Down the Frozen River

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  • Carey Price Earns 8th Postseason Shutout in Victory Over Winnipeg Jets.

    Carey Price Earns 8th Postseason Shutout in Victory Over Winnipeg Jets.

    The Montreal Canadiens are on a five game win streak for the first time since 2017. They have not trailed a single time in those five games. These are the same Montreal Canadiens who were struggling to hold on to the fourth seed toward the end of the regular season. From juggernauts to underdogs, the Canadiens are here to prove people wrong. 

    Tyler Toffoli did what Toffoli did best and that’s scoring the only goal of the evening. The 29 year old signed with Montreal last offseason, after he and Vancouver decided to part ways. It appears to have been a wise move on Toffoli’s part as he scored 28 goals, just shy of his career high 31 with the Los Angeles Kings.

    Having Carey Price and Connor Hellebuyck at either end of the ice is scary enough. Going up against playoff Price is another challenge in itself. His postseason save percentage is a .919% with a goals against average of 2.39. While seen as an inconsistent goalie through the regular season, postseason Price is locked in and makes it all look easy. He has saved 275 of 294 shots. The MVP of the Canadiens’ postseason thus far. 

    Mark Schiefele is suspended for another three games due to the hit on Josh Evans in game one. Schiefele’s absence was noticeable in last year’s postseason but will it be the same story this year? Schiefele has come out and shown a bit of remorse but people are saying it’s too little too late. If he does return to the lineup this series, will we see a spark for the Jets or will they keep themselves from another success? 

    Heading into the series, many people assumed it would be a four game sweep for the Winnipeg Jets. They ran through the Edmonton Oilers and had a mini vacation before moving on to the second round. Game three is set for Sunday night at 6:00pm.

  • Mangiapane’s Success at Worlds Solidifies Future Top Six Role

    Mangiapane’s Success at Worlds Solidifies Future Top Six Role

    The Flames finished the season in fifth place of the North Division. While expectations were high, the reality is that the team did not have what it takes to make it in the playoffs. One issue being the team’s health and the offensive struggles and inconsistency. The Flames are playing middle of the road hockey but with a few tweaks and tune ups, they could be a playoff team. 

    Andrew Mangiapane is emerging as one of the Flames best players. He bounced between the middle six and earned himself a new career high 18 goals. His regular season performance was a launching pad into his success with Team Canada. Number 88 has 7 goals in 6 games. He is making quite the case for a top six spot in the Calgary Flames lineup and it’s time to utilize that talent. 

    There’s no denying that the middle six of the Flames lineup needs some tweaking. We’re going to assume that Sean Monahan stays and Johnny Gaudreau bounces between the top line. Although, a case has been made for why he needs to be separated from Monahan but alas, that’s a conversation for another day. So, Mangiapane is one of your most effective forwards. He was fourth in points with 32 and second in goals with 18. Had it been a regular 82 game season, Mangiapane was on pace for 26 goals. 

    That second line needs some sort of elevation. Considering Monahan’s injury history, it appears that he hasn’t fully healed from hip and groin surgery. Just as a reminder, being cleared to play does not mean you are fully healed. The problem with the second line is that the right wing slot is a revolving door. It could be Dillion Dube, Brett Ritchie, or if they want to win, it will be Mangiapane.  There needs to be some sort of consistency on the right wing. The Brett Ritchie experiment is more than likely done. With that, I would like to call all attempts to rejuvenate forth liners or washed up AHLers. It’s time to use your talent in an effective manner. That means shuffling the lines and making sure your lines are set up for success. As we saw in the last push of the season, moving Gadreau to a line with a consistent center and strong winger created a situation where scoring with a regular occurrence. Matthew Tkachuk, who had 11 goals heading into the last 5 games, ended the season with 16 after seeing an increase in production in the last five games with five goals. 

    Making Mangiapane a permanent member of the second line would ensure offensive success. You would be giving Sean Monahan another talented and capable winger to work with. Johnny Gaudreau wouldn’t be held back by someone who is older and a bit slower. You have youth on your side when you add Mangiapane to the line. I do believe it would be worthwhile to look into. It doesn’t make sense to have a revolving door or right wingers when the talent is right there.

    The twenty four year old has made strides in the last year and people are already fully worried he will be given a Milan Lucic like contract. There is a stark difference between the two but we will start at the age difference and one is on the rise while the other is at the tailend of their career. The concerns shouldn’t be about paying Mangiapane. It should be making sure the team utilizes him in a way that is successful and beneficial. 

    There is a lot of theorizing one could do this offseason about the 2021-22 Flames line up, but one thing should be for certain and that is putting Andrew Mangiapane on a line where he can succeed and assist the Flames to more wins. Out of all the youth on the team, looking to take that next step in their career, he has earned a right to make the second line his home. The team could benefit from a 20+ goal scorer and you’re not going to get that if he is buried as a bottom six player. Blowing up the team doesn’t have to be the route management takes as long as they are willing to acknowledge and build around the talent shining through.

  • Golden Knights rally late for Game 3 victory in front of capacity crowd

    Golden Knights rally late for Game 3 victory in front of capacity crowd

    A pair of goals in 45 seconds were enough to tie the game and take the lead in the third period as the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Colorado Avalanche, 3-2, in front of a full capacity crowd at T-Mobile Arena in Game 3 of their 2021 Second Round series on Friday.

    17,504 fans were in attendance in the first full capacity crowd since the ongoing pandemic was declared in March 2020, as the Golden Knights cut Colorado’s series lead to 2-1.

    Marc-Andre Fleury (5-4, 1.88 goals-against average, .922 save percentage in nine games played) made 18 saves on 20 shots against in the win for Vegas.

    Avalanche goaltender, Philipp Grubauer (6-1, 1.86 goals-against average, .941 save percentage in seven games played), stopped 40 out of 43 shots faced in the loss.

