#Defenseman Luca Sbisa

[vivavgk]

Capitals center Lars Eller (20) scores a third-period goal past Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (29) during Game 5 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final on Thursday, June 7, 2018, at T-Mobile Arena, in Las Vegas. Benjamin Hager Las Vegas Review-Journal @benjaminhphoto

[pedalingontheroadoflife]

Covered another battle on the ice, this time the Vegas Golden Knights  and Boston Bruins during an NHL hockey game at T-Mobile Arena. The Knights defeated the Bruins 3-1 and are overall 4-1 now to the surprise of some but delight of the fans. I made a few nice images but still am adjusting to the speed and shooting through a tine hole in the glass, this time a puck and a glove came into that space and makes me a bit jumpy but I’ll get used to it. Last game a stick rattled the hole too, hazards of the job :D

Nice work by goalie Malcolm Subban (30), defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) , left wing James Neal (18), center Cody Eakin (21) and others. They will be in town for another four games or so then on the road, I’ll keep trying to get better.

[uncleleo16]

2016-17 NHL Season Team Review

The 2016-17 season wrapped up with the Pittsburgh Penguins winning their 5th Stanley Cup in team history and becoming the first team since 1998 to win back-to-back Championships. Each team had a different story during the regular season and for some during the playoffs and while the Penguins are pleased with their performance many teams need improvement heading into next season. The Vegas Golden Knights expansion draft will shake up things in the NHL and the offseason will be busier than ever with some key decisions. I will look at each teams individual season performance and grade them based on expectations. I will also give a brief outlook on Free Agents for each team and what players are exposed to the Expansion Draft.

Colorado Avalanche

Season Story: This was the first year for head coach Jared Bednar and are coming off a season where they finished 9th in the West. They did lose Mikkel Boedker in the offseason but added defenseman Patrick Wiercioch, Fedor Tyutin and forwards Joe Colborne and Rene Bourque. They signed Tyson Barrie and Nathan MacKinnon to big contracts and drafted Tyson Jost 10th overall. Things were looking okay for Colorado and they entered December with a respectable 9-11-1 record. They then finish the NHL season going 13-45-3, Semyon Varlamov is terrible before a season injury in January, their only 20 goal scorer is a rookie, their role players are awful and this team is arguably one of the worst teams in the past 10 seasons.

Record: 22-56-4, -112 Goal Differential, 30th in NHL, 14th in West

Best Month: October, 4-3-0

Worst Month: January, 1-9-1

Top Scorer (Points): Nathan MacKinnon, 16 Goals and 53 Points in 82 Games

Top Scorer (Goals): Mikko Rantanen (rookie), 20 Goals and 38 Points in 75 Games

Disappointing Performance: Carl Soderberg. The forward was coming off a season in Colorado where he had 12 Goals and 51 Points in 82 games. In 80 Games this season he had 6 goals and 14 Points. Remember, he makes 4.75 million dollars each year for the next three seasons!

Goaltender: Calvin Pickard, 15-31-2, 2.98 GAA and a .904 SV%. Once Varlamov went down with injury, Pickard was in charge of this runaway train. He is signed for one more year at 1 million dollars. Varlamov went 6-17 this season before injury with a 3.38 GAA and a .898 SV%. He is signed for the next two seasons at just under 6 million per year.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Rene Bourque (12 Goals, 18 Points in 65 Games), F- John Mitchell (3 Goals, 7 Points in 65 Games), D- Cody Goloubef (5 Points in 33 Games), D- Fedur Tyutin (-25, 13 Points in 69 Games), GK- Jeremy Smith (1-6-1, 3.54 GAA and a .888 SV%).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Sven Andrighetto (5 Goals, 16 Points in 19 Games), F- Matt Nieto (4 Goals, 11 Points in 43 Games), F- Mikhail Grigorenko (10 Goals, 23 Points in 75 Games), D- Patrick Wiercioch (4 Goals, 12 Points in 57 Games), D- Nikita Zadorov (73 Penalty minutes, 10 Points in 56 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: GK- Calvin Pickard

Team Season Grade: F  This team regressed it’s progress by posting such a terrible season and now head into the offseason with a lot of questions surrounding core players.

Vancouver Canucks

Season Story: The Canucks went into the season refusing to try a full out rebuilt by signing big free agent Loui Eriksson to a six year deal and trading to acquire defenseman Erik Gudbranson while only letting go of Radim Vrbata, Dan Hamhuis and Yannick Weber. The Canucks were having a decent season and headed into February 23-21-6 and within playoff reach. They than proceeded to have a terrible February and finally conceded at the deadline by trading away Alex Burrows and Jannik Hansen for prospects Jonathan Dahlen and Nikolay Goldobin. They finished 13th in the West and 29th in the NHL but look to head towards a proper rebuild given their final few months of the season where they went 7-22-3.

Record: 30-43-9, 29th in NHL, 13th in West

Best Month: January, 6-3-3

Worst Month: April, 0-5-0

Top Scorer (Points and Goals): Bo Horvat, 20 Goals, 52 Points in 81 Games

Disappointing Performance: Loui Eriksson, 11 Goals and 24 Points in 65 Games for their big offseason acquisition. Eriksson is signed for 5 more years at 6 million dollars per season.

Goaltender: Ryan Miller, 18-29-6, 2.80 GAA and a .914 SV%. Very respectable numbers from the veteran goalie.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Jack Skille (5 Goals, 9 Points in 55 Games) and GK- Ryan Miller (36 years old).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Brendan Gaunce (5 Points in 57 Games), F- Bo Horvat (star player, 22 years old), F- Reid Boucher (5 Goals, 7 Points in 27 Games), F- Michael Chaput (4 Goals, 9 Points in 68 Games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Luca Sbisa (13 points, 40 penalty minutes in 82 games)

Team Season Grade: D+ They weren’t that good but near the end of the season they realized they need a rebuilt. Slowly making the steps towards a better team

Arizona Coyotes

Season Story: The Coyotes were coming off a decent season where they finished 10th in the Conference. They went out and acquired some prospects, drafted two first round picks, added F- Radim Vrbata, D- Luke Schenn, F- Jamie McGinn and looked poised to possibly challenge for a playoff spot. They had a really rough October and December and headed into 2017 with a 11-21-5 record. The Coyotes then made trades involving Defenseman Michael Stone and Forward Martin Hanzel which brought in two picks in 2017 (including one first), one pick in 2018 and two conditional picks. They finished the season average but continue to stock pile young talent.

Record: 30-42-10, 27th in NHL, 12th in West

Best Month: November, 6-4-3

Worst Month: December, 3-11-2

Top Scorer (Points and Goals): Radim Vrbata, 20 Goals, 55 Points in 81 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Anthony Duclair, 5 Goals, 15 Points in 58 Games. The second year player was coming off a 20 goal, 44 point season but had a rought 2017 and even spent 16 games in the AHL. He is still only 21 and has plenty of room to grow.

Goaltender: Mike Smith, 19-26-9, 2.92 GAA and a .914 SV%. Not bad numbers for a team that was struggling at times

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Radim Vrbata (top scorer, 36 years old), F- Shane Doan (6 Goals, 27 Points in 74 Games, 40 years old), D- Zbynek Michalek (spent most of year in AHL) and GK- Chad Johnson (recently acquired in a trade will by a UFA).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Jordan Martinook (11 Goals, 25 Points in 77 Games), F- Alexander Burmistrov (5 Goals, 14 Points in 26 Games), F- Peter Holland (5 Goals, 11 Points in 40 Games), Anthony Duclair (21 years old) and F- Josh Jooris (3 Goals, 10 Points in 42 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Teemu Pulkkinen (25 years old, spent most of season in AHL where he had 18 goals and 36 points in 47 games).

Team Season Grade: C+ They stayed the course, they made some good trades at the deadline and they are accepting the rebuild process.

Dallas Stars

Season Story: The Stars were coming off a 50 win season in which they lost in Game 7 of the second round to the Blues. The Stars lost Defenseman Alex Goligoski, Jason Demers, Kris Russell and Forwards Valeri Nichushkin, Colton Sceviour and Vernon Fiddler. They added Defenseman Dan Hamhuis and forwards Lauri Korpikoski and Jiri Hudler. This all while not addressing their goaltending problem. They proceeded to have a below average season and both goalies struggled year round. At the end of the season they traded for the rights to goaltender Ben Bishop and then signed him to a six year deal. But this year was a throw away.

Record: 34-37-11, 24th in the NHL, 11th in West

Best Month: December, 7-6-1

Worst Month: February, 4-8-0

Top Scorer (Points): Tyler Seguin, 72 Points and 26 Goals in 82 Games

Top Scorer (Goals): Jamie Benn, 26 Goals, 69 Points in 77 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Antti Niemi, 12-12-4, 3.30 GAA and a .892 SV. He is making 4.5 Million and has one year left on his deal. He was actually decent in 2015-16 but hasn’t been amazing since 2012.

Goaltender: Kari Lehtonen, 22-25-7, 2.85 GAA and a .902 SV%. This was likely Lehtonen’s last season as a starting goalie in the NHL. But he could be a good back-up.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Ales Hemsky (4 Goals, 7 Points in 15 Games), F- Patrick Sharp (8 Goals, 18 Points in 48 Games) and F- Jiri Hudler (3 Goals, 11 Points in 32 Games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Radek Faksa (12 Goals, 33 Points in 80 Gams), F- Brett Ritchie (16 Goals, 24 Points in 78 Games), D- Patrick Nemeth (14 Penalty minutes, 3 Points in 40 Games), D- Jamie Oleksiak (37 Penalty minutes, 7 Points in 41 Games) and D- Esa Lindell (6 Goals, 18 Points in 73 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Cody Eakin (12 points, 49 penalty minutes in 60 games)

Team Season Grade: D- They wasted a year of the Benn and Seguin era by not acquiring better defensive help and goaltending.

Los Angeles Kings

Season Story: The kings have a reputation of sliding into the playoffs and then going on deep runs and after last seasons first round exit they looked to improve heading into this season. They lost forwards Kris Versteeg and Milan Lucic and defenseman Luke Schenn and Jamie McBain. They didn’t add any big pieces and relied on their core to help them reach the playoffs. After 17 games Jonathan Quick goes down with an injury and although back-up Peter Budaj plays fantastic, the goal scoring is lacking and the Kings miss the playoffs by 8 points.

Record: 39-35-8, 22nd in NHL, 10th in West

Best Month: November, 8-5-1

Worst Month: February, 5-6-2

Top Scorer (Points and Goals): Jeff Carter, 32 Goals and 66 Points in 82 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Jake Muzzin, the defenseman is making 4 million dollars and has been a key member of the Kings team but his 2016-17 season was sub-par. Dropping back from two 40 point seasons to a 28 point season in 82 games and a -21 plus minus.

Goaltender: Jonathan Quick, 8-5-2, 2.26 GAA and a .917 SV%. It should be mentioned that the Kings disrespected back-up Peter Budaj trading him away despite a 27-20-3 record with a 2.12 GAA and a .917 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Jarome Iginla (6 Goals, 9 Points in 19 Games), F- Teddy Purcell (0 Points in 12 Games, mostly AHL player).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Andy Andreoff (2 Points, 72 Penalty minutes in 36 Games), F- Nick Shore (6 Goals, 17 Points in 70 Games), F- Tyler Toffoli (16 Goals, 34 Points in 63 Games) and D- Kevin Gravel (1 Goal, 7 Points in 49 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Brayden McNabb (4 points, 54 penalty minutes in 49 games).

Team Season Grade: C Injuries can be partially to blame for their performance, but it was still disappointing that they didn’t make the playoffs.

Winnipeg Jets

Season Story: The Jets were looking to improve on their 2015-16 season where they finished 11th in the West and the 2nd overall pick Patrik Laine looked to help. They entered the year with a very similar team and played decent for most of the year with terrific offensive power. Mark Scheifele was breaking out for a career year, Laine was a rookie sensation, Blake Wheeler continues to perform and Nikolaj Ehlers had a great sophomore year. The achilles heel was goaltending at times. The Jets however finished the year going 12-5-1 and missing the playoffs by only 7 points.

Record: 40-35-7, 20th in NHL, 9th in West

Best Month: April, 4-0-0

Worst Month: February, 4-5-2

Top Scorer (Points): Mark Scheifele, 32 Goals, 82 Points in 79 Games

Top Scorer (Goals): Patrik Laine, 36 Goals, 64 Points in 73 Games

Disappointing Performance: Michael Hutchinson, 9-12-3, 2.94 GAA and a .905 SV%. He needed to be more reliable at times as a back-up goalie.

