trying

By Sara Civian

Cliches are a given in most NHL interviews, but it’s not because hockey players are dumb. They’re just too polite to tell you to screw off when you ask them something dumb, so responding with something equally dumb is the next best thing.

It happens so often that the league compiled a video in which stars like Marc-Andre Fleury and Jack Eichel revealed their favorite cliches. Somehow, the one thrown around the Hurricanes locker room every single night didn’t make the cut.

Bounces, folks. We’re always talking bounces.

Bad bounces are the default culprit after Canes losses when they outperform their opponent (which, if you’re keeping track, is most of them). But then the talk of bounces doesn’t go away when the Canes win.

“So you guys aren’t just saying this?” I asked a couple Canes throughout their most recent win streak, some away from the cameras. “You really do believe in the bounces and the bad luck stuff?”

It turns out some of them really, really do.

And there’s comfort in the fact that at some point they made a group decision to stay the course. If they could just keep outperforming teams, if they could just keep shooting the

puck despite the worst NHL shooting percentage in a decade, then regression to the mean had to be inevitable.

The bounces would come. Then the goals would come, then the wins would come, then the …

Wait, what?

Don’t look now but the Canes have won seven of their past eight games, they’re getting the puck in the net with ease and they’re three points back of Buffalo and four back of Montreal with a game in hand in the playoff race.

Best part is, there’s no grand explanation except these vague bounces they’ve been going on about. Maybe this team and its sometimes-cursed-sometimes-beloved bounces have no place on that cliche video because it’s the same story when the cameras are on and when they’re off.

“(We’re) just sticking to the game plan,” Micheal Ferland said with his daughter in his arms after tallying two assists and one KO against Nashville. “We haven’t changed the way we played. We’re still shooting the puck. Roddy told us to change nothing, just keep playing the way we’re playing.

He paused. …

“And we’re finally getting bounces.”

If you ask Brind’Amour about the bounces, he’ll give you the same knowing chuckle he gave about how Justin Williams is

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proving people wrong with his career-high five-game goal streak.

So, how about Williams?

“Yeah. I mean what else can you say about him? I’ve said it all along,” Brind’Amour smirked after Carolina’s win over Buffalo. “I haven’t wavered a bit. I knew what we were getting out of him. He’s going to have some stinker games, just like all of us, but he keeps playing every shift. He’s consistent and that’s why he’s a pro, he has been his whole career and he’s leading this team that way. Every day he comes to the rink and does it the same way — no excuses good or bad, he gives you everything he has. That’s all we ask from all of our guys.”

Brind’Amour has maintained this confidence in his team win or lose, so long as they stick to the game plan. They’re gonna do them whether you like it or not. Brock McGinn is going to hit 25 goal posts, give the acting performance it seems he’s been waiting for his whole life as Thor in the Storm Surge, then he’ll finally score the next game.

Luck, Thor voodoo, Finnish coffee, black jerseys (7-0-2), Greg McKegg? Whatever turns the tides of the mysterious bounces, the Canes “haven’t wavered a bit” in the hard work that creates them in the first place, give or take a handful of games.

Even if these bounces are ultimately puppets of the Hockey Gods, you have to create them from the right spots to nudge them in a good direction. The Canes have been doing that all season — it’s what they mean when they say nothing’s changed.

They’re first in the NHL in both shot quantity and quality, despite a league-worst shooting percentage. They also boast a league-leading 510 high-danger chances (per Natural Stat Trick). While some of us have been knee deep in conspiracy theories in an attempt to explain how this is happening, the team generally surrendered to the bounces.

Now the Hurricanes have been regressing to the mean, scoring at least three goals in each of their past seven wins.

“It’s the same players, it’s the same system,” Sebastian Aho reiterated after the Canes’ 6-3 win over Nashville. “Maybe we’re doing the little details better now, but we’re doing it right all the time.”

As for his second-career hat trick, achieved in a matinee? He turned to coffee, something he and his countrymen often do.

“(I had) a lot,” he laughed. “It was an early game. Had a few extra cups to wake up.”

How many times have the 2018-19 Carolina Hurricanes attempted and failed on breakaways? So what, they’d tell you, the process doesn’t change. Aho’s still out there breaking away, and apparently he got there just in time for a “good bounce.”

One good bounce on the power play, one at even strength, and one on the penalty kill.

The People’s 21-year-old All-Star has 14 goals and 25 points in his past 18 games — two on the power play, three shorthanded, nine even strength.

If Brind’Amour is going around praising someone’s conditioning like he does Aho’s, you know it must be all-strengths legit.

When asked about his penalty kill prowess, Aho contested that actually he and the team could be better.

It’s fun to watch him grow into stardom.

Try and tell me Ferland isn’t secretly launching a full-blown presidential campaign.

A quick rundown of his accomplishments since returning to Aho’s wing Friday night: First career three-point night against Buffalo, two more assists against Nashville including a delicious backhand feed, one bounce short of a Gordie Howe hat trick, an old school uppercut to the jaw that knocked a villain out and made PNC Arena the loudest it’s been this season.

Then the man who just took Austin Watson down in three punches came out for the postgame presser with his adorable daughter.

He’s either running for office or getting paid. If the Hurricanes end up trading him closer to the deadline, which seems likely, at least he’s putting on one hell of a farewell tour.

Andrei Svechnikov has hit his rookie wall, and that’s fine. Almost every rookie has to deal with that at some point. Brind’Amour said he remembers almost crying when he hit his. It’s important someone like Svechnikov realizes the team is capable of winning without the weight of the world on his shoulders, so good for the team for not losing right now. It’s only a matter of time until we’re looking back laughing at the fact that this kid really managed to get a penalty while still in the penalty box. It’s obviously not great that he’s leading the league in stick penalties right now, but part of it is Brind’Amour has started trusting him to unleash the Svech factor — he’s gotta make some mistakes if he’s gonna learn how to alter his game to fit this league full-time. Referees are also extra hard on rookies. It’ll be OK.

Just promise me some of you will remember how hard you criticized Brind’Amour for not putting him on the first line early on. I have a feeling we’ll be using his “I’ve said it all along” soundbite often through the course of his head coaching career.

The Hurricanes staff went on a two-game coaches challenge win streak last week, which is kind of insane. Two important goals were overturned. Tripp Tracy said on the broadcast that they’re a tight-knit crew. Chris Huffine and L.J. Scarpace are the video coaches, and goalie coach Mike Bales (who is doing a great job with goaltending decisions) was a factor in one of the offsides challenges. I told Brind’Amour there had never been such an appreciation for video coaches in my comments.

“Every team has those guys, they’re behind the scenes working like dogs,” he said. “They’re putting in so much time and energy, and obviously on those calls it’s imperative they get it right — especially on the offsides ones (or suffer a penalty). There’s a lot of pressure behind there, believe it or not, but they’ve done a nice job obviously.”

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The Hurricanes head to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, where they’ve lost 15 consecutive games. Those were darker times, though. Greg McKegg was just a twinkle in Ron Francis’ eye.

Pronman: 2018-19 midseason NHL prospects ranking

By Corey Pronman

Welcome to my midseason rankings of the best prospects in NHL organizations.

The midpoint of the season is a point to reflect in the prospect community. NHL teams regularly have meetings with their scouting staffs at this time of year. A lot transpires in the first half of the season. I’ve traveled a lot and watched a lot of hockey, and with the World Junior Championship recently completed, this is always a great time to compress all the information and see where everyone stands.

These rankings are based on thousands of hours of research, spanning many trips to rinks across the hockey world, watching a lot of video, analyzing player’s production, and discussing players with scouts, coaches and executives. While I seek input from many sources, these are solely my opinions and will deviate from NHL sources, even significantly in some instances.

My preference is for highly skilled players with upside. I look for prospects with speed, skill and intelligence. Skating is a little more important to me in forwards than defenders, and physicality is more important to me in defenders than forwards. I prefer forwards to defensemen, and centers to wingers.

To help illustrate players’ strengths and weaknesses, each profile shows the grading scale I use for players’ attributes. I am a fan of the 20-80 scale, borrowed from baseball. The 20-80 range represents three standard deviations from the mean, a grade of 50. A grade of 50 means the skill projects as NHL average in that category, 55 is above average, 60 is top 33 percent, 70 is top 10 percent, 80 is one of the best. A 45 is below average, 40 is fringe NHL level. A 20 is beer league level. Given how a normal distribution usually looks, most grades are within the 40-60 range. I only make note of a shot grade when a player stands out in that regard.

I split players up into tiers that will be seen throughout this feature. The difference between the very bottom of one tier and the very top of the next one is not significant. Here is how you should interpret them:

Elite prospect: Projects to be top 10-15 percent of the league at their position.

High-end prospect: Projects as a legit top-line forward who can play on your PP1/top pairing defenseman.

Very good prospect: Projects as a top-six forward/top-four defenseman/starting goaltender.

Prospects are not eligible if they’ve played more than 25 career NHL games in a season, 50 career games, 27 years of age or older, or were currently in the league as of Jan. 12.

Elite NHL Prospect

1. Quinn Hughes, D, Vancouver

Skating: 70 Puck Skills: 65 Physical Game: 35 Hockey sense: 65

Quinn Hughes is a special talent. The way he skates is unique and separates him from the pack. He’s a truly elite skater but it’s not just speed, his edges are ridiculously good. He spins off pressure and gets up to top speed incredibly well. He’s also very skilled and makes elite plays seems routine. He has a fluidity to his game that I’ve never seen before. Every pass is crisp and on the mark, every rush seems easy. He’s a small defenseman and he’ll never be known for his penalty killing ability, but I think he defends OK. The biggest thing I’ve seen with Hughes is he needs to improve is cutting down the turnovers, especially the high-risk ones. But you take some bad with a truckload of the good. He projects to be a star defenseman in the NHL.

2. Martin Necas, C, Carolina


Necas didn’t have the best world juniors, but he’s been great everywhere else in the past year and a half. I’ve watched him in the AHL where he’s looked very good and other scouts have said the same. His skating, skill and vision are all plus tools. He can push the pace with his speed and make skilled plays at an NHL pace. Necas has the potential to be a No. 1 center who drives a line. He’ll need to get a lot stronger and a little more consistent in terms of how he physically competes, but I expect he’ll be in the NHL in the near future.

3. Owen Tippett, RW, Florida

Skating: 55 Puck Skills: 65 Physical Game: 45 Hockey sense: 65 Shot Grade: 60

Tippett has really impressed me this season between the OHL and Canada’s U20 team. I see a player whose game has started to mature and has a talent level that’s off the charts. Tippett’s skill level is elite, he makes plays many wouldn’t even think of trying. He has the individual skill to dance around defenders, but what’s really impressed me is his playmaking. He makes the tough passes consistently, hitting pucks through seams on the power play and showing a lot of creativity as a playmaker. He still has his great shot, and that combination of tools makes him lethal. He’s never going to be a great defender and will have the occasional night off, but when he’s on there aren’t many players who can match his talent level.

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High-End NHL Prospect

4. Filip Zadina, RW, Detroit


Zadina had a very disappointing world juniors, and while he’s been quite good in the AHL, he hasn’t been blowing doors down. There’s some reason for pessimism, he hasn’t been dancing around guys like he did last season and his compete level has worried me at times. But there’s still plenty of reason for optimism. He has a ton of talent, his skills are fantastic, he skates well, he’s got that cannon of a shot and, from what I’ve seen this season, his playmaking/vision is better than I thought last season. I still think he’s going to be a great NHL player but it may take more time than I initially thought.

5. Barrett Hayton, C, Arizona


I’ve written a lot this season about Hayton, but he’s looked fantastic every time I’ve watched him. His skill level and playmaking ability are among the best in junior hockey and at the world juniors he showed people how creative he can be. While his skill drives his value, he’s also a very competitive two-way forward who projects to be a reliable defensive center in the NHL. He’s improved his skating and can play at a quick pace when he wants to, but too often I find he slows the play down more than I’d like. With his talent and progression, it’s hard to be too down on him, and I think he could be a top-line center one day for the Coyotes.

6. Jordan Kyrou, RW, St. Louis


Kyrou hasn’t had much success at the NHL level this season, but he’s been fantastic in the AHL as a 20-year-old, named an AHL All-Star and consistently a threat. The offensive tools Kyrou has make you optimistic about his NHL projection. He’s an elite skater with a lot of offensive creativity. He can play in a straight line with his speed, as well as having the skill to pull up and make a play. He’s got to get stronger, a little tougher and learn to play inside the dots, but the talent will make him a power play guy if he rounds out his game a little bit.

7. Grigori Denisenko, LW, Florida


Denisenko was the best player at the recent world juniors and has impressed me this season. He’s got nearly every

tool you want despite not being the biggest guy. He’s quick and elusiveness with great edge work, he’s got high-end hands and vision, and he plays hard. If anything, the criticism of him is he plays too hard at times and goes over the line. The production hasn’t been there for him in the KHL, but it’s the second best hockey league and he’s very physically underdeveloped. Once he bulks up, I think he’ll be a no doubt top-six forward.

8. Rasmus Kupari, C, Los Angeles


There are times when I’m watching Kupari and I think he’s not only going to be good, but he could be a cornerstone player. The raw tools are off the charts. He’s a pro-sized center with high-end speed and puck skills who makes filthy moves seem routine, and he can do so at top speed. He’ll have rushes where he goes through several guys and you wonder just how high the ceiling is for him. I like his hockey sense, but I don’t think he sees the game at the same level as his other attributes and that’s the main thing holding him back from hitting the highest echelon for me. His production concerns from his draft season have all but subsided, and he looks on the fast track to the NHL.

9. Cody Glass, C, Vegas


Glass has torn up the WHL for the past two-and-a-half years and was quite good as Canada’s No. 1 center at the world juniors. He’s a top-end playmaker. He’s the prototypical guy you want on the half-wall on the power play due to his vision and skill level. He knows how to wait out options, sees options develop and has the soft touch to thread passes through any lane. He’s worked on rounding out his game and I think he’ll be a decent two-way guy as a pro. He’ll never be confused for a physical guy, but his smarts will carry him a lot in that respect. Glass skates fine but I find he plays a bit slow at times. When he wants to turn on the jets, he has an extra gear.

10. Cale Makar, D, Colorado


Makar returned for his sophomore season at UMass, where he’s been the best player on one of the better teams in the nation. He’s one of the best puck rushers you’ll see, as his great speed combined with his skill level can make him a nightmare to handle for defensemen when he’s coming up the ice. He’s at his best on the rush, but he’s also a very smart player who can make the tough passes. Makar will never be the best defender as a pro due to his size, but at the collegiate level, he’s defended more than fine. The 2017 fourth-overall pick by the Avs will likely sign and suit up for them this spring.

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11. Vitali Kravtsov, RW, New York Rangers


Kravtsov has been very impressive over the past 12 months in the KHL and international play. Kravtsov’s point totals haven’t been amazing this season in the KHL, but Chelyabinsk has a weak team. His game is defined by his skill. When Kravtsov has the puck, he’s looking to make something happen. He makes the flashy skill plays seem routine. His playmaking has also consistently impressed me this season. I wasn’t 100 percent on that aspect of his game going into the draft, but I think his vision is high-end now. His pace at times could be better, but he can skate fine when he gets going. The main thing with Kravtsov is improving his compete level. He can get lost on the perimeter and taken out of games physically.

12. Dominik Bokk, RW, St. Louis


Bokk hasn’t dominated the SHL this season but I still think his development is on track for a guy who one-and-a-half seasons ago was in German junior hockey. He was the top scorer at the U20 B pool and, in the past month, his play in the SHL has gotten a lot better, with him being a regular on Vaxjo’s top power play unit on the half-wall. His skill level is great. I saw him fighting the puck a bit more than I’d have liked early on this season, but I was also more impressed with his vision and pace than what I saw last season. He may take longer than a typical top prospect and needs a lot of work off the puck, but I think when it clicks, with his skill level, he’s going to start rolling over teams.

13. Troy Terry, RW, Anaheim


Terry is the best player I’ve seen in the AHL this season. The 21-year-old has at times shown the ability to dominate that level with his offensive ability. Terry has a ton of skill and playmaking ability. He’s always looking to make a play, he does so many good things in small spaces and makes creative decisions without much room to work with. Terry has also played with pace, using his speed to push defenders back and then making a skilled play at full speed. Despite being an older player he still has room to fill out physically and can get pushed off pucks, but he does compete well.

14. Nick Suzuki, C, Montreal


I was unsure on Suzuki last season, I watched him a fair bit and he never blew me away like in his draft year. This season I’m back on the bandwagon. Between his OHL and World Junior Championship play, I’m back toward my original assessment. He’s an elite playmaker who sees the ice like few others. He combines that with a high skill level and makes difficult plays seem easy. Suzuki can score goals and has a good shot but has a pass-first mentality. Despite being small and lacking physicality, his exceptional hockey IQ allows him to be a good defensive forward. His main issue has and continues to be his skating as he really lacks any kind of dangerous gear. Once he’s in the offensive zone he’s lights out, but he could struggle to be the main zone entry guy on an NHL line.

15. Ryan Merkley, D, San Jose


Merkley is a player that you can write a lot about. He’s an elite playmaker whose vision is off the charts. When he’s on, he’s making cross-ice passes with frequency, dancing around the blueline and making defenses look silly. But he’s had some off nights where he’s making bad decisions defensively, letting his emotions get the best of him and is a major negative. He’s been traded this season and is off to a fresh start in Peterborough.

16. Adam Boqvist, D, Chicago


Boqvist has been good this season in the OHL, his first season in North America. Some games he hasn’t been as impactful and some games his playmaking stands out in a major way. His skill and particularly his offensive instincts are great, he sees the ice so well, and he is very creative in how he jumps into attacks and creates chances. I don’t think he’s shown a ton of pace on the smaller ice. He’s a good skater but some games he plays a bit too slow. He’s also not the biggest or meanest defenseman, so he might need time before he heads to the league.

Very Good NHL Prospect

17. Kirill Kaprizov, RW, Minnesota


I sense a fatigue in the industry, from scouts to fans, when discussing Kaprizov. He’s been a regular on prospect lists for years. Even though his production is a bit down this season in the KHL, I haven’t moved much on him as a player. He can make highly skilled plays, he can score, he has pace to his game and, despite being a smaller guy, he competes well versus men. The tools are there to succeed, but as one NHL scout put it, “I’m tired of hearing how good an NHL prospect

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he is. Let’s see him do it already.” Kaprizov is signed in the KHL through the 2019-20 season and has said he plans to see that contract through.

18. Noah Dobson, D, New York Islanders


Dobson’s counting numbers will not impress anyone at first glance, but he played the first half on an awful Bathurst team. He’s a great player who has continued to win me over through the course of the season. He’ll never be a first power play guy in the NHL, but I see a tough minutes defenseman who can play every situation. He’s very mobile, especially for 6-foot-3, smart defensively, moves the puck well and has better hands than I thought last season. I expect him to have a monster second half since being traded in the QMJHL.

19. Erik Brannstrom, D, Vegas


Brannstrom is one of the better defensemen in the AHL as a teenager and was also great at the world juniors. He’s a dynamic skater who can lead a rush and activate off the blueline very well. He’s also a creative puck-mover who can thread passes on the power play and out of his own zone. I had mild concerns going into the season about his pure offensive skill level, but he’s eased those concerns. Brannstrom might not be the biggest guy, but he defends well because of his feet and hockey sense.

20. Drake Batherson, RW, Ottawa


Batherson looks excellent in the AHL as a rookie pro, continuing his dramatic upward trend as a prospect. He even earned a brief NHL call-up and was decent at the top level. Batherson is very skilled and smart, with the ability to run a power play and make a lot of plays. His skating will never be his strong point, but he’s improved enough to where he can gain the zone and create some space for his skill. He’ll need some time to continue to improve his strength and pace, but he looks like he will be an important part of the Senators soon.

21. Bode Wilde, D, New York Islanders


Wilde sparks much debate in scouting circles due to his tremendous natural ability, combined with a draft season that had significant ups and downs, and questions about his decision-making. The latter hasn’t struck me as an issue this season. He certainly has a gambler mentality to his play and

lives on the edge with the puck, but he’s made an impact with his skating and skill. He can take over a shift and that’s hard to find.

22. Sam Steel, C, Anaheim


Steel looks quite good as a rookie pro in the AHL. He probably wasn’t ready for the NHL to start the season, but he will get back to that level soon. Steel is a very skilled playmaking center who can play at both ends of the rink. That’s a valuable player. He can be the guy on an NHL power play who sets things up. He has dynamic skill, but the thing holding him back from showing true top-end potential is a lack of breakaway speed. He looks quicker this season but his first step could still be better. He has room to get stronger, but I like his compete level and he can kill penalties.

23. Eeli Tolvanen, LW, Nashville


Tolvanen’s 2017-18 was everything you could hope for. He tore up the KHL, was great at the world juniors and Olympics, and appeared to be on the fast track to the league. This season has been a bit different. He’s been good. His shot is still a cannon, he’s very skilled and can create offense, but I have some mild concerns. He’s not the quickest guy for his size and struggles in 1-on-1 battles, leading to a transition to North America where both aspects of a player’s game are important. I still think he’s going to be a good player, but it may take longer than I thought last season.

24. Evan Bouchard, D, Edmonton


Bouchard hasn’t put up giant numbers in the OHL like last season, but he’s played very well, logging a ton of minutes and anchoring Canada’s power play at the world juniors. He’s got great vision and a big shot, which makes him deadly on the man advantage. Bouchard improved his defensive play enough that he should be able to check fine at the pro level. With Bouchard the question is, outside his vision, how much can he create with his feet or skill? Neither are weaknesses, but I wouldn’t call either massive strengths.

25. Philippe Myers, D, Philadelphia


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Myers’ second pro season got off to a bit of a rocky start. He turned pucks over a lot but scouts report he’s been better lately. There are few defensemen out there with Myers’ combination of size, mobility and touch, and that athletic skill set has a ton of value. I don’t think his hockey sense will ever be the selling point of his game, but he’s smart enough to get enough out of his toolkit and create chances. He could be a reliable every situation guy who plays on a second pairing.

26. Kristian Vesalainen, LW, Winnipeg


Vesalainen is having a tumultuous season, bouncing between the NHL and AHL before heading off to play for Jokerit in the KHL, where he’s played well. He declined an invite to the Finnish U20 team, which was an interesting moment but understandable given his travels. Vesalainen on the ice has a lot of the tools you want. He’s big, quick, skilled and can score. That tends to be a good combination. What I’ve liked this season is I’ve seen Kristian look to make a play more often. He distributes the puck at an above-average level even versus KHLers. He does need to compete harder at times as he’s not the most physically intense player.

27. Oliver Wahlstrom, RW, New York Islanders


Wahlstrom’s season is the subject of much debate. With every scout I’ve talked to this season, his name comes up at least once. Last season Wahlstrom seemed to score at will, putting up monster numbers at the USNTDP. He still has his big shot and his great hands, but his freshman season at Boston College has been a bit rocky. His compete level and pace hasn’t always been the best, per scouts who’ve been to B.C. games. That said, he still gets his chances, makes some plays and had a good world juniors. I’m not ready to get off the Wahlstrom bandwagon, but it would be nice to see a four-point weekend from him soon.

28. Denis Gurianov, RW, Dallas


I had come down on Gurianov in the past year or two. I thought his play in the AHL leading up this season looked indifferent and questioned whether he saw the game well enough. I’ve always seen the great feet, the size, the skill and could envision a player, but he never really delivered. This season he’s looked like a whole new Gurianov. He’s making plays with pace versus men, driving the Texas Stars’ offense and hitting tough passes, which I’ve never seen him do before consistently. Player development is not always linear. Sometimes it has peaks and valleys.

29. Morgan Frost, C, Philadelphia


Frost has been one of the top players in the CHL the past one-and-a-half seasons. His skill level is fantastic. He makes plays others have no business trying and consistently looks like a top-end playmaker. I’ve had concerns over the years over his pace, but I’m seeing mild improvements in that area. At the world juniors, he showed he could skate at a quicker pace, but he’s not great there, and at times, as a smaller guy, he can get pushed off pucks too easily. Due to that, it might take him some time to adjust to the pro game, but once he does he’s so skilled that he’s going to be a great NHLer.

30. Ruslan Iskhakov, LW, New York Islanders


There are few prospects I’ve thought more about this season than Iskhakov. He’s a 5-foot-8 winger, around a half point per game playing for UConn as a freshman, which typically doesn’t suggest great NHL prospect. However, his pure skill level is “oh my” good. He makes plays nobody else at that level can make. He’s a fantastic playmaker who has added more pace to his game since last season and has truly elite hands. Iskhakov can be a victim of trying to do too much at times and needs a lot of work physically. His upside is through the roof if he ever puts it together and I think he will. He’s had games where he does a lot of good things but the points don’t come, and I think he’ll have a big second half.

31. Nikita Gusev, LW, Vegas


Gusev has dominated the KHL for the past two-and-a-half seasons. Now a 26-year-old winger (and the last season I’ll consider him a prospect due to him losing Calder eligibility), it feels like I’ve talked about him forever. Gusev has a ton of skill and his vision is very good. He makes plays and can help an NHL power play. He’s not the biggest, most physical or quickest guy, but he knows what to do with the puck. His contract is up at the end of the season and it feels like if he’ll ever come to the NHL it’s now or never.

32. Alexander Nylander, RW, Buffalo


Nylander’s performance is better this season than 2017-18, and he had a good NHL camp. He’s shown his skill and vision at the AHL level a little more consistently and is an important part of a strong Rochester club. He looks a little

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quicker this season, but I wish he played quicker, in that he’d attack with speed and make plays at a fast pace. He has the playmaking ability to be a top player at the AHL level (and eventually a good NHL player) if he did these things and competed a bit harder.

33. Ty Smith, D, New Jersey


Smith was one of the best defensemen in the WHL last season and has continued that level in 2018-19. His puck moving ability and IQ are fantastic. He processes the game so well and seems to have ice in his veins with the puck, leading to a lot of clean breakouts and entries. Smith isn’t the biggest guy but he’s a decent defender because of his IQ and very good skating ability. Despite having great edge work and good speed, he doesn’t always push the pace like I’d like to see and can get pressured into turnovers when he plays too slow.

34. Lucas Elvenes, RW, Vegas


Elvenes’ season has been a bit up and down. He’s had good flashes in the SHL but also had stretches where he hasn’t been as good. He had a good world juniors, though, and I’m a believer in the skill set. His hands are very good and his vision is better. Elvenes makes high-end plays consistently. He’s not a perfect player by any means though. He lacks a real breakaway gear and isn’t all that good off the puck due to a lack of strength and, at times, a low compete level. That said, if he gets it going he has the skill to run a power play and drive a line offensively.

35. Josh Norris, C, Ottawa


I was skeptical that Norris had top-six potential last season (as well as during the Erik Karlsson trade). The 2017 first-round pick by San Jose has had an impressive season, though, between the NCAA and U20 levels. He’s never going to dominant a game, but he’s a well-rounded player who teases you with flashes of high-end skill. He skates well, he competes well, he makes plays and he can be used in any situation. If you’re expecting a gamebreaker, you’ll be disappointed; if you want a center who can log 15-16 reliable minutes a game, he could be that.

36. Serron Noel, RW, Florida


I was skeptical about Noel’s NHL projection last season, but I’m impressed by his play this season. He’s always been one of the toolsiest players in the OHL, but his production is more consistent in Oshawa this season. He’s 6-foot-5, skates and handles the pucks well, and this season he’s making more plays. His vision will never be great, but if he can just make the right plays and not force things, he has the talent level to take over a shift and be a good pro.

37. Joseph Veleno, C, Detroit


Veleno is one of the best players in the QMJHL this season and recently is scorching hot scoring-wise. He’s a very good skater who can push the pace and make a play with speed. He competes hard and could be a solid two-way center as a pro. Veleno is putting up points, but more importantly scoring goals – and not just tap-ins, a criticism of his game last season. He’s a divisive prospect. Some scouts love him, some scouts say he screams fourth-liner. I lean to the former camp. Though his counting stats this season might get Detroit fans ahead of themselves, I think Veleno has enough skill to score in the NHL.

38. Ryan Poehling, C, Montreal


Poehling has had a solid second season at St. Cloud and had a great world juniors, where he was named the tournament MVP. His best assets are his hockey sense and vision. He sees the ice very well and can be a setup guy on the flank on a power play as a pro. The rest of his toolkit won’t amaze you, but he’s got skill. Poehling combines a good offensive skill set with a competitive two-way game down the middle and the ability to kill penalties. He projects as a solid all situations second-line center.

39. Joel Farabee, LW, Philadelphia


I was a mild skeptic of Farabee going into his draft year, but since being picked by the Flyers (18th overall) I’ve steadily been won over by his game (I know, crazy right!). I always knew he was a smart player, but he’s so smart. His natural skill level isn’t high-end, but he’s very creative and sees the game very well. Farabee combines that with a high compete level and fine but not amazing speed. He might never frequent highlight reels, but he will be a guy who will log a lot of minutes in all situations.

40. Klim Kostin, LW, St. Louis

Skating: 55 Puck Skills: 55

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Physical Game: 65 Hockey sense: 55

Kostin is a hard player for me to figure out. He’s got a lot of tools that intrigue me. He’s big, skilled, skates well and has a real mean streak to his game. At the amateur level, he’s consistently impressed me and he’s added an extra step to his skating this season. Versus men in the AHL, though, he’s been good but nothing spectacular, and the production is so-so. It makes me wonder if he’s just so physically ahead of other juniors that he looks better than he is. I believe too much in his skill set though so I am willing to let him figure it out.

41. Isac Lundestrom, C, Anaheim


Lundestrom had a great NHL camp, which led to him initially making the Ducks’ injury-plagued roster before being sent down to the AHL. I still question how dynamic his offensive ability is from watching him in the SHL and international level, but based on his great NHL camp and talking to scouts who spoke highly of his play in the AHL, I’m willing to bump him up. He’s got a well-rounded skill set. Lundestrom is fast, skilled and a very smart two-way center. He will finish the second half of the season back in Sweden.

