The 2006 NHL Entry Draft held no real surprises for anyone. The consensus top five players were taken with the top five picks, and things continued in a rather ho-hum fashion. At least, it did if you don't count the big deals that went down...

The day before the draft, the Panthers dealt Roberto Luongo, Lukas Krajicek and a pick to Vancouver for Todd Bertuzzi, Alex Auld and Bryan Allen. Now, obviously this trade didn't make headlines because Krajicek was involved, as both Bertuzzi and Luongo have been expected to move for some time now. Luongo could make the Canucks a legitimate contender - more so than since 1994 - and Bertuzzi goes to a new city where he can possibly leave the Steve Moore issue behind him. The one thing that was unexpected about the deal was that Roberto Luongo was under the impression that the Panthers were ready to sign him to a long-term contract that he liked, and he was ready to accept. Needless to say, that won't help Florida's PR, but Luongo should thrive in an actual hockey market.

Calgary picked up Alex Tanguay from Colorado for defenceman Jordan Leopold and a couple picks - an amazing deal for them. They're deep on defence, so no worries in giving up Leopold, and a line with Tanguay and Iginla could be centred by an orangutan - they're still going to score. (I'm not going to lie to you; those two guys are my first-line wingers in NHL 06 - and if that doesn't seal the deal, I don't know what does.)

Toronto grabbed former Rookie of the Year Andrew Raycroft from the Boston Bruins for goaltending prospect Tuukka Rask, who was expendable because of Justin Pogge's presence. In Raycroft, Toronto gets a player coming off an atrocious year, but he's young, and will bounce back. He's also cheap at $1.35M this season, especially compared to the salaries other number-one netminders would have commanded. This essentially ensures that Ed Belfour will be leaving town either through a buy-out or a trade, and either Mikael Tellqvist or J.S. Aubin will follow (probably the former). In Rask, Toronto gave up a great prospect, but did themselves a favour in not surrendering anyone off their roster. The most unfortunate part: "Tuukka Rask" is really fun to say, and that just won't be happening as often in Toronto now.

After the Hurricanes took a 4-0 pounding in Game 6, there were really only two possibilities for Game 7: either they were completely out of gas, or they were going to roar back and avenge their wounded egos by putting their names on the Cup. Turns out it was the latter, as Edmonton couldn't get anything going. Fernando Pisani's goal in the opening minutes of the third period brought with it a glimmer of hope, but Carolina shut Edmonton down the rest of the way, as Cam Ward polished off a Conn Smythe-winning playoff performance with just the one goal allowed.

If you're an Edmonton fan, the loss stings even more now that Chris Pronger wants a trade (for personal reasons, is the word on the street), and Mike Peca and Dwayne Roloson are by no means locks to return. Just when it looked like the Oilers could be contenders for a while, this uncertainty has been heaped upon them, and the tragedy is that their fans - the best in the league - don't deserve it. GM Kevin Lowe is very skilled at his trade, however, and will get back some value in whatever deal he makes for Pronger (and make no mistake, teams are lining up for the defenceman, who is a steal at $6.25 million per season).

As horrible as the Cup loss was for the Oilers, though, any hockey fan couldn't help but feel happy for Rod Brind'Amour, the gritty 'Canes captain who finally got a chance to raise Lord Stanley's mug. He deserved that victory, and the team around him deserved the recognition that they'll now get as a legitimate NHL power.

The Oilers lead Game 3 1-0, after the first period has drawn to a close. If Jussi Markkanen can pull out some big saves for Edmonton, they can still win this series, but it's going to be much tougher without Dwayne Roloson around.

As much as I like the Oilers, I think I might love their fans even more. Again tonight, they cheered "The Star Spangled Banner" (though there was a slight smattering of boos to be heard just before the cheering drowned it out), and then sang "O Canada" as loudly as I've ever heard it. Singer Paul Lorieau actually stopped singing into the microphone halfway through, holding it above his head instead so that the crowd would take over. And they did. I got chills, and many of the Oiler players have said they experience the same when their hometown crowd does that. Just a great bunch of hockey fans out there in Edmonton, loyal, spirited, and deserving of a Stanley Cup. Here's hoping.

To be giving away contracts like this, we must be craaaaazy!!

Hoo boy. The Tampa Bay Lightning are doing their damndest to ruin the NHL's pay structure. Again.

Brad Richards' new deal - $7.8M/year for 5 years - makes him the league's second-highest-paid player. And he's definitely not the second-best player in the NHL. Sure, Richards is consistent, can put up points, and is a natural leader, but an elite scorer he is not, and he doesn't deserve close to this amount of money, especially when there's a salary cap around. This is going to really mess things up elsewhere around the NHL; Bryan McCabe was signed to a 5-year, $29 million deal (apparently the Leafs' brass got a hold of whatever Tampa GM Jay Feaster had been smoking), which is more money than he deserves as well. That's $5.8M per season, kids - his defensive partner Tomas Kaberle, who is arguably a better D-man, will earn almost $1.6 million less per year. Wade Redden and Zdeno Chara are also reportedly looking for $7.8M per season, making it impossible for the Senators to sign both; it's possible that even signing one of the two could be out of reach. So Ottawa fans, thank the Lightning for that.

Back to the playoffs, how 'bout those Oilers? And those 'Canes? Should be an entertaining Cup Final...at least, for the people who care. The bulk of North Carolina (outside Raleigh, anyway) will be watching basketball, baseball or soccer, but you can bet that everyone in Edmonton will be paying close attention. So here's my prediction:

STANLEY CUP FINAL

Edmonton vs Carolina - Edmonton in 6
-The long layoff might hurt the Oilers at first, but I'm confident they'll bounce back. In all likelihood, it will come down to special teams, which will pit Carolina's juggernaut of a power play against Edmonton's masterful penalty killing. As much as I like Edmonton, though, I wouldn't mind seeing Rod Brind'Amour win himself a Cup...we'll see what happens.


Also, not to gloat, but just let me point out that I've had some pretty damn good predictions so far...I hope somebody's winning money on these; it'd be a shame not to. I'm particularly proud of myself for beating all of TSN's analysts - even their monkey.

This isn't me getting cocky; I realize that I could easily lose this round, but I'm still 10-4 going into the finals. By the way, I've just read your future in the stars...opportunity will knock tomorrow, but don't let old feelings get in the way of your goals; also, watch out for your death, which will be caused by - sorry, an airplane's in the way of the rest. It's probably not important.

Just some assorted ruminations:

Now that the NHL playoffs are down to two series, Jim Hughson is no longer calling the games, and that's too bad. In Canada, CBC is using their usual team of Bob Cole and Harry Neale, and TSN has moved back to Gord Miller and Pierre McGuire, as Chris Cuthbert's services will no longer be necessary for The Sports Network this season. Now, I do enjoy listening to Gord Miller, but Pierre McGuire makes me want to beat my head off things; on the CBC side, I used to love hearing Bob Cole every Saturday night, but bless his heart, he just doesn't have it anymore. Miller and Neale would be a decent tandem, but that just won't happen. This is rather inconsequential in terms of the game of hockey itself; it just irks me that I need to tune out half of the commentary in order to keep my sanity.

Update (2006-05-24): It turns out that CBC is indeed carrying some of the Eastern Conference Final, so the duo of Hughson and Greg Millen is still getting some work.

At the World Championships in Riga, Latvia, Canada skated to another fourth-place finish. Is it just me, or are Canadian men just not fans of bronze-medal games? They were slaughtered 5-0 by the Finns, and if you'll remember all the way back to 1998 in Nagano, they put in another lacklustre performance - again, against Finland. Now, maybe these seem like very separate occurrences, or maybe you could even say that Team Finland really shows up to battle for that third spot, but it seems like after the Canadians are out of gold medal contention, they always roll over and die. Just my two cents.

Back to the NHL, it's really been a strange second season so far, one made possible by the salary cap. Rather than the usual formula of at least one top team in the Cup finals, it's entirely possible that there could be two Cinderellas at the ball. Sure, the Hurricanes played a very good season and finished second in the Eastern Conference, but I'm not sure anyone's ever seen them as a juggernaut. Maybe that's because not many people have ever taken the 'Canes seriously anyway, or because they played 32 of their 82 games against the East's weakest division, but
the bottom line is that none of the remaining four teams were on anybody's list as a surefire Cup bet at the season's beginning. But of those four, my money's on Edmonton. The Oil is on fire, and I'm not sure anyone's going to be able to put it out.

First off, congratulations to the fans in Edmonton for the super-classy way they conducted themselves during the anthems of Game 6. If you haven't already heard, not only did they loudly cheer the American anthem, but everyone sang "O Canada," and I'm fairly sure I saw tears in the eyes of a couple Oilers on the bench.

Now then. Predictions. (And quickly, before I turn on the Western Conference Final.)

WEST

(6) Anaheim vs (8) Edmonton - Edmonton in 6
-The Oilers have the strong defence to counter Anaheim's hard forecheck, and will go to the net with more gusto than Calgary or Colorado did. Plus, they win every series in six. What's left to tell?

EAST

(2) Carolina vs (4) Buffalo - Carolina in 7
-Two teams who can score and play defence, with hot goalies at either end of the ice. Buffalo will fight to the death, but the 'Canes will ultimately prevail.


So last round my predictions were 2 for 4 in terms of who would win the series...and the only one I got on the number of games was the Sharks/Oilers series. So I'm not sure if that counts. Overall, that puts me up to 8 for 12, so you've gotta like that.

By the way, that series between Edmonton and San Jose was some of the best hockey I've ever seen, if you ignore some of the refs' decisions. The players were all in for that one, so a salute to them. Hopefully the Conference Finals bring more of the same.

At the beginning of Game 5 between San Jose and Edmonton, which was played in California, the Sharks' fans loudly booed the Canadian national anthem. Sure, before it ended, they toned it down a bit, and some even sang along, but come on. It may not be the first time such a thing has happened, and it won't be the last, but where are these people's heads? I'm not sure there's such a huge difference between booing an anthem and burning a flag, and while flag-burning may be seen by many as a perfectly legitimate form of free speech, it's still completely disrespectful, unsportsmanlike, and generally in extremely poor taste...not to mention stupid, if half of your team (and particularly its best players) are from the country that you're booing.

