Ovechkin Chooses Cash Over Cups

Well you can put to bed all the rumors about Alex Ovechkin leaving the Caps. Washington's superstar left wing has just put pen to paper on a 13-year $124 million contract extension. That works out to just slightly over $9.5 million per season over the life of the contract, or just under the maximum amount of space Ovechkin could take up under the current salary cap. Possibly the most noteworthy part of all of this is that Ovechkin negotiated the deal himself. Now he doesn't even have to give a cut to an agent. Not bad.

$124 million buys a lot of golf clubs!

Now that I'm done patting AO on the back... assuming he really does play out this entire deal with the Caps, Ovechkin will NEVER win the Cup. Ever. Before you get all riled up, hear me out. This has nothing to do with the amount Ovechkin will be making. While I do think it is a mistake to let him take up that much cap space, who knows where the salary cap will be in 10 years? This deal could end up being a bargain. Okay probably not, but my point is that the size of the deal isn't what is going to keep AO from kissing the Cup. It's the fact that the deal is with the Capitals. I just don't see the Craps ever winning the Stanley Cup. After all... they're the Capitals. I'd put the over/under for the number of times Ovechkin even makes the playoffs during that contract at 6. And if I were a betting man I'd take the under.

All bias aside, this deal is a huge gamble for the Caps. Ovechkin plays a very reckless brand of hockey and a series of long-term and possibly career threatening injuries for the talented Russian certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility. Nevermind that he plays a bit on the dirty side and could easily be the victim of some good old fashioned frontier justice somewhere down the road. Heaven help him if he boards one of Todd Bertuzzi's teammates.

In the meantime AO can kick back and celebrate his big payday, and maybe stash a little away so that 15 or 20 years from now he can buy himself a nice plaque that reads "Most Goals Scored By An NHL Player Who Never Won the Stanley Cup!" If you ask me that is the best-case scenario for Ovechkin's legacy when all is said and done.

Luongo Tells Fans To Shove It

Okay, so not really, but the Canucks heart and soul is going to skip the All-Star game in Atlanta despite being voted in to start by the fans. TSN is reporting that the Canucks have given Luongo permission to skip not only the All-Star game, but also their first game after the All-Star game so that he can be with his wife, who is pregnant with the couple's first child.

Luongo says, "Thanks but no thanks." to the All-Star Game.

I think this is a great move by the Canucks to get their big man some rest before the playoff drive really kicks in. This team is only going to go as far as Luongo takes them and getting him a week or so off could really pay off for Vancouver down the road. I'm sure the NHL would love to have Roberto in Atlanta, but the NHL can't complain too much since Luongo will also be missing one of his team's games and not just the All-Star game. Besides, in a perfect world this opens the door for Pascal Leclaire to get the start for the Western Conference. I'll take just about anyone though, as long at it's not Hasek.

Breakout Passes: The Pensblog Is Mightier

In what I am hoping to make a Wednesday staple... it's time to take a little online stroll and see what is going on in the world of hockey.

• There has never been a better time to get to know The Pensblog. Check out their Pens first half recap while you're at it. You owe it to yourself to read this blog if you are a hockey fan. The Pensblog is the first thing I read in the morning (if I don't stay up late enough to catch the new post the night before) and the boys have been in world class form since the Winter Classic.
• James Mirtle has announced his All-Stars (no Pascal Leclaire?), and also took a crack at reducing the impact of shootouts on the game.
• Teemu Selanne was seen working out at my old home rink in Anaheim.
• Greatest Hockey Legends takes Vincent Lecavalier to school.
• California is a legit hockey environment, dude!
• Jarome Iginla... he's a decent player.
• Brad Boyes has paid his dues.
  

Are Shootouts Breaking The Standings?

Much has been made recently of the success of the Edmonton Oilers in the overtime shootout and the affect that has had on their point total. To date the Oilers have taken part in a league high 13 shootouts (the Penguins are next on the list with 7) and have won an astounding 11 of those 13. Depending on how you look at things and your opinion of the shootout, that is an "extra" 11 points for the Oilers on the season.

This topic has intrigued me for a while now and I had always meant to take a look at the standings and see how they would look with and without shootouts in effect. Well, it looks like this is as good a time as any, so here are the NHL standings as they currently look, and how they would look if games still ended in a tie after the 5 minute overtime period.

NHL Standings with Shootouts

Eastern Conference

1. Ottawa* - 58 points
2. New Jersey* - 49 points
3. Carolina* - 46 points
4. Pittsburgh - 48 points
5. Montreal - 48 points
6. Boston - 46 points
7. NY Rangers - 45 points
8. Philadelphia - 44 points
9. NY Islanders - 44 points
10. Atlanta - 43 points
11. Buffalo - 41 points
12. Florida - 41 points
13. Toronto - 40 points
14. Washington - 39 points
15. Tampa Bay - 35 points
    

Western Conference

1. Detroit* - 67 points
2. San Jose* - 52 points
3. Calgary* - 51 points
4. Dallas - 52 points
5. Vancouver - 50 points
6. Anaheim - 50 points
7. Minnesota - 48 points
8. Colorado - 47 points
9. St. Louis - 45 points
10. Columbus - 44 points
11. Phoenix - 43 points
12. Nashville - 42 points
13. Edmonton - 42 points
14. Chicago - 41 points
15. Los Angeles - 32 points
    

NHL Standings without Shootouts

Eastern Conference

1. Ottawa* - 57 points
2. New Jersey* - 47 points
3. Carolina* - 45 points
4. Montreal - 46 points (+1)
   
5. Boston - 45 points (+1)
   
6. Philadelphia - 44 points (+2)
   
7. NY Islanders - 43 points (+2)
   
8. Pittsburgh - 42 points (-4)
   
9. NY Rangers - 42 points (-2)
   
10. Buffalo - 40 points (+1)
    
11. Toronto - 39 points (+2)
    
12. Washington - 39 points (+2)
13. Atlanta - 39 points (-3)
14. Florida - 38 points (-2)
    
15. Tampa Bay - 33 points
    

Western Conference

1. Detroit* - 63 points
2. San Jose* - 50 points
3. Calgary* - 50 points
4. Vancouver - 49 points (+1)
   
5. Minnesota - 48 points (+2)
   
6. Dallas - 48 points (-2)
   
7. Anaheim - 46 points (-1)
   
8. Colorado - 45 points
   
9. St. Louis - 44 points
10. Columbus - 43 points
11. Chicago - 40 points (+3)
12. Nashville - 40 points
    
13. Phoenix - 39 points (-2)
    
14. Edmonton - 31 points (-1)
    
15. Los Angeles - 30 points
    

It's pretty apparent that getting rid of the points awarded for shootout wins does have an impact on the standings. There is quite a bit of shift in the Eastern Conference when you take away points earned from shootout wins, with Pittsburgh and Atlanta getting hit the hardest. The results aren't as dramatic in the Western Conference except for the huge drop in Edmonton's point total. When you look a little closer the biggest impact is really on who has home ice in the first round of the playoffs, which can be huge. Having said that, I don't think there is anything there that would make Gary Bettman and the NHL big wigs think about getting rid of the shootout for one second. It's here to stay my friends.

Fantasy Focus: Time To Make A Move

In this edition of Fantasy Focus I am simply going to look at some players that would make a nice addition to your roster. As the second half of the NHL season begins it is time for you to take a look at your squad and possibly reassess the value of some of your assets. If your team is in the bottom half of the standings in your league and you have some players who haven't worked out as planned so far this season, this is a great time to make a change and try to right the ship before it is too late. Here are some players to look at adding (if they aren't taken already...):

• Ty Conklin (G - PIT) Conklin has been a savior in Pittsburgh since Marc-Andre Fleury went down with an ankle injury. If Conk is still available in your league grab him right now. Penguins coach Michel Therrien loves to roll with the hot hand in net, so Conklin could still maintain some value after Fleury returns to the lineup.
  
• Radim Vrbata (RW - PHX) Vrbata has been quietly lighting it up for the Coyotes, to the tune of 8 points in his last 5 games. I recently added Vrbata to both of my teams and hope that he can continue his breakout year in Phoenix.
  
• Teemu Selanne (RW - ??) As you should already know by now, Selanne was spotted working out at the Ducks' practice facility last week. It's not a guarantee that he will be back, but if he does want to play the Ducks want him. If your team is struggling it could be worth taking a gamble on the Finnish sniper. My gut tells me he is going to play and play well.
  
• Mike Ribeiro (C - DAL) Ribeiro has been the catalyst for the shockingly potent Dallas attack so far this season. For which he was just rewarded with a 5 year contract extension. As long as all those dollar signs don't go to his head Ribeiro should continue to light it up for the Stars. Grab him if you can!
  
• Dan Cleary (RW - DET) Cleary finally found a home in the NHL last season with Detroit and now he is picking up the scoring again. Cleary has put up great numbers over the last month and is a solid contributor in every category. This guy should be owned in every league right now. If he's not in yours, you know what to do.
  
