NEW YORK (Jan. 13, 2023) – Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for roughing Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland during NHL Game No. 667 in Tampa on Thursday, Jan. 12, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today.
The incident occurred at 19:19 of the third period. The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
Watch below.
NEW YORK (Jan. 13, 2023) – Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for cross-checking Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Brannstrom during NHL Game No. 672 in Tempe on Thursday, Jan. 12, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today.
The incident occurred at 11:19 of the first period. Keller was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for cross-checking.
The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
watch below
from Joe Smith of The Athletic,
It drives some fans crazy, wondering why the team doesn’t feel the need to work on things after a loss. But coach Dean Evason’s philosophy doesn’t change whether his team has won three in a row or lost three in a row, as they have now. The Wild have practiced just twice in the first 12 days of January. They had off days Monday and Wednesday heading into Thursday’s game against the Islanders.
It’s not because Evason, an avid golfer, wants to work on his swing. It’s not because the staff doesn’t see value in practice. It’s not because players are snowed in.
“When you see the science behind it,” captain Jared Spurgeon says, “It makes sense.”
Evason says the team’s decision on a practice schedule is the result of constant communication between coaches, players and the strength and conditioning staff. He believes rest can be a weapon, especially in today’s NHL. He understands the importance — mentally and physically — of getting away from the rink.
And Evason trusts the data....
Each Wild player wears a heart-rate monitor as often as he can — from when he’s getting his gear on, to workouts, practices and games. The monitor is attached to a strap around the chest.
There’s a program called Firstbeat, which many NHL teams (and soccer clubs) use. It tracks a measurement called TRIMP (training impulse), which is based on zones of your heart rate. You accumulate units per minute. For example, if you’re above 90 percent of your max heart rate, it can be accumulating at least three TRIMP per minute, and it decreases as it goes down.
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from Kevin Woodley at the NHL website,
Missing front teeth might be one of the most cliched signs of being a hockey player, but contrary to popular belief, NHL goalies are not excluded from this club.
Their fancily adorned full face masks may cover the mouth area, unlike the helmets worn by skaters. Yet when rising pucks catch them the right way in the mask, it can feel like being punched in the mouth. And sometimes, perhaps more than most realize, the bottom edge of the mask's face opening is slammed up hard enough to knock some -- or at least parts of some -- teeth out.
It doesn't even need to be a slap shot.
"Mine aren't fully lost but both of my front teeth are capped in the middle," said Jake Allen of the Montreal Canadiens. "A wrist shot hit the mask and it came up and hit the top of my teeth in morning skate. It wasn't ideal, but it was all right. Just fill them in for now and I'll fix it when hockey is over. There's no point in doing it now."
That's because Allen knows there's always a chance another shot catches his mask and drives the lower chin portion into his top teeth.
Goalies seem more aware of the possibility after Ben Bishop lost his front teeth while making a save for the Tampa Bay Lightning against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 25, 2016. He admitted at the time he was shocked.
from Kate Shefte of the Seattle Times,
he Kraken finished off the first half of the season with their most telling win to date. They handed the Bruins their first regulation home loss 3-0 on Thursday and hit seven straight victories for the second time in the 2022-23 season.
The Bruins have the best record in the NHL. They were in the Kraken’s way, on their heels, maybe even in their heads early. They gave Seattle one of the stiffest challenges it has seen this season.
Goaltender Martin Jones made 27 saves and shut out Boston for the first time in 41 games. He turned in his second consecutive shutout and third of the season.
The Bruins had only lost in regulation four times this season and were 19-0-3 at TD Garden. Seattle is two wins shy of matching its total for its inaugural season in mid-January.
Catch the game highlights below.
* The Kraken blanked the Bruins to capture their seventh straight victory and become the first team to earn a regulation win at TD Garden since April 14, 2022 while also halting their 14-game point streak overall.
* Connor McDavid, who dazzled fans one last time before his 26th birthday today (including Ducks legend Teemu Selanne), enters the NHL’s three-game Friday the 13th schedule just one point shy of 80 on the season. The slate also features Jack Hughes and Trevor Zegras squaring off on HULU and ESPN+.
* Just over a week after Connor Bedard’s MVP performance at the 2023 World Junior Championship, NHL Central Scouting will release its mid-season rankings presented by BioSteel on Friday at 11 a.m. ET, listing the top draft-eligible players for the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft.
Does Patrick Kane’s current injury affect any early potential trade talks? Will the Jets be buyers at the NHL trade deadline? Will defenceman John Klingberg be traded to one of the 10 teams on his list? What should we expect from the Kraken as TradeCentre approaches? TSN Hockey Insiders Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger discuss this and more.
via the YouTube page of Sportsnet,
Watch as PK Subban returns to Montreal and receives a heartwarming tribute from the Canadiens and fans at the Bell Centre before reuniting with longtime teammate Carey Price.
