Filip Chytil steals the show with overtime winner

The NHL did it. They found a rule that I hate more than the puck over the glass penalty. It’s now the stupid faceoff violation penalty. Don’t get me wrong, I think that blatant violations should be penalized. But a winger lining up with half a skate in the circle? Are you serious? No league gets in their own way quite like the NHL.

Now that my gripe is out of the way, let’s get back to the evaluation of the game.

• Starting with Filip Chytil. It was only one preseason game, and I don’t expect him to make the club, but boy did he look good. The kid just turned 18 years old, and he was out there controlling play. There was one sequence where he protected the puck –they showed it on replay– and he looked like a seasoned NHL vet. Skill beyond his years.

• Lias Andersson again looked like he belongs in the NHL. But it’s again early. As teams make cuts, he will face tougher competition. I think he makes the team, but let’s see how he’s doing a week from now.
• Kevin Shattenkirk made his presence felt. He’s already showing he’s worth the money, and it’s not about the points. It’s about the controlled entries and exits. It’s about the poise with the puck and the directing traffic on the powerplay. He’s the complete package, and looked damn good with Brady Skjei.
• John Gilmour seems forgotten, and he goofed a bit on the Pavel Zacha goal. He chased to the blue line, leaving Zacha a path to the net. Zacha made a great play as Gilmour almost recovered.
• A lot of people got on Marc Staal for his holding “penalty.” That wasn’t a penalty. The officiating this preseason is awful. That said, Staal still snow angeled on the powerplay goal by the Devils. Beyond that, I noticed that the Rangers were pinned in their own zone a lot when he was on the ice. Par for the course. I wonder what his future is.
• That Mats Zuccarello feed to Chris Kreider for his goal….wow.
• Kreider with the A. I approve.
• Great to see Matt Puempel fight. But I hate staged fights. Heat of the moment….go for it.
• Adam Tambellini may have seen his chance come and go, much like Boo Nieves.
• David Desharnais in the front of the net is a good thing. Don’t think he’s a 3C, but let’s see how he does with NHLers on a 4th line.
• Didn’t really notice Ryan Gropp, but perhaps I wasn’t really looking for him? I was focused on Andersson and Chytil.
• Alex Georgiev looked lost in net. Nerves? I won’t fault him for the third goal, that got tipped.
• Vince Pedrie needs more time. He looked a little overwhelmed.
• Ok I lied, one last thing about the officiating. Beyond the FO violation stuff, let the guys play. If you sneeze near someone, it’s going to be a penalty. Learn from baseball: Pick up the pace of play. Preseason games that start at 7pm shouldn’t end at 9:45. They should end at 9:30. Doesn’t seem like much, but that means I miss my 9:45ish train! It’s personal now!