NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 20, 2025
The Jets and Avalanche take the opening games of their respective series, the Rangers and Ducks fire their head coaches, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
RECAPPING SATURDAY’S PLAYOFF ACTION
NHL.COM: Kyle Connor scored the winning goal with 1:36 remaining in the third period as the Winnipeg Jets defeated the St. Louis Blues 5-3, taking a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven opening round series.
Winnipeg Jets winger Kyle Connor (NHL Images).
Connor and Mark Scheifele each had a goal and two assists as the Jets scored three unanswered third-period goals to overcome a 3-2 deficit. Robert Thomas, Oskar Sundqvist and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues. Game 2 is Monday, Apr. 21, in Winnipeg starting at 7:30 pm ET.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If Game 1 was anything to go by, this should be a fast-paced, entertaining series. The Blues set a physical tone, outhitting Winnieg 53-33. However, the Jets adapted and took control of the game in the final period.
Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon scored two goals and collected an assist to lead his club to a 5-1 win over the Dallas Stars to take a 1-0 lead in their first-round series. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 23 shots for the win in his first-ever NHL playoff game.
Roope Hintz tallied for the Stars to make it 2-1 in the third period before the Avalanche pulled away with three goals. Game 2 is Monday in Dallas at 9:30 pm ET.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: MacKinnon was outstanding as usual, but Blackwood was the real star of this one for the Avs, coming up with several big saves to frustrate the Stars.
Avalanche forward Ross Colton left this game in the third period with a lower-body injury. An update on his status is expected Sunday. Meanwhile, sidelined Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen attended Saturday’s morning skate and has been upgraded to day-to-day. He’s been out since undergoing knee surgery in late January.
HEADLINES
NEW YORK POST: The Rangers fired head coach Peter Laviolette on Friday. Hired in 2023, Laviolatte guided the Blueshirts to the 2023-24 Presidents’ Trophy, but the club struggled this season and missed the playoffs. They are seeking their fourth head coach since 2021.
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: The Anaheim Ducks relieved Greg Cronin of his duties as head coach after two seasons. The rebuilding Ducks improved by 21 points over last season but missed the playoffs for the seventh straight season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Laviolette firing was expected, given his inability to cope with the turmoil within the team as management attempted to remake the roster during this season. However, the Cronin firing was a surprise because of the Ducks’ notable improvement this season.
FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW: Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk was a full participant in practice on Saturday as his club prepares for Game 1 of their first-round series with archrival Tampa Bay Lightning. The power forward has been sidelined with a groin injury since the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in February.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Lightning-Panthers series begins on Tuesday. Barring a setback, expect Tkachuk to return to action in Game 1.
DAILY FACEOFF: Speaking of the Lightning, winger Oliver Bjorkstrand will miss that series with the Panthers because of a lower-body injury.
TORONTO SUN: Maple Leafs defensemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jake McCabe were back in their usual spots on the blueline during Saturday’s practice. Both rearguards had been sidelined with injuries heading into the postseason.
DAILY FACEOFF: Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson revealed he played the final 12 games of the regular season with a broken fibula after blocking a shot during a March 25 game against the Seattle Kraken.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Andersson kept playing because he was trying to help his club stay in the playoff race. While those efforts were unsuccessful, his toughness and will to win are among the reasons why management hopes to sign him to a contract extension this summer.
NEW YORK POST: Islanders forward Mathew Barzal and goaltender Semyon Varlamov are expected to be ready for training camp in September. Knee surgeries sidelined both players and their absence was partly responsible for the Isles missing the playoffs.
THE SCORE: Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is expected to miss the start of next season after undergoing arm surgery. His last game of this season was March. 11.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ristolainen’s improved performance before his injury was among the few bright spots for the Flyers this season.
THE BUFFALO NEWS: Sabres defenseman Owen Power won’t require surgery on his injured left knee. He’s been told to stay off the ice for two months, which shouldn’t interfere with his offseason training.
Meanwhile, Sabres forward Josh Norris revealed a torn oblique muscle limited him to just three games with the club following his March 7 trade from the Ottawa Senators.
THE TENNESSEAN: Nashville Predators winger Jonathan Marchessault was critical of head coach Andrew Brunette’s offensive system. “Clearly, it didn’t work,” he said, adding that there had to be adjustments before next season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Predators were among this season’s worst offensive teams despite the additions last summer of scoring forwards Marchessault and Steven Stamkos. That inability to score occasionally sparked speculation over Brunette’s job security.
TSN: The Edmonton Oilers signed defenseman Ty Emberson to a two-year, $2.6 million contract extension.
Colorado got off to a great start last night! The GM did a great job picking up 3 centers in trades this year! All surrounded by Mackinnon who is all world. Nelson,Coyle,Drury all fit their needs perfectly.
YES , Totally agree !
Colorado is my choice for the Cup, over Tampa.
Its going to be a good few months if all games were like that. Have to love playoff hockey. Lets hope the refs stop calling all the little things and let them play .
