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December 28 – Day 79 – Hollywood vs. Hollywood North

I predicted a Bruins win, but the Senators proved me wrong with a 3-1 victory on home ice in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

Ottawa snuck in the only goal of the first period with only 19 seconds remaining. After Jimmy Hayes was sent to the box for instigating, Kyle Turris and Erik Karlsson assisted Mark Stone to a power play goal.

That late goal did not sit well with Third Star of the Game David Krejci and the Bruins during the intermission, as he scored a goal after 7:54, assisted by Matt Beleskey and Loui Eriksson, to knot the game at one-all. Again, the Sens waited until the end of the period to take the lead, as Bobby Ryan and Mike Hoffman assisted Second Star Mika Zibanejad to the game-winner with only 1:39 remaining in the second period.

The final goal only occurred because Tuukka Rask was on the bench to give the Bruins a man-advantage. It was a copy of the Senators‘ first goal, with Turris and Karlsson assisting Stone to an empty netter with 54 seconds remaining in the game, setting the score at the 3-1 final.

First Star Craig Anderson made 38 of 39 saves (97.4%) to improve his record to 16-9-4, while Rask’s record falls to 13-9-3 after saving 19 of 21 (90.5%).

The DtFR Game of the Day series now stands at 31-12-6 in favor of the home side, leading the roadies by 28 points.

After 18 games over the weekend, Monday is a slightly relaxed schedule, featuring six matchups. The action gets started at 7 p.m. eastern when Washington visits Buffalo, followed half an hour later by Montréal at Tampa Bay (RDS). Two games drop the opening puck at 8 p.m. eastern (the New York Rangers at Nashville [TVAS] and Detroit at Minnesota) and are the last games to start before 10 p.m. eastern, when Los Angeles visits Vancouver. Finally, this evening’s nightcap gets started at 10:30 p.m. eastern when Colorado visits San Jose.

Two of tonight’s games are between divisional rivals (Montréal at Tampa Bay and Los Angeles at Vancouver), while three are between quality squads currently qualifying for the playoffs (New York at Nashville, Detroit at Minnesota and Los Angeles at Vancouver). Finally, Montréal at Tampa Bay is also a rematch of one of last season’s Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Even though the rematch provides interesting storylines, I’m taking the personal leverage to instead focus in the Los Angeles–Vancouver, mostly because I want to look into the Kings‘ play. I know, selfish.

This will be Los Angeles‘ second appearance in the DtFR Game of the Day – the other time they were featured, they fell in Chicago 4-2 on November 2. Tonight’s game will be Vancouver‘s first appearance as the Game of the Day.

The 21-11-2 Los Angeles Kings currently own a seven-point lead in the Pacific Division, and are tied for third in the Western Conference. They’ve found that success by playing one of the best defenses in the league, even though their most recent showing, a 4-3 overtime victory in Arizona on Saturday may not be indicative of that.

Thanks in part to Alec Martinez’ team-leading 73 blocks, the Kings have allowed only 958 shots to reach the net, of which 18-9-1 Jonathan Quick and co. have saved 92.1%, allowing only 78 goals, the second best in the league. The Kings have also killed 82.11% of penalties, allowing 22 goals on 123 attempts.

I say it on a regular basis, but more shots usually turn into more goals. While the Kings‘ percentages may not be on par with the league average, 86 (led by Tyler Toffoli’s 14 goals) of their 1097 shots (led by Jeff Carter’s 103 shots) have found the back of the net. One point that the Kings should focus on to improve their offense should be their power play. They have been successful on only 18%, scoring 18 goals on, you guessed it, 100 attempts.

Their counterparts, the 14-14-9 Vancouver Canucks, currently sit in third place in the Pacific Division, but eighth in the Western Conference. They are currently riding a two-game win streak, with their most recent showing a 2-1 overtime victory over the Oilers on Saturday. So far this season, the Canucks have been a better team with the puck on their stick, but both sides of the ice are performing below the league average.

Led by Daniel Sedin’s 133 shots, Vancouver has put 1086 shots on net so far this season (well above the league average), but only 91 have found the back of the net, led by Sedin’s 16 tallies. The main facet of Vancouver‘s offense that is holding them back is their lack of success on the power play. On 124 attempts (well-above the league average), the Canucks only have the league-average 21 goals to their credit, led by Sedin’s five. Given the weak competition in the Pacific division, I expect Vancouver to make moves to improve their offense in preparation of a playoff run.

