A 2nd Period to Remember, Spotlight Pens vs. Flyers, 2/18/12

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by Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Today’s Pens vs. Flyers game was a great spectacle. The teams have an awesome rivalry that has just grown over time. Recently adding to the rivalry was Max Talbot’s trade to the Flyers and Jagr’s decision to pursue the end of his career in Philly rather than in Pittsburgh. Fans have also learned to love each team through their up-close actions shown on HBO’s 24/7. Both teams have hosted the Winter Classic, both have made it to the Stanley Cup final in the last 3 years and this season they are both contenders despite being plagued with major injuries to some of their star players.

The game today was close with goals continuously being traded back and forth throughout the game. The first goal came from Penguins’ forward Matt Cooke only 3 minutes into the game. His goal was overshadowed by the pair of goals from Jagr that finished out the 1st period. Yeah, you can imagine how bitter Pittsburgh fans must have been about that.

With the Pens down 2-1 after the first, they fought back in the 2nd period. The first goal of the second was an impressive short-handed goal by Pens’ center Jordan Staal. About a minute after Staal’s shorty goal, Cooke managed to do the impossible. He scored on a breakaway while the Pens were down 2 men! The Cookie Monster really came out to play!

Flyers players were visibly furious on the ice. If the 2nd period wasn’t exciting enough after two short-handed goals, the Flyers ended up getting a major break from Pens’ defenseman Deryk Engelland. Engelland tripped on the ice and let Wellwood get off a quick shot near the end of the 2nd period. Wellwood ended up scoring off Engelland’s major mistake. After Wellwood’s goal the 2nd period ended at 3-3.

After the excitement of the 2nd period, the 3rd turned out to be pretty lack-luster in thrill-factor (especially if you are a Flyers fan). The Pens scored 3 goals and left the Flyers goal-less until the last minute of regulation. Pretty exciting game overall and definitely a rivalry that is worthwhile in the NHL.

I will upload the individual play videos when they go public on YouTube, but if you want to see the game recap and the goals I am talking about here is a link where you can watch it! —> http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?hlg=20112012,2,865

NHL in Seattle?

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by Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Will Seattle ever have an NHL team? It seems that the issue keeps coming up from various sources in the NHL and Gary Bettman made it sound like it was definitely possible. A couple questions arise when discussing this issue:

Why now? Well, plans are being unveiled for Seattle’s new arena that will be easily accessible for both basketball and hockey teams. San Francisco’s Chris Hansen (who is actually from Seattle and is a hedge-fund manager) is interested in bringing a basketball team back to Seattle. He has bought up land near Safeco Field (see the Seattle Times picture to the left) which is in the perfect location for a new arena. The question is, will Seattle be able to get both a basketball team (which is what Hansen and his investors seem most interested in), or will there also be opportunity for a hockey team to move into the arena?

Chris Hansen and investors have talked about bringing in an NBA team to Seattle and it seems possible considering the amount of money and passion behind the idea. Hansen has continuously talked to Seattle media about how the Supersonics impacted his childhood. Hansen has his eyes on prize (which happens to be the Sacramento Kings) and seems focused on bringing the sport he loves back to the city he grew up in.

But, what does this mean for potential Seattle hockey? According to Gary Bettman, Seattle (as well as 5 other cities) seem to be options for a hockey team that might re-locate. Bettman has stipulated that definite arena plans must be made before the NHL will approve a relocation. And every other city that seems to be an option doesn’t seem very simple. Quebec would love for a new team to come up North, but the Nords’ old arena is fairly small and rundown. Kansas City was another option raised, but is mid-America really the best place to attract hockey fans and why hasn’t any team committed to the new arena since it was built in 2007?

According to the Globe and Mail, AHL Chicago-Wolves owner, Don Levin came out today and told Hansen he would be interested in getting involved with bringing a hockey team to Seattle. This is a major step in getting Hansen and his basketball-minded investors to start thinking about the dual-benefits of a multi-purpose/multi-sport arena. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said that Don Levin has been interested in owning an NHL franchise for the last couple years.

