NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – October 13, 2023

by | Oct 13, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – October 13, 2023

Recaps of Thursday’s games featured two-goal performances by the Rangers’ Chris Kreider and the Devils’ Jack Hughes plus the Bruins reveal their All-Centennial Team. Details on these and other stories in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider scored a power play and a shorthanded goal in a 5-1 season-opening victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Mika Zibanejad collected three assists while Igor Shesterkin made 23 saves for his 100th career victory to give Peter Laviolette his first win as Rangers head coach. JJ Peterka scored for the Sabres.

New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider (NHL Images).

The New Jersey Devils opened the season with a two-goal performance by Jack Hughes to hold off the Detroit Red Wings 4-3. Jonas Siegenthaler collected three assists while Vitek Vanecek stopped 32 shots for the win. Alex DeBrincat scored his first goal for the Red Wings while Ville Husso made 23 saves.

Philadelphia Flyers winger Travis Konecny tallied twice, Scott Laughton had two assists and Carter Hart kicked out 31 shots in a 4-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Patrik Laine scored for the Jackets while rookie Adam Fantilli picked up an assist for his first career NHL point.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Flyers center Sean Couturier had an assist and winger Cam Atkinson scored as both players played their first games after being sidelined by injuries for the entirety of last season. Meanwhile, Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski left the game in the second period with a quadriceps contusion following a hit by Flyers forward Garnet Hathaway.

The Minnesota Wild got a 41-save shutout from Filip Gustavsson to blank the Florida Panthers 2-0. Wild rookie (and Minnesota native) Brock Faber scored his first career NHL goal while Joel Eriksson Ek scored and assisted on Faber’s goal. Sergei Bobrovsky made 19 saves for the Panthers.

Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros stopped 23 shots for his 21st career shutout in a 3-0 win over the Seattle Kraken. Colton Sissons, Gustav Nyquist and Juuso Parssinen scored for the Predators, giving head coach Andrew Brunette his first win behind their bench. Philipp Grubauer made 32 saves for the Kraken.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Kraken played without forward Brandon Tanev as he remains sidelined with an upper-body injury. Predators defenseman Luke Schenn was a late scratch from this game with a lower-body injury.

Shootout goals by Jason Robertson and Matt Duchene lifted the Dallas Stars over the St. Louis Blues 2-1. Jamie Benn opened the scoring while Jake Oettinger stopped 23 shots for the Stars. Tyler Tucker replied for the Blues, who got a 33-save effort from Jordan Binnington.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Stars played without top-line forward Roope Hintz as he continues to nurse an upper-body injury.

Second-period goals by Nic Hague and Nicolas Roy carried the Vegas Golden Knights to a 4-1 win over the San Jose Sharks. Logan Thompson made 22 saves for the Golden Knights. Filip Zadina replied for the Sharks.

HEADLINES

BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: The Bruins announced their All-Centennial Team yesterday.

Forwards: Patrice Bergeron, Johnny Bucyk, Wayne Cashman, Bill Cowley, Phil Esposito, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, Rick Middleton, Cam Neely, Terry O’Reilly, David Pastrnak, and Milt Schmidt.

Defense: Ray Bourque, Zdeno Chara, Dit Clapper, Bobby Orr, Brad Park and Eddie Shore.

Goaltenders: Frankie Brimsek and Gerry Cheevers.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Fans will likely quibble over the same of the names on this list, making for what should be a fun debate. Overall, however, it’s comprised of players who played major roles for the Bruins in their biggest moments over their 100-year history.

Oh, and if they haven’t already chosen the biggest moment in Bruins history, it’s unquestionably Orr’s Stanley Cup winner in 1970. That is the most iconic goal ever scored in the NHL.

TSN: The Los Angeles Kings placed winger Viktor Arvidsson (lower-body injury) on long-term injury reserve. Meanwhile, Kings center Phillip Danault was fined $5,000.00 for slashing Colorado Avalanche forward Ross Colton on Wednesday.

DAILY FACEOFF: *WARNING: GROSSNESS AHEAD!*

Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet revealed the reason why goaltender Thatcher Demko left the game during Wednesday’s 8-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers. Demko was battling the flu and was pulled during the third period after he “puked in his mask,” according to Tocchet.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: My apologies to those of you who may have been eating when you read this bit, but I did warn you!

