Relentless Devils stun Hawks for second time in six days

Posted on November 13, 2015 by Derek
Kyle Palmieri celebrates his second period goal in a Devils win over the Hawks. AP Photo by Nam Y. Huh/Getty Images

Kyle Palmieri celebrates his second period goal in a Devils win over the Hawks.
AP Photo by Nam Y. Huh/Getty Images

#Relentless. That’s been the theme of the 2015-16 Devils. Like the popular hashtag on Twitter, these Devils continue to battle hard for first-year coach John Hynes. The rookie coach is getting results. Facing the defending champs again, the Devils stunned the Hawks for the second time in six days.

Rookie Sergei Kalinin’s power play goal with 2:27 left in regulation proved to be the difference. Ultimately, it was the brilliant play of Cory Schneider who finished with 27 saves to give his team another thrilling victory. Following an 0-3-1 start, the Devils have won nine of their last 12 (9-3-0) and are right in the thick of things in a tight Metropolitan Division. At 9-6-1 with 19 points, they sit fourth a point behind third place Pittsburgh who they face Saturday at home.

It’s not always pretty. But the Devils make it work with timely scoring and clutch netminding from Schneider. The most encouraging aspect is their best players continue to step up in key moments. After trailing on a Patrick Kane goal, they responded with a two goal second period. Adam Henrique stayed hot scoring his team-leading eighth from John Moore 59 seconds into the second.

Kyle Palmieri slammed home his sixth with 2:59 remaining in the middle stanza. It was set up by the improving Kalinin. Signed out of the KHL, the 24-year old Russian is showing more confidence as his role has increased. His willingness to go to the dirty areas is paying off.

”When you play more, when coach and team trusts you, it’s more power for you,” Kalinin said after recording a power play goal and assist. ”You feel more comfortable on the ice, and try to create things.”

When the Hawks fell behind, they did what they usually do. Turn up the heat. As the Devils found out less than a week ago, when Chicago pushes the attack they’re nearly impossible to control. Puck possession has long been a Blackhawk trait during their three Cups. Even without top defenseman Duncan Keith, they’re a handful. They came in waves launching an all out assault at Schneider, who for a good portion of the third was up to the challenge.

That didn’t stop the Hawks from finally getting the equalizer. Another talented Russian KHL import Artemi Panarin (Panera Bread anyone?) was able to beat Schneider with a quick wrist shot evening the score with 6:41 left. Erik Gustafsson and Kane set it up. Considering that Schneider had made other sprawling saves, it was a stoppable shot. However, that doesn’t account for the pressure he faced. Plus Panarin is gonna be in the Calder conversation. He’s that dangerous.

The thing about the Devils is they usually bounce back. Following Panarin’s goal, they had two point blank chances to go back ahead. But Corey Crawford made his best stops including thwarting Palmieri on the doorstep. He also denied Cammalleri prior to Panarin’s tying marker.

Chicago had a power play with less than six minutes to play on a iffy tripping call on Mike Cammalleri. But New Jersey was able to kill it off. With the game still hanging in the balance, Kane was nabbed for hi-sticking with 2:35 left. It gave the Devils the chance they needed.

Off a face-off win, Palmieri deflected a David Schlemko shot into Crawford. But a pesky Kalinin poked the puck home before Crawford could get a whistle for the game-winner at 17:33. They used only eight second of the power play. 

”The game-winner was great,” beamed Hynes. ”We have him now net-front on the power play, which he earned.”

The game wasn’t over yet. The Devils still had to deal with the predictable Hawks onslaught. They sure had their chances. But even with Crawford pulled, they were unable to beat Schneider. The Devils defensively did just enough to seal the victory.

”What we’re real happy with, even more than the record, is just the way the team’s come together,” Hynes added. ”Guys are playing for one another. There’s a lot of belief in how we’re playing.”

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Kyle Palmieri, NJD (goal-6th of season, assist)

2nd Star-Cory Schneider, NJD (27 saves incl. 10/10 in 2nd)

1st Star-Sergei Kalinin, NJD (game-winning PPG with 2:27 left in 3rd, assist, 4 SOG, 4 hits in 20 shifts-14:33)

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Rangers make it seven in a row with win over Blues

Posted on November 13, 2015 by Derek
Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello celebrate Brassard's early goal in another Rangers win. AP Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello celebrate Brassard’s early goal in another Rangers win.
AP Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

They keep winning games. Make it seven in a row for the Rangers who defeated the Blues 6-3 at MSG last night. Even a step up in competition couldn’t cool them off.

This is one I didn’t see. My Dad, brother and friend attended. They got to see six goals on 22 shots including the first three on only five chasing the previously red hot St. Louis starter Jake Allen. He entered with a shutout streak of 165:59. But didn’t last a whole period. Mats Zuccarello was the catalyst setting up Derick Brassard for the game’s first goal and scoring his eighth goal just 2:18 later by abusing Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester.

”He’s playing at such a high level right now. It starts with his compete level,” teammate Derek Stepan praised of the pint sized Norwegian with the gigantic heart. ”He competes so hard.”

Since Alain Vigneault reunited the top line, they’ve been hot. Nash just came back and scored in the win over Carolina. He helped set up the first two goals and set a perfect screen on captain Ryan McDonagh’s big power play goal in the third which gave them some much needed breathing room against quality opponent. Zuccarello earned the game’s first star recording a goal and two assists. Brassard had a goal and helper allowing the trio to combine for seven points.

Kevin Hayes chased Allen when he beat him on a breakaway with 5:22 remaining in the first. Sent in on a perfect feed from Viktor Stalberg, the improving second-year forward went forehand deke to send Allen to the bench in favor of veteran backup Brian Elliott. By the time McDonagh scored, he was equally frustrated.

