Jaroslav Halák je klíčem k této sérii. Všechny Halák musí udělat, je, aby Washington na uzdě, pokud se podaří k tomu, že Canadiens budou mít spoustu šancí proti švýcarským sýrem obraně Washingtonu. Dvě věci víme jistě: Montreal nemůže zastavit Washington z bodování a Washington nemůže zastavit Montreal z bodování. Číslo jedna klávesa, jak jsem se zmínil, je Halák, ale také, že je životně důležité pro Montreal hrát velmi dobře disciplinovaný hokej každou minutu každé hře. Technické chyby budou to právě povaha hry, ale dělat špatná rozhodnutí (špatné přihrávky, líný puk Pursuit, atd) a při špatné pokuty bude konec Montreal playoff života. Washington má dost talentu k překonání chyb to bude dělat a nedostatek adekvátní obrany a flekatý goaltending ale Montreal není. Mnoho lidí si myslí, Washington je zralá ke sklizni, a to může být pravda, ale pokud Montreal neudrží jejich poměr chybu ve srovnání s Washingtonu velmi nízké Capitals bude vyhodit je pryč. I když Montreal se říká mít špatný trest se musí spoléhat na playoff zkušeností kluků na jejich soupisce vzít někoho s sebou do boxu, každý trochu záležitostí. Pokud Montreal můžete dělat ty věci, které vyhrajete; ale tím, že si beru Capitals v pěti.
2. New Jersey vs Philadelphia 7.
Philadelphia vyhraje tuto sérii. To má málo co do činění s schopností letáky "a více co do činění s New Jersey je nedostatků. Devils se příliš spoléhají na vstřelil první pak pomocí past neutrální zóny a Marty Brodeur potlačit jiný tým. New Jersey se ne vždy skóre první a mají náskok na ochranu, a nemají ani kapacitu, aby se vrátil z bytí se 2 nebo více gólů by Philly tak daleko dopředu. Je to 1995 a už nové NHL nepřispívá do systému New Jersey, což má velké množství post-sezony úspěchu. Oni také dát příslovečnou zeď před jejich největší bodování hrozbu Ilya Kovalchuk. Každá hra bude s největší pravděpodobností v blízkosti, protože o tom, jak Devils hrát, ale je to série Philly je vyhrát.
3. Buffalo vs Boston 6.
Ryan Miller je nejlepší brankář na světě, dnes a Boston Bruins nemůže NELZE skóre. Dost řečí, Sabres se série.
4. Pittsburgh vs Ottawa 5.
Crosby byl horký pozdě, ale že zahrnuje dvě utkání proti New York Islanders, kteří mají opravdu malou obranu a to má za následek tunu šancí a mnoho cílů. Penguins měli těžké časy zastavení tým je z bodování a zároveň nemají co největší skóre statečnost se uděluje (Gonchar a Malkin byl zraněn tak, že by jistý, se nahoru). To bylo říkal, že Penguins prostě potřeboval dostat do play-off a teď, že nadešel čas, budou více motivováni, aby si jejich jednat společně, stavět na zkušenostech z posledních několika let, a dál se dostat zpět do na nejméně konferenční finále. Nicméně si myslím, že Ottawa Senators mohou něco říct o tom. Senátoři byli jedním z nejlepších týmů v konferenci po posledním měsíci období a hrají neuvěřitelně dobře jako celek. Ztráta Alex Kovaljov bude překážka pro Ottawě, ale stále mají Daniel Alredsson, Jason Spezza a Mike Fisher, takže nebudou touha po bodování prezentuje na ledě. Jejich obránci jsou dost velké, takže se bude shodovat-up relativně dobře s linkami tučňáky "odshora dolů. Šancí bude vyžadovat mnohem více práce pro Penguins proti Ottawě, než tomu bylo proti Islanders. Možná, že největší chyba v Ottawě je Brian Elliot nedostatek playoff zkušeností. Zatímco zkušenost záleží na všech místech je velmi důležité, brankářů, pokud jste Ken Dryden nebo Patrick Roy. Nicméně s tím, jak Penguins hrají (v souladu), které jsou zralé pro nevolnost a myslím, že Ottawa Senators bude dělat jen to.
West Preview:
1. San Jose vs 8. Colorado
Být technické analýzy, jak myslím, že tento zápas-up půjde je možná ztráta času. San Jose je tu znovu a znovu, a Colorado je tým, který má lepšího výsledku po celou sezónu. Myslím, že v době, Colorado bude velmi dobré, ale to prostě není v kartách pro ně v letošním roce. San Jose má více zkušeností, jsou celkově lepší tým, a budou prostě ztratí do Colorada. San Jose má tuto sérii.
2. Chicago vs Nashville 7.
S Nashville v play-off je vždy příjemné, protože co pomáhá hokej rostou v netradičních trzích je dobrá věc pro hry a ligy. Nashville je tu dříve, ale nepodařilo se dostat přes první kolo (žádná ostuda, že jelikož jsem hrál Detroit v každém playoff vzhled ve své krátké historii). Co dává Nashville má největší šanci na úspěch v této sérii je to, že se nespoléhají na každou osobu, aby všechny jejich trestný čin. Steve Sullivan, Patric Hornqvist, Martin Erat, Jason Arnott, JP Dumont, a Shea Weber měli všichni 40 + bodové období, což je velmi pozitivní znamení, protože Chicago nemůže zaměřit pouze na jeden chlap v naději, že vedení Preds na uzdě. Problém Nashville je to na ročním období vzdali tolik gólů, jak oni skórovali, které nevěstí nic dobrého při přehrávání likes Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp a spol. v nejlepším čtyři ze sedmi-série. Zatímco jsem fandit úspěchu hokejové v Nashvillu pro dobro hry myslím, že Chicago bude příliš mnoho pro Preds a bude pohybovat kolem Nashvillu na své cestě do finále poháru, když jsem předpovídal v sezóně otevření.
3. Vancouver vs 6. LA Kings
Je skvělé vidět LA Kings zpět do play-off. Jsem říkal, protože mimo sezónu, že tento tým byl doopravdy a rozhodně nezklamal celou sezónu, a tady jsou v post-sezony. Anze Kopitar byl fenomenální po celý rok, a Jonathan Quick byl pevný čistého vodič-vodič. Řekl jsem před rokem začal, že nejen že by Kings dělat playoffs, ale oni by také získat jejich prvním kole série a já neustoupí od toho. Bohužel pro krále (a pro mě), že mají jít proti pravděpodobně nejlepší linky v hokeji po celý rok, tedy dvojčata Sedin s Alex Burrows a někdy Ryan Kesler. Jo a že Roberto Luongo chlap není poloviny špatné. Mnoho lidí si myslí, je to rok pro Vancouver překonat to, co jsem stál v minulosti a konečně vyjít ze západu. Půjdu proti mé hlavě při vychystávání tento jeden, a říkají, že Kings bude mít série, ale lepší spoléhají na vítěznou zkušeností Rob Scuderi je oproti loňskému roku, protože budou potřebovat.
4. Phoenix vs Detroit 5.
Chudák Phoenix. Problémy vyplývající vlastnická zpět offseason, nevěda, kam jedou hrát tento rok předtím, než sezóna začala, a to iv případě, že bude příští rok nebyl dokončen. Přes to všechno, že hráči se spolčili, a to nejen dostal se do play-off, ale domácím ledě v prvním kole, velký pravý !? Špatně. Všechny, že tvrdá práce přináší jim odměnu hrát Detroit Red Wings v prvním kole, to je odměna za skvělou sezónu co? Mohli bychom rozebrat Match-up až do soudného ale to by bylo hloupé, abych vyzvednout proti Detroitu. Doufám, že Phoenix dává Detroit velký boj, a dokonce se podaří porazit, ale to je nepravděpodobné, a to je důvod, proč dávám tuto sérii s Red Wings.
Kdo by si myslel, že v termínu obchodu, že nabytí z Calgary Flames bývalých hráčů Maple Leaf Ian White, Jamal Mayers, Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman a Vesa Toskala by mělo za následek v plamenech chybějící play-off? Jak se o každém, s výjimkou nikoho uvnitř organizace, Calgary Flames, který měl žádnou rozhodovací schopnosti; upřímně, co to napadlo? Toronto hrál špatně celou sezónu ještě dlouho nějak s hodně hráčů z tohoto výkonném týmu by zvýšilo úroveň Calgary hry? Popadla tyto lidi měl pomoci v bodovacích strasti Flames, místo toho neudělal nic. Povídá se, vířící kolem, že organizace Flames je pro obrovské změny v offseason v téměř každé úrovni, možná právem. Mnoho rozhodnutí učiněná cestou přispěl k odstranění Calgary z playoff tvrzení, ale nedávné kroky měli hodně mluvit do jejich roztažení spustit marnosti. Cílem pro Flames přichází do této sezony byl konečně dostat přes první kolo ... legrační, jak se věci mění.
S jejich 6-3 ztrátu u rukou Washington Capitals v úterý obhájci Stanley Cup Champions klesl na kombinované 0-10 proti New Jersey a Washington v této sezoně. Navzdory této záznamu Penguins podařilo umístit se v pozici, aby se domácí led v prvním kole play-off a stále mají šanci na vítězství v divizi Atlantik. Ale tato skutečnost stranou, co 0-10 záznam proti dvěma z nejlepších týmů na východě znamená pro Penguins v play-off? Samotné čísla neznamenají spoustu, protože pravidelná sezóna head-to-head záznamy nepřenášejí do play-off, ale to je důvod, proč přišli tolikrát těchto týmů, že je větší příběh. Washington prostě udělal Penguins, co udělali pro každého po celý rok, a to je skóre skóre a skóre ještě víc. Na tom není nic složitého hry a mnoho odborníků hlavních městech "Souhlasíte s tím, že nejsou dostatečně obrany bude spíše škodlivé, když přijde čas, aby se pokusila hrát a porazit tým v best-of-sedm řad. Více alarmující pro Penguins je jejich výkony proti New Jersey. Devils využili své neutrální zóny past nejen porazit Penguins, ale dominuje Pittsburgh v každém ze šesti her, které hráli. Penguins se podařilo pouze 5 branek v šesti soutěžích nikdo z které byly v blízkosti, včetně dvou shutouts. Zdá se, že něco v pasti neutrální zóny, která, jak skutečně danou Penguins bolesti hlavy letos zřejmě více než kdy jindy. Tento styl byl ovlivněn natolik, že Tampa Bay Lightning využívá stejný systém proti Penguins v poslední době k dokonalosti porazil Pittsburgh 2-0. Pokud se Devils a nyní Lightning vytvořili modrý tisk na to, jak ovládat tučňáky pak je pravděpodobné, že další dobré týmy v play-off také použít stejný systém, a ve skutečnosti vést k Penguins jsou odstraněny již v prvním kole. Získání vyřazeni z pasti na třech různých příležitostech proti dvěma různými týmy není náhoda, a to je důvod, proč to 0-6 záznam proti New Jersey je děsivá pro Pittsburgh.
Konečně, už je po všem, ale křičel na západ! Každý playoff bod byl zajistil a teď jen čekat, aby viděli, co se zápas-up bude. Letošní soutěž zahrnuje několik různých tváří z minulé sezóny jako LA Kings, Colorado Avalanche, Nashville Predators a Phoenix Coyotes, to vše s kvalifikací pro post-sezony hrát poté, co sledoval z domova právě před sezónu. Bude skvělé vidět nějakou novou krev v řadách na západ, ale nesmíme zapomenout na časté letce v Detroit Red Wings, která je přítomna v play-off na tý rok po sobě 19. Může některý z nových týmů nahradit Red Wings v horní části Západní konference Mountain? Nalaďte si příště, když jsme náhled na západ a dám důvody, proč Detroit bude (nebo nebude), vrátit se do finále ještě jednou.
Včera v noci Pittsburgh Penguins se konaly v šachu opět do New Jersey Devils, kteří se přehnala sezónu proti Penguins 6-0 a rozhodujícím způsobem pokaždé. Jeden tým dominoval další, jako to není vzácné, ale rozdíl v tomto případě je, že Penguins souhlasně byl jeden z nejlepších týmů v lize po celý rok a jsou i nadále bojují o divizní koruna s New Jersey, přestože prohrál každou hru proti nim. Není to moc běžné vidět tým dostat dominují jiného týmu, a přesto být tak vysoko v pořadí. Takže co to znamená pro play-off? Upřímně řečeno, pokud oba týmy, aby to (jak se jistě bude), neznamená to, že spoustu by měly odpovídat-up se navzájem až do první hra se hraje. Pokud Pittsburgh podaří vyhrát první z best-of-sedm série s New Jersey a pak břidlice je v podstatě otírat. Pokud by však v New Jersey porazil Pittsburgh a dominují jim stejným způsobem, že mají po celý rok pak v New Jersey bude mít vliv na důvěru týmu Penguin natolik, že seriál by v podstatě skončí dřív, než vůbec dostane začal. Není tam žádný skutečný rým nebo důvod dominanci Devils nad Penguins to byl pouze otázkou New Jersey hrál svůj systém důkladně a Penguins umožňuje příliš mnoho šancí a nevytváří dost vlastních. Uvidíme, co se stane, ze tady, ale když už nic jiného, tato série vítězství by měla v New Jersey spoustu důvěry jako úsek běh pokračuje a přechody do play-off.
