Eight points are on the line on this fourth Sunday of October. Edmonton visits Winnipeg at 3 p.m. (NHLN/SN/TVAS2) and Minnesota at the New York Islanders drops the puck at the completion of that contest at 6 p.m. Arizona at the New York Rangers (NHLN) starts at the usual starting time of 7 p.m., and Vancouver at Anaheim (SN), this evening’s nightcap, gets underway an hour later. All times eastern.
Although I have my qualms with the plethora of outdoor games played these days, this afternoon’s contest in Manitoba should be worth the watch.
Welcome to Investors Group Field. Canadians know this place as the home of Winnipeg‘s football team, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. All of us on this website are Americans, so we are more familiar with it hosting seven matches during the 2015 Women’s World Cup, including two involving *ahem* the World Champion USWNT.
I’ll wait for you to get settled down again. I know, I still celebrate every time I think about Megan Rapinoe’s two goals in this stadium.
Anyways, back to the sport we’re supposed to be talking about: football. Wait, no, the football stadium was taken over by hockey. Right.
The EdmontonEskimosOilers enter today’s game with a 4-1-0 record – the third best in the Western Conference, and fourth best in the league. Their lone blemish came last Sunday against Buffalo, falling 6-2. They’ve found their success with the puck on their stick, scoring 20 goals so far this season (seven more than the league average). Last year’s first overall pick in the NHL Draft has been at the forefront of the Oil‘s attack, as Connor McDavid has eight points to his name, including four goals.
Opposing them this afternoon is the 2-2-0 Winnipeg Jets. The last time we watched the Jets, Patrik Laine scored the first hat trick of his career against the only kid drafted before him in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft en route to a 5-4 overtime victory. Just like Edmonton, offense is where Winnipeg shines. They’re led by center Mark Scheifele, who’s six points are evenly split between goals and assists.
Some players to keep an eye on in today’s game include Edmonton‘s McDavid (eight points [tied for third-most in the league] on four goals [tied for fourth-most in the NHL]), Kris Russell (+6 [tied for eighth-best in the league]) and Cam Talbot (four wins [leads the NHL]) & Winnipeg‘s Dustin Byfuglien (four assists [leads the team]), Laine (four goals [leads the team]) and Scheifele (six points for a +4 [both lead the team]).
With home ice, Winnipeg is favored at a -123. While that would certainly make a nice story, I don’t think that’s what is going to happen. I believe it will be the Oilers taking the two points from this game with an exemplary performance from McDavid on arguably the biggest stage he’s had in his young professional career.
Hockey Birthday
Fred Shero (1925-1990) – He may have played defense for 145 NHL games (all with the Rangers), but Shero is more known for his coaching career. He amassed a 390-216-118 career record en route to four Stanley Cup Finals appearances, winning half of those with Philadelphia.
The Boston Bruins have had trouble of late defending home ice, going 17-18-6 a season ago. That trend continued last night when they fell 4-2 to their arch-rivals, the Montréal Canadiens.
The Habs won this game in the second period. After a scoreless opening frame for both sides, First Star of the Game Brendan Gallagher (Max Pacioretty and Alex Galchenyuk) broke the draw with a snap shot with 8:19 remaining in the second to give the Canadiens the lead. That lead doubled 6:03 later when Phillip Danault (Alexander Radulov and Greg Pateryn) scored his first of the season.
5:34 into the final period, Third Star Dominic Moore (Tim Schaller and Noel Acciari) scored a wrister for the Bruins to pull the home team within a goal, but Paul Byron‘s (Shea Weber and Andrei Markov) short-handed snap shot 1:58 later returned the Habs‘ lead to 3-1 – and proved to be the game-winner. Ryan Spooner‘s (David Backes and David Krejci) power play snap shot at the 8:09 mark once again pulled Boston within a score, but they were unable to find the back of the net again. Second Star Torrey Mitchell tacked on the insurance goal with 7:13 remaining for the Canadiens to seal the victory.
Carey Price earns the victory after saving 19-of-21 (90.5%) of the shots he faced, while Anton Khudobin takes the loss, saving 25-of-29 (86.2%).
With that road victory, the DtFR Game of the Day series now stands at 9-4-1, still favoring the home teams by six points.
We didn’t really start talking about goalies like we wanted to until almost 20 minutes into the recording, so if that’s what you came here for, sit tight a minute (or 20).
Washington‘s second appearance in the Game of the Day series didn’t need more than 60 minutes for them to earn their first win of the 2016-’17 campaign over the New York Islanders.
Winnik (Karl Alzner and Brooks Orpik) struck oil again 7:46 after returning to the ice with a wrister. It was the lone score of the final 40 minutes, giving the Capitals their first victory of the season.
Holtby earns the win after saving 21-of-22 (95.5%), while Greiss saved 26-of-28 (92.9%) in the loss.
Washington‘s victory sets the DtFR Game of the Day series at 5-2-0, favoring the home sides by four points over the roadies.
What a day yesterday, huh? Let your remote celebrate the Sabbath too, as there’s only three games to be played this evening. The action gets green lit at 6 p.m. when Anaheim visits the New York Islanders, followed an hour later by Buffalo at Edmonton (NHLN/SN1). Finally, Carolina at Vancouver gets its start at 10 p.m. (SN1). All times eastern.
The one that really attracts me is Sabres at Oilers. I know this will be the third time we’ll feature Edmonton, but is anybody really complaining about watching Connor McDavid?
As hinted at before, McDavid’s early success has only been eclipsed by Toronto‘s Auston Matthews – the man who replaced as the most recent No. 1 pick. Through two games, he’s already scored three times (tied for third-most in the league). Pair that with three more assists, and his six points ties Boston‘s Brad Marchand for best in the league. We certainly need more evidence, but every time the center takes the ice I begin to believe a little bit more in the return of the Oil.
