2011-12 Playoff Predictions

Along with my regular season predictions, I also wanted to predict who I thought would make it all the way to win Lord Stanley's Cup. These are based off MY PREDICTIONS, not the current standings.

Bracket template courtesy of: http://www.myexceltemplates.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/2011-Printable-PDF-NHL-Stanley-Cup-Playoffs-Bracket.jpg 

Quarter-Finals

In the first round, I thought the most intriguing match-ups would be the 3 v 6 and 4 v 5 in the West and the 2 v 7 and 4 v 5 in the East. Vancouver and Nashville would be a great match-up because Vancouver would have a bit to prove after falling just short last year and Nashville lead by Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne would be tough to solve defensively. I felt that Nashville, specifically Pekka Rinne would be extremely crucial and he would be and would bounce the Canucks out in 6. 

In the LA, Detroit series, I thought that LA would be very dominate from game 1, this may be because I am an Avs fan and am in no way a Red Wings fan, but I really thought LA would make a very large jump this year. This jump would not be contained to the regular season, but also in the postseason. I think that Quick would be very good, and Kopitar would take a huge jump in his play. Detroit would beaten in their old age and not quick enough (pun totally intended) to contain the Kings. Kings in 5.

In the Eastern conference the Penguins v Rangers would be a very interesting match-up. The Penguins with stars like Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal would have to face Marc Staal, Ryan Callahan, and of course Henrik Lundqvist. Offense versus defense.  In this case, offense would reign supreme and the Penguins would finish off the Rangers in 6.

Probably the best series in the quarterfinals, Philly and Boston would battle hard to advance to the next round. Two of the supreme teams in the Eastern Conference, These teams hit hard and play hard. This series would be all about home ice advantage. Each team would take advantage and would take this series all the way to game 7 in Philly. In the end though, the defending Stanley Cup Champions would fall just short and Philly would move one step closer to the Cup.

Semi-Finals 

In the Semi-Finals, every match-up is intriguing.  First off San Jose v Nashville. Nashville going farther than they ever have would face off against the tough San Jose Sharks. Nashville however would definitely would push the Sharks to their limits. Nashville would frustrate the San Jose offense with the play of Pekka Rinne, and the Preds big 'D'. In the end though, a lack of scoring from Nashville would lead the way for San Jose to take the series in 6.

In the Chicago, LA series, two very good offensive teams would battle for supremacy. This series would go 7 games and each game would be face paced and high scoring. The deciding factor in this series would be the goaltenders. The team that would move on would need their goalie to step up. In this series, that would be Jonathan Quick. Quick would be solid and help his team pull out the series win. As stated before, Kings win in 7.

In the East, both match-ups are, you guessed it, great. In the first match-up the President Trophy winning Buffalo Sabres face off against the high flyin', hard hittin' Flyers. This match-up would be a great, lots of hard hits and high tempo games. This series would go all the way to an amazing game 7. These two teams have amazing talent on all sides of the ice. In net they have Ryan Miller and Ilya Bryzgalov respectively and have players like Claude Giroux, James van Riemsdyk, Derek Roy, Tyler Myers, and Danny Briere would lead the way up front. This is a match-up the NHL would love and could show what hockey is all about. Buffalo in 7. 

The last match-up is a fantastic too. Two of the biggest rivals currently in the NHL. Penguins vs Capitals. The NHL's wet dream come true. I don't think I have to explain why this would be a fun series. Two of the NHL's elite facing off. Of course you have the Crosby vs Ovechkin angle, but there is more the these teams. Each team is very deep but Pittsburgh is probably deeper. It would be a hard fought series but in the end Pittsburgh's depth would be the deciding factor in the series. Pittsburgh in 7.

Conference Finals

Only one more step to the Stanley Cup Finals. 

In the West, Los Angeles and San Jose face off in a California battle of supremacy. The light travel will do these teams well and will create very high paced and fun hockey. Both of these teams have potent offenses and great goaltending. This will be a fun series with great hockey but in the end the "playoff chokers" will make it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, backed by a a stellar performance by goalie Antti Niemi and great play by the two Joes, Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski the Sharks. Sharks in 6.

In the East, the top two teams during the regular season Buffalo and Pittsburgh face off to become the Eastern Conference Champion. This series will be balls-to-the-wall crazy. Two great goalies, two great defenses, two great offenses. What more is to be said. The games will be close and intense. In the end, the Presidents winners will be victorious. Buffalo in 7.

Stanley Cup Finals

This is it. only 4 more wins before these teams can hoist the Stanley Cup. The journey has been long for both teams. Buffalo and San Jose for everything. Both teams are great on both sides of the puck and in net. I think San Jose's road has been easier than Buffalo's and that played a factor in the series. That said Buffalo and San Jose put on a great show and take the series to 7 games but in the end San Jose would be the victor and win their first ever Stanley Cup.