During this stretch, the Blueshirts haven’t been perfect by any stretch. In home victories over the Caps and Blues, they’ve been opportunistic. Able to victimize mistake prone yet talented opponents, they’re making the most of their chances. At times, they’ve been on their heels defensively. Washington was all over them last week for half the game. St. Louis was similar attacking for long stretches. They out-shot the Rangers 16-5 in the first but still trailed on the scoreboard.

”The best period we played all year on the road was the first period and we were down 3-0,” St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock said. ”I thought for sure with the way we were playing, we were really dominating the offensive zone. I thought we were going to win for sure.”

The difference is the goaltending. Henrik Lundqvist continues to perform at a high level. In by far his best start, he is making key saves at critical moments. Even when he allows a rare clunker like the rebound to Dmitrij Jaskin that got the Blues within 3-1 before the end of the first, he always bounces back. The three goals allowed were the first time he’s given up over two since Oct. 13 against Winnipeg. He finished with 31 saves to win his fifth straight decision. In fact, he hasn’t lost in regulation since Oct. 15 at Montreal.

As they’ve proven throughout the streak, the Rangers bend but don’t break. When they are stuck in their end, it’s usually because they can’t clear the zone. A bad trend that needs fixing. They also haven’t always managed the puck in the neutral zone. A clear example was Stalberg giving away the puck to the Blues most dangerous scorer Vladimir Tarasenko resulting in a highlight reel goal. Tarasenko took the early Christmas gift and blew into the Ranger zone whistling a lethal wrist shot past Lundqvist for an unassisted goal that cut it to 3-2 at 5:24 of the second.

”He’s one of the best players in the game,” Lundqvist admitted. ”He’s up there with (Ovechkin), I think, in the way he shoots the puck. I thought I was in good position and (his shot is) just so fast and accurate. Give him credit.

”It’s definitely a test for a goalie.”

Undeterred, the Rangers responded less than five minutes later thanks to J.T. Miller connecting off a Stepan feed from Dan Girardi. On the play, Stepan walked out and fed Miller for a one-timer that took a favorable bounce off a Blues skate past a helpless Elliott. That restored a two-goal lead for the time being. St. Louis wasn’t done. With Brassard off for a hook, Scott Gomez started a nice passing play with Robby Fabri finding a wide open Troy Brouwer in front for a power play goal that cut it to 4-3.

However, a Brouwer slash handed the Rangers their first power play less than two minutes into the third. On it, Zuccarello and Stepan combined to set up a McDonagh one-time blast from the point for his second at 2:44. With Nash parking his big frame in front of Elliott, he never saw the shot and then slammed his goal stick against the cage. A pleased McDonagh pumped his fist.

One of the best lock down teams in the game, the Rangers held down the forte improving to 12-2-2. Off a good fore check from Chris Kreider and Miller, Girardi iced it with an empty netter.

”A good test for us to raise our level,” Marc Staal said. ”I thought (it was) one of the hardest competition games (we’ve) had. They play a strong game. They play smart. I think it was our best effort, emotional type of win. It (was) a good test for us and (I’m) glad we responded the way we did.”

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-J.T. Miller, NYR (goal-4th of season, assist, 4 hits, +2 in 20 shifts-13:51)

2nd Star-Rick Nash, NYR (2 assists plus a big time screen on McDonagh’s PPG)

1st Star-Mats Zuccarello, NYR (8th of season, 2 assists-Most Valuable Forward)

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Lundqvist makes 33 saves for 56th career shutout in 3-0 win over Canes

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Derek

The only thing missing from this quick start was a shutout for Henrik Lundqvist. In a 3-0 win over the Hurricanes, the Rangers matched their best start in franchise history winning for the 11th time in the first 15 games. In upping their record to 11-2-2, they got another brilliant performance from Lundqvist, who made 33 saves to post his 56th career shutout.

As is often the case with shutouts, he had some help from his best friend the goalpost. Snake bit Canes forward Jeff Skinner hit the post twice. Carolina had some other close calls but were unable to beat Lundqvist. He’s off to a sensational start with eight wins in 12 starts decreasing his goals-against-average to 1.65 and increasing his save percentage to .949 while recording his first shutout of the season.

The Blueshirts didn’t play a good first period. They were out-shot 8-3 by the Canes.But it didn’t much matter due to goals 11 seconds apart from Jesper Fast and Rick Nash. Playing on the fourth line with Jarret Stoll and Emerson Etem, Fast scored for a second straight game when his turnaround shot beat Cam Ward at 9:21. Etem and Keith Yandle drew assists.

On the following shift, a sloppy Canes turnover led to Dan Girardi intercepting a pass and starting a 2-on-1 with Mats Zuccarello and Nash. Drawing attention, Zuccarello slap passed in front to Nash who deked around a very aggressive Ward for a sweet backhand finish for a goal in his return. He missed the previous two games with a stiff back. It was nice to see him actually score into a net as opposed to his only goal being counted when he was taken down with an empty net. Nash had a good night also setting up Ryan McDonagh’s first while recording four shots and finishing plus-two in 28 shifts (16:46).

The Rangers penalty kill got a workout. They were successful killing off all five Carolina power plays. In particular, the top forward tandem of Nash and Derek Stepan created havoc. McDonagh also had one of his best games recording a goal with two hits and four blocked shots. Marc Staal also was a standout aside from a hooking minor that prevented a scoring chance. Girardi was solid going plus-two with a helper and four blocks. He did have one glaring turnover over skating a loose puck that led to a chance against. Of course, a sliding Lundqvist slid across to bail out his teammate.

