Down the Frozen River

Tag: Brendan Perlini

  • Edmonton Oilers 2021-22 Season Preview

    Edmonton Oilers 2021-22 Season Preview

    2020-21 record 35-19-2, 72 points

    2nd in the Scotia NHL North Division

    Eliminated in the First Round by Winnipeg

    Additions: F Warren Foegele (acquired from CAR), F Zach Hyman, F Brendan Perlini, F Derek Ryan, F Colton Sceviour (signed to a PTO), F Tim Soderlund (acquired from CHI), D Cody Ceci, D Duncan Keith (acquired from CHI)

    Subtractions: F Adam Cracknell (signed with Bakersfield Condors, AHL), F Tyler Ennis (signed to a PTO with OTT), F Joseph Gambardella (signed with Utica Comets, AHL), F Gaëtan Haas (NL), F Dominik Kahun (NL), F Jujhar Khaira (signed with CHI), F James Neal (buyout), F Joakim Nygård (SHL), F Alan Quine (signed with Henderson Silver Knights, AHL), F Patrick Russell (SHL), F Anton Slepyshev (KHL), D Ethan Bear (traded to CAR), D Caleb Jones (traded to CHI), D Dmitry Kulikov (signed with MIN), D Adam Larsson (expansion, SEA), D Theodor Lennström (KHL), G Dylan Wells (traded to CAR)

    Still Unsigned: F Alex Chiasson

    Re-signed: F Tyler Benson, F Cooper Marody, F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, F Devin Shore, F Kailer Yamamoto, D Tyson Barrie, D Slater Koekkoek, G Stuart Skinner, G Mike Smith

    Offseason Analysis: The second-best team in the Scotia NHL North Division would’ve been the fourth-best team in the other three divisions last season.

    No matter what, the Oilers would’ve been a playoff team in 2020-21, but it’s the embarrassment that came with being swept in the 2021 First Round by the Winnipeg Jets and subsequent offseason moves that have left many scratching their heads.

    Instead of overreacting and making big, sweeping, changes, Edmonton went for a big piece and a few smaller moves that still ate up their valuable cap space in the midst of a flat salary cap due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

    So really it’s just more of the same from the Oilers.

    Let’s start with the good news…

    Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Kailer Yamamoto and Tyson Barrie are back and solidify some semblance of depth for Edmonton with Nugent-Hopkins on an affordable eight-year extension worth $5.125 million per season– the Oilers will have a surefire center on the second or third line for years to come.

    The 28-year-old was Edmonton’s 1st overall pick in the 2011 NHL Draft and had 35 points (16 goals, 19 assists) in 52 games last season after reaching the 60-point plateau in back-to-back seasons from 2018-19 through 2019-20.

    Had there been an 82-game schedule in 2020-21, Nugent-Hopkins likely would’ve at least eclipsed the 50-point mark.

    At 5-foot-8, 135-pounds, Yamamoto has a lot in common with guys like Martin St. Louis in his stature and– like St. Louis– is better off developing on his own as he had 8-13–21 totals in 52 games in his first full season run with the Oilers last season.

    Though he made his league debut in 2017-18, Yamamoto has only been utilized by Edmonton sparingly in parts of three seasons leading up to his full-time status in 2020-21.

    His game should be fine in due time, though offering him a supporting cast (a theme for the Oilers in general) would be fine.

    After he had 59 points in 78 games with the Colorado Avalanche in 2018-19, Barrie was shipped as part of a package to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a trade that, well, didn’t exactly live up to the high expectations in Toronto.

    Barrie’s production from the point plummeted to 39 points (five goals, 34 assists) in 70 games with the Maple Leafs in 2019-20.

    He joined the Oilers on a one-year deal last October and bounced back with an admirable 48 points (eight goals, 40 assists) in 56 games.

    He had 25 points on the power play in his last season in Colorado, then just 12 points as a quarterback on Toronto’s power play unit before rebounding with 23 points from the blue line while on the skater advantage last season for Edmonton.

    For his efforts, Barrie was rewarded with a sweet three-year deal worth $4.500 million per season and at 29-years-old that’s about right for a defender on the cusp of beginning the eventual decline from a defensive prime.

    Zach Hyman joins the Oilers on a seven-year contract worth $5.500 million per season, which isn’t completely terrible for a 29-year-old forward in his prime that had 15-18–33 totals in 43 games with the Maple Leafs last season and has reached the 40-point plateau twice before.

    As a top-six forward, Hyman is a welcome addition to Edmonton’s Art Ross Trophy-winning powerhouse offense (Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl).

    An additional positive from this offseason?

    Edmonton’s rid themselves of James Neal via a buyout. Granted, he’ll still be on the books through the 2024-25 season at about a $1.917 million cap penalty, but after parts of two seasons with the Oilers since being acquired for Milan Lucic, at least that branch of franchise history has come to a close.

    Neal had five goals and five assists (10 points) in 29 games last season after bouncing back from 19 points (seven goals, 12 assists) in 63 games with the Calgary Flames in 2018-19 to 31 points (19 goals, 12 assists) in 55 games for Edmonton in 2019-20.

    He’s a shell of his former self, but on a low-risk contract, he could fit in fine just about anywhere else that needs a touch of veteran experience.

    Now for the bad stuff that… …isn’t necessarily that bad, it’s just disappointing from the Oilers (who seemingly have chosen to make the Buffalo Sabres look good for at least being salary cap smart this offseason and that’s about it).

