NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – August 19, 2023

by | Aug 19, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – August 19, 2023

Former NHL stars turn out for Marian Hossa’s “Goodbye Game” in Slovakia, the Sabres trade Ilya Lyubushkin to the Ducks, the Sharks add Ryan Miller and Thomas Vanek to their hockey operations staff, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

THE SCORE: A number of former NHL stars participated in Marian Hossa’s “Goodbye Game” in Slovakia on Friday. Hossa’s playing career was ended prematurely following the 2016-17 season by a rare skin condition. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020.

Hockey Hall of Fame winger Marian Hossa (NHL Images).

Many of the players were former teammates of Hossa, who played for the Ottawa Senators, Atlanta Thrashers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks during his 19-season NHL career.

Among the notables were Nicklas Lidstrom, Zdeno Chara, Daniel Alfredsson, Duncan Keith, Henrik Zetterberg, Jonathan Toews, Peter Bondra, Dustin Byfuglien, Patrick Sharp, Martin Havlat and Miroslav Satan.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hossa, 44, delighted the crowd with a breakaway goal in the third period.

BUFFALO HOCKEY NOW: The Sabres traded defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: To quote Cap Friendly, “There’s nothing like a Friday night trade in the middle of August.” I jokingly suggested that they did it to see if we were paying attention. The timing could in fact be due to the Sabres and their fans mourning the passing of broadcasting icon Rick Jeanneret.

The Sabres had nine defensemen under NHL contract and had to clear the logjam on their blueline. Lyubushkin, 29, is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. This move also frees up $2.75 million from their cap payroll.

For the Ducks, Lyubushkin adds another measure of size, physicality and experience to their blueline after signing Radko Gudas earlier this summer.

SPORTSNET: The San Jose Sharks added former Sabres Ryan Miller and Thomas Vanek to their hockey operations department. The pair are former teammates of Sharks general manager Mike Grier.

Miller will scout draft-eligible goaltenders for the Sharks and will assist in the development of their goalies. Vanek, meanwhile, becomes an amateur scout in the Minnesota region.

TVA SPORTS: The Montreal Canadiens hired former NHL forward Fernando Pisani as an amateur scout. He played for the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks from 2002-03 to 2010-11, with seven of those seasons with the Oilers.

NHL.COM: Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid topped the NHL Network’s recent ranking of the top 20 centers for the 2023-24 season. Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon, Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl, Toronto’s Auston Matthews and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – January 20, 2023

by | Jan 20, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – January 20, 2023

The Sabres retire Ryan Miller’s No. 30, milestone games for the Bruins’ Patrice Bergeron and the Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov, the final 12 players are named to the 2023 All-Star Game, and much more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: The Buffalo Sabres retired Ryan Miller’s No. 30 in a pregame ceremony before downing the New York Islanders 3-2 on an overtime goal by Dylan Cozens. Rasmus Dahlen collected two assists for the Sabres (22-19-3) as they sit four points out of the final Eastern Conference wild-card berth with 47 points. Ilya Sorokin stopped 42 shots for the Islanders (23-19-6), who remain tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins with 51 points. The Penguins, however, hold the last wild-card spot with three games in hand over the Isles.

Buffalo Sabres raise Ryan Miller’s banner (NHL.com).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Miller played 11 seasons with the Sabres from 2002 to 2014. He’s their all-time goaltending leader with 284 wins, 540 games played, 14, 847 saves and single-season wins with 41. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2009-10 and was named to that season’s First All-Star Team. He retired in 2021 after 18 NHL seasons.

Boston Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron scored the game-winning goal and Jeremy Swayman made 31 saves in a 3-1 win over the New York Rangers. Bergeron surpassed Phil Esposito to move into second place among Bruins scorers with 78 game-winning goals. Boston (35-5-4) maintains a 12-point lead over the Carolina Hurricanes for first place in the overall standings with 76 points. The 25-14-7 Rangers sit third in the Metropolitan Division with 57 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: John Bucyk is Boston’s all-time leader in game-winning goals with 88. Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo left this game after blocking a shot with his left leg.

