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.

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.

In the last 20+ years, we have never had a Stanley Cup winner with less than a +25 goal differential in the regular season. The Penguins win over the Red Wings in 2009 was the lowest of the 20 years with a +25. How about the loser? Well for the losers there have been various goal differentials. For the most part they’ve all had a positive goal differential too. There are three exceptions. Carolina in 01-02 lost to Detroit and had a 217/217 GF/GA. In 92-93 Los Angeles lost to Montreal with a negative differential 338/340 GF/GA. The Kings gave up a lot of goals that year, only three teams gave up more goals than them that season. In 90-91 the Minnesota North Stars (remember them) had a negative 10 differential 256/266 GF/GA and a 27-39-14 record (yikes!). Of course that year there were only 10 teams in the West so all but two teams got in the playoffs.

Last year I wrote “So that means if we cut out the bubbles teams, though there are still five to seven games left so a lot could change, your Stanley Cup Champions will either be Washington, Buffalo, Vancouver, Chicago or San Jose.” and what do you know Chicago won the cup. They had a +62 while their Stanley Cup opponent, the Flyers, had a +11. Naturally it was a foregone conclusion that the Blackhawks would win.

This year I don’t see why the pattern won’t hold true again. So sorry any team with a less than a +25 goal differential, you won’t be winning the Stanley Cup this year. In the East we have Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Boston and surprisingly the Rangers. A stark contrast from last year when the East only had two teams with a +25 goal differential.

In the West we have Vancouver, San Jose, Chicago and the umm Predators. Hmmmm aren’t those the same three teams (minus the Predators) as last year in the West? Surprising, when you consider where Chicago is standingwise. Los Angeles has a chance to get to the +25 mark but it probably won’t happen.

I can’t see the Rangers winning it all, if they actually get in which now doesn’t seem likely, and for some reason I can’t see Philadelphia having the same run. The Flyers don’t have the goaltending and they are really moving in the wrong direction at the wrong time. Washington, Pittsburgh and Boston are your best bets in the East. Out West I really don’t like any of the teams. Sure Vancouver is by far having the best year but considering their past luck, I can’t really see them winning it all. Same with San Jose. It’s hard to look past all of those other dismal playoff performances and think that for some reason it will be different this year. On the other hand, the Sharks do have a much needed upgrade in goal with Niemi and you can’t really argue with the Canucks dominance. I think that one of three above mentioned Eastern teams will knock out the West this year in the Stanley Cup Finals. No I didn’t even mention the Predators because I mean come on.

So how did I do with my predictions from the beginning of the season?

Stanley Cup Finals

Pittsburgh over San Jose

I got all but two right in the East and all but two right in the West (assuming the Blackhawks win or the Stars lose). Not sure I’d keep those conference finals now but who knows. I’m still puzzled on how Nashville keeps making the playoffs every year and to a lesser extent Buffalo. I’m pretty sure the Predators will get knocked out of the playoffs in the 1^st round (again) and no one will care (again). Sorry if I offended the 5 Predator fans throughout this article.

Stay tuned for my mini 1^st round playoff preview which will be up in a few days.

Historic Franchises

The two teams that are matched up in Super Bowl XLV have combined for 18 NFL Championships and 11 Super Bowl appearances.  With that in mind for the NHL, the Stanley Cup Final this season would match up Montreal vs Detroit.  The Canadiens have made the Stanley Cup Final 34 times, winning 24 of them, although Les Habitants last made the Cup in 1993 when Patrick Roy took down Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings.

The Western Conference representative Red Wings have made 24 appearances in the Cup Final, winning 11 of them.  Red Wings fans, unlike the Canadiens fans, have not had to wait patiently for a Final, as they made back-to-back appearances in 2008 and 2009.  Although in the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys tied with Pittsburgh with eight Super Bowl appearances.  You get the idea of two historic franchises with tons of winning history squaring off to decide the ultimate championship.

Challenge on the Play

In 1999, the NFL changed their instant replay rules allowing coaches to “challenge” a call on the field. The NHL is getting close to allowing replays as well.  On Friday night two close off-side calls resulted in two big goals as both the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vancouver Canucks scored goals that on further review should have been called off-sides.

This has seemed to be a weekly, if not daily, occurrence in the NHL.  The game is faster and television coverage has improved—why not use these to your advantage to make the game better?  The GM’s rejected a Dale Tallon proposal back in November, but when they reconvene in March, they should take time out of talking head shots and discuss this much needed rule change.

Game of the Week

The NHL on NBC has returned and in the spirit of the flexible schedule that is given to NFL on NBC, the game I would flex this week would be the Boston Bruins vs the Montreal Canadiens.  With all due respect with the games that NBC chose for their Sunday lineup this week (Bruins vs Red Wings), this Northeast Division rivalry will be more fun to watch.

The 708 lifetime games between these teams are the second most of any two NHL opponents.  They come in second only to Detroit and Chicago, with their original six matchup games of over 712.  This season the series has been lopsided, with the Canadiens winning the first three matchups.  All three matchups have been close, as the Canadiens have outscored the Bruins by the combined score of 10-6, including a miracle overtime comeback victory in their last matchup on January 8th.  I expect fireworks in this matchup of division foes so close in the standings.

Goalie Spotlight

Tim Thomas – Boston Bruins

(Note:This is a repeat spotlight from last year, somewhat updated.)

Tim Thomas was the winner of the Vezina Trophy (top goalie) and the William Jennings trophy (best GAA for a team) with Manny Fernandez two seasons ago. However it took a long time for success and recognition to come to Thomas at the professional level. He won the Vezina trophy at the age of 34. He was the oldest first time winner in 43 years since Gump Worsley did it at age 36 in the 1965-66 season for the Montreal Canadiens.

Michigan born Thomas played at the University of Vermont. He was a two-time All-ECAC Conference selection and a two-time NCAA East All-American. He also holds many Vermont records including; games played (140), wins (81), and minutes played (3,950). He is also second in the NCAA Division I record book in career saves (3,950). Thomas was drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in 1994 but nothing ever came of that. He finished up his four years of playing at Vermont. After playing briefly in ECHL and IHL, Thomas made his way to Finland where he played for HIFK in the SM-liiga league. He led them to the championship that year.

He signed with the Edmonton Oilers in 1998 and joined their AHL affiliate only to end up in Finland again. He came back to the states to play for the Detroit Vipers only to end up in Europe again this time playing in the Swedish league. He then signed with the Boston Bruins but elected to play a year in the SM-liiga Finnish league again. He then came back to the states to play for the Bruins affiliate the Providence Bruins. He played a few games for the Bruins too during the stint and ironically his first NHL win came against the Oilers, the team that drafted him. He returned to Finland for the 4th time and racked up a league high SV% and broke the league shutout mark for a season. He led his team to a 2nd place finish that year. Finally done with Finland, Thomas came back to the Bruins (both Providence and Boston.) Due to injuries to two goalies he was supposed to backup in different seasons, Thomas emerged as the number one goalie. His last two seasons (2007-08, 2008-09) were his statistical best in the NHL and he was also named to the All-Star game both times, the first time as a replacement and the second time as a starter.

Thomas led the Bruins to their best record in some time in the 08-09 season and despite suffering a tough 7th game lost in the 2nd round to the Hurricanes, expectations were high in 2009-10 for Boston. Boston struggled somewhat that season but rebounded to make the playoffs before suffering their embarrassing collapse against the Flyers. Tuukka Rask ended up taking over the number one goalie position that year, not because Thomas necessarily struggled but because Rask was hotter. This season it was assumed to be Rask’s job to lose. Which is exactly what Rask did when he struggled to start the year off. Thomas was given the opportunity to take back the starting job, which he did when he was off to his best start in his career. Already recording 5 shutouts this season, Thomas should easily pass his career high of 5 set the previous two seasons. It’s likely he will also add another Vezina to his trophy collection.

Fights of the Week

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

Derek Dorsett vs. Patrick Kaleta

Dorsett plays the part of human punching bag in this fight.

Shawn Thornton vs. Jody Shelley

Decent scrap that would have been better if more had landed.

Goats of the Week

Mike Weber – Buffalo Sabres

This one cost the Sabres dearly as Weber’s giveaway in the final minutes of the 3^rd allowed the Bruins to tie the game and then go on to win it in overtime.

P.K Subban and Michal Cammalleri – Montreal Canadiens

This was one of the those play/passes you’d just like to forget. Subban has a risky pass to Cammalleri who handles it poorly and Dustin Penner picks it up for the game winner in overtime.

Mike Smith – Tampa Bay Lightning

I have no idea what Smith was doing on this play, either way he wasn’t doing what he should have been doing.

Mike Smith and Victor Hedman – Tampa Bay Lightning

You may have noticed this wasn’t Mike Smith’s best game of his career. I have no idea what these two were doing on this play.

Things I like

1. Atlanta is doing what Tampa Bay can’t do, beat Washington. The Thrashers are now 2-0 against the Capitals this season, with a combined score of 8-1. Impressive for a Thrashers team that will be competing for a playoff spot maybe a season before many thought they would.

2. Taylor Hall started out slow but it’s never easy for an eighteen year old rookie (now 19) to adjust to the NHL. Hall had his first multi-goal game against Toronto and then followed that up with the game winner in overtime against St. Louis. He also almost has the same amount of block shots in the past three games (5) as he did in the previous 23 games (6).

3. The Canucks actually beat the Blackhawks. More importantly Roberto Luongo actually had a shutout. While it’s just a regular season game, it has to do wonders for the Canucks confidence against a team that generally has had their number. The two will square off one more time this season in Vancouver.

4. Welcome Back Joffrey Lupul. Lupul played in his first NHL game since recovery from all of his complications from his back injury almost exactly a year after his last game. He didn’t produce any point but he did have three shots on goal. It’s great that he was able to make a recovery to continue to do what he loves.

5. Loved the goalie duel between the Sabres and Bruins last night. Thomas had some great stops, especially one from point blank range. This was a great goaltending battle last year in the playoffs with Rask vs Miller.

Things I don’t

1. The Calgary Flames now find themselves at the bottom of the conference. Probably not what they envisioned when they “retooled” this offseason. Of course most Flames and hockey fans in general are not surprised because all they did was basically bring back guys (Olli Jokinen, Alex Tanguay and so on) that didn’t work out in the first place. Surprisingly, however, is that Miikka Kiprusoff is on pace for as many shutouts as he had during the best season of his career a few years ago. I really hope if they don’t make any progress this year, they blow it up. (okay not last anymore, as they just beat the Lightning to leapfrog the Oilers)

2. San Jose Sharks are a team with talent obviously, they are also a team that can’t play consistently well. Let’s break down their last eight games. L, W, L, W, L, W, L, W. Judging by this pattern, I assume the Sharks will lose to the Flyers tonight before rebounding with a win in Buffalo. Just one of the many reasons the Sharks are 4^th in their division instead of their usual 1^st place spot. Though the West and the Pacific are very tough.