Defensively, the Canucks have needed all the help they can get. Even though Chris Tanev has a team-leading 89 blocks to his credit, Vancouver has allowed 1129 shots to reach 10-11-6 Ryan Miller and co., of which they’ve saved 91.2% and allowed 102 goals. The special teams’ issues continue when defending against the man-advantage, as the Canucks have allowed 124 opportunities to the opposition. Of those, they’ve killed 79.69%, allowing 26 goals.

Some players to watch include Los Angeles‘ Carter (+16 [tied for fifth in the league]), Quick (18 wins [tied for second in the league] and two shutouts [tied for eighth in the league]) and Toffoli (+18 [third in the league]) & Vancouver‘s D. Sedin (37 points [tied for seventh in the league] and 16 goals [tied for ninth in the league]) and Henrik Sedin (24 assists [tied for seventh in the league]).

The Kings and Canucks have already played two games in their five-game season series. The Canucks won the first meeting 3-0 on October 13 in the Staples Center, but the Kings were able to hold home ice on the first day of this month, winning 2-1 in overtime.

Given Vancouver‘s defensive woes, it’s hard to pick against a stellar Kings team, even if the Canucks have played Los Angeles tough twice this season. Expect Los Angeles to get the win north of the border.

December 28, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- St. Louis Blues

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

St. Louis Blues

Current Retired Numbers- 2 Al MacInnis, 3 Bob Gassoff, 8 Barclay Plager, 11 Brian Sutter, 16 Brett Hull, 24 Bernie Federko

Current Honored Numbers- 5 Bob Plager, 7 Red Berenson/ Garry Unger/ Joe Mullen/ Keith Tkachuk, 14 Doug Wickenheiser

Recommended Numbers to Retire/Honor

38 Pavol Demitra

Demitra spent the longest time in his career with St. Louis. He had several tremendous seasons with the Blues in scoring. Sadly, he was killed in the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslav plane crash. Out of pure respect for all who play the game and good guys like Demitra, the onus is really on the Blues to put aside his number for good in remembrance.

20 Alexander Steen

Steen has had a remarkable career so far with the Blues and is destined to see his number honored by St. Louis in some fashion, provided he isn’t moved by the end of his days on the ice.

42 David Backes

Backes encapsulates the consummate power forward and St. Louis Blue. It is without a doubt that this fan favorite, and captain, will remain a part of the Blues for years to come and see his number raised to the roof of the Scottrade Center in some capacity.

91 Vladimir Tarasenko

As long as Tarasenko can keep up with the thrills of his career so far, then there’s already a place reserved in the rafters for a number 91 banner at the end of his projected superstar career.

December 27, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- Pittsburgh Penguins

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Current Retired Numbers- 21 Michel Briere, 66 Mario Lemieux

Recommended Numbers to Retire

87 Sidney Crosby

To say the Pittsburgh Penguins will never retire Crosby’s number 87 sweater after his career is over is like saying penguins can fly.

71 Evgeni Malkin

The same goes for Malkin, as long as the relationship between the club and player never goes sour.

81 Phil Kessel

That’s right, I’m calling it. The Penguins will retire Phil Kessel’s number 81 one day. Not only am I crazy for making this declaration before he even touches the ice in a Pittsburgh sweater, but, well on second thought, that’s pretty much the only reason why I’m crazy. Kessel can score, that’s a fact. And anyone that plays alongside Crosby or Malkin is automatically made ten times better (if you’re not the one scoring, you’re the one passing the puck to Sid the Kid or Geno).

So that’s why I think his number will see the rafters in Pittsburgh in the future, aside from the fact that he’s finally found an organization he can settle in for longer than ever before. *I wrote this before the season started, as things are right now, his Pittsburgh venture is about as memorable as Colby Armstrong’s days in the Steel City.*

14 Chris Kunitz

Kunitz may be the first beneficiary of the Crosby-Malkin affect, as he is closest to retirement, but while he has been superb for the Penguins, his number 14 likely won’t rest alongside Michel Briere’s number 21 and Mario Lemieux’s number 66.

29 Marc-Andre Fleury

If he lets more beach balls by him, then all bets are off. Otherwise, Fleury’s the best goaltender Pittsburgh has seen in a long time, but is that enough to put number 29 out of commission after his career is over?

58 Kris Letang

Letang will likely be around for a long time in Pittsburgh and given the fact that he’s their best defenseman, there’s a good chance number 58 will see immortality above the ice at the Consol Energy Center. His health issues aside, Letang is one remarkable player in all of his resilience and persistence in the game. Including his health, Letang is superhuman.

