THW's Devils News

THW's Devils news for 03/21/2021

March 21, 2021

The latest Devils stories from The Hockey Writers.

 

03/21/2021 edition:

By Greg Boysen on Mar 21, 2021 07:35 am

March 21 has been quite the eventful date in National Hockey League history. It gave us a memorable goaltending performance in Boston, some great milestones in Pittsburgh and plenty of memories made by Hall of Famers. The THW time machine is fired up and ready to take us back through the decades to relive the best moments made on this date.

50 & 500 Rule the Day

Frank Mahovlich scored once to become the fifth NHL player to rack up 500 career goals on March 21, 1973, during the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. He became the third player to score his 500th career goal in a Canadiens uniform.

Bobby Carpenter became the first U.S.-born player in NHL history to have a 50-goal season on March 21, 1985, with a goal in the Washington Capitals’ 3-2 loss at the Canadiens.

Lanny McDonald became the 14th player in league history to score 500 career goals on March 21, 1989, as the Calgary Flames beat the New York Islanders 4-1. Joe Nieuwendyk scored his 50th goal of the season, becoming the third player in history to score 50 goals in each of his first two NHL seasons. Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky were the other two on this short list.

On that same night, Mark Messier scored a goal and recorded his 500th career assist in a 4-3 Edmonton Oilers’ loss to the Los Angeles Kings.

Tugnutt Goes Crazy in Boston

On March 21, 1991, Tugnutt started for the Quebec Nordiques at the old Boston Garden and was pushed to the limits by the Boston Bruins. He was peppered with 73 shots, stopping 70 of them, and yet, he didn’t win. The game ended in a 3-3 tie with the Bruins holding a 73-26 shot advantage. Bruins’ defenseman Ray Bourque set an NHL record with 19 of those shots on goal.

Tugnutt faced 17 shots in the first period, 19 in the second and 25 in the third period. He stopped all 12 shots he saw in the five-minute overtime session to earn the tie.

Even though 70 saves are incredible, it was still 10 saves shy of the all-time record. Sam LoPresti holds that one when he made 80 saves for the Chicago Black Hawks in a game against the Bruins on March 5, 1941. LoPresti later left the NHL to serve in the U.S. Navy and was aboard a merchant ship that was torpedoed and spent 42 days on a lifeboat before being rescued.

Martin Brodeur’s Trio of Milestones

You can have an in-depth conversation about great goaltender without Brodeur’s name eventually coming up.

The Hall of Fame goaltender made three memories on this date, starting in 2001 when he recorded his 50th career shutout in the New Jersey Devils’ 4-0 win over the New York Rangers. His eighth shutout of the season extended the Devils’ unbeaten streak over their rivals from the Big Apple to 23 games, going 15-0-8 since 1997.

A year later, Brodeur tied an NHL record with his seventh straight 30-win season with a 4-3 road victory at the Nashville Predators. He joined Tony Esposito and Ken Dryden as the only goaltenders to win 30 games in seven straight seasons.

Finally, in 2013, Brodeur is credited with a power-play goal in the first period of a 4-1 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes. In his first game back after missing 13 games due to a neck injury, he made a save during a delayed penalty. Hurricanes’ center Jordan Staal made an errant back pass that went down the length of the ice into his vacated net. This was the second regular-season goal of Brodeur’s career.

CBC Starts a New Tradition

Although Hockey Night in Canada’s origins began with radio broadcasts as early as 1929, the roots for a long run on television began on March 21, 1951. This was the first time the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation televised a live NHL game.

The cameras were set up inside the old Maple Leaf Garden as the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Canadiens. The first broadcast was only viewed by six people, watching the feed in the arena’s radio control room, but it set the foundation for what was to come.

The CBC began airing games on Saturday nights in 1952. Beginning with the 1967 Stanley Cup playoffs, all Hockey Night in Canada games were broadcast in color going forward. CBC’s deal with the NHL ran out following the 2013-14 season and rights for the national broadcasts were given to Rogers Communications. As part of the deal, CBC sublicensed a package of games from Rogers, allowing the network to continue airing Hockey Night in Canada at least the first four seasons of the agreement.