42. Kirill Marchenko, RW, Columbus


Marchenko is somewhat tough to track this season, if only because he’s bounced around between the MHL, VHL, KHL and Russia’s U20 team. He has a fantastic toolkit. He’s a big body winger with good speed and high-end skills. He can wow you on any given shift and looks like a better playmaker than he showed last season. With Marchenko’s big frame he can have a good power game, and when he drives wide with speed he’s tough to stop. But he’s been inconsistent and sometimes doesn’t always play that way.

43. Nicolas Hague, D, Vegas


I was a bit of a skeptic of Hague in the OHL, but he’s been quite good in his first full pro season. He plays a lot of minutes in all situations for the Chicago Wolves and is among the leaders in shots on goal for defensemen in the AHL. His skating and skill aren’t standout attributes, but he’s got enough skill that, given his giant wingspan and booming shot, he can make the most of his skill set. Hague is showing good power play ability in the AHL, particularly as a trigger man. Not only is he a big guy but he also has an edge to his game, making him a real physical presence once he adjusts to the pro pace.

44. Adam Fox, D, Carolina


Fox has had a tremendous junior season at Harvard, where he’s been among the best per game scorers in college among all players, never mind defensemen. Fox is an incredibly smart player – one may even say Fox is clever. He has a ton of poise and patience with the puck to see options develop, and has a high level of skill to execute plays. Fox is an agile skater, but for a defenseman his size, he lacks breakaway speed, leading some scouts to believe he won’t be a top-four defenseman. I can see the argument, but he’s got so much talent that I do think he can make it.

45. Gabriel Vilardi, C, Los Angeles


On talent, Vilardi is in the top 15. He’s got great skill and vision, is a big center, and is tough to dislodge from the puck. The tools point to a legit top level prospect. However, Vilardi’s prospect stock has diverted away from hockey and into the medical realm. He’s often hurt and barely played this season before reinjuring his back. He’s never been the best skater, either, and with all his ailments, there are concerns about how his pace will be when he returns.

This ranking is optimistic compared to a survey of NHL scouts who agreed on talent he’s a great prospect but would be hesitant to move one of their top prospects in a one-for-one for Vilardi with his current health status. I’m not a doctor, I know hockey (or at least pretend to), so this one is a tough one.

46. Janne Kuokkanen, C, Carolina


Kuokkanen isn’t a guy who is going to pop up on highlight reels, but he’s got a lot of the tools you want. He’s been great in the AHL, posting around a point per game and eating a lot of minutes for Charlotte. His best attribute is his hockey sense. He has good vision but understands his position well and is reliable at both ends of the rink. Kuokkanen skates fine and has skill too, but he makes a lot of plays from his smarts.

47. K’Andre Miller, D, New York Rangers


Miller has had a great freshman season. His world juniors didn’t go well as he got sick. At Wisconsin, though, he leads his team in scoring and is one of the better freshmen in the country. He’s a fantastic skater for a big man and competes

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hard at both ends. He’s shown more offense this season than I saw from him previously. I’m not fully convinced he’s a natural puck-mover/playmaker, but he can rush with the best of them and has solid skills.

48. Tyler Madden, C, Vancouver


Madden has had a great freshman season and was great at the world juniors for Team USA. He’s quicker than last season and his skill level is fantastic, with his offensive touch improved from when I watched him last season. He can dangle defenders with consistency but also has great two-way sense with the ability to play any situation. Madden isn’t the biggest guy and has a lot of bulking up to do, but his improved skating shows optimism for where he can get to when he fills out.

49. Alex Formenton, LW, Ottawa


Formenton is a tough player to get a read on. I like what I’ve seen. His speed is big-time, he’s got touch and I’ve seen flashes of good playmaking. However, the numbers have never been great in junior, and scouts question whether he sees the game well enough to be a legit top-six forward in the NHL. I don’t think he’ll ever be confused for a premier playmaker, but I think he’s got enough sense and touch to make a dent in the NHL with his speed, size and compete level.

50. Jesse Ylonen, RW, Montreal


Ylonen looks fine in Liiga this season but nothing amazing. He had a good world juniors, though, and I’m still confident his skill set will translate to pro success once he bulks up a lot. He’s a very elusive skater who can jet through the neutral zone and has a lot of skill. Physically he’s not imposing in terms of his style or body, but in open ice he can make a lot of plays. He’ll need time but I could see at some point soon, be it in the second half or next season, that it clicks for him.

51. Dylan Sikura, RW, Chicago


Sikura looks very good in the AHL this season, creating a lot of chances and buzzing, but he struggled mightily in his NHL call-up. Those struggles don’t write off his potential, but he’s 23 years old so there is a part of me that hoped he did more. With that said, I still believe so much in his talent level. His speed and skill are high-end, and he has the potential in the

NHL to score. Sikura is not the biggest guy, though, and his physicality isn’t the best, not an ideal combination.

52. Mathias Emilio Pettersen, LW, Calgary


Pettersen has had a great freshman season. He’s one of the leading freshmen scorers and leads all U19 players in college in scoring. He’s dynamic around the puck. Pettersen has a high skill level and makes a lot of high-level plays. He’s a big part of Denver’s power play off the half-wall and is a big reason why they are one of the top ranked teams in the country. He’s looked a tad quicker from last season, with elusive edge work, and is competing harder than when I saw in the USHL.

53. Alexandre Texier, C, Columbus


Texier’s counting stats don’t look amazing in Liiga for a 19-year-old, but from watching KalPa’s games this season, I’ve liked his game a lot. He’s gotten a lot of opportunities and generated chances but pucks haven’t gone in. Texier is very skilled, showing the ability to make high-end plays in tight spaces and make defenders miss. He moves the puck very well, too. What’s made me give him a slight bump as a prospect this season has been that I’ve noticed more speed/pace in his game. He still needs to get a lot stronger, as he can get pushed off pucks too easily.

54. Alexander Chmelevski, C, San Jose


Chmelevski has grown on me in the past few seasons and he had a great world juniors to affirm the growth I’ve seen in his game. He’s always been a very skilled forward who can dangle guys and make high-end passes. The growth in his game is away from the puck. Chmelevski evolved into a more reliable center who can kill penalties and compete for pucks. I don’t think he’s a great skater, but he moves fine and plays quick.

55. Jesper Boqvist, LW, New Jersey


Boqvist has had a good 20-year-old season for Brynas, as one of the leading scorers in the SHL. He has a lot of tools, between his great speed and puck skills, to be difficult to handle off the rush. I don’t think his playmaking is high-end, but he can see the ice and make good decisions with the puck. Boqvist will never be a difficult player to win pucks from and his defensive play leaves you wanting, but if he gets a

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little better there, the pace of his game will translate to the NHL.

56. Rasmus Sandin, D, Toronto


Sandin looks great in the AHL this season and had a good world juniors. He’s a very good passer and calm with the puck. For an 18-year-old defenseman in the AHL, the poise he’s shown versus men with the ability to make plays off the blueline or to hit the tough distributions from his D-zone is very impressive. He’s not the biggest or quickest defender but is still reliable defensively because of his IQ and compete level. I’ve struggled to grade his skating. I always though it was average, but I’ve seen enough improvement there. He may never blow by guys, but he has some speed and good elusiveness.

57. Liam Foudy, C, Columbus


Foudy is a tough player for me to evaluate. There are reasons I’d hedge against him ever being a legit top-six forward. His skill level doesn’t overly impress and his production in the OHL was never great. That said, he’s a fantastic skater and his hockey sense is quite good. Numerous times this season I’ve seen him make a top-end pass at speed or off the wall that made me more intrigued by his offensive potential. Maybe he’s just an up and down two-way center that lines up in your bottom six, but I can see enough there for him to be a second-line winger.

Top Goalies

I don’t currently see a standout top goalie prospect at the moment. The top six goalies are all very close for me, and I could see reasonable arguments for any of them to be the No. 1 goalie prospect.

1. Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers

Shesterkin is a very fun goalie to watch. He’s incredibly quick, makes unique saves and has a lot of energy in his game. He’s become more controlled over the years, improving his positioning and staying square to pucks even while moving quickly. His size is my only concern, but his athletic tools of production are otherwise fantastic.

2. Ilya Samsonov, Washington

Samsonov had a tough start to his North American pro career. The tools are all there for him to succeed as he’s a big goalie who moves incredibly well and has the sense to succeed versus pros. He gets caught being overly aggressive a bit too much and needs to improve some reads. I don’t like overreacting too much to a 20 game sample for goalies, so despite his brutal numbers, I still believe in Samsonov.

3. Ilya Sorokin, New York Islanders

Sorokin is having yet another great season in the KHL. He’s a well-rounded goaltender. He’s big, moves well but does so economically, squares up a lot of pucks and is a calming presence in the net. The big question on Sorokin is when is he coming over; with his contract expiring in 2020, Islanders fans will have to reserve a little more patience.

4. Michael DiPietro, Vancouver

There are few goalie prospects I’ve enjoyed watching over the years more than DiPietro. His save percentage may not suggest it, but he’s stolen many games. He’s a dynamic athlete who makes tough saves consistently and moves as well as any goalie outside the NHL. His sense/structure isn’t at the same level as his quickness, but both are good. DiPietro’s main issue is his size, and every time I see a puck go over his shoulder I wonder how much an issue it will be versus pros.

5. Daniil Tarasov, Columbus

Tarasov has bounced back well after missing an entire season with a knee injury to become one of the best goalie prospects. He’s been great this season versus men in Russia’s second-tier league. He’s a very big goalie at 6-foot-5 but moves like a 5-foot-11 guy. He can make the high-end saves moving across his crease, but he’s a smart read/react goalie. I’ve rarely seen him play poorly and often he’s keeping his team in games.

6. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Buffalo

Luukkonnen has had a great season, at times carrying a mediocre Sudbury team, and he was the best goaltender at the world juniors. I’ve always appreciated the size and the quickness, but lately I’ve been very impressed by his great hockey sense and positioning. There’s no extra movement in his game, which I saw in previous years, and he uses his size very well to take away angles.

7. Joseph Woll, Toronto

8. Samuel Ersson, Philadelphia

9. Lukas Dostal, Anaheim

10. Josef Korenar, San Jose

11. Cayden Primeau, Montreal

12. Jake Oettinger, Dallas

13. Connor Ingram, Tampa Bay

14. Cal Petersen, Los Angeles

15. Elvis Merzlikins, Columbus

16. Ville Husso, St. Louis

17. Kyle Keyser, Boston

18. Filip Gustavsson, Ottawa

19. Jakub Skarek, New York Islanders

20. Olof Lindbom, New York Rangers

21. Ian Scott, Toronto

Out of the running

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The following is a list of players who are prospects but are not eligible for this list due to being in the NHL. This doesn’t 100 percent mean they would have made the list, but they would have been in the running, at the very least. I will evaluate the players who just missed this list later this week.

Mason Appleton, RW, Winnipeg

Mackenzie Blackwood, G, New Jersey

Henrik Borgstrom, C, Florida

Michael Dal Colle, LW, New York Islanders

Thatcher Demko, G, Vancouver

Carter Hart, G, Philadelphia

Roope Hintz, C, Dallas

Filip Hronek, D, Detroit

Luke Kunin, C, Minnesota and;

Lawrence Pilut, D, Buffalo

Gold: Canes hoping to end one streak and continue another

By Adam Gold

Madison Square Garden has often been called “The World’s Most Famous Arena”. But, for the Carolina Hurricanes it’s really more a house of horrors.

On October 29, 2010, the Canes used a 3rd period power play goal by Erik Cole to escape the Garden with a 4-3 win over the Rangers. Cam Ward stopped 40 shots and Jeff Skinner scored twice in the 3-point night in what turned out to be the last time Carolina left Penn Plaza with a win.

That was 15 visits and more than eight years ago.

It would be one thing if the futility was only in the 212 area code, but the Canes’ misery against the Blue Shirts hasn’t just been confined to Manhattan Island. No, the Hurricanes have stunk against the Rangers in Raleigh as well. Since the last win in New York, through the end of last season, Carolina is a woeful 5-19-7 against the Rangers.

31 games. 5 wins. Gross.

Granted, the Rangers have been a playoff team for the lion’s share of that time while Carolina has obviously not. Still, that doesn’t explain last year’s team that finished last in the Metropolitan Division sweeping the Canes who finished 6th. For whatever the reasons, the Hurricanes just have not been able to solve New York.

This year, however, in the season’s 3rd game, the Hurricanes beat the Rangers 8-5, scoring the final four goals to snap a 4-game series skid. The line of Jordan Staal, Justin Williams and Warren Foegele — remember when? — combined for nine points (3 goals, 6 assists) in an obviously wild affair that was part of Carolina’s 4-0-1 start.

Will that result have any impact on the trip to the corner of 8th Ave and 33rd St.? Who knows. New York is 18-20-7 on the year. They’re 3-6-1 in their last 10 games. And, Sunday they absorbed a 7-5 loss to the Blue Jackets.

The Canes have become relevant again. Three weeks ago, Carolina was reeling, two points under NHL-.500 and teetering on the edge of the abyss. Then, on New Year’s Eve, they punished a floundering Flyers team and kicked off a stretch that has seen them win seven of their last eight games to climb back within shouting distance of the playoff race. If that’s to continue, however, this club needs to solve the Gotham City mystery.

Sebastian Aho registered his second career hat trick in the Canes win over the Predators on Sunday. Goals 19-21 came on an even strength breakaway, a power play 1-timer (on a sweet back hand pass from Michael Ferland) and a shorthanded empty net footrace with P.K. Subban.

Aho, headed to his first All Star game at the end of the month, has nine goals and 8 assists in his last 11 games.

Ferland has two goals and four assists in the 7-1-0 stretch, including the first three point game of his career on Friday against the Sabres.

Captain Justin Williams is on a 5-game goal streak, equaling the longest such stretch of his career.

Through the season’s first 19 games, Williams had one goal. He’s scored 12 (with four assists) in the 26 games since.

In the last eight games, Carolina’s defense has chipped in with six goals and 19 assists.

Carolina’s power play was 2 for 5 against Nashville and has scored on 7 of their last 21 tries. For the year, it sits at 17.0% which is 23rd in the league.

The penalty kill was a perfect 5 for 5 vs the Predators and has now killed off 87 of the last 100 over the last 32 games.

Andrei Svechnikov has gone seven games without a scoring point.

Carolina will return home to take on Ottawa on Friday night at PNC Arena. Not only have the Canes won five straight at

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home, they’ve done so in front of the largest crowds of the year. Other than the opener against the Islanders, the Canes six largest crowds have come in their last six home games. Carolina has played in front of at least 15,000 every home game since the December 21 game against the Penguins (16,548 average).

Key games from Monday night, Montreal beat Boston in overtime, while the Sabres were losers in Edmonton.

Wild Card race (games/points)….WC1 Montreal (47/55), WC2 NY Islanders (44/54), Buffalo (45/52), Carolina (45/49).

Carolina is four points over NHL-.500 for the first time since being 4-0-1 after five games.

Preview: Hurricanes at Rangers

Surging Canes visit slipping Blueshirts

by Michael Smith

NEW YORK - It's an Empire State of Mind for the Carolina Hurricanes, who will face off with the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.

The Canes are coming off a 6-3 win over the Nashville Predators at home on Sunday, and the team is hot to begin the new year, having won seven of its last eight games.

Just Keep Winning

The Hurricanes are hot, having won seven of their last eight games, a stretch that continued with a 6-3 win over the Nashville Predators on Sunday. In that game, All-Star Sebastian Aho netted his second career hat trick and crossed the 20-goal threshold for the third season in a row.

Though the results of this recent two-week stretch say otherwise, the Hurricanes haven't changed much from a month ago when the results weren't going their way.

"Same players, same system," Aho said. "Maybe we do the little details now, and we're doing them right all the time."

"Just sticking to the game plan. We haven't changed the way we play," Micheal Ferland said. "We're still shooting pucks. Roddy told us to change nothing and keep playing the way we've been playing. We're finally getting bounces."

"There was a time that we were playing really good hockey, but nothing was going our way," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "I give the guys credit, and our leadership group, they're the ones that are continually pushing the message. They're leading by example."

Ending the Drought at MSG

For whatever reason, Madison Square Garden has been a house of horrors for the Hurricanes in their last 15 visits.

The Canes last win at The World's Most Famous Arena came on Oct. 29, 2010. Since then, the team has posted a 0-12-3 record and has been outscored 54-20.

It's not that this stat has any bearing on the outcome of this game - not one player who dressed for the Hurricanes in that game is even still on the roster - but it is an odd drought worth noting and maybe a head-scratching streak that can finally end.

"I know what the record is. The strange thing is, over the last few years we've actually played really well in there. Just, for whatever reason, couldn't come out with a win. Every year and every game, to me, is new. There's no carryover," Brind'Amour said. "It's irrelevant."

The Last Meeting

These two Metropolitan Division opponents last met in the Canes' third game of the regular season, on Sunday, Oct. 7 in what was maybe the wildest game of the first 45. The Canes and Rangers traded pairs of goals in the first (2-2) and second (4-4) before the Canes cracked the game wide open in the third period. Andrei Svechnikov's first career goal broke a 5-5 tie about midway through the third period, en route to an 8-5 victory for the Hurricanes.

The Opposition

The Rangers have won just one of their first seven games to begin the new year, and at 3-6-1 in their last 10 games, they're sliding in the opposite direction of the surging Hurricanes. Mika Zibanejad leads the team in scoring with 37 points (12g, 25a) in 45 games.

WORTH A CLICK

News

Recap: Aho, Canes Roll Past Predators

December Canes Prospect Profile: Martin Necas

Forslund Named N.C. Sportscaster of the Year

Audio

CanesCast, Ep. 72: Rollin', feat. Greg McKegg

Videos

In the Room: Rod Brind'Amour, Jan. 14

CAROLINA HURRICANES


In the Room: Petr Mrazek, Jan. 14

Highlights: CAR 6, NSH 3

Postgame Quotes: Jan. 13 vs. NSH

Brind'Amour's Postgame Speech, Jan. 13

Storm Surge Celebration, Jan. 13

Gameday Links

Cool Bars: Wake Forest

First Goal Contest presented by Kayem

WATCH, LISTEN & STREAM

Watch: FOX Sports Carolinas, FOX Sports app

Listen: 99.9 The Fan, Hurricanes app, Hurricanes.com/Listen

Facts and Figures: Aho hat trick sparks Hurricanes

Carolina 7-1-0 in past eight, four points from second wild card in East

By: NHL.com

Aho's second career hat trick

Sebastian Aho scores an even-strength goal, a power-play goal and an empty-net goal en route to his second career hat trick

The Carolina Hurricanes are rapidly ascending the Eastern Conference standings. Sebastian Aho helped them take the next big step with his second NHL hat trick in a 6-3 win against the Nashville Predators at PNC Arena on Sunday.

The Hurricanes (22-18-5, 49 points) are 7-1-0 in their past eight games and have won five in a row at home to move within four points of the Montreal Canadiens (24-17-5, 53 points) for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

Aho, a 21-year-old forward who has 51 points (21 goals, 30 assists) in 45 games, is the fourth player to debut with the Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers and score 20 goals in each of his first three NHL seasons. Ron Francis (1981-82 to 1983-84), Sylvain Turgeon (1983-84 to 1985-86) and Kevin Dineen (1984-85 to 1986-87) are the other three.

He is also the sixth Finland-born NHL player to reach the 20-goal milestone in his first three NHL seasons, joining Jari Kurri (1980-81 to 1982-83), Tomas Sandstrom (1984-85 to 1986-87), Petri Skriko (1984-85 to 1986-87), Teemu Selanne (1992-93 to 1994-95) and Patrik Laine (2016-17 to 2018-19).

Justin Williams, Carolina's 37-year-old captain, extended his goal streak to five games, the longest active run in the NHL. His is the sixth NHL player with a streak of at least five games at age 37 or older.

Flames scorch Coyotes for 30th win

The Calgary Flames received multipoint games from Mark Giordano (three points; two goals, one assist), Matthew Tkachuk (two goals), Johnny Gaudreau (two points; one goal, one assist) and Sean Monahan (two points; one goal, one assist) in a 7-1 win against the Arizona Coyotes at Scotiabank Saddledome.

The Flames (30-13-4, 64 points) matched their record for fewest games needed to win 30 games (47) set in 1988-89 (30-10-7, 67 points) en route to winning the Stanley Cup. They did it by scoring at least seven goals in a game for an NHL high sixth time this season to give them 173 goals for, second to the Tampa Bay Lightning (189).

Calgary leads the Western Conference, has won five in a row and is 8-1-1 in its past 10 games, and Gaudreau is a big reason why. The forward has points in eight straight games (18 points; eight goals, 10 assists) and is second in the NHL with 69 points (27 goals, 42 assists) behind Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov (75 points; 22 goals, 53 assists).

Jets hand Ducks 11th straight loss

The Winnipeg Jets rallied from down 2-0 and 3-2 before Bryan Little scored with 10.1 seconds left in overtime for a 4-3 victory against the Anaheim Ducks at Bell MTS Place. The Jets (29-14-2, 60 points) lead the Central Division and are 8-2-0 in their past 10 games. They have also won four straight on home ice.

The Ducks (19-18-9, 47 points) have lost 11 in a row (0-7-4) since Dec. 17 but are tied with the Minnesota Wild and Vancouver Canucks for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference. The losing streak is longest in Ducks history.

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Weekend Takeaways: Why Vegas is the team to fear out West

Shea Theodore scored the overtime winner as the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3.

By: Ryan Dixon

There’s something downright weird about the thought of a franchise in just its second year of existence having unfinished business. It seems like the equivalent of a 20-year-old having a crisis about his or her career.

The Vegas Golden Knights may be an expansion squad that made the 2018 Stanley Cup final, but they’re also a team that lost the Stanley Cup final and that leaves a mark, regardless of how long you’ve been around. For the past few weeks, Vegas has been busy distancing itself from a middling start by winning everything in sight and re-affirming its status as a team to be reckoned with in the West.

What Slow Start?

Golden Knights’ first 22 games: 9-12-1 Since: 19-4-3

Most recently, the Golden Knights downed the Chicago Blackhawks 4–3 in overtime on Saturday, a win that marked the club’s eighth victory in nine tries. Vegas has earned at least a point in 11 of its past 12 games and the defending Western Conference champs have put up 31 points since Dec. 1, a total eclipsed by only Tampa Bay (35), San Jose and Calgary (32 apiece).

It’s impossible to think of the 2018 final without recalling Alex Tuch being denied by Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby’s save for the ages in the late stages of Game 2. Had Tuch buried there, the game surely would have gone into overtime, where Vegas would have been one shot away from taking a 2-0 series lead. Oh, what might have been.

If Tuch is still tortured by the memory of that near-miss, he apparently has no trouble ditching the anxiety at the dressing room door. Through 40 contests this year, the Golden Knights’ scoring leader has produced the exact same totals — 15-22-37 — he put up in 78 games last year as an NHL rookie.

Tuch, who sniped against Chicago, is taking his game to the next level while playing right wing on a trio with Vegas’s two key off-season acquisitions, Max Pacioretty and Paul Stastny. Both of those players missed chunks of time with injuries, but are now showing their new team exactly what they can do. On the back end, Nate Schmidt is producing offence at a career-best clip after serving his 20-game sentence for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.

So while the sick bay is still home to some key contributors like Erik Haula, Colin Miller and Reilly Smith, Vegas is clearly

rounding into form as it prepares to take another crack at getting the Stanley Cup on The Strip.

Other Weekend Takeaways

We’re at that juncture in the season where four-point weekends feel like they could impact a team’s big-picture approach. With wins on Friday and Sunday, the Carolina Hurricanes — thought to be sellers ahead of the Feb. 25 trade deadline — are just four points out of an Eastern Conference wild-card spot.

I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact blue-liner Dougie Hamilton is rumoured to be available for the second time in about seven months and third time in his young career. I understand why the Canes want to get something for winger Micheal Ferland before he presumably leaves as a UFA in the summer, but Ferland — who had 1-2-3 versus Buffalo on Friday and two-thirds of a Gordie Howe hattie (fight and two helpers) against Nashville on Sunday — could also play a significant role in helping the team track down its first playoff berth in a decade. How much value does the organization place on that?

I think we can safely say one Hurricane who isn’t going anywhere for a long time despite his pending-RFA status is Sebastian Aho. The 21-year-old Finn had himself a weekend, popping five goals in Carolina’s two outings.

Anaheim is getting all the unwanted headlines with its 11-game losing skid, and rightfully so. The Ducks blew a 3–0 lead against the Penguins on Friday before gagging up a 2–0 advantage in Winnipeg on Sunday. Still, the Ducks are hardly the only Western Conference wild-card contender having issues right now. Take a look at the past 10 games for the five teams in the hunt for the final two post-season spots in the West: Anaheim (0-6-4), Colorado (1-7-2), Edmonton (3-7-0), Minnesota (5-4-1), Vancouver (5-4-1).

I understand you’ll take ‘em any way you can get ‘em, but Conor Garland’s temple tip cannot be the preferred method of scoring goals.

This is the type of play we can only have fun with because Garland escaped relatively unscathed, showing off a serious scar to the Saturday Hockey Night audience during a chat with Scott Oake.

It was great to see former Blue Jacket and Blueshirt Rick Nash at centre ice with his family on Sunday in Columbus, presiding over the ceremonial face-off in a game between his two former clubs just days after announcing his retirement. As a former defenceman and one-time teammate of Nash, Mike Commodore had a close look at what the first-overall pick from 2002 could do.

I remember seeing Nash live a few times in Toronto when he was still with the Blue Jackets, and there were games it felt

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like — with his size and strength — he legitimately had a chance to score on every shift.

Red and White Power Rankings

1. Calgary Flames (30-13-4): Name a trophy and I’ll show you a Flame in the running for it, starting with Johnny Gaudreau and the Hart. Calgary has matched a franchise record by hitting 30 wins in 47 outings, equaling the pace of the 1988–89 squad that won the Cup.

2. Winnipeg Jets (29-14-2): The Jets have a tasty matchup with the Predators in Nashville on Thursday. Bryan Little picked up two goals on the weekend and is going through his most productive stretch of the season with seven points in his past five games.

3. Toronto Maple Leafs (28-14-2): If the Leafs have to see Boston again in the playoffs, they better at least lock down second place in the Atlantic and make sure they get home-ice advantage this time.

4. Montreal Canadiens (24-17-5): Carey Price is really starting to look like Carey Price again, as evidenced by his shutout versus the Avalanche on Saturday.

5. Vancouver Canucks (21-21-5): Try as Bo Horvat and Antoine Roussel did, they just couldn’t get Florida’s Michael Matheson — also known as the guy who slammed Elias Pettersson to the ground earlier this year — to drop the gloves on Sunday night.

6. Edmonton Oilers (21-21-3): The Oilers have gone a month without winning consecutive games, which is not how you stake your claim to one of two there-for-the-taking wild-card berths.

7. Ottawa Senators (17-24-5): With Thomas Chabot on the shelf nursing a bum shoulder, young defenceman Christian Wolanin has made the most of his call-up, netting four points in his past five outings.

In Your Ear

On the most recent episode of the Tape to Tape podcast, my co-host Rory Boylen and I listed our mid-season surprises,

disappointments and MVP candidates. We also spent a little time on each Canadian team to see where they’re at relative to expectations halfway through the year.

Looking Ahead

Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel go head-to-head in Edmonton on Monday night, as both the Sabres and Oilers are starving for points.

The Sharks-Penguins matchup on Tuesday not only represents a re-match of the 2016 Cup final — it also pits two of the hottest teams in the league against each other. Since Dec. 1, Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns have each put up 26 points to pace all defencemen in scoring.

Colorado will have plenty of incentive to drop the Sens in Ottawa on Wednesday. In addition to desperately needing Ws, you’ll recall the Avs hold Ottawa’s first pick in the 2019 draft, meaning Colorado will have the best chance at selecting first overall should the Senators — presently 29th in the league — sink all the way to No. 31.

While an opportunity to draft American centre Jack Hughes is tantalizing, let me throw this scenario at you. Even if Ottawa actually finishes last — which, no matter how bad you are, really takes some doing — the Avs would still have less than a 20-per cent shot at winning the top pick in the lottery.

Given that, if you were running Colorado, would you be willing to talk about sending that pick — acquired in the Matt Duchene deal last season — back to Ottawa in return for pending UFA Mark Stone if the latter would sign an extension with his new team? Stone is 26 and may be the best two-way winger in hockey. Acquiring a player like that in his prime would go a long way toward making Colorado a more well-rounded team than the one that currently depends way too much on the line of Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog to supply all the offence.

Just a little trade thought to get you primed for the pre-deadline weeks ahead.

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PHT Power Rankings: Ranking the Hurricanes’ victory celebrations

By Adam Gretz

The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL over the past two weeks with wins in seven out of their past eight games. This little surge has allowed them to creep back to within four points of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

They obviously still have a long way to go, and based on where they are in the standings and the deficit they still have in front of them the odds are not in their favor. But they are at least hanging around and trying to make a run at it, and they are kind of fun to watch.

One of the reasons they have been so fun is because they have been the best team in the NHL this season when it comes to angering the old guy that likes to yell at clouds due to the way they celebrate their wins on home ice.

You know, stuff like this.

In the end, it doesn’t really matter what anybody else thinks of it because the players are obviously enjoying it, the fans are obviously enjoying it, and this is all supposed to be entertainment. If you can’t have fun when you’re winning then what the hell are we all doing here? What is the point of all of this?

Something different is good!

If I have one criticism of the whole thing it’s that they also don’t do it on the road to a chorus of boos from opposing fans. Let’s be honest here, a team from the south going into a place like, I don’t know, let’s say … Toronto … and doing this after a win would be pure comedy gold if only for the reactions it would cause.

Do it on the road you cowards!

