TOP STORY
DUBIOUS!
The Markus Naslund and Brandon Dubinsky celebrate the eventual game winner midway through the 3rd period
(Photo Credit - AP)
(7) New York Rangers (1-0) over the (2) Washington Capitals (0-1) 4-3
The New York Rangers managed to steal home ice from the Washington Capitals (for now) at the Verizon Center last night, and the word "steal" would be an understatement. The Rangers blew a two goal lead, Henrik Lundqvist made 32 saves and the league's best penalty kill frantically stopped 5 of 7 power plays to take one in the Phone Booth.
"We took too many penalties," Tortorella said. "It's just too dangerous with that group they put out there. But I thought our penalty killers did everything they possibly could, especially at the end when he had two penalties to kill. Our power play is going to have to score for us to stay in there."
Brandon Dubinsky scored the game winning goal with 8:17 remaining in the 3rd period on a great move that crossed up Capitals defenseman Jeff Schultz and beat Capitals goalie Jose Theodore high. "Just wasn't good enough," said Theodore, who stopped only 17 of 21 shots. There's times when you sit there, you need the save, and he didn't make the save when we needed it," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said.
DUBIOUS!
The Markus Naslund and Brandon Dubinsky celebrate the eventual game winner midway through the 3rd period
(Photo Credit - AP)
(7) New York Rangers (1-0) over the (2) Washington Capitals (0-1) 4-3
The New York Rangers managed to steal home ice from the Washington Capitals (for now) at the Verizon Center last night, and the word "steal" would be an understatement. The Rangers blew a two goal lead, Henrik Lundqvist made 32 saves and the league's best penalty kill frantically stopped 5 of 7 power plays to take one in the Phone Booth.
"We took too many penalties," Tortorella said. "It's just too dangerous with that group they put out there. But I thought our penalty killers did everything they possibly could, especially at the end when he had two penalties to kill. Our power play is going to have to score for us to stay in there."
Brandon Dubinsky scored the game winning goal with 8:17 remaining in the 3rd period on a great move that crossed up Capitals defenseman Jeff Schultz and beat Capitals goalie Jose Theodore high. "Just wasn't good enough," said Theodore, who stopped only 17 of 21 shots. There's times when you sit there, you need the save, and he didn't make the save when we needed it," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said.
Boudreau said he didn't pull Theodore because "you never want to look like you're panicking and that's what that would have looked like," but the coach didn't rule out playing rookie Simeon Varlamov in Game 2 on Saturday -- a stunning admission considering that Varlamov has played in only six career NHL games. "There's a chance anything could happen," Boudreau said. "When you lose, you make changes."
Scott Gomez had a goal and two assists, Nik Antropov and Naslund each had a goal and an assist for the Rangers. Antropov and Naslund scored power-play goals on back-to-back shots to give New York a 3-1 lead in the second period, a pleasant development for a team whose power play ranked 29th in the league. New York scored more than one man-advantage goal only once in its final 12 regular season games.
The other big note about this game was Rangers captain Chris Drury being scratched right before the game. He missed the last game of the regular season with an undisclosed injury and went out for warm ups, but went to the locker room a few minutes in to the skate. Coach Tortorella expects him to play in Game 2, which will be Saturday at 2PM on NBC.
The Rangers can't expect to win games playing the way they did last night. That being said, they stole the win, scored when it mattered, and managed to keep up with the Capitals frantic pace through some decent stretches of the games. For everyone that said this would be a quick series, get ready for this one to got at least six.
OTHER PLAYOFF ACTION...
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins (1-0) over the (5) Philadelphia Flyers (0-1) 4-1
The Penguins got a goal and an assist each from Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and shut down the frustrated Flyers' for a 4-1 victory. Penguins goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, idle for long stretches in the first two periods as his teammates controlled play at the other end, made 26 saves to help the Penguins win their fourth consecutive conference playoff series opener.
Flyers fans, be very worried. Not only did you lose home ice to a team that's a pain in your ass, the Penguins outplayed you in EVERY aspect of Game 1. The one that stood out most to me was the physicality. The Flyers are more physical than just about every team in the league, and the Penguins brought the beating and banging to the Flyers. The Flyers may have slipped in to a slump at the worst time and this could be over very quickly for the boys from Broad Street. Game 2 is Friday night in Pittsburgh.
(3) New Jersey Devils (1-0) over the (6) Carolina Hurricanes (0-1) 4-1
Zach Parise and Jamie Langen- brunner each had a goal and an assist and the Devils dominated from start to finish with a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in the opening game of their best-of-seven first-round playoffs series Wednesday night.
