Grabner steals show in Newark

Posted on October 5, 2013 by Derek
Grabbing the spotlight: Michael Grabner celebrates one of his two goals in the Islanders 4-3 shootout win over the Devils. AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Grabbing the spotlight: Michael Grabner celebrates one of his two goals in the Islanders 4-3 shootout win over the Devils.
AP Photo/Julio Cortez

It was supposed to be about John Tavares. Much is expected from the Islander captain in 2013-14. On a night when he was held in check, another teammate stepped up. Michael Grabner stole the show scoring twice and setting up another in the Isles’ 4-3 shootout win over the Devils at Newark. Easily the best player for either side, the fourth-year forward was all over the ice.

With Tavares tightly guarded by Devil defensemen Andy Greene and Bryce Salvador, Grabner came to play. Using superb speed, he blew past Devil defenders twice beating Martin Brodeur on breakaways. The first one came in direct response to new Devil Damien Brunner scoring the game’s first goal. Taking an outlet from Travis Hamonic, he was gone tying it up 5:08 later. Just call him the Austrian Flash.

When the Islanders needed a spark, Grabner provided it. The Devils carried much of the play in the second period. Sustained pressure led to another new pickup Michael Ryder rebounding home his first 4:46 into the second. Evgeni Nabokov made a couple of big saves keeping his team within striking distance. The veteran netminder was strong making 26 saves while stopping all six Devil shooters in the skill competition. Grabner again came to the rescue when he beat Adam Larsson and then snuck a wrist shot five-hole on Brodeur.

It’s that kind of blazing speed the 26-year old Austrian possesses that makes him a good asset for the Islanders. It won’t be easy for the rebuilding club to make the playoffs in a full season. That’s where secondary scoring comes in. In three seasons, Grabner has scored 70 goals including 16 last year. A respectable total for a dangerous game breaker who can be lethal shorthanded. In his rookie season with the club, the former Panther notched six shorthanded goals while registering career bests in goals (34), assists (18) and points (52). That’s the kind of skill he possesses. Once, he was selected by Vancouver in the first round in ’06. On a club that includes shootout hero Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey and Frans Nielsen, he can be overlooked.

Entering tonight, Grabner had four goals and three assists versus the Devils. It easily could’ve been double if not for Brodeur stoning him. His speed and defensive instincts make him a player you have to account for. Tonight, the Devils forgot to and were burned literally. Over a minute into the third, he was at it again setting up Nielsen’s first. Brunner would tie it again after rookie Brock Nelson’s hooking penalty expired. Before the seesaw contest went to overtime and a shootout, the game was on Grabner’s stick. In he came once more on Brodeur. Only this time Marty was ready getting serenaded by the home crowd. In that moment, you could hear gasps from those same fans. Brodeur’s biggest save allowed the Devils to get a point.

In the shootout, neither goalie budged. A pair of elder statesmen stopped the first 11 shooters in their tracks. Then, Moulson wired one inside the near post sending everyone home. Interestingly, Grabner wasn’t selected by Jack Capuano. If he had already used him, the drama might’ve ended earlier. Maybe next time for the Austrian Flash.

Posted in NY Islanders | 1 Comment

Lack Of Preseason shows for Stepan, Other Observations

Posted on October 4, 2013 by Derek

All training camp, we wanted to know when Derek Stepan would sign on the dotted line. With the key piece of the Rangers in a battle with general manager Glen Sather, it took all preseason to finally get the 23-year old center done agreeing to a bridge contract worth $3.075 million per year.

One area of concern had to be how long it will take Stepan to catch up playing for Alain Vigneault. It’s no secret that the former Vancouver coach runs a different ship than John Tortorella, allowing for more offensive creativity. Even though they lost to the Coyotes 4-1 last night, we got a taste of what to expect. For instance, Marc Staal scored a power play goal by jumping in on the rush. Stepan picked up an assist for his first point.

Centering a Rangers top line flanked by Brad Richards and Rick Nash, Stepan took 24 shifts totaling 19:12. Only Richards (19:35) ranked higher among forwards. Each had some good opportunities with Richards pacing the club with four shots including a dangerous one-timer off a Stepan cross feed that was stopped by a sliding Mike Smith. Perhaps that explains why Vigneault wants Richards on the wing. To become more of a shooting threat.

Despite some solid chemistry in Game 1, Stepan finished minus-two. That included a bad turnover which led directly to Kyle Chipchura giving the Coyotes a 1-0 lead. His pass was intercepted by Oliver Ekman-Larsson allowing Rob Klinkhammer to set up Chipchura 3:36 into the contest. Stepan wasn’t the only guilty party with Nash forgetting to pick up Chipchura in front. A Nash turnover led to Vrbata’s hat trick in the third.

Simple mistakes are correctable. Vigneault talked about how his team had trouble clearing the puck. That was an issue last year. On Vrbata’s first goal, John Moore didn’t get it out. With three days until Game 2 against the Kings on Monday, the coaching staff has plenty of time to make adjustments. One big one could be the return of captain Ryan Callahan. He sat out Thursday but might be ready. If he is, Vigneault hinted that rookie Jesper Fast could come out. I’m not too keen on sitting a kid with speed while keeping Derek Dorsett and Taylor Pyatt in. Dorsett I can see just for the toughness element against a physical Kings roster. I don’t get the fascination with Pyatt. I understand he played for AV before. But come on.

If Vigneault wants to be different than Tortorella, how about giving Fast an opportunity? What is the harm? It’s not like this team can’t use a little jam. Carl Hagelin is missing the first 10 games. I don’t like having Brian Boyle and Dominic Moore center the last two lines. It’s redundant. But I guess he wants to stick with this Richards experiment on the wing. He was one of the bright spots. Hopefully, it works out.

