Atlantic Notes: Larkin, Point, Brassard, Condon
The Detroit Red Wings pulled off a big overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday, but suffered an even bigger loss when star center Dylan Larkin had to leave the game in overtime while trying to chase Mitch Marner. He was doubled over and appeared to hurt his rib cage.
Fox Sports John Keating reports that coach Jeff Blashill said that Larkin will miss one to two weeks with a strained oblique muscle, although the team is hoping he will only miss one week. He has already been ruled out for tonight’s game against Ottawa. Andreas Athanasiou is expected to replace Larkin at center on that line.
Larkin has been a key player for the struggling Red Wings. He is having a career-year as he already has 22 goals, just one shy of his career-high and is close to being a point-per game player.
- In a mailbag article, The Athletic’s Joe Smith writes that Tampa Bay Lightning soon-to-be restricted free agent Brayden Point has made it quite clear that he wants to remain in Tampa Bay for a long time and the scribe suggests that the team might be best offering a five-year deal which might be the perfect compromise between a bridge deal and an eight-year pact. Both sides have agreed to put off contract talks until the summer. With 30 points goals and 65 points already in 51 games, the 22-year-old should receive quite a bump in pay when signing his new deal.
- Even though the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to get their new acquisitions Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann into their game Friday by giving them a police escort from the airport to the game, the Florida Panthers didn’t do the same thing. The Panthers, who acquired Derick Brassard, Riley Sheahan, three draft picks and future cap room from Pittsburgh earlier in the day Friday, opted to go without the pair Friday and are expected to have the two in the lineup Saturday against Vegas, according to Sun Sentinel’s Wells Dusenbury “I didn’t find out [about the trade] until about 11 [am],” Boughner said. “We were planning on having a different lineup in there tonight and so we built the lineup with what we had and unfortunately [Brassard and Sheahan] couldn’t get in for the game.”
- The Ottawa Senators continue to be without goaltender Mike Condon, who the team placed on waivers on Oct. 31 who had and still is trying to come back from a hip injury, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. The veteran goaltender cleared waivers, but has appeared in just one game for the Belleville Senators in all that time. Condon has recently started skating and working out in Ottawa, but there remains no timetable for his return. The hope is that he can make a return to the ice for Belleville March. The team acquired goaltender Anders Nilsson to be their backup goaltender on Jan. 2, who has fared well in eight appearances for Ottawa with a .922 save percentage, meaning that Condon will have a tough time getting back into the goaltending rotation, barring injury.
Snapshots: Pominville, Moravcik, Winnipeg
When the Buffalo Sabres take the ice tonight against the Dallas Stars, they will do so without veteran forward Jason Pominville. Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News, after speaking with head coach Phil Housley, relays that Pominville will sit out Wednesday night’s contest as a healthy scratch. Some quick research by the Olean Times Herald’s Bill Hoppe indicates that this is Pominville’s first healthy scratch since April 4, 2006 – during his rookie season. Pominville, 36, has been an All-Star and frequent Selke Trophy candidate over his 15 years in the league, split between two stints with Buffalo and five seasons with the Minnesota Wild. So why now is he out of the Sabres’ lineup? Lysowksi writes that the only reason Housley gave was to rest the veteran of more than a thousand games in the second night of a back-to-back and give young Remi Elie a shot. However, Pominville’s streak of one goal and two assists in his past 24 games likely contributed as well. Even though Pominville is on pace to meet or exceed his 34 total points from last season, he has cooled off significantly after a hot start, much like the Sabres overall. His spot in the lineup could be in jeopardy, especially if Elie proves to be the spark that Buffalo is seeking.
- It didn’t take long for defenseman Michal Moravcik to find new employment. Just a day after clearing unconditional waivers and having his contract terminated by the Montreal Canadiens, Moravcik has returned home to the Czech Republic. HC Plzen has announced a contract with the 24-year-old blue liner for the remainder of the season. Plzen is the same team that Moravcik had come up through the system with and was playing for before signing in North America. As such, Morazcik should soon return to the elite form that first caught the eye of NHL scouts. Plzen is surely looking forward to the boost, as the team that also employs familiar names like Jakub Kindl and Petr Straka hopes to make up ground in the standings.
