Sources: Coyotes would stay in Phoenix

This story seems to be evolving and changing by the day, it was looking better yesterday. While today's turn of events does not appear to be good for the city of Winnipeg right now, this could change again if the city of Glendale doesn't agree to pay any and all operating losses for the Coyotes next season. - Stay tuned.

The City of Glendale and the Ice Edge Holdings group have agreed on all points on a new lease agreement that would keep the Phoenix Coyotes in Arizona, sources told ESPN.com Friday evening.

The two sides are expected to sign a letter of exclusivity by early Monday morning, which will formally end the bid of Chicago sports tycoon Jerry Reinsdorf, although sources told ESPN.com that the city has not considered the Reinsdorf bid viable for some time now.

Ice Edge will not, however, agree to have its new memorandum of understanding submitted to the City Council for a vote until Glendale agrees to a number of conditions outlined by the NHL, chief among them that the city will agree to pay any operating losses the Coyotes might incur next season if a deal to sell the team collapses.

Those requirements will be discussed by City Council at its public meeting Tuesday in Glendale.

Although it's possible the city could find itself on the hook for between $20 million and $30 million in operating losses if a deal with Ice Edge or any other potential buyer moving forward collapses, it's believed Glendale will agree to the league's conditions because the NHL will exercise its right to move the team without those assurances.

It's believed Winnipeg would be the prime target for relocation, sources have told ESPN.com, and that a deal to sell the team to interests in Winnipeg could be completed quickly if Glendale cannot satisfy the league's conditions. [ESPN.COM]

BREC - BSU HOCKEY ARENA

Moose Richards of KBUN Sports Radio "the Bun" and the award winning Hockey Show sent me some recent pictures of the new Bemidji Regional Event Center as it nears completion. BSU and the UND Fighting Sioux will open the event center in October.

Former Badger Adam Burish calls Canucks clowns.

Here is the Adam Burish interview that has everyone talking, I have to admit that I agree with the former Badger Adam Burish, the Canucks are a bunch of clowns and some might even call them Hacks. I can't wait for game four.

VANCOUVER -- Chicago Blackhawks winger Adam Burish accused Vancouver Canucks forward Alex Burrows and defenseman Shane O'Brien of being "clowns" for roughing up Blackhawks skill players during their Western Conference semifinals.

"The thing that upsets me about O'Brien and Burrows is they go and target [Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews]," Burish said Friday morning. "The clown Burrows goes after [Brian] Campbell in the middle of the ice.

"Give me a break. If you want to target someone, come find me or [Ben Eager]. You guys want to pretend you're so tough, and yet you go and try to pick a fight with those guys. If you want to hit them and play hard, fine. But those clowns are pushing them after the whistle and punching them."

Burish implied O'Brien acts tough only when Burish and Eager -- the Blackhawks' enforcers -- aren't on the ice.

"We call O'Brien a 'spot picker,' " Burish said. "He picks his spots pretty nice. He knows who's on the ice and when he can be a tough guy and when he kind of has to shut up."

Burrows' hit on Campbell drew an unsportsmanlike penalty midway through the second period of Game 3 on Wednesday, shortly after the Canucks grabbed some momentum and narrowed the Blackhawks' lead to 2-1. Dustin Byfuglien scored his second goal of the game on the ensuing power play to make it 3-1. The Hawks won 5-2 to take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 is Friday night in Vancouver.

"You have to be careful at this time of the year," Burish said. "I go into a game and I have a plan. You know who you want to go after, and who you want to target.

Kelly seems giddy about changing the Fighting Sioux name Edit: Audio included

First off I am an alumnus of the University of North Dakota and nothing pisses me off more than what has transpired with the Fighting Sioux nickname, this spring. UND has lacked leadership and someone to bring the University of North Dakota forward.

In my opinion Robert Kelly is the wrong person to lead this university forward, I find him uninspiring. When I read this article it makes my head want to explode of course Robert Kelly is committed to lead the transition, he has no commitment, no attachment and no understanding of what the Fighting Sioux stands for, not a clue what so ever. Robert Kelly is an alumnus Abilene Christian University in Abilene, TX Kelly could give a “flying eff” about the Fighting Sioux name and its storied history. Kelly is an academic who probably has never held a real job outside of the University setting and probably looks at the Fighting Sioux Nickname as a impediment to UND and his vision of what UND should be.

I still to this day believe that UND should be run by a person that is from UND and more specifically a UND grad. You can’t tell me we don’t have someone from UND and North Dakota that isn’t qualified to run this University. I can't be the only one that feels this way? Here is the video of the this uninspiring speech. [Click to watch]

GRAND FORKS – UND President Robert Kelley told members of the University Senate on Thursday that he is “fully committed to the implementation” of marching orders he received last month from state higher education authorities concerning transition from the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.

Two “task groups” have been established, one to “plan and implement the process of honoring the history and traditions of the Sioux name and logo” and another to “reach out to students, faculty, staff, alumni, friends – all our constituencies.”

A third group has not yet been activated, he said, identifying it as a “new-directions task group,” which – when and if activated – “will help us think through the process of selecting a new name and logo for the university.”

Kelley, who will report to the state Board of Higher Education in Bismarck Monday on the transition, said that “for the immediate future,” he will recommend “that UND simply use its name – the University of North Dakota – and that our athletic and academic teams use the term ‘North Dakota’ or the interlocked ND as an outward identity for activities that require such designation.”

Due to licensing and contractual considerations, including the fact jerseys and other items already have been ordered, “we will use the Fighting Sioux name and logo through the coming year,” he said. “We’re certainly not going to cover up (that part of) any team item that has been ordered.”

However, “as we get through that cycle (the 2010-2011 school year), we would expect to see no Fighting Sioux logo” in use by UND teams, he said.

Kelley said he has had “cordial, businesslike talks” with representatives of the NCAA and with managers at Ralph Engelstad Arena concerning terms of the lawsuit settlement negotiated in 2007 by Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem. The NCAA stipulated that many of the Sioux logos and other features at the arena would have to be removed.

Don Cherry on Flyers hack Dan Carcillo

This video is for Redwing77 as Don "grapes" Cherry addresses the diving and embellishment of the Flyers top agitator (I refer to them as hacks) Dan Carcillo. It's no mystery Don Cherry is not impressed with the antics of Flyers hack Daniel Carcillo because he has addressed this subject in his last two episodes. Don Cherry hits it out of the park with his spot on assessment and Carcillo on how he is a bully and cheapens the game with his soccer like mentality. Carcillo loves to act tough when he is dealing with players that he knows don't or wont fight. Also, notice how Cherry calls Carcillo the wrong name. Classic way of disrespecting someone by mispronouncing their name.

More on the Phoenix Coyotes mess...

A few of my readers have told me that the NHL will never return to Winnipeg. Stories like this one is the reason why I am still hopeful that eventually an NHL franchise will relocate to Winnipeg and once again be only a short drive of 150 miles away from Grand Forks, ND. That is a third of the distance one must drive to see the NHL in Saint Paul, Minnesota. I will still follow the Wild of course but it gives fans like me stuck in flyover country between Saint Paul and Winnipeg options. With each passing day the possibility of an NHL franchise moving back to Winnipeg, Manitoba is becoming more and more of a possibility and looking better and better all of the time. For fans like me that are hoping for this to happen all I can say is keep the faith.

