Finnish Hockey - Weekly Round Up - January 23-29, 2017

Weekly Finnish Hockey round-up by Aatami Mäkinen.

KHL

Jokerit - It proved to be a difficult week in the Kontinental Hockey League for Helsinki side Jokerit. Last Tuesday they were beaten by the Kazakh side Barys Astana on home ice 3-4. Then two days later things got worse as they lost by a heavier scoreline of 6-2 at the Hartwall Arena, this time to Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg. Their saving grace being both sides are in the Eastern Conference and so won't have a direct bearing on their play-off position.

On Saturday they were able to salvage something from their week when they beat Ugra 6-5 in what proved to be something of an old fashioned shoot out.

Whilst losing twice on home ice, did deal something of a blow to Jokerit's play-off hopes, they are, for now still holding on to that eighth and final spot. But having played a game more than Sochi, their slender two point lead over the Black Sea club is looking more precarious by the week. They also can't count out Slovan who, just a place back on Sochi in tenth are only four points behind the Finnish club. With just six games to go can Jokerit do enough to make the play-offs for a second successive season?

This week they must face a home game with Dinamo Minsk before playing those same three sides [Barys, Avtomobilist and Ugra on the road].

 

 

SM liiga

Pelicans – Had a successful week with two important wins over two potentially difficult opponents.

They put in one of their most impressive displays of the season to see off a very strong side in Assat. Antti Erkinjuntti gave the Lahti-based side an early lead before Aleksi Rekonen double the home side’s advantage by the 10:30 mark. Jarno Karki pulled a goal back for the visitors towards the end of the second period but Arttu Heikkinen restored Pelican’s two goal lead at 43:09. Simon Suoranta then pulled another back for the team from Pori just 34 seconds later before defenseman Ben Blood the game safe with his side’s fourth goal of the evening at 53:07.

On Saturday they saw off Jukurit with a 3-2 win. Juha Leimu and Juhani Tyrvainen scored deep into the second period to seemingly set Pelicans up for the win, but Jukurit had other ideas and responded through Miika Roine and Janne Ritamaki. Vili Sopanen then replied for the home side 44 seconds later to restore their lead and give the team from Lahti he win.

Lukko had a home and home series with local rivals TPS of Turku over the weekend. The team from Rauma were well beaten at home on Friday and it has to be said it wasn’t totally unexpected. A casual glance at the standings will show Lukko struggling at the foot of the table, whilst TPS, who have been in great form these past few weeks are sitting in third place, closing in on the team in second spot, KalPa.

Peter Tiivolo gave Lukko the lead inside the first five minutes of the game  but Iikka Pikkarainen, Patrik Virta, Tomi Kallio and Miro Keskitalo all scored for TPS to give them the away win.

The following evening saw the teams switch to Turku, with an identical 4-1 scoreline. To the visiting team! Also strangely the team that took the lead in both games went on to lose them both too. Lukko put in one of their best performances of the season to beat one of the best teams in the league, and skated off with an important road victory. Patrik Virta had given TPS the lead at 18:37 but four unanswered goals from the visitors gave Lukko a surprise win. Joonas Niemala, Peter Tiivola, Valentin Claireaux and Ville Vahalahti all scoring.

SaiPa

The team from Lappeenranta had a home and home series of their own, with HPK. Unlike the Lukko-TPS series the spoils went to the home sides in both contests.

On Friday, SaiPa came from behind to beat the Hameenlinna side. Petteri Nikkila scoring at 14:01, but SaiPa were back level just 90 seconds later through Curtis Hamilton. Tero Koskiranta scored the game winner with just over ten minutes to go, while Matti Jarvinen made the game safe with a third in the last minute.

The next day HPK managed to beat SaiPa 3-2. The home side lead early on through Sakari Manninen, but SaiPa hit back through Brock Trotter and Curtis Hamilton. Manninen then grabbed his second of the game to tie proceedings up again before Niko Kapanen scored what proved to be the winner at 35:28.

JYP had an interesting week after they toppled, second placed KalPa on their own ice, before splitting their home and home series with Ilves.

The team from Jyvaskyla delivered a severe blow to KalPa’s title hopes in Kuopio on Tuesday when they skated off with a 2-1 win. Sami Niku had given JYP the lead at 23:07, but Tommi Jokinen tied the game up just over five minutes later. Any chances KalPa had of getting something from the contest were dashed with just over twn minutes to go when Micke Saari hit what proved to be the game winner.

In the first game with Ilves, JYP were beaten on home ice losing 2-5. Teemu Aalto, Teemu Rautiainen and Jerry D’Amigo all scored for the visitors during a 7 minute period in the opening session. That meant JYP were chasing the game and it was always going to be tough against a good Ilves side. Jerry Turkulainen pulled one back for the hosts early in the second period, but Tapio Laakso restored the Tampere-based sides three goal advantage before the period was over. Juha-Pekka Hytonen pulled another one back for JYP with just under seven minutes to go but D’Amigo hit his second of the night with 41 seconds left.

The following night JYP went to Tampere and won a seven goal thriller. Michael Keranen gifted Ilves the lead at 4:17 but two goals in just over a minute from Ossi Louhivaara and Jerry Turkulainen saw the game turn in JYP’s favour. They added a third through Juha-Pekka Hytonen early in the second period, but Jerry D’Amigo responded for Ilves to keep them in touch, scoring just 26 seconds later. Louhivaara then scored his second of the night to give JYP some breathing space with just over 12 minutes to go, and that proved to be crucial as Ilves pulled another goal back through Teemu Rautiainen with 21 seconds remaining.

Tappara – Still find themselves top of the standings and whilst their closest rivals, KalPa and TPS slipped up during the week, the Tampere giants skated off with three straight wins. The trio of successes included a local derby and a home and home series with IFK.

Tappara came out on top once again in their latest Tampere derby with Ilves, but had to come from behind twice in the game to do so. Markku Flinck gave Ilves, the designated home team, the lead early on in the game but Teemu Nurmi tied it at 22:57. Aleksi Mustonen then restored Ilves’ lead but as the sides started the third period, Nurmi hit his second of the game to tie the game up once again. Veli-Matti Savinainen hit the winner at 54:27.

