Kukla's Korner Hockey
Entries with the tag: Zdeno+Chara
Morning Line
by Paul on 05/09/09 at 09:39 AM ET
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I’m not a different player. I’m battling hard. I’m playing hard. I’m giving my 100 percent every game. Mistakes, sometimes they do happen. And obviously I believe I’m making more strong plays and good plays than bad plays. I really don’t know how to explain it.
“I realize the responsibility I have, I’m one of the leaders. I’m the captain. I do take it to heart. At the same time, today’s today and tomorrow’s a new day. We have to somehow regroup and find the energy to go into the next game and win it. It’s as simple as that.”
-Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins after losing to the Hurricanes last night. More from Chara by Steve Buckley of the Boston Herald.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Is Your Norris Trophy Winner
by Paul on 03/29/09 at 09:00 AM ET
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from Mike Zeisberger of the Toronto Sun,
If anyone can grapple the Norris Trophy from the clutches of multiple winner Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, it is Chara.
The numbers speak for themselves. His 16 goals rank him among the league leaders for defencemen. His plus-24 is one of the best totals in the NHL.
Yes, the Washington Capitals’ Mike Green is having an outstanding offensive season with 28 goals. And yes, the likes of Lidstrom, Andrei Markov, Dan Boyle, Brian Rafalski and Shea Weber, just to mention a few, certainly deserve consideration.
Where Chara separates himself from the others is the ability to use his towering frame to completely smother opposing snipers, a quality his coach very much appreciates.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Parise Sees A Lot Of Chara
by Paul on 03/22/09 at 08:12 PM ET
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from Tom Gulitti of Fire & Ice,
“Going into the game, we knew we were going to be seeing a lot of him (Chara), our line was,” Parise said. “A few times, we were able to get in there, but I think we’ve got to do a better job against him. We have played well against him before in the last couple of games, but tonight we couldn’t get much going.”
Devils coach Brent Sutter said it’s up to Parise to fight through that sort of thing and not his teammates to protect him.
“Every time someone gets touched, it’s a big deal because someone gets touched,” Sutter said. “Your best players have to play through some things too. This time of the season and come playoffs, you’re going to have to take punches to the head for the benefit of the team. Did he intimidate us? He certainly didn’t intimidate us out there. He’s a competitor and Zach has to learn to play through stuff too. That’s part of being a good player. You’ve got to play through some things maybe you don’t like. You have to fight through it. I’m not saying he doesn’t. I’m just saying that every time someone gets hit in a game doesn’t mean you have to respond or a positive or negative way either. We know how to handle that. It’s not like we don’t know how to handle these things.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zach+Parise, Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Reaching New Heights
by Paul on 02/25/09 at 08:10 AM ET
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from Larry Wigge of NHL.com,
There are no more growing pains for Zdeno Chara.
The 6-foot-9, 255-pound defenseman from Trencin, Slovakia, hasn’t had a major growth spurt since he was 17—shortly after he grew six inches in a two-year span. He no longer has to hear coaches tell him maybe he should try basketball or some other sport. He’s no longer a big joke to some teammates, who watched him clumsily skate around the rink and laughed behind his back.
No, when Chara turned 22, the rest of his body caught up with his height, a development for which the Boston Bruins are eternally grateful. Now, equipment comes custom made for Chara. He no longer plays with skates held together by tape, glue and screws. Nor does he have trainers sew extra material from old sweaters onto the bottom of his jersey to cover his hockey pants.
“I wasn’t supposed to make it. I was too tall, too awkward, too everything,” Chara said. “I couldn’t make anyone in Slovakia believe I could play ... so I had to leave home.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Ovechkin & Chara Discuss The SuperSkills
by Paul on 01/24/09 at 10:21 PM ET
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Q. Alex, where did you get the idea to do the hat and the glasses?
ALEX OVECHKIN: Well, it was last night. I talked actually with Nate about it, and I said it’s going to be fun, and you have to try it.
Q. Can you just comment on, it seems like you really enjoy the spotlight and playing up to the crowd. Do you think hockey needs a little bit more of that?
ALEX OVECHKIN: Well, I think, you know, fans have to see how we are, who we are, you know. They see our skills and, I think the last trick like was just for fun. I think fans love it.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Alexander+Ovechkin, All-Star+Game, Zdeno+Chara,
Fighting Lessons From Zdeno Chara
by Alanah McGinley on 10/30/08 at 04:44 PM ET
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From Ron Spence at Crashing the Goalie,
What’s he learned the most about fighting in the NHL?
“The most important thing is to know what kind of fighter you’re fighting. It’s a good thing to know before you fight, if he likes to fight in tight, if he’s a righty, lefty, or both….”
So, he’s a student of the hockey fighters?
