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Oilers ride confident, dominant play during homestand right into playoff spot – Sportsnet.ca

Published

3 years ago

March 19, 2022

EDMONTON — In the smaller picture, five wins in a five-game homestand — no matter who the schedule-maker puts in front of you — probably deserves a pat on the back and a cold beer.

The Edmonton Oilers began this homestand on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. Ten points later, after a 6-3 win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday afternoon, they find themselves five points clear of Dallas — the third wild-card team — and within two points of L.A. for second place in the Pacific, with two games in hand on the Kings.

You’ve got to admit, Edmonton was tested in a myriad of ways in this homestand: Washington scores with two seconds to play to force overtime; mighty Tampa comes in as the two-time defending champs; Detroit erased a 3-0 deficit and tied the game at five in the third period; and New Jersey scores twice in the third to take a 3-2 lead with 16:45 to play.

But every time failure knocked, Edmonton managed instead to succeed.

It wasn’t long ago we referenced this club a fragile. But lately, whomever the opponent, it has been quite the opposite.

“We come out in the third period knowing what we need to do, but they get a couple of bounces and take the lead,” said Evander Kane, after another two-goal night for 12 tucks in 23 games. “We stick with our game plan, we get pucks to the net. We turn up the heat a little bit, stay with it, and we’re able to respond.”

Why now? And not a month ago?

“I think it’s just believing,” said Kane, whose plan to come to Edmonton and beef up his value before July 1 has been working brilliantly, becoming a fixture on Connor McDavid’s left wing. “We can score goals, we know that. It’s just about playing a certain way, having the right attitude and staying with that attitude no matter how bounces go in a game.

“I see great potential in this team, that’s why I came here,” he said. “I think you’re starting to see what it can look like. As we continue to grow our game and become even tighter as a team in the way we play, I think we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”

The small, quick Devils gave Edmonton fits at times Saturday. New Jersey doesn’t pin you in your zone for long stretches, but they’re a fast-break team that can kill you with odd-man rushes.

Alas, Mikko Koskinen was the difference. He made a ton of good saves on a loose night for the Oilers structurally, while former Calgary Flame Jon Gillies folded up at the other end — much to the chagrin of Devils head coach Lindy Ruff.

After New Jersey took a 3-2 lead in Period 3, Gillies surrendered a weak goal from the bottom of the circle by Tyson Barrie. Edmonton never looked back after that, scoring three more times to coast to the finish line.

“That goal from the goal line, the bad angle from Barrie, a terrible goal,” spat Ruff. “That gave them some life. We were doing all the right things. You give up a shot from there, 99 out of 100 times you’re getting a save.”

Poor Lindy. His team had a shot at a win here, but it was the Oilers who found a way instead.

“Our goalie had a tough night,” Ruff complained. “You can look at the first goal, you can look at the second goal. … It’s a team we wanted to limit opportunities, high-rush opportunities, and I thought the momentum changed when all of a sudden, that tough goal goes in.”

It’s a bit ironic that, not so long ago, Dave Tippett was issuing quotes like those about Koskinen. Now, the Three Metres of Koskinen has seized the starter’s job in Edmonton, and given the Oilers enough goaltending to contend for second place in the Pacific.

In return, he’s getting run support. The Oilers scored six goals in three straight games for the first time since 1993, and while getting the first goal of the game was a major issue earlier this season, they have now scored first in nine of Woodcroft’s 18 games.

The Oilers are 21-0 when scoring first this season.

“It’s remarkable,” marvelled Woodcroft. “When our staff came about a month ago, we put a premium on starting well. We talk a lot about early urgency — wanting to sink our teeth into the other team immediately. And putting a little bit of onus on personal responsibility for players to find their game within the team right off the bat.”

McDavid tied a career high with a goal in his fifth straight game, an empty-netter. It capped a night where a fragile team might have lost, but the Oilers — again — found a way not to.

“That comes with a little bit of confidence,” Leon Draisaitl said. “When you get a couple of wins going, get a little streak going, you know that you can come back from a bad shift or getting scored on.

“I think we are growing in that area of the game and it makes us a better hockey team.”

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Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to 7-year deal worth nearly $60M

Published

5 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.

The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.

Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.

He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.

Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.

Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.

The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.

Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.

Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.

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Veterans Tyson Beukeboom, Karen Paquin lead Canada’s team at WXV rugby tournament

Published

6 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

Veterans Tyson Beukeboom and Karen Paquin will lead Canada at the WXV 1 women’s rugby tournament starting later this month in the Vancouver area.

WXV 1 includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France and Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, and the United States).

Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 7 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the eighth-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.

“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” Canada coach Kevin Rouet said in a statement. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world.

“France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”

Beukeboom serves as captain in the injury absence of Sophie de Goede. The 33-year-old from Uxbridge, Ont., earned her Canadian-record 68th international cap in Canada’s first-ever victory over New Zealand in May at the Pacific Four Series.

Twenty three of the 30 Canadian players selected for WXV 1 were part of that Pacific Four Series squad.

Rouet’s roster includes the uncapped Asia Hogan-Rochester, Caroline Crossley and Rori Wood.

Hogan-Rochester and Crossley were part of the Canadian team that won rugby sevens silver at the Paris Olympics, along with WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry. Wood is a veteran of five seasons at UBC.

The 37-year-old Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada including the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 World Cup.

Canada opens the tournament Sept. 29 against France at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver before facing Ireland on Oct. 5 at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, and England on Oct. 12 at B.C. Place.

The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.

WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.

The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.

Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team WXV 1 Squad

Forwards

Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Français Paris (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph Goats; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Saracens (England); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Club de rugby de Quebec; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., College Rifles RFC; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Leprechaun Tigers; Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England);

Backs

Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Asia Hogan-Rochester, Toronto, Toronto Nomads; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Saracens (England); Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Rivière-du-Loup, Que, Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., Westshore RFC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).

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Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Vancouver Canucks star goalie Thatcher Demko working through rare muscle injury

Published

6 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.

The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.

He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.

Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.

He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.

Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.

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