NHL Thread

[CanadianChris 0]

A very interesting December, as Buffalo scorched through the entire month, landing three points back of Ottawa (albeit with three more games played), and Calgary took over first in the Northwest over Vancouver on the last day of 2005. There's no one really running away with anything at this point, as we thought the Red Wings and Senators would do earlier in the season. The standings are really tight, both to get into the playoffs and to get a higher seed.

 

If the season ended today:

 

EAST

Ottawa (57 pts) vs. Tampa Bay (41)

Philadelphia (54) vs. Montreal (42)

Carolina (52) vs. Toronto (47)

Buffalo (54) vs. NY Rangers (49)

 

Missing out - Atlanta (38), New Jersey (37), NY Islanders (36), Florida (35), Boston (34), Washington (29), Pittsburgh (28)

 

WEST

Detroit (55) vs. Colorado (43)

Los Angeles (52) vs. Vancouver (47)

Calgary (50) vs. Edmonton (48)

Nashville (51) vs. Dallas (49)

 

Missing out - Phoenix (42), Minnesota (40), Anaheim (40), San Jose (37), Chicago (30), Columbus (25), St. Louis (23)

[the max 0]

I got soda and beer thrown on me at the Bruins/Bolts game the other night when Bergeron scored the winner on a breakaway. Bolts fans are kind of stupid. They saw I had the Bruins sweater on but acted surprised when I was pulling for the Bruins. This brought all kinds of sarcastic remarks about how they won the Stanley Cup in my lifetime, how the Bruins only have Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque to be proud of, etc. They finally stopped when I noted to them that Bruins great Phil Esposito founded the team and without him, they don't have a team. Ah well.

 

 

This month defines the Bruins season. If they go .500 or worse this month, it's over and I'd expect Leetch, Samsonov and anyone not nailed down to be moved. They play 10/14 at home this month and really need to start making with the wins.

[Fartsauce 0]

Is anyone even still playing fantasy hockey? I seem to update my lineups everyday and still can't get past 7th. It would be nice if i could get a goalie.

[stahl 0]

I play as I'm near the top. Seems like a lot of people have given up or half ass it though.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

If you had told me in September that on New Year's day, a young, speedy team with some talent but no superstars and a hot goalie would be the hottest team in hockey, I'd have told you without a second htought it'd be Montreal...And Buffalo's even in the same division for pete's sake!

[Guest]

I got soda and beer thrown on me at the Bruins/Bolts game the other night when Bergeron scored the winner on a breakaway. Bolts fans are kind of stupid. They saw I had the Bruins sweater on but acted surprised when I was pulling for the Bruins. This brought all kinds of sarcastic remarks about how they won the Stanley Cup in my lifetime, how the Bruins only have Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque to be proud of, etc. They finally stopped when I noted to them that Bruins great Phil Esposito founded the team and without him, they don't have a team. Ah well.

From my understanding, Bolts fans are known as the worst in the league for that reason. Heckling fans when they go to another arena, pouring beer on people, spitting at people. I'm going to the game at Staples in a few weeks, and I'm fully expecting to get stuff thrown at me.

[stahl 0]

Now that we are just about at the midway point of the season, lets bitch, argue and discuss the mid season trophy winners/leaders/etc

 

My top 5 finalists would be (in no particular order)

 

 

Calder Trophy - Rookie of the Year

 

- Sidney Crosby (37GP 19G 23A 42PTS)

- Alexander Ovechkin (37GP 24G 22A 46PTS)

- Marek Svatos (39GP 20G 14A 34PTS 7GWG)

- Dion Phaneuf (39GP 9G 14A 23PTS 8PPG 4GWG)

- Henrik Lundqvist (25GP 14W 5L 4OT 1SO 2.19GAA .925SV%)

 

Really tough call this year as there is a great crop of rookies out there.

