Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin will meet up in the ultimate Stanley Cup playoff pairing (I swear I can hear Gary Bettman drooling).  Both of the players have incredibly impressive stats but only one of them will emerge from this series with bragging rights (and we all know that Ovie knows how to brag).

Here’s the schedule (all in Eastern Time):

• Saturday, May 2, 1pm – Penguins at Capitals
• Monday, May 4, 7pm – Penguins at Capitals
• Wednesday, May 6, 7pm – Capitals at Penguins
• Friday, May 8, 7pm – Capitals at Penguins
• Saturday, May 9, 7pm – Penguins at Capitals
• *6 Monday, May 11, TBD – Capitals at Penguins
• *7 Wednesday, May 13, 7pm – Penguins at Capitals

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

With the score at 3-2 for the Devils with just a few minutes left, I was pretty sure this was a done deal.  I started to think about how the team would do in the next round and I even muted it and started listening to my iPod.  I was surprised, however, to look up with just about 90 seconds left in the game to see things heating up.  I quickly unmuted it just in time to see a crazy good place that ended with Jussi Jokinen beating the Devils’ star goaltender, Martin Brodeur.  I couldn’t believe what I had just seen!  The Hurricanes had tied the game with just over a minute left in Game 7!

I took a swig from my water bottle and got composed.  I figured I would call my son down to watch overtime with me in the basement.  I seriously almost wiped out on the treadmill when the Canes scored AGAIN with about half a minute left in the game.  You could see the shocked Devils fans filing out of the arena and I can’t even imagine how the team felt. 

I don’t know what happened but that was one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen in all my time as a hockey fan.  I had wanted the Devils to win but after seeing the determination of the Carolina Hurricanes (particularly Tim Gleason), it’s hard not to deny that they deserved to win. 

The Carolina Hurricanes will face the Boston Bruins for Game 1 of the semi-finals this Friday.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

Last night, the Caps took on the New York Rangers, knowing it was their last chance to keep their playoff hopes alive and they did, overcoming about a million odds.  With just 4:59 left in the third period, Sergei Federov, put one in New York’s net.  Meanwhile, rookie goaltender, Simeon Varlamov, held off the Rangers allowing the team to celebrate a 2-1 victory.

This is one of those series that had me all worked up and I made some mistakes in judgment along the way.  The most important thing I need to take back are all of the inflammatory comments I’ve made about Bruce Boudreau as a coach.  I was furious with him for pulling Jose Theodore from the starting lineup because I really didn’t have a lot of faith in Varlamov.  I’m a big enough person to admit that I was wrong.  He’s been solid between the pipes and I think he played a HUGE role in helping the Capitals head to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in more than 10 years.

With the New York Rangers out of the playoffs, it will give the league some time to figure out what to do with Sean Avery and will allow coach John Tortorella time to go off and lick his wounds.  Who knows if either of them will be with the Rangers when next season starts.

Looking forward, I’m pretty excited about the showdown between Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby since the Capitals will face the Pittsburgh Penguins this Saturday in Game 1 of the semifinals.  Somewhere I swear I hear Gary Bettman drooling over how many viewers this series is going to attract.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

I am so sorry Sharks fans but I can’t help but enjoy a good underdog story.  This is only the third time since 2000 that a team beat a Presidents’ Trophy winner (awarded for the best record in the league) in the first round of the playoffs.  The Ducks are also “the eighth No. 8 seed to win a playoff series since 1994, largely dominating the league’s first all-California post-season series in 40 years.”

The Ducks really kept it together as San Jose got more and more physical.  Teemu Selanne and Francois Beauchemin logged their first playoff goals just 43 seconds apart in the second period.  Meanwhile, the incredible Jonas Hiller made 36 saves in the victory and has really been the hero throughout the playoffs considering the fact that the Ducks have been outshot in every game.

