NHL Grind Down: Saturday, October 22nd - Page Two
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Tampa Bay Lightning at Ottawa Senators
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Ottawa Senators | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 46-31-5 | 38-35-9 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.73 | 3.25 | 15.80% | 84.00% | Team Stats | 2.80 | 4.00 | 15.80% | 75.80% |
Tampa Bay comes into this one hot off the heels of a total beatdown at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche in their own barn on Thursday night. Many observers think that there may be something wrong with goaltender Ben Bishop, as his .861 save percentage is well below career mark of .920. The Lightning are 3-1 basically because they have been able to score 13 goals in their first three games before Semyon Varlamov shut them out the other night.This is probably why Tampa has decided to mix up their lines for tonight’s contest. Steven Stamkos will skate with Vladislav Namestnikov and Ondrej Palat while Jonathan Drouin, Nikita Kucherov and Valtteri Filppula make up the second line. I think that Ottawa will try to shut down the Stamkos line, which puts the second line in play for your GPPs tonight. Anton Stralman and Victor Hedman are your choices on defense, as they too got the power play time from the point last game as they go against a team tonight that has given up four goals in 17 chances while a man short. Ottawa has given up 16 goals, which was tied for second going into last night’s contests.
Ottawa has won all three of their home games so far this season, while their only loss was a 5-1 drubbing by the Detroit Red Wings. Defenseman Erik Karlsson leads the team in points and time on the ice, so trying to squeeze him in whenever possible is always an optimal play. Karlsson, along with the top power play unit usually get more than 65 percent of the ice time with the man advantage. Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman, Bobby Ryan and Derick Brassard complete the unit that has only tallied one goal in 11 power play attempts. The other side of the coin finds Tampa Bay giving up just one goal in ten attempts while short-handed so maybe special teams is not the way to go where Ottawa is concerned tonight. I would, however, keep the pairs together as Kyle Turris skates with Stone and Hoffman, while Ryan and Brassard are joined by Zack Smith.
Elite Plays
TB: Steven Stamkos
OTT: Erik Karlsson
Secondary Plays
TB: Jonathan Drouin, Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn, Anton Stralman
OTT: Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman, Kyle Turris, Bobby Ryan, Derick Brassard
Minnesota Wild at New Jersey Devils
| Minnesota Wild | New Jersey Devils | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 38-33-11 | 38-36-8 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.60 | 2.75 | 18.50% | 77.90% | Team Stats | 2.22 | 2.00 | 19.90% | 83.00% |
After losing a tough 3-2 game on the road in St Louis the Wild have ripped off three home wins while scoring 13 goals in the process. Minnesota looks like they have scoring coming from a few lines but may be in trouble tonight as they visit the New Jersey Devils, who have only given up eight goals in four games. The Wild have scored only two power play goals while Devils have surrendered just one goal on the short-hand, which doesn’t bode well for Minnesota tonight. The top line of Zach Parise, Charlie Coyle and Eric Staal should be blanketed tonight, which kind of makes them a low GPP option as they get most of the power play time with defensemen Ryan Suter and Jared Spurgeon. Again, this game should be low scoring, so I’d look elsewhere on tonight’s big slate for your cash game plays.
This game should be passed over altogether, as the Devils have only managed six goals in their first four games. There is a GPP silver lining here, as it seems the power play isn’t that bad as it has scored half of the team’s with the man advantage.There have been a few reports that the Devils will shuffle up their lines tonight, as was reported yesterday by beat writer Andrew Gross. The lines he had yesterday were Taylor Hall, Adam Henrique and Blake Speers on one line, while Travis Zajac skated with Beau Bennett and Kyle Palmieri. The third line consisted of Mike Cammalleri, Pavel Zacha and P.A. Parenteau. I understand what they are trying to do, but sometimes things need to settle down and gel as there has been a lot of movement on the New Jersey roster over the past year. This to me seems like just throwing stuff against the wall and seeing what sticks. It also doesn’t help that Gross now reported today that Zajac is likely to center Cammalleri and Speers. Like a few teams that are shuffling up their lines, it’s best to stick with the skill players instead of trying to catch lightning in a bottle.
Elite Plays
MIN: None
NJ: None
Secondary Plays
MIN: Zach Parise, Eric Staal, Ryan Suter
NJ: Mike Cammalleri, Kyle Palmieri, Taylor Hall, Travis Zajac, Damon Severson
New York Rangers at Washington Capitals
| New York Rangers | Washington Capitals | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 46-27-9 | 56-18-8 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.84 | 3.00 | 18.60% | 78.20% | Team Stats | 3.02 | 1.25 | 21.90% | 85.20% |
The Rangers have a tough task tonight in this Metropolitan battle in Washington tonight. The Capitals have only given up six goals in four games, so trying to crack Braden Holtby and their tough defense may be more than the Rangers can handle. If there is a chink in the armor, it may be the fact that Washington has given up three goals while a man down in 11 attempts to kill off a penalty. Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Rick Nash comprise both the top line and get the top power play minutes as well. Two of Kreider’s seven points have come via the power play, so maybe he is a one-off GPP play here as it’s very likely the Rangers do not score too many here in Washington. If you are feeling lucky and the Blueshirts break out, the second line that features Derek Stepan and Mats Zuccarello is the GPP play for you. I’d advise against it, but it’s your money. Defensively Ryan McDonagh is the only possible play on the blue line tonight.
