Can The Pittsburgh Penguins Survive Without Evgeni Malkin?

The last 2 seasons the Pittsburgh Penguins learned how to live without their captain Sidney Crosby as he battled through multiple concussions, now they have to adapt to playing without Evgeni Malkin who played a major role in Crosby's absence. By many accounts Evgeni Malkin has been the Penguins best player over the last 2 seasons, single handedly carrying the team and putting up enough offence for 2 superstars. He also won the NHL MVP award for for his leadership role during Crosby's absence. At the start of 2013 the Penguins were poised for a big year as both Crosby and Malkin were ready to start off the year healthy, but after a collision in a game Friday against the Florida Panthers Evgeni Malkin has been diagnosed with a concussion.

Anytime the word "concussion" is thrown around with the Penguins, fans and coaches hold their breath and hope for the best. They dealt with Crosby's concussion and "concussion like symptoms" which forced him to miss over 100 games in 2 seasons. Right now the Penguins are hoping that Malkin's concussion won't have the same effect. Concussions are nasty injuries and completely un-predictable, there's no time-table for a return and a player could be better within a few days Brendan Gallagher or their career could be over like Chris Pronger. Good news for Penguins fans is the team knows how to handle concussions thanks to their experiences with Crosby and Kris Letang, so they will be sure that Malkin is 100% before sending him back into game action.

Now that the Penguins are without Evgeni Malkin for the foreseeable future, will they be able to keep up their strong play or will their game taper off with the loss of their MVP?

No matter what way you look at it losing a player such as Malkin is huge for any team. He's currently 18th in points with 21 (4 goals + 17 assists) and is the type of player who makes everyone on the ice better. But if any team is able to handle the loss of a superstar it's the Pittsburgh Penguins who will still have Sidney Crosby and James Neal to turn to.

Here's why the Penguins will survive the regular season without Evgeni Malkin;

1. Sidney Crosby

The Penguins are lucky in the fact that they have arguably 2 of the best players in the NHL, because of that their 2 superstars are able to cover for each other if one is out with an injury. While Crosby was out Malkin was called upon to lead and carry the team, the Russian superstar responded by putting up 109 points and winning the Hart Trophy. Now it's Crosby's turn to answer the bell and prove to everyone who believes that Malkin became the better player during Crosby's absence that Crosby can also elevate his game and lead the Penguins by himself.

Right now Crosby sits 2nd in the league in points with 28 (9 goals, 19 assists) and has points in 13 of 15 Penguins games making him one of the most consistent players this season. Stepping up in Malkin's absence should be no problem for Sid the kid who is used to being the star and carrying his team to victory. It's time for Crosby to step up, lead his team and show the league he is still the most dominat all-around player.

2. James Neal

Aside from Crosby, James Neal will be affected the most while Evgeni Malkin is not playing. Malkin and Neal are arguably the best center/winger duo in the NHL right now and help provide the Penguins with a solid 1- 2 punch as both the first and second lines can score. But with Malkin out look for Neal to jump to the first line with Crosby. Now there is nothing wrong playing on a line with Crosby, but there's no guarantee Neal will have the same chemistry that he had with Malkin- he has 12 goals and 9 of them were assisted by Malkin. Neal's job will be to go to the net and try to get open so he can continue adding to his goal total, and Crosby has to be just as good at setting up goals as Malkin right?

With Neal jumping up on the first line he too will be called upon to play a bigger offencive role alongside Crosby. After putting up 81 points last season he is a dangerous guy in the offencive end and can score big goals when needed. He'll want to prove he can play with Crosby and add his name in the mix for the Penguins MVP race.

3. Power Play

Anytime you have the ability to have Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, Chris Kunitz and Brandon Sutter on the ice for one of your two power play units you're going to be able to capitalize more times than not. With Malkin out Kunitz will sub into his spot on the power play and his job will be to set up Crosby and Neal. The Penguins have the 3rd best power play in the league (28%) but it will be dealt a serious blow without the playmaking of Malkin, the way he sees the ice is just incredible and unfortunately for the Penguins near irreplaceable. But Neal and Crosby are also gifted on the power play and have combined for 23 power play points, so there is still some serious skill left on the Penguins power play that can easily burn the opposition.

The Penguins are crossing their fingers hoping that Evgeni Malkin's concussion isn't too severe and will be back by the end of the regular season, but no matter how severe it is they will make sure to take their time with Malkin to make sure he's fully healed up. Brandon Sutter will likely center the 2nd line and will need to step his game up along with goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury who hasn't been all that spectacular to start off the year. The Penguins have built a team that can compete and beat any team in the East regardless of whether they have both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin or just one. They will be fine in the Eastern Conference, but when playoffs roll around they may be in some trouble without Evgeni Malkin. Right now it's all about Sidney Crosby stepping his game up and carrying the Penguins like Malkin did when he was injured.

