NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – November 29, 2023
Recaps of Tuesday’s games, the Blackhawks’ move to terminate Corey Perry’s contract and acquire Anthony Beauvillier from the Canucks, injury updates and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
GAME RECAPS
NHL.COM: Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid continued his torrid scoring pace with a goal and two assists in a 5-4 shootout victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins netted the winning goal for the 8-12-1 Oilers as they’ve picked up three straight victories. The Golden Knights (14-5-4) picked up a point to retake first place in the overall standings (32 points) but they’ve managed just three wins in their last 10 games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That was McDavid’s third straight multi-point game. It’s not a coincidence that the Oilers have improved of late as a result.
Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser (NHL Images).
The Vancouver Canucks got two goals from Brock Boeser and 30 saves from Thatcher Demko to down the Anaheim Ducks 3-1. Boeser now leads the league with 17 goals as the Canucks (15-7-1) sit one point back of the Golden Knights in the standings. Ryan Strome replied for the struggling Ducks (9-13-0) as they’ve dropped seven straight games.
Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger kicked out 27 shots to shut out the Winnipeg Jets 2-0. Joe Pavelski and Tyler Seguin were the goal scorers as the Stars (28 points) rose to 13-5-2 on the season. Connor Hellebuyck made 19 stops for the 12-7-2 Jets as they sit two points behind the second-place Stars in the Central Division.
The Nashville Predators nipped the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 to pick up their sixth straight win. Michael McCarron scored twice while Filip Forsberg potted the winner in overtime as the Predators improved to 11-10-0 and moved into the second wild-card berth in the Western Conference with 22 points. Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust scored for the Penguins as they overcame a 2-0 deficit to force the overtime period.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Earlier in the day, the Penguins placed defenseman Will Butcher on waivers and released blueliner Mark Pysyk from his professional tryout offer.
The Minnesota Wild picked up their first win in John Hynes’ first game as their new head coach by beating the St. Louis Blues 3-1. Filip Gustavsson made 23 saves for his first victory since Oct. 24 while Frederic Gaudreau’s first goal of the season proved to be the game-winner for the 6-10-4 Wild. Colton Parayko had the only goal for the 11-9-1 Blues.
Three unanswered third-period goals by Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier and Curtis Lazar rallied the New Jersey Devils over the New York Islanders 5-4. Hughes finished the night with a goal and two assists for the Devils as they improved their record to 10-9-1. Islanders center Mathew Barzal also had a goal and two assists as his club dropped to 8-7-6.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton did not play in the third period with an upper-body injury. There was no postgame update as to his status.
The Toronto Maple Leafs nipped the Florida Panthers 2-1 on a shootout goal by Noah Gregor, who also scored their only goal in regulation. Joseph Woll made 38 saves for the 11-6-3 Maple Leafs. Kevin Stenlund tallied for the 13-7-2 Panthers.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers appeared to win this contest on a shootout goal by Evan Rodrigues but a video review determined that he touched the puck after shooting it, which is not allowed in the shootout. It was a costly win for the Leafs as defenseman Mark Giordano left the game in the first period with a lower-body injury. He’s expected to miss some time as a result.
Two-point performances by Michael Bunting and Sebastian Aho gave the Carolina Hurricanes a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Pyotr Kochetkov stopped 28 shots for the Hurricanes (13-8-0). Travis Konecny replied for the 11-10-1 Flyers.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Before the game, the Flyers announced that forward Noah Cates will be sidelined for six to eight weeks with a lower-body injury.
Arizona Coyotes winger Michael Carcone scored twice and Connor Ingram made 30 saves to upset the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-1. With the win, the Coyotes improved to 10-9-2 (22 points) and sit behind the Predators for the final Western wild-card spot. Brayden Point scored for the 10-8-5 Lightning.
The Chicago Blackhawks got a 33-save performance by Petr Mrazek to hold off the Seattle Kraken 4-3. MacKenzie Entwistle scored what proved to be the winning goal for the Blackhawks (7-13-0) while Matty Beniers had a goal and an assist for the 8-10-5 Kraken, who also lost winger Jaden Schwartz to a lower-body injury in the third period.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: This game was overshadowed by the Blackhawks’ announcing earlier in the day that they had placed veteran winger Corey Perry on unconditional waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Speaking of which…
HEADLINES
SPORTSNET: Chicago Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson said the decision to release Corey Perry from his contract was a “workplace decision” but he declined to disclose the specifics about the incident.
