Tag: Niklas Backstrom
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Niklas Backstrom signs deal with Finnish league
Long-time NHL netminder Niklas Backstrom has effectively ended his NHL career by signing a one-year deal to play for HIFK Helsinki in the Finnish Liiga. This will mark the first season the 38-year-old has played in Finland since the 2005-06 campaign with Karpat. He spent the first 10 years of his career playing professionally in…
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Will Mike Smith leave Phoenix as a free agent this summer?
In 2011, the Phoenix Coyotes plucked perennial backup netminder Mike Smith out of near obscurity after he had finished stints with the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning. The team signed him to a two-year deal worth $2 million, but after his stellar play in last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, the Coyotes could lose Smith…
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Minnesota Wild Season Preview: No Playoffs this Season
Believe what you want, but the Minnesota Wild will not make the playoffs this year. You’ve heard it all before, from Brian Burke going to be the savior for the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Edmonton Oilers picking (insert any of their last first round draft picks) will finally get them into the playoffs. Now,…
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Minnesota’s Fletcher Inks Harding; Won’t Deal Backstrom
It’s that time of the year when GM’s like Chuck Fletcher and other front office personnel decide which current players to keep or let go on the free agent market come July 1. For the Minnesota Wild and their goaltending situation, two things are certain: Josh Harding will compete for the starting goalie role for…
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Patrick Kane Shootout Goal vs. Minnesota
It’s still early in the season, but I think we may have found an early favorite for shootout goal of the year. Last night, Patrick Kane dazzled and amazed fans with his shootout goal against Niklas Backstrom of the Minnesota Wild. Kane’s game winner saw him put his lightning quick hands on display as he…
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Hockey World Blog Season Previews 2010: Minnesota Wild
Key Offseason Losses: Derek Boogard, Owen Nolan Key Offseason Additions: John Madden, Matt Cullen Last Season Ranking: 13th, West Offense: The Minnesota Wild have a 1-2-3 punch in captain Mikko Koivu, Martin Havlat and Andrew Brunette. Koivu and Havlat are both balanced players capable of putting the puck in the net while Brunette is a…
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Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild, who finished only one spot out of the playoffs last season, looks to take the ice with a drasticly different team this year. Head coach Jacques Lemaire announced he will not return to coach the Wild on April, 13 2009 and will be replaced by Todd Richards. Richards was once a professional…