3. The Patrick Kane injury will be a tough thing to overcome for a Blackhawks team that looked like it was just starting to gel, winning four of their last five. It will be tough to cope without their second leading scorer but the Blackhawks have many skilled players (Kopecky, Stalberg, Skille, Bickell) to help fill the void. In the long run this might actually help the Blackhawks and give somebody else a chance to step up and shine.

Stat Line of the Week

12/02/10 Pittsburgh 3 vs. Atlanta 2

Sidney Crosby is in the midst of a remarkable run. But there is one thing he hasn’t accomplished in his still young career. That would be the natural hat trick, until the game against the Thrashers. Crosby accounted for all of the Penguins goals and notched his 7^th career hat trick just two games after his 6^th.

Did You Know?

On October 17, 2008, Zach Harrison of the Minnesota State University Mavericks recorded a shorthanded natural hat trick against the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. Harrison scored the three consecutive short handed goals over a span of 29:54. According to the Hockey Hall of Fame, they were not sure that this feat had ever been accomplished before at college level, and have since put Harrison’s stick on display at the Hockey Hall of Fame. However, C.J. Young of Harvard is believed to have accomplished a shorthanded natural hat trick in 1988 against Dartmouth.

Numbers, Numbers

0 – Regular strength goals in the Flames vs Blackhawks game. 5 power play goals and 1 empty net goal ( I don’t count the empty net goal as an even strength goal)

16 – Straight games with a point for Sidney Crosby

40 – Giveaways by Ryan Getzlaf tops in the NHL

10 – Rounds of shootout between the Oilers and Ducks, which was highly entertaining to watch

16.90 – GAA for Brian Elliot after giving up a goal in four minutes of relief duty against Montreal

0 – Regulation losses for Boston and Carolina when scoring first, the only two teams that can say that

Quotes of the Week

“It’s not fun until it’s over.”

- Coach Dan Bylsma, on watching a blowout victory at Columbus after the Penguins scored four goals in the opening period.

“If you’ve got the answer, let me know.”

- C Jason Spezza, after the Senators were shut out for a second straight game in Saturday’s 1-0 shootout loss to the Sabres.

“When we come into games now you can just tell in the dressing room, everyone is a lot more vocal. Before, we’d come in the dressing room and it would just be kind of down. That’s how we’d start games. It’s always been a fun feeling in here, but sometimes before games you’d just get a little down.”

—Taylor Hall, on the recent change in the Oilers.

“They must have run out of bodies.”

- Flyers RW Andreas Nodl on why he was used for the final 20 seconds of a power play, during which he scored his first career power-play goal.

This Week in Hockey History

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

December 02, 1989 Toronto’s Ed Olczyk began a team-record 18 game point scoring streak in the Maple Leafs’ 7-4 loss to the Flames, at Calgary.

December 03, 1991 Joe Nieuwendyk scored his 200th NHL career goal in a 5-2 Flames loss at Detroit. Nieuwendyk became the 4th player in franchise history to score 200 goals in a Calgary uniform.

December 04, 1971 Rookie goaltender Ken Dryden recorded his third career shutout, Jacques Lemaire scored his second career hat trick and added two assists and Frank Mahovlich picked up four assists as the Canadiens won 7-0 against the visiting Vancouver Canucks.

December 05, 2001 Mike Keenan became just the second man in NHL history to coach seven different NHL teams, when he led the Florida Panthers to a 2-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets in his first game behind the bench. Roberto Luongo picked up the shutout.

December 06, 2000 Ron Francis became the fifth player in NHL history to record 1,100 career assists. He picked up the milestone point during Carolina’s 5-3 win over the Thrashers, in Atlanta. It was also Francis’ 900th game with the Hurricanes’ franchise.

December 07, 1961 Jean Beliveau wore the “C” on his Montreal sweater for the first time in his career, when he played his first game of the season in a 4-1 win over Toronto, at the Forum.

Rankings

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

Top 5

1. Pittsburgh

2. Detroit

3. Dallas

4. Atlanta

5. Chicago

Bottom 5

30. N.Y Islanders

29. Minnesota

28. Columbus

27. New Jersey

26. Ottawa

SHOOTOUT VICTORY

The following teams are shopping this holiday for a shootout victory this season.  As Wild, Oilers and Bruins are 0-3 this season and the Canucks and Islanders are 0-2. The Wild wish there was a power play on the shootout as they have only scored 3 goals in their 3 shootouts.

The offensively challenged Oilers and Bruins are worst off as both teams have only 2 goals in their 3 shootout losses.  The top two picks of the 2010 NHL Draft have been successful for those teams as Taylor Hall is one for one and Tyler Seguin has the only two goals for the Bruins in three attempts.

Though only in two shootouts each the Canucks only have two goals and the Islanders have none.  The goalies of those two teams have not done any better as Roberto Luongo has given up five goals on all five shots this season.  Dwayne Roloson has only stopped one of his three shots faced but ironically Ricky DiPietro has given up only one goal on his three attempts faced.

The goalies of the three shootout losses teams have been atrocious also.  Niklas Backstrom has given up six goals on the 11 shots faced, that is not going to give any team a chance to win.  Early season favorite for the Vezina Tim Thomas has stopped six of the nine attempts he faced, so that goes on the offense to have someone other than Seguin to score. His counterpart Tuukka Rask gave up two shootout goals on the two shots he faced.  The Oilers were glad to see Nikolai Khabibulin return as he at least stopped one of the two shots he faced, while Devan Dubnyk was awful giving up five goals on seven shots.

So in the month of December all these teams are asking for is a victory in a shootout to give them a chance in the standings as we have seen in the last couple of the seasons the shootout can be the difference in making or missing the playoffs.

POWER OUTAGE

Some of the top teams are having a difficult time scoring with the man advantage this season and will be shopping around on ways to improve what could be a deadly weapon. Philadelphia, Montreal and Pittsburgh are seeded 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th right now in the Eastern Conference but ranked 16^th, 11^th and 12^th respectively on the power play. All those teams have dangerous offensive talents and normally ranked in the top five in power play percentages.

Out West the Los Angeles Kings had the seventh ranked power play last season and have the 23^rd ranked one this season.  The surprise Dallas Stars, who lead the Pacific Division, have the 17^th ranked power play and the upstart St. Louis Blues who sit in a playoff spot now in the West are ranked 26^th in power play percentage.

All of these teams mentioned have offensive talent just have not found the right combination on the man advantage.  For most of these teams finding that right combination can be the difference in being a good team and a great team and for some being a playoff team and playing golf in the spring.

FIRST GOAL FRENZY

Scoring the first goal in a game is important in many levels and shown that all 30 NHL teams have a winning percentage of .500 or higher when scoring first.  That being said some teams have horrible winning percentages when they give up the first goal and will be shopping this holiday season for the all important first goal.

The New York Islanders have had a tough time to start the season, not to mention a 14-game losing streak and a coach firing, they are 0-13-2 when they give up the first goal.  The Devils have had a tough time scoring goals, NHL worst 1.81 goals per game, as they are 2-12 when trailing early.  The Canucks are 12-1-1 when they score the first goal of the game and conversely 2-7-2 when they don’t. Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators are fringe playoff teams and both only have two wins when they give up the first goal.

Look at the top of the standings with teams like Washington (9 wins when giving up first goal), Pittsburgh (7 wins), Philadelphia (6 wins) and Detroit (4 wins) shows that good teams that can bounce back from giving up the first goal of the game. But these teams would like for the holiday some games where they do not have to bounce back and take the early lead.

During the Islanders heyday Bill Torrey was the GM. His last few bigger deals included Kelly Hrudey for Mark Fitzpatrick, Pat LaFontaine for Pierre Turgeon essentially and the acquisition of Darius Kasparaitis. While they were not that bad, they weren’t all that great either. Torrey left when the Islanders changed management.

Next up was Don Maloney whose deals included trading Pierre Turgeon for Kirk Muller and Ron Hextall for Tommy Soderstrom. Soderstrom never panned out as the Islanders would have liked and Hextall ended up leading the league in GAA. Kirk Muller ended up playing a whopping 27 games total in his two seasons with the Islanders before being traded in a big mess. Maloney was shortly fired.

Then came everyone’s favorite GM Mike Milbury. Milbury was able to help guide the Islanders to three straight playoff appearances between 2001-2004 the first time that happened since 1985-1988. On the down side all of the appearances was they were all 1^st round exits. The Islanders could have been even better if Milbury had an eye for talent. Milbury’s most notable blunders include trading Roberto Luongo and Olli Jokinen for Oleg Kvasha and Mark Parrish. He also acquired Alexei Yashin for Zedno Chara, Bill Muckalt and the 2^nd overall pick in the 2001 draft, which ended up being Jason Spezza. He also traded Bryan McCabe and Todd Bertuzzi for Trevor Linden. While Linden was a great player, he was definitely on the downside of his career while McCabe and Bertuzzi were just starting their careers. Personally I think a team of Chara and McCabe on defense, a line of Spezza, Bertuzzi and Jokinen, with Luongo in net wouldn’t be that bad. Even with Luongo’s and Jokinen’s problems.

Drafting wise the Islanders haven’t done any better. Bertuzzi and Brett Lindros were drafted under Maloney. Bertuzzi was of course traded before being developed and Lindros was a bust who had a career ending injury. Wade Redden was also a bust but regardless of that, he never even played for the Islanders in the first place.

Milbury didn’t draft much better. His first 1^st round pick of Jean-Pierre “J. P.” Dumont, ended in a contract dispute that saw Dumont get traded. He followed that up with drafting Luongo and Eric Brewer. Luongo played one season with the Islanders and wasn’t given time to develop and Brewer’s short two year run was a disaster. Michael Rupp was picked the next year in the draft and you can guess how that went. Between 1994 to 1998 the Islanders had six draft picks in the top ten spots. Three of them never even wore an Islanders sweater during a game and the other three all played two shortened seasons or less before being traded or they had their career ended by injury. In 1999 the Islanders had four 1^st round picks but rather than write about it, I’m going to let you guess how those panned out. Here’s a hint, they weren’t any better than the previous ones. Then there was the Rick DiPietro pick to start the century off. That actually wouldn’t have been a bad pick if not for DiPietro’s injury problems.

When Milbury finally left Neil Smith took over for a whopping 40 days and then was replaced with current GM Garth Snow. I actually like the last few Islanders’ draft picks of Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey and John Tavares. A good sign is that they are all still on the team. This years pick of Nino Niederreiter seems like he will develop into a great player, though still too early to tell. I also like the recent pick-ups of James Wisniewski and Michael Grabner.

The main thing the Islanders need is a GM with a good eye for talent. I think Garth Snow has that. The next step is to actually let the players develop. So while they aren’t winning now, results can’t be expected to happen overnight. I realize if you are an Islanders’ fan, it seems like you have been waiting forever but just give it a little more time.

