NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 19, 2022
The Panthers and Hurricanes continue their chase for the Presidents’ Trophy, Brad Marchand’s six-game suspension is upheld and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.
GAME RECAPS
NHL.COM: The Florida Panthers kept pace with the Colorado Avalanche in the Presidents Trophy chase with a 6-2 win over the Minnesota Wild. Forward Mason Marchment tallied his first career NHL hat trick while Jonathan Huberdeau, Anthony Duclair, Anton Lundell and Aaron Ekblad each collected two points. The Panthers (74 points) are one point behind the Avalanche in the overall standings. Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello each had a goal and an assist for the Wild (63 points), who remain one point ahead of the St. Louis Blues for second place in the Central Division.
Florida Panthers winger Mason Marchment (NHL Images).
Carolina Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov scored twice and collected an assist as his club held off the Nashville Predators 5-3. With the win, the Hurricanes (70 points) moved ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning for third in the overall standings with a game in hand. The Predators, meanwhile, have lost four straight games and hold the first wild-card berth in the Western Conference with 60 points, three ahead of the Los Angeles Kings.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hurricanes center Vincent Trocheck left the game in the first period with an upper-body injury. No word yet as to the severity of his injury.
Speaking of the Kings, they overcame 2-0 and 3-2 deficits to nip the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in overtime. Adrian Kempe scored twice, including the game-winner, as the Kings (57 points) hold a one-point lead over the Dallas Stars for the final Western Conference wild-card spot. Golden Knights winger Max Pacioretty tallied twice while teammate Jack Eichel collected an assist for his first point of the season. Vegas sits in second place in the Pacific Division with 60 points, two behind the Calgary Flames.
The Stars, meanwhile, beat the Chicago Blackhawks 1-0 on a shootout goal by Jacob Peterson. Wild goaltender Jake Oettinger turned in a 34-save shutout.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Stars defenseman John Klingberg and winger Joe Pavelski have become fixtures in the trade rumor mill of late. However, The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro recently suggested pumping the breaks on that speculation. “Dallas is in playoff race with GM on hot seat who needs to make the playoffs with an owner desperate for playoff revenue. They aren’t a seller.”
HEADLINES
NHL.COM: Boston Bruins winger Brad Marchand’s six-game suspension has been upheld on appeal by league commissioner Gary Bettman. He received the suspension for roughing and high-sticking Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry on Feb. 8.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: What apparently set Marchand off was Jarry chirping him by yelling, “How about that f**kin’ save!” Regardless, his long suspension history evidently factored into this latest one as well as Bettman’s decision.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Oilers winger Jesse Puljujarvi has been sidelined for four weeks with an upper-body injury.
MONTREAL GAZETTE: The Canadiens made two more front-office additions, hiring former NHL star Vincent Lecavalier as a special advisor to hockey operations and Nick Bobrov as co-director of amateur scouting. Bobrov spent six seasons as director of European scouting with the New York Rangers.
TSN: Forward Adam Brooks is on the move again, claimed off waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs by the Winnipeg Jets. Earlier this week, the Leafs had claimed Brooks from the Vegas Golden Knights, who had claimed him in November from the Montreal Canadiens, who had claimed him from the Leafs in October.
NHL.COM: The 2022 IIHF World Junior Under-20 Championships will be held this summer in Alberta after being postponed in December due to COVID-19. The rosters will remain the same regardless of whether players turn 20 before the new tournament.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That’s great news for those youngsters, a number of whom are or will become NHL prospects.
Help – I would like someone smarter than me to explain why the Leafs would claim someone on waivers who they had no intention of keeping. On the surface this made no sense.
You will have to ask the boy wonder Dubious. LOL
@whalecare as it was reported several times they did it for cap releaf. That’s why they send Timothy liligren down for a game. Brooks was injured and every news release stated that they were going to be putting him right back on waivers.
thanks, whattheheck, I hadn’t seen that reported (southern US, not a ton of hockey news here).
The Cap angle makes complete sense, thanks.
It’s called acquiring depth, something people talk about here but really acknowledge it when it happens. Its not a big move but a smart and shrewd move by a proactive GM.
Heh. As I said the other day, this poor guy Adam Brooks had better like living out of a suitcase. The fact he keeps being claimed (and re-claimed) must mean the scouts see some worthy talent in him, as countless others clear waivers almost daily.
Why the Leafs figured they’d be able to sneak him through is anybody’s guess.
