Everything Else – Page 79 – Faxes from Uncle Dale

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Game #24 – Hawks vs. Panthers Spotlight: Sasha Barkov Might Be The Boss, Too

By Sam Fels November 24, 2018 1813 0

You’d be forgiven for not knowing that Aleksander Barkov is one of the best young centers in the league. You’d also be forgiven that if you knew that you didn’t realize he’s still only 22-years-old. He’s in his sixth season already, and is anchoring this Panthers team which a lot of people still think will eventually surprise in the Atlantic Division (though people think a lot of things). It’s not his fault he’s toiled away in Sunrise, which is basically the witness protection program for NHL players. Barkov has gotten to play in only six playoff games in his five previous seasons, and it’s hard to carve your name out for the masses when that’s the case.

He’s a name you should know. Barkov’s 79 points last year and 25th-place finish in scoring might not seem like it’s all that impressive for a #1 center. But you have to look a little deeper than that to see what was actually going on.

Barkov, and his linemate Evgenii Dadanov, and a cast of thousands on the other side, were used as much as a checking line as a scoring line. And not just like a secondary checking line along with a third or fourth unit that did the real mine-sweeping. Barkov started less than 40% of his shifts in the offensive zone. His quality-of-competition was top-20 in the league. And yet he was still able to put a point-per-game, while also managing a possession-share over 3.5% higher than the rate of his team when he wasn’t on the ice. That was the second year in a row he’d been well above the team-rate, as he went +5.2% in that campaign.

Of the top-35 players in terms of relative-Corsi last season, none had a lower percentage of shifts start in the offensive zone than Barkov. Of the top-25 scorers, only Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak had zone starts anything like Barkov did, and they got to run with Patrice Bergeron. Perhaps Barkov is the new Bergeron? The new, Finnish Bergeron?

The Panthers seem to want to lessen that burden this season. Barkov has seen his defensive-zone starts drop from 60% last year to 51% this year, as Vincent Trocheck was taking up more of that responsibility. But now that his leg is in cubist form, it may land on Barkov to take that role back. Which will probably keep him from putting up the 90+ points that would get anyone to notice a Panther for awards such as the Hart or Selke.

Still, Barkov is trucking along at a point-per-game again, with 18 in 19 games at the time of writing. He’s also got a full-time left-winger now in Mike Hoffman, who he has helped elevate to the team’s leading scorer and on pace for a career-high in goals and shooting-percentage. Hoffman is getting more shots and more good chances (in terms if individual expected goals) on Barkov’s wing than he ever did in Ottawa. He’s averaging less shot-attempts as well, which lets you know that he’s getting the puck in better areas with the improvements in shots on goal and chances. That’s all on Barkov.

Which makes Barkov’s contract a real boon for the Panthers. He’s on a matching $5.9M hit with Jonathan Huberdeau for the next three seasons after this one (Huberdeau has four). The Cats don’t have a lot of raises to dole out in the coming years, but with Barkov such a bargain it would behoove them to make the most out of the next three years before he becomes one of the more coveted free agents in recent memory.

And maybe by then, people will actually know his name.

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Game #24 – Hawks vs. Panthers Q&A: Frank Rekas

By Sam Fels November 24, 2018 1551 0

Frank Rekas has been our Cats guy for as long as we can remember (which admittedly is only a few days). You can follow him @FrankRekas.

The Panthers started out the season rough, but seem to have turned it around. What was the problem earlier?

In typical Florida Panther tradition, the season started slowly. As it always does. Last year took the Florida Panthers approximately 30 games to figure things out under a new coach, with a new system. The second half finish was tremendous and most thought that it would just naturally continue into this season. Knowing that another slow start couldn’t happen, they did just that. First of all, no one could have predicted the freak leg injury to the ageless wonder, goaltender Roberto Luongo that occurred in the season opener. We all know a team plays differently depending on who’s in net, and the Panthers are no stranger to that. The play of James Reimer and Michael Hutchinson was below average to poor depending on the night. The inability to make a key save, or steal a game was missing. While there weren’t many games that the Panthers were blown out of, one of the goaltenders needed to find a way to make that “key” stop. Additionally, playing a full 60 minutes was also a trouble spot. Specifically the Panthers had issues with the second period. For whatever reason the middle frame saw them become lethargic, mistake prone, and defensively erratic. Taking poor penalties at inopportune times and defensive mistakes led to the downfall of games during the middle frame. It’s kind of funny in a way that it took a 39 year old goaltender to return from injury to get things back on track.

