NHL 10 Wish List: Fantasy Draft

As the anticipation for NHL 10 mounts, we will put up a weekly post related to the buzz. Perhaps one week we'll take a look at what the 2K series could do to gain some ground against EA, but for the most part we'll list an item on our "Wish List." This could either be an additional feature or a glitch we hope is burned in the flames of polygonal hell. Feel free to share your personal Wish Lists, too.

To start things off, we'd happily like to share the fact that NHL '10 will feature something we've been clamoring for since the series moved to next-gen consoles: a "Fantasy Draft." (H/T to Fear the Fin for RT-ing that.)

For those of you unaware of what a Fantasy Draft is, we'll first say that it is as nerdy as it sounds. It's also kind of cool, if you're dorky enough to imagine it happening in the actual NHL.

Basically, though, the Fantasy Draft allows users to put EVERY NHL player in one big draft. The fun comes in many forms: who do you pick first? Do you go with Ovechkin, Crosby or Malkin? Perhaps you appeal to your inner Lemaire and draft a defenseman. Then again, sometimes a great goalie can really tip the digi-scales.

If the NHL decided to re-draft its league, would one of these guys be your #1 pick?

Either way, these are pretty fun little activities to do with friends. No longer can your buddy complain that his team sucks since, after all, he's the one who picked the players. There's also a "lottery" aspect to it: if I choose player A will player B still be around later?

Anyway, it's pretty fun and could be excessive/a real blast if they are available in online leagues. Could you imagine screaming at people to hurry up and make their 15th-round pick already? Gold!

Since this first addition of the Wish List feature lacks suspense, check out Gross Misconduct for a fun little post where he took screen shots of newly minted free agents playing on their new teams. (It's kind of weird seeing Gionta in Montreal)

Not to "bury the lead" here, but if you were starting a team and the league did a real-life Fantasy Draft, who would you pick? Ah, the potential Crosby bashing that will ensue ...

The Final Countdown

Not much to say about Game 7 of Penguins-Capitals that hasn't been said yet. I'll (unfortunately) be watching the game on a two to three hour delay so obviously there's no sense starting a liveblog tradition tonight. Here's a big collection of links about the game that will start in less than an hour (and stop many hearts).

• Pensblog's spectacular post about Game 7s
• An uplifting message for Pens fans from the Puck Huffers.
• Puck Daddy breaks down Ovechkin vs. Crosby. Who's had the better series through six games?
• I think we can all agree with the thesis of this On Frozen Blog piece: there will be at least a slight sense of relief once this controversial and spell binding series is over. (Although the NHL might consider making 9-game series whenever these two teams face each other)
• Scott Burnside's Game 7 preview for ESPN.
• JP has a couple preview pieces well worth reading.
• Illegal Curve covers plenty of the bases.
  

Zdeno Chara: a seven foot goat on skates? (and other playoff thoughts)

Zdeno Chara isn't a hockey player, he's a big angry tree who can slap a puck through my soul. Please don't take this as a concentrated attack on the big Z.

But let me take you back to a fuzzy age for many of you young ones. You see, there was a time when this team named the Ottawa Senators roamed the earth as near-dominant hockey dinosaurs. While it never really worked out for that team, they were just loaded with talent.

During this period, the Senators chose Wade Redden over Chara and allowed the Big Z to sign a huge contract with the Boston Bruins. It's hard to believe this really happened, especially since Redden's play dropped horrifyingly enough to make him become an absolute whipping boy ... for the New York Rangers.

Most would say Chara was the obvious choice for the Senators, but it's more than a bit off putting that he might once again be a scapegoat for a team's playoff disappointments.

I say "might" because it hasn't been possible for me to watch much of Chara's performances. We all know that plus/minus and offensive scoring do not necessarily define a defenseman, but without knowing his Corsi rating and his totals for goals for/against during the playoffs , those stats still tell you a somewhat disturbing story:

If you don't feel like clicking on that image, Chara's been held scoreless against Carolina with a -5 rating in the last three games (+1 in Boston's dominating game 1 victory). Overall in the playoffs he has 1 goal and 1 assist. He's also been on the ice for some dramatic goals, most noticeably Jussi Jokinen's OT GWG in Game 3.

Surely, the blame cannot fall only on Chara's gigantic shoulders. That being said, don't be surprised if the Norris Trophy-level D gets a big bowl of blame barring a near-miraculous turnaround.

• Maybe the Carolina Hurricanes have found the perfect formula: only make the playoffs when you can make a dramatic run.

• Whether you like the Alex Ovechkin knee-to-knee hit or not, there is NO WAY the NHL is going to have the cajones to suspend him. Even if the Penguins make it to the Conference Finals, truly threatening for the Cup is unthinkable without Sergei Gonchar.

From a "headaches for the league" standpoint, they are probably hoping that the Penguins advance without Gonchar. If not, the league's in a lose-lose situation: if AO does get suspended, the Caps were screwed; if the Penguins get bounced then Yinzers will claim that we live in a godless society where the (talent) rich are above the law.

Let's hope this controversy doesn't mar what has been a true dream series for the NHL.

• Even though Jonas Hiller had a superhuman performance against the Sharks, I keep finding myself expecting J.S. Giguere to play the role of Ghost of Playoff Goalies Past against the Red Wings. Weird, huh?

• Finally, make sure to keep your eye on the sidebars.
  

The Ducks-Red Wings and Penguins-Capitals blogs have been especially busy lately and we also have plenty of goodness going on in the Hurricanes-Bruins and Canucks-Blackhawks blogs. I'll try to keep a better eye on them as the series go deeper, but don't let their great (no, make that superior) work slip under the radar.

