This is what Hockey is all about

This is why I love Canadian hockey and a Canadian team:

Canadian hockey fans are amazing. As was the case in 2010, I felt the pull of the magnet to check out the prospects every single day. I was far from alone; every day hundreds of local hockey fans gathered in Millennium Place to do the same, many of them on more than one occasion. Sitting among those fans from day to day, chatting casually about this prospect or that, I felt a strong sense of community, of a shared and deep-rooted interest. Just as the 31 scrubs on the ice represented the seedlings of Oilers future, those who gathered to watch them were the grass roots fans of the club, and of the game. More so than at an actual Oilers game, where availability and affordability are issues. Not much corporate schmoozing going on at Millennium Place, just interested folks keeping a watchful eye on the hopefuls below. Lots of room for kids, and for interaction with some of the sweaty heroes at the end of the day.

Man, is the season here yet?

Oilers take Nugent-Hopkins #1 Overall

Hopefully this is the tandem that takes the Edmonton Oilers to new heights over the next 15 years.

Hall & Nugent-Hopkins. Just stay healthy fellas. Don't drink too many pints and be down with too many fast women.

Keep your heads where your ass is at and the Oil will be in great shape.

- Posted from my iPhone

Game Seven Stanley Cup Finals goes down tonight

The day has arrived, and tonight after game 7 the NHL season will end and a new Stanley Cup Champion will be crowned.

These two teams will be forever married in history; the Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks. Many are predicting that this champion will be decided due to an unlikely hero.

We expect to be much more involved on this blog starting with the NHL Draft at the end of this month and into next season. Watching the Oilers chase their own Stanley Cup dreams will be something we'll follow on a game by game basis beginning next October.

But all is not forgotten with the 2010-2011 season. After all, this is the season that we fell in love with the game of hockey. This is the season that we studied the game, attended two games live, watched the Winter Classic, went skating several times, and watched some high school hockey games on Friday nights.

It's a great and glorious game filled with tradition and the finest trophy in sports. For these reasons, we'll be tuning in tonight. And although we're in the heart of America and it would be easy to pull for Tyler Seguin and the Bruins; it's also hard not to be happy that a Canadian team has the opportunity to bring the cup back to the roots where the sport was born on frozen ponds.

Daniel Sedin guaranteed victory in game 7. Something has to give. It all goes down tonight.

The Deadspin Story of the Canucks Bender

This is AWESOME.

Every Rookie Taylor Hall Goal

Edmonton is getting their new downton arena

Great news last night.

I'm so happy for the people of Edmonton.

“It will reflect the Edmonton Oilers, five Stanley Cups and what we want downtown Edmonton to be,” said the owner who finally will be able to be celebrated in the city after the messy bit of business to get to this day.

Edmonton City Council approves the framework to build a new downton arena in Edmonton. Finally, the Oil get their new barn. I think they should call the new place "The House that Hallsy Built". 

The Champions fall in Vancouver

[Nucks Misconduct]

[Box Score]

It would have been nice to have seen this game instead of getting a text in the form of an ESPN alert. But unless I was watching the game illegally on the net somewhere or paying extra dollars to have Versus, there was no way for me to watch this game.

From NHL.com:

"This is what legends are made of," Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo said, referencing what was spoken inside the relatively quiet room. "Game 7, OT. It doesn't get any better than that. Somebody is going to become a hero."

Take a bow Alex Burrows. It was you.

Burrows capped off one of the craziest emotional roller-coaster nights in the Canucks’ 40 NHL seasons in Vancouver by ripping a knuckling slap shot over Chicago goalie Corey Crawford's right shoulder 5:22 into overtime. Vancouver's 2-1 victory set off a wild celebration on the ice, in the stands and in the streets while relieving an insane amount of tension from the entire city.

The win sends the Canucks into the Western Conference Semifinals, where they will face the Nashville Predators. All Vancouver had to do was withstand a near-miraculous comeback from the Blackhawks, both in the series and in Game 7.

Chicago became the seventh team in NHL history to force a Game 7 after losing the first three games of a series, but the fourth to lose the final game after winning Games 4-6. The Hawks also trailed 1-0 heading into the final two minutes of regulation Tuesday, but Jonathan Toews scored a game-tying shorthanded goal to send this one into overtime.