Goalie Spotlight

Rick DiPietro – NY Islanders

Since we are on the subject of the Islanders, I figured I would spotlight Rick DiPietro. DiPietro was born in Winthrop, MA and played just one season for Boston University. But what a season it was. He was named to the All-Rookie Team, named to the Second Team All-Hockey East and was awarded the Hockey East’s Rookie of the Year. He also stopped 77 of 80 shots, just one save short of the record, in a quadruple overtime loss to St. Lawrence University during the NCAA regional final. He was also named MVP of the Beanpot tournament, which is a tournament participated in by the four major Boston area colleges. After his one stellar season the Islanders made him the 1^st overall pick of the 2000 draft. Milbury’s desire to draft DiPietro is what prompted him to trade Roberto Luongo.

He played in only 20 games is rookie year and manged just three wins and a .878 SV%. He was subsequently sent down to the Chicago Wolves of the IHL and then the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL. He didn’t fare any better with the Wolves but the next two seasons with the Sound Tigers he progressively improved. He also saw 10 games of action with the Islanders in 2002-03 in which he was slightly better than his last NHL go around. He was called up for good the next season and posted a 2.36 GAA with a .911 SV%.The next three seasons he played 60+ games. The 2006-07 season was his best season and he recorded a career high five shutouts. In March of 2007 DiPietro suffered a concussion which him caused him to miss a few games but he was able to play most of the playoff games that season.

In the summer of 2007 he underwent hip surgery to repair a torn labrum but the next season during the All-Star Game competition in 2008 he injured his hip again. He played most of the rest of the season with his injury. The next two seasons the played a combined total of 13 games mostly due to knee related injuries, swelling and surgeries. This season he is back and presumed to be 100%. He has so far split the goaltending duties with Dwayne Roloson. He has not played well this season. In fact he only played well during a win against Tampa Bay and a loss against the Thrashers. Otherwise he has been mediocre at best. His current numbers are a 3.93 GAA and .870 SV%. DiPietro is still only 29 and has a good chance to play a decade or so if he can stay healthy. It’s important for the Islanders organization that he bounces back this year after all that time and money has been invested in him.

Fights of the Week

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

Darcy Hordichuk vs. Shawn Thornton

Decent fight between these two, advantage Thornton.

Krys Barch vs. Colton Orr

A nice long fight that Orr clearly domaintes.

Kevin Westgarth vs. Chris Neil

Decent scrap despite Westgarth’s balancing issues.

Goats of the Week

Jaroslav Halak – St. Louis Blues

Even great goalies like Halak can make bad judgments from time to time, though if he wouldn’t have hit it accidentally for the 2^nd time it never would have went in. Mostly players are chosen as goats because their blunder cost their team the game. In this case, the Red Wings won by so much it didn’t really matter but I thought it deserved a mention anyway.

Corey Perry – Anaheim Ducks

Perry tries to center the puck in the closing seconds of the game with the goalie pulled but ends up scoring a goal… into his own net, a good 200 feet away.

Things I like

1.Loved the high scoring affair that was Tampa Bay vs. Philadelphia. I think we need to have games like that more often. It really showcases the awesomeness and excitement of the NHL. I’m not saying a defensive goalie duel isn’t exciting, it is, but this adds a different level of excitement. Too many games like that would be bad, as the fans would expect them too much.

2. Jerome Iginla has struggled mightily with the Flames so far this season. However since management has told him he wouldn’t have to wave his no trade clause, he has been on fire. I’m not sure why that would make a difference but I guess it has psychologically. Though if he and the Flames had started better, I don’t think the idea of trading him would have ever crossed their mind in the first place. Iginila has six goal in his last three games.

3. The 34 year old Milan Hejduk is on pace to have his best year since 2002-03. He is an integral part of the Avalanche’s offense and power play and brings much needed experience to the young Avalanche forwards.

4. Anytime you shutout the high scoring Capitals, except if your name is Jaroslav Halak, I think you deserve a special mention. So congratulations on making 30 saves goes to Johan Hedberg, a mostly career journeyman and the owner of a just below career .900 SV%.

Things I don’t

1. After the Blackhawks shed a few people off their roster, most notably Dustin Byfuglien, you would think the Canucks would have an easier time with the Hawks. But that is certainly not the case. After losing 2-1 in overtime to the Hawks earlier this year, Vancouver followed it up with an atrocious 7-1 loss at home. The Canucks were dominated in ever facet of the game except at the face-off circle. Not a good sign for the Canucks, especially if they have to meet the Blackhawks in the playoffs again.

2. Teams on the West Coast. The Canucks have lost their last four, the Kings have lost four of their last five, the Sharks have lost their last three and the Ducks have lost their last five. Maybe it’s something in the Pacific Ocean. I will admit the Kings received a couple of questionable calls against Ottawa.

3. After Ryan Smyth’s no goal because he was called for high sticking, I think it’s necessary the NHL invests in additional cameras so they can show more angles. I also think the NHL should grant each coach one challenge during the game. The idea was brought up during the GM meetings but was shot down. I think it’s time we had it. This challenge could be used for goals or penalty calls.

Stat Line of the Week

11/18/10 Tampa Bay 8 vs. Philadelphia 7

I suppose I could have picked a player form another game but I took the easy way out. Stamkos converted all three of his shots into goals for his 3^rd career hat trick. All of his goals were setup by nice passing by his Tampa Bay teammates. Stamkos is almost averaging a goal a game.

Did You Know?

In 1964-65, Red Wings’ Roger Crozier was the last goaltender to appear in all of his team’s games for an entire season. Crozier ended up playing in all but 33 minutes of the Red Wings 70 games that year. A feat that will surely never be done again in this day and age. Of course now they play 12 more games a season. Brodeur came pretty close a few years ago, having played in 78 games.

Numbers, Numbers

0 – Minus games for Toni Lydman thus far this season

0 – Regulation losses for the Blues at home

7.5 – The power play percentage of the Florida Panthers, dead last in the NHL

.945 – SV% of the Blues at Home, tied for 1^st in the NHL

.872 – SV% of the Blues on the Road, last in the NHL

4 – Shutouts by Cary Price in 20 games, the same number of shutouts he had the previous 3 seasons or 134 games

Quotes of the Week

“I don’t know what they were looking for.”

- LW Chris Kunitz, on word he received from officials on what the Toronto crew was looking for when they reviewed his goal in the third period Friday against Carolina.

“It always seems when I make a mistake, we pay for it somehow. I just can’t make those.”

- Sabres goalie Patrick Lalime on his costly turnover that led to Tampa Bay’s winning goal. “If we talk about that I’ll break down.”

Seeing as how you are the goalie, mistakes would be costly.

“I don’t want anyone feeling sorry for me. I’ve had a great life. I’ve been around a great sport. I didn’t want to be a celebrity, I just want to be myself.”

- Pat Burns, in the days before his death from terminal cancer.

You will be missed Pat Buns.

“What have you guys been doing for 10 years?”

- Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel, when told by a staffer that Saturday’s win in San Jose was the franchise’s first regulation win in HP Pavilion.

This Week in Hockey History

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

November 18, 1979 Vancouver Canucks earned their first ever home victory over Montreal, 5-2. The win snapped a streak of 21 home games (0-15-6) without a win versus the Habs. Glen Hanlon stopped 34 of 36 shots for the win, the 4th straight for Vancouver.

November 19, 1998 Mike Keenan became just the sixth coach to record 500 career NHL victories, and Garth Snow recorded his 5th career shutout as Vancouver won 5-0 at Colorado, to end a 15-game winless streak against the Avalanche, (0-12-3 since December 1995).

November 20, 1988 Blackhawks retired the jerseys of goaltenders Glenn Hall (#1) and Tony Esposito (#35) in a pregame ceremony at Chicago Stadium. Hall had played 15 years in Chicago, and Esposito 10 years. Blackhawks lost 7-4 to the Canucks.

November 21, 1987 King Olav V of Norway watched from behind the Montreal bench, as the Canadiens beat the Devils 2-1 at the Forum. Bobby Smith and Chris Chelios each scored a goal and added an assist in the second period for Montreal.

November 22, 1983 Brian Sutter had five assists to set a new club record for assists in a game, as the Blues won 7-4 over the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs, to end a 6 game winless streak (0-4-2).

November 23, 1974 Goaltenders Rogie Vachon and Gary Inness traded shutouts as the Kings and the Penguins played to a 0-0 scoreless tie, at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh. It was the 25th shutout of Vachon’s NHL career.

Rankings

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

Top 5

1. Detroit

2. Phoenix

3. Columbus

4. Philadelphia

5. Colorado

Bottom 5

30. N.Y Islanders

29. Edmonton

28. Calgary

27. Anaheim

26. Carolina

Marian Hossa leads the league in points (nine) and tied for the league lead with five goals, as he seems primed to become the number one option in a star-laden lineup.

Who is in panic mode and who should have some patience is the theme of this week’s Pucking Awesome Hat Trick, or the top three stories I am watching this week.

Down On the Devils:

My preseason pick to win the Atlantic Division has not looked anything like a contender in the first week of the season.

The team that spent so much money and effort on signing the offensive talent of Ilya Kovalchuck is last in the league with 1.67 goals per game.

The team that has arguably the best goalie ever to lace them up is giving up 3.50 goals per game, good for 27^th in the league.

The 1-4-1 is the worst start for the franchise in the 27 years, and they are yet to win at home.

Their prized offseason acquisition, Anton Volcenkov, broke his nose in his second game in red and black. It got so bad for the cap strapped Devils that they only dressed 15 players in their third game of the season.

Will this continue for the defending Atlantic Division champions? My best guess is not likely.

This is a team with a new coach this season and already some major injuries to the back line. Rookie head coach John MacLean has already held closed door meetings and chew out sessions at practice to let the club know that this is unacceptable.

You have to remember that the season is a long one and ultimately if they start to get healthy and get production out of their top scorers they will be fine.

If not, then the Ilya Kovalchuck sweepstakes was all for naught.

Who Are These Leafs?

The biggest surprise of the first week has been the torrid play of the much improved Toronto Maple Leafs. Much has been made of their 4-0 start and how that is a polar opposite of last year’s 1-7-5 start.

Improved defensive play and clutch scoring has been the key to such a improved start.

At the middle of it all is the man that cost them Seguin, as Phil Kessel has six points and two game winning goals already this season.

Also a big part of the offensive success goes to the development of Clarke MacArthur. The player that was let go of two organizations last season has found a home in Toronto and according to the Elias Sports Bureau, MacArthur became the first Leaf ever to score in his first four games.

Their best non move of the offseason was keeping Tomas Kaberle on the roster. The veteran has shown he still has something left to give with three helpers and a plus-3 while playing over 24 minutes per game and acting as a stabilizing force for his young partner Luke Schenn. All three of his assist have come while playing on the Leafs top power play.

Can this continue? Can the Leafs become the latest team in the NHL parity party to go from playoff obscurity to a Cup contender?

My gut feeling is that this team has some staying power and should stay in the playoff picture the entire season.

Bobby Lou, Where Are You?

So all that talk that relinquishing captaincy will help Roberto Luongo focus on having a career year in his quest for the Cup is now gone.