With all of that in mind, this week’s PHT Power Rankings (one of our bi-weekly random rankings) will take a look at all of the Hurricanes’ victory celebrations.

All rankings are final.

1. Jan. 4 win vs. Columbus (Thor Hammer Strike)

This is the best one yet and I am not really sure there is a close contender at this point.

2. Nov. 23 win vs. Florida (The domino surge)

After doing the SKOL clap the Hurricanes line up staggered throughout the neutral zone and knock each other over like a bunch of dominoes. It’s different, it’s unique even for them, and to this point it is their best effort and most creative effort.

3. Jan. 11 win vs. Buffalo (Bowling for Hurricanes)

Captain Justin Williams goes bowling after a big win over the Buffalo Sabres. It is pretty self explanatory, but also pretty awesome. [Watch it here]

4. Dec. 31 win vs. Philadelphia (Putting the rookie in the net)

The Hurricanes are hoping that Andrei Svechnikov is going to put a lot of pucks in the net throughout his career. They celebrated their New Year’s Eve win over the Philadelphia Flyers by putting him in the net.

5. Oct. 8 and 10 wins vs. Vancouver and New York (The one that started it all)

There is always something to be said for the classics and the one that starts it all. You can see it in the video at the top.

6. Oct. 26 win vs. San Jose (Row the boat)

It starts off looking like the original, and then quickly escalates into something new. This is the first time we saw any sort of variation in the celebration. [Watch it here]

7. Nov. 18 win vs. New Jersey

This was when the celebrations really started to vary a little bit in terms of what they were doing instead of just a different variation of the original. It’s different. It’s good. But it’s not one of their best.

8. Dec. 23 win vs. Boston (Hello, Pucky the Whale)

Have to be honest here, am not really a fan of the celebration itself or the Hurricanes wearing Whalers gear. On the other hand, anything that involves Pucky The Whale is okay in my book. [Watch it here]

9. Dec. 16 win vs. Arizona (Ships passing in the night)

Half of the team lines up on one blue line, the other half lines up on the other, they do the SKOL clap, and then charge toward the glass at the opposite end of the rink, passing by each other. [Watch it here]

10. Nov. 21 win vs. Toronto (The one that made Brian Burke mad)

You just knew once they did this against a big-time original six team that the criticism would really start to come out, and that is exactly what happened when former Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke referred to all of this as “pee-wee garbage stuff.” Instead of the entire team charging toward the end glass, they all split up and went throughout the rink. [Watch it here]

11. Nov. 12 win vs. Chicago

12. Jan. 13 vs. Nashville

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Sunday’s win against Nashville featured a variation of their Dec. 16 celebration against the Arizona Coyotes with the team splitting up at opposite blue lines, and then shoulder

bumping at center ice. It’s okay. It’s not great. Such a big win over a Stanley Cup contender probably deserved more. [Watch it here]

Struggling Rangers have history on their side vs. 'Canes

Things are looking up for the Carolina Hurricanes after a successful last couple weeks. Things are rapidly deteriorating for the New York Rangers.

by STATS

Things are looking up for the Carolina Hurricanes after a successful last couple weeks. Things are rapidly deteriorating for the New York Rangers.

Now, a pair of Metropolitan Division foes trending in significantly different directions get together Tuesday night when the Hurricanes visit the Rangers looking to end a 15-game losing streak at Madison Square Garden.

From Nov. 30-Dec. 29, the Hurricanes endured a 3-8-2 stretch that dropped them 10 points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Starting with a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Dec. 31, Carolina is 7-1-0 in its last eight games and is within striking distance of the second wild-card spot at 22-18-5, good for 49 points.

During their month-long skid, the Hurricanes scored 26 goals and lost five games by two goals or less. In the hot streak, Carolina is outscoring opponents by a 32-22 margin while chasing the starting goaltender in four games and getting several goals on deflections.

"There was a time that we were playing really good hockey, but nothing was going our way," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour told reporters recently. "I give the guys credit, and our leadership group, they're the ones that are continually pushing the message. They're leading by example."

"Finally," Carolina right winger Teuvo Teravainen added. "We're doing a lot of things right and maybe that's why we're getting these bounces."

Carolina's latest win was Sunday's 6-3 victory over Nashville, highlighted by Sebastian Aho's hat trick with a goal in each period. Aho leads the Hurricanes in goals (21) and assists (30), has 15 goals in his last 18 contests, and is the sixth Finnish-born player to score at least 20 goals in each of his first three seasons.

Justin Williams also scored a power-play goal Sunday -- his fifth straight game with a goal.

The Rangers, on the other hand, are on a 1-6-0 slide since winning one-goal games in Nashville and St. Louis on Dec. 29 and 31. They are being outscored 34-15 and have held a lead for just 7:32 total during the streak.

New York stopped a five-game losing streak with Saturday afternoon's 2-1 win in Brooklyn against the New York Islanders but followed it up with a 7-5 loss at Columbus on Sunday. That result infuriated first-year coach David Quinn, who watched his team lose 47 of 68 faceoffs and be outshot 40-27.

"You're going to lose hockey games. But you better want to battle somebody. It's just ridiculous," Quinn told reporters. "Three games where we feel good about our effort and our compete (level), and then we come out here and do that? It's a freaking joke."

While the Rangers scored five goals for the first time since Dec. 8, they gave up seven or more for the fourth time this season. Three of the goals the Rangers surrendered on Sunday came less than two minutes after New York had scored.

"We're going to watch this and we're going to learn from this," Quinn said. "We have zero chance if we've got 20 guys in uniform not wanting to compete for pucks and get into people and have a little bit of snarl to your game."

Chris Kreider scored one of New York's goals after going a season-high seven games without a tally and Mats Zuccarello scored twice after getting the game-winner Saturday. Those performances were negated by Mika Zibanejad losing 15 of 24 faceoffs and Boo Nieves losing 14 of 16 draws.

Sunday's loss is part of a rapid decline that actually began Nov. 23. From Oct. 23-Nov. 21, the Rangers enjoyed a 10-3-1 surge. But starting with a 4-0 loss at Philadelphia, they are 6-12-5 and 1-3-5 at home. New York sits at 18-20-7, giving them 43 points.

Alexandar Georgiev played the last two games but Henrik Lundqvist is expected to start in goal Tuesday after getting a breather by backing up in four of the last six contests.

Rangers center Kevin Hayes missed his sixth straight game with an upper-body injury and he could be out again Tuesday.

Carolina torched the Rangers in the first meeting when 13 players registered a point in its 8-5 home win on Oct. 7. The Hurricanes are seeking their first win against the Rangers in New York since Oct. 29, 2010.

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The Hurricanes are proving they have what it takes to snap their nine-year playoff drought

Carolina has won seven of its past eight and are inching closer to the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, and the Hurricanes might finally have the pieces in place to put an end to their league-worst drought.

By Jared Clinton

As far as single-game performances go, Sunday’s outing was arguably the Carolina Hurricanes’ most inspiring of the season.

Hosting the Nashville Predators, a Western Conference juggernaut that appears primed to make another legitimate post-season run come April, the Hurricanes were outstanding from the drop of the puck. Carolina carried the play, took the game to the Predators and out-chanced a club some consider a Stanley Cup frontrunner. The Hurricanes chased Vezina Trophy contender Pekka Rinne from the crease for just the second time all season. Sebastian Aho had hats rain down on him when he notched his second career hat trick as part of a four-point night. More than half of the Carolina roster chipped in on the scoresheet. And when all was said and done, they skated to a 6-3 victory, celebrated in now-typical Hurricanes fashion and left the ice having picked up their seventh win in eight tries.

All of a sudden, there’s honest-to-goodness belief once again that this could be the year in Carolina. It’s hard to blame the Hurricanes’ faithful for feeling that way, either. And quite possibly chief among the reasons Carolina has allowed itself some hope — something that has been in short supply over the course of a league-worst nine-year playoff drought — is that the Hurricanes are getting something that has long felt impossible: capable goaltending.

For several seasons now, particularly through the Bill Peters era, the crease concerns loomed larger than anything in Carolina. In fact, during the tenure of the now-departed coach, who was replaced by former assistant and once Hurricanes captain Rod Brind’Amour in the off-season, it was often Carolina’s most apparent Achilles heel. Despite being seen as a potential wild-card contender for the past few seasons, the Hurricanes were continually sunk by subpar netminding, and in no season was it worse than the 2017-18 campaign. Carolina was the sexy pick to go from Eastern Conference cannon fodder to wild-card contender only for their season to fall apart behind league-worst goaltending. The Hurricanes finished a woeful 14 points shy of the final berth in the conference despite sitting only two seeds shy of the last wild-card spot.

Unfortunately, that was par for the course for a club whose best season between the pipes in the past four campaigns — best, remember — was when their goaltenders combined to finish with the fourth-worst save percentage in the NHL. It was expected that the Hurricanes’ fate would be much the same this season, too, when they seemingly failed to upgrade in goal over the course of the off-season. As it turns

out, though, the additions of Petr Mrazek and waiver-claim Curtis McElhinney have paid dividends.

While hardly the most star-studded duo in the league, Mrazek and McElhinney have combined to unseat incumbent starter Scott Darling and take the reins in Carolina. After a slow start to the season in which he posted an .880 SP across his first eight appearances, Mrazek has rounded into form with a .911 SP across his past dozen games, including a 20-save victory in Sunday’s clash with the Predators. More impressive, though, has been McElhinney, who has quietly turned in an impressive campaign. Among the 50 goaltenders with at least 15 games played, he ranks eighth with a .921 SP and third with a 2.30 goals-against average.

The result? A combined performance in the Carolina crease that ranks 19th at all strengths with a .899 SP and 17th at 5-on-5 with a .917 SP. And limited only to the past 25 games, over which one of Mrazek or McElhinney has started all but two games, the Hurricanes have the 14th-best all-strengths goaltending (.906 SP) and 16th-best crease at 5-on-5 (.921 SP).

No doubt, a big part of Carolina’s goaltending success is finding a pair of keepers who’ve been able to succeed in a system that is one of the most limiting in the league. That style of play has been the club’s calling card for a while now, too. Under Peters, the Hurricanes grew to become one of the most dominant puck possession clubs in the NHL, which is what made them a time-and-again favorite to claw their way into the post-season. That has continued under Brind’Amour, as well, and it may very well be the thing that ends up powering this Carolina team into the post-season.

Just consider the Hurricanes’ underlying numbers for a second, according to NaturalStatTrick. At 5-on-5, Carolina ranks second in Corsi percentage (55.1), second in shots percentage (55.2), second in scoring chance percentage (55) and second in high-danger chance percentage (56.2). Those are numbers commensurate with some of the best of the best, including top clubs such as the San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames. Adjusted for score and venue, the Hurricanes respective ranks are second, second, fourth and third. And at all strengths, it’s much the same. Carolina has been a team that carries the play on any given night. That’s a recipe for success if you add a dash of decent goaltending.

But what is it that will put the Hurricanes over the top? How can this team go from another year spent as an also-ran to a drought-busting wild-card club?

First, Carolina is going to need to find some finish. That’s the greatest area of concern right now. The Hurricanes are piling up the shots, but while similar possession clubs such as the Sharks and Leafs and Lightning boast team-wide shooting percentages over and above 8.5 percent, Carolina is mired in the NHL’s basement when it comes to shooting success at

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6.3 percent. Insert your Jeff Skinner jokes here, sure, but the Hurricanes have pieces — Micheal Ferland? Dougie Hamilton? — that could be used as trade bait to land a pure scorer. Adding a talent who can fill the net with some consistency is maybe the only real tweak this roster needs right now in their pursuit of a wild-card spot.

But the other, arguably more important piece of the puzzle is going to be out of the Hurricanes’ hands: some help. With four points separating Carolina from the Montreal Canadiens, who currently sit second in the Eastern Conference wild-card, the Hurricanes are going to need to make up some ground in the second half on not just the Habs, but also the wild-card contending Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders. The good news? Carolina has three games in the

offing against those wild-card competitors — two against Buffalo, one against Montreal — and that’s one fast way to overtake the two contenders. The bad? The Hurricanes’ schedule isn’t all that much easier than that of Montreal, Buffalo or New York. No relative freebies is going to mean Carolina has to scratch and claw the rest of the way.

It’s not going to be easy for the Hurricanes to snap their post-season drought, and a rough stretch throughout the month of December put them in a tough spot. Rattling off seven wins in their past eight games has Carolina right back in the conversation, though, and if the goaltending can hold and we see more of the same Hurricanes team that took it to the Predators Sunday night, maybe, finally, this can be the year.

Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Rangers: Game Preview and Storm Advisory

The Carolina Hurricanes look to keep the ball rolling tonight with their first matchup of the season in historic Madison Square Garden.

By Andrew Ahr

Carolina Hurricanes (22-18-5) vs. New York Rangers (18-20-7)

Tuesday, January 14, 2019 - 7:00 PM ET

The Hurricanes take on a divisional foe in the New York Rangers tonight, their second matchup of the season as the Canes try to build on a strong start to the new year.

Vital Statistics

Category Hurricanes Rangers

Record 22-18-5 18-20-7

Points 49 43

Division Rank 5 Metro 6 Metro

Conference Rank 10 EC 11 EC

Last 10 Games 7-3-0 3-6-1

Streak Won 2 Lost 1

Category Hurricanes Rangers

Goals/Game 2.71 2.69

Goals Against/Game 2.84 3.44

Shots/Game 35.9 28.1

Shots Against/Game 28.2 33.5

Faceoff % 49.6% 47.9%

Power Play % (Rank) 17.0% (23) 18.6% (17)

Penalty Kill % (Rank) 80.7% (12) 76.6% (26)

ES Corsi For % 55.09% 45.46%

ES PDO 98.2 99.6

PIM/Game 7:41 10:10

Goaltender #1

Category Petr Mrazek Henrik Lundqvist

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Category Petr Mrazek Henrik Lundqvist

Record 9-9-2 12-12-7

Save % .901 .907

GAA 2.67 3.08

Goaltender #2

Category Curtis McElhinney Alexandar Georgiev

Record 11-5-1 6-8-0

Save % .921 .895

GAA 2.3 3.43

Game Notes

Tonight’s tilt is the second of four this season between the Rangers and the Hurricanes, and the first of two between the teams at Madison Square Garden.

The Canes took down the Rangers in Raleigh on October 8th by a score of 8-5. The teams will finish out their season series in early February with two more games.

The Hurricanes’ big offensive win in October was fueled by three point games from Warren Foegele (2g, 1a), Jordan

Staal (1g, 2a) and Justin Williams (3a), as well as Andrei Svechnikov’s first NHL goal.

The Rangers ride a 15-game winning streak on their home ice against the Hurricanes coming into tonight’s game, their longest home winning streak against any team in franchise history. On top of that impressive streak, the Rangers have won 25 of their last 30 matchups against Carolina.

For perspective, the last time the Hurricanes won in Manhattan, Rod Brind’Amour was only a few months removed from retiring as an active player and Andrei Svechnikov was ten years old.

Justin Williams has scored a goal in five consecutive games, becoming just the sixth player in NHL history to earn a streak of that nature after turning 37 years old. Can you guess the other four?

Storm Advisory

This is a good one.

The Ducks sent Andrew Cogliano to the Stars for Devin Shore. [TSN]

Phil Di Giuseppe is on waivers again.

The Hurricanes are getting some national media recognition for the victory celebrations. Here’s a power ranking of all the Storm Surges thus far this season. [Pro Hockey Talk]

Martin Necas was recognized in the latest Prospect Profile.

Ron Francis discusses his transition away from the game with his new job as a real estate broker. [WRAL Sports Fan]

In case you missed it yesterday, John Forslund has been selected as the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year. A well deserved honor for one of the best in the business. [Us]

John Forslund named North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year

The Canes’ beloved play-by-play man receives one of his profession’s top honors.

By Brian LeBlanc

Carolina Hurricanes fans have long known that they have been fortunate to have nothing but longtime broadcast professionals calling their games since the team’s move to North Carolina. On Monday, their opinion of John Forslund was validated with a well-deserved honor.

Forslund, the television voice of the Hurricanes franchise since 1994, was named the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sports Media Association, the NSMA announced as part of its annual award announcements. It’s the first such award for Forslund in his NHL career, and the second for the Hurricanes; former radio play-by-play man Chuck Kaiton was the 2015 winner of the same award.

However, Forslund is no stranger to awards and recognition for his work. He was named the 1989 Ken McKenzie Award winner for the top publicist/announcer in the American Hockey League. His work has been recognized with increasing visibility on national broadcasts of NHL games on NBC and NBCSN, and he is widely considered one of the top

candidates as the eventual replacement for Mike Emrick, who was named to the NSMA Hall of Fame today, as the lead broadcaster for the NHL on NBC.

For more on the meticulous preparation process that Forslund undertakes before broadcasting a game, see Canes Country’s 2015 profile of Forslund. Unsurprisingly for the rarely-idle broadcaster, Forslund will celebrate his award by calling four games in four days from four cities: yesterday in Raleigh, tonight in Boston, tomorrow in Manhattan, and Wednesday in Philadelphia.

The Hurricanes release is below.

FORSLUND NAMED N.C. SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR National Sports Media Association tabs ‘Canes play-by-play man as state’s best

The National Sports Media Association announced today that Carolina Hurricanes play-by-play announcer John Forslund has been selected as the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year.

Forslund is in his 24th season as the television play-by-play voice with the Hurricanes franchise and his 28th year overall with the club. He first joined the Hartford Whalers in 1991 as

CAROLINA HURRICANES


public relations director and took over television play-by-play duties in the 1994-95 season. Prior to joining the organization, Forslund spent seven seasons handling broadcast duties for the American Hockey League’s Springfield Indians from 1984-91. In 1989, he was named the

winner of the Ken McKenzie Award, given annually to the top publicist/announcer in the AHL. In addition to calling Hurricanes games on FOX Sports Carolinas, Forslund also serves as a play-by-play announcer for nationally-televised games on the NBC family of networks.

Behind Enemy Lines: Previewing the Rangers, Senators and Oilers

A three-game week, including the final home game before the All-Star break, awaits the suddenly hot Canes.

By Andy House

New York Rangers

Tuesday, 7:00 p.m. at Madison Square Garden

The Carolina Hurricanes enter Tuesday night’s tilt with the New York Rangers on an incomprehensible 15-game losing streak at Madison Square Garden. They will look to rewrite a terrible history at the Garden as they enter Tuesday having won seven of their previous eight games to claw within four points of a playoff spot.

The Rangers will renew acquaintances with the Canes as they attempt to combat a losing spell that has seen them drop six of their past seven. They have slid to a full ten points out of a playoff spot after beginning the year in promising fashion in what was billed by many as a transition season.

As expected, offense has been a bit of a challenge for the Blueshirts as they currently stand 22nd in the league in scoring. The lack of a prime offensive star has forced the Rangers to rely on a balanced attack, but the depth that has been required has fallen short to date. Mika Zibanejad currently leads the Rangers with 37 points, followed closely by Chris Kreider (33 points), who far and away leads the Rangers with 21 goals. Kreider is on pace for career highs in both goals and points, but at 27, his expanded role in the offense has been more of a sign of talent lost across the board than of an uptick in true productivity.

While the Rangers are gaining valuable experience for players such as Filip Chytil (19 years-old), Brett Howden (20 years-old), and Pavel Buchnevich (23 years-old), that trio has only been able to produce 44 points (18 goals, 26 assists) despite a total of 117 games played as a group.

When you combine the lack of offensive firepower with a defense that has allowed the sixth-most goals in the NHL, you get a recipe for real struggles. Despite the presence of a few veteran stalwarts on the blueline (Kevin Shattenkirk, Marc Staal and Adam McQuaid), the softer underbelly of the defensive unit has continued to expose an aging Henrik Lundqvist to the fifth-most shots against. Despite that barrage, Lundqvist has maintained a respectable .907 save percentage, while allowing a shade over three goals per game.

For the Hurricanes to break their streak at MSG, they must continue to produce offense with all four lines as they have done in their recent stretch of good hockey. With depth a concern, especially on the blueline, for the Rangers, the third and fourth lines for Carolina should have ample opportunity. Can they continue to cash in?

What to Watch For

Kevin Hayes has been out for close to two weeks with an upper body injury. He is tied for second in points (33 points), and the offensive starved Rangers could certainly use him. Will he return for Tuesday’s tilt?

With a well-spaced week of games, how will Rod Brind’Amour handle his goalie situation for the week?

Ottawa Senators

Friday, 7:30 p.m. at PNC Arena

The Hurricanes will host the Ottawa Senators in their final home date of January on Friday, in what is the Sens’ only trip to Raleigh this season. The Canes do so after visiting the Senators just over a week ago in the Canadian capital. For a deeper look at the Sens roster, check out that recent Behind Enemy Lines for a rundown.

Since the Canes last saw Ottawa on January 6th, the Sens were finally able to end their losing streak at eight games, actually picking up a pair of wins during their California road trip. Despite their breakthrough, the Senators still sit at the bottom of the Atlantic Division and are only one point ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers for the cellar in the Eastern Conference. While a talent deficiency has been evident on the blueline all season (the Sens are last in the league in goals against), the injury last Sunday to their most talented defenseman, Thomas Chabot (38 points in 38 games), has left an even bigger void in front of the revolving door that has occupied the net when Craig Anderson has been unable to.

As the season moves toward the All-Star break, decisions are bound to be made regarding a number of older players on the Sens roster. A high number of attractive forwards (Mark Stone, Mikkel Boedker, Chris Tierney, Ryan Dzingel, and others) could potentially be had for the right price, as the Sens close the book on competing in 2019. Changes are most certainly expected. The only question is how much value the Sens can extract.

For Carolina, the solid, tight hockey which they have played over the past two weeks is the exact prescription for a Friday night result in front of the home faithful. If they are unable to provide that some type of quality, the Sens certainly have enough offensive firepower (12th in offense) to create serious problems.

What to Watch For

If the Canes seek offensive help at the trade deadline, Ottawa could perhaps be a worthy trading partner for bottom-six reinforcements. Keep an eye on players like Ryan Dzingel or perhaps even a higher-end option such as the ever-elusive Matt Duchene. Who knows what can happen, should the Canes continue their winning ways?

CAROLINA HURRICANES


Craig Anderson continues to battle concussion symptoms as the week begins. Should he not be able to return by Friday, expect Anders Nilsson in the first of what is a back-to-back for the Sens.

Edmonton Oilers

Sunday, 9:30 p.m. at Rogers Place

The Hurricanes will leave after Friday for a Western Canada trip that will conclude the “first half” of the season. The trip commences with a trip to Edmonton to take on Connor McDavid and the Oilers.

After replacing Todd McLellan behind the bench with veteran coach Ken Hitchcock, the Oilers have practically seen the same results, as they have managed a 21-21-3 record to date. Despite having possibly the best player on the planet in Connor McDavid, the Oilers have struggled to put up consistent offense. Ranked 22nd in offense, the Oilers’ attack is basically distilled down to McDavid, Leon Draisaitl (54 points), and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (40 points). While depth is the clear concern for such a top-heavy roster, seeing players such as former Hurricane great Ty Rattie playing directly alongside McDavid points to the dire situation in terms of roster depth for the Oilers.

Defensively, while Hitchcock has brought in his usual defensive philosophy, the Oilers continue struggle to keep opponents out of the net as well. Ranked 22nd in goals against, the Oilers have seen their former number one netminder Cam Talbot basically relegated to a time-share at

best with Mikko Koskinen. Koskinen has been far superior on the year, as his .913 save percentage out-rates Talbot by 17 points, including three shutout in just 21 starts. With a damaged defensive unit (Andrej Sekera yet to play a game, Oscar Klefbom nursing a hand injury, and Alexander Petrovic dealing with a concussion), the Oilers must score at a greater pace in order to pick up the slack.

Despite the concerns, the wild card spots in the Western Conference are very much up for grabs with the Oilers just two points out of the final spot despite their .500 record. Can McDavid put this team on his back to carry them to the playoffs? It will be interesting to see how the season plays out and how the results affect the decisions going forward on the roster, behind the bench, and in the front office.

What to Watch For

This is said every time the Canes matchup with the Oilers, but watch the speed and fluidity of McDavid. It is second to none. The past matchups have featured great play between McDavid and Jaccob Slavin. Keep an eye on that high-end action.

The Hurricanes special teams have taken a step forward recently, and the power play particularly has seen some increased success. The Oilers penalty kill sits 25th in the league. Watch for Carolina to continue that success if they can earn a few opportunities.

About Last Night: Aho, Williams, Ferland, Hurricanes stay hot

Thanks to Sebastian Aho’s second career hat trick and a continued hot streak from Justin Williams and Micheal Ferland, the Canes have won seven of eight games and are right in the thick of the wild card hunt.

By Andrew Schnittker

With a 6-3 win over the Nashville Predators Sunday, the Hurricanes are red hot. Behind the hot hands of Sebastian Aho, Justin Williams and Micheal Ferland, the team won for the seventh time in eight games and is now just four points out of a wild card spot.

While the Canes have some big decisions to make in the near future, the present sure has been a lot of fun. Here’s a few key takeaways from the win.

Oh captain, my captain

With a power-play goal against the Preds Sunday, Williams is officially red hot. He’s got goals in five straight games, which ties a career high, and points in seven straight.

Earlier in the season, as Williams’ numbers took a dive in November and December, it was fair to wonder if he’d seriously lost a step. Williams had just three goals and six points in both of those months. So far in January he already has five goals and six points in just six games.

The Canes’ captain certainly looks capable of leading the charge by example down the stretch.

Decisions, decisions

The Hurricanes finally have what they’ve been looking for in a goalscoring power forward to play on the top line. Micheal Ferland has a goal and four assists in two games since being returned to the team’s top line with Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen.

The trio seems to have great chemistry, and Ferland’s hard-nosed style is ideal for finishing the chances Aho and Teravainen create. Ferland even took down Preds forward Austin Watson with a three-punch KO in the first period.

Unfortunately, the clock may be ticking on his time with the Canes.

He’s going to be an unrestricted free agent after the season, and, per reports, the two parties are not close on an extension and Ferland could be traded.

Brett and I will both have more to say on this subject this week, but there’s a massive decision coming for the Hurricanes’ brain trust.

First-line center

Say it with me. The Carolina Hurricanes have a number one center. Say it with me again. The Carolina Hurricanes have a number one center.

CAROLINA HURRICANES


With his second career hat trick (a goal at even strength, on the power play and shorthanded), Sebastian Aho is now at 21 goals and 51 points in 45 games this season. He’s in the top 20 in points and top 25 in goals.

And Aho has been doing that playing center all season for the first time in his career. He’s not just playing in the middle,

he’s thriving doing it. For so long, the discussion around the Hurricanes has been that they needed that top-line, point-producing center.

In Aho, they appear to have just that.

TODAY’S LINKS https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/article224524795.html

https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/canes-now/article224532865.html https://theathletic.com/764591/2019/01/14/state-of-the-canes-the-curse-of-the-bounces-and-the-team-that-keeps-trying/

https://theathletic.com/761041/2019/01/15/pronman-midseason-nhl-prospect-ranking/ https://www.wralsportsfan.com/gold-canes-hoping-to-end-one-streak-and-continue-another/18124861/

https://www.nhl.com/hurricanes/news/gameday-preview-carolina-hurricanes-new-york-rangers/c-303889642 https://www.nhl.com/news/sebastian-aho-hat-trick-sparks-carolina-facts-and-figures/c-303876226

https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/vegas-golden-knights-alex-tuch-takeaways/ https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2019/01/14/pht-power-rankings-ranking-the-hurricanes-victory-celebrations/

https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/struggling-rangers-have-history-on-their-side-vs-canes/ https://thehockeynews.com/news/article/the-hurricanes-are-proving-they-have-what-it-takes-to-snap-their-nine-year-playoff-drought https://www.canescountry.com/2019/1/15/18182703/carolina-hurricanes-vs-new-york-rangers-game-preview-statistics-notes-links

https://www.canescountry.com/2019/1/14/18182813/john-forslund-carolina-hurricanes-north-carolina-sports-broadcaster-year-national-sports-media https://www.canescountry.com/2019/1/14/18182024/behind-enemy-lines-previewing-new-york-rangers-ottawa-senators-edmonton-oilers

https://www.canescountry.com/2019/1/14/18181670/carolina-hurricanes-nashville-predators-justin-williams-sebastian-aho-micheal-ferland

CAROLINA HURRICANES


1125964 Carolina Hurricanes

‘It’s the NHL. Games just keep coming.’ Is Canes rookie Andrei Svechnikov hitting the wall?

BY CHIP ALEXANDER

RALEIGH-Is Andrei Svechnikov hitting the wall?

The proverbial wall, that is. That invisible barrier that rookies in the NHL inevitably encounter, physically and emotionally.

Svechnikov has been in the Carolina Hurricanes’ lineup since opening night. The Russian forward, the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, has gotten a lot of ice time and been constantly tested as opponents gauge both the 18-year-old’s skills and his toughness -- a blindside hit by Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals comes to mind -- while probing for weaknesses in his game.

A year ago, with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League, Svechnikov played 44 games in the regular season, missing a chunk of games with a wrist injury. He now has played the first 45 games for the Hurricanes, at the highest level of hockey.

“It’s the NHL. Games just keep coming,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said.

And the wall?

“I think every young guy hits it at some point,” Brind’Amour said. “There’s some ups and downs in his game for sure and we’re talking about that. You’ve got to manage that. I know one thing, being there myself, you have to show confidence in them.”

Svechnikov shrugs off the notion that the wear and tear of the NHL season is beginning to creep in and have an effect, saying Monday, “No, physically I feel great.”

But his offensive production has slowed significantly. Svechnikov has 11 goals, tied for second among NHL rookies, but the last came New Year’s Eve against the Philadelphia Flyers. The last of his eight assists came in the Dec. 14 game against the Capitals.

He now has gone 11 of the past 12 games without a point, including all seven in 2019.

