NHL Grind Down: Saturday, November 19th - Page Two
Jump to Page 1 2 3
Pittsburgh Penguins at Buffalo Sabres
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Buffalo Sabres | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 11-4-2 | 5-8-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.94 | 2.88 | 23.30% | 80.00% | Team Stats | 1.82 | 2.53 | 20.80% | 80.30% |
The Penguins had to shuffle things up a bit last night as Patric Hornqvist may be out a few games with concussion-like symptoms. That did not stop them from outshooting the Islanders last night en route to a 3-2 overtime victory nor did it deter Sidney Crosby from tallying his 11th goal of the season in just 11 games played. Crosby and Conor Sheary are joined by Scott Wilson while Evgeny Malkin, Chris Kunitz and Bryan Rust make up the team’s second line. Phil Kessel is the one-off here as he has found the scoresheet five times over the last five games while playing on the top power play unit from the third line. Kris Letang in the choice on the blue line as he 11 points in the 12 games he has appeared in while quarterbacking the power play which has scored four goals in the last four games. Pittsburgh plays their third game in four nights, but I think just on talent alone can win this one for the Penguins.
We have mentioned many times how the Buffalo Sabres have virtually been crippled with injuries this season and unfortunately the results have reflected that. They have only managed 31 goals so far this season, so chances are that even if they can win this game it will be because of goaltending and not their offensive prowess. To make matters worse, Buffalo hasn’t scored more than two goals in any of the nine games they have played so far this month, so I will make this brief. In an effort to try to shake things up Brian Gionta is now on the top line with Sam Reinhart and team scoring leader Kyle Okposo while Matt Moulson skates with cult hero Zemgus Girgensons and the listless Evander Kane. Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is switching sticks as the ones he’s been using have been breaking on almost a nightly basis. Okposo, Moulson, and Ritolainen all play on the team’s top power play lines and are the closest this team has to a real skill player. They are all one-offs tonight for GPP play and very, very borderline for cash plays tonight.
UPDATE
The Sabres have switched up their lines according to Mike Harrington and this is what we have. If you thought the Sabres couldn’t score before, this won’t make you feel any better.
Mike Harrington @BNHarrington
#Sabres lines vs. #Pens (ouch): Kane-Larsson-Okposo, Foligno-Reinhart-Gionta, Girgensons-COR-Moulson, Carrier-Grant-Schneider.
Elite Plays
PIT: Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang
BUF: None
Secondary Plays
PIT: Evgeny Malkin, Phil Kessel, Chris Kunitz
BUF: Kyle Okposo
Edmonton Oilers at Dallas Stars
| Edmonton Oilers | Dallas Stars | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 9-8-1 | 7-6-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.67 | 2.72 | 16.00% | 88.00% | Team Stats | 2.67 | 3.28 | 18.10% | 77.80% |
The Edmonton Oilers have fallen on hard times as they have only won two of their last 10 games while only lighting the lamp 11 times in their last six games. Connor McDavid, Jordan Eberle and Patrick Maroon are the team’s best line and look to them on a nightly basis to be the team’s main source of scoring. They do have a combined 15 points over the last six games and that’s as good as it gets where the oilers are concerned. Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins play on different lines as both get plenty of ice time when the Oilers draw a penalty. It is for this reason that they both make a decent one-off play here as they do get the opportunities and have the knack for finding the back of the net. Defenseman Oscar Klefbom is trying to make some inroads since his promotion to the top power play unit as he has a goal and an assist over the last six games. I think I’d look elsewhere for my defensemen tonight.
Hallelujah! The Stars look to be getting healthier as Jamie Benn has been put back on the top line with Tyler Seguin and the returning Patrick Sharp. You will run into these guys all night in your cash games, as people hope that they will regain the magic from last year. Although on the third line, Jason Spezza will join them along with defenseman John Klingberg to reunite a power play unit that did so well a year ago. This comes just in time as not only were the Stars slumping a little bit, the Oilers have started to implode as well. Edmonton has given up at least three goals in seven of the last eight games, and there is little doubt they will make it eight of nine as they make their last stop of this road trip in Dallas tonight. If you want a GPP play you can either use Spezza with Cody Eakin or Antoine Roussel with Patrick Eaves. Either way, they are GPP plays only as the top line is where the cash ownership will be tonight.
