Monthly Archives: February 2024
Kane scores OT winner in return to Chicago
It had to be him.
Patrick Kane reminded Chicago Blackhawks fans of the glory days on Sunday, burying the overtime winner with a top-shelf breakaway goal in his first game at his old stomping grounds as a member of the Detroit Red Wings.
More to come.
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Fleury: ‘I don’t want to just quit’ on Wild in playoff race
This might be Marc-Andre Fleury's last season in the NHL, and he wants to ride it out with the Minnesota Wild as they battle for a playoff spot.
"I don't want to just quit, right?" he said, according to The Athletic's Joe Smith. "I like this. I like the guys. It's a great bunch of guys. When you're so close, you want to do it all for each other. It's been fun lately winning a bit more, too."
Minnesota has been one of the league's best teams coming out of the All-Star break, owning a 7-1-1 record and the second-best points percentage (.833). The Wild are now just two points behind the Nashville Predators for the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference as a result of the red-hot run.
"If we were last in the conference, maybe it'd be a little bit different," Fleury said. "But this is my team. We've been battling together, right? I take pride in winning with this team. I want us to make the playoffs. That's my first priority.
"I think being in the hunt, it's fun, it's challenging. And I want to be here and see this team make the playoffs."
It's been a roller-coaster campaign for the Wild, who were in 30th place when they fired head coach Dean Evason in late November. Minnesota has since gone an admirable 23-14-2 under John Hynes, but even that stretch has been marred by some major dips: The Wild dropped eight out of nine contests earlier this winter.
Fleury has been key to Minnesota's recent turnaround, boasting a .908 save percentage and a 4-1-0 record since Feb. 7.
With many contenders in need of a serviceable backup goaltender, Fleury could be a valuable asset at the deadline. However, the affable veteran's future is entirely up to him, thanks to his full no-move clause. The Wild have five games remaining before March 8.
Fleury has three Stanley Cup championships to his name, and he's made the playoffs in each of the last 17 seasons. Despite the Wild's improvement, his streak is still in danger, as Minnesota only has a 27.7% chance of making the postseason, per MoneyPuck.
The 39-year-old took sole possession of second place on the NHL's all-time wins list earlier this season with his 552nd victory. Fleury owns a 12-10-3 record and an .899 save percentage on the campaign.
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Sunday NHL Rumor Roundup – February 25, 2024
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – February 25, 2024
Post Game: Trusting the Process
Sat Shah and Bik Nizzar breakdown the Canucks dramatic 3-2 OT win over the Boston Bruins. Hear from Head Coach Rick Tocchet (36:55) and JT Miller (11:35) post game. Brett Festerling and Iain McIntyre(1:03:37) provide their analysis.
The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.
Report: Golden Knights, Canucks among several teams eyeing Guentzel
A deep group of playoff contenders have Pittsburgh Penguins star Jake Guentzel on their radars leading up to the trade deadline.
The Vegas Golden Knights, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Florida Panthers are among the teams that have expressed interest in the pending unrestricted free agent, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
Guentzel would be arguably the biggest name available for this year's trade season, but the Penguins haven't made it clear if he's on the block. General manager Kyle Dubas is reportedly listening to trade offers for all non-core players as Pittsburgh fights for a playoff spot. The club is nine points back of both a wild-card and divisional seed with 28 games remaining.
Dubas shut down rumors involving Guentzel in January, saying all trade talk was "pure speculation."
Guentzel was sidelined for up to four weeks on Feb. 15 with an upper-body injury, halting a terrific season in which he's racked up 52 points in 50 games on Pittsburgh's top line. The 29-year-old is a two-time 40-goal scorer and has 58 points in 58 career playoff contests to go with a Stanley Cup in 2017.
He currently carries a $6-million cap hit and is expected to land a notable raise on his next deal.
The trade deadline is March 8.
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Leafs win 7 straight for 1st time in 20 years on Bertuzzi’s hat trick
Tyler Bertuzzi celebrated his 29th birthday in style with a hat trick as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 on Saturday.
The Maple Leafs have won seven consecutive games for the first time since the 2003-04 campaign.
Bertuzzi is the first player in Maple Leafs history to record a hat trick on his birthday. He had one goal in his previous 23 games.
Ilya Samsonov made 26 saves as he won his sixth consecutive start. Mitch Marner tallied a goal and an assist as his point streak reached nine games.
Toronto won 10 games to commence the 1993-94 campaign, which stands as the longest streak in team history.
The Maple Leafs will look to match the eight-game win streak from 2003-04 on Tuesday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
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Report: Sens have untouchables but are ‘open for business’
If there was any doubt the Ottawa Senators would be active ahead of the upcoming NHL trade deadline, it can be put to rest.
The Senators have untouchable players but are "open for business," league executives told Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch.
Ottawa forwards Vladimir Tarasenko and Dominik Kubalik are prime candidates to be dealt before March 8 because of their status as pending unrestricted free agents. Tarasenko has a $5-million cap hit, while Kubalik's figure is half of that, according to CapFriendly.
The Senators have reportedly listened to teams interested in defenseman Jakub Chychrun, who they acquired in a swap with the Arizona Coyotes last spring. Chychrun called the report "ridiculous" when asked about it in January. The blue-liner, who'll turn 26 on March 31, is under contract through 2024-25 with a $4.6-million cap hit.
Ottawa might not just be a seller, though. The Sens were reportedly one of the teams interested in Calgary Flames rearguard Chris Tanev, who is among the most coveted deadline targets.
In terms of untouchables, Ottawa has eight players signed through at least 2026-27. Team captain Brady Tkachuk (2027-28), Tim Stutzle (2030-31), Josh Norris (2029-30), Drake Batherson (2026-27), Thomas Chabot (2027-28), Artem Zub (2026-27), Jake Sanderson (2031-32), and Joonas Korpisalo (27-28) are all inked long term.
The Senators entered Saturday sitting second last in the Atlantic Division by points percentage. They have the fewest points in the group but three games in hand on the Montreal Canadiens, who have one more point.
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Stars’ Stankoven making NHL debut vs. Hurricanes
Dallas Stars prospect Logan Stankoven will play his first NHL game Saturday night against the Carolina Hurricanes, head coach Peter DeBoer confirmed, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. Dallas forward Tyler Seguin will sit out the tilt due to injury.
Stankoven, who'll turn 21 on Monday, is thriving in his first season with the AHL's Texas Stars. Stankoven entered Saturday leading the league with 57 points while sitting in a tie for second with 24 goals in 47 outings.
Stankoven similarly dominated the WHL last season, amassing a whopping 97 points (34 goals and 63 assists) in 48 outings as a member of the Kamloops Blazers. That was the fourth-highest total in the league even though Stankoven missed 20 games.
Dallas selected Stankoven in the second round of the 2021 NHL Draft.
The Stars have been relatively thin up front as of late. Evgenii Dadonov has missed the last four games because of a lower-body fracture and the team shifted him to long-term injured reserve Sunday. Meanwhile, Matt Duchene was a late scratch during Monday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Boston Bruins. Dallas had to play a man short as a result.
Dallas (34-16-8) came into Saturday sitting second to the Winnipeg Jets (35-15-5) in the Central Division by points percentage. The Stars led the Jets by a single point with Winnipeg having played three fewer games.
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