- The city of Winnipeg already hosts the NHL’s Jets and the AHL’s Manitoba Moose, but it will have yet another tenant beginning next season. The WHL’s Kootenay Ice have decided to move to Winnipeg, as first reported by The Winnipeg Free Press’ Jeff Hamilton. The team is expected to keep the “Ice” moniker and same logo and will soon get to work on a long-term development plan for a new arena and sports complex on the south side of the city. While Winnipeggers already have two good teams to root for, no one in the area is likely to complain about the return of major junior hockey and should be excited to watch presumptive top-15 pick Peyton Krebs lead a young, rebuilding team next season.
Metropolitan Notes: Panarin, Hall, Blackwood, Pionk, Hayes
Despite rumors that he might want to sign with the New York Rangers and talk that he loves playing in Columbus, it looks like Columbus Blue Jackets winger Artemi Panarin still hasn’t started negotiating with Columbus. In fact, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports that the agent for Panarin, Dan Milstein said he wants another meeting with his client before he lets Columbus know whether he’s willing to negotiate a contract extension with the Blue Jackets.
Milstein and Panarin met in Miami over the weekend, but Portzline writes that the two will need a second meeting to discuss their what their next step will be. Panarin, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, has been unwilling to sign an extension in Columbus with rumors that he wants to move to a city that can give him more exposure. However, Panarin has fit in well with Columbus and has said that he enjoys playing there.
The 27-year-old would be one of the most intriguing free-agent options if he chooses to test the open market as he’s having another strong year with 19 goals and 53 points in 46 games and could even break some of his career-highs if he can keep those numbers up. Even if Panarin opts not to negotiate a deal with Columbus, the rumor is that the Blue Jackets would keep him for their playoff run this year. Columbus is currently in third place in the Metropolitan Division with 59 points.
- NHL.com’s Amanda Stein reports that star forward Taylor Hall practiced on his own today, but it looks unlikely he will join the team on their road trip to face Pittsburgh on Monday. Hall has been out since Dec. 23 with a lower-body injury and missed the All-Star game because of it. However, the team was hoping the Hart Trophy winner would be ready after the break, which he apparently isn’t. Stein adds that head coach John Hynes said that Hall is progressing, but isn’t healing as quickly as originally thought.
- The New Jersey Devils also made several roster moves today, but didn’t recall goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood. NHL.com’s Amanda Stein reports that the Devils had already decided to go with Keith Kinkaid in goal on Monday. So New Jersey decided to recall Cam Johnson instead, so Blackwood could play in the AHL All-Star Game. The team didn’t want Blackwood to miss the opportunity while sitting on the bench as the team’s backup.
- While the New York Rangers recalled goaltender Alexandar Georgiev and forward Boo Nieves from Hartford earlier today, it’s been noted that the team didn’t bring back defenseman Ryan Lindgren, but much of that could be because defenseman Neal Pionk might be ready to return to the lineup. Pionk has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury, but the 23-year-old was practicing today with the team along with Kevin Hayes, according to New York Post’s Larry Brooks. Hayes has been out since Jan. 2.
Metropolitan Notes: Rangers, Hickey, Ladd, Kinkaid, Myers
After sending out a letter, telling fans that the team intends to rebuild last February, the New York Rangers rebuilding project is well underway, but The Athletic’s Shayna Goldman (subscription required) writes that there is one problem the team has — they aren’t losing enough.
One key aspect of a rebuilding team is to pick up top prospects and the best way to do that is through the entry draft. However, with the team’s 21-20-7 record this season under new head coach David Quinn, their 49 points would give them the 22nd best record in the league, which would not give them a chance at super prospects Jack Hughes or Kappo Kakko next season. While there is never a guarantee to picking up a top pick due to the draft lottery, had the team just five points fewer, 44 points would have put them 30th.
Of course, if New York trades off more players at the deadline such as Kevin Hayes or Chris Kreider, the team may continue to drop in the standings and improve their chances at a top pick. However, it could have a negative effect on the team’s environment that Quinn has developed this season.