Elite Plays
EDM: Connor McDavid
DAL: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn
Secondary Plays
EDM: Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Leon Draisaitl
DAL: John Klingberg, Jason Spezza, Patrick Sharp
Nashville Predators at St. Louis Blues
| Nashville Predators | St. Louis Blues | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 7-6-3 | 9-6-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.88 | 2.63 | 22.00% | 81.50% | Team Stats | 2.44 | 2.72 | 22.20% | 90.50% |
Nashville has been on a nice little run here, as they have won four of their last five games, and to be honest, the only game they lost was when Pekka Rinne was not the goaltender. James Neal has been leading the way has his five goals over the last four games has put him atop of the Predators scoring list while line mate Ryan Johansen has added three assist over that time span. Viktor Arvidsson rounds out the team’s top line while Filip Forsberg has been promoted to the second line with Mike Ribeiro and Craig Smith, Forsberg makes a decent one-off play here as he see minutes on the team’s top power play with Neal and Johansen. The same could be said for Mike Fisher who serves the same role as Forsberg but skates on the team’s third line. On defense we are still waiting for Roman Josi to catch fire as his eight points trail P.K. Subban for the team leader in points from the blue line. Subban hasn’t been shooting as much as he did in Montreal, but he has collected three goals and seven assist in the first 16 games so far this season. The Blues are streaky in terms of giving up goals and if you couple that with Nashville’s 2-5-2 road record, you may want to use some caution here.
The Blues look to get out the brooms as they try to win the third game on their current three-game homestand and should have no problem doing that provided they get a decent game out of their goaltender. The Blues hope to get Alexander Steen back tonight as he is still listed as day-to-day. Even if he doesn’t return the top line of Vladimir Tarasenko, Robby Fabbri and Jori Lehtera is the line to play here tonight. Tarasenko is always in play while Fabbri has registered four points in the last four games with three of them finding the back of the net. Lehtera is the guy to leave out if you are pairing your players tonight, as he does provide salary relief, but just doesn’t score enough, which is almost hard to believe. If Steen is out tonight Jaden Scwartz is still a good play from the second line, as he gets some major exposure to Tarasenko on the power play while skating on the team’s second line. We could use Paul Stastny as well, but his production pales in comparison to Schwartz’s four goals over the last four games. Kevin Shattenkirk is the play on the back line, but I wouldn’t be opposed to using Alex Pietrangelo, who has 44 shots so far this season, as they both play on the power play.
Elite Plays
NSH: James Neal
STL: Vladimir Tarasenko
Secondary Plays
NSH: Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg, Mike Fisher, P.K. Subban, Roman Josi
STL: Robby Fabbri, Paul Stastny, Kevin Shattenkirk, Jaden Schwartz
Colorado Avalanche at Minnesota Wild
| Colorado Avalanche | Minnesota Wild | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 7-9-0 | 9-6-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.06 | 2.81 | 16.40% | 79.10% | Team Stats | 2.63 | 1.81 | 12.80% | 88.00% |
It’s a tough pill to swallow when you realize that the NHL is actually expanding when they already have enough bad teams in the league and Colorado is one of them. Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog did not travel with the team for the game in Dallas on Thursday night, and it is unclear whether they will meet up with the team here in Minnesota for tonight’s game. Duchene is dealing with a concussion while Landeskog has a lower-body injury. Even if the Avalanche had two of their three top scorers in the lineup, it probably wouldn’t help much against a Minnesota team that has given up just 29 goals so far this season. All you need to know is that Nathan MacKinnon is on the top power play unit with Mikael Grigorenko, Joe Colborne, Fancis Beachemin and Erik Johnson and you can come to the conclusion that this is a team in big trouble. Of course, if Duchene and Landeskog return it changes things, but just slightly. MacKinnon is only a one-off GPP play here along with Rene Bourque, who somehow has managed three goals in the last four games. Even Tyson Barrie looks disinterested as he has been bounced on and off the top power play over the past few weeks while managing just six points in 16 games this season. Stay away from this one in cash games tonight.