One other note. Ryan McDonagh only played 15:08. He did take a puck to the chin and missed a shift. Maybe they were just being extra cautious. Interestingly, Mike Del Zotto received the second most minutes behind Staal (25:40) logging 24:21. They are paired up and my guess is Vigneault was searching for offense. Del Zotto was minus-two but did get one good shot on Smith. He can benefit from the higher tempo. Just remember, he’s a high risk/reward player. He got a few times with Staal saving him. It’s an interesting dynamic.

Posted in NY Rangers | Leave a comment

Devils suffer Murphy’s Law epidemic on Opening Night

Posted on October 4, 2013 by hasan4978

Damien Brunner getting stuffed at the net (NJ.com)

Whatever can go wrong, will – that’s what Murphy’s Law is.  And that’s pretty much how the Devils’ Opening Night began last night, before and during a 3-0 loss to the Penguins in Pittsburgh.  As much as I’d been looking forward to the season opener, I was in a foul mood after the team lost defenseman Alex Urbom on waivers to Adam Oates and the Capitals of all teams, and it wasn’t improved thereafter by the game.  Yes, one can say we went on the road and played the prohibitive division favorite with a bunch of new faces – even coach Pete DeBoer played that card after the game.  It wasn’t so much the loss that bugged me though, it was more the (again) questionable lineup decisions of the coach and an offense that didn’t look improved at all despite bringing in an armada of 20-25 goal scorers and touting depth over talent.  Sometimes you need talent too, you know.

As far as the lineup – once again, Mark Fayne sat in favor of Peter Harrold.  And though Harrold played fine and is a good fill-in, he’s not an every-day player and there’s still no excuse for what’s happened to Fayne the last several months.  We could have just traded Fayne and kept Urbom, but we lost Urbom on waivers and now we’re letting Fayne rot until he walks as a UFA this offseason.  I had less of an issue with scratching Jacob Josefson and Rostislav Olesz up front, though Olesz sitting was a mild surprise.  I understand wanting to keep Carter-Gionta-Bernier together as one line with continuity but let’s face it, baby Gio is a gamer but even he can’t overcome his limitations (you can be short as a wing, but not as a center, especially if you can’t win a single faceoff).  Probably my biggest problem with the coach is what happened in-game though…all through the preseason word was that Patrik Elias would be shifting back to center and Adam Henrique would play wing.  And I was fine with that, Elias has played center before and Henrique’s played wing before and honestly despite his own faceoff limitations, Elias is the closest thing to a first-line center we have – though Travis Zajac is certainly capable of an all-around game.

So what happens last night?  Elias indeed was moved to center, on a line with Ryane Clowe and Damien Brunner.  Little surprise that Clowe and Brunner were among the best Devils last night, since Elias always seems to raise everyone else’s game around him. While Henrique and Zajac played on a line with Jaromir Jagr, which was fine on paper – except it was Zajac playing wing for much of the night, not Henrique.  What?!?!?!  A guy that’s never played wing in his life and is being paid (and expected to produce) like a first-line center is all of a sudden shifted to the left wing on the eve of the season?  After not getting any time there in the preseason?  I have no idea how to explain some of Pete’s whims other than perhaps he’s trying to surprise teams.  Henrique even took some faceoffs over Zajac, which is not a good idea in any universe (Henrique was 1-6 last night, Zajac 8-14).  This is even more bizarre than the whole Kovalchuk at RW fascination, but to put it mildly I hope this one gets nipped in the bud.  I don’t expect it to happen though, cause Pete’s stubborn to the nth degree.

Not that coaching was the only problem last night.  I don’t care what lines you throw out there, you gotta score at least one goal against a bad defense (without its best player in Kris Letang) and shaky Marc-Andre Fleury in goal – who was getting heckled all spring and summer because of his bad playoffs, but by the end of the game was getting his name chanted by the home crowd.  In what looked like a re-run of a number of games last year, the Devils dominated the shot counter over the last forty minutes but created little in terms of quality chances until the game was gone at 3-0 in the latter half of the third period.  Our best chance in the game’s first fifty minutes was when Marek Zidlicky wound up with the puck and an open net late in the second period…and tried to pass it back through Fleury instead of just shoving it in.  Aye yai yai – Zidlicky said afterward his body was slightly turned and he didn’t see the open net, but it didn’t take him long to realize his mistake either, slamming his stick on the ice after a play which could have changed the entire feel of the game.  Brunner was very active with eight shots on goal, but I can’t remember a single one of them where Fleury had to struggle to make the save.  Even when Henrique got taken down in the final few minutes and a penalty shot was called, Fleury wound up making a routine save off the pads.

Even our defense and goaltending, which was supposed to be the foundation of the team looked shaky last night, giving up two-on-ones all over the place.  Particularly in the first period, where both Penguin goals came off two-on-ones, though admittedly the first one came off a horrendous rebound off Cory Schnieder, which Chuck Kobasew swatted in after gaining the zone and skating past Adam Larsson.  Not that Larsson was alone in making defensive mistakes – Harrold bailed out d-partner Anton Volchenkov after he got out of position in the d-zone by sweeping a goal-bound puck off the line. There was really little Harrold could do on the next two-on-one he got caught on though – though he made the correct by-the-book play taking away the pass, when the puck’s on Sidney Crosby‘s stick you’d generally rather he make the pass.  Instead Crosby fired a laser past Schnieder, and just like that the perfect goalie in the preseason was anything but in his first real action giving up two goals in the first 12:19 of the season.  Schnieder played better after that, though he nearly gave up a Johan Hedberg-like goal early in the second period when Elias had to bail out his goaltender after shaky puckhandling.  As a whole, it just looked like we played the Penguins’ game in the first period although when we started to play a more Devil-like game in the last two periods it didn’t help our offensive production.

