Lots of interesting stuff in the playoffs thus far...
Western Conference
Detroit def. Phoenix 4-0 - Goodness gracious, the Wings looked solid.
San Jose def. Los Angeles 4-2 - As a Sharks fan, I'm of course glad they won, but didn't see much to inspire confidence going into the later rounds. Very interesting piece Sharks-Kings piece on shooting at a goalie's pads from Puck Daddy at Yahoo Sports.
Nashville def. Anaheim 4-2 - Always happy to see Anaheim lose, but I have a hard time being sold on the Preds chances.
Chicago & Vancouver 3-3 - What a series... great players, panicked coaches (well, Vancouver coach), potential monster comeback from 3-0. It's been fantastic viewing.
Eastern Conference
Washington def. New York Rangers 4-1 - Heck of a team those Capitals are.
Boston leading Montreal 3-2 - I think the Canadiens cooked, but not overly impressed with the Bruins.
Pittsburgh & Tampa Bay 3-3 - Really good series... regardless of who wins, I think it would be tough sledding if a matchup with Washington awaits. Now, either Boston or Montreal... could be a different story.
Philadelphia & Buffalo 3-3 - Another good series, but not sure that it would be if the Flyers were able to get decent goaltending. To that point, amazed that Sergey Bobrovsky didn't even warrant a backup goalie spot for games 3-6 of the series.
Showing posts with label Yahoo Sports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yahoo Sports. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Video of Building a Backyard Rink
Came across this video a few days ago linked from a post on Puck Daddy at Yahoo! Sports and while I found the time-lapse photographs to be a bit difficult on the eyes to watch, I sure did love the result at the latter part of the video...
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Good Goal - Terrible D - Hilarious Commentary
Wow, such a great highlight... on multiple levels.
Saw this from the blog post "Video: Defense is hard to come by in the ECHL" on Puck Daddy at Yahoo! Sports.
As the title indicates, the defense is laughable, but frankly, so is the commentary on the second go-round (that being the "Goal of the Night from Cialis"... which provides additional mirth) of the highlight below. Love when announcers chat with one another as if they forgot they're on camera.
Saw this from the blog post "Video: Defense is hard to come by in the ECHL" on Puck Daddy at Yahoo! Sports.
As the title indicates, the defense is laughable, but frankly, so is the commentary on the second go-round (that being the "Goal of the Night from Cialis"... which provides additional mirth) of the highlight below. Love when announcers chat with one another as if they forgot they're on camera.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Amazing Dwayne Roloson Saves
Yes, it may be excessive to have two posts in a row with content taken entirely from a different blog, but man... this is a great save.
Below is video taken this Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports post.
Below is video taken this Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports post.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Minnesota Wild Equipment Fire
Wow, never seen anything like this story from the Puck Daddy blog on Yahoo! Sports.
Below is an image from the Yahoo! post... crazy.
Below is an image from the Yahoo! post... crazy.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Yahoo! Sports Puck Daddy "10 Biggest NHL Goon Moments of the Decade"
Interesting piece from the Puck Daddy NHL Blog on Yahoo! Sports today.
Titled The 10 biggest NHL goon moments of the last decade it has... that ... and with videos!
I suppose this isn't surprising, but of the ten, nine were cheap shots, with the remaining one being the Sabres goons going out to fight the Senators (great video linked and below, especially the coaches yelling naughty words at each other) after Chris Drury was hit late with a head shot.
Also linked from this story (and also from the Puck Daddy on Yahoo!) was The 10 biggest NHL stories of the last decade. Maybe I'm just an NHL cynic (though not a hockey cynic), but it seems to me that a number of these "stories of the decade" are of the not so great variety and can be tied to how the league is run.
As to the cheap shots, players out to injury others deserve the most blame, but the league itself isn't in the clear given that it's the NHL dictating punishment for transgressions. The severity of said punishment is usually determined by... well, see one blogger's most excellent mock suspension flow chart...
Titled The 10 biggest NHL goon moments of the last decade it has... that ... and with videos!
I suppose this isn't surprising, but of the ten, nine were cheap shots, with the remaining one being the Sabres goons going out to fight the Senators (great video linked and below, especially the coaches yelling naughty words at each other) after Chris Drury was hit late with a head shot.