Detracting from this matchup is the condition, and ultimate absence of Buffalo‘s Jack Eichel. The second pick in last year’s NHL Entry Draft scored 24 goals last year en route to 56 points. Almost ironically, his second year has already started like McDavid’s rookie season. Last year, McDavid missed time early in the season. Now it’s Eichel’s turn, as he suffered a high ankle sprain on Wednesday. All I know is Dylan Strome, the third pick of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, had better be careful next year. Something’s coming. Something bad.
In all seriousness, Eichel and McDavid have only squared off once in three possible meetings, which is probably two fewer than the NHL’s marketing and promotions departments would have liked. That being said, it looks like ex-IslanderKyle Okposo will be making his Sabres debut this evening, with the possibility of ex-PantherDmitry Kulikov also suiting up. So that’s exciting, right?
Just so you know, in comparison to Eichel v McDavid, the answer is no.
Some players to watch include Buffalo‘s Robin Lehner (.924 save percentage last season) and Matt Moulson (scored Sabres’ lone goal of the 2016-’17 season) & Edmonton‘s Leon Draisaitl (two goals [tied for sixth-most in the league] for four points [tied for seventh-best in the NHL]), McDavid (six points [tied for the league-lead] on three goals [tied for third-most in the NHL] and three assists [tied for third-most in the league], and +4 [tied for third-best in the NHL]), Kris Russell (three assists [tied for third-most in the league]) and Cam Talbot (two wins [tied for the league-lead]).
When’s the last time you heard this one: the Oilers are going to win this game. Vegas has Edmonton favored at -175 minimum in their home contest. I’ve gone against the odds a couple times this season (and, I would also like to point out that I’ve been right both times), but this is not one of those games. Edmonton pulls off the victory.
Hockey Birthday
Darius Kasparaitis (1972-) – The defenseman’s career may have found its start on Long Island, but Kasparaitis is most known for his time in Pittsburgh. Last year, he co-founded a Floridian real estate development company.
Paul Kariya (1974-) – This left winger was the fourth player selected in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft, and with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim he played for nine seasons and 606 games. Oh, and he’s also a movie star. Check that footage from D3: The Mighty Ducks. Get him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Yesterday’s Game of the Day between Washington and Pittsburgh was exactly what we’d hoped it would be. Exciting. Tight. Competitive. It took a shootout for Pittsburgh to earn two points on a 3-2 victory that improved their record in banner-raising games to 3-0-1.
The Pens leveled 8:47 into the second frame with a power play tally when Patric Hornqvist (Kris Letang and Second Star Evgeni Malkin) deflected a shot from the point to score on Braden Holtby. With 1:08 remaining in the frame, they took the lead when Malkin (Conor Sheary) faked out Holtby to sneak the puck behind his left skate.
Washington returned the favor with another Burakovsky (Backstrom and Matt Niskanen) tally to level the game with 13:47 remaining in regulation. That score held until the clock read zeroes, forcing three-on-thee overtime and, thanks to some incredible saves by Fleury, the shootout.
Phil Kessel: Rang one off the post. Originally called no good, it bounced out that fast.
Alex Ovechkin: Rejected to give the Penguins the win.
Fleury saved 39-of-41 (95.1%) in his first victory of the season, while Holtby saved 28-of-30 (93.3%) in the shootout defeat.
With that result, the home teams improve to 4-1-0 in the DtFR Game of the Day series.
There’s three games going on this evening – a nice, light schedule. Chicago at Nashville kicks things off at 8 p.m. (NBCSN/TVAS), followed an hour later by Edmonton at Calgary (SN1/SN360). Philadelphia at Los Angeles clean things up at 10:30 p.m. All times eastern.
All three are great contests, but I’m drawn to the Battle of Alberta for the second time in three days. Not only is it a serious rivalry (any rivalry that has a name is serious), but it’s also Kris Russell‘s first game in Calgary since being traded to Dallas at the deadline last season.
Who else to seal the Oil‘s first victory of the year than newly-christened Captain McDavid. His second goal of his sophomore season was an unassisted breakaway goal during four-on-four play in the middle frame.
The shared province of Alberta is physically represented this season by defenseman Russell, who as of Wednesday has played for both clubs. Three seasons ago, Russell moved from St. Louis to Calgary. While there, he helped lead that 2014-15 Flames team to the Western Semifinals, a team that turns more into an aberration instead of foreshadowing by the game. He scored two goals and seven points that postseason, the most of any playoff appearance in his career, but the Flames were unable to build off that success and missed the playoffs last year.
Some players to keep an eye on tonight include Calgary‘s John Gaudreau (78 points last season [tied for sixth-most in the league]) and Edmonton‘s McDavid (two goals [tied for second in the league] and three points [tied for fifth in the NHL]), Russell (+3 [tied for seventh in the league]) and Cam Talbot (a win [tied for second-best in the league] on a .902 save percentage [10th-best in the NHL]).
Calgary enters the game favored by Vegas anywhere from -125 to -130, but I have a hard time thinking the Flames can pull out the win given the seven goals McDavid and co. put up the other night. Oilers improve to 2-0-0.
Hockey Birthday
Dave Schultz (1949-) – The Hammer was not simply an enforcer, he was an enforcer on the Philadelphia Flyers‘ Broad Street Bullies teams of the 70s. An enforcer for enforcers, if you will. It’s not something he puts on his résumé anymore, even if he still holds the distinction of most penalty minutes in a season (472). Nowadays, he’s a successful businessman.
Sylvain Lefebvre (1967-) – Most known for his days in Colorado, the defenseman played 14 seasons and hoisted one Stanley Cup. He’s still involved in hockey, specifically coaching the St. John’s IceCaps within Montréal‘s system, the first club he played for.
A point is better than nothing, right? It all depends how the Red Wings play today, as Boston lost 2-1 in the shootout to Carolina in yesterday’s Game of the Day.
The Canes struck their lone goal of regulation with 1:06 remaining in the first period on a Third Star of the Game Jaccob Slavin wrister, assisted by Justin Faulk (his 21st helper of the season) and Nathan Gerbe.
Boston waited to level until the 1:45 mark of the third, courtesy of a Loui Eriksson wrister (his 29th tally of the season), assisted by John-Michael Liles. Neither team could find the back of the net again, whether in the remaining regulation time or overtime, so we moved into the shootout.
