Down the Frozen River

Tag: Tampa Bay Lightning

  • 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Now with some spice!

    Thursday night’s action brought us a close, 2-0, win for the Florida Panthers over the Tampa Bay Lightning– stealing home ice advantage in the process heading back to Florida for Games 3 and 4 with a 2-0 series lead for the Cats.

    What’s more, it also brought a 3-0 series lead for the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Ottawa Senators as an unlikely hero scored the game-winning overtime goal in Game 3 on the road.

    Matt Boldy and Kirill Kaprizov continued their hot streaks for the Minnesota Wild as they downed the Vegas Golden Knights, 5-2, and took a 2-1 series lead in the process.

    Finally, the St. Louis Blues blew out the Winnipeg Jets, 7-2, which is bad news for Connor Hellebuyck fans as the Jets netminder was pulled from the action and good news for Hellebuyck haters, I guess. At least Winnipeg still leads that series 2-1, however.

    Now it’s a battle

    Just the other day I asked if the “Battle of Florida” actually kind of sucks and it’s good to see both teams are rejecting the hypothesis.

    Game 2 was a low scoring battle of attrition. Then Brandon Hagel went and threw gasoline on the fire.

    Now, I didn’t mean for someone to do that and go about making an illegal check rendering a five-minute major for interference and knocking Aleksander Barkov out of the game in the process.

    I want to note I’m a fan of heavy hockey, not bullshit hockey.

    A physical presence is always a good thing and a corresponding immediate response to it via fisticuffs is sometimes necessary and encouraged under heavy hockey pretenses. Unlike in bullshit hockey where premeditated or staged fighting occurs at, say, the opening puck drop of a 4 Nations Face-Off game between the U.S. and Canada.

    Heavy hockey is a grind and something to pride oneself on when the final score reads in your favor. Bullshit hockey is a five-minute major penalty in the waiting and possible other supplemental discipline upon a hearing.

    The latter tends to lead to being embarrassed in the next matchup too when it matters most– at least as Team USA found out.

    Now, I’m not saying that fighting isn’t part of the game or anything. Quite the contrary. It’s always been part of the game– as a penalty.

    You run the risk of being penalized and you will be penalized for shedding the gloves in an attempt to enact vigilante justice.

    Yet, big, clean hits are always perfectly legal and well within the range of “normal expectations and teetering on the edge of ‘the line’ or whatever.”

    The best way to handle something like Hagel’s illegal check? Score more goals than his team. Then win the next game for good measure too.

    In fact, make it a living hell for the opposing team. Finish every check. Capitalize on as many scoring chances as possible.

    Anyway, the Panthers still won Thursday night, 2-0, courtesy of a goal from the red-hot defender, Nate Schmidt, and an empty-net goal from Sam Bennett in the dying seconds of the game for insurance.

    Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside all 19 shots that he faced for his fourth career Stanley Cup Playoffs shutout in 96 postseason games. Bobrovsky has now recorded at least one shutout in each of the last three postseason runs for Florida and currently has a 1.00 goals-against average and a .951 save percentage to boot.

    Tampa spent a lot of time in the attacking zone with no results on the scoreboard and Jake Guentzel sent a rebound through the crease behind Bobrovsky and out the other side at one point late in the action too.

    The Bolts dropped home ice advantage and despite only trailing 2-0 in the series are basically in a do-or-die situation heading into Game 3 Saturday on the road.

    For the Panthers, their focus has to remain on the bigger picture– score goals and beat the Lightning on the scoreboard. Don’t try to settle the score, but let Matthew Tkachuk and Brad Marchand do the talking (and walk the walk). A 3-0 series lead is within reach and can be accomplished with some home cooking.

    After writing this, Tampa forward, Brandon Hagel, was suspended by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety for one game for interference against Florida forward, Aleksander Barkov. Hagel can return to the series in Game 4.

    Sonny and Cher approaching

    Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Ottawa Senators, 3-2, in overtime in a playoff game.

    Unlike in Game 2 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, this time the Leafs did it in Game 3 on the road from Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa sorry, Kanata (well, technically it’s still Ottawa– it’s just 30 minutes from downtown Ottawa).

    Toronto now has a 3-0 series lead heading into Saturday night for Game 4 and can sweep the Senators while on the road and become the first team to advance to the Second Round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Claude Giroux kicked off the night’s scoring to give the Senators a, 1-0, at 1:38 of the middle frame.

    Almost midway through the period, however, Matthew Knies had other plans and evened it up, 1-1, at 8:31 of the second period.

    Nobody else could muster anything on the scoreboard through the second intermission.

    Then it happened.

    A mere 32 seconds into the final frame of regulation, Leafs forward, Mitch Marner, fed Auston Matthews a pass with his golden stick while Ottawa’s goaltender, Linus Ullmark, was caught looking the other way and had no idea the puck was now briefly on Matthews’ stick.

    Matthews sent a one-timer behind Ullmark’s back to give Toronto their first lead of the night, 2-1, and people will still find a way to complain about Marner despite his offensive awareness and playmaking abilities.

    In any case, he’s due for a surefire raise this summer. Where he’ll be getting his new salary from, however, remains to be seen.

    Midway through the period, Brady Tkachuk carried the Sens into the attacking zone and proved Ottawa wouldn’t go down without a fight as he tallied a wrist shot goal on a breakaway from the faceoff circle– top shelf blocker side while using Maple Leafs defender, Brandon Carlo, as a screen– and tied the game, 2-2.

    Giroux picked up the primary assist as the home crowd came alive at 11:22 of the third period.

    But nobody could seal the deal on a regulation victory thereafter.

    Signed as a free agent by the Anaheim Ducks on March 7, 2019, before making his NHL debut during the 2020-21 season, Simon Benoit joined the Maple Leafs via free agency on August 28, 2023, and has recorded just six goals in 279 career regular season games.

    Benoit notched his first career Stanley Cup Playoffs goal in his 10th career postseason game.

    It also happened to be the game-winning goal at 1:19 of the overtime period.

