Outside of safety protocols, among the chief concerns with the NHL’s restart was, simply, what are the ice conditions going to be like?
Turns out, not great!
It hasn’t taken long for players — particularly those in the Eastern Conference hub of Toronto — to lament the playing surface, but that’s to be expected. Not only are games being played in August, but in many cases there have been three contests per day at both Scotiabank Arena and Rogers Place. That’ll do a number on the ice, even without 18,000 fans jammed into the building.
Boston Bruins defenseman Torey Krug, who labeled the Scotiabank ice “sloppy” after Sunday’s loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, put a pretty firm time table of when guys can be creative before the ice becomes a factor.
“The first five minutes of periods are probably when you can make your plays and then after that it’s about putting the puck in the right spot and putting the D on the opposing team in difficult positions to make plays with the puck,” Krug said. “Both teams have to play on it and make plays when they’re there. (We have to) be accountable and take care of the puck (based on) on the time and score. Look at the second half of periods, it looks like it’s bouncing around out there. We need to just be smarter about it.”
For Philadelphia Flyers center and Selke finalist Sean Couturier, it could be worse.
“It was all right,” Couturier said, via the Pittsburgh Tribune. “It wasn’t the best. But I’ve seen worse in the league at times. It’s the same thing for every team.
“It was OK. Playoff hockey, you play in May, June. At some places, it gets ugly. It’s no different here.”
But Pittsburgh Penguins blueliner Justin Schultz might’ve stated it best after the Pens’ Game 1 overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens.
“The ice was chippy, especially in the overtime, but both teams had to play on it,” he said, via ESPN.
Maybe it’ll get better when fewer games per day are being played, but that’s no guarantee. It’s no secret at this point though that the ice may be a factor, so beyond the first couple of games it’s not the best of excuses for cautious, or outright bad, performances.
More Bruins: Tuukka Rask ‘Felt Good’ In First Game Since NHL Pause In March
Here are some other notes from this week:
— It is a little concerning the number of players that have been injured so far during the restart. But, at the very least the nature of the injuries doesn’t appear related to poor ice or the long layoff.
Michael Ferland is dealing with an undisclosed injury that resulted in him returning to Vancouver and will keep him out of the remainder of the Canucks-Minnesota Wild series.
Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Muzzin is out for the rest of their series after getting tangled up with Columbus Blue Jackets pivot Pierre-Luc Dubois, resulting in a nasty landing that caused Muzzin to leave on a stretcher.
Mark Scheifele has missed time with a leg injury after a collision with Matthew Tkachuk in Game 1 that has stirred debate over the cleanliness (not lack thereof) of the hit. Winnipeg also has been without Patrik Laine, Mason Appleton and Mathieu Perreault at points throughout the series.
— We were curious to see how busy the Department of Player Safety would be in the first week of play, and actually it has been fairly active.
Some controversial plays were deemed acceptable, as Dubois and Tkachuk avoided even having hearings for their collisions, which was the right call. So too did Barclay Goodrow for his hit on Boston’s Anders Bjork, though that was something we believed warranted a hearing.
Ferland ($5,000 for spearing), Mike Matheson ($2,500 for high-sticking) and Luke Kunin ($1,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct) all have been fined. The only player to get a hearing was Chicago’s Drake Caggiula, and he was hit with a one-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of Edmonton’s Tyler Ennis.
— The NHL is really missing an opportunity to showcase Connor McDavid.
Games 2 and 3 of the Chicago Blackhawks-Edmonton Oilers series were played at 10:30 p.m. ET, with games ending around 1:30 a.m. ET. That’s not exactly the time slot you want the best player in the league in McDavid and a Hart Trophy finalist in Leon Draisaitl playing in.
That has been a fascinating series, and players like Chicago’s Patrick Kane still have national appeal, but the poor planning has made those games tough for many to stay up for.
Fortunately, the league got the clue in time for Friday’s Game 4, which started at 6:45 p.m. on the East Coast.
