NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 14, 2023
The Kraken push their series with the Stars to a seventh game, the Islanders expected to re-sign Lou Lamoriello, Alex Pietrangelo calls out Oilers for premeditated hits, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
NHL.COM: There will be a seventh and deciding game between the Seattle Kraken and Dallas Stars as the Kraken rolled to a 6-3 victory in Game 6 of their second-round series. Jordan Eberle and Eeli Tolvanen led the way with three points each for the Kraken to even the series at three games apiece.
Seattle Kraken winger Jordan Eberle (NHL Images).
Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger got the hook early in the second period after giving up four goals on 18 shots. Stars forward Joe Pavelski scored his eighth goal of this series to set a single-series franchise record and tied a postseason record for most goals by a player 38 or older. Mason Marchment also scored for the Stars after missing Game 5 with an upper-body injury.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Game 7 of this series goes Monday in Dallas. It’s fitting that this closely contested series goes the distance. The winner will face either the Edmonton Oilers or Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Finals starting later this week.
NEWSDAY: Andrew Gross reports the New York Islanders have decided to offer general manager Lou Lamoriello a three-year contract extension. Lamoriello, 80, has been in that role for the past five seasons.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: No word yet as to whether Lamoriello has accepted though it’s expected he will. A formal announcement will be made by the club when he does.
VEGAS HOCKEY NOW: Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said his two-handed slash on Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl late in Game 4 was retaliation for what he considered to be premeditated hits on himself and his teammates by the Oilers. Pietrangelo’s actions earned him a one-game suspension. He returns to the Golden Knights lineup for Game 6 tonight in Edmonton with his club leading the series three games to two.
FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW: The Carolina Hurricanes are geographically restricting tickets to their upcoming Eastern Conference Finals series with the Florida Panthers. Tickets can only be purchased by those with credit card billing within North Carolina, South Carolina and parts of Virginia.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers employed a similar tactic in their second-round series with the Toronto Maple Leafs to limit the number of Leafs fans in their arena.
THE DENVER POST: Medical experts say the long-term effects of Gabriel Landeskog’s knee cartilage transplant are difficult to predict due to the rarity of such procedures among professional athletes. While the surgery will ensure a return to a good quality of life for the average person, it remains to be seen if it can help a pro athlete like Landeskog resume his career and regain his previous level of performance.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Landeskog is expected to miss the entirety of next season recuperating from this procedure. Time will tell if he’ll be able to return to his playing career.
NHL.COM’s Mike Morreale reports New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton revealed that he was dealing with a wrist injury during his club’s second-round series with the Hurricanes.
NEW YORK POST: Former NHL defenseman Gerry Hart died Saturday at age 75. The cause of death was not revealed. He spent 15 seasons in the NHL from 1968-69 to 1982-83 with the Detroit Red Wings, New York Islanders, Quebec Nordiques and St. Louis Blues.
One of the original Islanders, Hart played seven seasons with the franchise from 1972-73 to 1978-79, becoming a fan favorite for his gritty play. He finished with 179 points and 1,240 PIMs in 730 career NHL regular-season games and 15 points in 78 playoff games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: My condolences to Hart’s family, friends and former teammates.
Hey, if this is the “age of the octogenarian” maybe there’s something in the cars yet for me … LOL
Lou Lamoriello, if he accepts, will turn 81 this October and be pushing 84 when the deal expire, while President Biden, if he wins again, will be 84 at the end of his next term!
“cars” ?? You still drive, George?
cards, dammit, cards …. and yes, I still drive … among other things 🙂
Pietrangelo just sounds dumb . Your a top d man , of course the other team is going to lean on you , finish there checks hard and try to play you tough, that is premeditated every series . Like every other top d man and star in every playoff series since the beginning of time . What you can’t do is raise your stick over your head and two hand a guy over the wrists with seconds remaining and the score out of hand . Only problem being someone forgot to tell Paros, he learned nothing and other players have the green light to follow suit knowing the standard for that action is 1 game . Rookie look for the nhl over and over and over .
He’s just trying to justify a stupid reaction.
He’s admitting guilt further . I’d love to know what he said to Paros. It wasn’t a sudden reaction , it was a planned response because he was frustrated by getting hit . The definition of premeditated. That to me makes it worse that a heat of the moment poor decision turning is response to something and swinging out of control . Still 1 game , pathetic .
retaliation for what he considered to be premeditated hits on himself and his teammates by the Oilers.
That’s hilarious. Premeditated? Yup, if Pietrangelo has the puck along the boards, hit him. Same goes for the other Knights.
Doesn’t sound dumb at all. Telling the refs to watch what is going on.
Kane crossed checked him in the face on purpose with the period expiring. Got his money worth for a 2 minute minor.
He suspension was warranted.
The one negative is admitted that the Oilers are getting to him.
We will see how game 6 plays out.
It is dumb to explain what the refs, every coach , every player , every fan , yourself included already know and have known entering every series ever played. If there is an opportunity to get a shot on a star/ important player, your take it , if you cross the line like Kane , you should expect a two minute penalty , now , thanks to Paros if you attempt to seek retribution and two hand a star player across the wrists with the game settled and time expiring you get 1 game . I stand by both my comments , dumb comments by petro and a joke of a decision by Paros and bad look for the league .
I’m there with you, George, and yet I truly don’t understand the Islanders’ offer of a three year contract to Uncle Lou. Don’t think he has earned it.
Maybe BC Leaf fan , U should approach Islander management and reverse the Lamoriello extension .
The Islanders will be reversing it themselves within the first year. He’s yesteryears management style. Retire Lou.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms out there.
I’m thinking particularly of my wife, of course, and especially my beautiful daughter, celebrating her first Mother’s Day as a mom.
Thank you for all that you do while all of us dads are online debating topics like Kyle Dubas and Pierre Luc Dubois.