One of my colleagues from NIHL Radio, Oz Phillips was in attendance for Tappara’s home game on Friday. He got to witness Alexander Bonsaksen and Teemu Nurmi scoring for Tappara in the opening period, either side of a Joonas Rask strike for HIFK. Charles Linglet and Veli-Matti Savinainen then increased their side’s lead before Saku Salmela pulled one back for the Helsinki team. Jani Lajunen killed off any hopes HIFK had of a comeback when he got his sides fifth goal of the evening at 57:36. Roope Hintz, did net another consolation for HIFK with 36 seconds to go though. It certainly was an exciting game to take in, for what proved to be a great trip for Oz. Not that I’m jealous at all!

The following night the teams switched venues to the Capital city, with the league leaders coming away with a vital 2-1 win. Tappara had to come from behind to do so however, after Henri Tamminen had given the side from the Capital city the lead. However, the league leaders were thankful for leading scorer Veli-Matti Savinainen who netted twice to turn the game in Tappara’s favour.

KalPa – played a home and home series with KooKoo over the weekend, and the Kuopio-based side manged to skate off with two narrow victories.

At home KalPa got the better of a nine-goal thriller, but twice blew a two goal lead. Janne Keranen and Mikko Nuutinen scored early on to give the home side a 2-0 lead, but Mikko Lehtonen pulled one back before the opening period was over. Nuutinen then scored early into the second period to make it 3-1, however, Jarkko Malinen and Miika Heikkila had the teams level going into the second intermission. Terry Broadhurst then gave KooKoo their first lead of the game, and up until the final two minutes, looked to have given his side a shock victory. KooKoo have been struggling this season and have spent much of the campaign in the bottom two places in the standings, whilst their opponants spent all of theirs in the top two places. With 1:41 to go, Niko Mikkola netted to spare his sides blushes and take the game into overtime. Surprisingly, there were no further goals and so that meant the teams headed into a shootout. KooKoo missed all three of their attempts, whilst KalPa failed to convert on their first two opportunities. It was left to Janne Keranen to hit the winner.

The following night Miikka Pitkanen opened the scoring for KalPa but a few minutes later Juha-Pekka Haataja had KooKoo back on level terms. Joonas Lyytinen then restored KalPa’s lead two minutes later and the team in second place in the standings held on for a much needed win.

Elsewhere around the league this week, there were wins for TPS, IFK, Jukurit and Karpat, whilst Sport grabbed a double victory over Assat.

TPS remain in third after splitting games with Lukko, but earlier in the week they grabbed a win over Jukurit. Henrik Tallinder and a double strike from Dave Spina was enough for them to see off the team from Mikkeli.

HIFK put four goals past HPK on Tuesday. Juuso Puustinen, Daniel Grillfors, Joonas Rask and Oliwer Kaski all scoring.

Jukurit had their home game with Karpat won by the twelfth minute. Teemu Suhonen gave them the lead just 2:04 into the game, but Mikko Lehtonen tied it for Karpat at 8:10. The game’s scoring was complete just over four minutes later when Keni Karalahti hit what proved to be the winner.

Karpat came from a goal down against Sport Vaasa on Tuesday, to take the spoils in the North-West Derby. Hailing from the Northern town of Oulu, Karpat, are the Liiga’s most Northern outpost, and so Sport who are just down the coast in Vaasa are the side closest to them geographically. Markus Nordlund had given the visitors  the lead at 26:52 but Jari Sailio tied the game less than a minute later and with 21 seconds left in the middle period their first lead. Karpat hit another three goals in the final period to thrash their rivals. Mika Pyorala, Jesse Saarinen and Shaun Heshka all finding the net.

Sport won both their games with Assat over the weekend. Tommi Tikka hit both goals for them at home on Friday. Whilst the Vaasa based side, went to Pori and skated off with a 5-3 win. Sport had to come from behind though after Jere Seppala and Jarno Karki had given Assat a 2-0 lead by 23:23. Sport came back though and scored three times in a span of 4:32 to take control of the game. Ville Viitaluoma, Otto Karvinen and Matti Lamberg scoring. Assat were not to be brushed aside that easily though and they were back level at 45:52 when Niko Ojamaki netted. Sport then pushed for a winner and they were rewarded with 2:01 remaining when Viitaluoma grabbed his second of the game. Tuomas Vanttinen then made the game safe with 48 seconds left.

 

Liiga Standings

Leading Scorers

 

Tuesday, January 24

HIFK v HPK 4-0

Ilves v Tappara 2-3

KalPa v JYP 1-2

Karpat v Sport 5-1

TPS v Jukurit 3-0

 

Wednesday, January 25

Pelicans v Assat 4-2

 

Friday, January 27

Jukurit v Karpat 2-1

JYP v Ilves 2-5

KalPa v KooKoo 5-4

Lukko v TPS 1-4

SaiPa v HPK 3-1

Sport v Assat 2-0

Tappara v HIFK 5-3

 

Saturday, January 28

HIFK v Tappara 1-2

HPK v SaiPa 3-2

Ilves v JYP 3-4

KooKoo v KalPa 1-2

Pelicans v Jukurit 3-2

TPS v Lukko 1-4

Assat v Sport 3-5

 

Mestis

SaPKo still lead the standings with a seven point advantage over second placed TUTO but have played a game more than their rivals from Turku. The leaders lost their opening game of the week away to Peliitat before returning to winning ways at home in Savonlinna. Beating LeKi 4-0. TUTO also lost to Peliitat, although their 6-5 defeat came on home ice. Like SaPKo, the Turku-based side were able to follow up that defeat with a win against JYP-Akatemia. KeuPa HT who are based in the Finnish town of Keuruu near Jyvaskyla lost away to Helsinki-region side K-Vantaa before responding with a 4-3 win over Peliitat.

K-Vantaa had a fine week winning all three of their games and are now up to fifth in the table. Aside from the aforementioned home success over KeuPa HT, they also recorded big road wins over IPK (5-1) and Jokipojat (4-1).

Leki from the town of Lempaala near Tampere won away to JYP Akatemia (2-1) but were involved in a high scoring defeat with RoKi. The visiting team from Rovaniemi skating off with a 7-4 win. However, RoKi were unable to carry that form into their next game. Losing away to in-form Espoo. Elsewhere, Hermes from the Northern town of Kokkola, are now in third place in the standings, having won both their games last week. Winning 2-1 in Kajaani against Hokki and then enjoying a home success over IPK (6-1). Hokki bounced back from their defeat to Hermes by seeing off Jokipojat at home.

