Author: Patrick Hoffman
Patrick covers the NHL for Inside The Rink. He has previously covered the league for The Ultimate Hockey Fan Cave, WTP Sports, Sportsnet.ca, Kukla’s Korner, Spector’s Hockey, NHL Network Radio blog, TheHockeyNews.com, The Fourth Period, Stan Fischler’s “The Fischler Report”, as well as a slew of others.
Schmid Earns Devils Net for Rest of Playoff Series With the Rangers
The play of New Jersey Devils goaltender Vitek Vanecek during the regular season is one of the reasons why the team had so much success and made it into the playoffs for the first time in five seasons. Vanecek, 27, was 33-11-0-4 with a 2.45 goals-against average, a .911 save percentage, and three shutouts during […]
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Evason’s Two-Goalie System Backfires At the Wrong Time
When it comes to the Stanley Cup playoffs and goaltending, teams will often go with one goaltender more often than not. You generally will not see clubs rotate their goaltenders and instead stick with the hot hand at the most important time of the year. Sure, it is okay to split time during the regular […]
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Do Not Sleep on the Kraken
Coming into their second season in the NHL, not much was expected from the Seattle Kraken. Last year, the Kraken were the third-worst team in the league with a 27-49-6 record and 60 points. They had trouble scoring goals, did not get great goaltending, and were outmatched by almost every other team. This season was […]
Read MoreA Look Back At Crazy Offer Sheets in the NHL
As a New York Rangers fan, I am well aware of offer sheets. On August 7th of, 1997, the Blueshirts signed the great Colorado Avalanche forward Joe Sakic to a contract offer sheet of $21 million over three seasons. At the time, the team was looking to replace Mark Messier since the “Messiah” went and signed […]
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Rangers’ Shesterkin Already in Playoff Zone
In last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, it took New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin about five games to find his form. After making over 70 saves in Game 1 against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round last year, Shesterkin, 27, struggled in Games 2, 3, and 4 and put the Rangers behind the eight […]
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Why the Devils Scare Me as a Rangers Fan
In some of my previous articles for this site, I have mentioned to you that while I grew up a New York Rangers fan and will always root for them, I am a hockey fan first. For this particular article, I am going to wear both hats as it concerns both areas. As a Rangers […]
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Can Oettinger Shine in the Playoffs Again for the Stars?
Going into their first-round matchup with the Calgary Flames in last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, the Dallas Stars were considered significant underdogs. The Flames were a much better hockey team. They won the Pacific Division finishing the regular season with 111 points, while the Stars were the second wild card team and finished the year […]
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Oilers Skinner Looks Set For the Playoffs
Going into this season, the Edmonton Oilers figured that Jack Campbell would be their main man between the pipes for the regular season and the Stanley Cup playoffs. Last off-season, the Oilers signed Campbell, 31, to a five-year, $25 million contract. He earned that contract thanks to a solid season last year with the Toronto […]
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Can The Kings Count on Their Goaltending in the Playoffs?
Undoubtedly, the Los Angeles Kings have had one heckuva hockey season. As of this writing (Tuesday, April 11), the team, who clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs for a second straight season, is 46-25-10 with 102 points. They are currently third in the Pacific Division and 11th in the league. Throughout the regular […]
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The Panthers Have the Heart of a Lyon
After being the best team in the league last season, the Florida Panthers struggled to find their way for much of this year. Do not look now, but the Panthers appeared to have found themselves at the most important time of the regular season. Thanks to a Buffalo Sabres loss to the New Jersey Devils […]
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