Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Kovalchuk nets No. 50, could be considered for MVP


Ilya Kovalchuk scored his 50th goal of the season last night vs. Philadelphia, marking the second time in his career he has reached that feat. This added to a resume that already includes two 40-goal seasons. One would think that Kovalchuk's name would have to be taken into consideration, along with Washington's Alexander Ovechkin and Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin, when discussing the league's MVP. Though it appears unlikely that Atlanta will make the playoffs, Kovalchuk has remained consistent, having been among the NHL's top 2 goal scorers for the entire season. Kovalchuk also owns the distinction as having scored the most goals since entering the league in 2001. "Kovy" has accounted for over 25 percent of Atlanta's goals this season; Atlanta's offense currently ranks 12th in the NHL.



Kovalchuk's 50th goal can't save Thrashers

Kovy denied tying goal with only second remaining


The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 03/19/08

Philadelphia — Remarkably, Ilya Kovalchuk was wide open between the circles a few feet in front of Philadelphia goalie Antero Niittymaki.

Down one goal, as the final seconds of the third period ticked away, Slava Kozlov shot a pass in Kovalchuk's direction. Kovalchuk ripped a one-timer with 2.7 seconds remaining, and the players and coaches on the Thrashers' bench jumped up in anticipation of a game-tying goal. But Kovalchuk was stoned. Niittymaki made the save, and as the final buzzer sounded on the Flyers' 3-2 victory over the Thrashers, Kovalchuk collapsed to the ice, laying on his back, staring at the Wachovia Center rafters.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

G Pekka Rinne making a name for himself


Milwaukee Admirals' Pekka Rinne became the first AHL goaltender to win 30 games this season with a 23-save performance against Rockford this past Saturday night. Nashville Predators director of hockey operations had this to say about Rinne: "Judging by the workload he's had this year, he can be a regular NHL player. The other thing he has (that) you can't teach is size. He's a big, lanky kid and he's got long arms and legs, which sometimes for a goalie is a good build. He's also very even-keeled. He doesn't get too emotional, doesn't get bothered by a goal or two, doesn't get flustered by going into tough places to play. So I think the future is bright for him as an NHL goalie."

Rinne has appeared in 2 career NHL games, winning (35 saves) his debut on December 15, 2005 vs. Chicago. Pekka was also recently rated by The Hockey News as the #3 prospect in the Nashville organization. Rinne currently leads the AHL in games played by a wide margin (58), is tied for the league lead in shutouts (5) and has emerged as one of the league's top netminders; he should figure to be part of Nashville's goalie rotation for the 2008-09 season.


March 12, 2008

By JOHN GLENNON

Staff Writer

Topping 30: Prospect goaltender Pekka Rinne recently became the first American Hockey League netminder this season to top the 30-win mark. Rinne is 31-23-2 for the Milwaukee Admirals, and has a .907 save percentage and a 2.53 goals against average. Rinne posted his fifth shutout of the season on Tuesday.



Monday, March 3, 2008

Alexei Morozov voted the Best Player in the Russian Super League




Former Pittsburgh Penguin Alexei Morozov missed leading the Russian Super League in points for the third consecutive season by one point (Sergei Mozyakin led the league with 64 points). However, after the conclusion of the regular season on Saturday, Morozov was still voted the RSL's best player. Morozov finished with 30 goals (which led his team, Ak Bars Kazan) and 33 assists in 57 games. Ak Bars Kazan will face off against HC MVD in the 1st round of the playoffs beginning March 4th and be looking for its second championship in three years.



Monday, March 3, 2008

MOROZOV: THE SUPER LEAGUE'S BEST PLAYER

Alexei Morozov is voted the best players of the Russian hockey Superleague regular season.

The Russian teams have completed their regular season fixtures on Sunday and now wait for the eightfinals matches.

Ak Bars star Alexei Morozov became the best player of the regular season and spoke to Sport Express unveiling his point of view on his comeback to NHL.

"Ak Bars made a poor start to the season, but today we are among the key favorites of play-off series", said Morozov.

"Having such a line-up and potential for the growth we are capable to win the finals."

"I get offers from NHL as several clubs were interested in my services."

"However, I don’t want to change the team and I will keep on playing in Ak Bars."
"I am not going to take leave of Ak Bars and switch to NHL so I am highly unlikely to change my career."
"It will be very interesting to play in a new hockey league in Russia the next year, to my mind it’s very perspective idea."
"If the new league observes the rules declared in their plan, many Russian players will prefer to come back to their native country and I believe they won’t regret their decision."