 

Top 10 NHL Goals of 2012

Anyone else missing the jaw dropping goals from the NHL? yeah me too! But with 2012 down to the final days and a hockey-less 2013 on the way it's time we look back at some of the best goals from the NHL during the 2011 and 2012 season. Some of these goals will leave you scratching your head and wondering how they made it happen. Here are my top 10 NHL goals of 2012.

*Warning The Following Videos May Cause Hockey Withdrawals*

 

10. Benoit Pouliot 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg_-grgXhD8

Pouliot goes end to end on butter toast, between the legs and then falls to his knees before tucking the puck in far side! The benefit of 4 on 4 hockey is the extra space for these guys to work their magic and in this highlight reel goal Pouliot takes full advantage of the extra space.

9. Corey Perry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ8CTsV8ruI

Now although this goal was done in the All-Star skills competition, an event made just to hype up goals and wouldn't have counted in a real game, for fans who grew up watching hockey this one hits home. In this amazing goal Perry goes old school by pulling out the mini-stick and going back to the mini-stick days, using the decoy to deke out the goalie. As far as goals go, this one is a classic.

8. Tyler Ennis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQKCfYSCZ88

Ennis is a guy who plays the game all out and seeing his emotion coming out after a jaw-dropping goal is amazing. Ennis makes Markov look like a simple pylon during practice with this dandy, check out his celebration after the goal!

7. Bobby Ryan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN_s2FjJ0ak

One of the most under-rated advantages/skills in hockey is size. At 6 foot 2 Ryan uses all of his extra length to rend the defenceman helpless. After getting past 2 defencemen, Nabokov misses the poke check giving Ryan a wide open net.

6. Claude Giroux

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEVdL2Ej_AA

If you followed the Pittsburgh Penguins and and Philadelphia Flyers rivalry throughout the season, you can understand why this goal is included. The two team simply can't stand each other, and arguably the two best players from each team collide in an open ice hit. While Crosby is busy wondering why someone actually hit him, Giroux jumps up, joins the rush and snipes a short side goal on Marc Andre-Fluery.

5. Jeff Skinner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqPOjGIVn-I&feature=player_embedded

If there's one thing young hockey players know how to do it's score exciting goals. Here Skinner mixes in a little toe-drag and then kicks the puck from his back skate between his legs and back on the blade of his stick then goes far side. Skinner actually loses the puck on this rush manages to compose himself and get back, fantastic composure from such a young player.

4. Alexander Ovechkin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-PCeU2o9B0

You could probably have a top 10 dedicated specifically to highlight reel goals from Ovechkin, it seems all the guy does is score jaw dropping goals. Here Ovechkin goes between the legs to lose the defenceman and the proceeds to go bar down, the goalie didn't stand a chance.

3. Matt Duchene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHQb4NjOk5M

Now this is an incredible goal, not only does Duchene score this beauty he also reaches behind him, to the opposite side of his stick, to redirect the puck back to his forehand. It's the type of goal you have to watch 2 or 3 times to fully believe your eyes.

2. Jason Spezza

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggKY-kMCHko

Now I know Spezza himself didn't score this goal, but after an effort like this they should have just given the goal to him. Here Kyle Turris is in the right place at the right time and benefits from a fantastic individual effort from Spezza. If you didn't know better you would have thought he had a the puck on a string, the way he's able to weave his way through the opposition and keep control shows the skill he truly possess.

1. Evgeni Malkin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piXBKJHNkH0

One thing that can't be disputed is that Malkin had a breakout year last season while Crosby was on the sidelines. He put the team on his back and never disappointed. Here he goes coast to coast on butter toast and honestly I don't think there's a player in white who he didn't deke out of their uniform. Malkin dances through the entire Tampa Bay Lightning team and slips the puck 5-hole. People were so impressed by this dandy that it drew comparison to a goal scored by Penguins great Mario Lemieux.

I hope you enjoyed the top 10 NHL goals from 2012, it was truly a remarkable season with many highlights. Did I miss any spectacular goals, from 2012? Let me know!

 

Turning Attention to the KHL

Let's face it folks both the NHL and NHLPA are far apart on working out a new CBA, it's unlikely we'll be seeing NHL hockey any time soon. With players all over the world it would be a whirlwind trying to get all those players back to respective NHL teams by the start of the season. If you're truly a hockey fan and not just an NHL fan, it's time to start diverting your attention the other professional leagues. There's the AHL, OHL, QMJHL and many more all with their own unique brand of high level hockey. But perhaps the next biggest league next to the NHL is the recently formed KHL. Last night I was on Sports Rantz radio (83:44, shameless plug) to talk about the latest CBA talks, during the interview I was asked if I was watching or following the KHL. I answered truthfully and told them I wasn't watching the games but was following some of the action, but not nearly as much as I'd like to be. That got me thinking, why am I not watch the KHL?

The KHL officially deemed itself a professional league in 2008 after they broke away from the Russian SuperLeague. In 2008 they started out with 24 teams and today have 26 teams. The KHL is home to many skilled Russian hockey players who could easily be playing in the NHL if they chose to leave their home. But until the current lockout has been largely in the shadow of the NHL waiting for their "big break". Everyone knew the KHL existed, some knew they had some skilled players but few knew where or how to find games to watch those players. The KHL began to gain popularity and recognition when many skilled Russians showed up in the 2012-2013 draft. I myself wanted to watch and focus on more Russian hockey as there are many talented Russian's emerging from overseas. Something had to break and lucky for the KHL it appears the NHL has figuratively broken, giving the Russian league it's "big break".

Now that the NHL is on a temporary break, many top notch Russian players have returned home to play in the KHL, and these players are finally putting a face to the KHL for many North American hockey fans. Two of the biggest being Alexander Ovechkin playing for Dynamow Moscow his former team and Evgeni Malkin playing for Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Not to mention Canadian born Sidney Crosby debating heading over to Russia if the lockout goes much longer. In addition to those big name players the KHL is currently hosting many other NHL players and top notch Russian players.

From watching the highlights it's easy to see that there is some great hockey being played over in Russia right now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NM0kboSuaU

Lots of goals, an up take of physical play and some big saves, everything a hockey fan wants from the game no? It's actually very exciting hockey to watch, even if it's not commentated in english, it's still hockey. Hockey is a universal language that has the power to connect people on various continents no matter what language or cultural berries are present. If it's hockey, it's hockey, who cares where it's being played!

With big name players like the ones mentioned above and others like Claude Giroux, Danny Briere, Tyler Seguin, Tyler Ennis, Nail Yakupov and Rick Nash bringing interest and attention from North American fans the KHL is finally in the limelight and not just Russia. The whole world is watching or has the capability to watch the KHL and it's players, could the NHL have handed them a better situation?

Although they can't financially challenge the NHL because of salaries and only a handful of their 26 teams breaking even, they are able to challenge the NHL in terms of talent. There are some darn good players in the KHL who aren't from the NHL, not a single player from the NHL is in the top 25 of KHL scoring, That speaks volumes in terms of the talent over seas. Heck it may even be a good idea for Bettman and the NHL to join forces with the KHL, now I'm not talking about combining them into one league, but perhaps the NHL all-stars can play against the Russian all-stars. It would make the snooze fest known as all-star weekend  lot more exciting and globally would be a great thing for the game of hockey.

So while the players take a nice vacation over in Russia, the KHL benefits from their talent. I think it's time to start paying more attention to the KHL and give them more credit, it's not easy to convince NHL players to come and play in your league while the NHL is on strike. Remember if you're a hockey fan and don't think there's any hockey on, you're not a hockey fan, you're an NHL fan. There's lots of hockey out there folks, open your eyes and look. AHL, OHL

Malkin Disproving the Russian Stereotype

It's a popular discussion in the hockey world and a dilemma for NHL organizations, the great Russian stereotype. Are Russian players lazy? Do they only care about themselves? Are they as good as Canadians? It's an age old topic that was revamped when Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby were the forerunners in the league and arguably the two best players in the world. But it's the new best player in the world (for now) Evgeni Malkin who is disproving the Russian stereotype.

There have been plenty of instances over the years that prove that the Russian hockey players are a completely different breed than the Canadians, and that they only care about themselves and the money they make. There's also a nasty rumor that they are famous for getting coaches fired.

Alexander Ovechkin
Sure Ovechkin is a phenomenal hockey player, he scores jaw dropping goals and brings fans out to the game. But when the game is on the line would you really want him on the ice? When first asked this question you want to say yes, but to fully answer the question you need to dive in deeper. Take this year's playoffs for example, sure the Capitals made it to the 2nd round but Ovechkin never really stepped up to the plate and is part of the reason they're not playing right now. Anytime you can take the top seeded team to the 7th game and have them on the brink of elimination it's something special, something Ovechkin should have been all over. In 14 playoff games, Ovechkin scored just 5 goals and had his ice time diminished, Kings forward Dwight King (who few have ever heard of, has 5 goals!) Bottom line was when Ovechkin's team needed him the most, he was nowhere to be found, he has now played 7 seasons in the league and has failed to make it past the 2nd round of the playoffs, his stock, like his ice time is slowly going down.

Team Russia
What has really puzzled a lot of people is why Russian teams with all their fire power have never been able to win medals or be dominant on the World Stage. Canada and the United States can't be that much better than Russia can they? Especially when you can combine Ovechkin, Semin, Malkin, Kovalchuk and Datsyuk some of the top players in the NHL. (2010 Olympics).
Many say it's because they're too lazy or too cocky, they care more about partying than playing hockey. Whatever the reason despite all the fire power the Russian's can cook up they're still unable to crack into the upper echelon of the World rankings.