So here we are, 0-1 going into the home opener tonight against the Islanders, in a game that’s as vital as any second game of the season could be with a West Coast trip looming after our lone home game in the season’s first two weeks.  It’s not just the upcoming five-game road trip that is cause for concern though…after all the negativity of not being able to score goals late last season and with all the drama that surrounded the offseason, it’s imperative this team doesn’t let the negative juju bleed over into this season.  Especially with the grim reaper (Lou Lamoriello) ready, willing and able to take decisive action after an offseason of trades and signings galore, showing he did not want to miss the playoffs for a third time in four seasons.  I’m already feeling it as a fan, but then again I watched last year happen and quarter of the roster wasn’t even here.  For all the talk about the Islanders being improved, tonight’s still a winnable game – especially with it being their season opener tonight after a long layoff.

At least I have a previously unscheduled day off today, so there’s plenty of time for me to get excited again for the home opener, particularly seeing some people I know for the first time in a while.  And it’s going to be nice weather out again so there’s that.  I didn’t particularly want to do this recap after sleeping the game off last night but since I had time, might as well pick the bones.  Hopefully tomorrow’s recap will be sunnier.

Posted in Devils, NY Islanders | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nothing To Howl At: Rangers drop opener

Posted on October 4, 2013 by Derek
Radim Vrbata is greeted by hats from happy Coyote fans after his hat trick against the Rangers. azcentral.com

Radim Vrbata is greeted by hats from happy Coyote fans after his hat trick against the Rangers.
azcentral.com

The Rangers dropped the season opener to the Coyotes 4-1. Not exactly the start you wanted to see under Alain Vigneault. Similar to preseason, they never led and were undisciplined. Another theme was the superb play of Marc Staal. He scored the only goal connecting on the power play tying it up in the second period. By far he’s been their best player. Staal made several strong defensive plays including a great takeout along the boards.

Staal wasn’t the only bright spot. Brad Richards had a very active game. Playing with more confidence, he attempted several shots and had some good passes that set up chances. I liked how he was used on the power play. Instead of holding the puck at the point, the coaching staff had him sneak in. Once, it almost worked with Derek Stepan setting up a one-timer that Mike Smith stopped. Rick Nash had a similar opportunity that also was snuffed out by the Phoenix goalie.

Staal’s goal came on the rush. Stepan and Nash combined to feed the on-rushing defenseman, who blew a wicked shot short side. At Applebee’s with my brother Justin, it was nice to hear Sam Rosen say his trademark “It’s a power play goal.” Hopefully, that’ll be a harbinger of things to come.

The ‘Yotes were led by Radim Vrbata’s hat trick. An underrated finisher, Vrbata managed to do in the Rangers for a litany of errors. With John Moore out of the box, they were caught with three defensemen including a spent Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi. Moore’s poor clearing attempt was intercepted by Derek Morris, whose shot caromed off Henrik Lundqvist to Vrbata who had two whacks before putting it home. A frustrated McDonagh slammed his stick.

A good majority of the second was spent in the Ranger zone. Once Phoenix went ahead, they got momentum. At one point, they had the next 11 shots. Clean slate doesn’t necessarily mean old habits die. There were instances where they were slow to the puck and outworked by a more determined opponent. If not for the play of Lundqvist, it could’ve been much worse. He gave them a chance.

Girardi took a selfish roughing penalty early in the third which immediately led to Vrbata’s second. Off a faceoff win, Antoine Vermette and Keith Yandle combined to set him up. He completed the hat trick at 7:23 finishing the Rangers off.

The only other bright spot was Nash challenging Martin Hanzal after a hit on Stepan. Nash stood up for a fallen teammate. The first ounce of passion from him in a Ranger uniform. It was better than the lazy play we’ve grown accustomed to. This team has no enforcer. That could pose a problem.

Final thoughts. I wasn’t expecting much tonight. Without Callahan and Hagelin, they’re a very easy team to play against. They get 3 days off to practice before taking on the Kings Monday. Lets wait and see.

In what can only be seen as poetic justice, Tort’s Canucks lost by an identical score against the Sharks.

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

Schnieder to start opener, Elias off IR and Urbom waived

Posted on October 2, 2013 by hasan4978

Less than 36 hours before their season opener, the Devils made news by announcing that Cory Schnieder would get the nod tomorrow in Pittsburgh, the first time someone other than Martin Brodeur has started a season opener since 1993-94.  Brodeur won’t have to wait long to get back into action though, since he’ll be getting the home opener on Friday night against the Isles.  Brodeur had initially been slated to start tomorrow night, but his father’s untimely death changed the timetable as Marty was away from the team for a few days at the end of the preseason.  In any case I sort of expected each goalie would get two of the first four games, with two straight back-to-backs to open the season.

