NHL FanHouse

Game Six LiveBlog: Red Wings at Stars

Bruce Ciskie — Mon, 19 May 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, NHL Live Blogging, Stanley Cup

Are we about to witness history?

It's been 33 years since a team won a series in the NHL Playoffs after dropping the first three games. Dallas not only lost the first three games, but never led in any of them.

Now, the Stars have a chance to force a Game Seven. To do so, they need a home win tonight against the suddenly sinking (maybe?) Red Wings.

We'll be here to cover it live, via Cover It Live. Join us after the jump for our liveblog, beginning at around 7:45pm Eastern.

Game Six LiveBlog: Red Wings at Stars originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 19 May 2008 19:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Left for Dead Again

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 17 May 2008 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Flyers, Penguins, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

There may be a lot of you who are surprised there is hockey this weekend.

I'll freely admit to being one of them. I'm even more surprised that there are two games this weekend.

Both the Dallas Stars and Philadelphia Flyers were left for dead after falling behind 3-0 in their respective series. Even though they were playing on home ice, they were heavy underdogs in Game Four.

They both got the job done. Their prize? They're being left for dead entering road games this weekend.

While I think it would be outright lunacy to predict one of these series will be extended, you can't rule it out. After all, most of you ruled out these series even going five games, and here we are.

Dallas tries first, as they face Detroit Saturday in "Hockeytown". We'll be live-blogging the game here at FanHouse, so join us for the action starting at 1pm Eastern.

Can this added confidence carry the Stars to a Game Five upset?

(Still to come: The conference finals indeed continue, NBC prays for a regulation end to Saturday's game, and a YouTube to remember from the incomparable Tie Domi)

The Red Wings looked dominant at times in Games One and Three, and practically ran the Stars off their own rink in the third game. However, Detroit looked beatable at times in the even-numbered games.

I'm a big believer in the power of confidence on a team. Dallas got a lead, played pretty well with it, and found a way to beat a team that had just pounded them two nights earlier. Marty Turco was outstanding in Game Four after a poor performance in Game Three.

Obviously, Dallas has to overcome some things in Saturday's game. Most notably, the Stars have to overcome the almost undeniable fact that Detroit is the better team. It's one thing to beat a team that's better than you once, on your home ice. It's another to come back a couple days later and beat that same team in their place. Oh, and that team you need to beat? They're 7-0 at home in the playoffs. Good luck, boys.

If the Stars can find a way to win Game Five, they'd be back home Monday night to try to force Game Seven.

Can the Flyers do it? I didn't think they'd win Thursday, and they get full credit for jumping all over Pittsburgh like they did.

When they meet Sunday in Pittsburgh, the Flyers will have a tall task. There's talk that Kimmo Timonen may play Sunday, which would be a great boost to Philly's beleaguered defensemen. They held on late in Game Four despite looking quite fatigued. They appeared to wear down late in the third game of the series.

In order to win an elimination game on the road Sunday, they're going to have to stay physical with Pittsburgh's stars.

(Put it this way, Mike Richards isn't trying to do the samba with Sidney Crosby in that photo to the right.)

They need Martin Biron to continue to play like he did Thursday night. It's not too much to ask, as Biron played like that for much of the first two rounds.

In the end, however, I think Pittsburgh is the better team (similarly to Detroit being better than Dallas). The Penguins will prevail eventually, and I think it's a good bet that they'll get it done Sunday at home.

Having Versus would be a good thing, just in case. I'm sure many of you have already done the requisite research on this topic, but we're here to serve.

Last year, you may remember NBC cutting out of the Ottawa-Buffalo playoff game so they could bring us the stirring six-hour lead-up to the Preakness.

(Okay, it wasn't six hours. More like four.)

Anyway, it caused an uproar among hockey fans. That's understandable, but it doesn't change the fact that NBC was obligated to make the switch.

This year, they've done a somewhat better job of planning ahead for the possibility of a long hockey game. The network says they will stick with the hockey game through one overtime, at which point the game will switch to Versus if it's still going on. That way, NBC can get their coverage of the horse race on the air at a decent time, satisfying its larger pool of viewers and more lucrative advertisers.

Clearly, it's in the best interests of NBC to work with both partners. Horse racing has its flaws, no question, but it's still much more popular than hockey. That said, the NHL has enjoyed some decent ratings increases during these playoffs, and they have a loud, passionate, loyal fan base.

Recommended reading. Jes Golbez would like Crosby to shave. Frankly, I disagree. I feel the playoff beards are a tradition, and guys should be encouraged to play along. Bad beards are part of the game. It's also amusing when you get a guy like Scott Niedermayer, who has all the money you could ask for, but is too cheap to buy a box of Just for Men.

Among Matt Saler's notes is the revelation that Bill McCreary's Mustache will work Game Five in Detroit. Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News picks it up from there.

This would be the same Bill McCreary who Stars captain Brenden Morrow said on his radio show Thursday ``made up'' a call in Game 1 to ``even the score'' with Stars' rookie defenseman Mark Fistric, who apparently did not show the proper amount of respect to McCreary during Game 5 of the Anaheim series.

When asked about a roughing call on Mark Fistric made in Game 1 that handed Detroit a 5-on-3 power play, Morrow responded on his show on KTCK The Ticket:

``That was a very phantom call. I think that was just a little payback for something that happened in the Anaheim series between Fisty and McCreary. That's just my opinion, but I think that's something that was made up. I think there was a little grudge between referee and player where he felt he wanted to even up the score. You never want to see those things.''

It's worth noting that Fistric has mono and isn't playing Saturday. However, this seems to me to be a situation the NHL should have worked harder to avoid. Actually, it wouldn't take much effort at all. Just bizarre.

Also, Greg Wyshynski talks about marriages of athletes and teams that never should have happened. To this day, I refuse to acknowledge that Mark Messier ever played for Vancouver, so I see Greg's point.

Random YouTube glory. Penguin fans think this should happen to Philadelphia fans more often. Thank you, Tie Domi.

We'd love to hear your tips, ideas, comments, thoughts, and what-not. Feel free to drop us a line at nhlfanhouse@googlegroups.com.

The Ice Sheet: Left for Dead Again originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 17 May 2008 08:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Stars Live Another Day

Bruce Ciskie — Thu, 15 May 2008 06:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, NHL Videos, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

No programming hole to fill Saturday, NBC. The Dallas Stars will play at least one more game.

After an underwhelming performance in Game Three Monday night, the Stars rebounded with a 3-1 win Wednesday night. The Western Conference Finals will go at least five games, as Detroit's lead is now 3-1.

Dallas came out flying early, got three power plays in the first period, and got nothing out of it. It was 0-0 after one period, and many of Dallas' best chances ended with shots that were blocked or missed the net. The Stars also had trouble connecting on passes down low, which took away some chances.

The Wings had their chances, and they had a controversial disallowed goal in the second period. Tomas Holmstrom was ruled in the crease on a Wings' power-play goal. Replays indicated that Holmstrom was on the ice, but he wasn't in the crease. At all. He was screening Marty Turco, but was doing it within the rules. The totally legal goal was waved off, with no hope for a review from upstairs.

Dallas struck first late in the second, as Loui Eriksson stuffed home a bad Chris Osgood rebound. Before scoring, the Stars had to weather quite the Detroit storm. The Wings outshot Dallas badly, had three power plays, and clearly had the better of the play.

(Still to come: More on Game Four, an update on Johan Franzen's condition, and a celebratory YouTube)

The Stars' lead didn't last long, as Henrik Zetterberg rifled a shot past Turco to even the score. Dallas played better in the third, however, and a Mike Modano power-play goal 5:35 into the third proved to be the game-winner. Captain Brenden Morrow added a late insurance goal, and Dallas killed off a six-on-three in the final 30 seconds to send the series back to Detroit.

The disallowed goal should be a big point of contention over the next two days (remember, there's an extra day off, and we don't resume until Saturday). It was, frankly, a despicable call. There's no excuse for a mistake like that. I mean, the goal was waved off even before Turco could lodge a protest about Holmstrom being, um, not in the crease.

Combine that with the typically uneven, inconsistent officiating, and the Red Wings have plenty of reason to be upset about having to work again Saturday.

Mule update. Good news/no news on Johan Franzen, who has 12 goals in the playoffs, but hasn't played since Game One against Dallas because of concussion symptoms.

The Detroit Free-Press says Franzen has been cleared to exercise.

"He's been given the green light to go ahead and work out," Holland said. "Not full out, but he can ride a bike and start doing some things. I talked to Tony Colucci last night, our team doctor, and ... he's at least been given the green light to ride the bike."

This is great news for the team, since the longer Franzen had to go without being able to do any physical activity, the worse it would have affected his conditioning. Now it becomes a matter of seeing how Franzen responds to light workouts.

"Tony Colucci told me, let's do two or three days now, let's see how he responds," Holland said. "Hopefully, he can ride the bike and he feels good. We're monitoring the headaches, but he's been cleared to take a step forward."

I can't imagine Franzen will play in Game Five, because there's just not enough urgency and, frankly, Detroit has already established that they don't need him.

These have to be the worst conference finals ever, right? Even if both series don't end up being sweeps, it doesn't get much more anticlimactic than this. What happened?

I'm not a rocket surgeon, but I'd start with the fact that this is as good a Detroit team as I've seen in a long time. They're better than they were last year, and I'd even argue that they may be better than their Cup winner in 2002. Outside of a few hiccups in goal and a lack of tremendous depth on defense, there aren't many flaws with this team. They have top-notch scorers, gutsy grinders, and a fourth line that isn't afraid of anything. They have one of the best players in the world anchoring their defense. They have a goaltender who might not have had a Hall of Fame career, but he's playing at a high level when he needs to be.

As for Pittsburgh, they deserve this opportunity because of the steps they took to improve themselves. To me, the biggest thing Pittsburgh did over the offseason was avoid panic. They knew they had a quality young team that just needed experience. They have enough of an edge to be effective in the playoffs, and their big guns (Crosby and Malkin) have elevated their games for the postseason. Combine that with a great goaltender, and you have major ingredients for a Cup run.

It also helps that Philadelphia and Dallas have looked tired and overmatched for most of these series. The Flyers are decimated by injuries on defense, and even if they get Braydon Coburn back for Game Four, there aren't enough quality players for all the minutes that need to be played.