And where would this team come from? It is nearly impossible to start a team from scratch in the NHL, and with realignment talks already in the works, this deal probably needs to go through fast. The only team that I think really has a chance of being relocated is the Phoenix Coyotes. Their fan base is weak, attendance is the second-worst in the league, the team is being run by the NHL, they have only won a couple more games than they have lost, and Arizona is not quite a place where ice-cold hockey fits in with the local culture. Not to mention the fact that the Coyotes have been losing money ever since they left Winnipeg to come to Arizona. But will Levin be accepted by Hansen? Will he be able to lure the Coyotes up North?

Hatty Valentine’s Day Courtesy Spezza and Kovalchuk

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by Hat tricks, Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Two NHL players had a ‘Hatty’ Valentine’s day yesterday night. The first hat trick was from Jason Spezza of the Ottawa Senators and the next was from Ilya Kovalchuk of the New Jersey Devils. Both teams ended up winning their games. Good Valentine day gift for fans from New Jersey and Ottawa! Here are those highlights:

Spezza’s hatty (I like the delay before the shot on the 2nd goal): 

Kovalchuk’s hatty (Check out Parise’s steal on the 3rd goal): 

Valentine’s day also proved to be fairly interesting on social media with the hashtag #nhlvalentines. People took the opportunity to create their own ‘roses are red, violets are blue’ poems, completely bashing other teams and boosting their own. Alright here are some favorites (for some of the more racy ones, just search the hashtag):

20 Consecutive Home Game Wins for the Wings

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by Comeback Wins, Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With tonight’s Wings win over the Flyers, Detroit is starting to look unstoppable. Tonight marks their 20th consecutive home-game win. The Red Wings have never accomplished this feat in franchise history. In fact, the only other teams to ever replicate what the Wings have done over these last 20 home games, were the 1929 Bruins and the 1976 Flyers. Impressed yet? It looks like Detroit has a lot going for them. Can you imagine what it could mean if Detroit kept winning like this until the Winter Classic and 24/7?

Tonight’s 4-3 win should be attributed to the effectiveness of the Red Wings powerplay (2 goals on the PP). PP goals were attributed to Kronwall and Datsyuk. Mike Babcock (the coach of the Wings) even said, “We got credit for two power play goals, but really (the Flyers) never got out of their zone on the third one at all, so we basically had three power-play goals.” Pretty impressive. Especially because different power-play units got the goals. Overall, a major congratulations to the Wings. Now, they just have to make sure to not let the wins go to their heads and stay focused for their next home game against the Dallas Stars (shouldn’t be too tough right?)

2013 Winter Classic, Great for City of Detroit and NHL Fans

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by Hockey in the News, Winter Classic • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The NHL had their press-conference at Comerica Park today to discuss the 2013 Winter Classic. It was officially announced that the game will take place at the University of Michigan’s Big House and will be an original six match-up between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings. Most of us already knew this, but it was nice to get confirmation and also hear some new details about the festivities surrounding the Winter Classic.

Speeches were made by league commissioner Gary Bettman and the owners of both the Wings and the Leafs. Bettman said that extra activities would take place in Detroit including open skates on the outdoor ice and numerous other hockey games. This ‘Hockeytown Winter Festival’ that will take place mostly around Detroit and Comerica Park, will include minor league affiliate battles (Granad Rapids Griffins vs. Toronto Marlies), OHL games (Saginaw Spirit, Plymouth Whalers, London Knights and Windsor Spitfires), youth games, and the Red Wing vs. Maple Leaf alumni game. The press-conference speakers kept repeating that there will be “something for everyone” which certainly seems like it must be true if you like hockey at all.

There was also a video shown during the press conference that featured past Winter Classic games and the age-old rivalry between the Wings and the Leafs. This rivalry was also talked about by owners during the conference. One of the stats given was that the Wings have played the Leafs 644 times. The Leafs have won 276 of those games while the Wings have won 275 (I realize this does not add up, I am assuming they were not accounting for ties). Pretty close though wouldn’t you say? The rivalry was said to have peaks in the 40s and 60s.

This game will be the largest Winter Classic ever played. The Big House is said to hold 109, 901 seats for the game which is much higher than any other Winter Classic game ever played. This game also has the potential to be the biggest hockey game of all time. Yeah, pretty amazing.

