A Look at the Conn Smythe Candidates After Round Three

With Johan Franzen's injury causing him to miss the Stars/Wings series, the Conn Smythe race has opened up to a whole swath of contenders, mainly the big names and usual suspects.

Right now, Sidney Crosby and Henrik Zetterberg sit 1-2 in the scoring race, with the likes of Malkin, Hossa(!), and Datsyuk not far behind.

Name               Team    GP   G   A   Pts   +/-

Sidney Crosby      PIT     14   4   17   21    6
Henrik Zetterberg  DET     16  11   10   21   15
Marian Hossa       PIT     14   9   10   19   7
Pavel Datsyuk      DET     16   9   10   19   12
Evgeni Malkin      PIT     14   9   10   19   5

While Crosby does have 2 less games played than Zetterberg,
I'd give Zetterberg the edge in the Conn Smythe race because goals are far more important than assists, and 7 is a large margin. Zetterberg also has a better +/-, and over twice as many shots on goal taken than The Kid.

Henrik also has 2 shorthanded goals and 3 game winning goals, which is tops among the Top 5. If I had to pick a winner after the first three rounds, he'd be it. I'd also give credit to Zetterberg for putting up his points against tougher defensive teams like Dallas and San Jose, compared to Crosby versus the likes of Philly and Ottawa.

Of course, we can't forget the starting goaltenders, both of whom have had an incredible playoff run.

Osbad: 13GP 10-2 1.60GAA 93.1SV%
Fleury: 14GP 12-2 1.70GAA 93.8SV%

Despite the fact that Osgood has a career full of mediocrity, and Fleury has had his growing pains, both goalies are practically 'money' right about now, and are neck and neck in terms on stats.

Of course, I'm loathe to give evil goalies too much credit, so I'd want them to prove

The World Championships Are On?

You'd think with the World Championships in Canada, I'd blog about the tournament somewhat.

But, how can anyone with a day job blog about a tournament that plays its game at 11AM? Yes, I know the times are set for the European audience, but it seems rather foolish to have Canada's game in the morning when nobody can watch them. Why not have Canada's games, at the very least, during the evening? *sigh*

So, here are some highlights, courtesy of TSN, from the tournament that nobody around here seems to be watching.



Highlight #2 is sick...

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The Czech uniforms from this tournament are ... hideous! Red armpits, WTF?

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Southern Correspondent Wayne shares some thoughts on the PIT-PHI series.

Once the Flyers scored the empty net goal to put the game away, why didn't the Pens' coach take Crosby out and put in Georges Laraque? I don't think fights at the end of games "to send a message" makes much sense, but it was obvious something was gonna happen...

Every time I see Don Cherry with those loud coats, I can't help but think of an old sketch on the old Carol Burnett Show. A comedy classic, it was the "Gone With the Wind" parody which had Ms. Burnett (as Scarlett O'Hara) descending down a flight of stairs wearing drapes (curtains and rod) saying, "I saw it in the window and just had to try it on"...

Proof that Versus (cable TV's witness-protection program) has a tiny viewership: if Chris Simpson were a sideline reporter in any other sport, fans would be making signs saying, "Marry me, Chris Simpson"...

I think Thrasher fans may have dodged a bullet: Dave Nonis interviewed for the Maple Laffs job this week...

Tuesday's Tight Thoughts

While the Nashville Predators gave the Wings some fits with their physical, grinding play, the finesse of the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars has allowed Detroit to easily roll into the Stanley Cup Finals.

Yes, I know the Stars/Wings series is not officially over, but the Stars have as much chance for a comeback as Hilary Clinton. It ain't gonna happen, as we all know.

Wayne, our Southern Correspondent, charms in:

Could someone put the Stars-Wings series out of its misery? I tuned to a hockey game, and a soccer game broke out...The only thing missing was the voice of John Paul Della-Camera (the second greatest soccer announcer ever)...No wonder Wings fans are staying home...

In a topic I've covered before, Wings fans just aren't coming out to pack Joe Louis Arena. Combine a bad economy with a spoiled fanbase, and you get empty seats.

