Winter Classic a Mega Success

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.

On the rest of the NHL front there are a number of teams streaking in both the right and wrong direction. The San Jose sharks are currently the hottest team in the league as the smoked Edmonton 4-1 on Saturday to improve their win streak to eight. Despite the streak the fans in San Jose are cautiously optimistic as they’ve been down this road before. In each of the last three years the Sharks have posted over a hundred points—winning the President’s trophy last year—and faltered come playoff time. This year’s teams is by far the best they’ve ever had but the question is can they finally carry over this success into the post-season.

Another team enjoying recent success is the Philadelphia Flyers. Despite losing to Boston in the Winter Classic on Friday, the Flyers have won four out of five and have earned at least a point in five straight. There is a long way to go for the Flyers who have dug themselves quite a hole but it seems they have managed to turn things around and make a legitimate push toward the playoffs almost overnight.

The Calgary Flames are also in the midst of a four game winning streak after coming from behind to defeat Toronto 3-1 on Saturday. This is a team in a situation similar to San Jose in that they have had a decent amount of regular season success that they have not been able to translate into the post-season. Strong goaltending has always been there for Calgary but what separates them from last year’s squad is a much stronger blueline with the addition Jay Bouwmeester in the offseason who is a plus 13 to date. It is his presence that has helped Dion Phaneuf up his game a bit and also takes some pressure off of Kiprusoff which is why this year is probably Calgary’s best chance they’ve had in years to advance deep into the playoffs.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are streaking as well but in the wrong direction. With their 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon the Penguins have lost four in a row, scored only one goal in two games, and blew a 3-0 lead to the Buffalo Sabres earlier in the week. In a long season there are many ups and downs but the alarming thing for Pittsburgh is the way they’ve been losing. There is a long way to go and the Penguins have too much talent for such a streak to continue but they’ve got to find a way to score more consistently and protect leads when they get them.

The worst of the losing streaks belongs to the Atlanta Thrashers who have lost 8 games in a row after a great start to the season. There’s really no surprise it’s simply Atlanta being Atlanta until they show me otherwise.

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!

Winter Classic Ruined by Philly?

The third annual Winter Classic is only days away! There is plenty of hype about the mystique of Fenway Park with its stories baseball history and coupling that with the return of hockey to its roots by playing an outdoor game. The stage will be magical, the fans excited in stadium and out, the media frenzy is on, and the players are psyched as they day gets closer. However, despite all of that there is a strong possibility that the game itself will flop big time. Although the Philadelphia Flyers have made some strides recently they still are not a very good team while Boston is pretty well put together and getting a little better as the season goes on. Philadelphia has problems that go so much deeper than just tactics and strategy; it’s rumored that some of the guys do not get along off of the ice and I tend to buy into that because it is certainly being manifested in their poor on ice play. There is no doubt that plenty of teams over the years have played well and even won championships across sports with a group of guys who do not generally get along, but it seems to run deeper than that for the Flyers. There is also the issue of the Flyers caring more about winning the fight than winning games night in and night out which also needs to be addressed down to each individual player. Perhaps they tried to fix some of their off ice issues and on ice focus by firing John Stevens and hiring Peter Laviolette but it seems unlikely that changes coaches will help that. Thus far a coaching change has made little difference despite some recent success; I think that’s true because the problems for the Flyers come down to the players respecting one another in hockey terms. There is no doubt the Flyers have a ton of talent on their team but each player has to take do what they do best every night while stepping aside in some aspects and let other players who may do something a little better to take the lead in that area. But if the players do not respect one another then they will all try to do everything on their own with complete recklessness and it results in a losing team. It is unlikely that this will be made apparent in the Winter Classic because of so many extra elements surrounding the game [or so we hope for the sake of the event] but while watching the game keep some of those things in mind and see if the Flyers have made any strides in rectifying the situation or if they show why they are currently well out of a playoff position in the East.

Penguins Fly, Oilers Flop

Greetings puckheads, hope everyone in the U.S. 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.

The news is not so good in Edmonton as the team continues to struggle they have officially lost their second leading scorer Ales Hemsky for the year with a shoulder injury that will require him to have surgery to repair. It has really been tough going for Edmonton since making it to game 7 of the finals in the first year after the lockout.  Mediocrity has plagued this hockey crazed city and this year was finally supposed to be different. There was a new coach, a seemingly a brand new Dustin Penner , and they went out to get a big time netminder in Nikolai Khabibulin, all of which coming together nicely for the Oilers. Despite their great start to the season the month of November has been a disaster where Edmonton has only been able to muster three wins in 13 attempts dropping them not only out of a playoff spot but into 14^th in the conference ahead of only the Minnesota Wild.  With Ales Hemsky the Edmonton Oilers had a chance to rebound from this rough stretch, but with him out they will need more than just Penner to push this team into playoff contention and I simply do not believe they have the fire power on their roster to do that as it stands today. As a result the mediocrity will probably continue in hockey crazed Edmonton.

