Well start growing your hockey beards it’s that time of year. Let’s take a look at the match-ups and try and break it down. In the East, Washington and Pittsburgh are the same seeds they were last year and Philadelphia and Boston flipped their seeds but are still in the same seeding match-up. Also of note is that 5 of the 8 season series between the teams are tied.

If you are curious last year I predicted:

“As for Stanley Cup Final prediction I say Washington/Pittsburgh winner against Chicago. I’m not sure who I would pick and I know it’s a cop out not to pick a winner and not to pick between Pittsburgh and Washington but it really depends on how the goaltending for Washington and Chicago fair in order to pick. Part of me wants Chicago to lose in the finals so that Marion Hossa can be on the losing side three years in a row. The hilarity that would ensue for everyone but him, I know Schadenfreude, I’m a bad person.”

1 Washington Capitals vs. 8 New York Rangers

Season Series: 3-1 Rangers

Playoff Series History: 3-2 Capitals

Star to Watch: Alexander Semin, again, because he mustered up a whopping zero goals last year in seven games. If the Capitals hope to go anywhere, he needs to produce something. Marion Gaborik on the other hand has had a fairly disappointing season. He has sometimes been hot but he has also been cold. With Callahan gone, Gaborik will need to step it up.

X-Factor: Deja Vu? The Capitals never make things easy for themselves in the playoffs. In fact their last 4 playoffs series have gone 7 games each. Everyone remembers last season’s collapse. They also went the distance against the Rangers two years ago. How they prepare mentally for this series will determine how far they go.

Goalie Problem: The Capitals said they plan on rotating between Semyon Varlamov and Michal Neuvirth. Sound familiar? It should. Last season they planned on rotating between Jose Theodore and Semyon Varlamov. I think they really ought to go with Varlamov. He had slightly better numbers and he has more experience. As for the Rangers will it’s not a problem when you have Lundqvist and his league leading 11 shutouts.

Fun Fact: The Rangers actually scored more goals than the Capitals, if you can believe it, and they had a better goal differential.

Prediction: The Rangers are just lucky to be in the playoffs this year, of course last year they were just as unlucky to not make it; losing in the shootout in the final game of the season. Washington has tried a new defensive approach this season. While it didn’t seem to be working at certain stretches, the Capitals found themselves back as the top seed. I think the Capitals have found the right balance of what works. Capitals in five or six.

2 Philadelphia Flyers vs. 7 Buffalo Sabres

Season Series: tied 2-2

Playoff Series History: 5-3 Flyers

Star to Watch: Thomas Vanek because he is the Sabres most potent offensive threat. He is also a streaky player and is currently fairly hot. He will need to produce for the Sabres to have a chance. The postseason means it’s Danny Briere time. Watch for him to blow your mind a few times.

X-Factor: Can you say different directions? The Sabres went on a tear down the stretch to make the playoffs and where arguably the hottest team the last month. The Flyers went in the opposite direction… off a cliff and almost cost themselves the division crown. This series will truly dictate if momentum matters.

Goalie Problem: The Flyers goalie situation reminds of a lot of last years, very cloudy. A lot of options but no real good one. They will probably trot out their three headed monster clearly not what they had in mind and a stark contrast from earlier in the the year when Bobrovsky looked to be the guy. What the goaltending produces will determine the Flyers fate. I think it will be either Leighton or Boucher between the pipes. The Sabres counter with Ryan Miller. You might have heard of him. He should be 100% recovered for the series.

Fun Fact: Neither team had any player score over 80 points. They each had only one score over 70 points. Nothing new at all for the Sabres but kind of surprising for the Flyers.

Prediction: Despite the momentum being in the Sabres favor, I’m going to have to go with the Flyers. Though the Sabres clearly have the goaltending advantage, making me somewhat regret my decision. I think the Flyers overwhelming experience advantage will help. Flyers in seven.

3 Boston Bruins vs. 6 Montreal Canadiens

Season Series: Montreal 4-2

Playoff Series History: These teams have never met in the playoffs… jk . 24-8 Montreal. They last met two seasons ago when the Bruins swept them in the 1st round.

Star to Watch: Michael Cammalleri had a down season after an exceptional postseason. How will he do this year. Also the legend of P.K Subban was born last postseason. He has been brilliant at times this season and also played so poorly he was benched. How will he handle himself? He tends to let his emotions get the best of him.

X-Factor: I think these two teams might not like each other. The media in Montreal I’m sure will be at a fevered pitch. While the Canadiens took the season series, they came up flat in their “revenge” game. It should be interesting to see how each team controls their emotions.

Goalie Problem: The Bruins boast the best goalie duo and Tim Thomas should wrap up the Vezina this season. I see no reason why Thomas won’t continue his exceptional level of play. Although Thomas has actually posted some of his worst numbers against the Canadiens this year (3.22 GAA, .907 SV%). As for the Habs well lets just say that Carey Price has some big shoes to fill, as if he needed any additional pressure (See Halak circa last year). I seriously hope that if the Habs lose he plays well, so that he might be spared.

Fun Fact: This is actually the most played match-up between two teams in the NHL. The Bruins had 12 players score 10 goals or more, tops in the league. Both teams are tied for last in winning games after trailing in the 1st period.

Prediction: Really tough to say but I think it’s Boston’s turn to have the kind of run the Canadiens had last year. I think the Bruins just have a better all around team. Plus the Bruins have something to prove after being embarrassed in last year’s playoffs. Bruins in 7.

4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 5 Tampa Bay Lightning

Season Series: tied 2-2

Playoff History: Zilch

Star to Watch: I’m going to have to say Tyler Kennedy and Steven Stamkos. Stamkos is making his first playoff appearance. He was also pretty cold in the last month of the season. It will be interesting to see how performs. With no Malkin or Crosby, Kennedy has taken advantage of his opportunity and he had a breakout year. He will need to continue to carry the Pens offensive load with Jordan Staal. Those two will need to step up their game for the Pens to advance.

X-Factor: There’s a guy named Sidney Crosby that may or may not play. If he does play, advantage Pittsburgh. Of course there’s always the question of how will he play if he does come back? I think he probably won’t play until the 2nd round if the Pens advance. Strange how he lead the team in scoring when he only played half the season.

Goalie Problem: Mac-Andre Fleury proved me wrong and had a great season. He usually posts worse numbers in the playoffs but he finds a way to win tthe big games, except of course in Game 7 last year against the Canadiens. I’m really not sold on Dwayne Roloson being a playoff caliber goalie but apparently the Lightning are. He has only been to the postseason three previous times. The last time was five years ago with the Sabres.

Fun Fact: The Penguins have no wins when trailing after two periods, with a 0-19-1 record this season. The Penguins led the league in hits and the Lightning had the 2nd fewest.

Prediction: I have to give the edge to Pittsburgh in what should be a widely entertaining series. It could go either way really. But I can’t help but feel that the Penguins didn’t overcome all of those injuries and almost get 2nd place to lose in the 1st round. It just wouldn’t seem right. Penguins in seven.

1 Vancouver Canucks vs. 8 Chicago Blackhawks

Season Series: tied 2-2

Playoff Series History: 3-1 Blackhawks, including the last two seasons in which the Hawks bounced the Canucks in the 2nd round both times

Star to Watch: Toews and Kane had great long playoff runs last season. The question is what will they do for an encore? They find themselves in new territory in being the hunted as opposed to the hunter.

X-Factor: Dustin Byfuglien…. wait what? He isn’t on the Blackhawks anymore. That’s precisely the problem. The Blackhawks will find out exactly why they needed to keep him in this series. He was able to effectively get in Luongo’s head and knock him off his game. The Blackhawks don’t have anyone to do that anymore.

Goalie Problem: Both of these teams feature goalies that have something to prove. Luongo has to prove that he can actually deliver in the postseason. Having great regular seasons, he is coming off arguably his best season ever, is nice but it really only matters what you do in the playoffs. Crawford, while just a rookie, will be under some pressure to duplicate Niemi’s success who Chicago let go. The front office will probably get a lot of slack if the Hawks don’t do well in the playoffs and rightfully so.

Fun Fact: The Sedins are the first brother combo to win the Art Ross trophy back to back. They may also add the Hart trophy to that list. Speaking of back to backs, the Blackhawks hope to do what no other 8th seed has ever done, win the Stanley Cup.

Prediction: Truly one of the more compelling series because of the Hawks just making the playoffs and trying to defend their cup. Through in their recent history and the Sedins claiming more hardware and you have watch should be an awesome match-up. This is the year the Canucks revenge their past losses against the Blackhawks. It will be made all the more sweeter because they are knocking out the defending champions in the 1st round. Canucks in six. (Just to stick it to Chelsea Dagger)

2 San Jose Sharks vs. 7 Los Angeles Kings

Season Series: tied 3-3

Playoff Series History: Zilch

Star to Watch: Drew Doughty was simply sensational against the Canucks last postseason but he had a pretty average regular season. He will need to regain his form to help shut down the Sharks top line. Dustin Penner is also on the watch list for the sheer fact that he needs to do something.

X-Factor: The injury bug rears its ugly head. I can’t help but think that the Kings would be slightly higher if it wasn’t for all their injuries down the stretch. But such is life. Losing your top two scorers is never easy but the Penguins have been able to deal with it, so now it’s the Kings turn. Justin Williams should be coming back to play in the 1st round though. Getting by without Kopitar won’t be easy however.

Goalie Problem: Antti Niemi is back in the postseason just wearing a different jersey. He has turned out to be a great pickup and was red hot down the stretch. He will now use his experience to further propel the Sharks. On the flip-side Jonathan Quick will need to rebound from a fairly poor playoff performance last year. He should be more comfortable having a postseason under his belt.

Fun Fact: The Sharks are playing their 7th different team in as many series. In fact the Sharks have now played every team in the playoffs in the West except for the Wild, Canucks and Blue Jackets.

Prediction: The Sharks top line produced less that last year and in the postseason they don’t always produce at their best. The Sharks are a deep experienced team though, that has seven players with at least 20 goals. The Kings are still getting their feet acclimated to the post season and I don’t think they are mentally where they need to be. Still it should make for an interesting series. Sharks in six or seven.

3 Detroit Red Wings vs. 6 Phoenix Coyotes

Season Series: tied 2-2

Playoff Series History: 2-0 Detroit

Star to Watch: With Zetterberg out it will be Datsyuk’s job to carry the Wings scoring load. He will be matched up with Norris trophy candidate Keith Yandle.

X-Factor: Probably how the Coyotes as a group handle themselves mentally. Here’s a team that rarely makes the playoffs and now they find themselves in on back to back trips. They are also seeking revenge against the team that knocked them out of a hard fought series last postseason. They also might be moving, again.

Goalie Problem: Jimmy Howard now has a year of playoff experience under his belt and Ilya Bryzgalov now has three. Bryzgalov didn’t play all that well last year and he will need to play better for the Coyotes to have a chance. Howard had a down year this year and will need to pick up his game as well.

Fun Fact: Detroit has been to the playoffs the past twenty seasons and 56 times (not including their days as Cougers or Flacons) and Phoenix now seven times including two in a row. The Coyotes have never made it to the 2nd round. I think the Red Wings may have made it out… a few times.

Prediction: This is a match-up between two of the lower hitting teams in the league. I think we will have a repeat of last season, a close wild affair that goes the distance. The Red Wings are all a year older and that isn’t something working in their favor but I think they will prevail anyway. Red Wings in seven.

4 Anaheim Ducks vs. 5 Nashville Predators

Season Series: Nashville 3-1

Playoff Series History: Zilch

Star to Watch: Teemu Selanne has generally been lukewarm at best in the playoffs. This possibly being his last season, again, it will be interesting to see how he plays. The Ducks will need to have the 2nd line continuing to score and Selanne was hot down the stretch.

X-Factor: It will be interesting to watch Shea Weber battle against quick wingers in Bobby Ryan and Corey Perry. This battle will go a long way in determining who wins the series. The Ducks’ playoff experience also outweighs the Predators’ by a considerable margin.

Goalie Problem: Pekka Rinne was probably the best kept goalie secret of the season. If it wasn’t for Tim Thomas he would have gotten more recognition but since he played in Nashville probably not. He should get a Vezina nod for his production. On the other side Jonas Hiller was having one of his best seasons before he got vertigo and well that’s been pretty much it. The Ducks have relied on pickups of Dan Ellis and Ray Emery to backstop them this far. Ellis will probably get the bulk of the load with Emery still recovering from his injury. Ellis has only been in the playoffs one other time as a member of the Predators. He was on their team for a few other postseason appearances but he never played in any of those games.

Fun Fact: The Ducks have the 2nd best power play and the Predators have the 5th worst. The Ducks have the 5th most penalty minutes and the Predators have the 2nd fewest. Both of these teams are tied for 4th in wins when leading after the 1st.

Prediction: The Predators are 0-5 in getting out of the 1st round and I don’t see that changing. The Ducks are red hot and they are loaded with prime time players that excel in the playoffs. Still I think it’s likely all the home teams will win. Ducks in seven.

My Stanley Cup prediction is Washington over Vancouver. Washington will probably play Boston in the conference finals and assuming Vancouver can beat Chicago, I really only see San Jose and Anaheim as threats. It’s highly unlikely it will be 1 vs 1 but you never know.