- Andrew Gross of Newsday writes that despite the layoff, neither defenseman Thomas Hickey and winger Andrew Ladd of the New York Islanders have a timetable to return and remain on injured reserve. Hickey, who has been out with an upper-body injury since Dec. 17, could be out for some time as head coach Barry Trotz said the defenseman will need four or five practices before being able to play, which could mean he may not be back into the lineup until mid to late February. Ladd, who has been out with a lower-body injury and has been out since Nov. 15, and also may not be back until late February.
- NJ.com’s Chris Ryan analyzes the New Jersey Devils’ roster, looking at what players should stay and go and while even a few months ago, goaltender Keith Kinkaid was considered to be a key piece to the Devils’ success after proving last year that he can handle the full-time job well, it’s likely time to move on from the 29-year-old, who has struggled quite a bit of late. Kinkaid, who is in the final year of a two-year, $2.5MM deal he signed in 2017, has struggled this year with a 13-14-6 record, a 3.10 GAA and a .899 save percentage. Throw in the fact that MacKenzie Blackwood looks like the team’s long-term starter and the fact that the team can’t move Cory Schneider due to his lengthy and expensive contract and Kinkaid is likely to be looking for a new team this summer.
- The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor (subscription required) answers mailbag questions, pointing out that the Philadelphia Flyers are likely to bring up more prospects over the next several months. The team will likely recall defenseman Philippe Myers at some point this season. O’Connor writes that Myers has been playing impressive hockey with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL for the past two months and looks to be a player ready to take over a spot on Philadelphia’s defense next season. To ensure that, the Flyers will need to bring him up and give him some playing time this season.
Poll: Which Team Is Under The Most Pressure To Make The Playoffs?
When the NHL’s unofficial second half kicks off this week, there will be substantially fewer teams with playoff hopes than when the first half began back in October. Of course, no team has been statistically eliminated yet, but a quick look at the standings can help to rule out more than a handful of the league’s bottom-dwellers. In fact, The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn had seven teams with less than a 5% chance of reaching the playoffs in his latest model: the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, Chicago Blackhawks, and Philadelphia Flyers.
On the other hand, there are also quite a few teams whose first-half success has given them near certainty of playing beyond the regular season this year. Luszczszyn’s projections give eleven teams an 85% chance or better of qualifying for the postseason: the Tampa Bay Lightning, Calgary Flames, Winnipeg Jets, Nashville Predators, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vegas Golden Knights, Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Columbus Blue Jackets, and New York Islanders.
This leaves 13 clubs remaining – the “fringe” teams – who are vying for a possible five playoff spots. Eight of these teams will miss out. Who least wants to be part of that group?
Well, the team who has been a member of the early off-season club the longest would certainly like to change things up. The Carolina Hurricanes have gone nine seasons since making a postseason appearance and have come close the last few years but fallen short. The team could crack 90 points this season for the first time in eight years, but it might not be enough in the tight Eastern Conference wild card race. The two other teams who are desperate to get back to the playoffs are the Buffalo Sabres, who are on a seven-year drought, and the Arizona Coyotes, who are six years out from a postseason appearance. The Sabres got off to a hot start this season and looked to be a surprise playoff team, but have regressed recently, with three wins in their past then games, and are now tied with Carolina for ninth place in the East. The Coyotes have been resilient in the deep Western Conference wild card race, battling injuries and inconsistency to stay in the mix, but Arizona has their work cut out for them the rest of the way.
Then there are the teams who have made the playoffs recently but not performed. The Blue Jackets – who have never won a playoff series in franchise history – will almost certainly have another shot this year, but what about the Florida Panthers? Many have dismissed the team this season, but the Panthers have plenty of talent and have fallen short of expectations until recently. They face an uphill battle to make the postseason but if they do, the team would have a chance to snap the league’s longest streak without a playoff series win. Florida has not won a round since 1996, a whopping 21 seasons without postseason success and longer than the Blue Jackets have even existed. That’s a substantial mark on the franchise. It’s been a decade now since the Colorado Avalanche have won a postseason series as well and now that they are armed with one of the league’s best forward lines, have a chance against anyone if they can win a spot. The Avs looked like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender early this season and with some trade deadline reinforcements could be a factor this spring. However, recent struggles have plummeted them into the thick of the wild card race in the West and they are in danger of missing the playoffs entirely.