Rudy Kelly's sweet, sweet hate

Rudy Kelly breaks down everything (and everyone and every reason) to hate about Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and more in the Capitals-Penguins series. Click on the beefcake photo (or right here) to read it. Here's a couple highlights:

Hate Marc-Andre Fleury... because his name is Marc-Andre Fleury. Don't you have a joust to get to or some peasants to beat, you landed fuck?

Hate Sergei Fedorov... because he has boned Anna Kournikova and now he looks like he has AIDS or tuberculosis.

Hate Jordan Staal... because people are lazy and say, "Crosby, Malkin and Staal" when it should be, "Crosby, Malkin... and then that one weird albino with the pinhead." Also, hate him because Penguins fans refuse to admit they made a mistake drafting him instead of Jonathan Toews or Phil Kessel because he plays defense, which is like saying, "Yeah, I'm glad I went blind because now I have a good sense of touch." Wait, it's not like that at all. Moving on...

Round 2: Who's under pressure?

With the second round set to begin in Vancouver tonight, the stakes are rising for the remaining 8 teams. Still, expectations and future outlooks play a huge role in how a team's playoff run is evaluated. Taking that into account, which teams have the most to lose (and gain)? Are there any teams "playing with house money"? Let's take a look.

1. Boston vs. 6. Carolina

Both teams defied expectations this season. For the Bruins, that came early, as Boston went from being a nice little 8th seed last year to a squad good enough to make people wonder if they could go toe-to-toe with San Jose and Detroit. In Carolina, the Hurricanes went through most of the regular season looking like their typical selves (limping through stretches, remaining thoroughly mediocre ... the ultimate bubble team) and then all of a sudden became arguably the hottest team in the NHL.

Hockey fans will probably remember the Canes stunning two goals in 1:20 to shock the Devils for years to come. At this point, Carolina is the perfect foil for a number one seed: they're playing their best hockey of the year and just seem to have everything falling in place. If they lose, no sweat, really. Right?

One thing that stands out for Boston is that they have some tough salary cap decisions to make. David Krejci and Phil Kessel are RFAs this summer. Marc Savard only has one year left on his contract and will certainly command a bigger cap hit than his current $5 million.

The B's are a nice story, but the startling depth that made them such a juggernaut won't last forever.

Bruins have way, way WAY more to lose than the Hurricanes.

2. Detroit vs. 8. Anaheim

The second of two "behemoth vs. Cinderella" match-ups, although the Ducks have more to lose than the Hurricanes (and the Red Wings are probably yawning at the pressure of being heavy favorites).

Anaheim will have a lot of questions to answer this off-season, particularly when it comes to Scott Niedermayer. Could this be the last year of the Norris brothers?

Still, the Ducks can't sweat it too much when they look at their young forward trifecta: Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan make up quite the nice group of sub-25 threats. With Getzlaf and Perry wrapped up for a long time at a low cap hit, Anaheim isn't crazy to wonder if the sky is the limit.

And if they get bounced, it will at least make Jonas Hiller easier to re-sign.

It's difficult, however, to muster much fervor for the Red Wings. Yes, it would be a letdown if Detroit blows this series but they won the Cup last year. They have a mountain of talent wrapped up for below market value prices. If they screw up this year, they'll be a top-3 seed for the next decade anyway.

Ugh.

Detroit has more to lose than Anaheim, but they both have bright futures.

2. Washington vs. 4. Pittsburgh

No doubt about it, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin have a lot to lose in this series. They are the two faces of the league and will suffer from harsh Photoshops, mouth-breathers in comments and a predictable "I TOLD YOU SO!!!!!11" mentality. Evgeni Malkin can obviously swoop in and show that perhaps he should be the Hart trophy winner instead of Ovechkin.

Hell, even Alex Semin has plenty to prove after his "Kane over Crosby" comments from earlier this year.

If you had to choose, the slight edge in pressure might go to the Capitals. They are the higher seed with home ice advantage. After barely beating the Rangers in a 7-game series - and getting, honestly, severely out-played at times in that decisive game - the Capitals need to show that they're not just a weak willed collection of gorgeously talented Europeans.

The Penguins have "been there" before, putting up a cute little fight against the Red Wings in the SCF last year. In some ways, that means that they have quite a bit to lose, as they don't have the excuse of inexperience.

The Capitals and Penguins face extreme pressure to deliver on all the media hype, with a slight bit more on the Caps' shoulders. Either way, someone's getting flamed in a message board before this one is done.

3. Vancouver vs. 4. Chicago

The Canucks are an odd story this season. On one hand, you have disappointments like Mats Sundin and the hot button issue of re-signing the Sedin twins. There's also the oddness of Roberto Luongo being the first goalie to be a team captain since the railroad industry was thriving.

That being said, there's the "aha!" season of Alex Burrows and the assorted flavors of hard scrabble two-way forwards this team provides. Will Kyle Wellwood make you pay for that fat joke? Shall Ryan Kesler show us why he's a Selke finalist? Lots of sneaky good guys on this team.

One story I promise to beat to the ground is that the Chicago Blackhawks shouldn't be so loosey goosey this year. Everyone seems to think that the BLACKHAWKS ARE A TEAM OF THE FUTURE. While that would be great, it might not be so easy.

Martin Havlat and Nik Bulin are all but gone, barring some crazy hypnosis-based contract signings. As I wrote before, the team might have a devil of a time re-signing its talented trio of Kane-Toews-Keith between now and the 2010 summer.

Yes, the Hawks are still in their cliched "losing to learn how to win" season, but they might want to think about skipping that process altogether. Things might get a lot tougher for this team in the future.

The Canucks are under more pressure, but the Blackhawks are under more pressure than you'd think.

How to steal a series or Gary Bettman is ruining his trousers right now

Martin Brodeur might be thinking that life is a fraud after tonight.

It seemed like Brian Rolston's crazy slap shot goal was going to allow the Eastern Conference to fall in 1-2-3-4 order until Tim Gleason's sprawling play kept the puck in the zone for the Hurricanes, which allowed Joni Pitkanen to set up Jussi Jokinen (of all fucking people) for a stunning game tying goal.

Then, out of nowhere, Eric Staal scored the series clinching goal with a little more than 30 seconds left in the game. Just a stunning series of events that ended an incredible (and odd) season for the New Jersey Devils.

With that, Gary Bettman's devil horns are probably ejaculating at the thought of a Ovechkin-Crosby clash (yes, we know Malkin exists but we know how this series will be marketed). The Capitals-Penguins series surely will bring out a trolling onslaught like we've never seen before.

Get your helmets, kids. Shit's about to get real.

Hockey Orphan: the Puck Huffers on the Pittsburgh Penguins

Click on the logo above to read all the Hockey Orphan entries

(While I admit that the Penguins are my team, the fact that they missed the playoffs for six years softened my allegiance ever so slightly. Typically, then, I like to venture to the Pens-logopshere for all things Malkin and Crosby. One of the absolute best Penguins blogs goes by the name Puck Huffers. They absolutely rocked the All-Decade team like no one else, a post that makes you wonder if they travel the country destroying hotel rooms. ANYWAY, make sure to make Puck Huffers one of your go-to sources for info on the igloo.)

We hate to show up late with our feature submission and walk in here like we own the place, but really you all leave us no choice. So you’re a hockey fan but don’t know what jersey to invest your hard earned money in, what team to cheer for, scream at, and on the occasion you feel like getting feisty in a bar fight, bleed for? It’s not that hard to realize, good citizen, that you should be a Penguins fan.

Do let us explain.

THE PROOF THAT THE PENGUINS ARE UNDOUBTEDLY THE BEST HOCKEY TEAM IN THE NHL. EVER.

1)We love the franchise and it loves us back. The Penguins franchise knows its fans. It knows we want feel good commercials and slogans.
It knows we want tacky fashion and decorations beamed in directly from the early 90’s. It knows that when we can’t see a playoff game in the arena, we’ll probably still want to watch it at the huge, free, outdoor viewing location. Every time the organization does something for us we have to take a minute to say “God damn, we really need to check for recording devices around the apartment, because that was MY idea when I was drunk on Iron City last Tuesday.” But really, with God – Oh, hahaha, you common folk who don’t walk in his gracious light might know him as “Mario”- head manning the operation, what can you expect?

2)We’re the best dressed team in the league. Go ahead and roll your eyes at us women basing decisions off of fashion. Sorry boys, at the end of the day we’re still the ones you have to talk out of our skirts. You might want to pay attention. And on top of that, we don’t even believe that you are a man if you don’t marvel at the glory that is Eric Godard’s bright red pimp suit.
Our boys also offer up an assortment of unreal shirts and hats that are so unbelievably hideous they must be extremely expensive and fashionable.

Either that or dumpster diving is a Pittsburgh Penguins pastime, and really, are you going to argue with the coolness of that either?

3)Our players are as entertaining as they get. Sure, we could take this time to talk about Malks and Sid being so exciting to watch play, et cetera, et cetera, but we won’t because they speak for themselves. Well…Malkin tries, at least. Regardless, we’re not talking about that shit. We’d rather focus on the shoe checking, baby-clothes-hiding, Fu Manchu growing, donut-spinning, retarded group of fuckups that are the boys on the Penguins. They’re the kids you wanted to be friends with in high school because you never knew exactly what they were doing this weekend, but you were pretty sure it was going to end up a major topic of discussion at the 5, 10, and 20 year reunions. Every ten seconds you have to stop and ask “Oh my god, what the hell is he doing? Who the jesus let him out of the house today?”

On the flip side, they’re one of the most charitable hockey teams in the league. Every other day you get a slew of pictures of some charity event one of the guys threw together in his spare time. We’re fans of a lot of other teams, and we’ve come to realize how much the Pens really do. It’s kind of amazing.

4)Sid’s more unreal than you even thought. An added bonus of having Sidney Crosby on your team? If you somehow mathematically calculate the curve of his ass, you find the meaning of life.

Too bad no one’s ever survived the equation.


REASONS YOU MIGHT WANT TO STEAR CLEAR OF ALL OF THIS AWESOMENESS
We won’t say that the Penguins are without fault. We’re happy to list our downsides.

1)Penguins hockey is not for the faint of heart, nor those who easily give up. If you’re too much of a bitch to handle some excitement, we’re not the team for you. Our battle cry has forever been “third period team!” because we like to failboat a lot in the first two periods and then remember “Oh, hey! We’re playing hockey!” and take it back in the third. Our seasons are equally as distressing anymore – especially this season past – it always seems like we’re on the cusp of both failure and success. As a Penguins fan, chances are you might have to sit through quite a few years of us toiling in mediocrity. But there’s always a payoff at the end. Just…don’t get too comfortable in your chair. Ever.

2)You might not always appreciate the sass of the Lord.
Our Lord and Savior has been known to play his pimp card. Namely threatening to sell the team to faraway lands if the world didn’t meet his demands. After the world met his demands he just laughed, in a pimp-like fashion, and informed everyone he was never actually planning on doing it anyway. While we appreciate this trickery and deceit in the name of shady business, we can understand why others couldn’t handle this amount of pimp in their day to day lives.

