Tag: Nick Bonino

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NHL Nick's Net

Bruins beat Sharks in first meeting in almost two years

Jake DeBrusk’s second period goal proved to be the game-winner as the Boston Bruins withstood a third period surge and held off the San Jose Sharks in a, 4-3, victory at TD Garden on Sunday afternoon.

Linus Ullmark (2-0-0, 2.00 goals-against average, .935 save percentage in two games played) turned aside 23 out of 26 shots against in the win for the Bruins.

Meanwhile, Adin Hill (3-1-0, 2.93 goals-against average, .890 save percentage in four games played) and James Reimer (1-0-0, 0.65 goals-against average, .980 save percentage in two games played) split the effort in the loss for the Sharks.

Hill made 10 saves on 14 shots faced for a .714 save percentage in 25:41 time on ice before he was replaced by Reimer, who stopped all 20 shots against in relief.

Boston improved to 3-1-0 (six points) on the season and– at the time of this writing– moved into 3rd place in the Atlantic Division, while San Jose dropped to 4-1-0 (eight points) overall and remained in command of 2nd place in the Pacific Division standings.

The B’s also improved to 2-0-0 at home this season, as well as 25-12-5-0 all time against the Sharks in 42 regular season meetings.

The Bruins were without the services of Curtis Lazar (upper body), Nick Foligno (upper body), Anton Blidh (upper body) and Craig Smith (undisclosed) on Sunday afternoon.

Foligno was placed on injured reserve, while Jack Studnicka and Oskar Steen were recalled from the Providence Bruins (AHL). Veteran defender, John Moore, was assigned to Providence as a result.

B’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, told reporters prior to Sunday’s matinee with San Jose that Foligno and Blidh are unlikely to play in the team’s upcoming road trip on Wednesday and Thursday.

As a result of the recent rash of injuries, Cassidy continued to tweak to his lineup, promoting Tomáš Nosek to center the second line and sliding Charlie Coyle to the right wing in place of Smith as a result.

Cassidy inserted Steen on the third line in Nosek’s usual spot and returned Trent Frederic to the fourth line left wing with Studnicka at center and Karson Kuhlman on the right wing.

On defense, Connor Clifton returned to his spot on the third pairing alongside Derek Forbort with Moore assigned to Providence.

Jakub Zboril was the only healthy scratch on Sunday.

It only took 28 seconds into the action on Sunday afternoon for David Pastrnak to work the puck to Patrice Bergeron through the trapezoid behind the net before Bergeron found Brad Marchand (4) in the high slot for a catch and release goal to give the Bruins a, 1-0, lead.

Bergeron (2) and Pastrnak (3) notched the assists on Marchand’s goal as Boston got off to a fast start in the first period.

Less than a few minutes later, Clifton worked the puck to Marchand, who sent the rubber biscuit along the point to Forbort (1) for a wrist shot that floated past Hill’s blocker side as a Sharks defender partially screened his own goaltender– extending Boston’s lead to two-goals in the process.

Marchand (3) and Clifton (1) had the assists on Forbort’s first goal in a Bruins uniform and the B’s led, 2-0, at 3:18 of the first period.

Almost midway through the opening frame, Nosek tripped up Tomáš Hertl and cut a rut to the penalty box with a minor infraction at 9:44.

San Jose’s power play, however, could not convert on the skater advantage.

The Sharks got another chance on the power play moments later when Charlie McAvoy caught Logan Couture with a high stick at 13:01, but once again Boston’s penalty kill stood tall as Ullmark kept the puck out of the back of the net.

Shortly after killing off McAvoy’s minor, Brent Burns knocked down Taylor Hall away from the puck and was assessed and interference minor at 15:59– presenting the Bruins with their first power play of the afternoon as a result.

It didn’t take long for Boston to capitalize on the ensuing skater advantage as Bergeron rang a shot off the crossbar before setting up Pastrnak (2) for one of his trademark one-timer power-play goals from the faceoff circle– right above the dot– to give the Bruins a three-goal lead.

Bergeron (3) had the only assist on Pastrnak’s goal as the B’s extended their lead, 3-0, at 16:12 of the first period.

Less than a minute later, however, San Jose got on the scoreboard with a quick break into the attacking zone and a little bit of a give-and-go that resulted in a short side goal for Jasper Weatherby (2) to cut Boston’s lead back to two-goals.

Jonah Gadjovich (1) and Andrew Cogliano (2) tabbed the assists on Weatherby’s goal at 16:44. With the primary assist, Gadjovich recorded his first career National Hockey League point in his second career game (Gadjovich made his season debut with the Sharks on Sunday and appeared in one game last season for the Vancouver Canucks).

After one period of action, the Bruins led the Sharks, 3-1, on the scoreboard despite both teams amassing 11 shots on goal each.

Boston also held the advantage in blocked shots (10-2), while San Jose led the way in takeaways (3-1), giveaways (4-3), hits (13-7) and faceoff win percentage (58-42).

The Sharks were 0/2 and the Bruins were 1/1 on the power play heading into the first intermission.

Early in the middle frame, Forbort sent Steen up through the neutral zone on a rush with DeBrusk before Steen bounced an indirect pass to DeBrusk off the boards.

DeBrusk (2) entered the attacking zone and wired a shot over Hill’s glove to put Boston ahead by three goals once more, 4-1, at 5:41 of the second period.

Steen (1) and Forbort (1) recorded the assists, marking the first career NHL point for Steen and the first assist as a Bruin for Forbort in the process.

Sharks head coach, Bob Boughner, replaced Hill with Reimer as a result of DeBrusk’s goal and tried to spur momentum in San Jose’s favor as a result of the goalie change.

Late in the period, Nick Bonino and Clifton exchanged pleasantries in a post-whistle scrum that resulted in minor penalties for roughing for each player as well as an addition two minutes for slashing for Bonino at 17:29.

As a result, the Bruins finished off most of the rest of the second period on the power play, though they couldn’t muster anything past Reimer as the second intermission commenced.

Through 40 minutes of action, the B’s led, 4-1, on the scoreboard and, 22-16, in shots on goal, including an, 11-5, advantage in the second period alone.

Boston also held the advantage in blocked shots (12-6), while San Jose led in takeaways (8-5), giveaways (10-5), hits (20-13) and faceoff win% (53-48).

The Sharks were still 0/2 on the power play, while the Bruins dropped to 1/2 on the skater advantage heading into the final frame.

With tensions rising as the second period came to an end, Frederic and Jacob Middleton kicked things off in the third period with five-minute majors for fighting at 3:02 of the final frame in the first fight of the 2021-22 calendar for Boston.

Less than a couple of minutes later, Mario Ferraro took an interference penalty at 5:48 of the third period, but the Bruins weren’t able to capitalize on the final power play of the afternoon.

Midway through the third, the Sharks scored a pair of quick goals as Hertl (2) deflected a shot from Marc-Edouard Vlasic at the point amidst net front traffic to pull San Jose back to within two goals, 4-2, at 13:19.

Vlasic (2) and Alexander Barabanov (1) tallied the assists on Hertl’s goal.

Minutes later, Timo Meier (3) redirected a shot from Couture from outside the slot to bring the Sharks to a one-goal deficit, 4-3, at 15:08 of the third period.

Couture (5) and Burns (4) had the assists on Meier’s goal which was reviewed for a high stick, but determined to be a good goal– the call on the ice was confirmed.

Boston’s lead had shrunk to a close, 4-3, game in the dying minutes of Sunday’s action.

Boughner pulled Reimer for an extra attacker with 1:45 remaining in the game and used his timeout with 1:02 left on the clock after a stoppage, but it wasn’t enough to rally his team to force overtime (at least) as the Bruins managed to hold off San Jose’s comeback.

At the final horn, Boston had won, 4-3, and finished the afternoon leading in shots on goal, 34-26, including a, 12-10, advantage in the third period alone.

The Bruins finished the afternoon leading in blocked shots (14-6) and faceoff win% (52-48), while the Sharks exited TD Garden with the advantage in giveaways (16-7) and hits (25-23).

San Jose went 0/2 on the power play, while Boston went 1/3 on the skater advantage on Sunday.

