Latest news with #4NationsFace-off
Vancouver Sun
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Vancouver Sun
Oilers notebook: Playoff rivals, McDavid and Reinhart named to Canada's Olympic team; Kane needs to step up in Hyman's absence
Edmonton Oilers ' captain Connor McDavid , of course, headlined the first six players named to the 2026 Canadian Olympic team along with mentor Sidney Crosby, Norris trophy winner Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Brayden Point and Florida Panthers' rival Sam Reinhart. It'll be the first time McDavid has played in the Olympics in his 10 NHL seasons. 'Incredibly honoured to represent my country at the biggest sporting event in the world,' said McDavid, who did get to play at the 4Nations Face-off in February against the United States, Sweden and Finland, so he got a taste of best-on-best, but without the Russians, who won't be taking part in the Olympics in Italy, either. 'You think of the Canadian players that can be named to that Olympic team, and to be selected again (after the 4Nations), it means a lot, obviously,' he said. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. But, that's then, and this is now, before Game 6 against Panthers. 'We're looking forward at what we have right in front of us. That's a heckuva opportunity to go and win a (Stanley Cup Final) game,' said McDavid. McDavid's Oilers sidekick Leon Draisaitl, who'll likely wear the C in Italy for Germany, was a slam-dunk on their first six selections. So was forward Tim Stutzle and defenceman Moritz Seider. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer, Lukas Reichel and Florida's centre Nico Sturm, an extra for Panthers, were the others. Reinhart is part of the Panthers top line with captain Aleksander Barkov (selected for Finnish Olympic team), tasked with trying to limit McDavid's damage in the Final. But, Reinhart, who has played 311 games over the past three seasons with regular-season (246 games) and all the playoff contests with Panthers in their third straight Cup Final, was a teammate of McDavid at the 4 Nations, too. What did he learn about McDavid, the teammate? 'His speed speaks for itself. I don't know if I'm ever going to get there, so there was not much I picked up from that standpoint,' said Reinhart, with a smirk. 'But to be able to see that first-hand, we always joke that even stepping on the ice for practice, he's going faster than anyone two seconds from being on the ice. Faster than I've ever gone in my life. Stuff like that is cool to see. 'You also appreciate the level of work that he puts in to be able to do that on a daily basis, and just the competitive level he has, that's pretty neat to see as well.' With Zach Hyman sorely missed because of his wrist surgery, the Oilers were counting on Evander Kane to provide some goals and assists in the Final. But the only place he's been on the stats sheet, apart from one game, is penalties. Clearly they need more from Kane, who was hobbled in last year's Final with his hernia issues. But he's healthy now, and yet has one foot in coach Kris Knoblauch's doghouse as a fourth-liner in Game 5. He has 12 points overall (11 even-strength) but he's been too quiet against Florida. His best game of the series was Game 2 when he had a goal and an assist and eight hits. He doesn't have a point in the other four games. And he's taken some ill-timed penalties that weren't of the aggressive variety. 'The physicality is obviously there. You see it in every fore-check, making some big hits. That's important,' said Knoblauch. 'But like our team, he needs to take fewer penalties. He's been quiet for awhile but if he gets an opportunity, he's dangerous to score. That's an element Evander's always brought. It's a tight-checking game and there's not many chances, but having a guy like that in your lineup, you'd like some offensive contributions.' Knoblauch is having to fend off repeated questions about who's in his net — Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard. It'll likely be Skinner in Game 6 even if he won't say publicly. Meanwhile Sergei Bobrovsky has played every single minute of the 22 Florida Panthers playoff games this spring. Bob is the ultimate plug-and-play goalie. Doesn't get hurt, doesn't come out of games. His backup Vitek Vanecek may as well be in the witness protection program except for those pre-game Vanecek staredowns with Skinner in warmups so we know he exists. The Oilers have gotten to Bobrovsky for 16 goals in the first five games of the Final, so he's far from perfect, but he remains the Panthers safety net. 'Bob's totally underappreciated, even taken for granted by us, I guess, because he's so consistent with his game,' said Florida coach Paul Maurice. 'If one gets by him that he doesn't like, it has nothing to do with what's going to happen next. His ability to focus is trained. Or maybe it's a talent, I don't know. There's a calmness that comes with Sergei that spreads throughout the team.' Panthers' pest Matthew Tkachuk, who was hurt at the 4 Nations Faceoff tournament in February, wasn't sure if he would be ready for the playoffs. He got in a few late-season games, but clearly struggled. He's not a great skater at the best of times, but here he is with 22 points. 