Also linked from this story (and also from the Puck Daddy on Yahoo!) was The 10 biggest NHL stories of the last decade. Maybe I'm just an NHL cynic (though not a hockey cynic), but it seems to me that a number of these "stories of the decade" are of the not so great variety and can be tied to how the league is run.
As to the cheap shots, players out to injury others deserve the most blame, but the league itself isn't in the clear given that it's the NHL dictating punishment for transgressions. The severity of said punishment is usually determined by... well, see one blogger's most excellent mock suspension flow chart...
Monday, October 5, 2009
Rendition of Herb Brooks' Speech by 4 Year Old
Apparently this has been quite the viral web hit lately, but I just came across this video on this post by Greg Wyshynski in the Yahoo! Sports hosted Puck Daddy blog.
The video itself is brilliant and the post itself is well worth reading (probably even reading first) as it provides background.
Short description is it's a 4 year old kid doing the Kurt Russell as Herb Brooks "tonight we beat the Russians" speech from the movie "Miracle". Great stuff.
The video itself is brilliant and the post itself is well worth reading (probably even reading first) as it provides background.
Short description is it's a 4 year old kid doing the Kurt Russell as Herb Brooks "tonight we beat the Russians" speech from the movie "Miracle". Great stuff.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Mickey Mouse NHL
I suppose it doesn't make me a writing genius to simply link to a story, but "Potential Stanley Cup break could be long, very long" from Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports tells the story well enough.
Yea, no hockey for 10 days before the Cup Finals... that will be great for bringing in the casual fan. Guess it's important that the NHL do what NBC wants given $0 in right fees paid by the network (it's just an ad revenue-sharing deal).
Here's to hoping the Penguins do sweep, the Red Wings win in 5 and then league looks stupid enough that the owners sack Bettman and bring in as commissioner someone with a hockey background to run the league.
Yea, no hockey for 10 days before the Cup Finals... that will be great for bringing in the casual fan. Guess it's important that the NHL do what NBC wants given $0 in right fees paid by the network (it's just an ad revenue-sharing deal).
Here's to hoping the Penguins do sweep, the Red Wings win in 5 and then league looks stupid enough that the owners sack Bettman and bring in as commissioner someone with a hockey background to run the league.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
NHL League Management
It's a shame to be doing a post like this during the midst of such great second round series (Caps-Pens Game 7, anyone?), but... this is lame. I really wish the league could be better run.
Exhibit A: non-suspension of Carolina Hurricanes forward Scott Walker.
The video of the incident that in the mind of the officials earned an automatic one game is below and a really good commentary piece from Jim Kelly at CNNSI can be found here.
Exhibit B: Game 5 of the Ducks-Red Wings series NOT ON NATIONAL TV.
Very bizarre and for a description of why (well, not really as there is no good reason why, but for the facts), look about halfway down this post from Greg Wyshynski as Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports.
I suppose exhibit C could easily be the Coyotes move/no move, NHL running/not running soap opera, but since the facts are yet to come out in court, I'll simply say that they... never should have left Winnipeg.
Hockey... a great sport. The NHL... it's top professional league. Oh well.
Exhibit A: non-suspension of Carolina Hurricanes forward Scott Walker.
The video of the incident that in the mind of the officials earned an automatic one game is below and a really good commentary piece from Jim Kelly at CNNSI can be found here.
Exhibit B: Game 5 of the Ducks-Red Wings series NOT ON NATIONAL TV.
Very bizarre and for a description of why (well, not really as there is no good reason why, but for the facts), look about halfway down this post from Greg Wyshynski as Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports.
I suppose exhibit C could easily be the Coyotes move/no move, NHL running/not running soap opera, but since the facts are yet to come out in court, I'll simply say that they... never should have left Winnipeg.
Hockey... a great sport. The NHL... it's top professional league. Oh well.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
2009 NHL Playoffs: Day One Impressions
Well, after watching pretty much all of Pittsburgh-Philadelphia and Vancouver-St. Louis... I'd say some pretty interesting stuff going on thus far.
Penguins 4 - Flyers 1: Wow, Pittsburgh looked dominant in this game. They really appeared to be a study in how good a team can and should be when they've got two of the top five players in the game. The Flyers attempted to "play their game" and get chippy in the final minute, but it actually seemed more sad than what I'll call "send a messageish". The announcers were right when making the comment that there wasn't really a point anymore to the antagonism.
