So, with that out of the way, here is my All Time Team USA
Line 1
LW- Joe Mullen
C- Mike Modano
RW- Pat LaFontaine
Line 2
LW- John LeClair
C- Doug Weight
RW- Brett Hull
Line 3
LW- Keith Tkachuk
C- Jeremy Roenick
RW- Tony Amonte
Line 4
LW- Dave Christian
C- Neal Broten
RW- Bill Guerin
Def. Pair 1
RD- Rod Langway
LD- Brian Leetch
Def. Pair 2
RD- Mark Howe
LD- Phil Housley
Def. Pair 3
RD- Chris Chelios
LD- Gary Suter
Goalies
1- Frank Brimsek
2- Tom Barrasso
3- John Vanbiesbrouck
Reserves
1- Ken Morrow- D
2- Mathieu Schneider- D
3- Patrick Kane- RW
4- Mike Ramsey- D
5- Zach Parise- LW
Line 1
This line would be scary quick. All 3 players have the unique ability to pass, shoot and dangle and are just as good at those abilitie as an Canadian.
Line 2
This line is nearly perfect but unfortunately, the USA has yet to deliver an elite playmaker ala Gretzky or Lemieux. Still though, near perfection is still going to give team's nightmares. I originally had JR on here but figured Weight's passing ability would take advantage of the 2 best US snipers ever.
Line 3
A fairly gritty line, no star defensive player but all 3 have the ability to play in their own end and cause trouble for opposition forwards.
Line 4
Again, no star defensive forward but still 3 guys who are well above average defensively.
Def. Pair 1
The perfect combination of offense and defence, Langway's sound defensive game would perfectly compliment Leetch's offensive game
Def. Pair 2
I'd like to officially change my pairings, here I would have Housley with CRAIG LUDWIG, same reasoning as above.
Def. Pair 3
And I'd move Mark Howe here with Chris Chelios. This would be the Top Pair on most countries teams but this shows the depth Team USA has on defence.
Goalies
Anyone nicknamed "Mr. Zero" has to be a starter. Barrasso would be the perfect back up with Beezer being one of the better 3rd stringers ever.
Reserves
The only problem with Team USA is their lack of depth up front, forcing me to choose 2 relatively unproven players in Kane and Parise. Don't get me wrong, when all is said and done, Kane and Parise could very well be Top 5 best US forwards ever.
Here's my first list. I know it's not a Top 10 but I've got a few on tap that I need a bit more time to complete so I'm starting my first Olympic themed list, My All Time Team Canada.
1st Line
LW- Wayne Gretzky
C- Mario Lemieux
RW- Maurice Richard
2nd Line
LW- Joe Sakic
C- Steve Yzerman
RW- Gordie Howe
3rd Line
LW- Guy LaFleur
C- Gilbert Perreault
RW- Mike Bossy
4th Line
LW- Ron Francis
C- Bob Gainey
RW- Marcel Dionne
Def. Pair 1
RD- Bobby Orr
LD- Doug Harvey
Def. Pair 2
RD- Larry Robinson
LD- Ray Bourque
Def. Pair 3
RD- Paul Coffey
LD- Denis Potvin
Goalies
1- Patrick Roy
2- Terry Sawchuk
3- Martin Brodeur
Reserves
1- Bobby Hull
2- Stan Mikita
3- Brad Park
4- Howie Morenz
5- Red Kelly
Line 1
The Greatest Playmaker, The Greatest 2 Way Center and the Original Power Forward. Gretzky and Lemieux with Richard would be an amazing sight to see. I really don't think theirs a defensive strategy in the history of hockey that could stop that line.
Line 2
I wanted this line to be a bit more defensively responsible, which is why I chose Mr. Hockey to be the RW over Mike Bossy.
Line 3
Not your typical 3rd line checking line but they'd be the best 3rd line in the history of hockey.
Line 4
You know you're deep on offense when Marcel Dionne is a 4th line checker.