As stated above, the reason that the Wild are hanging in there this season is all because of the defense and goaltending. Devan Dubnyk has been spectacular, as they have only given up 29 goals in 16 games so far this season. Minnesota has scored 42 goals but have only scored 10 of them in their last eight games. Zach parise has returned and needs to get this team going as he will now skate with Mikko Koivu and Mikael Granlund. This line is listed as the second line, but don’t be surprised if they get the favorable match ups tonight on home ice. Eric Staal has done his best to keep this team on the right track in Parise’s absence by scoring five goals while adding eight assists. He leads the team in both categories, and that should speak volumes about what state the Minnesota offense is in at the moment. Staal and line mate Charlie Coyle will play on the top power play unit with Parise as defensemen Ryan Suter and Jared Spurgeon round out the top five on the blue line. Suter is always a good play from the point, but if you are looking for a line stack the best they have is Staal, Coyle and Nino Niederreiter, as they have collected four goals and seven assists over the past four games.
Elite Plays
COL: None
MIN: None
Secondary Plays
COL: Nathan MacKinnon
MIN: Eric Staal, Charlie Coyle, Zach Parise, Mikko Koivu, Ryan Suter
San Jose Sharks at Arizona Coyotes
| San Jose Sharks | Arizona Coyotes | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 9-8-0 | 5-9-2 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.29 | 2.29 | 17.00% | 88.10% | Team Stats | 2.50 | 3.38 | 12.80% | 75.00% |
After losing their last two games, the San Jose Sharks look to get back on track in the desert tonight, as they finish up their current six-game road trip. A win here will get them even for the trip, as they are 2-3 so far coming into tonight. Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns will be counted on heavily to get the job done as they are the leaders of the team on and off the ice. They are two of seven players who have registered two points over the last nine goals the Sharks have scored in the last four games. Logan Couture makes nice cash game play here, as he skates on the second line but gets the top power play minutes with Burns, Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau. The problem is that the power play has been a bit dormant of late as the sharks have only scored one goal with the man advantage over the last six games. Tomas Hertl was injured last game and flew back to San Jose so sticking with the top five is the order of the day here. Pavelski and Thornton skate on the top line with Joel Ward which could be a nice line stack for your GPP plays tonight.
There is not much you can say about a team that has only 12 points so far this season and is dead last in the league standings, but it’s my job to at last try. Arizona has won just one game over the last few weeks and although being semi-competitive, they really don’t score goals to be a playoff caliber team. A lot of this has to do with the lack of consistency on the power play. Arizona uses players from three different to make up their top unit and really all that does is make it tougher on those players as they are not as familiar with them as they are their own line mates. Max Domi, Martin Hanzal and Radim Vrbata is the line to target here, as they will be getting the secondary defensive lines when they play the Sharks on home ice tonight. Domi leads the team in scoring with 12 points while Vrbata leads the team in goals with six while firing 24 shots on goal in the last four games. Yep folks, this is the best that it gets. Tobias Rieder could be used as a one-off play here, as he has scored half of his four goals this season in the last three games. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is even slumping this year as he has eight points in 16 games while playing the point on the listless power play. Anthony DeAngelo can provide some salary relief, as he has two points over the last four games.
Elite Plays
SJ: Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski
ARZ: None
Secondary Plays
SJ: Logan Couture, Joe Thornton
ARZZ: Max Domi, Radim Vrbata, Anthony DeAngelo, Oliver Ekman-Larsson