Oilers Secretive Of New Victory Song, "Pink Pony Club"
EDMONTON – 'I'm gonna keep on dancing.'
The Edmonton Oilers and La Bamba have been a match made in hockey heaven. It's such a great match that the Oilers have flags with 'La Bamba' on them.
Bookmark The Hockey News Edmonton Oilers team site to never miss the latest news, game-day coverage, and more.
However, this season is a new year, and at some point, La Bamba was swapped out for a new jingle.
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Say hello to 'Pink Pony Club.'
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The hit single by Chappell Roan has become the anthem of every Oilers victory. When they finish a game with more goals than their opponents, the lyrics to Pink Pony Club can be heard emanating from their locker room before the media is allowed in.
I would know…I've heard it myself countless times. But that's not the only time it's being played around Rogers Place.
In the dying seconds of Game 3, it was playing for everyone on the ice surface and in the stands to hear.
When Evan Bouchard and Trent Frederick spoke to the media on Monday, they were asked about the origin of Pink Pony Club. Their answer?
"We're going to keep that one between the team," Bouchard revealed after exchanging a knowing glance (and a smile) with Frederick.
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On Tuesday night, the Oilers put a damper on the Dallas Stars' hopes of getting back into their series. After 60 minutes had been played, the Oilers walked away with a 4-1 victory.
I have a sneaking suspicion that I know what's being played in that locker room tonight after that victory.
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New York Times
3 hours ago
- New York Times
Which NHL teams need to upgrade at center? Ranking all 32 by current quality
The offseason is here, and one of the most crucial things to know going into it is how each team stands on a position-by-position basis. Today, we look at each team's center depth with regard to what they already have and what they need this summer. Using Net Rating as a starting point, we looked at how much value each team is currently carrying down the middle to figure out what holes they need to address. The stronger a team looks up the lineup, the better its baseline looks. After adding a subjective touch to the rankings, here's how each team's center depth ranks from best to worst before free agency begins. Current quality: 100th percentile Looking for: Bottom-six center No surprise which team ranks first: it's the one that has the best player in the world and the second-best player in the world down the middle. As long as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are around and dominating, the Oilers will be the top team at center every time. And it's not particularly close. Advertisement All the Oilers really need here is a center for the bottom six. Whether he slots in ahead of or behind Adam Henrique doesn't really matter; Edmonton is already stacked enough. Current quality: 97th percentile Looking for: None Assuming Vegas doesn't pull anything truly wacky to clear space for anyone (cough, Mitch Marner, cough), it might have the most complete depth chart in the league. Rolling Jack Eichel, Tomas Hertl, William Karlsson and Nicolas Roy down the middle is a terrific place to start. Hertl is still effective and would be a first-liner on plenty of teams, and Karlsson remains a complete player. Vegas' issue here, if there is one, is that Eichel isn't an all-world talent on par with the McDavids and Draisaitls of the world. It's not that Eichel isn't great in his own right, either; the bar is just that high — and this past postseason, when he had zero goals in a five-game loss to Edmonton, provides some proof. Current quality: 96th percentile Looking for: Top-nine center, depth center We debated between the Golden Knights and Devils as the best non-Oilers team at center and settled on Vegas. As great as Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier are as a 1-2 punch — arguably only the Oilers are better — Vegas' depth earns the edge. With Cody Glass currently in the 3C slot and the need for a 4C still present, the Devils fall just shy of Vegas. Ideally, New Jersey looks for an upgrade at 3C to shift Glass to the wing, but that's a nitpick. What the Devils have with Hughes and Hischier is seriously special, a strong foundation toward contention. It makes the need for a stronger top-nine center behind them more of a luxury than a pressing concern. Current quality: 94th percentile Looking for: None No single player in the league is better equipped to deal with McDavid and Draisaitl than Nathan MacKinnon. His presence gives Colorado an edge on virtually every other team. Brock Nelson, who this month signed a three-year deal with a $7.5 million AAV, is the above-average second-line center the Avs had chased since Nazem Kadri left town. Advertisement Behind them are Charlie Coyle and