by Holger Neumann, Monday February 27, 2023, reading time: approx. 3 minutes
Philipp Grubauer has to accept a clear home defeat with the Seattle Kraken.
After beating the Washington Capitals 7-4 at home, the Buffalo Sabers are now within reach of the Eastarn Conference playoff spots. Against the 2018 Stanley Cup winner, the Sabers even had to do without their top players Rasmus Dahlin and Alex Tuch. Dylan Cozens jumped into the breach with the first hat trick of his NHL career.
After an eventful first third, the hosts pulled away from 2:2 to 6:2 with four goals within seven minutes. Jeff Skinner, Zemgus Girgensons, Vinnie Hinostroza and Dylan Cozens with his second prank provided a supposedly reassuring lead. However, the Capitals fought back in the final phase of the middle third: first Alex Ovechkin dusted off the rink following a rebound, then Sonny Milano scored solo with a majority. It was Ovechkin’s first goal following returning from Russia, where he had traveled to attend his late father’s funeral.
In the final section, a balanced game developed, in which Dylan Cozens set the final point: After a fine relay pass, he suddenly found himself free in front of Caps goalie Charlie Lindgren and overcame him with a quick forehand-backhand movement. Halfway through the game, Lindgren had taken the place of regular number one between Capitals post Darcy Kuemper following the Sabers’ fifth goal.
JJ Peterka showed some good offensive actions in the encounter, but remained without a point and without a shot on goal for almost 13 minutes.
The win puts the Buffalo Sabers just one spot behind the Pittsburgh Penguins, who currently hold the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Penguins defeated runner-up Tampa Bay Lightning thanks to a spectacular intermediate sprint. In the second third, five goals were scored in a good four and a half minutes, making it 7:2 from 2:2. Captain Sidney Crosby, Latvian Teddy Blueger, Jeff Carter, Jason Zucker and Brian Dumoulin with his first goal of the season set the course for victory. In the final section, the Bolts, for whom Nikita Kucherov scored his 700th scorer point in the game as the fourth player in the history of the franchise, might only shorten it with a number goal from Brayden Point.
Philipp Grubauer not only had to accept a clear 1:5 home defeat once morest the Toronto Maple Leafs with the Seattle Kraken, the German national player was also substituted early: After the fourth goal of the guests from the province of Ontario by Auston Mathews (25th) it was over for the Rosenheimer. Martin Jones took over, but might no longer avoid defeat.
Trading Deadline: Timo Meier joins the New Jersey Devils
While the main round is now entering the decisive phase, the trading deadline next Friday is also becoming more and more important. The San Jose Sharks have now set a first exclamation point and handed over their Swiss striker Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils. With him, defenders Scott Harrington and Santeri Hatakka, young players Timur Ibragimov (forward) and Zachary Emond (goal) move from the west to the east coast. The Devils also get a vote in the fifth round of next year’s NHL draft. The San Jose Sharks, who will continue to pay 50 percent of Timo Meier’s salary, will in exchange give attackers Fabian Zetterlund and Andreas Johnsson, defensemen Shakir Mukhamadullin and Nikita Okhotiuk, a conditional first-round pick in this year’s draft, as well as voting rights in the second and seventh round of the 2024 NHL draft.
Timo Meier is moving from the third-weakest team in the Western Conference to the third-best team in the Eastern Conference. He is expected to play in one of the front two lines, alongside compatriot Nico Hischier or young star Jack Hughes.
More changes: Stanley Cup winner Jack Johnson is moving back to Colorado Avalanche, who he left following last summer’s triumph, in a trade for Andreas Englund from the Chicago Blackhawks. Jevgeni Dadonov was traded from the Montreal Canadiens to the Dallas Stars for Denis Gurianov on Sunday. It will also be interesting to see whether Sharks defender Erik Karlsson, in whom the Edmonton Oilers are said to be interested, and Blackhawks striker Patrick Kane will change jobs at short notice.
The other results of last night at a glance:
Minnesota Wild – Columbus Blue Jackets 3:2 (OT)
Winnipeg Jets – New York Islanders 0:4
New York Rangers – Los Angeles Kings 5:2
Arizona Coyotes – Nashville Predators 2:6