Def. Pair 1
The 2 greatest defencemen in NHL history as you're top pairing would be like waking up in heaven with 40 virgins waiting for you. Harvey's defensive mind set would allow Orr to pretty much become the 4th forward on the ice.
Def. Pair 2
2 more of the greatest defencemen in history as a pairing. This would be my personal shutdown tandem.
Def. Pair 3
Coffey wasn't my first choice but I felt compelled to ave him because of his offensive game. I kind of wanted Park here but decided to give it to Coffey for Power Play purposes only.
Goalies
This proved tougher then expected. I really couldn't decide if I wanted Roy or Sawchuk as my starter. Ultimately, it came down to Roy's clutch OT play in the Playoffs. In hindsight, Brodeur may be the better option simply because of the 3, he'd be the one who's used to facing a low number of shots but I'm sticking to Roy.
Reserves
I know this may come as a surprise since I don't have Mark Messier anywhere on this team. Truth is, I couldn't find room for him. Theirs plenty of leadership and offense among the forwards that Messier becomes expendable. I could of had him as a reserve but I wanted 2 extra forwards and 2 extra defencemen along with the most versatile player in NHL history, Red Kelly., who can play both forward and defence.
Coach and GM
I knew I forgot something when making the list so here they are, my coaching staff and GM.
Head Coach- Scotty Bowman
Forwards Coach- Toe Blake
Defence Coach- Scott Stevens
Goalie Coach- Francois Allaire
Here's my view of the all-time toughest, meanest, and best team to play against. An all-star team might beat them, if they managed to last until the end of the game.
RW1 - Gordie Howe
C1 - Mark Messier
LW1 - Ted Lindsey
RW1 - Rocket Richard
C2 - Bobby Clarke
LW2 - Dave Schultz
As is our custom, the Guru and I have each submitted our itemized predictions for the upcoming hockey season. This year, not only did we each try to guess the exact order of the final standings, but in these waning days of the Summer of '09, I will also attempt to predict the outcome of every playoff series in the Spring/Summer of 2010.
You may recall that we had updated our playoff predictions back in April, so look for us to make some more informed picks next Spring. Think of these playoff picks as my long-term forecast, which is always less accurate, but more revealing of my personal biases.
But before we get to who I think will win the Cup, let's take a look at my regular season predictions:
2010 Final Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Montreal 2. Pittsburgh 3. Washington 4. New York Rangers 5. Boston 6. Ottawa 7. Carolina 8. Philadelphia 9. New Jersey 10. Buffalo 11. Toronto 12. Tampa Bay 13. New York Islanders 14. Atlanta 15. Florida
Western Conference
1. San Jose 2. Chicago 3. Calgary 4. Detroit 5. Anaheim 6. Vancouver 7. Minnesota 8. Los Angeles 9. Nashville 10. Dallas 11. Columbus 12. St. Louis 13. Edmonton 14. Phoenix 15. Colorado
And with that, I'll hand the mic over to the Guru.
Thanks, TD. I won't be making my playoff picks yet, but I will see your regular season picks and raise you some maths.
In an attempt to put a twist on the pre-season prognostications, the Guru is assigning percentages as far as likelihood of making the playoffs. Since 8 teams make the playoffs in each conference, the total percentage allocated = 800% (i.e. 8 "locks" = 8 teams at 100% each)
Eastern Conference
Philadelphia Flyers: 100% Pittsburgh Penguins: 99% Washington Capitals: 98% Boston Bruins: 80% Tampa Bay Lightning: 52% Florida Panthers: 51% New Jersey Devils: 47% Buffalo Sabres: 45%
Carolina Hurricanes: 44% New York Rangers: 39% Toronto Maple Leafs: 38% Ottawa Senators: 35% Atlanta Thrashers: 27% Montreal Canadiens: 25% New York Islanders: 20%
Western Conference
San Jose Sharks 100% Detroit Red Wings 99% Vancouver Canucks: 95% Chicago Blackhawks: 90% Calgary Flames: 85% Anaheim Ducks: 70% Columbus Bluejackets: 60% St. Louis Blues: 56%
Not sure if this is even interesting to me, after completing it, but I'm going to post it in case anybody finds this remotely interesting and perhaps some discussion can ensue in the Comments section.
