And, once again I've been slipping with posting here. My weeks are just flying by and I can't really do everything I want to do.
Surprise, surprise! The Stars are still in it. Courtesy of Marty Turco. In his first carreer win in the Joe, Marty Turco was OUTSTANDING. Some of the saves he made aren't from this planet. Add to that that he got the only assist on Joel Lundqvist game winning goal.
Next round will be in Dallas. For the sake of some nice hockey, I hope the Stars win that one. Personally, I'm just enjoying the playoffs now. No nerves anymore. The Pens killed'em all by knocking out the Rangers.
Tonight we can see the fifth round between the Pens and the Flyers. I belive it all ends here, for the Flyers. Hopefully it doesn't. Because it has been a nice series to follow. Will Martin Biron stand against the mighty attacks of the Pens tonight? And will the Flyers boxplay manage to keep the hungry power play line of Pittsburgh at bay?
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5/18/2008
5/11/2008
I know, I know
Yes, it has been a while again. Been a busy week for me, but I've managed to watch some hockey anyways. Although, I haven't had the time to write anything.
What is there to say about the Conference Finals so far?
First of all: Evgeni Malkin. What a player? Did you see his goals?! The last one really made me laugh. I don't know why, but that was a bit funny. Instead of trying to deke Biron in his breakaway he simply loaded the big gun and let the slapshot do the talking. That's business, for you. Will Malkin be the MVP of the playoffs? Maybe, if the Pens go to the Finals. But that series is far from over.
O-s(o)-good it must be to be a Red Wings fan right now. With Chris Osgood in net and the always alterning attacks of four amazing lines in offence, it's really hard to see anything stand in the way of the Wings machine. Up 2-0 against Dallas. Now they're going to the Lone Star State for two games. I reckon the Stars need to win both to stand a chance. I don't think they will, though. The Wings will take at least one of the games there and then finish it off back home. I know, I thought the series would go to six or seven games but I can hardly see anything pointing in that direction right now. Maybe if the Stars win the first match in Dallas.
What is there to say about the Conference Finals so far?
First of all: Evgeni Malkin. What a player? Did you see his goals?! The last one really made me laugh. I don't know why, but that was a bit funny. Instead of trying to deke Biron in his breakaway he simply loaded the big gun and let the slapshot do the talking. That's business, for you. Will Malkin be the MVP of the playoffs? Maybe, if the Pens go to the Finals. But that series is far from over.
O-s(o)-good it must be to be a Red Wings fan right now. With Chris Osgood in net and the always alterning attacks of four amazing lines in offence, it's really hard to see anything stand in the way of the Wings machine. Up 2-0 against Dallas. Now they're going to the Lone Star State for two games. I reckon the Stars need to win both to stand a chance. I don't think they will, though. The Wings will take at least one of the games there and then finish it off back home. I know, I thought the series would go to six or seven games but I can hardly see anything pointing in that direction right now. Maybe if the Stars win the first match in Dallas.
5/05/2008
Conference Finals
That's it. The season is over for the Rangers and the Sharks. The Sharks lost the Battle of the West in the fourth OT-period last night. We got to see some amazing goaltending throughout the game and especially in OT. Evgeni Nabokov and Marty Turco tried (at least it looked like they did) to outclass eachother in amazing saves. Togehter they stopped 114 shots (Turco 61 and Nabokov 53). This was the only game in the series where the team who scored the first goal, won the game. It's been a great season for the Sharks but I think they thought they could go all the way after gaining some momentum against the Stars. I know one player who really really wanted it to happen. Jeremy Roenick. "JR" will probably quit playing now and he was hoping to do what Andreychuck and Borque did in their last seasons as players - lift the Cup for the first time. We'll see, maybe JR will give it another go next season. I hope he will, he deserves to lift the Cup as well.
The Rangers but themselves in the situation leading to their termination. Looking back over the series, maybe it was all decided in that first game. The Rangers was up 3-0 in Pittsburgh but relaxed and lost it 5-4. That just gave the Pens some momentum and from that point it all rolled on. Marian Hossa scored twice last night. What a trade that turned out to be. The question still remains, will he stay in Steel City after this season? But if the Pens go all the way and win the Cup, I reckon they will find the deal being worth it - even if Hossa leaves. He has been magnificent since arriving.
Now the Pens will face the Flyers. That ought to be one interesting series. Both teams have lots of confidence and they allways shoot from the hip, so to speak. I expect lots of goals and many great hits and saves. Both teams have fast skaters and players with great stick skills. Will this go to seven games? Maybe. It all depends on wether the Pens will try to set the tone from the start. If they win the first match by some margin, it might be a shorter series. But then again, the Flyers have done the impossible - twice. So I will not coun't them out this time. Lesson learned.
Biron vs. Fleury: Seven rounds. Winner? I'll say the Pens. They should take this. But, once again, I won't, I just won't, count the Flyers out once again.