Drafting Russians
Then of course you have to look at the NHL entry draft, a lot of teams are hesitant to pick Russian players as there is no guarantee they will leave Russia to come play in the NHL. Now that the KHL is ramping up in Russia, they're throwing large amounts of money to Russians so they will come back home and play in Russia. The 78th pick in the 2009 NHL entry draft, Sergei Andronov has never left Russian, he currently plays in the KHL despite being drafted by the Blues! The Russian players want all the glory but none of the responsibility that goes a long with playing in the NHL.

Evgeni Malkin

But they say it takes just one to change people's perspective; queue Evgeni Malkin.

In all honesty I have never been a fan of Malkin, I always thought Crosby was better and more valuable to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but this season really changed my mind about Malkin. He had a fantastic season both on the scoreboard and with his character.

As everyone knows the Penguins were without their star Crosby for the majority of the season. They started the year without him and only saw him a couple of times during the year. Yet they still had a fairly successful season and made the playoffs due in large part to the play of Malkin.
Not only did Malkin have to carry the team in the absence of Crosby, he also was without Jordan Staal, the Penguins virtually went from having the best top 3 centers in the league to having just 1.

Most teams that are dealt multiple injuries, especially to their top players fold up (Sabres, Wild) but credit to the Penguins and Malkin for battling through it. To sum up the Penguins regular season, Evgeni Malkin put the Penguins on his back and took them to the promise land. To be frank Malkin did something I'm not sure the great Sidney Crosby could have done, another thing he did that Crosby wouldn't have been able to do; keep quiet. Not once did you ever hear Malkin complain that he had to do it all himself, or that his team's lack of success was because of injuries. Malkin gave no excuses, when the team wasn't playing well he took it upon himself to play better.

Malkin absolutely dominated the league this year, finishing with 50 goals and 59 assists for 109 points not to mention he only played in 75 games. Steven Stamkos who led the league with 60 goals but had just 97 points played in all 82 games!
Not only did Malkin lead the league in points, he's also nominated for the MVP award and he also led Russia to an IIHF World Championship! Becoming only the second player ever to lead the NHL in scoring and lead the World Championships in the same season! He was also named the MVP and best forward of the World Championship tournament.

After Malkin's amazing season in the NHL and jaw dropping performance, there is no doubt he is the best player in the world right now. He showed he was hungry to win, was willing to battle and do whatever he had to, sure he didn't go far in the NHL playoffs but he went a long way in putting Russia back on the map for the IIHF.

Malkin elevated his game and showed just how special a hockey player he really is, there were stretches during the season where he was totally dominant, no one stood between him and scoring a goal. Evgeni Malkin deserves some major props for what he was able to do this season. He showed a lot of character and showed just how valuable a Russian player can be, not just by scoring goals but by playing a complete game. He was able to do what all great hockey players do, make his teammates better!
He was able to help disprove the Russian stereotypes of them being lazy, he wanted the responsibility of leading his team, he even remained humble during his play. He possessed many qualities that other Russians don't usually show. If Crosby has troubles in the future, Malkin would be more than capable of wearing the "C".

The way Malkin was able to transform the success of his team by putting them on his back is remarkable and should make scouts think twice about skipping over a Russian. You never know who will pay off in the long run, Russian or not!

Cup Favorites Early Exit

Sunday was a great day for a lot of hockey fans, particularly fans who don't like the Vancouver Canucks and or the Pittsburgh Penguins. Both the Penguins and Canucks were eliminated from Stanley Cup contention after losing their first round series'. It's not every day the 2 teams picked by so many to face off for hockey's ultimate prize get eliminated in the first round!

Flyers win the series 4-2 over the Penguins
It's really weird knowing Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, arguably 2 of the 3 best players in the world are no longer in playoffs. I didn't think the Penguins would be able to beat the Flyers, but I thought they would be able to put up more of a fight, they really made the Flyers job pretty easy. Malkin decided to take the first round of the playoffs off and it cost his team. As soon as the opponents realize that Malkin wasn't doing anything they turned all their attention to Crosby, and 99% of the time not even Crosby can beat 5 opposing players. It was a rough series for the Penguins and they just couldn't bounce back after some shaky goaltending. Bottom line though is key players for the Flyers stepped up while key players for the Penguins did not!

3 reasons the Penguins lost


1. Goaltending: I don't know what happened to Fleury but he was not the goaltender he was all season or in past seasons, he let in suspect goals, goals at the worst times and he just looked shaky. The Pens  scored a few key goals to take the lead, but a couple minutes later the refs were fishing the puck out of the back of the Pens net. For whatever reason the Penguins didn't get the goaltending they needed to advance in the playoffs. The only thing that keeps the Pens in the series at all was, Ilya Bryzgalov didn't play that much better than Fleury.

2. Star Players: The Penguins star players really didn't step up and help the Pens. Malkin, Crosby and Neal were all pretty much absent during the series, the three combined for just 8 goals in 6 games, heck the Flyers Claude Giroux had 6 goals and 14 points in the 6 games! Giroux and Daniel Briere carried the Flyers offensively during the season and showed some great leadership. What everyone forgets is the Flyers are doing all this without their Captain Chris Pronger who has been out for the majority of the season!
People talk about Crosby being the best player in the world, but right now the best player in the league/world is Claude Giroux. He was a clutch player for the Flyers and contributed in every game.

3. Discipline: The Flyers were able to get under the Penguins skin and bait them into taking stupid penalties. It was most evident in game 3. The Pens lost their composure, and tried to out tough their opponents which was never going to happen! Philly was able to get into their heads and throw them off their game.

LA Kings win the series 4-1 over the Vancouver Canucks
Most of Canada rejoices with me as the Vancouver Canucks are eliminated from the playoffs and may have just wasted their last chance to dominate the league and win a Stanley Cup.
You have to believe with this loss there will be some major changes coming in Vancouver; first of all they need decide if they're keeping Loungo or shipping him out of town, right now all signs point to him leaving, especially after the Canucks virtually told him they have more faith in Schnieder (after game 4 and 5 starts), there are also rumblings of a coaching change in Vancouver, and who knows if the free agents will stay or go! This was probably the Canucks last chance to make it far with their current roster. Just goes to show that 2 presidents trophies don't mean anything, as the Canucks still have not won a cup. I saw an interesting tweet earlier: "Giving a team the Presidents Trophy, is like giving a student an award for having the highest mark in the class before the exam!" Seems like the Canucks can't seem to pass the biggest test!

3 reasons the Canucks lost

1. The absence of Daniel Sedin: One thing fans noticed is that 1 Sedin without the other is pretty much useless. Henrik did nothing during the first 3 games while his brother was injured. It was obvious he didn't have the good chemistry with his line mates! As soon as Daniel was back he started to score again, and compete harder. Without his brother Henrik looked lost out on the ice, seems like Daniel may be the anchor between the twins. Without Daniel and Henrik scoring the rest of the Canucks weren't able to pick up the slack and ultimately the Canucks got outplayed.

2. Didn't win at home: The Canucks lost all 3 games at the Rogers Centre in Vancouver, during last seasons playoff run the Canucks won every single game 1 at home which put them in a nice spot. But Vancouver was not able to win a single home game this series.

3. Started the wrong goalie: Now this isn't a criticism towards Roberto Loungo, as he surprisingly played really well, his team just couldn't score. But we've seen for the last little while that the Canucks are a different and arguably better team when Cory Schnieder is net, which is why I believe the Canucks will keep Schnieder. But neither goalie got any support from the team, so the goalies are not to fault for this early exit!

The Canucks are not the same team that went to the Stanley Cup playoffs last season, They seemed weaker and not as ready to battle this season, and got outplayed by the Kings.

It's a tough break for the two Stanley Cup favorites, but perhaps a lesson well learned for both teams. The regular season (Presidents trophy) means nothing come playoff time and reputation means even less. Teams must stick to their true identities and not change their game to play like their opponents, for some reason the Pens weren't confident playing with their own style and tried to play the Flyers type of hockey!

Now let's see how the Bruins do...

Penguins and Canucks in a hole

View this article on The Hockey Writers ----> Penguins and Canucks in a hole!

It's the best time of the year, or at least the best time of the NHL season, the playoffs! Sixteen teams battle it out for a chance to lift the Stanley Cup-- it's the NHL's second season. We're roughly 3 games into the playoffs and Stanley Cup favorites Pittsburgh and Vancouver find themselves in a rough spot, down 3 games to their opponents and on the verge of elimination. What the heck happened?

Pittsburgh vs Philadelphia: 3-0 series lead for the Flyers
This series has been by far the most physical series, anytime you get two teams who really don't like each other as much as these two you know stuff is going to happen. Even though it's a team effort during the playoffs, a lot of the blame for the Penguins mess falls squarely on the shoulders of Marc-Andre Fleury. In each of the first 3 games the Penguins came out and grabbed an early lead. In game 1 they were up 3-0, game 2 3-1, and game 3, 3-1 yet in each game they let the Flyers storm back and come out with the victory. The majority of the goals the Flyers have scored are not goals that should go in on a elite level goalie like Fleury, if the Penguins want to get back into this series they need their goalie to stop a puck and keep them in the game. Acquiring a lead but then losing it does no good, especially in the playoffs and against a team like the Flyers who never give up!
The other reasons the Pens find themselves in this hole is the Flyers have been dictating the play of this series. After seeing the WWE type of game Sunday it looked like the Penguins were trying to out tough the Flyers and that's not going to happen. What happened instead was the Penguins completely lost control and took far too many stupid penalties and shot themselves in the foot, the game yesterday quickly spiraled out of control and the game itself was lost.


Key players


Evgeni Malkin- Has anyone even noticed Malkin out there?
The Flyers have done an amazing job of shutting down the Penguins star player and have held him to just 4 assists in the 3 games. Malkin has yet to score and really get his game going in this series, he has not been benefiting the Pens, he's been hurting them and is a -4 through this series. He doesn't look like he wants to win.
If the Penguins want to claw their way back into the series and move on they need Malkin to score some goals and be a difference maker!
Claude Giroux and Daniel Briere- Talk about clutch, Briere has been putting the puck in the net and really breaking the back of the Penguins, he's proving that he is an amazing playoff player. Briere's scored 4 goals and lead or fuelled the Flyers comebacks.
Giroux has been another amazing player for the Flyers. Before the playoffs he said "I don't just want to be another player, I want to make a difference". Boy has he made a difference for the Flyers; hits, fights, and goals great leadership from such a young player! He's racked up 4 goals and 8 points and leads all players in points, goals and assists in the playoffs, the Flyers have a real gem in this kid.

If the Penguins want back in this series they will need Malkin to score a few goals and be more physical and get Fleury to stop some pucks and make key saves at the right time. But at the same time Flyers fans shouldn't just rest their hat on this series and with Bryzgalov, he too has not been anywhere near as good as the Flyers need him to be! Both these goalies have been off this series and really need to star playing like they should, the one that does make the key saves and steals a game for their team will be the winner.
For the Penguins sake I hope it's not too late!

Vancouver Canucks vs Los Angeles Kings: 3-0 series leads for the Kings

Oddly enough the problem with the Canucks has not been the goaltending, Luongo has actually been playing fairly well. It's the rest of the Canucks who haven't been playing well, it appears that not having Daniel Sedin in the lineup is taking a bigger effect on the Canucks than most expected. Henrik Sedin looks lost out there without his twin, there must have been a reason why they wanted to go to the same team! The rest of the Canucks forwards have not been able to pick up the play missing from their top player, because of the lack of production the Canucks are on the verge of elimination! Even putting Cody Schnieder in wasn't enough to spark the Canucks, he played extremely well in game 3 but his teammates didn't score a goal for him! The worst part for the Canucks is they aren't going to score a lot of goals on Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, this could be the beginning of the end for the Canucks. The proverbial window is closing!
If the Canucks are swept in 4 games, they will become the first team to win a President's trophy and then get swept in the first round of the playoffs.

Key Players


Henrik Sedin and Roberto Luongo- Even though Henrik is badly missing his brother out there, he needs to get over it and start producing for the Canucks. If he plays better his brother can get a chance to get back out there with him. If he doesn't start scoring he won't have the opportunity to win a cup or have his brother back with him. He's got some great line mates replacing his brother they are more than capable of scoring goals, it's about time to start scoring again!
Luongo had been great for the Canucks in the start of this series and is not the reason for them being behind the 8 ball. Luongo needs to keep playing like he is and the Canucks will have a chance to climb back into their series and make history.
Jonathan Quick- Quick is a major reason why the Kings have manhandled the Canucks in the first 3 games. He's a great goalie and has been shutting down the door, not allowing rebounds and limiting his opponents to just 2 goals. In the third game he faced 41 shots and stopped all of them earning his first career playoff shutout. If the Kings manage to eliminate the Canucks, the next team they face should be fearful of Quick and be able to score.

Bottom line is the Canucks and Penguins have been out played and out smarted by their opponents, the two teams most fans picked to come out of their respective conferences and face off for the Stanley Cup are on the verge of being eliminated after just 4 games. This proves that the playoffs are a different ball game whatever happened during the season is gone, no matter where teams ranked going into the playoffs it seriously no longer matters. It now comes down to what you do night in and night out. You can't get by on reputation alone!

End of the Regular Season

It's official the 2011-2012 NHL regular season has come to an end, and for teams like the Leafs, Sabres, Oilers, and Flames it's going to be a long offseason. But for 16 teams it's a chance to compete for hockey's holy grail the Stanley Cup!

Saturday marked game 82 for many teams, despite being the last day of the regular season some records were made, playoff battles were confirmed and fans had a chance to see some of their teams for the last time till October. Time to wrap the events from this weekend, and preview the playoff match ups.

Steven Stamkos reaches 60

For the Lightning's Steven Stamkos, it's a bitter-sweet ending to the season. He reached the 60 goal plateau for the first time in his career, becoming the first player to reach 60 since Alexander Ovechkin back in 2007-2008 and just the 20th player in NHL history to accomplish the feat. Stamkos will also be bringing home his second Maurice Richard trophy, awarded to the player who scored the most goals. He also set a career high with 60 goals and 97 points. But his Tampa Bay Lightning will not be making the journey back to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Stamkos said in his interview "He'd trade all those goals for an opportunity at the postseason" as the postseason is still what makes the players work as hard as they do.
But to reach 60 goals in the NHL is a special milestone, especially doing it in the new "era" where fewer goals are being scored; it takes a special hockey player to crack 60! Stamkos is a phenomenal, classy hockey player who plays the game the right way and is a great ambassador for the sport.

