Tag Archives: Hockey
Bruins’ Cassidy calls officiating during playoffs ‘a black eye’ for NHL
Boston Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy vented his frustration after another controversial non-call took the spotlight during his team's Game 5 loss to the St. Louis Blues in the Stanley Cup Final.
"I’m a fan of the game," Cassidy said, according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. "It’s the National Hockey League getting a black eye with their officiating in these playoffs, and there’s another one that’s going to be talked about."
With less than 10 minutes to play in the third period and St. Louis holding a 1-0 advantage, Tyler Bozak seemingly tripped Bruins forward Noel Acciari in Boston's zone. The play allowed David Perron to pick up the puck and beat netminder Tuukka Rask with a bank shot.
"The no-call on Acciari ... their player is on his way to the box," Cassidy said. "It's right in front of the official. It's a slew foot. Our guy's gone. The spotter took him out of the game for a possible concussion. I mean, it's blatant. It had a big effect on the game."
The Bruins bench boss also wasn't happy with a couple of hits that he perceived to be illegal checks to the head.
"Those are the hits they want to get out of the game, correct? That's what I hear a lot about," he said. "Clearly, they missed a couple tonight. It's a fast game. I sat here two days ago or whatever it was and said I believe these officials are at this level because they've earned the right to be here."
Marcus Johansson has returned to the ice after taking this hit from Ivan Barbashev #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/zr1dSj5k0D
— NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSBoston) June 7, 2019
Cassidy believes the series took a turn when Blues head coach Craig Berube complained about the officiating after Game 3.
"I mean, the narrative changed after Game 3. There's a complaint or whatever put forth by the opposition. It just seems to have changed everything," he said.
Officials have been held under a microscope all postseason after multiple botched calls.
In Game 7 of the opening-round series between the San Jose Sharks and Vegas Golden Knights, a questionable five-minute major allowed the Sharks to erase a 3-0 deficit and win the game in overtime. The Blues found themselves on the opposite side of a controversial play in Western Conference Final when the Sharks scored the overtime winner in Game 3 courtesy of a hand pass.
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Binnington ties rookie record with 15th playoff win
With a 2-1 victory in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday, St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington tied the NHL record for wins by a rookie in one playoff year.
Jordan Binnington has matched the NHL rookie record for wins in one playoff year, improving to 15-9 in the 2019 #StanleyCup Playoffs. #NHLStats pic.twitter.com/W7dz6kGRuI
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) June 7, 2019
Binnington's 15th win matched the previous totals of Cam Ward, Ron Hextall, Patrick Roy, and Matt Murray. Ward, Hextall, and Roy all went on to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.
The 24-year-old has been stellar since posting a shutout in his first career start on Jan. 7. He led all qualified starters with a 1.89 GAA in the regular season and has backstopped the Blues to within one win of the Stanley Cup.
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Watch: Perron scores Game 5 winner after controversial non-call
The Blues go up 2-0 in Game 5 after a Tyler Bozak trip on Noel Acciari goes uncalled pic.twitter.com/yIkkQECDtz
— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) June 7, 2019
The St. Louis Blues may have gotten away with one in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.
With under 10 minutes to play in the third period and St. Louis holding a 1-0 lead, Tyler Bozak seemed to trip Bruins forward Noel Acciari in the Boston zone. The play allowed David Perron to pick up the loose puck and beat netminder Tuukka Rask off an awkward bank shot.
Cam Neely was not a fan of that call. pic.twitter.com/mHzE7IyxbA
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) June 7, 2019
The Blues found themselves on the opposite side of a controversial play in Western Conference Final when the San Jose Sharks scored the overtime winner in Game 3 after a hand pass led directly to the winning goal.
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Chara in Bruins’ lineup for Game 5
Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara was medically cleared to play in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday after suffering a jaw injury in Game 4, according to head coach Bruce Cassidy.
Defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, however, will miss his third straight contest with a concussion.
Boston opted to go with seven defensemen and only 11 forwards, with David Backes drawing out of the lineup.
Chara ranks fourth on the team in ice time, averaging 21:56 per contest this postseason. The 21-year veteran leads the Bruins with 179 games of playoff experience.
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Stars sign Janmark to 1-year, $2.3M extension
The Dallas Stars signed forward Mattias Janmark to a one-year contract extension worth $2.3 million, the team announced Thursday.
Janmark notched 25 points in 81 regular-season games for Dallas in 2018-19. He added another three points during seven playoff games.