There is so much more to talk about but so little time. But I will say that the season has been incredibly entertaining so far and it’s only going to get better with the Winter Classic and Olympics right around the corner!

Seasons Greetings (Hockey Season That Is)

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 L.A. 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!

Bruins-Flyers In; Caps and Ovechkin Out

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 U.S. 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.

NHL Winter Classic Doubleheader?

The Winter Classic has been one of the best thing to happen to the NHL perhaps ever but certainly one of the highest points of the post-lockout era. So should there be two Winter Classics making for a New Year’s Day outdoor game doubleheader? The idea is this: first off it has already been determined that this year’s Winter Classic will be held at Fenway Park between the Boston Bruins and a team yet to be determined. What some within the game are lobbying for is a second outdoor game to be played in Calgary at the conclusion of the Fenway park version of the game. Among the supporters of this potential second game are Canadian fans and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC) because the first two Winter Classics have included U.S. based teams and it is unlikely the plans include a Canadian based team in Boston because NBC’s rating would most likely suffer. The NHL’s competition committee would have to approve of this second game and they will likely vote it down.

As a matter of practicality it is probably unwise to field more than one Winter Classic because part of its allure is how unique the event is. However, the underlying theme is an important one that should be well considered by the NHL and that is if this trend continues Canadian based teams will always be excluded from the yearly Winter Classic and that is an abysmal prospect. Hockey is by far the most popular sport in Canada, most of the  players on NHL rosters are Canadian born, and the support of all six Canadian based teams is second to none. The passion with which they support their teams by using their hard earned money to buy game tickets along with merchandise (both very expensive) among a plethora of other things makes them deserving of at least having a team in the Winter Classic. Sure the name of the game is money and the best way for NBC to do that is to increase ratings which will likely reach their greatest potential by having two American based teams in the game. But in the long run as a matter of principal these fans cannot be shut out forever. It isn’t fair to take one of the biggest contingency of fans and completely disregard them when considering what has become one of the game’s most sacred events. Even if there is ones team from each country in the game it is unlikely that the ratings will make a major decline since the novelty of the game still exists. As Sir Isaac Newton taught us for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction and if the NHL does not work to include Canada in the Winter Classic somehow it will surely comeback to bite them somewhere along the way.

Wrigley Field Shines, Second Winter Classic a Success

The second Winter Classic wrapped up from Wrigley Field Thursday afternoon in front of 40+ thousand fans who unfortunately witnessed a Blackhawks loss but were part of a historical experience they will likely not soon forget. The event itself was spectacular as Wrigley Field was set up perfectly with piles of snow scattered throughout and mini games going on around the main ice surface. The fan-fair was incredible and the presence of stars from the past combined with the rich sports tradition of Wrigley Field and the two franchises who are members of the original six NHL teams.

Unfortunately the game itself left much to be desired. It was off to a fast start as the game play was fast and the buzz in the stadium was unbelievable. Both teams settled in well to the elements and put on a great show in the first period combining to score four goals with Chicago taking the 3-1 lead at the end of one. At the start of the second period things slowed down an awful lot and the Detroit Red Wings took control by establishing their slow, puck-possession style of play which works as a great offense and defense. Despite Chicago’s fast start once Detroit cut the lead to one at 3-2 those who watch the game closely knew that Chicago as more than likely in trouble. As it turns out the game in fact slowed down a ton which worked very much in Detroit’s favor and they skated out of Wrigley Field with a dominating 6-4 victory.

Although the hockey game ended up being fairly unentertaining after the end of the first period it was a still a very exciting event; certainly things went well enough that the NHL should continue to stage this event once a year. But for now the Winter Classic is in the books and tomorrow things go back to business as usual as the All-Star game and a push for the playoffs are on the horizon.

Winter Classic Excitement

The NHL’s second Winter Classic is only two days away and the sports world should be in for a real treat. The Chicago Blackhawks have won 9 straight games and have recorded a point in each of their last ten. Not only is winning nine straight impressive but the Hawks have been putting away some very good teams including at home against Philadelphia and four road games against Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver and Minnesota. Chicago is getting great play from not just their big stars (Kane, Sharp, Toews, Campbell) but also from guys like defensemen Duncan Keith who has 18 points and is a plus 19 for the season. They are a solid team and are finally coming together to create what could be something very special not only in the years to come but this season in particular.

