A quick mix of the things we gleaned from the week of hockey, serious and less so, and rolling four lines deep. EBUG-free for 14 days and counting!
1. One of the highest-scoring clubs in the league has another one coming.
Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Nick Robertson is absolutely lighting up the Ontario Hockey League, averaging 1.2 goals per game over a 44-game span.
Robertson hit the 50-goal mark in Game 43 with a short-handed, game-winning beauty in a hat-trick effort.
Even better? Only 12 of Robertson’s snipes have arrived on the power play, six have been shorties, and 10 have been game-winners. In addition to overall goals, he leads his junior circuit in short-handed and winning goals as well.
“This is not like Nick has had a good season. Nick’s an elite goal scorer. That’s what he is. One of the hardest-working players you’ll ever see,” Peterborough Petes head coach Robert Wilson told The Starting Lineup Thursday.
“You’re banking on, as a coaching staff, that Nick is scoring a goal a game — and he doesn’t let you down that way.”
Robertson’s OHL-goal-leading campaign has been all the more impressive considering Wilson has constantly juggled the 18-year-old’s linemates and the kid missed a month of action to represent the U.S. at the world juniors.
Wilson explained that Toronto has monitored the 2019 second-rounder’s progress closely, even sending Barb Underhill across the 401 for power-skating sessions.
“They’re pretty on it,” Wilson said. “Leafs fans will definitely hear about Nick.”
Toronto’s general manager, Kyle Dubas, tweeted his congratulations to Robertson this week and took a moment to praise his prospect when the executive met with reporters at the GM meetings in Boca Raton, Fla.
“He’s had a great season,” Dubas said. “With his work ethic, he’s only going to continue to push himself to get better.”
Robertson himself has been thinking about how he’ll fit into the Maple Leafs’ system since draft day.
“They play my style. They play a big skill game with Matthews (and) Marner. I’m not saying I’m that calibre of player yet – I hope to be – but there’s a lot of skill,” said Robertson, back when he was turning heads at development camp. “So it’s a great spot.
“I don’t think size is a factor. I think Toronto doesn’t see it as a factor. They’re a lot about skill and puck possession and hockey IQ. And that’s what I bring.”
2. When the Maple Leafs arrive at the rink on game days, they always discover that Santa has left an educational gift in each of their stalls: A preloaded, personalized iPad slapped with a blue leaf decal stamped with their individual sweater number.
The tradition began during Toronto’s playoff series with the Boston Bruins last spring and has continued throughout this season.
“What exactly is on the thing?” we wondered.
• An edit of each skater’s own shifts from the previous game.
• A breakdown of the night’s opposing goaltender with his tendencies and weaknesses.
• The opponent’s power-play and penalty-kill formations and strategies, for those on special teams.
• The opposition’s breakout, neutral zone and forecheck inclinations.
• Face-off tendencies of the opponent’s centremen, for those who take draws.
• Aspects the Leafs should key on for that game.
• Heart-rate monitoring software.
• Skills development drills.
Each player is left to his own devices (hey-oh!) to use his iPad when and how he chooses.
“Depends who you are, Alexander Kerfoot says. “Some guys, for sure, if it’s too much information, then they’re overthinking it. It’s better for them to just get out and play. Other guys want all the information.
“At least I know it. If I make a mistake out there, it’s on me. But I like to be prepared. I don’t think I overthink it. The more you know, the more comfortable you are, and the more you can let your instincts take over on the ice.”
Kerfoot leaves the iPad in his stall after the morning’s skate or meeting, returns to the rink post-nap well before puck drop and goes through it, focusing mostly on the face-off scouting report and any changes Sheldon Keefe has made to their Leafs’ own plan.
“It definitely helps. Probably some games more than others,” says Kerfoot, who relied on the tool heavily in the season’s early days. He was the new guy, and he was trying to take in as much as he could.
Kerfoot’s former club, the Colorado Avalanche, used the same XOS ThunderCloud system for digital pre-scouts, but the Avs weren’t served with their own preloaded tablets alongside their morning coffee.
Fellow centre John Tavares picks up the 91 tablet to drill down on the face-off scout and pays close attention to the special-teams info. He’s also brought his iPad on the ice with him during practice to keep an eye on his heart rate and making sure he’s pushing himself hard on a workday and not overexerting himself on a recovery day.