ESPN.com was reporting late Thursday night that the agreement between the City of Glendale and Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf was dead, and that Glendale, which had voted against Ice Edge and in favour of Reinsdorf several weeks ago, had reached out to Ice Edge again. Even the NHL, however, has questioned the ability of Ice Edge to put the funding together to buy the team, and ESPN.com reported that the NHL would place a number of conditions on the sale, including Glendale having to agree to cover any operating losses next season.

If Ice Edge can't strike a deal, the ESPN.com report indicated that Canadian billionaire David Thomson has a purchase agreement ready to sign that would see the team shift operations to Winnipeg.

Winnipeg mayor Sam Katz said it's "just a matter of time" before the city gets an NHL team. Even if it's not the Coyotes, Katz said this week he believes a team will be in Winnipeg within three years.

The impressive first round playoff performance by the Coyotes that saw huge crowds attend the club's games against the Detroit Red Wings apparently weren't enough to keep Reinsdorf in the game, or to make his proposed deal acceptable. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said as recently as Monday that he still hoped a deal could be struck to keep the team in Phoenix, but that he had no deadline on when a purchase could be completed.
[The Spin]

Coyotes sale in jeopardy

So you say that there is a chance. This makes the chances of hockey moving back to Winnipeg even better. I am holding out hope, as I recently told a friend of mine from Winnipeg. I can't wait till I can go to a Jets game on Boxing Day just like the old days.

The imminent sale of the Phoenix Coyotes to Jerry Reinsdorf is no longer imminent, meaning Winnipeg's chances of landing an NHL team just got a little bit better.

Several media outlets reported Thursday night that the NHL’s sale of the Coyotes to the Chicago businessman is dead and that the city of Glendale, Ariz., wants Ice Edge Holdings to assume control of the franchise in an effort to keep the team in the desert.

Scott Burnside of ESPN wrote that Reinsdorf’s deal with the Phoenix suburb is off the table and that Glendale’s city council will file documents on Friday morning accepting a new lease proposal from Ice Edge. Glendale voted against Ice Edge’s initial proposal last month.

As for the team possibly returning to Manitoba, the ESPN report indicated that Glendale needs to guarantee several conditions with the NHL before the league will agree to sell to Ice Edge.

It’s believed Ice Edge was waiting for those conditions to be met before signing the new lease agreement.

If those conditions aren’t met, Burnside wrote it’s possible the league would then look at selling the franchise to Canadian billionaire David Thomson, who co-owns True North, the company that owns MTS Centre. ESPN said a purchase agreement is ready if the Glendale-Ice Edge deal falls apart. [Winnipeg Sun]

NCAA hockey tournament could be changing

When I first read Brad's article I didn't like the idea, then I called a couple fellow hockey fans like myself and came to the conclusion that this could be a change for the better. Can you imagine if UND had gotten to play Yale in the REA instead of some run down half empty hockey arena in Worcester, Massachusetts for a best two out of three series. Yeah! In my opinion there is no way that Yale beats UND two out of three times. Before some fans from hockey east attepmpt to take my head off, I lived in Ayer, MA for a year and a half. I worked in Worcester, it is a run down city and the DCU center is a dump as well. Those are accurate statements.

NC$$...

The NCAA would win because they would sell a lot more tickets than they did this year in the NCAA regional’s. I mean seriously, you have beautiful building like the Xcel Energy Center which seats about 19,000 and you can’t even sell 10,000 tickets? That is unacceptable. Also, with home venues I don’t think you would see crappy ice like you did in Fort Wayne Indiana. The ice conditions there and at the Frozen four were a disgrace and made the NCAA look like a second rate organization. I think the NCAA can do better and if it takes a few tweaks to make things better so be it.

The format for the NCAA men’s hockey tournament may be changing in a couple of years.

Proposals were discussed at an annual college hockey national meeting in Florida last weekend and one gained the most traction.

Under the most popular proposal, the tournament would stay as a 16-team field, but the first round would be a best-of-three series played at the venue of the higher seed.

The eight teams advancing to the quarterfinals would play at one of two super regional sites. The quarterfinals would be one-game shots with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line. The Frozen Four would not change.

The proposal would have to be approved by the NCAA and could not happen until the 2011-12 season at the earliest. Regional sites already have been scheduled for the upcoming season.[Grand Forks Herald]

Is Dustin Byfuglien goal celebration over the top?

This goal celebration by former Roseau native and current BlackHawks forward Dustin Byfuglien has cause quite the discussion over on KuklasKorner. Personally, I don't have a problem with his celebration, it might have crossed the line but I am fed up with all the whining that Canucks fans have done during the playoffs. What do you think? Did he cross the line? Does his celebration lack class?

Chay Genoway press conference

Here is the video and audio of the Chay Genoway's press conference that took place at 1:00 pm today. I have to say that I am very happy with his decision to come back and play another year at UND. UND Fighting Sioux hockey coach Dave Hakstol also had a press conference as well.

Krejci to Miss Remainder of Playoffs

Here is the official announcement that Bruins fans already feared. This is very devastating news for the Boston Bruins because David Krejci fills a lot of roles on the Boston Bruins and his presence will be missed in the line up. Either Trent Whitfield or Brad Marchand will attempt to fill Krejci’s spot in the line up.

BOSTON, MA – Boston Bruins General Manager Peter Chiarelli announced today that forward David Krejci will miss the remainder of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs due to a dislocated right wrist. The injury occurred during the first period of the Bruins/Flyers game on Wednesday, May 5.

Krejci had surgery to repair the wrist at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, MD following the game. The surgery was performed by Dr. Thomas Graham, Surgeon-in-Chief. Krejci is expected to return for the 2010-11 NHL preseason.

The 24-year-old Krejci tallied four goals and four assists in nine games this postseason, after recording 17 goals and 35 assists in 79 regular season games. He set career highs in goals and assists in 2008-09 with 22 goals and 51 assists, in addition to leading the NHL with a +36 rating. Krejci signed a three-year extension through the 2011-12 season on June 2, 2009.

Chay Genoway returning another season. Yeah!

Today Fighting Sioux fans every where are celebrating this morning's good news. I mean seriously this is really good news for the Fighting Sioux hockey team, because they get their all-American defenseman for another season. I would say that the return of Chay Genoway makes the UND Fighting Sioux hockey a much better puck moving team defensively. There is going to be a press conference at 13:00 hours today. This is one of the final pieces to the puzzle for the 2010-2011 season. I would believe that Chay Genoway is going to be one of the top candidates and possibly one of the front runners (top three) for the Hobey Baker Memorial Awards as well.

Grand Forks, ND --- Chay Genoway has decided to return to UND for his senior season with a medical redshirt that has recently been granted.

The free agent could have pursued free agent NHL offers, but for the second summer in a row, has decided to leave them on hold in order to play for the Sioux.

