Down the Frozen River

Tag: Vancouver Canucks

  • Roberto Luongo, Bjugstad, and Smith Overpower New York to Even Up the Series.

    The Florida Panthers defeated the New York Islanders by the score of 2-1 on Friday night in front of a rocking 18,373 at the BB&T Center. The Panthers were led by their All-Star goaltender Roberto Luongo who made 41 saves in their winning effort.

    Both teams started off the game by sending their 4th line to the opening faceoff to try to gain momentum. This worked in favor of both sides being that just 42 seconds into the game there already was a scrum. The scrum involved the two team’s enforcers Shawn Thornton and Matt Martin but didn’t amount to anything. Just three minutes later on the Panthers sixth shot, Rielly Smith (his 3rd goal in just two games) scored the game’s first goal off a juicy rebound from Thomas Greiss, assisted by Nick Bjugstad and Johnathan Huberdeau.

    Rocco Grimaldi took the game’s first penalty just two minutes later after he took down Islanders center, Alan Quine. This would send the Islanders to the power power where they looked to even up to score. They were able to sustain a good amount of pressure, but with just one weak shot from the point, it never amounted to anything great. Then 12 minutes later Panthers left winger Garret Wilson tripped Islanders left winger Shane Prince resulting in their second power play of the period. Unfortunately, this PP was worse than the first one resulting in no shots. So, the first period ended 1-0 in favor of the Panthers.

    The second period started just like the first, with both coaches sending out their 4th line to set the tone, but this time nothing happened. The first prime scoring chance and momentum went to the Panthers at 17:04 of the second period from veteran defenseman Dmitry Kulikov after Greiss shut down his first shot from the slot with a great toe/blocker save. Then just 3 minutes and 21 seconds later Dmitry Kulikov found Reilly Smith behind the net who then found a cutting Nick Bjugstad (who slipped poor coverage from Islanders right-winger Josh Bailey) with a spinning backhand pass and Bjugstad roofed his first of the playoffs to open the Panthers scoring tab in the second period.

    With 1:27 remaining in the second period we had our games first major altercation. Of course, you might have even guessed it, it involved both teams 4th line again! The Islanders enforcers went at it trying to gain energy for their team who were down 2-0 at the time. It seemed that everyone on the ice had a man tied up and were going back and forth. Before it all started, the pesky Casey Cizikas gave Panthers D-man Aaron Ekblad a shot below the belt and his teammates didn’t like that and a brawl commenced. After everything settled down, a total of 6 penalties were handed out, with both teams sending 3 players to the box. Believe it or not, each player on the 4th line for both teams got two minutes for roughing with Cizikas getting an extra penalty for the low blow. So, the Panthers went on their first power play, but it resulting in nothing special.

    The start of the third period was a slow one, with no team truly gaining momentum. One of the first actions of the period was at the 15:47 mark of the third period when Cal Clutterbuck made two beautiful toe drags to gain the zone and gave Panthers defenseman Alex Petrovic no choice but to drag Clutterbuck down and go to the box for holding. The Islanders would then get their third PP of the game. They grabbed three high-quality shots during the 2-minute span, but Roberto Luongo was up to the task and kept the shots out of his net.

    Then with 3:33 seconds remaining in the game, the Islanders were able to ultimately get one past the stellar Luongo with their 40th shot of the game. With their superstar, John Tavares corralling Nick Leddy’s point shot off the boards and slamming the puck past Luongo’s right pad for his second of the playoffs. Also, Kyle Okposo grabbed the secondary apple (assist) on the goal. They then pulled goaltender Thomas Greiss for the extra attacker pushing for that tying goal. They only managed two shots, but “Lu” wasn’t having any of it and shut the door. The Panthers would then ice the game on an empty net goal scored by Dmitry Kulikov assisted by Aleksander Barkov at 19:51 of the third period.

    New York outshot Florida 42-31 and outhit the Panthers 32-22. While Florida won in the faceoff category 36-27, lead in giveaways 13-9, and blocked shots 12-8. Florida was 0/1 on the power play while New York was 0/3.

    First Start Roberto Luongo would earn his first playoff win since 2011 when he was with the Vancouver Canucks after saving 41 out of 42 shots (.976%). While Thomas Greiss, who played a great game, gets stuck with the loss after saving 28 out of 30 shots (.933%).

