Scott Cullen looks at Saturdays playoff action, including tough times for the undisciplined Chicago Blackhawks, Matt Calvert lifting the Blue Jackets to their
first playoff win, and Nathan MacKinnon putting on a show as Colorado takes a
2-0 series lead over Minnesota.
Brice
Butler Cowboys Jersey . HEAVY HOCKEY The Chicago Blackhawks are within
two minutes of having a 2-0 series lead, surrendering tying goals late in the
third period (1:45 remaining in Game One, six seconds left in Game Two) of the
first two games in St. Louis, leading to 4-3 overtime defeats in both games.
Being that close doesnt amount to much now, though, as Chicago is facing a 2-0
series deficit along with the possibility that a top pair defenceman,
Brent Seabrook, could be suspended for a crushing hit on Blues C David Backes,
whose status has to be questionable in the immediate aftermath. Seabrook had a
goal and an assist in Game Two, before taking a major penalty for his hit on
Backes wit 4:51 remaining in the third period. If Seabrook is suspended,
Sheldon Brookbank could move into the Chicago lineup, but Backes potential
absence also causes issues for the Blues. Even though the St. Louis lineup was
bolstered by the return of RW T.J. Oshie, their top three healthy centres after
Backes in Game Two were Vladimir Sobotka, Maxim Lapierre and Derek Roy. If
Backes is out (and Patrik Berglund is already out), then St. Louis may have to
shuffle Steve Ott to the middle and add a winger, Dimitrij Jaskin or
Brenden Morrow, to the lineup. Leading the way for St. Louis in Game Two was D
Kevin Shattenkirk, who had a goal and two assists, and also happened to be
break-even in Corsi%, which was rare on a Blues team that was easily handled by
Chicago at even strength. The problem for the Blackhawks, however, was an
appalling lack of discipline, as Chicago was shorthanded nine times, including
11 minutes of shorthanded time in the final 15 minutes of the game. A positive
for the Blackhawks was the performance of RW Marian Hossa, who matched his
season high with eight shots on goal in Game Two. Blackhawks C Jonathan Toews,
who was on the ice for both the tying and game-winning goals against, had a
dominant possession game (85% Corsi%), getting the better of a
strength-on-strength matchup against the Blues top line of Backes,
Alexander Steen and T.J. Oshie. Returning to the lineup for the first time since
a late-season concussion, Oshies Corsi% for the game was 13.0%. The results
through the first two games could have gone either way, so its not as if Chicago
is out of the running as they head home for Game Three. However, their margin
for error is gone. They need to get on the board with a win if they are going to
make a series out of this. JACKETS EVEN UP Matt Calverts second goal of the
game, 1:10 into double overtime, earned the Columbus Blue Jackets the first
playoff win in the franchises history. Calvert, who was favourably included in
my piece on which fighters can handle more playing time, played a career-high
22:26 in the double-overtime affair, having possession success with linemates
Cam Atkinson and Brandon Dubinsky. Blue Jackets D Jack Johnson led all skaters
with 38:21 of ice time and scored the game-tying goal with 6:01 remaining in the
third period. Johnson now has 15 points in 14 career playoff games. Among
defencemen with at least a dozen career playoff games, Johnsons 1.07 points per
game in the postseason ranks second, behind only Bobby Orr. Blue Jackets C
Ryan Johansen added a goal and an assist, while D David Savard contributed two
assists to the winning effort. On the Penguins side, RW Brian Gibbons scored a
pair of goals, and Sidney Crosby had a couple of assists, but no other Penguins
forwards got on the scoresheet. D Paul Martin had two assists while
Matt Niskanen added a goal and an assist. Perhaps the most troubling issue for
Pittsburgh in Game Two was the play of D Kris Letang, who was stomped (32.5%
Corsi%) in possession terms. His minus-14 Corsi was his lowest of the season.
Even so, his 27:40 of ice time was behind only Paul Martin (34:07) and
Brooks Orpik (28:02) on the Penguins blueline. Columbus D Fedor Tyutin left the
game with a presumed upper-body injury after taking a couple of hard hits and
playing just 6:55. If Tyutin is out, Dalton Prout or Nick Schultz are available
to join the Columbus lineup, but Savard is the one who moves up the depth chart.
He played 33:46 in Game Two. Earning the Game Two win ought to give the Blue
Jackets some feeling of belonging in the postseason. They can compete with the
Penguins, play them close enough that G Sergei Bobrovsky (who stopped 39 of 42
shots in Game Two) has a chance to make a difference. MACKINNONS COMING OUT
PARTY 18-year-old Avalanche rookie RW Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and three
assists in Colorados 4-2 Game Two win over the Minnesota Wild, giving the Avs a
2-0 lead in the series, and MacKinnon seven points through two games. There is a
good chance that MacKinnon is on his way to the best playoff scoring for an
18-year-old in league history, as Jaromir Jagr holds the current mark with 13
playoff points in 1991. The line of MacKinnon, LW Gabriel Landeskog (two goals)
and C Paul Stastny (one goal, three assists) carried the day for the Avalanche,
with MacKinnons speed and playmaking ability creating huge difficulty for the
Wild, even though Minnesota frequently had their top defence pairing of
Ryan Suter and Jonas Brodin matched up against them. Though he wasnt
particularly to blame for Colorados first three goals, Wild G Ilya Bryzgalov was
pulled with 8:01 remaining in the second period, replaced by Darcy Kuemper, the
rookie who last played March 27. Kuemper stopped all 14 shots he faced. That
Colorado has high-end skill up front comes as no surprise, nor is it shocking
that G Semyon Varlamov has been the better of the goaltenders in the series but,
coming home for Game Three, the Wild need their own top forwards to answer the
bell and hope that whomever they go with in net, Kuemper or Bryzgalov, will give
them a chance to get back in the series. Scott Cullen can be reached at
[email protected] and followed on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook.
A.J.
Jenkins Cowboys Jersey .ca. The NHL Play of the Year showdown kicks off
with some slick moves going head-to-head with a combination of soft hands and
endless patience.
Larry
Allen Cowboys Jersey . Ryan Getzlaf certainly got them started in the
second. Getzlaf scored the first two goals in the second, and Teemu Selanne
scored the go-ahead goal late in the period as the Anaheim Ducks beat the
Nashville Predators 4-3 Thursday night.
http://www.cowboysproshopus.com/Womens-Roger-Staubach-Authentic-Jersey/ . Blatter also told reporters Saturday after meeting with Qatars emir that the
decision to award the tournament to the desert nation is "not reversible." There
have been calls to move the tournament because of Qatars intense heat. CHICAGO
-- The Cleveland Indians have activated All-Star second baseman Jason Kipnis
from the 15-day disabled list after he was sidelined by a strained muscle in his
right side. They also optioned infielder Justin Sellers before Wednesdays game
against the Chicago White Sox. Kipnis had not played since April 29, when he
strained his right oblique during an at-bat in the fourth inning against the Los
Angeles Angels.
Dallas Cowboys
Jersey. He went on the DL the following day. Kipnis was batting .234 with
three homers and 12 RBIs entering Wednesdays game. The Indians were last in the
AL Central at 24-29 after making the playoffs as a wild-card team in 2013, and
were leading the majors in errors.
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