Rangers deal Marc Staal to Red Wings for cap relief

Posted on September 26, 2020 by Derek

For better than a decade, Marc Staal was a fixture on the Rangers blueline. After 13 years, one of the longest tenured defensemen in franchise history is moving on.

In a cap cutting trade, the Rangers dealt Staal and a 2021 second round pick to the Red Wings for future considerations. The 33-year old veteran was taken 12th overall in the famed 2005 NHL Draft that saw the Penguins land franchise superstar center Sidney Crosby. That late Draft followed the lockout that canceled the whole ’04-05 season.

The second of four brothers that were all drafted by NHL teams including youngest brother Jared, Marc was the only defenseman in the Staal family. A solid skating two-way player who was part of Canada’s gold medal teams at the ’06 and ’07 World Junior Championships, Staal debuted with the Rangers in 2007-08.

A poised player, who didn’t look overwhelmed, he took part in 80 games and 10 postseason contests. That season is best remembered for Staal’s late goal in regulation of Game Four at MSG that put the Blueshirts up 3-1 on the Devils. It was one of seven postseason goals he scored in 107 playoff games. The most memorable coming early in overtime of Game Five against the Capitals during the second round of 2012. A game we attended. Brad Richards tied it with seconds to spare and Staal won it on the power play. Yes. There was a time when he played on the man-advantage.

Throughout his first 13 seasons spent on Broadway, Staal was a steady top four defenseman who the team could rely on for important minutes. He was frequently matched up against Crosby when the Rangers faced them in the playoffs. That included the team’s first ever comeback from a 3-1 series deficit to stun the Pens in the second round of the 2014 Playoffs. It was also the first time they defeated Pittsburgh in a playoff round. A year best remembered for how the team rallied around the death of Martin St. Louis’ Mom France.

Staal was a big part of that run to the Stanley Cup Final. Paired with Anton Stralman, he worked well with the smooth skating right defenseman. Ryan McDonagh teamed with Staal’s former partner, Dan Girardi. In many aspects, the two gritty warriors were tied together. Even as their bodies betrayed them due to the hard-nosed physical style each played, both are well respected by Ranger fans for their blue-collar work ethic.

When GM Glen Sather had a tough choice to make, he decided to keep both Girardi and Staal over popular captain Ryan Callahan, who was instead traded for St. Louis. It worked out well for both sides. Though the Lightning got the better of the Rangers in a unpredictable seven-game Eastern Conference Final five years ago. A series in which four of the Blueshirt defensemen were broken in half. That included Staal, Girardi, McDonagh and Keith Yandle. That’s how much they were willing to sacrifice their bodies to try to deliver a championship back to the Big Apple.

Instead, those teams featuring Henrik Lundqvist and a host of mainstays fell short of their ultimate goal. Staal was there for all of it. Unfortunately, the window officially closed when they were eliminated in the second round by Ottawa in 2017. Leaving the building as Game Six concluded was gut wrenching. You knew it was over. Even if management still tried to get help by signing Kevin Shattenkirk, it was all for naught. Now, Shattenkirk is ironically bidding for a Cup with the Lightning tonight. He scored the overtime winner last night to put Tampa up 3-1 on Dallas.

It’s funny how things work out. At least Staal didn’t wind up like so much of the old core, who went to the Bolts. That’s where McDonagh, Girardi, Callahan, Stralman and Brian Boyle went. So too did JT Miller. Only McDonagh and Shattenkirk are left vying for the Cup.

Staal lasted 13 years as a Ranger. He played in 892 games while registering 43 goals with 145 assists for 188 points and a solid plus-46 rating. He also was disciplined despite being tough. He totaled 432 penalty minutes. Never more than the 64 PIM he had in his second year as a 22-year old.

The astonishing thing about him is that he was always willing to play hurt. Who can forget when former coach Alain Vigneault used him on a road trip despite Staal being far from 100 percent during 2017-18? It’s one of the reasons Vigneault was dismissed. That also marked the first season the Rangers missed the postseason since 2010. The infamous shootout at the Flyers in Game 82.

It was Lundqvist and Staal who were the longest tenured Blueshirts. Lundqvist coming in during ’05-06 where he took the starting job from Kevin Weekes and got the team back to the playoffs. Jaromir Jagr and friends had a lot to do with it. Those teams were exciting for fans. They gave us hope. There was that close call against Buffalo in ’07 before Staal’s arrival. A good second round series they lost in six.

As easy as it was for misguided fans to criticize Staal due to his contract that came with an average cap hit of $5.7 million that expires next year, he always laid it on the line. It’s easy to forget the scary concussion he suffered after absorbing a tough hit along the boards from older brother Eric during a game on Feb. 22, 2011. He missed some time before coming back in 2012. That’s why it’s easy to marvel at how well Marc played during the team’s run to the Conference Final. He had three goals and three assists in 20 postseason games.

What about the scary eye injury he suffered the next season against the Flyers? He missed a majority of the ’12-13 season and only got into one playoff game. They missed him. It didn’t help former coach John Tortorella, who was dismissed following a second round exit versus the Bruins.

What if Staal didn’t have those setbacks? Could he have been better? He was on the cusp of becoming an All-Star defenseman who could contribute offensively while playing strong D. Instead, he was only an All-Star once in 2011.

The injuries didn’t help his skating. Maybe it’s easy to forget what Staal brought. It was similar to Girardi, who eventually was bought out. He played his final two seasons in Tampa. All the hits absorbed and delivered along with blocked shots adds up. Despite some in the analytics crowd alluding to his possession statistics, Staal was always utilized more in the defensive zone. That’s where he started most shifts. He was a fixture on the penalty kill. They never look at zone starts. It doesn’t apply.

Even David Quinn trusted Staal to take on tough assignments. He became a steady influence on offensive defenseman Tony DeAngelo, who had a career season. Now, the Rangers are moving on. They freed up necessary cap space so they can afford to re-sign DeAngelo and maybe Ryan Strome. Both of who are restricted free agents along with Alex Georgiev, who won’t cost as much. That’s assuming they keep him and make an even harder decision on Lundqvist.

The only thing left to say is thank you to Staal for the kind of high character team player he was. A true locker room leader, who certainly will be missed. Maybe that’s the kind of player the even more rebuilding Red Wings can use. He’s only got one year left and that defense is a mess. It sure will be strange to see Staal in a Winged Wheel jersey. That’ll take some getting used to.

Wishing Staal and his family the very best. Stick taps to Number 18. Thanks for 13 good years.

Posted in Battle News, NYRangers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shattenkirk’s overtime winner puts Lightning a game away from the Stanley Cup

Posted on September 26, 2020 by Derek

All postseason, the Lightning have been on a mission. It began with a five game first round triumph over the Blue Jackets, avenging last year’s humiliation. They still had to work extra hard in Games One and Five before putting Columbus away thanks to Brayden Point. He Pointed the Bolts in the right direction.

Along with the brilliant play of Victor Hedman, dominance of Nikita Kucherov and emergence of Ondrej Palat, these Lightning are on the verge of winning their second Stanley Cup. They can also thank Andrei Vasilevskiy, who’s enormous saves seem to come at the right time. He might not have repeated as the Vezina winner, but he’s the best goalie in the NHL. More often than not, the athletic Russian is able to make the clutch stops when his team needs it. Take his huge kick save of a Stars pointblank chance that could’ve put the Lightning down two.

