Vancouver exploded in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals with a 7-3 victory over San Jose Wednesday in Vancouver.
The Canucks hold a 2-0 series lead, and are looking very strong at this point.
The Sedin twins started to show just how good they are on a national stage. Ryan Keslar is also an impressive defensive foward, and has the ability to score big-time goals.
What impresses me the most about Vancouver is how its adjusts to any style. The Canucks can play a tight, defensive game and they can win a high-scoring game, too.
Roberto Luongo had a good, not great, game Wednesday, but you don't need to play lights out when your team scores a touchdown.
The Sharks have the ability to bounce back, and have shown resilience in these playoffs after winning Game 7 against Detroit and rallying from way down to beat Los Angeles in the first round.
Anttii Niemi has won a Cup and I believe he will play better in Game 3.
If San Jose can win Game 3, I believe this series could be competitive, but if Vancouver wins, it can sweep the series.
Enjoy Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals tonight. I like Tampa Bay, 5-3.
Showing posts with label Antti Niemi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Antti Niemi. Show all posts
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Conference finals update
I don't know if the Stanley Cup playoffs are lacking sizzle or what, but I don't hear too much about it. Maybe it's because the Penguins are out. Besides hardcore sports fans, most cities don't care once their team is eliminated from the playoffs. Just my opinion.
As of 2:18 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 17, 2011, Tampa Bay leads Boston 1-0 in a best-of-seven in the East finals and Vancouver holds a 1-0 series lead over San Jose.
Game 2 of the Lightning-Bruins series will be on tap tonight.
Tampa Bay easily dispatched Boston in the first game, but I believe the Bruins will rebound to win Game 2 if they stay out of the penalty box. In addition, Boston's power play is awful, so five-on-five play is where the Bruins will flourish. Tim Thomas needs to outplay Dwayne Roloson, too. I guess a bunch of things have to go right for Boston.
I can't believe how good the Lightning have been in these playoffs.
The Canucks-Sharks series is intriguing. Both teams have been notorious playoff chokers in the past, but one will be in the Stanley Cup finals. San Jose has never made it, while Vancouver lost in its only appearance to the New York Rangers in 1994.
I believe the Canucks are the best team left in these playoffs. They have the offense in the Sedin twins, who haven't played up to their potential, which is scary because they will. Ryan Keslar is a force at both ends of the ice, and will shut down the Sharks' offensive weapons. Roberto Luongo is the best goalie left, and even though he has never been to the Cup finals, he will finally get past his failures in the playoffs.
Anttii Neimi did win a title last year, so he knows what its all about, and Roloson led Edmonton to the finals, which I like for him to do again, but Luongo is going to be the man this year.
He had his rough stretch in the first round, but has rebounded from that, and will be good again Wednesday night in Vancouver.
It's just getting good.
If you so choose to, go out and vote. That's my one political order for the day.
As of 2:18 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 17, 2011, Tampa Bay leads Boston 1-0 in a best-of-seven in the East finals and Vancouver holds a 1-0 series lead over San Jose.
Game 2 of the Lightning-Bruins series will be on tap tonight.
Tampa Bay easily dispatched Boston in the first game, but I believe the Bruins will rebound to win Game 2 if they stay out of the penalty box. In addition, Boston's power play is awful, so five-on-five play is where the Bruins will flourish. Tim Thomas needs to outplay Dwayne Roloson, too. I guess a bunch of things have to go right for Boston.
I can't believe how good the Lightning have been in these playoffs.
The Canucks-Sharks series is intriguing. Both teams have been notorious playoff chokers in the past, but one will be in the Stanley Cup finals. San Jose has never made it, while Vancouver lost in its only appearance to the New York Rangers in 1994.
I believe the Canucks are the best team left in these playoffs. They have the offense in the Sedin twins, who haven't played up to their potential, which is scary because they will. Ryan Keslar is a force at both ends of the ice, and will shut down the Sharks' offensive weapons. Roberto Luongo is the best goalie left, and even though he has never been to the Cup finals, he will finally get past his failures in the playoffs.
Anttii Neimi did win a title last year, so he knows what its all about, and Roloson led Edmonton to the finals, which I like for him to do again, but Luongo is going to be the man this year.
