"I heard that and I was surprised because I thought we were supposed to be the team whining," McLellan told reporters prior to Game 4. "That threw me off a little bit.
"As far as Connor goes, I think there are maybe two, three, maybe four players in the league ... Connor, the guy who isn't playing in Pittsburgh tonight, and some others that have to play through that hooking, holding, and mauling and all that type of stuff that goes on."
McDavid has drawn a penalty in each of the three games so far, while the Oilers' power play has gone 3-for-12 in the series.
Edmonton leads the series 2-1 and has a chance to take a stranglehold Wednesday on home ice.
"The white glove part of it," McLellan continued, "I think that's questioning the integrity of the officiating, so I'm going to stay out of that and let (Anaheim) do that."
Eaves, who's doubtful for Game 4 against the Edmonton Oilers with a lower-body injury, has been playing on a line with Ryan Getzlaf, bumping a struggling Corey Perry down the depth chart.
In advance of a game the Ducks need to win in order to tie the series, head coach Randy Carlyle put Perry back on Getzlaf's wing, along with the first power-play unit, hoping the familiarity will spur some much-needed offense.
"I’m comfortable there obviously," Perry said, per Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register. "I was there for a long time. It’s something that if it ends up that way, it’s a good thing for me. I just got to embrace it and roll with it."
Perry has scored one goal in seven playoff games after managing only 19 over 82 regular-season games, well below his normal output. He does have 19 shots and plenty more attempts this postseason, and feels like it's only a matter of time before he gets going.
"I’ve had my chances to score," he said. "The puck hasn’t gone in the net. I’ve had my shots. You look at my shot totals and they’re up there where they normally are. My shooting percentage is way down. That’s all it is."
"It's hard to see a player go down, and it's hard to see he get hurt," Ovechkin said Wednesday, per Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post. "He's a player you don't want that stuff to happen (to), so it's sad. I hope he's going to be fine and come back in the series."
The injury was caused by a hit to the head by Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen, an event immediately preceded by a hard slash by Ovechkin on the Penguins captain.
"It's hockey, you know?" Ovechkin said of the play. "We move forward, and they are. I'm pretty sure they're going to be strong on the puck, they're going to play physical, and it's going to be interesting game."
Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola is looking for the next head coach of his beleaguered NHL team - but he'll take a break from his search this Saturday, when he'll watch a couple of members from his other sports franchise compete in the Kentucky Derby.
Viola and partners own the aptly-named Always Dreaming, a top contender in the Derby. The 3-year-old colt, who races for Viola's St. Elias Stable, is also owned by Viola's wife Teresa, MelB Stables, Brooklyn Boyz Stable, and West Point Thoroughbreds. Always Dreaming won the Florida Derby last month, a respected prep race for the Derby.
Always Dreaming is the second co-favorite at 5-1 on the Wednesday morning line. He will run from post position 5.
Viola and partners weren't messing around with their intentions for the colt when they purchased Always Dreaming two years ago for $350,000; Always Dreaming was purchased with the Derby in mind. He has not disappointed, winning three of his five races, while finishing no worse than third. The horse is trained by Todd Pletcher, who has entered three other horses in the Derby.
Despite Viola only taking a serious interest in race horses six years ago, his stable has already earned more than $1.7 million, not including its partnerships. The billionaire trader was a candidate for President Trump's Secretary of the Army, but turned down the role due to business conflicts.
Always Dreaming is Viola's first Derby starter.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Earlier this week, Viola added to his stake in this year's Run for the Roses - purchasing stallion interests in another Derby favorite, Irish War Cry. Viola does not own the horse yet, but will own shares when the colt - listed at 6-1 on the morning line - retires to the stud barn.
Should Irish War Cry run well in the Derby and subsequent races, the investment could prove to be a lucrative one. Stud fees can exponentially eclipse what is earned on the racetrack - which could mean big things for both Viola and celebrity chef Bobby Flay, who is also a part of the deal.
There has been a long history of NHL team owners and horse racing. For decades, Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk had a formidable stable, as did hockey legend Conn Smythe. Bruce McNall owned horses with his star player Wayne Gretzky, while George Strawbridge, a shareholder in the Buffalo Sabres, breeds and races thoroughbreds all over the world.
Viola is not the only notable sports figure with a horse in the Derby. Olympic champion skier Bode Miller owns part interest in 50-1 longshot Fast and Accurate, who will open from post position 3.
A West Point graduate and native of Brooklyn, Viola is talking tough coming into the big race.
He has said that a win in the Derby will not make up for the Panthers' dismal season, calling it a "simple failure." He was chastised in the media for the way in which he fired head coach Gerrard Gallant and assistant coach Mike Kelly, and he's allegedly courting the likes of former Montreal Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien for the vacancy. He also reportedly said he would be disappointed with anything less than a victory in the Derby.
Given the success of his stable to date, it wouldn't be wise to bet against him.