The champs are all finished. Toews got them close but could not get them past the Canucks. The picture above says 1,000 words. It's a shame that more of this country can't see games like this to make them fall for hockey. The drama, irony, and all that is rich this time of year. 

The Game by Ken Dryden & Miscellany

I started reading a book this past week that will hopefully educate my hockey knowledge: The Game by Ken Dryden. I'm told that it's the greatest hockey read of all time.

It's a great book and it helps you learn about those dynasty Montreal Canadiens teams of the early to late 70's. It's great to read this book and learn about the life of a hockey player and what it was like to be a pro athlete back in that era before contracts were astronomical and before the game became so different.

I'll update the blog with anything that I see that I like in the book.

Meanwhile, Ryan Nugen-Hopkins as well as Adam Larsson say that they're content to stay with their current teams next year rather than get NHL experience.

Edmonton will select #1 Overall again

I watched the draft lottery on NHL.com live last night, and I was happy to know that the Oilers have landed the #1 overall pick again. These guys really are like the Cleveland Browns when I first started following the Browns hardcore. Now the key will be selecting the right player.

I think Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is that player, but we'll see what Steve Tambellini thinks.

The New Jersey Devils lucked out, winning the draft lottery to select 4th overall, moving up from the 8 spot.

NHL Draft Lottery Tonight

Big night tonight in the next chapter of Oilers hockey.


By virtue of their league-worst record, the Edmonton Oilers hold the highest odds of obtaining the first overall selection at 48.2 percent, followed by the Colorado Avalanche (18.8 percent) and the Florida Panthers (14.2 percent).

I'll be tuning in, fingers are crossed for the Oil, who could have a new look to them next year. 

Taylor Hall notches Gordie Howe hat-trick

[Cult of Hockey]
[Oilers Nation]
[Box Score]

It was amazing because before the fight with Derek Dorsey, completing the Gordie Howe hat trick, Taylor Hall put on display some of the sickest moves to nearly score his second goal of the game. It's so obvious that he is the superstar on the Edmonton Oilers, and it's a shame that he's going to miss time now that he has 22 goals on the season.

A couple of great takes from The Globe and Mail. 

Starting reading 'Tough Guy' by Bob Probert

I started reading Tough Guy: My Life on the Edge by Bob Probert today. I didn't buy the book, but it will have me making frequent returns to the local Barnes & Noble bookstore to keep getting through pages of what began as an epic tale of booze, fighting, and all out hockey talk.

The review I linked to really says it best.

Tough Guy is the no nonsense expose of Bob Probert’s life written with Kirstie McLellan Day. Its part Animal House and part Slap Shot. This is a story of a time in sports that is so different from today that it’s hard to believe that it was only a couple decades ago. Probert was such a hard party machine that he would stay out all night, till 7 A.M. dress for practice and play that night. He was a smoker. He microwaved his urine to fool the testers into thinking it had just come out of his body and yet he occupies some interesting spots in the record books.

And that's why I loved it thus far. So many books I need to read, so little time. It's amazing that Probert lived as long as he did. He sounds like a guy who knew that he wasn't built to live 80 years and be on social security, and it probably didn't matter to him.

It's looking like one Hell of a book.

Tyler v. Taylor I goes to the Bruins 3-2

[Box Score]

The Oilers remained stuck on 48 points and in last place in the entire NHL. In the closing minutes, Taylor Hall ripped off a whistling slap shot from the bottom of the screen that flew just wide of the space in goal, and the Bruins hung on to the win. Tyler vs. Taylor round 1 goes to the Bruins.

It wasn't a particularily memorable night for either Taylor or Tyler.

Seguin: -1 in 9:32
Hall: -2 in 19:52

Gilbert Brule looked really good in his game back 1G, +1, 50% on faceoffs 4 hits.

Hall has 20 games left in his rookie season and 40 points tallied. You'd like to see him somehow get to 50 or 55, with 30 goals. But it's looking unlikely. 

