Down the Frozen River

Category: Daily Matchup

Connor Keith presents a Game of the Day Column every game day (what a surprise). For those with a lot of initiative, free time, and money- you could also use this to plan to attend every game of the day in person and watch it live. Props to anyone who actually does that. Maybe we’ll write something about you or give you a high five- OR BOTH.

October 17 – Day Six – Someone must lose
Up until last night, the Edmonton Oilers had been a fun, high-flying offense. Then Buffalo gave them a taste of their own medicine, beating them 6-2 in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

2:37 after taking the ice for the first time this season, Kyle Okposo (Sam Reinhart and First Star of the Game Ryan O’Reilly) scored the first goal of the game, followed 4:37 later by O’Reilly (Okposo and Rasmus Ristolainen) doubling the Sabres‘ lead. The first period ended tied though, as Benoit Pouliot (Zack Kassian and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins) and Milan Lucic (Third Star Leon Draisaitl and Jordan Eberle) scored 100 seconds apart before the first intermission.

Buffalo continued their trend of scoring twice a period in both the second and third frames. O’Reilly (Ristolainen and Cody Franson) takes credit for the winner, with Marcus Foligno (A), Second Star Brian Gionta (2G), Johan Larsson (A), Jake McCabe (A), Matt Moulson (G), O’Reilly (A) and Ristolainen (A) all participating in the three insurance tallies.

Robin Lehner earns the victory after saving 31-of-33 (93.9%) shots faced, while Cam Talbot takes the loss after saving 17-of-23 (73.9%). He was replaced with 10:04 to go by Jonas Gustavsson, who saved the lone shot he faced for no decision.

Although the road team won this time, the home squads still own a 5-3-0 record and a two-point lead over the roadies in the DtFR Game of the Day series.

We’ve got four games to choose from this evening, starting with two at 7 p.m. (San Jose at the New York Rangers [NHLN] and Colorado at Pittsburgh [SN1]). Ottawa visits Detroit half an hour later (RDSI), and the night starts to find its end at 8 p.m. with Boston at Winnipeg (TVAS). All times eastern.

I must admit, none of the games are extremely enticing. Ottawa at Detroit is the only contest between teams of the same conference, but the Red Wings would probably prefer we didn’t watch them right now. Although it is early in the season, Colorado at Pittsburgh is the lone game between undefeated teams, so we’ll head to the Steel City.

The Avalanche come to PPG Paints Arena owning an incredible 1-0-0 record. Their lone game so far this season was a 6-5 barn-burner against the Dallas Stars at the Pepsi Center. Tyson Barrie‘s then-unassisted insurance goal with 6:03 remaining in the game ended up being the game-winner Saturday night. Francois Beauchemin (2A), Joe Colborne (3G), Blake Comeau (A), Mikhail Grigorenko (A), Erik Johnson (A), Gabriel Landeskog (A), Nathan MacKinnon (G/A), Carl Soderberg (G), Patrick Wiercioch (A) and Nikita Zadorov (A) all participated in the scoring explosion.

In addition to their opening thriller against the Washington Capitals, the Penguins have also bested the Anaheim Ducks without leaving the comforts of home. Phil Kessel (Patric Hornqvist) takes credit for the game-winner 2:02 before the halfway point of the contest. Ian Cole (G), Matt Cullen (A), Trevor Daley (A), Chris Kunitz (A), Evgeni Malkin (A) and Conor Sheary (G) all earned the honor of being listed on the score sheet.

Some players to keep an eye on include Colorado‘s Colborne (three goals [tied for third-most in the league]) and Pittsburgh‘s Marc-Andre Fleury (two wins [tied for the league-lead] and a .948 save percentage [fifth-best in the NHL]).

Last season, Pittsburgh won both games against the Avalanche by a combined 8-5 score. It was the first time either team had swept the other since 2012, which capped a four-game winning streak by the Penguins over Colorado over the span of three seasons.

The Pens opened in Vegas favored at -155, and bettors have continued to bet against the visitors. Although the Avs outscored one of the most potent offenses from the comforts of home, I have a hard time believing they can duplicate that success against a Pittsburgh team with a better defense and goaltender. I pick the Pens to win by at least two goals.

Hockey Birthday
- Francis Bouillon (1975-) – Bouillon played 776 games over 14 seasons in the NHL, 581 of which were with the Montréal Canadiens. Though only 5′ 8″, Bouillon was always in the thick of things and helped the Habs reach the playoffs six times during his tenure.
October 17, 2016
October 16 – Day Five – What does Dylan Strome have to do with Buffalo at Edmonton?
Washington‘s second appearance in the Game of the Day series didn’t need more than 60 minutes for them to earn their first win of the 2016-’17 campaign over the New York Islanders.

First Star of the Game Daniel Winnik (John Carlson and Jay Beagle) opened the scoring 11:58 after beginning play by deflecting Carlson’s wrister past Third Star Thomas Greiss. 1:51 later, Ryan Strome (Brock Nelson and Johnny Boychuk) scored on a power play wrister to beat Second Star Braden Holtby to level the score at 1-1, which held into the first intermission.

Winnik (Karl Alzner and Brooks Orpik) struck oil again 7:46 after returning to the ice with a wrister. It was the lone score of the final 40 minutes, giving the Capitals their first victory of the season.

Holtby earns the win after saving 21-of-22 (95.5%), while Greiss saved 26-of-28 (92.9%) in the loss.

Washington‘s victory sets the DtFR Game of the Day series at 5-2-0, favoring the home sides by four points over the roadies.

What a day yesterday, huh? Let your remote celebrate the Sabbath too, as there’s only three games to be played this evening. The action gets green lit at 6 p.m. when Anaheim visits the New York Islanders, followed an hour later by Buffalo at Edmonton (NHLN/SN1). Finally, Carolina at Vancouver gets its start at 10 p.m. (SN1). All times eastern.

The one that really attracts me is Sabres at Oilers. I know this will be the third time we’ll feature Edmonton, but is anybody really complaining about watching Connor McDavid?

As hinted at before, McDavid’s early success has only been eclipsed by Toronto‘s Auston Matthews – the man who replaced as the most recent No. 1 pick. Through two games, he’s already scored three times (tied for third-most in the league). Pair that with three more assists, and his six points ties Boston‘s Brad Marchand for best in the league. We certainly need more evidence, but every time the center takes the ice I begin to believe a little bit more in the return of the Oil.

Detracting from this matchup is the condition, and ultimate absence of Buffalo‘s Jack Eichel. The second pick in last year’s NHL Entry Draft scored 24 goals last year en route to 56 points. Almost ironically, his second year has already started like McDavid’s rookie season. Last year, McDavid missed time early in the season. Now it’s Eichel’s turn, as he suffered a high ankle sprain on Wednesday. All I know is Dylan Strome, the third pick of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, had better be careful next year. Something’s coming. Something bad.

