The New Jersey Devils have re-signed goaltender Cory Schneider to a multi-year contract.
While the official terms have not been released yet, The Bergen Record reported that the contract is for seven years at $6 million per year.
President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello made it known that signing Schneider was a top priority. He would have been a free agent after the 2014-2015 season.
“With today’s signing, we have solidified our goaltending for the present and the future. Cory demonstrated throughout the year what he could bring to our organization, both on and off the ice,” Lamoriello said.
Last year was Schneider’s first season with the Devils after Vancouver traded him to New Jersey during the 2014 draft. As a backup to goalie Martin Brodeur, Schneider had a 16-15-12 record in 45 games played. He also recorded a 1.97 goals against average, which was third in the league.
For most of his time spent in Vancouver, he split games with goaltender Roberto Luongo. In his five years with Vancouver, he accumulated a 55-26-8 record in his 98 games played.
His 45 games played with NJ last season was a career high. This upcoming season will be the 28-year-old’s first opportunity as an undisputed number one goaltender.
After over 7 years of experience on high-profile sports networks (NESN, NHL Network), NHL Network host Kathryn Tappen has joined the NBC Sports Group. A report was released today regarding the situation. Tappen will now cover some of the biggest events in sports such as Super Bowl XLIX, 2016 Rio Olympics & 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics. Along with her coverage on NBC Sports, she will continue her coverage on the NHL Network on programs such as NHL tonight, the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic, NHL All-Star Game, Stanley Cup Playoffs and Stanley Cup Finals.
Her extensive background in sports reporting will give her the advantage when reporting live from these well-known sports events. Tappen is not an amateur when it comes to NBC Sports, seeing as she was in the studio during the Sochi Winter Olympics and some other instances as well.
Kathryn released a statement saying:
“I’m thrilled to be joining the NBC Sports team and to work on some of the most high-profile events in sports,” said Tappen. “This opportunity represents the best of both worlds as I can continue to work on hockey, including signature events for NHL Network, while also covering sports that I’ve worked on in the past and have had a passion for since childhood, such as the Olympics, the NFL and college football.”
– NHL Network Press Release
Seeing as her record is pretty impeccable, this new gig will probably be a breakaway!
Last year, I remember watching a video of the then-Boston Bruins forward, Tyler Seguin, doing Pilates. It is a rather comical video with this insanely strong man, barely being able to do these seemingly simple moves. The instructor in the video explains to viewers that hockey players, “often get tight in one plane of motion and the other plane is elongated”. She goes on to explain how balancing the two out can quicken the reaction time of the athlete.
After some research, I found that more and more hockey players are beginning to use these Pilates methods. Hockey players spend most of their time in a crouched over position. Because of this, their bodies are extremely imbalanced. The purpose of Pilates, and even yoga is to get the balance back to their bodies. Often, the type of muscle hockey players develop is bulky rather long and lean. Pilates and yoga help create a type of lean muscle due to its focus on stretching and balance.
Some of the main reasons that more and more players are using Pilates have to do with an overpowering strength from other places in their body. Most of the power they generate is out of their quads, and because of this, they subdue the strength coming from muscles like the hamstrings and glutes. Also, a player’s core is typically weak, they specifically show a weakness in their lower core. This is because the muscles in the pelvis area are particularly feeble. The main focus in Pilates is working from the core and building it up.
There are many notable players in the league who attribute Pilates and yoga to their success. This includes Henrik Lundqvist, Tim Thomas, Tyler Seguin and more. Some teams have even decided to implement it into their teams overall workout. These teams include the San Jose Sharks, New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins. I’m sure as the word spreads of the benefits of Pilates and yoga, more and more teams will be jumping on this exercise bandwagon.
According to reports, Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby is to have arthroscopic surgery on right wrist. This surgery will not make him miss any of the upcoming season, but will it affect his performance at all? With the recent team refashion, this season is highly anticipated by critics and fans. Sidney Crosby has all of the weight put on his shoulders, seeing as the captain had a disappointing performance in the playoffs. He racked up a total of 9 points (only 1 goal), after leading the league in points. At the NHL Awards he took home the Ted Lindsay Award for the third time in his career, and the Art Ross Trophy for the second time.