    At 39-years-old, Mike Smith could’ve called it a career, but when Jimmy Howard turned down Oilers General Manager, Ken Holland, Smith was rewarded with two-year (not just one-year!) extension worth $2.200 million per season.

    The cap hit is fine, considering he recored a goals-against average under 2.50 for the first time since the 2011-12 season with the Phoenix Coyotes.

    Back then, in 67 games with Phoenix, Smith had a 38-18-10 record, a 2.21 goals-against average, a .930 save percentage and eight shutouts en route to backstopping the Coyotes to the 2012 Western Conference Final, where the Los Angeles Kings eliminated Phoenix in five games.

    Last season with the Oilers, Smith went 21-6-2 in 32 games, had three shutouts and amassed a 2.31 goals-against average as well as a .923 save percentage.

    In 2019-20, he had a 19-12-6 record in 39 games, one shutout, a .902 save percentage and a whopping 2.95 goals-against average.

    Whether it’s the introduction of Barrie to Edmonton’s defense that helped singlehandedly reduce the workload Smith faced or not– Smith had a fantastic season in 2020-21.

    However, time stops for nobody and with an average age of 35.3 between Smith, Mikko Koskinen and Alex Stalock as reliable options in the crease under contract at the NHL level, well, it’s easy to feel uneasy about Edmonton’s chances at stopping the puck from night-to-night as their bodies collectively wear down through an 82-game schedule.

    Then again, they are athletes and you and I are not.

    Yet, it’s worth noting since unlike Smith, Koskinen went from an 18-13-3 record in 38 games with a 2.75 goals-against average, a .917 save percentage and one shutout in 2019-20 with the Oilers to a dismal 13-13-0 record in 26 games with a 3.17 goals-against average and an .899 save percentage in 2020-21.

    For all the good that Barrie and Co. on Edmonton’s blue line have done, there’s two new additions that, uh, might undo some of the forward progress.

    Connor McDavid (ever heard of him?) vouched for Holland to acquire Duncan Keith from Chicago and then Holland went along and signed Cody Ceci in free agency.

    Though Keith recorded 6-34–40 totals in 82 games in 2018-19 with Chicago, he’s been in decline, notching 27 points (three goals, 24 assists) in 61 games in 2019-20 and just 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) in 54 games last season.

    The 38-year-old defender would’ve accepted any trade to a team close to the pacific northwest as he expressed a desire to be closer to family, having been isolated playing hockey for a living for most of the time during the ongoing pandemic and spending roughly five months combined with his son prior to being traded to Edmonton.

    In 1,192 career NHL games, he’s won three Stanley Cup rings, was named playoff MVP in 2015, and has 105-520–625 totals in the regular season.

    With two years left on his contract, Keith’s $5.538 million cap hit is a bit steep for what could be a defensive liability as the aging process continues and– turns out– Holland could’ve done better by waiting another day and signing Keith Yandle for much less after the Florida Panthers bought him out. Who knew?!

    Though the Internet likes to make fun of Ceci, the 27-year-old defender really hasn’t been all that bad.

    Sure 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) in 53 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins last season isn’t great, but he’s not expected to be a top-four defender– or at least he shouldn’t be.

    Mistakes and weird things will happen. Sometimes you’re just unlucky like that.

    Wait, Holland gave him four-years at $3.250 million per season? Yikes.

    And to put the icing on the cake, Holland traded Ethan Bear to the Carolina Hurricanes for Warren Foegele. Not that Foegele’s bad, but for a team that could use a better defense, Bear fit in pretty well.

    Has this McDavid guy ever tried watching the Oilers?

    Offseason Grade: C+

    For the Nugent-Hopkins extension, sensible new deal for Barrie and Yamamoto bridge contract, Holland deserves some praise for keeping the right pieces happy and on the roster heading into 2021-22.

    That said, he also made some errors in judgment acquiring Keith at the price he paid, as well as handing out Ceci a contract with a steep cap hit and term for a guy that’s probably not that good.

    In other words, it was just another normal offseason for the Oilers.

    Edmonton made some smart moves, but then overreacted in other areas, while still searching for the second coming of Andy Moog in net or whatever.

  • Athanasiou scores two as Detroit tops Boston, 3-1

    The last place in the National Hockey League, Detroit Red Wings, beat the first place in the NHL, Boston Bruins, 3-1, Sunday afternoon at Little Caesars Arena.

    Red Wings goaltender, Jonathan Bernier (12-14-2 record, 2.82 goals against average, .911 save percentage in 32 games played), stopped 39 out of 40 shots against for a .975 SV% in the win.

    Bruins netminder, Tuukka Rask (20-5-6, 2.14 GAA, .911 SV% in 32 games played) made 17 saves on 19 shots faced for an .895 SV% in the loss after starting in Saturday’s, 4-2, win over the Arizona Coyotes.

    Boston fell to 34-11-12 (80 points) on the season, but remained in command of the Atlantic Division, while Detroit improved their record to 14-39-4 (32 points), despite staying in 8th place in the Atlantic.

    The Bruins also fell to 15-9-3 on the road this season and are 0-2-0 against the Red Wings with two games remaining against Detroit in their season series.

    Boston was without the services of Kevan Miller (knee), Connor Clifton (upper body), Joakim Nordstrom (allergy complications) and Jeremy Lauzon (suspension) on Sunday, while Bruce Cassidy made a few minor changes to his lineup.