In all seriousness, Eichel and McDavid have only squared off once in three possible meetings, which is probably two fewer than the NHL’s marketing and promotions departments would have liked. That being said, it looks like ex-Islander Kyle Okposo will be making his Sabres debut this evening, with the possibility of ex-Panther Dmitry Kulikov also suiting up. So that’s exciting, right?

Just so you know, in comparison to Eichel v McDavid, the answer is no.

Some players to watch include Buffalo‘s Robin Lehner (.924 save percentage last season) and Matt Moulson (scored Sabres’ lone goal of the 2016-’17 season) & Edmonton‘s Leon Draisaitl (two goals [tied for sixth-most in the league] for four points [tied for seventh-best in the NHL]), McDavid (six points [tied for the league-lead] on three goals [tied for third-most in the NHL] and three assists [tied for third-most in the league], and +4 [tied for third-best in the NHL]), Kris Russell (three assists [tied for third-most in the league]) and Cam Talbot (two wins [tied for the league-lead]).

When’s the last time you heard this one: the Oilers are going to win this game. Vegas has Edmonton favored at -175 minimum in their home contest. I’ve gone against the odds a couple times this season (and, I would also like to point out that I’ve been right both times), but this is not one of those games. Edmonton pulls off the victory.

Hockey Birthday
- Darius Kasparaitis (1972-) – The defenseman’s career may have found its start on Long Island, but Kasparaitis is most known for his time in Pittsburgh. Last year, he co-founded a Floridian real estate development company.
- Paul Kariya (1974-) – This left winger was the fourth player selected in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft, and with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim he played for nine seasons and 606 games. Oh, and he’s also a movie star. Check that footage from D3: The Mighty Ducks. Get him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
October 16, 2016
October 15 – Day Four – Chim Chim Chimera
The Oilers were able to open Rogers Place with a bang on opening night, but last night was Calgary‘s turn to hold serve during our Game of the Day in the Saddledome.

Unveiling their new home colors (which are throwbacks from a day gone by), Sean Monahan (John Gaudreau and Deryk Engelland) got to work only 1:22 after the initial puck drop, but Connor McDavid (Jordan Eberle and Kris Russell) were quick (6:23, to be exact) to level the game at a goal-all. The Flames regained the lead with 8:25 remaining in the frame on a Michael Frolik (Mikael Backlund) wrister and held it into the first intermission.

The lone goal of the second period belonged to the road side. Eberle (Leon Draisaitl and McDavid) on a power play opportunity to pull the Oilers even heading into the final 20 minutes.

The first two tallies of the final frame both belonged to Edmonton. Only 1:28 after resuming play Draisaitl (Milan Lucic and McDavid) found the back of the net for the first time this season with a power play goal. 5:19 later, Mark Letestu scored an insurance shorty that proved to be very necessary, as Jyrki Jokipakka (Kris Versteeg) set the score at 4-3 with 7:44 remaining in regulation. Draisaitl (Lucic and Darnell Nurse) put the Flames‘ comeback to bed with 80 seconds remaining by burying a wrister on an empty net to set the score at 5-3.

Cam Talbot earns his second win of the season by saving 32-of-35 (91.4%), while Brian Elliott takes the loss, saving 24-of-28 (85.7%).

With that result, the DtFR Game of the Day series favors the home teams by only two points at a 4-2-0 record.

Ah, the first Saturday of the season. You know what that means: lots of games. #What’sCollegeFootball? The evening gets its start at 7 p.m. with eight contests (Winnipeg at Minnesota [SN1], Boston at Toronto [CBC/NBCSN], Montréal at Ottawa [City/TVAS], New Jersey at Tampa Bay, Detroit at Florida, Anaheim at Pittsburgh [NHLN], the New York Islanders at Washington and San Jose at Columbus), and the New York Rangers visit St. Louis an hour later. 8:30 p.m. brings with it the puck drop of Nashville at Chicago and two other matchups get their start half an hour later (Philadelphia at Arizona and Dallas at Colorado). Finally, Calgary visits Vancouver at 10 p.m. on CBC. All times eastern.

Short list:
- Boston at Toronto: It’s an Original Six matchup, which everybody likes to play up whether it’s worth it or not. Also, Toronto gets to wear their home blue sweaters with the new logo on it for the first time.
- Montréal at Ottawa: This rivalry predates Original Six – well, kind of. Ottawa plays their second-straight Canadian divisional nemesis.
- New York at Washington: Jason Chimera returns to the Verizon Center, the arena where he’s played the last seven seasons. Oh yeah, and the Easter Epic has something to do with this series too.
- Philadelphia at Arizona: Just like #NYIvsWAS, this contest features the return of Boyd Gordon to Gila River Arena where he spent the last three years.
- Calgary at Vancouver: In addition to being another rivalry game, Linden Vey also returns to Rogers Arena after calling it home for two years.
Given the rivalry and the return of a specific left winger, let’s head to the American capital.

I know we just caught Washington Thursday night for their shootout loss in Pittsburgh and that team-selection has grown slightly repetitive (I mean, this is the third team we’ve already seen twice in a four-day-old season). Do not be alarmed, we’ll catch the rest of the league soon enough!

Chimera played 490 games over his seven seasons in the Verizon Center. He arrived in Washington in December 2009 via a trade from Columbus. During his time with the Caps, he scored 82 goals for 197 points. For the past five seasons, he’s had a productive season followed by one that doesn’t quite cut the mustard.
- 2011-’12: 20 goals/19 assists/39 points
- ’12-’13: 3/11/14
- ’13-’14: 15/27/42
- ’14-’15: 7/12/19
- ’15-’16: 20/20/40
If that trend continues, it makes sense why the Isles signed him for two seasons. New York is a team that scored 232 goals last season, the 10th-most in the league. If Chimera can manage one of his better years, he will do well to bolster the Islanders‘ top line.

Some players to keep an eye on this evening include New York‘s Casey Cizikas (two assists [tied for third-most in the NHL]) and Washington‘s Andre Burakovsky (two goals [tied for second-most in the NHL]) and Braden Holtby (1.85 GAA [tied for fifth-best in the league] and .933 save percentage [tied for eighth-best in the NHL]).

Last season, the Capitals won the season series 3-0-1, and that lone overtime loss was at the end of the season after they’d already clinched the Presidents’ Trophy. They also have the most recent playoff meeting, advancing to the 2015 Eastern Semifinals in seven games. I don’t expect this game to go any different: Washington gets their first win of the season.

