The Top 10 NHL Playoff Storylines To Watch, #5 New Jersey's added dimension of Ilya Kovalchuk

The Top 10 NHL playoff storylines to watch
Sean Leahy SportsShizle.com April 11, 2010

5. New Jersey's added dimension of Ilya Kovalchuk

Since being dealt from the Atlanta Thrashers on February 4th, Kovalchuk has posted 10 goals and 15 assists in 27 games with the Devils. He brings a dimension to the New Jersey lineup that could make fans forget about their early departure last season against Carolina. Having played just four playoff games in his eight-year career, Kovalchuk is entering new territory being part of a team that has a reasonable chance to win a Stanley Cup. Devils head coach Jacques Lemaire is still working to find the right fit for Kovalchuk in the lineup, but since he's been almost a point-per-game player as a Devil, the line tinkering hasn't affected his production.

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Hedberg Stops All 33 Shots To Earn 3rd Shutout of The Year

Thrashers go out fighting with a win
Chris Vivlamore The Atlanta Journal-Constitution April 10, 2010


Johan Hedberg stopped all 33 shots to earn his third shutout of the season.

“Even though we have been extremely disappointed the last few days here, you have to play for your fans and you have to play for your pride,” Hedberg said. “We did all that tonight. I was happy to see the fans come out. It was a great atmosphere in the building, and it leaves you with a good taste for the summer. Even though we are disappointed, I think we did a lot of things better this year than last year. … You have to keep building.

"Rome wasn’t built in one day. Hopefully this is a step that will carry us.”

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New Jersey Gamebreaker: Ilya Kovalchuk

Mike G. Morreale NHL.com April 11, 2010

Wondering what keeps New Jersey Devils winger Ilya Kovalchuk up at night? How about the fact he's never won a Stanley Cup Playoff game in his seven-plus seasons.

"Our team (Atlanta) lost all four games in our only playoff appearance (in 2006-07), but I remember the great atmosphere in those games," Kovalchuk said. "But I'm still looking for first win in the playoffs."

The fact Kovalchuk had been winless in the postseason was of no concern to Devils General Manager Lou Lamoriello when he pulled the trigger on a five-player trade with the Thrashers in February to acquire the perennial 40-goal scorer....

While Kovalchuk adds a similar dynamic offensive presence for the Devils, not to mention a cannon for a shot, he also has an insatiable appetite to succeed at both ends and a powerful presence on the power-play. Kovalchuk has scored at least 12 power-play goals in each of the last six seasons.

"He's been very steady in his work," Devils coach Jacques Lemaire said of Kovalchuk. "He's played hard since he's been here. He makes things happen either for him or guys' he's playing with."...

"He knows how to make other people around him better, as you can see by the assists he gets," Lamoriello said. "He can do things that a lot of people can't do."

Kovalchuk is just the type of game-breaker the Devils will need to advance deep in the Stanley Cup Playoffs....

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Playoff stage awaits Ilya Kovalchuk

"He works hard, he wants to win, and maybe that's why I think maybe he's a better player than I thought he was. He wants to win so much. He enjoys the game, which I didn't see that as much as when he wasn't around," the veteran coach and Hall of Fame player said. "He's a real player. He's a guy that he wants to improve. He wants to do well. He wants the team to win. He's not selfish; those things that you don't know when the guy's away. And then when they come in, sometimes you do get some surprises, could be negative or positive. This one was positive, big time."




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Hedberg Wins Georgia’s Own Credit Union Three Stars of the Year Award

Atlanta Thrashers goaltender Johan Hedberg has won the 2009-10 Georgia’s Own Credit Union Three Stars of the Year Award, and for the second consecutive year, forward Marty Reasoner has been selected by his teammates to receive the Players’ Player Award. Both awards will be presented prior to tonight’s game against the New Jersey Devils at Philips Arena (7 p.m.).

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Ilya Kovalchuk looking forward to return to Atlanta in a Devils jersey

In a city that embraces the tomahawk chop, Chipper Jones and college sports moreso than hockey, Ilya Kovalchuk was still someone very special.
They may have had some trouble understanding his Russian accent, and he their southern drawl, but for more than eight seasons Kovalchuk forced Georgians to pay at least some attention to the Thrashers.
Now he wonders how they will react when he returns to Philips Arena Tuesday night wearing a Devils jersey, well aware that he turned down lucrative offers to sign a contract extension with the team that drafted him first overall in 2001....


