Sidney Crosby Becomes 86th NHL Player to Score 1,000 Points

Pittsburgh Penguins captain, Sidney Crosby became 86^th player in National Hockey League history to reach the 1,000-point milestone on Thursday night against the Winnipeg Jets at PPG Paints Arena. 

Crosby recorded point number 1,000 as he set up Chris Kunitz at the 6:28 mark of the opening period of the matchup with the Jets. In reaching the milestone in his 757^th game, he became the 12^th fastest player in the history of the league to accomplish the feat. 

The ‘Great One,’ Wayne Gretzky, 424 games and former Penguin, Mario Lemieux, 513 games accomplished are number one and two on the list of fastest to 1,000. Crosby also became the third player this season to hit the 1,000-point plateau, Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals did it on January 11 and Henrik Sedin, of the Vancouver Canuks scored his on January 20.

After scoring his 998^th point on February 7, Crosby went without a point in consecutive games, before getting number 999 on Tuesday night against the Canuks. He picked up points number 1,001 and 1,002, as he picked up the helper on Phil Kessel’s tying goal in the third period and after he found the back of the net in overtime to pick up the victory for the Penguins. 

Crosby said, “I have been hovering around it for a while, so it is nice to get it and nice to get a win. You get that early and you want to make sure you win the game. We hung in there and found a way to get it.”  

After 50 games, Crosby leads the NHL in goals with 31 and is tied for the lead in points with Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, with 64 points. He missed the first six games of the season with a concussion. 

The number one overall selection in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft has scored 100 points in a season, five times in his career (2005-2006, 2006-2007, 2008-2009, 2009-2010 & 2013-2014). He helped the Penguins capture the Stanley Cup last season as they defeated the San Jose Sharks in six games.

He also helped lead them to a Stanley Cup Championship in 2009 over the Detroit Red Wings. Crosby has won the Hart Trophy for league Most Valuable Player and Art Ross Trophy as the scoring leader in 2007 and 2014. 

He added, “I think you just reflect on all of the teams you have been a part of and all of the guys you have played with and how quickly it goes by. I think the number itself is a nice number, but I think I probably tend to think of all the guys that I have played with and all the teams that I have played on. I probably tend to think about that a little bit more.”  

Crosby just barely clipped, the “Ageless One,” Jaromir Jagr, by six games to become the 12^th fastest to reach the 1,000-point mark. Jagr, by the way hit another milestone, of his own on Wednesday night against the Sharks, as he scored his 1,900^th point on his 45^th birthday. 

The 11 players who scored 1,000 points faster than Crosby were Gretzky (424 games), Lemieux (513), Mike Bossy (656), Peter Stastny (682), Jari Kurri (716), Guy Lafleur (720), Bryan Trottier (726) Denis Savard (727), Steve Yzerman (737), Marcel Dionne (740) and Phil Esposito (745). 

Montreal Canadiens Fire Michel Therrien and Hire Claude Julien

Claude Julien was not unemployed for very long after being fired by the Boston Bruins last week, as he was named as the replacement for Michel Therrien behind the bench of the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.

While the Canadiens lead the Atlantic Division with 70 points this season, the organization felt it was time to make a change behind the bench as they were in a little slide after going 1-5-1 in their last seven games. Therrien was in the fifth season of his second stint at the helm with the Canadiens. 

Julien who was fired by the Bruins on February 7^th, last coached in Montreal from 2003 to 2006. Ironically, he replaced Therrien, 14 years ago, as well. 

With the Canadiens on their five-day break, the first practice under Julien is scheduled for Friday at 4:00 PM. 

Canadiens general manager, Marc Bergevin, is scheduled to hold a press conference at 11:00 Wednesday morning to announce the coaching change. Julien will have a conference call with the media at around 1:00 PM. 

Like last season, the Canadiens jumped out of the gate on a hot streak before cooling off as the season progressed. During the 2015-2016 National Hockey League season, Montreal won its first nine games and went 17-4-2, before goaltender, Carey Price went down with a knee injury in late November. The rest of the season, they put up a 21-34-4 record and fell short of the playoffs. 

During the offseason, Bergevin made a bunch of big moves hoping to avoid a similar fate for 2016-2017. The most notable trade being sending defenseman, P.K. Subban to the Nashville Predators for defenseman, Shea Weber. 

He also acquired Alex Shaw from the Chicago Blackhawks, signed free agent forward, Alexander Radulov and sent Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals. 

