NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 27, 2019
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 27, 2019
Sharks and Hurricanes win Game 1 of their respective second-round series, Jack Adams Award finalists revealed, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.
NHL.COM: Brent Burns had a four-point performance (one goal, three assists) while teammate Joe Thornton had a goal and an assist (his 100th career playoff assists) to lead the San Jose Sharks to a 5-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 1 of their second-round series. Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made 26 saves for the win.
The Sharks were without captain Joe Pavelski (head injury) and winger Joonas Donskoi (undisclosed) for this contest. Both remain questionable for Game 2 on Sunday.

San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns had a four-point performance against the Colorado Avalanche in a 5-2 Game 1 victory (Photo via NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Sharks forward Kevin Labanc’s game-winning tally was a thing of beauty, dodging a hit from Avs winger Mikko Rantanen near the Colorado blueliner and firing a high wrister past netminder Philipp Grubauer.
The Carolina Hurricanes drew first blood in their second-round series with the New York Islanders as Jordan Staal’s overtime goal gave them a 1-0 Game 1 victory. Hurricanes goaltender Petr Mrazek made 31 saves for the shutout while Isles goalie Robin Lehner also kicked out 31 shots.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: For a one-goal playoff game, this one was rather entertaining. There were some good scoring chances, several flashy saves, and some big hits in this contest. The Islanders didn’t look too rusty from their 10-game layoff while the Hurricanes had little difficulty adjusting to a new opponent after ousting the Washington Capitals less than 48 hours prior.
Craig Berube of the St. Louis Blues, Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Barry Trotz of the New York Islanders are this year’s finalists for the Jack Adams Award, “given annually to the coach voted as the best in the NHL.”
THE SCORE/TSN: Boston Bruins pesky left winger Brad Marchand wasted no time trolling Columbus Blue Jackets forwards Cam Atkinson and Riley Nash. Marchand broke Atkinson’s stick in Game 1 by stomping on it during a faceoff. “I think he was trying to dull my blade there,” Marchand said. He chided former teammate Nash following Game 1 for his hit on David Krejci that sidelined the Bruins center with an upper-body injury. “I don’t think he had a hit in two years with us.”
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Well, at least he’s not cheap-shotting someone or licking an opponent’s face.
MONTREAL GAZETTE: The Canadiens yesterday re-signed center Jordan Weal to a two-year contract with an annual average value of $1.4 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canadiens acquired Weal from the Arizona Coyotes before the February trade deadline. This is the second re-signing in as many days of a depth forward they traded for this season, having inked Nate Thompson on Thursday to a one-year contract. Both are reasonable short-term signings.
TSN: Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Igor Ozhiganov is likely to return to the KHL next season. The Leafs remain interested in re-signing him.
CBS SPORTS: Former NHL winger Jannik Hansen is hanging up his skates. He spent nearly 13 seasons with the Vancouver Canucks and San Jose Sharks – all but two with the Canucks – from 2006-07 to 2017-18. In 626 NHL games, the 33-year-old tallied 109 goals and 147 assists for 256 points, as well as seven goals and 19 points in 70 playoff contests. He spent this season in the KHL with CSKA Moscow.