Obviously I'm not too high on Dallas this year (to say nothing of Colorado). But the point I think I'm making is that in today's NHL there aren't a lot of surprises. Only a few teams missing the playoffs would really shock me and reasonable arguments can be made for pretty much every team that they will be in the playoffs this year.
Injuries will definitely play a part.
If a couple teams rank way higher or lower than you expect, drop me a line and we'll break it down, Ottawa Hockey League style. Back to you, TD.
Thanks, Guru.
Damn, I wish I had thought of that. I loves me some maths. Oh well. I'll steal that idea for baseball season. Meanwhile, here are my playoff predictions, as promised:
(1) SJ def. (8) LA (2) Chi def. (7) Min (6) Vcr def. (3) Cal (5) Anh def. (4) Det
Conference Semifinals
(8) Phi def. (4) NYR (6) Otw def. (7) Car
(6) Vcr def. (1) SJ (2) Chi def. (5) Anh
Conference Finals
(6) Otw def. (8) Phi (2) Chi def. (6) Vcr
And the Stanley Cup Finals will be over in 5 games, with the Hawks ending the league's longest drought (which will seem far less impressive when the Cubs win the World Series four months later).
I paraphrase the famous ten year old question, and put it to a 40-year old veteran: will the real John Smoltz please stand up?
Or Hell, sit down? Or just lay there? Whatever you did before your last game, when the Cards benefitted from your greatness.
Then!
I'll welcome Sierra Menace into the fold. As long as this guy streams his players more than Plano, I'm certain we'll get along.
Finally!
My guest tonight in the studio will be Dany Heatley.
I'll ask him not what he can do for the league, but what the league can do for him. Tonight ... on the Guru Report!
Welcome Nation. I know it's still only Olympic evaluation Camp time, and that hockey season doesn't even kick into first gear for another few couple of weeks, so I'll remember to include some more non-hockey material in tonight's episode. First up, it's Hockey Guru's segment called, "Balls ... for kids (of all ages)!"
Eager to have a top-of-the-rotation arm, particularly one pitching for the Red Sox, I drafted John Smoltz in several leagues this Spring.
His return has been ... shall we say ... less that stellar?
Even when he's getting outs, it feels like it is being done through smoke and mirrors. Why does age have to impact pitchers? Why did Ulf Samuelson's knee have to ruin Cam Neely's career? And why can't I drink and avoid hangovers anymore?
In late July, after Week 16 had ended, the Guru transformed into his alter-ego, Clubber Lang. Witnessing yet another bad week from my man Smoltz seemed to set me off. I responded to the Commish's Week 16 Awards™ with my own recap:
"I pity the fools that performed so poorly in Week 16 that it caused me pain - so much pain that this list is limited to one fool...
John Smoltz
There was more scoring off you this past week, John Smoltz, than there was off Paris Hilton - and don't forget it was Fleet week, fool!
You say you bad? You ain't so bad. You a chump.
All your records and history is made up against creampuff National League opponents, fool.
Now go score yourself some of that HGH - I got plenty of the stuff in Clubber Lang's Laboratory. C'mon fool, you part of the chemistry team, now ..."
Moving on!
We here at the Clubhouse would like to take this opportunity to welcome Sierra Menace to the league. It's always great to see the Yankees rebranded and run outta New York, even if they were a 20th place team this season.
Sierra was joined soon after by another expansion owner, Gloucester Expos, who took over the unfortunately named Gobble Gobble Gobble team.
So to help acclimate them to their new surroundings, the Guru has a few things that you both should know...
TRADER DICK ISN'T YELLING WHEN HE POSTS IN ALL CAPS, SO DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT
Billy Bradski is probably not the real Jesus - no miracles have been performed by him to date. Perhaps he is employing his avatar in the hope that we bow down before him and let him win?