“Oh yeah, you get to know the people,” he nods. “You know when I watch for a couple of minutes, you get to know how they fight.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: fighting, zdeno+chara,
The Kilimanjaro Trek Is Complete
by Paul on 07/19/08 at 09:24 AM ET
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from Rob Simpson at the Bruins website,
As we neared the National Park gate and the village of Marangu, we came across small children and later women, who came up from the village to essenitally beg. A German couple walking ahead of me stopped and gave a boy a dollar for a flower he had picked and was selling. The others simply asked for money, clothes, whatever you could spare.
It was a sudden reality check for us, after six days on a mountain, and should remind everyone of the importance of Right to Play’s mission.
Once over the final few steps, and back at the National Park gathering area, we bid farewell to our porters, tipped them (a bit more generously than they were used to) much to their appreciation, and gave them some of our gear.
Chara gave away practically everything he had taken up on the mountain.
You’d think they’d won the lottery. They applauded enthusiastically when Aloyce read out the tips. He, his assistant, the cook, and the three porters who toted the TV gear all the way to the summit earned extra.
“These people can use everything they can get, and if I had more stuff, I’d give that to them as well,” Zdeno stated.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Mountain Hiking With Chara
by Paul on 07/17/08 at 10:01 AM ET
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from Rob Simpson at BostonBruins.com,
Trekking with Zdeno – Day 4
Three hours of sleep on night 3 and a relatively flat day ahead: Things were looking up.
It was time to cross the “saddle”, the seven-mile plateau-like ridge between Mawenzi and our ultimate destination, Kibo, the volcano that sat within the snow-capped summit of Kilimanjaro.
continued and you can read the previous day journals there too…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Playing With The Kids
by Paul on 07/10/08 at 07:32 AM ET
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from Scott Cruickshank of the Calgary Herald,
To have hockey-playing giants show up in their villages must have been stunning for kids in Mozambique.
Last month’s encounters were no less eye-opening for said giants—Robyn Regehr and Zdeno Chara.
The National Hockey League players’ one-week tour through the nation on Africa’s southeast coast—on behalf of Right To Play (motto: “Creating a healthier and safer world for children through the power of sport and play’’)—provided more than a few stunning moments.
Filed in: Hockey Related Stories | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Robyn+Regehr, Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Facing Three More Months Rehab
by Alanah McGinley on 06/12/08 at 11:48 AM ET
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From Steve Conroy at the Boston Herald,
Coming off left shoulder surgery six weeks ago to repair a torn labrum, Chara finally shed his sling a week ago and started his rehabilitation.
He’s doing daily range-of-motion exercises, and it’s estimated that he faces three more months of rehab, which would take him into September and the start of training camp. He couldn’t guarantee that he’d be ready from the get-go, but it shouldn’t be too long after that if he isn’t.
“We’ll have to see how the rehab goes, but it should be right for the start of training camp,” Chara said. “But we’ll see”
read on for more news on the Norris Trophy candidate
In other Bruins news, team owner Jeremy Jacobs and his wife gave a substantial charitable gift to the University of Buffalo this week: $10 million.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeremy+jacobs, zdeno+chara,
Join Chara on Kilimanjaro
by Alanah McGinley on 05/26/08 at 12:42 PM ET
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From Brian Costello at The Hockey News,
The Boston Bruins defenseman will be climbing Africa’s Mount Kilimanjaro the first week of July for the humanitarian organization Right To Play. And he’s leaving open a spot on his climbing team to be taken up by the highest bidder in an eBay auction. Check it out now at [eBay] and you might turn out to be his lucky climbing partner. Bidding ends on Thursday.
Chara is challenging hockey fans everywhere to raise $5 for every foot he climbs in support of his fundraising goal of $100,000 for Right to Play programs. Kili rises 19,340 feet off the plains of Tanzania. All proceeds from the eBay auction to join Chara benefits Right To Play, which uses sport programs to aid the development of children and youth in underprivileged areas of the world.
Having been fortunate enough to climb Kilimanjaro with my wife in 2001, I have two words of advice for Chara and his climbing partners: Poli, poli. That’s Swahili for ‘slow, slow.’
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: charity, mount+kilimanjaro, zdeno+chara,
Feel The Pain
by Paul on 05/18/08 at 08:15 AM ET
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If there were any question about Zdeno Chara’s toughness, this should settle it: The towering defenseman considered not having anesthesia when undergoing recent shoulder surgery to repair a torn left labrum. “True story,” said his agent, Matt Keator. “That’s Z, right there. He cares about his body, like no one I know, and he doesn’t want to do anything that could compromise it. He asked if he could go without it, and he would have done it, but the doctors convinced him it was better to have it.
more NHL bits from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Chara A Marked Man
by Paul on 04/12/08 at 07:35 AM ET
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from Mike Zeisberger of the Toronto Sun,
The Canadiens are not hiding the fact that Chara is a marked man. Pancaked early in the game by the Habs hard-charging duo of Tom Kotsopoulos and Steve Begin, Chara did not look anything like the Norris Trophy candidate who was dominant at times during the regular season.