    The series is now tied at one game apiece (1-1).  Both teams will now grab a flight up north to Brooklyn, New York for Game 3 on Sunday with puck drop scheduled for 8 PM. You can catch this matchup on NBCSN, SN, MSG+, or FS-F.

  • Down the Frozen River Podcast #31- Frozen Four and We Love the Checkers (Feat. Will Roberson)

    Down the Frozen River Podcast #31- Frozen Four and We Love the Checkers (Feat. Will Roberson)

    Jordan Dettrow makes his podcasting debut on the Down the Frozen River Podcast as he joins the rest of the crew via Skype to talk about this year’s NCAA Frozen Four and other college hockey headlines.

    This week’s episode also includes the DTFR Podcast’s first official guest (since Jordan and Frank don’t technically count, as they’re part of the team). Will Roberson stopped by to talk about what it’s been like to balance life as a Queens University of Charlotte student athlete and intern with the Charlotte Checkers this year, as well as how awesome the Checkers organization is and some of the hype surrounding their push for the 2016 Calder Cup Playoffs.

    Stay tuned for more 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs coverage coming soon and as always, hear what the DTFR Crew has to say about the latest news and notes from the NHL, right here on the Down the Frozen River Podcast.

    Join the conversation, make a suggestion, or ask a question for our next podcast using #AskDownTheFrozenRiver or #DTFRPodcast on Twitter and/or drop us a line on Facebook– your thoughts might make it on our show!

  • April 6 – Day 174 – Home sweet home… one more time

    A point is better than nothing, right?  It all depends how the Red Wings play today, as Boston lost 2-1 in the shootout to Carolina in yesterday’s Game of the Day.

    The Canes struck their lone goal of regulation with 1:06 remaining in the first period on a Third Star of the Game Jaccob Slavin wrister, assisted by Justin Faulk (his 21st helper of the season) and Nathan Gerbe.

    Boston waited to level until the 1:45 mark of the third, courtesy of a Loui Eriksson wrister (his 29th tally of the season), assisted by John-Michael Liles.  Neither team could find the back of the net again, whether in the remaining regulation time or overtime, so we moved into the shootout.

    It took five rounds before the Hurricanes struck their game-winner of sorts.  Noah Hanifin was last night’s hero, scoring on a backhander.

    First Star Cam Ward earns the win after saving 35 of 36 shots faced (97.2%), while Second Star Tuukka Rask takes the shootout loss, saving 27 of 28 (96.4%).

    After such a busy Tuesday schedule, we need a little breather, so the NHL only scheduled three games today.  The action starts at 7 p.m. eastern with two games dropping the puck (Vancouver at Edmonton and Columbus at Toronto), followed an hour later by this evening’s nightcap, Philadelphia at Detroit (NBCSN/TVAS).

    Vancouver at Edmonton is the only divisional rivalry being played this evening, while Philadelphia at Detroit is the only game between teams currently qualifying for the playoffs.

    In most cases, I’d usually go Philly–Wings (and you should no doubt watch it, it’s a huge game), but tonight is a night of incredible, bittersweet memories and optimism centered around the best rookie Alberta has seen since the Great One, as this is the last Oilers game to be played in Rexall Place.

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    Welcome to my EDM/House lounge, I’m DJ Connor bringing you all my favorite tunes.  *Bonus* if you haven’t, you need to listen to the entirety of Daft Punk’s Discovery album.  This is the one that made them big time, and still probably my favorite of their four records.

    And you thought you visited this site just for hockey info.

    Anyways, tonight’s game is the last NHL hockey game to take place in Rexall barring any terrible setbacks in the completion of Rogers Place or severe damage to the new facility.  Rexall is the second oldest active arena (opened in 1974), and third smallest (16,839 capacity).  Rogers will be 14th biggest in the league.

    Rexall has seen a lot in its 42 years.  Five times have the Oilers won the Stanley Cup, and four of those series clinching victories took place on this ice.  In fact, Rexall Place has never seen a visitor clinch the title on its surface, as both of the Oilers‘ Stanley Cup shortcomings were finalized on the east coast.