Pro vás Západní konference fanoušky, nedívej se, ale teď Detroit Red Wings jsou v nejlepších pozicích, aby nárok na post-sezony ještě jednou. Jak teď Red Wings mají jeden bod výhodu oproti 9. místo Calgary s hrou v ruce a porazili plamenů každém z posledních dvou časů, které jsem hrál. Bez ohledu na to, jak pravidelné období platí pro Detroit se vždy zdá, že zbavit se případných nedostatků, které vykazovaly v průběhu celého roku, a vrátit se do vrcholné formě, kdy dubna valí kolem. Detroit je také stále zdravější, takže pravděpodobnost, že budou šedohnědý dolů úsek se snižuje s každým hráčem se dostat zpátky. Měly by se v play-off to bude pravděpodobně jako 7. a 8. osiva; co cena pro tým, který odchází s název konference pravidelné sezóny. Můžete pracovat po celý rok, aby se v nejlepší pozici možné a vy jste odměněni prvním kole zápas-up proti dvěma časovými bránit konference mistrů. Neexistuje nic jako rande s Franzen, Zetterberg, Lidström, Datsyuk, atd a všichni jejich kroužky Stanley Cupu, jako způsob, jak říkat gratulace k tvrzením, jedním z nejlepších míst v konferenci. Přesto, jak se sezona je pryč Detroitu, v případě, že se v tobě muset trefovat jako jeden z favoritů přijít ze západu.
A konečně, co se Chicago Blackhawks myšlení v termínu obchod? Ve velkých bodě jejich tým je pevný a není třeba nastavení, aby bylo jistý, to, co by mělo být běh na finále Stanley Cupu (to je rozumný cíl přinejmenším). Ale jedna oblast, která nezbytně nutné zabývat se brankářů. Bez urážky k Huet a Niemi, ale nejsou připraveni vést tým do země zaslíbené. Ani nemá playoff zkušenosti poznámky a zatímco vy můžete jen získat zkušenosti, které ve skutečnosti hraje, když zbytek týmu je připraven, aby se silný tlak, že není čas na vaše netminder dostat nohy mokré. Kane, Keith, Sharp, Toews, Hossa, Byfuglien, Versteeg, Campbell (pre-zranění), atd jsou na nejlepší cestě zvýšit na loňské jízdě do finále konference tím, že se svých her "na další úroveň a poslední věc, co potřebují, je brankářů, aby je dolů. Chystáte se poté, co někdo jako Manny Legace, kdo má nějaké zkušenosti, nebo dokonce JS Giguere, který navzdory vypadl z laskavosti v Anaheimu má slušnou traťový rekord a možná i změnu prostředí, je právě to, co doktor objednal pro něj. Buď volba by stálo alespoň za vyzkoušení, protože ani jeden mohl dělat horší než Niemi a Huet bylo pozdě. Ve dvou nedělích v řadě i Huet a Niemi se vzdali nepřeberné množství cílů ve velmi krátké době způsobuje jejich tým vyhodit dva a tři cíle vede pořadí, foukané vede Chicago nemohl odskočit z obou časů. Ujistěte se, že by se mohlo stát komukoliv v daný den, ale dvakrát za 7 dnů je nepřijatelné, a to nevěstí nic dobrého velmi dobře pro Chicago v této sezóně, pokud budou hrát i v blízkém okolí, že špatně v play-off.
Před týdnem dnes svět viděl jeden z nejlepších hokejových her v nějakou dobu a určitě nejlepší hra olympijského turnaje. Přes obrovské houževnatosti vyjádřené Američany to byl hokejový král Kanada vede Sidney Crosby, který opustil Vancouver hry s zlatou medaili. Přesčas Cílem Crosby označil konec fantastickou dvou týdnů hokeje, které produkovaly nepřeberné množství nepředvídatelných momentů. I když to bylo Kanaďané, kteří vylezli na vrchol hory, na konci skutečnými vítězi se hokejoví fanoušci po celém světě. Tak jsem si tento čas poblahopřát Kanaďany na jejich vítězství, pozdravit hokeje obecně, a aby se rozloučili s tím, co bylo úžasné dva týdny hokej.
S olympiádou nyní za námi přechod z jednoho souboru velkého hokeje na druhou, úsek běhu NHL jde do plného proudu. Jak to stojí dnes skvrny od 6 do 11 ve východní konferenci jsou odděleny celkem čtyři body, zatímco bitva u 7 a 8. místa na Západě je ještě pevněji závod. Během několika příštích týdnů budeme zjistit, kdo udělal správné kroky ve lhůtě obchodu a kdo by měl udělat víc. Uvidíme, jestli povýšeného Phoenix může Colorado (zpět ke slávě dnů popsán výše?) Může udržet svou úroveň hry dostatečně vysoké k udržení playoff pozice, jak to je nový koncept pro oba tyto týmy ve smontovaném stavu dnes. Může Detroit Red Wings podaří zpevnit playoff místo nebo budou vynechány poprvé od dinosauři toulali po zemi? Líbilo se Pittsburgh Penguins přidat dost nových tváří, aby jejich lineup, aby jistý, se nedostatky, které mohou mít museli dát je do týmu porazit na východě? Už Washington Capitals nakonec řešit své obranné trápení dost katapultovat se do kategorie závažných poháru uchazečů? Proč ne v Bostonu, který byl nejvyšší semeno na východě loni ne učinit více pro řešení jejich neschopnost skóre? Celou tu dobu, která bude do konce sezóny Alex Ovechkin nebo Sidney Crosby více gólů? Každá z těchto otázek budou zodpovězeny v průběhu příštího měsíce, a to znamená, že hokejoví fanoušci budou rozmazlovat od teď až do konce finále Stanley Cupu v červnu. Tak Gear Up puckheads, protože to bude úžasné!
V pondělí večer Pittsburgh Penguins a Buffalo Sabres kladen na poměrně show pro národní televizní publikum, které by mohly velmi dobře byl Východní konference finále náhled (v závislosti na úložný mazeriál samozřejmě). Tam a zpět aféra vedla k Penguins překonat dva góly druhém období deficit porazit Sabres 5-4. Hra sama o sobě nepředstavuje větší obrázek, tedy proč se Sabres a Penguins by mohly být dvě nejlepší (nejúplnější) týmy Východní konference.
Pro Penguins je zřejmé, proč jsou v tak dobré pozici. Pittsburgh má hvězdnou sílu v Crosby a Malkin, hvězdné a přichází hvězda Jordan Staal, Savy veteráni, jako je Bill Guerin a Sergeje Gončara, neuvěřitelnou netminder ve Marc-Andre Fleury, a ach jo, že jsem byl na finále každé z poslední dva roky (Zmínil jsem se, že vyhrál Stanley Cup v loňském roce?). Budoucnost Penguins se zdá být velmi stejným způsobem jako jejich nedávné minulosti. Jedna hlavní překážkou Penguins museli překonat, je chyba, zranění a dokonce, že vypracoval docela dobře pro ně. Přesto, že ztratí mnoho hráčů na dlouhé úseky byli schopni získat spoustu výroby z kluků, které jsem měl k vyvolání jejich AHL pobočky, která je, co se držel je nad vodou. Zkušenosti tito lidé získali, je neocenitelná, a to jen dobrým znamením pro Penguins nejen pro zbytek pravidelného období, ale také v play-off by, které potřebují někoho, kdo by zvýšily v prekérní situaci. SO přes některé hrubé záplaty Penguins prošly letos ještě musíte znovu zvážit, jedním z favoritů dvou ve Východní konferenci v letošním roce.
Sabres nemají velké honosné hvězdy jako Pittsburghu, ale pokud budete mít tým, který má pravděpodobně pouze jednu velkou hvězdu, kterou chcete, které začínají být v síti, a to je to, co mají Ryan Miller. Není pochyb o tom, že Miller je jedním z nejlepších v netminders nejen NHL, ale v celém světě. Čísla kariéra Miller mluví samy za sebe, ale zaměřme na tuto sezónu sám. Miller se objevil v 47 hry vysílání 2,10 GAA (vrcholy mezi brankáři s vystoupení alespoň 20), 0,932 ušetřit procento (nejlepší v lize) a pět shutouts (na druhém místě v konferenci za Marty Brodeur). Mít goaltender s čísly, jako to je neuvěřitelné startovacím bodem pro jakýkoli tým, a přestože nemají hvězdnou sílu před ním dalo by se rádi mají spoustu hráčů, kteří jako skupina jsou neuvěřitelně konzistentní. Tim Connolly vede tým v bodech, ale nemůže nést celá nahrát sám, a to je, když nepřeberné množství dalších hráčů zaplnil uvolněné místo. Vypadá to, že každý večer jiná osoba posílení, aby se rozdíl, včetně ale ne omezené na Derek Roy, Thomas Vanek, a Jason Pominville; Ve skutečnosti někteří nocí kluci jako Drew Stafford a Tim Kennedy zesílí velký, když potřebují. Tím, že mají velký čas hvězdu na svůj tým Buffalo Sabres potřebují několik kluků se zvýšily spojku a to je přesně to, co oni byli schopni dělat dosud v tomto roce. To bude mít týmy z rovnováhy, protože nelze jednoduše vypnout jeden kluk a vím, že hra je na nich k mání. To je zvláště důležité přijít playoff čas, a to je důvod, proč si myslím, že Buffalo Sabres jsou v nejlepší pozici (pokud zůstanou zdravé), aby se vážně běh na název konference.
NHL Dvě největší hvězdy se ledy proti sobě poprvé od svého klasického Východní konference semifinále před rokem. Mluvím samozřejmě o Sidney Crosby a Penguins proti Alex Ovechkin a Washington Capitals. To není jen matchup dvou největších hvězd ligy, ale také ze dvou nejlepších týmů v hokeji. Hra byla velmi zábavná soutěž, která nakonec viděla Washington zavřel Pittsburgh ve třetím období, které hru 6-3, ale hra sama o sobě není děj. Bohužel větší problém je skutečnost, že hra nebyla vysílána na výstupu, které lidé po celé zemi viděl. Jistě to byl vysílán na síti NHL, ale počet lidí, kteří mají v kanálu je omezen nejen v čistých číslech, ale také omezena na lidi, kteří již mají rádi hru. Tato hra potřeboval být na stanici, která by dosažení maximální počet osob možných a zároveň všední den hra nebude na NBC a já přijímám to, že stále ještě mohla být na Versus. Je pravda, že NHL nemá nejlepší smlouvu TV, ale ani maximalizovat potenciál dohody, které mají. Hokej je skvělý sport, ale lidé jako já, nemusí být přesvědčen o tom, že je to příležitostný fanoušek, který ladil do loňské sérii play-off, kteří potřebují vidět přehlídku ve hře nejlepších hráčů v letošním roce je přiblížit ke hře; Nicméně, je pravděpodobné, že neviděl hru, protože kauzální fanoušci pravděpodobně nemají NHL Network. V ostrém kontrastu s tím na stejné noci NBA byla přehlídka skříň dva ze svých největších hvězd LeBron James a Kobe Bryant na TNT, který mnohem více lidí, kteří mají přístup k. To je prostě příklad NBA dělá mnohem lepší práci marketingu, než v NHL. Podle mého názoru přinejmenším NHL má produkt, který je tak dobrý, jako ten, který NBA pole každou noc, že je to jen otázka lepšího marketingu na straně NBA. V případě, že NHL chce, aby hru rostou a jednoduše vzít svůj skvělý produkt pro masy (které nepochybně mají rádi to, co vidí), pak se musí dávat pozor na detaily; jinak liga se bude i nadále jeden krok vpřed a dva kroky zpět, pokud jde o rostoucí popularitu v USA.
Ve zprávách na ledě Edmonton Oilers se nemají nejlepší rok. Existuje mnoho důvodů, proč Edmonton byl bojují, ale tam je také není pochyb o tom, že nikdo ztratil více než Heartbreakers Oilers. Edmonton matchup proti Dallas Stars v pátek v noci, je dokonalým příkladem takového srdcervoucí ztráty. S jen něco málo přes minutu, aby šel za cíl Oilers vytáhl svůj goaltender ve prospěch šestina útočníka a 01:02 vlevo na hodiny svázaný hru na tři. Hráči byli v povznesené náladě, fanoušci byli psychicky a vypadalo to, Edmonton se bude alespoň ukrást bod z jejich Západní konference nepřátel. Nicméně, ani o minutu později zármutek udeřil Edmonton opět jako James Neal udeřil domácí odskočit s jen 23 sekund později dát Dallas dopředu pro dobré. Říkejte si, co chcete, o tom, jak Edmonton ztratil, a jak už ztrácí hry jako celou sezónu, ale na jednu noc to vypadalo, jako všichni v Edmontonu by měl důvod k oslavě udatný comeback spíše než poslední chvíli porážky a ještě ... to nebylo souzeno. Špatný pocit pro profesionální sportovce za žádných okolností je těžké, ale v tomto případě mám pocit, špatné pro organizaci olejnička a jejich fanoušci mohou koupit vítězství?
