2011/2012 NHL Season...

[Coddfish]

Now that baseball has come to a close, I can now look forward to the winter sports, and what better way to start than this year's NHL season.

A couple of things that I have noticed...

1. The Wings are doing well, though last night and Washington's game weren't the greatest.

2. The Leafs are doing well. (Huh?)

3. Both the Canucks and Bruins are doing poorly.

4. The Oilers are doing well. (HUH?)

5. The Habs are now a good example to never dump your team, under any circumstances. I was reading through an NHL board where the fans were crying for a change after losing to Florida. They were also saying that they were going to be screwed once they played the Booins and the Flyers. Well, after they won both of those games, they were all excited for the season again! Oh God...

6. The Flyers and Jets game was fun to watch...after hearing "He shoots, he scores!" about 4 or 5 times. Then it got a little boring.

7. The Islanders are a basement dweller team, again! Same with Columbus!

And 8. I still do not like the Caps or the Pens.


Hey, it's still early. What do you guys think of this season?

[Coddfish]

Wow, the Leafs and Oil are doing wonderful, while the Wings are on a 5 game slide.

Has Hell frozen over, already?!

[Coddfish]

From CTV News:

MONTREAL -- As hot as veteran Ryan Smyth has been, he was quick to give goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin much of the credit for the streaking Edmonton Oilers' latest victory.

Smyth had a goal and an assist but Khabibulin was the difference as the Oilers downed the Montreal Canadiens 3-1 despite being outshot 29-14 on Tuesday night.

"Great goaltending gave us a chance," said Smyth, who has nine points in his last five games. "Habby's been playing superb all year.

"In the third they had some chances but we found a way to hold on. It was a good road win."

Ryan Jones scored short handed and Tom Gilbert got the game-winner for the Northwest Division-leading Oilers (9-3-2), who rebounded from a 4-2 loss to Phoenix on Saturday to post their seventh win in eight games.

They have surrendered one or fewer goals in seven of their 14 games and Khabibulin has dominated the league's goaltending statistics since the start of the season.

"I wouldn't say all season long because it hasn't been long yet, but I felt pretty good," the 38-year-old said. "I think we're all playing well, so that helps."

Max Pacioretty scored for the Canadiens (5-7-2), who have lost two in a row and have scored one or fewer goals in six of their defeats.

Pacioretty's team-leading sixth of the season came 22 seconds after Gilbert put Edmonton ahead 2-0 at 16:28 of the third period. The big winger swept in on the right side and saw his backhander go off Gilbert's stick, change speed and fool Khabibulin between the pads.

That brought the Bell Centre crowd of 21,273 to life after seeing the home team checked tightly by the speedy Oilers and thwarted time and again by the big Russian goaltender. But Smyth ended the threat with an empty-net goal with 43 seconds to play.

"We had a lot of opportunities to score, but Khabibulin played well and we weren't able to cash in on a lot of really good opportunities," said Erik Cole, who was Montreal's best forward on the night with five shots on goal and a strong physical effort throughout the game. "It could have been a much different games if we could have cashed in on a couple."

Montreal coach Jacques Martin felt his team played well enough to win, generating 17 scoring chances, but fell victim to a hot goalie and some bad luck. Michael Cammalleri hit two goalposts, while Edmonton had Gilbert's harmless looking shot go in off defenceman Josh Gorges.

"They have the best goals-against in the league," Martin said of the Oilers. "They're a good team with a lot of speed and talent, but we dominated them in scoring chances. You're disappointed with the score, but it wasn't a lack of effort or execution."

A key was special teams, as aggressive Edmonton penalty killing left the Canadiens 0-for-6 on the night and also produced the game's first goal.

Jones picked off a Tomas Plekanec pass at the Montreal blue-line and went in alone to put a deke on Carey Price and slide in his third of the season short handed 4:38 into the second frame.

Smyth's goal was his fifth in five games and gave him the team lead with seven, one more than rookie Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.

"It's just nice to chip in offensively and feel a part of it," said Smyth. "I've said this many times, being around young kids really pushes you and with the experience I've gained over the years I want to push them too.

"It's a two-way street and it's been going good. It's just a matter of putting up wins now."

Edmonton's marquee line of No. 1 draft picks Taylor Hall and Nugent-Hopkins with Jordan Eberle were matched against Montreal's top defence pair and a strong defensive line and had few scoring chances, but neither did they give Plekanec's line much room.

The Canadiens move on for road games in Phoenix and Nashville this week, while the Oilers continue a six-game trip to three more Original Six cities in Boston, Detroit and Chicago.

Link:
Oilers down Canadiens to post seventh win in eight games

[Coddfish]

Oh, and now it seems that the Leafs are going back to reality!

7-0 loss to Boston on Saturday and now a 5-1 loss to the Panthers, last night! Eww...

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

I will evaluate the Leafs in March. But it gets annoying when they win, the press is planning the Stanley Cup parade. When they lose, they are suggesting they are big losers.

Glad the Mount Royal Canadians are sucking. Hope they miss the playoffs.

Go Oilers.

[Coddfish]

I will evaluate the Leafs in March. But it gets annoying when they win, the press is planning the Stanley Cup parade. When they lose, they are suggesting they are big losers.

Glad the Mount Royal Canadians are sucking. Hope they miss the playoffs.

Go Oilers.

Oh, I know exactly how you feel! Hearing that sort of thing on TSN each morning gets me going, especially if the Leafs lose and they start to believe that the sky is falling.