It wasn’t a masterpiece. But didn’t have to be. After Lundqvist turned aside all 14 Carolina shots in a more entertaining second that saw the teams combine for 28, Nash got in on the forecheck and fed an open McDonagh at the left point for a shot that caromed off Canes defenseman Ron Hainsey past Ward 13 seconds into the third.

Lundqvist did the rest turning aside all 11 shots to earn the shutout. He continues to be the early story. Brilliant play from the 33-year old Swede. Could this be a special season? A Vezina and even a Hart could be in play. But individual awards pale in comparison to the ultimate prize. So far, so good.

Note: The 11-2-2 start matched the Rangers’ best start in 15 games tying 1990. … Rangers blocked 19 shots as a team including 10 in the first. Canes had nine. … In 14 shifts, Etem played his best game recording an assist with two hits in 9:31. Stoll went 8-and-9 on draws. As a team, the Rangers got beat badly 37-21 with the combination of Jordan Staal and Victor Rask going 27-and-9. … Rangers should get a better test when the Blues visit MSG Thursday. St. Louis shutout the Devils 2-0.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Ryan McDonagh, NYR (goal-1st of season, +2 in 28 shifts-20:24)

2nd Star-Rick Nash, NYR (goal-2nd of season, assist)

1st Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (33 save shutout-56th career)

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Moore a healthy scratch for tonight

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Derek

In a bit of a surprise, coach Alain Vigneault has decided to scratch Dominic Moore when the Rangers host the Hurricanes tonight. In his words, he wants to take a look at Emerson Etem and Jesper Fast in their natural positions with Jarret Stoll. So, Moore will sit out for the first time this season.

Moore has been a solid performer since returning to his original team in ’13-14. Who could ever forget his series clincher from Brian Boyle in Game 6 of an emotional Eastern Conference Final against the Canadiens? The affable 35-year old veteran overcame the loss of his wife Katie to liver cancer. He sat out an entire season.

Moore, who recently remarried is someone to root for. A hard working player who fills his fourth line penalty killing checking role well. After posting 10 goals and 17 helpers last season, he has a goal in 14 contests so far. It’s been a bit of an adjustment playing with Stoll, who also is a natural center. Both have split duty on face-offs while killing penalties. Stoll sat out once. He has a goal and two assists in 13 games.

Vigneault wants to take another look at Etem. A player acquired from Anaheim as part of the Carl Hagelin trade which allowed the Rangers to move up in the second round and select Ryan Gropp. The 23-year old from Long Beach, California has just an assist in five games. He got a chance to play on the top line the past two with Rick Nash out with a bad back. Nash is good to go tonight and will play with Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello.

The Blueshirts need to see what they have in Etem. A former first round pick who’s only totaled 15 goals and 17 assists in 117 games with the Ducks and Rangers. At some point, he must perform to stay in the lineup. He has more skill than Fast, who’s a hard working defensive forward that kills penalties. His hustle led to his second goal on a redirect of a Dan Girardi shot in a recent 4-1 win over Arizona. Fast won’t blow anyone away offensively but is more consistent than Etem.

With Nash returning to the top line and Moore sitting out, here are the lines:

Nash-Brassard-Zuccarello

Kreider-Stepan-Miller

Stalberg-Hayes-Lindberg

Etem-Stoll-Fast

As for the blue line, it’ll be Dan Boyle paired with Keith Yandle. Boyle returned to the lineup over the weekend and had an assist with a plus-two rating. He still was shaky in his end but the veteran gets another start.

With Dylan McIlrath performing well, it’s time for the organization to tell Raphael Diaz to go play in Sweden instead of keeping a handshake agreement that would have him up this month. McIlrath has done enough to stay. He should continue to spell Boyle and maybe even Dan Girardi if he needs a blow. It’s not worth losing McIlrath, who adds size and is more well rounded this time.

Henrik Lundqvist gets the start. With eight more saves, he’ll move past Mike Richter for the most total saves in franchise history counting regular season and postseason. It would be fitting if it comes in a win. Cam Ward will oppose him.

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Improving Sabres visit Lightning in fourth and final meeting

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Derek

Rebuilding takes time. That much is known. For the Sabres, they’re showing improvement under new coach Dan Bylsma. Winners of two of their last three, they visit the talented Lightning tonight.

At 6-8-0 with 12 points in the first 14 games, they are seventh in the Atlantic Division. However, outside of the Canadiens who are off to a whopping 13-2-1 start leading the NHL with 27 points, the Atlantic is mediocre with five points separating second place Ottawa from seventh place Buffalo. Even Tampa Bay has struggled entering play a disappointing 7-7-2 with 16 points.

The Sabres are coming off an emotional 3-2 win over the Canucks this past weekend. It was the return of Ryan Miller. The franchise leader in wins (284) and games played (540) by a goalie. Buffalo welcomed home Miller with a nice video tribute during a stoppage highlighting his best moments. He acknowledged the cheers from an appreciative crowd.

2015 second overall pick Jack Eichel recorded his first two assists. He set up Jamie McGinn and Rasmus Ristolainen. For the season, he has five goals and two helpers for seven points. He leads the Sabres in shots (49). Eichel has been okay on face-offs going 79-and-88.

Buffalo blew a two-goal lead against Vancouver. The Canucks rallied on goals from Henrik Sedin and Chris Higgins, who just squeaked one through rookie goalie Linus Ullmark. Ullmark has been a revelation winning three of his last four starts. The 22-year old from Sweden was a 2012 sixth round pick. He made 35 saves in the win over the Canucks. With starter Robin Lehner still out, Ullmark has earned starts over backup Chad Johnson, who gets the call at Tampa.

