Polemic Hockey

Washington started to live up to expectations and crushed the mediocre Rangers, who overperformed their skill level.

Philadelphia took advantage of the less-than-stellar appearances that Ryan Miller made, and Buffalo couldn't get it done when he wasn't there to steal the game.

Pittsburgh almost made it. Seems like they would have won with Crosby and/or Malkin.

Boston and Montreal was the best series in the East in the first round and in the top 3 overall.

(1) Washington vs. (5) Tampa Bay
Washington in 5
Tampa Bay relied on another round of Roloson acrobatics to beat the seriously depleted Pittsburgh. Washington is much better.

(2) Philadelphia vs. (3) Boston
Philadelphia in 7
If the Flyers have settled on Boucher and he's solid, they should be able to eek this one out. They've shown some grit this year.

...what this means... (1) Washington vs. (2) Philadelphia with Washington losing to Vancouver in the finals.

Vancouver almost choked after the champs decided that they weren't going out like that. They won't be able to spot Nashville 3 games like that as long as Nashville keeps playing the way they have.

The Coyotes collapsed along with Bryzgalov and under the strain of the uncertainty of where the franchise would be located. Maybe it was a lot more real than last year when they used those anxieties as their fuel.

The Ducks couldn't keep Nashville's tenacious forwards out of their zone and had mediocre goal tending. Rinne didn't show he can steal a series in this one and Nashville's PK will have to be better against the Sedins.

The Sharks look shaky. The Kings were without their best forward and came close to pulling off the upset, but just couldn't finish it in OT. They were close.

Give that, here are my picks for round 2 out west:

(1) Vancouver vs. (5) Nashville
Vancouver in 6
Rinne will have to steal the series and he showed no indication in the first round he could do that. The Canucks are as deep at forward as the Ducks were and deeper everywhere else.

(2) San Jose vs. (3) Detroit
Detroit in 7
The Wings aren't going to give San Jose three wins in OT and aren't going to give up a 4 goal lead. San Jose's shaky goaltending will get even more pressured by Detroit and San Jose has not shown the guts to beat Detroit or any other elite team in the playoffs. Detroit might take a game or two to get back into game shape.

...Resulting in (1) Vancouver vs. (3) Detroit with Vancouver winning in 7 and bringing the Cup back to the West Coast after a 4 year absence and back to Canada after an 18 year absence.

(1) Vancouver versus (8) Chicago/Dallas
Vancouver in 5
I'm not going to bother waiting to see who wins the 8 seed. Neither of them are going to beat the Canucks.

(2) San Jose versus (7) Los Angeles
San Jose in 6
Fans have waited for 20 years for this series. When the Sharks came into being, they were a bottom-tier team, while the Kings enjoyed their run with Wayne Gretzky in his prime. After the Kings went into their dark ages, the Sharks emerged, slowly but surely, as a competitive team every year. Neither team has won a Stanley Cup, and only the Kings have been to the finals, just once. I am hopeful that this is the most exciting series to watch.

The Sharks have talent at every position but they have problems in the playoffs. I think a lot of that had to do with their former goaltender. He had decent stats, but he never really stole a series. But I could be wrong. There could be more than one problem here. Still, I think they have the experience, the hunger, and the talent to outshine the Kings, their anemic power play, and their depleted forwards.

Shark Weak on NHL won't be until later on.

(3) Detroit versus (6) Phoenix
Phoenix in 7
The playoffs are still about goaltending first. I'm gonna make this my "against the grain" pick because of Bryzgalov on the one hand and Howard on the other. There's not much else that needs to be said.

(4) Anaheim versus (5) Nashville
Anaheim in 6
Anaheim has something to talk about with their goaltending situation, but they have two backups playing fantastic and one starter with a great playoff record with a few days to get back to 100%. Still, the Ducks are a nasty team that can score with an underrated D corps. Nashville will have to figure out how to stop two lines. Rinne will have to steal the series for them, because they can't score and their PP is terrible.

What this means:
Round 2: VAN vs. PHX, SJ vs. ANA, WAS vs. TAM, PHI vs. BOS.

