The Original Trio wraps up this year’s Stanley Cup Final takes and final thoughts. Colby, Connor and Nick make their Vegas Golden Knights predictions known with the official Down the Frozen River mock 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. Also, Florida hired a new head coach and Colby ranted about Sidney Crosby.
Tag: NHL
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Boston eyeing Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin
The Boston Bruins and Minnesota Wild have been kicking the tires on a potential trade involving Boston’s 2017 1st round pick and Minnesota defenseman, Jonas Brodin, as first reported by CSNNE.
Brodin, 23, is a left shot defenseman, drafted 10th overall in 2011 (one spot after Dougie Hamilton) and is signed through 2020-2021 at an affordable $4,166,667 million AAV.
The Bruins could utilize the services of the young top-4 defenseman to ensure that they take their time to develop their plethora of prospects, while implementing young guns, Brandon Carlo and Charlie McAvoy full time on the blue line next season.
With free agency potentially looming for pending UFA John-Michael Liles and RFA Joe Morrow, the Bruins would be wise to make a move to acquire a top-4 defenseman, given the Vegas Golden Knights could be eyeing Colin Miller, Kevan Miller and/or Adam McQuaid as at least one of them is likely to be exposed and ripe for the picking in this year’s Expansion Draft.
A player like Brodin could fill the role of guiding Boston’s young defense through some of the early learning curves of their career and transition to the NHL, as well as balance the immense load of NHL minutes they are expecting to face.
Minnesota, on the other hand, is lacking a 1st round pick, thanks to the Martin Hanzal trade at this year’s trade deadline and would love to 1) boost their prospect pool and 2) unload Brodin from their roster.
While Brodin hasn’t panned out exactly as planned– he has 18-61-79 totals in 331 career games played– a change of scenery might just be exactly what he needs.
Or maybe he’ll be a smart investment as a tactically sound defenseman that’s not expected to put up points like Torey Krug, but rather keep the puck moving out of the defensive zone and strengthen the youth movement for Boston with 40-year-old captain Zdeno Chara entering a contract year (though Chara has indicated a desire to continue playing past next season in the Hub).
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Down the Frozen River Podcast #62– The Original Three
The Original Trio discusses the ongoing Stanley Cup Final and all of Smashville’s boisterous madness. Additionally discussed, delay of game penalties, Pekka Rinne, Matthew Murray, Marc-Andre Fleury, the latest shockwave out of Seattle and the upcoming Expansion Draft procedure for the Vegas Golden Knights.
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Down the Frozen River Podcast #61– Fight Coach
Nick and Connor discuss the ongoing 2017 Stanley Cup Final matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Nashville Predators, as well as Conn Smythe picks, St. Louis’s surprising coaching moves and more. Also professed, Connor’s love for tennis.
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Penguins rout Predators 4-1 in Game 2
2017 Stanley Cup Final– Game Two Recap
Rookie Jake Guentzel continued to dominate the Stanley Cup Final spotlight as he scored two goals— including the game winner— en route to a 4-1 victory for the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 2 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final. Nashville Predators goaltender, Pekka Rinne, continued to live in the midst of a nightmare at PPG Paints Arena on Wednesday night and was chased in the 3rd period.
Penguins goaltender, Matthew Murray, made 37 saves on 38 shots faced for a .974 SV% in the win, while Rinne surrendered four goals on 25 shots against (21 saves) for an .840 SV% in 43:28 played. Juuse Saros made 2 saves on 2 shots faced in the remaining 16:32 of regulation for Nashville.
Continuing the recent string of lackluster officiating and dumb penalties, Craig Smith earned the first penalty of the night for cross checking Ian Cole, but Pittsburgh wasn’t able to convert on the man advantage.
Matt Irwin got away with a non-call shortly thereafter, when he delivered a hit from behind to the numbers of Pittsburgh’s Matt Cullen. The nastiness exchanged in that hit would reverberate throughout the rest of the game.
