| 1. aliciahuang - 17 ßíâàðÿ, 2018 - 05:45:14 |
Jonathan Bernier was the first goalie selected in the 2006 NHL draft, at No. 23 by the Washington Capitals. More than a decade ago,adidas Jake Guentzel jersey, Bernier was considered the better prospect, going 11th overall to the Los Angeles Kings. Semyon Varlamov was the third goalie to have his name called that year, but not by much.
Today,Authentic Matt Murray jersey, and if the oft-injured Varlamov doesn’t play another game this season, the two Avalanche goalies are both capable of being the No. 1 guy,Authentic Joe Pavelski jersey, Bernier seems more than capable of leading Colorado to the playoffs.
Bernier made his fourth consecutive start Monday — each since Varlamov went down with another groin-area injury Jan. 2 — and improved to 4-0 in that stretch. He’s played in Colorado’s last six games (five starts), 3-1, and is a big reason why the Avs won their seventh-straight game in a MLK Day matinee at the Pepsi Center, over the Anaheim Ducks.
Bernier,adidas Patrick Marleau jersey, made the play of the game — a diving stick save on Anaheim center Ryan Kesler midway through the second period that led to the game-winning goal. The Avs gained possession after the save and scored on the counter-attack, who played for the Ducks last season, with Nathan MacKinnon scoring his 20th of the season for a 2-1 lead.
“He looked at me after the goal and kind of laughed,adidas Joe Thornton jersey, the game could have been a lot different, because he knew if I don’t make that save,” Bernier said of Kesler. “It’s nice to get rewarded — you make a good save and then you go on the other side and score.”
Bernier finished with 33 saves and was similarly as sharp as he was Saturday in a 4-1 win at Dallas. He has only allowed seven goals in the Avs’ last six games, and has lowered his goals-against average to 2.15.
Colorado signed Bernier to a one-year, $2.75 million contract last summer after losing Calvin Pickard in the expansion draft to the Vegas Golden Knights. Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic chose to protect Varlamov over Pickard, even though Varlamov was coming off hip surgeries last winter and hasn’t consistently played his best since 2013-14.
Perhaps a blessing in disguise, losing Pickard forced the Avs to sign a proven No. 1 as Varlamov’s backup.
“That’s why Joe and his team identified him and why they went after him (last) summer,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said of Bernier, like Varlamov, is 29. “He’s been a No. 1 in the past, who, he’s also been a backup — he understands. He’s has some experience and he’s eager to prove himself (here). I don’t know what to say about him besides he was excellent again tonight. He’s stringing games together.”
Bednar dubbed Bernier’s save on Kesler the turning point of the game.
“Pretty even-played game to that point,” Bednar said. “He makes that save and we go down to the other end and take a 2-0 lead. Big turning point of the game.”
Without Varlamov, the Avalanche has Bernier and fellow veteran backup Andrew Hammond, as options at goalie. Hammond, also 29, who was acquired from Ottawa on Nov. 5 in the Matt Duchene trade, has proven himself in the league and is another reason the Avs likely won’t be looking for a goalie on the trade market if Varlamov’s groin issues continue.
Here are five takeaways from the Carolina Hurricanes’ 4-3 loss Friday to the Washington Capitals.
Canes coach Bill Peters said all regulation losses feel the same — “No points,” he said — but this one was a gut punch for the Canes.
On a day when there was much for the franchise to celebrate, with new owner Tom Dundon being formally introduced at a press conference, pure and simple. Leading the Washington Capitals 3-2 with a little more than three minutes to play in regulation, adidas Joe Pavelski jersey,the Canes allowed two goals, the loss was a downer, lost 4-3 and walked away from the game with nothing.
“It’s not a good feeling when you lose and probably a little bit worse feeling when you lose like that,adidas Kris Letang jersey,” forward Jeff Skinner said.
With 10 seconds left in regulation and the score tied 3-3, Caps defenseman John Carlson had the puck behind the Washington net with Canes forward Justin Williams in pursuit. Overtime appeared likely.