Instead, the Bolts came back to score two straight goals including one from Alex Killorn on a turnaround shot that caught Anton Khudobin off his angle for a 4-3 lead in a wild third period last night in Game Four. But the Stars would come back thanks to a yeoman effort from the ever clutch Joe Pavelski, whose shot towards the Tampa net banked off Kevin Shattenkirk with Tyler Seguin in the vicinity and past Vasilevskiy to tie the score. Initially, it was given to Seguin, who played his best game in a long time. But it didn’t go off him. So, they credited it to Pavelski.

Shattenkirk has redeemed himself this year with Tampa. After being bought out by the Rangers because it didn’t work out with them rebuilding, he decided to sign with the Lightning. A team that was close to winning that played a better style more suited to his offensive minded skating game. It’s worked out well.

Although there have been moments where he was caught on for goals against like Pavelski’s game-tying power play goal, Shattenkirk has come back to contribute to the Tampa success. Healthier than he was in the Big Apple, he’s demonstrated what he brings. A good puck handling offensive defenseman, who is capable of making smart reads. Take Friday night’s 5-4 overtime win over a desperate Stars to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.

On a gifted power play by some porous officiating, he took a Hedman feed at the right point and found enough of a seam to get off a good, accurate wrist shot that beat Khudobin far side into the top of the net for the clutch OT winner. It had to feel good for the veteran, who like his team, had something to prove this season. He sure has. Good for Kevin Shattenkirk. A good guy, who just didn’t work out even though the hometown kid had hoped it would go better in his two years on Broadway. It happens.

Now, he’s partnered again with Ryan McDonagh in a Lightning Bolt jersey a win away from Lord Stanley. Something McDonagh came close to twice as a Blueshirt. Only once did he get to play for it with his former team falling short of their goal in 2014. Their hearts and body parts broken into pieces in a crushing Game Seven loss to the Lightning the following Spring.

It’s ironic how almost all Rangers wind up in Blueshirts South Tampa Bay. At one point, you had Ryan Callahan, Brian Boyle, Anton Stralman, Dan Girardi and then McDonagh and JT Miller. Not all at one time. Boyle was gone after their last Stanley Cup appearance in 2015. Stralman stayed until last year where he wound up with the Panthers. Ironically, Boyle signed there. Girardi and Callahan are since retired. Miller was dealt to the Canucks where he finally had his best season. Now, it’s only McDonagh and Shattenkirk, who can get their names etched on the greatest trophy in sports.

Both have had good postseasons. Shattenkirk supplying more offense while McDonagh does the nuts and bolts. He’s been hitting like a freight train and playing outstanding defense like he once did here in NYC. It’s nice to see the former Rangers captain looking healthy and motivated. He no longer has to be leaned on for offense. He doesn’t play power play. The Lightning have all world Conn Smythe candidate Hedman for that. He’s a goal shy of tying Brian Leetch, who scored 11 goals in his Conn Smythe run during ’94.

Coach Jon Cooper can also use Shattenkirk and Mikhail Sergachev on the man-advantage. McDonagh can focus primarily on defending at five-on-five and playing penalty kill. Areas he excels at. He’s on the second pair. A better fit for him at this stage. The hard work is paying off. If the Lightning do wrap it up tonight, it’ll be strange seeing McDonagh lift the Cup with Shattenkirk. However, the latter was only a Ranger two years before management realized they were going in a different direction. They’re in good shape on the right side with Adam Fox, Jacob Trouba and Tony DeAngelo with prospect Nils Lundkvist a year away.

Sometimes, that’s how it goes. Shattenkirk grew up idolizing Leetch and those 1994 Rangers. However, he wasn’t healthy and played through pain before opting for surgery. By the time he returned, McDonagh was gone along with Miller. The organization decided to reverse course due to a declining Henrik Lundqvist, whose time could be up. The first buyout period already began with the Senators placing Bobby Ryan on unconditional waivers to buy him out. The period runs into early October. So, there’s no rush for the Rangers to decide on Lundqvist yet. We’ll see where it goes.

Given the state of sports due to the pandemic, the NHL salary cap is likely holding steady at $81.5 million. That’s going to force teams into tough decisions. If the Rangers buyout Lundqvist, they’ll have over 12 million in dead cap space for next year. But the other choices are finding a trading partner who’ll be able to absorb the remainder of his $8.5 million cap hit through next year. Or the prideful Lundqvist could retire. Not something I foresee. Unless he decided to return to Frolunda for a year and then attempt a comeback in 2021-22 at 40. His kids go to school in the city.

All this is pure speculation. For now, we may as well enjoy whatever is left of this extended NHL season. Games 4 and 5 are the first back-to-back games in the Stanley Cup Final since 2009 per NBC Sports Network host Kathryn Tappen. I don’t think these teams should have to play consecutive days. But that’s how it’s scheduled. So, it’s the Lightning looking to win a fourth straight game to wrap it up. The Stars hoping they have enough left to force a Game Six.

I really thought Dallas would win last night. They probably should have. Even if the Lightning had the edge in shots and territorial play. It was the Tampa power play that did most of the damage with three goals coming on the five-on-four. That included Point getting his second by batting a puck out of midair and valuable third line center Yanni Gourde burying one home off a fortunate bounce.

It’s unfortunate that the refs got involved in the finish to a great game. First, they didn’t want to send Corey Perry to the penalty box by himself for tripping up Point. Somehow, they decided Point embellished leading to a four-on-four. You should’ve seen both his reaction and Cooper’s. It was ridiculous.

Then in overtime, with Seguin getting past Sergachev, he grabbed the attacking Star to hand Dallas a four-on-three. A perfect opportunity to even the series. But Vasilevskiy was sharp in denying Miro Heiskanen and preventing the Stars from winning it. Seguin was all set up on one glorious chance, but sent his dangerous one-timer just high and wide. It narrowly missed the mark. That’s how it’s gone for him. He remains stuck on two goals in the entire playoffs. But was much better yesterday.

The Stars inability to capitalize on their power play came back to haunt them. An even more egregious error by the officials lead to their demise. A back ref called captain Jamie Benn for tripping Point. Only he didn’t. Conclusive replays showed that Benn didn’t kick out the skates of Point. He didn’t slew foot him. It was a horrible call that gave the Lightning a power play.

For the first part of the power play, Dallas got the job done. Their penalty kill looked like it was up to the challenge. However, following a Gourde face-off win, Hedman finally had enough time to control the puck at the point. He worked it over to Shattenkirk, who had a player (Pat Maroon) in front. It was a perfect screen. He was able to quickly fire a seeing eye shot between a Dallas player’s skates and past Khudobin for the game-winner.

That gave the Lightning a thrilling 5-4 victory in a game they once trailed 2-0 and later 4-3. It was a bitter end for the Stars with Benn knowing full well it wasn’t a penalty. You hate to see such a great game decided in that fashion. Now, all Dallas can do is move on and focus on winning later to keep their Cup hopes alive. Do they have a 3-1 comeback in them?

It’ll be tough due to how well the Lightning are playing. They took Game Three thanks to captain Steven Stamkos returning and scoring an electrifying goal off a rush in a rout. He didn’t take another shift. But stayed on the bench. His final stat line was one goal on one shot and a plus-one in 2:47. That could be all he plays in this Final. In fact, his focused team has done it without him thanks to that cohesive top line and a tremendous supporting cast that includes key additions Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman. There’s also Conference Final hero Anthony Cirelli, who’ll get a raise in the off-season.