The 31-year-old is off to another slow start by giving up 10 goals in his first four starts and a 1-2-1 record.

Luongo has saved 115 of the 125 shots he has faced including a horrible 15 saves on 19 shots loss to the Kings on Friday.

This start should not surprise anyone, as in his 11-year NHL career Luongo has notoriously been a slow starter. In 92 career games in October, Bobby Lou has a 38-45-6-3 record with a 2.56 GAA and .917 save percentage; in contrast, look at his March career numbers: 111 games with a 57-40-8-5 record—you would see that he usually saves his best for last.

The team in front of him has not been helping, as they are giving up 31.6 shots per game and they have been shorthanded 25 times.

Some good news for Vancouver is that top prospect Corey Schneider came out with a strong performance in a 32-save win over the Hurricanes Sunday night; the presence of Schneider should allow Luongo not play his 70 games and keep him fresh for his usually hot finish towards the playoffs.

I am not worried about Bobby Lou but good luck trying to tell that to the rabid fans in British Columbia.

Teams with 2 games this weekend: Ducks, Thrashers, Blackhawks, Avalanche, Sabres, Blue Jackets, Canadiens, Devils, Islanders, Coyotes, Penguins, Canucks

Forwards To watch

Clarke MacArthur, Leafs W

Four goals and five points in the first three games for the red hot Maple Leafs have put the 25-year-old on the fantasy map.  The player who has been on three teams in the last seven months seems to have found a home in Toronto.  Makes you wonder if Atlanta is regretting walking away from his arbitration award of $2.4 million.

The former third-round pick of the Sabres did have 44 goals in 208 career games and is playing 15:25 minutes per game with time on the power play and is worth the pick up as the hot Leafs face off versus the Rangers this weekend.

Blake Comeau, Islanders W

With all the injuries to the Islanders forwards, Blake Comeau is stepping up with the added ice time.  With three goals and four points in the first three games, the former second pick is blossoming playing on a line with former first-round pick Josh Bailey.

The 24-year-old is playing over 20 minutes a game early and playing on the top power play unit.  With John Tavares coming back in the next couple of games will add to the stock of Comeau as the Isle have two games this weekend.

Tomas Kopecky, Blackhawks W

Marian Hossa buddy from the Red Wings has four points and is a +4 in the first four games playing mostly on a line with Hossa and Jonathan Toews.  The Blackhawks who lost a lot of their depth in the offseason have given the 28-year-old added responsibilities.

The Slovak is now playing on the top line and on the top power play and is getting plenty of chances with seven shots but is still only owned in about 11 percent of leagues.  With two games this weekend look for that number to go up when he has a successful weekend.

Defenseman To Watch

Jordan Leopold, Sabres

As the Sabres said goodbye to Henrik Tallinder and Toni Lydman this offseason and hello to Jordan Leopold, most Sabres fans cringed. Now those fans are excited about the hot start that the former Hobey Baker winner is on this season.

The 30-year-old is partying like it is 2003 with two goals and four points in the first four games while playing 4:00 minutes a game on the power play.  There is no doubt that Tyler Myers is the Sabres No. 1 defenseman, but Leopold is playing himself into fantasy relativity and is a player to watch for in Buffalo’s two games this weekend.

Brad Stuart, Red Wings

With the injury news that Brian Rafalsky will miss three to four weeks due to knee surgery, Brad Stuart is now a fantasy option on the potent Red Wings.  The 30-year-old will now be a part of the top defensive unit with Nicklas Lidstrom and expand on his ice time.  The veteran is already a +2 with four shots and 9 PIM and should help your fantasy team for the next three to four weeks.

James Wisniewski, Islanders

Even though he got more headlines this week for his gesture towards Sean Avery than his play, James Wisniewski should get more attention from fantasy owners.  With Mark Streit out the 26-year-old acquired from the Ducks is now the No. 1 defenseman on Long Island.  Let us not forget that five-year veteran had 30 points in 69 games last year and after he sits out one more game this weekend should be picked up in all leagues.

Goalies To Watch

Nikolai Khabibulin, Oilers

With all the controversy this offseason with the former Stanley Cup winner most fantasy owners stayed away from Nikolai Khabibulin.  Now the 37-year-old is proving all the naysayer wrong and leading the young Oilers to a 2-1 record early with .933 save percentage.  The Russian is now the most added goaltender in leagues and should give a fantasy a nice boost with one game against the Flames this weekend.

Sergei Bobrovsky, Flyers

The Russian Rookie known to his teammates as “Bobs” has broken onto the scene as a viable fantasy option with two wins in his first two career starts.  Now a return engagement with the surprisingly offensively challenged Penguins this weekend for Bobrovsky, who beat them on opening night.  The 22-year-old has a 2.00 GAA and impressive .931 save percentage and should be owned in all fantasy leagues.

Michal Neuvirth, Capitals

The 22-year-old Neuvirth is finally getting his shot to show he belongs with the big boys and has looked sharp in his first four starts with three wins.  Jose Theodore did win 30 games in front of similar team last season, so why can’t Neuvirth do the same?

With Semyon Varlamov getting closer to a return from a groin injury the young goalie has made Coach Bruce Boudreau job difficult to take him out of the net with a .924 save percentage and is a great start against the Predators this weekend.

1.) Vancouver Canucks

Rear-view Mirror: The Canucks are coming off of a highly successful season. A division crown, a 100+ point season and Henrik Sedin (29G-83A-112P) led the NHL in points and assists and won the Hart trophy for most valuable player. In the postseason the Canucks dispatched the Kings in the 1^st round and then played their arch rivals the Blackhawks in the 2^nd round. The Blackhawks once again got into the Canucks’ and Luongo’s head and the Canucks self destructed and were eliminated.

Roberto Luongo (.910 SV%, 2.57 GAA, 4 SO) was able to help lead Team Canada to an Olympic medal but he actually had one of his worst seasons in awhile. His SV% was his lowest since his rookie year with the Islanders. His shutouts were less than half of the previous season.

The Canucks were the 2^nd highest scoring team with 268 goals or a 3.23 GFA, 2^nd only to the Capitals. They were also 2^nd to the Capitals in shooting percentage at 10.6%. Four (D. Sedin, Ehrhoff, H. Sedin, Burrows) of the top nine +/- leaders were on the Canucks, the other five were all Capitals. The Canucks were also 2^nd in the league in shorthanded goals with 9.

Offseason Ins: Keith Ballard, Dan Hamhuis, Manny Malhotra

Offseason Outs: Michael Grabner, Willie Mitchell, Pavol Demitra, Andrew Raycroft, Kyle Wellwood

What Makes Them Tick: The Sedins are obviously the heart and soul of the Canucks. Including all of the above mentioned accolades, King Henrik finally logged his 1^st 100+ point season. He should be able to continue that pace this season. His brother Daniel (29-56-85) missed 20 games last season, otherwise he probably would also have logged his 1^st 100+ point season. Alexandre Burrows, (35-32-67) who led the team in goals, is generally paired with the Sedins and is one of the more physical 1^st liners in the league. He logged 121 PIM last season, down from the previous few seasons. Ryan Kesler (25-50-75) anchors a decent second line. He has seen his point totals go up every season for the past four. Defensively the Canucks have arguably one of the best top six in the league. Keith Ballard and Dan Hamhuis are added to compliment Sami Salo, Kevin Bieksa, Christian Ehrhoff and Alexander Edler. On the checking line Rick Rypien is one of the top fighters in the league. If you haven’t seem him fight, you really ought too.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: The Canucks seem to have a big problem with keeping defensemen healthy. Salo, Mitchell (now departed) and Bieksa all missed portions of the last season. While the have about eight or so defenseman signed now, keeping their main ones healthy and in the lineup is a priority, albeit one they don’t have much control over. The Canucks also need to play more physical as they were one of the lowest shot blocking and checking teams in the league.

Player to Watch: Roberto Luongo finally gave up the C on his sweater. He also finally got the monkey off of his back (somewhat) by winning something big with the Gold medal in Vancouver. Now comes the hard part of elevating his game come playoff time. The last two times the Canucks have been eliminated in the playoffs, Luongo has not had his best game. Consistency has never been his strong point. Sometimes he makes such an amazing save, you wonder how did he did it. The next time he might let in a goal that leaves you scratching your head. With the length of Luongo’s contract he won’t be leaving anytime soon. He needs to find a way to keep his composure come playoff time. The door on the Canucks title hopes will be coming to a close in a few seasons.

Prediction: The Canucks should be able to wrap up their 3^rd division crown. This is very much a win now team. The Sedin twins are also now in the prime of their careers. The Canucks boast experience and depth offensively and defensively. The two lingering questions come playoff time are: Can the Canucks maintain their composure and discipline? and Can Luongo raise his game to the next level come playoff time? The Blackhawks actually did the Canucks a huge favor by shipping Dustin Byfuglien to Atlanta. He tormented the Canucks the most in the previous postseasons and with him out of the way I think at least a Conference Finals appearance is very likely for the Canucks. The Canucks Stanley Cup aspirations lie squarely on Luongo.

2.) Colorado Avalanche

Rear-view Mirror: The Avalanche finished dead last two seasons ago and nobody picked them to do much of anything last season. However between the pieces that were injured the previous season, a stellar draft and a few key accusations, the Avalanche were able to put it all together and make the playoffs as the 8^th seed. The Avalanche battled the Sharks in the 1^st round but it was clear they were over-matched.

In his first full season Craig Anderson (.917 SV%, 2.63 GAA, 7 SO) proved to be a workhorse and the goalie that the Avalanche have been looking for since Patrick Roy retired. Paul Stastny (20G-59A-79P) rebounded nicely after two injury plagued seasons and led the Avs in assists and points. 3^rd overall pick Matt Duchene (24-31-55) immediately contributed and was 2^nd on the Avs in goals. Kyle Quincey (6-23-29) was the Avs top defensemen in his 2^nd full season and had a +9, 3^rd on the team and 2^nd for defensemen. The Avs were also 4^th in takeaways with 684.

Offseason Ins: Daniel Winnik

Offseason Outs: Brett Clark, Ruslan Salei

What Makes Them Tick: The Avs, like the Penguins, have three quality centers. Stastny and Duchene are joined by fellow 1^st round pick of last year Ryan O’Reilly (8-18-26). Duchene and O’Reilly’s further development will be the keys to another successful season. Veteran Milan Hejduk (23-21-44) and newly acquired Peter Mueller (13-24-37) round out the top line. Mueller (more on him below) was acquired in the trade for Wojtek Wolski last season. The 11 year vet, Hejduk showed that despite his age and injuries he could still produce. Hejduk and Adam Foote are the only Avalanche left from the 2001 Stanley Cup team. Chris Stewart (28-36-64) led the Avs in goals last season. He should be able to continue his development further alongside of Duchene and become a 30+ goal scorer this season. Defensively the Avalanche have a nice mix of young and old. Foote, Scott Hannan and John-Michael Liles (6-25-31) pair with the younger Quincey, Kyle Cumiskey (7-13-20) and Ryan Wilson. Hannan and Quincy were both in the top 25 for blocked shots. Quincey and Cumiskey were in the top eight for takeaways.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: The 2^nd youngest team in the league, the Avalanche will now have a little pressure on them to try and duplicate the same success. Craig Anderson played 71 games last season, 5^th most in the league. It didn’t seem to phase him in the playoffs, where he went on to face the most amount of shots in the 1^st round. Still he needs to receive more of a breather and hopefully the Avs can knock his games played down to 60. The most pressing issue for the Avalanche is they need to get more shots on goal. They had 2287 shots last season 2^nd worst in the league. They made the most of their shots though as they were 3^rd in shooting percentage at 10.4%. Their shooting woes continued in the postseason. If they hope to advance further this season they will need to put the puck on net more. One way of doing that and creating more offensive chances would be to improve on the face-off. The Avs were 2^nd worst in the league with a FO% of 47.7.

Player to Watch: Peter Mueller was taking 8^th overall in the 2006 draft and had a fairly productive rookie year. His production slipped the following year and then slipped again with about 2/3 of the season complete last season. He requested a trade, which the Coyotes granted. He ended up being more productive in a third as many games with the Avalanche. In the final week of the regular season he suffered a concussion, which made him miss the rest of the year and the playoffs. Mueller says he is fully recovered from his concussion and it will be interesting to see how his game develops in a full season on the top line with the Avs. 30 goals is a distinct possibility for him, as I don’t believe he will suffer a second career slump.

Prediction: The Avalanche at this point are well ahead of where many thought they would be. It’s very possible the Avalanche could suffer a “sophomore” slump so to speak and not make the playoffs. However I think they have the talent necessary and will continue to develop and gel as a young group. A lower to middle playoff seeding is the most likely scenario. If Mueller, Duchene, O’Reilly and Stewart can continue to develop and can get more shots on goal ,with Anderson providing another stellar year in net, the sky is the limit for this young team.

3.) Calgary Flames

Rear-view Mirror: After five straight seasons of making the playoffs, the Flames were in a good spot to sneak into the playoffs again but stumbled down the stretch and finished tied for 9^th. Captain Jerome Iginla (32G-37A-69P) one again paced the Flames but he actually had his lowest point total in four seasons. About two thirds of the way through the season the Flames parted with longtime defenseman Dion Phaneuf.

Miikka Kiprusoff (.920 SV%, 2.31 GAA, 4 SO) had his best season in net in four years. But he struggled mightily against top western teams like Vancouver (4.69 GAA, .856 SV%) and Chicago (4.94 GAA, .851 SV%). The Flames as a team were 2^nd to last in goals scored with 201. The power pay also struggled converting on only 16% of their chances, 4^th worst in the league.

Offseason Ins: Olli Jokinen, Henrik Karlsson, Alex Tanguay, Tim Jackman

Offseason Outs: Nigel Dawes, Eric Nystrom

What Makes Them Tick: Olli Jokinen (15-35-50) found decent chemistry with Iginla when he was brought in the end of the 2008-09 season. That chemistry wore off the next season so Jokinen was shipped to the Rangers, only to find his way back again. The Flames have to hope the second time is the charm. Another new (old) line mate rejoining the team is winger Alex Tanguay (10-27-37). Tanguay’s number have dropped significantly since he left Calgary a couple of seasons ago. Rene Bourque has increased his goal production and penalty minutes the last 4 seasons and he hopes to do the same this season. Kiprusoff should have another stellar season in net but he will need to play better against top conference rivals particularly the Canucks. Mark Giordano (11-19-30) led the team in +/- with a +17. Look for Giordano to move up the depth chart and garner more ice time.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: Jay Bouwmeester has been somewhat of a disappointment since be acquired from the Panthers. His goal production is about a fifth of what it was in Florida the last few seasons. Defensively he is still contributing and he is logging about 25 minutes of ice time a game. Considering the Flames offensively struggles they will need to find a way to convert on their power play chances and Jokinen will need to find his power play touch. The Flames are also now without their two most dangerous fighters in Brandon Prust and Brian McGrattan.

Player to Watch: Olli Jokinen was a dynamic goal scorer for the Panthers scoring 38 then 39 and then 34 goals before being traded to Phoenix. His goal production slipped the following season, before it totally bottomed out last season. Playing for three different teams in two seasons is never an easy task though. Now reunited with Iginla, Jokinen will be expected to produce like he used to. If he doesn’t General Manager Darryl Sutter will feel even more heat, than he already is, and will probably lose his job.

Prediction: It’s hard to know what to make of this team and I have a feeling GM Darryl Sutter feels the same way. But the talent is there for the Flames to make another playoff push. They really need to increase their goal production and their only hope at this point seems to be hoping that Tanguay and Jokinen can score like they used to. Daymond Langkow (14-23-37) is another 30+ goal scorer who has seen his production slip. He was also the 3^rd leading scorer with only 37 points. If the old guys can regain their scoring touch, the Flames could slip into the playoffs. Otherwise it will be another long season in Calgary.

4.) Edmonton Oilers

Rear-view Mirror: The Oilers had a season to forget. After just missing the 8^th playoff spot the past two seasons before, the Oilers finished dead last in the NHL. Dustin Penner (32G-31A-63P) led the Oilers in every major offensive category. He was the first Oiler to record over 30 goals since Ryan Smyth last did it the 2006-07 season. The Oilers had the 4^th lowest goal total in the NHL with 206 goals. The Oilers were also dead last in face off wins, with a FO% of 46.4.

Goaltending wasn’t any better as the Oilers were 2^nd to last with a team SV% of .898 and they finished last in GAA at 3.34. Nikolai Khabibulin (3.03 GAA, .910 SV%, 0 SO) was brought in to solve some of those woes but he end up only playing 18 games due to a herniated disk. Jeff Deslauriers (3.26 GAA, .900 SV%, 3 SO) ended up being the number one goalie. Though defensively they did have 4^th highest shots blocked with 1305. Unfortunately they had the highest giveaway total with 1055, which was a 145 more than the next worst team.

Offseason Ins: Taylor Hall, Kurtis Foster, Colin Fraser

Offseason Outs: Patrick O’Sullivan, Ethan Moreau

What Makes Them Tick: Their newest addition 1^st overall pick Taylor Hall well be a welcome addition to the team. Hall is the first player to ever be drafted that high by the Oilers in the NHL. The previous highest pick was the 4^th overall selection of Jason Bonsignore who only played 21 games for the Oilers. Getting a healthy Ales Hemsky (7-15-22) back will be a huge boon to the Oilers. The former 1^st round pick suffered a shoulder injury and only played 22 games last season. Hemsky had been averaging a point a game and has steadily increased his goal total the last few seasons. Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson, the Oilers 1^st pick in the 2009 draft, will make his debut for the Oilers this season. Magnus just came off of a successful run in the 2010 World Championships as Sweden’s leading scorer. He is also shortening his name to Magnus Paajarvi. The 2008 1st round pick of the Oilers Justin Eberle is also poised to have his breakout season this year.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: When only one player on your team has over 30 goals or 30 assists, you know you have problems scoring goals. Finding consistent goal scoring is priority number one. Another problem is Khabibulin was convicted of drunk driving. He is set to appeal but if he loses that, he will need to serve jail time and will obviously miss some games. The Oilers are in rebuilding mode now and time would be better spent figuring out if Deslauriers, in the final year of his contract, is their guy instead. Of course Khabibulin has three years left on his deal, so the likelihood of that happening isn’t very high. Sheldon Souray who is a highly productive defenseman when healthy, has been asked to not attend camp. In all likelihood a trade will probably not happen and Souray will be released. It’s a shame because a quality defenseman is something the Oilers could really use and worse if he gets released the Oilers would get compensated. Considering the history though, it’s probably best for all parties to move on. The duo of Ryan Whitney (7-32-39) and Tom Gilbert (5-26-31) need to protect the puck better to cut down on their turnovers.

Player to Watch: Dustin Penner will be looked upon this season to carry the majority of the scoring load again but also to mentor the younger talent like Taylor Hall and Magnus Paajarvi. Penner started last season with a hot start only to struggle from the end of December until March before he got hot again in April. Consistency will be another challenge for Penner to work on. He does bring a lot of passion and hard work to his play and is always crashing the net for loose pucks. Another 30 goal season is very likely for Penner but with a healthy Hemsky again, Penner should be able to have his first 80+ point season.

Prediction: There isn’t anywhere to go but up for the Oilers but don’t expect a worst to playoffs finish like the Avalanche did last season. The Oilers haven’t had two goal scorers record 30+ goals since the 1996-97 season. The days of Messier and Gretzky it’s not but the Oilers hope the drafting of Taylor Hall will turn over a new page in their franchise. A healthy Hemsky, a motivated Penner, the electrifying Hall, Eberle and Paajarvi would give the Oilers offensive threats they haven’t seen for over a decade. Still one of the bottom spots in the conference seems likely. There are too many other talented teams in the conference and the Oilers still have some big defensive holes. They also need to stop turning the puck over. Not to mention there is no guarantee the new forwards will gel together like the Avalanche did last season. They should be at least moderately successful and I think the Oilers will produce two 30+ goal scorers this season.

5.) Minnesota Wild

Rear-view Mirror: After winning the division, the Wild have missed out on the playoffs the last two seasons. Mikko Koivu (22G-49A-71P) led the Wild in assists and points. Andrew Brunette (25-36-61) led the Wild in goals. Offensively the Wild had no 30+ goal scorers or players with 50+ assists. Niklas Backstrom (.903 SV%, 2.72 GAA, 2 SO) who had a remarkable 08-09 season, took a big step back last season. The Wild only had 6 players with a positive +/-. The team’s leader at +3 was Kim Johnsson who was traded to the Blackhawks (along with prospect Nick Leddy) for Cam Barker.

Offseason Ins: John Madden, Eric Nystrom, Matt Cullen

Offseason Outs: Derek Boogaard, Owen Nolan, Andrew Ebbett, John Scott

What Makes Them Tick: The Wild were one of the better face-off teams winning 52.2 of their draws. Greg Zanon (2-13-15) is one of the better unheralded defensive defensemen in the league. He was 11^th in hits and 4^th in blocked shots. Fellow blue-liner Nick Schultz (1-19-20) was 13^th in blocked shots. Cal Clutterbuck (13-8-21), a fan favorite, led the NHL in hits last season with 318. The previous season he broke the NHL record with 356. His offensive game showed a little bit of improvement but the Wild would like to see him hit the levels of scoring he produced while playing for the Oshawa Generals. Martin Havlat (18-36-54), a former 30 goals scorer, is entering his second season with the Wild and will hopefully have better chemistry with Koivu on the top line. Brent Burns (3-17-20) has battled injures the past two season and accordingly missed a large amount of games. Getting him healthy again will hopefully produce another 15 goal season.

