Author: Dose

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Top-5: A disgusting gesture by Mark Stone towards Miro Heiskanen

The Canadiens not only lost their game against the Jets: they also saw Kaiden Guhle get injured during the match.

And it doesn’t look good for the defenseman…

That said, there were also seven other games played in the NHL last night. Here’s a summary of what happened:

1 : An unsightly act by Mark Stone

Mark Stone is a good hockey player… But he is also capable of being a jerk on the ice.

Miro Heiskanen learned this the hard way last night: Stone hit him sneakily and it was the defenseman’s knee that took the hit.

Like Guhle, we can fear the worst for Heiskanen:

Ouch…

I hope the NHL will penalize Mark Stone for his actions!

The Stars players took care of avenging their teammate’s injury in the game.

In fact, it was Wyatt Johnston who stole the show by scoring a hat trick.

The Stars won 4-3 in overtime:

2 : Connor Bedard scores one of the goals of the year

We know that Connor Bedard has a great shot.

He terrorized goalies in the WHL when he was playing junior and is on his way to doing the same in the NHL.

When you see a shot like that, you realize how much talent he has:

Wow!

The Blackhawks had a big game in Tampa Bay. They managed to beat the Lightning 4-1 with key players contributing to the team’s victory.

Seth Jones notably registered two assists in the game.

For the Lightning, this marks their fourth loss in five games. Things are not going well in Tampa Bay lately…

3 : Thompson and Peterka too strong for the Bruins

Seeing a hat trick in an NHL game happens quite frequently.

But last night in Buffalo, we saw two in the same game!

JJ Peterka and Tage Thompson took care of the Bruins by scoring three goals each:

No need to tell you that the six goals scored by Peterka and Thompson were enough for the Sabres to win the game.

The Buffalo team won the game 7-2: the fans of the team were able to celebrate the victory… But many of them went home without their hats, hehe.

Note that Brad Marchand scored his 18th goal of the season in his team’s loss.

4 : First point for Rantanen with the Hurricanes

Everything worked for the Hurricanes last night at Madison Square Garden.

The big guns from Carolina had fun: Andrei Svechnikov (twice), Sebastian Aho, and Seth Jarvis scored to lead the Hurricanes to defeat the Rangers.

The game ended with a score of 4-0… And Mikko Rantanen scored his first point in Carolina’s uniform:

Svechnikov, Aho, and Jarvis scoring…

Rantanen contributing to the victory…

But in all this, one must not forget Frederik Andersen’s performance.

After all, the goalie was perfect in front of his net, stopping all 22 shots directed at him!

This is his first shutout of the season:

5 : Martin Necas continues to have fun with his new team

Martin Necas recorded two assists in his second game with the Avalanche.

He was shut out in his first game with the Colorado team.

Yesterday, he again contributed to the scoring with two assists against the Islanders.

Necas assisted on a somewhat strange goal by Artturi Lehkonen and he was involved in the goal by his former teammate in Carolina, Jack Drury:

Despite Necas’s brilliance, the Avalanche was never in the game against Patrick Roy’s team.

The Islanders won 5-2, and Alexander Romanov scored his second goal of the season in his team’s victory.

Also note that Tony DeAngelo registered his first point with the Islanders.

The Islanders had a big test, but they managed to secure their fifth consecutive victory!

Overtime

– A goal for Shane Wright.

– Sick.

– It was enough for the Ducks to win (6-4) against the Kraken.

– He’s doing well lately:

– Wow!

– Flames fans gave him a warm welcome.

– The top scorers of the night:

(Credit: NHL.com)

– Five games in the NHL tonight:

(Credit: Google)
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The CH loses the match and the services of Kaiden Guhle

The Montreal Canadiens had quite a challenge on Tuesday night: the Winnipeg Jets.

Before tonight’s games, the Jets were tied for first place in the NHL with the Washington Capitals.

The Canadiens were trying to find their way back to victory, having lost their last two games.

It should be noted that Patrik Laine was facing his former team.

Here’s the lineup that Martin St-Louis presented for this match:

What stood out the most in the lineup were the changes made to the first two defensive pairings.