Pittsburgh Penguins Make Plenty of History

The Penguins have enjoyed playing on March 21 over the years. In 1993, Mario Lemieux and Kevin Stevens lit the lamp in the first period of a 6-4 win over the Oilers in a neutral-site game played in Cleveland, OH. It was the 50th goal of the season for both players as they became the first set of teammates in league history to reach 50 goals in the same game.

Exactly five years later, the number 1,000 was lucky during a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at the old Civic Arena. Future Hall of Famer Ron Francis picked up his 1,00th career assist in helping the Penguins become the 10th team in the NHL to win 1,000 games.

Sidney Crosby scored a goal and became the 53rd player in NHL history to record 700 career assists on March 21, 2018, in the Penguins’ 5-3 win over the Canadiens.

Odds & Ends

On March 21, 1921, more than 11,000 fans filled the Vancouver Arena for the first game of the Stanley Cup Final to see the Millionaires defeat the Ottawa Senators 3-1. At the time, this the largest crowd ever to watch a hockey game.

Gordie Howe became the first player in NHL history to lead the league in scoring four straight years on March 21, 1954, when he had a goal and two assists in the Detroit Red Wings’ regular-season finale, a 6-1 win over the Maple Leafs.

Before the Bruins hosted the St. Louis Blues on March 21, 1974, Bobby Orr promised a gravely ill 16-year-old fan he’d score a goal for him. Orr under-promised and over-delivered by scoring his fifth career hat trick to reach the 30-goal mark on the season as Boston won 7-0.

Tiger Williams racked up 31 penalty minutes in the Vancouver Canucks’ 5-3 loss at the Canadiens. This made him the first player in NHL to score 30 goals and have 300 penalty minutes in the same season.

Ilkka Sinisalo scored the 4,000th goal in Flyers’ history on March 21, 1982, during a 5-3 win over the Hartford Whalers at the Spectrum.

Bernie Federko became the first player in Blues history to record 600 career assists on March 21, 1986, during a lost 7-6 to the visiting Devils.

Two years later, Joe Mullen scored twice to become the first U.S.-born player to have 250 career goals, as the Flames extended their team-record road undefeated streak to 9 games (6-0-3) with a 3-3 tie at the Canadiens.

Brett Hull scored four goals, including his 30th career hat trick on March 21, 2001, as the Dallas Stars won 8-0 against the visiting Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. This moved him into seventh place on the NHL’s all-time goal list, past Steve Yzerman and tied with Lemieux at 644 goals.

Happy Birthday to You

The late Duke Keats is the lone Hall of Famer of the 24 players who have skated in the NHL, born on March 21. Other notable names of this group include Jim Kyte (57), Al Iafrate (55), Johan Garpenlov (53), Boris Mironov (49), Rostislav Klesla (39), Ryan Callahan (36), Erik Johnson (33), Sven Andrighetto (28) and Mirco Mueller (26).

By Eddy Jones on Mar 20, 2021 04:38 pm

The New Jersey Devils agreed to a three-year, entry-level contract with their 2019 third-round pick. Barrie Colts defenseman Brandt Clarke continues to impress on loan in Slovakia. Edmonton Oil Kings forward Dylan Guenther adds to his impressive start to the season as he paces the Western Hockey League (WHL) in points per game.

Devils Sign Michael Vukojevic

The Devils announced that they’ve agree to a standard three-year, entry-level contract for Michael Vukojevic. Drafted 82nd overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, he spent the 2019-20 season in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Kitchener Rangers, where he recorded five goals and 25 assists for 30 points in 63 games played 11th in team scoring. He won a gold medal with Canada at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup during the 2018-19 season.

THW’s Alex Chauvancy had this to say about progress and his impressive start to the 2020-21 AHL season.

