The Beauty of Chaos

It's about this time of year that the disappointed Rockies fans start searching for something else. They often find hockey. The bored NFL fans start tuning in the Stanley Cup Finals. This inevitably leads to the declaration by said novices that hockey is luck, what with all the bouncing around of the puck. Off the knee and in the goal and you call this skill? they ask me.

What they don't understand is that hockey is the ultimate game in which opportunity is created out of chaos.

Football fans should be especially appreciative of this aspect of hockey. Some of the most memorable plays in NFL history are pure chaos unfolding in the course of the game. What about the hail Mary? What about the fumble? What about the Immaculate Reception?

In hockey it occurs much more often and why shouldn't that be appreciated? It's freakin' fun! The mad scramble in front of the net for the puck and the ability of a player to pick it out of the mess with his stick, gain control and roof it for a goal. The puck that lands on a players stick when he's not ready for it and the poise to send a backhand shot at the net. The man in front of the net that bats the puck out of midair for a goal.  Sure, there's plenty of chaos and the beauty of it all is how they turn it into a  scoring chance.

Opportunity from chaos.

What's a more memorable display than that of a goalie making an amazing save on an impossibly chaotic bounce of the puck? When a goalie is standing on his head (or 'on fire' for the novice fan) making save after impossible save, you begin to realize that the goalie actually anticipated the possibility of that crazy carom and was prepared for the possibility. Chaos controlled!!

It's the only major sport where the athletes are expected to do everything sans hands. It reminds one of soc...um, no it doesn't. Anyway, the game is perfectly balanced by moments of grace and the highly controlled skill of a give-and-go, the tic-tac-toe goal of a power play and the break away.

It's not just crazy bounces and dumb luck. So sit back and enjoy some beautiful chaos.
   

Avs Fans are Losers

by J. Scott Moore

I’m going to make this clear right at the beginning of this post.  When it comes to the big picture, there are no winners when the Avalanche organization misses the post season.  There are individuals that had a good and even great season but that isn't what this post is about.

The Avs have missed the playoffs and the real losers here are the fans.  The Avs traded away the first round pick to this spring’s draft and missed the post season.  Landing around the 10^th spot is probably the worst situation for a team that is trying to rebuild.  No sure fire draft pick and no playoff appearance to salve the growing pains of a young team in transition. 

Unless a team goes to the playoffs or plummets to the depths of the lottery they are stuck in a sort of purgatory.  Just look at the Calgary Flames for a perfect example of a team that isn’t bad enough to restock with the best of the draft and not elite enough to really attract the top-end free agent talent. 

The Avalanche have already started to show a predilection for trading like for like.  Trades that don’t necessarily accomplish a lot in the long run, just shake things up in the here and now.  A pattern the Flames have been in for years.  Purgatory.

I give the Avs management credit for making some moves over the summer and at the deadline to get into the post season.  However it just wasn’t enough.  In a world where fans want instant gratification, there will be none.  In fact the Avs management went all in on this season with the Varly trade.  Even a plummet to the depths of the standings would not have given the fans the dubious satisfaction of a high draft pick.

And now there is no post season excitement.  For that matter there will be no post season flush of cash for the team.  And as fans that should be as much a concern as the disappointment of knowing Matt Duchene is going fishing pretty soon.

I suspect Matt isn’t the only one that will be fishing this off-season, but he’s probably the only one that will land a big one.

    

The Improbable Season of Tim Tebow

by J. Scott Moore

Luck is often dismissed in sports.  Derisively by the losers.  Players and teams characterized as lucky are not often characterized as good, as well.  Surely the elite have their share of luck on occasion?  Perhaps it’s overshadowed by the skill and the execution?

For the Broncos, and more specifically, Tim Tebow, the run of luck is bordering on the unbelievable. 

Take week 14, the Broncos won in very unlikely fashion against the Chicago Bears when Marion Barber made not one critical mistake but two.  Running out of bounds and then fumbling the ball in OT. 

This sort of improbable story line is often unbelievable and trite in literary fiction.  A literary situation that many have addressed, but not quite like JRR Tolkien.  You may be familiar with Tolkien and his Lord of the Rings books that were adapted into the movies.  In his prequel The Hobbit, Tolkien uses luck as a pivot in his iconic novel.

JRR Tolkien seems to be writing the script for the Denver Broncos. 

But Tolkien took simple luck to a new level and coined the term "Eucatastrophe" to describe the happy ending of "fairy-stories."  He describes it as the "…sudden happy turn in a story which pierces you with a joy that brings tears..."  If that isn't this Bronco season I don't know what is.

The situation that Tolkien calls the Eucatastrophe is exactly what we enjoy the most about sports.  It’s in fact the very essence of what is going on right now with the Tim Tebow mania.  On a seemingly regular basis Tebow has faced certain defeat at the hands of his opponent and yet some unlikely turn of fortune ends up benefiting the Broncos and enabling their victory.

This week it wasn’t enough that the Broncos were facing the mighty Steelers.  A late fumble by the Broncos’ McGahee seemed to spell doom, and yet the Broncos survived.  The Denver Broncos aren’t the only ones that have benefitted from Eucatastrophe.  Go to any rabid fan in any town and ask about their favorite sports team pulling their ass out of the proverbial fire.  They will have a story.  It’s the classic game that everyone remembers.

