Roberto Luongo wasn’t very good on two of Boston’s goals last night. The other two weren’t fantastic either. That doesn’t even begin to explain game three.
When the Canucks began to melt down against the Blackhawks, the epicenter was in net. Most of the blame was shouldered on Roberto Luongo. He wasn’t good in the middle of that series, nor was his team. Now, the rest of the Canucks were very average in games three and four and Luongo was just as average. Continue reading
Aaron Rome delivered a monsters hit to Nathan Horton at the Vancouver blue line last night. The hit left Horton unconscious on the ice and Rome was ejected.
The fallout is this: Horton will miss the remainder of the Finals with a severe concussion and Rome will miss the remainder of the Finals with a four-game suspension.
I think the NHL’s punishment is appropriate. Rome left his feet and hammered a guy way too late. The result was a serious injury and Rome will now pay the price.
A lot of people seem to think the four-game ban isn’t enough and i have to disagree. I don’t think this was a hit to the head, nor was it blind side. Face it people, when the players are skating AT each other there is not a blind side. Sure Horton was vulnerable but it wasn’t a blind side hit. I do agree that the hit was far too late and that by leaving his feet Rome was putting Horton in a position to be injured.
So Rome deserved a suspension and he got one. He will not play in the rest of this series and that is fair. There is a theory that playoff games count double when dealing with suspensions, so the critics can rest with the fact that Rome is suspended for eight games, technically speaking. Personally, I think that theory is a load of garbage. Four games is four games, period.
However, this was the exact length the guy deserved. There is no previous history with the guy, in fact he has been the victim twice this season. So don’t hate on he discipline system on this one. Had they only given him one or two games thee would be a case, but missing the remainder of their run is all Rome needed to be given.
This topic has been rehashed far too many times. But the fact of the matter is Alex Burrows should not have played in game two of the Stanly Cup Finals. However, he did and he had a very small impact on the game.
I am a Canucks fan, have been for a while now (didn’t jump on the bandwagon this year). I wanted Kevin Bieksa and Ryan Kesler shipped to Buffalo at least three years ago. This is a team I have a vested interest in, I still think it is a sham that Burrows was able to play. We can all admit he bit Patrice Bergeron’s finger, there is no doubting that one. Most people can probably admit he should have been suspended for the infraction. I also think it is safe to assume that a vast majority of hockey fans think it is brutal that the NHL didn’t give him a single game for chomping down on Bergeron’s channel changing digit.
I will admit when I saw the incident live I conceded that he could get away with the bit because it looked like he was attempting to pull Bergeron’s hand out of his mouth rather that ingesting it. Still, there is little evidence to show he didn’t bit the guy and he should have gotten at least one game. Here lies the problem.
Even with Colin Campbell, the previously assumed culprit of the NHL’s wishy-washy discipline, out of the decision making process, the NHL still got it wrong. The same goes for Nathan Horton not getting suspended for throwing a water bottle at a Tampa fan (even if he/she deserved it). Add to that his borderline headshot on Steve Downie. Horton probably shouldn’t have played in game seven of the ECF and he scored the clinching goal. Hell, Andrew Ference went out of his way to knock Jeff Halpern in the face during the Bruins’ series with the Habs. Ference ended up having a say in the outcome of that game too.
It seems as if the NHL isn’t capable of drawing that line. They are afraid of banning their stars and they’re equally afraid to drastically affect the outcome of a game or asides with a ruling. Unfortunately they are doing exactly that be being consistently inconsistent. Perhaps Brendan Shanahan will be able to bring some stability to this process, because now it is nothing short of a train wreck.
The 2011 Stanley Cup Finals will likely be decided by one thing: the Bruins ability to play tight, defensive hockey. If the Canucks are able to wheel and deal they will be very successful. If the Bruins are able to check the Canucks’ top scorers, the Bruins ability to score five-on-five will win the series.
A lot will be made of the goaltending match up. Tim Thomas will likely be the Vezina Trophy winner and Roberto Luongo has forever been branded as the guy who can’t win the big one. Thomas had his troubles against Tampa and their firepower while Luongo has given up a few bad goals as he has recovered from a rough first round quite well. Continue reading
I should preface this post, and explain that headline, by saying I have loads of respect for Jeremy Roenick. I was lucky enough to spend time with Jeremy in Vancouver at the Olympics and he is truly a great guy. The morning production meetings were always a blast with him there.
So, I digress. The fact that Jeremy Roenick was so emotional over the Blackhawks winning the Cup shows the die-hard attitude the players have in the NHL. Roenick was so close, so many times and missed his opportunity. And to see him in that state shows his dedication to the game of hockey. I know a lot of people are going to have a lot of fun with what happened in studio after the game, but I respect him for it. I know if the Sabres ever win the Cup………….I will probably experience a wave of emotion. Plus, if I were to have the hockey career similar to his, and see a former team of mine hoist the Cup, I would be happy but heartbroken too. So, my hat’s off to you Mr. Roenick. But, for everyone else, here is the video.
Pat Kane fired the shot heard ’round the hockey world. Well, it was more of a trickler that eluded Michael Leighton to give Chicago their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.
It was a climactic end to a game that was rather frustrating to watch. Particularly the first period and a half. Scott Hartnell – first of all cut your hair, you look like an ass – ran around taking dives and just played reckless through the first period. I thought the dive that drew a make-up call on Brent Seabrook was far worse than the tumble he took before his first goal. Either way, he runs around every game and plays a dangerous style, so does Dan Carcillo. Of course, Carcillo couldn’t do too much damage in the press box could he?
