Hockey Hearsay compiles stories from around the hockey world and runs weekdays, 12 months a year.
HOLTBY’S COMMENTS FORESHADOW CAPITALS’ LOSS
The Washington Post relayed Monday afternoon how the mood at the Capitals’ morning skate at Madison Square Garden ahead of Game 3 was noticeably relaxed. Players whooped it up on the ice, joking and teasing each other as they worked through drills and line rushes.
While Washington’s upbeat confidence with a 2-0 lead in this series wasn’t surprising, goaltender Braden Holtby wanted to make sure the team didn’t lose its focus.
“It’s good to a point. I’m not sure we want it as loose as this morning,” Holtby said. “It’s still playoff time and you never want to get comfortable. When you’re starting to get loose, you can tell guys are starting to get comfortable and whatnot.”
Multiple times this season Holtby, 23, has offered his assessment of the Capitals’ overall demeanor, and the starting netminder has rarely been off the mark.
Cue the Rangers’ 4-3 victory over the Capitals Monday night, to pull to within one game in the series.
And this…
Holtby: “That game was far from our best, we weren’t as tight as we should be.” #Caps #NYR
— Katie Carrera (@kcarrera) May 7, 2013
TAVARES DRAWS ON CROSBY’S LESSONS
Newsday alludes to the fact that Islanders star John Tavares has had his share of frustrations about the officiating this season, just as Sidney Crosby did when he was first becoming a star with the Penguins.
Tavares has noted how Crosby took all the uncalled punishment in stride before the Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 2009 — and how officials now give Crosby the benefit of the doubt on calls.
“I don’t think he worries about that,” Tavares said of Crosby. “He doesn’t make the calls, he just plays the game.”
Heading into Game 4 Tuesday, Tavares isn’t looking to win a penalties-drawn matchup with Crosby, just the final score.
“He puts his focus on winning the game,” Tavares said. “He’s a very competitive guy and he pushes himself every single time he steps out there.”
GROUP RALLIES FOR OILERS’ DOWNTOWN ARENA
The Edmonton Journal reports that ahead of a key City Council discussion Wednesday on how to find the final $55 million for the $480-million structure, a downtown booster group kicked off its arena counteroffensive Monday; urging the city, the province and Oilers owner Daryl Katz to get the project built. Several councillors say the deal is on the verge of falling apart.
“Today we launch a coalition of support for something that’s too often diminished to just an arena for millionaire hockey players. It is much more than that,” said Simon O’Byrne, spokesman for the Downtown Vibrancy Coalition.
There’s $3-billion worth of development waiting on arena approval, bringing shops, condos, restaurants, an upgraded Jasper Avenue and other improvements to Edmonton’s core, he told 125 people at the group’s kickoff event at the Art Gallery of Alberta.
“We want city council, the government of Alberta and the Katz Group to sit down now and get this done. This transformational megaproject is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. … Allowing this to fail would be an utter travesty.”
Ledcor Construction vice-president Bob Walker said with Edmonton building costs potentially rising by at least five per cent annually, each year of delay could cost another $30 million.
KEY WEEK FOR COYOTES
The Arizona Republic reports NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly are coming to town on Tuesday to meet about the Phoenix Coyotes with representatives from the Renaissance Sports and Entertainment, a group led by Anthony LeBlanc and Canadian financier George Gosbee.
Word is, the investor group has raised $240 million, which is $70 million more than the asking price. It’s willing to absorb $40 million in losses over the first four years of a 15-year deal. It will be seeking an out clause if the economics haven’t changed for the better, likely after five years.
It’s committed to re-signing GM Don Maloney and coach Dave Tippett.
The trick will be if Glendale can reach a lease agreement deal that works for everyone. It will not bend like it did for Greg Jamison, who would’ve received $308 million over 20 years. Sources say the city will be looking to land in the $6-12 million range.
BATTAGLIAS CELEBRATES “AMAZING RACE” WIN
The Raleigh News & Observer reveals “The Amazing Race” viewing party for Bates and Anthony Battaglia was spilling over into Monday when the free-spirited Battaglias got together for an interview. “The Hockey Brothers”, as they were called on the show, won the 22nd edition of the CBS television show.
Bates Battaglia is a former Carolina Hurricanes forward and both played pro hockey, but they said it wasn’t just their athleticism that was decisive in the “Race.”