    See, Benoit received a pass off the kickplate from Matthews– who had just won an offensive zone faceoff– then blasted a slap shot from the point with eyes past Ullmark.

    Benoit had served as the screen and had the only assist on Max Domi’s overtime goal in Game 2. This time in Game 3, he was the hero.

    For the first time since the 2001 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal, the Leafs have the chance to sweep a postseason series. Coincidentally, that 2001 series also happened to be against the Senators.

    Toronto can also improve to 5-0 in all-time playoff series’ against Ottawa with a win in Game 4 on Saturday, having most recently beaten the Senators in seven games in the 2004 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal.

    Meanwhile, Sens head coach, Travis Green, has a difficult task ahead of him– besides the obvious “reverse sweep” attempt, Green has to contemplate starting Ullmark in Game 4 or, perhaps, looking to someone like Leevi Meriläinen to tend the crease.

    Meriläinen has never appeared in the postseason before and went 8-3-1 in 12 games (11 starts) with a 1.99 GAA, a .925 SV% and three shutouts in that span this season.

    Either way, it’s do or die at home for Ottawa and they look very much on their deathbed.

    Xceling in the Wild?

    Xcel Energy Center is getting a new naming rights partner next season and the Minnesota Wild opened up the 2025 postseason on home ice with a, 5-2, win in Game 3 of their First Round matchup with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    The Wild took a 2-1 series lead in the process and chased Adin Hill from the net after 40 minutes in favor of Akira Schmid.

    Zeev Buium recorded his first career Stanley Cup Playoffs point via the primary assist on Kirill Kaprizov’s power-play goal to give Minnesota a, 1-0, lead just a few minutes into the game Thursday night.

    Matt Boldy notched the secondary assist on the goal and, like Kaprizov, remained hot the rest of the night.

    Hill lost his focus a few minutes later after Wild forward, Justin Brazeau, sent the puck around the boards in the attacking zone. Hill went to play the puck in the trapezoid– stopping the rubber biscuit for a few seconds before going right back up the boards and directly to… …Brazeau.

    Brazeau eagerly worked the puck back down low to Yakov Trenin, who fed Marco Rossi in the slot for a one-timer goal while Hill was caught playing catch up.

    The goal marked the first of Rossi’s postseason career and gave the Wild a, 2-0, lead at 6:51 of the opening frame.

    Midway through the period, however, Alex Pietrangelo willed Vegas back into the game– if only for a little while, anyway.

    Pietrangelo received a pass from Noah Hanifin and rushed the attacking zone before unloading an old-school slap shot through Filip Gustavsson’s five-hole to cut Minnesota’s lead in half, 2-1.

    Midway through the second period, however, Boldy re-extended Minnesota’s lead to two-goals with a wrist shot goal.

    Then in the dying seconds of the period, the Wild struck gold on the power play. Again.

    This time Kaprizov put the puck in the back of the twine on a deflection to send the Wild into the second intermission with a, 4-1, lead.

    That goal was enough for Golden Knights head coach, Bruce Cassidy, to make a change in net and utilize the services of Schmid for the rest of the night.

    Midway through the final frame, the Golden Knights were shorthanded and Reilly Smith made it a two-goal game again, but Vegas couldn’t do anything else to erase the, 4-2, deficit.

    Boldy rang the post from way downtown while Schmid was on the bench for an extra attacker, but Marcus Foligno followed Boldy’s effort up with a surefire empty-net goal while shorthanded. Mostly because he skated the puck into the attacking zone and everything.

    Vegas finds themselves in a “must-win” situation entering Game 4 Saturday in light of the fact that the Golden Knights split Games 1 and 2 on home ice.

    Minnesota, meanwhile, can take a commanding 3-1 series lead with a win in front of their home crowd Saturday and try to eliminate Vegas on the road in Game 5.

    Of note, The Athletic‘s Michael Russo pointed out that Boldy and Kaprizov became the first Wild players in franchise history with multiple points in each of Minnesota’s first three postseason games. Eric Staal had multiple points in a two-game streak back in 2020.

    Hat’s all folks!

    Lately– and I haven’t had a chance to look at the swath of data, so I’m just going off of the “eye test” here– it seems like teams that have a blowout win in a series go on to win the series more times than not.

    Well, the St. Louis Blues ran away with a, 7-2, victory over the Winnipeg Jets in Game 3 in front of St. Louis’ home crowd at Enterprise Center Thursday.

    Pavel Buchnevich scored a power-play goal 48 seconds into the night, then added two more goals– including one more on the power play– to complete the hat trick and give the Blues a, 4-1, lead at 5:24 of the third period.

    Then the flood gates opened and Connor Hellebuyck was chased from the net and replaced by Eric Comrie as Winnipeg head coach, Scott Arniel, tried to wake up his team.

    Hellebuyck didn’t help himself, admittedly, after mishandling the puck with pressure bearing down on him from Blues forward, Robert Thomas, in the trapezoid leading to a gift goal for Buchnevich for the hat trick on a grab and go effort.

    The long story short is that “playoff Hellebuyck” might be back and the Jets couldn’t score (or defend, really) and that’s a dangerous combination for Winnipeg’s hopes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Especially after their best season in franchise history– having won the Central Division, clinched the best record in the Western Conference and league courtesy of the Presidents’ Trophy for the first time ever.

    It’s not quite a 2007 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal collapse like when the Atlanta Thrashers were swept by the New York Rangers after winning the Southeast Division title in their only playoff appearance before relocating to Winnipeg in 2011, but…

    The feeling is awfully familiar.

  • 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Fourth day takeaways

    Tuesday night marked the fourth night of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs and– well, I’m not going to keep track of the number of days that have passed. I WILL forget one of these days, so let’s just get ahead of it now.