I like equating fairy tales with sports.  People often point out that those boys aren't in the real world anyway.  And sports do function as the ultimate story-time for many of the world's adults.  All of us that think we are all grown up and jaded and aren't affected by unbelievable happy endings and implausible heroes, better take a second look at that.  Because sports is all about fiction becoming fact.  It's just that we don't write the story; it unfolds before us on Sunday afternoons.

When the Broncos wrapped the season with three straight losses you wonder, where's that luck in that?  Well they still made the playoffs.

If you've ever read The Hobbit, you might have noticed that Bilbo, the "hero" of the story was nothing, if not lucky.  Then again, you may not have noticed it due to Tolkien's style of pointing out just how lucky Bilbo was time and again.  He managed to draw your attention away from how ridiculously lucky his main character was by pointing it out repeatedly.  At the end of the book, even Bilbo ponders the happy ending of his story.

Gandalf chuckles and says, "You don’t really suppose…that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit?  …you are only quite a little fellow in a wide world after all."  In other words this isn’t just for the benefit of Mr. Tebow, it’s for everyone’s benefit.

But to extrapolate on Gandalf’s point, someone other than Bilbo might not have been the perfect companion for this quest, the lucky number as he was dubbed.  Gandalf takes all the credit for picking the right companion for the quest.  Corollary: Tim Tebow seems to be the right guy for this quest.

Divine intervention, fate or faith?  Sometimes people are lucky.  Tolkien framed it as prophesy in his writings.  How about that old saying about the harder you work the luckier you get?

Call it what you want.  Tebow's got it in spades.  The question now is; is there any left for this Saturday?  I'm bettin' yeah, there's more where that came from.  Tune in Saturday for story time!!

   

Stanley Cup Finals Blog Challenge

by J. Scott Moore

That Tapeleg guy is a rascal. Yesterday morning I innocently clicked on a link to his latest blog post and next thing you know I’m calling him names on Twitter.

He starts this shit about languishing bloggers and I start looking over my shoulder, guiltily.
Crap.
I challenge you to write everyday till the middle of June, he says.
Crap. That’s a lot.
He says: that might seem like a lot.
Whoa.

What a bastard. Like I don’t have other things to do. One thing I know I can always count on is Tapeleg tweeting about something motivational, completely sensible and irresistibly important. Jerk.

There’s no getting around it. I’ll be working on this challenge for the next 15 days. It’s just the kick in the pants I needed. Thanks you bastard Tapeleg!!

Well this is certainly a good time to predict my Stanley Cup finals winner. Boston in six. Has to be six so they are at home. Sure, sure, seven games with double OT would be exciting but I really want the Bruins to win at home. So it won’t be seven games and I’m not so greedy as to predict a sweep by the Bruins. Although it would be sweet like cherry pie!

This is purely based on fandom of the lowest kind: rooting against the other team, no stats, no analysis. I hate the Canucks. The only way I would root for them is if they were playing the Red Wings, which isn’t currently possible. And this isn’t just about the past. It’s about the fact that Roberto Luongo is a douche-bucket. The Sedin twins are creepy, times två. By the way, what’s with Yahoo listing one as 6-1 and the other as 6-2? There’s a conspiracy for ya Vancouver!! And I’ve never been one to blindly root for a team just because they are in my team’s division.

In addition, I simply want to see Tim Thomas win the Cup
 

Bandwagon Hopping – Let’s Go Flyers!

The Hawks have too many guys with goalie numbers that aren’t goalies. It’s weird to see all those jersey’s in the 30’s range skating around out there. I’m pretty sure there is something fishy going on. Might involve a plot!

You may find me a despicable sports fan. The worst kind of all. Showing no loyalty except to the almighty “W” of winning. But the age of free agency is now and is the players can move and change their loyalties. Why can’t I?

In my post HERE I explained why I was on the Hawks wagon. But frankly I still can’t stand coach Q. I naturally root for ANY goalie (Niemi) to overcome the poor goalie-handling of the Stache. And I do like Dustin Byfuglien.

But it just isn’t enough.

Not when Ian Laperriere is on the other team.

Yep. That’s it. One guy is all it takes. The right guy. A guy like Lappy.

If Lappy has played in your town you understand. And I know there are other guys in this league that have that kind of following. But this is the guy that has played in my town and I’m more of a loyalty guy than is probably good for me. But that’s the way I am.

Sure, this “fan” is hopping wagons. I can see why people do it. But lets get something straight here. I’m an Avalanche fan through and through. This is just the fickle post-season machinations of an emotionally scarred Colorado fan.

-From the Point

Flyers VS Bruins

         VS        

Frenchy
Here we have a classic match. The Flyers beat out the Devils, a team I was worried would actually get to the Stanley Cup finals, to get here. I just didn’t think the goalie match up was a fair one but Brian Boucher played great and pulled out the win. As for the Bruins, I predicted that they would beat the Sabres, didn’t really have reason for that, guess I got lucky.


These teams split their meetings this season at two a piece. They are pretty even if you look at their regular season numbers but a lot has changed for both over the course of the season and in the first round of the playoffs.

The Bruins lost Marc Savard, their best forward, on March 7th and they’re getting him back for game one. Glad to see the team pick up the slack while he was gone but having him back is huge. They have guys like Recchi, Satan and Bergeron to help out up front. Let’s not forgot the big Chara in the back. Try getting around that guy, I bet he can poke check a puck that’s 7 feet in front of him. And last of all, I’ve been really impressed with how well Rask has played and kept his composure. Being a rookie and playing that well, this guy looks like the real deal. The Bruins did allow the least goals against during the season and he’s a big reason why. But, even if he does fall apart, the Bruins would have to go to their back up, a guy called Thomas, the Vezina winner last year. That’s quite the back up.