Adam “Claimed” Brooks
George, since the Leafs where so low on the claim wire when they plucked him off waivers, they thought as tight as most teams are to the cap and plus him being still available to the Leafs to pick up, they thought they could sneak him through but the Jets thought better and Brooks can now play for his home town team.
Looks like it worked out for him after all maybe.
For his sake (and that of his wife if he has one) I hope Winnipeg keeps him up – otherwise, he could be moved again.
What got me is the fact it was Winnipeg who claimed him! They were one of 25 teams that could have claimed him – sitting about 14th in the pecking order – when Vegas put him on waivers, but he went through all 25 before getting to Toronto who sat approximately 6th overall at the time.
That smacks of vindictiveness since it all occurred within hours.
He was not low on the waiver. Toronto was actually 2nd in the waiver since they were the first team to send put him on waivers this year. Only Montreal could have taken him sooner. Next time it would be Toronto then Vegas then Montreal. They did it for cap release only. They didn’t expect him to pass through waivers again although I’m sure they hoped. His numbers aren’t that bad for a 4th liner and who knows what he could do given some power play time and extra minutes. Teams keep taking him because there is an nhl player there.
Ahh, thanks for that What the heck – completely forgot about that aspect of the waiver system. Makes perfect sense now. Even so, the poor kid must be getting a tad frustrated. And I agree – as I said above – that there has to be some considerable promise seen in him for it to keep happening. Let’s hope the Jets give him some decent ice-time and allow him to settle in.
Just looking at Bettman’s response to Brad Marchand’s appeal made me feel a bit squeamish. This guy is turning the league into ice capades. Surely there’s got to be some Owners that have to feel The same way. There is another step for Brad, but by the time this legal procedure’s run it’s course the suspension will be over.The league is far too slow in response to the appeal process..( will not respond to Mr Mchappy, here’s his thoughts to B’s woes as of late,”well my team’s in the dumpster but at least we’re not being invaded”. Idiot.)
The only idiocy around here is you defending Marchand.
Glad to see the league uphold Merchands suspension. Such a great player acting like a RAT! He’s the king of chirping but can’t handle getting it back? What a baby.
If anybody for one second believe that is what Jarry said… well I can’t help you.
Marchand decided to keep that between him and Jarry
Caper if only most of us can only be as willingly ignorant we would feel the same about him like you do.
Sorry Marchand is a good player but his on ice antics hold him back from people believing he’s anything more than good, in other words, it completely holds him back from being a great player worthy of the HHoF.
Ron please explain what makes me ignorant in regards to Marchand?
Doesn’t matter if you agree or not, he has proven to be an elite NHL player.
Every suspension he got he deserved.
I may debate the length of them.
Bittman himself said these actions by themselves are not 6 game worthy.
When it initially happen I said 10 games.
I know who and what Marchand is.
Outside of Chrism most people would want Marchand on their team.
Hell yes! I’m just glad he’s not available today when the Bruins visit Ottawa … maybe they can pull off a win this time – their previous 2 have been close.
I might be wrong in reading this: “ Marchand decided to keep that between him and Jarry” you’re implying Marchand has some honorable thing to not say what was said between them to set him off like that… it turns out, it only took the goalie to say nice fing save?
What a loser.
Good, great player aside, he’s what we call a loser for that. Trying to imply otherwise is being willfully ignorant – ie ignoring the obvious.
I agree with Caper 100%.
That may have been what he said, may not have been, and if it wasn’t he sure as hell wasn’t going to tell Bettman.
We’ll never know, and the players prefer to keep it that way.
You might be right Ray but as you said, “ We’ll never know, and the players prefer to keep it that way.” one player we do know has shown us that’s not the case.
It’s always good to know it doesn’t take much to make him get unhinged. His opponents should really poke that bear.
Jerry himself said it will stay on the ice.
If that is all he said, I don’t think he says it stays on the ice.
In the end doesn’t matter what Jarry said; Marchand reaction was wrong and he is paying the price for them.
I pretty sure Jarry actually said “nice job at the olympics bro!”
I’m even more confident it was …. “Maritime lobster sucks. BC Salmon can’t be beat”
I’m even more confident it was …. “Maritime lobster sucks. BC Salmon can’t be beat”
100% agree with Caper. He’d never say what was really said.
In an interview today, Marchand vowed to avoid stick infractions and other histrionics that impair his team. He said he intended to spend his time off studying an anger-management film starring Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 World Cup Final.
For humor only-
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/07/materazzi-zidane-headbutt-world-cup-2006
I remember that.