Jack Drury. Coyle is fine as a 3C in a vacuum, but his contract ($5.25 million AAV for one more season) isn't ideal. Drury gives them some decent defensive depth for the fourth line. Current quality: 88th percentile Looking for: None On Thursday morning, it was fair to wonder what Dallas' lineup would look like at the end of the offseason. Roope Hintz is a solid first-liner and Wyatt Johnston, as a 2C, is a luxury item. You can't reasonably ask for much more from your top two guys. Matt Duchene's pending UFA status, though, was a wrench in the works. If he were to walk, Dallas would need to replace him — and that'd be no easy task. Duchene led the Stars in overall points (82) and was second at five-on-five (47). Now, after Duchene's four-year, $4.5 million AAV extension on Thursday, our question has an answer. Down the middle, Dallas is set. Current quality: 76th percentile Looking for: Depth center After the Stars and Avalanche, there's a fairly steep drop to the next tier. The Stars have three top-six centers to the Lightning's two. As for the Avalanche, Brayden Point is obviously not MacKinnon. Point and Anthony Cirelli don't even add up to MacKinnon, which is part of what creates such a divide. Regardless, the Lightning are pretty set down the middle. Point is a high-end 1C, Cirelli is a great shutdown center coming off a career year and one of Yanni Gourde or Nick Paul rounds out the top nine with defensive utility. It's a very strong trifecta that's easily contender-caliber, especially when paired with Tampa Bay's strengths elsewhere. All the Lightning really need is a stable 4C. Ideally, they get an upgrade from Luke Glendening, the team's go-to option last season. While the fourth line isn't and shouldn't be high on many teams' priority lists, it does help to at least be average at center there. The Lightning have been playing a bit too much catch-up with that role over the last few years. Advertisement Current quality: 72nd percentile Looking for: None Things are in flux for the Isles. Jean-Gabriel Pageau, a still-solid 3C, is once again a trade candidate, and there are indeed interested teams, according to Islanders reporter Stefen Rosner. If new GM Mathieu Darche decides to move him, it's even more likely that Mathew Barzal will move back to center. He spent most of last season on Bo Horvat's right wing. Either way, the Islanders are in decent shape. Horvat is a competent 1C, and Barzal's offensive production will give them a major advantage on the second line. If Pageau is moved, prospect Calum Ritchie — acquired from Colorado for Brock Nelson — figures to be in the mix as his replacement. Current quality: 61st percentile Looking for: Middle-six center While there's a good chance that Sam Bennett will remain a Panther, he's not signed yet, so it's worth looking at where the Panthers stand with and without him. Without him, the Panthers will probably be fine thanks to having a succession plan in line with Anton Lundell. That's an advantage that other teams with 2Cs hanging in the balance don't have. Lundell should have no trouble moving up the lineup and already looks 2C-worthy at age 23. That means the Panthers only need to find a middle-six center to fill the void, and not a true 2C — a much easier job. Alternatively, Sam Reinhart can also shift to the middle, if needed. The Panthers have options, a result of having a deep team led by Aleksander Barkov, one of the league's top centers. If Bennett returns, that's obviously ideal because it would give the Panthers the vaunted 1-2-3 punch that's made them feel unstoppable over the last two years. With Bennett, Florida has a top-five center group in the 88th percentile. Current quality: 60th percentile Looking for: High-end center Advertisement If you're a Kings fan who's yelling, 'We have two high-end centers,' take a breath. Anze Kopitar and Quinton Byfield are both, indeed, really good. But as Kopitar ages — he'll be 38 on opening night — it becomes even more crucial for Byfield to continue his development. Last season, once his puck luck changed in December, it was another step in the right direction. For now, though, Byfield is projected to be a low-end 1C in 2025-26. They need him to continue pushing that number in the right direction. At 3C, little has changed. Phillip Danault is one of the best in the league at what he does. Current quality: 62nd percentile Looking for: None Assuming Tage Thompson is the team's 1C, the Sabres look surprisingly set. Thompson is a bona fide star at the top of the lineup, especially now that he's taken serious strides defensively. He's Buffalo's best forward and the main reason the Sabres rank so highly. If the Sabres put Thompson on the wing, however, they would drop to 22nd. Both Ryan McLeod and Josh Norris look like decent top-six options, which should give the Sabres an advantage on the third line — again, assuming Thompson is driving the top line. Add Peyton Krebs, a solid 4C, to the mix, and Buffalo's pivots