by Edward Fraser - May 28, 2008 11:08 AM EDT
The Penguins trail the final 2-0, but if you're already handing the Cup to the Wings you're fooling yourself.
I normally blog on Thursday, but I asked good man and good friend Adam Proteau if we could switch because I have to get something off my chest after listening to fan and media buzz as the NHL final moves to Steeltown…
Since mere milliseconds after the final buzzer of Game 2, words from high and low, east and west have had the Red Wings hoisting their 11th Stanley Cup in club history as an undeniable inevitability.
by Edward Fraser - May 22, 2008 10:29 AM EDT
The Stanley Cup final is set, but before it begins, we hand out awards to the best players of the third round.
Despite valiant comeback attempts from the Flyers and Stars, the East and West championship series lost luster after both the Penguins and Wings jumped out to near-insurmountable leads before finally advancing.
by Edward Fraser - May 15, 2008 2:06 PM EDT
Kudos to the Coyotes for pursuing a marketing campaign on the links with Jeff Quinney.
Let’s face facts, Phoenix is hardly a hotbed of hockey, so any way you can draw local attention to the sport – even if that attention comes from golf fans – you have to go for it.
by Edward Fraser - May 8, 2008 11:00 AM EDT
In preparation for the conference finals, we award the best performances of the second round... and does anyone want to be a mascot?
Even though the drama dipped in the second round – save for Dallas-San Jose Game 6 – the quality of hockey has remained incredibly high.
by Edward Fraser - May 1, 2008 12:06 AM EDT
Thornton and Marleau must be more than just OK if the Sharks' comeback is to continue.
Truth told, Dallas-San Jose Game 4 was a bit of a dud compared to tilts one, two and three, but unlike the previous trio of games, the Sharks ultimately found a way to win.
by Edward Fraser - April 24, 2008 10:36 AM EDT
The second round is ready to start tonight, but first, here are some awards based on first round performance; and The Great Predictor.
Before the second round kicks off with a couple of games Thursday night, I figured I’d hand out some hardware for one of the most exciting first rounds the NHL has seen in recent years.
by Edward Fraser - April 19, 2008 10:14 AM EDT
Down 3-1, Anaheim could have thrown in the towel, but a Game 5 victory has this series back in reach for the defending champs.
The excuses were all lined up, ready to use.
• Everybody was gunning for the defending champs;
• Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer both missed significant chunks of the regular season;
• UFA signing Todd Bertuzzi was a bust;
• Injuries (Corey Perry, Samuel Pahlsson; Rob Niedermayer; Bertuzzi; Mathieu Schneider) and a suspension (Chris Pronger) to key players meant the team never played together as a whole;
• An ill-approved European adventure followed by a grueling road trip to open the season.
by Edward Fraser - April 16, 2008 11:54 PM EDT
Detroit's goalie conundrum... Preds' summer plans... beauty and the beasts... and how the playoffs would look without the loser point.
Man, oh man did it stink to be a Red Wings or Predators fan (or blogger) north of the border Wednesday night.
Flipping on the ol’ boob tube to catch the puck drop, hopeful watchers were instead welcomed with the third period of the isn’t-this-over-yet Sens-Pens Game 4 matchup.
by Edward Fraser - April 9, 2008 11:47 AM EDT
The playoffs aren't usually a time when rookies shine, but this year there are a few you should look out for.
First things first, the playoffs are not a time for rookies.
Storylines surrounding the NHL’s second season focus on players who’ve had long, illustrious careers, but have been unable to reach the NHL’s tallest hill (see Teemu Selanne in ‘07 and Jeremy Roenick this year); not about players trying to claim the grail their first time around.
by Edward Fraser - April 3, 2008 11:25 AM EDT
Dallas could start the playoffs without a key piece... a showdown in Miami... Bertuzzi's struggles... and Philly is flyin'.
A few random thoughts bouncing around my head as the season winds down…
A little more than a week ago, Dallas was my pick to win the Stanley Cup, but after learning Sergei Zubov may not be ready for the playoffs I’m thinking of joining the majority of my officemates in swimming with the Sharks.
by Edward Fraser - March 27, 2008 11:43 AM EDT
The April 1 edition of The Hockey News magazine ranked the league's GMs from top to bottom. Now that the dust has settled, Edward ranks them based on trade deadline performance.
In the April 1 edition of The Hockey News magazine, senior writer Ken Campbell – after speaking with several knowledgeable hockey insiders to solicit their opinion – takes a no-foolin’-around approach at ranking the NHL’s GMs 1-30, based on their career body of work, with a sharp focus on this season.
by Edward Fraser - March 20, 2008 10:51 AM EDT
Knocking the Norris King from his throne is hard to do... Is Pogge better than Price?... and Big D's Burrito Supreme.
A few postulations while poring over the pages of The Hockey News magazine…
• On the Opinion Page of the April 1 edition, Mike Loftus of the Patriot Ledger makes a compelling argument for Zdeno Chara being given serious consideration for the Norris Trophy (the award given to the NHL’s best defenseman, for those of you new to the sport).
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"We're playing the defending champs and you can tell they're not going to beat themselves. That team, just from them going all the way, you can see it over there. There's no panic…You can tell that's a machine over there and we've got to be at our best."
- San Jose's Scott Gomez on the Los Angeles Kings. Los Angeles leads the series 2-1.
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