(Late) NHL Draft

June 30th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

THIS ALL OWNED BY TSN I DIDNT HAVE TIME TO WRITE IT, THIS IS ALL PROPERTY OF http://tsn.ca

The 2009 NHL Entry Draft had a little bit of everything – mystery, a big trade, excitement for the hometown crowd at Montreal’s Bell Centre and a spirited round of boos when the rival Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins made their picks.

The New York Islanders ended weeks of speculation about who would go first overall when they selected forward John Tavares of the London Knights.

Tavares and the Islanders had to share the spotlight on Friday, as the Anaheim Ducks and Philadelphia Flyers swung a major trade involving Chris Pronger. The deal saw the 1999-2000 Hart and Norris Trophy winner and forward Ryan Dingle head to the Flyers for defenceman Luca Sbisa, forward Joffrey Lupul, the Flyers’ first Round pick (21st overall) in 2009, first Round pick in 2010 and a conditional third round pick in 2010 or 2011.

In Tavares, the Islanders get a skilled offensive player who should thrill fans with his highlight reel goals. He has the ability to elevate his game when need be and the few times in his career where his skills have been questioned, he has responded quickly to prove his abilities.

“Obviously it has been a long time coming for me,” Tavares explained to TSN. “[I've] been through a great process in junior and now I have a great opportunity to go to a rebuilding franchise in New York. Hopefully we’ll bring the tradition back.”

Tavares also joins a young core up front that includes first-rounders Kyle Okposo and Josh Bailey.

“Now you can have the offence to match up with teams like Washington and Pittsburgh,” said TSN’s Pierre McGuire following the pick. “[Tavares] is the right guy at the right time for a team that needs an identity.”

The Islanders were also busy well after taking Tavares. They swung a deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets, exchanging several draft picks. The Isles swapped first round picks with Columbus and then made another deal with the Minnesota Wild to turn it into the 12th overall pick (D Calvin De Haan – Oshawa Generals).

The Tampa Bay Lightning was up next and took big, 6′6” defenceman Victor Hedman from Modo of the Swedish Elite League.

“[Hedman] is a very mature guy on and off the ice,” said TSN’s Bob McKenzie. “This is a guy who played 21 minutes a game on average against men in the Swedish Elite League.”

The Colorado Avalanche selected Matt Duchene with the third overall pick. The Brampton Battalion playmaker possesses a great combination of speed and on-ice vision. “This kid’s got character, heart and soul. He can score and check, but the biggest thing is that he’s a Bryan Trottier type player – he plays all ends of the ice and uses all 200 feet,” said McGuire of Duchene.

The Maple Leafs were the first of the Canadian teams to step to the podium. They had expressed interest in moving up, but were unable to work out a deal. General manager Brian Burke paused for a quick chuckle as he was loudly booed by the Bell Centre crowd before he selected London Knights forward Nazem Kadri with the seventh pick.

“He’s got a chance to be a very good offensive player,” said McKenzie about Kadri. “This is a terrific kid who has tremendous offensive ability. He just needs a little consistency.”

The Ottawa Senators were the next Canadian team up and took Jared Cowen of the Spokane Chiefs with the ninth pick.

“He’s a Memorial cup winner, has overcome his knee injury, but most importantly he has big body presence,” McGuire said of the defenceman. “Ottawa won’t be easy to forecheck against Cowen and Erik Karlsson.”

The Edmonton Oilers were up after the Senators in the 10th spot and made Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson from Timra of the Swedish Elite league. The winger brings big offensive upside to the Oilers. “The Edmonton Oilers love speed and Svensson is the fastest skater in this draft,” said McKenzie. “This was the youngest Swede to ever play in the World Juniors. He drives to the net very well and has speed to burn.”

The Canadiens gave their fans a treat by using the 18th pick to take forward Louis LeBlanc of the USHL. The selection of the Montreal native was greeted by a large ovation from the Bell Centre crowd.

The crowd cheered again when the Vancouver Canucks sent Roberto Luongo to the podium to make the selection at 22. The Canucks captain announced the team had taken forward Jordan Schroeder from the University of Minnesota.