1.) San Jose Sharks

Rear-view Mirror: The Sharks rolled their way to a second straight Western Conference title and advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2004. They then lost to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

The addition of Dany Heatley (39G-43A-82P) added to an already potent line consisting of Joe Thornton (20-69-89) and Patrick Marleau (44-39-83). On the backend Dan Boyle (15-43-58) paced the Sharks logging 26.12 of ice time per game, 4th in the league, and he was also 4th in the league for defensemen in scoring. The Sharks were the 4th highest scoring team in the league, they had the 4th best power play and the 5th best penalty kill at 85%.

Evgeni Nabokov recorded his best SV% (.922) of his ten year career and he also faced the most shots (2168) of his career. His GAA (2.43) was right around his career average but, along with backup Thomas Greiss , it was good enough as a team to finish 8th in the league.

In the playoffs the Sharks were led by Joe Pavelski (25-26-51) who had a breakout postseason with 17 points. A very welcome changed from a Sharks team that sometimes struggled to score in past postseasons. The Sharks pretty much owned the Avalanche peppering Craig Anderson with a barrage of shots. The series was only closer because of a few gaffes. The Sharks then almost swept the Red Wings pretty much demolishing them impressively. The Sharks run came to an end against the Blackhawks, where they seemingly couldn’t get much going. They were basically manhandled in the same way they manhandled their previous opponents.

Offseason Ins: Antero Niittymaki, Jamal Mayers, Antti Niemi

Offseason Outs: Evgeni Nabokov, Rob Blake (retired), Manny Malhotra

What Makes Them Tick: The Sharks are an experienced yet still somewhat youthful bunch. They have pretty much been through every scenario possible, except a Stanley Cup Final, while still being just below the average age for the league. They have two really talented scoring lines that rival any other teams. The Ryan Clowe (19-38-57), Pavelski and Devin Setaguchi (20-16-36) line is a great second option to the potent Thornton, Heatley and Marleau. Defensively Boyle will continue to log major minutes but expect Jason Demers to creep into more minutes. Demers just came off his 1st NHL season and along with Marc-Edouard Vlasic, both 23, they are the future of the Sharks defense. Vlasic led the Sharks in +/- with a +21. The Sharks were also the top faceoff team in the league, winning 55.6% of their faceoffs.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: The Sharks were looking to upgrade their goaltending, so the let Nabokov walk and signed experienced but somewhat unproven Antero Niittymaki. They also signed Antti Niemi to a one year deal. A great move for the Sharks but one that may become controversial. Niittymaki signed with the Sharks thinking he would be the number one goalie. While that may still be the case, the addition of Niemi certainly clouds that picture. Certainly the Sharks have upgraded their goalie tandem and how they utilize both will be interesting. Niittymaki only brings two games worth of playoff expereince to the table but Niemi brings 22 games and a Stanley Cup. Niemi is the first Sharks’ goalie to have won a Stanley Cup since Mike Vernon did so with the Flames. The Sharks must find a way to stay motivated throughout the season, even though they are only interested in the postseason. Losing Blake will be somewhat of a blow, with no other veteran acquired to take his place, but Demers and Vlasic should be more than capable to handle the load. They also need to cut down on turnovers, as they were the 5th worst in the league with 810 giveaways.

Player to Watch: Joe Thornton is in the last year of his deal you have to assume the Sharks would like to retain him for at least three more years to anchor the Marleau and Heatley line. Depending on how he preforms in the regular season and playoffs, he might price himself out of the Sharks budget. But in order for any team to want him, including the Sharks, he will need to step-up his game in the playoffs. This postseason he lead all players with a -11, a dubious distinction no player would ever want. This season and post season is a make or break, put up or shut up for Thornton.

Prediction: The Sharks hope to wrap up a 4th consecutive Pacific Division crown and a 5th consecutive 100+ point season. There really shouldn’t be any reason they won’t unless Niittymaki falters greatly. As always though, the Sharks season is measured but what they do or do not do in the playoffs. They didn’t really lose any significant pieces in the offseason other than Nabokov. However they have replaced him nicely with Niittymaki and Niemi. The Sharks have to hope that Dan Boyle does not suffer an extended injury as that would be a huge blow to the Sharks. The Sharks are once again early favorites to capture the Stanley Cup. Unlike prior seasons when this was the case, this version of the Sharks have learned enough mentally through past mistakes and have acquired the necessary goaltending pieces to make it into a reality.

2.) Los Angeles Kings

Rear-view Mirror: The Kings had their most successful season in awhile making the playoffs for the first time since 2002. They then lost to the Canucks in the 1st round in six games. During the regular season the Kings were one of only two teams, the Capitals were the other, that had eight players score 40 or more points each. The Kings were led by Anze Kopitar (34G-47A-81P) who set career highs in goals, assists, points, +/- and shots on goal. Kopitar also flirted with the league scoring title for a few weeks. Wayne Simmonds (16-24-40) in his 2nd season continued to develop into an all around player. While he was only 8th on the team in points, he almost doubled his point total from last season and he was 1st on the team in +/- with +22 and 2nd in PIM with 116.

On the defensive side Drew Doughty (16-43-59) emerged as one of the premier defensemen in the league and his hard work paid off with a Norris Trophy nomination in only his 2nd season. He was also second on the team in assists, +/- (+20) and points. Jonathan Quick became a workhorse goalie in his 2nd full season and played in 72 games, the 4th most of any goalie. None of Quick’s major stats (2.54 GAA, .907 SV%, 4 SO) were better than his previous season however.

Offseason Ins: Alexei Ponikarovsky, Willie Mitchell

Offseason Outs: Alexander Frolov, Sean O’Donnell, Randy Jones

What Makes Them Tick: The Kings boast an extremely talented and dynamic defensive group. Featuring young Olympians Doughty and Johnson paired with veterans Rob Scuderi and newly signed Willie Mitchell. With the young defensive stars having another year of NHL experience and the addition of another experienced veteran to learn off of, the Kings defense will only get better. Offensively the Kings have a very balanced attacked as alluded to above with eight players with 40+ points each. Kopitar almost had the breakout season everyone was expecting him too before he started to slump somewhat. He still had a great season but this year he should even top that. He should be a 100+ point player this season.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: The Kings will now have expectations for the first time in a long time. How they handle them mentally will determine how successful their season is. Kopitar will need to play more consistently as the Kings are 34-21 when he scores a point and 12-15 when he does not. Overworking Quick is also a potential problem discussed further below. The Kings could also work on turnovers, as they gave away the puck the 4th most with 815 giveaways.

Player to Watch: Jonathan Quick will be under a lot of pressure to preform this year, as the Kings have higher expectations. Quick faltered in the playoffs, where he had the 3rd worse (3.50) GAA and 3rd worse (.884) SV% of playoff goalies who stated at least four games. In order for the Kings to reach their full potential they must get good consistent goaltending from Quick. If Quick falters, the Kings do have a number of options. Erik Ersberg and Jonathan Bernier are two such options. Bernier was sensational in the limited action he saw last season. It’s no doubt that the Kings view Quick, the third goalie on Team USA, as the long term option. It might be wise to play him less games this season, as fatigue was probably a big factor in his playoff slump and the Kings possess more than capable backups.

Prediction: The 6th youngest team in the league, the Kings are poised to improve upon last years balanced success. Frolov and O’Donnell are somewhat significant losses but it shouldn’t have much of an impact on a pretty deep team. O’Donnell is essentially replaced with the Mitchell signing anyway. The Kings should pretty much be a lock to make the playoffs. If Quick can improve his game and Kopitar can take his game to the next level, it’s very possible the Kings could win the division. With the available cap space, I wouldn’t be surprised the Kings add one or two veterans to make a strong playoff run during the season.

3.) Anaheim Ducks

Rear-view Mirror: The Ducks missed the playoffs for the first time in five years. A huge disappointment for a team that was a game away from making the Western Conference Finals the year before. Jonas Hiller emerged as the number one goalkeeper when the Ducks traded away fan favorite and former Conn Smythe winner Jean-Sebastien Giguere to the Maple Leafs. Still he wasn’t as sharp as the year before and he had half as many shutouts (2) in 20 more games. In Scott Niedermayer’s swan song he showed that he still had it logging the 3rd most minutes per game in the league but he finished with his lowest +/- (-9) of his 18 year career.

Injuries also plagued the Ducks for most of the year. Ryan Getzlaf (19G-50A-69P) had various injuries at the beginning and end of the season and Teemu Selanne (27-21-48) broke his hand and then his jaw. Joffrey Lupul (10-4-14) started out the season playing in 23 games and fairly well until he had back problems that kept him out the rest of the season. Despite their injuries the Ducks managed to have the 5th best power play in the league, scoring on 21% of their chances.

Offseason Ins: Toni Lydman, Andy Sutton, Aaron Voros

Offseason Outs: James Wisniewski, Scott Niedermayer, Steve Eminger, Mike Brown

What Makes Them Tick: The re-signing of Teemu Selanne and Saku Koivu (19-33-52) was a huge relief for the Ducks. Now if the Ducks can finally sign Bobby Ryan (35-29-64) and if Joffrey Lupul is healthy enough to play, the Ducks will be boast arguably the best top 6 forwards in the NHL. Even if Lupul can’t play the Ducks will still be loaded. The Getzlaf, Ryan and Corey Perry (27-49-76) line is one of the best in the league. There are also rumors of a reunion with former Duck and team captain Paul Kariya. But those rumors were squashed when Kariya announced he will need to sit out this season due to post-concussion syndrome. Hiller is still on of the top young goalies in the league. He had stretches where he just didn’t look that great last season. But as he has shown during the ouster of the Sharks in the 2009 playoffs and more recently with the Swiss Olympic team, Hiller is capable of raising his game to another level.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: Not signing Bobby Ryan would certainly be a huge blow but that’s unlikely to happen. Injuries and the defense were the downfall of the Ducks last season and it could very will be that way again. Keeping everyone healthy especially the 40 year old Selanne will be hard to do. GM Bob Murray decided to scrap the whole defense after Scott Niedermayer retired. It’s never easy for any team to lose a future hall of famer on defense two seasons in a row. The Ducks have now done that and are hoping the late season additions they made last year (Lubomir Visnovsky (15-30-45)) , coupled with the changes this offseason of Sutton and Lydman will yield them a competitive defense. The Ducks are always one of the most penalized teams in the league and last year was no exception. They racked up 16.1 PIM a game 3rd worst in the league. The Ducks faceoff winning percentage has been taking a tumble recently. They were 4th worst in the league at 48.1%.

Player to Watch: Ryan Getzlaf is an elite player who boasts a impressive resume. Among his accolades are All-Star appearances, Stanley Cup Champion, Olympic Gold medalist and World Juniors Gold medalist. However, he has yet to produce a 100 point season or more than 25 goals in a season. Now entering the prime of his career and his 6th full season, Getzlaf will be expected to step up his game and also his leadership role on the team. The team captaincy is currently vacant and Getzlaf, a current alternate captain, is the front runner to receive it. Other options include the only other former Ducks captain on the roster Teemu Selanne and current alternate captain and long time Canadiens captain Saku Koivu. If he stays healthy, this could very well be Getzlaf’s elite breakout year.

Prediction: The Ducks can easily go from a mid seeded playoff team to not making the playoffs at all. They will probably get in as the 7th or 8th seed. The forwards, especially the big guns, need to stay healthy, if they do that they will develop chemistry and score a lot of goals. On the back end Hiller needs to play better than he did last season. How the defense clicks will ultimately determine the fate of this team. Luca Sbisa, acquired in the Chris Pronger trade, will really need to develop into a top four defenseman in his first full season in the NHL. He played well for the Swiss Olympic team, this past Olympics, with teammate Hiller. Sbisa is also looking to score his first NHL goal. The addition of Sutton will give the Ducks a gritty defenseman who will hopefully rub off on the rest of the defenders. Sutton was 2nd in the league in blocked shots with 204 and 21st overall in hits with 197. Though the Ducks as a team are physical themselves, as they finished 7th in the league in hits with 2050. But they could certainly use the help with blocked shots, as they were the 2nd worst in the league with 943.

4.) Phoenix Coyotes

Rear-view Mirror: The Coyotes had what you would call a magical season last year. They started the season unsure of whether they would stay in Phoenix and as such played to mostly empty arenas. But by the end of the season, they had flirted with the Western Conference’s best record, made the playoffs for the first time since 2002, recorded their first ever 100+ point season and played to packed “white out” crowds. Despite losing to the Red Wings in seven games in the 1st round of the playoffs, Phoenix accomplished a lot as a team and proved that hockey could make it in the desert.

Ilya Bryzgalov (2.29 GAA, .920 SV%) finally became a household name with his breakout season. He was 2nd in the league in shutouts (8), 3rd in wins (42) and he received a Vezina nomination. He helped the Coyotes to the 3rd best team GAA (2.39) in the NHL.

The Coyotes were an offensively challenged team, ranking near the bottom in goals scored. Shane Doan (18G-37A-55P) lead the Coyotes in points. Only the Bruins had a team leader with less points and the Maple Leafs leader (Phil Kessel) also had 55 points. Radim Vrbata (24-19-43) lead the team in goals, the only player on the Coyotes to crack the 20 goal plateau. On the backend Ed Jovanovski (10-24-34) and Zbynek Michalek (3-14-17) formed a formidable defensive one two punch.

