The rookie has been nothing short of incredible this year. From AP-
After the Pittsburgh Penguins came away as the NHL’s trade deadline winners, Ty Conklin helped them savor their big day with an eye-popping performance.
Conklin made a career-best 50 saves Tuesday night in the Penguins’ 4-2 victory over the New York Islanders — hours after Pittsburgh acquired Marian Hossa from Atlanta.
“I haven’t seen a goalie steal a game like that this year,” Penguins defenseman Ryan Whitney said.
Evgeni Malkin and Jeff Taffe scored first-period goals for trade-depleted Pittsburgh, and Conklin did the rest. The Penguins — still playing without an injured Sidney Crosby — were outshot 52-21, including 11-4 in the second period.
“Sometimes shot clocks aren’t indicative of the game necessarily,” a humble Conklin said.
Since coming up in December after Marc-Andre Fleury injured an ankle, Conklin has gone 17-4-5.
Conklin has a 2.19 Goals against average and a .933 save percentage. While I predicted Ottawa to win the Eastern Conference, Pittburgh is looking awfully tough to beat at this moment.
Ottawa Senators 51 32-15-4-68
Montréal Canadiens 50-27-15-8-62
Philadelphia Flyers 49-28-16-5-61
Pittsburgh Penguins 50 28-18-4-60
New Jersey Devils 50-28-19-3-59
Boston Bruins 50-26-19-5-57
New York Islanders 51-24-21-6-54
New York Rangers 52-24-22-6- 54 Carolina Hurricanes 53-25-24-4-54
Washington Capitals 51-23-23-5-51
Atlanta Thrashers 52-23-25-4-50
Buffalo Sabres 49-22-21-6-50 Florida Panthers 51-22-24-5-49
Toronto Maple Leafs 52-20-24-8-48 Tampa Bay Lightning 51-20-26-5-45
Note- The numbers above from left to right are- Games played, wins, losses, Overtime losses, total points
Teams in Bold are Southeast Division teams
First of all barring a complete collapse by these teams, you have to think Ottawa, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New Jersey and Montreal are locks to make the playoffs. You can probably also toss Boston in.
The rest of the conference is pretty wide open. The only teams that appear to have little chance are Tampa and Toronto.
The Southeast Division is wide open. It is also a division likely to send only one team to the playoffs. First to fourth place is separated by a measly 5 pts, and the 4th place team Florida has played two less games than division leader Carolina. That would point to Florida having a good chance to make the playoffs for the first time in 8 years. On the other hand, there is the team’s listless play of late, only 4 wins in 14 games and this from today’s Palm Beach Post.
The Panthers, who return to action tonight against Buffalo following the All-Star break, say they are determined to end their agonizing playoff drought.
But some observers think the Panthers haven’t exhibited enough determination to reach the post-season for the first time since April 2000.
To put it more bluntly, some critics think they are soft.
“This team plays too much on the perimeter; I haven’t seen the willingness to get their noses dirty and do the dirty work,” said NHL broadcaster John Vanbiesbrouck, who starred in the nets for the Panthers when they reached the Stanley Cup Final in 1996.
“Winning isn’t easy. You’ve got to make up your mind you’re going to do whatever it takes to get there and play like that every night.”
I’m not totally sure if Vanbiesbrouck is right in what he says. Florida has blown at least five games this year in the last minute of play. They’ve also played games where they either quit or showed little effort. I’ve missed only a handful of games on television this year, Florida has the talent to win the division and even make a run in the playoffs. The only teams I worry about in the conference are Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Carolina and Toronto (The Maple Leaf oversized defensemen seem to intimidate the Panthers) when Florida faces them.
I question if the Panthers has the desire, and perhaps the coaching. Why the hell did the team send Shawn Matthias back to the minors? He scored two goals in four NHL games, two of which Jacques Martin barely played him in, and 21 in 32 games of OHL play before his callup. I rather have Matthias on the roster than the overrated Brett McLean or Kamil Kreps. After all, Kreps has just 4 goals in 45 games played!
Heatley was the Senators’ second leadin scorer at the time of his injury. From AP-
OTTAWA — The Ottawa Senators’ Dany Heatley will be sidelined up to six weeks because of a separated right shoulder. He’ll miss Sunday’s game against the New York Islanders, ending a streak of 205 straight games with the Senators.
Heatley crashed into the end boards with Detroit forward Dallas Drake in the second period of Saturday’s 3-2 victory over the Red Wings. He was slouched over when he left the ice, favoring his right shoulder.
