Will Acton - Edmonton Oilers - October 14, 2013
As you can well imagine, I have seen a lot of goal scoring over the past few weeks. While the situations differ, the one universal aspect of every single goal I have seen is the elated group hug that lasts for 12 minutes, a veteran on the ice digs into the net to grab the puck, and the whole unit skates over to the bench and taps gloves down the line. The first NHL goal is a big moment and the kid who scores deserves that kind of catharsis. Hell, even guys who score 50-60 a year get buck-wild after a tally (see: Ovechkin, Alex). Watch this one and tell me if something seems off:
I don't know if it was the score of the game coupled with the remaining time on the clock, or maybe his teammates didn't know this was his first season which I imagine would be akin to your friends forgetting your birthday, but that was quite the depressing celebration.
David Perron gets a jump on the forecheck, bumping Nate Schmidt off the puck behind the Washington net. Perron feeds it to Jeff Petry, who is coming in hot a step and a half in front of noted elite backchecker Ovechkin. Petry fools the pants off of Braden Holtby, who reads shot, as Petry bounces the puck through the crease to Acton waiting completely uncontested at the backdoor. And he buries a shot you are not allowed to miss. Ever.
But back to the post-goal reaction because this is so sad that it's funny. Once Acton nets it, Petry and Jordan Eberle immediately bestow congratulatory, seemingly half-hearted fist-bumps, followed by Ladislav Smid, but Perron is missing from action. The group then makes the skate over to the bench. Eberle immediately jumps through the open door, Petry avoids traffic and skips to the middle of the line to get his bump on, and Acton gets about 3 or 4 love taps before almost running in to Perron. Perron gives Acton a touch that looks as much like "Hey, watch where you're skating, rook" as "Hey, nice goal, kid". I guess Acton can use this snub as motivation to win this year's Calder and Rocket Richard Trophies (he won't).
Ryan Stanton - Vancouver Canucks - October 17, 2013
Prior to this season, Ryan Stanton has played only one NHL game. Being an undrafted defenceman means you have a lot to prove to a lot of people before cracking the lineup. After signing a on-year deal this offseason with the Blackhawks, his original squad, Stanton was placed on waivers before the start of the 2013-14 season and was claimed by Vancouver. Well after spending four years developing in the AHL, Stanton finally has something to show for all of his hard work:
There must be something in the Law of Attraction about Sedins in the offencive zone because with the two of them in scoring proximity, along with Ryan Kesler, Buffalo has four men back to cover. Henrik Sedin starts this play in Gretzky's office and does some great stickwork to keep the Sabres from getting too close. The Sabres converge around the net and Henrik Tallinder, Johan Larsson, and Brian Flynn are all occupied by either Henrik or brother Daniel while Mike Weber covers Kesler. Henrik tries to feed Daniel right in front of the crease but fails to connect, sending the puck bouncing into the slot. Stanton is starting to pinch so once he sees the puck is free, he jumps up to meet it and decides to shoot the puck into what looks like traffic on the 10 in downtown Los Angeles. His shot couldn't be more perfect as he finds the opening and sails the puck over Ryan Miller's glove.
The Sedins may be slowly regressing over the years but they are still a formidable force as far as creating and finishing scoring opportunities. This was just a great way to get bodies in front of Miller and it was subtle, but Daniel's little kick that sent the puck out of the scrum was perfectly executed. Great read by Stanton as well, he was hungry for the puck and didn't miss his chance to make it count when he got it.
Josh Leivo - Toronto Maple Leafs - October 17, 2013
Toronto has had quite the handful of rookies make appearances over the past two seasons. The marquee attraction this year has been defenceman Morgan Reilly but another young buck to look for is winger Josh Leivo. Leivo practically jumped straight from juniors to the NHL, making only a seven game swing through the AHL last year between the regular season and the playoffs. He likely won't stick with the big squad aside from the occasional call-up, but here is why we should be keeping an eye on the 20-year-old:
This is just a great individual effort. There are three Hurricanes and two Leafs in the corner digging away at the puck. Leivo is sitting a little bit further north than the scrum when the puck pops out and onto his stick. He practically bowls over Andrej Sekera, who does a terrible job standing Leivo up at his own blue line, and Leivo has a 2-on-1 break with Jay McClement against Justin Faulk. Even with McClement tied up with Faulk, Leivo postures himself to chip the puck in front of the net but instead sends a rising wrister past Cam Ward short side.
If you noticed Leivo's teeth after the goal, it isn't all that surprising that Leivo has a knack for finding gaps. This is the kind of goal where he picked out the spot he was going to shoot at 20 feet out and stuck with it. The most impressive thing here, though, is that Sekera has about 30 pounds on Leivo yet completely stepped out of Leivo's way when he came charging at him. I'm sure that will hit the blooper reel for Carolina at the end of the year.
