It's a sad day for yours truly. Not only were my Rangers knocked out of the playoffs with a heartwrenching 2-1 shootout loss to the hated Flyers, but my Blackhawks lost to the Red Wings 3-2 in overtime. That not only meant that the Hawks will finish second in the conference and have to play a much tougher Nashville team instead of the Colorado Avalanche, but it also pushed my Kings down from 5th to 6th. Of the four teams at the top of the West, the ONLY team I really wanted the Kings to avoid playing was Vancouver. We'll get into the whys of that in a second, but just about everything that could go wrong today did.
The meaningful games are almost over; we're waiting on the result of a Buffalo-New Jersey game that's in progress as I type this to decide who gets 2nd in the East. The West, however, has been decided, and finally we can break down all the match-ups heading into the playoff excitement. So in search of anything to distract me from the heartbreak, let's dive right into it and make some predictions!
(1) San Jose Sharks vs. (8) Colorado Avalanche
(Sharks won season series 2-1-1)
First of all, I'm not listing anyone's regular season records, because in my opinion you can throw that out the window once we get to the playoffs. How the teams did against each other back in that regular season is at least a little bit interesting, but I wouldn't read too much into that, either. As we all know, the playoffs are a whole different animal: more tight-checking and physical than regular season hockey could ever approach.
You can't talk about the San Jose Sharks without mentioning their playoff failures, most recently as the first seed against the eighth-seeded Anaheim Ducks. However, no one in San Jose should be too worried about history repeating itself this year. Colorado is almost an exact opposite of the Ducks team that knocked out the Sharks last year: the Ducks were a veteran team who got off to a poor start and then turned it on in a major way down the stretch to get again. They were a better team then their record showed, and they proved it by nearly eliminating the Red Wings in the second round. Colorado, on the other hand, is an incredibly young team who almost backed into the playoffs. They picked up a few big wins over the last week, including over the Sharks themselves, but the teams they beat were largely playing for nothing (or at least close to it). When the chips were down and the Avalanche had to beat the Calgary Flames to hold onto their spot last Friday, they lost. Only by getting some help from other teams did they hold off the Flames for the eighth and final playoff spot.
The Avs getting into the playoffs was clearly a great story. But I don't see how they can hold off a Sharks team that is hungry and out for blood (pardon the pun). There's simply no way this San Jose team will be anything but ready to play in the first round after what happened last year. I don't think the Sharks have what it takes to make it through the rest of the playoffs, but they shouldn't have much trouble here.
Prediciton: Sharks in four.
(2) Chicago Blackhawks vs. (7) Nashville Predators
(Blackhawks won season series 4-2-0)
The Hawks are an interesting team to talk about right now. They followed the exact same pattern as last year: awful in March, really good in April. Of course, that doesn't guarantee they will have a post-season like last year's, and most fans of the Hawks will tell you that simply a trip to the conference finals won't satisfy them this year. It's Cup or bust for these Hawks, but to get there they have to get through a very tough Nashville team. Nashville is a fantastic defensive team, and one of the big problems the Hawks have had all season long is getting through the neutral zone against teams who know how to play that 1-2-2 style well. Those problems are only increased when you consider the fact that the Hawks are missing their best puck-carrying defenseman, Brian Campbell, for what will likely be this entire first-round (and perhaps the second-round as well, should they get that far). There's also the question of how rookie goaltender Antti Niemi will hold up under the playoff pressure, a valid question to be sure.
With all that said, I don't think the Predators have enough firepower to hang in there with the Hawks in a seven-game series. I've told you a lot of reasons why the Hawks might not win, but now let me tell you even more reasons why they will win: Jonathan Toews. Patrick Kane. Marian Hossa. Patrick Sharp. John Madden. Kris Versteeg. And on and on and on. This is by far the deepest group of forwards in the Western conference, and only Washington can perhaps compete with them when it comes to being able to roll four lines and always have someone who can score on the ice. Nashville is a pretty great defensive team and Pekka Rinne has been stellar for them in net, but I don't see how they can shut down all four of the Hawks' lines for an entire series. The Hawks will have some problems, maybe even send the (suddenly very sizable) fanbase into a panic by losing game 1 at home, but in the end they'll pull it out.
Prediction: Blackhawks in six.
(3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Los Angeles Kings
(Vancouver won season series 3-1-0)
Like I already mentioned, of all the four opponents the Kings could have played in the opening round, this is the only one I really wanted them to avoid. With the sole exception of their recent 8-goal pummeling of the 'Nucks in LA, the Kings have almost always played horrible against Vancouver. They're probably the only team who have a line that's better on the cycle than the Kings (though their overall cycle game is still probably stronger), and considering it's largely on the strength of their cycle they got here in the first place, that would in fact be a problem. Vancouver had won a staggering seven games in a row against the Kings before LA finally snapped that streak.
Another problem for the Kings is the play of starting goalie Jonathan Quick, who has gone 0-3-3 in his last six games of the season. The Kings in general have played OK in front of him, sometimes better than others, but Quick has failed to lock it down even when the Kings were heavily outshooting their opponents. Quick's role as franchise goaltender of the future is suddenly in question with the rise of Jonathan Bernier, but unless Quick gets injured or really gets shellacked it will probably be his ball to run with (for this year, at least).
There's really not much else to say here. Vancouver will enter as overwhelming favorites with the best offense in the Western conference. Barring a meltdown from Luongo (who has been known to melt down in the playoffs before) and/or a complete drop-off in play from the Sedins, there's no reason to believe that the Canucks won't be able to handle the Kings with ease. Kings fans can take solace in the fact that their young team will likely be back, and the Vancouver team who will likely eliminate them is perhaps an early favorite to take the Western conference crown.
Prediction: Vancouver in five.
(4) Phoenix Coyotes vs. (5) Detroit Red Wings
(Detroit won the season series 2-0-2)
It's a shame for the Coyotes that it's come to this. Phoenix has had a fairytale season this year, turning from a team everyone had left for dead due to their off-season, off-ice woes into everyone's favorite underdog story. Their 107-point campaign was a new franchise record, including all those years in Winnipeg. But now their magical regular season, full of shootout wins and gutsy performances from guys having career years, must enter the playoffs and face reality. That reality is a Red Wings team that has lost only 1 game in regulation since the Olympic break, a Red Wings team that is healthy for the first time all year. And they are ready to pounce.
If Phoenix has any shot to win this series, they need to get out to a strong start and win both games in Phoenix. If they can really put some pressure on the Wings and their rookie goaltender Jimmy Howard, perhaps they can pull off the upset. We also don't know how this Detroit team will handle starting on the road in the playoffs for the first time in decades. But unless Phoenix has a lot more miracles left in them- and more late-period and overtime goals since there's no shootout to dominate in the playoffs- they will see their dream season come to a nightmare end. We all know how important special teams becomes in the playoffs, and Phoenix has one of the worst power plays in the NHL
Prediction: Detroit in five games.
Alright folks, that's it for the West. I'll be back later tonight breaking down all the matchups in the East, and don't forget we'll have a podcast talking it all over for you tomorrow night at 9 pm EST.
Showing posts with label predators. Show all posts
Showing posts with label predators. Show all posts
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Today's Games to Watch 3/27
Alright folks, the Eastern Conference playoff preview is on hold for now, for a couple of reasons. First of all, with the recent struggles of the Boston Bruins & especially the Philadelphia Flyers, the bottom of the East is nowhere near as locked-up as the bottom of the West, so I'm going to give it a few more days just to see if things get sorted out and we have a more clear view of who is finishing in 7th & 8th in the East. The Thrashers and Rangers, teams who we thought might have been out of it, are back in the race moreso due to the aforementioned teams' struggles than anything they've done (though the Rangers tying the game vs. the Devils with just 16 seconds left and then pulling out the extra point, in Jersey on the second night of a back-to-back no less, was admittedly impressive).
The second reason we're putting it on hold is today's schedule is among the most interesting we've seen in a while, so it's as good of a time as any to bring back Today's Games to Watch. As always, here's the awards we'll be handing out:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Saturday, March 27th
Overall: Definitely one of the most intriguing schedules we've seen in a while, full of teams fighting for their playoff lives as well as teams who are already near-locks for the playoffs going head-to-head.
Marquee Match-Up: Vancouver Canucks (45-25-4, 94 points, 1st in Northwest, 3rd in West) at San Jose Sharks (45-19-10, 100 points, 1st in Pacific, 1st in West)
10:00 pm EST/7:00 pm PST
National TV: CBC (Canada)
Following their six-game winless streak that was the Sharks' longest since November of 2005, San Jose appears to finally have turned things around after winning in Minnesota then coming home and winning that always-tough first game back from a long road trip against the Stars. It's of course worth noting that neither of those teams are playoff teams, but it's also worth noting that sometimes the hardest games to win are the games you're "supposed" to win this time of year. Just ask the Canucks, who dropped a game at home to the Islanders of all teams, how hard it can be to beat a team that's playing loosey-goosey hockey. However, now the Sharks will be faced with a much different test, as they welcome in the Northwest-leading Canucks. The Sharks are used to having everything wrapped up with a pretty bow at this time of year, but they currently sit just 1 point ahead of the Blackhawks (who have a game in hand) for 1st in the conference and 2 points ahead of the Coyotes for the division lead. If they want to hold on to the top seed going into the playoffs, they need all the points they can get. Vancouver, meanwhile, is looking at this as a statement game. Ever since the Sharks and Hawks have displayed their recent struggles, more and more pundits are shifting their Stanley Cup-favorite status in the West to the Canucks. If they can come into San Jose and beat the Sharks, it will be a huge reaffirmation of those words. No matter what happens, two division leaders meeting this close to the playoffs is always a huge deal, and this should be a fantastic game.
Prediction: Canucks 5-3
Runner-Up: Philadelphia Flyers (37-31-6, 80 points, 3rd in Atlantic, 7th in East) at Pittsburgh Penguins (42-25-7, 91 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East)
1:00 pm EST/10:00 am PST
The Flyers are, to put it simply, in a tailspin of epic proportions. Brian Boucher has looked even worse than people probably expected since Michael Leighton went down with an injury, going 1-4-1 and giving up soft goals in every game he's started. Blowing a 3-1 lead going into the 3rd period against the non-playoff Wild on Thursday was the most blatant example of this, as he gave up 2 goals from just not having his pads down in the right position coming across from one post to the other. That's basic, goalie school level stuff folks. As if that wasn't bad enough, Jeff Carter, the team's leading scorer in almost every category, is gone until the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs. Whether or not he'll even get a chance to come back this year is becoming more and more in question, as the Flyers absolutely need to get things turned around right now if they want to make the post-season. The Thrashers & Rangers, two teams playing pretty well right now, are nipping right at their heels (4 and 5 points back respectively), and the Flyers must be looking over their shoulder at the Rangers with the most nervousness. The Rangers have a road-heavy schedule, but they're also playing 6 of the next 7 games against non-playoff teams. Then, the two teams will meet in a home-and-home set to end their respective seasons, and given the way the Rangers have played the Flyers at times this year, the Flyers do NOT want it to come down to those two games to decide which of these two teams makes the playoffs. So with all that said, they have decided to throw rookie goaltender Johan Backlund to the proverbial wolves today, as he will make his first-ever NHL start in Pittsburgh of all places, a place where the Flyers have struggled to win since the lockout even without a rookie goalie in net. Even worse, they're playing a Penguins team that is just as desperate for points as they are, trying to chase down to the Devils for the Atlantic division lead. Flyers-Penguins games are always chippy, hard-hitting affairs, but this game has twice the intrigue as usual just because we'll get to see if Backlund can be entrusted to carry the ball. Given how bad Boucher has been, the Flyers better pray he can.