Hockey Birthday
- Willie O’Ree (1935-) – Major League Baseball celebrates Jackie Robinson Day every April 15, the date Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. If the NHL were to follow suit, they’d celebrate January 18 – the day O’Ree debuted with the Boston Bruins in 1958 as the first black player in the NHL. He may have played only 45 games over two seasons in the world’s top league, but his impact is immeasurable.
October 15, 2016
October 14 – Day Three – Everyday I’m Russellin’
Yesterday’s Game of the Day between Washington and Pittsburgh was exactly what we’d hoped it would be. Exciting. Tight. Competitive. It took a shootout for Pittsburgh to earn two points on a 3-2 victory that improved their record in banner-raising games to 3-0-1.

Third Star of the Game Andre Burakovsky (Nicklas Backstrom and Marcus Johansson) scored five-hole on First Star Marc-Andre Fleury only 59 seconds after the opening puck drop to give the Capitals a 1-0 lead.

The Pens leveled 8:47 into the second frame with a power play tally when Patric Hornqvist (Kris Letang and Second Star Evgeni Malkin) deflected a shot from the point to score on Braden Holtby. With 1:08 remaining in the frame, they took the lead when Malkin (Conor Sheary) faked out Holtby to sneak the puck behind his left skate.

Washington returned the favor with another Burakovsky (Backstrom and Matt Niskanen) tally to level the game with 13:47 remaining in regulation. That score held until the clock read zeroes, forcing three-on-thee overtime and, thanks to some incredible saves by Fleury, the shootout.

Pittsburgh elected to shoot first.
1. Nick Bonino found glass.
2. T.J. Oshie? Bueno.
3. Malkin: Tickled the twine, top-shelf.
4. Evgeny Kuznetsov: Fleury makes the stop.
5. Letang: Lit the lamp.
6. Backstrom: Keeps the shootout going.
7. Phil Kessel: Rang one off the post. Originally called no good, it bounced out that fast.
8. Alex Ovechkin: Rejected to give the Penguins the win.
Fleury saved 39-of-41 (95.1%) in his first victory of the season, while Holtby saved 28-of-30 (93.3%) in the shootout defeat.

With that result, the home teams improve to 4-1-0 in the DtFR Game of the Day series.

There’s three games going on this evening – a nice, light schedule. Chicago at Nashville kicks things off at 8 p.m. (NBCSN/TVAS), followed an hour later by Edmonton at Calgary (SN1/SN360). Philadelphia at Los Angeles clean things up at 10:30 p.m. All times eastern.

All three are great contests, but I’m drawn to the Battle of Alberta for the second time in three days. Not only is it a serious rivalry (any rivalry that has a name is serious), but it’s also Kris Russell‘s first game in Calgary since being traded to Dallas at the deadline last season.

This is both teams’ second fixture of the season, as well as their second meting of the three-day-old season. Wednesday night, the Oilers defended home ice 7-4 with Leon Draisaitl (A), Jordan Eberle (G), Zack Kassian (G), Oscar Klefbom (A), Adam Larsson (A), Patrick Maroon (G), First Star of the Game Connor McDavid (2G/A), Darnell Nurse (A), Tyler Pitlick (G), Jesse Puljujarvi (G), Second Star Russell (2A) and Andrej Sekera (A) all getting on the score sheet.

Who else to seal the Oil‘s first victory of the year than newly-christened Captain McDavid. His second goal of his sophomore season was an unassisted breakaway goal during four-on-four play in the middle frame.

Scoring for Calgary in the game was Third Star Mikael Backlund (2A), Lance Bouma (A), T.J. Brodie (A), Troy Brouwer (G), Alex Chiasson (G), Michael Frolik (G), Mark Giordano (A), Matt Stajan (A) and Dennis Wideman (G).

The shared province of Alberta is physically represented this season by defenseman Russell, who as of Wednesday has played for both clubs. Three seasons ago, Russell moved from St. Louis to Calgary. While there, he helped lead that 2014-15 Flames team to the Western Semifinals, a team that turns more into an aberration instead of foreshadowing by the game. He scored two goals and seven points that postseason, the most of any playoff appearance in his career, but the Flames were unable to build off that success and missed the playoffs last year.

Some players to keep an eye on tonight include Calgary‘s John Gaudreau (78 points last season [tied for sixth-most in the league]) and Edmonton‘s McDavid (two goals [tied for second in the league] and three points [tied for fifth in the NHL]), Russell (+3 [tied for seventh in the league]) and Cam Talbot (a win [tied for second-best in the league] on a .902 save percentage [10th-best in the NHL]).

Calgary enters the game favored by Vegas anywhere from -125 to -130, but I have a hard time thinking the Flames can pull out the win given the seven goals McDavid and co. put up the other night. Oilers improve to 2-0-0.

Hockey Birthday
- Dave Schultz (1949-) – The Hammer was not simply an enforcer, he was an enforcer on the Philadelphia Flyers‘ Broad Street Bullies teams of the 70s. An enforcer for enforcers, if you will. It’s not something he puts on his résumé anymore, even if he still holds the distinction of most penalty minutes in a season (472). Nowadays, he’s a successful businessman.
- Sylvain Lefebvre (1967-) – Most known for his days in Colorado, the defenseman played 14 seasons and hoisted one Stanley Cup. He’s still involved in hockey, specifically coaching the St. John’s IceCaps within Montréal‘s system, the first club he played for.
October 14, 2016
October 13 – Day Two – Trophy vs. Cup
*Editor’s Note: I wasn’t planning on doing a recap of any of the games last night, but I must simply state: Auston Matthews is very, very good.*

Yesterday might have officially been opening day, but tonight marks the first game of most teams’ seasons – read nine games being played this evening. Three drop the puck at 7 p.m. (Montréal at Buffalo [RDS], the Islanders at the Rangers and Boston at Columbus), with two more getting started half an hour later (Detroit at Tampa Bay and New Jersey at Florida). Another trio gets green lit at the top of the hour (Minnesota at St. Louis, Carolina at Winnipeg and Washington at Pittsburgh [NBCSN/TVAS2]) and Anaheim at Dallas, this evening’s nightcap, cleans things up 30 minutes later. All times eastern.

Short list:
- New York at New York: In addition to being the first Battle of New York of the year, the Rangers edged the Islanders by only a point last year. Even though the Islanders fared better in the playoffs, I expect the Isles to be unhappy by being barely beaten.
- Detroit at Tampa Bay: A divisional rivalry and a rematch of a Eastern Quarterfinal for the past two seasons. This might be far from the best rivalry in the Atlantic Division all-time, but it might be pretty high on this season’s list.
- New Jersey at Florida: In addition to being a good game, this is also the first official home game with the Panthers‘ new look.
- Washington at Pittsburgh: It’s a rivalry. It’s a rematch of one of last season’s Eastern Semifinals. It’s the Penguins‘ banner raising ceremony. Should make for an exciting atmosphere in the arena and an emotionally charged environment on the ice.
I said it last year, and I have to say it again. There’s only one banner raising ceremony a year, so we have to head to the the City of Champions.

