Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Chicago Blackhawks rookie Artemi Panarin will be hard to catch in the NHL rookie scoring race as he plays on the most potent line with the league's leading scorer in Patrick Kane. That and the fact that he's 24 yrs. old and spent seven seasons playing in the KHL. Props the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks for finding and bringing aboard a Russian who scored 102 points (46g, 56a) in 105 games for St. Petersburgh SKA of the KHL.
Dude has mad skills and when you put him on a line with a premier player like Kane, who leads the league in scoring, it's a recipe for big-time success.
Panarin picked up where he left off in the first week of play after the All-Star break netting a goal and adding five assists in three games while adding to his rookie leading 18 goals, 34 assists and 56 points.
It will be hard for any rookie to catch him in the overall points-race as his next closest competitor is Dylan Larkin with 37. But Detoit's Larkin did tie Panarin in goals on the strength of three goals in three games. The Detroit Red Wings forward has 18 goals and 19 assists on the season.
In what could end up as a race for second amongst scoring, Buffalo's Jack Eichel is third in points (35) and goals (16) and is tied for third in assists with 19. Eichel had a rough week scoring-wise as he was only able to register one assist in three games for the week.
Arizona's Max Domi sits fourth in the rookie scoring race with 34 points but is second in assists with 21. He added two in three games for the Coyotes last week.
Props to Philadelphia defenseman Shane Gostisbehere who cracked the top-five in points on the strength of five points (1+4) in four games this past week. Gostisbehere who was taken by the Flyers with the 78th pick in the 2012 NHL Draft has season totals of nine goals and 18 assists (fifth amongst rookies) in 33 games, easily tops defensemen in points.
The Coyotes' Anthony Duclair and the Calgary Flames Sam Bennett round out the top-five in goals with 14 each as listed on NHL.com, but Buffalo's own Sam "The Forgotten One" Reinhart also has 14 goals in one less game then Duclair.
Although he's miles behind because of an injury that kept him out of the lineup 37 of his teams 54 games, Edmonton's Connor McDavid is scoring at a feverish pace. In 17 games he has 18 points (7+11) and rattled off a post All-Star break stat-line of two goals and four assists in four games last week.
Because of that lost time McDavid is far off the pace and catching Panarin is a distant dream, but who amongst us would count him out of making it into the top-five in any or all three scoring categories?
Not I, types the man at this keyboard.
Rookie Leaders (via NHL.com)
Points:
Panarin--52
Larkin--37
Eichel--35
Domi--34
Gostisbehere--27
Goals:
Panarin--18
Larkin--18
Eichel--16
Duclair--14
Bennett--14
Assists:
Panarin--34
Domi--21
Larkin--19
Eichel--19
Gostisbehere--18
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Sunday, February 7, 2016
Of the Buffalo Sabres present 28th place standing. Plus some prospect stats.
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
The NHL Standings say that the Buffalo Sabres have 47 points, tied with the Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers and Columbus Blue Jackets at the bottom of the league. At 52 games played, the Sabres have played more than the Flames, Leafs and Jets and because of it sit behind those three in the standings. They've played two more than the Jackets who are in 30th place and have played the same number of games as the Oilers but because Buffalo has three more regulation/overtime wins than Edmonton they presently hold down 28th-place in the league standing.
For some in Sabreland it's an abomination that a team like Buffalo, who went to the bottom of the league two-years running, should be in this predicament. And in typical fan-fashion, begin to throw blame around.
Some of it is thrown head coach Dan Bylsma's way, especially in light of his shootout choices in the home loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. Some of the blame is directed at GM Tim Murray who finished the tear-down his predecessor started. It could be said that this is almost wholly Murray's squad as there are only a few holdovers from the previous regime.
Then there's blame directed at individual players and in a real head-scratcher, some throw a heap of blame towards Terry Pegula and Pegula Sports and Entertainment.
And, of course, there are those who believe there's a "stealth tank" going on as our own 22sabresQ mentioned. That Murray's looking for one more top-end pick before the team really gives it a go.
The NHL Standings say that the Buffalo Sabres have 47 points, tied with the Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers and Columbus Blue Jackets at the bottom of the league. At 52 games played, the Sabres have played more than the Flames, Leafs and Jets and because of it sit behind those three in the standings. They've played two more than the Jackets who are in 30th place and have played the same number of games as the Oilers but because Buffalo has three more regulation/overtime wins than Edmonton they presently hold down 28th-place in the league standing.
