Kukla's Korner Hockey
Category: NHL-Teams
Time For The Blackhawks To Get Serious
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 05:57 PM ET
Comments (6)
from Jesse Rogers of ESPN Chicago,
No one move will make the difference, it’s a cumulative effect, but now that the Wings have proved they can play with the Hawks it’s time for the favorite to get serious. Speed and chaos – as seen in Game 1 -- is called for and the Hawks have been able to accomplish that at Joe Louis Arena lately as much as any team in the league. But Detroit has been decent enough in Chicago over the years too. They were again on Saturday.
“They had the puck a lot tonight,” Kane said. “Took a page out of our game. I felt like we were chasing the puck all the time.”
That was Detroit’s game before it was the Hawks’. The Wings never stopped playing that way, they simply haven’t been as good at it over the last few years. Saturday showed they can still bring it, if their seven-game series win over the Ducks didn’t.
more with some suggested changes...
Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, | KK Hockey | Permalink
NHL Fines The San Jose Sharks $100K
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 05:51 PM ET
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NEW YORK (MAY 18, 2013) -- The San Jose Sharks have been fined $100,000 for public comments by General Manager Doug Wilson pertaining to the suspension of Sharks forward Raffi Torres, the National Hockey League announced today.
The fine was issued for violation of League Rules that prohibit formal team statements to the media during the 48-hour period following a disciplinary decision. The Rule calls for an automatic fine of $25,000. The Sharks were fined an additional $75,000 under Article 6 of the League's Constitution due to the inappropriate nature of the comments.
On January 17, 2013 a memorandum was issued to all Clubs regarding Disciplinary Procedures for the 2012-13 season. Following is the excerpt from the memorandum dealing with 'Prohibited Communications':
Filed in: NHL Teams, San Jose Sharks, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Afternoon Line
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 03:47 PM ET
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Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, | KK Hockey | Permalink
No Surgery Required For Eric Staal
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 11:13 AM ET
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RALEIGH, NC – Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test on team captain Eric Staal’s right knee revealed a third-degree sprain of the medial collateral ligament (MCL). Surgery will not be required to repair the ligament, and Staal’s rehabilitation should last three months. It is expected that he will be healthy and ready to play to start the 2013-14 season.
Staal, 28, was injured when he took a knee-on-knee hit from defenseman Alexander Edler in the first period of Canada’s quarterfinal game at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships on Thursday in Stockholm, Sweden. Edler received a five-minute major kneeing penalty and a game misconduct by the game’s officials. On Friday, the IIHF Independent Disciplinary Panel determined that Edler should have received a match penalty as a result of the play and suspended him for the remainder of the tournament.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Carolina Hurricanes, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: eric+staal
Two Western Conference Games Today
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 11:05 AM ET
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The Red Wings will try to even the series at 1-1 with the Blackhawks while the Sharks need a win or else they will go down 0-3 to the Kings.
Filed in: NHL Teams, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Brad Richards, The High Priced 4th-Liner
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 08:50 AM ET
Comments (4)
from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,
So when Tortorella begins an answer to a question about Richards’ status as the club’s fourth-line center with the words, “Sometimes it’s not about Brad,” as he did yesterday on the first of two days between Game 1 of the conference semis and Game 2 against the Bruins here tomorrow, it’s kind of a whoa moment.
As much of a whoa moment as the whole of the 3-2 overtime series-opening defeat in which Richards got the least amount of even-strength ice time of any Ranger (9:59), including 26 seconds in the second period when he sat on the bench for a stretch of eight minutes.
Richards, who turned 33 a couple of weeks ago, isn’t some bit guy. He was supposed to be the missing link when he signed that nine-year, $60 million contract over the summer of 2011 under which he has already been paid $24 million — and would be owed another $24 million if the Rangers use their final amnesty buyout on him this summer.