Chris Kunitz cross checked P.K. Subban in the head while Evgeni Malkin earned a minor penalty for tripping Subban’s defensive partner, Mattias Ekholm, with 10:24 to go in the 1st period. Nashville failed to convert on their short-lived 5-on-3 power play, thanks to captain, Mike Fisher’s interference infraction against Cole less than a minute into the two-man advantage.
The Penguins were not successful on their short power play.
Almost 13 minutes into the 1st period, Pontus Aberg (2) skated in on a breakaway, dragged Murray out of position and fired the puck top shelf to give the Predators a 1-0 lead. Viktor Arvidsson (9) and Fisher (3) had the assists on what became Nashville’s only goal of the game.
Roman Josi got a little carried away and promptly cross checked Conor Sheary a little over 90 seconds after Aberg scored.
In keeping with the theme of the night for Pittsburgh’s special teams, the Pens were unsuccessful on the ensuing power play, however, Guentzel (11) found the twine on a soft goal four seconds after the man advantage had expired. Sheary (5) and Kunitz (6) shared the assists on the goal that made it a 1-1 game heading into the first intermission.
Nashville led in shots on goal, 18-12, hits, 18-11, and won 74% of the faceoffs drawn in the first 20 minutes. Pittsburgh led in blocked shots, 6-3, takeaways, 2-1, and giveaways, 1-0 entering the first intermission.
The 2nd period was a long battle for puck possession and quality shots, but Murray and Rinne stood tall through 40 minutes of play.
With the score still tied, 1-1, entering the 3rd period, something was about to give, though nobody could’ve imagined the game unfolding the way it did for the Preds, considering their 32-19 shot advantage after two periods.
Just ten seconds into the 3rd period, Guentzel (12) scored his 2nd goal of the game. Bryan Rust (2) and Ron Hainsey (5) were credited with the assists on the goal that had made it 2-1 Pittsburgh. Guentzel’s two-goal night gave him 19 points this postseason— the most in NHL history among U.S. born rookies. Additionally, he is two goals shy of Dino Ciccarelli’s record of 14 goals as a rookie in one postseason set back in 1981 with the Minnesota North Stars.
Scott Wilson (3) made it a 3-1 game on a fluke goal at 3:13 of the 3rd period. Phil Kessel (13) and Cullen (7) had the primary and secondary assists.
Nearly 20 seconds later, Malkin (9) snapped a wrist shot past Rinne to make it 4-1 Penguins. Nashville head coach, Peter Laviolette, made the decision to pull Rinne in favor of Saros after Pittsburgh scored just their second goal in 19 seconds (and third of the 3rd period). The assists on Malkin’s goal went to Kunitz (7) and Cole (8).
For the remainder of regulation, Aberg picked up a slashing minor at 4:51 of the 3rd, Sidney Crosby was assessed an interference infraction at 9:20, Malkin and Subban fought 12:14 into the 3rd, Cody McLeod interfered with Trevor Daley with less than two minutes remaining in the game and Kunitz slashed Ekholm once more for good measure.
To summarize, a bunch of penalties were called, but neither the Penguins nor the Predators were able to capitalize on their special teams chances.
At the final horn, the Penguins had secured the 2-0 series lead with a 4-1 win on home ice. Nashville finished the night with more shots on goal (38-27), hits (41-35) and giveaways (4-3), while Pittsburgh led in blocked shots, 20-8.
The visiting Predators were 0/4 on the power play in Game 2, meanwhile the Penguins were a dismal 0/7 on the man advantage, Wednesday night.
Rinne’s struggles from Game 1 translated into Game 2, having allowed four goals on six scoring chances in the loss and amassing a .778 SV% through two games of this year’s Stanley Cup Final. No indication has been made as to whether or not Laviolette is considering a goaltending change for Game 3.
The series now shifts to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, where Game 3 is set to take place on Saturday night. Puck drop is scheduled for a little after 8 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can tune in to NBCSN for coverage. Fans in Canada will have their array of CBC, Sportsnet and TVA Sports to choose from once again, so check your local listings.
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Penguins trounce Predators 5-3 in Game 1
2017 Stanley Cup Final– Game One Recap
Comebacks are a bit of Peter Laviolette’s specialty. That is until Monday night when Nashville Predators head coach, Laviolette, faced fellow Massachusetts native and Pittsburgh Penguins head coach, Mike Sullivan in Game 1 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final.