He has good size at 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, and is a high-end skater. He wasn’t thought to have much offensive upside, but he’s shown good offensive instincts in spurts while in the AHL. He still has a ways to go to be NHL-ready. But for someone who wasn’t supposed to be playing pro hockey this season, he’s handled himself well.

In eight games played with the Binghamton Devils, Vukojevic has one goal and five assists for six points. He will remain with Binghamton for the time being, but if the OHL does resume, he will have to return to the Rangers. There still are several details to work out before the OHL begins play for the 2020-21 season, and I’m sure the Devils would like to keep him around for as long as they can.

Clarke Extends Point Streak in Slovakia

Clarke is heating up for HC Nove Zamky in Slovakia’s Tipos Extraliga. With an assist yesterday he extended his point streak to five games and has eight points over that stretch. He was recently named to the league’s Team of the Month for February after he had two goals and three assists for five points in eight matches. Clarke now has five goals and 10 assists for 15 points in 26 games played. It’s an impressive stat line for the 18-year-old considering he had only three points in 14 games played prior to February.

He is likely on his way back to the Colts soon as the OHL is hoping to begin their 2020-21 season in April. During the 2019-20 season, Clarke was named to the OHL First All-Rookie Team and led all rookies in assists with 32. He’s one of several players fighting for first overall in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft and his recent uptick in production will help his case.

Guenther Picks Up Where He Left Off

The 2020-21 WHL season kicked off earlier this month and top prospect for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft Dylan Guenther got off to a scorching start. The Edmonton Oil Kings winger recorded four goals and three assists for seven points in his first two games played. He followed that up with another two goals giving himself six goals and four assists for 10 points in four games played. It would be another 13 days before we saw Guenther return to action for the Oil King’s next set of games, but he returned in style with two goals and one assists in last nights 5-0 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. He’s now up to eight goals and five assists for 13 points in five games played. He ranks second in the WHL in scoring.

THW analyzed Guenther’s skillset in his 5 WHL Players to Watch article for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft earlier this year.

One of the biggest standouts about Guenther is his elite hockey sense at both ends of the ice. He reads the play so incredibly well. Defensively, he knows when to take a chance, spring forward, and pick off a pass, or when to hang back and take away a passing lane. Offensively, he reads defenders so well and knows where to find his teammates, setting up plays with regularity. He’s a player that never takes his foot off the gas, even without the puck. You can tell he’s hungry for his team to win and he’s always hungry to have the puck on his stick.

During the 2019-20 season, Guenther led all 2003-born forwards in scoring with an impressive 26 goals and 33 assists for 59 points in 58 games played. He was awarded the Jim Piggott Trophy for WHL Rookie of the Year. With the WHL season delayed this year, he played a few games on loan with the Sherwood Park Crusaders of the Alberta Junior Hockey League. In four games played, he recorded three goals and two assists for five points. He is one of the top forwards available in this year’s draft and this hot start will only help his draft stock.

By Alex Chauvancy on Mar 20, 2021 10:18 am

It’s been a busy week for the New Jersey Devils. Trade rumors are beginning to pick up steam before the April 12 deadline, especially those involving Devils’ players.

Plus, could some prospects be close to joining the organization? And an update on some injuries to a few of the Devils’ key players. Let’s dive into the latest team news and rumors.

Blackwood Injured; Hischier Has Surgery

Perhaps the biggest Devils news of the week was that center Nico Hischier underwent surgery to repair a sinus fracture he suffered on Feb. 27 after taking a puck to the face against the Washington Capitals. The surgery took place on March 15, and his timeline to return to action is three weeks from then.

Hischier has played in only five games this season due to a variety of reasons. He suffered an injury training in Switzerland during the offseason, got COVID while in New Jersey, then took a puck to the face in his fifth game of the season. There’s no doubt his absence has had an impact on the team, and they’ll welcome his return in about two weeks.

