Yes! The NHL returns tonite and the stretch run to the playoffs begins. There is a lot going on in the rumor mill regarding trades. The NHL trade deadline is just 2 weeks away, and with many players coming back from the Olympics battered, it may have some teams scrambling to make deals to secure their playoff positions. For a complete rundown of rumors you have to visit Spector's Hockey.
In other news it appears that Keith Primeau may be done for the season due to post concussion symptoms. The Philadelphia Flyers have called a press conference this morning and speculation is that it pertains to Primeau. To find out more, visit TSN.ca.
Eric Lindros is apparently ready to come of the IR shelf. After two months of not playing due to a wrist injury, Lindros has declared himself ready to go. To read more about this story visit TSN.ca.
Game of the Night:
Detroit at San Jose 10:30 PM
Really every game tonight is the game of the night, but if I had to pick on this is it. Will Nabokov return from a great Olympic campaign for Russia and continue his stellar play for the Sharks? I certainly hope so! Several Gold medalists return from Stockholm for Detroit tonite including game winning goal scorer Nicklas Lidstrom. This should be a fun game to watch. Enjoy the games!
Throughout the Olympics, one player's name kept appearing on the scoresheets that I have never heard of. At first I thought it was just a fluke, but game after game, there he was, providing consistent offense and ultimately helping his team to the Gold Medal game. Ville Peltonen of Finland. Who is this guy and why isn't he in the NHL? Well I did a little searching and did find some information on this unknown European stars.
Ville Peltonen was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. He split time with the Sharks and what appears to be their farm club the Kansas City Blades for several seasons until he was either traded or signed with the Nashville Predators (perhaps he was an expansion draft acquisition) during the 98-99 season. He played an entire season with Nashville for 99, but again traded time with the farm system in Nashvilles AHL affiliate the Milwaukee Admirals. Since then he spent two years with a Finnish club called Jokerit Helsinki, and the last three seasons with a Swiss club called Lugano. You can find out more about Ville Peltonen here.
I have a feeling Ville's phone may be ringing this week.
What a game!! Tight, physical, and loaded with skill! Sweden proved to be dominant in a game that went down to the wire this morning, defeating Finland 3-2. Sweden got the game winner from Nicklas Lidstrom just 10 seconds into the third and hung on to win it. Niklas Kronwall and Henrik Zetterberg also scored for Team Sweden. Kimmo Timonen and Ville Peltonen (why is this guy not playing in the NHL? He's amazing!) provided the two goals for Team Finland.
Henrik Lundqvist made 25 of 27 saves, and as I said over 2 weeks ago (if you don't believe me click here), would be a huge factor in the Olympics. As one of the hottest goalies in the NHL, he continued his magnificent play through the tournament. I hope Henrik continues his outstanding play when he returns to New York this week!
Congratulations go out to Finland, who had an amazing tournament, and have nothing to be ashamed of. Unbeaten till this morning, it is impressive what they pulled of this year, and have won the silver!
Congratulations to Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic on their medals, and thank you for a terrific tournament (and special thanks to Sweden for making Captain Bosh look like a genius!).
The NHL regular season resumes on Tuesday the 28th, and I know you are as pysched as I am to get going again! More to come!
That's right Germany and Italy will face off for the Gold Medal! Just kidding. Tomorrow Sweden will meet an undefeated and surprisingly resilient Finland Team for the Gold Medal. Through 7 games Finland has won five by shutout, and has only allowed five goals against the entire tournament. What's this? Is Captain Bosh waffling? Absolutely not friends, I stand by Sweden the same way France stood by Germany in World War II. Sweden will win this Gold Medal. Henrik Lundqvist is hot and is ready to prove himself a big game player. Forsberg is going to through that broken groin on the ice one last time (remember he missed the last Olympics due to an injury to the face, head, neck, chest, and breast area). Playoff Beard Prediction: Sweden 5 - Finland 0.
Bronze Medal Game
Czech Rep. vs. Russia
2:30 p.m. - NBC,CBC
It's amazing that these two teams will be battling for third place. It shows you how rich in talent the tournament and the NHL truly is. This should be a high scoring affair. Russia will look to rebound from being shutout, and the Czech Republic from being shutdown. They are still looking to medal and both teams are loaded with talent, in fact this game is packed with some of the brightest stars in the NHL, so where sunglasses (I'm here all week!). Playoff Beard Prediction: Czech Republic 4 - Russia 3. Enjoy the game!
Milan Hnilicka couldn't solve the goaltending woes of the Czech Republic this morning as he and his team fell to the Swedish Team 7-3. Covering for Hasek, in place of Vokoun for roughly a period and a half, Hnilicka was shelled by the Swedes and gave up five goals before being chased. Tomas Vokoun came in, in relief and gave up two more to the Swedish juggernaut. Tomas Holstrom, Jorgen Jonsson, Fredrik Modin, Per Johan Axelsson, Henrik Sedin, Daniel Alfredsson, and Christian Backman provided the scoring for Team Sweden. Henrik Lunqvist made 21 saves on 24 shots to complete the victory.
Bosh is good...Bosh is wise!!! Stay tuned to see if i pick the double!
Great hockey. That's what we have today. The four remaining teams are made up of some of the best the NHL has to offer, and should provide us with some terrific play today. I'm sure you are asking yourself, is Bosh going to stay with his prediction of Sweden winning the gold? You bet your beard I am. Unfortunately the Czech Republic is playing Sweden so they can only get the bronze (i picked them Silver), but I still think this is Sweden's medal to lose. Here are the my official predictions:
Czech Rep. vs. Sweden
10:30 a.m. - MSNBC,CBC
Sweden all the way. Not that this will be a quick, clean shave.....the Czech Republic will be a formidable opponent, but I think the loss of Dominik Hasek will be the Achilles heel for this team. They have not gotten strong net-minding from Vokoun....on the other hand, the Swedish Team has gotten great goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist, and terrific play from everyone else. Forsberg will of course play through his injuries (much to the detriment of Ed Snyder, Bobbie Clarke, and all of Philly) and provide the Swedish Team with clutch offense and inspiration. The Czech team may have some advantage because a large contingent of their team is from the Rangers, and may know how to exploit some of Lundqvist's weaknesses, but I still don't think it will be enough. Playoff Beard Prediction: Sweden 4 - Czech Republic 2.
Finland vs. Russia
3:00 p.m. - USA,CBC
It's over Finland. OVER! Russian stars (and NHL) Kovalchuk and Ovechkin are going to show you why they are the best in this game! Both of these teams have been very stingy in net, pulling off multiple shutout wins on the goaltending of Nittymaki (Finland) and Nabokov (Russia). I think we are going to see some goals today. Russia's offense is just too explosive to be contained. Playoff Beard Prediction: Russia 5 - Finland 3.
While the Olympic tournament has been exciting to watch, it has been also a time of concern and potential disaster for a few NHL teams.
The biggest has to be Dominik Hasek. The Ottawa Senators had been riding high on the legs of Hasek all year, and 1 period into the Olympics, he gets injured, or re-injured rather. His groin, which has been suspect for some time has reared its ugly head again, and now has GM John Muckler scrambling with 2 weeks to go before the trade deadline to determine whether to acquire a goaltender or not.
Peter Forsberg, also playing with a sore groin, and the key word is playing....is risking a season ending injury, thus completely destroying the hopes of the Flyers making it to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Patrick Elias was injured early in the tournament, the extent of which I'm not sure of, but he has been kept out since.