Wednesday, January 25

JYP Akatemia v LeKi 1-2

K-Vantaa v KeuPa HT 2-1

Peliitat v SaPKo 5-3

Hokki v Hermes 1-2

 

Friday, January 27

IPK v K-Vantaa 1-5

TUTO v Peliitat 5-6

SaPKo v LeKi 4-0

Hokki v Jokipojat 4-3

 

Saturday, January 28

Hermes v IPK 6-1

Jokipojat v K-Vantaa 1-4

JYP-Akatemia v TUTO 0-3

LeKi v RoKi 4-7

KeuPa HT v Peliitat 4-3

 

Sunday, January 29

Espoo v RoKi 3-2

 

Mestis Standings

Leading Scorers

 

 

NHL - Wild - Round Up - January 17-22, 2017

New Jersey @ Wild 4-3 - Tuesday, January 17, 2017
Beau Bennett scored with 2:17 left in the third period to give the New Jersey Devils a 4-3 win against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. New Jersey (19-18-9) won the final three games of a four-game road trip (3-0-1). Cory Schneider made 32 saves. Devan Dubnyk made 22 saves for Minnesota (28-10-5), which had won four in a row. He was 14-1-0 in his previous 15 starts, allowing 29 goals. Jared Spurgeon scored 30 seconds into a power play at 17:58 of the first period to give the Wild a 1-0 lead. It was his fifth goal in the past 12 games, and Minnesota's power play has scored in 11 of the past 14 games.

Jason Zucker increased the lead to 2-0 at 9:24 of the second period. Pavel Zacha made it 2-1 on the power play at 13:19 with a snap shot off a feed by Kyle Palmieri. Taylor Hall led Adam Henrique on a break for a top-shelf goal to tie the game 2-2 at 5:23 of the third period. The assist extended Hall's point streak to four games (one goal, three assists). Erik Haula gave Minnesota a 3-2 lead at 9:08, but New Jersey answered with a goal by Palmieri 22 seconds later.

* Devils forward Blake Coleman worked the puck out from behind the net to find Bennett breaking in off the bench. The assist was Coleman's first NHL point in his fourth game.

"It was huge getting the confidence to be out there late in the game," Bennett said. "Obviously [Coleman] made a great play, taking on a few of their defensemen, holding on to it, waiting for me to come off the bench and made a great pass, and I'm happy for him to get his first NHL point in a critical time."

* Schneider stopped Wild forward Nino Niederreiter in close at 5:14 of the first period.

* New Jersey forward Travis Zajac won the faceoff against Minnesota center Eric Staal at 9:22 of the third period to set up the tying goal. Zajac won 57 percent his faceoffs.

* After drawing a roughing penalty on New Jersey forward Devante Smith-Pelly, Spurgeon palmed down a Nino Niederreiter rebound and swatted it in for a goal. 

* Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin left at 4:52 of the second period with a broken finger. Boudreau said he expects to know more Wednesday. … Wild forward Mikko Koivu (two assists) has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in the past 11 games. … Mikael Granlund (assist) has five assists in a four-game point streak.

"Well, they kept pushing, and I'm sure they believed they were going to tie it up the way [they] came out in the third period. We just did some uncharacteristically dumb things on all their goals. You can call it what you want, but they earned it, and we didn't." Bruce Boudreau
"It's frustrating because we threw it away. We haven't done that. We talked about this is an important game for us. Tie game with two minutes left, that's where we're usually solid." Dubnyk said.

Phoenix Coyotes @ Wild 3-4 - Thursday, January 19, 2017
Nino Niederreiter scored two power-play goals, including the tiebreaker with 7:06 left in the third period, and the Minnesota Wild defeated the Coyotes 4-3 at Xcel Energy Center. Niederreiter has five goals in five games and 11 points in 12 games, including three points. Minnesota (29-10-5) is 18-2-1 in its past 21 games and has won 10 of its past 12 at home. The Wild, who lost 4-3 to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday and blew a 3-1 lead Thursday, have lost consecutive games in regulation once this season. Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk made 20 saves. He is 15-2-0 with 36 goals allowed in his past 17 starts.

Chris Stewart gave Minnesota a 3-1 lead on a breakaway at 16:31 of the second period, but Phoenix scored twice in 30 seconds to tie the game. Jakob Chychrun made it 3-2 at 16:54, and Jamie McGinn scored at 17:24. The Coyotes are 2-12-1 in their past 15 games and 0-6-1 in the past seven road games. Louis Domingue made 21 saves. Eric Staal scored at 4:39 of the first period to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead. Staal has a Wild-leading 16 goals and 40 points; he scored 39 points in 83 games last season with the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers. Brendan Perlini scored with a wrist-shot high over Dubnyk's glove at 11:42 to make it 1-1. Niederreiter scored on the power play at 13:37 for a 2-1 lead.

* Wild forward Mikael Granlund passed the puck to Niederreiter, who redirected it toward the net for the game-winning goal.

* With Phoenix on a power play, Dubnyk stopped a slap shot by Radim Vrbata at 2:37 of the third period.

* Stewart deked Domingue before backhanding the goal, his 10th of the season.

"It was a [heck] of a pass by [Pominville] there to get me on a breakaway," Stewart said. "And that's a move I've been doing my whole life since junior, so kind of had it there."

* Jason Pominville led Stewart for his goal in the second period, one of his three assists.

"Tonight's one of those nights where things were working," Pominville said, "and felt good with the puck and you're able to make some plays, and obviously we scored on them."

"I feel like as a group our power play has been working really well. We are jumping on loose pucks and trying to shoot pucks more often. That is a key that has helped us be successful."
"It was a huge win for us. We came out hard. We knew they were going to come out hard. They are still a very good team. They are not where they want to be in the standings. We have to be way sharper than we were today. It wasn't our strongest game. We have to find a way to be better." Niederreiter said.

"If you lose one and you get right back ... I mean, I don't classify losing one as a losing streak, but you certainly like being able to bounce back every night that you lost a game. It's not going to happen all the time, but you'd certainly like to make an effort of it." Bruce Boudreau said.