Of more pressing importance the Devils needed to clear room to take Patrik Elias off of IR and finally did so by waiving 22-year old Alexander Urbom.  It’s questionable whether anyone will take Urbom, who does have some skills to be sure but his celing is limited and his NHL play hasn’t been great to this point.  Plus team’s rosters are mostly set right now and it’s this fact that Lou Lamoriello is counting on by exposing Urbom to waivers.  Most of my sturm und drang towards the lineup is over coach Pete DeBoer‘s lines in practice today, which is usually a pretty good indicator of the lineup the next night:

Forward lines: Henrique-Zajac-Jagr, Clowe-Elias-Brunner, Zubrus-Loiktionov-Ryder, Carter-Gionta-Bernier, Olesz-Josefson-Tedenby

Defense pairs: Salvador-Zidlicky, Greene-Larsson, Volchenkov-Harrold, Stevens-Fayne

So apparently our 22-year old former first-round pick (Josefson) is going to be a healthy scratch in the box along with our 23-year old former first rounder (Tedenby), who’s a ‘non-roster injury’.  Although I’m a bit queasy over the fact Stephen Gionta has turned from a feel-good fill-in to an indispensable regular and would rather get one more look at Josefson at the start of the season, at least you could justify having Gio in the lineup over Josefson based on their play last year.  Having Elias back at center and shifting Henrique to wing is interesting, and gives the Devils left-handed sticks at each LW position in the lineup.  Really the top three lines could all play 15+ minutes a night (with CBGB resuming their rightful fourth-line energy role), which the Devils are going to need to have happen without anyone around to suck up 20+ minutes on a consistent basis anymore.  Arguably Travis Zajac is our only forward that’s both worthy and capable of doing so left on the roster, but his offense has to improve this year. 

Really, most of my angst is the continued marginalization of Mark Fayne, who is clearly in the doghouse now.  I can understand having Anton Volchenkov in the lineup over him, based on contract and the fact he’s a left-handed defenseman and the staff’s obsessed with having lefties on the left side and vice-versa, fine.  But playing Peter Harrold over him, really?  Don’t get me wrong, Harrold’s a nice little fill-in, and a decent puck-mover but it’s not as if he’s some great defenseman himself that has to be in the lineup night in and night out.  With Zidlicky, Greene and Larsson the team should have enough puck-moving lineup to subsist on that front, unless of course they’re going to play Harrold over Larsson on the PP again, which would be yet another source of angst. Back to Fayne though, the last time he was playing consistently he was on a lockdown defensive pair with Andy Greene during the ’12 playoffs.  I honestly don’t know where it went south with Fayne and this staff, but sometimes things just break down for whatever reason I guess.  I wasn’t a fan of John Tortorella by the end of his Ranger tenure but even I felt a tad sorry for him describing his damaged relationship with Brad Richards recently, a guy he grew up with in Tampa.  In the case of Fayne, this constant yo-yoing out of the lineup will almost certainly result in him walking by the end of the year and yes, there are defensemen with more talent in the pipeline but it’s still a shame to completely waste a guy who at his best was a smart, capable defenseman.

Of course the lineup won’t be set until after tomorrow’s morning skate so maybe my angst is for naught…and to be fair to Pete, the forward depth is going to make lineup decisions extremely difficult.  That’s not even accounting for perhaps the most important nightly decisions of all – goaltending, and today Brodeur reiterated he’d be ‘happy’ with 50 games, which would basically mean starting 75% of games that aren’t on a back-to-back. It’ll be interesting to see how the coach handles it if (as was the case in preseason and in prior years judging by their stats) Schnieder does outplay Brodeur and how long it takes for the torch to be passed and everyone to be accepting of it.  Or whether Marty gets off to a fast start and Cory doesn’t, will the shiny new toy be put in the doghouse along with Fayne and Josefson?

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

NHL Opening Night, other random thoughts

Posted on October 2, 2013 by hasan4978

James Reimer and Carl Gunnarsson celebrate Leafs win (TSN.ca)

Although I was busy and unfortunately couldn’t watch much of the action last night – and wasn’t interested in staying up for Winnipeg/Edmonton considering I wanted to get some sleep after a really long day – from what I’ve read it seems as if the NHL couldn’t have asked for a better start to its season, on-the-ice anyway.  Unfortunately, the concussion sustained by the Canadiens’ George Parros marred the night during an otherwise fun game between rivals Montreal and Toronto when Parros’s second fight with Colton Orr ended with a scary injury after Orr lost his balance and dragged Parros down, with the Canadiens enforcer lying motionless for a time and bleeding after having landed face-first and eventually being carted off in a stretcher.  Fortunately it seems as if Parros ‘only’ suffered a concussion but was alert and conscious afterward.  Hopefully this won’t be the latest example the anti-fighting advocates around the NHL use to push for banning it since this was a total freak accident, but it seems as if with the new rules (visors, not being able to take helmets off) the NHL’s surreptitiously trying to phase fighting out anyway.  I’m not the world’s biggest fan of goon-on-goon violence but you can’t legislate physicality completely out of the game, it just won’t be the same game.  Just like the NFL wouldn’t be the same if they went to flag football.

As far as the action goes, the Leafs won 4-3 in a back-and-forth game which had two lead changes and 100 PIM’s, a rousing start to the season for Canada’s most high-profile rivalry.  Toronto’s Dion Phaneuf made me happy I picked him in both my fantasy leagues with a goal and the Leafs happy with a +1 and a team-leading 27:01 TOI.  Also scoring for the Leafs was James Van Riemsdyk – getting the first goal of the ’13-14 season in the process – along with recent signing Mason Raymond and always underrated Tyler Bozak, who scored a shorthanded marker.  Seeing James Reimer make 34 saves last night after his strong season last year make you wonder what the Leafs were thinking draining assets to trade for Johnathan Bernier, who wasn’t even tabbed to start Opening Night. Montreal’s Lars Eller was the Habs’ first star of the night with two goals and an assist, with young linemates Alex Galchenyuk (two assists) and Brendan Gallagher (goal) also contributing offensively, which would be a good sign for the Habs going forward since that’s not their first line by any stretch.