Canucks 2 - Blues 1: Interesting game. The two teams played very similar games with grinding forwards, stout D, excellent goaltending, lots of driving the net and action after the whistle. After seeing them match up for 60 minutes, it appears that St. Louis will likely remain game for as long as they're alive in the series, but Vancouver just does each thing a little bit better.
Other (not watched) action...
Well, given the whole "not watched" thing for the other two games, I'll link to some interesting analysis from Greg Wyshynski at Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports (not sure if I worded that correctly, but it'll do).
The long and short of it... New Jersey is good and Jose Theodore in the Caps net... maybe not so good.
Yea, I understand that Theodore won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP back in 2002, but me thinks goalie years are kinda like dog years... meaning stellar play 7 years ago does not necessarily equate to the same performance today. Maybe they looked around and found the asking prices too steep, but I just don't know how Washington didn't go get some solid backup insurance at the trade deadline. Hello... Scott Clemmensen, anyone? Now the Caps coaching staff has to decide between rolling Jose back out there for game 2 or going with Simeon Varlamov and his 6 career NHL games played. Fun choice...
Penguins 4 - Flyers 1: Wow, Pittsburgh looked dominant in this game. They really appeared to be a study in how good a team can and should be when they've got two of the top five players in the game. The Flyers attempted to "play their game" and get chippy in the final minute, but it actually seemed more sad than what I'll call "send a messageish". The announcers were right when making the comment that there wasn't really a point anymore to the antagonism.
Canucks 2 - Blues 1: Interesting game. The two teams played very similar games with grinding forwards, stout D, excellent goaltending, lots of driving the net and action after the whistle. After seeing them match up for 60 minutes, it appears that St. Louis will likely remain game for as long as they're alive in the series, but Vancouver just does each thing a little bit better.
Other (not watched) action...
Well, given the whole "not watched" thing for the other two games, I'll link to some interesting analysis from Greg Wyshynski at Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports (not sure if I worded that correctly, but it'll do).
The long and short of it... New Jersey is good and Jose Theodore in the Caps net... maybe not so good.
Yea, I understand that Theodore won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP back in 2002, but me thinks goalie years are kinda like dog years... meaning stellar play 7 years ago does not necessarily equate to the same performance today. Maybe they looked around and found the asking prices too steep, but I just don't know how Washington didn't go get some solid backup insurance at the trade deadline. Hello... Scott Clemmensen, anyone? Now the Caps coaching staff has to decide between rolling Jose back out there for game 2 or going with Simeon Varlamov and his 6 career NHL games played. Fun choice...
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Power Rankings Revisted
It's been almost two weeks since I posted last so I might as well jump back in easy with links to the newly posted power rankings from Ross McKeon at Yahoo! Sports and those from Allan Muir at CNNSI.
My thoughts on some of the teams (with first their Yahoo! and then CNNSI ranking)...
New Jersey Devils (1/1) - Looking really good right now. Should be nice having a rested Martin Brodeur in net come playoff time.
Detroit Red Wings (2/2) - Great playoff team last year, probably going to be great again this season.
San Jose Sharks (3/3) - Scuffling a bit in the last month, but still has the horses needed. Just gotta get them back running in tandem.
Pittsburgh Penguins (5/7) - Don't have the talent they did after the trade deadline last season, but opponents should be very afraid of any team with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
Calgary Flames (4/10) - Good team, got better at the trade deadline, but seem a bit dysfunctional with Coach Mike Keenan playing Captain Hook with all-star goalie Mikka Kiprusoff.
Washington Capitals (9/4) - Not surprising to see a disparity in the two sets of rankings. Hard to know what to make of a team with such offensive talent (see: Ovechkin, Alex) and inconsistency in net (see: Theodore, Jose).
Philadelphia Flyers (7/8) - Good team, entertaining to watch what with the short-handed stylings of Mike Richards and frequent mayhem contributed from Daniel Carcillo.
Columbus Blue Jackets (12/9) - Anyone want to play this team (including Steve Mason in net) in the postseason?
Vancouver Canucks (8/6) - Not sure what it is, but I just don't like this team much.
Boston Bruins (6/5) - Haven't heard much about them lately, but should be an intriguing team to watch come playoff time.
My thoughts on some of the teams (with first their Yahoo! and then CNNSI ranking)...
New Jersey Devils (1/1) - Looking really good right now. Should be nice having a rested Martin Brodeur in net come playoff time.
Detroit Red Wings (2/2) - Great playoff team last year, probably going to be great again this season.
