Habs vs Flyers: The War of Words Begins...

Why does it always seem that Philadelphia boasts three things? -- great steak sandwiches, dirty sports teams, and obnoxious fans. This is a team that garnered the most suspensions out of any team in the entire NHL this season. This is a franchise that would be proud of a team that never won a game as long as they won every fight.

So you can understand why I found it so funny that the Flyers, of all teams, were whining and crying about Tom Kostopolous' punch after they began to laugh at the Habs after scoring their fourth goal of the game.

Without a doubt, tonight's game 3 will be fiery and with the obnoxious, bloodthirsty Philadelphia fans, it might resemble the Coliseum in Rome more than a hockey rink.

My prediction: Habs win 4-1.

NHL Playoffs: Round 2 Predictions

Montreal Canadiens vs Philadelphia Flyers
This should be an interesting series. Both teams just played 7 tough games. The difference is, the Habs have an extra days rest and home ice advantage. Price was playing like a man possessed in game 7, and the Canadiens defeated the Flyers in all four meetings during the regular season. But, as the Bruins taught the Habs, once the playoffs start, past victories are out the window. Still, the deck is stacked against the Flyers, and with a slow defense and a crowd that's going to be all over Briere, it's tough to go with anyone but the Habs.

Habs in 5.


Pittsburgh Penguins vs New York Rangers
Boy, this is gonna be the one to watch in round two. It's so hard to pick a winner. You know Avery is going to be all over Crosby and Fleury. The Rangers are the better all around team, but the Penguins have so much talent that you cane never count them out. It's going to come down to who wants it more, and I have to go with the Rangers on that one. Still, it's going to be a long, hard series.

Rangers in 7.


Detroit Red Wings vs Colorado Avalanche
This used to be an amazing rivalry. Some of the best hockey I've ever seen played was when these two teams met in the conference finals a few years ago. I'd love to see the Avs go right to the finals, but the Red Wings have been coming together lately. The big question for them will be goaltending. Is Hasek still capable of leading a team to the show? Time will tell. I still have to go with the Wings in this series.

Red Wings in 6.

San Jose Sharks vs Dallas Stars
This series will be just as interesting as the Rangers and Penguins over in the East. The Stars have more talent, but the Sharks have more grit. This is going to be another long, hard fought series. The Sharks just went into the mouth of hell and did battle with the Flames, but how much do they have left? The Stars, on the other hand, have the benefit of a few extra night's rest, so they should come out flying. I picked the Sharks to go straight to the finals, so I won't waver.

Sharks in 7.

What are your predictions?

Google Adsense

So apparently my Adsense account has been disabled due to the fact that my account was "a danger to Adwords clients." Not sure what happened, but whatever. Does anyone know of an Adsense alternative?

A great place to talk baseball...

I recently came across a great baseball forum. It's brand new but it already has a steady stream of new members pouring in daily. I'm finding the community to be very welcoming and knowledgeable...something that's pretty rare in sports communities these days.

It's definitely worth a look, I highly recommend it.

The Avery Rule

Oh, Sean Avery, what will you come up with next? For those that haven't seen what he did, here you go...



The NHL has now instituted the "Avery Rule" and from now on a 2 minute penalty will be called for those kinds of antics.

What are your thoughts on this?

NHL's Greatest Goals, Hits, and Moments

Cool video!

Check out the hottest new hockey forum out there, just in time for the playoffs!

Myhockeyforum.com

Playoff Series Analysis: Washinton vs Philadelphia

VS

SEASON SERIES:
Flyers win 2-1-1

Statistical keys to the series (Courtesy of TSN.ca)

- Washington ranked 10th in the league on the power play, with an 18.8% success rate. Philadelphia ranked second at 21.8%.

- Washington ranked 25th in the league in penalty killing, with an 80.5% success rate. Philadelphia ranked 10th at 83.2%.

- Washington tied for fifth in the league with 31.0 shots on goal per game.

- Washington's Alexander Ovechin led the league with 65 goals.

- Washington's Alexander Ovechkin led the league with 112 points.

- Washington's Alexander Ovechkin led the league with 22 power play goals.

- Philadelphia's Mike Richards tied for third in the league with 5 shorthanded goals.

- Washington's Alexander Ovechkin led the league with 11 game-winning goals.

- Alexander Ovechkin (220), Matt Cooke (198) and Milan Jurcina (151) are the Capitals' leading hitters. Cooke's totals include stats with Vancouver.

