Soundin' Off

Bridgeport Sound Tigers

Niederreiter, Switzerland looking golden

Saturday, May 18, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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The rest of the organization waits at home, but Nino Niederreiter’s playing for gold on Sunday. He scored the first goal on a two-on-one off a neutral-zone turnover, and he assisted on Reto Suri’s breakaway empty-netter (complete with Suri’s awesome leap-into-bench celebration) to put away Switzerland’s 3-0 win over the United States. First chance I’d had to watch, and Niederreiter looked really good: playing a physical game, using his size, getting to the net with and without the puck. He’ll get a chance at national sporting heroism. Switzerland plays tomorrow afternoon against Sweden, which beat Finland 3-0 as Jhonas Enroth made 30 saves.

The U.S. is relegated to playing Finland for bronze, Sunday morning at 10. Both games are rematches from early in the tournament.

(Wrapping up the quarterfinals, Eric Staal has a third-degree MCL strain that the Hurricanes hope will be healed in time for next season.)

Two elimination-game Game 5s in the AHL tonight.

Categories: International, Niederreiter

Friday links: Survive, sweep, send to brink

Saturday, May 18, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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The Penguins fell behind but scored three goals in the second to extend the series to five games against Providence with a 3-1 win. Brad Thiessen made 31 saves. Up in Syracuse, though, the Falcons are done: The Crunch finished the sweep with a 5-2 win. Between last year in Norfolk and this year in Syracuse, the Lightning’s affiliate doesn’t lose playoff games. Or many games, period. (Except this year against Bridgeport for some reason.) Howard Dolgon was much happier with the turnout.

Out west, Grand Rapids is a game away from knocking out Toronto after a 4-1 win in Game 4.

The Big Club re-upped Eric Boulton. Think that’s 33 contracts for next year.

Hershey fired coach Mark French. The Utica rumo(u)rs won’t go away. The World Championship reaches the medal rounds, but Alex Edler doesn’t. (The USA-Switzerland game is on NBC Sports Network at 1 p.m. Edit: Chris Peters notes that OLN/Versus/NBCEtc won’t be showing it live, but on tape delay late Saturday night. It will stream on their website at 1 p.m., though.)

And RIP, Ken Venturi.

Categories: 'Round the League, Coaching Carousel, International, RIP

Semi-set

Friday, May 17, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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We got us an AHL semifinalist: Yann Danis made 33 saves as Oklahoma City beat Texas 5-1 Thursday, finishing the series in five games. Mark Arcobello had three points, including his ninth goal in 10 playoff games. They’ll move on to meet the Grand Rapids-Toronto winner, and that won’t be determined until at least Saturday.

Speaking of semifinals: The United States is on to the World Championship semifinals after Thursday morning’s shellacking of Russia, 8-3. The U.S. led 2-0 and 4-1 (chasing Ilya Bryzgalov) and 5-2; Alexander Perezhogin scored soon after that to make it 5-3, but three goals in 1:56 finished things off with 10 minutes left. John Gibson stopped 31 of 34. (Alex Ovechkin flew over there to play on a broken foot. How’s that for pride.) In Saturday’s semifinal (1 p.m.), they’ll have to stop undefeated Switzerland, who rode Martin Gerber’s 33 saves to its eighth win in a row. Nino Niederreiter without a point and with one shot. On the other side of the bracket, Finland blew a three-goal lead but beat Slovakia 4-3 on Juhamatti Aaltonen’s goal with 11:47 left. It’ll be a matchup of the hosts in the early semifinal, as Sweden beat Canada in a shootout. Eric Staal left the game with a knee injury; Alex Edler got a major and a game misconduct for kneeing.

This is, obviously, a curious tournament, European-focused, played amidst the Stanley Cup playoffs, missing most of the world’s best players despite being a world championship. Still, the United States has managed as many 13th-place finishes as it has medals since 1963, and both of those medals have been bronze. Until 1968, the Olympics counted as the World Championship result; 1960, then, is the United States’ only World Championship gold since 1933, and 1933 is its only other title.

It’s two wins away.

(Russia’s entry in the Power Rankings got me.)

@CTWhale on Twitter has surreptitiously become @WolfPackAHL with its first tweet after the official name rechange. (Also appears the old @HtfdWolfPack account is gone, unless the handle was changed and I just missed it. It still existed, though idle since the fall of 2010, at least as of Tuesday.)

Though I matched precisely no numbers Wednesday night, I rather enjoyed the Powerball FAQ. (See also “Real Letters” and despair but laugh.)

Finales are hard. I thought “The Office”‘s was pretty darned good.

And RIP, Dick Trickle.