The B’s improved to 3-0-0 (2-0-0 at home) when scoring the game’s first goal, 3-0-0 (2-0-0 at home) when leading after the first period and 2-0-0 (1-0-0 at home) when leading after two periods this season.

The Sharks dropped to 2-1-0 (1-1-0 on the road) when allowing the game’s first goal, 2-1-0 (1-1-0 on the road) when trailing after one period and 0-1-0 (0-1-0 on the road) when trailing after the second period in 2021-22 as a result of the loss.

The Bruins hit the road for a pair of games against the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes at FLA Live Arena on Wednesday and PNC Arena on Thursday, respectively, before returning home to finish the month of October against the Panthers on Saturday (Oct. 30th).

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NHL Nick's Net Previews

Minnesota Wild 2021-22 Season Preview

2020-21 record 35-16-5, 75 points

3rd in the Honda NHL West Division

Eliminated in the First Round by Vegas

Additions: F Frédérick Gaudreau, F Dominic Turgeon, D Jordie Benn, D Kevin Czuczman, D Alex Goligoski, D Joe Hicketts, D Dmitry Kulikov, D Jon Lizotte, D Jon Merrill

Subtractions: F Nick Bonino (signed with SJS), F Gabriel Dumont (signed with TBL), F Marcus Johansson (signed with SEA), F Luke Johnson (signed with WPG), F Gerald Mayhew (signed with PHI), F Zach Parise (buyout, signed with NYI), F Dmitry Sokolov (NMHL), D Matt Bartkowski (signed to a PTO with PIT), D Louie Belpedio (signed with MTL), D Ian Cole (signed with CAR), D Brad Hunt (signed with VAN), D Brennan Menell (traded to TOR), D Carson Soucy (expansion, SEA), D Ryan Suter (buyout, signed with DAL)

Still Unsigned: D Ian McCoshen

Re-signed: F Will Bitten, F Nick Bjugstad, F Joseph Cramarossa, F Brandon Duhaime, F Joel Eriksson Ek, F Kevin Fiala, F Kirill Kaprizov, F Kyle Rau, F Mason Shaw, D Dakota Mermis, G Andrew Hammond

Offseason Analysis: It took all summer, but it didn’t linger into the fall as Wild General Manager, Bill Guerin, and forward, Kirill Kaprizov, were able to hammer out a five-year extension worth $9.000 million per season– forcing this entire offseason recap/season preview to be re-written.

Going into Tuesday, Minnesota was bound to receive a letter grade in the “D” range for failing to secure Kaprizov before training camp, despite a few other moves that have actually been pretty good for them– salary cap penalties via buyouts aside.

Late Tuesday, Kaprizov re-signed and all is just about forgiven for the Wild.

Since joining the league as an expansion team in 2000, Minnesota has rarely had a competitive team that can make a deep run into the postseason. They’ve consistently been good, but never good enough.

Marian Gaborik came and went, Mikko Koivu stayed loyal until he joined the Columbus Blue Jackets for a brief stint last season prior to retiring less than a month into the 2020-21 schedule and then the dawn of the Kaprizov Era began.

After spending time in the Kontinental Hockey League for his early development, Kaprizov amassed 27-24–51 totals in 55 games in his debut season with Minnesota as a 24-year-old left wing.

He’s the real deal and the Wild are leaning into it.

Though Nick Bonino, Marcus Johansson and others weren’t re-signed as part of Minnesota’s depth that got them all the way to a Game 7 at T-Mobile Arena against the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2021 First Round, Guerin held things down where it counts– the core.

Joel Eriksson Ek signed an eight-year extension worth $5.250 million per season after a breakout season with 30 points (19 goals, 11 assists) in 56 games last season after amassing 8-21–29 totals in 62 games in 2019-20.

If the last two seasons are an indication of what’s to come, then the Wild have a steal of a deal in Eriksson Ek’s cap hit as the 24-year-old emerges in his prime.

Guerin brought back Kevin Fiala on a one-year extension worth $5.100 million– retaining restricted-free agency status over the 25-year-old forward heading into next offseason– after putting up 101 points (46 goals, 55 assists) in 133 games with the Wild in parts of three seasons since he was acquired on Feb. 25, 2019.

In parts of five seasons with the Nashville Predators from 2014-15 through 2018-19, Fiala had 45-52–97 totals in 204 games.

Don’t fix what isn’t broken, because clearly something is clicking in Minnesota and the Wild are reaping the benefits.

Alex Goligoski and Jon Merrill are fine additions to the defense, though as for how efficient they’ll be compared to the loss of Ryan Suter remains to be seen.

Guerin bought out the remainder of Zach Parise and Suter’s matching contracts on July 13, 2021, and in doing so saved Minnesota some valuable cap space to sign Kaprizov and build off of the new core.

That said, Parise and Suter will cost the Wild about $4.744 million in dead cap space for 2021-22, then $12.744 million in dead cap space in 2022-23, before the buyout penalties reach a crescendo with a combined $14.744 million in dead cap money from 2023-24 through 2024-25 before Parise and Suter’s penalties taper off with a combined cost of $1.667 million in 2025-26, as well as 2026-27.

This offseason might have been a breeze, but next offseason is a different story– especially as building and maintaining contender status gets difficult in the next few seasons too.

Ultimately, the cost of buying out Parise and Suter may or may not even be a headache for Guerin to deal with. It all depends on how the team performs between now and a couple of seasons from now.

For now, Guerin has about $3.215 million in cap space to play with for the 2021-22 season.

Over the summer, the Seattle Kraken formed their first roster and did Minnesota a favor without asking.

Seattle could’ve selected Kaapo Kähkönen, since the Wild protected Cam Talbot, but the Kraken went in a different direction and snagged Carson Soucy from Minnesota’s depth on the blue line.

Offseason Grade: B+

Though it took a little longer than both sides had probably hoped– and with more frustration than expected– Guerin re-signed his No. 1 priority in Kaprizov before the start of training camp.

The biggest challenge for Minnesota– other than improving on last season’s success before a First Round exit– is finding a way to keep the band together next offseason, when Fiala, Jordan Greenway and Kähkönen are on the short list of important pending-restricted free agents.

Meanwhile, guys like Victor Rask, Nick Bjugstad, Kyle Rau, Nico Sturm, Goligoski, Jordie Benn and Merrill have a little more flexibility to come and go as they please– assuming there’s enough cap space in face of the Parise and Suter buyout penalty crunch on top of what might still be a flat cap for the 2022-23 season due to the ongoing pandemic.

At the very least, 2023-24 should be a bit more optimistic with the latest U.S. broadcasting rights deals for ESPN and Turner Sports inflating league revenue all-around and likely bumping up the salary cap as a result.

For now, Minnesota’s transition continues, but for once there’s a sense of stability given their best players are 25 and under and enjoy being in a Wild uniform.

Though they didn’t bring the alleged “State of Hockey” a Stanley Cup championship in their tenure, Parise and Suter made playing for Minnesota cool as the franchise found its footing now entering its second generation.

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NHL Nick's Net Previews

San Jose Sharks 2021-22 Season Preview

2020-21 record 21-28-7, 49 points

7th in the Honda NHL West Division

Missed the postseason for the second-straight year

Additions: F Nick Bonino, F Andrew Cogliano, F Nick Merkley (acquired from NJD), F Lane Pederson, D Jaycob Megna, G Adin Hill (acquired from ARI), G James Reimer

Subtractions: F Kurtis Gabriel (signed with TOR), F Fredrik Händemark (KHL), F Maxim Letunov (signed with CAR), F Marcus Sörensen (SHL), F Alex True (expansion, SEA), D Christian Jaros (traded to NJD), D Greg Pateryn (signed with ANA), G Martin Jones (buyout), G Josef Korenar (traded to ARI)

Still Unsigned: F Ryan Donato, F Noah Gregor (RFA), F Patrick Marleau

Re-signed: F Rüdolfs Balcers, F Joachim Blichfeld, F Jonathan Dahlén, F Dylan Gambrell, F Matt Nieto, F Jeffrey Viel, D Nicolas Meloche

Offseason Analysis: The Sharks have been quiet– too quiet– this offseason for a team that proclaims they’re “definitely not rebuilding” and “totally going to be back in the playoffs in 2022”.