Speaking of the Hurricanes, they defeated the Minnesota Wild by a score of 5-2. Frederik Andersen turned aside 29 shots while Martin Necas had a goal and an assist for the 28-9-8 Hurricanes. Wild winger Kirill Kaprizov scored his 100th career goal, becoming the third-fastest active skater to reach that milestone by doing it in his 180th career NHL game. The Wild (25-14-4) remain in third place in the Central Division.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It was a costly loss for the Hurricanes as winger Max Pacioretty left the game in the third period after suffering an injury to the same leg that sidelined him for all but five games this season. It remains to be seen if he reinjured the Achilles tendon.

The Dallas Stars got a 34-save shutout from Scott Wedgewood to blank the Los Angeles Kings 4-0. Tyler Seguin scored twice and collected an assist as the Stars (27-13-7) took over sole possession of first place in the Western Conference with 61 points. The Kings slipped to 25-16-6 and hold third place in the Pacific Division.

Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews scored twice and Ilya Samsonov kicked out 37 shots in a 4-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Mitch Marner scored to extend his home points streak record to 20 games as the Leafs (28-11-7) sit in second place in the Atlantic Division with 63 points. Kyle Connor replied for the Jets (29-16-1) as they slipped two points behind the Stars in the Western Conference standings.

The Edmonton Oilers picked up their fifth straight win by downing the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-3. Connor McDavid netted his league-leading 39 goal of the season to snap a 3-3 in the third period while Zach Hyman tallied twice for the 26-18-3 Oilers, who hold the first Western Conference wild-card berth with 55 points. Brayden Point had a goal and an assist for the Lightning (29-14-1) as their five-game win streak came to an end, leaving them four points behind the Leafs in third place in the Atlantic Division.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Oilers winger Evander Kane faces two trials next week in a San Jose courtroom after filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy two years ago. The two creditors hope to block a discharge that would allow Kane to walk away from his remaining debts. His trial briefs revealed he borrowed $48 million between 2014 and 2019.

An overtime goal by Andre Burakovsky lifted the Seattle Kraken over the New Jersey Devils 4-3, snapping the latter’s five-game win streak. Ryan Donato scored two goals and added an assist for the 27-14-4 Kraken, who moved ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights into first place in the Pacific Division with 58 points. Devils captain Nico Hischier tallied his 21st goal of the season as they sit two points behind the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes with 62 points (29-12-4).

Speaking of the Golden Knights (28-16-2), they fell 3-2 to the Detroit Red Wings. Ville Husso made 33 saves while Joe Veleno scored what proved to be the game-winning goal. Reilly Smith collected two assists for the Golden Knights, who have the same number of points as the Kraken (58) but the latter hold first in the Pacific with a game in hand. The Wings, meanwhile, improved to 19-17-8 on the season.

Washington Capitals goalie Darcy Kuemper made 26 saves to pick up his league-leading fifth shutout of the season to beat the Arizona Coyotes 4-0. Dylan Strome scored twice for the Capitals (25-17-6) as they opened a five-point lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins for the first Eastern wild-card spot with 56 points. The Coyotes (14-26-5) played without leading goal scorer Lawson Crouse (16 goals) as he’s listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

St. Louis Blues forwards Brandon Saad and Robert Thomas each had a goal and an assist in a 5-2 win over the Nashville Predators. The Blues improved to 23-20-3 (49 points) to sit two points behind the Calgary Flames for the final Western wild-card spot. The Predators (21-18-6) sit one point back of the Blues.

The Florida Panthers (22-20-5, 49 points) moved to within two points of the Penguins for the final Eastern wild-card spot with a 6-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Matthew Tkachuk scored twice and Aleksander Barkov collected two assists for the Panthers. The Canadiens fell to 19-24-3.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and forward Eric Staal left this game with injuries. Backup netminder Alex Lyon made 23 saves for the win. Earlier in the day, Panthers coach Paul Maurice was fined $25,000 by the NHL for making comments about the officiating in their game against the Leafs on Jan. 17.

Five unanswered goals rallied the Anaheim Ducks over the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-3. Trevor Zegras, Cam Fowler and Adam Henrique each had a goal and an assist for the 13-28-5 Ducks as they snapped a five-game losing skid. The Jackets dropped to 13-20-2.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Ducks activated forward Isac Lundestrom off injured reserve but forward Mason McTavish missed this contest with a lower-body injury.