Na závěr bych byl líný, když jsem se zmínil o neuvěřitelné množství úspěchu na povýšeného New York Islanders jsou s. Minulou sezónu to byl jeden z nejhorších týmů v lize na ledě a vyrovnat se s tunou zmatku mimo led, co se týká její budoucnosti na Long Islandu. I přes pokračující z otázek ledu Islanders dávají dohromady docela sezónu na ledě a jsou v nejlepší pozici, aby do play-off. Úvěr může jít lidi jako John Tavares, který byl celkově vybral číslo jedna letos v offseason nebo skryté poklady, jako je Matt Moulson, který předčil očekávání všech. K dispozici je také hvězdná hra netminder Dwayne Roloson, který navzdory svému věku, provedl velmi obdivuhodně celou sezónu. Bez ohledu na to, co je odpověď Islanders dali dohromady tým, který tvrdě pracuje každý zápas, i nadále lepší, jak sezóna pokračuje, a používat jejich práce etiky kombinovaná s jejich dovednosti, aby se snad krást hry, které by jinak vyhrát. Krádež vyhrát každou chvíli je vázán na stát se všechny mladé a overmatched týmu. V případě, že Islanders však porazil týmy jako New Jersey a Detroitu ve velmi krátké době v poměrně přesvědčivým způsobem (po vypnutí oba týmy ven), není náhodou. Nemusíte vyhrát utkání proti top týmy, ale vypnutí je ven, pokud jste dobří, a věřte nebo ne lidem New York Islanders jsou dobrý tým. Zmínil jsem v loňském roce a na začátku sezóny, které jsem milovala, jak tento tým bitvy noc a noc, a to konečně začíná vyplácet za ně. Je možné, že Ostrované budou i nadále zaostávají z play-off letos, ale v případě, že nadále hrát tak, jak jsou tým bude mít za co stydět a mít něco velkého, aby navázala na příští sezónu. Tam bylo hodně dobrý pocit, příběhy pro týmy, které jsou zdánlivě Overachieving dosud v této sezóně, ale nikdo lepší než tento tým New York Islander. Pokud budete mít možnost dívat se na ně v daný večer zkontrolovat je, že je to hodně legrace.
First off I have to take this time to congratulate the Team USA U-20 squad on winning the World Junior Championship over Canada in one of the best games I've ever seen at any level. The flow of the game was back and forth the whole time with Canada wiping away a two-goal Team USA lead in the final three minutes of regulation before Team USA took the 6-5 win in overtime. Canada once again had an incredibly talented team and for the second year in a row had the home crowd behind them but Team USA did not let that effect their level of focus and that is to be greatly respected. So congrats to both teams on an incredible game and hopefully it is a prelude to what we will see in Vancouver in February.
Refocusing on NHL news this is the perfect time to welcome the Philadelphia Flyers back to the contenders table. I've been particularly critical of this team thus far because they had way too much talent to be playing so poorly. Michael Leighton has provided some much needed stability for them in net posting a 7-0-0 record with an astounding 2.14 GAA; any team with a netminder playing like that has a chance to win every night. The rest of the team has uped their level of play as well but tactics and strategy do not explain why the Flyers have all-of-a-sudden returned to respectability. In a game against Pittsburgh last week the Flyers defeated the Penguins 7-4; throughout the game there were many opportunities that the old Flyers would have taken to win the “battle of the tough guys” causing their team precious penalty minutes in the process and ultimately losing the game. But these new Flyers kept their cool, stayed focus on the real task at hand and that was winning the game on the scoreboard. It's a fundamental change that should be credited to Peter Laviolette as well as the on-ice leadership of the Flyers. If they keep their focus (while managing to stay healthy) and continue to get decent goaltending the Flyers will not be a team people want to play down the stretch and into the playoffs.
Na rubu jsou tři týmy, kteří hráli dobře a nezdá se pravděpodobné, že se obrátit věci kolem v nejbližší době; those teams are the Carolina Hurricanes (not much to say about them, they are embarrassingly bad in every way), St. Louis Blues, and Columbus Blue Jackets. All three teams made it to the playoffs last year and were expecting big things this year but so far have flopped. St. Louis may be the most intriguing of these teams because they actually have a very good road record at 12-5-4 but are terrible at home going 6-14-3. Traditionally in hockey it is a little “easier” play games on the road because players worry about getting and protecting leads rather than entertaining the fans but in the case of St. Louis it is pretty extreme. Perhaps their new coach can inspire them to translate their road game play into a few extra home wins but for the moment their home performance and overall record as a result are embarrassing. St. Louis is much too talented to be in such a big hole at this point in the season.
As for Columbus what's happening to them is what many people feared might prior to the season—that is that Steve Mason would not be able to play up to the level he did last year and the team would suffer as a result—that has come to fruition. Mason's GAA is a deplorable 3.31 and while there is plenty of blame to go on the defense in front of him the team is built to basically rely on Mason night in and night out. Maybe it is unfair to place so much blame on Mason but that is the situation the powers that be in Columbus have structured the team that way. It isn't that their plan all along was to have Mason be the cornerstone of the team, but with how he performed last year management seemed to make the determination that they would make him that piece and did little to sure up their defense. So either Mason (or Garon) step it up or Columbus will be a lost cause until they get better defensemen and defensive forwards.
The 2010 Winter Classic by all accounts was a big time success and I agree completely. The magic of the day was not tarnished by anything; the weather was great, the ice held up extremely well, the fans were fired up, and the game itself was spectacular. Three cheers for everybody who helps make this game happen because it's certainly a treat for everyone and congratulations to the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers for putting on a great show leaving us all wanting for more.
In the meantime the other big news to come out over the holidays was the announcement of the various Olympic team rosters set to take the ice next month. At the moment the easy favorites to win the Gold Medal are Canada and Russia with the Canadians possibly holding a slight edge over Russia because the tournament will be held on the smaller North American size ice along with the fact that the games will be held in Canada which instantly gives them a boost. On the other hand, one might say that the games being held in Canada yields a slight advantage to the Russians because Canadians traditionally have a ton of pressure on them to win the Gold Medal anyway but now that pressure is intensified since Team Canada will be playing on home ice. Although there is a fair amount of pressure on the Russians as well there will no doubt be a lot less on them than on the Canadians which will allow them to simply relax and play hockey without worrying about any other distractions. Despite those factors it is still a virtual toss-up between the two teams in trying to pick the favorite but you can't really go wrong either going for gold and everyone else likely battling for the bronze.
Well that's a run around the league a little bit. I hope everyone enjoyed the Winter Classic and have a great time ringing in the New Year! Have a great 2010 everybody!
Greetings puckheads, hope everyone in the US had a great Thanksgiving (and to you as well Canadian friends, although I'm about a month late eh?). I am back from my break and have a lot to cover so let's get started.
Saturday night Sidney Crosby and the Penguins opened up a can on the New York Rangers with an 8-3 win vaulting Pittsburgh back into first place in the Atlantic Division (at least for the moment). Crosby netted his third career hat trick on free hat night in Pittsburgh (the ice was covered) while Sean Avery put up big numbers of his own jumping Ruslan Fedetanko midway through the third period yielding a 7 minute power play for Pittsburgh as Avery got two for instigating, five for fighting and a ten minute game misconduct penalty. Quite a turn of events for Pittsburgh who just a short time ago had most of their starters sidelined with injury, and now they can focus on defending their title as most everyone returns to the lineup.
There is also a certain level of delight in three Eastern Conference cities who have not seen (or had much success) in the playoffs the last few years. As I write this the Ottawa Senators, Atlanta Thrashers, and Tampa Bay lightning occupy the final three playoff spots which few expected. Most new Ottawa could be good but not be able to put things together so well so quickly as they have. We all knew Atlanta could score with Ilya Kovalchuk, but now he has a supporting cast in Rich Peverley, Maxim Afinigenov, and Nik Antropov. We also knew that there was a ton of talent in Tampa but it never produced anything last year so there was little reason to think otherwise this year but so far so good. It is my contention that NONE of these teams (that's right zero) will make the playoffs, simply because there is too much talent in the East; but all of these teams can hang their hats on the amount of success they've had to date and possibly parlay that success into a playoff run proving me wrong.
On Thursday night the Penguins got good news with the return of Sergei Gonchar and Max Talbot, Goncarh's first game in weeks and Talbots first since game 7 of the Cup Finals last season. These two additions to the line-up were important for Pittsburgh as they have been decimated with injuries after their hot start. That good feeling did not last long for the Penguins or their fans as Ottawa ruined the party with a 6-2 drubbing of Pittsburgh.
The Penguins started out in a hurry with an impressive goal from Jordan Staal within the first 70 seconds of the game. The rest of the first period and into the second were pretty even but it was in the third when the wheels really fell off. Before you could blink the Senators had posted three goals, it was 5-1, Fleury was yanked, and the Penguins had lost any shot of winning the game. Some may want to blame the loss on Fleury giving up a few arguably soft goals, others might say the two guys coming back left the team out of sync, but it was simply a game of missed opportunities and a loss of focus as a result of those failed chances. After netting the first goal Pittsburgh got four power play chances to really distance themselves from the Senators—who are not a top team by any stretch—which probably would have put the game out of reach but Pittsburgh failed to do so. That really seemed to take the wind out of the sails for the Penguins and to Ottawa's credit they smelled blood and seized the opportunity. The Senators were pressuring majorly in the final two periods and spent a ton of time in the Penguins' zone. There were a number of occasions that Ottawa wore the Penguins down in their own zone resulting in Pittsburgh icing the puck a number of times allowing Ottawa to regroup and sustain their pressure. Neither Ottawa nor Pittsburgh are as good or bad respectively as they showed on Thursday but what you can take from this game is what happens when one team misses chances, loses confidence, and the other teams senses that and turns up the heat. Ottawa did not do anything special they simply put Pittsburgh away when they were down.
A great sign about Thursday for Senators fans was that they showed the ability to turn it up a notch when last year they might have let Pittsburgh hang around and actually lose the game. It has been a while since a Senators team has been able to do that and if they build off of this experience they can grow into a pretty good team.
With a 3-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks last night the New Jersey Devils have now won six in a row and find themselves on top of the Atlantic Division supplanting the injury riddled Pittsburgh Penguins. That is what makes the Devils a unique win producing machine; in the offseason they lost Brian Gionta and long time stable John Madden and yet the victories continue to pile up. Say what you will about the neutral zone trap—that it's boring, unentertaining, etc.—the bottom line is that it works and there's nothing more entertaining than watching your team win. Let's not kid ourselves, the Devils roster is not full of duds, Patrick Elias, Jamie Langenbrunner, and of course Martin Brodeur are big time players. However, for most teams losing the players New Jersey has over the last few years would not have ended well. Despite the losses (including Brodeur miss most of last year with injury) the Devils players continue to buy into the system being preached to them and it results in win after win and ultimately playoff appearances. Granted, over the last few years success in the playoffs has been hard to come by for New Jersey but being in a position to be successful is all you can ask for coming out of the regular season because once the post-season begins you never know what will happen.
After most NHL teams have played in the neighborhood of eight games it is important to note (as should be said every year about this time) that no top team is as good as they seem and no bottom teams are as bad as they seem. So Pens and Rangers fans keep your lids on and Leafs fans it really will get better.
The LA Kings are for real. There has been some debate whether they're ready to be good now or are still a year off. Well after a very strong start there should be no doubt in anybody's mind that they are ready to compete now. So to those of you on the east coast if you do not watch any other games for west coast teams all year make sure to catch LA in a home game if you can it's worth it to watch a team just beginning to bloom.
Early signs point to the Atlantic Division in the east and the Pacific Division in the west as being the most competitive division in each conference. As a result they will probably have the most teams in the playoffs come April.
The Pittsburgh Penguins could not have asked for a much better start to their championship defense as they are 6-1-0, undefeated on the road, have a starting netminder who has yet to lose, and are seeing Jordan Staal ride last year's playoff wave by becoming a major force in the middle. Crosby and Malkin are of course still leading the team, (and Sergei Gonchar continues to play extremely well) but they are also getting strong play from the likes of Tyler Kennedy who has four goals and an assist which equals Crosby's total to date. Defenseman Alex Goligoski is very much taking advantage at his first chance to play a full season at the top level for he has been brilliant. Not only does Goligoski have five points but he has been working extremely hard to get to loose pucks and to make other teams pay for every inch of ice they gain against him; Goligoski is also in the top twelve in the league in terms of blocked shots (see: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/statistics?stat=nhlscoring&league=nhl&sort=bs&order=true&qual=true&season=2009&seasontype=2&pos=r for more blocked shot numbers among other stats). The season is still young and as the Ottawa Senators (of two years ago) and New York Rangers (of last year) will tell you a fast start does not carry you throughout the season. It never hurts to get off to a great start and few would doubt that the Penguins have the team that can sustain their early success but their energy level has to remain high. The Stanley Cup hangover certainly has not been an issue thus far but they must also hold off the complacency bug as the season rolls on.
Tomorrow the journey for the Stanley Cup begins but for now we preview the other side of the coin before the puck drops, all analysis ends, and the games begin.
Ok corny intros aside here is my preview of the west (much like I did for the east) followed by the finals pick and who I think will hoist the Cup next spring.
The eight teams to qualify—in no particular order—are as follows: Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, and the San Jose Sharks.
