Today we experienced just about everything except the NFL, which of course, is saved for Sundays at this point in the season. Some of the exciting headlines
MLB:
Texas showed no hangover from the heartbreaking loss in game one, dominated game two with a 7-2 victory. The series heads to New York, with Cliff Lee set to pitch...it's getting interesting. Series even at 1-1
Surprisingly enough, this game went over the six runs predicted by the odds makers. More surprisingly, San Francisco came away with a huge upset victory in Philly to take away home-field advantage. San Fran leads 1-0
NCAAF:
1 Ohio State knocked off by 18 Wisconsin. Second consecutive week the No. 1 ranked team has lost.
Un-ranked Kentucky upset 10 South Carolina, un-ranked Mississippi State upset 22 Florida, un-ranked San Diego State upset 23 Air Force
5 Nebraska get completely outplayed and throws away their National Championship hopes with a loss to un-ranked Texas.
Will 3 Boise State jump to No. 1?
NHL:
Caps have early season magic, come back from 2-0 to win 3-2 in OT.
Blackhawks show no sign of slowing with 4-3 win over Sabres.
NFL:
Get ready for some crazy week six action tomorrow.
I thought I was going to have a hard time finding interesting things to write with the NHL in the off-season, and my general lack of interest in baseball so far this year.Boy was I wrong.
The news is simple and complex in so many ways.The Chicago Blackhawk’s signed free agent goaltender Marty Turco to a one year, $1.3 deal.Ordinarily this wouldn’t be newsworthy but the way the Hawks got there is newsworthy. I’ll start back in June, when the Hawks won the Stanley Cup. The team was overloaded with players in the final year of their contracts, which is how they managed to get so good and stay under the salary cap. Goaltender Antti Niemi was in his first full year with the Hawks, and earned the starting job earlier in the year.Niemi was making a modest $825,000 which isn’t all that bad for a young goalie.Niemi went on to backstop the Hawks to the Cup and went looking for a substantial raise.
The Hawks had already dumped the likes of Dustin Byfuglien, Ben Eager, and Andrew Ladd to make salary room.Neimi and the Hawks went all the way to salary arbitration, and the arbitrator sided with Neimi.He was awarded a one year $2.75 contract.The Hawks had a couple of days to decide to accept the ruling or allow their rookie goaltender to become an unrestricted free agent.The Blackhawk’s made the decision to let Niemi walk, and signed Turco to the $1.3 million deal. That’s how the Hawks go from winning the Cup, to signing a goalie whose reputation is built on playoff futility.I’m sure occurrences like this are normal in the NBA and the NFL, but the salary cap is still new to the NHL, so teams are still learning to adapt to it.I’m sure there will be more instances like this one in the future, but this one sets the precedence. Neimi is rumored to land in Philadelphia or San Jose. Both cities are in dire need of goaltending.
The arbitrator in the NHL v. Kovalchuk case should rule early this week, so this may be quite a historic week in the league.Stay tuned!
The NHL’s post season awards were handed out on Wednesday night in Vegas, and no, I didn’t win MVP.Here’s who did win and a few comments:
Hart Memorial Trophy, MVP: Henrik Sedin, Vancouver Canucks. This is being called a huge upset as he beat Ovechkin and Crosby. I think it’s good for the sport to have a different guy as MVP.He did lead the league in goal scoring which netted him the Art Ross Trophy as well.
Ted Lindsay Award: Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals.This is the “players” MVP, as this award is voted on by the players.
Norris Trophy: Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks.The Norris is awarded for the best defenseman.Keith’s win signals a “changing of the guard” from the veteran defensemen like Nicklas Lidstrom.
Calder Trophy, Rookie of the Year: Tyler Myers, Buffalo Sabres. This was a mild upset, considering he beat out Matt Duschene, but certainly not a surprise.
Vezna Trophy, Top Goalie: Ryan Miller, Buffalo Sabres.I think we all know why he won this.He’s awesome.
Jack Adams Award, Top Coach: Dave Tippett, Phoenix Coyotes.Phoenix came within one win of getting to round two of the playoffs. Considering where they came from.Enough said.