Does anyone want to be GM of the Maple Leafs? The latest is that Wild GM Doug Risebrough doesn't.

It's hard to blame him for wanting to stay in Minnesota. New owner Craig Leipold has preached a hands-off managerial style, so Risebrough knows he won't have an owner peeking over his shoulder all the time. Not only that, but the Toronto job comes with more pressure than any front-office gig in the NHL.

Not to belabor the point, but it merits mention. Jes Golbez was very kind to point out some reasons why the NBA playoffs just aren't as good.

4. The NBA has the glamor teams

The Red Wings, in years past, have been a glamor team. But not so much anymore. This team is as talented as any Detroit has had, but outside of Nicklas Lidstrom there are no well-known stars. (Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg are wonderful players, but not marquee names because of their quiet personalities.) There's no Steve Yzerman or Brendan Shanahan or Scotty Bowman

Steve Yzerman was one of the quietest superstars of all time, and Brendan Shanahan, while an outgoing guy, isn't exactly anywhere near the level of 'glamor' as an NBA superstar. The Wings are no more or less of a glamor team then they ever were.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are one of the more glamorous and exciting teams the league has had in years. What the hell is this guy smoking?

5. The NBA plays five-on-five all the time

Well, this argument is just too stupid to spend much time on, given the natures of both games are completely different. Tom whines about NHL players not having to pay the price, yet fails to realize that simply breathing on a guy will get you a foul in the NBA.

Beautiful, sir.

What would this be without a YouTube? I'm not sure I could live, frankly. I mentioned that 2002 Red Wings team. Here's the clincher.

Got a Tip ... or a link you'd like to share with us? Just use this form to let us know.

The Ice Sheet: Stars Live Another Day originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 15 May 2008 06:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LiveBlog: Dallas Demolition Night?

Bruce Ciskie — Wed, 14 May 2008 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, NHL Live Blogging, Stanley Cup

This isn't news anymore. The Detroit Red Wings can advance to the Stanley Cup Finals with a win tonight. It would be Detroit's fifth trip to the Finals since 1995.
What could be more notable is that the Wings have a shot at their tenth straight win tonight. All nine games in this current streak have come with Chris Osgood as the starting goaltender. Despite this 9-0 run, there may not be a more underappreciated goalie in these playoffs than Osgood.

When he took over, he was immediately overshadowed by the Game Five performance of Nashville's Dan Ellis. Then Jose Theodore's head-stand against Minnesota got everyone talking. This round, it was all about the great play of Marty Turco.

Osgood has beaten all three of them, and he's done it without losing a single game. I don't care how good the team is in front of him. That's impressive.

Join us after the jump for a live discussion. We'll start the festivities at 7:45pm Eastern, 6:45pm Central, and 4:45pm Alaskan.

Our live chat/blog/talk is being hosted by the good peoples at Cover It Live. Enjoy.

LiveBlog: Dallas Demolition Night? originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 14 May 2008 19:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Ribeiro Will Not Be Suspended

Bruce Ciskie — Sun, 11 May 2008 20:10:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, NHL Fights

Much has been made of the end-of-game incident Saturday involving Mike Ribeiro of the Dallas Stars and Chris Osgood of the Detroit Red Wings.

As the Wings' 2-1 win closed out, Osgood appeared to put his stick out in an effort to butt-end Ribeiro. The Star forward responded with a two-hand chop across the top of the net, which Osgood sold as if a sniper in the fifth row of the upper deck had just picked him off.

TSN is reporting that neither player will be suspended, but fines were levied against both. Dallas' Steve Ott was also fined for his attack of Detroit's Kris Draper ~~after the official let him (Draper) get away with faceoff interference~~.

In the end, discretion on the NHL's part is the right move. Suspending Ribeiro probably would have required a suspension of the obvious instigator, Osgood. And I'm pretty sure the league doesn't want to suspend a goaltender who is 8-0 so far in the playoffs.

Game Three should be interesting Monday night in Dallas. Typically, a player who two-hands a goaltender the way Ribeiro did would be required to pay for his sin at some point. However, it's the playoffs. Such redemption may have to wait until October, when the games aren't quite as meaningful.

Report: Ribeiro Will Not Be Suspended originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sun, 11 May 2008 20:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stars Shaking Up Defense for Game Two

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 10 May 2008 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

The Dallas Stars couldn't have been happy with their defensive play in Game One of the Western Conference Finals in Detroit. The Stars were outshot 31-21, and were back on their heels from the outset.

Head coach Dave Tippett knows that can't happen again, and it appears he's taking steps to adjust his defense before Game Two. Jean-Jacques Taylor of the Dallas Morning News says hard-hitting rookie Mark Fistric is out for Saturday's game, while puck-moving rookie Matt Niskanen is in.

Mattias Norstrom will work with Niskanen, who's more adept at moving the puck and plays more of a finesse game than the hard-hitting Fistric.

No one is blaming Fistric for the Game 1 loss, but he took a roughing penalty less than five minutes into the game, giving Detroit a 5-on-3 power play that it quickly converted into a 1-0 lead.

The message for Niskanen is simple. Play calm, composed hockey and don't try to do too much, as noted by Mike Heika.

And the skilled Niskanen is, in theory, a much better fit against the skilled Red Wings. We'll see if that holds true. Fistric seemed much calmer in pressure situations against the Sharks, so Niskanen needs to not only bring his skill, but also bring some calm.

Judging by this move, the Stars realize they can't win by playing mauler hockey. They're going to have to use their skill to get back in this series.

Stars Shaking Up Defense for Game Two originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 10 May 2008 12:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Defense Optional

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 10 May 2008 08:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Flyers, Penguins, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

It became evident very quickly Friday night that the coaches in the Eastern Conference Finals had some work to do.

Yes, both teams were scoring and creating chances. Neither team, however, was playing much defense. The goalies were tested more than usual, and the action was exciting.

In the end, Pittsburgh was the team that got their defense going first. They held Philadelphia off the board through the last two periods of a 4-2 Game One win.

Petr Sykora set the early tone, getting open in front and making a great move on Martin Biron for the game's first goal. Mike Richards scored two in a row for the Flyers, before a Biron turnover led to a goal by Sidney Crosby to tie it for Pittsburgh. Late in the first, Evgeni Malkin held the puck in the Philadelphia zone by a hair, skated in, and wristed a shot past Biron, giving the Penguins a 3-2 lead after one.

Malkin added a short-handed goal in the second period to make it 4-2 before things finally settled down. Of course, that wasn't good news for Philadelphia, since they had to make up a two-goal deficit.

(Still to come: More on Flyers-Penguins Game One, the Stars try to rebound, and we'll dig something up from YouTube. You'll then have to judge whether or not it's cool.)

They couldn't do it. The Flyers outshot the Penguins 28-21, but Biron was uncharacteristically shaky, and Marc-Andre Fleury played well on the other end of the rink. The Penguins showed over the last two periods that they are capable of mucking up the neutral zone, and they also used their forecheck to keep the puck in Philadelphia's end, even when they weren't generating great chances.

Pittsburgh's penalty kill was very strong, holding the Flyers' power play off the board in three chances. They also tallied Malkin's shortie, which was a huge goal for the Penguins. Not only did it give them a two-goal lead, but the goal seemed to take a lot of air out of Philadelphia. The Flyers only got 16 shots over the last two periods, and give the Pens credit for playing sound defensive hockey and keeping Philadelphia from re-gaining any momentum in the game.

Game Two is Sunday night at 7:30pm Eastern in Pittsburgh.

Can Dallas bounce back? I mentioned Friday that the Stars need to get their feet moving. They also have to decide how to defend Johan Franzen and Tomas Holmstrom in front of the net, because what they tried in Game One didn't exactly work very well.

Actually, it failed miserably.

Franzen and Holmstrom each scored goals from the front of the net in the Wings' Game One win. It's a pattern that's likely to continue.

For one, the league adjusted rules after the lockout, cracking down on how players were treated when they didn't have the puck. While Holmstrom and Franzen (and others around the league who like to camp at the top of the crease) still have to establish position, the way they are treated once they win that battle has changed.

Dallas defenseman Mattias Norstrom said he can't battle or wrestle his fellow Swedes, adding there are ways to get the job done against Franzen and Holmstrom.

"You try to get in front of them and turn away that shot instead of focusing on moving the guy," Norstrom said. "From Marty's standpoint, if we're standing there battling, now they have two guys instead of one in front of them. Not a good situation."

Dallas doesn't have the bodies to win those battles for position in front of goaltender Marty Turco, so they have to defend in front of them better. If you're going to camp in front of your goaltender, you have to keep the puck from getting to him.

I expect to see some adjustments made by the Stars, but the big area of needed improvement is in the execution of their defensive zone play.

Ticket sales in Detroit lag again. James Mirtle covered this Friday. Frankly, I wish I could get really hyper about "Hockeytown" not selling out games, but this story isn't really news. It happened last year, too.

My guess is Dallas will fill its rink to capacity when the series shifts to Game 3 in Texas, Pittsburgh has sold out every game this season and things in Philadelphia are starting to really heat up in terms of sales and TV viewers.

It makes you wonder just where "Hockeytown" fits in as an American hockey market these days, and if the team has priced its cash-strapped fans out of the building.

Here's a look at playoff ticket prices in Detroit. For the conference finals, the cheapest ticket is $70-75, which is down from $99 last season. Upper bowl tickets, like the one I bought for a game against Phoenix in January, go from $44 in the regular season to $90-100 in this round, while lower bowl seats range from $180 to $215.

Listen, I have a lot of respect for the history of the Red Wings franchise. I'm confident a large majority of their fans do, too. While I think the "Hockeytown" moniker is a bit ridiculous (I'm also admittedly biased, having lived in or near Minnesota for my whole life), I'm also not going to hold it over anyone's head on this one.

These prices are ridiculous. It's amazing and sad that they're actually down from last year. But they're not "down" enough. Michigan's economy is terrible right now, and it's unfair to expect even a large city like Detroit to fill a hockey arena when the prices are like this.

Hopefully, ownership in Detroit gets this message, and we don't see a repeat next year.

Today's example of YouTube's awesomeness. In honor of University of Minnesota junior Blake Wheeler apparently deciding to sign with the Phoenix Coyotes, I present one of the best college hockey goals you'll ever witness. This is Wheeler's game-winner in the championship game of the 2007 WCHA Final Five.