For, say, a Western Conference club, he might invest more screen time because it’s an opponent he seldom sees. For other games, he’ll scale back and lean on his own experience.
“It gives you as much information as you want or as you need. It’s a great tool to have,” Tavares says. “Some guys are on it in between periods. It just depends on the way you feel. Sometimes I feel like there’s too much information, and it’s just nice to just go out there and trust your instincts.”
3. Jake Casey, everybody. Fathers, hide your daughters:
4. Precisely four weeks out from the conclusion of the regular season, here are my major individual trophy leaders.
Hart: Leon Draisaitl Norris: John Carlson Selke: Brad Marchand Vezina: Andrei Vasilevskiy Calder: Quinn Hughes Lady Byng: Teuvo Teravainen Jack Adams: Alain Vigneault Jim Gregory: Joe Sakic
(Note: Writers don’t get a vote on top coach, goalie or GM.)
5. The NHL’s salary cap is projected to rise from $81 million in 2019-20 to somewhere between $84 million and $88.2 million. That $4.2 million is a wide range, enough to accommodate a top-four defenceman like Oscar Klefbom, Jonas Brodin, or Josh Manson.
It could also mean the difference between giving one of your impending UFAs the raise he’s gunning for or letting him walk and find his riches elsewhere.
Every GM wants more salary to play with, but cap-tight teams facing major decisions with key contributors are probably praying the ceiling gets pushed as close to $88.2 million as possible.
The Vancouver Canucks (Jacob Markstrom, Chris Tanev), Washington Capitals (Braden Holtby), St. Louis Blues (Alex Pietrangelo), Arizona Coyotes (Taylor Hall or suitable replacement), and Boston Bruins (Torey Krug) stick out.
6. Markstrom had earned the Vancouver Canucks points in four straight games before going out long-term with his knee injury.
Since the goalie has been sidelined, the Canucks have gone 2-4. Friday’s first regulation win since Markstrom’s injury — a biggie over Colorado — is hopefully one to build on.
As a franchise — and a city — expecting to build on a campaign with so much excitement and promise, how can Vancouver not re-sign Markstrom and roll into fall with its fate in the hands of Thatcher Demko?
(That’s no slight to Demko. Markstrom wasn’t ready to carry the load and be a No. 1 when he was 24 either.)
7. Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Casey DeSmith made 36 NHL appearances last season and zero with the farm club. He was rewarded with a three-year, one-way deal in 2019 for $3.75 million.
And, as the flip side of the Tristan Jarry success story, he’s played the entire 2019-20 campaign in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for the baby Pens. Certainly, this is not how he imagined life as a millionaire.
“I just think he was a victim of circumstance, but he’s an NHL goalie,” says Mike Vellucci, DeSmith’s coach.
Especially when the season opened, DeSmith took his demotion hard. Vellucci describes it as a “Why me? What did I do wrong?” kind of a thing.
For about two weeks, the coach let his disappointed athlete cool. Then he called DeSmith in for a good chat. The coach explained that DeSmith’s bump to the minors was purely circumstantial — it helps the big club’s cap picture that, until July 1, Jarry carries a more manageable hit — and that people would take notice of how he responded to this challenge.
“He started playing great,” Vellucci says. “It’s not what happens to you; it’s how you deal with what happens to you. And that’s what I talked to him about: Which way does he want to go? He’s taken the positive route and worked really hard on his game. I’m really proud of how he’s handled it.”
If Pittsburgh opts not to give both Jarry and Matt Murray juicy raises in free agency this summer, they have a No. 2 in DeSmith who is hungry and under contract. If Jim Rutherford does want to reward both Jarry and Murray, DeSmith becomes intriguing trade bait for one of the handful of clubs that will be eager to shake up their crease.
8. Kudos to the league for easing up on its nitpicking around the blueline and reducing offsides to a touchdown-esque “breaking the plane” determination.
The spirit of the rule was to discourage cherry-pickers, remember? If everyone could turn back the clock, would we not just go back to letting offsides be the official’s call, for better or worse.
Getting mad at refs is infinitely more fun than getting mad at the precious life minutes wasted by video review.
9. The NHL did the right thing by not drafting a batch of new rules and regulations surrounding the buzzy EBUG, a fluke occurrence that happens so infrequently and, it turns out, doesn’t even harm the team you’d think.