Wayne chips in again:

Take a look at things right now: $4/gallon gas, homes being forclosed, layoffs in the white-collar/middle-and-upper management sector (the people who buy season tix and luxury boxes), make MLB, the NBA, and the NHL (especially the NHL) particularly vulnerable...I don't think people are going to be willing to plunk down $60/ticket much longer, especially in soft markets. All NHL teams are going to have to take a good hard look at themselves...

Well, Detroit certainly isn't a 'soft' market, and the NHL is probably going to realize that American fans might have to cut expensive NHL tickets out of their budget as food and gas prices soar. It's rather troubling that 'Hockeytown' (self-billed, I know) can't sell out a Conference Finals playoff match.

At least the Flyers/Pens series is entertaining, if not entirely one-sided. The Flyers' are getting punished for taking penalties, and Martin Biron is not the answer to the question, "What goalie is going to take us to the Stanley Cup?"

Whiner of the Day: Michel Brule

Despite some of the things I've written on this blog in the past, I don't hold any ill will towards the people of Quebec. Hell, Poutine is one of my favourite guilty pleasures. Mmmm, cheese curds ... *drool*

That said, I cannot stand whiny separatist snobs who feel the need to force others to do things in French. You know, have a French-speaking captain on the Habs, have French signs for shops, have French fries with every meal, etc ... it's quite silly. While I understand that certain people feel their culture is threatened, it's quite another to constantly whine about it, and force people to cave in to the wishes of a vocal minority. It's not as if Quebec doesn't get a disproportionate share of federal funding, is it?

The latest whiner: Michel Brule, a fellow who is pooping his diapers because the Habs aren't playing enough French music at the Bell Centre.

A prominent Quebec publisher is calling on governments to force the Montreal Canadiens to spin more French-language tunes for the Bell Centre crowd.

Michel Brule said he was shocked the team's DJ played one French song during Game 7 of the Habs' first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins.

"We are not in Raleigh, (North) Carolina, we are not in Philadelphia, we are in Montreal and we are in Quebec," said Brule, publisher of Les Editions des Intouchables.

"Anglophones think the only language on the planet is English."

A single tear rolls down my cheek ...

Let's see ...

1. Has a petition EVER worked? Maybe once or twice, but that's it. You know the TV show FAMILY GUY? It didn't return to the tube after a petition circulated, it came back to the tube because people went out and bought a lot of DVDs. Speak with your wallet if you want some real change. If people stopped going to Habs games over this music issue (and they won't), then you might actually be doing something. Signing a piece of paper is simply an empty action designed to make people feel better about themselves, while not actually accomplishing anything.

2. The Canadiens are a privately held club, playing in a privately-owned arena, charging people money for the privilege of watching a hockey in this privately-owned building. Why should anyone be able to tell the Habs what music they can play?

If Brule wants to listen to French music, perhaps he ought to spend his money at a concert, instead. The Habs are a business venture, and they obviously feel it is in their best interest to play English-language music.

3. Snobby Francophones like this Crème Brule fellow seem to think that the world is divided into Anglophones and Francophones, as if the rest of the non-French speaking world is all the same. Come to Vancouver some time, and you'll soon realize that most 'Anglophones' aren't even 1% British, and many of them speak another language.

(Hat-tip to 'hockeychic')

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Playoff Predictions?

Well, I went 3-for-4 in the second round, which is much better than the 6-for-12 record I compiled for Round One.

Philly vs Pittsburgh is the must-watch series, and this will feature a lot of offensive chances, physical play, and bad blood. I'll take Pittsburgh in 6.

Detroit vs. Dallas is the must-not-watch series, given how both Dallas and Detroit can slow down the game to a crawl.

I know I shouldn't keep betting against Dallas, but I'll maintain that it takes a physical team to beat Detroit, and Dallas is more finesse than brutish. Detroit in 5.