Prediction time!

Washington vs. New York Rangers
Washington in 5.
New York is actually a better offensive team than the Capitals, and have a better overall plus/minus. But New York doesn't have the scoring depth to hang in there. Washington will have to get quality 'tending in order to go deep, but I think they've got this one.

Philadelphia vs. Buffalo
Philadelphia in 4
Ryan Miller versus the Flyers. Nuff said.

Boston vs. Montreal
Boston in 7
This is probably going to be a bit bloody, but Boston has more of everything.

Pittsburgh vs. Tampa Bay
Tampa in 6
Pittsburgh has a good core group leftover from their Cup run, but they aren't the same team and injuries have depleted them. Tampa has some experience as well and also some youthful energy, which seems to be the post-lockout mix for success.

No.

First of all, Lamoriello imposes very tough standards of judgment on everyone including himself. This is one of the things I admire about him. This is why I think it's more than fair to pass this kind of judgment on the man himself.

The Devils are at a crossroads this season, one they haven't really faced in 20 years. They are out of the playoffs. They have no long term solution for a coach. Marty Brodeur is no longer capable of playing at a high level for 70 games and the playoffs, but he still has it. Should he be re-signed? There's no long term solution there. Who knows what it will take to get Zach Parise under contract. A lot of the team's bad contracts still have another year on them.

And while the season ended on a great run, that run was unproductive. Sure, Ilya Kovalchuk saved some face for everyone by getting to 30 goals, a spectacular proportion of which were game winning. But now the team is faced with building from the forward ranks back, something that completely breaks their formula. And they won't even have a lottery pick to deal with it (though all of the goalies and defensemen except one are likely to still be available at #7). But they didn't even make the playoffs. I'm not sure that would have meant anything for the long-term health of the organization, but it might have made things look a little better. But this is an organization where only winning a Stanley Cup is a successful season. Lou's standards again.

There are many NHL teams in worse shape than the Devils. There are many that always seem to have potential and never do anything about it. But most of those teams and their fans are resigned to it (though the world changed for Hawk fans fast, didn't it?).

So, no. I don't take it back. Lou should either step aside, or focus more on being the team's CEO and promote someone else to the GM slot. But first he needs to find a long-term coach and a goalie.

The Devils' reporter Tom Gulliti tweeted tonight that a year ago, the Devils were in first place and tonight they are in last place. And while that tells a tale all on its own, the real story of the Devils decline from perennial Cup contenders stems from the abject failure of the team's management to adapt to the salary cap era.

Remember, the coaching carousel at one point included Lou himself after Larry Robinson's second stint (or was it his third?) behind the bench failed in yet another nervous breakdown. This was the first season after the lockout when the Devils also tried to bring back Alexander Mogilny and Vladimir Malakhov, both of whom were epic failures costing the Devils almost $10m in cap space until the Devils wiggled out.

Over four years ago, I started raising this red flag. At that time, there was an abject failure not only to transition to the cap era, but a failure to prepare by signing the right players to replace departing hall of fame defensemen Niedermayer and Stevens.

At some point, the build from the goal forward philosophy seemed to be deemed fulfilled simply by having Martin Brodeur in net. Now, the failure to replace the blue line corps is being compounded by the failure to give Martin Brodeur rest, and he is now burning out and may be more or less done. There is no replacement in sight. In other words, not only is the d-corps being filled with anonymous AHL jobbers, the net soon will be too.

But that's ok, because this philosophy has apparently been abandoned. Perhaps it should be. Perhaps the post-lockout NHL is simply so turned off by skill at any position other than forward that adapting to it is a must. But turning over the keys of the franchise to Ilya Kovalchuk has cost this team perhaps the most valuable of all of the seasons for which he is under contract: the last useful season of Martin Brodeur's career. This should have been their year.