'I didn't know if I was going to come back at the start. I thought there was maybe a 50 per cent chance. Very fortunate I've got great trainers and doctors here. I kind of found out, day of first game (against Tampa), honestly and the first round was definitely the worst I've felt by far,' said Tkachuk. Once again, the injured Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (undisclosed) took a full practice off but Knoblauch says he'll play Game 6. Maurice on trying to navigate this past regular season after the Cup win high from last June. 'It wasn't easy. We were in a party mode early, things we had to deal with, ring ceremony, stuff like that. So trying to figure out is like your kids when they're like 15: how much is it they're an asshole because they're 15 and how much of it they're just learning? That was inappropriate (family) but that's exactly the way you feel,' said Maurice. Brad Marchand was one of the first six Canadian players named to the 4 Nations Faceoff tournament, but even with his Conn Smythe credentials in the playoffs, the Florida winger will have his nose pressed up against the glass to see if he's in Italy at 37. One of the enduring Stanley Cup Final storylines: Marchand and his third-line teammates Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen, are taking it to the Oilers third line of Adam Henrique, Trent Frederic and fill in the blanks on the other wing in this Final. Marchand and Lundell have six points, Luostarinen five, so 17 total. Henrique has one assist, Frederic no points. Kasperi Kapanen's NHL veteran dad Sami travelled from Finland to see his son play in Game 5 at Rogers Place, only to have the Oilers winger be a healthy scratch. Certainly a tough story but Kasperi could be back in for Game 6 in Florida. It was difficult to figure out the lines Monday because Vasily Podkolzin was a place-holder for Nugent-Hopkins on the top line with Connor McDavid and Connor Brown so we'll see how it shakes out Tuesday. He could be back in for Viktor Arvidsson. Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters . You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post, and 13 other Canadian news sites. The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun
Ottawa Citizen
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Ottawa Citizen
Oilers notebook: Playoff rivals, McDavid and Reinhart named to Canada's Olympic team; Kane needs to step up in Hyman's absence
Article content Edmonton Oilers ' captain Connor McDavid, of course, headlined the first six players named to the 2026 Canadian Olympic team along with mentor Sidney Crosby, Norris trophy winner Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Brayden Point and Florida Panthers' rival Sam Reinhart. Article content It'll be the first time McDavid has played in the Olympics in his 10 NHL seasons. Article content Article content 'Incredibly honoured to represent my country at the biggest sporting event in the world,' said McDavid, who did get to play at the 4Nations Face-off in February against the United States, Sweden and Finland, so he got a taste of best-on-best, but without the Russians, who won't be taking part in the Olympics in Italy, either. Article content Article content 'You think of the Canadian players that can be named to that Olympic team, and to be selected again (after the 4Nations), it means a lot, obviously,' he said. Article content Article content But, that's then, and this is now, before Game 6 against Panthers. Article content 'We're looking forward at what we have right in front of us. That's a heckuva opportunity to go and win a (Stanley Cup Final) game,' said McDavid. Article content McDavid's Oilers sidekick Leon Draisaitl, who'll likely wear the C in Italy for Germany, was a slam-dunk on their first six selections. So was forward Tim Stutzle and defenceman Moritz Seider. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer, Lukas Reichel and Florida's centre Nico Sturm, an extra for Panthers, were the others. Article content Reinhart is part of the Panthers top line with captain Aleksander Barkov (selected for Finnish Olympic team), tasked with trying to limit McDavid's damage in the Final. Article content Article content But, Reinhart, who has played 311 games over the past three seasons with regular-season (246 games) and all the playoff contests with Panthers in their third straight Cup Final, was a teammate of McDavid at the 4 Nations, too. Article content Article content What did he learn about McDavid, the teammate? Article content 'His speed speaks for itself. I don't know if I'm ever going to get there, so there was not much I picked up from that standpoint,' said Reinhart, with a smirk. 'But to be able to see that first-hand, we always joke that even stepping on the ice for practice, he's going faster than anyone two seconds from being on the ice. Faster than I've ever gone in my life. Stuff like that is cool to see. Article content With Zach Hyman sorely missed because of his wrist surgery, the Oilers were counting on Evander Kane to provide some goals and assists in the Final. But the only place he's been on the stats sheet, apart from one game, is penalties. Clearly they need more from Kane, who was hobbled in last year's Final with his hernia issues. But he's healthy now, and yet has one foot in coach Kris Knoblauch's doghouse as a fourth-liner in Game 5.