look playoff-caliber. Whether they (finally) make due on that promise is the big question. Current quality: 65th percentile Looking for: Depth center The Sens' top three makes plenty of sense. Tim Stützle has the juice necessary to be a first-liner on a good team, though he shot the puck less frequently in 2024-25 (about six per 60 minutes) than ever before. Dylan Cozens still profiles as a 2C, even though his numbers lag a bit. Shane Pinto, meanwhile, brings plenty of defensive value to a third line. If they find a competent fourth-liner and if Cozens resumes his upward trajectory, things will look even better for the Sens. Advertisement Current quality: 57th percentile Looking for: Top-six center When Carolina signed Jesperi Kotkaniemi to an offer sheet, the vision was clear: lock in the entire prime of a potential 2C behind Sebastian Aho once Jordan Staal ages. Kotkaniemi, still just 24, has shown flashes, but never for long enough to believe he's that caliber of player. Within a deep lineup, that's one of Carolina's most glaring holes. Aho is still a great 1C, Staal is fine as a 3C and Mark Jankowski is great as a 4C. But the presence of Kotkaniemi is what keeps the Hurricanes outside of the top 10. An upgrade there, or Kotkaniemi finally realizing his potential, is sorely needed. Current quality: 52nd percentile Looking for: Top-six center, Top-nine center A John Tavares-less world is not an ideal one for the Leafs — at least not without an acceptable backup plan to fill the void behind Auston Matthews. With Tavares, the Leafs jump to the 94th percentile and into the top five. Without him, they're barely above average. The presence of Matthews can only do so much. That's partially because the team's bottom-six center depth is also lacking. Neither Max Domi nor Scott Laughton looks like a strong enough 3C option, and that was apparent against the Panthers when going up against Lundell. Laughton works very well as a defensively responsible 4C, but an upgrade on Domi is necessary. If Tavares leaves on top of that, Toronto might be in trouble. Current quality: 59th percentile Looking for: None Dylan Larkin once again projects to provide completely legit production for a first-line center. For the first time in a long time, Detroit has reason for optimism behind him. Marco Kasper's first NHL season was a success. He led Detroit's regulars in expected goal share and popped off in the season's second half, leading all rookies with 17 goals after Jan. 10 and adding a welcome dose of creativity and tenacity to the mix. Advertisement For next season, he projects as an average 2C. That should be great news for the Red Wings — and the better news, based on his age and second-half production, is that he seems to be capable of more. Larkin needs help, and the other options (Andrew Copp and J.T. Compher) are limited for a team desperately trying to take the next step. Current quality: 41st percentile Looking for: High-end center, Bottom-six center The key theme for the Capitals across the board will be similar: prove last year was no fluke. That might be harsh, but when it came time to actually play a legit contender, the Capitals folded. It was enough to warrant skepticism that many of the career years experienced throughout the roster were just that: highs that will be hard to repeat. That brings us to Pierre-Luc Dubois. He's a high-pedigree player who flashed the potential of a two-way stud early in his career, but has also been plagued by consistency issues. Last year, he finally realized that potential, playing to the level of a top-15 center. Can he do it again? Maybe, but we're going to wait and see. Dubois is the big key to Washington seeing consistent success, as he and Dylan Strome form a solid one-two punch down the middle: a shutdown center and a scoring center. They just need one of them to do it at a high enough level, and Dubois seems like the better bet. Aside from that, Washington's only external need is another bottom-six center to pair with Nic Dowd. Ideally, Dowd works as a wonderful defensive 4C and someone is brought in above him. But he's strong enough that getting a depth center to play behind him is also fine. Current quality: 44th percentile Looking for: Top-six center There's a reason this could be Evgeni Malkin's last year with Pittsburgh. He's starting to fall short of expectations. Malkin's age (39 on opening night), combined with his drop in point production (50 in 68 games, 1.65 per 60 at five-on-five), has him projecting as a below-average second-line center for the first time in his career. He once was an MVP-caliber superstar. Then, he was an elite 2C. Then, he was an adequately, appropriately paid 2C. Now, we're talking about the end of the line. Age and injury catch up with everyone. Advertisement There's obviously no such problem for Sidney Crosby, who should remain a high-end 1C in his age-38 season. Still, Malkin's decline combined with underwhelming options on the bottom six — Kevin