Kukla's Korner

Jokinen Willing to Do Whatever It Takes for his Hockey Club

Blog: Goal Line Report By Patrick Hoffman

03/16/10 at 03:56 PM ET | Comments (0)

From good friend of the blog Andrew Gross at The Record:

Olli Jokinen tried to change his game with his previous NHL team. Now thrust into the middle of the Eastern Conference playoff race, it’s not a mistake the Rangers’ center is willing to make again.

Olli Jokinen, left, came to the Rangers with a reputation as a passer, but now calls himself a shooter on the top line. “I’ve always been a shooter,” said Jokinen, acquired from the Flames on Feb. 2. “In Calgary, I tried to be a passer with Iggy [Jarome Iginla]. I tried to find him all the time. Once you do that, it affects your own play.”

So despite playing in between the Rangers’ top scorers, Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal, Jokinen isn’t planning to only think pass. But he does realize he has to heed coach John Tortorella’s demand to be more defensively responsible as he starts his fourth straight game on the top line in tonight’s critical match with the Canadiens.

Click here for more.

Filed in: | Goal Line Report | Permalink
  Tags: John+Tortorella, New+York+Rangers, Olli+Jokinen,

An E-Mail Interview with David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period

Blog: Goal Line Report By Patrick Hoffman

03/16/10 at 03:34 PM ET | Comments (1)

Earlier this afternoon, I was lucky enough to receive answers to an e-mail interview I did with David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. If you don’t know this already, The Fourth Period is a terrific hockey web site/magazine that is worth checking out on a daily basis.

David was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule and tell us about how he got into the game, how he started The Fourth Period and his current thoughts on surprising teams/players this year.

PH: How did you get into hockey?
DP: I was never a great player. I knew there wasn’t any hope in hell that I was good enough to take my game to the next level. That sucked, but I wanted to get into the game somehow. I figured, if I could do it on the ice, I might as well give it a shot off it. I got involved in hockey about 10 years ago when I started TFP. I really got it going for fun; I was still in school and I really could care less about most of my classes. I still did the work, but hockey was a priority. I was also an off-ice official in the OHL, and being that close to the game got my juices flowing even more. After noticing that more and more people kept visiting, I expanded it. I started interviewing scouts, GMs and players and they actually called me back. In fact, Scott Howson was the first to call back when he was working with the Edmonton Oilers. One thing led to another and it took off.

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Filed in: | Goal Line Report | Permalink
  Tags: David+Pagnotta, NHL, The+Fourth+Period,

Relax Chicago Fans Or Maybe You Shouldn’t

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 03:25 PM ET | Comments (1)

from Tom Musick of the Northwest Herald,

• Long slumps don’t happen: Every time the Hawks have slumped, they have recovered. Coach Joel Quenneville’s team has built a 44-18-6 record by avoiding long losing streaks. The worst skid was three losses from Jan. 30 to Feb. 5, and the Hawks responded then by winning the next four games and six of the next seven.

• Hawks have been through this before: Remember last year? The Hawks suffered a five-game winless streak from March 13 to March 20, and they limped to a 4-7-2 record from March 5 to March 31. Questions swirled about their toughness and their goaltending, but they came alive in the playoffs to reach the Western Conference Finals.

more including reasons to worry…

Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Babcock Talks Hockey At Red Deer College

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 01:36 PM ET | Comments (2)

from the Red Deer Advacate,

Twenty-two years after being hired on as a rookie hockey coach, Mike Babcock returned to the Red Deer College fold on Tuesday morning.

In front of more than 800 people at the Capri Centre Exhibition Hall, Babcock — recent coach of the gold medal-winning men’s hockey team in the Winter Olympics and current coach of the Detroit Red Wings — was the featured speaker of the seventh annual Red Deer College Kings and Queens Scholarship Breakfast.