It took five rounds before the Hurricanes struck their game-winner of sorts. Noah Hanifin was last night’s hero, scoring on a backhander.
First Star Cam Ward earns the win after saving 35 of 36 shots faced (97.2%), while Second Star Tuukka Rask takes the shootout loss, saving 27 of 28 (96.4%).
After such a busy Tuesday schedule, we need a little breather, so the NHL only scheduled three games today. The action starts at 7 p.m. eastern with two games dropping the puck (Vancouver at Edmonton and Columbus at Toronto), followed an hour later by this evening’s nightcap, Philadelphia at Detroit (NBCSN/TVAS).
Vancouver at Edmonton is the only divisional rivalry being played this evening, while Philadelphia at Detroit is the only game between teams currently qualifying for the playoffs.
In most cases, I’d usually go Philly–Wings (and you should no doubt watch it, it’s a huge game), but tonight is a night of incredible, bittersweet memories and optimism centered around the best rookie Alberta has seen since the Great One, as this is the last Oilers game to be played in Rexall Place.
Welcome to my EDM/House lounge, I’m DJ Connor bringing you all my favorite tunes. *Bonus* if you haven’t, you need to listen to the entirety of Daft Punk’s Discovery album. This is the one that made them big time, and still probably my favorite of their four records.
And you thought you visited this site just for hockey info.
Anyways, tonight’s game is the last NHL hockey game to take place in Rexall barring any terrible setbacks in the completion of Rogers Place or severe damage to the new facility. Rexall is the second oldest active arena (opened in 1974), and third smallest (16,839 capacity). Rogers will be 14th biggest in the league.
Rexall has seen a lot in its 42 years. Five times have the Oilers won the Stanley Cup, and four of those series clinching victories took place on this ice. In fact, Rexall Place has never seen a visitor clinch the title on its surface, as both of the Oilers‘ Stanley Cup shortcomings were finalized on the east coast.
The 1989 All-Star Game took place in Edmonton, as well as the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. Of course, those events pale in comparison to even just a single game featuring the likes of Glenn Anderson, Paul Coffey, Grant Fuhr, Wayne Gretzky, Al Hamilton, Jari Kurri, Mark Messier, Adam Oates, Jacques Plante, Chris Pronger, Glen Sather and Norm Ullman, all men who either have their numbers retired by the club or are honored in the Hall of Fame.
This building will be sorely missed by those reminiscing about the past, but the new Rogers Place is a new start for a franchise that looks nothing like its elite past, although a certain rookie has intentions to change that for the better.
The visiting 30-36-13 Vancouver Canucks are the fifth best team in the Pacific Division (read that as third worst) and 12th in the Western Conference (again, read as third worst). To get there, they’ve played the 10th worst defense, paired with the second worst offense.
Led by Chris Tanev’s 165 blocks, Vancouver has allowed only 2534 shots to reach 17-23-9 Ryan Miller and co., but they’ve collectively only saved 91.8% for 227 goals against, the 10th most in the NHL. The lack of success absolutely cannot be blamed on the defensive special teams, as the penalty kill has neutralized 82.35% of their infractions, allowing 42 power play goals in the process, the 10th best rate in the league.
Daniel Sedin’s 254 shots has led the squad to firing the puck 2229 times, but only 8% have found the back of the net for 182 goals (led by Sedin’s 28 tallies), the second fewest in the league. You know what I said about the Canucks‘ penalty kill not being responsible for defensive shortcomings? Yeah, that doesn’t apply to the power play, which is successful on only 16.17% of attempts, good for 38 extra man goals (led by Sedin’s eight power play tallies), the fifth worst rate in the league.
As poorly as they’ve played all season, Vancouver is actually entering tonight’s game riding a three game winning streak, with their most recent being the 3-2 win over the visiting Kings on Monday.
The 30-43-7 Edmonton Oilers are, once again, the worst team in hockey (okay, they’re tied with Toronto for that honor, but the Leafs have a game in hand). They play the sixth worst offense paired with the fourth worst defense.
Led by Taylor Hall’s 283 shots, the Oilers have fired the puck a measly 2310 times, with 8.2% finding the back of the net for 194 goals, the sixth fewest in the NHL. Once again, that is partially to blame on the power play, which is successful on only 17.39% of their attempts for 30 extra man goals (led by Jordan Eberle’s seven power play tallies), the 11th worst rate in the league.
Led by Andrej Sekera’s 153 blocks, the Oil have allowed 2480 shots to reach 20-27-4 Cam Talbot and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 91% for 239 goals against, the fourth most in the league. The special teams strike out again (did someone mention baseball season starting?), as they’ve killed only 80.16% of opposing power plays for 49 extra man goals against, the 11th worst rate in the league.
Edmonton enters tonight’s game on a three game losing skid, with their most recent being Saturday’s 5-0 home loss to the rival Flames.
Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Edmonton‘s Hall (61 points, 21 of which are even-strength goals and 36 are assists, with 30 at even-strength, 283 shots and six game-winning goals [all lead the team]) and Sekera (12 power play assists and 153 blocks [both lead the team]) & Vancouver‘s Jannik Hansen (+16 and a .191 shooting percentage [both lead the team]), D. Sedin (61 points, 28 of which are goals, including six game-winners, consisting of 20 at even-strength and eight on the power play and 254 shots [all lead the team]) and Henrik Sedin (43 assists, consisting of 28 at even-strength and 15 on the power play [all lead the team]).
Given each team’s streak, I’m worried that Vancouver might win this one. I expect a tight game regardless of the winner, but in honor of the occasion, I am pulling for the Oilers so they may end their years at Rexall on a high note.
The Kings jumped out to an early lead on the Capitals, but Washington was able to level the game with three goals of their own in the third before giving up an overtime winner.