9 Pascal Dupuis

As a player, Dupuis was committed to the Penguins through and through. He might not have been the greatest there ever was, but he’s certainly worthy of receiving the distinction of having his number retired by Pittsburgh. Best of luck to Dupuis in his transition to the front office aspect of the game within the organization.

December 27, 2015
December 27 – Day 78 – Bruins try to jump to top of the Atlantic Division

Thanks to a clutch save from Jake Allen in the ninth round of the shutout, the St. Louis Blues were able to claim the extra point over the Dallas Stars in last night’s Game of the Day.

After playing a scoreless 26:18, First Star of the Game Alexander Steen scored a power play goal, assisted by Kevin Shattenkirk and Third Star Vladimir Tarasenko, to give the Blues a one-goal lead. It was short-lived though, as Cody Eakin and Jamie Benn assisted Colton Sceviour to knot the score at one-all. The Stars scored their second and final goal of regulation with only 37 seconds remaining in the period when Patrick Sharp and Alex Goligoski assisted Tyler Seguin to his 20th goal of the season, giving Dallas a 2-1 lead going into the second intermission.

The Blues waited to score the game-tying goal until only 1:50 remained in regulation, as Jay Bouwmeester and David Backes assisted Second Star Robby Fabbri to send the game to overtime and, ultimately, the shoutout.

While he won’t get a goal added to his season total, Backes scored the final goal of the shootout, but it was Allen, who made the save on Vernon Fiddler’s shot, who secured the Blues‘ victory.

Allen improves his record to 17-8-2 with the win, saving 22 of 24 (91.7%), while Antti Niemi’s record falls to 15-5-3, saving 35 of 37 (94.6%).

The DtFR Game of the Day Series now stands at 30-12-6, favoring the home squad by 26 points. Last night’s game was the second straight that required a shootout, as Ottawa beat Florida on Tuesday, the last day of action before the Christmas break.

Tonight’s schedule consists of nine games, with the action getting started at 5 p.m. eastern when Boston visits Ottawa (RDS2). Three games follow at 6 p.m. eastern (Columbus at Florida, Toronto at the New York Islanders [TVAS/SN] and St. Louis at Dallas), trailed an hour later by Carolina at Chicago. Three games get started at 8 p.m. eastern (Pittsburgh at Winnipeg, Arizona at Colorado and Philadelphia at Anaheim), and the nightcap follows an hour later when Edmonton visits Calgary (SN).

Three of tonight’s games are between divisional rivals (Boston at Ottawa, St. Louis at Dallas and Edmonton at Calgary), while two of those are between teams currently qualifying for the playoffs (sorry Edmonton–Calgary!). Even though Dallas and St. Louis just played last night and should carry over a lot of emotion, the Boston–Ottawa game has a more immediate effect on the standings.

This will be both teams’ fifth time featured in the DtFR Game of the Day series, where they both have a 1-2-1 record. The lone time the Bruins were the road squad in the series was November 7 then they visited Montréal – they lost 4-2. Ottawa has been the home side twice, winning their most recent game 4-2 over the Sharks (December 18), but losing 3-1 on October 11 against the Canadiens.

The 19-11-4 Boston Bruins currently sit third in the Atlantic Division and sixth in the Eastern Conference. They are currently riding a two-game losing skid, their most recent showing being a 6-3 defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres. Don’t let those recent results fool you, though: Boston has been a quietly good team this season, especially on the offensive end of the ice.

Led by Patrice Bergeron’s 110 shots, the Bruins have accounted for 1018 attempts so far this season. Exactly 10%, a significant portion, of those shots have found the back of the net for 102 goals, led by Brad Marchand’s 15. Especially strong for Boston has been their power play. Of the 90 opportunities the Bruins have been given, they’ve scored 26 goals (led by Loui Eriksson’s seven) for a 28.89% success rate. Although it is always wise to avoid penalties, Ottawa should probably take special care to avoid the box this evening, as Boston has a knack for making teams pay.

While the defense started the season playing very poorly, they have clamped down to give up only 84 goals to date. The main reason for this has not been so much the play of 13-8-3 Tuukka Rask and co., but the defense allowing only 959 shots to reach net (led by Adam McQuaid’s 56 blocks). Although the penalty kill has been only average (currently killing 81.36%), it has gotten in on the goal-scoring. When shorthanded, the Bruins have scored six times already this season, well above the league average of two.