It was Lou that allowed Scott Niedermayer to leave, even if it was through his failure to acquire his brother, who, res ipsa loquitur, was good enough for the team because he played here later. It was Lou that could never replace Pat Burns, probably because most coaches are scared to death to play for him. It was Lou that resigned Malakhov and Mogilny and signed McGillis. It was Lou that brought Bobby Holik of all people back. It was Lou that allowed Martin Brodeur to continue to play 70+ games per season even after it became clear this was bad. It was Lou that went all in on Ilya Kovalchuk. It was Lou that groomed John MacLean as one of the worst coaches in NHL history.

Is that a harsh standard of judgment? Maybe, but it's Lou's own. In fact, as is well documented on this site, I know that the media and the league applies ridiculous standards and double standards to the Devils. Is it because of Lou? In part, perhaps. But it is what it is. It can't be gotten around through a dominant team anymore.

It's time for Vanderbeek to send Lou off with the honor and dignity he deserves as the best general manager of the 20 year period from 1985-2005 and the architect of one of the NHL's most durable dynasties.

But it's time for a new direction.

People seem to be reacting to the Ducks win over the Sharks as the Ducks stealing a game they didn't deserve to win. I think that's true simply based on the gameplay. But to the extent that this has built in bias that the Sharks are a good team and the Ducks are a bad team, it's false.

The Ducks are a very average team. But, no matter what we want to think, the Sharks are a bad team. They deserve their place in the standings.

In the salary cap era, you don't get 5 years to win a Cup with your team. You get a very, very short window. They blew it.

The NHL has more or less completed the transition into the look and feel of a salary-capped league. That is, not only are there not dynasties in the sense of multiple, repeat championships, there is also rapid turnover in who the elite teams are, or even who the playoff teams are.

This means anyone can win each year. Chicago had a good "warm up" playoff run in 2009, but it might have been tough to pick them to win it all even still.

Player mobility is up even more. The importance of veteran defenseman is greatly reduced. This may not be by design, because the market for defensemen was greatly inflated. But the elimination of goaltending as a dynasty- or even consistency-making element of a team, worthy of being a franchise player, is also complete. And it is by design. Brodeur will probably be the last of his kind for a while.

This is all to say that I think that the value of a prediction under these circumstances is even sillier than it used to be. Sure, someone will name the proper team. But the meaningful information that that guess could have been made on is so greatly reduced as to suggest it was dumb luck, and nothing else.

Still, there are some things you can see after 10 games or so about a team. Some just aren't cohesive or mentally able to win. Those teams probably won't be Cup contenders.

So, on the basis of even less meaningful information than before, I present my predictions for 2011.

Stanley Cup: Los Angeles Kings
Eastern Conference Champion: Washington Capitals

Final Four: LAK, WAS, STL, MTL

Playoff Teams: LAK, DET, VAN, STL, DAL, CHI, ANA, COLO; PHI, WAS, MTL, PIT, NYR, BOS, OTT, TOR

...based on the hockey Internets, it seems that now that the Devils have signed a player to a 17-year cap it is now a crime against God and humanity. Just like the trap and goalies handling the puck.

So here's my chance to walk everything back and say how great Kovalchuk is and blah blah.

While I admit to being skeptical of Lou Lamoriello having offered the kind of amounts being rumored (and if he did, I think he's off his rocker), this kind of pants-on-fire reporting from Tom Gulitti is silly. It's not really news that a signing of that magnitude would impact the Devils' ability to resign anyone. Duh.

Ilya Kovalchuk is probably one of the top three goal scorers in the NHL right now. He is an exciting player. He will put people in seats, and I don't see him scoring less than 30 goals a season any time soon.

But take a look at the last several Cup winners. Solid goaltending is still required, but it isn't the sine qua non anymore. You need defensemen still, of course. But a pack of young forwards has been the key to every recent winner. Think Kane and Toews, Crosby and Malkin, Datsyuk and Zetterberg, Getzlaf and Perry. Guys like Selanne and Hossa only played supporting roles.

Every team purportedly in the Kovalchuk bidding already has this going and needs a top six forward, not a top one forward, not at the asking prices. The role Kovalchuk would play on a potentially winning team doesn't justify the bank- and cap-breaking salary demands he's making.