Anaheim Sucks @ Wild 3-5 - Saturday, January 21, 2017

The Minnesota Wild scored three goals in a 1:59 span of the third period for a 5-3 win against the Anaheim Ducks at Xcel Energy Center. Anaheim (26-14-9) led 3-2 with 6:21 remaining. Erik Haula scored for the Wild at 13:39, followed by Ryan Suter at 14:15 and Jason Zucker at 15:38. Minnesota (30-10-5) is 19-2-1 in its past 22 games and leads the Western Conference with 65 points. The Wild are 11-2-0 in the past 13 home games and 16-5-0 here this season. This is the third time this month Minnesota has rallied from a two-goal deficit to win (San Jose 5-4; Chicago 3-2; Anaheim 5-3). Devan Dubnyk made 26 saves. He is 16-2-0 with 39 goals allowed in his past 18 starts. The Ducks have two regulation losses in their past 11 games (8-2-1); each one is to the Wild and former coach Boudreau. The other was 2-1 in Anaheim on Jan. 8. Haula gave Minnesota a 1-0 lead with a slap shot at 2:35 of the first period. Stefan Noesen tied it at 5:47, and Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler scored on a shorthanded breakaway at 13:58 for a 2-1 lead. It was Fowler's 10th goal of the season, tying his NHL high set as a 19-year-old rookie in 2010-11. Corey Perry made it 3-1 with a power-play goal at 2:23 of the second period. It was the first non-empty-net goal for Perry since Dec. 13 at the Dallas Stars. Zucker brought Minnesota within 3-2, getting a loose puck and beating defenseman Sami Vatanen to score at 5:03. It was Zucker's fourth goal in six games, and he has 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in the past 14 games. The Ducks were 8-1-1 in their prior 10 games and had a point in 13 of 14 games (9-1-4). Anaheim's John Gibson made four saves before leaving at 14:22 of the first period with an upper-body injury. Jonathan Bernier made 16 saves in relief.

* Suter was positioned on the left side for a shot off a weird angle that deflected off Bernier for the go-ahead goal.

* Gibson blocked a backhander by Zach Parise at 6:58 of the first period.

* Wild defenseman Marco Scandella hustled back at 5:58 of the first period to prevent Ducks forward Andrew Cogliano from scoring on a wide-open shot to keep the score 1-1.

* Haula scored his second goal on a deflection in the slot off Suter's shot.
* The Wild recalled forward Kurtis Gabriel from Iowa of the American Hockey League before the game. Gabriel had one five-minute fighting penalty in 4:37 of ice time. He played in place of center Tyler Graovac, who was a healthy scratch.

"That was fun. It was loud, the crowd was into it. It was a lot of fun. It was a good ending to a great day for Minnesota." Ryan Suter
"I think we just kept pulling; it's hard to say when, but we could feel it at the end of the second there that we were turning around a little bit. That's a good team over there and they played hard and we're happy the way we came back." Haula said.

"I don't know. … I think a lot of guys are confident that they can do it over and over again. Certainly we wouldn't like to do it all the time. You like to be able to think that you can do it when you have to." Bruce Boudreau said.

Nashville Predators @ Wild 4-2 - Sunday, January 22, 2017

Filip Forsberg scored twice, including the game-winning goal at 13:24 of the third period, and Nashville Predators coach Peter Laviolette got his 500th NHL career win in a 4-2 victory against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center.
Nashville (23-17-7) has won three in a row and concluded its five-game road trip 4-1-0. The Predators have won six of seven after going 2-4-2 in their previous eight games. Predators goalie Pekka Rinne made 21 saves and has won four of his past five starts, allowing eight goals. Minnesota (30-11-5) had a 2-0 lead after the first period. It was the third time on the Wild's four-game homestand they surrendered a two-goal lead. Wild goaltender Darcy Kuemper made 28 saves. Predators forward James Neal made it 2-1 at 2:25 of the second period. Forsberg tied the game at 2:28 of the third. Ryan Johansen scored an empty-net goal with 1:18 remaining. Wild forward Mikael Granlund scored at 2:18 of the first period. He has eight points (one goal, seven assists) during a career-high seven-game point streak. Jason Pominville made it 2-0 when he took a pass from Erik Haula and beat Rinne at 7:31. Pominville has six points (two goals, four assists) in his past five games. Wild captain Mikko Koivu did not play because of the flu.

* Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis passed to Forsberg, who one-timed a shot past Kuemper for the go-ahead goal.

* At 16:39 of the first period, Rinne denied Wild forward Jason Zucker of a rebound down low by getting his foot out and kept the game at 2-0.

* Ellis moved the puck up to Johansen for the empty-net goal. It was Ellis' second assist of the game. He has five points (three goals, two assists) in four games.

* Forsberg pulled the puck from between Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon's legs and backhanded into a wide-open net to make it 2-2.

* Laviolette became the 25th coach in NHL history to win 500 games. … Koivu is expected to fly with the Wild to Dallas on Monday.

"When you give yourself a two-goal lead, you can't let them hang around. You have to get that third one and put them out of the game, and we weren't able to do that." Zach Parise.

"Obviously if we want to win a championship, it's got to get better. You can't do that. You've got to be able to play with a lead. It's tough to play with a lead in this league. … You've got to go after them and try to increase the lead rather than just hold the lead."
"Look at our faceoffs; in the first two periods we were well under 50 percent. [Koivu's] our guy for faceoffs, so it hurt. It hurts the balance and everything." Bruce Boudreau said.

NHL - Wild - Round Up - January 07-12, 2017

Wild @ Los Angeles Kings 3-4 OT - Saturday, January 07, 2017
Tanner Pearson scored with 1:28 left in overtime to give the Los Angeles Kings a 4-3 win against the Minnesota Wild at Staples Center. Pearson tipped in Martinez's feed from the side boards for his 11th goal. The Kings are 8-1 in overtime this season. Minnesota tied it 3-3 with 43 seconds left in the third period on a power-play goal by Zach Parise. Mikael Granlund drew a tripping penalty on Drew Doughty with 1:17 left, and goalie Darcy Kuemper was pulled to give the Wild a two-man advantage. Mikko Koivu fed Parise from down low and he scored on his rebound. Koivu and Charlie Coyle scored for Minnesota (24-9-5), which lost for the second time in 15 games. Kuemper made 32 saves.