On January 1^st the Blackhawks welcome the Detroit Red Wings to Wrigley Field and rumor has it that the Red Wings are pretty good… Clearly the Red Wings are very good for not only are they the defending Stanley Cup champions but they are second in the West with 50 points trailing only the amazing San Jose Sharks who the Wings recently pummeled 6-0. Complimenting the Wings would take all day so I’ll just let mentioning names like Lindstrom, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa, and Frazen (among many others) do all the explaining themselves. Not only will the atmosphere be great but the hockey won’t be half bad either. The fans are hyped and the players are excited as face-off approaches. In two days the eyes of the hockey universe will be focused on Chicago, live at 1pm eastern time on NBC in the US and CBC and RDS in Canada. The wait… is almost over.

Welcome Back Chicago Blackhawks

It really is good to have the Chicago Blackhawks back in the playoff hunt; it is good for Chicago, U.S. Hockey and the NHL at-large. As it stands right now the Blackhawks are 6^th in the Western Conference two points behind 4^th place Anaheim and one point behind 5^th place Calgary but have two games in hand over both those teams. They are getting very good goaltending from both Cristobal Huet and Nikolai Khabibulin, and watching Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Jonathan Toews is a lot of fun now and will be for years to come. It is also very nice to see the fans fill the arena to see the Blackhawks who, to the fans defense, have not been very good in quite some time. That said, two years ago the Blackhawks were 29^th out of 30 in attendance average and now they are first with 21,481 per game. Watching these fans at the Winter Classic should be a lot of fun and come playoff time they will give the Blackhawks an incredible home ice advantage especially because it has been a while since Chicago made it to the playoffs. Blackhawk fans are showing what a great hockey town Chicago really is and this is just the beginning of what could form into a series of great teams in the years to come. How can you not love a team that has its own song? If you have never heard the song the following link will give you a taste of it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPBw45ETm7o . So to all those who think “no one” cares about hockey in the U.S. Chicago is yet another example of how wrong you are!

Exciting Winter Classic Preludes

The second annual Winter Classic (to be held 1/1/2009 at Wrigley Field in Chicago) is fast approaching and if their first two games are any indication the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings are going to put on quite a show. In their first match-up the Blackhawks built-up a 4-2 lead only to see that slip away resulting in a 6-5 shootout win by Detroit. Saturday night the two teams collided again with Detroit taking the early lead only to lose it to Chicago who again earned a 4-2 lead over Detroit. And again, much like the first game, Detroit battled back and ultimately got the best of Chicago in a shootout 5-4. Watching the established stars in Detroit (Zetterberg, Lindstrom, Hossa, etc.) face-off against rising stars like Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane is extremely entertaining; it is kind of a way of looking into the game’s present and while also seeing where it is headed in the future and boy does the future look bright. Having played two close games has only increased the anticipation of the game as the intensity level has taken a major leap as Detroit has frustrated the young Blackhawks who badly want to get over the hump that is the Red Wings—healthy animosity is building. If this all holds up the National audiences in the U.S. and Canada and those watching around the world are in for a real treat.

Short Blurbs From Around The League

I want to talk about a number of things in short order so a few blurbs on league wide news:

- Do not let Tuesday’s 7-2 loss fool you, these are not the same Columbus Blue Jackets from years past. People make pre-judgments about the team based on reputation only but they will make you bite your tongue when they beat your team.

- Yes, the Boston Bruins are that good. They may not dazzle you night in and night out but they play very good defense in front of Tim Thomas who is having an incredible start to the season. The Bruins will absolutely be a force throughout the season and I would NOT want to face-off against them in a best 4 of 7 series come playoff time.

- Brian Burke resigned as Anaheim Ducks GM (shocker…). Despite his denials he will most likely end up in Toronto and help their already ahead of schedule rebuilding process. Burke and Ron Wilson may knock heads but it will probably result in victories.

- The Chicago Blackhawks are once again relevant, THANK GOD. Not only is this great for the U.S. since Chicago can be a great hockey town if they have a winner to support but it also serves the league well since the Winter Classic will more than likely be a competitive and intriguing game.

- The Minnesota Wild have played the fewest number of games of all teams in their division and yet they are in first place. Minnesota plays very slow-paced methodical defense that puts teams to sleep, reminds me a lot of the Devils of the mid to late 90s and early part of this decade. All New Jersey did was win 2 cups in a 4 year period and 3 in 8 years; that’s good news for Wild fans.