Evgeni Malkin reaches 50
Malkin made his dream a reality on Saturday night notching his 50th goal of the season. He also became the only player to score 50 goals while adding 50 assists and reaching over 100 points in a single season. For Malkin it's a triple victory; reaching 50, Art Ross trophy, and a trip to the postseason with one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the league. He will likely also bring home the MVP trophy for everything he did for the Penguins without their star Crosby.

Canucks win 2nd straight President's Trophy
The league's most despised team has captured their 2nd straight President's Trophy capturing the honor by beating out the Rangers and Blues for most points on the year! The Vancouver Canucks went 51-22-9 to finish on top of the league with 111 points. As a result the Canucks finish 1st in the West and will play the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs!

Why I hate the 3 point system in the NHL

The Buffalo Sabres finished the regular season in 9th place in the East, with 39 wins and 89 points. The Florida Panthers finished 3rd in the east with 38 wins and 94 points. Yes you read that correctly the Sabres won more games than the Panther yet missed the playoffs all because of the points earned for losing in overtime games. In any other sport, the losing team gets 0 points, doesn't matter how many innings or quarters the game goes the losing team doesn't get a point. But in the NHL the losing team gets 1 point, those extra points for (losing games) end up putting you in the playoffs instead of a team that actually won more games. Only in the NHL can a team play to a tie.

Phoenix Coyotes clinch the Pacific division
The division title is the Coyotes first ever division title dating back to when they were the Winnipeg Jets way back in 1979.

Playoff matches:

East
New York Rangers (1) vs. Ottawa Senators (8) Rangers in 5
Boston Bruins (2) vs. Washington Capitals (7) Bruins in 6
Florida Panthers (3) vs. New Jersey Devils (6) Devils in 6
Pittsburgh Penguins (4) vs Philadelphia Flyers (5) Flyers in 7
My pic is for Boston to come out of the East again!

Round 2:
Rangers vs Penguins Rangers in 6
Bruins vs Devils Bruins in 5

Conference finals
Rangers vs Bruins Bruins in 7


West
Vancouver Canucks (1) vs. Las Angeles Kings (8) Canucks (barely, 4-3)
St. Louis Blues (2) vs. San Jose Sharks (7) St Louis Blues
Phoenix Coyotes (3) vs. Chicago Blackhawkes (6) Blackhawkes
Nashville Predators (4) vs Detroit Red Wings (5) Red Wings

Round 2:
Vancouver vs Detroit Detroit in 7
St. Louis vs Chicago St. Louis in 5

Conference finals:
St. Louis vs Detroit St. Louis in 6

Stanley Cup Final:

Boston Bruins vs. St. Louis Blues --- Well now, that's a blog by itself.. stay tuned and enjoy the playoffs!

Leave your picks below!

Crosby Who?

Having Sidney Crosby back in the Penguins lineup undoubtedly makes them a major threat in the postseason, they're coming off an 11 game win streak (9 of those without Crosby) Which makes you wonder - is Crosby all that crucial to the Penguins? I heard an interesting quote on Sportscentre a couple mornings ago; "The Penguins getting Crosby back, is like Bill Gates winning the lottery!" It's nice but not needed. It feels weird saying the Penguins don't need perhaps the best NHL star since Wayne Gretzky, but thanks to a couple underdogs stepping up to the plate, Crosby is now just another offensive weapon that the Penguins can unleash on their opponents.

Crosby is Back
You honestly can't talk about the Penguins without mentioning Sidney Crosby, Trust me this blog is more about how the Pens don't need him this season. But you can't not mention the Leagues best player.
Crosby is back from a 3 month layoff, he's played 4 games (Rangers, Devils, Flyers, Jets). During those four games Crosby has collected 9 assists, and has helped bring the Penguins within 1 point of the Eastern Conference leading Rangers. Last night against the Jets Crosby had 4 assists alone, he seems to be able to dish the puck, but when's he going to score a goal? Good news for the NHL and hockey fans everywhere, Sid the Kid is back!

Four Players who stepped up
The Penguins have won 44 games this season the majority of those with Crosby, so there obviously the Penguins have had players step up and play a bigger role on the team; Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, James Neal and Matt Cooke are a few of the players that have really changed their game this season.