Sullivan coaxed his Penguins to the 5-3 victory on home ice— staving off a looming Predators comeback at PPG Paints Arena.
Jake Guentzel scored the game winning goal late in the 3rd period before Nick Bonino added an empty net goal for good measure, securing the win for Pittsburgh goaltender Matthew Murray.
Murray made 23 saves on 26 shots against for an .885 save percentage in the win, while Nashville’s Pekka Rinne stopped 7 out of 11 shots faced for a .636 SV% in the loss.
This year’s Stanley Cup Final begins with controversy, though of a different kind from what you’re probably thinking about (a borderline hit, a blown call or whatever). No, this year’s Stanley Cup Final began with a coach’s challenge that drastically turned the momentum of Game 1 on its side.
P.K. Subban thought he had scored his 3rd goal of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs early in the 1st period, but after Sullivan challenged the call on the ice, the refs determined that prior to the puck entering the net, the Predators had entered the zone offside.
The review lasted 4:12 and was the 19th coach’s challenge of the 2017 postseason. It was only the 5th to result in the call on the ice being overturned.
Sullivan, of note, is 2-for-2 in the successful outcome of having utilized his coach’s challenge this postseason.
With 6:10 to go in the 1st period, Calle Jarnkrok and James Neal took coinciding minor penalties for interference and cross checking, respectively, resulting in a 5-on-3 power play for the Penguins.
It didn’t take long for Pittsburgh to capitalize on the two man advantage, as Evgeni Malkin (8) opened up scoring on a power play goal. Trevor Daley (3) and Sidney Crosby (14) assisted the goal that made it 1-0 Penguins.
Conor Sheary (1) followed suit with a goal of his own less than a minute later on a tremendous no look pass from Chris Kunitz. Sheary’s one timer goal from the side of the net made it a 2-0 game and was assisted by Kunitz (4) and Crosby (15).
Bonino (3) capped off the three goal 1st period for Pittsburgh, scoring his first of two goals on the night with 17 seconds left in the period after throwing a shot near Nashville’s goal before it deflected off of Predators defenseman, Mattias Ekholm, and in. Brian Dumoulin (3) collected the only assist on Bonino’s goal.
After 20 minutes of play, the Penguins led 3-0 on the scoreboard, while the Predators led in just about every other category, including shots on goal (11-8).
Nashville was unsuccessful on their first power play opportunity of the night almost four minutes into the 2nd period, but they wouldn’t be fooled again for the rest of the night on the man advantage.
Almost a minute after the Penguins killed off Olli Maatta’s interference minor, Ian Cole was sent to the penalty box for roughing Jarnkrok after a stoppage in play.
With Viktor Arvidsson screening Pittsburgh’s net minder, Ryan Ellis (5) unloaded a shot past Murray with 18 seconds left on the ensuing power play and cut the lead to two. Subban (9) and Mike Fisher (1) recorded the assists on the power play goal, which made it 3-1. Fisher’s assist snapped a career worst 16-games without a point in the playoffs.
Entering the 2nd intermission, the Predators trailed 3-1 despite outshooting the Penguins 20-8 in the game and 9-0 in the 2nd period alone. That’s right, Pittsburgh failed to record a shot on goal in the 2nd period. Nashville became the first team to hold an opponent to 0 shots on goal in a period in a Stanley Cup Final game since the NHL officially began tracking the stat in the 1957-1958 season.
Mounting a comeback effort in the 3rd period, Colton Sissons (6) redirected a shot behind Murray on a power play with 9:54 to go in regulation. Roman Josi found a loose puck as a result of a botched pass attempt from Jarnkrok and fired the puck on goal after Nashville won the offensive zone face-off on a power play, thanks to Malkin’s slashing minor against Subban. Josi (6) and Jarnkrok (3) were credited with the primary and secondary assists.
Trailing by a goal, the last thing the Preds wanted to do was take a stupid penalty. Thankfully, the Penguins weren’t able to convert on Subban’s delay of game minor penalty for sending the puck over the glass.