Prediction: Penguins 5-2
Under the Radar: Detroit Red Wings (38-23-13, 89 points, 3rd in Central, 8th in West) at Nashville Predators (43-27-5, 91 points, 2nd in Central, 5th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
The Red Wings are the hottest team in hockey right now, having won four in a row and only dropped 2 games (1 in regulation) since the Olympic break. They've put 6 points of separation between themselves and 9th place Calgary, and now they can concentrate on trying to move up the standings in the top 8 before the end of the season. It's hard to believe considering how hot the Predators have been, too, but they now sit just 2 points ahead of their division rivals in Detroit, and that's with a game in hand for the Winged Wheel. So this game is incredibly important for both teams, as Nashville will want to put up a 4 point cushion to try and give themselves some breathing room. Either way, Detroit will still have a game in hand, so this game could very well end up being the deciding factor for which of these two teams finishes ahead of the other.
Prediction: Red Wings 4-3 (SO)
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: New York Islanders (30-34-10, 70 points, 5th in Atlantic, 14th in East) at Columbus Blue Jackets (30-32-12, 72 points, 5th in Central, 14th in West)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm PST
I always get a ton of crap from my Isles-loving friend when I pick the Isles for my Ice Dancing game, but tonight it's not even close. This is one of only two games of the night between non-playoff teams, amazing given how many of those games we've had all week. It's the 14th-place teams of each conference which of course means no rivalry to speak of, and the only thing on the line here is the loser putting themselves in better draft position. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, who really cares? With all that said, admittedly both teams have played well against better competition of late, really taking to that spoiler role. The Isles beat the Flames, who desperately need those 2 points to keep pace with Detroit; in fact, you could probably argue that loss has ended Calgary's season. Columbus, meanwhile, welcomed in a Chicago team that needed 2 points to keep pace with San Jose atop the Western conference, and absolutely pounded them 8-3. Of course, the problem is neither team can spoil the other, so this is gonna be a tough game to get up for.
Prediction: Isles 2-1
The Rest
Flames @ Bruins, 1:00 pm EST: Well, like I just said, the Flames have probably already squandered their only chance to catch the Red Wings for 8th in the West. The question now is, do they come out flying in Boston trying desperately to salvage their season, as we saw the Rangers do this week after their potentially season-ending loss to Boston? Or do they come out flat knowing their season is probably over? Boston of course needs the points to stay ahead of those Rangers & Thrashers. This could be a good game between two desperate teams, or it could be one desperate team absolutely pounding the crap out of a team that's already given up. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Lightning @ Sabres, 7:00 pm EST: The Sabres are on the second-half of a back-to-back coming off a disappointing loss to division rivals Ottawa at home last night. A win here will probably put a kibosh on any hopes the Senators have of challenging Buffalo for the division title, given the games in hand the Sabres still have. Meanwhile, the only chase the Lightning are really in is Stamkos chasing the Rocket. They could be up for it to try and play spoiler, but for some reason the Lightning always seem to play really poorly against Buffalo. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Thrashers @ Hurricanes, 7:00 pm EST: The only other game between non-playoff teams, Atlanta is at least still right there in the race, 2 points back of 8th place Boston and 4 points back of 7th place Philadelphia. Their hosts in Carolina have been one of the best teams in the second-half of the season, and if it wasn't for their awful, awful first-half they'd be comfortably in the playoffs right now. Atlanta needs these 2 points desperately with the Rangers now nipping at their heels just 1 point behind, but everytime you think Carolina is ready to roll over and give up on their slim playoff hopes, they keep winning games. This should be a good one. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Devils @ Canadiens, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC & RDS in Canada, NHL Network US) Martin Brodeur always plays very well in his home province against his childhood favorite team, and tonight should be no exception with the added incentive of staying ahead of Pittsburgh in the Atlantic race. The Habs, meanwhile, are probably the East's hottest team since the Olympic break, reeling off a 6-game winning streak that was interrupted only with a loss to Ottawa and an OT loss to the Sabres, then responding by bouncing right back with a clutch home win against the Panthers on Thursday night. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Panthers @ Senators, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC) Speaking of the Panthers, they will once again be without David Booth after he took yet another hit to the had against the Habs on Thursday. Unlike the blindside hit Mike Richards gave him earlier in the season, however, this one was totally Booth's fault, as he skated into the Montreal zone with his head down (something you're taught not to do as a 6-year-old) and paid the price for it. The Sens finally seem to have come out of their post-Olympic funk, and the only thing that could stop them from pounding on the Booth-less Panthers is this being the second night of a back-to-back. Either way, this game probably won't be very exciting. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Rangers @ Maple Leafs, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC) Alright, New York, here's what everyone has been waiting for. Every since the Rangers lost that disappointing game to Boston on Sunday, everyone pointed to their six-game road trip where 5 of the 6 teams are far out of the playoffs as their chance to make up ground. The Rangers already made up some ground by pounding the hapless Isles into submission with a 5-0 home win then following that up with their gutsy victory in Newark the very next night. Now that they've finally put themselves back into the race, they absolutely need to start these games against non-playoff teams on the right foot. If they lose to the Maple Leafs (who are in the middle of their yearly "well, we're out of it, so I guess we might as well finally play some hockey" March surge), it will get this make-hay run off on absolutely the wrong foot. A win, on the other hand, would be the Rangers' first 3-game win streak in almost three months and really get that snowball of momentum rolling downhill (and right towards the playoffs). The Maple Leafs aren't gonna roll over for them and have beaten better teams in Toronto of late, and as a result this should be a pretty good game. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Avalanche @ Coyotes, 9:00 pm EST: Colorado's position in 7th is very tenuous, as they have been extremely inconsistent since the Olympic break. Now they have to go into Phoenix and beat one of the NHL's best home teams, with Detroit breathing right down on their neck (tied in points but the Avs have a game in hand). The 'Yotes are looking to bounce back from actually, gasp, LOSING a shootout to the Predators, and want to keep pace with the Sharks for an incredibly improbable Pacific division title. With all that said, both these teams aren't all that exciting on most nights, so this game might not be all that exciting, either. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Stars @ Kings, 10:30 pm EST: Speaking of teams that the Red Wings are breathing down on, the Kings are only 1 point up on the Winged Wheel and absolutely do not want to fall back into that 7-8 hole. This is another team that's been very up-and-down since the Olympic break, as they've shown flashes of brilliance but also shown some signs of mental and physical fatigue, especially from starting goaltender Jonathan Quick. Coming back after going 0-1-1 in a brief 2-game trip, the Kings could use a pick-me-up, and beating the non-playoff Stars would be just what the doctor ordered. Dallas, on the other hand, was playing pretty well of late before dropping a 3-0 decision in San Jose, so they'll be trying to bounce back as well. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that'll do it for another edition of Today's Games to Watch in the NHL. We've got two early games that are incredibly important for all four teams, so enjoy some afternoon action then get ready for the main event late tonight between the Sharks and the Canucks.
The second reason we're putting it on hold is today's schedule is among the most interesting we've seen in a while, so it's as good of a time as any to bring back Today's Games to Watch. As always, here's the awards we'll be handing out:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Saturday, March 27th
Overall: Definitely one of the most intriguing schedules we've seen in a while, full of teams fighting for their playoff lives as well as teams who are already near-locks for the playoffs going head-to-head.
Marquee Match-Up: Vancouver Canucks (45-25-4, 94 points, 1st in Northwest, 3rd in West) at San Jose Sharks (45-19-10, 100 points, 1st in Pacific, 1st in West)
10:00 pm EST/7:00 pm PST
National TV: CBC (Canada)
Following their six-game winless streak that was the Sharks' longest since November of 2005, San Jose appears to finally have turned things around after winning in Minnesota then coming home and winning that always-tough first game back from a long road trip against the Stars. It's of course worth noting that neither of those teams are playoff teams, but it's also worth noting that sometimes the hardest games to win are the games you're "supposed" to win this time of year. Just ask the Canucks, who dropped a game at home to the Islanders of all teams, how hard it can be to beat a team that's playing loosey-goosey hockey. However, now the Sharks will be faced with a much different test, as they welcome in the Northwest-leading Canucks. The Sharks are used to having everything wrapped up with a pretty bow at this time of year, but they currently sit just 1 point ahead of the Blackhawks (who have a game in hand) for 1st in the conference and 2 points ahead of the Coyotes for the division lead. If they want to hold on to the top seed going into the playoffs, they need all the points they can get. Vancouver, meanwhile, is looking at this as a statement game. Ever since the Sharks and Hawks have displayed their recent struggles, more and more pundits are shifting their Stanley Cup-favorite status in the West to the Canucks. If they can come into San Jose and beat the Sharks, it will be a huge reaffirmation of those words. No matter what happens, two division leaders meeting this close to the playoffs is always a huge deal, and this should be a fantastic game.
Prediction: Canucks 5-3
Runner-Up: Philadelphia Flyers (37-31-6, 80 points, 3rd in Atlantic, 7th in East) at Pittsburgh Penguins (42-25-7, 91 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East)
1:00 pm EST/10:00 am PST
The Flyers are, to put it simply, in a tailspin of epic proportions. Brian Boucher has looked even worse than people probably expected since Michael Leighton went down with an injury, going 1-4-1 and giving up soft goals in every game he's started. Blowing a 3-1 lead going into the 3rd period against the non-playoff Wild on Thursday was the most blatant example of this, as he gave up 2 goals from just not having his pads down in the right position coming across from one post to the other. That's basic, goalie school level stuff folks. As if that wasn't bad enough, Jeff Carter, the team's leading scorer in almost every category, is gone until the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs. Whether or not he'll even get a chance to come back this year is becoming more and more in question, as the Flyers absolutely need to get things turned around right now if they want to make the post-season. The Thrashers & Rangers, two teams playing pretty well right now, are nipping right at their heels (4 and 5 points back respectively), and the Flyers must be looking over their shoulder at the Rangers with the most nervousness. The Rangers have a road-heavy schedule, but they're also playing 6 of the next 7 games against non-playoff teams. Then, the two teams will meet in a home-and-home set to end their respective seasons, and given the way the Rangers have played the Flyers at times this year, the Flyers do NOT want it to come down to those two games to decide which of these two teams makes the playoffs. So with all that said, they have decided to throw rookie goaltender Johan Backlund to the proverbial wolves today, as he will make his first-ever NHL start in Pittsburgh of all places, a place where the Flyers have struggled to win since the lockout even without a rookie goalie in net. Even worse, they're playing a Penguins team that is just as desperate for points as they are, trying to chase down to the Devils for the Atlantic division lead. Flyers-Penguins games are always chippy, hard-hitting affairs, but this game has twice the intrigue as usual just because we'll get to see if Backlund can be entrusted to carry the ball. Given how bad Boucher has been, the Flyers better pray he can.