-Colorado Cross Checker

2011-12 Season Predictions

To begin every NHL season, I always like to predict who will make the playoffs and who wont. These predictions were my initial thoughts coming into the season. My predictions are as follows.

Western Conference:


1. *San Jose Sharks
2. *Chicago Blackhawks
3. *Vancouver Canucks
4. Los Angeles Kings
5. Detroit Red Wings
6. Nashville Predators
7. Anaheim Ducks
8. St. Louis Blues
9. Minnesota Wild
10. Calgary Flames
11. Dallas Stars
12. Colorado Avalanche
13. Edmonton Oilers
14. Phoenix Coyotes
15. Columbus Blue Jackets

Teams in bold make the playoffs.
*Division leaders


Eastern Conference:


1. *Buffalo Sabres-P
2. *Pittsburgh Penguins
3. *Washington Capitals
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. Boston Bruins
6. Tampa Bay Lightning
7. New York Rangers
8. Montreal Canadiens
9. Toronto Maple Leafs
10. Florida Panthers
11. New Jersey Devils
12. Carolina Hurricanes
13. New York Islanders
14. Winnipeg Jets
15. Ottawa Senators

Teams in bold make the playoffs
*Division leaders
P is the Presidents Trophy winner for best team in the league.

In the West, San Jose would probably start out a bit slow, but then find another gear and end the season on a high note. For Chicago, I thought that after their disappointing regular season last year, they would play well and win their division. Vancouver would prey on a weak Northwest division to cap the final division. I really thought that Phoenix would really struggle without Bryzgalov in net, and would have a hard time winning games. For St. Louis, I thought it would be a break out year for them and they would start to become a very good team for years to come. Teams like Minnesota, Dallas, and Calgary would be the teams that would float around .500 all season and would be competing for those final playoff spots all season. Also, I felt that the 2 worst teams in the league (Edmonton and Colorado) would take a step in the right direction, just not enough to fight for the last playoff spots.

In the East, I thought that Buffalo, with their new additions would be an absolute dominate force in the NHL along with Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. I thought that the Washington Capitals would take advantage of a very weak Southeast division and only have the Lightning to worry about to win their division and get themselves to the 3rd seed. The Stanley Cup champs from the year before would be good again, just not as good as Philly or their division opponent Buffalo Sabres. My surprise pick for the East was the Florida Panthers. I didn't think they would be good enough to make the playoffs, but after gelling as a team, they would go on a run to try and make it to the final playoff spots. Finally, I didn't think that Winnipeg was going to be significantly better than their Atlanta counterparts mostly because the team was pretty much the same from Atlanta and they finished 12th.

Now I would like to look at the current standings as of now, Friday December 16th, 2011 at a little after midnight. Standings courtesy of nhl.com.

Western Conference:


1. *Minnesota Wild
2. *Chicago Blackhawks
3. *Dallas Stars
4. Detroit Red Wings
5. St. Louis Blues
6. Vancouver Canucks
7. Nashville Predators
8. San Jose Sharks
9.Phoenix Coyotes
10. Los Angeles Kings
11. Calgary Flames
12. Edmonton Oilers
13. Colorado Avalanche
14. Anaheim Ducks
15. Columbus Blue Jackets

Teams in bold make the playoffs
*Division leaders

Eastern Conference:


1. *Philadelphia Flyers
2. *Boston Bruins
3. *Florida Panthers
4. New York Rangers
5. Pittsburgh Penguins
6. Toronto Maple Leafs
7. Washington Capitals
8. Buffalo Sabres
9. New Jersey Devils
10. Montreal Canadiens
11. Winnipeg Jets
12.Ottawa Senators
13. Tampa Bay Lightning
14. Carolina Hurricanes
15. New York Islanders

Teams in bold make playoffs
*Division leaders

First off...this season has been very odd. Out of the 16 playoff teams I predicted, I got 12 correct. Not bad I suppose, but there are a lot of oddities in the standings. The Minnesota Wild and Florida Panthers being the weirdest ones. No one, I mean NO ONE, would have predicted that Florida and Minnesota would be leading their divisions and in the case of the Wild, leading the entire NHL!

 Along with the feel-good teams, there are just as many disappointing teams too. Anaheim, Los Angeles, Montreal, and Tampa Bay have been majorly disappointing. I predicted all four of these teams to make the playoffs and they are sitting outside the playoff bubble. Montreal though is tied for 8th place with 33 points. Anaheim has been baffling because they are essentially the same team. A team that flew into the 4th spot late in the 2010-11 season. Tampa Bay is probably the biggest disappointment of them all. This team went from an Eastern Conference Finals appearance and only one win away from a Stanley Cup Finals appearance and now sits at 13th in the East.

