NGKEIB

At the end of the day, I don't think that we lost the series due to officiating. I would rather see the Sharks get through than the Hawks, for two reasons. For starters, we're not divisional rivals with the Sharks. Furthermore, it's always nice to say that if you got knocked out, you got knocked out by the (Conference) winners. As far as the playoffs go, I'm rooting for the Flyers. I've only been to one NHL game (as I'm a softie who wears a visor and plays a Eurotrash game), and it was in Philadelphia (a disappointing tie with the Thrashers, nothing to write home about). Also I quite like some of their players, so I'm rooting for them.

It's a shame about Maltby, I thought that he had been playing better since he was benched at the end of last season. He was a fixture on the PK with Miller, and frankly I think it's a shame that Draper has another year on his contract, because I would rather keep Maltby...

I'm with you on that one, but don't leave out the Flyers.

Sounds interesting, I'll see if I can download it. (For anyone who is interested, it is also quite easy to download the famous '76 match between the Flyers and the Soviets, when Van Impe knocked Kharlamov out with a hit). I read an interview fairly recently, though I can't remember who with (I think it was on the THN website), and he was saying that before his team (the Leafs?) had to play Philly in the playoffs, many of the Toronto players went down with 'injuries' because they didn't want to face the Flyers.

Would anyone rather see Ritola over Williams?

What about Ritola? He wasn't a liability when he was called up. Janik and Kindl are defensemen, Eaves is a forward...

Don't forget that they also lost Gagné and Carter...

He's a Coyote, why would you want to go for a drink with him? He always leaves after the first round...

Well, HV71 just won the Swedish championship! In the 16 postseason games he played, Almquist had one goal and ten assists, and was used by the coach in all situations - 2nd ES pairing, 2nd PP formation, and also saw time on the penalty kill (usually with Janne Niinimaa - you'll remember him from '97). In the locker room after the match he was interviewed in the locker room, and he is tiny! That said, he looks like another late round steal. He has good sense, doesn't rush things etc.

I would rephrase that - one of those guys you hate when he plays your team, and love the rest of the time. I still think that signing him and Betts were such good moves.

I'm honestly not that surprised - the Flyers ran roughshod over them in the regular season, and have a lot of players who are built for the playoffs. New Jersey has a recent history of playoff disappointment, so it's nice to see them keep that up. Shame about Carter and Gagne though. It will be interesting to see Leino try to adapt to postseason NHL hockey.

Larsson in San Jose?

I hope the Mule gets going.

That's my take on it too. I think we can expect lots of effort from Draper and Williams.

Maybe why Williams will see post-season time - he does have a good shot, and it is nice to have something like that buried on your fourth line...

It's nice to hear the anthem sung properly...

Eaves's shoot-out goal the other night. Those Datsyuk ones are nice just because they show how well-rounded he is. I still feel that some of Homer's goals are great to watch - some of the deflected ones because it's so hard to do, but even the slappers he scores from a way out, because they're just so rare.

I think that enforcers are less useful in the playoffs than they are in the regular season. May can still forecheck and skate, but I'm not convinced that he would be more useful than Draper (who could be out there to take crucial faceoffs etc.).

I'm not sure I agree with you regarding Mickey as a homer - in my eyes he is a complete homer. However, he isn't biased towards any team, just more towards a certain style of play (and against certain types of equipment). But who would have it any other way? Heaven forfend, FSD could have that pair of NESN announcers who do Boston's games or Nashville's...

Right now it is game 5 in the semifinal between HV71 and SAIK (HV lead 3 games to 1), and HV are up 3 to 0. Almquist has two assists so far.

At one point they had some guy called Drake on that line with them...

Philly is a team that seems built for the grinding style of the playoffs, but I think that their problem is that they go a bit overboard. I just get the impression that when playing teams like Pittsburgh they get so caught up in needing to play physically and send messages that they actually lose sight of the goal - namely, win the game. However (with a few notable exceptions) Carcillo has shown that he can toe the line better than he has in the past, they have added solid defensive forwards (Betts and Lappy), and Pronger (despite what you have to say about him) is still a great player and can hopefully provide some leadership (something that Richards sometimes seems to struggle with). And, of course, they have Ville 'Jay' Leino waiting in the wings...

I've seen the Flyers play live, so I have a soft spot for them. You guys may not like some of their players, but can you honestly say that you wouldn't like a guy like Lappy on our fourth line? I hope they make it - if only because the Rangers were dumb to let go of Betts, and the Flyers were smart to pick him up.

For starters, I'm glad that you noticed my sarcasm. For some reason, when I state that the trade for Brendan Shanahan didn't have much of an impact for the wings, people take it seriously... I'm certainly with you that it is reassuring to have them be playing their best hockey of the season right now (and it is more than just injuries), and also have a larger than usual degree of underdog status (though no one is seriously considering the wings an 'underdog' I'm sure...). Earlier this year I would have been satisfied with us making the playoffs. Now I feel that it is right to expect more (take that, Jimmy D.!).

There is also a Stefan one out there (not official, of course...).