Offseason Ins: Ray Whitney, Andrew Ebbett, Kyle Wellwood

Offseason Outs: Zbynek Michalek, Matthew Lombardi, Daniel Winnik, Lee Stempniak

What Makes Them Tick: Not really having a go to guy on the team means that opponents can’t really zero in on any one player to disrupt the flow of the team. Everyone chips in with their blue collar approach. The Coyotes do well in the shootout, where they had the most wins of any team at 14 and one of the higher winning percentages. They are a well disciplined team coming in with the 7th least PIM a game with 11.3. They also had the 2nd least amount of giveaways with 420. Wojtek Wolski (23-42-65) will now move to the center position and anchor the top line with Doan and Ray Whitney (21-37-58). Of course Ilya Bryzgalov is their biggest strength. Look for him to have another phenomenal season.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: The Coyotes didn’t really add enough players to make themselves a stronger contender in a very tough western conference. The offensive struggles of the Coyotes will more than likely continue which is not something you can realistically get away with two years in a row. Last season the Coyotes had the 3rd worst power play in the league but they did have the 6th best penalty kill. The addition of 18 year veteran Whitney will help, provided he can still prove his has some gas left in the tank. Michalek and his 9th best 156 blocked shots are also gone.

Player to Watch: Wojtek Wolski was the big acquisition last year by the Coyotes who gave up Peter Mueller and Kevin Porter. At the time it seemed like a steal, with Mueller struggling to fit in the with the Coyotes. However, Mueller flourished in the few games he played with the Avalanche and nobody is quite sure what the young Porter will develop into. The pressure is now on Wolski to have his break out season, especially on an offensively challenged team. Last season he set career highs in goals (23), assists (42) and points (65). Look for him to push towards a 30 goal 80 point season.

Prediction: It’s hard to imagine the Coyotes duplicating last years success. Teams will now take them as more of a threat. Key players like Doan and Jovanovski are now each a year older. The loss of Michalek will hurt the Coyotes without anyone really brought in to take his place. Still if any team can make it work and make a run for the playoffs the Coyotes could. Last year at this time things looked even bleaker for them. Kyle Turris the 3rd overall pick in the 2007 draft should see even more playing time this year. He is still low on the depth chart currently but could creep up fast. The Coyotes are also bullish on 8th overall pick of the 2008 draft Mikkel Boedker who only played in 14 games last season. How well these young guns can be integrated into the Coyotes, will determine their playoff fate.

5.) Dallas Stars:

Rear-view Mirror: After five consecutive seasons of making the playoffs, the Stars are currently on a two season streak of not making them. After an injury plagued year, Brad Richards (24G-67A-91P) played his first full season in a Stars jersey and lead them in assists and points. Defenseman Stephane Robidas (10-31-41) continued his exceptional level of play. He was 7th in the league in blocked shots (177) and 4th in the league in hits (269) but 1st overall for defensemen. Loui Eriksson (29-42-71) led the Stars in goals and was 2nd in points.

Marty Turco’s GAA (2.72) and SO (4) were pretty average but he had his best SV% (.913) since 2004. The Stars actually finished last in the Pacific Division for the first time since the NHL switched to the the three division format in the 1998-99 season.

Offseason Ins: Andrew Raycroft, Adam Burish, Brad Lukowich

Offseason Outs: Mike Modano, Marty Turco

What Makes Them Tick: The Stars are a very physical and great checking team. The lead the NHL in hits last season with 2338. Loui Eriksson is just coming into his prime and he should be able to produce another 30+ goal season. Paired with a healthy Brad Richards and gritty veteran and team captain Brenden Morrow (20-26-46) they make a formidable 1st line. The Stars have a lot of free cap space, so they should be in the market to make other improvements. Defenseman Mark Fistric (1-9-10) finished 4th in the league in +/- with a + 27.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: Kari Lehtonen is so far penciled in to be the starting goalie. Lehtonen is now entering his 7th season in the NHL and while he has played well, it’s nothing exceptional that you would want in your number one goalie in this day and age. So while he is not a bad option, he is probably only temporary anyway. The Stars have a few young goalie prospects that could come up this season or next. They include 2006 pick Richard Bachman, 2008 pick Tyler Beskorowany and the 11th pick overall in the 2010 draft Jack Campbell. Despite their physical nature of style, the Stars ended up with the 4th worst penalty kill. Like the Ducks, the Stars also struggle with faceoffs coming in at the 5th worst with 48.1%

Player to Watch: Jamie Benn was a relative unknown last season taken in the 5th round of the 2007 draft. However he was a standout player for the Kelowna Rockets in the WHL and was named to the all-star first team his last year there. He also helped Team Canada win a Gold at the 2009 World Junior Championships. Benn found a home on the 2nd line with the Stars in his first NHL season. He produced 22 goals and 19 assists for 41 points and 3 game winning goals tied for 3rd on the team. Look for more out of Benn in his 2nd season. He has the potential to be a consistent 30+ goal scorer.

Prediction: It’s a transition season for Dallas as the team shed two veterans (Turco, Modano) who most identified as the faces of the franchise. Playing in a fairly strong division it is not likely the Stars will make the playoffs and they seem destined for last place for the 2nd year in a row. However the Stars didn’t miss the last playoff spot by much, like a lot of teams out West. They still boast two impressive scoring lines and one of the top defenseman in the league in Robidas. The team certainly is not an easy win especially in Dallas. If Lehtonen or one of the young prospects can perform well in goal, anything is possible.

As you sit there in your favorite team jersey waiting for it to be October, let’s recap and vote on our favorite moments on the season that was. The 2009-10 NHL season was one of the most thrilling ever, featuring a Stanley Cup playoff race that was wide open. The 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs smashed many ratings records on the way to crowning the Chicago Blackhawks as Stanley Cup champions. Most, if not all, of the twitter tending topics that night were NHL related. Hockey is definitely on an upswing. Some of the points below I didn’t go into as much detail as I would like to have. However, I already wrote about most of it in previous columns, so sometimes it’s hard to re-write. There’s a lot to read and videos to watch, so I hope you enjoy it! (Trust me when I say it’s really long)

To break this article down, in the first part I recap the season of the Stanley Cup Champions, then I go into the biggest surprises, disappointments and awards of the season and other miscellaneous stuff. I end it with voting for the goat and the fight of the season, compiled from the best of those during the regular season from my weekly Between the Pipes column. Which I hope you all come back to read next season.

The 2009-10 Stanley Cup Champions

Chicago Blackhawks

What an unusual season it was for the Chicago Blackhawks. Their offseason certainly wasn’t boring. First you have Marian Hossa signing a huge contract worth 62.8 million dollars over 12 years. That alone brings up many questions like won’t he be 42 by the end of it? How do you even know how he will perform towards the end of the contract? Then the good/bad of the signing, Hossa wanted to play for a contending team and he viewed the Blackhawks as the team with the best chance to do so. Well that’s great but then you wonder, didn’t he think that with the Penguins and the Red Wings as well? How did that turn out? Next up you have Patrick Kane and his cousin assaulting a cab driver for 20 cents. Wait he what? There’s nothing like having one of your top players being involved in a ridiculous incident like that. Still the Blackhawks pressed on and opened the season a talented loaded team with one huge albatross around their neck, what about your goaltending?

Cristobal Huet was the number one goaltender by default, despite not being the number one last season, because the Blackhawks didn’t have enough money to sign Nikolai Khabibulin. As the starting goalie, Huet certainly didn’t make the regular season boring. First you had his 25.29 GAA average against the Flames in October, where he gave up three goals on five shots in seven minutes. Though to speak to the resiliency of the Blackhawks this season, Niemi actually came in and gave up two more goals in the 1^st period to put the Blackhawks in a 0-5 hole at intermission. But the Blackhawks ended up scoring six unanswered goals to win the game in overtime. Then there was the game against the Stars in which Huet gave up four goals on ten shots. Finally he gave up 14 goals over a span of three games, when the Blackhawks finally said the hell with this and made Antti Niemi the starting goalie. He did have some high points, putting together a seven game win streak and posting four shutouts. But he will mostly be remembered for plays like this:

Despite their goaltending issues, Chicago came within one point of the best record in the West. They boasted a balanced scoring attack with six players each having 20+ goal seasons. They also boasted one of the top defensive pairs in the league in Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. Antti Niemi started to develop into a number one netminder, hopefully vanquishing the albatross in the process.

The Blackhawks opened the 1^st round of the playoffs against the perennial stepping stone Nashville Predators. The Blackhawks lost the 1^st game at home and then the 3^rd game on the road to find themselves in a 1-2 hole. They seemed disinterested in the series and they weren’t getting the basics right. They managed to win Game 4 but then Game 5 happened. Game 5 was the kind of game that everything just went right, even when things looked bleak. It was the turning point of the series and the Blackhawks season. It was the game in which the Blackhawks got their swagger back. Let’s set the stage. Down in the important Game 5, 4-3, in the final minutes the Blackhawks try a final push only to have Marian Hossa get called for boarding. It appeared that Hossa was already working his curse magic. Instead it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the inexperienced Predators played aggressive on the power play, looking for the kill goal. The Blackhawks were able to get a lucky bounce on the rebound and storm the other way and then pull their goalie to make it five on five. Then in some eerie foreshadowing, Patrick Kane scored the game tying goal off of a rebound in what would be his second most important goal of the playoffs.

After opening the overtime period shorthanded the Blackhawks ended up in the Predators zone and Hossa jumps out of the box and sets up right where Patrick Kane scored the previous goal. The puck once again took a fortuitous bounce and Hossa capped off the impromptu comeback.

In the decisive Game 6 you could tell it would be the Blackhawks year after Brent Seabrook gets an unexpected goal against Pekka Rinne.

From there it was the highly anticipated rematch with the Vancouver Canucks. Personally I found the series to be disappointing, as most of the games were pretty one sided. It had some comical moments though, like when the Canucks self destructed in Game 5 and committed four penalties in the span of four minutes and 40 seconds. There was also Roberto Luongo being himself hot, a 1.00 GAA in the two Canucks wins and cold, 5.25 GAA in the four losses. The soon to be Conn Smythe winner, Jonathan Toews was simply sensational against the Canucks. He was also in the midst of a 13 game point streak in which he amassed 25 of his 29 points.

Next was the highly anticipated match-up between the number one seeded Sharks. The win total of the two teams far surpassed any of the other match-ups in the 2010 playoffs. Oddly enough, it was also the only sweep of the playoffs. I’ll write more about it below in the disappointing section.

Then it was onward to the Blackhawks first Stanley Cup appearance in 49 years to face the Philadelphia Flyers and their 35 year drought. The series was very good and each game had a point in the 3^rd period, except for Game 5, where there was only a one goal differential. I don’t know about you but that’s hockey I want to see. Nobody on the Blackhawks had a truly remarkable series. They won as a team as it should be in hockey, the ultimate team sport. Some players did have remarkable games though, as Dustin Byfuglien did in Game 5 and Patrick Kane did in Game 6. The thing I love most about hockey is watching each player on the team hoist the Stanley Cup and skate around with it. You don’t see anything else like that in any other sport, period. Just the player, the Stanley Cup and the moment. It’s something every player in the NHL hopes to achieve but very few get too. An experience so awesome that it brings tears to those that didn’t get to achieve it, like Jeremy Roenick the great Blackhawk for eight seasons and 20 NHL seasons overall.

You shouldn’t be surprised that the Blackhawks won the series, as we still haven’t had a team with a regular season goal differential of less than a +25 win the cup in the past 20 years, maybe longer (This is my favorite hockey stat). The Flyers had no chance with their +11. It also wasn’t all bad for Huet. As many of you know, Niemi was the first Finnish goalie to win the Cup. Despite not really playing, Huet was also the first Frenchman to win the Cup. Here are some of the Blackhawks celebrating with Jay Leno, gag.

Finally for shits and giggles here are some of the best user comments on Yahoo by fans after the Blackhawks were down 1-2 to the Predators after their Game 3 loss.

A Yahoo! User Thu Apr 22, 2010 03:02 pm PDT

“I can’t wait next year for the Hawks 50 year anniversary since the last cup we won! We’re not gonna win it this year cause we won’t get out of the 1st round but when they bring those guys from the 1961 cup team come out on their rascals i will stand up and salute them. I hope they make snow tires for rascals. Maybe the Caps will let us borrow the cup next year for the ceremony. We probably won’t make the playoffs next year with a new coach and we play in a division with the Red Wings, Preds, (who are embarassing us) and the Blues and Jackets will be better next year so we might be last in the central. I also can’t wait to hang that central division banner next year. The Caps can have the cup we have the central division! That’s most important.” (This guy feels really stupid right now)

tom c Wed Apr 21, 2010 10:40 am PDT

“I don’t care who wins the cup if Detroit doesnt all I do know is it won’t be CHICAGO….1961…hahaha. Get used to it and the Wings will win another cup or two before you do if ever again…Love hossa now don’t ya…”

Biggest Surprises/Best of the Year

Teams

Phoenix Coyotes – How many of you had the Coyotes getting home ice in the 1^st round and then coming within a game of knocking off the perennial contending Red Wings? Nope nobody did and if you said you did, you’re lying. Apparently Wayne Gretzky was holding them back. Kidding aside this plucky group gave it their all. They even did it with the possibility of being sold at any moment during the season and having to possibly relocate at the end of the season. Ilya Bryzgalov, who had a few previous outstanding seasons, finally became a somewhat household name. He was 2^nd in the league with eight shutouts and he was nominated for the Vezina Trophy. The rest of the squad collectively overachieved. Shane Doan was the leading scorer with a whopping 55 points and only one other player had over 50 points (Matthew Lombardi). Radim Vrbata was the only Coyote to have over 20 goals during the season with 24. Despite losing in the 1^st round, the season was definitely something to build on. More importantly it may have finally sold hockey in the Phoenix desert.