He had his rough stretch in the first round, but has rebounded from that, and will be good again Wednesday night in Vancouver.
It's just getting good.
If you so choose to, go out and vote. That's my one political order for the day.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Hockey Notes (Crosby still not able to work out, Jagr Shines at Worlds, Red Wings/Sharks ready for game 7)
*Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguin Captain Sidney Crosby has yet to resume workouts after suffering a setback in his recovery from a concussion suffered in early January. Crosby was skating and practicing with the team up until the reoccurrence of symptoms, which occurred on April 20th.
This is a major concern for both the Penguins, and the NHL as a whole, as the future of one of hockey’s greatest young stars, just coming into the prime of his career, is in serious peril, dealing with a brain injury that we are only beginning to fully understand the long term impact of now in the 21st Century sports world. Hopefully Crosby is able to make a full recovery with rest and begin next season at the same level he was at December 31st, 2010, but with brain matters like this, there are no guarantees.
*Jaromir Jagr’s contract status is unknown for the coming season. He made a statement yesterday at the Hockey World Championships to anyone who was wondering if he had enough left in the tank for a possible NHL return after 3 seasons in the Russian KHL. Jagr scored a hat trick for his Czech squad in eliminating the United States and NHL caliber goalie Ty Conklin 4-0.
One thing I will say for Jagr, he has always been a conditioning freak from when he first came to Pittsburgh in the early 90s and has been a pretty durable player throughout his career. I think even at age 39 he has some game left in the tank, and if rested strategically during some soft spots on the schedule, could really crank it up to another level for a team in the playoffs.
My guess is that it makes sense for #68 to stay in the KHL, the money over there is more than any NHL team would be willing to commit to under the Salary Cap, and is tax free to boot. Money can be a very important thing to the talented Czech winger, who has been verified to have run up at least $1 Million in gambling debts over the course of his career, and for all we it could very well be higher than that.
There is absolutely no logical reason why Jags should want to come back to the NHL for what would most likely be a highly publicized tryout, but the rule of Jagr states that he is just crazy enough that there is about a 2% chance that he will do pretty much anything. And his offensive talents and numbers alone will certainly draw interested suitors, should his whims take him back to North American soil this offseason. It will at least be something interesting to keep track of over the summer.
*Fans of the San Jose Sharks or Detroit Redwings will get an unwanted early start on such offseason speculation after tonight’s game 7 in San Jose. I never remember a series in my lifetime of watching hockey where the clearly better team went down 3 games to Nil in 3 consecutive one goal games, and then stormed back to even the series. I will chalk this one up to the experience and poise of the veteran Detroit squad, but anything can happen in game 7, and often does. Antti Niemi will have to be very good if the Sharks have any chance to pull through and shed the epic choke label that must feel like an anchor around their necks. San Jose has to feel pretty tight right now, and if the bounces don’t go their way early it could easily get out of hand. In any case, it should be a real fun game to watch starting at 9 PM tonight. We will check in tomorrow morning with reaction and hopefully some video highlights from NHL.com.
This is a major concern for both the Penguins, and the NHL as a whole, as the future of one of hockey’s greatest young stars, just coming into the prime of his career, is in serious peril, dealing with a brain injury that we are only beginning to fully understand the long term impact of now in the 21st Century sports world. Hopefully Crosby is able to make a full recovery with rest and begin next season at the same level he was at December 31st, 2010, but with brain matters like this, there are no guarantees.
*Jaromir Jagr’s contract status is unknown for the coming season. He made a statement yesterday at the Hockey World Championships to anyone who was wondering if he had enough left in the tank for a possible NHL return after 3 seasons in the Russian KHL. Jagr scored a hat trick for his Czech squad in eliminating the United States and NHL caliber goalie Ty Conklin 4-0.
One thing I will say for Jagr, he has always been a conditioning freak from when he first came to Pittsburgh in the early 90s and has been a pretty durable player throughout his career. I think even at age 39 he has some game left in the tank, and if rested strategically during some soft spots on the schedule, could really crank it up to another level for a team in the playoffs.