“We took the video on the bench off the bench because we want them to just worry about their next shift,” Tortorella said after the Flyers’ 5-3 win Wednesday over Washington. “I think it’s a major problem with us, understanding the momentums of the game,” You can’t understand momentums of the game if you’re looking at the iPad all the time.
“We took them off and aren’t even going to use them, so that they watch the game and see what’s next.”
-John Tortorella, head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers. Ariel Melendez of Philly Hockey Now has more.
* Connor McDavid welcomed the second half of the 2022-23 season with another highlight-reel goal and maintained his pace to become the NHL’s highest-scoring player since Mario Lemieux finished with 161 points in 1995-96
* For the second straight season, the NHL saw a jump in the goals-per-game rate from the quarter mark (6.3 G/GP) to the halfway mark (6.4 G/GP). That is just the third time that has occurred in consecutive seasons since the start of the 1980s.
* Streaking clubs will clash at TD Garden when the Kraken and their six-game win streak square off with a Bruins team that has collected at least point in all 22 of their home games this season.
via the NHL PR department,
The 2022-23 season will eclipse the halfway mark during games Wednesday, Jan. 11 (657 of 1,312 games). All stats below entering play on Wednesday (through 653 games played).
QUICK HITS
* The highest-scoring NHL season in 27 years will surpass the halfway mark Wednesday, with the 6.4 goals-per-game rate last seen at this stage of a season in 1995-96 (also 6.4 G/GP).
* Should the 6.4 goals-per-game rate hold through Wednesday’s first three contests, it will mark the second straight season to witness a scoring jump from the quarter mark (6.3) to the halfway point (in 2021-22, the goals-per-game rate moved from 5.9 to 6.1 over that span). That would mark the third time since the start of the 1980s that such an increase has occurred in consecutive campaigns (it happened from 1990-91 to 1991-92 and from 1999-00 to 2001-02).
from Luke DeCock of the News & Observer,
Fourteen years is too long.
There was a time, an epoch ago, when the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils seemed destined to collide in the playoffs, year after year after year. Then, the Hurricanes faded from relevance and as they returned the Devils did the same, and never the twain shall meet.
But based on the way the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference are shaking out this season, there are pretty good odds that time has come again.
And based on the way their games have gone this season, there are equally good odds that a Canes-Devils series would be as much fun as it ever was. Maybe even more.
Tuesday night was a disaster for the Hurricanes, who led by two goals going into the final minute of the second period and ended up losing 5-3. But it was an entertaining disaster, full of wild momentum swings, a pair of short-handed goals, a controversial winner — replays showed Dawson Mercer’s breakaway was sprung by a high stick, but the officials missed it and it’s not a challengable play outside the offensive zone — and an epic collapse by the Hurricanes’ third defensive pairing of Jalen Chatfield and Dylan Coghlan.
Pyotr Kotchetkov was poor as well, and while the rookie helped carry the Hurricanes through their winning streak, he clearly needs some time in the AHL to recalibrate. Frederik Andersen, who has been practicing for more than a month, can’t return soon enough — and could as soon as Thursday, although the weekend appears more likely.
Tuesday’s wild loss came on the heels of their last meeting with the Devils in Newark nine days ago, in which the Hurricanes were up 2-1 and 3-2, fell behind 4-3 late and ended up winning in a shootout. That win extended the Hurricanes’ winning streak to 11. They have a new streak now, 0-3-1 since then.
from Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet,
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put the Vancouver Canucks together again.
But Bruce Boudreau will keep trying.
The National Hockey League team, which crashed on its first road trip in October and has seen its fragments smashed into smaller bits since then, blew another three-goal lead Tuesday and lost 5-4 to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It’s not that this game made the Canucks irreparable, blowing a 3-0 first-period head start over the span of 10 minutes. It’s all the games they’ve kicked away in the franchise’s most disappointing first half this century.
Tuesday was the third time in 40 games they lost in regulation time after scoring the first three goals. It was the eighth time they’ve lost while leading by two or more goals.
But, really, what has made them unfixable is the way they defend – leading or otherwise. They have surrendered five or more goals 18 times, nearly every other game. And only the Anaheim Ducks have allowed more goals this season than the 158 pucks the Canucks have fished out of their net.
Game highlights are below.
from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,
- I have no doubt some teams would like to tank — even more — for Connor Bedard. And who could blame them? The thing about Bedard’s performance on such a large stage is that it gives teams licence to do it with their fans. Before, to many who aren’t invested in prospects, Bedard was an exciting rumour. Now they’ve seen him with their own eyes and salivate. The thing is this: the league is completely constipated and it’s not like anyone’s going to be able to hold a roster garage sale. For the most part, the tankers already have their treads on the tracks.