During the season, and even after, Crosby never let on his troubles with his wrist. It was not even reported until Wednesday, when it was said that it is not known how or even when the injury occurred. Surgery is said to be fairly non-invasive, but he will not be able to “play the same way”. We’ll see what this means when it comes to October and the spotlight is shining brightly on #87.
For any player, the spark to ignite one’s love for the game may come from anywhere. Grandparents, parents, friends, or more often than not, the sibling factor. A domino effect of sorts, when one child plays a sport and loves it, the rest will follow — that sentiment rings truer than a puck off the crossbar for the Shore family. With one son making strides between the NHL and AHL in Drew with the Florida Panthers organization, another burning up the AHL with Nick in the Los Angles Kings organization, then Quentin playing NCAA at the University of Denver and an Ottawa Senators draft pick, leaving youngest Baker with large skates to fill; the Shore family has producing hockey talent down to a science.
The desire to compete and get in the game came early, in a similar fashion to most fans of the game; seizing opportunities to play whenever they arose was a lifestyle in Denver. Drew Shore, being the oldest of the Shore brothers, was the first to pave the way for his brothers to follow behind him.
A 23-year-old forward in the Florida Panthers organization, Drew spent three years at the University of Denver before making the jump to the pros. Following his freshman year at Denver, Drew was drafted by the Panthers in the second round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. But playing college hockey so close to home was not an experience he could have passed up.
“That was huge, it was a great experience for me, it was a lot of fun, just being able to play in front of my parents, family, grandparents and friends,” Drew said. “Coach had a big influence on me and I absolutely loved my time there. Playing in college with my brother Nick, that was probably my best hockey experience that the two of us have together.”
Now that he’s moved on to follow his dreams of playing professional hockey, Drew has had the chance to play in front of the fans in Florida. Over the past two seasons, he has racked up 67 NHL games, all with the Panthers, and has 20 points in that time. Although Florida might not be what most people think of as a traditional market, it has a great fan base.
“I think it’s pretty clear that the people in Florida like their team, if you put a good product on the ice they’ll come to the games. It was a tough year, anyone can see that, but the organization is moving in the right direction and we will hopefully surprise a few people,” Drew said. “Hopefully with an improved team and more wins, it will continue to make the hockey more exciting.”
The Florida Panthers are a young team that is continuing to develop. Drew Shore is one of those players that knows he also has to continue to improve his game. He wants to develop into a player that earns a permanent spot on the roster for the Panthers.
“I’m trying to develop into an elite two-way centerman, I think the game well and that enables me to be offensively and defensively responsible at the same time,” Drew said.
The next in the line of the Shore family is Nick Shore, a forward in the Kings system. He spent last season as a rookie playing in the AHL with the Manchester Monarchs. Like his older brother Drew, Nick also left college after two seasons. It was a decision he said Drew helped him with a lot. Even still, the transition is not always seamless.
“I think the most difficult transition coming from college is the lifestyle is a lot different,” Nick said. “You’re not going to class or anything like that. You have a lot more time on your hands which helps because you need that to recover from playing more games.”
During his first season, Nick also suffered an injury to his wrist that kept him out of the lineup. Although it can be hard to come back from an injury, Nick seemed to come back with something to prove. The Monarchs went through a stretch of a lot of injuries and call-ups to LA. After his injury, Nick Shore became one of the players to make the biggest impact going forward.
“That was a little disappointing to be out 9 or 10 games there,” Nick said of his time away from the ice. “We had a transition on the team throughout the year as guys went up (to LA). So your role is going to change and I knew my role would change. You have to take the opportunities and make the most of them.
Overall, Nick Shore has nothing but good things to say about his first season in Manchester. There is something to be said about being part of the LA Kings organization, especially now that they have won the Stanley Cup two out of the last three seasons. That kind of winning culture is sure to trickle down and have an impact on younger players hoping to crack the NHL.