Whether you buy into the speculation that Tomas Hertl is going to be shopped by the team or not, there is some uneasiness in the dressing room as Evander Kane’s bankruptcy court ongoings continue to unfurl in public amidst separation from his wife while San Jose is tight against the salary cap with about $3.361 million in cap space heading into the 2021-22 season.

Erik Karlsson’s made it known that he doesn’t want to experience another rebuild in his career– having been dealt to the Sharks originally as a casualty of the Ottawa Senators’ demise and subsequent retool/rebuild.

It’s not hard to feel empathy for the precarious position that Doug Wilson is in as General Manager, though it’s through much of his own doing.

For starters, Karlsson carries an $11.500 million cap hit through the 2026-27 season, which contributed to Joe Pavelski leaving for the Dallas Stars via free agency on July 1, 2019, and with it San Jose’s character amongst the Sharks’ leadership core.

Kane carries a $7.000 million cap hit through 2024-25, though he may reach a termination agreement at any point in time with San Jose to restructure his debt and may or may not end up signing for much less as a result with the Sharks if he isn’t forced to take a step back from hockey to focus on that whole debt thing that keeps getting mentioned.

Seriously, we’re hoping for the best here.

Forced to make minor moves due to a stagnant salary cap, Wilson signed Matt Nieto to a two-year extension worth $850,000 per season and continued to fill out his middle of the lineup/bottom-six forwards with Andrew Cogliano and Nick Bonino via free agency.

Cogliano received a one-year, $1.000 million deal, while Bonino earned a two-year contract that carries a $2.050 million cap hit.

Nieto recorded three consecutive seasons of 20 or more points with the Colorado Avalanche from 2017-18 through 2019-20 as he experienced a career resurgence as a bottom-six forward, prior to amassing 5-2–7 totals in 28 games last season with San Jose before a lower body injury cut his 2020-21 season short.

After spending the last few seasons in Dallas, Cogliano left the Stars for the Sharks in free agency after managing 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 54 games last season.

At this point, the 34-year-old center is just trying to hold onto what is likely the twilight of his career and looking for a way to either spice up his remaining playing days and extend his tenure in the league or find a way to be moved by the trade deadline to a Cup contender as the 14-year NHL veteran has only been to one Stanley Cup Final in his career thus far– losing in six games with Dallas to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020.

Bonino, on the other hand, brings some Cup winning experience to San Jose’s dressing room as the 33-year-old center won his first of two Cup rings with the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games against the Sharks in the 2016 Stanley Cup Final.

After winning back-to-back Cups in 2016 and 2017, with Pittsburgh, Bonino made his way to the Nashville Predators and, most recently, the Minnesota Wild, where he had 10-16–26 totals in 55 games while the Wild rose to prominence and endured a seven-game First Round series loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Bonino may be at the point where he bounces around the league every other season or so, but he’s shown that he can still prove to be a valuable piece down the middle as a glue guy, which is welcome news for San Jose as they look for Logan Couture and Hertl to remain steady as a 1-2 punch at center on the first and second lines.

Drafting William Eklund 7th overall in the 2021 NHL Draft, then signing him to a three-year entry-level contract was another quality move made by Wilson in the ongoing restructuring of the organization’s depth and future foundation.

Ranked as the No. 1 European skater by NHL Central Scouting, Eklund fell to the Sharks in the draft and could end up playing this season for San Jose. Sure it might be throwing him to the fire a bit early, but if he’s as good as he looked with Djurgårdens IF, then it’s worth it to spur the *ahem* rebuild in San Jose as he managed to have 11-12–23 totals in 40 games in the SHL last season.

But the biggest change this offseason for the Sharks comes in the crease, where San Jose has bought out Martin Jones– freeing themselves from his 15-13-4 record in 34 games last season, with a 3.28 goals-against average, an .896 save percentage and one shutout in that span– and traded for Adin Hill before signing Hill to an extension and landing James Reimer in free agency.

Jones will carry a $1.917 million buyout penalty on San Jose’s cap through the 2026-27 season, but at least he’s the Philadelphia Flyers’ reclamation project now.

In the meantime, Hill was acquired in exchange for Josef Korenar and a 2022 2nd round pick back on July 17th.

The 25-year-old former Arizona Coyotes goaltender was given a two-year extension worth $2.175 million per season and went 9-9-1 in 19 games last season, recording a 2.74 goals-against average, a .913 save percentage and two shutouts in that span.

It’s important to note that he had a 2.62 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage in 13 games in 2019-20 with the Coyotes and has shown that, perhaps, in a better defensive situation, he just might improve.

Meanwhile, Reimer reunites with the Sharks for the first time since San Jose’s 2016 Stanley Cup Final appearance as he was acquired by the team on Feb. 28, 2016, with Jeremy Morin for a 2018 3rd round pick, Ben Smith and Alex Stalock in return to the Toronto Maple Leafs back in the day.

Since then, Reimer had a stop with the Florida Panthers and, most recently, with the Carolina Hurricanes as a tandem duo with Petr Mrazek.

The 33-year-old goaltender might have an edge going into the season over Hill as Reimer managed to record a 15-5-2 record in 22 games last season for Carolina and had a 2.66 goals-against average, as well as a .906 save percentage in that span.

He signed a two-year deal worth $2.250 million per season with the Sharks on July 28th.

In both cases, it’s a low-risk, high-reward move that Wilson can defend simply as a placeholder if it all goes south while searching for a long-term solution in net.

Offseason Grade: C-

It’s time for the Sharks to make some serious roster decisions in a proactive manner instead of forcing their own hands tied and reacting to the alarming situation that may only worsen as the team desperately tries to avoid using the term “rebuild”.

San Jose’s unprecedented success in the regular season throughout the 2000s and 2010s meant that the team never really had to rely on the uncertainty of going through growing pains and struggles, but for the first time since franchise’s infancy it appears that it’s inevitable once more.

Whether removing Wilson is something to be done sooner rather than later or not hinges upon whether or not Sharks ownership is informed of a solidified plan.

There cannot be any wavering any longer for a team that, sure, finished ahead of the Anaheim Ducks last season, but is expected to bottom out in the Pacific Division by virtually every expert and analyst on paper going into 2021-22– and that’s even with the uncertain nature of the expansion, Seattle Kraken, to consider.

San Jose is close to getting a “D+”, but cutting their losses and buying out Jones now brings them up to a “C-“.

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Free Agency NHL Nick's Net

2021 NHL Free Agency Signings Quick Recap

This post will be updated as signings are officially announced. Be sure to check our Twitter account (@DtFrozenRiver) for all of the latest signings, news, and analysis.

Free agency begins at noon (technically 12:01 PM ET) on July 28th.

For the second-straight year, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the schedule a bit for the National Hockey League, but after the free agency signing period opens to kickoff the 2021-22 league calendar year, things will be back on track for a full 82-game schedule (albeit about a week later than usual).

All that is known is shown and will be updated throughout the day. More analysis will come as we play catch-up.

ESPN+ is streaming TSN’s coverage of free agency from 11 a.m. ET onward and NHL Network has the Sportsnet/their own feed, probably (we like the former, in all partiality).

Reported free agent signings

These are reported agreements in place that are yet to be confirmed and/or announced by a playing club.

F Kyle Palmieri has likely re-signed with the New York Islanders.

Announced free agent signings

These are confirmed/announced signings by playing clubs.

F Carter Verhaeghe signed a three-year extension worth about $4.167 million per season with the Florida Panthers that goes into effect starting with the 2022-23 season.

The Edmonton Oilers re-signed D Tyson Barrie to a three-year contract worth $4.500 million per season.

The Vegas Golden Knights signed D Alec Martinez to a three-year extension worth $5.250 million per season.

The Carolina Hurricanes signed G Frederik Andersen to a two-year deal worth $4.500 million per season.

G Petr Mrazek signed a three-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs worth $3.800 million per season.

F Nick Bonino agreed to a two-year contract with the San Jose Sharks.

