The Contract Trap!

When players play super well, in their rookie season their respective teams often sign them to monstrous contracts with big money attached. When young players gain these huge contracts from their teams, they often stop playing as well, as they did to get the contract. One explanation is-  due to trying to live up to the hype of their contracts! Right now there are perfect examples of 2 young players not playing up to their "standards" in the NHL. Luke Schenn of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabres. These are two players whose teams are trying to build franchises around them, and they are pegged to be the future captains of their teams.

Let's start with Tyler Myers, Myers was drafted 12th overall by the Sabres in 2008, after 2 seasons in the NHL, the 21 year old Myers signed a contract that will keep "The Big Easy" in Buffalo for the next 7 years. Back in September Myers and the Sabres agreed to the 7 year deal worth $38.5 million. Myers is coming off 2 great seasons with the sabres, in which saw him win a Calder Trophy and surpass the 30 point plateau both seasons. But this season "The Big Easy" has become a major concern on defence, for the Sabres. Now last season Myers got off to quite a slow start but picked up his play down the stretch, "I felt the pressure last year and at times I was way too hard on myself," He said. "I got off to a tough start but was happy with my game after Christmas, especially after the All Star game." It appears lightning has struck twice, as Myers is playing very poorly to start off the season. Through this seasons' 8 games, Myers only has 2 points, which are assists. Myers is currently averaging a bit more than 21 minutes of ice time, and has gone 28 games without scoring a goal and 2 games without recording an assist. But it's not just his point totals that have fans worried, it's his play on defense, that's worrying everyone. He is making very poor choices on the ice; pinching at the wrong times, making bad passes, has to many turnovers and is losing his checks. Myers is now paired with veteran defence partner Robyn Regehr who will hopefuly help calm Myers down. One thing Myers needs to pick up is his aggressive play, through 8 games he only has 12 hits - less than 2 hits a game. Defenceman need to be aggressive and hit the opposition regularly, when defenceman are not hitting, often their point totals are effected, like in Myer's case. But here is a good thing for Sabres fans-, Tyler Myers will be fine! Based on last seasons' turn around from a slow start, this is nothing to panic over for Myers and Sabres fans everywhere. He is having a difficult time living up to his big contract, he just needs to get back to basics and become the reliable Tyler Myers that everyone loves! Myers is a player that the Sabres want to stick around for the foreseeable future and maybe even take over the captaincy one day, but first he needs to fix his slow starts to the regular season. Myers and Regehr should soon fine chemistry and Myers can stop worrying about the big contract looming over his head. But Myers slump will soon end, I'm positive about it.

Next up is Luke Schenn, despite Mike Komisarek being chirped hard by all the Leafs fans, it's Luke Schenn who needs to step up his game the most. Schenn's ice time has been reduced by 25% this season, making his new ice time average 15:43, which is the lowest amongst the Leafs D-men and to boot he is struggling majorly in his own defensive zone. Schenn was a big part of the major turnaround with the Leafs in last seasons' 2nd half. The Leafs rewarded him, with a huge contract extension; 5 years $18 million. Since he signed the contract, Luke has been uptight and has had trouble moving the puck. “He has had trouble starting games and I think Luke has put a lot of pressure on himself,” Wilson said. “He has to relax and he will be fine.” Coming off a strong season last year, in which he set a career record for assists. As soon as Schenn calms down, and just simplifies his game, his defence he will be just fine. For Schenn to succeed his game needs to be as simple as possible, 1 pass and out, nothing fancy, or he becomes flustered. Many bandwagon fans are calling for a trade, but HELLO after signing this contract, Scheen is not going anywhere! His future and the future of the Leafs is together and he's likely the future captain. Schenn should find a little extra motivation this season as he will be facing his younger brother several times with the Flyers. Plus if the Flyers make it to playoffs and the Leafs don't! i wont be a very fun time at the Schenn house this summer! No older brother wants to be chirped by their younger brother for playing better! Good news for fans, is Schenn has never really been, nor is he expected to be, a big contributer on offence, but he did lead the league in hits and blocked shots last season, and could very well do it again this season.

Unfortunately for these young defencemen fans jump on and off bandwagons faster than it took the two of them to sign their new multimillion dollar contracts. Right now they are trying to do to much and prove to bandwagon fans that they are worth the money they're being paid. They both need to simplify their game! For Myers he needs to be more physical for Schenn he needs to keep it simple. I have no doubt that these two defenceman will settle down and be just fine. It's part of the jinx of rookies signing their next major contracts, they always play like crap afterwards, someone needs to break that jinx, maybe one of them will win an award this season.
So my message to fans is to stop freaking out over their poor starts to the season, you are not helping them any by booing and chirping these young players. Give them time it is STILL early in the season, their teams are winning and the most important time for these two to play well is down the stretch!

Scheifele is a Colt agian

To put it simply, Mark Scheifele is simply not ready to play a full NHL season in his rookie season.
Head coach of the Winnipeg Jets Claude Noel decided that it would be more beneficial for the 18 year old rookie to have another go in junior playing for the Barrie Colts. "It's a men's league," Noel said when talking about his decision; "I think his game is still good," Noel said. "He's a good player. I think he's going to be a tremendous player. I don't think anything has changed. I think the league... it's a men's league."

The 18 year old from Kitchener Ontario; tore it up during the preseason, racking up 8 points in 5 games, and had a smile that quickly won him the love of the Jets faithful. But after a slow start to the regular season for the Jets going 2-4-1, and Scheifele contributing 1 point, it was clear that he needed more time to develop his game and get ready for the NHL. After seeing his ice-time all but evaporate, Scheifele was just seeing 7 minutes of ice time in his last 2 games. Sending down the young Scheifele show`s the Jets are not going to put up with the notion of needing time to adapt back into the NHL as the jets, they want to win and if Scheifele isn`t going to help that then, he needs more time to develop. "We deal in progress," the coach said. "That's what we're trying to do. This is a good move for him. He's going to learn a lot there. He has a good coach in Dale Hawerchuk. He'll learn how to become a dominant player at that level and that's the right move for him." Scheifele was the Jets first pick and the 7th overall pick in the entry draft the June, he surprised many with his preseason production, but succumbed to the pressure of only being 18 and being thrust into the NHL, its a transition few can make right away. "It’s a development process, and when you sit back and put it into perspective, at 18 years old, that’s a big feather in his cap to have earned the opportunity to play the seven games here this year," Cheveldayoff said.

The choice of sending him back to junior was a good choice. In Barrie with the Colts, he will get a chance to be a key player in the success of the Colts; instead of being a 3rd or 4th line player, and getting discouraged with the lack of ice time and his team losing. Scheifele will likely dominate in junior, after a first season success with  22 goals and 75 points in 66 games. The most important point that everyone seems to be forgetting is now Scheifele will be eligible to play for team Canada at the Junior tournament in December. If Scheifele wins a championship with the improved Barrie Colts, wins a scoring championship or an MVP and a gold medal at the WJC, that will give him all confidence he needs to excel at the NHL level. With the experience he will gain will be perfect for him. Jets and the Jets fans have seen just enough of Scheifele to be excited about his future with the team, we may even see Scheifele back in a Jets uniform near the end of the season. "We were very, very ecstatic about him coming in, the way he played in Penticton, what he did in the exhibition season and the way he handled himself at the NHL level in the regular season," he said. "He showed that he thinks the game very well. He's very responsible defensively, which at this stage of his career is a very, very good sign."

