Patrick WilliamsFeatures Writer, TheAHL.com
Some of these players were born to play in June.
“It's a different game in the playoffs,” the Coachella Valley Firebirds goalie said. Chris Dreiger Said. “[Fewer] A skilled game of tic-tac-toe and then a little bit more of bringing out the shovel and taking it to the net.”
Firebirds Advance John Hayden was one of them, playing brilliantly in a 4-3 win over Hershey last night at Giant Center in the opening game of the Calder Cup Finals, with Game 2 of the best-of-seven series set for Sunday (5 p.m. ET, AHLTV, NHL Network).
“He's a beast with the puck,” head coach Dan Bylsma He said about Hayden:
His two goals in Game 1, one of which came on a shorthanded shot in the first period, gave him five points in the final two games and moved him to nine points in the postseason, one shy of the league lead. After recording 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists) in 65 regular season games, he led the Firebirds in points with 12 in the playoffs. His plus-12 rating was the best in the AHL.
Haden, a third-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013, scored 21 goals as a senior at Yale but hasn't been as productive as he has been over the past six weeks since turning pro. He has 17 goals in 249 NHL games with Chicago, New Jersey, Arizona, Buffalo and Seattle. He scored a career-high 17 goals last season with the Firebirds but missed most of last year's postseason due to injury.
What Haden offers the Coachella Valley is a pure, big wing who can protect the puck, and Bylsma sees long-term chemistry in a line with Haden to the right of center. Devin Shore and Marianne Studenik Securing the left wing, Stadenik has great speed to go with Shore's creativity and Hayden's muscle.
“I think for us, the line is a combination of a lot of experience and being able to play each other for as long as possible,” Hayden said.
Hayden is set to become a free agent on July 1. Whether he stays with the Kraken organization or becomes a free agent next month, his performance this spring should benefit him. This season's Firebirds are a heavier, more physical team than the one that lost to Hershey last June, and it starts with Hayden. After Hershey cut Coachella Valley's lead to 3-2 late in the second period of Game 1, Hayden positioned himself inside in down-low coverage, picked up a loose puck and shot it across the face of the goal from the left circle. Hunter Shepard This goal proved to be the deciding factor in winning the match.
“John's been a great asset to us,” said Driedger, who made 16 saves in the Game 1 win. “Even if he didn't score, he would have been one of our most effective players. In short, we're happy to have him on our team.”
Hayden also has a knack for skating. With the Bears already leading 1-0 early in Friday's game and on the power play, Hayden pounced on a fumbled puck in the defensive zone, whisked it past two Bears players and beat Sheppard to tie the game.
Coach Bylsma said Hayden's goal helped stabilize the team.
“They had a great start, they had a lot of excitement, the crowd was excited and it's a tough place to play so kudos to them for starting out,” Hayden said of the Bears, “but I thought we did a pretty good job of staying calm and playing our game.”
Patrick Williams, a features writer for TheAHL.com, has covered the American Hockey League for nearly two decades for outlets including NHL.com, Sportsnet, TSN, The Hockey News, SiriusXM NHL Network Radio and SLAM! Sports, most recently as co-host of The Hockey News On The 'A' podcast. In 2016, he received the AHL's James H. Ellery Memorial Award for outstanding coverage of the league.
