Blaming the media is the last resort for villains behind the bench, and Lindy Ruff fell into that depths after the Devils lost 5-1 at home to the Rangers on Thursday.
New Jersey’s season didn’t go well, as the club failed to score on the power play that season despite having an 11:52 man advantage. This marked a continuation of the club’s worrying trend of winning just two of 46 games on the power play in the last 14 competitions.
After the contest, the coach of this underperforming team, beset by goaltending issues that have been exacerbated by the hierarchy all year, said reporters asked New Jersey’s power-play players about their difficulties and called them “excessive.” “I was under a lot of pressure,” he said.
Yes, I can imagine Nico Hischier melting into a puddle when asked by the boys what he needs to improve on.
Weak as hell.
So A) Anaheim’s Frank Vatrano is still on the Rangers’ radar, and B) Selling low and buying Pavel Buchnevich high is the best way to reacquire a winger who scored one goal in 12 games. I would like to say that I do not think it is a good strategy. Blues playoff game during a tournament trip two years ago.
The same goes for this. According to Natural Stat Trick, the triumvirate of Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, and Buchnevich scored at a rate of 2.97 goals per 60 minutes, 00 seconds in 726 minutes from 2018-19 to 2020-21. His expected goal share was 51.3%.
Meanwhile, BFF has Vatrano scoring at a rate of 3.54 goals per 60:00 in 187 minutes in the 2021-22 season (and Blake Wheeler scoring at a rate of 3.24 goals per 60:00 in 314 minutes this season) ).
From the trade market: As I was told, “Is it possible that the Canes have made it clear that they intend to listen to Martin Necas’ opinion? And that information has proven to be reliable? If the information from the source is accurate, what am I missing?”?
If you’re Jacob Markstrom, are you willing to waive your no-travel clause to come to New Jersey? You’ll probably get a call from Carolina.
Is there anyone in hockey more in need of treatment from the NHL-NHLPA Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program than 23-year-old Coyotes forward Adam Ruzicka, who posted a video of himself on his Instagram account on Friday? Is it? A white powdery substance, a credit card on a plate, and a vial in your mouth?
Don’t you think this is a cry for help? That’s the kind of behavior the program is intended to address, right?
However, the Coyotes have not sent the winger, acquired on waivers from Calgary in late January, to the program. No, instead they placed Ruzicka on waivers with the intent of terminating his contract ($762,500), which expires at the end of the season.
Some players will be helped, but will others be fired? I don’t think that’s how the program is supposed to work.
The reasons for termination are open to interpretation. The Blackhawks fired Corey Perry for conduct so egregious and unspeakable that the league refused to let the 38-year-old Perry sign a contract with the Oilers less than two months later. Allowed.
Everyone knows how much I love watching Jack Hughes play. He had been in the conversation with Hart the past two seasons before the injuries started. I’m pretty sure he came back too soon from the most recent game, where No. 86 missed 11 games during the All-Star break. He didn’t look like the impact athletes we’re used to seeing.
But the unfortunate truth is that the No. 86 player who paid money to watch Thursday’s game against Rangers probably should have asked for a refund.
I don’t know how or why it happened, but the Penguins organization, essentially losing young talent, traded potential difference-making winger Jake Guentzel for a futures package to hasten a rebuild. There seems to be ongoing debate as to whether he should let him do so or whether he should extend his pending free contract. The agents are there to keep the old gang together for the next run, which will almost certainly fail.
That would mean the Rangers would extend Rick Nash in exchange for trading pending free agents to Boston in exchange for a package that would directly and indirectly acquire Ryan Lindgren, Quandre Miller, and Ryan Strome. It would have been like debating whether it should have been done or not.
The original sin is that keeping the trio of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang will give the 87th-ranked player a fourth Cup, even though this main group hasn’t won a playoff round since 2018. This was perpetrated by the government’s widely supported decision to guarantee the best chance of participation in the war. He had 6 wins and 15 losses in tournaments over the past 10 years.
Who would have guessed that Jean-Guy Talbot, who died Thursday at the age of 91, was 50 years ahead of his time when he wore the jersey behind the bench as the Rangers’ head coach during the 1977-78 rebuilding season? I wonder. Did the club wear that Blast logo sweater?
snap shot. Elite Eight: 1. Vancouver; 2. Florida State. 3. Rangers. 4. Boston. 5. Colorado. 6. Dallas. 7. Winnipeg. 8. Carolina.
And the Canucks’ season is even more impressive considering they accomplished this even though Vitali Kravtsov was at home in Russia.
