NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 21, 2020

by | Feb 21, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 21, 2020

Alex Ovechkin is one goal shy of 700, Mark Scheifele and Jonathan Huberdeau have four-point performances, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines

NHL.COM: Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin tallied his 699th career goal, but it wasn’t enough to prevent his club from dropping a 4-3 overtime decision to the Montreal Canadiens. Ben Chiarot scored twice, including the winning goal. The Capitals moved into a first-place tie (80 points) with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Metropolitan Division, but the Pens hold a game in hand. Earlier in the day, the Canadiens made a minor trade with the Penguins, acquiring Joseph Blandisi and Jake Lucchini in exchange for Riley Barber and Phil Varone

Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin is one goal away from reaching 700. (Photo via NHL Images)

The Toronto Maple Leafs bounced back from a 5-2 defeat against the Penguins by blanking the latter 4-0 in the second game of their home-and-home series. Frederik Andersen made 24 saves for the shutout while Jake Muzzin had a goal and two assists. With the win, the Leafs (72 points) regained possession of third place in the Atlantic Division.

Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifele had a hat trick and added an assist to lead his club over the Ottawa Senators 5-1. With 69 points, the Jets vaulted over the Calgary Flames and Arizona Coyotes into the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

Kevin Hayes scored in overtime as the Philadelphia Flyers rallied from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3. Travis Konecny had a goal and two assists for the Flyers (75 points), opening a two-point lead over the Jackets for third in the Metro Division. Earlier in the day, the Flyers sent defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere to their AHL affiliate on a conditioning stint.

The Vegas Golden Knights picked up their fourth straight win by defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-3. Alec Martinez had a goal and an assist in his debut with the Golden Knights. Steven Stamkos tallied twice for the Lightning as their 11-game winning streak – and goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy’s 21-game points streak – came to an end. The Bolts (85 points) sit three behind the league-leading Boston Bruins, while Vegas (72 points) moved into the top spot in the Pacific Division.

Despite a four-point effort by Jonathan Huberdeau, the Florida Panthers were nipped by the Los Angeles Kings 5-4. Kings rookie Gabe Vilardi had a goal and an assist in his NHL debut. The Panthers (70 points) slipped to fourth in the Atlantic Division.

St. Louis Blues goalie Jordan Binnington turned aside 14 shots for his second straight shutout in a 1-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes. Ryan O’Reilly tallied the only goal as the Blues (78 points) regained sole possession of first place in the Central Division.

P.K. Subban tallied the game-winner as the New Jersey Devils edged the San Jose Sharks 2-1. Devils goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood kicked out 36 shots to win his sixth game (6-0-1) in his last seven starts. Earlier in the day, the Devils placed Domingue on waivers and held him out of this game for precautionary reasons.










Surveying The NHL Buyers – Metropolitan Division

by | Feb 21, 2020

Surveying The NHL Buyers – Metropolitan Division

 










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 20, 2020

by | Feb 20, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 20, 2020

The Rangers and Wild keep their playoff hopes alive, the Panthers move up in the Atlantic Division, David Pastrnak is tied for the goal-scoring lead and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: Mika Zibanejad had a four-point game and Chris Kreider picked up three points to lead the New York Rangers over the Chicago Blackhawks 6-3. Dominik Kubalik scored twice for the Blackhawks to lead all rookies with 25 goals. With seven wins in their last 10 games, the Rangers (66 points) are six points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider collected three points in a 6-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks (Photo via NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Rangers are still assumed to be sellers by the Feb. 24 trade deadline, but that might change if they win their next two games and move closer to a playoff spot. Kreider is considered a prime trade candidate, but the Rangers are reportedly talking contract extension with his agent.

Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak’s overtime goal lifted his club to a 2-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. It was Pastrnak’s 43rd goal of the season, tying him with Toronto’s Auston Matthews for the league lead. The Bruins (88 points) widened their lead in the Eastern Conference standings by three points over the Tampa Bay Lightning, while the Oilers (71 points) opened a one-point lead over the Vancouver Canucks for first place in the Pacific Division.

The Dallas Stars moved into a tie with the St. Louis Blues for the top spot in the Central Division by edging the Arizona Coyotes 3-2. Ben Bishop made 39 saves for Dallas, while Stars captain Jamie Benn was ejected for boarding Coyotes captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the second period. Ekman-Larsson left the game but returned for the third period. With 68 points, the Coyotes cling to a one-point lead over the Winnipeg Jets for the final Western Conference playoff spot.

Sergei Bobrovsky kicked out 33 shots and Vincent Trocheck had a goal and an assist to give the Florida Panthers a 4-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. The Panthers (70 points) move into third place in the Atlantic Division, knocking the Maple Leafs into fourth and out of a playoff spot in the East.

Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar each picked up two assists as the Colorado Avalanche downed the New York Islanders 3-1, handing the latter their fourth straight defeat. The Avs sit one point behind the Blues and Stars in the Central Division while the Islanders (72 points) slipped to the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot.