On your first day, you've already posted more Season-to-date messages than half the league. I apparently missed the memo about the rule that this is supposed to be the OttawaHockeyLeague Library Edition
Never disrespect Aaron Hill - it is critical that his value in this league does not get questioned. That issue has the potential to shut the league down, entirely
Anyway, it's great to see someone who can give the Commish a run for his money in the Total Transactions department. Unfortunately for Nepean, he forgot to include that column as a scoring category, which is why he'll never see the Top Ten.
Moving on!
My guest tonight is none other than Ottawa Senators forward, Dany Heatley. Let's give him a hand, Nation - Dany Heatley!!
...
[silence]
...
[*crickets, crickets*]
...
Ummmm Tito? Our producer, Tito O'Dell in the booth, everyone ... Tito, you there? What's going on? Where's tonight's guest?
He what?!? Just because we took him out of the first segment and replaced him with that John Smoltz piece?
Did you explain to him that he's still an important component of the show? Or that he is guaranteed more than one-third of the air-time AND he is playing the third act, aka the powerplay segment of the show?
And he still won't join us? I don't get it ...
What's that? He was booked to go on The Nightly Show with Plano Flames, then quickly cancelled his appearance in Alberta as well? What a turd. Do we have any video of that? Roll it, Tito:
You know what? Screw him. We'll do this segment without him, and probably have better chemistry to boot.
Ladies and gentlemen, Nation, it’s time for the formation of the DHL – the Dany Heatley League. There’s no room for him in the NHL anymore. In fact, the DHL doesn’t need to be limited to hockey players only – it can be a league for all athletes that are simply entitled to everything.
Society has moved so far away from accountability it’s ridiculous. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time nor probably the last time we see this garbage take place.
The outrage, disappointment and utter contempt this creates among fans is like seeing Santa Claus steal your flat screen TV. It’s something that just shouldn’t happen. It’s just plain wrong. Unfortunately, fans will root for him again. He will be loved again – not because of who he is – but merely because of the sweater he’ll pull over his shoulder pads.
His legacy is tarnished forever. He can’t un-ring that bell. Hopefully he’ll never land in the Hall of Fame (if his numbers even end up supporting his case), because voters and fans simply won’t want to honour somebody that brought dishonour to the sport.
Having the talent and opportunity to play professional sports is something that 99% of society can never fully understand. However, that 99% of society spends absurd amounts of money which gets channeled into the pockets of those gifted few.
Dany Heatley capitalized on his skills and abilities and chose to sign a 6-year $45 million dollar contract with Ottawa and required a no movement clause in that contract.
When you sign a contract like that, both you and the team lose the right to move on.
In his August 21st press conference, he claimed that he requested a trade because he felt his role had been reduced in Ottawa. Awwww, poor baby. It's an embarrassment to him, his agent and his parents that he wasn't raised to understand the importance of accountability and responsibility.
He’s guaranteed the money, but you can’t be guaranteed the ice time. That is earned. If you don’t like your role, then bust your ass and improve your role. Dany reduced his own role ever since separating his shoulder against Detroit in December 2007. Since that time, he plays mostly on the periphery looking for the big wind-up slapshot.
If he wanted out of Ottawa, he should have offered to have Ottawa tear up the contract. (Not that that would have been legal in today's NHL, unlike when Daniel Alfredsson cancelled his last contract). At the very least, let Ottawa trade his rights to whichever team makes the best offer. He’s not a free agent and shouldn’t control the process. On the open market he wouldn’t even sniff the contract he is currently paid under.
Now he wants to be given a role that may not be deserved?
Meet me over on camera 3, Mr. Heatley.
Okay, you listening Dany? If you truly love the fans of Ottawa and the city of Ottawa, then bust your ass and earn the role you want to have. Earn your contract. Become an MVP candidate.
Given his life's experiences so far, he shouldn’t be feeling sorry for himself. Rather he should be thanking his lucky stars that he continues to have the opportunities he has, and he should never have requested the trade in the first place.
At this point, there probably aren’t too many NHL teams that really want to bring in an overpaid star that wants his role given to him rather than earning his ice time. It’s the wrong message for an organization to send its players, its’ the wrong message for the league and it’s the wrong message for sports.