The Flyers played really well against the Devils, beating them in 6. Pretty darn good! Only problem now is they lost three really good forwards. They lost Carter for the season, Gagne is out for 3 weeks so we probably won’t see him again and it looks like Lappy is out for the rest of the season. Let’s all bow to Lappy, the guy is one tuff SOB. To go down and take a puck to the face like that for the second time this season, wow! The only real scorer they have left is Richards and the guy can’t do everything himself. The Flyers do have Pronger in the back but I’ve never believed he was ever that good. Looks kind of slow to me and I’ve seen him make mistakes; don’t see that changing at this point. And, the Flyers have had problems with the goaltending situation all season long. Boucher played amazing in the first round but I don’t see him playing that well for a second straight series.

I’ve got no choice here to go with the Bruins, not really based on how well they played during the season or in the playoffs, but because they get Savard back and the Flyers are just to beat up at this point.

Bruins in 6

From the Point
In the first round I didn’t pick either of these teams. Frankly not too many people did. But I give Frenchy credit for picking Boston in the first round.


As I’ve said before I think the goalie can make all the difference in a series and Boucher is making that difference right now. But look how cold Halak went in game one of the second round. So is Boucher going to let his team down in round two?

Boucher is sporting a 1.59 GAA and a 0.940 SV%.

Rask has a 2.18 GAA and a 0.927 SV%.

Boucher is tops amongst all goalies in this playoff season so far. But stats don’t always tell the whole story. This will be a battle of two hot goalies. Rask is the untested rookie and Boucher is a guy that has never played a whole season anywhere. This season is no different, he wasn’t brought in as the starter and yet here he is leading this team through the playoffs. Which one will maintain this pace and which one will crumble?

This is likely to be a bloody battle. A battle of the giants on the blue line. I think it’s pretty clear that the league will let star players get away with just about anything in these playoffs so if things get ugly don’t be surprised to see Pronger and Chara get a little chippy early. Both will try to set a tone for their teams.

This series is a bit of a toss up but I’ll give the edge to the Bruins for the same reasons that Frenchy does. Though I wouldn’t mind seeing this one go all the way, seven games with these two teams are bound to be big entertainment!

Bruins in six

Canucks VS Blackhawks

Battle for a Western Conf. berth is at stake tonight.  Frenchy and I make our predictions.

VS

Frenchy
For this series, I don’t really know what side to go for. It’s going to be tuff one. When looking at the depth of these two teams, they seem to be pretty equal. Let’s take a look at what these two teams are bringing to the table.

On one side, we all know what the Sedin twins can do when they’re on fire, those guys play like they’re two bodies using one brain. Samuelsson has stepped it up and scored some important goals. But, the Blackhawks can of course counter that with Toews, Kane and……Sharp. I want to say Hossa here but the truth is that he hasn’t played to his standards. There’s just something about Hossa when he shows up to a playoff game, he’s just not the same. When you get paid to score goals and yet only have one in 6 games, time to get going.

As for the D, Salo has been good as always and Edler is really becoming an elite defensemen. The Canucks don’t let that many shots go through and that is always a plus. For the Hawks, good news is that Campbell is back. Without him I would say their chances would be a lot smaller. Not only do they need him to be there to stop the rushes but he’s also got that offense skill that they need from the blue line. Let’s not forget that the Hawks have Duncan Keith, a Norris nominee, can’t be all that bad right?

The goaltending is where the Canucks might have a little problem, key word being little. Luongo can be insanely good at some times but he gets those little stretches where he just doesn’t seem to get it. If he doesn’t show up ready for a good series, they’re going to be in trouble. But, it could be worse though, they could have Quenneville as a coach. He’s a known goalie killer and why would it be different here. In my mind, Niemi has yet to prove himself an elite goaltender in this league. Maybe this is the series where he proves himself, we shall see.

I know for a fact that From the Point is going to jump on the Hawks bandwagon now that the Avs are out of the playoffs. But…I’m sure there’s more to it than that. He might not want to admit it but he likes the Hawks because of Quenneville. More specifically, the mustache. That thing is rockin’!!!! Maybe he thinks that thing has got super powers or something.

                    After the Game 1 disaster, Neimi decided to grow a mustache just like Coach Q.

Well it might have some super powers but winning the Stanley Cup isn’t one of them. This one is going to be tight but I just don’t see the Hawks pulling this off. The fact is that as soon as Hossa is on a team, it will not win the Stanley Cup.

Canucks in seven.




From the Point
Just how do the Hawks keep getting these nice long breaks between series? I’d say something smells fishy but it’s probably just the Canucks. Man do they stink! Or maybe that’s just Roberto Luongo that smells up the place?

Sure, he had a nice, ok, great game against the Kings in game six.

So Bobby-Lu is either on the verge of getting his playoff mojo or it’s just another “up” in his lackluster up and down play since…er…that giant contract was signed.

No matter, the Hawks are unstoppable. I don’t really know why I even bothered to root for my Avs all season long when the inevitability of the Hawks winning the cup has been SO apparent all season long. Despite Mr. Mustache running the team. And despite what Frenchy says, it is Niemi that has the super powers.

Don’t listen to him Capt. Niemi!