Shortly after killing off Subban’s penalty, Frederick Gaudreau (1) notched his first career Stanley Cup Playoff goal and tied the game, 3-3, with 6:31 to go in regulation.
The assists on Gaudreau’s goal went to Austin Watson (3) and Fisher (2).
Exactly 37 minutes after Bonino made it a 3-0 game, the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded their 9th shot on goal. And it wasn’t just any shot from the Pens. It was also a goal, this time on a wrist shot from the rookie, Guentzel (10) with 3:17 to go in the 3rd period. Again, that’s two shots in a span of 37 minutes between the 1st period and the 3rd period (and both shots were goals).
Matt Cullen (6) and Justin Schultz (8) picked up the assists on Guentzel’s game winning goal that had made it a 4-3 game.
Prior to becoming the hero of Game 1, Guentzel had “been getting really frustrated lately” as a result of his recent point skid— or more accurately, his recent goal skid— which put him in the fourth line spot that he was playing on Monday night, per our in house Penguins beat Down the Frozen River contributor, Connor Keith.
Finally, Bonino (4) doused the hopes of yet another rallying effort by Nashville with an empty net goal at 18:58 of the 3rd period. Kunitz (5) had the only assist on the goal that made it an untouchable 5-3 game.
At the final horn, the Penguins held on to win Game 1, despite trailing in nearly every important statistical category not including the final score. Nashville outshot Pittsburgh 26-12, led in blocked shots, 14-9, and hits, 37-31. The Penguins dominated the face-off dot on the night winning 58% of face-offs taken.
Pittsburgh finished the night 1/3 on the power play, while Nashville had marginally better success, converting on two of their three (2/3) man advantage opportunities on Monday.
The Penguins take a 1-0 series lead heading into Wednesday night for Game 2 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final on home ice. Puck drop at PPG Paints Arena is scheduled for a little after 8 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can tune in to NBCSN for coverage, while Canadian viewers have their choice of CBC, SN or TVA Sports.
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Down the Frozen River Podcast #60– Beating a Dead Horse
Nick and Connor discuss the ongoing Conference Finals matchups after Pittsburgh beat Ottawa 7-0 on Sunday. Additionally, the GM of the Year finalists are discussed. A weird trip into horse racing occurs and lends itself to a challenge for Pierre McGuire.
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Stanley Cup Playoffs: Conference Finals– May 20
Nashville Predators at Anaheim Ducks– Game 5
The Nashville Predators are one win away from continuing to make franchise history and advancing to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final thanks to a 3-1 victory against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Saturday night.
Nashville’s Pontus Aberg scored the game winning goal in the 3rd period and Pekka Rinne made 32 saves on 33 shots faced for a .970 save percentage in the win. Anaheim goaltenders, John Gibson and Jonathan Bernier split time in goal, as Gibson left the game after the 1st period with a lower body injury.
Gibson stopped all 10 shots he faced in the 1st period, while Bernier made 16 saves on 18 shots against for an .889 SV% in the final two periods of play.
The Predators take a 3-2 series lead back home to Bridgestone Arena for Game 6. Nashville can advance to their first Stanley Cup Final in franchise history with a win on Monday night.
After 20 minutes of play, the game was still tied, 0-0. Shots on goal were even, 10-10, and the Ducks were leading in hits, 15-13, as well as giveaways, 4-3. Nashville led in blocked shots, 7-6 and went 0/1 on the power play, while Anaheim went 0/2 on the man advantage in the 1st period.
Chris Wagner (2) kicked off the game’s first goal at 12:46 of the 2nd period to give the Ducks a 1-0 lead. Wagner promptly fired a shot on a rebound off of Rinne’s glove after Brandon Montour had initially threw the puck on goal. Montour (7) and Jakob Silfverberg (5) collected the assists on the goal.
Filip Forsberg took a penalty for hooking Sami Vatanen with six minutes remaining in the 2nd period. Anaheim failed to convert on the man advantage and took a penalty of their own when Josh Manson was sent to the box for cross checking Forsberg shortly after he was released from the sin bin.