3)You have to deal with a lot of bullshit. While your favorite players may be Robert Scuderi; American Hero, President T. Kennedy, Maxime the French Canadian Dream, or any other of the Penguins assorted cast of characters, every homer in the street is going to hear “Penguins” and immediately assume you are Crosby’s biggest fan and supporter. They will then proceed to air their every grievance to you, and follow up with something like “But that Malkin, he’s something else.” If you have a low quota of faces you can punch in a day, the Penguins are not the team for you.

4)The team and the city are a package deal, and that’s a lot of work.

You aren’t a Penguins fan without loving Pittsburgh. Maybe you live there, maybe you plan to visit one day as a sort of holy quest, either way you’ve got to be emotionally involved with Steel City. It’s a different sort of place, something both of us have realized after leaving. It’s a little odd, and maybe not what normal people are used to, but once you fall for it you’re never turning back, and you’re never going to find another place that feel quite like it. The people, the workers, the surrounding landscapes, the streets, the bridges, just the feel of Pittsburgh, it’s all distinct. The Penguins are a gateway drug to Pittsburgh and vice-versa. If you can’t handle one, you won’t last long with the other.


So, come, take our hands and we shall lead you to salvation – that is if you think you can handle it. We didn’t even mention how being a Penguins fan throws in the advantage of getting to know us. We just thought that was a given.

Say it with us now.
Go Pens.

Riiiiiiight

Sorry, Bruce Boudreau, but Washington is not the "New Hockeytown." In three and a half months of an internship that took me all around the Capitol building, there was not one single mention of Alex Ovechkin. Even when I said "I'm a big hockey fan." Not one. Of course, that was in the fall of '07, before everyone could hop on the bandwagon.

Well, since Hockeytown is taken, let's see what we have in storage. *Dusts off Carolina Hurricanes 2005-06 Flavor of the Month T-shirts*

(Maybe we can re-consider their application when the Capitals fail to sell-out playoff games. Hey-oh!)

Afternoon Cycle: Sometimes we're wrong (except about NBC)

A few concessions are in order this afternoon.

• First, it looks like the Tim Thomas contract is not nearly as Bruins-friendly as it originally seemed.

As mentioned at Stanley Cup of Chowder, the elder Swede's dude from Michigan's (thanks: SCoC) deal is considered a 35+ contract so if he gets injured, retires or turns into the second coming of Roman Cechmanek then too bad so sad for Boston. Thomas has been great this season - without getting deep into research, he might be our gut reaction Vezina winner - but Mirtle astutely points out that the NHL isn't exactly heavily populated by older goalies these days.

Ultimately, the contract should be judged by how it affects the future of the B's. Will they have the cap space to retain Phil Kessel, David Krejci and - eventually - guys like Milan Lucic and Marc Savard? Time will tell, but Krejci/Kessel might be sacrificed to the offer sheet gods before this is all over.

• Our other concession: Alex Ovechkin probably deserves the MVP. For quite some time, we've been promoting Evgeni Malkin as the Hart winner but Ovechkin's goal scoring ability is more of a "game breaker" than Geno's all-world passing. Not to say it isn't a very close match and we could always pull a 360 if Malkin scores 8 points this week.

But, really, the question is: will either be worthy of the "Staal" trophy?

• One thing we have a hard time imagining: CLS ever pumping up NBC when it comes to NHL coverage.

It's bad enough that NBC decided to show Minnesota vs. Detroit, a game that managed to be bland on two levels: the "familiarity" of seeing the Red Wings again combined with the tedium of watching the Wild. Could we call NBC "talented" at sucking? At least Bettman and NBC had to eat some crow, though, because Puck the Media reports that the game was NBC's lowest rated match of the season. Shocking, we know.

• Oh, but it gets MUCH worse.

You may or may not have heard that, in a move that's just another slap in the face in a series of injustices, the peacock will be televising Games 1, 2 (good) and then 5, 6 and 7 if necessary of the Stanley Cup Finals. That's right, the NHL might not even have the raising of the chalice on an American national network. Unbelievable.

After NBC's stunning decision to move a heated Eastern Conference Finals overtime game to Versus for a horse racing preview show, they pretty much were dead to us. But give NBC credit for finding new and exciting ways to pour salt in the wounds of hockey fans.

Illegal Curve makes a good point about another flaw in NBC's programming decisions: the lack of anything resembling consistency. A casual hockey fan truly can never know if they're going to get to watch a game each Sunday as there is no clear reasoning to indicate when the NHL will be on NBC and when it will "take the week off."

With the continued struggles of Versus to find a uniform home on basic cable, finding the NHL is starting to become like a sad sports version of Where's Waldo. Despite what crazy Boston announcers tell you, the NHL needs one nightly ESPN game so people can at least find one game per week.

Ugh.

• Greatest Hockey Legends featured a really interesting look at Don Cherry's brother, Dick.

Interesting to see that Don was once considered "Dick's brother" in their home town. You have to wonder if Don Cherry never reacts to being called a dick simply because he assumes the person's trying to scream at his bro instead.

GHL has some other great posts too, with a look at the evolution of the Cup and also a discussion regarding a female hockey player who looks A LOT like Owen Hart.

• Turned in the last "Bubble Update" at Battle of California today. Here was the prediction for the final three remaining qualifying West teams, with Nashville being the odd team out:

6. Columbus
7. Anaheim
8. St. Louis

• Finally, unless technology says otherwise, you could hear my awful voice on the Hockee Night Puck Cast tonight.