- Jason Smith (142), Scott Hartnell (110) and Mike Richards (110) are the Flyers' leading hitters.

- David Steckel is the Capitals' top face-off man -- 56.3%.

- Jim Dowd is the Flyers' top face-off man -- 53.8%.

- Nicklas Backstrom led the Capitals with six points in four games against the Flyers this year.

- Scottie Upshall led the Flyers with five points in four games against the Capitals this year.

- Washington's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Alexander Ovechkin 5:40
Michael Nylander 5:14
Mike Green 4:41
Alexander Semin 4:28
Nicklas Backstrom 4:02
Sergei Fedorov 3:54
* - Fedorov's numbers include stats with Columbus.

- Philadelphia's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Kimmo Timonen 4:56
Mike Richards 4:52
Daniel Briere 4:51
Simon Gagne 4:37
Mike Knuble 4:28
Joffrey Lupul 3:38

- Washington's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Boyd Gordon 4:00
Tom Poti 3:49
David Steckel 3:46
Shaone Morissonn 3:25
Jeff Schultz 3:10
Quintin Laing 2:50

- Philadelphia's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Derian Hatcher 3:54
Mike Richards 3:17
Kimmo Timonen 3:09
Jason Smith 2:54
Jaroslav Modry 2:43
R.J. Umberger 2:34
- Modry's numbers include stats with Los Angeles.

Ovechkin is a hell of a guy to have to handle. The Capitals hopes rest squarely on his shoulders. While Huet has been hot ever since the trade that sent him from Montreal to Washington, as any Habs fan will tell you, you can't rely on him to steal you a series. Having said that, if any team can shut down Alex the Great, it might just be the Philadelphia Flyers. With a reputation for being just a little rough around the edges, maybe even, dare I say it...dirty, the Flyers could have the secret ingredient to success against Washington.

Remember the World Junior Championships a couple of years ago? Crosby's Team Canada vs Ovechkin's Team Russia. How did Canada handle him? They pounded him into the boards until he left the game with a shoulder injury. Now, he's matured a lot since then, and no one will ever knock him for his physical play, but if the Flyers made a concerted effort to rough Ovechkin up, it may be their best shot at advancing.

Ovechkin can single handedly win games, but it remains to be seen if he can single handedly win a series.


X-FACTOR'S PREDICTION: Philadelphia in 6.

Playoff Series Analysis: Pittsburgh vs Ottawa

VS

SEASON SERIES:
Ottawa wins 3-0-1

Statistical keys to the series (Courtesy of TSN.ca):

- Pittsburgh ranked fourth in the league on the power play, with a 20.4% success rate. Ottawa ranked 12th at 18.3%.

- Pittsburgh ranked 23rd in the league in penalty killing, with an 81.0% success rate. Ottawa ranked 22nd at 81.0%.

- Ottawa ranked first in the league with 3.15 goals per game.

- Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin ranked fourth in the league with 47 goals.

- Ottawa's Dany Heatley ranked third in the league with a plus-33 rating.

- Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin tied for fourth in the league with 17 power play goals.

- Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson tied for the league lead with seven shorthanded goals.

- Brooks Orpik (239), Ryan Malone (138) and Jarkko Ruutu (134) are the Penguins' leading hitters.

- Mike Fisher (234), Chris Neil (204) and Christoph Schubert (187) are the Senators' leading hitters.

- Sidney Crosby is the Penguins' top face-off man -- 51.4%.

- Antoine Vermette is the Senators' top face-off man -- 56.7%.

- Ryan Malone led the Penguins with six points in four games against the Senators this year.

- Jason Spezza led the Senators with eight points in four games against the Penguins this year.

- Pittsburgh's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Sergei Gonchar 5:38
Ryan Whitney 5:14
Sidney Crosby 5:12
Evgeni Malkin 5:01
Marian Hossa 4:33
Petr Sykora 3:53
* - Hossa's numbers include stats with Atlanta.
- Ottawa's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Dany Heatley 4:27
Jason Spezza 4:20
Daniel Alfredsson 4:18
Cory Stillman 4:07
Wade Redden 3:48
Mike Fisher 2:53
* - Stillman's numbers include stats with Carolina.

- Pittsburgh's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Hall Gill 4:27
Mark Eaton 4:12
Sergei Gonchar 3:52
Jordan Staal 3:27
Adam Hall 3:15
Rob Scuderi 3:14
* - Gill's numbers include stats with Toronto.

