The Daily: Rutherford gaining revenge on Boudreau for goal in Red Wings game? Griffins taste defeat again

Many, many years ago, Bruce Boudreau was scoring his first NHL goal for the Toronto Maple Leafs, tallying against the Detroit Red Wings. It was on March 12, 1977 at Maple Leaf Gardens and Boudreau tallied on a breakaway.

The goalie in the Detroit net that was beaten on the play? Why, none other than Jim Rutherford. Yes, the same Rutherford who in his role as president of the Vancouver Canucks, left Vancouver coach Boudreau twisting in the wind for days before officially firing him last week.

Bruce Boudreau's 1st NHL Goal! The goalie is Jim Rutherford 😮 (1977) pic.twitter.com/LHKmvz33Z3

— Jeff the Repetitively Concussed Leafs Fan (@goaleafs) January 24, 2023

Who doesn’t love a good consipracy theory? Well, based upon social media, just above everybody does. And since the suggestion is that revenge is a dish best served cold, let’s just suppose for a moment that Rutherford was finally getting even with Boudreau for that goal he scored nearly 47 years ago.

Sure, it’s a crazy notion. This is more coincidence than conspiracy. But it isn’t the craziest thing you’ll read today.

Griffins Go Down Again

Falling behind 4-0 by the 1:15 mark of the second period, the Grand Rapids Griffins were 4-2 losers in an AHL road game Saturday against the Milwaukee Admirals. The Griffins are 2-3-1-2 over their past eight games, dropping to 15-20-2-2 on the season.

It wasn’t all dire news for Grand Rapids, however. Defenseman Simon Edvinsson was back in action after missing one game with an undisclosed injury. Edvinsson scored a goal, his third point in his last four games. It was a power-play goal, ending an 0-for-24 Griffins skid with the man advantage.

Matt Luff played his first game since being sent down by Detroit, picking up an assist. Jasper Weatherby also scored. He has a point in each of his first two games with the Griffins.

The Griffins have assigned forwards Drew Worrad and Patrick McGrath to the ECHL Toledo Walleye. Grand Rapids is back in action Sunday, 4 p.m. ET at the Chicago Wolves.

Red Wings In Case you Missed It

• The underlying numbers are displaying that forward Lucas Raymond is a defensive liability for the Red Wings
• A 10-day break in the action couldn’t be coming at a better time for Detroit
• The Red Wings finished 1-1 on their two-game road trip following a 2-0 loss to the New York Islanders

Red Wings Next Game

Detroit is off until February 7, when the Red Wings will be playing host to the Edmonton Oilers. The Red Wings are 12-3 in the last 15 home games against the Oilers.

Hockey Now Network

Pittsburgh: Following a 6-4 loss to the San Jose Sharks, the Pittsburgh Penguins are coming to the realization that the playoffs aren’t a guarantee for them.

Boston: By virtue of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Florida Panthers, the Boston Bruins were dropping both games on their Florida trip.

Philadelphia: With Carter Hart posting the shutout, the Philadelphia Flyers were blanking the Winnipeg Jets 4-0.

Washington: The latest update on injured Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson.

Montreal: The weaknesses of the Montreal Canadiens are being exposed since the injury to forward Cole Caufield.

Islanders: Mathew Barzal scored in overtime to give the New York Islanders a 2-1 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

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Florida: The comeback cats were back in action as the Florida Panthers edged the Boston Bruins 4-3 in overtime.

Calgary: Calgary Flames goalie Dan Vladar has gone a franchise record-tying 13 games without a regulation loss.

Colorado: Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev of the Colorado Avalanche that he skated to center ice in Saturday’s game because he just wanted to talk to Jordan Binnington, his St. Louis Blues counterpart.

San Jose: With center Logan Couture collecting five points, the San Jose Sharks were downing the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-4.

Vegas: The slumping Vegas Golden Knights have lost seven of eight, sliding from top spot to third place in the Pacific Division.