Three and out

Thursday, May 16, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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The Eastern Conference series looked good on paper. They’re not going that way on ice. Carter Camper scored 31 seconds into overtime Wednesday, and the Bruins took a 3-0 lead over Wilkes-Barre with a 2-1 win. Trevor Smith scored for the Penguins, but that was the only one of 33 shots past Niklas Svedberg. A little further up I-81, Syracuse took a 3-0 series lead on Springfield, winning by that same score; Ondrej Palat had a short-handed goal eight seconds into the third period to make it 2-0 and assisted on the other two goals. Both series can end Friday. (Howard Dolgon would like to see more people in Syracuse for that.)

There’s a Western Conference series that could end Thursday: Oklahoma City actually trailed by a goal twice in Game 4, but they had the game’s last five to beat the Stars 7-3. Mark Arcobello scored twice, including the 2-2 goal on a breakaway out of the penalty box, and was named first star. The Barons can wrap it up at home. Still with a ways to go: Grand Rapids won a game that looks like a see-saw of momentum to take a 2-1 series lead over Toronto. They get back at it in Game 4 on Friday.

An IIHF piece with ref Marcus Vinnerborg; the World Championship quarters are all on NBCSN beginning at 6 a.m with USA-Russia.

Down Goes Brown’s Sean McIndoe on Those Games.

A few familiar officiating names working the Kelly Cup Final, which pits Reading, with former Sound Tigers PTOs Riley Gill and Ethan Cox, against Stockton, which includes Islanders draft pick Tony DeHart (rights lapsed). The series begins Saturday in Reading. (Fact from the final media guide that I don’t remember hearing: The Kelly Cup, like the Calder Cup, came from Boardman Silversmiths in Connecticut.)

And not to go all Ilya Bryzgalov on you — no, not that way — but out in space: This stinks. Hopefully they can make it work.

Categories: 'Round the League, Alumni watch, International, Southern CT: Taking over hockey one player at a time

Same as it ever was

Wednesday, May 15, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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Off day in the AHL playoffs; four games Wednesday. Dylan Reese is said to remain out for Wilkes-Barre but at least is skating. Neat stuff from Lindsay Kramer on Howard Dolgon and Bruce Landon. The once and future HartfordWolfPack.com is kinda sparse right now unless you’re looking for season tickets, but there it is.

The U.S. finished the round robin at the World Championship with a disappointing loss to Slovakia that knocked it down to third in the pool and a Thursday-morning date with Russia, the only other team that beat the Americans (and now a Russian team fortified with New Haven Open tennis fan Alex Ovechkin), and yipes, Ben Bishop (h/t: Chris Peters. America). Finland wins the pool with a win over Latvia (despite needing overtime after a late Latvian tying goal) and faces Slovakia. (There’s crossover between the two pools come the semifinals.)

Even with the upsets and the close wins and all, the Big 8 make the quarters anyway. Nino Niederreiter was off the scoresheet again, but Switzerland won its pool anyway, the only unbeaten team in the tournament. It’ll face the Czech Republic in the quarters, leaving Canada to face Sweden, which finished up with a win over Denmark with goals for the Sedins. Germany gets ninth overall with its overtime win over France (Christian Ehrhoff early in OT).

And Jack Capuano: Maine Hall of Famer. (H/t: Dan Hickling.)

Categories: 'Round the League, Alumni watch, International

Sunday, Monday: wacky days

Tuesday, May 14, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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(Not sure which Game 7 surprised me more Monday. Crazy.)

Yann Danis made 30 saves in a shutout, Mark Arcobello had a goal and Oklahoma City took a 2-1 series lead over Texas in the only game in the league Monday. All four series resume Wednesday. Meanwhile, Dave Eminian reports that, on the day the Canucks informed Peoria that they wouldn’t operate there this year, Peoria got a Southern Pro League team.

At the Worlds, the U.S. clinched its quarterfinal berth Sunday with a win over Germany. A win over Slovakia on Tuesday morning and it’ll be first in the Helsinki group; otherwise, it’ll sweat out Finland’s game against Latvia later. Russia stayed alive in that mix with a win over Slovakia and a come-from-behind — yes, really — win over Austria. (Because of that, the U.S. could finish as low as third with a regulation loss.) France, the team that knocked off Russia, lost to Latvia; both are still alive for the fourth spot in that group.

No points for Nino Niederreiter for the first time Sunday; Switzerland beat Norway anyway. Canada beat the Czechs on Sunday and somehow needed overtime to beat Slovenia on Monday (Steve Stamkos), leaving the top spot in the Stockholm group until the last day of the round robin. Whoever that is — it’s Switzerland with a point against Belarus, or Canada otherwise — will play the winner of Tuesday’s Norway-Czech Republic game. Sweden faces whoever finishes second. Denmark beat Belarus on Monday; that loss would’ve left Belarus in danger of relegation along with Slovenia, but Belarus hosts next year and can’t be relegated, so Austria drops instead.