Carter had a goal and two assists, and Jake Muzzin and Marian Gaborik scored for Los Angeles (20-16-4). Peter Budaj made 21 saves. Koivu made it 1-0 at 3:12 of the first period when he picked up an errant pass in the neutral zone, came down to the top of the left circle and shot through Budaj's legs. Coyle made it 2-0 at 7:27 when he caught a rebound and went five-hole on Budaj.
Carter scored his Kings-leading 22nd goal at 7:39 of the second period to make it 2-1. Gaborik was credited with a goal that banked in off the face of Wild defenseman Ryan Suter to tie at 2-2 at 11:13. It was Gaborik's second goal in 18 games this season. Muzzin scored on the power play 54 seconds into the third to give the Kings a 3-2 lead.

* Martinez took a cross-ice feed from Kopitar and found Pearson waiting in front of the crease for the overtime winner.

* With an extra attacker and trailing 3-2 with 1:19 left in the third period, Wild forward Nino Niederreiter shot from the high slot. Despite heavy traffic in front, Budaj managed to save it.

* Pearson screened Kuemper, taking his eyes away from the developing play that Muzzin finished for a tiebreaking goal.

* Koivu made it look easy when he skated untouched to the circle, and his snap shot went quickly through Budaj's legs.
* The Wild clinched the best winning percentage in the Central Division through Jan. 10, which makes Boudreau a coach in the NHL All-Star Game. … Minnesota plays the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday, Boudreau's first game against his former team. … Doughty got his 251st NHL assist, surpassing Mark Hardy for second among Kings defensemen (Rob Blake has 333). … Dustin Brown played in his 922nd NHL game (all with Los Angeles), surpassing Marcel Dionne for third on the Kings list (Dave Taylor, 1,111; Luc Robitaille, 1,077).

"When they got the lead in the last five or six minutes, when it was a desperate time, we went after them again. It's not consistent and that's what we have to do." Bruce Boudreau said.
"The puck was bouncing on the wall a lot, and that's where they are probably one of the better teams around the League is on the wall. If you are not getting those pucks against these guys, it makes for a long night. After they got that first one, it felt like we had a lot of trouble getting anything clean or forechecking hard. We couldn't get much going." Zach Parise

Wild @ Anaheim Sucks 2-1 - Sunday, January 08, 2017
Devan Dubnyk made 23 saves, and defensemen Matt Dumba and Jared Spurgeon scored 1:41 apart in the second period to help the Minnesota Wild defeat the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 at Honda Center. It was Minnesota coach Bruce Boudreau's first game in Anaheim since the Ducks fired him April 29. Boudreau, who turns 62 on Monday, said he enjoyed coming back to Southern California and reconnecting with old friends. Though Boudreau said he never mentioned anything about facing his former team to the Wild, the consensus from the players was that they understood the importance of winning for their coach. The Wild (25-9-5) have won 14 of their past 16 games. They are 2-1-1 after a 12-game winning streak, the longest in their history. Ryan Kesler scored for Anaheim (21-13-8), which lost for the first time in four games. John Gibson made 34 saves. Kesler made it 1-0 at 11:44 of the first period when he scored on a rebound. It was his 16th goal of the season, fourth in four games.

Dumba scored on a 5-on-3 power play at 4:39 of the second period to tie the game 1-1, and Spurgeon put the Wild ahead 2-1 at 6:21. Nino Niederreiter appeared to score a goal at 1:26 of the third period, but video review confirmed the ruling of the four on-ice officials that Niederreiter used a distinct kicking motion to put the puck in the net. Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf missed his third straight game with a lower-body injury.

* Wild forward Jason Pominville, skating left to right above the faceoff circles, dropped the puck to Spurgeon on the move at the left point, and Spurgeon beat Gibson with a hard wrist shot through traffic from the top of the left circle.

* Cogliano shot toward an open net while falling to the ice after Chris Wagner's backhand pass from behind the net hit off Dumba's skate, but Dubnyk sprawled out to make the save at 9:48 of the second period.

* Defenseman Sami Vatanen had seven of 21 blocked shots for the Ducks.

* Dumba beat Gibson inside the left post with a one-timer from the top of the left faceoff circle off a pass from Wild forward Zach Parise.
* Minnesota is 10-5-1 when the opponent scores first. They were 5-25-6 when opponents scored first last season. … The Wild extended their road point streak to 10 games (8-0-2), the second-longest in their history. … Anaheim hasn't scored a power-play goal in five games and is 3-for-27 in the past nine games.

"I love it, When you win, it's easy to face the questions (about being back). I saw an awful lot of people that I knew and treated me really well when I was here. It was a good birthday present."
"I don't want to get fired anymore. I don't want to keep getting that experience." Boudreau said.
"He's candid and he's emotional, he's a human being, and you can tell this game meant a lot to him. It meant a lot to us as well. It was nice to get this one for him." Dubnyk said.

Montreal Canadiens @ Wild 1-7 - Thursday, January 12, 2017

The Minnesota Wild scored seven goals on Carey Price in a 7-1 win against the Montreal Canadiens at Xcel Energy Center. Price made 17 saves for Montreal (26-11-6) but allowed seven goals in a game for the fifth time, the first since March 2, 2013 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Nino Niederreiter scored twice for the Wild (26-9-5), who are 15-1-1 in their past 17 games and are 9-1-0 at home in their past 10. Tomas Plekanec ended Devan Dubnyk's shutout with nine seconds left in the third period. Dubnyk made 20 saves and is 13-1-0 with 27 goals allowed in his past 14 starts. Christian Folin scored his first goal of the season at 2:34 of the first period to make it 1-0. The Wild scored three goals in the second period, two 39 seconds apart: by Staal at 6:35 to make it 2-0, and by Jordan Schroeder, who dove to deflect a Jared Spurgeon shot at 7:14. Staal has eight points (three goals, five assists) in a four-game point streak, and 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists) in his past 14 games, including a point in 13 of those 14. Niederreiter scored the fourth goal for Minnesota at 17:58. Price started the third period after allowing four goals on 14 shots in the first two. Montreal, with Al Montoya in goal, defeated the Winnipeg Jets 7-4 on Wednesday. Jason Zucker redirected a shot by Spurgeon on the power play at 3:31 of the third period to make it 5-0. Ryan Suter scored a power-play goal at 6:06, and Niederreiter scored his second at 14:26.