The 17-12-6 Ottawa Senators currently hold the second wild card position as the fifth-best team in the Atlantic Division and eighth-best in the Eastern Conference. Similar to their New England opponent, the Senators are also riding a two-game losing skid, with their most recent game a 2-1 shootout loss at Florida on Tuesday. I know I sound like a broken record when I talk about Ottawa, but their offense and goaltending have had to cover up for the poor defensive play on a regular basis this season.

I usually try to start with a positive, and Ottawa‘s offense is certainly one. Thanks in no part to only 969 shots put on net (led by Mike Hoffman’s 95), the Sens have scored 102 goals so far this season, led by Hoffman’s 17 tallies. While in no way as strong as Boston‘s, Ottawa‘s power play has been better than average, as they’ve scored 21 (led by Hoffman’s four) on 108 attempts for a 19.4% success rate.

The other end of the ice has not been quite as spectacular. Although Erik Karlsson already has 71 blocks this season, the Sens have allowed 1180 shots to reach 15-9-4 Craig Anderson and co., who have a combined 92% save percentage, only half a percent above league average. In addition to allowing too many shots into the crease, the penalty kill is also not going Ottawa‘s way. They’ve allowed 26 goals on 118 attempts, killing only 77.97%. If the defense could do more to improve these two statistics, they could be considered a significant threat for the cup this season. Until then, Ottawa can only be considered a playoff stepping stone.

Some players to watch in tonight’s game include Boston‘s Rask (four shutouts [tied for third in the league]) & Ottawa‘s Anderson (15 wins [tied for sixth in the league]), Hoffman (17 goals [tied for sixth in the league]) and Karlsson (29 assists [tied for league lead] and 38 points [sixth in the league]).

Given Ottawa‘s poor defense and penalty kill, it is hard to pick against the Bruins, even if they are the visiting team. I expect Boston to jump into the division lead with a win tonight.

December 27, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- Philadelphia Flyers

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

Philadelphia Flyers

Current Retired Numbers- 1 Bernie Parent, 2 Mark Howe, 4 Barry Ashbee, 7 Bill Barber, 16 Bobby Clarke

Recommended Numbers to Retire

10 John LeClair

The Philadelphia Flyers really have some catching up to do when it comes to their retired numbers. For starters there’s the Legion of Doom line left winger, John LeClair, who spent ten years of his career with the Flyers, which included two consecutive 97-point seasons from 1995-1996 to 1996-1997. LeClair would reach the 90 point plateau for the third time in four seasons in the 1998-1999 season.

So, umm, yeah, why exactly haven’t you sent his number to the rafters, Philadelphia? I’ll speak from a completely biased perspective for a moment- John LeClair was one of my favorite players to try to emulate while growing up and playing street hockey in my neighborhood.

88 Eric Lindros

The center from the famous Legion of Doom line, Eric Lindros is well known for having been oft injured and the reason why the Québec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche had one of the greatest Swedish forwards of the game. But in his time well spent in Philadelphia, one season in particular, stands out for Lindros- his 115 point season in 1995-1996. Lindros only broke the 90-point plateau three times in his career, all as a member of the Flyers.

He only barely missed never having a season in Philadelphia with less than 60 points total, but in 1999-2000, Lindros came up just short, with 59 points, after only having played in 55 games due to injury. So again, why haven’t the Flyers done anything to immortalize his career with Philadelphia?

8 Mark Recchi

Recchi had two very successful stints with the Flyers over his 22-year career. In the 1992-1993 season, Recchi had 53-70-123 totals in 84 games played. From a scoring point, that was his best year ever in his career, but his success didn’t end there.

Although he won a Cup with Pittsburgh in 1991, before joining the inner state rival, Philadelphia Flyers, and went on to win a second Cup with Carolina in 2006, and his third with Boston in 2011, Mark Recchi will- rest assured- always be one of the greatest Philadelphia wingers in franchise history. Recchi was a centerpiece in the trade with Montreal that brought LeClair to the City of Brotherly Love and he was one of the reasons why playing with the Flyers in NHL 2001 was so great, for the record.

Again I must ask the question, why haven’t you done anything yet, Philadelphia Flyers organization?

12 Simon Gagné

Gagné spent eleven years of his remarkable career with the Flyers and scored some of the biggest goals in franchise history, including the one in 2010 that completed the seven game series comeback from being down in a 3-0 hole to the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Whether he is able to make a return to play since taking a personal leave of absence 23 games into his short tenure with the Bruins, or whether he’s forced to retire, the Flyers should do the right thing with his jersey number and send it to the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center.