Niederreiter and Kirill Petrov (who had a couple of assists in that mess Monday) are the last men standing in the organization, then. Mitchell Theoret had two points for Barrie, including the tying goal with 2:53 left, in the seventh game of the OHL final on Monday. The problem: London’s Bo Horvat scored with less than a second left in regulation to send the Knights to the Memorial Cup, joining Halifax and Portland in Saskatoon. Theoret’s (and Brenden Kichton’s) rights are reserved to the Islanders only until June 1.

And RIP, Dr. Joyce Brothers*.

*-”I brought my own mike!” (9F15)

Building block, but over

Sunday, May 12, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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So it ends for the Big Club, in overtime at home in Game 6. Fine job to get themselves in; a good step along the way. (“Now do it again,” etc.) Brock Nelson played 7:44 in his NHL debut, on for the Penguins’ second-period goal but drawing five more shifts, up until 6:11 remained in regulation. A hit, a giveaway and a takeaway on his ledger.

Two 2-0 series leads in the Eastern Conference. Providence was all over Wilkes-Barre again and quickly to chase Jeff Zatkoff after one period and claim another win. Jonathan Bombulie and Mark Divver with more, including an injury to Zach Trotman on a hit from Warren Peters that the Bruins, Mark reports, will ask to be reviewed. Neither Bobby Robins nor Joey Mormina were suspended for hits they made in Game 1. Meanwhile in Springfield, the Tyler Johnson show again: a hat trick (the first in Crunch playoff history) and an assist for him, plus three assists for Ondrej Palat in a 5-3 win. Game 3 in both series is Wednesday after the change of venue. (They’re both 2-3-2, remember, and they’re both Wednesday/Friday/Saturday-if-necessary.)

Texas evened up its series with Oklahoma City, despite a late extra-attacker goal by Mark Arcobello. Toronto bounced back nicely to even the series with Grand Rapids; 30 saves for Drew MacIntyre, and three assists for Mike Zigomanis.

At Worlds, the U.S. took care of its own business with spread-out scoring against France, but no clinch yet; Rob Zepp’s 26 saves shut out Latvia for Germany. The U.S. (with T.J. Oshie and Alex Galchenyuk coming) can get through on Sunday with a win over Germany. Finland beat Austria handily to clinch a berth in the quarterfinals.

Nino Niederreiter scored again as the Swiss beat Denmark to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals from the other pool. Sweden shut out Slovenia (21 saves for Jhonas Enroth, Sedin twins coming), and Norway beat Belarus to move back into fourth.

Most teams over there have two games to play, though two of the eight in each pool — including Finland, just two points ahead of the U.S. — have just one. The round robin ends Tuesday; the quarters are Thursday, semis next Saturday, medal games next Sunday.

And Darryl Bootland and the Allen Americans are champions of the Central Hockey League. (Scott Howes and Brett Skinner were both on the team but are up in the AHL.)

Twenty-seven goals, with Jon Gleed reference

Saturday, May 11, 2013 by:Michael Fornabaio
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To open the second round, appropriate for May 10, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Providence apparently played lacrosse. Yeah, 8-5 Bruins. Jonathan sums it up. Dylan Reese was lost to a Bobby Robins hit. Chad Kolarik scored the first goal on a penalty shot after Kevan Miller was called for gloving the puck in the air above the crease, reminiscent of a call we saw in Bridgeport against Jon Gleed in an eventful night almost four years ago.

Three points for the MVP tonight, Tyler Johnson. Curtis McElhinney, my vote for MVP, got chased midway after giving up five goals on nine shots — the fifth by Johnson himself. So much for that (for one night). First blood to Syracuse. Out west, Grand Rapids played a repeat against a different opponent, blowing Toronto out of the water; three guys with three points, making league history.

Everybody plays Saturday. Sunday’s a clean travel day.

The Islanders play Saturday and, if they win then, Sunday. Saturday’s game will air on WFAN-AM 660 and WFAN-FM 101.9.

At the Worlds, Russia’s on a sudden two-game losing streak: Finland takes over the lead in the pool with a 3-2 win behind Antti Raanta’s 34 saves. Petri Kontiola had two goals and is one off Ilya Kovalchuk’s six for the tournament lead; he’s that tiebreaker behind for the scoring lead (and that tiebreaker ahead of Steven Stamkos). Stunning in a different way: Austria beats Slovakia in a shootout. I think the math stands: U.S. win Saturday, German loss, and the U.S. is through to the quarters. In the other pool, the Czech Republic and Canada won, expectedly if not particularly easily. (Though I guess Belarus’ 10 shots would indicate some kind of ease.)

Halifax won the QMJHL tonight, moving on to the Memorial Cup next week in Saskatoon. Barrie had a chance to join them tonight, but lost Game 5 of the OHL final to London; Islanders draft pick Mitchell Theoret had a goal in defeat. Portland could’ve finished off the WHL final, but Edmonton, minus injured Griffin Reinhart, won in overtime.

Categories: 'Round the League, Alumni watch, International, Rampant nostalgia, The Big Club
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