Prediction: Penguins 5-2
Under the Radar: Detroit Red Wings (38-23-13, 89 points, 3rd in Central, 8th in West) at Nashville Predators (43-27-5, 91 points, 2nd in Central, 5th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
The Red Wings are the hottest team in hockey right now, having won four in a row and only dropped 2 games (1 in regulation) since the Olympic break. They've put 6 points of separation between themselves and 9th place Calgary, and now they can concentrate on trying to move up the standings in the top 8 before the end of the season. It's hard to believe considering how hot the Predators have been, too, but they now sit just 2 points ahead of their division rivals in Detroit, and that's with a game in hand for the Winged Wheel. So this game is incredibly important for both teams, as Nashville will want to put up a 4 point cushion to try and give themselves some breathing room. Either way, Detroit will still have a game in hand, so this game could very well end up being the deciding factor for which of these two teams finishes ahead of the other.
Prediction: Red Wings 4-3 (SO)
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: New York Islanders (30-34-10, 70 points, 5th in Atlantic, 14th in East) at Columbus Blue Jackets (30-32-12, 72 points, 5th in Central, 14th in West)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm PST
I always get a ton of crap from my Isles-loving friend when I pick the Isles for my Ice Dancing game, but tonight it's not even close. This is one of only two games of the night between non-playoff teams, amazing given how many of those games we've had all week. It's the 14th-place teams of each conference which of course means no rivalry to speak of, and the only thing on the line here is the loser putting themselves in better draft position. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, who really cares? With all that said, admittedly both teams have played well against better competition of late, really taking to that spoiler role. The Isles beat the Flames, who desperately need those 2 points to keep pace with Detroit; in fact, you could probably argue that loss has ended Calgary's season. Columbus, meanwhile, welcomed in a Chicago team that needed 2 points to keep pace with San Jose atop the Western conference, and absolutely pounded them 8-3. Of course, the problem is neither team can spoil the other, so this is gonna be a tough game to get up for.
Prediction: Isles 2-1
The Rest
Flames @ Bruins, 1:00 pm EST: Well, like I just said, the Flames have probably already squandered their only chance to catch the Red Wings for 8th in the West. The question now is, do they come out flying in Boston trying desperately to salvage their season, as we saw the Rangers do this week after their potentially season-ending loss to Boston? Or do they come out flat knowing their season is probably over? Boston of course needs the points to stay ahead of those Rangers & Thrashers. This could be a good game between two desperate teams, or it could be one desperate team absolutely pounding the crap out of a team that's already given up. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Lightning @ Sabres, 7:00 pm EST: The Sabres are on the second-half of a back-to-back coming off a disappointing loss to division rivals Ottawa at home last night. A win here will probably put a kibosh on any hopes the Senators have of challenging Buffalo for the division title, given the games in hand the Sabres still have. Meanwhile, the only chase the Lightning are really in is Stamkos chasing the Rocket. They could be up for it to try and play spoiler, but for some reason the Lightning always seem to play really poorly against Buffalo. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Thrashers @ Hurricanes, 7:00 pm EST: The only other game between non-playoff teams, Atlanta is at least still right there in the race, 2 points back of 8th place Boston and 4 points back of 7th place Philadelphia. Their hosts in Carolina have been one of the best teams in the second-half of the season, and if it wasn't for their awful, awful first-half they'd be comfortably in the playoffs right now. Atlanta needs these 2 points desperately with the Rangers now nipping at their heels just 1 point behind, but everytime you think Carolina is ready to roll over and give up on their slim playoff hopes, they keep winning games. This should be a good one. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Devils @ Canadiens, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC & RDS in Canada, NHL Network US) Martin Brodeur always plays very well in his home province against his childhood favorite team, and tonight should be no exception with the added incentive of staying ahead of Pittsburgh in the Atlantic race. The Habs, meanwhile, are probably the East's hottest team since the Olympic break, reeling off a 6-game winning streak that was interrupted only with a loss to Ottawa and an OT loss to the Sabres, then responding by bouncing right back with a clutch home win against the Panthers on Thursday night. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Panthers @ Senators, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC) Speaking of the Panthers, they will once again be without David Booth after he took yet another hit to the had against the Habs on Thursday. Unlike the blindside hit Mike Richards gave him earlier in the season, however, this one was totally Booth's fault, as he skated into the Montreal zone with his head down (something you're taught not to do as a 6-year-old) and paid the price for it. The Sens finally seem to have come out of their post-Olympic funk, and the only thing that could stop them from pounding on the Booth-less Panthers is this being the second night of a back-to-back. Either way, this game probably won't be very exciting. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Rangers @ Maple Leafs, 7:00 pm EST: (National TV: CBC) Alright, New York, here's what everyone has been waiting for. Every since the Rangers lost that disappointing game to Boston on Sunday, everyone pointed to their six-game road trip where 5 of the 6 teams are far out of the playoffs as their chance to make up ground. The Rangers already made up some ground by pounding the hapless Isles into submission with a 5-0 home win then following that up with their gutsy victory in Newark the very next night. Now that they've finally put themselves back into the race, they absolutely need to start these games against non-playoff teams on the right foot. If they lose to the Maple Leafs (who are in the middle of their yearly "well, we're out of it, so I guess we might as well finally play some hockey" March surge), it will get this make-hay run off on absolutely the wrong foot. A win, on the other hand, would be the Rangers' first 3-game win streak in almost three months and really get that snowball of momentum rolling downhill (and right towards the playoffs). The Maple Leafs aren't gonna roll over for them and have beaten better teams in Toronto of late, and as a result this should be a pretty good game. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Avalanche @ Coyotes, 9:00 pm EST: Colorado's position in 7th is very tenuous, as they have been extremely inconsistent since the Olympic break. Now they have to go into Phoenix and beat one of the NHL's best home teams, with Detroit breathing right down on their neck (tied in points but the Avs have a game in hand). The 'Yotes are looking to bounce back from actually, gasp, LOSING a shootout to the Predators, and want to keep pace with the Sharks for an incredibly improbable Pacific division title. With all that said, both these teams aren't all that exciting on most nights, so this game might not be all that exciting, either. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Stars @ Kings, 10:30 pm EST: Speaking of teams that the Red Wings are breathing down on, the Kings are only 1 point up on the Winged Wheel and absolutely do not want to fall back into that 7-8 hole. This is another team that's been very up-and-down since the Olympic break, as they've shown flashes of brilliance but also shown some signs of mental and physical fatigue, especially from starting goaltender Jonathan Quick. Coming back after going 0-1-1 in a brief 2-game trip, the Kings could use a pick-me-up, and beating the non-playoff Stars would be just what the doctor ordered. Dallas, on the other hand, was playing pretty well of late before dropping a 3-0 decision in San Jose, so they'll be trying to bounce back as well. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that'll do it for another edition of Today's Games to Watch in the NHL. We've got two early games that are incredibly important for all four teams, so enjoy some afternoon action then get ready for the main event late tonight between the Sharks and the Canucks.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Versus returns to DirecTV; Today's Games to Watch 3/16
Alright folks, I know I missed a couple of days, and no it wasn't just out of the shame of being there in-person for my Blackhawks' 2.1 second collapse against the Flyers on Saturday. The Hawks weren't the only things collapsing on Saturday; the sky itself apparently decided to join them, as this entire region was just flooded nonstop with rain on Saturday & into early Sunday. So I ended up staying overnight in one of my least favorite places, putting the kibosh on any hopes of getting a blog up before the first NHL game at 12:30. As far as yesterday goes, did you really need me to tell you which of the THREE games to watch? Probably not. But we've got a full slate of 11 games to get into today, so here I am.
But before we get back into the swing of things, I wanted to talk a little bit about the return to DirecTV of the NHL's oft-maligned cable partner, Versus. As a DTV customer this kind of hits home, and obviously I'm thrilled the NHL playoffs will be on the satcaster. Before we put the kibosh on this story for good, let's take a look at a few of the details that came out in the network's return.
There should no longer be any debate on what the REAL cause for this outage was, thanks to some very telling quotes from both sides. From the beginning of this whole mess (way back in LATE AUGUST), we heard two different sides to this story. There was the Comcast/Versus side, which said that DirecTV wanted to put them on a lower programming tier (a sports-specific tier, apparently), and they would not accept losing a very large percentage of their viewership just when they were adding a ton of new properties. Meanwhile, the DirecTV side never said anything about a tier, they just said Comcast wanted more money and they were refusing to pay it.
Well, read the quotes from yesterday closely enough, and one thing stands out: Versus is not only back on DirecTV, but they're back on *the same tier they were on back before all this started*. The quotes go on to specifically state they will stay there from here on out. This not only means that Comcast's quotes were, at the very least, quite a bit less dishonest than DirecTV's, but it also means that there should be no question who blinked first and who, in the end, "won" this whole mess. Comcast said they were open to negotiations on money (and I imagine they did have to take a bit of a hit from what they were originally asking), but being placed on a lower tier was a non-starter and no deal would be done with that included. Not that I should have to reiterate it for you again, but that's exactly what happened.
DirecTV was facing mounting pressure from three different sides to get the network back; namely, the NHL fans we all know about have been increasingly pressuring the satcaster to get the network back on the air in time for the stretch run and the playoffs. It's worth noting that Versus has probably their strongest schedule I've ever seen from them for the rest of the regular season, including both of the remaining meetings in the NHL's most high-profile rivalry, the Capitals and the Penguins. A shocking amount of fans had already switched to their rival Dish Network in the past six months, thanks in part to a clever ad campaign that specifically pointed out Dish had Versus and DTV didn't, and you have to believe that number only would have jumped tenfold once the playoffs started and people were theoretically missing games not just twice a week, but every single night! It's also worth noting that several articles I've seen have mentioned that the pressure on DirecTV from hockey fans went up significantly after the Olympics, saying that hockey's "increased visibility" from the Games greatly helped Versus & the NHL put more pressure on the satcaster.
Besides that increased pressure from hockey fans, DirecTV was also under pressure from fans of mixed marital-arts, as the juggernaut UFC promotion has its first-ever event on Versus scheduled for this weekend. Finally, cycling fans have apparently been making some noise to DirecTV as well, as Lance Armstrong will be back in the Tour de France this year, which airs exclusively on, you guessed it, Versus. So facing all of this mounting pressure from all sides, DirecTV finally gave in and dropped their ridiculous demand, and what do you know, a deal got done almost immediately.
Hopefully they learned something from this whole sideshow mess: if you're going to promote your satellite service as having "the most sports coverage", you can't just ignore several sports because you don't think they're important. Yes, Versus is nowhere near as important as ESPN, everyone is aware of this. But when one of your sources of subscriptions is having one of the best all-around NHL Center Ice packages out there, you can't simultaneously thumb your noses at hockey fans and tell them their sport doesn't count. They lost a ton of this money through this whole process from irate hockey fans calling up, complaining, and getting 25, 50, and yes, even 100% refunds off their Center Ice packages, and they lost even more money from fans who finally just gave up on the service altogether. This all could have ended when the regular season started in October if they had just dropped their silly demand and put Versus back on the air, and hopefully the people in charge can look in the mirror and realize they just wasted seven months and a lot of profits and, in the end, had to give up on their demand altogether anyway. They lost, Versus won, end of story.
