Marian Hossa was a late scratch and his condition was later revealed to be an upper body injury. Hossa’s loss didn’t help the cause but the Bruins have been the superior club for most of the series. By my count in nine of 13 periods of hockey, including overtime, Boston has had the edge in play.

The Hossa injury caught everyone off guard. Joel Quenneville commented after Game 2 his team was healthy. Then Monday night following the loss he mentioned of being aware during the day that Hossa playing would be a game time decision. After Hossa took part in the pre-game skate it was decided he wouldn’t play.

What makes the incident sketchier is Ben Smith, who was inserted in the lineup as Hossa’s replacement, did not skate in the warm-ups. It seems that if there was any chance Hossa would be unable to start Smith should have skated with the team before the game.

It’s too early for Blackhawk fans to panic but the warning flags should be up. Monday night’s game wasn’t as close as the score would indicate. Some great work by Corey Crawford kept the Hawks in the contest. Once again Tuukka Rask was in fine form but he wasn’t severely tested. The Blackhawk forwards were kept out on the perimeter for the entire night.

Boston doesn’t score much and they don’t have to the way the Hawks offense and power play has been performing. What the Bruins do well is play a simple effective game night after night. They have been the more consistent club, it really hasn’t been close. When Boston does score their chances have come from prime goal scoring areas, places where the Hawks forwards can’t seem to find.

Read more: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/22620359/chicago-blackhawks-cant-solve-the-bruins-and-are-shutout-2-0-in-game-3#ixzz2WaIZdVvR

BOSTON, MA – After Daniel Paille’s overtime game-winner on Saturday evened the series at one game apiece, the Stanley Cup Final would shift east to Boston’s TD Garden for Game 3 between the Bruins and Blackhawks on Monday evening. Fortunately for the crowd of 17, 565 that packed into the building for this one, the home-standing Bruins were able to come away with an impressive 2-0 shutout victory over the ‘Hawks.

The Bruins stormed out of the gate in the early going, controlling play in the Chicago end for the first handful of minutes in the opening period. However, the Blackhawks were able to recover from their slow start and finish the period strong, though neither team was able to get on the board in the opening twenty. The unexpected absence of super-star sniper Marian Hossa, who reportedly suffered an upper-body injury during pre-game warm-ups, had to have had a huge impact on the ‘Hawks, both on the ice and off.

In the second period, it was Boston who would break the scoreless tie. Game 2 hero Daniel Paille corralled a loose puck in front of the goal and fired a wrist shot high-glove side that beat Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford and put the Bruins ahead, 1-0, at the 2:13 mark of the middle frame.

Boston would add to their lead later in the period after being given a chance with a 5-on-3 power-play. With both Dave Bolland and Niklas Hjalmarsson in the penalty box for Chicago, the B’s would double their lead to 2-0. With puck possession down low at the side of the goal, Jaromir Jagr slid a beautiful cross-ice pass over to Patrice Bergeron, who rifled it into the back of the net for his seventh goal of the playoffs.

Throughout the third period, the intensity of the game clearly ramped up a few levels as the physicality on both sides came to the forefront in a couple of post-whistle scrums. The Blackhawks were given two separate opportunities to climb back into the game with the man-advantage, but on both occasions, the Bruins’ penalty-kill unit was equal to the task. The power-play continues to be an unexpected deficiency in this series for Chicago, as the ‘Hawks are now scoreless on eleven attempts with the man-advantage.

“We know they’ve got some great players on that other team. Our penalty kill has to be at its best” said Boston head coach Claude Julien. “It really got better as the playoffs went on. Again, it just continues to give us some help in these games. I think killing those has really given our bench a boost”, he added.

One final scrum would break out in front of the Boston net with less than fifteen seconds left in regulation, resulting in a pair of penalties for each team, but the result of this Game 3 had already been determined. When the final seconds ticked off the clock, the Boston Bruins had captured a 2-0 victory, and in the process, a 2-1 series lead over the Blackhawks.

With Monday’s shutout victory over Chicago, the Bruins improve their record to an incredibly impressive 11-0-2 over the course of their last 13 postseason games. In fact, the last time any team was able to defeat the B’s in regulation was back on May 12 in Game 6 of their first round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. It’s become quite clear that the Black and Gold have been playing their best hockey of the season over the past month.

“I think it’s the energy in the game, the effort.  You see our guys, like I said, they’re back-checking, having layers, so when somebody makes a mistake, you have somebody covering up. We’re blocking alot of shots” said Julien, when asked to describe how his team has been so successful as of late. “The commitment is totally there.”

Ben’s Three Stars of the Night: 

1)  Daniel Paille (1 Goal/Plus-1 Rating)

2) Patrice Bergeron (1 Goal/7 Shots)

3) Tuukka Rask (28 Saves)

Series: Boston Leads, 2-1. 

Looking Ahead: Game 4 is set for Wednesday at 8:00 PM in Boston.

Thanks For Reading!

“LIKE” Us On Facebook: HockeyIndependent Bruins

Give Me A Shout On Twitter! : @BWoodward_HI

Or You Can E-Mail Me At BWoodward.HI@gmail.com

The defence played scared, the forwards appeared disinterested and the Powerplay looked to have as much organization as my last minute college presentations. This was all after the outstanding 1^st period, of course, on Saturday night in Chicago.

The Blackhawks must come with a more complete effort or this run will all be for not. There’s not much to say other than the Hawks could have used help on that goal called back on Jonathan Toews in the 1^st frame. Not only would that have given them a nice 2 goal lead (which might not have mattered anyway), but it may have gotten Captain Serious back on the scoresheet in the most positive way possible.

In closing, it was just an awful overall effort.

Yes, that is all I have to say. Game #3 goes tonight in Boston.

Ty’s Tidbits

~ It seems to be a trend that whenever I write about an individual player, they make me look like a turkey. Niklas Hjalmarsson has been a completely different player in the finals, and not in a good way. The Hawks rock on the backend has looked like a timid rookie against the B’s. Look for him to turn it up from here on out, he possesses too much composure for this to continue. Or if I want my trend to carry on, he’ll be even worse… worst player on the Hawks.

~ Victor Stalberg didn’t show any signs of remorse when Coach Q put him back into the lineup after a short benching vs. Detroit in the 2^nd round. Let’s see how he responds tonight as he checks in on the 4^th line.

~ If Patrick Kane has issues gaining ground with 5 on 5 play then the Hawks need him to be a force on the PP when we has room. Not to single him out as the units with the extra man are all to blame for their play but 1 PP assist the ENTIRE playoffs is simply not good enough.

~ Finally, I don’t want to take anything away from the Bruins. Their play has been a little up and down so far through 2 games, however, they were 100% the better team and showed sheer dominance from the 2^nd period onwards through the last game. They have the confidence and a balanced attack that the Hawks need to fear.

Ty Cam out!
(@tycam)

Since then, the noise has been more about what next. Anytime you have a 63 acre plot of real estate sitting around in NassauCounty next to a highway or two, developers start get aroused. Islanders fans who thank Charles Wang for saving the Islanders back in 2000 conveniently forget why he bought the team – 63 acres of land sitting next to a highway or two in NassauCounty. The “Hockey for Dummies” book gimmick was cute, but it probably held a grain of truth to it- the team wasn’t the reason he and criminal supergenius Sanjay Kumar bought the team. And it wasn’t long after a few free agents and trades happened that brought some newfound heat to the team when we started to hear about the Lighthouse Project. Islander fans overlooked that the deal was going to be funded by the Chinese equivalent of the Yakuza, because we wanted a winning team. But this is the past, and was really well hashed out here: 

In the present, there are four offers to do something with this super valuable plot of land. Like every other op-ed piece, we’re going to discuss what we think. Unlike every other piece, we’re doing it from the perspective that we share with a few Long Islanders- as neighbors.

A dump, yes. But OUR dump.

You see, the authors of this blog are basically neighbors to the arena. One of us lives bight by Newbridge Road in Bellmore, the other just off of Hempstead Turnpike in East Meadow. Neither is more than 10 minutes away from the arena. We know the backroad routes to the Coliseum, either via Glenn Cutriss Boulevard, the EisenhowerPark passthrough, Front Street to Uniondale Avenue, Endo through NCCC, or the Charles Lindberg train crossing path. We’ve parked at Champions. We know where Dr. Generosity was/is. One of us even worked in Uniondale for a while. We’re local. And generally, local makes you sound like a hick. However, local makes us VERY interested in what takes the place of what for us has functioned like a home away from home for a long time. And by home away from home we mean a place that has functioned as a living room, a kitchen, a bar, a bathroom, and a bedroom.

To summarize the offers:

1)     Blumenfeld Development Group, headed by Ed Blumenfeld – who was against EVERYTHING there not proposed by this group in 3 prior land grab attempts- wants to build a brand new arena. Good for him. Blumenfeld is partnering with SMG, who Islanders fans know all to well as a douchebags, so this makes us already think that he shouldn’t win development rights. If you can’t pick a decent business partner, it speaks volumes to your judgement. Blumenfeld is right- the area could use a brand new arena. Sadly, that was 5 years ago. Then maybe the area wouldn’t have lost its biggest tenant. However, this is the only plan involving building a brand new building, so it is unique. And Blumenfeld did offer to buy a minor league hockey team to be a tenant, so that gives some second rate city could have another reason to hate New York, which is another plus. Overall, not a bad proposal per building, but we’re looking for more than architecture- we want function.

2)     New York & Sports Entertainment LLC, headed by Bernard Shereck, thinks a revamped arena could work. He’s not alone in this thought. He wants to bring in an East Coast Hockey League team and an indoor lacrosse team into the arena. Maybe he forgot that an indoor lacrosse team already tried that? Does he want to bring in an arena football team as well? This plan puts forth the least effort in terms of money and vision, is awful…and so it’ll likely be chosen. But it absolutely should not.

These first two are local developers, and thus they get first dibs in the “local guy” piece here. And really, a new arena is the best plan if you like buildings. But its more about the content, and neither of these two offers came with anything impressive in that realm. Lacrosse? Sorry, there’s plenty of free, exciting lacrosse happening at most high schools on Long Island. Onto the next two:

3)     MadisonSquareGarden, headed by James Dolan, wants to renovate the Coliseum and build an entertainment district called Long Island Live, which would be a mix of places to eat and look at stuff- think of it as a Dave and Busters for 5,000. MSG is partnering with Scott Rechler, who had previously chosen to partner with Charles Wang in developing the arena. See previous comment on choosing bad partners. Also, MSG wants to bring in either Knicks or Rangers minor league teams, and want to give Long Island a professional tenant- the New York Liberty of the WNBA. OUCH. From Doctor J to furry vajayjay. From a professional sports legendary dynasty to our enemy’s minor league squad. How far have we fallen, Long Island?

4)     ForestCity, let by Bruce Ratner, stole the Islanders away from a sleeping NassauCounty. He wants to rebuild the arena, like most proposals. He also wants to create an “entertainment district,” whatever that means. He wants to work with the Marriott to build an exhibition hall- again, see comment on awful partners and taste. Ratner is planning a smaller arena on the grounds akin to Westbury Music Fair, and an outdoor theatre just like the one 500 feet away at EisenhowerPark. He wants to bring in a minor league hockey team- maybe the Sound Tigers for an Islanders connection? There would be possible Nets exhibition games, which would be nice. And Ratner offered 6 Islander games, and we’re totally speculating in thinking that would come with the opportunity for Islanders training camp and exhibition games like the one happening at the Barclays this upcoming season.