The Ice Sheet: Defense Optional originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 10 May 2008 08:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PuckToons: Wings vs. Stars Game One Recap

Earl Sleek — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, Western, Stanley Cup

Every Thursday (and sometimes Friday when he's lazy), Earl Sleek will conspire with his pen and scanner to bring you another installment of PuckToons. Hopefully you will find these amusing, relevant, well-drawn, or you're a person who is tolerant towards mediocrity.

Of course the Mule here represents Red Wings forward Johan Franzen, whose postseason heroics continued last night with his club-record 12th goal in just 11 postseason games. His game-winner was one of three power play goals the Wings scored en route to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars.

The Stars trail in a series for the first time these playoffs, and will have to find a way to stay out of the penalty box if they want to improve their result for Game Two tomorrow. Even if they do, with so much focus on the Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Holmstrom line, can they stop the raging Mule? Tune in to find out.

PuckToons: Wings vs. Stars Game One Recap originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 09 May 2008 14:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stars Lament Game One Loss in Detroit

Bruce Ciskie — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:45:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Everyone who watched Game One of the Western Conference Finals Thursday night is keenly aware that the Detroit Red Wings basically skated circles around the Dallas Stars.

This isn't a great surprise, but the Stars look at it as a lesson. For the first time in these playoffs, the Stars have failed to win a series opener. In dropping this one, they left little doubt that Detroit was the better team.

One thing was clear last night. Dallas can get back in this thing. They just have to start moving their feet.

"You can't stand around and watch the puck," said captain Brenden Morrow.

He's right. The Stars were caught puck-watching last night, and they paid dearly for it. They took lazy penalties, they made bad decisions with the puck, and they didn't generate any speed through the neutral zone.

Blame it on the San Jose series if you want, but you could also argue that Dallas looked tired.

Center Brad Richards said the Stars may have suffered from fatigue after an emotional, four-overtime win in Game 6 on Sunday night to close out the San Jose Sharks. "The speed of the game, in all areas, we were a little bit behind," Richards said.

I still feel that a long series could work in Dallas' favor, but it has to become a long series first. The Stars looked meek in their own zone last night, and they don't have much on the sidelines they can call on. Rookie Matt Niskanen may be a better puck-mover, but he's not moving Johan Franzen or Tomas Holmstrom from the front of the net. Neither is anyone else. Coach Dave Tippett has to find a way to deny them the puck in the tough areas, because keeping them out of those areas is a near-impossibility.

There will probably be some rumbling about the play of Dallas goaltender Marty Turco, who allowed four goals on 31 shots. He's now 0-8-2 all-time at Joe Louis Arena, and that ain't good. However, Tippett dismissed any potential demons surrounding this arena.

Stars Lament Game One Loss in Detroit originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 09 May 2008 13:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Conference Finals Roundtable

Eric McErlain — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:13:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Flyers, Penguins, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Click here for more NHL playoff previews.

After what seems like forever, the NHL gets back on the ice tonight with the start of the Western Conference Finals tonight in Detroit as the Red Wings host the Dallas Stars. The Eastern Conference Final gets in gear tomorrow night for the battle of Pensylvania as the Penguins host the Flyers in Pittsburgh.

I'm not sure anyone is surprised that Detroit and Pittsburgh made it this far, though seeing Dallas and Philadelphia still alive this late in the game has to count as something of a shocker. As you'll see from our panel, while the discussion was nearly unanimous regarding predictions for both series, there were plenty of folks who were hedging their bets.

Eric McErlain: Let's kick it off out West where Dallas is the underdog -- just like their other 2 series -- against Detroit. The Wings have had plenty of time off after polishing off a denuded Colorado team, while it's safe to say that Dallas, despite playing almost two games on Sunday night, are probably going to be well rested going into Thursday night's game at Detroit. The Stars have gotten in done for two rounds now thanks to responsible play in all zones, a solid power play and superior netminding from Marty Turco. After watching them beat Anaheim and San Jose, it's hard to dismiss them as some sort of Spring fluke.

And Detroit, well, they're still Detroit. Still loaded up front and still stocked with plenty of role players who all seem to understand their roles rather precisely. The only potential weakness I see is with Chris Osgood, but I seem to recall plenty of people doubting him back in 1998. Granted, that's 10 years ago, but his numbers this year were plenty respectable, and when you're playing behind the rest of that team, it isn't like you have to make up for a lot of mistakes -- not with Nick Lidstrom running the defense and putting in almost 26 minutes per night.

Earl Sleek: I'm torn on this one. On the one hand, I've made a decision to stop being surprised by Dallas' success. I had them as a slight underdog to Anaheim and a serious underdog to San Jose, but it's made me look silly on both counts. On the other hand, I don't think there's any way that Dallas is taking the first two games in Detroit like they did in the first two rounds, and it will be interesting to see what happens if Dallas trails in the series.

On a game-within-the-game level, I'm really interested to see how the Red Wings attack the Stars' blueline. Both the Ducks and Sharks struggled with the ability to dump and retrieve the puck, as they had to deal with the ever-roving Turco as well as Dallas' ability to surround the puck and intercept passes. I don't think the Wings are as much a dump and chase team as the California squads, but the Stars will certainly be trying to force that as much as possible.

I'm thinking that special teams are a toss-up, or at least I'm not creative enough to decide who gets the advantage. Stars' penalty killing has been generally excellent, and their power play has been absolutely clutch, but the Red Wings certainly aren't any slouches.

In any case, I think this should be a solid series. Both teams have capable scorers throughout their top three lines, and both can counterattack quickly and effectively. I think Dallas' defense will have their hands full with Zetterberg and Datsyuk, who have more flash than any twosome on either Anaheim or San Jose, but I also think Detroit's going to have some issues with Morrow and Ribiero, who frankly has impressed the heck out of me through two rounds.

I think in the end the Red Wings take it, but if Dallas takes one of the first two games, it's going to be a close one. If Detroit has the home sweep, though, they're probably set. By my eye, the Stars have played better hockey these playoffs on the road than at home.

Bruce Ciskie: The key to this series is Dallas' ability to get pucks to the net. Detroit's defense is a bit on the, well, old side. They're experienced and playing generally awesome hockey right now, but they're not without their flaws (see: "Lilja, Andreas").

The Stars have to find ways to pressure Osgood and make him stop plenty of shots. Colorado couldn't consistently do this, and neither could Nashville.

The way to beat the Wings is to wear them down. That doesn't mean that you hit them into oblivion, because I'm not convinced an overly physical tone will work. I do think you have to make Detroit's defensemen skate. Force them to play in their zone, and you can get them to make mistakes.

Matt Saler: I'll be interested to see what the Stars do against a team that has it all together. I don't want to take anything away from them, but they beat the Ducks and Sharks when those teams weren't quite playing to their potential. The Wings were firing on all cylinders in the second round and there's no reason to believe they won't be in the third.

Detroit's forward depth will be tested by Ribeiro, Morrow, Richards, and Modano, but I think they should be in a good position to shut them down. To counter the Stars attack, they have two deserving Selke candidates that can be split up if necessary and a solid crop of defense-oriented forwards. Before Johan Franzen became a goal scoring machine, the team was working on molding him into a shutdown forward able to handle tasks like silencing Joe Thornton. Kris Draper, Dan Cleary, and Dallas Drake all have big bodies and are strong in their own end.

Bruce is definitely right about the Stars' need to pin the Wings in their own end. That was nearly Detroit's downfall in the first round as the Predators would put up two minute-long pressure shifts and wear the team out. They didn't have the same problem with Colorado, but whether that was a product of the Avs' injuries or the Wings having better defensive zone puck management, I can't be certain. I'd like to think it was the latter. The Wings will need to put on a puck possession clinic this round and it starts in their own end.

The Wings will have to be stellar in the breakout and transition games against Dallas. They'll need to get the puck up ice before the Stars can adjust and gain the zone without resorting to dump-and-chase hockey. The Stars' defense will make it difficult to cross the blueline on your average carry-in. If Detroit's puck moving defensemen can't get passes out to the forwards and spring them into the zone, they'll have a tough time getting going offensively.

The Predators showed that the Wings have the potential for composure problems when they scored so many of their goals in sequence. Detroit didn't let Colorado's goals rattle them as much, but the Stars would be smart to come out hard after they score.

James Mirtle: If I'm the Stars, my biggest worry is just how green the defence is there. Philippe Boucher's injured, Sergei Zubov missed a few months and doesn't quite look right, and the three of Nick Grossman, Mark Fistric and Matt Niskanen are going to play in this series.

A 23-year-old and two 21-year-olds on the blueline against the Red Wings? That's tough.

As Matt alluded to, the Stars' greatest asset is that three-shot at center (Ribeiro, Richards, Modano) which will create problems for every team. The Wings have problems of their own down the defensive depth chart, and that lack of depth could hurt either team.

Earl Sleek: Strangely, the Dallas defenseman I'm the most worried for is Matty Norstrom. I thought the youth on the blueline would be a problem for Dallas, but they seem to fit into the structure very well, especially guys like Trevor Daley. Norstrom was fine also, but that was largely against large bodies like Getzlaf and Thornton. If he draws the Zetterberg-Datsyuk line, I'm not sure Norstrom's assets will be terribly useful, and his weaknesses (mainly footspeed) could get exposed.

We'll see, but I think guys like Grossman and Fistric have looked very serviceable, and despite not having Zubov for round one or Boucher for round two, the Stars' defense didn't have too much trouble against the Ducks or Sharks. As has been pointed out, though, Anaheim and San Jose were the two worst offensive teams in the western bracket, so it definitely will be a tougher test.

Eric McErlain: All very interesting. One point nobody mentioned: The leading scorer among defensemen for this playoff -- Stephane Robidas of Dallas.

Ok, let's shift back to the East. As J.P. noted ahead of the entire hockey world, it's the Battle of Pennsylvania. Yes, Pittsburgh seems stacked beyond belief, and Marc-Andre Fleury seems to finally be fulfilling his promise as a top draft pick in net. But there's something about this Philly team I can't seem to shake. They always hang around and it seems like there's just no quit in them. As I've written before, the Philly Power Play is absolutely suffocating, their defense seems well balanced between speed, strength and grit and Martin Biron made all the saves he's had to since Game Seven against the Caps.