So if you're a San Jose fan who either booed "O Canada" tonight or cheered the fact that it happened, just think: do Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo really think they're playing a "home" game if they hear their country being disrespected by the people who are supposed to support them? Did Scott Hannan and Patrick Marleau smile inside and think, "I'm so proud of our fans"?

Congratulations! You're idiots.



Oh, and if Oiler fans decide to reciprocate on Wednesday night, or if any team's fans ever do it again at any point, just read this message again. The parts that apply, anyway. For a sport that's lauded for it's encouragement of sportsmanship - see, for example, the handshakes that follow a hard-fought playoff series - this kind of crap is just an embarrassment.

There's nothing I could say about yet another early postseason exit by the Ottawa Senators that hasn't already been said by one of the talking heads on television, but TSN's Bob McKenzie might have put it best with the quote, "Let's call this what it is: epic failure." Many Ottawa fans (the ones left on the bandwagon, anyway) will be quick to blame Ray Emery, who wasn't anywhere near as good as Ryan Miller was in the Buffalo nets. Put it in perspective, though - Miller was amazing, and it wasn't Emery's fault that Sens captain (and perennial playoff phantom) Daniel Alfredsson scored only two goals in the postseason - an empty-netter against the lightning, and a powerplay goal to tie Game 5 at 1-1. Not only that, but it was Alfredsson who Sabres grinder Jason Pominville walked around to score the shorthanded game-winning OT goal (his fifth marker of the playoffs).

Alfredsson wasn't the only Senator playing shoddy defence, though; witness Chris Drury's powerplay goal in the second period of Game 5. After getting the puck between the right faceoff dot and the bottom of the circle, he walked right in on goal as all four Ottawa penalty killers watched, dumbfounded. This was the story of the series to be sure, as many of the goal scored against Ray Emery were garnered off odd-man rushes, surrendered by sloppy pinching and worsened by the remaining defenseman's inability to decide whether to take away the passing or the shooting lane.

Would things have been better for Ottawa if they'd had Dominik Hasek between the pipes? Maybe, but who are you going to blame for that one? Management for signing a 40-year-old goalie with groin problems who'd played a handful of games over the last three years? Or the team, for becoming so dependent on that ticking time-bomb?

One thing's for sure: heads will roll in Ottawa before the next training camp begins. Let's see if the bandwagon-jumpers will hop back on board.

I'm sure everyone's heard by now about the wonderful jobs that the NHL's referees are doing of maintaining their high standards on what constitutes clean play; for the most part, the parade to the penalty box has continued straight on from the regular season. But every so often, you'll see refs let some glaring penalties go, and what do the commentators tell you? "Oh, they're letting them play! It's good old-fashioned hockey!"

Well, that's good old-fashioned BS.

I'm not saying that I like seeing 57 penalties each game, but I would like to see a little more consistency out of the refs. If they want to let a few more hits go, whatever, but let them go for everyone, not jsut when you feel like taking a night off. And there are some disgusting examples of penalties that should be called no matter what the situation - take tonight's San Jose / Edmonton tilt. Late in the second overtime, Shark defenceman Scott Hannan put Oiler forward Shawn Horcoff in a headlock from behind and put him down to his knees, then practically sat on Horcoff's head. The ref was standing fifteen feet away, looking straight at them, with no call. I don't care if it's the second overtime of Game 7 in the Finals, you call that penalty. Granted, the Oilers got away with a few bad ones too, but that's no excuse; all the glaring ones should have been called. Now, a penalty was assessed to Jarret Stoll in the dying minutes of that period after he took down Jonathan Cheechoo (robbing him of a gimme of a scoring chance), but one has to wonder if the referees weren't just showing Gary Bettman that they still know how to blow a whistle; after all, the commish did say that if they didn't call the penalties, they wouldn't be reffing any more of these playoffs.

It all makes you wonder: what's the use of a two-referee system if the only guys blowing the whistles are the linesmen?

I know, I know, I said "before the games start" for my predictions, but things happen. Really, if you have a chance to hear Romeo Dallaire speak, you're not going to go home and blog instead. Anyway, here they are:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

(1) Ottawa vs (4) Buffalo - Buffalo in 6
-It'll be a high-scoring series, and I don't think the Senators will be able to keep up with the Sabres' speed either. The Ottawa papers have been singing Ray Emery's praises and gushing about how he can take the Senators all the way, but he hasn't seen nearly as much puck as he will in this series.

(2) Carolina vs (3) New Jersey - New Jersey in 6
-Both teams can score, and they have good goaltending on both ends of the rink, but the Devils are on fire right now. Their more stable defence should win out.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

(5) San Jose vs (8) Edmonton - San Jose in 6
-Edmonton did an amazing thing in upsetting Detroit, but the Sharks should be ready for them. The Oilers need to beware of San Jose's depth up the middle; unless they're planning on cloning Mike Peca, they'll be in tough.

(6) Anaheim vs (7) Colorado - Anaheim in 6
-What? Another series in six games? Well, yeah. The Ducks forechecked very aggressively against the Flames and got the job done; if they can rattle Theodore a bit by making him lose confidence in his defence's ability to clear the zone, he could slip back into the poor form that he displayed earlier in the season.

The updated series listings will be up shortly; I'm having some issues with my Internet access, but hopefully they're resolved soon.

As for my first round predictions, I didn't do too badly, if I do say so myself. Six for eight in terms of the winning team, and for two of those I was right on the money with the number of games...and let's face it, I resisted the urge to change my prediction to Devils in 4 after Jagr got hurt, so come on folks; just give me that one.

The second-round predictions will go up tomorrow afternoon, before the games start.

Shot Down in Flames

If you watched Game 7 between Calgary and Anaheim, you probably didn't see what you expected...great if you're a Ducks fan, but not so much if you cheer for the Flames. Anaheim played an amazing series, and were even tougher and grittier than Calgary was; Jarome Iginla tried to wake his team up by fighting Francois Beauchemin, but Beauchemin was pretty much the clear winner of that bout.

Why did Calgary lose? Well, it was a combination of things. Their defence that was so, so good during the regular season just wasn't that great in the seventh game, and at times they looked a little bit lost. They also had trouble with their outlet passing - which isn't to say that anyone on the team could complete a pass, because their puck control and movement was brutal. But to give the Ducks credit, they forechecked hard, and stayed with their men on defence; Anaheim was all over the ice, breaking up passes and winning puck races while Calgary's players seemed to be skating with the weight of the title "Favourite" heavy on their shoulders. Simply put, Anaheim played a solid game, while the Flames, as they say, "crapped the bed."

If there's any consolation for their fans, it's that none of the top four seeds in the West made it to the second round...and then, straight to the mantra of Leafs fans: "There's always next year."

Wow...what a game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Detroit Red Wings tonight; the fourth playoff game to go to double overtime thus far. Edmonton won it 4-3 (or, if you were to believe CBS Sportsline's web ticker, 5-3 in OT...not sure how that happens) on an insane goalmouth scramble after a back-and-forth game that saw the Oilers relinquish a 3-1 lead, and also featured Detroit seemingly scoring the winner in the first OT period, though review showed that the puck squeaked underneath the net when Dwayne Roloson bumped into it, causing it to jump on its pegs. As I said before, the longer this series goes, the better it is for the Oilers, the West's 8th seed with lots of young legs...and nothing makes a series go longer like tacking on a few overtime periods.

You wouldn't know how exciting the game was, however, from the CBC play-by-play announcer; I never caught his full name, but his colour commentator kept calling him "Mark." Mark seemed to have a little trouble figuring out what was going on at times, and the only times he got particularly excited were bonafide scoring opportunities; as soon as the threat passed, he dropped back down to a low tone that I can only guess was valium-induced. He was absolutely terrible at capturing the emotion of the game and the energy of the crowd, and I found myself hoping that at least one Canadian team would be ousted so that I wouldn't have to listen to him again - give me Bob Cole, Jim Hughson or Don Wittman over ol' Mark any day...at least listening to them isn't the equivalent of ingesting a roofie.

Tell you what: I feel a little goofy posting my first-round playoff predictions after 12 of the teams have already played game #1, but better late than never.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

(1) Ottawa vs (8) Tampa Bay - Ottawa in 5
-The Senators' defence is just too strong, and their offence shouldn't have too much trouble with the Lightning's goaltending tandem of John Grahame and Sean Burke. Even without Hasek, Ottawa shouldn't have too much trouble.

(2) Carolina vs (7) Montreal - Carolina in 7
-Montreal had solid goaltending from Cristobal Huet in the regular season, but the Hurricanes have so many weapons that they should ultimately prevail. And nobody on either team wants a Stanley Cup more than 'Canes captain Rod Brind'Amour.

(3) New Jersey vs (6) NY Rangers - New Jersey in 6
-In making this prediction, I'm pretending I didn't see Jaromir Jagr leave Game #1 with an apparent shoulder injury; that could ultimately mean this series is over in 4 or 5 games, especially if the Rangers continue their undisciplined play that saw them give the Devils 13 power plays, on which they allowed 5 power play goals, plus one that Ken Klee tallied just one second after a man advantage had expired.

(4) Buffalo vs (5) Philadelphia - Buffalo in 6
-Philly is a very hostile environment for opposing teams, but that should be the only real problem for the Sabres, who are worlds faster than the big-and-strong Flyers.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

(1) Detroit vs (8) Edmonton - Detroit in 6
-Edmonton definitely has the advantage of young legs, but you wouldn't have known it in Game 1, when Detroit won in double overtime. The Wings are the league's oldest team, but they've got lots of experience, and should go deep; however, the goaltending duo of Chris Osgood and Manny Legace might not be up to the task. The longer this series goes, the better for Edmonton, who will have energy to burn; if they can play smart defence and keep the puck moving, they could wear the Red Wings out.