F Brandon Sutter signed a one-year extension worth $1.125 million with the Vancouver Canucks.

G Antti Raanta reportedly signed a two-year deal worth $2.000 million per season with the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Los Angeles Kings re-signed F Andreas Athanasiou to a one-year deal worth $2.700 million.

D Dougie Hamilton signed a seven-year contract worth $9.000 million per season with the New Jersey Devils.

F Blake Coleman signed a six-year deal worth $4.900 million per season with the Calgary Flames.

The Montréal Canadiens signed D David Savard to a four-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

G Brian Elliott signed a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

D Tucker Poolman agreed to a four-year contract worth $2.500 million per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Dallas Stars signed F Luke Glendening to a two-year deal worth $1.500 million per season.

D Andreas Borgman signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Dallas Stars.

D Travis Hamonic signed a two-year extension worth $3.000 million per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

F Dominik Simon signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

F Charles Hudon signed a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

D Zach Bogosian signed a three-year contract worth $850,000 per season with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The San Jose Sharks signed F Andrew Cogliano to a one-year contract worth $1.000 million.

The Montréal Canadiens signed F Cedric Paquette to a one-year contract worth $950,000.

D Brady Keeper signed a two-year deal worth $762,500 per season with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Vegas Golden Knights signed G Laurent Brossoit to a two-year deal worth $2.325 million per season.

F Jean-Sébastien Dea signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

The San Jose Sharks signed G James Reimer to a two-year deal worth $4.500 million per season.

F Michael Bunting signed a two-year deal worth $900,000 with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

D Patrik Nemeth signed a three-year contract worth $2.500 million per season with the New York Rangers.

F Maxim Mamin signed a one-year deal worth $975,000 with the Florida Panthers.

D Louis Belpedio signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

The Vancouver Canucks signed F Danila Klimovich to a three-year entry-level contract worth $886,667 per season.

The Dallas Stars signed D Alex Petrovic to a one-year, two-way contract.

F Michael Amadio signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Vancouver Canucks signed D Luke Schenn to a two-year contract worth $850,000 per season.

F Josh Leivo has signed a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Carolina Hurricanes signed D Ian Cole to a one-year, $2.900 million deal.

F Nic Petan signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Vancouver Canucks.

D Jake McCabe signed a four-year contract with Chicago worth $4.000 million per season.

The Detroit Red Wings signed D Jordan Oesterle to a two-year deal worth $1.350 million per season.

F Andrew Agozzino signed a two-way contract with the Ottawa Senators.

D Adam Clendening signed a two-way deal with the Philadelphia Flyers.

D Ryan Murphy signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Red Wings.

The Los Angeles Kings have signed D Alex Edler to a one-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

The Boston Bruins signed F Erik Haula to a two-year deal worth $2.375 million per season.

F Tomas Nosek signed a two-year contract worth $3.500 million per season with the Boston Bruins.

F Phil Di Giuseppe signed a two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Tampa Bay Lightning signed F Pierre-Edouard Bellemare to a two-year contract worth $1.000 million per season.

F Matt Luff signed a one-year, two-way, $750,000 deal with the Nashville Predators.

F Jon Lizotte signed a one-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Minnesota Wild.

F Ryan Getzlaf agreed to a one-year extension with the Anaheim Ducks worth $4.500 million.

F Ryan Dzingel signed a one-year, $1.100 million deal with the Arizona Coyotes.

D Matt Tennyson signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Nashville Predators.

F Mattias Janmark reached an agreement on an extension with the Vegas Golden Knights.

F Josh Ho-Sang signed a PTO with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

F Mike Hoffman signed a three-year deal with the Montréal Canadiens worth $4.500 million per season.

G Linus Ullmark signed a four-year deal worth $5.000 million per season with the Boston Bruins.

G Garret Sparks reached an agreement on a one-year, two-way contract with the Los Angeles Kings worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

F Sam Gagner agreed to an extension with the Detroit Red Wings.

The Red Wings also agreed to an extension with G Calvin Pickard.

D Ryan Suter signed a four-year deal worth $3.650 million per season with the Dallas Stars.

The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Boone Jenner to a four-year extension.

The Pittsburgh Penguins signed F Evan Rodrigues to a one-year extension worth $1.000 million.

F Patrik Laine signed his qualifying offer with the Columbus Blue Jackets and will make $7.500 million on a one-year deal as a result.

F Eric Robinson agreed to terms on a two-year extension worth $3.200 million with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Philadelphia Flyers signed D Keith Yandle to a one-year deal worth $900,000.

D Alex Goligoski signed a one-year deal worth $5.000 million with the Minnesota Wild.

G Braden Holtby signed a one-year contract worth $2.000 million with the Dallas Stars.

The Minnesota Wild signed F Frederick Gaudreau to a two-year deal worth $1.200 million per season.

D Jarred Tinordi signed a two-year deal worth $900,000 per season with the New York Rangers.

F Justin Bailey signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Vegas Golden Knights signed F Sven Baertschi to a one-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

The Tampa Bay Lightning signed F Gabriel Dumont, D Darren Raddysh, D Andrej Sustr and G Maxime Lagacé to one-year, two-way contracts.

F Gage Quinney signed a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Ottawa Senators signed D Michael Del Zotto to a two-year contract worth $2.000 million per season.

Chicago signed F Jujhar Khaira to a two-year deal worth $975,000 per season.

F Alexander Wennberg agreed to a three-year deal worth $4.500 million per season with the Seattle Kraken.

The Nashville Predators signed F Anthony Richard to a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level.

F Phillip Danault signed a six-year contract worth $5.500 million per season with the Los Angeles Kings.

The Seattle Kraken reached an agreement with F Jaden Schwartz on a five-year deal worth $5.500 million per season.

F Michael McCarron signed a two-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Nashville Predators.

G Martin Jones signed a one-year, $2.000 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.

F Nate Thompson signed a one-year, $800,000 contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.

G Philipp Grubauer is signed a six-year deal worth $5.900 million per season with the Seattle Kraken.

F Greg McKegg signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the New York Rangers.

F Dryden Hunt signed a two-year deal with the New York Rangers.

The Florida Panthers signed D Brandon Montour to a three-year contract worth $3.500 million per season.

D Chris Wideman signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Montréal Canadiens.

The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Sean Kuraly to a four-year contract worth $2.500 million per season.

The San Jose Sharks signed F Lane Pederson to a two-year contract worth $750,000 per season.

D Tony DeAngelo signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes worth $1.000 million.

D Gavin Bayreuther signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Edmonton Oilers signed D Cody Ceci to a four-year deal worth $3.250 million per season.

F Kurtis Gabriel signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

F Zachary L’Heureux signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Nashville Predators.

The Toronto Maple Leafs signed F David Kampf to a two-year contract worth $1.500 million per season.

The Pittsburgh Penguins signed F Brock McGinn to a four-year contract worth $2.750 million per season.

The Arizona Coyotes signed F Dmitrij Jaškin to a one-year contract.

The Carolina Hurricanes re-signed F Jordan Martinook to a three-year contract worth $1.800 million per season.

F Juho Lammikko signed a one-year extension with the Florida Panthers.

G Jonathan Bernier signed a two-year deal worth $4.125 million per season with the New Jersey Devils.

The Buffalo Sabres signed F Vinnie Hinostroza to a one-year contract worth $1.050 million.

F Zach Hyman reached an agreement with the Edmonton Oilers on a seven-year contract worth $5.500 million per season.

G Filip Lindberg signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

F Brayden Point signed an eight-year extension worth $9.500 million per season with the Tampa Bay Lightning that goes into effect starting with the 2022-23 season.

The Boston Bruins agreed to a three-year deal with D Derek Forbort worth $3.000 million per season.

The Boston Bruins signed F Nick Foligno to a two-year deal.

G David Rittich agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.250 million with the Nashville Predators.

G Carter Hutton signed a one-year deal worth $750,000 with the Arizona Coyotes.

The Colorado Avalanche signed D Roland McKeown to a one-year contract.

The Columbus Blue Jackets signed F Alexandre Texier to a two-year contract extension worth $3.050 million.

