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Dobber’s latest piece for Puck Daddy – great advice as we have come to expect.

 

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It shouldn't really be a huge surprise, but last night's game was a great example as to why Scott Hartnell is s valuable. He had two helpers in the first period, and was a huge offensive catalyst all night long. It isn't a surprise that Giroux looked great as well.

 

Simon Gagne scored a goal, had four shots on net, two hits, and played 16 minutes. I think he likes being back in the Orange and Black.

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Kyle Palmieri recorded a hat trick last night – the Ducks young forwards have all been huge for them this season, and the time spent together on the farm team during the lockout is a big reason for that.

 

Getzlaf and Perry each had three helpers (not a surprise considering they play with Palmieri).

 

Cam Fowler logged 25 minutes of ice time – he played five minutes more than any other Duck 9although he finished with no points).

 

Two of those other young forwards I was talking about – Nick Bonino and Emerson Etem – also finished with points last night.

 

Pekka Rinne has allowed at least four goals in three consecutive starts – don't expect that to happen again anytime soon.

Probably not enough to hurt his trade value… but you never know!

 

Craig Smith has been an offensive disappointment in 2013, but he does have goals in consecutive games for the Predators.

 

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Brendan Smith played only 16 minutes for the Wings last night – he left the game briefly after colliding awkwardly with Dustin Penner, but he did return later.

 

Nick Kronwall played close to 28 minutes.

 

Jonathan Bernier was great in goal for the Kings, stopping all but one of the 33 shots fired his way.

 

Bernier has now won four consecutive starts and has allowed only four total goals over that time. It is nice to see him string some great games together and finally show the potential we have so often heard about.

 

 

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Mike Milbury apparently isn’t Ovechkin’s biggest fan.

 

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James Reimer is cleared and ready to go – sounds like he may be playing tonight against the Isles.

In his first game as #11, Brendan Gallagher had a goal and five shots on net. He gave up his #73 to Michael Ryder. The last Hab to wear 11 was….

Pacioretty had a great game – he was very involved physically, and scored a pair of goals on seven shots.

Ryder was pointless in about 15 minutes of ice time – he skated on a line with Galchenyuk and Lars Eller.

Bozak/JVR/Kessel were a combined minus-12 last night – safe to say they didn’t win their line matchup.

Carey Price is the best goalie in hockey right now. Calm, cool, collected.

The most dangerous Leaf forward (as he has been for much of the season) was Nazem Kadri, even with Colton Orr on one of his wings.

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Updates on last night’s other three games will be up shortly.

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Landed some cool interviews last week.

 

Talked hockey/training with Cal Dietz, who trains the University of Minnesota hockey team, including Nick Bjugstad, and current NHLers Thomas Vanek, Paul Martin, Keith Ballard, Alex Goligoski, and more.

 

And also got to speak with Ben Prentiss, a hockey trainer based in Connecticut. He trains a number of NHLers, including Marty St. Louis, Max Pacioretty, James van Riemsdyk, Matt Moulson, and Cam Atkinson. He offered up some great stuff on Pacioretty (neck injury related) and Atkinson in particular.

 

Oh, and he also trains Jessica Zelinka, a Canadian Olympian, and the owner of a ridiculous set of abs.

 

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Ryan Kesler is out for up to six weeks with a broken foot. Tough break (pun) for him as he just came back from offseason surgery.

 

Welcome to the Band Aid Boy committee, Mr. Kesler!

 

This is a huge opportunity for Jordan Schroeder, who will see PP1 time as well as more evenstrength minutes. Expect Andrew Ebbett to fill in as well – he's a solid depth forward who can play top nine minutes in a pinch (he was good last year and has had some success in Anaheim in the past as well).

 

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Speaking of Band Aid Boys, Nikolai Khabibulin is back on the IR with a groin issue. His fourth IR trip in the past three years with the Oilers.