Goaltender: Connor Hellebuyck, 26-19-4, 2.80 GAA and a .907 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: D- Paul Postma (14 Points, 15 Penalty minutes in 65 Games) and GK- Ondrej Pavelec (4-4, 3.55 GAA and a .888 SV%)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Brandon Tanev (2 Goals, 4 Points in 51 Games), F- Marko Dano (4 Goals, 11 Points in 38 Games), F- Andrew Copp (9 Goals, 17 Points in 64 Games), D- Ben Chiarot (12 Points, 33 Penalty minutes in 59 Games) and GK- Connor Hellebuyck (24 Years Old)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Chris Thorburn (3 goals, 95 penalty minutes in 64 games) Winnipeg traded their first round pick and a third round pick in 2019 for the Vegas Golden Knights 24th overall pick

Team Season Grade: B Continual improvement throughout the year and the young offensive talent is scary with Ehlers, Scheifele and Laine.

Calgary Flames

Season Story: The Flames were trying to return to the postseason after a disappointing 2015-16 season. The Flames hired new coach Glen Gulutzan who previously coached in Dallas for two seasons. The Flames then signed Goaltender Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson. They also brought in veteran Troy Brouwer to help lead the team to the playoffs. The season started off pretty rough and the Flames were in danger of missing the playoffs but a strong final 2 months going 20-9-1 helped them finish 7th in the West with a first round match-up against Anaheim. The Flames lost all 4 games of the playoffs and despite a decent regular season, Brian Elliott was not good in the playoffs.

Record: 45-33-4 (Playoffs as 1st WildCard, Swept by Anaheim).

Best Month: February, 9-2-1

Worst Month: January, 5-7-1

Top Scorer (Points): Johnny Gaudreau, 61 Points, 18 Goals in 72 Games

Top Scorer (Goals): Sean Monahan, 27 Goals, 58 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Sean Monahan, 4 Goals, 5 Points in 4 Games

Disappointing Performance: Brian Elliott, 26-18-3, 2.55 GAA and a .910 SV%, 0-4 in the Playoffs with a 3.89 GAA and a .880 SV%

Goaltender: Chad Johnson (back-up), 18-15-1, 2.59 GAA and a .910 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Kris Versteeg (15 Goals, 37 Points in 69 Games), D- Michael Stone (2 Goals, 6 Points, 20 Penalty minutes in 19 Games), D- Dennis Wideman (18 Points, 32 Penalty minutes in 57 Games), GK- Brian Elliott

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Alex Chiasson (12 Goals, 24 Points in 81 Games), F- Curtis Lazar (1 Goal, 3 Points in 4 Games), F- Sam Bennett (13 Goals, 26 Points in 81 Games), F- Michael Ferland (15 Goals, 25 Points in 76 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Deryk Engelland (16 points, 85 penalty minutes in 81 games). Pending UFA

Team Season Grade: B They made moves to improve their team and made the playoffs. Unfortunately their playoff performance hurts their grade slightly.

Chicago Blackhawks

Season Story: The Blackhawks entered the season expected to do well again with their core still intact. They did lose however Andrew Ladd, Andrew Shaw, Teuvo Teravainen and Dale Weise in the offseason. The additions of Brian Campbell and fourth line forward Jordin Tootoo apparently helped as the Blackhawks finished 1st in the Western Conference with a 50 win season. This lead to a first round match-up against the 8th seeded Predators. Nashville outscored Chicago 13-3 in 4 games and shocked the hockey world with a sweep of the Blackhawks.

Record: 50-23-9 (Playoffs as 1st Seed, Lost against Nashville)

Best Month: February, 9-1-0

Worst Month: April, 0-2-2

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Patrick Kane, 34 Goals, 89 Points in 82 Games

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews each with 1 Goal and 1 Assist.

Disappointing Performance: Andrew Desjardins, 1 assist, 22 penalty minutes in 46 Games. He obviously isn’t on the team for scoring but 1 point in 46 Games as a forward is pretty bad.

Goaltender: Corey Crawford, 32-18-4, 2.55 GAA and a .918 SV%. 0-4 in playoffs with a 2.83 GAA and a .902 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: D- Brian Campbell (5 Goals, 17 Points in 80 Games), D- Johnny Oduya (2 Points in 15 Games) and F- Andrew Desjardins

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Dennis Rasmussen (4 Goals, 8 Points in 68 Games), F- Tomas Jurco (1 Goal in 13 Games) and D- Ville Pokka (Spent year in AHL).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Trevor Van Riemsdyk (16 points, 29 penalty minutes in 58 games).

Team Season Grade: A- Virtually unstoppable in the regular season but a very disappointing playoff effort.

Minnesota Wild

Season Story: The Wild entered the season as darkhorse contenders as they signed new head coach Bruce Boudreau, added forwards Eric Staal and Chris Stewart and maintained their strong defensive core. They were fantastic during the regular season, a rough march stretch of going 4-10-2 gave away their president trophy chances and set up a Divisional playoff match-up with St. Louis and former coach Mike Yeo. The Wild lost a defensive match-up in 5 games which included two overtime defeats.

Record: 49-25-8 (Lost in first round to St. Louis)

Best Month: December, 12-1-1

Worst Month: March, 4-10-2

Top Scorer (Goals): Eric Staal, 28 Goals, 65 Points in 82 Games

Top Scorer (Points): Mikael Granlund, 69 Points, 26 Goals in 81 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Zach Parise, 2 Goals, 3 Points in 5 Games

Disappointing Performance: Marco Scandella, 4 Goals, 13 Points in 71 Games. He really wasn’t that bad but the Wild didn’t have many disappointing performances.

Goaltender: Devan Dubnyk, 40-19-5, 2.25 GAA and a .923 SV%. In the Playoffs was still terrific going 1-4 with a 1.86 GAA and a .925 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Martin Hanzal (4 Goals, 13 Points in 20 Games), F- Ryan White (3 Points in 19 Games), D- Nate Prosser (2 Goals, 7 Points in 39 Games) and GK- Darcy Kuemper (8-5-3, 3.13 GAA and a .902 SV%)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Jordan Schroeder (6 Goals, 13 Points in 37 Games), F- Mikael Granlund (25 Years old), F- Nino Niederreiter (25 Goals, 57 Points in 82 Games), D- Christian Folin (8 Points, +10 in 51 Games) and D- Mike Reilly (1 Goal in 17 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Erik Haula (15 goals, 26 points in 72 games). Pending RFA

Team Season Grade: A Despite the month of March and an early exit, this was a very good year for the Wild. Expect them to be contenders next season.

San Jose Sharks

Season Story: After losing in the Cup Finals the Sharks were looking to make it back to the Finals this season. They added forward Mikkel Boedker and Defenseman David Schlemko after losing Goaltender James Reimer and Defenseman Roman Polak to free agency. The Sharks started the year good and had a clear goal of making a deep run this year. They entered the playoffs as 6th in the Conference but faced the young Oilers in a true Veteran vs. rookie battle. The Sharks lost in 6 Games and might have just seen their Cup window leave them.

Record: 46-29-7 (Lost in first round to Edmonton)

Best Month: December, 9-4-0

Worst Month: March 6-10-0

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Brent Burns, 29 Goals, 76 Points in 82 Games

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Joel Ward, Joe Pavelski and Patrick Marleau each with 4 Points in 6 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Mikkel Boedker, the big offseason splash for the Sharks had 10 Goals and 26 Points in 82 Games. He is signed for three more years at 4 million dollars.

Goaltender: Martin Jones, 35-23-6, 2.40 GAA and a .912 SV%. 2-4 in the playoffs with a 1.75 GAA and a .935 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Joe Thornton (7 Goals, 50 Points in 79 Games), F- Patrick Marleau (27 Goals, 46 Points in 82 Games) and F- Michael Haley (12 Points, 128 Penalty minutes in 58 Games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Chris Tierney (11 Goals, 23 Points in 80 Games) and a bunch of AHL players.

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- David Schlemko (18 points, 14 penalty minutes in 62 games)

Team Season Grade: B- This was probably the last opportunity for San Jose during the Thornton and Marleau Era and they didn’t reach that next level of play.

St. Louis Blues:

Season Story: The Blues entered the season with big expectations after losing in the West Finals the previous season. They had a character change losing forwards David Backes, Troy Brouwer, Steve Ott and Goaltender Brian Elliott. They added forwards Nail Yakupov, David Perron, Landon Ferraro and Goaltender Carter Hutton. The Blues had a rough start to the season and after a disappointing first half they fired head coach Ken Hitchcock and hired Mike Yeo as their new coach. The Blues then went 22-8-2 under their new head coach and headed into the playoffs as a dark horse. They also traded away star defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk at the deadline for a first round pick and two minor league forwards. They beat the Wild in a 5 game defensive series, which set up a match-up against the Nashville Predators. They lost in a 6 game close series.

Record: 46-29-7, 3rd in Central, Lost to Nashville in Second Round.

Best Month: March, 11-2-2

Worst Month: January, 5-8-0

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Vladimir Tarasenko, 39 Goals, 75 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Jaden Schwartz, 4 Goals, 9 Points in 11 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Nail Yakupov, the former 1st overall pick has seen his production drop ever since his rookie year. The Blues took a small risk acquiring him and he had 3 Goals and 9 Points in 40 Games with the club. He is still only 23 years old and can improve.

Goaltender: Jake Allen, 33-20-5, 2.42 GAA and a .915 SV%. He was 6-5 in the playoffs with a 1.96 GAA and a .935 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Scottie Upshall (10 Goals, 18 Points in 73 Games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Nail Yakupov (23 Years Old), F- Magnus Paajarvi (8 Goals, 13 Points in 32 Games) and D- Colton Parayko (4 Goals, 35 Points in 81 Games).

Player Lost in the Expansion Draft: F- David Perron (46 points, 54 penalty minutes in 82 games).

Team Season Grade: A- The Blues seem to have a good future under new head coach Mike Yeo, Goalie Jake Allen and superstar Vladimir Tarasenko.

Edmonton Oilers

Season Story: The Oilers were coming off another bad season but they had a new superstar exposed in Connor McDavid. During the offseason, they made some noise trading away forward Taylor Hall for Defenseman Adam Larsson. They also added forward Milan Lucic and Defenseman Kris Russell while parting ways with forwards Nail Yakupov, Lauri Korpikoski and defenseman Adam Clendening. The Oilers opened with a strong October before sliding in November and having a strong rest of the season. Sophomore Players Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and Goaltender Cam Talbot lead the way all season to a playoff birth. They upset the Sharks in 6 games during the first round and lost a close 7 game series against Anaheim in the second round. This was major improvement for a franchise that hadn’t made the postseason since 2006.

Record: 47-26-9, 2nd in Pacific, Lost in Second Round of Playoffs.

Best Month: October, 7-2-0

Worst Month: November, 5-8-2

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Connor McDavid, 30 Goals, 100 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Leon Draisaitl, 6 Goals, 16 Points in 12 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Benoit Pouliot, 8 Goals, 14 Points in 67 Games. This after recording two 30 point seasons in a row where he only played 60 games or less.

Goaltender: Cam Talbot, 42-22-8, 2.39 GAA and a .919 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- David Desharnais (2 Goals, 4 Points in 18 Games), F- Matt Hendricks (4 Goals, 7 Points in 42 Games), F- Tyler Pitlick (8 Goals, 11 Points in 31 Games), D- Kris Russell (13 Points, 23 Penalty minutes in 68 Games) and D- Eric Gryba (6 Points, 65 Penalty minutes in 40 Games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Leon Draisaitl (29 Goals, 77 Points in 82 Games) and F- Zach Kassian (24 Points, 101 Penalty minutes in 79 Games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Griffin Reinhart (Spent year in AHL, who was called up for one playoff game). Pending RFA

Team Season Grade: A+, First Playoff appearance in 11 seasons, almost made it to the Conference Finals. McDavid has 100 Points, Draisaitl is amazing, Talbot stands tall all season and the Oilers players have yet to reach their potential.

Anaheim Ducks

Season Story: After a first round exit in 2016, the Ducks were looking to add to their game and become a contender. They signed forwards Antoine Vermette and Jared Boll for more grit to the organization. The ducks cruised through the regular season to finish 1st in the Pacific. They swept the Flames in the opening round, beat the young star Oilers in a 7 game battle that involved a lot of old style hockey and fans began to look down on the Ducks. They embraced the villains role in the Conference Finals against the Predators but couldn’t get the job done and lost in a 6 game series. It should be noted that Randy Carlyle was hired as their new head coach prior to this season and he changed the atmosphere in Anaheim.

Record: 46-23-13, 1st in Pacific. Lost in Conference Finals.

Best Month: March, 10-2-2

Worst Month: February, 4-6-1

Top Scorer (Goals): Rickard Rakell, 33 Goals, 51 Points in 71 Games.

Top Scorer (Points): Ryan Getzlaf, 73 Points, 15 Goals in 74 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Ryan Getzlaf, 8 Goals, 19 Points in 17 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Sami Vatanen, the defenseman who is largely known for his offense only managed 3 goals and 24 Points in 71 Games. This is a poor performance considering he is coming off of back to back near 40 point seasons.