Hayes, Connor Dewar and so on — means that Pittsburgh can add 'overall down-the-middle ability' to its list of problems. Current quality: 44th percentile Looking for: Top-nine center As is, Minnesota's center depth is probably not good enough. Joel Eriksson Ek is a solid 1C, just not to the level of the league's top teams. And the team has a gaping hole at 3C that needs to be addressed. Naturally, that means one thing: the Wild should make it worse by trading their 23-year-old 2C. With Ryan Hartman sliding up in the event of a Rossi trade, the Wild would drop to 25th in these rankings. It's odd that a franchise that's spent decades searching for center depth is so willing to trade a young 60-point center. Yes, Rossi's size is a concern, and yes, his production is partly a Kirill Kaprizov byproduct. Still, he's worth holding onto unless an obvious upgrade comes back the other way. And that feels unlikely. With Rossi, Minnesota's center depth is at least average. Without? Woof. Current quality: 39th percentile Looking for: Top-six center Like too much of the dialogue surrounding the Jets, their lack of down-the-middle talent is old news. It's still a fact, though, even with Mark Scheifele once again projecting as a legit first-liner. Vladimir Namestnikov has some defensive value. Adam Lowry is a solid 3C. Neither of them comes close to offering the reliable offensive pop that the Jets need if they're going to show the capability to truly rely on anything other than consistently great goaltending. They had that shot against Dallas and, once again, fell short. Advertisement Current quality: 38th percentile Looking for: Middle-six center Robert Thomas was incredible last season and has emerged as one of the game's best. Oskar Sundqvist is a perfectly cromulent 4C. Those are St. Louis' center bookends — what they need is to fill the hole between them, whether that means a top-six center in front of Brayden Schenn, or a top-nine center behind him. Schenn looked great once Jim Montgomery took over, meshing well on a line with Dylan Holloway and Jordan Kyrou. But if we're looking at the league's best teams, 2C is definitely an area where St. Louis is lacking in comparison. Shifting Schenn down would be the ideal move, allowing him to win bottom-six matchups. Without a superstar forward, St. Louis' best bet is building a depth advantage. If that can't be accomplished, the Blues at the very least need a trustworthy player behind Schenn. Sundqvist won't cut it as the team's 3C. Current quality: 33rd percentile Looking for: Bottom six centers If the Rangers hold on to Mika Zibanejad — though there's increasing reason to think that they won't — their on-paper center depth would improve. In these rankings, they'd be comfortably inside the top 10. Of course, that'd leave out some important context. Both sides seem to be done with each other, though Zibanejad's contract ($8.5 million AAV through 2030 with full trade protection) remains a roadblock. Getting out from under Zibanejad's contract isn't a bad idea, but his absence would certainly make the Rangers worse in the short term. We'll see what happens there. For now, we're assuming that Zibanejad is either playing elsewhere or on the wing. That leaves the Rangers' situation behind J.T. Miller, a middle-of-the-road first liner, and Vincent Trocheck, a high-end 2C, incredibly bleak. There's not a solid fourth-liner on the roster, let alone another top-nine option. Advertisement Current quality: 33rd percentile Looking for: Bottom-six center There are a lot of variables at play when it comes to analyzing Columbus' center depth. Can Sean Monahan repeat last year's magic? Is Adam Fantilli ready to become a star? How good can Cole Sillinger be? For all three, there's a wide range of possibilities where it's easy to see the potential upside. But we're going to play things a bit safer. Mostly, what we need to see is Fantilli and Sillinger offering the substance in the middle-six necessary to bring Columbus into above-average territory. Fantilli looks like a future star with this production (with his top comp being Dylan Larkin), but his two-way game is still lacking. The same thing goes for Sillinger, who's had his fair share of struggles at five-on-five. While Boone Jenner is an option to solidify things, it might be prudent for the Blue Jackets to look at a defensively capable bottom-six center to keep things steady. Betting on growth from Fantilli and Sillinger is the way to go, but it wouldn't hurt to have a safety net in case they struggle again. Current quality: 37th percentile Looking for: Top-line center In some spots, you'll hear that the Flames — who scraped their way to 96 points last season — need a center to play behind Nazem Kadri. What they actually need, though, is someone to play in front of him. At this point in his career, Kadri projects as a high-end second-line center. On teams with another similar player in the mix, that's acceptable enough. The Kings, with Kopitar