* Folin calmed a bouncing puck and switched to his backhand for his third goal in 96 NHL games.

* "I don't score too often, so I try to be a little fired up," the 25-year-old said. "I remember it was like two years ago and I scored against [the Washington Capitals] back here, I was fired up too. It's fun scoring goals. You've got to get a little fired up. It's tough to score in this league."

* Dubnyk sprawled to stop Daniel Carr at 10:51 of the third period.
* Minnesota defenseman Matt Dumba picked up a loose puck and started the rush into the offensive zone to earn the second assist on Staal's goal. Dumba had three assists.
* Staal put a wrist shot past Price for his Wild-leading 14th goal of the season.

* Price allowed an NHL-career high eight goals to the Boston Bruins on Feb. 9, 2011. … Wild forward Mikko Koivu has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in his past eight games. … Zucker has nine points (four goals, five assists) in nine games.

Wild Quotes

"Everybody has nights that aren't their best, and I think as the game got going, we got going and they looked a little more tired. A goalie can only do so much. It's still a good thing to feel good about scoring on him, because it doesn't happen very often." Eric Staal said.
"Anytime there's a decimal point on the clock, it stings a little more. Obviously wins are tough to get in this League and you've got to enjoy them. Shutouts are a bonus. Not going to lose any sleep over [it] tonight. That's about as good a game as you get, I think. I was happy I was on my end. I felt like every shot we got was a scoring chance down there. Guys were more than solid for me in my end and allowed me to feel comfortable all game." Dubnyk said.

"Whatever it is [we're doing] I'd like that to continue because we're not going to score seven goals in this league every night. We have good balance where different guys are scoring all the time, which is a positive thing." Bruce Boudreau said.

NHL - Sharks - 1991-92 Season

They were lovable losers – heavy emphasis on the lovable part – the San Jose Sharks’ team that entered the NHL in 1991-92. The one calm oasis in an otherwise dysfunctional storm was a quiet and unassuming first-year NHLer named Mike Sullivan.

Sullivan had four years of college hockey and one year of minor pro under his belt when he signed with the expansion Sharks as a free agent a month before their inaugural NHL season. Now, some 25 years later, Sullivan is coaching the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup final against the Sharks, a team he helped usher into the NHL. The series opens Monday night in Pittsburgh.

San Jose eventually became a model NHL organization, but that first year, according to former Shark Perry Berezan, was a year of “absolute chaos.” Weirdly, Berezan says that now with a great deal of affection, noting how Sullivan was “stuck with a lot of Bad News Bears castaways. With all the goofballs and antics and Link Gaetz and you name it, Mike was Mr. Serious. He was Mr. Serious all the time; and I don’t think he’s changed a bit. He managed to survive – I don’t know how.”

The Sharks landed in the NHL as its 22nd franchise in 1991-92, in arguably the most convoluted transaction in league history. Half the team was stocked through a traditional expansion draft. The other half came from Minnesota, where the owner of the North Stars, George Gund, wanted to shift the money-losing franchise to San Jose. Reluctant to lose a traditional U.S. hockey market, the league granted Gund an expansion franchise in exchange for his promise to sell the North Stars to a group of NHL designated investors who promised to keep the team in the Twin Cities. Gund paid a then-record price of $50-million (U.S.) for the privilege of the San Jose start-up.

Under terms of that agreement, Minnesota got to protect 14 players and two goaltenders off its roster, so the Sharks received only the scraps from them. The expansion draft didn’t yield much more talent either.

The Sharks would go on to lose 71 games in their second year of existence, still an NHL record. It was all coach George Kingston and assistant Bob Murdoch could do to keep the players positive every day, Berezan said.

“That first year, we went to Sun Valley, Idaho, at Christmas because the Gunds owned a bunch of land there,” Berezan said. “Right after practice on an outdoor rink, when George and Bob were putting their ski boots on, here comes Link Gaetz down the hill, doing a jump and a spread-eagle – in the middle of the season, and with a San Jose cameraman at the bottom of the hill filming it all.

“When will that ever happen again? It can’t. It almost felt like it wasn’t a real season. Why would you let a team do that? Well, it was because they knew we weren’t going to win enough anyway, so why not let them have some fun? So they did. Losing sucks so badly that you better be sure you’re doing something to have some fun.”

The Sharks won the second home game they ever played, Brian Hayward picking up the victory in net, Kelly Kisio scoring the winning goal, and then promptly lost 13 in a row, finishing the season with a 17-58-5 record. Their leading scorer ended up being Pat Falloon, chosen second overall in the 1991 entry draft after Eric Lindros. San Jose received the first pick in every round of that year’s entry draft except for the first one, because the NHL didn’t want such a coveted prospect – Lindros – to fall to an expansion team.

The smell wasn’t limited to just their record, either. The Sharks played their first season in the Cow Palace and the odour of decades of rodeos and agricultural fairs permeated the building, no matter how high they cranked up the air conditioning.

The real success story occurred off the ice, where the Sharks set records for merchandise sales. The distinctive teal colour of their jerseys, plus the shark crunching the hockey stick, became hugely popular all across North America.

“I don’t know how or why it caught on, but it was phenomenal,” said Jack Ferreira, the team’s first GM, who came over from Minnesota with the Gunds. “I had friends calling me from back home, wanting stuff for their kids, guys I went to high school with. The crazy thing is it almost didn’t happen.

“That summer, I get a package in my office and it was our uniform, but the colours were wrong. They were the colours of the Seattle Seahawks – the blue and the green, not the teal we’d selected. So all of a sudden, a bell goes off. I think someone’s trying to change the colours. But luckily, it never happened – because they had all these reveal-your-teal nights. It was a popular colour and real unique. I don’t think anyone else had it at the time.”

The team ran all sorts of promotions to generate fan interest that year, including one that occurred in the first intermission of a game against Montreal, in which 20 couples were married on the ice between periods.

“I ran into Pat Burns in the corridor,” Ferreira remembered. “They’re out there performing these marriage ceremonies and we’re just shaking our heads.”

For Ferreira, San Jose’s presence in the final is bittersweet, given that they eliminated the Los Angeles Kings, his current team, in the opening round.

But he is rooting for Sullivan and recalled how in that first year in San Jose, the NHL players association staged a 10-day player strike near the end of the season. Just before that occurred, teams were instructed to send to the minors as many players as were eligible in case the strike dragged on. Ferreira, knowing Sullivan’s wife was pregnant and about to give birth, refused to do so and kept him on the NHL roster instead.

