The Week Junior - USA (2021-11-12)

18

Sports

T

he 2021–2022 National Hockey League (NHL)

season began on October 12, and it’s been a

thrilling few weeks. The standout teams

have been the Carolina Hurricanes and

the Florida Panthers. Each won their

fi rst eight games.

On October 30, the Boston

Bruins ended the Panthers’

winning streak with a 3–2 victory

in overtime. The game was tied

2–2 at the end of regulation, and

after neither team was able to score in

the extra period, they went to a shootout.

During a shootout, players from each team take

turns trying to score on the opposing goaltender

with no defenders present. Bruins forward Charlie

Coyle scored the lone goal of the shootout to give

his team the victory. He also scored earlier in the

game. Boston goaltender Linus Ullmark

saved all three attempts by the

Panthers in the shootout.

The following day, the

Carolina Hurricanes beat the

Arizona Coyotes, 2–1, for their

eighth win. Arizona opened the

scoring on a goal by Christian

Fischer in the fi rst period. Carolina’s

Martin Necas scored his fi rst goal of the

season toward the end of the second period

to tie the game. With less than three minutes left,

Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce fi red a shot

from his team’s half of the ice that landed in the

top left corner of the goal, putting the Hurricanes

ahead. Necas and Seth Jarvis assisted in the play.

Two players from other teams have had

impressive starts to their seasons. When The Week

Junior went to press, Edmonton Oilers center

Connor McDavid led the league with 16 points,

which is the sum of his seven goals and nine

assists. Washington Capitals left wing Alexander

Ovechkin is second in the league in points. He has

15 but leads the NHL with nine goals.

Meanwhile, the NHL’s new team, the Seattle

Kraken, has started a fun tradition. After games,

team employees dressed as fi shermen hand fake

salmon to players to throw into the stands. It was

inspired by Seattle’s famous Pike Place Market,

where workers toss fi sh to one another.

The Week Junior • November 12, 2021

NHL season o to exciting start

Women’s hockey news

The National Women’s Hockey

League is now the Premier

Hockey Federation. The name is

meant to focus on the athletes’

talents, not gender. It is the fi rst

female sports league in North

America without the word

“women” in its name. Their

season kicks o on November 6.

The Boston Bruins and

the Florida Panthers

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Michigan State University beat its rival,

the University of Michigan, 37–33, on

October 30. Michigan State was

awarded the Paul Bunyan trophy,

which has been given to the winner of

this matchup since 1953.

CURLING

At the World Wheelchair Curling

Championship in Beijing, China, on

October 30, China won the gold medal

match, 5–3, over Sweden. The Russian

team beat the US, 7–4, for the bronze.

THIS WEEK’S WINNERS...

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Over the October 30 weekend, the

North Carolina Courage and NJ/NY

Gotham FC earned spots in the

National Women’s Soccer League

playo s. The Courage clinched the

sixth seed (ranking) after a 0–0 draw

against the Portland Thorns. The next

day, retiring star Carli Lloyd scored for

Gotham in the club’s 1–1 draw against

Racing Louisville. Gotham will be the

fi fth seed. Playo s start November 7.

The Chinese

curling team

Alex

Ovechkin

DID YOU

KNOW?

Over the past 79 years, the

NHL has expanded

from six teams to 32.