The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
NHL’S hottest team climbing North standings
Eleven and two in the last 13. Second place in the North. The hottest team in the NHL continued its relentless assault on the North Division standings Thursday, posting a workmanlike 3-0 victory over Vancouver to complete a two-game sweep and leave the mortally-wounded Canucks bleeding out in the cellar.
Kind of what they did to Calgary in the series before.
“It’s fun to win, it’s so much better than losing,” said goaltender Mike Smith, who posted a 32-save shutout and improved to 6-0 since returning to the lineup after a training camp injury. “It’s been a treat to be a part of it and watch this team get better and better every single day.”
With their fifth-straight win, Edmonton moved 10 points clear of the Canucks and, more importantly, within four points of the first-place Toronto Maple Leafs, a team they’ll be hosting for three-straight games starting Saturday.
Fans in Edmonton, and observers on the outside, have been waiting a long time for the Oilers to become a force in the league — a juggernaut equipped to win any style of game — and if the last few weeks are any indication, the wait might be coming to an end.
“We have a lot of veteran guys who’ve been through a lot, the younger guys have really grasped the team game and it’s really showing,” said Smith. “Everyone is starting to feel that we’re a really good hockey team and there’s belief in the locker room that we can beat any team on any given night.”
That’s probably because they’re beating any team on any given night. The highest scoring club in the league can trade goals with anyone, it can lock it down with anyone, it can match special teams with anyone (the power play is 36.2 per cent in the 13 games while the PK killed 30 of the last 34 penalties) and it boasts a pair of superstars that few of its opponents have an answer for.
And on a night when everything seemed a little off, the Oilers kept their cool and ground out a decision with a second period goal from Alex Chiasson, a back breaker from Jesse Puljujarvi 12:35 into the third period and an empty netter from Connor Mcdavid. The power play went two-for-five and the PK went four-for-four.
A team that always found a way to lose is now piling up points with its will to win.
“It’s experience and confidence and learning how to win close games,” said Smith. “It’s believing in the coaching staff, what they’re preaching, and everyone getting on the same page to do the things to win games.
“I feel we’ve really taken a step in the right direction. It’s a different feeling in the locker room. This team is gaining confidence every single day we’re together.”
And why shouldn’t it? The Oilers will be the first to tell you there is still a very long way to go — starting with what is certain to be a stern three-game test against the Leafs — but how far they’ve come can’t be ignored.
So what’s happening, exactly? And why now, after 10 long years of wandering in the desert?
“I like the strides our team is taking and Smitty has come in and given us a boost,” said head coach Dave Tippett. “I look at what Ken (Holland) did over the summer, adding some depth for us. Our top players are very motivated and it’s trickling down through the whole group. It’s a good team effort. I like the attitude of our guys right now; everybody is trying to do the right things to win.”
The return of Smith has played a huge part in this story. He’s 6-0 with two shutouts in displaying the fighting spirit Tippett and Holland want to see from everyone.
“I just really want to play well for this group,” he said. “I feel like we’ve done a lot of good things this year and we’re in a good spot right now, I don’t want that to slide away because of goaltending. It’s a mission I’m on. And the way we’re playing makes it a lot easier on the goalie, too.”
Next up: the Maple Leafs and a chance to close the gap on first place in the North.
“You take a look at the schedule and you know they’re there,” said Nugenthopkins. “It will be our first time playing a team three times in a row, we have to prepare for that. We know they’re ahead of us. That gives us a shot at them.”
Columnists are often meant to stir the pot and generate readership, but those of us who live and work in the forest sector every day cannot continue to tolerate the obvious bias against our livelihood.
Ralph Surette’s Feb. 20 column made me especially angry. Did Mr. Surette check any facts before he decided to write? Did he call any scientist, forester or technician who has knowledge on the matters he writes about? Based on his opinions (that he portrays as facts), it is painfully obvious that he did not.
Does The Chronicle Herald employ any editors anymore?
Surrette writes about Tusket River resident Sandra Phinney being frustrated about the level of harvesting in her area and nobody responding to her concerns — fair enough.
Did Ms. Phinney ever contact Westfor (the local contractor) to express her concerns?
Did she comment using the system designed for public comment on the map viewer for upcoming harvest plans?
Ms. Phinney apparently chose to break the law by blocking hard-working rural Nova Scotians from performing a job they are legally permitted to do. Imagine if every citizen could just stop a legal activity from happening because they don’t like something. Our world would be chaos. We have processes and rules for a reason.
Mr. Surette labels clearcutting as a devastating scourge that is expanding all over Nova Scotia. The truth is exactly the opposite. Clearcutting has been substantially reduced in the last five years, and even more so in the last two years, with the government introducing interim guidelines while waiting for the Lahey report’s implementation.
For the record, clearcutting is appropriate in certain circumstances and can be a form of regeneration and renewal.
The Lahey report, which most forest users and governments have embraced, allows for limited clearcutting in the future under the proposed triad model. Importantly, those decisions will be made by foresters and technicians who use established management guides and the best science to help design harvest plans.
But to be clear, the area that was illegally blockaded was a partial harvest that was only removing a small percentage of the trees; it was not a clearcut. The irony is, this blockade in southwest Nova Scotia was not stopping a clearcut. Sadly, our critics are trying to stop all forestry in Nova Scotia.
For the sake of the 10,000 Nova Scotians who rely on forestry for their livelihoods, we would hope The Chronicle Herald would be more careful when allowing their pages to be used to harm a vital renewable sector and the families who have relied on it for generations.