Why is this making me of the documentary that they just had on Steve Bartman and the Cubs? Oh, never mind...

Personally, I still do not have any bad feeling towards the Habs, though if they don't make the playoffs, I probably wouldn't be too upset. Now, if the Booins choke and don't make it, oh, I will be happy!

And I still find it crazy that the Oil are doing so well. Hopefully they can continue with this winning streak! They do deserve it!

[Coddfish]

Am I the only one who's sort of glad that he isn't playing, right now?

From CTV News:

Sidney Crosby won't play this weekend

The Associated Press

Date: Thursday Nov. 10, 2011 1:19 PM ET

PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby is feeling good these days. Still, the Pittsburgh Penguins superstar isn't sure when he'll return to the ice.

Coach Dan Bylsma said Thursday afternoon Crosby will not play Friday or Saturday and that his status remains uncertain. Crosby hasn't played since being diagnosed with concussion-like symptoms in early January.

Crosby has practised with the team since the start of training camp two months ago and was cleared for contact last month.

There has been speculation a six-day layoff between last Saturday's shootout win in Los Angeles and Friday's home game against Dallas would provide a window for the 2007 NHL MVP to be cleared to play.

Instead the wait continues. The next possible return date is Tuesday against Colorado.

Link:
Sidney Crosby won't play this weekend - CTV News

[Coddfish]

Apparently, Sabre fans are going crazy over this hit.


Milan Lucic hits Ryan Miller Nov 12, 2011 - YouTube

Link:
Would you fight Milan Lucic? Did the Sabres fail to defend their goalie? - Sports Blog | Top Sports Blog | Best Sports News ? Sympatico Sports - The Cheap Seats

[Coddfish]

Well, the Leafs lose another game last night, as they lose to Phoenix in a shootout.

And with another loss added to their record, the sportscasters are predicting the 'end of the world' for them, again.

Oh, what will happen on the next 'As The Leaf Falls'?

[Coddfish]

From CTV News:

Crosby to return to Penguins lineup on Monday

CTVNews.ca Staff

Date: Sun. Nov. 20 2011 10:07 PM ET

Hockey fans can now breathe a sigh of relief. Sidney Crosby is set to return to the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup on Monday night after missing more than 10 months with a concussion, the team announced Sunday.

Crosby will make his return against the New York Islanders.

Penguins coach Dan Bylsma, who spoke with Crosby on Sunday, said the superstar is both "excited" and "anxious."

"He's been wanting to play hockey for a long time," Bylsma said. "Now that he is scheduled to play, the anticipation is coming to the forefront and he's excited."

"We're certainly going to enjoy No. 87 out there," Bylsma added.

TSN Radio host James Cybulski said Sunday that Crosby's return "does the game a world of good."

"This is the face of hockey right now," Cybulski told CTV News Channel. "Sidney Crosby is the best player on the planet."

Crosby has not played a game since Jan 5, when he was driven into the boards by Tampa Bay defenceman Victor Hedman. He had also taken a hard hit from the Capitals' David Steckel on Jan. 1, but remained in that game and was cleared to play against Tampa.

When he was sidelined, Crosby had already rung up 32 goals and 66 points in 41 games last season, and was on pace for the highest-scoring season since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96.

The 24-year-old suffered for months with post-concussion symptoms that included dizziness, nausea and sensitivity to light and loud noises.

Crosby's doctors explained that his concussion largely affected the vestibular system, the part of the brain that controls space in motion, making it particularly important for professional athletes.

When training camp got underway in September, Crosby cautiously said that it was "likely" he would return to hockey this season.

He opened camp wearing a white helmet to remind teammates that he could not be hit. Crosby was cleared for contact on Oct. 13, which ramped up speculation about when he would return.

At the September press conference, Crosby said retirement was never an option he seriously considered.

However, he did say that the NHL needed to reconsider its policy regarding headshots.

Crosby said he had come across a statistic that showed of the tens of thousands of hits across the league every year, only dozens were hits to the head.

"And to take those out, the game's not going to change," he said.

"As players we're professionals, and the odd time maybe there's accidental contact, but for the most part we can control what goes on out there," he continued, questioning the distinction between stickhandling rules and those covering players' bodies.

"If a guy's got to be responsible with his stick, why shouldn't he be responsible with the rest of his body when he's going to hit someone? Whether it's accidental or not accidental, you've got to be responsible out there, and like I said, at the end of the day, it could do a lot more good than what it's going to take away from the game."

Since Crosby was injured, league disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan has cracked down on head shots, suspending players for dangerous hits.

Despite losing their superstar, the Penguins are off to a strong start with a record of 11-6-3 and fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

Bylsma said he will start Crosby on a reduced schedule and won't ask him to play his usual 20-plus minutes right away. However, he predicted his superstar wouldn't be interested in holding back.

"You get those guys in a game, they always want to go out one more shift," Bylsma said. "So we may have to tie him to the bench a bit."

Cybulski said it makes sense for Crosby to make his return in a home game, as well as against a team that he seems to enjoying playing. Crosby has scored 62 career points in 33 career games against the Islanders.

While Crosby's teammates have avoided hammering him during practices, it remains to be seen exactly how opposing players will treat the superstar.

"It's one thing to take part in contact practices with your teammates. This is a different story when you're playing to win," Cybulski said.

"Nobody wants to be the guy to end the career of Sidney Crosby. So it remains to be seen how his opponents will react."

Link:
CTV News - Crosby to return to Penguins lineup on Monday