Montreal Canadiens – The Canadiens magic season can be summed up with two words, Jaroslav Halak. If it wasn’t for his emergence the Canadiens would have had just another 1^st round exit. But he did emerge out of the shadow of Carey Price. I’ll admit Carey Price doesn’t cast a very large shadow but Halak had mostly been his backup until this year when they evenly split time in the regular season. Come the playoffs Halak was named the starter but he really didn’t flourish until after he was benched for Game 4 and then he came back with a vengeance. He even faced 134 shots over a three game span against the Capitals, not an easy task. It wasn’t all Halak though, Michael Cammalleri, Brian Gionta, Scott Gomez and Tomas Plekanec led the Canadiens offensively in the regular season and postseason. Though Gionta and Cammalleri combined for almost half of the 46 postseason goal total with 22 goals. There was also the emergence of P.K Subban who stepped in for the injured Andrei Markov and perhaps even surpassed his level of play. Subban was loved in Montreal for his hustle, determination and skill and hated everywhere else for his big mouth. The 2009-10 Canadiens returned the storied franchise to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1993. Even a 1^st round series win is celebrated like they just won the Stanley Cup in Montreal. I’ll leave with two videos, one the crazy but tame celebration and one not so tame.

Best Game 7

Washington Capitals vs. Montreal Canadiens

I can’t think of a game that had me at the edge of the seat like this one, in quite some time. Despite the Canadiens winning the previous two games, I didn’t really give them much of a chance. First you had the Canadiens taking the early 1-0 lead on the power play, just 30 seconds into the game. But it was still early and the Capitals had plenty of time to come back. Only after the second intermission it was still 1-0 and then you start to wonder, maybe the Canadiens can pull it off. When Montreal scored with about four minutes left in the game to take a 2-0 lead, you realized you were watching history in the making. About a minute and a half later the Capitals finally score to cut it to 2-1 and then you think maybe they can come back. All you know is the final two minutes would be the most intense you’ve ever seen in your life. Then Montreal gets called for a penalty to make 5 on 4. The Capitals pull their goalie to make it a 6 on 4 and you think surely the number 1 offensive team can score a goal with a two man advantage to save their season. But no Halak comes up huge the time runs out and see Alex Ovechkin slumped over to end another season. Relive the final two minutes here.

Best Series

This one was really hard for me to pick so I decided I’ll name four and you can vote. I didn’t include the Stanley Cup Finals because well it’s the Stanley Cup Finals so it would be memorable even if it sucked, which in this case it did not.

Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings

This was an awesome series that we were sadly deprived of a Game 7. It featured lots of open ice action, some high scoring and sometimes some great saves. Watching Doughty shut down the Sedin twins was also great to watch.

Detroit Red Wings vs. Phoenix Coyotes

This series was also great. The enthusiasm in the Jobing.com Arena (dumb name) was awesome and Detroit matched it. There was a ton of open ice as well in this series and high scoring. Game 7 took a little bit of the luster off of the series. Favorite moment is the Shane Doan face after his Game 2 goal, who could ever forget that.

Boston Bruins vs. Philadelphia Flyers

Game 1 was truly spectacular and featured a lot of pretty goals and an overtime win. Game 4 featured the same 5-4 score as Game 1 and another overtime. This series will mostly be remembered for the Flyers and their great series comeback and never give up attitude.

Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

Hard to pick this series over the Canadiens vs. Capitals series but I did because you didn’t really know what you were witnessing at that point, plus I missed a lot of the games because there were so many other series going on. Other than Game 7 (more on that below) I thought this series was pretty evenly matched with great intensity and an always great Montreal crowd. Just love that atmosphere in the Bell Centre.

Biggest Disappointments/Worst of the Year

Teams

Anaheim Ducks – After coming within a game of the Western Conference Finals last season, Anaheim made the off season trade of sending Chris Pronger to the Flyers for Joffrey Lupul and Luca Sbisa. They had hoped to bolster their offense while securing another blueliner of the future for Pronger. They felt the addition of Lupul coupled with the signing of Saku Koivu would give them the offense they needed in order to make another run at the cup. Unfortunately while that looked great on paper, absolutely nothing worked out for the Ducks. Sbisa, while he will probably be on the Ducks blueline for the next decade, at only 19 was not ready for the big leagues especially with the crowded Ducks defenseman corp; he wouldn’t have cracked the top two pairs. Coach Carlyle felt it was important Sbisa received playing time, so down to the minors to dominate he went. Lupul was reunited with the team that drafted him but a happy reunion it was not meant to be. He ended up playing in only 23 games and was out the rest of the year with back spasms and a subsequent herniated disk surgery. While in the long run the trade might look kindly on the Ducks, they essentially traded Pronger and received nothing in return.

Koivu and Teemu Selanne, Team Finland linemates, never really developed the chemistry the team was hoping for when they acquired Koivu. Selanne also suffered two of his worst injuries in his career almost in succession, further dampening the Ducks hopes of a potent second line. Towards the last few weeks of the season, the duo finally blossomed and showed their potential but it was to late. But give credit where it’s due, Koivu was the Ducks MVP for the last two weeks racking up 11 points in the final five games. On the back-end the defensive core seemed to be okay with the trade of Pronger because the Ducks had acquired James Wisniewski and Ryan Whitney last season. Wisniewski played adequately but found himself suspended a few times, causing the group to not be at full strength. Ryan Whitney did not fit in well, especially at the power play point where the Ducks had hoped he would fill Pronger’s skates. He did not and the Oilers and Ducks swapped Olympians with the Ducks receiving Lubomir Visnovsky (further giving me another beyond complicated name to type when I recap the past weeks Anaheim Ducks games). Lack of chemistry and injuries really were the downfall of the Ducks. Next year looks promising though if they can bring back all of the key players next season.

Washington Capitals – There’s an old adage that goes “defense wins championships”. Apparently the Capitals have never heard of it. Coasting through the regular season playing in the weakest division and racking up goals like nobody’s business, these Capitals seemed destined for great things. They were the Goliath of the NHL. But unfortunately for the Capitals, there was also a David lurking named the Montreal Canadiens and their mighty stone Jaroslav Halak. Now don’t get me wrong the Capitals had a 3-1 series lead at one point, so it’s not like they played horribly throughout. It’s just when you play four series in three seasons and they all go to even games and you only win one of them, people start to wonder many things. I don’t blame the Capitals for only getting three goals by Halak in games five, six and seven, because lets face it, the line of Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Brett Hull in their primes probably wouldn’t have scored any more goals either. I more concerned with their lack of heart and their willingness to do whatever it takes to win. I’m also concerned with their defense. Mike Green is probably the premier offensive defenseman in the league but he’s nowhere near the top of defensive defenseman in the league. That’s really where the Capitals need him to be. He just completed his fourth season though, so barring something drastic on his part I really don’t think he will improve. The NHL really needs to do him a favor and stop nominating him for Norris Trophies he doesn’t deserve. The Capitals need to acquire better defensive talent and they need to become a more dynamic offensive team. I will give props to Semyon Varlamov who had a pretty good postseason. Unfortunately not many noticed it. Who knows though, the Sharks had a 1^st round exit last year and made it to the Conference Finals this year. The same could happen to the Capitals.

Worst Game 7

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Montreal Canadiens

This Game 7 was somewhat reminiscent of last years 2^nd round game between the Penguins and Capitals in which the Penguins destroyed the Capitals 6-2 in the 2^nd round in a hugely disappointing game as well. This time the Penguins were on the losing end. I’m still not really sure how the defending Champions would show up so flat footed at home, but they did. They lost the game 5-2 and were even down in the 2^nd at one point 0-4, yikes. As awesome as this series was, and it was one of the best of the playoffs, this game couldn’t have been anymore anticlimactic. It also showcased none of the things that made the series great, other than Halak playing well again. Marc-Andre Fleury was awful, the Penguins defense was awful, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin had no points and the game wasn’t close.

Worst Series

Chicago Blackhawks vs. San Jose Sharks

I alluded to it in the Blackhawks season recap but this certainly was the most disappointing series in some time. Normally you don’t get the 1 vs. 2 match-up very often and considering what we got in the East, I expected so much more from this series. The Sharks had just come off a dismantling of the Detroit Red Wings and the Blackhawks looked strong coming off their Canucks series win. Now none of the final scores had more than a two goal win but you just got the vibe the whole series that the Sharks didn’t have much of a chance, especially after they dropped the first two games at home. The score in those games were a lot closer than the game actually was. Nobody on the Sharks came to play except Patrick Marleau and they never scored more than two goals in a game. You can’t expect to win the series when you average 1.75 goals a game in the series. The Sharks also took a bunch of dumb penalties in Game 4 when it was tied 2-2, basically handing the game to the Blackhawks on a silver platter. Evgeni Nabokov didn’t play well and now I hear the Sharks want to resign him, yikes. He’s a regular season goalie, not a playoffs goalie.

Miscellaneous

Can only happen in hockey

Duncan Keith loses seven teeth – Duncan Keith, or how he’s referred to on the internet Duncan Teeth, showed the world just how tough hockey players are. While trying to keep the puck in the offensive zone on the power play, Keith took a puck to his face from a clearing attempt by Patrick Marleau. Marleau ended up scoring a breakaway goal because Keith was taken out of the play. But showing the true hockey player that he is, Keith returned to the game minutes later. Here’s a nice video on the play and what happened afterwards.

You’ve got to be kidding me

The Philadelphia Flyers come back from an 0-3 series deficit – This feet was made all the more impressive by the fact that they only got into the playoffs on a shootout win in the final game of the season against the New York Rangers. But the Flyers became only the third team in NHL history to comeback, joining the 1975 New York Islanders and the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs. Not only did they come back down from 0-3 in the series, they also came back down 0-3 in Game 7. Not to mention they had to switch stating goalies in the middle of the series due to injury and they lost their 2^nd leading scorer, Jeff Carter, for a month due to injury. I can’t think of a team that had to battle so much to get so far. Many thought this might be a team of destiny but their destiny ran out in the Stanley Cup Finals. Special acknowledgment goes to Danny Briere for leading the whole NHL in postseason scoring and for having some pretty goals along the way.

Iron Man Award

Craig Anderson – Now here’s a guy that had never been a starter in the league before or played in more than 31 games. He played in 71 games this season for the Colorado Avalanche, almost the same amount of games he played combined in his first five years in the league. He didn’t stop there, as he faced the most shots of any goalie during the regular season with 2233. He was one of the primary reasons the Avalanche rebounded so quickly. In the playoffs he faced the highest shot total of any goalie to play six games and sometimes he faced more than those with a few more games played than him. He finished the playoffs with the highest SV% at .933. Here’s hoping he can keep up the pace next year.

Team on the Rise

Los Angeles Kings – Something is brewing in Los Angeles and it isn’t the latest motion picture. It’s the first legit team the Kings have put together since Wayne Gretzky left town. They’re a young and deep talented team. Anze Kopitar at only 22 has seemingly blossomed into an elite player leading the league in scoring for a good chunk of the time. He did severely cool off towards the end of the season. However, I think this season was just a little preview of what’s to come. The Kings have a great pair of young defenseman in Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. Doughty is something truly special and his skilled were acknowledged with the Norris Trophy nomination. While I don’t think he will win it this year, my vote is on Duncan Keith, I think Doughty might dominate the award in the future like Bobby Orr, Raymond Bourque and Nicklas Lidstrom have in the past. Doughty was simply sensational in the Canucks series. How quickly the Kings can ascend, falls mostly on the shoulders of Jonathan Quick. Quick was a workhorse this season and will probably need to be again next season. He will need to continue to hone his skill in his 3^rd full season if the Kings hope to advance further in the playoffs.

The comeback that never was

Ray Emery – Nobody wanted to take a chance on Ray Emery because of his previous bad behavior but the Flyers desperate for goalie help decided it would be worth the risk. Emery started all of 29 games before suffering a torn muscle. He was later diagnosed with avascular necrosis and was out for the rest of the year. In his absence Brian Boucher and Michael Leighton led the Flyers all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. With the Flyers recently signing Johan Backlund and already having Brian Boucher under contract, its unlikely free agent Emery will return. I don’t think any other NHL team will give him a chance either and I’m not even sure if he is fully recovered to play.

Breakout of the year

Steven Stamkos – I gave it to Stamkos because he had struggled so much the previous year. It’s not easy to come into the league as the 1^st overall pick in the draft. Expectations are high and you are expected to perform. Stamkos rose to the challenge in his second year. Playing along side Martin St. Louis certainly helps but Stamkos is a special talent in his own right. Leading the league in goals in your second season is also an impressive feat. Stamkos will only continue to get better. John Tavares was another number 1 pick this year that put up almost identical numbers to what Stamkos did in his first season. I suspect his second season will end up being his breakout year as well. Craig Anderson would have gotten this nod for the regular season but I gave him another award. Jaroslav Halak would defiantly have gotten this award for the postseason but I already wrote about him.

