Stanley Cup Preview

Once again, a few comments on the round that was and on to the round that will be. We didn’t learn too much in the previous round. Many thought the Blackhawks were going to beat the Sharks, and they did—winning four very tight games. Chicago keeps rolling on two dynamic scoring lines, steady defense, and a strong goaltender. In the east, many expected Philadelphia to continue its run right through Montreal—and they did.

Stanley Cup Final:
(2) Chicago Blackhawks (12-4) [1.24 5on5, 22.6% PP, 86.6% PK] vs. (7) Philadelphia Flyers (12-5) [1.39 5on5, 20.7% PP, 87.0% PK]

Chicago has solidified themselves as the best team in the NHL throughout this season, with a very impressive regular season and flashes of dominance in the playoffs. The forwards, led by Jonathan Toews (7G, 19A, +4) and Patrick Kane (7G, 13A, +2) are numbers 1 and 3 in playoff points (although they combined for only one goal against San Jose). The team can score from the blueline as well, and also play steady defense, led by Duncan Keith (1G, 9A, +3) and Brent Seabrook (3G, 6A, +8). Antti Niemi (12W, 2.33GAA, .921 Sv%) has been very good. The Blackhawks also have a second line of punch that the Flyers will have to deal with, including Patrick Sharp (7G, 9A, +3), Marian Hossa (2G, 9A, +8), and a surprising showing from Dustin Byfuglien (8G, 2A, -3). Chicago should be able to get goals and their defense is good enough to stop any rush that Philadelphia throws at them. If Seabrook, Keith, and the boys can stop the Flyers forecheck and Niemi plays like a Conn-Smythe winner, this will be a quick series and the Flyers will be forever known as that team as “who was that 7 seed that made a run in 2010?”

The seven-seed underdog Flyers continue their improbable run. The Flyers have found a way to get better throughout the playoffs and have since added their top goal scorer and their best penalty killer. Concerns about long minutes to a strong set of blueliners are the only concerns about this team’s health. The Flyers have regained sniper Jeff Carter (4G, 1A, +1) and sparkplug Ian Laperriere (0G, 1A, -2) and also survived without Simon Gagne (7G, 3A, +6). But the story of the Flyers has been the emergence of Mike Richards (6G, 15A, +6) as a force to be reckoned with, Claude Giroux’s (8G, 9A, +10) inauguration into an undeniable NHL superstar of the future (if not today), and Danny Briere’s reemergence (9G, 9A, +4). On the back end, Michael Leighton (6W, 1.45 GAA, .948 Sv%) continues his fairy tale run through the playoffs. Not to be outdone, the Flyers has been the steady of their top four defensemen, Chris Pronger (4G, 10A, +2), Matt Carle (0G, 10A, +10), Kimmo Timonen (0G, 8A, +6), and Braydon Coburn (1G, 2A, +7), who have kept their goaltenders workload in check. With Carter back healthy, scoring depth at forward, shut-down defense, and the steady Leighton in net, there isn’t anything that can stop the Flyers, except for mistakes on the back end and “beating themselves”.

All in all, the pundits have made it very clear that the Flyers don’t stand a chance. The Blackhawks have too much scoring depth, strong defense, and outstanding goaltending. While this is true, it’s also true about the Flyers. In fact the Flyers have three scoring lines, whereas Chicago has two. Keith and Seabrook are outstanding, but so are Pronger and Carle. Niemi has been outstanding, but Leighton has been even better. The Blackhawks have a dynamic power play and a shutdown Penalty Kill—so do the Flyers. The Blackhawks have the ability to exhibit a relentless forecheck—so do the Flyers.

Thus, I don’t see this as a landslide series—I see this as an outstanding series that could rejuvenate hockey in America. If you peel back the onion on hockey superstars (Ovechkin and Crosby are the obvious guys), Jonathan Toews and Mike Richards need to be in this conversation—one of those two will be instrumental in winning Olympic Gold and will have captained a team to the Stanley Cup title in the same year—this deserves more recognition.