Nashville was on the power play for just the second time of the night, trailing 1-0 on the scoreboard until Colin Wilson (2) was at the right place at the right time. With less than a minute remaining in the period (and almost 10 seconds left on the power play),
P.K. Subban shot the puck from the point, only to have it blocked before it could reach the net. That’s when Colton Sissons freed the loose puck and found Wilson in the slot, who then threw the rubber biscuit on goal and beat Bernier to tie the game 1-1 at 19:19 of the 2nd period.
After 40 minutes of play, the Ducks led 23-21 in shots on goal, 13-11 in blocked shots, 26-19 in hits, 5-2 in takeaways and 10-7 in giveaways, but the scoreboard still read 1-1. Statistically speaking, Nashville was close, but not too close.
Scoring chance for scoring chance was matched by each team through the first 10 minutes of the 3rd period. The Predators caught Anaheim’s defense lagging behind a play as they broke out on a rush, whereby Aberg crashed the net and dove for a rebound. Aberg (1) shot the puck while diving, leaving Bernier with no time to recover and square up to the shot in desperation.
Aberg gave Nashville their first lead of the night, 2-1, at 11:01 of the 3rd period. Forsberg (6) and Mattias Ekholm (8) were credited with the assists. The goal was Aberg’s first career Stanley Cup Playoff goal. He has one career regular season goal that he scored back in November, while also amassing 31 goals for the Milwaukee Admirals (t-3rd in the AHL) this season.
Bernier was forced to vacate his net in the closing minute of the game for the extra attacker as the Ducks were desperate to defend their home ice advantage. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned, as Nashville’s Austin Watson (2) stumbled upon a loose puck and fired it on goal from his just about the blue line in his own zone.
Watson’s empty net goal was unassisted at 19:12 of the 3rd period and put Nashville up by two goals.
The Predators finished the game 1/2 on the power play, while Anaheim failed to score on all four of their special teams advantages. The physical series has continued to claim more casualties, as Gibson indicated he would be good to go for Game 6, but is officially pending evaluation before Ducks head coach, Randy Carlyle makes a decision.
Anaheim led in shots on goal, 33-29, blocked shots 18-15, hits 32-25 and in giveaways 15-13 at the conclusion of Game 5 on Saturday night.
With the 3-1 victory, the Predators take a 3-2 series lead into Game 6— on home ice— Monday night in Nashville. Puck drop is scheduled for a little after 8 p.m. ET. Fans looking to watch the game can tune to NBCSN in the United States, while Canadians can catch the action on CBC and/or TVA Sports.
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Down the Frozen River Podcast #59– We’re Baseball Guys Now
Colby makes his return to the podcast for the first time since… Anyway, Nick and Colby discuss the ongoing 2017 Eastern and Western Conference Finals matchups between Pittsburgh and Ottawa, as well as Anaheim and Nashville. Nick makes several plugs for brands that should sponsor the podcast and invites Ilya Bryzgalov to join the show for an episode. Also discussed, Buffalo stuff and why Dallas shouldn’t trade the 3rd overall pick.
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Stanley Cup Playoffs: Conference Finals– May 18
Anaheim Ducks at Nashville Predators– Game 4
Corey Perry and the Anaheim Ducks bursted the Nashville Predators undefeated at Bridgestone Arena this postseason bubble with a 3-2 victory in overtime in Game 4 of the 2017 Western Conference Finals.
In short, the series is now a best-of-three scenario as it is now tied, 2-2, heading back to Honda Center in Anaheim for Game 5.
Ducks goaltender, John Gibson made 32 saves on 34 shots against for a .941 save percentage in the win, while Predators goalie, Pekka Rinne stopped 34 out of 37 shots faced for a .919 SV% in the loss.
Rickard Rakell (7) opened the game’s scoring on a slap shot from outside the slot and just over the blue line after catching the Predators in the midst of a line change to give the Ducks a 1-0 lead. Cam Fowler (7) had the sole assist on Rakell’s goal.