Three goals were scored in the first period, all belonging to Los Angeles. Vincent Lecavalier’s was first, marked at the 4:52 mark of play. His power play tally was assisted by Second Star of the Game Tanner Pearson and Alec Martinez (his 19th helper of the season). Pearson continued his assisting ways 7:13 later, as he and Tyler Toffoli (his 22nd helper of the season) assisted Jake Muzzin to the Kings‘ second score. 1:21 later, Milan Lucic got involved with a goal of his own, assisted by First Star Jeff Carter (his 29th helper of the season) and Brayden McNabb. That 3-0 score held not only to the end of the first period, but also through the second.
Washington got one back only 1:46 into the third with a little help from a Dwight King holding penalty that Third Star T.J. Oshie turned into a power play goal, assisted by Marcus Johansson and Matt Niskanen (his 24th helper of the season). One goal became two 9:16 later, courtesy of a Nicklas Backstrom wrister, assisted by Alex Ovechkin and Oshie (his 22nd helper of the season). Washington leveled the game with 3:22 remaining in regulation when Dmitry Orlov’s backhander found the back of the net, assisted by Justin Williams and Evgeny Kuznetsov (his 48th helper of the season). The three-all score held to the end of regulation, so the Game of the Day witnessed its third straight overtime game.
Carter’s wrister at the 62:50 mark goes down as the game winner. He was assisted by Lucic and Drew Doughty (his 31st helper of the season).
Jonathan Quick earns the win after saving 29 of 32 (90.6%), while Braden Holtby takes the overtime loss, saving 26 of 30 (86.7%).
Los Angeles‘ win ends the road warriors winning streak at five games and sets the DtFR Game of the Day series at 65-37-15, favoring the home sides by 29 points over the roadies.
Six games will be played this Thursday evening, beginning with Carolina at Boston at 7 p.m. eastern. Dropping the puck at 7:30 p.m. eastern are three contests (Buffalo at Montréal, Winnipeg at Detroit [NHLN] and Ottawa at Florida), followed half an hour later by Edmonton at Minnesota. This evening’s nightcap is New Jersey at San Jose, which begins at 10:30 p.m. eastern.
A third of tonight’s games will be contested between divisional rivals (Buffalo at Montréal and Ottawa at Florida), and none are between teams currently qualifying for the playoffs.
Colorado surpassed Minnesota last night with their 3-0 win against the Ducks, which certainly upset the Wild. Let’s see if they can get themselves back into the playoff picture with a win over the Oil.
Tonight’s game will be Edmonton‘s third in the DtFR Game of the Day series, where they currently own a 0-1-1 record. Their most recent game in the series was their visit to San Jose on January 14 when they fell 2-1 in a shootout. Minnesota has been featured nine times before tonight, and own a 5-4-0 record in such games, with their most recent occurring March 6, a 4-2 loss on home ice to the Blues.
The 26-36-7 Edmonton Oilers are currently tied with Winnipeg for the distinction of worst team in the Western Conference (the Jets best them on games played), and are only four points better than Toronto, the worst team in the NHL. Their offense ranks ninth worst in the league, but the defense has played even poorer, ranking fifth worst.
Even with Taylor Hall’s 249 shots, the Oilers have fired the puck 1995 times, of which 8.2% have found the back of the net for 167 goals (led by Hall’s 22 tallies), the ninth fewest in the NHL. The power play follows suit, successful on only 16.84% of attempts for 33 power play goals (led by Jordan Eberle’s six extra man tallies), the sixth lowest rate in the league.
The defense has played even poorer. Even with Andrej Sekera’s team leading 135 blocks, the Oil have allowed 2155 shots to reach 16-23-4 Cam Talbot and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 91.1% for 204 goals against, the fifth most in the league. The best thing Edmonton does is kill penalties, as their 80.28% kill rate, which has allowed 42 power play goals against, ranks only 14th worst.
Edmonton‘s most recent game was March 8, a three goal shutout loss to the Sharks on home ice. I’d like to say that Edmonton does more harm than good by winning even one more game this season, but they’ve consistently had early draft picks and have yet to show anything of it. So, I guess what I’m saying is, who knows?
The 31-26-10 Minnesota Wild currently occupy sixth place in the Central Division and ninth in the Western Conference. To get to that position, they’ve played the 10th best defense in the league, paired with the 14th worst offense.
Led by Jared Spurgeon’s 131 blocks, the Wild have allowed only 1922 shots to reach 25-22-5 Devan Dubnyk and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 91.8% for only 169 goals against, the 10th fewest in the NHL. Although the overall defense has been solid, Minnesota‘s penalty kill has been atrocious. Their 75.9% kill rate, which has allowed 40 power play goals, is third worst in the league. It is slightly made up for by its offensive threat though, as the kill has six shorthanded goals to its credit (led by Erik Haula’s two shorties).
Even with Zach Parise’s team leading 188 shots, the Wild have fired the puck only 1958 times, of which 9% have found the back of the net for 177 goals (led by Charlie Coyle’s 21 tallies), the 14th fewest in the league. The special teams have tried to make up some of the slack though, as their 18.96% success rate, good for 40 power play goals (led by Mikko Koivu’s nine extra man tallies), ranks 14th best in the league.
Minnesota‘s last game was their 4-2 loss to the Blues on Sunday, but that can be quickly erased with a win tonight. Should they do just that, they will reclaim their spot in the second wildcard position.
Minnesota has already won this season’s series against the Oilers 2-0-0, with their most recent meeting ending 5-2 in Edmonton on February 18.
Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Edmonton‘s Hall (249 shots and 22 goals [six game-winners], 18 of which were at even-strength, and 35 assists, 29 of which were at even-strength, for 57 points [all lead the team]) and Minnesota‘s Dubnyk (four shutouts [tied for fifth most in the league]).
For Minnesota‘s sake, this shouldn’t be too much of a game. As long as they can take care of Edmonton‘s slightly-decent penalty kill, they should be able to reclaim their position in the second wildcard.
The Washington Capitals paid back the Pittsburgh Penguins for beating them in the Verizon Center in October by taking a 4-1 victory in Consol Energy Center in last night’s Game of the Day, spoiling Mike Sullivan’s debut.