F C.J. Smith signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Carolina Hurricanes.

G Chris Gibson signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Florida Panthers.

The Detroit Red Wings signed F Pius Suter to a two-year contract.

D Brandon Davidson signed a one-year contract extension worth $750,000 with the Buffalo Sabres.

The Nashville Predators re-signed F Mikael Granlund to a four-year contract worth $5.000 million per season.

The Calgary Flames signed F Trevor Lewis to a one-year deal worth $800,000.

G Jaroslav Halak agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.500 million with the Vancouver Canucks.

Categories
NHL Nick's Net

Bruins score touchdown in Nashville, win, 6-2

Six different players scored goals in the Boston Bruins’, 6-2, victory over the Nashville Predators Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena.

B’s netminder, Tuukka Rask (16-4-6 record, 2.29 goals against average, .924 save percentage in 26 games played) stopped 33 out of 35 shots faced for a .943 SV% in the win.

Predators goaltender, Pekka Rinne (14-9-3, 3.06 GAA, .894 SV% in 26 games played) made 30 saves on 35 shots against for an .857 SV% in the loss.

Boston remained in command of the Atlantic Division with a 25-8-11 record this season and 61 points. Meanwhile, Nashville fell to 19-16-7 (45 points), but remained in 6th place in the Central Division.

The Bruins improved to 11-6-2 on the road this season and snapped a three-game losing streak.

Kevan Miller (knee) has yet to make his season debut and missed his 44th game this season due to complications stemming from an injury last season.

Meanwhile, the Bruins were also without the services of Connor Clifton (upper body) and Joakim Nordstrom (illness) against the Predators.

Steven Kampfer was assigned to the Providence Bruins (AHL) on Sunday before being recalled on Monday likely for cap reasons and as a result of Clifton’s extended stay in the press box with an injury.

Boston’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, made a few minor moves to his lineup entering Tuesday night in Nashville– most notably moving up Anders Bjork to the second line right wing with Jake DeBrusk at left wing and David Krejci at center.

Danton Heinen, Charlie Coyle and Brett Ritchie comprised of the third line, while Sean Kuraly moved over to the left wing of the fourth line with Par Lindholm at center and Chris Wagner on the right side.

On defense, Zdeno Chara remained paired with Charlie McAvoy on the top pairing, while Torey Krug and Brandon Carlo rounded out the top-four defenders as usual.

John Moore was back on the left side of the third pairing with Matt Grzelcyk on his right side.

David Backes and Kampfer were the only healthy scratches for the B’s on Tuesday.

While Boston made line changes, Nashville made a head coaching change prior to their meeting with the Bruins.

After losing to the Ducks, 5-4, in a shootout on Sunday night in Anaheim, the Predators fired Peter Laviolette on Monday and hired John Hynes as just their third head coach in franchise history Tuesday afternoon.

Kevin McCarthy was also let go by the Preds and Rob Scuderi was hired as an assistant coach in place of McCarthy.

Brad Marchand cross checked Viktor Arvidsson 14 seconds into the first period, but Arvidsson also cut a rut to the penalty box for embellishment on the delayed call.

The two teams played 4-on-4 for two minutes and were almost unscathed except for when David Pastrnak (32) glided through the neutral zone, skated around Calle Jarnkrok and blasted a shot past Rinne just a couple of feet after entering the offensive zone to give Boston the, 1-0, lead at 1:36 of the first period.

McAvoy (14) and Grzelcyk (10) had the assists on Pastrnak’s goal.

Moments later, Kuraly hit Matt Duchene from behind along the glass and received a two-minute minor for boarding at 6:10.

Nashville did not convert on their first power play opportunity of the night.

Entering the first intermission, the Bruins led the Predators, 1-0, on the scoreboard and, 13-8, in shots on goal.

Boston also held the advantage in blocked shots (3-1) and faceoff win percentage (53-47), while the Preds led in giveaways (3-2) and hits (8-2).

Both teams had four takeaways aside and the Predators were 0/1 on the skater advantage heading into the middle frame. Boston had yet to see any action on the power play.

Nashville thought they had tied the game up 61 seconds into the second period when Nick Bonino batted the puck out of the air and over the goal line while the net was knocked off its moorings, but after review it was determined that the actions of a Predators player had caused the net to come off– therefore negating the goal.

Rocco Grimaldi bumped McAvoy and sent the Bruins defender barreling into the post– knocking the net off its pegs as Bonino worked his magic.

The score remained, 1-0, for Boston at 1:01 of the second period.

About a minute later, the B’s had too many skaters on the ice and were assessed a bench minor penalty that was served by Ritchie.

Once more the Preds couldn’t convert on the ensuing legal skater advantage.

Almost midway through the second period, Heinen (7) sniped a shot over Rinne’s blocker side and into the corner pocket of the twine to score his first goal in eight games and give the Bruins a two-goal lead.

Grzelcyk (11) and Coyle (14) tallied the assists on Heinen’s goal at 8:21 of the second period and Boston led, 2-0.

But less than a minute later the Bruins found themselves shorthanded yet again as Carlo tripped Arvidsson at 9:01– resulting in a 5-on-4 advantage for Nashville.

Things escalated to a 5-on-3 power play for the Predators after Grzelcyk caught Craig Smith with a high stick at 10:28.

A short, 33-second, two-skater advantage would be followed by an abbreviated standard power play, but the Preds didn’t need that long to connect on the 5-on-3 advantage.

A bang-band play led to Filip Forsberg (15) rocketing the puck behind Rask with assists from Duchene (20) and Roman Josi (31).

With the secondary assist on Forsberg’s power play goal, Josi extended his scoring streak to 11-games and Nashville cut Boston’ lead in half, 2-1, at 10:54 of the second period.

The B’s escaped the remainder of the penalty kill unharmed.

Late in the middle frame, Nashville lost track of basic numbers and had too many skaters on the ice at 16:29.

Kyle Turris took the long skate across the ice to serve the bench minor infraction and the Bruins capitalized on their first power play of the night.

Patrice Bergeron (18) followed up on a second-effort and sent a shot over Rinne’s blocker to once again give the Bruins a two-goal lead.

DeBrusk (10) and Marchand (41) had the assists on Bergeron’s power play goal and Boston led, 3-1, at 17:42.

Through 40 minutes of play in Nashville, the Bruins (and their moms– as it was Boston’s moms trip) led the Preds, 3-1, on the scoreboard and, 26-24, in shots on goal despite trailing in the second period shots on net alone– 16-13.

Boston also maintained the advantage in blocked shots (9-2), takeaways (5-4) and faceoff win% (51-49).

Nashville led in giveaways (5-3) and hits (13-6).

The Predators were 1/4 on the skater advantage, while the B’s were a perfect 1/1 on the power play heading into the final frame of regulation.

Wagner (4) kicked off the third period with a quick goal as he unintentionally redirected a shot after he was pushed by a Predators defender into Rinne at 2:51.

Lindholm (1) and Krug (24) notched the assists on Wagner’s goal and the Bruins extended their lead, 4-1.

Almost a minute later, Grimaldi tripped Chara and was assessed a minor infraction at 3:52 of the third period.

Boston’s ensuing power play was not successful.

Midway through the third period, Yakov Trenin tried to engage Chara in a fight and got the Bruins captain to exchange fisticuffs at 11:40.

Chara received an extra minor for roughing while both received majors for fighting and thus the Predators were headed on the power play after just the 8th fight this season for Boston– and 3rd in a row for their captain.

Four seconds later, Moore hooked Arvidsson and joined Ritchie (serving Chara’s roughing minor) and Chara in the box as the B’s faced Nashville’s 5-on-3 advantage at 11:44.

The Predators weren’t able to get anything done with the two-skater advantage and took a penalty of their own at 15:38 when Josi hooked Lindholm.

Shortly after Boston’s resulting power play expired, Coyle tripped Mikael Granlund at 17:46 and presented the Preds with their seventh power play opportunity of the night.

Just as the saying goes “the seventh time’s a charm”, the Predators managed to squib a puck through Rask and just over the line while chaos ensued in the crease at 18:06.

