Tag Archives: Hockey

Report: NHL closely reviewing Wilson’s hit on Dumoulin

Tom Wilson's hit on Brian Dumoulin is under scrutiny.

The Washington Capitals forward caught the Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman with a hit to the head in Sunday's Game 2, a collision that went unpenalized.

Related: Dumoulin leaves Game 2 after hit to head from Wilson

Now, the NHL Department of Player Safety is in the process of closely reviewing the incident, a league source told Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post.

Since Wilson was suspended twice in the preseason, he is considered a repeat offender, which could potentially lead to a stiffer punishment if the league decides the hit warrants action.

That history, however, does not factor into whether there should be supplemental discipline to begin with.

Dumoulin was unable to return to the game, and there's no word yet on his status for Game 3.

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Watch: Byfuglien, Scheifele strike for 2 goals in 29 seconds

The Winnipeg Jets can put some offense together in a hurry.

Case in point: Dustin Byfuglien and Mark Scheifele scored 29 seconds apart in the first period of Game 2 in Nashville, making Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne look very human in the process.

Patrik Laine also hit the post shortly after Scheifele's goal.

The Jets were looking to head back to Winnipeg with a 2-0 series lead.

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No goal: Penguins suffer from inconclusive evidence of puck crossing line

What would Stanley Cup Playoff action be without some sort of goal controversy?

The issue Sunday was whether the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to get the puck all the way across the goal line during the third period of Game 2.

Patric Hornqvist sure thought he scored on Braden Holtby, but the Capitals goaltender was able to shield the puck from view just enough to hinder the officials from conclusively ruling it a goal.

A closer looks sure makes it seem as though the puck went in the net, but again, the photo evidence is inconclusive.

Play therefore carried on with the Penguins down 3-1, and the NHL later explained the ruling as follows:

"At 9:03 of the third period in the Penguins/Capitals game, the Situation Room initiated a video review to further examine a play at the Washington net. Video review determined that there were no definitive replays which showed that the puck completely crossed the Washington goal line. Therefore, the Referee's call on the ice stands - no goal Pittsburgh."

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Waddell: No. 2 pick makes Hurricanes more appealing to coach, GM candidates

The Carolina Hurricanes have another selling point.

Team president Don Waddell represented the Hurricanes at the NHL draft lottery on Saturday, and was obviously quite pleased to come away with the No. 2 overall pick after finishing 21st in the overall standings this season.

The addition of a top-flight prospect will certainly help attract candidates for the team's vacant general manager and head coach positions, Waddell believes.

"You put another big asset into your team," Waddell said, per Chip Alexander of the News & Observer. "To have that kind of asset that you didn't have before the day started, I think makes it even more appealing to what we have going on right now in Raleigh."

Waddell added new owner Tom Dundon appreciated the jump in draft order.

"He's happy," Waddell said of Dundon. "The value of the 11 pick is good. The value of a No. 2 pick is great."

Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is expected to go first overall, but highly-touted forwards Andrei Svechnikov, Brady Tkachuk, and Filip Zadina will all be there for the taking with the second pick.

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Watch: Penguins’ Dumoulin leaves Game 2 after hit to head from Caps’ Wilson

Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin was forced to exit Sunday's Game 2 in Washington after taking a hit to the head from Tom Wilson, with Alex Ovechkin levying a check directly in the wake of that contact.

Dumoulin remained down on the ice for a few moments before slowly getting up and heading to the locker room.

No penalty was called on the play, but Wilson may be hearing from the NHL's Department of Player Safety.

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Cooper: Lightning lacked intensity in Game 1 loss to Bruins

Jon Cooper was less than impressed after a 6-2 shellacking to the Boston Bruins in their second-round series opener on Saturday.

Following the loss, the Tampa Bay Lightning coach opted for a tough practice Sunday, putting his players through a series of intense drills.

While the practice may have been difficult, Cooper's words following the workout were even harsher.

"I bet you all five games in the Jersey series we had more intensity than we had in Game 1 last night," Cooper said, per Joe Smith of The Athletic. "And that's just not going to get it done."

The agitated bench boss particularly felt his team put up little resistance against the Bruins' dominant top line of Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, and Brad Marchand.

Clearly, Cooper is hoping for a better showing when the two sides meet for Game 2 on Monday.

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Lottery luck sees Sabres’ number called twice

Lady luck was finally on the side of the Buffalo Sabres.

After previous draft lottery losses saw the Sabres miss out on Aaron Ekblad and Connor McDavid, a winning combination belonging to Buffalo came up not once, but twice Saturday night.

Already winning the top pick in the first lottery, and the right to draft Rasmus Dahlin come June, the Sabres were picked again in the third draw (the Carolina Hurricanes won the second lottery), which would have given Buffalo the first and third selections.

Of course, since the Sabres' first-rounder had already laid claim to the top pick, a redraw was necessary and ultimately landed on the Montreal Canadiens.

Entering the lottery, the Sabres held a 18.5 percent chance of picking first, and 14.4 percent odds at the third pick.

The Sabres hold the first-overall pick for the first time since 1987, when they chose Pierre Turgeon with the top selection.

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Malkin remains out of lineup for Game 2 vs. Capitals

Evgeni Malkin will miss his third straight contest when the Pittsburgh Penguins face off for Game 2 against the Washington Capitals on Sunday, coach Mike Sullivan confirmed.

Malkin returned to practice Saturday in a full-contact jersey and saw some time working with the Penguins' top power-play unit. Following practice, Sullivan indicated that Malkin would be a game-time decision ahead of Game 2.

The Russian center has been sidelined with an undisclosed injury that has forced him to miss both games against the Capitals as well as the series-clinching Game 6 against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Sullivan later added that Malkin has not experienced any setbacks due to the injury, but rather his latest absence is simply part of the recovery process.

Malkin has notched three goals and two assists in five appearances this postseason.

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Rangers have ‘checked in’ with free agent Kovalchuk

The New York Rangers have gauged Ilya Kovalchuk's interest in bringing his show to Broadway.

The Russian superstar, now an unrestricted free agent, has expressed interest in returning to the NHL after spending the past five seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League, and could find a fit with the Rangers.

"We've checked in with him. It's fair to say that's something we're going to look at again further and see what's going on," Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton told Larry Brooks of the New York Post.

Kovalchuk last suited up in the NHL for the New Jersey Devils, but retired following the 2012-13 campaign in order to return to Russia. He had 12 years remaining on his contract at the time of his retirement.

Had Kovalchuk opted to return to the NHL prior to the coming season, the Devils would have retained his rights. However, now that his 35th birthday has passed, he is removed from the NHL's voluntary retired list and free to sign with any team.

As of April 15, Kovalchuk can hold talks with interested teams, but cannot put pen to paper until free agency opens on July 1.

In 55 appearances with St. Petersburg SKA this season, Kovalchuk tallied 32 goals and 33 assists. The former Devil and Atlanta Thrasher also notched 816 points in as many NHL games.

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