Is this the best thing to ever happen to Michigan/Detroit? There is definitely a convincing argument that could be made. Detroit or “Hockeytown” as they refer to themselves, are huge hockey fans and they seem thrilled to have the chance to host the Winter Classic. And the city could really use the positive impact of the Classic (socially and more importantly economically). And the $3 million the NHL is paying the University of Michigan to rent the Big House has to be huge for students and the people affiliated with the University. What is best is there is no way we will have to worry about weather delays this year- Michigan is darn cold!

Spin-O-Ramas taking over NHL Shootouts, One Spin at a Time

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by Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Over the last couple years, there as been an increase in the number of shootouts in professional hockey. Because of this, a new trend has begun to form amongst NHL players. 

May I introduce you to: The SPIN-O-RAMA (yes, the capital letters were needed for major emphasis).

What is the Spin-O-Rama you ask? Only a phenomenally exciting technique/move used by the best players in the league to school goalies and get their team a win after overtime. Some Spin-O-Ramas were featured during the shootout elimination challenge during the all-star game and Evgeni Malkin successfully converted one against Carey Price last night. See that video here:

Spin-O-Ramas are thrilling to watch and are way more effective than you would imagine. Who knew spinning in a circle and shooting the puck at the last second could throw off a goalie so much? You just have to make sure progress continues forward during your spin (people who play NHL ’12 and have tried this move know just how difficult this can be). Here are some of my favorites from the last couple years.

Steven Stamkos at the All-star Game: 

Todd Bertuzzi: 

Martin St. Louis:

Jason Blake: 

Best Super bowl Commercial- Potentially about Hockey?

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by Hockey Commercials • Tags: , , , , , , ,

We have all been watching the teasers for the ever-exciting Super bowl commercials for the last couple weeks. We’ve looked forward to a new Ferris Bueller movie only to realize it is really just a Honda commercial, and we can’t wait to see what Darth Vader and Volkswagen have to offer. But, has anyone seen this commercial set to air in Canada during the Super bowl?

Is this commercial (which will be missed by hundreds of thousands of Americans) going to be the highlight of the content rather than ad commercials? I think Budweiser has hit this out of the park. It is exciting, it takes some energy away from the football grind, and it shows hockey at its finest. Watch this commercial and I dare you to not yearn for what Budweiser has just given these Rec-hockey players. Doesn’t everyone want to be recognized and cheered- and feel like a professional athlete? Makes me wanna go buy a Budweiser! How about you?

 

Credit: Video was sent in by Dave Grachnik– thanks!

Sam Gagner’s Crazy 8 Point Night

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by Hockey in the News • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

For those of you who didn’t hear (aka Americans who don’t get proper hockey news coverage)… Last night Sam Gagner tallied 8 points for the Oilers in their win over the Chicago Blackhawks. Sam Gagner becomes the 3rd Oiler player to score 8 points in a game (with Gretzky and Coffey– good company huh?)

Even more impressive is that no one in the NHL has been able to make this feat since Mario Lemieux scored 8 points in the late 1980s. So is Gagner really on par with the 8-point superstar club? Is it fair to put him in a grouping with Maurice Richard, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Paul Coffey, and Bryan Trottier? I mean, he did earn it. Eight points in a eight-goal win is pretty impressive. He scored 4 goals and 4 assists in the game and fans couldn’t get enough. It is reported that after Gagner’s fourth goal, one fan (who had already thrown his hat for the hat-trick) through his shoe on the ice- now if that isn’t excitement and serious commitment I don’t know what is! Gagner’s name also started to trending on Canadian’s twitter accounts yesterday and quickly became the number 1 topic trending worldwide on twitter. To top it all off, Gagner is going to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Can you imagine what he could do for a franchise that has a decent record and is building a strong, young team?

Here are the highlights of Gagner’s 4 goals and 4 assists from last night:

History Will Be Made

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by Hockey Commercials • Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

I know these commercials are old news, but I still absolutely love them. How many other commercials do you look up on youtube to see every one ever made and all the spoofs? They are inspiring and they really get your blood pumping. How could you not get excited for hockey after watching these? Here are some of my favorites.

Miracle on Manchester:

Flying Bobby Orr: 

Super Mario Lemieux: 

Pat Kane and the Blackhawks win the cup: