Stadium Series Review #2

The Red Wings beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-3 Saturday night at Coors Field with Brad Richards scoring the game winning goal in the third. This is what happened in fast paced game. The Red Wings struck first with Thomas Tatar getting his own rebound for a nice goal. The Avalanche would respond with Nathan Mackinnon scoring with a nice wrist shot from the top of the circle. The Avalanche would take their first lead with Tyson Barrie scoring with a nice little dangle to beat Petr Mrazek. Gustav Nyquist had a nifty no looker backhand to tie up the game for the Red Wings. Darren Helm had a weird looking pass to Justin Abdelkader who was right there to give the Red Wings their second lead of the game. Alex Tanguay scored a one timer to tie up the game, but that would be the last goal for the Avalanche. With one minute remaining Brad Richards put it in with nobody near him, and Darren Helm put it away with an empty netter. I'd say this game was a huge success for the NHL and for the fans. It was fast paced and was a close game unlike the Wild and Blackhawks, but the Avalanche did lose their first outdoor game, but they played well, and for the Red Wings they got out of a mini slum and should be making the playoffs again. Was this a good game? Could the Avalanche have won? Will they get another outdoor game? stay tuned.... P.S I am doing a trade deadline review after the trade deadline so stay tuned for that!

Andrew Ladd Trade

ANDREW LADD HAS BEEN TRADED TO THE BLACKHAWKS. I'm not kidding they have traded Marko Dano and a 2016 1st round draft pick for former Jets captain Andrew Ladd. This deal is perfect for the Blackhawks since they needed this first line left winger to play with Toews and they finally got him. For the Jets the get a future potential star and a draft pick which always helps. This is a risky move for the Blackhawks since Marko Dano might have become something good for the Hawks, and they have once again traded their first round pick at the deadline. The Jets bad side is that they are going to most likely tank it for the year, but that means they can draft high and maybe get Austin Matthews, but don't count on it. I think the Blackhawks will be serious threats in the playoffs now and once Hossa comes back hopefully it should work out. I would say the Blackhawks won this trade now, but in the future the Jets will probably really benefit from it. The Blackhawks are a "now" team and the Jets are a "soon" team. Who won the trade? Will Ladd work well with the Blackhawks? Will Dano become a star for the Jets in the future? stay tuned....

Little out for Season

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpsAECZStp0 Winnipeg Jets second leading scorer Bryan Little was injured recently against the Tampa Bay Lightning and will be out for the season with a fractured vertebrae. The hit was from Anton Stralman and it wasn't good looking. The thing is the Jets have to get rid of Andrew Ladd their leading scorer and now their second best scorer is out so this just makes the already disappointing season even worse. The good news is Ladd will be gone and Little is injured they can tank and draft high. The thing is, they are not a rebuilding team and they just have to fight through this and see what happens. Another bad thing is that Little is 28 years old and in his prime so this year was a half waste. Little is an underrated player who has been getting more than 20 goals a season and this could affect that in the future. It's a long road ahead for the Jets as they face the trade deadline with Andrew Ladd an now Little out, their playoff chance seems to be slim. Will the Jets win without Little? Is he going to be affected by this next year? What will the Jets do? stay tuned....

Stadium Series Review #1

As a Blackhawks fan this was a hard one to watch, the Wild killed the Hawks 6-1 and Kane was the only one to score for the Hawks. First Matt Dumba scored early on in the game, than Thomas Vanek barely scored to make things worse for the Hawks. Nino Niederreiter scored in the second period to put it away. I couldn't watch it after that, but Jason Pominville scored about halfway through the period to put salt in the wound. The third period starts and Ryan Carter scores to make it 5-0. Luckily for the Blackhawks Patrick Kane scored to get them on the board, but Erik Haula scored and that was it. Jason Zucker suffered a head injury after taking a hit from Blackhawks defenseman Michael Rozsival, and he got a game misconduct for the high hit. Overall the game was one sided and the Wild really stepped it up for the big stage they were on. The Blackhawks are now 1-3 in outdoor games and the Wild are 1-0, but the Hawks may be in the Winter Classic next year against the Blues rumors have told. The next Stadium Series game is the Red Wings and Avalanche on February 27th at Coors Field. Was this an entertaining game? Did the Blackhawks lose because of Hossa's injury? Will the Wild be in any more outdoor games? stay tuned....

Ducks are Back

The Anaheim Ducks have come from the grave to 9th in the league, 5th in the conference, and second in the Pacific Division. Right now these guys are on a 4 game winning streak and are 8-1-1 in their last ten. Once again Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry are leading the way for their team and Frederik Anderson and John Gibson are mostly splitting the job. Everything is just working for these guys now and they really have a shot at winning it all, but they have to deal with the Kings and Sharks this season since they are all really close to each other in the standings. I'd say they are going to make the playoffs, but not win the cup and not go to the Western Conference Finals. I say this because they have too many older forwards and that could really show in the playoffs. They do have a nice young defensive core and it could be like the Blackhawks last year who lead them to victory. All that matters for the Ducks is that they're winning again and have a chance this year. They have to keep this up in the playoffs since they have to face the Los Angles Kings to beat, but it should be a close finish. Are the Ducks for real? Will they continue this? Are they now Stanley Cup contenders? stay tuned....

Gostisbehere Point Streak

Flyers rookie defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere is on a 13 game point streak, and I hope I don't jinx it again like I did with Patrick Kane. This is very impressive especially since he is a defenseman and they don't usually produce as much. He got a goal against the New Jersey Devils to extend it to 13 games and I'd say this will last for a little while. Not to mention this is the longest point streak by a rookie defenseman in the NHL. The Flyers needed something good to make this season worth something since they once again may not make the playoffs so he can be a good player to help get this team back to the playoffs. Also the game against the Devils was crazy with Gostisbehere'g goal, Gudas's dirty headshot, and Blandisi's embarrassing dive. Anyways Gostisbehere is doing great right now and this is amazing for a defenseman to do. Will the streak continue? Is he the real deal? Can he beat Patrick Kane's? stay tuned.... (P.S sorry if this post was bad, I don't know anything really about Gostisbehere......sorry)

Hossa Injury

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L49nD2U83B8
Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa is injured and will be out for "a couple of weeks" Now that we sort of know how long he'll be out the Blackhawks may have to make a move at the deadline. First things first the hip check from Anaheim's Hampus Lindholm wasn't pretty, but it wasn't dirty so it doesn't seem all that bad. The hit was at Hossa's leg and then he fell down and slid into the boards, but that's not where the injury came from. This is really going to hurt the Hawks since they can't put Kane on the first line since that'll ruin their amazing second line so the Hawks need a replacement. The worst thing is that the Hawks don't have a true first line left winger since Shaw isn't consistent enough, and now they don't have a 1st line right wing. Luckily the trade deadline is coming so they can maybe trade for Andrew Ladd for Dano and a second or something to get a left winger, but that means Shaw will have to move to right wing or vise versa. The Hawks need to do something about this or the rest of the season will be rough and they could drop in the standings, but they should be able to pull through. Will this injury have a huge effect? Will the Blackhawks be fine without him? Will Hossa recover in time for the playoffs? stay tuned....

Mike Yeo No More

The Minnesota Wild have finally put the hammer down on Mike Yeo with this 8 game losing streak they have in hand. The Wild were 173-132-44 with Yeo which isn't bad, but he has failed to have the Wild be true Stanley Cup contenders, but they were close to that, but the Chicago Blackhawks beat them in 2013 in the first round, 2014 in the second round, and 2015 second round. Those years were the only times the Wild got into the playoffs with Mike Yeo. The replacement coach will be the Iowa Wild's coach John Torchetti. This is a big change since this guy has become a part of his team so the Wild will have to move on and have a fresh start with John Tortchetti. I think the Wild will not be too affected by this, but it may take time for the team to get used to him and his way of coaching. Will John Torchetti be a good replacement? Will the Wild continue to lose? Will Mike Yeo coach another team eventually? Stay tuned.... (P.S I'm back now so normal posts will be coming out!)