Now how to explain the Hossa Effect? Simple. The year with the Pens is a simple case of the Wings being better. The year with the Wings is a simple case of the Curse of Def Leppard.

The Sedin twinkies are a force to contend with, there is no doubt about that. However, Capt. Niemi will look like Wonder Woman fending off bullets with magic bracelets anytime the Sedins start firing. They will have no chance to score. In fact I willing to say right here, right now that the Sedins will go scoreless through this round. No, wait, I predict that the ‘Nucks will not score ONE. SINGLE. GOAL. On the great and powerful Capt. Niemi!

Hawks in…wait for it…four.

Canadiens VS Penguins

Ok, we are back with our predictions for this round, Habs and Pens. Take it away Frenchy!

VS

Frenchy
Alright, this one is going to be easy. Let me start off by giving a lot of praise to the Canadiens. What they did to the Capitals was un-freaking-believable!! Not only did they beat the best team in the NHL but they did it coming back from a 3-1 deficit. That’s quite an accomplishment. Bad news for the Canadiens now is that their prize for playing so well in the first round …. a series against the defending Stanley Cup champions.

I’m a huge Penguins fan and yes, I’m a huge Crosby fan! After the first round he had, nobody can say that Crosby can’t do it all. It’s going to be pretty hard for him to keep on his ridiculous pace but he will still show up and play amazing against the Habs. That’s just what he does. I don’t believe the Habs have enough depth in their team to compete against a team like the Penguins. Yes, they beat the Caps, but I’ve said all along that the first team that they would face with a good defense would be the end of them. The only way the Caps can win is when they score 5-6 goals because that’s how many the other teams can score on them. It’s going to be a different story versus the Pens. They have some of the best scorers in the world, Crosby and Malkin, their third line is one of the best in the NHL and watch out for Max Talbot on the fourth line, the guy is a machine in the playoffs.

As for the Habs, the whole series is going to rest on Halak’s shoulders and the guys in front of him. Hal Gill and the other defensemen were insane in the first round but the problem is the Caps had one good line but it’s a whole different story here. They only have a few good players to score goals but no real pure goal scorer and that’s going to hurt them in the long run. As soon as Halak starts playing like a human being again, it’s going to get ugly.

The Pens have 4 good lines. To be honest, Crosby’s line isn’t even that good; Guerin and Kunitz aren’t at the same level as him. But with Crosby centering that line, it doesn’t really matter and watch out when Bylsma puts Sid the Kid and Malkin. Game over!

I know From the Point is saying Montreal will win it in five but I’ve seen him play with chemicals all day, I think that affected his judgment quite a bit, that’s the only explanation for his crazy prediction!

Penguins in 5.

From the Point
Hal Gill knows a thing or two about the Pens offence, and about Sid Crosby. I have no doubt that Gill will be the guy that is tasked with shutting down The Kid. He did it very effectively against thye GREAT Alexander Ovechkin. He can do it to Sid too. And Sid has less scoring help than Ovie had. It’s possible that Crosby may try to do too much and that could play right into the Canadiens hands.

Do I really think the Canadiens can beat the Pens in this series? Hell, yes! You might think I’m forced to argue the other side here because of Frenchy’s love of Sid the Kid that borders on the freaky! Look at all that verbiage (garbage) up there! Ridiculous! The guy has NO objectivity. None.

Marc-Andrea Fleury’s goaltending in the first series was good enough to win. But it wasn’t really very good. In fact his 2.75 GAA and 0.890 SV% is well below that of Jaroslav Halak. The 2.75 GAA is one of the highest of the remaining goalies and the 0.890 SV% is THE worst of the remaining goalies if you dismiss the 0.857 SV% of Vancouver backup, Andrew Raycroft. Feel free to dismiss Razor, we in Denver have.

Halak’s 2.46 GAA is middle of the pack but his 0.939 SV% is second only to Boucher. The playoffs is about goaltending, just ask the Capitals. So the Flower is going to need to start playing a better game to get the Pens on through to the next round. Crosby can’t do it all.

Now Halak has practically outdone Craig Anderson in the statistically unsustainable backstopping performances against the Caps. And I won’t argue that it can go on forever. It can’t. But I do think it can go on long enough that if Montreal can keep this contest to 5 or 6 games, they can do this. No really!

Montreal in five.

Wings vs Sharks Prediction

Our first matchup of the Western Conference semifinals is tonight.  Frenchy and I make our predictions.

VS

From the Point
As much as it pains me to say anything nice about the Red Wings, well, I just won’t. They are, after all, the most hated team in Denver. Not even the Raiders are close anymore. Regardless, the Sharks could barely handle the Avalanche, so they frankly have zero chance against the Wings. The Wings have owned them in the regular season and that isn’t going to change here. The Wings beat the Sharks on the road this season and I think a split in San Jose is a sure thing and I’ll even bet that the Sharks drop ‘em both at home. I haven’t been impressed with Howard and Osgood is less impressive, but it doesn’t matter. They never see much rubber and they probably won’t see much from the inept first line of the Sharks. Heatley, Marleau and Thornton are sixth, seventh and eighth respectively in playoff points. None of them are positive in the plus/minus category. Dan Boyle has more points than those guys. Wow, that’s not even counting his own goal against Nabby. I can’t help it; I have to put that in there! They got away with it for one round against a very depleted Avs team, but the Wings will make them pay.

Wings in five.