While injuries to Alex Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher and Andrei Markov during December and January may have been a contributing factor in the slump, as their players started to get healthy they could not get back on the winning side. 

Back-to-back losses over the weekend, a 4-2 defeat to the St. Louis Blues at home and a 4-0 shutout by the Bruins at the TD Garden helped to prompt the coaching change. The game in Boston was the third time in five games they were unable to light the lamp.  

Left wing, Max Pacioretty told Sportsnet.ca, “As a player, especially as the captain, you feel guilty. Ultimately, if we had performed better, especially as of late, then you do not force management to have to make a decision like this. We definitely have been underperforming as of late, but I feel it is on the players. We have seen around the league that this tends to be the result when teams do not step up and perform. I have nothing but great things to say about Michel and that is what makes it pretty tough for me.”  

Gallagher added, “It is just one of those things where we had gotten away from our identity as a team. In no way am I blaming the coach for that, that is more on us as players. I think as a group, we have just got to get back to what made us successful.”

Bergevin said, “I came to the conclusion that our team needed a new energy, a new voice a new direction. Claude Julien is an experienced and well-respected coach with good knowledge of the Montreal market. Claude has been very successful as an NHL coach and he won a Stanley Cup. 

Today we hired on the best available coach, and one of the league’s best. I am convinced that he has the capabilities to get our team back on the winning track.”

After spending the past nine seasons with the Bruins, he led Boston to a Stanley Cup Championship in 2011 and a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2013. When the Bruins fired him last week, they had been in second place in the Atlantic with a 26-23-6 record. 

In 14 seasons with the Bruins, Canadiens and New Jersey Devils, he has won 538 games. His third game, in this second stint with the Canadiens, will be his 1,000 as an NHL coach.     

Detroit Red Wings Owner Mike Ilitch Passes Away at 87 Years of Age

Longtime owner of the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers, Mike Ilitch, passed away on Friday at the age of 87 years old. 

The Detroit native and founder of Little Caesars Pizza, bought the Red Wings in 1982 and under his ownership, brought four Stanley Cups the “Motor City (1997, 1998, 2002 & 2008). In 2003, Ilitch was enshrined into the National Hockey League Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the International Franchise Hall of Fame in 2016. 

The Red Wings have qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 25 consecutive seasons, tied for third longest streak in the NHL. They have also won 16 division championships and captured the President’s Trophy, for best regular season team, six times. 

 NHL Commissioner, Gary Bettman said, “With the passing of Mike Ilitch, the Red Wings have lost the consummate owner, the National Hockey League has lost a cherished friend and passionate builder, Detroit sports has lost a legend and the city of Detroit has lost not only a devoted native son but a visionary and driving force in the rebirth of downtown.”

 

He added, “Mike’s commitment to excellence and to winning were unparalleled, and his commitment to the community was unrivaled, as was his boundless support of youth hockey. He was a prolific He was a prolific philanthropist, and above all a devoted and above all a devoted partner and husband to his wife of 62 years, Marian. At this moment of heart breaking sorrow, we send deepest condolences to the entire Ilitch family and to all who were privileged to know him, play for him or work for him.”

 

Ilitch, born July 20, 1929, served in the United States Marines from 1948 to 1952 before playing minor league baseball with the Tigers organization from 1952 to 1955. He purchased the Tigers in 1992.

Ilitch also established the Little Caesars Amateur Hockey Program. He also created the Little Caesars Love Kitchen, which are mobile restaurants that have served more than three million people. The Little Caesars Veterans Program, provides support to help veterans open a franchise. 

Christopher Ilitich, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ilitch Holdings Inc. said, “My father was a once in a generation entrepreneur, visionary and leader setting the tone for our organization and our family. He made such a positive impact in the world of sports, in business and in the community, and we will remember him for his unwavering commitment to his employees, his passion for Detroit, his generosity to others and his devotion to his family and friends. Together my family and the company celebrate the tremendous man he was and we will continue to work hard to uphold his remarkable legacy.”

He continued, “I am honored to have had the opportunity to work with him to nurture and grow our businesses, but mostly, I am gratefully to have called him my dad, and I know my siblings feel the same.”

Ilitch is survived by his wife, Marian, seven children, 22 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

The Red Wings will be closing out Joe Louis Arena at the end of the 2016-2017 season, before opening the new Little Caesars Arena next fall.