Then, there are teams that simply entered the 2018-19 campaign with high expectations and need to meet them. The defending champion Washington Capitals are of course part of this group. Among the most likely fringe teams to make the postseason, it is nevertheless hard to ignore the disastrous play of the Capitals of late. Three wins in their past ten games, including a number of blowout losses, has begun “Stanley Cup hangover” talk and has legitimately injured Washington’s playoff odds. The team needs to right the ship soon or risk falling out of the current playoff picture. A team on the opposite trajectory are the Minnesota Wild, who have improved their play of late and have pulled away in the race for the final Central Division berth. Minnesota is another team that entered the season with high expectations and are still searching for the franchise’s first ever Stanley Cup final appearance. With hopes reaching new highs this season, a collapse for the Wild would be devastating.
Unlike the Capitals and Wild, there are also teams with high expectations who don’t have promising playoff outlooks right now. The Edmonton Oilers and the league’s best player, Connor McDavid, sit atop that list. Edmonton is currently in 13th in the Western Conference and in danger of dropping out of the playoff conversation sooner than any fringe team. The organization has already fired their head coach and general manager this season amid another year of disappointing results and face slim odds that this campaign will end any differently. McDavid and company maintain that the Oilers are a playoff-caliber team, but something has to change with this team down the stretch for that that hypothesis to be tested this postseason. The St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars certainly look like playoff teams on paper, but both have been mediocre at best this season. The Blues, a popular dark horse Stanley Cup pick before the season, have been disappointing in every regard and there has been talk that the team could blow it up this season. A recent improvement paired with the struggles of others in the Western Conference playoff race have revived postseason hopes, but few expected that making the playoffs would be this difficult for St. Louis this season. The same goes for Dallas, who has had highly-publicized feuds between ownership, coaches, and players alike this year as the team continues to fall short of expectations. The Stars currently hold the top spot in the wild card race, but a recent history of late season collapses casts doubt over their ability to hold on to that spot.
There are still many teams whose playoff futures this season remain in question. These franchises all have varying degrees of desperation based on history and expectations. Of the 13 “fringe” teams, which team is under the most pressure to make the playoffs?
Mobile users, click here to vote.
PHWA Announces 2018-19 Midseason Awards
Though they have no bearing on the eventual winners, last season the Professional Hockey Writers Association brought back their Midseason Awards to give fans an idea of who was leading the charge around the NHL at the halfway point. Today those ballots have been tallied and the midseason trophies were given out:
Hart Trophy – Most valuable player
1. Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning
2. Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames
3. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Norris Trophy – Best defenseman
1. Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames
2. Morgan Rielly, Toronto Maple Leafs
3. Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks
Selke Trophy – Best defensive forward
1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins
2. Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers
3. Mark Stone, Ottawa Senators
Calder Trophy – Best rookie
1. Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
2. Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
3. Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
Lady Byng Trophy – Sportsmanship & gentlemanly conduct
1. Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers
2. Morgan Rielly, Toronto Maple Leafs
3. Sean Monahan, Calgary Flames
Vezina Trophy – Best goaltender
1. John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks
2. Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights
3. Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs
Jack Adams Award – Best coach
1. Barry Trotz, New York Islanders
2. Bill Peters, Calgary Flames
3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning
GM of the Year Award
1. Brad Treliving, Calgary Flames
2. Doug Wilson, San Jose Sharks
3. Lou Lamoriello, New York Islanders
Rod Langway Award – Best defensive defenseman
1. Mattias Ekholm, Nashville Predators
2. Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames
3. Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Comeback Player of the Year Award
1. Robin Lehner, New York Islanders
2. Jeff Skinner, Buffalo Sabres
3. Zach Parise, Minnesota Wild
Columbus Blue Jackets Hire Martin St. Louis
The Columbus Blue Jackets have struggled on the powerplay for several years now, so head coach John Tortorella has called up an old friend for help. The Blue Jackets have hired Hall of Fame forward Martin St. Louis as a special teams consultant. Tortorella explained why the team has brought in his old captain:
Marty St. Louis made himself into a Hall of Fame player through sheer determination, hard work and a great understanding of how to play the game the right way. We’re still developing his role, but he has so much knowledge about our game and what it takes to be successful, both individually and within the team concept, that he’ll be a great asset to our players.