You would expect that Islander fans would jump at that last proposal. Six home games a year is probably more games than most fans attend. A smaller arena would mean higher ticket prices, and the novelty could make it a hot ticket. Besides, 13,000 seats are more than they currently average for attendance. Connecting a team to its history is a thoughtful gesture. Bringing in their minor league squad gives us a glimpse of what the future of the Islanders would hold, and Brooklyn isn’t all that far away- it’s on the same island!

But Islander fans have an emotional connection to their team. It’s not just a game- it’s a passion, A love. What else do people love? Girlfriends/boyfriends. Think of the Islanders as your girlfriend. What if some other guy stole her away, but she still hung around for a few random dates, just to remind you of old times? Then she offers to set you up with her ugly friend? There’s an awful lot of self abuse in that offer. But being self abusive really isn’t new territory when you’re an Islanders fan.

But what’s the alternative? The MSG offer? That’s basically having your ex’s new partner move in next door, and with a very accessible view of the bedroom. It would be nothing short of AWFUL to have Rangers affiliated home games at the Coliseum. The thought makes us wretch. We’d bring the hammers ourselves and knock the thing down first. And this whole, weird Islanders themed bar? To stick with the ex theme, it’s like seeing his/her clothes in the bedroom to boot. Its a weird, dumb idea. Way to go Nassau- here’s a reminder of your failure, complete with hot wings.

So, what’s the local guy take here? We want something to do. Islanders games are sort of a ritual for us- a ritual involving rare beers, endless discussion of 80’s basketball and movies, tailgating, yelling loudly in public (well, one of us), and eventually watching a game. It’s going to be hard to give that up. So why should we? Nassau has declared that they still want an arena, so this isn’t going to be a plot of land full of corporate offices and government buildings, even though that was Kate Murray’s vision. And Nassau should have an arena- its one of those things that generates a level of civic pride, even as we shift from major league to minor league. Two of these offers bring excitement, but only one truly pays tribute to our past. In our opinion, there is really only one choice here. If we had an endorsement to give, it would be to the Ratner plan. We already wrote to Ed Mangano about it. If you agree, let Ed Mangano know, too. We suggest:

Website: EdMangano.com

Facebook: Ed Mangano

Twitter: @EdMangano

Phone: 516- MANGANO

Email: No idea. That’s pretty well hidden. Comment below if you know it!

It may have taken them longer than usual to get going, but the Boston Bruins were able to recover from a disastrous opening period and storm back for a 2-1 overtime victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final. In doing so, the team evened the series, 1-1, before heading back to Boston for Games 3 and 4.

In the first period, it appeared as if the Bruins were going to be in for a tough evening at the office. Chicago had the Boston net under siege throughout the entire opening twenty minutes and was completely dominating the puck possession aspect of the game. The Blackhawks were looking a lot like the unstoppable juggernaut that rolled through the Western Conference with ease during a historic, season-opening 24-game point streak. It was as if the opening storm that many had expected the ‘Hawks to come out with in front of their home fans in the series opener had been delayed until Game 2. Chicago eventually accumulated an enormous total of 19 shots on goal during the first period, while holding Boston to just four. Fortunately for the Bruins, only one of the Blackhawks’ many opening-period shots made it past goaltender Tuukka Rask. Out of a frenetic net-mouth scramble in the Boston crease, Chicago sniper Patrick Sharp found a way to shovel it into an open goal to put the home team ahead, 1-0. However, just keeping the score within one at the intermission was, without a doubt, a huge momentum boost for the Bruins.

“Well, we definitely were in survival mode there for a bit. It looked like they had more guys out there than we did. They were bouncing on every single puck in front of net, had a lot of chances.  We definitely played pretty bad” said Rask. “But, you know, it was good that we were only down by one and regrouped after that”, he added.

After surviving the opening frame, the Bruins were able to re-establish their game over the next forty-plus minutes, changing the pace of the game from feverish, end-to-end chaos, to the slower, more physically-demanding style that they have typically been much more comfortable in. Towards the end of the period, the Bruins were finally able to get on the board when an incredible effort behind the Chicago net by Daniel Paille was enough to set up new linemate Chris Kelly for a rebound goal in front.

“I think on my goal, it was a great five-guy effort. Andrew (Ference) made a pinch, Tyler (Seguin) was in on the play and got it to Daniel (Paille), and Daniel took it to the net. I just happened to be there, tapped it in” said Kelly.

For the final five minutes of the second period, most of the third, and even throughout overtime, the game was a complete role-reversal from what we saw in the early going, as Boston dictated the play and really took control of the game. After the first period, the B’s outshot the ‘Hawks by a significant 24-15 margin. However, as no team was able to break the tie, we were heading to overtime for the second straight game.

At the 13:48 mark of the extra frame, Boston would get another goal from their third line, as Paille’s quick wrist shot beat Blackhawks’ goaltender Corey Crawford to the glove side, sending the Bruins over the boards for a series-tying celebration.

“Dan skated well tonight. His forecheck created turnovers. He also was a lot stronger on the puck as far as battling, coming up with it” said Boston head coach Claude Julien, praising Paille’s superb performance in Game 2. “That was a great shot from him, and obviously a great pass by Tyler (Seguin). That line, like I said, came up huge for us tonight.”

With the series now even at one game apiece, the 2013 Stanley Cup Final will now shift eastward to Boston’s TD Garden. Game 3 is set for Monday evening. Puck-drop will be just after 8:00 PM.

Ben’s Three Stars of the Night: 

1)  Daniel Paille (1 Goal/1 Assist/Plus-2 Rating)

2) Tuukka Rask (33 Saves)

3) Chris Kelly (1 Goal/Plus-2 Rating/3 Shots)

Series: Tied, 1-1. 

Looking Ahead: Game 3 is set for Monday at 8:00 PM in Boston.

Thanks For Reading!

“LIKE” Us On Facebook: HockeyIndependent Bruins

Give Me A Shout On Twitter! : @BWoodward_HI

Or You Can E-Mail Me At BWoodward.HI@gmail.com

In Game 1 the Blackhawks third line outplayed their counterparts and was a significant factor in two goals. On Saturday night the Bruins newly formed third line made the difference. In what was described as a gut feeling by head coach Claude Julien, a different third line was rolled out for Game 2. Chris Kelly played in the middle flanked by Daniel Paille and Tyler Seguin as the trio accounted for the two Boston goals.

The Bruins were never dominated in the post season the way the Hawks handled them in the opening frame. 

Chicago was credited with 19 shots while Boston could only muster four shots on goal. In Game 1, Corey Crawford’s play in the first OT session led the Blackhawks to victory. Last night Tuukka Rask was great in period one and kept his team afloat. This could be considered a goalie win by Rask although the Hawks didn’t put forth a sustained challenge after the first period.

Maybe it was the added emotion of playing at home and a super adrenaline rush to begin the game but the Hawks looked tired as the night wore on. The Bruins chased the puck in the first frame and recorded 19 hits as that type of punishment could have helped to sap some energy from the home team.

One of the tradeoffs of playing puck possession hockey is Boston will have the opportunity to make a lot of hits. They are very good at finishing checks but it isn’t easy to pound away at an opponent for an entire match.

It also isn’t easy to play at such a fast pace and high level as the Hawks demonstrated to start Game 2. It took Boston almost 15 minutes to sustain any meaningful offensive zone time but they came out the better club to begin the second frame.
Read more: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/22603523/incredible-start-no-finish-as-the-chicago-blackhawks-drop-game-2-in-ot-2-1#ixzz2WOanZSAm ]]> http://hockeyindependent.com/blog/al-cimaglia/52121/feed/ 0 http://hockeyindependent.com/blog/tom-dougherty/52111/ http://hockeyindependent.com/blog/tom-dougherty/52111/#comments Sun, 16 Jun 2013 05:32:48 +0000 Tom Dougherty http://hockeyindependent.com/blog/?p=52111 By Tom Dougherty (@todougherty)

Photo by Michael Miller

Fourth in the NHL in scoring, 41 assists and 56 points, and on pace for 74 points for the 48-game schedule — 127 points for an 82-game schedule yet Sidney Crosby did not take home the Hart Trophy on Saturday.

That honor went to Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, who was a deserving finalist as was Islanders center John Tavares. But if we’re voting on the Most Valuable Player, out of the three finalists, Tavares runs away with the award.

No one saw the Islanders making the playoffs, and Tavares led them there. Their roster doesn’t fly off paper as a playoff team. They’re a young squad with a troubled goaltending situation, though Evgeni Nabokov was stellar.

It’s similar to Sergei Bobrovsky in Columbus. Bobrovsky singlehandedly put the Blue Jackets in contention. Take him out of the equation we’re talking about Seth Jones headed to Ohio.

Without Tavares leading the way, the Islanders miss the playoffs. The true MVP is almost always the goaltender. A team goes as far as their goalie takes them as the Flyers have learned, but there are some circumstances where it’s not the goalie. The Islanders are an example of that.

The voting for the award is flawed because history says that MVPs are usually the players with the most eye-popping stats, which, in this case, is Sidney Crosby.

Crosby potted 15 goals in 36 games, compared to 32 for Ovechkin in 58 games and 28 in 48 games for Tavares. Sid’s 41 assists were 17 more than Ovechkin and 22 more than Tavares. He did this while also missing time with a fractured jaw.

Sit back, sip your coffee and think about that. Crosby was on pace for 74 points — 14 more than Martin St. Louis, who led the league with 60 points. Had it been a full 82-game schedule, he’d finish with 127 points. When Crosby won the Hart Trophy in just his second season at the age of 19, he tallied 120 points.

Crosby’s points per game totals were ridiculous. The 25-year-old scored 1.56 points in each game he played. He picked up a 1.14 assists per game and in 0.42 games he scored a goal. That means that the Pens could count on Crosby scoring at least a point in 36 regular season games this year.

The argument that the Pens can live without Crosby is valid. They also have Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, and acquired Jarome Iginla at the trade deadline, among other highly talented forwards. But Crosby was simply too good not to be the MVP.

If Ovechkin takes home the award because how good he was in the second half of the season and due to him carrying the Capitals into the playoffs when they looked like a team in dismay at the midpoint, then how do you look past how dominant Crosby was for the best team in the Eastern Conference that was forced to play 12 games — 24 possible points in the standings — without the greatest player in the world.

There’s no doubt that Ovechkin became an effective player once again in the NHL after several seasons as nothing other than a goal scorer. That’s good for the NHL. But by no means was Alex Ovechkin the Most Valuable Player for the third time in his career.

At least, not this season. That honor goes to Sidney Crosby.

–

Contact Tom Dougherty at todougherty@gmail.com.

Alain Vigneault has agreed in principle to become the next coach of the New York Rangers.

Reports surfaced Friday that Mark Messier had indeed interviewed for the Rangers head coaching vacancy and that the Blueshirts had  permission to speak to Los Angeles Kings assistant John Stevens as well. Later in the day, news broke that former Vancouver Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault had taken himself out of the running for the Dallas Stars coaching vacancy.

Now we know why.