In the marquee event last night, the Blackhawks raised their banner in a half-hour ceremony before their game against Alex Ovechkin‘s Capitals, then beat them 6-4 in another high-scoring tilt.  During a night of offensive star turns, Mikhail Grabovski turned in arguably the best with a hat trick plus an assist for a four-point(!) night.  Three of the Caps’ four goals came on the power play, which is always deadly with Ovechkin (goal, assist) and a healthy Mike Green (two assists) on the point.  Adam Oates‘ power play kept the Caps in the game as they came back to tie the Hawks three times and even took the lead in the third period before the Hawks stormed in front with three unanswered goals to win.  Joel Qunneville‘s defending champs showed off their depth with six different players scoring for the Hawks last night.  Ironically ex-Devil Johnny Oduya wound up with the game-winning goal with just over six minutes remaining, and he wound up with a +4, getting only the third(!) star of the game, behind Grabovski and Brandon Saad who had a goal and two assists for Chicago.

Hockey Night in Canada’s second doubleheader game wasn’t as marquee as Habs-Leafs but no less entertaining as Winnipeg outgunned the Oilers 5-4 in Edmonton.  Jets rookie defenseman Jacob Trouba – who I immediately picked up in my 20-team league this morning – stole the show from the Oilers’ superhyped young talent, getting the game-winning goal, an assist and putting up a +2 in a team-leading 25:02 of icetime last night.  And Trouba (ninth overall pick, ’12 draft) is only 19 years old.  As Devil fans learned with Adam Larsson some bleaker days are inevitably going to be ahead once the league scouts you and you have to improve to counteract that, especially given he isn’t used to an 82-game workload but the overall future definitely seems bright for Winnipeg with this young man.  Castoff Michael Frolik scored twice for the Jets with a now semi-svelte Dustin Byfuglien contributing three assists.  Who knew the new rules for goalie equipment would also affect Big Buff’s size…we kid cause we love.  Edmonton surely wasn’t helped by the injuries to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Sam Gagner (out two months) last night, but eventually they have to start living up to the hype.  Ironically, their leading scorer last night was Ales Hemsky (goal, assist), who is otherwise being phased out of a younger forward core.  And for all the talk of their forwards, once again their defense and goaltending was a culprit blowing a 4-2 lead with less than twenty-four minutes remaining.

Five more teams begin their seasons tonight in the three games on the docket – Leafs at Flyers, Sabres at Wings, Ducks at Avs – but the locals don’t start up till tomorrow night when the Rangers and Devils both begin on the road (the Rangers in Phoenix, while the Devils are at Pittsburgh in a division game).  Although I was busy this week and Derek already did a good job with the previews, part of me didn’t want to bother with predictions this year anyway…especially since the Atlantic Metropolitan is almost impossible to predict, with pretty much every team capable of making a realistic case that they’ll make the playoffs (aside from maybe Carolina who has a crap defense and a one-dimensional offense).  My Devils are especially hard to forecast and this is coming from a fan of the team.  I saw one prediction last night that said we could win the Stanley Cup or finish last overall.  While that’s slight hyperbole both ways, thing is – it isn’t that far off the mark imo.  No I don’t see the Devils finishing in the bottom five but they certainly could finish bottom eight-ten again if the old guys up front get hurt (crippling a Russian merc-less offense) and Cory Schnieder either doesn’t perform or get as much time as anticipated for whatever reason.  And I could see the Devils making it to the Conference Finals if the old guys stay reasonably healthy, our younger centers bounce back and our goaltending slots in nicely with Schnieder taking the baton from legend Martin Brodeur a la the Habs’ torch-passing ceremony at Center Ice, and running with it.

I also didn’t want to comment on the ‘final’ roster because everyone knows it isn’t really final, with Patrik Elias being placed on IR but still not expected to miss tomorrow’s game. Perhaps we’re waiting till the last possible minute to trade/send someone down, which even GM Lou Lamoriello came close to acknowledging the other day.  I don’t really expect anything to happen other than Alex Urbom getting sent down (hopefully clearing waivers), giving us thirteen forwards, seven defensemen, two goalies and one ‘non-roster’ injury in Mattias Tedenby.  If a trade is still made, the smart money is still on Mark Fayne going, as he seems to have been marginalized over the last year.  However it’s hard to imagine what kind of value the UFA-to be really has around the league considering he’s been in and out of the lineup since February, and routinely skating on the fourth d-pair with Urbom in practice.  While I don’t like the fact Fayne – who was on the first-pairing and did a fine job during the 2012 run – has been shelved, the fact is there are other defensemen coming up who have a higher celing than a smart, stay-at-home guy who isn’t particularly fast or physical.

On a personal note, with games coming tomorrow night and Friday I probably won’t do a recap after both but definitely will do one sometime Saturday as perhaps a two-game block overview – which I might wind up doing a lot this year with a league-leading 22 back-to-backs – along with upcoming West Coast games which will also be impossible to recap until the day after.  Truth be told, I like going off the reservation some and not doing straight recaps all the time anyway, especially when I go to games I like to give my thoughts sometimes on what’s going on at and around the arena and I’m sure I’ll do that this weekend after the home opener.

Posted in Devils, NHL Preview | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NY Puck NHL Predictions

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Derek
Anze Kopitar is one of our picks to have a big year. viewfrommyseats.com

Anze Kopitar is one of our picks to have a big year.
viewfrommyseats.com

Predicting the NHL always presents a unique challenge. Reflecting back on last year, what was I thinking? I had the Rangers beating the Canucks in a ’94 rematch. Instead, John Tortorella and Alain Vigneault swapped places. All the more reason for why it’s almost impossible to predict what will happen. Which coach will fare better? Fuh-get ’bout it!

