The NHL Evening Skate for Dec. 14
Heading into this evening’s action, here are the day’s top NHL storylines:
NHL ‘toughness’ is dying out, and that’s a good thing
It wasn’t so long ago that the vast majority of teams in the league had their designated tough guys who would get like only 10 shifts a night, and those only when called upon. At that point, they came over the boards, threw their bodies or fists around, and generally seemed to discourage other teams from the kind of cheap-shottery that happens when you have a bunch of no-talents on every roster. But the game has changed and continues to evolve at a rapid pace. [More]
Lamp-lighters
Vasilevskiy’s save-of-the-year bid on Marleau is absurd
I’ll have to work with our medical sources to try and confirm this, but it’s very possible Andrei Vasilevskiy was born without any bones in his body. Though several of Vasilevskiy’s season-high 48 saves were of the 10-bell variety, this one from Thursday night, in particular, had the hockey world going nuts. [Watch]
Five NHL veterans who could be on the move
Many insiders are reporting that there’s a lot of trade chatter going on between general managers. Teams are pushing hard to make a move prior to the Dec. 19 roster freeze. But even if teams can’t pull the trigger on a deal before next week, all these talks should help set the table for trades later on in the season. So with that in mind, here are some of the bigger names that may find themselves on the move in the near future.
How should Rangers approach the trade deadline?
Whether by design or not, the New York Rangers have been better than expected so far in 2018-19. Despite waving the white flag of rebuild, they’re only one point behind the Islanders for third place in the Metro, which would help them sneak into the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs. With five of their next six games at home, they might even make that jump, at least briefly. But, honestly, here’s what the Rangers should do come trade deadline time. [More]
All Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon wants is that sweet, sweet offense
Remember that old saying, “offense wins games, but defense wins championships?” Yeah, well, that take hasn’t aged very well when it comes to the National Hockey League. In the Eastern Conference, the formula seems pretty simple. If you want to be good, you have to score goals. The top three teams, the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals also rank first, second and third in goals. And then you have the Carolina Hurricanes. The club has had mixed results to start the year, but its 72 goals rank last in the conference. In the spirit of making the NHL fun again, team owner Tom Dundon has made it clear that this trend will not continue if he has his way. [More]
Embarrassing loss at home sparked Calgary Flames’ charge to top of division
The Calgary Flames bounced from humiliation into first place in their division in a few short weeks. Since an embarrassing 9-1 loss at home Oct. 25 to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Flames have gone 15-5-2. A 32-point haul in that span is second only to the Tampa Bay Lightning (36). Giving up eight unanswered goals and getting booed at Scotiabank Saddledome is arguably the best thing that happened to the Flames in the first third of this season. [More]
Game of the night
Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins
Do the Bruins have the best goaltending in the entire NHL as teams slowly approach the midway mark of the season? It certainly appears that way as they throw Jaroslav Halak out against the high-powered Penguins in a Friday night showdown in Pittsburgh. That’s the same Halak that sat out the previous two games despite currently ranking fourth in the NHL in goals against average (2.30 goals against average) and second in save percentage (.930) after a tremendous start to the season. Meanwhile, Pens star Sidney Crosby has 50 points (13 goals, 37 assists) in 37 career games against Boston. [Follow on Yahoo Sports]
More from Yahoo Sports:
• Pete Thamel: Why Craig James disappeared from limelight
• Ex-MLB player who took a knee remains unsigned
• Parker looks like a $40M mistake for Bulls
• Chargers stun Chiefs on gutsy late call
