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8 thoughts about Panthers at Rangers, 10/23/18
1. "Penalty Kill" kills the momentum The Panthers scored their go-ahead 1-0 goal on the power play, which wasn't the biggest surprise - Florida has a power-play goal in 9 out of their last 10 games against the Rangers. The Blueshirts PK ranks (72.0%) 24th in the league, between the Montreal Canadiens and Washington Capitals.
2. Shortie and PP Mika Zibanejad became the first Rangers forward to score both shorthanded and power play goals in one period since Brandon Dubinsky (that does sound old, right?) First, Rangers were able to steal the puck in the middle of the ice and although Zibanejad's original shot attempt was blocked, Swede followed on the play and scored an impressive goal with a wraparound to beat Panthers' goalie Michael Hutchinson. Later in the period, Neal Pionk made a set of great moves on the blueline and set up Zibanejad for a shot.
3. Snipe City .... which leads us to thought number three. At some point, the goaltenders will realize that Zibanejad tends to shoot the puck, from left side to the top left. Apparently, Hutchinson didn't get the memo yet. All in all, this play is working for the Rangers. Pass from the blueline to Zibanejad, great screen in front by Kreider, he shoots - he scores. And by the way, when his shot is on point, there aren't a lot of guys with a better shot than Mika Zibanejad. Now he just has to keep using that shot.
4. Bad Boy Smitty Even after the clarification from MSG's John Giannone, I thought that the referees made a wrong call on Brendan Smith. Five minute major AND 10-minute misconduct for what seemed a fairly regular fight was too much, in my opinion. Smith thought that the original punch was "sucker punch" and he didn't have enough time to react for it. The referees argued that they told Smith to stop but Rangers D continued the altercation. During his first spring in New York, Smith was excellent when it came to showing physical strength on the ice. First 8 games this year have shown, that he's still capable to do this kind of stuff on the high level.
5. Alex Georgiev After playing a few games down in Hartford, Georgiev had a solid, probably one of his best, a game in the net. Russian goalie looked calm, he made good saves early in the first and kept the Rangers in the game after the Panthers grabbed a 1-0 lead. Georgiev's highlight was the double save on Mike Hoffman in the second period. After having a rough game against the Hurricanes, where he gave up 7 goals, it was crucial for Georgiev to have a good start tonight.
6. Norwegian Hobbit Mats Zuccarello should shoot more, just take a look at the 4-1 goal. Norwegian's start to the season has been disappointing to say at least, but Tuesday's game was classic-Zuccarello. After being promoted to the first line, Zuccarello responded with a strong, 2-goal performance. He was more noticeable in 5-on-5 play and had a good chemistry with Zibanejad all throughout the game. If the Rangers want to win more games, they need Zuccarello on the scoreboard.
7. Young Star Neal Pionk has been playing great hockey for the past few games. The young defenseman is skating well, making good plays and being comfortable with the puck. Pionk's skating ability also makes the power play more effective.
8. Three stars of the game. 1. Mika Zibanejad 2. Mats Zuccarello 3. Alex Georgiev *honorable mention, Neal Pionk
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8 thoughts about Flames at Rangers, 10/21/18
1. Skjei-incident Let's start with this one. I have no problem with Skjei defending Zuccarello after the hit from Flames D Rasmus Andersson - but he has to realize that the hit was a result of his own buddy pass. Somebody would argue that you shouldn't have to defend yourself after a clean hit (which it absolutely was), but late in the game, I thought Skjei just a made a hurried decision to defend his teammate. I was little surprised that the referees didn't blow the whistle but the end result, Flames 4-1 goal, was just a cherry on the top of the cake.
2. Def. zone v. Off. zone Continuing with Skjei's performance. Although he has been fairly impressive at the offensive zone this season (OT-goal against the Sharks, good moves against the Caps), he has been struggling quite a bit at the defensive end of the ice... which is not ideal for a defenseman. Paring Skjei with a more defensive minded defenseman could help the case but there aren't too many options in the current Rangers lineup. Freddy Claesson fits the bill but he's currently unavailable with a lower-body injury. If Skjei's struggles continue, he might find himself at the press box sooner rather than later.