The team that wins this series will be able to solve the other team’s goalie—and the way to beat Leighton and Niemi has been to get second-chance opportunities through a dynamic forecheck and relentless play in front of the crease that frustrates the other team’s defense. Chicago is more suspect to a relentless forecheck, based on a young core of defensemen that have made a lot of turnovers. While Byfuglien has gotten a lot of press for his in front of the crease antics, the Flyers have more than one guy capable and willing of going in front of the crease. Similarly, it will be interesting to see if Byfuglien is as prolific playing against Pronger.

Thus, I can’t believe I’m about to say this…

Flyers in 5.

Once again, a few comments on the round that was and on to the round that will be. First and foremost, we’ve learned one thing—a hockey playoff round, moreso than any other playoff round is all about winning four games. No matter how effectively you win 3, you have to win that fourth one. Hockey is about bounces and luck and just as easily as the bounces can go your way, they can just as quickly turn the other way. Montreal has now outlasted Washington and Pittsburgh after being down 3-1. Goaltending issues permeate from Washington and Pittsburgh. Philadelphia outlasted Boston after being down 3-0 for only the third time in NHL History. Out west, Chicago got it rolling over Vancouver and San Jose finally got an inch of top-line production, plus a mile of second-line production to make it to the Western Final for the second time in history.

Western Final:

(1) San Jose Sharks (8-4) [.95 5on5, 19.3% PP, 84.2% PK] vs. (2) Chicago Blackhawks (8-4) [1.05 5on5, 21.6% PP, 88.7% PK]

San Jose remains the enigma of the playoffs. The verdict has come in on the big three Dany Heatley (2G, 8A, -3), Patrick Marleau (3G, 4A, -1) and Joe Thornton (3G, 8A, -6)—these guys are not playoff players. After averaging 1.05 ppg and a combined +52 in the regular season, the trio has checked in at .90 ppg and a combined -10 in the playoffs (let it be known that the last series against the Red Wings saw an increased production from the trio—so baby steps in the right direction, I guess). The tight checking in the playoffs has spelled doom for the finesse trio. San Jose has gotten their production from a set of gritty forwards Ryan Clowe (2G, 8A, +5) and Joe Pavelski (9G, 6A, +7). The blueliners led by Dan Boyle (2G, 7A, +1) have been steady in front of Evgeni Nabokov (8W, 2.43GAA, .907 Sv%). San Jose needs to maintain its steady production from their second line of forwards, blue liners, and Nabokov. If they are able to get all of those things and also add a dynamic first line, there isn’t much that Chicago can do to stop them.

Chicago remains the scary potential team of the playoffs. The forwards, led by Patrick Kane (7G, 8A, +1) and Jonathan Toews (6G, 14A, +4) are as good as any two forwards left in the playoffs. The team can score from the blueline as well, and also play steady defense, led by Duncan Keith (1G, 5A, -1) and Brent Seabrook (2G, 6A, +5). Antti Niemi (8W, 2.57GAA, .909 Sv%) has been both good and bad, but overall very good. As if this isn’t enough to get the Sharks shaking in the boots (read: choking), they also have to deal with a steady dose of second line scorers, including Patrick Sharp (5G, 9A, +2), Marian Hossa (2G, 8A, +5), and a surprising showing from Dustin Byfuglien (4G, 2A, -3). Chicago should be able to get goals and their defense is good enough to stop any rush that San Jose throws at them. However, Niemi has shown that he can be beat. If Niemi plays like a Conn-Smythe winner, this will be a quick series and the Sharks will have an even-tougher time beating down their “choking legacy.”

All in all, I expect more of the same—San Jose’s top line will contribute sparingly, but their second line will carry the play. On the other hand, Chicago is going to get scoring from both lines. Both defenses are good enough to stop an offensive surge. Nabokov has been a little bit more steady than Niemi, but Niemi has shown more of an upside. Thus, I expect Chicago will win the series in six games, Niemi will give one away, but he will also steal one. The headline coming out of this series will be how the Sharks lost and didn’t get production from Heatley, Thornton, and Marleau.