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Okay, with that bit of business out of the way, let's get back to the hockey. As always, here's the awards I'll be giving out to tonight's games:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Tuesday, March 16th
Overall: An 11-game schedule provides some excitement, but there's really no genuine best-on-best match-ups to really get our hearts pumping.
Marquee Match-Up: Montreal Canadiens (35-29-6, 76 points, 3rd in Northeast, 7th in East) at New York Rangers (31-29-9, 71 points, 4th in Atlantic, 9th in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
National TV: Versus (US) & RDS (Canada, french only)
Two original six teams step into the spotlight on Versus (hey, a tie-in to the rest of the blog, yay!), as the Habs make a rare national TV appearance in the US as they visit the suddenly revitalized Rangers. The Rangers are sitting 1 point back of the struggling Bruins (who are in Carolina tonight), but the Bruins will still have a game in hand after tonight's games, making a win here for the Blueshirts even more important. Meanwhile, the Habs have been playing great hockey as of late, and they'll be riding a 5-game winning streak into the Garden. They couldn't have picked a better time to get hot, as they've still played more games than anyone else in the East (including the Rangers), so even though they're coming closer to locking up a playoff spot with each win of this streak, nothing's guaranteed just yet. If both these teams play as well as they've been playing of late, this should be nothing short of a great match-up, well worthy of marquee status. And hey, DirecTV customers, you can actually watch it! How about that?
Prediction: Rangers 4-3 (SO)
Runner-Up: Toronto Maple Leafs (23-34-12, 58 points, 5th in Northeast, 15th in East) at Ottawa Senators (37-27-5, 79 points, 2nd in Northeast, 5th in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
Though it's hard to pick the Maple Leafs for runners-up in anything other than "biggest failures" (and actually, that might offend Oilers fans since they, unlike Toronto, at least still have their 1st round pick), on a relatively weak night in marquee-quality match-ups, I have to give the nod to the Battle of Ontario. Here's something that might surprise you: that same Senators team that went on their club-record-setting 11-game win streak just a few short months ago has the exact same record as their southern Ontario counterparts in their last 10 games: 4-5-1. For the Leafs, that's a reflection of stronger play of late as some of the kids have stepped into the line-up and looked promising. For the Sens, on the other hand, that's a reflection of how they've suddenly run out of goals, and they've gone from having a slight lead over Buffalo in the Northeast to starting to fade fast in that particular race. You have to believe the Leafs would love nothing more than to beat their Ontario rivals and help continue that slide out of contention for home-ice advantage, in their own barn no less. This game could provide some excitement as a result.
Prediction: Sens 4-2
Under the Radar: Philadelphia Flyers (36-28-4, 76 points, 3rd in Atlantic, 6th in East) at Nashville Predators (38-26-5, 81 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
This may be hard to believe when we're talking about an 11-game schedule for a league where MORE THAN HALF of the teams make the playoffs, but this is the only game of the night where both teams are in playoff position going into the game. So even though a game that reads "Flyers @ Predators" probably doesn't jump off the page at you, in actuality this is probably the night's best match-up, at least as far as the quality of the two teams goes. Both teams are also playing relatively well of late: the Flyers are 7-3-0 in their last 10 and the Preds are 6-4-0, with both teams coming off huge late victories over good opponents (the Flyers with the aforementioned 2.1 second shocker over the Hawks, while the Preds scored with about a minute-and-a-half to play to continue their mastery over the Kings). This should be a good, tight-checking, low-scoring battle between two teams who know how to play defense. As Mike Babcock said last night after the Wings-Flames game, even though people like to say "such and such game had a playoff feel", it's still not the playoffs. But this is probably as close as you're going to get tonight.
Prediction: Preds 3-2 (SO)
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: Edmonton Oilers (21-41-7, 49 points, 5th in Northwest, 15th in West) at Minnesota Wild (33-29-6, 72 points, 4th in Northwest, 11th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
I'm sure there will be some smart-aleck who will read this and think to themselves "But John, at least this is a divisional rivalry! What about, say, the Avs and the Blues?". And to you, imaginary person, I say, hogwash! How much of a divisional rivalry can it really be when one team is 20 GAMES BELOW .500 and it's a battle of 4th and 5th in the division? Please. At least the Avs and the Blues are both above .500. Hell, one of those teams is even in the playoffs! Don't get me wrong, I'm not gonna tell you to watch that game either, but as far as games on tonight's schedule that are completely useless, I still give the edge to this one. Then again, given how the past few games I've given this award to have turned out (Sharks-Panthers was a 3-2 overtime thriller win for Florida, the Wild upset the Sabres 3-2 as well), I'm sure this game will turn out to be exciting, just so I can be wrong again.
Prediction: Wild 4-1
The Rest
Bruins @ Hurricanes, 7:00 pm EST: The Bruins are bad, but it's not for a lack of effort. They play hard and they usually play physical, but they just don't have the goal-scoring on most nights to get things done, especially now with Marc Savard out. It's hard to believe considering they're still holding onto a playoff spot in the East by the skin of their teeth, but the Bruins are 30th in goals for per game. Yes, out of 30. Meanwhile, Carolina's still got their sights set on a miracle comeback, 8 points back of the Bruins going into tonight, so obviously a win here would be huge. 4 point game, might just make it exciting. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Sabres @ Thrashers, 7:00 pm EST: The Thrashers' playoff hopes are fading fast with each heartbreaking loss, and they suffered yet another one to the Coyotes in a shootout. How many home games can Atlanta squander before they're officially out of it? Tonight they've got Eastern heavyweights Buffalo in, and this will either be a slaughter for the Sabres, or a very competitive, up-tempo game. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Coyotes @ Lightning, 7:30 pm EST: I heard one of Tampa's beat writers say he thinks the Lightning played their two best games of the season over the weekend; unfortunately for Tampa, that was still only good enough for a 1-1-0 record, thanks to a heartbreaking late goal given up against the Penguins. They won't have much time to dwell on that as they'll welcome the streaking Coyotes into the Forum. I'm expecting a physical, competitive game, as it's do-or-die time for Tampa. Of all the "rest" games, this is easily your best bet. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Capitals @ Panthers, 7:30 pm EST: Fortunately for the Panthers, Ovechkin got suspended two games for his hit on Brian Campbell. Unfortunately for the Panthers, the Capitals have a great record without Ovie in the line-up this season, as this isn't 2007 anymore and they're much more than a one man show. The last time these two teams played in Florida, it was a super-exciting, high-scoring comeback win for the Caps; then again, the last time the Caps played in Florida, the Panthers were still a playoff contender. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Avalanche @ Blues, 8:00 pm EST: Hey, so, remember when I said that this game wasn't quite bad enough to win tonight's Ice Dancing award? That should in no way be construed as telling you to watch it. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Sharks @ Stars, 8:30 pm EST: Remember when Dallas was sitting in 10th for the longest time and kept flirting with the idea of being an actual, honest-to-goodness playoff contender? Well, they're sitting in 12th now, 9 points back of 8th place Detroit. So much for that. Oh yeah, this game will probably suck, too. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Islanders @ Canucks, 10:00 pm EST: I've been getting a lot of crap from a very good friend of mine who happens to be an Isles fan about how often I tell people not to watch Islanders games. To be fair to the Isles, they've won 2 in a row and they've been better of late. But beating a Devils team that's actually not playing Marty and beating the Toronto Maple Leafs are two totally different things from beating one of the NHL's best in the Vancouver Canucks. With all that said, since it's the only late game tonight anyway, I'm gonna give the Isles the benefit of the doubt and say this MIGHT actually be competitive, if only because the Canucks are due for a let-down game. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that's it from me. As always, enjoy the hockey!
But before we get back into the swing of things, I wanted to talk a little bit about the return to DirecTV of the NHL's oft-maligned cable partner, Versus. As a DTV customer this kind of hits home, and obviously I'm thrilled the NHL playoffs will be on the satcaster. Before we put the kibosh on this story for good, let's take a look at a few of the details that came out in the network's return.
There should no longer be any debate on what the REAL cause for this outage was, thanks to some very telling quotes from both sides. From the beginning of this whole mess (way back in LATE AUGUST), we heard two different sides to this story. There was the Comcast/Versus side, which said that DirecTV wanted to put them on a lower programming tier (a sports-specific tier, apparently), and they would not accept losing a very large percentage of their viewership just when they were adding a ton of new properties. Meanwhile, the DirecTV side never said anything about a tier, they just said Comcast wanted more money and they were refusing to pay it.
Well, read the quotes from yesterday closely enough, and one thing stands out: Versus is not only back on DirecTV, but they're back on *the same tier they were on back before all this started*. The quotes go on to specifically state they will stay there from here on out. This not only means that Comcast's quotes were, at the very least, quite a bit less dishonest than DirecTV's, but it also means that there should be no question who blinked first and who, in the end, "won" this whole mess. Comcast said they were open to negotiations on money (and I imagine they did have to take a bit of a hit from what they were originally asking), but being placed on a lower tier was a non-starter and no deal would be done with that included. Not that I should have to reiterate it for you again, but that's exactly what happened.
DirecTV was facing mounting pressure from three different sides to get the network back; namely, the NHL fans we all know about have been increasingly pressuring the satcaster to get the network back on the air in time for the stretch run and the playoffs. It's worth noting that Versus has probably their strongest schedule I've ever seen from them for the rest of the regular season, including both of the remaining meetings in the NHL's most high-profile rivalry, the Capitals and the Penguins. A shocking amount of fans had already switched to their rival Dish Network in the past six months, thanks in part to a clever ad campaign that specifically pointed out Dish had Versus and DTV didn't, and you have to believe that number only would have jumped tenfold once the playoffs started and people were theoretically missing games not just twice a week, but every single night! It's also worth noting that several articles I've seen have mentioned that the pressure on DirecTV from hockey fans went up significantly after the Olympics, saying that hockey's "increased visibility" from the Games greatly helped Versus & the NHL put more pressure on the satcaster.
Besides that increased pressure from hockey fans, DirecTV was also under pressure from fans of mixed marital-arts, as the juggernaut UFC promotion has its first-ever event on Versus scheduled for this weekend. Finally, cycling fans have apparently been making some noise to DirecTV as well, as Lance Armstrong will be back in the Tour de France this year, which airs exclusively on, you guessed it, Versus. So facing all of this mounting pressure from all sides, DirecTV finally gave in and dropped their ridiculous demand, and what do you know, a deal got done almost immediately.