There are also some underachieving teams such as Buffalo, Washington, San Jose, and Vancouver. Vancouver is seemingly hitting their stride however, and will most likely be a high seed once things are said and done. Buffalo probably just needs time to gel as a team, and that may even take a full season to do. Washington is a team that will be judged not by their regular season, but by their playoff performance. Maybe a little adversity will do the Caps some good. Finally, San Jose is in the same boat as Washington. The Sharks will be judged by how far they go in the playoffs. In fact, they are my pick to be the Western representative in the Stanley Cup. That though is for another time.

That said, in my next post, I will discuss my predictions for the playoffs. See ya soon

-Colorado Cross Checker

Top 5 NHL Centers

Top 5 NHL Centers. You know the drill, not in any particular order. All stats gathered from nhl.com


Henrik Sedin

Henrik Sedin is a passing master, plain and simple. In his 11 year NHL career (missed one season due to the lockout), he has 165 goals, 534 assists for 699 points in 839 games. He averages 48.5 assists a year and averages .63 assists a game. Along with is twin brother, he is a force to be reckoned with on the ice. His on-ice vision is incredible and his ability to get a pass through nearly anything is unmatched. His best season was in 2009-10 when he finished with a career high in goals with 29, assists with 83, and in points with 112. Henrik won a goal medal in 2006 with Sweden and has also won the Hart Memorial and Art Ross Trophy both in 2010. One thing that will propel Henrik Sedin to greatness is if he can get his name on Lord Stanley's Cup.


Jonathan Toews

That's Captain Serious to you. Jonathan Toews my not be a major point producer like his teammates Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa, but what he "lacks" in point production, he makes up in leadership and clutch performances. Toews has won gold in nearly every major international tournament from the World Juniors to the World Championships and of course in 2010, the Winter Olympics. In the same year, he won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks becoming the youngest ever player to join the "Triple Gold Club." In 332 games he has scored 132 goals and has 167 assists for 299 points.  His responsibility on both ends of the ice has kept his plus/minus at a great +82 and he has never been a minus in the regular season.

Steven Stamkos

The first overall pick in 2008 by the Tampa Bay Lightning had a lot to live up to coming into his career and an underwhelming rookie season had people wondering if he was a bust. His next season proved everyone wrong. That season he scored 51 goals and had 44 assists for 95 points. That's a 49 point increase from his rookie year! Since then he as been a steady point producer reaching 91 points last season. Stamkos' 51 goals in 2009-10 gave him the Maurice Richard Trophy (Shared with Sidney Crosby) for the most goals in the NHL. Since his rookie season, he continues to improve in every stat. His plus minus has gotten better over the past couple years. Last season he and the Tampa Bay Lightning were 1 win away from making a Stanley Cup appearance, but were beaten in game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals  by the eventual Champion Boston Bruins. Stamkos is going to be a major star in the NHL for years to come and will be a constant threat to score every time he is on the ice.
Sidney Crosby

Say what you will about Sidney Crosby, but he is an absolute world class player. In 420 games, he has scored 217 goals and has gotten 367 assists for 584 points (That is 1.39 points a game, by the way). Crosby is the youngest captain to win a Stanley Cup which he did in during the 2008-09 season. He has received many awards such as the Maurice Richard Trophy, Art Ross, Lester B. Pearson Award (Now the Ted Lindsay Award), Hart Memorial Trophy. In 2010 Crosby scored the game winning goal against Ryan Miller of the United States to give Canada the gold during the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The major concern with Sid is the fact that he has never played a full 82 game season. The most he has played in an entire season is 81. Recently he has been been sidelined by a concussion that allowed him to only play 41 games in 2010-11. This year he made a comeback but is back off the ice due to concussion like symptoms. When healthy though, Crosby is a dynamic and amazing player to watch.

Pavel Datsyuk 

Even though he plays for the Detroit Red Wings, I can still say that he is one of my personal favorite players. Pavel Datsyuk is not just a scorer, he is easily one of the best two-way players in the NHL today. His uncanny vision and intelligence make him one of the hardest forwards to play against on both sides of the ice. He can burn you with a sweet move in the offensive zone, then strip you of the puck in the defensive zone. In 690 games, he has scored 229 goals, and has 450 assists for 679 points. While those are amazing stats, his plus minus is amazing. He is a plus 180 for his career! With his defensive prowess Datsyuk has been awarded the Frank J. Selke Trophy 3 years in a row from 2008 to 2010. He has also won the Lady Byng Trophy 4 times in a row from 2006 to 2009. Along with the personal accolades, he has won 2 Stanley Cups with Detroit in 2002 and in 2008. The most mind blowing thing about Datsyuk is that he was the 171st overall pick in 1998.

-Colorado Cross Checker

Top 10 NHL Goaltenders

This list is in no particular order because I am no authority on goaltending and goaltending is much more than just save percentages and goals against averages. The stats used are from the 2008-09 season to the 2010-11 season. I didn't include this seasons stats because the season is still in progress. All stats were gathered from www.nhl.com.