My guess is that it makes sense for #68 to stay in the KHL, the money over there is more than any NHL team would be willing to commit to under the Salary Cap, and is tax free to boot. Money can be a very important thing to the talented Czech winger, who has been verified to have run up at least $1 Million in gambling debts over the course of his career, and for all we it could very well be higher than that.
There is absolutely no logical reason why Jags should want to come back to the NHL for what would most likely be a highly publicized tryout, but the rule of Jagr states that he is just crazy enough that there is about a 2% chance that he will do pretty much anything. And his offensive talents and numbers alone will certainly draw interested suitors, should his whims take him back to North American soil this offseason. It will at least be something interesting to keep track of over the summer.
*Fans of the San Jose Sharks or Detroit Redwings will get an unwanted early start on such offseason speculation after tonight’s game 7 in San Jose. I never remember a series in my lifetime of watching hockey where the clearly better team went down 3 games to Nil in 3 consecutive one goal games, and then stormed back to even the series. I will chalk this one up to the experience and poise of the veteran Detroit squad, but anything can happen in game 7, and often does. Antti Niemi will have to be very good if the Sharks have any chance to pull through and shed the epic choke label that must feel like an anchor around their necks. San Jose has to feel pretty tight right now, and if the bounces don’t go their way early it could easily get out of hand. In any case, it should be a real fun game to watch starting at 9 PM tonight. We will check in tomorrow morning with reaction and hopefully some video highlights from NHL.com.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
My second-round picks
The Penguins' season is over, but the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs live on. Here are my picks for the second round, or the conference semifinals if you want to get technical.
In the Eastern Conference, I pick Washington to upend Tampa Bay in six games. Dwayne Roloson played well in the first round against Pittsburgh, but the Capitals are a much better scoring team with a solid power play.
The Lightning can light the lamp, although it won't be enough against Washington. This could be the Capitals' year.
Philadelphia, yes I'm going with them, will top Boston in seven games. The Flyers were the top team in the league for a long time, and after surviving a scare against Buffalo, has a renewed focus.
The goalie situation is suspect in Philadelphia, although it will play tough defense in front of whoever the goalie is. This will be an exciting series.
For the Western Conference:
Vancouver takes care of Nashville in six games. The Canucks showed tremendous character against Chicago. Yes, the Blackhawks took them to a seventh game after trailing 3-0, but Chicago wasn't your average No. 8 seed.
The Predators have some tremendous players in Shea Weber, Mike Fisher and Pekka Rinne, but I believe the Canucks have too much fire power. Roberto Luongo will have a bounce back series. Nashville doesn't have the scoring punch.
Detroit has it all, and the Red Wings will fly past San Jose in six games.
The Sharks have some offensive firepower, although Los Angeles played them a little too tough for my liking.
I believe goaltending is a liability for San Jose. Although Antti Niemi won a Stanley Cup with Chicago last season, I doubt that he can lead the Sharks over the Red Wings.
I don't know if revenge is on the Red Wings' minds, but San Jose took them out of the playoffs in five games last year.
Once again, Washington over Tampa Bay (six games), Philadelphia over Boston (seven game), Vancouver over Nashville (six games) and Detroit over San Jose (six games).
Also, check out Pucks_and_Pols' picks. Feel free to respond to both.
In the Eastern Conference, I pick Washington to upend Tampa Bay in six games. Dwayne Roloson played well in the first round against Pittsburgh, but the Capitals are a much better scoring team with a solid power play.
The Lightning can light the lamp, although it won't be enough against Washington. This could be the Capitals' year.
Philadelphia, yes I'm going with them, will top Boston in seven games. The Flyers were the top team in the league for a long time, and after surviving a scare against Buffalo, has a renewed focus.
The goalie situation is suspect in Philadelphia, although it will play tough defense in front of whoever the goalie is. This will be an exciting series.
For the Western Conference:
Vancouver takes care of Nashville in six games. The Canucks showed tremendous character against Chicago. Yes, the Blackhawks took them to a seventh game after trailing 3-0, but Chicago wasn't your average No. 8 seed.
The Predators have some tremendous players in Shea Weber, Mike Fisher and Pekka Rinne, but I believe the Canucks have too much fire power. Roberto Luongo will have a bounce back series. Nashville doesn't have the scoring punch.