Ryan Murphy - Carolina Hurricanes - October 17, 2013
Well with Leivo's goal, Toronto had a 2-0 lead on Carolina heading into the 3rd period. The 'Canes needed some sort of jump so why not from one of their younger members? Electric rookie defenceman Ryan Murphy would prove to provide some hope for the team:
Holy hell was that a rush! Murphy starts this play behinds his own net and I know when I'm in a similar situation I think "yea, I'm taking this all the way up the ice". Murphy splits through three Leafs players before getting poked off of the puck by Carl Gunnarsson. Murphy peels off as Mason Raymond chases the puck into the corner followed by Jeff Skinner. Skinner steals the puck away from Raymond and also avoids Gunnarsson to push the puck back to Murphy at the point. Murphy tees up the slapper which has eyes all the way to the back of the net over Jonathan Bernier's glove.
If you are familiar at all with Ryan Murphy's history then this kind of play shouldn't surprise you. During his 228 game career in the OHL the Ontarian has accumulated 220 points, which is practically unheard of for a defenceman. While he did join the Hurricanes last season for 4 games, he had nothing to show for it. It seems like the 20-year-old is here to stay this year and, if he keeps making this sort of impact, will continue to turn heads to the point that they spin.
Michael Bournival - Montreal Canadiens - October 17, 2013
Montreal had a big freshmen breakout last season with Alex Galchenyuk jumping straight into the lineup after being picked 3rd overall in the 2012 draft while Brendan Gallagher challenged for the Calder Trophy. Well the Habs keep rolling with the youth as Michael Bournival joins the team this year and starts finding the scoresheet with this one:
This play starts with Ryan White jumping into the forecheck and pushing the puck into the Columbus zone after an attempted breakout by the Jackets. Travis Moen and Bournival keep the Blue Jackets busy in the corner before opting for a reset by chipping the puck up to the point. Andrei Markov passes across to P.K. Subban who has to activate the slippery switch to get away from Ryan Craig and Jared Boll before returning the puck to Markov. Markov holds just long enough to draw all attention over to him before passing cross-ice to Bournival all alone at the faceoff dot. Bournival connects on the one-timer and gets it past Sergei Bobrovsky, who has to double-check to make sure the puck did in fact go in. Yes, Bob. It's in there.
Michael Bournival is absolutely incredible during this sequence. He is the front-runner on the forecheck which leads to Fedor Tyutin giving the puck away to start Montreal's possession. He maintains control of the puck in the corner despite pressure from two Blue Jackets players. But the best part is the kid's constant movement and eye for open areas of the ice. Before Subban executes the D-to-D pass to Markov, Bournival cuts across from the left side to the right side while attention is shifting in the opposite direction. A significant part of hockey is how players react without the puck and Bournival showed a great example of how you can create opportunities by staying active in the offencive zone.
Boone Jenner - Columbus Blue Jackets - October 17, 2013
With the Leivo-Murphy tit-for-tat earlier, it just wouldn't seem right if two rookies didn't score in the same game here as well. So, similar to the Toronto-Carolina game, the Blue Jackets are in a 3-0 hole and need a spark to open up scoring in their favour. Enter Boone Jenner:
It isn't shown in the first view of this play, but this opportunity comes from a successful faceoff by Columbus in the offencive zone. Ryan Johansen wins it back to David Savard up high on the right boards. Savard shifts the point of attack to the center before passing back to Johansen who rips a slapper on net. Price lets the rebound come right out in front of him while Jenner is circling straight for him. Jenner settles the puck and brings it towards Price's weak side before quickly lifting it over Price's leg and in.
Columbus opens this play on the power play and makes great use of the extra ice. The play off of the faceoff was clearly designed and well executed in getting the puck to the net. Jenner's movement is just a great example of why you head to the net when your team shoots because you might be in place for a deliciously decadent rebound. Jenner is in perfect position for this one here and makes no mistake about firing it right back at Price.
Brandon Pirri - Chicago Blackhawks - October 17, 2013
One thing the Blackhawks can boast over many other teams is their depth at almost every position. If their top two lines can't get the job done, they have guys down the lineup that can find the back of the net. Making his way through the system is centre Brandon Pirri who has seen games in the past 3 seasons but hasn't quite made himself a fixture on the roster until now. In his 9th NHL game, he finally makes the scoresheet:
The Hawks are working on a low cycle before they give the puck up to St. Louis. Roman Polak has a handle on things but a pass up the boards to Jaden Schwartz is intercepted by Marian Hossa. Hossa sees Pirri sliding uncontested into a prime location inside the near faceoff circle and flips the pass to him. Pirri doesn't hesitate, snapping the puck past Jaroslav Halak's blocker.