28 Claude Giroux

Giroux is the best player on the Flyers roster currently and will likely spend the majority of his career in Philadelphia black, white, and orange. After his career is over, the Flyers will no doubt bestow him the greatest honor from an organization and remove number 28 from circulation on the back of any Flyers jersey.

93 Jakub Voracek

The Flyers will need at least another eight years of Voracek to really determine if retiring his number is worthy of consideration one day, but we might as well include him in the conversation for the future.

December 26, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- Ottawa Senators

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

Ottawa Senators

Current Retired Numbers- 8 Frank Finnigan

Recommended Numbers to Retire

11 Daniel Alfredsson

Alfredsson was the heart and soul of the Ottawa Senators. It really is a shame he could never win a Cup, but 17 years of winning over an entire city is nearly as good. It would only be fitting that the Senators first retired number of their own (and not from the previous installment of a Senators franchise in Ottawa) would be Alfredsson’s. He was the 75^th player in league history to reach 1,000 career points in the NHL and played in 1,178 games for the Senators, which is now second to Chris Phillips for the most games played for the organization (Phillips surpassed Alfredsson’s mark on February 5^th of this year).

19 Jason Spezza

Once Spezza calls it a career, it only makes sense that his number 19 hangs in the rafters of the Canadian Tire Centre alongside former linemate, Daniel Alfredsson. Spezza was influential in the Senators run to the Final in 2007 and was well respected by the city, fans, and management. The feeling was mutual, but ultimately, Spezza had asked to be dealt and was traded to the Dallas Stars on July 1, 2014.

What led to the demise of Spezza’s time in Ottawa, I can only think has to do with the bitter taste of Alfredsson leaving him to play his last season in Detroit, coupled with the bleak outlook the Senators had over the last few years leading up to Spezza’s departure. Since then, the deal has worked out for both sides. The Senators are a surging team in the Atlantic Division, poised to make consecutive playoff runs, while the Stars have a beyond superstar talent laden roster that really shouldn’t surprise to have a decent turnaround after missing the playoffs in 2015.

65 Erik Karlsson

Karlsson is Ottawa’s best offensive defenseman in franchise history, despite being 25 years old. It is without a doubt that, as captain, he will stick around with the Senators for the majority, if not entirety, of his career and will go down in history in Ottawa, if not league history for his remarkable scoring ability from the blue line that he so often leaves to find the net.

December 26, 2015
December 26 – Day 77 – Top two goal-scorers square-off

The NHL’s Christmas gift to you this season? The same one they give you every year: a return to hockey after the holiday!

Eighteen teams return from holiday hiatus today to take the ice. The action gets started at 7 p.m. eastern, when four games get underway (Buffalo at Boston [BELL TV], Columbus at Tampa Bay, Montréal at Washington [CBC/NHLN/TVAS] and New Jersey at Carolina), followed an hour later by three more (Dallas at St. Louis, Detroit at Nashville and Pittsburgh at Minnesota). Los Angeles visits Arizona at 9 p.m. eastern, followed an hour later by Edmonton at Vancouver (CBC), this evening’s nightcap.

Five of tonight’s matchups are divisional rivalries (Buffalo at Boston, New Jersey at Carolina, Dallas at St. Louis, Los Angeles at Arizona and Edmonton at Vancouver), while three are between current playoff qualifiers (Montréal at Washington, Dallas at St. Louis and Detroit at Nashville). As you’ve come to expect, we’ll go for the game that qualifies for both categories: the Stars–Blues matchup.

This will be Dallas‘ fifth time featured in the DtFR Game of the Day series, where they currently own a perfect 4-0-0 record, with their last showing a 6-3 victory in Minnesota on Monday. The Blues have been featured five times before today, and own a 3-2-0 record when the focus of our attention. Their last showing was a 2-1 victory over the Predators on December 17.

The 26-7-2 Dallas Stars have been the story of the season thus far. They lead the Central Division and Western Conference by eight points, and the entire NHL by two points. They’ve found that success by pairing an above-average defense with one of, if not the best offense in the league, made evident by their last victory, a four-goal shutout of the Blackhawks on Tuesday that extended their winning streak to three games.