Taylor Hall's First Hat Trick

 [Cult of Hockey]

[Event Summary] [Box Score]

To watch what Taylor Hall did yesterday afternoon at Rexall Place against the Atlanta Thrashers was truly witnessing something special. If you watched Hall take over the game in the 3rd period yesterday, you knew that you were watching a dominating performance and after he got his first two goals (cutting the deficit to 3-2, tying the game at 3-3 with the goal horn coming within mere minutes of each-other) you just knew he was going to find a way to get the hat trick.

The young man looked hungry with the puck. And guys like Ales Hemsky and Sam Gagner just kept feeding the monster. Tom Renney should get credit, because he saw that Hall was in one of those rare zones and kept giving him ice time. It seemed like Hall was playing every other shift. It was truly fun hockey to watch. The Thrashers looked helpless on the power play defence and Hall scored all three goals on special teams to get a natural hat trick.

NBC's Matt Reitz:

There’s a certain quality that superstars have that most NHLers will never experience—some people call it the “it” factor. Hall controlled the game. It wasn’t the shots, it wasn’t the odd-man rushes, and it was just the way the game flowed. When he was out there, the Oilers were a dangerous team—when he wasn’t, they weren’t. He was the player you looked for during the entire game and when he jumped over the boards, you held your breath because you had no idea what he’d do next. It was that “edge-of-your-seat” factor that only a handful of guys are capable of producing—and he did it 19-years-old.

Isn’t this what we expect from a #1 overall pick?

The win was the Oilers third straight. It was the first natural hat-trick by a rookie in five years. I am so glad Hall is an Oiler. And I'm thrilled I was watching on this February Saturday afternoon. Gary Bettman was on hand to see the future of his league. 

They're calling him "Cyclone". And this is only the beginning.

Video of the first "Hall Trick"

Oilers rough up Canadiens 4-1 to start a 'win streak'

[Cult of Hockey]
[Event Summary]

EDMONTON 4

VS.

MONTREAL 1
--------------

I'm always very glad to beat these guys, but mostly to beat their strange edmonton-based fans that try to own the rink every time they play here. It's one thing to be loud and maybe even obnoxious, but I still find booing the home team sad and distasteful. I still don't understand why so many season ticket holders give up their tickets without at least accompanying these strange folk to the game to even out the numbers. I was very happy with the guys tonight for a) getting the first goal to keep the Habs fans relatively quiet and b) winning by more than 1 to keep the fans from getting too noisy and excited during the end. It really seems as though the Montreal fans that are Edmonton-based lack the supposed hockey IQ of their Quebec-based counterparts, but do possess the same attitude of being above other fanbases. Needless to say I don't enjoy dealing with that.

I think there were some pretty clear keys to the win tonight that most people got:
- Our goalie was much better than their goalie.
- The D, which is already weak, suffered an injury and made our pathetic blue look formidable.
- In the third after the Oilers got the lead, they played a simple game, got the puck deep, and made the necessary effort to hold the lead. They played like a playoff team holding a lead (other than lacking killer instinct on the PP, though at least they didn't take any exceptionally stupid or wild shots).

Montreal plays a very interesting style that seems reliant on forcing the other team into turnovers. They do this by having active, well placed sticks and clogging lanes. Early on we had a ton of trouble with this and several promising rushes or chances were foiled by a Montreal stick that would look random or flukey if it weren't so consistent. Credit to them on their execution of this plan generally and I can see why it would work for them. They do have a lot of players who can jump to chances and make something happen. In addition to their currently weak D, they missed Mike Cammalieri tonight a ton. He might've made this a closer game.

The reffing tonight was intriguing to say the least in that it was pretty much prison rules for the first 2 periods. Not that it was an ugly game, but there was some stuff that probably should've been called in today's league and was let go. If games were consistently reffed like this, I'd love it and we'd have a much more entertaining game, but they aren't. When we were finally able to convince the ref that yes indeed we were playing the game too and got a PP, we may not have converted but you certainly felt something slip away from MTL.