But Stamkos is credited by thankful teammates for being there for all of it. It’s had to be very hard to watch for the Tampa captain. But throwing his emotional support behind his team means a lot. You can tell. They’re a close-knit group who believes in itself. That’s why they’re a win away from delivering a second Cup to Tampa. They haven’t won since 2004 when they had to dig deep to come back and beat the Flames in seven. Martin St. Louis was the OT hero in Game Six and Ruslan Fedotenko (The Closer) was the Game Seven hero.

The Lightning last played for the Cup in 2015 when they lost in six to the championship proven Blackhawks. This time, they look to put the finishing touches on a special run. As hard a postseason as there’s ever been minus fans and home ice due to the Coronavirus. If they win, they’re to be congratulated. So is the NHL for successfully putting on a great show.

It’s not over yet. The Stars will have something to say about it. We’ll see if they can keep this very long summer that’s now Fall going.

Posted in Stanley Cup | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lightning even up Stanley Cup series with Stars

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Derek

Nikita Kucherov congratulates Andrei Vasilevskiy, who improved to 6-0 following playoff losses this postseason in the Lightning 3-2 win over the Stars in Game Two to level the Stanley Cup Final. AP Photo credit Tampa Bay Lightning via Getty Images

After a flat start in which they were bottled up by the grinding style of the Stars, the Lightning pushed back by posting a 3-2 victory to take Game Two of the best-of-seven Stanley Cup series.

Even though they lost Game One by a count of 4-1, they were able to carry over the momentum from a dominant third period that saw them outshoot Dallas 22-2. Anton Khudobin was a brick wall in that one stopping all 22 shots en route to 35 saves. He got goals from Joel Hanley, Jamie Oleksiak, Joel Kiviranta and an empty netter from Jason Dickson as the astonishing Russian netminder continued his great run by garnering the Number One Star.

Would Khudobin be in the Lightning’s heads? The resounding answer was no. Due in large part to the Stars taking bad penalties, Tampa finally ended an 0-for-14 drought on the power play. Brayden Point was able to have his one-timer in the slot take a weird bounce off a Dallas stick by Khudobin into the top portion of the net. Nikita Kucherov made a, great pass with little wiggle room to find Point for his 10th of the postseason.

That goal was huge for the Bolts’ psyche. It loosened them up. With coach Jon Cooper going the more conventional route with a lineup of 12 forwards and 6 defensemen, they were rewarded. A third consecutive minor penalty on Dallas defenseman Jamie Oleksiak (tripping) resulted in Kucherov making a brilliant feed across to Ondrej Palat, who buried home his ninth for a 2-0 lead.

Victor Hedman helped set up both power play goals. He’s the leading candidate for the Conn Smythe if the Lightning win. If not, it’ll go to Khudobin, who kept his team in it after falling behind by three.

Less than a minute after the Palat tally, Kevin Shattenkirk connected from the point off a nice pass from key contributor Blake Coleman. The former Devil is up to eight assists in a secondary role on the third line. Anthony Cirelli recorded a helper.

At that point, one wondered if Dallas coach Rick Bowness would use his timeout. The period was so lopsided due to all the Stars penalties and sloppy play. A Dickinson giveaway caused the Shattenkirk goal. It was the polar opposite of the first two periods of Game One when Dallas built a three goal lead before sitting back.

Penalty trouble caused the Lightning to lose the momentum in a poor second period. The Stars sprung to life. Following an Andrew Cogliano breakaway that Vasilevskiy denied, they took over. Four consecutive Tampa penalties tilted the ice.

On the third straight Dallas power play drawn by Joe Pavelski, the gritty center was able to redirect a John Klingberg wrist shot past Vasilevskiy despite Ryan McDonagh being all over him. It was a skilled play by a skilled player, who always does his best work in the playoffs. Pavelski is now up to 10 goals for the Stars. The former Shark has really led the way along with captain Jamie Benn and youngster Denis Gurianov up front.

The Stars always activate their defense. Why not. They boast Klingberg and potential future Norris winner Miro Heiskanen, who is dangerous. Plus Oleksiak able to jump in. That defense almost dug them out of a three goal hole. They outshot the Lightning 18-5 in a much better period. Vasilevskiy shined by coming up with some big saves.

You knew it wasn’t over. Especially when a patient Klingberg somehow managed to find Mattias Janmark with his stick on the ice for a tip in off a brilliant pass to make it a one goal game with 14:33 left in regulation. It was a splendid play by one of the game’s most underrated players. Klingberg is a top 25 defenseman. Maybe higher. He’s very good at getting his shot through and finding seams.

Shattenkirk looked to have Janmark covered, but got outmuscled which resulted in the goal. As good as he is offensively, Shattenkirk is shaky in his end. He got blown up by a vicious Benn hit along the boards. It nearly resulted in Benn tying it. Somehow, he missed. He was that close to scoring the third consecutive Stars goal.

To their credit, the Lightning settled down. They reasserted themselves at even strength. Able to defend better in front of Vasilevskiy, who only had to stop five shots in the third, they thought they’d retaken a two goal lead. However, the linesmen missed an easy offside that negated a Mikhail Sergachev goal. It was an easy challenge for Bowness. Not sure how the officials didn’t see it.

Despite applying pressure, Dallas was never able to do enough to beat Vasilevskiy. They couldn’t sustain anything. It was the Bolts who shutdown the Stars with better attention to detail in the neutral zone and at their blueline. They did a great job protecting the 3-2 lead.

Tampa forechecked well. It was mostly Lightning over the final five minutes. They looked for an insurance goal. Only it didn’t come due to Khudobin, who still managed to play well in finishing with 28 saves. He had to contend with the top line of Point, Kucherov and Palat, who were in on two goals and buzzed all night. They combined for four points (2-2-4) and 11 shots.

A rare mistake from Hedman handed the Stars an icing with still 3.5 seconds left. Pavelski won the draw back to Klingberg, but his low shot was blocked to end the game. He didn’t get all of it.

The Lightning survived. They did a good enough job protecting the one goal lead. Game Three is tomorrow. It’s now a best-of-five series for the Cup.

Note: The teams combined for 101 hits. The Lightning held a slight 51-50 edge in the physicality. It’s the kind of hockey you’d expect at this point. It’s either hit or be hit.

Coleman and Palat each paced Tampa with seven hits apiece. Gurianov registered six for Dallas along with Oleksiak.

Posted in Stanley Cup | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Panarin named to NHL First All-Star Team, Award Winners revealed, big off-season awaits Rangers

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Derek

Artemi Panarin didn’t win the Hart Trophy, but deservedly was named to the First All-Star Team. AP Photo credit NHL.com via Getty Images

Yesterday, the NHL completed revealing their Awards for this extended 2019-20 season. One that’s still going following the Lightning edging the Stars 3-2 in Game Two of the Stanley Cup to even the series.

The winner of the Calder was Cale Makar. He beat out fellow defenseman Quinn Hughes with Dominik Kubalik finishing a distant third. Rangers defenseman Adam Fox was fourth even receiving a first place vote. Mystifying. Elvis Merzlikins was fifth and Devils goalie Mackenzie Blackwood finished sixth.

The All-Rookie Team featured Makar and Hughes on the blueline with Kubalik, Nick Suzuki and Victor Olofsson up front. Merzlikins was the goalie.