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov pointed to the Flyers and their style of play for the decline in his performance during his final three seasons with the club. Provorov was traded to the Jackets in June.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It’ll be interesting to see if there’s any reaction from the Flyers about Provorov’s comments, especially from head coach John Tortorella. Time will tell if his move to the Jackets will improve his game.

Mind you, Provorov does have a point about the Flyers’ style of play. Part of that was due to their coaching changes since 2021, firing Alain Vigneault and going with Mike Yeo on an interim basis before hiring Tortorella in 2022.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Anaheim Ducks rookie Leo Carlsson will miss the club’s season opener on Saturday with a lower-body injury. However, he’s expected to rejoin the lineup at some point next week.

TAMPA BAY TIMES: The Lightning recalled forward Alex Barre-Boulet, which is seen as an indication that winger Tyler Motte will remain sidelined with an injured hand.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Ottawa Senators free agent Alex Formenton has signed with Swiss club HC Ambri-Piotta until the end of the calendar year. The club also released a statement referencing an ongoing investigation into sexual assault allegations made toward some unnamed members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior team. Formenton was part of that club but hasn’t commented on the investigation nor has he been accused or charged.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Formenton’s contract also contains an out-clause allowing him to return to the NHL.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – October 23, 2021

by | Oct 23, 2021

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – October 23, 2021

​Another multi-point game for Connor McDavid, the Sharks are unbeaten in four straight, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

NHL.COM: Connor McDavid collected two assists while Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman each scored twice to give the Edmonton Oilers a 5-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. The Oilers captain has a league-leading 13 points in five games. Only Wayne Gretzky had more points (15) in franchise history over the same period to start a season. The Oilers sit atop the overall standings with a 5-0-0 record while the Golden Knights are 1-3-0.

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid (NHL Images).

The San Jose Sharks pushed their season-opening win streak to four games (4-0-0) by downing the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-3. Logan Couture scored two goals and set up another while goalie Adin Hill made 30 saves for his third straight victory. The Leafs are 2-2-1 in their first five.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Sharks general manager Doug Wilson entered this season on the hot seat as his club missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. He was also criticized for his handling of Evander Kane’s off-ice issues. The Sharks will eventually lose some games but building on this impressive start will reduce the heat on Wilson.

A 35-save performance by Linus Ullmark backstopped the Boston Bruins to a 4-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres, handing the latter their first loss of the season (3-1-0). Charlie Coyle had a goal and two assists while Taylor Hall and Brad Marchand chipped in two points. This was Ullmark’s first game against his former club.

An overtime goal by Denis Gurianov lifted the Dallas Stars over the Los Angeles Kings 3-2. Miro Heiskanen had a goal and two assists for the Stars. Kings captain Anze Kopitar tallied his sixth goal of the season and has scored in all four of his club’s games. Kings defenseman Drew Doughty left the game in the second period following a knee-on-knee hit by Stars blueliner Jani Hakanpaa, who received a five-minute major and game misconduct for kneeing. Doughty’s status remains unknown.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hakanpaa could receive supplemental discipline for what was a dirty hit on Doughty, who could end up missing significant time as a result.

THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: Anaheim Ducks forward Max Jones will be sidelined between four and six months after suffering a torn pectoral tendon during Monday’s game against the Calgary Flames.

TRIBLIVE.COM: Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry was removed from COVID protocol yesterday and rejoined his teammates in practice. Jarry had received a false positive test on Thursday.

SPORTSNET: Winger Alex Barre-Boulet was reclaimed off waiver by the Tampa Bay Lightning yesterday. He was originally claimed by the Seattle Kraken on Oct. 11 and saw action in two games with them.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: I look forward to his video tribute by the Kraken the next time those two clubs meet.

DAILY FACEOFF: Frank Seravalli reports the NHL and its team of medical experts are currently debating the merits of testing asymptomatic players. This comes after several players, including Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifle and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jeff Carter missed games due to a positive COVID-19 test despite being asymptomatic. That’s led to growing frustration among players and general managers.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Seravalli speculates this could lead to changes to the protocol only to test players and team staff who show symptoms of COVID-19. However, he notes even the experts have split opinions on the matter.

The league and the NHLPA will meet on Nov. 1 to review the protocol. Given the 99.5 percent vaccination rate among players and staff and the strict rules on social distancing, it wouldn’t be surprising if the testing rules become adjusted.