“Yes, we’re not just good-looking, we’re smart,” Bates said. “We’re just friendly people but if we have to beat you in a foot race, we’ll do it.”
Bates Battaglia, 37, helped the Hurricanes reach the Stanley Cup final in 2002. Now retired from hockey, he played in more than 600 NHL regular-season and playoff games.
The brothers quipped that they may try to encourage some TV producers to give them their own show.
“It’s ‘Battaglia & Battaglia,’ ” Bates said. “Handsome brothers do America! There will be lots of women and lots of drinking. Print that!”
STAMKOS HOLDS HIMSELF ACCOUNTABLE
The Tampa Bay Times released some quotes from 23-year old Lightning superstar Steven Stamkos, who spoke to reporters before leaving for the world championship.
On improving his game: “You want to be able to do everything. If you’re not improving, if you don’t want to improve, if you think you don’t have to improve, then you’re never going to get better. For me, obviously, I know and expect myself to produce offensively, but I want to be even more accountable on the other side of the rink. There were times this year, you go through stretches when you feel like you’re on the ice for every goal against. Sometimes it’s not your fault but sometimes it is and you have to look at that as a collective group thing. That has been the Achilles heel of our entire team the last few years. We scored enough goals to win. It’s a commitment from everyone. I need to look in the mirror. Sometimes you do find yourself cheating and find yourself hoping and you can’t. At the end of the day, if you want to win, it’s not about the I’s in here. It’s about winning as a team. That’s something, for sure, I’m guilty of sometimes. As an offensive player you want to produce, but you have to be accountable at both ends of the rink.”
WINTERHAWKS COACH DISMISSES CRITICISM OF SETH JONES
The Denver Post indicates Seth Jones, a 6-foot-4, 208-pound defenseman with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League, is the consensus No. 1-rated player eligible for the NHL draft June 30.
Jones makes it look so easy on the ice, there already is something of a recurring theme among those grasping to poke a few holes in his growing legend. He’s not intense enough, some say, not mean and physical enough, given his size, to play defense at the next level against grown men.
Winterhawks coach Travis Green, a 14-season NHL veteran, bats a dismissive hand through the air over such criticism.
“He competes real hard,” Green said. “He doesn’t have to be real physical right now in our league. Can he be? Yeah. I mean, I think he’s probably going to have to add a little bit of that element, but you look at most of the top D, they’re not bone-crushing defensemen. If you’re looking for a 4, 5 or 6 defenseman, then I guess that’s what you want. But if you’re looking for a guy who’s going to play 30 minutes and run your power play and play your penalty kill, then I think you might want a guy like Seth.”
CULLEN MENTORS WILD’S ZUCKER
The St. Paul Pioneer Press illustrates how Minnesota Wild forward Matt Cullen has become a mentor to 21-year-old hotshot Jason Zucker. Since the beginning of the year, Zucker has been in Cullen’s back pocket. After shifts, they sit next to each other on the bench and discuss strategy. Cullen does much of the talking.
“It just happened naturally,” Cullen said of his mentorship with Zucker.
Zucker’s confidence borders on cocky. His shot is powerful, his skill abundant. And his skating is effortless.
But Cullen knows the importance of having a mentor, someone to provide guidance in a tough league.
He had some great ones, Cullen said: Paul Kariya, Teemu Selanne, Ted Drury, Rob Brind’Amour. It doesn’t feel that long ago, he said, that he was the high-flying rookie with a veteran in his ear.
So what’s it like to be, you know …
“That old guy?” Cullen said. “You can say it. You don’t really think about it. It happens so fast. I still remember being a rookie in Anaheim with Kariya and Selanne. It goes so fast. But it’s been a fun run.”
ROY NOT ON SABRES’ COACHING RADAR?
The Buffalo News notes the Sabres are still without a permanent coach, but it appears Patrick Roy is not in the sights of General Manager Darcy Regier at the moment.
Roy, the Hall of Fame goaltender who is coach, GM and co-owner of the Quebec Remparts, is a much-discussed choice to become a coach in the NHL. But apparently that discussion is only among fans and media.
“As of now nobody contacted him,” Nicole Bouchard, the Remparts’ director of team services and media relations, told The News Monday morning via email.
Regier said Friday that a coaching decision would be made “fairly soon.” Rolston, who was the coach in Rochester, said recently the organization had until June to decide his fate.