St. Louis, the poster boy for overlooked and undersized forwards, certainly knows what it takes to make a good special teams player. He recorded 101 goals and 216 assists with the man advantage during his long career, and added an incredible 29 short-handed goals. The 11-time Lady Byng finalist also took only 310 penalty minutes in his entire 1,134 game career, meaning he was almost never the man unavailable in special teams situations.
Tortorella in the past has explained that St. Louis always had questions on how to do something better, or more efficiently and suggested at the Hall of Fame ceremony that there was a future in coaching if he wanted it. That journey has started today, though it’s not clear exactly where St. Louis will take this new career path.
Pacific Notes: Chychrun, Smith, Vlasic
While Arizona Coyotes oft-injured defenseman Jakob Chychrun will be playing in his 30th game Sunday, the defenseman still isn’t 100 percent after offseason surgery on his right ACL. The 20-year-old is already in his third season in the NHL, but he hasn’t played more than 68 games in a season due to injuries. The most recent injury, he knows he’ll just have to play through, according to The Athletic’s Craig Morgan (subscription required).
“My knee can get a little sore still sometimes, which can be a little frustrating,” he said. “Last year, I didn’t really have that because last year was just a repair (left meniscus). This one they had to take another part of my body and make that into a new ACL. Taking that piece of patellar tendon, it can get really sore. It’s pretty up and down and it’s one thing I have been dealing with. It can feel great or it can feel terrible.”
Regardless, Chychrun has been making the most of his time as the defenseman has three goals and 10 points while averaging 20:12 in ATOI this season with 41 hits and 41 blocked shots. Arizona head coach Rick Tocchet has been impressed with Chychrun’s play despite his struggles with injury.
“He’s a 20-year-old kid that didn’t have a training camp and doesn’t have a ton of games under his belt and I’m playing him 20-plus minutes, playing him penalty kill, power play. We’re giving him a lot. My thing is to see how he reacts after bad games and they are fewer and farther between — you don’t get as many in a row and I think that’s a big step for him.”
- When you think of the Vegas Golden Knights’ best player, you think of names such as Marc-Andre Fleury, William Karlsson, Jon Marchessault or Alex Tuch. However, when The Athletic’s Jesse Granger (subscription required) went around the locker room and asked that question, he got a surprise answer — Reilly Smith. The forward has been out of the lineup with a leg injury since Jan. 6 and while there is talk that the Golden Knights missed defenseman Nate Schmidt desperately while he missed 20 games at the start of the season with a suspension, the players feel that Smith’s offense is missed even more. “It’s been big,” defenseman Shea Theodore said. “I think he’s by far one of the most underrated players in the league. He’s a great two-way player who wins a lot of battles in the defensive zone. He’s a big guy on the penalty kill as well. When you look at that, and look behind his numbers, I think it’s been a huge loss for us.”
- Saturday’s matchup between the San Jose Sharks and Tampa Bay Lightning was played without star defenseman Erik Karlsson, who chose to sit out with a lower-body injury. Reports suggest that Karlsson might sit out the team’s final two games on Monday and Tuesday, to rest up until after the All-Star break. However, while that loss is significant to the team, fellow defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic missed his eighth game and The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz (subscription required) writes that the team may not be missing Vlasic much at all. The team has outscored their opponents 24-15 with Vlasic out. That along with his minus-13 rating might suggest that the team might be better off using a more offensive-minded defenseman in his stead like Tim Heed.
Central Notes: Jokiharju, Johnson, Timmins, Laine
As the Blackhawks pass through another disappointing season, the team must continue to focus on development. The team has a nice group of prospects coming up the pipeline, but there are many that are starting to worry about whether the Blackhawks are doing the right thing with defenseman Henri Jokiharju, their 2017 first-rounder.
