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Game Seven: Oilers-Canucks series to be decided in winner-takes-all showdown
Playoff Game Day 2.7 Edmonton at Vancouver Game Seven. Both words are common enough, but when conjoined in that fashion will set a hockey fan’s heart aflutter. On Monday night, those will be fans of the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Cancucks, as the two surviving Canadian squads play a winner-take-all showdown to decide who moves on to face Dallas Stars in the Conference Finals. It’s the twelfth time in their 45-year NHL history that the Oilers have played a Game Seven. Many words could and have been written about each of its predecessors, but we’ll stick to the basics here: 1984 second round: EDMONTON 7, Calgary 4 1986 second round: Calgary 3, EDMONTON 2 1987 Stanley Cup Finals: EDMONTON 3 Philadelphia 1 1989 first round: LOS ANGELES 6, Edmonton 3 1990 first round: EDMONTON 4, Winnipeg 1 1991 first round: Edmonton 5, CALGARY 4 (OT) 1997 first round: Edmonton 4, DALLAS 3 (OT) 1998 first round: Edmonton 4, COLORADO 0 2006 Stanley Cup Finals: CAROLINA 3, Edmonton 1 2017 second round: ANAHEIM 2, Edmonton 1 2022 first round: EDMONTON 2, Los Angeles 0 2024 second round: Edmonton at VANCOUVER Winning team shown first, home team in ALL CAPS. Edmonton has a 7-4 record in prior Games Seven, but so does the home team. 7 times the games produced 5 or fewer goals. Games Seven are traditionally hotly-contested affairs with open ice at a premium anywhere on the sheet and primo scoring chances a rarity. Tonight’s line-up No surprises here as the Oilers will ice the exact same lines, pairings and starting goaltender as produced their 5-1 win in Game Six. It was likely the squad’s most complete game of the series. The Canucks are not so fortunate as to be able to ice the same line-up, having lost star winger Brock Boeser to blood clots that were diagnosed in the aftermath of Game Six. Boeser led Vancouver with 40 goals during the season, and is doing likewise with 7 tallies in this series. He terrorized the Oilers in particular, scoring 9 times in the 10 prior games this season. The home squad will in fact make a pair of line-up changes, as depth forward Vasily Podkolzin will reportedly be scratched. One change they won’t be making is in net, where Vezina Trophy finalist Thatcher Demko remains sidelined, as he has been for this entire series. So it’s advantage Oilers on the health front, whose players are dealing with a variety of aches and pains not to mention illness, but nothing so debilitating as to knock anyone out of the line-up. On the ice, though, it’s a single game, where things can be decided by a crazy bounce (see: 1986), an amazing save (1997), or an individual dominant performance (2022). Let’s hope it doesn’t come down to an official’s call or video review but is decided cleanly on the ice. Game time is officially 7:00pm MDT. More to come.
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Vancouver will take nuclear option for Game 7, says Canucks insider. Will Edmonton Oilers respond in kind?
This in from Canucks insider TSN’s Farhan Lalji, news of how the Vancouver Canucks intend to respond in Game 7 to the loss of star forward Brock Boeser. In previous home games against the Edmonton Oilers, Boeser was counted on as a two-way ace to team with star forward J.T. Miller and winger Pius Suter to face Edmonton’s top line led by Connor McDavid. But with Boeser out, that line match-up — so fundamental to Vancouver’s home success against Edmonton, with the Canucks winning two out of three games — is not possible. What is possible, though, is the Canucks going nuclear, putting their top two forwards Miller and Elias Pettersson together to face the McDavid line in Game 7. As Lalji has reported, it will be difficult to replace such a player as Boeser, who not only scores but is counted on to check top players. Here is a link to Lalji’s full report . Elias Lindholm will reunite with Connor Garland and Dakota Joshua and could be the match-up line against McDavid’s line, Lalji said, but then added: “I do think (Elias) Pettersson and (J.T.) Miller are going to see extensive minutes together so that they can provide some additional offensive support.” Presumably Vancouver coach Rick Tocchet would match up the Pettersson/Miller combo against Leon Draisaitl’s line with Dylan Holloway and Evander Kane. In this high-stakes coaching duel, how will Edmonton Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch respond? My take 1. Vancouver has the last change on home ice so Tocchet has that trump card when it comes to line matching. Against this weapon, Knoblauch finally has the four best, most balanced and most effective two-way lines that he’s managed to put together the entire season. The question for Knoblauch is whether he’ll stick with those lines or go back to a trio of Draisaitl, McDavid and Zach Hyman on the top line, Edmonton’s own nuclear option. This might be a game of nuclear vs nuclear. 