 

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The Blues and Kings both have a lot of work to do this summer. A look at some upcoming free agents:

 

LA:

 

Kyle Clifford, Jonathan Bernier, Alec Martinez, Slava Voynov, Jordan Nolan, Trevor Lewis, Jake Muzzin, and Keaton Ellerby (all restricted).

 

Penner and Scuderi are UFA's – I'd expect Scuderi back. And all of those RFAs will be due raises.

 

Blues:

 

There are rumours that the Blues may be open to moving defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. That sounds crazy, I know. But this may be why:

 

Chris Stewart, Alex Pietrangelo, Shattenkirk, Ian Cole, and Patrik Berglund are all restricted free agents. Andy McDonald is a UFA. How much money will Pietrangelo and Berglund command?

 

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Brandon Worley offers his take on the Cole/Ryder trade from Tuesday.

 

Suffice it to say, I liked having Ryder on the Stars and enjoyed watching what he could bring to the ice. He brought a dynamic to the Stars the team was missing, especially last season, and the past few weeks had recovered from an exceptionally mediocre start for the right wing to become the co-leading scorer for the Stars in goals and assists.

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Yeah… he's good (and my pick for 1^st overall in any fantasy league format):

 

 

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Equally as impressive – look at how much ice he covers:

 

 

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A great (seriously, read this one) read on what makes hockey fans so unique.

 

Hockey fans are just so dorky, and I say that with nothing but respect: As a sports fan, I consider it the ultimate compliment. There is no posing, no ulterior motive, no nothing other than obsession with the game itself. There’s a manic look in the eye of a hockey fan that doesn’t compare to anything you see in the other three major North American sports; I might be a lunatic during Cardinals playoff games, but you can still tell, no matter how much I’m jumping around and biting the shoulders of everyone in my vicinity, that I’m aware the world will not, in fact, end if the Cardinals lose. The planet outside of the game exists, and I plan on returning to it. You don’t get this from hockey fans. Hockey is all there is, and hockey is all that matters.

I would say dorky is the right word to use – and in a good way.

 

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Finalizing my top 10 keeper league right winger list for 2013 – share your thoughts here, and check out my three previous lists from 2010, 2011, and 2012.

 

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Alex Semin doesn't speak English often, but he gave an English interview to a Carolina reporter on Tuesday. I wonder if this had anything to do with the recent comments from Troy Brouwer (which were pretty stupid, in my opinion).

 

We get it now – Semin wasn't always the best teammate in Washington. However, what is accomplished by throwing him under the bus now? Move on.

 

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Patrick Kane, who has been arguably the most dominant forward in the NHL this season, gives a great interview here with Yahoo.

 

"I know he looked at his season last year, and he wasn't happy," Brisson said. "He said, 'Come on.' He said to himself – aside from the incident and all that – 'I can do a lot more. I know what I have, and I'm not happy with what I provided based on what I can provide.' And I think that's the biggest part."

Kane played in Switzerland during the lockout – and lived with his mother. It is the last story on his Deadspin thread right now. The plan really wasn't for him to go to Europe as some sort of hockey boot camp, dangling on the big ice at the rink, hanging out with mom at home. The arrangement lasted longer than expected because the lockout lasted longer than expected. But it was good for him.

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Brendan Ross offers an early look at the 2013 NHL Draft with this mock up.

 

He has Drouin going number one to Columbus. Why?

 

The Blue Jackets are in a tough position with arguably four franchise players to choose from with the top selection. Last season, Columbus was robbed of the top pick when the Edmonton Oilers won the draft lottery to select Nail Yakupov. With a slew of talented defensive prospects, including 2012 2nd overall selection Ryan Murray, and three first round picks, Columbus opts to select Jonathan Drouin. In Drouin, the Jackets add an electrifying player who will get fans out of their seats with all-world puck skills and an unmatched on-ice hockey sense in this draft class. If Columbus passes on Drouin, Nathan MacKinnon certainly would be an equally valuable player for the Blue Jackets with his blazing speed and total package of skills.

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In case you didn't know – Kris Letang is really good. Click that link to check out a phenomenal play he made on Beau Bennett's first NHL goal.

 

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