Hopefully they learned something from this whole sideshow mess: if you're going to promote your satellite service as having "the most sports coverage", you can't just ignore several sports because you don't think they're important. Yes, Versus is nowhere near as important as ESPN, everyone is aware of this. But when one of your sources of subscriptions is having one of the best all-around NHL Center Ice packages out there, you can't simultaneously thumb your noses at hockey fans and tell them their sport doesn't count. They lost a ton of this money through this whole process from irate hockey fans calling up, complaining, and getting 25, 50, and yes, even 100% refunds off their Center Ice packages, and they lost even more money from fans who finally just gave up on the service altogether. This all could have ended when the regular season started in October if they had just dropped their silly demand and put Versus back on the air, and hopefully the people in charge can look in the mirror and realize they just wasted seven months and a lot of profits and, in the end, had to give up on their demand altogether anyway. They lost, Versus won, end of story.
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Okay, with that bit of business out of the way, let's get back to the hockey. As always, here's the awards I'll be giving out to tonight's games:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Tuesday, March 16th
Overall: An 11-game schedule provides some excitement, but there's really no genuine best-on-best match-ups to really get our hearts pumping.
Marquee Match-Up: Montreal Canadiens (35-29-6, 76 points, 3rd in Northeast, 7th in East) at New York Rangers (31-29-9, 71 points, 4th in Atlantic, 9th in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
National TV: Versus (US) & RDS (Canada, french only)
Two original six teams step into the spotlight on Versus (hey, a tie-in to the rest of the blog, yay!), as the Habs make a rare national TV appearance in the US as they visit the suddenly revitalized Rangers. The Rangers are sitting 1 point back of the struggling Bruins (who are in Carolina tonight), but the Bruins will still have a game in hand after tonight's games, making a win here for the Blueshirts even more important. Meanwhile, the Habs have been playing great hockey as of late, and they'll be riding a 5-game winning streak into the Garden. They couldn't have picked a better time to get hot, as they've still played more games than anyone else in the East (including the Rangers), so even though they're coming closer to locking up a playoff spot with each win of this streak, nothing's guaranteed just yet. If both these teams play as well as they've been playing of late, this should be nothing short of a great match-up, well worthy of marquee status. And hey, DirecTV customers, you can actually watch it! How about that?
Prediction: Rangers 4-3 (SO)
Runner-Up: Toronto Maple Leafs (23-34-12, 58 points, 5th in Northeast, 15th in East) at Ottawa Senators (37-27-5, 79 points, 2nd in Northeast, 5th in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
Though it's hard to pick the Maple Leafs for runners-up in anything other than "biggest failures" (and actually, that might offend Oilers fans since they, unlike Toronto, at least still have their 1st round pick), on a relatively weak night in marquee-quality match-ups, I have to give the nod to the Battle of Ontario. Here's something that might surprise you: that same Senators team that went on their club-record-setting 11-game win streak just a few short months ago has the exact same record as their southern Ontario counterparts in their last 10 games: 4-5-1. For the Leafs, that's a reflection of stronger play of late as some of the kids have stepped into the line-up and looked promising. For the Sens, on the other hand, that's a reflection of how they've suddenly run out of goals, and they've gone from having a slight lead over Buffalo in the Northeast to starting to fade fast in that particular race. You have to believe the Leafs would love nothing more than to beat their Ontario rivals and help continue that slide out of contention for home-ice advantage, in their own barn no less. This game could provide some excitement as a result.
Prediction: Sens 4-2
Under the Radar: Philadelphia Flyers (36-28-4, 76 points, 3rd in Atlantic, 6th in East) at Nashville Predators (38-26-5, 81 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
This may be hard to believe when we're talking about an 11-game schedule for a league where MORE THAN HALF of the teams make the playoffs, but this is the only game of the night where both teams are in playoff position going into the game. So even though a game that reads "Flyers @ Predators" probably doesn't jump off the page at you, in actuality this is probably the night's best match-up, at least as far as the quality of the two teams goes. Both teams are also playing relatively well of late: the Flyers are 7-3-0 in their last 10 and the Preds are 6-4-0, with both teams coming off huge late victories over good opponents (the Flyers with the aforementioned 2.1 second shocker over the Hawks, while the Preds scored with about a minute-and-a-half to play to continue their mastery over the Kings). This should be a good, tight-checking, low-scoring battle between two teams who know how to play defense. As Mike Babcock said last night after the Wings-Flames game, even though people like to say "such and such game had a playoff feel", it's still not the playoffs. But this is probably as close as you're going to get tonight.
Prediction: Preds 3-2 (SO)
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: Edmonton Oilers (21-41-7, 49 points, 5th in Northwest, 15th in West) at Minnesota Wild (33-29-6, 72 points, 4th in Northwest, 11th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
I'm sure there will be some smart-aleck who will read this and think to themselves "But John, at least this is a divisional rivalry! What about, say, the Avs and the Blues?". And to you, imaginary person, I say, hogwash! How much of a divisional rivalry can it really be when one team is 20 GAMES BELOW .500 and it's a battle of 4th and 5th in the division? Please. At least the Avs and the Blues are both above .500. Hell, one of those teams is even in the playoffs! Don't get me wrong, I'm not gonna tell you to watch that game either, but as far as games on tonight's schedule that are completely useless, I still give the edge to this one. Then again, given how the past few games I've given this award to have turned out (Sharks-Panthers was a 3-2 overtime thriller win for Florida, the Wild upset the Sabres 3-2 as well), I'm sure this game will turn out to be exciting, just so I can be wrong again.
Prediction: Wild 4-1
The Rest
Bruins @ Hurricanes, 7:00 pm EST: The Bruins are bad, but it's not for a lack of effort. They play hard and they usually play physical, but they just don't have the goal-scoring on most nights to get things done, especially now with Marc Savard out. It's hard to believe considering they're still holding onto a playoff spot in the East by the skin of their teeth, but the Bruins are 30th in goals for per game. Yes, out of 30. Meanwhile, Carolina's still got their sights set on a miracle comeback, 8 points back of the Bruins going into tonight, so obviously a win here would be huge. 4 point game, might just make it exciting. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Sabres @ Thrashers, 7:00 pm EST: The Thrashers' playoff hopes are fading fast with each heartbreaking loss, and they suffered yet another one to the Coyotes in a shootout. How many home games can Atlanta squander before they're officially out of it? Tonight they've got Eastern heavyweights Buffalo in, and this will either be a slaughter for the Sabres, or a very competitive, up-tempo game. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Coyotes @ Lightning, 7:30 pm EST: I heard one of Tampa's beat writers say he thinks the Lightning played their two best games of the season over the weekend; unfortunately for Tampa, that was still only good enough for a 1-1-0 record, thanks to a heartbreaking late goal given up against the Penguins. They won't have much time to dwell on that as they'll welcome the streaking Coyotes into the Forum. I'm expecting a physical, competitive game, as it's do-or-die time for Tampa. Of all the "rest" games, this is easily your best bet. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Capitals @ Panthers, 7:30 pm EST: Fortunately for the Panthers, Ovechkin got suspended two games for his hit on Brian Campbell. Unfortunately for the Panthers, the Capitals have a great record without Ovie in the line-up this season, as this isn't 2007 anymore and they're much more than a one man show. The last time these two teams played in Florida, it was a super-exciting, high-scoring comeback win for the Caps; then again, the last time the Caps played in Florida, the Panthers were still a playoff contender. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Avalanche @ Blues, 8:00 pm EST: Hey, so, remember when I said that this game wasn't quite bad enough to win tonight's Ice Dancing award? That should in no way be construed as telling you to watch it. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Sharks @ Stars, 8:30 pm EST: Remember when Dallas was sitting in 10th for the longest time and kept flirting with the idea of being an actual, honest-to-goodness playoff contender? Well, they're sitting in 12th now, 9 points back of 8th place Detroit. So much for that. Oh yeah, this game will probably suck, too. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Islanders @ Canucks, 10:00 pm EST: I've been getting a lot of crap from a very good friend of mine who happens to be an Isles fan about how often I tell people not to watch Islanders games. To be fair to the Isles, they've won 2 in a row and they've been better of late. But beating a Devils team that's actually not playing Marty and beating the Toronto Maple Leafs are two totally different things from beating one of the NHL's best in the Vancouver Canucks. With all that said, since it's the only late game tonight anyway, I'm gonna give the Isles the benefit of the doubt and say this MIGHT actually be competitive, if only because the Canucks are due for a let-down game. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that's it from me. As always, enjoy the hockey!
Friday, March 12, 2010
Today's Games to Watch 3/12
Yes, it's a very, very early edition of Today's Games to Watch, as yours truly actually has something to do on a Friday night. But hey, that doesn't mean I'm not here for you: if you're home tonight needing a game to watch, as always let me be your guide. But first....
About Last Night...
Hurricanes 4-Penguins 3 (OT)
(My Prediction: Pens 5-2)
There's bee a lot of hand-wringing this season, especially from the so-called "experts" from the NHL's television partners, about the Washington Capitals' defense not being good enough to win a Stanley Cup. However, I haven't heard much of anything this season (with the exception of the NHL Network's On the Fly, which usually is good at pointing out things other networks miss) about the so-called favorites to repeat, the Penguins, and their own defensive problems. The Caps are ranked 16th in the league with a 2.76 GA/PG....not a good stat, but not horrible. Guess which team is ranked below them? That's right, those Pittsburgh Penguins are sitting at 20th with a 2.87 GA/PG. The Goals For, meanwhile, is much farther spread (3.88 for the Caps to 3.09 for the Pens). The Pens' defensive deficiencies showed up in force last night, as the 14th-place Hurricanes took advantage of some untimely breakdowns in defensive zone coverage to pick up a huge win in overtime in Pittsburgh. True, the Pens did pick up a point, but at home against a team they soundly swept in last year's Conference Finals, you have to believe that's not much of a consolation prize. And now they head into New Jersey tomorrow night....more on that in a second.
Flames 2-Senators 0
(My Prediction: Sens 3-2)
Woof, so sorry for picking this clunker as my runner-up game. Not much happened here, it was your standard defensive lockdown win from the Flames to maintain a 1-point lead for 8th in the Western Conference. Amazing that a team like Calgary can win four in a row and still only have a 1 point lead, but that should tell you something about just how great the West has been this year.
Red Wings 5-Wild 1
(My Prediction: Red Wings 5-2)
That's probably the closest I've been yet to picking an exact score, kind of proud at myself at that one. The Wings were at home against a team chasing them, needed a big effort from their suddenly healthy team, and got it. Good on them. With both the 9th place Wings and the 8th place Flames on relatively hot streaks, this is shaping up to be one hell of a playoff race down the stretcch.
Maple Leafs 4-Lightning 3 (OT)
(My Prediction: Lightning 5-1)
Boy did I get this one wrong folks: not only did I get the score completely wrong, but I also picked this for my Ice Dancing award thinking it would be Tampa Bay's traditional thrashing of the Leafs. Instead, the Leafs young players did indeed come to play, and pulled out a very nice 4-3 overtime victory in an exciting clash at the Air Canada Centre.
All in all, last night was not quite as boring as I thought it would be. I guess that's why they play the games, folks. Now it's time to dig into a six-game schedule on a Friday night. Here's the awards we'll be giving out:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Friday March 12th
Overall: Doesn't look like much on first glance, beyond one obvious huge game, but dig beneath the surface and some of these games are a bit more interesting than you might think. So let's get going.