(2) Dallas vs (7) Colorado - Colorado in 7
-The Avalanche definitely deserves more respect than it's getting; many people seem to have counted them out because José Theodore has had such a shaky season, but Colorado still has a well-built team, not to mention a top line of Alex Tanguay, Milan Hedjuk, and the ever-clutch Joe Sakic. Dallas has quite a few offensive weapons too, plus better defence and arguably a better goaltender, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Colorado advance.

(3) Calgary vs (6) Anaheim - Calgary in 5
-Solid defence, solid offence, a brilliant goalie, a captain who would do anything to win, and so much heart throughout...I just can't see Anaheim overcoming them.

(4) Nashville vs (5) San Jose - San Jose in 7
-Kariya had a huge first game, and the Predators did a good job of holding up Cheechoo and Thornton, but the Sharks still have another big scorer in Patrick Marleau, not to mention 2004 Selke finalist Alyn McCauley and Calgary's pugilist from that year's Cup run, Ville Nieminen. With Tomas Vokoun out, can 30-year-old Chris Mason, with a total of 44 games' NHL experience going into the playoffs, help Nashville hold onto the series? My guess is no.

Toronto GM John Ferguson Jr. fired head coach Pat Quinn and his assistant Rick Ley this morning, and at his 1:00pm press conference, that was about the only thing JFJ seemed sure of. Reporters were ripping into him left, right and center, demanding an explanation of his plan for the future, and reminding him of the many acquisitions he made last summer that didn't pan out. Ferguson often looked quite taken aback by the barrage, and stammered his way to many vague answers; perhaps he wouldn't have seemed quite so unsure of himself if he wasn't aware that his performance is under careful review as well. He might not survive at the post until next season begins.

Notice that I said nothing along the lines of, "Wow! I saw this one coming! I totally called this weeks ago!" I've read posts like that so many times today that I want to scream, and even the talking heads on TSN and Sportsnet felt it necessary to tell us that they'd seen this coming, having the inside connections that they do. Well, I've got news for you, kids: everyone saw this one coming. Toronto wasn't going to miss their first playoffs in 8 years without at least one head rolling, and coaches are hired to be fired. Ferguson's hiring of Paul Maurice as the coach of the AHL's Toronto Marlies was an obvious precursor to bringing him up with the big club; seeing the positive impact Maurice has had on the kids down in the 'A', that just might translate into a big season for the Maple Leafs next year. Notice, however, that JFJ didn't announce Maurice as the new head coach today; that may seem strange, but they shouldn't rule out other candidates, and Maurice still has to coach the Marlies through their own playoff run.

So please, people, no more pointing out that you predicted the obvious. If you'd predicted the Joe Thornton trade last fall, I would have been impressed...but keep this up, and I'm going to start relentlessly predicting that here in southern Ontario, the sun will rise between midnight and 11:59am, and set between noon and 11:59pm. Year 'round, too! You could set your watch to it.

Still singing the Blues

I was ready to get on St. Louis GM Larry Pleau's case for deciding to exercise their option on underachieving left winger Keith Tkachuk, but now that I think about it, it's really not such a bad idea after all. Tkachuk will make $3.8 million next year, but because the CBA states that the average of his contract will count against the cap, that's $5.7 million accounted for. Why is it not a bad idea? Well, this past year, St. Louis ended up with about $27M in salary, with a $21.5M floor. Next year, the league minimum could jump as high as $29 million, which would leave the Blues a good two million below the limit. Now, this extra $1.9M that will count against the cap with the Tkachuk signing should give them a little more of a cushion to make sure they are in compliance with the cap. Clever, no?

Of course, they could have always gone out and spent that money on some free agents who would have earned it...

Good thing the Jays are better this year...

In case you haven't noticed, Toronto was eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since Pat Quinn arrived, and the questions are swirling as they head to the golf course. Will Quinn stay, or will GM John Ferguson Jr. bring Paul Maurice to fill his spot? Will JFJ even be back next year? And which players will be re-signed? Which ones will be let go? Will the Leafs stick with Tellqvist and Aubin in goal? Will there be any big trades or free-agent signings?

After the way Aubin has played in his 10 games with the big club (8-0-2, 2.14 GAA, .926 SV%), he was awarded a one-year, one-way contract for next year. On one hand, it would be good to give him a shot at the full-time starter's job, but on the other, Toronto might be safer to pick up a free agent goaltender like Curtis Joseph. One strategy would be to try Aubin and Tellqvist in net for the start of the year, and if it doesn't work out, a swap could be made; this would mean giving up a pick or a player, but there would also be more goalies available for this type of transaction.

As for skaters, Toronto looked solid to end the year, but a few upgrades could stand to be made. A winger for Sundin should be at the top of the shopping list; Patrick Elias would be a viable-but-expensive option (though Toronto should have plenty of cap room), and Sergei Samsonov or Maxim Afinogenov would work nicely as well. If Brad Richards decides to test the waters of free agency, Toronto could also make a play for him. The rest of the forwards are more-or-less in place, with a few tweaks to be made. Tie Domi, love him though Leafs fans might, has very little impact at this stage of his career, and should step away from the game gracefully this summer. Jeff O'Neill is still under contract for another year, and should be given a chance to turn things around next season; 19 goals and 38 points isn't a bad year, but he has to be much more effective - if not, he's trade bait. Nik Antropov also finished the season strong; Toronto should re-sign him, but should also be prepared to jettison him if he doesn't meet expectations. Clarke Wilm, a capable penalty killer and defensive forward, could be re-signed for the league minimum, but kept as a spare. Eric Lindros - get ready, because you might not hear this a lot - should be re-signed if the price is right. His injury was not concussion-related, which means he should be good to go next year, and if Toronto can get him for around $1 million, they would be wise to seriously consider it. The rest of the forwards should stay status quo; the kids are all right, and they're ready to keep on impressing - Stajan, Wellwood and Steen all had impressive years, Ben Ondrus was a sparkplug, and several other youngsters could be ready to make the jump including Alex Foster, Aleksander Suglobov, Robbie Earl, Jeremy Williams and Johnny Pohl.

Back on defence, things look bright for the future. A slew of capable youngsters have all been impressive this season, with 6 - count 'em, 6 - suiting up for the big boys at some point. Kaberle has signed a 4-year deal, which was a smart move on the Leafs' part. McCabe might be determined to try out free agency, and if he asks for too much, Toronto should let him do it and turn their focus elsewhere - loads of defencemen could be available, including Zdeno Chara, Wade Redden, Ed Jovanovski, Pavel Kubina and Filip Kuba. Richardson played well too, much better than Ken Klee, and should be rewarded with a contract (for somewhat less than the $2.09 million he makes now). When all is said and done, Toronto should use two or three of their youngsters, plus Kaberle and Richardson, with the remaining spot or two filled by McCabe and/or free agents; they should also think about dealing one of their surplus sophomores-to-be to get some return, instead of letting that talent stagnate within the organization. ...What? I didn't mention Berg or Belak? Whoops! Well, Belak is under contract next season, and actually wasn't awful on his own; he works as a seventh defenceman. Berg, on the other hand, should have been traded after his silver medal at the Olympics, when his return value could have been higher; now, Toronto should just stay away from re-signing him. He never lived up to his potential in Toronto, and has just become a running joke among Leafs fans.

Now, if John Ferguson Jr. just reads this and is convinced, then we're set...or best-case scenario, the MLSE could read it, like what they see, and I'm the new GM, which would work out just fine; I always wondered what the ACC offices were like.

Things have started settling a little more in the playoff race, although there are still a lot of things to determine. The only playoff team in the East whose position is solidified is Buffalo, in fourth. The Western Conference, however, is just about ready to roll. So far, the playoff matchups will be first-place Detroit versus Edmonton, and fourth-seeded Nashville against number-five San Jose. #2 Dallas and #3 Calgary need to wait and see what happens with the Ducks and the Avs in each team's last game, as Colorado is just a point behind Anaheim.

Stay tuned.

A few things have been resolved after a busy night in the NHL, so briefly:

-Calgary and Ottawa clinch the titles of their respective divisions
-Vancouver's loss solidifies the Western Conference playoff picture, but first-round matchups have yet to be determined
-Toronto and Atlanta both win while Tampa Bay sits idle; the Thrashers and Leafs are now 2 and 3 points back of the Lightning, respectively.

Check out TSN.ca's complete standings here.

With every NHL team having between two and four games remaining, the playoff picture still isn't cleared up, as some are hanging on for dear life. Here's the 411.

EAST:

-Montreal still hasn't clinched a spot. 9th place Atlanta sits 6 points behind them with four games left, and could catch up; this, however, is unlikely considering the roll the Canadiens have been on since the Olympic break. Three points either way - either through Montreal gaining them, Atlanta losing them, or a combination - would seal the deal for the Habs.
-If anybody should be scared right now, it's the Lightning. Atlanta is just four back of them, and has a game in hand; one misstep by the Bolts could kill them. Toronto is also six points back of the last playoff spot, and have been lighting things up with no regulation losses in their last eight games. It will still take a big miracle, as four points either way with Tampa will send the Leafs golfing, but after Mats Sundin's 4-goal, 6-point night on Tuesday, it looks like they're not ready to give up yet.

WEST:

-The Kings have one point to give between themselves and the 8th-place Oilers, who are cold in their last few games and must snap out of it. Chances of the Kings making it are slim-to-none.
-Vancouver sits one point out of 8th, and both they and Edmonton have two games left. The Canucks play San Jose and Colorado, and will need to rebound after a costly loss to the Sharks on Wednesday night (though they managed to take a point from overtime). The Oil battle the Avalanche as well, with their other game coming against Anaheim. For both these teams, the last two matches will be crucial, and it looks like at least one of the Western Conference's Canadian teams won't be making it to the big dance.

Well, as awful as the Mighty Ducks' announcers may be - and who'da thunk that they wouldn't have amazing announcers for a fantastic hockey market like that? - the Los Angeles Kings have gotten sick of Sean Avery's antics anyway, and are ditching him. And I don't mean at the season's end; I mean right now. Avery was asked to participate in a drill in Wednesday's team practice, and he refused; he was then told to leave the ice. He then met with GM Dave Taylor and interim coach John Torchetti, and subsequently did not accompany the team on a road trip to Phoenix.