The Chicago Blackhawks ended a 17-game regular-season road winless skid against the Philadelphia Flyers with a 4-1 victory. Petr Mrazek stopped 37 shots while Jonathan Toews had a goal and an assist for the 13-26-4 Blackhawks. The Flyers fell to 19-20-7.

HEADLINES

NHL.COM: The final 12 players were named to the 2023 NHL All-Star Game. Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, Leafs center Auston Matthews, Bruins winger David Pastrnak and Rangers winger Artemi Panarin were among the notables chosen by fan voting.

Speaking of the All-Star game, the jerseys for the event were also unveiled yesterday.

PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: Flyers head coach John Tortorella continued to support Ivan Provorov after the defenseman declined to participate in a warm-up skate before Tuesday’s game against Anaheim wearing an LGBTQ+-themed jersey during Pride Night citing his religious beliefs. “Prov did nothing wrong,” said Tortorella. “Just because you don’t agree with his decision doesn’t mean he did anything wrong.”

DAILY FACEOFF: NHL commissioner Gary Bettman weighed in on the situation to put the focus on the 700 players who supported LGBTQ+ Pride and embrace inclusivity.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Those comments did little to quell the wave of criticism from a number of fans and pundits on social media over Provorov’s stance and Tortorella’s support of his decision.

OTTAWA SUN: Senators forward Mathieu Joseph was scratched from the lineup for Wednesday’s game against the Penguins for breaking a team rule. Neither he or the club elaborated on the situation but Joseph is keen to return to action for Friday’s rematch in Pittsburgh.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – September 10, 2022

by | Sep 10, 2022

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – September 10, 2022

Ryan Miller to be inducted into the US Hockey Hall of Fame, an update on contract talks between the Golden Knights and Nicolas Hague, Danny DeKeyser and Calvin de Haan among several players accepting PTOs, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

TSN: Ryan Miller will be part of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2022. He joins Olympic gold medalist twins Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando, Steve Cash and Jim Johansson among the inductees on Nov. 30.

Former NHL goaltender Ryan Miller (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Miller played 18 seasons in the NHL from 2002-03 to 2020-21 with the Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks and Anaheim Ducks. He is among the best American goaltenders in league history.

Winner of the Vezina Trophy in 2010, Miller holds the record for most wins (391) by a US-born netminder and sits 14th on the all-time NHL wins list. Miller also backstopped Team USA to a silver medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics and was named the tournament’s most valuable player.

FOX 5 VEGAS’ Vince Sapienza took to Twitter reporting a lack of progress in contract talks between the Vegas Golden Knights and Nicolas Hague. There’s been “very little dialogue” since early July.

Sapienza also reports Hague is in Las Vegas preparing for training camp but his representatives are growing concerned over the lack of communication. He won’t report when camp opens on Sep. 21 if there’s no deal in place by then.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hague, 23, is coming off his entry-level contract. The only leverage he has is avoiding training camp but that won’t do either side any good. Hague will miss out on valuable preparation with his teammates including preseason play while the Golden Knights will be without a big promising two-way defenseman who can log big minutes for them.

TSN: Five notable free agents signed professional tryout offers on Friday.

The Vancouver Canucks signed Danny DeKeyser. The 32-year-old defenseman spent 10 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings.

Carolina Hurricanes sign Calvin de Haan. The 31-year-old blueliner spent the past three seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Toronto Maple Leafs signed Zach Aston-Reese. The 28-year-old winger was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks at the 2022 trade deadline after spending almost five seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

San Jose Sharks signed Scott Harrington. The 29-year-old defenseman spent the past six seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

CBS SPORTS: Nathan Beaulieu signed a PTO with the Anaheim Ducks. The 29-year-old blueliner split last season between the Winnipeg Jets and Pittsburgh Penguins.

TORONTO SUN/THE PROVINCE: The recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II prompted remembrances of her attendance at a 1951 exhibition game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs and her ceremonial puck drop at a 2002 game between the San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 11, 2022

by | Jun 11, 2022

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 11, 2022

The 2022 Stanley Cup Final schedule is announced, the Stars trade Ben Bishop’s contract to Buffalo, Ryan Miller’s number to be retired by the Sabres, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

NHL.COM: The 2022 Stanley Cup Final will begin on June 15 or June 18 depending on the outcome of the Eastern Conference Finals.