The Guru says trade him to the KHL so he can play with his apparent mentor - Alexei Yashin. Or better yet, create the DHL and simply let him go away and rot.
Earlier this summer, in a stunning move, the Atlanta Braves released baseball's winningest pitcher, just when he was ready to return to the big leagues.
I'll find out if the recession has hit Ted Turner, or if he's just being as cheap as Jane Fonda says he is.
Then!
I'll break with baseball tradition and speak openly about that of which we dare not speak.
Finally! I'll recap the standings from our playoff hockey pool. Mmmm....there's nothing like fresh hockey scores in August. Tonight....on the Guru Report....
Welcome, welcome Nation. I trust all nine of you have enjoyed your summers. Here at the Clubhouse, we've taken a few months off to try our hand at baseball, and I just want to say one thing off the top.
Baseball is the best because you never spill your beer no matter how crazy the play is. The annual dry cleaning bill for my fishsticks jersey is enough to send Mr. Lam's daughter to university in Ottawa, so it's nice to be able to sit back and watch a relaxing ball game and get less beer on me, than in me.
But then I remembered that you can't be angry while you're relaxed....unless, of course, you're Charles Bronson. I tried several times, but no dice. So I went to the closet, pulled out my vintage Clark Gillies sweater and got my game face on....well, at first I had to wear my wife's exfoliating mask, cuz after a few months I couldn't remember where my game face was. But then I found it, so it was cool.
Just in time, too, cuz it was NOT cool the way the Braves were treating a legend.
The 43-year-old Glavine, who was coming back from shoulder and elbow surgery, threw six scoreless innings for Class A Rome on a Tuesday night in June and proclaimed himself ready to pitch in the majors again. Instead, the Braves cut him immediately. Just another move that figures to draw the ire of Atlanta fans after the team failed to re-sign John Smoltz during the offseason. Glavine was the winningest active pitcher in the majors with a record of 305-203. The move could be based on financial considerations. Glavine's $3.5 million deal, signed after the start of spring training, included a $1 million bonus when he was placed on the active roster and $1.25 million each for 30 and 90 days on the active roster.
Sounds to me like somebody's paying some extra-high alimony to ol' Hanoi Jane.
Moving on.
Something I noticed this summer on more than one occasion - the MLB Network has, more than once, cut in live to games that are progressing as no-hitters. In the studio, however, there is no avoidance of the phrase "no hitter", which has always been the tradition in the past.
In early June, ESPN sent out text messages alerting people that Beckett had a no-hitter going into the seventh. Dennis Eckersley, on the Red Sox own broadcast, must have said "no-hitter" fifty times.
So of course, in the bottom of the seventh Beckett loses the no-hit bid - and to the guy who Eckersley had repeatedly claimed that Beckett just plain owned. Eck assured us that Curtis Granderson would be an easy strikeout.
I don't think those mentions of a no-hitter or the alerts were the reason the no-hitter was broken up - but I do like the tradition of not talking about it. The tap dance around the term is part of the intrigue to me - just like a shutout in hockey.
Anyhow, I just wanted to see what the opinions of others were.
The closest no-hitter that I saw which really stung when it was broken up:
Curt Schilling versus Oakland, which was broken up with 2 outs in the ninth, I believe. Watching on television is a little bit different from being "live" at an event, but it is still cool to be part of a no-hitter as it occurs. As a Sox fan, I've watched several no-hitters. A few that were awesome and a couple that absolutely sucked.
The first, and worst, of my life? The 4th of July, Red Sox at Yanks. I spent the day watching at my parents' friends' house without air conditioning in about a million degree heat. I'm pretty sure that it was Dave Righetti who threw it. Another shit-tastic no hitter was Chris Bosio for Seattle mowing down the Sox in a late night game on the West Coast. There's nothing better than staying up to see absolutely nothing happen. I wish I could be more open to seeing greatness as a fan, but I hated it. A classic (apparent) no-hitter, which was later taken away, was when Matt Young threw a no-no and lost, giving up about three runs on no hits.
