You can’t score an empty-netter if you’re sitting on the bench in those crucial defensive moments.
That’s important to remember as Calgary Flames forward Blake Coleman threatens the NHL’s single-season record for most goals into a vacated cage.
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As he told Postmedia: “Ultimately, you’re putting a game away. And that’s always good.”
Indeed, it is.
The 32-year-old Coleman put another game away Thursday, sealing a 4-1 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Adin Hill had been pulled for an extra attacker.
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Coleman, who is one of the most respected leaders in the Flames’ locker-room and has been frequently wearing an ‘A’ as proof of it, has now registered seven empty-netters during the 2023-24 campaign. He leads the loop in that category.
“The boys, they just know it’s pretty automatic if I get the puck on my stick late in a game,” Coleman said with a wide smile, a hint that he has been getting an earful from his buddies for sinking so many gimmes. “They call it tradition now.”
This tradition has turned into a record quest, although Coleman insists it’s the furthest thing from his mind.
The mark for most empty-net notches in one winter is nine, which is shared by Pavel Bure (1999-00) and Alex Ovechkin (2021-22). With 16 regular-season dates remaining, starting with Saturday’s showdown against the Montreal Canadiens (5 p.m. MT, CBC/Sportsnet 960 The Fan), Coleman needs to tuck two more to match those legendary lamp-lighters.
“It’s good company,” he said. “It’s not the guys that you necessarily think of that are out there to kill the game, but it shows obviously those guys were trusted in that situation. I would imagine Bure’s were more breakaways, and Ovi was probably just sniping from wherever. But it’s an impressive list of players.”
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‘Trust’ is the key word.
When Flames bench boss Ryan Huska sends out his shutdown line — captain Mikael Backlund between Coleman and Andrew Mangiapane — in the late stages, twine-tickling is not the top priority.
On Thursday’s empty-net sequence, Backlund disrupted a scoring chance with a savvy stick-play, calmly collected the puck and spied Coleman as he hustled up the left wing. Not wanting to risk an icing call that would force a defensive-zone draw, he crossed centre before lofting a 90-footer that was right on target.
“I’m pretty good when the goalie is out,” he quipped afterward.
Give him credit, he’s darn good when the goalie is in, too.
Keep in mind, Coleman has also slipped 21 pucks past the opposing backstop, included the tiebreaking bury midway through Thursday’s third period against the defending champion Golden Knights.
Coleman’s season total of 28 is a new career-high. He is tied with Yegor Sharangovich for the team lead in tallies.
This heart-and-soul sort is also a plus-23, the best rating of any dude on a squad that sits outside of the playoff picture.
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“Those are guys that typically do things the right way,” Huska said of Backlund-Coleman-Mangiapane trio. “And in Blake’s case, he understands how to win and I think when games are on the line, he knows that sometimes that means you’re going to have to block a shot. It means you’re going to have to be positionally sound.
“At the same time, when you’re playing with a goalie out at the other end of the ice, you have an opportunity there. I know his teammates give him a hard time because he always seems to be the guy that is getting them this year, but he deserves to be out there because of the way he plays the game.”
There’s no doubt that No. 20 will continue to be tapped in those pressure-packed, clinging-to-a-lead scenarios.
Question is, can he capitalize with a couple more empty-netters and add his name to the NHL history books?
“I don’t put too much thought into it,” Coleman protested after Friday’s off-ice workout at the Saddledome. “To me, it’s just you’re put out in that situation to put the game away, and we’ve been able to do that pretty frequently.”
ICE CHIPS: Asked Friday for an update on starting netminder Jacob Markstrom, who has missed consecutive contests due to a lower-body injury, Huska replied: “He’s day-to-day for us and we are doing our best to get him in a position to come back and play games really soon.” While Markstrom hasn’t been spotted on the ice since Tuesday, it’s worth noting he was one of seven veterans summoned for a leadership meeting prior to that bounce-back against the Golden Knights.
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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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