Genoway got off to a great start in 2009-10, scoring 10 points in the first nine games of the season, but suffered a concussion on an illegal hit from Aaron Marvin in mid-November. He never played again the rest of the season, bothered by post-concussion problems. [Grand Forks Herald]

Bruins Win, but…

I think the Boston Bruins were lucky tonight to get the win tonight, their goal tender stopped 34/35 shots and held them in the game when the Bruins were on their heels with the Flyers buzzing. Now with the loss the Flyers have no room for error what so ever, however they will not go quitely into the night, they will put up a big fight. I expect them to play with heart and I and I expect a very rough game on Friday night. Sure they Flyers can come back and win this series anything is possible, however, highly unlikely that they do. The injury to David Krejci if it ends up being true is devastating. Krejci is a great center that kills penalties and plays on the Power Play. The hit was clean and what can you do hockey is a physical game.

The B's may have to do so without defenseman Adam McQuaid and center David Krejci, the latter of whom, according to Claude Julien, was sent to a Philadelphia hospital for evaluation on an undisclosed injury he suffered just prior to the Bruins' second goal at 5:45 of the first period. Krejci assisted on the goal scored by Miroslav Satan.

A source told NESN.com that Krejci needed a wheelchair when he left the building, and John Boruk of CSN Philly tweeted that Krejci broke his wrist on the play, will have surgery in Baltimore and is out for the series and likely the season.

Krejci was carrying the puck through the neutral zone and was cleaned out by an open ice hit from Flyers captain Mike Richards. Krejci laid on the ice as the puck popped loose to Lucic, who then found a streaking Satan for the goal.

As Krejci finally made his way to the bench, he appeared to be favoring his shoulder area, but the actual injury is still unknown. After Julien announced that Krejci went to the hospital, there was rampant speculation in the press box that Krejci had suffered a concussion.

Julien noted that he felt it was a "clean hit" and had no problems with it [NESN.COM]

Bruins push the Flyers to the brink of elimination; Bruins lose David Krejci to injury

The Boston Bruins push the Philadelphia Flyers to the brink of elimination by beating the Goons Flyers 4-1 and lead the best of seven series 3-0. I think it's safe to assume that the Boston Bruins will probably win this series, they would have to lose four games in a row.



The win for the Bruins proved costly as they lost one of their top 6 forwards David Krejci to a possible upper body injury, it sounds like from the early reports that Krejci might have a suffered a separated shoulder. David Krejci was taken to the hospital for further evaluation. Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com is reporting that it could be a seperated shoulder. That is not good news. [Video of the Richards hit on David Krejci] You can see that it's not a dirty hit at all. John Boruk from CSNFlyers is reporting that David Krejci with a broken wrist. Will have surgery in Baltimore. Out for series and likely season. That is horrible news.

Chances of a series win good

NOTES: The Philadelphia Flyers are 31-31 over all record in Game 3s. The Flyers have never come back to win a playoff series when trailing 0-2 and returning home to play Games 3 and 4. The Bruins are 16-0 all time when they lead a best-of-seven series 3 games to 0.

Blake Wheeler got his first career Stanley Cup play goal on the power play. Wheeler had been snake bit so far this spring.

Carcillo embellishment

Here is the video of the Dan Carcillo embellishment from game two that we have heard so much about, it's pretty obvious that Carcillo is a good actor, I am beginning to wonder if he didn’t take classes in drama. The series between the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers has been a hard fought series with quite a bit of banter back in forth in the media and on the blogs...

Standing Rock votes to table petitions on Fighting Sioux nickname

You have to wonder if the Standing Rock Tribal Council will ever have a vote on the issue, it's not looking good. I guess those 1,004 signatures don't mean a thing if the Standing Rock Tribal Council don't allow their members to have a vote.

Grand Forks Herald --- The Standing Rock Tribal Council decided again Tuesday to delay action on petitions that had been submitted by tribal supporters of UND’s Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.

The petitions, bearing 1,004 signatures — about half the number of people who voted in the last tribal election — ask that the council allow the people of Standing Rock to have a voice in determining whether the university may keep the 80-year-old nickname.

A spokeswoman in Chairman Charles Murphy’s office said the council “tabled” the issue as it organized the agenda for its scheduled two-day meeting, but she did not know whether council members intended to bring the matter up again later.

Archie Fool Bear, a leader of the petition drive, said the council didn’t formally table the petition but delayed action again “because the tribe did not receive official notice that the State Board (of Higher Education) had acted on the name.”

The vote was 6-6 on a motion to affirm the council’s April 6 decision not to discuss the nickname issue until the State Board “finalized” its decision to retire the nickname. Vice Chairman Mike Faith broke the tie, Fool Bear said.

Faith and other council members did not return calls Tuesday. Chairman Murphy was traveling because of a death in the family and did not participate in the meeting.

“I don’t know how much more quibbling we can have on this,” Fool Bear said. “I guess we’ll have to get a copy of the letter the board sent” to Kelley.

Paul Kelly interview with From the Rink...

This is a must read interview with some really interesting points affecting the landscape of NCAA Division one hockey. Funny thing the Big Ten Hockey Conference keeps coming up. Yawn!

FTR: You mentioned the choices between junior hockey and the NCAA. Following your initial debut and the first few interviews you've done, there's been a negative response from the CHL. They've used the words "unfairly targeting" to describe the things that College Hockey Inc. has said about the CHL.

Kelly: I don't think we're unfairly targeting anybody. We need to provide information to people so that they can make informed decisions. Many times we need to draw distinctions between the experience of playing NCAA hockey as opposed to playing junior hockey in Canada. In order to do that, you need to point out the pros and cons for both of us. If that's viewed as a negative by them, I would say that whatever statements we've made are backed up by solid evidence and facts. If we make a claim that some of the statements that they make and some of the information that they put forth on their website regarding their education packages are somewhat suspect, then players need to read the fine print. We've found many instances of players that have had difficulties of players obtaining their educational benefits. In fact, a vast majority of players that have played in the CHL have never tapped into those benefits - the rate of kids that never get an education, that never get a diploma is very high in the CHL. I think that it's important for players, whether they are from the United States or Canada to know these facts. I'm not saying that NCAA hockey doesn't have it's own bumps and bruises and issues, because it does, but I think it's fair for us to point out some of these things to players and their families. We're not doing it to be purposefully negative, that's not our intention at all. I've always said that the CHL may be the right course for some kids and I think that means that NCAA hockey and the juniors programs in Canada need to co-exist.

FTR: One piece of the Canadian program that does co-exist with the NCAA is the BCHL. So many kids come out of the BCHL and play NCAA hockey. As an Edmonton writer, one that sticks out for me is Riley Nash from Cornell. Are you going to work with the BCHL at all?

Kelly: There are a number of programs up there, the BCHL is one of them, the Albert Junior Hockey League is another, the Prince Edward Island League is another. I actually traveled out to British Columbia and spoke at the BCHL All Star banquet, attended the Owners and Board of Governors Meeting for the league and spoke very candidly with them about our support of what they're doing. The answer to your question is yes, the BCHL is doing a terrific job, they're producing some great players, they've put a great number of very talented kids into NCAA programs. We have every desire to see that continue.

FTR: There are so many kids coming out of California now that have to travel a long way if they want to play Division I hockey, and many of them choose to go to the WHL instead. Is California expansion of NCAA Division I hockey a priority?

