Anton Volchenkov crushes Matt Moulson
Saturday, December 25th, 2010
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Anton Babchuk Scores, Flames beat Stars in OT
Friday, December 24th, 2010
Kiprusoff made 14 saves and Anton Babchuk scored on the power play for the Flames, who scored three goals during their three-game skid.
“Obviously, this is something we can build on,” Calgary coach Brent Sutter said. “To come into this building and play as well as we did, it’s a plus.”
Ribeiro scored a power-play goal and Lehtonen stopped 31 shots for the Stars, 10-0-3 in their last 13 at home.
Dallas heads into a two-day holiday break with 46 points, tied with Detroit for the top spot in the Western Conference.
Vancouver falls to Detroit, but Samuelsson and Canucks give mighty fight
Thursday, December 23rd, 2010
The Detroit Red Wings’ big win came at a heavy price.
Henrik Zetterberg’s second goal of the game at 2:59 of overtime gave Detroit a 5-4 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night.
But the Red Wings also lost star center Pavel Datsyuk for at least four weeks with a broken bone in his hand or wrist, according to coach Mike Babcock.
“It’s unfortunate, there’s nothing we can do about it. We got to find a way to dig in, just like we did tonight to get the game done,” Babcock said. “More opportunity for someone else. We know Pav’s a good player and we know he’s coming back. He gets a little bit of vacation so he’s ready for the playoffs.”
Datsyuk, who has 12 goals and 39 points in 33 games, will not need surgery and his hand will be placed in a cast.
Datsyuk was hurt with about 1:30 left in the first period when he tripped over former Red Wings’ teammate Mikael Samuelsson in the Vancouver zone and landed on his right hand-wrist area.
Nicklas Lidstrom’s third-period power-play goal tied the game at 4-4. Zetterberg also added an assist on Lidstrom’s goal. Danny Cleary and Valtteri Filppula also scored for Detroit. Brian Rafalski had three assists and Jimmy Howard stopped 35 shots.
The Red Wings, first in the Western Conference after passing Dallas with the win, lost their previous two games and are only 4-4-2 in their past 10 games.
“It was huge. You look at the standings, everything’s gotten pretty condensed here so every point matters right now,” Howard said.
Henrik and Daniel Sedin each had a goal and an assist and Mikael Samuelsson and Jeff Tambellini also scored for Vancouver, third in the Western Conference and three points behind Detroit. Ryan Kesler had two assists and Roberto Luongo made 40 saves.
Russia’s Igor Bobkov Set To Take On The World at WJC
Thursday, December 23rd, 2010
But the big London Knights goalie expects to be in the crease Boxing Day in Buffalo when the Russian world junior team takes on a Canadian squad eager to prove it has enough firepower.
“All goalies want to start,” said the six-foot-six, 240-pound Anaheim Ducks prospect, who leaves Sunday to join a Russian pre-tourney camp in upstate New York.
In London, the 19-year-old Bobkov is the backup to younger and undrafted American Michael Houser, arguably the Knights MVP so far who made his fifth straight start Friday night against the powerful Owen Sound Attack at the John Labatt Centre.
Of course, Bobkov wants to play more than he has this season. But he explains the frustration in his usual laid back way.
“Goaltending, it’s all up here,” he said, pointing at his head.
Last year at the world juniors in Saskatoon, Bobkov was a standout for a disappointing Russian squad that finished out of the medals. He and his mates want to redeem themselves this time, starting with the Dec. 26 game against the Canadians.
“Very angry,” he said about last year’s quarterfinal flame out. “In Russia, it’s the same way. Gold or nothing. Fourteen hours, long trip (home on the plane).”
Anton Volchenkov: The A-Train Rolls Into Newark
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
Requiring eight stitches. He was sidelined for 12 games until his return to the ice against the Rangers on November 5.
“I just fixed my nose over the summer. I tried to be maybe a little more better looking,” he laughed. “I’ll probably fix it when my career is done.”
When asked if he feels compelled to shy away from a shot after an injury, Volchenkov just shrugged. “Maybe you look back a little bit,” he allowed, “but after you play, you forget everything and just try to help the team win games. You forget the injuries from before and just try to play hard.”
His injury amnesia is just another element of what makes Volchenkov such an immovable defensive force. Since his return to the ice, Volchenkov is back to playing the same unyielding defense as he did before: aggressive, physical, and completely unfazed by the potential threat of injury.
For Sweden’s Oscar Lindberg, Preparation and Toughness Key to Success at WJC
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
Oscar Lindberg, along with Martin Lundberg and Max Carlson has become one of the crowd favorites in Skellefteå Kraft Arena. But during the Christmas and New Year is a great risk that the trio split. Oscar is very topical for the Junior World Championships in Buffalo.
Junior World Cup squad is out on a week.
Adam Larson and Tim Erixon , of course, abandoned as they were last year.
Oscar Lindberg also feels like a natural choice for J-20 bass Roger Rönnberg.
- I’ve got plenty of confidence in recent matches. So I of course hope that the site, “says Oscar.
Though it is well with the little twin emotions you stand as the elite series continues?
- It is true. But while this is my only chance in life to play the Junior World Championships. So it feels great on my sites.
Run extra
In the case of Skellefteå AIK as Oscar always one of those who stay longest on the ice. At the training yesterday, he was the very end. Oscar drove through some extra stopping and starting, although the ice maker entered the rink.