Will only be better
I said it late yesterday, and I’ll repeat the sentiment again today – there was no way Greg Cronin was going to turn that sow’s ear known as the Anaheim Ducks into a silk purse in just 2 seasons. No way whatsoever.
The year prior to his becoming coach they wallowed at the bottom of a 32-team league with a pathetic 23 47 12 58 points, for a % pace of .354, scoring 209 goals while giving up 338 – a differential of minus 129! That was a bad team no matter which way you sliced it, so the expectation had to be that it was going to be a long road back when Verbeek handed him the reins.
And sure enough, his first season behind the bench saw only a very slight improvement to 27 50 5 59 points (a .360 % pace) with 204 goals scored and 295 relinquished for a differential of minus 91.
But this season, following some deals and other moves by Verbeek, Cronin had them in the playoff hunt for about 3 quarters of the way, finishing with a 35 37 10 80 points record, and coming close to a .500 pace at .488, scoring 221 goals and giving up 263 for a differential of -42.
In other words, steady improvement, but unless Verbeek suddenly thought he was the reincarnation of Sam Pollock, what Cronin did with that collection was nothing short of amazing.
Of course, after the prerequisite “we’d like to thank Greg Cronin for his tireless work and dedication to our organization …” yadda, yadda, yadda claptrap, Verbeek could not come up with a viable reason for the firing when facing the media, just some rambling, hollow so-called rationale
https://www.nhl.com/ducks/news/ducks-gm-verbeek-discusses-not-retaining-cronin-as-coach-and-other-topics
They clearly fired the wrong guy, and if the Rangers had any sense, he’s the coach they should hire to replace Laviolette.
Verbeek may have had someone else in mind to bring in. Cronin surely had the Ducks on an upward trajectory!
I see this and wonder to myself – was this a fit or personality issue. I don’t follow them but wonder when you see the curve going the way you need it to and still fire the coach, there is something.
Was it the players through their agents or as part of exit meetings, that there was a us or him foisted on Verbeek?
we will never know but if they regress next season, Verbeek may the next one thanks for his efforts….
CDM, Cronin began his coaching career in 1987-88 as an assistant at Colby College, before moving to perform the same job at the U. of Maine from 1988 to 1990, then moved to Colorado College, again as an assistant for 3 seasons to 1993. Then he went back to U of Maine from 1993-94 to 1996-97.
He turned to the pro ranks as an assistant coach with the NYI from 1999 to 2002-03, then head coach of their AHL team in Bridgeport from 2003 to 2005. From 2005-06 to 2010-11 he served as head coach at Northeastern U, then took a job as an assistant with Leafs from 2011-2014, then back to the NYI as an assistant from 2014-15 to 2017-18.
Prior to taking the Anaheim job he served as their AHL head coach with the Colorado Eagles from 2018-19 to 2022-23. So, contrary to another’s opinion that his tenures were short due to some lingering issue, the fact he kept going back to former locations says he was well respected.
If he s like Cassidy,he will go on and win a cup with a more talented roster! Sweeney still in a job after firing Cassidy and Montgomery!Has one year left on his contract so he survives because Boston doesn t want to eat his contract.
Greg Cronin coaching history is a litany of 2-3 year and move on for whatever reason.
He’s been successful but never stuck around to get to the top.
Moving on from Anaheim seems like part of a pattern more than anything else.
HF30: Do you get to see any Rocket games? Your fav Davidson has, statistically at least, had a good season. Thoughts on him and any others (Reinbacher, Farrell?), especially if you have had eyes on them?
Others welcome to jump in.
LJ,
I see Rocket games on RDS and my nephews go to their games sp I don’t see enough of them and I ignore hilights.
As you know Davidson stands out to me, he’s dog with a bone on the ice and he’s doing what he can to be noticed.
Farrell isn’t an NHLer despite his good stats. he’s one of those guys who top out at AHL.
Reinbacher looks very good, he’s too good for the AHL, only injury has held him back.
Mailloux is a disappointment with his best value being trade bait as a 1st round RD prospect.
I still see an NHL future for William Trudeau he sees the game at NHL speed.
AHL stats are deceptive when looking at NHL futures. Barre-Boulet and Laurent Dauphin are the top two point getters for the Rocket and they are border line NHLers.
I think Roy, like Mailloux is trade bait they aren’t on the same lel as Beck who in my opinion is a future Hab 2C.
This year’s draft is interesting and might spell the end for some prospects who need to make room.
You are still keen on Trudeau. Interesting. He gets no mention in the stuff I read. But only 22.
I see by stats only that Roy hasn’t gone on an offensive tear since being sent down.
Thank you.
I can predict Western Conference Winners
Colorado
Winnipeg
Vegas
LA ? – Goaltending – huge advantage
But I cannot predict Eastern conference winners , other than Washington
I might need therapy sessions if Leafs are not Victorious
Best line for the Avalanche was Drury, O’Connor and Kelly. Smart, simple and effective hockey. What a play by Drury on that Coyle goal? Necas and drouin didn’t do much of anything as far as I could tell. Necas needs to utilize that great shot he has, same for drouin. Blackwood, big time saves. Could have resulted in different outcome. Makar needs to step it up!