Continue Reading: http://www.nj.com/devils/index.ssf/2010/04/ilya_kovalchuk_looking_forward.html

Classic Video: Johan Hedberg Makes Great Stick Save Against NY Rangers 12-14-2009

Youtube.com User: HockeyWebCast

Johan Hedberg's 34 Saves Gets Him His 2nd Shutout of The Season

Thrashers tame Hurricanes, keep playoff hopes alive
Atlanta Thrashers Examiner March 28, 2010

Johan Hedberg steered aside 34 shots en route to his second shutout of the season and Rich Peverley and Evgeny Artyukhinscored 57 seconds apart, leading the Thrashers to a 4-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night in Raleigh.

“We stayed with it the whole way,” Hedberg told the Associated Press. “We didn’t have any lapses, which is key. We didn’t beat ourselves.”

Additional Reading: http://www.examiner.com/x-5437-Atlanta-Thrashers-Examiner~y2010m3d28-Thrashers-tame-Hurricanes-keep-playoff-hopes-alive

The Man Behind the Mask: Johan Hedberg

NHL Hot Stove March 23, 2010

The 1994 entry draft was a solid one for goaltenders. Jose Theodore was chosen in the 2nd round by Montreal. In the 5th round, the Dallas Stars chose Marty Turco, and four goaltenders were chosen in the 9th round, three of those eventual starters: Tim Thomas by the Nordiques, Evgeny Nabokov by the Sharks, and Tomas Vokoun by the Habs.

None of them are having a season like Johan Hedberg.

Johan “Moose” Hedberg was drafted in the 9th round, 218th overall, by the Philadelphia Flyers. While his compatriots are suffering through either average seasons (Thomas, Theodore), off play (Turco, some can argue Nabokov), or suffering behind sub-par teams (Vokoun), Hedberg is literally having the best year of his career. In this, his 9th year in the NHL, Hedberg has only once had a goals against average lower as this season’s 2.67, and he has never had a save percentage as high as his .914. He’s putting up solid numbers behind an Atlanta Thrashers defense who allows 33.4 shots a game, which is 29th in the league. While wrangling with all of this pressure, the 36 year old goaltender has grabbed the reigns as Atlanta’s current #1 goaltender in the midst of a playoff run.

Familiar territory indeed for the consummate professional.

Additional Reading: http://nhlhotstove.com/the-man-behind-the-mask-johan-hedberg/

MVM: Most Valuable Moose, Hedberg Continues To Look Strong

Still some fight, life left in Thrashers after 6-3 win over Sens
Bill Tiller AJC March 19 2010

Johan Hedberg faced 39 shot on his goal…and one to his jaw when Jarkko Ruutu knocked him over in the crease chasing the loose puck. The play resulted in one peeved Moose as the goalie had to be held back from trying to…ahem…discuss the matter with referee Stephane Auger.

“He couldn’t get back to the net and was elbowed in the face”, coach John Anderson quipped after the game. “Other than that, the ref said it was a good hockey goal”.

As the play happened, I couldn’t help but remember a goal that was disallowed last week that would have tied the game against Nashville. The refs waived it off because it was ruled Armstrong …no, it was Thorburn…interfered with the keeper, not allowing him to play the puck. But that play was nowhere near as egregious as this one.

With the win, Hedberg moved his season record to 18-13-52.69 GAA and .914 SV%.

I ask you, where would we be without the Moose right now? I’ll tell you where we wouldn’t be…we wouldn’t be just 3 points away from the playoffs with 12 games left to play, that’s for sure.

Additional Reading: http://blogs.ajc.com/iceman-thrashers-blog/2010/03/19/thrashers-win-over-sens-leaves-them-3-out-with-12-games-left/?cxntfid=blogs_iceman_thrashers_blog

Hedberg Saves 29 in 4-3 Win Over Ryan Miller and Buffalo

Thrashers rally for win after chasing Miller
Chris Vivlamore The Atlanta Journal-Constitution March 17, 2010

They scored three first-period goals and chased the NHL’s top goaltender five minutes in, but they later had to rally for a 4-3 victory over Buffalo on Tuesday night at Philips Arena. The victory came after the Thrashers twice blew two-goal leads. In the end, the win snapped a six-game losing streak and kept the team’s playoff hopes alive.

...Hedberg finished with 29 saves. Lalime stopped 20 of the 21 shots he faced after entering the game.

