Who is the best in the world today?

The question of who is the best player in the world is always a contentious one in any sport. In the hockey world the debate usually leads to fist fights. A recent study found that 98.2% of NHL fights are a result of the Crosby/Ovechkin/Malkin debate. 150 of Eric Godard’s PIMS have resulted from this debate, as are 115 of Donald Brashear’s PIMS. Maybe I’m being a little facetious here, but the fact remains that in hockey the debate is always heated, but incomplete. The debate always seems to leave out great goaltenders. As I see it right now the top 5 contenders are: Sidney Crosby: 1.38 points per game(ppg),career +34; Alex Ovechkin: 1.29ppg, career +22; Evgeni Malkin: 1.26ppg, career +38, Martin Brodeur 553 wins, 101 shutouts, Evgeni Nabokov: 247 wins, 47 Shutouts.

Evgeni Malkin: Strengths: He has a hard shot, great passing abilities, solid in his own end, and toughness. Weakness: As is often the case with incredibly skilled players, he can try too much. He also has a habit of making far too many blind passes, in some cases they look bad because they are bad, and in some cases, they look bad because his line mates aren’t expecting them.

Sidney Crosby: Strengths: He is the best most consistent passer on the list. I don’t think Crosby will ever top the 40 goal plateau. Not necessarily because he doesn’t have the skill to be 40+ goal scorer, but because he has a pass first mentality. His speed and vision give him an advantage over Malkin and Ovechkin. He is maybe the best in the league at splitting the defense. Weakness: His shot is just slightly above average, but even so he doesn’t use it often enough. As with Malkin, he often attempts to do too much, and attempts passes that his line mates aren’t expecting or that are simply bad.

Alex Ovechkin: Strengths: Strength and size work to his advantage. He has the best wrist shot of anyone on this list, maybe in the league. Weakness: He can be pulled off his game looking for the highlight-reel-hit. His passing is average. He may never go over 55 assists, because he has a shoot-first mentality. This can be a liability come playoff time as defenses will know to zero in on the chucker.

Evgeni Nabokov: Strengths: He goaltends with a unique style that gets the job done. He can single handedly win games. Weakness: He has little to no playoff success, but that maybe more of a reflection on the team in front of him.

Martin Brodeur: Strengths: The all-time wins lead, is an impressive stat, but it is a slightly inflated by the advent of the shootout. The number that really proves the point is the 101 career shutouts; 103 is the all-time mark. In this era shutouts are rare, and 101 is mindboggling. The combination of focus, skill, determination, and luck it takes to earn a shutout make this stat the most impressive of any on the list. He also happens to be the only player on the list who has won a Cup. Weakness: Other than playing the Rangers, its hard to find a flaw in his game.

My answer to the question: Martin Brodeur Is the best player in the world.

Posts to come before the playoffs......

Who is the best player in the world?

Awards predictions

East/West Stanley Cup Experience ratings.

If I were in charge of the Awards show, these would be the Awards and the recipients.

Thoughts on Ovechkin

The buzz around Alex Ovechkin's 5oth goal celebration won't die. The problem isn't that AO celebrated after scoring a goal, everybody does. Some celebrations are subtle; Mario Lemieux always seemed to be cool and collected while he calmly pumped his fist, Sidney Crosby of late has followed that model, some are elaborate; Theo Fleury once rode his stick across the rink to celebrate a playoff series winning OT goal, Teemu Selanne shot his glove out of the air, and I'm sure Penguins fans will never forget Darius Kasparaitis sliding across the rink celebrating his game 7 OT winner in Buffalo, but they all had one thing in common, they were spontaneous. The AO stick on fire celebration, was not only pre-planned, but in the words of Michael Scott from the Office it was "lame so it's double offensive." No one can take away the fact the AO is the best pure goal scorer in the league, but he is miles away from being the best all around player. AO doesn't kill penalties, on most nights he doesn't back check, and if there an Atwood-English Dictionary his picture would appear next the phrase "Cherry Picker." He is a physical presence, but he is by no means a tough guy. He has a history of head-hunting, and hitting from behind. I don't mean to tear the guy apart, but there seems to be a blind admiration for the guy. Most hockey fans are blinded by the goals, and most hockey reporters fall into the same habit. The thing we have to keep in mind is that those of us who are fans of the game, can look beyond of favorite teams and hold the players accountable regardless of the sweater they're wearing, while bandwagon fans, Johnny-come-lately's, and anti-Crosbites admire the guy for being a character. Hockey's characters need not resemble football and basketball buffoons. As the great Herb Brooks once said, we're not a "bunch of monkey’s hugging a football." The simple fact remains that Gary Bettman's efforts to remove violence from the guy in order to market it to people who don't want to watch it anyway has created the kind of environment where clowns like Avery and Ovechkin can flourish. At least in Avery's case he's willing to drop the gloves to back up his antics, AO not so much. If AO had done this 15 years ago he'd still be getting his nutrients via IV come playoff time. I'll end what has turned into a grumpy oldmanish rant by saying that if AO continues down this path, sure he'll still be a great goal scorer, but his legacy will be that of a clown. If I say TO which phrase pops into mind first, incredible talent, or incredible buffoon? A few more "hot stick" celebrations and AO will be the NHL's TO.