Also announced was the winner of the Vezina. It went to Connor Hellebuyck. In becoming the first Winnipeg Jet to be recognized by NHL GMs as the league’s best goalie, he beat out Tuukka Rask and Andrei Vasilevskiy. Jacob Markstrom finished fourth.

There’s a new Norris winner. Finally, Roman Josi was rewarded as the NHL’s top defenseman. He easily outdistanced John Carlson. Lightning behemoth Victor Hedman was third. Soon to be former Blue Alex Pietrangelo was fourth. Jaccob Slavin was fifth. Tony DeAngelo received a fourth place vote and totaled 12 points.

In the biggest award of the day, Leon Draisaitl took home his first Hart Trophy as league MVP. A deserving winner, he received 91 first place votes to win comfortably over runner-up Nathan MacKinnon, who got 48 first place votes and 66 second place tallies. Artemi Panarin, who had a brilliant first season with the Rangers, was a distant third with 24 first place votes, 41 second place and 54 third place tallies. Although he didn’t win, his remarkable year won’t be forgotten. David Pastrnak was fourth and Connor McDavid was fifth.

Draisaitl made it a clean sweep by taking home the Ted Lindsay Award (formerly Pearson) as the most outstanding player as recognized by his peers. He won it over MacKinnon and Panarin, who I felt could’ve been the winner for this award. Especially given who he played with at five-on-five. The Rangers weren’t in the same league as either Colorado or Edmonton, who also boasts McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.

Even though he came up short, Panarin was named to the First All-Star Team (seen above). There are no surprises with the team looking like this.

G Connor Hellebuyck, WPG

D John Carlson, WSH

D Roman Josi, NSH

C Leon Draisaitl, EDM

RW David Pastrnak, BOS

LW Artemi Panarin, NYR

Here is the Second All-Star Team.

G Tuukka Rask, BOS

D Victor Hedman, TBL

D Alex Pietrangelo STL

C Nathan MacKinnon, COL

RW Nikita Kucherov, TBL

LW Brad Marchand, BOS

If there were a third team, it would’ve been pretty good. You could’ve had Andrei Vasilevskiy in net with defensemen Jaccob Slavin and Cale Makar along with Connor McDavid centering Patrick Kane and Alex Ovechkin. Not bad. There’s a combined five Harts (Ovechkin 3) and a Vezina.

Regarding the Awards which also saw Sean Couturier take home his first Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward, beating out Patrice Bergeron and Ryan O’Reilly. It’s mystifying that they gave Bruce Cassidy the Jack Adams over John Tortorella and Alain Vigneault. Unbelievable.

For Panarin, it was a successful season on Broadway where he led the Rangers in scoring with 95 points (32-63-95) to tie MacKinnon for fourth overall. His plus-36 rating paced all NHL forwards. No one had more even strength points than the Bread Man who wound up with a league best 71 (25-46-71). That is mostly playing with Ryan Strome and Jesper Fast on the second line. It speaks to Panarin’s unique talent.

Who will he play with next year? Strome is a restricted free agent and due a raise. A year away from unrestricted status, will the versatile center be back on a one-year contract at say $4.8 million? Between him and Tony DeAngelo, the Rangers don’t have a lot of room to work with. Fast is a UFA they’d like to bring back with Alex Georgiev and Brendan Lemieux both Group II free agents.

The organization must reach a decision with Henrik Lundqvist, who isn’t expected to return. Will it be a buyout, a trade or even a retirement announcement? Who knows. We’ll have to wait and see how things go this off-season.

One that promises to be strange and exciting given the calendar. Normally, they’re in full camp mode playing preseason games. Instead, the Stanley Cup will conclude in a week crowning a new champion. The first buyout period is coming up. Then, you’ll have a Virtual Draft where the Blueshirts will make it official and select top rated Canadian prospect Alexis Lafreniere first overall on October 6. Rounds 2-7 are Oct. 7.

There’s a lot around the corner as the first official day of Fall is here. It’s sure to be fascinating.

Posted in Battle News, NY Rangers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

HARD HITS: What can be learned from the Islanders’ run

Posted on September 19, 2020 by Derek

It’s not too often I write about a bitter rival. However, the Islanders made it impossible not to devote a few posts to them due to their great run in these very unpredictable and strange Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Give credit where credit is due. When we last saw them, the Islanders were struggling mightily in the abbreviated regular season that got paused due to the pandemic in mid-March. In fact, they weren’t even in the regular NHL playoffs when play was stopped following March 11. Winless in seven games including a pair of losses to the rising Rangers, it looked like they were worn out. Maybe that taxing style coach Barry Trotz demands out of his players was starting to have an adverse effect.

Here’s the thing. Even with the 10 to 11 games left, we’ll never know definitively if the Isles would’ve missed the postseason. The same way we don’t know if the younger Blueshirts would’ve beaten out teams like the Islanders, Panthers, Blue Jackets and Hurricanes for one of two wildcards. It’s likely they would’ve fell a little short. Instead, they were included in the expanded format that provided hockey fans with an extra best-of-five Play In series. It afforded the top four teams in each conference a bye as they played a round robin to determine the highest seeds.

Ask the Capitals or Flyers how that turned out. Neither could handle the gritty and physical style of the Islanders. They did the same thing to the Caps that they did to the Penguins a year ago after taking care of the flawed Panthers in four. Speaking of which, so Mike Kitchen is the fall guy for Joel Quenneville’s inability to adjust his team’s open style?

UPDATE: Thanks to Ryan, who filled me in on why Kitchen was fired. Even if I think the rest of his reply is very offensive and wrong, he took the time to read and correct me on an important detail.

If true, it’s understandable why the Panthers let him go. Even if there may have been an incident with a player, you cannot cross that line. It’s inexcusable. My apologies for not being up to date.

As for the Flyers, they were lucky to even get to a Game Seven. They were dominated for most of the second round series by the hungrier and stronger Isles. Many people took the Islanders including yours truly for that exact reason. They rolled four lines and were six deep on the blueline with two capable goalies in Semyon Varlamov and Thomas Greiss, who’ll leave with Ilya Sorokin ready to backup next season.

As good as the Trotz system is, Team President and GM Lou Lamoriello deserves a lot of credit for key additions such as Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Andy Greene and even bringing back popular fourth liner Matt Martin in ’18-19. It was the Identity Line comprising of Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck that defined the hardworking style of the orange and dark navy blue. Their no-nonsense style established exactly how Trotz wanted to play. It’s no surprise that both Martin and Clutterbuck were effective players during their run.

They came an overtime away from playing a Game Seven for a crack at the franchise’s first Stanley Cup appearance since the end of the great dynasty when the Oilers finally beat them in ’83-84. A Clutterbuck goalpost late in regulation from a do or die seventh game. Who would’ve ever thought that was possible? Well, you know the players and coaching staff believed. So too did most of their fans.

Once you get a taste of success, it rubs off. This was no fluke. The Islanders made the second round in 2019 by taking apart Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in Round One. They repeated the formula against Alex Ovechkin, John Carlson and a good Washington team that had won before. Was it a special circumstance that aided them? Absolutely. Grinding teams like the Islanders and Stars, who take on the Lightning in Game One of the Cup Final later, benefited from the long break. It was the same for everyone.

So, there are no excuses for teams that under performed. They all had the same time frame. They had shortened camps and a couple of exhibition games to get ready. It didn’t help the Blues against the Canucks. It hurt the Golden Knights, who were a trendy pick to win the Cup. Their scoring dried up against Vancouver reliever Thatcher Demko and Conn Smythe candidate Anton Khudobin, who’s the biggest reason for the Stars’ success.