    Danton Heinen returned to action on the fourth line left wing in Detroit, while Anton Blidh was joined by Urho Vaakanainen as the only healthy scratches for the B’s.

    Vaakanainen was recalled from the Providence Bruins (AHL) on an emergency basis in case Brandon Carlo’s flight was delayed.

    On defense, Carlo was back from his personal leave on the second pairing with Torey Krug and John Moore filled in on the right side of the third pairing with Matt Grzelcyk while Lauzon served the first half of his two-game suspension for an illegal hit to the head of Arizona Coyotes forward, Derek Stepan, on Saturday.

    Nordstrom, meanwhile, was retroactively placed on the injured reserve and may be available in time for Wednesday night’s action against the Montreal Canadiens.

    Jaroslav Halak was expected to start in goal for Boston and took part in warmups as usual, but was not given the green light to start the game after feeling ill.

    Instead, Rask made back-to-back starts on back-to-back days while Halak was deemed “available if necessary”. The last time Rask played on consecutive days was Nov. 12-13, 2016.

    He won on both days as the Bruins beat the Coyotes, 2-1, on Nov. 12, 2016 and Colorado Avalanche, 2-0, on Nov. 13, 2016.

    Brad Marchand tripped up Bernier in the trapezoid at 3:01 of the first period and presented Detroit with the game’s first power play, but the Red Wings weren’t able to convert on the skater advantage.

    Midway through the opening frame, Sean Kuraly tripped Valtteri Filppula at 10:55 and put the Red Wings back on the power play, but once more Detroit could not score.

    In the vulnerable minute after special teams play, Trevor Daley was guilty of holding Kuraly at 13:15 and gave Boston their first power play of the afternoon.

    The B’s went on a two-skater advantage after Filppula tripped Jake DeBrusk at 13:57 and presented the Bruins with a 1:18 span of 5-on-3 action, but Bernier stood tall and denied each shot fired at him.

    Late in the period, Justin Abdelkader tripped Charlie Coyle and presented Boston with another power play at 16:10, but Detroit’s penalty killing efforts were well oiled by that point and killed off Abdelkader’s minor infraction with ease.

    Entering the first intermission, the score remained tied, 0-0, and and the Bruins led in shots on goal, 12-6.

    Boston also held the advantage in takeaways (2-1) and faceoff win percentage (65-35), while Detroit led in blocked shots (5-1), giveaways (4-3) and hits (8-5).

    The Red Wings were 0/2 and the B’s were 0/3 on the power play heading into the middle period.

    Early in the middle frame, Brendan Perlini (1) deked around Carlo and snapped a shot off of Rask’s glove and into the twine to give Detroit the first lead of the afternoon, 1-0, at 2:07 of the second period.

    Adam Erne (2) had the only assist on Perlini’s first goal of the season, as well as his first as a Red Wing.

    Midway through the second period, Marchand thought he had tied the game on a tip-in through Bernier’s five-hole off a no-look shot from David Pastrnak initially, but Red Wings head coach, Jeff Blashill, used his coach’s challenge– arguing that Boston had actually been offside entering the zone prior to the goal.

    After review, it was determined that the Bruins were offside as Patrice Bergeron was in the midst of stepping off the ice and into the visiting bench while on a line change as Krug rocketed the puck around the boards.

    The call on the ice was overturned– no goal– and the Red Wings remained in command of a, 1-0, lead with 7:27 remaining in the second period.

    Late in the period, Detroit defender, Patrik Nemeth, held DeBrusk and was sent to the sin bin as a result at 17:04, but the Bruins went unsuccessful on the ensuing power play opportunity.

    Through 40 minutes of action on Sunday afternoon, the Red Wings were still ahead, 1-0, despite trailing Boston in shots on goal, 26-13.

    The B’s held the advantage in faceoff win% (56-44), while Detroit led in blocked shots (9-7), takeaways (3-2), giveaways (12-9) and hits (14-9).

    After two periods of play, the Red Wings were 0/2 and the Bruins were 0/4 on the power play.

    Early in the final frame, Pastrnak caught a Red Wing with a high-stick on a follow through while trying to corral the puck, but failing.

    The follow through went uncalled and actually better positioned Pastrnak to receive a pass from Bergeron as Pastrnak entered the attacking zone alone, faked a shot, then slid a pass to Krug (8) for the one-timer goal that tied the game, 1-1, just 33 seconds into the third period.

    Pastrnak (40) and Bergeron (24) tallied the assists on Krug’s goal.

    After that, things only went downhill for Boston.

    DeBrusk returned the favor from earlier in the game and tripped Daley and gave Detroit a power play at 6:01.

    The Bruins penalty kill lasted a little more than a minute into the special teams play before the Red Wings perfected a quick pass through the slot from Tyler Bertuzzi to Andreas Athanasiou (6) for the one-timer goal as Rask couldn’t keep up with the short-range blast.

    Bertuzzi (20) and Dylan Larkin (25) notched the assists on Athanasiou’s first goal in about 20 games– putting Detroit back into command with the, 2-1, lead at 7:10 of the third period.

    With less than two minutes remaining in the game, Cassidy pulled his netminder for an extra attacker, but the Red Wings quickly capitalized on the open goal-frame in Boston’s own zone.