Does it feel great to train as serieledare even if only half the season is played?
- Exactly, and that’s where we’ll try to be.
How about your season so far?
- We have had good flow in the chain and the game has worked well in many matches. I myself have for example not made as many goals as I had hoped. But you need to keep working, then the targets also.
Tim Erixon has chance to shine during 2011 WJC
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
This year, in the SEL, Erixon is on pace for a career high in points, with three goals and twelve assists. He’s averaging 19:52 of ice time a game, a career high, and plays on the top pairing for Skellefteå AIK alongside the awesomely named David Round Leaf (I think- I had trouble finding this, so that pairing may just be wishful thinking on my part).
To make a point- that’s two more minutes a game than projected top 3 NHL draft pick Adam Larsson.
Erixon is a type of player I’d like to compare to everyone’s favorite Flame, Mark Giordano. He competes every shift, blocks shots, makes good defensive poke checks, but he’s just as dangerous in the offensive zone.
So what’s he won? Well, not a whole lot. He was on the silver medal WJC team in 2009, but that’s really about it. SAIK, however, is on pace for the #2 seed in the league, giving him a shot at some post-season glory.
His previous WJC have definitely shown a progression in playing capability. His first year he earned a grand total of zero points in 6 games. Last he put up a goal and two assists as well as ten penalty minutes. This year? Expect to see him on the top pairing next to Oliver Ekman-Larson and grab more than a couple assists. It’s hard to say if he’ll make it to the Flames at some point, especially given their defensive depth, but he’s absolutely growing as a player, and this is a great chance to see how much.
Tim Erixon Brings Talent and Depth to a Swedish Team You Cannot Sleep On
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
Sweden has been knocking on the door for three straight years now, finishing in medal contention, but unable to break through to claim gold. However, led by a player that seems to balance the best of North American and Swedish hockey, the Kitchener Rangers’ Gabriel Landeskog.
Due to the challenges of travel, Landeskog remained in North America while his team prepared overseas for the tournament. Once the club arrived on this side of the Atlantic, Landeskog joined the roster and the OHL’s top-ranked draft-eligible prospect will be counted upon to play a key two-way game in his first world junior experience.
However, Landeskog will have some help leading the club towards its first gold since 1981 (and only its second gold overall). Four players return from last year’s bronze-medal-winning club: Landeskog’s fellow 2011 draft-eligible Adam Larsson, Tim Erixon (Calgary’s 2009 first-round selection), Anton Lander (a second-round pick by Edmonton in 2009) and Carl Klingberg (second round, Atlanta, 2009).
PuckAgency Prospect Report – Oscar Lindberg, Sweden
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
Center
Born October 29 1992 – Skellefteå, Sweden
Height 6.00 – Weight 185 – Shoots L
Drafted: Phoenix Coyotes, 2010 NHL Entry Draft
Round: Selected #57 overall (2nd Round)
Currently Plays For: Skellefteå AIK (SEL)
Lindberg is a dependable player in all three zones and is particularly strong in the face-off circle.
The Scouting Report
Excels in the faceoff circle and has said he models his game after Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby.
USA Today
Lindberg has been noted to be very strong in his own end of the ice, and has proven to be sharp in the offensive zones. Lindberg also is a great faceoff man. Leading the league the past two seasons in faceoff percentage, which has been invaluable to Skelletfea’s J20 club.
The Bleacher Report
Evgeny Kuznetsov Talks about his Sophomore Season in the KHL and the Upcoming WJC
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
Traktor-centric, the Sports.ru blog dedicated to the KHL’s Traktor Chelyabinsk, recently spoke with the top forward of the team, Evgeny Kuznetsov, whose nine goals this season make him the team’s second leading goal scorer. Fantastic North American defenseman Deron Quint, leads the Black-and-Whites with 13.
Our conversation occurred just before Zhenya’s departure for Russia’s WJC camp and it touched on a variety of subjects: Traktor’s recent string of bad luck, what it’s like to be coached by Valery Belousov, Evgeny’s post-game showmanship, and the upcoming U-20 World Junior Championships tournament in the United States.
Igor Zhukov – The club’s business is left behind. The World Championship is now ahead of you. Nevertheless, is it possible to analyze Traktor’s trajectory in the standings so far this season?
Evgeny Kuznetsov – We are definitely not where we should be. It seems like we aren’t playing badly at all, but we are constantly coming up just a little bit short. Bad luck.
IZ – Are you happy with your game and scoring? It appears you aren’t doing bad at all. Not every 18 year old manages to score 9 goals in the KHL.
EK – I don’t want to separate myself from the team. If I am doing well – but there is no result for the team – who needs that? I am working the same way I always have. I just happened to score a few more goals than last year, and am having a bit better luck. This is, after all, already my second season playing among adults.
IZ – What is your best goal this season?
EK – Probably the first one. The one I scored in Magnitka. You remember the first one for a long time. And, we beat Metallurg at their arena for the first time in 16 years. So, that would be the one.
IZ – You know, everybody says that your game is becoming more and more mature, and that you have progressed a lot this year. Do you feel that way?
EK – Yes, of course, I feel this. Most importantly, I’ve gained confidence. Also, Belousov trusts me. It’s very important. When you score the team benefits and you feel good and you become more confident. You feel much better.
