It’s been a week of heavy and questionable hits in the NHL, the most recent recipient, Anaheim Ducks forward Dustin Penner. During last evenings contest against Dallas, Stars Ryan Garbutt left Penner laid out on the ice. In a scary few moments where it was unclear if Penner would even get up, he gingerly made it to his skates and was helped off the ice with the assistance of teammates.
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Earlier in the week, San Jose Sharks Dan Boyle was hit from behind by St. Louis Blues Maxim Lapierre. NHL Department of Player Safety rightfully suspended the Blues forward 5 games.
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Adding to the hit list for the week, Avalanche forward Cody McLeod checking Red Wings Niklas Kronwall from behind. McLeod, like Lapierre was also suspended 5 games.
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Many hope that the hits don’t keep coming, but if this week in the NHL is any indication, that hope sadly isn’t a probable one.
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Stamkos
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Penn
Steven Stamkos is known for lighting the lamp in Tampa Bay and across the league, his NHL Celebrity Look-a-Like Sean Penn has been a Hollywood staple for years now. We know the age difference between the two is drastic, but a quick search of “young Sean Penn” will have you doing a double take for the NHL superstar!
We all love charitable endeavors and Sharks Brent Burns is finally giving us a reason to love his caveman appearance as of late.
SAN JOSE – Sharks Right Wing Brent Burns (@Burnzie88), who most recently has been recognizable by his untamed hair and mountain-man beard, today announced “Burnzie’s Buzzcut for Charity.” In an effort to raise donations to support Defending the Blue Line and the Katie Moore Foundation, Burns is going to allow one of his teammates to give him a buzz cut and shave his beard on Nov. 1. From now until October 31, the Sharks Foundation will be accepting donations with the goal of raising $5,000 for each of these worthwhile charities. Fans who donate $50 or more will receive a signed “before/after” photo of Burns, while the Top 3 donors will have the chance to meet Brent and witness the shaving in person. Giving totals will be updated daily on the Sharks Foundation’s website and Facebookand Instagram accounts so fans can track the progress of this special fundraiser.
For more information, visit www.sharksfoundation.org
Photo: Sharks
ABOUT DEFENDING THE BLUE LINE
Defending the Blue Line’s (DTBL) mission is ensuring that children of military members are afforded every opportunity to participate in the game of hockey. We accomplish this by providing free equipment for military kids, hockey camps, special events, and financial assistance for registration fees and other costs associated with hockey. Thanks to the generosity of our NHL partners, including Brent Burns, game tickets are made available for military kids during the season. To date, over 2500 tickets to pro, semi pro, and collegiate hockey games have been given away to deserving families. To learn more about DTBL, visitwww.defendingtheblueline.org.
ABOUT THE KATIE MOORE FOUNDATION
The Katie Moore Foundation (KMF) was founded by former Sharks athlete Dominic Moore following the passing of his wife, Katie, due to a rare liver cancer. The KMF is committed to funding research to advance cancer care and providing resources and hope to individuals and families battling rare diseases. For more information, visit www.KatieMoore.org.
ABOUT THE SHARKS FOUNDATION
The Sharks Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the lives of youth and families in our community. Through the generosity of our athletes, front office staff, corporate partners and fans, the Sharks Foundation has donated $1M over the past two seasons and nearly $7M since our inception in 1994. As role models, we are committed to giving back to the community that so strongly supports us. To learn more about how the Sharks Foundation is helping tens of thousands of underserved children and families in our community, visit www.SharksFoundation.org.
Over the summer, the Ontario Reign (currently affiliated with the Los Angeles Kings) brought on an additional affiliation with the Winnipeg Jets in which they received the following players from the Jets/Ice Caps: Defensemen Cody Sol and Zach Bell; forwards Yassin Cisse, Zach O’Brien; and goaltender Michael Hutchinson. They also received defenseman Alex Roach and goaltender Matthias Niederberger from the Manchester Monarchs. All players mentioned above, except Niederberger and O’Brien made their team debut at the home opener.