In case you're wondering what my voice sounds like (most common response: "Do you have a cold?") you might get the chance.

Look for a link, unless it ends up being a disaster. If that happens I'll claim it was a different James O'Brien with the same lust for puns and disregard for personal hygiene and tact. Seriously, there's about a million James O'Briens/Bryans/Brians out there.

Let me say this again: Enjoy it

In Bill Simmons' recent mailbag, he discussed the NBA's great 1-2-3 MVP race between Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and Dwayne Wade. I couldn't help but think of hockey's 1-2-3 MVP race of Ovechkin, Crosby and Malkin. Say what you want about those guys, they deliver. Don't forget that you're witnessing one of the best generations of NHL talent in a long, long time. Sometimes the Internet babble can make you forget what's really important. We're able to watch something great.

The Heatley-Thornton-Lecavalier generation is/was fun and all, but make no mistake about it. We're living in the next golden era.

Bits and Pieces: Malkin's 'struggles,' Ovechkin's celebrations and falling giants

• Boy, it sure is amazing how much a bad Stanley Cup Finals performance can hurt you.

Just ask Evgeni Malkin, the man who likely would have been "The Staal Trophy" winner last season with a 100-plus point performance in the regular season and a fantastic playoff run. Until the SCF, of course.

While Malkin clearly struggled against the Red Wings, his performance was slightly inflated by playing against some fairly weak Eastern opponents in previous rounds. The Penguins cruised through the playoffs (only two losses in three rounds!) so easily that they must have been shell shocked once they played against a team that was actually more talented.

Still, the idea that Malkin will lose Hart trophy votes because of last season is pretty stunning. It's not like he has a small lead on Alex Ovechkin. Nine points is a tremendous lead.

But that's a debate for another day. If people penalize Malkin for SCF struggles, maybe they should consider the fact that Ovechkin never even sniffed the second round of the playoffs yet.

• Speaking of the anointed saint of hockey media, Ovechkin's Jimi Hendrix goal celebration is getting some heat.

Frankly, for us it's not really that he taunted his opponents. As fans of Ric Flair, we are huge fans of tormenting opponents as you defeat them (especially if you hook the tights).

No, instead, our biggest beef is that the celebration was kind of lame. If you're going to do the Hendrix burning guitar gimmick, you really have to sell it. Kneel on your knees. Take off your gloves so you can really pantomime that "smoke coming from the stick" effect. Hell, get one of your teammates to find you an afro wig.

After all, Ovie never had any issues with using props, right?

While everyone can agree Ovechkin is awesome, it's only fair that he gets a little cheap heat since people are always frothing at the mouth to tear apart Crosby.

• So, the Boston Bruins and San Jose Sharks might not be the dominant forces - or at least not as dominant - as they were believed to be.

After holding a huge lead in the Eastern Conference, the Bruins are taking on water and may in fact relinquish the No. 1 spot to the New Jersey Devils or Washington Capitals. Injuries are wreaking havoc on the Sharks roster. When you combine that issue with an increase in road games, the mighty seem only strong.

The Bruins have the least to worry about, on some level. Let's face it: this team was not necessarily primed to dominate just yet. There may be a lot of pressure on the Bruins to succeed, but this season should still be a success with or without a Cup. Of course, if they lose in the first round of playoffs, then that tune would change quite a bit.

The Sharks, on the other hand, must be wondering if their window is about to close. Although there are some great young talents in their nucleus, trading for Dan Boyle and signing Rob Blake made San Jose take a "win now" position. Sharks fans must be hyperventilating right now.

• Finally, a lot is being made about the Montreal Canadiens having a plethora of unrestricted free agents, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. The Habs can re-construct their roster next season, focusing on good value (and maybe a headliner or two) instead of their current "big talent, high speed, no heart" model.

With the cap ceiling becoming a serious question in the short term future, the Canadiens have a chance to build a winner while remaining cap flexible. This will be an envious position sooner or later.

What now, Crosby haters? Does success count if you can't see it? (Morning Cycle)

This was just too weird not to post (from a blog called On Deadline)

• After reading that Sidney Crosby helped the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Washington Capitals yesterday and checking the Penguins' status in the Eastern Conference bubble, the next thought that came into my head was:

Well, how is the "Crosby is the Anti-Christ" movement going to spin this one?

Sure, it wasn't all Crosby. Both Crosby and ohmygawdtotallyammmmilliontimesbetter Alex Ovechkin scored goals for their teams. From what I saw on NHL on the Fly, the Capitals had more sustained pressure and may have been the more deserving team.

But right after Ovechkin failed to score on the gimmick fest, Crosby had the shootout game winner. It would be pretty difficult to argue that Ovechkin grossly out-played Crosby, something that a lot of pathetic people are clamoring to do.

So here's some advice: calm the hell down about this Crosby stuff. Maybe get some sunlight. Eat a delicious pretzel. Stop being a dick.

• And here's some advice to NBC: just stop covering the NHL.

Seriously.

Can't help but picture Jack Donaghy picking the NHL games for NBC

How many times can the network make the wrong programming choices? Guess what hockey moment was given the ESPN Sportscenter treatment? Let me tell you: it wasn't a game where Manny Fernandez crapped himself three times.

No, it was actually the first game between the Caps and Pens after the Ovechkin-Crosby rivalry had the hockey world buzzing.

But, hey, let's be fair: Boston vs. New York featured bigger markets. It must be that NBC assumes the only people who would watch hockey on a Sunday afternoon are people who are just hungover and don't even know their TV set is even on. Let's face it, there are probably more people with hangovers in Boston and New York. So maybe we are the blind ones.