3. Faceoffs The one aspect Rangers are really struggling at (again!) is the faceoffs. Kevin Hayes, Brett Howden and Mika Zibanejad all have FO-percentage of under 53%. Hayes, who takes 14 faceoffs on average, has an FO-percentage of 47.5%, which is not good enough for a second line center. The Rangers have given up too many goals this year after losing the faceoff in their own zone. Johnny Gaudreau's 1-0 goal was a great example of this.
4. Shots, shots, shots Rangers are getting a lot of shots - not a lot of goals. The Blueshirts have scored a total of 18 goals in the first 8 games of the season, which ranks them 27th in the league. Their goal differential, which currently stands at -10 ranks 29th in the league, only the Kings and Red Wings have a worse goal differential. The Rangers are getting enough chances, they aren't just using them.
5. Brendan Smith Brendan Smith has probably been the Rangers best defenseman so far, but he had a rough night on Sunday. In the Flames' first goal, Smith had two chances to clear the puck out of the zone. The second time, he had more than enough time to shoot the puck while standing less than four meters from the blueline. Instead of doing that, Flames were able to steal the puck and score a go-ahead goal.
6. 4th-line Fourth-line of Cody McLeod, Vlad Namestnikov and Vinny Lettieri had a positive game against the Flames... well, as positive as they could be in 3-1 loss. McLeod had a great chance early in the first, while Letteri got the rebound. They provided some energy in the first part of the game, then disappeared from the picture in the second half. It's nice to get some contribution from the fourth line but you know what would be even nicer? Getting some goals from the fourth line.
7. Wanted: Goalscorers Mats Zuccarello has 0 goals, Filip Chytil has 0 goals, Ryan Spooner has 0 goals, Vlad Namestnikov has 0 goals. The Rangers are struggling to score goals, mostly because their goalscorers are having a hard time to find the back of the net. These guys have to get going at some point, right?
8. Three stars of the game. 1. David Rittich 2. Johnny Gaudreau 3. Mika Zibanejad *honorable mention, everybody who stayed until the final buzzer.
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10 thoughts about Liverpool at Huddersfield, 10/20/18
1. Tough Break It was quite an international break for the Reds. Salah, Van Dijk, Firmino and Mane all had minor injuries but only Mane missed the Saturday's clash at Huddersfield. There was a talk before the game that Fabinho could have made his 1st start with the Reds but James Milner was good to go, after suffering a minor calf-injury in the match against Manchester City two weeks ago. Sherdan Shaqiri made his opening XI debut for the season on Saturday.
2. Keeping up with Man City After nine rounds of matches, the Reds are sitting on the second place tied in points (23) with Manchester City. Both teams are undefeated, as is Chelsea, in the Premier League play with a little quarter of matches played. City's goal differential stands at +23, while the Reds are +13. Compared to the last season, Liverpool is doing a much better job. At the same time last year, their goal differential was +2.
3. November 28th, 1959 Liverpool has been fairly successful against Huddersfield over the years. In fact, their last loss came almost 60 years ago, in 1-0 loss at Huddersfield. Since that, the Reds have won 10 meetings with two matches ending at a tie. All in all, both teams now have 31 wins against each other.
4. Nr. #50 Mo Salah's 1-0 goal was his 50th in English football (48 with Liverpool, 2 with Chelsea). After scoring record-breaking 32 goals last year, the Egyptian King now has 4 this year. While there's still something missing from Salah's game, he's looking better and better every week. With Firmino and Mane on the bench, it doesn't look like Salah will be getting rest anytime soon, which is probably okay for the man himself.
5. Lallana's return to the lineup It had been a while since Adam Lallana started a game for the Reds. The midfielder played a total of 235 minutes in an injury-filled season a year ago. Today, as a part of starting XI, Lallana made a strong statement for his position at the team. He was comfortable with the ball, made some good plays and more importantly, looked like a healthy Adam Lallana. Having some depth in the midfield can't hurt, especially with Milner playing so much early in the season.
