A quick mix of the things we gleaned from the week of hockey, serious and less so, and rolling four lines deep. But, baby, we’re in Sweden. How’d you get to Sweden?
1. Mark Giordano lights up recalling that October night in 2006 at Air Canada Centre when he and one of his boyhood heroes left the rink with duelling milestones.
A Toronto-born Maple Leafs fan, Giordano was a rookie facing off against Mats Sundin on Oct. 14.
With plenty of friends and family in the hometown stands, the young Calgary Flames defenceman registered both his first and second NHL goals against Sundin and the logo he grew up rooting for.
“I had a good night that night, too, but he showed me up pretty good,” Giordano smiles Saturday morning inside Stockholm’s Hovet Arena. “He scored a hat trick for his 500th. So that was a pretty cool night, especially being from Toronto.”
That Sundin was in the rink Friday, delivering a surprise pep talk to Giordano’s Leafs, and again Saturday, quietly taking in practice from the bleachers — where his son’s youth team chanted “Ny! Lan! Der!” — is no small gesture.
The franchise’s all-time leader in goals and points has, at times, felt distant from the current group, separated by an ocean as Sundin and his wife, Josephine, raise their three young children near Stockholm.
No ill will or anything, but due to geography and his modest profile Sundin has simply been around less than local Leafs icons such Doug Gilmour, Darryl Sittler and Wendel Clark.
At this Global Series, Detroit’s Nicklas Lidstrom (officially a VP with the Detroit Red Wings) dropped a ceremonial puck and held a press conference. Daniel Alfredsson (officially hired by the Ottawa Senators last month) walked the bench, guest coaching during Thursday’s thrilling OT win over the Wings.
“What I’ve enjoyed most is being on the inside again,” Lidstrom says. “You know what’s going on. You’re looking at, developing and scouting players. You’re part of the team again.”
Sundin is not officially part of the team, yet he has been present in his understated way this week, joining Brad Treliving, Brendan Shanahan and Sheldon Keefe for a team dinner, spending time catching up with “nephew” Max Domi, and sharing the stage with William Nylander at a fan event.
“He’s a proud Maple Leaf, first of all. You can see that. But also, he just loves the game, and I think he just enjoys being around everyone and telling the stories,” Keefe says.
The plan is for Sundin, 52, to return to Toronto in February and enjoy the city’s festivities during All-Star Weekend.
With his children growing up, and his words with the current players landing so meaningfully, one wonders if the hockey man will one day become even further involved with the Maple Leafs.
“Also a Canucks legend,” notes Vancouver native Morgan Rielly, with a grin.
“It was awesome [having Sundin call out the lineup]. I mean, what he means to our team and to Toronto is pretty special. And to be in Sweden and to have him around, it’s been very cool.”
Indeed.
2. Wondering if John Klingberg — and his $4.15 million cap hit — could be placed on LTIR.
The Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman hasn’t played in a week despite aggressive treatment for an undisclosed injury that he’s been managing throughout his NHL career. He was in pain following Friday’s morning skate and walked off the ice just 10 minutes into Saturday’s full practice.
Injured and struggling, the defenceman is untradable at this point, unless the Leafs attach a sweetener.
Toronto also has another offensive-minded, playmaking right shot in Conor Timmins, who is nearly ready to return to game action.
Timmins has practised for a week without a non-contact sweater, and Keefe would rather not dress six lefties.
Timmins has got to return Friday in Chicago, no?
3. That the general managers are considering rule changes to 3-on-3 overtime — eliminating regroups once gaining the offensive zone or installing a shot clock — feels unnecessary and potentially disastrous.
The offside review has been more hassle than it’s worth, and the spirit of the original rule has been supplanted by Zapruder film–like studies that interrupt game flow and wipe goals off the Jumbotron.
Imagine stopping a fun 3-on-3 back-and-forth to analyze in slow-motion if the puck left Nathan MacKinnon‘s stick before the 10-second shot clock or if Miro Heiskanen brought the puck over-and-back by a hair over the red line.
Ugh.
Be careful not to open another Pandora’s box here.
4. Why are shootouts so anticlimactic but penalty shots — and the leadup to them, waiting for the ref to point to centre ice — are one of the most exhilarating moments in hockey?
(Count me firmly against the floated idea of allowing coaches to select their penalty-shot taker. The skater who earned the breakaway deserves a chance to play hero.)
5. Shame that the Winnipeg Jets — firmly in a playoff spot and dressing one of the NHL’s goal-scoring leaders, Kyle Connor — are struggling at the gate.
The Jets are averaging 11,874 fans per home game and the Canada Life Centre is 79.1 per cent full.
Only the horrid San Jose Sharks (73.8 per cent) are having a more difficult time packing them in.
League sources point to 2011, when Winnipeg took over the Atlanta Thrashers, as an explanation for the current attendance issue in a depressed economy.
The bring-back-the-Jets movement sold 1,870 season ticket packages to Manitoba Moose loyalists, then another 8,000 to the public within two hours of going on sale.
What was a feel-good story at the time — regular working folk putting down hard-earned money to see live NHL hockey — has had a negative effect over time.
Too great of a portion of the ticket buyers were individuals, not corporations. Individuals fall on hard times or grow old or eventually wish to spend their entertainment dollars elsewhere.
Companies are more likely to renew their tickets.
Not enough corporate investment, the league believes, is the root of the Jets’ attendance woes now.
6. The Columbus Blue Jackets are the worst team in the Eastern Conference. They have the fewest wins (four), the worst goal differential (minus-15), the longest losing streak (seven games), and have allowed the most goals (61).
In Friday’s 3-2 loss to the Arizona Coyotes, Johnny Gaudreau (zero goals on a netminder this season) got benched for the final 6:15. Star sniper Patrik Laine sat for the final 6:15.
Those who believed the Jackets couldn’t be any worse off than 2022-23 might’ve been mistaken.
Midseason GM changes are rare, but this performance has the franchise spiraling into something awful.
7. Hands up if you had 37-year-old Jonathan Quick ranking second leaguewide in goals-against average (1.98), earning nine of a possible 10 points in his decisions (4-0-1), and tracking a career-best save percentage (.928).
This after the 37-year-old netminder sat on the sidelines for the Vegas Golden Knights’ entire Cup run and settled for a $825,000 contract with the New York Rangers.
Big W for the olds.
8. We’re told the NHL doesn’t directly/immediately make money from its Global Series, but it is a long-term investment that goes miles toward keeping the league’s foreign sponsors and broadcasters happy.
To mitigate the financial damage on this weekend’s four-team event, it’s no surprise that the Maple Leafs — handily one of the NHL’s top three gate earners, despite the Canadian dollar — are not sacrificing a single home game in Stockholm.
Both of Toronto’s dates, against the Wild and Red Wings, are away games for the Leafs but “home” games for the opposition. Also, even with natural rivals Ottawa and Toronto in town, they aren’t playing each other in Stockholm because Battles of Ontario rake more HRR in Ontario.
9. Here’s Noah Hanifin on playing in Calgary through ceased extension talks and plenty of uncertainty regarding whether he will be wearing a flaming C past the trade deadline:
“It’s just controlling what I can each day and trying to play the best hockey I can. Right now, that’s all in my control and just trying to get wins for this team. That’s just where my mindset has to be at. Whatever happens in the future will happen and take care of itself. But for right now, it’s just trying to focus on each day, just continuing to get better and helping the team win games.
“You want to win games. Just the whole atmosphere, the mood, everything’s better when you’re winning. When you’re losing, things can be tough for everybody.”
10. Quote of the Week.
“To be honest, I hate watching baseball. I think it’s pretty boring.” —Tim Stützle, following his beautiful walk-off home run on opening night of the Global Series in Stockholm.
11. If William Nylander registers a point Sunday versus the Minnesota Wild in Stockholm, he will tie Connor McDavid for the longest season-starting point streak by an active player and Henrik Zetterberg for the second-longest such streak by a Swede (17 games).
12. Story time with Wayne Gretzky …