Goaltender: John Gibson, 25-16-9, 2.22 GAA and a .924 SV%. In the playoffs he had a 2.59 GAA and a .918 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Patrick Eaves (11 Goals, 14 Points in 20 Games), F- Nate Thompson (2 Points, 14 Penalty minutes in 30 Games), D- Korbinian Holzer (7 Points, 23 Penalty minutes in 32 Games), GK- Jhonas Enroth (28 years old) and GK- Jonathan Bernier (21-7-4, 2.50 GAA and a .915 SV%)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Emerson Etem (Spent most of year in the AHL).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Clayton Stoner (3 points, 28 penalty minutes in 14 games) and F- Shea Theodore (9 points, 28 penalty minutes in 34 games).

Team Season Grade: A-, A lot of fans disliked this team but they were effective and almost made the Cup Finals. Easily one of the best Center depth in the NHL with Getzlaf, Kesler and Vermette.

Nashville Predators

Season Story: The Predators entered the offseason with a strong team but not one to contend for a Stanley Cup. They traded away star defenseman Shea Weber for Defenseman P.K. Subban in one of the biggest blockbuster trades in recent history. They also added forward Harry Zolnierczyk and defenseman Yannick Weber and Matt Irwin. During the season they acquired forwards Cody McLeod, Vernon Fiddler and P.A. Paranteau. The Predators snuck into the playoffs as an 8th seed and weren’t expected to do much but they proved the league wrong. The beat the Blackhawks, Blues and Ducks on root to the Stanley Cup Final and a match-up against Pittsburgh. The Penguins won the first 2 games but the Predators rebounded winning both home games by a combined score of 9-2. The Penguins then dismantled the Predators 6-0 in Game 5 and then in Game 6 a 2-0 shutout victory to eliminate Nashville and win the Stanley Cup.

Record: 41-29-12, 4th in Central, Lost in Stanley Cup Final

Best Month: November, 9-3-2

Worst Month: December, 5-6-2

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Viktor Arvidsson, 31 Goals, 61 Points in 80 Games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Filip Forsberg, 9 Goals, 16 Points in 22 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Mike Ribeiro, the 37 year old Veteran was demoted to the AHL after his poor performance in 46 Games with only 4 Goals and 25 Points. He was point per game in the AHL but he struggled in the NHL. Regardless, Ribeiro is a fantastic hockey player and person and should have been called up during the Predators playoff run.

Goaltender: Pekka Rinne, 31-18-8, 2.44 GAA and a .917 SV%. He was 14-8 in the playoffs with a 1.96 GAA and a .930 SV%. He was the main reason they went so far in the playoffs despite a poor finals performance. He is almost 35 years old and his Stanley Cup window as a starting goalie is closing.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Mike Fisher (18 Goals, 42 Points in 72 Games), F- Vernon Fiddler (1 Goal, 37 Penalty minutes in 20 Games), F- P.A. Paranteau (1 Point in 8 Games), F- Harry Zolnierczyk (2 Goals, 4 Points in 20 Games), F- Mike Ribeiro (4 Goals, 25 Points in 46 Games) and D- Brad Hunt (1 Point in 3 Games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Viktor Arvidsson (24 Years Old), F- Ryan Johansen (14 Goals, 61 Points in 82 Games), F- Austin Watson (17 Points, 99 penalty minutes in 77 Games), F- Frederick Gaudreau (1 Point in 9 Games), F- Pontus Aberg (2 Points in 15 Games) and GK- Marek Mazanec (0-2, 4.72 GAA and a .839 SV%)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- James Neal (23 goals, 41 points in 70 games). 29 years old

Team Season Grade: A+ The Ribeiro situation makes me mad but the Predators made the Stanley Cup Final. That only is a great season and for a team not expected to make it to the Finals this season, it was fantastic to see.

New Jersey Devils

Season Story: The Devils were trying to improve from a disappointing 2015-16 season. They added forward Taylor Hall and defenseman Ben Lovejoy and Kyle Quincey while losing David Schlemko and Jordin Tootoo. The Devils were having a decent season but when March was coming around, they relized they probably won’t make the playoffs. They traded away forwards Vernon Fiddler, Sergei Kalinin, P.A. Paranteau and other pieces for draft picks and AHL players. The Devils then ended the season going 3-15-2. They were actually rewarded with this tank attempt and recieved the 2017 first overall pick in this years draft. So not a complete waste of a season for New Jersey.

Record: 28-40-14, 16th in East, 28th in NHL

Best Month: January, 7-5-2

Worst Month: March, 2-11-2

Top Scorer (Points): Taylor Hall, 53 Points, 20 Goals in 72 Games.

Top Scorer (Goals): Kyle Palmieri, 26 Goals and 53 Points in 80 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Michael Cammalleri, usually a good bet to get 40 points despite only playing 60 games or so but this year he didn’t perform. He had 10 goals and 31 points in 61 games and for some reason I drafted him in fantasy hockey.

Goaltender: Cory Schneider, 19-18-10, 2.67 GAA and a .913 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: GK- Keith Kinkaid (6-7-2, 2.81 GAA and a .913 SV%)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Beau Bennett (8 Goals, 19 Points in 65 Games), F- Jacob Josefson (10 Points in 38 Games), F- Stefan Noesen (8 Points in 32 Games), D- Damon Severson (31 Points, 58 Penalty minutes in 80 Games) and others.

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Jon Merrill (6 points, 24 penalty minutes in 51 games, 25 years old )

Team Season Grade: C, The Devils understanding the need for a rebuild is a good start but they still have a lot of questions to answer about their future.

Buffalo Sabres

Season Story: The Sabres entered the season looking for gradual improvement from last year with this young club. They acquired defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, Taylor Fedun, Justin Falk and Goaltender Anders Nilsson. They also made a free agent splash by signing Kyle Okposo. They lost Goaltender Chad Johnson and defenseman Mark Pysyk. The Sabres started the season without Jack Eichel and they never truly found that extra step. They finished the season 15th in their conference and will draft 8th at the 2017 Entry Draft.

Record: 33-37-12, 26th in NHL, 15th in East

Best Month: January, 7-5-1

Worst Month: April, 1-4-0

Top Scorer (Goals): Evander Kane, 28 Goals, 43 Points in 70 Games.

Top Scorer (Points): Jack Eichel, 24 Goals, 57 Points in 61 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Tyler Ennis, 5 Goals and 13 Points in 51 Games. He was a consistent 20 Goal scorer for the beginning of his career and after missing most of last year with a concussion, he hasn’t fully got his game back. Not really his fault, but hopefully Ennis can improve next season.

Goaltender: Robin Lehner, 23-26-8, 2.68 GAA and a .920 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Brian Gionta (15 Goals, 35 Points in 82 Games), D- Cody Franson (19 Points, 34 Penalty minutes in 68 Games), D- Dmitry Kulikov (5 Points, 26 Penalty minutes, -26 in 47 Games),  D- Taylor Fedun (7 Points, 16 Penalty minutes in 27 Games) and GK- Anders Nilsson (10-10-4, 2.67 GAA and a .923 SV%)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Marcus Foligno (23 Points, 73 Penalty minutes in 80 Games), F- Zemgus Girgensons (16 Points, 18 Penalty minutes in 75 Games), D- Nathan Beaulieu (Spent last season in Montreal) and GK- Robin Lehner (23-26-8, 2.68 GAA and a .920 SV%)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- William Carrier (8 points, 21 penalty minutes in 41 games) and 2017 6th round pick

Team Season Grade: B-, They had a decent season and injuries played a factor in their result but the Sabres still have a lot of work to do.

Detroit Red Wings

Season Story: The Red Wings entered the season hoping to make another consecutive trip to the playoffs. They lost star veteran Pavel Datsyuk to the KHL and added forwards Frans Nielsen, Thomas Vanek and Steve Ott to help propel this team to the postseason. The Wings never really got going once the season started though and struggled their way to a 14th in the East finish. Starting goalie Petr Mrazek had a awful season, Danny DeKeyser struggled, Riley Sheahan really struggled and Thomas Vanek was fantastic but got injured and was then traded away at the deadline once Ken Holland realized the season was over. This season was a wake up call for Detroit that it is time to rebuild and develop young talent once again.  

Record: 33-36-13, 14th in East, 25th in NHL

Best Month: October, 6-4-0

Worst Month: January, 4-5-5

Top Scorer (Points): Henrik Zetterberg, 17 Goals, 68 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Goals): Tomas Tatar, 25 Goals, 46 Points in 82 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Riley Sheahan, 2 Goals, 13 Points in 80 Games. The 25 year old had back to back seasons of 13 goals. He didn’t score a single goal until the final game of the season when he got 2. He went 79 straight games without scoring, and he was playing top 3 line minutes.

Goaltender: Petr Mrazek, 18-21-9, 3.04 GAA and a .901 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Joe Vitale (0 Games Played) and F- Drew Miller (5 Goals, 7 Points in 55 Games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Andreas Athanasiou (18 Goals, 29 Points in 64 Games), F- Tomas Tatar (25 Goals, 46 Points in 82 Games) and D- Xavier Ouellet (12 Points, 51 Penalty minutes in 66 Games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Tomas Nosek (Spent season in AHL where he had 15 goals, 41 points in 51 games)

Team Season Grade: C- A combination of bad luck, injuries and reality hit this season to eliminate the Red Wings from the playoffs but this offseason is going to be big for Ken Holland to truly prove himself as a high calibre GM.

Florida Panthers

Season Story: The Panthers entered the season with high hopes after finishing the 2015-16 season 1st in the Atlantic. They acquired Goaltender James Reimer, defenseman Jason Demers and Mark Pysyk. They also added forwards Jonathan Marchessault and Colton Sceviour. The Panthers did however lose defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, Brian Campbell, Goaltender Al Montoya and forwards Jiri Hudler and Teddy Purcell. The Panthers started the season struggling before firing head coach Gerard Gallant at the end of November and hiring Tom Rowe. The Panthers remained average and were without Jonathan Huberdeau for for 51 games this season, Aaron Ekblad missed 14 games this year and Aleksander Barkov missed 21 games this year. With these injuries to three of their stars, it was very difficult for the Panthers to advance to the postseason. They added Thomas Vanek late in the season for an extra boost but ended up finishing 13th in the East.

Record: 35-36-11, 23rd in NHL, 13th in East

Best Month: February, 7-4-0

Worst Month: March, 4-10-1

Top Scorer (Points): Vincent Trocheck, 23 Goals, 54 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Goals): Jonathan Marchessault, 30 Goals, 51 Points in 75 Games.

Disappointing Performance: Jussi Jokinen, 28 Points, 11 Goals in 69 Games. Last season Jokinen had 18 Goals and 60 Points in 82 Games. The 34 year old is still under contract for one more season.

Goaltending: James Reimer, 18-16-5, 2.53 GAA and a .920 SV% while Roberto Luongo was 17-15-6 with a 2.68 GAA and a .915 SV%.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Thomas Vanek (10 Points in 20 Games with the Panthers), F- Jaromir Jagr (16 Goals, 46 Points in 82 Games) and D- Jakub Kindl (4 Points, 28 Penalty minutes in 39 games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Michael Sgarbossa (7 Points, 9 penalty minutes in 29 games), D- Alex Petrovic (14 Points, 79 Penalty minutes in 49 games) and D- Mark Pysyk (17 Points, 10 penalty minutes in 82 Games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Jonathan Marchessault (30 Goal Scorer is under contract for 750,000 next season) and the Panthers acquired a 4th round pick in 2018 for F- Reilly Smith (Smith is 26 years old, had 37 Points last season in 80 Games, 50 Points in 2015-16 season but is signed for five more years at 5 Million Dollars per season, so the Panthers just wanted to get rid of his contract).

Team Season Grade: C Barkov and Huberdeau were largely hurt all season but the Panthers need some rebranding this offseason in order to return to the playoffs.

Carolina Hurricanes

Season Story: The Hurricanes made a playoff push last season finishing 10th in the East and were hoping to reach the playoffs in 2017. They added forwards Viktor Stalberg and Lee Stempniak while they lost forward Riley Nash to the Boston Bruins. The Hurricanes had a roller coaster season that started off slow, went downhill in January and February before they went up to a 10-2-5 record in March and then cooled down in April going 1-4-1. Their goaltending struggled immensely during the season but their young talent had a really good season. They also traded away veteran defenseman Ron Hainsey at the trade deadline and witnessed the 36 year old win his first Stanley Cup during his first postseason appearance (Hainsey played for the Blue Jackets, Thrashers, Jets and Hurricanes prior to this postseason).

Record: 36-31-15, 12th in East, 21st in NHL

Best Month: March, 10-2-5

Worst Month: February, 3-5-2

Top Scorer (Points and Goals): Jeff Skinner, 37 Goals, 63 Points in 79 games.

Disappointing Performance: Philipp Di Giuseppe, The 23 year old forward wasn’t very good in his sophomore campaign with 1 goal and 7 Points in 36 Games before spending the season in the AHL where he had 28 points in 40 games. Last season in his rookie year, Di Giuseppe had 7 goals and 17 points in 41 games. The second round pick hopes to improve next season.