“With the Sedins in flux and Pavol Demtira not getting younger, the Canucks needed this pick – along with last year’s pick Cody Hodgson – to inject some youth,” said McGuire.

While none of the six Canadian teams were able to move up in the draft, the Calgary Flames cut a deal with the New Jersey Devils to take a lower pick. The Flames were scheduled to selected 20th, but traded the pick to the New Jersey Devils in a deal for the 23rd selection. When the Flames finally got to the podium, they took defenceman Tim Erixon from Skelleftea in the Swedish Elite League. Tim is the son of former Ranger winger Jan Erixon.

“He’s not fancy or slick – he’s just good. He moves the puck unbelievably well and will grow into that 6-2 frame,” said McGuire following the selection. “When the games got big for Sweden at the World Juniors, he elevated his game.”

With the big three of Tavares, Hedman and Duchene off the board, the number four and five picks went very much as expected. Vancouver Giants forward Evander Kane went to the Atlanta Thrashers with the fourth pick, followed by Brayden Schenn going to the Los Angeles Kings. 

Schenn, the younger brother of Maple Leafs defenceman Luke Schenn, had 32 goals and 56 assists over his 70 games for the Brandon Wheat Kings during the 2008-09 season. 

“This guy is heart and soul and winning character,” said McGuire of the new King. “He’ll be a perfect addition up front alongside Dustin Brown.”

The Phoenix Coyotes took defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson from Leksand in Sweden with the sixth pick. Ekman-Larsson is skilled with the puck and possesses a good shot, he also has the ability to deliver big hits. The Dallas Stars selected forward Scott Glennie of the Brandon Wheat Kings eighth overall.

Following the Senators’ and Oilers’ picks, the Nashville Predators took Ryan Ellis from the Memorial Cup champion Windsor Spitfires, the Buffalo Sabres took Peterborough Petes tough guy Zack Kassian (13th), the Florida Panthers took defenceman Dmitry Kulikov (14th), the Ducks took forward Peter Holland (15th), the Wild picked Nick Leddy of Eden Prairie High School (16th) and the St. Louis Blues picked defenceman David Rundblad.

The New York Rangers selected forward Chris Kreider from Andover Academy (USHL) at 19th and the Devils used the pick they acquired from Calgary to take forward Jacob Josefson of Djurgarden.

The Ducks then dealt the 21st pick acquired in the Pronger trade to the Blue Jackets. Columbus used the pick on defenceman John Moore of the USHL.

The final selections of the first round went down as follows – Washington Capitals – F Marcus Johansson of Farjestad in Sweden (24th); Boston Bruins – F Jordan Caron from the Rimouski Oceanic (25th); Ducks F Kyle Palmieri from the US National Development program (26th); Carolina Hurricanes – F Philippe Paradis of the Shawinigan Cataractes (27th).

The Bell Centre erupted in applause again when legendary former Canadiens coach Scotty Bowman stepped up to make the Chicago Blackhawks’ pick at 28 – defenceman Dylan Olsen of the AJHL.

Another one of Bowman’s former clubs was involved in a trade with the next pick as the Red Wings sent the 29th selection to the Lightning for the 32nd and 75th overall picks. Tampa used the pick on forward Carter Ashton of the Lethbridge Hurricanes.

The Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins had the final selection of the first round and used it on defenceman Simon Despres from Saint John of the QMJHL.

Notes: For the first time since 1993, there were no American born players taken in the top-10 (seven Canadians, three Swedes)… It was also the first time three Swedish players went in the top-10… There were a record seven players from Sweden taken in the first round

Who will be first?

June 26th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

Tavares? Hedman? Duchene?

Those are the questions people have been asking since last year’s draft ended when Steven Stamkos went first overall to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In Tavares, the Islanders could get an exciting name on the marquee to put fans back in the seat and a green light for their ambitious Lighthouse arena project. Hedman – who could have Islander fans filing out quickly from their draft party at Nassau Coliseum if he’s drafted – has drawn comparisons to elite blueliners like Chris Pronger and Jay Bouwmweester – will take a bit longer to develop but has all the makings of a defenceman you can around.