Third Star of the Game Nicklas Backstrom scored his 10th goal of the season at the 3:53 mark of the first period after being assisted by Second Star T.J. Oshie and Karl Alzner. The eventual game-winner was fired only 3:11 later when Jason Chimera and Jay Beagle assisted John Carlson to the Caps‘ final goal of the period. Evgeni Malkin fired the lone goal of the game for the Pens at the 13:59 mark, assisted by Ben Lovejoy and Phil Kessel. The 2-1 Washington lead held through both intermissions before expanding.
Oshie again found his way onto the stat sheet with his first of two goals in the final period. He was assisted by Backstrom at the 8:50 mark to give the Caps a two-goal lead. His second was a five-on-three power play goal, scored at the 19:11 mark after being assisted by Backstrom and Carlson.
First Star Braden Holtby saved 45 of 46 (97.8%) shots to improve his record to 19-4-1, while Marc-Andre Fleury (13-10-2) takes the loss after saving only 30 of 34 (88.2%).
The DtFR Game of the Day series now stands 22-10-5 in favor of the home team, who lead the roadies by 17 points.
Tonight’s schedule is a busy one, with a total of 11 games being played. Four get their start at 7 p.m. eastern (New Jersey at Buffalo [Bell TV], Florida at the New York Islanders, Edmonton at the New York Rangers and Carolina at Philadelphia), followed half an hour later by two more (Tampa Bay at Toronto [TVAS] and San Jose at Montréal [RDS]). Starting at 8 p.m. eastern are three games involving the Central Division (Calgary at Nashville, Vancouver at Minnesota and St. Louis at Winnipeg), followed half an hour later by the two nightcaps of the evening (Colorado at Chicago [NBCSN] and Columbus at Dallas).
Four of tonight’s games involve division rivals (Carolina at Philadelphia, Tampa Bay at Toronto, St. Louis at Winnipeg and Colorado at Chicago), while another represents the lone matchup between two teams currently qualifying for the playoffs: Edmonton at New York. To commemorate the potential for Edmonton‘s first playoff push since falling in the Stanley Cup Finals to Carolina in 2006, let’s tune into the Oilers visiting the Rangers.
Yes, you read that correctly. The 14-15-2 Edmonton Oilers are currently qualifying for the playoffs. Nevermind that three Pacific Division teams are technically tied for second place in the division and Edmonton narrowly leads Vancouver by Regulation+Overtime wins, focus more on the fact that Edmonton only needs Arizona to lose two games for the Oilers to officially move past them in the standings. The future is bright for the Oil!
But how have they made it to this position? Did Connor McDavid get healthy and the media not let us know? No, he still has near a month before he sees the ice again, but that has not stopped the squad from winning six games in a row coming into tonight’s matchup, including a 3-2 victory over Boston in the TD Garden last night.
So far this season, Edmonton‘s offense has been little more than average. They’ve scored 80 goals so far, led by Taylor Hall’s 14 tallies, on 865 shots (led by Hall’s 124). While the shot total trails the league average, the Oilers have made up for it by scoring on 9.2% of their attempts.
Even the power play has been average, as they’ve scored 18 goals on 95 attempts (six players have two goals, including Hall and McDavid), the same 18.95% the average team has earned.
The defense has been where Edmonton has really struggled this season. Most teams have given up 79 goals so far this season: Anders Nilsson (10-7-1) and co. have given up a whopping 90. This hasn’t been all the goaltenders’ fault though, as they’ve faced 913 shots already this season. Oscar Klefbom has a team-leading 62 blocks, but the rest of the defense needs to do more to prevent opponents from putting so much pressure on their keeper.
Luckily, one of the saving graces of this defense has been their penalty kill. They’ve given up 18 goals on 91 attempts for a 80.22% kill rate that is, once again, simply on par with the rest of the league.
Also, speaking of keepers and the like, it would be wrong to ignore 3-8-1 Cam Talbot who was such an important part of New York‘s season last year when King Henrik went down. Unfortunately for him, he has not found the same success in Edmonton and has been again relegated to a backup position.
While it is exciting for the Oil to be in the position they’re in after years of futility, they face a stiff opponent this evening that will surely test their grit, as they head to Madison Square Garden to face the 18-9-4 New York Rangers, who currently own the third-best record in the Metropolitan Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference. With their eyes on a deep playoff run, even though they’re currently riding a three-game losing skid (including a 5-4 OT loss in Calgary on Saturday), the Blueshirts employ a strong game on both ends of the ice.
Beginning with the offense, we find a team that has scored 89 goals this season (led by Mats Zuccarello’s 13), well exceeding the league average of 79. I usually say that goals are a symptom of a high quantity of shots, which still holds true with the Rangers‘ 878 total shots (led by Rick Nash’s 88), but I think this is actually an instance of impeccable and opportunistic shooting accuracy, made evident by a whopping 10.1% of shots tickling the twine.
The Blueshirts are an imposing offense when evenly matched, but their power play has been especially strong, as they’ve scored the league average of 18 goals on 12 fewer attempts (21.69%). While Edmonton‘s penalty kill may be good, it would be in the Oil‘s best interest to avoid going down a man as much as possible.
Of course, we cannot talk about Nash, Zuccarello and the offense without discussing 14-6-3 Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers‘ defense. They’ve given up only 70 goals this season, and saved 959 shots (well exceeding the league average) for a 93.1% save percentage. But it’s not been just King Henrik, but also the defense, specifically Dan Girardi and his 70 blocks. Unfortunately for him, one of those blocks cost him a knee, as he is currently dealing with swelling in that spot and listed as day-to-day.
Just like Edmonton, New York is also good on the penalty kill. They’ve faced 100 penalties already this season, and only allowed 16 goals. That 84% kill rate exceeds the league average by over 3%.
The Blueshirts and Oil have already met once this season, a 7-5 Edmonton victory last Friday in Rexall Place.