    Once more, Logan Thompson served as Fleury’s backup in Game 3 as he did for Game 2 with Robin Lehner (undisclosed) out of the lineup.

    Nazem Kadri and Ryan Reaves continued to serve their own individual suspensions on Friday– with Reaves completing his two-game suspension in Game 3 (so he’ll be back for the Golden Knights in Game 4).

    Kadri has three games remaining in his suspension for a blindside hit on St. Louis Blues defender, Justin Faulk, in Game 2 of the First Round.

    Neither team managed to score a goal in the opening frame as Colorado presented Vegas with the first two power plays of the night.

    First, Gabriel Landeskog cut a rut to the penalty box for hooking Max Pacioretty at 7:13 of the first period, then late in the opening frame, Patrik Nemeth was penalized for interference at 17:54.

    The Golden Knights were unsuccessful on the power play in each case.

    Entering the first intermission, the score still read, 0-0, despite Vegas outshooting the Avalanche, 14-3.

    The Golden Knights also held the advantage in takeaways (4-3), giveaways (4-3) and faceoff win percentage (67-33), while the Avs led in blocked shots (8-5) and hits (21-19).

    Vegas was 0/2 on the power play, while Colorado had yet to see any action on the skater advantage.

    William Karlsson (3) pounced on a rebound with a backhand tap-in around Grubauer’s pad to give the Golden Knights a, 1-0, lead at 4:38 of the second period.

    Alex Pietrangelo (4) and Alec Martinez (1) tallied the assists on the game’s first goal early in the middle frame, but Vegas didn’t hold onto the lead for long.

    Almost 90 seconds after Karlsson put his team on the scoreboard first, Carl Soderberg (1) buried a rebound off of Fleury’s glove and into the twine– tying the game, 1-1, in the process.

    Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (2) had the initial shot and recorded the primary assist, while Kiefer Sherwood (1) was credited with the secondary helper as Soderberg’s goal evened things up at 6:07 of the second period.

    Late in the period, Shea Theodore sent the puck over the glass and out of play for an automatic delay of game infraction at 14:41.

    The Avs were not successful on the ensuing skater advantage.

    With about 1:50 remaining in the second period, Pacioretty had a breakaway that Grubauer denied– keeping the game even at, 1-1, as the second intermission got underway shortly thereafter.

    Through 40 minutes of action at T-Mobile Arena, the Golden Knights and Avalanche were tied, 1-1, on the scoreboard despite Vegas leading in shots on goal, 24-12, including a, 10-9, advantage in the second period alone.

    Colorado held the advantage in blocked shots (16-12) and hits (38-37), while Vegas led in giveaways (8-6) and faceoff win% (65-35). Both teams had nine takeaways each heading into the final frame.

    The Avs were 0/1 and the Golden Knights were 0/2 on the power play after two periods.

    Nicolas Roy hooked Sherwood early at 4:56 of the third period and the Avalanche made quick work of the ensuing power play.

    Colorado won the ensuing attacking zone faceoff and worked the puck around the zone before Mikko Rantanen (4) blasted a one-timer off of Fleury’s glove and into the back of the net while Joonas Donskoi served as a screen in front of the crease.

    Cale Makar (7) and Landeskog (8) had the assists on Rantanen’s power-play goal as the Avs took their first lead of the night, 2-1, at 5:04 of the third period.

    Rantanen’s goal extended his postseason point streak to 17 games dating back to the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Less than a minute later, Zach Whitecloud lost his own footing– perhaps with the ever so slight nudge or push from Landeskog– and crashed hard in the corner, clutching his right arm as he skated off the ice on his own power.

    Late in the third, Jonathan Marchessault (2) stuck with a broken play, following up on his own mishandling before banking the puck off of Grubauer and into the net from behind the goal line.

    Reilly Smith (3) and Nicolas Hague (1) notched the assists on Marchessault’s goal as the Golden Knights tied the game, 2-2, at 14:42.

    Less than a minute later, Vegas capitalized on the momentum swing with their second goal in 45 seconds as Nick Holden sent a shot from the point that Pacioretty (2) deflected under Grubauer to put the Golden Knights back into the lead, 3-2, at 15:27 of the third period.

    Holden (5) and Mark Stone (2) had the assists on Pacioretty’s deflection goal, which wound up becoming the game-winning goal as neither team could add to the scoreboard total as time winded down to the final horn.

    Colorado couldn’t tie the game with Grubauer pulled for an extra attacker with 1:53 remaining, nor could they draw up the right plan to force overtime when Avalanche head coach, Jared Bednar, used his timeout with 44.1 seconds left on the clock.

    At the final horn, Vegas had won, 3-2, and cut into Colorado’s series lead.

    The Golden Knights wrapped up Friday’s effort leading in shots on goal, 43-20, including a, 19-8, advantage in the third period alone.

    Vegas also led in givewaways (14-7), while Colorado finished the game leading in blocked shots (22-19).

    The two clubs split hits, 50-50, and faceoff win%, 50-50, as well, while the Avs went 1/2 on the power play and the Golden Knights finished 0/2 on the skater advantage in Game 3.

    The Avalanche lead the series 2-1 heading into Game 4 in Vegas on Sunday. Puck drop at T-Mobile Arena is scheduled for a little after 8:30 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can tune to NBCSN for game coverage, while fans in Canada can choose from SN or TVAS.

  • Don’t Count Carolina Hurricanes Out, Staal Wins it in Overtime

    Don’t Count Carolina Hurricanes Out, Staal Wins it in Overtime

    The tides have turned as the Carolina Hurricanes win their first of the series over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Alex Nedeljkovic had the night off and Petr Mrazek held down the fort for Carolina. Tampa kept the formula the same, hoping for some more success. The game was like a sandwich. There was really nothing exciting on the outside but in the middle, it was exciting and bursting with goodness. Yes, I just compared a hockey game to a sandwich. The overtime is a side of your choice. If you’re a Canes fan it’s  more than likely chips but for Tampa fans it may be coleslaw. 