After 20 minutes of play, Anaheim led 1-0 on the scoreboard and held Nashville to just two shots on goal in the 1st period. As a result, the Ducks set a franchise record for fewest shots against in a playoff period (2). The previous record was three back in the 1st period of Game 5 of the 2015 Western Conference Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Both Nashville and Anaheim went 0/1 on the power play entering the first intermission.
The Ducks extended their lead to two goals when Nick Ritchie (4) used Roman Josi as a screen against Rinne, then toe dragged the puck out of Josi’s reach to snipe a wrist shot top shelf on the glove side. Nate Thompson (4) and Sami Vatanen (3) were credited with the primary and secondary assists on the goal that made it 2-0 Anaheim.
Officials put away the whistles for the 2nd period, as no penalties were called, which would only provide for more scrutiny later in the game when several calls were made against the Ducks and a non-call that probably should’ve been a penalty against the Predators indirectly led to the game tying goal in the final minute of regulation.
After Nashville had an abysmal two shots on goal (compared to Anaheim’s 14 SOG) in the 1st period, the Predators picked up their offensive efforts in the 2nd period, outshooting the Ducks 18-12. Anaheim still led in total shots on goal, though, 26-20 after 40 minutes of play.
Trailing 2-0 at the start of the 3rd period, the Nashville Predators remained calm, as they had been there before this postseason, having trailed by the same score to the Blackhawks in the First Round before coming back and winning in regulation.
Anaheim could not convert on their final power play opportunity of the night about a quarter of the way into the 3rd period.
After being given two power play opportunities of their own about midway through the 3rd, the Predators had no luck on the man advantage, but had begun racking up the minutes of offensive zone time.
P.K. Subban (2) received a pass from Colin Wilson (2) and fired home a slap shot to cut the lead in half and make it a 2-1 game at 13:33 of the 3rd period. The already rambunctious fans in attendance at Bridgestone Arena only became louder as the Predators begun to smell a possible comeback. Viktor Arvidsson (7) had the secondary assist on Subban’s 2nd goal of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Kevin Bieksa’s high sticking infraction was quickly followed up by Anaheim’s Josh Manson’s slashing minor penalty, resulting in a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:31 with 4:38 remaining in regulation for the Preds.
Anaheim’s penalty killing unit was successful at killing off both minor penalties before Nashville could tie the game.
With less than a minute in regulation, the Predators won an offensive zone face-off and fired a barrage of shots at Gibson.
Ryan Johansen appeared to get away with a cross check to the back of one of Anaheim’s skaters, before contributing on what would end up setting up the final goal of regulation
Filip Forsberg (7) tied the game, 2-2, with his followup in front of the goal, beating Gibson to the puck before he could freeze it. Arvidsson (8) and James Neal (2) collected the helpers on the game tying goal with 34.5 seconds to go in the 3rd period.
Forsberg now has four goals in four games thus far in the series.
Nashville was mounting a comeback riding the momentum of the final 13 and a half minutes of regulation. Shots on goal were even at 31-31 after 60 minutes of play. Nashville led in blocked shots 18-15 and in giveaways 10-9, while Anaheim led in hits 28-27 and takeaways 9-6 heading into the overtime intermission.
Game 4 became just the 26th playoff game of the 2017 postseason to require overtime (two games shy of the record— 28 overtime games— set in 1993).
A little past halfway into the overtime period, Perry (4) fired a shot in the direction of the goal as a hard charging teammate, Thompson, was crashing the goal. Instead of setting up a one-timer, the puck deflected off of Nashville defenseman Subban’s stick and past Rinne to secure the 3-2 victory for the Ducks.
Perry’s game winning goal was unassisted at 10:25 of overtime and tied the series 2-2.
Anaheim finished the game leading in shots on goal 37-34, blocked shots 20-19 and giveaways 12-10, while both teams were even in hits 30-30. Neither team scored a power play goal on Thursday night, as Nashville went 0/5 on the man advantage and Anaheim went 0/2.
Puck drop for Game 5 at Honda Center back in Anaheim is scheduled for a little after 7:15 p.m. ET on Saturday night. Viewers looking to watch the game in the United States can tune to NBC, while Canadian fans can catch the game on CBC and/or TVA Sports.
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