It was Alexandre Carrier who found himself to the right of Mike Matheson, while Lane Hutson played to the right of Kaiden Guhle.

Having more defensive stability with Carrier alongside Matheson could help him bounce back, as he has been struggling lately.

The Canadiens didn’t intend to take it easy at the start of the game.

Martin St-Louis’ team bombarded Connor Hellebuyck with 15 shots, and it paid off as Juraj Slafkovsky opened the scoring in this duel.

An eighth goal for the Slovak, while Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield picked up assists.

Slafkovsky unleashed a powerful one-timer, and Hellebuyck had no chance.

Interestingly, Slaf has scored his 4th goal in his last seven games, having only four after 40 games.

We’re starting to see the Slaf from the second half of the season.

A few minutes later, Kyle Connor brought everyone back to square one with his 28th of the season.

Connor is always dangerous.

After 20 minutes of play, it was 1-1, and the Canadiens led 15-7 in shots.

The second period was nothing like the first.

First, we had to wait over 12 minutes to see the Canadiens’ first shot on goal.

Just before that first shot, Mark Scheifele put his team ahead, and Gabe Vilardi collected his second assist of the game.

Michael Pezzetta had the best chance of his season to score, but he fanned on an open net after a beautiful pass from Brendan Gallagher.

And finally, Kyle Connor decided to double the Jets’ lead with his 29th goal just before the end of the period.

This time, the Jets were far superior to the Canadiens in this period, with 13 shots compared to only three.

The third period was tighter between the two teams than the first two.

However, Kaiden Guhle fell against the boards, and his right knee was affected.

The young defenseman quickly returned to the locker room and unfortunately did not return to the game.

There was even a moment when we saw Martin St-Louis receive an update on Guhle and his reaction said it all…

The Canadiens had several golden opportunities to close the gap in the third period, but to no avail.

In addition to losing Kaiden Guhle’s services, Montreal also lost the game, marking a third consecutive defeat.

The Canadiens’ next game will take place on Thursday night, as the Minnesota Wild will be visiting the Bell Centre. Marc-André Fleury is expected to face the Montreal club.

Overtime

Arber Xhekaj had a good game, but he especially stood out by delivering many checks. In the game, he recorded no less than eight, and that’s exactly what we want to see from the hulking defenseman.

He’s primarily there to stir the pot by delivering several hits and dropping the gloves when it’s time. He doesn’t drop the gloves as much as he did at the start, but that’s not a bad thing, as he visits the penalty box much less often. We know he can also help the Canadiens on the ice by supporting the offense from time to time.

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Requalification: Two Quebecers in the top 13 of Corey Pronman’s ranking

Corey Pronman knows how to get people talking, especially when it comes to ranking the prospects of the Tricolore…

However, he surprised quite a few by revealing his mid-season list for the upcoming amateur draft.

We know that Caleb Desnoyers will be chosen quite high in the rankings, but there is also another Quebec player who is increasingly making a name for himself.

Justin Carbonneau is gaining more points with an impressive season totaling 59 points, including 31 goals, in 43 games.

His physical play also gives him strong arguments for being drafted in the top 20.

Pronman has high hopes for both Quebec players.

First, he places Desnoyers at 4th, while Carbonneau is ranked 13th on his list.

I didn’t think Carbonneau could make it into the top-15, but more and more experts are ranking him very well, including Craig Button who places him at 14th.

What’s even more impressive about Pronman’s rankings is seeing two Quebec players ranked so high.

In fact, this would be the first time since 2013 that two players from here are chosen in the top-15.

In 2013, there was Jonathan Drouin (3rd) and Samuel Morin (11th).

If we look at the 2020 draft, there was obviously Alexis Lafrenière, who was selected first overall, but we had to wait until the 22nd pick to see another Quebec player chosen, which was Hendrix Lapierre at that spot.

Quebec players are not as dominant as they were a few decades ago. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any left…

Can’t wait to see what this draft will bring, and especially, who the Habs will select first.

In a Nutshell

– What a save by Frederik Andersen!

– Tage Thompson is very solid. It looked way too easy.

– Cale Makar ran into a wall named Alexander Romanov.

