Ryan Szporer
After 10 years of writing hockey, Ryan decided it was as good a time as any to actually join The Hockey Writers for the 2014-15 season. Having appeared as a guest on such programs as CBC Radio One's Daybreak, Ryan has written for such publications as the Montreal Gazette and Bleacher Report and worked for the NHL itself and his hometown Montreal Canadiens. He currently fills an at-large position at THW, covering the NHL and hockey in general.
Author's Posts
Flames Have Legitimate No. 1 in All-Star Goalie Rittich
January 18th, 2020 Don’t believe the hype that there’s a Calgary Flames goaltending controversy. The only controversy should be how analysts refuse to give David Rittich the respect he’s earned as the team’s undisputed No. 1 in front of Cam Talbot. Rittich's Path to the NHL There are a lot of theories as to why hockey fans outside Calgary...
Capitals Ignore Consequences of Overpaying Backstrom
January 15th, 2020 You would have a hard time denying Washington Capitals star Nicklas Backstrom has been a $9.2 million player over the course of his current 10-year contract. The problem is the 32-year-old likely won’t be during his five-year extension, during which he will almost certainly burden the Caps with that very same cap hit. Capitals...
Islanders Still Have a Shot to Win the Metropolitan
January 12th, 2020 For the second straight season, head coach Barry Trotz’s New York Islanders are proving the doubters wrong. This time around, despite all appearances, they’ve got a shot at surprising to an even greater degree by winning the Metropolitan. Islanders Have Hill to Climb It may not look good, as the third-place, 27-12-4 Islanders...
NHLers by Country: On Top of Their Game and the World
January 11th, 2020 It may be called the National Hockey League, but it sure feels more like it could be an international one. Of course, the now-defunct International Hockey League was in operation for decades, but as a North American farm league for NHL teams. There’s nothing purely North American about the NHL, not any longer anyway, not based on a...
What Can the Senators Get for Borowiecki at the Deadline?
January 10th, 2020 For all of their similarities, Ottawa Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki and forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau are quite different. At least the circumstances surrounding them both as the trade deadline approaches are, anyway. Borowiecki vs. Pageau Both Borowiecki and Pageau are career-long Senators, each originally hailing from the...
3 Signs the Lightning Are Back as Stanley Cup Contenders
January 7th, 2020 There have been too many false starts and stops to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s mediocre 2019-20 to count, event at just the 41-game mark. As soon as a flash of greatness of last season’s Presidents’ Trophy-winning team appears, it gets ripped away thanks to a demoralizing defeat. Far too often, analysts have attempted to pinpoint...