Joe Sakic received a fractured cheekbone and lovely beauty mark during a game against Switzerland.
The Canucks have just received word that not only was Mattias Ohlund injured with broken ribs for Sweden, but Sami Salo, another Canucks defenseman, has suffered a shoulder injury.
Jaromir Jagr almost appeared lost for the season after an elbow to the skull.
It's been interesting, and perhaps has changed the scope of this NHL season, not to mention the policies in following seasons. We'll see.
Well the Bosher went 3 for 4 yesterday. I still can't believe that Canada didn't show up. Unfortunately for NBC, the two North American teams have been knocked out, and anyone in the US and Canada other than crazy hockey fanatics will probably not be watching the final games. Here are the semifinal matchups:
Friday February 24th
Czech Rep. Sweden
10:30 a.m. - MSNBC,CBC
Finland vs. Russia
3:00 p.m. - USA,CBC
I'll give you my breakdowns and predictions later today.
February 22nd Show
The Olympics continue and we're still waiting for the Swedes to let up a shot from Rome. We'll give all the details on the games, as the medal rounds come closer. Lyle Richardson from Spector's Hockey will join us for some Olympic talk and talk about the recent articles talking about what each team needs. We welcome Eric Krol from LTHL as we'll discuss the game of table hockey and how much of a boom will be created by it. Ray Flowers from Fantasy Hockey will come on to give you advice about how to pick your playoff pool and who the biggest bust and surprise was this season. Finally, Keegan Dansereau from the Calgary Hitmen will join us for the WHL Report. All that, plus it keeps getting worse for Jose Theodore.
Alexander Ovechkin, Alexei Kovalev, and Team Russia just completed a 2-0 shutout of Team Canada. The third defeat in four games that has come by shutout for a very dissapointing Canadian team. Where are the goals? Perhaps on the taxi squad with a player like Eric Staal? Whateve the case the heat on Wayne Gretzky will certainly be turned up. How this team was only able to score 3 goals in the last 4 games is shocking. Credit is due once again to goaltending, and this time around it was Evgeni Nabokov for Team Russia who continues his stellar play during the Olympic tournament with his third shutout.(Evgeni better bring this game back to the Sharks next week, because he's my starting keeper!!)
Slovakia vs. Czech Republic IN PROGRESS
The Czech Republic lead Slovakia 2-0 late in the second on goals by Martin Rucinsky and Milan Hejduk. More to come!
The Swiss Team was dominated by a powerfully offensive Swedish team today, 6-2. The Swiss team did rip off more shots, but as I predicted Henrik Lundqvist was stingy and showed up big, only allowing 2 goals on 29 shots. Sweden's scoring was provided by Mats Sundin (2 goals), Henrik Sedin, Samuel Pahlsson, Fredrik Modin, and Henrik Zetterberg. Peter Forsberg assisted on 2 of the goals. Sweden will face off against the winner of Czech Republic vs. Slovakia on Friday.
Unfortunately Team USA started scoring too late. It would have been nice to see them medal, but Finland is just unstoppable right now. Finland beat USA 4-3 in a higher scoring game than I originally thought it would be. Finland's goals came from Olli Jokinen (2 goals), Ville Peltonen, and Sami Salo. USA scoring was provided by Brian Gionta, Mike Knuble, and Mathieu Schneider. Finland remains perfect in the tournament, and will play the winner of Russia vs. Canada.
The two strongest teams after the first five games are Finland and Slovakia, both still unbeaten. Finland has been very impressive, getting lots of scoring, especially from current leader Teemu Selanne (6 goals), and solid goaltending from Antero Nittymaki, and Fredrik Norrena who have each recorded two shutouts a piece.
The next leading scorer is Slovakian forward Marian Hossa with 5 goals. Slovakia has also been getting tremendous goaltending from Colorado Avalanche keeper Peter Budaj.
Ok here are my breakdowns and predictions:
Sweden vs. Switzerland
Switzerland has been outstanding this tournament, handing upset losses to both Canada and the Czech Republic. Today is where their magic carpet ride ends. I expect Sweden to pour it on today, and wouldn't be surprised to see Forsberg put forth some quality minutes as well. Henrik Lundqvist has been thriving lately in the big games, so I expect him to shutdown the Swiss attack. PlayoffBeard Prediction: Sweden 3 - Switzerland 1.
USA vs. Finland
Team USA has its hands full today. I would love to see them come out on top, but Finland has been very impressive. Team USA has had a lot of trouble scoring this tournament, and I don't think they will find it much easier today against Finland's Antero Nittymaki. Rick DiPietro of Team USA should keep this close (he's had a great tournament and will hopefully spark the Islanders in his return after the NHL break), but I think Team USA will be overwhelmed in this one. PlayoffBeard Prediction: Finland 2 - USA 0.
Canada vs. Russia
Will the real Canadian Team please stand up? I think they will today. This team is so deep with talent, that I expect them to shine today. After 2 straight shutouts, the Canadians rebounded in a tight victory over the Czech Republic, that should help their confidence going against a very strong Russian Team. Led by youngsters Kovalchuk and Ovechkin, Team Russia has looked very strong, but I think the experience of the Canadian team will win out. Expect a nail-biter, and overtime wouldn't be out of the question. PlayoffBeard Prediction: Canada 3 - Russia 2.
Czech Republic vs. Slovakia
Since losing Dominik Hasek to a groin injury during the first game of the tournament the Czech Republic's goaltending has been pourous. Tomas Vokoun who has had a great year in the NHL has struggled in the Olympic tournament. Slovakia thus far has had a great tournament, perfect actually. No one has beaten them. Their ride will end today. Jaromir Jagr always shines in the big game, and I expect him to carry his team through this win. Should be another terrific game. PlayoffBeard Prediction: Czech Republic 4 - Slovakia 2.
After the results of today's Kazakhstan vs. Latvia game, Team USA will now face off against an undefeated Finnish Team in the quarterfinals. Not an easy test for a team that has had difficulty scoring, and a Finnish team that has allowed only 2 goals throughout the tournament. Finland has recorded 5 wins, and 4 have come by shutout. They have clearly emerged as the favorite in this tournament. Team USA has a formidable test ahead.
Team Canada narrowly defeated the Czech Republic today 3-2. Who they play in the quarters will be determined later today.
Sweden vs. Slovakia IN PROGRESS
Slovakia leads in the first on a goal by Peter Bondra.
With strong showings by Slovakia and Finland in the tournament so far, my predictions of a 1,2,3 finish of Sweden, Czech Republic, and Canada aren't looking very good....however, Captain Bosh will stand by it!! More to come!
Latvia vs. Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan's 5-2 win over Latvia has secured a quarter final berth for Team USA.
Switzerland vs. Italy
Italy and Switzerland skated to a 3-3 tie this morning. The Swiss had already upset The Czech Republic and Canada this weekend, so I have to tip my hat to Team Italy for coming out strong.
The Canadian women just won their second consecutive Olympic Gold today with a 4-1 victory over a surprisingly good Swedish Team. Team Canada was dominant throughout the tournament and put forth a brilliant team effort today and had goals from Gillian Apps, Caroline Ouellet, Cherie Piper, and Jayna Hefford. The Canadian team outscored its opponents 46-2 during the tournament. PlayoffBeard Alert: Just kidding!