Kings fans rejoice! He's somebody else's problem now...so fans of the other 29 teams, start cringing in fear. He could be yours.

Sean Avery: Back to Business

Boy, it's been a while since Sean Avery made a fool of himself, hasn't it? He's been fairly quiet over the last few months; the one notable thing he had to say to the media was to talk about the pink sticks he and several other players are playing with, to promote breast cancer awareness.

But wait!

Mighty Ducks broadcaster Brian Hayward was visiting the Kings' dressing room on Friday, when Sean Avery confronted him about comments he had made accusing Avery of running away from a fight with Anaheim pugilist Todd Fedoruk. The full TSN.ca report can be seen here, but here are some of the highlights (as reported by the L.A. Times):


Avery: "You're an embarrassment."
Hayward: "You want to see an embarrassment? Look in the mirror, Sean."

Avery: "You're the reason the league doesn't have a national television deal. You're a (terrible) announcer and you were a (terrible) player."
Hayward: "How would you know? When I played, you were in your third year of eighth grade."

Oh boy. That's good times. From what I understand, Hayward is indeed a mediocre broadcaster, and was a career backup goaltender - he shared the Jennings Trophy (for goalies of the team with the least goals against) with Patrick Roy in three consecutive years (1986-87 to 1988-89), but many would argue that a trained monkey could share the Jennings if your number one is Patrick Roy. On the other hand, he seems to have a quick wit, and if he's going to trade verbal blows with Sean Avery, that makes him my hero for the day.

It wouldn't have been the first time that Avery ran from a fight, and certainly will not be the last - he's not big on backing up that mouth of his - but apparently he felt the need to defend himself. I'm not sure why, because by now his reputation is so far down the toilet that the only people who like him are the ones who like everybody that "speaks their mind," which the monkey doesn't even need to be trained to do, he just needs the power of speech (although I guess flinging feces is a form of expression).

Race to the Playoffs

In the NHL's Eastern Conference, the top eight teams are all but written in stone, with the biggest uncertainty being which place each will finish in. After Friday night's games, Atlanta and Toronto are 6 and 7 points back of 8th-place Tampa Bay, respectively; both have six games to play. All hope is not lost for these two teams, however. Although the Lightning play bottom-feeders Washington and Pittsburgh one more time each, these are teams with nothing to lose, and could prove to be a challenge. Besides that, Tampa faces off against division leader Carolina twice more. Atlanta can look forward to playing the Lightning one more time next Tuesday, in a four-point matchup that they absolutely must win.

The Leafs, meanwhile, must play three challenging teams in Philadelphia, Ottawa, and Buffalo; they will not face any of the teams they are chasing again, and can only control their own fates to a certain degree. Even to win all their remaining games would give them only 92 points on the year, a mark that Tampa should not have trouble passing. That being said, stranger things have happened.

With a 5-1 loss against the Penguins tonight, Florida was eliminated from the race; they will look to get Roberto Luongo under contract now, and with captain Olli Jokinen having signed at the trade deadline, have a decent core to build around. And they should do it fast, because their fans must be losing patience.

Though the playoff race in the Eastern Conference seems to be winding down, in the West, things are still up in the air. Anaheim (92 pts), Edmonton (91), Colorado (90), and San Jose (89) sit in spots five through eight, and the Canucks (87) and Kings (85) are still within striking distance. Of these six teams, the Ducks, Avalanche and Sharks are in the best shape, with 6 games remaining for each. Los Angeles has only four left with which to scrape into contention, with two of those coming against Anaheim and San Jose. Vancouver is in a slightly better position, and will play San Jose twice, along with Anaheim and Colorado once each, in four of their final five matches. The Canucks' playoff drive would be helped greatly by the return of stud defenceman Ed Jovanovski, who is rumoured to be looking at a return to the lineup on Saturday night.

When the fifth seed could still be knocked out of the playoffs, you know the competition is fierce. Anaheim should have their sights set on taking fourth place (and home ice) from Nashville, which sits four points ahead, but the Ducks should be wary of all the teams trying to catch them; they do not have any easy games left, and will be hard-pressed to fend off those which sit below them in the standings.

Should be an interesting last couple of weeks.

You won't hear me arguing against the fact that Alex Ovechkin is a great hockey player, who has exceptional offensive skills and brings a physical edge. But if you're in the "Alexander can do no wrong" camp with Daniel Alfredsson, take a look at this and see if that changes your opinion.

Basically, Ovechkin has been disobeying the coaches, taking shifts that are too long and not covering up defensively, so they gave him some time on the pine to think about it. That's a ballsy move, taking a firm hand with a young star with so much self-confidence; it's also smart, trying to rein him in early. Hopefully it works, and he remains professional about it. The lesson might lose a little bit of its power when it's given by a cellar-dwelling team who ended up losing the game, but it's a lesson Ovechkin needs to learn all the same.

The Trouble With Trades

The Vancouver Canucks and the Edmonton Oilers made a flurry of deals on March 9 in an effort to solidify their respective lineups for a long post-season run. Vancouver went out and got defencemen Eric Weinrich, Keith Carney, and Sean Brown, as well as goalie Mika Noronen to back up Alex Auld. In the short term, the three blueliners were supposed to fill in for injured rearguards Ed Jovanovski, Sami Salo and Mattias Ohlund. And guess what? Since the deadline, the Canucks are 0-2, and winless in their last four games.

The Oilers, picked up Dwayne Roloson to be their number one netminder, as well as sniper Sergei Samsonov. The Oil also have four losses in as many games, with Roloson taking the loss in three of them.

Calgary, meanwhile, only picked up centre Jamie Lundmark - much to the chagrin of the "experts" on TSN and Sportsnet - yet stormed back into first place in the Northwest Division, while the Canucks and Oilers slid down to seventh and eighth.

Am I suggesting that these trends are going to continue? Of course not; I still expect (and hope) that all three teams will make the playoffs. But I do find a little bit of irony in the fact that two of the teams thought to have done the best at the deadline are winless since then.



Also last Thursday, Carolina made one more slick move to prepare for a run at the Cup by acquiring Mark Recchi from the Pittsburgh Penguins. They're looking more and more formidable by the day, and have a good mix of youth and experience that could take them all the way to the top; add the fact that they're one of the league's fastest teams, and you've got yourself a juggernaut.

Of course, if you're one of those people who listens to what Al Strachan says - you're in my prayers, by the way - then you'll be interested to learn that he believes the Hurricanes have absolutely no shot whatsoever at winning the Stanley Cup. He told the Sportsnet panel that they simply don't have the experience necessary to win it; it's not that they're unlikely to win, it's that they absolutely won't. Now, I'm not going to be so stupid as to guarantee that they win it, but how can you count out this team? That's right, you can't. Sure, his arguments might hold water - there's a lot of pressure on the 1st-overall team, Gerber isn't really playoff-tested, blah blah blah. But do these things completely guarantee that they won't win it all? Of course not. This claim of Strachan's might have been a little easier to take if he hadn't presented it as though anyone who disagreed was a complete moron - the same way he makes most of his claims on Hockey Night in Canada's "Satellite Hot Stove" discussions. Any time the other men on the panel would approach the subject of Carolina's playoff chances, he would sneeringly refer to them as "your beloved Hurricanes." Maybe he's getting ready for a career in politics.



Finally, Daniel Alfredsson on the rookie race:

"I just think (Ovechkin has) everything you could want. He's a great skater, he's a great stickhandler, good one-on-one and he's got a really good work ethic. He doesn't get frustrated if he gets hit, either. He gets up and keeps playing. Not like the other rookie (Crosby), who starts crying. I think there's a big difference in the attitude."

I guess ol' Daniel didn't watch the World Juniors last year, when Alex Ovechkin was in tears after getting thumped around by Team Canada (including Crosby, who even laid a hit on the Russian) en route to a 6-1 Canadian victory. Let's also keep in mind that Ovechkin is playing for a team that wasn't supposed to do anything this year; they were expected to come across the line dead last, so there isn't much pressure on the big Russian. Meanwhile, Crosby's Penguins were expected to be a playoff team - they were predicted to come sixth by The Hockey News prior to the season - and they've done nothing more than stink out the Mellon Arena. His friend, mentor and landlord, Mario Lemieux, also retired mid-season, putting even more pressure on the kid from Cole Harbour, who was given an "A" on his sweater by new head coach Michel Therrien. And really, who can blame Crosby for getting frustrated? He's a target every game, he's taunted both in the media and on the ice, and he's only 18 years old; on the other hand, the 20-year-old Ovechkin played in the Russian SuperLeague before coming over to the Capitals, so he's got much more experience playing against grown men.

I'm not slighting Ovechkin's accomplishments, because he's an excellent hockey player, but all these people who criticized all the hype heaped on Crosby also seem to have bought into it, since they apparently expect him to not just live up to it, but surpass it; the second he doesn't, he becomes a "crybaby" and a "whiner," and never mind his 74 points in 64 games (good for 10th place in league scoring) - that's just an inconvenient statistic.

Looks like the NHL's general managers have really kicked things into high gear the day before the trade deadline. There have been many moves - some major and some minor, depending on who you're talking to - already today, and there are still more than 16 hours until the deadline.

The major moves:

Montreal trades Jose Theodore to Colorado for David Aebischer. These two teams have dealt in goaltenders in the past (remember Patrick Roy?), and they're both hoping that these goalies will find new life in new environments. Aebischer has never really instilled much confidence in Avs fans, while Theodore has had an awful season so far. Theodore is still out with a broken heel, but should be back by the start of April.

The Islanders trade forward Mark Parrish and defenceman Brent Sopel to Los Angeles for forward Jeff Tambellini, D-man Denis Grebeshkov, and a conditional draft pick. With this, the Islanders send over $2 million in salary California's way, when all price tags in this deal are accounted for; meanwhile the Kings, 6th in the West, have some big-time help for their playoff run.

