Miikka Kiprusoff News: Pro Sports Daily

Five-goal second period fuels Hawks' rout of Flames

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November 20

Chicago Sun-Times

"The Blackhawks got their six-game road trip off to a rousing start Thursday, crushing the Calgary Flames 7-1 in a game that was all but decided after the second period. The Hawks snapped a 1-1 tie with five unanswered goals in the second in romping to their sixth straight win over Calgary. Kris Versteeg, who sat out the previous game with an upper body injury, scored twice for the Hawks in the second period barrage with Dustin Byfuglien, Andrew Ladd and Patrick Kane also scoring. The Blackhawks got their six-game road trip off to a rousing start Thursday, crushing the Calgary Flames 7-1 in a game that was all but decided after the second period. The Hawks snapped a 1-1 tie with five ..."

Starting Kiprusoff 'made perfect sense'

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November 17

Calgary Herald

"In case you were wondering about the choice of netminder for Saturday's game against the home-ice Maple Leafs, Brent Sutter is here to tell you that the second half of a back-to-back set was an ideal spot for Miikka Kiprusoff. "You manage your schedule and your games very appropriately," started the Flames coach on Monday morning. "I know people were questioning — why was Kipper playing against Toronto? Well, for us it made perfect sense. The fact that we only played two games in six days (Nov. 11-16) . . . and Kipper usually plays pretty good in those back-to-back games. To be quite honest, it was a real simple decision to make. "But as our schedule heats up here, and you're playing every ..."

To Kipper's mates he's always a star

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November 17

Calgary Herald

"Say one thing for Miikka Kiprusoff, he makes things easy for the big brains at the National Hockey League. With last week's spectacular play and spiffy numbers — record of 2-0-1, goals-against average of 0.97, save percentage of .969 — he carried the Calgary Flames to five of a possible six points. On the road yet. Meaning Monday's announcement for player-of-the-week honours was painfully straightforward. Give the nod to Kiprusoff, right? Well, no. The NHL opted for three other chaps — Detroit forward Henrik Zetterberg (nine points in three wins); Atlanta forward Ilya Kovalchuk (eight points in three wins); Buffalo netminder Ryan Miller (1.30 GAA, .953 save percentage, in three wins). But ..."

Kipper, Flames ice road trip with win over Leafs

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November 15

Calgary Herald

"If you didn't know better, you'd swear the Calgary Flames were trying to throw a hockey game Saturday night. Goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff wouldn't co-operate, however, so they were forced to take a 5-2 win over the homestanding Toronto Maple Leafs in spite of themselves to finish their three-game National Hockey League road trip in anything but glowing style. The victory made it a highly successful junket, nabbing five of a possible six points, and snapped a nine-year string of losses in the centre of the hockey universe. But it was anything but pretty. After scoring on their first two shots of the game inside two minutes, the Flames went into some kind of crazy funk that saw them stuck in ..."

Kiprusoff shrugs off his return to top form

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November 12

Calgary Herald

"Those who have been watching closely will tell you there's something different about Miikka Kiprusoff this season. They'll tell you the red-headed Finnish goaltender is either getting better with age or he's rediscovered his Vezina Trophy-winning form. That he's off to a fast start unlike most seasons, that he's more consistent and that he always seems to be in a happy-go-lucky kind of mood. Try as some veteran followers of the Calgary Flames want to put a finger on his sterling play, particularly during the past three games, there is no new magic. This is the same ol' Kipper except for a new mask he broke in a couple weeks ago. "I feel the same," he smiled Wednesday, when asked if he was ..."

Kipper's the hottest Flame of all

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November 11

Calgary Herald

"There's no longer any question as to who is the hottest Calgary Flame. "I go with Kipper," said a grinning captain Jarome Iginla, following Tuesday's 1-0 National Hockey League decision over the Montreal Canadiens. "He played sick again. You can just see he's battling in there, having fun . . . the saves, the demeanour. He's enjoying it, our D is playing great in front of him. "They're playing well as a group back there. You can see they're all enjoying it . . . we're all enjoying it." Iggy popped his fifth goal in the past four games as the Flames stretched their winning streak to four, but his surge on the scoresheet pales in comparison to the heroics of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff on ..."