 

Hart Memorial Trophy - NHL Most Valuable Player

 

- Alexander Ovechkin (Washington)

- Bryan McCabe (Toronto)

- Jaromir Jagr (New York)

- Peter Forsberg (Philadelphia Flyers

- Mikka Kiprusoff (Calgary Flames)

 

Another hard trophy as any of the three scoring sens could be included as well. I will elaborate on my picks.

 

Ovechkin has been pretty much the only thing going in Washington. Without him, they would probably be even worse off then they are. He is dominating and exciting and will develop into a superstar player.

 

McCabe is an interesting pick and one I made since I watch many leaf games (don't worry, I'm not a leaf fan) and he is the dominating force on the team. If a team takes a penalty, they fear McCabe as he can produce with the advantage and has a dangerous shot. Everything seems to be going well for him this season as he is having a super breakout season.

 

Jagr is having another great season after a few lackluster ones in Washington. He seems to have found his scoring touch and is lighting up the league again this year.

 

Forsberg is probably the best set up man in the league. The only thing that might hurt his chances of hardware this year is the constant injuries he seems to be always facing. He produces well even with all the injuries, I wonder what he could be capable of in an injury free season.

 

Kiprusoff is once again leading the Flames to a great season behind the pipes. His league high 5 shutouts are tremendous considering only 2 other goalies have 3 and 8 others have 2.

 

James Norris Memorial Trophy - Top Defenseman in the NHL

 

- Bryan McCabe

- Lubomir Visnovsky

- Nicklas Lidstrom

- Wade Redden

- Zdeno Chara

 

This is another tough catagory this year as there doesn't seem to be a clear cut winner. McCabe, Visnovosky. Lidstrom and Redden are putting up very great offensive numbers and Chara is once again being a bruising defender with an offensive touch.

 

Vezina Trophy - Top Goalie in the NHL

 

- Mikka Kiprusoff

- Dominick Hasek

- Manny Fernandez

- Henrik Lundqvist

- Curtis Joseph

 

Another trophy with no clear cut winner. Kiprusoff has been very steady in net this year. Hasek has been pretty flawless but the fact that he plays for such an offensive team might make his numbers more impressive in the wins catagory then they would be on any normal team. Fernandez has some of the best stats out of any goalie and wins many games on his own. Henrik is the rookie that is leading the Rangers to the top spot in their division and Cujo is having a very solid season that no one seems to notice.

 

This would be my First and Second All Star teams if the season were to end tonight:

 

First Team Allstars

 

C - Eric Staal

RW - Jaromir Jagr

LW - Ilya Kovalchuk

D - Bryan McCabe

D - Lubomir Visnovsky

G - Manny Fernandez

 

Second Team Allstars

 

C - Joe Thorton

RW - Daniel Alfreddson

LW - Simon Gagne

D - Nicklas Lidstrom

D - Wade Redden

G - Mikka Kiprusoff

[CanadianChris 0]

Ovechkin has no business being included on the list for the Hart trophy. If they took him off the team, they'd be, what...dead last instead of second last?

 

Alfredsson should get serious consideration for this award, particularly if the Sens slide while he's out the next week or two.

 

Hasek would get my vote for the Vezina in a flash. The argument for Hasek's numbers not being as meaningful because he plays on an offensive team is ridiculous. He's second in the league in wins, GAA, save % and shutouts, and he led in those categories for most of the season up until now. He'd be having a phenomenal year regardless of who he played for. Not to take anything away from Fernandez and Kiprusoff, who've also had great years so far.

[Red Baron 0]

I got soda and beer thrown on me at the Bruins/Bolts game the other night when Bergeron scored the winner on a breakaway. Bolts fans are kind of stupid. They saw I had the Bruins sweater on but acted surprised when I was pulling for the Bruins. This brought all kinds of sarcastic remarks about how they won the Stanley Cup in my lifetime, how the Bruins only have Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque to be proud of, etc. They finally stopped when I noted to them that Bruins great Phil Esposito founded the team and without him, they don't have a team. Ah well.

