March 16, 2012

Jeff Angus

2012-03-16

 

Calgary rookie Sven Baertschi has scored his third goal in four games. Tremendous upside and he’ll have a lot more confidence next season knowing he can produce at the NHL level.

 

Iginla has goals in six straight games. He’s doing all he can to get a Calgary team that has battled the injury bug to the playoffs.

 

Matt Stajan is benefitting from more ice time – he now has points in four straight games.

 

Pekka Rinne was unbelievable for Nashville last night – he made 34 saves on 35 shots, and I’d wager that at least 15-20 of those were great scoring chances for the Sharks.

 

Justin Schultz, the top ranked prospect defenseman on my recent list, was the feature of a piece I wrote yesterday. Check it out here.

 

If Edmonton calls up Phoenix on draft day and offers them their 1st round pick (assume it is 2nd or 3rd overall) for Oliver Ekman-Larsson… does Phoenix do it? Ekman-Larsson is playing like a number one defenseman right now and is looking like he'll be the cornerstone of that team for the next 10+ years. The Coyotes are rich in defensemen, but can you move a proven young asset like that?

 

I hear the Bruins have extended a contract offer out to Blaine Lacher.

 

Thomas was lit up for six goals by the Panthers last night. Things are no good in Beantown right now, and the Bruins could lose their once rock solid division lead if the Senators win on Friday night.

 

Florida got contributions from a variety of sources, including Brian Campbell (three helpers), Tomas Fleischman (two helpers), and Samuelsson and Weiss with a goal and an assist each.

 

Florida pulled a Boston by spreading out their ice time – only one forward saw less than 10 minutes of ice time (Krys Barch).

 

James Reimer had a strong game in Tampa Bay last night, coming within a minute of a shutout. As Bruce Arthur tweeted, the Leafs lose when they need to win, and win when they should be losing.

 

Jake Gardiner scored and was played with great frequency by Randy Carlyle. He played both sides of defense and with a variety of partners. He skates so well and moves so fluidly with and without the puck – sky is the limit. In a defensive role, he could log big PK minutes. His production will depend a lot on PP minutes, as it does for most defensemen.

 

It took Carlyle a few games to figure out how bad Mike Komisarek is – 11 minutes played last night.

 

Matt Frattin led the Leafs with five shots on goal. He's shown a lot of good things this season, but the production hasn't been there. A good sleeper for 20 goals next season.

 

Took him longer than expected, but Jeff Skinner hit the 20 goal mark last night.

 

The Blues suffered only their second regulation loss all season against an Eastern Conference opponent last night (Carolina).

 

Bad news for the streaking Andy McDonald – he was hit awkwardly into the boards and looked to injure his shoulder. I'm not a doctor (I just play one on TV), but it didn't look good.

 

Ho-hum, another 25 minutes logged for rookie defenseman Justin Faulk.

 

Jamie McBain could be a trade target for many NHL clubs this summer – he's being passed over on the Carolina depth chart, and the Hurricanes have similar players coming up through the ranks (Murphy, Dumoulin, and so on).

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Bobby Sanguenetti had three shots on goal in 14 minutes of ice time – he's played himself back to relevant prospect status with a strong AHL season.

 

Crosby had a helper last night – the best news, though, is how he played. He didn't look tentative at all in puck battles or around the net.

 

Artem Anisimov left the game with an injury for the Rangers – he's a big part of their team, even when he isn't contributing on the score sheet.

 

Kris Letang was injured, you say? Could've fooled me – plus-five, two shots on goal, and 24 minutes of ice time in his return after missing five games.

 

The reformed Matt Cooke scored a pair and led the Penguins with five shots on goal.

 

Jordan Staal was probably the best forward on the ice for either team – he only had one assist, but I thought he was dominant at both ends of the ice.

 

Carl Hagelin is continuing to make the most of his top line spot – two more points and four shots on goal playing with Richards and Gaborik last night. He's combing a good work ethic with his sensational speed, and Tortorella is rewarding him with ice time and opportunities.

 

Not a good night for the Rangers big guns on defense – Staal, Girardi, and McDonagh were a combined minus-six.

 

Lundqvist didn't even dress because he was afraid of Crosby had the flu.

 

Ilya Bryzgalov came within seven minutes of his fourth straight shutout. He set a new Flyers record, with nearly 250 minutes of mistake-free hockey.

 

Jaromir Jagr has 145 points in 97 career games against the Islanders. Wow.

 

Stefan Elliott and Tyson Barrie were both healthy scratches for Colorado last night.

 

Matt Duchene played last night, but he didn't find the score sheet (nor did any other Colorado player).

 

Colorado prospect Michael Sgarbossa cleaned up in a recent OHL poll – check it out here.

 

Not exactly textbook…. Looks like a video game, no?

 

Nice toe drag from Gardiner last night:

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