As the hour draws closer and the puckheads continue to salivate over the tease that is the hockey preseason it is time to supplement the appetizers before the hockey fest begins.
Eastern Conference Preview:
I'll start by predicting who I think will make it to the playoffs (in no particular order) then we'll look at least briefly at where each team stands. So here are the top eight teams in no particular order: Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers (Carolina Hurricanes?), New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, and the Washington Capitals.
The Pittsburgh Penguins should probably be the favorites going into the season because their team is a lot the same and they are the champs until someone else wins the title. They did lose Rob Scuderi but overall you have to like their chances to defend their conference title.
The New York Rangers lost Scott Gomez but have added Marian Gaborik who—if he can stay healthy—will add scoring power to a pretty solid but not spectacular line-up. The nice thing about the Rangers is that even if they do not score a ton of goals Henrik Lundqvist will keep them in most games, will steal a few, and will overall give them a chance to win most every contest they are involved in. Having a chance to win every game is not actually winning them however and that's where Gaborik is going to be important for them. If Gaborik stays healthy he scores enough goals to get them enough points to get them into the playoffs. In the event that Gaborik does get hurt that will leave New York on the outside looking in and will open the door for the Carolina Hurricanes to sneak into a playoff spot. Carolina too is a solid team but Cam Ward cannot do it alone and they will not be able to rely on Jussi Jokkinen to play all year the way he did in the playoffs. But if any team should fall off at all (ie the Rangers) that opens the door for the Canes. Either way, neither team will be a serious Stanley Cup contender.
The New Jersey Devils are channeling their inner 1995 by bringing Jacques Lemaire back to captain the ship. Nothing has changed for the Devils since 1995 and as a result they can continue like a well-oiled machine with their new, old, coach. New Jersey is very much a system team so with Martin Brodeur playing behind that system you have to pencil them into the playoffs and as championship contenders. Some players have changed since last season's first round exit to Carolina but it matters not as the methodical Devils will be back in the playoffs again.
In each of the last two years the Philadelphia Flyers have put very good teams on the ice but have run into a freight train headed to the finals in the form of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Flyers got tougher by adding veteran Chris Pronger but their folly has arguably been in goal and that is an issue that still has yet to be worked out. Philadelphia went across the pond to lure Ray Emery back to North America so the verdict is still out on whether the goaltending problem is fixed (one might argue that Emery's attitude will cause more problems than it will solve). Bottom line, the Flyers talent will get them to the playoffs and at that point all they'll need is solid (not spectacular) net play to put themselves in a position to win the Stanley Cup.
Boston's future is bright because their talent level is a lot the same as last year. Phil Kessel was traded for some draft picks which speaks to how confident Boston is with their team from top to bottom. They still have Chara manning the blueline and they can score at the drop of a hat. There were a lot of questions about Tim Thomas last year and he'll have to answer those same questions again this year. If Thomas is able to play consistently well the Bruins will learn from their experience last year and should be considered favorites to at least reach the east finals.
The key for the Buffalo Sabres is to stay healthy. Last season Buffalo was a clear playoff team until injuries struck them like a wrecking ball and their playoff hopes came crashing down. So if the Sabres' stars stay healthy they will be a force, if they do not then Buffalo is not a force… it's that simple.
The Washington Capitals can score like none other. In the offensive zone 5-on-5 and on the power play they are just about unstoppable. The Caps are greatly lacking defensively but certainly score enough to make up for that over the course of a long season. The biggest downfall of Washington last year was in net and that is their greatest unknown once again. Semyon Varlamov was certainly much better than anyone could have expected in the playoffs last season but is he the answer long term? There is no doubt that Varlamov has talent but he is still young and with being young come growing pains that every player experiences. If Varlamov grows quickly then there's reason to believe the Caps can win it all, but if he doesn't then it the fans in DC will be “rocking the red” to the second round of the playoffs and no further.
The Montreal Canadiens did three very good things in the offseason: let Kovalev go, picked up Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez, and got rid of Kovalev (did I mention that already). Alexi Kovalev is a very talented player but he was too inconsistent and caused too much drama in a place that creates enough drama on its own. Gionta and Gomez provide stability as leaders on the ice and can put points on the scoreboard. Both players spent time in New Jersey so each know how to play a role to perfection. As long as Carey Price can keep his confidence up and the fans give this team a chance they can be very dangerous.
As for the rest of the conference there is very little to talk about. The New York Islanders are clearly rebuilding so the best anyone can hope from them is that John Tavares and company just improve from game to game. In my estimation the Islanders have far more problems off the ice (on the business end) than they do on it. The isles know they are rebuilding and are taking steps toward becoming a good team in time. This is in contrast to the Lightning, Thrashers, Senators, Maple Leafs, and Panthers.
Tampa has a lot of talent but did nothing with is last year and do not have a goaltender that can take them anywhere. Atlanta is just plain bad and probably will not improve very much in all likelihood. Ottawa keeps changing coaches, do not gel as a team, have lost one of their best players in Dany Heatley, and decided that adding Kovalev was the best way to stabilize/improve their team (very dumb). Toronto cannot decide whether they want to try to win now or build for the future. Last year they had enough talent to stay at the top of the non playoff teams for most of the year and this year they are in about the same spot. Lastly are the Florida Panthers who do not have a whole lot of talent (after having lost bouwmeester ) do not get much fan support which makes for a very bad situation.
So that's the east in a nutshell (believe it or not). Tune in next time for the west preview as well as my Stanley Cup Finals pick and winner.
Well it has been a long time coming for but finally the NHL season is upon us and as such so is the return of the NHL section of sportsroids.com. I am just as excited as anyone for the season to rev up again so let's get right to it.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are back to defend their title and with the exception of the loss of Rob Scuderi the team is about the same now as they were on the day they won the cup. Despite that, repeating is going to be a daunting task because not only are they the defending champs but in order to repeat they will have to reach the Stanley Cup Finals for a third year in a row. At the same time they still have two of the best players in the world on their team so it will be interesting to see how the story develops in Pittsburgh.
As for the rest of the league there are a lot of intriguing stories to keep an eye on including some old faces in new places (for example Dany Heatley to San Jose, Marian Hossa to Chicago) as well as the return of a few from their disappearing acts (Ray Emery in Philadelphia, Theo Fleury in Calgary). There are also plenty of questions to be asked about both up and coming teams as well as those who have been on the cusp but have not quite made that next big step: In the East, can Washington play just enough defense this year to get them into the Conference Finals and possibly make their first finals appearance in the Ovechkin Era? Will Philadelphia finally get the consistent play in net they have lacked the last two years that will likely get them over the hump? Does the Southeast Division continue to be a two horse race or can Tampa Bay finally put their talent together well enough to become serious playoff contenders? And what is actually going on in Montreal and Ottawa, have they finally got their respective acts together? Out west, will Chicago seize this opportunity to dethrone the Detroit Red Wings in the Central Division? Is Dany Heatley the answer to San Jose finally translating their regular season triumphs into post-season glory? Are the LA Kings poised to translate their young talent into a playoff appearance? Is Calgary ready to kick their first round exit habit of the last few years? What is the deal with the Coyotes, are they moving or what?
Of course along with all of the aforementioned questions there are to two major events on the horizon this year in both the Winter Classic (January 1 at Fenway Park) and the Olympic hockey tournament in Vancouver this February. There is so much to talk about and look forward to this season. Over the next few days I will go through a preview of each conference, give you not only who will win each but what other stories to watch out for like what teams will overachieve and those that will disappoint.
So much to do and talk about, it's great to be talking puck again. We here at sportsroids.com are very excited to start year two of hockey blogging, it's great to have you with us!
The NHL has announced that the 2010 Winter Classic will be held at Fenway Park between the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers. Generally speaking I could care less who is playing in this game because as a fan of the sport and of the unique nature of this game I will be watching and will enjoy it from start to finish. That said, I cannot understand why the NHL and NBC have decided that a Bruins-Flyers match up will have a better draw in the US than say a Bruins-Capitals showdown. It is true that both teams have large television markets and that will result in a huge draw from the two participating cities alone. However, there is no bigger star in the NHL today than Alexander Ovechkin; no matter what you think of him I think all fans agree that he is one of the most exciting hockey players in the whole world from his on ice performance to his off-ice personality. Not only would people in the DC and Boston area be excited about this game, but hockey fans throughout the country and casual sports fans alike would go out of their way to watch Ovechkin play in a game as special as the Winter Classic has become. Not only should Ovechkin and the Caps be playing this game instead of the Flyers for star power but also because Philadelphia playing in this game against Boston pushes away the idea of a Penguins-Flyers Winter Classic at Beaver Stadium for many years. That makes deciding to put Philadelphia in this match-up a double whammy of blunders on the part of the NHL and NBC. The ratings will suffer this year because Ovechkin is not in it (and should be) and because a potential future contest that could also result in huge ratings and fan turnout in person has been push back indefinitely. So again, while I will be watching this game no matter who is playing in it–and it is possible that this match-up will still get a huge draw and be largely entertaining–I still think the NHL and NBC have hurt the potential of the Winter Classic not only for 2010 but for the near future as well.
As the Pittsburgh Penguin organization and fans continue to celebrate their club's victory and people in Detroit continue to lick their wounds the rest of the hockey world looks to the future. The NHL awards dinner is Thursday June 18, the NHL entry draft on June 26 and of course NHL free agency starts July 1 st . With the NHL awards first up we'll take a look at three of the biggest awards (according to me) up for grabs and my prediction for who will win; those awards are the Calder Trophy (Top Rookie), Norris Trophy (Top Defensemen), Vezina Trophy (Top Goaltender), and the Hart Trophy (League MVP).
Calder Trophy Nominees are Steve Mason (CBJ), Bobby Ryan (ANA), and Kris Versteeg (CHI). Bobby Ryan made an unbelievable impact on the Ducks this year and will certainly big a major force in Anaheim for years to come but he's not taking home this trophy. Kris Versteeg is an important part on a very young team that will be fantastic for years to come with guys like Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Duncan Keith (among others) but it's not his trophy to win either. The winner in my view has to be Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets because if not for him the Blue Jackets would not have made the playoffs let alone a decent seed at sixth. Mason led the league in shutouts with 10 and first in Goals Against Average (GAA) in the Western Conference at 2.29. They have some talent in front of Mason in Columbus but he was the backbone of the team and if he plays like this in the years to come as the talent improves with time the Blue Jackets can make a lot of noise but without Mason they won't go anywhere. So as far as I'm concerned the 2008-2009 Calder Trophy winner will be Chris Mason.
Norris Trophy Nominees are Zdeno Chara (BOS), Mike Green (WSH), and Nicklas Lindstrom (DET). Mike Green had a wonderful season for Washington but he was more of an extra forward when he was playing than a good defensemen. Green scored with regularity and played a major role in Washington taking the two spot in the Eastern Conference but his defense is lacking compared to the other two nominees. Nicklas Lindstrom is back once again trying to win the Norris for the 7 th time in his career and is nominated for the umpteenth time. Lindstrom has been a major part of Detroit's success over the years as the face of the team changes over the years Lindstrom remains a constant and it seems like his game never diminishes. I do not think Lindstrom is going to win this year but once again his presence on the ice and leadership on and off of it is second to none. Last but not least is who I think will win the award and that is Zdeno Chara. A major part of the turn-around for Boston from 8 th to 1 st was the play and leadership Zdeno Chara exhibited this season. He has always been a good player but he stepped up majorly this year not only scoring timely goals but also asserting himself physically to help dominate a number of teams over the course of the season. As a result of those things I think Zdeno Chara will be awarded the Norris Trophy.
Vezina Trophy Nominees are Niklas Backstrom (MIN), Steve Mason (CBJ), Tim Thomas (BOS). Niklas Backstrom has a wonderful season for the Wild but two things that hurt his chances are A. that he plays for a team that did not make the playoffs, and B. that he played in the Jacques Lemaire neutral zone trap that has a reputation for making a goalies life much “easier” on a goaltender whether that's fair or not. As a result a person who is probably deserving of winning this award will be left out in the cold. It's a similar story for Steve Mason in that he is definitely deserving of winning the award but since he will in all likelihood win the Calder Trophy the odds that he wins the Vezina trophy are not good. Of the three in the running Mason probably did the most for his team and as a result should probably win the award but it is doubtful that he will take the trophy home. That leaves Tim Thomas who may win the award just by process of elimination but despite that Thomas certainly deserves to win the award and his nomination was well earned. Thomas led the league in GAA at 2.10 as well as save percentage at .933 and was under a lot of pressure to perform in Boston because many felt he could not be a top goaltender. He proved everybody wrong with his consistency this season and should be awarded accordingly. While it may be true that Thomas will win as the last man standing of the three up for the award Thomas could win the award up against any other goaltender in the entire league which is why he'll be given the award at the show on June 18 th .
This year's Hart Trophy nominees are Pavel Datsyuk (DET), Evgeni Malkin (PIT), and Alexander Ovechkin (WSH). This is probably the most anticipated award of the whole show and is definitely one of the most hotly contested award up for grabs. Each nominee is as deserving of the award as the next and that makes it one of the hardest awards to call because each player is so important to the success of his respective team that so little separates them. Pavel Datsyuk had an unbelievable year finishing 5 th in assists (65) and 4 th in points with 97. He is one of the best two way players in the world and has played a large part in the amount of success the Detroit Red Wings have experienced in the last few years in particular. Datsyuk's play in both the offensive and defensive is something that every team craves to get out of their players to at least be adequate at doing let alone excel the way Datsyuk does. To stand out on a team of superstars the way Datsyuk does really says a lot about his game and makes him a deserving Hart Trophy candidate.