 

 

This month defines the Bruins season. If they go .500 or worse this month, it's over and I'd expect Leetch, Samsonov and anyone not nailed down to be moved. They play 10/14 at home this month and really need to start making with the wins.

 

You wonder if that one poster for the Lightning still cheering for them.

[the max 0]

Now that we are just about at the midway point of the season, lets bitch, argue and discuss the mid season trophy winners/leaders/etc

 

Hart Memorial Trophy - NHL Most Valuable Player

 

- Alexander Ovechkin (Washington)

- Bryan McCabe (Toronto)

- Jaromir Jagr (New York)

- Peter Forsberg (Philadelphia Flyers

- Mikka Kiprusoff (Calgary Flames)

 

Why Ovechkin? I know we argue in sports a lot about value to a team and whether or not it matters if you're in last place. The Crapitals weren't doing anything going into this year and Ovechkin hasn't led them anywhere but 14th in the conference.

 

McCabe has been a good offensive guy this year, but his defense is still suspect.

 

Jagr has been reinvigorated this season, actually looking like he gives a shit now. If the Rangers make the playoffs, Jagr's chances improve greatly.

 

Forsberg...wrong player from that team. Take Gagne. Peter has greatly enjoyed playing alongside Gagne and Knuble this season and his numbers show that.

 

Kiprusoff is an interesting pick. In terms of value, he's more valuable than Hasek is to Ottawa, but as stats go Hasek is having the better year (He's second in all four major goaltending categories). Whether or not you penalize Hasek because Emery has emerged in his few absences is the question. I'd put Hasek over Kipper because Hasek's been consistant. Remember that Calgary and Kipper started off slow, Hasek's been on all season.

 

Noticeably absent from your list is one of Ottawa's big three. Leaving off all three of the guys from Ottawa's big line is inexcusable. Alfredsson is having a career year, Spezza has emerged as a star and Heatley has returned to form. One of those three replaces Ovechkin.

 

James Norris Memorial Trophy - Top Defenseman in the NHL

 

- Bryan McCabe

- Lubomir Visnovsky

- Nicklas Lidstrom

- Wade Redden

- Zdeno Chara

 

Good selections for this, but give it to Chara.

 

Vezina Trophy - Top Goalie in the NHL

 

- Mikka Kiprusoff

- Dominick Hasek

- Manny Fernandez

- Henrik Lundqvist

- Curtis Joseph

 

One could make a case for Tomas Vokoun to be on this list, having gotten off to a great start (somewhat coming back down to earth might hurt him) and being a part of Nashville's excellent play.

 

This would be my First and Second All Star teams if the season were to end tonight:

 

I bolded my changes

 

First Team Allstars

 

C - Jason Spezza

RW - Jaromir Jagr

LW - Ilya Kovalchuk

D - Zdeno Chara

D - Lubomir Visnovsky

G - Dominik Hasek

 

Second Team Allstars

 

C - Joe Thorton

RW - Daniel Alfreddson

LW - Simon Gagne

D - Nicklas Lidstrom

D - Wade Redden

G - Mikka Kiprusoff

[the max 0]

double

[Guest]

Mine go like this.....

 

Calder Trophy

1. Alexander Ovechkin

2. Sidney Crosby

3. Dion Phaneuf

4. Henrik Lundqvist

5. Marek Svatos

 

Hart Trophy:

1. Jaromir Jagr

2. Daniel Alfredsson

3. Pavol Demitra (If you've seen the Kings play, you'd get my drift)

4. Dominik Hasek

5. Simon Gagne

 

Norris Trophy

1. Zdeno Chara

2. Lubomir Visnovsky

3. Bryan McCabe

4. Wade Redden

5. Nicklas Lidstrom

 

Vezina Trophy

1. Kipper

2. Dominik Hasek

3. Marty Turco

4. Henrik Lundqvist

5. Tomas Vokoun

 

I don't like doing all-star lists.