I found more fault with the refereeing, particularly in the first half of the game. Chris Pronger plays a rather edgy style, but, he didn’t really deserve the call he got for roughing up Jonathon Towes. In the same hand Marian Hossa did not interfere with Leighton in the 2nd. In fact, that was one of the worst calls I have seen in quite some time. Thankfully, the zebras put away the whistles for the third period and overtime. The final 20 minutes and change was wildly entertaining hockey and rather poetic, thanks to the deflection off Marian Hossa’s shin pad that led to the Flyers tying goal. Of course, that was moot once Kane slipped the winner under Leighton from a sharp angle.
In the mid-1990s a strong argument could be made that the NHL had surpassed the NBA in popularity. But, goaltender equipment grew, the trap gained popularity and hockey entered the dead puck era. All the while, the NBA had a surge of young talent and rapidly attracted casual fans.
Entering the early 2000s the NHL, armed with commissioner Gary Bettman, who was sent from the NBA, attempted to invade non-traditional, warm weather markets. Ten years later the Nashville Predators have been in a constant state of limbo, the Phoenix Coyotes are being run by the league and teams like Florida, Tampa and Atlanta have trouble filling seats. All of this is occurring while the Stanley Cup Finals draws new audience highs since the 90s with numbers comparable to the Lakers/Celtics NBA Finals. In fact, last night’s 7-4 Blackhawks win trounced the NBA Finals in the Chicago market. Of course, that is to be expected.
The trend nationwide surely would favor the NBA, and I would not argue that the NHL has again surpassed the NBA in popularity. However, hockey is a much more team-oriented sport that has seen less drama off the playing field than the NBA recently. When it all boils down the NHL is still a few years away, but, the youth movement has spurred ticket sales and unique events like the Winter Classic. Plus, the high-scoring Finals that is developing not only will help draw casual fans hungry for goals, but it will have Gary Bettman doing backflips about high-scoring games.
If ESPN’s coverage was less biased towards the NBA and the NHL continues to grow, the league should see nothing but positive growth in the next few years.
Your call:
The Hawks overwhelmed the Flyers, plain and simple. The three-goal first period all but nailed the coffin shut for Philly, although they fought back valiantly all game.
Give credit to the Chicago coaching staff, they used the last change to their advantage and kept their big guns away from Chris Pronger. Apparently, second line players are Pronger’s kryptonite. The towering d-man was a minus-5 tonight after going plus-7 in the first four games of the series. In fact, Pronger was on the ice for six Chicago goals, but Brent Seabrook’s first-period tally came with the man advantage.
Again, the goaltending was less than impressive on both sides. Antti Niemi played well enough for his team not to lose, which appears to be the trend for this Cup Final. I’m sure game six will mirror that trend. After all, every game, save for one, has been a shootout.
I don’t know who will take game six, I truly don’t. Neither team has shown up and played their true style of hockey for back-to-back games this series. If Chicago can come out like gangbusters on the road Tuesday, the Blackhawks will win the Cup. But, you just can’t count out home ice in this series, it has proven to be too valuable of a commodity.
Why must major sports outlets jump to such wild and rash conclusions with every sport? Perfect example, the Chicago Blackhawks go up 2-0 in the Stanley Cup Final. Sportscenter immediately wonders, “is the series over?”
Of course it isn’t. And the excuse that it makes for better television is, in the words of Charles Barkley, “trbl“. I’d rather hear why Philly had a chance to tie the series, which they did, and what the Blackhawks had to do for a sweep. That makes more sense to me.
Tiger Woods is another good example. The guy made a mistake(s), but it wasn’t on the golf course. So those transgressions should be left outside the realm of the PGA Tour because that’s where they occurred. He knows the errors he made and he took steps to fix that, why does ESPN need to stake out his rehab clinic?
Sorry, that was a rhetorical question. It’s the same reason the network televises the Spelling Bee (which is intoxicating to watch), the World Series of Poker and a NASCAR studio show. Honestly, what could you possible talk about on a 30-minute NASCAR talk show? Left turns can only take you so far.
The networks are even doing it after one game of the NBA Finals. I can almost guarantee the response from the major sports outlets. It certainly won’t be conservative either.
Game five of the Stanley Cup Final gets underway at 8pm tonight (CBC, NBC) and will likely be touted as the turning point of the series for the winner. I’m not so sure.
I truly feel that this series will be decided by home ice, therefore Philadelphia needs an inspired performance tonight to steal the advantage. The Flyers already showed they could take away momentum in games three and four, why can’t they keep this ball rolling into game five?
Chicago, on the other hand, just needs to play their game. On paper, and sometimes on the ice, Chicago is the far better team. Hell, they went goal-for-goal with Philly in game one and finally imposed their will on the visitors to take the first victory of the series. The Dustin Byfuglien/Chris Pronger match-up has been a snoozer. Mostly because Pronger has neutralized Big Buff and Mike Richards; line have taken away time and space from Jonathon Towes and Patrick Kane.
Games three and four were very similar to games one and two, it was a simple case of role reversal. In Chicago the Flyers top guns were neutralized as was the top line for the Blackhawks. However, players like Patrick Sharp, Dave Bolland et. al. stepped to the plate and help take those two games. In Philadelphia, it was the other way around. Daniel Briere and Claude Giroux provided the Flyers with secondary scoring and they were the victors.
Then who takes game five? Its a tough call between home ice and momentum. I like Chicago tonight just because the Madhouse on Madison will be rocking and both teams have proven winning on the road this series is going to be difficult. Final: Chicago 4 – Philadelphia 2
Two in the Box 