The Minnesota Wild kept their playoff hopes alive by nipping the Vancouver Canucks 4-3. Alex Galchenyuk tallied the game-winner in the shootout. J.T. Miller scored twice for the Canucks. The Wild (63 points) sit five behind the Coyotes while the Canucks are one point behind the Pacific Division-leading Oilers.

IN OTHER NEWS…

The Toronto Maple Leafs announced winger Andreas Johnsson underwent season-ending knee surgery and will be sidelined for six months. They also made a couple of minor trades, shipping Mason Marchment to the Panthers for Denis Malgin, and acquired Max Verroneau from the Ottawa Senators for Aaron Luchuk. Malgin appeared in 36 games with the Panthers this season.

THE DETROIT NEWS: Red Wings forward Filip Zadina is sidelined two-to-three weeks with an injured foot.

PUCKPEDIA.COM: The Columbus Blue Jackets re-signed forward Stefan Matteau to a two-year, two-way contract.

 










NHL Up and Down the Boards – Canucks, Penguins Offer Value on H2H Playoff Odds

by | Feb 20, 2020

NHL Up and Down the Boards – Canucks, Penguins Offer Value on H2H Playoff Odds

 










NHL Would Make A Big Mistake Passing On The 2022 Winter Olympics

by | Feb 19, 2020

NHL Would Make A Big Mistake Passing On The 2022 Winter Olympics

 










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 19, 2020

by | Feb 19, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 19, 2020

Sidney Crosby has a four-point game, an update on Jay Bouwmeester, the Senators honor Chris Phillips, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby picked up four points in a 5-2 victory over the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs. Bryan Rust collected three points as the Penguins (80 points) moved into first place in the Metropolitan Division. Auston Matthews tallied his league-leading 43rd goal of the season for the Leafs (70 points), who cling to third place in the Atlantic Division. Penguins center Evgeni Malkin was a late scratch due to illness. Earlier in the day, the Penguins also revealed forward Zach Aston-Reese is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby led his club to a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs (Photo via NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Not to take anything away from the Penguins’ dominant performance, but that was a pathetic effort by the Leafs in a must-win game. They’ve dropped six of their last nine and remain in danger of slipping out of a playoff spot.

St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington made 17 saves to shut out the New Jersey Devils 3-0, snapping his club’s five-game losing skid. It was their first victory since Jay Bouwmeester suffered a cardiac incident last week in Anaheim. Bouwmeester released a statement yesterday indicating he’s on the road to recovery. With 76 points, the Blues hold a two-point lead over the Dallas Stars for first place in the Western Conference. Devils’ Will Butcher and Nick Merkley left the game with injuries.

The Ottawa Senators honored former defenseman Chris Phillips by retiring his number and thumping the Buffalo Sabres 7-4. They tallied four goals in a 3:29 span in the first period and sealed the two with two third-period goals. Jean-Gabriel Pageau led the way with two goals and two assists while Artem Anisimov also scored twice. Brandon Montour scored twice for the Sabres, who remain eight points behind the Leafs in the Atlantic.

Travis Konecny had a three-point performance as the Philadelphia Flyers rolled to a 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, leaving the latter winless in their last six games. The Flyers (73 points) vaulted over the New York Islanders and the Blue Jackets into third in the Metropolitan Division.

Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho scored to extend his points streak to 10 games in a 4-1 win over Nashville Predators. The Hurricanes (72 points) hold the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, while the Predators (65 points) remain three points out of a Western Conference wild-card berth.

Blake Wheeler and Nikolaj Ehlers each had three points as the Winnipeg Jets beat the Los Angeles Kings 6-3. With 67 points, the Jets are one point out of a Western Conference wild-card spot.

The Montreal Canadiens blew a 3-1 lead to fall 4-3 to the lowly Detroit Red Wings, who swept their four-game regular-season series. Andreas Athanasiou scored twice for the Wings, handing the Habs their fifth straight defeat.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: And with that, we can close the book on the Canadiens’ playoff hopes for 2020. Earlier in the day, they traded defenseman Marco Scandella to the St. Louis Blues for two draft picks. More moves are likely in store leading up to the Feb. 24 trade deadline. The Wings, meanwhile, won 15 games thus far this season. Four of those came against the Canadiens.

HEADLINES

SPORTSNET: Colorado Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen received some good news when an MRI on his upper-body injury revealed no requirement for surgery. He’s expected to return before the end of the regular season.

TSN: Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser will be sidelined eight weeks with a rib cartilage fracture.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canucks already made a significant move to address Boeser’s absence by acquiring Tyler Toffoli earlier this week. They might not be done dealing.

CBC.CA: A shoulder injury will sidelined Edmonton Oilers defenseman Oscar Klefbom for the next two-to-three weeks.

SPORTSNET: The New York Rangers acquired minor-league winger Julien Gauthier from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for minor-league defenseman Joey Keane.