[Brush with Greatness 0]

Forsberg...wrong player from that team. Take Gagne. Peter has greatly enjoyed playing alongside Gagne and Knuble this season and his numbers show that.

 

WHAT?! WHAT!!!?

 

Do you even watch hockey? Gagne put up 24 goals and 45 points in 80 games last NHL season and his numbers were on a similar pace in an injury riddled season before that.

 

This year he's already got 27 goals and 44 points in 32 games riding shotgun with Forsberg. Even with the scoring increase, I would say that's quite a bit of an improvement.

 

Mike Knuble? Please, I know you love the Bruins, but the guy's put up less than 1/2 point per game throughout his career. He's a glorified third liner that, when paired with an outstanding playmaker, can generate some decent offense. And Forsberg is benefitting because he gets to play with Knuble? Just take a look at the year Milan Hedjuk is having in Colorado without Forsberg. Despite almost every player in the NHL having improved numbers thanks to all of the powerplays, Hedjuk's numbers are actually down this year.

 

When healthy, Forsberg is arguably the best all around player in the world yet you would have us believe that it is him that benefits from playing alongside Gagne and Knuble rather than vice versa? This might be a stupid question, but living in Florida, did you never have the opportunity to see Forsberg play before he moved to the east coast this season?

 

And then you go on to tout the big three from Ottawa, who have all clearly benefitted playing alongside each other much more than Forsberg has benefitted playing alongside either Gagne or Knuble.

 

I would say one name who's been missed in all of this discussion regarding the Hart Trophy winner would be Eric Staal. Let's face it, he doesn't have much for scoring support in Carolina (no, Cory Stillman doesn't count) and it's not like Gerber has been anything above average for the 'Canes this year, but despite these two facts, Carolina is one of the top 5 teams in the NHL right now.

 

The original post on awards also missed any Jack Adams discussion. I think right now, Lindy Ruff would be your winner, edging out Andy Murray, Laviolette, Renney and possibly Barry Trotz.

[mike546 0]

Rangers and and Flyers meet for the first time since opening night on Thursday, I'm really looking foward to it.

[CanadianChris 0]

Jesus Christ...ANOTHER injury to the Sens. Hasek tweaked a back muscle and is now out for today's game and day-to-day after that.

 

At least Spezza is back for today's game.

[the max 0]

Bad start to the new year as the Bruins are shutout by Niittymaki and the Flyers, 1-0.

 

Jeff Richards got the goal on a nice play with Umberger. Other than that, it was a very quiet game. The Bruins outshot the Flyers 27-21, but none of those were really testing Niittymaki, they were shots with nobody in front, sharp angles, etc.

 

A bad game and a bad way to start out the homestand.

[stahl 0]

Ovechkin has no business being included on the list for the Hart trophy. If they took him off the team, they'd be, what...dead last instead of second last?

 

I disagree greatly. He is a complete player and has 46 points. The second place guy on his team has 22. Washingtons problem is that they have no defence. You can't blame him for that. Luongo last year got hart consideration despite his team not making the playoffs. I won't blame Ovechkin for playing for a shitty team when he is [quputting up numbers like he is when compared to his teammates.

 

Hasek would get my vote for the Vezina in a flash. The argument for Hasek's numbers not being as meaningful because he plays on an offensive team is ridiculous. He's second in the league in wins, GAA, save % and shutouts, and he led in those categories for most of the season up until now. He'd be having a phenomenal year regardless of who he played for. Not to take anything away from Fernandez and Kiprusoff, who've also had great years so far.

 

Fernandez has slightly better numbers then Hasek and plays for a team that averages 2.85 goals a game in support. Ottawa averages 4.39 goals a game. The edge goes to Fernandez in that case as it's harder for him to get wins in that regard.

 

Why Ovechkin? I know we argue in sports a lot about value to a team and whether or not it matters if you're in last place. The Crapitals weren't doing anything going into this year and Ovechkin hasn't led them anywhere but 14th in the conference.