Who's In Who's Oot: East

There are 10 teams battling for the 8 Eastern Conference playoff spots. This week has dealt some tough blows to the two teams on the outside looking in, making the selections a little easier. The top 3 seeds have a substantial lead in their divisions, and barring their losing out they’ll hold their top three statuses.

Here is my take on the East.

#1-Bos
They’ve been sliding with only 4 wins in the last ten, but their points lead is very solid, and their schedule is a little easier than the Devils. I think it’s likely they lose 5 of their last 11, but I think they can find away to lose 3 of them in OT and help hold of the Devils. They finish 6-2-3.
Final Record 51-19-12 114 Pts

#2-NJ
First off congratulations to Marty Brodeur, 552 wins, wow. The Devils have a tough road to finish out, 3 back-to-backs, with one of them being back-to-back road games. They also face more teams currently in playoff positions than the Bruins. The X-factor here is that for the first team in franchise history they have a fresh Marty Brodeur going into the playoffs. Assuming that the team plays a group of mortals in front of the almighty Marty, I think they finish 6-4-2. The back-to-backs are the ultimate factor here, as we saw last night against the Canes, sometimes it’s hard to win both. Would anybody be surprised if they pass the Bruins for the 1 seed?
Final Record 52-25-5 109 Pts

#3 WSH
The Caps have the easiest schedule of any of the contenders in the East. Only 1 game against a team currently in a playoff spot, no back-to-backs, the only downside is they play 6 of the last 10 on the road. My predictions here are based on the fact that the team will play hard, despite the fact they have almost nothing to get them motivated. They can’t realistically finish lower than 3rd, they play almost exclusively against non-playoff teams, perhaps the only motivation they have is that the teams they play are in the division. That OT playoff loss last year might be some motivation, but probably not until the second season begins. They should finish 7-2-1.
Final Record 51-24-7 109 Pts
#4 PHI
They have games in hand and play fewer playoff teams, these are the only reasons they get the edge over the Pens. It’ll be a close race for home ice, maybe the game this Sunday in Pittsburgh could be the ultimate decider. They should finish 7-3-3.
Final Record 44-25-13 101 Pts

#5 PIT
They’re schedule is tough to say whether it’s hard or easy, I’ll call it a push. No back-to-backs, 6 out of 10 at home, but they face more playoff teams than not. This could be an advantage. They way they’re finding ways to win it’s hard to see them losing any games, but they should finish 7-2-1.
Final Record 45-28-9 99 Pts

#6 CAR
They finish with 7 out of 10 at home and play as many playoff as non-playoff teams, they have 1 back-to-back but both at home. I see a strong 6-2-2 finish.
Final Record 43-30-9 95 Pts

#7 MON
I think they’ll 8th, but the math favors them over the Rags. They play 7 of the last 12 at home, they have a game in hand, they face fewer playoff teams, these are the only reasons they get the nod for 7th. They could finish 5-4-3.
Final Record 41-29-12 93 Pts

#8 NYR
They only determinate that drops them below le bleu, blanc, et rouge is the number of playoff teams they play, 7 out of 11. They limp across the finish line 4-4-3.
Final Record 41-30-11

Oot
Florida- They play too many on the road, if they get in I think it’s at the expense of the Canadiens who I don’t think can finish as strong as the math says they could.

West Playoff Pictures.....Who's In Who's Oot

The Western Conference is a little trickier to try to dissect than the East. In the East only 10 teams have a legitmate shot at the 8 playoff spots, but the West as many 13 teams has a shot. LA’s loss to Vancouver may have crippled their chances. Prior to last night they were 5 points out with 2 games in hand, but as everyone knows games in hand are only good if you win them. Before action begins tonight the Ducks, Blues, Predators, and Wild are all with 2 points of the 7th place Oilers. The 7th place Oilers, and 8th place Stars, and 9th place Wild have won only 3 of their last 10 games, but the 11th seeded Blues have won 7, including a big 3-1 win over the Sharks on Thursday. At this point the Sharks, Wings, Flames, Blackhawks, Canucks, and Jackets are fairly safe.