The Blackhawks, not known for developing defensemen recently, loaned Jokiharju out to Finland for the World Junior Championships, against the youngster’s wishes even though they eventually won the gold medal. Since his return, the team has changed course in his development, moving him over to the left side, his off-side which will help make room next season for right-hand shot Adam Boqvist, and has had his ice-time cut, according to The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required). He even was a healthy scratch recently.
Head coach Jeremy Colliton said the changes are being made to make sure the youngster won’t burn out like many rookies do during their first season.
“I think he doesn’t need to play every game just like other guys don’t need to play every game,” Colliton said. “Kind of touched on it yesterday, we got some young players, 82-game season, it’s hard to keep that level night in and night out, so we may end up with a rotation. It’s not necessarily performance specifically why they’re coming out, but we can get them extra off-ice training or video or maybe a little more practice work so we continue to develop them.”
- The Colorado Avalanche suffered a key loss Saturday as the team will be without defenseman Erik Johnson, who suffered a concussion during their game against Los Angeles. The veteran defenseman is expected to be out for the next two games and head coach Jared Bednar hopes he’ll be back after the All-Star break, according to The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark. The defensive-minded blueliner averages 21:42 of ATOI and is a key figure on the team’s defense.
- The Avalanche also had good news in practice as defensive prospect Conor Timmins, who has missed all of the 2018-19 season so far with a concussion, practiced today with the team even if it was in a non-contact jersey, according to BSN’s AJ Haefele. Bednar said after the practice that Timmins will begin ramping up activities over the next couple of weeks and they will see if he’s ready to go when the team returns after the All-Star break. Timmins, the team’s second-round pick in 2017, could help the team down the stretch if he’s deemed ready.
- Ted Wyman of the Winnipeg Sun looks back at the first half of the season now that the team hits their bye and All-Star week, suggesting that while many things have gone right for the Jets, perhaps the most disappointing part of the season has been the play of star forward Patrik Laine. The scribe writes that the third-year winger is having a miserable season despite having 25 goals at this point. Despite an 18-goal November, Laine has tallied just seven goals combined in the other three months and often looks like a rookie on the ice. Of course, he’s only 20 years old still, so patience is needed.
Eastern Notes: Nylander, Patrick, Donato
Since signing his six-year, $45MM contract in December, Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander has found himself struggling mightily with just one goal and three points in 19 games (and a current seven-game scoreless streak). Nylander, who admitted to being in the worst slump of his career, showed up to practice this morning both clean-shaven and on a new line as the 22-year-old has been moved down to the team’s fourth line along with Frederik Gauthier and Par Lindholm, according to TSN’s Kristen Shilton.
“He’s getting in his own way. He thought things were going to come easier, and when it didn’t come, you’re pressing and then you press some more,” explained head coach Mike Babcock ahead of the Leafs’ matchup Sunday night against the Arizona Coyotes. “It’s not like he’s not trying, and it’s not like we’re not trying to help him. We’re doing all that; it’s just not going as good for him. Ideally this will allow him to take some heat off himself and get playing.”
Babcock pointed out that Nylander has always been used to being a dominant player who shoots the puck with confidence. However, the opposite of that is true as he has just six shots on goal in his last four games, and even worse, holds a minus-seven rating.
- There has been much concern over the struggles of 2017 second-overall pick Nolan Patrick this season, especially concerning his lack of production considering a week ago, he had five goals and 11 points in 38 games. The 20-year-old has finally responded with two multi-point games in his last three, including a two-goal, two-assist performance Monday, followed by another two-goal game Saturday. Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that Patrick’s confidence seems to be soaring and the youngster seems to be figuring things out. Patrick, who tallied 13 goals and 30 points last season as a rookie, is beginning to show his assertiveness like he did a year ago during the second half of the season.
- The latest Boston Bruins’ player to find himself scratched was Ryan Donato, according to Matt Porter of The Boston Globe. And while many would think that he found himself in the press box due to scoring just one goal in the past 10 games, head coach Bruce Cassidy had a different reason. The coach wants Donato to work harder on his strength on the puck. Donato needs to learn how to get the upper hand on larger and stronger defenseman, something that many young players struggle to do. “It’s not like a flat tire you put air in and it gets fixed,” Cassidy said. “It takes a while. Some guys have it naturally.”