Some players to watch in tonight’s game include Edmonton‘s Hall (34 points [tied for fourth in the league], +14 [tied for fifth in the league], 20 assists [tied for sixth in the league] and 14 goals [tied for eighth in the league]) and New York‘s Lundqvist (14 wins [tied for fourth in the league], .933 save percentage [tied for fourth in the league], two shutouts [tied for seventh in the league] and 2.14 GAA [ninth in the league]).
The Oilers may be hot and caught the Rangers on a long Canadian road trip last week, but I do not think they will be so fortunate in Madison Square Garden. I expect the Rangers to easily take care of the Oil, potentially even shut them out, to break this losing skid.
The New York Rangers were disappointed with their lack of success in the playoffs last year, and knew they were going to face a tough off-season with the salary cap issues and players needing new contracts. The Rangers needed to make moves, and they ended up trading Carl Hagelin to the Anaheim Ducks for Emerson Etem and draft picks. Their moves continued as the Rangers then traded Cam Talbot to the Edmonton Oilers for picks in the draft.
The Rangers lost a few more players to free agency, like Matt Hunwick going to Toronto. They experienced another loss when Martin St. Louis, retired after 18 years of professional hockey, one Stanley Cup, three Olympic medals and one Hart Trophy. He finished out his career with the Rangers scoring 22 goals and 38 assists during his 2 seasons combined.
The Rangers went on to resign players like Derek Stepan, Jesper Fast, and J.T. Miller. They also tried to fill the holes they created with the moves by acquiring Antti Raanta to replace Cam Talbot, and they signed free agents Viktor Stalberg and Jarett Stoll.
Going into the season, many believe the Rangers wouldn’t have the same level of success as they had last year. Obviously, Antti Raanta is not Cam Talbot. When Henrik Lundqvist went down last year, Talbot stepped up and play phenomenally to help lead the Rangers to the franchise’s third Presidents’ Trophy.
However, Raanta has started this season with an excellent performance, winning both of his starts and posting a goals-against-average of 0.50 and a save percentage of .987. Obviously, with the season being so young and the Rangers only having played 12 games, they seem to be continuing their success from last season.
But how is this possible? Viktor Stalberg and Jarrett Stoll aren’t Carl Hagelin, and Emerson Etem has only seen three games this season.
My Opinion
There are two main answers to this question: the defense core and the stepping up of the young role players.
The Rangers arguably have the best D-core in the league, with a solid 6: Marc Staal, Keith Yandle, Dan Boyle, Kevin Klein, Dan Girardi and the captain Ryan McDonagh. All these players have been in the league for so many years and have great experience. If any of these players were on a different team, they would all be considered to be on the top two defense lines. The Rangers’ defenseman and goalies have allowed the fewest goals this season and the six defensemen have 6 goals on the season. They are truly doing it on both ends.
The stepping up of players like Mats Zuccarello, Oscar Lindberg, and others are the reason the offense is continuing to flow in New York. Zuccarello is making up for the lost time in the playoffs last season by storming out of the gates with 7 goals and 2 assists. He might truly be the heart of the Rangers; when he went out last year, the offensive production of the team dropped dramatically.
(Photo: Brad Penner, USA TODAY Sports)
Oscar Lindberg, a rookie, has been one of the biggest surprises of the Rangers this year. He has had a few multi-point games thus far, including a two-goal game in his first few games this season. Lindberg has 6 goals and 3 assists on the season. In the first few games he made an argument for the Calder Trophy, however the success would have to continue all year for him to beat out Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel for this award.
Overall, the success will be there for the Rangers throughout the season if their players stay healthy and they find a way to get the puck in the back of net. (Yes, I know, that’s what every team needs) The defense and goaltending for the Rangers will be there all year long. So it won’t be surprising seeing them in the playoffs again this year.
It’s been a busy offseason around the NHL- and by that I mean it’s been a rather unusual offseason around the NHL.
The Ryan O’Reilly saga finally ended in Colorado and began in Buffalo, but took a side trip into the side of a Tim Horton’s somewhere in Ontario. While the Sabres could use his offense, they could do without his legal offenses (moral of the story, everyone, don’t drink and drive- have a designated driver, be responsible- use common sense).
Mikhail Grigorenko’s been reunited with Patrick Roy in Colorado, although sadly the rest of the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 Quebec Remparts will not be joining the party in Denver.
T.J. Oshie, Brandon Saad, Milan Lucic, Dougie Hamilton, Patrick Sharp, Cam Talbot, Phil Kessel, and others have all been on the move as the result of blockbuster trades.
Boston Bruins general manager, Don Sweeney (pictured), has been wheeling and dealing this offseason- in stark contrast of his predecessor, Peter Chiarelli (bruins.nhl.com).
Don Sweeney’s been on a rampage (more on that later), Peter Chiarelli’s turned around the Edmonton Oilers in one offseason (at least on paper), and the Toronto Maple Leafs front office might be the smartest guys in the game for the first time in a longtime. Wait, what did I just say?
That’s right, on Thursday, 72-year-old hockey front office legend, Lou Lamoriello, resigned as president of the New Jersey Devils only to join the Toronto Maple Leafs (announced on Twitter a mere two minutes apart) as their 16th general manager in franchise history.
Fun fact: Back in 1987, Lamoriello drafted now fellow colleague, Brendan Shanahan, 2nd overall in his first season as the president and general manager of the Devils.
Now, Lamoriello joins Shanahan in Toronto’s front office. Things certainly are weird right now in New Jersey, in the meantime, by the way- where Ray Shero is currently their GM and Marty Brodeur is, well, among the front office of the St. Louis Blues. Yep, it’s safe to say nobody would have predicted that both Brodeur and Lamoriello would move on from the Devils.
In 2009, Lamoriello praised Shanahan after Shanahan attempted one final go in the NHL, with the Devils, only to decide he would not continue his career and thus stepped aside from playing, retiring before the 2009-2010 season. Lamoriello expressed so much praise, in fact, that he blatantly stated that should Shanahan want a job in the Devils front office, Lamoriello would go out of his way to make it happen.
But here we are in 2015, where Shanahan recently transitioned to the helm of the Maple Leafs front office and instead of going to his former boss for a position, he brought in his former boss.