(7) Philadelphia Flyers (8-4) [1.29 5on5, 21.7% PP, 83.6% PK] vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens (8-6) [1.04 5on5, 21.6% PP, 85.5% PK]

In an incredibly rare situation, a seven-seed will have home ice in the playoffs (the only way a seven ever gets home ice is if they make the conference finals and also if an 8 makes it too). The Flyers got to the Finals in typically Flyers fashion, by looking like world-beaters one day (destroying New Jersey and winning four straight against Boston to come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win) and looked complacent on other games. To be fair, the Flyers are dealing with some injuries (but who isn’t in the playoffs). The Flyers are without sniper Jeff Carter (2G, 1A, -3) and sparkplug Ian Laperriere(0G, 1A, -1) and played several games without Simon Gagne (4G, 3A, +3), who has returned to the lineup and then some. Philadelphia’s forwards have been led by Daniel Briere (7G, 8A, +3) who seems to be finding the net like it’s 2005, Captain Mike Richards (5G, 12A, +2), and newcomer Claude Giroux (5G, 6A, +3). A key story for the Flyers has been the steady of their top four defensemen, Chris Pronger (4G, 7A, +3), Matt Carle (0G, 7A, +7), Kimmo Timonen (0G, 5A, +1), and Braydon Coburn (0G, 1A, +1), who have kept their goaltenders workload in check. In goal, the Flyers have gotten steady play from the injured Brian Boucher (6W, 2.33 GAA, .915 Sv%) and his back-up Michael Leighton (2W, 1.55 GAA, .943 Sv%) didn’t skip a beat after being called into game 5 (which was elimination game), game 6 (which was an elimination game), and game 7 (which was an elimination game). With Gagne back healthy, scoring depth at forward, shut-down defense, and the steady Leighton in net, there isn’t anything that can stop the Flyers, except the Flyers…which they’ve demonstrated that they just don’t show up at time.

The Canadiens story is the story of Jaroslav Halak (8W, 2.42 GAA, .933 Sv%). He’s been sensational and he’s looked at more rubber than the Michelin Man. The Canadiens not only beat the best team in the east, and arguably the second-best team in the east in 7 games, but they did much of it with injuries on defense and virtually only one guy scoring goals. Mike Cammalleri (12G, 6A, -1) has been the one offensive bright spot for the Habs. Meanwhile, Hal Gill (0G, 1A, +2) and Josh Gorges (0G, 1A, +1) have shown that a team can win any game if they don’t give up any good shots. Montreal’s team defensive system makes them tough to crack, especially if they get up early. However, a team that isn’t prone to complete defensive lapses (read: Pittsburgh and Washington), should not get down against the Habs if they can stop Camalleri. That said, if Halak continues his hot streak, a team may only need four goals to win this series.

When push comes to shove, Philadelphia has more scoring depth than the Penguins, and nearly as many goal scorers as Washington. However, Philadelphia’s defense is far superior to that of Washington and Pittsburgh. Michael Leighton has stabilized this team. I’ve said this once, but I’ll say it again. Montreal will be outplayed in this series. Halak may be able to steal one game, but Pronger and Carle will shut down Camalleri et al., which means Montreal isn’t going to get the goal-scoring that they need to get up early to trap-to-win. Philadelphia in 5.

Joke of the Day

This seems so very, very obvious, so many of you that travel in hockey circles may have heard it already. But I hadn't heard it until last night (thanks, Eric) and I just had to share:

--

A guy walks into a bar. The bartender asks him, "What'll ya' have?"

Guy says, "Give me an Ovechkin."

Bartenders says, "You got me. What's an Ovechkin?"

Guy says, "Ovechkin: A white russian without the Cup."

Mr. April

Mr. April: Trevor Gillies

Even though Gillies' team is not in the playoffs, the Islanders made the push to get there, grabbing on to the handlebars supplied by this man. Notice the thicker bottom portion of this stache. This tells us it was not due to laziness or a mistake, but rather dominance.

A quick comment on the first round and then on to more analysis on the second round…

We got mostly chalk out west and a truckload of upsets in the east.