• Mike Green (D - WSH) Green has been one of the few bright spots for the Caps this season on the blueline. I don't care who is on your roster, he is an improvement over at least one of your current defensemen. He's probably already been snagged off the free agent list in your league, but you never know...
  
• Antti Miettinen (RW - DAL) Miettinen has emerged as a very capable scorer for the Stars and could really help a team that is struggling in offensive categories. He has been red hot since the beginning of December and hasn't gone more than 3 games in a row without at least 1 point. Definitely worth a look if Vrbata is already gone in your league.
  

The NHL Announces All-Star Game Starters

The fan votes have all been counted and the NHL has announced the starters for the upcoming All-Star Game in Atlanta. The starters are:

Eastern Conference

• Sidney Crosby
• Vincent Lecavalier
• Daniel Alfredsson
• Andrei Markov
• Zdeno Chara
• Martin Brodeur

Western Conference

• Henrik Zetterberg
• Pavel Datsyuk
• Jarome Iginla
• Nicklas Lidstrom
• Dion Phaneuf
• Roberto Luongo

All things considered these are actually pretty solid picks by the fans as all 12 players are definitely deserving of the trip to Atlanta. I would probably stick hometown boy Ilya Kovalchuk in instead of Alfredsson, but Ilya will make the team any way so it's not that big of a deal. At first I didn't think too highly of Markov being voted in, but it's not that much of a reach when you look at the numbers. Of course if Sergei Gonchar had been on the ballot (I'll never understand why he wasn't) then maybe things would have been different.

Live Blogging The Past: The Nedved Game

Being in school along with having a job, a wife, and 3 awesome kids (among other circumstances) rarely affords me the chance to watch hockey live. The Winter Classic was the first game I have watched live in its entirety all season. As you can imagine this makes it tough to live blog a game, something I have wanted to do for a while now. I was going to live blog the Winter Classic, but I thought my kids would make that difficult and I was right, so it's a good thing I didn't even try.

However I figured there is no reason why I couldn't "live" blog some other classic games from seasons past. The Penguins 10 Greatest Games DVD set has certainly help to make this idea a reality, as well as the handful of other classic games I have on tape somewhere. So, with the wife out of town for the weekend, once I get the kids in bed I will be pressing play on the DVD player and "live" blogging the 4OT classic between the Penguins and Captials from the '96 playoffs, otherwise known simply to most as The Nedved Game. So grab a drink and get comfy... it's going to be a long night.

First Period

• 20:00 - Opening face-off and Game 4 is underway! The Pens start with Francis centering Jagr and Nedved. Francis jumps off immediately for Mario Lemieux. The matchup games are underway already.
• 18:54 - Sandstrom makes a strong move to the net and gets hauled down! Penguins on the power play.
• 17:44 - Francis makes a great play in front but Kolzig closes the door. Tinordi plants Jagr on top of Kolzig for his trouble.
• 16:40 - Clip with Caps defender Jim Johnson shows him openly questioning the confidence of goalie Jim Carey. With friends like these...
• 16:08 - Kolzig stones Nedved on a 2-on-1 with Sandstrom.
• 15:37 - Peter Bondra gets sent to the box for slashing. Another early power play for Pittsburgh.
• 14:55 - Lemieux, Francis and Jagr out there together. Best line in hockey history for my money.
• 13:37 - Pens are a quick 0 for 2 on the power play.
• 13:20 - Nice save by Barrasso on Bondra who is just out of the box.
• 12:48 - Sandstrom tries a cute pass between the legs and wastes a nice scoring chance in front of Kolzig.
• 10:28 - Nice centering pass from behind the net by Bondra finds nobody and goes all the way down to Kolzig.
• 9:44 - Gonchar dumps Dziedzic in front of the net. Third power play of the period for the Pens.
• 8:20 - Gorgeous play by J.J. Daigneault at the point to keep the puck in the offensive zone. Caps penalty killer are up to the task again though.
• 7:19 - First Caps power play of the night. Chris Joseph is off for holding the stick.
• 6:10 - Pivonka puts the Caps on the board! Traffic in front of Barasso and Pivonka snuck in from the point to drive home a nice pass by Dale Hunter from his backside. 0-1
• 5:00 - Jagr muscles by three Caps but can't get enough on the puck to challenge Kolzig.
• 3:20 - Glen Murray just got mugged in the Capitals zone. No call.
• 2:00 - Chris Tamer just missed it wide from the point. Close call for Kolzig.
• 0:00 - That's the end of the first. The Pens were unable to cash in on the power play, going 0 for 3, while Washington scored on their only man advantage to go into the break up by a goal.

Second Period

• 20:00 - Puck drops to start the second with Pittsburgh down by a goal. Ken Wregget is now in net for the Penguins as they try to even this series at 2 games. No word yet on a reason for the switch.
  
• 18:37 - Ron Francis gets hauled down by Dale Hunter on a breakaway. Penguins go back on the power play for the fourth time. Ronnie almost put it in despite being tripped from behind.
• 17:37 - Washington is really keeping the Penguins power play on the perimeter. They have to find a way to get the puck into the slot for some quality chances.
• 16:37 - Pens now 0 for 4 with the extra man. That needs to change in a hurry for the Pens to get back in this game.
• 15:35 - Barrasso is out with muscle spasms in an undisclosed location. He may return.
• 14:52 - Jagr just outmuscled half the Caps roster and then set up Tamer for another point shot that went wide. Gotta get those on net!
• 14:00 - Mario is in all alone and just misses the top right corner of the net! May have grazed Kolzig and/or the crossbar. Best chance so far for Mario.
• 13:47 - Neil Wilkinson is off for hooking. Caps get their second power play of the game. Lazy penalty by Wilkinson. Needs to keep skating there.
• 12:36 - Mario just completely undressed a pair of Capitals in close but was denied again by Kolzig. Best scoring chance of the game so far for the Pens comes shorthanded as Mario is really starting to pick up his game.
  
• 12:24 - Caps come back the other way and Bondra scores on a one-timer from the high slot. The Caps have converted both of their power plays as special teams are looking more and more like they will be the story of the game. 0-2
• 12:04 - Penguins try to answer right back but put a pair of shots off the side of the net.
• 11:04 - Wregget robs Krygier as the Caps are trying to put the Pens away on home ice. A shot off the right post right after the Krygier chance. Wregget needs to answer the bell and keep the Pens in it right now.
• 10:30 - Mario gets taken down entering the Capitals zone. Pittsburgh goes on the power play for the fifth time. The Pens could really use a goal here to get back in the game.
• 8:30 - Pens power play comes up empty again as the Caps are stacking the blue line and Pittsburgh isn't adjusting.
• 6:34 - Zubov is off for tripping Bondra coming out of the corner. Time for the Pittsburgh penalty killers to make a stand and get some momentum going.
• 5:36 - Nice wrister by Nedved is stopped by Kolzig along with the rebound chance by a streaking Wilkinson.
• 5:00 - Bondra deked Wregget out of his net but missed a wide open net. Caps were that close to being 3 for 3 with the extra man and really putting the screws to the Pens.
• 2:39 - Sandstrom is going off for roughing. Bad penalty to take behind the Caps goal.
• 1:18 - Jagr scores shorthanded! Francis made a perfect headman pass in the neutral zone that hit Jagr in stride and he snapped the wrister by Kolzig to the low stick side as the Pens' best chances continue to come while down a man. 1-2
• 0:35 - Mario just lost it and went after Todd Krygier! Krygier looked to have speared Mario and then gave him a shot to the head for good measure. Mario went right back at Krygier giving him a slash and a high cross check and then driving him to the ice before everyone else piled on. Mario is given a game misconduct (among other penalties) while Krygier get just two minutes. Mario's night is done and now the Pens are without their best player and their number 1 goalie. Pat Peake is gone for the Caps for being the third man in and the Pens now have to kill off a five minute major power play. The Penguins are really in a deep hole now despite only being down by a goal to the Caps.
• 0:00 - The second ends with the Caps up by a goal. The Caps have to like their chances here. They will start the third with the lead, almost a full four and a half minutes of power play to work with, and the Penguins missing Lemieux and Barrasso.

