CANTLON’S CORNER: CATCHING UP ON CHRISTMAS HOCKEY 

CANTLON’S CORNER: Catching up on Christmas Hockey

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

WORLD JUNIOR TOURNAMENT

One of the most important tournaments started in Buffalo on Boxing Day the World Junior Hockey Championships.

The host USA looks to defend its gold medal and the highlight of the opening day preliminary round with a 9-0 shutout of Denmark.

Casey Middlestadt, the Buffalo Sabres draft pick delighted the fans with a two-goal performance as did Kieffer Bellows. Pat Harper (New Canaan/Avon Old Farms) a Nashville draft choice who plays at BU had a goal and an assist as seven players had multiple point games.

Max Jones, son former New Haven Nighthawk Brad scored the game’s first goal a little over two minutes into the game and was among the seven with two points.

Next up for the US is Slovakia on Thursday.

The big preliminary game is on Friday at 3 pm with the US and Canada at New Era Field home of the NFL Buffalo Bills. The weather is still a factor that could force the game indoors as a sub-arctic weather front has moved into the region playing temps and with wind chills that are expected to be in a dangerous territory like 20 to 30 degrees below zero !!

On the opening day of the tournament, the Czech Republic led by current Wolf Pack Filip Chytil knocked off Russia 5-4 with Chytil getting a goal and an assist.

Doing some hard work behind the net shaking off a Russian defenseman he tried a wraparound that created a loose puck situation and Ostap Safin scored.

Chytil recovered a from a clean, tough open-ice hit by Russia’s Alexei Polodyan midway through the second to score late in the period to give the Czechs a 4-2 lead.

Chytil following up the play smacked in a rebound for his goal.

Connecticut, Hockey East which UCONN is a part of and the AHL is well represented among the 10 countries participating in the tourney.

Canada-Dante Fabbro (Boston University-HE) and Cale Maker (UMASS-Amherst- HE).

Czech Republic-Filip Chytil (Hartford-AHL)

Denmark-Dan Jensen assistant coach (father of ex-Pack Nicklas Jensen)

Finland- Kasper Kotkansalo-(Boston University-HE)

Janne Kuokanen-(Toronto-AHL)

Aspali Rasnen-(Boston College-HE)

Russia-Klim Kostin-(San Antonio-AHL)

Sweden-Tim Liljgren-(Toronto-AHL)

Lias Andersson *Captain (Rangers 1^st round pick 2017)

United States- Goalies: Jake Oettinger (Boston College-HE)

Jeremy Swayman- (Maine-HE)

Joseph Woll (Boston College-HE)

Forwards: Logan Brown – Windsor (OHL) (son of ex-Whaler Jeff), Max Jones London (OHL) (son of former Nighthawk Brad), Pat Harper (New Canaan/Avon Old Farms/Boston University), Brady Tkachuk (Boston University-HE).

All US games are live on the NHL Network they also pick up the feed from Canada TSN for other games.

PACK ENJOYING CHRISTMAS

For captain Joe Whitney, Christmas is all about family and everybody making the journey home to the family house in Massachusetts. “We’re all heading back home. It’s a great time of the year to be with family and friends, shut the mind down from hockey for a few days and have a good time,” He said.

The last game against Bridgeport, Whitney went against some former teammates still with the Sound Tigers as well as his future brother-in-law in ex-Pack captain, Ryan Bourque.

“Just a few Merry Christmas’s out there. Nothing too much. This a nice break four, five days…it’ll get us a chance to recharge our batteries and come back ready for the second half of the season.”

For Keith McCambridge, this break gives the players an opportunity to recharge themselves, “What I have seen over the years in the American Hockey League, the players do have a chance to catch their breath, go home, spend time with their family and friends and just sit back and reflect on how fast the front half of the season went. Usually, they come back with more jump in their step and ready to tackle the rest of the season. When Chris Drury was presented with a chance to make this break, we jumped at it.”

In McCambridge’s coaching career, especially in St. John’s, he’s had some real time off. “When I was in St. John’s, we had a 10-day stretch off and in Manitoba, we had a couple of lengthy breaks. In St. John’s, when you have a stretch like we did one year of 17 straight days on the road, that’s the price of living on an island almost in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. You get a lengthy Christmas break,” McCambridge said with a smile and a laugh.

When the team returns to action on Friday night in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton against the Penguins, and then Saturday night at the XL Center against Springfield, they will be without top scoring center Peter Holland for both games.

Holland was suspended by the AHL for two games for a minor slashing penalty on Bridgeport’s Connor Jones on a faceoff. It came as a retaliation for a late hit missed by the officials. Travis St. Denis was on the left wing and barreled past Kosmachuk and Pionk that led to what was more of a wrestling match than a fight, but was called fighting for each player at 2:31 mark of the first period.

Holland never dropped his gloves but St. Denis did. Neither of them was issued an instigator or aggressor in an altercation call. Holland has 16 career fighting majors from juniors to the pro’s (source hockeyfights.com).