The Stars have put 1128 shots on goal this season (led by Tyler Seguin’s 143), a total that exceeds the league average by 115 attempts. A strong 10.9% of those shots have found the back of the net for a league-leading 123 goals (led by Jamie Benn’s 22). The Stars have been especially potent on the power play, where they’ve scored 27 goals (led by on Benn’s nine) on 116 opportunities for a 23.28% success rate that well exceeds the league average.

Even though it may the weaker end of the ice for Dallas, the Blues should not assume that having the Stars defending will give them an advantage. Dallas has only let 993 shots reach 15-5-2 Antti Niemi and co. (helped by Alex Goligoski’s team-leading 71 blocks), of which they’ve saved 91.3% for only 87 goals. Probably the biggest issue the Stars face is their penalty kill. On 101 attempts, Dallas has given up 20 goals and killed the remaining 80.2%, which trails the league average by .83%.

The 21-11-4 St. Louis Blues currently qualify for second place in both the Central Division and Western Conference, trailing the Stars by eight points. Their most recent game was a two-goal shutout victory in Boston on Tuesday. The Blues have favored the defensive end of the ice, but are still very much a threat on the offensive.

Thanks in part to Alex Pietrangelo’s team-leading 65 blocks, St. Louis has allowed only 1020 shots on net, a total that exceeds the league average by only 12 shots in two more games played. 16-8-2 Jake Allen and co. have saved 92.4% of those shots, allowing only 84 goals against. The defense especially clamps down on the penalty kill, where they’ve killed 87.29% of power plays, allowing only 15 goals.

Offensively, the Blues have not been as strong. They’ve managed only 1086 shots (led by Vladimir Tarasenko’s 127), of which 8.4%, or 91 (Tarasenko leads the team with 22) have found the back of the net. Although the offense has only been average overall, the Blues‘ power play is nothing to laugh at. On 99 attempts, nine fewer than the league average, the Notes have scored 21.21%, or 21 goals (led by Tarasenko’s seven tallies).

Some players to watch in tonight’s game include Dallas‘ Benn (22 goals [tied for league lead], 46 points [tied for second in the league], +17 [tied for second in the league] and 24 assists [tied for sixth in the league]), Jason Demers (+16 [tied for fifth in the league]), John Klingberg (27 assists [tied for third in the league]), Niemi (three shutouts [tied for fifth in the league] and 15 wins [tied for sixth in the league]), Johnny Oduya (+15 [tied for seventh in the league]) and Seguin (46 points [tied for second in the league], 27 assists [tied for third in the league], 19 goals [fourth in the league] and +15 [tied for seventh in the league]) & St. Louis‘ Allen (five shutouts [tied for league lead], 16 wins [tied for fourth in the league], .928 save percentage [sixth in the league] and 2.06 GAA [tied for sixth in the league]) and Tarasenko (22 goals [tied for league lead] and 38 points [tied for fifth in the league]).

This will be the Stars‘ second trip to St. Louis this season, with the first representing the first game in the season series. The Blues won the matchup on December 12 with a three-goal shutout. Following tonight’s game both squads will board planes for Dallas to play again tomorrow night.

This is a tough game to predict, as both provide compelling arguments. The Stars, their offense in particular, have been very tough to stop this season, but the Blues proved that they have the superior defense in their previous matchup only two weeks ago. Especially since the game is taking place in the Scottrade Center, I think I have to lean towards the Blues taking a 2-0-0 lead in the season series with a win this evening.

December 26, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- New York Rangers

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

New York Rangers

Current Retired Numbers- 1 Eddie Giacomin, 2 Brian Leetch, 3 Harry Howell, 7 Rod Gilbert, 9 Andy Bathgate/Adam Graves, 11 Mark Messier, 35 Mike Richter

Recommended Numbers to Retire

18 Marc Staal

There’s a chance that if the New York Rangers could ever win a Cup one of these years and the stars align for Staal, then maybe his number 18 could hang from the rafters of Madison Square Garden one day.

27 Ryan McDonagh

This is just a reminder that the Montreal Canadiens got Scott Gomez in return for McDonagh, who is arguably the New York Rangers number one defenseman when Marc Staal isn’t playing up to his potential. So yeah, about that Cup thing again- it’d further solidify the chances of McDonagh’s number being retired, provided he sticks around the Big Apple for a long time.

30 Henrik Lundqvist

One of the greatest goaltenders in the world, Lundqvist has yet to find out how to win a Cup. When he does, the world will rejoice. He’s a face of the franchise for the Rangers and without a doubt will see his number ascend to the rafters of MSG. Need I say more? This one is rather self-explanatory.