Calgary Herald
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Calgary Herald
Oilers notebook: Playoff rivals, McDavid and Reinhart named to Canada's Olympic team; Kane needs to step up in Hyman's absence
Article content Edmonton Oilers ' captain Connor McDavid, of course, headlined the first six players named to the 2026 Canadian Olympic team along with mentor Sidney Crosby, Norris trophy winner Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Brayden Point and Florida Panthers' rival Sam Reinhart. Article content It'll be the first time McDavid has played in the Olympics in his 10 NHL seasons. Article content 'Incredibly honoured to represent my country at the biggest sporting event in the world,' said McDavid, who did get to play at the 4Nations Face-off in February against the United States, Sweden and Finland, so he got a taste of best-on-best, but without the Russians, who won't be taking part in the Olympics in Italy, either. Article content Article content 'You think of the Canadian players that can be named to that Olympic team, and to be selected again (after the 4Nations), it means a lot, obviously,' he said. Article content Article content But, that's then, and this is now, before Game 6 against Panthers. Article content 'We're looking forward at what we have right in front of us. That's a heckuva opportunity to go and win a (Stanley Cup Final) game,' said McDavid. Article content McDavid's Oilers sidekick Leon Draisaitl, who'll likely wear the C in Italy for Germany, was a slam-dunk on their first six selections. So was forward Tim Stutzle and defenceman Moritz Seider. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer, Lukas Reichel and Florida's centre Nico Sturm, an extra for Panthers, were the others. Article content Reinhart is part of the Panthers top line with captain Aleksander Barkov (selected for Finnish Olympic team), tasked with trying to limit McDavid's damage in the Final. Article content Article content But, Reinhart, who has played 311 games over the past three seasons with regular-season (246 games) and all the playoff contests with Panthers in their third straight Cup Final, was a teammate of McDavid at the 4 Nations, too. Article content Article content What did he learn about McDavid, the teammate? Article content 'His speed speaks for itself. I don't know if I'm ever going to get there, so there was not much I picked up from that standpoint,' said Reinhart, with a smirk. 'But to be able to see that first-hand, we always joke that even stepping on the ice for practice, he's going faster than anyone two seconds from being on the ice. Faster than I've ever gone in my life. Stuff like that is cool to see. Article content 'You also appreciate the level of work that he puts in to be able to do that on a daily basis, and just the competitive level he has, that's pretty neat to see as well.' Article content With Zach Hyman sorely missed because of his wrist surgery, the Oilers were counting on Evander Kane to provide some goals and assists in the Final. But the only place he's been on the stats sheet, apart from one game, is penalties. Clearly they need more from Kane, who was hobbled in last year's Final with his hernia issues. But he's healthy now, and yet has one foot in coach Kris Knoblauch's doghouse as a fourth-liner in Game 5.