Who should trade for Andrew Ladd?

For a while Andrew Lad has been a trade rumor and now it looks like for sure he will be traded since Dustin Byfuglien got a 5 year contract. The Jets had to pick between the two and Ladd got unlucky. Some of the teams that should go after him are the Ducks since they don't have depth and Ladd could be a leader for them and their best player. The Carolina Hurricanes would be a good since they have to make a decision on Eric Staal and him and a first or second could bring Ladd back to Carolina and that would be a captain for captain trade. The Boston Bruins could work out since they are barely in the playoffs and could trade Loui Eriksson an someone else to boost their offense and take a playoff spot. I think the Blackhawks should get him for sure since they need a 1st line left wing to replace Andrew Shaw since he's serviceable, but not really meant to be a 1st liner. Andrew Ladd is a left winger as well so that would be nice to se that work even though the Jets and Blackhawks are in the same division. Do you agree with me? Where should Ladd be traded to? Will he be traded? stay tuned.... P.S I have a hockey tournament this weekend so I may not be able to post this weekend, but I'll try to if I have time.

Phaneuf Trade

The Toronto Maple Leafs have just traded their captain Dion Phaneuf in a 9 player deal to an Eastern Conference Ottawa Senators. The Leafs trade Phaneuf, Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey, Ryan Rupert, and Cody Donaghey for Jared Cowen, Milan Michalek, Colin Greening, and Tobias Linberg as well as Ottawa's second round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft.  The only good thing the Leafs got was MIlian Michalek and more cap space for the future. The Senators should obviously get a boost defensively and get some points out of Phaneuf. The Leafs just made another big move in their rebuild so this'll be good for the future, but for now their team is going to be even worse now without JVR and now their captain and best D-Man. This trade seemed necessary for the Leafs since he was taking up so much cap and he's 30 yers old so the Leafs luckily got rid of him while he still has value and career left just like the Patrick Sharp trade the Blackhawks made during the offseason. Will this trade be good for both teams? Is the Leafs rebuild working?Will the Senators use Phaneuf in the right way? stay tuned....

Capitals vs Blackhawks Debate

The Washington Capitals and Chicago are the top two teams in the league with Washington being the best has caused debate to decide who is better. I'm going to help you decide that right now. The basics are that the Blackhawks have won six Stanley Cups and the Capitals have not won any, the Capitals have a super star Alex Ovechkin and the Blackhawks have Patrick Kane, but which team is really better? The Blackhawks have a longer history than the Capitals so I'm not going to talk about the past too much. The Capitals lately when they have played the Blackhawks have beat them like in the winter classic and in the regular season game this year, but the Blackhawks didn't have Duncan Keith and he's one of the best in the league. The Blackhawks have had the most games in the NHL so that's a factor for them and how they can keep up with the Caps. The Capitals have Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin who are both having amazing years and the Hawks have Patrick Kane and the amazing second line doing amazing. Goal tending wise I'd say the Hawks have the edge since Crawford comes up big when needed and has won two Stanley Cups, but Brandon Holtby has no Cups and isn't as clutch in the playoffs like Crawford. The teams both have talent and skill, but the huge thing is that the Blackhawks find ways to win in the playoffs no matter what and the Capitals just don't put in the final effort in the playoffs like they did last year when the gave up a two game lead to the Rangers and ended up losing. The Capitals have a bright future as they get more experience, but the Blackhawks can win Stanley Cups and that's all that matters. Do you agree with me? Who do you think is better? Will the Capitals win the Cup this year? stay tuned.....