The 26-year-old Swede was originally drafted in the third round (79th overall) by the Detroit Red Wings in 2013.
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Hughes expects to be linked with Kakko ‘for a long time’
Jack Hughes understands that he and Kaapo Kakko will likely be seeing a lot more of one another once their NHL careers begin.
"I think it'll be really competitive for a lot of years," the presumptive first overall pick told the assembled media, including TSN, before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final in St. Louis on Monday.
Hughes has long been expected to be selected by the New Jersey Devils at the draft later this month. He was the top-ranked North American skater in NHL Central Scouting's final rankings.
Kakko, who was Central Scouting's No. 1-ranked international skater at season's end, is expected to be chosen second by the New York Rangers, although neither pick is a certainty.
"Whether it's the Devils or the Rangers, we're going to be linked to each other for a long time with us going to places so close to each other and maybe a little bit of a rivalry between the Devils and Rangers, so I think it'll be a lot of fun for years to come," Hughes said.
The Devils and Rangers both play in the Metropolitan Division. The 2019-20 schedule hasn't yet been released, but the clubs will face off either four or five times during the regular season.
Hughes and Kakko have already battled on the international stage with the United States and Finland, respectively.
Kakko scored the late winner to defeat Hughes and the U.S. for the gold medal at the World Junior Hockey Championship last winter. He also outperformed Hughes at the World Championship in May, leading Finland to gold in that tournament with six goals and seven points in 10 games.
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Canada’s Teams: What Will The Vancouver Canucks Do This NHL Off-Season?
Philip Broberg was no child prodigy. Now he’s a top talent in the 2019 draft
Growing up, Philip Broberg didn't turn many heads.
While his talent stood out in the Swedish system, by no means was Broberg labeled exceptional like some of his 2019 NHL Draft peers spread across the world.
But fast forward roughly five years, and Broberg's game has matured - a ton. There was slow growth throughout his early teens as he converted from forward to defense, and then rapid improvement over the past three seasons as his skill set developed and his confidence took off.
"As time has gone on, the dots have started to connect for him,” said Randy Edmonds, who's played, scouted, coached, and managed in Sweden for 30 years and now represents Broberg for DHG Sports Agency.
"It wasn't obvious at 13 that this kid was going to be a first-round pick in the NHL," he continued. "We knew - and Philip knew - he was a good player. But you see a lot of those players at that age and you don’t know which direction they'll go. With him, he's continued to rise."

These days, Broberg, who doesn't turn 18 until June 25, moves around the ice effortlessly. And while that skating ability is his calling card, talent evaluators have really warmed to his other tools, including hockey sense and defensive coverage. Bulking up and sharpening his decision-making are high on the to-do list.
It's conceivable now that an NHL team will use a top-10 selection on him later this month in Vancouver. Offensive juggernaut Bowen Byram is considered the top blue-liner in the 2019 class, while Broberg is among a handful of others - including German Moritz Seider and compatriot Victor Soderstrom - making up the second tier. It's anybody's guess which order they'll be selected, with the draft's first round expected to be all over the place.
"He's one of those players where I think a team will step up for him in the draft," NHL Central Scouting director Dan Marr said of Broberg. "I think that’s going to be a smart move. He's not the loudest, flashiest player, so he doesn’t draw attention. But, when you go to a game, you don't have to look for him. He makes the kinds of plays where you say, 'Smart player. Smart player.'"
"Prototypical size-skating combo," added an NHL scout who requested anonymity. "He's got a shot, good hands. Can probably man the second-unit power play one day. He's a really fun player to watch.”
Broberg shrugs when asked how he's managed to become an elite skater. Instead of bragging about a change in mechanics or productive sessions with a renowned skating coach, he references hard work and a belief in himself and his abilities.
"I don’t think a lot of guys realize how fast he is until it’s too late," said Niagara IceDogs forward Philip Tomasino, another projected first-rounder and Broberg's training partner during the Swede's annual visit to Toronto. "He's got a really long stride, with his body stretching out."
As the clip below demonstrated, Broberg possesses high-end acceleration. He crosses over often to gain speed, blazing past helpless opponents with conviction reserved only for the quickest skaters in the world.
In many instances, it looks like he's been shot out of cannon in the same way Connor McDavid and Rasmus Dahlin often enter or exit a zone:
Broberg's improvement was also aided by Swedish hockey culture, which is known for its focus on individual skill development. At the lower levels, winning is a secondary pursuit. Instead, the general encouragement of creativity and the blanket philosophy of learning from mistakes take precedent. It's no coincidence that Broberg's homeland has produced a boatload of dynamic defensemen, including his hero, Norris Trophy winner Victor Hedman.