It’s a significant loss for the Senators (29-10-4), who hold a seven-point lead atop the Eastern Conference. The 26-year-old has 56 points (25 goals, 31 assists) in 43 games this season, good for seventh place in the NHL scoring race. Heatley is also second in the league with a plus/minus rating of plus-31.
Heatley joined he Senators in a trade with Atlanta in August 2005, and has recorded 264 points (125 goals, 139 assists) with the team
Even with Heatley injured, I predict Ottawa to lead the Eastern conference at the end of the regular season. As long as the left winger returns to the lineup, I stick to my prediction that the Senators win the Stanley Cup next spring.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Alexander the Great has a contract worthy of his nickname — the first $100 million deal in NHL history.
Alex Ovechkin signed a $124 million, 13-year contract extension Thursday with the Washington Capitals, a handsome reward for the charismatic Russian who has been a nonstop goal-scorer since coming to the NHL in 2005.
*****
It’s not the longest deal in NHL history — Rick DiPietro signed for 15 years with the New York Islanders — and it doesn’t set the record for largest average salary, but it is the league’s first contract to guarantee nine digits of income.
Long-term contracts like this if guaranteed are highly risky. One injury and a team can be paying through the nose for someone unable to play again. Ovechkin is a great player, but if I was a GM, I wouldn’t like the gamble.
They won last night, marking for the fist time this season that the team has a winning record.
Thursday night’s Panthers-Hurricanes game might as well have been played on a roller coaster, it had so many ups and downs.
In the end, the final up went to Florida, which registered a 5-4 victory at the BankAtlantic Center, taking the lead for good on Brett McLean’s goal midway through the third period.
Back home after winning three of four games on the road and facing the Southeast Division leaders, the Panthers had nothing but opportunity in front of them. A win would cut into their five-point division deficit and set an energizing tone for a year-end schedule that features four of five games at the BankAtlantic Center.
It looked bleak when Carolina took a 3-1 lead after the first period, but the Panthers rallied for their third consecutive victory. They now trail the Hurricanes by just three points.
I have felt from Opening Night, that this Panther team is capable of taking the Southeast Division. That the team is right on Carolina’s back at the moment says something(Other than the SE division being mediocre) about how Florida has come this far. They’ve been plagued by injuries this year, particularly to defensemen(Three are out at this time, and its not known when any will be back) but all through this the team has pulled themselves over .500. Yes I still worry about the lack of punch the team has, their tendency to sit on a lead, and whether they give up when they fall behind. As to the last, maybe we’ve seen the end of it. For Florida was down 3-1 a little over 16 minutes into the game. The Panthers then stormed back.
The Eastern Conference playoff picture stands like this. Teams in italics are Southeast division teams
1- Ottawa 22-8-3 47 pts
2- Boston 18-12-4 40
T3- Montreal 17-12-5 39 T3- Carolina 18-15-3
T3- New Jersey 18-13-3 39
6 NY Rangers 17-14-3 37 T7 Florida 17-16-2 36
T7 Pittsburgh 17-15-2
T9 with 35 pts Buffalo and Philadelphia(32 games played each) and Toronto(35 games)
T12 with 33 pts Atlanta and Tampa Bay in 34 and 35 games respectively.
You can look at it one of two ways. Florida is four pts out of 2nd place in the conference or that the cats are just a game or two from being in 10th place because of the fewer games played by Buffalo and Philadelphia. As I see the conference, Florida can play as well as anyone with the exception of Ottawa, and arguably Carolina and New Jersey. The cats, who are notoriously bad as a road team, are 8-9-1. When you factor in injuries and the Panthers road record, this team could finish as high as 2nd in the conference, but more likely 4th or 5th. I think my preseason prediction of Florida making the playoffs for the first time since 2000, is looking better and better.
The controversial left winger is probably facing another suspension from the NFL. From AP-
NEW YORK - Chris Simon stepped away from the New York Islanders before the NHL had a chance to toss him out.
That might be next for the troubled forward.
Simon and the Islanders agreed Monday he should take a paid break from hockey following his latest penalty for attempting to injure an opponent.
He had already missed the first five games of this season while completing a 25-game ban — his sixth NHL suspension — meted out in March. Simon played in only 26 games before he found more trouble on the ice.
He is likely in line for another long penalty after he took down and stepped on Pittsburgh’s Jarkko Ruutu last weekend. Simon is scheduled to have a hearing with NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell on Tuesday in Toronto.