Third Period

• 20:00 - Capitals start the third with the man advantage and a fresh sheet of ice. This could be the beginning of the end for Pittsburgh, but they need to concentrate on killing the penalty before they can worry about trying to tie up the game at 2.
• 19:16 - Jagr is getting some time on the PK now with Mario lost for the night.
• 17:43 - Collision between Smolinski and Eagles at the Caps blueline. Neither player was looking and the ran right into each other. Eagles is helped off and Smolinski heads back to the bench on his own. Hopefully Bryan is okay as the Pens are already working with a short bench.
• 16:24 - Mark Tinordi channels Chris Tamer and completely misses the net from the point.
• 15:37 - Penalty is over! Nice hand for the penalty killers by the Penguins fan in attendance. This could give the team a huge boost, much like Game 4 against the Rangers in '92.
• 14:37 - Steve Levy just mentioned that it was Pens equipment manager Steve Latin who suggested wearing the third jerseys in which the Pens are currently unbeaten. Nice call by Latin as the Pens improved to 7-0 in the new unis after their Game 3 win in Washington.
• 13:43 - Pens go back on the power play as Michal Pivonka goes off for roughing.
• 12:27 - Nedved just misses a wide open chance from the side of the crease! Pens still working with the man advantage and creating some chances in front of Kolzig.
• 12:00 - Nedved scores on the power play! Petr rips a wicked wrist shot to the high glove side after the Caps penalty killers gave him way too much time and space. 2-2
• 11:29 - Jim Johnson goes after Dave Roche after Roche ran right into Olaf Kolzig at the top of his crease. Sandstrom and Johnson get two minutes each for roughing. 4 on 4 hockey for the next two minutes.
  
• 10:31 - Daigneault is taken down but no call. The ref's whistles are starting to make their way into their pockets as the end of regulation approaches.
• 8:48 - Todd Krygier picks Ron Francis and is off for interference. Huge chance for Pittsburgh to take the lead for the first time in the game.
• 8:24 - Joe Juneau makes a nice shorthanded rush but is turned away by Wregget.
• 7:40 - Nedved is skating hard and has really picked up his game since Mario got tossed.
• 5:42 - Dave Roche is lucky... thanks to Alex Stojanov being around he's not the worst skater on the Penguins.
• 3:11 - The Caps are turning up the pressure and trying to end this in regulation. The Pens are looking a bit tired here and need to start skating again.
• 1:15 - Jagr makes a nice cut to the slot and almost puts the Penguins ahead. Kolzig stops the rebound shot from Francis too.
• 0:00 - That's the end of regulation. We're headed to OT with the Penguins looking to take both games in Washington to even the series.

First Overtime Period

• 20:00 - Pens open up with Jagr, Francis and Nedved on the ice. They must want to end this thing as quickly as possible and get back to Pittsburgh.
• 17:46 - The Caps are cycling well but don't generate a quality chance out of it.
• 17:15 - Jagr is flying with the puck! He just has an extra gear when he gets the puck on his stick.
• 16:40 - The Pens fans in the arena are starting to make some noise. Typical Pens in Washington stuff. It's like a home away from home for the Pens.
• 15:09 - Jagr is off for hooking Juneau. OT power play for the Caps who have scored on 2 of their previous 5 power plays but were unable to convert on the 5 minute major to Lemieux.
• 14:20 - Francois Leroux fails twice to clear the puck. That can't happen in OT.
• 13:21 - Great save by Wregget on the point shot from Sylvain Cote. That one was close!
• 12:24 - Kelly Miller almost had a breakaway but he couldn't quite split the Penguins defense. Daigneault made an outstanding play to clear the rebound away.
  
• 10:00 - Halfway through the period and the Pens only have one shot on goal. Wregget is really settling in at the other end as the Caps are throwing everything they can at him.
• 9:20 - Jeff Nelson hooks Sandstrom down and is sent off for two minutes. Pens on the power play.
• 9:00 - Pittsburgh outshot the Caps 42-21 in regulation, but it's 12-1 the other way so far in OT.
• 8:07 - Francis almost pounded a rebound past Kolzig but was denied and then flattened for his effort.
• 6:42 - Wregget robs Stefan Ustorf with the glove! Save of the game as the Caps had Pittsburgh running around in their own end.
• 3:33 - Things slow down a bit as the players are starting to look a little tired. Some sloppy passing going on too.
• 1:27 - Glen Murray makes a great play to beat out an icing call, but he is all alone in the Caps end as the Pens are making a line change.
• 0:00 - One OT period is in the books and no winner to show for it. The Caps came out gunning but the Pens worked their way back into it as the period wore on, largely thanks to Jagr's hard skating. Both teams started to show fatigue towards then end of the period though as the play really dropped off in the last five minutes.

Second Overtime Period

• 20:00 - And we're off again! Pens start the period with the big guns on the ice again. Not a bad move as Jagr and Nedved have been their two best players for most of the game.
• 19:02 - Nedved breaks in alone and is robbed by Kolzig as he deked and went to the backhand. Nedved chipped the puck by Pivonka at the blueline and walked in all alone on Kolzig, but no dice.
• 16:53 - There's a lot of coasting going on on the ice, but Jagr is still working through checks like it's the first period.
• 15:31 - The net is off and Tamer and Bondra are trading punches behind the cage! The Caps are throwing everything at the net but Kenny Wregget is coming up huge and looking pretty calm in the process.
• 13:07 - Pivonka had Wregget down and out but couldn't bury the puck from the side of the crease. Best chance of the second OT so far.
• 11:43 - Jagr is cruising to the bench after a stoppage and he looks like he's about ready to pass out. Jags is leaving it all on the ice tonight.
• 11:25 - Joe Dziedzic just drilled Dale Hunter in the neutral zone. Big hit to throw in a second OT. Hunter never saw him coming.
• 10:18 - The Caps are buzzing again and Wregget continues to shut the door. Miller and Bondra were both denied by Wregget at close range.
• 9:18 - Chris Joseph just tackled Andrew Brunette but no call. That's easily two minutes in regulation. You have to love playoff OT hockey!
• 7:45 - Zubov has a great chance from the circle and then Kolzig takes a shot at Jagr after the whistle. Kolzig needs to lighten up a bit, Jagr was nowhere near him there.
• 5:53 - A couple more OT periods and everyone else will be skating almost as slow as Dave Roche. Almost...
• 4:17 - Trickling puck in the crease and the net is off! Juneau almost ended this things and then Chris Tamer made a game saving swipe with the stick and then took the net off its moorings in the process. Delay of game call on Tamer. Penalty shot for Washington!!! Juneau will take it...
  
• Penalty Shot - SAVE!!! The puck was rolling and bouncing all over the place on Juneau and he couldn't get a good shot off. It was rolling before he even hit the blueline. All Kenny had to do was stand his ground and the game continues.
• 3:31 - Pens put some pressure on at the other end but no dice. Tamer finally got a shot on net though.
• 1:03 - The guys are really looking tired out there on both sides. You can sense they are just trying to make it to the intermission without costing their team the game.
• 0:00 - That's it for the second OT. We've played 100 minutes of hockey and still no winner in what has been an epic game full of twists and surprises.

Third Overtime Period

• 20:00 - Play starts back up and again the Pens start with Jagr, Francis and Nedved on the ice. The Pens lack of depth could really end up costing them here.
• 19:29 - Mark Tinordi just flopped on top of Jagr after the whistle like the ass that he is. Jagr and Francis are on the bench laughing about it. Life goes on.
• 18:22 - Dziedzic continues to hit everything he can. Big time effort from the Minnesota native.
• 17:13 - Jagr dances around in the slot and fires a wicked backhander on net that Kolzig kicks aside. Nice try by Mario Jr.
• 16:35 - Chris Joseph is headed off for a hook. Pretty blatant dive by Jeff Nelson but the ref bought it. Caps power play here in the third OT.
• 15:24 - Kevin Miller just drew a trip from Sylvain Cote as he tried to chip it by and head in on a shorthanded breakaway. That will give us 48 seconds of 4 on 4 and then a Penguins power play and a chance to end things.
• 13:45 - Chance for Nedved in front off a giveaway but he didn't have enough room to do anything with it! Bad turnover in front by the Caps but Kolzig bails them out again. Nedved is starting to show some jump again.
• 12:56 - Johnson snuck in from the point and gets a one-timer but just misses the net! Wregget looked to have the angle if the shot had been on target.
• 10:46 - Joseph and Bondra get into it after the whistle after Wregget stops Bondra's shot from the faceoff dot. No penalties called of course. Things are getting a little chippy away from the play again.
• 8:32 - Jagr, Francis and Nedved put on some good pressure but leave the zone empty handed again. Jagr is doing a great job of conserving energy and finding space on the ice. Nedved looks a lot "fresher" than just about everyone else too. Amazing display by the Penguins top line.
• 7:20 - Just showed a guy in the crowd with a "Die Penguins Die" sign. Real creative there winner. As guess we have to die once for each Cup.
• 5:39 - Shot of Olaf Kolzig and he looks ready to pack it in. Guy has to be dead tired at this point. I'm impressed he's still putting his arm up for icings.
• 5:07 - Bondra just missed deflecting a point shot in. That was the best chance the Capitals have had in quite a while. Looks like it may have caught Wregget's blocker. Good positioning never goes out of style.
• 3:36 - Ronnie Francis breaks into a full sprint and almost beats out an icing call. They've played almost two full games of hockey now and Ronnie is still sprinting to prevent icings. What a player... what a human.
  