The biggest question is can the Blackhawks repeat. Short answer. Yes. They could become the first repeat winner since the Red Wings. It’s the NHL that has a different champ every year despite the cap and every ticky tac rule change that flusters the diehards. Hybrid icing is in for player safety. So is the helmet rule that’s geared to protect fighters from dangerous head injuries. The jersey no tuck rule is odd. It’s better off I don’t say anything I might regret later.

Even with the new rules, hockey fans are still the most passionate of any sport. The added excitement of six outdoor games including the Devils, Islanders and Rangers participating in the Stadium Series at Yankee Stadium will generate even more revenue. The Winter Classic features Original Six rivals Detroit and Toronto, who now play in the same division. This would’ve been hard to picture 20 years ago when each still existed in the old Norris. Realignment has made it possible. The other outdoor events include the Blackhawks and Pens meeting at historic Soldier Field, the Kings hosting the Ducks at Dodger Stadium and the Canucks and Senators at Vancouver’s BC Place. How exactly will that hockey game look at Dodger Stadium? That’s the one I’m most excited about.

It all takes place in an Olympic year with the world’s best players headed to Russia. By then, Ilya Kovalchuk should be recovered. Depth will get tested. There are sure to be plenty of injuries which could further throw things out of whack. With four action packed divisions and a full slate, it’s sure to be wild. Let’s take a closer look at each division and who’ll be crashing the Spring party.

METRO

+*1.Capitals

*2.Penguins

*3.Rangers

4.Devils

5.Blue Jackets

6.Flyers

7.Islanders

8.Hurricanes

ATLANTIC

+*1.Bruins

*2.Red Wings

*3.Senators

*4.Canadiens

*5.Maple Leafs

6.Lightning

7.Sabres

8.Panthers

FINAL EAST RANKINGS

1.Bruins

2.Capitals

3.Penguins

4.Red Wings

5.Rangers

6.Senators

7.Canadiens

8.Maple Leafs

9.Devils

10.Blue Jackets

11.Flyers

12.Islanders

13.Lightning

14.Sabres

15.Panthers

16.Hurricanes

EASTERN CHAMP-Capitals

CENTRAL

+*1.Blackhawks

*2.Blues

*3,Wild

4.Stars

5.Predators

6.Jets

7.Avalanche

PACIFIC

+*1.Kings

*2.Canucks

*3.Sharks

*4.Ducks

*5.Coyotes

6.Oilers

7.Flames

FINAL WEST RANKINGS

1.Kings

2.Blackhawks

3.Canucks

4.Blues

5.Sharks

6.Ducks

7.Wild

8.Coyotes

9.Stars

10.Oilers

11.Predators

12.Jets

13.Avalanche

14.Flames

WESTERN CHAMP-Kings

 

STANLEY CUP WINNER-Kings

HART-Anze Kopitar

ART ROSS-Sidney Crosby

ROCKET RICHARD-Steven Stamkos

VEZINA-Jonathan Quick

NORRIS-Erik Karlsson

CALDER-Nathan MacKinnon

SELKE-Anze Kopitar

JACK ADAMS-Dallas Eakins

FIRST TEAM Ovechkin-Crosby-Stamkos Karlsson-Weber Quick

SECOND TEAM Malkin-Kopitar-P. Kane Chara-Subban Lundqvist

Posted in NHL Preview | Leave a comment

Metropolitan Division Predictions

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Derek
Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are reunited in the Metropolitan Division. www.centericechat.com

Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are reunited in the Metropolitan Division.
http://www.centericechat.com

The new season finally is here. Six teams are in action tonight including new Metropolitan Division member Washington. The Capitals are back where they belong playing against old Patrick rivals the Devils, Islanders, Rangers, Flyers and Penguins. The only difference is the Blue Jackets and Hurricanes are joining them in the newly formed eight team division. It’s still going to take some time to get used to the Metro. An easier nickname for what should be a very competitive division. It’s even hard to pick who will finish last.

On paper, the Pens are the team to beat. Loaded up front with the game’s two best players Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, they’ll score plenty. Pascal Dupuis, Chris Kunitz and James Neal can all finish. Already Kris Letang is hurt which bares watching. It’s all on Marc-Andre Fleury to perform with a blood clot sidelining Tomas Vokoun. The Caps boast a solid nucleus that features Hart winner Alex Ovechkin. The most electrifying player who’ll compete with Steven Stamkos for 60 goals. Braden Holtby is the goalie. Nick Backstrom is the crafty setup man. Mike Green and John Carlson are the triggers. Troy Brouwer, Jason Chimera and Brooks Laich lead a strong supporting cast. This is a team that could challenge for the division.

The Rangers have a new coach in Alain Vigneault, who’s implementing a higher tempo system that should result in more offense. The growing concern is how will that impact Henrik Lundqvist? With Ryan Callahan and Carl Hagelin questionable for the start and a nine-game road trip, they might struggle early. Much depends on Brad Richards, who’ll start on the wing playing with Derek Stepan and Rick Nash. Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello are key pieces along with a blueline led by Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal. The Devils boast a pair of 41-year old future Hall Of Famers in Marty Brodeur and Jaromir Jagr. From the looks of it, they’ll have plenty of depth with key additions Damien Brunner, Ryane Clowe and Michael Ryder looking to supply more offense. Cory Schneider gives them a potential new number one goalie. How will it all work out? Patrik Elias must be a big part of it. The injured team leader is their best scorer.