Marquee Match-Up: Pittsburgh Penguins (40-22-5, 85 points, 1st in Atlantic, 2nd in East) at New Jersey Devils (39-23-3, 81 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm EST
National TV: RDS (Canada, French only)
This was as much of a no-brainer as you'll probably ever see for the Marquee award. With all due respect to the other five games, this one has far and away the most interest. Two teams battling it out for 1st in the Atlantic division as well as 2nd overall in the Eastern Conference do battle, and this is a season series that has been dominated by the Devils so far. Everyone forgets last year that while of course the Penguins won the Stanley Cup, they did NOT win the Atlantic division. Everyone, that is, except the team who took that division title, the New Jersey Devils. And although the Devils have stumbled quite a bit in the second-half of the season so far, they're coming off a huge 6-3 win over their cross-river rivals the New York Rangers, and they still have a sleeping giant. Ilya Kovalchuk hasn't done much for the Devils since they picked him up, but you have to believe that he's going to pick it up at some point as we head down the stretch. The Devils are currently 4 points back and they will still have 2 games in hand on the Penguins after tonight, so tonight's game is obviously huge. Either they will be just 2 points back of the Pens, still with those 2 games in hand, or the Pens can put a bit of separation between them and go up 6 points instead. You also can't discount the fact that the Pens are playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
Prediction: Devils 4-2
Runner-Up: Nashville Predators (36-26-5, 77 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West) at Anaheim Ducks (30-28-8, 68 points, 5th in Pacific, 13th in West)
10:00 pm EST/7:00 pm PST
Like I said, this isn't a strong night for marquee-type games other than the obvious pick, so I'm going with this one as my runner-up, and here's why: desperation tends to breed great hockey, and both these teams have every single reason to be desperate right now. The Predators had a 4-2 lead on the San Jose Sharks last night before giving up a stunning SIX third-period goals to the Sharks to fall 8-5. Now, they find themselves sitting tied in points with 8th place Calgary, and they're fighting for their Western Conference playoff lives just one point up on 9th place Detroit. Anaheim, meanwhile, is coming off a far more disastrous 5-2 loss to the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets at home on Tuesday night. They're just 4-5-1 in the last ten, and now a team that many expected to make a huge surge back into the post-season is hanging on for their playoff lives, 9 points back of Detroit & Nashville. This is the very definition of a 4-point game: either Anaheim will close their gap with Nashville to a much more manageable (but still difficult) 7 points, or Nashville can throw some dirt on the Ducks and make it a deadly 11-point gap instead. Should be exciting hockey, folks.
Prediction: Ducks 4-1
Under the Radar: Los Angeles Kings (39-22-5, 85 points, 3rd in Pacific, 5th in West) at Dallas Stars (29-25-12, 70 points, 4th in Pacific, 10th in West)
8:30 pm EST/5:30 pm PST
This isn't exactly a game that jumps off the page at you: the very good Kings into Dallas to face a Stars team that has been the textbook definition of mediocrity, and in fact Fox Sports West isn't even airing the game at all. But there's a couple of admittedly King-centric reasons why you might want to watch this game: first of all, Justin Williams will finally return to the Kings' lineup coming off his horrible broken leg injury. For those of you who weren't following the Kings closely earlier in the season, the top line of Williams-Kopitar-Smyth was unbelievably great early in the season, putting up points in bunches and dominating games. Unfortunately, first it was Smyth who went down to injury in late-November, and then in Smyth's very first game back, Williams had his horrific leg injury in Phoenix! Terry Murray has immediately put these three back together in Williams' first game back, and if they can refind the chemistry they had earlier in the season, it's downright scary how much better this already great LA team can be. Meanwhile, Jonathan Quick is at home with his wife as she prepares to give birth to his first child. That means that the Kings' OTHER great young goalie named Jonathan, AHL-leading Jonathan Bernier, gets the call-up, and Murray has indicated it's very possible Bernier gets the start.
Prediction: Kings 4-2
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: Minnesota Wild (31-29-6, 68 points, 4th in Northwest, 12th in West) at Buffalo Sabres (36-20-9, 81 points, 1st in Northeast, 3rd in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
The Wild are just off of last night's heart-wrenching 5-1 loss to playoff bubble rivals Detroit, and now dejectedly must shuffle into Buffalo to face the powerhouse Sabres on the second night of a back-to-back. Add those factors to the fact that it's intra-Conference (so no rivalry) and it's a very good team against a mediocre one, and you have your classic example of a skipable game.
Prediction: Sabres 3-0
The Rest
Lightning @ Capitals, 7:00 pm EST: The Capitals weren't even in action last night, and yet they officially became this season's Southeast division champions thanks to Columbus' 2-1 win over Atlanta. Tonight they get a Tampa Bay team off a possibly exhausting and demoralizing overtime loss in Toronto last night. That alone makes me reach for my "not worth your time" trigger finger, but I'll give these guys a little bit of a benefit of the doubt just because Tampa tends to play Washington hard and both teams play an exciting style. Still, be forewarned: this could easily be a blowout for the Caps. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Rangers @ Thrashers, 7:30 pm EST: Speaking of teams coming off demoralizing victories, here's a battle of two of them. The Rangers got thrashed (pardon the pun) 6-3 by the Devils on Wednesday, while the Thrashers got beaten by the lowly Blue Jackets 2-1 last night. Still, this is a game between two teams who are on that Eastern playoff bubble, so it might turn out to be something exciting. Then again, it might not. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that'll do it for another night of action in the NHL. I'll be back with you again, probably early morning again on Saturday. See you around!
About Last Night...
Hurricanes 4-Penguins 3 (OT)
(My Prediction: Pens 5-2)
There's bee a lot of hand-wringing this season, especially from the so-called "experts" from the NHL's television partners, about the Washington Capitals' defense not being good enough to win a Stanley Cup. However, I haven't heard much of anything this season (with the exception of the NHL Network's On the Fly, which usually is good at pointing out things other networks miss) about the so-called favorites to repeat, the Penguins, and their own defensive problems. The Caps are ranked 16th in the league with a 2.76 GA/PG....not a good stat, but not horrible. Guess which team is ranked below them? That's right, those Pittsburgh Penguins are sitting at 20th with a 2.87 GA/PG. The Goals For, meanwhile, is much farther spread (3.88 for the Caps to 3.09 for the Pens). The Pens' defensive deficiencies showed up in force last night, as the 14th-place Hurricanes took advantage of some untimely breakdowns in defensive zone coverage to pick up a huge win in overtime in Pittsburgh. True, the Pens did pick up a point, but at home against a team they soundly swept in last year's Conference Finals, you have to believe that's not much of a consolation prize. And now they head into New Jersey tomorrow night....more on that in a second.
Flames 2-Senators 0
(My Prediction: Sens 3-2)
Woof, so sorry for picking this clunker as my runner-up game. Not much happened here, it was your standard defensive lockdown win from the Flames to maintain a 1-point lead for 8th in the Western Conference. Amazing that a team like Calgary can win four in a row and still only have a 1 point lead, but that should tell you something about just how great the West has been this year.
Red Wings 5-Wild 1
(My Prediction: Red Wings 5-2)
That's probably the closest I've been yet to picking an exact score, kind of proud at myself at that one. The Wings were at home against a team chasing them, needed a big effort from their suddenly healthy team, and got it. Good on them. With both the 9th place Wings and the 8th place Flames on relatively hot streaks, this is shaping up to be one hell of a playoff race down the stretcch.
Maple Leafs 4-Lightning 3 (OT)
(My Prediction: Lightning 5-1)
Boy did I get this one wrong folks: not only did I get the score completely wrong, but I also picked this for my Ice Dancing award thinking it would be Tampa Bay's traditional thrashing of the Leafs. Instead, the Leafs young players did indeed come to play, and pulled out a very nice 4-3 overtime victory in an exciting clash at the Air Canada Centre.
All in all, last night was not quite as boring as I thought it would be. I guess that's why they play the games, folks. Now it's time to dig into a six-game schedule on a Friday night. Here's the awards we'll be giving out:
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
Once those four picks are done with, I'll go through The Rest and tell you which of those games just might be worth your time as well. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll make sure to note which (if any) of these games are available on national TV in the US & Canada.
Friday March 12th
Overall: Doesn't look like much on first glance, beyond one obvious huge game, but dig beneath the surface and some of these games are a bit more interesting than you might think. So let's get going.
Marquee Match-Up: Pittsburgh Penguins (40-22-5, 85 points, 1st in Atlantic, 2nd in East) at New Jersey Devils (39-23-3, 81 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm EST
National TV: RDS (Canada, French only)
This was as much of a no-brainer as you'll probably ever see for the Marquee award. With all due respect to the other five games, this one has far and away the most interest. Two teams battling it out for 1st in the Atlantic division as well as 2nd overall in the Eastern Conference do battle, and this is a season series that has been dominated by the Devils so far. Everyone forgets last year that while of course the Penguins won the Stanley Cup, they did NOT win the Atlantic division. Everyone, that is, except the team who took that division title, the New Jersey Devils. And although the Devils have stumbled quite a bit in the second-half of the season so far, they're coming off a huge 6-3 win over their cross-river rivals the New York Rangers, and they still have a sleeping giant. Ilya Kovalchuk hasn't done much for the Devils since they picked him up, but you have to believe that he's going to pick it up at some point as we head down the stretch. The Devils are currently 4 points back and they will still have 2 games in hand on the Penguins after tonight, so tonight's game is obviously huge. Either they will be just 2 points back of the Pens, still with those 2 games in hand, or the Pens can put a bit of separation between them and go up 6 points instead. You also can't discount the fact that the Pens are playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
Prediction: Devils 4-2
Runner-Up: Nashville Predators (36-26-5, 77 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West) at Anaheim Ducks (30-28-8, 68 points, 5th in Pacific, 13th in West)
10:00 pm EST/7:00 pm PST
Like I said, this isn't a strong night for marquee-type games other than the obvious pick, so I'm going with this one as my runner-up, and here's why: desperation tends to breed great hockey, and both these teams have every single reason to be desperate right now. The Predators had a 4-2 lead on the San Jose Sharks last night before giving up a stunning SIX third-period goals to the Sharks to fall 8-5. Now, they find themselves sitting tied in points with 8th place Calgary, and they're fighting for their Western Conference playoff lives just one point up on 9th place Detroit. Anaheim, meanwhile, is coming off a far more disastrous 5-2 loss to the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets at home on Tuesday night. They're just 4-5-1 in the last ten, and now a team that many expected to make a huge surge back into the post-season is hanging on for their playoff lives, 9 points back of Detroit & Nashville. This is the very definition of a 4-point game: either Anaheim will close their gap with Nashville to a much more manageable (but still difficult) 7 points, or Nashville can throw some dirt on the Ducks and make it a deadly 11-point gap instead. Should be exciting hockey, folks.