Goaltending: Cam Ward, 26-22-12, 2.69 GAA and a .905 SV%. Yes he is still their starting goaltender.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Derek Ryan (11 Goals, 29 Points in 67 Games), F- Jay McClement (8 Points, 18 Penalty minutes in 65 games) and D- Matt Tennyson (6 Points, 6 penalty minutes in 45 games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Brock McGinn (7 Goals, 16 Points in 57 games) and F- Philipp Di Giuseppe

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Connor Brickley (Spent all of 2016-17 in AHL is an UFA during this offseason). The hurricanes also gave the Golden Knights a 2017 5th round pick to possibly protect other exposed players.

Team Season Grade: B Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Noah Hanifin and Elias Lindholm all had good seasons and are all under the age of 23. This is still a rebuilding year in Carolina but they are making good progress.

Philadelphia Flyers

Season Story: The Flyers were entering the second season of the Dave Hakstol coaching term and were coming off a playoff appearance in 2015-16. Philadelphia added forwards Dale Weise and Boyd Gordon. They lost forwards Sam Gagner and Ryan White and defenseman Evgeny Medvedev. The Flyers had a strong start to the season but faded in January and February going 9-12-3 over those two months. They went 10-7-3 over their last 2 months but couldn’t reach the playoffs finishing 7 points behind the 8 seed. The Flyers somehow managed to get the 2nd overall selection in the draft which will be huge in getting either Nolan Patrick or Nico Hischier as Franchise players.

Record: 39-33-10, 11th in East, 19th in NHL.

Best Month: December, 9-4-1

Worst Month: February, 4-6-1

Top Scorer (Points): Jakub Voracek, 20 Goals, 61 Points in 82 Games.

Top Scorer (Goals): Wayne Simmonds, 31 Goals, 54 Points in 82 games.

Disappointing Performance: Michael Neuvirth, 11-11-1, 2.82 GAA and a .891 SV%. He had such a strong season in 2015-16 but this season really puts his future as an NHL goalie in question.

Goaltending: Steve Mason, 26-21-8, 2.66 GAA and a .908 SV%. This was not his strongest season but Steve Mason has seemed to find his rhythm since arriving in Philadelphia in 2013.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Jordan Weal (8 Goals, 12 Points in 23 games), F- Chris VandeVelde (6 Goals, 15 Points in 81 games), D- Michael Del Zotto (6 Goals, 18 Points in 51 games), D- Nick Schultz (4 Points, 10 Penalty minutes in 28 games) and GK- Steve Mason (29 years old)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Roman Lyubimov (4 Goals, 6 Points in 47 games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (4 Goals, 8 Points, 20 penalty minutes in 82 games). Bellemare is a coaches dream, he skates hard, hits hard and is a great depth winger.

Team Season Grade: C- Philadelphia fans saw their rivals Pittsburgh lift a another Stanley Cup while the Flyers couldn’t even make the playoffs. Giroux struggled, goaltending struggled but the positive aspect is that the Flyers have a good prospect pool that just gets a lot better with the 2nd overall pick this season.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Season Story: The Lightning were looking ahead to another deep playoff run after losing in Game 7 of the Conference Finals to Pittsburgh in 2015-16 and in 2014-15 they lost in the Cup Finals. They went through the motions in the first half of the season going a comfortable 19-15-4. The Lightning were awful in January going 3-8-2, and although they finished the season 20-7-4 and only missed the playoffs by 1 point in an incredible effort, the Lightning fell short. They also traded away forwards Brian Boyle, Valterri Filpulla and goaltender Ben Bishop around the trade deadline when things looked bad. Steven Stamkos only played 17 games this season and Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman had to carry this team on their back to have a chance at the playoffs. The Lightning will be disappointed in this performance but they should be back and strong next season.

Record: 42-30-10, 18th in NHL, 10th in East

Best Month: March, 10-4-1

Worst Month: January, 3-8-2

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Nikita Kucherov, 40 Goals, 85 Points in 74 games

Disappointing Performance: Jason Garrison, 1 Goal, 9 Points, -8 in 70 games. He wasn’t awful but the team really needed more offence from a former 30 point defenseman.

Goaltending: Andrei Vasilevskiy, 23-17-7, 2.61 GAA and a .917 SV%. The 22 year old Russian goaltender had his first full year as an NHL starter this season.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Greg McKegg (1 point, 11 penalty minutes in 15 games) and D- Luke Witkowski (4 points, 39 penalty minutes in 34 games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Tyler Johnson (19 goals, 45 Points in 66 games),  F- Ondrej Palat (17 goals, 52 Points in 75 games) and D- Andrej Sustr (14 points, 43 penalty minutes in 80 games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: D- Jason Garrison (32 years old) The Golden Knights also acquired F- Nikita Gusev, 2017 2nd round pick and a 2018 4th round pick in Tampa Bay protecting certain players.

Team Season Grade: D This was a bad year for the Lightning who went from back to back conference Finals to not even making the playoffs.

New York Islanders

Season Story: The Islanders entereed the season hoping to continue their regular season success of making the playoffs for the third straight year. They added forwards Andrew Ladd, Jason Chimera and P.A. Paranteau. They also added defenseman Dennis Seidenberg. They did however lose key forwards Kyle Okposo, Frans Nielsen and Matt Martin in free agency. The Islanders struggled early in the season going 8-10-4 in the first two months before picking things up in December, January and February. They had a rough March going only 7-7-2 and although they ended the season going 5-0-0 in April, they missed the playoffs by 1 point. They also traded away their first round draft pick for this upcoming draft.

Record: 41-29-12, 9th in East, 17th in NHL

Best Month: April, 5-0-0

Worst Month: November, 4-5-4

Top Scorer (Goals): Anders Lee, 34 Goals, 52 points in 81 games

Top Scorer (Points): John Tavares, 28 Goals, 66 Points in 77 games

Disappointing Performance: Andrew Ladd, 23 Goals, 31 Points in 78 games. Yes Ladd had 23 goals, but he only had 31 points which was his lowest point total since 2008. Ladd was also the big free agency signing that the Islanders are paying 5.5 million dollars per season over the next 6 years.

Goaltending: Thomas Greiss, 25-16-5, 2.67 GAA and a .914 SV%. The german goaltender is now 31 years old and has 3 years left on his reasonable contract at 3.33 million per season.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Stephen Gionta (1 goal, 6 points in 26 games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: D- Calvin De Haan (25 points, 36 penalty minutes in 82 games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: GK- J.R. Berube (3-2-2, 3.42 GAA and a .889 SV%). They also acquired F- Mikhail Grabovski and a 1st round pick in this years draft as well as a second round pick in 2019. These trades were meant to protect Calvin De Haan and other exposed players.

Team Season Grade: C- Really not the season the Islanders were hoping for as they only have one more season with John Tavares under contract before he becomes an Unrestricted free agent.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Season Story: This was the Blue Jackets second full season under head coach John Tortorella and expectations weren’t particularly high but the Jackets wanted to make some noise. They lost defenseman Fedor Tyutin and Justin Falk in the offseason while forwards Rene Bourque and Jared Boll also signed with new clubs. The big addition the Blue Jackets made was signing former first round pick Sam Gagner. The Blue Jackets then surprised everyone. They ran out the gates fast and entered 2017 with a 26-5-4 record including going 14-0-0 in the month of December. While they would cool down over the rest of the season, they were still tremendous and entered the playoffs 3rd in the East which because of the awful playoff format matched them up against Pittsburgh. They lost the series in 5 games but Columbus proved to the league that they are no laughing stock anymore.

Record: 50-24-8, 3rd Seed in Metro, Lost to Pittsburgh in 5 games

Best Month: December, 14-0-0

Worst Month: April, 1-4-0

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Cam Atkinson, 35 Goals, 62 points in 82 games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Cam Atkinson, Boone Jenner and William Karlsson each had 2 goals and 1 assist in 5 games.

Disappointing Performance: Boone Jenner, 18 goals, 33 points in 82 games. Jenner stepped up in the playoffs but his regular season numbers dropped significantly after a 30 goal season in 2015-16.

Goaltending: Sergei Bobrovsky, 41-17-5, 2.06 GAA and a .931 SV%. Bobrovsky was amazing this season and won the Vezina Trophy for best goaltender.

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Sam Gagner (18 goals and 50 points in 81 games), F- Lauri Korpikoski (0 Points in 9 games) and D- Kyle Quincey (3 points, 12 penalty minutes in 20 games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Alexander Wennberg (13 goals, 59 points in 80 games) and F- Josh Anderson (17 goals, 29 points and 89 penalty minutes in 78 games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- William Karlsson (24 years old, 25 points in 81 games). The Jackets also traded F- David Clarkson and his contract to Vegas Golden Knights with a 2017 1st round pick and a 2019 second round pick.

Team Season Grade: A This team was a pleasant surprise and it was important for the Blue Jackets franchise to finally see some success after years of misery.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Season Story: The Leafs were coming off a bad year in which they finished dead last in the NHL with only 29 wins. The rebuilding plan was still in process entering 2016-17 with the Leafs acquiring veterans Matt Martin and Roman Polak to help the young team. The Leafs parted ways with forwards P.A. Parenteau, Michael Grabner and Ben Smith entering the season to open up room for their young talent. The Maple Leafs had 7 rookies on their roster for this season and not much was expected of the young team. The Leafs started with a rough October going 2-4-3 but then picked it up in November and December going 14-8-4 over the two months. After a strong January and an average February the Leafs decided to take a chance by trading for veteran forward Brian Boyle at the deadline to add some leadership in a surprising playoff push. They finished the season going 12-6-2 and sneaking into the playoffs by 1 point. They faced the top seeded Capitals in an uphill battle, but made a series of it although they eventually lost in 6 games despite the series containing 5 overtime games. This season was an amazing experience as a Leafs fan to witness the rookies put on a show.

Record: 40-27-15, 2nd wildcard in East, Lost in 6 games against Washington

Best Month: March, 9-3-2

Worst Month: October, 2-4-3

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Auston Matthews, 40 Goals and 69 points in 82 games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Auston Matthews, 4 Goals and 5 Points in 6 games

Disappointing Performance: Ben Smith, 2 goals, 4 points in 36 games. Smith was given another opportunity in Toronto on the 4th line but struggled in face-offs, production and overall impact. The Leafs then traded for Brian Boyle to replace him.

Goaltender: Frederik Andersen, 33-16-14, 2.67 GAA and a .918 SV%. Andersen was 2-4 in the playoffs with a 2.68 GAA and a .915 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Brian Boyle (3 points, 18 penalty minutes in 21 games), D- Matt Hunwick (19 points, 18 penalty minutes in 72 games), D- Roman Polak (11 points, 65 penalty minutes in 75 games), GK- Curtis McElhinney (6-7-0, 2.85 GAA and a .914 SV%) and Colin Greening, Milan Michalek, Brooks Laich, Steve Oleksy and Andrew Campbell.

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Connor Brown (20 goals, 36 points in 82 games), F- Zach Hyman (10 goals, 28 points in 82 games) and both AHL Goalies (Bibeau and Sparks) plus Seth Griffith, Justin Holl and Sergei Kalinin.

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Brandon Leipsic (a solid AHL forward prospect that will get his opportunity in the NHL)

Team Season Grade: A This was basically the perfect season for the Maple Leafs, the rapid development of their young players with playoff experience already will go a long way.

Boston Bruins

Season Story:  The Bruins were coming off of back to back seasons where they finished 9th in the East and were hoping to finally get over the hump and back in the playoffs. Although they lost forward Loui Eriksson in free agency, they added forward David Backes for additional scoring help. The Bruins season saw them hang around a playoff spot for most of the season and after a strong February going 7-3-0 and an average March they closed out April going 3-1-1 to reach the postseason with the same amount of points as the Maple Leafs. They faced Ottawa in the first round and although they won game 1, they lost 3 games in overtime over the course of the series and were eliminated in 6 games.

Record: 44-31-7, 3rd in Atlantic, Lost in 6 games against Ottawa

Best Month: February, 7-3-0

Worst Month: January, 6-6-2

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Brad Marchand, 39 goals, 85 points in 80 games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak with 2 goals and 4 points in 6 games.

Disappointing Performance: Jimmy Hayes, 2 goals and 5 points in 58 games. Hayes had back to back season where he scored more than 10 goals and 25 points but couldn’t come close to either marker this season.

Goaltender: Tuukka Rask, 37-20-5, 2.23 GAA and a .915 SV%. In the playoffs Rask was 2-4 with a 2.24 GAA and a .920 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Dominic Moore (11 goals, 25 points in 82 games), F- Drew Stafford (4 goals, 8 points in 18 games) and D- John Michael Liles (5 points in 36 games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- David Pastrnak (34 goals, 70 points in 75 games), F- Tim Schaller (7 goals, 14 points in 59 games), F- Ryan Spooner (11 goals, 39 points in 78 games), F- Noel Acciari (5 points, 16 penalty minutes in 29 games) and D- Joe Morrow (1 point, 8 penalty minutes in 17 games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: Defenseman Colin Miller, 6 goals, 13 points in 61 games with 55 penalty minutes. The 24 year old is coming off his second season in the NHL.