    Detroit got a quick break out of their zone and sent Christoffer Ehn and Athanasiou on a two-on-one that became an unguarded breakaway– paving the way for Athanasiou (7) to score his second goal of the game and seal the deal on a, 3-1, victory for the Red Wings.

    Ehn (2) and Filip Hronek (19) had the assists on Athanasiou’s empty net goal at 19:31.

    At the final horn, Detroit finished the game with the, 3-1, win despite being outshot by Boston, 40-20.

    The Red Wings finished the afternoon leading in blocked shots (12-10), giveaways (18-14) and hits (23-14), while the Bruins finished Sunday’s action leading in faceoff win% (55-45).

    Detroit went 1/3 and Boston went 0/4 on the power play.

    The B’s dropped to 10-2-6 when tied after one period and 5-8-4 when trailing after two periods this season and had their six-game winning streak snapped by the Red Wings who had lost 10 out of their last 11 games entering Sunday.

    Detroit has now defeated Boston in their last five regular season meetings.

    One consolation for Boston, however, is that they still have won seven out of their last nine games.

    The Bruins home for a two-game homestand against Montreal on Wednesday (Feb. 12th) and Red Wings on Saturday (Feb. 15th) before going on a four-game road trip with stops against the New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks.

  • Chicago Blackhawks 2019-20 Season Preview

    Chicago Blackhawks

    36-34-12, 84 points, 6th in the Central Division

    Missed the postseason for the second straight year

    Additions: F Ryan Carpenter, F Alexander Nylander (acquired from BUF), F John Quenneville (acquired from NJD), F Aleksi Saarela (acquired from CAR), F Andrew Shaw (acquired from MTL), F Zack Smith (acquired from OTT), D Calvin de Haan (acquired from CAR), D Philip Holm, D Olli Maatta (acquired from PIT), G Robin Lehner

    Subtractions: F Artem Anisimov (traded to OTT), F Victor Ejdsell (SHL), F John Hayden (traded to NJD), F Peter Holland (KHL), F Dominik Kahun (traded to PIT), F Marcus Kruger (NLA), F Chris Kunitz (retired), F Luke Johnson (signed with MIN), F Anthony Louis (signed with Charlotte, AHL), F Andreas Martinsen (signed with ANA), F Jordan Schroeder (KHL), F Tyler Sikura (signed with Rockford, AHL), F Spencer Watson (signed with Indy, ECHL), D Brandon Davidson (signed with CGY), D Gustav Forsling (traded to CAR), D Blake Hillman (signed with Toledo, ECHL), D Henri Jokiharju (traded to BUF), G Anton Forsberg (traded to CAR), G Cam Ward (retired)

    Still Unsigned: F Andrew Campbell

    Re-signed: F David Kampf, F Brendan Perlini

    Offseason Analysis: Chicago Blackhawks General Manager, Stan Bowman, had a busy offseason making six trades that involved players and navigating a transition period for the franchise that has won three Stanley Cup championships in the last decade, but found themselves outside of the playoffs for the last two seasons.

    First, Bowman dealt forward, Dominik Kahun, and a 2019 5th round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for defender, Olli Maatta, on June 15th, then the Blackhawks GM followed things up with a minor swap with the New Jersey Devils a week later.

    Acquiring Maatta wasn’t the only adjustment made to Chicago’s blue line as Bowman traded Gustav Forsling and Anton Forsberg to the Carolina Hurricanes for Calvin de Haan and Aleksi Saarela on June 24th.

    By the end of the month, Bowman was reunited with former Blackhawk turned current Blackhawk once more– Andrew Shaw– in a trade with the Montreal Canadiens involving draft picks and Shaw.

    Maatta brings a $4.083 million cap hit, de Haan carries a $4.550 million cap hit and Shaw costs $3.900 million per season. All three players are under contract through the 2021-22 season.

    On July 1st, the Blackhawks strengthened their crease by signing Robin Lehner to a one-year, $5.000 million contract. The 28-year-old Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy winner is slated to backup 34-year-old, Corey Crawford, but could easily split time with the two-time Stanley Cup champion.

    Lehner could also become a valuable option if Crawford misses any time due to injury.

    Both goaltenders are in contract years.

    One (Crawford) is getting older and may not be able to keep playing indefinitely and the other (Lehner) just signed his one-year deal with the possibility of cashing in if Crawford cannot continue to be the goaltender for Chicago, let alone an NHL starter.

    Crawford managed a 14-18-5 record in 39 games played last season– while battling injuries– with a 2.93 goals against average and a .908 save percentage. In 2011-12, Crawford had a 2.72 GAA and a .903 SV% in 57 games as a starter.

    Lehner amassed a 25-13-5 record in 46 games last season with a 2.13 GAA and a .930 SV% en route to splitting the William M. Jennings Trophy honors for 2018-19 with his backup on the New York Islanders, Thomas Greiss.

    It’s no easy task to replace Crawford with the next goaltender in the post-Cup dynasty era, but Bowman’s already strategizing for the inevitable as time doesn’t wait for anyone.

    On July 9th, Bowman continued his offseason moves and dealt Henri Jokiharju to the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Nylander– a player who’s yet to make an impact at the NHL level and looking for a change in scenery (you know, like how Dylan Strome turned things around after the Arizona Coyotes sent him to Chicago).