Simmonds Sucker Punch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eC9lhzwHK3w
Wayne Simmons today "deliberately" injured Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh by sucker punching him after the two were shoving each other. The worst thing is that Ryan McDonagh did not return to the game and will most likely have some sort of a head injury. Wayne Simmonds got a 10 minute ejection penalty which basically mean he got ejected. I'm sure he will get suspended for this since it did seem like he meant to injure McDonagh on the play. I think this will be handled like the Dennis Wideman situation and this was the Rangers captain he punched. On the bright side for Rangers fans they did win the game 3-2 in the shootout. I don't think the NHL will not back on this since McDonagh miht have a head injury and the NHL right now is under fire for concussions lately. Will Simmonds be suspended? Will McDonagh have an injury? Does this make the rivalry even tougher? stay tuned....

Wild Falling

The Minnesota Wild lately have been doing pretty bad and have dropped out of a playoff spot. They have lost 12 of 15 games in 2016 this year. What also hurts is that Ryan Suter said that the team was "fragile", and Zach Praise has one goal in his last nine games so that will obviously hurt his team. The good news is that the Wild have been in this situation before where they have a good start to the season than struggle during the midseason, but they manage to make it to the playoffs, but usually lose to the Chicago Blackhawks. I think this will be the same script as usual, but that shouldn't mean Wild fans should relax about this or panic about it either. This is just a slump and they'll get out of it eventually, but they need to make up ground in the playoff race especially since the Central Division is tearing it up in the playoff race. Colorado has 58 points, Nashville has 56, and the Wild have 55. The Wild are down, but not out. They have to stop allowing comebacks and become less "fragile" to get out of this slump. The Wild really need their top players to step up for the team or have someone else do so. How long will this slump be? Will any of their players step up? Can the Wild do something in the playoffs? stay tuned....

McDavid Back in Style

Edmonton Oilers rookie Connor McDavid returned last night and exploded. He had a 3 point night and a highlight reel goal. He's back, at least for that game. I think he's going to explode after his amazing performance after coming back from a long term injury. I would say it'll take him a few games to really get in the swing of things, but it seems like he's already there and more. So the goal he got was him splitting the D starting from his blue line and totally dangled out the goalie like it was nothing. This second half is going to be fun to watch as McDavid will try to get his team back in contention and the Oilers will benefit from it. Is this the best goal of the season? Will the Oilers raise in the standings with McDavid? Will McDavid produce consistently? stay tuned.....

Wideman Suspended 20 Games

This happened a while ago, but we now know that Dennis Wideman is suspended for 20 games for  checking an official from behind. Since Wideman has no history of doing anything like this he probably got lucky on this one. When Wideman took a hit from Nashville winger Miikka Salomaki and wasn't happy since there was no penalty on the play so he went after the linesman. Wideman has clamed that it was unintentional, but I'm sure everyone else did. I think this choice is right since, if Wideman did the same thing to a player and injured him, the consequence would have been severe as well. Wideman also just drove right into the ref without slowing down or do anything to prevent the hit. Do you think it's too severe? Will Wideman do something like this again? What is next for him? stay tuned....

All Star Weekend Review

So John Scot continued his legacy as an All Star by scoring two goals and earning the All Star MVP.  It all started out in the skills competition when he was cheered on as Patrick Kane got booed and they both got a good laugh about it. Then the fastest skater competition started and Red Wings rookie Dylan Larkin soared his way to victory as he won the competition and beat the record of fastest skating. Next was the breakaway challenge and Brent Burns and P.K Subban stole the show with Burns wearing a Chewbacca mask and P.k Subban dressed up ad Jaromir Jagr and the fans liked that so P.K Subban won. The Hardest shot competition wasn't that good since nobody broke Shea Weber's record of 108.5 MPH, but John Scott went and got nowhere it. Shea Weber won it again with 108.1 MPH. The shootout was nothing much, but John Scott trying a spin o rama, but that shot was denied. The East won this event, but there was still the tournament to play. The first game which was the East game was low scoring considering it was 3 on 3 with Atlantic winning 4-3. The West game was a blowout of 9-6 and John Scott scored twice. The last game was close with a 1-0 score and the Pacific Division winning it with Corey Perry scoring. John Scott won the MVP and a new car. Was this entertaining? Did John Scott deserve the MVP? What's next? stay tuned....