Rookie of the Year (Calder Trohpy)

Tyler Myers – Besides goalie I think defenseman is the hardest position to learn. It’s not easy to try and stop the speed and skill of the top wingers in the NHL on a nightly basis. Myers was also the only defenseman on the Sabres in the top 80 in defenseman scoring. It’s very rare that there aren’t at least two defenseman from each team in the top 60. Leading all players on your team in ice time is always an honor for any rookie. Myers should compliment Ryan Miller for years to come.

Goalie of the Year (Vezina Trophy)

Ryan Miller – Goaltending has only gotten better over the years and there were a lot of strong contenders. Tuukka Rask came in a strong second but he played in 24 fewer games so I’d like to see what he can do with a full season under his belt. Miller had the 2^nd best GAA at 2.22 and the 2^nd best SV% at .931. Both were behind Rask. He faced the 4^th most shots and had the 4^th most wins. So while he wasn’t first in any major statistical category, he was 1^st in taking over a game. He isn’t perfect though as he did make a few of my Goat of the Week awards this season. But as the entire World witnessed in the Olympics, he can put on quite a good show. This past January I saw Miller play live against the Ducks. He didn’t start the game, Patrick Lalime did. But the Ducks chased Lalime after the first 10 minutes after he gave up four goals. Though the Ducks did manage to score one goal on Miller, the whole entire feel of the game seemed different when he came into it. It was if he told the Ducks this isn’t going to be easy anymore. It wasn’t. I hope that Miller doesn’t suffer the same fate Dominik Hasek did in Buffalo. That is to go cupless.

Player of the Year (Hart Trophy)

Sidney Crosby – Now before we start this, I am not a diehard Sidney Crosby fan. I think he is a great player but I do not worship the ground he walks on. Furthermore, I honestly don’t think he is the most talented player on his team. I think Evgeni Malkin is. Two years ago Malkin would have easily won my player of the year award (I know my award isn’t that prestigious). So why does Crosby get it when Alex Ovechkin and Henrik Sedin had just as good or even better seasons? Well first off, Malkin didn’t have the same year he had in the previous two seasons and a lot of that was due to injuries. So basically Crosby had to carry the Penguins on his back. The other important thing to remember is Crosby doesn’t really have anyone else on his line. Sure Chris Kunitz and Bill Guerin are good players but they aren’t great. Sedin has his brother Daniel Sedin on the same line and Ovechkin has Nicklas Backstrom and sometimes Alexander Semin. Crosby is the line all by himself. He also scored 51 goals which was not only tied for 1^st in the league but his own personal best. He had never even reached 40 goals in any of his previous seasons. He was also red hot in the 1^st round of the playoffs before coming back down to earth against Halak. I don’t think he has reached his full potential yet but I felt he was the best player on the ice this season.

Vote for the best of the season

Some were hard cuts particularly in the Goat category, so many goats this season. But I narrowed it down to three fights and five goats. There is no playoff goats so no Dan Boyle own goal or Halak stupidly playing the puck way beyond his net.

Fight of the Season

Cam Janssen vs. Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond

David Koci vs. Brian McGrattan

Rick Rypien vs. Cam Janssen

Goat of the Season

Nikolai Khabibulin misplays the puck in the final minute of the game against the Flames to give them the win.

Tim Thomas mishandles the puck allowing the Penguins to get the win in overtime.

Keith Ballard taking out his own unsuspecting goalie

Ivan Vishnevskiy loses the puck off his stick and into his own empty net

Antoine Vermette comes sweeping in and knocks it in his own goal.

1 Washington Capitals vs. 8 Montreal Canadiens

Season Series: split 2-2

Playoff History: They have never played each other, well there’s a first time for everything.

Star to Watch: Alexander Semin because he needs to step his game up to the next level in the playoffs for the Capitals to have a chance at the Stanley Cup.

X-Factor: With Saku Koivu and Alexei Kovalev gone Tomas Plekanec is the man in Montreal. He produced a goose egg in three games in last years playoff. He will need to play well for Montreal to have any chance.

Goalie Problem: Both teams have problems and they both might go with a two headed monster in net. But I think in Montreal’s case they stick with Jaroslav Halak. He’s certainly played better down the stretch and earned it. As for the Capitals they said the plan on rotating between Jose Theodore and Semyon Varlamov. I say go for it because if there is any round which you can afford to experiment it would be this one. Have them play every other game and go with the hotter one.

Fun Fact: Washington has scored 101 more goals this year than Montreal.

Prediction: The Washington Capitals should sweep the Canadiens unless Varlamov/Theodore truly suck it up.

2 New Jersey Devils vs. 7 Philadelphia Flyers

Season Series: 5-1 Flyers

Playoff History: 2-1 in favor of the Devils, last meeting was in 2004 which the Flyers won in the 1^st round.

Star to Watch: Ilya Kovalchuk because the spotlight is on him. He was acquired for the playoffs and now it’s his time to shine. He has only played in four games in the postseason before but he’s surrounded by a group that’s been there before. I expect the Devils to continue to jumble their top two lines to find a good fit for everyone including Ilya.

X-Factor: Can Chris Pronger stay out of the penalty box? He sure had a problem doing so in Anaheim at key moments. However, last year was the first year he averaged under one PIM a game in his postseason career.

Goalie Problem: The Flyers employed a three headed monster in goal this season and lost two of its heads to injury and were left with just Boucher. This is his second stop in Philly and he was last in the playoffs with them in 2002 where he only played in two games. He played well in the must win against the Rangers.

Fun Fact: Philadelphia had the 2^nd highest PIM this season while New Jersey had the 3^rd lowest. I smell fights though.

Prediction: Well despite the advantage of the Flyers in the regular season, the Flyers have played poorly down the stretch and are lucky to have made the playoffs. The Devils are still mad about being bounced in the 1^st round the past two seasons. I think they and Brodeur have something to prove, Devils in six or seven.

3 Buffalo Sabres vs. 6 Boston Bruins

Season Series: Boston 4-2

Playoff History: 5-2 Boston, though Buffalo has won the last two meetings the last one being in 1999 in the 2^nd round.

Star to Watch: Well slim pickings in the star category but I’d have to say Michael Ryder. Marc Savard is injured, Phil Kessel is gone and it’s up to Ryder to lead them in playoff scoring like he did last year.

X-Factor: How will Calder candidate Tyler Myers hold up? Myers was phenomenal playing for the Kelowna Rockets in the playoffs last year and he will need to deliver again.

Goalie Problem: Neither of these teams have one, unless you consider choosing between Tuukka Rask and Tim Thomas a problem. Personally I call that a luxury.

Fun Fact: If Tuukka Rask plays most/all of the round, this match-up will feature the top two goalies in GAA and SV% this season.

Prediction: Buffalo in five games because the Bruins just don’t score enough and goals will not be plentiful on Ryan Miller.

4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 5 Ottawa Senators

Season Series: split 2-2

Playoff History: Bad blood between these two. They didn’t meet last year as Ottawa didn’t make the playoffs but they met the previous two years in the 1^st round and here they are again. The first time the Senators beat the baby faced Penguins who vowed revenged next year. They got their revenge with a sweep and supposedly tanked on purpose to draw the Senators in the first round.

Star to Watch: Evgeni Malkin because he hasn’t been healthy lately but when he has been in the lineup he’s still been effective. The key to the series (but mostly other series) might be how often he can play.

X-Factor: Can Kris Letang (3) and Brooks Orpik (2) both score more goals in the postseason than they did in the regular season? Probably.

Goalie Problem: Mac-Andre Fleury hasn’t played all that well the last month except for three games. But playoff off time is generally when Fleury shines so he should rebound nicely. If not we might see some of Brent Johnson. Brian Elliot gets some much needed experience for Ottawa.

Fun Fact: The winner in each of the two previous playoff meetings went on to lose in the Stanley Cup Finals first to the Ducks and then to the Red Wings, will that happen again?

Prediction: Pittsburgh should win this probably in five games but possibly a sweep. The Senators are probably one of the weakest five seeded teams in some time.

1 San Jose Sharks vs. 8 Colorado Avalanche

Season Series: split 2-2

Playoff History: They have met three times in the playoffs before, the Avalanche hold the series lead 2-1. They haven’t met since the 2004 playoffs when San Jose bounced them in the 2^nd round.

Star to Watch: Patrick Marleau, people rag on Joe Thornton a lot, but where the hell does Marleau disappear to in the playoffs? He has 11 points in 19 games and a -2 the past two seasons. With the addition of Danny Heatley he does have a little less pressure but now he has no more excuses.

X-Factor: With all that Colorado youth I’m sure they’ll have no pressure and continue to play as normal. That might be a probably if San Jose ratchets up the intensity but Adam Foote, Milan Hejduk and Stephane Yelle have sure been here before.

Goalie Problem: Craig Anderson has been overworked this year and it’s by far the most amount of games he as ever played in the NHL in one season. Subsequently he started to wear out at the end. He was stupidly not rested in a meaningless game against the Kings. Way to go management. Evgeni Nabokov will need to put last year’s playoff debacle against the Ducks behind him and play better.

Fun Fact: San Jose has only been past the 2^nd round once. Colorado has been past the 2^nd round six times. San Jose has been around four more years as a franchise.

Prediction: Honestly this is probably the hardest series to predict. I can actually see the Avalanche beating the Sharks. Whatever happens, it’s going seven games but I’ll just say Colorado for the hell of it. Prove me wrong San Jose.

2 Chicago Blackhawks vs. 7 Nashville Predators

Season Series: Chicago 4-2

Playoff History: None, then again the Predators haven’t been around that much.

Star to Watch: Jonathan Toews because he really needs to have a breakout campaign in the playoffs for Chicago to reach where they want to go. Anchoring Hossa, Kane and/or Sharp should help him reach his potential.

X-Factor: The Predators have never been out of the 1^st round and they sure would like too. I’m sure the fans in Nashville really don’t care.

Goalie Problem: Antti Niemi has played really well down the stretch with a .927 SV%, except for the game against St. Louis. If he keeps it up we won’t see Huet. Nashville is a good first round opponent for Niemi as they aren’t exactly an offensive powerhouse. He only faced Nashville once this year and wasn’t stellar with an 800 SV% and a 4.00 GAA.

Fun Fact: Chicago has been to the playoffs 54 times and Nashville four times, not including this year.

Prediction: Chicago in five. I expect big things from Chicago this year; then again they made it all the way to the conference finals last year. Chicago just has way more talent than Nashville. I’m amazed Nashville finished as high as they did.

3 Vancouver Canucks vs. 6 Los Angeles Kings

Season Series: Vancouver 3-1

Playoff History: 2-1 Los Angeles and not since the 2^nd round in 1993 when the Kings made it to the Stanley Cup finals.

Star to Watch: Way too many to mention here. I’ll have to say Anze Kopitar vs. Henrik Sedin in the head to head center match-up, fun times indeed. Henrik obviously has the experience advantage and his new Art Ross hardware.

X-Factor: We have the inexperienced defense of the Kings, minus Scuderi and O’Donnell of course, vs. the banged up Canucks defense. I think we will be seeing some high scoring games.

Goalie Problem: What has happened to Roberto Luongo? If Luongo can regain his form the Canucks may go for, if not they could get bounced in the 1^st round.

Fun Fact: The only win this year that Los Angeles had over Vancouver, the Kings scored eight goals on Luongo.

Prediction: Well this will probably be the most fun of all the first round series and another hard one to predict. It should go seven but I guess I’ll take the Canucks.

4 Phoenix Coyotes vs. 5 Detroit Red Wings

Season Series: split 2-2

Playoff History: Only met one other time in 1998, Detroit won in the 1^st round.

Star to Watch: Shane Doan returns to the playoffs with the Coyotes for the first time since 2002. He’s the only one left from that team as well. Doan will need to step it up for the Coyotes to have any chance at all.

X-Factor: How much do the Red Wings care? I mean they’ve been there done that a few times before. Phoenix on the other hand has not accomplished anywhere near as much. Between their ownership problems, their surprising season and not making the playoffs in eight years it should make for an interesting dynamic. At least fans finally came out to support the Coyotes. I’m looking forward to the WhiteOut.

Goalie Problem: Jimmy Howard doesn’t have a lot of playoff experience and neither does Ilya Bryzgalov. While Howard has none, Bryzgalov did play a few games for the Mighty Ducks including three consecutive shutouts.

Fun Fact: Detroit has been to the playoffs 55 times (not including their days as Cougers or Flacons) and Phoenix five times, not including this year.

Prediction: Try as I might, I can’t see any scenario that the Coyotes beat the Wings. Then again I couldn’t have seen any scenario in which the Coyotes would obtain over 100 points. Lightning can strike twice but in this case I think the Wings experience wins out, so Detroit in six.

As for Stanley Cup Final prediction I say the Washington/Pittsburgh winner against Chicago. I’m not sure who I would pick and I know it’s a cop out not to pick a winner and to also not pick between Pittsburgh and Washington but it really depends on how the goaltending for Washington and Chicago fair in order to pick. Part of me wants Chicago to lose in the finals so that Marion Hossa can be on the losing side three years in a row. The hilarity that would ensue for everyone but him, I know Schadenfreude, I’m a bad person.

Fights of the Week

Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.

Matt Cooke vs. Evander Kane

Well we had a few KOs this season but this one might take the cake. I’m guessing Matt Cooke will want a rematch next year.

Trevor Gillies vs. Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond

A decent back and forth fight with a weird start.

Micheal Haley vs. Rod Pelley

A decent back and forth fight with some good punches.

Goat of the Week

Marc Staal – New York Rangers

Marc Staal’s bad pass attempt to another Ranger, I can’t identify, who wasn’t even looking for the pass sets up Mike Richards breakaway goal.

Things I like

1. Ten years of over 100 points for the Red Wings. That is consistency and it’s really tough to do in this day in age of the game.

2.  The Boston Bruins scored three shorthanded goals all during the same penalty. To think that Boston had problems scoring all year, they just needed to be shorthanded. Although they were the 29^th shorthanded scoring team so maybe it was just an anomaly.

3. Seven teams in the Western Conference had 100 points or more. Wow. Yet many people wonder why I and many others think the West is the superior conference. Of course you get a point now for an overtime loss but you used to get a point for a tie which a lot of these games could have ended if there wasn’t a shootout.

4. Standing Ovations for Mike Modano (maybe retiring), Keith Tkachuk (retiring) and Teemu Selanne (maybe retiring) during their final home games. Of course two of those three players made up a phenomenal line on the Winnipeg Jets. Tkachuk and Selanne teamed with Alexi Zhamnov in the early to mid 90’s. I didn’t see them play because who televised Winnipeg Jets games (and I was like 12 haha) but I did have their hockey cards. Scott Niedermayer also might have played his last game but he’s a defenseman so no one cares. I’m just kidding but my gut tells me Selanne and Niedermayer will both be back.

Things I don’t

1. NBC did one of those patented NBC moves. Only one game had a game that meant something to both teams, the New York Rangers vs. the Philadelphia Flyers. You can argue that Detroit and Chicago meant something but only whether they would move up a spot or not, which is not a big a deal as winner gets into the playoffs. So NBC shows the Capitals vs. the Bruins, ugh. And people wonder why the NHL can’t get a bigger following in the states, bonehead moves like that is why. Now I know that the Caps game was at 12ET and the Rangers vs. Flyers game was at 3ET but I’m pretty sure they could have moved the game up if they wanted to show it.

2. When NBC was going over the standings and possible playoff matches they had the Flyers vs. the Capitals and then they said of course the Rangers could win and get in instead. Of course they failed to mention that if the Flyers won they wouldn’t play the Capitals because they would leapfrog the Montreal Canadiens and the Canadiens would then play the Capitals. I guess that would have required too much research on their part. Between NBC’s sheer stupidity and no one carrying versus I can’t think of a time the NHL had worse broadcasting partners. Unless of course you count that FOX glow puck debacle.

3. Four teams in the West that didn’t make the playoffs finished at or above the 88 points the 7^th and 8^th seed Flyers and Candiens had in the East. Hmm… doesn’t seem fair. Of course Detroit shouldn’t even be in the West seeing how they’re even more East than Atlanta is.

4. Ranges in the shootout, I mean Gaborik wasn’t even one of the first three shooters and Lundqvist picked a bad time to suck in the shootout after playing an awesome game.

Stat Line of the Week

04/11/10 Pittsburgh 6 vs. NY Islanders 5

Crosby made a run for the records he could get and while he came up short on the points record, he did end up tying Ovechkin for 2^nd. He also ended up tying Stamkos for the goal lead at 51.

Did You Know?

The playoff beard tradition was started by the New York Islanders in the early 1980’s. It seemed to work as they won four cups in a row in the 80’s.

This Week in Hockey History

Special thanks to the Hockey Hall of Fame site for making this section a little easier to do.

April 08, 1937 Referee Clarence Campbell officiated his first Stanley Cup match in Game Two of Finals, a 4-2 win for Detroit over the Rangers. Campbell, who became third league president in NHL history in 1946, gave out three penalties.

April 09, 1980 Bob Sauve recorded first shutout in Sabres playoff history, 6-0 over Vancouver in Game Two of the Stanley Cup Preliminary Round. Gil Perreault scored a goal and added two assists.

April 10, 1982 L.A. Kings staged their famous “Miracle on Manchester”, scoring 5 goals in the third period to tie the Oilers, then winning 6-5 on an overtime goal by Daryl Evans. The win gave the Kings a 2-1 lead in the best of 5 series vs Edmonton.

April 11, 1994 Tom Barrasso stopped 32 shots for his 21st career shutout as Pittsburgh clinched the Northeast Division title with a 4-0 win at Ottawa. Jaromir Jagr led the scoring with three assists.

April 12, 1960 Montreal’s Maurice “Rocket” Richard scored his 82nd (and final) NHL playoff goal in Game 3 of the Finals against Toronto. Canadiens beat the Leafs 5-2, and won again two nights later for the 1960 Stanley Cup Chamionship.

April 13, 1997 Mario Lemieux picked up two assists in his final career regular season game (until his comeback in 2000-01) as the Penguins lost 7-3 at Boston. The two assists gave Lemieux 122 points, and his 6th NHL scoring championship, in his 12th season.

Rankings

Based on the likelihood of winning the Stanley Cup

Top 5

1. Washington
2. Chicago
3. Pittsburgh
4. New Jersey
5. Detroit

Bottom 5

16. Montreal
15. Nashville
14. Ottawa
13. Philadelphia
12. Phoenix

The Coyotes are hot and have now won nine in a row. They are also contending for the top spot in the West. It actually makes my head hurt thinking about it because I never would have guessed this in a million years. I’m not really surprised about the Avalanche, the other darlings of the West who have since fallen, because they just had some bad injuries last year and then had some great picks in the off-season and a great goalie acquisition. But the Coyotes gunning for the best record in the West!?! The Coyotes haven’t made the playoffs since 2002 and even more telling, they have never been out of the 1^st round as a franchise.

Other than the superb goaltending duo of Ilya Bryzgalov (the current leader in wins and shutouts) and Jason LaBarbera it’s hard to see how they are having this much success. The Coyotes only have one player on the team with over 20 goals, Radim Vrbata who I don’t think strikes fear into opposing goalies. They would have two players over 20 goals if you add on the goals Wojtek Wolski has with the Avalanche. Offensively and defensively they are just a bunch of rag tag blue collar guys. They do have Mr. Everything Shane Doan and sniper Ed Jovanovski, though. It will be interesting to see how the Coyotes do in the playoffs. They don’t boast much experience in the playoffs and the West is especially tough this year. Even if they have a 1^st round exit, which seems likely, Phoenix should be proud as they have accomplished a lot this season, including transforming the franchise, no matter the playoff outcome.

The rematch against the Blackhawks didn’t go quite as well. The Coyotes lost 2-0 and were unable to set the franchise record for wins, still nothing to be ashamed of.

Goalie Spotlight

I would like to keep doing this section but I haven’t been in the mood with all the other crap going on in my life.

Fights of the Week

Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.

Cam Janssen vs. Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond

Wow sums this fight up, with everyone’s favorite frenchie. If you like long fights this one clocks in at over two minutes of action.

Brad Winchester vs. Brandon Prust

A unique fight in which Prust was outsized by a lot but managed to hold his own.

Ryane Clowe vs. Jarome Iginla

A decent fight between these two heavy hitters. Iginla drops his helmet and Clowe does not despite having plenty of time to do so.

Goats of the Week

Lots of goats this week, enjoy.

Thomas Vokoun – Florida Panthers

We’ve had a few really long goals this year and this would be another. The difference is nobody blamed the goalie (Vokoun) this time, they all blamed the bad ice. Except this goal cost them the win because it forced overtime which the Panthers lost in a shootout.

Corey Crawford – Chicago Blackhawks

Crawford goes out of his net to play a puck coming into his zone with Chipchura and Former Duck Boynton chasing after. Crawford fails miserably at whatever he was trying to do and Chipchura makes a nice pass to Marchant who gets the goal. In all the epic fails this year, I think this one is right up there.

Joel Quenneville – Chicago Blackhawks Coach

In the final minute of the game Quenneville pulled his goalie in a game against Anaheim, despite the fact that Anaheim had position of the puck and no Blackhawks were in sight. Even though it was behind the Anaheim net it was still a bad decision, as two passes later Anaheim had an empty net goal.

Things I like

1. The dominance of New Jersey over Pittsburgh is quite interesting this season. The Devils are 6-0 and have outscored the Penguins 22 to 5. That’s a huge differential. Marc-Andre Fleury only has one game against the Devils this year with a SV% above .900. Johnson had the best performance against the Devils only giving up one goal on 32 shots in a 2-0 loss (the other goal was an empty net). Don’t be surprised to see a lot of Brent Johnson come playoff time with Fleury’s struggles. But averaging less than a goal a game of offense is quite putrid for Crosby, Malkin and company.

2. This should be filed under Things I don’t, since I can’t stand them, but here it is anyway the Detroit Red Wings are hot and trying to keep their consecutive playoff streak alive. Personally I was hoping the Red Wings wouldn’t make it but alas that doesn’t look to be the case. They will be a tough 1^st round out for any of the possibilities, Phoenix (inexperience), Chicago (bad goaltending) and San Jose (umm they’re San Jose). Jimmy Howard continues to excel in his first full season. I’m surprised a goaltending needy team didn’t make a run at Chris Osgood. Unless the Red Wings didn’t want to part with him.

3. Teemu Selanne’s 600^th goal. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. It’s been a long Hall of Fame career for the Finnish Flash and this was the icing on the cake for his career. I’m also happy that he could at least etch his name on Lord Stanley’s cup once.

4. How about the Washington Capitals clinching their division a week ago and they currently have an over 30 point lead on the Thrashers in the standings. Just a few more wins and the can lock up the top spot in the East. I am looking forward to a Capitals vs. Devils or Penguins conference finals.

Things I don’t

1. James Wisniewski’s suspension. I think eight games are a bit excessive. If the NHL is serious about cutting down on headshots and defenseless hits, I expected him to get suspended. But it wasn’t that bad of a hit and it pales in comparison to the suspension that Ovechkin received, proving preferential treatment for the stars. The biggest problem with the suspension is that Brent Seabrook’s hit on Corey Perry was almost as bad and it was the whole reason that Wisniewski hit Seabrook. Seabrook took out Perry’s head and Perry could not see him coming because his back was to Seabrook. Where as Wisniewski’s hit was able to be seen by Seabrook, even for just a second, and was more of a total body check, thought it was made worse by him leaving his feet. But had he not left his feet, I wouldn’t even have seen anything wrong wit the hit in my own opinion, I’m sure others disagree. It’s the typical double standards garbage by the NHL.

2. Well I won’t say I didn’t tell you so (I did), but San Jose has started their annual slide to mediocrity. Their latest offense was losing to the Oilers 5-1, which ups their losing streak to six games. Someone should tell the Sharks they are losing a month early though, as it’s not April yet. Evgeni Nabokov’s poor Olympic showing seems to have carried over to the Sharks. Not a good sign for the Sharks as I’m not sure Thomas Greiss is up for the playoff challenge, but who knows. At least the Sharks finally snapped their losing streak against the Wild.

Stat Line of the Week

03/18/10 Buffalo 6 vs. Tampa Bay 2

Ever hear of Jason Pominville? Well I haven’t but other than Ryan Miller, Derek Roy and Tyler Myers, I couldn’t name any Buffalo Sabres. But the Sabres have found some offense as of late and in this game Pominville picked up his 2^nd career hat trick.

Did You Know?

That after Selanne the next active player with a shot at 600 is Mark Recchi with 560, Mike Modano with 556 and Keith Tkachuk with 537. None of these players seem likely to get it though. At Recchi’s current scoring pace he would need another three seasons or so to get it. Modano would also need another three seasons at his current pace. It’s unlikely either will play another three. Tkachuk is most likely retiring at the end of this year, so barring some miracle he won’t get it either. Jerome Iginla with 441 has the best shot to reach it next, but he isn’t getting any younger.

Numbers, Numbers

The Teemu Selanne edition, in honor of his 600 goals

97 – Career game winning goals

76 – Goals scored his first season, the most of any season

3 – The number of times he has scored over 100 points in a season

216 – Power-play goals, 10^th all time

16 – The lowest amount of goals he has scored in a season that he played more than 30 games in.

46 – Goals against the San Jose Sharks, the team he has scored most on

This Week in Hockey History

Special thanks to the Hockey Hall of Fame site for making this section a little easier to do.

March 18, 2000 Ray Bourque became the first defenseman in NHL history to score 400 career goals. His milestone came in a 4-3 loss against the visiting Atlanta Thrashers.

March 19, 1991 Brett Hull became the third player in NHL history to score 80 goals in a season, in a 2-1 Blues win over the Caps, at Landover, Maryland. Hull joined Gretzky and Lemieux as the only players in NHL history to accomplish the feat.

March 20, 1969 Boston’s Bobby Orr set a new NHL record for defensemen with his 21st goal of the season (breaking the mark set by Flash Hollett in 1944-45). It came at 19:59 of the third, on Orr’s 21st birthday, in a 5-5 tie against the Black Hawks, in Boston.

March 21, 1983 Darcy Rota scored two goals to become only the second player in Canucks’ history to score 40 goals in a season. It came as Vancouver defeated Pittsburgh 7-3.