Prediction: Ducks 4-1
Under the Radar: Los Angeles Kings (39-22-5, 85 points, 3rd in Pacific, 5th in West) at Dallas Stars (29-25-12, 70 points, 4th in Pacific, 10th in West)
8:30 pm EST/5:30 pm PST
This isn't exactly a game that jumps off the page at you: the very good Kings into Dallas to face a Stars team that has been the textbook definition of mediocrity, and in fact Fox Sports West isn't even airing the game at all. But there's a couple of admittedly King-centric reasons why you might want to watch this game: first of all, Justin Williams will finally return to the Kings' lineup coming off his horrible broken leg injury. For those of you who weren't following the Kings closely earlier in the season, the top line of Williams-Kopitar-Smyth was unbelievably great early in the season, putting up points in bunches and dominating games. Unfortunately, first it was Smyth who went down to injury in late-November, and then in Smyth's very first game back, Williams had his horrific leg injury in Phoenix! Terry Murray has immediately put these three back together in Williams' first game back, and if they can refind the chemistry they had earlier in the season, it's downright scary how much better this already great LA team can be. Meanwhile, Jonathan Quick is at home with his wife as she prepares to give birth to his first child. That means that the Kings' OTHER great young goalie named Jonathan, AHL-leading Jonathan Bernier, gets the call-up, and Murray has indicated it's very possible Bernier gets the start.
Prediction: Kings 4-2
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: Minnesota Wild (31-29-6, 68 points, 4th in Northwest, 12th in West) at Buffalo Sabres (36-20-9, 81 points, 1st in Northeast, 3rd in East)
7:30 pm EST/4:30 pm PST
The Wild are just off of last night's heart-wrenching 5-1 loss to playoff bubble rivals Detroit, and now dejectedly must shuffle into Buffalo to face the powerhouse Sabres on the second night of a back-to-back. Add those factors to the fact that it's intra-Conference (so no rivalry) and it's a very good team against a mediocre one, and you have your classic example of a skipable game.
Prediction: Sabres 3-0
The Rest
Lightning @ Capitals, 7:00 pm EST: The Capitals weren't even in action last night, and yet they officially became this season's Southeast division champions thanks to Columbus' 2-1 win over Atlanta. Tonight they get a Tampa Bay team off a possibly exhausting and demoralizing overtime loss in Toronto last night. That alone makes me reach for my "not worth your time" trigger finger, but I'll give these guys a little bit of a benefit of the doubt just because Tampa tends to play Washington hard and both teams play an exciting style. Still, be forewarned: this could easily be a blowout for the Caps. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Rangers @ Thrashers, 7:30 pm EST: Speaking of teams coming off demoralizing victories, here's a battle of two of them. The Rangers got thrashed (pardon the pun) 6-3 by the Devils on Wednesday, while the Thrashers got beaten by the lowly Blue Jackets 2-1 last night. Still, this is a game between two teams who are on that Eastern playoff bubble, so it might turn out to be something exciting. Then again, it might not. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Alright folks, that'll do it for another night of action in the NHL. I'll be back with you again, probably early morning again on Saturday. See you around!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
The Moment of Truth; Today's Games to Watch 3/7
As I type this, we're just two hours away from the return of NBC's Game of the Week. The Western Conference-leading Chicago Blackhawks will host their Original Six rivals, the Detroit Red Wings, in a Central division showdown. But although much will be made of the various stories on the ice, perhaps the biggest story is an off-ice one. A very important question will be answered: can the NHL carry over some momentum from last Sunday's gold medal match between the US and Canada? Today's game will perhaps be the biggest test: it features stars from both the US & Canadian teams, as well as Canada's gold-medal winning head coach, exactly one week to the day on the same network that hosted the record-setting game.
Last Sunday's game drew nearly 28 million viewers on the Peacock, beating out television heavyweights in sports (last year's World Series, featuring the defending champion Phillies against baseball's highest-drawing team, the New York Yankees, peaked at 22.8 million viewers for Game 4; it also beat out the Daytona 500, the NBA Finals, and more) and entertainment (the Grammys drew almost 2 million viewers less as well). During last week's game, which was up 61% from 2002's US-Canada gold medal showdown, NBC smartly bombarded viewers with a well-done ad for today's game. The advertisement pointed out that Chicago's two big stars, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, were playing on opposite sides of the gold medal showdown, but would be back under the Blackhawks banner together next Sunday.
Furthermore, there are few rivalries in the NHL with as much built-in drama and history as the Hawks and the Wings, so all in all it was an excellent choice to try and bring some of those viewers back for more hockey. The problem is, this week's ratings on VS and in local markets have not exactly shown any kind of momentum shift from the gold medal contest. Versus opened strong with 400,000 viewers for the Avs and the Wings on Monday night, but the rest of the week's ratings were closer to their around 250,000 season average. Local ratings here in NYC were not particularly strong either, with the Rangers-Pens doing a below-average .93 rating.
Of course, there are arguments to be made that those ratings have mitigating factors. The Versus network remains off the air on nearly 1/3 of American homes thanks to the ongoing conflict with DirecTV, and the Rangers aren't exactly having the type of banner season that will draw in fans en masse. Today's game, on the other hand, will have no such built-in excuses. Everyone gets NBC, and the Blackhawks are one of the NHL's best teams while the Red Wings are still holding onto the final playoff position. So now the question is, will all the Olympic momentum help NBC improve upon this year's highest number (a 1.1 for the last game before the Olympic break, a marquee showdown between the Pens and Caps)? My prediction is no, we will see it right around that 1.0-1.1 level, but I certainly hope I'm wrong. Anything at a 1.5 or higher would blow away NBC's usual non-Winter Classic regular season numbers, and would be considered a home run for the NHL. Let's hope it happens.
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So with the business side of hockey out of the way, let's get down to what we all really care about: the hockey. I'm going to debut what I hope will become a regular weekly feature as we hit the stretch-run: a look at Today's Games to Watch. Basically, I'm going to look at the schedule day-by-day, and make 4 picks per day (unless, of course, there aren't enough games to do that!). Hopefully this can become a daily feature, and if you're like me and you've got Center Ice you'll have a better idea which games are worth your time and which ones to avoid. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll be sure to mention which games you can see on national TV.
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
With all that out of the way, let's get to it!
Sunday, March 7th
Marquee Match-Up: Detroit Red Wings (30-22-12, 72 points, 3rd in Central, 8th in West) at Chicago Blackhawks (43-16-5, 91 points, 1st in Central, 2nd in West)
12:30 pm EST/9:30 am PST
National TV: NBC (US)
The easiest pick of them all, for all the reasons I already talked about and more. The last time these two teams met on the Peacock, it was one of the most exciting games of the regular season, ending in a shootout victory for the Red Wings. Since that time, however, the Blackhawks have just continued to make their Central division lead more and more insurmountable, while the Wings are in the most unusual (for them) position of trying to just hold on to a playoff spot. As a Hawks fan, I can't tell you how much fun it is to see the Hawks & Wings' longtime positions in the standings flip-flopped, and there's nothing we'd love more than to beat up on the Wings at home to really drive that point home. The Hawks have played well against the Wings this season, but the Wings are finally healthy for the first time all year. In short, this will be a showdown.
Runner-Up: Buffalo Sabres (34-20-9, 77 points, 1st in Northeast, 3rd in East) at New York Rangers (29-28-8, 66 points, 4th in Atlantic, 10th in East)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm PST
To be honest, there's slim pickings for the rest of today's schedule, as it's a lot of high-ranked teams playing low-ranked teams. So with that in mind, I'm at least going with one of those match-ups featuring upstate New York's team against Manhattan. While this isn't really a big deal to us Ranger fans, Sabre fans tend to resent the coverage the Rangers get (their network is named MSG, despite being a good 6 hours from there, and tends to focus too much on the Metro-area teams for their liking). Plus, both these teams are desperate for points for entirely different reasons. The Sabres are trying to hold on to a slim 1-point lead in the Northeast standings over the surging Ottawa Senators, while the Rangers have less games remaining than most of the teams around them and need every single point they can get if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive. This will be a battle, folks, worthy of marquee status on a weak day for marquee match-ups.
Under the Radar: Vancouver Canucks (39-23-2, 80 points, 1st in Northwest, 3rd in West) at Nashville Predators (35-24-5, 75 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West)
3:00 pm EST/12:00 pm PST
Few people are going to see the Nashville Predators as a team that jumps off the page at them, but the Preds have a talented team this year, especially on the back-end, and can be fun to watch at times (they can also be very boring to watch at times, which is why recommending you watch a Preds game is a bit of a crapshoot, but like I said, it's a weak day). The Canucks have those cycle-loving Swedish twins, the Sedins, and Luongo looking to bounce back from giving up 5 goals in the first 20 minutes in Chicago. Of course, this is also game 12 of the Canucks' NHL-record 14-game road trip (and for those of you wondering why they still can't play at GM-slash-Canada Hockey Place, it's called the Paralympics, people), so one has to wonder how much the Canucks have left to give. Sure, the Olympics broke up that road trip, but you try living out of a suitcase for two weeks at a time and see how YOU like it, okay?! Either way, this is an interesting game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: New Jersey Devils (38-22-3, 79 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East) at Edmonton Oilers (20-38-6, 5th in Northwest, 15th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
Ugh ugh ugh. Welcome to the downside of increased intra-conference play, kids: it's a "battle" of one of the NHL's best vs. one of the NHL's worst and there's absolutely no rivalry here to make it even the least bit interesting. I'm sure Kevin Smith (of "Mallrats" fame....and yes, that's my favorite movie of his, so he'll always be "of Mallrats fame" to me, goddamnit) is just tickled pink at seeing his two favorite teams go at it, but for the rest of us? Yeah, don't bother. The Habs and the Ducks drop the puck at the same time, and that at least has two teams desperate for points to keep their (slim?) playoff hopes alive in their respective conferences. If you still are in the mood for hockey at 8 pm on a Sunday, just watch that instead.
The Rest
Bruins @ Pens, 3:00 pm EST: I really can't think of a single relevant thing to write about this game. Sidney Crosby of Team Canada vs. the USA's backup goalie, Tim Thomas? Unless Tuuka Rask starts? Yeah, that's all I got. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Flames @ Wild, 3:00 pm EST: A Northwest showdown with two teams currently sitting in 9th and 12th, respectively, but separated by just 4 points in the standings. Yes, the West race for 8th is incredibly tight. This is the definition of a four-point game. I can't go for a full-on recommendation though, just because the Flames tend to play that boring Sutter style of hockey. Should be chippy as all hell, though. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Hurricanes @ Thrashers, 5:00 pm EST: Carolina's stunning 7-game winning streak has them 9 points out of a playoff spot after they started the season buried deep beneath the earth with the Maple Leafs (who are all but mathematically eliminated already). To keep this Cinderella run alive, they need to beat their Southeast rivals, with the Kovalchuck-less Thrashers somehow only 2 points back of the Habs for 8th, with 3 games in hand. If the Canes lose this game, you can probably throw the last few clumps of dirt on their season. But if they win, they keep the dream alive. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Maple Leafs @ Flyers, 7:00 pm EST: Speaking of the Leafs, they're in Philadelphia. Yeah. Raise your hand if you care? Really, Toronto? You care? How incredibly shocking. For those of us who DON'T continue to unequivocally support losers, yeah, take a pass on this one. Go read a book instead. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Canadiens @ Ducks, 8:00 pm EST (National TV on the NHL Network, Canada only): As I mentioned already before, these are two teams that really, really need points to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Ducks made some moves at the deadline that didn't help them out one bit in Phoenix, where they got shutout 4-0 in a listless affair. You'd think a team that's fighting for their playoff lives would, you know, at least SHOW UP against a division rival, but apparently you'd be wrong. They've played very well at home this year, however, and the Habs are coming off an energetic game against the Kings last night, so I'm predicting a blowout for the Ducks. If it's not, this could be a fun game, and you have the intrigue of Saku Koivu playing against the team he was Captain of for the first time. Still can't go a full-monty on the recommendation, just because of the blowout possibility, but jesus christ if you really want to watch hockey at 8 pm, this is damn sure a better bet than that Devils-Flames game. It will be on the NHL Network in Canada; of note, the NHL Network in the US will air Canadian junior hockey, WHL to be exact, featuring the Calgary Hitmen and the Saskatoon Blades. Personally I'll be checking that out instead, just for the "it's never on TV in the States" curiosity factor. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Hope you guys enjoyed that. I'll try to work more of the kinks out day-by-day, but hopefully this will provide you with a little bit of perspective on what to watch and what not to watch in the NHL. Thanks for reading, feel free to provide feedback! I'm all ears.