There isn’t usually a lot of notable trade action in the NHL offseason, but the deal that went down yesterday between the Blackhawks and the Thrashers was a big one.The Blackhawks have sent Dustin Byfuglien, Ben Eager, and Brent Sopel to the Atlanta Thrashers for veteran Marty Reasoner, a minor leaguer, a first round and second round draft pick in Friday’s draft.
Byfuglien, Eager, and Sopel were all critical players in Chicago’s Cup run, and now they are gone. I can’t imagine how these guys must be feeling. Heck, they haven’t even gotten their day with the Cup yet. They are going from a potential dynasty, to a team that may not even make it through next season in Atlanta.It’s strictly a result of the salary cap, and I’m sure the Hawks would have rather kept them, but big contracts for Toews, Kane, and Hossa have them up against the cap. Personally I feel bad for these guys, but they are professional athletes and I’m sure the big checks they will be getting from the Thrashers will help them get over the disappointment of the trade.
In other trade news, the Montreal Canadiens have sent goaltender Jaroslav Halak (no that isn’t a typo) to St. Louis for two players, both are young and neither are stars.Halak is up for a new contract and the Canadiens decided to go with Carey Price as their every day goalie instead of Halak, who carried the team to the third round of the playoffs.The Canadiens have always loved Price, but I have to say I’m not sure I agree with the decision that was made.Halak regularly outplayed Price during their time together in Montreal, but apparently the Montreal brass aren’t ready to give up on Price just yet.
The NHL Entry Draft is tomorrow (Friday) night from StaplesCenter in Los Angeles.Edmonton picks first followed by the Boston Bruins. Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin are projected to be the first two picks, and will probably be the only two players from this years’ draft that go straight to the NHL.I’m looking forward to see if there will be more “wheelin’ and dealin” at the draft.I’m off to New Jersey this weekend to try and get my hands on some game used Devils equipment.I’m looking forward to checking in with the Devils fan base.
The Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 49 years.Game six was a back and forth, tightly contested affair, much like the previous five games.The Flyers played with much grit and determination again, and even managed to force overtime with a goal late in the third period. The Blackhawks were just the better team, and they proved it in overtime.
Goalie Antti Niemi stood on his head for the last ten minutes of regulation. One save in particular was especially impressive on Mike Richards from point-blank range. The overtime game winner was scored by Patrick Kane a little more than five minutes into the overtime period.Kane put a sweet head fake on Philly defensemen Kimo Timmonen and drove to the net, a lot like another Chicago legend drove to the basket in the early 90’s.The shot slipped under Leighton’s stick and pads and stuck under the pad that goes around the inside of the net.Kane knew the puck was in immediately, as did Patrick Sharp.Everyone else, including the game’s broadcasters and other players had no idea the Cup had just been won.Kane streaked down the ice shedding his gloves and stick as he did.It took about a minute for the goal to become “official”, but once the players saw the puck in the goal, the party was on.
It was a surreal ending. I was watching on TV and I remember looking up as I heard Mike “Doc” Emerik start to say the word “score”, but he too lost the puck and continued the call for a couple of extra seconds.There was no controversy after seeing the overhead replay. It was clearly a good goal.
I talked to a teammate of mine last night, and found out the feeling of confusion that was in the WachoviaCenter last night was mainly due to the fact that the Flyers never showed a single replay of the game winning goal.No goal light came on, nothing.He said he saw Kane shoot the puck and then gear was everywhere.Folks in the rink were very confused. Overall though, the Philly faithful were respectful and well behaved during the post-game ceremonies.I saw some towels get thrown on the ice, but not a lot.They booed Gary Bettman, the NHL Commissioner, but everyone boos the commissioner. It’s like booing a politician. Jonathan Tows won the Conn Smythe Trophy for the MVP of the playoffs.Patrick Kane had better numbers but Toews is the captain of the Hawks, so he’s going to get more votes.
The Flyers have nothing to be ashamed of. I know it’s very easy for me to sit here and type that, but think about it. They were one shootout goal away from not even making the playoffs, next they were down three games to none to the Bruins, only to get down three to nothing in game seven of that series.The Flyers never quit, and proved that “History will be made” was the correct slogan for this year’s playoffs. Their run was magical and most of their fans know it.
Overall, the series was a lot of fun to watch.It wasn’t an epic, nor will it be compared to the best series of all time, but I believe it brought more new people to the game.I was also pleasantly surprised to see the game on NBC.Weeknight games had been traditionally carried by Versus as NBC didn’t want to take the ratings hit.It got good overnight ratings too, especially the overtime.
Lastly, I have thoroughly enjoyed writing about hockey for this blog since I started a few months ago, and thank Dan for the opportunity.Thank you for taking the time to read it.I’m looking forward to writing about some other sports as the summer and fall go on, and then getting back in to Hockey in the fall.Congrats to the Blackhawks….but look out for the Caps in 2011!
The scoreboard at the “Madhouse on Madison” had a very simple image.There was a picture of the Stanley Cup and a number one.The Hawks torched both Philly goalies for seven more goals, and are now one win away from winning their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.
There were many strong similarities to the first game of the series, as the teams combined for 11 goals, and Flyers goalie Michael Leighton got pulled.Chicago jumped all over the Flyers in the first period, scoring three goals and taking that 3-0 lead to the first intermission.The Flyers showed the resilience that is their trademark in this years playoffs, getting the deficit down to two goals twice, but they just couldn’t overcome the Hawks fast start.Neither Leighton nor Boucher were overly spectacular for the Flyers.Chicago coach Joel Quenneville moved Patrick Kane to the second line in an effort to spread out the scoring threat.Chris Pronger had been on the ice every time the Toews, Kane and Byfuglien(pronounced buff-len) line was on the ice in the first four games.The move allowed Kane to get more time and space with the puck and he responded with a huge game.
Byfuglien had a much better night against Pronger in the trenches as well.The Blackhawks power play was two goals out of four chances on the evening, which was the first time special teams has made an impact in the series. The best analogy I can give you is the Blackhawks were like the bully, who have just enough strength to keep the Flyers at arms length.The Flyers certainly didn’t quit in this game, but they just couldn’t get close after Chicago went up 3-0.The game was very entertaining, which has been a nice trend throughout the series. All the matches have been fun to watch so far.
Now the series shifts back to Philly on Wednesday night.Will the home ice advantage hold true? Home ice had been almost a disadvantage so far in the playoffs, it’s nice to see that has turned around for the Finals.It will be interesting to see how both teams play with the Stanley Cup in the building. I can’t wait for this one!
Goal scorers in game five:
Chicago: Brent Seabrook(Power Play), Dave Bolland, and Kris Versteeg in the first.Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien(Power Play) in the second. Partick Sharp and Dustin Byfuglien(Empty Net) in the third.
Philadelphia: Scotty Hartnell and Kimo Timmanen in the second. James Van Reimsdyk and Simon Gagne in the 3rd.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a series.The outcome of game four is exactly why I don’t pick games, especially in the playoffs.The Flyers showed grit and skill at the same time as they evened the Stanley Cup Finals at two games apiece.
The Blackhawks were never really in this game.The Flyers imposed their will from the opening face-off all the way to the final whistle.I find it amazing what a little “home cooking” can do for a team. Less than a week ago the Hawks were up 2-0 and a lot of folks (myself included) were thinking sweep. Now, the series heads back to the “Mad House on Madison” on Sunday evening for game five, with the Stanley Cup Final down to a best of three.
Toews and Kane are still struggling to get on the board for the Hawks, and Chicago really needs them to get going.Philly’s big guns woke up for games thee and four, the two Flyer wins.It will be interesting to see if the trends hold true and the Hawks win again at home.Looks like a long road to the Cup from here. Goal scorers in game four were as follows:
Flyers: Mike Richards, Matt Carle, Claude Giroux in the first. Ville Lieno and Jeff Carter in the third.
Blackhawks: Patrick Sharp in the first. Dave Bolland and Brian Campbell in the third.