During the Hockey Night in Canada broadcast of the opener, there was speculation that Chara still might be nursing a nagging shoulder injury. Confronted with that idea yesterday, the hulking defenceman deflected away the suggestion with the same ease that Habs goalie Carey Price deflects away shots.
“That’s gone now,” he told the first wave of reporters when asked about a potential ailment. “Everything’s fine.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Returns & Chases The Spin
by Paul on 03/21/08 at 08:03 AM ET
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from the Boston Globe,
Chara looked the same. He used his reach to fish loose pucks out of trouble spots and leaned on opponents with his big frame. He was even booed by the large Montreal contingent in attendance.
For the most part, his return went as planned. Until Alex Kovalev hopped over the boards.
The Montreal dynamo ruined Chara’s return - and the Bruins’ night - with two goals and an assist, all against the tandem of Chara and Wideman.
more…
Watch the spin move Kovalev put on Chara…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Alexei+Kovalev, Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Out A Short Time
by Paul on 03/09/08 at 06:16 PM ET
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from the Bruins Blog at the Boston Globe,
According to Bruins coach Claude Julien, Chara also might have to sit out Tuesday night’s game in Ottawa against the Senators.
“He’ll be out a short time,” said Julien, who did not identify the
nature of Chara’s injury. “It’s minor. He’s out [today] and possibly in Ottawa, too.”Chara appeared to hurt a shoulder in the second period of Saturday’s Garden matinee against the Capitals but returned to play effectively in the third period.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Senators Must Deal With Chara
by Paul on 12/18/07 at 06:48 AM ET
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from the Ottawa Sun,
Now that he gets to a podium every day, Paddock takes any and all opportunities to sing the Big Zee’s praises. And yesterday, with his team about to fly off to face Chara and the rejuvenated Bruins, a chance to belt out a new chorus presented itself.
Paddock pointed out the B’s had “no defensive structure” last season, Chara’s first in Beantown since losing to Redden in the Which One Do We Keep sweepstakes the John Muckler regime held in Ottawa.
“As wonderful a defensive player as he is, Zee couldn’t do it by himself,” Paddock said, adding that under Claude Julien’s coaching, Chara is “back to being the type of player he was with us.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
Chara Points Finger At Habs
by Paul on 11/19/07 at 09:01 AM ET
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from Dave Stubbs of the Montreal Gazette,
Chara said the Canadiens started all the nonsense on the ice, but were unwilling to finish it, and that what goes around, comes around, etc.
(The two teams meet next on Dec. 6 in Boston.)
Carbonneau was buying none of that, with these illustrations:
Ten minutes into the third period, Bruins’ Jeremy Reich, who’d played not enough this game to work up a sweat, ran Canadiens goalie Carey Price;
Less than a minute later, Bruins defenceman Mark Stuart pummelled a why-me? Andrei Kostitsyn.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Andrei+Kostitsyn, boston+bruins, carey+price, fighting, Jeremy+Reich, mark+stuart, montreal+canadiens, zdeno+chara,
Ouch
by Alanah McGinley on 10/25/07 at 10:46 PM ET
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By popular request tonight, here’s the scrap in Boston featuring Zdeno Chara and David Koci. And while Koci’s face looks like he was in a car wreck after the fight, it’s worth remembering he only broke his nose a few nights ago fighting Wade Belak, so that might be the primary cause of the mess.
From HockeyFights.com:
addd 8:38am Friday by Paul, The ESPN view of the fight…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: boston+bruins, chicago+blackhawks, david+koci, fighting, zdeno+chara,
A More Physical Chara
by Paul on 09/14/07 at 05:18 PM ET
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from the Hockey Journal,
Chara said he expects there to be more physical play both from him and his teammates.
“I think it’s a big part of the game – the physical and obviously the fighting is part of the game,” he said. “When it’s the time necessary, you have to decide right away if it’s something you have to step in and do. But I think the physical part of taking the body and finishing checks should be mandatory, and that’s what we’re going to try to do. It doesn’t mean you have to try to run the guy and put him in the third row, but you always have to finish the check and bump into the guy and make it difficult on him.”
Chara was asked why he didn’t fight last season. He responded, “There was some reasons. I’m not going to talk about them.”
When pushed further about former head coach Dave Lewis’ possible penchant for telling his star players not to fight, Chara then responded, “That’s one of the things, yeah.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Zdeno+Chara,