Last Sunday's game drew nearly 28 million viewers on the Peacock, beating out television heavyweights in sports (last year's World Series, featuring the defending champion Phillies against baseball's highest-drawing team, the New York Yankees, peaked at 22.8 million viewers for Game 4; it also beat out the Daytona 500, the NBA Finals, and more) and entertainment (the Grammys drew almost 2 million viewers less as well). During last week's game, which was up 61% from 2002's US-Canada gold medal showdown, NBC smartly bombarded viewers with a well-done ad for today's game. The advertisement pointed out that Chicago's two big stars, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, were playing on opposite sides of the gold medal showdown, but would be back under the Blackhawks banner together next Sunday.
Furthermore, there are few rivalries in the NHL with as much built-in drama and history as the Hawks and the Wings, so all in all it was an excellent choice to try and bring some of those viewers back for more hockey. The problem is, this week's ratings on VS and in local markets have not exactly shown any kind of momentum shift from the gold medal contest. Versus opened strong with 400,000 viewers for the Avs and the Wings on Monday night, but the rest of the week's ratings were closer to their around 250,000 season average. Local ratings here in NYC were not particularly strong either, with the Rangers-Pens doing a below-average .93 rating.
Of course, there are arguments to be made that those ratings have mitigating factors. The Versus network remains off the air on nearly 1/3 of American homes thanks to the ongoing conflict with DirecTV, and the Rangers aren't exactly having the type of banner season that will draw in fans en masse. Today's game, on the other hand, will have no such built-in excuses. Everyone gets NBC, and the Blackhawks are one of the NHL's best teams while the Red Wings are still holding onto the final playoff position. So now the question is, will all the Olympic momentum help NBC improve upon this year's highest number (a 1.1 for the last game before the Olympic break, a marquee showdown between the Pens and Caps)? My prediction is no, we will see it right around that 1.0-1.1 level, but I certainly hope I'm wrong. Anything at a 1.5 or higher would blow away NBC's usual non-Winter Classic regular season numbers, and would be considered a home run for the NHL. Let's hope it happens.
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So with the business side of hockey out of the way, let's get down to what we all really care about: the hockey. I'm going to debut what I hope will become a regular weekly feature as we hit the stretch-run: a look at Today's Games to Watch. Basically, I'm going to look at the schedule day-by-day, and make 4 picks per day (unless, of course, there aren't enough games to do that!). Hopefully this can become a daily feature, and if you're like me and you've got Center Ice you'll have a better idea which games are worth your time and which ones to avoid. Even if you don't have Center Ice, I'll be sure to mention which games you can see on national TV.
Marquee Match-Up: The biggest game of the night, the game you absolutely need to see, featuring the biggest stars and/or the best rivalries.
The Runner-Up: Basically the same criteria that applies to the Marquee, just not quite as big of a deal as the night's biggest game.
Under the Radar: This is a game that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't normally jump out at you if you're taking a quick glance at the day's schedule, but upon taking a closer look, this should probably be a great game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: With the Winter Olympics fresh on everyone's mind, I'm naming this dubious "award" after the Olympics' most craptastic event that NBC tried to push off on us all in lieu of actual figure skating. Please do yourself a favor, don't watch this game.
With all that out of the way, let's get to it!
Sunday, March 7th
Marquee Match-Up: Detroit Red Wings (30-22-12, 72 points, 3rd in Central, 8th in West) at Chicago Blackhawks (43-16-5, 91 points, 1st in Central, 2nd in West)
12:30 pm EST/9:30 am PST
National TV: NBC (US)
The easiest pick of them all, for all the reasons I already talked about and more. The last time these two teams met on the Peacock, it was one of the most exciting games of the regular season, ending in a shootout victory for the Red Wings. Since that time, however, the Blackhawks have just continued to make their Central division lead more and more insurmountable, while the Wings are in the most unusual (for them) position of trying to just hold on to a playoff spot. As a Hawks fan, I can't tell you how much fun it is to see the Hawks & Wings' longtime positions in the standings flip-flopped, and there's nothing we'd love more than to beat up on the Wings at home to really drive that point home. The Hawks have played well against the Wings this season, but the Wings are finally healthy for the first time all year. In short, this will be a showdown.
Runner-Up: Buffalo Sabres (34-20-9, 77 points, 1st in Northeast, 3rd in East) at New York Rangers (29-28-8, 66 points, 4th in Atlantic, 10th in East)
7:00 pm EST/4:00 pm PST
To be honest, there's slim pickings for the rest of today's schedule, as it's a lot of high-ranked teams playing low-ranked teams. So with that in mind, I'm at least going with one of those match-ups featuring upstate New York's team against Manhattan. While this isn't really a big deal to us Ranger fans, Sabre fans tend to resent the coverage the Rangers get (their network is named MSG, despite being a good 6 hours from there, and tends to focus too much on the Metro-area teams for their liking). Plus, both these teams are desperate for points for entirely different reasons. The Sabres are trying to hold on to a slim 1-point lead in the Northeast standings over the surging Ottawa Senators, while the Rangers have less games remaining than most of the teams around them and need every single point they can get if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive. This will be a battle, folks, worthy of marquee status on a weak day for marquee match-ups.
Under the Radar: Vancouver Canucks (39-23-2, 80 points, 1st in Northwest, 3rd in West) at Nashville Predators (35-24-5, 75 points, 2nd in Central, 7th in West)
3:00 pm EST/12:00 pm PST
Few people are going to see the Nashville Predators as a team that jumps off the page at them, but the Preds have a talented team this year, especially on the back-end, and can be fun to watch at times (they can also be very boring to watch at times, which is why recommending you watch a Preds game is a bit of a crapshoot, but like I said, it's a weak day). The Canucks have those cycle-loving Swedish twins, the Sedins, and Luongo looking to bounce back from giving up 5 goals in the first 20 minutes in Chicago. Of course, this is also game 12 of the Canucks' NHL-record 14-game road trip (and for those of you wondering why they still can't play at GM-slash-Canada Hockey Place, it's called the Paralympics, people), so one has to wonder how much the Canucks have left to give. Sure, the Olympics broke up that road trip, but you try living out of a suitcase for two weeks at a time and see how YOU like it, okay?! Either way, this is an interesting game.
I'd Rather Watch Ice Dancing: New Jersey Devils (38-22-3, 79 points, 2nd in Atlantic, 4th in East) at Edmonton Oilers (20-38-6, 5th in Northwest, 15th in West)
8:00 pm EST/5:00 pm PST
Ugh ugh ugh. Welcome to the downside of increased intra-conference play, kids: it's a "battle" of one of the NHL's best vs. one of the NHL's worst and there's absolutely no rivalry here to make it even the least bit interesting. I'm sure Kevin Smith (of "Mallrats" fame....and yes, that's my favorite movie of his, so he'll always be "of Mallrats fame" to me, goddamnit) is just tickled pink at seeing his two favorite teams go at it, but for the rest of us? Yeah, don't bother. The Habs and the Ducks drop the puck at the same time, and that at least has two teams desperate for points to keep their (slim?) playoff hopes alive in their respective conferences. If you still are in the mood for hockey at 8 pm on a Sunday, just watch that instead.
The Rest
Bruins @ Pens, 3:00 pm EST: I really can't think of a single relevant thing to write about this game. Sidney Crosby of Team Canada vs. the USA's backup goalie, Tim Thomas? Unless Tuuka Rask starts? Yeah, that's all I got. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Flames @ Wild, 3:00 pm EST: A Northwest showdown with two teams currently sitting in 9th and 12th, respectively, but separated by just 4 points in the standings. Yes, the West race for 8th is incredibly tight. This is the definition of a four-point game. I can't go for a full-on recommendation though, just because the Flames tend to play that boring Sutter style of hockey. Should be chippy as all hell, though. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Hurricanes @ Thrashers, 5:00 pm EST: Carolina's stunning 7-game winning streak has them 9 points out of a playoff spot after they started the season buried deep beneath the earth with the Maple Leafs (who are all but mathematically eliminated already). To keep this Cinderella run alive, they need to beat their Southeast rivals, with the Kovalchuck-less Thrashers somehow only 2 points back of the Habs for 8th, with 3 games in hand. If the Canes lose this game, you can probably throw the last few clumps of dirt on their season. But if they win, they keep the dream alive. Verdict: Probably Worth Your Time
Maple Leafs @ Flyers, 7:00 pm EST: Speaking of the Leafs, they're in Philadelphia. Yeah. Raise your hand if you care? Really, Toronto? You care? How incredibly shocking. For those of us who DON'T continue to unequivocally support losers, yeah, take a pass on this one. Go read a book instead. Verdict: Not Worth Your Time
Canadiens @ Ducks, 8:00 pm EST (National TV on the NHL Network, Canada only): As I mentioned already before, these are two teams that really, really need points to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Ducks made some moves at the deadline that didn't help them out one bit in Phoenix, where they got shutout 4-0 in a listless affair. You'd think a team that's fighting for their playoff lives would, you know, at least SHOW UP against a division rival, but apparently you'd be wrong. They've played very well at home this year, however, and the Habs are coming off an energetic game against the Kings last night, so I'm predicting a blowout for the Ducks. If it's not, this could be a fun game, and you have the intrigue of Saku Koivu playing against the team he was Captain of for the first time. Still can't go a full-monty on the recommendation, just because of the blowout possibility, but jesus christ if you really want to watch hockey at 8 pm, this is damn sure a better bet than that Devils-Flames game. It will be on the NHL Network in Canada; of note, the NHL Network in the US will air Canadian junior hockey, WHL to be exact, featuring the Calgary Hitmen and the Saskatoon Blades. Personally I'll be checking that out instead, just for the "it's never on TV in the States" curiosity factor. Verdict: Might Be Worth Your Time
Hope you guys enjoyed that. I'll try to work more of the kinks out day-by-day, but hopefully this will provide you with a little bit of perspective on what to watch and what not to watch in the NHL. Thanks for reading, feel free to provide feedback! I'm all ears.
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