“I did not send him down because that would have changed his insurance status – and if there were any complications, I didn’t want to risk that,” Ferreira said. “But I took some grief from some of the old-timers when I didn’t send Mike down.

“Years later, I was in Phoenix and they announced on the scoreboard that Mike Sullivan was playing his 700th NHL game that night. So after the game was over, I went down to ice level to congratulate Mike and he sees me and comes walking over and we talked about that story and how that all unfolded. And he said, ‘Here, I want you to meet someone.’ It was his daughter, the little girl that was born that year.”

California Golden Seals

The 1970’s were a very strange, flamboyant and colourful decade.  Technology was changing fast: telephones went from rotary dial to touch button dial, the Americans were landing men on the moon, cars needed catalytic converters to stop pollution, the first 747 jumbo jets started roaring through the skies, the first personal computers were appearing, remote controls for TV’s were available, the list is vast. Hard rock music came into its own, movies had better colour and sound, the 8 track tapes were replaced by cassettes, the Walkman pocket music device became popular, not to mention disco and punk rock blasted onto the scene. In fashion and clothing, basically anything went.  Bizarre colours, polyester suits, hot pants, bandanas, guys wearing orange dress shirts with purple ties.  Mens white belts and white shoes.  Many boys and men had hair halfway down their backs. In sports the white cleats became the norm in football, basketball and baseball. People would try anything.  During the 70’s there was an NHL hockey team based in the San Francisco Bay Area, before the Sharks, named the California Golden Seals.  The owner was an eccentric millionaire by the name of Charlie O. Finley. Charlie decided that his hockey team should be a little different from the rest of the teams.  Charlie introduced white skates for his players to zoom up and down the ice on. Prior to the 1970-71 season, Charlie O. Finley, the flamboyant owner of baseball’s Oakland Athletics, purchased the Seals. Finley and Roller Derby boss Jerry Seltzer had both put in a bid on the team. Although Seltzer’s offer was slightly better and included a more detailed plan for revival, a majority of NHL owners from the “old establishment” voted in favor of Finley. General manager Bill Torrey left by mid-season due to clashes with Finley. On October 15, 1970, with the new season already two games old, Finley announced that the team’s name was being changed to California Golden Seals (“Bay Area Seals” had been reported the previous week, and appears on some of that year’s promotional material), following a number of other marketing gimmicks intended to sell the team to the fans, among them changing the Seals’ colors to green and gold to match those of the popular A’s.  The Seals are remembered for wearing white skates, but initially Torrey convinced Finley to use green and gold painted skates instead, as team colored skates were a trend of the period. However, this was all for naught, as the Seals finished with the worst record in the NHL that year.

NHL - Hawks - Round Up - January 20-24, 2017

Hawks @ Boston Bruins 1-0 - Friday, January 20, 2017
The Chicago Blackhawks gave backup goaltender Scott Darling a rare start because they were playing the second game of their father-son trip. Darling rewarded the Blackhawks and the fathers with 30 saves, and Marian Hossa scored with 1:26 left in the third period for a 1-0 win against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. The 28-year-old goalie got his second shutout of the season in his first start since Jan. 6. It was Darling's fourth shutout for the Blackhawks (29-14-5), who are 6-2-0 in their past eight games. Darling makes his offseason home in nearby Essex, Massachusetts, making the game more important. Hossa hadn't scored in 10 games, seven since returning from a five-game absence because of an upper-body injury. He last scored in a 5-4 win at the New York Islanders on Dec. 15. Hossa, Vinnie Hinostroza and Tanner Kero combined for eight points (four goals, four assists) in a 6-4 win at the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday. The line got the winning goal Friday after a slow start. Tuukka Rask made 21 saves for the Bruins (23-20-6), who are 0-2-1 in their past three and 10-12-0 at home. The Bruins outshot the Blackhawks 25-14 in the first two periods and 30-22 for the game.

* Hinostroza gained the offensive zone and passed to Kero, who sent the puck across the slot and through defenseman Adam McQuaid's legs to Hossa for a one-timer from the left side.

"I tried to go to the net and the puck hit me right on the stick. I tried to shoot it as fast as possible and overall it was a nice goal," Hossa said.

* Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane deked his way past Riley Nash out high and then shot from the left dot, but Rask knocked away the puck at 7:31 of the second period.

* Off a center-ice faceoff, Bruins forward David Pastrnak skated around defenseman Duncan Keith and tested Darling from the right dot. The Chicago goaltender stopped Pastrnak's shot and then fell to the ice to deny Tim Schaller on the rebound before the Bruins went on a power play at 4:45 of the second period.

* Blackhawks defenseman Michal Kempny poke-checked the puck from Bruins forward Frank Vatrano at the Chicago blue line to get possession before Hossa's goal.

* Darling is the first Blackhawks goalie to shut out the Bruins in Boston since Tony Esposito on Jan. 17, 1970 (1-0), according to the Elias Sports Bureau. ... Hossa has 17 goals this season, 10 in the third period or overtime. ... Bruins forward Matt Beleskey returned from a 23-game absence because of a knee injury. He had three hits in 11:06 of ice time. ... The Bruins, who lost 4-0 to the Islanders at TD Garden on Monday, were last shut out in consecutive home games Oct. 23 and 30, 2003.

"I don't know if you guys know who my goalie partner is but [Corey Crawford's] one of the best goalies in the world, hands down, no arguments. So I'm just pretty happy to get any games I can."
"I have a lot of friends and family that were here tonight. Obviously my dad, all the dads were there, so it was special for me. I'm still excited for every chance I get to play, but it's fun to play against some of these guys." Darling said.

"Well it definitely feels great, especially with our dads here. I had a great time. We obviously came here to play the game and we got four points out of two games, which is beautiful and successful." Hossa said.
"Yeah it wasn't our best start there. I think we got caught in our end a little bit, especially early on. So we just tried to stick with it, not get too frustrated and just kind of chip away." Kero said.