Brendan Shanahan (left) introduces Lou Lamoniello (right) as the new general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. (Galit Rodan/The Canadian Press via AP)
Lamoriello spent 28 years with the New Jersey Devils organization, but now he’s about to embark on his first season with a different organization- just his second as a general manager- the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Maple Leafs, if you recall, hired Mike Babcock this offseason as their latest head coach, by the way. Babcock too, left an organization he spent a lot of time with for the Maple Leafs this summer. Babcock spent the last 10 years with the Detroit Red Wings before joining Toronto.
Both Lamoriello and Babcock have something in common, they both left teams that used red as a primary color for a team that wears a blue maple leaf proudly displayed prominently on their jersey (it’s a bit slow right now in the offseason, cut me some slack).
In other news, the National Hockey League began the formal expansion process this summer, having accepted expansion applications up until Monday.
Two cities formally submitted a bid before the deadline- Las Vegas, Nevada and Quebec City, Quebec.
Las Vegas billionaire, Bill Foley, continues to headman the construction of an arena in Las Vegas as well as a drive for season tickets while aiming to land an expansion team. Meanwhile, Montreal-based media conglomerate, Quebecor, aims to bring the NHL back to Quebec City.
One of Canada’s hockey gods, Don Cherry, has already provided his blessing for a return to Quebec City.
This is the first time the league has formally gone through the expansion process since the late 1990s when the league quickly grew in size adding the Nashville Predators, the Atlanta Thrashers, the Minnesota Wild, and the Columbus Blue Jackets between 1998 and 2000 to become the 30 team league that we all know and love today (with the minor relocation of the Thrashers to Winnipeg having occurred prior to the 2011-2012 season, of course).
Since the Thrashers relocation to Winnipeg, the NHL has continued to take a firm stance against having to move another team for a while. Prior to the formal announcement of the expansion process being officially explored, the Arizona Coyotes and the City of Glendale, Arizona were at odds with one another.
Despite IceArizona’s firm commitment to the State of Arizona, many thought the Coyotes would be on their way out of Glendale this offseason. Given how a short move back to Phoenix in such a short period of time would not be feasible, speculation led to the Coyotes packing their bags and moving to an NHL ready arena.
Downtown Phoenix does not have an appropriate sporting arena for hockey currently, thereby handing the Coyotes a double whammy when their Gila River Arena lease agreement with Glendale was pulled out from under them by the city.
After threatening substantial legal action, IceArizona and the City of Glendale came to terms on amending their agreement- eliminating an outclause from its initial version and adjusting some revenue sharing between the hockey club and the city (the team will now get a larger share, with the city footing less of the bill).
Again, the Coyotes are staying put. No escape route to Seattle, no move from one desert to another desert (Las Vegas), and no move to Quebec City that would further imbalance the conferences in the league.
But then again, the amended lease agreement is only for two years, so the Coyotes aren’t fully out of the woods yet.
There remains so much yet to be seen concerning the Arizona Coyotes and their strained relations with the City of Glendale. While a short-term deal is necessary for their immediate survival in the market, their ultimate situation is not comforting. Things still could get quite ugly in a couple of years, yet the two sides have something to work with right now and can always chip away at improving viability of the franchise in Glendale.
The Arizona Coyotes will be debuting new jerseys this season, but their future in Arizona, despite glimmers of hope, is still uncertain in the long run (coyotes.nhl.com).
If not, perhaps the next two years is all the time the Coyotes need to convince Phoenix, Arizona and the NBA’s Phoenix Suns to construct a new- joint- arena that would be suitable for hockey in the desert and a return to downtown Phoenix for the Coyotes franchise. Otherwise, it could be enough for Seattle to scrap together some plans for a NHL-ready arena and sway the Coyotes into relocation.
Or there’s always Quebec City or Las Vegas, that, should either location not see the expansion process include them in the more immediate future of the league, could always have a stronger say in relocation. Both cities have strong interest from potential ownership groups and physical arena’s that are state of the art and nearing completion.
Speaking of Quebec City and Las Vegas, now is the perfect time to reach into these markets. A return of the Nordiques to the hockey crazed Ville de Québec would be a golden opportunity for the league to return the game to where it belongs and can further drive marketability.
For those that are opposed to adding another team in the Eastern Conference, kindly show yourself to the door. Realignment is never a fun topic, but I think we can all agree that sending the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets back to the Western Conference would be a good thing. As fans, we’d see a return of more Detroit and Chicago matchups, providing more fuel to the fire- built into the regular season schedule- when it comes to that longstanding rivalry.
And with the addition of a team in Las Vegas, well, it’s the same old, same old. It’s a never before seen market in all of professional sports and it would balance the conferences under the aforementioned scenario.
REUTERS/Mathieu Belanger
So at the end of the day, why disappoint the good people of Quebec City once again, NHL?
Then again, balanced conferences are overrated, aren’t they?
Come to think of it, the European model for professional sports isn’t too bad when it comes to league structure. Yet, the North American model of conferences, divisions, and such makes for a much more exciting game. We’ll never see the NHL switch to a relegation model based upon Premier League association football, but maybe we’ll see the NHL become more at ease with unbalanced conferences.
Hey if the game works in a market, why ruin it by taking it away from that market just to satisfy conference structure? If the owners are going to squabble over that then they really aren’t looking out for the best interest of the league are they? Management’s number one goal is to profit from growing the game.
Without an interest, there aren’t any fans. Without any fans, there aren’t any marketing opportunities from potential sponsors looking to reach fans. Without any cash flow, there is no game. If there’s an economically viable market or situation, go for it.
Last, but not least, the Boston Bruins have been a busy team this offseason. One can only think that the B’s will make another move or two before training camp in September. Don Sweeney and the Big Bad Bruins front office are in on trying to sign defensemen, Cody Franson, or Christian Ehrhoff.
The Boston fanbase continues to grumble and gripe about the presence of Chris Kelly and Dennis Seidenberg on the Bruins roster. One of the two could be moved before the puck drops in October.
