Playoff nerves: not even "The King" can avoid them.
Even with 116 postseason starts heading into Wednesday night's series opener versus Montreal, Henrik Ludnqvist was chock-full of nervous anticipation.
"As a goalie you always try to look at good things in every situation," Lundqvist told Sportsnet's Eric Engels. "I had butterflies for two days. I've been thinking about this almost every hour for the past week about the start and to get going and feeling anxious and nervous and excited at the same time. It's just nice to get going."
Despite the nerves, it's safe to say he was ready, as he turned away 16 first period shots en route to a 31-save shutout - his 10th in the playoffs, establishing a new franchise record over Rangers legend Mike Richter.
Lundqvist didn't enjoy his best statistical season in 2016-17, going 31-20-4 with below career average numbers across the board. But it's a new season now, and after the first installment of his battle with fellow all-world netminder Carey Price went his way, it appears he's ready for more.
The Vegas Golden Knights officially announced the hiring of Gerard Gallant as the franchises first head coach Thursday.
Gallant, 53, has been linked to the gig since his dismissal from the Florida Panthers in November, and the speculation became all but a certainty Wednesday, as reports surfaced that general manager George McPhee was closing in on his target.
"We are proud to announce Gerard as the first head coach in Vegas Golden Knights history,' McPhee said. "He is an experienced head coach, has had success at multiple levels and has a great reputation amongst the players who have played for him.
"Being named the first head coach in Vegas Golden Knights history is such a tremendous opportunity and one I am extremely grateful for," said Gallant. "There is a great deal of excitement in the hockey community regarding what is happening with the Golden Knights and I am glad to now be a part of the team."
Gallant led the Panthers to the Atlantic Division title in 2015-16, and owns a record of 152-141-4-31 as an NHL head coach. He's also been named to Team Canada's coaching staff for the 2017 World Championship, and was an assistant for Team North America at September's World Cup.
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Here is a look at the Squad Up daily NHL fantasy picture for Thursday, April 13 (all advanced statistics courtesy of Corsica.Hockeyand apply to 5v5 situations):
Dynamic Duos
LW Kevin Fiala (29K) & RW James Neal (44K), Predators (at Blackhawks): Fiala and Neal are on a second line centered by Mike Fisher at 5v5. They operate on separate power-play units, offering full exposure to the offense. The Blackhawks had the worst regular season penalty-kill percentage of all 16 playoff teams at 77.7 percent. Only five teams had more power-play opportunities than Nashville.
LW Alex Ovechkin (82K) & C Nicklas Backstrom (63K), Capitals (vs. Maple Leafs): While Ovechkin is the highest-priced player at left wing, Backstrom's reasonable salary still makes the stack affordable. Backstrom led the Capitals' offense in the regular season, finishing fourth in the league with 86 points. With RW T.J. Oshie, the Caps' top line averages 2.85 expected goals per 60 minutes.
(Photo courtesy Action Images)
Bargain Plays
D Matt Niskanen (34K), Capitals (vs. Maple Leafs): The defense pairing of Niskanen and Dmitry Orlov was Washington's most common defense tandem this season, playing 19.64 percent of all 5v5 minutes. D John Carlson is expected to rejoin the lineup for Thursday's postseason opener, but he shouldn't separate the duo. Niskanen will likely see less PP time, but he'll play mostly with the Backstrom line at 5v5.
C Nick Schmaltz (26K), Blackhawks (vs. Predators): Schmaltz totaled just 66 shots on goal in 61 games played this season, but he concluded his rookie campaign with seven SOG in his final two outings. He was unable to snap a 19-game goal-less spell, dating back to Feb. 23, but he did notch an assist in the season finale. He played at least 14 minutes in eight consecutive games, mostly on the side of C Jonathan Toews at 5v5.
(Photo courtesy Getty Images)
Top Fades
RW Marian Hossa (50K), Blackhawks (vs. Predators): Hossa is one of the most experienced players in the postseason, but he was relegated to a third-line role toward the end of the regular season. He played on a line with C Marcus Kruger and LW Ryan Hartman. The trio posted a 55.38 CF% but averaged a modest 7.78 scoring chances per 60 minutes.
LW Andre Burakovsky (50K), Capitals (vs. Maple Leafs): Burakovsky scored just two goals in the final three months of the regular season, though he was sidelined from Feb. 10 through March 17. His most common 5v5 line pairing was with C Lars Eller and RW Brett Connolly for the final 10 games. Capitals head coach Barry Trotz will likely deploy this line mostly against the Maple Leafs top line featuring C Auston Matthews.