Team Sweden took the Silver and Team USA the bronze.
Congratulations to Team Canada, Team Sweden and Team USA on a great Olympic tournament!
United States vs. Sweden
The US Team gave a great effort, but it didn't show on the scoreboard as they fell for the second straight day, this time 2-1 to Team Sweden. Daniel Alfredsson and Mikael Samuelsson scored for Sweden, and Mike Modano got the loan goal for Team USA. Team USA will most likely advance to the next round, but unless they start scoring, they are unlikely to go very far.
Russia vs. Latvia
As expected, the Russian squad crushed Latvia 9-2. Russian youngsters Ilya Kovalchuk (4 goals) and Alexander Ovechkin scored, along with Viktor Kozlov, Evgeni Malkin (future Penguins star, watch out for this kid next year), Maxim Sushinsky, and Alexei Yashin.
Slovakia vs. Kazakhstan
Slovakia remains perfect after beating Kazakhstan 2-1 this morning and they are in first in Group B. Peter Bondra and Marian Hossa scored for Slovakia.
Czech Republic vs. Italy
Jaromir Jagr returned after an elbow to the head yesterday to help lead the Czech Republic to a 4-1 win over Italy. Milan Hejduk had a goal, and Vaclav Prospal recorded a hatrick to shutdown the Italian team.
Finland vs. Canada
Canada has been shutout for the second straight game. A team heavily favored by many to take the gold this year is having more difficulty than the US scoring goals. Team Canada ran into a stingy Swiss goalie in Martin Gerber, and is receiving similiar treatment at the hands of Finnish goaltender Antero Nittymaki. Finland beat Canada 2-0 on goals by Niko Kapanen, and Teemu Selanne. Selanne leads all players with 5 goals in the tournament.
So far the games have been great. Teams I expected to play well have. Team Canada has been a dissapointment in the last two games, but the quarter final round is more important. They and the US Team need to improve their play. Slovakia, Finland, Switzerland, and Russia shouldn't change a thing.
Monday is a day of rest for the Men, and they resume play on Tuesday. See you then!
Marian Hossa and Peter Bondra scored, and Peter Budaj made 28saves to lead Slovakia to a 2-1 victory over Team USA. Slovakia is undefeated in the tournament and sits atop the standings in Group B.
Sweden vs. Latvia
Sweden won convincingly over Latvia 6-1.
Czech Republic vs. Finland IN PROGRESS
Tied at 1 a piece midway through the second. Goals have been scored by Marek Zidlicky for Team Czech., and Olli Jokinen of Finland. More to come.
WOW! Team Switzerland has been getting outstanding goaltending. Martin Gerber just finished a 49 save performance to upset Team Canada 2-0. Paul DiPietro had both goals for Team Switzerland. The Swiss Team has no upset two favorites in the Olympic Tournament, the first being the Czech Republic.
There was some controversy in the game, with an apparent goal by Rick Nash being dissallowed (Gerber's glove was definitely driven behind the line, and it should have been a goal), but Canada was stopped the rest of the way, by Martin Gerber. He has continued his excellent play that has helped the Carolina Hurricanes to first in the East.
Sweden vs. Latvia IN PROGRESS
Sweden coming off an old school whooping at the hands of Team Russia is rebounding nicely against Latvia. Currently leading in the second period 5-0 Team Sweden has been powered on goals by Samuel Pahlsson, Nicklas Lidstrom, Daniel Alfredsson, Per Johan Axelsson, and Henrik Zetterberg. Peter Forsberg declared himself fit to play and obviously wasn't kidding as his return has sparked his team. Forsberg has 2 assists in the game thus far. More to come!
Upset in the making? Early in the second, Team Canada has gotten into penalty trouble, giving Switzerland a 5-3 powerplay opportunity, which they have immediately capitalized on! MORE TO COME!
Team Switzerland has taken an early 1-0 lead on Team Canada. A sloppy turnover by Joe Thornton of Team Canada led to a quick goal by Team Switzerland's Martin Pluss. More to come!
Russia defeats Kazakhstan 1-0. The lone goal was scored by Alexander Karitonov. Evgeni Nabokov made 24 saves for his second shutout of the tournament, while Kazakhstan goalie Vitaliy Yeremeyev made an amazing 49 saves!
Italy and Germany just finished in a 3-3 tie. A thrilling ending which saw Italy take a late 3-2 lead on a beatiful short handed goal by Christian Borgatello. Germany tied it up at 3 moments later on a goal by Marcel Goc.
Canada vs. Switzerland IN PROGRESS
Scoreless in the first, but Martin Gerber of the Carolina Hurricanes is putting on a goaltending clinic for Team Switzerland right now with 9 saves already. I'll keep you posted, as I am spending the day watching hockey!! Can life get better? I submit that it cannot! (Thank you Brian Reagan!)
Team USA coming off of a poor effort against Latvia, came out strong against Kazakhstan. USA defeated Kazakhstan 4-1, with a huge 3 goal first period. Mike Modano, Brian Rolston, Brian Gionta, and Bill Guerin provided the scoring for Team USA. Rick Dipietro only had to make 11 saves for the victory.
As expected, favorite Team Canada crushed Germany 5-1. Wade Redden, Shane Doan, Dany Heatley, Simon Gagne, and Joe Sakic scored for Team Canada, and Roberto Luongo got the win on an 11save performance.
Teemu Selanne of Finland is thriving on the bigger Olympic ice and leads all forwards with 4 goals in the tournament. Pavol Demitra and Shane Doan are right behind him with 2 goals each. Todd Bertuzzi (Canada), Marian Hossa (Slovakia), and Jere Lehtinen (Finland) lead the assists category with 3 a piece.
Tomorrow is going to be a big day of hockey, and finally I will be able to view the games live. Here is the schedule for tomorrows games.
Russia hands a 5-0 blowout to the Swedish Team! Rookie NY Ranger Goalie Henrik Lundqvist was torched for 5 goals, while San Jose Sharks goalie Evgeni Nabokov was perfect for Team Russia. Alexander Ovechkin, Viktor Kozlov, Alexei Kovalev, Maxim Sushinsky, and Maxim Afinogenov provided the scoring for Team Russia.
Slovakia vs. Latvia IN PROGRESS
Slovakia continues to dominate, currently leading a Latvian team that refuses to quit 5-3. Pavol Demitra, Marian Hossa, Ronald Petrovicky, Richard Zednick and Zdeno Chara have scored for Slovakia. Sandis Ozolins, Aleksandrs Nizivijs, and Martins Cipulis have the three tallies for Latvia. More to come.
Finland defeats Italy 6-0
Teemu Selanne (2 goals), Saku Koivu, Ville Peltonen, Jere Lehtnine, Jussi Jokinen provided balanced scoring in a rout of Italy this morning.
Czech Republic vs. Switzerland IN PROGRESS
Switzerland leads the Czech. Team in the third 3-2. David Aebischer has made 32 saves thus far.
Craig Conroy, Brian Gionta, and savior Jordan Leopold scored to help the US Team completely self-destruct. NHL castoff Arturs Irbe made 39 saves for a Latvian team that is largely NHL free, and upset a Team USA made up entirely of NHL players.
I didnt' see the game, but it sounds as though travel and jetlag may have got the better of many of the American players. Hopefully they can rebound from this against Kazakhstan tomorrow.