After meeting with Rangers brass in La Quinta, California during their organizational meetings last week and reportedly spending time with Rangers owner James Dolan in New York on Friday, it appears that Vigneault will succeed John Tortorella as the thirty-fourth head coach in the franchise’s history. While there has been no official announcement from the Rangers, multiple outlets reported Saturday that the two sides had agreed in principle to a deal.

As Tortorella was hired in part because he was the “Anti Tom Renney” –  a no-nonsense guy following someone with a reputation as a player’s coach – Vigneault comes in as the “Anti Tortorella”, a coach who gives his players freer rein in the lockerroom and on the ice that they did not appear to have under his predecessor. He’ll likely be a breath of fresh air for the New York media as well. Vigneault comes in with a mixed bag of a track record, leading the Canucks to Northwest Division titles 6 of the last 7 seasons, two Presidents Trophies (2011 and 2012). He himself earned a Jack Adams Award in 2007 as the NHL’s coach of the year. Despite all that success in the regular season, he has yet to lead a team to the Stanley Cup, coming within one victory of it in 2011. His team being swept this season in the first round of the playoffs by the San Jose Sharks led to his dismissal.

There is no word yet as to who would be joining Vigneault’s coaching staff. Not surprisingly, Messier’s name is coming up again – this time as a potential assistant coach. Would Vigneault actually add him to his bench, and have the specter of a Rangers icon and legend (and possibly his replacement when his time is up) working right beside him? I know what what I would (or wouldn’t) do if it were me. Assistant Coach Mike Sullivan was not dismissed when Tortorella was. He’s likely to learn his fate in the coming days as well.

The clock is ticking on a decision about Brad Richards – does he get bought out prior to the start of free agency, or does he return, hoping he bounces back and gets a new lease on his Rangers career under a new coach and a new style of play?  What other changes will they make – either through trades or free agency this summer to give Vigneault the team he feels he needs to be successful? When the ink is finally dry and the hands have shaken,coach and management can get down to the brass tacks of working on the answers to those questions.

*********************************************************************

The Hawks and Bruins might have felt like they’ve played an entire series worth after Game #1. However, it’s simply just one down with a potential of 6 more. While Andrew Shaw shines those shin pads up and gets ready to be the motor that drives the Hawks ship, the B’s have been crossing their fingers for Nathan Horton.

The latest on Horton is he WILL play. The productive right-winger from Welland, Ontario is over a point-per-game in the post-season. A collective sigh of relief echoed throughout Bruins nation with this news. This is not to say Horton is 100% as it appeared that his workout was a gingerly one at practice. No, not ginger like the Sedins… gingerly… like the way be was favouring that upper-body/left shoulder.

The Hawks will no doubt be targeting him although Horton will be up to the task as he’s apparently been battling this shoulder problem throughout the playoffs. Carl Soderberg, Jordan Caron and Jay Pandolfo (<- he’s still in the NHL?) you can relax now!

Chicago cannot be too focused on this and just look to play their game. The lineup looks to remain the same as game #1 with Quenneville having no reason to switch it up. Stalberg may disagree (along with some other Hawks fans), but Brandon Bollig offers exactly what this team needs in terms of physical presence. I mean, c’mon, the Leafs were dressing Colton Orr and Fraser McLaren against the B’s and almost beat them.

Crawford vs. Rask round #2 begins tonight and you can expect their game of H-O-R-S-E to continue. Both goalies are dialed in keeping their teams in it with save after save. I expect their to be more battles in front of the net and after the whistle as the hatred grows like the Chia-Pet hippo I had when I was younger. Which didn’t make any sense because hippos don’t have fur.

Ty’s Tidbits
~ Even with the insertion of Bollig to the 4^th line, the Hawks don’t ice a regular group that is usually categorized as the bottom line on the roster sheets. Regular shifts is what they’ve been rewarded with as Kruger and Frolik have been consistently causing opponents with matchup issues with their speed and tenacity. The Bruins chemistry on their 4^th line is a little off with the loss of Gregory Campbell. Advantage Chicago for the remainder of the series.

~ Bryan Bickell seemed to have hit a wall in game #1. Some may think that the “playoff hero” buzz is going to his head. I can’t see that, as he’s a very modest guy. Look for Shaw or Bolland to ignite him or maybe a couple shifts with Toews or Kane might help tonight. The idea of having him as a permanent fixture on the Hawks horrendous PP would be my prescription though.

~ Joel Quenneville lost out to Paul MacLean in the Jack Adams voting but you can’t help but admiring the way Q’s coached this year. His comments after a 1^st round exit last year mentioned that he needs to re-evaluate his ice time for certain players. In limiting some minutes during the regular season and earlier in the post-season, his top dogs are more than capable of handling it in these finals.

~ Jonathan Toews won the Selke Trophy yesterday as the top defensive forward. A very well deserving accolade as Toews has been one of the best all-around forwards for the last couple of years. The most underrated though is probably Patrice Bergeron. This guy doesn’t get a lot of love in the mainstream media and I know he won the same trophy last year, but you have to love his game even if you hate him for the next 2 weeks. Also, when will Marian Hossa get the Jere Lehtinen treatment (a 3-time Frank J. Selke winner)? He was the last to take home the award as a winger. Anyone know the last winger to win before him?

Ty Cam out!
(@tycam)

Teams: Boston Bruins at Chicago Blackhawks

Series: Chicago Leads, 1-0.

Location: United Center – Chicago, IL

Face-Off:  8:00 P.M. (EST)

TV/Radio Info:  NBC Sports Network – 98.5 The Sports Hub (Goucher, Beers)

Last Game:  Boston 3, Chicago 4 (3OT)

Tonight’s Lineups (Subject To Change):

BOSTON:

Lucic–Krejci–Horton

Marchand–Bergeron–Jagr

Daugavins–Kelly–Seguin

Paille–Peverley–Thornton

—

Chara–Seidenberg

Ference–Boychuk

Krug–McQuaid

— 

Rask

Scratches– ….. Carl Soderberg, Jay Pandolfo, Jordan Caron, Carter Camper, Chris Bourque, Aaron Johnson, Dougie Hamilton, Wade Redden, Matt Bartkowski, Niklas Svedberg

CHICAGO: 

Saad–Toews–Hossa

Sharp–Handzus–Kane

Bickell–Bolland–Shaw

Bollig–Kruger–Frolik

—

Keith–Seabrook

Hjalmarsson–Oduya

Leddy–Rozsival

—

Crawford

Scratches– ….. Daniel Carcillo, Viktor Stalberg, Sheldon Brookbank

Injuries: Gregory Campbell (BOS)

Opposing Goaltender:  Corey Crawford (18 GP/1.73 GAA/.936 Save Percentage)

Prediction: For as grand a spectacle as overtime, double-overtime, and even triple-overtime hockey always is, an unfortunate byproduct of the extra playing time is that the longer the game goes on, the harder it is to recover for the team who doesn’t get the victory. Saturday’s Game 2 will be a true test of the Bruins’ mettle and team toughness, as they attempt to salvage a split on the road in the first two games of the Final. The Bruins have been in situations like this before. They’ve been through the uphill battle of early-series deficits. I think tonight will be another instant classic, Cup Final clash with a late third-period goal making the difference as the Bruins even the series before heading back to Boston.

Bruins 3, Blackhawks 2

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The Hawks took the hard way in drawing three victories away from capturing the Cup as they trailed for the entire game. In the third extra period the winning goal was scored by Andrew Shaw who was the best player for the Blackhawks in Game 1.

The experience of Michal Rozsival showed as he sent a well-directed shot toward the Boston net while two Hawk forwards stood in front. The puck deflected off of Dave Bolland’s stick and then Shaw’s leg as it went past a stunned Tuukka Rask.

The argument could be made that the Bruins didn’t deserve to lose as they did play well. The Blackhawks got some lucky breaks at the end of regulation and during the overtime session. That is part of the game and the Bruins realize excuses can’t be made when up by two goals in the third period.

Luck always matters when it comes to playoff success and the Bruins know the same. The Penguins hit iron with about eight shots over their final two games as they were swept by Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals.

It was a wide open Milan Lucic who scored the Bruins first and second goals and put Boston up by two. The Hawks got caught puck watching and were out of position. Corey Crawford probably would like to have another chance on the second goal but he really couldn’t be faulted on either. When Patrice Bergeron scored at 6:09 of the third frame to give the Bruins a 3-1 lead it looked like they were well on their way to capture Game 1.

Brandon Saad deservedly scored the first goal for Chicago and was one of the most noticeable forwards throughout the night. Saad also came on in a player change just before Johnny Oduya tied the score at three. It was Saad who replaced Brandon Bollig and went to the front of the net to set a screen as the puck deflected in off the skate of Andrew Ference.

Marcus Kruger, Michael Frolik and Bollig as the fourth line had a fine game. It actually was much more than just a fine performance. The trio played meaningful minutes and caused problems for the Bruins. The fourth line was a big boost for the Hawks and an option Joel Quenneville went to often.
Read more: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/22582985/chicago-blackhawks-show-their-depth-capture-game-1-4-3-in-3-ot#ixzz2W6yU2aHG

The Chicago Blackhawks took some beatings in the media over the last couple years. A remarkable amount of keystrokes tapped loud and clear on message boards. For the most part, it was deserved. The fans were upset they had to part with their fan favourites.

“See ya Andrew Ladd. Nice knowing ya Dustin Byfuglien. Yay, we finally have a goalie… oh wait, peace out Antti Niemi.”

It was overwhelming to deal with after such a long Stanley Cup drought. However, the fans, as savvy as they are weren’t going to put up with mediocrity. They needed more. No, demanded more from the front office. The bar had been set and signing Fernando Pisani, pretending John Scott was the next Big Buff and putting the wily Marty Turco between the pipes with what appeared to be my old Road Warrior street hockey pads, wasn’t going to cut it.

Two 1^st round exits and a NHL lockout later, here we stand. The Hawks make the finals with a team showing clear signs of long-term greatness. They have depth in spades and the names that are screamed relentlessly from my man-cave couch becoming household names to the rest of the hockey community.

The window of opportunity for the Hawks to win is still very much open and should be for the next few years. Toews and Kane have a couple more years left on their contracts, Hossa’s still truckin’ along but who knows how much longer he will remain a dominant force.

Bryan Bickell has this great looking Stanley Cup ring to go along with the incredible memories of bringing the Cup to Bowmanville, Ontario in the summer of 2010. I believe the fact that his name is not engraved on that big, shiny, silver trophy thing, is the main reason for his extraordinary play this post-season though. Some may cite it’s because he’s in his contract year and sure that has something to do with it; but he’s a competitive dude and he knows this is a chance to make a difference this time around.

This is all sunshine and lollipops, isn’t it? I’m sure this talk about the Hawks rise back to elite status after a bloody dismantling of the 2010 team makes people’s tummies all warm inside. However (and I hate to do this) we need to take a second to respect their opponents. This is a team that poses a lot of problems for the Hawks and Claude Julien knows it!

The Boston Bruins had a scare, much like the Hawks in the early stages of their run. The B’s almost lost to what everyone called “a much inferior team” to them in the 1^st round. The Toronto Maple Leafs fed off that media stance of categorizing them as the underdogs. The Leafs ran with it and played the Bruins very hard and short of that Game #7, 3^rd period collapse would have defeated them.

That was the wakeup call the Bruins needed. The Hawks needed the same with Detroit putting them in a 3-1 deficit. Both teams have been rolling along at a good pace since staring death in the face. Well not quite death, it’s just a game and these players aren’t playing for John Tortorella. Hmmm… where is Brad Richards these days? Someone should check on him.

