Tag: Boston Bruins

NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum: Players get compensation on concussion issue; Karlsson gets first goal with SJ; B’s Chara out with knee injury; plus more

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sportingnews.com photo: Boston Bruins Zdeno Charo will miss 4-6 weeks due to a knee injury the Bruins reported on Saturday night 

On the NHL podcast with Daniel: 

1 NHL the big winner in battle with ex-players over concussion compensation

2 Karlsson gets his first goal for Sharks

3 Bruins’ Zdeno Chara out at least 4 weeks with knee injury

4 Habs’ Max Domi off to fast start

5 45 years ago, Bobby Orr had NHL’s first 7-point game

Daniel has your NHL podcast each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com 

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Kings’ Peterson plays the most fun game of his life; Blues come to SJ after win in Vegas; Leafs too hot to handle, get by Ducks 2-1; plus more

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Chicago 5 Sports photo: The Los Angeles Kings Nate Thompson (44) congratulates Kings goaltender Calvin Peterson (40) following Friday night’s game at the United Center in Chicago against the Blackhawks

On the NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: 

#1 For the Los Angeles Kings goaltender Calvin Peterson, it was a homecoming facing the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night at the United Center. Peterson was a player with the Chicago Young Americans of the Midwest Elite Hockey League; played at the United Center when he was with Notre Dame during the Frozen Four. Peterson stopped 34 shots in the Kings victory over the Hawks 2-1.

#2 The St Louis Blues who come to SAP Center tonight against the San Jose Sharks picked up a huge victory at T Mobile Center on Friday in a 4-1 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights. Goals from Ryan O’Reilly–two of them help pace the Blues to victory.

#3 The red-hot Toronto Maple Leafs who have won six of their last seven including a win last Thursday over the San Jose Sharks defeated the Anaheim Ducks 2-1. The Leafs Morgan Reilly scored an overtime breakaway goal for the winner. It was Reilly’s ninth goal of the season and 26th point.

#4 The Washington Capitals’ Nicklas Backstrom didn’t waste any time scoring a power play goal 22 second into overtime to help edge the Colorado Alvalanche 3-2. The Caps’ Alex Ovechkin and Devante Smith-Pelly also scored.

#5 The Dallas Stars shutout the Boston Bruins behind Jason Dickinson’s goal a rebound at 1:34 in overtime. The Stars’ Ben Bishop stopped 23 shots. Big win for the Stars and tough loss for the Bruins.

Matt Harrington does the NHL podcast each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Fall to Bruins 3-1, Power Play Struggles

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Photo credit: San Jose Sharks

By M. Walsh

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks fell to the Boston Bruins 3-1 on Saturday. Boston goals came from Peter Cehlarik, Jake DeBrusk, and Danton Heinen. Bruins goaltender Anton Khudobin made 36 saves for the win, while Sharks goaltender Aaron Dell made 17 saves. The lone Sharks goal came from Timo Meier.

The Sharks played well in many short bursts, but they could not generate second chances or sustain pressure for very long. After the game, Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said:

We’ve got to be a little bit harder around the net. We had some good chances tonight, it’s just we’re one play off, it feels. You come back to the shift and it’s one play, whether it’s in your d-zone or the neutral zone or the o-zone. It just feels like it’s one play right now.

In Saturday’s loss, the Sharks extended their power-play goal drought to 22. Perhaps more improbable, they saw a fourth consecutive coach’s challenge go against them. Brent Burns continues to shoot without scoring. He now leads the Sharks with 75 shots this season.

Just 1:02 in, the Sharks seemed to have ended their 63-minute goalless streak. Joe Thornton held the puck briefly near the goal line and then passed it back in front of the Bruins net. Out of a crush of players in front of the goalie, the puck found its way over the line off of Joonas Donskoi. The Bruins challenged it and won the challenge. Instead of ending their scoring drought, the Sharks now had three consecutive goals disallowed.

