x

Already member? Login first!

Comments / New

Quick Strikes: Dennis Yan impresses in 5-2 Tampa Bay Lightning victory over Nashville Predators

Posted on by Hardev

Training Camp

The Tampa Bay Lightning shocked the Nashville Predators on Saturday night after a team full of prospects beat an almost fully-formed NHL team in a tough game.

J.T. Miller, Alex Volkov, and Dennis Yan all scored for the Lightning on Preds backup Juuse Saros, with Carter Verhaeghe and Cedric Paquette each adding an empty-net goal each.

Calle Jarnkrok and Ryan Ellis both scored for the Preds, so you know how tough a game the Bolts were able to come out on top of.

Connor Ingram stopped 22 of 24 shots in a 60-minute win, his first of the preseason.

It wasn’t all rookies in this game. Former Team North America forward J.T. Miller got the party started for the Lightning with a classic slapper from the faceoff dot. A goal you can set your watch to, that’s for sure.

It was a back-and-forth almost the entire way between these two teams. Volkov was able to use some smooth moves in tight to clear a defender, get Saros moving, and pot home the first go-ahead goal for the Lightning on the night.

This goal came late in the game and gave the fans at AMALIE Arena a real treat. IT looked like a nothing shot, it should’ve been a nothing shot, but with the screen in front by defenseman Anton Stralman (I know, right), Denny Yan was able to get the puck through for the lead, and eventual win.

After losing back-to-back games to the Carolina Hurricanes and only being able to score twice over 120 minutes, the Bolts have found a way to beat the Predators not once, but twice, and score five goals in each game. Now, THAT’S the Bolts we’ve come to know and love!

Coach Coop definitely agreed that the effort and results carried over from the win against Nashville on Friday. “Every game we’ve gotten better. Our structure’s gotten better. Our compete’s elevated. You want to see that in your group, and that’s what we’ve been able to see.”

In the 3 Things we Learned article by Bryan Burns, Dennis Yan’s shot has turned heads. [NHL dot com]

“When I turned around and I saw the net, the goalie was kind of looking like that,” Yan said, indicating Saros was looking the other way. “There was a couple D in front and I kind of felt they weren’t paying attention when I shot it, and it went through (Saros’) glove. It was kind of a long-distance shot, but I had an eye on that.”

The Bolts

Danick Martel is the newest member of the Lightning organization after he was claimed by Julien BriseBois from the Philadelphia Flyers. [Raw Charge]

Martel was an undrafted player from the QMJHL who signed an entry level contract with the Flyers after three years with the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (that sounds familiar…) and after three seasons with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL (and four NHL games with the Flyers), he’s now a member of the Lightning organization.

Also, judging by his youtube searches; he fights sometimes.

Broad Street Hockey had a lot to about their newly departed forward. The Flyers SBN site is probably your best bet for information if you want to learn more about Martel. [Broad Street Hockey]

Martel was named to the AHL All-Star game last season, though he wasn’t able to participate after falling victim to a big (and illegal) hit in January. After coming back from injury, Martel struggled to maintain quite the same pace of production he was on earlier in the year (unsurprisingly, as that would’ve been a tough clip to match regardless), but finished the year with a respectable 25 goals and 15 points in 59 games.

Waiver add Martel a perfect fit for Lightning

Some more on Danick; also known as a really nice story.

In a Fanpost, TeslaCoils gives a great breakdown of Training Camp so far and what they’ve seen out of some of the players. A must-read! [Raw Charge]

Cirelli – zipping around like his skates had rockets on ‘em. Was having a bit of a problem with being smushed along the boards during puck battles. Could also make lineup, but he could use a few more sandwiches or something.

The other five forwards I remember would all show some flair/skill now and then, but otherwise weren’t that memorable in the chaos. Listed in order of the impression they made on me, most to least. Remember that this is all subjective.

This year may not be the one where you see a lot of prospects graduate to the NHL, but there are a lot who are just hitting dingers in terms of what they’ve been able to show the team and fans. One of those people is Boris Katchouk. [Tampa Bay Times]

“If I keep producing, if I keep playing well, it’s going to turn heads for the coaches and give them a hard choice to make for them,” Katchouk said.

“He’s smart, and he knows where the pucks going,” Stephens said. “He’s got a heavy shot. Hands in tight. Can make plays. Just overall work ethic.”

The Game

Forward Mile Wood has signed a four-year contract extension with the New Jersey Devils. The RFA will make $2.75 million per year on the deal. [All About The Jersey]

The first is comparable players by 5-on-5 offensive score per 82 games. Despite the lack of ice time, he’s nestled in between Mathieu Perreault ($4.125 million cap hit) and Chris Kreider($4.625 million cap hit) while not being too far behind Hart Trophy candidate Anze Kopitar ($10 million cap hit) and young ace Jack Eichel ($10 million cap hit). For the sake of completeness, Wood’s total game score per game was 2.25 last season – which ranked 103rd out of 520 NHL forwards per Corsica, virtually tied with Michael Frolik ($4.3 million cap hit) and Rickard Rakell ($3.789-ish million cap hit).

Another episode of The Ice Garden’s podcast is out for any and all women’s hockey fans! [The Ice Garden]

The Boston Pride re-signed former NWHL Goaltender of the Year Brittany Ott to join Katie Burt and Madison Litchfield in the goal crease. The Metropolitan Riveters brought back a veteran of their own by re-signing Erika Lawler, securing their center depth. But the Connecticut Whale out-did everyone this past week by signing four players, including NWHL trailblazers Elena Orlando and Jordan Brickner.

Highlight of the Night: Erik Brannstrom.

If you enjoyed this article please consider supporting RawCharge by subscribing here, or purchasing our merchandise here.

Support RawCharge by using our Affiliate Link when Shopping Hockey Apparel !

Talking Points