    Finally, Bowman completed his offseason trading with another one-for-one swap, sending Artem Anisimov to the Ottawa Senators for Zack Smith, saving the Blackhawks $1.300 million in the process for a durable third line center.

    Head coach, Jeremy Colliton, has a lot of new puzzle pieces to play with and figure out what’s the best fit.

    With an aging core, new acquisitions and plenty of fresh, young, faces emerging, Chicago is under no pressure to win it all in 2020, but they are hoping to make a serious dent in the regular season and make it back into the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

    Offseason Grade: A-

    The Blackhawks didn’t overpay anyone in free agency, but they did trade a 2020 2nd round pick, a 2020 7th round pick and a 2021 3rd round pick to the Canadiens for Shaw and a 2021 7th round pick. That’s… not ideal.

    Drafting Kirby Dach 3rd overall in June is sure to help speed up Chicago’s transition and avoid a rebuild, plus Bowman is remaining active in his roster construction with the future in mind instead of getting too attached to components from their Cup winning days.

  • Game of the week: March 18-24

    As we inch ever closer to Decision Day, every game takes on even more importance. Whether clubs are battling for seeding or their playoff lives, there’s been much excitement to be had this week.

    Speaking of, here’s the NHL’s slate of games for this week:

    NHL SCHEDULE: March 18-24
    TIME (ALL TIMES EASTERN) VISITOR HOST NATIONAL BROADCAST(S)/
    Result
    Monday, March 18
    7:30 p.m. Arizona Tampa Bay 1-4
    8:30 p.m. Vancouver Chicago 3-2 (OT)
    10:30 p.m. Winnipeg Los Angeles 3-2
    10:30 p.m. Vegas San Jose 7-3
    Tuesday, March 19
    7 p.m. Boston Bruins New York Islanders 5-0
    7 p.m. Detroit Red Wings New York Rangers 3-2
    7 p.m. Montréal Philadelphia 3-1
    7 p.m. Pittsburgh Carolina 2-3 (SO)
    7:30 p.m. Washington New Jersey 4-1
    8 p.m. Edmonton St. Louis 2-7
    8 p.m. Toronto Nashville 0-3
    8 p.m. Colorado Minnesota 3-1
    8:30 p.m. Florida Dallas 2-4
    9 p.m. Columbus Calgary 2-4
    Wednesday, March 20
    7 p.m. Toronto Buffalo 4-2
    7:30 p.m. Tampa Bay Washington 5-4 (OT)
    10 p.m. Ottawa Vancouver 4-7
    10 p.m. Winnipeg Anaheim 3-0
    Thursday, March 21
    7 p.m. Arizona Florida 2-4
    7 p.m. Boston New Jersey 5-1
    7 p.m. Tampa Bay Carolina 6-3
    7:30 p.m. New York Islanders Montréal Canadiens 0-4
    8 p.m. Detroit St. Louis 2-5
    8 p.m. Pittsburgh Nashville 2-1 (SO)
    8:30 p.m. Philadelphia Chicago 3-1
    8:30 p.m. Colorado Dallas 3-1
    9 p.m. Ottawa Calgary 1-5
    9 p.m. Columbus Edmonton 1-4
    10 p.m. Winnipeg Vegas 0-5
    10:30 p.m. San Jose Los Angeles 2-4
    Friday, March 22
    7 p.m. Minnesota Washington 2-1
    10 p.m. San Jose Anaheim 3-4 (OT)
    Saturday, March 23
    1 p.m. Arizona New Jersey  
    1 p.m. New York Islanders Philadelphia Flyers NHLN
    3 p.m. Chicago Colorado ESPN+, SN1
    4 p.m. Ottawa Edmonton TVAS
    7 p.m. Nashville Winnipeg ESPN+, SN360
    7 p.m. New York Rangers Toronto Maple Leafs CBC, NHLN, SN1
    7 p.m. Buffalo Montréal CITY, TVAS
    7 p.m. Boston Florida  
    7 p.m. Minnesota Carolina  
    8 p.m. Tampa Bay St. Louis  
    8 p.m. Pittsburgh Dallas ESPN+
    10 p.m. Calgary Flames Vancouver Canucks CBC, CITY, ESPN+, SN, SN1, SN360
    10 p.m. Detroit Vegas  
    10:30 p.m. Anaheim Los Angeles  
    Sunday, March 24
    12:30 p.m. Philadelphia Washington NBC, TVAS
    3 p.m. Arizona Coyotes New York Islanders SN
    7 p.m. Montréal Carolina ESPN+, RDS, SN
    8 p.m. Colorado Chicago NBCSN
    10 p.m. Columbus Vancouver  

    There’s no shortage of fun tilts taking place this week, even if we look beyond the standings.

    For instance, Vancouver and Chicago squared off on Monday to rekindle their former hatred from the last decade, followed the next day by an Original Six tilt between the Red Wings and Rangers.

    Wednesday saw another edition of the Battle of the QEW, while the Wings were back at it in St. Louis on Thursday. Speaking of Thursday, the Battle of California also took place that night to springboard the Sharks into their Friday tilt against the Ducks.

    Today’s rivalry action once again features the Rangers in an Original Six bout, this time squaring off against Toronto. Once that game is through, the Freeway Face-Off will be played for the second-to-last time this season, while Philadelphia and Washington’s derby will wait until tomorrow afternoon.