Undaunted, the Sharks went back to work and did get a goal at 4:50, this time from Meier. Danny O’Regan wrested control of the puck behind the Bruins net and guided it to Meier across the goal mouth. Khudobin could not get across in time to stop it. A secondary assist went to Joel Ward.

Moments later, the Bruins came back with a goal of their own. The puck went over the line after Boston’s Jake DeBrusk slid into Aaron Dell and pushed him into the net. The Sharks challenged the play for goaltender interference. The goal held up and was credited to Peter Cehlarik. DeBrusk got an assist for his trouble. It was the fourth consecutive challenge to go against the Sharks.

Of the decision, Pavelski said: “I don’t know. They say he was tripped in there. He was already kind of going down, I think.”

The first power play of the game went to the Sharks at 8:43. Riley Nash went to the box for tripping Joe Thornton. The Bruins penalty kill was effective. It was so effective that, just as Dell was tapping his stick to signal the end of the penalty, DeBrusk broke away and scored to give Boston the lead. Assists went to Charlie McAvoy and Sean Kuraly.

By the end of the first period, the score was 2-1 Boston, though the Sharks were outshooting the Bruins 17-5.

Near the midpoint of the second, Joe Thornton was called for tripping David Pastrnak. The Sharks penalty kill started well, with Melker Karlsson and Chris Tierney leading a merry chase at Boston’s end. The Bruins got no shots with that man advantage and really had no opportunity to do so.

The next penalties called were offsetting minors at 10:46, an interference call against Zdneo Chara and an embellishment call against Jannik Hansen. The Sharks dominated the four on four play but did not change the score.

As the period came to a close, the Sharks still trailed 2-1, and still led in shots, now 25-14.

Fans in the third period saw the Sharks start slowly. It was near the midpoint of the period before they had their first shot on goal. Their game picked up after that, but so did Boston’s game. At 14:59, Danton Heinen scored his third of the season against the Sharks, catching a well-timed pass from Kevan Miller for a breakaway. Too many Sharks were too deep in the Boston zone to catch him.

The Sharks had another power play in the last two minutes of regulation, but it didn’t make a difference.

The Sharks will have a chance to repair their game on Monday when they host the Anaheim Ducks at 7:30 pm PT.

Bruins Beat Sharks 2-1, Thornton Climbs to 20th in NHL Points

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Photo credit: San Jose Sharks

by Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 2-1 to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. Rookie Danton Heinen scored both Boston goals, his first and second NHL goals. It was his fourth NHL game. Joe Thornton scored the lone goal for San Jose. The point moved him up to a tie for 20th place with Jari Kurri among the NHL’s all time points leaders. Boston goaltender Anton Khudobin made 36 saves on 37 shots for the win.

After the game, Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said:

I think we worked pretty hard. The ice was not great out there. We had opportunities, we just didn’t find a way to stick them in net. I think when we came out of our end we played down there. They’re a good strong team, they’re big and heavy. I think they stuck their nose in, wanted this one. You know, you get those opportunities on the power play, we’ve got to cash in there.

The game was a reversal of Monday’s game in New York, when the Sharks had to kill six penalties to the Ranger’s 1. In Boston, the Sharks only took two penalties to the Bruins’ six. The loss drops the Sharks to a 4-5-0 record this season, and 2-2-0 for this five game road trip.

Martin Jones made 31 save son 33 shots for the Sharks. Joel Ward was again in the lineup, while Barclay Goodrow was replaced by Timo Meier. Otherwise, the lineup remained the same as on Monday. Ward got credit for one hit and had 9:40 in ice time. In 11:49 of ice time, Meier had a hit and two shots on goal.

The first goal of the game was short-handed. The Sharks were having little luck getting set up and in the second half of the power play Boston’s Kevan Miller won a race to the puck and quickly sent it back to David Backes. Backes headed for the neutral zone, with Heinen was a few steps ahead of him. The Sharks had two players back but Backes’s shot got by them and Sharks goalie Martin Jones kicked the rebound out right to Heinen. Assists went to Backes and Miller.