The Sabres showed character pulling out the one-goal victory on Saturday. Ristolainen scored his second goal with 16.5 seconds remaining in regulation. The play was made by Tyler Ennis, who out-skated three Canucks before passing for Marcus Foligno who found a open Ristolainen for the winner at 19:43. Ristolainen showed patience moving to the left before firing past Miller.

When they visit the Lightning, it’s already the fourth and final meeting of the season. Tampa took the first three winning 4-1 at Buffalo on Oct. 10, 2-1 at Tampa on 10/17 and 4-1 at Buffalo on 11/5. The good news is after tonight, the Sabres won’t see the Bolts again unless they meet in the playoffs. That the schedule would have them play a division rival four times in a month without any more match-ups is odd to say the least.

Tampa will be without Ondre Palat (lower body). He’s expected to miss anywhere between three to five weeks. Evander Kane (knee) remains out for Buffalo. He could return before Thanksgiving.

Victor Hedman leads the Bolts with 11 points (1-10-11). The gifted defenseman should be a leading candidate for the Norris. In a contract year, captain Steven Stamkos paces them with seven goals. After a slow start, Tyler Johnson has points in three of his last four. He and Nikita Kucherov each have eight points. Scoring has actually been an issue for Tampa. Ryan Callahan has four goals so far playing mostly on the third line with Jonathan Drouin replacing him on the Stamkos unit.

Newest Sabre Ryan O’Reilly has been as advertised. He leads them in scoring with 13 points (4-9-13). Seven of his 13 have come on the power play. O’Reilly has three power play goals and four power play assists. Since putting up 10 points (3-7-10) over a five-game stretch, he’s without a point in three straight.

With Johnson returning to net, he’ll oppose Andrei Vasilevskiy. He made 30 saves in his first start of the season against Buffalo five days ago. All-time, he’s 3-0-0 versus the Sabres with his only career shutout coming on March 3, 2015.

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Slumping Islanders hit California for three game road trip

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Derek
Jaroslav Halak and Johnny Boychuk can't look after Brad Marchand scores the winner in a Bruins 2-1 win over the Islanders. AP Photo by Kathy Kmonicek/Getty Images

Jaroslav Halak and Johnny Boychuk can’t look after Brad Marchand scores the winner in a Bruins 2-1 win over the Islanders.
AP Photo by Kathy Kmonicek/Getty Images

After dropping a 2-1 decision to the Bruins Sunday at Barclays Center, the Islanders have dropped five of their last six. In all six, they have scored two goals-or-fewer. They’ll have to muster more offense when they hit California for a three-game road trip beginning Tuesday in San Jose. It’s a tough three games over four days with stops at Los Angeles and Anaheim Thursday and Friday.

In their first season relocated to Brooklyn on Atlantic Avenue, goals weren’t supposed to be hard to come by. Franchise center John Tavares got off to a blistering start with 11 points (4-7-11) in the first six games leading the Islanders to a 5-1-0 record. But a mystery illness kept Tavares out of of three games between Halloween and Nov. 3. The team went 1-1-1 splitting a home-and-home with the Devils while losing to the Sabres in between.

Tavares returned for Montreal with some bad luck leading to a 4-1 loss. They followed it up with only a Johnny Boychuk third period goal in a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Boston. Thus far, the Islanders captain and Kyle Okposo are tied for the club lead in scoring with 11 points. One ahead of Frans Nielsen. Boychuk, Nikolay Kulemin and Anders Lee each have seven. The trouble is after the trio of Tavares, Okposo and Nielsen who have combined for 14 goals, no one has over three.

Ryan Strome was expected to do big things this season. Instead, a poor start caused Islanders coach Jack Capuano to send him down to Bridgeport. A strange decision that was mutual with Strome admitting he needed a kick in the ass. The 22-year old Strome was coming off a breakout year in which he posted career bests with 17 goals, 33 assists and 50 points with a plus-23 rating in 81 contests last season. In his first dozen games, he had only one goal and four helpers with 18 shots-on-goal. He missed two games with an illness. But the lack of production was alarming. He needs to regain his confidence.

Strome isn’t the only young player under performing. Brock Nelson has three goals and three assists so far. In the first year of a new contract, he must be more consistent. Meanwhile, second-year forward Anders Lee also has a similar line of 3-4-7 with a team worst minus-six rating. This is the same young core that were key contributors last year.

Mikhail Grabovski has only five points. Josh Bailey has six which is about right for a third line forward who is a strong penalty killer. Defenseman Nick Leddy is off to a slow start with no goals and four assists. One less goal and point than Marek Zidlicky. Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin remain an effective fourth line that contributes while being tough to play against.

They’re getting good goaltending from Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss. Halak has four wins in eight starts with a 1.87 goals-against-average and two shutouts. Greiss is 3-1-0 with a 2.45 GAA and .924 save percentage. Each netminder has done the job keeping their team in games.

Due to the recent slump, the Isles find themselves fifth in the Metropolitan Division with a 7-5-3 record. They have 17 points which is tied with the surprising Devils who won again Sunday in overtime over Vancouver. New Jersey has played one less game. So they’re fourth. Unlike the Isles, they’re getting maximum effort from key cogs Adam Henrique, Travis Zajac and Mike Cammalleri. Even Lee Stempniak is scoring and setting up big goals.

For the Islanders to turn it around, it starts with Tavares who’s one of the top players in the game. They follow his lead. He is the emotional leader. Playing the Sharks, Kings and Ducks out West will be a challenge. But maybe it’s for the best. The Isles need that extra spark. This could be it.