In the West, the Stars will face the Wings. Probably a seven-round fight as well. I had the Stars as outsiders in the playoffs and they might surprise again. Brenden Morrow has been great for the Stars and The Mule (Johan Franzen) has been outstanding for the Wings. We'll also see two teams with great defense.
The Mule vs. Morrow: Six rounds. Winner? I'll say the Mule. But it would be nice to see the Stars go through. They've really impressed me.
The Rangers but themselves in the situation leading to their termination. Looking back over the series, maybe it was all decided in that first game. The Rangers was up 3-0 in Pittsburgh but relaxed and lost it 5-4. That just gave the Pens some momentum and from that point it all rolled on. Marian Hossa scored twice last night. What a trade that turned out to be. The question still remains, will he stay in Steel City after this season? But if the Pens go all the way and win the Cup, I reckon they will find the deal being worth it - even if Hossa leaves. He has been magnificent since arriving.
Now the Pens will face the Flyers. That ought to be one interesting series. Both teams have lots of confidence and they allways shoot from the hip, so to speak. I expect lots of goals and many great hits and saves. Both teams have fast skaters and players with great stick skills. Will this go to seven games? Maybe. It all depends on wether the Pens will try to set the tone from the start. If they win the first match by some margin, it might be a shorter series. But then again, the Flyers have done the impossible - twice. So I will not coun't them out this time. Lesson learned.
Biron vs. Fleury: Seven rounds. Winner? I'll say the Pens. They should take this. But, once again, I won't, I just won't, count the Flyers out once again.
In the West, the Stars will face the Wings. Probably a seven-round fight as well. I had the Stars as outsiders in the playoffs and they might surprise again. Brenden Morrow has been great for the Stars and The Mule (Johan Franzen) has been outstanding for the Wings. We'll also see two teams with great defense.
The Mule vs. Morrow: Six rounds. Winner? I'll say the Mule. But it would be nice to see the Stars go through. They've really impressed me.
5/01/2008
The Flyers?!
What's going on? The Philadelphia Flyers are on their way to take a major scalp in the playoffs. After last nights game, they have a nice lead, 3-1, over the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens is a team that I thought would have no problems with the Flyers. But, boy was I wrong. Sure, the Canadiens are playing a variation of offensive tactics and they're creating alot. But thanks to the best keeper, so far, in the playoffs, the Flyers can weather the storm as it comes. Martin Biron has been outstanding, supberb, fantastic so far in the playoffs. He's piling up the impossible saves time and again.
Turco, Lundqvist, Fleury, Nabokov, Osgood, Price (Halak last night, though) and Theodore. Good keepers, all of them. But the question is, is anyone of them better than Biron at the moment? The only one I can imagine being close to him is Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers. But he's not getting any help from his defensemen, hence a few more shots are getting past him.
Biron gets the help. Biron makes the saves. Biron is, at the moment, a brick wall.
Speaking of the Rangers. Tonight, it may all end. They lost their first game in the Garden, 5-3, and nothing, absolutely nothing speaks for a victory tonight. Even if they win tonight, they will just postpone the unavoidable. Or? As far as I know, no team has ever turned around a series, being down 3-0. The Pens are playing with confidence and will probably try to kill the series as soon as possible.
In the West, Detroit are cruising towards the Conference Finals. 3-0 up against the Avs. It's the same situation here as it is between the Pens and Rangers. Nothing speaks for Colorado. This will end tonight. No doubt about it. The Avs hasn't really had anything to worry the Wings about. And with The Mule, Johan Franzen, in his greatest form ever in the NHL, having produced 11 points (8+3) in just nine games, it means that the Avs defense has yet another Red Wing to look out for. This is something they already know, since the Mule scored three goals against them last Saturday.
The Sharks are in a bit of trouble, being down 3-1 in the series against the Stars. But, they won last night and may have gained some momentum. Are they just postponing the unavoidable or will they battle back? There's something strange going on in that series. The team that has scored the first goal in each game have lost the game. Will this continue? In that case, if I were a Sharks fan, I'd be hoping for the Stars to score the first goal tomorrow night.
The NHL - is awesome.
Turco, Lundqvist, Fleury, Nabokov, Osgood, Price (Halak last night, though) and Theodore. Good keepers, all of them. But the question is, is anyone of them better than Biron at the moment? The only one I can imagine being close to him is Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers. But he's not getting any help from his defensemen, hence a few more shots are getting past him.
Biron gets the help. Biron makes the saves. Biron is, at the moment, a brick wall.
Speaking of the Rangers. Tonight, it may all end. They lost their first game in the Garden, 5-3, and nothing, absolutely nothing speaks for a victory tonight. Even if they win tonight, they will just postpone the unavoidable. Or? As far as I know, no team has ever turned around a series, being down 3-0. The Pens are playing with confidence and will probably try to kill the series as soon as possible.