6. Don't worry, be happy Going back to Mo Salah for a second, there seems to be a lot of talk about him being not quite there yet when it comes to conditioning. He seems to be struggling a bit with the last passes and finishing but other than that, I think he has had a quite positive start to the season. Will he score another 28 goals this season? I doubt that but I don't see a reason why he wouldn't break 25-goal mark. Last year, Salah had 5 goals in the first 9 games, so there's no need to worry just yet.
7. You get a clean sheet, everybody gets a clean sheet There's no other way to say this, Alisson Becker has been magnificent in the goal in his 9 starts with the Reds, and the stats prove that too. Alisson has given up a goal every 405 minutes (a total of 4 goals this season) and has kept a clean sheet in 6 out of 9 games. He had a rough match at Leicester but the team was able to secure to win and three points. Without Alisson, the Reds would have 3-5 fewer points in the standings.
8. Defense looks good The biggest difference compared to last season? Defense. The Reds have given up only 3 goals in the first 9 games. A year ago, they had surrended 16 goals in the first 9 games. The defense was upgraded already at the end of last year with the addition of Van Dijk. Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, and Matip all have had a great start to the season. Some people will argue that the team plays more boring football this year, and they are completely right. Good defense is the key to winning and Klopp has found a good receipt for that. Don't change what's working.
9. 7-2-0 With 23 points in the first 9 games, the Reds are off to their best start since the 2008-2009 season. That season, the team finished second just four points behind the league winners, Manchester United. Next Saturday's match against Cardiff gives the Reds another chance to extend their point-streak to ten games.
10. Three stars of the game. 1. Mo Salah 2. Adam Lallana 3. Alisson *honorable mention, Fabinho
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10 thoughts about Sharks at Rangers, 10/11/18
1. King Henrik
Henrik Lundqvist was, once again, pretty good. Now he also has his first win of the season. Hank made key saves throughout the game and kept the Rangers in the battle for the points. He still doesn't get enough support from the defense, but we have to believe he's used to that. Win Nr. 432 for Lundqvist, 5 more wins to tie Jacques Plante for the 7th on the all-time list.
2. After the video review... There has to be some sort time limit when it comes to the offside reviews. Checking Howden's (sick) goal took way too long. If you can't come to a conclusion after 5 minutes, let it be and stick with the original call. I'm not a big fan of the whole offside-review thing, but it does need some tweaking as it is.
3. How You Doin'? Brett Howden's goal though. Manitoba-native, 20-year-old Howden has sparked the Rangers offense in the first four games - and he could easily have more. Howden was the one who passed on the 3-on-0 play at Buffalo the other night. For quite a small guy, Howden uses his body well to create space around him and is quite effective around the net. Both of his goals have come just outside the crease. Look out for this kid, he'll be a good one.
4. Chris Kreider Chris Kreider had another rough night. There's no need for that slapshot before the second Sharks goal. a) if you do choose shoot, make sure to hit the net. b) make sure that your teammates are not caught up by the shot. Kreider didn't hit the net and his teammates got caught... which lead to the 3-on-1 attack for the Sharks, with Donskoi finishing the pass from Suomela. #20 has to be better.
5. Ryan Spooner and Vlad Namestnikov. These two guys have had more quality scoring chances in the first four games, more than any other forwards - yet the duo is still without a goal. Namestnikov's role has switched around from 4th line to 3rd line but Spooner has had a fairly good spot to get something done in all of the games so far. David Quinn wants more of them. Quinn told the media after the preseason that they aren't "asking anything more than these guys haven't already done in the league." When they are on, Namestnikov and Spooner are good NHL-players. Now Quinn wants them to be what they can be.
6. 2-on-1's. The Rangers keep having problems with odd-man rushes. Against San Jose, they were better in the defensive zone but the odd-man rushes just kept coming and coming. Some of this can be blamed on the forwards (watching at you, Kreider), but defensemen also have to be more careful with their drop-passes along both blue lines. Donskoi scored from 2-on-1 but Sharks also had multiple quality chances throughout the night from odd-man rushes.