 

Mainly because he is dominating his team and without him, they probably would be at Columbus levels. I don't think him playing for a crappy team should hurt him that much. Its goals against which is hurting Washington. They also have problems scoring goals but Ovechkin has been in on 46 of 107 goals. He is basically 43% of his teams offensive output and that is very impressive.

 

McCabe has been a good offensive guy this year, but his defense is still suspect.

 

In regards to the Hart trophy, being a well rounded player doesn't really matter.

 

Jagr has been reinvigorated this season, actually looking like he gives a shit now. If the Rangers make the playoffs, Jagr's chances improve greatly.

 

I'm pretty sure the rangers will make the playoffs and be one of the higher ranked teams.

 

One could make a case for Tomas Vokoun to be on this list, having gotten off to a great start (somewhat coming back down to earth might hurt him) and being a part of Nashville's excellent play.

 

If I was making a list of 6, he would have been the 6th goalie.

 

Forsberg...wrong player from that team. Take Gagne. Peter has greatly enjoyed playing alongside Gagne and Knuble this season and his numbers show that.

 

Good point, can't argue with that. Either should get consideration. Injuries may hurt both players chances.

 

Kiprusoff is an interesting pick. In terms of value, he's more valuable than Hasek is to Ottawa, but as stats go Hasek is having the better year (He's second in all four major goaltending categories). Whether or not you penalize Hasek because Emery has emerged in his few absences is the question. I'd put Hasek over Kipper because Hasek's been consistant. Remember that Calgary and Kipper started off slow, Hasek's been on all season.

 

Not to discredit any of Haseks play, I don't think he is the most valuable player on his team, let alone the league. He is the Grant Fuhr of the Edmonton Oilers, overshadowed by a few other players on his team. I know people will argue that he has great goalie stats, and he does, but I think Heatly, Alfredsson and Spezza have better and are worth more to their team as Emery has proven to have very similar goalie stats.

 

Noticeably absent from your list is one of Ottawa's big three. Leaving off all three of the guys from Ottawa's big line is inexcusable. Alfredsson is having a career year, Spezza has emerged as a star and Heatley has returned to form. One of those three replaces Ovechkin.

 

It's hard to pick one since all pretty much have the exact same statistics and I have only watched two Ottawa games all year. As I stated above, I would keep Ovechkin on the list but replace McCabe if one of these three were to be included.

 

Good selections for this, but give it to Chara.

 

Just incase It wasn't made clearer in my first post, I didn't put any players in order so I didn't pick McCabe for the spot. I just listed 5 players I felt worthy in no order.

 

The original post on awards also missed any Jack Adams discussion. I think right now, Lindy Ruff would be your winner, edging out Andy Murray, Laviolette, Renney and possibly Barry Trotz.

 

I didn't pick that trophy because it's stupid. It's never about the best coach, it almost always goes to a new coach that took a shit team last year and improved then greatly in the standings. Considering Scotty Bowman has only won one in his career. That says something about the Jack Adams and how it's voted.

[stahl 0]

Any reason why the quote function didn't work properly?^^ Sorry if it's difficult to read because of it.

[CanadianChris 0]

Ovechkin has no business being included on the list for the Hart trophy. If they took him off the team, they'd be, what...dead last instead of second last?

 

I disagree greatly. He is a complete player and has 46 points. The second place guy on his team has 22. Washingtons problem is that they have no defence. You can't blame him for that. Luongo last year got hart consideration despite his team not making the playoffs. I won't blame Ovechkin for playing for a shitty team when he is [quputting up numbers like he is when compared to his teammates.

If he was leading the league in scoring, or close to it, that might be a valid argument, but he's not, so it isn't. He's a very good player, and will probably be a leading candidate for league MVP someday, but certainly not now. If he was truly the most valuable player in the league, Washington would be a contending for a playoff spot instead of for the top pick in the draft.