The Islanders are probably the best fit, but the NY media says they never made the big offer people were saying. The Devils would have to trade a player who has a no trade clause, probably for nothing in return. I can't see how the Flyers arrange the cap room and fill out their roster. The Kings are building something special and fit the template of the young dynamic teams that are winning these days, but they can't break their cap for Kovy without risking losing important elements of their young core. Dean Lombardi is one of the smartest GMs in hockey and he showed it by backing off here.

If I was a GM and Kovalchuk really wanted to play on my team, I'd offer him a 2 year $10m deal to give him the chance to show what he's made of in the playoffs. His two appearances so far haven't impressed.

Well, I said Pens in 6 and Flyers in 6 on Facebook before this started. Heh.

Sharks/Wings

The last time the Sharks faced the Wings in the playoffs, in 2007, they were up in game 4 and about to take a 3-1 series lead. They didn't and they lost the series. So, as for many teams, beating the Wings is the test of whether or not a team will have playoff success. Indeed, more so that ever this year. I think the odds are good that the Sharks will get to the finals if they can win here. Big "if." But it's their series to win or lose. The Wings aren't good enough to beat them if they don't psyche themselves out. Sharks in 7.

Hawks/Canucks

Interesting rematch. Van beat a good LA team, but the Hawks didn't exactly live up to expectations against the Preds. The Hawks are the kind of team that will get stopped butt cold by a hot goalie. Luongo made some key saves but in he second round, especially late, but you cant have an off night like Luongo is prone to. Hawks in 7.

I didn't watch enough games this year to make a qualified thorough post-mortem, but I'll say this much:

The pundits are almost always wrong about the Devils and what they need to do, but even a stopped clock is right twice a day. Marty needs to quit playing so many regular season games. Period.

And I'll just add that the d-corps is nothing compared to the teams that won cups. Back in 2000, GM Lamoriello said that he traded to get Claude Lemieux back because the Devils had too many of the same kind of player. That is true again now.

The Devils are probably as deep in forward scoring now as they've ever been, except maybe 2000-01, but as thin on D as they have been since 1991. Lou says he is trying to sign Ilya Kovalchuk. Fine, but how about getting a defenseman of that caliber?

All you need to see to be convinced that the "new rules" or "post-lockout rules" in hockey are complete, utter bullshit is the first 20 seconds on this clip. This is clearly "interference" by Recchi—Kennedy isn't within 5 feet of the puck and hasn't touched it yet—but it's guts and it's an awesome play. Assuming you're not a Sabres fan, would you rather plays like this are made, or called dead by a ref's whistle? If you answer is the latter, you must reject the new rules, reject the spin of calling the decade prior to the lockout the "dead puck era" and rename it the "guts counted" era.



Hell, the Associated Press seemed to think it was the lead story of the game.

P.S. You could also call it "when everything other than finessy scoring counted." Goaltending counted more. Everything mattered. But, hey, why care about hardcore fans when you can sell Ovechkin and Crosby pinups to fair-weather fans in Kentucky.

Sharks apologists can continue to make excuses. The goal was a fluke. Heatley was out. Fine—all of that is true. But it's the kind of things that teams on a trajectory for a Cup overcome, especially against first round opponents that are significantly weaker. Or appeared that way on paper.


In the end, the fact that the Sharks couldn't score one goal on 51 shots speaks just as loudly as the Colorado goaltender's 51 saves.


They sure seem to have a way of running into a hot goaltender, don't they? Maybe someone will start to ask: when will the Sharks get the hot goalie? Not until they make a change.

Every year, games 1 and 2 completely change the goalposts. Before the playoffs started we expected to see total domination by the Sharks and Capitals. After game 1, and well into game 2 in each series, we wondered if the #8 seed was going to run away with it. Then, the #1 team wins game 2 and it seems to change everything.

Let's just remember that even a win in 6 was lower than our original expectations for both of these teams. The usual source of playoff underachievement in the face of such predictions is goaltending. It has been not good enough for both teams. Both could win their series in 5 games yet, though I doubt that will happen. If they do, they will have to contend with teams in the next round where this lack of goaltending, unless it gets better, could be a critical difference.