But Carlson got the puck up the left wing to Alex Ovechkin, who carried it into the Carolina zone before losing control. Canes forward Brock McGinn had a play on the puck,Authentic Jake Guentzel jersey, but Caps center Nicklas Backstrom took it away and passed to Jay Beagle for the winning goal with 1.3 seconds remaining in regulation.
“It’s a mental thing, we need to be smarter,” Williams said. “It’s situational responsibility and play that we have to do better. Situationally,adidas Matt Murray jersey, and certainly my play there at the end is one of those reasons. A play in the first period might not be a play you make in the third period. That’s what we’ve got to learn from.”
There are no-calls in the course of every game, plays where the referees are out of position or don’t see a quick stick strike a player.
It was hard to miss Jordan Staal getting high-sticked by the Caps’ Evgeny Kuznetsov late in regulation. Kuznetsov caught Staal in the mouth,Authentic Patrick Marleau jersey, leaving the center’s lips bloodied.
“Yep, it was a stick in the face in front of (the ref) and he chose not to call it,” Staal said.
The Canes had twice scored on power plays in the game. Had the double-minor been called and the power play extended to overtime it would have been a four-on-three advantage for Carolina.
Staal’s shorthanded goal helped the Canes beat the Caps on Thursday and his power-play goal Friday gave the Canes a 1-0 lead.
The Canes scored again on the power play,Authentic Joe Thornton jersey, Sebastian Aho ripping a shot in the second period, and Jeff Skinner’s third-period score gave the Canes a 3-2 lead.
Since that 5-3 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals, the Bruins have been on an absolute tear, posting a 9-0-4 record over their next 13 games.
Boston was able to extend its point streak Monday afternoon against the Dallas Stars. Though the B’s weren’t able to earn the win, thanks in large part to old friend Tyler Seguin’s overtime winner, they still managed to scrap out a point against a tough Western Conference opponent.
While the Bruins’ current point streak certainly is impressive, Monday’s outcome against the Stars makes it difficult to ignore the “what if” in terms of Boston’s overtime success (or lack thereof) this season. Out of the 11 contests the B’s have taken to overtime or a shootout, they’ve only managed to pick up two points in three of them.
Now, and their play of late suggests they’re capable of a deep postseason run. But if Boston came out on top in the eight overtime/shootout games it dropped, it would be just one point behind the Atlantic Division-leading Tampa Bay Lightning. Additionally, this could just be nit-picking. The Bruins remain one of the hottest teams in the NHL, the B’s would own the second-highest point total in the entire league.
However, of course, are a total crap shoot. But with that said, it’s obviously impossible to expect Boston to always come out on top in sudden death. The new three-on-three format turns overtime into pure chaos and shootouts, the Bruins can do their part to try to eliminate free hockey after 60 minutes of regulation.
One of the unfortunate trends plaguing Boston thus far in the season is slow starts. While the issue has been subdued during the team’s recent point streak, it’s prominence early in the season led one to believe that the playoffs would be a pipe dream for the Bruins. The B’s have proved they can fight back, but they’d be the first to tell you that playing from behind is no easy task.
If Boston can consistently perform in the first period the way its been performing in the third this season, the Black and Gold can become a major threat in the Eastern Conference and in the NHL, in general.
The bye week does not just mean no games, the day before they return to action, on the road. When it comes to the finely tuned machine of a professional hockey team, it means no practices too. The team is not allowed to practice until Wednesday afternoon, it doesn't take long for rust to set in.
Last year, given how the Metropolitan has looked,Authentic Kris Letang jersey, the Capitals entered the bye week on a six-game winning streak. They returned with back-to-back games on the road and lost both. They would go on to lose eight of 14 before they finally pulled together. This year, a stretch like that could end up costing them the division.
The team also needs to be especially cognizant of injuries. Washington comes back from the bye week with three games in four days. To go from no practice or games to three games in four days seems like a dangerous proposition for the players. |
|