Isles recall D prospect Pelech: With the team struggling, the Islanders recalled defense prospect Adam Pelech. A former 2012 third round pick, Pelech had four points (2-2-4 with the Sound Tigers and a plus-nine rating. He will join the team in San Jose and could get his first chance in place of defenseman Brian Strait.

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Devils get emotional OT win over Canucks

Posted on November 8, 2015 by hasan4978

For an interconference game between two non-rivals this afternoon’s game with the Canucks certainly featured an unusual amount of fireworks – on and off the ice.  From a successful coach’s challenge that nullified a second-period Canucks goal to Bobby Farnham and Jordin Tootoo making like the Hanson brothers to a contreversial third-period major penalty/game misconduct for Adam Larsson that drew the ire of coach John Hynes and the nearly 15000 Devil fans in attendance, there was no shortage of emotion or contreversy in this game.  Even after the game Tootoo was fired up by unspecified comments the Canucks’ Alex Burrows made when both were in the penalty box.  Throw in some hideous power plays by both teams (or great penalty kill work, depending on your perspective), a lot of bad goaltending early, and clearly this game had a little of everything.

In a way then, I suppose it was fitting that the Devils won this wild and wacky contest with a 4-on-3 OT power play goal after the Canucks were whistled for a blatant New England Patriot-like pick play.  Jersey native Kyle Palmeri whipped the crowd into a frenzy with his OT winner at 3:33 of the extra period, as the Devils hung in there after blowing a 3-1 lead in regulation.  Perhaps this game epitomized the Devils, not exactly artistic but very gritty in terms of effort and determination and contributions from just about everyone on the roster.  More importantly from a team standpoint the win made their Friday performance against the Hawks stick and gave them still more confidence going into a brutal week that sees the Devils play the red-hot Blues on Tuesday then go on a one-game trip to Chicago Thursday before playing the Penguins on Saturday night.

Even during the first period you could tell there was something a little wacky about this game when just 2:20 in Sergey Kalinin and Damon Severson got caught playing soccer with the puck instead of hockey, and backup goalie Keith Kinkaid gave up a weak turnaround goal by Chris Higgins in the slot.  Perhaps Kinkaid was rusty after not having played for a month, and this certainly was far from his best game as a Devil.   Second-year defenseman Severson didn’t have a great start either, taking an early penalty just a couple minutes after Higgins’ goal, but the Devils’ PK turned into a man disadvantage for Vancouver when Travis Zajac and Adam Henrique teamed up for a shorthanded goal at 5:18 with Zajac making the nice cross-ice feed to Henrique for his seventh goal of the season.  Despite being outplayed for much of the period, the Devils took the lead at 16:32, taking advantage of overpursuit by Vancouver in the offensive zone with Henrique and Lee Stempniak starting a breakout and Mike Cammalleri finished it off, deking out Ryan Miller for an easy goal, his fifth of the year.  For good measure the Canucks tied the game late in the period with Jake Virtanen beating Kinkaid on a wraparound…but coach Hynes used a challenge to appeal for goaltender interference/contact and unlike Friday night this challenge overturned the call on the ice and disallowed the goal.

After a roller-coaster first period emotions certainly picked up during the second although according to Tootoo the seeds were planted during the first when Canuck agitator Burrows made some below the belt comments, and then declined to resolve the issue himself when Tootoo challenged him, leaving it to Derek Dorsett to fight Tootoo in the second period.  Since the fight took place before the faceoff both players also got ten-minute misconducts.  After thumping Dorsett in the fight, Tootoo whipped the crowd even more into a frenzy by raising his fists in the air.  Just two minutes later Farnham also decided to get into a scrap with Virtanen, and though he didn’t do as well in his fight he still played to the crowd afterwards himself – and got another rise out of the patrons in attendance.  Between the fights there was actually hockey being played, with some very questionable goaltending on both sides.  Kalinin got his first NHL goal at 10:31 beating Ryan Miller with an excuse me floater that was so bad I was even mocking Millertime.  Of course, with this game being what it was I could barely say anything before Kinkaid gave up his own soft goal, albeit one deflected by Tootoo just before his takedown of Dorsett.  That fight didn’t stop Vancouver’s momentum as Sven Baertschi scored just two minutes later.  Although Kinkaid wasn’t directly at fault for this goal his horrible rebound control seconds earlier kept the play alive in the offensive zone.

Just after Baertschi’s goal came Farnham’s fight, and soon after that the Devils found themselves with an extended 5-on-3 after penalties by Yannick Weber and Alex Edler just twenty-eight seconds apart.  Of course the Devils’ PP again looked worse than their PK offensively, and that opportunity to retake the lead went by the boards.  Midway through the third after the action had quieted a bit, Larsson checked Jared McCann into the boards and he was given a game misconduct for interference.  Try to mute/not get influenced by the obvious homerism from the Canuck announcers and judge yourself how dirty this hit was.  It’s pretty bad when even many Canuck fans felt the call was unjust and way over the top.  Admittedly on first glance I also thought it was dirty but I didn’t have an ice-level view of the play the way the refs did either.  Be that as it may, the Devils now had to kill off a five-minute major in a tie game without one of their key penalty-killing defenseman.  Somehow…someway…this team found a way to do it, and that sequence turned out to be the difference between getting zero points and getting two.  Hockey being the back and forth game it is, the Devils had their own glorious chance to win in regulation after a late penalty on Edler gave the Devils a power play.  Kalinin had by far the best chance of the man advantage, getting a breakaway on a counterattack and somehow missing the net entirely from point-blank range on a backhand.  A cruel twist of fortune indeed for the KHL import that could have really made the night of his first NHL goal memorable.