What Could Make Them Go Boom: While it’s nice the Wild acquired Barker, in the long run I have a feeling the better option would have been to keep the defenseman prospect Nick Leddy. While neither player brought anything to the table offensively, Boogard and Scott were quite a checking and fighting force to be reckoned with. Both were 6′ 8” and will be hard to replace physically. Backstrom will definitely need to play better for the Wild, if they hope to make a run at the playoffs. Offensively they didn’t add any new firepower. The additions of Madden and Nystrom are solid veteran additions to the bottom lines.

Player to Watch: Martin Havlat came to Minnesota from Chicago, after his best season as a pro, with much fanfare and a pretty decent contract. His first season in Minnesota was pretty disappointing though. Havlat is the only current Wild player to have scored 30 goals or more in a season. Coupled with his five million a year contract, the pressure is on for him to deliver. Last year was only the 2^nd time in his career he had a negative +/-.

Prediction: It appears the Wild will be heading for a 3^rd straight year of no postseason. The Wild will probably still be an offensively challenged team. The 1^st line of Koivu, Brunette and Havlat is pretty decent but they have not been playing up to their potential. The other lines while adequate, don’t really scare opposing defenses. It might also be time to start looking for a new goalie especially if Backstrom can’t bounce back. Johan Gustafsson, taken in this past draft looks to be the best candidate for the job but his is only 18. Defensively the Wild have a pretty decent core with Zanon, Schultz, Barker, Burns and Marek Zidlicky (6-37-43).

Next up the deep position of Left Wing and the sleeper filled position of Right Wing

Fantasy LW Rankings

1.)    Alex Ovechkin

2.)    Daniel Sedin

3.)    Iyla Kovalchuk

4.)    Zach Parise

5.)    Patrick Marleau

6.)    Alex Semin

7.)    Henrik Zetterberg

8.)    Patrick Sharp

9.)    Lou Eriksson

10.)  Taylor Hall

11.)  Jussi Jokinen

12.)  Wojtek Wolski

13.)  Michael Cammalleri

14.)  Alexandre Burrows (IR)

15.)  Simon Gagne

16.)  Ryan Clowe

17.)  Thomas Vanek

18.)  Alex Frolov

19.)  Patrik Elias

20.)  Kris Versteeg

Honorable Mention:  Tyler Ennis

===========================================================================================

Fantasy RW Rankings

1.)     Martin St Louis

2.)    Patrick Kane

3.)    Dany Heatley 

4.)    Corey Perry

5.)    Marion Gaborik

6.)    Rick Nash

7.)    Jarome Iginla

8.)    Bobby Ryan

9.)    Daniel Alfredsson

10.)   Nikolai Zherdev

11.)  Marian Hossa

12.)   Nathan Horton

13.)   Ales Hemsky

14.)   Phil Kessel

15.)   Daniel Briere

16.)   Kyle Okposo

17.)   Shane Doan

18.)   Jason Pominville

19.)  Johan Franzen

20.)  Martin Havlat

Honorable Mention:  Jordan Eberle

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.

Montreal Canadiens vs Pittsburgh Penguins Game 7 Recap

The biggest story is of course the Canadiens ousted another superstar laden team in the Penguins. After they ousted the Capitals you probably shouldn’t have been so surprised but this was the defending Stanley Cup champions we’re talking about. A young, yet playoff experienced team with back to back Stanley Cup Final appearances under their belt. So what went wrong? Well for starters Sidney Crosby took a penalty in the first 10 seconds of the game which really set the tone. The Canadiens took advantage of it and scored first and early. Most of the games they won against Pittsburgh the Habs scored in the first two minutes of the game. It’s hard mentally for a team to be down that early in a game. It’s almost like you start with a handicap. Also Fleury seems like a goalie who once he makes an early mistake lets that mistake overwhelm and take control of him mentally for the rest of the game. This leads to him playing poorly. Consequentially he wasn’t able to recover and he was pulled for Johnson. Game 5 was a game I thought the Penguins would win and they did. It was an important game because the series was now tied at two and the winner of Game 5 usually controls the series. I thought because the Penguins were the more experienced team and were at home, they would win. I thought the same thing would happen in Game 7 because the Penguins had the same things going for them in this game, wrong. It just didn’t seem like they showed up or really wanted to win the game. Maybe they were just tired because they have played the most hockey out of anyone the past three seasons. Whatever it was, the defense was just awful and once you get behind by a couple of goals against Halak you can pretty much kiss the game goodbye.

Boston Bruins vs. Philadelphia Flyers Game 7 Recap

The Bruins vs. Flyers series was just interesting on so many levels. First you have the Bruins going up 3-0 in the series and naturally you wouldn’t think it would be hard to win just one of the next four games. Of course since it’s the Bruins, you’d be wrong. Then in the decisive final Game 7 you have the Bruins going up 3-0 in the game, hard to lose that lead right? Wrong again, the Flyers rally back to win the game 4-3 and the series 4-3. Game 7 was essentially a microcosm of the whole series right down to the Bruins goal scoring problems. The Bruins scored the least amount of goals of all the playoff teams. Yet against the Flyers they had no problems scoring in the first three games they won and even game four which they lost. Then in the next two games they only scored one goal. In Game 7 they produced three goals in the 1^st period, so perhaps all was well again. Unfortunately they didn’t score again after that period which was a problem because they Flyers did. The Bruins has more shots in the 1^st period then they did in the 2^nd and 3^rd periods combined. You can’t win games like that and they didn’t.

Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks Wrap-up

The Canucks must be feeling some Deja Vu right about now. For the 2^ndstraight year the Canucks were eliminated in the 2^ndround by the Blackhawks. I guess some progress was made as instead of giving up seven goals Luongo only gave up five. However the Canucks were only able to muster up one goal as opposed to last years five. Either way the Canucks have some major problems. Despite backstopping team Canada to a goal medal, Luongo still has a monkey on his back. He has yet to win anything important in the NHL. Each year his playoff GAA average has gone up and his SV% has gone down. Next year, assuming the Canucks make the postseason again, is really a make or break season for Luongo. If he fails again, I think the Canucks should look for a new goalie. Of course the Canucks signed Luongo to a hefty 12 year deal with a no trade clause until the 7^thyear, so they pretty much screwed themselves over. Good job.

7 Philadelphia Flyers vs. 8 Montreal Canadiens

Some important things to note about this match-up. Neither of these teams would have made the playoffs in the West. They both would have been tied for 12^th. Furthermore is how the Rangers play into all of this. The Flyers didn’t make the playoffs until the last day of the season and if the Rangers had beaten them they wouldn’t even have gotten in. The Canadiens wouldn’t have made the playoffs if the NHL used the Olympic scoring system. If the NHL did the Rangers would have gotten the last spot over the Canadiens. It just illustrates how crazy the East has been this year.

Season Series: split 2-2

Playoff History: 3-2 Canadiens. Most recent in 2008 when the Flyers defeated the Canadiens in the 2^nd round.

Star to Watch: Well we all know how awesome Michael Cammalleri is, he will need to continue to be for the Canadiens Stanley Cup hopes, but I’m going with Tomas Plekanec. Despite having a three game assist streak currently I feel he has been rather quite. He also has scored a goal in the last eight games. He will need to step it up. For the Flyers I am going with mister dynamic Danny Briere. Briere had many key and pretty goals in the Bruins series. He started off slow against the Devils with no points in the first three games but he has come on as of late. He is a nice second fiddle to Mike Richards.

X-Factor: P.K. Subban who is essentially not even a rookie since he only has two regular season games under his belt. Despite the lack of experience and only being 21, Subban is leading all Canadiens in ice time for the playoffs. He is also one of the main penalty killers and currently has a +3.

Goalie Problem: Jaroslav Halak has simply been sensational. On the other side Brian Boucher had been pretty awesome in his own right, that is until he got injured. So the Flyers turned to Michael Leighton who was originally their 3^rd string goalie. I wonder if there’s ever been another time where all three goalies on a team have been injured at some point in the season. Anyway Leighton has performed well so far posting a .943 SV% and a 1.54 GAA. Neither Halak or Leighton have prior playoff experience so it will be interesting to see how they handle the increasing pressure. But then again Patrick Roy was a rookie and he did alright for himself.

Fun Fact: The 7^th and 8^th seeds have never played each other in a conference final.

Prediction: Well I picked against the Canadiens twice and was wrong both times. So this time I am going to pick them in I’ll say six games. Halak is the better goalie and I like the style of defense the Canadiens play. I think the Flyers will take to many dumb penalties and the Canadiens will capitalize on this. In reality there’s no way you could have predicted anything that has happened in the East, I mean really there’s no way.

1 San Jose Sharks vs. 2 Chicago Blackhawks

Season Series: 3-1 Blackhawks, two wins were in overtime for the Hawks

Playoff History: Zippo

Star to Watch: Joe Pavelski who has been on fire for the Sharks had a six game point streak going. His last two games though, he posted no points and a -1. He will need to get it going again against the Blackhawks for the Sharks to have a chance. For the Blackhawks keep an eye on red hot Jonathan Toews who has a nine game point streak currently going. He is also a +7 during that streak which is a huge comeback from his first three games of 1 point and a -3.

X-Factor: The Sharks haven’t played in eight days. The good thing is they well be well rested the bad thing is they may be rusty. It wouldn’t surprise me if they didn’t win Game 1.

Goalie Problem: Evgeni Nabokov still hasn’t impressed me all that much. Of the four starting goalies left Nabokov has the best winning percentage but he also has the worst SV% at .907. Niemi’s SV% isn’t much better at .909 but he’s had moments where he has really played well. He is also the playoff league leader in shutouts with two. Experience edge definitely goes to Nabokov having played 76 playoff games to Niemi’s 12.

Fun Fact: The last time the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup was in 1961. Of course the league was much different then. The last time they made it to the Stanley Cup Finals was in 1992 when they lost to the Penguins. I was hoping we would get a rematch but alas that was not to be, thanks Halak.

Prediction: As dominate as the Sharks have been so far, I think their run is up. I believe Chicago is the more dynamically skilled team and I like Niemi over Nabokov despite his inexperience. I think Dustin Byfuglien will again play a key part in the series with his net presence and his ability to get under everyone’s skin. The Sharks don’t really have anyone in particular to counter that. Blackhawks in six.

Goat of the Week

The Penguins Defense and Marc Andre Fleury – Pittsburgh Penguins

There’s obviously more than one blunder that can be written here but I think the 4^th goal scored shorthanded by Travis Moen sums up the Penguins D or lack thereof for the night. After a bad turnover Moen rushes up the ice in what is essentially a 1 on 3 in favor of the Pens. So you wouldn’t think it be that hard to wrest away the puck but after assistant captain Sergei Gonchar’s lackadaisical hit on Moen and no one else really attacking him, Fleury completes the awful trifecta by letting in a weak goal. It’s a shame really because that was really the dagger in the Pens back. Had that not of happen after the Pens scored those two goals to close the 2^nd, they would only have been down a goal in the third and may have had more confidence in mounting a comeback.