 Scheifele was 3 games away from his NHL contract kicking in. If a player plays 10 NHL games, he is automatically getting paid and entry level contract no matter how games the player plays in the NHL. Plus it counts as a full season. That fact probably weighed heavily with the decision to demote Scheifele to junior.
Scheifele is a little small, and needs to put on some weight during his stay in junior, to get bigger to handle the rough physical play of the grown men in the NHL. “He’s a humble person. He worked hard,” Cheveldayoff said. “He took nothing for granted from the moment he stepped into the locker-room at rookie camp. Scheifele took the demotion in stride, and kept his smile all the way out the door. Don`t feel to bad for the rookie, his 17 day stay in Winnipeg earned him $85,000.

With Sceifele being sent down, it leaves only 5 players from the entry draft in June still around with their respective teams; C Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton, LW Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado, D Adam Larsson, New Jersey, C Mika Zibanejad, Ottawa and C Sean Couturier, Philadelphia. My guess is Mika Zibanejad will be the next to join Scheifele in junior. Zibanejad is having much of the start that Scheifele had, having scored just 1 point in 8 games.

Who's hot and who's not

Well were roughly 6 games into the regular season (depending on teams) so Lets see who's producing and helping their teams and who's not.

Phil Kessel
I know for myself I did not see this super start to the season for Leafs superstar Phil Kessel, I was just hoping for an ordinary season out of him, but right now he is on pace to reach the 40 goal plateau. Kessel has 7 goals in 5 games, and 12 points to go with it. Now Kessel will likely not be able to keep this pace up for the whole season, but he's helping the Leafs win right now, and thats what counts. With this amazing start to the season Kessel has been dubbed Phil the Thrill Kessel. I am very impressed with his start, and what makes this fast season start different that other seasons, is that he is more mature; He is now playing a full 200ft game, and he thinks about passing almost as much as shooting now.


Luke Schenn
Schenn has not gotten off to the start the he and everyone else would have liked him to have. Last season Schenn averaged 22 minutes a game, but so far this season Schenn has yet to see any ice time close to that. Worse than the diminished ice time, is he looks horrible when goals are scored against the Leafs, he losing coverage and cant seem to clear the puck out of his own defensive end. The early season struggles has many saying Schenn has caught the Komisarek virus. One possible reason to the slow start, his the massive contract Luke Schenn and The Leafs agreed to right before camp, a 5 year extension that will see Schenn earn 3.5 million per year. i think its just a matter of time before Schenn steps up his game, but until than Leafs fans can expect to see Schenn's minutes stay low. For him to snap out of this funk he needs to keep his game simple; 1 pass out of the zone.

James Neal

Not going to lie here, when I heard that Pittsburgh penguins forward James Neal was scoring all these goals, I had to think to myself; Pittsburgh has a James Neal? Low and behold they do, and he is a Canadian to boot. In 8 games with the penguins he has 6 goals (2nd) and 7 points. He is helping fill the void of not having Crosby, Malkin and Letang. Making life for the Penguins a little bit easier. But I have never heard of this kid? so where did he come too. The Penguins required Neal at the trade deadline from the Stars last season. Right now Neal is on pace to score 30 goals, and its not seeming so far fetched anymore.


Thomas Vanek

Now you had to know there would be a Sabres player in the mix somewhere in this blog, so its a good thing Vanek is playing well right, or else I would have to stretch the truth a little, (jokes). In the 5 games the Sabres have played thus far Vanek has been producing; 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points. Now that may not be as many goals as Phil Kessel. but its when Vanek is scoring his goals, they are coming at crucial times. Vanek scored the second goal of the win against the Canadians, with 2.8 seconds left in 2nd to put the Sabres up 2-1 heading into intermission. Vanek a little upset that he was an assistant captain instead of the captain is showing the Sabres organization that maybe they should have given a little more thought to him wearing the C. Regardless he is playing like a leader on this reformed Sabres team, that has new faces from right to left. Im  hoping Vanek will be able to keep this pace up and help this Sabres team make a deep run into the playoffs.

Matt Read
A Philadelphia Flyers rookie, who no one knew, until Tuesday when he put up 4 points in a 7-2 win over the Senators. The young kid has 6 points in 5 games this season. This is Reads first time playing in the NHL, and he`s making a case, to play a whole season with the Flyers. with 2 goals and 4 helpers, he`s making a name for himself in Philly.

Roberto Luongo
I hate to say it, well actually I dont since I`m not a fan of Luongo, but he is playing horrible to start the season. Remember Luongo`s less than Stellar play in the cup finals last spring? yeah well he`s decided thats how he will start this year! with less than stellar goaltending. Luongo is ranked 37th out of goaltenders with his GAA of 3.70 goals a game and a very sad Save Percentage of .856% Luongo can be quite a spectacular goalie, when he decides to actually play like an elite goaltender. Until Luongo steps his game up, he will remain the ire of Canuck fans. Right now Luongo has forgetton the basics of goaltending and his flopping around like a fish out of water. As much as everyone loves to blame Luongo, unless his teammates score, their not going to win no matter how well he plays.

Dwayne Roloson

The grey haired veteran who helped get the Lightning into the 2nd round of last years playoffs, has not a a good start tot the season to say the least. The Lightning as a whole have given up 26 goals in their first 6 games. (4 goals a game) and a 6.73 goals-against average in his last three starts. The 42 year old will need to pick up his play if the Lightning are going to claw their way out of 12th in the east into a playoff start.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Now the first over all draft pick in this past draft may not be considered as playing "hot" so to speak, but he did record his first NHL career hat- trick in only his 3rd NHL game. Pretty impressive for such a young star. Right now in Edmonton Hopkins is being dubbed the "oilers savoiur" as with the addition of Hopkins to an already star studded team, they believe he will lead the team back to the post season. Strange that he is getting higher rating than Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, but hey cut the kid some slack and let him play his game, maybe in a year or two, we will see the oilers back in the post season. So far Nugent-Hopkins has 5 points in 5 NHL games, the hat trick helped with the points thats for sure. There is no question this kid is going to be good, the question is how good?

Alexander Ovechkin
This one breaks my heart a little bit, I love Ovie and I though he's have a better start to a year, he knows the Capitals need to go big. But through 5 games this season Ovechkin only has 1 goal! 1 goal?!?!?!? are you kidding me??? Its not like he's helping else where either, only 2 assists and a +/--2. Where is the Ovechkin we all love, or at least love to hate.  Lucky for Capitals fans the Washington Capitals are still 5-0-0 without Ovechkin doing anything at all. But this success without Ovechkin contributing can not last long and will lead to another early exit from the post season. Want to know a secret? Ovechkin is afraid to hit! He thinks if he hits someone he will suspended. When Ovechkin hits without any remorse he plays just fine and is on fire, but when he doesn't hit, he plays like crap. This new crack down on hits is making Ovechkin get off his game. Ovechkin needs to get his game back up to full speed, hit a few guys and not worry about the consequences of his hits only then will Capitals fans get to see the real great 8 at his best.