– Now that’s surgical precision.

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After 48 matches, Ivan Demidov is just one point away from Matvei Michkov’s record at the same age

We are starting to realize it more and more, but Ivan Demidov is not just a promising talent.

Many are starting to believe that he will be a superstar, even a generational player.

It’s been a long time coming in Montreal.

In short, even today, Demidov made headlines again with another beautiful performance: nothing less than a hat trick.

He is starting to get more and more playing time per game, and the results are following.

It was about time that Roman Rotenberg trusted him.

With his three-goal haul, he is dangerously close to the record for the most points in a season for a player under 20. Kirill Kaprizov holds this mark with 42 points (20 goals and 22 assists) in 49 games.

Matvei Michkov is just behind the Wild star with a tally of 41 points in 47 games.

Demidov has played 48 games so far and could join – or even surpass – the two Russians in his next match.

However, it should be noted that the average ice time of Demigod (12:44) is significantly lower than that of Michkov (16:58) and that of Kaprizov (15:30). This makes his season even more impressive.

Not to mention that he is starting to see playing time on the power play.

If we put everything over 60 minutes, we can see how dominant Demidov is. My colleague Raphael Simard recently talked about it.

We can never talk about this enough, but imagine if Rotenberg had trusted him from the start, or at least earlier.

We can only dream about what he could have accomplished with 16-17 minutes of ice time per game.

Let’s focus on what he will do in the 19 remaining games on the schedule for SKA Saint Petersburg.

He will have played more games than Kaprizov and Michkov, but the Wild player’s record won’t hold for long if he keeps up this pace.

’En

– A first point collected by Taylor in his new colors.

– That was quick.

– It’s shaking in Tampa Bay.

– A must-read.

– Good news.

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Patrik Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers had dinner together last night

This evening, the Canadiens will try to secure a big victory.

The task does not seem easy since the Winnipeg Jets are in town.

We’re talking about the second-ranked team in the NHL standings!

Patrik Laine will have the chance to reconnect with his former team and former teammates.

I predict a great game from #92…

Let’s also note that Laine will have the opportunity to play against one of his best friends, Nikolaj Ehlers.

The two guys even went out for dinner together last night:

Did Laine try to convince Ehlers to sign in Montreal next summer? I’m sure the two friends talked about it last night.

Ehlers, who will celebrate his 29th birthday in February, will be free as a bird starting July 1…

And for what it’s worth, Éric Bélanger would like to see the Canadiens interested in his services if Ehlers decides to test the free agent market:

In December, while Ehlers was sidelined due to an injury, Laine brought him a signed Montreal Canadiens jersey.

It was Ehlers who asked for it:

Of course, seeing Patrik Laine go out to dinner with one of his friends… That might not mean much in the end.

But the link between Ehlers and the Canadiens is interesting nonetheless.

After all, we know that the Habs were interested in his services last summer. The forward’s name was at the center of several rumors in Winnipeg, but the Jets ultimately decided to keep him in town.

That said, it might not be crazy to think that the Canadiens could still have him in their sights next summer if Ehlers hasn’t signed his new contract yet.

The player is proud of what Patrik Laine has accomplished in the past year: could that encourage him to come join him in town?

Who knows…

In Brief

– Oh no!

– Anthony Mantha went to visit his former teammates.

– The result is splendid.

– He is on fire.

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Mikko Rantanen in Edmonton: The (rather outlandish) idea of Andy Strickland

Mikko Rantanen has been traded to the Hurricanes in recent days.

But even though the trade was unexpected, it doesn’t mean he will automatically continue his career in Carolina for the next few years.

The reason is simple: this summer, the forward will be able to test the free agent market. The Hurricanes better pull out the big bucks if they want to see him stay within the organization…

It’s going to be expensive to sign him, and if the Hurricanes can’t afford it, another club will.

At this point, Andry Strickland stated on his podcast that there is a team to watch if Rantanen hits the market.

He’s talking about… the Edmonton Oilers:

According to the informant, the plan could work because the Oilers will have cap space to offer a huge contract to Rantanen.