I don’t know what is going to happen with San Jose during the off-season but I do know that this had to be an embarrassing loss for the team and I’m sure they are questioning the abilities of rookie coach Todd McLellan.  I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for updates on this story.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

For the fourth season in a row, the Flames have left the playoffs with a whimper in the quarterfinals and the reasons for this repetitive performance is anyone’s guess.  Tonight, the younger, faster Blackhawks put an end to Calgary’s run for the Cup but I’m not sure this was a game that was decided by offensive play.

In my opinion, this game boiled down to goaltending.  The Blackhawks might have scored four goals but they didn’t have to work very hard.  I knew it was bad but it wasn’t until I looked at the boxscore to write this post that I realized that they only took 15 shots on net and Flames netminder, Miikka Kiprusoff, actually let in three of them (the last goal was an empty-netter). After being so upset when he was pulled by coach, Mike Keenan, in Game 5, I’m shocked that Kipper wasn’t in better form.

His Chicago counterpart, Nikolai Khabibulin, allowed just one of the 44 shots he faced to trickle into the net and, even then, the goal scored by Calgary’s Todd Bertuzzi was pretty much impossible to save.  The Bulin Wall definitely came up big for his team tonight while Kiprusoff seemed out of his depth.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

It’s been an intense series for the two teams but things have really escalated in the last two games.  The Caps fans were basically allowed to harrass the Rangers, the plexiglass behind their bench had to be replaced, they were spit on and someone poured beer on John Tortorella.  The Rangers allege that Washington’s security failed to intervene when they were asked to do something about the fans.

They also allege that obscene comments were made: “According to Rangers trainer Jim Ramsay, one patron was screaming at the team, in graphic language, about whether defencemen Dan Girardi and Marc Staal have a sexual relationship,” New York general manager Glen Sather wrote in a letter to Bettman that the team released Sunday.  “This was within earshot of several children seated nearby.  Several other fans also made repeated homophobic remarks.”

People came to the defense of John Tortorella, who was banned from one game after he threw a water bottle at fans (among other things).  “I know the heart of the guy and I know the thing that triggered him,” interim assistant coach Jim Schoenfeld said. “It wasn’t any sling to him, and there were many. It was what was said about one of his players. It’s easy to say you’ve got to be in control, you’ve got to keep it in check, you’ve got to turn the other way. There are rules… You can say what you want to Torts … call him whatever you want. He’ll tell you what to do with your horse, but he’s OK with that. Don’t get down on the people he cares about. He will fight for them, and that’s what he did.”

The Rangers feel that they were not properly protected during Game 5 (the league has since increased the security at their games) and they feel that Washington should be penalized for allowing it to happen since it eventually led to the suspension of Tortorella.  “We will follow up on the Rangers’ request, as appropriate,” NHL spokesman Frank Brown said. “We had already implemented additional security procedures for Games 6 and 7 and we don’t anticipate any further problems.”

As if that wasn’t enough, the league is now looking into the behavior of Donald Brashear (Washington) who has a hearing today regarding his actions during Game 6.  He not only got into an altercation with Colton Orr during the warm-up but he also delivered a hit on Blair Betts, who suffered a broken orbital bone.

I hate when a playoff series gets ugly.  It just ruins it for both teams.  It’s a privilege to play in the postseason and I hope the Caps wake up and realize that.

images: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

The New York Rangers had an opportunity to eliminate the Washington Capitals but, with Sean Avery back in the lineup and coach John Tortorella suspended for one game, it looked like they were a bit lost.  The Caps took full advantage of the situation, winning the game 5-3.

It’s not that the Rangers didn’t try hard (32 shots on goal) but they just got outplayed.  The Caps really showed that they want to stay in the playoffs and they came out strong, scoring three goals in just the first period.

