Marner wants to be role model like Gilmour, Sundin were to him

In a season in which the Toronto Maple Leafs are making a point to appreciate their history, rookie Mitch Marner requires no prompting.

The 19-year-old from nearby Markham, Ontario explained Saturday in advance of his home debut that the Maple Leafs legends he grew up watching - many of whom were named to the franchise's top-100 players list revealed Friday - were the inspiration behind getting him to this stage.

Now that he's here, he wants to continue that tradition.

"I think just watching every (Maple Leafs) game, it inspired me to want to be a hockey player," Marner said, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton. "Watching Dougie Gilmour, Mats Sundin, guys like that come into this city and they're a lead role model to kids.

"Now it's my time to try and be a role model for younger kids and just try and make sure their goal is to play in the NHL one day."

A student of hockey history and the Maple Leafs, Marner already knows he'll make memories on Saturday that he'll cherish for the rest of his life.

"For me personally (hearing my name introduced is) going to be kind of breathtaking. I figure for my friends and parents in the crowd, it's going to be pretty crazy for them too. It's going to be a night that's going to be remembered for a long time."

Marner didn't score four goals like fellow rookie Auston Matthews, but still impressed in Toronto's season opener in Ottawa. He created ample offensive chances and rang a shot off the bar within his first few shifts.

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Marner wants to be role model like Gilmour, Sundin were to him

In a season in which the Toronto Maple Leafs are making a point to appreciate their history, rookie Mitch Marner requires no prompting.

The 19-year-old from nearby Markham, Ontario explained Saturday in advance of his home debut that the Maple Leafs legends he grew up watching - many of whom were named to the franchise's top-100 players list revealed Friday - were the inspiration behind getting him to this stage.

Now that he's here, he wants to continue that tradition.

"I think just watching every (Maple Leafs) game, it inspired me to want to be a hockey player," Marner said, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton. "Watching Dougie Gilmour, Mats Sundin, guys like that come into this city and they're a lead role model to kids.

"Now it's my time to try and be a role model for younger kids and just try and make sure their goal is to play in the NHL one day."

A student of hockey history and the Maple Leafs, Marner already knows he'll make memories on Saturday that he'll cherish for the rest of his life.

"For me personally (hearing my name introduced is) going to be kind of breathtaking. I figure for my friends and parents in the crowd, it's going to be pretty crazy for them too. It's going to be a night that's going to be remembered for a long time."

Marner didn't score four goals like fellow rookie Auston Matthews, but still impressed in Toronto's season opener in Ottawa. He created ample offensive chances and rang a shot off the bar within his first few shifts.

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Lightning’s Kucherov feeling ‘rusty’ after contract holdout

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov is still feeling the effects of a long contract holdout.

The 23-year-old - who spent the entire summer as a restricted free agent before coming to terms earlier this week on a three-year deal - isn't afraid to admit he's still shaking out the cobwebs.

"I feel a little rusty," Kucherov said, following Tampa Bay's 6-4 season-opening victory over the Detroit Red Wings, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times.

"I didn't practice with this kind of speed, I didn't practice with this kind of players at home. It's been hard. I feel like my legs were heavy and my hands were bad. I wasn't happy with the way I played."

Kucherov led the Lightning in scoring during both the regular season and playoffs last year. And despite missing training camp this season, he took part in last month's World Cup of Hockey after training in his native Russia.

Nonetheless, after going pointless in the first game of the season, Kucherov told Smith he feels ready to go ahead of the team's clash with the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

Hey, it's just one game.

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Red Wings’ Athanasiou promoted from opening night scratch to top line

From the press box to the top line.

Speedy Detroit Red Wings forward Andreas Athanasiou will skate on the No. 1 unit with Frans Nielsen and Henrik Zetterberg on Saturday versus the Florida Panthers after he was scratched for the club's loss on opening night to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"Without totally changing things, we want to keep tinkering and trying to just find the best combinations," head coach Jeff Blashill told Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News. "We think we've got good depth up front. Let's tinker as we need to tinker to get the most out of every line."

Athanasiou provided an unexpected scoring punch in his minutes last season, scoring nine goals and 14 points in 37 games. He beat out Anthony Mantha for a spot on the roster.