Marc-Andre Bergeron
The Lightning's best player thus far to be sure. Has already matched the numbers he put up all last season and were only 6 games in. Right now Bergeron is sitting a 2 goals and 6 assists for 8 points. Another positive is he doesn't have a negative -/+ rating quite yet. He is currently leading the league in goals scored by defenceman, pretty impressive for a guy who had 8 points all of last season. All of the drafties are kicking themselves for not taking a chance and drafting this guy thats for sure. With Bergeron riding hot and quarterbacking this Lightning power play there is no telling how many goals and points this guy will rack up, maybe even doubling his points from last season. 


John Tavares
What can I say about this kid, he signed a deal keeping him on long island for the foreseeable future and stating that he has faith in his team. This could have easily jumped ship and found another team in an instant, but he believes in the new Islanders team. Good thing he stayed because he is on fire right now! on a 3 game win streak right now Tavares has put up 5 goals and 3 assists for 8 points in 4 games to start off the season. Now it may become the same old story for the Isles, and they mall fall short of the playoffs again, but I think this is the year we will see Tavares step up and be a league leader in goals and points. This kid has a lot of maturity and has a lot of talent. I see good things for Tavares and the islanders


P.K. Subban
The young flashy Montreal Canadian is off to quite a slow start, and he's hearing about it. Whats being dubbed as the PK show is starting to really get on peoples nerves, with just 1 win int he first 5 games, the Canadians need players to step up. Montreal is relieing on Subban quite heavily as the youngster is averaging 24:55 minutes a game. But Subban has made a couple of boo boo's and has been out of position for many a goal scored against the Canadians.  But Subban is sticking to his guns and is not about to change his game anytime soon. But right now he should reconsider it, as he is off to a very slow start, something the Canadians do not need. One reason Subban is getting hung out to dry is there have been a number of injuries to Canadians defencmen, making it near impossible for them to "rest" Subban when he isn't on his game. With many errors to start off the season many are wondering if his rookie season was a bit a fluke, and if he has returned to being a diva who still needs to learn his place in the league. 


Please not this blog was made on Thursday Afternoon, right before 11 games on Thursday night, some of these stats may be slightly altered based on Thursday nights games. So for those of you who's players are not playing well right now, don't worry its still early, remember it is an 82 game season, still lots of time. For those of you, who's players are playing well, remember its still early, stuff could change, almost all NHL players go into a slump at some point during the season. Hope you enjoyed this edition of "who's hot and whos not".

Its Hockey not WWE

Well lets talk about a bit of an ugly incident from the Penguins vs. Capitals from last week. I know I'm a bit late to the party on this one, but hey I wanna chime in as well.
As everyone one (or at least all hockey fans) know the Penguins and the Capitals are 2 hockey team that don't like each other to say the least! One of the most heated rivalries in the NHL, it generally stems from both teams arguably having the 2 best players in the league; Ovechkin and Crosby. But after Ovechkin and the Capitals rolled out of Pittsburgh with a 3-2 OT victory, the game was the last thing people wanted to talk about.
In the 3rd period of the contest, Penguins tough guy Arron Asham decided to drop the mitts with Capitals Jay Beagle. Right away Beagle was way over his head, as Asham is a tough guy and has been in his fair share of fights, but instead of the fight ending with a deadly left from Asham, this fight got a little more dramatic. Asham delivered a series of 2 punches that knocked Jay Beagle out cold, then following his impressive knock-out Asham decided to go all WWE style and show the fans what happened to Beagle "going to sleep" with a couple of gestures. These gestures just added more fuel to the fire that is the Capitals vs. penguins. Reporters and NHLers everywhere chimed in and called it a classless act on behalf of Arron Asham. Alex Ovechkin said, "It's not [Beagle's] job to fight. It looked kind of unrespectful (sic). I don't know … I think it's kind of unrespectful."

Right away people started debating weather Asham would be suspended or if he had chosen a guy to just beat up instead of a real fighter. But it is immportant to note, that both Beagle and Asham AGREED to fight. Now the job of the fighter (Asham) in this case is to pump up the crowd and his respective teammates by winning the fight. Should both Asham and Beagle have gotten up to their feet right after the fight, a little arm swing by Asham would have been totally acceptable, But in hockey they "code" is if a fight knock out or injures his opponent the victor is supposed to just skate away to show a sign of respect for his opponent. Asham issue gestures meaning "its over" and "he's sleeping" so therefore Asham knew full well that Beagle was hurt and not getting back up on his own. Now due to rule 75.2 (i) an unsportsmanlike conduct monor penalty shall be assessed … [if] any identifiable player uses obscene, profane or abusive language or gestures directed at any person.” With Ashams post fight gestures, he stepped into an area of unsportsmanlike conduct and therefore should have received an extra penalty on top of his match penalty for fighting. But the right call was made to NOT suspend Asham, there was no question that Asham did deliver a shot to Beagle's head, infact he delivered 2 shots, but the shots delivered to Beagles head are deemed legal by the NHL since they came from a fight that both players had agreed to participate in. Rule 48- “Illegal Checking to the Head“.  These were shots to the head occurring in a fair, one-on-one fight, not a head shot delivered with a shoulder or elbow to an unsuspecting player. Beagle knew what the end result could have been when he dropped the gloves.

Unfortunately for Asham he just got caught up in the adrenaline of the game, and made some gestures that even he himself regrets; "It's unfortunate the way the fight ended," he said in a post-game media scrum. "I obviously want to win but I don't want to go out there and hurt anyone. My gesture after it was done - I was into the game - it was uncalled for; classless on my part. I think those guys know I'm not that kind of guy to be going off, but it was a big game, I wanted to get my bench going, and classless move on my part." The fight was a response to Beagle knocking Kris Letangs helmet off in a scrum.“It’s no different than ‘Ovie’ throwing his stick down and rubbing his hands over it,” Asham said.  “It’s a part of the game.  I didn’t want to hurt the kid but it’s just the way it happens.” If it wasn't with the way everything in the news is portraying fighters and their deaths, I don't believe this fight would have gotten so much negative attention, Asham's gestures after what was a normal fight were inappropriate yes, but not a huge deal. Afterwards Asham went to former teammate and Caps veteran Mike Knuble, to check up on Beagle and apologize for his "showboating." The good thing here is that Asham realized what he had done, and was legitimately sorry for his actions.