Although it is just a game, the “just go have fun out there” clichés will be left at home this series. The fact that these two teams did not face each other in the regular season will not deter them from creating a mutual hatred beyond any other starting immediately after puck drop tonight. This will no doubt be a battle and here are some individual matchups I’m looking forward to seeing:

-        Super-Pest Alley: Brad Marchard vs. Andrew Shaw

-        Selke Mitts: Patrice Bergeron (2012 Selke Trophy Winner) vs. Johnathan Toews (2013 Selke Trophy                                         Nominee)

-        Grocery Shopping: Milan Lucic (220 lbs) vs. Bryan Bickell (233 lbs)

“Get Excited” says Coach Q. It all starts tonight!

Ty’s Tidbits

-        Of course, the instance I write about Kaner not performing in the playoffs, he has an epic performance in game #5. He reads here ya know? For motivational support, I’ll be sure to cut him up later in the series if he’s not playing up to par.

-        The Blackhawks will be looking to come out and impose some physical will against the big, bad Bruins. Brandon Bollig checks in to the playoffs for the first time since the 1^st round, while Victor Stalberg finds himself on the sidelines.

-        The potential resurrection of Dave Bolland helps in the decision to scratch Stalberg. Shaw moves to the wing with Bolland and Saad rounding out that line. Those wingers will have to be sound defensively as Coach Q utilized a “checking” line for a first time in the playoffs last series.

-        Nick Leddy should look to emulate his counterpart on the Bruins, Troy Krug. They have similar skillsets although the confidence of late seems to be on the opposite spectrum with these players. Krug is taking shots, jumping into the play while Leddy was struggling to get out of his zone vs. LA.

-        The Hawks must be better on the draws this series or Boston will hurt them from the start of each position. The onus is not just on Toews, Handzus, Bolland and Kruger – the wingers must add support.

-        Prediction? Vince Vaughn takes out Mark Walberg in a concession line in game #5.

Ty Cam out!

(@tycam)

After dispatching the Pittsburgh Penguins in four short games, the Boston Bruins have advanced to their second Stanley Cup Final in the last three seasons. In doing so, they’ve earned themselves a date with the Western Conference Champion Chicago Blackhawks. With Game 1 of the 2013 Final set for this evening at the United Center in Chicago, here are five match-ups to keep an eye out for during this series between the two Original Six rivals.

1) Who has the edge on the power-play?

– Though both of these teams boast an impressive lineup of offensive talent, neither has been able to get the job done on the power-play this postseason. Remarkably, the Bruins didn’t score a single power-play goal (0-for-13) in their four-game sweep against Pittsburgh. Similarly, Chicago struggled with the man-advantage in their conference final series against the Los Angeles Kings, scoring just one goal on fourteen attempts. In this series, both power-play units will be put to the test again, as Boston (86.5%) and Chicago (94.8%) are both known for excellence on the penalty-kill.

2) Secondary Scoring… Who has it, and who doesn’t?

– One of the most important story-lines for the Blackhawks this postseason has been the emergence of power-forward Bryan Bickell (8 goals/5 assists) as a legitimate scoring threat on the wing. He, along with veteran pivot Michael Handzus (2 goals/7 assists) and undersized, agitating winger Andrew Shaw (4 goals/3 assists) have provided some much-needed secondary scoring for the ‘Hawks during their run to a Western Conference crown. For the Bruins, it’s actually incredible to think that they’ve made it this far in the playoffs without any sort of offensive production from their third line. Veteran centers Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley have combined for just one goal and zero assists in the first three rounds of the postseason. With both teams possessing a formidable group of top-six forwards, one of the biggest keys to this series will be which team gets more secondary scoring from it’s depth players.

3) Is the goaltending match-up closer than we think?

– While Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask has really used this year’s playoff run as a “coming out party”, so to speak, Blackhawks’ netminder Corey Crawford has quietly enjoyed a stellar postseason performance, as well. His 1.74 goals against average in 17 starts is just a hair better than Rask’s 1.75. Each goalie has also posted otherworldly numbers in the save percentage department, with Rask’s at .943 and Crawford just eight percentage points lower at .935. The difference here is the path in which each of these two goalies has taken to reach this point. Rask’s incredible showing against the Pittsburgh Penguins and their loaded lineup of skilled forwards really elevated him into the Conn Smythe discussion, as he allowed just two goals on 134 shots in the four games of that series.

4) The Chara Factor

– After stymieing both of the world’s two best players in the Conference Final series against Pittsburgh, Boston captain Zdeno Chara is once again performing at the peak of his game for the Bruins, even at the age of 36. Against Chicago, Chara will have his work cut out for him again, as he’ll likely be matched-up against the Blackhawks’ dynamic first-line trio of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, and Marian Hossa. While Toews doesn’t present the same type of challenge in the defensive zone as the uber-skilled Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby, he’s still proven an ability to put the puck in the back of the net when he has to. He’s also got a pair of highly-skilled playoff veterans skating on his wing, making Chicago’s top-line one of the most dangerous units Chara and defense partner Dennis Seidenberg will have faced all season.

5) Conn Smythe Battle

– Despite another phenomenal postseason performance, Bruins’ top-line pivot David Krejci again finds himself behind his own goaltender in the race for the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded annually to the MVP of the NHL playoffs. In 2011, No. 46 had 23 points (12 goals/11 assists) in 25 postseason games, but lost out on the extra hardware as B’s goalie Tim Thomas had just enjoyed the greatest playoff run that a goalie has ever had. This year, Krejci has scored nine goals and added 12 assists in just 16 games played. Linemate Nathan Horton also deserves some consideration, as he leads the league with a plus-21 rating and has chipped in with seven goals of his own. However, there is little questioning the fact that Boston’s No. 1 standout performer in the 2013 postseason has been goaltender Tuukka Rask, and if the B’s are victorious in this series, I’d consider him the hands-down favorite to take home the award. For Chicago, candidates include goaltender Corey Crawford, defenseman Duncan Keith (2 goals/9 assists), and top-line wingers Marian Hossa (7 goals/7 assists) and Patrick Sharp (8 goals/6 assists).

Series Prediction: Bruins in 6.

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With the first game of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final set to begin in just over 24 hours, five members of the Hockey Independent writing staff have come together to predict which team will be hoisting the holy grail of hockey high above their heads at the end of this series. The contributing authors to today’s piece will be Cris Cohen (New York Rangers), Seth Levin (New Jersey Devils),  Bill Philp (Tampa Bay Lightning), Chris Triantafilis (New York Islanders) and myself, Benjamin Woodward (Boston Bruins). Each writer has also included his/her series “X-Factor” for the series. In each case, the performance (or lack thereof) of the “X-Factor” could determine the outcome of the series. Enjoy!

(4) Boston Bruins vs. (1) Chicago Blackhawks

Cohen– Bruins win in 7 . X-Factor –> These are two teams with rosters full of players who have been here before and won it all. Almost evenly matched, the Bruins’ edge in the physicality department will be the difference.

Levin– Bruins win in 6 . X-Factor –> Zdeno Chara

Philp– Bruins win in 6 . X-Factor –> Tuukka Rask

Triantafilis– Bruins win in 6 . X-Factor –> Tuukka Rask… The Penguins couldn’t score on the Bruins, so why should Chicago?

Woodward– Bruins win in 6. X-Factor –> Can Boston’s second defense pair (Ference-Boychuk) slow down Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp?

Conn Smythe Award Winner

Cohen — Zdeno Chara (Boston)

Levin — Tuukka Rask (Boston)

Philp — Tuukka Rask (Boston)

Triantafilis — Tuukka Rask (Boston)

Woodward — Tuukka Rask (Boston)

This is an excellent move by the Predators, as Josi has shown that he has significant upside and is a solid compliment to Weber. Signing Josi to the 7 year contract helps solidify the blue line and that number one defense pairing.

Here is the press release from the Predators:

Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has signed defenseman Roman Josi to a seven-year, $28 million contract. He will make $2.5 million in 2013-14, $3 million in 2014-15, $4 million in 2015-16, $4.25 million in 2016-17, $5 million in 2017-18, $5.25 million in 2018-19 and $4 million in 2019-20.

“Re-signing Roman was a top priority as we look to regroup heading into the 2013-14 season,” Poile said. “Roman has proven, with his growth and success here in Nashville and on the international stage, that he is one of the best young defensemen in the NHL. Roman’s skating ability and instincts have allowed him to play in all key situations. With today’s signing, we have our top defensive pairing locked up long-term, and we look forward to Roman’s continued development and contribution to the Predators’ on-ice success.”

Josi, 23 (6/1/90), posted 18 points (5g-13a) while appearing in all 48 of Nashville’s games in 2012-13, surpassing his 52-game total from his rookie campaign in 2011-12. The Bern, Switzerland native saw his average ice time increase by more than five minutes from his rookie campaign (from 18:23 to 23:31), leading the team in ice time on nine occasions while ranking 19th in the League in total minutes played (1,129:25) last season.

The 6-2, 198-pound blueliner had a standout 2013 World Championships, becoming the first Swiss player to be named Most Valuable Player, Best Defenseman and a tournament All-Star after helping Switzerland to a silver medal, the nation’s first medal in 60 years. Josi led all tournament defensemen in goals (4) and points (9), in addition to leading Switzerland in points and average ice time (20:08).

Nashville’s third choice, 38th overall (second round), in the 2008 Entry Draft, Josi has posted 34 points (10g-24a) in 100 regular-season games.

BOSTON, MA – Suffocating defense, brilliant goaltending and timely goals from up-and-down the lineup. This was the strategy Claude Julien’s Bruins executed perfectly in the Eastern Conference Final. On Friday evening, it all paid off for the Black and Gold, as a 1-0 Game 4 shutout victory secured a 4-0 series sweep for Boston.

A relentless team effort on defense would hold the vaunted Pittsburgh Penguins’ offense to a grand total of two goals in the entire series. In the process, the B’s kept both of Pittsburgh’s mega-star centermen, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, off the score-sheet in all four games. You read that right, folks. The best player in the world and last season’s league MVP combined for a grand total of zero goals and zero assists in this series.

After Patrice Bergeron’s double-overtime heroics lifted the team to a 2-1 victory in Game 3 on Wednesday evening, fans packed into Boston’s TD Garden on Friday with dreams of a sweep against the villainous Penguins. The building was rocking all evening long and the fans deserve tons of credit for creating a truly electrifying atmosphere, unlike any I’ve ever seen before.

The first two periods of the game were dominated by splendid defensive play from both teams, as neither offense was able to generate much in the way of high-quality scoring opportunities. Both goalies were solid between the pipes, though neither was called upon to make any extraordinary stops.

In the third period, the timekeeper at TD Garden was finally able to dust off the ole goal horn for the first time of the evening. With just more than five minutes gone in the final frame, a quick neutral zone feed from Patrice Bergeron allowed linemate Brad Marchand to enter the Pittsburgh zone with speed. A heads-up play to get the puck across the ice to a trailing defenseman would certainly pay off for No. 63, as Adam McQuaid’s slapshot blast sailed right past the glove of Tomas Vokoun and into the back of the Pittsburgh net. With 14:59 to play, the Bruins had taken the lead.