Does this one go to the distance?

James Mirtle: I'm going to pick it to.

They key for the Flyers is going to be getting a split in Pittsburgh. Getting into an 0-2 hole against a team with that much firepower, like the Rangers did, is too dangerous, and leaves you needing to win four of five to win the series.

But if things go back to Philadelphia at 1-1 or even 2-0 for the Flyers, that's where they want them. They've been tough to beat at home.

Biron's going to have to keep being terrific, too.

Bruce Ciskie: Can Pittsburgh go in the tough areas more consistently than Montreal did? If so, they have a real shot to crack the code of Biron. The Penguins strike me as being a little hungrier than Montreal looked, but how much of that was Philadelphia just sapping the will out of the Habs?

I want to see how Philadelphia's offense handles a goaltender who won't give them gaggles of soft goals.

Patrick Lackey: I think James is absolutely right about the first two games of the series. The Rangers definitely outplayed the Penguins for most of games 3-5 in their series, but it didn't matter because of the lead the Penguins had built up.

Honestly, I think this is going to be a really close series. Both teams are playing very well, both power plays should test the opposing goalie in ways that they haven't really been tested yet, and there's a lot of offensive skill and physicality on both sides.

I think the key questions that we should have answered early in the series are probably 1.) Is Philly's offensive attack really that good or was Carey Price simply that bad? and 2.) Is the Penguins penalty kill really that good or was New York's power play just that bad? In both cases, the answer is probably a bit of a compromise between the choices, but figuring out what applies from the early rounds and what was a factor of the opponents should go a long ways towards figuring out what kind of series this will be.

Kevin Schultz: I'm done picking against Dallas. I'm done picking against Philly as well as Osgood. All of them have made me look silly. As Mirtle said, home splits are going to be big in both series. Two wins in hand going back to either Dallas or Philly is going to be a killer obstacle for those teams.

Also a big key to both series: goaltending. All three Vezina finalists (Nabby, Brodeur, Lundqvist) have now been eliminated. Depending on who you ask, all four remaining keepers have serious doubts about them. All of these guys have question marks be it poor past experiences, lack of expericence or, in Ozzy's case, a whole bunch of doubters. I saw Osgood play a couple years on Long Island and the guy goes through spurts where he's the best in the league and spurts that make you want to strangle him. I think he's found his form and probably won't let up the rest of the way. Even if he does, he's got that Detroit D in front of him.

I'm taking Detroit and Pitt, but both series will likely go long. I'm also really curious to see how Pittsburgh matches up against the physical play of the Flyers. The physical play the Rangers thew at the Pens in Game Four might now be turned into an entire series of that type of play against Philly. Pens might be in a bit of trouble if that happens.

Eric McErlain: Predictions -- Who wins and in how many games?

Bruce Ciskie: I'm taking Detroit in seven and Pittsburgh in six. I don't feel awfully confident about either of those predictions.

James Mirtle: I hate to follow the crowd, but that's what I've got too. Detroit in six, Pittsburgh in seven.

I wouldn't be surprised at all to see one of the Stars or Flyers get in there, but I just can't figure out which.

Jon "J.P." Press: Stars in 7. Pens in 5.

Patrick Lackey: Pens in six, Stars in seven.

Like everyone else, I don't feel terribly sure about either of these picks. What I am sure of is Rule #1 of sports: whenever there's a final matchup that the media and public want to see and start talking up before the matchup is set, someone screws it up.

Jes Gölbez: Pens in 6 and Wings in 5.

Earl Sleek: Crosby in 6, Zetterberg in 6. Let the NHL have its dream.

Matt Saler: Wings in six, Pens in seven.

Patrick Lackey: Has anyone picked the Flyers? That makes me nervous.

Kevin Schultz: Gonna stick with what I got on BMR ... Pens and Wings in 7.

Eric McErlain: I'll close it out with Wings in six and Pens in Six, though like many of the others, I'd not exactly be surprised at the opposite outcome.

Conference Finals Roundtable originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 08 May 2008 16:13:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Hockey Returns

Bruce Ciskie — Thu, 08 May 2008 06:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Rangers, Flyers, Penguins, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

Don't remind me that the offseason is quickly approaching. There will be many nights like Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

Here's hoping the NHL Network can find better "vintage games" than Devils-Flyers 2004 Game Five. Listen, I have nothing against that game, but it's hardly a "classic". It's going to be a long summer. Oh, and it's the NHL Network. Give me that four-overtime Avalanche-Panthers Cup clincher. I mean, Uwe Krupp rules, and he scored the game-winner.

Back on task, you need not worry about a lack of hockey anymore. The Ice Sheet is back, as the conference finals are set to get underway. We've already offered you previews of the East and West (read the East one, because the West was written by some idiot from Minnesota). You're invited to check them out.

As for other hockey news, there is some. We'll cover that, and offer some final words on the NHL's version of the "Final Four" after the jump.

Where does Jagr end up? Jaromir Jagr is a free agent this summer. Take note, because this has never happened before. Jagr knows it, and he is also likely aware that this is his last chance at a big-money contract. The Rangers may have been bounced in the second round with relative ease by Pittsburgh, but Jagr proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he can still play, and he has the desire to win.

For his part, Jagr says the Rangers are the first option for 2008-2009. He hinted that he's likely to return to Europe in two more years to fulfill a promise to his father. That means he will want to play for a team that has a real chance at the Cup. Do the Rangers qualify? They have a lot of money tied up in veteran forwards, and they are sorely in need of an upgrade on defense. Henrik Lundqvist is a great goaltender, but he can't do it alone, and he was too often left on an island against Pittsburgh. Either guys weren't getting back, or they would screen him when they did get back. New York will continue to be good, but they aren't a legitimate contender if they don't address their issues on defense.

Paul Maurice: You're fired. No surprise here. Maurice got the axe in Toronto after two years outside of the playoffs. One year is bad enough in Toronto, but a second year would get anyone fired up there, even if there wasn't a new GM coming. Colleague Jes Golbez makes a great point on his blog, saying that it's not like the Maple Leafs have been a well-oiled machine from the top down. Bad signings and bad trades crippled the roster, and while Maurice doesn't inspire confidence in his tactical abilities, he didn't have much of a shot with this team.

Make fun of the rabid Toronto fan base all you want, but they don't accept mediocrity. Then again, "mediocrity" would be a step up from what we saw much of this past season.

The Maple Leafs job reminds me of the Dallas Cowboys coaching position. The pressure is tremendous, and the chances of satisfying a significant percentage of the fans, along with ownership, are usually not very high.

What you may have missed. The NHL hasn't been doing much, but FanHouse has been busy. Here's a quick sample of what you may have missed since that four-overtime game Sunday night.

Leafs Give Maurice the Boot
John Tavares Fires Agent, Hires Mommy
Ron Wilson May Need Some Lessons on Motivation in the Workplace
Sabres Sign Boston College Star Gerbe
Detroit's "Mule" Pulls a Big Load
FanHouse Roundtable: NHL Playoff Officiating
America, Prepare to Be Blinded by Don Cherry
Hockeysfuture Purchased by CraveOnline

Final thoughts: Conference finals. If you're looking for more great material on these series, check out James Mirtle, who interviewed bloggers from the final teams, and Earl Sleek, who has some great stuff on the Dallas-Detroit series.

I already opined on Dallas-Detroit, and I like the Wings in a close shave. In the East, I feel the series will come down to the play of Marc-Andre Fleury. He's been great so far, but the Flyers have made two goalies (Huet and Price) look bad so far in the playoffs, and they'd love to do the same to the Pennsylvania rival goaltender. If Fleury plays well, can he frustrate a team that's scored a few softies so far, or will the Flyers bear down and beat him anyway? I like Pittsburgh, but I don't think it will be anything close to a cakewalk. It should easily be tougher than either of Pittsburgh's first two series.

Random YouTube, or maybe not Random at all. It's been 20 years since Jim Schoenfeld dropped a tirade for the ages on Don Koharski. In fact, May 8 is the 20th anniversary of the controversial one-game suspension handed down to Schoenfeld.

I'm almost embarrassed to state that Koharski's officiating career easily outlasted Schoenfeld's NHL coaching career, which ended in 1999. And he still stinks after all these years.

Let's all have a doughnut in honor of this monumental anniversary.

The Ice Sheet: Hockey Returns originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 08 May 2008 06:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NHL West Finals Preview: Detroit vs Dallas

Bruce Ciskie — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, General NHL, Wings, Stars, Stanley Cup

Click here for more NHL playoff previews.

One team is supposed to be here. The other is probably (at least to some extent) using the "No one is giving us a chance" motivational ploy.

Throw the seeds out the window and forget who is favored. This should be a very entertaining series.

The Dallas Stars are probably not supposed to be here. It was expected that Anaheim would run them off to the golf course in the first round. That didn't happen.

But surely, the great San Jose Sharks weren't going to take Dallas lightly. In the end, it didn't matter how the Sharks took the Stars. Dallas won the series.

Detroit, meanwhile, is on a six-game winning streak since Chris Osgood replaced the ineffective Dominik Hasek in goal. Johan Franzen has scored 11 goals in the playoffs, putting him in line for the Conn Smythe should Detroit keep going.

(If you had Franzen in your Conn Smythe pool at work, I want to know what information you were acting on. I'd also like to know where you work, because it would be cool to have a Conn Smythe pool.)

The Wings have the firepower. Will Dallas try to get physical, or will they push the tempo and hope to wear down Detroit's veteran defensemen?

Offense: Not as easy a call as you may think. Yes, Detroit has Datsyuk and Zetterberg. Yes, Franzen is on fire. He was great against Colorado, and his presence will be an issue for Dallas. The Stars aren't blessed with big, Earth-moving defensemen (more on that in a bit), and Franzen is, well, a Mule. He'll cause problems in front of the net, and it's obvious that he knows what to do with the puck when it comes to him. Of course, we can't discount guys like Tomas Holmstrom, Valtteri Filppula, and Mikael Samuelsson, all of whom are capable of contributing offensively. Even Darren McCarty has a playoff goal.

