Around these parts, we’ll do our best to give you everything you need to know about the Columbus Blue Jackets. We’ll also fill you in on the stories you may not have heard about (or those you didn’t think you need to know about), the social media buzz around the league, along with a few random nuggets for good measure.
Think of it as your morning coffee with a shot of hockey talk.
WE MEET AGAIN, CONTROVERSY: You’ll be hard-pressed to get any actual information out of either Mike Sullivan or Peter Laviolette at this point of the playoffs, but that’s not going to stop the 357 (approximate) media members covering the Stanley Cup Final from asking the question.
And, in part, it’s the Penguins’ own doing. They are carrying two No. 1 goaltenders on their roster; one of them, Marc-Andre Fleury, won a Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2010 and has been a franchise mainstay since he was a top-five pick a decade or so ago. Fleury was dethroned last spring by youngster Matt Murray, who was called upon in Fleury’s absence due to injury and carried the Penguins to a championship. What that means now is, whenever one goalie lets in four goals or the Penguins have a bad outing, the questions will come fast and furious about a goaltending change.
Again…here we are.
Sullivan was pressed on the issue Tuesday but would not reveal his goaltender for Game 5 back home at PPG Paints Arena (Thursday, 8 p.m.). The smart money says he’ll stick with Murray as he knows him from both AHL Wilkes-Barre and their Cup run together last spring, but it’s a little odd that the guy who brought them to this point (Fleury) was so quickly pushed aside once Murray was healthy. It’s all very weird, actually, but hey – the Penguins are two wins away from being the NHL’s first repeat champion in 20 years.
While we're talking about weirdness and controversy...how about this from Game 4?
STRUGGLING STARS:
While the goaltending debate rages on, the other hot-button item for Sullivan and the Penguins is the offensive dry spells for Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel. Sidney Crosby has been in-and-out of that boat in this series but did score the Penguins’ only goal in Game 4, however, the other two have been off the grid while the Predators roared back to even the series at two games apiece.
Former NHL assistant Doug Lidster, who is doing guest analysis for NHL.com during the playoffs, had some interesting quotes on the situation in his latest piece:
"That's a good question," Lidster said. "It was both a very tight-checking game, and yet there were breakaways and there were odd-man rushes. It's hard to fight for that ice night after night after night when you're always matched up against the other team's best defenders. Sometimes it's incumbent on the other guys to find a way to get it done."
THE FRENZY AWAITS: As the NHL Draft approaches, so does the league’s annual spending spree in free agency. Though it’s become a bit more tame in recent years because of the stagnant salary cap and so many teams up against it financially, there are still plenty of fireworks on Canada Day and this July 1 features a handful of big names atop the board.
TSN’s Frank Seravalli dropped the first edition of the Free Agent Frenzy list on Tuesday, a list that has quite the Washington Capitals flavor – particularly at the top. TJ Oshie, Kevin Shattenkirk and Karl Alzner are three names poised for mega paydays on July 1, and now, its just a matter of finding out where they end up.
Blue Jackets center Sam Gagner, who signed a one-year $650,000 deal last August and parlayed that into a 50-point season, checks in at No. 8 on TSN’s first list. He figures to get a significant raise (and a multi-year deal) on the open market, which could price him out of range for the Blue Jackets despite his desire to remain in Columbus.
ICYMI: Speaking of Mr. Gagner, our first "burning question" of the summer surrounds his status with the Blue Jackets ... One prominent NHL insider believes the Blue Jackets are willing to deal with the Vegas Golden Knights in order to protect Joonas Korpisalo ... We conclude our season report cards with defensive stalwart David Savard, who enjoyed a solid season paired with an old friend.
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