For some in Sabreland it's an abomination that a team like Buffalo, who went to the bottom of the league two-years running, should be in this predicament. And in typical fan-fashion, begin to throw blame around.
Some of it is thrown head coach Dan Bylsma's way, especially in light of his shootout choices in the home loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. Some of the blame is directed at GM Tim Murray who finished the tear-down his predecessor started. It could be said that this is almost wholly Murray's squad as there are only a few holdovers from the previous regime.
Then there's blame directed at individual players and in a real head-scratcher, some throw a heap of blame towards Terry Pegula and Pegula Sports and Entertainment.
And, of course, there are those who believe there's a "stealth tank" going on as our own 22sabresQ mentioned. That Murray's looking for one more top-end pick before the team really gives it a go.
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Letdown at the F'N Center. Bruins beat Buffalo in shootout.
For Buffalo Sabres fans watching last night's game vs. the Boston Bruins, the 3-2 shootout loss at the hands of the Bruins was a letdown, especially after blowing a 2-1 third-period lead on a goal that caught the entire team napping.
Boston's best penalty killer, Zdeno Chara went to the box for tripping and an inept Sabres powerplay couldn't convert. To make matters worse, just after the penalty expired, the Bruins' Brad Marchand, the second-most hated Boston player behind Chara, caught the entire Sabres team napping as he went one-on-six and lifted a backhander past a surprised Buffalo goaltender, Chad Johnson. The game-tying goal.
Even though Johnson was stout in net the rest of the way, including a sterling save in overtime, it was "that one goal" that he and all of Sabreland wanted back.
C'est la vie.
Although management, coaches and players are saying all the right things about this season, the playoffs are a far too distant dream at this point. The Sabres have 47 points, good for last in the Atlantic Division and they're 11 points back of the last wild card spot with six teams ahead of them. If they're not sellers at the February 29 trade-deadline it would be really surprising.
Boston's best penalty killer, Zdeno Chara went to the box for tripping and an inept Sabres powerplay couldn't convert. To make matters worse, just after the penalty expired, the Bruins' Brad Marchand, the second-most hated Boston player behind Chara, caught the entire Sabres team napping as he went one-on-six and lifted a backhander past a surprised Buffalo goaltender, Chad Johnson. The game-tying goal.
Even though Johnson was stout in net the rest of the way, including a sterling save in overtime, it was "that one goal" that he and all of Sabreland wanted back.
C'est la vie.
Although management, coaches and players are saying all the right things about this season, the playoffs are a far too distant dream at this point. The Sabres have 47 points, good for last in the Atlantic Division and they're 11 points back of the last wild card spot with six teams ahead of them. If they're not sellers at the February 29 trade-deadline it would be really surprising.
Friday, February 5, 2016
Notes from Montreal. Boston in town.
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
The Sabres pulled out a real good road win last night as they scored three unanswered in the third period for a 4-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. While Montreal was on the second of a back-to-back, Buffalo was coming off of the All-Star Break after a seven-day hiatus. And it looked like it.
Les Habitants swarmed the Sabres early in the first period, at one point holding a 10-2 edge in shots on goal. But as the period wore on the Sabres found their legs, turned the table and by the end of the first the Sabres narrowed the SOG to 12-11 in favor of Montreal but more importantly went into the intermission with a 1-0 lead.
On the Montreal broadcast last night there were a number of occasions where the broadcast team mentioned that the Canadiens were "fragile." Montreal had gone from 17-4-2 prior to an injury to No. 1 goaltender Carey Price and are now 24-24-2 after last night's loss to Buffalo. To those of us who remember "the core" years, the word "fragile" made it into the broadcasting vernacular all to frequently.
The Sabres pulled out a real good road win last night as they scored three unanswered in the third period for a 4-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. While Montreal was on the second of a back-to-back, Buffalo was coming off of the All-Star Break after a seven-day hiatus. And it looked like it.
Les Habitants swarmed the Sabres early in the first period, at one point holding a 10-2 edge in shots on goal. But as the period wore on the Sabres found their legs, turned the table and by the end of the first the Sabres narrowed the SOG to 12-11 in favor of Montreal but more importantly went into the intermission with a 1-0 lead.
