The 2011 Stanley Cup Final is a little different than most because it features a chance for a Canadian NHL team to win the Stanley Cup. Most pundits thought the Canucks felt this pressure since before the puck dropped. They were the strongest of all of the Canadian teams in the league this season. Both teams faced similar paths in getting here. Both were trying to exercise past playoff disappointments (Blackhawks and Flyers), both had to win a 7^th game at home (Canadiens, Blackhawks, Lightning) to advanced and both had to dispatch their arch rivals in a series to advanced (Canadiens and Blackhawks). Actually it’s quite unique that both teams beat their rivals in the 1^st round at home in a 7^th game overtime. Talk about destiny.

1 Vancouver Canucks vs. 3 Boston Bruins

Season Series: 1-0 Bruins

Playoff Series History: Never

Season Goal Differential: Boston +51, Vancouver +77 Both therefore make the superstitious cut-off (+25) for being a champion in the modern era.

What We Learned: Boston and Vancouver can play some great inspired hockey when needed. They both have resilient goalies that bounce back when needed.

Stars to Watch: Well when you get to the Finals both teams have a handful of stars to watch but I will pick one from each side. We all saw how well the Sedins played against the Sharks, which is a good thing since they had disappeared for a bit. But the Canucks heart and soul is Ryan Kesler. Kesler took a slight step backward against the Sharks and also got a little banged up. He will need to continue to grind, do the dirty work and be a force in front of the net for the Canucks to win. On the Bruins side it’s all about Nathan Horton. The Bruins haven’t lost a single game when Horton has scored a goal. They have only lost once in a playoff game when Horton produced at least 1 point. As Horton goes so do the Bruins. The Bruins top line might go against the Sedin line a lot, so it’s important they aren’t playing defense most of the time. Otherwise it coul dbe bad news for the Bruins.

X-Factor: Did somebody say Manny Malhotra? After sustaining a horrible eye Injury in March, Malhotra looks cleared to play. Besides being a defensive and face-off ace, Malhotra can also produce some points. Don’t forget the emotional lift teammates will have when they see him step onto the ice. The return of Malhotra may just tip things in the Canucks favor. But there’s still a chance he won’t go. For the Bruins their x-factor is the young Tyler Seguin. Seguin started out strong in his first two playoff games but didn’t produce any points in the next five. But he still played well even without any points. He has a minus in only one game. Seguin will need to produce again to counter the deep Canucks team.

Goalie Problem: Roberto Luongo vs Tim Thomas, again. You should remember that this two were both the back-up goalies for Team Canada and Team USA in the Olympics. Luongo ended up being the starter and Thomas didn’t really play at all. But it further adds to the similarity and continuity of the team’s paths. Both goalies are also Vezina finalists, just in case you didn’t know they were good. Both are more known for strong regular seasons and no so stellar playoff seasons. However, both have played real well this postseason. They both also have a pair of shutouts and twelve wins a piece. You might have noticed that the goalies are just as mirrored as the teams are. So who has the edge? Well despite the immense pressure, Luongo has persevered and hasn’t had a bad game since moving past the Blackhawks. I’d still give the slight edge to Thomas though. Thomas still tends to overplay shots and scoring chances. If he continues to do that, Vancouver will make him pay.

Fun Fact: The Canucks won their first series in 7, the 2^nd in 6 and the 3^rd in 5. Would they win this round in a sweep? It would follow the pattern but it’s extremely unlikely.

Prediction: This should be a dandy of a series. Great goaltending, great depth, great defense, good hitting and long cup droughts. Hockey fans have been fortunate to witness some great Stanley Cup Finals the past few seasons. I view the Bruins as more of blue collar underdogs with a slightly harder to path to get here. While the Canucks are the more glamorous record setting team. I know the Canucks did not have an easy path to the Cup and they also boast blue collar players but it’s just what it looks like to me. The Canucks are having what you may call a magical year. The only thing they need now, to cap it off, is to raise Lord Stanley’s Cup. Vancouver has already seen magic in the building with Team Canada’s Olympic win and the fact that Luongo was their goalie. This Finals will serve as an encore with the same results. I see the Canucks winning in seven and finally getting that monkey off of Canada’s back. Of course the Canucks are led by two Swedes and an American but who’s keeping track.

“NHL teams losing money – First Phoenix and now Columbus. The Coyotes troubles are well documented and despite the NHL’s best efforts the Coyotes really should really leave Phoenix. However don’t tell that to Commissioner Gary Bettman he doesn’t want to hear it. Now it is being reported that the Columbus Blue Jackets are losing on average 12 million a year.

Phoenix is dead last in attendance this year and has lost about 30 million in some seasons. Of course with team ownership up in the air many fans don’t want to invest money into a team that may not be there. The Coyotes were also near the bottom in attendance last year.

Columbus is 22nd in attendance capacity this year and was 2nd to last two seasons ago. Columbus is the 32nd largest US metro area not the largest by any means and not that smallest either, but only three teams play in front of smaller markets. The Blue Jackets also have to pay 5 million a year to use the arena. So that really doesn’t help their financial situation.

I think the NHL and Bettman really need to think harder before they place teams and try to keep teams in markets. A successful team depends on two things a large market and a large hockey or sports fan market. Phoenix and Atlanta (another money loser) are two top 12 markets, however neither care about hockey. Atlanta in general isn’t much of a sports market. None of their professional team are in the top 50% of attendance and the Atlanta Hawks are usually at the bottom like the Thrashers. Columbus and Carolina are also small markets with skeptical hockey fan bases, though Carolina fares a little better then Columbus, and then there’s Nashville and Florida(Miami).

For the life of me I don’t know why Bettman thought it was a good choice to put teams in some of these locations. I don’t have a problem, unlike most fans, of Bettman moving the teams out of Winnipeg and Hartford. I just question where he decided to move them to and when he decides to keep them there, even when it is a no win situation. For the life of me I can’t comprehend why Seattle and/or Portland, OR does not have a hockey team. Seattle is the 15th largest market and Portland is the 23rd largest. They both have built-in hockey fan bases and Seattle could really create a nice rivalry with Vancouver. They both do fairly well with WHL attendance. I imagine the NHL would do even better.”

A year later not much has changed. Guess who is dead lost in attendance this season? The Atlanta Thrashers and who is a close second? The Phoenix Coyotes. People use the excuse of well they aren’t winning franchises. True, but how many cups have the Canucks or Capitals ever won? Not to mention weren’t Toronto and Edmonton the worst teams last year and they both sold out like every single game? I agree wining helps and having star players help too. Before Crosby and Malkin got to Pittsburgh things looked bleak. But you really need to have an owner committed to winning in a city that’s on the bubble. It doesn’t seem like any of these cities have owners that do. I also realize that not every season will you play to jam packed crowds. The Blues had some really bad years of turnout before they rebounded this year and last year with about 100% capacity (even thought they didn’t make the playoffs last season). Realistically you should be able to get 85% of the arena full on average. Since the economy is bad a more realistic 75% for this season would do. The Thrashers, Coyotes, Blue Jackets and Islanders are all under 75% capacity. The Coyotes hit rocked bottom the other day when a whopping 6000+ fans came to a home game. This is a team that made the playoffs last season. You also can’t use the ownership situation excuse as a reason because Bettman has stubbornly said they will not leave Phoenix. If fans won’t come out to consistently support their team, the NHL should think of moving the franchises to cities that will.

Goalie Spotlight

Pekka Rinne – Nashville Predators

Finnish born Rinne is one of the bigger goalies in the league at 6-5. He started out his career playing for Oulun Kärpät in the SM-liiga league, the top league in Finland. He started out in their junior system before being called up to serve as a backup to Niklas Bäckström. He was apart of the championships team with Kärpät in 2004 and 2005. Rinne was drafted in the 8^th round by the Predators, 258^th overall.

He was then sent to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. He secured the top goalie job with the admirals rather easily, he even played in two game for the Predators in the 2005-06 season. Strangely during that summer he was roughed up by unknown assailants which caused him to miss four months of the following season. His stellar play for the Admirals coupled with Dan Ellis’ fine 2007-08 season enabled the Predators to move starter Chris Mason. Although originally only meant to backup Ellis, Rinne quickly assumed the starting position. He was rookie of the month for February 2009 and he even sent a Predators franchise record with seven shutouts in a season. He ended up tying his own shutout record again the following season.

Rinne is off to a hot start this season currently 3^rd in GAA (1.58) and 2^nd in SV% (.955). Goaltending mate Anders Lindback, who is actually even an inch taller, is also off to a decent start and they have helped catapult the Predators to one of the best records in the league. The Predators hope it will continue, as they look to make it to the playoffs for the 2^nd straight season and hopefully advance past the 1^st round for the first time in their history.

Fights of the Week

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

Derek Boogaard vs. Shawn Thornton

More of a grappling match, Thornton handles the Boogie man well. He even lands a nice one right in Boggie’s face. The refs break it up to early though.