    Before the game, the Carolina Hurricanes hadn’t had a lead in a game since game 4 against Nashville. Jackie Redmond reported that they had gone a total of 296:04 TOI without a lead. That would end in game three. Brett Pesce opened it up in the second period giving the Canes a much needed lead to build off of. Sebastian Aho would follow suit, extending their lead to two. Tampa Bay wasn’t going to take the easy way out. Brayden Point and Alex Killorn each earned this sixth goal of the postseason on power plays, tying it up as they headed into the final twenty. 

    Tampa Bay out shot the Canes 37-27. Neither team’s penalty kill could quite get it done tonight. Carolina scored on 1 of 2 power plays and Tampa capitalized 2 out of 3 times with the man advantage. While the reigning Stanley Cup champions are a powerhouse of a team, the Carolina Hurricanes have them beat when it comes to special teams. During the regular season, the Canes had a 25.61% on the power play. Their penalty kill was at a whopping 85.23% The Bolts had a 22.35% on the power play when the league average was just under 20% at 19.79%. Their PK was 84.15%. It is fair to say that Carolina had a better special teams unit assembled. 

    Sebastian Aho set up the beautiful overtime winner from Jordan Staal.  The Canes now trail 2-1 in the series.

  • Marchand lifts Bruins to 2-1 series lead in, 2-1, OT victory on the road

    Marchand lifts Bruins to 2-1 series lead in, 2-1, OT victory on the road

    Brad Marchand scored the game-winning goal in overtime as the Boston Bruins beat the New York Islanders, 2-1, in Game 3 of their 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round matchup at Nassau Live at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Thursday night.

    Tuukka Rask (6-2, 2.04 goals-against average, .934 save percentage in eight games played) made 28 saves on 29 shots against in the win for Boston.

    Meanwhile, New York netminder, Semyon Varlamov (1-3, 2.83 goals-against average, .923 save percentage in four games played) stopped 39 out of 41 shots faced in the loss.

    Bruins head coach, Bruce Cassidy, surpassed Art Ross for the second-most postseason wins behind the bench with Boston, earning his 33rd career Stanley Cup Playoffs win as the B’s head coach. Cassidy trails Claude Julien (57 postseason wins with Boston) for the most in franchise history.

    The Bruins were without the services of Ondrej Kase (upper body), Kevan Miller (upper body) and John Moore (hip) on Thursday.

    Though Kase and Moore are shutdown for the year, Cassidy provided reporters with an update on Miller’s progress ahead of Game 3 and indicated that the earliest the Boston defender might return to the lineup is for Game 5.

    Craig Smith returned to the lineup after missing Game 2 with a lower body injury.

    Smith was slotted into his usual role on the right wing on the second line, while Jake DeBrusk was bumped back to the third line and Karson Kuhlman returned to being one of many on the list of healthy scratches at this time of year.

    Cassidy made no other changes to his lineup for Thursday night’s action in New York.

    Boston’s long list of healthy scratches, taxi squad members and injured players included Nick Wolff, Trent Frederic, Greg McKegg, Zach Senyshyn, Jack Studnicka, Moore, Kase, Jaroslav Halak, Steven Kampfer, Cameron Hughes, Jack Ahcan, Urho Vaakanainen, Oskar Steen, Jakub Zboril, Callum Booth, Dan Vladar, Anton Blidh, Kuhlman, Jarred Tinordi and Miller.

    Taylor Hall forced a turnover on a great backcheck that led to Matt Grzelcyk feeding Hall with a pass as the Bruins worked their way into the attacking zone.

    Hall hit Smith (2) with a pass through the high slot for a catch and release goal on Varlamov’s glove side to put Boston up, 1-0, at 5:52 of the first period, while Hall (2) and Grzelcyk (3) tallied the assists.

    Moments later, Rask made a big stop with his blocker on a breakaway by Anthony Beauvillier as the B’s held the lead.

    Midway through the opening frame, Marchand caught Travis Zajac with a high stick and was assessed a minor penalty at 11:08, presenting the Islanders with the first power play of the night.

    New York couldn’t convert on the ensuing skater advantage, however.

    Heading into the first intermission, Boston led, 1-0, on the scoreboard, despite trailing, 7-5, in shots on goal to the Isles.

    The Islanders also held the advantage in blocked shots (8-3), giveaways (6-3) and faceoff win percentage (63-38), while the Bruins led in takeaways (3-1) and hits (13-11).

    New York was the only beneficiary of a power play opportunity in the first period, though the Isles went 0/1 in the process. Boston had yet to see any action on the skater advantage after one period.

    Neither team managed to score a goal in the middle frame, but David Pastrnak managed to slash Ryan Pulock at 8:12 of the second period– presenting the Islanders with their second power play of the night.

    New York failed to convert on the ensuing skater advantage, however.

    Through 40 minutes of action, the Bruins remained in control of the scoreboard, 1-0, and led in shots on goal, 18-15, including a, 13-8, advantage in the second period alone.

    Boston held the advantage in takeaways (3-1), but New York dominated in just about everything else, including, blocked shots (14-9), giveaways (9-6), hits (28-22) and faceoff win% (57-43).

    The Islanders were 0/2 on the power play, while the Bruins still had yet to see any action on the skater advantage after two periods.

    Andy Greene caught Charlie Coyle with a high stick and presented the Bruins with their first power play of the night at 1:38 of the third period.

    Boston did not score on the ensuing skater advantage, however.

    Moments later, Cal Clutterbuck checked Brandon Carlo into the boards as Carlo’s head bounced off the glass and left the B’s defender dazed and visibly confused as he was helped off his knees by the athletic training staff and escorted down the tunnel.