After all the pomp-and-circumstance are done, a fantastic hockey game should commence. Washington, last season’s regular season champion comes in with probably the biggest chip on their shoulder possible, as this evening’s opponent forced them to settle for finding the bottom of 18 cups instead of hoisting the Cup.

That’s not the only thing they have going for them though. They bring back most of the incredible roster they had a season ago, led by future Hall-of-Famer Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, T.J. Oshie, Justin Williams… you get the idea. Behind that firepower they have last year’s Vezina Trophy winner Braden Holtby. This squad is built to win now.

How many times have Capitals/Nationals fans heard that?

The Pens are also built to win now, but if you had picked them to win the Stanley Cup last December, many would have called you crazy. It took another coaching change and a hot run over the last month of the regular season to land them their fourth championship.

Like Washington, most of last season’s club will take to the ice tonight. Unfortunately, Sidney Crosby finds himself in street clothes due to sustaining a concussion at practice Friday – Chris Kunitz and Evgeni Malkin will fill in leading the team during his absence. So does Matt Murray, the goaltending star from the playoffs. Marc-Andre Fleury retains his starting job unopposed for at least another week.

Some players to keep an eye on tonight include Pittsburgh‘s Fleury (35 wins [fourth-most in the NHL a year ago], five shutouts [fifth-most in the league last year], 2.29 GAA [ninth-best in the NHL last season] and .921 save percentage [10th-best in the league last year]), Kunitz (+29 [fourth in the NHL a season ago]), Kris Letang (51 assists [sixth in the NHL last season]) and Olli Maatta (+27 [tied for sixth-best in the NHL last season]) & Washington‘s Nicklas Backstrom (50 assists [tied for seventh-most in the league last season]), Holtby (48 wins [led the league last season], 2.2 GAA [fifth-best in the league last year] and .922 save percentage [eighth-best in the NHL last season]), Kuznetsov (57 assists [fourth-most in the league a season ago], +27 [tied for sixth-best in the NHL last season] and 77 points [tied for ninth in NHL last season]) and Ovechkin (50 goals [led league last season])

Vegas marks Pittsburgh at a +105, so the Caps are barely favored in this one. The last two NHL banner raising ceremonies have ended in disappointment, so we’re getting close to a trend. That being said, Pittsburgh has never lost a celebratory game in their history, so they’ve got that going for them.

Last season, in addition to beating the Capitals in the playoffs in six games, Pittsburgh also took the regular season series 3-2-0. All of this adds up to quite the contest this evening. I pick the Pens to defend their newly-named ice and come away with an early-season statement win.
October 13, 2016
October 12 – Opening Day – What to choose?
The day we’ve all been waiting for is finally upon us: Opening day of the NHL season. It’s time to see if *insert the name of your favorite team’s GM here* made any good decisions during the off-season, or if you’ll just spend the next seven months cursing at your television set.

Oh wait, you’ll be doing that even if your team is good? Carry on, then.

Just like last year’s opener, we’ve got four games on the docket. Some stats about them? Sure, I thought you’d never ask!

Two contests will occur in the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave, and the other two will be under the red and white maple leaf where many citizens of the first nation might be headed after November’s election. Similarly, no teams will be crossing any national borders, meaning that it will be American vs. American and Canadian vs. Canadian clubs. Each timezone will also be represented in this evening’s festivities, beginning in Eastern time and traveling across the map towards the Pacific.

Tonight will feature Toronto visiting Ottawa in the Battle of Ontario at 7 p.m. (SN and TVAS), followed an hour later by St. Louis at Chicago (NBCSN). 10 p.m. marks the puck drop of Calgary at Edmonton (SN and TVAS2), the first installment of the Battle of Alberta this year, followed half an hour later by Los Angeles at San Jose (NBCSN) to start this season’s Battle of California. All times eastern.

Which one to pick… which one to pick…

I know: all of them.

That’s right, each game is too special not to watch this evening, so we’re going to break tradition (does a series only in its second year have traditions?) and feature all four of tonight’s games. So without further to do, let’s get some quick previews in before you get watching.

This game is a special one not simply because of the rivalry that exists between these squads, but that it is also the first official game that the Leafs will be sporting their new logo as well as the first wearing of their road whites. As explained here, the level of symbolism in the new crest is pretty cool, including references to the 1931 opening of the Maple Leaf Gardens (hint: count the points of the leaf), the 1917 foundation of the franchise and their 13 Stanley Cup titles (hint: count the veins, and note a majority of their locations above the word mark).

Beyond that, this is also a rivalry game, and probably one of the four most circled dates on the Sens‘ calendar (the other three being the remainder of this series). Ottawa swept the season series last year and certainly has intentions of continuing that success after the summer break.

If you’re a little bit old-school and enjoy a good hockey scrap, this is probably your game this evening – this series leads the league in fights and penalty minutes.

This has been one of the best rivalries in recent years, and that has only intensified – twice – since the end of April, which witnessed St. Louis beating the Blackhawks in Game 7 to advance to the Western Semifinals, and eventually the Western Finals. Chicago will look to exact revenge against a Notes squad that ended their title defense earlier than they would have liked.

Further dirtying the waters, the Blues and Blackhawks played a preseason game only 11 days ago. My opinions on division rivals contesting exhibitions deserves another post, but the net result was a questionable blow from Niklas Hjalmarsson against Ty Rattie. The defenseman was suspended for the remainder of the preseason as well as tonight’s game for throwing a leaping shoulder at the right wing’s head. Although he was not injured, Rattie’s linemates were quick to converge on Hjalmarsson, and I fully expect there to be some carryover both tonight and November 9 after the defenseman returns.

The third of our four rivalries this evening, this edition of the Battle of Alberta is special in a similar way to the Battle of Ontario. This will be the first official game played in Rogers Place after 42 years at Rexall Place, and what better way to commemorate it than with naming Connor McDavid the youngest captain in NHL history.

And you thought Sidney Crosby was a baby-faced captain.

The Oil‘s new home, located almost dead-center in downtown Edmonton, increases their seating capacity by almost 2000 and moves them to the bottom of the list of oldest arenas – a list they ranked second in a year ago.

Speaking of new beginnings, the Oilers hope to continue rebuilding towards the days of old with this year’s first rounder, Jesse Puljujärvi. Perhaps this game will be a sampler of how Todd McLellan intends to use his offensive youngsters this season.