    Anyway, the Carolina Hurricanes hosted the New Jersey Devils in Game 2 of their series and took home a, 3-1, victory to go along with a 2-0 series lead heading to New Jersey for Games 3 and 4. Jordan Martinook scored the game-winning goal for the Hurricanes after they fell behind, 1-0, through 20 minutes of action.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 series lead over the Ottawa Senators and had a, 2-0, lead in Game 2 from Scotiabank Arena before the Sens tied things up late and forced overtime. Max Domi was the hero for the Leafs early in the extra frame to give Toronto a, 3-2, victory.

    The “Battle of Florida: Part IV” commenced as the Florida Panthers paid a visit to the Tampa Bay Lightning for Game 1 of their series. Florida upset the Bolts on the road, 6-2, at Amalie Arena with Nate Schmidt credited as the game-winning goal in the dominant effort from the Cats.

    Finally, after an 11 p.m. start for the East Coast crowd, the Minnesota Wild jumped out to a huge lead and never looked back as they beat the Vegas Golden Knights on the road, 5-2, to even their First Round series 1-1. Mats Zuccarello had the game-winning goal, but Matt Boldy continued his hot start with a goal and an assist in the effort.

    Hello Hurricanes

    Two of their last three series meetings were quick five-game routs by Carolina and thus far in the 2025 First Round, there’s nothing to show that the Devils might make it past a Game 4.

    Though closer on the scoreboard than Game 1’s, 4-1, win for the Hurricanes, Game 2’s, 3-1, victory by the Canes felt like a classic, defensively dominant game in the Rod Brind’Amour era.

    Shots on goal were pretty even with Carolina holding the 28-26 advantage by the end of the night and Seth Jarvis’ first goal of the 2025 postseason occurring on an empty net to add the insurance marker to Carolina’s triumph.

    Former Hurricane, Erik Haula, fired a shot off of Frederik Andersen early in the action that New Jersey’s regular season leading scorer, Jesper Bratt, pounced on to give the Devils a, 1-0, lead 3:51 into the first period.

    That was it for the night for New Jersey, however.

    Shayne Gostisbehere tied things up, 1-1, for the Hurricanes early in the middle frame after collecting his own rebound for a snap shot goal at 2:57.

    Just a few minutes later, Martinook added a shorthanded goal to give the Hurricanes a, 2-1, lead at 5:54 of the second period after Dmitry Orlov fed Martinook a pass to breakout of Carolina’s own zone and skate up the ice without much pressure before unloading a snap shot past Jacob Markström.

    Another display of a strong defensive zone effort resulted in the Canes winning the draw from their own end with New Jersey’s net empty in the last minute of regulation.

    Martinook fed the puck up to Jarvis, who split the Devils defenders and skated through the uprights to guide a soft poke check empty net goal into the back of the twine for the, 3-1, win.

    Brenden Dillon and Luke Hughes did not appear in Game 2 after both Devils defenders exited Game 1 due to injury with the latter later returning late in the third period.

    This series doesn’t look like it’s going to be an offensive dynamo only two games into it. Yet, if New Jersey wants to have any chance of defending their home ice for Games 3 and 4, they’re going to have to get pucks in the back of the net.

    “Thanks Captain Obvious.”

    “You’re welcome!”

    One of the good things for the Devils heading home for Game 3 Friday night (8p ET on TBS, MAX, SN360, TVAS2, FDSNSO, MSGSN) is the fact that Carolina was only 16-21-4 on the road in the regular season, though New Jersey went 19-17-5 on home ice this season.

    The Hurricanes had a .439 points percentage in away games, while the Devils had a .524 points percentage at Prudential Center.

    Not your fathers’ Leafs?

    Morgan Rielly and John Tavares each scored for the second time in as many games to give Toronto a, 2-0, lead less than halfway through the first period Tuesday night– 8:20 into the opening frame, to be exact.

    The Maple Leafs recorded just seven shots on goal in the first 20 minutes and had scored on two of them.

    Things weren’t looking like they were going to bounce back for Linus Ullmark from Game 1 to Game 2, but then the Leafs just… …didn’t score again for the next 40 minutes and only had 12 shots on goal in the remaining two periods of regulation.

    Ottawa outshot Toronto 10-7 in the first period and 13-3(!) in the second period before the Maple Leafs held the advantage in shots on goal over the Senators 9-4 in the third period.

    The Leafs also had two shots on goal in overtime to Ottawa’s one shot on Anthony Stolarz in the extra frame.

    The final shot totals may have looked pretty close with the Sens holding a 28-21 advantage by the end of Game 2, but the Senators had fired far more rubber in the Leafs’ direction that didn’t end up hitting twine.

    Instead, the Vulcanized rubber disk smattered against the end boards, glass and Ottawa’s opponents. Toronto finished Tuesday night with 32 blocked shots– a number that would make John Tortorella smile, even if Craig Berube is the actual head coach of the Maple Leafs.

    At the other end, the Senators recorded six blocked shots themselves as the Leafs hit bodies with pucks few and far between by comparison.

    Heading into Game 3, Ottawa is going to have their work cut out for them to open up the shooting lanes and focus on getting more quality shots on net to make Stolarz earn every save.

    Power plays were few and far between with Toronto capitalizing on their only skater advantage of the night on Tavares’ goal. That’s something the Sens need to improve on too– their penalty kill.

    That said, Brady Tkachuk notched his first goal of the postseason while on the power play for Ottawa on a backhand shot late in the second period.

    Tkachuk’s goal planted a seed of doubt as Toronto’s lead was cut in half, 2-1, and the all too familiar comeback that Leafs fans have suffered through almost annually in the Stanley Cup Playoffs crept to the forefront of their minds.

    It wasn’t until late in the third period, too, that Adam Gaudette tipped a shot from the point by Tyler Kleven past Stolarz– tying the game, 2-2, in the process at 14:47 of the third period.

    But Domi made it look easy in overtime as he skated past Dylan Cozens and avoided Drake Batherson’s last-ditch effort flyby to breakup Domi’s advance.

    Domi wired a wrist shot from the slot just inside the outer edge of the faceoff circles through traffic past Ullmark to win the game, 3-2, at 3:09 of the overtime period.