In the West, Detroit are cruising towards the Conference Finals. 3-0 up against the Avs. It's the same situation here as it is between the Pens and Rangers. Nothing speaks for Colorado. This will end tonight. No doubt about it. The Avs hasn't really had anything to worry the Wings about. And with The Mule, Johan Franzen, in his greatest form ever in the NHL, having produced 11 points (8+3) in just nine games, it means that the Avs defense has yet another Red Wing to look out for. This is something they already know, since the Mule scored three goals against them last Saturday.
The Sharks are in a bit of trouble, being down 3-1 in the series against the Stars. But, they won last night and may have gained some momentum. Are they just postponing the unavoidable or will they battle back? There's something strange going on in that series. The team that has scored the first goal in each game have lost the game. Will this continue? In that case, if I were a Sharks fan, I'd be hoping for the Stars to score the first goal tomorrow night.
The NHL - is awesome.
4/21/2008
Duck Hunting
Last years Stanley Cup Champions, the Anaheim Ducks, are out of the playoffs. The Dallas Stars won the deciding match, 4-1 and clinched the series 4-2. The Stars now face the Red Wings, who beat Nashville last night. This means that we have three out of four teams in the West waiting for the Quarterfinals (Conference Semi Finals): The Avalanche (who will face either the Sharks or the Flames), the Stars and the Wings.
In the East, things are more complicated. There is a 3-3 tie between the Bruins and the Canadiens. The winner there (which will be decided tonight) will face the New York Rangers. And the Flyers and the Capitals have only played five ganes, with Flyers in the lead 3-2. The winner there will face the Pittsburgh Penguins. Should the Caps win tonight, the deciding game will be played tomorrow night.
Back to the West. I'm getting more and more impressed of some of the Swedes in Dallas. Loui Eriksson and Joel Lundqvist had a great game last night, creating many chances and ending up with one point each. Eriksson scored the 3-1-goal and Lundqvist had an assist with his opening pass to Brad Richards. Niklas Grossman also had an assist in the game. He had an opening pass to Stephane Robidas, who in turn passed it on to Stu Barnes. That meant 2-1.
NHL.com has a slogan saying: "The Cup Changes Everything". That really is the case for the Stars. Now they're flying over the ice. But I have put up a finger of warning for them. Look out, Red Wings. This will be a true clash of the titans. I belive that the winner here will also win the Conference Final, ending up in the Stanley Cup final. We'll see.
In the East, things are more complicated. There is a 3-3 tie between the Bruins and the Canadiens. The winner there (which will be decided tonight) will face the New York Rangers. And the Flyers and the Capitals have only played five ganes, with Flyers in the lead 3-2. The winner there will face the Pittsburgh Penguins. Should the Caps win tonight, the deciding game will be played tomorrow night.
Back to the West. I'm getting more and more impressed of some of the Swedes in Dallas. Loui Eriksson and Joel Lundqvist had a great game last night, creating many chances and ending up with one point each. Eriksson scored the 3-1-goal and Lundqvist had an assist with his opening pass to Brad Richards. Niklas Grossman also had an assist in the game. He had an opening pass to Stephane Robidas, who in turn passed it on to Stu Barnes. That meant 2-1.
NHL.com has a slogan saying: "The Cup Changes Everything". That really is the case for the Stars. Now they're flying over the ice. But I have put up a finger of warning for them. Look out, Red Wings. This will be a true clash of the titans. I belive that the winner here will also win the Conference Final, ending up in the Stanley Cup final. We'll see.
4/20/2008
Red Wings and Rangers
Both teams are through to the second round of the playoffs. The Rangers beat the Devils in The Rock last night and the Red Wings just knocked the Predators out of the playoffs with a comfortable 3-0 win. Lidstrom, Hudler and Rafalski scored, with Lidstroms goal being a BP dump towards net. The puck took a weird bounce and ended up behind a rather surprised Ellis in net. The Rangers looks to face either the Bruins or the Canadiens. And the Wings will face either the Stars or the Ducks.
NHL playoffs, there's nothing like it.
NHL playoffs, there's nothing like it.
4/15/2008
The Avery-rule....
or Rule 75.
That's the newest of rules in the NHL. A player is not allowed to disturb the goalkeeper with his hands or stick. This is something we've seen between the Rangers and the Devils. Mr. Avery did sort of a "not touching - can't get mad"-thing in front of Marty Brodeur, preventing the Devils man to see just about anything. The ref couldn't do anything. Now he can.
This kind of behaviour is now under the name of "Unsportsmanship conduct" and will render a two minute minor.
Rangers up, 2-1 in matches.
I know I haven't been fair to you. No predictions has yet been made. I will now do them, a bit late. But better late than never. I will name the teams in the conference finals with one outsider on each coast.