“It’s a long year and when you come in it’s just a grind,” said Canes forward Jordan Martinook, who has played something of a big-brother role for the rookie. “And especially what we’re in now, playing a ton of hockey. For you to be able to mentally bring yourself to that level of play every night, I feel it takes more than 30 or 40 games to have the mindset you have to be ‘on’ every night.

“He still is impactful in games, still skating well, but I feel like sometimes he’s almost trying to do too much. If he’s not involved with the score sheet he might be trying to make that one extra play. We don’t want to take his skill set away from him but there are times when there might be an easier play to be made.”

Another problem: Svechnikov has a proclivity for taking too many penalties. His 21 minor penalties and 42 penalty minutes lead the Canes and are second among NHL rookies.

“It’s just crazy,” Svechnikov said. “I feel bad for that.”

Carolina Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov, the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, said it was "super cool" to score his first NHL goal in an 8-5 win over the New York Rangers and the first goal for a NHL player born in the 2000's,

Brind’Amour said the two have talked at length about how to resolve the penalty issue although conceding, “Not very well, apparently, because he keeps on getting them. I think the more we talk about it the worse it gets.”

In the Dec. 27 game against the Caps, Svechnikov was about to step out of the penalty box when the puck was being played just outside the open door. He instinctively reached out his stick and touched it -- another penalty for interference. All he could was turn around and sit down for another two minutes in the box.

In last week’s road game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Svechnikov was called for slashing in the second period, then for hooking in the third with the Canes holding on to a 1-0 lead against the league’s best team. The Canes killed off the first penalty, but Tampa Bay tied the score on a power play after the second.

Later, a slashing penalty on the Canes’ Greg McKegg resulted in another Tampa Bay power-play score as the Lightning went on to win 3-1, ending the Canes’ five-game winning streak.

“The momentum just flipped, like a switch,” Brind’Amour said of the penalties.

Brind’Amour said Svechnikov’s defense often has been that the other team is doing the same things, getting the stick up on him, and no penalties are called.

“And it’s true,” Brind’Amour said. “But rookies don’t get those (calls). He has to understand that part of it, that he can’t get away with anything.”

Svechnikov said Monday he has gotten the message and does understand, saying, “I must keep my stick down.”

Through the season Martinook, 26, has tried to keep Svechnikov loose but also focused and on-point. Playfully bang him to boards in practice, in warmups. Maybe babble some Russian at him in the locker room. Pump him up in games.

“I’m a rookie and when he sees I’m down a little he’s like, ‘Hey, Svech, let’s go, do your job,’” Svechnikov said, smiling. “He’s a high-energy guy.”

No one questions Svechnikov’s energy or work habits. He was out early Monday before practice as Brind’Amour helped him on his shot release, and stayed late with forward Warren Foegele taking more shots.

Martinook said his objective with Svechnikov remains a simple one, saying, “When he’s smiling he’s playing loose and playing like he can. When you’re an offensive guy and struggling to put points up, you’ve still got to come and have fun. I want to keep him there so he can take off again.”

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News Observer LOADED: 01.15.2019


Canes’ John Forslund named NC sportscaster of year

BY CHIP ALEXANDER

RALEIGH-Hey, hey, whaddya say, John Forslund has a big award coming his way.

The Carolina Hurricanes play-by-play announcer has been named the North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sports Media Association, it was announced Monday.

Forslund is in his 24th season as the TV play-by-play man for the Hurricanes and his 28th year overall with the franchise. He joined the Hartford Whalers in 1991 as public relations director and became the TV play-by-play man in the 1994-95 season, moving to North Carolina when franchise was relocated in 1997 and renamed the Carolina Hurricanes.

Forslund also works nationally televised games for the NBC sports network.

Forslund spent seven seasons handling broadcast duties for the American Hockey League’s Springfield Indians from 1984-91. He was the winner of the 1989 Ken McKenzie Award, given annually to the top publicist/announcer in the AHL.

News Observer LOADED: 01.15.2019


State of the Canes: The curse of the bounces and the team that keeps trying

By Sara Civian Jan 14, 2019

Cliches are a given in most NHL interviews, but it’s not because hockey players are dumb. They’re just too polite to tell you to screw off when you ask them something dumb, so responding with something equally dumb is the next best thing.

It happens so often that the league compiled a video in which stars like Marc-Andre Fleury and Jack Eichel revealed their favorite cliches. Somehow, the one thrown around the Hurricanes locker room every single night didn’t make the cut.

Bounces, folks. We’re always talking bounces.

Bad bounces are the default culprit after Canes losses when they outperform their opponent (which, if you’re keeping track, is most of them). But then the talk of bounces doesn’t go away when the Canes win.

“So you guys aren’t just saying this?” I asked a couple Canes throughout their most recent win streak, some away from the cameras. “You really do believe in the bounces and the bad luck stuff?”

It turns out some of them really, really do.

And there’s comfort in the fact that at some point they made a group decision to stay the course. If they could just keep outperforming teams, if they could just keep shooting the puck despite the worst NHL shooting percentage in a decade, then regression to the mean had to be inevitable.

The bounces would come. Then the goals would come, then the wins would come, then the …

Wait, what?

Don’t look now but the Canes have won seven of their past eight games, they’re getting the puck in the net with ease and they’re three points back of Buffalo and four back of Montreal with a game in hand in the playoff race.

WIN OVER NASHVILLE MAKES CAROLINA MORE LIKELY TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS THAN NOT.

— MICAH BLAKE MCCURDY (@INEFFECTIVEMATH) JANUARY 13, 2019

Best part is, there’s no grand explanation except these vague bounces they’ve been going on about. Maybe this team and its sometimes-cursed-sometimes-beloved bounces have no place on that cliche video because it’s the same story when the cameras are on and when they’re off.

“(We’re) just sticking to the game plan,” Micheal Ferland said with his daughter in his arms after tallying two assists and one KO against Nashville. “We haven’t changed the way we played. We’re still shooting the puck. Roddy told us to change nothing, just keep playing the way we’re playing.

He paused. …

“And we’re finally getting bounces.”

If you ask Brind’Amour about the bounces, he’ll give you the same knowing chuckle he gave about how Justin Williams is proving people wrong with his career-high five-game goal streak.

THIS IS THE BEST “I WAS RIGHT Y’ALL WERE WRONG” IN A MINUTE PIC.TWITTER.COM/O8EMOEI6O2

— SARA CIV (@SARACIVIAN) JANUARY 12, 2019

So, how about Williams?

CHANGING THE CULTURE PIC.TWITTER.COM/40XVEFG2JR

— TOM DUNDON (@TDCANES) JANUARY 13, 2019

“Yeah. I mean what else can you say about him? I’ve said it all along,” Brind’Amour smirked after Carolina’s win over Buffalo. “I haven’t wavered a bit. I knew what we were getting out of him. He’s going to have some stinker games, just like all of us, but he keeps playing every shift. He’s consistent and that’s why he’s a pro, he has been his whole career and he’s leading this team that way. Every day he comes to the rink and does it the same way — no excuses good or bad, he gives you everything he has. That’s all we ask from all of our guys.”

Brind’Amour has maintained this confidence in his team win or lose, so long as they stick to the game plan. They’re gonna do them whether you like it or not. Brock McGinn is going to hit 25 goal posts, give the acting performance it seems he’s been waiting for his whole life as Thor in the Storm Surge, then he’ll finally score the next game.

Luck, Thor voodoo, Finnish coffee, black jerseys (7-0-2), Greg McKegg? Whatever turns the tides of the mysterious bounces, the Canes “haven’t wavered a bit” in the hard work that creates them in the first place, give or take a handful of games.

Even if these bounces are ultimately puppets of the Hockey Gods, you have to create them from the right spots to nudge them in a

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good direction. The Canes have been doing that all season — it’s what they mean when they say nothing’s changed.

They’re first in the NHL in both shot quantity and quality, despite a league-worst shooting percentage. They also boast a league-leading 510 high-danger chances (per Natural Stat Trick). While some of us have been knee deep in conspiracy theories in an attempt to explain how this is happening, the team generally surrendered to the bounces.

Now the Hurricanes have been regressing to the mean, scoring at least three goals in each of their past seven wins.

“It’s the same players, it’s the same system,” Sebastian Aho reiterated after the Canes’ 6-3 win over Nashville. “Maybe we’re doing the little details better now, but we’re doing it right all the time.”

As for his second-career hat trick, achieved in a matinee? He turned to coffee, something he and his countrymen often do.

“(I had) a lot,” he laughed. “It was an early game. Had a few extra cups to wake up.”

How many times have the 2018-19 Carolina Hurricanes attempted and failed on breakaways? So what, they’d tell you, the process doesn’t change. Aho’s still out there breaking away, and apparently he got there just in time for a “good bounce.”

One good bounce on the power play, one at even strength, and one on the penalty kill.

The People’s 21-year-old All-Star has 14 goals and 25 points in his past 18 games — two on the power play, three shorthanded, nine even strength.

If Brind’Amour is going around praising someone’s conditioning like he does Aho’s, you know it must be all-strengths legit.

When asked about his penalty kill prowess, Aho contested that actually he and the team could be better.

It’s fun to watch him grow into stardom.

• Try and tell me Ferland isn’t secretly launching a full-blown presidential campaign.

A quick rundown of his accomplishments since returning to Aho’s wing Friday night: First career three-point night against Buffalo, two more assists against Nashville including a delicious backhand feed, one bounce short of a Gordie Howe hat trick, an old school uppercut to the jaw that knocked a villain out and made PNC Arena the loudest it’s been this season.

Then the man who just took Austin Watson down in three punches came out for the postgame presser with his adorable daughter.

“YOU DON’T LIKE IT WHEN DADDY FIGHTS, DO YOU?” PIC.TWITTER.COM/HT7TZVGBRK

— SARA CIV (@SARACIVIAN) JANUARY 13, 2019

He’s either running for office or getting paid. If the Hurricanes end up trading him closer to the deadline, which seems likely, at least he’s putting on one hell of a farewell tour.

• Andrei Svechnikov has hit his rookie wall, and that’s fine. Almost every rookie has to deal with that at some point. Brind’Amour said he remembers almost crying when he hit his. It’s important someone like Svechnikov realizes the team is capable of winning without the weight of the world on his shoulders, so good for the team for not losing right now. It’s only a matter of time until we’re looking back laughing at the fact that this kid really managed to get a penalty while still in the penalty box. It’s obviously not great that he’s leading the league in stick penalties right now, but part of it is Brind’Amour has started trusting him to unleash the Svech factor — he’s gotta make some mistakes if he’s gonna learn how to alter his game to fit

this league full-time. Referees are also extra hard on rookies. It’ll be OK.

Just promise me some of you will remember how hard you criticized Brind’Amour for not putting him on the first line early on. I have a feeling we’ll be using his “I’ve said it all along” soundbite often through the course of his head coaching career.

BEST BUDS � PIC.TWITTER.COM/TBLYCY0MOS

— CAROLINA HURRICANES (@NHLCANES) JANUARY 13, 2019

• The Hurricanes staff went on a two-game coaches challenge win streak last week, which is kind of insane. Two important goals were overturned. Tripp Tracy said on the broadcast that they’re a tight-knit crew. Chris Huffine and L.J. Scarpace are the video coaches, and goalie coach Mike Bales (who is doing a great job with goaltending decisions) was a factor in one of the offsides challenges. I told Brind’Amour there had never been such an appreciation for video coaches in my comments.

“Every team has those guys, they’re behind the scenes working like dogs,” he said. “They’re putting in so much time and energy, and obviously on those calls it’s imperative they get it right — especially on the offsides ones (or suffer a penalty). There’s a lot of pressure behind there, believe it or not, but they’ve done a nice job obviously.”

• The Hurricanes head to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, where they’ve lost 15 consecutive games. Those were darker times, though. Greg McKegg was just a twinkle in Ron Francis’ eye.

The Athletic LOADED: 01.15.2019


Micheal Ferland is looking for a ‘significant’ raise. Will the Hurricanes pay the price?

By Sara Civian Jan 13, 2019

Manitoba-born Micheal Ferland stood in front of multiple cameras in Winnipeg back in October. He had just scored the lone goal in the Hurricanes’ losing effort — a net-front tap in that showcased his finishing touch, the one this team was missing.

A Jets reporter asked him about the trade that sent him, Dougie Hamilton and prospect Adam Fox to the Hurricanes over the summer.

He thought about it for a while, then he said something completely unprompted.

“I would love to stay in Carolina.”

This is the kind of statement you hear all the time and barely bat an eyelash at. It’s no rarity for an NHL player to dish out a feel-good answer to a feel-good question regardless of the truth. Raleigh is also a great city to live in.

But no one even asked, and his delivery made you sure that he meant what he said.

He’s also a power forward about to hit the free agency market in what will be the best opportunity of his career for a big payday.

He probably does love Carolina. He would probably love to get paid in his prime, too. Who can blame him?

The 26-year-old heavy left winger has found success at Sebastian Aho’s side this season, providing physicality and killer instinct to

CAROLINA HURRICANES


complement high-end talent as he did in Calgary with Johnny Gaudreau.

“It’s never enough for those guys,” Ferland said of Gaudreau and Aho after Carolina’s win Friday. “You’ll get some scoring chances, then the next shift Fishy is yelling down your throat ‘Get the puck in, let’s go, let’s keep it going.’ It’s what makes them special.”

His 13 goals, 10 assists and grit have been special in their own right for the Hurricanes through 37 games played. He did have a goal-scoring drought from the end of November through December, but he’d been struggling with the pace of the game after spending a significant amount of time sidelined with a concussion — and he’d been floating around on the second and third lines. He told me he was finally starting to feel 100 percent again after the game in Washington on Dec. 27, then he scored his first goal in more than a month four games later in the Hurricanes’ all-important win over the Blue Jackets.

He looked more like 1,000 percent against the Sabres on Friday. As rumors about his pending free agency continued swirling, he got his spot next to Aho back and responded with his first career three-point game (1 goal, 2 assists). Of course, it was great, but add it to the list of things this fan base has to hold its breath about with cautious enjoyment — on the night of Jeff Skinner’s return, no less.

Will Ferland go the same “can’t lose him for nothing” direction as Skinner?

The Hurricanes obviously love what he has brought to the table at $1.75 million AAV. They’re also aware he’s due for a bigger paycheck, one they’d be willing to give to a certain extent. I’m told he’s asking for a “significant” raise that sounds like it’s at least in the ballpark of Tom Wilson’s $5.17 million AAV, though the term — which could be the biggest issue — is unclear.

I’ve also heard that the two camps haven’t communicated “for some time,” and last time they did they were not on the same page about Ferland’s deal. A player like Ferland could potentially get paid what he wants elsewhere, so it makes sense that he and his camp keep pushing and want to explore the possibilities. It’s not like the Canes and their well-documented playoff drought are in a position where they can ask him to take one for the team.

Things are rarely set in stone until the last second in this business — Ferland’s camp and the Canes could always still get together and reach an agreement. As it stands right now, though, my sense is moving Ferland is much more of a “when” than “if” situation, one that will unfold before the Feb. 25 trade deadline.

There are plenty of valid complaints surrounding trading Ferland, but personally I’d hold off on them until we see all of this play out. As frustrating as the idea of trading an actual goal-scorer must be for any fan of this team, as desperately as you want the Hurricanes to just pay someone, anyone, who provides an X factor, there’s more to it.

The Athletic‘s Pierre LeBrun reported the initial ask for Ferland sounds like a first and a prospect, and with the way he’s been playing that isn’t totally out of the question. You know there are some … interesting … general managers out there as well. A first round pick for a player who could walk is an offer a non-Stanley Cup contending team probably can’t refuse, right?

We also can’t ignore The Athletic‘s Jeremy Rutherford’s reports that the Blues have had “significant talks” with Carolina and Vladimir Tarasenko’s name has been involved. He said Dougie Hamilton “makes sense” but he’s also heard the Blues have interest in Justin Faulk.

If the Canes can pull off a trade for Tarasenko, trading Ferland stings much less — especially with the looming possibility that he could walk in the offseason. Of course, it’ll sting regardless, as he’s has been a fan favorite since Day One, and there’s gotta be a

German word for how you feel watching former Hurricanes tear it up elsewhere.

But for the Hurricanes, it might be coming down to what owner Tom Dundon told me last week while we were discussing something completely unrelated.

“Whatever the perception is, my job is to make sure we’re not over- or under-valuing emotions,” he said. “(I’m here to) provide resources, ask questions, and hopefully, as an organization, everyone feels empowered to have an opinion. ... We have to be very careful not to let short-term results affect our long-term plans.”

The short-term suggests Ferland has been an awesome addition to the first line, emotions suggest he’s a fun player everyone loves watching with an inspiring backstory. Long-term plans include the need to sign Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen and some yet-to-be-determined goalie.

It seems both the Canes and Ferland are right at the intersection of the short- and the long-term on their respective paths. The Canes are back on the fringe of the playoff bubble with six wins in seven games. Meanwhile, Ferland loves playing for them by all accounts, but also is thinking about his family and his future.

This is where the hardest decisions happen all around. There’s a chance their plans could still include each other, but as of today it’s more likely they don’t.


1126038 NHL

Outdoor NHL game in Seattle? As good a chance as the new team being named ‘Kraken’

Geoff Baker

Oh well, as Meat Loaf might have sung back in the day — two out of three ain’t bad for this city when it comes to major NHL events.

Then again, Meat Loaf was more into baseball metaphors for his songs than hockey. So, perhaps a couple of indoor NHL events coming this way won’t totally make up for an apparent Seattle rain snub when it comes to the league’s most prestigious outdoor showcase.

On a swing through town last week, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman promised our city will play host to an All-Star Game within seven years of a team launching. Bettman also proclaimed we’ll likely get some type of draft held here before that.

But other than the dubious face he made when somebody suggested “Metropolitans” and “Kraken” as the new team’s name, the one idea Bettman seemed downright allergic to was Seattle staging what actually has become the league’s biggest one-off attraction: the annual Winter Classic.

That’s where you take two NHL teams, dress them up in retro uniforms and have them play an outdoor game in a football or baseball stadium. Sounds a little hokey, but it has become a hugely popular, driving force behind a nostalgia-based NHL marketing effort dating back more than a decade.

The outdoor games aren’t all called Winter Classic, though it has become the colloquial term of choice for NHL contests not taking place in an actual hockey arena. For official purposes, the Winter Classic occurs around New Year’s Day in a general region that already has an NHL team. This year’s was at Notre Dame Stadium in Indiana, where the “hometown” Chicago Blackhawks played the Boston Bruins.

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Then, you also have the NHL Heritage Classic, held infrequently and only among Canadian teams. Also, there’s the NHL Stadium Series from late January through early March in a U.S. football or baseball stadium.

A little confusing, maybe, but don’t worry: We aren’t getting any of them. At least, that’s what Bettman seemed to suggest when asked.

“There are two things that are a problem for us with outdoor games … sun glare – well, that’s not a problem here – and rain,’’ said Bettman, motioning out some nearby windows to a steady downpour that had greeted most of his Seattle visit. “We can play in snow, but rain’s a problem. So, we’re going to have to study whether or not it’s feasible.’’

When an astute media member pointed out the newly named T-Mobile Park has a retractable roof, Bettman quickly shot back: “But then it’s not an outdoor game.’’

This isn’t the first time our city risks being passed over because of its wetter elements.

We were supposed to get a Super Bowl played at CenturyLink Field at some point, but that has never materialized. Five years ago, while in New York City before the Seahawks beating the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII in suburban New Jersey, I heard commissioner Roger Goodell say the league would consider future games in cold-weather cities.

“I was up in Seattle for the NFC Championship Game, and if you want to feel energy, you go up to Seattle,” Goodell told the nation’s media at his pregame address.

Some optimistic types back then pushing for a Super Bowl here by 2020 (it’s now booked solid through 2023) were even quoting weather averages, showing Seattle can be warmer than the New York area in early February. Alas, when I put the question to former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka, then an NFL Network analyst, he looked at me quizzically.

“Has it ever been dry up there?” he quipped, drawing laughs from those around us. “I’ve never been up there when it’s dry. Every time I’m there, it’s raining. It’s crazy. It’s a good city with good people, but it has a tendency to rain a lot.”

Ditka was partially kidding. But he nailed it when it comes to our city’s biggest weather drawback, especially for a hockey game outdoors.

It doesn’t matter that Boston might get more annual rainfall than we do. In hockey, even the slow drizzle or misty mornings that permeate our outdoors in non-summer months can wreak serious havoc on ice surfaces and pose a safety hazard to players.

So, that rules out CenturyLink Field or Husky Stadium for a hockey game. Sure, there’s previously been talk of staging an outdoor junior-hockey game at T-Mobile Park, but Bettman does have a point about a roof taking away some of the mystique.

These games, after all, are all about the nostalgia of outdoor hockey played a century ago on frozen Canadian ponds. The early “shinny” games in Ontario, Quebec and on the Prairies featured some snow and plenty of bone-chilling cold that players managed to suffer through and that the NHL apparently has no qualms about making its fans endure, either.

The first NHL outdoor contest was the 2003 Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, where the Oilers and Montreal Canadiens played in minus-2 degree weather in front of 57,237 fans. A snowstorm greeted the 2008 Winter Classic in Buffalo between the Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins in front of 71,217 fans at Ralph Wilson Stadium, in the first U.S. outdoor NHL game.

Having attended a late-January nighttime 2014 Stadium Series matchup at Yankee Stadium between the New York Rangers and

Islanders, where temperatures dropped to 1 degree with the wind chill, I can guarantee the league had fans suffering. I spoke to several of them in the outfield bleachers, huddled under communal blankets, teeth chattering – and claiming they loved every minute of it.

Putting them under a roof – even one with open-air sightlines – with temps in the 40s or 50s, isn’t quite the experience these events purport. So, that’s one hockey problem this city might have a tough time overcoming.

Sure, there’s time to convince the league of a different direction. After all, they played a 2014 Stadium Series game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles between the Kings and Anaheim Ducks in high-70s temperatures that weren’t exactly reminiscent of early Canadian shinny.

Then again, outdoor hockey in L.A. was a novelty in itself, owed largely to advanced refrigeration technology. Perhaps they’ll have developed a way to rainproof ice surfaces by the time our city gets around to seriously bidding on an outdoor game.

If not, we’ll likely have an NHL expansion draft to look forward to here by June 2021. And the only blankets you’ll need to bring will be for picnicking on the lawn outside KeyArena ahead of time.

Seattle Times LOADED: 01.15.2019

1126034 New York Rangers

Rangers call up a top prospect hoping to aid struggling defense

By Brett Cyrgalis January 14, 2019 | 11:58PM

Here comes a glimpse of the early returns as the Rangers believe defenseman Ryan Lindgren is ready for his look in the NHL, so they called him up from AHL Hartford on Monday and he is expected to play in Tuesday night’s Garden match against the Hurricanes.

Lindgren, 20, was part of the deal last season that sent Rick Nash to the Bruins. He was Boston’s 2016 second-round pick (No. 49 overall) and went on to spend two years at the University of Minnesota. He joined the Wolf Pack after his sophomore season, and after being in the Rangers’ training camp this year, the lefty shot has zero goals and five assists to go along with a plus-7 rating in 35 games.

But his game has always been predicated on playing an in-your-face defensive style, and despite his 6-foot, 200-pound frame, he has seemingly proven to the organization he’s ready for his look.

“I think that I can play at the NHL level,” Lindgren told The Post in Bridgeport in December. “I just have to keep working and hopefully I get my call to play up there and show them what I got.”

The Rangers played a woeful defensive game in Columbus on Sunday night, losing to the Blue Jackets, 7-5. Head coach David Quinn ripped his team, calling the effort “a joke.” It was their sixth loss in seven games.

It also happens that second-year defenseman Neal Pionk returned from a one-game absence due to a lower-body injury he has been playing through for a while, and he struggled. It seems unlikely he will be available — or they don’t want to rush him — to play Tuesday. Fellow righty shot Adam McQuaid is also considered day-to-day after he sat Sunday, having played the past 13 games following a six-week absence due to a lower-body injury.

Also, lefty shot defenseman Fredrick Claesson went for an MRI exam on Monday for an assumed right shoulder/arm injury and isn’t

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expected back until at least after the bye week, which finishes on Jan. 28.

Lindgren, a native of Burnsville, Minn., has represented the United States in two World Junior Championships, winning a gold in 2017 and a bronze in 2018. He came to the Blueshirts along with a first-round pick, Ryan Spooner (who then turned into Ryan Strome in a trade), veteran Matt Beleskey, and a seventh-round pick in 2019.

The Rangers made a minor league trade Monday, swapping forwards with the Predators by sending Cole Schneider to Nashville and getting Connor Brickley in return. Brickley, 26, has played in 39 games for Nashville’s AHL team this year, putting up seven goals and 11 points. The second-round pick (No. 50 overall) of the Panthers in 2010, Brickley played 44 games last season with Florida, and the Everett, Mass., native has played 67 career games in the NHL.

New York Post LOADED: 01.15.2019


Rangers’ response to coach’s frustration could define season

By Brett Cyrgalis January 14, 2019 | 10:42PM

There is certainly going to be some fallout from this radioactive explosion on the part of Rangers coach David Quinn coming Sunday night in Columbus. It was a defining moment of Quinn’s early tenure behind the Blueshirts bench, just over the halfway mark of Year 1.

During his scathing diatribe following the 7-5 loss to the Blue Jackets, Quinn called his team’s effort “just ridiculous” and “a freaking joke.” But now, where does that leave things as the bye week beckons starting Jan. 20, the trade deadline approaches Feb. 25, and months of Rangers hockey await a possible turn into a toxic environment of losing? What do they do to make sure the inevitable defeats that will continue to mount don’t poison the development of young players, which was the overarching point going into this season and for Quinn’s hire in the first place?

These are not easy questions to answer, but ones that have to be addressed by general manager Jeff Gorton, in concert with Quinn and his staff. For much of the first half of this season, the young group played hard for its new coach, even if the players were often overwhelmed by a discrepancy in talent and experience.

But the effort has come and gone over the past few weeks — a good 20 minutes here and there, and the occasional full-game performance, like the buttoned-up 2-1 win over the Islanders for the Blueshirts’ first win in Brooklyn on Saturday. But effort is the one thing Quinn has said is “non-negotiable,” and the inconsistency of that effort is far more disturbing than just losing.

Asked about that Sunday night, with the veins in his neck getting more and more pronounced, Quinn actually gave a rather even-keeled answer.

“I don’t think we’re physical enough,” he said after a quick moment of contemplation. “I don’t think we have enough grit when it comes to one-on-one battles. We’ve survived it. We’ve talked about it. We addressed it this morning. We’ll continue to address it.”

And that’s when Quinn went into the fact he wished the team could practice more because he wanted to “throw some pucks into a corner and see who comes out with it.” But this is not Boston University. This is the grind of the NHL season, with a necessary day off Monday, home games Tuesday and Thursday against the Hurricanes and Blackhawks, respectively, before a trip up to Boston

for a game against the Bruins on Saturday night. After that, his players flee to distant corners of the world — mostly, vacation in the Caribbean — for the five-day bye week that leads right into the All-Star break. Seven full days away from the rink before returning for what will likely be a screamer of a practice Jan. 28.

Maybe big decisions will have been made by then, like sending Filip Chytil back to AHL Hartford where the 19-year-old can play top-line minutes at his natural center position — if he still remembers how to do it after all these months playing wing in the NHL. Chytil continues to flash talent that is NHL-ready, like the great backhand seam pass he made to spring Jesper Fast on a breakaway against the Blue Jackets, or the game-tying goal he scored against the Islanders. But the points have been few and far between, and with those dips can easily go a young man’s confidence.

“I think most young players feel that way, they certainly judge all their success on points,” Quinn said in a much more subdued mood before the game on Sunday. “Like we’ve told all our guys — we want you to get points, we want you to score goals. But scoring is so hard at this level that we’ve got to understand that there are other things these guys have to take satisfaction in. The sooner that happens, I think the more productive you will be offensively, because there are so many more things at this level you have to do well in order to stay here and be productive.”

One of those things, picked at random, might be effort. Chytil’s talent level is undeniable, while his battle level has been inconsistent. But he’s 19 years old. What about the veterans who don’t have that level of talent and still aren’t putting forth the daily effort needed for this team to keep its morale above water?

That is what drew Quinn’s ire Sunday, and that is what led to a defining moment of this season. From here, it’s how the Rangers are going to respond that will dictate just how productive or destructive the next three-plus months will be.

New York Post LOADED: 01.15.2019


Rangers call up defenseman Ryan Lindgren from Hartford

By Colin Stephenson

Updated January 15, 2019 12:23 AM

A day after giving up seven goals in a loss to the Blue Jackets, the Rangers called up defenseman Ryan Lindgren from AHL Hartford on Monday.

Lindgren, 20, was perhaps the biggest piece — along with a first-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft — that the Rangers got back from the Boston Bruins in the Rick Nash deal last February.

In 35 games for Hartford this season, Lindgren has five assists, a plus-7 defensive rating and 41 penalty minutes.

“I try to be a competitive guy, be a leader, [be] good in my own zone, [make a] good first pass,’’ Lindgren said in describing his game at the Rangers’ Prospect Development Camp in June.

“I just try to be a guy that brings it every day, be hard to play against, be in the face of the opponents and be a guy who can shut down other teams’ top lines and just be a guy that can be relied on, and be a good steady defenseman and chip in offensively when he can.’’

Freddie Claesson’s shoulder injury opened the door for the Rangers to call up one of their highly regarded prospects, Lindgren or Libor

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Hajek, from Hartford. Claesson, who was injured in Saturday’s 2-1 win over the Islanders when he was hit by Matt Martin, was scheduled to have an MRI on the shoulder Monday, and Lindgren’s call-up signals that Claesson is headed for injured reserve.

The Rangers have a full roster of 23 — including eight defensemen — and could not call anyone up without sending someone down or placing someone on IR.

Lindgren was a second-round pick by the Bruins in the 2016 draft, and he was the prospect the Rangers demanded when they traded Nash to Boston.