Filed in: NHL Teams, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
A Bad Night For Erik Karlsson
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 08:16 AM ET
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from Ken Warren of Senators Extra,
It was one of the worst nights of Karlsson’s career. He played only 15:37, an all-time low for him in a playoff game, clearly showing that he’s not even close to full health since his quick return from Achilles surgery.
“We finished pretty strong, but we started poorly,” Karlsson said, earlier in the interview. “Some of the blame is on me. I’m struggling a little bit.”
Karlsson says he’s not sure whether his problems stem from the injury or fatigue.
“I don’t really know,” he said. “I don’t think I have the answer to that myself. I just have to find a way to figure my body out and obviously I’m not feeling the same way as I’m used to. It started bad and I just couldn’t get it going.”
Senators coach Paul MacLean didn’t disagree with any of that.
“He played 15:37, which isn’t normal for him,” said MacLean, looking at the official game sheet. “So, obviously, he wasn’t one of our best players. On our team, the best players play. He wasn’t one of our best players, so he didn’t play.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Ottawa Senators, Pittsburgh Penguins, | KK Hockey | Permalink
San Jose GM Doug Wilson On The Torres Suspension
by Paul on 05/18/13 at 08:06 AM ET
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from the Sharks website,
The Sharks organization fully supports the NHL in its efforts to remove illegal and dangerous hits from the game but we strongly disagree with the NHL's decision to suspend Raffi Torres.
Upon review of the incident, it is abundantly clear that this was a clean hockey hit. As noted by the NHL, Raffi's initial point of contact was a shoulder-to-shoulder hit on an opponent who was playing the puck. He did not leave his feet or elevate, he kept his shoulder tucked and elbow down at his side, and he was gliding - not skating or charging.
As stated in the NHL's Player Safety video, Rule 48.1 says, "A hit resulting in contact with an opponent's head where the head is targeted and the principal point of contact is not permitted." Thus, with the use of the word "and", this rule clearly states that two elements must occur in order to violate the rule. Raffi absolutely did not target his opponent's head on the play. The call on the ice specifically acknowledged that the head was not targeted and nowhere in the NHL's ruling does it insinuate or suggest that the opponent's head was targeted.
How does Don Cherry feel about the suspension? Watch below and find out...
Filed in: NHL Teams, San Jose Sharks, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: doug+wilson
Video- Come On Boys
by Paul on 05/17/13 at 06:24 PM ET
Comments (3)
Many NHL players were mic'ed by during the frist round of the playoffs.
Boy, boys sure is tossed around.
Filed in: NHL Teams, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Talking Puck Over The Glass And Missed Infractions
by Paul on 05/17/13 at 04:04 PM ET
Comments (1)
from Kerry Fraser of TSN,
Every other rule in the book allows for referee discretion to determine the existence of an infraction, along with the varying degrees at the referee's disposal to implement the final assessment ranging from a minor, double minor, major or match penalty. Aside from determining if the puck is deflected, the referee's discretion is nonexistent when it come to Rule 63.2 — Delaying the Game; Puck over the glass!
We have seen more than one playoff game determined when a player accidentally put the puck over the glass to incur a penalty. It matters not if the puck was rolling and unsettled or the ice was bad and contributed to the flight of the puck. It's the only rule that I can honestly say is simply 'Black and White'!It was very disconcerting for me to see obvious infractions that went uncalled in deciding games and particularly Game 7's that were played in the previous round. These 'discretionary calls' ranged from body slams to majors for elbowing, cross-checks from behind or a major cross-check infraction to the face (minor called), attempted slew-foot, goalkeeper retaliation with a blocker strike to an opponent's head, charging, and boarding. The referee 'discretion' implemented at times pretty much ran the gambit with a "let them play" mentality.
While I'm not suggesting that this poor standard of enforcement is in any way acceptable, it further demonstrates the absurdity of the puck over glass rule as it now exists.
Filed in: NHL Teams, NHL Talk, NHL Officiating, | KK Hockey | Permalink
About Kukla's Korner Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
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