    The 1989 All-Star Game took place in Edmonton, as well as the 1995 NHL Entry Draft.  Of course, those events pale in comparison to even just a single game featuring the likes of Glenn Anderson, Paul Coffey, Grant Fuhr, Wayne Gretzky, Al Hamilton, Jari Kurri, Mark Messier, Adam Oates, Jacques Plante, Chris Pronger, Glen Sather and Norm Ullman, all men who either have their numbers retired by the club or are honored in the Hall of Fame.

    This building will be sorely missed by those reminiscing about the past, but the new Rogers Place is a new start for a franchise that looks nothing like its elite past, although a certain rookie has intentions to change that for the better.

    The visiting 30-36-13 Vancouver Canucks are the fifth best team in the Pacific Division (read that as third worst) and 12th in the Western Conference (again, read as third worst).  To get there, they’ve played the 10th worst defense, paired with the second worst offense.

    Led by Chris Tanev’s 165 blocks, Vancouver has allowed only 2534 shots to reach 17-23-9 Ryan Miller and co., but they’ve collectively only saved 91.8% for 227 goals against, the 10th most in the NHL.  The lack of success absolutely cannot be blamed on the defensive special teams, as the penalty kill has neutralized 82.35% of their infractions, allowing 42 power play goals in the process, the 10th best rate in the league.

    Daniel Sedin’s 254 shots has led the squad to firing the puck 2229 times, but only 8% have found the back of the net for 182 goals (led by Sedin’s 28 tallies), the second fewest in the league.  You know what I said about the Canucks‘ penalty kill not being responsible for defensive shortcomings?  Yeah, that doesn’t apply to the power play, which is successful on only 16.17% of attempts, good for 38 extra man goals (led by Sedin’s eight power play tallies), the fifth worst rate in the league.

    As poorly as they’ve played all season, Vancouver is actually entering tonight’s game riding a three game winning streak, with their most recent being the 3-2 win over the visiting Kings on Monday.

    The 30-43-7 Edmonton Oilers are, once again, the worst team in hockey (okay, they’re tied with Toronto for that honor, but the Leafs have a game in hand).  They play the sixth worst offense paired with the fourth worst defense.

    Led by Taylor Hall’s 283 shots, the Oilers have fired the puck a measly 2310 times, with 8.2% finding the back of the net for 194 goals, the sixth fewest in the NHL.  Once again, that is partially to blame on the power play, which is successful on only 17.39% of their attempts for 30 extra man goals (led by Jordan Eberle’s seven power play tallies), the 11th worst rate in the league.

    Led by Andrej Sekera’s 153 blocks, the Oil have allowed 2480 shots to reach 20-27-4 Cam Talbot and co., of which they’ve collectively saved 91% for 239 goals against, the fourth most in the league.  The special teams strike out again (did someone mention baseball season starting?), as they’ve killed only 80.16% of opposing power plays for 49 extra man goals against, the 11th worst rate in the league.

    Edmonton enters tonight’s game on a three game losing skid, with their most recent being Saturday’s 5-0 home loss to the rival Flames.

    Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Edmonton‘s Hall (61 points, 21 of which are even-strength goals and 36 are assists, with 30 at even-strength, 283 shots and six game-winning goals [all lead the team]) and Sekera (12 power play assists and 153 blocks [both lead the team]) & Vancouver‘s Jannik Hansen (+16 and a .191 shooting percentage [both lead the team]), D. Sedin (61 points, 28 of which are goals, including six game-winners, consisting of 20 at even-strength and eight on the power play and 254 shots [all lead the team]) and Henrik Sedin (43 assists, consisting of 28 at even-strength and 15 on the power play [all lead the team]).

    Given each team’s streak, I’m worried that Vancouver might win this one.  I expect a tight game regardless of the winner, but in honor of the occasion, I am pulling for the Oilers so they may end their years at Rexall on a high note.

  • NHL Trades Since January 1, 2016

    NHL Trades Since January 1, 2016

    By: Nick Lanciani

    Here’s a quick recap (and I mean really quick recap- more like a brief refresher) of every trade made in the league since January 1st. For anything before the 2016 calendar year, check out NHL.com’s Trade Tracker.

    This year’s trade deadline is Monday, February 29, 2016 (in other words- tomorrow). All trade calls must be made by 3:00 PM EST on Monday in order for any deal to potentially go through.

    On January 3rd, the Chicago Blackhawks traded F Jeremy Morin to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for F Richard Panik.