Davidson did say that the situation didn’t involve any other Blackhawks players or their families, calling any suggestion to the contrary “disgusting.” He said the club first learned of the incident last Wednesday prior to a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The decision was made at that time to pull Perry from the lineup while an internal investigation was conducted. According to Davidson, the results of that investigation indicated he engaged in “conduct that is unacceptable, and in violation of his Standard Player’s Contract and the Blackhawks’ internal policies intended to promote professional and safe working environments.”
Perry, 38, was on a one-year, $4 million contract. The NHL Players Association is reviewing the matter and has 60 days from when the contract is terminated to file a grievance.
ESPN.COM: A source told Emily Kaplan that Perry traveled with the Blackhawks to Columbus last Tuesday, a day before the game, and an incident occurred that day involving a team employee.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Blackhawks did the right thing by attempting to address this issue with Perry immediately upon learning of the incident and launching an immediate investigation. However, they could’ve done a better job with their statements regarding his absence leading up to Davidson’s press conference.
The Blackhawks management insisted that Perry’s removal was a “team decision” but offered no other details. That was likely because they didn’t want to risk compromising the investigation. Perry’s agent attempted to address this by saying his client was dealing with a personal matter and asked that his privacy be respected.
Unfortunately, the conflicting messages raised more questions about Perry’s absence. It also resulted in baseless and salacious speculation on social media that may have caused unnecessary emotional distress to those who were the subject of such mean-spirited rumors.
THE PROVINCE: Speaking of the Blackhawks, the Vancouver Canucks traded winger Anthony Beauvillier to Chicago in exchange for a 2024 fifth-round pick.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Acquired last January as part of the Bo Horvat trade with the New York Islanders, the 26-year-old Beauvillier struggled in Vancouver. He’s slated to become an unrestricted free agent and carries a $4.15 million cap hit for this season.
The Canucks didn’t get much of a return for Beauvillier. Nevertheless, this move clears his cap hit from their books, giving them room to add a defenseman or another scoring forward.
Meanwhile, Beauvillier will get an opportunity to improve his game with the rebuilding Blackhawks. They were short two wingers with Perry’s contract termination and Taylor Hall sidelined with a season-ending knee injury.
NEW YORK POST: The Rangers yesterday placed Kaapo Kakko (lower body) and Filip Chytil (upper body) on long-term injury reserve.
TSN: The Buffalo Sabres assigned goaltender Devon Levi to their AHL affiliate in Rochester.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Levi showed promise in a handful of late-season games in 2022-23. However, he’s really struggled this season to play up to expectations. Meanwhile, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has emerged as the Sabres’ starter this season.
NHL.COM: Ottawa Senators forward Zack MacEwen was fined $2,018.23 by the department of player safety for unsportsmanlike conduct during Monday’s game against the Florida Panthers.
If McDavid scores Edmonton wins, if he doesn’t they do not.
How does a rumor take on such a life of its own where it’s absolutely everywhere and have nothing to back up the allegations.
Americans do love a good conspiracy theory.
Rant warning.
How Caper?
1 – The algorithms on social media sites that intentionally promote the most outrageous posts (those that drive emotion) that drive traffic, and ad revenue.
2 – The incentives for those who make a little cake from advertising on their accounts, post these and share them to get more eyeballs and hits. The more cake they get.
3 – The dumbasses out there that share it and actually believe it even though its started out of thin air with some jackass thinking they can make a few bucks off it by tricking the morons.
4 – We have learned that there are plenty of morons out there that make this extremely profitable for the platforms. For example – Zuckerberg is worth $118B
How do we know this – internal documents and testimony shared by folks who actually did this for companies like Meta. And they all do it, even though they know the effects it is having on society, especially teenagers. And they know how to fix it, they just don’t want to add 1% to their ops costs, and risk revenue.
Whether or not something is true doesn’t even enter into the equation.
So now Bedard’s mother is slandered and her face is getting shared all over the flippin’ internet. Does she have any recourse? Nope.