    There was no penalty on the play and Carlo would not return for the rest of the night.

    Cassidy told reporters after the game that Carlo was feeling “pretty good” and that the Bruins would have a better read on the extent of his injury in the morning on Friday.

    Josh Bailey tripped Charlie McAvoy at 11:04 and the B’s went on the power play for the second time as a result, but once more Boston was unsuccessful on the skater advantage.

    Moments later, while on a long shift and struggling to get the puck out of their own zone, the Bruins gave up a goal as Mathew Barzal (1) poked around enough to slip a puck through Rask and tie the game, 1-1, in the process.

    Kyle Palmieri (2) and Pulock (2) had the assists on Barzal’s eighth career Stanley Cup Playoff goal at 14:34 of the third period.

    With about 3:16 remaining in regulation, Rask denied Beauvillier on yet another breakaway– this time with Rask turning aside a backhand shot to prevent the Islanders from taking their first lead of the night.

    Shortly thereafter, Sean Kuraly delivered a quick cross check that brought Palmieri to his knees and presented New York with one final power play at 17:45 of the third period.

    Boston killed off Kuraly’s minor as the two teams were tied, 1-1, after 60 minutes of play on Thursday.

    The Bruins led in shots on goal, 39-24, and had a, 21-9, advantage in shots in the third period alone.

    Boston also held the advantage in takeaways (4-1), while the Isles led in blocked shots (22-13), giveaways (12-9), hits (37-33) and faceoff win% (55-45).

    As there were no penalties called in the overtime period, the Islanders finished the night 0/3 on the power play, while the B’s went 0/2 on the skater advantage.

    Rask kept Boston in the game early in the extra frame before McAvoy brought the puck from his own zone into the attacking zone, dropping a short pass to Marchand in the process while Marchand skated up along the wall deep into the zone.

    Marchand (5) fired a shot from almost the goal line past Varlamov on the short side to the opposite corner on the far end of the net behind the New York netminder and into the twine, 3:36 into overtime.

    McAvoy (7) and Patrice Bergeron (4) were credited with the assists on the game-winning goal as Marchand put the Bruins ahead of the Islanders, 2-1, in Game 3 as well as in the series by the same margin (2-1).

    The goal gave Marchand his 102nd career playoff point (42-60–102 totals in 129 postseason games)– tying Phil Esposito (46-56–102 totals in 71 Stanley Cup Playoff games) for fourth place on Boston’s all time postseason scoring list.

    Boston finished the night leading in shots on goal, 41-29, despite trailing New York, 5-2, in shots in overtime alone.

    The Isles dominated in blocked shots (22-14), giveaways (13-10), hits (38-35) and faceoff win% (56-44).

    The Bruins lead the series 2-1 heading into Game 4 Saturday night at Nassau Live at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York.

    Puck drop is scheduled for about 7:15 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can catch the action on NBC, while those in Canada can tune to CBC, SN or TVAS.

  • The Canadiens Can’t Stop Winning, lead series 1-0 over Winnipeg

    The Canadiens Can’t Stop Winning, lead series 1-0 over Winnipeg

    The Winnipeg Jets grounded after their first game in 9 days. Montreal took game one with a final score of 5-3. 

    Canadiens forward Jake Evans left the ice on a stretcher after a hit from Mark Scheifele. Scheifele was given a charging penalty along with a game misconduct. He will have a hearing on the hit at some point on Thursday. 

    Montreal took a two goal lead within the first 5:30 with goals from Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Eric Staal. Winnipeg’s Adam Lowry would cut the deficit in half. Nick Suzuki would dash that hope when he scored the third goal for Montreal in the first frame. 

    The second period was goalless. Were the nine days off detrimental to the Jets? While I’m sure the rest was much needed after all that overtime hockey, was there too much downtime? Even Connor Hellebuyck didn’t look like himself. That’s when you know there’s something going on. 

    The final 20 was met with 2 goals a piece. It was the final Montreal goal that shifted the energy of the series. Evans scored an empty net goal and was met with Scheifele’s hit. There has been plenty of discourse surrounding the hit. Was it dirty? Did he intend to play the puck? Evans should’ve had his head up! Way to blame the injured. And then of course there are those analyzing photos of the Jets’ forward and making egregious claims that could be met with a defamation case. Not a lawyer, and I don’t play one on t.v. We have to draw the line somewhere. Not everyone has faith in DoPS and that’s okay, it’s justified but remember that these are real people. Scheifele’s playoffs ended last season after a collision with Matthew Tkachuk. The difference there is that Tkachuk was remorseful after the unintentional collision. We’ve yet to see or hear that from the Jets star. 

    You have two fantastic goaltenders in net and high expectations for both of them. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 28-33 shots. You don’t see him missing that many pucks on any given night. There’s a reason why hockey fans are intimidated by the Jets and he is the main proponent. We saw Carey Price come alive against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He stopped the top goal scorer in the league and held him to just one goal in seven games. Price had 27 saves in game one. While the offense is fun to watch, make sure you keep an eye on these net minders through the series.

  • Rantanen lifts Avs over Golden Knights, 3-2, in OT

    Rantanen lifts Avs over Golden Knights, 3-2, in OT

    Mikko Rantanen drew a penalty less than a minute into the extra frame before scoring on the ensuing power play to give the Colorado Avalanche a, 3-2, win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2 of their 2021 Second Round matchup at Ball Arena on Wednesday.

    Philipp Grubauer (6-0, 1.66 goals-against average, .943 save percentage in six games played) made 39 saves on 41 shots against in the win for the Avs while becoming just the 10th goaltender in National Hockey League history to earn 10 consecutive postseason victories.

    In addition, the Avalanche took command of a 2-0 series lead over the Golden Knights in light of Wednesday night’s win.