Evgeni Malkin
You can't say enough about the play of Malkin this season in the absence of Crosby, right now this is Malkin's team. He single handily took it upon himself to put the team on his back, and proved a lot of critics wrong. I didn't think Malkin was capable of leading this Penguins team without Crosby helping, but he's really stepped up and out of the shadows to lead this team. He is hands down the MVP of the Penguins season and leading a candidate for the Hart trophy, personally I think he's a shoe in for the Hart trophy after everything he's done for the Pens. He's also in the hunt and currently leading the race for the Art Ross trophy. In 64 games Malkin has scored 43 goals and added 50 assists to make 93 points on the season, giving him the league lead in points. Malkin has been amazing in the midst of this playoff hunt (even though the Pens are in the playoffs) and arguably in the toughest division in the league, he's been on fire and consistent all year long.
Malkin's dominance started during the beginning of December, in 47 games since he started scoring goals like it was his day job; 34 goals and 86 points, and in no coincidence the Penguins have won 30 of those games. No question that Malkin has been an important part, if not the most important part of this team, and I really hope fans don't just forget what he's done for this team, just because Crosby is back. This Penguins team in under Malkin's control this season, if I had a vote for MVP it would go to Malkin. It's just amazing what he's been able to do, he proved me and other critics wrong and I tip my hat to him!
Last night against the Jets, Malkin scored his 200th career goal and was showered with "MVP" chants during the game.

Kris Letang
Letang is an underrated player in the league and on the Penguins, he's one of my favorite defenceman. I love the way he plays the game, the leadership and how crucial he is to the Penguins yet still flies under the radar to most.  I remember watching Sportscenter and hearing them talk about how great Crosby will be for the Penguins in the playoffs, but one of the analysts piped up and said; "I think it would be a worse case scenario for the Penguins if Letang was unavailable for the playoffs rather than Crosby being unavailable." That speaks volumes to me, Letang being more valuable to the Penguins than Crosby, that's remarkable. It's been a rough season for Letang, who like Crosby has suffered through concussions, Letang returned from his second concussion the same night Crosby returned, but unlike his teammate Letang's return lacked press, media attention and his own camera on game night. In Letang's return, he played 24 minutes, and had a career high +5 in the game not bad considering he hadn't put on a jersey since February! Before his first concussion back in November 2011, Letang was a front runner for the Norris trophy; averaging 25 minutes a night, 32 points and 3 game winning goals in just 41 games. Letang was added to the 2012 all star game as a replacement, despite only playing 26 games. In the 2010-2011 season he was the Penguins 2nd leading scorer behind only Crosby with 50 points.
Kris Letang has quite the resume; already a Stanley Cup winner, 2 time all star, and a 2 time gold medal winner at the world juniors, the 62nd pick in the 2005 draft has made quite the name for himself. He was also named the Penguins rookie of the year in 2007-2008, in 299 career NHL games, Letang has 29 goals and 100 assists for 129 points (not including this season). The future is bright for the 24 year old Penguins defencman, and the Penguins are lucky to have this guy anchoring their blue line.

James Neal
This kid has come out of nowhere, early on in the season when he was turning kids I admit I hadn't heard of so I had to go look him up. After a hat trick in the game last night against the Jets, Neal has 35 goals which puts him 4th in the league! Add on his 37 assists, and he's got 72 points this season, far above his totals with the Dallas Stars and he's still got some games to add on to his totals! The way James Neal has stepped up during the absence of Crosby is scary good, if he can do the majority of his scoring without Sid around, what can he do with him around?
Due to his amazing play this season, which has resulted in career high for Neal, the Penguins resigned him for 6 years at $5 million a year. Neal has showed great leadership on the Pens this season, and is now one of the top go to players this season. With 70 points this season, Neal becomes the first Penguins winger to score 70 points since 2001-2002.
It's quite funny actually, although Neal had a hat trick and an assist last night against the Jets, all anyone wants to talk about is Sidney Crosby's 4 points last night.

Matt Cooke
The guy they call Cookie, was, at one point in his 11 year NHL career one of the most feared NHL players. Not because of goal scoring ability but because of his questionable hits that have left players concussed and even ended careers.  In those 11 NHL seasons between the Canucks, Capitals and Penguins he has racked up 988 penalty points! His worst year being 2010-2011 where he had 129 penalty minutes and really hurt his team with his suspensions. But something has clicked in Cooke's head and he's changed his game around, I won't get into it all as it'll be in a later blog, but Cooke's transformation is incredible, he's even set a career highs with 16 goals and will likely set a career high in points by the end of the season. But what's most remarkable is the fact he has just 30 penalty minutes this season an all time low! By playing cleaner, less dirty hockey he's helping his team by staying out of the box (both penalty and press) and staying on the ice and contributing in a positive way.

The Penguins are definitely happy to have their star player back, but it wasn't like they were desperate to have Crosby back. They had several players stepping up and putting points on the board, they're in the playoff picture and just 1 point back of first, something tells me they would have been fine without Crosby.
With the Penguins having Crosby, Malkin, Letang Staal and several other players in their lineup it's almost an unfair advantage to their opponents. So now that the Penguins have Crosby, Malkin, Neal, Cooke, Staal, Letang does this make the Penguins Stanley Cup favorites?
This blog was to remind people about some of the role players who have stepped up during Sidney's absence, let's not forget the people who have stepped up and carried this Penguins team. Just because Crosby's back doesn't mean we should forget their contribution!


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