Vintage Kiprusoff in victory

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November 11

Calgary Sun

"The Montreal Canadiens wore vintage sweaters from their 1910-11 NHL season. That was the year in which the legendary Georges Vezina began his career with the storied franchise. But it was Calgary Flames netminder Miikka Kiprusoff doing his best impersonation of the legendary goaltender with a 25-save performance in a 1-0 win over the Canadiens last night at the Bell Centre. "I didn't know that," Flames captain Jarome Iginla said of the Vezina trivia. "But he's sure feeling it, right now. He's been playing absolutely huge for us. You can see he's enjoying it. "We're all enjoying it." Kiprusoff has been outstanding since missing a start a week ago due to illness, and he was perfect in ..."

Miikka Kiprusoff blanks Canadiens

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November 11

Boston Herald

"Miikka Kiprusoff got his first shutout of the season and Jarome Iginla extended his goal-scoring streak to four games, leading the Calgary Flames to a 1-0 victory against the Canadiens last night in Montreal. Kiprusoff made 25 saves and improved to 10-3-1 this season as Calgary won its fourth straight to begin a four-game trip. It was his 31st career shutout. Named the NHL's first star of the week one day earlier, Iginla opened the scoring with his team-leading ninth of the season 14:55 in. Jaroslav Halak stopped 30 shots for Montreal, which has lost its last three games at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens have dropped 5-of-7 overall. The Canadiens, who will celebrate their 100th anniversary ..."

Kiprusoff keeps Rangers at bay as Flames win again

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November 8

Calgary Herald

"The anticipation of the confrontation created an obvious stir of tension Saturday night among the seat-takers at the Pengrowth Saddledome. So while the bad blood between Dion Phaneuf and Sean Avery never really amounted to anything more than a stiff shoulder check, it was left to little winger Nigel Dawes to make an impression. Dawes, in his first career game against his former team, gathered three assists as the Calgary Flames edged the New York Rangers 3-1 to end a two-game losing streak on home and stretch their winning skein to three games. Daymond Langkow, Rene Bourque and captain Jarome Iginla, who stretched his goal scoring streak to three games, scored for the 10-4-1 victors. ..."

Kipper anchors Flames' triumph

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November 6

Calgary Herald

"Lickety-split, Miikka Kiprusoff went from the sick bay to the winner's circle. From feverish . . . to just plain hot. Wednesday in Dallas, he was turning down his start. Thursday in St. Louis, he was shutting down the Blues. With a sensational evening's work, the Calgary Flames' netminder lifted his squad to 2-1 overtime success in National Hockey League action at the Scottrade Center. Jarome Iginla scored first (3:24 into the contest) and Dion Phaneuf scored last (2:50 into overtime), but the story was Kiprusoff. "Oh, I'm all right," croaked the Finn. "Just had a little cold there. It's gone now. I feel good again." Obviously. The day before, the goalkeeper had been too sick to ..."

Trust-win game for backup

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November 6

Calgary Sun

"Miikka Kiprusoff was back between the pipes last night. But a game like the one Curtis McElhinney had in Dallas Wednesday stopping 38 shots in a 3-2 OT win is exactly what the Flames brass and fans needed to see. Confidence in him -- and his own confidence on the ice -- had been sagging. "He responded to the challenge," head coach Brent Sutter said a day after the backup made an unexpected start when Kiprusoff came down with a bug in the morning. "I challenged him as a coach. I wanted his level of play up where it needs to be, and yet the team's level of play where it needs to be playing in front of him.""