The defending Pacific Division Champions opened their season at home on Saturday night against division rival the Bakersfield Condors. Prior to the game starting, the Reign introduced their 2013-2014 roster (which can be found here).
An enthusiastic crowd loudly greeted the unveiling of the banner with cheers and whistles. The antsy crowd was buzzing with anticipation prior to puck drop, hoping to see the Reign win their first ever season/home opener (they have won their season opener in prior years, but since they came in 2008, they have not a season opener at home). The Reign got their first chance to put the Condors in a hole less than two minutes in when Gary Steffes took a hooking penalty. They were unable to convert on the power play but kept up excellent pressure. They were rewarded for their hard work just about five minutes later when second year forward Mario Lamoureux managed to sneak the puck past Bakersfield goaltender Paul Karpowich.
Just four minutes later, Bakersfield center Nicholas Tremblay took a tripping minor. This time, the Reign were able to convert on the man advantage and rookie Matt White potted his first goal of the season. The Condors took yet another penalty right after White scored but were able to hold off the Reign on their third PP opportunity of the night.
The second period was similar to first with excellent pressure by the Reign, who spent the vast majority of the period in the Condors’ zone. Credit to Karpowich for standing tall, though. He made some great saves on the PK and on a few of the Reign’s shorthanded bids. He kept his team’s hopes for a win alive with his stellar play and calm net presence.
The third period was a little more even between the two teams, especially as the Reign took several penalties and gave the Condors a couple 5-on-3 opportunities. Almost midway into the final frame, Matt White scored his second goal of the season to officially put the game out of the Condors’ reach.
Backstopping the Reign to victory was Michael Hutchinson, who made his season debut. Hutchinson was not extensively tested throughout the game, but came up big when he called upon, successfully shutting out a tough Condors team. He was named second star of the game (Matt White being first).
The Ontario Reign will be in Stockton on Wednesday, October 23 and return home on the 25th when they host the Florida Everblades. Visit their website at ontarioreign.com to purchase tickets or see the entire schedule for the season.
All photos belong to Dinur Blum.
By Jen D’Amico
In front of 13,000+ screaming fans, the Ducks brought their winning streak to six Friday, the first time in club history the team has won six of its first seven contests. Goalie Jonas Hiller remains undefeated this season and is tied with Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask for the league record with a .954 save percentage, while Teemu Selanne scored his 450th goal in orange and black. This was the first matchup of the season for the Ducks and Coyotes, which includes former Duck Kyle Chipchura.
Selanne puts the boys on the board early in the first with a slider, making his 677th career goal look as easy as the first. Ducks kill the first power play with Cogliano in the box for slashing, and then lose Winnik with thirty seconds to the close of the first with an ugly blood-drawing high stick to the face by Coyotes Yandle.
The second starts with 3:31 of power play time on the board and Winnik back on the ice with a visor, but the Ducks come up empty. Vermette gets his revenge on Hiller after a short-sided glove save in the first to score the first for the Coyotes to tie it up, just seconds after Ducks are full strength from a Vatanen tripping penalty. The Ducks are unable to answer back, and the second closes with a 1-1 score.
The third looked a bit desperate for the Ducks who needed a point for the win. A call for too many men and a slashing call shortly after were followed up by a Coyotes goal to bring it to 2-1 Phoenix. With 2:01 left, Ducks Bonino flings it to the net, barely missing teammate Penner’s head, for a last minute unassisted goal to tie it up.
Overtime proves unfruitful for either team, and the game moves into shootout. Bonino channeled his prowess from last season’s playoffs to sink the first fifth period goal. Each team equally answers back and brings it to a sixth shooter. Silfverberg makes his first SO goal as a Duck, and Hiller shuts down Doan for a 3-2 Ducks win.