My guess at NBC's target demographic: blackout drunks

Illegal Curve had a great take on the blunder:

The NBA markets its stars perfectly. They put them on the national platform; and in the process they market the game itself. It is time the NHL took these steps. They need to broadcast good exciting hockey, regardless of where that team is based. That is how your market the game. We know the Rangers and Bruins will always have their hardcore fans, but a novice turning on hockey for the first time, won’t exactly take to the game if it is slow and without much action.

On the other hand, if a novice turns on a Penguins/Capitals game or Sharks/Blackhawks game then they are probably more likely to comeback and take to the game.

• Let's all pour out a 40 for our homie "Scary" Gary Roberts, who announced his semi-involuntary retirement from the good old hockey game.
  

He's not a HoF player, unless you mean the Manly Hall of Fame (for which he would probably have the mandatory 20-year waiting period waived).

• More and more, there are those "The NHL is BACK!" articles streaming from the MSM idiot tanks. It is something that regularly generates an eye-roll.
  

But it's impossible to deny that this is the highest point the sport has seen since the lockout.

My hockey newbie pal Abel discussed some of the things that helped turn him on to the sport: the influx of young stars like Malkin-Crosby-Ovechkin, the nice mix of arcadey action and realism provided by EA's NHL games and a general breakthrough feeling for the league. (Surely the Winter Classic tradition made some waves, too.)

Still, the recent successes are exactly why we need to remain critical of those NBC-type blunders.

When you have all those marketing dollars going into two players, then you choose that game. It's really pretty f'in simple.

• Finally, Wendi Nix is very attractive.

That doesn't have anything to do with hockey, really, but it needs to be said. Someday I hope to buy her a beer so that she looks around, sees me and then has that "Oh ..." look of disappointment on her face. Life is good.

Crosby vs. Ovechkin: Everyone needs a good villain

After Sunday's Washington - Pittsburgh game got a little ugly, it seemed there was a line drawn in the sand.

On one side, there are people who think Alex Ovechkin is light years ahead of Sidney Crosby. People who cannot stand Crosby's whining or bland, vanilla personality.

On the other side: Penguins fans.

For a long time, it seemed like Crosby just needed to open up. Over the years, there've been rumors of Crosby being gay (whether those rumors are faint, in my head or Tom Cruise-level widespread is irrelevant) and that didn't seem crazy to me. The guy still lives in Mario Lemieux's basement (doesn't he?) and to my knowledge has only been photographed with women while promoting his Reebok clothing line. No saucy Russian blondes wrapping themselves around Sid the Kid. At least not in public.

That's the strangest thing. For a league that barely generates high-end marketing, Crosby is the closest thing to "overexposed" the NHL can muster. Yet, does anyone really even know the guy? He could be gay. He could be a huge fan of "comedian" Sinbad. Hell, he might collect Pogs and Magic cards. None of this seems unreasonable because I know nothing of "the next, next one."

But maybe that's for the best because every league needs an "Elvis vs. the Beatles" type debate. And like NBA officiating, NFL replays and the BCS, controversies get people arguing and generate free publicity. If hockey fans found out that Crosby actually is a pretty solid guy, it would take all the fun and the fervor out of it for many Sid-haters.

The NBA's breakthrough era came with the Bird vs. Magic rivalry, two players who seemed both sublimely skilled and diametrically opposed. Magic played for the run-and-gun Lakers, coached by then-Hollywood-ized Pat Reilly; Bird was the leader of a Celtics team soaked in tradition, the last basketball team to win championships with two goofy looking white dudes as their best players.

You could appreciate both teams, but ultimately it came down to a choice. And that's a lot more fun than being in the middle.

When you talk about "best player" it's a Malkin vs. Ovechkin vs. Crosby battle, but the fight that sells tickets is Crosby vs. Ovie. Two players who couldn't be more different. Ovechkin takes nine shots a game, throws his body all over the ice and is wilder than a tornado. Passing is an afterthought to him. Crosby threads some of the prettiest passes you'll ever see, plays an all-effort game on both ends of the ice and is as bland as unflavored yogurt. He over-passes almost to a fault.

On some level, we need to sit back and enjoy this. Keep in mind: this is far from settled; Crosby can barely buy a six-pack right now.

I'll leave you with this thought originally posted on Battle of California:

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs. "The Hitman" Bret Hart: Not a bad parallel to the Alex Ovechkin vs. Sidney Crosby rivalry when you think about it. Austin/Ovechkin appeal to the simple fan with brashness and aggressiveness; Hart/Crosby are vaguely whiny, undeniably talented Canadians. Crosby might even have a disturbing obsession with baby oil and strange sunglasses for all we know."

Crosby hate or How I learned to stop worrying and love the stats (Morning cycle)

• Watching the Washington Capitals crush the Pittsburgh Penguins was no surprise to well-informed observers and no one expects Washington fans to treat Sidney Crosby with anything less than disdain. Crosby urinal cakes and "Crosby is a douche" T-shirts? Par for the course.

But c'mon guys, the Crosby hate is starting to be excessive. Look, we all understand that Sid the Kid gets media coverage that is not quite proportionate to his standing in the league. That doesn't mean he's not one of the best forwards, just that he's not the only fish in the sea. Here's the analogy that makes the most sense to me:

Consider NHL marketing a pizza. There's eight slices and four dudes who want that stuffed crust. Let's say we have Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Jarome Iginla/whichever fourth forward strikes your fancy at the dinner table. It's not unreasonable to give each guy two slices, but really, Crosby gets about 5 slices and the rest are lucky to even get one.

