Quarterfinals begin today and Latvia and Finland will start their relegation* games. Underdog Alert: This is the first time since 1998's bronze where the Swiss have a shot at medalling after finishing in ninth place in the past two years. The Swiss have 0 wins, 2 ties, and 20 losses against the U.S. Good luck with this one!! *Relegation: Both last place teams play in a best-of-three format where the winner comes back to next year's tournament and loser is relegated to Division I, Group A, a tougher group.
In case you didn't know: This is the first time that a defending champion had to be in relegation. Meanwhile...
*Finland is dialing Jesse Puljujärvi, Patrik Laine, and Sebastian Aho to see what they're up to while 'Hotline Bling' plays in the distance* Leafs win in overtime!!! How did they do it? Auston Matthews made it possible, but he got a little help from his friends... And that fight was a big help... Once the third period began, Leo Komarov tied the game (Anthony Mantha scored the first goal in the second for Detroit) and it took some time and a fight but Toronto woke up first. Detroit definitely wished that they didn't wake up after three unanswered goals by Mitch Marner, Connor Brown, and Matthews. Detroit did not lay down to die in this game though. Jonathan Ericsson, Dylan Larkin, and a thrilling clock beater by Mantha took the game into OT. It was Matthews' moment to shine and deliver what his team and legions of fans were hoping for. 3:40 into OT, Matthews fooled Coreau with a nice backhand shot that scored the game winner. Photos of the GameFirst of the year!!! Auston MatthewsMatthews has had 4 points since our last meeting (2 goals and 2 assists) and is fifth overall in the NHL. Matthews still leads the team in goals and points with a sizable lead (5 goal lead and 4 points ahead). The exciting part about today is that Matthews will play his first outdoor game and everyone will be able to watch it on primetime television! It's a good thing that Matthews is on an Original Six team so we can see more of him in these games. ScheduleSebastian AhoCarolina is 10-0-1 in their last eleven home games which would not be possible without their playmaking rookie. Aho has points in each of his last three games (2 assists and 1 goal), including a crucial assist in Carolina's defeat of Chicago, the best of the West. Aho is a nice addition to the Hurricanes because he provides the offense that they want and is great at assisting plays. ScheduleMiles WoodWood came into attention for something different than scoring a game winner or being the team leader. This past week, Wood got the chance to play his childhood idol, Alex Ovechkin. Ten years ago, eleven year old Wood wrote Ovechkin a letter with a card that he wanted him to autograph and if he didn't autograph the card, Wood would check him once he got into the NHL. Such a confident kid at the time but he knew he would make it. The only problem is that Ovechkin never autographed the card so Wood had to do his promise. Did he do it? Nope, but Ovechkin autographed a picture for him, telling him to "take it easy tonight". Wood played back-to-back games against the Capitals and had a +/- of +1 in the first game, so he was not completely starstruck there! ScheduleJuuse SarosHow Nashville can help out their goaltending: Put another Finn with their Finn! It's working because Saros recorded his first career shutout on Friday against the Blues and stopped Tarasenko. What a way to have your first shutout! Saros was doing well in the AHL with the Milwaukee Admirals and was named one of the November Players of the Month, so Nashville knows what they are doing with him. ScheduleGetting closer to the All Star Game for these rookies!!
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ThoughtOne century of this game and League is a wonderful milestone to celebrate. Let's hope to do this in the next century! Archives
October 2017
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