If the Tampa Bay Lightning win Game 6 on Saturday, they will face off against the Colorado Avalanche in Denver for Game 1 of the Cup Final on June 15.

If the Rangers win Game 6 and force a seventh and deciding game of the Conference Final on Monday, the winner of that game will meet the Avalanche in Colorado for Game 1 of the Cup Final on June 18.

WGR 550/THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: The Dallas Stars traded the contract of Ben Bishop along with their 2022 seventh-round pick to the Buffalo Sabres for future considerations. A knee injury ended the 35-year-old goaltender’s career but he hasn’t officially retired because he remains under contract through 2022-23.

Dallas Stars trade Ben Bishop’s contract to the Buffalo Sabres (NHL.com).

The Stars clear Bishop’s contract from their books, allowing them to avoid potential bonus overages in 2023-24. It also makes it easier for them to navigate the salary cap in 2022-23 without Bishop on long-term injury reserve.

As for the Sabres, the move allows them to get closer to next season’s $61 million salary-cap minimum by taking on Bishop’s $4.9 million cap hit for next season, though in actual salary they’ll pay him $3.5 million.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Some readers might wonder why the Stars didn’t just retain Bishop and put him on LTIR to exceed the cap next season. Once they do that, however, they won’t be able to accrue salary-cap space.

That’s why we hear trade rumors of cap-strapped teams trying to peddle the contracts of permanently sidelined players to teams looking to reach the cap floor. What also made Bishop’s contract enticing to the Sabres is that his actual salary is less than his cap hit.

NHL.COM: Speaking of the Sabres, they will retire Ryan Miller’s No. 30 during a ceremony next season. Miller, 41, retired at the end of last season following an 18-season career, 11 of those spent with the Sabres from 2002-03 until traded to the St. Louis Blues before the 2014 trade deadline.

Miller is the Sabres’ all-time leader with 284 wins and sits second to Dominik Hasek with 28 shutouts. He backstopped them to consecutive Eastern Conference Finals in 2006 and 2007 and won the Vezina Trophy in 2010.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Congratulations to Miller for this well-deserved honor.

SPORTSNET: Carey Price recently had a platelet-rich plasma injection as part of his treatment for the knee injury that still threatens to end his playing career. The 34-year-old Montreal Canadiens goaltender hopes to begin ramping up his training as he intends to start preparing to play. “I don’t think I will actually have an idea of how that’s going to look until later this summer when I’ve taken all the necessary steps to get back on the ice again.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The ongoing uncertainty over Price’s status will affect whatever decision they make regarding their goaltending for next season. They could end up shopping for help by placing him on LTIR. They also have Jake Allen under contract for next season and could give Cayden Primeau another try between the pipes if Price can’t play.

TAMPA BAY TIMES: With eight goals, Ondrej Palat has taken over the Lightning goal-scoring lead this postseason. He’s tallied in the last three games, including two game winners.

NEW YORK POST: Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant could break up his Kid Line of Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere for tonight’s Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The line saw limited ice time during the Rangers’ 3-1 loss in Game 5.

Speaking of the Rangers, one of their fans was arrested and charged with two counts of assault, two counts of disorderly conduct and two counts of harassment after sucker-punching a Lightning fan in Madison Square Garden following Game 5 and then punching another fan who attempted to stop him from fleeing the arena. Garden officials condemned the incident and banned the fan from all their venues for life.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: At some point in that guy’s life, somebody probably warned him that his temper would get him into trouble…

PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE: A source indicates Fenway Sports Group will name Kevin Acklin as the Penguins’ president of business operations.

THE ATHLETIC: Sean McIndoe looked at several theories regarding why Canadian teams haven’t won the Stanley Cup since 1993.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: I have two that didn’t appear on McIndoe’s otherwise solid list.

First, Canadian clubs are outnumbered by a much larger margin of American teams than they were during the Stanley Cup glory years of the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames. That makes it more difficult to build and maintain a Cup contender.

The other is all seven of the current Canadian teams have also suffered the consequences of mismanagement since 1993. Sometimes, those decisions were based on the misguided view that their fans wouldn’t support a rebuild. Others were due to meddling ownership, inexperience or just poor judgment.