and Byfield, come to mind. The Mammoth do too, to a lesser degree. Sticking a garden-variety 2C between Kadri and Mikael Backlund, though, won't get Calgary anywhere close to contender status, especially as Backlund — always offensively limited — enters the back half of his 30s. It might not get them too far into the wild-card discussion, either. Dustin Wolf can only do so much. Advertisement Current quality: 27th percentile Looking for: High-end center It's no secret that the Mammoth are looking to add down the middle, and it's easy to see why. Barrett Hayton has turned into a solid shutdown center who would be perfect for the third line, while Logan Cooley is an ascending star, but still a second-liner at the moment. In order for Utah to make the playoffs, the Mammoth need to add to those two — and they need those two to add to their games. Even if Utah adds a strong second-line center, internal development will decide the team's ceiling. The top contenders all have legitimate high-end stars as their 1Cs and unless Cooley gets there, a shiny 2C probably won't get the Mammoth to where they need to go. Cooley is the team's biggest X-factor. Current quality: 27th percentile Looking for: Middle-six centers Last season, Nick Suzuki should've removed all doubt: he's a quality first-line center. Did he deserve that first-place Hart Trophy vote? Nope. Would he have been a reasonable down-ballot consideration? Absolutely. He does it all for Montreal and was one of the best players in the league after the 4 Nations break. There, the Canadiens are set. Behind him, it's a plane built entirely of below-average third liners. There, the Canadiens are not set. Kirby Dach showed promise in 2022-23 but had his last two seasons derailed by major injuries. Alex Newhook has yet to show he's capable of producing enough offensively. Jake Evans has some defensive utility, but he fits best on a fourth line. What's left? The single biggest impediment to the Canadiens' attempt to build on last season's great leap forward. They've got long-term pieces in place everywhere else, but that's a big asterisk to carry. Current quality: 26th percentile Looking for: Top-six center, depth center Advertisement Macklin Celebrini is already a star. The next step is superstardom, and that should cause the Sharks to quickly rise up these ranks. In Celebrini, the Sharks have locked in the most important piece. Will Smith is next in line, though he still needs to show a fair bit more to establish himself as a bona fide 2C. Smith started really slow and looked overwhelmed without the puck at the NHL level, but to his credit played a lot better in the season's second half. More of that effort would boost his stock heavily. If Smith can be the guy many expect him to be, the Sharks would have a formidable 1-2 punch that could be top-five worthy sooner rather than later — just not yet. After the team's dynamic duo, the Sharks look pretty settled at 3C with the steady and defensively capable Alex Wennberg. It's after him where there's room to improve. For teams of San Jose's ilk, addition by subtraction usually goes a long way. Just having an average 4C would push the Sharks to the middle of the pack. Further growth from their young dynamic duo should take care of the rest. Current quality: 23rd percentile Looking for: High-end center, middle-six center Perhaps no team is better situated to have its needs met by internal candidates than the Blackhawks. Connor Bedard isn't a high-end first-liner yet — but can he be? Obviously. And it might happen soon. Frank Nazar isn't a quality middle-six center yet — but can he be? Obviously. And it might happen soon. Behind those two is Jason Dickinson, a solid bottom-sixer. In a perfect world, Chicago would add someone in the middle of the mix to stabilize things and help both Bedard and Nazar reach their potential. In the meantime, they're closer to the bottom of these rankings than the middle. Current quality: 22nd percentile Looking for: Top-six center Advertisement Last year the Canucks — with Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller and Pius Suter — ranked sixth. No team has fallen farther after Pettersson struggled heavily, Miller was downgraded to Filip Chytil and Suter looks likely to walk in free agency. The depth that made the team a contender during the 2023-24 season has evaporated. While Pettersson should be able to bounce back with good health and Chytil should be a suitable Suter replacement, that still leaves the Canucks with a gaping hole at 2C. Maybe Chytil steps up and the need lowers to a competent 3C. For now, it's difficult to see the Canucks doing much damage. Current quality: 18th percentile Looking for: High-end center Here's the optimist's view for the Kraken: If they shift Matty Beniers to 2C, Shane Wright to 3C and Chandler Stephenson to 4C, everything looks great. That's partially due to Wright popping a bit in his first protracted NHL action; he scored 19 goals last season as