Deryk Engelland vs. Kevin Klein

I picked this fight mostly because it was funny watching Klein trying to goad Malkin into a fight, which of course didn’t happen.

Goat of the Week

Craig Anderson – Colorado Avalanche

The infamous goalie leaves his crease and bad things happen is back. Anderson leaves to try and beat Brad Richardson to the puck but stupidly clears it off the near boards right to Jarret Stoll who slings it to Richardson who puts it into the wide open goal for his 2nd of three that night. I wouldn’t have played the puck like Anderson did in the first place but I’m not really sure why it took Anderson so look to get back to the net or at least a lot closer then he was.

Steve Mason – Atlanta Thrashers

Mason leaves his crease, but not as far as Anderson did, and makes a bad pass behind his net that Alexander Semin capitalizes on. Semin’s other two goals follow in the clip.

Things I like

1. All those hat tricks. Alexander Semin, John Tavares, Brad Richardson, Steven Stamkos, Rene Bourque, Lee Stempniak and Daniel Alfredsson each had one this week. Though Stempniak and Alfredsson each got their last goal on an empty netter. Only Tavares’ hat trick was in a losing effort. Three hat tricks on Friday and three hat tricks on Saturday is always fun to watch. You might say the days had their own hat tricks.

2. Speaking of Steven Stamkos he has picked up right where he left off left season, lighting up arenas nationwide. As an added bonus, Stamkos gets to stick it to Steve Yzerman nightly who passed over him for a Canadian Olympic roster spot. Of course since Yzerman is now the Lightning GM, I’m pretty sure he’s smiling.

3. Only one team has yet to lose in regulation and that would be the umm… the Nashville Predators? Yes that’s right, the Nashville Predators who are also undefeated on the road. It’s good for hockey in that region if they can sustain it. The goaltending duo of Pekka Rinne and Anders Lindback, their 7^th round selection in ’08, (both mentioned above) are playing exceptionally well. Though I can’t really see the Predators taking the division crown over the Blackhawks and the Red Wings in the long run.

4. Who said the Bruins were Tuukka Rask’s team? Tim Thomas is currently the NHL leader in in SV% (.980) and GAA (0.75) through four games. A good reason why the Bruins were smart not to move him. Nathan Horton has also fit in better with the Bruins then they could have ever imagined. He is 1^st on the team in goals (5) and points (9). Though the Bruins are still one of the lower scoring teams in the league, I would hate to see where they would be without him.

Things I don’t

1. As the Devil turns. Well they say that Devils like it hot but nobody can like it as hot and as uncomfortable as it’s getting in New Jersey. First not winning and then Ilya Kovalchuk is a healthy scratch. Word is then apparently leaked that nobody wanted to sign Kovalchuk except Owner Jeff Vanderbeek. GM Lou Lamoriello denies that but what is he really going to say? Kovy is not a team player and he doesn’t play defense well. Basically he is not a good fit but let’s keep him in New Jersey for life anyway. Makes sense right?

2. The Edmonton Oilers have not won a game since they started 2-0. They’ve had four straight losses culminating in a bad loss to the Sharks 6-1, in which they made many mistakes in their own zone that led to most of the Sharks goals. The Oilers have also said they aren’t sending any of their rookies down to the minors before the nine game window. This will definitely be a learning experience for the rookies and hopefully it won’t do the Oilers in when it comes time to re-sign them all. On the plus side if they don’t end up doing well, Edmonton will get another high draft pick. The Oilers lost again last night but they showed some heart and determination battling back from a 4-1 deficit. They also at least picked up a point for their effort.

3. Colton Orr’s “goal” Tuesday night which basically consisted of him bowling over goalie Florida Panthers’ goalie Scott Clemmensen in the crease and having the puck redirect off of his skate. I can’t believe the refs allowed the goal, it’s not like he was pushed in. It’s a good thing the game was in Toronto because I hate to hear the chants coming from Florida. Orr’s goal was the game winning goal but luckily Phil Kessel scored a goal a few minutes later so if that goal wouldn’t have counted, the Panthers would have lost anyway.

Stat Line of the Week

10/23/10 Los Angeles 6 vs. Colorado 4

Brad Richardson scored equal or more goals in one game than he did in three previous seasons. Though the seasons weren’t full, ranging from 22, 31 and 44 games played, it’s still an impressive feat for a guy who doesn’t score that much especially in about 12 minutes of playing time.

Did You Know?

