Tag Archives: Anaheim Ducks

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are Here: It’s prediction time.

Posted on April 12, 2009 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment

Minnesota Wild assistant general manager Tom Thompson has a theory about the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

It comes true most years, but somehow, this looks like a year in which it might come to pass in spades (although I don’t believe it). 

 

“The first round of the playoffs is always the most compelling round because you generally have two types of teams,” explained Thompson. 

 

“You have the teams that were successful all year and feel that if they don’t get to the final or win the Cup, their season was a failure. Then you have the teams that snuck into the playoffs and have nothing to lose. The top teams are often tight while the lesser teams have already done what they set out to do and by the opening round of the playoffs are as loose as can be. 

 

“That’s why there are so many great series and so many big upsets in the first round.”

 

He’s right, of course. The first round of the playoffs is always the most exciting. So without further adieu, let’s look at the 16 teams and eight matchups for the 2009 series which have already begun.

 

THE EASTERN CONFERENCE

 

No. 1 Boston Bruins (53-19-10) vs. No. 8 Montreal Canadiens (41-30-11).

The Habs and Bruins go at it again, a repeat of last year’s first round, in which the Canadiens outlasted Boston four games to three. But this year, things are different. Boston was the best team in the East and the second best team in the NHL and they are on a roll. It’s a team that allowed the fewest number of goals in the league (196) and has a wide-open offence to go with a stingy defence. The Habs were very fortunate to make the playoffs (they finished with the same number of points as Florida) and in six meetings this season, Boston won five of them, two in shootouts. Bruins in five.

 

No. 2 Washington Capitals (50-24-8) vs. No. 7 New York Rangers (43-30-9).

Second-place Washington with all that firepower – Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green are a good start — will face the seventh-place Rangers. The Caps have been very good this season and won the Southeast Division by 11 points over Carolina. They also won three of their four meetings with the Rangers. Capitals in five.

 

No. 3 New Jersey Devils (51-27-4) vs. No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes (45-30-7).

New Jersey, which won the Atlantic Division, will play sixth-place Carolina after beating the Hurricanes in the season finale last week. However, Carolina won its first three meetings with the Devils this season and played much better hockey down the stretch than New Jersey. Hurricanes in seven.

 

No. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins (45-28-9) vs. No. 5 Philadelphia Flyers (44-27-11).

Pittsburgh won four of the six meetings between the two teams this season, one in overtime and another in a shootout. However, all Philadelp[hia had to do to earn home ice advantage throughout this series was to win the final game of the season at home against the Rangers and they couldn’t pull it off. Pittsburgh has too much offence and is just playing better hockey at this time. Penguins in six.

 

THE WESTERN CONFERENCE

 

No. 1 San Jose Sharks (53-18-11) vs. No. 8 Anaheim Ducks (42-33-7).

Although it’s No. 1 vs. No. 8, this is a matchup that features two of the most successful teams in the NHL since the lockout. Since the start of the 2005-06 season, the Ducks have gone 180-107-41 with four playoff appearances while the Sharks have posted a 197-94-37 mark with three consecutive 100+ point seasons, four playoff appearances and two Pacific Division titles (2008 & 2009). However, the Sharks were the President’s Trophy winners as the best team in the NHL during the regular season while Randy Carlyle’s Ducks were fortunate to make the playoffs. The Sharks also won the season series, 4-2. Sharks in five.

No. 2 Detroit Red Wings (51-21-10) vs. No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets (41-31-10).

A tale of two cities: The Red Wings are the defending Stanley Cup champions while the Blue Jackets are in the playoffs for the first time in their eight seasons of existence. During the regular season, the teams split. Detroit won the first two meetings, Columbus won the next three (including an 8-2 win at Detroit on March 7) and Detroit geat the Jackets 4-0 in a statement game on March 17. I like Ken Hitchcock as a head coach, but Detroit has way too much of everything. Red Wings in five.

 

No. 3 Vancouver Canucks (45-27-10) vs. No. 6 St. Louis Blues (41-31-10).