While playing a good defensive brand of hockey, it can at times take its toll on the offense, as is the case here. Washington can afford to only score 11 goals in four games as long as they continue to only give up six over the same time frame. The top line that features Alexander Ovechkin and T.J. Oshie is always in play at home as they anchor the top power play unit. Marcus Johansson and Nicklas Backstrom join defenseman John Carlson to complete a power play unit that has connected just twice in 14 attempts. If you want to play fill lines, just add Evgeny Kuznetsov with Ovechkin and Andre Burakovsky with Backstrom. Washington should grab about three goals tonight, and I wouldn’t be surprised if one came via the man advantage.
Elite Plays
NYR: None
WSH: Alexander Ovechkin
Secondary Plays
NYR: Chris Kreider, Ryan McDonagh, Mika Zibanejad
WSH: Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, T.J. Oshie, Marcus Johansson
Columbus Blue Jackets at Dallas Stars
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Dallas Stars | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 34-40-8 | 50-23-9 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.60 | 4.50 | 17.30% | 81.00% | Team Stats | 3.23 | 3.25 | 22.10% | 82.30% |
After almost a week off, the Blue Jackets won a hard fought game last night on home ice against the Chicago Blackhawks. Tonight, they travel to Dallas, and I wouldn’t put too much stock in the back-to-back situation here, since they had all that time off, they should be pretty fresh. Dallas has given up four goals while being short-handed 17 times while the Blue Jackets are now four for seven on the power play after lighting the lamp twice in two tries last night. This looks like a great place to start, especially on the road as it is unclear as to which line the Stars will choose to try and shut down. Cam Atkinson and Oliver Bjorkstrand are decent one-off plays here, as they skate on the first and third lines respectively. Assuming the Stars try to shut down the Atkinson line, we can look to the second line where we find Nick Foligno and Alexander Wennberg leading the team with four points each. Even if the Stars go after this line, it is still okay, as they are joined by defenseman Zachary Werenski to complete the team’s top and successful power play unit. With all this information, I’d be surprised in the Jackets didn’t find the scoresheet with the man advantage tonight.
Dallas comes into this one with a 2-2 record and by all accounts should be able to gain victory tonight at home against a Columbus team that played Chicago at home last night. Columbus isn’t anything special and even without Patrick Sharp and possibly Patrick Eaves, the Stars should be in good shape. Ales Hemsky has been practicing with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin and will no doubt be on the team’s top power play unit if Eaves can’t go. Jason Spezza was moved up to the top line when Eaves was injured during the game, but there’s no doubt he will drop back down to the second line with Antione Roussel. Spezza and defenseman John Klingberg are still in play, as they get the top minutes with the top line when the Stars have the man advantage which has scored three times in 14 attempts.
Elite Plays
CBJ: None
DAL: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg, Zachary Werenski, Nick Foligno, Cam Atkinson, Oliver Bjorkstrand
DAL: John Klingberg, Ales Hemsky
Pittsburgh Penguins at Nashville Predators
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Nashville Predators | ||||||||
 |  | ||||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 48-26-8 | 41-27-14 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.94 | 2.80 | 18.40% | 84.40% | Team Stats | 2.73 | 3.00 | 19.70% | 81.20% |
With Sidney Crosby out of the lineup, the only that is for sure is that Chris Kunitz will skate with Evgeni Malkin and Carl Hagelin will be on a line with Nick Bonino. Bryan Rust started on the Malkin line but was swapped out with Kessel, who was with the Bonino line halfway through the game. With defenseman Kris Letang out of the lineup Justin Schultz took his place on the team’s top power play unit alongside Malkin, Kunitz, Kessel and Patric Hornqvist. They received more than 80 percent of the power play time last year on a team that has tallied five of their 12 goals with the man advantage. With Shea Weber now in Montreal, Nashville may be prone to give up more goals so taking a Penguin or two tonight is not out of the question. Obviously, if Letang returns, he should be considered as well.
Nashville comes home after a 5-3 loss last night desperately needing a win. They are 1-3 so far this season and head coach Peter Laviolette is much like Joel Quenneville in the fact that he likes to shake things up, maybe a bit too soon. He had Calle Jarnkrok with Ryan Johansen and James Neal while the second line featured Mike Ribeiro, Filip Forsberg and Craig Smith as the lines to start the game. According to leftwinglock’s line percentages, it was far from that when it was all over. The only thing that was clear was the fact that Forsberg, Neal, Mike Fisher and defenseman Roman Josi all had over three minutes of power play time. No other forward had more than 70 seconds of ice time while on the man advantage. It’s tough to predict player’s performance when the head coach is unpredictable. In these cases, it’s usually best to stick with the players you think are the skill guys.
UPDATE
The Predators have been calling up minor league players all morning. So far Josi, Neal and Subban seem fine and it’s unclear who else. Pittsburgh may be more of a better play than we previously thought.
Elite Plays
PIT: Evgeni Malkin
NAS: Roman Josi
Secondary Plays
PIT: Chris Kunitz, Phil Kessel, Patric Hornqvist
NSH: Filip Forsberg, Ryan Johansen, James Neal, P.K. Subban, Mike Fisher