Global News
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Global News
2 Winnipeg Jets named to Olympic hockey rosters
At least a couple of Winnipeg Jets will get to represent their country on sports biggest stage next year. All of the 12 countries who qualified for next year's Olympic men's hockey tournament named the first six players to their roster, and two Jets players were among the initial selections for the 2026 Winter Games in Italy. Forwards Nikolaj Ehlers and Nino Niederreiter were both chosen by their respective countries, but goalie Connor Hellebuyck was not selected by USA Hockey after helping them to a second place finish at the 4 Nations Face-off tournament. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Ehlers will skate for Denmark after getting named to its preliminary roster. Ehlers played for Denmark at this year's World Championship and also helped his country qualify during last summer's Olympic qualification tournaments. Ehlers days with the Jets appear to be numbered though as he'll become an unrestricted free agent in around two weeks time. Story continues below advertisement Niederreiter was selected by his home country of Switzerland. The 32-year-old scored two goals in four games for Switzerland at this year's worlds in his third straight year at the tournament. Ehlers will make his Olympic debut, but it'll be the second Olympic Winter Games for Niederreiter after playing in the last Olympics with NHLers back in 2014. While Hellebuyck was not chosen, USA Hockey did not name any goalies to its initial roster and went with six skaters instead in Quinn Hughes, Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Charlie McAvoy, and Matthew and Brady Tkachuk. Canada selected five forwards and one blueliner to start it's roster. Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Connor McDavid, Brayden Point and Sam Reinhart were all chosen. It'll be Crosby's third Olympic games, while McDavid will finally make his long-awaited Olympic debut. The men's Olympic ice hockey tournament begins on February 11.
NBC Sports
10-06-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Lane Lambert expects to lead the Kraken to the playoffs
SEATTLE — Lane Lambert said he feels no pressure to turn the Seattle Kraken into a playoff contender. But his own expectation is to do exactly that. Lambert was introduced as the Kraken's coach at the team's practice facility. He was hired on May 29 after spending last season as an associate head coach with Toronto. The Maple Leafs won 52 games and the Atlantic Division title, but were eliminated in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals by Florida, which is currently playing in the Stanley Cup Final. He will become the third head coach in the history of the Kraken, who are entering their fifth season and have made the playoffs just once in their previous four. 'I have an expectation of myself and of my role and of my abilities,' the 60-year-old Lambert said. 'You start on Day 1 and it's a process, it's a journey. If you do the right things through that journey and do the right things every day and look to get better every day and stick with the process, the results will take care of themselves.' Lambert takes over for Dan Bylsma, who was fired on April 21 after one season. Seattle was well outside the playoff picture by the time of the February break for the 4 Nations Face-off and finished 35-41-6 (76 points). That was 20 points below the West's final wild-card spot and five fewer than the Kraken's 81 points in 2023-24. 'It became very evident that Lane presented the attributes we were looking for,' general manager Jason Botterill said. 'The combination of presence and knowledge to work with veteran players, and would also be dedicated to interact with young players.' Seattle ranked in the bottom third of the league on the power play (23rd), faceoff winning percentage (24th) and average shots per game (25th). It was 21st on the penalty kill, an area in which Lambert helped the Leafs improve from 23rd to fourth. 'There are priorities in certain areas, but everything has to be addressed,' Lambert said. 'You can't build Rome in a day, and that's the whole process from Day 1. You start with the process, start demanding, and you start instilling your systems, your structure, your details. But definitely, our special teams have to be better. We'll better in our defensive zone. I know we will be. So that would be the start and the focus.' Lambert has had NHL coaching jobs since 2011. His only head coaching experience came with the New York Islanders, beginning at the start of the 2022-23 season and ending when he was fired in January 2024. In his only full season, the Islanders made the playoffs but were eliminated in the first round. 'You go through an experience like that, you get let go, and you have a lot of time to reflect,' he said. 'If you don't have an ego, you can say, 'Gee, I'd do this differently or that differently. Or I'd do this or that the same.' There's certain little things I'll look at and look into changing.' He was an assistant with Nashville from 2011-14, then with Washington from 2014-18, with the Capitals winning the Stanley Cup in 2018. The Islanders hired him as associate head coach prior to 2018-19. The teams he has worked for have made the playoffs 10 times. Lambert inherits a roster that includes veterans Jaden Schwartz (a team-high 26 goals last season), Jared McCann (22 goals and a team-leading 61 points), Eeli Tolvanen (23 goals) and Chandler Stephenson (38 assists). The Kraken also have highly regarded young talent such as 2023 Rookie of the Year Matty Beniers (20 goals, 23 assists) and Shane Wright (19 goals, 25 assists). 'When you look at the team and the balance, we have great talent,' Lambert said. 'We have veteran players. The non-negotiables are that we have to play the right way — that's the formula.'