Rest easy! Kipper's back

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November 6

Calgary Sun

"Making his first appearance since undergoing an emergency appendectomy late last month, St. Louis Blues centre T.J. Oshie was determined to make an impact. Starting in goal one night after he was too sick to even sit on the bench as a backup, Flames netminder Miikka Kiprusoff was equally set on keeping the sophomore from making a difference. Kiprusoff got the best of that battle, and Dion Phaneuf got a piece of the young Blues star, banking his overtime winner in off Oshie to give the Flames a 2-1 win. "He was great," Flames captain Jarome Iginla, who opened the scoring just a few minutes into the game, said of Kiprusoff's performance. "We didn't know (if he'd play). Yesterday, he had the ..."

Kiprusoff skates this morning, may start tonight

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November 5

Calgary Herald

"For the Flames, it was an optional skate this morning in St. Louis. But both goalies — Curtis McElhinney (last night's starter/winner) and Miikka Kiprusoff (who'd been sick in Dallas) — were on the ice. Meaning what exactly? "I would say that (Kiprusoff) is probably 50-50 (to start tonight)," said coach Brent Sutter. "Till we see this morning how he responds and we see where he's at — I don't know right now myself — then we'll make a decision at that point in time. "Curtis is (operating) under the mindset that he's playing tonight, which is the way I want it to be. If that happens to change, we'll change it." Sutter went on to praise the work of McElhinney, who, stopping 38 of 40 shots, ..."

Never mind Flames stats

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October 23

Calgary Sun

"At the tail end of TSN's highlights of the Calgary Flames-Columbus Blue Jackets clash, a comment was made about Miikka Kiprusoff's performance this season. Kiprusoff "continues to struggle," said broadcaster James Cybulski, reading from a script that noted the Flames netminder has allowed three or more goals in seven of eight starts. Talk about numbers not telling the story. Yes, it's true Kiprusoff has only once surrendered two or fewer goals this season. Curiously, it was in a 2-1 defeat. Yes, he has a goals-against average of 3.23 and a .902 save percentage. Those are facts. But to say he's been struggling is dead wrong. Through the first 10-game segment of the season, which concludes ..."

Comeback kids

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October 13

Chicago Sun-Times

"First it was a shootout victory that went a club-record nine rounds in their first game of the season at the United Center. In their second, it was a comeback from a five-goal deficit. What will those Blackhawks do next? Monday's 6-5 overtime victory over the Calgary Flames was one for more than the franchise record books. The Hawks' biggest comeback in their history that dates back to 1926 was from four goals. They rallied from that deficit to win three times. In coming back from five, however, they tied an NHL record. ''It was awesome,'' said winger Patrick Kane, the rallying point for the comeback with a goal and two assists. ''It was crazy to come back like that, but what a fun game to ..."

Magnificent Miikka preserves win for Flames

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October 2

Calgary Herald

"Don't press the details. Just make the sign of the cross, whisper a couple of Our Fathers under your breath and move on to Edmonton. The width of the paddle of Miikka Kiprusoff's goal stick. That's how far the Calgary Flames were from folding like a piece of cheap oragami; from unravelling like a playful kitty's ball of yarn. A sure thing transformed into a near thing. They almost allowed all their hard work over 35 minutes to go for naught. If not for Kiprusoff, a notoriously slow seasonal starter, this would've ended badly. He saved Calgary blushes. Thursday's 5-3 curtain-raising victory over the late-arriving Vancouver Canucks is down to him. As the Canucks piled on the pressure through ..."

Kipper shines in win

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October 2

Calgary Sun

"Game 1 last season was the difference between the Calgary Flames winning the Northwest Division title. That opening-night 6-0 thrashing at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks added up to the two-point deficit. Looks like the Flames learned the folly of their ways, albeit by the slimmest of margins and thanks in big part to some incredible goaltending by Miikka Kiprusoff in a one-sided third period. The Flames drew first blood against the team expected to be their main competition for the division with last night's 5-3 victory over the Canucks. "It's unbelievable how when it comes down to the end of the year, it's two points that makes the difference," said Flames winger Eric Nystrom. "It's ..."