Monday Morning Musings

I know I haven't given Dallas any credit this post-season, and they continue to win and win and win against good teams. I never expected their passive-Eurochoke style would work against the physical beasts like San Jose and Anaheim, yet the Stars are just 2 wins away from facing the Red Wings in the Conference final (As if Colorado has a chance)

I always felt Detroit could be exploited by either Anaheim or San Jose, but they might get lucky and not have to face the two teams that would likely give them the most trouble. If that is the case, their Stanley Cup chances look pretty damn good.

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Don't cry for Sean Avery once his Ranger$ get knocked out by the Pens (not that I'd expect you to), because he has a great summer job lined up!

Meet Sean Avery, Fashion Intern.

Avery, who makes $2 million a year with the Rangers and has cavorted with starlets since his days with the Los Angeles Kings, initiated the contact with Vogue editor Anna Wintour. "He is ridiculously obsessed with fashion," Avery's publicist Nicole Chabot told ABCNews.com. "He loves it more than anything in the world. It's something he has always wanted to do."

Chabot admits Avery is an agitator in the "old-style" of hockey and a "blabber mouth," but off ice the player is "surprisingly articulate, creative and savvy," she said. He's also charming, she noted. "There is not a woman that doesn't fall in love with him in five minutes."

Just the perfect profession for a self-centered shallow guy like Avery. Ridiculously obsessed with fashion? Apparently, that doesn't count for the unfashionable moronic comments that come out of his mouth.

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Ritch, The American Hockey Fan, has decided to mimic the teams he cheers for, and has become the American Golf Fan. WTF?

So, after some soul searching (and some head-scratching) we've decided to unveil the exciting new format you see in the header above. So keep us bookmarked, America - don't forget to check in for our thoughts on the Players Championship, the U.S. Open, and the John Deere Classic, as well as Ritch's special series on whether this Tiger Woods kid is the real deal.

That's right, it's American Golf Fan all summer long...or at least until we break down and tune back in to the playoffs. Or, failing that, September, when we start our annual complaining about whether or not pre-season hockey is worth watching.

How about discussion on whether Payne Stewart-type high socks will be the new IN trend this summer?

I will never understand how anyone can actually enjoy WATCHING Golf on TV. My gramma loves the stuff, and, as much as I've tried, I can't get one iota of joy out of watching a bunch of rich white assholes (and the token black guys Tiger and Vijay) whack a tiny ball into a tiny hole 400 yards away.

(Carlin Mode) No matter which way you slice it, golf is an elitist game that takes up far too much good land for the sole purpose of providing wealthy assholes a forum to discuss business deals that divide up the country between the wealthiest citizens. Bomb the golf courses and turn them into low-cost housing. Oh, and bomb Yaletown, too. And Coal Harbour. What a Yuppie-generic waste of space that place is.

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Photo of the Day: A crafty and witty Flyers fan (as witty as they can get, really) came up with this t-shirt for the Flyers/Caps series. Despite the total mispronunciation of Semin's surname, the shirt still works.


Talking to Earl Sleek (Battle of California fame), he wasn't all that impressed.

I'll never be impressed by player-name-slogans. Not since the 90s, when some anti-Buffalo fan had a sign that said: "HASEK, YOU SMEHLIK LIKE ZHITNIK".

As far as I'm concerned, that's the be-all, end-all to name manipulation.

The Rangers Aren't Be-Deviled

by Jes

In my First Round predictions, I gave the New York Rangers little chance and little credit in their ability to beat the New Jersey Devils.

With the Devils on the brink, I obviously have quite a lot of egg on my face.

Admittedly, I don't follow the Devils or Rangers all that closely, since they are far in the East and both not very interesting to watch. Thus, perhaps I should have given more credit to Tom Renney for turning his club into a defensive juggernaught, and getting guys like Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, and Jaromir Jagr to buy into his choking system.

In his preview for FanHouse, Greg Wyshynski, a noted Devils fan, wasn't too upbeat about his team's chance at getting past the first round. Despite some decent names on the Devils roster, Greg thought the Devils lack of offence would come back to bite them.