Detroit has it all, and the Red Wings will fly past San Jose in six games.
The Sharks have some offensive firepower, although Los Angeles played them a little too tough for my liking.
I believe goaltending is a liability for San Jose. Although Antti Niemi won a Stanley Cup with Chicago last season, I doubt that he can lead the Sharks over the Red Wings.
I don't know if revenge is on the Red Wings' minds, but San Jose took them out of the playoffs in five games last year.
Once again, Washington over Tampa Bay (six games), Philadelphia over Boston (seven game), Vancouver over Nashville (six games) and Detroit over San Jose (six games).
Also, check out Pucks_and_Pols' picks. Feel free to respond to both.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
A royal collapse
The Los Angeles Kings became just the fourth team in playoff history to blow a four-game lead in losing Game 3 to the San Jose Sharks, 6-5, in overtime.
The Kings jumped out with two goals, 13 seconds apart in the first period. They added another at 18:22 of the first to take a 3-0 lead.
When Brad Richardson scored for LA 44 seconds into the second, Antti Niemi gave way for Antero Nittymaki.
At that point, I was considering changing the channel and watching some NBA basketball. I'm glad I didn't.
The Sharks got on the board when Patrick Marleau scored on a tip-in at 3:08. I figured, no biggie, the Kings still have it.
Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture added goals at 6:53 and 13:32 to cut the lead to 4-3. Clowe's goal was on the power play.
Ryan Smith scored 15 second later for Los Angeles, but I knew that the game wasn't over.
However, being the dumby that I am, I flipped over to the NBA game. When I came back to it, I saw it was 5-4 LA. Clowe scored his second goal.
Joe Pavelski tied the game at 5 with 31 seconds remaining in the period. Remarkable.
The Sharks scored five goals in the second period.
Ironically, no goals were scored in the third, and the game went into overtime.
I was just settling in with my popcorn when Devin Setoguchi took a pass from Marleau and scored on a wrist shot off a 3-on-2 rush to finish a remarkable rally for the Sharks at 3:09 of overtime.
I really thought the game would last longer due to the conservative approach teams take in OT, however it was only fitting for San Jose.
I don't know what happened to the Kings. They didn't appear to take the foot off the gas. Or maybe they did. I believe psychology plays a big part in sports. Yes, they're amazing athletes, but they're also human. Whatever it was, LA will not recover. It's over.
For those of you who have jobs in the morning, the game was over around 1:30 EST, the NHL Network will replay it at 2 p.m., but you don't need that, just read this.
The Kings jumped out with two goals, 13 seconds apart in the first period. They added another at 18:22 of the first to take a 3-0 lead.
When Brad Richardson scored for LA 44 seconds into the second, Antti Niemi gave way for Antero Nittymaki.
At that point, I was considering changing the channel and watching some NBA basketball. I'm glad I didn't.
The Sharks got on the board when Patrick Marleau scored on a tip-in at 3:08. I figured, no biggie, the Kings still have it.
Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture added goals at 6:53 and 13:32 to cut the lead to 4-3. Clowe's goal was on the power play.
Ryan Smith scored 15 second later for Los Angeles, but I knew that the game wasn't over.
However, being the dumby that I am, I flipped over to the NBA game. When I came back to it, I saw it was 5-4 LA. Clowe scored his second goal.
Joe Pavelski tied the game at 5 with 31 seconds remaining in the period. Remarkable.
The Sharks scored five goals in the second period.
Ironically, no goals were scored in the third, and the game went into overtime.
I was just settling in with my popcorn when Devin Setoguchi took a pass from Marleau and scored on a wrist shot off a 3-on-2 rush to finish a remarkable rally for the Sharks at 3:09 of overtime.
I really thought the game would last longer due to the conservative approach teams take in OT, however it was only fitting for San Jose.
I don't know what happened to the Kings. They didn't appear to take the foot off the gas. Or maybe they did. I believe psychology plays a big part in sports. Yes, they're amazing athletes, but they're also human. Whatever it was, LA will not recover. It's over.
For those of you who have jobs in the morning, the game was over around 1:30 EST, the NHL Network will replay it at 2 p.m., but you don't need that, just read this.
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