    Meanwhile, Vegas netminder, Marc-Andre Fleury (4-4, 1.86 goals-against average, .924 save percentage in eight games played), stopped 22 out of 25 shots faced in the loss.

    With the start in Game 2, Fleury joined Patrick Roy as the only goaltenders in league history to face 20 different postseason opponents.

    Logan Thompson suited up as Vegas’ backup, while Robin Lehner (undisclosed) was given the night off and did not dress– not even for warmup.

    Meanwhile, Nazem Kadri continued to serve his eight-game suspension for his blindside hit on St. Louis Blues defender, Justin Faulk, in Game 2 of Colorado’s First Round matchup with St. Louis.

    Kadri has four games remaining in his suspension.

    Ryan Reaves was out of the lineup for the Golden Knights– serving the first half of his two-game suspension for roughing/unsportsmanlike conduct against Ryan Graves in Game 1 against the Avs.

    Brandon Saad (5) kicked off the night’s scoring after fanning on a shot that ended up trickling over the goal line through Fleury’s five-hole to give Colorado a, 1-0, lead early in the opening frame.

    Samuel Girard (4) and Graves (5) notched the assists on Saad’s goal at 3:39 of the first period as No. 20 in burgundy and blue extended his goal scoring streak to five games.

    Moments later, Nicolas Hague cut a rut to the penalty box for holding at 6:13, presenting the game’s first power play to the Avalanche, but Colorado couldn’t convert on the ensuing skater advantage.

    Shortly after killing off Hague’s minor, Vegas exchanged their penalty kill unit for their power play unit as Alex Newhook was assessed a holding minor at 8:36 of the first period.

    It didn’t take the Golden Knights long to score on the power play as Alec Martinez (2) sent a one-timer past Grubauer’s glove side— tying the game, 1-1, at 9:32.

    Max Pacioretty (2) and Shea Theodore (3) had the assists on Martinez’s power-play goal as Vegas looked much more competitive than they had been in Game 1.

    Pacioretty cut a rut to the box for holding at 11:45, but Colorado couldn’t convert on the resulting power play.

    Minutes later, Jonathan Marchessault slashed Nathan MacKinnon and took a seat in the sin bin at 15:38 of the first period as a result.

    The Avs nearly used up the entire length of the ensuing skater advantage, but pulled ahead, 2-1, on a power-play goal from Tyson Jost (2) at 17:08.

    Girard (5) and Devon Toews (4) notched the assists on Jost’s tally.

    The Avalanche got another chance on the power play at 17:50 when Theodore cleared the puck over the glass and received an automatic delay of game infraction, but Colorado struggled to get anything else on the scoreboard as the advantage expired and— shortly thereafter— the first period itself.

    After 20 minutes of action at Ball Arena on Wednesday, the Avs were in command, 2-1, on the scoreboard and, 11-9, in shots on goal.

    Vegas led in blocked shots (12-10), giveaways (1-0), hits (9-7) and faceoff win percentage (74-26), while both teams amassed one takeaway each.

    The Golden Knights were 1/1 on the power play, while Colorado was 1/4 on the skater advantage heading into the first intermission.

    Midway through the middle frame, Reilly Smith (2) broke through Girard and Graves after Vegas forced a turnover before deking and elevating a backhand shot over Grubauer’s glove to tie the game, 2-2.

    Marchessault (2) and Theodore (4) tallied the assists on Smith’s goal for the Golden Knights at 10:28 of the second period.

    About a few minutes later, Patrik Nemeth caught Marchessault with a slash at 13:05, but Vegas was unsuccessful on the ensuing power play.

    The score was tied, 2-2, heading into the second intermission, with the Golden Knights leading in shots on goal, 25-17, including an impressive, 16-6, advantage in the second period alone.

    Vegas managed to dominate in blocked shots (18-7), takeaways (4-2), hits (19-18) and faceoff win% (63-38), while Colorado led in giveaways (5-1) after two periods.

    The Golden Knights were 1/2 and the Avs were 1/4 on the power play through 40 minutes of play.

    Alex Tuch slashed MacKinnon midway through the final frame of regulation, but the Avalanche were powerless on the power play at 10:08 of the third period.

    Toews tripped Alex Pietrangelo at 16:39, but Vegas couldn’t get another one last Grubauer as their skater advantage came and went late in the period— despite using their timeout with 3:21 remaining to draw up a potentially game-winning play.

    At the horn, the Avalanche and Golden Knights were heading for overtime in Denver as Wednesday night drifted into Thursday morning on the East Coast.

    Vegas continued to lead in shots on goal, 40-23, through 60 minutes, including a, 15-6, advantage in the third period alone.

    Meanwhile, Colorado led in giveaways (6-3) and hits (22-21) after three periods and the Golden Knights held the advantage in blocked shots (27-17) and faceoff win% (58-42).

    Both teams managed to have five takeaways aside heading into the extra frame.

    Vegas was 1/3 and Colorado was 1/5 on the power play after regulation.

    44 seconds into overtime, Smith slashed Rantanen with a soft one-handed chop that might otherwise be seen as a “soft” call, depending on your vantage point as a fan.

    Nevertheless, Colorado went on the power play less than a minute into overtime.

    A little more than a minute later, after working the puck around the attacking zone and ringing the iron, Cale Makar sent the puck to MacKinnon for a spin move to throw off William Karlsson from making a defensive play in his own zone.

    The Avalanche phenom then sent the puck across the slot to Rantanen (3) for the catch and release past Fleury’s short side— over the left shoulder of the Golden Knights goaltender and into the twine— to secure the victory for Colorado.

    MacKinnon (5) and Makar (6) had the assists on Rantanen’s game-winning power-play goal in overtime at 2:07 of the extra frame.

    The goal lifted Colorado over Vegas, 3-2, and marked the second career overtime winner for Rantanen in the playoffs, as well as his fourth career postseason game-winning goal.

