National Hockey League

National Hockey League

"Big two-way defenceman," Verhoeff said. "I like defending. I take pride in my defensive zone, hard on guys in the D-zone. Then getting up the ice, I'm kinda able to transition the puck pretty quickly I think. Using my size and my shot in the offensive zone to create time and space and create some passing lanes and be able to wire the puck."

It seems like more than other sports, professional hockey players have family ties to current players and those of days past. Last night was the first game of the CHL vs USA top prospects game, as Parker Trottier, the grandson of six-time Stanley Cup champion and NY Islanders legend Bryan Trottier, was part of the USA's 4-2 victory. While grandpa came from the Canadian plains, born in Val Marie, Saskatchewan, Parker hails from Edina, MN, currently playing for the NTDP.

Selected in the fourth round (115th overall), Gamzin has taken the reins as starting netminder for CSKA Moskva in the KHL. The 22-year-old backstop took over the role from former NHLer Spencer Martin, who recently left CSKA after losing the starting job, signing with the NY Rangers, and is currently playing for the Hartford Wolf Pack. Despite playing in a low-scoring league, Gamzin's numbers have been phenomenal.

Hockey players are no stranger to bridging the language gap. With more than a dozen countries represented across the NHL, learning English is often a vital part of adjusting to the league. But for Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson, the flow of knowledge is going the other way. Thompson has started to pick up some Russian, enlisting Aliaksei Protas as a tutor. Protas, who hails from from Vitebsk, Belarus, was all to happy to oblige.

Schaefer takes the quarter-season Calder Trophy The question immediately surrounding Schaefer was whether he could stick in the NHL for a full season. Then it became, how much can he produce? Now the only question is, how high is his ceiling? NHL.com polled 16 of their writers using a 5-4-3-2-1 system to determine their quarter-season Calder Trophy winner, with Schaefer running away with the award totalling 80 points, followed by Ivan Demidov of the Montreal Canadiens (57) and Beckett Sennecke of the Anaheim Ducks (34).

Fantilli was drafted third overall out of the University of Michigan in 2023, and is still continuing to grow into his role in Columbus. As one of the many young and exciting rookies expecting to sign a big deal next summer, Fantilli is likely going to be one of the players who has the season to prove his worth, and if things continue to improve, he will meet that value with no issue whatsoever.

Signed to a bridge deal on July 1st, Eklund's contract was at first criticized for not being long enough and for the Sharks refusing to take the gamble on Eklund's potential. But what if that was the correct move? What if that's the proper way to do reconnaissance and one's due diligence before making a long-term investment into a future cornerstone?

Kampf was a serviceable piece for Toronto during the height of the Core Four era. Kampf was part of the replaceable depth pieces that supported the big guns. However, Kampf's role on the team gradually diminished as his limited scoring vaporized, and his defensive play didn't warrant a lineup spot. The situation came to a head this season when Kampf didn't even make it out of training camp.

The New York Islanders have done something they haven't done in over a calendar year: Win a game in a shootout. Facing a second straight loss after Freddy Gaudreau of the Seattle Kraken snuck the opener past Islanders netminder David Rittich, the red-hot Bo Horvat converted what would have been his side's final chance with a quick wrister that beat netminder Joey Daccord. Kyle Palmieri snapped the winner in the next round, lifting the Islanders to a 1-0 victory on Sunday night at UBS Arena.

It's just one game, but the Toronto Marlies answered the call of their head coach and leadership group by delivering an overpowering performance against Iowa. Admittedly, the Wild are a young group missing some key pieces, but you can only beat the team in front of you. The Marlies did it with aplomb on Saturday, starting with a dominant first period.

This season, it's been No B.S. The only member of the New York Rangers who adhered to the latter motto in the club's 3-2 road loss to the Utah Mammoth on Saturday night was goaltender Jonathan Quick. Quick turned aside 31 of the 34 shots he faced, ending with a .912 save percentage. And the three goals that evaded him were hardly his fault. All came off either a broken play or a giveaway, more indicative of disjointed team play.

"That we're defending as a five-man unit a lot better than we have been. We have numbers around the puck, and we are breaking pucks out easier. We are not stretched out. We are connected in the zones. That's what I see. In the neutral zone, we have done a pretty good job with our defending. Offensively, we have done a pretty good job of creating chances. I liked our power play; it created some opportunities that didn't go in."