The minor:

Toronto dealt defenceman Ken Klee to the Devils for prospect Aleksander Suglobov, while picking up another blueliner, Luke Richardson, from Columbus for a conditional draft pick. The difference between the two defencemen isn't huge; they both play the same style of game, but Richardson's price tag is $190,000 higher. This, of course, is helped by the waiving of Mariusz Czerkawski. Consider the trades in these terms: Richardson for Klee, and a prospect for a conditional pick. I would have to say that the Leafs win out here, and though Richardson is 36 years old and will be a free agent this summer, either his departure or his eventual retirement will leave a roster spot open for one of the Leafs' young defencemen. Toronto also signed Bowling Green University's star forward Alex Foster.

The Senators signed utility skater Brad Norton, who has been playing this season with HIFK Helsinki in Finland. He's just another body to add to the roster, whether at the pro level or in the AHL, as he's signed a two-way contract. Probably won't add much to a potential Stanley Cup contender; if they're looking for a player with sandpaper, they can do better than this.

The San Jose Sharks acquired scrappy forward Ville Nieminen from the Rangers for a 3rd-rounder in 2006. This is who the Senators should have gotten, a gritty team player who's not afraid to mix it up, and has decidedly more skill than somebody like part-time goon, part-time thug Brian McGrattan. Instead, the Rangers are gambling that they won't need Ville's skills during the playoffs - judging from how well he played for the Flames on the way to the 2004 Finals, I would think that every team would want a Ville Nieminen.

Finally, Anaheim signed prospect Bobby Ryan to a three-year deal; the young American star is expected to be a big part of their future. Also, the Washington Capitals kept defenceman Brendan Witt off the ice as a healthy scratch tonight, which makes it fairly obvious that he will be traded before 3:00 tomorrow.

Until demain...

As of precisely 13 minutes ago, TSN.ca is reporting that the Edmonton Oilers have acquired Dwayne Roloson from the Wild for a first-rounder and a conditional pick. The Oilers waived goalie Mike Morrison this morning. Roloson is 6-17-1 this season, with a 3.00 GAA and a .910 save percentage. This gives Edmonton the number-one goalie they've been needing for a while, and it also ends the speculation on which goaltender will end up with the Oil - Ed Belfour, Curtis Joseph, Martin Biron and Mika Noronen were also rumoured to be headed their way. Joseph or Biron would have been prime acquisitions if the deal had been just right, whereas Belfour would weigh down their pocketbooks, and Noronen is not a proven starting goalie, adding another noggin to the three-headed monster they had in nets with Ty Conklin, Mike Morrison and Jussi Markkanen.

The Bruins have also picked up Mariusz Czerkawski off waivers from Toronto, looking to fill some roster holes that have been opened up by injuries. There are a few guys in Hogtown who will look awfully silly if he starts scoring in bunches.

The stage lights come on, revealing an apartment in downtown Toronto. The phone rings. A six-foot-one, 205-pound 22-year-old man named Brendan crosses the room to answer it.

Brendan: "Hello?"

Mysterious Caller: "Hi, am I speaking with Marlies defenceman Brendan Bell?"

Brendan: "Yes, you are...who is this?"

Caller: "This is John Ferguson. We're going to need you to hop in a cab and come down to the ACC, Brendan. You're playing tonight!"

Brendan: "Oh, wow! Really?"

Caller: "Yes, Andy Wozniewski got hurt the other night and we really need your bodychecking...and your puckhandling skills...and your shot...and your, uh, awesomeness...and bring some beer."

Brendan: "Wait a second...Ben Ondrus?"

Caller: "Hahahaha...yeah man, it's me. I was just kidding; I got the call-up, you're already sent back down. Tough break, dude...but at least you get the night off, right? See you later."



I guess my new drama, The Trials and Tribulations of the Exquisitely Fluctuational Life of Brendan Bell and His Faithful Dog Chowderhead won't ever show on Broadway...in fact, I'm still trying to think of ways to work the Chowderhead character into the script. Really, he's just a dog, so what can you do with that? It's a hard life.

If, however, I decide to have one of those epilogue-type deals, where it tells what happened to all the characters after the fact, I would have to mention Ben Ondrus' game with the Leafs tonight, and he was tremendous. The kid's all hustle. He got a lot of ice time in the first period, and threw checks all over the place, playing a fast, gritty game. He even managed to draw a cross-checking penalty from a frustrated Saku Koivu. The contribution the Maple Leafs got from Ondrus was fairly consistent with what all their minor-leaguers have done this year when called up, playing with lots of heart and energy, and this team needs a ton more of those two attributes. The rookie's play sparked Toronto, as many guys stepped up and had their best games in a while; Jason Allison even outraced a few Canadiens to loose pucks, and if you need to read that twice to make sure your eyes are working right, I don't blame you. Allison skated faster in the first period than I've ever seen him skate before.

Ed Belfour also played his best game in a long time, and had the fans chanting "Eddie, Eddie" after he robbed Saku Koivu from point-blank range - twice - during a Montreal power play. Will that be the last time they chant "Eddie" in Toronto? We'll know by Thursday...

To close things out for the night, some precious Pierre McGuire Moments:

Gord Miller: "[The question on everyone's mind is] could Alexander Ovechkin be the MVP?"
Pierre McGuire: "No!"
Miller: "Why not?"
McGuire: "........" (no response)

Pierre McGuire, on an Andrei Markov hooking penalty: "[This penalty is] tough for Markov, because in the old NHL, it's not a penalty." Um...how many games have they played now, Pierre? Sixty-one? I would think that he could get used to the new rules in three-quarters of a season.


P.S. This hasn't suddenly become a blog just about the Leafs, but I find myself mainly concerned with their fortunes lately. Come draft day, it'll be back to basics for everybody.

P.P.S. Yes, I realize that "fluctuational" is not a word. It's called "artistic license." Leave me alone.

As mentioned today on Raking Leafs, Mariusz Czerkawski has been waived by the Maple Leafs. I can't help but think that he could have been put to better use this season. Sure, he scored a paltry 4 goals in 19 games, but he also never really got a chance to play several games in a row, to try and find his stride (if, indeed, it was to be found). Quinn "experimented" with him on Sundin's wing - notice the quotation marks, since said experiment never lasted very long. If the two had been able to drum up some chemistry together they could have been a force, a la Sundin and Mogilny, while Chad Kilger or Darcy Tucker could have played Gary Roberts' old role on left wing; Wellwood could have even played the left side for some more creative playmaking.

What's done is done, though, and the Leafs have finally shaken free of the overwhelming burden of Czerkawski's $500,000 salary (note the sarcasm). There are three reasons he could have been waived:
-John Ferguson Jr. is trying to honour Czerkawski's wish to play where he is wanted, hoping another team will pick him up; after Thursday he still will not have a place in the lineup, so there was no point in delaying the inevitable
-Ferguson has already tried including him in potential trades as a deal-sweetener, and it didn't work, so he was therefore totally useless
-the Leafs GM is shaving the payroll a bit, clearing the deck for a couple of deadline moves

Apparently Toronto is not cleaning house, because the relatively cheap Pole could have filled a hole at forward in the event that the team was just riding out the rest of 2005-06. All the best to Czerkawski, for whom the lockout never really ended. I'm sure he'd rather forget that this season ever happened.

Whether the Leafs make the playoffs or not, their future does not look bad at all, now that Ferguson has beefed up their scouting again. Brendan Bell will make his first NHL appearance against Montreal tonight, giving the Buds five rookie defencemen who have all seen icetime with the big boys this season. Add the eventual arrival of Justin Pogge and/or Tuukka Rask, and things look good on the back end, while Alex Steen and Kyle Wellwood will need some more help up front in order for this team to become a scoring threat again.

As Thursday draws ever nearer, Saturday night's eleven NHL games saw a few teams getting closer to a decision on whether to buy or sell at the trade deadline, depending on their abilities to make the playoffs.

In the Eastern Conference, the Canadiens won again, keeping their distance from the pack of hungry clubs looking for their spot in eighth. 10th place Boston and 11th place Toronto both lost, putting them six and seven points behind Montreal, respectively. The Thrashers, however, defeated the Capitals to keep pace with the Habs, and it looks like GM Don Waddell might still be able to keep his promise that Atlanta will make it to the dance. The latest rumour here is that playmaking centre Marc Savard will be shipped to Calgary for young defenceman Jordan Leopold, a deal that would likely benefit both teams.

Toronto has been at the centre of many trade rumours, with just about every player being named by some talking head, no matter how far-fetched the claim. The latest is that Ed Belfour might waive his no-trade clause for a move to any contender who would pick up his option for next year, paying him more than $4M in salary. Things could look very different in Hogtown by the time the 2006-07 season rolls around, and that might not be a bad thing. John Ferguson was looking ahead a little bit last summer by mostly signing players to one-year deals, so he could evaluate how things worked out under the cap system, and what changes have to be made. The Leafs should look to make changes at every position - four rookie defencemen got NHL experience this season (Wozniewski, Colaiacovo, Kronwall, and Harrison), and didn't look bad. The forward lines don't look terrible on paper, but the on-ice product is something else, especially when Pat Quinn insists on keeping potential big lines apart (Sundin only sees Jason Allison in the locker room and on the power play, and just played half a game with Eric Lindros on his wing before Lindros' wrist injury; Mats has also gushed about how much he loved playing with Wellwood after one game, and they were promptly separated). Not to flog a dead horse, but the Leafs need to acquire someone who can play wing with Sundin and bury the puck when he gets his chances. Meanwhile, Tellqvist is likely to take the reins in the nets, unless JFJ goes after another goalie; Ed Belfour probably won't come back - and rightly so, as he just doesn't play like Ed Belfour any more.

In the West, the Ducks trail the Oilers by just three points for the last playoff spot, while the Sharks missed a great opportunity to move four points back when they were shut out by the Calgary Flames on Hockey Night In Canada. The race here is a bit closer than the one in the Eastern Conference, but not much; it does, however, fly a bit under the radar as the team rankings between second and eighth seem to change hourly. Neither Anaheim or San Jose have been connected to many trade murmurings (the biggest news from the Pond is that centre Tyler Wright cleared waivers and is considering retirement). This could be because they plan on sticking with the players who got them this far, or simply due to Californians' hockey apathy keeping reporters away - there can't be any trade rumours if nobody hears them, can there? Besides, everyone with a voice recorder in California is too busy working out at the gym to prepare for the media scrum on Oscar night.