The remarkable, red-hot Blues clinched the No. 6 seed in the final game of the year and put a cap on an amazing finish. From Feb. 15 to the end of the season, head coach Andy Murray’s Blues went 18-6-3. It was significant because on Feb. 15, the Blues were dead last in the West. This team finished the regular season by going 9-1-1 over its last 11 games and 5-1-1 on the road. Had the Blues lost their final game, they would have finished eighth — which would have meant a series with the top-seeded San Jose Sharks. Instead, they finished with the best second-half record in the League at 25-9-7. However, they have only four players who have ever won a playoff game. Vancouver, meanwhile, came back to claim the Northwest Division title by winning their last three games and going 6-3-1 down the stretch behind the tremendous goaltending of Roberto Luongo. This will be a match-up of two of the hottest teams in the game and two red-hot goalies – Luongo and Chris Mason.. Canucks in seven.

 

No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks (46-24-12) vs. No. 5 Calgary Flames (46-30-6). 

This series screams “Blackhawks!” Chicago swept the four-game season series with the Flames, winning 6-1 and 5-2 at the United Center and 3-2 in overtime and 5-2 at the Saddledome. Add it up. Chicago has more firepower and probably equal goaltending (Huet/Khabibulin vs. Kiprusoff). Chicago oputscored Calgary 19-7 during its four wins and really, the Hawks dominated the season. In fairness to Calgary, the two teams haven’t faced each other since the Hawks’ second win at Calgary on Feb. 5, but still, Hawks in six. 

 

* * *

 

THE 2008-09 NHL TROPHY WINNERS

 

Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin captured his first career Art Ross Trophy as the League’s leading scorer with 113 points while Washington Capitals leftwinger Alexander Ovechkin won his second consecutive Maurice Richard Trophy for being the League’s top goal scorer with 56. 

 

Meanwhile, Boston Bruins goaltenders Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez earned the William Jennings Trophy as the goaltenders on the club that allowed the fewest number of goals — 196.

 

→ Leave a comment

Posted in 2009 NHL Playoffs

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

There will always be fighting until NHL games are properly officiated.

Posted on January 18, 2009 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment

Since the terrible death of Don Sanderson of the Whitby Dunlops after a fight in an Ontario Sr. League game last month, the debate has raged. Should fighting be banned from the National Hockey League.

Almost everyone who has never played a game of hockey at an elite level said yes to a newspaper poll to ban fighting last week. Most of those who have played the game at a high level either shrugged or said, “No chance.”

 

The reason why there is no chance? Because there is no one anywhere who can officiate any game of any kind properly at any time. And as long as that remains the case — and it will forever — in a high-speed collision sport with hard plastic protective gear and sticks that can be used as weapons, fighting will be a necessary evil.

 

After the lockout of 2004-05, the NHL handed down a series of rule adjustments that were designed to usher in “the new NHL.” For about a year, the officials did their utmost to maintain the integrity of those rule adjustments (they weren’t really rule changes because the rules were already spelled out clearly in the NHL rule book), but by the 2006-07 season, fighting had become widespread once again — and fighters had become important members of every contending team. In fact, in 2007, the Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks led the NHL in fighting majors. If you fight, you protect your skilled players and you win.

 

Fact is, fighting had become necessary again because the officials had stopped calling most of the penalties they were told to call after the lockout. Sadly, the incredible whining from NHL beat writers and TV commentators about the number of power plays and the length of the games, convinced the league and the officials that “managing” not “officiating” hockey games was a better way to go.

 

So after a year of cracking down on hooking, holding and interference, the league virtually stopped altogether. Hooking, holding, slashing, high-sticking and hitting-from-behind became common-place once again and with officials only calling penalties on occasion, it was up to the likes of Colton Orr, Donald Brashear, Georges Laracque and big Derek Boogaard to take the law into their own hands — hockey vigilantes, for lack of a better term.

 

During Sunday’s Pittsburgh-Rangers game on NBC, the officiating could not have been more arbitrary. Chris Drury gets cross-checked in the back in front of the net, no penalty. Chris Drury gets cross-checked in the back in front of the net — again — no penalty. Sidney Crosby gets hooked less than a stride past Scott Gomez, Crosby gets a penalty shot (which was comical since Crosby wasn’t as far into the open as Montreal’s Guillaume Latendresse was in a 4-4 tie against Ottawa on Saturday night and yet Latendresse didn’t get a penalty shot). What is a penalty and what isn’t?