The Flyers found it tough to get through the disciplined Islander defense. They needed sudden death to win all three games including Games Five and Six to reach a deciding seventh game. Then fell apart in a lifeless performance that was so bad, it invoked memories of Alain Vigneault’s’ 11-12 Canucks no show in Game Seven of the Stanley Cup against the Bruins at home. As bad as the conclusion of the 2015 Conference Final was with the Lightning shutting out the Rangers with big third period goals by Alex Killorn and Nikita Kucherov, at least they were banged up. It still was mind numbing that they scored zero goals at MSG in the final two home games. Weird.

The Islanders wouldn’t have gone so far without the strong play of the cohesive second line centered by Brock Nelson. He scored and set up clutch goals. Whether it was Anthony Beauvillier delivering a key finish or Josh Bailey finding an open teammate for a goal, that was their best trio. Trotz never broke them up. What if Nelson had converted that shorthanded breakaway versus Andrei Vasilevskiy? They’d still be playing tonight.

You had even Derick Brassard show some old form of Big Game Brass in a couple of wins. He isn’t the same player he was on Broadway, but his postseason should earn him a job for next year. He still has some good skill and vision. It’s just the defensive issues and bad penalties that make him frustrating. No wonder Trotz handled him with kid gloves. He used Ross Johnston in a big game and it worked.

The Stanley Cup winning coach, who the Caps foolishly let go, pushed a lot of right buttons. He knew when to give Greiss a start against the Flyers. Then went back to Varlamov, who was brilliant in defeat against the ultra talented Lightning. That 46 save performance will be remembered by the loyal Islanders fans. The same fans who didn’t understand why management moved on from Robin Lehner, who once again can hit the market after being rented by Vegas. Does he stay put spelling the end for Marc-Andre Fleury? We’ll see.

What if Mat Barzal shot the puck more? Or didn’t always try to carry the puck over the opposing blueline through everyone. A superb skater and playmaker, the young center could be a lot better if he altered his approach. There’s nothing wrong with dumping the puck in and allowing players like Anders Lee and Jordan Eberle to go in and get it.

That’s how the playoffs are played. It isn’t all skill and finesse. That’s something the Rangers learned against the Hurricanes in the most uncompetitive Preliminary Series. They were exposed. Especially the lack of depth and edge. Areas that John Davidson and Jeff Gorton must address in a off-season that promises to be exciting with the NHL Draft moved up to October 6. Get ready for Alexis Lafreniere.

You look at the Isles’ supporting lines and that made a huge difference. Pageau was again his usual self scoring clutch goals while winning key draws and playing penalty kill for Trotz. Though his scoring dried up against the league’s best goalie in Vasilevskiy, the effort was there. At the time that trade was made, many laughed at all the draft picks Lamoriello gave up to Ottawa. But he wisely signed Pageau to an extension. He makes them better. Think the Senators are getting such high picks if the Isles continue to make the playoffs and go far?

Having a deep defense helps. Nick Leddy is reborn under Trotz. He logs big minutes and plays much more consistent because defense is emphasized. Ryan Pulock didn’t score as much despite his big shot, but he’s a solid all around top four defenseman the team relies on. Devon Toews has become a future along with Scott Mayfield in the top six. Adam Pelech somehow played with a broken wrist before he couldn’t go anymore in Game Six. Encouraging was that Noah Dobson looked good in his postseason debut.

Trotz got the most out of former Devil Greene, who even scored a couple of big goals to go with all those diving blocks. He’ll likely walk. Retirement is an option even though it looks like he can still help a team. He certainly knows how to play the position and can be an asset in a bottom pair role. That experience counts for something.

Even Johnny Boychuk reminded people that he still could come in and play the kind of determined and scrappy hockey needed at this time of year. I wonder what will be for him moving forward. The Isles will make room for Dobson.

Here’s a question. As good as they played, do the Islanders dip into free agency and add some more skill? I bet Barzal would’ve loved to play with Artemi Panarin. He wanted the bright lights of Broadway. Will he be rewarded with the league MVP like Taylor Hall was in Newark once? Or perhaps his own peers will recognize the special season he had.

The Isles also need to find out about Kieffer Bellows. He has good hands and should be capable of becoming a decent finisher who can play on the power play. An area they can get better at.

So, how much emphasis will team put on adding more grit and physicality following the Stanley Cup? Even the Lightning knew they needed it. Are they even here without unsung heroes like Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Pat Maroon, Yanni Gourde, Anthony Cirelli, Cedric Paquette, Eric Cernak, Zach Bogosian and Luke Schenn supply? Those kind of rugged players will be important versus the Stars, who bring a junkyard dog approach to each game.

You look at the two teams left. Sure. Each has stars with the Lightning boasting three of the world’s best in Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point along with Ondrej Palat. Then you have the Stars, who have Miro Heiskanen, John Klingberg to go with skilled forwards Jamie Benn, Alex Radulov and Tyler Seguin, who’s struggling. However, key additions like vets Joe Pavelski and Corey Perry have helped. It’s also been a breakout Summer for Denis Gurianov. Plus gritty types like Blake Comeau, Esa Lindell and Jamie Oleksiak have been instrumental in their first Stanley Cup appearance since 2000.

It shapes up to be a hard fought series that could go long. Will we see Steven Stamkos at some point for the Bolts? Time shall tell.

One thing is clear. The perception that only great skaters and skill wins has been erased. Ask the Caps if they would’ve won without Tom Wilson or Brooks Orpik. Ditto for the Blues, who got strong support from David Perron, Oskar Sundqvist, Maroon (who broke the Stars back), Sammy Blais and Robert Bortuzzo.

Those are the under appreciated gritty types who help you win in the playoffs. They’ll do whatever it takes to get the job done. I hope the Rangers are listening.

BODY CHECKS

Cirelli certainly boosted his stock with his clutch goal in sudden death that rescued the Lightning from a nerve racking Game Seven. He might not be producing a ton this postseason, but the two-way checking pivot is the kind of player who should draw interest around the league. He’s a Group II free agent this Fall.

It’ll be strange to see former Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh playing in his second Stanley Cup Final for Blueshirts South the Lightning. He still is a solid top four defenseman who understands how hard it is to get back. Especially after what happened in 2015, which ironically came against the Bolts. Good luck to him in his quest for the Cup and the same for Kevin Shattenkirk, who has had a good postseason fitting in better with Tampa.

How dominant is Victor Hedman this postseason? Try this Dominant!

The last time the Rangers played for the Cup, they had Dominic Moore, Brian Boyle and Derek Dorsett before the Tanner Glass era. I kid. I kid. But you need those types to be successful. Whether it’s a big shift that changes the momentum, key hit or huge goal, you want to be able to rely on your fourth line. Brendan Lemieux can be part of the solution as long as he stays away from bad penalties, plays on the edge and draws them. Some more goals would help too.

It looks like the end of an era in St. Louis. They have told Alex Pietrangelo he can test the market. What a shame. He’s been a great defenseman and valuable leader for the Blues for better than a decade. He never finished in the top three for the Norris which goes to the best defenseman. But anyone who’s seen him play knows how good a player he is. So, where will the 30-year old veteran top pair righty go? Would the Devils have interest? Their D needs help. Or maybe they’ll be in on Torey Krug assuming the Bruins can’t afford him. Such is life in the cap era.