Let's just say I'm from Missouri City, Missouri and I need to be shown more than once. Winning "an upset" in game 2 is not going to convince me that either of these teams will make it into the finals.

Time for depth to make its appearance in this series for the Devils. They will need to get at least two goals from either their PP, PK, Defenseman of third/fourth line players. Indeed, they need three goals from these sources to win Game Two. Assuming they are essentially third line players, I would like to see Rolston and/or Clarkson score a goal.

The other adjustment the Devils need to make is on the PK. White is the only player that they have who is big enough to contend with Pronger in the crease. White will have to keep an eye on Pronger and battle him in front of the net when he moves in from the point. Both front of the net goals that Pronger scored were against pusillanimous smaller defending players.

Really, the Flyers were lucky to win Game 1 and Game 2 would have probably been 4-2 absent the criminal 1997-style officiating. If Boucher were truly as good as he was in his rookie run he would have established himself somewhere in the past ten years. Enough quality chances against him and he will fold.

Let's Go Devils!

Labels: Clarkson, Depth, Devils, Flyers, Game Three, nhl, Officiating, playoffs, Rolston

Win or lose tonight, it's clear that Nabokov is soft in the playoffs. Nobody could have predicted.

Oy.

It has to be a terrible, terrible day to be a Sharks fan. I can't imagine the anxiety. Arguably, they have been the best and most consistent team in California since Gretzky left. But that argument breaks down around this time of year. The 00s were the decade of the Ducks in California hockey. It began with a miraculous run to game 7 of the finals in 2003 which prefaced a conference finals run in 2006, California's first Stanley Cup in 2007, a playoff appearance in 2008, and bookended by a dramatic upset of the President's Trophy winners in the first round in 2009. That President's Trophy winner, was, of course, the Sharks.

Now they are on the verge of being eclipsed by their other southern neighbor, the Kings. If not this year, then next year it seems all but certain.

The hockey press/media, who is doing everything possible to ruin the sport, have embodied the two poles of ridiculousness on this issue. Hours before the puck dropped yesterday, San Jose columnist Ross McKeon declared that a decade of underachieving in the playoffs by the Sharks is totally irrelevant to this year. Maybe he was writing a propaganda piece. Maybe he was just really optimistic. But how could he not see what was coming?

The minute the Sharks gave up the first goal, everyone other hockey journamalist began writing their "choke" storyline. And once they lost game 1 at home, they submitted them for print. Indeed, what McKeon was really blind to wasn't the statistics, nor was it the Xs and Os of executing a hockey game. Rather, it was the self-fulfilling prophecy, the snowballing effect that a loss, any loss in any game in this series would have, and the psychological consequences of it.

The San Jose Mercury News spent roughly half of their article on the game relating it to past failures. Their other article? Speculating, once again, on whether Patrick Marleau will be the fall guy for the loss. I don't think you can argue with a straight face that none of this has any effect at all. It's certainly not the whole story. As I write this, I still believe San Jose will win this series. But it will have an effect.

I'm having trouble finding anyone except the usual Colorado chauvinists who think the Sharks won't win this series. There were more than a few people that thought they were stepping into it last year with the Ducks. At the end of the day that means that a loss in this series will be an even bigger choke.

I'll take the Caps in 4, the Devils in 6, Sabers in 7, and Pens in 4.

Washington Capitals versus Montreal Canadiens (Washington in 5): The Habs simply do not have the goaltending or the defense to contain Washington. I expect a lot of goal scpring; Gomez and Gionta are cagey enough to get theirs, but this will ultimately be as lopsided as a Pacquio fight.