Frenchy
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of the Wings. I’m still pretty pissed they beat the Coyotes out of the first round. But…..I do think they will be able to beat the Sharks. The Sharks did not look all that impressive to me in the first round. They played a beat up Avs team and it still wasn’t a blow out. Their first line was pretty much useless, unless you count giving the Avs a good chance of scoring useful. Things are just going to get harder for them now since the Wings have a much better defensive core than the Avs did. Plus, as long as the Wings have guys like Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Lidstrom and Rafalski playing their best hockey, they’re going to be hard to beat. And another thing the Wings have going for them, they win in the goalie category. Sure Howard is a rookie and he might fall apart at some point during the series due to pressure, he still has more skills than Nabokov. And to me, Nabokov isn’t the most reliable goalie out there, he’s had some weak showings lately, Olympics anyone?!?! The guy crumbles under pressure. I hate the Wings, don’t really like the Sharks either, but I have to go with the Wings.

Wings in six.

Mr. Quenneville, bring me a dream...

I want to dedicate a song to the Hawks to celebrate their win over the hapless Preds.

I'm feeling a bit antiqued tonight.

Old, you slow-wits. 

So here's an oldie but a goody going out the the Hawks for round two, watch out 'Nucks!

This is to the tune of Mr. Sandman...

Mr. Quenneville, bring me a dream (bung, bung, bung, bung)
Make this the best series I've ever seen
Trust in Niemi and don't screw him
Don't treat him bad he's not Khabibulin.
Quenneville, you must atone
Treat your goalies like one of your own
Please turn on your magic mustache
Mr. Quenneville, stop smokin the hash!


(scat "bung, bung, bung, bung".)


Mr. Quenneville, get you a 'Nuck (bung, bung, bung, bung)
Make him a Twinkie that you'd like to WHOA!
Give him the word that you're not a rover
Then tell him that his lonesome nights are over.
Quenneville, you're so alone
Don't have nobody to call your own
Please turn on your magic beam
Mr. Quenneville, it's not a dream.

-From the Point

Hello Tears - Goodbye Playoff Beard

The tears have barely stopped flowing since the second empty- netter last night, just a really emotional time for me.  My stomach muscles hurt from sobbing myself to sleep. 
Some how I've pulled it together long enough to get a post up and even managed to shave the beard.
Here's a little playoff beard before and after photo shoot.  I'm pretty disappointed that it's time to shave it off.  For the obvious reasons but also because I was starting to get into the caveman look.  Gooseberry however, is quite happy that it is gone.

First the Before (notice the awesome Avs hat I got Lappy to sign)

Oh, and here's an intermediate shot.  The soul patch.  Always wanted one of those.  Probably just because Stevie Ray Vaughan used to sport one.  Mueller looks like he can wear one well enough, but I'm not kidding myself.  It lasted all of 10 minutes.

And now the After

Now that the Avs are out (sniff) I'm throwing in with the Hawks.  This is no doubt shocking news to many, especially Gooseberry, that I am willing to overlook Mr. Mustache and his evil ways to root for this team.  I could say that it's because I have family in Chicago and it's a good young team with good guys and fun to watch. 

But that really doesn't have anything to do with it.  It's the phenomenal goaltending I've seen all year, the brilliant coaching and of course Marian Hossa.  He's won everywhere he's ever played.  I can't miss!  And look, who doesn't love the team name and mascot?  A Blackhawk?  Awesome.  Know what else Stevie Ray Vaughan wore well besides a soul patch?  An Indian headdress!  Yeah, nothing cooler than a full headdress and a soul patch.  I'm amazed ALL Hawks fans are not dressed in a war bonnet for every game!

Since the Hawks aren't "my team" I feel zero responsibility to be objective or represent the intelligent or balanced fan.  No way buddy!  I'm a 100% bandwagon fan.  I have no idea who Cain and Taze are, are they brothers?!  So as the Hawks blaze through the playoffs I assure you that I will be providing hyperbole-laced bull crap like any good bandwagoner should! 

Of course Frenchy will also be appalled by my lack of Sid-love.  Whatever dude.  Ovie rocks!  Imagine the Caps and the Hawks in the Finals, the goalies would be so ragged by then it will be a score-fest to rival spring break in Cancun.

Oh, and bad news Goosey - I'm starting my Hawks playoff beard right ... NOW!

-From the Point

Avs Can’t Hold off the Sharks

The Colorado Avalanche didn’t start game six the way the wanted to, allowing an early goal by the San Jose Sharks. It didn’t end the way they wanted it to either.

The San Jose Sharks came out in the third with the Thornton line reunited and buzzing around the Avs’ net. It foreshadowed the future.

The Avs scored at 4:51 of the third to give them the lead in the game, but it wouldn’t last for long.

Suddenly the game opened up with back and forth play and lost whistles. Next thing you know Boyle scored, the puck inexplicably hitting no one on the way in despite the Avs crowding the lane.

Less than two minutes later Pavelski scored on a two on one when Adam Foote lost his check along the boards.

Douglas Murray ended the Avs season, scoring the second empty netter of the night with 31 seconds left in the game.

  

Just 47 seconds into the game the Sharks Joe Pavelski scored on a wrap-around when Kyle Cumiskey couldn’t control the Avs-killer behind the net. Pavelski scored four key goals in this series, more than any of the high dollar guys on the Sharks team.

That opening goal was the seventh unanswered goal by the Sharks.

The period, though scoreless, went well for the Avs in that they managed good pressure on the Sharks in their zone. And Avs fans were shocked to see that the Avs earned the first power play opportunity of the game. It did not result in a goal but the Avs kept the pressure on and controlled the puck well.

