Tag Archive for nhl

NHL Trade Rumors: 7 Teams That Should Pursue Colorado Avalanche’s Paul Stastny

December 29, 2011 Sports No comments

Paul Stastny of the Colorado Avalanche has found his name in trade rumors for the past couple of seasons, and this year is no different.

The Buffalo News has suggested that the Sabres should get on the phone with Colorado Avalanche GM, Greg Sherman, to try to acquire Stastny.

According to this article, “sources” (who were never referenced) claim that Paul Stastny is available.

Stastny’s contract is one that can be difficult to trade, but we saw with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter that those big contracts can be traded with the right circumstances.

There are plenty of teams that could potentially be interested in Stastny’s services.

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NHL Winter Classic 2012: Strong Matchup Between Rangers and Flyers

December 28, 2011 Sports No comments

The 2012 NHL Winter Classic is approaching, and the NHL has a great matchup to present to you this year.

If you take a look at the current standings you’ll notice that the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers are the first and second place teams of the Atlantic Division, and both are at the top of the Eastern Conference.  

These are two division rivals who have a strong dislike for each other.  The fanbases of Philly and New York hate each other, so that only adds to the intrigue of this game. 

The NHL certainly hoped both teams would be having strong seasons heading into this game.  Add in the fact it’s an outdoor event that you only get to see once a year, and I think you have a recipe for a highly dramatic game that should captivate the minds of sports fans, whether they are casual or hardcore fans of the NHL.

The Rangers come into the game having allowed the fewest goals in the entire NHL (76).  The Flyers will bring the third-highest scoring attack to try and put a dent into those totals.  

If you’re looking for star power, both teams have it. 

For the Flyers, they have the NHL’s leading scorer in Claude Giroux (17 goals, 27 assists).  Scott Hartnell also ranks amongst the best goal scorers in the league with 17 and veteran winger Jaromir Jagr is having a strong season (11 goals, 19 assists) as well.

The Rangers counter with NHL-leading goal scorer Marian Gaborik (22 goals, 11 assists), and of course they boast a Vezina Trophy candidate in Henrik Lundqvist who ranks fourth in GAA (1.95) and save percentage (93.6 percent). 

I think the edge in goal has to go to the Rangers.  Ilya Bryzgalov (3.01 GAA, 89 percent save percentage) has been a bit of a disappointment for the Flyers.  Not exactly what they envisioned when they poured some offseason capital into him.

If you’re looking for a slight intangible for Philly, the fact they have already played in a Winter Classic might help a little bit.  Plus they are the home team, even though the NHL passes out a lot of the tickets to neutral parties. 

All eyes in the hockey world, and some from beyond it, will be focused on these teams come January 2nd.  It’s an event you need to check out.  You won’t be disappointed.

2011-12 San Jose Sharks: 5 Steps to Success

December 28, 2011 Sports No comments

The San Jose Sharks dropped their third game against the Anaheim Ducks this season. They have 10 wins all season.

No true contender accounts for 30 percent of a team’s win total over 40 percent of the way into a season. The Sharks may have won four in a row going into Monday’s game and registered points in six straight, but have one win over a team projected to make the playoffs since Thanksgiving.

This team is expected to contend for a Stanley Cup, but looks like one simply trying to contend for a division title. The Sharks underachieve because they do not play fundamental hockey.

Sometimes they fail to do the things that make it harder on their opponents, like crowding the net and getting pucks deep. This was the case against Anaheim, when Joe Thornton got fancy with the puck high in the offensive zone. His giveaway led to a Bobby Ryan breakaway.

Statistically, the Sharks out-played the Ducks in almost every category: San Jose blocked two more shots despite the Ducks attempting 18 fewer and getting 15 fewer on net.

They are a team that reminds you for most of a game and the season of why they are projected to contend. But it is more about the timing of the Sharks mistakes and letdowns that lead to their failure.

Having five extra giveaways Monday nullified their slight advantage in the faceoff circle (25-24) and in takeaways (9-6). The hole they dug for themselves last season left them weary in the playoffs. Coupled with the letdown in the third period of Game 5 against Detroit forcing them to play two extra playoff games, they were left with too little in the tank against a faster Vancouver team.

Teams that do not play 60 minutes and commit mental errors at this time of the year do not win the Stanley Cup in the spring. It is time to accept that the shakeup that has been long called for must happen now—the first step to overcoming your bad habits is accepting you have a problem.

Here is the Sharks’ 12-step program to overcoming their addiction to bad habits…

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