7. Comeback Kids. I mean, that was a great way to get the 1st win of the season. The Rangers had chances, they kept working and finally got rewarded with Brendan Smith's tying goal. Brady Skjei was able to win it for New York with a beautiful wrist shot in the OT. San Jose beat the Flyers 8-2 the other night, now they got the short end of the stick against the Rangers. NHL is a weird league for sure.
8. Nr. 1 for Coach Quinn. You gotta love the emotion from the coach Quinn after Skjei's OT-goal. It definitely wasn't the start he was hoping for, but at least now he has his 1st win as the head coach of the Rangers. He wasn't afraid to make big changes to the lineup, early in the season. Kevin Shattenkirk, who was a healthy scratch tonight, will return to the lineup on Saturday afternoon vs. the Oilers.
9. 1-3-0 Rangers improved their record to 1-3-0. Guess what was their record after 5 games in 2013-2014, the year they went to the Cup Final? 1-5. I'm not saying that you should get your hopes up but... it's still early. Let the boys play.
10. Three stars of the game. 1. Brady Skjei 2. Brett Howden 3. Henrik Lundqvist *honorable mention, Brendan Smith
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10 thoughts about the Flyers at Sharks, 10/9/2018
San Jose Sharks picked up their first regulation win with a record-breaking 8-2 effort against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night. After 4-0 shutout against the Islanders, Sharks received an offensive burst from six different players. Evander Kane and Joe Pavelski both had two goals. Here are the 10 thoughts about the Sharks at Flyers.
1. Aaron Dell
- The final score might overshadow it but Aaron Dell had a really solid night in the goal. He made some key saves early in the first and was able to keep the Flyers off the board early in the second as well. If the Sharks wanna have success in tight Pacific, they better have two goaltenders.who can put on a show a night after night. So far, so good.
2. Two PPGs, 0-for-10 before tonight... but it still feels a bit awkward.
- Burns, Karlsson, Hertl, Pavelski, and Couture. I mean, that is a preeeetty solid first power play unit. Somehow the Sharks were 0-for-10 on the PP before tonight. They got one from Kane and one from Hertl but at times, the PP still looks awkward. Is there simply too much talent on the ice at the same time? Erik Karlsson said that the power play is a work in progress. Kevin Labanc said that they need to look for the dirty PP goals, instead of the pretty ones.
3. No Thornton, no worries?
Jumbo is out for a while (I know, not the most accurate time frame) but Doug Wilson insisted it being "nothing out of ordinary" and "more likely short-time, than long-term. Let's just believe what Doug says, right? Tonight, the Sharks survived without Jumbo. Evander Kane had two (for a season total of 5) and Joe Pavelski had two as well. Kevin Labanc had four assists. Two assists for Karlsson. The offense was there tonight. Now the question is, can they do this on the most nights? Not 8 goals but something along these lines.
4. Suomela should have had his 1st NHL-goal - had a very active 1st period.
- Antti Suomela, a 24-year-old Finnish rookie forward, scored his first NHL-goal - which was immediately waved off. After the game, Suomela said that the ref told him that the original call would stand. Later in the period, the same ref (Gord Dwyer) told the another Finnish forward, Joonas Donskoi, that he blew the whistle a little too quickly and that it should had been a good goal. Suomela was very active and visible in the first period, with only 2:48 of ice time. He had 5 shots and was visible in both ends of the ice. He finished the night with 7 shots and 11:34 of ice time. Suomela also said that he is getting much more comfortable playing with some of the players he grew up watching.