Kelly: Frankly, the first college or university that decides to add Division I hockey in California will have just an absolute bounty in front of it. They will have their pick of some of the most talented kids in the country and they've got some great young kids coming up. If we could ever convince USC or UCLA or Stanford or California to add a program, they would have such an immediate impact. It's impossible in football or basketball to start a college program and think that you could have a team that could compete for the national championship any time soon. That's not the case in hockey. You could start a hockey program, get the right coach and bring in the right recruits and within a matter of three or four years, you could be challenging for the national title. I think that many of these big schools need to take a look at that and realize that many of the teams in Division I do so very successfully from an economic perspective. Most of the teams in the WCHA do very well. They fill their buildings, there is a lot of excitement, it attracts students, not just athletes, to the school. It's another activity that they can offer to the student body that brings excitement and enthusiasm. We've got three NHL teams in California and there is a hockey following out there, so I think it's a natural fit for one of those schools.

Personally, I don’t see college hockey being all that successful in the west past DU and C.C., just my humble opinion, while there is some youth hockey out west it’s definitely not as strong as strong as Minnesota, Massachusetts and Michigan, where would they get a majority of their recruits from?

One could make the argument that UAA and UFA have had very limited success and they have decent to very good high school hockey in Alaska. Unfortunately for both schools there has been an out migration of good home grown hockey players to the lower 48 states. These schools would be in direct competition the WHL and the WCHA for recruits. If the western schools could support hockey successfully wouldn't they attempted it already?

Mark Recchi on Daniel Carcillo

Here was an interview that Mark Recchi did for WEEI.COM and it can be found on the Big Bad Blog. Couple of interesting things that stuck out.

Is Daniel Carcillo funny? He never stops yapping.

He’s actually not funny at all. There’s nothing funny to his repertoire at all
----------
Savard really made a statement by taking those guys on. Are you beating the Flyers at their own game?

Well, that is our game, too. That is what makes us a factor. It is almost like people wake the sleeping giant. We get involved in these games, we seem to really get the emotion and are able to play a better hockey game. It is great that Savvy — he could have just laid down after he got hit but he is a competitive guy and he is showing that he is willing to stick up and is ready for this battle. And that is important. That is fine; we’ll kill those penalties and do the job for them.

Did you hear Mike Richards say that he was going to give Savard another concussion, and if so do you have a problem with it?

I didn’t hear it. I just actually heard about it for the first time last night, so that is just really in the competition unless he goes out and acts on it, then we have to look into it. But that is just part of the heat of the moment and a lot of things get said on the ice that really can’t get repeated half of the time.

Another CBC Hockey Montage

The best NHL Hockey Coverage on television.

Back by popular demand more Coach's Corner from CBC

May 1st Coach's Corner episode - Don Cherry on Daniel Carcillo's antics...

May 4th Coach's Corner espisode - More Don Cherry as he talks about Daniel Carillo again.

More on bite gate. (Carcillo and Savard)

This video is worth a look; more on bite gate. It's almost like a couple of children on the play ground having a spat. Apparently Flyers forward Mike Richards threatened Marc Savard on is way to the penalty box. Savard is denying the claim. This series is heating up.

Bruins center Marc Savard has denied a report that said Flyers captain Mike Richards threatened on Monday night to knock him you "for another six weeks."

"No he never said that to me," Savard told NESN.com's James Murphy at practice on Tuesday. "I don't know where that came from."

The original report said that Richards approached Savard as the B's pivot was making his way to the penalty box, saying: "You were out for six weeks? We'll put you out for another six weeks."

Though it appeared to be the latest chapter in the brewing distaste growing between the Flyers and Bruins, Savard has quieted the storm. At least until Wednesday night.
[NESN.COM]

Gary Bettman discusses the officiating; yada yada yada...

I am going to say Barbra Streisand on that one Gary. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman must think the NHL hockey fans are complete and utter morons. In reading various fan sites, media blogs and on line newspapers, it does appear to be a reoccurring theme.

I agree the officiating has been really poor in all of the series. There has been no consistency in the way that games are called in any of the games that I have watched this spring. The best officiating that I saw was game seven between the Canadians and the Capitals. I will also admit that I have seen my Boston Bruins be the benefit of some really poor calls.

The officials: Bettman was also asked about the officiating in the playoffs -- a sensitive topic judging from ESPN.com message boards -- and whether the games are being called differently in the postseason.

"It's not the case," Bettman said. "They haven't been given a different set of instructions. The game is played a little differently, and the officials have to react to that. And there are adjustments that go on in the course of a series that you don't see over the course of the regular season, two teams will play and play different teams the next night.

"The games now are probably a little more intense. ... But no, they're told to call it just the way they did [in the regular season]. I also think the scrutiny tends to be even a little greater and the passion involved in every call is probably greater because every call is important. Our goal is to have the officials get it right and overwhelmingly they do. Are they perfect? This is a game of mistakes. Coaches make mistakes, players make mistakes and, occasionally, even an official might." [ESPN.COM]

Sharks reap return from Badger connection

This is a link to a very nice story about former Badgers Joe Pavelski and Dany Heatly. I know they are not Fighting Sioux hockey players but the success that Joe Pavelski has had in the NHL playoffs this season makes for a nice feel good story for WCHA fans. Currently Pavelski is 1st in goals with 9, 1st in game-winning goals with 3 and finally 1st in power-play goals with 5.

Had a chance to chat with the San Jose Sharks’ Joe Pavelski for a time this morning on his cell phone, just as they were about to leave for Detroit and Tuesday night’s third game of their playoff series with the Red Wings. A lot of us inquiring minds wanted to know what had possessed Pavelski to score nine goals already this spring, which leads the league. It’s my column for Tuesday’s paper and should be posted sometime tonight.

But I also had a personal question for him relating to Sharks teammate Dany Heatley, a fellow alumnus from the University of Wisconsin. When Heatley was originally traded to the Sharks from Ottawa last year, he mentioned that among the players that he knew on his new club were the ones that he’d crossed paths with internationally for Team Canada (Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle) - plus Pavelski. Except their times at the school didn’t overlap - Heatley was already in the NHL when Pavelski captained the Badgers to an NCAA championship.

Turns out, according to Pavelski, that he actually played one year of college with Heatley’s younger brother Mark, but he and Dany had a brief on-ice encounter earlier in their respective careers.

“Kinda funny story,” said Pavelski . “When I was in bantam or midget one year and getting ready for a national championship, one of the coach’s friends was one of the Badger players, so they came out and skated and scrimmaged with us. That was one of those things where you’re in bantams or whatever and you’ve got the college players out there and it’s a whole different level.

“That was my first experience with Dany. He didn’t even know who I was; and I don’t even know if he remembers that happened.” [Read the Whole Story]

Carcillo accuses Savard of biting him

Carcillo is one of the biggest hacks to ever play the game. Carcillo was diving up and down the ice last night and turtled when challenged.

BOSTON – Things are getting interesting between the Bruins and the Flyers.

The biggest incident from Monday night’s Game Two stemmed from a heated scrap between Marc Savard and Daniel Carcillo after the whistle had blown in the second period.

Carcillo threw a forearm shot to the side of Savard’s head in Savard's second game back from a Grade 2 concussion, but that was only the tip of the iceberg in a scuffle that took a turn for the bizarre.

Savard got tangled between Carcillo and Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen, and ended up being the only player called for roughing after the testy exchange in the second period.