The Toronto Star is reporting that the Leafs are having trouble getting defenceman Bryan McCabe signed to a new contract, which is of some concern. He is rumoured to be looking for $5M a season, for five years. Considering that partner Tomas Kaberle just got a new $4.25M, 5-year deal, this doesn't sound too unreasonable - although McCabe might be wrong in his assumption that he's worth $750,000 more per year than the smooth-skating Kaberle. Just for argument's sake, however, take a look at what eight of the league's other top defencemen - the ones McCabe played with on Team Canada, plus the two who got hurt - are making per year:

Rob Blake: $6,364,111
Jay Bouwmeester: $946,000
Adam Foote: $4.6 million
Ed Jovanovski: $3.99 million
Scott Niedermayer: $6.75 million
Chris Pronger: $6.25 million
Wade Redden: $3.724 million
Robyn Regehr: $1.672 million

Illuminating, no? Now, obviously McCabe is going to try for as much money as he can, but if he's actually planning on testing the waters of free agency this summer and getting more than $5 million per season, he'll have another thing coming. If one looks at this list of players and figures with the assumption that dollar amounts directly reflect skill level, that would mean that McCabe would be the fourth-best defenceman on the list, ahead of Foote, Redden, Jovanovski, Regehr, and Bouwmeester. Foote was the big free agent signing of this past summer, by the Columbus Blue Jackets, and they only paid $4.6M for his services - a figure that the Leafs, who were rumoured to be a possible destination for the big veteran, couldn't match. McCabe is reportedly looking for a Sergei Gonchar-style contract (also $5M/5 years), but looking at how the Penguins are doing after that acquisition, you won't see many teams looking to make the same mistake by overpaying as they might have last summer.

McCabe's agent, Jeff Soloman, insists that Bryan loves playing and living in Toronto; hopefully he loves it enough to bring his price down closer to the $4.75M price tag that the Leafs are said to be looking for. If this doesn't happen, and it looks to management before next Thursday afternoon at 3:00 that their star defenceman will bail come July 1, he could very well be dealt. It's that simple. And with Toronto likely set to completely rebuild the team if they miss the playoffs, that would free up some big-time cap space for the summertime to sign a player like Brad Richards, or another couple of defencemen.

He's got one week left to decide...

A quick look over at the "Other Blogs" column will tell you that I've added two to the roll:

"Virginia's For Lovers" is by a tall drink of water named Dan Gilbert, and features audio, video, essays, and some of his trains of thought - both sensical and nonsensical.

"Raking Leafs" is by a guy known both as Mike and "Ninja," and follows everyone's favourite Toronto-based hockey team.

Check them out.

Cox and his Crystal Ball

Apparently Toronto Star columnist Damien Cox is running for the presidency of the local clairvoyant society, because in one of his recent columns, he's predicted what Canada's men's hockey team in 2010 will look like. Follow the link to see the complete list, which contains a couple of eyebrow-raisers, but the one that jumped out most at me was Maple Leaf prospect Justin Pogge's inclusion.

"Eh?" says I.

I'm not saying it couldn't happen*, but how does one make this prediction, exactly? The kid's 19 years old right now, and the tournament isn't for another four years; to expect that in that time he'll grow into one of the top three Canadian goalies in the game seems like a bit of a stretch. Granted, youth will be served, but there are other young keepers with a better chance of making it. Marc-Andre Fleury, for example, if he lives up to his potential. José Theodore and Andrew Raycroft could always find their forms again. And what about Cam Ward, the 22-year-old kid (well, 4 years old, according to the calendar - damn those February 29th birthdays) sharing duties with Martin Gerber in Carolina? And if the team doesn't mind getting a little older, Marty Turco and Marty Biron will be 34 and 32 years old, respectively, in 2010.

Sure, predicting that Pogge will be the cream of the crop doesn't hurt newspaper sales, since he's writing in a Toronto paper, but come on, Damien. Don't be silly.


Meanwhile, on the trade front...

The first deal of March went down between the Thrashers and the Ducks today...are you ready?

Anaheim acquired G Jani Hurme, while Atlanta got forward Joel Stepp, and immediately sent him to their ECHL affiliate.

Not exactly a blockbuster, but there's 8 days till the deadline, don't forget. This move was just a salary dump, make no mistake; Hurme pulls in nearly a million bucks per season, and was just an expensive spare part in Atlanta, with Mike Dunham and Kari Lehtonen in the fold. Stepp, on the other hand, is likely to spend the bulk of his career in the minors, as he has already. This won't greatly improve either team; they're just taking care of business.




*See that? I didn't say it couldn't happen. So now if Pogge makes the team, I was "skeptical," not "wrong." That's how they teach things at my clairvoyant society meetings.

Back to Business

The NHL is back in action tonight, but first, a quick round-up of the rest of the men's Olympic tournament:

-Gold for Sweden, and good for them. Seriously. The #2-ranked hockey nation in 2005, they'd endured an awful lot of disappointment since Lillehammer. As for whether they threw the game against the Slovaks, a coach telling the media that he might like his team to lose, doesn't mean that his players are going to go out and lose. They have their pride to consider, and on an international stage like the Olympics, is a group of professionals really going to pull a stunt like that? You can bet head coach Bengt-Ake Gustafsson is breathing a little easier now, too; that gold medal might just have saved his job. It should also help a few of the NHLers - especially Mats Sundin, who was suffering a crisis of confidence - in playing hard down the stretch.

-The Finns are about as bitter a silver-medal-winning squad as you're ever likely to see. And that's okay. Not everybody comes to the Olympics just to do well; these guys play to win. Too bad that mindset would be lost on Jaromir Jagr, who told reporters that this would likely be the last Olympics of many of the Czech Republic players, including himself. "We're not going to play for our country. It's so much pressure. We lose, and they blame us. They blame the old guys again." Makes you wonder what he's doing in professional sports at all, really.


Back to the NHL, though, there's only about a third of the season left to play, and the races for the last playoff spots are wide open. The trade deadline also hits on March 9, just over a week away, so look for quite a bit of swapping to be going on, as big names rumoured to be available are Olli Jokinen, Keith Tkachuk, Mark Recchi, and Brendan Witt; many goalies are also expected to move, a list that includes Sabre Martin Biron, Panther Roberto Luongo, and one of the Wild's Dwayne Roloson or Manny Fernandez.

Teams on the playoff bubble will be waiting until the last minute to decide whether to buy or sell, and one of those teams will be the Toronto Maple Leafs. In truth - and it pains me to say this - it wouldn't be the worst thing for the club if they were to miss the playoffs. A lot of salary would move in an attempt to rebuild, as players like Ed Belfour and Nik Antropov would likely be bidden farewell. Though it might not be the free agent-rich summer that GM John Ferguson Jr. was hoping for prior to Vincent Lecavalier and Joe Thornton signing new contracts in the fall, there will still be some big names available, and with smart spending, the Leafs could be serious contenders again next year.

Also, in one of the more bizarre things I've heard recently, CBS Sportsline is reporting that the Penguins are apparently trying to start a league-wide bidding war for young Russian Evgeni Malkin, who is expected to move to the NHL next season. I'm not sure what the sense in this would be, if the rumour is even true (CBS tends to find trade rumours in their Alpha-Bits, and similarly, in Sun Media newspapers); they would be selling off their potentially lethal one-two punch in Crosby and Malkin, and for what? There is nothing that would be more valuable to Pittsburgh than two young franchise players-to-be. Scoring or defence right now wouldn't help them, they have a young goalie in Marc-Andre Fleury that they're trying to develop, and they certainly don't need high draft picks - they've got the market cornered there. (Never mind that the idea of trading a can't-miss prospect for draft picks makes no sense whatsoever.) Even from the ownership's standpoint, there'd be no upside to any such deal; it makes the team more likely to be moved, as fans lose interest even more, and it makes the selling price much lower. Granted, if Malkin was somehow dealt in a multi-team trade for several young stars-to-be, the Penguins wouldn't be terribly off; since they have so many high draft picks, however, it would be much more advisable to focus on scouting and developing other prospects, to build a team that would be a powerhouse in a few years' time.

I would feel left out if I didn't do a little second-guessing of my own, but I strongly believe that this version of Team Canada had more than enough skill to win the gold, if they wanted it badly enough. And though it's been said dozens of times already, it bears repeating that claiming Wayne Gretzky & Co. picked the wrong players just lets the guys who were on the ice off the hook.

The point has been made by one of the talking heads - I forget which one - that Canada has more than enough scoring talent in the NHL; 12 of the 25 top scorers are Canadian, but some didn't even make the team. Let's look at those players, shall we?

2. Joe Thornton: 55 GP, 21 G - 60 A- 81 PTS
-Scored a goal and two assists in Italy, with a -1 rating. Looked lost on the larger ice surface.

3. Eric Staal: 57 GP, 36-39-75
-Made the taxi squad; his youth and speed would have been appreciated. Many believe he should have made the club ahead of Todd Bertuzzi, and I'm inclined to agree.

6. Marc Savard: 58 GP, 24-48-72
-Plays with some stellar talent in Atlanta, including Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa and Peter Bondra. One can't help but rack up points with that crew. Has solid playmaking skills, but the guys who made the national team were supposed to be better.

7. Dany Heatley: 56 GP, 34-37-71
-Was supposed to be one of Team Canada's major point producers, but scored only two goals and one assist. Another big disappointment.

10. Alex Tanguay: 58 GP, 24-42-68
-Might have worked well on a line with Joe Sakic, his teammate with the Avalanche. Never really seemed to be considered seriously.

12. Sidney Crosby: 58 GP, 28-37-65
-The brightest light by far on a dismal Pittsburgh team, his playmaking skills and raw hunger could have been a boon to Team Canada. More importantly, he would have gained valuable experience, looking ahead to 2010, a squad that he should make easily, barring the unforeseen.