Marian Gaborik scored 2 goals in the third period to help Slovakia beat Russia 5-3 this afternoon. Pavol Demitra, Peter Bondra, and Lubomir Visnovsky also scored.
Latvia vs. United States IN PROGRESS
Currently tied at 3 a piece in the third.
Finland shutsout Switzerland 5-0
Philadelphia Flyer's goaltender Antero Nittymaki opens the Olympics with a shutout. Teemu Selanne (2 goals), Olli Jokinen (2 goals) and Teppo Numminen provided the scoring for a convincing win over the Swiss Team.
Czech Republic wins, but lose Hasek
Czech Republic defeated Germany 4-1 but lost goalie Dominik Hasek to injury this morning. Jaromir Jagr, Tomas Kaberle (2 goals), and David Vborny scored for the Czech. team.
Russia vs. Slovakia IN PROGRESS
Russia leads Slovakia 2-1 in the first right now on goals by Pavel Datsyuk, and Alexei Kovalev. Pavol Demitra has the lone tally for Slovakia. Stay tuned!
February 15th Show
It's time to take a break from the NHL and let the World War happen where there is a shroud. We'll talk about the Olympics, as well as pick our ponies. Lyle Richardson from Spector's Hockey will be on to talk about who the chum will be in the Shark tank and how many teams are a trade away from being contenders rather than pretenders. John Wordock from All Things Hockey will join us to talk some Caps hockey, as well as the super-rookies who are starting to take center stage. Mark Stepneski from Andrew's Dallas Stars Page will join us to talk about the Stars being one of the underrated contenders and about their own super rookie in Jussi Jokinen. Plus, if that wasn't enough-- Derek LeBlanc from the Calgary Hitmen will talk about being shipped from his hometown to Calgary and what the Hitmen could do down the stretch. All that, and you know the Chunkybutter will all on your toast.
Dominik Hasek has reportedly sustained a leg injury during the first period of Germany vs. Czech Republic currently still in progress. Germany holds a 1-0 lead over the Czech Republic still in the first. Thanks to NHL.com radio program for the update! Tomas Vokoun has replaced Hasek at the 9:25 mark in the game.
Team Canada waited till the second period to blow away their Italian counterparts 7-2 this morning. Shane Doan, Dany Heatley, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Joe Thornton, and Jarome Iginla (2 goals) all scored to quickly put the Italian team away.
Later, Sweden also came out swinging, putting away the team from Kazakhstan 7-2. Daniel Tjanqvist (2goals), Daniel Alfredsson, Daniel Sedin, Mats Sundin, Henrik Sedin, and Per Johan Axelsson all provided the scoring for Team Sweden.
For more results, recaps and games in progress click here.
TSN.ca also has great online coverage (not online broadcast though).
Currently underway Switzerland vs. Finland is scoreless in the first.
If you love hockey as much as I do, then you have some serious issues. Well in order to help you feed that need, I have listed below, the best sites (in my opinion) that cover the NHL, and hockey in general. I visit every one of these at least once a day, but in most cases, several times through out the day. Here they are in order of my frequency of visits:
TSN.ca
Hands down the best site for hockey. TSN updates the site regularly throughout the day. Imagine ESPN.com, but just giving you news on Hockey, and you would have TSN. Great writers, great stories, great videos and highlights. This site should absolutely be bookmarked, if not your browser home page.
The Face Off Hockey Show
The Face Off Hockey Show rocks. If you haven't seen my regular plugs on them, then let me throw one more at you. Every Wednesday night, from 9PM-11PM EST, the FOHS provides everything you'd want to know about hockey and more. They were on the entire lockout (the NHL can't say that) giving you hockey updates all year long, even where there weren't any. Their message boards are the best. The FOHS community has fun, and is extremely informative. They can even help you with your Fantasy team! Give the show a chance, you won't be dissapointed.
Spector's Hockey
Trade rumors from the master. Lyle Richardson is great. He provides up to date information from around the league and let's you know who's getting traded (most of the time before they do). He is also a regular guest on the Face Off Hockey Show.
NHL.com
NHL ranked 4th? I'm sure this is confusing to you, but its not because of any downfall of NHL.com's, its' actually just a testament to how good the sites above really are. NHL.com has a great radio show, every day from 10AM - 12PM hosted by Don LaGrecca and Zig Vircossi (I probably destroyed their names). It's really worth checking out, even though I only hear the last hour because they overlap with Opie and Anthony (hilarious show on XM Radio).
Playoff Beard
Yeah yeah, its a shameless plug, but I'm trying to keep this site up to date with as much news and information I can find out there, as well as put my own twisted spin on things!
I'm trying to find internet broadcasts of the games. I'm not sure if this is actually available, but if it is, I will post the links. I did find a pretty decent live updated site provided by NBC.
I will keep you posted, and if any of you guys find links post them here!
Last nights scores:
St. Louis 5 Edmonton 4 F (SO)
Dallas 5 Los Angeles 6 F
Buffalo 3 Carolina 4 F (SO)
Colorado 3 Detroit 6 F San Jose 5 Phoenix 4 F (OT)
Chicago 1 Anaheim 4 F
Minnesota 2 Vancouver 3 F (OT)
This country has no balls. It's embarrassing sometimes. Every News Channel was alerting, and throwing EMERGENCY STORM WARNINGS across the bottom of my screen all night yesterday. It's snow! SNOW! You'd think hand grenades were falling from the sky.
Here in Central Jersey we were blessed with almost two feet....which I'm sure you Canadian's laugh at. Speaking of Canadians...the Women's Hockey team kicked the vodka out of Team Russia this morning 12-0. While I write this the American women are beating Germany 3-0. Excellent job ladies, keep it up!
The men's tournament begins Wednesday, but in the meantime, there are some pretty cool things going on. I watched the ski jumping qualifiers last night which was outstanding. Those guys have huge....you know, and the speed skating 5000 meters. Awesome.
As far as coverage for the Olympics thus far. I've seen NBC, MSNBC, and USA Network all covering the games. I'm keeping my fingers crossed they show some Men's Hockey. I've heard rumors that Center Ice may have some games on too. I'll let you know.
Last nights scores:
NY Islanders 2 at New Jersey 1
Chicago 4 at Los Angeles 5 NY Rangers 4 at Toronto 2 Tampa Bay 6 at Boston 5 Atlanta 2 at Montreal 1
Philadelphia 2 at Ottawa 3 Pittsburgh 6 at Washington 3
Florida 3 at Buffalo 5
Columbus 2 at Nashville 5
Game of the night:
Buffalo at Carolina 5:00 PM
Things are tight in the East. Buffalo is 4 points behind Carolina. This should be a great matchup prior to the Olympic break. Enjoy the game!
Here's the list of times and games scheduled for the 2006 Mens Olympic Hockey Tournament beginning on Wednesday February 15th (from NHL.com):
Preliminary Round
Note: All times in Eastern Standard Time. Italy is six (6) hours ahead.
Wed Feb. 15
5:30 a.m. Kazakhstan vs. Sweden
7:00 a.m. Italy vs. Canada
9:30 a.m. Switzerland vs. Finland
11:00 a.m. Germany vs. Czech.
