The Bolts
Nikita Kucherov is now 10th all-time in points for the Tampa Bay Lightning with 255 points in 298 games. What is crazy about this reccord is that Kucherov is one of the fastest players to that feat. The next closest comparable would be Brian Bradley from the 90’s who had 300 points in 328 games. [Hockey Reference]
Forgot to mention last night, but Kucherov moved past Dan Boyle for #10 in points in @TBLightning history. Next in line is Gratton’s 259pts
— Dustin Stauffer (@dustinstauffer2) October 31, 2017
Want to know what all the Bolts wore for Halloween all in one concise article? Of course you do! [Raw Charge]
Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning tied the NHL record for most wins for October with 10. “The truth is Vasilevskiy was little better than average. Among the 30 goaltenders to play 41 games, he posted the 13th-best SP (.917) and 18th-best 5-on-5 SP (.924) as the Lightning, who were admittedly decimated by injuries, missed the post-season despite title-contending potential. [But] The Lightning stuck by Vasilevskiy” [The Hockey News]
Our talented graphic design artist RxlandS has made the November team calendar avaliable for download! Go check it out, you desktop will thank you. [Raw Charge]
The Prospects
Unlike the Lightning, the Syracuse Crunch did not get out of the gate very well this season. “Is it a hangover from that Cup run that’s at fault for such a poor showing to start the season? Maybe, but one could argue that the amount of turnover the Crunch has seen is more to blame.” [Raw Charge]
D’awww.
Get yourself a guy that can do both pic.twitter.com/ONpm0SyTQI
— Connor Ingram (@CBIngram1) November 1, 2017
The Game
After giving up eight goals to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Aaron Ekblad of the Florida Panthers apparently ripped into his team. “There’s a lot of problems,” Ekblad said. “We’re making the wrong mistakes, mistakes that we talk about day-in and day-out that we should improve on. We shouldn’t be making the same mistakes over and over again.” [SB Nation]
Andreas Borgman scored his first career NHL goal against the San Jose Sharks on Monday night. However, the goal was then credited to Nazem Kadri because it looked like Kadri deflected the shot in. Yesterday morning, the NHL released an official correction, giving the goal back to Borgman. So, umm, I know it’s a day late, Andreas, but congrats on your first NHL goal! [Pension Plan Puppets]
Andreas Borgman now credited with his first NHL goal. #TMLtalk https://t.co/cQyXgaTdkz
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) October 31, 2017
Yes — he did.
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) October 31, 2017
How do goaltenders handle the puck? The correct answer is badly, for the most part, but it is still worth looking at how goalies move the puck and who’s the best at it. “If I asked you who the best puckhandling goalies are in the NHL right now, I’m betting Smith is the first who comes to mind, followed by Ben Bishop (another lover of the long bomb), and maybe Pekka Rinne (who enjoys nothing more than rimming the puck up the boards after stopping one behind his net).” But there is another. [Sportsnet]
Highlight of the Night: Henrik Lundqvist still has it. Even with players scrambling and flopping everywhere, even with chaos in front of him, Hank is still able to keep the puck in sights at all times and keep it in front of him, and most importantly, out of the net. He’s definitely one of the best goaltenders of all-time. [Reddit]