Hockey is becoming the topic of discussion, whether it be the fights, the concussions or the head shots, Hockey needs to somehow get out of the limelight and take a step back, to much negative attention is going on around the game we love, its making people who don't know a didlysquat about the game try to change it, dare i say this attention is ruining the game. I'm sorry but in my humble opinion fighting belongs and needs to stay in the game, its fun its entertaining and it can change the whole momentum of the game. rarely do we see these kinds of minor blemishes. Players know, you do something stupid, your going to have to step up to the plate and pay the price for what you did. Without out that fight after a cheap shot, there is a sense of accountability missing from the game. Beagle needs to accept some responsibility here, why would you choose to have your first NHL fight against someone who has been in 93 fights, as Asham, the outcome was too predictable. The sad thing is Asham didn't want to fight Beagle at all! “I was kind of telling him to settle down and stop running around or he was going to have to fight. He wanted to fight and it’s unfortunate he got hurt,” Asham said. People stop trying to ruin our game! hockey is a sport for real men, not little pussy's! Fighting was not the issue here, the issue was Asham's actions so lets stop trying to take fighting out of the game, please people, just relax!

Phil Kessel

Back on September 18 2009, Leafs fans were wondering if Leafs GM Brian Burke had lost his marbles. He organized a blockbuster trade, sending 3 draft picks, (2 of them 1st rounders) to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Phil Kessel. Upon arrival to Maple Leafs, Kessel had a slow start and had fans jumping off his bandwagon as fast as possible. Despite the slow and streaky play of Kessel he has managed 3 straight 30 goal seasons, and is on pace to reach a 40 goal season for the first time in his NHL career.
Phil Kessel entering his 3rd season with Leafs, is on fire, leading the league in scoring with 5 goals and 8 points in 3 games thus far in the 2011/2012 season. So with Kessel leading the league in scoring, it begs the question, can Kessel keep this pace up for the entire season? After last seasons less than stellar campaign, and being turned into the league laughingstock after being the last pick for the All-Star game, Kessel has seemed to revamp his play. Not only is he excelling offensively, which is normal for him at the start of a season scoring seven goals in 10 games in Oct. 2010, and  25 goals in 43 career October games, but he is becoming a complete 2 way player and a leader on this young Maple Leaf hockey team. “It probably came out of the constant discussions that if you’re not scoring, what can you do to help the team?,” Wilson said after the Leafs' morning skate on Monday. “He wants to participate a little bit on the PK (penalty kill), as an example, and I’ve told him ‘I not going to put you out on the PK unless you’ve got a 200-foot game going.’ It’s not going to be the cart before the horse. The horse has gotta be first, and that would be getting the game done defensively, five on five, and then we’ll think about the PK.” There is no doubt the playing hockey in a city like Toronto who is just crazed about the sport, is not easy, the fans are ruthless and the media is worse, Kessel has been called a superstar but then criticized for not playing like one, and has been under a microscope since everyone heard about the major price tag that came with Kessel. But is Kessel finally grown up and ready to play in the hockey market of Toronto?
Now it is only 3 games into a season that has 82 games, and 3 games doesn't make a season, (but can certainly end one) and the leafs have been playing 3 pretty weak teams, and wont face a "true" cup contending team until the face the Bruins on Thursday. So lets not put the cart before the horse so to speak.
Coming off arguably his best game as a Leaf, Kessel scored 2 goals to help his team overcome a 2 goal deficit and beat the Calgary Flames 3-2 on Saturday. It would appear that Kessel is scoring goals that are actually helping his team, instead of the second goal in a 5-2 loss. But since Febuary the 10th of last season Kessel has 18 goals and 19 assists in his last 31 games.
So Kessel has finally become a 2 way team player. Not only does he score goals, but he has also shown that he is willing to pass the puck to his teammates, as well as  hustle back hard on the back check to help out the Defence. Kessel was named the NHL's 1st star of the week and it was well deserved. “Statistically it’s pretty clear in the way he’s played. There are some great performances obviously throughout the league, but Phil’s done it in every game, so I think it’s deserved,” coach Ron Wilson said of the honour. So what is Kessel crediting his success to? his line mates; “Without my linemates, it wouldn’t be possible,” Kessel said of being honoured by the league. “They’re getting me the puck in good areas and right now we’re clicking.” Currently Kessel is playing with Tyler Bozak and Joffrey Lupul a far cry from what the number one line was supposed to look like coming out of training camp. That just it this, line that was assembled for tempory fix while new number one center Tim Connolly heals from injury, has been one of the top lines in the NHL to start the season. This line has accounted for 7 of 11 goals scored by Toronto. “I’ve always known that defence turns to offence,” said Bozak, who had a pair of assists in the Leafs’ 3-2 win against the Calgary Flames on Saturday.  "I think it has a huge effect," said linemate Tyler Bozak. "When guys see Phil going as hard as he can and playing the way he is, it definitely puts a spark in all the other guys. He's a leader on the ice and guys follow him. When he's playing well it makes everyone work extra hard." With the help of his linemates, Kessel was able to record his first hat-trick as a member of the Maple Leafs.
But the question remains, how will Kessel cope when the pucks stop going in the net. He will need to keep playing a sound 200 foot game, but will he resort back, to his selfish puck hogging ways?
I don't believe so, At 24 years of age and 6 seasons in the NHL I think Kessel is finally maturing and "getting" what it means to be an elite player in the NHL. I think Kessel has finally turned that corner in his career, where he cares and wants to help his team win whatever way he can. Now no one truthfully expects Kessel to continue scoring at this pace, but if he can post a 40 goal campaign, he might just convince Leafs fans to fall in love with him.
Unfortunately the trade will forever be over thunk and scrutinized, as it saw the Bruins pick up some solid players in Seguin, and Hamilton. But for now I think both teams are happy with how things have worked out; heck the Bruins just won the cup and the Leafs are poised to go 4-0 in back to back seasons for the first time in their history.
Right now I'm on Kessel's side; I vote we leave him alone and just let him play his game and help this team win and maybe even sneak into the playoffs. If Kessel tanks and doesn't even reach 30 goals, then you leafs fans have an argument but for now, he's the best player to be in Toronto since the Sundin era.

The comback kid; Sidney Crosby

At long last there was a positive sign on the ice at penguins practice on Thursday. The great Sidney Crosby was seen wearing a black helmet instead of the white one, he had been using since being back on the ice. What does the black helmet mean? it means that the rest of the Pittsburgh penguins no longer have to pay extra attention to where Crosby is, essentially they are okay to "hit" him. Yes at long last Crosby got the all clear from doctors to participate in contact at practice, thus the next step in Crosby's return to a league game. "It's a good step in the right direction," said Crosby, sweat still pouring off his face following the half-hour practice. "It's a big step ... it's a big one and we'll see how things go." Although he was cleared for contact Crosby neither received or gave out any hits on the ice.

So what does this mean?  Will be seeing Crosby in the coming couple weeks? Likely not, the penguins play 6 games in 10 days, so it will be difficult for them to schedule a practice in which Crosby can take a little contact. But it will help Sid the Kid ease back into the swing of things. Although Crosby has been upgraded to being able to take hits, there is no timetable for his return, another sign it is unlikely we see him before November. "But I don't think it's hard to be patient at this point," said the 24-year-old Crosby. "I'm getting closer and I want to make sure I respond well in the next however long it is." Crosby's doctors have said that there is still a few more hoops to jump threw before he is ready to be thrown into a actual game; First off he has to be hit, something his teammates will likely be hesitant of. Then he has to prove that he is fine after a hit, IE no headaches or dizziness. Then finally he will have to prove that he can handle the hard faced pace action of a game. Crosby said he has been symptom free since the end of the summer; "Yeah, I've been good since around (the start of) camp," he said. "Everything's gone pretty smooth."

Now this is huge progressive for the leagues super star, He's gone from having trouble walking with others and looking at a TV, to being back on the ice ready for contact. He even went through all of training camp, which was a good sign to the organization and his doctors. "Going through training camp, (from) where he came from, was significant and helped with that process. He's been with a line, he's been in full drills, even in some drills that had contact although he had the non-contact helmet. It's significantly different than coming back halfway through season," Bylsma said. "That helps with the situation." The only catch is the fear his teammates will be to reluctant to hit him in practice, they will likely lay up on their checks or just bounce off of him, or flat out avoid the contact. But coach Bylsma isn't to concerned as Crosby is usually pretty good at getting people to take a run at him, the ultimate pest to his teammates; "But he instigates contact and he'll do something that will warrant that from a player," Bylsma said. "There will be some jostling and hitting going on. Every training camp, he's always ended up in some jostling with players and that will happen because of the way Sid competes." and Crosby didnt shy away from saying that he will undoubtedly have to jossile his teammates if they dont co-operate. "Maybe have to bump them a little bit and get them going. (Get it as) close to a game situation as we can get it," Crosby said.

But despite all the progress the 24 year old has made, there are still 2 words the penguins are waiting to hear from doctors "Full Go". That would mean he would be ready to be inserted into a game. Despite all the practice and progress Sid has made, he knows practices are nothing like a real game at full speed. But the leagues marquee player should not have too much trouble readjusting to game speed. He's quite the NHL career and had no trouble adjusting when he was just 18; Crosby has won an MVP, a Stanley Cup, an Olympic Gold Medal and a scoring title all before turning 22. Right now after a 9 month layoff due to the concussion, Crosby is so close to being back, is on stage 5 of 6 of the return to play protocol. But the question remains how long will he stay at stage 5 and what if he goes backwards after receiving a hit.

K the first part of this blog was all fact, I'm now going to specualte a little more on the future of Crosby. Now the first issue is, no one knows if the Crosby that left the game back in January will be the same Crosby returning back to the ice, when he gets clearance. He may be timid at first and avoid the corners, try to get rid of the puck as quick as possible to avoid the other team. There is a whole psychological aspect dealing with these concussions, it can really screw you up mentally and change a person. But for the NHL and the fans sake, I hope Sidney Crosby return to his normal goal scoring self. I can already see the Hollywood movie script being typed up now. "The great Crosby return from possible career ending concussion and wins another Stanley cup and scoring title" But all joking aside, it will be difficult for Crosby to come back and see just how fast his opposition is moving.

Secondly there is a very sensitiv topic that I know is the back of everyones mind, including Crosby.
With the game it is right now, everyone is targeting the head. SOMEONE IS GOING TO HIT CROSBY AND END HIS CAREER! there I said it!! You know its going to happen, somebody is just going to smoke him and then have the ultimate reputation for ending Sidney Crosby's hockey career.  Whats the league going to do suspend the player for 15 games? Big Whoop. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that someone in the league is going to take another "accidental" run at Crosby, It may not be right away, it may not even be this season but eventually MARK MY WORDS someone is going to go head hunting on Sidney Crosby.
Whats a crucial thing for teams to do in hockey, exploit their oppositions weaknesses. Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh penguins weakness is Crosby and his concussion. No one will come right out and say they are going to do it or they meant to do it, but it'll happen. It may not even be a huge hit, once you sustain a concussion your are at more risk for a concussion even if they hit was minor, its twice as likely to cause concussions. Im truly sorry but you know everyone is thinking about it.


The NHL and hockey in General needs Sidney Crosby back, like it or not, he is a huge "attraction" to the fans. When Crosby is in the line-up more tickets are sold, more merchandise sell, and more kids start playing hockey because they want to become the next Sidney Crosby. He's a good Canadian boy with good values, a sense of humor and out of this world hockey skills, just what hockey needs!
Remember if it wasn't for him the Americans would have likely brought home the gold medal at the Olympics. Love him or hate him, we need number 87 back on the ice where he belongs. Its great to see the Sid has taken the next step in this very long and difficult path back to the NHL, I'm happy for him, he can now start to see the light at the end of the tunnel, lets just hope its not another train coming for his head. Look for Crosby to be back in a game situation in roughly a month. For penguins fans, be happy it is likely you will see your number 1 center before the Leafs see their new number one center.

Welcome to Winnipeg!

Ah a long wait has come to an end, 15 years after the city of Winnipeg had their hockey team ripped from their midst and moved to Phoenix, hockey returned to the city of Winnipeg. Sunday marked the historic day that hockey was back in Winnipeg. After a couple years of speculation that the Phoenix Coyotes would likely be heading back to Winnipeg or even to Hamilton, the NHL finally caved and gave Winnipeg their beloved NHL team the Jets back, but it wasn't the Phoenix team that had originally left Winnipeg coming back, it was the Atlanta Thrashers. A team that was in big trouble financially and had a dwindling fan base. Sunday October 9 was a time to rejoice as hockey was being played in Winnipeg again.
If you were to have traveled to Winnipeg on Sunday I don't think you would have found a single person anywhere on the street; they were either at the historic games, or huddled around TV's watching from their homes. It all fell into place; a new general manager, a new head coach, new arena, and new fans. Unfortunately for the city of Winnipeg with inherit the Atlanta Thrashers, they inherit much of the roster that missed the post season last year. The excitement had finally mounted and it was time for the puck to drop.
"There's a real genuine excitement. I think it's a pure excitement. I don't even know how to put it," Winnipeg GM Kevin Cheveldayoff said. "It's the excitement of a little kid at Christmas, I guess."

But on Sunday afternoon at 5 the city seemed to stand still and cheer for their team has returned. Not only was it a surreal moment for the fans but the players also were caught in the moment; "Looking back at it, it was a pretty surreal moment," Scheifele said. "To think back and say I played in an NHL game, and throughout the years look back and see how many people you played with and how many people you played against... It just kind of gives you the chills to think you made it there and were able to play in an NHL game."Yeah, it was probably when they announced all our names before the game. There was the smoke, the big lights... it was pretty unreal. I was like big-eyed with my mouth open. It was a fun moment and something I'll always remember, for sure." For the veterans that were with the club in Atlanta it will be a new experience, playing in front of a packed house every game, compared to the empty building in Atlanta. It was a seen to remember, fans came early and were loud right up to puck drop, Rick Rypien’s mother, Shelley was invited to drop the ceremonial puck after an emotional tribute to the late NHLer and the Prime Minister even unveiled a special 50 cent coin marking the event, and when fans saw the top draft pick from this past draft Mark Scheifele they cheers got louder, the The fans carried the excitement once the game began, with chant's of "Carey, Carey" and boos whenever P.K Subban touched the puck.