Scott Gomez had a goal and two assists, Nik Antropov and Naslund each had a goal and an assist for the Rangers. Antropov and Naslund scored power-play goals on back-to-back shots to give New York a 3-1 lead in the second period, a pleasant development for a team whose power play ranked 29th in the league. New York scored more than one man-advantage goal only once in its final 12 regular season games.
The other big note about this game was Rangers captain Chris Drury being scratched right before the game. He missed the last game of the regular season with an undisclosed injury and went out for warm ups, but went to the locker room a few minutes in to the skate. Coach Tortorella expects him to play in Game 2, which will be Saturday at 2PM on NBC.
The Rangers can't expect to win games playing the way they did last night. That being said, they stole the win, scored when it mattered, and managed to keep up with the Capitals frantic pace through some decent stretches of the games. For everyone that said this would be a quick series, get ready for this one to got at least six.
OTHER PLAYOFF ACTION...
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins (1-0) over the (5) Philadelphia Flyers (0-1) 4-1
The Penguins got a goal and an assist each from Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and shut down the frustrated Flyers' for a 4-1 victory. Penguins goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, idle for long stretches in the first two periods as his teammates controlled play at the other end, made 26 saves to help the Penguins win their fourth consecutive conference playoff series opener.
Flyers fans, be very worried. Not only did you lose home ice to a team that's a pain in your ass, the Penguins outplayed you in EVERY aspect of Game 1. The one that stood out most to me was the physicality. The Flyers are more physical than just about every team in the league, and the Penguins brought the beating and banging to the Flyers. The Flyers may have slipped in to a slump at the worst time and this could be over very quickly for the boys from Broad Street. Game 2 is Friday night in Pittsburgh.
(3) New Jersey Devils (1-0) over the (6) Carolina Hurricanes (0-1) 4-1
Zach Parise and Jamie Langen- brunner each had a goal and an assist and the Devils dominated from start to finish with a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in the opening game of their best-of-seven first-round playoffs series Wednesday night.
"It's step one," Parise said. "It's going to be a long series. You've got the start somewhere and the effort was there from everybody. It was a good way for us to start." Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, who set the regular-season record for NHL career wins last month, was closing in on his 23rd career playoff shutout when Ray Whitney scored on a rebound. He finished with 18 saves in winning for the 96th time in the postseason.
I predicted Devils in 5 and that prediction looks to be good after last night. The Devils were the wrost match-up for the Hurricanes, and just like the Flyers, they are cooling off at the wrong time.
(3) Vancouver Canucks (1-0) over the (6) St. Louis Blues (0-1) 2-1
Special teams were supposed to be the Blues strong point coming in to the series. They got their chances, but it was the Canucks who capitalized on their chances. Daniel Sedin scored the first goal on a delayed penalty and set up Sami Salo's power-play marker, and Roberto Luongo made the best of his 25 saves while killing off a 5-on-3 to help the Canucks take Game 1 at GM Place. the Canucks killed off the first six St. Louis power plays. Brad Boyes finally scored on the seventh power play with 1:44 left in the second period to pull the Blues within a goal. But that was the lone bright spot for St. Louis special teams. "I don't think we can be in the box six, seven times in the game, we all know that," said Luongo. "They are a good special teams team and we talked about that, so I expect us to be a little less penalized next game." Vancouver, 14-1-1 at home since Feb. 1, hosts Game 2 of Friday night.
On a sadder note, Canucks LW Taylor Pyatt hasn't rejoined the team since fiancee Carly Bragnalo was killed in a car crash April 3 while vacationing with family in Jamaica. Bragnalo's funeral was Tuesday in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
What the St. Louis Bues did to get in to the playoffs was great. They went on a run to vault themselves from worst in the West to 6th, but theyran in to a brick wall known as Roberto Luongo. Luongo is playinig with that swagger he has when he is at the top of his game. Unless St. Louis responds in Game 2, this could be a very short series.
OTHER NEWS
-After eight seasons behind the Edmonton Oilers' bench and three straight seasons without a playoff berth, Craig MacTavish has been relieved of his duties as head coach. "We both agree that it is time for a change," said Oilers' general manager Steve Tambellini at a news conference in Edmonton on Wednesday. MacTavish led the team to a disappointing 38-35-9 record this season as the Oilers finished 11th in the Western Conference. The news comes just weeks after team owner Darryl Katz sent a text message to Oilers radio analyst Bob Stauffer during a pre-game show on April 2 that stated, "MacT is not going anywhere." MacTavish is leaving the organization entirely and the search begins immediately for his replacement The Oilers will consider all options including both experienced NHL coaches and younger coaches. After finishing ninth in the conference last season, the Oilers came into this campaign with high hopes that their young talent would propel them to higher levels. But a lack of scoring, inconsistent goaltending and a difficult schedule in the early going set the club back this season. "This is the right thing for Craig, and the right thing for the Edmonton Oilers," Tambellini added. "This does not absolve the players and their performance, or lack thereof." Winger Ales Hemsky led the team in scoring with 66 points, followed by defencemen Sheldon Souray and forward Shawn Horcoff - who each had 53 points. Nowhere among the leaders were youngsters Sam Gagner (41 points), Andrew Cogliano (38 points) or Dustin Penner (37 points) - three players considered as the future of the franchise. Penner, who signed a five-year, $21.25 million contract before the 2007-08 season, drew the ire of MacTavish in November and was a healthy scratch on several occasions. "MacTavish felt it was time to move on in the best interests of the organization," Oilers president Kevin Lowe told TSN. "He really felt he couldn't do any more with the group.'' Defenceman Steve Staios said the writing was on the wall. "I'm not really that surprised because of where we've been the last few years," he told THE CANADIAN PRESS. "This is probably just the start." The Oilers also began the season rotating goaltenders Dwayne Roloson, Mathieu Garon and Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers before settling on Roloson for the second half of the season. The schedule didn't do the Oilers any favours early on, with the team playing 16 of its first 23 games on the road. Ironically, the Oilers finished the year with a better record on the road, 20-18-3, than they did at home, 18-17-6. In 2005-06, MacTavish led the Oilers to their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 1990 as Edmonton fell in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes.
-Ron Wilson will have a few familiar faces when he takes the bench behind the U.S. Men's National Team later this month. Toronto Maple Leafs' Jason Blake and Lee Stempniak, Ottawa Senators Nick Foligno and Ryan Shannon and Edmonton Oilers Patrick O'Sullivan were among the first 19 players named to the U.S. Men's National Team that will compete at the 2009 International Ice Hockey Federation Men's World Championship in Berne and Zurich-Kloten, Switzerland. The Americans initial list boasts nine players who have previously played in the IIHF Men's World Championship, including Blake, Stempniak, and O'Sullivan, as well as defensemen Keith Ballard (Florida Panthers), Jack Johnson (Los Angeles Kings), and Ryan Suter (Nashville Predators), forwards Dustin Brown (Los Angeles Kings), Drew Stafford (Buffalo Sabres), and goaltender Robert Esche, who is currently playing for the KHL's SKA St. Petersburg. Under the direction of Leafs' general manger Brian Burke, the U.S.'s advisory group charged with leading the selection of players has handpicked 12 players who are 25 years old or younger including Foligno, Johnson, Suter, Brown, O'Sullivan, Stafford, Zach Bogosian (Atlanta Thrashers), Matt Niskanen (Dallas Stars), Peter Harrold (Los Angeles Kings), Kyle Okposo (New York Islanders), and Colin Wilson (Boston University); and goaltender Al Montoya (Phoenix Coyotes). Rounding out the first group of players named to the U.S. roster are defenseman Ron Hainsey (Atlanta Thrashers) and forward Colin Stuart (Atlanta Thrashers). “This is a skilled group of players who will represent the United States well,” said Jim Johannson, assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey. “It is a nice mix of veterans and newcomers to international competition that our National Team Advisory Group is looking forward to watching.” Joining Wilson on the coaching staff are assistant coaches Scott Gordon and Joe Sacco. Gordon is currently the head coach of the New York Islanders, and Sacco is serving as the head coach of the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL. Team USA will face Switzerland on April 21, in a pre-tournament game before beginning play in the 2009 IIHF Men's World Championship on Saturday, April 25, against Latvia.
Both reports courtesy of TSN.CA
TONIGHT'S ACTION:
Gm 1 - (8) Montreal Canadiens @ (1) Boston Bruins - 7PM
Gm 1 - (7) Columbus Blue Jackets @ (2) Detroit Red Wings - 7PM
Gm 1 - (5) Calgary Flames @ (4) Chicago Blackhawks - 8:30PM
Gm 1 - (8) Anaheim Ducks @ (1) San Jose Sharks - 10:30PM
Email From The Slot at fromtheslot@gmail.com
Gm 1 - (8) Montreal Canadiens @ (1) Boston Bruins - 7PM
Gm 1 - (7) Columbus Blue Jackets @ (2) Detroit Red Wings - 7PM
Gm 1 - (5) Calgary Flames @ (4) Chicago Blackhawks - 8:30PM
Gm 1 - (8) Anaheim Ducks @ (1) San Jose Sharks - 10:30PM
Email From The Slot at fromtheslot@gmail.com
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