“I think everybody in the dressing room is really happy for him (Adam McQuaid).  He went through obviously a tough situation in the Fall.  To be able to come back and play with us, not only that, but score a big goal for us tonight, is certainly a big boost to his morale.  Certainly he’s got the players and his teammates behind him.” – Claude Julien

Throughout the duration of the third, Pittsburgh stormed the Boston end with multiple scoring opportunities. None closer than Malkin’s wide-open wrist shot attempt from the slot that was deflected away by the long reach of Zdeno Chara. The Penguins had a chance to pull even with the man-advantage, but Boston’s penalty-killers got the job done once again, just as they did throughout the duration of the series.

“(I’ve) always said your best penalty killer has to be your goalie” said Bruins’ forward Chris Kelly. “Tuukka (Rask) was unbelievable for us.  He made those big saves when there were breakdowns. I thought we did a good job taking their time and space away and staying compact.  We didn’t let them seam us (into the defensive zone) too often and we didn’t give them any freebies”.

The game’s final minute featured a flurry of Pittsburgh shots as the Boston net was under siege with the Penguins’ season on the line. One final wrist-shot from the slot off the stick of Jarome Iginla (very fittingly, might I add) was gloved by Tuukka Rask just as time expired. The game was over. The Bruins had completed the most improbable of four-game sweeps, against the mighty Pittsburgh Penguins.

“It feels great. I was watching yesterday somebody said on TV, ‘Bruins going to try to sweep Pittsburgh in Game 4 and go to the final.’ Just hearing that was pretty cool, and now we did it. We’re going to enjoy the win tonight and go from there.” – David Krejci

Despite the pre-series prognostications that predicted their demise and told of how Pittsburgh’s star power would be too much for them to handle, the Bruins simply stuck to their coach’s proven, championship-caliber defensive system and, most importantly, played their game. In the end, it most certainly paid off for them, as for the second time in just three seasons, they’ve earned the prestigious title of “Eastern Conference Champions”.

“We just played hard and tried to just go out there and play our game every game. I don’t think anyone expected us to win in four games, but going into this series we truly believed we could win. A lot of guys stepped up and played great, and we’re obviously excited with what we’ve accomplished here tonight.” – Milan Lucic

Ben’s Three Stars of the Night: 

1)  Adam McQuaid (1 Goal/2 Shots/Plus-1 Rating)

2) Tuukka Rask (26 Saves)

3) Brad Marchand (1 Assist/Plus-1 Rating/3 Shots)

Series: Boston Wins, 4-0.

Looking Ahead: The Boston Bruins will await the winner of the Los Angeles–Chicago series, with Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final set for some time next week. The Bruins would open the series on the road against Chicago, or at home against the defending champion Kings.

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The Blackhawks took a 3-1 series lead over the Kings with an impressive road victory Thursday. It was a solid, collaborative display by the boys in white in front of a sold out Staples Center. Predictors stated that LA would feed off the home crowd and continue to be a greedy group and steal ALL the momentum. The Hawks didn’t care about a home winning streak of 15 and showed impressive resiliency over 60 minutes.

The Hawks knew they had to perform better than their previous effort and that would start with the Keith-less back end. Brookbank apparently was not up to the challenge but the top 4 of Seabrook, Hjalmarsson, Rozsival and Oduya played admirably in #2’s absence.

Now, on to my inspiration for this blog, Hjalmarsson. The media all recognized that this guy is a warrior and might have been the Hawks best defender last night. I wouldn’t argue. It also got me thinking that the “core” that the front office ever-so-often like to call out and list for all to see might be shifting with certain personnel.

Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Dave Bolland, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook were established after the 2010 Cup Winning Team was being dismantled, as the core. This group of character and skilled players would be the foundation to build around for years to come.

Well the times, they have changed… and very quickly. The emergence of Niklas Hjalmarsson has been fun to watch. I am now ashamed to admit I had him heading out of town for a lower line, gritty forward and a pick in my capgeek projections last summer.

It would be my advice to the front office to lock up Hammer to an extension as soon as that window appears. If this happens and the price tag per season is in the 4.5-5 million range, which it could be, I think that would spell the end of Brent Seabrook in Chicago.

With Brent Seabrook’s roller coaster season, in no way am I focusing solely on the bad with him this season in my analysis. I am looking at financial ramifications as well as future plans for this team. It is true that Seabs is one of the most physical defenceman, and his chemistry on and off the ice with Keith should be taken into account. However, the return for a Gold Medal, Stanley Cup winning, tough defender with an offensive touch would be a package someone like Philadelphia would be salivating over.

Hjalmarsson has shown that he can play top minutes and would be a welcomed addition to any team’s blueline who need a steady and calm presence from a young veteran such as him. The Hawks should not let that happen and make him a staple in the last line of defence for years to come.

I believe the new core will start to form in the short term. Obviously a lot is hinging on what happens here in June. This is the core I would want steering this ship (keep in mind the salary cap before ripping me):

-        Toews

-        Kane

-        Hossa

-        Sharp

-        Kruger

-        Shaw

-        Keith

-        Hjalmarsson

What’s yours?

Ty’s Tidbits

~ Patrick Kane showed up last night. Thanks Patty! While we’re on the subject of core players, I would suggest Kane might fall out of that group in the next season or so. His contract is up in 2016 and I would have a problem with him commanding more than his current $6.3M/season (which he and his agent obviously will). I think he will continue to grow as a regular season player but will always struggle to prove his worth in the playoffs. It’s not a secret that Kaner doesn’t like the horseplay that happens in the post-season and if he’s bailing out and unable to produce, then I wouldn’t bother.

~ For all this “Hossa buyout talk” at the end of the season, I would challenge you find a better overall player suited for playoff hockey. I would take an aging Hossa over Kane in his prime in the post-season. Hossa is a 200 foot player, extremely strong and will continue to come up big when you need him. Case in point, 5 of his 7 goals have come when the game is tied.

~ I think it’s safe to say that Dave Bolland has worked himself out of the core. It’s too bad because of his skillset. He was a prolific point machine in the OHL, all while Dale Hunter was showing him how to play a smart defensive game. He’s become too injury prone and failed to capitalize on his 2^nd line centre duties in his time here in Chicago. He will become a valuable asset to someone and I think you see him traded at the draft. My guess? Montreal, Florida or Toronto.

Ty Cam Out!

* picture courtesy of Bridget DS

Who is going to help our next captain?

We also wonder what Egveny Nabokov has left in his tank, and if Kevin Poulin’s postseason performance under such pressure on that kind of stage was a fluke or the real thing. We’re hoping for the latter, but expecting the former. What we do know is that, despite many options, Snow is not going to make a trade for a goalie. And we find it quite amusing that Snow is allegedly looking to “make it worth their while” for a team willing to take the DiPietro contract on their books. Guess we shouldn’t be expecting a buyout, nor can “the Rick” expect checks for $1.5 million until 2029. 

More importantly, unless Snow goes waiver wire ballistic again like last season, there’s a good chance that we will finally see some of the picks from the 2010-2012 drafts coming into fruition. With names from the big club like Mark Streit, Keith Aucoin, Brad Boyes, Marty Reasoner, Radek Martinek, David Ullstrom and Jesse Joensuu likely taking a walk, opportunities to see what Garth Snow’s vaunted pile of lottery picks and first rounders can do should be explored. After all, as many have pointed out, there are 5 first round draft picks – 3 of the lottery variety- in the system who should absolutely be contributors. This team definitely needs to make a personnel move (actually at least 4 moves) to take their next step.  But one has to wonder, is it logical to place so many rookies on a team coming off of a playoff berth?

Is he even a rookie anymore? Or a scorer?

Well, we do know that when it comes to acquiring a player, Garth Snow really isn’t much of a player. Lubomir Visnovsky’s NTC debacle is a great example of a Garth Snow style trade- give me an old man with an expiring contract that is a salary dump from a team looking to make cap space, just so long as his salary is below his cap hit, and expect nothing from our roster in return.  Snow’s major moves do not involve imports or exports of the “core,” whatever that means to a barely playoff team, so don’t expect a trade for Vinny Lecalvlier, a Jarome Iginla signing, or even offering an entire draft worth of picks to trade up to draft Seth Jones.  Now, would those players be welcome additions?  Surely. But the focus of this off-season piece has to do with the roster, and the eventuality of a youth movement in a rebuild.

Waiting in the wings to contribute and replace current under-performing and sub-talented players are Nino Niederreiter, Ryan Strome, Brock Nelson, Matt Donovan and Griffin Reinhart.  Any roster spots that need filling- these guys should be getting first crack.  Unlike an Anders Lee, there is no need for all of them to play at Bridgeport next season, and at least three of them should be on the Islanders next year. Anyone watching the Bridgeport scrimmage last season could have made a strong case that Donovan should have been with this team last season over the likes of Joe Finley, Thomas Hickey, and Radek Martinek this past season alone.

No pressure, Ryan. Just win us a cup.

In fact, the better question to explore is why is there suddenly a glut of prospects showing up on the front door? Why were these guys not weaned in at the proper times? Why was Nino in the AHL last season playing top line minutes when he could have done the same next to John Tavares? Was a year of Brad Boyes that amazing? And if so, then why is Snow not resigning Brad Boyes? The 2007 draft produced a boatload of nothing for the Islanders. 2008 was Snow’s windfall draft, if by windfall you mean 4^th liners, depth players, and second pairing defenders. What else can you call a draft including players like Justin DiBenedetto, Kirill Petrov, Jyri Niemi, David Toews, and Corey Trivino?  The 2009 draft was 4 years ago, and gave us our savior, and a 4^th line center. Maybe Anders Lee does something, maybe one of the goalies taken that year do something, but so far, nada. The 2010 draft so far is a bust. Again, 2 maybe’s, a lot of no, and Cody Rosen. Poor Cody Rosen. We’ve already declared 25% of the 2011 draft as waste by letting Brenden Kitchon and Mitchell Theoret go. And here’s a little trivia- 73% of players drafted between 2011-2012 play defense. There aren’t many teams in hockey that haven’t promoted a player taken in the draft since 2010, and there are NO teams that haven’t given playing time to lottery picks from 2011…except the Islanders.

And that leads us to a slightly different question: why are there so few prospects with offensive flair? Strome and Nino are supposed to be elite scorers. Nelson is supposed to be a third liner akin to Jordan Staal, which would be a huge win. Matt Donovan has put up points in his AHL career. After that…the drought. Who else scores? On what level? Snow let Kitchon walk away despite his stellar offensive numbers as a defenseman. Aaron Ness never lived up to his offensive hype- he’s the Islanders version of Thomas Hickey- their AHL stats are nearly identical. 30 year old journey defenseman Jon Landry had scored in every league he played in, except at Bridgeport in the AHL. In the Garth Snow era, Snow has drafted only 2 right wings ever. EVER. One of them is Kirill Petrov, the other Kiril Kabanov. Neither light the lamp in an consistent manner. 

Since the Tavares draft, the forwards drafted by the Islanders lack offensive ability on a wide scale. The track record of players not scoring in various leagues around the world include Kiril Kabanov, Jason Clark, John Persson, Mitchell Theoret, and Johan Sundstrom. We find this dearth of scorers especially scary considering the factr that the Islanders have used just 8 of their 21 draft picks on forwards, and one jst reentered the draft.  2/3rds of the picks in the last 3 drafts have gone to the defense. This has three implications. It means that there is no immediate or short range help for John Tavares coming through this system not named Strome or Niederreiter.  It also means that the Islanders expect each of Nino, Strome, and Nelson to provide massive doses of offense as core players. Lastly, it means that Snow expects current roster players to take that “next step” that so many players in general are incapable of and already have shown.