Team Season Grade: B Boston expects so much of their teams so this season maybe wasn’t special compared to the Celtics or Patriots but the Bruins still made the playoffs for the first time in a couple seasons.

Montreal Canadiens

Season Story: The Canadiens are coming off a Carey Price absent 2015-16 season and were hoping to make the playoffs again. They made a lot of noise in the offseason, trading Lars Eller and P.K. Subban away, while acquiring Shea Weber  and Andrew Shaw. They also signed Russian forward Alexander Radulov from the KHL in a risky move. They also added Al Montoya to their goaltending team to back up superstar Carey Price. The Canadiens were fantastic, they started the season going 8-0-1 and although they cooled down later in the season, even having a bad month in February where they went 5-7-1, the playoffs were locked in their under performing division. They matched up with the Rangers in the first round and despite a tremendous effort from Alexander Radulov and Carey Price they lost in 6 games.

Record: 47-26-9, 1st in Atlantic, Lost in 6 games to New York

Best Month: October, 8-0-1

Worst Month: February, 5-7-1

Top Scorer (Goals and Points): Max Pacioretty, 35 goals, 67 points in 81 games

Top Scorer  (Playoffs): Alexander Radulov, 2 goals, 7 points in 6 games

Disappointing Performance: Tomas Plekanec, the Canadiens veteran forward had a underachieving season with only 10 goals and 28 points in 78 games after having 54 points a year ago. The fans really started calling out Plekanec which is really awful considering he has given Montreal 12 years of service.

Goaltender: Carey Price, 37-20-5, 2.23 GAA and a .923 SV%. In the playoffs Price was 2-4 with a 1.86 GAA and a .933 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Alexander Radulov (18 goals, 54 points in 76 games), F- Dwight King (1 point in 17 games), F- Brian Flynn (6 goals, 10 points in 51 games), D- Andrei Markov (36 points, 16 penalty minutes in 62 games) and D- Nikita Nesterov (5 points, 4 penalty minutes in 13 games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Alex Galchenyuk (17 goals, 44 points in 61 games) and other AHL players

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: Defenseman Alexei Emelin. The big hitting defenseman had 71 penalty minutes and 10 points in 76 games.

Team Season Grade: A- Yes they lost in the first round of the playoffs but this season was a successful one for Montreal and Radulov really paid off big time for the club.

New York Rangers

Season Story: The Rangers entered the season with high hopes of another playoff appearance and General Manager Jeff Gorton did his best to make sure the Rangers would succeed. They added forwards Mika Zibanejad, Michael Grabner, Jimmy Vesey and Brandon Pirri with defenseman Nick Holden and Adam Clendening. The Rangers began the season very strong finishing the year of 2016 with a 26-12-1 record. They slowed down in the second half of the season but still finished 4th in the Metro and with the 1st wildcard spot. They faced Montreal in a defensive and goaltending battle which the Rangers narrowly won in 6 games. They then faced the Ottawa Senators and were shocked when the new look Sens beat them out in 6 games.

Record: 48-28-6, 4th in Metro, Lost in Second Round against Ottawa

Best Month: February, 9-3-1

Worst Month: January, 5-6-0

Top Scorer (Points): Mats Zuccarello, 15 Goals, 59 points in 80 games

Top Scorer (Goals): Chris Kreider, 28 Goals, 53 Points in 75 games

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Mika Zibanejad, 2 Goals, 9 points in 12 games

Disappointing Performance: Kevin Klein, 3 goals and 14 points in 60 games. The 32 year old defenseman really struggled this year after two strong seasons in New York with 9 goals and 26 points in under 70 games in both seasons.

Goaltender: Henrik Lundqvist, 31-20-4, 2.74 GAA and a .910 SV%, Lundqvist was 6-6 in the playoffs with a 2.25 GAA and a .927 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Tanner Glass (2 points, 17 penalty minutes in 11 games) and D- Brendan Smith (4 points, 29 penalty minutes in 18 games)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Mika Zibanejad (14 Goals, 37 points in 56 games), F- Brandon Pirri (18 points, 25 penalty minutes in 60 games), F- Jesper Fast (6 goals, 21 points in 68 games) and D- Adam Clendening (11 points, 17 penalty minutes in 31 games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: F- Oscar Lindberg (the 25 year old forward had 8 goals and 20 points in 65 games last season)

Team Season Grade: B+, The Rangers had a good season but probably could have hoped for a better result against the Ottawa Senators.

Washington Capitals

Season Story: The Capitals are regular season juggernauts looking for their second consecutive President’s Trophy. They were consistently good all season, never really had a bad stretch and entered the playoffs with a favourable match-up against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs however gave them a series and the Capitals had to battle for a 6 game series victory. They then faced their rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins. The series was competitive and went to a Game 7. Marc-Andre Fleury made a 29 save shutout and the Penguins won in Washington 2-0. The Capitals once again couldn’t reach the Stanley Cup Finals despite an amazing regular season.

Record: 55-19-8, 1st in NHL, lost in second round to Pittsburgh

Best Month: January, 12-2-1

Worst Month: March, 9-5-1

Top Scorer (Points): Nicklas Backstrom, 23 goals, 86 points in 82 games

Top Scorer (Goals): T.J. Oshie, 33 goals, 56 points in 68 games

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Nicklas Backstrom, 6 goals, 13 points in 13 games.

Disappointing Performance: Alexander Ovechkin, yes he was still second on the team in scoring with 69 points in 82 games but Ovechkin really under performed this season. He scored 33 goals which ended his three year streak of scoring at least 50 goals in a season. This was also his lowest point total since 2012 and he didn’t register a single point in the Pittsburgh series.

Goaltender: Braden Holtby, 42-13-6, 2.07 GAA and a .925 SV% and Holtby was 7-6 in the playoffs with a 2.46 GAA and a .909 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Justin Williams (24 goals, 48 points in 80 games), F- Daniel Winnik (12 goals, 25 points in 72 games), D- Kevin Shattenkirk (14 points in 19 games) and D- Karl Alzner (13 points, 28 penalty minutes in 82 games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Evgeny Kuznetsov (19 goals, 59 points in 82 games), F- Andre Burakovsky (12 goals, 35 points in 64 games), F- Brett Connolly (15 goals, 23 points in 66 games), D- Dmitry Orlov (33 points, 51 penalty minutes in 82 games) and GK- Philipp Grubauer (13-6-2, 2.05 GAA and a .927 SV%)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: Defenseman Nate Schmidt (17 points, +22 in 60 games last season). He is only 25 years old

Team Season Grade: C The Capitals grade will not be higher than a C until they can prove themselves in the postseason, they have all the talent in the world but can never get over the hump.

Ottawa Senators

Season Story: The Senators were looking to return to the postseason with former Lightning coach Guy Boucher as the new man in charge. They acquired forwards Derick Brassard and Chris Kelly with Goaltender Mike Condon coming over from Pittsburgh. They lost defenseman Patrick Wiercioch in free agency. The Senators had a good regular season and even made some deals at the deadline to improve their team. They acquired forwards Tommy Wingels, Alex Burrows and Viktor Stalberg. The Senators opened up their playoffs with a challenging six game win against Boston. They then eliminated the Rangers in six games setting up a Conference Finals match-up against Pittsburgh. Heavy underdogs the Senators gave the Penguins a tough series forcing game 7 and forcing overtime in game 7. Chris Kunitz scores in double overtime to eliminate the Senators. This was Ottawa’s best postseason run since 2007 when they went all the way to the Cup Finals.

Record: 44-28-10, 2nd in Atlantic. Lost in Conference Finals

Best Month: November, 9-5-1

Worst Month: February, 7-6-0

Top Scorer (Points): Erik Karlsson, 17 Goals, 71 Points in 77 games.

Top Scorer (Goals): Kyle Turris, 27 Goals, 55 Points in 78 games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Erik Karlsson, 2 Goals, 18 Points in 19 games.

Disappointing Performance: Bobby Ryan, this is a weird pick because although he had 6 goals and 15 points in 19 playoff games his regular season wasn’t very good. Ryan had 13 goals and 25 points in 62 games. He makes 7.25 million dollars per season for the next 5 years. He was even exposed to the Vegas Golden Knights who elected not to pick him. So while the playoffs were nice his contract doesn’t equal his production.

Goaltender: Craig Anderson, 25-11-4, 2.28 GAA and a .926 SV%, in the playoffs he went 11-8 with a 2.34 GAA and a .922 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Chris Kelly (12 points, 23 penalty minutes in 82 games), F- Viktor Stalberg (4 points, 8 penalty minutes in 18 games), F-Tommy Wingels (4 points, 12 penalty minutes in 36 games), F- Tom Pyatt (23 points, 14 penalty minutes in 82 games), F- Chris Neil (4 points, 63 penalty minutes in 53 games), D- Jyrki Jokipakka (0 points in 3 games), GK- Mike Condon (19-14-6, 2.50 GAA and a .914 SV%) and GK- Matt O’Connor (Spent season in AHL)

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Jean-Gabriel Pageau (12 goals, 33 points in 82 games) and F- Ryan Dzingel (14 goals, 32 points in 82 games)

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: defenseman Marc Methot (12 points, 24 penalty minutes in 68 games). The 32 year old defenseman was an absolute beast in the playoffs.

Team Season Grade: A- Yes this team was criticized for their style of play but you can’t argue with the results. The Senators look to be a dangerous team under new coach Guy Boucher.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Season Story: They are trying to repeat as Cup Champions. They breezed through the season finishing 2nd in a tough Metro division that set up a match-up against the Blue Jackets. The Penguins walked through them in 5 games, the next two series against Washington and Ottawa were tough and both went to 7 games but the Penguins prevailed again. This set up a match-up against the Nashville Predators. The Penguins took a quick 2-0 series lead before Nashville tied it up 2-2. The Penguins won big in game 5 on home ice and then finished the job in game 6, winning 2-0. They become the first team of the post 2004 lockout to win back-to-back Stanley Cups. Sidney Crosby also wins back-to-back Conn Smythe Trophies for best player of the playoffs. This is the true hockey dynasty of this generation

Record: 50-21-11

Best Month: December, 12-1-2

Worst Month: January, 6-5-0

Top Scorer (Points and Goals): Sidney Crosby, 44 Goals, 89 Points in 75 games.

Top Scorer (Playoffs): Evgeni Malkin, 10 Goals, 28 points in 25 games.

Disappointing Performance: Carl Hagelin, the Swedish forward had 6 goals and 22 points in 61 games and only 2 goals in 15 playoff games. Last season in Pittsburgh Hagelin had 10 goals and 27 points in 37 games and 6 goals and 16 points in 24 playoff games.

Goaltender: Matt Murray, 32-10-4, 2.41 GAA and a .923 SV%. In the playoffs he was 7-3-0 with a 1.70 GAA and a .937 SV%

Upcoming important UFA’s: F- Matt Cullen (13 goals, 31 points in 72 games. 40 years old), F- Chris Kunitz (9 goals, 29 points in 71 games. 37 years old). F- Nick Bonino (18 goals, 37 points in 80 games), D- Trevor Daley (19 points, 37 penalty minutes in 55 games), D- Ron Hainsey (3 points, 4 penalty minutes in 18 games) and D- Mark Streit (6 points and 6 penalty minutes in 19 games).

Upcoming important RFA’s: F- Connor Sheary (23 goals, 53 points in 61 games), F- Josh Archibald (3 goals, 4 penalty minutes in 10 games), D- Justin Schultz (12 goals, 51 points in 78 games) and D- Brian Dumoulin (15 points, 14 penalty minutes in 70 games).

Player Lost in Expansion Draft: GK- Marc-Andre Fleury (18-10-7, 3.02 GAA and a .909 SV%) Fleury was the obvious choice for the Knights as they get a good starting goalie.

Team Season Grade: A+ They won the Stanley Cup.

[islesblogger]

What Will Ladd and Hickey mean to the Islanders?

Lou Lamoriello, come on down

The Islanders will be clearing their Injured Reserve list shortly. Andrew Ladd and Thomas Hickey are on their way and that means they’ll be adding some experience and a bit of scoring to their roster. These additions will be FREE, and we all like FREE.

Let’s take a look at what these two can add to a roster that has the NY Islanders first in the Metro.

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Ladd and Hickey Add Depth

Barry Trotz will [most likely] deploy Andrew Ladd and Thomas Hickey as soon as he is able. That will be on Wednesday night against the Calgary Flames. Michael Dal Colle has already been loaned to the Bridgeport Soundtigers. I anticipate Lucas Sbisa being waived in an effort to move him to Bridgeport as well.