 

Hasek would get my vote for the Vezina in a flash. The argument for Hasek's numbers not being as meaningful because he plays on an offensive team is ridiculous. He's second in the league in wins, GAA, save % and shutouts, and he led in those categories for most of the season up until now. He'd be having a phenomenal year regardless of who he played for. Not to take anything away from Fernandez and Kiprusoff, who've also had great years so far.

 

Fernandez has slightly better numbers then Hasek and plays for a team that averages 2.85 goals a game in support. Ottawa averages 4.39 goals a game. The edge goes to Fernandez in that case as it's harder for him to get wins in that regard.

Fernandez's numbers are VERY SLIGHTLY better than Hasek's with respect to GAA and SV% (2.05 vs 2.10 and .930 vs .929, close enough to say they're the same). Wins are an overrated stat; I don't look at them anyway. Hasek also has three shutouts. Throw in the fact that he turns 41 this month and that it's ridiculous that he's performing at such a high level this late in his career, and he gets my vote.

 

Not to discredit any of Haseks play, I don't think he is the most valuable player on his team, let alone the league. He is the Grant Fuhr of the Edmonton Oilers, overshadowed by a few other players on his team. I know people will argue that he has great goalie stats, and he does, but I think Heatly, Alfredsson and Spezza have better and are worth more to their team as Emery has proven to have very similar goalie stats.

That's because you haven't seen the games. Emery is a good goalie, but he's not on Hasek's level right now. Hasek is at least as valuable as any of the big 3; take him out, and Ottawa's a good but not great team. See how much they've improved over the last season? Most of that is upgrading from Lalime to Hasek.

[Guest nWoCHRISnWo]

Hart Trophy:

~Daniel Alfredsson

~Jaromir Jagr

 

For the Hart Trophy, it will entirely depend on which teams makes the play-offs. Ovechkin has been playing just amazingly, but if Washington is at the bottom of the league, he isn't going to be a nominee for the most valuable player. You can probably add Forsberg or Gagne to that list, as well as a goalie (Hasek?) but those two guys are the obvious picks as of now.

 

Vezina:

~Hasek

~Lundquvist

~Turco

~Kiprussoff

 

I might wanna add Vokoun to that list as well. Not much to say here, just think they've been the best goalies from what I've seen.

 

Calder Trophy

~Ovechkin

~Crosby

~Phanuef

~Lundquvist

~Prucha

 

Best Calder class in as long as I can remember. Ovechkin is just slightly in the lead right now, with Crosby a half step behind him. These guys are the best rookies I've seen since Lindros at least. I wouldn't be suprised if they're both top 5 players in the world by as early as NEXT year. This takes nothing away from Phanuef who is just making people drop their jaws at the sight of such a great 20 year old defenceman. Lundquvist would be a clear number 1 or 2 choice in most other years, and Prucha is a step behind these guys for sure.

 

Norris Trophy

~Chara

~McCabe

~Redden

~Vishnovsky

 

Right now, McCabe may very well be the top choice for the Norris. Going by how the trophy gets handed out most of the time, usually one of the top or very top offensive D gets it. I wouldn't really disagree with that either, because as of right now, PP's mean a whole hell of a lot. McCabe is the main reason Toronto's PP is so deadly, and that is very valuable for a team. A lot of the time you can get away with bad games if you have a hot PP, and McCabe is bringing it people.

[the pinjockey 0]

Forsberg...wrong player from that team. Take Gagne. Peter has greatly enjoyed playing alongside Gagne and Knuble this season and his numbers show that.

 

WHAT?! WHAT!!!?

 

Just taking the first line here instead of quoting the whole post. I couldn't agree with BwG more. It is Forsberg that makes the line run. If he is having an off night, the game is entirely in the hands of the second and third lines. They have a very hard time scoring if it is not a Forsberg set up. Gagne is showing this year that he is a finisher, but I could argue he has regressed in other areas of his game. With playing next to Forsberg, Gagne now appears to be scared to death of actually handling the puck.