Henrik Lundqvist

Over the past three seasons, Henrik Lundqvist is 109-79-22 with a .920 save percentage and a 2.36 goals against average.Those numbers are great considering he averaged 30 shots a game and plays for a team that over the past three years has had a hard time scoring goals. Lundqvist is an outstanding goaltender and has been his entire career with the Rangers. He won a gold medal with Sweden in during the 2006 Winter Olympics as well as two silver medals in the World Championships. Henrik has been invited to two All Star games (2009, 2011) and has been nominated for the Vezina Trophy 3 times, most recently in 2008. Henrik Lundqvist is King for a reason. He has been outstanding for the Rangers since he joined them and has been a big part of their success this season. It may not be long before he is raising the Stanley Cup above his head.

Tim Thomas

Tim Thomas had a long road to get to where he is today. He has played in Sweden, Finland, the AHL, and IHL. Tim Thomas has finally become an elite goaltender in this league, especially in the past couple of years. Since the 2008-09 season he is 88-40-24 with a .930 save percentage and a 2.18 goals against average. The only blemish in the past 3 years has been 2009-10 when he lost his starting job to back-up Tuukka Rask, but the next year he bounced back and lead his team to a Stanley Cup. Tim Thomas won a silver medal with USA in 2010, although he wasn't the starter. He has won the Williams M. Jennings Trophy, Vezina (twice) and the Conn Smythe and has been invited to 3 All Star games in his short NHL career and this year he has been great again for his Boston Bruins.

Marc-Andre Fleury

Number 1 draft pick in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins. That pretty much says it all for the "Flower." Since 08' he is 108-59-8 with a .912 save percentage and a 2.55 goals against average. He has appeared in 2 Stanley Cup finals with the Penguins and won, one of them during the 2008-09 season. Fleury was one of the back-up goaltenders for Canada during the 2010 Winter Olympics in which they won the gold medal. Fleury is a very good goaltender behind a very good team. He plays a lot of minutes for the Penguins and is heavily relied on during the season. I'm sure the Penguins front office is very happy with what they got, picking him first overall in 2003.

Roberto Luongo

Say what you will about Luongo but he is a great goaltender. Since the 08' campaign, he is 111-50-18 with a .920 save percentage and a 2.34 goals against average. "Bobby Lou" has been great in net for the 'Nucks since he arrived from Florida. He has won the Williams  M. Jennings trophy as well as been voted to 4 All Star games. He also won a gold medal with team Canada last year as the starter after replacing Martin Brodeur.  The one thing Roberto has never won is a Stanley Cup. He lead his Vancouver Canucks to game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against Tim Thomas and the Boston Bruins but they ultimately fell short and lost. I think Luongo is a good goalie, but falls just short of elite mostly because he has yet to win a Vezina or a Stanley Cup.

Ilya Bryzgalov

Ilya Bryzgalov is probably one of the most interesting goalies on this list. Playing in Phoenix the last three years, he quietly put up great numbers. He was 104-71-22 with a .903 save percentage and a 2.57 goals against average with the 'Yotes leading them to 2 playoff appearances. He has won a Stanley Cup (as a back-up) as well as a Bronze medal for Russia in 2002. Bryzgalov has also been nominated for a Vezina in his NHL career. While his numbers may not jump off the page, remember that he played for a team that hadn't made the playoffs in quite a while in Phoenix and was heavily relied upon (He started 78% of Phoenix's games since 2007). The Flyers gave up a lot of assets to acquire him last season. Hopefully he will help a good Flyers team achieve greatness.

Carey Price

The Montreal Canadiens had high hopes for Carey Price when they drafted him 5th overall in 2005. Price is 74-64-21 with a .915 save percentage and a 2.80 goals against average. While those numbers are not amazing, Price has played in front of a Canadiens team that has been O.K for the past couple of years and faces almost 30 shots a night. Playing in Montreal is a very hard thing to do, especially for a young goaltender. I feel that Price will get better as he plays more and gets older.

Pekka Rinne 

Pekka Rinne has become an elite goaltender over the past couple of seasons. Since 2008, Rinne is 94-53-20 with a .921 save percentage and a 2.33 goals against average. The 6'5" netminder has helped Nashville make the playoffs the past two years and last year helped them get farther than the franchise has ever gone. Pekka Rinne is a big part of Nashville's future considering they just gave him a 7 year contract worth 49 million dollars. If Nashville is to consistently make the playoffs, Rinne is going to have to keep up his stellar play.




Jonathan Quick

Probably the most appropriate last name for a goalie, Quick has been very good for the Los Angeles Kings since 2008. Quick is  95-67-12 with a .912 save percentage and a 2.57 goals against average. On January 1, 2010, Quick was picked to be the 3rd string goaltender for the United States in the 2010 Winter Olympics. He and his team left Vancouver with a silver medal. Quick is heavily relied on in Los Angeles, averaging 59 starts a year, with his most amount of starts coming in 2009-10 with a whooping 72 starts (87% of the season)! Quick is having another great season this year and is clearly one of the best young goaltenders in the game.