Steve Ott was chosen in favor of Athanasiou versus the Bolts, a decision that drew the ire of many fans. It's expected that the fourth-liner will sit versus the Panthers.

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Canadiens’ Petry returns to lineup, Andrighetto clears waivers

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry will make his season debut on Saturday.

The 28-year-old missed the club's season opener against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday as he dealt with a knee injury, but will suit up when the Canadiens visit the Ottawa Senators.

In other news, forward Sven Andrighetto cleared waivers on Saturday and was assigned to the St. John's IceCaps of the American Hockey League.

The move is believed to have been in order to make room for Petry's return to the lineup.

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McDavid’s hot start the most productive for Oilers since Gretzky

Oh hey look, Connor McDavid has provided another reason to attach his name to Wayne Gretzky's.

McDavid bagged his sixth point of the season as the Edmonton Oilers swept their season-opening home-and-home series with the Calgary Flames on Friday night, becoming the first Oilers player since Gretzky in 1987-88 to collect six-plus points through two games, according to NHL Public Relations.

The early NHL scoring leader claimed another goal on a beautiful backhand deke during a breakaway try - using a different move on Brian Elliott than the one he scored with on a penalty shot in the season opener - also adding assists on goals from Jordan Eberle and Leon Draisaitl.

Edmonton is 2-0 for the first time since 2010.

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Squad Up Daily NHL Fantasy Dose: Sharks set to continue 2015-16’s road show

Follow theScore's fantasy feed on Twitter (@theScoreFantasy) for the latest news, features and more. And download Squad Up, theScore's free-to-win-money sports game.

Here is a look at the Squad Up daily NHL fantasy picture for Saturday, October 15:

Triple Threat

  • LW Mikkel Boedker (25K), C Logan Couture (75K), RW Joonas Donskoi (25K), Sharks (at Blue Jackets): The Sharks ranked third in the league in goals for per road game last season at 2.98. They opened this year with a lackluster 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings, but the Blue Jackets' defensive system is much worse. Couture's wingers make his salary affordable.
  • C Derick Brassard (48K), RW Bobby Ryan (47K), D Erik Karlsson (85K), Senators (vs. Canadiens): Ryan and Brassard each had a goal and an assist in the Senators' season-opening victory. Karlsson one-upped them, adding a second assist for a three-point game. The Sens' second line should avoid the shut-down of defense of Canadiens D Shea Weber.
  • LW Jamie Benn (41K), C Tyler Seguin (42K), D John Klingberg (33K): This typically dynamic trio combined for just a single assist in the Stars' first game of the season, a game in which the team totaled four goals. The disappointing season debut has resulted in drastically reduced salaries for their second game. Load up whenever you have this chance.

Goalie Breakdown

  • TARGET - Steve Mason, Flyers (at Coyotes): Mason was surprisingly not given the start in the Flyers' season opener, as G Michal Neuvirth started and picked up a victory on the road, against the Los Angeles Kings. Mason draws the second half of the double-header, in Arizona. He posted a .928 save percentage over a 26 game stretch from Jan. 1 to Apr. 2 last season.
  • BARGAIN - Chad Johnson, Flames (at Canucks): G Brian Elliott has started the Flames' first two games of the season, each against the Edmonton Oilers. He allowed a total of 10 goals on 55 shots, and he's likely to give way to Johnson for the second half of Calgary's double header. Johnson had a .920 SV% in 45 games with the Buffalo Sabres last year.
  • FADE - Frederik Andersen, Maple Leafs (vs. Bruins): Andersen is unlikely to draw much attention after surrendering five goals on 30 shots to the Senators in the season opener, but he needs to be excluded from all types of lineups. The Bruins' offense torched the Blue Jackets for six goals while on the road in their season opener.
  • CONTRARIAN - Cory Schneider, Devils (at Lightning): The Devils' offense spoiled an excellent season debut from Schneider, in which he allowed just two goals on 34 shots by the Florida Panthers. He's in tough once again to be credited with a victory, but he's sure to face a high volume of shots, and he'll rack up a high save total.