Going into the first round—we at Bettman’s Nightmare all felt the same thing. Both #1 seeds seemed somehow fallable. The San Jose Sharks’s struggles in the playoffs are well-known, they’ve been called soft and their stars never seem to show up in April. The Presidents Cup Washington Capitals seemed somehow beatable as well, especially with lackluster goaltending and defense. Colorado is a young and exciting team capable of beating the Sharks and extending their choke series. The Canadiens don’t have much and are unsettled at goaltending—so the Caps should have been able to escape—or so we thought.

To Washington Capitals fans….HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA…I’m sorry, that was wrong, we are more professional than that here at Bettman’s Nightmare. Let me try that again—HA HA HA HA..Sorry, it’s just too funny. Remember after game 3, Norris Trophy Candidate Mike Green said “ When everyone plays like that -- they don't have much out there. Really, they don't." How does this guy get nominated for a Norris and Chara, Lidstrom, and Pronger do not? This is the most fundamental rule in sports—don’t discount your enemy. San Jose, meanwhile, despite the efforts of Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, and Patrick Marleau actually found a way to win. At this point, these three should be trading salaries with Many Malhotra, Joe Pavelski, and Ryan Clowe. You’re soft Thornton—Boston knew it way back in the day, but I doubted them. They were right. MAN UP!

We are going to mix some things up here on Bettman’s Nightmare—we are going to start our round two forecasts in the west—east coast bias be damned!

#1 San Jose Sharks (19.2 PP%, 86.7 PK%, 1.33 5:5) vs. #5 Detroit Red Wings (23.5 PP%, 81.8PK%, 1.36 5:5)

San Jose in the playoffs? Detroit in the playoffs? I’ll take Detroit. That was easy. Let’s move on. But wait, Detroit is playing rookie Jimmy Howard (4 W, 2.59GAA, and .919 Sv %) between the pipes. San Jose has found good goal scoring behind their top line of Joe Thornton (0G, 3A, .5 Pts/Game), Dany Heatley (0G, 4A, .Pts/Game), and Patrick Marleau (1G, 2A, .5Pts/Game) (read: duds—1 Goal between these three!), their defense has improved, and Evgeni Nabokov (4 W, 1.76GAA, and .926 Sv %) has been playing well. Dan Boyle (2G, 4A, 1Pts/Game) has been leading the way for a much-improved San Jose defense. Still—how can you bet against Detroit? Well, Detroit’s top line played well, Pavel Datsyuk (5G, 3A, 1.1 Pts/Game) and Henrik Zetterberg (6G, 5A, 1.6 Pts/Game), but they did not get the stereotypical Detroit scoring from third-liners like Kris Draper (0G, 0A, 0Pts/Game), Dan Cleary (0G, 0A, 0Pts/Game) and Darren Helm (1G, 0A, .2GPts/Game). Nicklas Lidstrom (3G, 3A, .8Pts/Game) has been adding much-

needed offense from the blueline. Each Spring, somebody comes out of the word work in Hockey

Town—this year that didn’t seem to happen. Even Tomas Holmstrom (2G, 2A, .6Pts/Game) struggled to crack Ilya Bryzgalov.

There are three questions to answer: will Detroit find its second-tier goal-scoring, will San Jose find its first-tier goal-scoring, and which rookie Detroit netminder will show up? When push comes to shove, Detroit will find its second-tier goal scoring—San Jose isn’t as good defensively as Phoenix. Thornton will continue to choke—because Detroit is better defensively than Colorado. Howard will give away one game, but keep Detroit in the other five. Red Wings in Six!