According to Rangers director of player personnel Gordie Clark, the Rangers loved Lindgren, Hajek and Brett Howden in that draft but did not have a first- or second-round pick that summer. So when they announced their rebuild last February, those three were sought by the Rangers.

Lindgren played two seasons for the University of Minnesota. He left college after last season and signed with the Rangers.

Schneider traded

The Rangers traded Hartford forward Cole Schneider to Nashville for forward Connor Brickley, who had been playing for the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.

Schneider, 28, had 13 goals and 12 assists in 36 games for Hartford. He was called up to the Rangers on Dec. 8 but was scratched from the lineup for two games before being returned to Hartford.

Brickley, 26, had seven goals and four assists in 39 games for Milwaukee. He will report to Hartford.

Newsday LOADED: LOADED: 01.15.2019


Injuries are no excuse, Rangers' Chris Kreider says

By Colin Stephenson

Updated January 14, 2019 5:48 PM

The Rangers have lost six of their last seven games, and, coincidentally or not, Kevin Hayes has missed the last six of those.

But if the absence of Hayes, the team’s No. 2 center, is catching up to David Quinn’s crew – and if missing defensemen Freddie Claesson and Adam McQuaid contributed to the Rangers’ allowing seven goals in Sunday’s loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets – that is not something Chris Kreider wants to consider.

“Everyone has injuries,’’ Kreider said when asked if Hayes’ absence has had anything to do with the Rangers’ recent results. “There needs to be a next-man-up mentality. I mean, that’s an opportunity for other guys who might not necessarily get those minutes. So they should be chomping at the bit to go out there and to impress.

“I mean, we’re in a position where – you think back to the end of last year – guys are competing for jobs,’’ he continued. “No, it’s not an excuse. Any time you have a player like Kevin Hayes, the caliber player he is, Freddie, Adam – Neal [Pionk, who missed Saturday’s win over the Islanders with a lower-body injury], obviously, is going through some stuff – yeah, that hurts. But every team goes through it, so you’ve got to find a way.

“We’re a much better team with Kevin Hayes in the lineup,’’ Kreider admitted. “Every team in the league is a better team with Kevin

Hayes in the lineup; he’s an unbelievable player. But you’ve got to find a way. We’re right there."

Over the first 39 games of the season, Hayes had been, arguably, the Rangers’ best player overall. And his 33 points – 10 goals, 23 assists – were good for second on the team at the time. But the 6-5, 216-pounder suffered what the team described as an upper-body injury when he slid awkwardly and crashed heavily into the boards near the end of a game against the Arizona Coyotes on Dec. 14. He played the next eight games – though he skipped a few practices along the way – before finally sitting out against the Colorado Avalanche in the opener of a three-game Western road trip Jan. 4.

At the time he first sat out, the Rangers listed Hayes as day-to-day, and the team has been playing with no extra healthy forwards on the roster. That meant Quinn, who has shown quite the appetite for sitting players out who have underperformed, had no options to alter his lineup except on defense. Before Sunday’s game, Quinn said Hayes – whose participation in the morning skate last Thursday was his first practice in 2019 – remained day-to-day, and the Rangers would reconsider making a roster move, to call up a player from AHL Hartford if Hayes isn’t definitely able to return soon.

Claesson was scheduled to undergo an MRI Monday after he left Saturday’s game with an apparent shoulder injury after being checked by the Islanders’ Matt Martin. The Rangers did not practice Monday and did not announce the results of the MRI.

Newsday LOADED: LOADED: 01.15.2019

1126039 Ottawa Senators

Garrioch Snapshots: Matt Duchene treasuring every moment as a new father

Bruce Garrioch

Published:January 14, 2019

Updated:January 14, 2019 5:15 PM EST

Matt Duchene has taken on a new role at home: Being a dad.

Yes, the Ottawa Senators’ top centre missed his teammates while they were on a three-game road swing through California, but there was no chance he wasn’t going to be there with his wife Ashley for the birth of their son Beau David Newell Duchene last Wednesday.

After spending last week at home, Duchene will celebrate his 28th birthday Wednesday by returning to the club’s lineup against the Colorado Avalanche at the Canadian Tire Centre. He is thrilled with the joy Beau has brought to the couple.

“For those that have kids, it’s all of that, and there’s those emotions of joy and there’s just a different feeling than you’ve ever felt in your life,” Duchene said Monday. “It’s really neat.

“It was really cool to see (the broadcasters on TSN and Hockey Night in Canada) talking about him. It’s a sense of pride you get that you’ve never had before and it’s bigger than anything you’ve ever done. He’s just a baby and they were just talking about him as a baby, but it was pretty special.”

Duchene was excited to see his teammates dedicate their 2-1 overtime victory against Anaheim Wednesday to the family. The club posted a picture of Colin White, who scored the winning goal, holding the puck on its twitter account with Beau’s name on it.

“My wife and I were both almost teared up about that,” Duchene said. “It was something really cool. It’s one of those things where

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they boys are on the road and you’re going through something yourself and there’s a little part of you that wishes you could do both

“For them to get that big win in Anaheim and have that puck with his name on it that was pretty special. I’m going to track that (puck) down and see if its hanging around.”

Duchene said if the Senators hadn’t been in San Jose then there was a good chance he would have rejoined the team Saturday.

“The shape I was in after all that I was worried I was going to either get sick or hurt,” said Duchene, who will face his former team for the fourth time since being dealt to Ottawa in Nov., 2016. “I was so tired after going through that rollercoaster ride of emotions with no sleep.

“Had it been closer, I would have made it for sure. It’s just such a far place, especially flying commercial, it would have taken me a full day to get there with a three-hour time change, and then play a game. And, when you see the boys winning, it takes the pressure off you a little bit. They had a heck of a road trip. I was really proud of them.”

MAKING AN IMPACT

You have to give defenceman Christian Wolanin credit for the steps he’s taken.

Called up from the club’s AHL affiliate in Belleville when the Senators ran into injury trouble on the blueline, Wolanin has earned the trust of the coaching staff and played a career-high 23:32 vs. San Jose.

Those are strong minutes for the 22-year-old Wolanin, who suited up for 10 games with the Senators at the end of last season. He has the ability to move the puck, but the club hasn’t always been pleased with his play defensively.

Yes, Thomas Chabot will be ready to return against the Avs, but it won’t be Wolanin that is coming out.

“He’s definitely showing so many good things that I don’t care who’s available he’s in the lineup Wednesday,” Boucher said. “He doesn’t know that yet and you don’t have to tell him, but he’s played well enough for me on both sides of the ice.

“We knew with the puck, if he’s too exposed in the NHL defensively, then it’s not good for confidence and it’s not good to win games either. But he’s shown in the last (few) games that he did progress to a level where’s looking on both sides of the ice.”

The key for Wolanin, who has two goals and two assists in eight games this season, is to bring consistency.

“Can he keep it up? That’s what he has to show,” Boucher added.

THE LAST WORDS

After winning two out of three on the road trip, the Senators were pleased with their effort in the Golden State.

The Senators were on an eight-game losing skid before they put together back-to-back wins in Anaheim Wednesday and Los Angeles Thursday.

“We played really good against good teams in tough buildings,” said defenceman Dylan DeMelo. “Even that San Jose game we were right there we could have come out with that win. We’ve played good hockey of late and I guess maybe it was good for us to go on the road a little bit. It was fun to get on the road and pick up some wins. Now, we’ve got to bring that momentum back here to home.”

Defenceman Justin Falk, who hasn’t played since he suffered a concussion on Dec. 22 against Washington, was on the ice Monday and is closing in on a return.

He may not be ready to play Wednesday, but it would appear he won’t be long.

Centre Colin White is out with shoulder injury until Feb. 1 when the Senators return after the NHL’s all-star break.

Ben Harpur, who’s out with an upper body injury, was on the ice in a contact jersey but he won’t play against the Avs.

Ottawa Sun LOADED: 01.15.2019


Thomas Chabot could be ready to return Wednesday

Bruce Garrioch



Thomas Chabot could be ready to shoulder the load.

As the Ottawa Senators returned to the ice Monday at the Canadian Tire Centre, they were greeted by their top defenceman and after participating in the 40-minute skate Chabot declared if all goes well he’ll play Wednesday against the Colorado Avalanche.

Chabot, 21, who has eight missed games as a result of hit from Matt Martin of the New York Islanders on Dec. 28 in Brooklyn, has made excellent progress from the shoulder injury he suffered and he’ll be welcomed back with open arms.

“Really good,” Chabot said when asked how he was feeling after the skate? “Shooting is fine and everything’s fine. We’re just trying to slowly get hit. That’s the only with the guys on the road (last) week, we didn’t get to try it out.

“We did a little bit (Monday) and we’ll do a little bit more (Tuesday), but it feels good.”

While the Senators were on the road in California last week, Chabot wasn’t sitting idle. He was on the ice with defenceman Justin Falk (concussion) and goaltender Craig Anderson (concussion) as part of the rehabilitation from this ailment.

“I’m feeling a lot better,” said Chabot, who stayed out to do some extra work after the formal skate ended Monday. “Shooting the puck is fine, pushing guys and boxing (them) out is good. The only thing we’re looking at for Wednesday is a little bit more contact.”

Losing Chabot has been a big hit for the Senators.

Chabot has been one of the club’s most consistent performers with 10 goals and 38 points in 38 games. He is minus-3 on a team that has struggled and was selected to be Ottawa’s representative at the all-star weekend in Jan. 25-26 in San Jose.

He plays an average of 23:52 per-game and coach Guy Boucher noted he forces the opponent to change its game plan because down the road Chabot will be one of the NHL’s superstars.

“If we look at the games without Thomas it’s clear for us that our puck management wasn’t as good,” said Boucher. “It’s normal. You get what you get with a guy that’s going to be in the all-star game because he’s so good with the puck, so fast, so evasive and he can get out of trouble.

“That’s what he does, gets us out of trouble. He gets a breakout when another guy wouldn’t get a breakout, it’s going to stay in our zone. And, it’s the same thing on the transition, he’s going to skate it out. That’s why those guys are high-end players: They put a wrench in what the opponent is doing.”

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Being a spectator has tested Chabot’s patience.

“Especially whenever you watch the guys play you always want to be out there,” Chabot said. “It’s been a long few weeks and I’m excited to get back out there.”

Of course, being back in time to participate in the all-star weekend is also good for Chabot. Some players don’t want to take part in the skills competition and the three-on-three tournament, but nobody had to ask Chabot twice about the opportunity.

This will be his first all-star weekend and he’s excited about it. His parents will travel to San Jose with him to be part of the festivities and take in the game.

“It’s never something I expected,” he said. “Being there is an honour and it’s going to be fun. It’s going to be a great experience. My parents are going to enjoy it as well.”

The key to Chabot’s success, Boucher says,is the way the club has been patient with his development starting with sending him back to junior in his first year and his strong work ethic.

He spent part of last season with the club’s AHL affiliate in Belleville honing his skills defensively and it’s paid dividends.

“He’s going to be a top, top, top-end guy and he already is with the puck and to be honest I think he progressed a lot fast defensively than a lot of people expected,” Boucher said.

“It’s because of his attitude, he’s such a good person. You never have to tell him that he’s got to go to the gym, that he has to come and do some video. Nothing is ever too much. (His attitude) is “I want to get better, I want to get better”. He recognizes where he is.

“There’s a whole journey behind all that greatness that you see from him. It’s impressive. It really is but there’s a lot of work and it’s not just talent. There’s a lot of guys who have talent and they don’t get it or they get it but it’s five years down the road.

“We’re lucky he’s getting it now. He’s the perfect example of doing it the right way. With all that talent, it would have been easy to keep him, but it would have been the wrong thing.”



Craig Anderson making progress in recovery from concussion

Bruce Garrioch



Craig Anderson has taken steps in the right direction.

But he won’t be back from the concussion he suffered Dec. 21 against the New Jersey Devils in time to face the Colorado Avalanche Wednesday at the Canadian Tire Centre or even dress as the backup.

Though Anderson was on the ice for the first 15 minutes of the club’s skate Monday coach Guy Boucher told reporters that Anders Nilsson will make his fourth straight start in the club’s net.

That doesn’t mean Anderson won’t be back this week. He was closing in on a return before the club left for California last Monday, but suffered a setback and that’s why he didn’t make the trip.

If all goes well, Friday on the road vs. Carolina or Saturday in St. Louis could be realistic possibilities.

“He looked good today and I’m waiting to see where that’s at but it has gone better,” Boucher said. “There’s a progression there.”


1125996 Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton Oilers get some supplementary scoring to bury Buffalo Sabres

Jim Matheson, Edmonton Journal

For all those nattering nabobs of negativism who’ve said the Edmonton Oilers’ secondary scoring this season has been Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl’s second goal of the night, we say nonsense.

Tying their seven-goal explosion against Minnesota Dec. 7 here, we bring you two snipes by Zack Kassian and two others by Milan Lucic, who had four goals combined in a 7-2 pasting of Buffalo Sabres.

Kassian hadn’t scored since March 8 against Minnesota, and broke a 16-game drought with an excellent first period when he popped his pair on Carter Hutton, and Lucic, who had a gob-smacking one goal in a 91-game stretch over last season and this, now has three goals in his last four games.

“The last few games, my mindset was just to go out there and play and have fun,” said Lucic, after getting his second goal of the season against San Jose Sharks Jan. 8, his first since Oct. 6 in Sweden against New Jersey. “When you put pressure on yourself to score, it doesn’t work, especially for a guy like me. I’m not Joe Thornton, Connnor McDavid or Leon, that’s not what’s gotten me goals. It’s forechecking and competing.”

He was rewarded for his work with two shots that beat Hutton and his reliever, Linus Ullmark.

The Oilers did get goals from their usual sources with McDavid, Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins getting the others. McDavid’s come on a breakaway from centre and he also set up Draisaitl as he bolted around Jake McCabe in the third. Nugent-Hopkins also had a goal and an assist, with those three guys and Alex Chiasson (17 goals this year) combining for 84 goals in the 46 games.

The Sabres scored a minute in on Conor Sheary’s tip and had another from Evan Rodrigues in the first period, but that was it as the Oilers were very loose in the opening frame and at times in the second.

But they scored five times on their 12 shots on Hutton, driving him to the bench.

With the win, the Oilers are now tied at 47 points with Minnesota, Anaheim and Vancouver for the second wildcard spot in the West

Supplementary scoring? Yup …

With the Oilers scoring three in the first period on their first five shots it was the first time all season that they had that many in a game without any contribution from either McDavid, who missed the skills competition Sunday with the flu, or Draisaitl.

QUALITY MINUTES

Kassian, drafted in the first round by the Sabres before a journey to Vancouver, Montreal and here, only played eight shifts and 3:45 in

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the first period but he had his two goals and had another good chance late in the opening frame.

Two goals on three shots. Last time he had two in a game was last February against San Jose in a 6-4 loss. He’s had two two-goal games in his career.

NO PLACE FOR NERVES

First nine shots in the game: Four goals. So four snipes and five saves. And the first three were deflections, Kassian and Nugent-Hopkins, and Sheary for the Sabres. Sheary scored on the game’s first shot, which was the sixth time that’s happened to the Oilers this year, tipping Casey Mittelstadt’s harmless shot from the boards past Koskinen. Nugent-Hopkins got his stick on Caleb Jones’ pass.

AS DON CHERRY WOULD SAY …

Grapes is always railing on Hockey Night in Canada about defencemen who put their stick in front of harmless shots and deflect them by their own goalies, and Zach Bogosian did that on Kassian’s 50-footer from the boards two and a half minutes in.

Hutton could have stopped the wrister in his sleep if Bogosian had stepped out of the way.

MAKING COCO PROUD

Grant Fuhr flashed the leather night after night back in the glory days — nobody had a better glove hand — but Mikko Koskinen made two Fuhr-like mitt stops of his own against the Sabres.

The first was against 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin in the opening period, then on a breakaway by Tage Thompson in the second. The book on Koskinen at camp was he had a bad glove hand but it didn’t look like a skillet in this game.

This ’n’ that: This was the first time all season Hutton has been yanked and it took five goals to get him out for Ullmark … Koskinen got his first NHL point, an assist on Kassian’s second goal. His partner, Cam Talbot, also has one assist this year … The Sabres, who won 10 in a row earlier this season, nine by a goal, are leaking oil with just two wins in their last nine games …Rieder’s assist on Kassian’s second goal was his first point since Nov. 1. He missed 13 games after that with a sore shoulder … Koskinen doesn’t have any knob on the end of his goalie stick, which makes him pretty unusual, along with his No. 19 … The Sabres came into the game with a 9-2-1 record against the Pac-8 division and had beaten the Oilers four straight … Ex-Oilers defenceman Steve Smith is now looking after the development of Rasmus Dahlin, the first player picked in the June draft. Smith was working in Carolina as an assistant coach …Former Oilers draft pick Chris Hajt (second round in 1996) is also on the Sabres coaching staff. The former defenceman played one game with the Oilers and spent four years on their minor-league team in Hamilton.

Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 01.15.2019


JONES: Slapstick win relieves tension for Edmonton Oilers

Terry Jones

If Casey Stengel had been alive and in the building, the former manager of the expansion New York Mets after all those years of managing the Yankee dynasty, would likely have been inspired to re-utter his famous line about his slapstick expansion squad.

“Can’t anyone here play this game?”

In this case, the old manager would have been speaking of not just about the home team, but both teams. And he would have been speaking only a couple minutes after the game started.

The quote of the day actually came from the lips of Edmonton Oilers’ Jesse Puljujarvi, sitting on the bench beside Jujhar Khaira after the first three shots on goal of the game when into the net.

There wasn’t a live mic on the Oilers bench. But with Puljujarvi’s Joker-sized set of yappers, you don’t need a master’s degree in lip reading.

“What is happening?” he said.

Exactly.

What the heck was happening?

The first three shots of the game were goals.

Two of the goals were scored by the Oilers, the other by the Sabres.

And that was just the start.

The whole evening was slapstick. Maybe that was what the situation called for. A little levity.

OK. A lot of levity.

The city was out-of-sight up-tight going into Monday’s tilt between the two teams trying to remain in contention, just outside of playoff positions in their respective conferences.

The entire population was well aware that the final seven games prior to the 10-day all-star break were make or break for keeping this Edmonton team that had missed the playoffs for 11 of the last 12 years, in the playoff hunt.

Saturday, the Oilers missed a glorious opportunity to get into a tie for the final playoff spot with a loss to the Arizona Coyotes in a game in where they failed to compete.

I’m not sure this was much different. But they certainly couldn’t complain about puck luck.

And a Minnesota Wild loss allowed the Oilers to move into a four-team tie with Minnesota, Anaheim and Vancouver all with 47-points in the Great Race To Save Face for the second wildcard playoff spot.

Sometimes you need a break from drama. And there’s nothing better than a good comedic farce.

This 7-2 Oilers win was definitely that.

It was side-splitting, gut-busting, laugh-a-minute hilarity most of the way.

OK. It didn’t start that way.

Buffalo scored first to take the air out of the building.

How many games since the Oilers stared wearing orange, has an Edmonton goalie gassed his first shot on goal?

The shot came from Conor Sheary standing beside the boards outside the face-off circle.

Same time zone. But barely.

The shot found it’s way between Mikka Koskinen’s legs.

Time of goal — 1:00.

Zack Kassian tied it up from about the same spot on the sideboards at the other end. The only difference was that it deflected in off a stick.

Time of goal — 2:33.

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Fifty seconds later, Caleb Jones found Ryan Nugent-Hopkins alone in front.

Zing.

That made it 2-1.

Still no saves.

When Kassian found himself all alone to score his second of the game and make it 3-1, it sent the scribes to the record book.

If you were wondering, the record for the fastest three goals by one team from the start of the game was Edmonton’s 2:43 versus Vancouver in 2013.

The day after the Oilers Super Skills event, the Oilers and Sabres combined to produce a Lack Of Skills contest.

At one point in the first period, the Oilers had three goals on five shots and Buffalo had 16.

If you thought the two teams would settle down and play hockey, the game turned even more slapstick to start the second period.

They added one of those joke shop exploding cigars to proceedings. Or that’s what it must have looked like to Connor McDavid.

Coming off the flu, or perhaps even playing with the remnants of one, McDavid found a puck behind everybody coming off the period’s opening face off and twice stumbled, almost falling both times, trying to stickhandle the grenade toward the net.

It was so slapstick, McDavid skated in with a great grin on his face and couldn’t help but laugh after he deposited it into the net for a 4-1 lead.

Before the end of the period, as sort of the cherry on the sundae, Milan Lucic, he of two goals in 2018, found himself alone in front and pulled the trigger like a 50-goal scorer. In the third period, he scored his second in the game and third in a week.

Meanwhile, after giving up that goal on the first shot, Koskinen, who had been spending his time between wins reading about how everybody in the league had found his weakness — high glove side — made several five-bell saves, all high glove side. Buffalo outshot Edmonton 42-25.

Sometimes hockey is a funny game.



Buffalo Sabres making slow. steady progress on the rebuild

Robert Tychkowski

With 13 years worth of experience in the subject, hockey fans in Edmonton know a good rebuild when they see one.

So, even though the Buffalo Sabres were on the losing end of an ugly night on Monday, in a game where their goaltenders gave up five goals on the first 12 shots, a sold out crowd at Rogers Place could see where their eastern counterpart is going with this.

It was a timely meeting of two rebuilding teams, both anchored by proceeds from the 2015 Draft in Florida (Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel) and both trying to chase down playoff spots four years later.

The Sabres have done well with their lean years, drafting a very strong foundation in Eichel, Rasmus Dahlin, Sam Reinhart and Rasmus Ristolainen.

They also have 20-year-old rookie Casey Mittelstadt (eighth overall in 2017) and 21-year-old Tage Thompson (26th overall in 2016 via St. Louis) who have six goals each just past the halfway mark of the season.

And they traded for Jeff Skinner, who might score 50 this year.

Oh yeah, and they’re $7 million under the salary cap

It hasn’t been fast. Buffalo finished 31st last season and missed the playoffs for the seventh year in a row, but some very good pieces are falling into place.

“I’ve been here for four years and, year by year, you try to find positives,” said veteran defenceman Zach Bogosian, who is seeing a lot of them now. “You look at the building blocks here and there are some really talented players, some franchise players. I like where our franchise is going.

“This year we’ve taken a step in the right direction. We still have a long way to go, but it is nice to have some success. It’s great to see the young guys here get big roles and flourish in those roles.”

The Sabres looked like they were taking flight earlier this season, when they went on a 10-0 run and became the first team in NHL history to go from last overall in one season to first overall 25 game into the next one.

But they weren’t quite ready for prime time and fell into a lengthy mid-season sag (6-10-4). They lost a lot of one-goal games to some of the best teams in the league during that drought, so they might not be as far off as you might think.

“We’re just trying to find that consistency,” said Eichel. “It seems like it’s been win one, lose one. Back and forth. It hasn’t been consistent enough for us.”

They believe it’s just a matter of nailing down the winning culture and work habits that are often, as Oilers fans know, the hardest parts of a rebuild to get right after a long stretch of missing the playoffs.

“We learned a lot about our group in the beginning of the year, what we need to do to be successful,” said Eichel. “It’s defending hard, trying to minimize the time in our end, play fast, get to their goalie. We have to get some desperation back in our game.”

If they get it, and they get this thing back on the winning track, they all believe they have what it takes to stay there for a long time.

“We know it’s going to be a process and we have a lot of work to do, but we put ourselves in a good position to be right there in the hunt,” said Reinhart. “We have to embrace the challenge.”



Brandon Manning is trying to find some traction on Oilers blueline

Jim Matheson, Edmonton Journal

Edmonton Oilers Brandon Manning (26) flattens Winnipeg Jets Brandon Tanev (13) during first period NHL action on Monday, Dec. 31, 2018 in Edmonton. (Greg Southam-Postmedia)

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Brandon Manning was looking for a change of scenery after sitting out a string of games with the Chicago Blackhawks before being traded to Edmonton Oilers, but his situation is still cloudy.

The defenceman was looking for a sunny forecast here but was a healthy scratch for four straight games before getting back in against the Buffalo Sabres on Monday. He played left side on a third pairing with Matt Benning, with coach Ken Hitchcock probably looking for more positional calmness.

He pinched and was caught up ice in Los Angeles on a Jeff Carter burst down the wing for a goal Jan. 5, just his third game with the Oilers.

“Less is more,” said Hitchcock, offering up the standard refrain for defencemen, unless your name is Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns or Morgan Rielly, but they are paid to be creative and make plays. “His game is straight-ahead simple, positionally strong.

“We have to get him to calm down and not try to extend himself. If he can do that I think we’ll be in good shape. He’s a smart player but when you get to a new team you want to impress.”

Manning, who came to the Oilers for winger Drake Caggiula, had fallen out of favour in Chicago as they played Finnish rookie Henri Jokiharju and minor-leaguer Carl Dahlstrom ahead of him. He had a strong last season in Philadelphia but hasn’t gained much traction this year.

“The last game (against Los Angeles) didn’t sit too well with me,” said Manning. “I’m trying to do what I’ve done my whole career, provide energy and finish my checks.

“The first two games were a blur, the first one I played with the travelling (on game day) and then playing (against Winnipeg New Year’s Eve). I felt pretty good in Arizona, then made a couple of mistakes (against L.A.), Not physical ones, mental. Things I have to clean up. I want to get back to playing hockey, something I haven’t done much of the last six or seven weeks.”

Manning was a regular in 2017-18 with the Flyers — the Oilers wanted to trade for him then — before signing a two-year deal with Chicago this past summer. But he’s fought for regular work most of his NHL days.

“It’s something I’ve dealt with my whole career,” he said. “Things didn’t work out the way I wanted in Chicago.

“I’m just taking it one-day at a time. That’s pretty cliche but with the move, getting settled, that’s the way I’m approaching it.”

The Oilers have seven healthy defencemen with Kevin Gravel sitting against Buffalo. Oscar Klefbom, Alex Petrovic and Andrej Sekera are either hurt, rehabbing from surgery or coming off head trauma

WALKING WOUNDED

Klefbom, who hasn’t played in over a month after breaking his pinky finger, still isn’t on the ice with his teammates.

“We’re hoping the pins come out. He’s scheduled to see the doctors in the next 48 hours. Then he can participate in some form of on-ice activities before joining us. I hope he’s a full-time practice participant before the (all-star) break (Jan. 23),” said Hitchcock, who nevertheless doesn’t expect him to play until early February.

Hitchcock said it’s a wait-and-see with Petrovic, who suffered a concussion Jan. 8 in San Jose.

He didn’t skate with the Oilers before their Monday night game.

“This is the final stage for him. He’ll be evaluated tonight. He’s gone through the (on-ice observation) skate. He’ll participate Tuesday if green-lighted and, if so, he could be part of our group Wednesday (Vancouver),” said Hitchcock.

The Oilers coach hopes injured winger Kailer Yamamoto will be on a regular-line at practice Tuesday. He sat out his fifth straight game Monday after hurting his hand Dec. 29 against the Sharks.

“Today was assessment day and if he’s green-lighted, he’s a full-go Tuesday. We did the on-ice evaluation after our skate Monday,” Hitchcock said.

If Yamamoto is ready, he’ll play right-wing somewhere in the top nine at practice Tuesday.

Hitchcock liked his smarts and his willingness to get into the blue-paint areas for a small guy against the Sharks Dec. 29, much like Arizona’s Conor Garland, who scored two goals for Coyotes last Saturday against Oilers.

This ’n’ that: The Oilers are heavily scouting teams for at least one and probably more offensive forwards. They’re likely looking at unrestricted free-agents: Centre Derick Brassard (Pittsburgh) and wingers, Micheal Ferland (Carolina), Ryan Dzingel (Ottawa) and Mats Zucccarello (Rangers). But at what price?



Edmonton Oilers defence man Caleb Jones learning under fire

Robert Tychkowski

On the first extended road trip of his NHL career, Caleb Jones banked a puck into his own net in a tough loss one night, and watched the guy he was supposed to be covering blow by him to score a decisive goal on another.

All that means is that he’s playing in the NHL.

Because everyone in the league kicks one into their own net and everyone in the league gets walked. It sucks when it happens in the same week, and you’ve only been in the league for 10 games, but what are you going to do?

Seriously, what are you going to do?

As veteran defence partner Adam Larsson explains, it’s how a young defenceman responds on the next shift after being at fault for a goal against that defines his trajectory as a player.

They either learn from it and get better, or dwell on it and get worse.

“You just have to keep playing and don’t think so much, just let it go and get ready for the next shift,” said Larsson. “That was my problem when I just got into the league. It seemed like a mistake was the end of the world. But, in reality, you’re playing against such good players that they are going to beat you sometimes. It happens to the best defencemen in this league.

“Mistakes are going to happen, but it’s almost more important what you do after the mistakes.”

That’s a lesson Jones learned the hard way in his first year in the AHL. He’d get schooled by older and better players and often let it eat away at him for the rest of the night. There were times when a bad play early in a game meant he wouldn’t be playing much, if at all, by the end.

“Last year in the American League, I wasn’t good at dealing with it,” said the 21-year-old Jones. “I’d be done for the game. Sometimes I would even sit for a while in the third because I wouldn’t be able to recover if something happened, if I got beat.”

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Then it hit him the same way it eventually hits everyone else: These forwards are the best in the world, they’ve been blowing past really good defencemen since they were nine years old. When you’re talking about players who’ve undressed Drew Doughty and Brent Burns, you have to accept that at some point they’re probably going to leave you grasping at shadows, too.

“This summer, I realized that if you watch any game, somebody is getting beat,” said Jones. “It happens to everyone. Eventually you want to get to the point where it only happens to you two or three times a year, but the elite guys will get you. It happens.

“The most important thing is learning from it and not letting it happen again, which I think I’ve done a good job of.”

Jones, who had pair of games where he combined to go minus-five, says he’s already a better player for all the hard lessons.