 

Let’s not be patronizing. There are no rules in the NHL. I mean there is a rule book, but the rule book is all but ignored. So without rules there has to be fighting. If the officials can’t call the game, somebody has to stand up for the smaller, skilled players. If it isn’t the league, it has to be the enforcers-in-uniform. Until the game is officiated properly — which will NEVER happen — there has to be fighting.

 

* * *

 

By the way, it was great to have the mute button on the remote control between periods on Sunday.

 

Pierre McGuire asked Mike Milbury, “What’s wrong with the Pittsburgh Penguins?” MUTE!!!! If Milbury had any idea what was wrong with a hockey team, he would not have single-handedly destroyed the New York Islanders’ franchise.

 

If that team moves to Kansas City as some predict, it will be Milbury’s fault. He has no right telling hockey fans what’s good or bad about any team. He is the Matt Millen of the NHL.  

→ Leave a comment

Posted in 2008 NHL Playoffs, NHL

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Random thoughts: Three things on my mind after a day of football and a week of hockey.

Posted on December 14, 2008 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment

Just some random activity in my grey matter…

No. 1…

 

As the Boston Bruins remain among the Top 3 teams in the National Hockey League, it’s been fun to watch the brilliant play of 33-year-old Shane Hnidy of Neepawa, Mb.

 

Here’s a guy who has bounced around the NHL for about eight seasons. He made it to the big time after toiling in the East Coast League and the American League. He’s been in Detroit (although he never actually played in Detroit), Ottawa, Nashville, Atlanta, Anaheim and Boston and now, he’s finally found a home — on the Bruins defence. 

 

And now that he’s averaging 20 minutes a game on a terrific team, it’s a good home, too.

 

No. 2…

 

Sean Avery is no longer a member of the Dallas Stars. The tough guy with the crazy mouth who made disparaging public comments about two ex-girlfriends has been dumped by Dallas.

 

Most hockey fans figured it was coming, but there is something just a tad disturbing about it. 

 

Frankly, it makes Dallas GM Brett Hull look really bad. In fact, it makes you wonder if Hull and the people around him have paid any attention to anything at all. Did they not know what they were getting when they signed Avery?

 

And No. 3…

 

I wonder how these big time mainstream media folks in Winnipeg, the one or two who clearly suggested the Minnesota Vikings were on the right track — and a better team — when Gus Frerotte took over as the team’s quarterback, feel about their ridiculous statements today?

 

Yesterday in Glendale, Arizona, Tarvaris Jackson pitched an almost perfect game for the Vikes – 11-for-17 for 163 yards four touchdowns, no interceptions and a 135.5 passer’s rating. He also turned and handed the ball to Adrian Peterson enough times so that Peterson could run for 165 yards on 28 carries.

 

That’s how the Vikings win (they won 35-14 in Arizona yesterday)  and that’s why T-Jack is the Vikings one and only quarterback. At least he’s the one and only quarterback if the Vikings expect to win in the post-season.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Blog, NFL, NHL

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Burke takes over. Leaf Nation Rejoices. But, ahh, what about the players?

Posted on November 29, 2008 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment

OK, Leaf Nation, I get it. Brian Burke is the answer to your prayers. He can’t play, but boy he can manage and that’s all you need, right?

He’s experienced and tough and no-nonsense and my gawd, the Toronto media seems to love him and heaven knows, if the Toronto media loves him, he must be near-perfect. Because, well, as everyone in Canada knows, if the always-right, never-wrong Toronto media loves you, you have to be good.

 

Burke, who was allowed to leave the Anaheim Ducks because, well, because he wasn’t doing anything there, was unveiled to the precious Toronto media yesterday and was immediately proclaimed to be “The Saviour.”

 

Make that Saviour No. 9 or 10, but yes, the man who turned the Vancouver Canucks from Stanley Cup contender to average hockey team (remember Dave Nonis traded for Roberto Luongo) and won a Stanley Cup with somebody else’s team in Anaheim (remember Bryan Murray and Al Coates built the Ducks’ Stanley Cup winner), is now the man who will give Toronto its first Stanley Cup since 1967.