A few words on Mr. Subban:
- I don't think he's really a defenceman. He's most effective at the opposition blue line while rushing, looks for the hit too much, and doesn't get to use his skating. He's a power forward.
- A small play some may have missed, but I think he helped Eberle who had fallen near the net by making sure his head didn't whack the post. Very gentlemanly of him. Much more than I can say for a bunch of his teammates.
- Players certainly know he's there and adjust on the ice, but both Hall and Eberle figured out how to go right at him with success. He'll need to work on that.

On to the players...
---------

Khabibulin
- His best game of the year. He was on and flat robbed MTL on several occasions. They executed successful cross-crease plays (including one which would have been a game-changer in the second) and #35 made the save and made it look easy. He was way ahead of the play tonight and showed his confidence late by playing the puck a little more than usual. I'm not sure where these performances have come from, but he was certainly the biggest reason we won tonight. The only goal MTL scored was because he was hit on the play and didn't recover.

Foster
- Though his feet were still moving slowly and he took an awkward bunch/forearm to head in the third, Foster managed to have a decently strong game defensively. He was more committed to his coverages than usual and especially in the third. When we win it will often be because guys like he and Vandermeer push their effort in the defensive zone just a little higher.

Vandermeer
- Mixed game from him but mostly in the positive due to some stronger defensive play in the second half of the game. I'd count his mistakes as two ill-advised pinches and a couple ugly giveaways, but he covered up for most of them alright. He did a solid job of being in the right position and went out of his way to make some hits, which is something the Oilers D hasn't done near enough of when it has had the chance as a unit to grate on opposition forwards.

Chorney
- He got two really solid shots on net tonight, both while on the move. One nearly went in on its own and another was nearly tipped in. He's much much more confident this time around. I didn't notice him a lot in the defensive zone, which is generally a good thing. He certainly wasn't perfect, but this was a solid effort

Smid
- I hope Ladislav is okay. he was having a decent enough positional game and did some solid things with the puck on his stick. He's always best when he does a decent amount of skating with the puck and he was doing that tonight. Quite composed. The only glaring error I'll point out is that he put a really bad screen on Khabibulin once or twice that could have cost us big.

Peckham
- Though this wasn't an extremely physical effort, Montreal certainly knew he was there. He played a pretty solid game for the most part and came away in the positive. I think many of the Oilers learned early from MTL's approach to the game and more shots were blocked. Peckham being one of the best at that.

Gilbert
- Another excellent, albeit quieter, effort from the man who needs to be our #1 D right now. Solid with the puck, took his time and got into the right positions all night long.

Jacques-Reddox-Jones
- This was probably the best game I've seen Jacques play in terms of actually contributing to a win. He got a chance in the third on a bit of a rush with Reddox and Jones to make a solid NHL play, took his time, located Jones and made a really nice pass to set up the huge 3-1 goal. It was simple but for Jacques it was a victory and I appreciated the play. He also laid some some hits and got in the way productively at other times. There were still shifts where I felt he'd be better either ignoring the puck totally or playing without a stick, but he made a contribution to the win. Jones created problems for MTL's tired D at several junctures tonight, using his strong N-S skating and drive for the puck to pressure them, then finally capitalizing on his best clear chance in the third. He could have had at least 2 tonight, as a couple of his other chances were pretty good. Liam got beat down pretty hard on the faceoff dot, but I liked his effort 5-on-5. He does a really solid job of skating in the proper lane as well as driving the net. If you noticed on Jones goal, Reddox befuddled Subban and was actually in behind Price ready for a leaked puck if need be. These guys really helped the cause tonight

Paajarvi-Gagner-Omark
- Magnus had a shift in the third that I think really speaks to his potential as a strong two-way 5-on-5 guy. He made a great little backcheck play to break up an initial Montreal rush, then after some milling about, grabbed a loose puck, skated it out of danger and dumped it deep. It was a fairly simple shift but a great example of hockey IQ + skill + effort. Magnus had some chances to do offensive damage, but either didn't get the shots off or was stymied by MTL's active sticks. Linus got even sweeter chances, including a wonderful breakaway pass from Magnus (which me made a good choice and shot on but just missed) and a screen/tip/rebound play that was thwarted by an MTL defender. He does need to start converting on some of these. He drew the first MTL penalty, which was no small feat tonight. He struggled a little in the defensive and neutral zones, but also had a really nice backchecking play in the third that I hadn't seen from him before yet and would indicate him learning to use his skills at both ends of the ice, which is a plus. I truly think he's a guy you can refine into an excellent defensive winger. Too many tools to waste. Sam was a little quieter than usual tonight, but seemed to play a pretty strong supporting game. This line wasn't leaned on heavily with the rookies going and Hemsky's line dealing with many minutes, but they were certainly not a hindrance and could have scored a goal or two.