Somewhat fittingly the game finally went into overtime, and once Dan Hamhuis committed an interference penalty by taking John Moore out on a pick play the Devils had one final chance to cash in after going 0-4 on the power play in the game.  Stempniak and Cammalleri gained the zone with Cammalleri making like he was going to shoot from the faceoff circle – but passing at the last moment to Palmeri, who rifled a one-timer past Miller for the winner.  After everything that happened in the game it was certainly one of the most emotional wins I can remember since the Spring of 2012.  So nice I even wrote a second recap this week haha…seriously though, when there’s so much to write about doing recaps are a lot easier, particularly happy recaps.

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Rangers howl past Coyotes 4-1 in Yandle’s return

Posted on November 8, 2015 by Derek
Fast Gets One: Jesper Fast celebrates his 2nd goal of season with Dan Girardi in Rangers 4-1 win at Coyotes. AP Photo by Ross D. Franklin/Getty Images

Fast Gets One: Jesper Fast celebrates his 2nd goal of season with Dan Girardi in Rangers 4-1 win at Coyotes.
AP Photo by Ross D. Franklin/Getty Images

It was a successful return for Keith Yandle. Facing his former team, he had an assist and got a nice video tribute during a stoppage in the first period. Most importantly, the Rangers took care of business howling past the Coyotes 4-1 at Gila River Arena (seriously???).

Four different Blueshirts scored. Jesper Fast, J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider (yes!!!!!) and Kevin Hayes all tallied in the Rangers’ fifth straight win allowing them to sweep a back-to-back. Antti Raanta was splendid making 39 saves. In fact, he was 4.6 seconds away from a shutout before Coyotes captain Shane Doan steered home a rebound of a Kyle Chipchura shot off a rush. One that frustrated Ryan McDonagh, who wanted the shutout for Raanta.

When it was over, a smiling Raanta laughed it off as teammates congratulated him. In three starts, the new Rangers backup goalie has allowed two goals on 85 shots. He’s now 3-for-3 all coming against Western Conference opponents. He shutout San Jose on Oct. 19 and yielded one goal in a win over Calgary on Oct. 25. It continues to be a match made in heaven for Raanta and the Blueshirts. He’s more than replaced Cam Talbot, who has moved on in Edmonton as the starter on a rebuilding team.

Unless you’re a slanted Corsi blogger emphasizing puck possession and Fenwick charts to bash easy target Dan Girardi, there’s not much to complain about. The Rangers are off to a great start winning 10 of their first 14 games. At 10-2-2 with 22 points, they continue to lead the Metro Division. They’re two points up on the Caps who of course got a last second Nicklas Backstrom goal against the hapless Leafs before Alex Ovechkin won the game in a shootout. The same rival they took care of 5-2 earlier this week.

It was nice to see someone other than Oscar Lindberg score. Fast isn’t gonna finish much. He’s a checking forward who plays on the fourth line. He got rewarded going to the net. On a Girardi point shot which of course won’t be mentioned in other blogs, Fast neatly redirected the puck past Mike Smith for the only goal in the first.

After a good start, the Rangers were hemmed in a lot by the speedier Coyotes who didn’t play the night before. Arizona had some close calls but also bad luck. Anthony Duclair prevented a sure tying goal when he accidentally got in the way of a shot headed in. It was nice to see our former prospect helping us. The Yotes also hit two goalposts with each shot going off the far post. Raanta’s best friend.

It wasn’t Smith’s night. He allowed a wacky goal to Miller just 2:07 into the second. Dan Boyle threw a pass in front that Kreider touched followed by Miller who barely got a stick on it. The puck then took a funny bounce going through a startled Smith at such a slow speed it was like a knuckle ball. Or as most of us puckers would refer, a knuckle puck from the classic Mighty Ducks movies. The bizarre goal was Miller’s second.

Then Kreider finally got some luck for a change. Snake bit so far with only one goal despite plenty of chances, he took a Derek Stepan outlet and fired a routine wrist shot from the circle that eluded Smith five-hole. That made it 3-0 and ended Smith’s night. He allowed three goals on 17 shots. Anders Lindback replaced him. He fared better permitting just a Hayes power play goal while turning aside 12 of 13.

The problem for the Coyotes is they were already down four. A bit too hard to do against this Rangers team. Once they have a lead after two periods, they are about as lock down as it gets. Seth Rothman tweeted out a stat yesterday about them only losing one game when leading after two periods. They are up to 158-1-9 in their last 168 games since Feb. 6, 2010. Inside Hockey’s Rothman had more on the club’s recent success in the second part of back-to-backs.

As for the third, it was mostly uneventful. The only interesting part was Martin Hanzal having a goal reversed. Originally, he was credited with batting a puck out of mid-air that would’ve made it 4-1 with still over half the period left. However, conclusive replays on MSG showed that Hanzal’s stick was over crossbar height when it connected. After a few minutes, Toronto reversed the refs decision. A good call. And one time we actually agreed with them. Miracles do happen.

If only they could’ve gotten a shutout for Raanta. He so deserved it even making a save from the seat of his pants. But a late Lindberg penalty led to a Coyotes rush and Doan power play tally at 19:55. Unfortunate. But still it’s another two points.

The Blueshirts have accomplished what Alain Vigneault wanted. A quick start. That’s crucial in a good division. Building a cushion is nice. Rack up as many ROW’s and points as you can now. The Canes visit MSG Tuesday. A Staal reunion as Sam Rosen mentioned. They actually came back to beat the Senators with Jordan Staal scoring with less than four seconds left in the 3-on-3 derby.