13. Patrick Marleau: 56 GP, 25-39-64
-Plays in San Jose with Joe Thornton; is big, fast, and a natural scorer. Wouldn't a Nash-Thornton-Marleau line have been something, if all three played like they can?

14. Simon Gagne: 51 GP, 37-26-63
-One goal and two assists in Torino; a big letdown from a player who was supposed to be one of the team's leaders. His conscientious play in the back end helped a lot, but when he was hurt in the game against Russia, it really seemed to take the wind out of everyone's sails.

20. Brad Richards: 58 GP, 18-42-60
-Led Team Canada in scoring with two goals and two assists. When four points in six games leads the team, that hurts. Still, he played well, at both ends of the ice.

23. Jason Spezza: 43 GP, 14-45-59
-Made the taxi squad in Italy. Solid playmaker, but not great on defence. With a little more work and experience, should be a lock in 2010.

24. Paul Kariya: 58 GP, 19-39-58
-Notched the opening goal in the gold medal game in Salt Lake City (remember, when Mario let the Pronger pass go between his feet?), and is blessed with speed and scoring ability. Still only 31 years old, though it seems like he's been around forever, and his experience at the Olympic level - as well as his wheels - would have come in handy.

25. Shawn Horcoff: 56 GP, 16-42-58
-Can make plays or hold his own in front of the net, and is good on defence. Comes to play with his heart on his sleeve every game, and it's a big heart. He has some World Championship experience which would have served him well, and while Horcoff was far from a lock to make this team, the role he would have played would have been comparable with Kris Draper's. But should he have made the team? Probably not.

No matter whether these guys were in Italy or not, everyone had to produce a much better effort than they did. In reality, the big issue wasn't who didn't make the team, but what went wrong with the ones who did.

Heartbreaker

On a day when Canada's Olympians had already won four medals, one loss overshadowed the rest. Many of Canada's favourites in Torino had already fallen, and the men's hockey team became another casualty, losing 2-0 in the quarter-finals to a fast, skilled Russian squad.

The second-guessing, if it hadn't started already with two straight 2-0 losses in the preliminaries, is surely rolling along now. Were the right players chosen? Was the coaching to blame? Were injuries to Scott Niedermayer and Ed Jovanovski the downfall of the defence? Was the gambling scandal that clouded Wayne Gretzky's aura a distraction? Was the lawsuit filed by Steve Moore against Todd Bertuzzi enough to throw him off his game?

Wayne Gretzky, for his part, has heaped all the blame upon himself, though anyone with a clear head can see that, for the most part, it's not his blame to accept. For whatever reason, Canada's players failed to perform; they didn't work as a team, and they didn't raise their games to that higher echelon that is so vital to success at this level of play. Despite that, an emotional Gretzky told reporters in a post-game news conference, "I feel tremendously responsible that we didn't win. And quite honestly, I'm going to re-assess where I fit and what I'm going to do in the future...Hockey Canada is wonderful, my country is great, and I love it dearly. But I'm also human, too. It's tough and it's nerve-wracking. It's not fun when you don't win." The Great One had even stopped watching the game before the third period had drawn to a close; when asked why, he said he had "wanted to change our luck."

It didn't work.

Those who believe that Wayne Gretzky was a distraction over the last week - I'm looking at you, Brian Williams - may have had trouble on their own part looking past the gambling scandal surrounding the Phoenix Coyotes, but you can be sure that when Team Canada's skaters had trouble setting up on the power play, or keeping their defensive assignments, it wasn't because they were thinking "Gee, that sure is something about that gambling ring." Wayne Gretzky has earned these players' respect, and allegations against Gretzky's wife and friends aren't going to shake that respect.

The lawsuit filed by Steve Moore, on the other hand, may have shaken Todd Bertuzzi just a little bit, as at times he appeared very tentative, unsure of what he could do. While Brian Williams suggested that if Moore was trying to get back at Bertuzzi with the suit's timing, it was perfectly fair, I would argue that "two wrongs don't make a right." Maybe Williams skipped that day in kindergarten; it's an honour thing. But if that was indeed Moore's intention, I hope he feels good about being one of the many pieces of the puzzle in Canada's loss.

One would have trouble arguing that Canada's offence even approached the level of "adequate" in this tournament, as they scored an average of 2.5 goals per game (compare with the Pittsburgh Penguins at 2.80 GFPG), with 12 of their 15 markers coming against Italy and Germany. Veteran forwards that the team was counting on didn't deliver, and the young guys didn't step up either - I won't name names, because it's a long list. On the back end, the team only allowed 1.83 goals per game, but when you're getting shut out in half of your games, defence can only do so much. None of the goals could ever really be chalked up to spectacular efforts by the opposing squads, but they were in the right places at the right times, while the Canadian defencemen weren't.

On the bright side, Shane Doan, Kris Draper, and Brad Richards all acquitted themselves well, albeit largely in their own end of the rink. If the NHL returns to the Olympics in 2010, Canada will still be in tough, but they will also be able to challenge a plethora of young stars to step up. Look for a kid named Crosby, at least one Staal brother, Jason Spezza, Dion Phaneuf, and possibly even GM Wayne Gretzky, who closed out his press conference with this:

"This country will be back in 2010 and we'll hold our heads high. I'll be there to answer all your questions, I'm not going anywhere, I'll take the responsibility no problem."


Meanwhile, in the American camp...

Though Team U.S.A. made a game of it in the end, Finnish forward Teemu Selanne remarked after the game that "We know we can beat anybody when we play on our level, and we didn't even didn't have to play that well tonight." Unfortunately for the U.S. team, that's a fairly accurate assessment, and while no one has heard of any trashed hotel rooms yet, there was still some drama from them after the final buzzer, as Mike Modano sounded off on what he thinks is a broken system. "You'd think USA Hockey would be a well-oiled machine, but it's not," said the Dallas captain. "Basically we were on our own for hotels, tickets, flights, stuff like that. Normally we wouldn't have to worry about stuff like that."

The comments from Modano, who spent most of the game's latter stages warming the pine, were at odds with GM Don Waddell, who maintains that "the people at USA Hockey do a tremendous job." Waddell was in tears at the post-game press conference, but truth be told, this team was the weakest on paper of the Big Seven, finishing the preliminaries with a 1-3-1 record, and never really hitting their stride, if they had one to hit (as opposed to Team Canada, who had a stride to hit, but never even approached it).

One thing is for sure: Modano, who will be 39 years old by the 2010 Olympics, doesn't feel like he's closing any doors by badmouthing his country's hockey program; at worst, he's lashing out after feeling that he was unfairly benched, but at best, his comments will lead to an overhaul of the system that could see them successful again. They have a load of young talent that will be developing in the NHL over the next couple years, but will that translate into a medal in Vancouver? Time will tell.


...By the way, Harry Neale couldn't help but compliment Bryan McCabe on his quickness in the third period, after the Leaf charged back to strip a Russian player of the puck on a dangerous-looking rush. Well, that salvaged the game for me...Not.

Sigh...

A day after Swedish head coach Bengt-Ake Gustafsson suggested that his team might throw their game against Slovakia, claiming he was "still debating what would be best for the team," those same Swedes were shut out 3-0 by the Group B leaders. The idea was to play the club from Switzerland in the quarter-finals, which according to Gustafsson, "on paper, is the weakest team...I stand behind that. That's a fact."

The players showed up to play, and forward Daniel Sedin got angry with reporters when asked about the coach's comments, but it bears mentioning that backup goaltender Mikael Tellqvist got the start, stopping 28 of 31 shots on goal.

There are no official rules against intentionally tanking a game, but this doesn't look good on the Olympics, on Swedish hockey, or on hockey in general. Either Gustafsson was out of his head when he made those comments, or he's just dumb; whatever the reason, it is sure to enrage everyone involved, and I wouldn't look for him to be coaching the Swedes in 2010.

Sweden and Switzerland face off in the first quarterfinal game at 10:30am ET. It wouldn't be the Swiss' first upset...

Squeaking By

With the pressure applied by the Czechs in the third period, Canada was lucky to get out of the Palasport Olimpico with a 3-2 victory. The Canadians appeared to be working on team defence rather than trying to score, but they still gave up a lot of opportunities that required Martin Brodeur to bail them out, and bail them out huge. Though he made some scintillating saves, Brodeur looked frantic for much of the game, scrambling to get back into position and nearly tripping over his own feet a few times, not to mention being handcuffed on the bad-angle Cajanek goal that brought the Czechs within one. Hopefully playing two games in a row - something he has not done yet in these Olympics - will cause him to settle down a little.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I didn't see Rick Nash step on the ice once in the third period, and his minutes in the first two frames were anything but abundant. This is either Pat Quinn sending a message to the young left-winger, or Quinn is trying to simplify things as 13 forwards makes for lots of line juggling, and thereby presents a challenge to team chemistry. Shane Doan (remember what a good game he had on Sunday?) took Nash's place on Joe Thornton's line, playing on Big Joe's left flank with Todd Bertuzzi on the right-hand side.

Of Bryan McCabe's two penalties in this game, one was not smart (grabbed his man around the shoulder, but McCabe's hand slid up and got him in the face), and the other was unmerited (called for tripping when Rostislav Olesz tried to leap over him and couldn't clear the hurdle). Referee Don Marouelli is off the hook for both; the first was merited, while his view on the second was obstructed by McCabe's backside, and all he saw was McCabe reaching for the puck as Olesz fell down. Again, however, one could take issue with Harry Neale's interpretations, as he rambled about how foolish the first one was (yes, it was, but how many penalties are smart? You didn't hear him ragging on Rob Blake for his blatant hook that put Canada down two men), and after the video replay showed that the second call was suspect, Neale stopped yammering, simply finished his sentence with a feeble "as McCabe hauls him down," and left it at that. The only reason I can come up with for Harry Neale's apparent love of maligning the Leafs defenceman is that he sees McCabe play almost every NHL game, as Neale also does play-by-play for Molson Leafs Hockey on TSN. Perhaps he feels more comfortable criticizing McCabe than he does guys like Adam Foote or Chris Pronger, whom he seldom watches.