Hall-Cogliano-Eberle
- Try as I might, I just don't think I can give Cogliano a passing grade. His result was okay, but there were just way too many times in all zones that the play died with him. He missed a phenomenal chance that should have been a gimme goal in period 2. Thankfully he wasn't forced to defend much sustained pressure from MTL. If some people have some positives on Cogliano besides the one really hard shot he fired at the net, I'd love for you to add them to the discussion. I just can't see it right now. Hall seemed to have the game an always-effective star has when he's not on full go. Hall found a way to exploit the MTL D, and drove wide all night, either beating them clean or punishing them through a little physicality and hard work. He put forth a big effort even if the stats were understated and didn't give the puck away near as much as he might have usually. I liked his effort a lot. The play he made to feed Eberle on his goal was sick. Taylor needs to remember that he's an excellent and creative playmaker who can give his teammates great chances and especially so off the rush. He's been locked in shooting mode too often. Eberle was excellent as always. Positionally brilliant. The goal an example of a guy who knows how to score and is patient as hell with the puck on his stick. If Hall (or anyone) can get him the puck in that spot, he's a goal scoring machine. I say he gets 40 next season.

Penner-Horcoff-Hemsky
- On what should have been a rather good night for these guys to do some damage (and they looked good early) they struggled some. I'm going to pin a lot of that on Penner. He was very either lazy, tired or unfocused tonight. Way too many times he was either given the puck and frittered it away, or the puck was put in a position he'd usually get it and didn't. I think this play from Penner made it look like Horcoff and Hemsky were playing worse than they actually were. A bunch of pucks that were actually solid fundamental plays wound up as turnovers. Both were far from perfect, with Hemsky having more turnover struggles and Horcoff willing but unable to convert offensively, but the main laggard was Penner. Because of the way Montreal plays, the whole group needed to be going to look good and they didn't at many times. With that said, they still come out plus and Hemsky still finds a way to score two (including an empty netter for once! YAY!). These guys should be much better Sat. I'm predicting a really good game from them.
-----------

That was fun if not perfect. I love winning!

Went to the Jackets/Kings game last night

I apologize for the seedy pics, they're from my iPhone. But a co-worker and I headed to Nationwide after work last night to see the Jackets lost 4-3 to the Los Angeles Kings. Drew Doughty had a big goal on a really nice shot from the blue line, as did Rick Nash.

I wasn't a fan of either team obviously, but I love just being at the arena and watching the game live. Puck Rakers has the full recap.

Would you believe that my co-worker was tired so I got up and left about a minute before Kris Russell tied the game. We heard the goal horn as we were walking out the entrance. So we actually missed overtime and what would have been my first NHL shootout that I've witnessed. I'm confident that I'll see more.







Last time I saw a Jackets loss live? Opening night, 2006-2007. Last night was my first look at Wayne Simmonds.





The Oil play the Canadiens tonight at Rexall. My favorite NHL blog Cult of Hockey has a recap the other night from when they beat the snot out of Dallas. Today's post has a nice view of a game scouting top-prospect Ryan Nugent Hopkins. Now you see why it's my favorite hockey blog.


- Posted from my iPhone

I love this Sidney Crosby Commercial

I hope the game's finest player gets better soon. I thought this commercial had a great message.

Hockey Day in Canada weekend upcoming

Tomorrow is Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada. It's a good day to be just relaxing and watching the sport. I found a really good read on what it means to Canadians.

I won't have the entire Saturday to devote to watching hockey, but I am going to try to get started around 1 just before the Edmonton Oilers play and I'll certainly catch all of that game. Then I'll probably have to go get dinner with the wife and see the Justin Bieber movie. But whatever. 

Drunken Wayne Gretzky tells a funny story about Goose Hunting