Regardless of who goes first, the Tampa Bay Lightning can only strengthen their lightning with a player like Johnathan Tavares or Victor Hedman.

But the big question in Tampa over the last few days has been the internal issues with the front office. Co-owners Len Barrie and Oren Koules are reportedly at odds over how the franchise should be run, leaving general manager Brian Lawton in a tough spot on potential decisions like trading their pick or dealing captain Vincent Lecavalier.

“We are always looking for options, we are always looking for ways to improve our club and whenever you have options you feel better about that,” said Lawton.

But as of now, the New York Islanders are on the clock.

Ovechkin wins 2nd Straight Hart Trophy

June 19th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

Alexander Ovechkin captured what is considered to be the most honorary trophy in hockey, winning the Hart Trophy and the most valuable player in the league.

It was only fitting that the league’s glitziest player be the centre of attention during a jazzed-up awards night.

“Next year, the Stanley Cup will be ours” Ovechkin quoted.

Even though Datsyuk was a runner-up to Ovechkin for the Hart and Pearson, he managed to win both the Selke (top defensive forward) and Lady Byng (most gentlemanly) trophies for the second straight year.

Three members of that organization took home major honours. Zdeno Chara grabbed the Norris Trophy for top defenceman, Tim Thomas took the Vezina Trophy for top goaltender and Claude Julien claimed the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year.

“This year was especially hard,” said Ovechkin. “This award I give it to him and all my family.”

Penguins Capture Third Cup

June 12th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

The Pittsburgh Penguins are your Stanley Cup Champions as they have defeated the Detroit Red Wings 2-1 in Game 7.

Maxime Talbot scored twice while Marc-Andre Fleury made 23 saves as the Penguins claimed their first Stanley Cup title since 1992.

With the entire NHL season coming down to a solitary game, a jam packed Joe Louis Arena was rocking prior to puck drop as the capacity crowd attempted to will the Wings to their second straight Stanley Cup title.

Although the ‘Greatest of All Time,’ Muhammad Ali was in attendance and sporting a Wings’ sweater, it was the Penguins who were floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee early on as they buzzed around the Wings net. 

The Wings came under further fire when Brad Stuart was sent off for a slash that broke Evgeni Malkin’s stick.  While the Wings’ special teams have struggled throughout the series, they did their job killing off the Pens’ powerplay despite great chances by Crosby, Malkin and Marc Eaton.  When the smoke cleared Pittsburgh had out shot Detroit 10-6 in a fast paced opening frame.

The game plan did not change between periods for the Pens as they opened the second period with as much fire as they closed the opening stanza.  Stuart’s nightmare evening continued as he coughed up the puck directly behind his own net.  Malkin then found Talbot in front, who continued his trend of scoring big goals to give the Penguins the lead with his seventh goal of the post-season and third of the final.

Talbot was not done there either as the Wings’ blueline continued their shaky play.  The normally mistake free Brian Rafalski turned the puck over allowing Talbot to break in.  Osgood stood his ground to make the stop before being barreled over by Talbot into his own net.

The Pens got their first bit of bad news as Johan Franzen ran Crosby into the side boards.  The Penguins captain was noticeably grimacing as he left the ice and headed immediately to the Pens’ dressing room.

The problem was exacerbated almost immediately as Hal Gill was sent off for holding; however instead of folding, the Pens special teams came up with an enormous penalty kill to keep the Wings off the board.

The kill apparently gave the Penguins the spark that they were looking as moments later as they broke in two-on-one with Talbot firing his second of the contest past Osgood.

In the unfamiliar position of trailing at home, the defending Champs appeared to be shell-shocked as they were unable to generate any sustained pressure on Marc-Andre Fleury.  Detroit’s best chances of the game came with less than a minute remaining in the period when Fleury came up with a saves on Franzen and Zetterberg.  While the Pens dominated the scoreboard, shots were tied at 17 apiece after 40 minutes.

With the Pens a perfect 10-0 when leading after two period in the playoffs, the team got a big, emotional boost as Crosby returned to the bench for the final stanza.