"It should be nasty," Beagle had told Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post. "It's the playoffs. That's the way we like to play. That's the way they like to play - you know, hard hits, going after each other. These are two teams that don't like each other."
Khurshudyan noted that Beagle's quote wasn't in reference to Matt Niskanen's crosscheck in Game 3 that gave Sidney Crosby a concussion - it was just about the physical tone of a series between two rival teams.
Yet, when the quote was passed on to Kessel, he didn't take it lightly.
"If he thinks that's a clean hit, he's an idiot," Kessel said, according to Chase Williams of WPXI.
Beagle also added that he and Kessel could settle their differences over a game of Mario Kart. Who wouldn't pay to see that?
Beagle is clearly unafraid to display humor during serious times, but when asked about Niskanen's hit on Crosby, he agreed with Kessel that "it wasn't a clean hit," per TSN's Mark Masters.
Game 4 is set to take place Wednesday night in Pittsburgh, where there should be no shortage of fireworks.
"It should be nasty," Beagle had told Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post. "It's the playoffs. That's the way we like to play. That's the way they like to play - you know, hard hits, going after each other. These are two teams that don't like each other."
Khurshudyan noted that Beagle's quote wasn't in reference to Matt Niskanen's crosscheck in Game 3 that gave Sidney Crosby a concussion - it was just about the physical tone of a series between two rival teams.
Yet, when the quote was passed on to Kessel, he didn't take it lightly.
"If he thinks that's a clean hit, he's an idiot," Kessel said, according to Chase Williams of WPXI.
Beagle also added that he and Kessel could settle their differences over a game of Mario Kart. Who wouldn't pay to see that?
Beagle is clearly unafraid to display humor during serious times, but when asked about Niskanen's hit on Crosby, he agreed with Kessel that "it wasn't a clean hit," per TSN's Mark Masters.
Game 4 is set to take place Wednesday night in Pittsburgh, where there should be no shortage of fireworks.
"The time period expired and so the charges were dismissed and the record sealed," Kane's lawyer, Paul Cambria, told The Buffalo News' Harold McNeil.
Kane was charged with misdemeanor trespass and separate noncriminal violations of disorderly conduct and harassment after two female patrons and a bouncer at the bar alleged he had grabbed the women, pulled their hair, and then refused the bouncer's orders to leave.
"The time period expired and so the charges were dismissed and the record sealed," Kane's lawyer, Paul Cambria, told The Buffalo News' Harold McNeil.
Kane was charged with misdemeanor trespass and separate noncriminal violations of disorderly conduct and harassment after two female patrons and a bouncer at the bar alleged he had grabbed the women, pulled their hair, and then refused the bouncer's orders to leave.
While Nugent-Hopkins has been lauded by head coach Todd McLellan as an effective two-way player, Eberle - who's perceived primarily as an offensive weapon - was recently called out for not doing enough to help the team win.
Out of all the players remaining in the postseason yet to record a goal, Nugent-Hopkins' 24 shots lead the way. In fact, he ranks first on the Oilers in this category. Eberle, however, is well behind with 17 in nine games, which he admits is cause for concern.
"I want to score, put the puck in the net," he said, according to Mark Spector of Sportsnet. "The thing that sucks is, the last two games I haven't had too many chances, and that's when you start to worry. ...
"I'm an offensive guy, and my own worst critic. You can be great defensively, do good board work and all that. But I'm a goal-scorer. I've got to put the puck in the net."
Eberle scored 20 goals during the regular season, and Nugent-Hopkins chipped in with 18. It's time to dig deep and strike while there's still a chance to do so.
Alex Pietrangel-0
Coming off a regular season in which he scored a career-high 14 goals, St. Louis Blues defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has yet to hit the back of the net, despite 23 shots on goal through nine games.
Six of those strikes came on the power play, which is not clicking for the Blues at the moment. St. Louis has recorded two goals on 24 opportunities, ranking seventh among the remaining eight teams with a success rate of 8.3 percent. That can't all be pinned on Pietrangelo, but his lack of production isn't helping the cause.
The weird thing is that fellow Blues defenseman Joel Edmundson has scored three playoff goals, matching his regular-season total.
If the captain can't start scoring from the back end, the Blues' season could be done as soon as the end of Game 5.
No red lights for these Blueshirts
The New York Rangers received high marks when college standouts Kevin Hayes and Jimmy Vesey decided to take their acts to Broadway as free agents. But in six games against the Montreal Canadiens and three against the Ottawa Senators, the Blueshirts have yet to benefit on the scoresheet from either player.
Hayes has registered 16 shots without hitting the back of the net, while Vesey's 12 shots have proven equally as ineffective.
Hayes (17 goals) and Vesey (16 goals) ranked sixth and seventh among Rangers scorers during the regular season, and provided a healthy measure of depth that's necessary to succeed in the playoffs.
One or both needs to get it going in order to help erase the Senators' 2-1 series lead.
