The first round has been one-sided between the Carolina Hurricanes and the New York Islanders. The Hurricanes took the first game 3-1 and then overcame a 3-0 deficit to win 5-3 to take a commanding 2-0 series lead. A rematch of last season’s series is looking more or less the…
The Carolina Hurricanes had a miraculous three-goal comeback against the New York Islanders to take a 2-0 series lead in their first-round clash. Conceding the first three goals, it seemed as though the Hurricanes had little chance of making the game close after winning Game 1 in a tight 3-1…
The New York Islanders take on the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena tonight for Game 2 of their first round series. Here are the projected/expected lineups, sourced from NHL.com staff writers, independent correspondents and others. Related: 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 1 Hub (3M) ISLANDERS at (2M) HURRICANES Eastern Conference First Round, Game 2…
A veteran of 1,058 NHL games, Jakub Voracek announced his retirement at the age of 34. The Czech winger had 223 goals and 583 assists for 806 points. At his best, Voracek was one of the best players in the NHL. What did he do in his career, and why did he retire? Accolades & Reason for Retirement Voracek had some solid achievements in his NHL career. He was a two-time member of the Columbus Blue Jackets, finishing with a total of 202 points in 331 contests from 2008-11 and 2021-23. He spent the bulk of his career with the…
The Columbus Blue Jackets need a major shake up. What that shake up needs to be exactly is yet to be determined. But securing only 59 and 66 points in consecutive seasons is nowhere near good enough even if the team feels progress has been made. Welcome to our 2023-24 end of season Blue Jackets’ column. The team can talk about progress all they want. While it certainly deserves mention when trying to build something special, what matters is what the standings say. The standings this season say the Blue Jackets were the worst team in the Eastern Conference by…
The Columbus Blue Jackets held their end of season media availability on Wednesday at Nationwide Arena. A total of 16 players and head coach Pascal Vincent took to the podium to address their thoughts going into an offseason full of intrigue with the possibility of many changes coming. We will have all spring and summer to go over everything. For now, we will share 17 takeaways from the availabilities. That represents one takeaway for each player as well as one takeaway from coach Vincent. While a lot of the standard stuff you’d expect to hear at this kind of presser…
On June 15, 2023, the New Jersey Devils inked Jesper Bratt to an eight-year, $63 million contract extension. As with any major deal, there was some question amongst the fanbase as to how his play would follow it up. Now that the season has come to an end, it’s safe to say he lived up to initial expectations. He reached the point-per-game threshold for the first time in his career, notching 83 points (27 goals, 56 assists). That mark led the team by nine (Jack Hughes, 74). He also was one of only five Devils to suit up for all…
Breaking a record set by the Great One is quite the accomplishment, and a very unlikely player did just that on this date. One of the National Hockey League’s charter teams has had plenty of reasons to celebrate, while two legendary goaltenders had memorable games, and the hockey world lost another legendary Montreal Canadien as well. Let’s begin our daily trip back through time to take a look at all the moments, happy and sad, that April 22 has given us. Hockey World Mourns Another Great Loss in Guy Lafleur On April 22, 2022, the hockey world lost another great…
April 15 was not the day the New Jersey Devils or their fans had targeted for the last game of the season. After playing into May last year, the season ending immediately following game 82 left many Devils fans wanting more. The good news is that even though the Devils are finished playing, there is still a reason to watch the playoffs. The Devils have significant holes and many moves to make this offseason. These five teams could hold the key to ensuring they return to the postseason in 2025. Boston Bruins Former Devils Jesper Boqvist and Pavel Zacha will…
The first round has been one-sided between the Carolina Hurricanes and the New York Islanders. The Hurricanes took the first game 3-1 and then overcame a 3-0 deficit to win 5-3 to take a commanding 2-0 series lead. A rematch of last season’s series is looking more or less the same, only the Islanders look further away from contention. Related: Islanders Cannot Afford to Be Trigger Shy With the Islanders’ backs to the wall, they will turn to Ilya Sorokin for Game 3. Semyon Varlamov unraveled in the previous game, allowing four goals in the final two periods of play,…
The 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs are underway, and there isn’t much for the New York Islanders to be happy about. Of course, they are still in the playoff race, but they are down 2-0 in their best-of-seven series against the Carolina Hurricanes, and optimism is running short. Now seems to be a good time to look at some former Islanders who had regular-season success and are chasing the Stanley Cup. John Tavares John Tavares, the player who left the Islanders as a free agent to play for his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs, is again in the playoffs. He has had…
The Bridgeport Islanders finished their American Hockey League (AHL) season with a 4-1 victory over the Providence Bruins. A season that ended by taking down one of the league’s top teams was a rare bright spot for the disappointing Islanders. The team had just 28 wins in the 72-game schedule and sat at the bottom of the league the entire way. Despite the frustrating season, there were a few bright spots and a lot of lessons learned. Too Old, Too Slow The AHL is the premiere North American league in preparing hockey players for the NHL. It is home to…
The New York Rangers are off to a great start in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, winning their first two games against the Washington Capitals for a commanding 2-0 first-round series lead. Now, the series shifts to Washington D.C., for Games 3 and 4, and these games will be crucial for the Rangers. In their past two playoff series, New York has had a 2-0 series lead and went on to lose both of them – in 2022, they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning and in 2023 to the New Jersey Devils. Both experiences left a sour taste in the team’s mouth, and…
The 2023-24 NHL regular season has been completed, and the playoffs are underway. This season was expected to have one of the greatest rookie classes ever, consisting of generational star Connor Bedard, as well as Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson, Logan Cooley, and Brock Faber. As a result of this stacked class, a lot of rookies flew under the radar, and it is now time to give them credit. Will Cuylle It is hard to give a player on the New York Rangers a nomination for being underrated given their national attention, but Will Cuylle most definitely had an underrated season….