The Islanders are hoping the first round defeat to the Pens will be a springboard. Gone is Mark Streit, who now plays for the enemy Flyers. John Tavares is ready to assume the mantle as captain. Forty goals and 90 points are attainable. He leads a solid nucleus that includes Josh Bailey, Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo, Frans Nielsen and Michael Grabner. Travis Hamonic is injured to start. That means a heavier workload for Lubomir Visnovsky, who supplants Streit on the offense. How much will the Isles power play miss their trigger man along with Brad Boyes, who was replaced by Pierre-Marc Bouchard? Andrew MacDonald will also get big minutes on the back end. Evgeni Nabokov remains the man in net. Will age catch up?

You have the Blue Jackets joining the Metro. A team full of ex-Rangers. Marian Gaborik is the scoring ace who must deliver. He’s had solid chemistry with Brandon Dubinsky and rookie Boone Jenner. One of two kids to watch. Ryan Murray being the other one who could impact the blueline. Artem Anisimov will be looked to for secondary scoring along with Cam Atkinson and new Jacket Nathan Horton. Horton won’t start the season but will be back. Fedor Tyutin has quietly become a team leader and James Wisniewski must be smarter. Jack Johnson plays big minutes. The pressure is on Sergei Bobrovsky to repeat the Vezina form that had Columbus take it to the final day before missing on a silly tiebreaker. If the kids play well, they could take the next step.

With the Flyers, it’s always about the goalies. This year’s no different with the combo of Ray Emery and Steve Mason replacing departed universe extraordinaire Ilya Bryzgalov. Offense shouldn’t be an issue with Claude Giroux getting Vincent Lecavalier. Scott Hartnell is healthy and motivated. Jake Voracek and Wayne Simmonds can finish in front and Matt Read will pop at least 20. If Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier take the next step in their development, Philly will be four lines deep. They’ll want to forecheck so there’s not as much pressure on a D that leaves more questions than answers. Kimmo Timonen and Braydon Coburn are team leaders. Streit will supply offense but not much else. Luke Schenn is tough. They signed Hal Gill as an extra. Desperate times indeed.

The Hurricanes are very top heavy. A top five of Eric Staal, brother Jordan Staal, Jeff Skinner, Alex Semin and Jiri Tlusty will be counted on for the bulk of the scoring. Can youngster Elias Lindholm stick? Without Joni Pitkanen whose career might be in jeopardy which influenced the NHLPA to approve hybrid icing, there isn’t a standout on the back end. Justin Faulk is very young and already will have plenty of responsibility. They went out and signed Ron Hainsey. A solid addition along with ex-Sabre Andrej Sekera. But is it enough support for Cam Ward and Anton Khudobin? That remains to be seen.

So, how will it all shake out? Don’t hold me to this.

METRO DIVISION

+*1.Capitals

*2.Penguins

*3.Rangers

4.Devils

5.Blue Jackets

6.Flyers

7.Islanders

8.Hurricanes

+Division winner

*Playoffs

BEST PLAYER-Sidney Crosby

TOP GOALIE-Henrik Lundqvist

BEST FINISHER-Alex Ovechkin

BEST DEFENSEMAN-Ryan McDonagh

ROOKIE TO WATCH-Boone Jenner

TOP COACH-Dan Bylsma

BREAKOUT PLAYER-Kyle Okposo

ALL METRO TEAM-Ovechkin-Crosby-Malkin McDonagh-Letang Lundqvist

HONORABLE MENTIONS-Giroux, Tavares, Backstrom, Gaborik, E. Staal, Nash, Elias

M. Staal, Orpik, Carlson, Green, Girardi, Hamonic

Bobrovsky, Schneider, Holtby

Posted in Devils, NHL Preview, NY Islanders, NY Rangers | Leave a comment

Sabres name Vanek co-captain in potential final year

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Derek
Vanek's Final Hurrah? Thomas Vanek is in the final year of his contract with Buffalo. dirtydanglehockey.com

Vanek’s Final Hurrah? Thomas Vanek is in the final year of his contract with Buffalo.
dirtydanglehockey.com

With an eye towards retaining Thomas Vanek, the Sabres named their top finisher co-captain with Steve Ott. The 28-year old Vanek is entering his final year of a long-term contract that pays him $7.1 million this season. In eight seasons with Buffalo, his 250 goals place sixth on the all-time Sabres list. If he scores 18 goals, he’ll move up to fourth past popular Sabres Craig Ramsay and Daniel Gare.

Including last year, he’s scored 20 or better every season. A two-time 40-goal scorer, Vanek’s one of the most overlooked talents in the game. Playing in obscurity helps. Since consecutive Conference Final runs in ’06 and ’07, Buffalo has fallen on hard times. They’ve missed the playoffs the last two years and three of the last five. Buffalo hasn’t been out of the first round since Daniel Briere and Chris Drury departed. Now, Briere will make his debut with the Canadiens tonight when the season opens while Drury is retired. How times change.

All indications are that Vanek will leave. A potential trade candidate, he could go at next year’s deadline. Much depends if the Sabre youth movement works. A young roster that could include several players under 25 will be severely tested in the newly formed Atlantic. A division which features East heavies Boston, Detroit and Ottawa. Montreal and Toronto play tonight. Both made the postseason. Aside from the Red Wings coming over, Florida and Tampa Bay are also new making it a compelling division. Vanek will need help from the likes of Drew Stafford, Cody Hodgson, Tyler Ennis, Ott and Ville Leino. Already Marcus Foligno is hurt and starts the season on the injured list. That’s one young player they’re expecting more from. Does second-year man Mikhail Grigorenko make an impact? Johan Larsson could be someone to watch.