As for Blackwood, he left warmups before the Devils faced the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night and did not make his scheduled start. The team is saying it’s an upper-body injury, but it doesn’t seem to be serious. Hopefully, he doesn’t miss much time because his play had been coming along over the last couple of games.

Pavel Zacha took a nasty slash in Tuesday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. He missed Thursday’s contest against the Penguins, but he should be back in the lineup today in their rematch against Pittsburgh.

Devils Receiving Calls Ahead of Trade Deadline

On a recent segment of TSN’s Insider Trading (about 3:20 in), Pierre Lebrun reported the Devils have received calls from almost every playoff or bubble team and called the Devils the action team. He also mentioned that right-winger Kyle Palmieri is the player garnering the most interest from contenders.

Palmieri’s had a down season by his standards, but poor shooting luck has played a factor in his counting totals dropping. If the Devils can’t re-sign him, he’ll have plenty of suitors in the coming weeks. He should be able to fetch a second-round pick and a B-plus prospect at a minimum. Don’t rule out a first-round pick if enough teams are bidding on him too.

Palmieri isn’t the only pending unrestricted free agent the Devils have who contenders may consider acquiring. Defensemen Sami Vatanen, Ryan Murray and Dmitry Kulikov are all UFAs. Travis Zajac is also a UFA, though he has a full no-trade clause and is unlikely to waive it.

It’d be a surprise if the Devils traded all their UFAs, especially on defense. But they should be able to recoup some draft capital and perhaps add to an already strong farm system before heading into an offseason where they’ll be one of the few teams who’ll have an abundance of cap space to improve their roster.

Devils Sign Vukojevic

Early yesterday afternoon, the Devils signed defenseman Michael Vukojevic to a three-year, entry-level contract. Vukojevic was a third-round pick of the team in 2019 and got a start to his pro career a bit earlier than expected, with the OHL still on pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vukojevic has impressed with the Binghamton Devils, with six points in eight games. He has good size at 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, and is a high-end skater. He wasn’t thought to have much offensive upside, but he’s shown good offensive instincts in spurts while in the AHL. He still has a ways to go to be NHL-ready. But for someone who wasn’t supposed to be playing pro hockey this season, he’s handled himself well.

Vukojevic will finish this season on an AHL contract. And if the OHL does restart at some point, he’ll have to return there. This season won’t count against his ELC, as it won’t kick in until the start of the 2021-22 campaign.

Are Other Prospects Close to Joining Devils?

With the NCAA season drawing to a close, a couple of Devils’ prospects could be on the verge of joining the organization as soon as next week. Providence College was eliminated from the Hockey East tournament on Wednesday, though they seem to be in a good position for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. If they don’t receive an at-large bid, that means Tyce Thompson’s season would be over.

Over in the Big Ten, Penn State was eliminated from their conference tournament and are highly unlikely to make the NCAA tournament. That means forward Aarne Talvitie’s season will also be over. He finished with 13 points in 20 games.

The Devils will want to get them signed soon for a couple of reasons. One is because a delayed start to the AHL season means the league will be playing into the beginning of May. That will allow both players to get time in a decent amount of pro games. And if they play well, they could even see a game or two in the NHL.

The other reason the Devils need to get them signed soon is both Talvitie and Thompson would be eligible to become UFAs in August 2022 if they returned for their senior seasons. Thompson is a particularly good prospect, so the Devils will want to get him signed now rather than having him return to Providence.

It’s also worth keeping an eye on Alexander Holtz’s situation. He still has a few games left with Djurgården, followed by a play-in round to get into the SHL playoffs. If they fail to advance to the playoffs, the Devils will be eligible to sign Holtz to his ELC. There’s a good case to bring him over now and get him some games on North American ice. That’s still a few weeks away, but it’s something to monitor once the calendar turns to April.

That’ll wrap up this edition of Devils’ news and rumors. Make sure to stay tuned to The Hockey Writers for the latest coverage as the trade deadline approaches.