The final game of the night should be one of the better ones. The Battle of California has extended into the playoffs for three of the last four seasons, including San Jose advancing to the Western Semifinals, and eventually the Stanley Cup Finals, over the Kings in five games last season. This should be a fantastic game, one well worth staying awake for if you’re tuning in from the East Coast.

Best of luck to your team if they’re playing this evening. If not, we’ll see you tomorrow!

Hockey Birthday
- Jaroslav Drobný (1921-2001) – Tennis aficionados are raising their eyebrows at this one. Drobný may be more commonly known for his three major titles (including two French Opens), but he was also a highly successful amateur hockey player. In 1947, he was a part of the Czechoslovakian team that took gold at the World Ice Hockey Championships, where he scored 15 goals in seven games, including a hat trick against the Stars and Stripes. He also helped Czechoslovakia to the silver medal in the Winter Olympics a year later, “falling” to Canada in a goalless championship game. He scored nine goals in eight games in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Drobný impressed the Boston Bruins in that tournament, and they offered him a $20,000 contract. If he hadn’t declined to focus on his tennis career, he would’ve been the first European to play in the NHL (instead, Swede Ulf Sterner takes that title, joining the Rangers 16 years later in 1965). He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1997.
- Denis Brodeur (1930-2013) – Father of Devils‘ legendary goaltender Martin Brodeur, Denis also knew his way around the crease. He was on the Canadian team that took bronze in the 1956 Winter Olympics at Cortina D’Ampezzo, Italy.
- J.J. Daigneault (1965) – The defender made his NHL debut during the 1984-’85 season with Vancouver, but the 10-team journeyman will be most known for his days with the Canadiens. He played six seasons and seven games in Montréal, 39% of his 900 regular season-game career. He currently serves as an assistant coach with the Habs, a position he’s held since 2012.
- Dwayne Roloson (1969) – This goaltender made his NHL debut during the 1996-’97 season with the Calgary Flames. He played in 606 regular season games, most of which were with the Edmonton Oilers (193 games over four seasons).
- Mike Green (1985) – Although this is his second season in Detriot, this will be the defenseman’s 12th season in the league. Most of that time was spent in Washington, where he played in 575 regular season games and seven postseasons.
- Sean Monahan (1994) – Entering Year Four of his career, Monahan has gotten his start in Calgary. The sixth player selected in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, the center has appeared in 237 regular season games already and has 159 points his credit. Also, this kid is younger than me, so take that for what it’s worth.
October 12, 2016
April 10 – Day 178 – …but those snow days happened

T.J. Oshie may not have scored in his first return to St. Louis, but he did get a point en route to the Washington Capitals winning 5-1.

St. Louis‘ lone goal was struck only 1:15 into the game by Vladimir Tarasenko (his 40th tally of the season), assisted by Alex Pietrangelo and Paul Stastny, but the good vibes associated with the quick start began to fade 2:49 later when First Star of the Game Alex Ovechkin began his hat trick on a wrister, assisted by John Carlson (his 31st helper of the season) and Third Star Nicklas Backstrom. Ovechkin lit the lamp again for the game winner at the 6:49 mark on another wrister, again assisted by Backstrom (his 49th helper of the season). The 2-1 score held to the end of the period.

Carlson’s second point of the night was a goal at the 5:21 mark, a backhander assisted by Tom Wilson (his 16th helper of the season) and Brook Orpik. Jason Chimera got on the board 56 seconds after the midway point of the game with a tip-in, assisted by Evgeny Kuznetsov (his 57th helper of the season) and Dmitry Orlov. The Caps‘ 4-1 lead held into the second intermission.

Ovi completed the hat trick with a slap shot with 9:25 remaining in the game (his league leading 50th tally of the season), assisted by Backstrom and Oshie.

Second Star Braden Holtby earns the win after saving 19 of the 20 shots he faced (95%), while Brian Elliott takes the loss after saving 22 of 26 (84.6%). He was replaced after the second intermission by Anders Nilsson, who saved nine of 10 (90%).

Washington‘s win is the second straight for the road teams in the DtFR Game of the Day series, setting the season record at 82-47-19, with the home teams leading the roadies by 38 points.

There’s only two games on the docket this evening, and both of them were supposed to be played earlier in the year. Philadelphia visits the New York Islanders at 7 p.m. eastern and can be viewed on NBCSN, SN and SN360. Half an hour after that puck drop, Anaheim at Washington gets its start, and can be watched on NHLN, SN and SN360.

I know, there can’t be two different games on the same channels. Sorry Canada, I don’t have an answer, but if I had to guess, it’s regional. You’re on your own in figuring this one out.

All four of these teams have already punched their tickets to the playoffs starting this week, but two of them still have some positioning to finalize. With a win, the Islanders move ahead of the Rangers for third spot for a first round meeting with Pittsburgh, while anything less than two points leaves them in their current matchup with Florida. Similarly, a win of any variety gives Anaheim the Pacific Division title and a date with Nashville, while anything less leaves them in their matchup with in-state rival San Jose.

I’m more attracted to the Philadelphia–New York game, mostly because I think New York has more to gain, or potentially lose, depending on the outcome of this game.

Tonight’s game will be Philadelphia‘s ninth in the DtFR Game of the Day series, which stands at 6-2-0. When they were last featured, Philly won 2-1 on a shootout over the visiting Capitals on March 30. New York has been featured 10 times before tonight, and own a 3-6-1 record in such games. Last time, they won 5-2 over the visiting Lightning on Monday.

Usually, I go into a big statistical breakdown, but frankly, I don’t think that’s what this game boils down to.

To put that in perspective, the Flyers have absolutely nothing to play for, maybe except for confidence going into the playoffs. Haha, right, like they need any. They just fought themselves into a playoff position that many had written them out of contention for a month or two ago. In fact, I think they’ll use this as an opportunity to rest guys that have been playing their tails off during this span.

They already know they’ll be meeting Washington later this week, so they’ll want to prepare as much as possible for the pressure the Capitals bring at literally every section of the ice.

The real game tonight is being played between the ears of Jack Capuano, and you’d figure he went to bed last night already knowing how this game will end. He has a couple things to determine going into this game, including health and positioning.

Health is a big concern for New York right now, and Capuano has already said that this is the No. 1 priority. Eight men are currently listed on the injury report, including G Jean-Francois Berube, RW Cal Clutterbuck (best shooting percentage and a top five goal scorer in Brooklyn), C Mikhail Grabovski, G Jaroslav Halak (18-13-4, .919 save percentage and 2.3 GAA), D Travis Hamonic (top-three shot blocker), LW Anders Lee (a top-five goal scorer, including top power play totals, and assister for the Isles), LW Matt Martin (leads team in hits) and D Brian Strait.