But now its time to actually drop the puck..... The Canadians wanted to score early and silence the crowd at MTS center, and they did; Michael Cammalleri stepped up and ripped a wrist shot past Jets goalie Ondrej Pavelec 3:05 into the first period. In the end when the smoke was all clear the Jets had fallen to the Canadians by a score of 5-1. “It’s a big moment for the city,” said Ladd after the game. “Fans have been waiting for 15 years.“Pretty disappointing to give that performance,” Ladd continued referring to the dismal team play. “We’re just sloppy is the best way to describe it.” So who scored the lone jets goal? Nik Antropov, the former Toronto Maple Leafs scored the historic first goal for the new 2.0 Jets. So things didn't exactly work out like they were supposed to; Cammalleri wasn't supposed to score the opening goal, the jets weren't supposed to lose 5-1 and the first goal was supposed to be score by a true Canadian. But the fans were okay with the out come, because hockey is back in Winnipeg and hopefully back to stay!


Some have dubbed the return of hockey to Winnipeg as "Canada's Best Comeback", as it seemed all but lost to have professional hockey played in Winnipeg again. At the end of the last game played April 28 1996, it was described as a sad moment, “There wasn’t a dry eye in the building,” Meech said. “You could look around the rink, and all the fans were crying. You could look down on the ice surface, and the players were crying. So it was a pretty emotional thing for a young kid." 13,000 seasons tickets sold out in 17 minutes, that was the agreement, fans had to sell out in season tickets for up to 5 years in order for the Jets to come back. Fans had no problem doing that and the tickets were almost all sold out. “It’s a testimony not just to the team. It’s a testimony to the community, to the country. I think we all appreciate that there’s heartfelt connection to the sport and to the principles of integrity and attributes of courage, determination. You look at the fortitude of the people within the province and the country, particularly in these days. The team is a reflection of their struggles and how they surmount those struggles day in and day out.” its all about the future now for the Jets; a new team, a new generation, a new future. Kind of funny that the game was played on the Canadian thanksgiving and it featured 2 Canadian teams, this thanksgiving Jets fans truly had something to be thankful for. There is no question that this country loves our hockey!! It was a historic night, a night people will be able to tell their children and grandchildren about and its great for the city of Winnipeg and the Jets fans.

New Captain in Buffalo- Jason Pominville

Now the new Buffalo sabres captain isnt exactly the loudest, or loudly opinionated. Buffalo sabre fans were extremely excited to see that their team finally had a full time captain for this upcoming season and the foreseeable future. But it wasn't the player everyone in Buffalo had expected to be named captain. Fans were looking forward to seeing Thomas Vanek wear the "C" on his Jersey and lead this revamped Buffalo sabres team to the promise land and perhaps a sniff at the ultimate prize- Stanley Cup. But to the surprise of many it was Jason Pominville being named the 13th captain in Sabres franchise history. Leaving Thomas Vanek to wear the "A" as an assistant. The announcement was made in Helsinki, Finland, as the team started their season over in Europe. "It's an honor to represent the team," Pominville said to his teammates in a video released by the team. "I think we're going to have to hold each other accountable. ... Regardless of whether you have a letter on your jersey or not, if you see something that can help the team and make us better, just let anyone know about it."

In the 8 seasons Pominville has spent with the sabres, he has quickly become a fan favorite. Putting up solid
numbers and has a total of 145 goals and 358 points in his 459 games with the sabres. He wore the C during the 2007-2008 season when many players shared the honor and has been seen many times having an A on his Jersey and always seems to step up to plate and produce when the pressure is on him. During his time as captainn in 2007-2008 he produced some pretty decent numbers putting up 8 goals and 13 assists in his 17 games. Pominville has proven time after time that he is a clutch player, producing big numbers down the stretch helping push this team into the postseason, and by scoring timely goals to help boost his team. He also is a natural leader of this team, with or without the C, he leads by example. Pominville has put up some pretty constant numbers by putting up 5 straight 20+ goal and 50+ point seasons. He finds himself playing in every situation whether its killing penalties or on a power play, Lindy Ruff has no issue with putting number 29 on the ice. His importance to this team shows up drastically when he does good they win when he's not playing they loose; the sabres went 16-5-0 when Pominville scored a goal in the game and 22-9-4 when he put up a point where as without Pominville in the line-up the sabres went 2-5-2.
Pominville was a 2nd round draft pick of the sabres in the 2001 Entry draft. Lindy Ruff also named 4 players as alternate captains; Thomas Vanek, Drew Stafford, Paul Gaustad and Derek Roy. Left off the 5 names in leadership of the sabres; were Tyler Myers and Jochen Hecht. With the announcement of these 5 players, Lindy Ruff and the rest of the sabres organization are showing they are a committed to the core veteran players that have been with the team since being drafted and have all grown up together. this core group of players is now being called upon to step up and lead this team. "This whole group from Gaus to Van, to Rosie and Staff ... you guys have grown up together as a group and we have to push each other to higher levels," Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said. "We have to take the pain of the last two years in the playoffs and push ourselves past that and be the team that can get all the way." Pominville has matured as a player and person since being drafted in 2001, he handles himself very well with media and is always available to do an interview whether the sabres won or lost he's willing to talk about. Now most people didn't even have Pominville on the radar to become the next captain heck most people were extremely upset with Lindy Ruff for naming Pominville captain over the public's choice of Thomas Vanek or Tyler Myers. 

The only real drawback to having Pominville being the captain is he has been said to be "soft" not necessarily with wimping out of playing like Connolly, but he isn't a gritty or in your face type of player, it will be difficult for him to rally the sabres with a motivational speech. He wouldn't exactly hit anyone hard enough to smack some sense into them so we'll have to see how that plays out. Now it is a little shocking to see that Tyler Myers the supposed future captain and future of the team wasn't even given an A. I've heard many a person say that the true leader on the sabres in number net-minder Ryan Miller, now I agree that Miller is a huge leader on this team and carries most of the burden for the team, a hockey team needs to let goalies focus on being... well just being goalies. Everyone remembers what happened with the Canucks and Loungo becoming their captain. I'm very happy with the choice of Jason Pominville as the captain, I'll admit it took me a little bit by surprise but I'm quite happy with the decision. He puts up points, rarely gets injured and his "home grown" talent by Buffalo and last but not least he is a complete 2 way player.. Ruff knew exactly what he was doing and by me and most sabres fans, he made the right choice selecting Pominville over Vanek or Myers.
Who knows maybe the population of Pominville will reach into the mid 30's for the first time in a few years!!

2011/2012 Eastern Cnference Predictions

I'm back and this time I'll be predicting how the NHL's Eastern conference will shake out as well as why I think each team will be in that sport in the standings. The regular season starts up tomorrow so this is the perfect time to release my predictions. Now this is the first time I have ever publicly delivered my predictions so no hate guys!

