NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 21, 2024
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 21, 2024
A five-point performance by the Leafs’ Auston Matthews, Kings captain Anze Kopitar reaches a points milestone, Hall-of-Famer Lanny McDonald talks about his near-death experience, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
GAME RECAPS
NHL.COM: Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews scored twice and collected three assists in a 7-3 victory over the Washington Capitals. Max Domi had four assists while William Nylander and John Tavares had a goal and two assists each for the 39-20-9 Maple Leafs, who sit third in the Atlantic Division with 87 points. Alex Ovechkin scored twice for the 33-26-9 Capitals (75 points), who remain one point behind the Detroit Red Wings for the final Eastern Conference wildcard berth.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Matthews has a league-leading 57 goals, nine up on Florida Panthers forward Sam Reinhart. Some pundits are suggesting he could reach 70. He still has some distance to cover to reach that milestone but he’s within reach of 65, which was Ovechkin’s career high and the most scored by an NHL player in the salary-cap era.
Leafs defenseman T.J. Brodie was a healthy scratch from this game while teammate Ryan Reaves missed this contest with an eye injury. Capitals forwards T.J. Oshie (upper body) and Aliaksei Protas (lower body) missed this game and are listed as day-to-day.
Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar had a goal and an assist to reach 1,200 regular-season points as his club blanked the Minnesota Wild 6-0. Kevin Fiala, Phillip Danault and Viktor Arvidsson also had a goal and an assist each while David Rittich turned in a 31-save shutout for the 36-22-11 Kings, who sit third in the Pacific Division with 83 points. The 34-28-8 Wild (73 points) are three points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for the final Western Conference wildcard spot.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The third period got rough with 12 players (six from each team) receiving misconduct penalties.
Arvidsson returned to action for the Kings after being sidelined since Feb. 20. Meanwhile, Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin missed this game with a lower-body injury.
The Dallas Stars rolled to a 5-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes. Jason Robertson had a goal and an assist and Tyler Seguin scored in his return to the Stars lineup after missing 11 games with a lower-body injury. With a record of 42-19-9, the Stars sit third in the Central Division with 93 points. Clayton Keller tallied his 28th goal of the season for the 28-36-5 Coyotes.
HEADLINES
SPORTSNET: Hall-of-Famer Lanny McDonald revealed he was near death after suffering a heart attack at the Calgary airport six weeks ago. Doctors told the 71-year-old that he would’ve died if the episode had taken place minutes earlier on the plane or minutes later in the parking lot.
The quick response from two passing nurses and a policeman saved McDonald’s life. The policeman worked so hard administering CPR that he fractured McDonald’s sternum and several of his ribs.
McDonald underwent quadruple bypass surgery four days later and had a pacemaker installed eight days later.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Best wishes to McDonald and his family in his recovery.
DAILY FACEOFF: NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly insists the science is still lacking regarding the link to CTE and repeated blows to the head.
The question was raised following the suicide of Chris Simon earlier this week. Simon’s family issued a statement expressing their strong belief that the former NHL enforcer suffered from CTE attributed to his playing career.
CTE can only be diagnosed posthumously. In a document submitted to an Ottawa court in 2017, Simon claimed he suffered from symptoms including depression, anxiety and PTSD.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Mayo Clinic, Columbia University, the US National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, the NHS in the United Kingdom, Boston University and the Alzheimer’s Association are among those that would disagree with Daly.
THE SCORE: Speaking of Daly, he said the league probably wouldn’t have enough time to relocate the Arizona Coyotes if their owner fails to win June’s land auction. The Coyotes have been playing in Arizona State University’s 5,000-seat Mullett Arena while their ownership attempts to find a location to build a new arena.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: It’s been reported that relocation would be “on the table” if the Coyotes owner doesn’t win that land auction.
MONTREAL GAZETTE: Canadiens forward Joshua Roy has been sidelined indefinitely with an injured right hand. He suffered the injury blocking a shot during Tuesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers.
TSN: Boston University center Macklin Celebrini was named the NCAA’s Hockey East Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year. The 17-year-old Celebrini is projected as the top prospect in this year’s draft.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The San Jose Sharks could land Celebrini. They’re currently last in the overall standings and would have the best odds of winning the draft lottery.