5. Sharks had 48 shots, most ever in the road game.
- San Jose had 25(!) shots already in the first period. They kept their foot on the gas and broke the record for the most shots in the road game. The prior record was set back in 1996, at Pittsburgh. Kane said that they kept putting the puck to the net early on and it paid off. He also admitted that they got a few lucky bounces on the way. I guess that happens when you have 48 shots in the game…
6. EK-watch: Trust the Process.
- Erik Karlsson is looking better and better every game. We have to remember that the Sharks system is completely different compared to the Sens system (yes, I'm saying that the Sens do have a defensive system) and it'll take some time to adjust. That saying, Karlsson played his best game so far in Philly. He had a great one-timer on the power play early in the first but Brian Elliott was able to stop that one. Karlsson picked up a few assists later in the game, for a total of 0+3 in the season.
Trust the process... not my words.
7. Kevin Labanc had a record-breaking night too...
Not a bad start to the contract year, 5 points in 4 games. Labanc had four assists against the Flyers, most for the Sharks-skater since Pavelski had 4 in 2011. After the game, Labanc said that the team came into Philly “with a chip on their shoulder” and that showed on the ice. He also said that “the team is now looking like a team that everybody was talking about during the preseason”. Kevin, you read preseason power rankings?
8. No morning skate, better legs?
- It wasn't a quite normal back-to-back since the Islanders-game was played in the afternoon, but head coach Pete DeBoer decided to give his players some time off and canceled the morning skate in Philly. "If it wasn't 20-minute drive from the hotel to the rink, we might have done it but I'm glad we didn't. We had good legs and good energy right from the beginning.”
9. Oh, Gritty dropped from the ceiling to “Wrecking Ball” tunes.
Oh yes, Gritty was there. In fact, Gritty dropped from the ceiling, while "Wrecking Ball" (Miley Cyrus, not Bruce Springsteen) was blasting from the loudspeakers. If the Flyers had a fairly disappointing opening night, so did the Flyers DJ. The Athletic -reporter Kevin Kurz called the pregame warm-up mix “probably the worst mix of all time”. Also, there was no need for a goal horn when Wayne Simmonds scored to make it 7-2, with a minute to go.
10. Three stars of the game:
1. Evander Kane 2+0
2. Kevin Labanc 0+4
3. Joe Pavelski 2+0
* honorable mention, Aaron Dell.
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Texas-native Coleman gets his 1st NHL-goal against the hometown team, Devils fall to Stars in overtime
Devils-rookie Blake Coleman thought he scored his 1st NHL-goal against the Edmonton Oilers on January 7th - in fact he thought he did that twice. Both Coleman’s goals in that game were waved off after the video reviews. Ever since that game, 25-year-old Coleman has kept his focus on the game and tonight was the big night for him.
“Yeah, it’s a big weight off my shoulders,” said Coleman who told he would send the puck for his grandmother, who made him fall in love with the hockey in the first place.
Growing up in Plano, Dallas, Coleman is close to a lot of players in the current Stars locker room. Scoring the 1st NHL-goal against his own hometown team meant a lot for Coleman.
- I’m pretty familiar with a lot of guys in that locker room, so guys like Jamie Benn coming up and saying congrats is special.”
The Devils had a 1-0 lead for the most of the game but once again weren’t able to find a way to win a tight one goal game. Devils head coach John Hynes wasn’t overally pleased with his team’s performances but he found some positives.
- We didn’t work hard enough tonight. We have to be able to create more offensive pressure. We got the first goal but weren’t hungry enough to get the second or third one.
When asked about the positives in the game, Hynes quickly mentioned goalie Keith Kinkaid’s performance.
- I thought Keith played well tonight, he did his job. Like I said earlier we didn’t support him in the way we should.
The Devils have lost a bunch of one goal games this season and tonight’s game was just another add to that long list. Head coach had a clear idea where the team went wrong tonight.
- Let me tell you one thing, we are learning how to win these games. It’s a young group but we’re learning. Tonight we took two unnecessary penalties that cost us the game and that’s it.
Devils have seven more games left to play this season and they’ll be back in action on Tuesday night when they host the New York Islanders at the Prudential Center. Hynes and the whole coaching staff have a clear thought about what they want to get done during the last two weeks of the regular season.
- Obviously we want to win some games and find those ways to win. But most importantly, we need to analyse what we have here and what are our biggest needs for the future. That’s the most important thing to for us to figure out.
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