The Avs wrapped the period with a 7-10 shot disadvantage on the Sharks.

Building on a decent first period, the Avs hit the ice in the second with more confidence and attitude. After the first period the Avs were behind in hits but closed out the second ahead of the Sharks.

At the 6:14 mark of the second period Marek Svatos came screaming down the wing with Joe Thornton checking him. Svatos got the advantage to the inside and cut in front of the net for a very nice goal to tie things up. Many Avs fans have been hoping for the Marek Svatos scoring touch to return for, well, all season.

Way to end the season on a high note, now go away.

The Avs were again controlling the puck but were not getting much in the way of scoring chances. But the confidence was back and so was the attitude.

You could see it when Chris Stewart took exception to Nichol giving Cumiskey a little bit of a late hit on an offside. A 4-on-4 ensued that ended with a penalty on Liles. A ridiculous situation with the 240 pound Murray turning in an Oscar-winning performance of being pinned to the boards by the slight Johnny Liles.

I’ve got some sea-side real estate in Colorado to sell that referee.

Avs start and end season with the Sharks, though with different results.

The Avs had a great season, better that even most (reasonable) Avs fans expected. I don’t think you will hear any complaining in this town. Sure, some well meaning advice during the off-season but we are all looking forward to a great team in the future.

I’ll be covering them as we go forward so be sure to check back in!

Well, time to shave.

See ya ‘round Avs fans!

-From the Point

Focus Andy! FO-CUS on the GAME!!!

As you can see, 9:59 left in OT and it's time for the ice crew to work and Andy seems focused...ON THE WOMAN ON THE ICE CREW!!!!!

Just 23 seconds later the Sharks score to win the game.  Just sayin'.

After the disaster that was game #5 for the Avs, they need to keep this woman away from Andy.  It’s important to note that she is the ONLY female on the crew, so it would not be difficult to ensure that she is always working at the opposite end of the ice from Andy.  Home-ice advantage?

Another tip for the Avs in game #6.  Play some defense!  Still, on the bright side, no matter how bad the Avs looked, Jumbo Joe still looked like he was skating around with his head up his ass.  Glad I’m not a Sharks fan, though we do have a similar guy, Marek Svatos.  

-From the Point

Five for Fighting Monday - Avs-Sharks Playoff Edition

Something that would probably hurt the Avs more than the Sharks would be a rematch of these two in the playoffs.  Though Murray plays big minutes for the Sharks, the loss of the Avs top line winger and highest goal scorer during the regular season, for FIVE minutes would be worse than the Sharks losing Murray for five.  Blake, Boyle and Vlasic can easily cover the sin-binned Murray.

On the other hand, this endless face washing and shoving matches at every whistle is ridiculous.  And a real good fight might just clear that up.

On another note, I've already heard a ton of people start with the whole angle against fighting now that the playoffs are here.  Some claim that fighting is non-existent in the playoffs.  Others make the same claim, add a comma and a caveat.  

Either way, they phrase it as though the playoffs are better hockey because there's no fighting.

Whatever, the playoffs are better because it's the playoffs, not because there's no fighting.  Which there is...

-From the Point

Avs-Sharks: Is it a Sell Out? Is it a White Out?

There's been some talk on Twitter and in the blogs, the fans want to show this team that we are supporting them.  So if you are going to tonight's game be sure to wear white!  We will be.

But of course there is also the unending discussion about the attendance this year.  Terry Frei writes this morning in his Denver Post blog about it.  Read it HERE (Oops! where did the link go?  Bad Terry!  The Post must not have liked that honest opinion.  Nonetheless, the cached version is still available HERE) and tell me that isn't an open letter to his coworker, Adrian Dater.

Here are a couple of tasty bits from it:

"...no media members with press credentials available or hanging around their necks should be granted any credibility when blasting Colorado fandom for the lack of a sellout..."

"It’s even more ridiculous when those passing the judgment are not here or aren’t buying tickets themselves."

"I still think we in the media have a bit of an obligation to strive for professionalism and objectivity in discussing all matters, including attendance."

That word 'strive' in italics?  Yeah, that is Terry's emphasis, not mine.

On to the series!  And what a series so far. 

Sharks “Feel Good” About Themselves

Fans of the Colorado Avalanche can feel good about how this team is performing so far in the playoffs. The players obviously feel pretty good about how they have played so far. Despite the game two OT loss, there was little talk of one that got away, blah-blah-blah. They know the deal; they weren’t even supposed to win the first one.

On the other hand, or more specifically, in the other locker room, the Sharks are feeling pretty good about themselves as well. So shouldn’t the fans as well?

Here are a couple of quotes by the Sharks after game two:

“These are the kind of things that happen in the playoffs,” high-energy center Scott Nichol said. “It was a rollercoaster ride and everyone played well up and down the lineup. … I think we can all go home and feel good about ourselves.”

“I think everybody feels good about themselves after the game they played,” Sharks forward Joe Thornton said. “Hopefully, we’ll carry that into (Sunday).”

Really? You barely pulled that off. You were behind THE. WHOLE. GAME!

Thornton’s line scored 40 percent of the team’s goals in the regular season but haven’t put the puck in the net in this series.

“It really doesn’t matter who is on the ice as long as we get the job done,” Thornton said. “At this point of the year, it’s all about wins. That’s all that matters.”

