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With Rubeo in Spain for a couple weeks, Kittelberger, Kustron and Schwartz hold down the fort.
ICYMI:
Ted Lindsay Award Finalists:
- Nikita Kucherov – Led the NHL in scoring with 128 points (41 goals, 87 assists) to win the Art Ross Trophy.
- Patrick Kane – Third in the NHL with 44 goals, 66 assists and 110 points. The first United States-born player to win the award in 2016.
- Connor McDavid – Second in the NHL in scoring. NHL career-high 116 points (41 goals, 75 assists). Won the award in each of the past two seasons.
Jack Adams Award Finalists:
- Craig Berube – Blues were last in the NHL on Jan 2, went 38-19-6 under Berube and made the playoffs.
- Jon Cooper – Lightning 62-16-4, 128 points. 62 wins tied the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings for the NHL single-season record, and Tampa Bay finished 21 points ahead of the 2nd place Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins (107 points each). Best PP and PK in the NHL.
- Barry Trotz – Islanders (48-27-7) finished fifth in the League with 103 points, a 23-point increase from 2017-18. Gave up an NHL-low 191 goals after allowing a League-high 293 in 2017-18. Lost Tavares in free agency and expected to miss the playoffs.
Calder Trophy Finalists:
- Jordan Binnington – Made his first NHL start Jan. 7 and went 24-5-1 with a 1.89 GAA, a .927 SV% and five SOs in 32 games. Led the NHL in GAA and was fourth in SV%.
- Elias Pettersson – Canucks rookie-record 66 points (28 goals, 38 assists) in 71 games. Led rookies in goals, assists, and points.
- Rasmus Dahlin – Led rookie defensemen in points (44), assists (35) and PP points (20), and finished second in goals (nine) and average ice time (21:09) behind Miro Heiskanen.
Hart Trophy Finalists:
- Nikita Kucherov
- Connor McDavid
- Sidney Crosby
Wrap-Up the First Round
- 1st time in NHL history (and in any of the 4 major sports leagues) all division winners were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs. All 4 wild card teams still alive.
- Only 6 of the top 25 scorers from the regular season are still alive in the playoffs.
- John Klingberg scored series clinching goal in OT and Dallas knocked out Nashville with a 2-1 victory in game 6 at home.
- Carolina won game 6 at home 5-2 and then won game 7 in Washington 4-3 in 2OT. Brock McGinn with series clinching goal, assisted by “Mr. Game 7”.
- Boston dominated and won game 7 at home 5-1 over Toronto.
- San Jose with a crazy game 7 comeback win. Down 3-0 with under 11 minutes left in the 3rd. 5-minute major to Eakin for cross-checking Pavelski. Sharks score 4 goals on the PP to take 4-3 lead. Marchessault scores with 47 seconds left to send game to OT. Barclay Goodrow (played only 7:26) scores at 18:19 of OT to eliminate Vegas.
- Should NHL have replay review for penalties? Only major penalties? Should everything be reviewable?
Round 2
EAST
BOS v. CBJ: 2-1 CBJ
Coyle scores GTG and then GWG in OT in game 1.
Duchene with GWG on PP in 2OT in game 2.
Bobrovsky stops 36/37 in 2-1 game 3 win. Marchand’s punch to Harrington: worth a suspension?
-Wayne Gretzky weighs in on Brad Marchand’s Game 3 punchhttps://www.nbcsports.com/boston/bruins/wayne-gretzky-weighs-brad-marchands-game-3-punch
NYI v. CAR: 3-0 CAR
Jordan Staal with GWG in OT in game 1.
Carolina loses 3 more players to injury in game 2, including Mrazek, but McElhinney doesn’t allow a goal in relief and Canes win 2-1.
5-2 CAR win in game 3. Williams with GWG in 3rd.
-Carolina Hurricanes Twitter account murders the New York Islanders .://www.golfdigest.com/story/carolina-hurricanes-twitter-account-murders-the-new-york-islanders-this-series-is-all-but-over
WEST
STL v. DAL: 2-2
2 goals from Tarasenko lead Blues to 3-2 win in game 1.
Bishop (32 saves) and Roope Hintz (2G,1A) lead Stars to 4-2 win in game 2.
Teams exchange 4 goals in 5 minutes late in the 3rd but Maroon’s goal with 1:38 left gives Blues the 4-3 win in game 3.
4-2 Stars win in game 4.
SJ v. COL: 2-1 SJ
Burns with 1G,3A in 5-2 game 1 win.
Burns (2G,1A) and Barrie (1G,2A) both with 3 points as Avs win 4-3 in game 2.
Couture hat trick in 4-3 win in game 3.
SOCIAL DISCUSSION
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (@hockeyplayersclub) and Facebook (/hockeyplayersclub) for great hockey content!
Brad Marchand is still doing Brad Marchand things…
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw5xV6gFK8K/
How about this goalie getting trucked? The players on the other team respond accordingly.
Jack Hughes tied Ovie’s U18 all-time World Junior point record (31) on a beauty goal. Hughes will play for the US at the World Championships.
Weekly Picks:
Patrick Raymer out of Stouffville, Ontario scored 19 points in last week’s Weekly Picks, earning himself a free $20 HPC gift card. Congrats, Patrick! But get yourself a profile pic, would ya?!
A new slew of 9 questions were posted this week for an opportunity to earn points towards a free gift card and the playoff prize pack: an HPC XV3 hockey stick, Power Play hat, vintage tee, and accessory bag.
Top Shelf Trivia:
Kus brought this week’s Top Shelf Trivia with the career playoff marks in mind.
Please follow and reach out to the Hockey Players Club via Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter to submit your questions and comments to the HPC podcast crew.
Ever wonder, why are hockey sticks so expensive?! Check out our full explanation here.
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Need help buying the right hockey stick for you? Check out The Ultimate Hockey Stick Buying Guide.
Want a light, top-of-the-line hockey stick without spending an arm and a leg?! Check out our XV3 hockey sticks.
Looking to improve your game and score more goals? Check out the video Schwartz and Rubeo made about improving your catch-and-release shooting:
And don’t forget to check out our:
Shooting in Your Stride To Score More Goals Like Phil Kessel [VIDEO]
VIDEO: 5 Drills to Improve Your Snapshot
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