    As for playoff rematches of almost a year ago, we saw San Jose get whipped by Vegas once again on Monday, Tampa Bay barely escaped Washington with an overtime victory on Wednesday, Vegas beat the Jets on Thursday and the aforementioned Sharks-Ducks game last night. One more rematch is on the schedule this weekend, as the Predators and Jets will square off tonight in a game that could determine the fate of the Central Division.

    As for player returns, there weren’t many that qualified in any way as significant. As a matter of fact, D John Moore‘s return to New Jersey, his former home of three seasons, is the week’s biggest homecoming.

    Now, as fun as it would have been to do a big write-up on Moore’s time with the Devils, I thought this weekend’s home-and-home series featuring two Central Division clubs fighting to qualify for the playoffs was a bit more important.

    Coming into the weekend with a 32-31-10 record, the Chicago Blackhawks currently occupy seventh place in the Central Division and 11th in the Western Conference, but they’re still very much in the playoff race since they trail the Minnesota Wild by only five points and have two games in hand.

    Of course, this is not news to the Hawks, as they were on quite a tear before dropping their last two games. Chicago was on a five-game winning streak before losing 3-2 in overtime at home to the Canucks on Monday, and that six-game point streak was snapped Thursday with a 3-1 home loss to the Flyers.

    Just like the good ol’ days, one of the Hawks’ most potent weapons during this surge has undoubtedly been their impressive offense. Chicago has averaged 3.29 goals per game since March 7, the fourth-best mark in the Western Conference and seventh-best in the league.

    As would be expected, F Patrick Kane has been one of the most important players during this effort, as he’s posted solid 1-6-7 marks in his last seven outings to average a point-per-game. However, he’s been clearly outplayed by second-liner W Brendan Perlini (the Blackhawks’ return alongside C Dylan Strome for trading C Nick Schmaltz to Arizona in November) and his outstanding 6-2-8 effort in that time.

    Perhaps it is simply coincidence, but Perlini has not registered a point in his last two games – the same two games Chicago has most recently lost. Whether he buys into the correlation or not, Head Coach Jeremy Colliton certainly won’t complain if Perlini can get back to work this weekend.

    Another facet of Chicago’s play that has been absolutely incredible lately has been its goaltending. Despite playing behind a defense that has yielded 35.43 shots per game since March 7 (the fourth-worst in the league in that time), the Blackhawks have allowed only 2.29 goals in that same time frame – the seventh-best in the NHL.

    12-16-3 G Corey Crawford has been absolutely fantastic in his last seven starts. He’s posted a .945 save percentage and 1.79 GAA during this run by the Hawks despite playing behind their shoddy defense, and he will be the one that deserves the most praise should Chicago extend its season beyond 82 games.

    Just like the Blackhawks, the 33-29-12 Colorado Avalanche are still on the outside of the playoff bubble and looking in, but they can see their path to the postseason even easier than their brethren from the Windy City.

    Colorado enters the weekend trailing eighth-place Minnesota by only one point – an incredibly manageable deficit considering the Avs hold a game-in-hand on the Wild.

    However, it is that game-in-hand that makes this weekend’s series against Chicago so important for the Avalanche. Since Minnesota is only playing one tilt this weekend, Sunday’s game will spend that game-in-hand.

    Coming into Saturday’s tilt, the Avalanche boast a three-game winning streak, including road victories against current playoff teams in Minnesota and Dallas.

    The backbone of this three-game run has undoubtedly been 14-9-3 G Philipp Grubauer as, despite playing behind a defense that has allowed an average of 34.67 shots against per game since March 17, he and the Avs have yielded only two goals in their past three games.

    Despite boasting only a .911 save percentage and 2.77 GAA for the season, Grubauer has managed an unbelievable .981 save percentage and 0.67 GAA in his last three outings. Of course, New Jersey, Minnesota and Dallas do not boast the offenses that Chicago do, so he will need to be totally on his game either today or tomorrow when he gets his nod.

    The German has faced Chicago only twice in his entire career, earning a 0-1-0 record in those outings. Against the Blackhawks, he owns a career .923 save percentage and 2.27 GAA. His last outing against the franchise was on December 21 of this season, and the Avs played to a 2-1 home loss.

    So, who wins this weekend’s series?

    Though they’re riding a two-game losing skid, I like the Blackhawks in this home-and-home. Though Grubauer has been incredible lately, the fact that Crawford has such a strong offense playing in front of him is certainly in his favor. Additionally, offense will be even more important when the backups earn the nod, which should make the ice tilt Chicago’s way even more.

  • Kuraly leaps Bruins over Blackhawks, 4-2, in 2019 Winter Classic

    Outlined against a grey-cloudy New Year’s Day sky, the Four Horsemen looked on with the Hockey Gods as the Boston Bruins defeated the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-2, at Notre Dame Stadium in the 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

    From now on in Bruins lore four names will replace Jim Crowley, Elmer Layden, Don Miller and Harry Stuhldreher with David Pastrnak, Patrice Bergeron, Sean Kuraly and Brad Marchand instead as all four contributed the necessary amount of goals to secure the victory in the home of the Fighting Irish– in the first non-football sports event at the stadium in its history.

    Kuraly’s game-winning goal came with 9:40 remaining in the third period and gave the Bruins their first lead of the afternoon, 3-2.

    Temperature at puck drop was a balmy 35.5 degrees Fahrenheit as Tuukka Rask (10-8-2 record, 2.63 goals against average, .914 save percentage in 20 games played) turned aside 36 out of 38 shots faced for a .947 SV% in the win for Boston.