Additional Reading: http://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-thrashers/thrashers-rally-for-win-376048.html

Johan Hedberg has taken over Atlanta's starting goalie duties

Rotoworld.com March 8, 2010

Johan Hedberg has taken over Atlanta's starting goalie duties.
Hedberg has started 10 of the past 13 games for Atlanta. He is 6-2-2 during that stretch with a 2.44 GAA.

Hedberg and the New-look Thrashers win an easy one

They got three goals from players who joined the team in the past four weeks, including one each from two players making their Thrashers debut, en route to a 6-3 victory over the New York Islanders on Thursday night at Philips Arena.

The win was the second consecutive for the surging Thrashers, who are 4-0-2 in the past six games. It was the first time they’ve won back-to-back games in regulation since Jan. 26 and 28.


Continue Reading: http://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-thrashers/new-look-thrashers-win-348523.html

Moose Saves 34 of 36 and gets Win 15 of The Season

The Atlanta Thrashers started their post Olympic playoff push off with a bang. Goalie Johan Hedberg saved 34 out of 36 shots in a 4-2 win over the Florida Panthers. Tuesday's win was Hedberg's 15th win of the season.

St. Louis Blues Showed Interest in Ilya Kovalchuk Before Trade

Jeremy Rutherford of St. Louis Today.com wrote in his February 2, 2010 morning skate that Blues President John Davidson had "legitimate interest" in trading for winger Ilya Kovalchuk before he was traded to New Jersey. Davidson is on record by stating, "We [The Blues] had been working at it for the better part of the week...We had great conversations with Atlanta. We talked to them about various thoughts and ideas and put (a trade proposal) together. It never came to fruition.”

Davidson further stated that, “When you make a deal like that, if it’s really a magnitude coming out of your bank account, you’ve got to try to make sure that he signs...And that (permission to discuss a contract extension before a trade) was never given to any team that was in the battle trying to get him. So we just couldn’t afford to go the extra mile.”

The St. Louis President reiterated that if the Blues were able at the tim eto succesfully negotiate an extension with Ilya Kovalchuk, they would have been more likely to match Atlanta's trade demands.

Fellow Russian Sniper Wishes Kovalchuk Best In New Jersey

"I wish him good luck. He's a good friend of mine and a great player. It was a big trade and I'm sure good players are going to Atlanta, too." -- Alex Ovechkin

Kovy Leaves as "Good Teammate"

Elliot Friedman of CBC Sports writes in his Friday blog that despite being traded to New Jersey, Ilya Kovalchuk's teammates in Atlanta have nothing but kind words for their former captain. One teammate went on record to say, "[Kovalchuk] is a good guy. Hangs out with the rest of the team, fits in." Despite some of the negative public relations winds that were created between Ilya Kovalchuk and the Thrashers organization over the past few months, Friedman believes that New Jersey provides an incredible opportunity for Kovalchuk to revive his image. In addition, if Kovalchuk accepts a role with the Devils, it would not be out of the question to see Kovalchuk's open market value rise.

Anssi Salmela Brings New Dimension To Devils

Defensemen Anssi Salmela was part of tonight's mega trade between the Atlanta Thrashers and New Jersey Devils, and while the talk may reside on prized winger Ilya Kovalchuk, Salmela's strong offensive play will bring a new dimension to the New Jersey Devils. Salmela, 25, had a goal and four assists in 29 games this season for Atlanta. The Finn was acquired by the Thrashers from the Devils in exchange for defenseman Niclas Havelid and forward Myles Stoesz on March 2, 2009.

Kovalchuk made impact on and off the ice in Atlanta

Since his first season with the Atlanta Thrashers eight years ago, Ilya Kovalchuk has made a huge impression on the city of Atlanta and the National Hockey League. He is the franchise's all-time leader in games (594), points (615), goals (328), assists (287), game-winning goals (40), power-play goals (115), power-play points (243) and shots (2,178). Since entering the NHL, he has scored more goals and power-play goals than any NHL player over that period. He also is on a pace for a sixth straight 40-goal season – the only player to do so over that span (John Manasso, NHL.com). With the move to New Jersey, the Russian sniper could further raise his profile in the game of hockey. Joe Manasso of NHL.com explores the most memorable moments in Kovalchuk's career.

We Are All Professionals: Ilya Kovalchuk Speaks About Status With Thrashers

To listen to Ilya Kovalchuk's entire media interview, please visit this link.