    Vegas finished the night leading in shots on goal, 41-25, despite trailing Colorado, 2-1, in overtime alone.

    The Golden Knights also exited Ball Arena with the advantage in blocked shots (28-17) and faceoff win% (56-44), while the Avs led in giveaways (8-3) and hits (22-21).

    Vegas went 1/3, while Colorado went 2/6 on the power play in Game 2.

    The Avalanche improved to 6-0 in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs and matched a franchise record for the longest winning streak at any point in the postseason, a club record previously set by the 1987 Québec Nordiques.

    The Avs also became the third Presidents’ Trophy winner to start the postseason at least 6-0, joining the 1994 New York Rangers and 1999 Dallas Stars in doing so.

    The Rangers went 7-0 to begin their quest for the Cup in 1994, while the Stars went 6-0 en route to winning their first Stanley Cup ring in 1999.

    Colorado is in good company if they are to continue the trend, leading their Second Round series 2-0 heading into Vegas for Game 3 at T-Mobile Arena on Friday.

    Viewers in the United States can catch the game on NBCSN, while those in Canada can choose from CBC, SN or TVAS with puck drop expected a little after 10 p.m. ET.

  • Isles, Bruins locked in 1-1 series tie, here’s how both teams can win out

    Isles, Bruins locked in 1-1 series tie, here’s how both teams can win out

    The New York Islanders stole a game on the road against the Boston Bruins in a, 4-3, overtime victory Monday night at TD Garden.

    Casey Cizikas had the game-winning goal late in the overtime period after Boston rallied the third period to force the extra frame with goals from Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand.

    Charlie Coyle opened the night’s scoring before the Islanders scored three unanswered goals in the second period from Josh Bailey, Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau to take a lead into the third period before Boston evened things up.

    Semyon Varlamov made 39 saves on 42 shots in the win, while Tuukka Rask stopped 35 out of 39 shots faced in the loss.

    It’s been a couple days since Game 2 and we didn’t get to provide a recap on Monday night, so here’s some ways each team could win the series.

    How the Islanders could win the series

    Pelech-Pulock pairing: Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock have proven to be a lethal combination at shutting down their opponent all season long, so it was no surprise to see Islanders head coach, Barry Trotz, make an adjustment to his defensive pairings and reunite the Pelech-Pulock combination on Monday.

    After giving up five goals against in Game 1, it only makes sense for New York to fall back on what’s worked well this season– especially against the Bruins.

    Pulock managed to have four assists against Boston in eight meetings in the regular season, while Pelech provided a goal and a pair of assists in that same span.

    Though Pulock was a minus-2 and Pelech was a minus-1 in their regular season series with the B’s, their contributions from the blue line in both eliminating their opponent’s attack and jumpstarting New York’s offense from the back helped the Islanders go 5-2-1 in the regular season against Boston and outscore the Bruins, 21-18, in that span.

    More of that should stifle Bruce Cassidy’s potent offense since the trade deadline and force Cassidy to get creative with his matchups, if not play with own lines himself.

    Paging Pageau: Jean-Gabriel Pageau had a goal and an assist in Game 2 to go along with his 5-3–8 totals in eight games against Boston in the regular season in 2020-21.

    For some reason, Pageau’s emerged as the new Thomas Vanek when it’s time to play against the Bruins and could be their kryptonite if New York is ultimately to triumph over Boston in the Second Round.

    If the B’s aren’t able to contain Pageau, not only will he post a threat himself, but he’ll be able to make everyone around him that much better as a rising tide lifts all boats and the Islanders look to avoid running aground against Boston.

    Containing excellence: This kind of goes hand-in-hand with Pageau’s performance, but if the Islanders find a way to let their own players perform– both their actual best players on the roster like Mathew Barzal and Anthony Beauvillier, as well as the type of guys that come up big in clutch moments at this time of year (like Josh Bailey and Brock Nelson)– then they’ll also need to find a balance between sheer scoring power and defense.

    Or in plain terms, finding the right two-way style against the Bruins.

    The B’s can and have exposed Trotz’ trap, so the Islanders will be the ones that have to adapt.

    It’s not that anyone wouldn’t want to see an, 8-7, final score in a playoff game from time-to-time, but it is to say that if New York isn’t careful, Boston’s first line alone can force the game into some sort of shootout skills competition event.

    As it is, David Pastrnak recorded a hat trick in Game 1, while Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand worked their magic to force overtime in Game 2.

    If the Islanders can limit Boston’s first line in their opportunities to make an impact on the series, then New York will open up their own chances to runaway with things– especially if there’s any question about the health of the Bruins’ second line, though it appears Craig Smith (lower body) will be good to go in Game 3.

    How the Bruins could win the series

    Make Swiss cheese: Just like how the Islanders turned Tristan Jarry into, well, Tristan Jarry in the First Round against Pittsburgh, the Bruins could do the same with Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin– and they already did it to the revolving door of goaltenders against the Washington Capitals in the First Round.

    Though Varlamov has the experience of backstopping his team to the Eastern Conference Final in 2020, New York necessitated the use of their then backup, Thomas Greiss, in the process as the Islanders clawed their way past the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2020 Second Round before ultimately surrendering to the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Tampa Bay Lightning in the Conference Final.

    Boston’s already unloaded on Sorokin and his lack of postseason experience in their, 5-2, victory in Game 1 and Varlamov didn’t exactly look dialed in on the first shot of the game for the Bruins in Game 2 (because it turned out to be a goal against, courtesy of Charlie Coyle).

    If the Bruins force Trotz to juggle his netminders from night-to-night, then they’ll have a significant step up on their competition as there’s plenty of stability in the crease for Boston.

    Which brings up the next point for the B’s…

    Avoid bad luck: The majority of goals against for Boston have come from deflections– both accidental own goals and intentional redirections from their opponent– which means that Tuukka Rask hasn’t been bad by any means.