"One of the beauties of playing hockey in Europe - especially junior hockey - is that there's no money in it," Edmonds said.
"There's no extra playoff round, extra gate for the owner, no corporate boxes to sell. So, as (Broberg's) development has progressed, he's been allowed to make mistakes along the way. When you do that in the Ontario league or the Western league, you're costing your team a playoff round. These European defensemen - Erik Karlsson is a good example - make all sorts of mistakes and turnovers, but it doesn't cost anybody money so they're allowed to keep doing it so they can figure it out.”
However, Broberg's young career hit a fork in the road during the 2017-18 season. Frustrated with his hometown team's unwillingness to promote him to J20 SuperElit, Sweden's top junior hockey loop, he decided to pack his bags - leaving behind his parents and brother in Orebro - for a move to Stockholm, where he'd suit up for AIK and live alone in the nation's capital.
"My coach in Orebro didn't think I was ready to play, not mature enough, not strong enough, not fast enough. So they put me with the J18 team," Broberg said. "But I thought I was good enough to play in the J20, and AIK gave me the chance."

It turned out to be a shrewd decision.
As a 16-year-old in the higher level, Broberg dazzled, registering 13 points in 23 games for AIK while establishing himself as an NHL prospect worthy of close scrutiny. Then in August, he blew the doors off the heavily scouted Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, scoring three goals and adding an assist in five games as Sweden claimed the silver medal. And he's continued to impress on the international stage ever since.
"He took a huge step this year, I must say," said Magnus Havelid, Sweden’s Under-18 team head coach.
Indeed, the Hlinka was just the first of three tournaments for Broberg leading up to the 2019 draft. He also made Sweden's world junior squad, though an illness derailed his performance. April's Under-18 World Championship proved more productive, with the Swedes capturing gold while Broberg was named the best defenseman and earned a spot on the tournament's All-Star team.
"He seems to play well when the pressure is at its highest point," Edmonds said.

Broberg also dressed for 41 games in the Allsvenskan, the country's second-tier pro league, and eight at the J20 level during the 2018-19 season. But the transition from junior to pro included an adjustment period. The 6-foot-3, 199-pounder saw his ice time cut in half and the shift-to-shift physicality ramped up. Perhaps most significant for a guy who loves to create, Broberg was forced to make safe choices with the puck and clamp down defensively without it.
"Of course I want to contribute offense all the time, but I still want to be a guy who you can trust on defense," he said.
Next, Broberg will make the jump this fall to the Swedish Hockey League, the sport's domestic peak. He signed a one-year contract with Skelleftea in May and, barring a push from his future NHL team to jump ship and join the OHL's Hamilton Bulldogs, who own his North American junior rights, he'll face another challenge. The SHL is considered the third-best league in the world.
"I think that he will do fine, considering how well he played last year in Allsvenskan," Skelleftea general manager Erik Forssell said. "If you take into regard his age, we think that he will develop further and play well in the SHL."
If all goes according to plan, Broberg will spend one year - two max - in the SHL before leaving Sweden to chase his NHL dreams in a to-be-determined locale.
"I think the only thing that he needs is what a lot of 17-going-on-18-year-olds need: A little bit more maturity and experience to his game, where it all comes together. I don’t know if there's any liabilities," Marr said.
"He's a pretty complete package for a team to draft and watch develop over the next year or two."
For a player who was never considered a prodigy growing up, that's certainly quite the leap.
John Matisz is theScore's national hockey writer.
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Marleau puts Toronto home up for sale amid trade speculation
With chatter running rampant about his potential departure from the Maple Leafs, Patrick Marleau has put his Toronto home up for sale, according to the Toronto Star's Kevin McGran.
The mansion contains six bedrooms and seven bathrooms and is up for grabs for $11.8 million, per the online listing.
Marleau is entering the final year of his three-year, $18.75-million deal with the Leafs, but the club is exploring the possibility of trading him to create extra cap space.
The Leafs have reportedly had discussions with the Los Angeles Kings and Arizona Coyotes on a potential deal.
Marleau's contract features a full no-movement clause, meaning he'd have to sign off on his future destination before the Leafs could trigger a deal.
The 39-year-old hasn't missed a game since the 2008-09 season and put up 16 goals and 21 assists in 2018-19.
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