#2 Chicago Blackhawks (17.4 PP%, 96.3 PK%, 1.10 5:5) vs. #3 Vancouver Canucks (25.0 PP%, 61.5 PK%, 2.43 5:5)

This matchup really excites me. Chicago is young and fast and very solidly defensively. Vancouver has got a pair of twins that I’ve heard are pretty good and a goaltender that likes to make highlight-reel saves. Chicago will go into this series as the likely favorites, after surviving a tooth-and-nail battle with the plucky Nashville Predators. Vancouver beat a very underrated and up-and-coming Los Angeles Kings team that took the Canucks to the brink and very nearly forced a pivotal game seven. For the Blackhawks, the big name forwards are all over a point a game Jonathan Toews (2G, 6A, 1.2 Pts/Game), Marian Hossa (1G, 6A, 1.1 Pts/Game), Patrick Sharp (3G, 4A, 1.1 Pts/Game), and Patrick Kane (4G, 3A, 1.1 Pts/Game). They are backed-up by a steady group of blueliners led by Brent Seabrook (0G, 4A, .7Pts/Game) and Duncan Keith (1G, 1A, .3Pts/Game). All of this offense is strongly supported by the stable

goalkeeping of Antti Niemi (4W, 2.15GAA, .921 Sv%). The Canucks, on the other hand are riding the hot hand of shoot-first Mikael Samuelsson (7G, 4A, 1.8 Pts/Game), who has been paired perfectly with the red-hot Sedin twins. Daniel Sedin leads the way (4G, 6A, 1.7 Pts/Game), while pass-first Henrik Sedin (1G, 7A, 1.2 Pts/Game) is in hog heaven, passing to Samuelsson and his twin brother. Ryan Kesler (1G, 5A, 1 Pts/Game) has been providing sufficientsecond-line scoring to support the top line. In the back, the Canucks have a team of steady blueliners led by Sami Salo (1G, 2A, .5Pts/Game) and Christian Ehrhoff (1G, 2A, .5Pts/Game). In net, Roberto Luongo (4W, 2.92GAA, .893 Sv%) has looked at times like the best goaltender in the league and somewhat average at other times.

There are several questions to answer: can the Canucks blueline give Luongo enough support to make him the bestgoaltender in the league again? Can Antti Niemi continue to find the hot hand? Can Ryan Kesler spearhead a second-line scoring arsenal that compares with the Sharp line in Chicago? Can Vancouver shore upthe penalty kill? Not likely, against Chicago’s attack! In short, Chicago has too much forward pressure and Luongo will steal a few games, but when push comes to shove—Chicago is going to score a lot of goals and win in six. Also, don’t expect Vancouver to dominate Chicago 5:5 as they did against Los Angeles.

#4 Pittsburgh Penguins (25.0 PP%, 68.2 PK%, 1.33 5:5) vs. #8 Montreal Canadiens (20.0 PP%, 97.0 PK%,.76 5:5)

For Pittsburgh, the question coming out of the regular season was—could Crosby maintain his hot season, could Malkin find his game, and more importantly could Fleury find his game? Well, Sidney Crosby (5G, 9A, 2.3Pts/Game) maintained his hot hand, Evgeni Malkin found his game (4G, 4A, 1.3Pts/Game), and Marc-Andre Fleury (4W, 2.75GAA, .890 Sv%) has not. Pittsburgh’s playoff formula is very

consistent—ride your superstars and rent an old winger to pitch in some goals and leadership. Bill

Guerin (2G, 4A, 1Pts/Game) has played the role of the old goal scorer quite well. On the back end, Sergei Gonchar (0G, 6A, 1Pts/Game) continues to forget that he’s supposed to play defense. Jordan Staal (1G, 2A, .5Pts/Game) has stepped up his game and given the Pens a much-needed checking-line center. The story for the Canadiens going into the playoffs was—where would they find enough goaltending to go punch-for-punch with the Capitals? Well, as it turns out, the Capitals took a different approach—they took every punch the Caps had to offer and merely asked Jaroslav Halak (4W, 2.46GAA, .939 Sv%) to shrug them away. Halak found his game and I think he found Patrick Roy’s game too. Montreal’s defense quite simply shut down the Capitals, led by Hal Gill (0G, 1A, .2Pts/Game), Josh Gorges (0G, 1A, .2Pts/Game), and Jaroslav Spacek (0G, 2A, .3Pts/Game). All of these stay-at-home defensemen took the best of what the Capitals had to offer and left them without a good shot. Michael Cammalleri paced the way on offense (5G, 5A,1.4Pts/Game), while Tomas Plekanec added scoring as well (4G, 3A, 1Pts/Game).

