By Alexander Monaghan
President

By Dan4th Nicholas (Flickr: Eric Brewer)

Eric Brewer will face the St. Louis Blues for the first time since March 30th, 2004 on Saturday night, slightly nine months after getting traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 19th captain in team history was jettisoned from the Gateway to the West in exchange for a third round pick and defensive prospect Brock Beukeboom — a third round pick himself and son of former NHLer Jeff Beukeboom.

Although the Blues finished only 10 points out of a playoff seed, GM Doug Armstrong knew at the trade deadline the team would finish outside of the playoff picture. Brewer, an unrestricted free agent at the time (re-signed with the Bolts this June), became the casualty to proper asset management, leaving a young team for a contender in the Lightning.

In Tampa, the 32-year-old has thrived — playing a physical, two-way game and frequently lining up on the top power play unit. He leads all Lightning skaters in time of ice this season and led them in TOI/G last year. While with the Blues he still played the heavy minutes — leading the team in TOI/G in three of his five-plus seasons, finishing second twice — but playing on a contender with the League’s spotlight attached has given him his due.

As a former opponent of Brewer, Bolts GM Steve Yzerman knew what he was getting via trade. From The St. Petersburg Times, in February:

“He’s a very poised defenseman, a big guy who moves well,” Yzerman said. “He makes the good first pass. He’s a steady, reliable, good defenseman. I think he’s a very versatile guy who can play either side, a valuable player.”

Not only has Brewer been versatile and valuable, he’s been the stabilizing force on the team’s blue line. Most importantly, he fits in, just like he did in St. Louis.

Wearing a Blues sweater, the Vernon, British Columbia posted career highs in goals while establishing himself as a vital defender who could hit, block shots, play physically and contribute offensively. Clearly there would be no ill will against the team that gave him such a responsibility. Under former head coach he earned captaincy due to his lauded leadership qualities which have clearly translated its way over to the Southeast Division powerhouse.

When asked, Brewer was nothing but exuberant when discussing his former club. “I played with a lot of them for a long time and we had some really good times there. I have nothing but good things to say about their organization,” Brewer said to TampaBayLightning.com. Unlike most players who feel like they have something to prove, Brewer and the Blues know each other well and should provide the audience with gamesmanship at its best.

Should be an excellent game to watch if not to see how Brewer reacts but also to see defensive masterminds Guy Boucher and Ken Hitchcock fight to maintain the under.

Friday night with the 27th pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft the Tampa Bay Lightning selected, Russian center, Vladislav Namestnikov from the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League. In the 2010-11 season Namestnikov, 18, played in 68 games where he recorded 30 goals, 38 assists and 49 penalty minutes. Namestnikov is the son of former NHL player, Yevgeny Namestnikov.

Namestnikov is a good two way player that can certainly provide offense whether he is scoring himself or being a play-maker. He also has great hands when controlling the puck and is a solid skater. Namestnikov will need time to develop in addition to bulking up more coming in at 170lbs. before coming into the NHL. He has been compared to as a Pavel Datsyuk type player.

The Tampa Bay Lightning also re-signed defensemen, Eric Brewer to a four-year $16 Million contract on Friday. Tampa Bay acquired Brewer from the Blues during the 2010-11 season and finished the season with 9 goals, 7 assists, 81 penalty minutes and a plus-6 rating. Brewer will continue to protect and solidify the blueline where he has done well with the Blues and Lightning last season and into the playoffs

By Bill Whitehead

The final goal has been tallied, Stanley Cup awarded and car overturned and burned in Vancouver, so now the attention turns squarely to the draft next week in Minnesota. Here’s a look at a few Swedish players the Florida Panthers and GM Dale Tallon may have a shot at selecting in St. Paul:

Gabriel Landeskog, LW, Kitchener Rangers (OHL)

While Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the media favorite, has been the likely No. 1 pick of the Edmonton Oilers for some time now and Jonathan Huberdeau has been increasing his stock with a standout showing in the Memorial Cup, Landeskog has been going about his business as “The Character Guy” of the draft. The Swedish winger, along with fellow countryman and forward Mika Zibanejad, was profiled by NHL.com while traveling around the city during the combine. The overall impression? He is “The Character Guy.”

His impeccable English belies his European background, and he’s well-spoken and comfortable talking to NHL players like Daniel and Henrik Sedin — no doubt heroes of his — and Tyler Seguin, a Stanley Cup-winning rookie he would surely like to emulate. Landeskog put up stout numbers (36 goals, 30 assists in 53 games) for Kitchener, whether it was working in front of the goal or in the corners. Check out video of Landeskog here where Kitchener teammate Brandon Maxwell calls him “the perfect human being, I guess.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtVG7KMhjxc

Probability of being drafted by Florida: Possibly

If the first round of the 2011 NHL Draft closes and Tallon and company walk out of the Xcel Energy Center with Landeskog as their catch, no one in South Florida who is seeing red — the club’s new marketing campaign — should literally be seeing red in anger by any means. Does Landeskog have as high an offensive upside and skill set as some of the other forwards mentioned in the top 10? Maybe not. But he brings a boatload of quality, does everything above average with a strong work ethic, works a solid two-way game and has a future captaincy written all over his 6-foot-1, 207-pound frame. The Panthers, who traded away captain Bryan McCabe last season at the deadline, have a vacant hole in its leadership. If he’s chosen, I would expect to see Landeskog on Florida’s roster next season and a team leader in a couple of years. Much talk of late, however, has been of Tallon perhaps taking a center instead, so Landeskog gets downgraded slightly from “Likely” chosen to “Possibly.” Still, Landeskog is this draft’s safe pick and the one that will contribute the quickest.

Adam Larsson, D, Skelleftea AIK (SEL)

Larsson was the consensus pick before the season to be the top choice, but a disappointing year has left his stock somewhat down. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound blueliner seems to possess all the accolades that come with being a top defender — great size, strong shot, good puck-moving abilities, solid skating — but he may be passed over by Edmonton and Colorado with the first two selections. A strong case could be made, though, for the Oilers and Avs to take the 18-year-old Larsson. Edmonton may be the best fit for Larsson, but the Oilers seem enamored with Nugent-Hopkins and the possibility of seeing him feeding passes to young talents like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Magnus Paajarvi for a long time. However, Larsson could be a future top-pairing defender for Edmonton.

Probability of being drafted by Florida: Unlikely

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with Larsson. He’s a smooth skater who brings good offense from the blue line. And a good case can be made by some that drafting him would put the Cats in an envious position on the back end for at least the next five years — Larsson, Erik Gudbranson, Dmitry Kulikov, Jason Garrison, Keaton Ellerby, Colby Robak and Alex Petrovic would be a potentially outstanding group defending in front of goalie Jacob Markstrom soon. But the need for another talented but green defenseman isn’t there, and Florida’s biggest concern isn’t keeping the puck out of the net, it’s putting it in it. Also, the young defense could use a veteran presence, like a James Wisniewski, Andrei Markov or Eric Brewer, plus Mike Weaver’s there, too.

Another blue-chipper in play would crowd the corps even more, perhaps making one or more up-and-comers expendable and have Tallon looking at another trade, which hopefully wouldn’t involve Gudbranson, a defender whose edgy, physical play has drawn comparisons to Chris Pronger. If Tallon wants toughness and grit on the future team he ices at BankAtlantic Center, Gudbranson is a must in the defensive mix, not Larsson.

How it should play out:

Zibanejad, the third Swede, has seen his value rise in the past few weeks. One pundit even suggested the 18-year-old could go as high as the third selection where Florida sits. But Zibanejad will only be a Panther if some wheeling and dealing takes place in Minnesota and the Cats pick in the 6 to 10 range. Even then, Zibanejad might be a stretch being taken in front of a player whose stock has mysteriously fallen (Sean Couturier) or a sniper-type who’s considered second-tier (Ryan Strome).

Of the sweet Swedes, Landeskog and his intangible-filled, all-around game — often compared to that of Flyers captain Mike Richards — fits the bill and would look perfect in a throwback red Panther sweater next year, but Tallon may have different plans and opt for more scoring from a high-profile center instead.

By Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

By Danny Di Nicolantonio
NHLHS Tampa Bay Lightning Correspondent

After game one was decided by 18 seconds, the Lightning knew the importance of a playing the whole 60 minutes. Tampa Bay had the determination and played with the intense desperation needed to ensure they were not going to be down 2-0 in the series as it shifts to Tampa.

Lightning defensemen, Eric Brewer scored the opening goal 2:02 into the 1st period. A two on one rush alongside Nate Thompson and Brewer placed it on the top shelf above Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoulder. Brewer also had two assists in this one.

Vincent Lecavalier put the lightning up 2-0 on the power play that started with a great effort by Brewer to hold the offensive zone and keeping the pressure on the Penguins.
As the 1st period began to wind down Thompson extended to a three goal lead after an initial shot by Steve Downie rebounded out in front right where Thompson was to clean up the garbage.

It wasn’t all about the scoring for the Lightning in this one as they killed off seven-of-seven penalties against. This coming off a game one where the Lightning killed all six of the Penguins’ power plays.

Pittsburgh was able to get on the board at the 9:08 mark of the 2nd period after a puck that was misplayed by Lightning goaltender, Dwayne Roloson went into the no play zone. Arron Asham put a shot on net that rebounded out to Craig Adams who capitalized on the mistake.

The remaining of the 2nd period was dominated by the Penguins as they began to surge after that goal. However, with the Lightning on the power play toward the end of that frame, it was Martin St.Louis giving the Lightning the three goal cushion back. The impossible angle shot by St.Louis found a way between Fleury and the post before dropping over the goal line.

Roloson finished the night stopping 35 of 36 shots that he faced in game two. “We stayed with our game plan, we didn’t make any changes from our game plan — and we played hard,” goaltender Dwayne Roloson said. “We were trying to get one game out of here and that’s what we did.”

A fitting end to game two as Mattias Ohlund scored his first goal as a member of the Lightning with a short-handed empty net goal to cap off a 5-1 victory.
Game three is on Monday night at 7:30PM at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa.

Reports indicated that St. Louis Blues captain Eric Brewer has waived his NTC in allow a trade sending him to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The return is a 3rd Round Pick in the 2011 draft and prospect defenseman Brock Beukeboom.

Please check back later tonight for a more detail look at this deal. All bets are off that the Blues are done dealing.

All the talk this week, ever since the Canadiens lost 8-6 to the Boston Bruins, is that the Canadiens do not have the toughness to win the Stanley Cup.

They have a point. The Canadiens proved they can win in the playoffs but if you look closely, they beat the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins – two teams that don’t exactly portray tons of toughness – before losing to the Philadelphia Flyers, a team that does. The Canadiens, in the past, have had Boston’s number because their speed had the number on Boston’s size. It’s still true to an extent. They did have six goals against the Bruins. Sure, they allowed eight but it was a crazy game and the Bruins’ size wasn’t exactly responsible for all eight goals scored. But there is something missing, still.

Many people associate bringing toughness in as Georges Laraque. But the Canadiens don’t need someone who slows down the action and plays five minutes a game. There is toughness in other ways. They need someone that can play a regular shift and not just be a guy who fights. Think Anthony Stewart of the Atlanta Thrashers or Eric Brewer of the St. Louis Blues. Maybe even an old playoff nemesis in R.J. Umberger of the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Canadiens don’t need that much truculence. Just look at how it’s helping Toronto.

It’s important, sure. But there are plenty of good players who can bring toughness and the Canadiens can grab one of them. James Wisniewski is a guy who can bring toughness and stand up for people. I think instead of bringing in a top-six forward, they should be looking for a guy who can play top-six minutes and can crash, bang and fight.

Ryan White is a good example. He’s been playing very well, Travis Moen and Mathieu Darche as well. They just aren’t able to play top-six minutes because they aren’t skilled enough. That is what the Canadiens need more than anything else right now and that is what Pierre Gauthier will have to look at leading up to February 28 and failing that, into next season if this team is expected to take the next step.

Basically what the Canadiens need is someone who brings toughness, will make opponents think twice about playing rough with their skilled players and be good enough not to hurt the team on the ice. Play disciplined and not give Jacques Martin reason to have him in the press box several nights which would make his presence obsolete. Players like that aren’t easy to find, but they do exist and there are a lot of teams that are out of the playoffs that will be willing to listen to trade offers. If not, the Canadiens better hope that someone else can take care of the Flyers or the Bruins otherwise their dreams of a Stanley Cup championship will be just that.

Jared Book
NHLHS Montreal Canadiens correspondent
Twitter: @jaredbook

When referencing the St. Louis Blues, a few names immediately pop up: T.J. Oshie, Erik Johnson, Brad Boyes, Andy McDonald, and David Backes. Among those players, only McDonald (32 years) is older than the team average of 27.96 years (the Blues tie with the Minnesota Wild as the sixth oldest NHL team).

McDonald, as one of the older players on the team, leads the Blues in goals and overall points. The Canadian-born center knows what it takes to win — he proved that by winning the Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007. As one of the leaders in the St. Louis locker room, McDonald appears as a great model for his younger teammates.

One of those younger teammates, Oshie, has yet to face the sophomore slump. Though an injury kept him out of the lineup for a substantial period of time last season, Oshie looks to break his rookie numbers of 14 goals and 25 assists (he currently has 13 goals and 23 assists).

Similarly, Johnson, aged 21, broke his previous goal total of five, and it appears likely he will do the same to the assist column. Johnson, however, is a strong defenseman for the Blues. His offensive addition helps the Blues, but his main focus remains protecting his goaltender and keeping pucks out of his team’s net.

The leadership (captain) Eric Brewer and (alternate captain) Barret Jackman provide to the defense corp certainly helped Johnson. To have two great players (as well as Darryl Sydor) to learn from on defense can help any young defenseman transition into the NHL. Brewer missed some time from injuries, but now is back and trying to finish the season strong.

The offensive production of both Brewer and Jackman are small, but like Johnson, their main focus is defense, and the offense will come when necessary.

Back on offense, David Perron, one of the three 21 year olds on the team (Johnson and Patrik Berglund), will break his career high in goals (as he currently has 15 goals), but his assists from last season greatly outweigh his current season’s assist column.

Last season, as a sophomore Perron put up 15 goals and 35 assists, great for a player who did not even play the entire season the year before. This year, he added fifteen goals and eighteen assists, but with only twenty games left breaking 35 assists may not happen.

Backes, however, does not seem likely to break his points from last season. For the first time in his short career, Backes played in all eighty-two games last season, and had an amazing offensive season. Scoring eighteen more goals than his career best, Backes finished the season with fifty-four points. He also finished second on the team in points, only behind Boyes.

Then, comes Boyes, an offensive leader, who struggled thus far. In only his fifth season in the NHL, Boyes suffered a large drop off in production (about a thirty goal difference from two seasons ago).

The offensive leaders on the Blues are either stagnant or worse when compared to last season. This alone can devastate a team.

Then, as two of the oldest players on the team, Paul Kariya (35) and Keith Tkachuk (37),  these two players have experience and lots of practice in the tough, pressure-packed games. Unfortunately, both players seem past their prime. Each player suffered brief injuries this season, but the real focus remains their offensive production, or lack there of.

Kariya’s point total seems average when compared to his previous seasons, but long gone are the seasons where he would put up eighty points.

Somewhat similar, Tkachuk’s production dropped this season. Last season he finished with forty-nine points, but this season (through 55 games played) he has twenty-eight points.

Their age appears to hinder these two players. Both great offensive forwards in their time, but now their best abilities will serve best by mentoring and helping the younger players to develop.

In contrast, the Blues cannot blame injuries for their lackluster season. Of the twelve players that missed at least one game to an injury, seven are twenty-eight years or younger. On the Blues, the majority of the players injured at one point during this season, were at the average team age, or younger.

Comparatively, the Wild had a similar trend in injuries and age. The older teams, like the Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks, experience more injuries to the older players, but the younger teams begin to show a weak point in their youth.

Luckily, injuries did not plague the Blues too badly this year. Various key players, like Backes, Oshie, and Johnson suffered short injuries, but only three injuries were serious and long-term.

Largely responsible for the team’s success, Chris Mason backstops the Blues. He has twenty of the team’s twenty-eight wings, but his loss total (17) is too close to his win total to show a successful season. Finishing at .500 or slightly above represents a decent goaltending season, but finishing higher will only help his team make the playoffs.

As of the Olympic break, the Blues sit four points out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. But, the Blues need to jump over four teams to grab that last playoff spot.

There are twenty games remaining for the Blues this season, and making the playoffs is definitely still within grasp, but the task will prove difficult.

The Blues will face many tough teams in the last stretch of games, but after a two-week break, the majority of the Blues (those not participating in the Olympics) should feel rested and rejuvenated.

The final few games will likely cement a playoff spot or hinder their chances at a Stanley Cup run. In the Blues’ case, their youth should propel them above their opponents, but only time will tell how they will react to having two-weeks between games.

Katlyn Gambill
NHLHS Featured Writer
kgambill@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @freezethepuck