As an Avs fan, I like that attitude from Thornton. Nothing like your star player showing apathy when it comes to crunch time.

I much prefer Duchene’s attitude. After the OT loss he said

“I feel a little bit responsible for not burying those two chances.”

Along with a little responsibility, the Avs have a little bit of chip on their shoulder.

“I’m going to play hard every time I’m out on the ice. If they don’t like it, it’s too bad,” Galiardi said. “If Boyle thinks he can’t be hit, then it’s too bad.”

When pressed about Blake’s huge hit:

“Didn’t even hurt at all,” Galiardi said.

The Avs have gone from cellar to stellar this season, and if the Sharks don’t like it, it’s too bad!

-From the Point

Those Damn Kids, Can’t Tell Them Anything!

The Colorado Avalanche came out flying around in their first playoff game and looked great. That wasn’t supposed to happen. Did someone forget to tell the Avs they have no chance?

Was it just plain ignorance?

Maybe these guys haven’t been reading the papers? Cause if they were they would know better. They aren’t supposed to win. Sure, the Sharks have that whole choking thing to overcome. But this is the lowly Avs. The Avs that were falling apart at the end of the season. Were declared “done” after the Olympic break.

Yep, blame it on plain ole ignorance. These kids just don’t know any better. Damn kids!

I’ve been critical of some of Sacco’s coaching decisions this season, but I’ve got to say that he deserves credit for getting the team ready for game one. Ten guys on this team made their playoff debut in that 2-1 win on Wednesday night. I would say Sacco is doing a fine job of handling this team’s young guns.

Hey! Let’s play a little game of Which One Doesn’t Belong

TJ Galiardi could have lost a tooth when an errant stick hit him right in the pie-hole. He took fourteen stitches in his upper and lip and was back out there in no time.

"That's playoff hockey!"

Maybe the Avs are the wrong team to hit in the mouth. All season long everyone has underestimated this team. The playoff prognosticators even admit as much…and then STILL pick the Sharks in five.

Picking the Sharks in five is safe and could still be correct. But most of those fortune-tellers expected that one Avalanche win to be at home, so now what?

Honestly, now the expectations go up just a little in the Avalanche locker room. So even though ignorance is bliss, these guys can’t be ignorant of the fact that we as fans are expecting another stellar performance!

At the same time, the Sharks are probably starting to wonder if they hit the wrong guy in the chops.

Five Reasons I love Playoff Hockey

1. Avs are in the playoffs
2. Avs are in the playoffs!
3. I have an excuse to grow a scraggly beard
4. With this scraggly beard, I don’t have to shave and I get to work 5 minutes early
5. With this scraggly beard, my boss doesn’t suspect that I’m looking for a job

-From the Point

NHL Playoffs!!!

                The NHL playoffs start tonight and this is what the teams have been playing for all season long.  Nothing else matters now, it’s all about getting to the next round and finally get a crack at the Lord Stanley.  One thing I always want to see every year is a 8^th seed team knocking off a number 1 seed team.  Now, do I think that the Canadians can actually win against the Capitals….no.  Do I think that the Avs can actually win against the Sharks…yes!

                The Avs have almost no pressure in these series.  They are not expected to win and they shouldn’t win.  Maybe this is the perfect situation for them.  They can go in there and play with ease and play the game they want.  All the pressure is on the Sharks.  Let’s not forget that the Sharks don’t have the best playoff streak going.  They haven’t gotten past the second round in over 4 years even though they were one of the top teams in the West every year.  If you ask me, the Sharks have one good line and that accounts for almost 40% of their goals.  If the Avs can contain that line, they’re going to do just fine.  Also, they split the series this season with the Sharks 2-2.

                Now, I’m saying they can win if, and only if, the players get and stay healthy.  Matt Duchene said he’s going to play tonight, I hope that if he’s not 100%, that he’s pretty close.  They really need his scoring touch, Stewart and Hedjuk can’t score all the goals.  He had really good chemistry with Hedjuk and Mueller so hopefully thing will stay the same.  Speaking of Mueller, he has been a more than welcomed surprise since joining the team. He’s been great on the power play with Liles so losing him is huge at this point.  When you talk about an injury like a concussion, it’s always a bit tricky.  He didn’t make the trip to San Jose which already has me worried a little bit but I really hope that he'll make an appearance when they come back to play in Denver.  David Jones has been skating, it would be good if he could play and contribute but over 5 months off the ice is a long time.  I hope Sacco knows exactly when to use him. As for the top line, they need to keep playing the way they have been, no excuses.  At last of all, Anderson needs to bring his A game.  We need the Anderson that showed up at the start of the season.  

                The Avs have a chance to reach the second round; I’m just hoping they make it happen.  For a team that every body had finishing dead last in the West, getting to the second round would be quite the accomplishment.

-Frenchy.

Playoff Minutia

Stupid Denver Media

So all of a sudden every Avs player on the team is on every media outlet in town. Hmmm. I heard Stewie on the Fan and Tucker on 1510. Know why they call it 1510? Cause the odds are 1510:1 that I will be able to hear that station in my truck on any given day. Some Avs beat reporter was on the sports extra the other night. All of a sudden Les Shapiro is an expert on fighting in the NHL. Thbpthbpthbp.