    Chicago goalkeeper, Cam Ward (6-7-4, 3.85 GAA, .888 SV% in 18 GP), made 32 saves on 35 shots against for a .914 SV% in the Blackhawks loss.

    The Bruins improved to 2-1-0 in their all-time Winter Classic record, while the Blackhawks stumbled to 0-4-0 in the NHL’s New Year’s Day tradition.

    Boston also surpassed the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres in the standings with the win, improving to 22-14-4 (48 points) on the season– good enough for 3rd place in the Atlantic Division standings.

    All three teams are in action Thursday night with the Bruins hosting the Calgary Flames, Buffalo hosting the Florida Panthers and Montreal hosting the Vancouver Canucks as the Atlantic Division playoff position battle rages on.

    The Blackhawks, in the meantime, fell to 15-21-6 (36 points) on the season and remain 6th in the Central Division– two points ahead of the last place in the division, St. Louis Blues– heading on the road to take on the New York Islanders on Thursday.

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    Tuesday’s Winter Classic was the 26th regular season outdoor game in league history, 6th outdoor game for Chicago (1-5-0) and 3rd outdoor game for Boston (2-1-0) overall.

    Prior to Tuesday’s Winter Classic, Bruins head coach, Bruce Cassidy confirmed Brad Marchand’s return to the lineup after missing Saturday’s action with an upper body injury, as well as Charlie McAvoy‘s status out of the lineup.

    McAvoy was placed on the injured reserve last Friday and may return to action in time for Thursday night’s matchup in Boston against the Calgary Flames at the earliest.

    With David Backes serving the 2nd game of his thee-game suspension, Cassidy juggled the lines past his usual first line trio of Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak.

    Cassidy’s second line featured Jake DeBrusk to the left of David Krejci and Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson on Krejci’s right side, with Danton Heinen, Sean Kuraly and Chris Wagner on the third line in addition to Joakim Nordstrom, Colby Cave and Noel Acciari rounding out the fourth line.

    Once again, Zdeno Chara and Brandon Carlo were paired together on the blue line, with Torey Krug playing alongside John Moore and Matt Grzelcyk with Kevan Miller.

    With Backes suspended and McAvoy out of the lineup due to a lower body injury, only Ryan Donato and Steven Kampfer took in the game from Notre Dame’s press box as Boston’s healthy scratches.

    Rask got the start in net for his second career appearance (previous, 2016 at Gillette Stadium, 5-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens) in a Winter Classic game, as well as his 469th career game in a Bruins uniform– surpassing Cecil “Tiny” Thompson in franchise history for most games played as a goaltender.

    He was the backup goaltender to Tim Thomas‘ impressive win in net in the 2010 Winter Classic at Fenway Park.

    The atmosphere was palpable as the game got underway in front of a sellout crowd of 76,126 people in the 2nd most attended Winter Classic with a 1930s flair, as the visiting Bruins obtained the first penalty of the game early in the first period.

    Carlo was sent to the box with a holding infraction against Jonathan Toews at 5:52 and Chicago couldn’t capitalize on the resulting power play.

    In the vulnerable moment after the skater advantage, after forcing a turnover in the offensive zone, David Kampf helped slide the puck from Dylan Sikura to Brendan Perlini (5) for the 1-0 lead thanks to Perlini’s one-timed shot past Rask as the Bruins defensive coverage was nowhere to be seen.

    Krug had his stick lifted as Krejci was turning the puck over and Moore was out of position to the right of the net instead of attempting to thwart any chances through the slot.

    Kampf (10) and Sikura (3) had the assists on Perlini’s goal at 8:30 of the opening period.

    Thanks to Perlini’s goal, Chicago now has the game’s first goal in eight of their last ten games, despite the outcome of Tuesday afternoon’s matchup.

    Artem Anisimov tripped Nordstrom at 12:05 and sent the Bruins on their first power play of the day– yielding a power play goal just 23 seconds on the skater advantage.

    Bergeron worked the puck to Pastrnak (24) who then waited for Ward to make the first move as Pastrnak scored from point blank, tying the game, 1-1, at 12:38.

    An elated Pastrnak spread his wings as part of his celebration, while Bergeron (20) recorded the only assist on the goal.

    Pastrnak now has 11 power play goals this season and remains in the top-five in goals scored this season (tied with Jeff Skinner at 24 and trailing Alex Ovechkin, 29, and John Tavares, 26).

    Late in the opening frame, Grzelcyk was guilty of high-sticking Chicago’s Andreas Martinsen and served a two-minute minor in the penalty box at 17:03.

    The Blackhawks didn’t score on the ensuing power play.

    After 20 minutes of play, both teams were tied, 1-1. Boston led in shots on goal (14-12) and takeaways (6-2) after one period, while Chicago held onto an advantage in blocked shots (5-4), hits (11-10) and face-off win percentage (53-47).

    Both teams had five giveaways each entering the first intermission and the Blackhawks were 0/2 on the power play. The B’s were 1/1 after one.

    Early in the second period, Kuraly hooked Perlini and gave Chicago their third power play of the day. Once again, the Blackhawks were unable to score as the Bruins killed off Kuraly’s minor.