“It’s been great. It’s been a great coaching staff and a great group of guys in the room in Manchester,” Nick said. “Everyone really buys in and we get a lot of help from the entire organization. Anywhere you look, you have someone there to help you out, it’s been great.”
Drew and Nick Shore also took the time to answer some questions about growing up being part of a family of four brothers and how it helped them get to where they are today.
The Pink Puck: What’s your best memory of playing the game from your childhood?
Drew Shore: We were always competitive, we had a bunch of young kids that lived in our neighborhood, so we always played street hockey growing up. We probably spent countless hours every weekend doing that with roller blades on.
Nick Shore: Growing up having three brothers that all skated was great. We’re all over the place now but any time we’re back in the summers, it’s always really fun to skate with all of them. I had the opportunity to play with Drew and with Quentin at school so that was really cool.
TPP: How did having brothers with similar ambitions help develop your game?
DS: It was awesome, growing up in a family of four boys, everyone always had someone to play the game with, we obviously all loved hockey. It was easy to find a brother to go to the rink with or shoot pucks in the backyard and have fun while doing it. That made it a lot easier.
NS: It helped a lot to have brothers with my same ambitions. Obviously my older brother was the first one to play and he sort of got me into the game. So I was able to learn a lot from him. He’s helped me more than anyone. It’s the same thing with my two younger brothers so we’re all able to push each other.
TPP: How did your family as a whole help you get to where you are today?
DS: Our parents were huge in getting us where we are today. With four boys who all played hockey it was very competitive, especially at the youth level now, so they had to run us to countless rinks at 5 in the morning, take us to a bunch of places and tournaments in places that aren’t exactly vacation destinations. We’ve played all over the world, including Europe and places like that, they were great. I don’t think any of my brothers or myself would be where we are today without their support and help.
NS: Our family has just been great from the beginning. From a young age we’ve all been really into hockey and loved the game. From that it’s grown since we were little kids and we’re all hoping to keep going.
TPP: How would you describe each other’s style of play?
DS: I think Nick is someone who sees the game very well, he’s an elite passer, he’s someone who, if I was a winger, I would love to play with. He has a vision and hockey sense that just keeps growing.
NS: I try to watch Drew as much as I can, he’s a really good player and I look up to him a lot. I think he does a lot of really good things on the ice. I try to take some of things I think he does best and put them in my own game.
TPP: How would you describe your younger brother Quentin’s style of play?
DS: He’s developed a lot this year, he had a good year, with a lot of accomplishments — he made the World Junior team, it was well deserved. As he continues to get stronger and fills out his frame, he has a lot of potential. The main thing, he’s a really hard worker and loves the game. I have no doubt that he will be just as successful as us.
NS: I think Quentin is a little more similar to how I play compared to Drew. He just finished up his sophomore year at Denver and we’re looking for good things to come. Denver is doing great things right now.”
TPP: What’s the best piece of advice your brother has given you?
DS: We lean on each other a lot, we talk pretty much daily, all three of us actually, I tend to spend the most time talking to Nick, because we are in a similar situation. We just tell each other to stick with it, there’s a lot of things in this game, especially being young guys that are out of our control, I’ve really tried to focus on getting better everyday. I think if I take that approach, in the long run, we will be successful. We tend to reiterate that to each other and sometimes it’s easier than others, but we’re there for each other and it’s always good.
NS: I think from a young age we’ve all just liked the game so much and always had fun with it. I don’t know if any of us expected when we started that it would take us to where we are today. So we all tell each other just to remember to have fun with it and work hard every day. You just always have to do your best.
TPP: If your brother wasn’t playing hockey, what do you think he would be doing?
DS: Nick would like to think he’d be a professional in some other sport, but I don’t know what he would be doing. I think he would be trying to play some other sport.
NS: That’s a hard one because we’ve all been playing since we can remember. But he had the opportunity to go to school and work on a degree so I’m sure it would have to be something with that.
