NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 11, 2023
The Leafs avoid elimination by the Panthers, the Oilers tied their series with the Golden Knights, the Ted Lindsay Award finalists are announced, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
GAME RECAPS
NHL.COM: The Toronto Maple Leafs staved off elimination in their second-round series with the Florida Panthers with a 2-1 victory in Game 4. William Nylander and Mitch Marner scored while Joseph Woll made 24 saves for the Leafs. Sam Reinhart replied for Florida while Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots. Game 5 goes Friday in Toronto with the Panthers up three games to one.
Toronto Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was the best defensive effort by the Leafs in this postseason. They didn’t get rattled when the Panthers cut their lead to 2-1 in the third period and gave as good as they got with their physical play. Woll handled himself well in net in a must-win game while Nylander and Marner silenced their critics (for one game anyway) with their play.
The Edmonton Oilers evened their series with the Vegas Golden Knights at two games apiece with a 4-1 win. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and an assist, Connor McDavid collected two assists and Stuart Skinner kicked out 25 shots for the Oilers. Nicolas Roy replied for the Golden Knights. The series returns to Vegas for Game 5 on Friday.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was a dominant win by Edmonton in a game that got increasingly nasty as it went along, especially in the third period. The clubs combined for 111 minutes in penalties.
Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo got a five-minute major and a game misconduct for a lumberjack-style slash on Leon Draisaitl, prompting Oilers captain Connor McDavid to call for Pietrangelo to be suspended for a deliberate attempt to injure.
Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse could face a one-game suspension after receiving an instigator penalty for starting a fight with Vegas defenseman Nicolas Hague in the final minute of the game. Golden Knights forwards Jonathan Marchessault and Chandler Stephenson each received misconducts as did Oilers forwards Evander Kane and Kailer Yamamoto.
HEADLINES
NHL.COM: San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, and Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak are the finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award for the NHL’s outstanding player as voted by the fans.
PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: Various sources report the Philadelphia Flyers intend to hire Keith Jones as their new president of hockey operations. Jones played three of his nine NHL seasons with the Flyers and is the lead color analyst for their TV broadcasts. He has no front-office experience.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Jones has carved out a long, successful career as a hockey broadcaster and maintained ties with the club. However, his lack of front-office experience could become an issue as the Flyers attempt to rebuild.
This move also confirms that Daniel Briere will become their full-time general manager. Unlike Jones, Briere worked within the Flyers organization since 2017.
NBC SPORTS CHICAGO: The Blackhawks signed goaltender Arvid Soderblom to a two-year contract extension. The average annual value is $962,500.
TSN: A study of NHL players shows that enforcers who spent a lot of time in fights during their playing careers die 10 years younger than their fellow players. Researchers at Columbia University in New York reached that conclusion after studying data from over 6,000 players from 1967 to 2022.
Ahem! Told you so, Ron. Woll handled himself like a veteran in goal, the D eliminated the own-zone brain farts, and while the Core 4 didn’t exactly light it up, they did get both goals.
Now, if they play as solid a game at home and send it back to Florida down 2-3, the collars among the Panthers get just that much tighter and if they try to over-compensate and get away from their game plan, we’ll be looking at a game 7.
Oh, and while I am hoping for the Leafs players to go all the way, here’s a reminder from that twit Wills at the Globe & Mail – allegedly a “national” newspaper – as to why I absolutely detest the condescending Toronto-centric media
https://ottawasun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/ottawa-senators/garrioch-sale-of-the-ottawa-senators-could-mark-the-dawn-of-a-new-era
I do not always like Garrioch but he sure took Wills to task and shut all his “points” down brilliantly.
Wills probably has some ties to a competing group and wanted to undermine the Reynolds camp’s bid somehow.
I was surprised and congrats to you for being right. I don’t know if it’s sustainable and in no way a done deal. Woll didn’t have a lot of work but looked really composed whenever he was challenged.
For the Leafs to keep rolling and making this a series, I wouldn’t mind seeing some of the intensity go up and boil over like it has begun to in the Oilers/Knights series. The Leafs need to score more than two goals if they hope to win. They have the guns to do both but will they?
My previous post not showing up… my original reply giving you props for picking the Leafs and your faith in the young goalie.
As for that article, not surprised. The Toronto sports media all wish they were tele novella writers with the outlandish and down right cheap hits they constantly dish out.
Ignore, ignore, ignore. There’s nothing worth reading there. They don’t use facts or figures and like to think their opinions carry more weight or are the facts. Makes you wonder why no one reads the papers any more.
Nothing but a cheap puff piece.
George – Samsonov is yours for the taking in Ottawa
As I would like all of your dreams come True !!
LOL. Yeah, right.
Bush league Pietrangelo
The cheap shot stuff will continue as long as the NHL keeps their head in the sand. Fines aren’t enough. A player who is guilty needs to be suspended without pay as long as the player he injured is out. This is the only way to stop this. I’m looking at you Bennet you f’n goon.
i texted my brother last night watching that Maple Leafs and Panther’s game, Bennet is good at hitting guys at the bottom of the pile but will he answer the bell. I remember when he was in Calgary, he did the same thing in a series against the Avalanche. He jumps on the pile but he doesn’t square off with anyone when he has to. Real bravery. maybe he will in the future but I have never seen it yet? Same with Voracek who used to be on the Flyers but now in Columbus. Similar tough guys, lol!!!!