    Though he posted an .897 save percentage in Game 2 against the Islanders (his worst thus far in the postseason), at least a pair of goals came off of being in the wrong place at the wrong time for Jeremy Lauzon and his teammates.

    Rask has been locked in and was a major contributor to the fact that the Bruins eliminated Washington in five games and kept Alex Ovechkin mostly out of the equation– Ovechkin didn’t have a goal at 5-on-5 in the series, for the record.

    Unless absolutely necessary, Jeremy Swayman won’t have to suit up in a game against New York.

    Though his confidence has been fantastic through 10 regular season games, as more time passes between starts, there’s no sense in knowing what to expect from Swayman over Rask, who, in fact, is still the Boston’s starting goaltender.

    Health insurance: One of the keys to a long run for the Bruins is true of all teams– avoid injuries. Stay healthy.

    Boston’s got more depth than in recent years with an actual top-six forward playing alongside David Krejci in Taylor Hall on the wing (with Craig Smith on the other side), but any long term injuries to the first two lines could prove to be detrimental.

    On defense, on the other hand, at least Jarred Tinordi is a serviceable asset for a game or two while Kevan Miller remains out of commission.

  • Habs upset Leafs in Game 7: Three reasons why

    Habs upset Leafs in Game 7: Three reasons why

    For just the second time in the 104-year-old history of the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise, the club squared off with the Montréal Canadiens in a Game 7.

    Back in 1964, the Leafs came out on top, 3-1, at the Montreal Forum. Monday night at Scotiabank Arena, history repeated itself. Almost.

    Though the final score was the same, 3-1, it was Montréal that found a way to steal the victory on the road this time around– becoming just the second team in National Hockey League history to win a Game 7 in Toronto, joining the 1993 Los Angeles Kings in doing so.

    Brendan Gallagher opened the scoring in the second period for the Habs before Corey Perry’s power-play goal went on to become eventual game-winner later in that same middle frame.

    Tyler Toffoli completed the run of three unanswered goals for the Canadiens late in the third period with an empty net goal before William Nylander ended Carey Price’s bid for a shutout about a minute later.

    But enough about the game itself, since it’s been a couple of days now– let’s get into some reasons why Montréal won, why Toronto didn’t and where the Leafs can go from here, if it’s even possible to still win with this core.

    Why Montréal won

    The Price is right: Carey Price managed to amass a 2.24 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage in the seven games against the Maple Leafs, which is a pleasant surprise given Price’s bleaker regular season numbers in an injury plagued 2020-21 season (2.64 goals-against average, .901 save percentage in 25 games).

    Price’s career 2.50 goals-against average in 707 games from the 2007-08 season through 2020-21 is better than Patrick Roy’s 2.78 goals-against average in Roy’s 551-game tenure with the Habs, fun fact.

    Consistency: Tyler Toffoli led the Canadiens in scoring in the regular season with 28-16–44 totals in 52 games, while Nick Suzuki was third in team scoring with 41 points (15 goals, 26 assists) in 56 games.

    Corey Perry chipped in 9-12–21 totals in 49 games and even Jesperi Kotkaniemi, despite a slow start, managed to amass 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) in 56 games.

    In the First Round, Toffoli led the Habs with 2-3–5 totals in seven games, Perry, Suzuki, Joel Armia and Eric Staal managed to score four points and Kotkaniemi had three goals in six games after serving as a healthy scratch in Game 1.

    The Habs played their game– the long game– throughout the series, built on wearing down their opponent on the forecheck in the attacking zone and really just keeping things as simple as they come.

    It doesn’t always work, but in this case it did! Good for them.

    Seconds: At one point, Montréal had a minus-seven goal differential in the second period alone in the series. That was entering Game 5, when the Maple Leafs held a 3-1 series lead.

    They brought it up to a minus-five by the end of the series, which, albeit still leaves more to be desired from their effort in the middle frame as they approach the Second Round against the Winnipeg Jets, but goes to show that in low-scoring affairs, goal scoring is paramount in a 60-minute effort.

    Kind of obvious, right?

    The Canadiens scored more than three goals in a game just once in the series when they won, 4-3, in overtime in Game 5.

    Why Toronto lost and what now

    Lineups: Losing John Tavares in Game 1 limited Maple Leafs head coach, Sheldon Keefe, in his options when it came time to try something new to get anything going, but it still should’ve been explored.

    How many times did Toronto go back to the well with Auston Matthews and Mitchell Marner on the same line?

    Between the two players, the Leafs had 1-8–9 totals combined.

    Assists are nice because it means that at least somebody scored for your team, but if given the chance, Toronto probably should’ve bumped Marner down to the second line while giving William Nylander more of a chance to shine on the first line– at least for a period, if not just to spark Matthews’ play at 5-on-5.

    If anything, Tavares’ injury revealed a desperate need for the Maple Leafs in the offseason– a third line center.

    Marner musings: Alright, before everyone starts arguing over whether or not to trade the best playmaker in Toronto not named “Joe Thornton”, let’s assess the feasibility of moving a guy with a $10.903 million cap hit through the 2024-25 season in a flat cap due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

    Marner was on pace for about 98 points in an 82-game season, had 2020-21 not been condensed into a 56-game schedule.

    That said, he still managed to equal his scoring output from last season in fewer games– 67 points in 55 games this season, 67 points in 59 games last season while battling injury.

    For the third time in his career, Marner had at least 20 goals in a season and he has 358 points (103 goals, 255 assists) in 355 career games.

    If Matthews (the goal scorer) and Marner (the playmaker) are to Toronto what Patrick Kane (a goal scorer) and Jonathan Toews (a playmaker) are to the Chicago Blackhawks, then Marner is doing pretty fine.

    Toews had 144-180–324 totals in his first five seasons (361 games).