Dallas, meanwhile, has the Ribeiro-Morrow connection, which has worked wonderfully so far. Morrow has ~~eight~~ seven goals in the playoffs (sorry, I'm still bitter about the disallowed goal in Game Five), and it seems like he's timed them all very well. Mike Modano, dismissed by many as just an old dude, has tallied four times for the balanced Stars. I like the potential dimension Steve Ott brings to this series. He's a big, physical guy who has the ability to create havoc in front of the net. He's the kind of player who can really help Dallas should this be a long series, because he has good energy, and he will drive at Detroit's defensemen and goalie Chris Osgood until someone makes him stop.

I like Dallas' balance, but I like the combination of grit and skill Detroit has, and they're also better at moving the puck and getting up the rink. Edge: Detroit

Defense: The Wings have experience and high skill level at the top. Niklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski are great puck-movers, and they're a hard pair to beat in their own zone. They are the key to a Wings system that depends on puck possession, and boy do they ever possess the puck. In addition, the Wings have gotten solid play out of Niklas Kronwall. Chris Chelios hasn't played much, and he has shown his age at times. No doubt, the key to this group is the play of Lidstrom and Rafalski.

Dallas has some depth, and they have some personnel questions entering the series. Sergei Zubov is back, and I thought he looked pretty good against San Jose. He will see pretty regular playing time in this series. Mattias Norstrom and Stephane Robidas are the other veterans Dallas has relied on in the first two series. Word is that Phillippe Boucher will make the trip to Detroit, but he won't play in the season opener. Of the youngsters, Nicklas Grossman has looked pretty good, Mark Fistric brings a hard-hitting dimension, and Matt Niskanen has three assists, but was a healthy scratch for Game Six against San Jose. Moving forward, I would expect to see a lot of Zubov, Boucher (if he can go), and Niskanen. They are the best puck-movers Dallas has on the blue line. Their job will be to funnel the puck to the forwards and allow them to pressure Detroit's defense. Because of Dallas' depth, I'll give them a slight advantage. Edge: Dallas

Goaltending: Two veterans here. Chris Osgood is 6-0 as a starter in these playoffs, but it's likely that he hasn't been pressured the way Dallas will try to pressure him. Marty Turco has faced tremendous pressure at times, and he's had to win a lot of close games along the way. It's hard not to be impressed with what Turco has done in these playoffs, and it could be argued he's been the league's best goaltender so far in the postseason. This matchup almost comes down to which goaltender seems to have the best potential for a meltdown. Turco has certainly been guilty of this in the past, but has shown no signs of it this year. Neither has Osgood. I keep coming back to Osgood's 6-0 record, and no matter the circumstances of those six games, it's difficult to dismiss. Turco has prettier numbers, but I'll wuss out and call it even. Edge: None

Special teams: Purely by the numbers, Detroit has a slight edge. They are plus-seven on special teams (combining power play goals for and against, and short-handed goals for and against), while Dallas is plus-three. It's not much, but it's something. If you watch the teams, that edge probably goes away. Dallas' power play has been lethal from the start, when they accounted for all four of the team's goals against Anaheim in their opener. The Stars haven't slowed down much. Detroit has been pretty strong on the power play, but they haven't scored the big goals Dallas has. The Wings have been strong on the penalty kill, making this a great matchup. Dallas' kill has been steady, but not spectacular, while Detroit has shown more ability to move the puck up the rink and create chances. I'm going to give the Wings a slight edge here, if only because I think their puck movement will cause Dallas problems, no matter who is on the power play. Edge: Detroit

Prediction: This should be a great series. Dallas is on a roll, already winning two series in which they were considered the underdog. The Wings stumbled in Nashville, but rallied to win the last two games of that series, and they weren't seriously threatened after Game One against Colorado. This Stars team, however, is in a much better position to beat Detroit than the Avalanche were. Morrow has established himself as the unquestioned leader, Ribeiro may be playing the best hockey of his career, and Modano can still make things happen. Getting Zubov back on defense is huge for them, especially if he can play 25-30 minutes a night and neutralize some of the advantages Detroit may think they have in Dallas' zone.

Dallas can win if they punish Detroit's defensemen by making them skate and fight for the puck in their zone for a long series. If this is destined to be a short series, I have little doubt Detroit wins unless Osgood melts down. I think we're looking at six or seven games, though. It's there that Dallas has a real shot. To win, however, Dallas has to show they can keep Detroit from owning the puck possession battle, as they have against their first two opponents. With so much inexperience on defense, I'm not convinced this is going to happen. The pick: Detroit in seven

NHL West Finals Preview: Detroit vs Dallas originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 07 May 2008 16:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Sharks Win Again

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 03 May 2008 10:21:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, General NHL, Flyers, Canadiens, Stars, Sharks, NHL Media Watch, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

The Dallas Stars didn't want to put a test to that old "third time's a charm" saying.

Much better to just close this deal in San Jose Friday night, and avoid giving the Sharks any more chances to crawl back into the series they had seemingly fallen out of already.

However, things don't always happen the way we plan them.

San Jose pulled off an improbable two-goal rally, then Joe Pavelski scored just over a minute into overtime to give the Sharks a 3-2 win. Dallas' lead in the series is now 3-2, with Game Six Sunday in Dallas.

Dallas had to be happy with the first period. Nothing happened, but the big thing for them was that nothing good happened for San Jose. It kept a usually-boisterous crowd from getting riled up, and it kept San Jose's top line (which has been invisible even-strength for pretty much the entire series) from generating any major chances.

(Still to come: The NHL screws the Stars, a brief rant about the league's inexcusably bad television deal, Guy Carbonneau readies his players for a tall task, and the usual dose of YouTube)

The Stars struck in the second period, as Sergei Zubov sent a great feed over the middle to Jere Lehtinen for a power-play goal. They should have had one later in the period, but the clueless people working the video replay booth continued to demonstrate their inability to distinguish "skating" from "kicking". Brenden Morrow crashed the net, and Zubov threw the puck in front. It clearly went in off Morrow's back skate, but he wasn't really in a position to kick it, as he was trying to stop skating before he plowed into the goal and nullified the play. He also wasn't looking at the puck when it got to his skate. You'd think that makes it difficult to deliberately kick it. He had no idea it was in a place that he could kick it.

The "official" explanation from the NHL is, well, inexplicable.

"Video review at 15:31 of the second period determined that the puck was kicked by Morrow's back skate - there was a distinct kicking motion. Referee Paul Devorski's call of a goal goal on the ice was overturned by video review - no goal."

I almost feel like I was watching a different play than the people in Toronto. Morrow skated towards the net, and he's trying to stop himself from crashing into the crossbar as he makes contact with a San Jose defenseman and goaltender Evgeni Nabokov.

(Yes, goaltender interference should have been called. It wasn't. Based on that info, you can't go back and call it, and the goal should have stood. If Toronto was trying to cover for Paul Devorski's incompetence, then where the hell were they during Game Seven between Philadelphia and Washington, which Devorski and Don Koharski combined to botch as badly as any single playoff game so far?)

Anyway, Toronto ruled that Morrow intentionally kicked a puck he couldn't see. The nullified goal took some momentum from the Stars, but the television timeout that followed the near ten-minute review may have hurt San Jose. Dallas continued to control the flow, and Morrow got a "real" goal in the final minute of the period for a 2-0 lead.

Not enough.

Milan Michalek scored early in the third, and Jeremy Roenick threw a great feed to Brian Campbell for the tying goal, which Campbell sniped high past Marty Turco. San Jose showed great jump in the third period, and probably could have had a couple more goals. They had to settle for overtime, which Pavelski ended quickly.

More evidence that the NHL TV deal sucks. It's bad enough that the NHL continues to get ridiculed by the mainstream media for their invisible television partner, Versus.

(No, I don't really care much for what the mainstream media thinks, but it's not smart to dismiss them. They're influential, no matter what you or I may think of them.)

But then Friday night happens, and we're all given another reason why they should be ridiculed.

It's 2008. I can watch just about anything, including a simulcast of a radio show, in high definition. Some things are really enhanced when you watch them in high definition. Hockey is probably at the top of the list of sports that benefit from being broadcast in HD. With that in mind, you'd think it was important to the NHL that all their playoff games are beamed to the world in HD.

Oh, no. Why would they want to bother with such a detail?

Versus and The Golf Channel are owned by the wonderful folks (note sarcasm in previous two words) at Comcast. Instead of each network having a dedicated HD channel, Comcast decided to save some dough and make them share one.

Normally, this isn't an issue. A large majority of golf tournaments are played during the day (makes sense, as it would be tough to play a round in the dark, and it would be even tougher to televise that round), and all of the Versus hockey games are played at night.

Unfortunately, there is a problem. Someone in charge decided that it would be more important to air a tape-delayed broadcast of the Wachovia Championship in HD*, and Friday's Dallas-San Jose game was not available in the crystal-clear format.

(* - I'm assuming it was tape-delayed. Sources inform me it was indeed dark in North Carolina at 11pm ET Friday, and the golf was being played under bright sunshine.)

I know that many people don't have HD-capable televisions at this point, but this is ridiculous. We live in an era where just about every major sporting event (including the World Series of Poker) is carried in HD. Every miniscule PGA tournament is done in HD. You can watch Moto-X in HD. ESPN and HD Net each air one MLS game every week, and all of those games are done in HD.

Meanwhile, the NHL can't even get nationally-televised playoff games done in HD. No wonder no one takes them seriously. After all, MLS gets more consistent national television coverage in the HD format. Pathetic.

(And don't think I didn't notice that you idiots have gone back to the piped-in goal horn when the visiting team scores. The ridicule they got for this in their first year apparently didn't dissuade them.)

Can the Canadiens stay alive? Guy Carbonneau is going to pull out the lucky tie again. That decision isn't the toughest one he had to make in advance of Saturday's Game Five. That one comes in Montreal's goal. Carey Price is back after a one-game hiatus. It's not that Jaroslav Halak played badly, because he didn't. This is about making sure everyone knows who the top dog is in Montreal, and it's unquestionably Price.

The hope for Montreal is that Price regained some confidence while sitting out a game, and the home crowd in Montreal won't be nearly as hard on him as the fans in Philadelphia. A win of any kind is likely to be a further boost for Price, so he'll feel even better about himself heading into Game Six. If he doesn't regain some confidence, Montreal will be eliminated Saturday.