Vancouver Canucks @ Hawks 2-4 - Sunday, January 22, 2017
Jonathan Toews hasn't played like himself much this season, but the Chicago Blackhawks captain came through in the clutch at United Center. Led by Toews' season-high four points, which included a goal with 1:18 left to break a tie, the Blackhawks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 for their third straight win.
Toews had three assists and right wing Richard Panik had a goal and assist to lead Chicago (30-14-5). Panik's shot late in the third period sailed wide of the net and led to Toews' game-winning goal at 18:42. The puck caromed off the end boards to Toews, who scored his first goal since Jan. 6 against the Carolina Hurricanes. Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa also scored, and Corey Crawford made 26 saves to become the fourth goalie in Blackhawks history to win 200 NHL career games. Ryan Miller made 31 saves for the Canucks (22-20-6), who tied it 2-2 on goals 46 seconds apart in the third by Troy Stecher and Bo Horvat. Stecher capped a power play with a long shot through traffic at 5:03 and Horvat scored at 5:49 off his own rebound. Vancouver fell to 5-14-3 on the road. The Blackhawks outshot the Canucks 18-9 in the first period and took a 2-0 lead on goals by Panik and Kane, who scored 3:03 apart. Panik scored his 11^th goal with a one-timer from the high slot to make it 1-0 at 14:27. Kane made it 2-0 at 17:30 by scoring his 15^th goal with a quick wrist shot from the right faceoff circle. The back-to-back goals by Stecher and Horvat tied it early in the third, when the Canucks outshot the Blackhawks 7-2 through the first 6:25 of the period.

* Toews cruised up the left wing on a rush late in the third period and found himself in the right place at the right time to score the game-winner.

* The Canucks pressed for a go-ahead goal late in the third period and nearly got it with 6:12 left. But Crawford prevented it by stopping a quick shot from the slot by Michael Chaput, just getting his left pad out in time.

* Blackhawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson blocked three shots, had a plus-2 rating and assisted on Toews' goal by giving the puck to Panik for a rush up the right wing.
* Horvat's goal in the third was the result of his own second effort. He charged to the net for the initial attempt and was stopped by Crawford's sprawling save. Horvat stayed after it and tied it 2-2 on the rebound for his 14^th goal.
"We battled back hard and we did everything we could," said Sven Baertschi, who brought the puck into the Blackhawks zone. "Bo tied it there with a great goal for us. It gave us some energy."
* Marcus Kruger (hand) missed his 10^th straight game. He participated in the Blackhawks' morning skate and could return this week. … Chicago defenseman Brian Campbell's assist on Panik's goal was his 500^th NHL point. … Including Stanley Cup Playoff games, the Blackhawks had their 400^th consecutive sellout at United Center. … Former Blackhawks forward Jeremy Roenick took the ice in uniform for the national anthems as part of Chicago's "One Last Shift" commemoration series.

"I guess it's easy to start second-guessing everything when you're not scoring. Even a game like tonight where I don't even feel like I played that great and [I'm] on the ice for a handful of goals. It doesn't really matter. It just gives you a good feeling and it's easy to come to the rink and just kind of build off that." said Toews, who now has eight goals and 26 points in 40 games.
"I felt pretty good tonight, but there's still some work to do. I don't think I'm at the level I was at before that surgery, but I'm working hard to get there." Corey Crawford on his play following an appendectomy Dec. 3

Tampa Bay Lightning @ Hawks 5-2 - Tuesday, January 24, 2017

The Tampa Bay Lightning scored four goals in the third period, two by Tyler Johnson in 30 seconds, to defeat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 at United Center.
Tampa Bay (22-22-5) tied it 2-2 at 2:47 of the third on a goal by defenseman Nikita Nesterov. Johnson scored at 6:14 and 6:44 for a 4-2 lead. Nikita Kucherov scored into an empty net with 2:05 left. Tampa Bay had lost its past three games (0-2-1), but improved to 2-2-1 on a six-game road trip and 8-0-2 in its past 10 regular-season games against the Blackhawks (30-15-5).

The Lightning had a goal and assist from Brian Boyle, and two assists each from Valtteri Filppula and Alex Killorn. Andrei Vasilevskiy had 34 saves. Jonathan Toews had a goal and assist, Duncan Keith had a goal and Corey Crawford made 31 saves for Chicago. The loss ended a three-game winning streak for the Blackhawks, who lost in regulation for the first time when leading after two periods (16-1-1). Chicago was 78-0-5 since 2013-14 when leading in the regular season after two periods. Chicago took a 1-0 lead at 10:23 on Toews' goal following a give-and-go with Richard Panik. The Lightning tied it 1-1 at 18:35 when Boyle scored on a breakaway, which Filppula created with a nice play in the defensive zone followed by a pass in the neutral zone. Keith scored at 1:26 of the second period off a slap shot to make it 2-1, but Chicago couldn't beat Vasilevskiy on 14 shots in the third.


* Johnson's first goal put the Lightning up 3-2 and rewarded Killorn for a nice drop pass in the offensive zone. Johnson shot past Crawford to the far side from the right faceoff dot.

* Boyle nearly scored a second goal with 2:21 left in the second period, but Crawford made a great skate save to deny his hard one-timer and preserve Chicago's 2-1 lead.

* Ryan Hartman used a spin move to keep a loose puck in the Tampa Bay zone prior to Toews' goal. He kept the puck away from Nesterov and sent a pass to Toews in the slot to set up the give-and-go play with Panik.

* Filppula knocked down Keith's chip into the Lightning zone, then sent a pass to Boyle. Boyle split Keith and Niklas Hjalmarsson in the Chicago zone and beat Crawford with a backhand-forehand move.

* Marcus Kruger (hand) was activated off injured reserve but missed his 11th straight game. … Dennis Rasmussen missed Chicago's morning skate with an illness, but played 11:03. … Lightning defenseman Jason Garrison skated in warmups but sat out his second game with an illness. … Tampa Bay forward J.T. Brown returned after missing seven games with an upper-body injury.

"It hasn't happened a whole lot. Even if we give up that lead we're finding ways to win those games. But tonight it was 2-1 and you're in a good spot, and even 2-2 you're in a good spot … then you give up two quick ones and all of a sudden you're chasing the game." Patrick Kane said.
"We can't be letting games like that slip away. I think the talk for a long time has been starting games a little bit better. I think we've been seeing that. Obviously, if we're in the right spot, we're in the driver's seat going into the third periods with a lead, whether it's one goal or more than that. We've got to find ways to play better." Jonathan Toews