2. McDavid has regularly been force fed Miller in Vancouver, where Tocchet gets to play his trump card. In Games 1, 2 and 5, the Vancouver home-ice games, Miller’s 5-on-5 ice-time against McDavid was 10.6, 14.5 and 9.8 minutes. Tocchet has played this card again and again, trusting his big, rugged and smart centre to have what it takes to thwart McDavid. In Edmonton, Knoblauch has tried to get McDavid away from Miller, with McDavid facing off against the Canucks centre 7.9 minutes in Game 3, but just 4.2 minutes in Game 4, and 3.9 minutes in Game 6. Of course, the Oilers lost Game 3, when Miller played more against McDavid, but won Games 4 and 6, when McDavid faced Miller less. It would appear, then, that any strategy where McDavid plays less against Miller works to Edmonton’s advantage. 3. Is Tocchet going to abandon the Miller vs McDavid match-up now, when it’s worked so well in the past in this series? Hmm. I have my doubts, but it could well be that Tocchet will match the Lindhom line against McDavid, and then have his Miller-Pettersson nuclear combo against the Drai line, hoping that the Draisaitl line will implode defensively, as Drai’s line did facing the Jack Eichel line in the crucial Game 6 loss to Vegas last season. If Tocchet does match-up Drai vs Miller, Draisaitl will have the biggest defensive responsibility of his career, at least since facing off against the Eichel line. Containing Miller and Pettersson will be a major chore for Draisaitl and Evander Kane. One thought: if Tocchet does indeed go Miller line vs Draisaitl line, will Knoblauch respond by shifting a more defensive winger, like Mattias Janmark, to play with Draisaitl and Kane? 4. Miller and Pettersson did not play much together this year, just 175 minutes at 5-on-5 between the playoffs and the regular season. They have been handily outshot on the ice together, but they have outscored the opposition 15 to nine goals. That’s a sizeable margin. You can see why Tocchet might well be going to his own nuclear option. If Pettersson and Miller can combine to out-score Edmonton by a goal or two at even strength that will go a long way to the Canucks’ winning Game 7, especially if the Lindholm line can at least saw it off against the McDavid line. 5. When teamed up with RNH and Hyman in the playoffs, McDavid has done exceptionally well. In 34 minutes, the trio has outshot the opposition 23 to 10 and outscored them five goals to zero. This line appears to be a solid bet. In 29 minutes together, the Draisaitl, Evander Kane and Dylan Holloway line has also done well, 20 to 17 on shots and four goals for to one goal against, so another solid bet. 5. All that said, in the one game that Edmonton beat Vancouver on Vancouver ice, the Oil’s 4-3 Game 2 win, Knoblauch went nuclear, playing McDavid, Draisaitl and Hyman together, and the threesome were dominant. That wasn’t the case, however, in Game 3, where the Oilers went with the McD-Drai combo but lost on home ice. But there’s no sure things for the Oilers here. The McDavid, RNH and Hyman line was also mediocre in Edmonton’s Game 5 loss in Vancouver, so it’s not like going with that trio that did so well in Game 6 is a certain master stroke for Game 7 in Vancouver. 6. A final consideration for Knoblauch? He’s finally put together two solid shut-down lines to back up his top lines. The Ryan McLeod-Derek Ryan-Warren Foegele line did well in the playoffs last season and had a solid Game 6, even as McLeod lost his footing and position on Vancouver’s loan goal against. The line of Sam Carrick, Connor Brown and Janmark was also solid on defence. As I see it, it’s a win for the Oilers any time that Knoblauch can get one of these two checking lines out against the Miller or Lindholm lines. Edmonton’s bottom lines can defend well enough, tire out these lines, and free up the McDavid and Draisaitl lines to face Vancouver’s bottom two lines. 7. How will it play out? I don’t expect Knoblauch to go with McDavid and Draisaitl together, not unless Edmonton is sinking in this game. Vancouver has suffered a major blow in losing Brock Boeser, forcing Tocchet to adjust, possibly moving away from his effective Swede line of Lindholm, Pettersson and Nils Hoglander. It’s likely best to leave the scrambling just now to Tocchet and for Knoblauch to stick with lines that worked so well in Game 6. The advantage for the Oilers in simply rolling lines and not worrying about match ups is that the players and coaches can then focus on their own performance, get in a groove and just play hard and smart two-way hockey, freeing up mental energy for that most difficult of tasks. Make sense? How do you see it? 8. And in remembrance of TSN’s Darren Dutchyshen, a profile of him from 1990 when he was just a kid starting out in Edmonton, the brash, smart-talking and loveable pride of Porcupine Plain. Read it here . At the Cult of Hockey STAPLES: “Gutted for Boeser”: Hockey world reacts to Brock Boeser out for Game 7 due to blood clotting issues McCURDY: Game 6 player grades LEAVINS: 9 Things