He reminds us that Rantanen and Draisaitl share the same agent (Andy Scott)… And he also points out that the salary cap is set to rise in the coming years.

But realistically, seeing the Oilers make a move like that seems illogical.

Because if we look at the team’s salary cap, we realize that there are already players earning big salaries.

Connor McDavid is making an annual salary of $12.5 million until the summer of 2026, and it’s understood that he will sign an even more lucrative contract extension by then…

Leon Draisaitl just signed a $14 million deal that is valid until the summer of 2033…

Zach Hyman earns $5.5 million annually, and his contract ends in 2028…

Ryan Nugent Hopkins has a contract worth $5.125 million per season extending until the end of the 2029 season…

Darnell Nurse has a terrible contract that will pay him $9.25 million per season until the end of the 2029-2030 season…

Oh, and there’s also Evan Bouchard, who is likely to sign a big contract in the coming months. The defenseman – who is among the elite in the NHL – is currently earning just $3.9 million per season and needs to sign a new deal this summer…

The question to ask is: how would the Oilers manage to offer a huge contract to Mikko Rantanen?

(Credit: PuckPedia)

Obviously, there exists a universe where Stan Bowman decides to trade players to make room for one of the best forwards in the National League.

But would having McDavid, Draisaitl, and Rantanen at $14 million and more per season really help things?

The salary cap may be increasing… But the Oilers could quickly find themselves in trouble by signing Rantanen to a long-term deal.

It’s cool to think about having three forwards like that on the same team.

But there still needs to be money to build around them, and that’s where the problem lies…

In brief

– Who will replace Alex Pietrangelo at the Nations Cup?

– To be continued.

– The result is stunning!

– Oh really?

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Marc-André Fleury asked his coach to let him play Thursday in Montreal

Marc-André Fleury is in his final moments in the National Hockey League.

The decision is clear in his mind: he plans to hang up his skates at the end of the season after more than 1000 games played since his debut in the NHL.

At 40, he feels the time has come for him to move on.

The goalie will notably be at the Bell Centre this week for the visit of the Wild, and for the occasion, he has asked his head coach for a special favor.

What is it about?

It’s simple: Fleury wants to be the starter for Thursday’s game because he knows it will be his last career start in Montreal.

So we should expect to see him in front of the net against the Canadiens in two days:

This is the first time in his career (according to Stéphane Waite) that Fleury has asked to play a specific game.

That said, he truly deserves the opportunity to play in Montreal on Thursday because he is making his final rounds in the NHL.

Stéphane Waite raises a good point, by the way.

The fans on site are likely to give the goalie a very warm welcome, and it’s sure to be a special moment for Fleury.

He has never played for the Canadiens… But all hockey fans appreciate him in Quebec for his personality and his talent.

If there is one player who is loved in the city and across the league, it is Marc-André Fleury!

Let’s note in conclusion that the goalie has a record of 27-13-6 with a goals-against average of 2.91 and a save percentage of .904 against the Canadiens during his career.

Will he be able to secure one last victory against the CH in his career on Thursday night?

For that to happen, the Wild will need to work hard with the absence of Kirill Kaprizov…

In Brief

– Guess who’s back!

– Oh really!

– I love it.

– What a great play.

– Reinforcements for the Kings.

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Even Jim Rutherford admits it: the Pettersson / Miller conflict is causing distractions in the locker room

When things are bad in a sports team’s locker room (no matter the level), it is never a good sign.

This is exactly what is happening right now in Vancouver: Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller are not able to relate to each other, and it is impacting the team’s performance.

The Canucks have won only 10 of their last 27 games, and that is unacceptable when looking at the talent present within the roster.

Even Jim Rutherford admits it: the Pettersson/Miller conflict is causing distractions in the locker room.

The president of the Canucks knows that there are frictions within his team, and he is not afraid to say that all the drama caused by Pettersson and Miller is very disruptive right now.

When the president of a club openly says this, it means things are going badly.

But at the same time, Rutherford might have avoided saying something like that because the Canucks could lose the upper hand in their discussions with teams interested in the services of Miller or Pettersson.