 

Everyone being healthy, the second best player on the team is Joni Pitkanen. They have been scraping by in a lot of 1 goal games without him, doing a solid job hiding how much they actually are missing him. This season, in 25 games with him they are at 4.04 GPG, without him 3.07 GPG in 14 games.

[mike546 0]

Rangers brought up Thomas Puck today, their best offensive D man prospect. They really need it to, their leading D man is Poti, and he has 12 freaking points. The rangers really need a boost right now. Hossa and Nimenin don't do crap, Ruchin keeps getting injured, Moore has totally fallen off the planet since scoring a lot last month, and the only people doing ANYTHING on offense are Jagr, Prucha, Straka, Ruchinsky and Nylander.

[stahl 0]

If he was truly the most valuable player in the league, Washington would be a contending for a playoff spot instead of for the top pick in the draft.

 

I disagree with that. The trophy is for most valuable player. That doesn't mean that said player must lead his team to first place or even high in the standings. I provided stats that show just how valuable Ovechkin is to Washington. When someone can play at such a high level with no support on a shitty team, that makes a very valuable player in the league. The MVP is not a team trophy. You know that if Ovechkin played for any other team he would have better stats. I'm not saying he should win the trophy, but he should get consideration.

[stahl 0]

Also, just to emphasize my point. Here is the definition for the Hart Trophy as taken from the NHL.com website.

 

 

The Hart Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team.

 

Now based on the true definition of the trophy, its silly to say that Ovechkin shouldn't be given recognition when he scores over 40% of his teams points and more then doubles the second place guy on his team in regards to points.

[KGB 0]

Ottawa loses to Atlanta... 8-3! Kovalchuk got 4 points, Hossa and Kozlov each got 2 goals and an assist.

 

What was that you guys were saying about Ottawa's schedule again?

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Ottawa loses to Atlanta... 8-3! Kovalchuk got 4 points, Hossa and Kozlov each got 2 goals and an assist.

 

What was that you guys were saying about Ottawa's schedule again?

 

I kind of hope that saying it has tainted the upcoming schedule, as they're playing the hurtin Habs next week.

 

Hart, IMO, should be entirely predicated on a team's success. That's what the Pearson is for. My favourite Prime Minister, by the way.

[CanadianChris 0]

Ottawa loses to Atlanta... 8-3! Kovalchuk got 4 points, Hossa and Kozlov each got 2 goals and an assist.

 

What was that you guys were saying about Ottawa's schedule again?

I imagine that one had something to do with Emery not being told he was playing until the warmup.

[Guest]

Man, the Kings are on fire right now. 3-2 win over the Stars when we couldn't play any worse. Visnovsky had 2 PP goals and Garon has just been awesome lately. I can't believe we traded Radek Bonk to get him.

[nl5xsk1 0]

Also, just to emphasize my point. Here is the definition for the Hart Trophy as taken from the NHL.com website.

 

 

The Hart Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team.

 

Now based on the true definition of the trophy, its silly to say that Ovechkin shouldn't be given recognition when he scores over 40% of his teams points and more then doubles the second place guy on his team in regards to points.

While I don't disagree that Ovechkin - on paper - is more valuable to the Caps than pretty much anyone else is to their team ... the fact is that Washington would still be in the same place in the conference without him: damn near the bottom of the conference. If they were even remotely in the playoff hunt the argument would hold up better. But the truth is you can't give the MVP of a last place team the Hart.

 

I'm going to Thursday's B's-Sens game ... what are the odds that Ottawa will be a little pissed about getting embarrassed in Atlanta and unleash the hounds on the B's? Knowing Sullivan, he'll start Raycroft and watch him get shelled.

[mike546 0]

Winning the cup in 94 was incredible, but they were showing Messier's first Ranger home game on MSG last night, and they sure killed their future to win it. On that night in 91, Doug Weight, Tony Amonte and Ty Domi were all in the Rangers starting lineup.