Evgenii Dadanov and his extraneous I might be the quietest player to be averaging over a point per game. How good is he?

In his second tour of duty with the Panthers after playing in the KHL for 5 years, Dadonov has come back more rejuvenated, and skilled and fun to watch than anyone could have imagined. He was a huge question mark when Dale Tallon signed him prior to last season as a free agent. But as Tallon often does, this signing earned Dale a gold star. “Daddy,” as Panther faithful often refer to him as, has been nothing short of brilliant. He’s not afraid to shoot, plays with energy and passion, and scores goals that count at the right time. He’s been one of the Panthers most consistent players in the past two seasons, and is averaging almost a point per game so far this year. 22 of his 28 goals last season came 5×5, and 7 of 9 have been scored that way this season. He finds the right areas to be in, and never seems to take a shift off. His consistency is a breathe of fresh air. No reason he can’t keep that pace up playing with Aleksander Barkov and Mike Hoffman.

First impressions of Mike Hoffman?

My first impressions of Mike Hoffman when he was playing for Ottawa were, if the Panthers (or Hawks for that matter) ever had a chance to get him, they should as he caught my eye a while ago. That being said in another “kidnapping” by Tallon, Hoffman arrived with a background as a player that has skill, a dandy wrister, and a goal scorers mentality. So far, he has not disappointed. He loves to shoot, and on this team that’s a great sign because there are a few players who aren’t as “selfish”. He got off to a bit of a slow start, and at one point saw himself on the 4th line. But that’s old news now, and as I prepare this on Tuesday night, Hoffman has put together a 1- game point streak. Not at all surprising for a guy that’s known as a goal scorer. He’s displayed a nasty shot on a few occasions, and that’s what this team has needed for years. When the puck touches his stick it has a pretty good chance of getting on net, and possibly going in. He’s going to be huge part of the success of the Panthers, and now that he’s on the top line, his numbers could become even better.

Nick Bjugstad seemed to have something of a breakout year last year. Is he a full-time winger now?

Now that center Vincent Trochek has had an unfortunate leg injury, it would have appeared that Nick Bjugstad would have gone back to centering the second line. Surprise as that’s not the case at least in the game against Tampa on Tuesday night as “Big Nick” as some like to call him was on the wing with Jared McCann getting promoted to take Trochek’s place. Center is Nick’s natural position and he’s performed rather well there in the past, especially during the 2014-2015 season. But a back injury and concussion derailed his progress. Until last season, when the Bob Boughner line blender was looking for the right combination, found that putting Nick on the wing with Aleksander Barkov and Evgenii Dadonov seemed to be the perfect recipe. Bjugstad produced his best season to date playing the wing, and was extremely effective in his role. There are some questions though that seem to linger. Does he have a higher gear? Can he or why doesn’t he use his big body more? He has a good shot, but it’s not accurate at times. Why? The subject of trade rumors during the past two offseasons, Nick is a player that he Panthers believe in, and are hoping that he reaches his potential. One of the most likable players on the team, Bjugstad is talented, and is someone that everyone roots for. It’s up to him now, as he is being given a chance to prove how good he can be. And with Trochek out for an extended period of time, Nick is on the list of players that bigger things will be expected from.

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Game #24 – Hawks vs. Panthers Douchebag Du Jour: Are You Dumb Bastards Listening to Me, You Dumb Bastards?

By John Pullega November 24, 2018 2140 0

Imagine dating a good hockey player in 2018. Imagine that the good hockey player you’re dating is teammates with a generational talent and face of the franchise for which they both play. Imagine that you, in your own words, “fall out of favour” with that generational player’s wife, based on “noticing fewer likes on Instagram and Facebook.” Imagine going online and anonymously harassing that woman for months, saying that her recently stillborn baby “didn’t have a chance” because she was “popping pain killer medication everyday [sic],” saying you wish this woman were dead, and wishing someone would end her husband’s career. Then imagine that the good hockey player that you’re dating has to be traded not once but twice because of what a gigantic piece of shit you are.

Thus is the story of how Mike Hoffman, a good if not great hockey player, ended up in Florida, a state befitting some of the biggest piles of human garbage America has to offer. We touched on what a sharps-disposal container Ottawa is as a franchise, but the Melinda Karlsson–Monika Caryk debacle probably outpaces everything else.