    Toronto is going to want more of the same effort from Games 1 and 2, but without the jitters towards the end of the latter as they head to Canadian Tire Centre Thursday for Game 3 (7p ET on ESPN2, SNE, SNO, SNP, CBC, TVAS).

    Who wanted this exactly?

    Ever since the Florida Panthers were introduced to the National Hockey League in 1993, we’ve been dreaming of the intensity of Stanley Cup Playoff games between the Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    But I have to ask– does the “Battle of Florida” actually just suck?

    We were treated to the first edition of the “Battle of Florida” back in the 2021 First Round. Yep, it only took 28 years, but we rejoiced when it finally happened.

    The first game was a thrilling back-and-forth, 5-4, victory for the Lightning on the road. The Bolts stole the Cats’ thunder in Game 2 with a, 3-1, victory and stole home ice advantage out from under the Panthers– despite both teams still playing in Florida, mind you.

    Then the Panthers responded with a, 6-5, overtime win in Game 3– proving that home ice simply didn’t matter at all.

    Well, until Tampa lit up Florida, 6-2, in Game 4 and took a commanding 3-1 series lead.

    Then the Panthers responded with a lopsided, 4-1, win of their own in Game 5 to force a Game 6.

    Despite the final scores, the Hockey Gods were setting the scene for what could have been a thrilling finish in a Game 7– except the Lightning shutout the Panthers on home ice in Game 6, 4-0.

    Tampa outscored Florida, 24-17, in the series.

    We didn’t have to wait another 28 years for the next rendition of the “Battle of Florida” as the sequel “Battle of Florida II: 2 Fast 2 Florida (Teams)” happened in the 2022 Second Round.

    The Panthers were riding high after advancing from the previous round for the first time since 1996– the same year that Florida went to their first Stanley Cup Final appearance.

    The Lightning were looking to keep their younger brother (by a year) down and win their second series in as many years against the Panthers.

    Game 1 was a, 4-1, win for the Lightning. Game 2 was a closer, 2-1, win for the Lightning as once again the Panthers dropped their first two games on home ice in the “Battle of Florida Part Deux.” Game 3? You guessed it, another win for Tampa– this time, 5-1.

    The Bolts completed the sweep, 2-0, in Game 4 and outscored the Cats, 13-3, in the 2022 edition of the “Battle of Florida.”

    Then we had a year off as the Everglades went fallow as the Toronto Maple Leafs pulled off the unthinkable and won a playoff series for the first time since 2004– knocking off the Lightning in six games in the process in 2023.

    But in 2024, we witnessed the return of the “Battle of Florida” with the third edition: “The Battle of Florida III: Medium Sized Edition.”

    Whereas their 2021 First Round meeting required six games and the 2022 Second Round meeting required four, the 2024 First Round matchup between the Panthers and Lightning required just five games. A happy medium of sorts.

    Florida won Game 1, 3-2, then Game 2, 3-2, but this time in overtime.

    The Panthers took a 3-0 series lead with a convincing, 5-3, victory in Game 3 and, well, everyone thought “oh, great, this one’s going to be another rollover isn’t it?”

    But then Tampa rattled off a, 6-3, win on home ice in Game 4 just to play with us a little because Florida came back and stomped the Lightning to the curb, 6-1, in Game 5– clinching the series– their first series victory in the “Battle of Florida” on home ice.

    The Panthers outscored the Lightning, 20-14, in the 2024 First Round series win.

    And so far in 2025?

    Game 1 was a, 6-2, blowout for Florida on the road in Tampa.

    The defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers had goals from Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Nate Schmidt (x2) and Matthew Tkachuk (x2). The Lightning had goals from Jake Guentzel and Brayden Point.

    Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside 20 out of 22 shots faced for a quality start and a .909 save percentage in the win.

    Andrei Vasilevskiy made 11 saves on 17 shots against for a .647 SV% in the loss. Oof.

    Let’s hope the rest of the series gives us the “battle” part in “Battle of Florida.”

    Call of the Wild

    Matt Boldy became the second player in Minnesota Wild history to score three consecutive team goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs joining Marián Gáborík in the process.

    Gáborík did it on three consecutive goals in Games 3 and 4 of the 2003 Western Conference Semifinal.

    Boldy, meanwhile, kicked off the scoring as the Wild went on a run of four goals– three in the first period, one early in the middle frame– to jump out to a, 4-0, lead in Game 2 of their series with Vegas.

    For a moment, we all held our breath as the Golden Knights got on the board courtesy of Noah Hanifin to make it, 4-1, just past the midpoint of the second period.

    If Monday night was any indication in Los Angeles, then Tuesday night might have been a rerun in Vegas (kind of).

    Tomáš Hertl continues to be hot and made it a two-goal game at 2:26 of the third period, but the Golden Knights couldn’t muster anything else on the scoreboard.

    Kirill Kaprizov tallied an empty-net goal to put it away, 5-2, for Minnesota in Game 2– evening the series at 1-1 in the process.

    The Wild had five goals on 17 shots on net.

    Adin Hill’s 12 saves on 16 shots faced yielded a .750 SV%, which was better than Vasilevskiy’s save percentage over in Tampa at least. But still, that’s… …not a good look for Vegas.

    This series will be closer than you think and it could generate enough momentum to propel the winner on a deep run.

  • DTFR Podcast #253- Cam’s Birthday Bash (feat. Chris Gere)

    DTFR Podcast #253- Cam’s Birthday Bash (feat. Chris Gere)

    Nick and Cam reminisce on the 2022 Stanley Cup Final and talk about Jim Montgomery, offseason plans and free agency reactions so far.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon Music and/or Audible.

  • 2022 NHL Entry Draft Round 1 Recap

    2022 NHL Entry Draft Round 1 Recap

    Round 1 of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft was held Thursday night at Bell Centre in Montréal, Québec marking the first time since the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver that the selections were made in person in front of a live audience as the 2020 and 2021 editions of the draft were held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Coverage of this year’s first round began Thursday night at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN and streaming on ESPN+ in the United States, as well as on SN and TVAS in Canada.