61 Rick Nash

If Nash puts in at least a decade with the Rangers and is able to snag a Cup or two, as well as perform well in scoring, then there’s a good chance New York would retire his number and further enlarge the divide between Rick Nash and his former fans in Columbus.

Other Notes

If the Rangers finally pull off a Cup win for the first time since 1994, I fully expect either Staal, McDonagh, or Nash will have played a large enough role to put their numbers in consideration for retirement by New York some day. Maybe Derek Stepan too.

December 23, 2015
Numbers Game: Look to the Rafters- New York Islanders

By: Nick Lanciani

What will retired numbers look like around the league in the future? While there’s only a finite set of numbers to utilize on the back of a jersey, many teams choose to retire (or honor) some numbers based on extraordinary circumstances, dedication to the organization, or legendary status.

With that in mind, I explore what each team around the NHL might do in the coming seasons. Feel free to speak your mind and drop us a line in the comments or tweet to @DtFrozenRiver using #DTFRNumbersGame.

For each team, I thought of former and current players that should have their numbers retired now or once they hang up the skates.

New York Islanders

Current Retired Numbers- 5 Denis Potvin, 9 Clark Gillies, 19 Bryan Trottier, 22 Mike Bossy, 23 Bob Nystrom, 31 Billy Smith, 1500 Al Arbour

Recommended Numbers to Retire

91 John Tavares

Before the New York Islanders became America’s team this past season, let’s face it- they were terrible. The only bright spot they had was Tavares and the future he might bring. Luckily the Islanders have drafted well enough to continue to build a team around their star center and have landed several notable players via free agency and trades- most notably, Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk.

So years from now, number 91 will hang from the rafters of the Barclays Center, alongside many other NYI greats. Other than that, Tavares is the only player that’s a step above the rest on the Islanders for now, such that he will deserve special recognition in the form of retiring his number.

December 22, 2015
December 22 – Day 76 – Would a Miami Vice also be considered a Sen?

Dallas may have waited until they were down two goals, but they ended up beating Minnesota 6-3.

On the same day he signed a four-year, $20.75 million contract extension, Jared Spurgeon celebrated by scoring his fifth goal of the season at the 4:57 mark of the game. The Wild‘s second goal came 3:19 later, when Justin Fontaine and Third Star of the Game Nino Niederreiter assisted First Star Charlie Coyle to his seventh score of the season. Minnesota‘s 2-0 lead held into the first intermission.

While the first 20 minutes was all about the home squad, the second period favored the road Stars. Dallas scored their first goal of the game at the 14:59 mark of the second period, courtesy of Jordie Benn, assisted by Jason Spezza, his 12th helper of the season. 3:31 later, Dallas tied the game at two-all with a power play tally from Vernon Fiddler, assisted by Patrick Eaves and Alex Goligoski, his 11th of the season. The Stars‘ final goal of the period came only 59 seconds later, as Patrick Sharp and Jamie Benn assisted Tyler Seguin to a wrister to take the lead. Dallas‘ 3-2 lead held into the second intermission.

Dallas‘ fourth straight goal, the eventual game-winner, came only 3:41 into the final period when Johnny Oduya assisted Antoine Roussel to a backhander. The streak ended at the 10:26 mark when Coyle and Fontaine assisted Niederreiter, setting the score at 4-3. The comeback could not be completed though, as Cody Eakin scored the first of two empty netters for the Stars at the 18:07 mark. The second came with only 14 seconds remaining in the game when Seguin assisted Fiddler to his second goal of the game, and the final tally of the night.

Second Star Antti Niemi improved his record to 14-5-2 after earning the win, saving 30 of 31 (96.8%). He replaced Kari Lehtonen, who saved only two of four shots faced (50%) in only 8:16 played. 14-9-2 Devan Dubnyk earns the loss after saving only 28 of 32 (87.5%).

The DtFR Game of the Day series now stands at 28-12-6, favoring the home squads by 24 over the roadies.

Tonight is the last set of games before the NHL takes their Christmas break, with action resuming this Saturday. Due to that, there’s a total of 10 games occurring this evening, with the first two getting started at 7 p.m. eastern (St. Louis at Boston and Anaheim at the New York Rangers [SN1]). Three more get started 30 minutes later (New Jersey at Detroit, Vancouver at Tampa Bay [TVAS] and Ottawa at Florida [RDS2]), followed at 8 p.m. eastern by Montréal at Minnesota (NBCSN/RDS). Chicago at Dallas gets started at 8:30 p.m. eastern, followed half an hour later by two more (Winnipeg at Calgary and Toronto at Arizona). Finally, the nightcap drops the opening puck at 10:30 p.m. eastern when Los Angeles hosts San Jose (NBCSN/SN).