Here’s my take on the how the rest of the West will shake out.

Kings-Oot.

This is a good team with a lot of promise, but this was never meant to be their year. A veteran forward in the free agent market (a Billy Guerin, John Madden, or Jere Lehtinen type would fit the bill) maybe a little more depth, and this team will be back in the post season next year.

Ducks-Oot

The Ducks picked up Ryan Whitney, but other than that they were sellers at the deadline. This team has lost their GM, and could lose most of their blue line, could be tough for them to get in next year as well.

Blues-In
The team is peaking at the right time, goaltending has been good, Mason could be good enough to get them in, but a goalie’ who has never won a playoff series always has to be a question mark.
Predators-In
The Preds next 5 games come against teams below them. They could be a great chance to pick up between 7-8 points and shoot up to 7th. Pekka Rinne will have to be great, this is a franchise that always seems to get in, but exists quickly.

Wild-Oot
If Gaborik returns and lights the world on fire, they’ll get in, but as it stands, this is a team that get seem to get the offense and goaltending going in the same game. This is a good team, but they’ve got themselves in a tough spot, and some teams behind are streaking.

Stars-Out
The team is beat up. They’ll have to rely too heavily on Marty Turco, and his save percentage isn’t going to get the job done.

Oilers-Oot
If the Blues are Preds make it in, two teams currently on the inside have to drop out. The Oilers are struggling, if those struggles continue the streaking Preds and Blues will overtake them.

Hindsightblog

Sabres/Panthers
I said Buffalo finds a way to beat Florida at home....It happened. Patrick Lalime looked an NHL goalie in this one 30 for 31. Excellent night. Panthers have dropped two, by the time they get back to Sunrise for their five game homestand they’ll be in 9th, with only two points of breathing room between their 9th spot and the Sabres 10th.

Blue Jackets/Penguins
I said the Pens depth scoring gets it done, I said Steve Mason would be a beast. I said Pens win. Meatloaf said it best, two out of three ain’t bad. Easily the most exciting involving an Eastern Conference team. Down 3-0 in the third goals from Gonchar, Dupuis, and Talbot in a 3:25 span. The one thing I failed to mention was the Huselius factor. Fleury gave up a soff goal to Wolverine, sorry, Huselius, and then the shootout was a carbon copy. Not many 4-3 games are goaltending duels, this one was.

Devils/Coyotes
I called Devils for an easy win, it happened. Brodeur one win away from tying Patrick Roy. Is there any sane human being who doesn’t think Marty is the best goalie ever? Gretzky’s 99 is retired because he owns the record book for skaters, Marty’s 30 should be retired league-wide because he will own the record book for goalies. I think the Hall of Fame should waive the waiting period for him on the sad day when he hangs up the skates. He wins another Cup before then, bank it.

Bruins/Senators
I called Bruins, it happened. I didn’t see any of this game. 5-3 both teams end streaks.

Islanders/Canadiens
It took overtime, but the Islanders win on the road for the first time since January, only their 7th on the road. Carey Price actually used his glove to catch pucks, instead of using it as a second blocker. Okposo’s OT winner was soff, Price will want that back. Good news for Montreal is that the Pens only got one point.

Rangers/Predators
What a turnaround from the first to second period for the Rags. Preds get 10 of their 21 shots and both goals in the first. Rangers owned the game from there.

Hurricanes/Stars
Stars held on to win. Ray Whitney has a rocket, great shot to make the game 3-2. Eric Staal had a great chance in the final seconds, couldn’t make it happen. Brind’Amour had two more points, (SHG PPA) he’s one fire. Marty Turco literally made one more save than Cam Ward in this one. 29-28 both faced 31 shots.

My Record after one night:

4-4
If I were a Pittsburgh Pirate I’d call it a successful night, last time the Pirates are mentioned in the same sentence as .500 record all year.

Tomorrow I try my hand at the West. Only two games on tap for tomorrow, both out West.