1. Washington Capitals

2. Boston Bruins

3. Tampa Bay Lightning

4. Buffalo Sabres

5. Pittsburgh Penguins

6. New York Rangers

7. Montreal Canadians

8. Philadelphia Flyers

9. Toronto Maple Leafs

10. Carolina Hurricanes

11. New Jersey Devils

12. Winnipeg Jets

13. New York islanders

14. Florida Panthers

15. Ottawa Senators

Washington Capitals;

the last few years the Capitals have had a common theme to their season; a dominate regular season followed by a let downs in the post-season. Led by the leadership of Alexander Ovechkin the Capitals are going to have yet again another amazing season. Ovechkin production was down last season and was kind of embarrassed in the media and around the league, that is why I think Ovechkin is going to have a bounce-back season. It's put up or shut up for Ovechkin and the Capitals. If the Capitals don't get something big done this post season look for some major changes in DC. The Capitals also brought in some real character players and a real solid goalie; The Washington Capitals should clinch the conference title for the 3rd straight year and should go deeper in the playoffs this season.

New arrivals: Troy Brouwer, Jeff Halpern, Joel Ward, Chris Hanson, Thomas Vokoun and a few others. Thomas Vokoun gives the Capitals some reliable goaltending that they can FINALLY count on! With the goaltending taken care of the Capitals can focus more on offense! This season the Capitals are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup.

Boston Bruins:

After winning the cup in the 2010-2011 campaign, the Bruins are rested and ready to try to muster a repeat victory. The Bruins have kept most of the players from the Stanley cup winning team, which is a good start for next season. There is no doubt this team is poised for another outstanding season, and helping its cause with the contract extension of Brad Marchand. The Bruins surprised me last season, I did not see them having such a stellar season, but hey its hockey and anything can happen! Much of the success of the bruins will like last season come down to how well Tim Thomas will play. Last season Thomas one the Vezina and had unrealistic numbers, breaking the GAA all time for the NHL. But this season Thomas will likely see less time between the pipes, due to his age (37) and playing 82 games last season Tukka Rask should get his fair time this season.

Tampa Bay Lightning:

How can one not like Tampa; they have Stamkos, St. Louis, Lecavilliar and several other great character players. A surprise sweep of the capitals in last years post season, turned a lot of heads and let fans know the Lightning are a force to be reckoned with, This season Tampa is hoping that lightning will strike twice so they can return to the post season. With new GM Steve Yzerman, the lightning have all the ingredients of success with a nice mixture of seasoned veterans mixed in with a spicy core of young players. Lightning should easily contend for the southeast division title. Key new additions include; Mathieu Garon and Ryan Shannon.

With Dwayne Roloson between the pipes the veteran should help tighten up the back end. With Teddy Purcell primed and ready to have a breakout season, and Steven Stamkos looking to rebound from last season the Lightning should be good to go this upcoming season.

Buffalo Sabres

Now this will come as a surprise to most that I ranked them 4th, but hey, I am a little bias.

Buffalo now has a new owner Terry Pegula. Pegula has shown the Buffalo faithful that he wants to win and isn't afraid to spend the money to do so, If something needs to be done he will get it done. The sabres made major off-season acquisitions bringing in; Robyn Regehr, Christian Ehrhoff, Ville Leino and shipped out Tim Connolly and Steve Montador, who just weren't cutting it in Buffalo anymore. Also having a strong minor team will help in case of injuries players like Luke Adam, Zach Kassian and Marcus Foligno can fill almost any void, or be moveable pieces for a trade. A major factor is the Sabres now have a legitimate back-up goalie who can take some of the pressure of Miller in Jonas Enroth. Enroth can hold his own and give Miller much needed break during the season. Now that Buffalo solved the defensive woes, Miller will have more support and help and could be well on his way to his 2nd Vezna trophy in 3 years. Buffalo Sabres fans should be super excited because the sabres have a real chance to make a valid run at the Holy Grail of hockey the Stanley Cup. The cup could very well be

making its way to Buffalo for the first time ever! There is optimism in Buffalo. So believe me when I say; The Buffalo Sabres are the REAL DEAL this season. I'm drinking the Buffalo Sabres kool-aid that this will be their breakout year. Either they Put up or shut up!

Pittsburgh Penguins

I am a little worried for the Penguins will likely be without their star player; Sidney Crosby for a good part of the season if not all. Crosby has been out since last January with a concussion is still not ready to come back. This mean other players like; Malkin and Staal are really going to have to step up and fill the offense Crosby provided. Malkin is motivated this season knowing he has to carry the team without Crosby there to bail them out, all the pressure is resting squarely on Malkin's shoulders. if Malkin plays well it Crosby who? if Malkin can't step up, he's going to hear it from the fans. I don't believe the Penguins will have a dominating season like they have enjoyed since 09, as the fear factor of playing the Penguins is gone. But they will finish somewhere around 5 or 6 in the division, but wont be able to win another Stanley Cup unless Crosby comes back in a hurry and has no ill effects from his concussion. 

New York Rangers;

Last season the rangers barely made it into the post-season as the 8th seed. But this off season the Rangers made a big splash by landing Free agent Brad Richards without giving up anything in return. Richards instantly improves the Rangers squad. With Richard and Gaborik working together there could be no stopping the random. New defenceman Tim Erixon is poised and ready to have a break-out campaign. As long as John Tortorella can keep Sean Avery under control and focoused on scoring instead of causing trouble the Rangers should be in for a great year that will bring them a little higher in the standings. Plus Rangers fans are rejoicing that their team is playing in the Winter Classic. As long as Gaborik and Richards play well together the rangers will be in the post season for sure. 

Montreal Canadians

The Montreal Canadians; well I don't really know what to say about the Canadians as they are one of my least favorite teams. They reluctantly got rid of all-star goalie Halak and stuck it out with Carey Price who had a very rough season a back in 2009/2010 season. As well as Carey Price played last season it was not enough when they play-offs rolled around and they lost in the first round. I think this season will be another tough grueling season for habs fans were every game matters. The Canadians are one of the lowest goal scoring teams and rarely "blow out" any team, scoring just 216 goals last season. They decided to take a chance by signing Erik Cole this off season to help enhance the offense. Canadians hope Max Pacioretty is able to recover from his concussion and broken vertebra sustained from a hit delivered by bruins Chara. P.K Subban should have lots ice time this upcoming season and come close to 50 points in helping the Canadians return to the post season. The Canadians will squeak into the post-season in the 6 or 7th position. Price will have another good season but will struggle a little due to a weaker defence. I see another first round playoffs exit in store for the habs with a few of the bigger contracts not living up to their money.

Philadelphia Flyers:

Well Flyers made some major shake-up moves this off season, trading away their captain Mike Richards and super star Jeff Carter for the 3 men you see in the picture on the right. Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds and Jacob Voracek. The Flyers have gotten rid of 127 goals and 282 points and replaced it with 36 goals and 99 points and 2 stud prospects. Does the future look light or dim for the new faced Flyers? They have finally put an end to their forever spinning goaltending wheel, which spelled an end to any hopes of a Stanley cup final. They brought in former phoenix coyotes goalie Ilya Bryzgolav. So was this a good or bad offseason for the Flyers... only time will tell, I think I may have ranked them a little high for all their new editions. Also added in the off season is former pittsburgh penguins Jaromir Jagr, who is trying to make a comeback to the NHL. It was a extremly risky move shaking the core of the Flyers and it will result in a drop of their stnadings If the flyers get solid goal tending from Bryzgolav and solid production from Brayden Schenn, then they should be able to make the post-season.

Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Leafs are looking to finally make the post-season for the first time since 2004. The leafs started off last season with 4 straight wins but were then out of the post-season picture by January by going long stretches without a victory. But then Jame Reimer turned up and resurrected the finally of the Leafs season. The leafs finished only 8 points out of a playoff spot. They made some major off season moves and found some nice rookie talent coming up for next season. The Biggest move this off season would be the addition of the Tim Connolly of the Buffalo Sabres, truth be told the leafs over paid for a player who is always hurt! There was a reason the Sabres let Connolly go for nothing (dumb Leafs). A player who can make have a break out season is defence man Jake Gardiner, who will be in the line-up come opening night. For the leafs it all comes down to the goal tending of James Reimer, if he plays well he'll give the Leafs some extra much needed wins if he does not play well it will be another long long season for leafs nation. The leafs defence and offence aren't the greatest BUT they are good enough to make the post-season. I think the leafs will be the dark horse in the east this coming season and could easily finish in 8th but will likely just miss out again like last season. If the leafs don't make the post-season, look for the GM and Coach to be gone! (Brian Burke and Ron Wilson) For the offence of the leafs to be good enough to make the playoffs; the *new top line of Kulemin-MacArthur-Grabovski needs to be the leafs top line against like last season.

Carolina Hurricanes.

Last season the hurricanes controlled their own playoff destiny, in a win and your in game verse the lightning, but the lightning smoked the canes 6-2. Who knows how the playoffs would have shaped up if the Canes had made it but probably not much different. The team relies to heavily on number one goalie Cam Ward and captain Erick Staal, the Hurricanes need a more "full team" effort if they intend to make the post-season. The bright spot was rookie Jeff Skinner who won the Calder trophy and toar up the rookies. this season Skinner needs to replicate his rookie season. Most of the "bubble" teams try to get much better in the off season but the Hurricanes did nothing and lost a couple key players, this team is far from the 2006 Cup winning team!

New Jersey Devils

The devils had an horrible start to their season but had an amazing 2nd half and ended up just, yes just missing the playoffs they caped off the year with 28-10-3 run. Due to a tight salary cap the Devils did very little in the off season, but will need to find a solid back-up goalie as this could be the 39 year old Martin Brodeur's last NHL season. Brodeur has had quite the career and is likely to be a Hall of Fame Candidate in the future. Kovalchuk the guy who was supposed to "save" the team, they even gave him 100 million bucks to watch him do nothing! But Zach Parise is back from injury and should help the offense of this team. The devils are likely to be on the bubble fighting for a play off spot but will likely fall just short of that elusive final ticket into the NHL's 2nd season.

Winnipeg Jets!

The Jets are back!!!! woo its been 15 long years since the old jets departed from Winnipeg too long for many fans. But the Jet faithful are excited as ever to welcome back their storied franchise. Unfortunetly for Jets fans, the team they have ended up with is the same Thrashers team who have made the playoffs once in 11 years. But luckily their is no shortage of big names and talent; Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien who both won a cup with Chicogo and Evander Kane the 4th overall pick from 2009. For the management of the new jets making the post season is a secondary thought, as they are focusing on molding a team that can win in the future. Antropov and Fehr will need to stay consistent if this team hopes to improve an offense that was 20th last season. Enstrom and Byfuglien can be one of the top defensive tandems in the league when both are on top of their game; but legal issues for Byfuglien may cause him to miss some time on the ice. Still stuck in the south east division a trip to the post season would be tough to conjure up, but hey anything other than dead last is positive news right? Mark your Calenders Jets fans October 9th is when the party kicks off!

But amidst the joy and celebration of having the jets back lets remember the jets are or were the Thrashers a team hastily ripped away from Atlanta, so lets have a moment of silence for thrashers fans.

New York Islanders

Now the Islanders aren't one of the better teams in the Eastern conference, they will become better, maybe not in the standings but as a tougher team to play. Its not as easy for teams to walk all over the Islanders any more. You gotta feel bad for John Tavares, super star player on a less than good team, the last two season Tavares has lead the islanders in scoring and its safe to say its his team now. The islanders need Rick DiPietro to stay healthy, if he can stay healthy and prove why he was a former #1 draft pick that the islanders are in business. With good goal tending and a healthy defence the Islanders should be able to take some teams by surprise and challenge for a playoffs spot right to the end. The islanders will be a fun team to watch with all their young talent but will fail to make the post season yet again.

Florida Panthers

ah sunny side Florida, hard to believe that we can ice a hockey team in Florida. Coming of last season which found the panthers as the 3rd worst team in the NHL, and missed the post season for a 10th straight time, this team needs to turn things around and pronto. This off season they showed that they are serious about becoming a top notch team, with some major moves this off season,  will see the panthers ice nearly a brand new team. they spent money on some pretty risky players that may or may not play well; Adding Sean Bergenheim and injury worry Tomas Fleischmann and spending a bit to much money for  Scottie Upshall and Tomas Kopecky. But added the tiny guy with a ton of grit in Kris Versteeg. But this team will need help from the 2 best players on the team Stephen Weiss and David Booth if they are going to get anything accomplished. Unfortunately on the defensive end the panthers found them making some of the worst moves in a while signing veteran Ed Jovanovski the price was too much and the fact that Jovanovski has a history of injuries should have been a no go there sign for the panthers. The panthers also added former cup winning defence man Brian Campbell. In goal the panthers have taken some steps back having Jose Theodore and Jacob Markstrom as the goaltending Tandem. Theodore is mainly a back-up goaltender so it will be interesting to see how he handles the pressures of being the starter. not to forget the 3rd overall pick Jonathan Huberdeau who could be a break-out candidate with all the veterans around to help his development. It looks like the post season will be out of reach for the panthers yet again making it 11 straight seasons.

Ottawa Senators

Last but certainly not least the Ottawa senators. Sadly their 20th season will be nothing cheer about in the nations capital, wins are something that will be few and far between and its a secondary option for the Senators, developing the youth is the first and foremost mission for them. It is looking that the senators will have some stability in between the pipes with Craig Anderson, which is something for sens fans to cheer about! Andersons play may be the lone bright spot this season; as their focus is developing young rookies. But all eyes will be on the veteran leadership of Alfredsson, Spezza and Phillips, these three especially Spezza will need to "grow up" in a way; by logging big minutes playing more responsible hockey and putting the puck in the net as well as mentoring the next generation of senators. It is looking more and more like Spezza is the face of the franchise and will be the captain in a few years. The forecast is calling for a rough season in the nations capital, but hey once you hit rock bottom you can only go up.

So there you have it folks my breakdown on how the Eastern Conference will shake out. This Blog took a extremely long time and tons and tons of research so I'd appreciate if there was not real "hate" towards it. Any who hope you enjoy my blog.

With the today being the eve of the nhl regular season, thought it would a good time to release this, you guys should be stocking your shelves with nachos and wings and I'll see you guys in the couch starting tomorrow!

Here's to another great hockey season!