- With the feeling that this year’s draft is better than the
- Patrick Kane’s on-pace for 0.73 points per game, which would be the lowest of his NHL career. (Previous low is 0.80 in 2011-12.) This isn’t about age. The last three seasons, he had 242 points in 204 games. Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson said Tuesday that Wednesday’s practice could determine if Kane returns to action Thursday against Colorado, but I think we’re getting a window into why he’s struggled. Some of the local reporters have speculated a knee or hip injury, and I’m leaning to the latter.
The biggest question is what this means for the rest of the season. If it’s a simple thing, no worries. But there seems to be some fear it’s a lingering issue that could require cleanup. We speculated about this on the podcast, but if it comes to that, does a one-year extension make sense — allowing Kane to get whatever procedure he needs, and come back healthy in 2023-24? If the Blackhawks win the lottery, I could watch Kane and Bedard for a while. That’s appointment viewing.
A few of you have asked about Jakub Vrana being put on waivers. First, the most important thing is his health and mental well-being. Second, I remember a few years ago doing an interview with Steve Yzerman (still a player at the time), talking about opportunities being “deserved." The move was jarring when I first saw it, but the more I thought about it, the more I got it.
Vrana’s struggled in his return to the AHL, while some of Detroit’s younger players, particularly, Jonatan Berggren, grabbed the NHL opportunity. Head coach Derek Lalonde initially said he wanted to keep his young players in the lineup when Robby Fabbri returned, but the final decision was his GM’s. Yzerman’s a big believer in playing those who deserve to play. And, when you’re trying to build yourself into a winner, you have to stick to that. I don’t want to guess where this goes from here, aside from I hope that mentally, Vrana stays in a good place.
more Thoughts
* Moritz Seider, Evgeni Malkin and Nikita Kucherov each posted four-point performances to propel their respective clubs to victories.
* The Penguins erased a three-goal deficit in the first period and the Avalanche nearly completed a three-goal, third-period comeback Tuesday as the League maintained one of its highest rates of multi-goal comeback wins ever at this stage of a season.
* The 2022-23 NHL season will eclipse its halfway mark during Wednesday’s four-game slate, which features national telecasts in both Canada and the U.S.
The Oilers are searching for help on the blueline, the Sharks are hearing from teams about Erik Karlsson and the Canadiens have some decisions to make on the development of their young players. Geno Reda and the TSN Hockey Insiders discuss these topics and more on the latest edition of Insider Trading.
Pierre, you are usually the guy to say “pump the brakes” when it comes to pushing for change, but is it fair to say the Oilers are no longer in a position to wait?
LeBrun: I don’t think Ken Holland is ready to panic, but our understanding of the situation is that Ken Holland has been on the phone a little more of late than usual and he is fully investigating what’s out there on the defenceman trade market. So yes, our understanding is he has talked to Arizona about [Jakob] Chychrun, to Montreal about Joel Edmundson. Think of a team [that] has a defenceman potentially on the trade market and the Edmonton Oilers are trying to investigate fully what that means and what the price is – the prices are very high. I think Ken Holland is willing to be patient, doesn’t want to make a panic move. The other thing is they aren’t one trade away from fixing everything in Edmonton. I think the message internally is: ‘We need to play better.’ There’s no question that’s been heard.
watch and/or read at TSN
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic with player movement talk. I'll briefly touch on many subjects, you can read on if interested.
Several clubs are holding those meetings this week, and more will follow before the end of the month. These are meetings in which NHL front office staffs try to explore every possibility the trade market could present and plan for a number of different scenarios ahead of the March 3 deadline....
The Oilers are scouring the market, looking at defense options. That was always the expectation, of course, but the point here is that veteran GM Ken Holland has been active of late making those calls and trying to get a realistic view of what’s available. So yes, I believe they’ve talked to Arizona about Jakob Chychrun, to Montreal about Joel Edmundson, and well, to about every selling team you can think of with a defenseman potentially up for grabs.
The Oilers want to get a full understanding of what’s out there...
The Athletic’s Michael Russo has noted a few times that while the Wild aren’t shopping Dumba because they’re in a playoff spot, he could see the blueliner dealt as part of a hockey deal that helps the team this season....
The idea of an Erik Karlsson trade was theoretical when we first broached the subject earlier this season. Based on his strong start, we wondered if teams would be enticed. Then Sharks GM Mike Grier at the November GMs meeting in Toronto said he would listen on Karlsson, so we wondered if teams would actually engage or if that contract would be too much of an issue.