West: Detroit Red Wings vs. Dallas Stars
Outsider: San José Sharks
Why? The Wings is an awesome team, although they lost last night. The Stars made exactly the right moves at deadline and will be there. Look out for Thornton and co, though.
East: Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Outsider: New York Rangers
Why? Just look at the final table of the conference. Two outstanding teams. I really can't find a contender besides those two. The only thing stopping these team will be themselves. The Rangers is an outsider named mostly because I had to find one.
That's the newest of rules in the NHL. A player is not allowed to disturb the goalkeeper with his hands or stick. This is something we've seen between the Rangers and the Devils. Mr. Avery did sort of a "not touching - can't get mad"-thing in front of Marty Brodeur, preventing the Devils man to see just about anything. The ref couldn't do anything. Now he can.
This kind of behaviour is now under the name of "Unsportsmanship conduct" and will render a two minute minor.
Rangers up, 2-1 in matches.
I know I haven't been fair to you. No predictions has yet been made. I will now do them, a bit late. But better late than never. I will name the teams in the conference finals with one outsider on each coast.
West: Detroit Red Wings vs. Dallas Stars
Outsider: San José Sharks
Why? The Wings is an awesome team, although they lost last night. The Stars made exactly the right moves at deadline and will be there. Look out for Thornton and co, though.
East: Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Outsider: New York Rangers
Why? Just look at the final table of the conference. Two outstanding teams. I really can't find a contender besides those two. The only thing stopping these team will be themselves. The Rangers is an outsider named mostly because I had to find one.
4/04/2008
Bye bye, Canucks
We'll get to them later on
But now: Henrik Lundqvist is a man for the history books! With his 10th (!!) shut out of the season, he has now accomplished something that's hasn't been done since the 1920's, within the Rangers organisation. So: Congratulations, Henrik Lundqvist! And congratulations, Blueshirts! They're in the playoffs once again, after beating the Islanders 3-0.
More congratulations: Detroit Red Wings won the Presidents Trophy last night. Well done!
Vancouver Canucks.... What to say? Last night, something I stated a week ago, became reality. The Canucks won't be in the playoffs. They've only got them selves to blame. They had it all in their own hands. But if you don't win matches, you won't go to the playoffs. Enough said.
In the East, the pressure is now all on the Flyers. The Caps won last night. I stand firm with my prediction: It will be the Caps, not the Flyers, in the playoffs. But the Bruins might also miss out.
Right now it looks like this:
7. Bruins 80 matches - 92 points
8. Caps 81 matches - 91 points
---------------------------------------
9. Flyers 80 matches - 90 points
Back to the West. On March 27th I wrote:
"Since I'm here to predict, I will give you my two cents on the outcome in both Conferences.
Teams going to the playoffs in the West:
1. Red Wings
2. Sharks
3. Wild
4. Ducks
5. Flames
6. Stars
7. Avalanche
8. Predators"
And these are the teams who actually have clinched the eight spots:
1. Red Wings
2. Sharks
3. Wild
4. Ducks
5. Stars
6. Avalanche
7. Flames
8. Predators
Sure, the standings differs a bit. But I'm satisfied. How things will end in the East is a question for the future. Stay tuned!
But now: Henrik Lundqvist is a man for the history books! With his 10th (!!) shut out of the season, he has now accomplished something that's hasn't been done since the 1920's, within the Rangers organisation. So: Congratulations, Henrik Lundqvist! And congratulations, Blueshirts! They're in the playoffs once again, after beating the Islanders 3-0.
More congratulations: Detroit Red Wings won the Presidents Trophy last night. Well done!
Vancouver Canucks.... What to say? Last night, something I stated a week ago, became reality. The Canucks won't be in the playoffs. They've only got them selves to blame. They had it all in their own hands. But if you don't win matches, you won't go to the playoffs. Enough said.
In the East, the pressure is now all on the Flyers. The Caps won last night. I stand firm with my prediction: It will be the Caps, not the Flyers, in the playoffs. But the Bruins might also miss out.
Right now it looks like this:
7. Bruins 80 matches - 92 points
8. Caps 81 matches - 91 points
---------------------------------------
9. Flyers 80 matches - 90 points
Back to the West. On March 27th I wrote:
"Since I'm here to predict, I will give you my two cents on the outcome in both Conferences.
Teams going to the playoffs in the West:
1. Red Wings
2. Sharks
3. Wild
4. Ducks
5. Flames
6. Stars
7. Avalanche
8. Predators"
And these are the teams who actually have clinched the eight spots:
1. Red Wings
2. Sharks
3. Wild
4. Ducks
5. Stars
6. Avalanche
7. Flames
8. Predators
Sure, the standings differs a bit. But I'm satisfied. How things will end in the East is a question for the future. Stay tuned!
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