Game three was probably the most exciting game of the Stanley Cup Finals yet.The Flyers played desperation hockey in front of the largest home crowd in Flyers history.The 20,000+ Orange clad fans were sent home happy after Claude Giroux(pronounced Jerr-oo) scored his first goal of the finals in game winning fashion.The Blackhawks held a 3-2 lead in the third period after Patrick Kane got his first goal of the Cup Finals on a sweet breakaway.
I’d be lying if I told you that thoughts of a Blackhawks sweep didn’t enter my mind when the Hawks got the lead.Honestly, I’m excited to see that we will have what looks like a competitive series.Both goalies played well in Game 3.The Flyers just played more desperate hockey and fixed a lot of the mistakes that cost them in the first two games. I love overtime in the playoffs.We’ve only had one epic three overtime game so far this year.I was hoping this one would keep me well up into the night, but no such luck.
The series isn’t over yet!Game four should be very interesting. The Flyers now know they can beat Chicago, and will be playing at home again.The Hawks on the other hand will be looking to start another road winning streak.My instinct tells me that if the Flyers can win game four, then the series will probably go all seven games.A Blackhawks win in game four will most likely lead to the Hawks claiming the Cup after game five. I don’t usually make predictions, but since this one is in writing, I’m curious to see how it turns out.
Game three goal scorers are as follows: Flyers: Daniel Briere in the first on a power play, Scotty Hartnell in the second on the power play,Ville Leino in the third even strength, and Claude Giroux in overtime at even strength.Hawks: Duncan Keith in the second at even strength, Brent Sopel in the second at even strength, and Patrick Kane in the third on the even strength breakaway.
Game four is Friday night in Philadelphia at 8 pm.
Game two was the exact opposite of game one. A tight checking, defensive battle that put stellar goaltending on display.The Blackhawks scored two goals somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 seconds apart in the second period, and that’s all they would need.Philly goalie Michael Leighton rebounded nicely from a tough game one, but still took the loss.The legend that is Antti Neimi continues to grow as the rookie is now only two wins away from a Stanley Cup Championship.The Flyers activated Dan Carcillo for game two for some reason.He had little to no impact on the game. His accidental hit on teammate Mike Richards, will stick in most people’s memory; I would be surprised if he plays again in the series.The Hawks are still waiting for a breakout game from Patrick Kane.He played well, just hasn’t been the offensive force that he was all year long.The Hawks’ goals were scored by Marian Hossa and Ben Eager.The Flyers’ lone goal came courtesy of Simon Gagne.
I watched game two with a friend of mine who does not follow hockey.I very much enjoyed getting his perspective on the game.Avid hockey fans can enjoy a tight checking defensive battle; much like a die hard baseball fan can enjoy a 1-0 pitchers duel. I tried to explain to him that games like this are not what the league is looking for from the finals.The NHL wants a more wide open, run and gun, 6-5 final.(See my post about game one) The league believes that more scoring will entice the “casual fan” to pay more attention to the game, hence the changes to the red line rule, the goalie equipment sizes, the trapezoid, etc.Overall, it was a fun game to watch, both teams have proven they can play wide open and tight defensive hockey.Game three is Wednesday night in Philadelphia.Enjoy!
I remember thinking as I watched the Olympic hockey tournament back in February, “This is great hockey, I hope the NHL can live up to this level of hockey when it starts again.”Honestly, the last couple months of the season were entertaining, but not nearly as entertaining as the Olympic tournament… until Friday night.
Game One between the Flyers and the Blackhawks was the most entertaining game of the season in my opinion. The NHL needs more games like that to draw in new fans.The game was high paced, end to end, and full of excitement, especially offensive excitement, which is exactly what the league wants.The skill players got to show their stuff, we got to see Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Patrick Sharp lighting up both of the Flyers goaltenders.The Flyers responded with Daniel Briere, Simon Gagne and even Aaron Asham putting pucks past a rookie goalie, but came up just one goal short.
The old Chicago Stadium was nicknamed ‘The Madhouse on Madison’ and I noticed they put a sign up facing of the upper deck that read exactly that. The environment in that building was amazing, and I can only imagine how loud it must have been. The hockey fan in me was dying to be there, even though the ‘Hawks aren’t my team. The ‘Hawks sent almost 22,000 fans home happy. Personally, I can’t wait to see if game two is more of the same.