Next is Evgeni Malkin who had an unbelievable season in Pittsburgh leading the league in assists with 70 and overall points with 113. Malkin has the ability to take games over when the going gets tough and does just that time and time again carrying the team on his back. He's a player who is great at scoring goals when he needs to be also in making players around him better while he's on the ice. Malkin is a pretty good two-way player—although not as good as Datsyuk—who can back-check with the best of them and turn a rush for the other team into a great counter-attack for Pittsburgh. Leading by example is a strength for Malkin and is a top reason why the Penguins went from a team on the outside looking in on the playoffs to home-ice advantage in the first round in a very short period of time.
Last but not least is Malkin's fellow Russian teammate Alexander Ovechkin. What Ovechkin can do on the ice is clear as he led the league in goals with 56 and finished second in points with 110. Ovechkin is an explosive player who helps make Washington's power play one of the best in the league by far, and can help keep the Caps in a game by scoring big goals in games Washington probably should not be in otherwise if they're being dominated in their own end. Perhaps Ovechkin's biggest weakness is that he is not very good in the defensive zone and has a tendency to disappear if the other team is controlling the puck in the Washington zone while also disallowing the quick breakout counter attack. Nevertheless the energy Ovechkin brings to the game feeds off on other players and certainly makes them better offensively than they might be in other situations. So in terms of value to a team there may be no one who means more to their team than Ovechkin means to the Capitals because he is the lifeblood of that organization. All that said it is hard to say who will win the award by just looking at these three guys on paper. However, it may come down to the fact that Malkin plays with another star in Sidney Crosby and Datsyuk has a bunch of guys around him who are superstars in their own right. Ovechkin on the other hand does not have the stand out superstar around him and as a result Alexander Ovechkin will be your 2008-2009 NHL MVP.
It has been a wonderful season and the NHL awards are a great way to reflect on how wonderful the season has been even including the playoffs despite these being regular season awards. I hope everyone enjoyed this season as it was one of the best for the NHL in recent history which is something they can certainly build on. Now that the season is over it's a fresh start for everyone and so there should be a fair amount of things to talk about this summer as teams prepare to make a cup run of their own next season. Thanks for reading this season everyone and I hope you continue to follow along right here on sportsroids.com as we cover the happenings of the offseason and into training camp come September.
The Pittsburgh Penguins defied the odds Friday night by defeating the Detroit Red Wings to win the franchises third Stanley Cup and first since 1992. The hero of the night was Max Talbot who scored both of Pittsburgh's goals and had the Red Wings scurrying to keep up with him all night. It had been said that the Wings were going to be able to use their experience to walk all over the Penguins to win back-to-back titles with ease. What Pittsburgh showed Friday night is not only did they have outduel Detroit in a game seven, but for the second game in a row they showed more depth than the Red Wings from top to bottom. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were again both held without a goal and once again the Penguins showed they don't need their stars to score in order to win. Malkin did in fact have an assist on this night propelling him to his 36 th point and ultimately the Conn Smythe trophy making him the first Russian and only fourth non Canadian to win the Award.
One star the Penguins did need to come up with a huge game was netminder Marc-Andre Fleury and boy did he delivery. Fleury played arguably his best game of the series in game seven exercising all of his Joe Louis Arena demons in the process. Going into the game most felt that Pittsburgh needed a strong game from everyone on the ice to ultimately hoist the cup and that's exactly what they got. Pittsburgh was sharper than Detroit from start to finish including the man who came to the Red Wings in the offseason from Pittsburgh in one Marian Hossa. It was the ultimate irony as Hossa not only did not win a Stanley Cup in Detroit but he lost to the team he left because he felt he'd have a better chance of winning as a Red Wing. Hossa was a ghost in the final series and perhaps the pressure to perform got to him, or maybe we'll later on about an injury he was playing with but the bottom line is he left Pittsburgh last summer to win a cup and it was the Penguins who ended up winning the whole thing.
So congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins on their victory. This is a bunch of young guys who may find themselves in this position time and time again in the years to come. But for now, it is a moment for them to simply soak up and enjoy because despite their talent it is also something that may never happen again. Detroit will no doubt be back next year as they retool and get re-energized for next season, but for now the mountain top belongs to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The time is almost upon us and no one is more excited than I as the hockey world prepares for the 15 th game seven in Stanley Cup Finals history. All of the hype over the past few days will culminate it what we hope will be one of the best nights of hockey in recent memory and perhaps one of the best games in all of sports history. That remains to be seen of course but one thing we know for sure is that the Stanley Cup WILL be hoisted tonight and if that isn't enough to get you charged up then you simply don't like hockey. The fans, players, coaches, and media are all ready to go so the electricity inside Joe Louis Arena at the drop of the puck should be extraordinary.
So who will be victorious tonight and raise the Stanley Cup? Many think Detroit is the easy pick having home-ice advantage and experience on their side from having been here time and time again including last year over these very Pittsburgh Penguins. Detroit will also get last change so they expect to continue to hassle Crosby and Malkin at every turn frustrating them from the start of play until the final whistle. However, tonight's X-factor is the third line of the Penguins with Staal, Kennedy, and Cooke. They have played very well at home providing great energy and both goals for Pittsburgh in game six. The biggest advantage for them is that Detroit likes to match-up against every line man-for-man and as a result of that the Penguins third line disrupts that order. For the most part this series the Penguins third line has got the best of Detroit even managing to frustrate them a few times. The top players are going to play well no matter what but when it comes down to it Pittsburgh's third line has an edge over Detroit's third line. So will all the emotion flowing through the Joe tonight it is the third line of the Penguins that will be the difference in them WINNING THE STANLEY CUP. I picked Pittsburgh to win at the outset of this series and I will not back away from that now. Detroit has a lot going for them tonight but it won't be enough as the Pittsburgh Penguins will hoist the Stanley Cup for the third time in team history and first time since 1992.
Whether you're a fan of Pittsburgh, Detroit, or just a fan of hockey generally tonight should be an exciting and memorable night; for no matter what happens it should be a great not for hockey. Enjoy the game everyone!
The Pittsburgh Penguins answered the call Tuesday night to force game seven on Friday in Detroit. Pittsburgh used a lot of energy to dominate the entire first period and second putting up two goals before Detroit could get on the board. A few interesting notes about Tuesday's game are as follows: Sidney Crosby only played 17 minutes while Tyler Kennedy played 19; neither Malkin nor Crosby figured in on the score sheet; the players (excluding goaltenders) who had the best game were probably Jordan Staal, Tyler Kennedy, Brooks Orpik and Rob Scuderi; and last but not least Chris Osgood played a great game and the Penguins still won. Marc-Andre Fleury huge because he kept Detroit out of the net toward the end of the game which was exactly how Pittsburgh needed him to play after yielding five goals in game five. No save was any bigger than the breakaway save on Dan Cleary which probably would have put the Penguins behind the eight ball in terms of momentum.
On the other end were the Detroit Red Wings who were outplayed for most of the night but all-in-all did not play a bad game. Detroit was able to completely shut Malkin and Crosby out –at least kept them both off the score sheet—which most people ahead of time would have said that Detroit completing such a task would result in them hoisting the Stanley Cup. Chris Osgood also played a very solid game—as previously mentioned—a performance good enough for a victory on most nights. The unfortunate thing for Detroit was that they probably set out that night saying they would make the role players for the Penguins beat them on this night and Pittsburgh did just that. It's unlikely that the Red Wings will panic as a result but it definitely gives them something to think about going into game seven.
It's probably too early to make do any serious predictions about game seven just yet. With that in mind it's probably safe to say that the sports world will be very excited in anticipation of this game. There are storylines aplenty as there have been all series long, and if nothing else the Penguins have garnered more respect from the Red Wings than they had before the series started. All of the stats will be thrown out the window once the puck drops on Friday night and it should be quite a treat for everyone from the diehard hockey fan to the casual fan of sport. Let the hype begin as Pittsburgh and Detroit prepare for a one game playoff for the Stanley Cup!
After game three the tide had indeed turned in favor of the Pittsburgh Penguins as they parlayed their momentum into a 4-2 game four win to even the series at two. That momentum carried into the first period of game five which saw the Penguins outshoot Detroit 10-8 but resulting in the Red Wings taking a 1-0 first period lead. Then the wheels fell off… Three straight power play goals put the Red Wings ahead 4-0 and they never looked back. Pittsburgh lost its composure as they continued to tack up the penalties that ultimately led to the dismissal of Marc-Andre Fleury and a 5-0 Detroit win putting them only one win from their second straight Stanley Cup Title and Pittsburgh's second straight finals loss. Fortunately for the Penguins the score does not carry over into the next game so they can start anew as they face series elimination prior to game seven for the first time in these playoffs and only the third time in the last two years. All Pittsburgh has to do in game six is forget about the second period of that game and return to their first period form of game five—and with the home crowd on their side that should be fairly easy to accomplish. There is no need for them to panic because they have amazing skill, talent, speed, coaching, and leadership to aid them in forcing a game seven in Detroit.
For Detroit it's the same old story. They are one win away from winning their second straight title and fifth since 1997. They have allowed their experience and skill (along with impeccable coaching from Mike Babcock) to carry them through adversity by staying disciplined and focused. The Penguins can learn a whole lot from Detroit in how they bounced right back from dropping two in a row in Pittsburgh and having a game four second period to forget. As long as they remain patient, whether any early storm, and stay out of the penalty box (as they did Saturday night) they will no doubt be raising the Stanley Cup around 10:20pm or so Tuesday night.
From the causal Fan's point of view hopefully game six is as entertaining as the rest of the series had been prior to period two of game five. And I see no reason why it wouldn't be. If for no other reason excitement should build because for the first time this year the Cup will be in the house! Enjoy the game everyone.
[*Some of you may have noticed the drop off in the consistency of my posts the past couple of weeks. I was on vacation and had some unforeseen computer problems which did not allow me to post when I would have liked. But now I am back to my home computer and things are fine again; so thank you all for your patience and for sticking with me!]
The funniest thing about this series so far is that arguably the team to play best in each game has lost. In the first two games the Red Wings looked tired and broken down, were outshot by an enormous margin and yet they took a 2-0 series lead to Pittsburgh. On Tuesday night (despite scoring first) the Penguins looked outmatched and yet they were victorious. The difference so far has been timeliness goaltending and goal scoring but also in being first to the loose puck at the right time. Special teams have also played a major role as Detroit's penalty killing woes continue yielding two goals (including the game-winner) to Pittsburgh on Tuesday. So what will be the difference in the series as it rolls on? Pittsburgh simply needs to get timely goaltending from Marc-Andre Fleuryp; but furthermore they simply need Malkin and Crosby to each have decent games at the same time! The great news for Pittsburgh is that Detroit has played Crosby extremely tough and yet he still has a point, if that is as bad as it gets for Crosby then Pittsburgh has a great chance of not only getting back into the series but of winning it. Detroit on the other hand needs to use the time they have on Wednesday to rest. They seemed more upbeat on Tuesday and should be in much better shape come Thursday and perhaps that will help their penalty killing. Detroit also cannot continue to allow Pittsburgh to get on the board first because if they do then the Penguins will eventually get a two goal lead and build from there which can get to Osgood as has happened many times this season. In the end however it all comes down to who can one less mistake than the other team because that will likely be the difference between winning a game and therefore the series; and at the moment momentum seems to be in Pittsburgh's favor. The fans are pumped, the players seem relaxed and the hockey world in genearlly is strapping up for a great game four… See you on the other side!
Aside from Detroit's third goal (poor play by the defense and poor goaltending to boot) the Pittsburgh Penguins have been in each of the first two games but the difference is they have been outworked. Detroit certainly has a lot of talent but what makes them so successful is they pride themselves on their work ethic from top to bottom. No matter the skill level of the player each and every Red Wings works as hard as possible from start to finish and it is killing the Penguins. There is also a little bit of bad luck invovled–mainly potential goals by Crosby and Guerin narrowly missing by hitting the post each time–but bad luck does not lose you a series. If Pittsburgh wants to win they simply have to work a little bit harder; they do not need to outmuscle or outclass Detroit (they can't) but they can match their work ethic. By matching their work ethic they Penguins can surely win each of the next two games because that extra work combined with the home crowd, and the skill they already have can put them over the top. There is also the Chris Osgood factor, although he has played very well thus far he has been weakening as time goes on and there was a reason he split time with Ty Conklin this year and went into last year's playoffs as the backup to Hasek; Pittsburgh simply needs to keep going after Conklin the way they went after Varmalov in the second round and the way they did in Cam Ward (slowly but surely) in the Conference Finals. Pittsburgh winning game three means everything to the series and they can certainly do that. If the Penguins win game three then the series will surely change in tide no matter what happens in game four as they have shown they can come back from adversity. We'll see ya after game three everyone.