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Re; 🍁 Edmonton Oilers & Las Vegas Game
Last Night Alex Pietrangelo lost his cool and took a Hefty 2 Handed chop at Leon Draisaitl Head/Face This was a Deliberate Intent to Injury.⁉️
He should get a 2-3 game suspension for this🤔
McDavid said postgame that, Pietrangelo should be suspended for the play. It’s as intent to injure as you can get 100%
lets see what the NHL dose with this…..
Bet if it’s anything it’s no more than 1 game.
My money is on a one game suspension for Pietrangelo just because it was so blatant even the so called Dept of Player Safety will have to do something. TSN is reporting he has a hearing.
But I also expect that Nurse will get a game as well, to avoid Vegas screaming blue murder.
I think they will do that too LJ, but I disagree with it. The two events should be judged individually and IMO they are not comparable. But it’s the easy path, and that is what player safety does historically.
They have some discretion with the instigator call, and have used it in the past. Again, my opinion only, but these two were both willing combatants, I would suggest this fight was going to happen eventually, just a question of when. I don’t think what the instigator rule/game suspension was intended to address.
It’s plays like what Pietrangelo that helped usher in the goon era allowing fighting to be a norm in the NHL and claiming to be a deterrent against (this and other types) of stick work.
Expect a $5000 fine, maybe one game. Three or more would be great but no one should hold their breath on what is a blatant attempt to injure a star player.
Ron Moore
Bunting got 3 games for a little forearm shiver to Cernak.
If Pietrangelo doesn’t get at least 3 games something is wrong at DoPS
It’s a complete lack of consistency.
In the Leafs game Gudas ran Kampf into the boards after the whistle and skating 6-7 strides towards him. How is that not at least 2 for charging and 2 for unsportsmanlike conduct?
That Gudas hit should be called all day every day.
Bennet is getting away with murder this series too, first smashing knies into the ice head first and yesterday sitting on top of McCabe and pounding on his head at the end of the game.
Teuvo Teräväinen had his hand broken on a slash by JP Pageau on a very similar play and crickets, BUT seeing how Nurse is getting a game off Pietrangelo likely gets the same as requested by McJesus which is another issue as it’s supposed to be Dept of ALL player safety not just protect the who’s who by request.
I Have a problem with the double standards being how Teräväinen’s injury still has him out and zero punishment or Ohh he got a $5k fine?..To a multimillionaire sheesh that’s like a $50 fine to us Joe’s.
The DOPS should suspend the perpetrator until the injury player returns or the rest of the season or make the fines start at $50k maybe you get some attention…Or just bring back the enforcers and let them beat the perps into submission or the NHL will be. a league of Rat’s with no fear of real penalty’s…Hello Parros!
At the next game in Edmonton, every time Pietrangelo steps on the ice they should start playing the old Woody Herman jazz classic Woodchopper’s Ball
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxyj432cpwI
Wish. Pietrangelo was in Toronto
Give him an axe to hack away at a couple of Florida players
The Veg/Oil series is getting downright Nasty.
Just to the anti Nurse crowd, there is your $9M D man. He was the Oil’s best player last night and is their best D man, by quite a bit, and Ekholm is a good player.
I don’t just say that because he skated down and took on the monster Hague who was looking to take on one of the Oil forwards who would have been over matched, and did well considering the size difference.
But he did do that!
Nurse is a very, very good D-man and was dominant defending. Again.
Hey Ray,
one good game in 4 dose not make Nurse the best d/man on the Oil….❗️
Right now he has been 5&6 as far as best d/men go for the oil in in the past 4 games yes he answered the bell last night once!!
Evander Kane has been doing the tough guy stuff for the past 4 games Its about time he got some help….
from Nurse needs to play WAY More Physical than he has been doing ….
if he did that would make the LV forwards become way more aware of him
as far as size gos there is not much in it with these two, I hope Nurse streps up again and gives Hague a good thumping👍
Hague is 6.ft6 & 221
Nurse is 6.ft4 &221
I disagree with that entire post willie, and no I did not suggest one game makes Nurse the best. Hence my word again. And suggesting he has been there 5/6 D-man is ridiculous.
What you are also suggesting is Woodcroft doesn’t know what he is doing as he is playing Nurse more than any other D-man by more than 2 minutes a game. So would have to say Mr. Woodcroft agrees with my assessment, or rather, I agree with his.
I haven’t seen any player listing that has Hague under 230lbs. Some are actually above than. And 2 inches in height, and usually reach, is a big deal. Ever fight a guy with a weight, height and reach advantage?
I like how Nurse plays. He’s only getting better with age.
I also thought the slash by Petro wasn’t very hard.
Well it sure could have been harder than it was SOP. The full swing made it look worse than it was, but thinking it still left a mark.
I think the height of it, past Draisaitl’s head on the way down, is the concerning part for the NHL.
If they are going to take the easy route and give both Petro and Nurse a game, then just let them both play without the suspension and fine Petro.
I’m fine with letting them both play. I like the passion in this series. Those boys are playing some heavy hockey games.