Springfield’s Tony Horvat is suspended for two games for a major penalty hit that was NOT CALLED and played the whole game. Meanwhile, Dan DeSalvo will be out at least another week or two more.

Holland received the same length of suspension for a minor penalty on a player who was not injured. It doesn’t make any sense.

In addition, Bridgeport’s Kyle Burroughs removed his own helmet in a scrap with Tony DeAngelo and yet no call was given to Burroughs for doing so. In the same game, Whitney was hit with a minor tripping penalty despite the referee’s missing how Bridgeport’s Mitchell Vande Sompel had simply lost his edge avoiding Whitney’s hit.

The Pack recalled on loan, Brandon Troock from Greenville. He will take Holland’s spot. Troock has 33 points in 29 with 14 goals for the Swamp Rabbits. Troock has 118 AHL games with 24 assists mostly with Texas and some time with Tucson. His ECHL numbers he played 57 games with 24 goals and 49 points played with Idaho and Greenville.

He played his junior hockey with Seattle (WHL) including his last season of major junior with Ryan Gropp then playing his first season of junior hockey.

The Rangers have recalled Vinni Lettieri to New York. He leads the Pack with 12 goals and 21 points in 31 games in his rookie AHL season. Lettieri is out of the University of Minnesota and is tied for fifth for most goals scored among AHL rookies and is third in scoring for Hartford.

The recall was necessitated by a serious medical situation with ex-CT Whale, Chris Kreider, who developed a blood clot in his right arm during a game against the Washington Capitals on Wednesday.

Kreider will be treated with a blood thinning medication, likely to be Coumadin. He will be sidelined indefinitely until doctors do an extensive review of his blood clotting ability and he is cleared to be able to handle contact. While on blood thinners, any cut or serious physical contact could lead to a dangerous situation with internal bleeding.

Lettieri could make his debut tomorrow night against Detroit in an “Original Six” meeting at the brand new Little Caesars Arena or perhaps on New Year’s Day in Buffalo in the annual outdoor game at New Era Field.

The Rangers signed forward, Chris Langkow, to a PTO contract. Langkow has eight years of pro experience and presently leads Worcester Railers (ECHL) with 25 points in 24 games on the strength of nine goals and 14 assists. He has 148 AHL games under his belt with Peoria when then the Rivermen were in the league and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers with 15 goals and 44 career AHL points.

Last season, Langkow split the year with two different European teams first with HDD Olimpija Ljubljana of Slovenia that plays in the Austrian Elite League (AEHL) and Vasteras VIK that plays in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL),.

Langkow has played with five ECHL teams in Reading, South Carolina, and Worcester and with the now-defunct Elmira Jackals as well as the Alaska Aces with whom he won an ECHL Kelly Cup title in 2010. He has 167 points in 232 career ECHL games with 62 goals.

He has two cousins who played pro hockey Daymond Langkow who played 1,090 NHL games with Tampa Bay, Philadelphia, Calgary and Phoenix (now Arizona).

Goalie Scott Langkow played in the AHL with the Springfield Falcons, the old IHL, plus the ECHL and had a nice run in the German DEL League. He was still playing senior league hockey with the Two Hills Longhorns of the SASK-Alberta Senior League last season.

Springfield reassigned defenseman Matt Mackenzie to Florida (ECHL) and Bridgeport lost defenseman Sebastian Aho to recall by the Islanders.

Former Yale goalie star Alex Lyon was returned to Lehigh Valley by the Flyers yet played no games in Philly on his recall. Kasperi Kapanen, the son of former Whaler, Sami Kapanen was returned to the AHL Toronto Marlies by the Maple Leafs. Ex-Pack Michael Joly was returned to Colorado (ECHL) by San Antonio.

Ex-Pack Steven Moses was suspended by Rochester and has returned to the KHL with his former team Jokerit Helsinki (Finland) signing a deal until 2020.

Former Yale Bulldog and Sound Tiger Sean Backman signed a two-year extension with Eisbaren Berlin (Germany-DEL) as announced by their GM, ex-Nighthawk Stephane J.G. Richer.

Zach Pellegrino (Madison/Gunnery Prep) has given a verbal commitment to Bentley College (AHA) for 2019-20. He will be playing in a brand new on-campus arena that will open on February 16, 2018.

Northeastern (HE) lost senior defenseman Garret Cockerill two weeks ago and will replace him with Collin Murphy from Muskegon (USHL) 21-1-1-2-29 and a plus-5.

Arizona State and Boston University will play their game at the home of NHL Arizona Coyotes on January 28^th the Gila River Arena. The Coyotes just renewed their lease for another year.

Shane Bear, UMASS-Amherst (HE) leaves the school to play with Brooks Bandits (AJHL) that allows the sophomore to retain his NCAA eligibility.

Riley Stillman, the grandson of former Nighthawk Bud Stefanski, was traded from Oshawa (OHL) to Hamilton (OHL).

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