Ladies and gentlemen the time has arrived as hockey fans the world over gear up for the sports biggest club competition final featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings. The storylines in this series are plenty as the defending champs try to stave off last year's runner-up in the new and improved Pittsburgh Penguins. Beyond all of the hype and excitement is where we find the keys to victory for each team. For Pittsburgh they need to have their best players be their best players and have each role player take his role and embrace it every step of the way. If someone is in a scoring slump he shouldn't try to do too much to make up for the slack simply allow everyone else to fill in the void and focus on doing one thing and doing it well. Crosby, Malkin, and Fleury will have to be at the top of their game for sure but the team needs to rely a lot on last year's journey and the success of veterans like Billy Guerin whether it's on game day or at practice. Detroit on the other hand needs to overcome their health problems. The biggest hurdle for them is have played three overtime contests in the last round and are licking their wounds as a result. Otherwise the team has nothing to worry about as just about all of them have experienced an enormous amount of success. Unlike last year however this series will have a different tone and the Pittsburgh Penguins will use their grit, experience, and skill to raise the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1992 and the third time in team history. No curse here for touching the Prince of Whales Trophy folks, it will be the Penguins taking home the 2008-2009 Stanley Cup Title. Enjoy the Finals everyone!
After there game three and game five respective blow out wins the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings are each one win away from a repeat of last year's finals. Both teams looked very impressive as both their stars and role players shined in fairly one-sided victories. The Penguins had to flex a little more muscle because of the solid performance by Cam Ward that was aided by basically nothing from the rest of the team. Sure one might say the game was closer than the 6-2 score indicated but Ward still needed to get a lot more out of the guys in front of him to win and he didn't. In Chicago on the other hand, Huet getting his first start of this post-season proved to be a disaster as the Wings soared to an early 3-1 lead and never looked back. So for the moment both teams look to be in control and although neither series is over, a finals rematch is looming. As such, what could we expect to see differently this time around? The Penguins would certainly like to get off to a better start than last time and their year's worth of experience will certainly aid in that. It isn't just having lost in the finals last year but also having been pushed to the brink in the regular season (almost not qualifying for the playoffs) and in the playoffs when they were down 2-0 to Washington. Detroit simply needs to do what they've been doing and they will be fine. Of course the storyline to watch would be Marian Hossa taking on his old team as he left them for a chance to win the Stanley Cup in Detroit. Could the Penguins prove he made a mistake by leaving or will the Red Wings again prove their league supremacy? Perhaps we will find out soon enough!
Game two of the Eastern Conference Finals had a bit more intensity than the first and the contest was much closer than the 7-4 final indicates. The result of this game gives Pittsburgh a 2-0 series lead but the big story on Thursday night was the play of Evgeni Malkin. The Pittsburgh superstar took over the game in the third period scoring two goals in a row including a magnificent backhanded top-shelf goal right off of the face off deep in Carolina's zone that broke this otherwise tight game wide open. These are the things that separates superstars from the other great players; not only did Malkin break the game open, he stole momentum away from Carolina almost completely and scored his third goal unassisted and in an incredible manner. Nothing should be taken away from the rest of the team—including Marc-Andre Fleury who looked a little rattled early on but made some key saves at the end of the game—but this night belonged to Evgeni Malkin who helped make Cam Ward look human. Now the Penguins have a chance to smother Carolina by taking a 3-0 series lead as the teams shift to Raleigh for game three. Pittsburgh is not likely to take the series for granted at this point as the Canes have been resilient all season long and the Penguins won the previous round after going down 2-0 to Washington. On Saturday night the fans will be rocking the RBC Center and the Canes will not go away without a fight.
The Conference Finals start Sunday afternoon so before they get rolling let's take a lot at both series to see what we should expect from both and most importantly who will win!
Western Conference:
The Western Conference features the regulars versus the new kids on the block as the Detroit Red Wings take on the Chicago Blackhawks . Detroit won the Stanley Cup last year and are in position to be the first team to repeat as champions since they did it in 1997-98. This process is nothing new to the Red Wings and they'll be all business come Sunday afternoon whereas the Blackhawks have not been here in quite some time. Chicago is looking to return to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1992 where they were swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins . With those facts in mind which team has the edge? The easy answer is the Detroit Red Wings and rightfully so but there are other factors that play into this series that will make it a lot closer than it might first appear on paper. The following are what I think each team needs to do to win:
Detroit simply needs to remained focused on their goal. One of the things they pride themselves in is not retaliating to any post-whistle scrums, cheap shots, or “jaw-jacking” the other team might do which they have to continue to do. The Red Wings must allow their superior level of skill to shine through no matter the circumstances and stay out of the penalty box. This series is different from the previous two in that way because it is a natural rivalry that goes back to the 1920s and the early days of the NHL. But the most important factor for Detroit is going to be the play of Chris Osgood. There is no denying all that Osgood has accomplished but none of that is counted toward his record in this series. Osgood has played well thus far in the playoffs but if it returns to his regular season form at all the Hawks will eat him alive which would push Mike Babcock to insert Ty Conklin who was not much better over the course of the season and hasn't played in these playoffs at all so far.
Chicago has to keep playing with reckless abandon giving no credence to any of the factors going against them. Sure this is the first time most of them have been in this spot and yes the Red Wings greatly outmatch them at almost every position and yes Detroit is very methodical about their play from the opening face-off to the end of the game. Chicago cannot look to the other side of the ice and be blinded by the glare of Hart, Conn Smythe, and Norris Trophies and Stanley Cup rings. The young Hawks simply need to play hockey they way they have all along in these playoffs. They don't care who they are up against they are just a bunch of young guys who love to play hockey and are going out there to beat up on whoever they're playing. Most importantly, they will have to rely heavily on Nikolai Khabibulin's experience in goal to possibly propel them to the next level. If the Hawks can do that they give themselves a very good chance of winning this series. In the long run however I think the Red Wings will be too much and will send the Hawks packing in a very competitive five game series.
Tune in tomorrow for the Eastern Conference Finals preview.
Round two came to a close Thursday night and what a round two it ways. With three series going to game seven and the other an incredibly entertaining six game series the NHL should hold its head high tonight. Detroit/Anaheim and Boston/Carolina put the icing on the cake with two incredible game seven performances culminated with a game seven overtime won by the Canes over the Bruins. As much as I love hockey it has fallen from the graces of many people since the lockout in 2004, but this round has put the NHL back on the national map. Casual fans are tuning in and that base is continuing to grow as the ratings have skyrocketed as a result. Sports fans across the board have soaked up every moment of round two with many hoping the stage isn't set for the Conference Finals to be a letdown. But with the stakes getting higher as we move onto round three it seems highly unlikely that something like that will happen. The time will come in short order to look forward to the next round but now is the time to reflecting upon round two and simply appreciate what we saw.
The Pens and Caps stole the headlines with plenty of star power, the incredible story of rookie netminder Simeon Varlamov, and six unbelievably entertaining games including three overtime contests and at least one lead change in every game. The Pens and Caps not only put on a great show but they further escalated a rivalry that will be sensational for years to come. The other second round series in the east did not have nearly the amount of drama as the Pens-Caps until game seven.
The Bruins and Canes gave us everything one hopes to get out of a game seven. Each team had a lead at one point in the game with the Bruins taking the early 1-0 lead before Carolina battled back to net two in a row only to see Boston send it to overtime. In the extra period there were chances aplenty stifled by tremendous goaltending by both Ward and Thomas. And just as it seemed like the game was destined for double overtime Scott Walker buried a rebound behind Tim Thomas to score his first career playoff goal… and boy what a time to do it.
In the West the headliner was the battle between the last two Stanley Cup Champions in Anaheim and Detroit. Despite Anaheim being seeded eighth many felt the Ducks had a chance to put away the defending champs. The two teams battled game to game until the series finally culminated in a game seven that went the way of the rest of the series. Both goaltenders put on a great show combined with a lot of heavy hitting and lots of drama with both teams getting ticked at the referees at one point or another. In the end however the defending champs showed their grit by scoring the series winning goal with three minutes remaining in the third period.
Lastly we'll mention the upstart Blackhawks put away Roberto Luongo and the high-flying Vancouver Canucks. In their respective first round series the Hawks and Canucks traveled very different paths. Vancouver steamrolled St. Louis while Chicago had to battle to put away a banged-up but resilient Calgary Flames squad that had high expectations; as a result many felt the experienced Canucks would be able to dispose of a good but young Blackhawks squad whose “time was yet to come.” The people in Chicago—fans and players alike—had different plans as the young squad played each game like they had been there before withstanding early leads by Vancouver and eventually busting through the brick wall that is Roberto Luongo to advance to the Conference Finals.
Perhaps one of the best playoff rounds in any sport ever… and we've still got two rounds to go. See you in the Conference Finals everybody!
Yet another series is game seven bound in the Eastern Conference after Boston's 4-1 thrashing of Carolina Tuesday night. Unlike the Pens-Caps series however, this series has lacked any drama from the prospective of the casual fan. Each goaltender has been hot in some games while the other was hot in others but never at the same time and aside from a 3-2 overtime win by Carolina in game three there has been nothing to write home about. Perhaps the most exciting thing about the series generally is that Carolina took a 3-1 lead on the seemingly high-flying top-seeded Bruins who some thought my cruise into the Conference Finals. The Canes certainly showed their worth having taken a 3-1 lead over the mighty Bruins, a Bruins team that has since flexed its muscle to force game seven. So why should anybody watch the Bruins-Canes finale Thursday night? Because both teams will be pressing hard, the energy from the fans will be high and you better believe both netminders will be fired up and on their respective games. Because Boston could be yet another one seed that fails to reach the finals and be eliminated by a sixth seeded team to boot. Because no matter how good the game is Thursday night the Bruins fans will not be satisfied and although they may applaud their team at the game's conclusion they will NOT be so kind in the time to follow. The Boston sports teams have been so successful in recent years that the Bruins losing will be quite gratifying for follows of sports generally outside of New England. But if none of that appeals to you then there's always the fact that game sevens generally consists of some of the best hockey you'll ever see so if you pass on this one you'll be kicking yourself for some time to come.
What else should anybody have expected but to see Pittsburgh and Washington go to a seventh game. After an intense back and forth battle Monday night both teams will have to retool and focus their energies on playing what is all but certain to be another incredible match-up. The difference in the game will likely not be Washington having home ice advantage, or superstar play from Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin, Semin, etc, but it will come down to the goaltenders. Sure it seems obvious that the last line of defense will determine who wins and who loses but it is more than the obvious. Which of the two will make the big save at the right time and who will make the easy save when it's necessary? Which will push the play up the ice when the puck comes into his respective zone or make a simple play when a simple play is required rather than trying to be a hero with the puck? Smart play from the netminders, not just great saves, will be the difference in game seven. As the games have gone on Varlamov has been the one people are waiting to fall apart, and it was believed that finally happened in game four. But he has stood his ground and been able to battle back from the adversity he faced. The series is six games old and he has not caved yet and he won't—quite frankly neither will Fleury. Varlamov has played well but Fleury has another level to take his game to, it's a level we saw last year in game five of the finals and it's a level we'll see Wednesday night. Because of Fleury kicking it into another gear he will simply outduel Varlamov and the Penguins will head into round three.
PS This is my 100 th entry. Thanks very much to everyone who reads these and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them. Here's to the next 100!
Round 1 of Crosby versus Ovechkin goes to Ovie as the Washington Capitals outlasted the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 Saturday at Verizon Center. Based on the flow of the game this should be a pretty long series that goes back and forth. The difference in the game (aside from an incredible save by Simeon Varlamov) was Washington's stellar power play outdueling a “headscratchingly” bad power play for the Pittsburgh Penguins. If the Penguins want to win the series they have to get their power play to at least be mediocre. Right now they have an enormous amount of talent on their power play unit but they are wasting it by setting it up poorly. Set up two power play lines that splits up Malkin and Crosby and better utilizes Kunitz and Guerin so that there is a line with say Crosby and Guerin and another line with Kunitz and Malkin. Splitting up the time certainly can't hurt nor could making any change to it really because it hasn't worked. The Penguins are really only one power play goal per game away from being a completely unstoppable team offensively. The Capitals on the other hand just have to keep doing what they've been doing. Keep dominating on their power play while playing fairly strong at even strength. Their speed and skill cannot be stopped with the man advantage (let alone a two-man advantage) so as long as they have that going and Varlamov holds up they are going to win the series. Another luxury the Caps have right now is being able to be aggressive without fearing being penalized. It isn't that the refs aren't calling penalties on them it's just that the Penguins are not making Washington pay for their mistakes. Bottom line, if Pittsburgh's power play gets going they win the series, if it continues the tract it is on now Washington will win no matter what else happens.
Out West, the Chicago Blackhawks made another comeback against the Vancouver Canucks Saturday night erasing Vancouver's early two goal lead. Only this time the Hawks were able to make the comeback stick and went on to defeat the Canucks 6-3 tying their series at one heading to Chicago. Saturday's loss was the first for Vancouver in these playoffs and won't be their last as they are on a collision course with elimination. Sure they have been able to get off to a quick start the first two games—barely hanging on to win game one—but Vancouver relies way too much on Luongo to bail them out on a nightly basis. Relying on Luongo worked well enough in the first series against a more inferior opponent but it will not work against Chicago. Vancouver needs to get a whole lot more from their big guns if they want to survive. If Roberto Luongo has to be Vancouver's best player for them to win they will be eliminated before the end of this round.