It would also help the Canadiens if they could get a more consistent effort out of their key offensive guys. In the two games in Philadelphia, it could be argued that they only gave that consistent effort in the third period. Waiting that long didn't work in either of those games, and it surely won't get it done this time. Montreal's offensive focus needs to be in two areas. Their breakouts have been spotty, for the most part. Philadelphia is a good forechecking team, but the Canadiens have to do a better job using their superior speed. To do that, they have to hit the first pass and get guys moving into the neutral zone. The other area is around the net. Martin Biron has been great in this series, but he's been helped by a Montreal team that just isn't going to the net enough. When they do go to the net, they flash in front and then skate either to a wing or behind the net.

Weekend schedule. All times Eastern.

Saturday
Philadelphia at Montreal, 7pm (Versus) - Philadelphia leads series 3-1

Sunday
N.Y. Rangers at Pittsburgh, 2pm (NBC) - Pittsburgh leads series 3-1
(If necessary) Montreal at Philadelphia, 7pm (Versus)
San Jose at Dallas, 9pm (JIP - Versus) - Dallas leads series 3-2

Random YouTube Fun. Memo to all NHL rinks in the United States: This is how you sing a national anthem:

The Ice Sheet: Sharks Win Again originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 03 May 2008 10:21:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PuckToons: Cooking With the Stars

Earl Sleek — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Sharks, Western, Stanley Cup

Every Thursday, Earl Sleek will conspire with his pen and scanner to bring you another installment of PuckToons. Hopefully you will find these amusing, relevant, well-drawn, or you're a person who is tolerant towards mediocrity.

Well, thanks to a hard-fought 2-1 win in Dallas, the Sharks have forced a Game Five back in San Jose and will survive at least another day. The Stars and Sharks have been playing a strange series this round; the team that has scored the game's first goal has lost all four games. In that light, maybe rookie Devin Setoguchi knew what he was doing last night when he centered a clearing pass right to the Stars' Jere Lehtinen for an easy snapper past Evgeni Nabokov.

Of course, the Sharks still face a huge uphill battle with the Stars leading 3-1 in the series, so hope for San Jose fans is still faint. Incidentally, this cartoon is a tribute to one of my earliest Battle of California cartoons, back from the 2006 western conference finals, when the Mighty Ducks won a Game Four in Edmonton after dropping the first three games of the series. That series promptly ended in Game Five; can the Sharks avoid the same fate?

Tune in tomorrow and find out.

PuckToons: Cooking With the Stars originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 01 May 2008 14:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Habs on Brink

Bruce Ciskie — Thu, 01 May 2008 06:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, New York, Philadelphia, General NHL, Flyers, Canadiens, Stars, Sharks, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

Guy Carbonneau took an incredible risk Wednesday night.

It was admittedly a risk, even though I felt like it was necessary. Carey Price struggled, and it looked like the confidence was gradually seeping from him. Carbonneau was given almost no choice. Yes, Price was incredible down the stretch after Cristobal Huet was traded to Washington. But he looked to be slipping, and Montreal needed a win Wednesday to keep alive realistic hopes of winning this series.

With that in mind, Carbonneau went with fellow youngster Jaroslav Halak, who was asked to make just two third-period saves in relief of Price in Game Three.

The Canadiens' hopes are dwindling quickly. A power-play goal by Daniel Briere late in the third period nullified a late Montreal comeback, as the badly-outshot Flyers rode the goaltending of Martin Biron to a 4-2 win over Montreal and a 3-1 series lead.

The brilliant WhoWins website reports a probability of over 90 percent that a team up 3-1 in a best-of-seven will win the series. The percentage only falls to 87.5 percent when the team up 3-1 has to play Game Five on the road, as Philadelphia does.

This wasn't Halak's fault, however, as the Canadiens' netminder played well, with his highlight coming as he stopped an early breakaway by Jeff Carter. He was just outplayed by Biron, who is out of his head right now and carrying his team. He was also undone by another lackluster effort from Montreal's forwards. Alex Kovalev was practically a no-show, with Tomas Plekanec, the Kostitsyn brothers, Saku Koivu, Chris Higgins, and others taking turns making bad decisions with the puck.

Philadelphia isn't necessarily as talented as Montreal, but they're proving the age-old thought in hockey that "will beats skill". The Flyers have more will in their top line than Montreal's entire roster has shown so far.

(Still to come: The Stars try to close out ~~Ron Wilson~~ San Jose, Sean Avery's season is over, his teammates should soon follow, and we'll take a random look into the wonderful world of YouTube)

Sharks stay alive. Another physical game Wednesday night, which was only slightly surprising. Yes, these are the playoffs. Yes, San Jose's season was on the line. However, Game Three was noticeably hard-hitting, and it wasn't unreasonable to suggest that playing on back-to-back nights would slow the teams down a bit.

It didn't. Both teams played with great intensity, and both teams played well defensively. San Jose had a superb third period in a 2-1 victory that forces Game Five Friday in San Jose. Ron Wilson lives to coach another day.

Early on, it didn't look good for the Sharks. They had three power plays in the first period, but generated next to nothing. Then, Devin Setoguchi set up Jere Lehtinen with a great centering pass in the second period for the game's first goal. Of course, Setoguchi isn't likely to have done that on purpose, being that he plays for San Jose while Lehtinen is a longtime Star. Later, Patrick Marleau scored a short-handed goal for the second straight night, and a Milan Michalek power-play goal in the third gave San Jose a 2-1 lead.

The Sharks weren't exactly free-flowing on offense, and Dallas goalie Marty Turco still made some great saves. If the Sharks are to continue this comeback effort, they're going to need more out of their front-line players five-on-five. Marleau has the two shorties in the two games in Dallas, but the top line did nothing even-strength. And with how these games are being officiated, you know the vast majority of the 60 minutes will be played even-strength.

Avery update. Not much new to report. Eric McErlain and Pat Lackey did an outstanding job Wednesday, so there's no point in me laying any more shots in at the New York Daily News for screwing up the initial report. I'm glad to hear Avery will be okay and he will make a full recovery.

Meanwhile, Rangers coach Tom Renney did his part later in the day Wednesday to put to bed the "rushed to hospital at 3am" report the Daily News started this whole thing with.

"Our medical people were quick to react to that and did a great job. On my way home I knew that he was on his way to the hospital, and I got home before 3 a.m."

A source close to Avery told me Wednesday that he was resting comfortably and watching television in his hospital bed. It was early evening that Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur unexpectedly showed up. He stood between Avery and the television and started waving his arms back and forth.

(Sorry. On the bright side, I've now fulfilled the "one bad joke per month" provision in my FanHouse contract.)

Rangers, Avalanche on the brink. Avery's teammates could soon join him in the whole "season's over" thing. The Rangers face Pittsburgh at the Garden (7pm ET, Versus), trying to hold off elimination and get on the board in the series. The Rangers outshot and probably outplayed Pittsburgh in Game Three, but the opportunistic Penguins found a way to win by two goals.

New York isn't the only team down 3-0 trying to keep the season alive Thursday. Colorado will host Detroit (10pm ET, Versus) with the back against the wall. The Avalanche gave a valiant effort against Detroit Tuesday, but it wasn't enough to overcome the obviously superior Red Wings. By the way, I know not many of you have noticed, but Chris Osgood is 5-0 as the starting goalie for Detroit. Just sayin'.

We have two teams trying to avoid elimination. For the sake of entertainment for all of us who don't want to watch the NBA Playoffs, let's hope at least one of them wins Thursday.

Random YouTube Time! Obviously, we were all concerned for a time Wednesday about the health of Sean Avery. It's not the first time we've been scared for his well-being. This one goes all the way back to his time with the Los Angeles Kings.

The Ice Sheet: Habs on Brink originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 01 May 2008 06:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Stars, Penguins, and Red Wings Push Opponents to Virtual Elimination

Earl Sleek — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Detroit, New York, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Rangers, Penguins, Wings, Avalanche, Stars, Sharks, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

From an efficiency standpoint, these playoffs are delivering possibly the quickest second round in NHL history. Three series got a lot less interesting last night when the New York Rangers, the San Jose Sharks, and the Colorado Avalanche all came up short in must-win Game Threes. They will all be hearing lots about the brutal history of a 3-0 series deficit, a hole no NHL team has conquered since the 1975 New York Islanders. Well, maybe the Sharks won't have a chance to hear that much history -- they actually face elimination tonight.

I guess there's a bright side to one-sidedness: with the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Dallas Stars, and the Detroit Red Wings all on impressive winning streaks, it's looking to be an interesting third round. That there are three series at 3-0 less than a week into Round Two seems an odd phenomenon, though, as most games seem to have been toss-ups. Collectively, the Penguins, Red Wings, and Stars are 9-0 this round despite scoring the opening goal of the game only three times.

Stars 2, Sharks 1 (OT): In Dallas, defenseman Mattias Norstrom scored at 4:37 of the first overtime to propel the Stars to a comeback win over San Jose. For the fourth game in a row, the Stars surrendered the game's first goal, a shorthanded breakaway by Patrick Marleau. For the fourth game in a row, they fought back for victory, with Sergei Zubov tying the game on a 5-on-3 power play early in the third period. Dallas seems to have a real knack for playing past the forty-minute mark these playoffs: during third periods and overtimes they have collectively outscored their opponents 19-5. The Sharks also managed to extend a franchise streak: for the third year in a row, they lost three consecutive games in Round Two. Ouch.

(After the break, more on the win streaks of the Stars, Penguins, and Red Wings, plus some comeback advice from an unlikely source.)

Just for kicks, here's what I said before the Sharks-Stars series in the Second Round Playoff Roundtable discussion:

I think the Sharks take this series, and I don't think there will even be a Game Seven this time. The main thing the Sharks have to worry about is their ability to close out the second round (they have lost the last two postseasons in the second round despite leading the series 2-1 both times). Still, I think having those disappointments in previous years (plus a pretty serious scare in Round One) makes the Sharks less likely to melt down in Round Two this year.

Oops, that prediction's not looking so hot. Norstrom, by the way, has two goals in nine games in this postseason, which matches his goal output in the previous 87 games he's played in a Stars uniform (regular season and playoffs).