Dal Colle will be an easy recall, and will join Tanner Fritz, Joshua Ho-Sang, and Steve Bernier as forwards with NHL experience in the AHL. He can easily slot into any wing position in an emergency that Tom Kuhnhackl or Ross Johnston can’t fill.

  Hickey will allow Trotz to have Adam Pelech as their seventh defenseman. Adam has played really well of late, and is by far their best 7th guy this late in the season in decades. Sbisa, if not picked up off waivers, will join Sebastian Aho and Seth Helgeson as AHL defensemen with NHL experience.

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Roster Flexibility

Both players definitely fit the Lou’s Burger Barn menu.

Ladd: Looking Out for Number One

I see the two best fits for Ladd either with Barzal or Filppula. He has some chemistry with Mat Barzal and could be the “finisher” that line needs. He would be replacing Kuhnhackl in that role. Kuhnhackl would likely become the 13th forward, or at least share that role with Anthony Beauvillier for a while. Beau adds some creativity to that line, but Kuhnhackl adds defensive acumen and another penalty killer to the roster.

If they use Ladd with Flippula and Komarov it makes a few things possible. As I alluded to in a previous post, they could create the BrockLeeBar line which would give Barzal the best pair of finishers he’s been with as an Islander. That leaves a line with Bailey between Beauvillier or Ladd and Eberle. Bailey has assumed most of the center responsibilities (defense and face-offs) from Barzal anyway, and the line would have Beau and Eberle to share the puck moving responsibilities. If Beau falters in that role you could swap him for Ladd. The key is having a true number one line to create offense 5v5.

Hickey: Everything is Better with Bacon

Over the past two years we’ve seen both Ryan Pulock and Scott Mayfield enjoy greatly improved numbers when paired with Thomas Hickey. Either pairing at this juncture could be an improvement over the current roster alignment.

Don’t worry. Devon Toews isn’t going anywhere. If Hickey was to be paired with Mayfield it would allow Toews to be moved up with Pulock. Seeing how Toews has reacted to his promotion from the AHL makes me feel comfortable that he would handle the TOI upgrade with little downside. Toews is a more confident puck mover than Pelech and that should allow Pulock more time and space to get off that incredible shot. He also has a solid shot that finds the net more often than not. Having those two on the ice at the same time will also make any forward line more dangerous.

If they opt for the conservative approach you will see Hickey back with Pulock. The other two pairing will remain the same. Hickey will replace Pelech on the PK. The PK has evolved some since Hickey has been out. It will remain to be seen if Hickey can make the current kill better, or if it was Pelech’s evolution that made it better. I don’t mind this in the least, but I would really like to see Pulock with Toews at 5v5 before the playoffs start. 

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The Price is Right

This is the best part. They are both eligible to be added to the 23 before the trade deadline. If Lou decides to bring in a big name it makes guys like Pelech, Aho, Dal Colle and Ho-Sang more “expendable”. The bigger issue would be roster spots. That bridge[port] could be crossed with guys like Johnston or Kuhnhackl when we come to it.

The Next Step

Lou has a few days to ponder the cost of adding to the roster. This should settle some of his concerns about additional scoring or defensive depth. He needs to focus his attention on pending UFA’s. There are a few elephants in the room, and we’ll be talking about them soon.

What Will Ladd and Hickey mean to the Islanders? was originally published on islesblogger.com

[vegasknightsoftheroundtable-blog]

Mid-Term Grades: Vegas Golden Knights Defenseman

ICYMI: Grades Are In For The Vegas Golden Knights D-Corp, See How They Did

Las Vegas–With the mandatory bye week coming to an end for the Vegas Golden Knights, we take a look at the blueliners and hand out their mid-term grades.

Defenseman

Deryk Engelland

Previous Team: Calgary Flames (4 goals, 12 assists for 16 points, a +2, block shots 134, hits 135, and ATOI of 18:20 thru 81 games)

This season as a veteran among the Golden Knights blueliners, Engelland has played in…

[marketprdaily]

Rookie defenseman Josh Mahura sparks Ducks in victory over Jets

Rookie defenseman Josh Mahura sparks Ducks in victory over Jets

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 29: Connor Hellebuyck #37 of the Winnipeg Jets defends against Rickard Rakell #67 of the Anaheim Ducks during the first period of a game at Honda Center on October 29, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 29: Carl Dahlstrom #23 , and Luca Sbisa #5, congratulate Blake Wheeler #26 of the Winnipeg Jets…

[koolwebsites]

Vegas Golden Knights look to regain momentum vs. Capitals to avoid becoming a footnote

Vegas Golden Knights look to regain momentum vs. Capitals to avoid becoming a footnote

CLOSE

SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports’ Martin Rogers travels to Las Vegas to see just how much the Golden Knights’ improbable Stanley Cup run really means to the Vegas faithful. USA TODAY Sports

Vegas defenseman Luca Sbisa, right, says the Golden Knights need to remember that the magic “is there still.”(Photo: Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA TODAY Sports)

WASHINGTON – The 1969…

[investmart007]

WASHINGTON | Vegas returns to underdog role after Stanley Cup lapse

New Post has been published on https://is.gd/QMqU8A

WASHINGTON | Vegas returns to underdog role after Stanley Cup lapse

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Vegas Golden Knights have long embraced their status as unheralded underdogs, from their very first game as an NHL expansion team in October through their stunning dismantling of Winnipeg in the Western Conference Final.

“We call ourselves the Golden Misfits for a reason,” winger Ryan Reaves said prior to the Stanley Cup Final series against Washington. “We’ve proven everyone else wrong all season.”

Vegas entered the Final as favorites over the Capitals, who broke into the league in 1974 and are still in search of their first championship. The Golden Knights won the opener, but after dropping two in a row they find themselves playing a familiar role as they prepare for Game 4 on Monday night.

“We’re still underdogs,” left wing David Perron said. “They’re a great team over there. Now the pressure is on them to keep going. We’re going to find a way to answer.”

The Capitals got caught up in a fast-paced, fire-at-will contest in Game 1, and Vegas rolled to a 6-4 victory. Washington made the adjustment in Game 2 and won 3-2, then gripped the defensive clamp even tighter Saturday night in a 3-1 win.

Now, mired in their initial losing streak of the playoffs and trailing 2-1 in games for the first time, the Golden Knights are desperate to become more effective pushing the puck toward the net.

“We get it out on our blue line and we try to make a cross-ice play and they’re picking it off,” Reaves said. “Their transition game is good. We’re getting to their blue line and we’re trying get cute again instead of doing what works. With this team, that’s getting it in and then going to work.”

The Capitals know this, and they have taken great strides to shackle a team that averaged 3.31 goals per game during the regular season, tied for fourth in the NHL.

“Offensive teams have certain tendencies, certain routes that they take through the neutral zone, plays they like to make,” Washington defenseman Matt Niskanen said. “So if you can be on top of them and turn over some pucks, stifle them, make it hard for them to gain entry with possession, that frustrates skilled players.”

The Golden Knights mustered only 22 shots on goal in Game 3, with Tomas Nosek getting the lone score after Washington goaltender Braden Holtby did a miserable job of clearing the puck from behind his net.

“They defended well. We were getting clogged up a little bit,” Vegas winger James Neal said. “They sit back. We’ve got to get pucks to the net. We didn’t have enough shots. We didn’t have enough bodies going to the net. They out-battled us. We’re going to look at that and fix it.”

That’s what Sunday’s skate was about. The Golden Knights understand the problem, and the task now is to correct the shortcoming.

“We’ve just got to get back to our game, getting pucks deep and getting in on the forecheck,” defenseman Derek Engelland said. “It’s been our key all season long, the five-man forecheck and five-guy pressure all over the ice.”

Vegas doesn’t need a high-scoring, freestyle affair to win. The Golden Knights have a pair of 1-0 shutouts during the playoffs and have won twice when scoring only two goals.

The key is to cut down on the mistakes. Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury stopped Alex Ovechkin at the end of a 2-on-1 rush early in the game, but the Capitals converted an odd-man blitz in the second period for a 2-0 lead.

“Working hard to get down low, we just couldn’t hold onto it or make a big play, and the Capitals are going the other way,” Vegas center Ryan Carpenter said.

It’s not by accident. Washington coach Barry Trotz changed things up after Game 1, and the results were profound.

“There are things that they do that have given us some difficulties, and we’ve adjusted,” Trotz said. “They’ll do the same.”

The Capitals have fortified their defense, and Vegas now must find a way to penetrate the barrier. If it can do that, then Fleury will happily do his part in to help bring the series back to Las Vegas tied a two games apiece.

“I have faith in these guys that they can do well, they can do what they’ve done for the past three rounds and all season long,” the goaltender said.

What they’ve done, more often than not, is win when few thought they could.

“We’ve been in situations like this before: adversity, have our backs against the wall a bit,” defenseman Luca Sbisa said. “The belief in our group is still here. Just got to stick together.”

By DAVID GINSBURG by Associated Press – published on STL.News by St. Louis Media, LLC(U.S)

[flauntpage]

Your Tuesday Morning Roundup

Hope you enjoyed your Memorial Day, because the Phillies didn’t. Well, they did for the majority of last night’s four-game series opener against the Dodgers, but then it went downhill late en route to a 5-4 loss.

The Phillies got up 4-0 in the second inning thanks to a three-run home run by Cesar Hernandez. But Vince Velasquez gave up two runs in the bottom of the sixth and things became interesting. He didn’t allow a hit after five innings before his rough sixth forced him out after allowing three hits and striking out six.

Fast forward to the eighth, where Luis Garcia and Adam Morgan combined to give up the final three runs of the game from RBIs by Matt Kemp, Max Muncy, and Yasmani Grandal.

The Dodger bullpen pitched five shutout innings and gave up just two hits. The Phillies had five hits in the first four innings.

Rhys Hoskins definitely didn’t enjoy last night. His slump continued, but he also took a foul ball to the lip late in the game:

Rhys Hoskins fouls one off his face on what could’ve been the last strike of the game. #Phillies #Dodgers pic.twitter.com/OpLmObq6td

— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) May 29, 2018

With the loss, the Phils are now a game back of Atlanta in the NL East race. Washington is creeping up and are now in second place in the division. The Phils look to end their short losing streak tonight as they send Jake Arrieta to the mound. Game time is set for 10:10 PM on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Enjoy these late start times this week! They suck!

And also enjoy Dylan Cozens basking in the glory of the Celtics losing Sunday night.

The Roundup:

Check out the latest editions of Crossed Up and the Crossing Broadcast!

The Eagles continue OTAs today. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and offensive coordinator Mike Groh will speak with the media at 10:30 AM.

Something to keep tabs on is at quarterback, as usual. But not for Carson Wentz or Nick Foles. What about Nate Sudfeld?

“We have one quarterback who should have been the MVP, one who was the Super Bowl MVP, and one who could potentially be an MVP,” wide receiver Mack Hollins said.

That sounded like an extreme case of hyperbole, but Hollins was sticking with that claim because of what he saw from Sudfeld in practice last season.

The receivers will spend considerable time with Sudfeld the next few months. Even though Wentz participated in passing drills at last Tuesday’s practice, he has not been cleared for full-team work and likely won’t return anytime soon. Foles was slowed last offseason by a sore elbow, which sidelined him for the entire preseason and much of training camp. The Eagles know what Foles can do, so it would be prudent for them to manage his workload. That leaves Sudfeld in position to get more work than any other third-string quarterback in the NFL.

“I’m going to manage [Foles], but not because of the elbow,” Pederson said, “I do want to see Nate. I want to see him a little bit more extensively with the offense.”

Mack Hollins is a “freak” again, or as wide receivers coach Gunter Brewer states it from his days at UNC and Marshall “Fresh Receivers Exciting All Crowds.”

What Eagles players could still be traded? The Birds made five trades from Memorial Day last year until the start of the 2017 season.

How much would it take for the Sixers to get CJ McCollum and why he would be a great fit on the team.

Joel Embiid dunking on random folks is fun.

That’s why he did it again:

Here’s video, courtesy @astrait25, of Joel Embiid bouncing a ball off a dude’s face and then windmilling on his head at a park at 9th and South in Philly. Phenomenal. pic.twitter.com/XS99pFhXat

— Rob Dauster (@RobDauster) May 28, 2018

Embiid takes his next victim at 10th and Lombard @SpikeEskin @Michael_Levin pic.twitter.com/U7fW1EXv5D

— Ryan Walter (@rjwalter5) May 28, 2018

The Stanley Cup Finals began last night, as the Vegas Golden Knights took home the 6-4 win in Game 1 over the Washington Capitals.

One of those players for Vegas is former Flyers defenseman Luca Sbisa, who can’t believe the journey himself:

“Ten or 20 games in, we knew we had a good team, especially the way we handled adversity when our goalies went down,” he said. “We were down to our fifth goalie and we kept on winning. Everyone was saying that eventually, these guys are going to come back down to earth, and we never listened to that stuff. We just kept on going and kept piling up wins. And then when the playoffs started, it was the same thing. [People] saying, ‘The playoffs are a different game and they’re going to find out.’ But we never looked back and kept looking forward.”