And that’s where things started getting really interesting.

Carcillo went back to the bench, took off his glove and flashed his pinky at both the refs and Chris Pronger while claiming Savard bit him during the fracas in the corner of the Philly zone.

This why Sidney Crosby isn't liked by a lot of fans.

This is the reason I think a lot of people refer to Sidney Crosby as Cindy Crosby. The man is an amazing talent but he is also an incredible whiner as well. Grow up Sidney and maybe more fans will embrace you... I have to admit that I am enjoying watching the Penguins get everyone's best effort this spring as well.

Remember The Name! (Waving Flag - New Version)

Here is the latest updated version of Remember the name by Ryan Schaefer. You can also view this video on Face Book group - Fighting Sioux forever.

A perspective worth looking at

Here is another perspective worth looking at on the Ryan McDonagh story. I do think sometimes fans of NHL teams that are unfamiliar with the college game lose touch with the fact that many of these young men really like playing college hockey and attending college. I don’t think it’s such a bad thing that some of these young men aren’t going to be in hurry to sign with their professional teams that drafted them.

From watching college hockey over the years, we have seen quite a few players rushed to sign with their professional teams only to fizzle out and never reach their full potential. Very few college hockey players go on to play in the NHL. Some of these players have been on record as saying they wished they would have stayed in school. While Ryan McDonagh will probably play in the NHL, I can't fault him if he wants to play another year in Madison.

That being said what is kind of funny in a sad way is the way some Ranger fans are reacting to the possibility that Ryan McDonagh is choosing to return to Wisconsin over leaving to sign with the Rangers.

From shock to wanting the soon to be Wisconsin captain to issue a public statement; some Ranger fans are acting as if McDonagh does not have the right to turn down the Rangers. If Ryan McDonagh wants to return to Wisconsin for his senior season it is his right and he does not owe anyone an explanation why.

Sorry people but I could list a whole bunch of reasons why McDonagh would want to remain in school and they just might start with something so simple as wanting to finish his degree. Anyone who bothers to look at McDonagh's biography at Wisconsin's website might discover that McDonagh was named to the named to the Academic All-Big Ten and WCHA All-Academic teams as a sophomore (repeated as a junior on the WCHA team).

And if you think the Rangers have not made an effort to get McDonagh to sign (or for the matter Stepan and Hagelin) that would also be a mistake. The Rangers spend a lot of time and effort in watching their prospects and we are not talking scouts alone as the Rangers have been well represented in Madison Wisconsin.

The Rangers also for their part really do not want McDonagh to speak up either way until after the free agent period is underway. The Rangers as everyone knows need help on defense so the price to bring in quality help is going to want to squeeze the Rangers as much as possible whether it be a trade or a free agent. [Read the rest of the story here]

The McDonagh Madness Continues

Here is the latest rumor on the Wisconsin Badgers defenseman Ryan McDonagh. Sounds like the Rangers would really like to sign Ryan McDonagh to a professional contract and why wouldn't they. Ryan McDonagh has a lot of upside and has a great chance of being an every day player some day in the NHL. Seems to be a lot of speculation but no one really knows what is going to happen. This is the worst time of the year for college hockey fans.

Anyway, basically what is going on here is that McDonagh realizes he has options and is not about to be forced into something he does not want to necessarily do. With knowing that he will captain Wisconsin next season, and knowing that he is guaranteed an expected amount of playing time as well as responsibility, he is leaning toward sticking with the Badgers. This is option number one.

Option number two would be to agree on terms with the Blueshirts, sign an entry level contract and jump straight to the pros instead of finishing his senior year in college. The difference between option one and option two, besides salary of course, is that he is guaranteed absolutely nothing once signing with the Rangers. He is not guaranteed that same playing time he is with Wisconsin, and he certainly is not going to be given the same amount of responsibility.

Take Matt Gilroy, for example, who signed with the Rangers out of college last April. A former Hobey Baker Award winner, Gilroy entered the National Hockey League playing under a coach that apparently did not have much patients to allow him to develop. He was docked ice time, sent down to the minors, and then was sentenced to watch the final week of the regular season from the press box. Again, a Hobey Baker Award winner, coming out of college, was shown very little respect by head coach John Tortorella, and barely was given a chance.

After seeing that, can you blame McDonagh for wanting to stay in college for his final year where he is one of their "go to" players instead of being belittled by Tortorella and possibly not even dressing on occasion? I cannot, and it is a shame that out coach can possibly scare off future talent. Gilroy has potential, and could have developed nicely this past season, but Torts finds it necessary to play individuals such as Wade Redden over him. If I am McDonagh, I do not jump to the pros and lock into a contract with the risk of having to contend with that nonsense.

Now I am not saying this is why McDonagh is holding out, but without a doubt, it is a possible explanation. Once the upcoming NCAA season concludes, the 6-foot-1 blue-liner has no choice but to enter the National Hockey League, and there is plenty of time between the end of his season and early August for him to strike a deal with the Blueshirts before becoming an unrestricted free agent and New York losses his rights. Until then, he is Rangers property and has shown no indication whatsoever of not wanting to play on Broadway as Brooks claims in his article.

McDonagh has the upper hand in this situation, which is rare for a rookie entering the league, and most people that are fortunate enough to have that upper hand are going to fully take advantage of it. If he does not have to rush, why should he? With the risk of making the wrong decision, he should take all of the time given to him be sure he is making the right one. No, it may not be the ideal thing for the Rangers (or their fans), but I am presenting the situation to you from his point of view
[Rangers Tribune]

Screw it up, Red and White Style (RW77)

Well, the Red Wings are down 2-0 now... and it's about 95% their fault.

Ok, ok, the officiating was terrible for both sides. Diving continues to be the key way to earn a powerplay for the Sharks. I'd like to put the issue of crappy officiating to bed with three examples:

Example 1:

In the 3rd Period, Bertuzzi gets called for holding.... holding air apparently, which is illegal in their imaginary rule book. Bertuzzi, who was bigger than the defender (I think it was Doug Murray) muscled the defender to the puck. In so doing, the defender falls down and makes no attempt to get up until after he hits the boards. The officials call Bertuzzi for holding. 40 seconds or so into the Powerplay, the officials actually call a legit penalty on Kronwall and the Sharks even up the score. My contention is: Uh............. Bertuzzi shouldn't have been penalized. I saw Sharks pulling the same crap on the Wings during that period NO CALL. Fine if you want it to not be a call, but DON'T CALL IT ON EITHER SIDE!

Example 2:

Dany Heatley goes for Goaltender Interference. Heatley was CLEARLY pushed into Jimmy Howard. CLEARLY. But they called him anyways.

Example 3:

I cite this after Example 2 because I believe this is what gave the Sharks the initial powerplay. To be honest, I can't even remember who got the penalty. In any case, the Red Wing in question successfully stick checked the puck. In so doing, he struck the blade of a Shark's stick. The Shark immediately drops the stick and...VOILA! Slashing on the Red Wings.

Check this out... penalties were something like 10-4 in favor of the Sharks. Usually that is indicative of lopsided officiating... but after the third period ended, I'm not so sure.

Despite all of this, Howard played well and so did the Wings... sorta.