Is ol’ Rich Gedman Eyes a 30 goal scorer?

To be fair to Snow, he has done a fine job in eyeballing 4^th line talent, as Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas, Josh Bailey, and Colin McDonald would attest.  Compare this influx of rookies to a different rebuild, say, the one in Pittsburgh at similar junctions: at this point in their rebuild Pittsburgh had Malkin, Crosby, Staal, Fleury, Whitney, and Letang to show for 5 years of futility. Howabout Chicago, which drafted Dustin Byfuglien, Corey Crawford, Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Troy Brouwer, Bryan Bickell, Cam Barker, Dave Bolland, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Kane in the same span that Snow has for his rebuild. We have…Josh Bailey, Calvin de Haan, Anders Lee, and Mikko Koskinen to team up with John Tavares. Yeesh. Strangely, we do compare well with the Los Angeles Kings rebuild in that they really only drafted 3 core players in their rebuild- Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty, and Jonathan Quick. However, Los Angeles has shown savvy via trade and unrestricted free agent signings, which are two things taboo to Snow.  

Regardless of the lackluster overall drafting, the Islanders rookies will be upgrades over what was here. Last season saw a roster patched together with AHL journeymen, NHL retreads, and waiver wire pickups. Anders Lee was more valuable statistically over two games than Marty Reasoner was for two years.  In the aforementioned mix of young players are two top 6 forwards, players with much needed size, and defensive help.  Yes, adding these players may even put other players out of jobs.  After all, the roster is only so big. The casualties may be corsi queen Thomas Hickey, Colorado spurner for an absurd Islander contract Matt Carkner, David “Great Shot Yet No Goals” Ullstrom, or Jesse “I Can Score Anywhere But In The NHL” Joensuu.  Ullstrom is a fan favorite, but injuries happen, and his injury filled seasons and restricted free agent (RFA) status should impact his spot going into next year. Hopefully, we can assume Brad Boyes, Keith Aucoin and Marty Reasoner have played their final games in an Islander uniform. Sadly, we would not be surprised if Reasoner found a job coaching in this organization, especially since he should be working for free after his two season drain on the team. 

If Reinhart isn’t here next season, then his pick is suspect. See our article on defensemen for proof.

Whether you agree or disagree, the roster options really are under a microscope from here on out. You made the playoffs, so there goes the drafting of elite talent via lottery. Now it’s up to scouting to find players taken mid first round and later that turn out to be gems. It can be done- see Bossy, Mike going at #15. Where are the Islanders picking again for this draft? The reality is that the Islanders have made their picks in the recent past for the foreseeable future. Well guys, that future is here. By 21, Patrick Kane was hoisting a Stanley Cup, a mere two seasons after winning rookie of the year.  John Tavares didn’t even win rookie of the year. Tyler Myers? Really? Sheesh.

If this season opens with even more waiver wire avoidance behaviors, we know that Snow – or whatever other mysterious source doing the drafting – is a charlatan. By not promoting his last 5 first round draft picks, Snow has forced his own hand. He’s going to add an influx of rookies to a team that isn’t flying under the radar anymore. Personally, we think this can turn out to be a good thing, but we’re tempering expectations. Snow may be good at underpaying for talent, but unless Strome, Niederreiter and Reinhart become all stars, this team is going to peak like the Washington Capitals, who are wasting away an Alexander Ovechkin. Scratch that comparison, the Capitals aren’t afraid to fire a coach. Take two- lest those kids can flourish from day one, contribute, and become all stars, this is just going to be more of the same.

BOSTON, MA – After the Boston Bruins were able to capture the first two games of the Eastern Conference Final on road ice in Pittsburgh, the series would shift back to Boston on Wednesday evening for Game 3 at the TD Garden.  Entering the contest, the visiting Penguins were in desperate need of a spark to try and get back into this series. Despite Pittsburgh’s best performance of the series thus far, the home-standing Bruins were able to escape in double-overtime with a thrilling 2-1 victory.

Boston top-line pivot David Krejci continued his playoff hot-streak on Wednesday by getting the Bruins on the board first, just 1:42 into action. After being allowed to hold uncontested possession behind the Penguins’ net, Krejci turned and attacked the front of the net before firing a wrist shot past Pittsburgh goaltender Tomas Vokoun to give the B’s a 1-0 lead. The goal was Krejci’s ninth of the postseason, as he moves up to third in the NHL in playoff scoring since the year 2009. No. 46’s 28 second-season goals trail only Sidney Crosby (31) and Patrick Sharp (30).

Midway through the second period, the Penguins would strike back with a goal of their own. After an offensive zone face-off win by Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh swarmed the Boston net and Chris Kunitz collected the rebound and fired it past Bruins’ netminder Tuukka Rask to even the score at one.

For the remainder of regulation, the Penguins began to assert their will for the first time in the series, completely tilting the ice in their favor with speed and solid execution at both ends of the ice. In the third period, the Pens outshot the B’s by a whopping 13-4 margin. However, the Bruins were able to survive that difficult third period and reach overtime for the first time in the series. In the overtime periods, the Bruins began to pick up their game noticeably, creating more space and scoring opportunities in the offensive zone.

“We didn’t play a bad game, but we weren’t at the top of our game, and Tuukka was good for us, but character is because you get into overtime, and all of a sudden you become a better team.  So the further the game went, the better we seemed to get, the more chances we seemed to get.” – Claude Julien

Both teams had chances to win the game in overtime, with both Craig Adams and Nathan Horton each ringing the post. Jarome Iginla had a golden opportunity on a two-on-one rush in the second overtime, but was shut down by a red-hot Tuukka Rask.

With less than five minutes to go in the second overtime period, a 41-year-old Jaromir Jagr made an incredible effort to recover from a turnover and take the puck away from Penguins’ superstar Evgeni Malkin in a battle along the boards. He then slid the puck up to a streaking Brad Marchand for a two-on-two break. Boston’s round two overtime hero sent a picture-perfect lateral pass right onto the stick of linemate Patrice Bergeron for a redirection past Vokoun that would finally put an end to Game 3.

“It was first of all a great play by Jags (Jaromir Jagr) to take that puck on the wall there and just fighting and getting the loose puck to Marsh (Brad Marchand), and we do that chemistry where we know where we’re going on the ice.  I knew he was going to try to find me there if I was driving the net, and I just went to the net and tried to have my stick on the ice, and he found me.” – Patrice Bergeron

More than 66 minutes of play would separate the final two goals of this contest, but at the end of the night, the Bruins were victorious once again, and they now hold a commanding 3-0 lead in this series.

Bruins Extra

Campbell suffers injury, kills penalty on one leg …

Boston’s exhilarating double-overtime victory on Wednesday did however come at a price for the Black and Gold, as the team will reportedly be without fourth-line center Gregory Campbell for the remainder of the postseason. After blocking an Evgeni Malkin slapshot, Campbell remained on the ice to finish out the penalty-kill while skating with an obviously severe injury to his right leg.

“For what he went through, he showed a lot of guts to stay out there and to still try and play.  Obviously it was a pretty serious injury, so that’s just the kind of player he is, and it doesn’t surprise me, it doesn’t surprise his teammates, but certainly it shows the character of that player, and that’s why we appreciate having him on our team.” – Claude Julien

It was simply an incredible display of toughness, perseverance and determination on the part of Campbell, and the TD Garden crowd fittingly displayed their appreciation with echoing chants of his name for the rest of the period.

“(The fans) know their hockey. Well, you don’t have to know hockey too well to see how gutsy that was, but I think this is obviously a city that appreciates that kind of effort. It’s not the first time they’ve seen effort from guys on that line and what they do and what they bring to this team. Like I said, appreciated by anybody that sees that.”  — Andrew Ference

Ben’s Three Stars of the Night: 

1)  Tuukka Rask (53 Saves)

2) Patrice Bergeron (1 Goal/5 Shots)

3) David Krejci (1 Goal/4 Shots)

Series: Boston Leads, 3-0.

Looking Ahead: Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final is right back here at TD Garden on Friday evening. Puck drop is set for 8:00 PM.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Think of those times in your life that went by way too fast. Maybe it was a first kiss, or a first hockey game, or a great night out. Those were the good times.

Click here to view the embedded video.

And that’s what scares us. John Tavares has been an Islander for 4 years. Man, did that go by fast! And that scares us, because he can walk away in 5 years. Basically next season’s Olympics is John Tavares’ mid life crisis with the Islanders. Now, of course the Islanders can re-up his contract, give him a raise, etc, but what motivates John Tavares? Winning. He will get paid anywhere. He wants to win. So what do the Islanders do about it? 

Waiver wire. AHL veterans. NHL retreads. NHL castoffs.

“But they made the playoffs!” Yes, they did. And we are TIRED of hearing this statement being said like we won a Stanley Cup. The Islanders were beat in 4 of 6 post season games, twice via shutout. The playoffs were a feel good story, but think about the goal- winning. Progression. Doing better than before.

This’ll help.

Folks, the Rebuild Is Over. Once a team makes the playoffs, you’ve tasted the fruit of a rebuild. A playoff team generally gets mid to low level draft picks, so scooping up the top talent is no longer an option by merit of playing hockey. The drafts of 2010-2012 will define Garth Snow as a general manager. And that means time. John Tavares will give us 5 years. Thus, Snow’s draft picks can not take 5 years to develop to fruition. So we ask this simple question:

 What is the timetable for results?

 Look at the NHL landscape in 2013:

The Rangers underperformed. They fired their coach. What did Vancouver do with a playoff regression? Fire the coach. Dallas didn’t make the playoffs? Fired the coach. Buffalo missed the playoffs? Fired coach. What did Colorado do with no progression? Fired the coach, and replaced him with a Hall of Fame playing talent with an amazing amateur coaching record. What did Tampa Bay do with no progression? Fire the coach. When Montreal last missed the playoffs? Fired the coach.

Here is an AMAZING statistic: Jack Capuano is the 9^th longest tenured coach in the entire NHL. He has two career playoff wins. On the other hand, at least one of the fired coaches was a Stanley Cup winner. So then what makes Capuano bulletproof? The answer should be nothing.

Another question: what can best help John Tavares win a round or two of the playoffs in the upcoming season? The answer should be: a new head coach with new assistants.

 We all see the reluctance of Garth Snow to make an NHL player trade. We also see the Islanders failure at importing useful players via free agency. Via unconfirmed twitter rumors, someone allegedly recently working out with a Ted Nolan/Scott Gordon era Islanders player said the players were told back in 2008 to expect no free agents or major moves until the building issue was settled, and were told to expect nothing until 2015. 7 years. Longer than an average career. THIS is why free agents would not sign here, and likely will not until 2015. They know no one is coming in to help; that they will waste their productive years here and maybe even a whole career. Mayb the key question on the vaunted Islanders psychological test is “Are you fatalistic?” So, since Snow refuses to free agent up some help for Tavares, and will only trade for end of the liners, the only avenue left to help JT91 is new coaching.

Not happening.