Granlund (7) notched the power play goal for Nashville and the Preds cut the lead back to, 4-2. Mattias Ekholm (19) and Forsberg (15) had the assists on Granlund’s goal.

With 1:07 remaining in the game, Hynes pulled his goaltender for an extra attacker, but things didn’t go quite as planned when Krejci (9) received the puck on a pass from Rask and fired the rubber biscuit into the empty goal frame about 170-feet away from where he was standing at 19:05.

Rask (1) picked up his first assist of the season and the only assist on Krejci’s empty net goal as Boston all but confirmed the win, 5-2.

It only took another 22 seconds for the Bruins to rub salt in the wounds of Smashville– adding one more tic-toc-goal from Coyle (8) at 19:27 as Boston pulled ahead to a four-goal lead with seconds remaining in the action.

Ritchie (4) and Heinen (10) were credited with the assists on Coyle’s goal and the B’s sealed the deal on a, 6-2, win in Nashville.

Boston finished the night leading in shots on goal (36-35), blocked shots (15-6) and faceoff win% (56-44), while Nashville wrapped up the night with the advantage in giveaways (7-3) and hits (15-8).

The Predators wrapped up Tuesday night’s action 2/7 on the power play and the B’s finished the game 1/3 on the skater advantage.

The Bruins improved to 16-4-2 when leading after the first period, 14-0-5 when leading after two periods and 18-6-7 when scoring the game’s first goal this season.

Boston returns home to face the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday before venturing on the road to visit the New York Islanders on Jan. 11th, the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 13th and the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 14th.

Categories
Podcasts

DTFR Podcast #177- And A Dollar Short

2020 Winter Classic sweater reviews, a standings update and Top-10 NHL power rankings.

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

Categories
NHL Podcasts

DTFR Podcast #164- The Free Agency Mega-Hour

Nick, Cap’n and Pete recap the last two weeks of trades and first few days of free agency 2K19.

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

Categories
Nick's Net

Rinne and the Preds shutout Bruins, 1-0

Pekka Rinne celebrated his 36th birthday with a 1-0 shutout Saturday night against the Boston Bruins as the B’s were paying their annual visit to Bridgestone Arena. Roman Josi had the game’s only goal for the Nashville Predators and the Bruins wrapped up their quick two-game road trip, 1-1-0.

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Rinne (5-1-0 in 7 games played with a 1.63 goals against average and a .948 save percentage) stopped all 26 shots he faced for the win– his 2nd shutout of the season– and became the first goaltender in National Hockey League history to record multiple regular-season shutouts on his birthday (he previously shutout the Phoenix Coyotes on November 3, 2011).

The Preds netminder also signed a two-year extension with Nashville earlier in the day on Saturday, keeping him in Smashville through the 2020-21 season.

Bruins goaltender, Jaroslav Halak (4-1-2, 1.45 GAA, .952 SV% in 8 GP), made 39 saves on 40 shots against for a .975 save percentage in the loss.

Boston defender Torey Krug celebrated 400 career NHL games played with a minus-one rating, two hits and two blocked shots in 23:03 time on ice.

As a result of the loss, Boston fell to 7-4-2 (16 points) on the season, which was good enough to remain 3rd in the Atlantic– but tied in points with the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres. Nashville improved to 11-3-2 (22 points) so far this season– maintaining their 1st overall standing in the Central Division, as well as the Western Conference and entire league.

Bruce Cassidy made one change in the lineup after Ryan Donato was assigned to the  Providence Bruins (AHL) on Thursday, re-inserting David Backes on the third line as No. 42 in black-and-gold returned to action for the first time since sustaining a concussion in Edmonton last month.

Matt Grzelcyk (lower body), Urho Vaakanainen (concussion), Charlie McAvoy (upper body) and Kevan Miller (hand) remained out of the lineup Saturday as McAvoy was retroactively placed on the injured reserve earlier in the week.

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The game began with some quick end-to-end action that slowly became heavily dominated by the Predators with quality chances and zone entries.

Brandon Carlo took the game’s first penalty– a minor infraction for hooking– at 12:02 of the first period after getting his stick tangled up with Nashville forward, Ryan Johansen.

The Preds did not convert on the ensuing power play, but maintained just momentum in the vulnerable minute after the skater advantage expired for Josi (4) to waltz around Bruins forward, Danton Heinen, cut to the goal and fire a shot past Halak from point blank.

Ryan Ellis (8) and Nick Bonino (3) had the assist’s on Josi’s goal at 14:49 of the first period and Nashville led, 1-0. The goal was Josi’s 300th career NHL point.

Yannick Weber was guilty of hooking Joakim Nordstrom less than ten seconds later, but the Bruins didn’t convert on the ensuing power play.

Noel Acciari hooked Mattias Ekholm at 17:10 and Nashville didn’t score on that power play either, because– you guess it– there were no more goals scored in the Predators, 1-0, win.

Brad Marchand stirred the pot with a phantom high-sticking minor infraction at 19:58 of the first period.

It’s one thing if there’s a blown call. It’s another thing for a player to continue arguing and receive an extra unsportsmanlike conduct minor penalty– resulting in a 4:00 power play that could’ve drastically changed the game for Nashville– and a ten-minute misconduct without any conceivable warning.

Not to put too much thought into it, but just to sidestep onto a soapbox (since nothing else really happened other than a great goaltender battle all night long) regardless of making a call, professional sports usually work on a one-warning system.

It was not made clear by the broadcast whether or not Marchand faced a warning from the referee or whether that was implied by the penalties handed out, however NHL refs are noted for expressing verbal warnings to players early in a game before handing out unsportsmanlike minors or misconducts after repeated bad behavior (verbally or physically) later in the action.

Like how an umpire in baseball delivers a warning to both dugouts sometimes after a pitcher hits a batter. Whether the next hit batter is intentional or not, the umpire has already made it clear that discipline will be handed out and the subsequent pitcher beaning a batter is ejected from the game.

Anyway, that’ll probably save a few minutes on next week’s podcast.

There’s nothing wrong with the penalties handed out after the blown call, but rather the formality in which they occurred, without a given warning that would otherwise deem them flat-out the right call.

Then again, other league’s issue formal apologies after the game, in which nothing can be changed because it’s after the game and, well, the fact of the matter is– refs are human.

This is sports. Mistakes are made. Play better. Rise above. Insert whatever you want here.

Anyway, Marchand’s 14 minutes in penalties came with two seconds remaining in the first period, so Nashville’s power play would extend into the middle frame.

After one period, the Predators led, 1-0, on the scoreboard and in shots on goal, 15-10. Nashville also had an advantage in takeaways (3-1), giveaways (5-2) and face-off win percentage (55-46). The Bruins had an advantage in blocked shots (7-2) through 20 minutes.

The Preds entered the first intermission 0/3 on the power play, while Boston was 0/1 heading into the dressing room.

Ryan Hartman hooked Heinen early in the second period and gave the B’s a power play at 4:18. Boston didn’t convert on the skater advantage and had one more chance on the power play at 8:51 of the second period after Kevin Fiala got a stick hooked on David Pastrnak.

The Bruins power play was unsuccessful on that chance too.

Despite controlling the flow of the game more in the second period, the Bruins lacked quality in both shots and zone entries. Everything was moving too quick– too many passes, too much setup– and too many saves piling up in Rinne’s save percentage for the night.

Miikka Salomaki interfered with Acciari at 17:47, giving the Bruins one last chance on the power play, but it was unsuccessful.

Shortly thereafter, Steven Kampfer tripped up Johansen on a scoring opportunity after Johansen appeared to not actually get tripped up at all upon replay. Something about not anticipating the play, thereby calling misled reaction penalties and instead enforcing the rules…

Anyway, Nashville didn’t score on their final power play of the game at 19:56 of the second period. Again, the Bruins would start the subsequent period shorthanded, however, if you reread the previous sentence… they made out just fine.

After 40 minutes Nashville was still leading in shots on goal (23-20), despite being outshot by Boston (10-8) in the 2nd period. The Bruins led in blocked shots (10-9), hits (8-6) and face-off win% (54-46) through two periods, while the Predators held an advantage in takeaways (7-3) and giveaways (8-4).