• 3:24 - Wregget just absolutely robbed Todd Krygier with the right pad and smothers the rebound. Krygier will be seeing that one in his sleep.
• 2:10 - Play is breaking down again. Guys are even having trouble with simple, unpressured D to D passes.
• 0:42 - Slashing penalty coming to Joe Dziedzic as he drilled Todd Krygier. Another Caps power play that could carry over to the fourth OT.
• 0:00 - That's it for the third OT. Still no winner and the players look beat. Someone is going to have to dig deep to find a little something extra and finish this thing.

Fourth Overtime Period

• 20:00 - Here we go again. Hopefully fourth OT's the charm. Caps are still on the power play.
• 18:45 - Krygier fires one through the crease but no luck. Power play is over for Washington.
• 17:21 - Kolzig turns away a nice one-timer by Sandstrom off a nice feed from Smolinski. Pens are trying to pick up the offense again.
• 14:42 - Jagr just misses on a wrister from the right circle. The Pens are just firing it on net from anywhere right now.
• 13:30 - Glen Murray is stopped by Kolzig as the Pens broke in 3 on 2. The Penguins are starting to find some lanes into the offensive zone, but Kolzig still seems calm and in control between the pipes.
• 11:54 - Nedved is starting to look a little tired finally. That's the first time I've ever seen skating seem like work for him. All these OT's are really taking their toll on the players (and the announcers).
• 10:35 - Frantic action around the Capitals goal but nobody can put it home. Too many tired bodies out there flopping all over the ice. This is desperation hockey.
• 9:25 - This is now the third longest game in NHL history. Good times.
• 8:09 - Full credit to the players. They are all dead tired but nobody is losing track of their man. It's still tight defense being played all over the ice.
• 6:13 - Hunter and Eagles are shoving at Ronnie. Jokes.
• 6:03 - Close ups of some of the players and the Pens just seem more "with it". The guys they showed on the Caps look like the walking dead. Could be a good omen.
• 4:51 - The Penguins top line is starting to fly again. Even Ronnie seems to have found some jump in those old legs.
• 3:23 - Lots of Caps just standing around and watching right now. The Pens definitely have more jump right now... relatively speaking of course.
• 2:39 - Hooking call on Jim Johnson as he rode Jagr all the way through the Capitals zone. Jagr outworked him the whole way and the ref had to call that. It was way to blatant to let go, fourth OT or not. Penguins power play coming up!
• 1:47 - The Penguins are completely outworking and outskating the Capitals right now. They're going for the kill and this game could be over at any second. Kolzig is the only thing keeping the Caps' hopes alive.
  
• 0:45 - GOAL!!! It's over! Petr Nedved threw it on net and the puck made it's way through traffic and past Kolzig. It's Nedved's second power play goal of the game and it sends the Pens back to Pittsburgh tied with the Caps at two games apiece. The Pens were definitely the stronger team for most of the fourth OT and it seemed like only a matter of time before they sealed the deal. Epic game. Epic win. And Petr Nedved just secured his place in Penguins and NHL history. 3-2

Closing Thoughts

What a game! I remember when this game happened it was my freshman year at Cal State Long Beach and we didn't have cable in the dorms yet so I didn't get to see it. My buddy from the hockey team Rick Tiley called me when the game hit OT and the rest of the night consisted of me calling him every 10 or 15 minutes to see if they were still playing. I can still feel the relief and excitement from when he called me to tell me Nedved had ended it.

Revisiting this game now the biggest thing that stood out to me was that Penguins team's lack of depth. I always remember that 96 Pens group as being a Ron Francis broken foot away from the Finals, but there was a huge gap between their top players and the rest of the roster. It's pretty amazing how far Lemieux, Jagr, Francis, Nedved, and Wregget were able to carry that team in the playoffs that year. The stuff of legends.

Custom Winter Classic Covers

For all you custom cover fans out there I've whipped up Sidney Crosby covers for NHL 08 on the PS2 and XBox 360 to commemorate the Winter Classic in Buffalo. Enjoy!

Which Is Truly The Single Best Offensive Season Ever?

I have been running across a lot of old hockey clips from the late 70's and 80's lately and I just can't get over how bad the goaltending used to be in the NHL. That got me thinking about some of Wayne Gretzky's records and how he benefited from being in the league during that era. Comparing different eras in sports is always difficult, but I felt compelled to come up with a way to compare some of the biggest single offensive seasons in recent NHL history and see which was really the most impressive.

I used the following method of comparison; I picked the most impressive single season point totals since 1980 to put up against each other. I then determined the player's Points Per Game (PPG) for each season and then divided that by the overall average Goals Per Game (GPG) in the NHL for that season to determine that player's Offensive Involvement Percentage (OI%). The OI% was the percent of goals that player figured in on by a per game basis, using the league average GPG. This basically told me how much scoring a player accounted for per game compared against the NHL average as a whole. It's not a perfect method, but it does give hard numbers across the last 25+ years in the NHL.

For my comparisons I used the following seasons:

• Wayne Gretzky 81-82 (80 GP, 212 P)
• Wayne Gretzky 85-86 (80 GP, 215 P)
• Mario Lemieux 88-89 (76 GP, 199 P)
• Mario Lemieux 92-93 (60 GP, 160 P)
• Mario Lemieux 95-96 (70 GP, 161 P)
• Jaromir Jagr 98-99 (81 GP, 127 P)
• Jaromir Jagr 00-01 (81 GP, 121 P)
• Mario Lemieux 00-01 (43 GP, 76 P)
• Sidney Crosby 06-07 (79 GP, 120P)

The NHL GPG averages for those seasons were:

• 81-82 - 8.03 GPG
• 85-86 - 7.94 GPG
• 88-89 - 7.48 GPG
• 92-93 - 7.25 GPG
• 95-96 - 6.29 GPG
• 98-99 - 5.27 GPG
• 00-01 - 5.51 GPG
• 06-07 - 5.89 GPG

This resulted in the following OI%'s for each player:

• Wayne Gretzky 81-82 - 33%
  
• Wayne Gretzky 85-86 - 33.85%
  
• Mario Lemieux 88-89 - 35%
  
• Mario Lemieux 92-93 - 36.78%
  
• Mario Lemieux 95-96 - 36.57%
• Jaromir Jagr 98-99 - 29.75%
  
• Jaromir Jagr 00-01 - 27.11%
  
• Mario Lemieux 00-01 - 32.08%
  
• Sidney Crosby 06-07 - 25.79%

Now this is where things get interesting. Using the above stats I was able to take the resulting OI%'s above and then use them to project point totals for each player in each of the other seasons. In other words, I could tell you how many points were the 81-82 equivalent of Jagr's 127 points in the 98-99 season. Think of is as some kind of scoring exchange rate. For the sake of balanced projections, I calculated the projected point totals based on the same number of games played by the actual point leader that season. So for example, the 81-82 projections are all based on the player playing in 80 games, just like Gretzky did that season. One exception: for the 92-93 season I calculated all players' totals based on playing 80 games, due to Lemieux only playing 60 games because of his bout with Hodgkin's Disease. Also, for the 00-01 season, I recalculated Mario's "total" based on playing 81 games, just like Jagr did that year.

Here are the projections:

(click to enlarge)

So going by these projections we can see that Mario Lemieux is actually the owner of the two "best" offensive seasons in modern NHL history based on his OI% from the 92-93 and 95-96 seasons. If Mario had played at the level he did in the 92-93 season during the 85-86 season he would have scored an NHL record 236 total points. Not too shabby.

Again I stress that what I have done here isn't perfect, but it does give a foundation for comparing scoring in the NHL across many seasons. The real conclusion to all of this, if you could call it that, would have to be that as scoring went down in the NHL over the years points became harder to come by and thus are arguably more valuable, for lack of a better term, than points accrued during the wide open glory days of the NHL in the 80's. Naturally you could expand the range of this exercise and probably find some seasons from longer ago that compare favorably to Lemieux and Gretzky. In the meantime I feel very comfortable saying that while Wayne Gretzky may own the major single season scoring records in NHL history, Mario Lemieux has actually had the best offensive seasons in the history of the NHL.

NHL Team Of The Month: December 2007

I almost lost track of this in all the Winter Classic excitement, but here we are with the Team of the Month for December:

• Center: Jason Spezza (14 GP, 10 G, 15 A, +14, 7 PPP, 2 GWG)
• Right Wing: Jarome Iginla (14 GP, 14 G, 5 A, +10, 7 PPG, 3 GWG)
• Left Wing: Alexander Ovechkin (13 GP, 11 G, 7 A, 4 PPP, 3 GWG)
• Defense: Nicklas Lidstrom (15 GP, 13 P, +15, 5 PPP)
  
• Defense: Sergei Zubov (14 GP, 12 P, +8, 6 PPP)
  
• Goalie: Evgeni Nabokov (15 GP, 10 W, 1.96 GAA, .925 SV%, 2 SO)
  

Comments:

• Spezza quietly had an insane month for the Sens.
• Iginla and Ovechkin were both beasts in December. Iginla led Calgary's charge up the Western Conference standings while rumors are already starting to swirl about AO trying to get out of Washington this offseason.
• Lidstrom and Zubov are as steady as they come. You couldn't ask for more from a defender.
• Nabokov has been the one constant for the Sharks this season (he's started every game for San Jose) and is having an MVP-type year. As long as he doesn't wear down...
  