Vegas, which won the Pacific Division title with a mind-boggling 109 points (51-24-7) and had the league’s fifth-best record in the regular season, has gone 12-3 in the playoffs and has outscored its opponents, 42-27.

“We need four more, and we’re playing for the best trophy in all sports,” Sbisa said.

In other sports news, Golden State took care of the Houston Rockets 101-92 en route to meeting the Cleveland Cavaliers for the fourth straight season in the NBA Finals.

The Warriors are also the largest Finals favorite in 16 years.

Speaking of betting, here’s a beginner’s guide to it.

The Yale Bulldogs took home their first lacrosse national championship after beating Duke 13-11 in Foxborough. Or was it something different?

NCAA Lacrosse championship at Gillette Stadium aka a WR combine for the Patriots

— Don’t even like hockey (@FlyGoalScoredBy) May 28, 2018

The US dominated Bolivia 3-0 in a soccer friendly at Talen Energy Stadium. Imagine if they lost.

In the news, Starbucks is closing today for anti-bias training.

Three people are dead in Belgium after a person stabbed two policewomen before shooting them, killing another person, and then getting killed later.

Two South Carolina journalists died while covering Alberto.

Your Tuesday Morning Roundup published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[party-hard-or-die]

Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1

Tomas Nosek scored two goals, including what proved to be the game-winner with 10:16 remaining in the third period, to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a wild 6-4 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) battles for the puck with Washington Capitals center Chandler Stephenson (18) in the third period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Nosek, who had just 15 points and seven goals in 67 games during the regular season, scored his second and third goals of the playoffs. Reilly Smith had a goal and an assist and William Karlsson, Ryan Reaves and Colin Miller also scored goals for Vegas, which improved to 13-3 in the playoffs, including 7-1 at home. Deryk Engelland added two assists.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 24 saves to pick up his 75th career playoff victory, just two behind Mike Vernon for seventh on the all-time list.

Niklas Backstrom had a goal and an assist and Tom Wilson, John Carlson and Brett Connolly also scored goals for Washington, while T.J. Oshie added a pair of primary assists for the Capitals. Braden Holtby finished with 28 saves.

After a lengthy pregame ceremony that featured player introductions by longtime boxing and pro wrestling ring announcer Michael “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble” Buffer, Vegas opened the scoring at the 7:15 mark when Miller rifled a shot from the right point just inside the right post, ending a 166:42 scoreless string by Holtby.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith (19) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (70) in the second period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Harry How/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

But Washington rebounded to take a 2-1 lead with two goals in the span of 42 seconds. Connolly, parked in the slot with his back to the net, tied it with a between-the-legs deflection of a Michal Kempny shot from the left point that also ricocheted off the skate of Miller inside the left post. Backstrom followed with his fifth goal of the playoffs into the right side of the net off a wraparound pass from Oshie.

It marked the first time the Golden Knights trailed at home in regulation in the playoffs, but it didn’t last long, as Karlsson made it 2-2 less than three minutes later, putting in a shot from the right side of the net off Holtby’s shoulder during a goal-mouth scrum.

Smith, who garnered his 15th assist of the playoffs on Karlsson’s goal, then gave Vegas a 3-2 lead early in the second period when he put in a pass from behind the net by Engelland into the right side of the cage.

Slideshow (3 Images)

Carlson, left alone in the slot, tied the game for the third time at the 8:29 mark off a slick no-look pass from Oshie from the right circle. It was the 17th playoff goal of Carlson’s career, breaking a tie with Kevin Hatcher for most playoff goals by a defenseman in Capitals’ history.

Wilson put the Capitals back in front, 4-3, at 1:10 of the third period when he redirected a shot by Alex Ovechkin past Fleury, who lost sight of the puck after it went between his pads and then knocked it in with the back of his left skate.

But Vegas regained the lead with a pair of goals by its fourth line, the first by Reaves when Kempny failed to clear the puck by the right side of the net, and the second by Nosek, who one-timed a crossing pass from defenseman Shea Theodore into the right corner of the net.

Nosek clinched it with an empty-netter with 2.7 seconds remaining.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

—Field Level Media

The post Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1 appeared first on World The News.

from World The News https://ift.tt/2sm5WbR via Breaking News

[dani-qrt]

Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1

Tomas Nosek scored two goals, including what proved to be the game-winner with 10:16 remaining in the third period, to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a wild 6-4 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) battles for the puck with Washington Capitals center Chandler Stephenson (18) in the third period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Nosek, who had just 15 points and seven goals in 67 games during the regular season, scored his second and third goals of the playoffs. Reilly Smith had a goal and an assist and William Karlsson, Ryan Reaves and Colin Miller also scored goals for Vegas, which improved to 13-3 in the playoffs, including 7-1 at home. Deryk Engelland added two assists.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 24 saves to pick up his 75th career playoff victory, just two behind Mike Vernon for seventh on the all-time list.

Niklas Backstrom had a goal and an assist and Tom Wilson, John Carlson and Brett Connolly also scored goals for Washington, while T.J. Oshie added a pair of primary assists for the Capitals. Braden Holtby finished with 28 saves.

After a lengthy pregame ceremony that featured player introductions by longtime boxing and pro wrestling ring announcer Michael “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble” Buffer, Vegas opened the scoring at the 7:15 mark when Miller rifled a shot from the right point just inside the right post, ending a 166:42 scoreless string by Holtby.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith (19) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (70) in the second period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Harry How/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

But Washington rebounded to take a 2-1 lead with two goals in the span of 42 seconds. Connolly, parked in the slot with his back to the net, tied it with a between-the-legs deflection of a Michal Kempny shot from the left point that also ricocheted off the skate of Miller inside the left post. Backstrom followed with his fifth goal of the playoffs into the right side of the net off a wraparound pass from Oshie.

It marked the first time the Golden Knights trailed at home in regulation in the playoffs, but it didn’t last long, as Karlsson made it 2-2 less than three minutes later, putting in a shot from the right side of the net off Holtby’s shoulder during a goal-mouth scrum.

Smith, who garnered his 15th assist of the playoffs on Karlsson’s goal, then gave Vegas a 3-2 lead early in the second period when he put in a pass from behind the net by Engelland into the right side of the cage.

Slideshow (3 Images)

Carlson, left alone in the slot, tied the game for the third time at the 8:29 mark off a slick no-look pass from Oshie from the right circle. It was the 17th playoff goal of Carlson’s career, breaking a tie with Kevin Hatcher for most playoff goals by a defenseman in Capitals’ history.

Wilson put the Capitals back in front, 4-3, at 1:10 of the third period when he redirected a shot by Alex Ovechkin past Fleury, who lost sight of the puck after it went between his pads and then knocked it in with the back of his left skate.

But Vegas regained the lead with a pair of goals by its fourth line, the first by Reaves when Kempny failed to clear the puck by the right side of the net, and the second by Nosek, who one-timed a crossing pass from defenseman Shea Theodore into the right corner of the net.

Nosek clinched it with an empty-netter with 2.7 seconds remaining.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

—Field Level Media

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Mid-Term Grades: Vegas Golden Knights Defenseman

Las Vegas–With the mandatory bye week coming to an end for the Vegas Golden Knights, we take a look at the blueliners and hand out their mid-term grades.

Defenseman

Deryk Engelland

Previous Team: Calgary Flames (4 goals, 12 assists for 16 points, a +2, block shots 134, hits 135, and ATOI of 18:20 thru 81 games)

This season as a veteran among the Golden Knights blueliners, Engelland has played in…

[cleopatrarps]

Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1

Tomas Nosek scored two goals, including what proved to be the game-winner with 10:16 remaining in the third period, to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a wild 6-4 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) battles for the puck with Washington Capitals center Chandler Stephenson (18) in the third period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Nosek, who had just 15 points and seven goals in 67 games during the regular season, scored his second and third goals of the playoffs. Reilly Smith had a goal and an assist and William Karlsson, Ryan Reaves and Colin Miller also scored goals for Vegas, which improved to 13-3 in the playoffs, including 7-1 at home. Deryk Engelland added two assists.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 24 saves to pick up his 75th career playoff victory, just two behind Mike Vernon for seventh on the all-time list.

Niklas Backstrom had a goal and an assist and Tom Wilson, John Carlson and Brett Connolly also scored goals for Washington, while T.J. Oshie added a pair of primary assists for the Capitals. Braden Holtby finished with 28 saves.

After a lengthy pregame ceremony that featured player introductions by longtime boxing and pro wrestling ring announcer Michael “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble” Buffer, Vegas opened the scoring at the 7:15 mark when Miller rifled a shot from the right point just inside the right post, ending a 166:42 scoreless string by Holtby.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith (19) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (70) in the second period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Harry How/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

But Washington rebounded to take a 2-1 lead with two goals in the span of 42 seconds. Connolly, parked in the slot with his back to the net, tied it with a between-the-legs deflection of a Michal Kempny shot from the left point that also ricocheted off the skate of Miller inside the left post. Backstrom followed with his fifth goal of the playoffs into the right side of the net off a wraparound pass from Oshie.

It marked the first time the Golden Knights trailed at home in regulation in the playoffs, but it didn’t last long, as Karlsson made it 2-2 less than three minutes later, putting in a shot from the right side of the net off Holtby’s shoulder during a goal-mouth scrum.

Smith, who garnered his 15th assist of the playoffs on Karlsson’s goal, then gave Vegas a 3-2 lead early in the second period when he put in a pass from behind the net by Engelland into the right side of the cage.

Slideshow (3 Images)

Carlson, left alone in the slot, tied the game for the third time at the 8:29 mark off a slick no-look pass from Oshie from the right circle. It was the 17th playoff goal of Carlson’s career, breaking a tie with Kevin Hatcher for most playoff goals by a defenseman in Capitals’ history.

Wilson put the Capitals back in front, 4-3, at 1:10 of the third period when he redirected a shot by Alex Ovechkin past Fleury, who lost sight of the puck after it went between his pads and then knocked it in with the back of his left skate.

But Vegas regained the lead with a pair of goals by its fourth line, the first by Reaves when Kempny failed to clear the puck by the right side of the net, and the second by Nosek, who one-timed a crossing pass from defenseman Shea Theodore into the right corner of the net.

Nosek clinched it with an empty-netter with 2.7 seconds remaining.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

—Field Level Media

The post Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1 appeared first on World The News.

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Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1

Tomas Nosek scored two goals, including what proved to be the game-winner with 10:16 remaining in the third period, to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a wild 6-4 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa (47) battles for the puck with Washington Capitals center Chandler Stephenson (18) in the third period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Nosek, who had just 15 points and seven goals in 67 games during the regular season, scored his second and third goals of the playoffs. Reilly Smith had a goal and an assist and William Karlsson, Ryan Reaves and Colin Miller also scored goals for Vegas, which improved to 13-3 in the playoffs, including 7-1 at home. Deryk Engelland added two assists.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 24 saves to pick up his 75th career playoff victory, just two behind Mike Vernon for seventh on the all-time list.

Niklas Backstrom had a goal and an assist and Tom Wilson, John Carlson and Brett Connolly also scored goals for Washington, while T.J. Oshie added a pair of primary assists for the Capitals. Braden Holtby finished with 28 saves.

After a lengthy pregame ceremony that featured player introductions by longtime boxing and pro wrestling ring announcer Michael “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble” Buffer, Vegas opened the scoring at the 7:15 mark when Miller rifled a shot from the right point just inside the right post, ending a 166:42 scoreless string by Holtby.

May 28, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith (19) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (70) in the second period in game one of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Harry How/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

But Washington rebounded to take a 2-1 lead with two goals in the span of 42 seconds. Connolly, parked in the slot with his back to the net, tied it with a between-the-legs deflection of a Michal Kempny shot from the left point that also ricocheted off the skate of Miller inside the left post. Backstrom followed with his fifth goal of the playoffs into the right side of the net off a wraparound pass from Oshie.

It marked the first time the Golden Knights trailed at home in regulation in the playoffs, but it didn’t last long, as Karlsson made it 2-2 less than three minutes later, putting in a shot from the right side of the net off Holtby’s shoulder during a goal-mouth scrum.

Smith, who garnered his 15th assist of the playoffs on Karlsson’s goal, then gave Vegas a 3-2 lead early in the second period when he put in a pass from behind the net by Engelland into the right side of the cage.

Slideshow (3 Images)

Carlson, left alone in the slot, tied the game for the third time at the 8:29 mark off a slick no-look pass from Oshie from the right circle. It was the 17th playoff goal of Carlson’s career, breaking a tie with Kevin Hatcher for most playoff goals by a defenseman in Capitals’ history.

Wilson put the Capitals back in front, 4-3, at 1:10 of the third period when he redirected a shot by Alex Ovechkin past Fleury, who lost sight of the puck after it went between his pads and then knocked it in with the back of his left skate.