Antti Niemi

Antti Niemi may not be an obvious choice, but his Stanley Cup ring is hard to look past. Since 08' he is 62-26-11 with a .916 save percentage and a 2.36 goals against average. Niemi has not been a starter for long, but his numbers are great. During the 2009-2010 season, he became the first Finnish goaltender to win the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks. The next year, the San Jose Sharks signed him to a contract after parting ways with Evgeni Nabokov. In his first season with the Sharks, he finished the season with a 35-18-6 record and a .920 save percentage and a 2.38 goals against average. He almost helped lead the the San Jose Sharks make it to the Stanley Cup Finals being beat by the Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference Finals. Niemi is going to be a big part of getting San Jose their first ever Stanley Cup.


Ryan Miller

One of the best American goalies in the game today, Ryan Miller is a great goaltender. Since 2008, he is 109-58-22 with a .921 save percentage and a 2.44 goals against average. Ryan Miller is probably best known for his amazing play for the United States during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. He lead the underdog United States to the gold medal game only to be beaten by Canada in overtime. He was named tournament MVP posting a  .946 save percentage and a 1.35 goals against average. Along with a silver medal, Miller was awarded the Vezina Trophy in 2010. Miller is a great goaltender and is probably not far away from winning the Stanley Cup with his Buffalo teammates.





Those are my choices, feel free to let me know who I missed or if you see any statistical errors.


-Colorado Cross Checker

Thoughts on Realignment.

Yesterday, big news came out from the Board of Governors meetings. The governors approved a radical new plan for realignment that would see major changes to the hockey landscape. Before I get into my thoughts, I think I should first tell you what teams are in each conference/division and how the conferences will work

There will be 4 conferences in the NHL all based on geographical location to other teams (for the most part). There are two divisions with eight teams  and there are two, seven team divisions. In the eight team conferences, each team  will play each teams from their conference five to six times a year on a rotating basis for 38 inter-conference games. The seven team conferences will play teams from their conference six times (three at home, three away) for 36 inter-conference games. The eight team divisions will have 44 out of conference games, split evenly between home and away, and the seven team divisions will have 46 out of conference games, again, split evenly between home and away. Essentially, every team will see each other once, home and away. The first two rounds of the playoffs will be played in the conferences. The four best teams in each conference will compete with the usual "top seed v. last seed." Once a conference champion is crowned, the 4 remaining teams will be reseed and will then complete for the Stanley Cup. So, that is basically how it will work, now lets see who will be in each respective conference.

The conferences are as follows:

Conference A: Anaheim, Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, San Jose, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Vancouver.

Conference B: Detroit, Columbus, Nashville, Chicago, Winnipeg, Dallas, Minnesota, St. Louis.

Conference C: Boston, Tampa Bay, Florida, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Buffalo.

Conference D: Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York Rangers, New York Islanders

Here is a good geographical look at each conference. Looking at this makes the teams look so much farther apart in the west, hmmm.

First I want to address the names. A lot of people are saying that they should re-adopt the old Patrick, Norris, Smythe, and Adams, divisions and honestly I wouldn't mind it. My guess, as well as many others, is that they will be named the Pacific (A), Central (B), Northeast (C), and Atlantic (D) divisions.

I am mostly in favor of the plan, although I was never against the East and West conferences with 3 divisions each. Almost every team is benefited at least a little bit by the plan. The two biggest teams that were snubbed were the Florida teams. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers were put in a division with Buffalo, Boston, Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal. They are located no where NEAR there conference "rivals." Remember though that Florida is in a seven team conference so those teams I listed also have to make the trek down to Florida three times each.  Other than that, I think each conference has a good balance of bad and good teams. It will be interesting to see what rivalries spawn from this new system.

As an Avs fan, I feel that Colorado's move to a "Pacific" division is fine. I wouldn't mind seeing San Jose, LA, and Anaheim more often. Plus I think some good rivalries could spring between Colorado, LA, and Colorado, San Jose. I feel it is an opportunity for the Avs to play against very good teams, learn, and become a better team because of it. The only problem I might have is if every game that starts in Phoenix, LA, San Jose, Anaheim, and Vancouver is an 8:00pm MST start. That could make for a lot of long nights. Although with that said, there will be a lot more early games for us MST and PSTers so the is pretty awesome.  Hopefully, they will make games start at 6:00pm PST, or 7:00pm MST for those of you not well versed in time zones.

Well, that is my brief look at the proposed conference system for next year, remember though, that the players association will have to approve this as well before this becomes a reality. Up next, I will be taking a look at my personal top 10 goalies over the past couple of years. Keep an eye out for that.

-Colorado Cross Checker.

5 surprise teams so far in 2011-12 season.

So far this year there have been many teams, for better or for worse, that early in the season have been huge surprises. Some teams are underachieving and other are leading their divisions after spending last season in the basement. These picks are not in any specific order and as stated, include good and bad teams.

Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers are easily the biggest surprise this season. They currently are sitting in 3rd place in the Eastern Conference and are in 1st place in the Southeast division ahead of teams like the Washington Capitals and Tampa Bay Lightning. The Panthers made many offseason additions such as Brian Cambell, Tomas Fleischmann, Kris Versteeg, and Jose Theodore. Theodore has been solid and Tomas Fleischmann is showing that his play in Colorado was no fluke. General Manager Dave Tallon and rookie coach Kevin Dineen deserve a ton of credit for this transformation from bottom dweller to contender. I hope they can keep it up for the rest of the season 

Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks have been a mess this season, plain and simple. They are the second worst team in the NHL with 19 points, coming off a season finishing 4th in the Western Conference. Nothing has seemed to work for the Ducks leading them to fire head coach Randy Carlyle. Their star players such as Bobby Ryan, Corey Perry, and Ryan Getzlaf are not getting it done and Jonas Hiller has been average with a .900 save percentage and a 3.14 GAA. Hopefully Bruce Boudreau can help right the ship in Anaheim, but it is looking like it may be a long season in sunny Anaheim California.

Minnesota Wild 

At the beginning of 2011-12 NHL season, no one in their right mind (except maybe Wild fans) would think the Minnesota Wild would be the best team (points wise) 26 games into the season. The Wild are a surprising 16-7-3 for 35 points. Minnesota made some big offseason moves giving up Martin Havlat and Brett Burns to San Jose, getting Devin Setoguchi and Dany Heatley in return . Cal Clutterbuck has been great for the Wild and the goaltending tandem of Niklas Backstrom and Josh Harding has been stellar. The only thing the Wild have struggled to do is score goals, that said they are still 1 point better than the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL. That says a lot.

Toronto Maple Leafs 

After the Leafs' great end to the season last year, the Leafs came into the season looking to show that it wasn't a fluke. The Leafs are lead by Phil Kessel, leading the league in both goals with 16 and points with 32 on the year. Along with Joffrey Lupul, the top line is producing points on a night to night basis. James Reimer was solid up to his injury and is looking like he will be back to face the Boston Bruins. The only thing that can stop the Leafs from making the playoffs is injuries and if Kessel cools down as the season rolls along and if Reimer cannot remain solid in net. 

Phoenix Coyotes

After the departure of Ilya Bryzgalov, I felt that the Coyotes would take a major step back this season. Boy, am I wrong so far. It may be early, but the Coyotes currently sit in 8th place tied with Vancouver and Edmonton in a tough Western Conference. Free Agent signing, Mike Smith has been strong in net for Phoenix and Dave Tippet is still finding ways to get his team wins. Hopefully if they can make the playoffs this season again, fans in Phoenix will care enough to fill seats. If not, Quebec may be getting a solid team next year. 

(Dis)honorable Mentions: Montreal Canadiens, Dallas Stars, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals.

-Colorado Cross Checker

The Winter Classic...So What!?

Every New Year since 2008, the NHL holds the NHL Winter Classic and as each year passes, I find myself caring less and less. There are many reasons for my apathy and well..here they are.

The first and biggest reason I don't really care about the Winter Classic is because I have very little interest in watching teams on the east coast getting the game nearly every year. I love hockey and watching hockey but being a fan of a western team (The Avs obviously) I could care less if the Flyers play the Rangers, or the Penguins play the Capitals. There is no reason the Winter Classic cannot be played in cities like Minneapolis/St.Paul or here in Denver. Minneapolis/St.Paul is the biggest no-brainer. Outdoor hockey is part of the culture in the land of 10,000 lakes and could take place in a couple of place. They could play teams like Phoenix, LA, San Jose, Anaheim, or Dallas. Have the Dallas Stars come back to Minnesota and play the Wild. It will be great. As for Denver, it can be sunny and kind or warm during the day around the New Year, but you could easily have the game start at 5:00pm or 6:00pm MST and it would be dark and cold enough to play hockey at Sports Authority Field or even Coors Field since Coors isn't used during the winter. Hell, even Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado could work although it isn't in downtown Denver. Again have the Avs play a Pacific division team like LA or San Jose so they can be involved as well. I guess you can say Detroit, but in my eyes that rivalry is dead. At least the player rivalry is. Lets share the Winter Classic love and get every fan base involved.

Another problem with the game is the play in the actual game. The ice is awful, the puck is bouncy and the players have a harder time skating. This turns what would normally be a skilled battle between the Penguins and Capitals into a sloppy and ugly game. This is obviously something the NHL couldn't do much about. They cannot control the weather. Instead of an outdoor game, do what the NHL already did this year. This past Thanksgiving the NHL had a game between the Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins. Nearly everyone had the day off and were home sitting on their couches. I was much more excited during the affair because these two teams put on an amazing display of skill and the game had an up-tempo pace. This game felt special NOT because it was held in an outdoor stadium in front of 100,000 fans but because it was a great game, plain and simple. I know that cancelling the game isn't really a solution, but if there was a way to make it so they can make the play on the ice better and not just relying on the outdoors to make your game "special" then the game would be much better. If that means moving the game indoors and making the playing surface and as a result the play on the ice much better, I would be all for that.