Hossa and Patrick Sharp do most of the legwork on this goal, keeping the Blues hemmed in on defence. Pirri, as illustrated by the replay, is coming fresh off of the bench and does great work to jump right into what the two veterans have going to reestablish possession deep in the zone. This is a very lazy attempt at a breakout by St. Louis and Chicago makes no mistake about punishing the Blues for mishandling things.
Olli Maatta - Pittsburgh Penguins - October 19, 2013
As is expected, Sidney Crosby is on an unheard of tear in the early part of this season. Many members of the media see him winning pretty much every award after this year is in the books, and it's pretty difficult to argue with that since he came within 4 points of scoring the most points last year even after missing a quarter of the shortened season. So if you see Crosby going up the ice on an odd-man rush, it would behoove you to join him:
Crosby beats Ryan Kesler to a loose puck along the boards in the Pittsburgh end and has the room to get a rush going. Rookie defenceman Olli Maatta is the first to see this developing and gets on his horse to drive the middle of the ice with Chris Kunitz on the far wing. Crosby crosses Vancouver's blue line and has a ridiculous amount of time and space so he sends a cross-ice pass to Kunitz. Maatta speeds through Henrik Sedin and Jason Garrison as Kunitz throws a shot low at Roberto Luongo's pads. The puck pops out right in front of the crease and Maatta is coming in at exactly the right time to gain enough control to send the puck around Luongo and in.
This is an excellent play by the young Maatta. Not only does he gather the read on what Crosby is doing but he is relentless gaining speed through the neutral zone and does a great job drawing the denfence off of the puck-carriers. Neither Sedin nor Garrison are in any position to challenge Crosby and Kunitz while the backcheck doesn't even get close until Kunitz lets the shot go. Great drive to the net and it pays off handsomely, tying things up shortly after Vancouver scores the go-ahead goal.
Michael Kostka - Chicago Blackhawks - October 19, 2013
I couldn't find a clip of just this goal on YouTube. I guess Kostka's achievement was overshadowed by Brandon Pirri's two points in this game. You would think there would be at least some fanfare, given that Kostka's tally was the game-winner, but the 27-year-old AHL journeyman won't be getting much love for this play (starts at 1:23):
The full play can be found here in the game's highlight package on NHL.com. Kostka gets this sequence started, keeping the puck in the Leafs' zone with a wrist shot which is blocked on the way to the net. A scramble in the slot sends the puck to the left-wing boards where Brandon Pirri recovers it. Pirri and Nick Leddy pass back and forth as Jay McClement comes up to challenge. McClement's forecheck leaves a juicy chunk of ice wide open at the top of the slot, which Kostka slips undetected into. Kostka grabs the pass from Pirri, holds it as David Broll puts himself out of position for a shot block, and fires it over Jonathan Bernier's blocker.
Playing as a third-pairing defenceman, you have to give credit for Nick Leddy's maturation of his two-way game. While he typically lines up alongside veterans Michal Rozsival or Sheldon Brookbank, the 22-year-old also seems to fill the task of anchoring lines with less-experienced defencemen when the top-four is healthy. But as for Kostka, this is a great read on McClement's pinch and a good eye for a vulnerable spot on the ice. At 27, Kostka is just a depth option if he does stay with the organisation but he will prove himself to be valuable if he continues to play smart and convert.
Mike Smith - Phoenix Coyotes - October 19, 2013
Talk about having a drought. Mike Smith has played 271 games with 3 different teams since the 2006-07 season and just hasn't had the luck bounce in his favour. You would think a team would just give up on...oh wait *checks notes* Mike Smith is a goaltender:
Detroit is down 4-2 in the waning seconds so they pretty much aren't trying very hard on the play. They have a world of trouble getting through the neutral zone but finally get the puck across Phoenix's blue line. Mikael Samuelsson lets a shot go which Mike Smith easily stops low with his glove. With the lack of pressure from the offense, Smith quickly sets the puck up for himself and lobs it all the way to Detroit's blue line. As the clock winds down, the puck skitters into the gaping Detroit net and makes the scoresheet with .1 seconds left in the game.
When a netminder scores, it usually happens either pretty much exactly like this or if, on a delayed penalty call, he stops a shot before the opposing team makes a bad pass to the blue line and the puck somehow pinballs into their own empty net. I would imagine most coaches wouldn't be too happy about a move like this because, if Smith misses, the puck comes back to your own zone for a faceoff due to icing. Still this was an excellent goal and, with the set-up Smith had here, I wonder how long he was planning on going for the shot instead of doing what goaltenders normally do and keep the clock running.
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