Both teams failed to convert on the power play, as Nashville finished the night 0/5 on the skater advantage and the B’s went 0/4.

Though some things may have been mismanaged in the first 40 minutes, the on-ice officials put away their whistles in the final 20 minutes, yielding no stoppages for major or minor infractions.

Cassidy pulled his netminder with 2:02 remaining in the third period and called a timeout after a stoppage in the action with 12.0 seconds remaining in the game. Neither strategy worked as time ran out on the Bruins’s hopes for scoring a game-tying goal and the Predators walked away with the 1-0 victory.

Nashville finished the night with a 40-26 advantage in shots on goal (17-6 in the third period), as well as an advantage in giveaways (12-10) and face-off win% (53-47). Boston finished the 60-minute effort leading in hits (17-8) and both teams recorded 14 blocked shots.

Boston travels back home to begin a four-game home-stand with a matchup against former Bruin, Tyler Seguin, and the Dallas Stars Monday at TD Garden. The B’s will face the Stars (Nov. 5th), Vancouver Canucks (Nov. 8th), Toronto Maple Leafs (Nov. 10th) and Vegas Golden Knights (Nov. 11th) over the next four-games.

Categories
Playoff Recaps

Crashville: Preds crumble after strong start, Jets take 2-1 series lead

 

So, uh, which one of these teams is supposedly the one with the roster full of seasoned vets that have been there before and can’t be rattled, again?

In a series that was just about as hyped as Avengers: Infinity War, we expected to see plenty of crazy, unexpected stuff. But, much like with the film, I’m not sure many people expected to see (spoilers) half of the cast crumble to dust. Or, at least not the half that did in this game.

After answering an anomalous Game 1 drubbing by taking a thrilling double-overtime victory in Game 2, it looked like the Preds were back on track as the series shifted to Winnipeg’s raucous home ice. Clearly now with the early stumble in the past, the defending Western Conference champs would be able to rely upon their experience and battle-tested mental toughness to grab a hold of the series against a young, unproven Winnipeg roster.

In the first period, that narrative seemed pretty well spot-on.

Quickly and effectively quieting the thunderous atmosphere in the early going (shoutout to the crowd for a mid-anthem ‘TRUE NORTH’ that I’m pretty sure I felt here in Ohio), the Preds found paydirt just 4:53 into the game with a new-look fourth line featuring Ryan Hartman, Mike Fisher, and Miikka Salomaki (in for a banged up Calle Jarnkrok) when 37-year-old Fisher banged home a loose puck as it squeaked out from underneath of Connor Hellebuyck after he thought he had made the stop on a quick point shot set up by Hartman (who got buried by Dustin Byfuglien for his troubles).

The Jets tried to answer a few minutes later, as Nikolaj Ehlers and Paul Stastny combined on a beautiful criss-cross play entering the zone, eventually setting up Stastny all alone behind the defense, but Pekka Rinne had the answer for his backhand attempt.

Winnipeg’s momentum would be stifled shortly after, though, as the Predators would head to the power play. P.K. Subban (showered in the ever-present boos that I’m still not-at-all sure of the reason for) took a perfect one-time feed from Filip Forsberg at the top of the left circle and spanked it home through Hellebucyk. (It’s worth noting that the confusing boos became much less enthusiastic after this)

The energy of the play seemed to follow the energy of the building for the next few minutes, with very little of note outside of an unsuccessful Viktor Arvidsson breakaway attempt and a nearly-successful fake dump-in by Patrik Laine the only real highlights until Austin Watson picked up the puck on a bad Winnipeg change, walked in one-on-one against Josh Morrissey, and let go a seemingly-harmless wrister from a tough angle that eluded Hellebuyck, caught the far post and went in to give the Preds the 3-0 lead with 2:24 to play.

Rinne made a few solid stops in the waning minutes (including a stellar left pad stretch to deny Blake Wheeler as he picked up a deflected shot and tried to tuck it inside the left post) to preserve the lead and keep the crowd quiet heading into the first intermission. Predators leading 12-10 in shots after 20.

In the second period the tone changed immensely, and it began very early.

Jacob Trouba leveled Forsberg just inside the blueline in the first 30 seconds of the game to give the crowd some jump, and his team seemed to feed off of that. 3:38 into the period Winnipeg finally got on the board (although nobody besides Stastny noticed at the time) when a Byfuglien point shot caught Stastny’s skate and deflected past Rinne to bring the deficit to two goals.

Wheeler found himself staring at a yawning cage just under two minutes later when the puck came to him off of a Rinne misplay behind the net, but he fired the puck over the net trying to lift it over the top of a sprawling Rinne and Nick Bonino. As Wheeler tried to corral the puck along the boards, he was leveled by Watson, who got jumped by Mark Scheifele for his efforts. Both players went to the box, and just over 30 seconds into the resulting four-on-four it would be Big Buff blasting home the 3-2 goal after a beautiful zone entry and puck movement by Tyler Myers and Bryan Little. Then just 14 seconds later the roof came off of Bell MTS Place when Stastny, Wheeler, and Trouba connected for a gorgeous tic-tac-goal to tie the game at three with still over 14 minutes remaining in the second.

With his team rattled, Rinne seemed to take it upon himself to settle things back down, first gloving down a laser from Laine on a two-on-one, then later denying Wheeler on a point blank attempt on a beautiful passing play.

Despite the best efforts of the Nashville netminder, though, Winnipeg would take their first lead of the night with 44.7 seconds remaining in the period when Laine (locked and loaded taking a pass from Stastny who grabbed the puck on the rebound of a prior Laine shot) fooled everyone by firing the puck across the ice to Byfuglien who hammered home the one-timer from distance to put the Jets up 4-3. They’d carry that score (and a 16-6 shot advantage in the period) to the dressing room, looking to put away the Preds in the third.

The third period started with quite a few bangs. Trouba and Bonino got into a shoving match early on that eventually became a fairly lengthy fight between the two. Byfuglien just missed erasing Arvidsson from existence, then made up for it by stapling Hartman to the glass as the Nashville forward went to clear the puck out of his zone while killing a Winnipeg power play.

Unfortunately that hit would be about the only positive result for Winnipeg on their man advantage, and when Colton Sissons returned to the ice after serving his time, he immediately redeemed himself by drawing a penalty that would give the Predators the momentum swing they needed. Forsberg walked the line at the point before firing home a gorgeous wrist shot that beat a screened Hellebucyk and knotted the score at four with 12:20 remaining.

Nashville looked to have an opportunity to regain the lead shortly after the power play goal when Trouba mishandled the puck at his offensive blueline, giving Arvidsson a clear-cut breakaway. But Hellebuyck confidently and emphatically snagged the puck out of the air with his glove, bringing the arena back to life.

Byfuglien nearly had himself a hat trick a few minutes after the save (and resulting momentum switch), pouncing on a loose puck to create a two-on-one but having his bid denied by Rinne. He then once more narrowly missed demolishing a Predators player, this time being Subban who managed to avoid the hit at the last possible moment.

Ryan Ellis‘ tough series continued, this time taking a Byfuglien shot to the side of his face that didn’t get hacked open by a skate blade in Game 1. Luckily it was just a high-rising wrist shot without a ton of power behind it, and he’d shake it off fairly quickly.

Unfortunately for his team, though, it came when they were down a man and it took one of their best penalty killers off the ice. On the very next shift the Jets retook the lead for the final time when Wheeler buried the rebound of a Scheifele one-timer that he set up, giving Winnipeg the 5-4 lead with 4:59 to play.

Rinne was upset, as earlier in the sequence he had take a shot to the mask that seemed to break one of the straps of the helmet, but play was not called. Shortly after the goal, Adam Lowry attempted to steal the puck away from Rinne behind the net, and the Predators’ goaltender responded with a claymore-swing of his goal stick to the back of Lowry, putting Nashville down a man for the third time in quick succession in the final minutes of the game, this time when they were down a goal.

Bonino nearly played hero with a shorthanded goal, jumping on a loose puck in front of the Jets’ goal that no one but him seemed to be able to find, but Hellebucyk was able to blocker it away just in time.