On the Montreal broadcast last night there were a number of occasions where the broadcast team mentioned that the Canadiens were "fragile." Montreal had gone from 17-4-2 prior to an injury to No. 1 goaltender Carey Price and are now 24-24-2 after last night's loss to Buffalo. To those of us who remember "the core" years, the word "fragile" made it into the broadcasting vernacular all to frequently.
Thursday, February 4, 2016
McDavid serves Calder notice. Of Montreal, Robin Lehner and John Scott.
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
It's too bad that those who subscribed to NHL GameCenter Live (like myself) couldn't watch the "Triumphant Return," as was NHL.com's headline this morning, of Connor McDavid to the ice. The rookie phenom had been sidelined by a broken clavicle that cost him 37 games and it would have been great to be able to watch him dazzle on the heels of an impressive NHL All-Star Weekend. But, the note from the website was: Media Error. Video not available.
So, we're left with the highlights and if you haven't seen it, McDavid's goal last night was the stuff of legend. With the game tied at 1-1, McDavid took the puck in the neutral zone and hit the blueline as two Columbus Blue Jackets players converged on him. He left Jackets' d-man Jack Johnson looking for his jockstrap, had defenseman Justin Faulk literally tripping over himself as he fell to the ice while he whizzed past him and made Columbus goalie Joonas Korpisalo look like the 21 year old rookie he is.
It's too bad that those who subscribed to NHL GameCenter Live (like myself) couldn't watch the "Triumphant Return," as was NHL.com's headline this morning, of Connor McDavid to the ice. The rookie phenom had been sidelined by a broken clavicle that cost him 37 games and it would have been great to be able to watch him dazzle on the heels of an impressive NHL All-Star Weekend. But, the note from the website was: Media Error. Video not available.
So, we're left with the highlights and if you haven't seen it, McDavid's goal last night was the stuff of legend. With the game tied at 1-1, McDavid took the puck in the neutral zone and hit the blueline as two Columbus Blue Jackets players converged on him. He left Jackets' d-man Jack Johnson looking for his jockstrap, had defenseman Justin Faulk literally tripping over himself as he fell to the ice while he whizzed past him and made Columbus goalie Joonas Korpisalo look like the 21 year old rookie he is.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Will the Buffalo Sabres be Buyers or Sellers at the 2016 NHL trade deadline?
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
For the last three seasons the question of whether the Buffalo Sabres would be buyers or sellers at the NHL trade deadline was never in the minds of most in Sabreland. The rebuild was on, the Sabres were sellers and the only real questions were, "who's getting traded, where are they headed and what would the return be?"
For the last three deadline days the general theme was moving vets on expiring contracts for picks and/or prospects and it started with the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season under former Sabres GM, Darcy Regier:
--March 30, 2013: D, Jordan Leopold to the St. Louis Blues for a 2013 2nd round and a 2013 5th
--April 1, : D, Robyn Regehr to the LA Kings for two, 2014 2nd-rounders
--April 2, trade deadline: F, Jason Pominville to the Minnesota Wild for prospects Johan Larsson and Matt Hackett plus a 2013 1st rounder and a 2014 2nd.
Then came the all-out purge under new GM, Tim Murray beginning with the Ryan Miller blockbuster on February 28, 2014, one week before the trade deadline. Miller along with F, Steve Ott were traded to the Blues for G, Jaroslav Halak, F, Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier a 2015 1st rounder and what turned out to be a 2016 3rd.
One week later on trade deadline day, March 5, 2014:
--Halak and a 2015 3rd round pick to the Washington Capitals for G, Michal Neuvirth and D, Rostislav Klesla
--F, Matt Moulson and F, Cody McCormick to Minnesota for F, Torrey Mitchell and two 2nd rounders (2014, 2016)
--D, Brayden McNabb and F, Jonathan Parker plus the two 2nd rounders (previously acquired from the Kings) to Los Angeles for forward prospects Hudson Fasching and Nic Delauriers
For the last three seasons the question of whether the Buffalo Sabres would be buyers or sellers at the NHL trade deadline was never in the minds of most in Sabreland. The rebuild was on, the Sabres were sellers and the only real questions were, "who's getting traded, where are they headed and what would the return be?"