March 22, 2004 L.A.’s Luc Robitaille picked up an assist to set an NHL record for most career points by a left wing with the 1,370th of his NHL career (passing John Bucyk) as the Kings lost 2-1 to the visiting Edmonton Oilers.

March 23, 1983 Mark Messier became the third player in Edmonton Oilers history to score 100 points in a season, when he picked up a goal in a 7-4 loss to the Jets, at Winnipeg.

Rankings

The rankings are based on how the teams are currently playing.

Top 5

1. Phoenix
2. Washington
3. Detroit
4. Montreal
5. Nashville

Bottom 5

30. Tampa Bay
29. Ottawa
28. NY Rangers
27. San Jose
26. Minnesota

Anaheim Ducks Watch

After choking forever after the Olympic break, Anaheim beats the top two teams in a row in the Western Conference. Proving that if they actually tired hard enough they can beat anybody. Proving that since the Ducks aren’t trying hard enough, most of the time, the coach needs to go. Of course I have wanted Carlyle to be canned for awhile now, so I’m not holding my breath. Anyway, on with the recap.

Bobby Ryan starts Anaheim’s scoring off with his 30^th goal of the season. He is the only Duck besides Teemu Selanne to score 30 goals in back to back seasons. Seabrook ties the game. Marchant scores an easy short handed goal when goat of the week Crawford stupidly handles the puck way outside his net. Then all hell broke loose as Seabrook hit Perry and then Wisniewski hits him back. After Chicago ties the game the Ducks show some heart and in the 3^rd to win the game. In a weird play Sopel goes up to play a puck high, Perry gives him a nudge, Sople oversells the nudge and then everyone goes after Perry. Except that Perry made a nifty pass to a wide open Koivu, who nets the game winner. Bobby Ryan adds the empty netter. Hiller had some nice saves in the game and made 39 in all. If Corey Perry wasn’t Corey Perry (a jerk) I’m not sure the Ducks would have won.

Next were the Islanders in a game that was probably harder than it needed to be. Park scores for the Islanders and then less than a minute later Beleskey scores to tie the game. Then we reverse and Anaheim scores first with Visnovsky and then about a minute later Okposo ties it up. Then things start to get hairy as the Islanders score on the power play and Hiller is pulled. Hiller rarely gets pulled but most of the goals he let in were pretty lame. After giving up another goal things looked bleak in Duckville, but Anaheim clawed their way back with their new look never give up attitude. A power-play goal off of Jason Blake inches the Ducks closer. With the goalie pulled Visnovsky scores again with the magic touch and with help from some pretty awesome screens in front. In overtime Koivu takes a turnover and beats Biron on a one on one breakaway. Selanne had some really nice chances in the game to get 600, but alas it was not to be.

Next up was Colorado and a game that for once everything just seemed to go the Ducks way. Capping off the final game of a seven game home stand, the Ducks increased their winning streak to four games. They jumped out to a four goal lead and Teemu Selanne had the game winner for his 600^th goal, which was fittingly on the power-play. Troy Bodie even had a nice shorthanded goal. Colorado started to claw back and cut the deficit to 4-2, but Anaheim put the game away with a Ryan Getzlaf power-play goal to seal the 5-2 win.

Calgary was next up in a huge game at the Saddledome. Anaheim was able to tie the game up in the 2^nd period but a few minutes later Corey Perry’s costly turnover allowed Rene Bourque to come in alone and beat Jonas Hiller. Perry was none to please about it, nor should he be, as he took his frustrations out on his stick. Hagman scored later for the Flames and the Ducks just either didn’t shoot when they could or they just missed their chances. They had some that is for sure but they just couldn’t connect. Hiller has been pretty streaky in goal this season. Some games he makes some awesome saves, other games he just isn’t on and looks frustrated. That pretty much does it for Anaheim’s playoff chances. While they aren’t mathematically out, they pretty much are. A true shame with all that talent, Olympic talent, they just can’t get it together.

His edge is what makes Ovechkin a special player and I also don’t see this suspension taking it away, should be fun to watch this week, now onto the Pucking Awesome Hat Trick and the top three story lines I am watching this week.

Flyers Fallout:  

A sexy preseason pick for the Cup have not looked anything like it and the recent slide caused John Stevens his job, as Peter Laviolette takes over the fading Flyers.  The once powerful power play has been nonexistent in the recent four game slide going an abysmal 0 for their last 17 man advantages.

The undisciplined play has also been catching up to them giving up six power play goals along this current losing streak. The Ray Emery experiment has taken a turn for the worse as Emery has a 5.36 goals-against average and .814 save percentage in his last five starts.

The Flyers now turn to the theory that changing a coach can change the culture of the team, but unlike the Stanley Cup Champions a year ago this team seems to be lacking the maturity of a team destined for greatness. I will be watching the fallout this week as Laviolette tries to turn this talented team around and ask them to grow up or the next thing to change will be the core roster.

DiPietro Recovery:  

I don’t know if it is a recovery from injury or the Islanders trying to recover some return on the tremendous investment on the often injured goalie.  When healthy there is no denying the pure talent of Rick DiPietro but with only five starts in the last two years the brass on Long Island were expecting more from the goalie they signed to a monster 15-year contract back in September 2006. 

Although he shares the birthday with a Pucking Awesome writer it seems that this contract has been a bust up to this point, though he has 12 years on the back end to make it up to the organization.  Now comes the good news for Islanders fans after practicing with the team for about a week and a half the former number one overall pick suited up for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Saturday. 

In all reports he looked like he had been off for the last 11 months giving up three goals on 13 shots.  In his post game interview DiPietro stated “It’s been a long time since I played in a meaningful game. Nerves, excitement.  These guys have been great. It was good to get back in there and shake the rust off. There’s still a lot of work to be done.”  I will be keeping my eye on the valiant return of Rick DiPietro not only for the sake of the Islanders organization but for the goalie trade wheels that will be circling this club that will have three NHL starting goalies.

Game Of The Week:   Wild at Coyotes

The week gets started off right this week as the two hottest teams facing off Monday night, oh yes the Phoenix Coyotes and Minnesota Wild face off at Jobing.com Arena. The Coyotes are one of the best stories of the early season. In their current four-game winning streak 10 different Coyotes have scored a goal and Ilya Bryzgalov has been outstanding with a 1.75 GAA and has been outstanding at home with a 10-3-0 record.

The Wild have turned their season around with a five-game winning streak and been riding a white hot top line of Center Mikko Koivu and linemates Andrew Brunette and Antti Miettinen. They have combined for 23 points during their current winning streak and that is with Miettinen missing three games due to the swine flu. 

The week gets kicked off in style as one of the hottest lines in hockey faces one of the hottest goalies in a surprise scary good match up, I will be watching how about you?

This is quite strange to me. Let’s look at each team briefly.

Goaltending – The Ducks have Giguere, though in decline he still plays admirably, and Hiller, not as hot as last year but still decent. The Kings have John Quick who is in his 2^nd full time season and had an okay year last year. His numbers this year are decent but nothing spectacular. One would think advantage Ducks.

Defense – Though the Ducks lost Pronger they still have Neidermayer, Whitney and Wisniewski. The Kings have Doughty, in his 2^nd year, O’ Donnell, a journeyman, Johnson and Scuderi rounding out the top 4. They lost Kyle Quincy to the Avalanche. I would think once again advantage Ducks.

Offense – Ducks have Perry, Getzlaf, Ryan, Selanne, Koivu, and Lupul. Hard to argue with that bunch, it would take to long to list their accomplishments. The Kings counter with Kopitar, who is amazing, Brown, Williams, Smyth, Stoll and Frolov. Most of these guys are a few years into playing or journeyman. Most of them are really developing fast. This category I would only give a slight edge to the Ducks.

But as you can see, what looks good on paper and what actually performs well are two different things.

Yes the Ducks also gave the Maple Leafs their first win of the season in a 6-3 lost. However the game wasn’t like the score would have you believe. This was honestly one of the worst officiated games I have ever seen. Not including fighting and game misconducts the Ducks committed 15 penalties. That’s right 15. The Maple Leafs had 8 not including fighting and game misconducts. Now that’s kind of a big disparity. The Maple Leafs scored 5 of their 6 goals on the powerplay including two 5 on 3. I didn’t see the whole game but I saw most of it. I can tell you that at least 3 penalties called on the Ducks were not penalties. The Maple Leafs scored on all those penalties. I really don’t like it when refs decide games especially when they aren’t viewing the play from the right angle to make the correct call. I wish the NHL had coach’s challenges like the NFL has, or at least instant replays for penalties, not just goals.

On a side note I’d like to point out that the Ducks put together a thank you video montage of every former player who comes to town for a visit. I’m not just talking about the key past players, I’m talking about everybody. A very classy move I think by the organization.

Goalie Spotlight

Ilya Bryzgalov – Phoenix Coyotes

I figured this week we would take a look at one of the hottest goalies in the league.

Ilya Bryzgalov was born in Togliatti, Russia, one of many fine NHL players to come from Russia. He has a decorated international career that includes a silver medal at the 2000 World Junior Championships, a bronze medal with Russia at the 2002 Winter Olympics, and a gold medal in the 2009 Men’s World Ice Hockey Championships. You might say he scored the hat trick of medals.

Bryzgalov was drafted by the then Anaheim Mighty Ducks in 2000 and had success with them. Though mostly used as a backup to Jean-Sebastien Giguere he did start some playoff games towards the end of his tenure with the Ducks. He tied the playoff record for most consecutive shutouts by a rookie with 3. He was also a part of the Ducks cup winning team in 2007. Though he didn’t play in any of the Stanley Cup Finals he did start, and won, in previous rounds. After the Ducks failed to trade Bryzgalov he was picked up on waivers by the Coyotes. His numbers the past two seasons as the Coyotes starter weren’t anything spectacular but they were in line with his career numbers.

Off to a fast start this year, he is near of the top of the NHL in GGA, SV%, and he currently leads the league in shutouts with 2. Not bad considering the most shutouts he has ever had in a season has been 3. Whether or not his numbers stay at that level will be dependent on how well the Coyotes play around him. A perennial loser, recently, the Coyotes are off to one of their best starts ever. Time will tell how well Bryzgalov and the Coyotes will finish.

Fights of the Week

Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.

Colton Orr vs. George Parros

Best part of the fight is when Orr shoves the referee down to the ice. He got a game misconduct for that. Honestly the refs deserved it after their performance.

Steve MacIntyre vs. Brian McGrattan

Nice long fight with a lot of good punches, edge to McGrattan and his fists though.

Tim Conboy vs. John Scott

Talk about a mismatch, though it’s not as much of height disadvantage as it seems. I’ve seen worse discrepancies. A lot of wrestling in this fight.

Brad May vs. Tanner Glass

Good fight between two heavyweights in a good close game.

Goat/Trick Shot of the Week

Jeff Schultz and Ondrej Pavelec

Back to back weeks of the Goat/Trick shot of the week combined. Jeff Schultz, Capitals, was just the clearing the puck down the ice and just got a few lucky bounces. Ondrej Pavelec, Thrashers, just misplayed it with his glove.

Things I like

1. We have a Dustin Penner sighting. Penner, who helped the Ducks win the cup in 2007, is also off to his best season ever. Near the top of the league in Goals and Points, Penner has adjusted his game to a more aggressive style under new coach Pat Quinn and it’s paying off.

2. Relatively unknown Matt Carle is off to a great start. Playing for his third team and his 2^nd go around with the Flyers, Carle is tops in scoring for defenseman. He also has a stellar +7.

3. I mentioned Anze Kopitar a few weeks ago but he deserves mention again for his phenomenal play. The scoring race should go down to the wire between him and Ovechkin (I guess Gaborik too). Sorry Malkin and Crosby.

Things I don’t

1. Chris Osgood is not having a very good year. It’s tough to blame all of Detriot’s woes on Osgood since they defiantly have other issues. Last year Osgood didn’t have a great year either but he rebounded come playoff time when it mattered most. He might not get a chance to rebound in the playoffs this year though.

2. The Carolina Hurricanes are not following their surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals with a strong start. Eric Staal has really struggled this year. If the Hurricanes hope to have any success this year, he will need to get back on track.

3. The officiating in some of the games, rivals the NFL officiating on their worst days. I really feel bad officiating in football and hockey games can really turn games more so then in basketball or baseball.

This Week in Hockey History

New Feature starting this week, I will pull a few of the interesting events in hockey history from the week. I hope you like history!

October 26, 1990 Wayne Gretzky became the first player in NHL history to hit the 2,000 point milestone, with an assist as the Kings lost 6-2 to the Jets at Winnipeg. He upped his career stats to 684 goals, 1,316 assists, for 2,000 points in 857 NHL games.

October 26, 1984 Detroit Red Wings scored three empty net goals at the end of a 7-3 win over Buffalo, at Joe Louis Arena. Danny Gare scored two goals and two assists to lead the Red Wings’ scoring.

October 26, 1996 Buffalo’s Dominik Hasek picked up his 100th career NHL victory in a 6-3 win over the visiting Hartford Whalers. Hasek became the first European-trained goaltender to win 100 games.

October 26, 1969 Philadelphia Flyers tied St. Louis 0-0 at the Spectrum, with Bernie Parent and Jacques Plante earning the shutouts. It was the 69th career shutout for Blues’ Plante and 7th of Parent’s career.