 

There is something definitely wrong with this picture. 

 

Burke is the new president and general manager of the Leafs, a team that is, well, downright lousy. It was a burgeoning contender before John Ferguson Jr. was fired, but when Junior was let go and Cliff Fletcher took over as interim GM, he quickly made it one of the worst teams ever assembled. In fact, two of its best young players are now with the St. Louis Blues.

 

In fact, this team is so bad, that at $18 million over five years, Brian Burke is the fifth highest paid Leaf, behind Jason Blake, Tomas Kaberle, Pavel Kubina and Vesa Toskala.

 

Huh? If you were a struggling team in the NHL today, is there any one of those players you’d try to acquire in a trade? Not likely.

 

“This is like a dream come true for me,” Burke said at his news conference. “Coming to Toronto is like coming to the Vatican (ed. note: are you freakin’ kidding me?) if you’re a Catholic, it’s one of the most prestigious jobs on the planet. It’s a dream job, the crown jewel of the NHL. The Leafs are a brand known world wide (so are the Winnipeg Jets, still), so it is a dream come true.

 

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime to work for a team in a world-class city with passionate fans, solid ownership and a rich history,” Burke continued. “I can’t wait to get started.” 

 

Good, get started. It will be at least another 40 years before Toronto wins a Cup. And Brian Burke, who is little more than a bully, will take a lousy team and make it, at best, mediocre.

 

And the truly gifted Toronto media will scratch its collective pointed head and wonder what the heck happened.

 

After they lose confidence in him, gang up on the guy and run him out of town. 

 

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Blog, NHL

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

NHL free agency 2008: Perhaps this will end all the talk about Winnipeg and Quebec City. Of course, it might also ring the death knell for South Florida, Atlanta, Nashville and Phoenix.

Posted on July 3, 2008 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment

It’s free agent time in the NHL and the money spent this week bordered on the obscene. On Day 1, Tuesday  — Canada Day in Canada — the NHL spent about $400 million. On Day 2, it was closer to $150 million, but then, some of the signings were downright crazy.  If anybody continues to believe that Winnipeg or even Quebec City can play in this game, I would think they’re delusional. Even marginal players are getting gigantic contracts now that teams have a $56.7 million salary cap (and a $40.1 million floor).

Let’s look at some highlights: 

Marian Hossa signed with the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings. One year $7.4 million. And apparently, he turned down larger offers from other teams.

 

The Pittsburgh Penguins signed Evgeni Malkin to a five-year contract extension worth $43.5 million. The Pens also signed Brooks Orpik (Brooks freakin’ Orpik) to a six-year deal worth $22.5 million.

 

Dallas signed forward Sean Avery to a four-year, $15.5 million deal. Was that for the hockey skill or the comic relief.

 

Atlanta signed free agent defenceman Ron Hainsey — who!? — to a five year $22.5 million deal.

 

The Columbus Blue Jackets signed Kristian Huselius away from Calgary. Four years, $19 million.

 

Defenceman Brian Campbell signed an eight-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks which will pay him $7.1 million per season.

 

Anaheim signed restricted free agent Corey Perry to a five-year, $26.625 million deal and the Brian Burke blamed Edmonton GM Kevin Lowe for making the Ducks pay Perry that much money.

 

Washington re-signed star defenceman Mike Green, four years, $21 million.

 

Colorado signed unrestricted free agent forward Darcy Tucker to a two-year $4.2 million contract;

 

The Leafs signed Colorado free-agent defenceman Jeff Finger, four years $14 million and Dallas Stars’ free-agent defenecman Niklas Hagman, four-years $12 million. 

 

The Boston Bruins signed Michael Ryder and his 12 goals to a three year, $12 million contract.

 

New Jersey got Brian Rolston, four-years, $20.25 million.

 

The New York Islanders paid Montreal Canadiens unrestricted free agent Mark Streit, $20.5 million for five years. Huh???

 

And the New York Rangers signed defenceman Wade Redden away from Ottawa, six years, $39 million.