a 21-year-old. Here's the pessimist's view for the Kraken: they can't actually shift any of those guys, so everything looks … not-great, let's say. All of their centers are playing a level over their heads, and that's no recipe for success. Beniers and Wright are still young enough to make a leap, but the clock is ticking, and the options behind them are basically non-existent. Current quality: 12th percentile Looking for: High-end center, top-nine center Before last season, Leo Carlsson's top comps were Zibanejad, Barkov and Dubois. He looked like he had the makings of a two-way stud — the exact type of player a rebuilding team needs at the top of the lineup. One year later, his top comps are Nolan Patrick, Brendan Perlini and Christian Fischer. Not ideal! There are other comps that paint Carlsson in a better light (Ryan Johansen, Sean Couturier and Zibanejad again), but after a slightly disappointing sophomore season, there's a little more doubt about Carlsson's ceiling. The same is true of Mason McTavish, whose poor defensive game has him lining up closely with Max Domi, Dylan Strome and Casey Mittelstadt at the same age. Advertisement More than anything, the Ducks need Carlsson and McTavish to step up and break through. Anaheim needs one of them to be a high-end center. Otherwise, this rebuild will struggle to get off the ground. One thing that could help: a reliable 3C behind them. Trevor Zegras is probably better suited to the wing anyway. Current quality: 12th percentile Looking for: High-end center For a few seasons in Calgary, Elias Lindholm centered a first line. In 2024-25, the Bruins bet on him being a true first-line center. Those aren't quite the same things, and now Boston has proof. While Lindholm settled in at least a bit as the season progressed, it's safe to say that Boston is still living without any sort of legit replacement for Patrice Bergeron. Lindholm isn't the whole problem either. He still projects as an above-average 2C. Behind him is Casey Mittelstadt, who had a nightmare of a season and was traded at the deadline for the second straight year, and Matthew Poitras, who bounced between the AHL and NHL. The Bruins, in other words, are looking for centers, plural — not just one fit to take the opening faceoff. Current quality: 17th percentile Looking for: High-end center From a center-ice perspective, things look really rough for the Flyers. Sean Couturier, Noah Cates and Ryan Poehling — that depth is not great, to say the least. Couturier, at this stage of his career, is probably similar in quality to Anton Lundell, the 3C of the Stanley Cup champions. Cates is a fine shutdown 3C — but neither he nor Couturier provides much offense, which is a big problem. The Flyers are in desperate need of an offensive star, and they're probably only finding what they need at the draft. A stud 1C is the most important piece to find in a rebuild and until the Flyers do, they'll be a long way from relevancy. Advertisement Current quality: 9th percentile Looking for: High-end center, top-nine center Last season, Nashville's situation down the middle wasn't ideal, but it still made sense. All four of their centers fit neatly into their roles, but all four also came in on the lower end. This season, things have devolved. Ryan O'Reilly is now a high-end 2C playing on a first line. Behind him are two players who project as fourth-liners (the recently acquired Erik Haula and Colton Sissons) and not much else. So, if you find yourself watching the Predators and wondering how a team with Filip Forsberg, Jonathan Marchessault and Steven Stamkos could look so punchless, there's your answer. (Top photo of Leon Draisaitl and Nathan MacKinnon taking a faceoff: Andy Devlin / NHLI via Getty Images)
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
The Hockey News Playoff Frenzy Live: Reaction As Panthers Beat Hurricanes In Game 1
Welcome to The Hockey News Playoff Frenzy Live, streaming nightly during the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs. After the big game of the night, our experts go live to react to the match that was, break down the key moments and storylines and read your opinions. Advertisement On tonight's show, Katie Gaus and Michael Augello react to the Florida Panthers beating the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. Panthers vs Hurricanes Game 1 - Playoff Frenzy | The Hockey News Panthers vs Hurricanes Game 1 - Playoff Frenzy | The Hockey News Welcome to Playoff Frenzy Live by The Hockey News presented by where we give our live reactions and break down the latest news to all the biggest g... Share your thoughts in the comments, and the hosts may discuss your message during the stream. Check out the show right now. Promo image credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images
Boston Globe
5 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Is Tuesday the day former Bruins captains Zdeno Chara and Joe Thornton get the call from the Hockey Hall of Fame?