Well, Karlsson’s strong season has continued, and from what I’m hearing, there are teams that have in fact engaged with the Sharks in discussions....
The Coyotes remain patient on the Chychrun trade front, because well, they don’t actually have to move him before March 3. He’s signed for another two years after this season. But the desire is still there to move him for the right price.
Speaking of which, while the price generally remains two first-round picks plus a prospect in exchange for Chychrun...
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14 1/2 minutes of weird stuff happening in the NHL. Watch below
from Rachel Doerrie of The Hockey News,
The world juniors are over, which means scouts are on their way back to their respective regions to continue scouting the rest of the year, right? Nope. It's mid-term meeting time!
What are mid-term meetings? They're the first time every scout, assistant GM, GM, and president of a team are in the same room since the previous NHL draft. It is the official kick-off to the upcoming draft in June. Here’s an inside look at what happens during January scouting meetings.
Every month, from September to January, the scouting director and crossover scouts (who cover multiple leagues) will jump on a Zoom call with each region. The regions are usually divided as follows: WHL, OHL/QMJHL, U.S. (NCAA, USHL, Prep) and Europe. Some teams separate the U.S. levels, as well as separate Russia from the rest of Europe. It really depends on staffing. They will discuss players from their regions.
In September and October, it is very preliminary and is generally focused on which players to keep a close eye on, who has impressed and who has disappointed. Think about it as a brainstorming, information-gathering session. It’s an opportunity to really discuss who the crossover scouts need to see as we approach the meat of the season.
The November and December calls are a bit more focused. This is when each region will produce some level of player list to give management and crossover scouts an idea of who are the top players from their region.
from Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette,
After the Canadiens finished with the worst record in the NHL last season, it was obvious there were going to be growing pains as the new management team of Jeff Gorton, the executive vice-president of hockey operations, GM Kent Hughes and head coach Martin St. Louis began the rebuilding process.
After the Canadiens beat the Calgary Flames 2-1 in a shootout at the Bell Centre on Dec. 12 they had a 14-12-2 record and were playing entertaining hockey — even when they lost. But things started to fall apart after that and the Canadiens went 1-9-1 in their next 11 games before beating the St. Louis Blues 5-4 at the Bell Centre last Saturday.
During that dismal 11-game stretch — including eight road games — the Canadiens scored only 20 goals. They were both bad and boring, bringing back memories of last season with Dominique Ducharme as head coach.
More memories of last season came back with a 4-0 loss to the Seattle Kraken Monday night at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens were outshot 19-6 in the first period and were trailing 3-0 after 20 minutes.
The Canadiens have officially sold out 15 of their first 19 home games — including Monday night — with a capacity of 21,105 at the Bell Centre. But there have been plenty of empty seats for most of those games as season-ticket holders decided to stay home or were unable to resell their tickets.
The Canadiens reached the midway point of the 82-game regular season with Monday’s loss and have an 8-11-0 record at home and they are 16-22-3 overall, sitting in last place in the Atlantic Division. Canadiens fans — and especially season-ticket holders — will be hoping the team can at least play some entertaining hockey again during the second half.more
* A pair of Kings joined elite lists Monday, with Anze Kopitar recording his 1,100th career point and Kevin Fiala posting four points on the power play as Los Angeles bested Edmonton at Crypto.com Arena.
* A trio of goaltenders put up big performances to help backstop their respective clubs to victories on the road, including Juuse Saros who became the first netminder in over 27 years with 102 combined saves in consecutive starts.
* A number of U.S.-born players will look to reach season benchmarks Tuesday, including Jack Hughes and Matthew Tkachuk who will both aim to hit the 50-point mark when their respective clubs take to the ice on a 10-game slate.
from Samantha Pell of The Washington Post,
Washington Capitals career. One day later, Mantha called the decision a “wake-up call.”
“I think I had a good stretch, a bad stretch,” Mantha said Monday. “It’s part of hockey, I don’t think I was playing terrible. Obviously the minutes were going down, so decision to play me [9:48] in my last game there so, you kind of knew it was coming.”...
“[Laviolette is] obviously not happy with my game,” Mantha said. “That’s pretty much it.”
Through 42 games this season, Mantha has nine goals and 14 assists, matching his totals from the 2021-22 campaign, when he played 37 games in an injury-shortened season....
He struggled to find consistency through the first half of the season and there were many nights he was unnoticeable on the ice. The Capitals tried to put him on the second unit of the power play, but he only recorded one goal and one assist while playing on the man advantage. Mantha was also placed on different forward lines as Laviolette searched for the right trio.
“I felt good, I mean body-wise, no injuries, I think it’s the first year in a couple of years that I played the first half of the season without getting injured,” Mantha said. “So I was pumped for that … [the scratch was] a wake-up call.”