2:00 p.m Russia vs. Slovakia
3:00 p.m. Latvia vs. USA
Thur Feb. 16
6:00 a.m. Finland vs. Italy
7:00 a.m. Czech. vs. Switzerland
10:00 a.m. Sweden vs. Russia
11:00 a.m. Slovakia vs. Latvia
2:00 p.m. Canada vs. Germany
3:00 p.m. USA vs. Kazakhstan
Sat Feb. 18
5:30 a.m. Kazakhstan vs. Russia
7:00 a.m. Italy vs. Germany
9:30 a.m. Canada vs. Switzerland
11:00 a.m. Sweden vs. Latvia
2:00 p.m. Slovakia vs. USA
3:00 p.m. Czech. Rep. vs. Finland
Sun Feb. 19
6:00 a.m. Germany vs. Switzerland
7:00 a.m. Russia vs. Latvia
10:00 a.m. Slovakia vs. Kazakhstan
11:00 a.m. USA vs. Sweden
2:00 p.m. Czech. Rep. vs. Italy
3:00 p.m. Finland vs. Canada
Tue Feb. 21
5:30 a.m. Latvia vs. Kazakhstan
6:30 a.m. Switzerland vs. Italy
9:30 a.m. Finland vs. Germany
10:30 a.m. Canada vs. Czech. Rep.
2:00 p.m. Sweden vs. Slovakia
2:30 p.m. USA vs. Russia
I will try and find the channels and if possible internet feeds availabe to watch/listen to these games. Most of us will be at work or asleep when they are playing live, so hopefully they will be available somewhere.
Last nights scores:
Toronto 2 NY Rangers 4 F
Washington 4 Philadelphia 5 F Pittsburgh 4 Carolina 3 F Colorado 4 Columbus 1 F
St. Louis 2 Calgary 3 F (OT) Minnesota 6 Edmonton 3 F Anaheim 3 Vancouver 1 F
Dallas 3 San Jose 6 F
Game of the night:
Philadelphia at Ottawa 7:00 PM
Preview to an Eastern Conference Final Matchup? Not the way these teams have been playing lately, but this is exactly the kind of game they should get up for. Forsberg probably won't be playing, he is apparently resting for the Olympics, which Owner Ed Snyder, and GM Bob CLarke are in full support of......Enjoy the game and your weekend!!
With the Olympics just a day away, the NHL's best will join their respective countries in pursuit of the Gold Medal. As excited as I am about the Olympic Hockey Tournament, there is an anxiousness that comes with it. That anxiety stems from a question that I've never really gotten a direct answer to. What is worth more to an NHL player....an olympic gold medal, or the Stanley Cup?
My feelings on this have always been pretty constant. I love my country, and always enjoy seeing USA take as many golds in the games, Winter or Summer, but if I had a choice? I would take a Stanley Cup for my Rangers over a Gold medal for USA. Why? I think the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy (and by far the most beautiful) to win in any sport. 16 victories are necessary to achieve it. 30 teams battle for this trophy every year, as opposed to the 12 that try for the Gold.
The greatest thing about the Stanley Cup, is that the winning team's name, and players name's are etched into the rings that make up its base, forever immortalizing the victors.
Last nights scores:
New Jersey 3 Boston 2 F (OT) Montreal 3 Buffalo 2 F (OT) Atlanta 2 Ottawa 1 F
Carolina 3 Tampa Bay 5 F Detroit 3 Nashville 2 F Colorado 2 Minnesota 1 F Dallas 5 Phoenix 1 F
Game of the night:
Dallas at San Jose 10:30 PM
Dallas is hot right now, fighting for the pole position in the West with Dallas. Since I called out Bill Guerin, the guy's been a scoring machine!! Two goals in two games! Way to show up big guy! Evgeni Nabokov brings his new contract and the 11th place Sharks on the ice tonite looking to burst the playoff bubble. They have a lot of work to do!
According to TSN, Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jose Theodore has tested positive for a banned substance....Propecia?! Supposedly Propecia acts as a masking agent for anabolic steroids. Why is a man with a full head of hair taking Propecia...or is this a testament to the product itself. Propecia works, whatever steroid he may be taking....well thats a different story.
The only thing I can say to the WADA, is how can he test positive for a performance enhancer, when his performance has been butt awful. Jose, you may play like ass....but you look good doing it kid!!
Holy Cow! The Rangers went toe to toe with arguably the best team in the NHL last night and kicked the Molson out of them!! What a show the boys in blue put on for us last night. JJ had another 3 point night (1 goal and 2 assists), the team killed off penalty after penalty, including a 5 on 3 that shouldn't have been called, Ward netted a beautiful short handed goal, and the trade for Sykora continues to pay dividends. While in the nosebleeds last night (nice to see everyone in section 414 again!) we were all obviously thrilled, but stunned at the same time. Who in their right mind would have predicted that going into the Olympic break the Rangers would be in first place in the Atlantic, third place in the East, and the fifth best team in the NHL? Larry? No, I believe you said 31st. So did you Bucci. The Hockey News also had them holding hands with the Capitals.
I did predict they would make the playoffs this year (and was generously assaulted on the FOHS message boards for it) on the back of great goaltending, a lack of mercs, and a surplus of youngsters that really want to play! Never in my wildest dreams did I think they'd be challenging for the Presidents Trophy (which they are only 6 points away from). The Rangers close out the pre-olympic schedule with a home and home with Toronto Friday and Saturday night. Hockey Night in CANADA!!!
Last nights scores:
Ottawa 1 NY Rangers 5 F
NY Islanders 2 Philadelphia 5 F
Los Angeles 4 Columbus 7 F Boston 3 Pittsburgh 1 F
Nashville 0 Detroit 6 F
Anaheim 1 Calgary 3 F St. Louis 4 Vancouver 2 F
Chicago 1 San Jose 2 F
Game of the night:
Carolina at Tampa Bay 7:30 PM
A Southeast Division matchup between the first place Hurricanes (first in the NHL too) against the second place Tampa Bay Lightning. However, second place in the Southeast is only good for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. This should be an exciting game, because these two teams consist of some of the hottest young talent in the league. And really, my Game of the night picks have been pretty solid so far.....so trust me. Enjoy the game gang!
February 8th Show
We have money betting this week will be a great show, and how apropos it is. We'll talk about "Operation Slap Shot" and what it mean for the NHL and the personnel involved. Lyle Richardson from Spector's Hockey will come on to talk about what the Canucks and Oilers plan to do for their run down the stretch and what the Flames have already done on the market. Peter Yamamoto from Page 44 will join us to talk about the making of Gretzky '06 and what it could mean for the hockey video game landscape. We'll get back to it on the WHL Report and we'll talk about the streaking Stars in Dallas. Plus, the Beanpot Tournament is closing up and we can't forget Jimmy Chunkybutter.
Rick Tocchet is facing criminal charges for running a gambling ring. Allegedly part of a group based in New Jersey (the crown jewel of the East Coast, and where yours truly currently resides) that processed over 1,000 bets in excess of $1.7 million over a 40 day period. To get the full details of the story visit TSN.ca.
Aside from Tocchet, their are also 12 NHL players and/or personnel involved. My only hope is that these individuals didn't bet on NHL games.
The last thing the NHL needed was this. After a lockout had thoroughly pissed off the fan base, the NHL was in my opinion rebounding nicely. The pursuit of new fans will be severely crippled because of this scandal.
