Friday, March 14, 2008
Last ten games of NHL Schedule best there is
You could make a case that this particular block of games is almost as good as it gets in the NHL season. No question, nothing really can beat the first round of the playoffs with eight games going in some way, shape or form every night or every other night. This last couple of weeks of the schedule would be close though.
Leaf mania aside, the playoff race is what it’s all about especially for the eighth position. To many teams these days can win a round in the playoffs despite opening on the road or despite finishing lower in the standings so I don’t think when push comes to shove we’ll see teams going all out for that higher seed but you sure as hell will until they secure that spot in the post season dance. The Devils won the Cup in 1995 and opened every series on the road and the Pens won the cup in 1991 despite losing the first game of every series so the proof is there, it can be done.
Couple of thoughts going from the past few days and weeks in the NHL; Daniel Carcillo of the Phoenix Coyotes is my new favourite player. I love this guy. As of this writing he’s amassed 259 pim’s in 46 games. Over a full season that would work out to 462 pim’s, thirteen shy of Dave Schultz’s all time record set with the Flyers in 1975. Carcillo is 23 years old and is from King City, Ontario. He hits everything that moves and asks questions later, he’s emotional, impulsive, borderline irrational which is one of the reasons he was sent back down to the AHL by Gretzky and company earlier this season but he backs all of his teammates instantly and will fight anybody all the while being a plus player and amassing 15 points, on approximately twelve minutes of ice time. Excellent. Dave Schultz’s name may conjure up a number of different notions or memories all depending on your age but he did play a regular shift, he played in three straight finals and was on the two Cup wins by the Flyers, he was a 20 goal scorer, he scored an overtime goal, something Gordie Howe never did in the NHL and he scored game winners. All on top of having arguably the greatest reputation as a hockey pugilist even though he was far from the greatest fighter. Daniel Carcillo is cut from the same mould and I love it.
I also love Chris Pronger but how he’s escaped a suspension for the skate stomp on Ryan Kesler is beyond me. Kesler is a bit of a S**T disturber along with Alex Burrows on the Canuck roster but he did not deserve that and luckily he was not injured. In my estimation it was not as severe as the Chris Simon incident with Jarrko Ruttu but it was a heinous act none the less and Pronger should have received at least five games in my opinion. I love the rough stuff, hockey is after all controlled violence so I don’t want to appear to be the pot calling the kettle black but the line that I refer to quite often as the difference between what’s acceptable in terms of violence was certainly crossed by Pronger in this instance.
The rookie race is once again going to be a beauty with two, or even four names warranting some consideration. There is no question in my mind that the best rookie is Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks but the games lost due to injury will probably preclude him from winning. His teammate Patrick Kane is the most likely candidate for the award and should get a real healthy run from Nicklas Backstrom of the Capitals and a late run possibly from Carey Price of the Habs but the winner will probably be Kane. Maybe we’ll see a repeat of 1992, a most bizarre year in the NHL for rookie voting when Pavel Bure finally signed with Vancouver after sitting out the first fifteen games or so and ended up winning the Calder Trophy yet was not voted to the all-rookie team in his position instead that distinction going to Tony Amonte. Figure that one out. Then again this is the same league whose forefathers gave the Hart Trophy to Al Rollins in 1954 and Tommy Anderson in 1942. Both of those players were on last place teams that year and frankly it’s hard to imagine given that scenario that their teams were any more valuable with them in the lineups. Can you say collusion?? That’s another story for another time.
Stay tuned for the biggest question of all as it gets set to raise it’s ugly head again in a few short weeks; Will we get screwed out of playoff games on Hockey Night in Canada on our typical Saturday night so the vast American audience is pandered to again by Mr. Bettman and Co.? Answers to be known shortly.
Liam Maguire
Leaf mania aside, the playoff race is what it’s all about especially for the eighth position. To many teams these days can win a round in the playoffs despite opening on the road or despite finishing lower in the standings so I don’t think when push comes to shove we’ll see teams going all out for that higher seed but you sure as hell will until they secure that spot in the post season dance. The Devils won the Cup in 1995 and opened every series on the road and the Pens won the cup in 1991 despite losing the first game of every series so the proof is there, it can be done.
Couple of thoughts going from the past few days and weeks in the NHL; Daniel Carcillo of the Phoenix Coyotes is my new favourite player. I love this guy. As of this writing he’s amassed 259 pim’s in 46 games. Over a full season that would work out to 462 pim’s, thirteen shy of Dave Schultz’s all time record set with the Flyers in 1975. Carcillo is 23 years old and is from King City, Ontario. He hits everything that moves and asks questions later, he’s emotional, impulsive, borderline irrational which is one of the reasons he was sent back down to the AHL by Gretzky and company earlier this season but he backs all of his teammates instantly and will fight anybody all the while being a plus player and amassing 15 points, on approximately twelve minutes of ice time. Excellent. Dave Schultz’s name may conjure up a number of different notions or memories all depending on your age but he did play a regular shift, he played in three straight finals and was on the two Cup wins by the Flyers, he was a 20 goal scorer, he scored an overtime goal, something Gordie Howe never did in the NHL and he scored game winners. All on top of having arguably the greatest reputation as a hockey pugilist even though he was far from the greatest fighter. Daniel Carcillo is cut from the same mould and I love it.
I also love Chris Pronger but how he’s escaped a suspension for the skate stomp on Ryan Kesler is beyond me. Kesler is a bit of a S**T disturber along with Alex Burrows on the Canuck roster but he did not deserve that and luckily he was not injured. In my estimation it was not as severe as the Chris Simon incident with Jarrko Ruttu but it was a heinous act none the less and Pronger should have received at least five games in my opinion. I love the rough stuff, hockey is after all controlled violence so I don’t want to appear to be the pot calling the kettle black but the line that I refer to quite often as the difference between what’s acceptable in terms of violence was certainly crossed by Pronger in this instance.
The rookie race is once again going to be a beauty with two, or even four names warranting some consideration. There is no question in my mind that the best rookie is Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks but the games lost due to injury will probably preclude him from winning. His teammate Patrick Kane is the most likely candidate for the award and should get a real healthy run from Nicklas Backstrom of the Capitals and a late run possibly from Carey Price of the Habs but the winner will probably be Kane. Maybe we’ll see a repeat of 1992, a most bizarre year in the NHL for rookie voting when Pavel Bure finally signed with Vancouver after sitting out the first fifteen games or so and ended up winning the Calder Trophy yet was not voted to the all-rookie team in his position instead that distinction going to Tony Amonte. Figure that one out. Then again this is the same league whose forefathers gave the Hart Trophy to Al Rollins in 1954 and Tommy Anderson in 1942. Both of those players were on last place teams that year and frankly it’s hard to imagine given that scenario that their teams were any more valuable with them in the lineups. Can you say collusion?? That’s another story for another time.
Stay tuned for the biggest question of all as it gets set to raise it’s ugly head again in a few short weeks; Will we get screwed out of playoff games on Hockey Night in Canada on our typical Saturday night so the vast American audience is pandered to again by Mr. Bettman and Co.? Answers to be known shortly.
Liam Maguire
# posted by Liam Maguire @ 12:43 PM 