"This is bigger than hockey": Oilers and Canucks fans come together over Brock Boeser missing Game 7 due to blood clotting issues
News that top-line Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser will miss Game 7 due to blood clotting issues hit the hockey world hard on Sunday. And on the day of a game anticipated to be ferocious, fast and furious, it’s also brought together fans of both the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers in shared respect for Boeser and hope for his recovery. As one Oilers fan put it, “This is bigger than hockey.” The news was first reported by Vancouver hockey commentator Irfaan Gaffar on Sunday afternoon. Boeser is Vancouver’s leading scorer with seven goals and 12 points in 12 games in the 2024 playoffs. He was playing on the top line with J.T. Miller and Pius Suter. TSN’s Farhan Lalji has now reported the signs and symptoms were there even in Game 6 and worsened overnight. It will be difficult to replace such a player, who not only scores but is counted on to check to players, Lalji said. Related: Canucks will go nuclear in Game 7, Van insider says. Will Oilers respond in kind? Here is some of the reaction in Vancouver, Edmonton and around the NHL: Vancouver sports commentator Irfaan Gaffar@irfgaffar Brock Boeser will not be available for the Canucks in game seven on Monday. If they advance, his status moving forward is unclear… Yes, it’s a blood clotting issue. Again, this is not career or life-threatening, thankfully. They are going to take it slow and see how Brock progresses. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser is expected to miss Game 7 against Edmonton with a blood clotting issue. The exact timeline for his return is unknown, but several sources stressed this, thankfully, is not considered a life-threatening situation. Vancouver hockey writer Daniel Wagner @passittobulis Devastating news for Brock Boeser and the Canucks. All that matters now is Boeser’s long-term health. The Cult of Hockey’s Kurt Leavins @KurtLeavins Never want to see this, no matter who you cheer for. Hoping for a full recovery for Boeser. Edmonton sports commentator Dustin Nielson @nielsonTSN1260 Hopefully Boeser is okay, what a huge loss for the Canucks. Certainly could have been a Game 7 hero. Sportsnet Vancouver commentator Iain MacIntyre @imacSportsnet Got to admit I read through mentions — and am impressed at the unilateral support for Canuck Brock Boeser. Many Oilers fans sending good wishes to him. Former Globe & Mail writer Rod Mickleburgh @rodmickleburgh There’s just something about it being Brock Boeser that makes it so heartbreaking, beyond the #Canucks losing their top scorer…he’s such a grounded, human being, who’s been through so much…my heart aches ESPN play-by-play John Buccigross @Buccigross Some people exude a natural grace that is divinely disarming, even to the enemy. Brock Boeser classes up the sport. He showed up in the 2016 NCAA Championship game for North Dakota & he would have shone bright Monday Night. 🙏🏻 #Game7 Canucks fan Logan @CanuckSkate After years of suffering through personal struggles, Brock Boeser has his spectacular bounce back season ended by blood clotting. The world is far too cruel to good people. Nucks Misconduct hockey blog writer Harsunder Singh Hunjan @HarsunderHunjan I seriously hope Boeser is going to be okay and has a complete recovery! Poor guy has been through so much already in his young life 🙏 All of #Canucks nation is with you Brock Boeser! Let’s get the win for him tomorrow! Vancouver fan Rob Sampare Brotchie @canucker101 Get well Canucks Brock Boeser. Oilers fan Lynn Mercereau @lynnmercereau This is bigger than hockey Sports gambling analyst Rachel Doerrie @racheldoerrie Gutted for Boeser. He’s been through so much the past few years. Loved watching him have the fantastic bounce back this season. Hockey doesn’t matter in these moments. Just hoping Brock gets healthy 🙏🏻⭐️🥦🚀 I can’t believe this needs to be said, but it does: the nature of Boeser’s blood clot is no one’s business and we don’t need to add ;vaccine conspiracy theories’ to the nuclear toxic wasteland that is Canucks/Oilers Twitter right now. Hope for a speedy recovery & leave it there. Canucks fan Alece Anderson @AleceAnderson I’m so sad for him… it’s just one thing after the other. Hope he’s gonna be ok ❤️ Daniel Wagner @passittobulis Win it for Boeser. Oilers fan K-JAM @KevinJamieson86 Boeser is a helluva hockey player and a thorn in the Oilers’ side. I wish he was playing tomorrow, and I hope he finds the good health he needs soon. Sportsent commentator Randip Janda @RandipJanda Awful news on the Brock