Catch on already people; you’re the mark. Everybody knows what I just said is accurate and the way it is, and yet, most folks are on it anyway.
You got it, Ray.
When they taught us that the Universe is made up of protons, neutrons and electrons they neglected to mention morons.
Great rant, Ray.
Reminds me of Pogo’s comment:
We have met the enemy and he is us.
LJ. Walt Kelly – one of my all-time favorites
When they fined MacEwen they should also have fined D.J. Smith for impersonating a coach with a “system.”
Two articles this morning in the local newspapers suggest that, despite growing dissatisfaction among the fan base for his dismissal, he’s “not going anywhere.”
If not, neither are the Senators.
So Perry did not sleep with Bedard mom he just harrassed another employee. That is not connect to a player or their family.
McDavid looks to be healthy now and is back. He wasn’t moving with this explosiveness for weeks after the initial injury.
Vegas was on a road back to back, so grain of salt, but Oil were dominant again, against a quality team.
Last 5 minutes aside.
Are the Oil gonna get on a roll? They need one.
Huge to get the 2 points or would have been a gut punch, again.
A question is – to what degree did the change in coach also help the turnaround?
Something the Senators new hierarchy need to consider because, one thing has become certain, starting last season and continuing on into the first 17 games this season – consistency is obvious by its absence.
Hard to say the impact the coach has had George. He hasn’t changed the basic defensive structure, as that needs to be done in training camp or it can all go to sh*t in a hurry.
Woodcroft liked to go 11F 7D, Knoblach is rolling 12-6, which seems to get players into more of a groove, and the extra 2 F’s part of a unit.
They still aren’t great at the box +1 at times and seemed too passive with it in the 3rd last night, which is a downside of that option. But plenty of teams fall into that when they have a lead late.
But they definitely spent less time having to use it or defending at all as they seem more aggressive on the forecheck and breaking up the other teams exits and entries. The Oil can skate, they need to use that. At least that is what I saw the last few games. They are way more on attack mode all over the ice, less thinking, more doing. Maybe just got their mojo back?
Because of new coach wakeup call? I dunno, but had to try something. Can they keep it up if tending isn’t good? Most teams can’t. They need Skinner as much as anybody on that roster to play well.
“The Oil can skate, they need to use that.”
That described the Senators to a T – when they were dominating games at the start of the season they were using their skating skills to force turnovers and doing it for 60 minutes. Lately, when they’re being dominated – as they were against Florida – they looked more like spectators.
But I do get you and agree 100% when it comes to goaltending – consistency needs to start there for sure. Nothing deflates a young team as much as a soft goal … sort of a collective “why should we skate our butts off if he’s going to allow a 50-foot floater to get by him” attitude. Something that is often visible in the body-English on the bench.
A bad goal kill your momentum George, agree 100%.
On the bright side for Sens fans, Korpisalo looks better than Gustavsson this year. I know Dorian was taking heat for that last year. Just another example of goalies turning it around, then back the other way again.
Not sure who the Sens would hire if they dumped Smith. Staios may want to wait until off season to find a full time guy.
I think the Sens get it going sooner rather than later, meaning stop the brutal. Playoff team? Maybe. Long way to go, and they’re not that far out.
Yeah, there is that one ray (no pun intended) of hope in that they’ve played the fewest games so far (17), and although dead last in the Atlantic, they have 4 games in hand on the Habs, 5 on Buffalo and Florida, and 6 on TB. Also 3 each on Toronto and Detroit.
Of course that means squat if they don’t string a few wins together when making up those games.
George , at first I was like you , ‘time to can DJ’ but after assessing it for a couple of days I think the brass will wait it out and search for the right coach and GM to be added after the season. The last thing Staios wants to do is bring in someone on a leash or to start selling off players. Mind you some of them have lost their shine with me.
I have to be honest, the fact that Sanderson had to fight Matthew Tkachuk last game really pissed me off. I would be willing to bet that was his first fight playing hockey ever , at any level. Not asking for a good squad to show up but at least a couple of guys who can keep other teams looking over their shoulder. None of this crap ever happened when Chris Neil was playing.
Brady Tkachuk should not be policing for this team , he is too valuable one the ice.
Andlauer and Staios will get this right.
Sit and wait is a tough pill to swallow if you’re a season ticket holder, we will see.