If they were going to alter anything about the role, how about making it a paid gig?
David Ayres signed a contract for an amateur tryout (ATO) and was officially paid $0 for his win — although he kept his Hurricanes sweater, and we’re guessing his media tour included a few perks.
“Under this agreement, the Player shall receive no salary, bonus (of any kind) or any other form of compensation,” reads the NHL regular-season ATO contract.
Like a true rent-a-goalie, the Carolina players dug into their own pockets to show some thanks for showing up in a pinch. “Yes, we did give a little bit of money,” Sebastian Aho told Ilta-Sanomat, a Finnish outlet .
Funny: The NHL got its biggest mainstream publicity boost from its lowest-paid player. It probably wouldn’t kill HRR for the league to kick in a bigger stipend to the next EBUG.
Not that he’s in it for the dough, but perhaps Ayres gets some form of compensation down the line. Maybe from his hockey card — which is totally going on my Christmas wish list:
10. Mika Zibanejad scored five goals, including the overtime winner, Thursday. At the time, that was more than 441 NHL skaters had scored all season long. Dude is a star.
And his teammates mobbing only the third Ranger to pop five in one game is everything…
11. With Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe still tinkering around with his bottom six as he tries to find the perfect mix for secondary scoring, and Toronto’s offence going dry during its California swing, I wonder if Kenny Agostino gets a call-up and a brief look.
The 27-year-old journeyman (Flames, Blues, Bruins, Canadiens, Devils) has 85 NHL games on his resume but none this season.
Taking off under new AHL coach Greg Moore, Agostino is now the Marlies’ top scorer, outproducing a quartet of teammates who have earned a look with the big club: Pontus Aberg, Nic Petan, Egor Korshkov and Adam Brooks.
“Kenny has been our best player for the last two months. He’s really, really driven the offence for us and even at times when we get down by two goals, he goes out and has physical shifts and gets a couple good hits and brings energy. He’s finding ways to have an impact in every hockey game,” Moore told reporters. “He can absolutely wire a puck.”
With weeks still remaining in the season, the left-winger has already established a new career in goals (27) and has added 22 assists. Friday’s two-goal performance gave him nine points in six games.
“It feels good,” Agostino said. “We’ve had so many different line combos the whole year. I just think it speaks to the depth of our team really. We have so many forwards that are skilled and can make plays and I’ve been fortunate to play with a lot of them like Aberg, Petan, (Tanner) MacMaster as of late, Korshkov. I’ve really kind of played with everyone at some point.”
But not the Leafs… yet.
Kenny Agostino pushes off the defender and backhands the puck into the net before it comes off. Marlies down 6-2. pic.twitter.com/MNVHafXH5B
— Wipe the slate, clear the canvas part 2 (@RodBlanchard) February 29, 2020
12. Strombone 1 love.
On Saturday night, Roberto Luongo will become the first player to have his number (1) retired by the Florida Panthers. Fun fact: At the same time, the Panthers will become the first NHL franchise to begin retiring sweater numbers sequentially. No other team began their rafters-hanging tradition with a player who wore No. 1.
Sources say there is no truth to the rumour that the Canucks must chip in $3,033,206 to Saturday night’s retirement party in Sunrise.
CALGARY – Gabby Wood says her curling team is ready for anything this season after facing the No. 1 women’s team in the world.
The Canadian women’s college champions took on Rachel Homan in the opening draw of the single-knockout PointsBet Invitational on Wednesday.
Wood’s Edmonton foursome took their lumps in an 11-2 loss, and will also take the experience of playing on arena ice and on television against the reigning Canadian and world champions.
“It’s a crazy first game of the season, so honestly, none of our opponents after this are going to seem that scary,” said the 20-year-old Wood.
The PointsBet Invitational that unofficially kicks off the Canadian curling season offers a purse of over $350,000, including $50,000 each to the men’s and women’s victors, to an eclectic 32-team field.
There’s a soccer FA Cup element as underdog junior, college, university, under-25 and club champions attempt to upset, and send home early, the likes of Homan and reigning Canadian men’s champion Brad Gushue.
And 13th seed Jordan McDonald provided those fireworks Wednesday by eliminating fourth-seeded Matt Dunstone 8-5 in an all-Winnipeg matchup.