Wayne Gretzky has the most career NHL three goals or more games with 50. Mario Lemieux is 2^nd with 40. Wayne Gretzky also has the single season mark of 10, which he set twice in 1981-82 and in 1983-84.

Numbers, Numbers

1195 – NHL games for Teemu Selanne to get 610 goals

1063 – NHL games for Bobby Hull to get 610 goals

303 – Goals scored by Bobby Hull in the WHA, which he unfortunately doesn’t really get much credit for

36.5 – The Hurricanes face-off winning percentage, dead last in the league

14 – Years since the Coyotes last won a game in Montreal

Quote of the Week

“Actually, I have better games against better goalies. The way I look at it, I’m better than they are.” — RW Alex Kovalev, when asked if he was glad All-Star Ilya Bryzgalov didn’t start in goal for the Coyotes on Tuesday.

This Week in Hockey History

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

October 21, 2000 Nicklas Lidstrom had two assists for his 500th career point in the Red Wings 5-4 win in overtime against the visiting Buffalo Sabres. It came in the 5,000th game in Detroit’s franchise history.

October 22, 1999 Grant Fuhr became the 6th NHL goaltender to win 400 career NHL games and Derek Morris scored 20 seconds into overtime as Calgary won 3-2 at Florida.

October 23, 1971 Montreal’s Guy Lafleur scored his first career NHL goal. It came against Kings’ goalie Gary Edwards in the Canadiens’ 3-1 win at Los Angeles.

October 24, 1953 Maple Leafs’ Ted Kennedy scored a goal just :08 into a game between Toronto and Boston, to tie the NHL record for fastest goal from the start of a game (set by NY Americans’ Ron Martin in 1932). Leafs lost 3-2 to Bruins.

October 25, 1984 Guy Lafleur scored his 518th and final goal as a member of the Montreal Canadiens in a 3-2 win over Buffalo. His next NHL goal would come four years later with the New York Rangers.

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.

Rankings

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

Top 5

1. Nashville

2. Los Angeles

3. Detroit

4. Montreal

5. Tampa Bay

Bottom 5

30. New Jersey

29. Edmonton

28. Ottawa

27. Phoenix

26. Anaheim

What a weekend of hockey with six hat tricks in two days.  Friday saw Steven Stamkos, Rene Bourque and Daniel Alfredsson light the lamp three times. That was only to be followed Saturday by Alexander Semin, Brad Richardson and John Tavares first hat trick of his NHL career.  Alfredsson eight career hat trick also led to his 1,000 NHL point, only the 75th NHL player to reach that milestone. Team of the week has to be the St. Louis Blues

who fought the Blackhawks hard in an OT loss Monday only to come back and beat the defending champions Friday and then shutout the high powered Penguins on Saturday.  Player of the Week and maybe of the first couple of weeks in the NHL is the sharp shooting Steven Stamkos.

Not only did he have second career hat trick but the former first overall pick is on a four-game point streak as he paces the league with 15 points and 8 goals. Now onto the Pucking Awesome Hat Trick or the top three storylines I am watching for this week.

Bruins Goalie Drama

The stories coming out of the Hub not only surround the red hot start by Nathan Horton, who has a point in every game he has played for the Bruins but who is winning for the team in net.  Tim Thomas was named the 2009 Vezina Trophy winner and during that season was signed to a lucrative four-year deal and seemed to be the goalie of the present and future for the B’s.

The following season the veteran shared time with former Maple Leafs 1st round pick Tuuka Rask to only see his job stolen by the end of the season.  Thomas only started nine games after February 1st and Rask was named the playoff goaltender and thus given a two-year contract and presumed to be the Bruins goalie of the present and future.

But the 36-year-old goalie is not ready to just sit and watch that happen as Thomas has started the season 4-0 with a 0.75 GAA and .978 save percentage.  On the flip side Rask is 0-2 with a 3.52 GAA and .894 save percentage.  Can you say goalie controversy?

All signs point to that Thomas has regained his top spot for now as the second-year pro struggles to find his last season’s top notch form.  This will be a great storyline to watch as the Bruins have two division rival games this week.  We could be seeing another chapter being written in the fairy tale Tim Thomas story.

Can the Preds Be Stopped?

Quick, can you name the NHL team yet to lose a game in regulation this season? Blackhawks, not even close. Penguins, good guess. Red Wings, close, but no cigar.  It is the Nashville Predators, who have started the 2010-11 campaign 5-0-3.  The team that took the Blackhawks to the brink in last year’s playoffs have come out of the Chute on fire and have been led by the normal characters.