Other clubs know that the Canucks want to make a change after all. And in my eyes, one of those clubs will take advantage of the situation to acquire one of the two star players at a good price…

We’ll see how the Canucks will get out of this negative situation!

Simon Boisvert and Mathias Brunet talked about the situation of the Canucks in the recent episode of Processus and they wondered what it would take to bring Pettersson to Montreal.

According to the Snake, the Canadiens should at least part with Nick Suzuki and Kaiden Guhle to convince Rutherford to let the Swede go…

Personally, at that price, I’d rather pass on it:

I see Nick Suzuki and Kaiden Guhle as two untouchable players in Montreal.

The forward wears the “C” on his jersey and is already excellent in all facets of the game… while the defenseman has what it takes to be the general on the blue line for many years.

It’s agreed that Pettersson has averaged 95 points in his last two NHL seasons, but still: I wouldn’t be ready to give that much to bring him to Montreal.

How about you?

In Brief

– Oh.

– The answer is perfect.

– Tough break for the Wild.

– Martin St-Louis defends Mike Matheson.

– André Tourigny understands why the Avalanche traded Mikko Rantanen. [98.5 FM]

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Broken wrist: an uncertain return for Emil Heineman before the break?

A few weeks ago (two, to be precise), the Canadiens announced that after being struck by a car, Emil Heineman would need to be absent for three to four weeks.

If we fast forward two weeks, we know that the Canadiens will be on break for the Four Nations Challenge. Will Heineman manage to return to play before that?

Last week, Renaud Lavoie stated that we could expect to see him back before the break. The Habs will go on break after the game on February 9, the day of the Super Bowl.

Since then, one might wonder if things have changed. Why?

Because according to reports from The Fourth Period, we can question whether the European will return to play before the Habs go on break.

Heineman has a broken wrist and has already missed two weeks. He could return before the Four Nations Challenge, but that’s questionable.

Before bringing him back to play, the Canadiens must ensure that the young man is fully healed. There is no point in rushing his return, which can very well wait until after the NHL tournament.

We don’t quite know how his hand is doing since there are few clues. Even on Instagram, he is hiding his hand.

In the meantime, let’s remember that Michael Pezzetta is taking his place. Owen Beck has been tested a bit, but even though Rafaël Harvey-Pinard has been called up, it is Pezz’s position.

There are seven games left for the Canadiens before the break. We will see if he recovers quickly enough from his injury to play a few of them.

In brief

– The Quebecer has found a job.

– Kirill Kaprizov operated on? The Wild will be in Montreal this week.

– Mike Matheson keeps in mind that many fans support him.

– Not to be missed.

– Follow colleague Truman for your CF Montréal updates.

– If they wanted, they could.

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Another beautiful goal for Ivan Demidov

The more the season progresses in the KHL, the more we see Ivan Demidov gaining confidence.

He is taking advantage of his coach giving him quality playing time to help his team on the ice.

Again today, Demidov started the match on the first line of SKA St. Petersburg.

The Canadiens prospect did not take long to make his mark in today’s game.

Demidov, left in the slot, took advantage of a lovely pass from his teammate to outsmart the goalie with an excellent shot to the top of the net.

His 17th goal of the campaign is a beautiful one:

Things have been going well for Demidov recently – especially since the Canadiens’ visit to Russia.

Since December 17 (the date of CH’s trip), Demidov has played 14 games and has earned at least one point in ten of those games.

With his point earned today, Demidov has now tallied 18 points in his last 14 games.

That’s great!

It’s really clear that Roman Rotenberg is starting to like him for real. The SKA coach defends his player against journalists’ criticisms, trusts him by giving him more ice time… And ultimately, it’s the coach who looks like a genius right now because the results are there.

If only Rotenberg had decided to take this path from the start of the season…

Overtime

Last year, Matvei Michkov garnered 41 points (19 goals) in 48 games in the KHL.

Demidov, in his 48th game of the season, has just produced his 38th point of the campaign.

The two outputs are quite similar… But the difference is that Michkov played an average of 17 minutes (and 12 seconds) per game.

The Canadiens prospect, on the other hand, averages 12 minutes and 34 seconds on the ice per game since the beginning of the season…