What truly aggrivates me about this is the media coverage. Largely ignored by the press and tv news, the NHL has been fighting to get coverage. The NY Post hasn't given a back cover to the now 1st place Rangers all season (aside from Messier's retirement), instead they continue to let us know how much the Knicks suck. Ahhhh, but this morning, a lovely header entitled 'Betting Scandal Rocks Hockey". The TV news last night went as far as showing footage from Wayne and Janet Gretzky's wedding, also say that she may be involved. The media lives for this.
Whatever happens, I hope the NHL drops the hammer on all involved. Come clean, hard and fast. Honesty in this case will not be a panacea, but will definitely help begin the healing of this mess. Thanks again Dick.
Last nights scores:
Florida 5 Washington 0 F
Atlanta 1 Toronto 4 F Buffalo 3 Montreal 2 F (OT)
Tampa Bay 4 New Jersey 7 F
Los Angeles 1 Minnesota 5 F
Edmonton 2 Colorado 5 F Chicago 3 Phoenix 1 F
Game of the night:
Ottawa at NY Rangers 7:00 PM
2nd place Ottawa, and the 3rd place NY Rangers (whoever thought we would be saying that in February?). The Rangers will try to rebound after losing star rookie Petr Pruccha to a tough win against Philly on Saturday. Enjoy the game!
Team Canada is blessed (or cursed) with three of the best goaltenders in the NHL. The toughest job will be to determine who gets the starts....the obvious nod will be Brodeur, but the play of Marty Turco has to be taken into consideration. A hot goaltender can carry a team through the playoffs...so why not the Olympics? Turco of late has been a Terminator, he doesn't show pity or remorse, and he absolutely will not stop until he wins. By the way he actually tackled a dude trying to steal beer from his garage a few years ago, and held him down till the cops arrived.....that is goaltending (a welcome change for Texas Police officials who were still trying to shrug off Eddie Belfour's drunken bribe of "A thousand million dollars")!
Marty Turco leads the NHL with 29 wins and after last evening has the Dallas Stars tied for first in the West with the Detroit Red Wings. Not since Doc Holliday (see Tombstone, Kilmer's version of Holliday was sweet) has there been anyone better on the shootout. Playoff Beard Alert: Sergei Zubov. This guy has to shave between periods, so expect Zubov to look like Chaka from Land of the Lost during the playoffs.
Playoff Beard Note: Bill Guerin finally scored a goal last night, so now Dallas is only paying him $850,000 a goal. While you were reading this, the Dallas Stars just won another shootout.
Last night's scores:
Tampa Bay 3 NY Islanders 2 F (OT)
Pittsburgh 2 Ottawa 5 F
Nashville 2 Dallas 4 F
Anaheim 5 Edmonton 6 F (SO)
Columbus 4 Vancouver 7 F Calgary 4 San Jose 3 F
Game of the night:
Buffalo at Montreal 7:30 PM
Why? Buffalo is good. 4th in the East. I'm curious to see if Cristobal Huet will be in net for the Habs, who has pretty much locked up the starting job by his play of late (shutting out the Flyers Sunday night). The Sabres will be a great bench test for the upstart keeper. By the way, do the Habs have a monoply of french canadian goaltender with cool names? You never hear "Starting in net for the Montreal Canadiens.....Mike Smith"......
Enjoy the game!
As I said a week ago, Ottawa was picked by just about everyone to contend for the cup this year. Their counterpart, also predicted by just about everyone to land in the Stanley Cup Finals, is the Calgary Flames.
Calgary is currently in 5th place overall in the West and tied for 1st in the Northwest with Vancouver with 67 points. After a solid showing in 2003, Calgary lost a dissapointing game 7 to the current Stanley Cup Champions Tampa Bay Lightning. The Flames have rebounded and are positioning themselves for another successful post season.
New additions, Tony Amonte, Darren McCarty, and Rookie of the Year candidate Dion Phaneuf have made the Flames an even stronger team this year. Goaltending is still a strength, with Miikka Kiprusoff between the pipes, who is currently ranked 5th in the NHL with 27 wins.
The face of the Calgary Flames, team captain, and perhaps one of the best players in the NHL is Jarome Iginla. Iginla has 25 goals and 17 assists in 54 games this season. Although not producing point wise at the level he was last season, he brings other intangibles to the rink. He is a prototypical power forward. Strength, speed, great shot, and a tremendous dancer. In 2003-2004 he won the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (shared with Kovalchuk and Nash) for most goals scored. For the Flames to compete for the Cup again this year they need Iginla to be his best. Playoffbeard Alert: Jarome is on the cusp of being one of the greats. If the Flames can succeed in the playoffs this year, it will be hard to tell Jarome Iginla from Kris Kristofferson.
Last nights scores:
Carolina 4 Boston 3 F (SO)
Philadelphia 0 Montreal 5 F
Game of the night:
Nashville at Dallas 8:00 PM
2nd place Dallas faces off against 4th place Nashville tonite! Dallas will be looking to rebound from a loss to St. Louis....by taking Nashville to the shootout! Enjoy the game!
I don't think I've seen the referees more blatantly give a game to a team more than I did tonite. Not since the Stars beat the Sabres on an illegal goal by Brett Hull in 99' has there been worse officiating in my life.
This game personified what the game of football is all about....boring, stagnant, play. 60 minutes of football, which in reality provides you with less than 10 minutes of total action. Anyone that says hockey isn't a great sport, or unwatchable on TV....isn't watching hockey. If tonites game illustrates what excitement is to you, than by all means enjoy it.
Five days from now the torch will be lit and the coolest half (no pun intended) of the Olympics will commence in Turin, Italy, February 10th 2006
The Winter Olympics has always been my favorite. The sports are much more exciting than those of the Summer Olympics. The WO brings you speed skating (the short track is sweet), downhill skiing, bob sledding, ski jumping, luge(which is a cool way to say sled), all of the snow boarding events, curling (probably the best sport to watch and drink), and of course hockey. Frankly, if you removed figure skating from the Winter Olympics it would be perfect.....perfect.
The crown jewel of the WO is of course the Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. Players representing twelve countries, pursue the most coveted trophy next to the Stanley Cup. The Olympic Gold Medal.