Come to think of it, the Oilers can use a good, two-way defenseman like Pietrangelo. Their defense was exposed by the Blackhawks, who never would’ve qualified for the playoffs is it was a normal year. Let’s hope things improve in 2021. That hopefully includes fans returning to cheer their teams.

Smart move by the Canadiens sacrificing a fifth round pick for the exclusive signing rights to defenseman Joel Edmundson. A player Carolina wasn’t going to bring back due to a surplus of D. The Habs signed the lefty defenseman to a modest four-year contract worth an average cap hit of $3.5 million. A former Cup winner with St. Louis, he should have some good hockey left. They needed a left D to help out Shea Weber and Jeff Petry. It’ll take some pressure off Victor Mete and lessen the high expectations for Alexander Romanov ‘if’ he plays in Montreal.

The Habs are having a good off-season so far having added Edmundson and acquiring Jake Allen from the Blues to become the backup behind Carey Price. What else is coming?

I can’t seem to figure out what Larry Brooks’ issue is with Tony DeAngelo. It isn’t easy to replace the production DeAngelo supplied from the back end. He had excellent chemistry with Panarin and Mika Zibanejad on the power play, even strength and was a key performer in the three–on–three overtime. It’s just like Brooks to add his annoying political viewpoint without admitting it when it comes to a good player like DeAngelo, whose support of current President Trump has been treated unfairly by fair-weather fans who call themselves bloggers.

I don’t care what political affiliation you support. I care what you can do on the ice. There’s no reason to trade Tony D. Especially with Nils Lundkvist spending the season in Europe. Brooks is nothing but a tool. It’s way past time he stops doing the Rangers bidding with foolish suggestions that have no merit. Brooks’ is almost at his expiration date. Go have a shot of Jack Daniels with Jim Dolan.

So far, not one positive test for COVID-19 in the playoff bubble. The NHL needs to be congratulated for the tremendous job they’ve done. A challenging pandemic has been handled extremely well. Kudos to commissioner Gary Bettman, who’s back in my good graces. Dare I say it. He’s the best sports commissioner at the moment.

If you’re a Mets, Jets or Giants fan, you are already counting down the days to hockey training camp for the area locals. At least I got the Yankees.

Wishing any Jewish followers a Happy New Year! L’Shana Tova! May it be sweet, fulfilling and better.

Posted in Column, Hard Hits | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Cirelli’s overtime winner sets up Stanley Cup Final between Lightning and Stars

Posted on September 18, 2020 by Derek

The Lightning advanced to the Stanley Cup Final thanks to overtime hero Anthony Cirelli, who beat a brilliant Semyon Varlamov at 13:18 of sudden death to give Tampa a hard fought six game series win over the scrappy Islanders. They’ll face the Stars for Lord Stanley beginning Saturday night. AP Photo credit Tampa Bay Lightning via Getty Images

It looked like it would be a repeat of Game Five for the Lightning. Once again unable to score on a hi-sticking double minor that gave them even more power play time in overtime, they nearly let the determined and scrappy Islanders to get off the mat and level the series.

Had Brock Nelson been able to bury a clear-cut shorthanded breakaway on a dismal turnover, there would’ve been a winner advance or loser go home Game Seven. But Andrei Vasilevskiy made his biggest save of the very competitive Eastern Conference Final that required a few extra periods to decide. He was able to get his glove up to deny Nelson’s bid. He’ll probably be thinking about that chance the next couple of months.

That’s how close the Islanders were to forcing a deciding seventh game last night. Instead, following a maddening power play shift by the all too predictable Mat Barzal, Cirelli was able to get in on the forecheck on defenseman Devon Toews. Before you knew it, Barclay Goodrow fed him for the series clincher that banked in off the goalpost and just past an otherwise brilliant Semyon Varlamov to send the Lightning to the Stanley Cup Final against the rested Stars.

Sometimes, it’s a game of inches. Even with the Bolts holding another edge in shots (48-27), it was much closer following the first period that saw the teams trade goals 2:13 apart. The Lightning held a 17-6 shots edge and really dictated the play. If not for a sharp Varlamov, who finished with a playoff career high 46 saves, this one could’ve been over early. He gave his team a chance to extend the series.

Despite early goals coming from defensemen Toews and the utterly otherworldly Victor Hedman, who was by far the best player in the series, nobody would score again the rest of regulation. It didn’t matter how many shots Tampa fired on Varlamov. He wasn’t having it. So locked in was the Isles netminder that even screens didn’t bother him. He shutdown everything and didn’t allow any rebounds. You could make a case that he was the game’s first star even though his team lost 2-1 to the Lightning in sudden death.

Vasilevskiy wasn’t bad either. He still made 26 saves and didn’t allow the Islanders to steal it. Believe me, they could’ve the way the second half of the game was played. It turned more into a grinding, forechecking physical style that Islanders coach Barry Trotz prefers. That lunchpail gritty game resulted in some good opportunities. But Vasilevskiy was strong in stopping the best Isles that included Nelson, Anthony Beauvillier, Matt Martin and Ryan Pulock.

The Lightning were bolstered by the return of top center Brayden Point, who despite whatever is bugging him, was again effective while working between the dangerous Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat, who nearly had the winner on a backdoor play. But twice, he couldn’t slam home Mikhail Sergachev’s diagonal feed at the open net. The latter he got his stick on and sent it just wide. Following the shift, all he could do was shake his head and bury it at the Lightning bench.

Remarkably, Toews took a pair of needless delay of game minors. One with under seven minutes left in regulation when it was a redirect that felt incidental. That rule needs to be adjusted to interpretation. You would hate to see a team burned by it.

With not much happening and the game destined for overtime, the Bolts top line made a late push to end the suspense. Kucherov came close with under 30 seconds remaining. He eventually drew a errant hi-stick from veteran Andy Greene that also bloodied his nose. That meant four minutes. The penalty came with 23 seconds left.

However, the Lightning couldn’t come close to finishing off the Islanders, whose strong penalty kill went five-for-five in killing the Tampa power play. Hedman had the best chances with a couple of shots just missing the mark. Varlamov also got a piece of one for a superb save with traffic. He did everything he could.

A year ago, the signing was questioned by many including myself due to GM Lou Lamoriello letting Vezina finalist Robin Lehner walk. It’s safe to say Varlamov worked out well. He will work with top goalie prospect Ilya Sorokin in the future. Thomas Greiss will undoubtedly leave.

It was the Lightning, who got caught napping with too many men out 8:49 into OT. Point noticed it, but changed too late. Finally after five of six power plays including three straight, it was the Islanders turn. At least that’s what they thought.

Instead, they could do nothing with the two minute power play. It was due to Barzal, who stubbornly refused to alter his style. A splendid skater with great acceleration, the number one center attempted to carry the puck over the Tampa blueline three times. All three resulted in turnovers including a telegraphed pass that was easily intercepted and cleared down the ice. He made it easy on the four Lightning penalty killers. It wasn’t a good series for Barzal. Let’s leave it at that.

It only took the Bolts a few minutes to finally finish off the Isles for good. On a Alex Killorn soft dump in outside the designated area which in itself is a bad rule, a hustling Cirelli recovered the puck and got it over to Goodrow, who’d been effective in Game Six. An Isles defensive mishap cost them dearly. Goodrow centered for an open Cirelli for a one-timer that clanged off the far post and took a favorable carom off Varlamov and just over the goal line for the game-winner at 13:18 of overtime.