Round one could not have gone out on a better note with two game seven's ( Devils-Hurricanes and Caps-Rangers ) that did not disappoint in drama and excitement. I couldn't possibly say anything to sum the two games that are surely both instant classics; as a result we'll just turn to round two now that we know the match-ups. So far the sportsroids predictions have yielded a 4-4 record which I'll be looking to improve upon in round two.
Eastern Conference:
1. Boston Bruins vs. 6. Carolina Hurricanes The Bruins breezed through the first round sweeping the hated rival Canadiens right out of the playoffs. Despite picking Montreal to win (in the interest of not flip-flopping from my preseason Eastern Conference Champ) I had serious doubts about their performance down the stretch and how they would fair in the playoffs and sure enough they laid an egg. Although Boston swept the series the lame duck Canadiens probably would have made any team look like juggernauts. Nevertheless, the Bruins are very well rested and do have a lot of fire power, enough to have swept the season series from the Hurricanes anyway (not to mention the top seed in the East). So far Tim Thomas has continued his stellar play despite the doubts surrounding his style of play and his lack of consistent success in his career before this year. In front of Thomas are the likes of Zdano Chara who has been unbelievable for the Bruins all year and it continued in round one. Pair Chara's dominance at the blue line with a very strong core of forwards and the Bruins have all the makings of what could be a very special playoff run. Opposite the Bruins are the Carolina Hurricanes who are very much a different team today from the one Boston saw in the regular season. Ryan Whitney, Chad LaRose, and Eric Staal have played incredibly well thus far in the post-season each with at least five points against the best goalie in the game today in Martin Brodeur. The Canes also have a world class netminer of their own in Cam Ward who came up huge for them all season and certainly in the playoffs keeping them in game seven in particular. This team has a lot going for it on the ice with their talent but also their experience with key members from their Stanley Cup winning team of a few years ago still around. So what can we expect from this series? Well the goaltending for both will most likely be stellar but beyond that the comparisons end. Boston is more of a big bruiser type club that loves to slug it out and play a hard hitting, defensive type game. Whereas the Canes are a smaller, quicker club who will generate a lot of offense and as a result rely heavily on Ward defensively. Carolina is on an emotional high at the moment by they just finished a grueling back-and-forth seven games with New Jersey. The Canes experience will keep them in the series but the Bruins will simply out class the Canes and send them packing in six.
3. Washington Capitals vs. 4. Pittsburgh Penguins From one rivalry to another for the Pittsburgh Penguins as they plan to travel to Washington not long after deposing of the much hated Philadelphia Flyers in six. This is certainly the dream match-up for hardcore and casual hockey fans alike with both teams possessing an enormous amount of talent—namely Malkin and Crosby for Pittsburgh and Ovechkin and Semin for Washington among many others for both. So what can we expect from this series? Well the Caps took the season series from the Penguins 3-1 but three of the four contests were very close and filled with lots of intensity. The spotlight will certainly be on the Ovechkin/Crosby rivalry but those two alone will not determine the series. Both teams are going to need to get a lot out of their third and fourth lines as well as goaltenders. The top players for both teams will in all likelihood neutralize one another as they match up pretty well player for player both up front and on the blueline. So we turn to the third liners and it's the Penguins who have the advantage in that regard as they are the deeper team by far. Guys like Tyler Kennedy and Jordan Staal create a lot of energy for the Penguins as third liners and have been known to generate a lot of offensive zone action and that Caps simply don't have an answer for them. Washington had the advantage in the “toughness”category before Donald Brashear was suspended for six games and will not be able to play for Washington until game six of this series if there is one. There will certainly be a lot of up and down play in this series with a lot of passion coming from both teams and their fans. The buildings will be rocking, the media will be buzzing, and the tension/excitement amongst all parties involved should make this one of the best series of the playoffs. In the end the Penguins depth advantage will lead them to a six game series victory over the high flying Capitals.
Tune in next time (Thursday) for a preview of the Western Conference Semis.
Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins who overcame a 3-0 second period deficit on the road against the Philadelphia Flyers Saturday afternoon. The Flyers had a loud home crowd behind them, with all the momentum in the world and were seemingly headed toward pushing the series to a seventh game Monday night in Pittsburgh. However, the Penguins remained calm and the Stanley Cup finalists from a year ago used that experience to not only battle back but to score five unanswered goals to ruin the day for the Flyers and ending their season. The big stars— Malkin , Crosby , and Fleury—all played a major role in getting Pittsburgh back to the second round as you might expect, but it was role player Maxine Talbot who got the ball rolling. At 4:21 of the second period Talbot engaged Daniel Carcillo in a fight that by all accounts Talbot lost. As a result of the fight the Flyer bench was pumped up and the fans went absolutely crazy! There was one problem for Philly and that was the effect the fight had on the Penguins bench. Up to that point the Penguins had not lost composure but they also did not have a great amount of energy coming from the bench; but after Talbot's fight the players were jolted with a surge of electricity as they suddenly came to life and 14 seconds later Ruslan Fedetanko got the Penguins on the board. It was the beginning of the end for the Flyers when Fedetanko scored and it teaches everyone a valuable lesson about fighting. If your team is up 3-0 with all the momentum in the world and the other team is fairly deflated DO NOT FIGHT! You cannot give that other side anything to go on, simply frustrate them by not engaging in their antics and continue to bury them on the scoreboard. If not, then you re-invigorate the other side and give them something to build off of. So while guys like Crosby put the numbers on the scoreboard, the Penguins owe a debt of gratitude to Max Talbot for being smart enough to engaged the Flyers in battle, ultimately being the springboard to Pittsburgh's success. So Kudos to Max Talbot and shame on you Daniel Carcillo for obliging to Talbot's request; now Philly can thank Pittsburgh for sending them to the golf course two years in a row.
What an incredible night for Marc-Andre Fleury in Philadelphia as he helped the Pittsburgh Penguins get a strangle hold on that series. Not to be outdone however where the Canes and Devils who played a game that had quite an ending Tuesday night and that's where we'll start.
Coming into Tuesday's game the Devils and Canes had traded overtime wins on the other team's home ice and despite New Jersey's dominating game one performance this looks like it can be quite a series. Carolina came out of the gates blazing building a 3-0 lead that was kept from getting worse by Martin Brodeur's stellar play. The Devils were dominated for 39 minutes 30 seconds until Brian Gionta netted New Jersey's first goal as the second period came to a close ripping the momentum from Carolina's grasp. In the first nine minutes of the third period the Devils road the momentum into the net twice more to tie the game at three and looked to have taken control of game four. As the third period came to a close the contest looked destined for overtime where by all accounts the Devils would have held a marked advantage; NOT SO FAST! With time winding down in the third the Canes blast a shot from the blue-line that clips a skate in front and gets by Brodeur with only .2 seconds remaining! The goal was one of the most incredible plays in playoff history and perhaps in all of hockey. Buzzer beaters are a common occurrence in basketball but certainly not in hockey. For those of us who were able to catch the game witnessed history in the making. There really is no such thing as a bad shot in the playoffs, just ask the Carolina Hurricanes. The series is now tied at two and the story will just keep getting better.
Meanwhile in Philadelphia, Penguins netminder Marc-Andre Fleury was frustrating tens of thousands of Flyer fans by turning in one of the best performances of this young playoff season. After Crosby quieted the crowd by getting the Penguins on the board first Fleury did his part in keeping them silent for most of the rest of the game. Fleury was by far the best penalty killer for Pittsburgh who seemed to give the Flyers every chance in the world to allow Philly back into the game by taking Penalty after Penalty. But every chance Philly got was turned away by the absolute brilliance of Fleury. The final scored ended up being 3-1 Penguins but if not for Fleury the Penguins may very well have lost the game 5-3. Although he had some confidence issues this year the Penguins goaltender always seems to show up when the game is most important. Take note ladies and gentlemen because we may be witnessing the early stages of what could be a Conn Smythe Trophy candidate come early June. Pittsburgh now has a commanding 3-1 lead over the Flyers heading back to the Steel City for game five and a potential close out night. If the handshake line is indeed formed on Thursday night Flyers fans can address their complaints to Marc-Andre Fleury
Well the playoffs are now in full swing as every series will have played two games by the end of Saturday. So let's take a look and how the respective series are unfolding:
Eastern Conference
1. Boston Bruins VS 8.Montreal Canadiens The final score of game one was about what everybody expected but the level of competition between the two clubs was probably higher than most thought. Boston roared out to a 2-0 lead but the Canadiens battled back to tie the game at two before ultimately going down 4-2. But the rivalry is hot and despite the perception of a major mismatch it doesn't seem likely to be over anytime soon. Game 2 is tonight before the series shifts back to Montreal so we'll see what surprises are in store for us.
2. Washington Capitals VS 7. New York Rangers Jose Theodore didn't make it past the first game as he was benched for rookie back up netminder Simeon Varlamov after Washington's 4-3 loss at home to the Rangers. Again many people felt the Rangers were completely outmatch by the fire power of the Capitals and that the only chance the Rangers had offensively is if Theodore didn't play well. Theodore did not play all that well in game one and the Rangers stole one from Washington but surely things would be different now that Theodore was benched. Varlamov did indeed play very well in net for Washington Saturday afternoon as the Rangers were only able to net one behind the rookie netminder. Unfortunately for the Caps Henrik Lundqvist was up to the challenge and shut Ovechkin and company out. Now the series shifts back to New York with the Rangers having a commanding lead and looking for the sweep. Sportsroids when against the grain in predicting a Rangers win in this series and so far the Rangers have no disappointed.
It's time again to sweep around the league to talk about a few of the stories developing as the playoffs inch closer and closer:
1. Number one Story of the night is the Marty Brodeur has surpassed Patrick Roy in wins to take the all-time lead at 552. There is not much more to be said about Brodeur at this point after the article dedicated to his tying of the record. If you missed it you can click here or on his name above.
2. The Pittsburgh Penguins are in the midst of an eleven game point streak which catapulted them from 10 th into a tie with Philadelphia in fourth position in the Eastern Conference. The acquisition of Kunitz and Guerin has been golden so far as both have contributed majorly on the scoreboard as they play the respective wings next to Crosby on the top line. Roughly 20 games ago many people suspected the Penguins were very likely to miss the playoffs or do little damage even if they managed to scrape by to get in. But now not only are the Bylsma led Penguins in decent playoff position by some of those same people feel they can not only make it to the playoffs but make yet another run at the Stanley Cup. Oh and don't forget about that Malkin guy who scored his 100 th point Tuesday night, they tell me that's kind of a big deal or something.
3. The Montreal Canadiens have been in a virtual free-fall for weeks now. Carey Price has been struggling mightily, Alexi Kovalev has been subpar all season long and Guy Carbonneau has been fired and replaced by GM Bob Gainey who does not have them in much better position. It was supposed to be a celebration in Montreal this year with it being the 100 th anniversary of the franchise with allegedly their best team in a long time. Now the Habs are in 7 th position and barely hanging on with Carolina , Florida , and Buffalo hot on their trail.
4. In the West the LA Kings all the way down in 13 th place still have a legitimate shot at qualifying for the playoffs. Only six points separate eighth from 13 th as the teams play “musical chairs” with playoff positioning almost nightly. Also, the Columbus Blue Jackets have surged as of late and really separated themselves from the lower pack in the West led by rookie sensation Steve Mason. Meanwhile the Chicago Blackhawks —who were once considered to be a shoe-in—have been struggling as of late and risk surrendering the 4 th spot and the first-round home-ice advantage that comes with it
All-in-all there have been a lot of surprises over the last two months and the league continues to entertain. Things you thought you knew just a short time ago have completely changed and that's the beauty of the sport. As fun as the last two months have been they are sure to be topped in the next few weeks. So hang on to your seats hockey fans because as great as it has been thus far you ain't seen nothin' yet.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have won six in a row, eight of the last nine and when five-for-five in their most recent road trip yielding them ten points out of a possible ten. Since hiring Bylsma, Pittsburgh is 8-1-1 with an increase in the level of scoring, a rise in offensive zone pressure and spectacular goaltending from Marc-Andre Fleury. Not only did the road trip go very well for the Penguins but in those five games, four of the teams are either in a playoff spot or are tied in points with a team who is. The addition of Chris Kunitz has been priceless thus far as he has netted three goals in four games and five points overall. Kunitz gives them a presence in front of the net they missed dearly with the loss of Ryan Malone. Along with Kunitz was the acquisition of Billy Guerin who has provided invaluable experience and a right-handed forward for a power play that has improved with every game since the return of Sergei Gonchar. Pittsburgh's power play scoring has not exactly been stellar, but the amount of opportunities they are creating is more than they have in months. The amount of movement for those with and without the puck has increased which is a substantial change from recent months and will only lead to more scoring which is key to the Penguin's continued success.
