egroen

Nashville with the upset.

I'll go Pens in 6 - this will be a tougher matchup than most of the media will give credit to. I consider Alfredsson the type of leader who could lead the Sens past the Pens this year.

I'd put my money on Datsyuk, but be happy with whomever gets it!

Wow. That'll be around for a while.

Unbelievable. I never lost faith we would make the playoffs, but I never really gave the 100 pts streak much of a chance this year. Kudos to the team to really make a statement at the end of this year and get us fans jumpin' for the playoffs!

Wow, is there any fan in the league worrying about Cooke right now? Including Pittsburgh fans? Ok, maybe his mother.

So rooting for Sedin.

Which is still, honestly, a success... just to have a consistent player in the NHL (which he might not be). But Kindl almost made the team 3 years ago, and really has done little since then. I am actually hoping he might be a bit like Quincy, and that after that initial taste, he simply is on auto-pilot until he gets back to the Big Show again... only this time, instead of with a different team, but replacing Lebda for the Wings.

I'm now rooting for Vancouver - that team is banged up, and we certainly know that can have a huge impact.

That would explain why the East's record against the West is so abysmal...

Kinda sad seeing all these stars from the 90s hanging them up... I haven't yet retired from watching the games - so I don't know what their problem is.

Considering the massive punishment Holmstrom has taken throughout his career, maybe this is a bit of a life-time achievement nod? I'm really pulling for him! Truly a warrior!

I wouldn't be surprised if Babcock rested Lidstrom and maybe another player or two, no matter what the standings, simply because he can. A little extra rest to someone with tendinitis (like Lidstrom) is worth a lot.

Yeah, I think Fischer really paid attention to those lessons from Kocur.

They said on CBC hot stove that the cap was going up $900k to $57.7m for next year largely b/c of strong Canadian dollar this year. Huge for the Red Wings if true!

Scotty Bowman said to keep Price... so that's my vote. Or was Bowman playing mind games again? Or does he want us to think he is playing mind games???

USA never had to resort to that kind of play to defeat Russia in 1980 (I kid, one game is a heck of a lot different than a series)

Canada played similar against Sweden, who publicly stated Canada was playing "criminal" hockey. I've watched most of that Series - and Canada played on the edge, crossing over it many times. Taking out the other team's best player Tonya Harding style is definitely going to incite a new level.

Though Rask has faced considerably worse teams than Howard (like a backup typically does). You might be right, but Rask's stats have definitely benefited from an easier schedule (and less games).

1) Duncan Keith -- Keith has had by far the greatest all-around year this year by a defenseman. Near top of the league both defensively and offensively and a large reason why Chicago has so few goals against, despite Huet's meltdown of a season. 2) Nicklas Lidstrom -- Lidstrom is still hands-down the best defensive defenseman in the NHL, which I personally give more weight to than offense. In addition, he is now 8th in points overall. 3) Mike Green -- His points this year are too much to ignore, despite not being even close to elite defensively. Pronger, Doughty and Boyle would round out my Top 6. What will it end up being? My bet is the voters go with: 1) Keith 2) Green 3) Doughty With Lidstrom anywhere from 4th to 6th. The hype around Doughty this year has been huge, but he is not in the same league defensively as Lidstrom and Keith -- and his points are not far enough ahead of Lidstrom to make up for the much wider gap defensively.

No, but Canada clearly spring-boarded that Series into a violent one. First one to do it takes most of the blame in my book.

That incident happened after the slash. I will grant that Ferguson is actually a bigger piece of s*** than Clarke. Both should have been banned from international play. Life would have gone on if Canada had lost.... just as it did when Canada lost the '74 Summit Series.

And if you are good enough defensively, you can win without as much offense. But you will always need both. You are making fine points if you want to completely ignore the definition of the Norris, which obviously includes actual defensive play.

If I was Canadian, Clarke's actions would have appalled me... even at the time. Sweet, my team has to maliciously break the ankle of the other teams' best player in order to win. Go Team! That series meant a heck of a lot more than just hockey, but let's not fool ourselves into thinking Clarke prevented a nuclear winter, there.

Name me a Stanley Cup team that lacked elite defensive players. Without Backstrom and Schultz playing great defense, that Washington line is nowhere near as successful. Sorry, you need both defense and offense to win games. I doubt you are really that much of a blithering idiot to deny it.