The questions are: Can the Canadiens defense shut down the Penguins attack like they did the Capitals? Can Jaroslav Halak forget that he’s Jaroslav Halak and not Patrick Roy? Can Marc-Andre Fleury find his game? Where will the Canadiens extra goal scoring come from? Will the Pens be able to crack the Canadiens Penalty Kill? Will the Pens be able to figure out their own penalty kill? I like the Penguins to get more offense than the Capitals—the Capitals have become quite predictable. Jaroslav Halak will continue to play well—but not as well. Marc-Andre Fleury will play better, but still not great and the Canadiens will struggle to score. The Penguins will escape in 7 games. Until Fleury finds his game, the Canadiens will score well on the Powerplay.

#6 Boston Bruins (27.3 PP%, 100 PK%, .57 5:5) vs. #7 Philadelphia Flyers (27.6 PP%, 87.5 PK%,2.00 5:5)

Boston was able to find enough goal-scoring and incredible goaltending to skate by the Buffalo Sabres, who continue to struggle to find goal-scorers. Tuukka Rask (4W, 2.18GAA, .927 Sv%) played admirably to carry the Bruins to a six-game series win. The Bruins spread their offense around amongst forwards Mark Recchi (3G, 2A .8Pts/Game), Miroslav Satan (2G, 3A, .8Pts/Game), Patrice Bergeron (2G, 3A, .8Pts/Game), David Krejci (3G, 2A, .8Pts/Game), Defensemen Dennis Wideman (1G, 3A, .7Pts/Game), and Zdeno Chara (2G, 1A, .5Pts/Game). For the Flyers, the team was paced by the stalwart play of Brian Boucher (4W, 1.59GAA, .940 Sv%). The playoff Boucher far outplayed the regular-season Boucher. The Flyers got goalscoring from Captain Mike Richards (2G, 6A, 1.6Pts/Game) and youngster Claude Giroux (4G, 2A, 1.2Pts/Game). The Flyers blueline was anchored admirably by Kimmo Timonen (0G, 3A, .6Pts/Game) and Chris Pronger (2G, 3A, 1Pts/Game). Unfortunately, the Flyers will be dealing with a heavy dose of enfermary visitors, including snipers Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne and penalty killer Ian Laperriere.

The questions are: will Boston be able to find goal scoring to go punch-for-punch with Philadelphia? Will Rask maintainhis hot hand? Which Boucher will show up? How will Philadelphia deal with the loss of stars like Carter and Gagne? Both teams have outstanding special teams, but how will the Bruins offset the Flyers significant 5:5 advantage? Boston will struggle to get shots against the shut-down blueliners tha

t Philadelphia puts on the ice. Rask will face a lot more rubber against the Flyers forecheck than Buffalo was able to create. Boucher should continue to show up, and Giroux, van Riemsdyk, Richards, Carcillo, and the rest of the forwards should be able to pick up the offensive slack for the Flyers. Philadelphia wins in five games. Boston’s 5:5 disadvantage is too significant to overcome.

Q: What do West Virginian's and Philadelphian's have in common?

A: Not much.

However, they are linked in my stream of consciousness this afternoon as I watch the Phoenix Coyotes continue do what they've done all year - that is, win games no matter what overwhelming conditions are stacked against them.

But, to the point now. Being a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, one of my favorite jokes is:

Where was the toothbrush invented?
West Virginia, of course. Had it been invented anywhere else, they'd have called it a teethbrush!

This joke popped into my head as I was taking in the latest Geico commercial with Mike Green and one of the cavemen (you know, where the former is popping a puck into an empty net, and the latter is talking to the camera from the stands). It occurred to me that only a native of the City of Brotherly (Sh)ove could have come up with the idea for this commercial.

Why?
Because no hockey fan base other than Philadelphia's could so readily link together the idea of neanderthals and hockey.