Similarly, the Carolina Hurricanes were eager to hold off the New Jersey Devils and they did it in a big way.  Yesterday’s 4-0 win was the biggest victory the Hurricanes have had this series and I’m stunned that they not only continued to beat goaltender, Martin Brodeur, but I’m also disappointed that the Devils didn’t try harder (28 shots on net).  It was a game filled with penalties for both teams but the Devils really outdid themselves, spending more than 30 minutes in the box.  I hope their coach has a long talk with them because it was pretty ridiculous.

Tuesday, April 28 is going to be a big night in hockey with these four teams battling to advance to the second round.  I hope they bring the intensity because there will be no more chances.  Leave it all out on the ice, boys!

images: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

I really started to doubt that the game was going to go in their favor since the Sharks blew a two-goal lead early in the third period.  It definitely looked like the momentum had swung in favor of the Ducks.

For the second time in the playoffs, Patrick Marleau scored the game-winning goal after he launched a puck at Ducks goaltender, Jonas Hiller, who accidentally nudged it over the goal line.  It went to review and it counted (it looked to me like Hiller was pushed a little but what do I know?).

It’s too bad because Hiller had been spectacular again, stopping 45 of the 48 shots he faced.  The team let him down by only taking 25 shots on Sharks goalie, Evgeni Nabokov.

The Sharks and Ducks will battle it out next on Monday, April 27 at 10:30pm ET.

Post from: Hockey Beat

It was an important game since the series was tied 2-2 going into it but you wouldn’t have been able to tell it was a playoff game based on how Calgary played.  They were undisciplined and incurred unnecessary penalties throughout the 60 minutes.  I was extraordinarily disappointed because it was actually a discouraging and boring game to watch.  The Flames looked like they had given up within the first five of minutes of play.

Keenan took responsibility for the loss: "The team wasn’t prepared to play at all for a number of reasons. The bottom line when the team doesn’t respond or isn’t prepared, that’s the coach’s responsibility.  We weren’t prepared for the push from them and that’s my job."

He wasn’t the only one blaming himself, however.  Captain Jarome Iginla said: "We just weren’t ready. I wasn’t nearly good enough.  I was terrible tonight. There’s no excuse for that. … We’ll be ready for the next game."

There also seems to have been a disagreement between Calgary goaltender, Miikka Kiprusoff, and coach Mike Keenan.  Kipper was pulled after letting in four goals in 18 shots on net.  "I thought the goal was kicked in. It gave us a time of separation in the game to at least have the goal reviewed," Keenan said. "I told Miikka if they allow the goal he’s finished, if they don’t allow the goal he’s going back in."  Unfortunately, the goal counted and backup, Curtis McElhinney, was called upon to finish the game.  I saw all over Twitter that Kipper was unhappy with the decision. 

• NewYorkRangers tweeted: Kiprusoff pulled! He has gone storming off to the Calgary locker room! #Hawks 4 #Flames ! #NHLPlayoffs (via @goaliemom31) Hawks up 4-1
• NHLBlackhawks tweeted: For a second it looked like the Kipper walked off the bench, but he’s there. He did have some words for Mike Keenan, however. Awwwkwaaarrrd.

Meanwhile, Chicago netminder, Nikolai Khabibulin, was thrilled with the victory after having to make only 19 saves.  "It was one of our best periods of the year," he said. "We were skating, jumping to loose pucks."

Game 6 takes place, in Calgary, on Monday night.  If the Blackhawks win, they will take the series and if the Flames win, they will tie it up.  Either way, it’s going to be intense.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat

Just when it looked like the game was lost, Sergei Gonchar and Sidney Crosby rallied for their team – Crosby scored the game tying goal in the second (as well as an empty-netter in the final minute) while Gonchar put one in the back of the net in the third to secure a 5-3 victory in Game 6.

This was the second season in a row that the Penguins have eliminated the Flyers in the playoffs.  They will have to wait to find out who they will play in the semi-finals but I get the feeling that the Penguins are hungry for the Stanley Cup.  I would love to see them go up against the Boston Bruins in the conference final but there’s still a lot of time before that happens.

image: TSN

Post from: Hockey Beat