They were starting to put on pressure when they pulled Howard and committed the most retarded, most easily avoided, idiotic crime in hockey: TOO MANY MEN ON THE ICE.

Seriously... HOW RETARDED CAN YOU BE?

At this point, with barely 90 seconds left in the game, I threw up my hands and said "Well, mail it in boys. Oh wait, you did. That's why you got caught." They even may have gotten away with 6 on 5 during the ensuing penalty kill!

All in all, this game was infuriating to watch because the Red Wings didn't beat the Sharks. The Sharks didn't beat the Red Wings. The Red Wings beat themselves.

They were ridiculously stupid and the officials were more than happy to "teach them a lesson" on top of it.

Really, if Colin Campbell thinks that WCHA quality officials is the best the NHL has to offer, then perhaps Campbell should be fired and go on to be head officiating consultant to the WCHA. This kind of crap we expect in the WCHA. Not in the NHL.

Oh well.

The Red Wings made their bed in this one. Gave crappy officials reasons to call ghost penalties on top of the numerous legit ones.

Well, now the task gets harder.

In lighter news, the Habs beat the Penguins. Looks like the powerhouse is gonna have to shoot for 5 instead of the sweep the media had Pittsburgh basically penned in for.

Craig Adams hit from behind on Marc-Andre Bergeron

The Craig Adams hit on Bergeron got him 5 minutes and a game misconduct. I am sure the hit will be reviewed by the NHL. It was a bad hit but I don't think it was a deliberate attempt to injure.

Bruins and Flyers to get it on in round two...

I am excited about this series and the Bruins took game one from the Flyers 5-4 in O.T. as Marc Savard made his return to the ice after missing 24 games, Savard scored the game winner in O.T. with this beauty. The Bruins gained a key player of their team but also lost "the German" Marco Sturm to a knee injury (MCL and ACL).

The Flyers are the one of the tougher teams in the NHL and were second in fighting majors with 77. Daniel "the toothless wonder" Carcillo and Scott "mop head" Hartnell are also two of the biggest hacks in the NHL. Uber Hack and team fight leader, some might call him a goon Ian Laperriere is out for the rest of the post season with a head injury. I am sure that Shawn Thornton will have someone to dance with on the Flyers.


Here is the video of the Sturm knee injury, Sturm attempts a check on Matt Carle and ends up hurting himself. That looks like a freak accident kind of thing.

Make it One More in the "Disappointing Starts" Department (RW77)

I'll let Goon chime in on his beloved Bruins.

Today featured yet another interesting series beginning with the Blackhawks hosting the Canucks in a rematch of last year's semis.

Now, I know what you're all thinking. "He's a Red Wings fan. There's no way he's upset about the Canucks absolutely destroying the Hawks tonight."

Yes and No. Truthfully, if the Red Wings overcome Game 1 to win the series and advance to the Conference Finals, I'd rather them face Vancouver than Chicago. Odd for me to say that because the primary weakness for Chicago (goaltending) benefits Detroit rather than facing a good Vancouver team, but I love disappointing Vancouver fans... Especially when they feel all entitled and superior to us (which, this year, I think they may be).

Anyways, tonight the Hawks got absolutely blasted by the Canucks at home by the score of 5-1. From what I saw, it might as well have been 12-0.

This is a team (the Hawks) that played awfully bad in all respects.

They couldn't pass in ANY zone.

They couldn't defend (though part of this goes to just how good the Canuck forwards played too).

They couldn't goaltend. Niemi looked unsure of himself every time he handled the puck. Routine saves were hard for him tonight. Huet came in and suddenly the Hawks started playing Defense (probably because if they gave Canucks more than 7 shots on goal, Huet would start letting them in. I'm positive everyone in the arena was holding their breath on that Vancouver 4 on 1. Huet got lucky.).

They turned the puck over all the time. And they couldn't get the puck on net EVEN WHEN THEY MANAGED TO PRESSURE.

Vancouver didn't play a flawless game. Every time Chicago started to pressure, you could see them get a little panicked, but luckily Chicago played like crap and Luongo picked up the rest.

Maybe I'm wrong, but Chicago seems to me to be a streaky team. Niemi isn't the answer as the #1 goaltender, but Huet is a disaster.

The biggest downside is that Huet probably showed the Hawks that spending money on goaltending wasn't wise. So, signing a guy that could help them (such as Vokoun) is probably unlikely... Then again, they don't have the Cap space anyways.

I guess I'm a fan of the Hawks because I like Jonathan Toews. However, I think even he had a pretty off night tonight despite getting the assist on the only Hawk goal.

Anyways, onwards and upwards.

It's anyone's guess as to who starts Game 2 for the Hawks, but I'll say this: If you want to see a more lopsided game in favor of a team than Penguins/Habs if Price starts, Quennville should start Huet. Oh my God.

Wings and Habs lose in the first game (RW77)

Well, Game 1 of the Pens/Habs and Wings/Sharks are now in the books and it's about where I figured it.

I know I shouldn't be down on the Red Wings and I'm not, but I'm not blind to the fact that, if the Red Wings ever had an "easy" series, it was the one against the Preds.

The Sharks came out of the gate fast and scored 3 right away. That's all it takes sometimes to get rid of a team for the rest of the game. No, the Wings weren't out of it and did a pretty good job fighting their way back to make it close. However, it was too little too late.

One thing that both Game 1 losers had in common was that both were ridiculously stupid on the ice. Especially the Habs. Penguins score 4 Powerplay goals tonight. Halak gets yanked in the 3rd period (more on that soon). The Red Wings take a ridiculous 5 on 3 pk between the 2nd and 3rd periods.

WOW. However, I must hand it to Devon Setoguchi. The dive was JUST believable on the second penalty. Watch the replay. Even the commentators thought that Stuart got him on the wrist and down he goes for the count. I can't argue against the Stuart move not being a penalty. I thought it was a slash, not a high stick. But Setoguchi flopping to the ice and holding his head until the whistle blew, then getting up and not even fazed? D-I-V-E. He should have gone for embellishment. 4 on 3 Shark PP.

Both teams played solidly otherwise.

DA HABS

Ok, this was the kind of game I was actually expecting in Game One between these two foes, but I didn't expect it to be all special teams. The Habs were RIDICULOUSLY BAD on the PK.

Jaroslav Halak did ok, imo. The rest of the team? Not so much.

However, the commentators further tipped their hand when Halak got pulled in the 3rd period. They started by stating a truth (I too thought Halak should have been yanked at the start of the 3rd period) and then proceeded to glom praise on Price and acted like eager little school kids the morning of a field trip to a candy factory when describing Price's playoff history.

They dismissed Halak's performance as a "He may have done good in 5, 6, and 7, but if Price plays well, he could get the start in Game 2." Yeah, the difference is that with Halak, it took 4 power plays to get to 5 goals. With Price, it'd take 10 minutes of 5 on 5 vs. the Penguins.

So it should come as no surprise that the commentators were adamant about the possibility of Price for Game 2. There's no doubt they want the Habs to fail.

On a positive side, Crosby was held to less than 5 shots and only 2 assists on the night. He's still bound for Playoff MVP honors should the Habs not pull out a second straight upset.

The same thing applies though: Everyone expects the Penguins to advance. If the Habs lose, what have they failed at? I think this is bonus hockey for the Habs all things considered.

