Some news and thoughts as we enter the new year. (Insert pronounciation help here)
Maple Leafs picking up ground
Okay, so maybe the Leafs can make a good run at a playoff spot after all and maybe even a spot that’s higher than the 8th seed in the East as now the Habs are stuck in 8th place after a huge skid following their hot start. The Leafs, since the team was hit with injuries to Eric Lindros and Jason Allison (not to mention the horrible loss to the Sens), have won 6 in a row and they’ve done it with a vast group of youngsters along with Bryan McCabe and Darcy Tucker, which is what many within Leaf Nation were hoping for. When you look at the lineup that the Leafs currently sport you see names like Johnny Pohl (POLE) of Minnesota Gopher fame. My biggest memory of this guy was when he scored with a wicked slap shot from the left side to help the Gophers beat Maine in the 2002 Frozen Four Finals and it was good to see that Pohl got his first NHL goal the other night against New Jersey. Heading into the Olympic break the Leafs are standing on good ground and may even make a run at the Sens if their division record can improve.
New Jersey Devils waive Alexander Mogilny
Here’s a guy that has ties to both the Devils and the Leafs and a guy that is probably Hall of Fame bound. Mogilny, who defected from Russia in 1988, was the first Russian player to do so and he scored his first NHL goal 20 seconds into his first NHL game with the Buffalo Sabres. He stayed with the Sabres long enough to score 76 goals in 92-93 before moving on to Vancouver, a move which indirectly led to injuries plauging him through stops in New Jersey, Toronto and now back in N.J. In 34 games this season, Mogilny has 25 points but has been hardly clutch for the Devils. At 37 years old he was a risk to sign to a two year deal during the offseason but the Devils were hoping that bringing him back would add a big boost to their offense which would be a perfect counter to their depleted defense. Well, Mogilny currently sits at -7 but probably won’t be picked up by another team and will end up back in New Jersey.
Atlanta on the playoff hunt
Their signing of Bobby Holik (BOBBY hoh LEEK) still remains a mystery but the Thrashers are currently tied for 8th in the east and after a sound victory over the Senators the Thrashers are back to where most hockey people were predicting they would be: hunting for the franchises first playoff berth. Marian Hossa (Marian HOH suh) has carried the Thrashers when Ilya Kovalchuk (IHL yuh KOH vahl chuck) hasn’t been and the Heatley trade makes more sense every time he does it. The Thrashers did drop a game against division rival Carolina but got their biggest win of the season in the game prior by defeating the Ottawa Senators and spoiling Dany Heatley’s “homecoming”. Heatley managed to score for the Sens but that only served to incite the crowd to boo him louder, perhaps showing that the love affair that the player and the city of Atlanta once had is forgotten once the puck drops and Heatley is out to beat the Thrashers. Hossa, on the other hand, chipped in with 2 goals and an assist to boost the Thrashers to their eventual 8-3 win. Kovalchuk, after missing several games to start the season, is now tied for the league lead in goals with 27 and if Atlanta can continue to get good goaltending from Adam Berkhoel (BURK hole) and perhaps have Mike Dunham come back in time for some good backup work, the Thrashers could sneak into the playoffs….at which point they’ll be quickly ousted by Ottawa.
The Gold Medal Game – World Juniors Version
The World Juniors Tournament is down to it’s last game and just like last year, the game will feature a Canada versus Russia matchup. Last year, the Canadians came out on top but it had been the Russians who had won the previous 3 meetings (all in the gold medal game). Canada defeated Russia 8-1 in a rather meaningless pre-tournament game this year, a score that is reminiscent of Canada’s win over Russia in the finals last year (that score was 6-1) but that’s not stopping the Russian squad from talking victory despite the game being played in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It’s going to be a great game which will not be broadcast in the U.S. Thanks! In any case, Russia still has last years game in mind but Canada has played a strong tournament thus far. Prediction: Russia.
Now for some quick hits with Cursing The Following:
Boston Bruins
What in the hell is going on here? The Bruins took a different route to solve their problems this season by trading their franchise player rather than firing the head coach and things are *still* a mess. What happened to Andrew Raycroft? In the last NHL season, this kid carried the team for a good run that led to the Bruins making another playoff appearance and this season all of that potential has just seemingly dissappeared. Chalk it up to more of the same ho- hum Bruins song of the past 15 years: great expectations and then not even coming close.
Chicago Blackhawks
Well at least they aren’t the Bruins and don’t talk about winning the Cup too often as just making the playoffs is a good enough season for this franchise but just about everyone they brought in during the offseason has been a disaster. Khabibulin seemed like a good move and with perhaps more motivation (money doesn’t always count as such) and a little more scoring, old Nikolai would be a good move but that hasn’t happened. Meanwhile, the days of a good Eric Daze are quickly fading.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Signed Adam Foote. Traded for Federov (FEH duh rahf). Still suck.
Detroit Red Wings
8 games against Columbus. 8 games against St. Louis. 8 games against Chicago. Real sweet. 8 games against Nashville, oh damn.
Nasvhille Predators
8 games against Columbus. 8 games against St. Louis. 8 games against Chicago. Real sweet. 8 games against Detroit, oh damn.
Tom Hicks
The Dallas Stars owner decided to attend the Rose Bowl game in Pasadena rather than be in Dallas to watch his team take on the Canucks. Guess he knew the Stars would score 3 goals in about 5 1/2 minutes in the 3rd period to win the game 3-1 and move within 2 points of first place in the Pacific Division.
NHL on television
The best hockey in years is being played and there’s still hardly any national coverage. ESPN barely cares, OLN is doing a horrible job and the NBC deal won’t kick in for about another month. It’s ridiculous.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Move already.
The Turin Olympic Games
Due to being the host country, Italy gets an automatic ticket into the hockey tournament which, coincidentally, is also an automatic ticket out of the tournament.
2006
2005 brought a lot of good things to the world of hockey, here’s hoping you do the same.