    Rounds 2-7 will be televised on NHL Network and ESPN+ in the U.S., while viewers in Canada can tune to SN or TVAS starting at 11 a.m. ET Friday morning.

    Here’s a quick recap of the First Round in case you had other things going on Thursday night.

    2022 NHL Entry Draft Round 1

    1. Montréal Canadiens – LW Juraj Slafkovsky, TPS (Liiga)
    2. New Jersey Devils – D Simon Nemec, Nitra (Slovakia)
    3. Arizona Coyotes – C Logan Cooley, USA U-18 (USHL)
    4. Seattle Kraken – C Shane Wright, Kingston (OHL)
    5. Philadelphia Flyers – C/LW Cutter Gauthier, USA U-18 (USHL)
    6. Columbus Blue Jackets (from Chicago) – D David Jiricek, Plzen (Extraliga)
    7. Chicago (from Ottawa Senators) – D Kevin Korchinski, Seattle (WHL)
    8. Detroit Red Wings – C Marco Kasper, Rögle BK (SHL)
    9. Buffalo Sabres – C Matthew Savoie, Winnipeg (WHL)
    10. Anaheim Ducks – D Pavel Mintyukov, Saginaw (OHL)
    11. Arizona Coyotes (from San Jose Sharks) – C Conor Geekie, Winnipeg (WHL)
    12. Columbus Blue Jackets – D Denton Mateychuk, Moose Jaw (WHL)
    13. Chicago (from New York Islanders via Montréal Canadiens) – C Frank Nazar, USA-U18 (USHL)
    14. Winnipeg Jets – RW Rutger McGroarty, USA U-18 (USHL)
    15. Vancouver Canucks – RW Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
    16. Buffalo Sabres (from Vegas Golden Knights) – C Noah Ostlund, Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
    17. Nashville Predators – RW Joakim Kemell, JYP (Liiga)
    18. Dallas Stars – D Lian Bichsel, Leksands IF (SHL)
    19. Minnesota Wild (from Los Angeles Kings) – LW Liam Ohgren, Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
    20. Washington Capitals – RW Ivan Miroshnichenko, Omsk Krylia (Russia)
    21. Pittsburgh Penguins – D Owen Pickering, Swift Current (WHL)
    22. Anaheim Ducks (from Boston Bruins) – C Nathan Gaucher, Québec (QMJHL)
    23. St. Louis Blues – RW Jimmy Snuggerud, USA U-18 (USHL)
    24. Minnesota Wild – RW Danila Yurov, Magnitogorsk (Russia)
    25. Chicago (from Toronto Maple Leafs) – D Sam Rinzel, Chaska (High School- Minnesota)
    26. Montréal Canadiens (from Calgary Flames) – RW Filip Mesar, Poprad (Slovakia)
    27. San Jose Sharks (from Carolina Hurricanes via Montréal Canadiens and Arizona Coyotes) – C Filip Bystedt, Linköping HC (SHL)
    28. Buffalo Sabres (from Florida Panthers) – C Jiri Kulich, Karlovy Vary (Extraliga)
    29. Arizona Coyotes (from Edmonton Oilers) – D Maveric Lamoureux, Drummondville (QMJHL)
    30. Winnipeg Jets (from New York Rangers) – C Brad Lambert, Pelicans (Liiga)
    31. Tampa Bay Lightning – LW Isaac Howard, USA U-18 (USHL)
    32. Edmonton Oilers (from Colorado Avalanche via Arizona Coyotes) – LW Reid Schaefer, Seattle (WHL)

    Trades made during the first round of the draft:

    • The Montréal Canadiens trade D Alexander Romanov and the 98th overall pick to the New York Islanders for a 2022 1st round pick (13th overall).
    • Montréal traded a 2022 1st round pick (13th overall, originally belonging to the New York Islanders) and a 2022 3rd round pick (66th overall) Chicago for D Kirby Dach.
    • The San Jose Sharks traded a 2022 1st round pick (11th overall) to the Arizona Coyotes for a 2022 1st round pick (27th overall), a 2022 2nd round pick (34th overall) and a 2022 2nd round pick (45th overall).
    • Chicago acquired G Petr Mrázek and a 2022 1st round pick (25th overall) from the Toronto Maple Leafs for a 2022 2nd round pick (38th overall).
    • The Arizona Coyotes acquired F Zack Kassian, a 2022 1st round pick (29th overall), a 2024 3rd round pick and a 2025 2nd round pick from the Edmonton Oilers for a 2022 1st round pick (32nd overall).

    Trades made earlier in the day prior to the first round of the draft:

    • The Colorado Avalanche acquired G Alexandar Georgiev from the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2022 3rd round pick, a 2022 5th round pick and a 2023 3rd round pick.
    • The Ottawa Senators traded a 2022 1st round pick (7th overall), a 2022 2nd round pick (39th overall) and a 2024 3rd round pick to Chicago for F Alex DeBrincat.
  • DTFR Podcast #252- Who’s Steering The Boat?

    DTFR Podcast #252- Who’s Steering The Boat?

    Nick and Cam talk about the ongoing 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Finals matchups and Bruce Cassidy’s dismissal from the Boston Bruins.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon Music and/or Audible.

  • DTFR Podcast #251- Florida Men

    DTFR Podcast #251- Florida Men

    Nick and Sean talk about the ongoing 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round matchups. Subscribe to The ScorchStack (this isn’t an ad, we just like them).

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon Music and/or Audible.

  • DTFR Podcast #250- Is This The Leafs’ Year (To Get Out Of The First Round)?

    DTFR Podcast #250- Is This The Leafs’ Year (To Get Out Of The First Round)?

    Nick and Cam present cases for James Norris Memorial Trophy, Vezina Trophy and Calder Memorial Trophy finalists and predict how the rest of the 2022 First Round should go.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon Music and/or Audible.