When starting goalie Pekka Rinne went down early with an injury former 7th round pick Anders Lindback was forced into action and he responded big time.  The rookie is 3-0-1 with a 2.55 GAA and .925 save percentage to start his career as the 6-6 goalie has teamed up with the 6-5 Rinne for not only the tallest goalie tandem but a darn good one.

Rinne has returned and is 2-0-2 with a 1.58 GAA and .955 save percentage.  Both goalies need to be at their best as the Preds have been giving up 34.9 shots a game, good for 26th in the league and their combined 2.12 GAA is good for fourth best in the league.

Beyond the ageless Steve Sullivan (6 points in 8 games), the names of Cal O’Reilly, Colin Wilson and Cody Franson have paced the team offensively. The former seventh overall pick of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft Colin Wilson built on his hot finish last season to start with five points in the first eight games.

With the loss of Dam Hamuis this offseason and Ryan Suter to injury early, Cody Franson has picked up the slack with four points and a plus-4 rating.  The 23-year-old is proving that his 21 points and plus-15 in 61 games last season was not a fluke.

The biggest surprise to the Predators hot start has to be the play of Cal O’Reilly.  The 24-year-old has been playing on the top line and been producing with six points.  The former fifth round pick has been playing 17:36 minutes per game and has seen time on the top power play unit already with two power play assists and has one game-winning goal.

With division games against the Blues and equally hot Red Wings this week I will be watching to see if this unbeaten streak will continue.

Contraction Talk

With the news this week that NBA Commissioner David Stern confirmed that contraction could be a possibility, the heads turn to the NHL’s big boss Gary Bettman with the same question.  With the Coyotes still searching for an owner, the Islanders still are searching for a stadium deal and the Thrashers and Blue Jackets struggling to sell tickets the thought of contraction has to be thought about.

Those four teams are averaging fewer than 13,000 fans a game to start off this season.  One of the three between the Islanders, Thrashers and Coyotes have been the bottom three in attendance the last five years with all three being in those spots the last two.

While the latest collective-bargaining agreement still has two seasons to run its course the buzz word of contraction might come up in the next big discussion.  Would this help a league that is booming in many markets but struggling in others?

This is a storyline that will be discuss as we get closer to the CBA deadline and farther away from answers for the Coyotes, Islanders, Thrashers and Blue Jackets to why they are not getting people to care.

The NHL is getting stuffed these days so let’s crack open the cranberry’s and this week’s Pucking Awesome Hat Trick.

The Return of Hossa:

The most anticipated Blackhawk debut is schedule to happen this week as Marian Hossa will return from offseason shoulder surgery.  The winger signed a controversial 12-year, $62.8 million contract from the divisional rival Red Wings has been skating with the team all week.

Head coach Joel Quenneville have been skating him in practice with Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.  I would not be surprised if that is the line Hossa works with to start, it is important for the winger to come out strong and make a good impression on the fans and more important his teammates.  All of the NHL will be watching his return and more critical is how the Blackhawks finagle the cap.

Detroit Rock Infirmary:

When will enough be enough as the Red Wings have loss another big name player to an injury.  Niklas Kronwall is out 4-8 weeks due to a knee injury, on a dirty hit by Canadiens menace Georges Laraque.  The Red Wings have always been heralded as a team that just fits parts into the whole no matter who is there or not there.  This season the injuries are catching up to the team shown in their subpar start.

Kronwall Is added to the list that includes Johan Franzen (torn ACL out till March), Valtteri Filppula (broken wrist out till late December), Jason Williams (fractured fibula out till mid-January, Andreas Lilja (concussion out indefinitely).  I will be watching out the walking wounded Wings will do with a busy four games in six days.

Game Of The Week:

I know the obvious pick would be the big Sharks and Blackhawks, top two teams in the West, Blackhawks debut for Hossa, but I also will be watching a game between two of the hottest teams in the NHL.  The Predators have won five-straight games host the Florida Panthers, who have points in their last six games (5-0-1).

The Predators first line of Jason Arnott, Steve Sullivan and J.P. Dumont has been on fire of lately, as well as the power play as the Predators have 12 power play goals in last 13 games.  The Panthers have a tough stretch this week with home games against the Penguins and Rangers before facing the Predators on Saturday.

The cats from down south have been amazingly on this run without arguable their best player, as David Booth is still out with concussion symptoms.  They have been led by Nathan Horton with two goals and four assists is riding a five-game point streak.  Of course watch the big Hossa debut but don’t forget to tune in two teams on the rise.