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Detroit Red Wings, Non-NHL Hockey, International Hockey | KK Hockey | Permalink
  Tags: Mike+Babcock, Team+Canada,

Ovechkin On His Suspension

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 01:24 PM ET | Comments (15)

via the Washington Capitals PR department,

Statement from Alex Ovechkin

“I am very sorry that Brian was injured and I hope he is able to return to his team soon. NHL hockey is a physical game. We all play hard every time we are on the ice and have battles each shift in every game we play so we can do our jobs and win. As players we must accept responsibility for our actions and I am no different but I did not intend to injure Brian and that is why I was disappointed with the NHL’s decision yesterday. Every time I have the honor to play for my team, I will continue to do what I have done since I was taught to play. I will play hard, play with passion and play with respect for my teammates, opponents and fans. I look forward to returning to my team and doing everything I can to be the best player I can be.”

Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
  Tags: Alexander+Ovechkin,

Afternoon Line

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 12:32 PM ET | Comments (0)

“I think, as a goalie, you can’t think that you have to win.  You have to think, ‘Just play as good as you can and give your team a chance to win,’ because I can’t really effect how we play as a team or if we score or not. If I get too involved emotionally with how we do as a team, I’ll lose focus on my end, my job.”

-New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist.  More on Lundqvist from Scott Burnside of ESPN.

Filed in: NHL Teams, New York Rangers | KK Hockey | Permalink
  Tags: Henrik+Lundqvist,

Detroit Fans, Did You Look At The Ref After This Goal?

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 12:17 PM ET | Comments (16)

the first thing I looked for after this Datsyuk goal last night was the ref, making sure he wasn’t waving his arms and pointing at Holsmtrom.

Note that both Kipper and Homer gave a quick look too.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Calgary Flames, Detroit Red Wings | KK Hockey | Permalink
  Tags: Pavel+Datsyuk,

Complaint Department, Not Here

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

03/16/10 at 11:16 AM ET | Comments (13)

I’ve had and have had enough of the complaining.

Read my NHL.com blog today.

Filed in: NHL Teams, NHL Talk, NHL Media, Hockey Bloggers | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Most Underrated Player

Blog: The Puck Stops Here By PuckStopsHere

03/16/10 at 10:36 AM ET | Comments (4)

Often when a player is presented as the most underrated in the NHL, it is a player that few people have heard of who is doing a good job for his team.  That is not the case right now.  Most people who have some interest in hockey have heard of Tomas Vokoun of the Florida Panthers.  They have never thought of him as arguably the best goaltender in the NHL.

The case for Vokoun as a top goaltender is simple.  He has been the best goalie statistically in the last several years.  Fear the fin compiled saves percentage numbers since the lockout and finds Vokoun’s .923 saves percentage is four points higher than any other goalie on the list.  In that time, Tomas Vokoun has had no Vezina Trophy nominations.  The problem is that nobody has noticed him as he has toiled in obscure hockey markets of Nashville and Florida.  He hasn’t been able to get wins while playing for these teams.  These teams have had neither the offence nor the defence to make his job a success.

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Filed in: | The Puck Stops Here | Permalink
  Tags: Florida+Panthers, Nashville+Predators, Tomas+Vokoun,

Looking to Get in front of the Eight Ball

Blog: Goal Line Report By Patrick Hoffman

03/16/10 at 10:23 AM ET | Comments (0)

Thanks to a Boston Bruins loss to the New Jersey Devils last night, the New York Rangers have a chance to crack the top eight in the Eastern Conference with a win over the Montreal Canadiens tonight at Madison Square Garden.

The Blueshirts are coming off a huge victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday afternoon, a victory that showed that they can be a smart and disciplined hockey club. Whether that carries into tonight’s tilt with the Habs’ will be the test for the Rangers, a test that they must pass if they want to take over the eighth spot in the Conference.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, the Habs are playing some of their best hockey as they have won five in a row and are 7-3 in their last 10. The Canadiens sit in the seventh spot in the eastern Conference with 76 points, just six points behind the Northeast Division leading Buffalo Sabres.

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Filed in: | Goal Line Report | Permalink
  Tags: Montreal+Canadiens, New+York+Rangers,

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