  • Marchand notches five points in, 5-2, victory in Game 4

    Marchand notches five points in, 5-2, victory in Game 4

    For the 34th time since making his postseason debut in 2011, Brad Marchand had a multi-point Stanley Cup Playoff game as he amassed 2-3–5 totals in a, 5-2, win for the Boston Bruins over the Carolina Hurricanes Sunday afternoon in Game 4 at TD Garden.

    Among active players, only Tampa Bay Lightning forward, Nikita Kucherov, has more multi-point postseason games in that span with 37.

    Jeremy Swayman (2-0, 2.00 goals-against average, .925 save percentage in two games played) made 24 saves on 26 shots against in the win for Boston.

    Carolina netminder, Antti Raanta (1-1, 2.40 goals-against average, .928 save percentage in three games played), stopped 23 out of 27 shots faced in the loss.

    As a result of Sunday’s win in Game 4, the Bruins tied the series 2-2 heading back to PNC Arena Tuesday night for Game 5.

    With a five-point effort– including a pair of goals– for Marchand and three points (one goal, two assists) for Patrice Bergeron on Sunday, the Boston duo continued to climb the ranks of Bruins franchise postseason records.

    Bergeron is second in club goals in Stanley Cup Playoff history with 49, while Marchand usurped Phil Esposito for sole possession of the third-most with 48.

    Bergeron now has 77 postseason assists– good enough for the third-most in team history– while Marchand jumped Bobby Orr for the fourth-most with 68 to Orr’s 66.

    Bergeron (126) also surpassed David Krejci (124) for the second-most postseason points in Boston’s franchise history trailing only Ray Bourque (161) for the most overall.

    The B’s were without Jakub Zboril (right ACL), Jesper Frödén (lower body), Hampus Lindholm (upper body) and Charlie McAvoy (COVID-19 protocol) in the, 5-2, win against the Canes– prompting head coach, Bruce Cassidy, to make a few changes among his defensive pairings due to McAvoy’s late removal from the lineup.

    Matt Grzelcyk and Brandon Carlo were promoted to the first pairing with Derek Forbort and Connor Clifton filling out the rest of the top-four defenders.

    Mike Reilly suited up alongside Josh Brown on the third defensive pairing as a result with Trent Frederic, Anton Blidh and Kyle Keyser comprising the short list of healthy scratches for Boston in Game 4.

    Reilly caught Max Domi with a high stick and presented the afternoon’s first power play to the Hurricanes as a result at 2:24 of the first period.

    The Bruins made the kill on the ensuing special teams play, however.

    Midway through the opening frame, Curtis Lazar was penalized for interference at 11:44, but once more Carolina failed to convert on the resulting skater advantage.

    The Canes caught Boston in the vulnerable minute after special teams action, though, as Jordan Staal sent a pass to Brett Pesce (1) in the slot as the Carolina defender pinched in from the point and buried the rubber biscuit on Swayman’s five-hole.

    Staal (2) and Domi (1) had the assists on Pesce’s goal and the Hurricanes jumped out to a, 1-0, lead at 14:06.

    Carolina’s scored first in every game so far this series, but Boston answered back in a hurry about a couple minutes later when Bergeron (3) snuck a shot through Raanta’s five-hole from the doorstep to tie the game, 1-1, at 16:09.

    David Pastrnak (2) and Marchand (4) tallied the assists on the goal as the Bruins evened things up 2:03 after Pesce’s goal.

    About a minute later, Staal cut a rut to the sin bin for hooking and presented Boston with another power play at 17:25.

    The B’s time on the skater advantage was cut short, however, when Taylor Hall tripped Vincent Trocheck at 17:48 of the first period resulting in 1:38 of 4-on-4 action before an abbreviated power play for Carolina in the remainder.

    Entering the first intermission, though, the Bruins and Hurricanes were tied, 1-1, on the scoreboard with the Canes leading in shots on goal, 10-6, after 20 minutes.

    Carolina also led in blocked shots (4-2), giveaways (4-2), hits (13-12) and faceoff win percentage (62-38), while both teams managed two takeaways aside.

    The Hurricanes were 0-for-3 and the Bruins were 0-for-1 on the power play heading into the middle frame.

    The Canes wrapped the puck around the attacking zone quickly in the middle frame before Nino Niederreiter found Staal (1) for a one-timer goal from the slot to give Carolina a, 2-1, lead 33 seconds into the second period.

    Niederreiter (1) and Tony DeAngelo (5) had the assists on the goal.

    Less than a minute later, Andrei Svechnikov was given an interference infraction at 59 seconds of the second period and the Bruins went on the power play.

    Boston’s 5-on-4 quickly became a 5-on-3 skater advantage when Trocheck sent an errant puck over the glass and out of play at 1:37 of the second period, yielding an abbreviated two-skater advantage to Boston for a span of 1:23.

    The Bruins, however, did not convert on the power play opportunity.

    Teuvo Teräväinen hooked Pastrnak at 13:40, but Carolina’s penalty kill managed to get their job done without issue.

    Late in the period, however, Niederreiter tripped Craig Smith at 17:35 and presented the B’s with another skater advantage.

    This time, Raanta made a save on a shot by Marchand before the puck dropped to the ice and sat in the crease at the Hurricanes netminder’s feet prior to Jake DeBrusk (1) burying it on the far side with one quick swoop.

    Carolina’s head coach, Rod Brind’Amour, challenged the call on the ice on the basis that he believed DeBrusk made enough contact with his stick on Raanta prior to the goal to overturn the call, however the official review deemed DeBrusk’s play to be concurrent with the rulebook in terms of how a player is allowed to go after a loose puck in the crease.

    The call on the ice stood. Good goal.

    Boston tied it, 2-2, while Marchand (5) and Bergeron (2) tallied the assists on DeBrusk’s power-play goal at 18:44 of the second period.

    As a result of the unsuccessful challenge, the Hurricanes were assessed a bench minor and Niederreiter went back to the sin bin to serve the infraction at 18:44.

    The Bruins wound up with another 5-on-3 advantage after Sebastian Aho caught Bergeron with a high stick near the Boston captain’s eye and drew blood.