Martin would be ridiculously retarded to start Price UNLESS he thought that Halak was too fatigued (with the fast turnaround between series) to be effective. It is PLAINLY clear that the Habs' chances rest on Halak. NOT PRICE.

That being said, if Price starts Game 2, I would be STUNNED if the Pens didn't win. I'd taunt them mercilessly if they did anything but win in regulation (even if the won in OT) should Price start.

The Pens SHOULD take this series 4-1. I say the 1 win comes in Montreal when Halak steals another game.

On a side note: Sad Markov got injured. Not surprised Cooke did it. SURPRISED the hit was legal, though (which it was). Reviewing it further, yeah, it was legal. Too bad. I never wish injury on anyone but if Markov had to get injured, the best thing to happen would have been if he could have gotten Cooke suspended.

EDIT:

Here's the Cooke Hit:

Toews wants revenge against Mitchell, but only on the score board

This is what former Fighting Sioux hockey player Jonathan Toews has to say about the hit that knocked him out for a few games with a concussion last fall.

CHICAGO — Turnabout is not fair play in Jonathan Toews’ eyes.

The Chicago Blackhawks captain admits he wanted revenge against Willie Mitchell and the Vancouver Canucks after Mitchell’s open-ice check left Toews concussed — but only on the scoreboard.

He’d never wish ill will on the defenceman, who is now struggling through his own post-concussion battles.

Mitchell stepped out of the penalty box during an October contest and rocked Toews, who missed six games as a result.

A blind-side hit into the end boards from Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin has had Mitchell out of action since mid-January.

“You want to get revenge when you play against Vancouver and the player who put you in that situation, but I’ve got to say there’s definitely no hard feelings,” Toews said Thursday

Andy Sutton's you're an expert interview...

For those that haven't seen it, this is the interview that happened post game after former MTU Husky and current Senator Andy Sutton knocked former Gopher and Penguin Jordan Leopold out of the game and caused Jordan Leopold to miss the last four games of the series with the Senators. There is no set time table for Leo's return to the line up. This is what Leo had to say about the hit today.

Leopold declined to say how many concussions he has sustained in his career -- "I do [know], but I'm not going to advertise it," he said -- or to offer an opinion on whether he believed Sutton's hit was clean.

"What's done is done," he said. "You just leave it in the past."

Sutton was neither penalized nor suspended, and Leopold characterized the damage done by Sutton as "relatively mild," but acknowledged that he appeared to be seriously injured when it happened.

"You look back at the hit, it wasn't pretty," he said.

Leopold said, "it's my call" about when he will be able to get back into a game and made it clear that he will not consider playing until he is convinced he is completely recovered. [Post-Gazette.com]

Best plays of the first round of the NHL playoffs.

All I can say is wow, what a first round.

Hart Trophy Finalists and Redwing's prediction

The Hart Trophy was announced. For those who aren't familiar with the the names of the Trophies what they're awarded for, the Hart is for NHL MVP.

The three nominees are: Alexander Ovechkin (WAS), Sidney Crosby (PIT), and Henrik Sedin (VAN).

I think I'm going to take my biased opinion and relate to you all my thoughts on this topic by breaking down the three candidates.

Alexander Ovechkin:

This guy does it all. He hits (sometimes illegally and cheaply), he skates, he creates, and he scores. In fact, he's a far better overall scorer than any of the other candidates. He did a great job of driving his team to the playoffs and inspired his teammates towards greatness, even if he wasn't always the best player on the ice.

Why He'll Win:

He finished the regular season 3rd in goals scored (50; behind Crosby and Stampkos), 6th in assists, 3rd in points, 2nd to teammate Schultz in +/-, and 4th in Game winning goals. He also scored at a 1.51 ppg pace throughout the season (ok, he played 9-10 fewer games than Sedin and Crosby...)

Why He Won't Win:

Somewhat inconsistent. Doesn't have the clean reputation that Sedin and Crosby enjoy. Surrounded by a ton of talent but he couldn't help the team past the first round.

Henrik Sedin

This flying Swede is a smooth skating point machine. He finds himself not on the same platform as Crosby and Ovechkin for several reasons, but most notably his lack of ability to be a prolific goal scorer.

Why He Will Win:

83 assists. Most points in the league. Scored at a point per game pace identical to Crosby's despite scoring about 22 fewer goals. Leader throughout, including the playoffs. Consistent point producer.

Why He Won't Win:

Lack of goal scoring. 4 power play goals. Perhaps the perception that assists are easier to achieve than goals on a high scoring team. Other than points and assists, he's not statistically altogether superior to the other two candidates.

Sidney Crosby

This NHL Front Office PR machine appointed "GOD" of hockey is simply legendary... Ok, enough of the hype talking. Crosby is one of the top players playing today and probably one of the top players since Messier and Yzerman retired. He put up impressive numbers this year and is a consummate captain despite having the reputation of living in Daddy Lemieux's basement (I don't think he still lives there and probably hasn't since his rookie year).

Why He'll Win:

Unlike Sedin and Ovechkin, Crosby has more than just the Penguin fanbase rooting for him. Crosby has the NHL Front Office, led by Gary Bettman, the PR machine, and the Hockey Sports Media rooting heavily for him. This guy's media following as epic. In fact, those I've talked to who lived through Gretzky (Oiler and Kings years), Orr, Howe, Mekita, etc. eras can't remember there being the type and extent of hype being awarded to any of the "greats" that has been garnered to Crosby. You can argue about supposed "need" and the waning interest in hockey, but it's sometimes hard to withstand. That being said, he's got a clean reputation, a great scoring line, and has led their team farther in the playoffs than Ovechkin. He's fresh off a great performance last year that got him the Cup and he's leading the NHL in points in the playoffs.

Why He'll Lose:

He can't hit worth a darn. I can't think of anything else. He's far behind Sedin and Ovechkin in +/-. I can't put any more in without fabricating stuff.

Truth be told, I can't see anyone but Crosby winning the award. Does he deserve it? Yeah, as much as it grates my gears, he does. I'd rather it go to Sedin, though. I think Sedin did everything without the hype. He ended the season with 3 more points than Crosby and Ovechkin and no one really cared.

Kinda like how Stamkos finished the year with Crosby tied for the most goals but he was mentioned as a mere afterthought.

I'm not a Crosby hater. I hate what Crosby means to the NHL front office and to Gary Bettman. Hockey is so much better across the league than just what Crosby brings, even if it is that good.

I think Crosby has enough hype. I think the media has given Crosby more than enough attention and laurels. He's a great player, but I'd rather see the league pushed forward as great than one player. Right now, I can only hope that nothing bad happens to Crosby.

Imagine this: Crosby goes through a career ending catastrophe of some kind (god forbid, seriously, I hope note). What would the NHL do? Bettman might go on suicide watch.

I know I'd love to have Crosby on my team. I know anyone would. I just wish that the NHL did as much to promote the sport itself rather than just name recognition of one or two players.

Maybe R.J. Umberger was right

Last night I watched in awe as the Montreal Canadians disposed of the Washington Captials. As the game was over I recalled the comments from Blue Jackets forward R.J. Umberger who had said earlier in the year basically said that the Washington Capitals were not a going to win in the playoffs. Umberger's comments look spot on now.