Joe Thornton’s goal came on a power play in the second period. Boston goaltender Anton Khudobin got a piece of Brent Burns’s shot but it rolled over his toe. Thornton had just slipped behind defenders Zdeno Chara and Brandon Carlo. Thornton was able to turn and reach the puck in the blue paint and lift it in the net. Assists went to Burns and Tim Heed.

Heinen’s second goal was also in the second period. This time, the rebound came off the boards behind the net while Jones was still trying to come across. Assists went to Carlo and Tim Schaller.

Late in the third period, the Boston net came off of its moorings and was not called as a delay of game. The Sharks were already on a power play with just 1:17 left in the third period. After the game, Pavelski summarized the third period:

We made a little push trying to get that goal, I think we created some opportunities. It felt good. There was maybe a few plays where we’re trying to make something happen and they turn it over. In those situations, Joner made the saves. It felt good, felt like we were going to get one there at the end. Ran out of time.

The Sharks next play on Saturday in Buffalo at 10:00 AM PT.

Sharks Fend Off Bruins in 3-2 Win

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: The Sharks Logan Couture (39) battles with the Bruins Ryan Spooner for the puck during a second period face off on Tuesday night

SAN JOSE– For the second time this season, the San Jose Sharks defeated the Boston Bruins. The score was 3-2, with Sharks goals from Joonas Donskoi, Melker Karlsson and Brent Burns. With his 26th goal, Brent Burns tied the Sharks record for goals scored by a defenseman in a season, set by Sandis Ozolinsh. With 11 goals and 31 points, Donskoi is the highest scoring Sharks rookie since Logan Couture.

James Reimer made 21 saves on 23 Boston shots for the win. David Krejci and Loui Eriksson scored for the Bruins, with Tuuka Rask making 24 saves for Boston on 27 San Jose shots.

Melker Karlsson opened the scoring for the Sharks at 8:44. After winning the puck along the boards, Karlsson dropped it to Logan Couture and went to the front of the net. Couture sent the puck behind the net to Donskoi, who passed it ahead for Karlsson to put away. Assists went to to Donskoi and Couture.

The Bruins answered back at 11:26. David Pastrnak got by the Sharks defense and took a shot into Reimer’s pads. Reimer kicked the puck back out but right in David Krejci’s wheelhouse. His quick shot went under Reimer to tie the game. Assists went to Pastrnak and Torey Krug.

The first penalty of the game came with just 2:54 left in the first period. It was a hooking call against Jimmy Hayes. The power play did not go very well for the Sharks, and 39 seconds in, Boston scored short handed. Loui Eriksson broke away,and it was the second Boston breakaway in that power play, to beat Reimer and give the Bruins the lead.

The Sharks had one second of five on three, and then the rest of the period five on four against Boston. At the end of the first penalty, David Krejci finished up another breakaway with a slash to James Reimer, after the whistle blew.

The period ended with the Bruins up 2-1 and the Sharks ahead in shots 12-10.

The Sharks finished the remainder of that power play to start the second period. They did not give up another short handed goal and they did add a couple of shots to their tally.

At 11:46, Brent Burns tied the game. Burns made a pass through the slot in the direction of Thornton, but instead the puck hit Ryan Spooner and bounced into the net.

The game winner did not come until the third period, during the dying seconds of another Sharks power play. Jimmy Hayes was in the box for an illegal check to the head of Sharks defenseman Justin Braun. The Sharks’ first power play unit had been unsuccesful, allowing another short-handed chance, this time to Brad Marchand. Marchand also made some little extra contact with Reimer after his shot was stopped. That drew some reaction from the Sharks. The second unit came on with 1:22 left in the power play, with Tomas Hertl taking a defensive zone draw. The Sharks controlled the puck but after their first dump-in the Bruins pushed the puck back out quickly.