Nashville was unable to mount much of an attack with the extra man after pulling Rinne, and Wheeler and Brandon Tanev (who extended his goal scoring streak to four games) added a pair of empty netters to seal a 7-4 Winnipeg victory in front of the hometown faithful.

In the end, it was Hellebucyk’s ability to settle down after a shaky start, and Nashville’s inability to counter momentum swings (and stay out of the box at crucial times) that played the biggest role in this one. It also didn’t hurt that Byfuglien may have played his best playoff game since his Cup run with the Blackhawks. What looks to be a very important Game 4 comes to you at 9:30 p.m. ET this Thursday (May 3) on NBCSN, and @nlanciani53 will have your DTFR recap coverage.

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Playoff Recaps

Fiala, Preds, even series with Jets in 2OT win

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Kevin Fiala scored the game-winning overtime goal at 5:37 of the second overtime period Sunday night at Bridgestone Arena and the Nashville Predators topped the Winnipeg Jets, 5-4, in Game 2. The Second Round series is now tied, 1-1, heading into Game 3 on Tuesday.

Predators netminder, Pekka Rinne had 46 saves on 50 shots against for a .920 save percentage in 85:37 time on ice in the win, while Jets goaltender, Connor Hellebuyck, made 36 saves on 41 shots against for an .878 SV% in 84:50 TOI in the loss.

Getting the first goal in a Stanley Cup Playoff game means (almost) everything. Ryan Johansen (3) scored the game’s first goal just 27 seconds into the action and the Predators had a 1-0 lead. Filip Forsberg (3) and P.K. Subban (4) had the assists.

Matt Hendricks bumped into Rinne past the seven minute mark in the first period and received the game’s first penalty as Nashville went on the power play. The Preds did not convert on the man advantage.

Moments later, Ryan Hartman tripped Paul Stastny and the Jets went on their first power play of the night. Winnipeg’s power play was short lived, though, as Blake Wheeler promptly tripped Colton Sissons 52 seconds into Winnipeg’s man advantage opportunity.

As Nashville’s abbreviated power play was wrapping up, Viktor Arvidsson, was guilty of a minor penalty for interference.

Seconds later, after winning a faceoff in the offensive zone, the Jets worked the puck along the wall, around the boards and back to the point, where Dustin Byfuglien was sneaking his way in towards the goal.

Byfuglien (1) fired a shot from close range and snuck the puck through Rinne’s five-hole for his first goal of the postseason and tied the game, 1-1. Mark Scheifele (2) had the only assist on the goal at 12:47 of the first period.

Just 29 seconds after Byfuglien scored, Winnipeg converted on their abbreviated power play with Arvidsson in the box for Nashville.

Scheifele (7) was in the right place at the right time as Stastny collected a rebound that caromed off the glass behind the net and dished a pass to the young Jets forward standing point blank in the slot. Stastny (4) and Patrik Laine (4) notched the assists on the goal that made it, 2-1, Winnipeg at 13:16.

As momentum shifted in Winnipeg’s favor, Laine rang the post about a minute later and almost had what would’ve been three unanswered goals for the Jets.

Instead, after 20 minutes of play, Winnipeg had a one-goal lead as shots on goal were even, 9-9. The Jets led in blocked shots (9-7) and takeaways (4-2), while the Preds led in hits (9-7) and giveaways (3-2). Winnipeg was 1/2 on the power play and Nashville was 0/2 after one period.

Bryan Little tripped up Sissons 4:01 into the second period and the Predators went on the power play for the third time Sunday night.

Subban (1) fired a clapper past Hellebuyck while Arvidsson provided the perfect jump screen in front of the goal to tie the game, 2-2, at 5:04 of the second period. Forsberg (4) and Arvidsson (2) amassed the assists on Subban’s goal.

Mattias Ekholm slashed Wheeler almost midway into the second period, but the Jets were not able to score on the ensuing power play. Neither did the Predators on their own power play six minutes later when Hendricks took another trip to the sin bin for interference.

On a burst of speed into the offensive zone Arvidsson (3) let go of a cannon of a shot that beat Hellebuyck to give Nashville a, 3-2, lead at 18:41 of the second period. Forsberg (5) and Ryan Ellis (5) had the assists on the goal.

At the end of the period, Ellis delivered a cross check to Scheifele in the midst of a scrum and Nick Bonino mixed things up a bit with Scheifele himself. Three penalties were assessed at 20:00 minutes of the second period; Ellis (a minor for cross checking), Bonino (roughing, minor) and Scheifele (roughing, minor).

Through 40 minutes of play, the Preds led the Jets, 3-2, on the scoreboard and were outshot, 22-18, by Winnipeg. Nashville led in hits (18-10) and giveaways (13-7), while Winnipeg led in blocked shots (18-11) and takeaways (8-7). The Jets were 1/3 on the power play and the Predators were 1/4 on the man advantage after two periods.

Brandon Tanev (3) forced his way through the neutral zone on a chip pass from Little and beat Rinne on a breakaway, tying the game, 3-3 at 5:11 of the third period. Little (3) had the only assist on Tanev’s goal.

Johansen (4) scored on a breakaway of his own— destroying Toby Enstrom with one move and beating Hellebuyck bar-down— 34 seconds later, giving the Predators the one-goal lead, once again. Arvidsson (3) had the only assist on Johansen’s second goal of the game and Nashville led, 4-3, at 5:45.

For the longest time, the Predators were leading, 4-3, in the third period, but Paul Maurice’s Winnipeg Jets had more fight in them as time ticked down. Maurice pulled his goaltender for an extra skater with under two minutes remaining in regulation and it quickly paid off as Scheifele (8) nabbed his second goal of the night.

Wheeler (6) and Byfuglien (6) notched the primary and secondary assists on the game-tying goal at 18:55 of the third period.

With the score tied, 4-4, after 60 minutes of regulation, Game 2 went into overtime.

Entering overtime, Winnipeg was leading in shots on goal (36-25), while Nashville led in hits (21-19), takeaways (11-9) and giveaways (15-11). Both teams were 1/4 on the power play.

The Predators peppered the Hellebuyck with a ton of shots in the first half of the first overtime period and were in complete control of the chaotic flow of the game. Then Winnipeg caught the Jetstream and hightailed the rest of the period, generating numerous scoring chances that were tossed aside by Rinne.

After 20 minutes of overtime and 80 minutes of play, the score remained, 4-4, but the Jets led in shots on goal (48-38) and blocked shots (28-26). Nashville kept up with their physical play, leading in hits (26-23) and controlled the faceoff dot— winning 61 percent of all faceoffs taken after the first overtime.

Winnipeg had surpassed their previous longest postseason game in franchise history (dating back to their days as the Atlanta Thrashers) and would quickly pass the record for longest postseason game by any Winnipeg NHL franchise (new or old— a.k.a. the current day Arizona Coyotes) in the second overtime period.

Another milestone passed by the Jets that’s not to be overlooked (given the emergence/existence of the Vegas Golden Knights in Vegas’s inaugural season/postseason) is the fact that entering Sunday night, Winnipeg/Atlanta was the only active NHL franchise that had yet to play a game that required multiple overtimes.

Anyway, Kevin Fiala (3) converted in a two-on-one whereby Craig Smith tossed the puck across the ice, Fiala received it, stickhandled, made Hellebuyck commit, then pulled the puck to his backhand and scored on a largely left open 4×6 frame.

Smith (1) and Kyle Turris (3) had the assists on Fiala’s second career postseason overtime goal and the Predators had won, 5-4, at 5:37 of the second overtime.

Winnipeg finished the night leading in shots on goal (50-41) and blocked shots (30-26). Nashville led in the final scoreboard, 5-4, and in hits (26-23) after 85:37 elapsed time.

With the win, Rinne is now 7-6 all-time in postseason overtime games and Hellebuyck is 0-1 in his first career overtime Stanley Cup Playoff game.

The series is tied, 1-1, heading into Game 3 on Tuesday night at Bell MTS Place in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Viewers in the United States can tune to CNBC at 8 p.m. ET, while fans in Canada can catch the action on CBC or TVAS.