I used to tape almost every one of Pedro's starts - waiting to save his no hitter - but it never came. I did, however, watch and tape the end of the Nomo No-No against Baltimore. Unfortunately, I was out of town for my anniversary, listening to the radio during the Derek Lowe no hitter. I was, and still am, a huge Derek Lowe fan - the guy liked to party and the guy really liked chicks. Finally, the Clay Buchholz no-hitter was unreal, watching it unfold in the September atmosphere of Fenway.
The second closest I ever came to witnessing a no-no live and in person was when Greg Harris threw a 3-hitter against the Yanks and still lost (I think the Yanks' pitcher put up a 2-hitter, himself), but the closest I ever came was a much happier occasion, seeing Crazy Carl Everett break up Mike Mussina's bid.
[At this point, the Guru's brain won't stop playing, "No No No" by Def Leppard. Is anyone else reminded of that song when using the term, "no-no"?]
Moving on.
After trying to pick up the ball from Nepean, who dropped it when he stopped updating our Playoff Hockey Pool, the Guru also ended up dropping the ball.
It really didn't matter, though.
Since the previous update (my team had Nepean's team in a strangle-hold), I believe my team advanced to the Finals. Yeah. We'll go with that.
(It really, really didn't matter).
Meanwhile, Appalachia Christian had Toronto beat going into Round 2 by virtue of owning the same (and additional) players. Toronto was without a mathematical chance to catch him.
So the Finals pitted Appalachia versus the Clubhouse, but Appie had the series won before it began, yet again.
Therefore, we can safely crown Appalachia Christian as the Ottawa Hockey League Playoff Hockey Pool Champion. Congrats! Well Done! You may drink from the cup!
Well that's about all we have for tonight's installment of the Guru Report. Be sure to tune in regularly for more frequent updates, especially now with hockey season gearing up. And be sure to watch tomorrow's episode, when my guest in the studio will be Dany Heatley.
Heatley? Really? Wow, that's a good guest. Are we sure that he'll be here, Tito? Yeah? He committed to this show the day before last? Cool. I guess that means he's under contract to us and we can expect him to be here, as per that contract, so look for that.
Sorry about the technical difficulties yesterday. I should have realized that there might have been some of you out there in the Guru Nation, who might make Jacques Demers look like an Honours English major. In stead, I expected you to read the actual script for the previous episode of The Guru Report.
Now that I have located the master tape [thanks, TD], you can now view the episode in its full HiDef glory, the way it was meant to be broadcast. So grab yourself some popcorn and curl up with your loved ones because...
How quickly we forget. It's amazing how the last impression we get sticks with us.
Going into the playoffs, Chris Osgood looked like an obvious flaw in Detroit's Perfect Machine. It was like the hot chick at the bar, who turns around to reveal a nose like Gonzo the Muppet - so close to perfection, but just not going to work out. Osgood was a glaring problem to experts like me, in Detroit's attempted Cup run this year. And not subtly, like Seinfeld's issue with "Man Hands".
But as the Wings rolled into the Cup Finals, and through Games 1 & 2, we changed our collective tune to:
"Osgood is the most underappreciated goalie ... Ozzie is the greatest clutch goalie ... "
Going back a few days, however, to immediately after Games 1 & 2 (which could have clearly gone either way ... a couple posts, a covered puck in the crease called for a penalty shot, a different bounce off the end boards, and this series could've been a Pittsburgh sweep), all of the experts, the Guru included (note the capital G - someone's a little full of themselves) were saying:
"Detroit is simply awesome ... this is over ... there's no way Pittsburgh or anyone could win 4 of 5 from Detroit ... too bad for hockey ... this had the makings of a great series ... imagine that Detroit is doing this without Datsyuk ... "
It was OVER.
Then, a tremendous second period effort by Fleury and Pittsburgh found themselves tied up midway through the third period in game 3. Capitalizing on their powerplay, Pittsburgh pulls out Game 3 and maybe, just MAYBE the experts again felt that this could become a series.