Following a video review, they confirmed the obvious. That the Lightning had won and were going back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in five years. They’ll play for Lord Stanley against another gritty opponent in the bigger and more skilled Stars. It all starts tomorrow night at 8 EST.

It was a great run by the Islanders, who played about as well as they could in the two elimination games. Even if the shots and attempts said otherwise, they made it tough on the Lightning. There were so many physical battles. It was a grinding series that illustrated why Trotz is such a good coach. He gets his teams to buy in.

They might’ve fallen short. But the way they played was admirable. That’s about all I can say regarding the Rangers’ bitter rival. They had a real shot to push it seven against arguably the best team left. The Stars will have something to say about that. That shapes up to be a good final. It could be a long one.

Congrats to the Lightning. Especially good friend Dan Wheeler, who had to be extremely nervous last night. I know I would’ve been. The Isles put a scare into the Bolts, who by advancing definitely let coach Jon Cooper exhale on the bench. You should’ve seen his reaction once it was official. It wasn’t anything like you’d expect. I don’t blame him. He deserves credit for getting his skilled team to play a more patient and taxing style. They had to.

GM Julien BriseBois gets due for bringing in those gritty team oriented character guys that help you win these kinds of games. The additions of Pat Maroon, Goodrow, Blake Coleman, Zach Bogosian and Luke Schenn helped a lot. Every team needs the heavy lifters.

It should be more of the same against Dallas. Expect a hard fought series. One which will feature three of the best defensemen in hockey led by Hedman with Miro Heiskanen and John Klingberg quite a duo for the Stars. It’s also a second chance for Ryan McDonagh to win a Cup. He sure knows how hard it is to get back. In 2014, he was in peak form as an elite defenseman who was the anchor of the Rangers defense. Good luck to him and the guy I give a hard time to, Kevin Shattenkirk.

Congrats also go out to the Islanders on what they did. It’s commendable considering they had to go an extra few games to beat the Panthers just to make the real tournament. They handled both the Caps and Flyers even if the latter never gave up. In some twisted irony, the Isles played that role against the Lightning. It just didn’t reach a Game Seven.

I’ll have more thoughts and observations on things in my next post.

Posted in NHL Playoffs, Stanley Cup | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Kravtsov continues hot streak for Traktor Chelyabinsk

Posted on September 17, 2020 by Derek

Vitaly Kravtsov is on fire. He continues to score goals for his KHL team Traktor Chelyabinsk.

Having entered tonight’s match with three in five games, Kravtsov got two more for his Russian team.

Виталий Кравцов горит! 🔥🔥

You can google translate that if you want. Let’s just say it’s very good. Or очень хорошо!

Here was the first goal he scored. I actually like this one better.

Pretty sick skill by Vitaly. Who doesn’t love a nice goal in transition where a player fakes out the D and then rifles one home? There’s a lot to like so far about Kravtsov, who was more of a playmaker for Russia at the 2020 IIHF U20 World Junior Championships. He had two goals and four assists in the seven games to help Russia win a silver medal in a 4-3 loss to Canada.

Of all the young Rangers prospects prior to them making it official next month with Alexis Lafreniere, I like Kravtsov’s upside the most. It’s his combination of skating and skill that can make a player like Pavel Buchnevich expendable. He’s shooting the puck more for Traktor and showing why the Rangers scouts liked him enough to select him ninth in the 2018 NHL Draft.

He doesn’t turn 21 until December 23 right before Christmas. So far, so good for Kravtsov.

Posted in Prospect Watch | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sabres acquire Eric Staal from Wild for Marcus Johansson

Posted on September 16, 2020 by Derek

In a straight up one for one trade without any salary retained, the Sabres and Wild made a interesting deal. Buffalo acquired veteran center Eric Staal from Minnesota for forward Marcus Johansson.

It’s a deal that should help the Sabres for the short-term. Lacking a number two center to play behind star pivot Jack Eichel, they went out and got the 35-year old Staal. A wise move that can provide some additional scoring punch in the middle. He has one year left on his contract at $3.25 million through 2021.

Johansson will move to his fifth NHL team. Originally a Capital, he wound up in New Jersey and was rented by Boston before landing with the Sabres. A versatile forward who can play left wing or shift over to center, he’s owed $4.5 million for next season. He’ll be 30 by the time 2020-21 begins.

Each player had a moderated 10 team No Trade list. Neither the Sabres or Wild were on it. It’s nice to see an old fashioned straight up trade minus the cap headaches. Clearly, each team is looking for a change.

Though I like it better for the Sabres, who know with Staal in one for one year, he’ll have plenty of incentive following a down year. He posted 19 goals and 28 assists for 47 points in 66 contests for the Wild. His lowest output since he totaled a combined 39 between the Hurricanes and Rangers where it didn’t work out.

Staal was much more successful in St. Paul where he produced 240 points (111-129-240) over four years. That included recording 42 goals and 76 points in ’17-18. For his 16-year career, the former Hurricanes ’03 second overall pick who led them to a Stanley Cup, has registered 436 goals with 585 assists for a total of 1021 points over 1240 games.

He should be a positive influence for former Sabres 2019 first round pick Dylan Cozens. They can remain patient with him and do what’s best for his development.

As for Johansson, he’s coming off a disappointing season in which he had only nine goals in 60 games. Not what the Sabres had in mind. He did wind up with 21 assists and 30 points, but it wasn’t enough production for the two-year investment they made. Maybe a change of scenery will give him a boost.

The Wild have a interesting roster with Kevin Fiala emerging as a young star while veteran Zach Parise remains there. They just locked up strong left defenseman Jonas Brodin to a seven-year, $42 million extension. That could mean Matt Dumba becomes available given their defensive depth.

With the official off-season approaching soon, we’ll see more interesting things develop throughout the NHL. The Stars are still waiting for a dance partner for the Cup with the Islanders not cooperating last night. Game Six is tomorrow night with the Lightning again looking to close them out.

Posted in Off Season | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Eberle’s clutch goal in double overtime helps Islanders force Game Six

Posted on September 16, 2020 by Derek

Semyon Varlamov gives a little assist to help Johnny Boychuk back to the bench. The Islanders are still alive after Jordan Eberle scored at 12:30 of the second overtime in a 2-1 win in Game Five last night over the Lightning. AP Photo credit New York Islanders via Getty Images

For most of last night’s game, it felt like two teams battling for as little space as possible. That’s just how coach Barry Trotz prefers it. The slower pace and tighter checking favored his team.

Despite getting outshot by a good margin in half the six periods that were required, the Islanders staved off elimination in the Eastern Conference Final to force a Game Six tomorrow night. Jordan Eberle played the hero by scoring in double overtime off a two-on-one rush at 12:30 of the second overtime. Or basically 92:30.

It didn’t quite go five overtimes like that unbelievable Game One the Lightning won over the Blue Jackets five weeks ago to start the first round. In that one, top center Brayden Point won it. He also closed out that series. Unfortunately, Lightning coach Jon Cooper didn’t have his most valuable forward available on Tuesday evening. Still nursing an injury, he sat out after a goal and assist performance in their Game Four victory.

It’ll be interesting to see if Point returns for an all important sixth game. They’ve lost both times in the series without him. That would be Game Three and Game Five. If they don’t want to go seven against the resilient Islanders, who played good enough to pull out a hard fought 2-1 victory yesterday, the Bolts will probably need Point. He is that much of a difference maker.