It would be like Lebron James receving all the attention unless Kobe Bryant found a way to score 30 points blindfolded. I get that.

Still, let's not forget how lucky we are as NHL fans. The under-30 talent in this league is almost obscene. Crosby, Malkin and Ovechkin are joined by Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Ryan Getzlaf, Ilya Kovalchuk, Ales Hemsky, Anze Kopitar and the list goes on and on.

It's fine to dislike Crosby, but there may come a time when you regret frowning every time he touches the puck.

• For the longest time, it seemed, stats filled my head with a rage only matched by Rush Limbaugh's anger after a Donovan McNabb touchdown pass.

Perhaps, though, my deep hatred was for the statistics highlighted by ESPN and other networks when they cover sports rather than stats themselves. How many times per year do you roll your eyes at an obscure contextual statistic ... one that really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of anything?

After spending the last year getting more deeply involved in the hockey blogosphere than expected, my viewpoint of Moneyball/Bill James inspired statistics changed profoundly. It is painfully obvious that judging a player by studying superficial stats like plus/minus simply cannot cut it any longer.

Last week featured some fantastic examples of the best in stat-crunching and the last month shows my rapidly increased interest in "looker deeper." You can find some great examples of good stat use in a footnote at the bottom of this post.* (And for not as great examples, there are a few I wrote in that footnote too.)

• Here's an open challenge: find a way to convince me that the Minnesota Wild can actually make the playoffs. Before you scream "they're the eight (blanking) seed!" take a look at their positively homicidal schedule.

After they host the Kings tomorrow, they must go through this road trip: Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, San Jose, LA Kings and Anaheim. That's a six game run against borderline to ironclad playoff teams. And to be honest, their schedule isn't much easier from there.

• And, finally, from the Be Careful What You Wish For department: in this high tech era in which people can take a photo of you with a phone, is it finally time to admit that being a public figure might just suck? At least a little bit?

Obviously, the Montreal Canadiens might not be the wisest decision makers when it comes to public intoxication, but this stuff keeps happening in sports and beyond. Sure, it would be great to sleep with gorgeous women, play a child's sport for a living and rake in millions of dollars. No doubt about it, if I was a pro hockey player no one would be allowed to bring electronics into my home or parties and everything - banana peels, veal cutlets, everything - that goes into my trash would be shredded. Perhaps there are advantages to anonymity.

(Seriously, whoever snapped that photo of Michael Phelps might get the Wayne Gretzky/Mario Lemieux "skip the grace period" treatment. Just rush that douche into the Piece of Shit Hall of Fame.)

* - It's non-hockey, but Moneyball author Michael Lewis took a fascinating look into the way the Houston Rockets measure Shane Battier's under-the-radar contributions.

Matt from Battle of Alberta's breakdown of Alex Kovalev's struggles will leave you snickering at the surface-level "body language" type commentaries of talking heads.

Our pal Earl Sleek found some stark examples of how the Ducks currently handle tie game situations versus better time's for the Quack attack.

Your fearful author also published some stories that crunch stats in the last month. Most recently, there was my team-by-team breakdown of goaltending tandems. Also, while moonlighting at Battle of California I took a look at the Western Conference: (bubble bursting part I, part II and part III).

Two extraordinary articles that are extraordinarily different

Laughing and crying:

The Pensblog knocks it out of the park with a heel turn for Sidney Crosby. TPB usually kicks ass (they do, after all, share the same initials as the penultimate Canadian mockumentary "Trailer Park Boys") but this post is just unmatched. Laughingmyassoffblog.

On the other end of the spectrum, check out this well-written ode to the oft-injured Buffalo Sabres center Tim Connolly. Along with the unlikely comeback of Steve Sullivan, it's hard to argue with putting puck partisanship aside and rooting for a guy who's faced such tough luck.

Just had to pass along those two links since they dwarfed even some interesting stuff in the previous News Cycle.

Stop the presses: Versus chooses best game of the night

After watching a fantastic Washington - Boston game on Versus, it's hard to argue against taking the plunge and ordering NHL Center Ice. Chances are, it will be a part of the old rotation by this weekend. (At least if that $50 discount still applies)

Juggled the game along with a less interesting Atlanta - Dallas contest, so my viewing was a bit limited. But from what was witnessed, these two teams legitimately look like the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Boston, in particular, looks about as impressive as its record. It just seems like the Bruins have been put together with competence from top to bottom.

Marc Savard might still be the most underrated player in the NHL. Everyone "in the know" loves budding power forward Milan Lucic. The Bruins have been able to cope with injuries, so who knows what kind of fireworks the team is capable of with a healthy Patrice Bergeron (it was great to see him back tonight) and Phil Kessel. Their defense is well coached thanks to Claude Julien and Norris-level D Zdeno Chara.

But Tim Thomas may typify the Bruins experience more than anyone else. No one really wants to believe it, but Thomas deserves serious Vezina consideration. He made some fantastic saves in that game tonight, particularly in the OT period. Thanks to a great 1B in Manny Fernandez (who may never escape 1A-1B rotations after Boston and Minnesota), they can ride the hot hand in the playoffs.

Just a well balanced team. They don't miss the eternally fragile Marco Sturm that much because they have great guys like Michael Ryder, Blake Wheeler and Chuck Kobasew in addition to their near-elites.

It will be VERY interesting to see who the Bruins can hold onto, since David Krejci, Kessel and their two goalies are going into various states of free agency.