Prediction Time

Here are my predictions for the games that affect the East’s playoff picture tonight

Boston beats Ottawa
On one hand this is a no-brainer, best in the East at home against the 12th place visitor. Yet the two teams are streaking in opposite directions, Boston has lost back-to-back games, while the Sens have won 4 in a row, but I look for the Bruins to play like a number one seed.
Washington beats Philadelphia
There will be lots of fire power in this rematch of last years opening round playoff series. Both teams come in having won their last game, in the Flyer’s case their last 2. It is very tough to predict this one. The Flyers are the deeper team, maybe the deepest in the league, but goaltending has been an adventure for both sides. I’m going to say Washington, I think Ovechkin leads the Caps to the W, if it goes to OT or a shootout all bets are off.
New Jersey beats Phoenix
Marty Brodeur moves to within 1 win of tying Patrick Roy, Phoenix is rebuilding, the Devils are beastly. This one shouldn’t need much analysis.
Pittsburgh beats Columbus
Steve Mason is unreal, so are the Pens. If these two teams were in the same conference this could be a major rivalry as the two teams look to be set to compete for long haul. Nash is a beast, look for Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi to draw the unenviable task of trying to contain him. I think the Pens depth wins them a close one.
Buffalo beats Florida
Florida might still have a bad taste in their mouth about blowing a two goal lead in a game they had no business having a two goal lead in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. Bottom line here, Buffalo’s season could be over if they lose this one, they’re at home, they’ll find a way to get it done.
Montreal beats the Islanders
Islanders have 6 road wins, enough said.
Nashville beats the Rangers (OT?)
Just playing a hunch, Rangers looked flat on Monday, Nashville is at home so I’m giving them the edge.
Carolina beats Dallas
Dallas is struggling, they are beat up big time, Carolina has been destroying goalie’s lives. The Canes stole a point last night, they’ll got both tonight. The Cole and Staal reunion has been scary.
Funny things is, if things shake out exactly this way, standings remain unchanged. If I bat .500 with these guesses I’m calling it a win.

PROJECTED STANDINGS AFTER 3-12
1. BOS-97
2. NJD-91
3. WSH-90
4. PHI-82
5. MON-81
6. PIT-80
7. CAR-80
8. FLA-77 (FLA won season series with NYR 3-0-1)
9. NYR-77
10.BUF-75

Battle Royale in the East Round 1

It’s that time of year again, one month left to go until the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin. For hockey fans this is the most wonderful time of the year. Both Conferences have log-jams in their respective play off races. In the West as many as thirteen teams are in serious contention, and the stronger Eastern Conference, ten teams are battling for eight spots. I am well aware many people believe the West is the better conference, and back-to-back Cup champions certainly adds weight to that theory, but this years it looks like it’s going to take more points to make it to the Eastern Conference dance than the West. As a point of reference, the 11th seeded Toronto Maple Leafs are all but mathematically eliminated from contention in the East with 67 points, while in the West the 13th seeded LA Kings have the same 67 points yet find themselves only 4 points out.
Starting Saturday I’ll begin attempting to break down the congestion in both conferences, but for today I’ll stick to the East.
All fifteen Eastern Conference teams will be in action tonight and Saturday, which means that the entire playoff picture could be in for a massive overhaul. Only Boston and Philadelphia can rest assured of their spot come the end of the night. There could be a flop of the two-three seeds, and the 5-9 slots are all up for grabs. Pittsburgh, Carolina, and Montreal will all still be in a playoff position at the end of the night, but a regulation loss by any of the three in conjunction with a Rangers or Panthers win could leave them within a point of falling out.

The Ruutu Redemption

Last night the Carolina’s Tuomo Ruutu bought his team some breathing room by scoring with 27 seconds left in regulation to tie the Chicago Blackhawks at 2. It was a bit of poetic justice for Ruutu for several reasons. Most obviously because Ruutu was traded from Chicago to Carolina at least years trade deadline, but more immediately because he had been called for a 4 minute highsticking penalty earlier in the period, that not only negated a Carolina powerplay, but lead to Troy Brower’s go-ahead powerplay goal. The game was won by Chicago in a shootout, but Ruutu’s redemptive goal, bought them at least two more days in the top 8. By turning the game into yet another three point affair, Carolina tied Pittsburgh with 78. Here are the what if’s that make the one point HUGE. If Carolina loses to Dallas tonight and the Rangers win, the teams would tie at 78, but Carolina stays in the top 8 by Virtue of wins. If Ruutu would not have secured the one point, and the same scenario plays out the Canes would drop from 7th to 9th. Given that the Rangers have two games in hand, falling behind them is not an option.
Is this one point thing crazy enough for you? Well buckle in because there is a month left, and with both conferences as tight as they are, every shift could determine a team's playoff life.