Certainly, 9 goals in 4 games isn't going to do the trick offensively, but the Devils are a collective -31 in these 4 games, something unheard of in New Jersey Devils hockey since the Mickey Mouse days.

Tongue-in-cheek, Southern Correspondent Wayne asks "The team that has few fans is now down 3-1...Will Lou Lamoriello axe Brent Sutter before game 5 to fire up his team?"

Somehow, I wouldn't be shocked :/

I suppose the Rangers goal scoring woes this season blinded me to the fact that they do, in fact, have a lot more talent up front than the Devils. Shanahan, Jagr, Gomez, Drury, Straka vs. Elias, Madden, Parise, and Langenbrunner...it's no contest.

I suppose, from an outsider's perspective, I can blame the Devils woes on goaltending. It's simplistic, but look at the other stats.

Power Plays - Both teams are at 20%
Penalty Killing - Both teams are at 80%, with the Rangers even shorthanded 5 more times than the Devils
Shots on goal - 124 to 117
Faceoffs - Both teams are near 50%

So, we go to goaltending... Martin Brodeur? A 90.4SV% is well below average, and not the type of golden goaltending we're used to seeing from the man with the golden horseshoe up his ass. Lundqvist? He's at 92.4% after struggling for much of the regular season.

Whatever the case may be, the Rangers are one win away from sweeping aside the Devils, and booting me in the groin for not giving them enough credit.

Practical Playoff Predictions

by Jes

With all of my heavy workload at work and school, and with the Canucks practicing their chip shots, I'm finding it hard to really get into the playoffs like I normally do.

That sucks, I know ... the best time of the year for hockey, and I'd need the hockey equivalent of Cialis to get me in the mood to watch the action on the ice.

Wayne, our Southern Correspondent, feels much the same way.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm just not feeling a buzz for this year's playoffs...I guess the only place in the U.S. where there would be palpable excitement would be Washington...

It used to be that the early rounds of the Cup playoffs were far more entertaining than the NBA's; but after the lockout, everything's now in the NBA's favor. Maybe it's Versus, I don't know...

If the NHL were a fast food, it would be Burger King french fries...

If the NHL were a TV sitcom, it would be "According to Jim"...

If the NHL were any other sport, it would be the PGA Tour MINUS Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.

Well, that's rather harsh. Why aren't the NHL's first round match-ups entertaining? Hell, I can think of quite a few series that you ought to be watching.

Anyway, I might as well make some predictions and use my Jedi powers for something other than stealing Yu-Gi-Oh cards from schoolchildren.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Montreal (1) over Boston (8) in 5 games.
The Habs are a finely tuned machine, and the sum is greater than the yada yada yada. The Bruins are a surprise entrant into the playoffs, and will certainly be destroyed by Tomas Plekanec and the Montreal Power Play.

Pittsburgh (2) over Ottawa (7) in 7 games.
This should be a fun series to watch if you love goal scoring. Both the Sens and Pens have some of the most talented offenses in the NHL, and both teams have major question marks in goal.

Still, I'd go with the hot hand, and Crosby/Malkin is greater than Spezza/Heatley. The Sens are struggling, and are obviously mentally beat up.

Washington (3) over Philadelphia (6) in 6 games.
I don't think Philly is going to get away with murder as much as they want, and the Caps are just on frickin fire. With the addition of Huet and Fedorov, and Ovechkin on performance enhancers, the Flyers won't be able to keep up with the speedy Caps.

Good. Nobody wants Philly in there, anyway

New Jersey (4) over NY Rangers (5) in 7 games.
ZZZZ... the must-not-watch series of the first round pits two of the most defensive-minded teams in the league against each other. Thankfully, nobody outside of the New York area will be subjected to this dreck.

Martin Brodeur...never bet against him, especially when the Rangers' Henrik Lundqvist struggled most of the season.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Detroit (1) over Nashville (8) in 4 games.
I am not as high on Detroit as many others, but Nashville is not going to be the team to derail them. The Wings have a serious hole in goal, but should have no problem tearing the Preds a new one.