    January 6th saw two trades made across the league with the Philadelphia Flyers having traded F Vincent Lecavalier and D Luke Schenn to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for F Jordan Weal and a 3rd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

    That same day, the Columbus Blue Jackets acquired D Seth Jones and sent F Ryan Johansen to the Nashville Predators in a one-for-one trade.

    The Anaheim Ducks traded F Max Friberg to the Montréal Canadiens in exchange for G Dustin Tokarski on January 7th.

    On January 8th, the New York Rangers dealt F Emerson Etem to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for F Nicklas Jensen.

    The league saw several days off from trade action until January 14th when the Nashville Predators acquired D Patrick Mullen from the Ottawa Senators for D Conor Allen.

    January 15th witnessed two trades in the NHL, first with the Nashville Predators trading D Victor Bartley to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for D Stefan Elliott. This trade became part of the now infamous, John Scott trade, in which the Coyotes then traded D Victor Bartley and F John Scott to the Montréal Canadiens for D Jarred Tinordi and F Stefan Fournier.

    On January 16th the Pittsburgh Penguins traded F David Perron and D Adam Clendening to the Anaheim Ducks for F Carl Hagelin.

    The Chicago Blackhawks sent D Ryan Garbutt to the Anaheim Ducks for F Jiri Sekac on January 21st.

    Then on February 9th the Toronto Maple Leafs sent D Dion Phaneuf, F Matt Frattin, F Casey Bailey, F Ryan Rupert and D Cody Donaghey to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for D Jared Cowen, F Colin Greening, F Milan Michalek, F Tobias Lindberg and a 2nd round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

    February 21st played a part in the day that the Toronto Maple Leafs traded F Shawn Matthias to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for D Colin Smith and a 4th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs followed up with another trade on February 22nd, sending D Roman Polak and F Nick Spaling to the San Jose Sharks for F Raffi Torres, a 2nd round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft and a 2nd round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

    That same day (February 22nd) the Calgary Flames acquired F Hunter Shinkaruk from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for F Markus Granlund.

    The Washington Capitals sent a 3rd round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for D Mike Weber on February 23rd.

    On February 24th the Edmonton Oilers traded the rights to RFA D Philip Larsen to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a conditional 5th round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

    The Winnipeg Jets traded F Andrew Ladd, F Matt Fraser and D Jay Harrison on February 25th, to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for F Marko Dano, a 1st round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and a conditional 3rd round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft (if the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup in 2016).

    The Chicago Blackhawks then traded D Rob Scuderi to the Los Angeles Kings for D Christian Ehrhoff on February 26th.

    Not to be outdone, the Montréal Canadiens sent F Tomas Fleischmann and F Dale Weise to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for F Phillip Danault and a 2nd round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft also on February 26th.

    February 27th began a long list of trades, first with the Edmonton Oilers sending G Anders Nilsson to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for G Niklas Lundstrom and a 5th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

    Next the Toronto Maple Leafs traded G James Reimer and F Jeremy Morin to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for G Alex Stalock, F Ben Smith and a conditional 4th round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft (can become a 3rd round pick in 2018 if the Sharks reach this year’s Stanley Cup Final).

    The third trade on February 27th sent D Jakub Kindl from the Detroit Red Wings to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 6th round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

    The Calgary Flames then sent F Jiri Hudler to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 2nd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and a 4th round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. 

    Also on the 27th, the Edmonton Oilers acquired a 3rd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and sent D Justin Schultz to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    The sixth trade of the day saw the Oilers send F Teddy Purcell to the Florida Panthers for a 3rd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

    Finally, the last trade on February 27th witnessed the Buffalo Sabres trade F Jason Akeson, F Phil Varone, D Jerome Gauthier-Leduc and a conditional 7th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for D Michael Sdao, F Eric O’Dell, F Cole Schneider and F Alex Guptill.

    On February 28th the Carolina Hurricanes dealt F Eric Staal to the New York Rangers in  exchange for F Aleksi Saarela, a 2nd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and a 2nd round pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

    The New York Rangers traded F Ryan Bourque to the Washington Capitals in exchange for F Chris Brown.

    In the third trade of February 28th, the Carolina Hurricanes acquired F Valentin Zykov and a conditional 5th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and sent F Kris Versteeg to the Los Angeles Kings.