“No Matter how ugly it is, we battled back and got one late and were able to win a long shootout,” said Bonino. “We’ll take wins like this every day, two point is two points.”
The Ducks finish their homestand tonight against Dallas, looking to bring their streak to seven before hitting the road for a grueling eight straight games. They will join many other NHL teams during the month of October with the evening serving as Hockey Fights Cancer Night presented by Loma Linda University Health.
“Obviously Dallas is a great team,” said Emerson Etem at Saturday’s practice. “We need to get a lot of shots, play a simple game, make sure we don’t turn it over at both lines and play a simple game”.
Ducks Goalie Viktor Fasth is still out due to injury. Hiller will start looking to improve his already stellar record.
I have finally found a hairstyle that I love! It’s cute, it’s feminine, it’s not boring like a ponytail, and it keeps my massively long mane out of mine and everyone else’s way while I’m watching the Kings play at Staples Center. Even better its the perfect (and super simple) hairdo for the transition from 80 degree LA weather (yes, even still at the end of October) to cold ice hockey rink. And once LA realizes it’s almost supposed to be winter, this super cute style will keep my hair in place when the wind picks up and if the clouds decide to drop down some rain. So what is it you ask?? Well it’s non other than the sock bun!
The first step is preparing the sock to be used. The second is to put your hair in a ponytail then create the bun. These picture tutorials should help.
Now if you’d like you can be done and you have a cute simple hairdo, but I usually incorporate a third step where I accessorize with bows or pins for an added flare. I have long bangs so I usually leave them out then pin them around the bun, then I add one of the Kings inspired bows that a friend made me so I can cheer on my team in style. I always get compliments on my choice of bow (I’ve bought quite a few from her) and the style. You can’t lose with this one!!
And here I am ready for the game!
Last night the Worcester Sharks kicked off their home season and hosted the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. It was only second game of the season for the Sharks when almost every other team in their conference has played 4-6 games. Unfortunately for Sharks fans, the final score was not the end they hoped for.
The Sharks are no strangers to slugging it out game after game. During the 2011-2012 season, they led the league with 120 fighting majors during the regular season. It looks like fans could see a return to that. Although the Penguins are not a team the Sharks see a lot, it was less than two minutes into the game when the first fight broke out. Worcester’s Curt Gogol and Wilkes-Barre’s Reid McNeill broke away from a scrum following Gogol’s hit and squared off. Gogol got an extra two minutes for boarding.
Just 9 seconds later, still within the first two minutes of the game, another fight broke out. This one also started because of a hit, by the Penguins instead, and seemed to take awhile to sort out. Fists seemed to be flying everywhere as the officials struggled to restore order. The end result was a weird mix of penalties. Sharks forward Bracken Kearns ended up with a fight major, an instigating minor, and a 10 minute instigating misconduct for 17 minute in penalties. Penguins forward Brian Gibbons got 5 for fighting while Tom Kuhnhackl got a 10 minute misconduct for continuing a fight.
Those 46 minutes in penalties would be all for the period as the focus shifted to trying to build some offense. It was the Sharks to capitalize first in their home opener. Second year forward Freddie Hamilton put one past Penguins goalie Peter Mannino with assists to Brodie Reid and Rylan Schwartz. Hamilton was one of the last cuts out of San Jose and is looking to get that call up and into his first NHL game. The Sharks took the 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
When the teams came back to start the second period, it was clear that tensions were still running high. Veteran enforcers Jimmy Bonneau and Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond lined up next to each other on the face-off. Before the puck even dropped, the pair agreed to square off. With the new rule, in addition to fighting majors, each also got two minute penalties for taking off their helmets. Bonneau is back for his third season with Worcester while Leblond is in his first with the Penguins.
Although the scored remained with the Sharks leading 1-0 throughout the entire second period, Leblond was not done fighting. He dropped the gloves again, this time fighting Sharks defenseman Taylor Doherty. Leblond definitely has the edge in fighting experience, but at 6’7, Doherty was able to hold his own.