This is the next logical step moving forward, not lateral, in the rebuild process.  Many Islander fans like to point to other franchises that went through similar growing pains and similar rebuilds.  Look no further than Chicago, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh for the difference that a coaching change, and in some cases multiple coaching changes to successful teams, will make. A new and improved experienced coaching staff will ensure that the Islanders and their roster of young, homegrown players will take the next step of development that we keep hearing about. For the rookies, they can take the all important proper first steps. Ask Nino how an elite prospect was treated as a rookie if you need evidence of the Capuano rookie development system.  But this is not just on Jack Capuano.

Yabbo Dabba Douche!

The trio of Capuano, Weight and Thompson must be replaced.  To quote the disgusting New York Rangers General Manager Glen Slather, “Every coach has a shelf life.” Capuano et al’s has expired. The Islanders special teams were Jeckyl and Hyde all season. In the playoffs, the power play went powerless. That falls exclusively on Doug Weight. That Mark Streit was still the go to guy on the point, effectively neutralizing the better option of Lubomir Visnovsky shows that either Weight loves the slap pass, or he was afraid to make adjustments to his power play style. A coach that fears adjustments? Damn. Brent Thompson may be a decent option as an assistant. The defense did improve over the course of the season, although we wonder why it took them so long to figure out that substituting Radek Martinek for Joe Finley would improve the overall product. A position specific assistant coach should have the guts to call his own players from day one, not when injuries and roster juggling create that opportunity.

Always have a patsy. It works.

A new coach should name his own staff.  Let the new coach take the reins and lead the team behind the bench, while John Tavares leads the team on the ice.  If the new coach wants one or both of Thomson and Weight, so be it, but Snow should not demand that they be used. That should be a decision of the new guy. If the Islanders want to send a message to free agents that this team is serious, which they started to do so by re-signing Lubomir Visnovsky, then the next message they should send is that management is serious. Management should show that it understands hiring those smarter than you often leads to success.  This will send a vastly larger message than a two-year contract which pays a washed up veteran millions of dollars…or an AHL goalie $4.5 million for the cap hit so you reach the floor.

Through the season the Islanders coaching staff didn’t change a damn thing.  When they finally did, they broke up one of the top scoring linemates in the NHL over the past 3 seasons. The three coaches all stated the following when talking about the team’s improvement in much troubled areas: “These players taught themselves”, “The players all got together and decided…”  “This team made the commitment to supporting each other…” Never did anyone anywhere say “This coaching staff made great in game adjustments” or “Jack, Doug, Brett showed us the way” or “Other coaches praised Caupano’s strategy.” Nope, not once. Jesus, players cited Marty Reasoner as the reason that they picked up a bounce back win in Pittsburgh after an embarrassing game one loss. MARTY REASONER WAS MORE INSPIRATIONAL AND RATIONAL THAN JACK CAPUANO. X’s and O’s be damned!

What’s worse- the eye or the communion suit?

The clock is ticking on Tavares. 5 years. Since player help is 2 years away- even considering the 5 inexperienced first round picks that may be on board next season- a new coach is the logical step. A playoff experienced NHL coach with a few series victories under his belt, and maybe some successful assistants makes sense. There are names out there. To use a Garth Snow phrase, let’s kick some tires. And since Charles Wang likes to be creative, here’s an idea- trade a pick, prospect, or player for a coach. It can happen.

Because if Snow is reluctant to make that kind of move, let us revisit the 2013 NHL landscape:

What did Edmonton do with no progress? Fire the General Manager. What did Columbus do with no progress? Fire the General Manager. What did Toronto do with no progress? Fire the General Manager. What did Dallas do with a regression? When Montreal last missed the playoffs? Fire the General Manager.

No cup by 2017 would likely be the Tavares exodus, and another rebuild. And who could blame a guy for giving his boss NINE years of his limited career away just to see no return in loyalty by getting him some help? If this team is not in the semifinals next season, there is no need to keep either Capuano or Snow. As is, keeping this coaching staff and not making elite acquisitions to improve a fringe playoff team is going to make the 2013-14 Islanders look a lot like the 2012-13 Islanders. Or as we like to say, expect more of the same.

Passenger.

– The Boston Bruins may very well be playing their best hockey in recent memory. Even better than two years ago during their magical run to the Stanley Cup in 2011.

Not many expected the Black and Gold to outdo their Game 1 performance in which they perfectly shut down the dynamic Pittsburgh offense, en route to an easy 3-0 win.  However, the Bruins did more than match that performance during Monday’s Game 2, dominating the Penguins for a full sixty minutes and coming away with a commanding 6-1 victory.

Just 0:28 seconds into action, the B’s went ahead, 1-0, when ace agitator Brad Marchand took advantage of a Sidney Crosby blueline turnover and busted in on a breakaway to beat Pens’ goaltender Tomas Vokoun with a great quick-release wrist-shot. Later on in the opening period, another egregious turnover by the Penguins would lead to a second Boston goal. Norris Trophy candidate defenseman Kris Letang’s errant clearing pass was intercepted by Torey Krug and Nathan Horton was able to corral the rebound of his slap-shot blast to make it 2-0 Boston.

Less than two minutes later, the Bruins’ white-hot first line struck again with one of the most beautiful passing plays that we’ve seen all season. A tic-tac-toe triangle formation completely confused the Pittsburgh defense and center David Krejci was able to finish the play by blasting a one-timer right past Vokoun.

This Boston goal would prompt Penguins’ head coach Dan Bylsma to replace Vokoun with former starter and 2003 No. 1 overall draft choice Marc-Andre Fleury. The move would provide a small spark for the home team, as less than three minutes later; Pittsburgh was able to get on the board with their first goal of the series. First-year Penguin Brandon Sutter attacked the Boston defense with speed and released a perfectly-placed wrist-shot that sailed past the blocker of Tuukka Rask and into the Bruins’ net, cutting the lead to 3-1.

Just as Pittsburgh looked to have stolen the momentum with a last-minute goal, the Bruins answered right back 0:25 seconds later. It was again Marchand who burnt the Penguins with a play similar to Sutter’s goal in which he walked into the slot and beat the opposing goalie clean with a great wrist shot. With the score 4-1 and all of the energy now completely sucked out of the building, Game 2 was over. The Penguins were about to mail it in for a second straight playoff home-game, accumulating a grand total of 21 shots (and zero goals) over the course of the final forty minutes. Patrice Bergeron and Johnny Boychuk would eventually add goals of their own in the third period to make the final score 6-1 in favor of the visitors.

Bruins Extra

Julien’s system working perfectly against dynamic Pittsburgh offense …

From start to finish, the Bruins were in complete control of Game 2 for the entire sixty minutes. Head coach Claude Julien’s defensive system was executed perfectly all night and it was obvious how that frustrated the Pittsburgh forwards. The best example of such was during a second-period play where Boston captain Zdeno Chara was knocked down in the offensive zone and the Penguins were able to turn the play into an odd-man rush. Instantly, three Bruins’ back-checkers were quickly able to recover and keep Pittsburgh from even getting a shot on net during the sequence. Such a key part of the Penguins’ game is the confidence and swagger that they’re accustomed to playing with. Without it, Pittsburgh is a completely different (and very beatable) team. So far, the Bruins’ suffocating defensive system has completely depleted that confidence and obviously frustrated Pittsburgh’s skill players.

“I’m not going to start talking about my whole game plan here, but I think it’s pretty obvious that we have layers. Our guys are committed to come back and just making sure thatthere’s layer after layer that make it hard for them to get to our net.” – Claude Julien

Ben’s Three Stars of the Night: 

1)  Brad Marchand (2 Goals/Plus-4 Rating/4 Shots)

2) Patrice Bergeron (1 Goal/1 Assist/Plus-3 Rating)

3) Nathan Horton (1 Goal/1 Assist/Plus-2 Rating)

Series: Boston Leads, 2-0.

Looking Ahead: Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final will be back in Boston at the TD Garden at 8 P.M. on Wednesday evening.

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Do I owe an apology to the Blackhawks’ front office? I was very critical that the Hawks were not tough enough for the playoff grind. Well, sitting here today, they are enjoying a 2-0 lead in the Conference Finals vs. the L.A. Kings. A mere 2 wins away from another trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Hawks have employed a perfect mixture of speed and physicality after looking the fairway in the eye. They were one loss away from touching up their golf game, not once or twice, but three times last series.

The Kings, on paper appear to be the biggest, strongest foe the Hawks have incurred to date. The Kings look a little battered and bruised after a couple of tough opponents and the Hawks couldn’t care less. They are throwing themselves into this battle with no remorse. I think Marcus Kruger even had a couple hits last game.

With every single player buying into and feeding off the energy brought by Shaw, Bickell, Sharp, etc. and that’s a scary thing for anyone they face. It’s infectious. I’ll admit I was the one lobbying for a couple more physical players added at the deadline. I got Michal Handzus.

Whether it was due to the fact that there weren’t many dance partners or Stan Bowman actually believed this was a team that could win the Stanley Cup, I’m impressed the way his group has grown during this post-season. They faced adversity, they learned lessons (looking at you Stalberg) and they had each others’ backs.

Heading back to Los Angeles, Toews and Co. will have their hands full, with an uber successful home team. They Kings have won 14 in a row in the confines of their nice and cozy Staples Center.

This series is far from over as the Kings can easily even this up by Thursday night. However, this Hawks team is firing on all cylinders and is showing no signs of halting. So as hard as this is to admit, I’ll put my pride aside. I just wanted to say… Stan, front office, “I’m sorry, you were right. I was wrong”. For now at least!

Ty’s Tidbits

~ Random playoff stat time:

- The Hawks have 5 players in the minus column and it’s not who you would think – Leddy (-5), Bolland (-3), Seabrook (-2), Kruger (-1) and Toews (-1)

- Marcus Kruger LOVES playing on the penalty kill. How do I know? Well, he’s the only Blackhawks without a minor penalty.

-  Brent Seabrook leds the team with 45 hits. Patrick Kane is last with 1 registered hit. Way to get in the trenches Kaner.

-  Johnny Oduya leads the team in blocked shots with 25. His shot blocking was an underestimated asset since being acquired from Winnipeg.

~ The Chicago Blackhawks announced they have signed Finnish stud goaltender Antti Raanta. The 6’0, 182 lb goalie was Finland’s MVP of the regular season and playoffs with Assat Pori of SM-liiga. He looks small in net but the scouting report is that he’s lightning fast, a great teammate and a battler. He should challenge for Chicago’s backup role next year. It’s interesting that with teams like Edmonton, Minnesota and Winnipeg reportedly interested in Raanta, that he chose the Windy City. At 24, in his first stint in the NHL, its understandable that promised playing time would have been a selling point by his suitor. Corey Crawford might have something to say about that. Then again, it appears that Raanta wants to be a winner and who wouldn’t want to play with that defence and amazing talent up front.

That’s all I got for now. Enjoy game #3.

Ty Cam out!
@tycam

* photo courtesy of HockeyBroad

Teams: Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins

Series: Boston Leads, 1-0.