Penguins 5, Rangers 3: Evgeni Malkin was the hero in this game, scoring two goals and adding an assist as Pittsburgh won their seventh straight game this postseason. The Rangers came back from an early deficit in the second period when Ryan Callahan and Jaromir Jagr scored goals just over a minute apart to tie the game 3-3. Less than three minutes later, the Rangers were penalized when Ryan Hollweg boarded Petr Sykora, and Malkin potted the eventual game-winner during the ensuing power play. It was a tough loss for the Rangers, who outshot the Penguins 39-17 in the game but will still face elimination tomorrow at Madison Square Garden.

Red Wings 4, Avalanche 3: The return of Peter Forsberg was not enough to spark the Avs to victory, especially as it coincided with injuries to forwards Ryan Smyth and Paul Stastny. Detroit built a 4-2 lead through two periods and held on for the win, with Pavol Datsyuk scoring two goals and an assist, and Johan Franzen adding his league-leading eighth goal of the postseason. Andrew Brunette scored his second goal of the night to bring Colorado within one, but they could not put another puck past Chris Osgood, who is 5-0 this postseason. For a bit of personal redemption, here's what I said about this series in the Roundtable:

The Wings will be on a mission this round, and I don't know how well the Avalanche can withstand a properly motivated Red Wings squad. Though there will be a lot of "renewed rivalry" hype, I don't think this series will be that evenly matched.

Whew, at least that prediction's looking a bit better. Forsberg was held pointless in the game, but his six penalty minutes did at least get him on the scoresheet.

The Forty-Minute Split: It's interesting to look at the three winning streaks for Detroit, Dallas, and Pittsburgh, and what happens in the first two periods compared to what happens in the rest of the game. The Red Wings have won five games in a row, largely because of how they've dominated the first forty minutes of each game, outscoring opponents by a collective margin of 14-5. Past forty minutes it's a more modest 4-3 edge. This is a different pattern than the Stars or Penguins -- both those teams have owned third periods and overtimes during their postseason win streaks.

The Penguins have won seven games in a row. In the first two periods, they have outscored opponents 14-10. In the third period, however, they've simply slaughtered opponents 13-2. The Stars are even more lopsided in their current four game winning streak. During this stretch, Dallas has actually been outscored 5-3 in the first forty minutes, but has stormed back afterwards, outscoring opponents 11-1.

I'm not sure if there's too many conclusions to be drawn -- these numbers are based on a small sample size of purely wins -- but I thought it was a noteworthy pattern. In any case, all these teams have shown an ability to repeatedly win close games, which is certainly a coveted skill. Right now there's three opponent teams who would really love to learn how to quickly throw together a four game win streak of their own.

Tonight's Schedule:

Montreal Canadiens at Philadelphia Flyers, 7 pm. Flyers lead series 2-1. Suddenly this seems to be the most interesting series of the second round.

San Jose Sharks at Dallas Stars, 9 pm. Stars lead series 3-0. Break out the brooms, Texas.

Obligatory YouTube Embed: Thanks to a scheduling conflict with an already-eliminated Dallas Mavericks team, the Sharks will be facing elimination tonight. Four consecutive wins is a tall order, but maybe they can take some inspiration from their cupless neighbors to the south, who were able to pull their own miracle comeback against Marty Turco this season. Enjoy!

The Ice Sheet: Stars, Penguins, and Red Wings Push Opponents to Virtual Elimination originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Ice Sheet: Excitement!

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 10:18:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, New York, Pittsburgh, General NHL, Rangers, Penguins, Stars, Sharks, Stanley Cup

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

I'm not trying to say the first round was boring. However, you can't beat the start we're off to in the second round.

We've seen four games so far.

Philadelphia took a 2-0 lead in the first period at Montreal, stopped a penalty shot in the second period, but then managed to blow the lead. The tying goal was a short-handed thing of beauty by Montreal's captain, Alex Kovalev. Philadelphia, unfazed, took a 3-2 lead early in the third. But a controversial penalty on Mike Richards led to Kovalev's power-play equalizer in the final minute. A Tom Kostopolous goal 48 seconds into overtime won it for the Canadiens.

Detroit looked to be cruising against Colorado, scoring four goals on 16 shots against Jose Theodore and leading 4-1 when Theodore was benched in favor of Peter Budaj. Colorado rallied, scoring two straight in the second period to cut the margin to 4-3. The Avalanche had a couple glorious chances in the third period, but Detroit's strong defense and Chris Osgood combined to hold them at bay for a 4-3 final.

Oh, and Friday's games may have been even better.

(Still to come: A big comeback in Pittsburgh, Marty Turco steps up, and a preview of this weekend's action. Oh, and a YouTube. We didn't forget the YouTube.)

In Pittsburgh, the Penguins could have fairly been left for dead after New York built a 3-0 lead early in the second period. Things weren't going Pittsburgh's way. Henrik Lundqvist stood on his head early, former Penguin Jaromir Jagr assisted on a goal, and freaking Sean Avery scored. I mean, you can't script Game One worse than "visiting goalie makes big saves early, former member of your team sets up goal, Sean Avery scores, home team down 3-0", can you?

These Penguins, however, are nothing if not resilient. Last year's Penguins may not have had a significant answer, but this year's team showed last night why they are a legit Cup contender. Goals (including one by Jarkko Ruutu, Pittsburgh's equivalent to Sean Avery) 14 seconds apart in the second period made it 3-2. Marian Hossa shot one in off Scott Gomez to tie it in the third. Taking advantage of the momentum offered them by such a tremendous break, Petr Sykora scored off a world-class feed by Evgeni Malkin to give Pittsburgh a 4-3 lead.

Remember how I said the Penguins were resilient? Well, so are the Rangers. Gomez redeemed himself five minutes later, and we were once again tied. Just when it looked like we were heading to overtime, Martin Straka took an interference penalty that I have to refer to as "shady".

I'm not here to criticize the officials. Really. It's not my job, and I have no clue what it's like to be an official. However, what I've seen recently in these playoffs is absolutely disturbing. The new trend that has been adopted is to call absolutely nothing for long stretches of the game, then call a penalty that doesn't have to be called when the game is on the line late.

The other most recent example of this is Game 7 in Washington. Yes, Tom Poti was guilty of tripping. However, the trip of Sami Kapanen that was let go was a much more egregious penalty. Kapanen just beat his man and was going to start a two-on-one. Poti tripped a guy that was about to dump the puck for a line change, and all it did for the Capitals was spring a two-on-two. The standard was set (not just earlier in overtime, but also in the third period, where way too much was let go), and it was then conveniently ignored.

Same thing here. Of all the stuff that happened in the third period, Straka's offense has to rank no higher than tenth place on a list of "Things You Have To Call". So why are you calling it with 3:20 left in a tie game, when you didn't call anything else on the list?

Anyway, Sidney Crosby shot from the right wing, and Malkin tipped it in towards the end of the power play. Penguins win, 5-4. Great game, but a cruddy finish for a Rangers team that probably deserved better from the striped shirts.

Stars steal Game One. Meanwhile, in San Jose, the Sharks outplayed Dallas. Had the better of the scoring chances. Outshot them 27-15 in regulation.

And lost.

Sharks fans have probably heard that song before. I'm sure they're sick of it by now.

Brendan Morrow scored twice, including an overtime game-winner, and Dallas beat San Jose 3-2. Marty Turco was very good when he needed to be, which was a question mark in this series. He made 25 saves, and while I didn't see every one of them, it seemed he was doing a good job controlling rebounds and keeping San Jose from having great second-chance opportunities.

Dallas was opportunistic, taking full advantage of the discombobulated Sharks on the last play. Stephane Robidas drove the net down the right side for an initial chance, then got the puck around to the left point, where Mattias Norstrom fed it back across to Morrow on the right. Evgeni Nabokov had to slide across to the right to deal with Robidas, then back to the left when Norstrom got the puck. He couldn't get back to the right before Morrow tucked his shot inside the post. It looked like helter-skelter for the Sharks defense, and the Stars got in great position. Morrow looked like he's been taking lessons from Brett Hull on how to get open in scoring areas.

It can't be the end of the world for San Jose, but after past playoff disappointments and quite a scare from an inferior Calgary team in the last round, this isn't a good start for them.

Weekend schedule. As usual, all times Eastern.

Saturday
Colorado at Detroit, 3pm (NBC) - Detroit leads series 1-0
Philadelphia at Montreal, 7pm (Versus) - Montreal leads series 1-0

Sunday
N.Y. Rangers at Pittsburgh, 2pm (NBC) - Pittsburgh leads series 1-0
Dallas at San Jose, 9pm (Versus) - Dallas leads series 1-0

Random YouTube Time!

How about a few bloopers? Enjoy your weekend.

The Ice Sheet: Excitement! originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 26 Apr 2008 10:18:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sharks (2) vs Stars (5) Series Preview

Bruce Ciskie — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:35:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Sharks, Stanley Cup

Click here for more NHL playoff previews.

They made it interesting, but the San Jose Sharks were able to move into the Western Conference semifinals. They knocked off Calgary 5-3 in Game Seven Tuesday night to survive a first-round scare.

While the Sharks were heavy favorites to advance, the Dallas Stars were not. Their first-round win over defending champion Anaheim came virtually out of nowhere. The Stars neutralized the Ducks' big forwards with a crop of young defensemen who had never proven themselves in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They were so good over the balance of this series that Marty Turco was hardly tested, especially when his team was playing with a lead.

These are division rivals, meaning they met eight times during the regular season. They split those meetings, with two of San Jose's four wins coming in overtime. Even though the Sharks are going to enter this series as the favorite, you should expect to see some entertaining games.

Offense: The Sharks have size, speed, and depth. They boast a former MVP in Joe Thornton who is still itching to shake the label of "playoff underachiever" (whether he deserves that label or not is a subject for a different day). Thornton was overshadowed by Jeremy Roenick's big night in Game Seven, but he's still a key guy for the Sharks, as evidenced by his near 22:00 of ice time in that game (more than any other Shark forward). Roenick isn't counted on for big things, but he can obviously still deliver. Oh yeah, and they still have those Cheechoo and Marleau guys, and a supporting cast featuring the likes of Roenick, Joe Pavelski, and Milan Michalek is strong.