The Isles still have to be thankful to still be alive. They easily could’ve lost. Outplayed for two of three periods in regulation, they were outshot 25-16. Yes, that was the actual shot total for the first 60 minutes. A credit to how hard it was to find real estate. Overall, the Lightning totaled 37 shots to the Islanders’ 24. That included 8-3 in the second OT prior to Eberle converting a Anders Lee feed at the doorstep past Andrei Vasilevskiy.

On the play, a critical mistake was made by Kevin Shattenkirk. Following a face-off win in the Islander zone, the former Blueshirt wound up for a slap shot. It took too long. With pressure coming up top, he fanned on it. That allowed Lee to race the other way with a trailing Eberle for a two-on-one with only Mikhail Sergachev back. With Shattenkirk unable to recover, Lee was able to lay a perfect pass across a sliding Sergachev for a sweet Eberle finish.

It touched off a celebration for the underdog Isles, who won’t go down easily. The highlight being a cool Semyon Varlamov celly in which he did a funny dive across the ice to enjoy the moment with happy teammates. The number one goalie deserved it after keeping his team alive with 36 saves. Without him, the series ends. He’s performed very well and proven Jim Gregory Award winner Lou Lamoriello right.

The Isles got off to a slow start against a determined Lightning, who looked intent on finishing them off. In fact, they got eight of the first nine shots. But Varlamov kept his team afloat with some important stops.

As they settled in, the Islanders took advantage of a bad Nikita Kucherov tripping minor on Brock Nelson. After failing to do much in the first half of the power play, a good rush started by Mat Barzal allowed Nick Leddy to set up Ryan Pulock for a quick one-timer that beat Vasilevskiy at 15:41. Barzal gained the Tampa zone and dropped for Leddy at the point. He fed an open Pulock for his first goal in 18 games.

After closing to within 9-5 in shots, the Isles took a 1-0 lead to the locker room. It was crucial for them to get the first goal. Anytime you want to come back from a 3-1 series deficit, you want to score first and not play from behind. They never trailed.

One of the big reasons for how hard it was for the offensive minded Bolts to get shots as the contest went on was the return of veteran defenseman Johnny Boychuk. After sitting out for most of the playoffs, he was reinserted by Trotz, who went with an 11 forward, 7 D alignment. Only the second time he’s done that all season. The other coming way back on Oct. 25 last year. It worked. Boychuk showed no signs of rust. The gritty defenseman delivered five hits and had six blocked shots in 17 shifts (12:04).

The Isles are without center Casey Cizikas, who’s done for the rest of the postseason after leaving the bubble. Maybe Trotz realized that it was better to have an extra defenseman to help prevent the explosive Tampa offense, who even without Point had plenty of chances to close the series out.

It was early in the second that they drew even. In a transition started by Luke Schenn, Blake Coleman took a low shot off Varlamov that allowed the puck to come over to a pinching Victor Hedman, who picked high short side on a screened Varlamov for his eighth goal of the postseason at the four-minute mark of the period. It was a well executed play with Coleman able to find Hedman wide open. He didn’t blow it by, but used precision.

No wonder he won another Norris as the league’s best defenseman. Nobody is better right now in the sport. He’s not only lethal offensively, but very strong defensively. A complete player, who Cooper leans on heavily. He played 36:12 for the game. Only Kucherov (36:19) had more.

A key moment came late in the second when the Lightning had a goal reversed. They thought they took the lead after Cedric Paquette blew up Scott Mayfield and passed back for an open Carter Verhaeghe for a high shot that beat Varlamov with nobody covering him. However, Trotz wisely challenged for offside. Even though the officials correctly waved off icing, it was obvious that the Lightning were in the Islander zone prior to the puck. How they missed it I don’t know.

The successful challenge by Trotz changed the momentum. Had that counted, his team would’ve been in a lot of trouble. It’s a good thing the coaches have these challenges. Especially when it’s such an egregious error that’s easily correctable. It allowed the Isles to remain tied entering the third.

There really wasn’t much going on. Even with the Lightning doubling up the Islanders in shots (10-5), scoring chances were hard to come by. Each goalie made the key saves. When Anthony Beauvillier hi-sticked and cut Sergachev with 1:23 left in regulation, it handed the Bolts a golden opportunity to finish off the series. They came close to scoring before the end of regulation. Tyler Johnson had a deflection just miss on a good Hedman wrist shot.

The Islanders successfully killed off the remainder of the 2:37 at the start of overtime. The best chance in a tightly contested period where the shots were only 4-4 came when Barzal was in on Vasilevskiy, who beat him by getting his glove on the puck. Barzal wasn’t quite able to elevate it in the one-on-one.

It was astonishing how little action there was. There was no room to do anything. A credit to how well each team defended. Almost before the buzzer, the Isles survived a scare when Kucherov was buzzing around the net. His backhand going wide behind the net. He wasn’t happy because it looked like an Isles defenseman closed their hand on the puck. But it wasn’t called.

The start of the second extra session was more wide open. There was a lot of skating with both sides going for it. This favored the Bolts. In fact, following an Ondrej Palat rebound, Kucherov nearly ended it from a sharp angle. With the loose puck sitting there, he was checked just enough by Mayfield to have his rebound go off the outside of the post. If he had more time, we wouldn’t be talking about a Game Six.

Kucherov also set up Anthony Cirelli on a smart back pass for a good chance that Varlamov denied. The Islanders netminder also stopped Sergachev after the young defenseman made a good move towards the net for a shot that he swallowed up. Without him, the Isles aren’t alive.

It was on a Tampa offensive draw that the Islanders turned the tables. Off a Johnson win back to Shattenkirk, he took too much time winding up. The result was disastrous with Lee intercepting the fanned shot and quickly countering the other way with a hustling Eberle who caught up. Lee found the seam across for a sweet Eberle finish that gave the Isles the win at 32:30 of sudden death.

Now, we have a interesting game coming up on Thursday. All the pressure is on the Lightning. The Islanders are playing with house money. Sure. They’re still facing elimination. But they’re where they want to be. It’s Tampa that’s expected to win this series. More questions will get answered tomorrow night.

Posted in NHL Playoffs | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Kravtsov scores third goal in win for Traktor Chelyabinsk

Posted on September 15, 2020 by Derek

So far, so good for Vitali Kravtsov. The 20-year old Rangers forward prospect is off to a fast start for Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He scored his third goal in five games to help lead them to a 2-1 win over Spartak Moscow.

Kravtsov opened the scoring when he was able to take a pass, skate in and beat the Sparta goalie with a good wrist shot in the slot. Here is the play below:

The real positive sign is he’s been shooting the puck and getting results. In a previous game, Kravtsov recorded five shots on goal. If he’s going to be used extensively like they’re doing so far in Russia, that bodes well for his development.

It’s all about improving and boosting his confidence following a tough season where he went back and forth between the AHL and KHL.

In other prospect news, Lias Andersson has continued to be productive during the preseason for HV-71 in Sweden. I’ll withhold judgment until they start up the regular season.

You’ll see more European Rangers prospects playing overseas due to the unconventional NHL season that’s still going on. The Stars are waiting to see who they’ll face in the Stanley Cup. It’ll either be the Lightning or Islanders. Tampa can wrap it up in Game Five later tonight.

Posted in Prospect Watch | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment