A preview of the Avs - Wild game.
"It was one of those things where every time we felt like we were going to get some momentum back we didn't get the bounce we needed or the call we needed," said Duchene, who leads the Avalanche with 14 points.
Coach Joe Sacco's team now finds itself in the midst of a 2-7-1 stretch.
People are talking about concussions, and there is a new gadget (that hasn't been approved yet) that could warn when a player should be sat out due to a hit.
"Now we are [governed by Hockey Canada] and everyone’s been educated. Now, there’s no way I could get away with getting a hit like that and playing the next day or whatever until I’d been checked out."
Primeau said the Impact Indicator doesn’t prevent concussions but indicates when someone should come out of a game. Information is a weapon in the fight against concussions, he said. People can have an objective measurement rather than just subjective judgment of coaches, teachers, administrators and even physicians on the sidelines.
A concussion can happen without loss of consciousness and without immediate symptoms. "I didn’t show signs of concussion until 24 or 48 hours later, so to have that ability to recognize there’s been a forceful impact is invaluable," Primeau said.
The Globe and Mail looks into shot-blocking. Seriously, 110 guys blocked more than 100 shots each!?
Shot blocking has increased steadily in the NHL in recent years, a sign of the growing importance it plays in team strategy. In the 2005-06 season the St. Louis Blues led the league with 634 blocked shots and 92 players overall stopped 100 or more shots. Last season Anaheim led with 714 blocked shots and six other teams had more than 640. As for individual players, 110 blocked 100 shots or more.
The are many possible explanations about why shot blocking has become so prevalent. Some point to rule changes in 2005 that opened up the game and left shot blocking as one of the few legal means available to counter skilled players. Others say improvements in equipment have given players better protection. And still more say players are just bigger, stronger and more durable nowadays.