Boeser front. Luckily it’s not life threatening, but scary nonetheless. Wishing him a speedy recovery and return to full health. Rinkwide Vancouver commentator Jeff Paterson @patersonjeff If ever a player could have played the ‘getting treatment’ card instead of talking to media after a tough loss it was Brock Boeser last night. To his credit, he showed up, answered pointed questions, owned his performance — and today we learned he’s out for Game 7 with blood clot. Oilers fan Reese Campbell @LarisseAtalie As an Oilers fan – I wish Boeser nothing but the best as he navigates his health stuff. When he first came to the YVR, he lived in a hotel I managed (all the young Canucks did)& he and his family were nothing but kind and warm to the hotel staff. This was rare and so appreciated. Sportsnet radio play-by-play announcer Brendan Batchelor @BatchHockey You just have to feel awful for Brock Boeser. He’s overcome so much adversity and had such a tremendous season. Hoping for a speedy and full recovery for him. Just a brutal blow to have this happen right now. Vancouver sports commentator Brendan Kobliuk JABO Vancouver Playoffs are about heroes. Some heroes you see coming, and others you would never have expected. Hopefully there are guys in that dressing room who are looking at Brock Boeser’s absence as their opportunity to step up and be that hero. This team will need it. Oilers fan Brock W. Harrison @BrockWHarrison Yikes. As much as I want the Oilers to win, and as much as Boeser has dominated them at times this series, you never ever want to see this. Edmonton Journal hockey writer Jim Matheson @jimmathesonnhl Brock Boeser is a helluva player and scorer. Been a big-time playoff threat for Canucks. Blood-clotting issues are serious stuff. Wish him the best Sportsnet commentator Iain MacIntyre @imacSportsnet Got to feel awful for Brock. Longest-tenured Canuck, who emerged better and stronger after two years of anguish…. It’s like the hockey gods convened a special meeting. They were not happy. They were like, “You mean, the Canucks might still win this thing with their third-string goalie?! What else can we do? Brock Boeser!” TSN reporter Farhan Lalji Big loss for #Canucks leading playoff goal scorer. Even if the team makes it through game 7 it doesn’t sound like Boeser’s return would be imminent. The team’s playoff mantra has been, “Resilient.” That would have been put to the test Monday night regardless, now even more so. Canucks fan Trent Leith @trentl14 You’ve gotta be kidding me. Brock Boeser finally reached his potential as a 40+ goal scorer, is tied for fourth in playoffs scoring with 7 goals in 12 games. Then he has to leave the series right before a crucial game seven at home. This poor guy can’t catch a break. #Canucks OIlers fan X-JESSE @97OrangeCrush29 🙏 speedy recovery to Brock Boeser. All the best. – Oil Country The Hockey Spotlight @nhlspotlight Oilers twitter has not disappointed at the news of the Boeser news. I respect every one of you who’ve came out in support for him. Canucks fan 𝕐 – 𝔾𝕞𝕒𝕟✨ @NotoriousGman88 No Boeser. No Demko. If the Canucks pull if off, that would be MASSIVE! The Cult of Hockey’s David Staples @dstaples Brock Boeser damn impressive this series, both shooting the puck but also defending. Reminded me of Jari Kurri now and then… Wishing him well in recovery from blood clotting issue. Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch (asked what it’s like to lose a top player suddenly): It’s amazing when you lose a player like that — obviously you look at your line-up is weaker just without a top player. I’ve seen it numerous times. — but it’s amazing how guys steps up. Everyone steps up and collectively. Sometimes you’re just a beter team. In the long term it’s not a recipe for success, but short term, you look what happened at the Boston series losing (Brad( Marchand (to injury)(. Yeah, we got to be ready…We have to anticipate a team that is going to be really stepping up their game. And in remembrance of TSN’s Darren Dutchyshen, a profile of him from 1990 when he was just a kid starting out in Edmonton, the brash, smart-talking and loveable pride of Porcupine Plain. Read it here . Related LEAVINS: 9 Things McCURDY: Player grades Game 6 At the Cult of Hockey STAPLES: Canucks will go nuclear in Game 7. Will Oilers respond in kind? McCURDY: Game 6 player grades LEAVINS: 9 Things
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For new Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube, this question won't be answered on Tuesday