After a second consecutive 4-2 victory on Thursday night, Pittsburgh squares the series. Now all the experts jump from one bandwagon to the other:
"Detroit is just getting old ... Pittsburgh has all the momentum now ... Osgood is vulnerable ... "
Well, let the Guru now also re-align his own thoughts.
Pittsburgh was down 2-0 to Washington and roared back to a 3-2 lead and eventually blew Washington out in Game 7.
Pittsburgh seems healthy, particularly up front. I LOVE what Dan Bylsma is doing, playing Crosby and Malkin a ton (something that the Bruins failed to do, as their goal was to simply roll 4 lines, no matter what, in case the series contained 17 overtime periods, I guess). Now is the opportunity for star players to seize the moment. With Malkin and/or Crosby on the ice for two-thirds of the game, there is constant pressure applied to the opponent.
Detroit has focused so much on the matchups and awareness of those two, that they've lost a bit of focus on their own game. They've become reactive while Pittsburgh is being proactive. That's the difference in the series, right now.
Going into this Best-of-Three for the hardest trophy to win in all of sports, here's my current breakdown:
Crosby and Malkin are close and they want it WAY more than anyone on Detroit.
Detroit has drank from the Cup a lot and can't match the drive the leaders of Pittsburgh have right now.
Fleury is more able to steal a game than Osgood, at this point. Although, we've learned never to write Ozzie off, this seems like a pretty clear advantage for Fleury.
The Guru is leaning toward Pittsburgh (of course, his rooting interest in this series has been there all along and he may be getting carried away with the short memory syndrome).
Pavel Datsyuk is a wild card - what kind of impact will he bring tonight?
Will the home ice and line-matching ability make it easier for Detroit to get the matchups they want and focus on their own game more?
Which way will the puck bounce tonight?
Aren't we due for an overtime in this series soon?
The schedule from here on out may favor Detroit a bit with the multiple days off between games the rest of the way
Peace to all those who read this post. Your comments, reactions and criticisms are wanted!
We are currently in the midst of the first Stanley Cup Finals in a number of years, that is clearly undecided, through the first four games. It's time for the Hockey Guru to post a few comments / random thoughts:
Is there really justice in the NHL? The suspension issues mentioned in several previous installments of The NHL Needs a Fix, prove the league's consistent inconsistency. That is, suspensions continue to be given not given in a bizarre, haphhazard manner.
While I am in agreement with the overturning of Malkin's suspension, how was Lucic's suspension justifiable? Moreso, how could Scott Walker not only avoid a suspension, but avoid an "automatic" suspension that required the league to overturn it? Lucic was suspended for the same infraction. It's foolish.
The Stanley Cup Finals may be teaching a lesson to the league offices. Let the players sort things out on the ice. The more the off ice officials back away, the more the game takes care of itself.
The on-ice officiating has been great. Not calling every ticky-tack "interference" allows the game to have some flow and not evolve into half-court basketball, with alternating powerplays rather than alternating possessions.
In Thursday night's Game 4, after Staal's shortie, The Igloo was ROCKING and play was fast and frantic. (Until a certain bank - I'm looking at you, Tito O'Dell - adds money to Mario's coffers, it will remain The Igloo).
Have a look for yourself:
I commented to a friend that someone was going to score. It could have easily been Detroit, but play opened up and culminated in Sid's goal.
The action in this final series has been great. Unfortunately, there are only two or three games left.
Got a note this morning concerning this dormant site and the current hockey series.
I hadn't expected to post here anymore, but to give the Guru more visibility for his newest thoughts on the playoffs, the least I could do is provide this link to bump his comments to the top of all of the wreckage that my flawed basketball pool became.
Re-reading the old predictions now is plenty fun, but scroll down to the bottom of that link for the Guru's latest mental ruminations. (Not that kind of mental)
Check back shortly, and I'll properly bump his newest column to the top of the page.
Duke's Bagley to miss 4th game with knee sprain
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DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- Duke says Marvin Bagley III will miss his fourth
straight game with a knee sprain.
Team spokesman Mike DeGeorge announced Bagley's s...