By Dan Rice on Mar 19, 2021 05:01 pm

When the New Jersey Devils drafted defenseman Reilly Walsh at the 2017 NHL Draft (81st overall/round 3) they knew they were getting a skilled player with a high hockey IQ in the offensive end of the ice. He showed that with 78 points (27g-51a) in 96 games at Harvard University.

After drafting the son of former NHLer Mike Walsh, former Devils GM Ray Shero said he hoped that the younger Walsh had three great seasons at Harvard – hinting that he’d like to sign the defenseman before he hit his senior year, and before he had the chance to let the Devils rights to him expire making him an unrestricted free agent.

Shero didn’t hold the job long enough to see that happen, but Walsh did play in only three seasons. Part of that may be due to the pandemic which forced the cancellation of Harvard’s 2020-21 season. That put Walsh on the spot to make a choice, and you can bet the Devils franchise is thrilled he chose them.

The 21-year-old defenseman made his professional debut with the Binghamton Devils on Feb. 8. All he did that night was score the game-winning goal in overtime against the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins.

All in all this season he has played in all ten of Binghamton’s games through the stops and starts they have had as the AHL (like all of us) tries to navigate its way through the times we live in.

Adapting to the Pro Game

“It has been interesting,” Walsh said during a recent media availability about his first season as a pro. How could it not be? He’s playing for a team based in Binghamton, that has relocated to Newark, New Jersey for the current season because of the pandemic. He has been in New Jersey since the fall. He’s been to two training camps – New Jersey’s and Binghamton’s – since the calendar turned to 2021.

“Since I’ve been here we have had a couple of positives (for covid), so I’ve somewhat learned to battle through the stops and starts (as far as training goes). Luckily this last break for us was shorter than some of the others, but five days felt like forever,” said the defenseman who turns 22 on April 21. “We handled it. We got to take some workout equipment home. It was nice outside here for a couple of days so that was good. From day one coach (Mark) Dennehy has instilled in us that we have no control and whatever happens we just have to react to it.”

“We’re excited to hopefully play tomorrow.”

The last time Binghamton was scheduled to play a game was March 10. They played one period against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms before the game was suspended; it will be completed on Apr. 26.

So when he said hopefully it really highlighted the era we live in now and what coach Dennehy said about reacting to things as they come. When games and practices are canceled or postponed, you have to adapt, which has been made a tad easier being that we live in a world filled with technological advances changing daily.

“It’s a huge thing and lucky that we’re in a time with technology so powerful and creative. It’s nice that we’re able to still focus on hockey for at least a part of the day,” Walsh replied when asked if technology deserves a primary assist this season.

“I have had a couple of video sessions with my (assistant) coach (Ryan) Parent and it definitely helped me keep focused on things so that whenever we jump on a team/group zoom I’m up to speed. When we get back on the ice we’re going right into resuming the season, no training camp is needed. The goal down here is to keep getting better, keep improving every day, and be the best that we can.”

Walsh’s Work is Never Done

So what does Walsh think he needs to work on to make the jump from the AHL to the NHL (and stay there)? Well, we asked him, and here’s what he said.

“I definitely think just my overall awareness on the defensive side of the puck. The one thing I talk about with Coach Parent is that the confidence I have and the ability to see the ice on the offensive side of things – if I can use those skills on the defensive side and be able to read and react at a faster pace – it will help me a lot,” said the former Harvard blueliner.

“Obviously I’m not the biggest guy, but I move well and if I anticipate in the d-zone and play aggressive I can disrupt plays with my stick and make reads once we get the puck back. The biggest thing for me right now is analyzing the (incoming) rush, finding my guys early to anticipate them for quick box-outs, and take away time and space. I would say that I just need to be more confident and quicker on my reads in the d-zone; that allows our team to have tighter gaps and get the puck back faster.”

So what did the Devils’ management ask him to work on as he tries to navigate his way through the most unique first pro season ever? They asked him to fine-tune the defensive side of his game. Everyone knows he has the offensive skill set to play at the next level, but he also can’t be a one-dimensional player.