Wrapping Up The Winter Classic

The NHL rang in the New Year in a big way this afternoon with the Winter Classic outdoor game in Buffalo between the Sabres and the Penguins. It was a snowy, frozen day in Buffalo... the perfect setting for an outdoor hockey game. In anticipation for the game I pulled on my brand new Sidney Crosby Winter Classic tee, dropped some extra ice in my Mountain Dew as a sign of solidarity for my friends and acquaintances lucky enough to be in attendance, and settled in for the NBC telecast. And the rest was history...

The Event...

• The opening overhead shot of a snowy Ralph Wilson Stadium set the perfect mood for what promised to be an epic afternoon for true hockey fans.
• The side rink for kids to play on behind one of the goals was a nice touch. How sweet would it have been to be one of the kids lucky enough to get to take a skate down there?
• The players weren't especially bundled up for the most part, but full credit go to the Buffalo players rocking the eye black.
• Great anthems. Really helped the crowd kick it up an extra notch to start things out.
• The Penguins look great in the old powder blues. I'd love to see them pull these uniforms out again. I could see putting together a nice winning streak in those babies.
  
• As far as play was concerned the weather could have been better, but it was perfect from an atmosphere point of view. Nice and snowy in the first, pretty decent for the second and most of the third, then snowy again for the end of the third, OT, and the shootout.

When you look up picturesque in the dictionary...

The Game Itself...

• Huge goal by Colby 21 seconds in to start things off. I really thought that might have been enough to seal the win given the conditions. Must have been the soccer side of my brain at work.
• Even in a blizzard Sidney Crosby is still the best thing on skates.
  
• Nice goal by the Sabres to open the second. As mentioned by the announcers, it was hardly a coincidence the scoring was happening early in periods.
• There was some genuine exciting hockey while the weather eased up a bit in the second. It was nice to see two of the hardest skating teams in the NHL get a chance to open it up for a bit.
• The penalty call on Colby at the end of regulation was laughable. Especially given the circumstances.
• The changing sides during the third period and overtime really rubbed me the wrong way. The NHL committed to playing a game in nasty weather, so deal with it. I don't see how making players skate to the far bench for the last 10 minutes of regulation and the second half of overtime is doing them any favors. Just a bad move on the NHL's part.
• Nice shootout goal by Ales Kotalik. Kept it simple and nailed a perfect shot.
• Kris Letang is flat out nasty in shootouts. It's just sick how bad this kid makes NHL goalies look.
• Nice to see Sid nail the winner on the big stage. We all know shootouts aren't exactly his bread and butter, but it was an ideal finish to a great event if you're Gary Bettman (and if you are... YOU SUCK GARY!)
  
• Ty Conklin is in the zone. If he can keep this up it could be real interesting to see who gets sent down once MAF gets healthy. Has Sabu been Sabu'ed?
• Kudos to all the players! They played a fantastic game in conditions that were less-than-ideal at best.
• Hats off to the ice crew too. Kept things safe and as playable as possible.
  

The Broadcast...

• As I already said, beauty overhead shot to open the broadcast. Brought a smile to my face.
• Mike Milbury eh? Someday NHL broadcasting execs will learn that there is a difference between having personality and being a jackass. Unfortunately this will probably be after we've all been subjected to 10+ years of Jeremy Roenick doing color for national broadcasts.
• All in all the commentary was pretty solid. They didn't cater to people who know nothing about hockey as much as I feared they might. That said, someone should have told Emerick, Olczyk, and Pang that there were other players on the ice besides Sidney Crosby and Ryan Miller.
• Speaking of Miller, that Amp Yo Mama commercial was pretty solid, but what is J.S. Aubin doing in there? Pascal Leclaire and Andrew Raycroft should both be shopping for new agents as I type this.
• NBC continues to screw over the NHL with their intermissions. For a league that is trying to get back into the mainstream, how is a first period intermission consisting of talking about Slapshot and Bob Costas waxing nostalgic about his run-in with the "real" Ogie Oglethorpe going to help that? And if that wasn't enough, they took things to another level between the second and third with old Bobby Orr footage, the worst Sidney Crosby highlight montage ever, and then footage of Mike Milbury in the stands beating a fan with a shoe. How absurd is that? Can you imagine Ron Artest doing the halftime show for an NBA game 20 years from now and them showing footage from the brawl in Detroit and laughing about it? This is the kind of stuff that sets hockey back in many people's eyes and I seriously doubt it helped turn any casual viewers into hockey fans. NBC needs to get it together and actually try to market the game. I don't think there was one person watching who actually cared if Bob Costas almost got beat up on a bus 30 years ago, but I guarantee there were plenty of people watching who still don't know who Evgeni Malkin is.

Overall I think the Winter Classic lived up to its name. It generated a lot of buzz for the NHL and nobody could have watched that game and walked away disappointed. If you ask me the next logical step for the NHL would be an outdoor All-Star game. Maybe in New York (Giants Stadium anyone?) I wish I could have been there in person, mostly just so I could say I was, but I did get to jump around my living room trading high fives with my 17 month-old son after Sid iced the shootout win for the Pens. And that is something I wouldn't trade for tickets to any game ever. Happy New Year hockey fans, it's only going to get better.

The NHL Goes Up In Flames

Don't look now, but the Calgary Flames are starting to hit their stride. After a so-so start to the season, the Flames have picked up their game, especially on offense, and just completed a perfect 6-0 road trip. The Flames have yet to lose a game in regulation in the month of December, following head coach Mike Keenan publicly ripping his team after a 4-1 loss to Calgary at home.

Leading the charge for the Flames has been captain Jarome Iginla. Iginla contributed 8 goals and 3 assists on the road trip. He wasn't doing it alone though. Iginla's linemate Kristian Huselius notched 5 goals and 8 assists on the trip, including a pair of 5 point games, and defenseman Dion Phaneuf chipped in with a goal and 8 assists.

The Flames have been doing quite a bit of celebrating lately.

The scariest part of all is that superstar goalie Mikka Kiprusoff has still yet to provide the team with consistent play between the pipes. He has been great some nights, like in his 36 save performance against Columbus, but on other nights he has fallen flat, such as the game in Tampa when he allowed 6 goals to the Lightning. This despite, unsurprisingly, Kiprusoff being the target of much of Mike Keenan's criticism.

As it stands right now they are only a single point behind the Wild for the division lead despite their slow start. Although the Wild and the other teams ahead of them in the Northwest all have games in hand on the Flames. If the Flames can continue to get this high level of play out of their top line, and get some scoring from the depth players and more consistent play from Kiprusoff, they could prove to be a tough team to deal with in the Western Conference.

Fantasy Focus: Auld I Want For Christmas

It's time to take another look inside the world of fantasy hockey and see where those of you in need should be focusing your attention.

Prime Pickups:

• Alex Auld (G - BOS) All Auld has done since coming over from Phoenix is go 4-1 with a 1.40 GAA and .955 Save%. Tim Thomas will start eating into his ice time again shortly, but he is still a solid depth acquisition in net.
  
• Andy McDonald (C - STL) McDonald was having a pretty lousy year in Anaheim, but he's been given a fresh start in St. Louis alongside Paul Kariya. I think he will get it going again in a hurry. Grab him if he's available.
  
• Tyler Kennedy (RW - PIT) TK is the flavor of the week on Sidney Crosby's right wing. Kennedy has responded well to the assignment and should put up good numbers for as long as he stays with Sid.
  
• Aaron Voros (LW - MIN) Voros is a good source for PIMs and will contribute in other ways as well, as his 8 points attest. If you missed out on Daniel Carcillo, do yourself a favor and add Voros while you can.
  
• Denis Wideman (D - BOS) Wideman got off to a slow start in Boston, but he has rebounded with 8 points (6 on the PP) in the last month and could be a solid contributor on the blueline the rest of the way. Especially for those who will be without Bryan McCabe for the next 6 to 8 weeks.
  
• Dany Sabourin (G - PIT) The beneficiary of Marc-Andre Fleury's ankle injury, the man they call Sabu will be manning the pipes for the foreseeable future in Pittsburgh. The team is starting to hit its stride and Sabourin's win total will benefit from that. A solid number 3 goalie at worst.
  

Keep An Eye On:

• Andrew Raycroft (G - TOR) There are rumors flying around about Raycroft being traded. He could be a nice addition if he lands in the right situation.
  