Three of tonight’s games are between divisional rivals (Ottawa at Florida, Chicago at Dallas and San Jose at Los Angeles), and they are joined by two others (St. Louis at Boston and Montréal at Minnesota) to make five games between current playoff qualifiers.

The game that deserves our attention is the one that will have the biggest effect on the standings going into the three-day break, so let’s focus in on the Sunshine State.

This will be Ottawa‘s fourth time featured in DtFR’s featured matchup. When the focus of our attention, they have a 1-2-0 record, with their most recent showing a 4-2 victory over the Sharks on Friday. The home Panthers have only been featured once before, when they visited Boston on December 12 and lost 3-1.

The 17-12-5 Ottawa Senators are currently in fifth place in the Atlantic Division and eighth in the Eastern Conference, which qualifies them for the second wild card position. Their most recent contest was a 5-2 loss in Tampa Bay on Sunday. The Sens are certainly an offensive-minded team, as they’ve had to cover up mistakes on the other end of the ice.

So far this season, the Senators have only put 953 shots on net (led by Mike Hoffman’s 94), they’ve scored on a whopping 10.6% of those attempts for 101 goals, including Hoffman’s team-leading 17 tallies. Although Ottawa employs a strong offense, an interestingly average aspect of their attack is their power play. On 106 attempts, they’ve scored 20 goals (led by Hoffman’s four), for a slightly sub-average 18.87% success rate.

The offense has needed to be good, because the other end of the ice has been lacking. Although Erik Karlsson has a team-leading 69 blocks, 1140 shots have made it to 15-9-3 Craig Anderson and co. Although the goaltenders have allowed 99 goals, they do have a combined 91.8% save rate that slightly exceeds the league average, implying that the defense needs to do more to disrupt plays and block shots, potentially by being active before or at the trade deadline.

An even more distressing number is Ottawa‘s penalty kill rate: 76.99%. They have allowed 26 power play goals to the opposition on 113 attempts. This also points to Ottawa being very active at the trade deadline to bolster their blue line.

Their opposition this evening are the 18-12-4 Florida Panthers, who currently sit in fourth in the Atlantic Division and seventh in the Eastern Conference, which qualifies them for the first wild card. They are currently riding a four-game win streak, with their most recent showing a 5-4 shootout victory over the Canucks on Sunday. Florida plays well on both ends of the ice, but their strength is certainly their defense.

Although the Panther defense has allowed more shots on net than average, they have been much more stingy than Ottawa, allowing only 998, helped by Willie Mitchell’s team-leading 49 blocks. The real strength has been 13-11-3 Roberto Luongo an co. While his personal record is not indicative of their success, the goaltenders have a combined 92.6% save rate that leads the league average. One spot where Florida still needs to improve is on the penalty kill. They have allowed 20 goals on 106 attempts for a 81.13% kill rate that barely exceeds the league average.

The Panthers‘ offense may have put only 953 shots on goal (led by Aaron Ekblad’s 88), they’ve scored on 9.3% of those attempts for 89 goals, led by Reilly Smith’s 11. The power play has been an extension of that success, as they’ve scored 22 goals on 113 opportunities for a 19.47% success rate that leads the league average by .55%.

Tonight’s result could have major implications on the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference Wild-Card standings. Should Ottawa pull off the upset on the road, they will move into a tie with Detroit (who has a game against the Devils tonight) at 41 points. A Florida win puts the Panthers into a tie with Boston (who is hosting the Blues this evening), while an overtime loss puts them into a tie with Detroit and Ottawa.

Some players to watch in tonight’s game include Florida‘s Ekblad (+11 and 88 shots [both lead team]), Erik Gudbranson (84 hits [leads team]) and Jaromir Jagr (24 points [leads team]) & Ottawa‘s Anderson (15 wins [tied for fourth in the league] and two shutouts [tied for seventh in the league]), Hoffman (17 goals [tied for fifth in the league]) and Karlsson (28 assists [second in the league] and 37 points [fourth in the league]).

Due to Ottawa‘s poor defensive game and being on the road, I expect the Florida Panthers to win tonight’s game.

December 22, 2015