Donskoi dumped the puck in on their next entry and the Sharks retrieved the puck along the end boards. A pass from Vlasic to Burns wound up on Burns’ skate. Burns moved the puck from skate to stick, and found Joel Ward on the far side of the slot. Ward waited a beat and picked his shot. Donskoi was in front of the net, with his stick on the ice in front of Rask. The deflected shot went just under the diving goaltender and in the net. Assists went to Ward and Burns.

The Sharks took their first and only penalty at 10:20 of the third period. Donskoi went to the box for holding the stick, but the Bruins power play did not change the score, and the Bruins did not get any shots despite a couple of good attacks.

Back at even strength, the Bruins made a push in the final minutes of the game but the Sharks held them off for the win.

The three stars of the game were Joonas Donskoi, Melker Karlsson and David Krejci.

Sharks forward Tommy Wingels was off IR Tuesday, but did not play.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Arizona, against the Coyotes at 7:00 PT.

Sharks Acquire Martin Jones From Bruins

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By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks have acquired goaltender Martin Jones from the Boston Bruins. From the Sharks press release: “Martin was at the top of our list of players that we had targeted,” said Wilson. “We’re extremely excited to have him on board.”

In return, the Sharks gave up a first round pick in the 2016 draft and unsigned prospect Sean Kuraly. Kuraly was drafted in the fifth round in 2011 and is starting his senior year at Miami University.

In 2013-14, Jones won his first eight NHL starts to tie an NHL record. In that span, he was the first NHL goalie to average less than a goal a game in that win streak. The 6’4″, 25 year old goalie spent the majority of the past few seasons playing with the AHL Manchester Monarchs. In 2013-14, he played 19 games with the Kings, and this past season he played 13 games. Three of those appearances were against the Sharks: a win and two losses, one in relief of Jonathan Quick.

In the most recent World Championships, Jones started and won twice for Canada, helping the team earn the gold medal. His World Junior team won the silver medal in 2010, and he was named to the AHL All Star teams in 2011 and 2014.

Boston acquired Jones in a draft weekend trade from the Los Angeles Kings, along with a 2015 first round pick and defenseman Colin Miller in exchange for Milan Lucic. Jones was originally signed by the Kings as a free agent in 2008.

The Sharks also announced that they have issued qualifying offers to goalie Aaron Dell and forward Daniil Tarasov. By issuing the offers, the team retains negotiating rights to both players. The sharks did not issue offers to forwards Eriah Hayes and Rylan Schwartz, goalie JP Anderson, and defenseman Taylor Doherty. Those four players become unrestricted free agents.

Goalies and Go-Getters: NHL Playoffs

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By Mary Walsh

Watching the French team beat the Canadians in the World Championships was one of the most entertaining viewing experiences I have had in a while. Even though I had to keep clicking through ad popups, exposing my computer to who knows what kind of hazards, the game was riveting. Sure, it went to a shootout, after a couple of power play goals from the French kept them in the game. Goalie Cristobal Huet also kept them in the game, neutralizing the not yet ready for prime time Canadian team. But who doesn’t love to see an underdog steal one?

The French are not the only underdogs playing right now. The Montreal Canadiens, though their record hardly looks like an underdog’s, had the Boston Bruins on the ropes for a bit. I wonder how many people became Habs fans then? It isn’t that the Bruins are so easy to root against, but they won the Cup so recently, and they are reputed to be big tough guys. The Habs are supposed to be quick and light in the way they play. (Hence the utter confusion about the Douglas Murray signing.) Yet even if the Bruins are the hounds and the Canadiens the foxes, it usually takes several hounds to take down one fox. That makes us root for the fox. We know one hound could never catch a fox on his own, but it still seems unfair to gang up on the little fox like that.

The thing is, it isn’t true. Apart from Zdeno Chara, the Bruins are not bigger than average for an NHL team, and the Canadiens are not small. Even their playing styles are exaggerated– the Bruins play fast whenever possible, and the Canadiens don’t scamper around the rink without standing their ground defensively.