Sell High:

• Ed Jovanovski (D - PHX) Jovo was on a real tear there for a bit, but I don't really see anyone in Phoenix as a viable long-term option. Try to move him while his value is high.
  
• Vesa Toskala (G - TOR) Toskala has helped to lead the revival in Toronto with his solid play of late. Things in Leafland are so insane though that things could turn around in a hurry. Try to move him for someone a little more stable/predictable if you can.
  

Buy Low:

• Cam Ward (G - CAR) Carolina has been struggling of late and Ward's numbers reflect that. They still have the luxury of getting to fatten up on the rest of their weak division though, so things should turn around for the Hurricanes. You might be able to get away with a lowball offer to an impatient Ward owner if you are lucky.
  
• Jaromir Jagr (RW - NYR) Jagr has done next to nothing for about the last month, but he is just too talented for that to last. See if you can take advantage of a frustrated Jagr owner and bring in Double J on the cheap.
  
• Alexander Frolov (LW - LAK) Frolov missed some time with an injury but is back in the Kings lineup now. He could be a nice upgrade at left wing if you need one. Beware though, Frolov is a streaky guy so be prepared to take the bad with the good.
  

Ducks Make Move: Add Weight, Cap Space

TSN is reporting that the Ducks have sent struggling center Andy McDonald to St. Louis in exchange for Doug Weight, prospect Michal Birner, and a 7th round draft pick. This move gives the Ducks enough cap space to finally bring Scott Niedermayer back into the lineup. The Ducks are also hopeful this will give them enough wiggle room under the cap to start trying to extend pending RFA Corey Perry.

This move is a bit of a shock since most were assuming the Ducks would move a defenseman to free up some room under the cap. Mathieu Schnieder's name was being the one most often mentioned, but McDonald has really struggled without Teemu Selanne cruising his right wing. Hopefully a change of scenery will help him get back to his high scoring ways of a year ago.

Reactions To The Mike Richards Contract

The Flyers set the hockey world on fire today with their signing of Mike Richards to a 12 year, $69 million contract extension. Here are some reactions from around the league:

"Only 12 years? That kid needs a new agent."
- Rick DiPietro

"Man is that kid overpaid."
- Brad Richards

"That deal is so insane I got excited when I heard about it because I thought I had signed him."
- Kevin Lowe

"Ka-ching!"
- Evgeni Malkin's agent

"That's almost $700,000 for each career point. I can't believe they didn't offer me a 12 year, $1 billion contract. I'll show those ungrateful jerks!!!"
- Mark Recchi

"When did Kevin Lowe become GM for the Flyers?"
- Brian Burke

"So, you don't want me back next year then I take it."
- R.J. Umberger

"Are hey trying to one up us as the team dealing with the cap the worst? Quick, get Wade Redden's agent on the phone! I'll show them how to ruin your team's future."
- Bryan Murray

Anatomy Of A Salary Cap Crisis

In the wake of Mike Richards' new contract signing today, I figured the Flyers were painting themselves into a corner in regards to the salary cap. Never one to ignore a hunch, I opened up the Flyers page at nhlnumbers.com, took into account the new deal for Richards, and then found the following situation facing the Flyers:

• Daniel Briere - $6.5 million cap hit (8 years remaining)
• Kimmo Timonen - $6.33 million cap hit (6 years remaining)
  
• Mike Richards - $5.75 million cap hit (12 years remaining)
• Simon Gagne - $5.25 million cap hit (4 years remaining)
• Scott Hartnell - $4.08 million cap hit (6 years remaining)
• Derian Hatcher - $3.5 million cap hit (2 years remaining)
• Mike Rathje - $3.5 million cap hit (3 years remaining) yikes!
• Martin Biron - $3.5 million cap hit (2 years remaining)

That's over $38 million committed to 8 players, with the cap currently sitting at $50.3 million. I hope the flyers have a long list of players willing to play for the league minimum, because they have to fill out the remaining two thirds of their roster for about $12 million. I can already smell Kevin Lowe getting an offer sheet ready for R.J. Umberger.

Breakout Passes: Pennsylvania Is Burning

Welcome to the first installment of Breakout Passes! There's just too much good stuff going on out there in the hockey blogosphere to go unlinked. So away we go!

• Tuesday night's Pens/Flyers tilt has rekindled the interstate rivalry. The Battle of Pennsylvania has responses from both sides. Melt Your Face Off has a great post about how the officials should have taken control of the game. The Pens' visit to Philly on January 24th can't come soon enough.
• On a more positive note, the boys over at The Pensblog were able to drop a little knowledge on some poor soul who managed to slip through the cracks of the Philadelphia school system. Just do a find on palindrome...
• James Mirtle's man-crush on Mark Recchi is still going strong! All I will say about this is that the Pens' record is a lot better without Recchi in the lineup than in it this season.
• The buzz around the Lightning moving one of their big three forwards continues to grow. Good luck finding someone who will take on that Richards contract!
• Someone apparently needs to hold an intervention and explain the concept of a salary cap to the Flyers. They just aren't getting it.
• Going Five Hole scored an interview with Steve Williamson, he of 30 games in 30 nights fame.
• GFH was also the first blog I saw run the amazing Max Gherlach goal. That may be the best one-on-one goal I've ever seen at any level.
• Sidney Crosby... Lou Marsh Award winner!
  

Some Stars Don't Shine In Shootouts

Following Pittsburgh's shootout victory over the Canucks on Saturday night, a game in which Sidney Crosby was not only stopped by Roberto Luongo in the shootout, but also on an OT penalty shot, I started to reflect on Sidney's relatively poor track record in shootouts. I couldn't help but think that Michel Therrien might better serve the Pens by letting someone else take Sid's place in the shootout. This in turn led me to wonder how many other big name players are sent out in the shootouts by their coaches despite a lack of success. After going through the shootout stats since the start of the '06-'07 season, there is quite a list of big name players who have been disappointing in the shootout.

Some of the most prominent players are:

• Sidney Crosby - 6/20 (.300%)
• Alexander Ovechkin - 2/13 (.154%)
• Vincent Lecavalier - 3/14 (.214%)
• Henrik Zetterberg - 2/9 (.222%)
• Evgeni Malkin - 3/16 (.188%)
• Thomas Vanek - 2/11 (.181%)
• Patrick Elias - 2/11 (.181%)

My first reaction when researching these stats was that Crosby's numbers are actually a little better than I thought they were, yet still not as good as I would expect from him. For some reason I'm not surprised that Ovechkin hasn't fared well in shootouts. He's more of a finisher to me than a guy who can consistently take on goalies one-on-one and prevail. The numbers for Lecavalier, Zetterberg, and Elias (and Vanek to a lesser degree) really shocked me. These are craftier players who have been around for a while, and you would think they would be more successful in this setting.

The real question here is whether or not these players are helping their teams by taking part in the overtime shootouts. I recognize that there is pressure for a coach to send out a premier player like Crosby or Lecavalier, but at some point results have to start to come into play. If you look around the league, it isn't hard to find some "no name" players who have excelled at the shootout. Erik Christensen has been a revelation for Pittsburgh, going 11 for 18 in shootouts since the start of last season. Devils defensive specialist John Madden is a somewhat surprising (I think his offense is better than he gets credit for) 4 for 7 when participating in shootouts. And then there is the Wild's secret shootout weapon, defenseman Petteri Nummelin is a remarkable 8 for 9 in shootouts. Certainly these players help show that results count more than the name on the back of the jersey.

This isn't to say the stars should be given up on. For example, Anaheim center Andy McDonald was 1 for 10 in shootouts last season, but has converted both of his opportunities so far this season. I'm simply saying that coaches could probably secure a few extra points for their teams if they looked a little outside the box when putting together their shootout lineups. Would it hurt for the Penguins to try Kris Letang (2 for 2) in Crosby's usual 3 slot for a bit, or for the Canucks to make Trevor Linden (4 for 5) a regular shootout participant? It could mean a few extra points in the standings. And in today's NHL, that can be the difference between making the playoffs or golfing in April.

Step Back From The Ledge!

I know everyone is down due to MAF's ankle injury last night (I haven't seen any updates on his condition yet), so here's a little something to cheer you up.


A big thanks to Mirtle for the find!

Run Silent, Run Deep...

The purpose of this post is mainly to let those of you who frequent here (both of you) know that you shouldn't be expecting any new content over the next week or so. Finals start for me tomorrow and I'm flying out to California for the weekend for my Grandma's 100th birthday party (if life was the NHL, Granny would be Gordie Howe!), so I'm even more busy than usual for the next week or so. The good news is that starting next Monday afternoon I can forget about school for about 5 weeks, which will allow me to concentrate more on this here blog. I've got a few ideas clanging around in my head and I'm hoping to make good use of the time.