Here are the rosters of the Top 5 Teams (in my opinion), in no particular order:
Team Canada Goaltenders (3)
Martin Brodeur
Roberto Luongo
Marty Turco
Defensemen (7)
Rob Blake
Adam Foote
Ed Jovanovski
Scott Niedermayer
Chris Pronger
Wade Redden
Robyn Regehr
Forwards (13)
Todd Bertuzzi
Shane Doan
Kris Draper
Simon Gagne
Dany Heatley
Jarome Iginla
Vincent Lecavalier
Rick Nash
Brad Richards
Joe Sakic
Ryan Smyth
Martin St. Louis
Joe Thornton
Team Czech Republic Goaltenders (3)
Dominik Hasek
Milan Hnilicka
Tomas Vokoun
Defensemen (7)
Frantisek Kaberle
Tomas Kaberle
Filip Kuba
Pavel Kubina
Marek Malik
Jaroslav Spacek
Marek Zidlicky
Forwards (13)
Jan Bulis
Petr Cajanek
Martin Erat
Milan Hejduk
Ales Hemsky
Jaromir Jagr
Robert Lang
Rostislav Olesz
Vaclav Prospal
Petr Prucha
Martin Rucinsky
Martin Straka
David Vyborny
Team Russia Goaltenders (3)
Maxim Sokolov
Evgeni Nabokov
Ilya Bryzgalov
Defensemen (8)
Andrei Markov
Alexei Zhitnik
Darius Kasparaitis
Fedor Tyutin
Daniil Markov
Anton Volchenkov
Sergei Gonchar
Denis Kulyash
Forwards (12)
Ilya Kovalchuk
Pavel Datsyuk
Alexei Kovalev
Alexander Ovechkin
Alexei Yashin
Viktor Kozlov
Alexander Frolov
Evgeni Malkin
Maxim Afinogenov
Alexander Kharitonov
Alexander Korolyuk
Maxim Sushinsky
Team Sweden Goaltenders (3)
Stefan Liv
Henrik Lundqvist
Mikael Tellqvist
Defensemen (7)
Christian Backman
Niclas Havelid
Kenny Jonsson
Nicklas Lidstrom
Daniel Tjarnqvist
Mattias Norstrom
Mattias Ohlund
Forwards (13)
Daniel Alfredsson
Per-Johan Axelsson
Peter Forsberg
Mika Hannula
Jorgen Jonsson
Fredrik Modin
Markus Naslund
Samuel Pahlsson
Mikael Samuelsson
Daniel Sedin
Henrik Sedin
Mats Sundin
Henrik Zetterberg
Team USA Goaltenders (3)
Rick DiPietro
Robert Esche
John Grahame
Defensemen (7)
Chris Chelios
Derian Hatcher
Jordan Leopold
John-Michael Liles
Aaron Miller
Brian Rafalski
Mathieu Schneider
Forwards (13)
Jason Blake
Erik Cole
Craig Conroy
Chris Drury
Brian Gionta
Scott Gomez
Bill Guerin
Mike Knuble
Mike Modano
Mark Parrish
Brian Rolston
Keith Tkachuk
Doug Weight
Now to hazzard a guess as to which teams will medal.....that's a tough call. Canada should definitely be playing for a medal, and finish in the top 3. I know its a safe bet, but when your team is deep enough to leave Eric Staal and Bryan McCabe on the 'taxi squad' you are stacked. I really like the Czech Republic as well. Great goaltending and great players, most of which have been playing together in New York all season. Sweden looks impressive too, and this year they don't have Tommy Salo in net which greatly improves their chances. In fact they are riding Henrik Lundqvist, quite possibly the hottest goaltender in the NHL right now. So my predictions....
Boston 0 Montreal 2 F
Dallas 3 St. Louis 4 F (OT) Detroit 3 Colorado 0 F NY Islanders 5 Pittsburgh 4 F (SO) NY Rangers 4 Philadelphia 3 F(OT)
New Jersey 2 Toronto 4 F
Florida 4 Atlanta 6 F
Ottawa 1 Buffalo 2 F (SO)
Washington 0 Tampa Bay 5 F
Chicago 0 Nashville 6 F Minnesota 6 Phoenix 4 F
Vancouver 1 Edmonton 3 F Anaheim 2 San Jose 0 F
Game of the night:
Philadelphia at Montreal 3:00
Call it the Super Bowl pregame game. Philly trys to rebound from the loss against New York yesterday, as the Habs start Cristobal Huet the youngster who is rapidly becoming Theodores' replacement. Enjoy the game, and the big game tonite!
The new NHL rules have changed the game and forced many players to evolve. Many have adapted quickly and embraced the new game. Others have found this difficult, and several outright impossible forcing them into retirement. Many players that were once great are now some of our biggest dissapointments, which is what this week's Fantasy Report is all about. 2005-2006 Fantasy Busts. I was going to name the Top 5 but there have been so many I'm going to name everyone....because unfortunately I drafted a few of them and want to name names:
Sergei Gonchar
The Defenseman that was drafted first by many fantasy teams (I grabbed him in the second round), and has been the poster boy for NHL Bust this year. He was never great defensively, but Gonchar always put up huge numbers, especially on the powerplay. In 51 games this year he has 29 points and is a solid -18. Thanks for coming out!
Bill Guerin
BIll?!? Buddy?!? What's up!? Dallas' high priced winger has put 8 goals and 19 assists this year. Is he a casualty of the new NHL, or just having a bad year. We will find out next season, but hopefully he will turn it around. Dallas is currently paying Bill $875,000.00 a goal.
Keith Tkachuk
2005-2006 is a year KT would like to forget. He's not really a huge bust, because I doubt anyone drafted him very high after showing up to training camp 50 lbs. overweight. This former 50 goal scorer has only 17 points this year and has been a major dissapointment for the Blues.
Ziggy Palffy, Brett Hull, and Mario Lemieux
You couldn't have retired in the off season? How many people wasted high draft picks on these guys?
Patrick Lalime
3 wins? 3 WINS? How were the minors Patty?
Jocelyn Thibault
1 win....even Lalime is laughing at this guy. The only people not laughing.....anyone who drafted him.
The Penguins Roster
The whole team really needs to be blamed here. Aside from Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury, the Penguins suck. Why anyone thought they were going to be a sucess is beyond me. Didn't anyone realize that the team they put together was a facsimile of the 1998-2004 New York Rangers? High priced, overrated, overage players, no defense, awful goaltending (prior to Fleury's call-up) and an inexperienced coach....what do you get? A coach class ticket to Winnepeg.
Andrew Raycroft
Rookie of the Year to a sack full of smashed buttholes! Unbelievable! 7 wins, and currently sitting third on Beantown's goalie depth chart, and more than likely a 2nd or 3rd round pickup. Thanks for showing up.
Jeremy Roenick
He sucks. There's a reason you were left off the US Olympic Team. You are old, slow, lost your scoring touch, you get injured everytime you step on the ice, and oh yeah you are old.
Radek Bonk
1 goal dude? COME ON!!!
Eric Daze
Yes Daze is on the IR again. He almost played 1 game this year, and blessed us with a -2 rating while on the ice for those 15 minutes. Thanks a bunch!
Last nights scores:
Toronto 1 Washington 4 F
Carolina 0 New Jersey 3 F
Atlanta 2 Florida 5 F Vancouver 3 Calgary 1 F
Game of the night:
Lot of good ones on the schedule today gang, so I'm giving you, your choice of three (all entrees include a salad and your choice of vegetable):
Detroit at Colorado 2:00 PM
NY Rangers at Philadelphia 5:00 PM
Ottawa at Buffalo 7:30 PM
If you have the Center Ice package you can actually watch all three thanks to some clever NHL scheduling. The Detroit and Colorado game is an old rivalry (Gary Thorne and Bill Clement would salivate over this one on ESPN every year....Gary and Bill want to be in a hot tub with Sakic and Lidstrom so badly), and should be a great matchup. The Rangers and Flyers battle for first in the Atlantic, while Ottawa and Buffalo are battling for the top spot in the Northeast. Enjoy the games!
Tonight the New Jersey Devils honor their greatest and one of the best defenseman to ever patrol the blueline. Scott Stevens retires with 908 points, a +393 rating, 2,785 minutes in penalties and 13 All Star appearances . He developed into one of the NHL's most feared blueliners because of his proclivity for open-ice hitting. When the playoffs arrived, Stevens always turned it up another level, and helped guide the Devils to 3 Stanley Cups and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1999-2000 for the NHL Playoffs MVP. Stevens is probably the greatest defenseman to never win a Norris Trophy.