The Shore brothers are definitely a family to watch going forward. This coming season, Drew Shore will hope to make his role on the Florida Panthers a permanent one. He is on the last year of his entry level contract and is fresh off an appearance in the World Championship for the US this offseason. Nick Shore will likely be in Manchester for his second season with the Kings roster seeming to be mostly locked up. Quentin Shore will be returning to the University of Denver for his junior season, coming off an impressive run during his sophomore season. The youngest Shore, Baker, is not yet old enough to be starting school. But, one would have to assume, when it comes time, he will follow the family footsteps and also go to Denver.
I came across an article this week which made me wonder about amateur hockey players, their parents, and how far officials will go.
There is a growing problem concerning physical and verbal abuse against referees who officiate amateur hockey in Canada and the United States. I read about referees getting punched, things thrown on them, body parts getting broken, and a lot of verbal abuse. Last month a ref was punched into unconsciousness in Canada for doing his $35 a game job.
Sports Officials Canada, who represent sport officials, has begun to track incidents in parking lots after games. That is right, refs have been hurt after the game, in the darkness of the arena’s parking lot. Who does that? Their goal is to start-up the abuse database. The U.S. National Association of Sports Officials spends around 20% of their time on abuse issues. This is up by 3% in the last 20 years. What is happening out there? Why are we getting more violent? Are we getting more violent, or are we just hearing more about these incidents?
I always thought that it was the parents of the players who got mad at the referees. You hear horror stories of a parent who didn’t like it when a referee called their kid off the ice. Those are parents with little kids, which is still no excuse. It’s the older players who can cause bodily damage to the refs. Where is the spirit of the game?
I don’t know the future of the game but it can go two ways: 1) It just gets more abusive or 2) it gets less abusive. Do we want the game to be full of black and blue officials on the ice ($35 will not be enough), or do we want a game full of fun where we teach our kids how to respect people?
For players the off season is a time to become better, faster and stronger. There isn’t really much of a break. But for fans? It means insufferable heat and waiting around til October finally rolls back in. Pink Puck TV’s summer series “How to Survive the Offseason” is here to give you a few little helping hands to make it until the next puck drop with some of your sanity. We know we are always looking for something to do and these are some of the things we like to do to pass the time. Offseason doesn’t have to be torture!
Have your own ways to keep busy during the offseason? Let us know! You can tweet us (@thepinkpuck), find us on Facebook, or send us an email.
With the NHL Awards and Draft over and the “Free Agent Frenzy” period calmed down to a dull roar, the main focus for the NHL has become addressing individual players’ salaries while finding a way for teams to fit under this year’s $69 million salary cap.
For some players, this financial tug-of-war has led them to file for salary arbitration. Basically, if a player (specifically, an RFA) disagrees with his current salary for the upcoming season and feels he should earn more money, he and his team can each propose an amount and argue their cases at a hearing. The deadline for filing arbitration was July 5th, and the hearings come later in the summer, generally at the end of July and into August. During the hearings, a neutral third party listens to each side and then tries to find a happy medium and settle the player’s salary. If both the player and his team agree on this amount, problem solved. If not, the player may become an unrestricted free agent. Either way, a final decision must be made within 48 hours of the hearing’s conclusion.
(Of course, if the salary can be settled before the hearing, both sides can save themselves the trouble of having to go through the entire arbitration process. There’s plenty more to focus on in the offseason, after all.)
Twenty players have filed for salary arbitration for this upcoming season. And with the salary cap set lower than expected for 2014-15, the hockey world could see some fairly big moves in the next few weeks.
Head Coach Troy Mann is leaving the ECHL Bakersfield Condors to accept the head coaching position in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Hershey Bears. Hershey is the AHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Washington Capitals.
Mann, 44, earns the promotion after a memorable lone season at the helm of the Condors, posting a 36-30-0-6 record and taking the team into the conference finals for the first time in team history. The Condors went 35-20-0-5 after Thanksgiving to overcome a poor start and post one of the best records in the league for the rest of the season.
