2021-2022 PLAYER & GOALIE OF THE WEEK #5

EASTERN SKATER	TEAM	GP	GOALS	ASSISTS	POINTS	PM	+/-	SOG	S%
Patrice Bergeron	JAG	4	3	6	9	7	3	17	18%

EASTERN GOALIE	TEAM	GP	GOALS AGAINST		G.A. AVERAGE		SAVES	SAVE %
Jonathan Bernier	TBN	3	6		2		87	.935

WESTERN SKATER	TEAM	GP	GOALS	ASSISTS	POINTS	PM	+/-	SOG	S%
Leon Draisaitl	ALA	4	10	0	10	0	3	33	30%

WESTERN GOALIE	TEAM	GP	GOALS AGAINST		G.A. AVERAGE		SAVES	SAVE %
Elvis Merzilkins	GIL	2	1		0.5		59	.983

Chicago Cosa Nostra
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Chicago with 3 home games at the old broken-down Capone Center. Seems like the Cosa Nostra fit right in – in this old broken-down building.

YELLOWKNIFE BRAVES @ CHICAGO COSA NOSTRA	Chicago only faces 15 shots as the defense plays well. However, the goalie(s) do not! Juuse Sarros faces 6 shots in just over 15 minutes & allows 4 goals. Peter Mrazek fills in, & allows 1-goal over the last 44 & a half minutes. Chicago’s offense forgets how to score, even though they put 28 shots on the net. Final Score: Yellowknife 5 – Chicago 0 Labatts 3-Star Selection: Star 1: YEL – Marc-Andre Fleury 28 Saves – Shutout Star 2: YEL – Robby Fabbri 1G, 2Pts Star 3: YEL – Yegor Skarangovich 1G, 2 Pts Game Winner: – Yegor Skarangovich Notables: YEL – None CHI – None

BRENTWOOD BANDITS @ CHICAGO COSA NOSTRA	Chicago gets 33 shots on the net. 33 Saves by Andrei Vasilevskiy & another shutout loss at home for the Cosa Nostra. Home fans litter the ice after the 2nd game in a row being Shutout. Final Score: Brentwood 3 – Chicago 0 Labatts 3-Star Selection: Star 1: BWB – Andrei Vasilevskiy 33 Saves – Shutout Star 2: BWB – Alec Martinez 1G, 2Pts Star 3: BWB – Jake Guientzel 1G Game Winner: – Lars Eller Notables: BWB – T.J. Brodie 5 Blocked Shots, Alec Martinez 5 Blocked Shots, Andrei Vasilevskiy 33 Saves CHI – None

CINCINNATI INFERNO @ CHICAGO COSA NOSTRA	The Cosa Nostra get a fire lit underneath their @$$ & actually show up with some offense in this one. Tied midway through the 3rd, Chicago scores 3 unanswered in the last 11 minutes of the game and double up the Inferno. The fans walked out happy for a change. Final Score: Chicago 6 – Cincinnati 3 Labatts 3-Star Selection: Star 1: CHI – Shea Theodore 2G Star 2: CHI – Alexander Wennberg 2G Star 3: CIN – Max Pacioretty 2G Game Winner: – Jordan Kyrou Notables: CIN – Brayden Point 18 Faceoff Wins, Connor Hellebuyck 35 Saves CHI – Juuse Saros 33 Saves, Alexander Wennberg 15 Faceoff Wins, Zach Werenski 5 Blocked Shots

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	After looking like rubber dog $hit flown out of Hong Kong for 2 games the Cosa Nostra get back in the win column. But a 1-2 week stunk for the home fans.

Yellowknife Braves
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	2 home games vs Chicago and Bathgate

CHICAGO COSA NOSTRA @ YELLOWKNIFE BRAVES	All Braves 5-1 Stars #1 YEL Kuznetsov 2G 4pts #2 YEL Gurianov 2G 3pts #3 YEL Eberle 1G 2pts

BATHGATE RANGERS @ YELLOWKNIFE BRAVES	Bathgate outplays Yellowknife 5-3 Stars #1 BGR Buchnevich 2G #2 BGR Hertl 2G #3 YEL Monahan 2G

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Yellowknife split their home series 1-1

Toledo Walleye
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	The Miners come out of the Keystone State to the north end of Ohio for a little hockey.

PITTSBURGH MINERS @ TOLEDO WALLEYE	Walleye 3, Miners 2, SO – Nedeljkovic and Petersen rule the 1st period with an iron fist, keeping any marks from getting on the scoreboard. Each team kills off one minor penalty. 12 Toledo shots and 6 Miner shots get denied, and we go to intermission tied at zero. 2nd period the play cleans up and the penalty boxes stay empty. Meanwhile, the Miners get a little action going, and goals by Hague and Garland score less than a minute apart, and the Huntington Centre crowd goes pretty quiet, down 2-0. The Walleye cannot respond, and the Miners go to break pumped up with a 2 goal lead. The Walleye crank up the aggressiveness knob to try and pump some energy into the team. After both teams kill off minor penalties early, the Walleye score 2 goals in 24 seconds before the clock knocks 9 minutes off the board. Then 11 minutes of a 2-2 tie with each team getting a few chances, but no dice. Off to Overtime. The Miners control the 5 minute overtime period, 7 shots on goal to only 4 for the Fish, but the goalies both kick butt, and keep their lamps dark. In the Shootout, the Miners go 0 for 3, while Robertson slips one in, and the Walleye with a close one, 3-2. 1st star – Arvidsson 1G 2nd – Nedeljkovic 43 saves 3rd – Hague 1G

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Good defense by the Walleye, better than usual, pays off with a W. Strong outing for Peterson.

Bathgate Rangers
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	One home game – Toledo – should be fun (ha)

TOLEDO WALLEYE @ BATHGATE RANGERS	This game was good, bad, then good, then bad ….. 1st three goals belong to Toledo. Hoffman in the 1st (only goal of the 1st), then Trochek scores 6 minutes into the 2nd and Pettersson scores less than a minute later for the 3-0 lead. McCann scores a PP goal for Bathgate in the middle of the period, but Trocheck nets a 2nd goal in the 2nd and it ends 4-1. Then Trochek scores his 3rd in the 3rd for a 5-1 lead. Then the Rangers come to life and Tatar scores the Rangers 2nd PP goal in the middle of the period. Then 3 minutes later Hagel gets his 1st of the year and cuts the score to 5-3 and Donskoi gets the Rangers another goal with 3 1/2 to go in the 2nd and it’s 5-4!So we move to the 3rd and oddly both teams go after each other – but no one gets the biscuit in the basket. So the Rangers pull the goalie and two goals are scored 10 seconds apart. But they are both empty netters and both by Toledo’s Robertson! So the Walleye win it big time, 7-4. STARS – all TOL 1. Trochek 3 goals 2 assists 2. Robertson 2 goals, 1 assist 3. Hoffman 1 goal

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	That’s it 1 home game and we lose. Short week on the road – 2 road games (but one of them was played last week without instructions and we lost – and Yellowknife this week, which we won.

LA Great Danes
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	After player of the week honors, Roope Hintz is being given a rest for the 4 games in week 5 – an opportunity for LA’s other F’s to step up.

CHARLOTTE BUZZARDS @ LA GREAT DANES	A match up of two 11-win teams, with LA already losing to Charlotte on the road in week 1. The Danes come out strong, with the first 7 scoring chances of the game in the first 7 minutes. But they cannot beat Jake Allen, and Charlotte counters with goals a little over 2 minutes apart later in the period by Rust and Backlund (on the PP). Early in the second, Chandler Stephenson pulls LA within one, but they give the goal back just 25 seconds later (Backlund again), and Charlotte is up again by 2. William Nylander pulls LA back within one, and going to the third Charlotte is up 3-2. In the third, scoring chances are 12-0 LA, but incredibly they cannot get a single shot past Jake Allen – LA had 4-5 chances in the last minute of the game but this was Allen’s night. So LA falls again to Charlotte. What seemed like at the start a goalie mismatch with Varlamov (9.1) versus Allen (6.9), ended up being a dominating performance by Allen. LA outchanced Charlotte 30-8 for the game. It was Charlotte’s depth players doing the damage, Backlund with 2 goals was named the #1 star and Rust with a goal the 3rd star. Allen with 38 saves, many point-blank chances, probably deserved the #1 star but was the game’s 2nd star.

THUNDER BAY NORWESTERS @ LA GREAT DANES	It was a penalty-filled first period, with Thunder Bay taking two early penalties followed by 3 straight calls against LA. But the period ends scoreless. Igor Shesterkin in particular was excellent with 15 saves. In the second, LA gets the next power play, but it’s Casey DeSmith’s chance to shine, stopping wide-open wraparounds by Ehlers and Boeser. But LA keeps the pressure on, and after the penalty expired, Darnell Nurse gives LA the first goal of the game and first lead of the homestand. So after two periods, LA is up 1-0. LA has been outshot 15-29 after 2, although chances are even at 13-13. Chandler Stephenson takes his second minor of the game midway through the 3rd, and Thunder Bay cashes in and ties the game on a PPG by Couturier. After that, LA wastes a PP opportunity, and both goalies make some key saves, and we end regulation tied at 1. It’s a back and forth overtime, and with 1:17 left, it’s Miro Heiskanen who ends it with the winning goal for LA. Shesterkin is the #1 star with 40 saves for LA, and the two goal scoring defensemen for LA are the other 2 stars, Nurse and Heiskanen.

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	The Great Danes struggle to score at home this week without Roope Hintz in the lineup, but 2 goals by the D in the second game salvage an OT win, and Igor Shesterkin continues his stellar play in goal this season. He is now at 6-1-2 with a 1.97 GAA and .930 save %. He’s getting equal playing time with Varlamov so far and earning every minute.

Charlotte Buzzards
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Charlotte, whose best wins total in three prior seasons was 37, already had 11 victories in its first 16 tries entering this week. Trying to avert a letdown, it hosted an Alamo squad which also boasts a winning record in this young season. It was the only home game on the schedule for the Buzzards this week.

ALAMO DEFENDERS @ CHARLOTTE BUZZARDS	Leon Draisaitl singlehandledly put the Defenders on his back and rallied them to a 6-3 victory over the first-place Buzzards. With Alamo trailing 2-0 in the second, Draisatl proceeded to stun Charlotte and goalie Ilya Sorokin with a second-period hat trick on three unanswered goals. Sidney Crosby and defenseman Charlie McAvoy each collected two assists during the Draisaitl outburst. The Defenders continued badgering Sorokin later in a second period to forget when Alamo’s Steve Stamkos and Dmitry Orlov each found the net on even strength goals that gave their team a 5-2 lead and made the drubbing complete. Charlotte and Alamo exchanged goals in the third period but Alamo goalie Mike Smith provided typically solid play in the nets and made 11 of his 21 total saves in the final period to keep Charlotte at bay. Three stars (all Alamo): 1. Draisaitl (the hat trick) 2. Stamkos 1 G 3 points 3. Blake Wheeler (three assists)

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	The Buzzards collapsed in the second period, surrendering five goals (including the Draisaitl hat trick), and lost their only home game on the schedule this week. The lack of a Charlotte offensive spark was concerning and Sorokin, who has been otherwise sharp all season, probably needed to be yanked from this clunker — but he stayed in to preserve goalie usage and the result was Alamo steamrolling its way to victory.

Alamo Defenders
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Alamo hosts Gilbert, Portland, and Bucks County

GILBERT SHARKS @ ALAMO DEFENDERS	Pretty incredible game. It’s the Draisaitl show. He scores 4 goals. He scores 9 through 12. Korpisalo gets the shutout. Alamo 4 Gilbert 0 1- Draisaitl – 4 goals 2 -Korpisalo – 20 saves 3 – Crosby – 3 assists

PORTLAND STORM @ ALAMO DEFENDERS	In the 1st, Grzelcyk scores his 1st in the 1st for the Storm. In the 3rd, Grandlund scores. Draisaitl scores to narrow the Storm lead. But, the Storm scores on an Olofsson goal. Portland 3 Alamo 1 1st -Binnington 37 saves 2nd – Grzelcyk 1 goal 3rd – Olofsson 1 goal

BUCKS COUNTY RACCOONS @ ALAMO DEFENDERS	This was a back and forth game. Both teams score in the 1st. Comeau scores for Alamo in the 2nd. Kane ties it up early in the 3rd. Stamkos scores for Alamo. Oshie scores his 9th to tie the game. We go to OT, Draisaitl scores his 15th goal and Alamo wins. Alamo 4 Bucks County 3 (OT) 1- Draisaitl 2 -Stamkos 3-Comeau

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Alamo wins 2 of 3.

Gilbert Sharks
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Gilbert has 2 home games this week versus Brentwood and Portland

BRENTWOOD BANDITS @ GILBERT SHARKS	Brentwood enters the contest only having 1 loss on the season. Shockingly, this one is all Gilbert right from the get go as Danault scores just 1 minute into the game. Mackinnon and Hornqvist add Powerplay goals in the 2nd period and Mackinnon adds 1 more Even strength in the 3rd to reach the 4-0 final score. Merzilikens is spectacular turning away all 28 SOG.

PORTLAND STORM @ GILBERT SHARKS	Would Gilbert suffer a letdown after the big upset versus Brentwood? A resounding No as Burakovsky scores first to put them up 1-0. Portland would tie the game on a goal from Farrabee in the 2nd period but the rest is all Gilbert. 4 unanswered Sharks Goals (Keller, Kubalik, Fiala, Scandella) and Gilbert takes a 5-1 victory

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	A couple great home games for the Sharks to get back to .500

Cincinnati Inferno
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	The Cincinnati Inferno welcome Portland and Gilbert to The Incinerator this week.

PORTLAND STORM @ CINCINNATI INFERNO	CIN 3, POR 2 Logan Couture’s second goal of the season at 9:13 of the third period broke a 2-2 tie and sent Cincinnati to the win. The game had a curious start, as Patrik Laine, playing in his first game of the year — scored on his first shift, 15 seconds in to give the Inferno the quick lead. Connor Brown and Joel Farabee lit the lamp in the second to give the Storm the 2-1 edge heading into the third. Fillip Forsberg’s goal in the first minutes of the third, knotted the scores and set the table for Couture’s heroics. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 22 shots to take the win, while Jake Oettinger turned away 23 in the loss.

GILBERT SHARKS @ CINCINNATI INFERNO	CIN 5, GIL 3 Brayden Point netted a hat trick and won 16 faceoffs, as Cincinnati won for the 10th time this year. David Perron had a goal and three assists, to join Point in the four-point club for the game. Clayton Keller chipped in a pair of goals for the Sharks in the loss. Vitek Vanecek turned away 33 shots in a losing effort, while Connor Hellebuyck collected the win with 20 saves. The Cincinnati defense limited Gilbert to just nine total shots in the final periods.

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Cincinnati escapes with a pair of wins at home this week. The Inferno get a bit of a break with three games next week, but two of those are on the road.

Portland Storm
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Portland hosts division leading Los Angeles in only game of the week. 15 games into the season Portland is 7-7-1, a significant improvement over last season

LA GREAT DANES @ PORTLAND STORM	LA (11-3-2) visit the improving Portland squad in a test of how far the Storm have came along Portland opens the scoring on Ryan Lindgren’s first goal of the season 1:59 into the forst period and the Portland crowd was going wild. The second period LA showed why they are on of the top teams in the league as they exploded for 3 goals from Stephenson (5), a short hander from Poluck (2), and Brodin;s first goal of the season to take a 3-1 lead into the intermission. In the third period Ehlers (6) extended the lead to 4-1 before Portland’s Dvorak (3) gave the Storm crowd some hope. The Great Dames with stood the final 8:12 to win 4-2 Star #1 – Stephenson 1 goal 1 assist Star #2 – Brodin 1 goal Star #3 – Ehlers 1 goal

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Portland suffers a loss but shows continued improvement as they battle to remain in the early playoff hunt

Bucks County Raccoons
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Bucks County looks to get out of their early season malaise with 3 home games, 2 of which are against top 5 teams to date….

LA GREAT DANES @ BUCKS COUNTY RACCOONS	Jack Studnicka ties the game for BCR 55 seconds into the 3rd perion, and Evander Kane notches the game winner with 6:04 left as Bucks County defeats LA 3-2. Scheifele had both goals for the Great Danes.

THUNDER BAY NORWESTERS @ BUCKS COUNTY RACCOONS	The Thunder Bay Norwesters score 3 straight goals to overcome a 2 goal deficit, but Oshie ties it at 10:14 of the 3rd, and McDavid wins it with 9 seconds left on a slick penetration as Bucks County defeats Thunder Bay 4-3.

JAGR MULLETS @ BUCKS COUNTY RACCOONS	Austin Matthews scores with 2:03 left in the 3rd to break a 2-2 tie and Jagr held on those final 2 minutes when the puck barely left the BCR offensive zone and Jarg comes away with the 3-2 victory.

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Almost a home sweep by the Raccoons, but almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenade tossing. Still, some signs of life for BCR.

Jagr Mullets
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Three home games against three strong opponents.

TOLEDO WALLEYE @ JAGR MULLETS	Three unanswered goals in the 3rd gives the Mullets a 5-3 victory. Scoring Summary Per Time Str Team 1 1:04 EV TOL Mangiapane (4), assisted by Muzzin (5) and Hoffman (5) 2 6:17 EV JAG Lindholm (6), assisted by Tkachuk (3) and Toews (5) 2 17:54 PP JAG Bergeron (6), assisted by Ekholm (6) 2 18:51 EV TOL Arvidsson (4), assisted by Pettersson (4) and Lindell (3) 2 19:34 EV TOL Rodrigues (2), assisted by Mangiapane (5) and Ceci (1) 3 1:22 EV JAG Matthews (9), assisted by Svechnikov (11) and Letang (11) 3 12:16 EV JAG Lindholm (7), assisted by Tkachuk (4) 3 19:33 EN JAG Bergeron (7), assisted by Miller (5) and Weber (3) Star 1: JAG Bergeron 2 G Star 2: JAG Lindholm 2 G Star 3: TOL Mangiapane 1 G, 2 Pts GWG: Elias Lindholm

CINCINNATI INFERNO @ JAGR MULLETS	In a battle for yellow jersey supremacy, the Mullets win it 5-2 – but it was closer than it appears, as the final two goals were both empty-netters in the final minute. Scoring Summary Per Time Str Team 1 3:49 EV CIN Point (8), assisted by Pacioretty (11) and Perron (12) 2 8:01 PP JAG Ovechkin (5), unassisted 2 13:35 EV CIN Pacioretty (6), assisted by Klingberg (8) and Perron (13) 2 14:55 PP JAG Kaprizov (11), assisted by Matthews (11) and Bergeron (6) 3 1:56 PP JAG Matthews (10), assisted by Bergeron (7) and Letang (12) 3 19:00 EN JAG Toews (2), assisted by Miller (6) and Bergeron (8) 3 19:38 EN JAG Bergeron (8), assisted by Miller (7) and Weber (4) Star 1: JAG Bergeron 1 G, 4 Pts Star 2: JAG Matthews 1 G, 2 Pts Star 3: CIN Pacioretty 1 G, 2 Pts GWG: Auston Matthews Notables: CIN None JAG Bergeron 3 assists, Bergeron 16 faceoffs won

CHARLOTTE BUZZARDS @ JAGR MULLETS	It’s a barnburner – but the Charlotte barn is ashes first, as the Mullets win it 6-5 thanks to a late 3rd period PP goal by the stupendous Dollar Bill Kirill Kaprizov (13th of the year). Scoring Summary Per Time Str Team 1 1:20 EV JAG Ovechkin (6), assisted by Toews (6) and Miller (8) 1 6:21 PP JAG Kaprizov (12), assisted by Matthews (12) and Letang (13) 2 :17 EV JAG Weber (2), assisted by Kaprizov (5) and Matthews (13) 2 1:17 EV CHA Zacha (8), assisted by Mayfield (3) and Marchand (12) 2 4:15 EV JAG Ovechkin (7), assisted by Bergeron (9) and Letang (14) 2 8:09 EV CHA MacDonald (1), assisted by Rust (6) and Marner (12) 2 17:51 SH CHA Tyler Myers (2), unassisted 3 3:51 EV CHA Lee (1), assisted by Pietrangelo (4) and Backlund (10) 3 7:11 EV JAG Matthews (11), assisted by Letang (15) and Kaprizov (6) 3 10:39 EV CHA Rust (4), assisted by Smith (2) and Pietrangelo (5) 3 13:27 PP JAG Kaprizov (13), assisted by Bergeron (10) Star 1: JAG Kaprizov 2 G, 4 Pts Star 2: JAG Ovechkin 2 G Star 3: JAG Matthews 1 G, 3 Pts GWG: Kirill Kaprizov Notables: CHA Myers 6 blocks, Mayfield 8 blocks JAG Letang 3 assists, Matthews 15 faceoffs won

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Three big wins at home to try to keep up with Brentwood and Bathgate in our division.

Thunder Bay Nor’Westers
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	Pittsburgh and California came to town with the Nor’Westers looking to recover from a 2-5-1 home record. Thunder Bay was forced to play without Sean Couturier who is on the shelf with an upper body injury. Jonathan Bernier gets the start in both games and is amazing, as Thunder Bay records back-to-back home wins for the first time this season.

PITTSBURGH MINERS @ THUNDER BAY NOR’WESTERS	The Miners fall 3-1 to Thunder Bay, as Jonathan Bernier has a shutout going until Pittsburgh’s Mario Ferraro slips one past him with just :40 to play. The Nor’Westers #1 line of Kyle Connor, Ryan O’Reilly, Gabriel Landeskog is involved in all 3 Thunder Bat scores. 3 stars: (1) TBN – Gabriel Landeskog [1G+1A]; (2) TBN – Jeff Petry [1G+1A]; (3) TBN – Jonathan Bernier [26 saves]

CALIFORNIA REGULATORS @ THUNDER BAY NOR’WESTERS	Jonathan Bernier was “in the zone” with 39 saves, backing Thunder Bay to a 4-1 victory over California. But at the other end of the ice, Philip Grubauer was way off his game, fanning on 4 of the mere 17 shots he faced. His one bright spot was stopping J.T. Compher on a 3rd period penalty shot. 3 stars: (1) TBN – Jonathan Bernier [39 saves]; (2) TBN – Jeff Petry [1G+1A]; (3) TBN -Miles Wood [1G]

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Time will tell if this team has finally turned things around but one thing is for certain – – Jonathan Bernier will be starting more games between the pipes for the Nor’Westers.

Pittsburgh Miners
WEEKLY PREVIEW:	The Miners come in still with two wins

CALIFORNIA REGULATORS @ PITTSBURGH MINERS	California Comes in and demolishes the Miners 5-1.

YELLOWKNIFE BRAVES @ PITTSBURGH MINERS	Ladies and Gentleman Elvis has just left the building. 3-1 final score.

WEEKLY SUMMARY:	Miners trade Alex Tuch for three depth guys.