He is most famous for probably the greatest check ever delivered during the 1999-2000 Conference Finals against the Philadelphia Flyers' Eric Lindros. His teeth rattling hits inspired such eloquent lines from Bill Clement like "Scott Stevens is locked on and has tone". After that hit on Paul Kariya, I think Clement wanted Stevens to spray some Deep Woods Off on him by candle light, in a remote tent somewhere in the wilderness. Playoff Beard note: Stevens was never really a big fan of the beard, but did grow an exceptionally full 'Evil Spock' goatee during several of his playoff runs.
Quote of the Day: "God didn't make Rambo. I did!" --Colonel Trautman
Last nights scores:
Montreal 1 Boston 3 F
Philadelphia 2 Buffalo 4 F NY Rangers 5 NY Islanders 2 F Ottawa 7 Pittsburgh 2 F
Chicago 5 St. Louis 6 F (SO)
Colorado 3 Nashville 4 F (OT) Columbus 2 Edmonton 1 F (SO)
Los Angeles 1 Phoenix 2 F (SO) Minnesota 3 San Jose 2
Game of the night:
Vancouver at Calgary 9:00 PM
All Canadian match-up tonite boys between 3rd place Calgary and 5th Vancouver. I love the coverage you guys have up there and not just the color men, but the camera-men really know how to film the game. Enjoy the game!
He's back ladies and gentlemen, and back with a vengeance. No longer the Czechoslovakian James Bond, he has stopped laying money down on bad hands of baccarat, retired from his unsuccessful career as a venture capitalist, and returned to his roots. Jaromir Jagr can play hockey, and apparently can still do it better than anyone in the NHL. Sitting atop the NHL lead in scoring, Jagr has 76 points (33 goals and 43 assists) and is a modest +18 through 53 games this year. The old Jagr? Aside from not looking like a Whitesnake roadie, I think it's safe to say yes. He's having fun for the first time in years, and it is showing in his game. Jagr is surrounded by fellow countrymen, Straka, Sykora, Pruccha, and Rucinsky who have all responded well to each other and adapted surprisingly well to the new rules. The Rangers were predicted by everybody (except me) to finish dead last, and were repeatedly advised by the sports writing community to trade JJ. I think Lou Brown from "Major League" said it best:
"...I'm one for wasting sports writers time, so lets say we give them all a nice big $hit-burger to eat!"
Somewhere John Buccigross is enjoying that blue plate special with a side of fries.....Jagr has the Ranger's on the verge of making the playoffs for the first time since the 1996-1997 campaign. If he continues his play, Jagr is sure bet to win the Hart, Lester B. Pearson and Art Ross Trophies......perhaps the Stanley Cup?
Last nights scores:
Pittsburgh 1 NY Rangers 3 F
Ottawa 3 New Jersey 5 F
St. Louis 2 Detroit 3 F
Nashville 1 Dallas 2 F Columbus 2 Calgary 1 F (SO) San Jose 6 Anaheim 4 F
Game of the night:
I'm gonna give you two, because I want to try and shed this East Coast only homer thing I got going on:
Philadelphia at Buffalo 7:00 PM
Colorado at Nashville 8:00 PM
Four of the NHL's hottest teams face off tonite, so both should be good ones. Buffalo is another one of those 'surprise' teams this year and should be a handful for Philly tonite.
I've been listening to this show for what seems like 4 or 5 years now. Don't remember exactly how I found them, but every Wednesday night 9pm - 11pm EST, for two hours (used to be one, that's how old school I am!) they provide insight and entertainment on hockey. If you can't catch it then, don't worry, they conveniently archive their shows for your listening pleasure. Goto www.faceoffhockeyshow.com to listen and to check out their message board (which I am a rampant poster on)!
Tonite's Show:
February 1st Show
An action packed week this week as we try to fit all we can into a small, two-hour space. Lyle Richardson from Spector's Hockey will tell us why the St. Louis Blues are fire-selling now instead of waiting until the deadline and well as the next move for Roberto Luongo. Heather Creegan from So Very Obsessed will join us to talk about the Bruins organization and to see how much difference the AHL is this year from last. Scott Cahill from Let's Go Kings will come on to talk about the Kings up and down season so far and if Mathieu Garon can rest on his laurels as the #1 goalie. That's not all as we welcome James Mirtle from The Globe and Mail to the show to talk about what's hot in the NHL, as well as some Olympic chat as well. As always, we talk to Jimmy Chunkybutter for the week that was in the FOHSFHL.
While enjoying NHL Center Ice last night, I came across the French broadcast of the Carolina Hurricanes vs. the Habs. It was pretty interesting listening to the game in another language but as the Hurricanes continued to score goal after goal, and Jose Theodore got the hook after letting in 5 on 10 shots, it was apparent that the mood of these broadcasters was less than stellar. The Hurricanes went on to win 8-2, and new addition Doug Weight scored all 8 goals in his debut. Just kidding, I erroneously reported in my Game of the Night pick that Weight would be in the lineup, but he apparently won't be with the team till the next game. In his absence the Hurricanes still managed to produce with 3 goals from Erik Cole and 2 goals from Eric Staal. Eric Staal is having an amazing year. He leads the 'Canes with 69 points and is currently in 3rd overall behind only Jaromir Jagr and Daniel Alfredsson. Whereever Weight does get placed in the lineup, the Hurricanes will be very deep at center, with him Staal, and Brind'Amour. Playoff Beard Alert: Erik Cole while being one of the Hurricanes most prolific scorers, is also one of the team's most prolific beard growers. By the end of their Cup run in 2001-2002, Cole looked like Tom Hanks from Castaway.
Last nights scores:
Washington 3 NY Islanders 5 F Buffalo 5 Atlanta 2 F Carolina 8 Montreal 2 F
Toronto 2 Tampa Bay 3 F (SO)
Minnesota 2 Colorado 3 F Vancouver 7 Phoenix 4 F
Game of the night:
Ottawa at New Jersey 7:30 PM
Even though they are coming off a serious tuning up at the hands of the Bruins, the Senators are still one of the hottest teams in the league, and tonight they face off the hottest team in the month of January, the New Jersey Devils. The Devils have always had a hard time with the Senators, so this should be a great bench test for the team, and an exciting game to watch. The Devils need to improve their 5 on 5 play tonite, because they have been relying a little too much on the man-advantage. Enjoy the game!
Alexander Ovechkin, Alexei Kovalev, and Team Russia just completed a 2-0 shutout of Team Canada. The third defeat in four games that has come by shutout for a very dissapointing Canadian team. Where are the goals? Perhaps on the taxi squad with a player like Eric Staal? Whateve the case the heat on Wayne Gretzky will certainly be turned up. How this team was only able to score 3 goals in the last 4 games is shocking. Credit is due once again to goaltending, and this time around it was Evgeni Nabokov for Team Russia who continues his stellar play during the Olympic tournament with his third shutout.(Evgeni better bring this game back to the Sharks next week, because he's my starting keeper!!)
Tonight the New Jersey Devils honor their greatest and one of the best defenseman to ever patrol the blueline. Scott Stevens retires with 908 points, a +393 rating, 2,785 minutes in penalties and 13 All Star appearances . He developed into one of the NHL's most feared blueliners because of his proclivity for open-ice hitting. When the playoffs arrived, Stevens always turned it up another level, and helped guide the Devils to 3 Stanley Cups and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1999-2000 for the NHL Playoffs MVP. Stevens is probably the greatest defenseman to never win a Norris Trophy. 