While there are a lot of negatives to the Winter Classic one positive that trumps all the negatives is the 24/7 series on HBO. In my honest opinion, this is the only reason that I am excited for this years Winter Classic. HBO's 24/7 series has been a huge hit for boxing and now hockey. It give you the opportunity to see an NHL team uncensored as they make their way to the big event. You get to see the teams ups and downs, all the behind the scenes locker room conversations, practices, and you get to see hockey players and coaches in a new light. You gain a new respect for these guys and what they do, something you might not gain if it weren't for this series. Coming into this year 24/7 we get to see a ton of interesting hockey personalities such as John Tortorella, Sean Avery, Chris Pronger, and many more. I cannot wait 'till this starts up soon

The Winter Classic is still in it's infancy and will get better with time, these are just some things I feel that can be addressed to make the experience more entertaining and fun to watch for everyone.

-Colorado Cross Checker.

Top 5 Best and Worst Current NHL Jerseys.

These picks are in no specific order and include current 3rd jerseys as well.

Top 5 Best Jerseys:

1) Buffalo Sabres (Home)

I absolutely love these jerseys. This is the only jersey on this list that if I had the money, I would buy one right now. Love the colors, love the logo, love the stripes. If there was one thing I could take off the jersey, it would be the piping on the side of the body. Other than that they are beautiful.

2) Montreal Canadiens (Home)

If it 'aint broke, don't fix it. These jerseys have been used for a while and I love them. I love the color scheme as well as the white-on-blue-on-white stripe through the center of the chest with the Canadiens "C-H" in between. I am a sucker for a classic jersey look and this fits the bill.

3) Calgary Flames (Third)

Even though I do not like the Calgary Flames, this jersey which they wore during the Heritage Classic last winter against the Montreal Canadiens is very clean and is very simple. The red, yellow, and white, play well together and the Flames logo looks good as Always.

4) Minnesota Wild (Third)

Another team I don't like but these jerseys are absolutely beautiful. They have a very classic look. I love the shade of green they used in these jerseys, as well as the "Minnesota Wild" diagonally across the chest. If there is something you will see with me it is that I love simple jerseys such as this one. Now only if they could do something with their weird away jersey (I will get to these later).

5) Boston Bruins (Third)

Last, but certainly not least, the defending Stanley Cup champs, the Boston Bruins. Again simplicity can make the best jerseys. No frills just the logo and the yellow-on-white-on-yellow arm stripes. While I do like the Bruins regular home jerseys, I like their thirds more just because I like this logo.

Top 5 Worst Jerseys:

1) L.A. Kings (Home)

There is one thing that a jersey should not be, and that is boring. The color scheme of black, white, and silver does nothing for me, very "meh." Another thing is the piping in the back and on the front, it needs to go. If there is one thing I like about the jersey it is that the logo is pretty nice and the font isn't too bad either.

2) Nashville Predators (Home)

The complete opposite of the Kings jerseys, these do way too much. These feel like jerseys a roller hockey team would wear. I don't like the shade of yellow they picked (although better than the mustard yellow on their past third jerseys). I like to see jerseys have some nods towards the city they play in but with the piano on the neck (which you wouldn't see during the game anyway) and the guitar strings on the numbers, this jersey does too much in my opinion. Plus they have piping. I do like the guitar pick shoulder patch though.

3) Minnesota Wild (Away)

The reason these are on here is simple. They don't fit with the Wild's other jerseys. I love both their home and third jerseys but this one isn't like either of them it is weird to see a team have 2 completely different jerseys for home and away. I just don't get it. They look OK but I cannot get past the fact that they are so different from their home jerseys.

4) Anaheim Ducks (Home)

These jerseys are just plain ugly. The color scheme looks gross. It is just a boring jersey. I don't like how the "D" on the ducks looks and these just seem ugly, uninspired and boring. Although I like the font on the back...I guess.

5) New York Islanders (Third)

I'm not sure what was going on in the mind of the man or woman that designed this. The color scheme looks great when it is just the white, orange, and blue but once you put the black on it, it just looks....weird. I also don't like the shoulders and how it has the white up there. Not a very good look for this team. Should have stuck with their normal and nice looking jerseys.

There is my list and if there was one thing that was hard was find 5 current jerseys I "hate." I like pretty much every jersey in the league, minus these 5 mentioned of course. As an Avs fan I was thinking of putting a Red Wings jersey as the one of the 5 worst for laughs, but couldn't because they don't really look that bad.

If there are any jerseys you love or hate let me know in the comments!

-Colorado Cross Checker.

An Avalanche of a Conundrum.