The committee, while not restricted to considering solely the newly eligible names, easily could anoint a handful from just the 'freshman' list. Among them: Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up ⋅ Longtime Kings captain Dustin Brown, his name twice on the Stanley Cup and a perpetually grinding presence in their lineup for 18 seasons and nearly 1,300 games. Advertisement ⋅ Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith, who helped revitalize the Original Six franchise and lead it to three Cup titles. A two-time Norris Trophy winner and the Duncan Keith won three Stanley Cup titles with the Blackhawks, including against the Bruins in 2013. Bruce Bennett ⋅ Canadiens goaltender Carey Price, who never backed Les Glorieux to the Cup but logged 361 wins (23rd all-time), and in 2015 was named both the Vezina (top goalie) and Hart (MVP) winner. Advertisement ⋅ Capitals goalie Braden Holtby, a particular Bruins nemesis, who won the Vezina in 2016 and two years later backed the distant sons of Abe Pollin to the lone Cup title in franchise history, going 16-7. Capitals goalie Braden Holtby was a Bruins nemesis. Barry Chin/Globe Staff Chara, the 6-foot-9-inch Trencin Tower of Power, should be a first-ballot lock. If not, the voting machines should be seized by the International Court of Hockey Justice at 3:01 p.m. Originally an Islanders draft pick, Chara played the majority of his career with the Bruins, signing as a free agent in the summer of 2006 and immediately named captain of a franchise in desperate need of a course correction and cultural reset. Big Z provided both, particularly once Claude Julien was named coach for the start of the 2007-08 season. Chara finished with 1,680 regular-season games, the most ever by an defenseman and No. 7 overall. In the spring of 2011, he was captain for the franchise's first Cup title in 39 years. The Cup run also represents the lone time the Bruins, in 100-plus years of operation, ever won 16 playoff games in a season. Goalie Tim Thomas was the star — and was duly chosen the Smythe winner — but Big Z had his fingerprints on every one of those wins as the team's relentless, intimidating force on the back end. Related : Beyond getting his name on the Cup, Chara also banked a Norris Trophy (2009) during his time in Black and Gold and deservedly could have been named the league's top defenseman at least two or three more times during his near quarter-century of service. Red Wings star Nicklas Lidstrom, the smooth and efficient Swedish backliner, won seven during Chara's tenure, explaining, in part, why Big Z won it but once. Lidstrom was more prolific on offense (1,142 points to Chara's 680) and he also played on four Cup winners. Only Bobby Orr, with eight Norris wins, eclipsed Lidstrom. Advertisement No one during Chara's time was his match as a shutdown defenseman. He was big and agile, with a long stick, longer reach, and even deeper hockey IQ. His quintessential moment of leadership came in the Chara's career line: 1,680 games, 209-471—680, and 2,085 penalty minutes, many recorded as one of the game's most feared fighters. His playoff line: 200 games, 18-52—70. The affable, smooth-handed Thornton arrived in Boston in the fall of 1997, chosen No. 1 in that June's draft. It was a franchise all but dead at the side of the Charles River, without a trip to the Cup Final since 1990, and after a 1996-97 season in which the Bruins finished last with 61 points. The gangly, smiling 18-year-old center from St. Thomas, Ontario, arrived as the would-be franchise savior. Advertisement It indeed all came together for Thornton, though not in Boston, where his captain's 'C' proved more burden than honor. On Nov. 30, 2005, frustrated general manager Mike O'Connell abruptly Thornton went on an immediate, near-mythical offensive tear with the Sharks, and months later was named that season's MVP after producing 20 goals and 92 points in only 58 games. The Hart turned out to be the biggest trophy of his long, productive career. Despite Thornton's abundant offensive talent, mainly for setting up goals, the Sharks only made it to one Cup Final during his 15-year stay. They lost to the Penguins in 2016. Thornton's career line: 1,714 games (sixth all-time), 430-1,109—1,539. Only six NHLers ever recorded more career assists, only 13 tallied more points. Like Chara, he should breeze through the Hall's front doors on Tuesday as easily as he threaded passes to a legion of linemates for 24 NHL seasons. Selected by the Bruins with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1997 draft, Joe Thornton did his best work with the Sharks. Jamie Squire As for the scores of NHLers previously passed over by the Hall, four stand out because of their bountiful goal-scoring. Patrick Marleau (566), Keith Tkachuk (538), Pat Verbeek (522), and Peter Bondra (503) all crested the coveted 500-goal plateau. All but Bondra, who finished with 892, tallied more than 1,000 points. Yet for all their firepower, the only one with his name on the Cup is Verbeek, who was long beyond his high-output Hartford/New Jersey days when he helped the Stars clinch the title in 1999. Tkachuk, who grew up in Melrose, never made it to a Cup Final. Advertisement Just a year ago, fellow Bay Stater Jeremy Roenick (513-703—1,216) finally was Longtime Bruins backstop Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at