(Photo courtesy Action Images)
Contrarian Options
C Rickard Rakell (41K), Ducks (vs. Flames): The Ducks are likely to use their home-ice advantage to match the line centered by Ryan Kesler with the Flames' top line of C Sean Monahan and LW Johnny Gaudreau. Multi-point games are tough to come by in the playoffs, even for someone of C Ryan Getzlaf's caliber. Opt for the lower salary and more proficient goal scoring of Rakell.
RW Justin Williams (43K), Capitals (vs. Maple Leafs): Williams was part of a second line for Washington with C Evgeny Kuznetsov and LW Marcus Johansson which averaged 9.25 scoring chances per 60 minutes in the regular season. Williams has 85 career playoff points in 127 games since the 2001-02 season, including three goals and seven points in 12 games last year.
After one period Wednesday night, it appeared as though the San Jose Sharks' slump to close out the regular season had carried over into the playoffs.
The Edmonton Oilers, in front of a raucous home crowd, stormed out to a 2-0 lead, but the Sharks stayed calm, and their experience heavily factored into a 3-2 comeback victory in Game 1.
"I think there wasn't much that needed to be said. There wasn't much panic," captain Joe Pavelski said of the early deficit, according to Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area.
The Sharks, of course, are the reigning Western Conference champions, but they entered the postseason in a swoon. After holding a commanding nine-point lead atop the Pacific Division as late as March 14, San Jose lost six in a row in regulation, dropping the club below the Oilers and Ducks in the standings.
Entering the postseason, however, the Sharks' roster had a combined 1,169 playoff games under their belts, and it paid off in a huge road win.
"It doesn't matter what we did in March. We're here now and we're playing and that's all that matters," head coach Peter DeBoer said.
After each team recorded 10 shots in the first period, San Jose took over, winning the final shot count in dominating fashion by a total of 44-19. More importantly, the Sharks stole home-ice advantage from the Oilers, and may have reminded themselves how good they can be in the process.
Geno recorded two assists Wednesday in his first game since March 15, helping his club to a 3-1 win and 1-0 series lead over the Columbus Blue Jackets. The main beneficiary of Malkin's addition to an already terrifying offense was Phil Kessel, who picked up two points playing wing on No. 71's line.
After the win, Malkin praised his linemate.
"It's fun," Malkin said of playing with Kessel, according to Bill West of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "He's an amazing player, he's actually like a playoff guy. He wants to win every game. He wants to score every game. He wants to play hard every game."
During Pittsburgh's Stanley Cup run in 2016, Kessel turned in a Conn Smythe-worthy postseason on the right wing of the "HBK" line, featuring Carl Hagelin and Nick Bonino.
Kessel and Malkin, though, both finished in the top 20 in NHL scoring in the regular season, and the possibility that they'll develop more playoff chemistry should be daunting for opponents.
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With the end of the NHL season drawing to a close, it's time to hand out some end of season awards. theScore's fantasy department wants YOU, the readers and fantasy players, to vote and decide the winner of each award. When voting, value players relative to standard league scoring:
Skaters
Goalies
Goals
Wins
Assists
SV%
+/-
GAA
PPP
Shutouts
PIMs
SOG
Criteria: The Fantasy MVP should be awarded to the player who was the most valuable fantasy player during the 2016-17 season. Consistent season-long production and positional eligibility/scarcity should be factored in. Bonus points should be given to a player if he stepped up his play during the fantasy playoffs.
Nominee: C Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
G
A
+/-
PPP
PIM
SOG
44
45
17
25
24
255
The case: Over the course of Crosby's career, he has been more of a pass-first type of player. This year he is shooting the puck more and it has led to his highest goal total since 2009-10. This goal-scoring has made Crosby even more valuable in fantasy circles, as goals are harder to come by than assists. The only knocks on Crosby are his lone C eligibility and the fact he missed six games during the fantasy season.
Nominee: C Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
G
A
+/-
PPP
PIM
SOG
30
70
27
27
26
251
The case: Unlike Crosby, McDavid didn't miss a game all season long. He too, has only center eligibility, which dampers his value ever so slightly. He has collected more points than anyone in the league this season, albeit coming with assists more often than not. Nonetheless, his consistent production has been incredible.
Nominee: D Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks
G
A
+/-
PPP
PIM
SOG
29
47
19
25
40
320
The case: Burns provided fantasy owners with elite forward-like production from a position of scarce point producers. This would have allowed Burns owners to address the deep forward position later in drafts. He, amazingly, led the NHL in shots on goal, though he faded slightly down the stretch.
The St. Louis Blues goaltender, who was by far the best player in Game 1, watched as star forward Vladimir Tarasenko crafted the game-winning play at the other end of the ice by somehow managing to get the puck through the Minnesota Wild defense and on to the sick of Joel Edmunson.
Allen made 51 saves on the night, allowing one goal to Zach Parise with 23 seconds remaining in regulation that sent the game to overtime.
For Edmundson, it was his first career overtime winner.