NJ Devils versus Philadelphia Flyers (Devils in 6): Bad matchup for the Devils on papers (Flyers dominated the season series 5-1), but the Devils quietly played their best hockey towards the end of the season, and one feels that they are capable of taking it up a notch more in the post-season as they have really just been playing for positioning for about a month. Peter Laviolette gave the Devils fits when he coached the Hurricans, and the Flyers play a similar style as the Stanley Cup Canes. I am willing to bet that Jacques Lemaire is smart enough to narrow the "style of play" differneces over the course of three days of study. Boucher will be strong enough in goal, but if the Devils are able to control the tempo versus the Flyers they do have better finishers and the better goaltender. Pronger is the X-Factor in the Series though. We'll see if he still has it.

Buffalo Sabres versus Boston Bruins (Sabres in 6): This one is almost a toss up as the Bruins dominated the season series even though the Sabres finished far higher in the standings. Both teams play a very similar limit the chances and try to win a low scoring game style. I expect all of the games to be close. Ultimately, Buffalo has the money goaltender and the Bruins have a better defense but an untested goalie. When it comes down to someone scoring one goal, I would be most willing to count on Vanek, but I honestly would not be shocked if Boston wins.

Pittsburgh Penguins versus Ottawa Senators (Pens in 5): The Pens really lucked out in this first round match up as they are a team that has first round upset written all over them. The Sens' whole season has really consisted of one outlier long winning streak. Otherwise they are a shell of the perrenial contenders from the late 90s and first several years of the 2000s. They took a severe blow when they lost Alexi Kovalev. As mercurial as he is, he has always been a playoff stalwart. If the Pens show up they should win the Series, although Ottawa will play hard. It is still a true possibility that the Pens will not show up.

Labels: Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Devils, Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, nhl, Ottawa Senators., Phildelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, playoffs, Stanely Cup, Washington Capitals

San Jose versus Colorado: (San Jose in 5). The Sharks finally luck out in the first round. The Avs stalled over the last two weeks in the season and seem unlikely to carry their regular season brio into the post-season. They have already defied expectations, and Adam Foote isn't enough of a veteran presence to get them caring enough to make a real run for the Sharks' money.

Blackhawks versus Predators: (Chicago in 6): This will be a relatively easy 6 game series as the Hawks simply have too much firepower for the Predlies. I suspect that the Hawks will lose two games rather than the Preds winning two.

Canucks versus LA Kings (Kings in 7): Upset special. Roberto Luongo is probably the most over-rated player in hockey. He has never won anything and was nervous as a house cat in the Olympics (Canada won in spite of Luongo, his inability to catch a routine wrist shot lead to Parise's tying goal in regulation). Kings have exceptional players in goal and in key defensive areas and are deep up front with Ryan Smyth providing grit and leadership.

Coyotes versus Red Wings (Coyotes in 6): One of my sports memes is that the team that lost in the championship round the previous season almost never does as well the next season (Yes the Pens won after finishing second last year, but onyl after firing their coach and vastly changing their roster at the deadline. It's also nice to change horses in midstream and yet still keep Malkin and Crosby, too). Of course, even finishing second is a tall order and requires many things to go right. A lot of people like Bar Food in this series because they have so much experience and finished strong, but the Yotes have the goaltending and the leadership to win a frustrating unfair type series the way Edmonton did several years back. The Wings have gotten tons of breaks over the last several years and this team is not as good as recent vintages. Ilya Bryzgalov is as underrated as Luongo is overrated. Phoenix does not have any pressure, and never lulled this season. The higher seed will pull off the "upset".

Labels: Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, nhl, Phoenix Coyotes, playoffs, San Jose Sharks, Stanley Cup, Vancouver Canucks, Western Conference

Eastern Playoff Teams:

New Jersey, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, Boston, Carolina, Toronto

Western Playoff Teams:

Vancouver, Calgary, San Jose, Anaheim, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas

Final Four: Vancouver, San Jose, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh

Cup: Vancouver

Three days in these final four picks are looking ridiculous. I don't think Philly has the goaltending, even though it's starting well. Vancouver is choking under pressure, but it's early.

So Pens in 7. I'm glad I went with my heart instead of my mind on that. I really didn't want to see the Wings win again. Not that I looked forward to the apotheosis of Sidney Crosby, but oh well.