In the meantime, so as not to leave you empty handed... here's a couple pics of MAF owning some 9 year-olds:

NHL Team Of The Month: November 2007

With the quarter mark of this season in the rear view mirror, it's time to name the Team of the Month for November:

• Center: Vincent Lecavalier (14 GP, 9 G, 16 A, 7 PPP)
  
• Right Wing: Martin Erat (12 GP, 8 G, 10 A, 4 GWG)
  
• Left Wing: Ilya Kovalchuk (12 GP, 14 G, 8 A, 8 PPP)
  
• Defense: Sergei Gonchar (12 GP, 4 G, 11 A, +5, 9 PPP)
  
• Defense: Zdeno Chara (13 GP, 3 G, 7 A, +7, 4 PPP)
  
• Goalie: Roberto Luongo (12 GP, 8 W, 1.56 GAA, .940 SV%, 4 SO)

Comments:

• Lecavalier and Kovalchuk were both out of their minds in November. They were no brainers for Team of the Month honors.
• Martin Erat has been quietly sensational for the Predators. Four game winners in a single month is great for anyone. Where would they be without his offense?
  
• Chara and Gonchar both had outstanding months. Gonchar's +5 is especially noteworthy considering he does most of his scoring with the man advantage. Maybe it's time for people to start giving him some credit for his defense.
• Luongo gets the nod over Henrik Lundqvist because he takes the ice every game knowing he has to steal points for the beat up and goal-starved Canucks. Lundqvist has a bit more margin for error on most nights. It also doesn't hurt that Luongo closed out November with a three game shutout streak.
  

Don't Forget To Take Your Sticks And Rogaine

Just in time for the celebration of the year that will no doubt be Mark Recchi bobblehead night at the Igloo on Monday December 3rd, Recchi has apparently been told to trade himself. Preferably by tomorrow. Timing is indeed everything in life!

The Pens most likely won't get much in return for the balding vet, but it will undoubtedly be more than they would get from Recchi the rest of the way. I was against Shero bringing Recchi back this season (and last season to be honest) and Recchi has proven to not do much more than take up space on a team loaded with young talent. At this point there is no way to justify scratching Tyler Kennedy or Colby Armstrong in order to dress Recchi. There just isn't a place for him in this lineup anymore.

One deal that popped into my mind (partly due to the mention of Pierre being in Vancouver) would be a deal sending Recchi and Darryl Sydor (another recent press box regular) to the Canucks for ex-Pen Markus Naslund. I don't really see this deal happening, but it makes some sense since the Pens have the cap space and the Canucks would help their battered blueline and replace most of the scoring they'd be giving up. A swap with Columbus for Nikolai Zherdev is also tantalizing yet unlikely.

In reality the Penguins will probably get back a young player or a mid-round draft pick for Recchi. Which is fine since getting anything for him without having to eat some of his salary is probably the main objective at this point. Otherwise, there's always waivers...

A Star Is Reborn In Dallas

What a difference a record setting night in San Jose can make. Mike Modano entered his game on November 7th against the Sharks one goal behind Joe Mullen for the most goals ever scored in the NHL by an American born player. Modano scored two fantastic goals that night to move into the record books, and he has been on a tear ever since.

Back on top of his game!

Since that early November game Modano has scored 6 goals and 6 assists in his last 11 games, helping to catapult the Stars to the top of the Pacific Division. This is after notching just 2 goals and 3 assists in his first 14 games this season. Clearly Modano has turned his game around since getting the weight of the goal scoring record off of his back.

Modano's turnaround could not have come at a better time for the goal starved Stars. Offense has been a problem for the Stars for quite a while now (just look at their playoff series against Vancouver last season), but they have taken advantage of superb goaltending and Modano's hot hand to make a charge up the Western Conference standings.

Dallas clearly owes much of their recent success to the classy Modano, who stuck with the team despite being unceremoniously stripped of his captaincy prior to the start of last season. Even as Modano struggled out of the starting gates this season his critics circled like vultures as he painstakingly plodded towards the goal record. Ironically, Modano has been on fire ever since and looks to have the last laugh on those who were so quick to slap the "Washed Up" label on him less than a month ago. With the grace he has shown Navigating the rinks of the NHL throughout his career, Mike Modano has made it through one of the toughest stretches of his Hall of Fame career and retaken his seat at the table among the NHL's elite.

Fantasy Focus: These Flightless Birds Could Soar

Welcome to my first installment of Fantasy Focus. These won't be regular posts more than likely, but I will chime in from time to time with advice I think will help those of you trying to improve your fantasy hockey teams. Hopefully this won't come back to bite me in any of my leagues. Anyway, away we go...

Worth a gamble:

- Colby Armstrong (RW - PIT) Colby has proven in the past that he can put up big numbers when paired with Sidney Crosby. So guess where he has found himself the last two games... He likely won't see time on the power play, and Michel Therrien's line combinations are as consistent as New Jersey Devils attendance, but if Army sticks with Sid the points should be there. As the goal and two assists in the last two games show.

- Ryan Malone (LW - PIT) What I said above applies here too, but Malone seems to be pretty firmly attached to Crosby's left hip at this point and his recent play has done nothing to suggest that will change soon. Ryan has four points in the last two games, and assuming he stays with Sid and the Pens continue their recent turnaround, he should be good for about a point a game. Ryan's also good for some PIMs too, which gives him added value.

PIMs count too:

- Daniel Carcillo (LW - PHX) People often overlook PIMs in fantasy hockey, but they can be a difference maker. Carcillo is a great source for PIMs and he will actually give you some offense too as he continues to get quality minutes with a less than talent laden Coyotes squad. Carcillo has 179 PIMs in 39 career games and has also chipped in 11 points in 21 games this season. Pick up the poor man's Sean Avery if you still can... he may be the final piece to your championship team.

Blueline help:

- Tobias Enstrom (ATL) Enstrom has come out of nowhere to become Atlanta's top blueliner and throw his name into the Calder discussion. Since cracking the Thrasher lineup Enstrom has 13 points in 23 games (including 9 on the power play) and is a strong +6 while leading all Thrasher players in power play minutes and total minutes. His size could prove to be an issue, but this kid should be owned in every league.

- Erik Johnson (STL) This hulking rookie has been playing well since returning from a foot injury and is worth a look. He's drawn comparisons to his landlord Al MacInnis and could prove to be a good source of power play points. Definitely give the kid a look if you are saddled with some struggline defenders (i.e. Rob Blake).

- Kris Letang (PIT) Letang has taken over Ryan Whitney's left point on the Penguins' top power play unit, and if he stays there points are a given. Letang has definite offensive ability, but young defensemen are nothing if inconsistent. Still, most of you probably have a defender not really producing much for you so Letang's upside is probably worth the gamble at this point.

Crease upgrade:

- Mike Smith (DAL) There's something of a goalie controversy brewing in Dallas thanks to the recent play of Smith. Smith has seen a big increase in minutes on the strength of allowing only 4 goals in his last 4 starts, including stopping 39 of 41 shots against in a road win against the Rangers this afternoon. Smith is probably still available in most leagues and could definitely prove useful to a team struggling between the pipes.

Buy low:

- Marc-Andre Fleury (G - PIT) MAF's struggles this season have been well chronicled to put it mildly, but the Pens seem to be turning the corner on this season and getting back to their winning ways. MAF will still probably turn in the occasional stinker (see Thanksgiving in Ottawa), but if the team can continue to improve The Flower's numbers will too and he'll definitely help you in the win column. He may be a free agent in some leagues, and if he's not he can probably still be acquired relatively cheaply.

- Ryan Whitney (D - PIT) A notorious slow starter, Whitney has struggled out of the gate this season and has now been taken off of Pittsburgh's top power play unit. How long that will last is anyone's guess, but Ryan's goal against Atlanta Saturday night may get him going and he will still get his share of minutes with the man advantage. Send his owner a bit of a lowball offer and see what you can do, you'll be thanking me in January (if not sooner).

It's A Penguins Thanksgiving Charlie Brown!

The holiday season is upon us (you know, since stores have had their Christmas stuff up for about two months now) and I thought this would be the natural time to stop and give thanks. Instead of writing a novel about all the things I am thankful for (and believe me there's plenty) I am going to give thanks to my one lifelong love of the sporting world... the Pittsburgh Penguins. So grab yourself a slice of pumpkin pie and enjoy as one Pens fan gives thanks.

The things I am thankful for:

• Bob Johnson - Badger Bob brought a winning attitude to the Pens and transformed them into a dominant force in the NHL while leading them to their first Stanley Cup. Along with Craig Patrick, Johnson is responsible for much of the success the Penguins enjoyed in the early '90s, and he is not forgotten.
  
• Bob Errey - Bob was always one of my favorite players and it killed me when he was traded to the Sabres in '93. He wasn't flashy, he just went out and worked his butt off. He made some big plays and was a tremendous leader for the Pens. I am thankful we got to have him in black and gold.
  
• Petr Nedved - Endurance is a beautiful thing. Nedved played his best hockey as a Pen and was a big part of that '95-'96 team that came ever so close to the Finals.
  