San Jose (2) over Calgary (7) in 6 games.
I did a preview of this series over at FanHouse. Suffice it to say, only fans of grinding, "Blue Collar" hockey will enjoy this series. Not fun to watch.

Minnesota (3) over Colorado (6) in 6 games.
As if I'd go against Demitra and Mr. Potatohead!

The Avs have a scary offence, but questionable goaltending. Minnesota, despite some hiccups, is still a far superior systematic team to the loosey-goosey Avalanche.

Ducks (4) over Dallas (5) in 5 games.
The Stars suck, and will choke in the playoffs once again. Turco is not that great of a goalie, and Mike Ribeiro is living off of an unusually high shot percentage. His scoring won't last ...

Ever since Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne returned, the Ducks we know and hate are back to their old "beat em on the ice, beat em in the alley" ways that won them a cup last year.

So, not one upset pick in the bunch. Not that I don't think the Avs could beat the Wild, but I just don't see much upset potential in the first round.

Why Can't I Get Excited About the Canucks?

by Jes

So, we've got a few games left in the season and the Canucks are in a race for the Western Conference's last playoff spot that is tighter than Hillary Clinton's ice-cold nether regions.

Despite this, I can't seem to get excited about it at all.

Have I just given up on the Canucks, much like the Canucks seem to have given up on the season?

Rank                  GP W  L   OT  Pts GF  GA   Home   Away     L10
1 Detroit Red Wings*  79 52 20   7  111 248 175 27-9-3  25-11-4 7-2-1
2 San Jose Sharks*    78 47 21   10 104 210 182 20-13-6 27-8-4  8-0-2
3 Minnesota Wild*     79 42 28   9  93  214 211 23-11-5 19-17-4 5-2-3
4 Anaheim Ducks       79 44 27   8  96  195 184 26-9-4  18-18-4 6-3-1
5 Dallas Stars        78 43 29   6  92  230 196 22-15-2 21-14-4 2-7-1
6 Calgary Flames      78 40 28   10 90  216 215 21-11-9 19-17-1 5-5-0
7 Colorado Avalanche  79 42 31   6  90  221 211 26-12-2 16-19-4 5-5-0
8 Nashville Predators 79 39 31   9  87  222 221 22-14-4 17-17-5 4-5-1

9 Vancouver Canucks   78 38 30   10 86  203 200 20-12-5 18-18-5 4-6-0
10 Edmonton Oilers    80 40 34   6  86  231 247 23-16-1 17-18-5 6-3-1

While the Edmonton Oilers' are playing their asses off, the Canucks are almost content to get a head start on golfing.

Are the Canucks expecting a first round defeat? Why, then, is there a complete lack of caring and emotion out of most of the team?

I know, I know, it's not as if the Canucks can simply score at will. Still, watch the Canucks on any night and the effort just isn't there. Too many players just dont' truly seem to care.

Maybe that is why I am so apathetic about the team right now. If you are an Oilers fan, you can at least take heart in knowing that the team never gave up (assuming they miss the playoffs, which I bet they will).

The Hawks and Coyotes? They made real strides?

The Canucks? They turned into the Florida Panthers ... a great goalie and a mediocre team that won't go anywhere.

Makes you wonder if Luongo won't get GTFO out of here once his contract expires.

I hope GM Dave "No Action" Nonis is canned this off-season, and ownership doesn't simply let the injury excuse be used. I'm sorry, but the Canucks needed offensive help, and didn't get any.

*sigh*

I feel like I should just jump on a bandwagon this year and not invest too much emotion into the playoffs.

Montreal? They have Tomas Plekanec, but Quebecers hate me ;)
Boston? They have Milan Lucic, but they don't have a shot.
San Jose? zzzzz
Anaheim? Bunch of thugs!

Oh, I almost forgot that I did create the Sidney Crosby blog.

Time to jump onto my other bandwagon. w00t!!!

No, I don't have shame in doing so. Until the Canucks earn my respect and devotion again, I'll take my business elsewhere.