In all honesty, that should be two points. But they still have to play it. Figure Henrik Lundqvist to be back in. The Blues visit Manhattan Thursday. Then it’s at the Leafs on Friday the 13th. Raanta should be back for that one. All in all, a lot to be happy about if you’re a true Blueshirt.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Kevin Hayes, NYR (PPG-4th of season, 5 SOG-2-2-4 in last 3, 7 pts in last 7)

2nd Star-Chris Kreider, NYR (2nd of season, assist-maybe he’ll get hot)

1st Star-Antti Raanta, NYR (39 saves, 2 GA on 85 shots in 3 wins)

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Devils stun champs with early barrage

Posted on November 7, 2015 by hasan4978

Not-so-coincidentally before last night, the Devils’ last win over the Chicago Blackhawks was during the 2011-12 season, which was also the last season the Devils made the playoffs.  Few expected that to change last night despite an uneven start for the champs and improved play by coach John Hynes’s Devils.  Admittedly I was as cynical as anyone that the Devils could keep up their late October play once the schedule got tougher, since I was expecting a loss I was sort of glad a friend wanted to buy my tickets off me last night (even if it was to take one of her friends who was a Hawks fan).  Still suffering from sports hangover after a brutal last Sunday with my Mets and Jets I wasn’t even sure I was going to watch the game last night.

Thankfully I did turn it on, though I was barely paying attention at first when strange things began to happen, starting with a great individual effort from Lee Stempniak stealing the puck from Hawks defenseman Nicklas Hjalmarsson and beating goaltender Corey Crawford down low 3:48 into the game (highlight above) for the first of what would be a series of early Devils goals.  Most of the highlights of the first period came in the final two and a half minutes of the period though.  Kyle Palmeri scored his fourth goal as a Devil at 17:48 when he fired a one-timer into the net off a Travis Zajac faceoff win.  Moments later, sensing an off night for his team Hawks captain Johnathan Toews got into a scrap with Adam Henrique.  Though Toews won the fight on points, it was the Devils who landed the next blow that counted – on the scorebard.  Just twenty-six seconds after Palmeri scored and moments after the fight, the Devils got their third tally of the period when Zajac followed up a rebound from his own shot beating Crawford for his sixth(!) goal of the season with assists from Stempniak and Damon Severson.  After a 27-point campaign last year, Zajac seems determined to up his game although his first-period goal was the first he’d scored at even strength this season, with four coming on the power play and one shorthanded.

Even the obligatory first intermission goalie change from Crawford to Scott Darling didn’t change the momentum last night, as Mike Cammalleri scored the Devils’ fourth goal at 7:28 of the second period after a pretty feed from Severson.  Palmeri also got an assist, completing a balanced night where four Devils had multiple points and he could well have had another goal later in the period when Sergey Kalinin drove to the net, was stopped on his initial shot but Palmeri put in the rebound – except that the refs waved off the goal due to incidential contact after Kalinin was pushed into Darling by defenseman Trevor Daley.  Of course the refs didn’t reverse their own judgement call when Hynes used his first challenge of the season, losing his timeout when he lost the challenge but it was certainly a worthwhile gamble since 5-0 would really have ended the game as a contest, not to mention you’re sort of banking you won’t need a timeout at 4-0 anyway.

All night in the back of my mind I was waiting for the inevitable Hawks run but it never really came even though Patrick Kane got the champs on the board at 18:42 of the second and immediately the Hawks started buzzing, earning a power play that mostly carried over to the third.  Fortunately some yeoman defensive work from the Devils in the third sealed the win, not only killing two conventional power plays but also having to deal with a full six and a half minutes of the Hawks playing 6-on-5 after coach Joel Quenneville pulled Darling for an extra skater three goals down.  Though the Hawks prevented us from getting more than one serious chance at the empty net, and it seemed like maintained possession in our zone constantly during those final minutes they were only able to cash in once, when Tanner Kero scored off a rebound at 18:34.  You could look at those final minutes one of two ways, either having only one offensive-zone shot at the empty net in six and a half minutes (which was blocked off by a defenseman) was bad or the fact they were mostly able to limit the dangerous chances during such a long period against a championship team was good.  After outshooting the Hawks 21-15 in the first two periods the Devils got outshot 14-5 in the third period, little surprise given the nearly ten minutes with a man advantage the Hawks had, but the Devils showed resolve and never really allowed drama to creep into the final moments.

Even off-ice news was good last night as the team announced its first sellout of the year.  I guess a Friday night game against the champs is a pretty good draw.  Of course the most important thing for Devil fans isn’t neccesarily who they’re playing (though last night was certainly a positive in so many ways) but seeing the team continue to play well and actually being somewhat enjoyable to watch again, and it’s fun for the players as well:

“I think the coaching staff has created an atmosphere around here that, whether we win or lose, it’s all about coming to the rink to get better and enjoy the game,” Zajac said. “I think that’s been positive to have them create that kind of atmosphere. The players, coaches, everyone, wants to be around to have fun and work hard doing it.”

Although I’m sure coach Hynes was pleased at the win as well, he wasn’t losing sight of the big picture:

“It’s a good win and we liked the way we played, but we weren’t perfect,” Devils coach John Hynes said. “The two points are really important and the fact we won a hockey game is really important. We beat a very good team, but we have another game on Sunday too. It’s good to enjoy it and we want to take the good things that happened [Friday] and build on those, but we have to find a way to be better going into Sunday’s game (at home against the Vancouver Canucks).”