    Finally, the Washington Capitals closed out trading on February 28th by sending F Brooks Laich, D Connor Carrick and a 2nd round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for F Daniel Winnik and a 5th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft (previously acquired from the Anaheim Ducks).

     

  • TRADE: San Jose swaps goalies and more with Toronto

    By: Nick Lanciani

    The San Jose Sharks traded backup goaltender Alex Stalock, forward Ben Smith and a conditional fourth round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for goaltender James Reimer and forward Jeremy Morin. The conditional pick involved in the deal can become a third round pick in the 2018 draft if the Sharks reach this year’s Stanley Cup Final as reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger.

    UnknownReimer is a 27-year-old native of Morweena, Manitoba who has played in 207 NHL games, all with the Maple Leafs. He posted a 85-76-23 record with a .914 SV%, 2.83 GAA and 11 shutouts during his time with Toronto.

    He is most notably remembered as the Maple Leafs goalie in their 2013 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal matchup with the Boston Bruins, posting a 3-4 record with a .923 SV% and 2.88 GAA in seven career Stanley Cup Playoffs games.

    He has represented Canada twice at the World Championships (2011 and 2014) and posted a cumulative record of 7-1 with a .915 SV% and 2.13 GAA in eight games. Reiner was originally selected by Toronto in the fourth round (99th overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

    Morin is a 24-year-old forward who is currently playing with the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL). Through 41 games with the Marlies and the Rockford IceHogs, Morin has 11-17-28 totals, 32 penalty minutes and a plus-7 rating. He has played in 82 career NHL games with the Chicago Blackhawks and the Columbus Blue Jackets and has 10-12-22 career totals, as well as 69 penalty minutes and a plus-8 rating.

    He was drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers in the second round (45th overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Morin has previously played for San Jose’s assistant coach, Steve Spott, during his Junior hockey days with the Kitchener Rangers in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).

    Unknown-3Stalock is a 28-year-old goaltender who has split time with the Sharks and their AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda this season. In 62 career NHL games, spanning five seasons with the Sharks, Stalock posted a 24-19-7 record with a 2.37 GAA and a .911 SV%. This season alone, he was 3-5-2 in 13 games with a 2.94 GAA.

    The St. Paul, Minnesota native is 2-0-0 with the Barracuda this season with a 1.96 GAA. He was originally drafted by the Sharks in the fourth round (112th overall) in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. He was also a pleasure to watch with the Worcester Sharks, as an aside.

    Smith is a 27-year-old native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina who has split the season with the Sharks and the Barracuda. He was previously acquired by San Jose in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks last season and played in 25 games with the Sharks this season, notching two goals and three assists. Smith has 8-2-10 totals in 14 games with the Barracuda this season.

    He has played in 181 career NHL games split between San Jose and Chicago and has 25-19-44 career totals. Smith was a sixth round (169th overall) draft pick of the Blackhawks in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

    As a result of the trade, the Maple Leafs have recalled goaltender, Garret Sparks, from the Marlies to serve as the backup to Jonathan Bernier tonight as Toronto squares off with the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre. Meanwhile, San Jose’s additions may join the team as early as Sunday when the Sharks take on the Vancouver Canucks on the road at Rogers Arena.

     

  • TRADE: Montreal sends Fleischmann and Weise to Chicago

    By: Nick Lanciani

    The Chicago Blackhawks were quite busy on Friday, completing their third trade in 24 hours, when they sent forward Philip Danault and a second round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for forwards Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise.

    Unknown-2Fleischmann is a 31-year old forward who had 10-10-20 totals in 57 games with the Canadiens this season. The Koprivnice, Czech Republic native has 133-197-330 totals in 638 career NHL games.

    He is in his 11th NHL season, having previously spent time wish Washington (2005-2010), Colorado (2010-2011), Florida (2011-2014) and Anaheim (2014-2015). Fleischmann was a product of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft having been selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the second round (63rd overall).

    He signed a contract with Montreal this season as a free agent in early October and has played in 35 career Stanley Cup Playoffs games, in which he’s scored nine points (four goals, five assists).

    Weise is a 27-year old forward who is in the midst of a career season, recording 26 points (14 goals, 12 assists) in 56 games with the Canadiens before this trade. He ranked second on the Habs in hits (108) and had 117 shots on goal.