While 99% of the douchebaggery here comes from Monika Caryk—who, in case you haven’t pieced it together is Mike Hoffman’s now-fiancée—there’s enough shittiness to go around to qualify Hoffman as a douchebag here. To clarify and nutshell this story, here’s what happened:

Erik Karlsson’s wife, Melinda, alleged that Monika Caryk, Hoffman’s girlfriend at the time, harassed her and her husband in “over 1,000 negative and derogatory statements” beginning in November 2017, right around the time the Karlssons announced that they were having a baby.
The baby was stillborn in March 2018, and someone went online and accused Melinda of abusing painkillers, implying that that’s what caused the stillbirth. Melinda believed that it was Caryk who did it, and applied for a peace bond (basically, a restraining order) against Caryk in May.
Caryk and Hoffman denied that they had anything to do with any of it. Hoffman tried showing Erik Karlsson documents (obtained from an “IT contact” Caryk “reached out to”) that supposedly showed Caryk wasn’t making anonymous posts six days after the stillbirth (Karlsson refused to look at them).
Caryk was never served the peace bond.

So after all that, Hoffman gets traded to the Sharks, and then the Panthers. All the while, Hoffman goes to bat for his girlfriend, which in a case that seems like “she said she said” would make sense.

But consider the fact that five other wives and one girlfriend of Senators players—Kodette LaBarbera (Jason), Taylor Winnik (Daniel), Hayley Thompson (Mark Stone), Marlee Hammond (Andrew), Camille Pageau (J.G.), and Julie Turris (Kyle)—all shared some iteration of Caryk treating the Karlssons, especially Melinda, like shit. That’s an awful lot of independent accounts sharing a similar story, too many in my book to call this a “she said she said.” Consider too that Caryk has readily admitted to have made “unflattering observations about the Karlssons,” blaming it on her own drunkenness and “others twisting her own words.” My douchebag BINGO card just needs an “It was just a joke.”

But this is the NHL, where talent makes up for any number of character flaws a player might have. And wouldn’t you know it, appropriately named Panthers coach Bob Boughner took the lead in proving once again that the NHL doesn’t give a shit about women if you can score 20 goals, saying:

“All that stuff that happened in Ottawa, I don’t believe half of it.”

Of fucking course you don’t, Bob. Why believe the accounts of up to seven women when you can just sit down with people who have a vested interest in denying what happened because the guy you want on your team might get your wildly disappointing team over the hump?

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

“And the other half, I knew it wasn’t going to be an issue. I went down with my wife to Waterloo and took him and his fiancée out for dinner. It was a good meeting. I said to my wife afterwards: ‘They’re good people. They’re really good people.’ You could tell instantly.”

Never mind explaining what made them good people, because we all know that scoring 20 goals and putting up 60 points is what makes a man good in this urinal league.

And you better fucking believe Uncle Dale backed that up, calling Hoffman “a perfect fit” for the team because the Panthers have “a strong culture” and that “We feel that that’s in the past and the distractions.” THAT’S IN THE PAST AND THE DISTRACTIONS! In the most tongue-twisting corporate-speak this side of Bill Lumbergh, Tallon tried to justify trading for a guy who was locker room poison in motherfucking Ottawa, because the absurdity train of the NHL is never, ever fucking late.

Hoffman is a douchebag for haranguing Karlsson about his girlfriend’s innocence six days after his son was stillborn (because that’s foremost on Karlsson’s mind, you see) and supporting his now-fiancée who, by at least five independent accounts from other Senators’s players’ wives, went to extreme lengths to harass a woman who, in Caryk’s own words, stopped liking shit on her Instagram and Facebook.

I have a hard time believing that they would all tell similar stories about Caryk’s shittiness just because. Coupled with the fact that no one has provided an ounce of support for Caryk besides the guy who’s marrying her, it’s hard to disbelieve the douchiness Hoffman and Caryk share.

While the courts have sort of washed their hands of all this, there’s enough evidence here for the court of douchebaggery to warrant consideration for Caryk (for being a piece of shit) and Hoffman (for supporting this piece of shit). But how about that 17-game point streak Mike had for himself?

They’re good people. You could tell instantly.

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Game #24 – Hawks vs. Panthers: I Make A Lot Of Graphs

By Sam Fels November 24, 2018 1248 0

Due to Corsica’s mini-shutdown and the holiday, these are from before yesterday’s games.

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Game #24 – Hawks vs. Panthers: Lineups & How Teams Were Built

By Sam Fels November 24, 2018 1285 0

Game #24 Preview Suite