There's no team I really care to follow left in the playoffs, so I won't have anything else to say. Detroit is going to assrape Chicago in the Conference finals, I'm very sad to say. I'd love to see the Hawks—anyone except the Entitled Red Wings. Detroit in 5. If had balls I'd say 4.

Here's Damien Cox arguing to keep the Coyotes in Arizona. (If you've ever wondered exactly what you need to run a hockey team, look at the sale agreement in the side panel. They list every contract, every piece of equipment—everything they have. It's fascinating.)

Second, a successful franchise in Phoenix – something that hasn't yet been achieved because of awful ownership and management – is potentially worth more to the NHL than a successful second franchise in southern Ontario.

Third, franchises can flourish in the U.S. southwest and the Sun Belt. Look at Dallas, Anaheim and San Jose.

Among many last night.

I called it!

I think Game 1 is pretty much a microcosm of what's going to happen in the series. Anaheim is going to be in it for a lot longer than people think, but, in the end, they're not going to get all the bounces they need.

Showing my ignorance of the East, I only got one series right thanks to the Devils and Rangers both blowing series leads and losing game 7s.

Maybe Marty Brodeur wasn't 100% healed from his season long injury. I don't know. The Devils defense wasn't as strong as it needed to be, but there's something more than all of that.

Pretty easy, the Parise-Zajac-Langenbruner line needs to be at least as good a the Staal line. The Canes have dominated that matchup since game 4, and that is why they have won two out of the last 3 and gotten a tremendous amount of SOGs. Oh and it would be nice if Elias, who is usually good in the playoffs even after a so-so regular season, would do something.

#2 Detroit vs. #8 Anaheim

So was that fight Joe's attempt to like "have heart?" Prepare to be traded to Florida. lol.

UPDATE 2: Just to be clear, I'm not blaming this on Thornton. It's not his fault. It's Nabokov. He's the common denominator in the decade of Shark chokery. Why Joe should take the blame, I don't know. Joe is Joe. They expect him to be Eric Lindros or even Jerome Iginla. He's not that guy. But your goalie has to be able to steal games and Nabokov was good for stretches, but never dominated a whole game. Remember, the Ducks were always within a goal in game 3, and came back in a flash from down two in game 5. The goalie who wins the Stanley Cup doesn't do that, whoever he is. If I was the Sharks, I would look for some mercenary goaltending now that I have my mercenary d-men. Wouldn't it be interesting if they could swing a trade, three way or otherwise for Giguere? I can't think of any other Stanley Cup goalies that might be available out there. If they blame this on the coach, or on Thornton for not being a player he isn't, the results will likely be repeated. The Islanders are suckers for a bad trade. Marleau, a jobber, and yet another first rounder for DiPietro? haha. yeah, right. The Islanders think Tavares is going to win them a Cup.

On Calgary, I was just plain wrong about Kipprusoff he sucked. If he had been a little bit better, the Flames would've had it. Biron sucked, they lost. Lundqvist is sucking, they're losing. Goaltending. It's pretty much that simple.

For all the worthy talk on goaltending in this series if I were the Devils I would want to use the extra day off between games to figure out how my team gave up 90 shots over two regulation games. The Canes are very good at defense to offense transitions and at gaining speed through the neutral zone. They also win a disproportionate amount of key faceoffs. So they have the puck often and they attack with it. Moreover, the Devils have often backed off in the third to play for OT, whereas the Canes have attacked.

Although Rolston did his best, he tried too much ole bullshit where Langenbrunner would have started a cycle. For the Devils then the best defense is a good offense. They should try a little less heroism off the rush a little more cycling. They also need to keep on punching in the third, even if they are up on the scoreboard.

The Canes' two wins came in games in which the Devils lost a crucial player in the middle of the contest, and it still took improbable breaks for the Canes to get the W. All things being equal the Devils are the better team, but the Canes have an incredible talent for pulling a rabbit out of a hat which I suspect comes from the leadership of Brind'amour (who deserved the Smythe more than Ward, but whatever).

Anyhow, should be entertaining.

Labels: Devils, Hurricanes