Walsh said he was told, “‘At times, you may have gotten away with it at certain levels, but that you can’t get away with that starting now in pro hockey. And you really couldn’t even in college.’”

“I take a lot of pride in the d-zone, and this year I’ve really been trying to be a good, trustworthy defender; someone who takes care of his own end first and from there I let the way I see the ice come and go”

“I have fun when we have the puck, but it’s something I need to focus on – it’s my biggest focus. From there the coaches have been really good with letting me play and have fun when we have the puck.”

Big Shoes to Fill

In a ‘normal’ season Walsh would be working on his craft in Binghamton. But in Newark, he’s able to be around the NHL players (not too close though, because it’s still covidy out there!). Currently, he plays and practices in a building with the retired numbers of two Hockey Hall of Fame defensemen (Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer) and three franchise legendary defensemen (we got love for you too, Ken Daneyko) hanging from the ceiling.

So how often does he catch himself thinking about what his future holds? Is it inspiration or scary to live up to that legacy?

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t dream about stuff like that,” he replied with a grin. “Especially with those jerseys hanging up here, and guys they currently have (in New Jersey). With all of the NHL clubs basically right next to us in the locker room (area), seeing those other teams come in. Today a couple of us were watching (Sidney) Crosby skate in Pittsburgh’s morning skate and it’s hard not to kind of just be in awe of a guy like that.”

Binghamton plays and practices in the RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House, which is connected to the Prudential Center and the locker rooms are adjacent to one another. So for a hockey junkie like Walsh, it’s been virtually a who’s who in hockey (in the East Division) using the same rinks on an almost daily basis.

“Overall, it’s been just an eye-opening experience,” added Walsh. “To be right there in training camp with a guy like Norris Trophy winner PK Subban. Stuff like that, where guys have been successful at high levels, to just be on the ice with them was crazy. But at the same time, it’s motivation too. It’s something that I work towards every day and I expect to be in a spot like that, hopefully in the near future.”

“At the same time there’s plenty of stuff I need to do to get better right now and that’s why we play. It’s the journey and the progress.”

Next Level

New Jersey netminder Mackenzie Blackwood said earlier this season that when he’s away from the rink he rarely watches other NHL games. He prefers to spend his time away from hockey to relax, reboot, and refresh his mind for the next game – which is almost always a day or two away.

There’s a bit more downtime in the AHL and as someone who aspires to be in the NHL one day, Walsh watches games when he can, and also keeps tabs on a few former collegiate teammates as well.

“I look at the sheet for the 7:00 games to see who’s playing. I’ve tried to and watched almost every game for New Jersey and if there’s another game when Jersey is off that I like the matchups on,” Walsh revealed. “Personally I try to watch Pittsburgh and the Rangers because two of my old teammates at Harvard – (John) Marino and (Adam) Fox play for them. I try to watch them as much as I can, and being a right-shot D-man I try to watch and analyze those guys. Obviously, I like to watch teams like Toronto and Edmonton play with the lineups they have on the offensive side.”

“I try to watch a lot of hockey in general,” added Walsh. “I’m really not busy ever, so I don’t have an excuse to do something else. I do like watching the teams that play fast, quick, have puck-moving defensemen. You see how they play and what works, what doesn’t.”

The Devils front office is obviously hoping that Walsh works out for them. “It’s kind of different this season because usually only one or two of us would be the young D on a team in most leagues or instances,” said Walsh. “But this team is relying on young D to make plays and be in the lineup, which is awesome. Even though we’re just ten games in I feel like we’re growing as a group and feel more confident.”

With Walsh, Kevin Bahl, Michael Vukojevic, and Nikita Okhotiuk all playing for Binghamton this season, and Ty Smith in his rookie season with New Jersey – there is hope that a large part of the future of the Devils’ blueline is in the building.

Now they just have to unlock their potential and guide them along the path.

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