But Vegas regained the lead with a pair of goals by its fourth line, the first by Reaves when Kempny failed to clear the puck by the right side of the net, and the second by Nosek, who one-timed a crossing pass from defenseman Shea Theodore into the right corner of the net.

Nosek clinched it with an empty-netter with 2.7 seconds remaining.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

—Field Level Media

The post Golden Knights rally to top Caps in Stanley Cup Final Game 1 appeared first on World The News.

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What We Learned: Let Ovechkin be Ovechkin

The second you’re down 2-0, you need to start putting Ovechkin over the boards more often, not less. . (Getty)

So they might blow it now.

Just a few days after they led 2-0 in the series and were heading home, and it looked for all the world like the Capitals were going to roll Tampa, a team any observer had every right to feel was vastly superior.

In the three games since, Tampa has proven that superiority time and again. In Game 3, Tampa got by on special teams. In Game 4, they got by because Tampa’s overwhelming talent did the kind of things overwhelming talent occasionally does to steal a game.

Then on Saturday Tampa led for all but 0.5 percent of the game’s run time, and led by at least two for more than 80 percent. And when a team like Tampa gets up two goals for 50-plus minutes it’s going to be a long road back for whoever is trying to level the score.

The problem for the Caps, as it was for the Jets in much of the Western Conference Final, is that they flat-out didn’t show up in the first period. They got outscored 2-0, yes, and then gave up the third goal on the first shift of the second period, but they also got outshot 13-4. Tampa was up three before the Caps even decided they were going to play in this one, and while they put together a pretty good run down the stretch — they out-attempted Tampa 43-17 after the third goal — they also trailed by three so it didn’t really matter.

This is how score effects work; Tampa didn’t have to try too hard to score any more goals than it already had because three is plenty in most hockey games. Let the Caps empty the arsenal down the stretch, because you have an all-world goaltender and a roster of guys Nos. 1-18 who are at least pretty good defensively. The best defense is a good offense, sure, but the second-best defense is a good defense and Tampa absolutely has that. Washington came most of the way back — it was 3-0 for less than four minutes — but at no point did it feel like the game was winnable for the Caps.

The thing is, though, it should have been.

Even if you’re adjusting for score and all that stuff, Washington has certainly outplayed Tampa in this series, but is getting smoked on special teams (Tampa has six power play goals to Washington’s three) but in Game 5 in particular, Washington’s problems proved out.

For one thing, the way Barry Trotz has been managing his best player this series is a bit confusing. Let’s talk about Alex Ovechkin’s usage in Game 5, because it’s bizarre. Ovechkin played a little more than 20 minutes in the loss, after only about 17 per in Games 1 and 2, and at least 23 in Games 3 and 4. You say, “Okay, well in the first two games they led for a pretty good chunk of both and in Washington they trailed more than they led.”

That’s fine. You give your best players a breather when you don’t need them (or in this case when you need to protect a lead and you think their defensive contributions are suspect). I’d rather have Ovechkin out there but I get the rationale even if I disagree with it. And when you’re trailing, you put those guys over the boards more often because you absolutely, positively need a goal.

So why, then, in this game in which the Caps trailed by at least two goals for like 50 minutes, do you only play him 20:16 in the entire game? And more to the point, why does 4:28 of his ice time come in the last 4:48? You mean to tell me that Trotz couldn’t find a Devante Smith-Pelly shift to give the Ovechkin line instead?

And obviously Ovechkin didn’t have a great night, necessarily; he didn’t even put a shot on goal until about the 50th minute (though he did eventually score). And he only had one shot attempt through 40 minutes. But still, you have to let your best players play through that, right? But the Caps also didn’t draw a penalty in the entire game — which is the kind of thing that probably shouldn’t happen but that’s NHL officiating for ya — so there seems to have been a feeling that Ovechkin should have been doing something other than being Alex Ovechkin. He told reporters after the game he was trying to throw hits. Which is not what his job should ever be. I could’ve sworn that’s the whole reason Tom Wilson is on that line.

Some of that, you can say, is down to how well the Tampa fourth line has done in bottling Ovechkin up. He had the garbage-time goal in Game 5 but still has been outscored 3-2 when Ryan Callahan is on the ice. Against everyone else, it’s 2-1 for Ovechkin.

But at the same time, Ovechkin attempted a combined 31 shots in Games 3 and 4 and didn’t score on it. Doesn’t seem like there are too many 31-attempt stretches in which Ovechkin would not score at least a single goal. So again, why is Trotz not putting this guy — who rightly or wrongly is going to bear all the slings and arrows if (when?) the Caps lose this series — in a position to succeed when he gets the chance?

Even in Game 4, when the Caps were trying to come back and had that fearsome 6-on-5 working in the final minutes, the way the players were positioned on the ice was baffling. Ovechkin at the center of the point, TJ Oshie in the “Ovechkin spot,” John Carlson below Oshie near the dot. That oddity wasn’t just a random thing, either, because it was the same arrangement on the lengthy 6-on-5 on Saturday. I don’t know how you brain-genius your way into moving Ovechkin away from the part of the ice that colloquially bears his name, in an effort to get a defenseman closer to the net, but here we are. Carlson fanned on a cross-ice attempt in Game 4, took too long to corral a shot that Andrei Vasilevskiy easily stopped in Game 5. Does Oshie or Ovechkin make the same mistakes? Hmm.

Ovechkin of course needs to be better than “one shot attempt in the first two periods.” But he also only played 11:16 in those first 40 minutes, and it’s like, what is Trotz saving him for? Again, no power plays, but you gotta let your horses run, man. What’s the concern, that you’d go down 4-0 instead of 3-0? Who cares.

This absolutely goes back to hockey’s predisposition toward believing not-allowing goals is more valuable than scoring them. The second you’re down 2-0, you need to start putting Ovechkin over the boards more often, not less. Unless there’s something the Caps aren’t telling us — and it appears as though Ovechkin didn’t really miss a shift the entire game, they were just more spaced out than usual — there’s no excuse for this.

And no, it’s not why the Capitals lost, but it does highlight why their comeback attempt wasn’t a bit more effective. When Chandler Stephenson plays as much in the first two periods than the guy who won the Rocket Richard this year, that’s a deployment mistake, full stop.

What We Learned: Playoff edition

Tampa Bay Lightning: You can say what you want about Ryan Callahan and Chris Kunitz and what they get paid, especially at their respective ages, but if those are your 11th- and 12th-best forwards you’re probably in pretty good shape. Obviously you don’t expect them to outscore Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov head-to-head over any appreciably long period of time, but this is five games and they’ve mostly played them to a stalemate, which is all you can ever ask of guys like this. Obviously they’ve gotten help from the Stralman pairing behind them for most of the series but still, Kunitz and Callahan are both at 50 percent in goals (2-2 and 4-4, respectively) in on-ice goals for this series despite playing more against Ovechkin than any other opponents in this postseason. Pretty incredible.

Vegas Golden Knights: I, of course, thought Vegas was an elite team even before the expansion draft. Anyone who tries to produce evidence to the contrary is Doing Fake News. But as if we needed further proof that this is a universe beyond understanding, “Ryan Reaves from Luca Sbisa” is the goal that puts a first-year expansion team through to a Cup Final. Yup, definitely makes a ton of sense and for sure validates everything that happened around this team all year long. This is absolutely in no way a product of Marc-Andre Fleury playing the absolute best hockey of his life for five months straight. Nah. This team just Tries Harder than everyone else. More on this subject tomorrow.

Washington Capitals: I mean, if you were scripting a way for the Caps to blow the biggest series of their modern era, how else would you do it than this? They went up 2-0 with two wins on the road against the best team in the Eastern Conference this year. They looked pretty damn good doing it. Even in Game 3, they lost but they looked like the better team. And now they’ve lost three straight and are returning to home ice where, hell, I dunno, they’re probably gonna lose, right? Even getting to Game 7 would feel like a huge accomplishment at this point. Wouldn’t even matter what happened there. Lose 15-0. Whatever, you clawed back that one win when everyone gave up on you. And if you win? Well, losing to Vegas in the Cup Final would be an extremely funny way to go out.

Winnipeg Jets: You figured the Jets would come out and empty the tank, right? But nope, just eight shots on goal in the third period of a home elimination game they trailed by one. And that isn’t gonna get it done. And sure, seven scoring chances, but only three were high-danger and Vegas had twice as many as that. Marc-Andre Fleury was the difference once again but also you gotta give yourself the best possible chance to succeed and, well, they didn’t. Hockey’s dumb, what can I tell ya.

Play of the Weekend

A very normal regular goal from two guys you all expected to be in on the big W.

Gold Star Award

Pretty crazy that Marian Hossa is not-officially retired for the second year in a row. Totally impossible to see this turn of events coming.

Minus of the Weekend

The Alex Ovechkin “chicken parm” at whatever restaurant that is? It’s not a chicken parm. They don’t put a pound and a half of mushrooms on a chicken parm, or have the chicken on the side. I will go to my grave attacking this vile pasta entree!!!

Perfect HFBoards Trade Proposal of the Week

User “HailMcJesus” might be an Oilers fan.

To Ottawa:

Oscar Klefbom, Jesse Puljujarvi, 2018 1st, 2nd, 3rd (All from Edmonton)

To Toronto:

Jean-Gabriel Pageau

To Edmonton:

Erik Karlsson (Verbal Agreement to Re-Sign) , Kasperi Kapanen

Signoff                  

Yes I should be go…… good lord what is happening in there?

Ryan Lambert is a Puck Daddy columnist. His email is here and his Twitter is here.

(All stats via Corsica unless otherwise noted.)

More NHL coverage on Yahoo Sports:

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LAS VEGAS | Knights outworked by Capitals in Game 2, take rare home loss

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LAS VEGAS | Knights outworked by Capitals in Game 2, take rare home loss

LAS VEGAS — Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant for months talked about his team’s hard work, ability to battle and their devotion to playing a full “200 feet of hockey.”

In pockets of Game 2 in the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night, the Golden Knights were surprisingly outworked, outbattled and outhustled in losing 3-2 to the Washington Capitals. Game 3 is Saturday night in Washington and Vegas is going to need to up the energy level even further in a frantic series with scoring chances galore.

Vegas outshot the Capitals 39-26, but the hustle stats in Game 2 went to Washington, which handed the expansion club just its second home loss of the postseason. Washington had 18 blocked shots to eight for Vegas, helping goaltender Braden Holtby turn things around. He allowed five goals in the opener but was sublime in Game 2 as he made 37 saves — none bigger than stopping Alex Tuch with the paddle of his stick in a sprawling move with just 1:59 left.

Washington also showed its mettle on the penalty kill, limiting the Golden Knights to a single goal in four attempts — including a 5-on-3 on the third period.

“You’ve got to try and capitalize on those,” Vegas defenseman Luca Sbisa said. “It’s just one of those games, even at the end, with Tuchy having that chance. Most of times it goes in. It’s just one of those games.”

And while Washington outhit the Golden Knights, 46-39, it was some of Vegas’ bigger hits that ignited the Capitals in the second period.

Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb hammered Washington’s first-line forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, sending him to the dressing room with a little more than five minutes left in the first period. He didn’t return.

Washington coach Barry Trotz didn’t provide an update on his star afterward, but said it was the key moment in the game for his team.

“It galvanized us as a group, I think it might be a turning point for us,” Trotz said.

With Kuznetsov out, Trotz added Nicklas Backstrom to his top line with Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson. And 5:38 into the second period, with the game tied at 1-all and the Capitals on a power play, Ovechkin scored his first career Stanley Cup Final goal to give the Capitals the lead.

“I think they got energy from that, I think they were pissed off, that’s how sports go,” Vegas forward Erik Haula said. “You see one of your best players go down and you’re pissed off, that’s part of it. It’s no excuse for us. Bottom line is we were right in that game I think, it was right there for us to grab, we just came short.”

Vegas unraveled and gave up more uncharacteristic chances in front of Marc-Andre Fleury, who has yet to lose consecutive games this postseason. The Golden Knights also had 12 turnovers compared to Washington’s four.

“We shot ourselves in the foot a few times with some turnovers,” Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt said. “At the end of the day you really have got to see where your game is at. If you look at it as a whole, we played really well for parts of the first period and we got caught up in the transition game in the second period — and that’s not the game we want to play.”

Instead, Washington fed off the momentum and dictated the tempo, and a little less than four minutes after Ovechkin scored, Brooks Orpik broke a 220-game goal drought with the eventual game winner. It was his first goal since Feb. 26, 2016.

“I haven’t yelled that loud for someone to score a goal since Ovi scored one of his milestones,” Washington forward T.J. Oshie said.

Though the Golden Knights outshot Washington 15-6 in the third period, the Capitals skated faster, competed better, worked harder and played smarter to steal home-ice advantage with their first-ever Final win. The Capitals return to Capital One Arena, where they have just a 4-5 record in the postseason. Vegas is 6-2 on the road in the playoffs.

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By Associated Press – published on STL.News by St. Louis Media, LLC (A.S)

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