--

PS - Being an economist, another of my favorite jokes is:

How many Marxist economists does it take to screw in a light bulb?
None. The lightbulb has within it the seeds of its own revolution.

NHL Power Rankin's - Year in Review edition

It has been a great inaugural year for the NHL Power Rankin's - following in the footsteps of, and building upon the sturdy franchise name made famous by the NFL Power Rankin's over the past half-decade. I'd like to thank the Academy, and all my loyal listeners...

Let it be known that since Bettman's Nightmare went live, the Rankin's have had this year's edition of the Phoenix Coyotes ranked in the top 5 - making their debut at #3 back in early January. So like Southern hockey or not, you can at least count on the Rankin's to provide you a filter through your bias that enables you to speak intelligently on hockey matters.

The year's final Big Mover award goes to Nashville, which fell 8 spots on losses to Florida, Carolina and the Islanders to close the season. Not the most promising of trends as the Preds enter the playoffs.

All the usual suspects can be seen at the top - except for Pittsburgh, that is. Don't be surprised to see the Penguins make an early exit from the post-season this year. Rankin' 11th going into the post-season with no power play to speak of and sieve-like goaltending has this native 'burgher less than hopeful for a repeat - Rocket Richard trophy or not.

The highest finish for a non-playoff team is St. Louis (#13). They couldn't quite pull of an 08-09 Anaheim run, but they gave it a good fight. On the flip side, Montreal finishes lowest of the 16 post-season entrants, at #20. If I were a Habs fan (or player, for that matter), the prospect of playing Washington in the first round would likely have killed my spirit, too.

Toronto wins the year's Consistency award. Despite Edmonton's presence in the league, the Leafs managed to hold onto the 30th spot in the Rankin's for the lion's share of the year.

Based upon their respective places in the final Rankin's, I'll give the Overachiever award to the Los Angeles Kings - finishing in a surpising 5th place - and the Underachiever award (and oh, how I relish this) to the Philadelphia Flyers. Sorry, but I don't see Chris Pronger bringing the long-elusive gleam of the Cup home to Broad Street despite the hopes, dreams and flat-out guarantees of the Philadelphia phaithful.

1) (1) Phoenix
2) (2) Washington
3) (4) Chicago
4) (5) San Jose
5) (6) Los Angeles
6) (7) Buffalo
7) (8) Detroit
8) (3) Nashville
9) (9) Vancouver
10) (12) New Jersey
11) (10) Pittsburgh
12) (11) Colorado
13) (16) St. Louis
14) (14) Ottawa
15) (15) Anaheim
16) (13) Calgary
17) (18) Boston
18) (19) Dallas
19) (20) Philadelphia
20) (17) Montreal
21) (21) Atlanta
22) (22) NY Rangers
23) (23) Minnesota
24) (24) Florida
25) (26) Carolina
26) (25) NY Islanders
27) (29) Tampa Bay
28) (27) Columbus
29) (28) Edmonton
30) (30) Toronto

Boo the Rangers!

Olympic Pain Points Redux

As the Playoffs approach, it’s time to revisit our Olympic Pain Point blog. As you recall, we saw a number of the truly talented NHL teams send a majority of their teams to the Olympics. At the top of this list were the Sharks, Devils, Canucks, and Ducks. Meanwhile, the Islanders, Panthers, and Oilers all huddled around their respective captain’s Big Screen to watch the Olympics on TV, without much participation in the games themselves. Two things that strike me as noteworthy right away—the Sharks, Devils, Canucks, and Ducks seem to be better teams than the Islander, Panthers, and Oilers.

But the more interesting question is, how much did the Sharks, Devils, Canucks, and Ducks suffer from sending a significant portion of their team to Vancouver? How much did the couch time help the Islanders, Panthers, and Oilers? The short answer is—not much. There appears to not be any correlation between Olympic Pain Points and Post-Olympic Performance. If you were a 1-pt./game team prior to the Olympics and you sent a truckload of players to the Olympics, like Anaheim, you are a 1-pt./game team after the Olympics. It isn’t surprising that the Sharks, Devils, and Canucks are still good. It also isn’t surprising that the Panthers, Islanders, and Oilers are not that good.

(Teams are ranked by biggest drop-off in points/game after the Olympics)

NHL Teams	Olympians	Total Pain	Total Pain Grade
Tampa Bay Lightning	4	1200	D
San Jose Sharks	8	2048	F
Chicago Blackhawks	6	1036	C
Colorado Avalanche	3	728	B
Dallas Stars	4	560	A
Los Angeles Kings	5	1020	C
Ottawa Senators	5	1244	E
Philadelphia Flyers	5	1008	C
Minnesota Wild	5	1108	D
Atlanta Thrashers	5	1312	E
Florida Panthers	2	1088	C
Buffalo Sabres	4	1284	E
New Jersey Devils	6	1980	F
Boston Bruins	5	1232	E
Calgary Flames	3	1088	D
Pittsburgh Penguins	5	1216	D
Anaheim Ducks	7	1648	F
Edmonton Oilers	2	504	A
Vancouver Canucks	7	1868	F
New York Rangers	5	1104	D
Columbus Blue Jackets	6	788	B
Washington Capitals	5	896	B
Phoenix Coyotes	3	872	B
New York Islanders	1	448	A
St. Louis Blues	3	420	A
Nashville Predators	6	996	C
Montreal Canadiens	6	1344	E
Carolina Hurricanes	3	512	A
Toronto Maple Leafs	5	760	B
Detroit Red Wings	7	1580	F

Of the teams that saw a spike after the Olympics, (Maple Leafs, Red Wings, Canadiens, and Coyotes) Phoenix only sent three individuals to Vancouver, whereas Detroit sent 7, so perhaps this is just a case of teams either turning it on and getting good, or having more favorable schedules in the second-half. Conversely, the teams that fell apart in the second half (Blackhawks, Lightning, and Sharks) sent a mixed-bag of representatives to the Olympics.

Some teams had a good last-quarter of the season, others struggled, but it appears that the Olympics did not impact their performance. More interestingly, Just as a tiger reveals its stripes, so too does an NHL teams.

NHL Power Rankin's (week of 4/5/10)

We're down to the last week of hockey for the season, and the Power Rankin's are starting to crystallize. There are no Big Movers anywhere in the Rankin's, just some minor jostling as teams ramp it up or wind it down getting ready for playoff hockey (or golf).

One of the most noteworthy items in this final week is that the New York Rangers have finally moved up one spot, to #22. With Philadelphia standing pat versus last week at #20, we've got a battle of two undeserving teams (i.e., 20, 22 > 16) for the final playoff spot on our hands. The good news for the rest of the hockey world's fans - whichever team wins the honor of the #8 spot will be gone, oh, 5 games into the postseason I'd say.

Out West, its a shame that Colorado continues to slide slowly, but surely, down the Rankin's. They put up a helluva fight all year long, but are fading fast both in this analysis and in the standings. Contrary to the East, where the 8 seed is doomed, it would be unfortunate if the Avs missed the playoffs because the West's 8 seed will get a chance to upset San Jose in the first round. I've seen San Jose bounce around the daily Power Rankin's updates all year long, and I am convinced that they are set for yet another inconsistent postseason effort that will lead to an early exit.

1) (1) Phoenix
2) (2) Washington
3) (4) Nashville
4) (6) Chicago
5) (3) San Jose
6) (9) Los Angeles
7) (7) Buffalo
8) (5) Detroit
9) (8) Vancouver
10) (11) Pittsburgh
11) (10) Colorado
12) (12) New Jersey
13) (13) Calgary
14) (15) Ottawa
15) (16) Anaheim
16) (14) St. Louis
17) (18) Montreal
18) (17) Boston
19) (19) Dallas
20) (20) Philadelphia
21) (21) Atlanta
22) (23) NY Rangers
23) (22) Minnesota
24) (24) Florida
25) (25) NY Islanders
26) (26) Carolina
27) (27) Columbus
28) (29) Edmonton
29) (28) Tampa Bay
30) (30) Toronto