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    Midway through the period, Erik Gustafsson fired a shot from the point that was redirected by Dominik Kahun (5) past Rask and into the net, giving the ‘Hawks a 2-1 lead at 11:24 of the middle frame.

    Gustafsson (14) and Toews (20) had the assists on the goal for Chicago.

    Moments later, Gustafsson was penalized for roughing Nordstrom and the Bruins went on the power play for the second time of the afternoon at 17:57.

    Less than a minute into the power play, Bergeron (13) walked into the low slot without pressure and sent a backhand shot over Ward to tie the game, 2-2, at 18:48.

    Pastrnak (26) and Krug (20) had the assists on Bergeron’s goal.

    Just over a minute later– in the closing seconds of the second period– Grzelcyk hooked Patrick Kane at 19:50.

    Chicago’s ensuing power play would spill over into the third period as both teams went back into the dressing room for the second intermission, tied, 2-2.

    Through 40 minutes of play, Chicago was outshooting Boston, 21-20, and led in takeaways (8-7), hits (21-20), as well as face-off win% (56-44). The B’s led in blocked shots (14-8) and giveaways (9-7) heading into the third period.

    The Blackhawks went 0/4 on the power play and the Bruins were 2/2 through two periods.

    Getting off on the right foot while resuming play on the power play in the third period was not Chicago’s specialty as Kane caught Miller with a high-stick at 1:03.

    Less than a minute later, the 4-on-4 action became 4-on-3 when Anisimov tripped Miller at 1:42 of the third period.

    For nine seconds, Boston had a 4-on-3 power play, then an abbreviated 5-on-3, followed by a run-of-the-mill 5-on-4 power play. Despite the length and skater strength advantages, the Bruins did not convert on their extra skater opportunities early in the third.

    Moments later, Gustav Forsling hooked Kuraly and the B’s couldn’t get anything going on the ensuing power play at 4:56.

    Just past the midpoint of the third period, Kuraly (4) got his revenge on the scoreboard as a shot from the point bounced off Wagner and rebounded to No. 52 in black-and-gold before Kuraly tapped in a backhander into the open twine.

    The Dublin, Ohio native then did his trademark “Kura-leap” into the glass, having given Boston their first lead of the day, 3-2, at 10:20.

    Wagner (3) and Grzelcyk (10) had the primary and secondary assists on Kuraly’s goal.

    The fourth liner now has three goals in his last five games.

    With 1:38 remaining in regulation, Blackhawks head coach, Jeremy Colliton, pulled Ward for an extra attacker. About 36 seconds later, after Bruins defender, Kevan Miller sent the puck off glass and out, Colliton used his timeout to rally his troops for Chicago.

    Facing immense pressure on the heels of a big save and coverup from Rask, Cassidy used his timeout for Boston with 39.2 seconds left in regulation.

    Finally, after Krejci worked to clear the the defensive zone and was tripped up at the blue line, Marchand (13) took the loose puck down the ice and buried an empty net goal to seal the deal on Boston’s, 4-2, win at 19:27.

    Krejci (24) had the only assist on Marchand’s goal.

    At the final horn, the Bruins had won, 4-2, despite being outshot by the Blackhawks, 38-36. Boston finished the afternoon leading in blocked shots (19-13), giveaways (12-10) and hits (30-25), while Chicago finished the day leading in face-off win% (56-44).

    Entering Tuesday, the Blackhawks had five power play goals in their last three games. After Tuesday, the Blackhawks went 0/4 on the skater advantage in the Winter Classic and had five power play goals in their last four games.

    The B’s finished the afternoon 2/5 on the power play.

    Of note, Kuraly’s game-winning goal was his second straight game-winning goal as he had scored the overtime winning goal in Buffalo last Saturday.

    And Pastrnak’s 1-1–2 totals in Tuesday’s affair made him the 6th Bruins player since 1984-85 to require 40 or fewer games to reach the 50-point mark in a season (with the most recent being Marc Savard scoring 50 points in 39 games in 2006-07).

    Boston has now won five out of their last seven games.

    For the 12th time in 26 outdoor games, the team that won overcame a deficit en route to victory.

    The Bruins take on the Flames on Thursday back home at TD Garden, then play host to the Sabres on Saturday (Jan. 5th), the Minnesota Wild next Tuesday (Jan. 8th) and the Washington Capitals on Jan. 10th before hitting the road for a quick trip to face the Toronto Maple Leafs on Jan. 12th.

    Next year’s Winter Classic heads to the Cotton Bowl where the Dallas Stars will play host to an opponent that is to be determined by the Stars, NHL and NBC.

  • DTFR Podcast #134- Slinging First Round Picks

    DTFR Podcast #134- Slinging First Round Picks

    The Board of Governors meeting gets underway next week involving the Seattle expansion vote, Bill Peters took a puck to the jaw and Rick Middleton and Vic Hadfield are having their numbers retired this week.

    The Chicago Blackhawks and Arizona Coyotes made another trade with each other, Karl Alzner is being Wade Redden’ed, Ron Hextall got ousted as the Philadelphia Flyers GM, the Buffalo Sabres win streak reached double digits and the Winnipeg Jets brought back their Heritage Jerseys.

    Nick and Connor also encourage all of Long Island to go to the New York Islanders game at NYCB Live (it’s the Nassau Coliseum) this week and quickly plan a hopeful trip to see Sporting KC play in Atlanta.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Stitcher and/or on Spotify. Support the show on Patreon.