“It means the world,” McDonald said. “It was an unbelievable experience out there today.”
Kaitlyn Lawes, who ranked fourth in Canada at the end of last season, beat recently crowned national women’s under-25 champion Taylor Reese-Hansen 5-2.
“Every time we get to play on arena ice, we’re really excited, and playing against a top team, that’s what we want to do. That’s where we want to be,” said Reese-Hansen. “These are the teams that we want to play against and see how we stack up, so it’s super valuable.”
National No. 8 Corryn Brown doubled university women’s champion Serena Gray-Withers 8-4 in the opening draw.
“It just makes us hungrier for more, to be honest, because we’re just super blessed with great ice, great rocks and great conditions here, so we just want to be back for more,” said Gray-Withers.
Selena Sturmay edged Ashley Thevenot 8-7 in the other women’s game to kick off the five-day cashspiel at Calgary’s WinSport Arena.
In the men’s draw Wednesday evening, Gushue defeated Canadian men’s club champion Dan Sherrard 12-4.
Kevin Koe, who played a three-man team after firing second Jacques Gauthier the previous day, downed university men’s champion Josh Bryden 8-4. Rylan Kleiter defeated Sam Mooibroek 5-2.
McDonald, who won last month’s national under-25 championship, kept the pressure on Dunstone with pressure draws and timely runbacks.
Dunstone attempted a tough angle raise to score one and force the PointsBet’s tiebreaking draw to the button, but missed to give up a steal of two.
“Playing a team like at all for us is a really big experience,” said McDonald, who said his team drew confidence from playing Reid Carruthers and Mike McEwen in the last year.
“We feel like we can hang with these teams a little more.”
Among Thursday’s games, defending men’s champion Reid Carruthers faces Felix Asselin, national women’s under-21 champion Allyson MacNutt squares off against four-time Canadian champ Kerri Einarson, and men’s under-21 champion Kenan Wipf faces 2024 Brier runner-up McEwen.
“We are just so grateful that they include the college champions, the university champions,” Wood said. “We don’t get a ton of opportunities to play on arena ice, and so that makes a huge difference developmentally.
“Having a chance, other than our nationals, to play on arena ice, on this big stage, to get to experience just a little bit of what the pros experience is just really exciting and really inspiring.”
Seven months after claiming the Scotties Tournament of Hearts title on the same WinSport ice, Ottawa’s Homan opened defence of her PointsBet crown by scoring four in the second end en route to victory.
“It’s great to get them on this kind of stage, on a national platform and getting some arena ice experience is really key for next gen to get as much experience as possible,” Homan said.
“There’s lots they can take out of it for sure. Lots of great throws and I thought they communicated well.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2024.
CALGARY – Kevin Koe will skip a three-man curling team for now.
The four-time Canadian and two-time men’s world champion dropped second Jacques Gauthier from his Glencoe Club team on the eve of the PointsBet Invitational that started Wednesday in Calgary.
Koe opened the event that offers $50,000 in prize money to each of the men’s and women’s winners with an 8-4 doubling of national university men’s champion Josh Bryden.
Koe, who also represented Canada in the 2018 Winter Olympics, says there wasn’t enough time to find a replacement for Gauthier for the PointsBet, and there won’t be enough time before next week’s first Grand Slam of the season, which is the HearingLife Tour Challenge in Charlottetown.
“We haven’t talked to anyone yet,” Koe said. “We’ll see who can come and play an event or two. I don’t think we’re going to rush out and grab someone right away, but come to an event with us and see how it goes.
“We’ll get through these next two weeks and start talking about it and seeing what our options are.”
A big-name curling free agent without a team in Koe’s home province is Brendan Bottcher. The skip of the No. 2 men’s team in Canada last season was supplanted on his team by Brad Jacobs.
When asked if it was a possibility Bottcher would join his team, Koe replied “no, it’s not.”
After skipping his own team for four years and representing B.C. in the 2023 Brier, Gauthier joined Koe, his cousin Tyler Tardi and Karrick Martin to play second for the 2023-24 season.
The team won a pair of tour events and made five finals with Gauthier on the squad, but didn’t qualify for playoffs in five Grand Slam appearances and went 2-6 at the Canadian championship in Regina to miss playoffs.