    Aho was charged with a four-minute double minor for high sticking at 19:35 of the second period and the B’s went on the 5-on-3 advantage for the next 68 seconds– spilling over into the final frame as a result.

    Through 40 minutes of action, Boston and Carolina were tied, 2-2, on the scoreboard despite the Bruins leading in shots on goal, 19-16, including a, 13-6, advantage in shots on net in the second period alone.

    The Canes held the advantage in blocked shots (8-6), giveaways (5-4) and faceoff win% (57-43), while the B’s led in takeaways (4-3).

    Both teams had 24 hits aside heading into the second intermission.

    Entering the final frame, the Hurricanes were 0-for-3 and the Bruins were 1-for-7 on the power play.

    Cassidy sent out five forwards to start the third period as the Bruins had time remaining on the power play with Aho in the box for Carolina.

    It didn’t take Boston long to pull ahead of the Hurricanes.

    Charlie Coyle found Marchand in the high slot by the top of the right circle where Marchand (2) riffled a shot over Raanta’s glove side to give the Bruins their first lead of the afternoon, 3-2, 44 seconds into the third period.

    Coyle (2) and DeBrusk (2) notched the assists on Marchand’s power-play goal.

    A couple minutes later, Grzelcyk caught Brady Skjei with a high stick and yielded 52 seconds of 4-on-4 action at 2:46 of the third period as a result before an abbreviated power play for Carolina would commence.

    The Bruins managed to kill off Grzelcyk’s minor without issue.

    Early in the final frame, Bergeron won an attacking zone faceoff over to Marchand before Marchand setup Pastrnak (2) for the catch and release goal from point blank on the low glove side while Raanta dove across the crease.

    Marchand (6) and Bergeron (3) tallied the assists on Pastrnak’s goal as the Bruins extended their lead to two-goals, 4-2, at 5:41 of the third period.

    DeAngelo cross checked Lazar in the face at the midpoint of the final frame and presented Boston with another power play at 10:00, but the Bruins failed to convert on the advantage while the Carolina defender was in the box.

    With 3:48 remaining in the action, Brind’Amour used his timeout and pulled Raanta for an extra attacker.

    Shortly thereafter, Marchand (3) buried the puck in the empty net to secure a, 5-2, win for Boston at 19:25 of the third period.

    Coyle (3) and Carlo (1) had the assists on the goal as the B’s extended their lead to three-goals.

    In the dying seconds of the action, Nick Foligno flipped the puck over the glass for an automatic delay of game minor at 19:57.

    The Hurricanes did not convert on the ensuing skater advantage as the final horn sounded on a resounding victory for the Bruins in Game 4– tying the series 2-2 in the process.

    Boston left their own ice leading in shots on goal, 28-26, despite trailing Carolina, 10-9, in shots on net in the third period alone.

    The B’s also led in hits (37-29), while the Canes left TD Garden leading in blocked shots (15-6) and faceoff win% (54-46).

    Both teams had six giveaways aside and the Hurricanes were 0-for-5, while the Bruins were 2-for-9 on the power play on Sunday.

    Boston improved to 2-1 when tied after the first period and 1-0 when tied after the second period this postseason, while Carolina fell to 1-2 when tied after one and 0-1 when tied after two in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    The Bruins tied the series 2-2 as a result of their win in Game 4, which means a 3-2 series lead is up for grabs for either team Tuesday night at PNC Arena in Raleigh in Game 5.

    Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET and viewers outside of the local markets can catch the action on ESPN in the United States, as well as SN360 and TVAS in Canada.

  • DTFR Podcast #248- 2022 First Round Preview In Progress (Part 1)

    DTFR Podcast #248- 2022 First Round Preview In Progress (Part 1)

    Nick and Sean tackle a few leftover news items from the last week of the regular season and preview the Eastern Conference matchups in the First Round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon Music and/or Audible.

  • Bruins drop season finale on the road, 5-2

    Bruins drop season finale on the road, 5-2

    William Nylander scored a pair of goals in a, 5-2, victory for the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Boston Bruins Friday night at Scotiabank Arena.

    Erik Källgren (8-4-1, 3.31 goals-against average, .888 save percentage in 14 games played) made 24 saves on 26 shots against in the win for the Leafs.

    Bruins goaltender, Jeremy Swayman (23-24-3, 2.41 goals-against average, .914 save percentage in 41 games played), stopped 22 out of 26 shots faced in the loss.

    Boston finished the regular season with a 51-26-5 record (107 points)– good enough for 4th in the Atlantic Division and the first wild card in the Eastern Conference.

    The B’s will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the First Round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs as a result.

    Toronto improved to 54-21-7 (115 points) overall and finished 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They will host the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2022 First Round.

    The Bruins went 25-13-3 on the road and 0-3-0 against the Maple Leafs this season after going 2-0-1 against Toronto in 2019-20.

    The two teams did not meet last season due to the temporarily realigned divisions in light of the ongoing COIVD-19 pandemic.

    Boston’s list of injured players and healthy scratches got a bit of a shakeup heading into the final game of the regular season as Jakub Zboril (right ACL) and Jesper Frödén (lower body) were joined by Hampus Lindholm, Patrice Bergeron, Matt Grzelcyk, Erik Haula, Brad Marchand, Taylor Hall, Charlie McAvoy and David Pastrnak among those held out of the lineup.

    Zboril missed his 62nd game this season due to an injury sustained on Dec. 2nd in Nashville, while Hall missed his first game of the season as a healthy scratch.

    As a result, Charlie Coyle was the only Bruin to suit up in all 82 games this season– marking the first time that anyone in a Boston uniform played in all 82 games in a full 82-game season since Pastrnak and Tim Schaller did so in 2017-18.

    Since then, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic shortened the 2019-20 regular season and kept 2020-21 limited to 56 games.

    Chris Wagner made his season debut on Friday after being recalled from the Providence Bruins (AHL) with Jack Studnicka, Oskar Steen and Jack Ahcan to fill in for the regulars.

    Boston’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, opted to keep Trent Frederic, Coyle and Craig Smith together on the same line, while he moved Jake DeBrusk to the second line left wing with Studnicka at center and Marc McLaughlin on right wing.

    Curtis Lazar centered the third line with Nick Foligno and Steen on his wings, while Tomáš Nosek held the fourth line together– flanked by Anton Blidh and Wagner.

    On defense, Ahcan was paired with Brandon Carlo on the first pairing, while Mike Reilly and Josh Brown comprised the second pairing with Derek Forbort and Connor Clifton in their regular roles filling out the bottom pair.

    The Bruins struck first in quick fashion as Smith wrapped the puck around the back of the net and slipped a pass to Frederic (8) for the flub shot through Källgren’s five-hole.

    Smith (19) and Coyle (28) tallied the assists on the goal and the B’s led, 1-0, at 1:10 of the first period.

    Boston didn’t hold the lead for long, however as McLaughlin caught Mark Giordano with a high stick at 1:48 of the first period that was reviewed for an injury on the infraction– resulting in a four-minute double minor.

    Toronto made it a little past the midpoint of the skater advantage before Giordano sent a shot towards the net that Ilya Mikheyev (21) tipped past Swayman to tie the game, 1-1, at 3:51.

    Giordano (27) and Timothy Liljegren (18) notched the assists on Mikheyev’s power-play goal.

    Midway through the opening frame, William Nylander (33) got a breakaway and buried the puck in the twine on a forehand tuck after pulling Swayman to the right side of the crease.

    Nylander’s goal was unassisted and gave the Maple Leafs their first lead of the night, 2-1, at 13:16 of the first period.

    Late in the period, Morgan Rielly floated a shot towards Swayman that Nick Abruzzese (1) tipped for his first career National Hockey League goal.

    Rielly (58) had the only assist on the goal as a result and the Leafs extended their lead to two goals at 19:52.

    After one period, Toronto led, 3-1, on the scoreboard and, 10-6, in shots on goal.

    The Maple Leafs also led in blocked shots (10-2) and takeaways (2-0), while the Bruins held the advantage in giveaways (4-3), hits (20-15) and faceoff win percentage (56-44) entering the first intermission.

    The Leafs were 1-for-2 on the power play, while Boston had yet to see time on the skater advantage heading into the middle frame.

    DeBrusk went hard into the boards early in the second period, but skated off on his own power and sat on the bench until his next shift without much discomfort despite play briefly coming to a stop while he laid on the ice.

    Late in the period, Foligno tripped Wayne Simmonds and presented the Leafs with a power play at 14:49 of the second period, but Toronto failed to convert on the skater advantage.

    Shortly thereafter, Nosek cross checked Liljegren and became entangled in a quick exchange of pleasantries with Rielly– resulting in minor infractions for both Nosek and Rielly for cross checking and roughing, respectively at 19:30.

    The two clubs skated at 4-on-4 into the third period as a result.

    Through 40 minutes of action Friday night, the Maple Leafs led, 3-1, on the scoreboard and, 20-15, in shots on goal– including a, 10-9, advantage in the second period alone.

    Toronto also maintained control in blocked shots (11-5), takeaways (8-3) and giveaways (8-7), while Boston led in hits (45-27) and faceoff win% (53-47).

    The Leafs were 1-for-3 and the Bruins were 0-for-0 on the power play heading into the final frame.

    Nylander (34) collected his second goal of the night on a similar backhand-forehand effort from his first goal of the game and the Maple Leafs grabbed a, 4-1, lead at 8:00 of the third period.

    Moments later, Foligno thought he had his 500th career NHL point by scoring a would-be goal on the doorstep, but Toronto’s head coach, Sheldon Keefe, challenged the call on the ice on the basis that he believed Boston was offside entering the zone prior to the goal.

    Upon video review, it was determined that Lazar had gone over the blue line into the attacking zone before Steen broke the plane for a zone entry, rendering the call on the ice reversed. No goal.

    Toronto still led, 4-1, and Foligno will have to wait until next season for his 500th point.

    Shortly thereafter, T.J. Brodie cut a rut to the box for holding and Boston went on the power play for the first time at 11:55.

    Smith sent a shot on goal that DeBrusk (25) buried on the rebound past Källgren’s short side to give the Bruins their third power-play goal in their last two games.

    Boston trailed, 4-2, while Smith (20) and Reilly (13) picked up the assists on DeBrusk’s goal at 12:49 of the third period.

    With about a minute left in the action, Cassidy pulled Swayman for an extra attacker, but the B’s weren’t able to muster any last-minute comeback efforts.

    Pierre Engvall (15) capitalized on a turnover and buried the rubber biscuit in the empty twine for an empty net goal in addition to a three-goal lead at 19:50 of the third period.

    Engvall’s goal was unassisted and the Leafs finished their season with a, 5-2, victory on home ice.

    At the final horn, Toronto had won and wrapped things up leading in shots on goal, 27-26, despite trailing, 11-7, in shots on net in the third period alone.

    The Maple Leafs finished the night leading in blocked shots (13-8) and giveaways (13-11), while the Bruins exited the ice with the advantage in hits (54-48) and faceoff win% (53-47).

    The Leafs went 1-for-3 on the power play, while the B’s went 1-for-1 on the skater advantage Friday night.

    Boston fell to 37-10-2 (19-5-1 on the road) when scoring first, 6-15-2 (2-8-1 on the road) when trailing after one and 4-20-2 (1-9-1 on the road) when trailing after two this season.

    Toronto improved to 19-15-4 (13-7-2 at home) when allowing the game’s first goal, 29-3-3 (17-0-0 at home) when leading after the first period and 40-1-3 (23-1-0 at home) when leading after the second period in 2021-22.

    With the 2021-22 regular season in the rearview mirror, the Bruins look ahead to the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs and their First Round matchup with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    Games 1 and 2 will be at PNC Arena in Raleigh.