October 25, 1988 Toronto Maple Leafs scored four goals on just four shots in the second period of a 4-3 win over the NY Islanders. In the game the Leafs were outshot 34-18. Ed Olczyk led the scoring with two goals.

October 24, 1991 Paul Coffey scored his 310th career goal, to tie Denis Potvin as the highest goal scoring defenseman in NHL history, in a 4-2 Penguins’ loss to the Devils, in Pittsburgh.

October 23, 1982 Boston’s Normand Leveille suffered a career-ending cerebral hemorrhage during the first intermission at Vancouver’s Pacific Coliseum. Bruins lost 3-2 to the Canucks.

October 22, 1957 Chicago rookie Bobby Hull scored his first career NHL goal in a 2-1 win over the visiting Boston Bruins.

October 22, 2002 Patrick Roy played in his 971st game, to tie Terry Sawchuk’s NHL record for career appearances by a goalie, as Colorado tied 3-3 against the visiting Edmonton Oilers.

Rankings

The rankings are based on how the teams are currently playing.

Top 5

1. Pittsburgh
2. Colorado
3. Washington
4. Los Angeles
5. Buffalo

Bottom 5

30. Toronto
29. Florida
28. Minnesota
27. New York Islanders
26. Anaheim

Ducks Watch

The Ducks are in a bit of a funk. After spotting the Stars a 3-0 lead the Ducks finally got 2 goals to make it a game, including Getzlaf’s first of the year. But it was too little to late as the Ducks couldn’t muster any more goals and the Stars added an empty netter. They followed it up with a tough loss to the Blue Jackets, and I do mean tough. The offense finally started to click and they played well overall but they lost another game by 2 goals including the empty netter. Though the Ducks got one fluky goal the Blue Jackets scored two fluky goals, and if that wasn’t bad enough Giguere re-injured his groin muscle and will probably need some extended time off. I’m not going to discuss the Maple Leafs game in this section as I pretty much already covered it in the top section. They started off real slow last year and then reeled off like 15 games in a row with a point, so I’m not that worried.

Sure it’s still early, but who doesn’t love a good plot twist?  Sports fans always fall in love with the teams that come out of nowhere—from Cinderella stories in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament to BCS busters.  Anyone outside of Pittsburgh wanted to see the Arizona Cardinals hold the Lombardi Trophy after last year’s Super Bowl.

Of the early teams making many do a double take at their record which are for real and which are merely hot at the wrong time?

The only team in their correct place in the eastern conference’s Northeast Division is the Toronto Maple Leafs, but with only 1 point in 7 games and still in search of their first victory even this level of futility was unimaginable.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres and Ottawa Senators have turned the tables on the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens in the early going.  But how are they doing it and will it last?

BUFFALO SABRES: 5-1-1 (11 points)

So far, the Sabres are getting contributions form all the right players and their balanced attack has been a nightmare for opposing teams.  Left-winger Thomas Vanek’s 4 goals and center Derek Roy’s 6 assists aren’t surprising but the early performance of center Tim Connolly (6 points), left wing Clarke MacArthur (4 goals) and right wing Jason Pominville (5 points) is.

Most important to their early success has been goalie Ryan Miller (5-0, 1.66 goals against average, .942 save percentage).  Miller has the talent to put the team on his shoulders but at some point his numbers will come back down to earth.  When they do, can the offense keep scoring like it has?  Any sustained success and playoff run will rely on Miller putting up career-best numbers.

Staying power? Vanek is the only elite scorer on this team and he already had an injury scare.  With Connolly’s injury history and too many question marks throughout the rest of the roster it feels like this team is hanging by a thread.  All it will take is for one long injury to bury the Sabres.  VERDICT: No Playoffs

OTTAWA SENATORS: 5-2-1 (11 points)

The off-season trade of left-winger Dany Heatley was supposed to doom the Senators, but so far it looks like a case of addition by subtraction.  With Daniel Alfredsson (11 points) and Jason Spezza (7 points), there is still plenty of offense.  Left-winter Milan Michalek (5 goals) is off to a nice start and center Mike Fisher seems to have rediscovered his playmaking ability. They’re off to a hot start with zero goals combined from Spezza and former 50-goal scorer Jonathan Cheechoo.

However, behind Anton Volchenkov, Ottawa remains incredibly thin on the blue line and many of their mistakes have been covered up by goalie Pascal Leclaire.  But a goalie can’t be expected to carry the load each and every night and Leclaire’s numbers took a big hit after allowing 6 goals in an overtime loss to the offensively challenged Nashville Predators Thursday night.

Staying power? New head coach Cory Clouston has done a fantastic job so far, especially with two of his top forwards still looking to light the lamp for the first time.  If Leclaire plays up to his ability they’ll hang around all season.  VERDICT: Like doing late holiday shopping, they’ll be in it until the end but come up without the gift of the playoffs.

Fans of the Phoenix Coyotes must think they’re suffering from heat stroke.  Tops on the list for relocation, the Yotes are ignoring the off-ice issues and doing plenty of winning early on.

PHOENIX COYOTES: 6-2-0 (12 points)

This is easily the biggest surprise in the league thus far, not even stats can explain it.  Nobody has more than 3 goals and two of their top three scorers are defensemen (Adrian Aucoin with 6 points and Ed Jovanovski with 5).

Much like Miller in Buffalo, goalie Ilya Bryzgalov (6-1, 1.26 gaa, .949 save percentage) would be a strong Vezina contender if the award were handed out in November.  Bryzgalov will be the netminder for this franchise—wherever home is—for many years to come, but he’ll obviously fall off somewhat from his amazing start.

Staying power? They’re still not scoring and lack the talent to help Bryzgalov when the puck stops looking like a tire off a semi truck.  VERDICT: Late October brings cold outside of Arizona and there’s no delusion here, the Yotes will still finish near the bottom of the west.

COLORADO AVALANCHE: 6-1-2 (14 points)

This isn’t your older brother’s Avalanche anymore, but the misconception is they stopped building after Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Sandis Ozolinsh left.  The reality is injuries stunted the growth of young star Paul Stastny while Marek Svatos, Wojtek Wolski and John-Michael Liles have been slow to develop.

Defenseman Kyle Quincey’s team-leading 8 points have been a huge boost and veteran right winger Milan Hejduk is still a top sniper.  The talent is in place to succeed, if each player can meet the high expectations they once had.

The goaltender was a main position of weakness the last few seasons and so far it has been solidified by free agent acquisition Craig Anderson (6-1, 2.06 gaa, .934 save percentage).  Once a high-level prospect, it took Anderson a long time before earning a starting job, but he’s finally performing at a high level and showing the ability to be a workhorse between the pipes.

Staying power? Health and growth are essential to any young team to find success.  If Stastny stays healthy and their young talent matures, they will be headed back in the right direction VERDICT: Many continue to love the Avs based on their run of success years ago—kind of like Jennifer Aniston.  And much like Aniston’s relationships, it’s hard to see this being successful in the long haul.

LOS ANGELES KINGS: 6-4-0 (12 points)

Unlike every other team on this list, the Kings aren’t shocking the hockey universe because of an incredibly hot goaltender.  They have plenty of talent at every other spot on the ice.

22-year-old center Anze Kopitar (8 goals, 8 assists in 10 games) is the hottest player in the league not named Ovechkin and if he is ready to join the league’s elite scorers this team is very dangerous.  Left-winger Ryan Smyth (14 points) has brought not only his terrific skill but also the leadership this young team so badly needed and has immediately paid dividends.

Their success has been without much from talented left-winger Alexander Frolov who continues to butt heads with head coach Terry Murray.  Reports out of L.A. say the two have already had ten closed-door meetings—one for every game—and trade rumors continue to swirl around Frolov.  A quick resolution will only help matters.

Most importantly, the Kings have an extremely young and talented defensive corps led by the 2^nd overall pick of the 2008 draft Drew Doughty.  Fresh off winning the Stanley Cup, Rob Scuderi joins talented blue-liners Matt Greene and Jack Johnson to form a couple of exceptionally strong pairings.

Staying power? If the Kings can solve their goaltending issues—Frolov could be used as trade bait for that solution—this team is a definite playoff contender.  VERDICT: I had them in my playoff picks before the season began and there’s no reason to back down now.  It’s been a good sports year in L.A.—Lakers are NBA Champions and the Dodgers won 95 games before losing the NLCS—and the Kings will make for a very fun winter in the city of Angels.

Goalie Spotlight

Cristobal Huet – Chicago Blackhawks

Huet is from France which is quite rare for an NHL player. He is currently the only Frenchman playing in the league. Huet is currently the starting goalie for the Blackhawks, though I do emphasize the word current. Drafted by the Los Angeles Kings, Huet never fit into their long term plans. Huet made his way to the Montreal Canadiens were he was selected to the All-Star game in 2007. Despite having some success with the Canadiens, Huet was traded away next year in mid season when it was clear the Canadiens viewed newly drafted Carey Price as their goaltender of the future.

He ended up on the Washington Capitals where he supplanted Olaf Kolzig as the starting goaltender. He didn’t stay with the Capitals long as he signed with the Chicago Blackhawks when the season was over. Expected to be the number 1 goalie, Huet was unable to beat Nikolai Khabibulin for the top spot. Khabibulin was named starting goalie in the playoffs last year and led the Blackhawks to the conference finals. Huet saw his first action of the postseason in those conference finals vs. the Red Wings when Khabibulin went down with an injury. Despite playing admirably the Blackhawks lost to the Wings.

When Khabibulin left for the Oilers this off-season it brought great pressure on Huet. Even though he could not win the number 1 spot outright, he was handed it by default anyway. The Blackhawks have great expectations this year with a young and deep team. Huet is expected to help lead them, despite never getting out of the 1^st round of playoffs when he has been the number 1 goalie with the Canadiens and Capitals. So far he has not been able to live up to those expectations posting his worst numbers of his career. It is still early in the season but he does risk losing his number 1 spot to Antti Niemi if he keeps it up. Niemi will be a free agent at the end of this year. If Niemi does well they Blackhawks will be tempted to keep him, which they were unable to do last year with Khabibulin because of Khabibulin’s and Huet’s high salaries.

Fights of the Week

Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.

Tanner Glass vs. Brandon Prust and Darcy Hordichuk vs. Brian McGrattan

That’s right two fights at the same time! I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen that. I liked Darcy Hordichuk vs Brian McGrattan better. McGrattan’s last punch was really good.

Cody McLeod vs. Brad May

Some really good punches by both guys especially towards the end, May gets cut.

Rick Rypien vs. Brandon Prust

Rypien was in a good fight with Stortini this week as well, but I chose this fight because it was a little longer and more competitive. Rypien is a really quick fighter.

Goat/Trick Shot of the Week

Cristobal Huet and Stephane Robidas

Well it’s not many times that the trick shot of the week and goat of the week will be the same play, but in this case it was. Huet, who I spotlighted earlier, really miss played a dump in shot by Robidas, who probably never thought he would get a goal. I realize it was a tricky bounce but Huet had his glove right there, not sure how he missed it.

Things I like

1. The Pittsburgh Penguins, with only one loss, are rolling this year. Good to see that this team did not have a letdown after winning the Stanley Cup last year and after playing the most games the past two seasons. We will see how hungry they are come playoff time.

2. San Jose’s top line has been sensational. Thornton (14 pts.), Heatley (6 G), Setoguchi (7 G) are really delivering and Marleau is also chipping in from the 2^nd line with 7 goals.

3. Ilya Bryzgalov and his insane 1.14 GAA. In case you’re wondering, and let’s face it you are, that GAA currently stacks 4^th all time behind 3 goalies who played in the 20’s. In fact if you take away this season, the top 20 GAA are all from goalies that played in the 20’s and 30’s. Obviously it was a much different game back then. Miikka Kiprusoff would be the first goalie listed from the modern area checking in at 24 for his 1.69 GAA in the 03-04 campaign. Both IIyas (Bryzgalov and Kovalchuk on the Atlanta Thrashers) are having great seasons so far.

Things I don’t

1. The Minnesota Wild would have no points had the Ducks not blown a 3 goal lead in the 10/6 game. Of course the Ducks did, but if they hadn’t the wild would be 0-7-0. A team with some decent talent in Havlat, Koivu, and ageless wonder Nolan as well as a decent goaltender in Backstrom, should not be having this problem.

2. The Ducks so called top line and supposedly one of the best lines in NHL. Getzlaf, Perry, and Ryan have been less than stellar. Perry has played well but Getzlaf and Ryan have 1 goal between the two of them. That isn’t going to cut it. The Ducks will need them to step up if they have hopes to progress further this year.

3. Toronto is still winless. At least the NHL gave them a week off to dream about their first win. Anyone care to comment when that might be?

Rankings

Top 5

1. Pittsburgh
2. New York Rangers
3. Colorado
4. San Jose
5. Chicago

Bottom 5

30. Toronto
29. New York Islanders
28. Minnesota
27. Florida
26. Montreal

Ducks Watch (My team)

The Ducks must have had Deju Vu Wednesday night as they almost blew their 2^nd 3 goal led against Minnesota in a week. Luckily they pulled this one out for the win. They followed the big home win up with a drubbing by the St. Louis Blues 0-5. Not the way you want to lose in front of the home fans. The Ducks only had 2 games in the span of 9 days due to their odd scheduling. The Ducks will look to rebound against the Dallas Stars today. They should also have James Wisniewski back in the lineup from his shoulder injury.