That being said, this line item, although listed second, may come first in his game plan this evening: New York‘s position in the standings, specifically their first and possible second round matchup. As it stands right now, the Isles will be making the trip to Florida for a first round matchup with the Atlantic Champion Panthers, with the potential to face either the Lightning or Red Wings in the Conference Semifinals. Should they win tonight, they swap spots with their in-town rivals and head instead to Pittsburgh, with the potential to meet either Philadelphia or Washington in the Semis.

Frankly, one of those situations sounds way better to me, and that’s their current fate of going to Florida. Yes, the Panthers play an interesting, unpredictable and beautiful game, but I’d rather play them right now than the Penguins, who had an eight game winning streak before losing to Philly yesterday without Sidney Crosby (you know, the guy that scores the goals). Looking even further ahead, anything is better than playing Washington, and I think New York would have a good chance of beating either Detroit or Tampa, regardless of who they meet.

But Connor, are you implying that the Isles would toss a game?

Uh, yeah. Seriously, did you not see the beat-down the Caps put on the Blues last night, the fourth best defense in the league? I’m staying away from them as long as possible, maybe somebody else will do the dirty work of beating them, or at least wearing 50 goal scorer Ovi out. On top of that, you get to rest players with that game plan, which is a great spot to be in. Heck, if New York is really committed to losing, they could just not dress a goalie and go 60 minutes with an empty net. You know the league office would absolutely love that one, but I’d bet there’d be a few Islanders fans in the arena cheering the choice.

Philadelphia leads the season series 2-1-1, as well as won the last meeting 4-1 on March 21. If I had to pick the better team, I would certainly lean towards New York, but as I’ve already stated, I don’t know if both teams will be fully exerting themselves.

Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game, should they play, include New York‘s Thomas Greiss (.926 save percentage [tied for second best in the league]) and John Tavares (33 goals [10th most in the league]) & Philadelphia‘s Michal Neuvirth (.925 save percentage [fourth best in the league] and 2.28 GAA [ninth best in the league]).

I have no idea how this one will end. As I’ve hinted, I think this might be the weirdest game of chess played this season, but we shall see. Under normal circumstances I would have the Isles winning, but I think, if New York is wise, that the game will end in Philadelphia‘s favor.

April 10, 2016
April 9 – Day 177 – It used to be the final game of the season…

The Blue Jackets surprised me by beating the Sabres 4-1 in Buffalo in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

Only one goal was struck in the first period, belonging to the Jackets. Matt Calvert is the guilty party, assisted by Brandon Dubinsky (his 31st helper of the season) and Ryan Murray to a power play wrister with 1:15 remaining in the frame.

Buffalo leveled at the 13:37 mark of the second period on a Third Star of the Game Sam Reinhart power play tip-in, assisted by Jack Eichel (his 31st helper of the season) and Matt Moulson. Second Star Nick Foligno takes credit for the game winning snap shot 1:39 later, assisted by Boone Jenner (his 19th helper of the season) and Josh Anderson. The first of Columbus‘ two insurance goals found the back of the net with 2:35 remaining in the period, a Dalton Prout wrister assisted by William Karlsson (his 11th helper of the season).

The final goal of the game was struck at the 5:11 mark courtesy of First Star Brandon Saad, assisted by Alexander Wennberg and Oliver Bjorkstrand.

Joonas Korpisalo earns the victory after saving 34 of 35 shots faced (97.1%), while Jason Kasdorf takes the loss, saving 26 of 30 (86.7%).

Columbus ends the two game winning streak by home sides, setting the DtFR Game of the Day series at 82-46-19, favoring the home sides by 40 points.

Every single team is in action today. Yes, that includes your favorite team, your arch rivals, playoff teams, non-playoff teams… all of ’em. The action starts nice and early at half past noon eastern with two games (Ottawa at Boston [RDS/SN1] and Detroit at the New York Rangers), with Pittsburgh at Philadelphia (NBC/SN1) dropping the puck at 3 p.m. eastern. Anaheim at Colorado (SN1) is the next game to get underway, starting at 5:30 p.m. eastern, before five games drop the puck at the usual starting time of 7 p.m. eastern (Calgary at Minnesota [CITY], Tampa Bay at Montréal [TVAS/SN], Carolina at Florida, Toronto at New Jersey [CBC] and Chicago at Columbus), trailed half an hour later by Buffalo at the New York Islanders (BELL TV). The next two games start at 8 p.m. eastern (Washington at St. Louis [NHLN] and Nashville at Dallas), with two more getting underway two hours later (Edmonton at Vancouver [CBC] and Winnipeg at Los Angeles [SN]). Finally, after all that, Arizona at San Jose gets started at 10:30 p.m. eastern, this evening’s nightcap.

A little under half of today’s games are divisional rivalries (Ottawa at Boston, Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, Tampa Bay at Montréal, Nashville at Dallas, Edmonton at Vancouver and Arizona at San Jose), and three are between playoff qualifiers (Detroit at New York, Washington at St. Louis and Nashville at Dallas). Tampa at Montréal is also a rematch of one of last season’s Eastern Conference Semifinals.

There are some great games on the docket this evening, but the one that could be very meaningful is Washington–St. Louis, as T.J. Oshie makes his return to Scottrade Center.

With the 24th overall pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, the St. Louis Blues selected T.J. Oshie from the University of North Dakota. He joined the club during the 2008-’09 season, playing in 57 regular season games and scoring 39 points. He followed that effort with 48 points the following season, including 30 assists.

His breakout season was 2011-’12, when he played in almost every regular season game to score 54 points, including 35 assists. That success carried into the postseason, as he scored three points before falling to the Los Angeles Kings in the Western Semifinals. Excluding the lockout shortened 2013 season, Oshie has continued his success each season, leading to his personal-best 60 point season in 2013-’14 season.

This July, Oshie was shipped to Washington in exchange for Troy Brouwer, Pheonix Copley and a third-round pick in this year’s Entry Draft. In that first year, Oshie has tickled the twine 26 times, the most in his career.

His 55-17-8 Washington Capitals have clinched the President’s Trophy. They’ve earned that position by playing both the second best offense and defense.

Like you’d expect, the entire offense revolves around Alex Ovechkin. His 389 shots has led the Caps to firing the puck 2450 times, with a solid 9.9% finding the back of the net for 247 goals (led by Ovechkin’s 47 tallies), the second most in the NHL. Washington also has a very strong power play, successful on 22.36% of attempts for 55 extra man tallies (led by Ovechkin’s 19 power play goals), the fourth best rate in the league.

Led by Karl Alzner’s 202 blocks, Washington has allowed only 2284 shots to reach 47-9-7 Braden Holtby and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 92.1% for only 190 goals against, the second most in the NHL. Once again, Washington‘s special teams rank fourth best, neutralizing 84.8% of their infractions for 38 power play goals against.