    A native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Weise has 85 points (37 goals, 48 assists) in 314 career NHL games spanning six seasons with the New York Rangers (2010-2011), Vancouver Canucks (2011-2014) and Montreal (2014-2016). Weise has 5-5-10 totals in 34 Stanley Cup Playoffs games. The Rangers originally selected Weise in the fourth round (111th overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Prior to this trade, he was acquired by Montreal in a deal with Vancouver that sent Raphael Diaz to the Canucks on February 3, 2014.

    Both Fleischmann and Weise are pending UFA’s at the end of the season.

    UnknownDanault is a 23-year old native of Victoriaville, Quebec who had 1-4-5 totals in 30 games with Chicago this season.

    He also had 1-1-2 totals in six games with the Rockford IceHogs this season. Danault made his NHL debut last season with the Blackhawks and appeared in one additional game last year.

    The 6’0”, 201 pound forward has 68 points (20 goals, 48 assists) and 94 penalty minutes in 160 career AHL games. Danault was Chicago’s second pick in the first round (26th overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. He split time between the Victoriaville Tigres and Moncton Wildcats during his Junior career in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), and recorded 251 points (74 goals, 177 assists) in 243 career QMJHL games.

    As a result of the trade (and the recent injury to defenseman Nathan Beaulieu), Montreal has recalled forward Michael McCarron and defenseman Morgan Ellis from the St. John’s IceCaps (AHL).

    Montreal retained 30 percent of Dale Weise’s salary in the deal.

    The Canadiens are scheduled to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs from home ice at the Bell Centre in Montreal on Saturday night, while the Blackhawks and their new additions will take on the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon on home ice at the United Center as part of NBC’s Game of the Week.

  • TRADE: Scuderi returns to LA in deal with Chicago

    By: Nick Lanciani

    The Chicago Blackhawks and the Los Angeles Kings swapped defenseman late Friday afternoon exchanging Rob Scuderi for Christian Ehrhoff respectively.

    Unknown-3Scuderi is a 37-year old defenseman making a return to the Kings for the second time in his career. He had previously won a Stanley Cup with Los Angeles in 2012.

    He was traded from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Blackhawks prior to this trade this season. Scuderi had played in 17 games with Chicago this season, but produced no points. Prior to being dealt to the Blackhawks, he appeared in 25 games for Pittsburgh and registered four assists.

    The 6’1″, 212 pound defenseman is a native of Syosset, New York and has 8-96-104 totals in 762 career NHL games for the Blackhawks (2015-2016), Penguins (2003-2009, 2013-2015) and Kings (2009-2013, 2016-). Scuderi is signed through next season and skated in three games for the Rockford IceHogs (AHL) after clearing waivers earlier this month.

    He was also a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins 2009 Stanley Cup championship.

    The fifth round pick (134th overall) of the Penguins in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft has a plus-16 rating and 196 penalty minutes in his career and 1-13-14 totals in 117 playoff games.

    The Kings sent D Kevin Gravel to the Ontario Reign (AHL) to make room for Scuderi on their 23 man roster.

    Unknown-2Ehrhoff is a 33-year old defenseman who had two goals and eight assists in 40 games with Los Angeles this season before he was sent to Ontario earlier this month. Ehrhoff is a pending UFA at the end of this season and had three assists in five games with the Reign. He joined the Kings as an unrestricted free agent in September.

    The native of Moers, Germany leads all German-born defensemen with 337 points (74 goals, 263 assists) in 781 career NHL games, spanning 12 seasons with San Jose (2003-2009), Vancouver (2009-2011), Buffalo (2011-2014), Pittsburgh (2014-2015) and Los Angeles (2015-2016). In 73 career Stanley Cup Playoffs games, Ehrhoff has 7-27-34 totals. He has also scored 52 points (16 goals, 36 assists) in 111 career AHL games and eight points (two goals, six assists) in nine Calder Cup Playoffs games.

    Ehrhoff was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the fourth round (106th overall) of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. It is unclear if he will be sent to Rockford or join Chicago at this point in time.

    Chicago retained 50 percent of Scuderi’s contract and Los Angeles retained 15 percent of Ehrhoff’s salary. Scuderi’s contract has now been retained in two separate transactions and cannot be retained anymore by any team, per the rules of the current CBA, should he be traded again in the remaining duration of his contract.

    Scuderi and the Los Angeles Kings will host the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night at the Staples Center while the Chicago Blackhawks will be in action on Sunday at home versus the Washington Capitals as part of NBC’s Game of the Week.

  • TRADE: Maple Leafs send Matthias to Colorado

     

    By: Nick Lanciani

    The Toronto Maple Leafs traded F Shawn Matthias to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for F Colin Smith and a 4th round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft on Sunday.

     

    Unknown-1Matthias is a 28-year old forward who has played in 51 games this season for Toronto. He has 6-11-17 totals currently and signed with the Maple Leafs as a free agent on July 6, 2015.

    The 6’4″, 231 pound center spent the 2014-2015 season with the Vancouver Canucks. He had a career high 18 goals and 27 points last season in 78 games. Matthias also took part in all six playoff games for Vancouver in their first round exit to the Calgary Flames, where he had a goal and an assist in the series.

    The Mississauga, Ontario native has won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic and was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the second round (47th overall) of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Matthias made his NHL debut with the Florida Panthers in the 2007-2008 season and went on to amass 148 points in 459 career games with the Panthers, Canucks and Maple Leafs. He has 1-2-3 totals in 15 career playoff games.

    Unknown-3Smith is a 22-year old product of the seventh round (192nd overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, where he was selected by the Colorado Avalanche. The 5’10”, 175 pound center has appeared in one career NHL game last season.

    He had 13-21-34 totals in 54 games played with the San Antonio Rampage this season prior to the trade, and will likely spend time with the Toronto Marlies moving forward. Smith had 8-26-34 totals in 76 games played in the 2013-2014 season with the Lake Erie Monsters and 12-19-31 totals in 53 games last season with Lake Erie.

    No salary was retained in the trade by either team. The Maple Leafs are in the process of clearing house and were able to take advantage of Colorado’s full roster to pry a prospect and a draft pick in exchange for the lack luster Shawn Matthias. Matthias is a pending UFA with a cap hit of $2.3 million and will likely fill the role of a third or fourth liner for Colorado as they embark on the push for a wild card spot for the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Western Conference.

    The Avalanche are in action on Sunday night in Vancouver to take on the Canucks while the Maple Leafs resume play on Tuesday night at the Air Canada Centre as they welcome the Nashville Predators. It looks like Matthias will join Colorado in time for their Wednesday night matchup with the San Jose Sharks at the Pepsi Center in Denver.

     

  • Down the Frozen River Podcast #25- Joe Vitale is not like Michael Ryder

    Down the Frozen River Podcast #25- Joe Vitale is not like Michael Ryder

    The Down the Frozen River crew takes a look at whether teams in the Western Conference should sell, sell, sell or buy, buy, buy this year at the 2016 NHL Trade Deadline. Connor doesn’t mess up a name for once, although he does confuse the position of a player or two. Next week the DTFR gang tackles the Eastern Conference with the trade deadline getting closer and closer.

    Stay tuned for next week’s show, but until then, hear what they have to say about the latest news and notes from around the NHL in this week’s #DTFRPodcast.

    Join the conversation, make a suggestion, or ask a question for our next podcast using #AskDownTheFrozenRiver or #DTFRPodcast on Twitter and/or drop us a line on Facebook– your thoughts might make it on our show!

     

  • February 19 – Day 127 – Days Gone By

    Washington‘s 3-2 victory over the Islanders was the second this week in the Game of the Day series that required overtime to determine the recipient of the two points.

    It was actually New York who scored the first and only goal of the first period, courtesy of John Tavares’ wrister at the 15:41 mark, assisted by Nick Leddy (his 23rd helper of the season).

    Washington leveled the score only 1:25 after returning from the intermission with a goal from Alex Ovechkin.  His wrister was assisted by Evggeny Kuzetsov (his 42nd helper of the season) and Justin Williams.  They took the lead only 1:37 later with another goal from Ovechkin, this time a snap shot on the power play.  This goal was assisted by Nicklas Backstrom (his 37th helper of the season) and T. J. Oshie.  The Capitals held the 2-1 lead into the second intermission.