The question that will be on the minds of most won’t have an answer when Craig Berube is introduced as the new Maple Leafs coach on Tuesday morning. What will Berube do to guide the Leafs’ best players to the point that they can be actual difference-makers in the Stanley Cup playoffs? Everything else lined up for Berube’s predecessor, Sheldon Keefe, in the latter’s tenure of 4 1/2 years as Leafs coach. Under Keefe, the Leafs recorded three consecutive 100-point regular seasons, a fact that no other man who has stood behind the Toronto bench can use as a bragging right. When the hockey mattered most, though, we know what happened: The Leafs couldn’t break through in the playoffs and, when they did advance to the second round a year ago, the usual refrain resumed. In three of its four losses to Florida in a series that went just five games, Toronto lost by one goal. This spring, Keefe didn’t have the usage of a full lineup in the first round against the Boston Bruins for all seven games and, by that, of course, we’re referring to William Nylander’s migraines and Auston Matthews’ illness and head injury that caused the club’s best forwards to miss time. We’ll never know if the outcome would have been different had Nylander and Matthews both been healthy for every game. You have to entertain the idea, though, that the scales would have been tipped in the Leafs’ favour and, if so, then the narrative today changes. Having said that, we would have picked the Panthers to beat the Leafs in the second round. The elephant-in-the-room type of question that goes hand-in-hand with Berube’s ability to squeeze more from the Leafs’ stars in the post-season, of course, is which core players will be remaining when the puck drops for opening night of the regular season. Extensions for Matthews and Nylander start this coming season, extensions that were authored by general manager Brad Treliving with Matthews signing last August and Nylander this past January. With those contracts, Treliving tied the Leafs’ future to the backs of Matthews and Nylander. Captain John Tavares, with one year left on his contract, might not be asked to waive his no-move clause. With Mitch Marner, it could be much different. If the Leafs make true on their desire to make core changes, even the most casual of observers take that to mean that Marner will be asked to consider waiving his no-move clause. If Marner decides he doesn’t want to do that — and we go back two weeks ago when he said his wish was to remain with the Leafs for the long term — then Treliving’s off-season becomes that much more intriguing. There would be many worse things than having Marner back in 2024-25 for the Leafs to finish his contract. No matter what Marner has or has not done in the playoffs, though, watching him walk in free agency next summer with zero return would be a major blow to the organization. But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. If Berube wants a chance to coach Marner with the rest of the core, perhaps giving him that opportunity could bear playoff fruit in the end. That leads to another question, though: What could reasonably be deemed as playoff success in Toronto? Is it Berube coaching the team beyond the first round next spring? Do people really think that Berube is suddenly going to turn the Leafs into legitimate Cup contenders in one year? As it stands today, we can’t say with certainty that the Leafs will be any better under Berube than they were under Keefe. Look at this past regular season — Keefe coached the Leafs to a 102-point season through a minefield that included injuries to key players and goaltending that found consistency elusive at times. All the while, Treliving’s words that the Leafs defence corps was a work in progress hung in the air. And yet, defensive play was not the reason the Leafs lost in seven games to the Bruins. The Leafs played tight hockey, especially in the latter stages of the series. We hate to break it to you, but if the Leafs weren’t being held properly accountable within their four dressing room walls, they wouldn’t have persevered like they did in the regular season and they wouldn’t have played smart defensive hockey in the playoffs. At no time did the Leafs quit on Keefe. Berube won the Cup in 2019 with St. Louis after taking over mid-season when Mike Yeo was fired in Nov. 2018. The Blues, though, never got close to hoisting the silver mug again with Berube as coach and his regular-season record in the past several years wasn’t on par with Keefe’s. The Leafs have to figure out what’s happening with Marner, Treliving has to get it right with the changes he is bound to make in goal and he has to find a way to turn his defence corps into one that is no longer a work in progress. Lance Hornby looks back at the 15 Maple Leafs coaches he has chronicled SIMMONS SAYS: On second thought, Craig Berube was a good hire for the Maple Leafs As for Berube’s impact on the core and how that is measured in success next spring? Sure, Berube will be a different voice than Keefe was. But that question can’t be answered on Tuesday when Berube and Treliving hold court at the Ford Performance Centre. tkoshan@postmedia.com X: @koshtorontosun
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