If they are to go anywhere, Tyler Myers better rediscover the game that won a Calder. Still only 23, the big righty has the tools but not the level of consistency. In many aspects, he’s comparable to the Rangers’ Michael Del Zotto. The biggest difference is Buffalo relies a lot more on Myers. Can the return of vet Henrik Tallinder revive him? Number one pick Rasmus Ristolainen seems to have made the roster. The Finn is 18 and a building block for the future. Newcomer Jamie McBain should bring some skill to the blueline.

Vanek might be joined by Ryan Miller. If Vanek’s been Buffalo’s best offensive player, then Miller has been the backbone in net. Now 33, he’s entering his 11th year. Hard to believe he once had the Sabres within an eye lash of the Stanley Cup Final. If only that team’s blueline wasn’t so depleted. In 2010, it was Miller Time for Team USA with the charismatic goalie backstopping them to silver in Vancouver. If only Sidney Crosby hadn’t beaten him. Miller has played in exactly 500 games for Buffalo. The most in franchise history along with 269 wins. Thirty-five more than a guy named Dominik Hasek, who remains the club leader in shutouts (55). Miller is next with 28.

Now, both Vanek and Miller could be playing their final year with the only organization they’ve known. A sad tale that Sabre fans have grown accustomed to. Unless there’s a surprise season that allows the team to challenge for the postseason, it looks like the end of an era. Even with Vanek wearing the ‘C.’

Posted in Battle News | Leave a comment

Devils set roster: Elias on IR to start, Jagr ready to go

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Derek
Jaromir Jagr leads a new Devils attack. www.northjersey.com

Jaromir Jagr leads a new Devils attack.
http://www.northjersey.com

Monday, the Devils finally set their 23-man roster. While it looks like Jaromir Jagr is ready for the season, star forward Patrik Elias has been placed on the injured list with an undisclosed injury. The franchise all-time scoring leader is arguably the most important player on the roster. With many question marks surrounding the Devils offense, Elias is the one guy they can rely on. He led them with 36 points last season.

New Jersey is banking on Jagr and Michael Ryder to supply offense. The big question is how will Number 68 hold up during a hectic Olympic season? Still a big presence with strength and skill, it’ll be fun to watch him. He should help improve the power play along with Ryder, who supplies a big righty shot that should be good for 20 or more goals. Along with newcomer Ryane Clowe and smart addition Damien Brunner, they’ll be asked to pick up the scoring slack. In particular, Brunner is a creative player with speed which can help.

Travis Zajac and Adam Henrique are expected to bounce back. Much depends on how both centers perform. Each begins new contracts with added pressure. Henrique is the younger player with more potential while Zajac is a reliable two-way pivot who’s crucial to the Devil forecheck. Andrei Loktionov is someone to watch. The former King showed flashes last year. A very shifty skater with nice touch, he’s a wildcard. Rotislav Olesz gets a chance to play for Pete DeBoer again. Given a tryout in preseason, the ex-Panther made the most of it. If the club is to have secondary scoring, it’ll have to come from Loktionov, Olesz and injured forward Mattias Tedenby. That could determine whether the club makes the playoffs.

DeBoer can count on checkers Ryan Carter, Steve Bernier and Stephen Gionta for energy. Carter and Bernier have solid chemistry while Gionta is a classic overachiever. He can also move steady vet Dainius Zubrus around. Zubrus has been a solid player who’s carved a nice niche. A line with Clowe and Jacob Josefson is possible. Josefson is another young player who must improve. The 22-year old center has had trouble staying healthy. He showed progress on face offs.

On defense, the Devils are led by Andy Greene, Marek Zidlicky and captain Bryce Salvador. Greene is the steady two-way D while Zidlicky is the club’s best offensive defenseman. Salvador brings physicality. Much depends on Adam Larsson, who enters his third year. Inconsistent his first two seasons, the 20-year old Swede has looked more confident. He’s used his big shot more and looked steadier during preseason. If he can take the next step, the Devil blueline should be fine. Fellow Swede Alex Urbom made the roster beating out Eric Gelinas and Jon Merrill, who’ll start with Albany. With incumbents Mark Fayne and Anton Volchenkov rounding it out along with decent extra Peter Harrold, the Devils have plenty of depth.

The biggest aspect of the club is the dynamic goalie duo of Marty Brodeur and Cory Schneider. The 41-year old Brodeur is a legend who’s done it all. The all-time winningest goalie (669 wins) who doubles in shutouts (121) might be entering his last season. He hasn’t indicated anything leaving the possibility of one more year open. Brodeur is in the final year of his contract. It’ll be emotional for Devil fans every time they see number 30 in net. He’ll start Thursday’s season opener in Pittsburgh. The Devils host the Islanders Friday. It could be Schneider who gets the nod. An oddity for hockey fans. Lou Lamoriello’s biggest offseason move was trading a number one pick (Bo Horvat) to Vancouver for the 27-year old backstop. So far, it looks brilliant. Schneider was terrific during exhibition. No stranger to goalie controversies, he’ll be Brodeur’s successor. With the club having a league high 22 back-to-backs, that should allow DeBoer to balance it out. It’ll be an interesting storyline.

Here’s how the Devils roster shakes out:

GOALIES: Marty Brodeur, Cory Schneider

DEFENSEMEN: Mark Fayne, Andy Greene, Peter Harrold, Adam Larsson, Bryce Salvador, Alex Urbom, Anton Volchenkov, Marek Zidlicky

FORWARDS: Steve Bernier, Damien Brunner, Ryan Carter, Ryane Clowe, *Patrik Elias, Stephen Gionta, Adam Henrique, Jaromir Jagr, Jacob Josefson, Andrei Loktionov, Rotislav Olesz, Michael Ryder, Travis Zajac, Dainius Zubrus

*Injured Reserve

Posted in Battle News, Devils | 2 Comments