Bargain Plays

  • C Derek Stepan (26K), Rangers (at Blues): Stepan's 16:03 of ice time in Game 1 was less than he has ever averaged over a full NHL season. He's still the first-line center at 5v5 and on the second power-play unit. The Blues have an excellent defensive system, but they're likely to start to backup G Carter Hutton. Stepan registered five SOG in his first game.
  • LW Tomas Tatar (25K), Red Wings (at Panthers): Tatar registered a minus-2 rating in the Red Wings' first game of the year, but he did tally two shots on goal in his 14:26 of ice time. He is skating on the left side of C Dylan Larkin at 5v5, setting him up for success if he can stick in the spot.
  • RW Jiri Hudler (25K), Stars (at Avalanche): Hudler offers some of the cheapest exposure to an already discounted Stars offense. He didn't register a shot in 14:39 in the season opener, but he'll stick on the right side of C Jason Spezza at 5v5 while switching to the left side of the second power-play unit.

Top Fades

  • C Mark Scheifele (64K), Jets (at Wild): With teammate Bryan Little sidelined by injury, the Jets center depth will be tested. Until a second line emerges as an offensive threat, the top trio, centered by Scheifele, will face the league's top defenders on a nightly basis. This mean he'll draw Wild D Ryan Suter Saturday night, capping his upside.
  • D Seth Jones (51K), Blue Jackets (vs. Sharks): Jones registered a goal and an assist in the first game of the season, but he took just two shots in over 23 minutes. The offensive part of his game still hasn't developed to a reliable level and low shot counts give him a low floor. The Sharks' defense is much better than that of the Bruins.
  • LW Artemi Panarin (48K), Blackhawks (vs. Predators): A reliable option in any daily fantasy format last season, Panarin has totaled just three SOG in the Blackhawks' first two games. He's averaging over 20 minutes, but Chicago's busy early-season schedule could have a negative impact in the second half of a back-to-back.

Contrarian Options

  • C Nicklas Backstrom (77K), Capitals (vs. Islanders): Many considered Backstrom to have lost value by his "demotion" off the top line beside LW Alex Ovechkin. In the Capitals' season opener, Backstrom picked up two assists and recorded five SOG, something he did just once all of last season.
  • LW Alexander Steen (60K), Blues (vs. Rangers): Most daily fantasy owners are automatically attracted to the Vladimir Tarasenko of St. Louis, but Steen has three points of his own through two games, totaling seven shots on goal. He's also averaging over 20 minutes per game. Don't fear Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist.

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Gostisbehere ‘lucky’ to avoid serious injury from Clifford’s skate

With a nasty cut twisting from the middle of his cheek to his nostril, Shayne Gostisbehere was feeling fortunate.

The Philadelphia Flyers defender escaped with a certainly pronounced but thankfully superficial facial wound after being sliced across the cheek by the skate of Los Angeles Kings forward Kyle Clifford on Saturday night.

"I kind of fell first and he just hit me," Gostisbehere said, according to CSN Philly's Tim Panaccio. "I kind of got lucky. It didn't get me too bad. No stitches, just a scrape. I was just thankful it wasn't worse.

"I'll take this any day for whatever could have happened."

It's the first of what will likely be many seemingly unavoidable incidents of a similar nature this season. Hopefully all others can share in Gostisbehere's fortune.

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Nashville reporter captures Annie, a service dog, sitting intently behind the glass

A goal and cowboy celebration from P.K. Subban in his Nashville Predators debut. Punches exchanged between Jonathan Toews and James Neal. A win for the home side.

And Annie was there to see it all from the best seat in the house - her nose perched just above the dasher.

Check out this awesome moment captured by Associated Press reporter Jim Diamond, who noticed a yellow retriever sitting intently behind the glass in the background of a photograph he snapped of Roman Josi.

Fascinated by the image in his review, Diamond headed toward the dog and her owner, and learned that the pup was a service dog named Annie.

He wrote this in his Rinkside Report blog after the game:

After introducing myself as a writer and a photographer, I told the surprised gentleman that I captured an interesting shot of his quadruped and asked if I could have his permission to use the photo in a post. He was more than happy to allow it. The owner’s name is Josh Ray, and his furry friend is an adorable Yellow Labrador Retriever named Annie. In addition to being cute, Annie is Ray’s service dog.

The game was Annie’s first hockey contest, and Ray said that she handled the noise and excitement like a champ. Service dogs are trained to handle all kinds of different circumstances, and with more than 17,000 yelling fans, loud music, and goal horns Annie just took it all in stride.

And no, Pedigree did not supply the seats.

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