As great as the last ten games have gone for Pittsburgh they have needed to use every point gained to reach a playoff position. Right now they stand in eighth with 76 points tied with Florida and New York ahead of them and are only one point behind fifth place Montreal. However, Carolina and Buffalo are breathing down their necks and even a minor slip up can spoil this ten game party. Thus far the trades have been great, the coaching move is paying dividends and Fleury has elevated his game. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh they cannot celebrate their recent success too much because they almost have to go 8-1-1 in their NEXT ten in order to ensure themselves a playoff spot. The Penguins have certainly proven that this new look team can make a lot of noise in the NHL's second season; but for now… they just have to get there.
Every now and then I do a sweep around the league commenting on various topics and I think now is the time for one of those sweeps.
Therrien out – Michel Therrien has paid the price for the Pittsburgh Penguins' season of gravely underachieving. Despite having the league's top two scorers in Malkin and Crosby respectively, the Penguins are in 10 in the East and are coming off losses to out-of-contention Toronto and the lowly New York Islanders. Therrien is hardly to blame for Pittsburgh's struggles but coaches are usually the ones to take the blow when a team is struggling because firing players is hardly an option. Baby Penguins (Pittsburgh's AHL affiliate) boss Dan Bylsma has been called up to lead the team for the remainder of the season. Therrien stated he believes the now Bylsma led team will make the playoffs but now having lost two in a row to teams they should have beaten it certainly seems unlikely. The good news for Pittsburgh is that a lot of teams in front of them have been struggling to win games as of late keeping the Penguins in contention.
Rangers sliding – The New York Rangers have hit a bit of a rut lately losing eight of their last nine, including a five game losing streak and a 4 game slide that was extended Monday night with a loss to home-standing St. Louis. Tom Renney's job is in jeopardy and the Rangers are considering making a move for Sean Avery of all people to help turn them around. When a team looks to Sean Avery to “right the ship” that team is probably in a hole they will never dig out of.
Mathieu Schneider to Canadiens – The Canadiens—another team in a free-fall—have acquired defensemen Mathieu Schneider from the Atlanta Thrashers for two draft picks. Schneider, now in his 20 th season, returns to the Canadiens after being a part of their last Stanley Cup team in 1993. Perhaps Schneider's presence will serve as a morale boost but not much more than that. The defense may be sured-up slightly with him in the lineup, but in the end the Canadiens' problems stem from Carey Price's collapse, not being able to score on the power play, losing Robert Lang, and Kovalev having an extremely average season. If those pieces don't shape up then it won't matter what Schneider does because he cannot carry this franchise to the promised land alone.
There was a lot of action in the NHL this past weekend as there is every weekend but there are four big things we learned and should keep in mind the rest of the year:
1. The Washington Capitals are for real. They have been on a roll lately but nothing like Saturday when they beat the East leading Boston Bruins 2-1 at Verizon Center. And after defeated the new trap playing penguins (more on that later) and the similar defensive style of the Bruins who supplement that with great goal-scoring the Caps showed they can beat anybody and play any style. Their team speed breaks that trap better than any other team in the East and they can win high scoring AND low scoring games… the rest of the league should be on high alert.
2. The Pittsburgh Penguins have finally figured out that with all their injuries a change in strategy is necessary and the trap is just what the doctor ordered. In casual conversation with a friend on December 12 th I mentioned the Penguins need to run a trap if only temporarily to keep themselves in games until they get some guys healthy and sure enough a month and a day later they run it and win against the Flyers. Now they have won two of three and despite all the injuries are in a playoff position. The Penguins are now a team to worry about again and once they get guys healthy the teams at the top of the standings should worry… just ask the Flyers and Rangers.
3. The San Jose Sharks beat Detroit 6-5 on Saturday. They are not going to fade away… the Western Conference has been warned.
4. The Phoenix Coyotes (yes Phoenix) is a viable team and WILL make the playoffs.
The Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, and San Jose Sharks are the only three teams in the NHL that have shown any amount of consistency all year. The Pittsburgh Penguins once upon a 6 game winning streak, and now it looks like they cannot play defense or hold a lead for the life of them. At times Toronto has looked very strong at times and at others look very much like the young team they are. The New York Rangers started hot out of the gate and since have settled down a bit but are still playing well. Anaheim started pretty sluggish but now they look great and Phoenix was awful at one point but have seemed to put it together to become a much better team since the beginning of the year. Ottawa was up and down for a while got hot for a moment and now they are looking to have a fire-sale. The list of teams and stories to accompany them goes on and on, the point being, save for the three teams mentioned in the first sentence above we don't know anything about anybody. There is Panic in Pittsburgh with how the team has stumbled, there are rumblings in Montreal with how poor their power play is and how well the Bruins are playing. Bottom line is for players, coaches, front office managers, analysts and fans alike what is needed most in the NHL is to have patience with a team and that's what there seems to be the least of. See where your team is come late January early February and then start to Panic.
Lots of news, little time, let's go around the league in a flash.
- Mats Sundin has finally decided on a team, he's going to Vancouver. Great, now can we please stop talking about him?
- Detroit put a hurting on San Jose Thursday night 6-0. Be not afraid, the game means little because San Jose is still better than Detroit in the long run. I picked San Jose to win the Stanley Cup and I am not backing down now.
- My other finals pick (Montreal) ended Philly's five game winning streak on Thursday in convincing fashion. Despite a few hick-ups the Canadiens' season is going well so far. If Kovalev ever gets his scoring woes in order they will be in very good shape.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins scored 6 goals to defeat Atlanta by three on Thursday after a long lay-off. Any win for the Penguins right now is a good win but their defensive troubles continue to be a thorn in their side. - Yes Boston has 22 wins and 48 points good enough for first in the east; however come playoff time it will be hard for their overachieving players to keep playing at this high of a level. Kudos to their play so far though.
- The Washington Capitals are on fire, winning their fifth in a row Thursday night and looking tremendous in every facet of the game: special teams, offense, defense, and goaltending. Washington is rolling… remember them come playoff time.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are in the middle of a fairly rough stretch losing five of the last seven and with the exception of a 9-2 thrashing of the lowly New York Islanders scoring has been a problem. For most of the season to this point Pittsburgh has had trouble keeping opponents off the score board but were able to post enough goals to win games 6-5, 7-6, etc. However, not only have the defensive struggles continued but now the Penguins are not scoring a lot of goals. Games they have been able to come back to win or overcome blown leads by basically “scoring” their way out of it simply is not happening anymore. Injuries have seemed to plagued this team from day one of training camp and despite all that they currently sit sixth in the east but the standings will not be forgiving for much longer. No matter the amount of injuries, long road trips, normal slumps of a long season or otherwise the excuses have to stop. There is no position in the playoffs reserved for the team who had the most injuries but still did “pretty well” considering the circumstances. Last year's success has no bearing on this season and no one is entitled to anything because of what they have done in the past in professional sports (see the 2007 Ottawa Senators and Carolina Hurricanes of the last two years). There is time to right the ship but it better be righted quickly or Pittsburgh will have a bunch of talented hockey players populating golf courses everywhere come mid April.
ESPN.com is reporting that the Carolina Hurricanes have fired Head Coach Peter Laviolette just three seasons after leading the Hurricanes to the franchise's only Stanley Cup title. Although Laviolette led the team to the highest level possible they have missed the playoffs each of the last two years. Carolina currently stands second place in the weak Southeast division only three points behind Washington but have given up 10 more goals than they have scored thus far this season. The team's power play has struggled mightily scoring only 12.9% of the time and have won only four of their last 10 games and once in their last five. In a strange turn of events Laviolette has apparently been replaced by Paul Maurice who Laviolette actually replaced when he was named head coach five years ago. As it stands now Carolina would be in the playoffs sitting in the 8 th spot just one point ahead of Buffalo but the team clearly needs to turn a the corner. What this will mean for Carolina long-term is yet to be seen but Maurice will be tested right away as the Hurricanes welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday night. Carolina has plenty of talent in Ray Whitney, Rod Brind'Amour (although he's aging), Eric Staal, and a reliable goaltender in Cam Ward; but now that talent needs to produce wins.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are off to a very good start on paper. Stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are at or near the top of the scoring list and they are in good shape in the standings. However, their 4-1 win against New Jersey Saturday night was a performance that has become a rarity for the Penguins this year. Many times they have had to come from behind to win or have built big leads and struggled to hold on to them if they were able to hold on at all. Also, the Power Play has not been as good to them this year as in the past, in fact it has been very average overall thus far. The power play has resulted in one too many short-handed goals and their five-on-five defense has failed them on many occasions which is part of the reason they have such a hard time keeping big leads. The return of Ryan Whitney and Sergei Gonchar will no doubt improve the defense as well as the power play when Gonchar fulfills his role at the point which has been lacking to date. However, with both men returning from a serious injury there is no guarantee they will be able to play at a high level right away if at all this season. Bottom line, if the Penguins want to return to the finals and ultimately win the Stanley Cup they will have to play more consistently on the power play and defensively 5-on-5, otherwise it will be a long off-season of “what ifs” in Pittsburgh.
Let me start by saying I hope everyone had a happy and healthy Thanksgiving Day. There was not much action in the NHL on Thanksgiving, but since it was not Canadian Thanksgiving there were two games on the night one featuring the battle of Ontario, Toronto vs. Ottawa. Vesa Toskala has been taking an awful lot of criticism as of late (from the likes of me mainly) and his play certainly warranted that criticism. However, I have to give credit where credit is due and on Thursday night Toskala came up with a lot of key/great saves and although the Leafs lost 2-1 in a shootout if not for Toskala it could have easily been a two or three goal regulation loss. So I salute Toskala's performance against the Senators, and if he plays like that more often the Leafs can be a dangerous team.
Unlike Thursday, Wednesday had a full slate of action including two great performances by Russian stars Evgeni Malkin and Alexander Ovechkin. Led by Ovechkin's hat trick the Washington Capitals ended their three-game-losing-streak by defeating the Atlanta Thrashers 5-3. Also on Wednesday the Pittsburgh Penguins were down 3-1 in the third but Malkin's natural hat trick helped the Penguins get the come-from-behind 5-3 win over the suddenly surging New York Islanders. Sure there are a lot of other stars in the league but we should be very thankful to have them playing in the NHL because not that long ago both men would have remained hidden behind the iron curtain that was the Soviet Union.
Let me start by saying how great the respective ceremonies were honoring Patrick Roy and Wendel Clark. The Canadiens (Roy) and Maple Leafs (Clark) paid tribute quite appropriately to two guys' who each left different marks on the game but both will have a positive impact on the world of hockey for many years to come. In other news it was a showcase day for the original six teams who were all on TV nationally in Canada on CBC's Hockey Night In Canada and on the NHL Network in the US with four of the six matching up against each other—Montreal vs. Boston and Chicago vs. Toronto. Both games were extremely entertaining as they each had one team come from behind late in the game to force overtime with the former being decided in a shootout. Although both home-standing teams lost I think it was fitting that two players were honored on a night that ended in a very exciting manner. The rest of the schedule was entertaining with six games being decided by one goal five needing overtime/a shootout to decide a winner. All-in-all it was a great day to be a hockey fan; the one low point however came in Vancouver's 3-1 win at the Pittsburgh Penguins. In the first period netminder Roberto Luongo left the game with what appeared to be a substantial injury. We may never know what exactly is wrong with him due to the league's new ridiculous nondisclosure policy but nevertheless it does not look good for one of the league's best and most exciting goaltenders.
Tonight's (11/11) game between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins was billed as a rematch of last year's Stanley Cup Finals. And the Penguins 7-6 come-from-behind win in overtime certainly made a statement that the Penguins aren't still ailing from last year's Cup Finals loss. But the big story took a backseat to an incredible side-story that developed for one Jordan Staal. Entering the evening the promising young forward had been struggling to score goals and although his penalty killing continued to be top-notch many fans were growing restless of his goal-scoring woes; that is, until late in the third period. With the Penguins down 5-3 Staal gave them hope by scoring a brilliant goal in front of Osgood to cut the lead to one at 5-4. Detroit later answered to re-establish their two goal lead but Staal was just warming up. Staal scored the next two goals for the Penguins to force overtime and also drew a penalty toward the end of regulation setting up a golden opportunity for Pittsburgh heading into overtime. The ensuing power play was killed by the Wings, perhaps all that did was irritate Staal for as the game approached a shootout he pick-pocketed Pavel Datsyuk setting up Ruslan Fedetanko who buried the game-winning goal. Staal had 5 points before tonight, and left the ice with 4 in this game alone. So for all those who were worried, it won't be like this every night, but it looks like he's coming along just fine.
When is an injury more than just an injury? When it happens to Sidney Crosby. On Thursday night against the Phoenix Coyotes the Pittsburgh Penguins' superstar suffered what has been reported only as an upper body injury, which has him listed as day-to-day. Crosby's injury is a big loss for the Penguins because he is their best player as well as their on and off-ice leader. For the league as a whole he is so much more than a dynamic player—arguably the best in the world—but he is their most marketable person and the key to their commercial success in the United States. He sells merchandise and does wonders for national TV ratings in the US, that much is a given. Beyond that though is his ability to go on road trips to places that can barely keep decent attendance and draw sell-out crowds. Crosby is the type of player who people come to watch who barely care about hockey in general but sit in their seats or turn on the TV and watch in awe of everything he can do. The man changes casual fans into consistent hockey fans and I think his positive influence on the league cannot be overstated; so we can only hope that Crosby's injury is minor and the league is not without him for a long stretch two-years in a row.