Numbers Numbers

14 – Number of points for Sidney Crosby in the Senators series

5 – Number of points for Sidney Crosby in the Canadiens series, which was also a game longer

7 – Number of times Jaroslav Halak has had a SV% of or over .949 out of 13 games played

14 – Shots on goal by the Bruins in Game 7 in the 1^st period

11 – Shots on goal by the Bruins in Game 7 in the 2^nd and 3^rd periods combined

-1 – +/- for Michael Cammalleri the only player in the top 16 in scoring with a minus, maybe he isn’t so awesome after all

This Week in Hockey History

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

May 08, 2001 Mario Lemieux tied the game with 1:18 left in regulation and Martin Straka scored the winning goal at 11:29 of OT (and added two assists) in the Penguins 3-2 win against the visiting Buffalo Sabres, in Game 6 of the East. Conference Semi-Finals.

May 09, 1994 Rookie Martin Brodeur recorded his first career playoff shutout and Bob Carpenter scored a goal and added an assist in the Devils 2-0 win over the visiting Boston Bruins, in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals.

May 10, 1984 Grant Fuhr recorded his first career playoff shutout to lead the Oilers to a 1-0 win over the Islanders, at Long Island in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Fuhr became the first goaltender to get a shutout in Oilers’ playoff history.

May 11, 1996 Colorado’s Patrick Roy became the NHL’s all time leader in playoff minutes by a goaltender, during a 4-1 Avalanche win over Chicago, in the Western Conf. Semi-Finals. Roy passed Billy Smith, who had played 7,645 career playoff minutes.

May 12, 1993 Steve Thomas scored twice and added two assists to lead the Islanders to a 7-5 playoff win over the Penguins in New York, forcing a 7th game in the Patrick Division Finals. Kevin Stevens scored two goals and an assist for Pittsburgh.

May 13, 2000 Patrick Roy recorded his 14th career playoff shutout as the Avalanche ended the Stars’ 8-game home winning streak in the playoffs with a 2-0 victory at Dallas, in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.

May 14, 1995 Quebec Nordiques beat the visiting New York Rangers 4-2, in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Finals. It was the final NHL game played in Quebec City.

May 15, 1967 In one of hockey’s biggest trades, Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield were traded from Chicago to Boston in exchange for Gilles Marotte, Pit Martin and Jack Norris.

4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 8 Montreal Canadiens

What we learned: Halak mostly still has it.

Things I Like: Other than a really bad game 1, probably due to exhaustion, Halak has been back to his three game wonder days against the Capitals. Only difference is that the Penguins are a little more versatile than the Capitals.

I love the atmosphere of the Bell Centre, just awesome. From the consistent chants to the chorus of boos it the kind of atmosphere I wish every NHL arena had.

Marc-Andre Fleury hasn’t always been on the top of his game in the regular season or the postseason. But he did just pitch his first shutout of the postseason in game 3. Also every postseason he starts to get hot and help carry the penguins, that shutout must just be the catalyst to his hot streak. He truly earned his shutout as a lot of the saves early in the game were pretty awesome.

Things I Don’t: Besides Michael Cammalleri, who continues to be red hot, the Canadiens are having some offensive woes. Top guys aren’t really delivering when they need to. After having an awesome start in the Capitals series, Tomas Plekanec has cooled considerably and has only one assist in the past four games including the game 7 against the Capitals. Scott Gomez has only one goal in the postseason and that was in game 1 against the Capitals. These guys need to step it up for the Canadiens to have a chance. The one bright spot for the Habs is that P.K Subban has stepped in nicely for the injured Andrei Markov.

Likely Winner: Penguins

8 – Goals by Michael Cammalleri tied for 2^nd in the league

3.03 – Team GAA for the Canadiens the worst of the remaining teams, that probably surprises you so go ahead blame Carey Price

6 Boston Bruins vs. 7 Philadelphia Flyers

What we learned: Philadelphia can really only beat New Jersey and the Bruins had everyone fooled.

Things I like: The Bruins  regular season scoring problems was apparently a clever ruse to make people think they couldn’t score. Averaging a healthy 4 goals a game the Bruins are also getting real balanced scoring. In all three games no player has scored more than one goal.

I love the high flying open ice of the series. Asham, Satan, Briere, Krejci have all had nifty move goals or breakaway goals. I may have missed some others. In some cases this series reminds me of the Canucks vs. Kings series.

Things I don’t: The Flyers aren’t getting manhandled by the Bruins but at the same time they aren’t winning. We already know they can’t beat the Penguins in the post season but now they aren’t showing much fight against the Bruins. It’s been a season of ups and downs for the Flyers and most of the ups came against the Devils. They really need to pull out one win to have more confidence for next year.

Brian Boucher who was phenomenal against the Devils has cooled considerably against the Bruins. In game 1 he faced a ton of shots and had some nice saves, so he was still admirable in defeat. But the last two games he has been about average and he really needs to get it going for the Flyers to get a win. Boucher’s SV% is .874 against the Bruins and was .939 against the Devils.

Likely Winner: Bruins

2.34 – Goals a game average for the Bruins in the regular season

2.89 – Goals a game average for the Bruins in the postseason

4 – PIM so far this postseason for Chris Pronger an all time low that’s for sure

1 San Jose Sharks vs. 5 Detroit Red Wings

What we learned: Sometimes you win by losing.

Thing I like: Last year the Sharks got bounced in six games to the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks were by no means your typical 8^th seed and even though it was embarrassing for the Sharks, I don’t think it was that bad. Losing for them was a good thing it made them learn they weren’t where they need to be yet, that were a little over confident and it made them work harder. It has so far paid off this year. The same thing will probably happen to the Washington Capitals next year.

Joe Pavelski is on fire, so much so that at this point it doesn’t matter that Thornton and Marleau aren’t. They both were awesome on the overtime breakaway winner in game 3 though, so that more than makes up for their other shortcomings.

Things I don’t: Detroit got probably hotter than anybody down the stretch to make the playoffs. Having said that, they probably overworked themselves to much to get into the playoffs. Then to go up against a team with something to prove after a seven game series against the Coyotes, also didn’t help much. They’ll be back next year thought they might pick a few games in the meantime.

Jimmy Howard isn’t quite ready to led his team in the playoffs but he is getting there. This is all valuable experience for him. He should be a solid bet between the pipes for the Wings for the next decade.

Likely Winner: Sharks

4 to 3 – The last three scores of the Wings vs. Sharks series, talk about tight

9 – Goals by Joe Pavelski, the league leader in the playoffs so far

2 Chicago Blackhawks vs. 3 Vancouver Canucks

What we learned: These teams just aren’t peaking at the same time.

Things I like: Dustin Byfuglien needed to be the sparkplug in this series and so far he has. In game 3 he was truly was playing his best in his element. He screened Luongo, he goaded Canucks and he gasped scored a hat trick. If he keeps it up the Canucks don’t have much of a chance. He is the ultimate X-Factor.

After a bad game 1 Antti Niemi has bounced back with stong efforts in games 2 and 3. The Blackhawks Stanley Cup hopes lies mainly on his shoulders and I like how he has performed so far. Everyone has bad games it’s how you bounce back from them that matters. Niemi’s strong saves in a hectic 1^st period in game 3 really help set the tone for the Hawks in the game.

I liked Marian Hossa’s enthusiasm after he scored his goal in game 3 with his “yeah baby” yell. He has been mostly quiet thus far and I’d like to see if that goal helps energize him and get him more involved.

Roberto Luongo is a quote machine. From his first round gem of “I only play when it matters” to this round’s “Momentum is overrated” I’d love to know what he’d say in the Stanley Cup round if given the chance to play for it.

Things I don’t: The referring this Stanley Cup playoffs has been spotty at best. In game 3 of the series a couple of Blackhawks basically pushed Luongo into the net and it was called a good goal. They reviewed it and it was still a good goal. Byfuglien and the other Blackhawk weren’t pushed in by any Canucks and it’s ludicrous to count the goal when Luongo had no chance to make a play. Not to mention in another series, I can’t remember which, a similar goal was disallowed. Consistency is something refs should strive for as is not allowing goals that clearly are not legal.

The Sedin twins have been neutralized by the Blackhawks top defensive pair since game 1. Since the top line provides most of the offense for the Canucks that poses a huge problem. Coach Vigneault needs to get more creative on his line changes and perhaps even split up the twins.

What I mostly hate is how the Canucks brought their A game in game 1 and the Blackhawks didn’t show up. The Blackhawks brought their A game in game 3 the Canucks didn’t really show up. In game 2 the 1^st period was all Canucks and the 3^rd period was all Blackhawks. I’d like to see both teams just bring their A game for the whole game just once. That’s what everyone wants to see.

Likely Winner: Blackhawks

.932 – Antti Niemi’s SV% in games 2 and 3 combined

0.5 – Combined PPG average of the Sedins against the Blackhawks

1.5 – Combined PPG average of the Sedins against the Kings

Goat of the Week

Kevin Bieksa – Vancouver Canucks

Kris Versteeg gets credited for the goal but Bieksa was the one that actually knocked it in. Bieksa was at a bad angle but he could have done a better job in knocking the puck in a different direction. Having said that he was rushed by Versteeg which made him panic and forced him to react quicker.

Warning: The video is highlights of the whole game but the goal is the first clips in the reel. This was the only video I could find that had the overhead replay of the goal.

This Week in Hockey History

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

April 29, 1986 Rookie Claude Lemieux scored the winning goal at 5:55 of overtime as the Canadiens won 2-1 over the Hartford Whalers, at the Forum in Game 7 of the Adams Division Finals. Montreal advanced to the Conference Finals vs NY Rangers.

April 30, 2003 Anaheim’s Mike Leclerc scored a power play goal with 1:47 remaining in regulation, and Jean-Sebastien Giguere recorded his first career playoff shutout, in a 1-0 victory over the visiting Dallas Stars, in Game 4 of the Western Conf. Semi-Finals

May 01, 1992 Buffalo’s Pat LaFontaine became the first player in NHL history to score a goal in each of his team’s first 7 playoff games in one year. The milestone came in a 3-2 Sabres loss at Boston, in Game 7 of the Adams Division Semi-Finals.

May 02, 1971 Bobby Hull scored a goal and added two assists to lead the Black Hawks to a 4-2 playoff win over the New York Rangers, in Game Seven of the Stanley Cup Semi-Finals at Chicago Stadium. Black Hawks advanced to the Finals vs Montreal.

May 03, 1994 Don Sweeney scored the winning goal at 9:08 of overtime as the Bruins won 6-5 over the Devils at New Jersey, in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. The win gave Boston a 2-0 lead in the series.

May 04, 1972 Bobby Orr scored a goal to break the career record for defensemen playoff goals. #17 came in only his 47th playoff game. He broke the mark set by Detroit’s Red Kelly (16) in 94 playoff games. Boston lost to the Rangers, 5-2 at New York.

May 05, 1977 Montreal’s Bob Gainey scored twice to lead the Canadiens to a 2-1 win over the Islanders at New York, in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Semi-Finals. With the win Montreal advanced to the Finals against Boston.