Here's what Umberger said:

“I don’t think any team in the West would be over matched by them,” Umberger said. “They play the wrong way. They want to be moving all the time. They float around in their zone, looking for breakaways and odd-man rushes.

“A good defensive team is going to beat them (in the playoffs). If you eliminate your turnovers and keep them off the power play, they’re going to get frustrated because they’re in their zone a lot.” [Puck Rakers Blog]

This is what the Montreal Canadians basically did the last three games. They got good goaltending and score when they had to. The Canadians also capitalized on power play and made the Capitals pay for taking stupid penalties. Lastly, you can not go 1/33 and win a playoff series. That is about three percent on the power play.

Alex Ovechkin goal that wasn't

In my opinion I think the refs made the right call on disallowing the goal, from the video you can see that the Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau doesn't agree with the call and his comments what the f*ck.

Ovechkin and the Capitals get Halaked

I think we can put the Carey Price argument to bed it's no mystery who the staring goalie in Montreal is and Redwing77 pretty much covered it in the last blog post. Oh darn the Capitals aren’t unbeatable, I guess I am not very good at predictions.

The goaltender for the Montreal Canadians Jaroslav Halak was unbelievable in their first round series against the Washington Capitals. Against an onslaught of shots Halak was simply amazing and didn’t give an inch. If you didn’t watch any of the game and asked the question; how good was Halak? Jaroslav Halak stood on his head stopping 41 of 42 shots tonight and 131 of 134 shots in the last three games. The Canadians will now face Gary Bettman’s favorite team the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Bruins will face the Broad Street Bullies from Philadelphia in their second round series. The Bruins went 2-1 against Philly in the regular season.

Montreal made history tonight by winning the series 4-3 and becoming the first eight seed to erase a 3-1 deficit against a No. 1 seed to win the series.

Bruins schedule against the Flyers

Game 1: Saturday, May 1 at TD Garden at 12:30 p.m.
Game 2: Monday, May 3 at TD Garden at 7 p.m.
Game 3: Wednesday, May 5 at Philadelphia at 7 p.m.
Game 4: Friday, May 7 at Philadelphia at 7 p.m.
Game 5*: Monday, May 10 at TD Garden at 7 p.m.
Game 6*: Wednesday, May 12 at Philadelphia at TBD
Game 7*: Friday, May 14 at TD Garden at 7 p.m.

Hey Bettman and Gainey: HALAK SHALAK!

HOW ABOUT THEM CAPITOLS?

Hey Bettman, at least you still got Crosby!

I'm not going to say that the Pens will succumb to the awesome known as Jaroslav Halak, but I SURE AS HECK HOPE SO.

I may not be a big fan of Montreal, but I am of Jaroslav Halak. This guy can play. Vs. commentators said that he stopped 131 of 134 shots in the last 3 games. That's insane!

I say Gainey listen up because this is the guy YOU wanted to be backup to your precious Carey Price! This is a guy who wanted to be traded because he knew he was better than Price and so did his teammates (well, they play better in front of him anyhow) and Gainey's only smart move was NOT to trade him. In the end, the Habs ownership saw the light and removed the barrier towards getting Halak more #1 goaltending time: Firing Gainey's deadweight arse.

Halak reminds me a TON of JS Giguere the year he carried the Ducks to the Stanley Cup... only the Ducks had a bit more scoring.

Halak is, by far, the MVP of the entire playoff picture thus far.

On a side note, Vs. is interviewing Capitol Defenseman Karl Alzner... KARL FREAKING ALZNER! His playing time in this series? ONE BLEEDING GAME! What does he know? He knows he's the lowest guy on the totem pole so, "go get em champ!"

Varlamov wasn't that bad. I thought both goaltenders played well. The Capitols dominated in SOG.

The fact is: Halak carried this team to victory. I am doubtful they have the ability to keep it up.

This is the first time a #8 team beat a #1 team (according to Vs.) after being down 3 games to 1.

Vs. makes a big deal out of this and I suppose it is, by the fact that the Habs had to win 3 straight games to overtake them. However, epic upset? I dunno. I can see why it could be considered that. The Habs were the worst playoff team in the playoffs...

That's ok. All I care about is the fact that Gary Bettman and his PR monkeys are now down to one God-child in the playoffs. If Crosby gets knocked out in the semis.... HELLO CHRISTMAS IN MAY!!!

All Crosby all of the time.

Do you think the NHL networks have a fixation with Sidney Crosby? You bet they do. We all know that Sidney Crosby is a great hockey player, the new face of the NHL, there is no question about it.

My follow up question is; does anyone remember who the top point getting in the NHL was this season? I will give you a hint it wasn't Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin... I wonder how many people know the top pointer getter in the NHL was Henrik Sedin with (29 goals - 83 assists - 112 points)

Savard ready to return - who will the Bruins play next?

There is a very good chance the Bruins are going to play the Penguins in the next round because I think the Canadians are going to be hard pressed to beat the Capitals tonight, it could happen but It’s unlikely that the Canadians advance.

The emerging story line is Matt Cooke versus Marc Savard and the Bruins, most of us don't need to bring up the incident that led to the Marc Savard's concussion. We are well aware of it and I am sure the Penguins fans remember it as well. None the less, this discussion is becoming more prevalent with the prospects of Marc Savard returning from injury; both of players will end up being on the ice at the same time. It's just a matter of time.

I predict that if Matt Cooke even comes near Savard he is going to get blasted and I welcome it. I would love to see Milan Lucic go Evander Kane on Cooke. While I think Cooke is a disgusting piece of camel dung and the lowest of life forms, I don't want to see the Bruins spending all of their time trying to knock the crap out of Matt Cooke; they have to pick their places that won’t affect the team in a negative manner.

Ben Scrivens signs with the Leafs

Leaf general manager Brian Burke continues to sign former NCAA players as the Leafs have signed former Cornell Big Red goalie Ben Scrivens to an entry level contract.

he Toronto Maple Leafs continue to beef up their goaltending.

Sources tell TSN the Leafs have signed college free agent Ben Scrivens to a one year, entry-level contract.

Scrivens, a native of Spruce Grove, Alberta, starred with Cornell and was a top 10 Hobey Baker finalist for college player of the year. He just finished his fourth season with the Big Red, compiling a 21-9-4 record and an impressive .934 save percentage.

Scrivens is expected to challenge for a spot with the Toronto Marlies next season. [TSN.COM]

Savard cleared to play for the Bruins

Marc Savard has been cleared to play for the Bruins. This is good news for the Boston Bruins.

Bruins General Manager Peter Chiarelli announced during a conference call with reporters Tuesday that Savard was examined Monday afternoon by neurologist Jeremy Schmahamann at Massachusetts General Hospital and had passed all necessary tests.

"He (Schmahamann) examined Marc, he had some further discussion with our doctors and he has been cleared to play," said Chiarelli. "I'll leave it up to Claude (Julien, coach) as far as putting the lines together and who plays and who doesn't play. Marc is ready to go. We'll see how his conditioning goes, but I know from talking to him he's very anxious to play."

Savard began skating April 18, and has been practicing with the team since April 24. Chiarelli said he isn't exactly surprised Savard is able to play again, but admits he had doubts his top center would be available anytime before next season.