 

It was also reported that the Vancouver Canucks have free agent, ex-Leafs captain, Mats Sundin, a two-year contract worth $20 million. He turned it down. If he did, he’s completely insane so that offer probably wasn’t really on the table.

 

Some of these guys deserve big money. Ron Hainsey? Jeff Finger? Michael Ryder? My goodness gracious.

 

Hockey’s true financial armageddon is right around the corner. We should start a pool as to when the next team slips into bankruptcy. It hasn’t been that long since Pittsburgh was in court in 1998. 

 

This week’s spending spree made the lockout season look like one giant lie. You have to hope that after the sub-prime mortgage crisis, the rising food and gas prices, the War in Iraq and the slow, ugly death — read: outsourcing — of the U.S. industrial and manufacturing sectors, there will be money left to buy hockey tickets.

 

Funny, but I wouldn’t necessarily count on it.  

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Blog, NHL

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Is this the end result of the lockout? There could be more than 200 unrestricted free agents by next Tuesday.

Posted on June 25, 2008 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment

By next Tuesday, July 1, the National Hockey League could very well have more than 200 unrestricted free agents. 

Included on the list are Buffalo defenceman Teppo Numminen, Anaheim forward Teemu Selanne, Calgary forwards Kristian Huselius, Craig Conroy, Owen Nolan, Daymond Langkow and Stephane Yelle, Calgary goalie Curtis Joseph, Colorado veterans Peter Forsberg, John-Michael Liles, Jose Theodore, Andrew Brunette, Adam Foote and Joe Sakic, Detroit defencemen Andreas Lilja and Brad Stuart, L.A. Kings defenceman Rob Blake, Rangers veterans Sean Avery and Jaromir Jagr, Ottawa defenceman Wade Redden, Pittbsurgh’s Marian Hossa and Gary Roberts and two Manitobans from the New Jersey Devils, Arron Asham and Bryce Salvador.

Roberts and Hossa have already made it clear they won’t be re-signing with the Penguins, a team that must get long-term deals done in the next couple of years with Sidney Crosby, Marc-Andre Fleury, Jordan Staal and Evgeni Malkin.

Sakic won’t make a decision — and neither will the Avs — until Sakic becomes a free agent.

Jagr will probably sign with the Rangers, but Avery is headed to free-agency.

Calgary could be a completely different team season. 

This coming season, the salary cap will rise to $57 million. That’s quite a significant number and proves that having salaries tied to league revenue is a concept that makes incredible sense (too bad that dummy Bob Goodenow didn’t understand it and we lost an entire NHL season). In fact, when the NHL gassed a season to get a collective bargaining agreement, the league paid out $1.2 billion in player salaries. In 2008-09, it will, potentially, pay out $1.71 billion in salaries. And Goodenow didn’t like this idea? One gets the sense that if Goodenow wasn’t a lawyer, he’d qualify for Special Olympics.

Still, with $57 million to work with (and, granted, not all teams will use all $57 million in available salary cap money), many teams are watching closely how they spend their cash. Some teams want to get younger. They’ll let high-priced veterans go elsewhere. Some teams feel they are on the verge of a Cup run, they might chase a Selanne, Sakic or Hossa.

Regardless, there are more than 200 free agents because teams are counting their dollars before they make offers and those 29 teams that didn’t win the Cup are figuring that the players they had weren’t good enough so it might be time to look at somebody else.

This week, the Toronto Maple Leafs allowed Mats Sundin to negotiate with Montreal, released goalie Andrew Raycroft and forward Kyle Wellwood and bought out veteran winger Darcy Tucker. The Leafs are breaking down before they re-build and the one thing Cliff Fletcher said he would do, is find the money necessary to take a serious look at what’s available on hockey’s version of e-Bay.

This year, there will be plenty of free-agent action. In fact, it will be more fun than the draft. But the reason so many players have come free is that so many teams want to make sure they have the cap money available to get better.

On Tuesday, we start the NHL’s second season and it might be more interesting the the first. We’ve come to this point because the league now has a salary cap and the salary cap, at least one tied to revenues, is good, not only for competitive hockey, but for the players wallets.

Now all the league needs to do is get some of those financially weak U.S. teams to re-locate to Canada and then everybody will be better off. 

 

 

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Blog, NHL

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,