Sunday, February 28, 2010

Kiprusoff Takes Bronze at Olympics

Miikka Kiprusoff said he wouldn't be coming to the Olympics unless hes the number one starting goalie. After Fridays loss against the US where Kiprusoff let in 4 goals on 7 shots, we were unsure if Kipper would be back between the pipes for the bronze medal game against the Slovaks on Saturday. They started Kipper and he really payed off. He played stellar where he turned away 19 of 22 shots in their 5-3 win over Slovakia. Overall Kipper had a great tournament and it will be one that he will never forget.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Luongo Exited To get the Start Against Germany

Team Canada goalie Roberto Luongo is said to be playing in tonight's game against Germany. Luongo has already played one game so far and has posted a shutout stopping 15 shots. Martin Brodeur played the next game against the US where they lost 5-3 facing 22 shots and letting in 4 goals. Head Coach Mike Babcock wasn't very impressed with Brodeur. Luongo claims to be pumped up and exited to be playing in such a big game.

The rumor had it that the only game Luongo would play in would be the first one against Norway because it's his home rink but now it's very possible that luongo will be filling the net for the rest of the Olympics. Luongo has always been just behind Brodeur for the Olympics and now he is stepping up and above him.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Roberto Luongo Sharp for Team Canada

Team Canadas head coach Mike Babcock decided that he would give Roberto Luongo the first start in goal for the 2010 Olympics versus team Norway. Canada Won 8-0 with Luongo taking a shutout. This home town hero only faced 15 shots on goal but made some great saves on his home ice surface. "I think obviously there was much more electricity in the air" said Canucks captain Roberto Luongo.

Coming into the game I'm sure that Luongo was feeling confident because just on February 11th he played the Florida Panthers and won 3-0, facing 31 shots and taking home his fourth shutout of the season. We are currently unsure of the next appearance Luongo will be making in the Olympics.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Kari Lehtonen Traded to Stars

On Tuesday February 9th Kari Lehtonen was traded from the Atlanta Thrashers to the Dallas Stars for Ivan Vishnevskiy and a fourth round draft pick in the 2010 draft.

Lehtonen was called up by Atlanta on Tuesday after completing a conditioning assignment with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. He hasn't played this season in the NHL due to back surgery on September 16th.

When he played for the Chicago Wolves he played 4 games and posted a 2.67GAA and a 0.899 SV%.

The Stars now have three quality goalies to choose from. They have Marty Turco, Alex Auld, and now Kari Lehtonen.

"Obviously I think they feel pretty good about Kari Lehtonen. He's come back and I've heard that he's played well at the American League level, so we'll see what happens from there on our side" said Dallas Stars head coach Marc Crawford.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Rask puts a stop to Bruins’ losing ways

As expected, Year One of Tuukka Rask’s NHL career has been a tale of caution. With far too much evidence, starting from the early demise of Hannu Toivonen, of the woes that come from fast-tracking young goaltenders, the Bruins have practiced patience with Rask, feeding the 22-year-old just enough playing time to keep him from going soft.

But with results at a premium and a hot goalie desperately required, the Bruins have recognized that now, amid a season-altering slump, is no time to continue treating Rask like a rookie.

Before 21,273 at the Bell Centre yesterday, for the first time since playing in six straight in November when Tim Thomas was shelved because of a hand injury, Rask made his third consecutive start. By backstopping the Bruins to a 3-0 victory, Rask halted the team’s 10-game winless streak and proved that he’ll be back between the pipes tomorrow against Buffalo.

“We’ve been looking at the way he’s played, and technically, he’s been pretty sound,’’ said coach Claude Julien. “Even those last two games, he got us a point. The reason we didn’t get two points is because we didn’t do our job offensively. He’s been good.

“Right now, we’re at a stage where you’ve got to go with the goalie that’s playing the best. I think right now, he’s playing the best. We know what Tim [Thomas] can do. Tim will be there at some point. There’s no doubt. But right now, I think Tuukka’s done a pretty good job.’’



Friday, February 5, 2010

Hiller Signs 4 Year Contract Worth $18 Million

The Ducks have identified their goalie of the future by signing Jonas Hiller to a four-year, $18 million extension, it was announced Saturday. The 27-year-old will make $4.5 million in each year of the contract.

The deal comes after a quick three-year ascension for Hiller in the NHL, in which he took over the No. 1 mantle from Jean-Sebastien Giguere, led the Ducks into the second round of the playoffs last season and now will be paid like a starting goalie.

"When I got here I didn't know what to expect, my first year was more about showing I could play here," Hiller said. "My second year I tried to get better ... having that security is a great thing."

Since the Ducks signed Hiller as a free agent out of the Swiss Elite League, only Boston's Tim Thomas (.9244) and Florida's Tomas Vokoun (.9241) have a better save percentage than Hiller (.9192). He's just ahead of Roberto Luongo (Vancouver), Martin Brodeur (New Jersey) and Ryan Miller (Buffalo) on that list.

This season Hiller is 21-15-2 with a 2.75 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage. Like the rest of his teammates, those numbers have gotten better as the Ducks have turned their season around.

"We had a lot of new players and never found a way to play 60 minutes," Hiller said. "There is a lot of talent on this team. I was able to be a factor in that process."

Hiller said Giguere was the first teammate he told about his new contract - "That's the honesty me and Jiggy have"


Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Giguere Traded to Leafs

Jean-Sebastian Giguere was recently traded from the Anaheim Ducks to the Toronto Maple Leaf for veteran forward Jason Blake and goaltender Vessa Toskala. Giguere waived his no trade clause so that he could be traded.

On February 2nd Jiggy made his first start in a Leafs uniform. They played the New Jersey Devils where he faced 30 shots and made all 30 saves for his second shutout of the season.

Jiggy was the second goalie in Leafs history to get a shutout in his first game with a Leafs jersey on. Ed Belfour was the first to do it back in 2002 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.