    But– and it’s a pretty big one– Kane and Toews won the Stanley Cup twice before signing matching extensions worth $10.500 million per season through 2022-23, that, at the time of their signing on July 9, 2014, didn’t go into effect until the 2015-16 season, so… after the duo ended up winning their third Cup ring with Chicago in 2015.

    Sure, Chicago hasn’t won a playoff series since then, but they did end their longest drought before (over)paying their core– and at the very least, they made sure to commit to no more than two players at that rate.

    Maple Leafs General Manager, Kyle Dubas, has spent about half of his salary cap on Matthews, Marner, Tavares and Nylander alone.

    Trading Marner would probably mean parting with a high value draft pick or prospect if there’s no salary retained in the transaction and moving Matthews or Tavares wouldn’t make sense because Toronto needs a first and second line center to remain central to their core.

    If Dubas is confident in Marner being able to find that elusive second-gear in the postseason– along with Matthews– then the team’s in the odd position of moving someone like Nylander, who’s shown an ability to produce in the second-half of the season, as well as the playoffs, instead.

    The intangibles: Yes, having the veteran leadership of guys like Joe Thornton, Jason Spezza and more is good in keeping the day-to-day vibe nice and relaxed as a long, grueling, regular season goes on, but did anyone do their research on past postseason performances or… …lack thereof from guys like Spezza, Thornton, Nick Folingo and others?

    Foligno was hampered by injury, which gets somewhat of a pass, Spezza finished tied for third in team scoring in the playoffs with three goals and two assists (five points) in seven games from the fourth line, while Thornton managed to score a goal in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Alex Galchenyuk is not a long term solution, but a quick bandage for larger problems.

    Wayne Simmonds’ offensive production was almost nowhere to be found and if you’re using Simmonds solely for the energy that he can provide, then adding Foligno at the cost spent in April does not merit enough of a return on investment for one, if not both, of essentially the same player.

    Especially when you’re left trying to rotate Simmonds, Foligno, Thornton, Spezza and guys like, Riley Nash (another deadline acquisition), on the fourth line on any given night, while trying to balance some youth and speed in ongoing projects in Pierre Engvall and Ilya Mikheyev.

    And that’s not to mention wherever Alexander Kerfoot fits in on all of this when Tavares isn’t injured.

    Sometimes it’s not about buying in bulk, but buying the right component at a discount or on the clearance rack to solidify, well, mostly that third line.

    It’s fine to have three, four or five guys that are expendable and being rotated on the fourth line throughout the season, then narrowed down for situations in the postseason.

    It’s not necessarily recommended to have seven, eight or nine players vying for the same roles in the bottom-six– with tryouts lingering into the playoffs and results mixed as though the team had two fourth lines instead.

  • Weathering the Storm in Game 2: Lightning Strike Down The Hurricane, Extending Their Series Lead 2-0

    Weathering the Storm in Game 2: Lightning Strike Down The Hurricane, Extending Their Series Lead 2-0

    The Tampa Bay Lightning take a 2 game lead, beating the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1. The Hurricanes were without Nino Niederreiter and are likely to be without him for the remainder of the series. Both teams were quiet and this was not the night for the Canes to dip off the radar. 

    The storm was brewing in the first period but nothing touched down. With just six shots on goal, neither team was able to score. According to Natural Stat Trick, Tampa Bay led with 4 high danger scoring chances compared to Carolina’s one. 

    Canes successfully killed Sebastian Aho’s slashing penalty. Things were beginning to heat up as the Lightning were spending more time in the offensive zone. One major takeaway I have is the amount of incomplete passes. The team couldn’t get the puck tape to tape for a while. That would become a problem of the past. Lightning struck when Alex Killorn got Tampa on the board first 7 minutes and 9 seconds into the second period. The Canes could not tie it up in the second frame. Through 100 minutes, the Canes could not sneak a single goal by Vezina nominee Andrei Vasilevskiy. The Hurricanes found themselves on the penalty kill again and  Martin Necas whiffed one just wide of the net. I have to believe he will be seeing that every time he closes his eyes. Vincent Trocheck left the ice sixteen seconds into his shift. He was seen hopping off the ice and down the tunnel at the end of the second period. Sara Civian reported it was friendly fire that sent him down. We need to talk about Nikita Kucherov. No, this isn’t about cap space but his old habits dying hard. Kucherov stuck his leg out and kneed Brett Pesce. A referee was right there yet there was no call. Shots were 21-11 in favor of Carolina at the end of 40. Tip of the cap to the Canes for only allowing Tampa to add 5 shots. 

    As I mentioned before, the Hurricanes couldn’t score a goal through 100 minutes. The Canes are a heavy scoring team and unfortunately those Hurricanes vanished off the radar.  Aho led the team in scoring with 24 goals and Niederreiter behind him with 20. Nothing. Are we seeing a similar situation to the one in Toronto where stars fall flat or was it just an off night?

    Good News: Trocheck returned to the bench for the third period. Bad News: He would end up back in the room shortly there after. Pat Maroon high sticked Brady Skjei and Carolina looked to capitalize on that man advantage. Tampa’s penalty kill never waivered. Similar to the Hurricanes, the Lightning’s star players were rather quiet through most of the game. Victor Hedman of course changed that, scoring the second goal of the night with just under 12 minutes remaining. Limiting Tampa to 15 shots is something but the Bolts being able to score two goals off of that is quite impressive. Things began to heat up as the period progressed. Nothing ever escalated past a huddle and loads of yelling but tensions were rising. The Hurricanes would not go quietly. Andrei Svechnikov cut the lead in half with a minute and a half left. 

    Unfortunately, the 32 shots on goal were not enough for the Canes to tie up the series.They’re without Nino and possibly Trocheck. Is there room for them to turn the series around?

    The storm heads to Tampa for game three on Thursday.