- Ottawa's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Chris Phillips 4:32
Anton Volchenkov 4:16
Chris Kelly 3:47
Antoine Vermette 3:39
Mike Commodore 3:00
Mike Fisher 2:53
- Commodore's numbers include stats with Carolina.

This one seems like a foregone conclusion, but it was only one year ago that Ottawa was in the Stanley Cup final -- and favored to win, even. But a year later, they were lucky to even make the playoffs. After one of the best starts in NHL history, the Senators completely fell apart. Amidst the Ray Emery controversy, the Sens plummeted, posting a sub .500 winning percentage since Christmas. On top of the lack of confidence in their play, the Sens are missing captain Daniel Alfredsson, and gritty forward Mike Fisher.

On the other hand, the Penguins are firing from all cylinders, just barely missing out on first place in the Eastern Conference after dropping a game to the Flyers on Sunday afternoon. Some have speculated that they may have thrown the game so that they could face Ottawa in round one. Well, they certainly got their wish. With Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Hossa, and a plethora of others in their lineup, they more than match up with Ottawa's top line, which is missing perhaps its most important member.

Ottawa will give it their best shot, but there's just no way they can handle the surging Penguins.

X-FACTOR'S PREDICTION: Pittsburgh in 4.

Lightning Get First Overall Draft Pick

It looks as though the highly touted Steve Stamkos is heading to Tampa Bay, as the Lightning drew the #1 overall draft pick in the 2008 NHL entry draft moments ago.

Playoff Series Analysis: Montreal vs Boston

VS

Season Series:

Montreal wins 8-0.

Statistical keys to the series (Courtesy of TSN.ca)

- Montreal ranked first in the league on the power play, with a 24.2% success rate. Boston ranked 16th at 20.6%.

- Montreal ranked 15th in the league in penalty killing, with an 82.5% success rate. Boston ranked 28th at 78.6%.

- Montreal ranked second in the league with 3.13 goals per game.

- Montreal ranked 26th in the league with 31.6 shots allowed per game.

- Mike Komisarek (266), Francis Bouillon (168) and Roman Hamrlik (138) are the Canadiens' leading hitters.

- Zdeno Chara (223), Milan Lucic (181) and Aaron Ward (143) are the Bruins' leading hitters.

- Saku Koivu is the Canadiens' top face-off man -- 52.3%.

- Marc Savard is the Bruins' top face-off man -- 51.6%.

- Boston's Marc Savard ranked third in the league with 63 assists.

- Montreal's Alex Kovalev tied for fourth in the league with 17 power play goals.

- Boston's Zdeno Chara ranked third in the league with 26:50 of ice time per game.

- Andrei Kostitsyn led the Canadiens with 11 points in seven games against the Bruins this year.

- Marc Savard led the Bruins with nine points in eight games against the Canadiens this year.

- Montreal's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Andrei Markov 5:10
Mark Streit 4:52
Alex Kovalev 4:09
Saku Koivu 3:30
Tomas Plekanec 3:25
Chris Higgins 3:12

- Boston's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Zdeno Chara 4:20
Marc Savard 4:11
Glen Murray 3:44
Patrice Bergeron 3:44
Dennis Wideman 3:43
Marco Sturm 3:19

- Montreal's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Mike Komisarek 3:21
Andrei Markov 3:10
Roman Hamrlik 3:06
Francis Bouillon 2:42
Steve Begin 2:14
Bryan Smolinski 1:51

- Boston's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Zdeno Chara 3:37
P.J. Azelsson 3:13
Dennis Wideman 2:57
Glen Metropolit 2:49
Andrew Ference 2:45
Aaron Ward 2:28

Goaltending, as always in the playoffs, can win or lose a series. Last year, Montreal's Carey Price led the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs to their first Calder Cup. Price entered the AHL following his season in junior, getting three games of professional experience under his belt before being thrust into the spotlight of the playoffs. Price earned the Jack Butterfield Trophy (AHL Playoffs MVP). Can he repeat the same success at the NHL level? Based on his play this season, there is no reason to believe he can't.

Tim Thomas, on the other hand, has struggled this season. Brilliant at times, and abysmal at others, Thomas will have to be on top of his game against the NHL's number one offense. Like Price, this will be Thomas' first appearance in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

X-FACTOR'S PREDICTION: Habs in 6.