And while we’re still at it, the Bruins still need a backup goaltender. While Peter Budaj or Jonas Gustavsson may not be the first names that come to mind when it comes to free agent backup goalies that are still available and could be dispensable for the Bruins, well, one of them might be all that the Bruins need.
Of course, Ray Emery and Ron Zepp are always still out there, granted Emery is a proven goaltender in the league (well mostly- he could be a backup for Tuukka Rask, but he’s past his number of chances of ever being a number one goalie in the NHL) and Zepp parallels Tim Thomas thus far in his career (minus the two Vezina Trophies, a Conn Smythe, and a Stanley Cup championship).
Matt Beleskey (airborne) has found a new landing spot with the Boston Bruins this offseason. Stephen Dunn/Getty Images
I’ll go more into detail about the Boston Bruins offseason conundrum in another post prior to the season. Quite frankly, I’m still trying to piece together what their plan might be. For now it looks as though Patrice Bergeron could be set with (a recently spotted dancing in Montreal) Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, with Matt Beleskey-David Krejci-Jimmy Hayes, Loui Eriksson-Ryan Spooner-Brett Connolly, Zac Rinaldo-Chris Kelly-Max Talbot filling out the forward lines.
Their blue line still needs work, but can be corrected within a few seasons. What’s more important right now is that the Bruins sign a top four defenseman and obtain a backup goaltender (or at least, implement a plan for a successful backup goaltender). While not necessarily a problem with an elite starting goaltender of Rask’s quality, the revolving door of backup goalies the Bruins have had the last few seasons is something they must work on for the remainder of Rask’s dominance in net.
Anyway, this ends my stream of consciousness. I’ll go back to waiting for Cody Franson to make up his mind and sign somewhere now.
NYR- Round 1- defeated PIT in 5 games. Round 2- defeated WSH in 7 games. 3rd ECF finals appearance in 4 years (2012, 2014, and 2015).
TB- Round 1- defeated DET in 7 games. Round 2- defeated MTL in 6 games. 3rd ECF finals appearance in franchise history (2004, 2011, and 2015)- first time since 2011.
New York Rangers have home ice advantage.
Henrik Lundqvist is still searching for his first Stanley Cup. Yes, that’s hard to believe for a goalie of his caliber, but it’s true. He’s run into other teams on great runs, most notably the team the New York Rangers just beat on Wednesday night, the Washington Capitals. Some hockey writers argue that Braden Holtby has shown that he can be considered an elite goaltender.
Wrong.
He needs another year of performing just like he did this year to cement his status as a potential elite goaltender (fear not, Washington fans- before you bust out the fisticuffs- I think he is capable of doing it, he just needs one more year of stellar play to be considered elite).
But anyway, back to Lundqvist. He’s backstopped the New York Rangers and kept them in many games throughout the first couple of rounds of the playoffs and it seems as though they are beginning to understand now that you need to score in order to win. And scoring more than one goal is a good thing. Lundqvist has a .944 SV% and a 1.60 GAA in 12 games played so far, whereas Tampa Bay Lightning goalie, Ben Bishop, has a .931 SV% and a 1.81 GAA in 13 GP.
Both goaltenders have been superb. Bishop’s current run reminds me of Tim Thomas’s 2011 Stanley Cup run with the Boston Bruins in that he has been a large factor in Tampa’s game. The Lightning have had sparks of brilliance when all four lines and all three defensive pairs are rolling right along and things are absolutely fantastic to watch. The Triplet Line aside, the Lightning still have an incredible roster of youth, sprinkled in with some veteran talent and experience.
Also of note in this year’s Eastern Conference Finals, there are numerous former Lightning players, now Rangers, and former Rangers, now Lightning, going head to head in this series. If that’s not enough alone to hype up, not only who won the trade (remember the Martin St. Louis fiasco?), but the sheer fact that those players were smart enough and lucky enough to leave one good team for another.
Despite the hype of the pure talent in the West, there is pure grit and heart in the East with amazing storylines of how careers came to be, were shaped, and how they currently are. St. Louis, Dan Boyle, and Dominic Moore all once spent time in Tampa. Brian Boyle, Ryan Callahan, and Anton Stralman have all spent time with the Rangers (please tell me you recall the St. Louis for Callahan trade now).
The Rangers are the current President’s Trophy champions are should show why they are, however have struggled to get the offensive power on full blast from a night to night basis. Their defense is solid and obviously their goaltending is the cream of the crop. Tampa, on the other hand, has leading goal scorer in the playoffs, Tyler Johnson, alongside the gifted goal scorer Steven Stamkos, and the rest of their powerful roster that can also score on any given night.
Tampa’s defense is similar to the Rangers, however Bishop certainly is no Lundqvist when it comes to the strength of their net. Should Bishop need to be pulled, Andrei Vasilevsky- A 20 YEAR OLD BACKUP GOALIE- certainly can play well, but is no match for New York’s backup, Cam Talbot (should Lundqvist have a rare off night when things count the most).
Forget Corsi in this series. Only three players (two from Tampa, one from New York) rank in the top 20 in the playoffs with at least 8 games played. But do remember goaltending, as New York ranks first in fewest goals against per game with 1.67 (Tampa ranks 5th with 2.15). Again, both goalies have left everyone in awe of their athleticism, but how will they respond facing even quicker teams than the ones they faced in the last round?
The Lightning have scored 2.62 goals for per game so far, meanwhile the Rangers only score about 2.00 goals for per game (15th out of the 16 teams in the playoffs, although technically they are tied for 13th, if that makes you feel better). Both penalty kills are evenly matched (NYR ranks 4th, TB ranks 6th) and as a matter of fact, so are their power play units (TB ranks 9th, NYR rank 11th).
No matter what, if the Rangers are going to win, they’re going to need their best players to start stepping up and holding their weight- Rick Nash. If the Lightning are going to win, they’re going to need to keep their momentum going and not get discouraged if Lundqvist robs them of a great scoring chance every now and then.
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Down the Frozen River 
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