NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 16, 2018

by | May 16, 2018

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 16, 2018

Lightning take Game 3 of Eastern Conference Final, plus the latest on Jacob Trouba, Jaromir Jagr and more in your NHL morning coffee headlines.

NHL.COM: Victor Hedman scored his first goal of the playoffs and collected two assists to lead the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 4-2 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 3 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Final. The Capitals still lead the series two games to one. The Bolts remain lethal on the power-play, with Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov scoring with the man advantage. Game 4 goes Thursday night in Washington.

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman collected 3 points in his club’s 4-2 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 3 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Final (Photo via NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was a big win for the Lightning, as a loss would’ve put them down 3-0 in the series. The Bolts overcame early jitters to force the Capitals into making defensive mistakes. The Lightning aren’t out of the woods yet, as a Game 4 loss will put them on the brink of elimination. 

 

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL: Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt received media praise for his strong performance in his club’s victory over the Jets in Game 2 of the Western Conference Final. 

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Jaromir Jagr has agreed to return next season with his hometown club Kladno in the Czech Republic. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: And with that, we can put to rest the notion of Jagr possibly returning to the NHL next season. While the 46-year-old future Hall of Famer keeps his pro career alive elsewhere, his NHL playing days have come to an end. 

MONTREAL GAZETTE: Former NHL center David Desharnais will join the KHL’s Yaroslavl Lokomotiv next season. “In 524 career NHL games, the 31-year-old Desharnais posted 87-195-282 totals.”

THE DENVER POST: The Colorado Avalanche yesterday announced the re-signing of defenseman Mark Barberio to a two-year, $2.9-million contract extension.

 











NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 3, 2017

by | Feb 3, 2017

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 3, 2017

San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau celebrates his 500th career NHL goal.

Game recaps, waiver updates and the latest on the 2018 Winter Olympics in your NHL morning coffee headlines. 

NHL.COM: Long-time San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau scored his 500th career NHL goal as his club downed the Vancouver Canucks 4-1. Chris Tierney also scored twice for the Sharks.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Congratulations to Marleau for his incredible achievement. He is the fifth active NHL player to score 500 goals, joining Jaromir Jagr (758), Jarome Iginla (617), Alex Ovechkin (550) and Marian Hossa (518). 

Erik Karlsson collected three assists and Matt Stone scored twice to lead the Ottawa Senators to a 5-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, who’ve won only once in their last seven games. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Lightning have tumbled to second-last in the Eastern Conference and sit eight points out of playoff contention. If they don’t reverse this skid soon, this supposed Stanley Cup contender can forget about reaching the postseason. 

Ondrej Pavelec turned in a 39-save performance and Mark Scheifele scored twice as the Winnipeg Jets edged the Dallas Stars 4-3. Stars captain Jamie Benn scored a goal and set up two others in a losing cause.  

Pekka Rinne made 31 saves while Viktor Arvidsson and Ryan Johansen each netted a goal and an assist as the Nashville Predators blanked the Edmonton Oilers 2-0. 

New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist bounced back from a horrible effort against Columbus earlier this week with a 36-save performance to carry his club to a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres. Chris Kreider tallied the winner with 1:04 left in the extra frame. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Inconsistency has plagued Lundqvist throughout this season. The Rangers need a steadier effort from him over the remainder of this season and into the playoffs. 

Mike Yeo got his first win as head coach of the St. Louis Blues as his club cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Paul Stastny scored twice and set up another while Colton Parayko also had a three-point performance. 

First-period goals by Patrick Kane, Ryan Hartman and Marion Hossa powered the Chicago Blackhawks to a 4-3 victory over the Arizona Coyotes. It was the Hawks first win in four games. 

Matt Read’s first goal since Nov. 27 turned out to be the game winner as the Philadelphia Flyers downed the Montreal Canadiens 3-1. 

THE DENVER POST: The Colorado Avalanche claimed defenseman Mark Barberio off waivers yesterday from the Montreal Canadiens.

SPORTSNET’s Chris Johnston yesterday reported “Cal O’Reilly (BUF), Eric Gelinas (COL) and Luke Gazdic (NJ) have all been placed on waivers.”

NHL.COM: The Minnesota Wild yesterday re-signed goaltender Alex Stalock to a two-year contract. It’s one way for the first season (2017-18) and two-way the following season. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: With Darcy Kuemper due to become a UFA this summer, this move ensures the Wild can protect starter Devan Dubnyk. 

TSN: NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA director Donald Fehr will be meeting with International Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation officials today to discuss the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It’ll be interesting to see what comes out of this. While not much is expected from this meeting, it’s possible Bettman will use this opportunity to try and extract some additional concessions from the PA, the IOC and IIHF regarding participation in next year’s Winter Games. While the league board of governors isn’t interested in taking part, Bettman is not acting like someone who wants to fully slam the door on this issue. NHL players very much want to take part so Fehr’s presence also lends an interesting level of intrigue to the proceedings. 

TORONTO SUN: Chris Pronger jokingly said he’s fined himself five dollars for squashing pop star Justin Bieber against the glass during the celebrity exhibition game during the recent All-Star weekend. Pronger works with the NHL’s department of player safety. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It was worth every penny for that now-iconic photo.