Neither team shows the defensive recklessness of some teams (hello Pittsburgh), though both teams get reliable goaltending. Tuuka Rask and Carey Price are both exceptional, in their prime, and playoff hardened. Neither has been surprising in a good way or a bad way. They have performed as expected: very well.

The teams were more evenly matched than advertised, but hyperbole makes it a better story.

What is not exaggerated are their respective playoff records. The Bruins won the Cup in 2011 and made it to the Finals last season. The Habs haven’t been to the Conference Finals since 2010, and they haven’t won a Cup since 1993. One of these teams is due, the other has won recently enough to remember the way clearly. The latter will not go quietly, if at all. The Bruins demonstrated as much by taking the lead in the series on Saturday.

Here in the West, Sharks fans may or may not be watching the Freeway Series between the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks. If they are watching, they may have noticed how strange it is that two teams that did so well at home have now turned into road warriors, if across town really counts as a road game. In any case, it is strange to see the Ducks cast in the underdog role, since they were so dominant in the regular season.

One of the more talked about issues is the way Bruce Boudreau has been handling the Anaheim goaltenders. He pulled Frederik Andersen twice before he had to be replaced for injury, always putting Jonas Hiller in. Hiller has played well, has experience, and probably deserved to start Saturday. But the Ducks started the season overloaded with young goaltending talent. They even traded one away to the Oilers, they had so many goalies. Now they can’t seem to find one the coach can rely on.

It doesn’t really breed confidence, to keep switching goaltenders. It also doesn’t breed confidence to have a goalie the team doesn’t trust to make all the stops he needs to make. Here is the problem with that– some teams play better defense with a backup in the net, precisely because they don’t trust him. Doesn’t it make more sense to give defense extra attention, no matter who is in goal? What if your awesome unbeatable goalie has an off night? It wouldn’t matter if you were helping him out enough.

See the Minnesota Wild and Ilya Bryzgalov for how to make it work. Bryzgalov has one of the most mercurial records in the NHL. This season alone, he had to claw his way back into the league after starting off signed to a PTO with an ECHL team. He is not stealing games for Minnesota, but they are doing pretty well for a team working on its fourth goalie in the season. In response, he is playing better behind them.

See the LA Kings and Jonathan Quick in Games 1 & 2 against Sharks for how to let it take you down. No matter how the Sharks lit him up, it took the Kings two games to figure out that their super-duper goalie was not going to win the game for them and he needed some help. Once they gave it to him all was well, but how it could take them so long to get their act together is mind-boggling.

They say that a goalie has to steal a couple of games along the road to a Stanley Cup. That may be true but it seems awfully risky to assume that your team is going to simply fall apart for a game or two along the way. Yes, if a Sharks goalie had stolen a game, or two, maybe they would still be in it. But after the way the Sharks played in Game 5, did they deserve to be?

Sometimes a team has no choice but to flip flop goalies through the playoffs. The 2010 Flyers made it as far as the Finals, changing starting goalies mid-playoffs due to injury. Michael Leighton had only been cleared to play the day before he replaced Brian Boucher, and each goaltender gave exceptional performances in turn. In the end, they were still being swapped mid-game, I suspect because neither was truly 100% healthy. Through it all, the rest of the team held it together, killed themselves on defense (Ian LaPerriere almost literally) and went further than the Sharks have ever gone.

Maybe confidence is over-rated. Maybe will is all.

Antti Niemi was a raw rookie in his first season of North American hockey when he won. He didn’t even play in the minors. The Blackhawks made due. There really is no sure-thing formula for the role goaltending plays in a Cup run. Everyone needs to pull their weight and a little more if possible. Should it matter to the Ducks whether Anderson or Hiller or Gibson is behind them? No. If the puck is behind them, they need to get it back in front of them ASAP, no matter who is perched in the paint. That’s a good rule for any team to follow.