By the time the teams skated out for the final period, they seemed to have gotten the fighting out of their system. Rookie Tom Kuhnhackl beat Worcester goalie Harri Sateri at 1:48 of the third to tie up the game. But, the Sharks were not tied for long. Defenseman Sena Acolatse skated the puck down, stepping into the action and circled behind the net. He made a beautiful pass to John McCarthy in front of the net and McCarthy was able to put it home for his first of the season.
That was where the luck would run out for Worcester, though. At 12:48, Andrew Ebbett scored to tie the game up at 2. It looked like the Sharks might be able to hold on and force the game into overtime. Sharks defenseman Matt Tennyson went off for hooking at it proved to be too much for the Sharks. Kuhnhackl scored his second of the game at 19:40 while still on the power play giving the Penguins their first lead of the game. Despite pulling their goalie for the extra attacker, the Sharks were not able to come back.
The Worcester Sharks are back in action this afternoon as they host the Portland Pirates at 5pm. They will continue to search for their first win of the season. This is the first of twelve meetings between the Sharks and the Pirates. Being division rivals, tensions can sometimes run high so it will be interesting to see what this season holds.
The Stockton Thunder opened the season demonstrating why they raised the 2012-13 Western Conference Championship Banner to the rafters as they rolled over the Colorado Eagles in a 5-0 Shutout victory. It took only 30 seconds for the first goal to be scored in the game. Captain Garet Hunt captured a feed from Ryan Constant to put the Stockton Thunder on the board first. Then the fists began to fly after Stockton swarmed the Colorado net. Thunder’s Mathieu Gagnon dropped the gloves on the Eagles’ Alex Hudson. As the first period reached the halfway mark, the big hits by both teams ramped up and Colorado tallied its first shot on goal during a power play opportunity it failed to capitalize on. Ryan Constant delivered a number of board rattling hip checks throughout the period. Bridgeport product, Kirill Kabanov ripped one past Eagles’ netminder Trevor Cann to tally another for the Thunder. Colorado would draw a penalty and Brayden Irwin would put the puck behind Cann on the power play pushing the score to 3-0 at the end of the first. The Thunder dominated the play and Colorado generated very little offense, struggling to maintain puck possession in the neutral zone.
The second period showed the Thunder continue to dominate and the frustration build for the Eagles. The ice became a boxing arena as sticks and gloves went flying for much of the middle frame. Stockton would go on the power play after Colorado was called for delay of game and Mike Keenan wasted no time and took a slap shot from the point to rifle in past Cann, putting the Thunder up another goal and Colorado deeper in the hole. The Eagles would put Adam Brown in net for the remainder of the game. Mathieu Gagnon would again find himself in a tussle with Colorado’s Alex Hudson while Stockton’s Corey Trivino and Mike Dalhuisen would join in the extra curriculars. Before the second period came to a close, Stockton found itself on the power play once again and the Thunder would score it’s third power play goal of the evening when Mike Dalhuisen took a pass from Kabanov to find the back of the net, 5-0.
Colorado, desperate to get on the board, turned up the pressure in the third, but the Thunder’s goaltender Brian Foster stuffed everything that was thrown his way. Colorado’s Trent Daavettila and Kevin Young circled the net, looking for any opening but could not find it as the clock ticked down. Thunder Coach Rich Kromm was pleased with his teams’ play and likes what the new players Kabanov, Dalhuisen, and Gagnon bring to the ice.
“We have some very physical players, Dalhuisen is a very physical player, Gagnon, that’s his game, he plays that way and he showed that tonight. I thought overall as a group we were physical tonight.”
Kirill Kabanov, who had 1 goal, 1 assist and a fight at the end of the 1st period enjoyed the physical play. He said “We sent a message, we played our way, like it says on our door and the guys stood up for each other tonight.”
Brian Foster stopped 29 shots for a shutout performance over the Eagles.
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