Koe went 2-3 in the ATB Okotoks Classic last week before Gauthier was axed.
The 25-year-old son of Canadian champion and television commentator Cathy Gauthier, said Wednesday in a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Elephant in the room. I got cut yesterday.”
“I wasn’t sure if I should make a public comment on it, but I wanted to provide some clarity,” Gauthier wrote.
“The team decided I wasn’t performing to their standard and decided they’d pursue alternative options moving forward.
“It happens. Nothing is a given in this sport, and although I am surprised at the timing, I know I can be better as a player. I plan on using this as an opportunity to grow both as an individual and a curler, looking to improve in all areas.
“For now, it’s back to the lab.”
The 49-year-old Koe wants to skip a team that can qualify for, and win, next year’s Olympic trials, which he says is likely his last trials.
“We struggled at the end of last season and we had some good talks and meetings and thought we could turn it around at the start of the year,” Koe said.
“If the trials were a couple years away we probably would have been a little more patient. They’re 14 months away basically.
“They’re never easy, these moves. Jaques was a great teammate, great curler, best person, but we felt we needed to do what was best for the team.”
Koe finished last season ranked fifth in the men’s Canadian Team Ranking System.
Four teams ranked higher — Brad Gushue, Jacobs, Mike McEwen and Matt Dunstone — have pre-qualified for the 2025 Montana’s Brier in Kelowna, B.C.
Koe will have to win Alberta provincials to join them. Since Koe, Tardi and Martin live in Alberta, the team can recruit a player from outside the province.
“We’ve had a few people kind of inquire, but this was yesterday, right?” Koe said. “It’s a big week for us. We need some better results.
“We’ll start talking about it in a week or two. Maybe we’ll get some offers we weren’t expecting.
“We’re better than kind of the last half-year has shown, but it’s time for us to prove it.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2024.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have won their third straight Canadian Championship title, defeating Toronto FC 0-0 (4-2 on penalties) in the final at BC Place on Wednesday.
Defender Bjorn Utvik scored the decisive penalty for Vancouver, firing a shot into the left side of the net in the fifth round of kicks.
Goalkeeper Isaac Boehmer stopped seven on-target shots for the ‘Caps and Sean Johnson made two saves for TFC.
Toronto was the dominant side for much of the game, but Boehmer made a series of critical saves, including a penalty-kick stop on Toronto star Federico Bernardeschi in the 38th minute.
Vancouver earned its way into the final after edging Canadian Premier League side Pacific FC 2-0 in the tournament’s two-legged semifinal.
Vancouver, which hoisted the Voyagers Cup for the fourth time in its history, is now assured a place in next year’s CONCACAF Champions League tournament.
Bernardeschi proved tough for the ‘Caps to handle from the opening minute.
Thirty seconds into the match, the Italian launched a left-footed rocket that Boehmer tipped out of harm’s way.
Toronto controlled much of the play across the first half while Vancouver struggled to connect on passes early.
Boehmer kept the game scoreless in the 21st minute after Bernardeschi dished off to Richie Laryea. The Canadian defender fired a quick shot on net, only to see Boehmer knock it down.
Vancouver settled into the game and, in the 34th minute, got a prime opportunity when Brian White and Fafa Picault broke away from the Toronto defence. The duo raced into the penalty area, where White was taken down without a call.
Minutes later, TFC was awarded a penalty kick after Whitecaps defender Mathias Laborda hauled Laryea down near the goal line.
Loud boos emanated from the announced crowd of 12,516 as Bernardeschi lined up his shot. He took a few steps, then blasted a left-footed kick on net as Boehmer dove and punched the ball away to ecstatic cheers.
The score remained level at 0-0 as both sides headed to their locker rooms after the first 45 minutes. The first half saw Toronto control 71 per cent of the possession and outchance Vancouver 3-1 in shots on target, though the ‘Caps held a 6-5 edge in total shots.
The visitors came into the second half with renewed vigour.
TFC appeared poised to open the scoring in the 53rd minute when an unmanned Laryea collected the ball inside the penalty area. Boehmer came well off his line to challenge and when Laryea sent a rolling ball toward the net, the ‘keeper got a hand in its path for another save.
With neither side able to find the back of the net in regulation, the game went to penalties — and Vancouver pulled it out for a three-peat.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2024.