Challenges

While there are vets on this team, none of them are really at the top of their game. Ok that is a little harsh, but seriously, when was the last time Tucker connected on a check? The boards are more afraid of him than the opposition. He’s been flying into the boards with no mercy all season! Yelle, sure he provides those intangibles, and I’m not saying those things aren’t important. But man, these aren’t guys that are going to score the game winning goal. Foote hasn't scored since Dutchy moved into the room under the master bedroom.  But Hejduk is still a good player, thankfully he got that knee taken care of over the Oly break. So all that means is that the guys that are low on the playoff experience need to be high on the productivity.

Rob Blake is a Penisloaf

There I said it. That guy left town with a comparable offer on the table from the Avs and even collected a $1,000,000 bonus that first year of the salary cap. That really screwed this team. All the while pretending that he wanted to go home. Horse-pucky! Now he is in SJ and I’m sure that has nothing to do with the fact that he thought the Kings were going down the tubes.

So now he knocks Mueller out of the solar system with a hit that looks a LOT like one that got Ovie a two game suspension. So he helped bring a Cup to Colorado, he’s still a mercenary. He reminds me of Shannon Sharpe when he left the Broncos, it was all about the money. And not really THAT much money. I’m big on loyalty. Both those guys earned my disdain with that crap. I can totally understand why the LA fans used to boo him so much. I won’t have any problem with booing Blake in game three, I hope you will join me.

More Challenges!

How is one of the youngest teams in the league going to fare when it comes to the playoff beards? Well first indications are that some of the guys are going to try to distract you with Mohawks. The problem with that is…well you gots ta wear a lid on the ice surface. Don’t know if these guys thought of that. But no worries! Peter Budaj has been preparing for this playoff run for months! Have you noticed him over there on the bench? For weeks that guy has been growing a beard, shaving it off, repeat. At first I thought he was growing it between his opportunities between the pipes and then shaving it. But that didn’t pan out. No, I think he has been growing them, shaving them and then making beards out of them for all the guys. Whew, this is going to be tricky, I just hope none of the guys have an Andre Agassi-like rug malfunction during a post game interview. Ya gotta worry about that glue coming lose with all that sweat!

Five for Fighting Monday - Playoff Edition

Shortly after the Olympics were over, Terry Frei at the Denver Post wrote about the lack of fighting in the Games. His point was that most fans probably didn’t miss it. Now that it’s playoff season we will see a significant drop in fighting versus the regular season. Frei has a problem with all the pre-planned fights, the “gotta go” fights between the guys that play a mere two minutes a game.

Well, I didn’t really miss it during the Olympics but that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t have been fun. I like fighting in hockey, it’s entertaining! You just can’t compare the NHL regular season to tournament hockey, as Frei does concede.

And I agree that some of the gratuitous regular season fighting is tiring. The problem is that if team A signs a slug that can’t skate but is 6-6, 250 pounds and can and WILL beat the crap outa your guys, team B is forced to return fire. Could it be better? Of course, but it’s really easy to say that about anything. If it was completely ruled out of the game I would miss it.

Ideally all teams would always have a bench full of guys that can actually play hockey. And I include guys like Ian Laperriere in that list. He is a responsible defensive forward and rock solid on the penalty kill. Scott Parker, not so much. Does Lappy drop ‘em on occasion to fire up his team? Of course he does. Eighty two games is a grind. Completely different from the win or go home stakes that are on the line in the Olympics and the playoffs.

Not that there isn’t ever fighting in the playoffs. Here is Joe Thornton dropping the gloves with Ryan Getzlaf in game six of last years first round match up. That was a great series to watch last year, very entertaining. Now despite all the talk preceding this game about how it was time for Thornton to take a stand I’m not sure anyone was expecting them to go at the opening face off.

So, was it contrived?

Was it planned?

Was it entertaining?

Well THIS is entertaining! Hehehe...er, lets hope the Sharks are the usual goldfish in the playoffs.

-From the Point

The Surprising Avalanche

For Immediate Release

April 7th, 2010

 

From the office of I. Stanley Honky:


I am pleased to announce that this organization has decided to change our name to the down-right appropriate…”Surprising Avalanche.” This decision will integrate well with the media’s current mood and in fact their season long astonishment that the Avalanche are a competitive team.


We believe that the “Colorado” moniker is too limiting in scope. Now people far and wide can embrace the Avalanche, anyone that IS surprised can feel like a part of this family.


While it is heretofore an unprecedented event for a team to change names in the midst of a season, we feel that integrating this transformation as the team heads into the post-season is the perfect time and place for such a surprising maneuver.


Said Pierre LaObster, “This is an organ-eye-zation that has surprised everyone.”


General Sherman reiterated LaObster’s surprise, “If I had known this team was going to actually compete I never would have given away a guy like Ryan Smyth.”


Special note to the press: Please refrain from using any synonyms to “surprising” when describing the “Surprising Avalanche” for the immediate future as this will cause bafflement and general bewilderment amongst our fans, new and old.


The following are some examples:
Astonishing
Astounding
Amazing
Shocking
Startling
Unexpected
Unanticipated
Unforeseen


Thank you.



I have some inside sources that tell me that the name “Colorado Surprising Avalanche” was tossed around the room quite a bit but that the illuminati did not want to become associated with the only other NHL team (Anaheim Mighty Ducks) with such a silly name.

I called a few people around the league to get reaction to the news.

Doc Emerick: “Oh my! That IS surprising!”

Barry Melrose: “I’ll be surprised if they make it out of the first round.”

Patrick Roy: “I’m surprised at how much longer I’ll be staying here in Quebec.”

-From the Point