“There were a couple goals this year where maybe I was too casual or thought he was going to do something else and it burned me. You just have to bounce back from it, go back out there and keep your confidence. I’ve gotten good at that this year.”

It’s a hard gig, logging that many premium minutes right out of the box, having to learn under heavy fire, but Jones has done a good job stepping into a top-four role. That’s fortunate for the Oilers, because they’d be in a pretty bad spot if he hadn’t been able to soak up some of the responsibility.

“It’s tough,” said Larsson. “And when you get that many minutes you’re play against top guys, too. But I think he’s done a really good job so far, He’s a really, really good skater, which helps him a lot in a lot of situations. He’s a really good player.”

Larsson is a pretty calm cat, which is probably helpful for a rookie partner. He also embraces the role of being a defence whisperer if it helps.

“I just try to talk to him as much as I can,” he said. “When he makes mistakes, I just try to cool him down and be the good cop. The important thing for him is to be relaxed because he really is that good.”

Jones hopes there will come a day when he’s the veteran NHLer helping out a rookie teammate, but for right now he’s focusing on staying in the lineup one more game.

“In the NHL, you have to keep doing it,” he said. “You have to prove that you can do it every night at this level. That’s why I’m trying to do, just give it my best every night and see what happens.”



Lowetide: The Edmonton Oilers appear to be mere hours from doing something overbold

By Allan Mitchell Jan 14, 2019

The Edmonton Oilers are in a playoff race and that’s the good news. The club is not secure in that position however, so a measured approach to acquisitions is the proper course. Peter Chiarelli and his management team should be monitoring the situation, checking the waiver wire and pursuing every possible way to improve the club on the ice — short of bleeding future major assets. As much as the 2019 postseason is a major goal, this is still a building team. And now, this.

OILERS ORGANIZATION IS ON A FULL COURT PRESS TO FIND HELP AT FORWARD. SCOUTS AND STAFF DEPLOYED EN MASSE.

CAP SITUATION COULD MAKE IT TOUGH, BUT FIRST ROUND PICK, A GOALTENDER, MAYBE A YOUNG DEVELOPING FORWARD LIKELY ALL IN PLAY.

— RYAN RISHAUG (@TSNRYANRISHAUG) JANUARY 14, 2019

Huh. This comes in the middle of a season where the general manager has been very active, acquiring Ryan Spooner, Chris Wideman, Valentin Zykov, Alexander Petrovic and Brandon Manning in an effort to push the team to greater heights.

There are three main questions in regard to Rishaug’s tweet.

Is it new? (Have the Oilers recently gone into a full-court press?)

Is there a willing partner among the other 30 NHL teams?

Is there a clear benefit in trading those pieces now (or at the deadline)?

Whenever a team changes coaches, there’s an evaluation period followed by (possibly) some roster changes. We’ve already seen some of that, in my opinion, with the acquisition of defencemen Petrovic and Manning. It’s easy to imagine Ken Hitchcock reaching a breaking point with his forwards in the last two weeks and sounding the alarm. Who are they scouting? Micheal Ferland’s name is out there and Elliotte Friedman connected Edmonton to him in his recent 31 Thoughts. A “full-court press” is probably more like the pro scouts making sure quality of play hasn’t fallen off recently. The Oilers surely have a book 10 miles long on Ferland, who is 26 and spent four years with the Calgary Flames before being dealt to the Carolina Hurricanes in the summer of 2018. They know who he is.

As for a willing partner, the Hurricanes are open for business and aren’t the only team selling. The Ottawa Senators may move one or more of their free agents (Mark Stone and Matt Duchene are both near the top of the Craig Custance “Big Board” list for The Athletic) and the New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues are also mentioned often.

Most of the available players are unrestricted, but some have term and could make up Edmonton’s targets. If we’re making a list, I would suggest Chris Kreider of the Rangers (another year left after this one at $4.625 million per year), Vladimir Tarasenko and Brayden Schenn of the St. Louis Blues, Ferland, Andre Burakovsky of the Washington Capitals and Kasperi Kapanen of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The final question from the Rishaug tweet above (is there a benefit in doing a deal now?) is difficult to answer. There have been trades in the recent past involving first-round picks with conditions, so the actual value of the trade might not be known until the summer, as Edmonton could put some conditions on the first-round pick. An example might be (I’m not recommending this) the Oilers trading a conditional first to the Detroit Red Wings for Gustav Nyquist (the Wings retaining money), with the condition being Nyquist re-signs. If Edmonton signs him, it’s a first, otherwise it’s a second. That dovetails with recent deadline trades.

If you wake up tomorrow to find out the Oilers have traded the 2019 first-round selection and Jesse Puljujarvi for a player under contract this and next season (say Kreider or Schenn), is that a deal that sends you under the covers? What if a different package (involving substantial future assets) is used to acquire a player under control for several years, like Kapanen? It’s possible the Oilers send a boatload of futures to St. Louis for Tarasenko. All of these trade ideas can be pursued, but the rental route represented by the Nyquist example remains the most likely.

Keep your powder dry

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The current path is contrary to best practices in team building. Fans are rightly upset with Chiarelli’s transaction history as Oilers general manager, and the gathering storm around the coming trade appears likely to exacerbate the problem. As poorly as management has performed, I believe a bigger, unseen and unreported issue might go higher up the organizational depth chart. When ownership gets impatient and puts pressure on a management team who have displayed poor judgment, that is going to result in bleeding assets and leave the organization in a very bad place.

History recalls

This type of situation is not unique in sports history. The Montreal Expos spent the entirety of their run in the late 1970s/early 1980s (that was an exceptional team) looking for a suitable second baseman. The team had one, Tony Bernazard, but traded him away just as he was ready to step in as a regular. Why? In Dan Turner’s fine book The Expos Inside Out owner Charles Bronfman is quoted as saying “I encouraged John (GM John McHale) on the bad side of things. I said that Bernazard was never going to make my club. You do make these mistakes.” The Expos continued on with Rodney Scott (Bernazard had a better bat) then went with Doug Flynn, who was a drag on results and not close to replacement level at second base. As much as Tim Raines and Andre Dawson and Gary Carter were doing to help the team win, Doug Flynn was giving a lot of it away.

That brings us to the Oilers. As much as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are doing to help the team win, it’s all given back (and more) with McDavid off the ice. That said, trading Edmonton’s version of Tony Bernazard (Puljujarvi) or the first-round pick (possibly years away from helping) right now looks to be incredibly short-sighted and reactionary. The play here, in terms of franchise building, is to stay the course, try for the playoffs and take your lumps if you finish outside.

I expect Oilers fans will see a lot of future (Puljujarvi, first-round pick) heading out the door and further expect the return will leave most fans disappointed. Daryl Katz is the owner of the Oilers. His decade in that position reminds me of the book The Road to Hockeytown, a brilliant chronicle of a solid hockey man (Jim Devellano) and a passionate, impatient owner (Mike Ilitch). Ilitch bought the Red Wings in 1982 and won his first Stanley Cup in 1997.

If you’re a fan of the Oilers, this news isn’t encouraging. Current ownership and management appear to be on the verge of doing something overbold. Will Oilers fans look back on the Steve Tambellini ‘era of inertia’ as the good old days? We wait.


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The Athletic / DGB weekend power rankings: The teams that should be panicking the hardest

By Sean McIndoe

Jan 14, 2019

We spent a lot of the season’s first half saying things like “Sure, this team may be struggling right now, but it’s still early and there’s a ton of hockey left so nobody should panic.” Everyone does. It’s pretty much a standard disclaimer that you have to put on all first-half hockey writing.

Well, it’s not early anymore, and there’s no longer a ton of hockey left. It’s OK to panic now. In some cases, it may be mandatory. A few teams should have been here weeks ago.

But who? Since we’re all about arbitrary rankings around these parts, here’s a top ten list of teams that should be panicking right about now.

10. New York Islanders – They lost to the Rangers and Hurricanes, which wasn’t great, but then they smoked the Lightning last night to regain the top wildcard spot. Honestly, they’re only here because doing a top nine would be weird.

9. Montreal Canadiens – The good news is they’re playing reasonably well and aren’t ceding much ground in the wildcard race. The bad news is that even one week ago, we figured they only had to beat out one of the Sabres or Islanders to make it. Now, the Hurricanes are roaring back into the race, which ups the pressure on Montreal.

8. Dallas Stars – Two games against a pair of teams going nowhere resulted in zero points and the offense has dried up apart from the top line. And now we’re back to the organization saying stuff like this:

7. Florida Panthers – The only reason the Panthers don’t rank any higher is that, at this point, it’s basically over. They’re eleven points back and have four teams to catch, so barring a month-long hot streak, they’re done. They should have already moved past “panic” and onto “acceptance.” Now the question in Florida is who’s going to pay for it.

6. Columbus Blue Jackets – Unlike the other teams on this list, the Blue Jackets are playing reasonably well and in strong shape for a playoff spot. But they have other things to worry about these days, which we’ll get to down below.

5. Edmonton Oilers – The entire Western wildcard race is in a freefall, meaning it’s right there for the taking. And yet the Oilers can’t take advantage, losing at home to Arizona in a game that opened the door for the Coyotes to climb into the race. The big question here isn’t whether Oiler fans are panicking, but how much their beleaguered GM might be.

4. Buffalo Sabres – In the big picture, maybe they’re right where they expected to be. But after the highs of the season’s first few months, losing eight of eleven and falling out of a playoff spot can’t be fun. The rest of the Eastern contenders are playing well enough that the Sabres are basically losing ground on everyone. (Their meme game is still solid, though.)

3. Minnesota Wild – Things have been rough for a while. But Saturday’s loss to the Red Wings feels like a tipping point, with the coach calling it the worst game they’ve played since he’s been there and the goaltender saying stuff like this:

Is that bad? It seems bad.

2. Colorado Avalanche – It was only a few weeks ago that they looked like they had a shot at winning the Central. Now they’ve lost nine of ten, can’t keep the puck out of their net and are in danger of missing the playoffs entirely. What went wrong? Nobody seems to be entirely sure and that’s the scary part. If there was one player or position you could point to, maybe you can fix that at the deadline. When it’s a team-wide slump, you wonder how you’re going to pull out of the spiral in time.

1. Anaheim Ducks – Not really a hard call here. With eleven straight losses that have dropped them out of a wildcard spot, you don’t even have to assume the panic level in Anaheim is high – their coach is making it crystal clear by having meltdowns on the media.

Last night we found out that Bob Murray says he definitely won’t fire Carlyle, at least “at this time.” With that option apparently out, what

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do the Ducks do now? Here’s hoping they have an answer beyond “keep losing.”

On to the power rankings, starting with five teams who probably aren’t panicking much these days (but might still be panicking a little) …

Road to the Cup

The five teams that look like they’re headed towards a summer of keg stands and fountain pool parties.

Good news for everyone in this section, or hanging around the fringe of it: As we head towards deadline season, the market is apparently shaping up as a good one for buyers. That means there could be plenty of impact players available for you to devour rumors about right up until your favorite team’s GM mumbles something about trading being too hard and swaps a mid-round pick for a fourth-line rental instead.

5. Toronto Maple Leafs (28-14-2, +36 true goals differential*) – They’ve lost four of six, we’re still not quite sure what’s up with Frederik Andersen, and they seem headed towards yet another first-round matchup with a Bruins team that gives them all sorts of trouble. They’re still in the top five, but barely.

4. Calgary Flames (30-13-4, +42) – The Flames return to the top five on the strength of a five-game win streak. Frustratingly, they haven’t been able to gain any ground in the Pacific race because the Sharks and Knights are just as hot. Still, they’ve already basically locked down a playoff spot, and this week brings a chance to keep banking points against the struggling Red Wings and Sabres before they head to Edmonton for another chapter in the Battle of Alberta.

3. Winnipeg Jets (29-14-2, +28) – Their season-long pattern of never being too hot or too cold continues. They haven’t won three straight since mid-December, or three straight in regulation since early November. But they haven’t lost three straight all season and have only lost consecutive games twice. That’s pretty amazing, and it adds up to a team that’s holding down top spot in the Central even as they don’t always generate the sort of headlines that streakier teams get.

2. San Jose Sharks (27-13-7, +29) – The Sharks shoot back up our list on the strength of six straight wins. The offense is humming, Erik Karlsson has been unstoppable and Martin Jones is 5-0-0 with a .930 save percentage in January after barely looking like a replacement-level goalie over the season’s first half.

Things are going so well that some might argue this isn’t high enough for San Jose:

I wouldn’t go that far. There’s still a big gap between the Lightning and the rest of the contenders, and I have spots two through six or seven as a traffic jam without much separating anyone. But the Sharks are flexing these days, so they get the top spot in the group this week.

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (35-9-2, +53) – Oh good, it turns out that the Lightning are uniquely well-positioned to trade away young players and other assets, including moving prospects or draft picks for short-term help at the deadline. Better luck next year, everyone.

*Goals differential without counting shootout decisions like the NHL does for some reason.

Not ranked: Columbus Blue Jackets – The Blue Jackets continue to float around in the forgotten purgatory of these rankings; they’re not quite good enough to make the top five, and nowhere near bad enough to be considered for the bottom five. They haven’t shown up on either list all season long, one of only seven teams that’s true for.

But even if they’re not worth a formal ranking spot, we have to talk about them. Because they just went through an, uh, eventful week.

The drama started on Tuesday, with Sergei Bobrovsky getting pulled in a loss to the Lightning. At some point either during the game or in the immediate aftermath, there was an “incident.” We don’t know what happened, and the team is being tight-lipped on details, but they put out a statement that said that Bobrobsky had “failed to meet expectations and values.” He was told to stay away from the team on Thursday’s win over Nashville, then was allowed to rejoin them after a team meeting the following morning. He was on the bench on Saturday, and was in goal for last night’s wild win over the Rangers. It certainly wasn’t his best game, but he did enough.

Does that mean everything is back to normal? Well, not exactly, because there’s no “normal” when your star goaltender gets sent home a few months before he’s going to hit unrestricted free agency. Combine that with Artemi Panarin still needing an extension and there’s no shortage of drama in Columbus these days.

(Also, this tweet from colleague Justin Bourne is 100 percent bang on. John Tortorella’s doing a great job, but between him and Carlyle it’s been a bad week for coaches pretending to be offended by obvious questions.)

But even putting contract concerns aside, the Blue Jackets have other problems. The powerplay is a mess and has been just about all year. The goaltending has been surprisingly mediocre and occasionally worse. And while the forwards have been fine, none are having the kind of monster years that can make up for other weak spots on the roster.

All that said, the Blue Jackets are sitting in second spot in the Metro, having passed the Penguins last night. Plenty of teams would love to be dealing with that sort of crisis right now.

In the offseason, I called the Blue Jackets the hardest team in the league to figure out, with everything from a championship to total disaster feeling like it was reasonably in play. They still are, but the needle is trending towards the better half of that spectrum. We just need them to make it to the finish line without any self-inflicted implosions.

The bottom five

The five teams that look like they’re headed towards hoping the ping-pong balls deliver Jack Hughes.

We got my kids a new video game system for Christmas, and they were told that they could play it on weekends on one condition: they had to share, without getting into arguments over whose turn it was. Sure enough, on the first weekend, they get into a big fight and we had to shut it down. The second weekend, they got into an even bigger fight and we had to shut it down again. The third weekend they promised us that they’d learned their lesson and then got into yet another fight just like the first two times. Now we’re coming up on the fourth weekend, and they’re already making sad little eyes and promising us that this time will be different and we can totally trust them. And you know what? I believe them. I mean, I think they’ve earned the benefit of the doubt, right?

Anyways, in unrelated news, everyone is apparently really impressed that Gary Bettman says he doesn’t want a work stoppage.

5. New York Rangers (18-20-7, -34) – I didn’t include the Rangers in last week’s rankings and their fans were furious. They basically came at me with some variation of “How many goals does a team have to give up to get recognized for how terrible they’re playing?” Well, now we know the answer: seven. Giving up seven goals to the Blue Jackets will get you in. (As opposed to giving up seven goals to the Penguins, which they did a week ago and which did not get them in. Look, the formula is complicated, OK?)

4. Los Angeles Kings (18-25-3, -32) – This is the first time the Kings have fallen outside of the bottom three since the third week of the season. Why? Well, they’ve been competitive enough to avoid any

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major losing streaks and they earned one of their most impressive wins of the season on Saturday by beating the red-hot Penguins.

But mainly, I’m giving them some extra credit because they gave us this:

3. Detroit Red Wings (17-23-7, -24) – Do you take it personally when you win a game and your opponent’s social media pushes out quotes by the head coach saying it was the worst effort he’d ever seen? I feel like you’d have to.

2. Philadelphia Flyers (16-23-6, -39) – They got back to their losing ways on Saturday in New Jersey, and are holding down last place overall based on points and points percentage. Also, they haven’t won a game by more than one goal in over five weeks. Other than, it’s going great.

1. Ottawa Senators (17-24-5, -35) – Here’s a scary thought: even as the Senators struggle to stay out of last place overall, there’s at least some evidence to suggest that they’re actually playing worse than their record indicates. Meanwhile, there’s still no contract news on either Matt Duchene or Mark Stone, and the marketing department has launched a depressing “we’re terrible but we’re learning from it” campaign.

On the other hand, this was great:

Not ranked: Arizona Coyotes – The bottom-five section has had a special relationship with the Coyotes over the years. For more than two seasons they were our rock, the one consistent thing we could count on in this crazy world. When they finally got good enough to no longer be one of the league’s five worst teams, we said a tearful goodbye. But deep down, we knew it wouldn’t be forever. And as they underachieved their way through the first half, we could comfort ourselves with the knowledge that someday soon, they’d be back.

Gentle reader, I fear the Coyotes are not coming back.

They should be, since half the roster is injured, including their starting goaltender. They don’t score much. As recently as last weekend, they’d lost 11 of 15. Hell, the got stomped 7-1 just last night. Surely the Western playoff contenders would pull away and the Coyotes would sink back into the familiar arms of despair.

But no. As we covered up above, everyone on or around the Western bubble apparently decided to just stop winning two weeks ago. The Coyotes weren’t on that mailing list, winning three straight to close to within four points of the wildcard. And they did it while scoring the weekend’s most badass goal.

They might actually do this.

Or maybe not – those three straight wins came against the Rangers, Canucks and Oilers, and this week brings some good teams in the Sharks, Penguins and Maple Leafs. They played a good team last night too, and it didn’t go well. Maybe a week from now they’ve dropped back to six or seven points back and we can all write them off again.

But the fact that they’re even here now is pretty impressive, given how the seasons started. And it all but slams the door on them returning to their rightful home down the stretch.


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Sportsnet.ca / Maple Leafs come to Jake Gardiner's defence after boo birds emerge

Chris Johnston

January 14, 2019, 9:48 PM

TORONTO — That this is very likely Jake Gardiner’s final season with the Maple Leafs is no secret to anyone paying attention. So as teammates stepped up to defend him after some targeted boos by the home crowd, it almost felt like more of a referendum on his tenure in Toronto.

“The guy does everything for this team,” said Mitch Marner. “People don’t give him enough credit ever. He’s a guy that does a lot of plays for us out there, he makes a lot of stuff happen. It’s pretty disappointing to hear that.”

“I mean Jake’s a great player. He’s been a great player for this team for eight years now, maybe more,” added Morgan Rielly, his former roommate and good friend. “He comes to work every day like a pro, works hard. His teammates love him, he’s the most popular guy in this room.”

It was a weird night at Scotiabank Arena.

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The Leafs weren’t very good against a desperate Colorado Avalanche team that had dropped nine of 10 coming in. There were mistakes aplenty, including a ghastly turnover by Nazem Kadri on Mikko Rantanen’s tying goal.

Then Carl Soderberg beat Gardiner in a 1-on-1 puck battle and scored short-handed to make it 3-2. Others were culpable in the breakdown — Marner had been stripped at the far blue-line and goaltender Frederik Andersen probably could have been more aggressive with a poke check — but it looked worse on Gardiner.

And it was a killer time to give up that kind of goal.

“I just tried to get body position and then when I did that, I whiffed on the puck,” said Gardiner.

He didn’t see a shift for the final 5:31 of the second period, sitting near the end of the bench with his gloves off.

When Gardiner’s number was called again in the third he heard boos from a small group of fans while handling the puck. They grew in intensity with each passing shift, continuing even after Toronto briefly tied the game on the way to a 6-3 loss.

It seemed completely out of place.

These are not Dion Phaneuf’s Leafs or Bryan McCabe’s Leafs or Larry Murphy’s Leafs. Or anyone else who has felt the wrath of championship-starved fans in this city. This is a star-laden team that owns the sixth-best points percentage in the NHL even after going 3-5-0 since the Christmas break.

But why Gardiner? Why now?

He had a brutal game against Colorado, unable to turn the tide against a furious attack, but on this night, he was far from alone. Even after he was beaten for the short-handed goal, there was still more than 25 minutes left for the Leafs to get it back.

“Guys make mistakes out there all night,” said Rielly. “That’s the way the game is. It’s played on ice so things happen that can be unpredictable.

“It just happens that ends up in back of the net. If not, it’s probably a nothing play.”

Gardiner has played more games for the Leafs than anyone else on this team — 534 in total — and is basically the only one in the

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dressing room with a first-hand memory of waffles being thrown on the ice and SaluteGate and both Game 7 losses in Boston.

In the last one of those, in April, he was minus-5 and took ownership of the blown lead that ended the Leafs season.

“Yeah, it was not the way we saw it going,” Gardiner said that night. “Had a lead going into the third period, and personally I got to be better. A lot of this game is on me. And it’s just not good enough, especially in a game like this. It’s the most important game of the season, and I didn’t show up. There’s not much I can say, really.”

There was emotion in his voice when he met reporters again on Monday, although it only bubbled to the surface when addressing the fact his teammates defended him after the boos.

“Those are the guys that you play for,” said Gardiner. “That’s good.”

The 28-year-old defenceman has always had a high-risk, high-reward element to his game, but it’s telling how fervently he’s been defended by Mike Babcock in recent years. The coach is unafraid to tell it like it is and has repeatedly said that Gardiner does more than enough good on the ice to make up for the occasional brain cramp.

He took that same position after a game where the Avalanche owned a 21-6 advantage in even-strength shot attempts while Gardiner was on the ice.

“What I would say is that he’s a really, really good player. A really important piece,” said Babcock. “He didn’t play good. The good thing about our fans is they’re passionate, they want us to win, they want us to play way harder than that. … They paid their money, they’re allowed to say what they want. The bottom line is he’s an important player for us, we need him to be good.”

Even if the incident ends up as nothing more than a blip on the radar, it’s a reminder of how much is at stake for Gardiner over these next few months.

He’s playing out the final year of his contract and seems destined to become a salary cap casualty like James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov last summer. He’s lived through the dark times with the organization and can see the light now.

But that’s not all that has changed in this building.

“[Being booed] hasn’t happened before, that’s for sure,” said Gardiner. “Not something you want to hear. But plays happen in the game and fans are passionate, and they want to win.”

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Sportsnet.ca / Oilers' Lucic providing hope he can turn season around

Mark Spector

January 15, 2019, 12:51 AM

EDMONTON — There is a unique sound to the reaction here in Edmonton when Milan Lucic scores. Just a little extra enthusiasm, somehow, and a chorus of “Loooooch!” from an audience that might despise his contract, but always wanted to be able to cheer for the man who signed it.

Lucic is that old school, physical player that a fan base wanted to love. And to be honest, he’s still that guy. Now, if he could only

resurrect himself, and give the people a few more two-goal nights like the one he enjoyed Monday in a 7-2 romp over the Buffalo Sabres.

“I have full confidence in myself,” Lucic said after the game. “I can get it back. I WILL get it back. That’s the mindset you have to have. It’s me believing in myself first that will get me there.”


On a night when the big Serb scores a pair — after having notched just two goals in the calendar year 2018 — the cheers go up at Rogers Place as a fan base forgets, for a night at least, the incredibly awful free agent deal GM Peter Chiarelli threw at a player who left his best years behind, it seems, in Boston.

“I wish I could have done it more, to date. But I’m looking forward,” said Lucic, who suddenly has three goals in his past four games. It gives rise to the “Looch!” chant heard often when he scored 23 here two seasons ago.

“I even heard it in the Calgary game (on Dec. 9). We were up 1-0 and we had a powerplay late in the game. They saw I had a chance to score, and they were ‘Looch-ing’ before I even had the puck on my stick,” he said. “They had my back, wanting me to get rewarded for the effort that they see that I’ve been putting it in. It goes for Kass as well. They enjoy the way that we play, and they like to let us know.”

In a rare show of support scoring, Zack Kassian added a pair as well. But it is the rejuvenation of Lucic that would be the difference here in Edmonton, where the Oilers are so desperate for scoring from their wingers, having dealt away Taylor Hal and Jordan Eberle.

“For me,” began head coach Ken Hitchcock, “this is five games in a row where Looch has been like this. He looks like the player for me who was around two or three years ago.”

Lucic rifled home a pair of wrist shots from mid-range, the type of goals he scored regularly in his days as a 25-goal scorer. Which begs the question:

Can it ever return? Can a guy whose struggles have run this deep at age 30, whose decline has been this abject, reclaim what he once was?

“For sure I can,” he said. “The year I played in L.A. Dustin Brown was struggling. Last year he put up a career-high in points (61), and what did he have? Twenty-eight goals?

“Even Kopy (Anze Kopitar). Two seasons ago he had 12 goals, and then last year he was up for MVP.”

On this night, folks in Edmonton will settle for a win that was not delivered by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, though both added a goal. Edmonton opened up a 3-1 lead on two Kassian goals sandwiched around a Ryan Nugent-Hopkins deflection. From there they simply outscored a shoddy Buffalo team that couldn’t find a save from either goaltender, and used them both.

This Oilers franchise has proven that you can have an Art Ross Trophy winner and miss the playoffs. It’s a simple fact in hockey: You need production from throughout your lineup, or you don’t go anywhere.

“You know,” said former Washington Capitals winger Alex Chiasson, “I was on a championship team last year. Our best players were our best players, but our depth guys won us everything. It’s a big part of winning.”

It has to last here in Edmonton, if the Oilers have any chance of nabbing a playoff spot. And if the fans could stop talking about Lucic’s contract, and start talking about Lucic’s production?

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Well, that would be a pleasant diversion.


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Sportsnet.ca / Canadiens Takeaways: Price back to dominating, delivers huge win in Boston

Eric Engels

January 14, 2019, 11:36 PM

There were 65 shots, 52 hits, several good scoring chances, countless great saves, five goals, and a world-class, heavyweight fight between Nic Deslauriers and Kevan Miller in Monday’s Montreal Canadiens-Boston Bruins contest at TD Garden.

It was the kind of game that left you begging for more, but this January tilt was the last one to be played between these bitter rivals this season. The 3-2 win for Montreal evened the series at 2-2 and saw the Canadiens leapfrog the idle New York Islanders in the standings, placing them in the first wild-card position in the Eastern Conference—two points behind the Bruins for third in the Atlantic Division, and just three back of the second-place Toronto Maple Leafs.

Granted Boston has a game in hand, Toronto has two, and everyone’s got a lot of road left to travel before things the dust settles on the playoff picture. But the Canadiens keeping pace to this point tells you much about how surprising their season has been.

They were supposed to be a lottery team, but they’ve shown night in, night out that they’re going to fight right to the end for a playoff spot.

On this night they were out-played, in tough against a Boston team that came into the game with six wins in its last seven games and looking to pad the NHL’s second-best home record (16-6-0).

Here are our takeaways outlining how the Canadiens prevented that from happening.

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Carey Price closed the door … Again

He did it 41 times on Monday, and he made multiple highlight-reel saves along the way.

There was the first-period two-on-zero rush from Boston’s most lethal combination—with David Pastrnak passing to Brad Marchand, who took a perfect shot to the blocker side that Price kicked away. There was a second-period glove save on David Krejci, who had all kinds of time to shoot from the most dangerous area of the ice thanks to Canadiens defenceman Mike Reilly swimming helplessly in front of him.

In the third period, Price made an unbelievable stop on Jake DeBrusk before shutting down an in-tight attempt from Sean Kuraly. And he made two great saves on Krejci before the veteran Czech sniper tied the game 2-2 with 38 seconds remaining while Canadiens forward Michael Chaput was serving the final seconds of a puck-over-glass, delay-of-game penalty.

There was nothing Price could do on Marchand’s game-opening goal, which beat him on the glove side. Nothing he could do about

Krejci’s either, with DeBrusk taking away his vision on the point shot. And he was close to beat on great moves from both Krejci and Pastrnak over the final 20 minutes.

But Price got just enough of those chances to keep them out of his net and was near perfect this one. He was unquestionably the biggest reason the Canadiens got the extra point.

The B.C. native came into the game with the NHL’s second-best save percentage (.926) and its third-best goals-against average (2.18) since Dec. 1 and left Boston having improved on those numbers.

Phillip Danault won the big draws

He took 29 faceoffs and won 59 per cent of them.

One of his biggest ones came clean with just over 1:30 remaining in the first period. The Canadiens were trailing 1-0, they got a faceoff in the Boston zone, and Patrice Bergeron was waved out of the dot and replaced by Brad Marchand.

Danault swept it back, Jeff Petry shot it right away, and Brendan Gallagher scored his 18th goal of the season to tie things up.

More on Gallagher in a minute.

Danault won nine of his 15 faceoffs against the reputed best faceoff man in the league, Patrice Bergeron, who also happens to be his role model.

Gallagher brings Canadiens into the fight

On his very first shift, Gallagher, who’s generously listed at 5-foot-9, 184 pounds, went full steam into 6-foot-9, 250-pound Bruins captain Zdeno Chara and bounced right off of him.

No damage done to the big man, but the point of the hit was to make it clear right off the hop that he was going to be a nuisance in that matchup for Chara.

It was less than 18 minutes later that Gallagher juked into the high slot and bounced off Chara again to get his stick on the Petry shot that tied the game 1-1.

He now has eight goals, 13 assists and 20 points in 28 career games against Boston. More than any of his teammates.

Paul Byron with his biggest goal of the season

The speedy Canadiens winger had gone three straight games without a shot on net and had recorded only one—from a terrible angle on Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask—before he raced down the ice shorthanded and scored a remarkable goal.

Considering the circumstances—the Canadiens getting worked in a big divisional game—it was the most important goal of the 10 he’s scored this season. It came against a Bruins power play that had scored on 33.4 per cent of its chances at home.

Byron’s goal should also be considered one of the best plays of the season.

It started with him picking off a pass Pastrnak bobbled. Byron then chipped the puck past Bergeron at the Canadiens’ blue line, he flew around him at warp speed, and then he made a brilliant move to protect against a Bergeron stick-lift before shelving a backhand over Rask’s glove.

Petry hits 200 points in style

Batting a puck out of midair, 15 seconds into overtime? Are you kidding?

If Petry whiffs, the Bruins have a 2-on-1 from the faceoff dots in their own zone all the way down to Price’s net. But Petry, the son of former MLB star Dan Petry, connected pure on the rebound of Max

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Domi’s shot for what was the 200th point of his NHL career, delivering a huge win for the Canadiens.

The goal made Petry the fifth defenceman in the NHL to hit the 10-goal mark this season. His two points on the night improved his total to 33 on the year, ranking him 11th among blueliners in scoring.

Petry’s previous career highs in goals and points were 12 and 42, respectively, over 82 games last season.


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Sportsnet.ca / Canucks prospect Demko could be assistant Clark's masterpiece

Iain MacIntyre

January 14, 2019, 6:15 PM

VANCOUVER – Most people see height. Ian Clark looks for length.

Clark is the Vancouver Canucks’ goaltending professor. He was the goalie coach who helped Roberto Luongo elevate his game when he came to Vancouver, then built Sergei Bobrovsky into a Vezina Trophy-winner when Clark went to Columbus.

In his first National Hockey League season back on the Canucks’ staff, Clark is helping starter Jacob Markstrom play the best goal of his life. But his masterpiece could one day be Thatcher Demko, the tremendous goaltending prospect from the minors who, since his call-up to the NHL on Jan. 4, has been taking a heavy course load at Clarkie U.

The 23-year-old from San Diego is six-foot-four. That’s not what Ian Clark sees.

“I always measure goaltenders from an anatomical-athletic perspective on length,” Clark told Sportsnet before Demko and the Canucks got a rest day on Monday.

“Length is the key thing, not so much size. You can have a six-foot-four goaltender who lacks athleticism and he can’t lengthen himself (to make saves). But if you watch Andrei Vasilevskiy play (for Tampa), you’re amazed when you watch his length. And then he combines that with good structure and intelligent play. So he’s making simple saves simply and then out of nowhere, his leg comes out and that’s the length that he has.

“In Thatcher’s case, for me the question is: Anatomically, working with that athletic ability, does he have length? He’s a long goalie and that is something that’s very promising.”

Length is what allows goalies to extend, to reach or even contort to get to pucks. Height is little good if the goalie is not athletic enough or in the proper position to enable length.

When Markstrom appeared beaten on a rebound on Sunday but instead thrust his left arm out and back to snare Florida Panther Nick Bjugstad’s point-blank shot during the Canucks’ 5-1 win, that was length.

But even length doesn’t matter if the goalkeeper lacks the mental pace to read and anticipate puck movement at the NHL level.

“If we’re chasing the game all the time, we’re too physical and will always have a tough time making those reads,” Clark said. “With all the offensive activity in the National Hockey League today – lower

save percentage, more goals, more creativity, active D – the ability to have our eyes working for us is essential.”

And that is why Canuck practices, seemingly endless for Demko at the moment since there’s no indication when head coach Travis Green will actually start him in a game, are vitally important to the 2014 second-round pick as he transitions to the NHL.

Vancouver traded backup Anders Nilsson two weeks ago not so Demko could come up from the Utica Comets and try to lead the Canucks, but so he could train with Clark and work on the foundation the team hopes will eventually make him a No. 1 goalie in the NHL.

“It’s a big adjustment,” Demko said. “The guys are moving quicker, shots are coming quicker and plays develop quicker as well. You definitely have to read the game quicker.

“I just want to become acclimated as quickly as I can. It will come in time and with playing games and all that good stuff. But these practices are huge for me, just to see the shots and the pace and how strong guys are in front of me. So just keep getting acclimated and build confidence and get comfortable as the season goes along.”


Demko first worked with Clark at training camp in September. When he suffered a concussion and was returned to Utica to start a third season in the American Hockey League, Demko travelled with what Clark described as a “laundry list” of things he needed to improve.

That could be humbling, even a little insulting, to a player who had a brilliant college career at Boston College and was an AHL star last season when Demko posted a .922 save rate with the Comets. But Demko accepted Clark’s recommendations.

“I haven’t been with Thatcher a lot, obviously,” Clark said. “What I can tell you is he spent his time down in Utica very well. He left with sort of a laundry list of things to think about and begin to develop, and I can tell you he has checked off a number of those things, which is great for the franchise.

“Yeah, there’s some things Thatcher needs to develop. But my point is, he took it upon himself to use that time (in Utica) productively. He took things upon himself, which is the sign of a mature goaltender.”

Demko said: “One thing Clarkie is really good at is putting everything into terms. The way he looks at the game is a little different, but in a good way. When the communication is there and everyone is on the same page, the player is going to have a better chance to develop successfully. When you can narrow it down to maybe five things that you can work on instead of trying to look at the big picture … that can be overwhelming sometimes. That list that Clarkie gave me I thought was pretty helpful.”

Clark said he tells his goalies that they’re in charge of their development, and he is just there to assist.

“I’m more of a compass than a GPS system for them,” he said.

He’ll point them the right way, but the player has to get to the final destination on his own.

Demko desperately wants to get there. He badly wants to play, too, but knows a game or two in January isn’t his destination.

“This is what I’ve been working for,” he said. “I’ve got no right to come up and start demanding stuff. I’m just working hard every day and when they decide to give me a chance to play, I’ll be ready and be excited.”


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Sportsnet.ca / Oilers' Ken Hitchcock still searching for answers to scoring woes

Mark Spector

January 14, 2019, 4:27 PM

EDMONTON — The Edmonton Oilers forwards have scored 112 goals this season. Four players — Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Alex Chiasson — have accounted for 72 percent of those goals.

That means the support group, a gang of 11 or 12 forwards who fill out the remainder of the eight spots up front, have managed only 31 goals in just over a half a season.

Those numbers had head coach Ken Hitchcock sending out an all-points bulletin after a loss to lowly Arizona Saturday night, in search of some support for his top-four players.

"We have to find a way. We have to find more people to do more," begged Hitchcock. "Whether it’s the group that’s here or the group that’s somewhere else, we have to find more people to do more if we expect to get a different result."

Tobias Rieder, a key free agent signing by GM Peter Chiarelli, has zero goals in 32 starts. Milan Lucic has dented the twine twice, and at $6 million annually his ability to produce offensively appears to have completely evaporated. The ineffective Zack Kassian also has just two goals, and makes $2 million.

Jujhar Khaira, a big, strong and fast young player for whom many had high hopes this season, is muddling along on pace for 25 points. He has scored just twice, a major disappointment in Edmonton.

Jesse Puljujarvi has four goals. And while Ryan Strome has 6-5-11 in 26 games since being dealt to New York for Ryan Spooner, the new Oilers forward has 2-1-3 in 23 games as an Oiler. He’s been a total bust.

"We’ve got to find a way to produce more. It’s that simple," said Rieder, who has been a perimeter player on offence since joining Edmonton. "We haven’t gotten it done so far."

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It was thought Rieder might click with his countryman Draisaitl. Buried in a career slump however, Hitchcock can’t often justify playing Rieder in a top-six role.

It’s Jan. 14 and Rieder has not scored a single goal yet this season.

"First time ever," he said. "The longest I’ve gone in my career without a goal is a 12-game span. All I can do is be out there early, be out there late shooting pucks. Just work hard.

"I’m not proud of it. You’ve got to stick with it."

The old saying with depth forwards is, if you’re not scoring you’d better not be getting scored on. But because this group scores so seldom, they literally have to be perfect defensively just to break even.

"Individually and collectively, we have to figure out how we’re going to be a positive factor in games. When we’re not contributing, we can’t be hurting the team," said depth forward Kyle Brodziak, a

fourth-line centre often being pushed up to third-line status because of a lack of depth in Edmonton.

"You’ve got to find a way to contribute, no matter what situation you’re put in, no matter what the circumstances are," he added. "We haven’t done a very good job of that so far. Hopefully the second half we can turn it around.

"It’s no secret — we haven’t been getting the job done."

That leaves Hitchcock to overplay his top players. McDavid, who missed Sunday’s skills competition due to illness, is second among NHL forwards in average ice time per game at 22:52. Draisaitl is sixth (21:56).

"I’ve only been here 25 games or so," said Hitchcock. "I just know we’re trying to get more and more from people and sometimes we do and sometimes we don’t. I just know what it takes to get in and if this is the level we’re going to play at it’s not good enough.

"We’re going to have to find a way to get more from this group. That’s on us to try and see if we can squeeze more out of them."


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Sportsnet.ca / Layoff has Leafs' Andersen on track for championship-calibre workload

Chris Johnston

January 14, 2019, 2:24 PM

TORONTO — Even if no one will say it quite in these terms, there is a silver lining to the groin issue that has put Frederik Andersen on course to make fewer regular-season starts than his previous two years with the Maple Leafs.

The big Dane appeared destined to blow past the NHL’s point of no return for a No. 1 goaltender by playing 65-plus games once again — at least until he was shut down coming out of the Christmas break with what he described as a nagging issue that first popped up earlier in December.

Now, with Andersen set to return for Monday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche, he’s been recalibrated towards a workload that looks more like those of goaltenders who have won four playoff rounds in recent years.

Consider it a side benefit to his eight-game, 23-day layoff. In fact, mark it down as one of the reasons so much caution was likely taken with his recovery.

“I’ve been working hard on making sure it feels well and feels good to play on and obviously something that won’t linger,” said Andersen. “That’s the main issue. I think that’s why we took a little bit of extra time, to make sure it was feeling great.

“I’m sure I probably could have, if I really had to play, I could have pushed it a little bit sooner. We tested our patience a little bit in trying to get it fixed.”

That’s a prudent approach. There may not be a player more important to this season of heady expectations in Toronto.

Not only is Andersen prominently featured in the Vezina Trophy conversation — with his sparkling .923 save percentage and 20-9-1 record — but in Garret Sparks and Michael Hutchinson, the Leafs

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aren’t blessed with secondary options Mike Babcock would trust to carry the mail come playoff time.

They must ensure, then, that Andersen is handled with as much care as humanly possible.

He’s faced more rubber than any of his colleagues since the start of 2016-17 — 2,211 shots and counting — but is now on pace to appear in 61 games, assuming Babcock follows his well-established template of starting him in every game except both ends of a back-to-back.

Perhaps an extra couple starts will even be sprinkled in for Sparks down the stretch to keep Andersen in the high 50s. That should leave him a little more fresh come the post-season, given that he played 66 games each of the last two years.

“Freddie’s our guy,” said Babcock. “He hasn’t played in a long time. The doctors and the trainers were real careful to make sure. Obviously, he’s an important part of the team. So he’s had a good rest and good time off.

“Between the goalie coach and him, they say he’s up and running and ready to go.”

The conversation about how much is too much for a goalie to play is being had all over the league. No one since Jonathan Quick in 2012 has won the Stanley Cup after cresting 60 games during the season, and the workload for the top goalies has been reduced across the board in the last decade.

There is the odd exception — Vegas seems to be playing with fire by using Marc-Andre Fleury 41 times in 48 games, for example — but even goaltenders themselves have come around to the idea that less might end up being more in the long run.

“Back in the day, I used to play 70-plus games and you’re exhausted all the time,” Nashville Predators starter Pekka Rinne said recently. “You play the whole game, and it’s the mental wear.”

Andersen experienced a different sort of mental challenge during this absence. He had several on-ice sessions with goalie coach Steve Briere, and rejoined his teammates for practice on Jan. 4, but still had to wait 10 more days to get back in action.

That meant fielding a lot of questions about how he was feeling, which kept his mind searching for an answer, and that’s a much different way of being than when he’s locked in on getting ready to play every other day.

“I’ve just kind of been going by what they were saying in the trainer’s room,” said Andersen. “I’m looking forward to be back playing again. I think anyone will say that — it sucks to look from the outside in, and see the guys playing without you. You want to be part of the team and part of the battle for every game.”

There was naturally a little bit of relief after finally hearing his number called again on Monday.

“You want to be in there, you want to be in there every night and [sitting out is] really hard to do,” said Andersen. “Especially when you feel like you’re playing well. Yeah, just kind of tested my patience a little bit.”

If it pays off in the spring, it will have been worth it.


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Sportsnet.ca / Ducks GM says head coach Randy Carlyle's job is safe despite losing streak

Josh Beneteau

January 14, 2019, 10:49 AM

The Anaheim Ducks are in a tailspin right now, but head coach Randy Carlyle isn’t going anywhere.

In a statement released late Sunday after the team’s 11th consecutive loss, GM Bob Murray says he’s not considering a coaching change right now and is more focused on holding his players accountable.

“While it’s not my preference to make comments on this topic during the season, our recent play has led to many questions. Our fans are frustrated and rightfully so, and deserve a response from me,” Murray said in his statement.

“At this time, I am not considering a coaching change. I am more focused on our players, specifically with who is going to step up in this situation. The way we played tonight was a step in the right direction, but we need much, much more. We have higher expectations for this group, and they should expect more from themselves.”

Hours after releasing the statement, Murray acquired centre Devin Shore from the Dallas Stars for winger Andrew Cogliano on Monday.

The Ducks have a 0-7-4 record since they won four games in a row from Dec. 9-17. After their last win, 4-2 over the Pittsburgh Penguins, the team had 43 points and sat second in the Pacific Division, two points ahead of the San Jose Sharks and three ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights.

But after picking up only four points in their last 11 games, the Ducks woke up Monday morning tied with the Minnesota Wild and Vancouver Canucks for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference, but on the outside of the playoffs because the Wild have played two less games.

On top of that, the Calgary Flames, Sharks and Golden Knights are all 8-1-1 in their last 10, giving them all a 13 or more point cushion over the fourth place Ducks in the division.

The Ducks have also struggled to score this season. The team is currently 30th in the 31 team league with 112 goals, and have a minus-28 goal-deferential. Captain Ryan Getzlaf leads the team in scoring with 31 points, tied with Arizona’s Clayton Keller and the Kings’ Anze Kopitar for the lowest point total needed to lead a team in points.

Despite all the negativity hovering around the Ducks recently, the team remained mostly positive in their comments after Sunday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets.

“Obviously, now with the stuff that we’re going through, people are only looking at the results,” defenceman Cam Fowler said Sunday. “But we came in here, we played a great road game. If we continue to do that and we continue to put forth the effort we did tonight, then we’ll climb our way out of this thing.”

“You just have to multiply and duplicate efforts like tonight,” Carlyle said. “Because if we do that, we’ll have success. And I think we can do some things better.”

The Ducks hired Carlyle in June of 2016, giving him a second chance to lead the team he won the Stanley Cup with in 2007. Anaheim has gone 109-66-35 in the two and a half seasons since Carlyle returned, including a 19-18-9 record this season.

The Ducks’ next chance to snap their losing streak will come Tuesday night in Detroit against the Red Wings, the second game on a five-game road trip.

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Sportsnet.ca / Beyond Headlines: Trade deadline shaping up as buyer's market

Chris Johnston

January 13, 2019, 11:59 AM

‘Beyond Headlines’ is a deeper dive into some of the stories — and even some that weren’t — discussed each week on Hockey Night in Canada’s ‘Headlines’ segment.

FLOODED MARKETPLACE?

Six weeks out from the trade deadline, we can already identify more than a half dozen teams with assets to sell.

St. Louis, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, Ottawa, Carolina, New York Rangers.

There will be others, too, but consider the unrestricted free agents on these rosters alone: Patrick Maroon, Jay Bouwmeester, Carl Hagelin, Gustav Nyquist, Nick Jensen, Niklas Kronwall, Jimmy Howard, Wayne Simmonds, Mark Stone, Matt Duchene, Ryan Dzingel, Micheal Ferland, Jordan Martinook, Petr Mrazek, Curtis McElhinney, Kevin Hayes and Mats Zuccarello.

Then you add in the players with term who may be available from that group of teams: Brayden Schenn, Alex Pietrangelo, Colton Parayko, Jake Muzzin, Tyler Toffoli, Alec Martinez, Radko Gudas, Dougie Hamilton and Chris Kreider, to name a few.

No wonder there are sellers who fear a flooded marketplace at the Feb. 25 trade deadline, as my colleague Elliotte Friedman reported on “Headlines.”

It certainly seems to be shaping up as a buyer’s market. The prices will likely reflect that once the dealing starts.

Given the number of quality players that can be had, it should be a busy trade season.

LABOUR PEACE?

Given the history — all of the lockouts and missed games — it was an astounding quote.

Gary Bettman told reporters this week that he was hoping to complete a new collective bargaining agreement without fanfare, adding: “I’m not looking for a fight.”

Absolutely everything has been a fight between the NHL and NHLPA over the years. Whether it’s the big stuff, like instituting a salary cap, or smaller issues such as rule changes, discipline or Olympic participation, it has only been in rare moments where we could describe the league and players’ union as aligned.

And yet here we are, eight months before each has to decide if the CBA will be terminated in September 2020, and there is real genuine hope for an extension. A pathway to a new deal. They are still believed to be in the early stage of the process, as Friedge mentioned on “Headlines,” but there is some momentum in talks with a meeting planned in Toronto in the days ahead following the one in Las Vegas last week.

Stakeholders on both sides of these discussions point out that there isn’t one gigantic stumbling block this time around. There isn’t one fundamental issue — such as the salary cap or a 50-50 split of revenues — that justifies shutting the sport down for months on end.

There is a lot of smaller stuff to work through, but nothing worth fighting about. There may be peace in our time.

KICKED-IN GOAL

Thursday was a busy night in the NHL’s situation room and they had one particularly challenging review. That was out of Vancouver, where Arizona’s Nick Cousins directed a puck past Jacob Markstrom with his right skate.

The goal was allowed to stand, much to the dismay of Canucks coach Travis Green.

The league’s hockey operations department followed up with a call to Green on Friday to explain how the process played out on their end. They also reviewed the decision internally with no clear consensus — some felt there was a distinct kicking motion from Cousins that should have overturned the goal while others believed the correct ruling was made.

There can be shades of grey with these type of decisions and even during video review they have to be made pretty quickly.

It’s safe to say there was one area of full agreement: Hockey ops was happy this happened in a game on Jan. 10 rather than June 10, with a Stanley Cup on the line.

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GOALIE CAROUSEL

The Toronto Maple Leafs traded a fifth-round pick to Florida for goalie Michael Hutchinson on Dec. 29 and probably never dreamed they’d need to press him into NHL action so soon.

Hutchinson has started five straight games with Frederik Andersen nursing a groin injury and battling the flu, and Garret Sparks still recovering from a concussion.

The Leafs will face another roster decision if he appears in one more game. That would be the 10th of the season for Hutchinson and require him to clear waivers to be sent back to the American Hockey League.

Sparks needs waivers, as well, and you can be sure general manager Kyle Dubas doesn’t want to risk losing either goalie for nothing after seeing both Curtis McElhinney and Calvin Pickard plucked off the waiver wire at the end of training camp.

WOULD YOU?

We went down the rabbit hole in the commentator’s room on Saturday night while watching our two early games: Colorado/Montreal and Toronto/Boston.

Blame David Amber.

He’s the master of the hypothetical question and posed this one to the group: Would you consider trading Auston Matthews — unsigned beyond this season and likely to command a salary in excess of $12 million — straight up for Nathan MacKinnon (with four more years at $6.3 million)?

That was a hard no for me, given the age difference of the players and Matthews’ otherworldly scoring rates. Brian Burke had some choice words for David about how even coming up with that question showed why he’s spent a career talking about hockey rather than running a hockey team. But he did find a little bit of support in the room.

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So, just for fun … would you rather have a 23-year-old MacKinnon or a 21-year-old Matthews at potentially twice the price?

SALUTING RICK

“Rick Nash, woooooah. Rick Nash, woooooah. Rick Nash, woooooah.”

It was the 2007 IIHF World Hockey Championship in Moscow, and in the giddy din of Canada’s victorious dressing room the players started to chant. Nash was a beast in that tournament, taking home the MVP honours and even scoring a goal with a Finnish defenceman on his back in the gold-medal game.

When coach Andy Murray addressed his team after the win, he said that Nash wasn’t just carrying the Finn but also the hopes of 30 million Canadians when he scored that goal. There were some tears of joy shed among the champagne showers in that room.

Some of Nash’s best hockey came on the international stage.

He scored in the first period of the muscle-flexing, quarter-final victory over Russia at the Vancouver Olympics — a game where Russian goalie Ilya Bryzgalov memorably said Canada started like “gorillas out of a cage” — and accumulated 51 points across 53 games wearing the Maple Leaf.

I remember seeing Nash an hour or two after Team Canada won gold at the Sochi Olympics in 2014. He was proud of the fact he’d come back to Russia again and won again.

Nash’s playing career is over too soon, ended prematurely by concussions, but he should be proud of everything he achieved. He was a big-game player and a gentleman. He played over 1,000 NHL games, scored more than 400 goals and represented our country with distinction.

Bravo.


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Sportsnet.ca / Mike Smith sets table for monster Giordano, Flames performance

Eric Francis

January 14, 2019, 1:25 AM

CALGARY – They came to see how the goalie would fare and they left talking about the captain.

Making his first start since Jan. 3, Mike Smith made several big saves early to set the table for another monstrous night for Mark Giordano and the Calgary Flames.

Playing in his 800th NHL game, the Flames captain scored twice and added an assist in a 7-1 win over Arizona to keep the Flames atop the Western Conference and move himself into second spot amongst NHL defenceman in scoring.

“Plus-5 and three points – that’s something you tell your kids,” smiled coach Bill Peters of Giordano’s milestone night. “They’re going to look it up and they’re going to go, ‘Hey, he wasn’t lying.’ Good for him.”

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The mood was light after an outing in which the Flames felt they’d finally returned to playing the type of game they want to keep pace in a tight race for tops in the Pacific division.

The win was their fifth in a row, upping their record to 8-1-1 in a stretch in which their only loss came when Smith allowed five in a game against Boston they should have won. The pressure mounting on Smith to eliminate the soft goals he’s been prone to giving up had everyone wondering how he’d respond when started at home.

He responded well, making 22 saves. The only shot to beat Smith came from defenceman Jordan Oesterle whose point shot went in off the post as Smith tried peeking out from a net-front screen. By then, the Flames were up 4-1.

“Nice to keep the winning streak going and get back in there and feel good,” said Smith, who made several big saves early on, including a real beauty while shorthanded in a scoreless opener.

“I just wanted to be in there and be good, be solid. I thought I was calm in the net. I let the puck come to me and made the saves teammates rely on you to make.”

His focus after the game, like most, was on Giordano, who had his sixth three-point night of the year. He has 12 such binges in his career.

“Unbelievable,” said Smith of the latest feat from the 35-year-old captain, unquestionably the mid-season front-runner for the Norris Trophy. “One of the best captains I’ve played for over my career. The way he competes on the ice and the way he practices is the epitome of being a true professional.

“An unbelievable guy to be around off the ice as well. I’ve been here a short time but it doesn’t take you long to figure out what kind of person he is and what kind of leader he is. 800 games in this league playing the way he does says a lot about the person he is and the player he is.”

Giordano has nine goals and 47 points in 45 games to move ahead of Morgan Rielly in the blue line scoring race, and sits atop the loop at plus-36.

“I think getting a lot of touches on the first power-play unit this year with those guys is really helping,” said Giordano, when asked about his best season yet.

“Me and Brodes (T.J. Brodie) have good chemistry – we always have – and we’re jumping into spots and we’re having success. We know when we play well we give ourselves a chance to win.”

The victim of the latest Flames offensive was 22-year-old Adin Hill, a product of the Calgary Buffaloes, Bisons and Canucks programs. One of the poster boys for Esso Minor Hockey Week, which is going on here this week as the world’s largest hockey tourney, was under siege all night by a host team that has now scored seven or more a league-best six times. All seven goals were even-strength, coming on 26 shots.

Matthew Tkachuk also scored twice while Sam Bennett and Sean Monahan added singles. Johnny Gaudreau had a goal and an assist to up his point steak to eight games – a stretch in which he’s had eight goals and ten assists.

Andrew Mangiapane picked up an assist – his first NHL point, while Mikael Backlund, Michael Frolik and Brodie each had a pair of helpers.

Dalton Prout drew into the lineup after Travis Hamonic was a late scratch.

The Flames host Buffalo Wednesday with an eye on keeping their five-game home stand perfect (3-0).

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TSN.CA / Avalanche hand sloppy Maple Leafs another home loss

Kristen Shilton

TORONTO – In the aftermath of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 6-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Monday, the refrains from players to coach were eerily familiar: the Leafs didn’t work hard enough, didn’t execute, and failed to win enough battles while making too many costly mistakes.

With only two wins in their last seven games, the Maple Leafs can readily identify the issues at hand. Now they’re tasked with trying to fix them.

“We only have ourselves to blame,” said Mike Babcock. “Myself as the head coach, I’m responsible. We didn’t play well enough, we didn’t play hard enough. And for the players it’s the same way. We weren’t good enough. Since Christmas we haven’t found that [next] level. I don’t know why.”

The loss presented shades of the same story the Leafs have been writing for weeks, where they’re being outworked and outplayed by heavy, hard-nosed, opportunistic hockey teams. The Avalanche, a club reeling from nine losses in their last 10 games before Monday’s game, is the latest playoff-positioned team to down the Leafs, who have just one win in their last eight games against such opponents.

And as in those other defeats, Monday’s was dotted by lost puck battles that turned into goals against the Leafs, and their previously dominating offence is still looking for a missing spark as they lost the possession battle at 38 per cent.

“I don’t think we played a good game tonight at all,” said Mitch Marner, who scored one of the Leafs’ three goals. “We didn’t come ready to work; they did. They came ready to play us and we didn’t do the same.”

Things started well enough for the Leafs, when they jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the second period off goals scored 1:14 apart by Igor Ozhiganov and Kasperi Kapanen. That busted a seven-game goalless drought for Kapanen, and came just 11 seconds after Par Lindholm’s goal had been called back upon a successful offside review by the Avalanche.

Rather than emboldening the Leafs to keep pressing through, the advantage put them on their heels. And Colorado was only too happy to capitalize.

Colorado’s comeback started with its top line, made up of Gabriel Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, who entered the game having combined for 185 points. Landeskog got on the board first, fighting for position in front of the newly returned Frederik Andersen and deflecting a puck low past the netminder.

Then, in the midst of some terrible puck management by the Leafs in the defensive zone, Rantanen executed a great solo effort to pick Nazem Kadri’s pocket and blast the game-tying goal past Andersen midway through the second.

It was John Tavares’ line with Marner and Zach Hyman who were matched up against MacKinnon’s group, but the Avalanche got the better of them winning races and applying pressure with 65 per cent

possession, while Marner finished at minus-3 and Tavares at minus-4.

“They were getting the pucks in, they were getting them back, they were moving a lot,” said Marner. “We didn’t stop them, we didn’t get any puck pressure. That’s something we’re going to have to fix.”

Before the frame was over, Toronto trailed 3-2, on yet another poor defensive effort. While Toronto was on the power play, Jake Gardiner got completely outmuscled for a puck by Carl Soderberg who then beat Andersen shorthanded.

Gardiner was benched for the remaining 5:31 of the second period, and boos rained down from a faction of the Toronto crowd in period three whenever he touched the puck.

“Tried to get body position, got it, whiffed on the puck and he got body position again,” explained an emotional Gardiner post-game. “[Boos] haven’t happened before, that’s for sure. Not something you want to hear, but plays happen in the game.”

Trailing in the third, Marner streaked in along the boards and roofed a puck top-shelf on Semyon Varlamov to tie things up, 3-3. But while that got the Leafs’ motor running, Soderberg scored again, and an early pull of Andersen led to two empty-netters, including Soderberg’s hat trick score.

“Not mentally sharp, not physically engaged enough either,” Babcock assessed. “We haven’t been good enough. You get what you get. The league is going by and everyone is getting better and we’ve hit a lull, so we have to get it turned.”

With the league-leading Tampa Bay Lightning waiting for Toronto on Thursday, there is precious little time for the Leafs to find a stronger layer to their game they feel is there, even as the losses keep piling up.

“I don’t think we’ve been as consistent as we’d like to be the last few games. Tonight, we weren’t consistent at all,” said Tavares. “We just didn’t win enough battles. We have to be desperate, we have a lot to play for. We can be a lot better than we were.”

TAKEAWAYS

Gardiner in hot water

It’s been a rough stretch for Gardiner of late, even before he misplayed Soderberg on the shorthanded goal. His turnover directly led to a key goal for the Boston Bruins in Saturday's loss, and he finished that game minus-2, facts likely fresh in Babcock’s mind when he benched Gardiner for the rest of the second after his latest blunder.

If that message from Babcock wasn’t clear enough, fans audibly booing Gardiner in frustration got it across. Gardiner draws more ire than other Leafs’ defenders in part because of how he plays, intermittently high-octane and dazzling to watch, but too often caught defensively like he has been the last two games. Monday included, Gardiner is minus-1 in his last six games, finishing Monday even in 18:07 of ice time (well below his season average of 21:36) with a game-worst 22 per cent possession.

Still, it’s exceedingly rare for a skater to be singled out by the crowd for a bad error, and Gardiner’s teammates came to his defence immediately after the display. In shades of his Game 7 post-game press conference after last April’s first-round playoff exit in Boston, Gardiner was clearly distraught by the reception he received. But Babcock conceded Gardiner has to play better, and the defenceman wholeheartedly agreed there’s plenty that has to be improved going forward.

Andersen back in action

It had been a long two weeks for Andersen battling his groin injury, and the netminder was eager to get back in the net and start feeling the puck again. His teammates gave Andersen plenty of chances for

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that, being outshot 31-13 through the first 40 minutes of the game while he did what he could to mask their various defensive breakdowns.

Colorado had good early pressure in the first, challenging Andersen from in tight, but the goalie was immediately tracking the puck well through bodies.

The second period proved especially tough for the Leafs, Andersen included, when he ceded three goals in just under eight minutes. There were positive plays too, like the wild, scrambling save from his stomach that had a rain of “Fred-ie” chants coming down from Toronto’s faithful. There was also the save on MacKinnon’s partial breakaway chance that briefly preserved the Leafs’ 2-1 lead.

As Babcock noted, though, Andersen’s return wasn’t treated by his teammates as the boost it was, and Andersen thinks his reads will improve rapidly as he gets into more game action. He finished with 32 saves for an .889 save percentage.

Slow starts pile up

It’s become routine lately for the Leafs to overcome themselves in the first five to seven minutes of a game, where simple mistakes cost them early momentum. Monday was another example of that phenomenon, with Colorado outshooting Toronto 4-1 in the first five minutes and hemming Toronto in its own end with 80 per cent possession.

While the Leafs did get rolling as the period went along, the Avalanche stayed on top of them for the duration, outshooting their hosts 13-5 after 20 minutes with 64 per cent possession. Neither side registered a goal in the opening frame, a fortunate break for the Leafs, but after repeatedly identifying the importance of better starts lately, Toronto proved on Monday that adjustments in that respect, like several others, are still a work in progress.

Blue and White Trending

Tracking Leafs’ trends all season long

When trailing after 40 minutes this season, the Leafs hold a 1-12-2 record.

Next up

Toronto goes back on the road again, meeting the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday.

Last Word

“He comes to work every day like a pro, works hard, his teammates love him; he’s the most popular guy in this room. Guys make mistakes out there all night, that’s the way the game goes. It’s played on ice. So things happen that can be unpredictable and it just happens that that ends up in the back of the net."

TSN.CA LOADED: 01.15.2019

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TSN.CA / MacKinnon: Avs should split up top line if skid lingers

Mark Masters

TSN Toronto reporter Mark Masters checks in daily with news and notes on the Toronto Maple Leafs.The Leafs (optional) and Colorado Avalanche skated at Scotiabank Arena ahead of Monday night’s game.

The line of Gabriel Landeskog (27 goals, 24 assists), Nathan MacKinnon (26 goals, 40 assists) and Mikko Rantanen (20 goals, 48 assists) has been dominant this season, but with the Colorado Avalanche struggling it may be time to split up the trio, at least for a bit.

“That would probably be a good thing, too,” agreed MacKinnon. “Good to spread it out. We tried it at home for a few periods and it was OK ... but, yeah, it’s definitely something that we should try in the future especially if we don't win here.”

MacKinnon notes that other Avalanche lines absorb most of the defensive-zone draws allowing his group to stay on the attack and put up some gaudy numbers. He also points out that Carl Soderberg and Alexander Kerfoot are trending toward 50-point seasons so there are good options to mix and match throughout the lineup. And Colorado could use a shake up having lost nine of 10.

So, why is Jared Bednar staying the course by keeping his top weapons together?

"They like playing together," the Avalanche coach explained. "They’re excited about playing together every night. They put a lot of responsibility on themselves. It’s been working for us at times. We've broken them up and used them with some other linemates during games and sort of shuffled lines around, but we keep coming back to those guys as a group ... they've played some more shifts away from each other recently, but I still like playing them together.

“They’re one of the best lines in the league if not the best line in the league. If we’re going to get out of this thing we’re going to lean on those guys heavily and that’s what we’re intending to do here.”

After losing 3-0 to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, Bednar says his team has reached the “put up or shut up” moment in the losing streak.

“We feel a lot of pressure," MacKinnon said. “I mean, to give our team the best chance to win we’re going to have to produce and we didn’t do that against Montreal. The power play was in one a little bit (0/4) and it cost us the game ... The West is tight, fortunately for us. We’ve lost 12 of 15, but we’re still in a playoff spot somehow so we’ll take it.”

Considering how things have been snowballing of late, you can understand why Bednar is doubling down on his best players. MacKinnon (averaging 22:12 ice time per game), Landeskog (21:27) and Rantanen (21:14) log big minutes and have seen their playing time get pushed even higher when the team has trailed late in games as was the case last Wednesday against the Flames.

"In Calgary, I think we played 26 and after the game you’re kind of in shock," said MacKinnon, who lost his composure and yelled at Bednar on the bench late in that one, "that’s a lot of minutes. But you kind of get the adrenaline going, especially late when you’re down, you’re pushing. It’s mostly the next day I feel it. Definitely a little sluggish, a tough sleep and things like that, but I love it. It’s a lot of fun. You can’t complain about playing a lot."

Bednar noted that the average ice time for his top players is on par with other elite guys in the league and the team does everything to ensure the trio gets the recovery time necessary should the minutes skyrocket in certain games. He also adds, "We got to worry about the present here a little bit and not just the big picture."

MacKinnon: Avs should split up top line if losing continues: ''Good to spread it out''

With the Avalanche having one win over their last 10 games, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog discuss if they would want to split up their top line if the losing continues.

Just like on Saturday against Patrice Bergeron and the Boston Bruins, it will be Zach Hyman, John Tavares and Mitch Marner getting the toughest assignment tonight. Leafs head coach Mike

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Babcock confirmed that line will see MacKinnon and company a lot at even strength.

"I'm doing what I can to win the game," the Leafs coach explained. "I think they’re, right now, playing our best."

In the past, Nazem Kadri and Auston Matthews have gotten the tough assignments.

"I'd like to be able to give all three of those groups matchups as time goes on," Babcock said. "We've got to be playing good enough."

Tavares was asked to offer a scouting report on Colorado's top line.

"Landeskog is a real good finisher and strong on the puck, good in a lot of areas where maybe you don’t notice," the centre observed, "and, obviously, MacKinnon has dynamic ability with the puck, his skating, his shot and Rantanen’s hockey sense and playmaking ability is one of the best in the league so they have, really, a good blend of kind of everything."

Babcock, meanwhile, prefers spreading his top threats throughout the lineup something he's able to do thanks to Toronto’s tremendous depth up front.

"Over the course of 60 minutes you’d like to think you’re able to wear a team down that way and find a way to get opportunities," noted Tavares.

Babcock was asked why more teams seem to be embracing the load-up-one-line approach.

“Whatever works best for their team. The team that's running away with hockey though, that's not what they're doing,” he said referring to the front-running Tampa Bay Lightning. “They're spread out, they've just got good players on every line. Those are the ones that tend to play a long time in the spring, too.”

“Tampa spreads it out fairly well,” said Tavares. "I think we spread it out fairly well. It depends maybe the way the team’s built or the way they’re looking to play. Sometimes you get three guys that click so well together, it’s hard to not do that."

''Good blend of everything'': Tavares scouts the Avs top line

With Mike Babcock confirming that he will match the Hyman-Tavares-Marner line tonight against Colorado's Landeskog-MacKinnon-Rantanen line, Tavares looks ahead to the second straight matchup against one of the NHL's top lines.

Rantanen and Kasperi Kapanen helped Finland win a World Junior gold medal in 2016. Rantanen was the captain of that team while Kapanen scored the golden goal on overtime against Russia. And the pair linked up even before that magical run in Helsinki through the Finnish national program.

"I knew back then that he'd become an amazing hockey player," said Kapanen, "but if you’d asked me if he’d be leading the league in points pretty much the whole season and just tearing it up that’s something I couldn’t tell you. He’s a fascinating player."

"His skating is probably the biggest thing that impresses me," said Rantanen. "People don't talk about it, but I think he's one of the fastest guys in the league. He's getting better and better. He was an offensive talent, but here he was playing more of a defensive role last year, but now he's getting more offensive (chances) and he's scoring goals so that's good for him."

Tonight the pair of Finnish friends will be facing off in the NHL for the first time.

"We talk to each other every now and then," said Kapanen. "I'm sure he's busy and, you know, he's kind of far away from me, but every time I see him or he's posting something or whatever I'll give him a little chirp or try to talk to him. He's a good guy and fun to be around. I can't wait to play against him tonight."

Finnish friends: Rantanen and Kapanen on facing off for first time in NHL

Kasperi Kapanen and Mikko Rantanen have played together for Finland before but are facing off against each other for the first time in the NHL tonight. The fellow Fins had nothing but high praise for one another before the game.

Projected Leafs lineup for tonight's game:

Forwards

Hyman-Tavares-Marner

Johnsson-Matthews-Kapanen

Marleau-Kadri-Nylander

Lindholm-Gauthier-Brown

Defencemen

Rielly-Hainsey

Gardiner-Zaitsev

Dermott-Ozhiganov

Goaltenders

Andersen starts


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TSN.CA / Energized Ryan in a zone for Senators

Ian Mendes

On Thursday night in Los Angeles, television cameras inside the Staples Center caught Bobby Ryan sitting on the Ottawa Senators bench and singing along to a song being played inside the arena during a stoppage in play.

Ryan, however, has no recollection of his karaoke moment being caught on live television.

“I don’t remember the song or what it would have been. But for me that’s just being carefree,” Ryan told TSN.ca on Monday morning. “When I’m at my best, I think I’m aggressive and moving my feet. I’m doing both those things right now and maybe that leads to singing – I don’t know.”

That Ryan doesn’t recall singing along to the song – 24k Magic by Bruno Mars – illustrates just how dialled in the Senators winger has been in recent games. The 31-year-old veteran is currently riding a seven-game point streak in one of his most productive stretches in a Senators jersey.

“He’s been really good for a long time now,” said Senators head coach Guy Boucher. “He’s playing hard, he’s motivated. He’s coming to the rink with tons of enthusiasm. When you’re ‘on’ on a regular basis, it’s rare you don’t get the results that come with it.”

A potential turning point in Ryan’s season may have come when he dropped the gloves and fought Kyle Turris in a memorable fight with his ex-teammate on Dec. 17. Since then, Ryan has collected 10 points in his last 11 games – as compared to a stretch of just two points in the nine games leading up to the fight with Turris.

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“My energy level has been good and that’s a big thing for me,” Ryan said. “Through the season you go through some highs and lows and right now I feel great.”

Boucher says Ryan has been a calming influence on the Senators power play, where he provides a veteran presence for the young players when he’s handling the puck. The plan is for Ryan to be reunited with Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel for Wednesday’s game against Colorado as Duchene returns from a three-game absence around the birth of his first child.

Ryan is well aware of his penchant for roller-coaster stretches of productivity, which have been a hallmark of his time in Ottawa. This seven-game point streak marks the second-longest streak he’s had in a Senators jersey – eclipsed only by a nine-game point streak he posted in November of 2015.

“What’s important to me is – how do you manufacture that every night?” asks Ryan. “Offensively, I’m playing with guys who are giving me looks in areas I like to be and they’re finally going in.”

For a player making $7.5 million, Ryan is surprisingly under the radar in Ottawa this season as he is caught in a unique situation. The Senators are currently an intriguing mixture of young talent – featuring the likes of Brady Tkachuk, Thomas Chabot and Colin White – combined with several key pending unrestricted free agents like Matt Duchene, Mark Stone and Ryan Dzingel.

Ryan doesn’t fit into either group and as a result, he has received very little fanfare this season. Fittingly, his seven-game point streak has gone largely unnoticed by many – but it hasn’t escaped the attention of his head coach.

“His mind is in the right place, his work ethic is there, his discipline is there,” added Boucher. “Definitely, Bobby has been one of our better players for sure.”

It was around this time last year that Ryan’s name started to surface in the rumour mill around the NHL trade deadline. His name was connected to Erik Karlsson, as there was a belief that the Senators were potentially trying to attached Ryan’s hefty contract to a deal involving their superstar defenceman.

As the trade deadline approaches this season, Ryan’s name is no longer being dangled out there. But the names of some other players – such as Cody Ceci, Craig Anderson and Zack Smith – have all surfaced from time to time.

Given what he experienced around the trade deadline last season, Ryan says he’s offered some advice for those who are hearing their names in trade speculation.

“I’ve talked to a few guys. Just don’t take it personally. It’s a business,” said Ryan. “They have to do what’s right by them and you have to do right by you. If your name is out there, you can’t take it personally because when you do, that affects the rest of us.”

The Senators could be major sellers around the trade deadline this season, as they are languishing at the bottom of the standings and could be selling off a number of key pieces – including the likes of Duchene, Stone and Dzingel if they can’t hammer out long-term deals with the forwards.

As it stands now, Ryan says the team hasn’t addressed the trade deadline and the distractions that come with it as a group – but that’s likely to change in the weeks ahead.

“We’re obviously going to have to address that in the room, it will come up at some point,” Ryan said. “You can say, ‘Hey let’s not let that creep into the room and into the game.’ But guys are going to leave, they’re going to check Twitter and I’ve been guilty of that myself in the past. Just don’t read into what you read – if that makes sense. Wait until you hear from the right people around you.”


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TSN.CA / Countdown to TradeCentre: Sens willing to trade Ceci?

Staff

The National Hockey League's Trade Deadline is 3 p.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 25, and teams will be making decisions on whether to buy or sell and decide which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Check out the latest trade rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.

Wait and Ceci

Sitting 14th in the Eastern Conference, the Ottawa Senators project to be sellers ahead of the trade deadline, but who exactly will be on the move remains unclear.

The team has three key pending unrestricted free agents in Mark Stone, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel and contract talks with Stone and Duchene are expected to heat up in the near future.

TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie was asked over the weekend whether the Senators could consider trading defenceman Cody Ceci, who will become a restricted free agent once again this July.

“I think in the case of Ceci because he’s on the one-year deal… RFA at the end of this year - I think that the notion of trading Cody Ceci is within the realm of possibility,” McKenzie told TSN Radio 1200 Ottawa. “And that it wouldn’t surprise me if the Senators have gotten calls on Ceci and it wouldn’t surprise me if the Ottawa Senators are earnestly listening on those.

“Again, nobody has made any pronouncements, and so nothing is firm by any stretch of the imagination, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Senators were open to the idea of trading Ceci. That doesn’t mean they’re going to give him away. It’s not a fire sale. Contractually, they still own him. They could qualify him, or do another deal, or whatever the case may be - but he’s not unrestricted, he’s not walking out the door. You have some control over the player, but not a ton either. He’s getting on.

“So on that one I think there’ll likely be conversations.”

Ceci, 25, re-signed with the Senators last summer on a one-year, $4.3 million contract. Through 42 games this season, he has five goals and 12 points with a minus-20 rating.

Roster Moves?

Anaheim Ducks general manager Bob Murray released a statement on Sunday confirming his support for head coach Randy Carlyle in the midst of the team's franchise-record 11-game winless streak.

In the statement, Murray said he was "more focused on our players" and TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie believes that while Carlyle is safe, the Ducks roster hasn't been given the same assurance.

“Well, if they keep losing and losing and losing, I guess at some point maybe the coach goes,” McKenzie told TSN Radio Ottawa 1200 prior to Murray's statement. “But to be honest with you, Bob Murray, the general manager there, seems to be not inclined to want to make a coaching change in-season. I think he wants to try to ride it out with Randy Carlyle as long as he can.

“I do believe he’s been very active - and has been all season long, and continues to be - in terms of what might be a trade option for him.

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“So he’s got a lot going on there. It’s a contract year for Jakob Silfverberg. Are they going to be able to get him signed, are they not going to be able to get him signed? He’s a real good forward, and if they’re not going to be able to get him signed, then maybe he has to go.

“They’ve got lots of defencemen, when healthy. When you’ve got (Hampus) Lindholm and you’ve got (Cam) Fowler and you’ve got (Brandon) Montour and you’ve got (Josh) Manson - there’s a lot of really good young defencemen on that team. Some would say they have almost too many, that there’s a surplus, versus some of the other weaknesses in their lineup.

“I’ve got to believe that Bob Murray is looking at any and all trade options, both in terms of trying to make his team better in the very short term, so they can snag one of those playoff spots - the wild-card spots - but also with an eye toward, ‘You know what? For most of the last couple of decades it seems it’s been (Ryan) Getzlaf and (Corey) Perry and everybody else,’ and they obviously need to transition to a younger team and get a younger core. So if there’s hockey deals to be made that would allow him to do that as well…

“So I think he’s got a lot of balls in the air in terms of going in both directions. Try and make a move here that might push a button that gets them over the top and into one of the wild-card playoff spots, but also maybe has him to think trading some players that might otherwise wouldn’t think of trading, so that you can continue a renewal if you want - not a rebuild by any stretch - but just a bit of a renewal to try and change to change the look of this team long term for many years to come.”

The Ducks' current skid has dropped the team out of a playoff position, though they remain tied in points with the Minnesota Wild, who currently occupy the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Ducks have been without Perry rhis season due to a preseason knee injury, but are expected to get the 33-year-old back sometime in February.

Oil (Goalie) Change?

With the Edmonton Oilers already up against the salary cap, Kurt Leavins of The Edmonton Journal wonders if the team will consider trading goaltender Cam Talbot as they seek offensive help ahead of the deadline.

Leavins noted that both Talbot, who carries a $4.167 million cap hit, and Mikko Koskinen are pending free agents and the team is unlikely to re-sign both this summer.

Talbot, 31, has struggled this season, posting a 9-13-2 record with a 3.17 goals-against average and a .896 save percentage. He has a limited no-trade clause which allows him to submit a list of 10 teams approved for a trade.

Koskinen, who was signed as a free agent out of the KHL this past summer, has outplayed Talbot this season, posting a 12-8-1 record with a 2.72 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. The 30-year-old also owns a full no-move clause on his $2.5 million contract.

Koskinen has also started 20 games since Nov. 1, while Talbot, the team's starter to begin the year, has started 14.

Edmonton currently sits 11th in the Western Conference, but only two points back of the Minnesota Wild for the final wild-card spot.


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TSN.CA / Andersen returns for Maple Leafs against Avalanche

Kristen Shilton

TORONTO – The Maple Leafs are angling to get on another roll after losing four of their last six games. Goaltender Frederik Andersen is, at last, available to help.

Head coach Mike Babcock made Andersen’s return official on Monday morning, announcing him as Toronto’s starter against Colorado after the goalie missed more than two weeks with a groin injury (and brief bout of flu).

“Freddie is our guy,” Babcock said after the Leafs’ optional morning skate, in which Andersen took part. “The doctors and trainers were real careful to make sure [he was ready]. He’s an important part of the team. He’s had a good rest and good time off…they say he’s ready to go, so he gets his opportunity here today.”

Garret Sparks, now recovered from a concussion suffered on Jan. 2, will serve as the backup for Andersen, the first time Toronto’s goalie tandem has been in place since Dec. 28.

Since joining the Leafs in 2016-17, Andersen has carried the load in net with 66 starts in the previous two seasons. Watching Michael Hutchison (2-3-0 in five starts) take over for the last 10 days tested Andersen’s patience.

“I’ve been working hard on making sure it feels well and feels good to play on and it’s something that won’t linger,” Andersen said of his injury, the first groin-related problem he’s ever dealt with. “That’s the main issue. I think that’s why we took a little extra time to make sure it was feeling great.”

If he’d absolutely had to play – say, in a postseason situation – Andersen said he could have been pushed back into action sooner. Truth be told, he already played through the injury for longer than anyone knew.

Through October and November, Andersen was posting some of the best numbers by any goaltender in the league, going 14-7-0 with a .932 save percentage and tied for the most wins with Marc-Andre Fleury. December wasn’t as strong, with a 6-2-1 record and .903 save percentage. Andersen directly correlates that dip to his health.

“I was dealing with [the groin] most of December and I could tell [my game] wasn’t where it was the first two months,” he said. “It started nagging me and got worse…and for some games in December I wasn’t feeling as well. Been working hard in practice and trying to replicate as much as you can the intensity and the mindset of being in a game and try to prepare yourself as [well] as possible.”

Not only is Andersen expecting to bounce back into early fall form come Monday, so are his teammates. Between injuries, suspensions and contract holdouts, the Leafs have had only four games all season where their top nine forwards and starting goaltender have been on the ice together.

Welcoming Andersen back into the fold now is a boost for the Leafs.

“His skill set and the type of goaltender he is, he’s one of the best in the league, one of the best in the world,” said John Tavares. “[We have] a lot of confidence in him and he gives the group a lot of confidence [through] that consistency he brings on a nightly basis and his ability to make the big save when it’s needed and just being steady.”

The Leafs will need more than just solid goaltending from Andersen to keep the Avalanche’s top line at bay. While Colorado has lost nine of its last 10 games, Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog have continued to be one of the NHL’s top offensive units, combining for 185 points in 45 games.

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Slowing them down will fall to Tavares, Mitch Marner and Zach Hyman, no slouches themselves when it comes to production. Together, Tavares and Marner have 108 points in 44 games, and they’ve come up with 21 of the Leafs’ 44 goals in the team’s last 12 games.

While other stars like Nazem Kadri (two goals in 26 games), Auston Matthews (one goal in nine games) and William Nylander (one goal in 16 games) have gone quiet, the Tavares line keeps roaring.

Having just held the Boston Bruins’ top line of Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand off the board when they were on the ice in Saturday’s 3-2 loss, Tavares’ unit will try to carry momentum into another tall task Monday.

“The appeal [of Tavares’ line against MacKinnon’s] is I’m doing what I can to win the game, and right now they’re playing our best,” said Babcock.

“They have a good mix of guys with things they bring to the table,” added Tavares. “Landeskog is a real good finisher, strong on the puck…MacKinnon’s dynamic ability with the puck, his skating, his shot and Rantanen’s hockey sense and playmaking ability is one of the best in the league. They have a good blend of everything.”

Maple Leafs’ projected lines vs. Colorado:

Hyman-Tavares-Marner

Johnsson-Matthews-Kapanen

Marleau-Kadri-Nylander

Lindholm-Gauthier-Brown

Rielly-Hainsey

Gardiner-Zaitsev

Dermott-Ozhiganov

Andersen starts


1126125 Websites

TSN.CA / Avs could split up top line if skid continues

Staff

The NHL's most productive line could be headed for a split.

With the Colorado Avalanche owning just one win in their past 10 games, the dominant trio of Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog could soon find themselves spread out in the lineup.

All three players were named to this month's All-Star Game with Rantanen and MacKinnon both sitting in the league's top five in points and Landeskog sitting fifth in the NHL in goals this season.

MacKinnon said Monday that splitting up the unit could benefit the team as a whole.

"That would probably be a good thing, too," MacKinnon said ahead of his team's contest with the Toronto Maple Leafs. "It would be good to spread it out, but we tried a little bit this year and we just kind of kept coming back to three of us.

"We tried it at home for a few periods and it was okay, but (head coach Jared Bednar) just put us back together. It's definitely something that we should try in the future, especially if we don't win here."

The three players have combined for 13 of the team's 23 goals over the past 10 games, with MacKinnon recording 11 points, Rantanen posting 10 and Landeskog notching nine over the stretch.

While all three players have already topped the 50-point mark this season, Carl Soderberg sits fourth among Avalanche forwards with just 25 points this season in in 45 games.

Landeskog said he believes keeping the unit could still be the best option for the team.

"It already has happened a couple of times this season," Landeskog said. "A couple of weeks ago, they split us up and I went to play with (J.T.) Compher and (Alexander) Kerfoot – a shorter period of time, but I think that's up to the coaching staff to try to determine that. If they see that something's not going well and they want to change something up, then we're all up for it.

"It's a lot fun playing with these two guys and I think as long as we're playing well and contributing, I think that it could be a good thing for us – if we can drive the bus. If the coaches see something else, I'd be more than willing to play with other guys too."

The Avalanche, who have just four points since Dec. 21, have fallen into the Western Conference's top wild-card playoff spot and own just a one-point lead over the Anaheim Ducks, who sit ninth in the conference.


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TSN.CA / Strength of schedule and its impact on playoff races

Travis Yost

We are now six weeks away from the NHL trade deadline and the playoff picture is starting to take shape. But in the middle of the respective conferences, plenty of ambiguity remains.

The upcoming stretch of games is pivotal for front offices as they try to get a feel for the quality of their teams. Across the league, teams will make key strategic decisions for short-term roster management and ultimately whether or not their clubs should act as buyers or sellers on Feb. 25.

One of the interesting wrinkles at this point of the regular season is that schedule imbalance starts to take shape. We now have a pretty clear understanding of team talent across the league, and the reality is some teams will have a much easier road to the postseason than others. Depending on the team, this disparity can be rather significant.

Take the Pittsburgh Penguins as one example. Mike Sullivan’s team had a rather slow start to the 2018-19 campaign, but a recent surge has them sitting second in the Metropolitan Division.

But a glance at their remaining schedule shows just how much work they have to do. No team will have a tougher road through the second half of the season than Pittsburgh. They may have put enough daylight between them and the majority of teams in the Eastern Conference, but it does make you wonder if they can

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realistically chase down Washington for home ice in the Metropolitan.

On the other end of the spectrum are the Minnesota Wild – another team that’s had an up-and-down season, but one that can position itself for a serious run over the next six weeks. The remaining January and February schedules for Minnesota show them with the second-softest schedule, based on expected opponent quality.

To map out strength of schedule across the league, I rolled up opponent quality for every team in the league based on expected goal percentage, which better captures team talent than straight goal differential. I also appropriately weighted each team’s road/home splits and applied respective adjustments for ‘schedule loss’ type of games, which include (a) a team on a back-to-back playing a rested team; and (b) a team in a three-game-in-four-night situation playing a rested team.

Based on the above parameters, here’s future strength of schedule through March for the Eastern Conference teams. (Example: an “Opp. Quality” of 53.0 would indicate an average opponent who has carried 53 per cent of the expected goals through the first half of the seaso, which would indicate Stanley Cup-calibre competition.)

I mentioned Pittsburgh having a pretty brutal remaining schedule earlier. The other piece there is that Washington’s schedule for the next six weeks is actually reasonably light, with a healthy serving of home games against relatively weaker competition. I’m not sure I would count the Penguins out in the division considering how well they are playing right now, but it would seem that the marginal point gap in the standings could be bigger than what currently appears.

The other divisional race in the Eastern Conference might be a little bit more interesting if there wasn’t such a significant delta between Tampa Bay and Toronto at the halfway point of the season. The Maple Leafs have one of the softest remaining schedules in the league, with plenty of games against the bottom half of the Atlantic Division.

There’s also one fascinating draft lottery note here. Florida and New Jersey are relatively in the same position in the standings – about five wins back of the last wild-card position and, realistically, a more likely contender for the draft lottery than a playoff spot. But the Panthers will play a relatively brutal schedule through the trade deadline, while the Devils will play the easiest schedule of any NHL team over that stretch.

Is it possible that we could see the Panthers better position themselves for a high draft pick while the Devils make things a bit more interesting in the Metropolitan? It sure seems like it.

Let’s take a look at the Western Conference:

Look at Vancouver! The Canucks have faded of late – in no small part due to Elias Pettersson’s injury – but they are still in the playoff race at this point. That’s thanks to some of the points they banked early in the season, as well as the fact that the second tier of the Western Conference has underwhelmed this season. The Canucks have a sizable run of home games remaining on the schedule, which is mostly collinear with avoiding some of the league’s elite teams in the Pacific Division. There’s a chance for a run here, no doubt.

I’ll also mention Calgary. I wrote last week how critical I thought it was for the Flames to win the top seed in the Pacific, namely because the idea of falling to the two or three seed and running a VGK/SJS, VGK/SJS, NSH/WPG gauntlet to get out of the West seemed daunting. Outside of the Canucks, the Flames have the softest remaining schedule in the West – and perhaps more importantly, a relatively easier road than the likes of the chasing Sharks and Golden Knights.

Both conferences have some fascinating storylines and in a few weeks, we will have a much better idea of the deadline intentions of

the 31 NHL teams. But for now, we will have to sit back and watch as the next wave of games conclude.


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USA TODAY / Coyotes' Conor Garland bloodied when goal is scored off face, returns, gets game-winner

Mike Brehm,

Published 12:06 p.m. ET Jan. 13, 2019

Updated 5:57 p.m. ET Jan. 13, 2019

Arizona Coyotes rookie forward Conor Garland extended his goal-scoring streak to four games Saturday night, and he did it in the most painful way.

During a power play early in the second period, he was cross-checked to the ice by Edmonton Oilers defenseman Adam Larsson. As he was getting up, a wrist shot from Coyotes defenseman Jordan Oesterle bounced off his face and into the net.

Garland didn't get a chance to celebrate. He was in too much pain and trying to figure out where the blood was coming from.

"I wasn't too sure what hit me," he told reporters after the game. "I knew I got hit, but then I saw the blood and as I was going off the ice, (Oesterle) yelled, 'Nice goal.' "

Garland saw the replay in the trainers room as he received 10 stitches and passed a concussion test. Being a typical hockey player, he was back on the ice for the third period.

He scored four seconds into his first shift, also on the power play, for the game-winner in the 3-2 victory. This goal was a traditional one.

Arizona Coyotes forward Conor Garland is treated after he was cut by a shot that deflected off his face and into the Edmonton Oilers net for a goal.

That gave him eight goals in 17 games since the 2015 fifth-round pick was called up in December. He has scored six goals during his streak.

He's getting a chance because the Coyotes are beset by injuries.

Garland showed off his stitches to reporters after the game. He realizes the damage sometimes comes with the territory.

"I have to get to the net if I want to play in this league," he said.

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CAROLINA HURRICANES - downloads.hurricanes.nhl.comdownloads.hurricanes.nhl.com/clips/clips011519.pdf · That invisible barrier that rookies in the NHL inevitably encounter, physically