For the last three deadline days the general theme was moving vets on expiring contracts for picks and/or prospects and it started with the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season under former Sabres GM, Darcy Regier:
--March 30, 2013: D, Jordan Leopold to the St. Louis Blues for a 2013 2nd round and a 2013 5th
--April 1, : D, Robyn Regehr to the LA Kings for two, 2014 2nd-rounders
--April 2, trade deadline: F, Jason Pominville to the Minnesota Wild for prospects Johan Larsson and Matt Hackett plus a 2013 1st rounder and a 2014 2nd.
Then came the all-out purge under new GM, Tim Murray beginning with the Ryan Miller blockbuster on February 28, 2014, one week before the trade deadline. Miller along with F, Steve Ott were traded to the Blues for G, Jaroslav Halak, F, Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier a 2015 1st rounder and what turned out to be a 2016 3rd.
One week later on trade deadline day, March 5, 2014:
--Halak and a 2015 3rd round pick to the Washington Capitals for G, Michal Neuvirth and D, Rostislav Klesla
--F, Matt Moulson and F, Cody McCormick to Minnesota for F, Torrey Mitchell and two 2nd rounders (2014, 2016)
--D, Brayden McNabb and F, Jonathan Parker plus the two 2nd rounders (previously acquired from the Kings) to Los Angeles for forward prospects Hudson Fasching and Nic Delauriers
Monday, February 1, 2016
Sabres goalies held their own. Depth-chart taking shape.
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
For vast majority of the Buffalo Sabres 50 games this season the net was manned by a duo that consisted of a career backup bordering on being a starter and a 22 yr. old who just came to North America.
Chad "I'm Not Ocho Cinco" Johnson, who's tour-stops as a backup include New York with both the Rangers and Islanders, Phoenix and Boston, was thrust into the starters role when designated No. 1 goalie Robin Lehner was felled by a high ankle sprain in the second period of the opening game. In his six NHL seasons Johnson played in no more than 27 games and totaled 56 games before being thrust into the starting role for the Sabres. At the All-Star break this season, he's already played in 29 games, 25 of them as a starter for Buffalo.
Rookie netminder Linus Ullmark was a 6th round pick (163rd-overall) for Buffalo in the 2012 NHL Draft. He worked is way up the ranks with MODO in his native Sweden playing his last two seasons in the Swedish Elite League. He won the Honken Trophy for Goalie of the Year in 2014 as a rookie.
After elective double-hip surgery last spring and rehabbing way ahead of schedule, Ullmark began this season with the Rochester Americans and was 1-2-0 with a 2.72 GAA and a .932 SV% before getting called up to Buffalo.
The duo were forced into a situation where there were nine new players on the ice plus a new coaching staff in place. The highly skilled offensive players that GM Tim Murray acquired were (and still are) a long ways away from being anything close to an offensive juggernaut (2.26 goals/game, 28th in the league) and their defense was suspect with the injury to No. 3/2 defenseman, Zach Bogosian.
For vast majority of the Buffalo Sabres 50 games this season the net was manned by a duo that consisted of a career backup bordering on being a starter and a 22 yr. old who just came to North America.
Chad "I'm Not Ocho Cinco" Johnson, who's tour-stops as a backup include New York with both the Rangers and Islanders, Phoenix and Boston, was thrust into the starters role when designated No. 1 goalie Robin Lehner was felled by a high ankle sprain in the second period of the opening game. In his six NHL seasons Johnson played in no more than 27 games and totaled 56 games before being thrust into the starting role for the Sabres. At the All-Star break this season, he's already played in 29 games, 25 of them as a starter for Buffalo.
Rookie netminder Linus Ullmark was a 6th round pick (163rd-overall) for Buffalo in the 2012 NHL Draft. He worked is way up the ranks with MODO in his native Sweden playing his last two seasons in the Swedish Elite League. He won the Honken Trophy for Goalie of the Year in 2014 as a rookie.
After elective double-hip surgery last spring and rehabbing way ahead of schedule, Ullmark began this season with the Rochester Americans and was 1-2-0 with a 2.72 GAA and a .932 SV% before getting called up to Buffalo.
The duo were forced into a situation where there were nine new players on the ice plus a new coaching staff in place. The highly skilled offensive players that GM Tim Murray acquired were (and still are) a long ways away from being anything close to an offensive juggernaut (2.26 goals/game, 28th in the league) and their defense was suspect with the injury to No. 3/2 defenseman, Zach Bogosian.
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