This weekend there have been all kinds of exciting things happening in the NHL, NBA, and MLB. We'll start with hockey and work our way down the list.
NHL:
The Stanley Cup series is underway as the Chicago Blackhawks return to the Cup finals for the first time since '91-'92 and look for their first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history. The Flyers return to the Cup finals for the first time since '96-'97 and look for their first championship since '73-'74.
The Flyers have been a big surprise as they first upset the number two-seeded New Jersey Devils four games to one. Then, shocked everyone again and made history by coming down from being down three games to none against the Bruins and winning the series. The Flyers then only needed six games to cool down the very hot eight-seeded Montreal Canadiens in order to advance to the Cup.
The Blackhawks have been on fire and have just cruised through the playoffs as they have improved each series. They won the first series in six games, the second in five, before sweeping the number one-seeded Sharks. Game one took place on Saturday night and it was a fun one for the fans as it was full of offense. The Blackhawks gave the home team fans something to cheer about as they kept pace with the Flyers and won the always important game one 6-5.
NBA:
On Friday night, which is the weekend in my book, the Boston Celtics unfortunately closed out their series against the second-seeded Orlando Magic. The Celtics won the first three games before dropping the following two. They definitely didn't want to be the second Boston team in the past month to blow a three games to none lead so they just went ahead and won game six. They now advance to their second NBA Finals appearance in three years.
On Saturday night, which is most obviously the weekend, the L.A. Lakers went into Phoenix and beat the Suns with yet another 30+ point performance by Kobe Bryant. The L.A. Lakers advance to their third consecutive finals appearance and for a chance to defend their title. We will be witnessing a rematch of the 2008 NBA Finals when the Celtics defeated the Lakers in six games.
This Finals should be even better than 2008 as Kobe has been on a 30-point tear this post-season and is as hungry as ever for another ring. I have been watching more basketball than usual because I find the things Kobe does to be absolutely ridiculous. The guy makes some of the most amazing shots I've ever seen; ones LeBron couldn't make if he had 10 chances. Kobe is clearly the best basketball player of our era, and so far above LeBron it doesn't even seem fair. I understand they play different positions and I don't want to get into this right now, but Kobe is such a better offensive player and is a solid defender. He will win NBA Finals MVP...
MLB:
Ah, baseball...my first love. I know that most people don't give baseball any credit, but the people from Philadelphia got to see something very special on Saturday. Personally, I don't think they deserve it considering they way they have acted this season and in previous seasons.
Okay, I have beat around the bush long enough...if you didn't catch any ESPN this weekend, you didn't hear that Doc Halladay threw a perfect game against the Florida Marlins. That's right...absolute perfection (sounds like a good name for a brand of vodka). For me, there is no prettier thing in baseball...I mean just the sound of it...PERFECTION. It is impossible to acheive anything close in any other sport. A shutout in hockey? 20/20 in save chances...impressive but nothing out of the ordinary. Shooting 10/10 from the field in a basketball game...damn impressive, but still nothing too special. A perfect 158.3 QB rating in football...not too likely but still...just doesn't sound as good.
The reason I say that Phillies fans might not deserve it is because they have acted as bad this year as any other year. It is unbelieveable how they act, just click the link above. For them to behave the way they do, and then have the pleasure of watching a perfect game doesn't seem fair. I will speak for Yankee Nation, our fans might be obnoxious but we certainly don't act that bad. In fact, I will go as far as to lightly speak for Red Sox fans, or the few I know at least...
Not to mention, they have the pleasure of being graced by one of the greatest pitchers of our era... Harry Leroy Halladay III. Doc, as many call him, has been incredibly dominant this season...nothing out of the norm for him. The guy definitely deserves it more than anybody I can remember. He has owned the Yankees for as long as I can remember, formerly being a member of the Blue Jays, and I was more than overjoyed for him the leave not only my division but the American League all together. Regardless...this guy is incredible, a Hall of Famer if he retired tomorrow, and a classy guy. I hate him because he's so good but you've got to love him.