The New Brunswick native returns to the AHL, this time as the head coach of the team with which he spent four campaigns, from 2009-13. Mann was an assistant coach with the Bears during that time, winning a Calder Cup in 2010 and helping the club post 180 victories in four seasons. The 2013-14 Condors season was the first as a head coach for Mann since 2007-08, when he coached the Columbia Inferno. In each of his last two seasons as a head coach, he has guided his ECHL clubs into the third round of the playoffs. He was the first Condors head coach to have played for the team, having spent part of the 2000-01 season with the team.
“Thank you to Jonathon Fleisig, the Edmonton Oilers, Matt Riley, John Olver and the entire Condors staff for providing me with the opportunity to work in Condorstown,” said Mann. “It has been a pleasure to be a part of one of the premier organizations in the ECHL. It is bittersweet to depart, but this is an opportunity that I have been working towards my entire coaching career. I wish the organization nothing but the best moving forward.”
Condors’ President Matthew Riley said in a statement, “Troy is on the fast track. He is a great coach and a great person. We wish we could have had him here longer of course, but we’re grateful we could be a part of his journey, and in just one season he has had a tremendous impact on our organization. We wish him and Lori all the best.”
Mann has left for Pennslyvania and will be introduced on Thursday officially as the Head Coach of the Hershey Bears.
One of the three Lightning Free Agent Signings on July 1st was that of goaltender Evengi Nabokov who played in 40 games with the New York Islanders last season. Nabokov had a 15-14-8 record with 4 shutouts, a .905 save percentage, and a 2.74 goals-against average. He led the Islanders for games played, wins, GAA, save percentage, and shutouts.
A native of Kemenogorsk, Kazakhstan, the thirty-eight year old is one of the most established goalies in the NHL. He has played in 686 career games split between the Islanders and the San Jose Sharks. He has an all-time record of 350-221-98, a .912 save percentage, 2.43 GAA, and 59 shutouts.
Drafted 219th overall in the 1994 Entry Draft, Nabokov went on to be a Vezina Trophy finalist (2007-08), and played in 86 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. In the postseason he has a 42-42 record with seven shutouts, a .908 save percentage, and 2.43 GAA.
Rangers’ Brian Boyle
The Lightning also have signed center Brian Boyle to a three-year contract. Standing in at 6-foot-7 and weighing in at a hefty 244-pounds, he played in all 82 games with the New York Rangers last season and netted six goals and 18 points with a plus-1 rating. The bruiser was second on the team with 154 hits and second among the forwards with 500 draws taken in the face-off circle, winning 52.9%.
The Hingham, Massachusetts native also played in all 25 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Rangers, and helped them to the Finals. Throughout the postseason he notched three goals and eight points.
Selected 26th overall by the Kings in the 2003 Entry Draft, he has played in 391 career NHL games between the Rangers and the Kings, racking up 52 goals, 100 points, and 311 penalty minutes. Prior to becoming a free agent, Boyle played five seasons in New York.
(source: FullTilt)
Rounding out the three signings on the day, was that of defensemen Anton Stralman, who was signed to a five-year contract.
The Tibro, Sweden native spent the previous three seasons with Brian Boyle and the New York Rangers. Last season he recorded a goal and 13 points to go along with a plus-9 rating in 81 games. He averaged 19:24 in ice time per game, ranking fourth on the team. Stralman ranked third on the team with his 104 shots on goal and 12 assists.
The 5-foot-11, 190 pound defensemen played in all 25 postseason games with the Rangers and recorded five assists, averaged 21:03 in ice time, and ended with a plus-4 rating.
Drafted 216th overall in 2005, he has gone on to play in 394 career NHL games split between the Rangers, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Toronto Maple Leafs. In his seven-year NHL career, he has amassed 18 goals, 112 points, and 159 penalty minutes. He has a combined plus-32 rating in the previous three seasons in New York. In his career he has also played in 55 Stanley Cup Playoff games, all with the Rangers in the last three seasons. Over that time he has three goals and 11 points.
into the conference finals for the first time in team history. The Condors went 35-20-0-5 after Thanksgiving to overcome a poor start and post one of the best records in the league for the rest of the season.
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