San Jose Sharks (3/3) - Scuffling a bit in the last month, but still has the horses needed. Just gotta get them back running in tandem.
Pittsburgh Penguins (5/7) - Don't have the talent they did after the trade deadline last season, but opponents should be very afraid of any team with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
Calgary Flames (4/10) - Good team, got better at the trade deadline, but seem a bit dysfunctional with Coach Mike Keenan playing Captain Hook with all-star goalie Mikka Kiprusoff.
Washington Capitals (9/4) - Not surprising to see a disparity in the two sets of rankings. Hard to know what to make of a team with such offensive talent (see: Ovechkin, Alex) and inconsistency in net (see: Theodore, Jose).
Philadelphia Flyers (7/8) - Good team, entertaining to watch what with the short-handed stylings of Mike Richards and frequent mayhem contributed from Daniel Carcillo.
Columbus Blue Jackets (12/9) - Anyone want to play this team (including Steve Mason in net) in the postseason?
Vancouver Canucks (8/6) - Not sure what it is, but I just don't like this team much.
Boston Bruins (6/5) - Haven't heard much about them lately, but should be an intriguing team to watch come playoff time.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Welcome to the Top Spot, San Jose
Guess it shouldn't be surprising... after being placed at the top of heap in the both the Yahoo! Sports NHL Power Rankings from Ross McKeon and the rankings from Allan Muir at CNNSI, San Jose goes and gets beaten 4-1 in Detroit by the Red Wings.
Well, it is only the regular season and San Jose is still an excellent team (along with those pesky Red Wings), but as a Sharks fan, I'd be quite happy to see them return to the form they showed early in the season.
However, they've got time and the ingredients to win the Cup are still there. Not the least of which is Captain Patrick Marleau. To this point, there's an excellent article from Darren Eliot at CNNSI titled "Marleau and Sharks all business" that details the reemergence from a tough start to last season.
Good stuff, hope it translates in the playoffs.
Well, it is only the regular season and San Jose is still an excellent team (along with those pesky Red Wings), but as a Sharks fan, I'd be quite happy to see them return to the form they showed early in the season.
However, they've got time and the ingredients to win the Cup are still there. Not the least of which is Captain Patrick Marleau. To this point, there's an excellent article from Darren Eliot at CNNSI titled "Marleau and Sharks all business" that details the reemergence from a tough start to last season.
Good stuff, hope it translates in the playoffs.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
2010 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team Preview/Prediction from CNNSI
Only a year away till Vancouver. What may well be the last time that NHL players participate in the Olympics (if the league office gets their way) is highly anticipated and the subject of much debate.
To that end... CNNSI just published Michael Farber's take on the U.S. roster as well as Allan Muir's predictions for the Canadian roster. In addition to these posts, CNNSI also links to a comments page from the site Fan Nation.
From these, I want to first look at Farber's predictions for the U.S. team along with players he may have left off. Subsequently, I'll look at Muir's view of Team Canada. The links above to each story are very much worth viewing as there's analysis of each player.
2010 U.S. Olympic Team - by Michael Farber
Goaltenders
1. Tim Thomas
2. Ryan Miller
3. Jonathan Quick
Defensemen
Ryan Suter & Brian Rafalski
Ryan Whitney & Mike Komisarek
Paul Martin & Jack Johnson
extra guys: John-Michael Liles & Matt Niskanen
Forwards
Zach Parise, Paul Stasny & Phil Kessel
Dustin Brown, Scott Gomez & Patrick Kane
David Booth, Chris Drury & Brian Gionta
Jason Blake, Ryan Kesler & Jamie Langenbrunner
extra guys: Blake Wheeler & Jason Pominville
Here's the guys brought up on the Fan Nation comment page as others that may get the nod...
Defensemen
Brooks Orpik, Keith Ballard
Forwards
Tim Connolly, Erik Johnson, Peter Mueller, Brian Gionta, Lee Stempniak, Erik Cole, Patrick O'Sullivan, Ryan Malone and Keith Tkachuk
Finally, there's an interesting story from The Sporting News linked on Yahoo! Sports about the choices facing U.S. GM Brian Burke as he and the other team leadership decide what to do with longtime stalwarts such as Mike Modano, Doug Weight, Bill Guerin and... Keith Tkachuk.