As for the two game sevens we did get, I didn’t care for the Coyotes vs. Red Wings. I guess the Coyotes, despite being at home, never really had a chance especially without Shane Doan. They just couldn’t get any offense going despite Bryzgalov’s best efforts. In the end an amazing journey for the Phoenix Coyotes and their season has come to an end. As for the other game…

I have to say I’m a little stunned at the outcome of the Capitals vs. Canadiens series. Now the Capitals have underachieved before and have had problems closing out opponents in other series but this was a little different. They played really well all season except for down the stretch when they had nothing to play for. It may have hurt them because they probably got a little too used to playing for nothing. The Canadiens were just lucky to be in the playoffs. Varlamov played well and probably played a lot better than most people thought he would. Unfortunately he didn’t get much offensive or defensive help at certain times. The real story was Jaroslav Halak pulling his best Patrick Roy circa 1986 impression. Halak faced 134 shots in the final three games and he only allowed three goals. This equates to a mind numbing .977 SV%. Ovechkin’s disappointing year continues. No league leading goals or points trophy, no gold medal or any medal and now no Stanley Cup. The great number eight will defiantly have better seasons ahead. Regardless of the outcome the last five minutes of the game were phenomenal. A truly remarkable first round and one of the best first rounds I can remember. Of course this could also be attributed to the fact that I saw basically all the games since I watched them all online. I didn’t have to just watch whatever limited games were broadcasted on TV. One thing that bothered me was on the Fox Sports Red Wings and Predators broadcasts, both of them mentioned Pittsburgh as the 5^th seed. No, they are the 4^th seed how hard is it to look that up? Also the announcing team on the Predators broadcasts sure don’t look like hockey announcers, not that you have a certain look per say but you can defiantly tell they are from the south.

The young teams in the West with little to no playoff experience (Los Angeles Kings, Colorado Avalanche and Phoenix Coyotes) all made great strides this year. Prolonging a series to six or seven games against more playoff savvy teams is a great accomplishment. All should be a force to reckon in next year’s playoff. I particularly like the Kings upside assuming Jonathon Quick continues to develop into the top goalie he is projected to become.

4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 8 Montreal Canadiens

Season Series: split 3-1 Penguins

Playoff History: 1-0 Canadiens. The only time they met was in 1998 in the 1^st round. Sidney Crosby was ten then.

Star to Watch: Sidney Crosby to see if he can continue his epic scoring pace against the hottest goalie around in Jaroslav Halak.

X-Factor: Michael Cammalleri came on strong against the Capitals and he leads the team with 10 points. He single handedly beat the Caps in game six. The Canadiens will need him to continue to produce if they are to pull off another shocker.

Goalie Problem: Well Halak is not a problem so that leaves Fleury in the hot seat. Fleury’s current SV% is .890 but he usually comes up big when necessary. He will need to come up a big a little more often if Halak is able to stymie Pittsburgh’s big guns.

Fun Fact: Since the 1994 playoff format switch, only nine 8^th seeds have beaten the 1^st seed out of 32 possible tries, the Canadiens being the ninth.

Prediction: Well I said the Capitals would sweep the Candiens, oops though I should have written five or six games I never would have thought Candiens in seven. I’m going to have to go with Penguins in six just because there isn’t much difference with this Penguins team and the two that made the Finals.

6 Boston Bruins vs. 7 Philadelphia Flyers

Season Series: 2-2 split

Playoff History: 2-2 split. Not since 1978 have these two met in the post season. Starting in 1974 they met in four of the five following post seasons.

Star to Watch: Mike Richards because with Jeff Carter out this is Richards’ team. Richards has played well so far, as he is 8^th in scoring and leads the Flyers in scoring this post season. He will have to kick it up a notch to best Rask and advance the Flyers to the next round.

X-Factor: Can Satan continue to dominate? Miroslav Satan delivered game winners in Game 4 and Game 6 and his patented Satan Shuffle. In fact those were the only two goals he scored. The magic of Satan, the Bruins hope he has a little left in him.

Goalie Problem: The Bruins never had a problem in net and considering they usurped the best goalie this season in Ryan Miller I say they’re doing good. Boucher has become the top goalie with Halak this postseason, so none for the Flyers either.

Fun Fact: In the two post seasons the Bruins beat the Flyers in the 2^nd round and then they lost in the conference finals to the Canadiens. That could happen again this year and wouldn’t it be something if it did?

Prediction: Well this is a really tough one to call. I could never have envisioned this pairing and I’m sure the Bruins never envisioned a scenario that they would get home ice in. While the Bruins have found a little scoring depth and Rask is playing well, I think the Flyers are the more complete team. They are built for the playoffs. Unless of course Boucher returns to normal, then advantage Bruins if not Flyers in six.

1 San Jose Sharks vs. 4 Detroit Red Wings

Season Series: 3-1 Red Wings

Playoff History: 2-1 Red Wings. The last two times the teams met in the 2^nd round and the Wings won both. The most recent meeting was in 2007.

Star to Watch: Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton. I wrote about Marleau in last round’s preview about how he always disappears in the playoffs, well he hasn’t been found yet. Thornton has also joined him and he has no goals in six games, yikes. Both of them will need to bring their A game to have a chance at beating the Red Wings.

X-Factor: The Sharks made it out of the 1^st round, hooray. However their real problem is getting out of the 2^nd round as before their ouster in the 1^st round last year, they couldn’t get past the 2^nd round in the three post seasons following their Conference Finals lost in 2004. Now is when the true test for the Sharks begins.

Goalie Problem: Evgeni Nabokov played alright in the 1^st round but he also wasn’t tested. He faced the least amount of shots of the twelve goalies who played six games. Howard is a rookie so he is just gaining experience. The game seven Coyotes win was huge for him. Still his game is not complete and the Sharks should be able to pepper him with enough shots and exploit his game. Let’s face it Jimmy Howard is not Craig Anderson circa this year or Jonas Hiller circa last year and the Sharks will be much relieved of this.

Fun Fact: The Red Wings don’t lose in the 2^nd round very often. In the past 18 post seasons they have only done so four times. The Sharks on the other hand have lost in the 2^nd round 7 of 12 times.

Prediction: Well I’m hoping for San Jose but also I think they are the better team. Detroit struggled to make the playoffs until the last month and they struggled at times to beat the Coyotes. I think the Sharks have finally put it all together, let’s face it they have had plenty of time to, Sharks in seven.

2 Chicago Blackhawks vs. 3 Vancouver Canucks

Season Series: Split 2-2

Playoff History: 2-1 Blackhawks. The last two times they met in the conference semifinals and the Blackhawks won both of them. The most recent meeting was of course last year when Luongo gave up seven goals in the decisive game six.

Star to Watch: The Twinkie twins I mean the Sedin twins, thanks Panger. Neither has averaged over a point a game in any post season. They both currently are and they will need to continue to in order to beat the upper crust Western Conference teams.

X-Factor: Dustin Byfuglien hasn’t done much of anything yet. He has no points so far and even more surprising he has only two penalty minutes. Last year he was tied for 3^rd in PIM in the playoffs. Granted he has been playing out of position as a defenseman but he is moving back to forward in this series. He will need to get involved in the game more if he is to provide that pesky spark that he did so well in providing last year.

Goalie Problem: Roberto Luongo and Antti Niemi are very similar in that sometimes they have great games and other times you’re left scratching your head. Luongo has more of an upside but Niemi had way better numbers in the 1^st round, though numbers aren’t everything. If Luongo plays like he did in game six against the Kings advantage Canucks.

Fun Fact: These two teams were the 2^nd (Vancouver) and 3^rd (Chicago) highest scoring teams in the regular season. Chicago had the most shots on goal and the 10^th highest shooting percentage. Vancouver had the 10^th most shots on goal and the 2^nd highest shooting percentage.

Prediction: Both teams looked beatable in the 1^st round but I don’t think Chicago has peaked yet, while I think Vancouver has. I also don’t think Luongo can play consistently well the whole series. Chicago in seven.

Goat of the Week

Pekka Rinne – Nashville Predators

Poor Pekka he played his heart out and almost helped the Predators upset the Blackhawks. Alas it was not to be and his gaffe in the sixth game sealed that fate. Many Blackhawks say he played the puck correctly, as a former goalie I say no he did not. He reacted way too early to a puck that was far away. Even if the puck did what he thought it was going to do, he would have had plenty of time to play it.

Mathieu Schneider – Phoenix Coyotes

It wasn’t the greatest pass from Lee Stempniak but Schneider’s poor handling of the pass coupled with Brad Stuart leaving the penalty box at around the same time, led to the goal that essentially broke the Coyotes back.

Numbers, Numbers

1 – of 33 on the power play for the Washington Capitals the top scoring team for a PP% of 3

0 – of 19 on the power play for the Buffalo Sabres

10 – of 26 on the power play for the Los Angeles Kings for a PP% of 38.5 tops in the post season

.940 – Brian Boucher’s SV% in six playoff games started

.939 – Jaroslav Halak’s SV% in six playoff games started

2.33 – Sidney Crosby’s PPG in the playoffs

1.83 – Mikael Samuelsson PPG in the playoffs the next closet player

This Week in Hockey History

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

April 22, 1993 Yuri Khmylev scored twice, including a power play goal at 1:05 of overtime, and added an assist to lead the Sabres to a 4-3 playoff win over the Bruins at the Aud. Buffalo took a 3-0 lead in the Adams Division Semi-Final series.

April 23, 1991 Pittsburgh’s Kevin Stevens became just the third player in NHL history to get three straight game winning goals in one playoff series, in a 3-1 win at Washington, in Game 4 of the Patrick Division Finals. Mark Recchi added a goal and two assists.

April 24, 1994 Gary Suter scored a hat trick and Jeremy Roenick scored the winning goal at 1:23 of overtime and added three assists to lead the Blackhawks to a 4-3 win over Toronto in Chicago, in Game 4 of the Western Conference Quarter-Finals.

April 25, 1994 Claude Lemieux scored twice and added two assists to lead the Devils to a 5-3 win over the Sabres in New Jersey, in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Finals. New Jersey took a 3-2 lead in the series.

April 26, 1997 Rod Brind’Amour scored two shorthanded goals within a span of :54 (to tie an NHL record for most SHG in one game) and added an assist in the Flyers 6-3 win over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, in Game 5 of the Eastern Conf. Quarter-Finals.

April 27, 1992 Rookie goalie Tom Draper recorded his only career playoff shutout, and Petr Svoboda picked up two assists as the Sabres won 2-0, at Boston in Game 5 of their Adams Division Semi-Finals series.

April 28, 1984 Minnesota and Edmonton combined to set a Stanley Cup playoff record for most power play goals in one game, with seven. North Stars had four and Oilers had three as Edmonton won 8-5, in Game 3 of the Campbell Conference Finals.

Rankings

Based on the likelihood of winning the Stanley Cup

1. Chicago

2. Vancouver

3. Pittsburgh

4. San Jose

5. Detroit

6. Philadelphia

7. Boston

8. Montreal