So...the Chicago Blackhawks have returned to the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1992. Good for them. Chicago finally has something to cheer about considering the Cubs and White Sox currently stink (White Sox lost 13-0 tonight, and the Cubs are battling to keep their heads above .500). Of course, they'll probably cheer up a storm when they get LeBron James, but that's for another post.
Anyway, the Blackhawks will sit at home and relax while the Flyers attempt to put away the Canadiens in game five. Might seem fairly simple considering they've dominated them just about the entire series. Except for this one statistic, the Habs are an undefeated 5-0 this year in elimination games. Whether that was luck or them playing well with their backs against the wall, props to them. I hope they pull it out again... being down 3-1 to the Caps, then 3-2 to the defending champion Pens, and now 3-1 again to the seventh-seeded Flyers.
Let us look at something else. Does Chicago actually have a disadvantage here? They were the two seed and absolutely dominated the first-seeded San Jose Sharks without question. Well beyond a reasonable doubt. However, if the Habs pull out a win on tonight...and maybe even another, the Hawks will be at home watching. Ever think they might cool off in the process, and even though the other team will be tired, they'll still be hot. Just something to think about. I hope Montreal pulls out another one, but something tells me the story stops here.
Go Blackhawks in the finals...they're a fun team to watch.
This post is going to simply and clearly explain why this year's NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs prove why sports are great.
The eight-seeded Montreal (Habs) Canadiens beat Sidney Crosby and the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games. The Habs absolutely owned game seven, winning 5-2 on the road. The team from up north now looks to take on either the (7) Philadelphia Flyers or the (6) Boston Bruins.
This series is another great story because the Bruins were up three games to none and now the Flyers have won three in a row. Coming back from three down in a series is an almost unprecedented feat in the sports realm. (I would know, my Yanks blew it to the Sox in '04)
No one should care about the other conference right now. The Sharks beat the Red Wings four games to one, and the Blackhawks overtook the Canucks in six games.
The reason the West doesn't matter is because it's one vs. two in the conference finals. In the East, it's eight vs. six/seven.
That's awesome and it's awesome that the Flyers came back in the series. This is when random people pay attention. I'm not a Flyers/Bruins fan by any means, in fact, I strongly dislike both those sports cities to say the least. However, I will definitely at least be semi-watching the game because of how awesome the story is. Maybe it's just the journalist in me, who knows.
All I know is that I'm rooting hard for the Habs to go all the way, preferably against the Blackhawks. I think if Montreal plays the way they've been playing, they have a legitimate shot to win the Cup.
The Canadiens improbable comeback against the Capitals capped off a first round for the ages in the NHL playoffs last night.The final toll looks like this:
In the east, Montreal, an eight seed, took out Washington, the number one overall seed. The Flyers are a seven seed and they took out the Devils, who were a two. The sixth seeded Bruins eliminated the third seeded Sabres, and the Penguins were the only higher seed that moved on in the East, taking down Ottawa in the four vs. five matchup.
Out west things were a little less unpredictable. The Sharks beat the Avalanche in the one vs. eight matchup. The Blackhawks beat the Predators in the two versus seven, and the Canucks beat the Kings in the three versus six. The only upset was the Red Wings beating the Coyotes in the four against five series. A lot of people don’t really consider that an upset considering the hot streak the Red Wings were on going into the playoffs.
The first round was incredibly competitive and exciting. There were no series sweeps, in fact each series went a minimum of six games.I see that as good for the league, good for the fans and especially good for the sport.Sports leagues generally seem to be aiming for the type of parity you see in the most recent seasons of NFL football, and it looks like NHL hockey is certainly moving in that direction.I find that exciting as a highly involved fan of the sport.
The second round starts tonight in San Jose, the matchups are as follows:
San Jose Sharks vs. Detroit Red Wings: Can the Sharks shake off the ghosts of playoffs past and get to the conference finals?This year is probably their best chance in the last three.
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks: The Hawks knocked out Luongo and the Canucks in the second round last year. Vancouver has stated that they are looking for revenge. This has the potential to be a very nasty series.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins: If the Canadiens can get through the Caps in round one and the Pens in round two, there may not be any couches left unburned in Montreal.It’s another tall task though as Crosby and the Pens are stacked for another cup run this year.