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Stepan and Lindberg score 21 seconds apart in Rangers 2-1 win over Avalanche

Posted on November 7, 2015 by Derek
Oscar Lindberg gets congrats at the bench from Derick Brassard after scoring his seventh of the season highlighting a 2-1 Rangers win over the Avalanche. AP Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Oscar Lindberg gets congrats at the bench from Derick Brassard after scoring his seventh of the season highlighting a 2-1 Rangers win over the Avalanche.
AP Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

In the first of a back-to-back on the road, the Rangers came away with a 2-1 win over the Avalanche at Pepsi Center Friday night. Derek Stepan and Oscar Lindberg scored 21 seconds apart in the second period to give them their fourth consecutive win.

After 13 games, the Blueshirts are 9-2-2 with their 20 points tops in the Metropolitan Division. They are in first place despite only two combined goals from Chris Kreider and Rick Nash, who sat out with a bad back. His status is day-to-day. We’ll find out later if he’ll return for the Coyotes. It probably makes sense to heed on the side of caution and let him rest up for the Hurricanes back home on Tuesday.

Henrik Lundqvist stopped all 14 Avalanche shots in a busy third. He continues to be the story. In 11 starts, Lundqvist is 7-2-2 with a 1.80 goals-against-average and .945 save percentage. He finished with 29 saves. Facing a dangerous opponent that plays a wide open style, the Swedish King was up to the challenge denying talented Nathan MacKinnon (game high six shots) several times. The Avs’ third-year center beat Lundqvist on the power play for the only goal in the first period.

The Rangers were guilty of a few ill timed penalties. But after giving up one to MacKinnon on Colorado’s first try, they tightened up killing off the last four. That included undisciplined minors from J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider, Oscar Lindberg and Kevin Klein. While it wasn’t perfect, they played well. With Nash out, Alain Vigneault tried Emerson Etem on the top line with Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello. Let’s just say he’s still learning and leave it at that.

For a second straight game, Vigneault started rookie defenseman Dylan McIlrath in place of struggling veteran Dan Boyle. The former 2010 first round pick rewarded him with a strong defensive effort. In 18 effective shifts, he registered four hits with one shots while being used late on the second half of a key penalty kill with Klein off for delay of game. McIlrath made a few good plays in his end taking Avs forwards off the puck with his big body. That included shoving Jarome Iginla to the ice which led to a Colorado penalty.

As the 23-year old Winnipeg native continues to evolve, he could become a important player during a busy season. With Vigneault emphasizing that he wants to give Boyle nights off when the schedule picks up, McIlrath can provide a physical presence the blueline has been lacking since Mike Sauer’s career was ended by Dion Phaneuf. He also should take a look later at keeping vets Dan Girardi and Marc Staal fresh. The 82-game slate can be taxing. Especially when you consider how much they have played the past two years.

Most notably, Stepan snapped a six-game goal drought with his fourth for a power play goal at 12:42 of the second that tied the contest. Off a favorable carom of a Ryan McDonagh wide shot, Mats Zuccarello fed Stepan for a one-time blast that beat Colorado backup Reto Berra. Up till that point, Berra had played extremely well. On the very next shift, he let in a soft goal to Lindberg only 21 seconds later.

Off a sustained forecheck, Lindberg retrieved a puck from McDonagh down low and fired from below the goal line catching Berra leaning. It was a heady play by a smart player who is on a hot streak. The goal tied Lindberg with Zuccarello for the team lead with seven goals. His seven put him in a tie for first with three other players including Alex Ovechkin for most even strength goals (7).

”I didn’t expect to score this many goals,” Lindberg said. ”I’m not trying to think about it too much. I’m just trying to play.”

Call it a lucky seven for the first-year Swedish rookie who is very much an early Calder candidate. It’s too bad that Connor McDavid broke his clavicle. He’s gonna miss significant time. McDavid was off to a sizzling start with 12 points (5-7-12) in his first 13 games. He was tied with Artemi Panarin for first in rookie scoring. Max Domi is third with 11 points. Then Lindberg and Dylan Larkin each have 10. It’s a deep rookie class that also features ex-Ranger Anthony Duclair, Colton Parayko, Sam Bennett and Sabres center Jack Eichel.

”Sometimes when a player feels it, sees it, I always like that bad-angle shot,” Vigneault said. ”I always think it’s a good idea.”

They could’ve made it a little easier on themselves. But that’s not the Ranger way. They had strong shifts with puck possession generating chances. That included another power play in the third. Despite good looks, they were unable to take advantage. Instead, they defended well and let Lundqvist do the rest.

”When we get the lead, we know what to do,” a philosophical Lundqvist said after also thwarting old nemesis Blake Comeau. ”At times, think we sit back a little too much. At the same time, when we’re under pressure, it’s not like we’re panicking, we still know what we need to do.”

The 33-year old netminder needs eight more saves to break the franchise mark held by Mike Richter. His 29 saves gave him 19,397 for his career counting regular season and postseason. Richter holds the record with 19,404. Ironically, it was also Lundqvist’s 742nd appearance which also tied Richter for the most in franchise history.

”It’s surreal at times, because you grew up watching these guys,” Lundqvist said. ”But it’s been a lot of fun to be part of this franchise. Been lucky to be part of it for so long.”

They’re lucky to have him. World class.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Nathan MacKinnon, COL (PPG-6th of season, 6 SOG, 7 attempts in 24 shifts-22:51)

2nd Star-Oscar Lindberg, NYR (GWG-7th of season, +1 in 16 shifts-11:44)

1st Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (29 saves incl. all 14 in busy 3rd)

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