What is up with the Avs? What is it that is keeping the Avs from reaching their potential and keeping them from playoff contention? Is it coaching? Goaltending? Leadership? Management? In this post, I will address what I see is going on with the Avs. These will be semi-short and to the point as I could probably write pages on some of these subjects.

Coaching: Coach Sacco needs to go. It's always sad to see someone lose their job, but he just isn't getting it done. Seemingly every game for the past couple of weeks I see coach Sacco get constantly out coached. The biggest example of this was the 6-3 loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins. After the first period in which the Avs played well and staked themselves to a 3-1 lead, they held on in the second then got dismantlement by the Penguins and let in four third period goals. Although the Penguins are a much better team on paper than the Avs, it is inexcusable to have a two goal lead and lose it in the final period. Dan Bylsma, the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins recognized what the Avs were doing and made his adjustments. I am not sure who the Avs could get to replace Sacco, so that is the hardest thing about this. Do you guys have any ideas?

Goaltending: First I must say that I am in no way a goaltending expert. I am not a hockey expert for that matter, but the Avs gave up A LOT to get goaltender Semyon Varlamov and while he started the season off well, he has fallen off a little bit. I feel that the Avs made a smart move is getting Jean-Sebastien Giguere to help mentor young Varlamov. I feel that "Varly" needs not only a mentor in Giguere but also a FULL TIME goalie coach that he can work with to get his form and confidence back up. I think that Avs fans should not panic with Varly's play because he is a young man getting used to playing big minutes with an NHL club. The Avs need a goalie that can steal them games and give their forwards and defense confidence and I feel that Varlamov is that guy.

Leadership: I feel that the Avs are good on this front. I think Milan Hejduk is a good choice for now until he retires and will do a good job at showing the youngsters how to play good hockey. After Hejduk the Avs have players such as Erik Johnson, Paul Statsny, Ryan O'Reilly, Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, and also Shane O'Brien has emerged as a viable choice of captain. This team will have a host of players leading the charge for years to come and I have no doubt these players listed will be first into battle.

Management/Ownership: This is also one place that I think needs to change. The management and ownership seem very transparent. An example of what I mean is there is no indication that the management and ownership want to make this team a legitimate contender. In Buffalo, their new owner, Terry Pegula, came out in a press conference stating his intentions, he wanted to win no matter what the cost. He was willing to spend money on the players that management felt would get the job done. Kroenke Sports Enterprises (Stan Kroenke to be specific) has not shown that he is willing to help the Avs win. While he is busy with the St. Louis Rams and Arsenal F.C. he is leaving his Denver franchises' in the dust. Let me be clear though, I do not think blindly spending money like the New York Rangers or Toronto Maple Leafs creates a contender, but I feel that the ownership should allow the Avalanche spend a bit on some free agent players. Although the Avs do have a lot of money to spend this off-season to retain talents such as Matt Duchene, Ryan O'Reilly and many others. 

While It is frustrating to watch the Avs lose, I feel that there shouldn't be too much panic within the fan base because this is a young team trying to find their way to the win column and trying to grow out of their "weird teenage" years.

If you think there are other things wrong or that I am way off mark let me know in the comments!

-Colorado Cross Checker

Sid the Kid

When it comes to Sidney Crosby I do not understand the hate he receives. Maybe it's just jealousy, or something, I don't know. People call him out for his arguing with the refs, but that is his job. He wears the "C" on his chest for that reason, he is the "spokesperson," if you will, for his team. If he feels that the penalty called was not fair then it is his job to let the refs know. People call him out for being a wuss. He plays hockey, the toughest sport in the world. He is not a wuss.

With that said, the speculation on his return was very grating. How many times can you ask Sid, "How's your head?" and expect a different answer than "The same..." I was happy to see him return because he is a rare talent in this league. I was not fortunate enough to watch Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux in their primes. I can watch highlight reels, but it just isn't the same. I am not trying to say that Sid is on the same level as Gretzky and Lemieux, they played in a different era in the NHL. Crosby is a truly special player. He came back from almost a year removed from the NHL and was absolutely amazing. 4 points in a game is nothing to scoff at, especially the way he got them.

Crosby is world talent, his stats and accolades speak for themselves. Over 500 points in less than 500 games, Stanley Cup, Olympic Gold Medal. Those are only SOME of the things Sid the Kid has achieved at the ripe old age of 24. We as hockey fans should be excited Crosby is back. It's great for the fans, Penguins and the NHL.

Allow me to introduce myself.

Before I start my bloggin', I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Bryan Clark, I was born, raised, and still live in Aurora Colorado. I am currently attending college and am working towards a diploma in mechanical engineering. Obviously being born and raised in  Colorado I am a HUGE Avs fan and pretty much watch every game that I can. I do not only watch Avs hockey I watch any hockey I can, no matter which team (Even the Red Wings). I am a fan of the league as well as a fan of the Avs. Well I suppose that is pretty much it, hope you enjoy my blog!