To that end... CNNSI just published Michael Farber's take on the U.S. roster as well as Allan Muir's predictions for the Canadian roster. In addition to these posts, CNNSI also links to a comments page from the site Fan Nation.
From these, I want to first look at Farber's predictions for the U.S. team along with players he may have left off. Subsequently, I'll look at Muir's view of Team Canada. The links above to each story are very much worth viewing as there's analysis of each player.
2010 U.S. Olympic Team - by Michael Farber
Goaltenders
1. Tim Thomas
2. Ryan Miller
3. Jonathan Quick
Defensemen
Ryan Suter & Brian Rafalski
Ryan Whitney & Mike Komisarek
Paul Martin & Jack Johnson
extra guys: John-Michael Liles & Matt Niskanen
Forwards
Zach Parise, Paul Stasny & Phil Kessel
Dustin Brown, Scott Gomez & Patrick Kane
David Booth, Chris Drury & Brian Gionta
Jason Blake, Ryan Kesler & Jamie Langenbrunner
extra guys: Blake Wheeler & Jason Pominville
Here's the guys brought up on the Fan Nation comment page as others that may get the nod...
Defensemen
Brooks Orpik, Keith Ballard
Forwards
Tim Connolly, Erik Johnson, Peter Mueller, Brian Gionta, Lee Stempniak, Erik Cole, Patrick O'Sullivan, Ryan Malone and Keith Tkachuk
Finally, there's an interesting story from The Sporting News linked on Yahoo! Sports about the choices facing U.S. GM Brian Burke as he and the other team leadership decide what to do with longtime stalwarts such as Mike Modano, Doug Weight, Bill Guerin and... Keith Tkachuk.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Ross McKeon Yahoo! Sports Outdoor Game Locations
It is Tuesday, which would normally call for a simple review of the Yahoo! Sports and CNNSI NHL Power Rankings, but this week brings something special.
In his rankings for this week, Ross McKeon gives the standard rankings (predictable stuff with the Red Wings, Sharks and then Bruins 1-2-3), but also hypothesizes locations and opponents of an outdoor game for each NHL team. The ideas range from extremely likely (the Rangers hosting a game at the new Yankee Stadium) to the extremely entertaining (the Senators hosting a game on the canal through town).
Definitely worth a read.
In his rankings for this week, Ross McKeon gives the standard rankings (predictable stuff with the Red Wings, Sharks and then Bruins 1-2-3), but also hypothesizes locations and opponents of an outdoor game for each NHL team. The ideas range from extremely likely (the Rangers hosting a game at the new Yankee Stadium) to the extremely entertaining (the Senators hosting a game on the canal through town).
Definitely worth a read.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Dec 23 Power Rankings
Well... we don't have the weekly rankings from Allan Muir at CNNSI yet, but Ross McKeon at Yahoo! Sports has given us his top 30 list as of Tuesday Dec 30.
A review of McKeon's rankings:
1. Boston Bruins
2. Detroit Red Wings
3. San Jose Sharks
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. New York Rangers
Well, hard to argue with any of this. The Sharks are still an extremely formidable team, but did get handed a 6-0 blanking at the hands of the Red Wings last week. My thoughts (not counting that I'm ok with San Jose being pushed to 3rd on the list)...
(1) At various points the rest of the reason you'll see the Bruins, Red Wings, Sharks, Flyers and Penguins in the top spot.
(2) Things appear to be setting up for a San Jose-Detroit battle royale in the West (and wouldn't that be fun if Claude Lemieux currently of the Worcester Sharks skated in it?).
(3) That the Eastern Conference playoffs are going to be must-see tv throughout. In this vein, I think a follow-up post is called for...
A review of McKeon's rankings:
1. Boston Bruins
2. Detroit Red Wings
3. San Jose Sharks
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. New York Rangers
Well, hard to argue with any of this. The Sharks are still an extremely formidable team, but did get handed a 6-0 blanking at the hands of the Red Wings last week. My thoughts (not counting that I'm ok with San Jose being pushed to 3rd on the list)...
(1) At various points the rest of the reason you'll see the Bruins, Red Wings, Sharks, Flyers and Penguins in the top spot.
(2) Things appear to be setting up for a San Jose-Detroit battle royale in the West (and wouldn't that be fun if Claude Lemieux currently of the Worcester Sharks skated in it?).
(3) That the Eastern Conference playoffs are going to be must-see tv throughout. In this vein, I think a follow-up post is called for...
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