“The actions of Chris Simon on Saturday do not reflect what the New York Islanders stand for,” Islanders owner Charles Wang said in a statement. “They were reckless, potentially dangerous and against our team concept of grit, character and heart.
“We know Chris as a respected teammate and as a gracious man away from the playing surface and believe strongly that he has earned our continued support. The Islanders are going to provide some time for Chris away from the team and give him the counseling he needs and the compassion he deserves. When Chris is completely ready, he will be a member of our team again.”
Wang’s defense of Simon is idiotic. Here’s the video of last Saturday’s incident.
Simon is a thug who deserves a suspension for a year at least, I’d ban him entirely if I was the NHL. Two strikes and you’re out. Go look what he did last year. This player is indefensible and if Islander management think this leave changes anything, they’re as warped as Chris Simon is.
The last time the Flyers did a similar scoring feat was in 1986. From AP-
Taking a few extra minutes to clear the hats off the ice was about the only thing that slowed down the Philadelphia Flyers.
Joffrey Lupul completed the first hat trick at home in two years for the Flyers, and R.J. Umberger matched him with three goals in Philadelphia’s 8-2 rout of the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night.
*****
Not bad for a Flyers team who went 0-8 against the Penguins last year. This year, Philadelphia is 3-0 against its Atlantic Division rival.
*****
Lupul added three assists for the first six-point game for a Flyer since Eric Lindros on March 1, 1997, against Toronto. The Flyers also had two players with a hat trick in the same game for the first time since Tim Kerr and Dave Poulin each had three goals against the Islanders on Dec. 18, 1986.
I can’t ever recall seeing two hat tricks in a game. While I’m a fan of the notiously punchless Florida Panthers, I grew up watching the New York Islanders during their dynasty days. Thinking of it, I can’t remember the last Florida hat trick. I think it was during the 06-07 season.
The Florida Panthers had no business winning last night.
MONTREAL — Tuesday night showed why the Panthers grabbed goalie Tomas Vokoun this past summer.
Dead offensively throughout the game, the only reason Florida was within striking distance of the host Canadiens was the play of Vokoun. The All-Star netminder kept the Panthers’ deficit at a goal, giving his outplayed team a chance.
What a chance it was.
Nathan Horton’s goal with 10.2 seconds left tied the score, and Jozef Stumpel got the shootout winner as the Panthers crept out of town with a 2-1 victory at the Bell Centre. The Panthers have now won three games in a row after an 0-3 start.
”We were pretty bad for 59 minutes,” Jay Bouwmeester said. “[Vokoun] played real great. He stole that one for sure. He’s a good goalie. We knew he could do that. Sometimes a goalie has to steal one for you.”
Vokoun was nothing short of a miracle worker last night. After a slow start, probably atttributable to moving from the NHL’s Western to Eastern conference, the Czech born goaltender is playing like Florida Panthers fans hoped and dreamed he would.
The Panthers stand at 3-3, and have won their last three in a row. Unlike hurricane forecasters, I will stick by my preseason prediction. The Panthers, riding the likes of Stumpel, Horton, Olli Jokinen, Vokoun, and some fine defensemen like Bryan Allen(The only good thing to result from the Roberto Luongo fiascotrade), will make the playoffs this year.
Note- I’ve watched every Panther game this season so far. Including last night’s, which was only available on NHL Center Ice. I must be going through a mid-life crisis, for I hadn’t watched hockey seriously the New York Islanders were NHL Champs in the early 80’s.
Well, I’m 0 for 1 on my picks so far as the Rangers swept the Thrashers out of the Playoffs winning the four games with scores of 4-3, 2-1, 7-0, & 4-2. The Rangers just stuck it to the Thrashers as the veteran leadership figured to lead the Thrashers was hardly a factor in the series. Good job by the Rangers overall they turned their season around after looking like they would miss the playoffs two months ago. They got hot to make the playoffs and have carried that through, if they can keep this play up their second round opponent will have a tough series ahead.
Update on other First Round Series:
New Jersey Devils tied with Tampa Bay Lightning 2-2
Buffalo Sabres lead New York Islanders 3-1
Ottawa Senators lead Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1
San Jose Sharks lead Nashville Predators 3-1
Detroit Red Wings lead Calgary Flames 2-1
Vancouver Canucks lead Dallas Stars 3-1
Anaheim Ducks lead Minnesota Wild 3-1