    New York leveled the game with only 1:44 remaining of the game.  Frans Nielsen takes credit, assisted by Kyle Okposo (his 30th helper of the season) and Travis Hamonic.

    Washington had no interest in going to a shootout, so Williams made sure his slap shot with only 46 seconds remaining in overtime was pure, as he was assisted by John Carlson (his 25th helper of the season) and Matt Niskanen.

    Braden Holtby earns the win after saving 20 of 22 (90.9%), while Thomas Greiss takes the loss after saving 32 of 35 (91.4%).

    The Game of the Day series now stands at 56-29-12, favoring the home squads by 32 points over the roadies.

    It’s not a very busy schedule this evening, as there’s only five games on the docket.  As usual, the action gets started at 7 p.m. eastern with three games (the New York Islanders at New Jersey, San Jose at Carolina and Buffalo at Columbus), while Philadelphia at Montréal (NHLN) dropping the puck half an hour later.  The final game of the night drops the puck at 9 p.m. eastern, when Vancouver visits Calgary.

    There are only two divisional rivalries being played this evening (New York at New Jersey and Vancouver at Calgary), and none of the games are between teams currently qualifying for the playoffs.

    Since Vancouver and Calgary met in the playoffs last season, let’s take a trip down memory lane and watch that game.

    Unknown-1Calgary Flames Logo

     

     

     

    Tonight’s game will be Vancouver‘s fifth in the Game of the Day series, where they currently own a 2-2-0 record.  Their most recent time featured was January 15 when they beat the Hurricanes 3-2 in overtime in Raleigh.  Calgary has been featured much more recently, as we focused on their game against the Ducks on Monday, which they lost 6-4.  That game was their second in the series, and they have yet to earn even a point when featured.

    The 22-23-12 Vancouver Canucks currently sit in fifth place in the Pacific Division and 11th in the Western Conference, eight points out of a playoff position.  They play the 12th worst defense in the league, which is made even worse by being backed by the second-worst offense.

    Even with Chris Tanev’s team-leading 124 blocks, Vancouver has still allowed 1759 shots to reach 12-17-9 Ryan Miller and co., of which they’ve saved 91.8% for 157 goals against, 12th-most in the league.  Although the defense has not played as well, the penalty kill has been slightly above average, killing 81.11% for 34 power play goals against, 14th-best in the league.

    That being said, the Canucks‘ offense makes their defense look best in the league.  Even with Daniel Sedin’s 190 shots, Vancouver has only fired the puck 1607 times, with 8% finding the back of the net for 133 goals (led by Sedin’s 22 tallies), second-worst in the NHL.  Much of Vancouver‘s issues can be found by the lack of success on the power play, which ranks fifth-worst in the league by connecting on only 16.96% of extra-man opportunities for 29 power play goals (led by Sedin’s six).  To add insult to injury, Vancouver has allowed five short-handed goals, one more than the league average.

    Vancouver is currently riding a three-game losing skid, with their most recent being a 5-2 loss to the Ducks last night in Rogers Arena.  A win this evening would pull the Canucks within two points of the Coyotes for fourth in the division and only six points out of a playoff position.

    The 25-28-3 Calgary Flames currently sit in sixth in the Pacific Division and 13th in the Western Conference.  They play the 13th best offense in the league, paired with the fourth-worst defense.  A more in-depth analysis of Calgary‘s game can be found within Monday’s post.

    Calgary is also riding a three-game win streak, with their most recent being a 5-3 loss to the Wild on Wednesday.  Should the Flames end their losing skid, they would move past Winnipeg into 13th position in the conference.

    Calgary currently leads the season series against the Canucks 2-1-0, with their most recent meeting on February 6 in Vancouver, where the Flames won 4-1.

    These teams also met in last season’s Western Conference Quarterfinal playoffs, where the Flames won the series 4-2 with a deciding 7-4 victory.

    Some players to keep an eye on in tonight’s game include Calgary‘s Johnny Gaudreau (55 points [tied for seventh-most in the league]) and Vancouver‘s Sedin (46 points, with 22 goals, 16 of which were at even-strength and six were on the power play, with another six being game-winners, all on 190 shots [all lead the team]).

    Neither team’s defense has played well at all this season, but Calgary seems to be the only team of these two prone to take advantage of that fact.  Expect the Flames to get two points.