Blue Jays Future Looks Bright

You've got to love the look of the 2008 Toronto Blue Jays. No doubt, with the Toronto Maple Leafs season over, the Blue Jays will take center stage along with the Raptors. From the starting rotation, to the bullpen, to the batting line up, the Jays are more than capable of overthrowing the Red Sox and Yankees and winning the AL East.

But hardcore followers of the Jays have known that this team has been in the works since 2002. Back then, Rios was still just a highly touted prospect, McGowan's potential was being questioned, and Vernon Wells was just coming into his own as an every day player. My, how far they've come.

Wells and Rios are now perennial all-stars and gold glove candidates, McGowan is
dominating, Aaron Hill is getting ready to break out, and the rebuilding phase is finally over. With some key free agent acquisitions in the past few seasons -- Lyle Overbay, Frank Thomas, Matt Stairs, David Eckstein, Scott Rolen, AJ Burnett, to name a few -- this is a serious playoff contender.

It's now up to the fans to show their support. The Rogers Center should be packed, the Jays should be a hot ticket. A little extra boost from the crowd can make a big difference.

Side note: those powder blue retro uniforms looked fantastic on Friday night. Come to think of it, the new road jerseys don't look half bad either.

Who is Gregory Stewart?

How could you not be impressed with Montreal Canadiens call-up Gregory Stewart on Saturday night? Two breakaways, some hard work along the boards, didn't make any mistakes, and handled Bryan "I figured I'd practice my golf swing a little early" McCabe.

I for one hope he cracks the lineup next year. With Smolinski, Brisebois, Dandenault, and possibly Ryder unlikely to return next season, there should be more than enough room for the 6'2", 200 pound, 21 year old Kitchener native. He came in and showed the heart and grit we all hope to see in Latendresse some day.

For those who haven't seen just how tough Gregory Stewart is...here's a video for your benefit. This kid is a beast.

2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs Predictions

What better time to kick off a sports blog than playoff time? And what better way to start than with playoff predictions? Let's take a quick look at the first round match ups.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Montreal (1) vs Boston (8):
The Habs have had the number of the Big Bad Bruins all season, sweeping the season series 8-0 and dominating nearly every game. But the Bruins won't go down without a fight. I'm going with the Habs in 6.

Pittsburgh (2) vs Ottawa (7):
Crosby and the Penguins should handle the lowly Ottawa Senators easily. I predict a 4-0 series sweep, especially with the Sens missing Alfredsson and Fisher.

Washington (3) vs Philadelphia (6):
Ovechkin could singlehandedly win this series. Then again, when you rely on one player as much as the Caps do, if Philly can shut him down they should advance easily. Huet has been hot since being traded, but Washington just isn't ready to make a push yet. Philly in 6.

New Jersey (4) vs New York Rangers (5):
This is going to be one hell of a series. First of all, what a rivalry. Second of all, these are pretty evenly matched teams. I think Brodeur will be the difference though. Devils in 7.


WESTERN CONFERENCE

Detroit (1) vs Nashville (8):
Not much contest here. Nashville will go balls to the wall, but can they beat Detroit 4 times? I don't think so. Detroit in 5.

San Jose (2) vs Calgary (7):
Calgary sort of falls into the same category as Washington -- shut down Iginla and that's half the battle. San Jose in 5.

Minnesota (3) vs Colorado (6):
This could be a really good series. Both teams are relatively evenly matched, so there will probably be a lot of one goal games. In the end, it's tough to bet against Joe Sakic's leadership. I'm going with the Avs in 7.

Anaheim (4) vs Dallas (5):
This is another one that's going to be very intense. Dallas has really emerged as a powerhouse this season, but then again, Anaheim won it all last year and you just can't ever bet against them. Neidermeyer, Pronger, Giguere...not to mention the entire team has a Stanley Cup under their belts. Ducks in 7.


FINALS:
Montreal vs San Jose

The West is going to be a much tighter division than the East in the playoffs. Each series should be hard fought and likely pretty long. On the other hand, in the East, Montreal should run away with it. The only team I think could give them a run for their money is Pittsburgh, but if Carey Price can continue to dominate like he has, no amount of offense in the world is going to stop the Habs.

In the finals, I believe whatever team makes it out of the West (I'm predicting the Sharks) will be physically and mentally exhausted. Montreal, on the other hand, should be right where they need to be. With home ice advantage throughout the entire playoffs (unless they play Detroit), and the Molson Centre being a hell of a building to play in if you're playing for the other team, the Habs look poised to add a 25th Stanley Cup banner to the rafters.

Your predictions?