Washington enters tonight’s game on a three game losing skid, with their most recent being Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Penguins.

The 49-23-9 St. Louis Blues currently sit in second in both the Central Division and the Western Conference. They’ve gotten there by playing the fourth best defense, paired with the 14th best offense.

Led by Alex Pietrangelo’s 134 blocks, St. Louis has allowed 2391 shots to reach 23-7-6 Brian Elliott and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 92.5% for 196 goals against, the fourth fewest in the NHL. The penalty kill has also been spectacular, killing 85.04% of their infractions for 41 power play goals against, the third best rate in the league.

Led by Vladimir Tarasenko’s 289 shots, the Blues have fired the puck 2454 times, with 8.9% finding the back of the net for 223 goals (led by Tarasenko’s 39 tallies), the 14th most in the league. It’s another strong special team unit, as the Blues have found success on 21.79% of their power plays for 51 extra man goals (led by Tarasenko’s dozen power play tallies), the sixth best rate in the league.

St. Louis enters the game riding a three game winning streak, with their most recent being Thursday’s 2-1 overtime victory in Chicago. As the Blues are tied with the Stars for the division and conference lead, a win, or even an overtime loss, paired with a Stars loss will propel them to first place, but a Dallas win ensures that they keep home ice until the Stanley Cup Finals.

St. Louis has already made their visit to Washington, which they thoroughly enjoyed, winning 4-0.

Some players to keep an eye on include St. Louis‘ Elliott (two GAA [leads the league] and .932 save percentage [leads the league]), Colton Parayko (+29 [fifth best in the league]) and Tarasenko (39 goals [fourth most in the league]) & Washington‘s Holtby (47 wins [leads the leauge], 2.22 GAA [seventh best in the league] and .921 save percentage [tied for ninth best in the league), Evgeny Kuznetsov (56 assists [fourth most in the league] and 76 points [tied for eighth most in the league]) and Ovechkin (47 goals [leads the league]).

On paper, Washington should win this game. They should easily be able to shut down St. Louis‘ offense. But, the thing that gives the Blues a chance, beyond even their home ice, is that they still have something to play for. It’s for that reason that I think St. Louis will make every effort to win.

April 9, 2016
April 8 – Day 176 – Out of Necessity, Vol. 4

Boston threw a wrench in Detroit‘s playoff plans, as they beat them 5-2 in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

They struck their first only 1:25 into the contest with a David Pastrnak backhander, assisted by John-Michael Liles (his 15th helper of the season) and Colin Miller. 1:19 later, Boston doubled their lead when Third Star of the Game Brad Marchand connected on a snap shot, assisted by First Star Torey Krug (his 39th helper of the season) and Patrice Bergeron, which ended up being the final tally of the period.

The game winner found the back of the net at the 5:02 mark of the second period on the power play, courtesy of Krug after assists from Loui Eriksson and Second Star David Krejci (his 45th helper of the season). Detroit finally got on the board at the 6:59 mark on a Alexey Marchenko wrister, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg (his 36th helper of the season) and Gustav Nyquist. That was the last score of the period, so the score read 3-1 after 40 minutes.

Only 20 seconds after returning to the ice, the Bruins struck another insurance goal, this one a Lee Stempniak snap shot, assisted by Krug (his 40th helper of the season) and Marchand. 25 seconds after that, Eriksson set the score at 5-1 with a tip-in, assisted by Krejci (his 46th helper of the season) and Ryan Spooner. Detroit takes credit for the final goal of the game, struck with 1:23 remaining by Andreas Athanasiou, assisted by Marchenko and Kyle Quincey.

Tuukka Rask earns the win after saving 13 of 15 shots faced (86.7%), while Jimmy Howard takes the loss, saving 21 of 26 (80.8%). He was replaced after Eriksson’s third period goal by Petr Mrazek, who saved all eight shots faced.

The Bruins‘ win is the second straight for home sides in the DtFR Game of the Day series, setting the season series at 82-45-19, favoring the home teams by 42 points over the roadies.

We’ve only got one game on the schedule this evening, so we’re headed off to Buffalo for a 7 p.m. eastern puck drop on NHLN and BELL TV!

This will be Columbus‘ third appearance in the DtFR Game of the Day series, where they own a 0-2-0 record. Last time they were featured was October 22, a 3-2 loss in Minnesota. Buffalo has been featured three times before tonight’s game, and own a 1-2-0 record in such situations. Their lone win in the series was in their last appearance, a 3-2 victory in Ottawa on January 26.

The 34-35-11 Buffalo Sabres rank seventh in the Atlantic Division and 14th in the Eastern Conference. Although they play the 15th worst defense, they’ve been held back by the fifth worst offense.

Led by Josh Gorges’ 162 blocks, the Sabres have allowed 2445 shots to reach 22-16-4 Chad Johnson and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 92% for 215 goals against, the 15th most in the NHL. The defense has been spearheaded by the defensive special team, which has killed 82.79% of their penalties for only 37 goals against, the eighth best rate in the league.

The major pitfall has been on the offensive end. Even with the injured Evander Kane’s 271 shots, Buffalo has only fired the puck 2357 times, with 8.2% finding the back of the net for 196 goals (led by Jack Eichel’s 24 tallies), the fifth fewest in the league. Again, the Sabres have actually been fairly successful on the special teams, scoring on 18.95% of their power play attempts, which is good for 47 power play goals, the 11th best rate in the league.

The Sabres enter tonight’s game on a three game winning streak, with their most recent being Tuesday’s 3-1 victory at New Jersey.

The 32-40-8 Columbus Blue Jackets are the worst team in the Metropolitan Division and second worst in the Eastern Conference. They’ve gotten there playing the 12th worst offense, paired with the second worst defense.

Even with Brandon Saad’s 229 shots, the Jackets have fired the puck 2332 times, with 8.7% finding the back of the net for 210 goals (led by Boone Jenner’s 30 tallies), the 12th fewest in the NHL. Part of the problem has been that Columbus has not capitalized on opportunities, as their 16.8% power play success rate, good for 41 extra man goals, is the eighth worst in the league.

The defense has been a bigger issue. Even with Ryan Murray’s 170 blocks, Columbus has allowed 2471 shots to reach 14-19-1 Sergei Bobrovsky and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 90.9%, allowing 247 goals in the process, the second most in the league. In comparison, the penalty kill has actually been decent, neutralizing 81.11% of their infractions, allowing 51 power play goals in the process, the 14th worst rate in the league.

The last game Columbus played was Wednesday’s 5-1 victory in Toronto.

Buffalo has already won the season series 2-0-0, with the most recent meeting ending 4-0 on February 19 in Columbus.

Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Buffalo‘s Ryan O’Reilly (59 points, including 38 assists, with 24 occurring at even-strength [all lead the team]) and Columbus‘ Cam Atkinson (52 points, including two shorthanded goals [both lead the team]), Brandon Dubinsky (30 assists, with 26 occurring at even-strength and 224 hits [all lead the team]) and Saad (23 even-strength goals and seven game winners on 229 shots [all lead the team]).

Buffalo should have this game in the bag. Both their offense and defense are superior to the Jackets‘, and they enter their home game riding a winning streak. I’ve got Sabres winning easy.

April 8, 2016
April 7 – Day 175 – Effectively a play-in

With two three-goal periods by the Oilers, Rexall Place went out a winner over the rival Canucks by a score of 6-2 in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

Edmonton saved their first offensive outburst for the second period, as Nail Yakupov got things started at the 28:27 mark of the game with his eighth tally of the season, assisted by Mark Fayne. Patrick Maroon scored the second 4:49 later, his 10th tally of the season. The third and final goal of the second period, aka the game winner, was struck with 2:34 remaining courtesy of a Connor McDavid wrister, assisted by Jordan Eberle (his 21st helper of the season) and Taylor Hall, giving the Oil a three goal lead.

Vancouver finally got on the board at the 5:21 mark of the final period on a Matt Bartkowski snap shot, assisted by Alex Biega and Jared McCann (his ninth helper of the season), but the Oilers returned the differential to three 3:47 later with Maroon’s second of the night, assisted by Eberle and McDavid (his 31st helper of the season). 18 seconds later, Hall scored on a backhander for his 26th tally of the season, assisted by Adam Pardy and Iiro Pakarinen. With 7:51 remaining in the game, the Canucks scored their second goal on a Bo Horvat snapper (his 15th tally of the season), assisted by Emerson Etem and Derek Dorsett. The final goal of the game belongs to Leon Draisaitl, whose wrister was assisted by Hall (his 38th helper of the season) and McDavid.

Cam Talbot earns the win after saving 25 of 27 shots faced (92.6%), while Jacob Markstrom takes the loss, saving 32 of 38 (84.2%).

Edmonton‘s win sets the DtFR Game of the Day record at 81-45-19, favoring the home sides by 40 points over the roadies.

I hope you’re ready for another busy hockey night, because you’re in store for one! Six pucks drop at 7 p.m. eastern (Detroit at Boston [NBCSN/TVAS], Tampa Bay at New Jersey, the New York Islanders at the New York Rangers, Toronto at Philadelphia, Pittsburgh at Washington [SN360] and Montréal at Carolina [RDS]), followed half an hour later by Florida at Ottawa (RDS2). Arizona at Nashville gets underway at 8 p.m. eastern, with two games trailing 30 minutes later (St. Louis at Chicago and Colorado at Dallas). Vancouver at Calgary is the only game to start at 9 p.m. eastern, as the co-nightcaps get started an hour and a half later (Anaheim at Los Angeles [SN/SN360] and Winnipeg at San Jose).

There’s a lot of divisional rivalries being played this evening (Detroit at Boston, Islanders at Rangers, Pittsburgh at Washington, Florida at Ottawa, St. Louis at Chicago, Colorado at Dallas, Vancouver at Calgary and Anaheim at Los Angeles), and four games between teams qualifying for the playoffs (Islanders at Rangers, Pittsburgh at Washington, St. Louis at Chicago and Anaheim at Los Angeles). The Vancouver–Calgary game is also a rematch of one of last season’s Western Quarterfinals.

There’s a ton of great games being played this evening, which makes my choice difficult. Boston has the opportunity to qualify, which in turn makes the Toronto–Philadelphia game important (mark it down though, when was the last time Bruins fans hoped for a Maple Leafs win?). The Islanders can reclaim a division qualifying spot. St. Louis can move into first place in the Western Conference (again, that also makes the Colorado–Dallas game important). We’ve got a playoff rematch. And, oh yeah, we need to break a tie for the lead in the Pacific Division.

Since the biggest impact on the playoffs is a team not qualifying moving into the bracket, I suppose we’ll head to New England.

This will be Detroit‘s 12th time featured in the DtFR Game of the Day series, where they own a 6-4-1 record. The last time they were featured was March 22, a 6-2 beat down at the hands of the Lightning. Boston has been featured 21 times before tonight, and own a 8-11-2 record in such games. They were just featured Tuesday in their 2-1 home shootout loss to the Hurricanes.

The 41-28-11 Detroit Red Wings currently sit in third in the Atlantic Division and seventh in the Eastern Conference. To get there, they’ve played the 14th worst defense, paired with the eighth worst offense.

Led by Danny DeKeyser’s 103 blocks, the Wings have allowed 2344 shots to reach 27-16-6 Petr Mrazek and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 91.5% for 216 goals against, the 14th most in the NHL. They’ve been about that successful on the penalty kill too, neutralizing 81.23% of their infractions for 49 power play goals against, the 14th best rate in the league.

Led by Dylan Larkin’s 213 shots, Detroit has fired the puck 2358 times, with 8.6% finding the back of the net for 204 goals (led by Larkin’s 23 tallies), the eighth fewest in the league. In comparison, the power play has done well this season, successful on 19.29% of attempts, good for 49 power play goals (led by Pavel Datsyuk’s eight extra man tallies), the 12th best rate in the league.

Detroit enters tonight’s game riding a three game winning streak, with their most recent being last night’s three goal shutout victory over the visiting Flyers. With a win tonight, the Wings clinch their spot in the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs, but a loss makes their final game on Saturday in Madison Square Garden a must win, especially since they play at the same time as the Bruins.

The 41-30-9 Boston Bruins currently occupy fourth in the Atlantic Division and ninth in the Eastern Conference, making them the first team outside the playoff picture. To get there, they’ve played the fifth best offense in the league, but it’s been paired with the 12th worst defense. A more statistical breakdown of their game can be found within Tuesday’s post.

Boston enters tonight’s game on a two game losing skid, with their most recent being Tuesday’s 2-1 shootout loss to the Canes. The Bruins certainly keeps their playoff hopes alive with a win this evening, but they’ll need Toronto to beat Philadelphia if they want to actually break into qualifying position before the night is through.

This is the final meeting of the regular season between these two squads, and Boston leads the season series 2-1-0. That being said, it was the last meeting on Valentine’s Day that Detroit earned their lone win over the Bruins, a 6-5 home victory.

Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Boston‘s Brad Marchand (36 goals [tied for fifth most in the league]) and Detroit‘s Larkin (23 goals, including 19 at even-strength and five game-winners, on 213 shots, and +13 [all lead the team]).

I think Boston should be able to win this game. Their defense shouldn’t be pushed too much, and the offense is more than capable of scoring at a moment’s notice.

April 7, 2016