Boston Bruins vs. Philadelphia Flyers: What a great rivalry series this is. The Bruins have a chance to redeem themselves from a short playoff run last year, and the Flyers are playing with house money.It will be interesting to see if Brian Boucher can carry the banged up Flyers through another round.
There are still enough teams in play that there should be a game on television each night of the week.Most of the weeknight games can be found on Versus, which is also back to being available to DirecTV subscribers.So make some time to watch a game or two, you never know, you might see something historic!
We’ve seen our first casualty of the 2010 NHL Playoffs.The New Jersey Devils have been eliminated in five games by the Philadelphia Flyers.The fact that the Devils were a two seed makes this a fairly large upset.I didn’t get to see a lot of the games in this series, but I did see the one last night.Marty Brodeur looked very “ordinary”, and the Devils just looked like they weren’t really all that interested. Let the Kovalchuk free agent speculation begin!
I thought I was going to get to see a second elimination when the Penguins rallied to take a 3-2 lead on Ottawa in the third period, but to the Sens credit they fought back. The game kept me up way past my bedtime, but it was worth it to see Ottawa get a 4-3 win in triple overtime.Game 6 is back in Ottawa on Saturday night. (Pens win, advance)
The Capitals get their first chance to knock out the Canadiens tonight in DC.Washington has dominated this series ever since getting down 4-1 in the second period of game two. The Habs are going back to Halak in goal tonight to try and extend their season. The Buffalo Sabres are down three games to one to the Boston Bruins, which is a major surprise.(Caps lose 2-1, Sabres win 4-1)
Out west, the Canucks lead the Kings three games to two in their series.I haven’t seen many of these games, but the highlights are proving that they are playing some very entertaining games.The Red Wings took game five from Phoenix, also leading to a three games to two series lead. The Sharks have weathered an “own goal” in OT against the Avalanche and are now up three games to two.The Sharks need to close out this series as quickly as possible. They can’t let Colorado hang around and push it to a game seven, even though it would be played in San Jose. (Sharks won game six)Lastly, the Blackhawks and Predators are tied at two games a piece heading back to Chicago for game five. (OT win by Hawks, lead 3-2)
Round two will get going toward the end of next week.Overall the games have been very entertaining, I’m happy with the level of play and the officiating.Game five between Pittsburgh/Ottawa was the first real “epic” overtime game of the playoffs.I’m looking forward to at least one more three or four overtime marathon before the end of the playoffs.
The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, the temperatures are rising, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs have begun!
The last series of the first round starts tonight as the Nashville Predators head to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks.The story of the playoffs so far, granted it’s only been 3 days, has been the lack of home ice advantage.The home team has lost four out of the seven games played so far.Phoenix, Vancouver, and Buffalo are the only home teams to win. I loved seeing the whiteout in the desert.I find it interesting how people make such a big deal out of getting home ice for the playoffs, and every year it ends up meaning crap.The Capitals lost games one and two on home ice against the Rangers during last year’s first round.Carolina spanked Boston on home ice twice during last year’s second round.I don’t think it matters where the game is played; the better team is usually going to end up winning.I’ll have more playoff comments next week, after the series are a little bit further along.
In other news, the Tampa Bay Lightning have fired head coach Rick Tocchet and all his staff, as well as General Manager Brian Lawton.The new ownership in Tampa wants a fresh start for next year.They will be picking sixth in the draft, so they should be able to get another quality prospect, possibly an NHL ready player.
The New York Rangers have agreed to extend HC John Tortorella contract for one more season. The Rangers missed the playoffs by a single point this year.It’s going to be tough for them to make a lot of moves in the off season due to the overpaid and undervalued vets that are on the team.It will be interesting to see what they do for next year.
The Edmonton Oilers won the NHL draft lottery this week.They finished with the worst record in the league AND won the lottery so they will be picking first.The Boston Bruins got Toronto’s first round pick for Phil Kessel earlier in the year, and their number came up second. The Florida Panthers pick third, followed by the Columbus Blue Jackets.
There are playoff games basically every night for the next week, so enjoy the games!
