In a new Friday segment for McKeen’s Hockey, I’ll be going over five topics of particular interest from the week that was. Questions? Comments? Feel free to give me a shout @DFriedmanOnNYI. Without further adieu, here we go:
EVANDER KANE ON THE WAY OUT OF TOWN
Assuming you don’t live in a cave, you’re well aware of the recent events surrounding Winnipeg Jets’ forward Evander Kane. Unfortunately, this is not the first time that Kane’s attitude has come into question, and where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire.
I have a hard time believing that Dustin Byfuglien threw his teammate’s clothes into the shower over one incident, and I have a feeling that there’s far more to this than a dress code violation.
As far as GM Kevin Chevaldayoff and the Jets are concerned, this is going to be a very tricky issue to solve. They’ve essentially lost most of the leverage they otherwise would’ve had in any trade negotiations for an up-and-comer like Kane, thanks to the negative publicity that continues to pile on. Even if you take his questionable attitude out of the equation, there are other factors working against him here. His production has gone down in each of the last three seasons and he’s constantly injured.
Kane won’t be a Jet for much longer, whether he’s shipped out by the March 2nd trade deadline or at the entry draft. I suspect the return in any such deal will be underwhelming.
THE VEZINA CANDIDATE NO ONE’S TALKING ABOUT
We’ve seen some excellent goaltending this season, and the usual suspects (i.e. Carey Price, Pekka Rinne and Henrik Lundqvist, among others) are garnering significant attention.
However, there’s one net-minder we aren’t talking about enough, one who deserves every bit as much consideration for the Vezina Trophy right now. That would be Braden Holtby (yes, that Braden Holtby), the goalie who’s currently ranked no lower than sixth in every major statistical category.
Holtby is sixth in wins (25), second in shutouts (six), and fifth in both goals-against average (2.14) and save percentage (.925). He is just as big a reason for Washington’s success this year as Alex Ovechkin, and boy has he bounced back from what had been a very disappointing 2013-14 campaign.
The Capitals elected not to try and re-sign Jaroslav Halak this past summer, trading his rights to the Islanders and placing their faith in Holtby. He’s rewarded them quite nicely for doing so. He’s been outstanding for them, a performance that has him worthy of Vezina considerations in this writer’s opinion.
WHAT’S HAPPENED TO THE LA KINGS?
I supposed that if you win two Stanley Cups in three years, you deserve to take off the following spring.
Certainly, that’s not how the LA Kings are looking at it, but they’re running out of time to prevent that from happening. This isn’t a championship hangover; we’re well past that point. This is just poor execution. It’s hard to really pinpoint what’s gone wrong in Los Angeles, and you can’t really explain why it is that a team with so much talent can possibly be in this predicament.
One thing we’ve always said about these Kings is that they’re specifically built for playoff success, but they kinda just coast through the regular season and then turn it up a notch once April comes around. It may have worked every time until now, but it was never a recommended course of action. There’s no doubt you’re playing with fire when you embrace that type of approach, and while we’ve seen its merits, we’re now seeing its demerits.
But there’s more to this than just a mentality. From a hockey standpoint, the Kings just haven’t been the same. The defense appears to have taken a step back or two and Jonathan Quick hasn’t had a good year. In the extremely talented Western Conference, even the slightest error can push you out of playoff contention, and that’s what appears to have happened to the Kings. I fully-expect them to turn it around next season, but this one appears to be all but over.
METROPOLITAN DIVISION RACE HEATS UP
I think we knew the Metro would be interesting this season, but I’m not sure anyone could’ve predicted the neck-and-neck battle that has transpired here. Just three points separate the fourth-place Capitals and first-place Islanders (you read that second part correctly), and the exciting part is that Washington and the Rangers only joined in the fun over the last month or so.
Good luck trying to guess who’ll finish atop the division after 82 games, especially now that the two New York teams have lost key players (Henrik Lundqvist, Kyle Okposo) to injuries. There will probably be multiple twists and turns to come.
CAN ANYONE STOP THE BLUES?
This is now the third-consecutive year I’m picking the Blues to win the Cup (third time has to be the charm, right?), and for good reason.
It’s worth pointing out that they’ve gotten better and better in each of the last three seasons, and 2014-15 has been a special one. On Thursday night, they extended their point streak to 13 games, shutting out Buffalo by a 3-0 score. They’re doing it with proficient defense and goaltending, but they’ve also got more firepower this time around.
Vladimir Tarasenko was already a dangerous scorer before this season, but he’s risen to another level. The same can be said for Jaden Schwartz, and newcomer Jori Lehtera has turned out to be an outstanding addition.
They’ll have a tough hill to climb in the playoffs; any road they take will likely have to pass through the Chicago Blackhawks, and that won’t be an easy out. But I think they’re more prepared to get over that hump than before.
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