Dallas isn't exactly lacking for talented forwards, but they are not as big or as deep as their opponent. Of course, you could have said that in the first round, too. The Stars have a solid group of forwards, led by Mike Ribeiro and Brendan Morrow, who were huge in the Anaheim series. Jere Lehtinen, Mike Modano, and Stu Barnes are older guys who can still bring it. Dallas didn't get beaten up by Anaheim's big, physical forwards, because Anaheim took too many undisciplined penalties. San Jose is a more disciplined team, and their depth should pose more of a challenge to the Stars.
Edge: San Jose

Defense: The performance of Dallas' young defensemen is probably the most understated surprise of these playoffs so far. They knew going in that rookie Matt Niskanen was pretty good, being that he made the team out of training camp, played in all but four games, and led Dallas defensemen with a plus-22. Not bad for a rookie. What was surprising in the Anaheim series was the play of guys like Niklas Grossman and Mark Fistric. At least early in this series, it's likely that Dallas will need these young guys again. Sergei Zubov missed the first round after sports hernia surgery, and while he could return in this series, it doesn't look good for Game One.

The Sharks have some serious minute-eaters on defense. Brian Campbell, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Craig Rivet, and Christian Ehrhoff all averaged over 20 minutes a game in the first round (by the way, none of the seven games went overtime). They combined for a plus-five in the series, and they need to do even more against Dallas. I tend to think Dallas brings a little more speed to the table than Calgary, and there were times the Sharks looked like they were skating in mud in their own zone. The focus and effort from the whole team (especially while playing defense) has to be more consistent in this series. That said, it looks like San Jose has a little more to work with.
Edge: San Jose

Goaltending: Evgeni Nabokov was underwhelming at times during the regular season, and the first round was no different. His save percentage dipped below .900 against Calgary, and it has to improve this time around. The Sharks aren't good or consistent enough in front of him to be able to afford a lackluster effort in goal.

Marty Turco got great protection from the skaters in front of him, but he was solid when it mattered against Anaheim. He kept the Ducks off the board after Corey Perry's (somewhat) softie in Game Six, and then he faced very little heat in the third period as the Stars dominated. Turco is still capable of the occasional stinker, but if the Stars do another superb job of protecting him, it might not matter.
Edge: Dallas

Special teams: Yes, San Jose has Joe on the power play, but I think Dallas has more scoring depth on their two line. They were great against Anaheim, scoring ten goals in six games. The Sharks weren't quite as sharp, but these teams match up very evenly on special teams. San Jose was dreadful on the penalty kill against Calgary, but they were the top team in the NHL during the regular season. Of course, Dallas was right behind them in second place, so a lot of this comes down to which San Jose kill shows up this series.
Edge: Even

Prediction: I hate to bet against a Dallas team that was so impressive in the first round, but I'm given little choice here. The Stars appear to be just a little short on paper, but if they can catch the Sharks taking undisciplined penalties and get off to good starts in these first two games, all bets are off. It just seems like a lot to ask.

(The most intriguing question surrounding this series: If San Jose doesn't get the job done, will that first-round win be enough to save Ron Wilson's job?)
The pick: San Jose in six

Sharks (2) vs Stars (5) Series Preview originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stuuu! and the Stars Send the Ducks Packing

Pat Lackey — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 23:34:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Anaheim, General NHL, Ducks, Stars, Western, Stanley Cup

Four days ago, the Penguins wrapped up an easy sweep over the Senators. Tonight, the Stars just sent the Ducks to join their opponents from last year's Stanley Cup Finals on the golf course with a relatively easy 3-1 victory over the defending champs, taking the series from them 4 games to 2.

Honestly, I was kind of alarmed by how non-chalant the Ducks were this entire series and I doubt I'm alone in that aspect. The Stars dominated the first two games with two wins by a cumulative 9-2 win before the Ducks even woke up. After winning two out of three, the Ducks only managed 17 shots tonight with their season on the line in Dallas and the prospect of a home game 7 looming. That's not going to win a playoff game against anyone.

That is, of course, not to take away from what the Stars did in this series. Their power play dominated the first two games and Marty Turco was stellar in the whole series. After Corey Perry gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead tonight, Stephane Robidas and Stu Barnes scored in the first 130 seconds of the third period, then mostly dominated the rest of the third period until the Ducks late flurry of fruitless, desperate shots. Even then, the Stars managed to add exclamation points from Loui Eriksson and Mike Modano.

Four fourth period goals allowed and only 17 shots with their playoff lives on the line? Yeah, it's time to give the Cup to someone else.

Stuuu! and the Stars Send the Ducks Packing originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sun, 20 Apr 2008 23:34:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ducks (4) vs Stars (5) Playoff Preview

Earl Sleek — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dallas, Anaheim, General NHL, Ducks, Stars, Stanley Cup

Click here for more NHL playoff previews.

(Author's note: I'm a Ducks fan, deal with it.)

It has been five years since the NHL had a playoff game featuring two teams from the Pacific Division, when the top-seeded Stars lost in six games to the 7th-seeded Mighty Ducks in the second round of the 2003 playoffs. It was an amazing series from my perspective, at least. In all six games of the series Dallas was either tied or ahead with two minutes left in regulation, but the miracle Ducks managed to score four game-winners, each on their final shot of the game.

Fast forward ahead to 2008. The Ducks, no longer "Mighty", have won seven playoff series since that meeting, including the most recent Stanley Cup. The Stars, over the same stretch, have won none. It seems like this would be an opportunity for the Stars to get their playoff mojo back, but the blueline-heavy Ducks certainly have other ideas. This series will feature three of the last four winners of the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP; whose heroics will win this Pacific battle this time around? Let's take a look:

Offense: This is the main area where the Stars carry an edge, as Dallas has shown an actual ability to score goals; Anaheim's main talent is in preventing them. The Stars scored 237 non-shootout goals, which ranks 9th in the league and 2nd among western playoff qualifiers. The Ducks only managed 197 goals on the year, ranking 28th in the league and dead last among all playoff teams. Dallas boasts a lineup with five 20-goal scorers (Morrow 32, Ribiero 27, Hagman 27, Modano 21, and Richards 20), while Anaheim only has three (Perry 29, Getzlaf 24, and Kunitz 21), and Corey Perry will be starting the series on the sidelines. Teemu Selanne should be counted among the Ducks' goal threats, though; his 12 goals in 26 games projects to 38 over an 82-game season.

Power plays are probably a wash, though that will depend on how many opportunities each team gets. Dallas has clicked this season at 18.1%; since Selanne returned to the Ducks, Anaheim has produced at an 18.2% rate. One X-factor here is Dallas newcomer Brad Richards, who has struggled to find his role in the Stars' offense since being acquired at the trade deadline.

Edge: Dallas. In the season series, the Stars outscored the Ducks 14-5 at even strength. While that's largely irrelevant because of early-season rosters, it's still a sizeable discrepancy.

Defense: I really want to stress that the Stars are no slouches when it comes to team defense; their 204 goals surrendered was 6th-best in the league. However, defense really is Anaheim's bread and better, especially since defenseman Scott Niedermayer returned to the lineup. I wrote a post about it at Battle of California, but here's the skinny: The Ducks surrendered 96 goals in the 34 games without Niedermayer and only 88 in the 48 games with him in the lineup; since his return the Ducks have surrendered one less goal per game. In fact, if you prorate the last 48 games of the Ducks' season to a full season, the Ducks would have surrendered only 150 non-shootout goals, good enough to win last year's Jennings Trophy for fewest goals allowed by a margin of 34 goals, and this year's by 27. That's astounding. In terms of penalty killing, Stars were the 2nd-best penalty-killing team this season at 85.5%, but since Niedermayer rejoined Anaheim, the Ducks have been killing penalties at an 86.7% rate.

This isn't just a very good blueline in Anaheim; it's perhaps the best we'll see in this league for a very long time, and why shouldn't it be? Essentially it's the same blueline that won the Stanley Cup last year, replacing bit player Ric Jackman with experienced defenders Mathieu Schneider and Marc-Andre Bergeron. Add to that the stalwart checking line centered by Sammy Pahlsson that dominated last year's playoffs, and the Ducks' defense is very intimidating indeed.

Edge: Anaheim. Dallas has put together some impressive defensive results this season, especially considering they only got 46 games out of Sergei Zubov (out for this series) and 38 games out of Phillipe Boucher. Still, I don't think there's a team in the league that has Anaheim matched on the blueline.

Goaltending: For the season, the numbers aren't enormously different for Marty Turco and J.S. Giguere; Turco went 32-21-6 with a 2.31 GAA and a .909 save percentage, and Giguere went 35-17-6 with a 2.12 GAA and a .922 save percentage. There's an edge for Giguere there, but it's nothing compared to the edge when it comes to the postseason:

Playoff Stat	J.S. Giguere	Marty Turco
Career W - L	31 - 13	11 - 18
GAA, Sv%	1.96, 92.9%	2.21, 90.9%
OT Record	12 - 1	2 - 8
Seeds beaten*	1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6	8
Seeds lost to*	2	3, 4, 7, 7

* only includes series where the goalie started every game

Edge: Anaheim. Don't get me wrong; I do feel bad for a guy who got three shutouts in a series and lost, but until Turco can actually eliminate an opponent ranked higher than 8th, he'll be carrying a playoff stigma around Texas for a long time.

Prediction: If you're looking for momentum, the Ducks have gone 10-4-1 since the start of March, with 10 of those games played without captain Chris "Stompy" Pronger. The Stars have been reeling a bit, going 4-8-1 over the same stretch. Still, as someone who's watched this Ducks season, I have to say that the Stars can play the champs very well, especially when Turco gets involved in retrieving dump-ins. When Turco is active, it seems the Ducks spend an awful long time in puck pursuit, and it can really disrupt their gameplan.

The real key to this series (and really, this applies to all matchups) is how these teams will respond to pulling ahead or behind in the series. As was pointed out to me in the comments of Knee Jerk City's series preview, the Stars haven't led in a series since the first round of 2003; meanwhile, the Ducks have never lost a series in which they won at least one of the first two games.

All told, I think the edge goes to Anaheim, but I think this series is closer than most pick-em experts seem to think. Neither the Wild or the Red Wings were able to avenge 2003 playoff losses last spring, though, so why not? Just like the last meeting, Ducks in six.

For more Ducks coverage, check out Battle of California (hooray for self-promotion!), On the Pond, Girl With a Puck, and the OC Register's Ducks blog.

For more Stars coverage, be sure to visit Andrew's Stars Page, Knee Jerk City, Penalty Killing, and Five for Fighting.

Ducks (4) vs Stars (5) Playoff Preview originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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