Location: CONSOL Energy Center – Pittsburgh, PA

Face-Off:  8:00 P.M. (EST)

TV/Radio Info:  NBC Sports Network – 98.5 The Sports Hub (Goucher, Beers)

Last Game:  Boston 3, Pittsburgh 0

Tonight’s Lineups (Subject To Change):

BOSTON:

Marchand–Bergeron–Jagr

Lucic–Krejci–Horton

Peverley–Kelly–Seguin

Paille–Campbell–Thornton

—

Chara–Boychuk

Ference–Seidenberg

Krug–McQuaid

— 

Rask

Scratches– ….. Carl Soderberg, Kaspars Daugavins, Jay Pandolfo, Aaron Johnson, Dougie Hamilton, Wade Redden, Matt Bartkowski, Niklas Svedberg

PITTSBURGH: 

Neal–Malkin–Iginla

Kunitz–Crosby–Dupuis

Kennedy–Sutter–Cooke

Adams–Jokinen–Morrow

—

Orpik–Martin

Eaton–Letang

Niskanen–Murray

—

Vokoun

Scratches– ….. Tanner Glass, Joe Vitale, Beau Bennett, Deryk Engelland, Simon Despres, Jeff Zatkoff

Injuries:

Opposing Goaltender:  Tomas Vokoun (8 GP/1.98 GAA/.937 Save Percentage)

Prediction: After shutting out the high-powered Penguins’ offense in Game 1, Bruins’ goaltender Tuukka Rask will once again be the key to victory for Boston in the second game of this series on Monday evening at the CONSOL Energy Center. Rask’s 29-save effort on Saturday was nothing short of spectacular, and with the Penguins finding themselves trailing in a series for the first time all postseason, they are most certainly going to come out with a renewed sense of desperation and urgency.

“I expect them (the Penguins) to be better.  Any time you lose a game in your own building, and also being the team they are, they’re going to be better.  We expect that.  And that’s why we need to be better, as well.” – Claude Julien

It will be up to the Bruins to match that initial surge and survive those first few minutes or so, much like the way they did in Game 1. If they are able to do so, as well as avoid the run-and-gun type pace that we saw during parts of Game 1, I don’t see any reason why the Bruins won’t be able to come out and beat the Penguins again tonight. Capturing back-to-back victories in Pittsburgh is certainly no easy task, but I’m going to pick the Bruins to win Game 2 on the road with a late go-ahead goal in the third period.

“It’s going to be a challenge. Like I said, they’re going to be a better team tonight. And we’re going to need to be a better team. So it’s hard to win games in the Playoffs, gets harder as you move forward. So every time you get a chance, you have to make the most of it and don’t waste that opportunity by saying ‘at least we won one out of two’. You have to go out there every game and challenge and want to win that game because nothing guarantees you those home wins, and I think Pittsburgh knows that.” – Claude Julien

Bruins 3, Penguins 2

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With the first game of the 2013 conference finals set to begin in just a few hours, five members of the Hockey Independent writing staff have come together to predict which team will be representing their conference in the Stanley Cup. The contributing authors to today’s piece will be Cris Cohen (New York Rangers), Seth Levin (New Jersey Devils),  Bill Philp (Tampa Bay Lightning), Chris Triantafilis (New York Islanders) and myself, Benjamin Woodward (Boston Bruins). Each writer has also included his/her series “X-Factor” for each match-up. In each case, the performance (or lack thereof) of the “X-Factor” could determine the outcome of the series. Enjoy!

Eastern Conference

(4) Boston Bruins vs. (1) Pittsburgh Penguins

Cohen– Penguins win in 6 . X-Factor –> Discipline, on both sides. With an 81.1% PK, it might be wise for the Bruins to not give a Penguins power play that is chugging along at 28.3% too many chances to score. Conversely, are the Penguins capable of not letting the Bruins get under their skin and get them off their game by goading them into taking dumb penalties?

Levin– Bruins win in 6 . X-Factor –> Bruins’ size grit and defensive positioning will frustrate the Penguins.

Philp– Penguins win in 5 . X-Factor –> Tomas Vokoun

Triantafilis– Penguins win in 7 . X-Factor –> Jarome Iginla. We know how valuable he is on offense, but can his toughness off-set the Bruins’? I think it can definitely help.

Woodward– Bruins win in 7. X-Factor –> Patrice Bergeron vs. Sidney Crosby

Western Conference

(5) Los Angeles Kings vs. (1) Chicago Blackhawks

Cohen–  Kings win in 7. X-Factor –> Jonathan Quick, who’s playing at a level that could very well earn him a second Conn Smythe nod should the Kings reach the final.

Levin– Blackhawks win in 7 . X-Factor –> Will Crawford give the Blackhawks enough in goal to offset Jonathan Quick, who is easily moving himself to the forefront of the NHL’s goalie pantheon?

Philp– Blackhawks win in 7. X-Factor –> Patrick Kane

Triantafilis– Kings win in 6 . X-Factor –> Jonathan Quick is too dominant of a goalie in the playoffs.

Woodward– Kings win in 6. X-Factor –> The Kings are the more complete team, but can Drew Doughty and co. slow down Chicago’s dynamic offensive attack?

Babcock and Q weren’t using their queens much, it was almost as if they had a board full of kings. The warriors from both, the Hawks and Wings fought to the end. I won’t touch on the Stephen Walkom miscue (see: worst call in NHL playoff history) because people make mistakes, all I’ll say is I wish the league should have come out and stated their apologies after the game rather than praise him as “one of the best referees in the game today”.

The past is history and the Hawks have already forgotten this error as they prepare for the Conference Finals matchup vs. the L.A. Kings. Now if the movie Bring It On has taught us anything, it’s spying on the other team does you no good and you should just worry about your own moves. Who cares if they’ve stolen your routine? That was the moral of that story right?

However, planning is important and getting to know your opponent is valuable in building a successful gameplan. As a fan, I think people get caught up too much in their own team. It’s still nice to get an outside perspective so you can manage expectations, also eliminating the possibility of a heart attack.

I did not send someone over to the gymnasium to spy on the Hawks or Kings but what I am going to do is share with you the unique perspective of a Hawks fan answering question on the Kings and vice versa. Hopefully this sparks a great water cooler conversation with that Kings fan you hate in your office.

Anonymous KINGS fan:

1)    Blackhawks most underrated player?
Johnny Oduya..unless you’re in a pickle then it has to be Bryan Bickell

2)   Blackhawks most overrated player?
Nick Leddy, I’m under the impression he hasn’t become what he should (better than Cam Barker though). I wanted to put Dave Bolland in this spot, but he’s a personal favourite.

3)   What scares you the most about the Blackhawks team game?
Their transition game, quick puck movement that can beat a trap is the Kings’ undoing. Also, Chicago has forward depth, San Jose and St. Louis didn’t; the Hawks’ forward speed will be a challenge for Matt Greene, Regehr and Scuds.

4)   What part of the Hawks team game can the Kings take advantage of?
The Hawks D handle the puck a lot, LA’s forecheck and responsible forwards can cause some turnovers, that’s where the goals will come from. On the same note, the more Keith and Seabrook handle the puck, the more they will get hit. LA will try to wear them down over 6-7 games.

5)   Who wins and in how many games?
I think the Hawks take it in 6. They’ve had the Kings number all year. LA also cannot win on the road.

6)   Three words to describe Joel Quenneville?
Moustache, Respected, Demanding.

7)   Do you want Jamie Kompon back?
No…until this year I didn’t know you were actually supposed to score on the PP.

8)   One player on the Kings that the Hawks should watch out for?
I’m pretty sure everyone knows about Slava Voynov now, so he’d be the obvious answer. I’ll say Trevor Lewis, great on the forecheck and has a knack for scoring big goals, also very fast.

9)   Is Jonathan Quick the best goalie in the league?
He had a very average regular season, coming off back surgery but he’s found his groove again. I feel safe saying he’s the best goalie in the Western Conference.

10)   Is Jarret Stoll still dating Paulina Gretzky?
That’s an emphatic no..sadly she’s dating Dustin Johnson. I just hope he’s back for this series, LA misses him.

11)  Your favourite player that played for both teams *added by anonymous KINGS fan*
Bernie Nicholls, followed by Kyle Calder.
Anonymous HAWKS fan:

1)    Kings most underrated player?
Dustin Brown, the guy is a winner and a battler.

2)   Kings most overrated player?
Drew Doughty, he gets a lot of hype but not impressed by his overall game.

3)   What scares you the most about the Kings team game?
Their size and Jonathan Quick. Mostly, Jonathan Quick!

4)   What part of the Kings team game can the Hawks take advantage of?
Their speed, or lack there of on the back end. I know the Kings have a mobile defenceman paired with a molasses-esque player on each pairing. The Hawks will look to exploit those guys specifically.

5)   Who wins and in how many games?
LA in 6

6)   Top Celebrity spotted in the crowd at the Staples Center this series?
Justin Beiber, that is if Keyshawn Jackson hasn’t caught him and turned him into a pretzel.

7)   Would you be ok the Hawks give them Jamie Kompon back?
No – Hawks had a pretty stellar season so at least keep him around for now!

8)   Which Blackhawk will answer the bell physically?
Andrew Shaw and Bryan Bickell. I think they were leading the way in hits during the first 2 series.

9)   Who is more impressive this post season – Corey Crawford or the Blackhawks defence?
The Hawks Defence. Don’t get me wrong Crawford has been good but the overall team defence has been more beneficial towards success. Crawford might have to steal a game or 2 with Quick at the other end this round though.

10)  Pancake eating contest, who wins – Dustin Penner or Bryan Bickell?
Bryan Bickell wins. Dustin Penner has to chug a jug of maple syrup for losing.
So there you have it. Game #1 is around the corner! Let’s see what transpires.
Let me know if you agree or disagree with either anonymous responder!

Ty’s Tidbits

~ Here are some interesting comments from the men in charge of these teams, courtesy of ASAPsports.com:

Q. What move has Joel made in these playoffs that has impressed you, that made the biggest difference?
STAN BOWMAN: I don’t know if there’s one specific move. There’s always little adjustments you make, line combinations, matchups against the other team.
We faced some pretty good players here back in the first round. Obviously we had good matchups, a good plan to be able to accomplish that.
I think more so just finding smaller adjustments, maybe within games, game to game, things you notice on the other team. Our penalty killing has been strong, been that way all year. Got the power-play going briefly there a couple games, gave us a boost. Hopefully we can get that going again.

Q. Dean, is the size on this team by design? Is it a philosophy of yours to build a big team or did it just almost develop that way?
  DEAN LOMBARDI: Yeah, kind of (laughter). I think Darryl and I agree with what wins in this league. We’ve been together a long time. Basically a very similar model we used in San Jose. Part of it is size. But if that size doesn’t compete and have the will to win, it doesn’t matter. It certainly is an asset just like speed.
We see in the playoffs, we see how hard and physical it is. There’s never going to be much space. It does have an advantage. But whether you’re scouting or building a team, to just grab size can be a very dangerous philosophy if you don’t look at the other elements. But I’d say for the most part it’s a similar model we used in San Jose.

 
~ And finally, no matter where I am, I can still find a way to catch the Blackhawks game. I was in Mexico for games #3, #4, #5 and #6 of the Detroit series (hence my lack of blogging) – here are some pics of my relentless pursuit to find a place to watch/listen the the games

Game #4 in a restaurant called Guatama, downtown Playa Del Carmen.

Game #5 at the Casa de los Suenos restaraunt in Isla Mujeres. Oddly enough I ran into 31 people from Chicago there for a wedding looking for the game as well!

Game #6 at the Cancun airport. Listening on my WGN app for the first 2 periods. Found out the final score when I landed.

Comment away on the message board!
@tycam out!