The New York Rangers held off a furious late rally by the Washington Capitals to take Game 2 of their 2024 NHL Playoff series by the score of 4-3. The Capitals started the scoring in the first period on a Connor McMichael goal before the Rangers responded with goals from Vincent Trochek and Mika Zibanejad. The power play tally for Zibanejad continues his strong special teams performance from the regular season when he had 12 goals and 19 assists on the man advantage. In the second period, the Capitals tied the game on a Dylan Strome goal, but once again,…
In this edition of our 2023-24 Philadelphia Flyers player grading series, we take a look at 24-year-old winger Joel Farabee. The youngster is a veteran of 334 NHL games but had career-highs in goals, assists, and points. How did he grade out? Farabee’s Excellent Bounce Back In his 2022-23 campaign, Farabee struggled to score consistently. Coming off of disc replacement surgery prior to starting that season, his issues weren’t exactly unprecedented. With just 15 goals and 24 assists for 39 points in 82 contests despite averaging 17:01, it wasn’t fantastic for him. Related: 3 Flyers Who Can Bounce Back in…
A veteran of 1,058 NHL games, Jakub Voracek announced his retirement at the age of 34. The Czech winger had 223 goals and 583 assists for 806 points. At his best, Voracek was one of the best players in the NHL. What did he do in his career, and why did he retire? Accolades & Reason for Retirement Voracek had some solid achievements in his NHL career. He was a two-time member of the Columbus Blue Jackets, finishing with a total of 202 points in 331 contests from 2008-11 and 2021-23. He spent the bulk of his career with the…
The 2023-24 NHL regular season has been completed, and the playoffs are underway. This season was expected to have one of the greatest rookie classes ever, consisting of generational star Connor Bedard, as well as Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson, Logan Cooley, and Brock Faber. As a result of this stacked class, a lot of rookies flew under the radar, and it is now time to give them credit. Will Cuylle It is hard to give a player on the New York Rangers a nomination for being underrated given their national attention, but Will Cuylle most definitely had an underrated season….
In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the William Nylander watch continues in Toronto. Meanwhile, uncertainty in Minnesota looms and at least one player is wondering about his future there. Sidney Crosby and the Penguins want to get a deal done, but there haven’t been any formal talks between the two sides. Finally, what have the Penguins told Bryan Rust about his future with the team? Nylander and McMann Closer to Returning? As per TSN’s Darren Dreger, “The Willy watch continues in Toronto as the Leafs hope to even their series with the Bruins on Saturday. Bobby McMann is also being evaluated…
April 25 has provided us with some great playoff moments throughout the history of the National Hockey League. Two of the greatest players to ever lace up a pair of skates had offensive explosions on a date that saw plenty of great postseason moments. Let’s take our daily trip back in time to relive all the best this date has had to offer. The Great One & Super Mario Go Off Two of the most dynamic offensive talents to ever play in the NHL had huge games on this date. On April 25, 1985, Wayne Gretzky put up seven points…
The Pittsburgh Penguins have spent the last decade with higher expectations than almost any other NHL squad. Stacked with high-end talent and depth to make deep playoff runs, the team has constantly been in win-now mode throughout Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin’s primes. Part of the reason the Penguins have been competitive for so long is the aggressiveness displayed by Ray Shero, Jim Rutherford, and Ron Hextall as the team’s general managers (GM) over the last decade. Neither GM has ever been shy about making a big splash on the trade market, even if it doesn’t always work out. What…
The New York Rangers are off to a great start in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, winning their first two games against the Washington Capitals for a commanding 2-0 first-round series lead. Now, the series shifts to Washington D.C., for Games 3 and 4, and these games will be crucial for the Rangers. In their past two playoff series, New York has had a 2-0 series lead and went on to lose both of them – in 2022, they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning and in 2023 to the New Jersey Devils. Both experiences left a sour taste in the team’s mouth, and…
April 25 has provided us with some great playoff moments throughout the history of the National Hockey League. Two of the greatest players to ever lace up a pair of skates had offensive explosions on a date that saw plenty of great postseason moments. Let’s take our daily trip back in time to relive all the best this date has had to offer. The Great One & Super Mario Go Off Two of the most dynamic offensive talents to ever play in the NHL had huge games on this date. On April 25, 1985, Wayne Gretzky put up seven points…
If you had to choose two words to describe April 24 throughout the history of the National Hockey League, “overtime goal” would be the perfect pair to use. This date has provided some of the most memorable playoff goals ever scored, as well as some legends breaking records. The THW time machine is ready to take back through the years to relive all the best moments. More OT Goals Than You Can Shake a Stick At Jean Beliveau only scored one overtime playoff goal in his Hall of Fame career. It came early in the second overtime on April 24,…