• The Lang/Straka/Kovalev Line - It's a shame these guys played in the shadow of Jagr and Lemieux, because they were arguably the best line in the NHL when they were together. All great players individually, this line was magic on ice (they complimented each other perfectly) and the three of them will always share a warm spot in the hearts of Penguins fans. They were just flat out a blast to watch and we were lucky to have them.
  
• Ulf Samuelsson - The original Terminator. Ulfie brought a necessary dose of nastiness to those early '90s Pens teams. You just had to love the way he gave everything he had every shift. Every team needs a guy like Ulf.
  
• The Moose - Johan Hedberg made the summer of 2001 a magical time for Pens fans. The Moose came over from San Jose at the trade deadline and then propelled the team to the Eastern Conference Finals. Hedberg's stay in Pittsburgh was relatively short, but he has a place in every true Pens fan's heart and I am extremely thankful for the magical spring of 2001.
  
• Darius Kasparaitis - Say what you want about the guy, but he came to play every night and wasn't afraid of anyone. Oh, and he did this!
  
• Sid/Geno/MAF/... - This new crop of Pens are just awesome. Sid is a once in a generation player, Geno is blossoming into a true force on the ice, we all know I love the Flower, and the rest of the team is a blast to follow as well. This team has brought fun back into Penguins hockey and I am thankful for each and every one of them. Okay, except for Mark Recchi...
  
• Paul Stanton - The kind of player every successful team needs a couple of. Stanton was pretty much the defensemen version of Bob Errey. Never flashy, he just went out and did his job game after game, and for that I am thankful.
  
• Joey Mullen - What's not to love about Joe Mullen? From a purely physical standpoint Mullen had no business being a professional hockey player, but that didn't stop him. Joey was a gamer and gunned his way to retiring as the leading American-born NHL goal scorer. Joe was also a big inspiration for me (and other less physically gifted players as well I'm sure) and I couldn't be more thankful for what he brought to the Pens and to the game in general.
  
• Tom Barrasso - Not exactly Mr. Personality, but he was money when it mattered (most of the time). Without Tommy B. the Pens don't win two Cups and are basically the Kings of the Eastern Conference.
  
• Larry Murphy - Calm, quiet, and classy... that was Larry Murphy. He never really got the credit he deserved (he should have won the Norris in '93), but he was loved and appreciated by the Penguins faithful. If you look up solid in the dictionary you'll see a picture of Larry Murphy. Penguins fans were lucky to see the best years of his Hall of Fame career.
  
• Jaromir Jagr - Arguably the best NHL player of the '90s, Double J was a pleasure to watch his entire time in Pittsburgh. He may very well be the most skilled NHL player ever not named Lemieux. Despite an ugly breakup with the Pens and the horrible trade that sent him to the Caps, Jags gets nothing but love from me and I would love to see him finish his career back in the black and gold.
  
• Mario - Where to begin? Any hockey fan who got to see Mario in his prime should be thankful for all that he gave us. The dominance. The incredible goals. The comebacks. Mario did it all and I doubt there will ever be another player like him. He was a once in a lifetime talent and I am thankful to have been around for it.
  
• Ron Francis - Ronnie Franchise is easily my favorite athlete ever. Ron Francis did it all and he did it all extremely well. He may have been the most complete player ever and like so many others on this list, his best days were in Pittsburgh. He was often overshadowed by some of his flashier teammates, but for most of the '90s he was the heart and soul of the Pens. Saying I am thankful for Ronnie doesn't even begin to do it justice, he was my hero growing up and will always be my favorite.

I could probably continue this list for quite a while, but I think you get my point. Penguins fans have been extremely fortunate over the last twenty or so years. Yes there were some lean years in there, but it has all been worth it. I am thankful my dad took me to see the Pens play an exhibition in Oakland when I was a kid and that I was able to fall in love with them immediately. Ever since that September night at the Coliseum I've been black and gold through and through, and for that I will forever be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Be safe. Go Pens!

It's A Great Day For Hockey!

A small bit of "official" business here... Taking One For The Team is now solely a hockey blog. There are a few factors behind this decision, but one of the main ones is that I think I will be much more effective if I narrow my scope a bit. I'm sure there will be times when I have to resist the urge to write a Liverpool post, but I will survive. I have no doubt that this is the right move at this time and should allow TOFTT to move forward onto bigger and better things.

Also, a special thanks to those of you who have stuck it out through the recent inactivity. Your patience shall be rewarded...

Nap Time Is Over

Wow, I would like to say I can't believe I went that long without posting, but sadly I can. Things have been a bit crazy of late, but I'm back! And big changes are in store.

In the meantime, here are a few things I want to touch on:

• Friend of the Team, The Sidney Crosby Spotlight has assembled a great piece on how NHLers owe the Penguins captain a big one for getting Reebok to tweak their crappy new jerseys.
• Ron Francis went into the Hall of Fame, but some argue his true legacy exists off the ice.
• Al Strachan put together an outstanding article about wood sticks. It kills me that wooden hockey sticks are going the way of the dinosaur. I also buy into the theory that the new composite sticks are playing into a decrease in scoring. Another question is at what point does this start to make hockey too cost prohibitive for young players? I know my parents never would have bought me a $300 stick.
• The debate/outrage over the Penguins' goaltending continues to cruise along. I won't even bother to link to all the stories that have popped up, but there does appear to be an increasing number of people that feel the Pens need to stick with MAF and see where they end up. As has been well established here already, I fall into that category. Honestly, I'm one more bad game away from writing a fire Gilles Meloche rant. Let's just hope it doesn't come to that.

On a more personal note, I received a lot of great advice and support from a lot of people (too many to name right now) over the whole Ross McKeon situation, and I would just like to say thanks. Hockey fans are a special breed and hockey bloggers are no different. I truly feel honored to have an ever so small place in that community. For what it's worth, I did get a brief reply from McKeon and I am good with how things went down.

The Sincerest Form of Flattery?

So I opened up Firefox this afternoon and you'll never believe what I saw on the Yahoo Sports home page:
What an original idea for a story! I wish I had thought of that. Oh wait, I did a week ago. Ross McKeon will probably be getting an e-mail from me in the near future. I have no idea what it will say since I'm sure this is a coincidence, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it...

You can read McKeon's story here if you feel so inclined.

***UPDATE (11/2)***

I sent the following message to Ross moments ago:

Hi Ross,

I enjoyed reading your "Hockeytown, USA" piece. I couldn't help but notice though that it is quite similar to a post I wrote for my blog last week, which you can read here:
[linked to original post here]

Please do not get the wrong idea here, I am not accusing you of plagiarism here and am sure this is just coincidence, despite all of the similarities between the two pieces. You know, great minds think alike and all that. To be honest with you, I don't even really know what type of response I am hoping to get from you here. Some type of acknowledgment of my work would definitely be appreciated, but I would rather you not respond at all then respond in a way that you are not comfortable with.

Again I want to reiterate that there is no type of accusation being made here. I know we are not the only two people on the planet to have this idea and put pen to paper (or finger to key in this case). I guess I just feel that the similarities between our two works does justify some type of response/recognition, be it privately or publicly.

Thanks for your time, and keep up the good work.

Sincerely,
Chris

We'll see if anything comes of this... stay tuned.

NHL Team Of The Month: October 2007

Well, the first month of the NHL season is in the books. Here's my starting 6 based on their performance in October:

• Center: Sidney Crosby (11 GP, 5 G, 12 A, 9 PPP)
  
• Right Wing: Jarome Iginla (12 GP, 8 G, 11 A, 4 PPP)
  
• Left Wing: Rick Nash (11 GP, 9 G, 6 A, 8 PPP)
  
• Defense: Brian Rafalski (13 GP, 2 G, 9 A, +5, 8 PPP)
  
• Defense: Dion Phaneuf (12 GP, 3 G, 6 A, +10, 5 PPP)
  
• Goalie: Pascal Leclaire (8 GP, 6 W, 1.25 GAA, .953 SV%, 4 SO)

Comments:

• I went with Sid at center because I think he has been better than his numbers indicate (which is sick considering he is 5th in scoring despite having games in hand on everyone else at the top of the scoring list), and he was saddled with Mark Recchi on his wing for much of the early going. Hopefully he'll see more time on the ice with Malkin (Geno has been a beast so far this season) going forward and he'll have more nights like his recent 4 point outing against the Wild.
  
• You could make a case for Henrik Zetterberg at left wing and it would be hard to argue, but I think Nash has been more valuable to Columbus and has decidedly less talent around him. That gives him the edge to me.
  
• Rafalski and Phaneuf have both been lights out, as I would expect. Hopefully Rafalski will start to get a little more love from the hockey world now that he is out of New Jersey.
• Pascal Leclaire has been a revelation. There's no way he can keep this up for a full season, but for the first month he has clearly been the best keeper in the league. Enjoy it while it lasts Jackets fans!