In my predictions column, I misfired badly. The sexiest team in the NHL is probably the Washington Capitals, not the Edmonton Oilers. Last year, they were up-and-coming but now the team is more than just its irresistible force in Alex Ovechkin. Washington features a nice collection of entertaining players: Mike Green is perhaps the best offensive defenseman on a semi-under the radar level. Alex Semin is dynamic when healthy. Even though he's been on the trading block and hasn't worked out, Michael Nylander is a nice passer and Nicklas Backstrom is a fabulous (if a bit too pass-happy) playmaker. With a cavalcade of other Russians including Sergei Fedorov, the Caps are a team the NHL should root for them to go on a long playoff run.

The biggest question is in net with Jose Theodore. Theo wasn't too bad tonight, but it's a shame that the Caps lack an elite goaltending prospect going forward. Imagine how scary the Caps would be if Theodore can give them consistent to great goaltending.

In the next week or so, I'll look at some possible intriguing first round matchups. Because you can feel a subtle gravity toward the postseason now that games are heating up and the All-Star break is over.

All-Decade Team: Wings

Jaromir Jagr

(737 points - 301 goals and 436 assists in REG; 62 points - 22 goals, 40 assists in playoffs)Awards: Two Art Ross trophies, two Lester B. Pearson trophies, four time All-Star, three time First-Team All-Star

If you read my treatise on Jagr you already know where I stand. Just to recap: he was a deadly goal scorer with sublime passing skills. Jagr had the strength to shed checkers and the speed to leave the best defensemen in the dust. Simply a Frankenstein monster of offense.

Daniel Alfredsson

(677 points - 265 goals and 412 assists in REG; 61 points - 30 goals, 31 assists in playoffs)

Awards: two-time All-Star

There seems to be two camps regarding "Alf." On one side, there are the Alfredsson enthusiasts who point to his multi-dimensional and unselfish style of play. Yet on the other side of the fence, there are the people against him who criticize his playoff performances (not to mention the way he acted toward Scott Niedermayer in the SCF).

Whatever way you lean, it's hard to deny Alfredsson's impressive body of work. He might not sport the emotional leadership of Iginla or the offensive flashiness of Jagr, but Alfie is one of the best of his era.

Dany Heatley

(512 points - 240 goals and 272 assists in REG; 35 points - 10 goals, 25 assists in playoffs)

Awards: Calder trophy, First-team All-Star once, two time All-Star

Heatley went from tragedy in Atlanta to an impressive run to the Stanley Cup Finals in a short period of time. Over the last few seasons, he's established himself as one of the game's most devastating snipers alongside Alexander Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk.

Jarome Iginla

(680 points - 330 goals and 350 assists in REG; 43 points - 24 goals, 19 assists in playoffs)

Awards: Four time All-Star, First team All-Star, two Rocket Richard trophies (one in a three-way tie with Rick Nash and Ilya Kovalchuk, one won outright) Lester B. Pearson trophy

There were a few years in which I advanced this argument: if J.S. Giguere gets a Conn Smythe in a losing effort, then why not Jarome Iginla a year later? Yes, Brad Richards had an amazing playoff run. But Richards was one of three stars in Tampa would could come up with big plays - Iginla carried the Flames offense by himself. All the way to game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Still, that Smythe trophy voting was acceptable ... but the way he was robbed of a Hart trophy was atrocious. Despite the fact that Iginla lead the league in scoring with 96 points on an awful Flames team, one voter left him off the ballot altogether. This move allowed one year wonder in Jose Theodore to win the MVP and raised legitimate questions of racism.

Beyond all that, Iginla's had a borderline HOF decade. Only Jaromir Jagr beats him in points among wingers. Plus, "Jarmoe" brought more to the table than a wicked wrister. He's been the ultimate leader: combining clutch scoring, toughness and a willingness to drop the gloves if need be.

Naturally, dropping the gloves forced him to miss some games and might hurt his standing with some voters.

Martin St. Louis

(547 points - 224 goals and 323 assists in REG; 48 points - 23 goals, 25 assists in playoffs)

Awards: four-time All-Star, first team All-Star once, one Art Ross, Pearson and Hart trophy

It doesn't get much more Disney than the story of Martin St. Louis. He went from being an unwanted, undrafted free agent to becoming the league's MVP and a Stanley Cup champion. If ESPN's bitter hatred had not been at an all-time high at that point, his would have been one of the sport stories of the year.

Marian Hossa

(662 points - 306 goals and 356 assists in REG; 59 points - 25 goals, 34 assists in playoffs)

Awards: four-time All-Star

Though they were unable to keep him in Atlanta, getting Hossa for Heatley might qualify as the only time "Thrashers GM Don Waddell" and "impressive job" could be mentioned in the same sentence without words like "completely un-" because Hossa might be Heater's equal. His defensive skills make up for a slight loss in pizazz.

Nearly half of Hossa's playoff output came last year during the Penguins run to the SCF. That performance showed what Hossa is capable of with a top-end center.

Markus Naslund

(640 points - 286 goals and 354 assists in REG; 30 points - 12 goals, 18 assists in playoffs)

Awards: four All-Star games, Pearson award, three time First-Team All-Star

Recent years haven't been too kind to the Swedish sniper, but Naslund was one of the true elite forwards in the NHL during his peak years in the early part of the decade.

Brendan Shanahan

(539 points - 256 goals and 283 assists in REG; 50 points - 22 goals, 28 assists in playoffs)

Awards: three All-Star games, one time First-Team All-Star

Most of Shanahan's best years came before the decade started, but he still put up some very nice power forward numbers. Being on three Stanley Cup winners with Detroit cannot hurt either (although two of those Cups came before the time period in question)

Not enough yet: Alex Ovechkin (if the lockout didn't happen he might be close enough), Ilya Kovalchuk and Rick Nash