Potentially facing a long off-season of answering questions of what went wrong, the Wings looked re-energized to start the period forcing Marc Eaton to take an early penalty.

After being largely unchallenged all night, Fleury came up with his biggest saves, repeatedly stopping Tomas Holmstrom on the doorstep.

After looking lifeless for the majority of the game, desperation finally set in for the Red Wings as they continued to bomb away on Fleury in the Pens net.  Unlike in previous games in Detroit, this time the Sorel, Quebec native remained composed to keep the Wings’ snipers at bay and off the board.

Penguins’ head coach Dan Byslma must have been crossing his fingers as he sent Crosby over the boards for his first shift of the period with just over 10 minutes remaining in the contest.  The former Hart Trophy winner responded by winning a faceoff, but appeared to be labouring around the ice.

Up two goals, the Penguins appeared to be content to sit back as the play was almost exclusively in their defensive zone.  The decision cost them as Jonathan Ericsson beat Fleury high glove side to get the Red Wings on the board.

Sensing that they had the Penguins finally on their heels the Red Wings poured on the pressure, narrowly missing on tying the score when a Niklas Kronwall point shot drew iron behind Fleury.

With just over a minute remaining, Wings’ head coach Mike Babcock called a timeout as he attempted to draw up an equalizer.

With Osgood pulled in favour of the extra attacker, the Red Wings threw everything they had at the Penguins’ net.  With time running out Fleury came up with an enormous save on Niklas Lidstrom to secure the victory for the Penguins.

Notes…Pittsburgh was forced into one lineup change prior to the game as Miroslav Satan replaced Petr Sykora who suffered an apparent broken bone in his foot in Game 6.

I DID NOT WRITE THIS POST!!! IT IS COMPLETELY FROM http://tsn.ca

Writing just didn’t feel right after this game, as I am a die-hard Red Wings fan.

Penguins Force Game Seven

June 9th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

The Penguins home crowd backed them again as the Penguins barely got out of game six with a 2-1 victory.

“It’s an unbelievable opportunity,” Penguins captain Sidney Crosby told reporters after the victory. “You know, we weren’t thinking about last year at all. But, you know, we found a way to survive, that’s what we had to do tonight. And now it’s anyone’s game. And, it’s going to be a great challenge. They play great at home but we’ve got to battle and find a way to pull it off.”

But the odds are in Detroit’s favor, the road team has only won on two occasions, out of fourteen.

The Penguins carried the play for the first two periods, outshooting the Wings 24-12 and keeping sustained pressure in the offensive zone with solid forechecking.

“Those things happen,” said Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock after the game. “I thought they were better than us, though, at the start of the game, probably, for the first almost 32 minutes. They won more races and more battles, had more play, were on top of us more, and they kept us to the outside. I thought we started to build some momentum at the end of the second period, and then obviously we had a good third period.”

Back to back powerplays for the Wings proved useless as the Penguins killed off two of them.

For Fleury, the win was sweet redemption after Saturday’s 5-0 drubbing in Detroit. He was outstanding between the pipes, making 25 saves – including a breakaway chance by Dan Cleary in the dying moments of regulation.

“As soon as he made that save on Zetterberg (in the first) with the blocker, you knew he was on his game,” Penguins forward Maxime Talbot told TSN.

Game seven is Friday evening.

Hossa’s Decision Could be Validated

June 8th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

If the Detroit Red Wings are to win the Stanley Cup tomorrow night in Pittsburgh, it would valiate Marion Hossa’s decision to leave the Steel City and come play for the Red Wings.

“I don’t think about it yet,” Hossa said. “There’s still hard work in front of us and there’s still a huge step in front of us. We’re just trying to focus on the next game.”

Detroit coach Mike Babcock is certainly pleased to have Hossa — who scored 40 goals during the regular season — on his side this time around. Unquestionably, a Stanley Cup championship would help Hossa validate his decision to bolt Pittsburgh for Motown.

Wings One Away from Repeat

June 6th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

After two tough losses in Pittsburgh, Pavel Datsyuk helped the Red Wings to a five nothing win on Saturday night.

After missing seven games, Pavel Datsyuk contributed two assists, including the game winner that came from Dan Cleary in the first period. 

“I keep hearing about how old we are,” said Red Wings’ head coach Mike Babcock, when asked if his team is wearing down. “But Datsyuk and Zetterberg are not that old, and Hossa’s not that old, and Mule’s not so old, so who is old? Cheli’s older than me, I give you that.”

In the shut out win, Chris Osgood stopped 22 shots.

Marc Andre Fleury let in 5 goals on the Red Wings first 21 shots, he was mercifully chased from the net. 

After a powerplay, Chris Osgood flipped up a shot to Valteri Filppula, who slid in a backhand shot passed Fleury.

The rest of the story would be told with goals from Brian Rafalski, Henrik Zetterberg.

A surprising forward like effort from Nicklas Kronwall would result in a goal, he used his strength to wrap around to the front and put it over Fleury’s shoulder.

The Penguins emotions would boil over, Sidney Crosby slashed Henrik Zetterberg, and about 20 seconds after Max Talbot took a slashing penalty. The Penguins also had three ten minute misconducts. 

The Red Wings now lead the series three to one with a chance to win the Stanley Cup in game 5 Tuesday night.

Datsyuk in, Cleary Questionable for Game 5

June 6th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

The Detroit Red Wings will have some breathing room now that sharpshooter Pavel Datsyuk is back in the lineup for the pivotal game 5 against Pittsburgh.

“Not everybody’s healthy. You need to play … it doesn’t matter if you’re healthy or not,” Datsyuk said. “Everybody plays like that. I’m looking forward to the next game.

Forward Henrik Zetterberg will have more breathing room now that Datsyuk is in to take care of Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby, he is also in to help out against Evgeni Malkin. 

The Red Wings may be without forward Dan Cleary, who has a lower body injury, as well as Brian Rafalski. 

When Cleary was asked if it was something new, or something that had previously bothered him, he replied “A little bit of both.”

Game 5 is tonight at 8:00 P.M. EST

Penguins Even Series with Three Goal Surge

June 5th, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

Jordan Staal’s shorthanded goal was all the Penguins needed as they tied the series at 2-2 with a 4-2 win in game 4.

”These last couple at home have been desperation from us,” Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said following the game. ”It’s going to be like that all the way through here.”

On a Niklas Kronwall penalty, Penguins sniper Evgeni Malkin scored from the left side of the net.

The Red Wings would answer late in the first when a rebound popped out and found Darren Helm.

At the beginning of the 2nd period Brad Stuart fired a shot from the point that beat Marc Andre Fleury.

The momentum shift came when Jordan Staal scored a shorthanded goal.

The game winner would come quickly from Sidney Crosby on a beautiful two on one pass from Evgeni Malkin.

Tyler Kennedy would seal the deal on a nice 3 on 1 pass from Sidney Crosby. 

The next game is Saturday night at Joe Louis Arena.

Pens take Game 3

June 2nd, 2009    Posted in Krnsports

Sergei Gonchar got a power play goal in the third period that stood as the winner as the Pittsburgh Penguins took game 3 from the Detroit Red Wings 4-2.

The first goal came early from Max Talbot on a beautiful one timer from Evgeni Malkin.

A minute and a half later, Ville Leino attempted a wrap around that came loose and Henrik Zetterberg put in the loose puck.

Brooks Orpik took a penalty and the Red Wings pressure paid off, Henrik Zetterberg found Johan Franzen on a cross ice feed, this was Franzen’s 12th playoff goal.

But the Penguins came back quickly on the power play, Kris Letang took a shot from the outside and beat Osgood.

The Penguins would get another powerplay, this time Sergei Gonchar blasted one from the point that beat Osgood, this was also Sidney Crosby’s first point, as well Evgeni Malkin assissted on the goal.

The Red Wings would pull Osgood, but they wouldn’t succeed as Evgeni Malkin passed a shot to Max Talbot who iced the game for the Penguins.

Game 4 is back at Mellon Arena on Thursday, where its 2-2, or 3-1.