Finally, an addition to my last post: Canadian defenceman Jay Bouwmeester is also sporting a visor for this tournament, something he doesn't usually do in the NHL for the Florida Panthers. It is possible that some of these players have upped their protection under orders from their employers, who want to be sure that their assets will come back safe and sound to help down the stretch.

Back to Basics

At the end of the second period, Canada leads the Czech Republic 3-1. Some quick thoughts:

-Martin Brodeur was bowled over in the second frame by Petr Cajanek, who backed into the goalie and fell on his left leg. No penalty was called on the play. Brodeur appeared to be in a good deal of pain for some time afterwards, though he made a spectacular glove save on a Jaromir Jagr one-timer. This bit of adversity fired up the Canadians for the next couple minutes, as Simon Gagne dug hard to clear the zone past two Czechs; Jarome Iginla then followed the puck into the Czech zone and, after a brief hesitation at the top of the faceoff circle, charged in to take out backup goalie Milan Hnilicka. Unfortunately, this earned Iginla the Canucks' first penalty of the game, and Rob Blake gave the referee an easy hooking call just 1:01 later, leading to the Czech goal on a 2-man advantage. Though it's not a bad thing for the Canadians to get geared up like that, they have to have a little more self-control, lest they find themselves in penalty trouble again.

-After a first period that saw Bob Cole and Harry Neale sounding a little more upbeat as Canada scored three, Neale seemed to derive some satisfaction from telling viewers that in the second, the Canadians "dodged a bullet...having been badly outshot, outchanced, and outscored." (Note that being "badly outscored" means having one goal scored against, during a 5-on-3.)

-If you pay attention to players' equipment, you might have noticed that Bryan McCabe and Jaromir Jagr are both sporting new looks in this tournament. McCabe is wearing a visor, which is out of the ordinary for him. Jagr, meanwhile, has switched helmets again; for the start of the Olympics, he was sporting the old-school, Gretzky-style Jofa, but has switched back to his usual Rbk bucket. The latter change was likely spurred by the hit from behind that he received from Jarkko Ruutu of the Finns, when he remembered just how much protection that helmet provides (try on a cardboard box, and you'll have some idea).

A Swedish forward said before the gold-medal game today that, in her opinion, Canada's defence was its weak point. Apparently she underestimated them. So did I, but hey, a 4-2 prediction and a 4-1 result? Close.

The Canadian women were dominant throughout, though they found themselves in some penalty trouble at the game's end, which actually should have been worse than it was. I'm starting to feel like a broken record, but the referee's work was sloppy in the third period, as she seemed to just want to get the rest of the game over with. A few Swedes were mugged with no call in the final few minutes (save a penalty against Hayley Wickenheiser with just under 2 minutes left), and with about 15 seconds to go, the ref raised her arm, signalling a penalty against the eventual champs. The Canadians touched the puck twice before the play was blown dead with two seconds left, but the clock ticked twice more, and the celebration was on.

Why won't I just let sleeping dogs lie? Because it meant my prediction was wrong, that's why! In all seriousness, though, the officials' gaffes have been nonstop, and it should be cause for concern that those mistakes haven't yet been corrected. The calls have been inconsistent at best, and just plain wrong at worst.

Also, WADA president Dick Pound received a fairly warm ovation when he stepped on the ice to present Team Canada with their gold medals. If the Canadian men win some hardware, don't expect such a welcome for him; the players won't have forgotten his accusations that 1/3 of NHLers are on steroids, and the fans might not have either.

Going for Gold

As the Swedish and Canadian women's teams get ready to do battle for the gold medal at 2:30pm ET on Monday, I'm going to make my prediction: a 4-2 win for Canada. Yes, Canada defeated the Swedes 8-1 in the preliminaries, but they didn't have to face goalie Kim Martin, who only allowed two goals against a skilled American team. She did, however, catch a few breaks, as the U.S. had several open-net opportunities in the semi-final game, and failed to cash in; the Canadian women are better on offence, and should be able to take advantage of those kinds of opportunities. At the other end of the ice, Sweden should get more chances than they did the last time around, as fewer goals against will lead to more opportunities to clear the puck out of danger, and likely to a few more scoring chances.

We'll find out for sure when the puck drops in 20 hours.

Canada vs. Switzerland, take 2

Just in case you were thinking that the 2-0 loss to the Swiss yesterday would wake Team Canada up, think again. Another game featuring sloppy passing and poor defensive coverage has seen the world's #1 team drop to fourth place in the Group A standings.

The Finns, much more skilled than the Swiss, played an uptempo game with lots of physical play; they jumped out to a two-goal lead in the first period, and held it the rest of the way home. The Canadians did not do themselves any favours, as their lack of teamwork allowed for few scoring chances - when they did get an opportunity, goalie Antero Niittymaki was there to stymie the shooters. Having been shut out for the last two games in a row, Canada's offence is no less than snakebitten, as evidenced by Rick Nash's breakaway attempt being stopped, and several glorious opportunities fizzling as the puck slid away from the goal mouth, oh-so-close.

Part of the Canadians' woes with regards to teamwork could be blamed on coach Pat Quinn, whose penchant for line-juggling can't be helping the team's chemistry. The forwards need to learn their linemates' habits, which will make playmaking easier. They also need to trust their teammates more, both on offence and defence; that trust will lead to everyone being in the right position, making set plays more effective. At this point, the Canadians all seem to be looking for that glorious pass, or that spectacular one-man effort, and it just hasn't happened. The defencemen need to look for the quick, easy passes out of the zone instead of waiting for the long-bomb feed to become available, as they are now; the forwards need to pass it to their linemates with the intention of creating chances, not just to keep the play alive when the puck carrier is under pressure.

While good moments for the Canadians were few and far between in this game, a few players aquitted themselves well. Shane Doan showed great hustle on the penalty kill, throwing his weight around and landing some big hits. Rob Blake played a mistake-free game. Rick Nash, before he left in the third after being hit with a shot, also played fast and gritty, which is when he is at his best; he did, however, shoot right into Niittymaki's pads on his breakaway.

One of the quarterfinal matchups has already been determined: Finland (A1) will play the U.S. (B4) in the first game on Wednesday, at 10:30am ET (2:30pm in Torino). The rest of the seedings will be decided after Tuesday's games are finished, with the top spot in Group B still up for grabs, and the Swiss, Czechs and Canadians jostling for second place. All the teams have Monday off as the women play for the gold, and some of them - Canada especially - will need that day of rest to find the antidote to whatever is poisoning them.

"Swiss Cheese": not a great goalie analogy anymore?

Did I suggest that the Germans were a tougher team than the Swiss?

Whoops.

With two hot goaltenders in David Aebischer and Martin Gerber, and two big wins against Canada and the Czech Republic, Team Switzerland is letting it be known that they're for real. They play a tight, well-disciplined trapping style, with an extremely aggressive penalty kill that gave the Canadians fits. For their part, Team Canada had an absolutely awful game on offence, undoubtedly partly due to the clingy Swiss defenders; but this is a team that has yet to gel, and needs to do it quickly. Canadian passes missed the mark continuously, making the Swiss look better when they corralled the errant pucks and cleared them out of the zone, and any time there was a good scoring chance on Gerber, he came up big. Two disallowed goals - one called back because winger Todd Bertuzzi was in the crease, and a Rick Nash offering denied because of inconclusive evidence that the puck crossed the line - should have taken the wind out of Canada's sails, but they kept coming hard; unfortunately, they did not get any good quality opportunities again. The near-goal by Nash absolutely looked like it was over the line from every available camera angle, but it wasn't certain because the overhead goal camera in that rink is positioned over the crease, not the crossbar (the one intelligent statement that colour commentator Greg Millen offered up all game).

Team Canada's next job will be to prepare for the Finns, whom they play tomorrow, and a much better effort will be expected; after all, in the past, nothing has brought the Canadians together like a little adversity. And this should be enough adversity for everybody.

A few other observations on the Olympics thus far:

-The hockey refereeing has been awful, with no exceptions. Both the women's and men's tournaments have been marred at times by terrible calls, either from overzealous officials looking for penalties where there are none, or from negligent refs who seem like they'd rather be someplace else.

-I had almost forgotten how negative CBC commentators Bob Cole and Harry Neale can be when they expect great things from a team; during the Canada/Germany game, they were so down on the Canadians that it seemed as though they wanted the Germans to pull off an upset. Even when the score was 4-1 for Canada, the pair spoke like it was only a matter of time before Team Germany scored four quick goals to win it. Hopefully that doesn't keep up, because few things are more irritating.

-Stemming from Cole and Neale's turn as Negative Nancies, the lone goal in the Germany game was blamed entirely on the shoulders of Bryan McCabe - an accusation that just was not true. Just like their work on Hockey Night in Canada, there are times during games where it seems like the two are watching an entirely different match. This was one of those times. So let's use some diagrams!



In the second period, with two Canadians in the box, and one German serving his own penalty, Germany enjoys a 4-on-3 powerplay, moving the puck around the Canada zone. Cole says that it is a 5-on-3.





McCabe's holding penalty expires at 8:59 of the frame, evening the squads up at 4 skaters apiece. Two defencemen are already on the ice for his squad, so he assumes the role of the winger in the four-man grouping, taking the far defenceman on the side boards. Sakic inches closer to the German puck carrier below the goal line, flattening out the defensive triangle. Cole believes the Germans still have the man advantage.



As Sakic cheats lower, the German forward passes to his defenceman (Sakic's man), now in the high slot, who scores far side on Luongo. McCabe's man is well-covered.






Am I sticking up for McCabe because he's a Maple Leaf? Maybe. But there have been too many posts on various sports websites by people who don't know what they're talking about, saying that McCabe doesn't deserve to be a part of this team, and that's just not true. I'm not desperately trying to shift blame, either; Sakic is such a great player that he's allowed to make one mistake, and it didn't exactly cost them the game. The anti-McCabe bandwagon, however, has filled up even faster since the start of the NHL season than the pro-McCabe one, and to hear Neale and Cole hop on board the former irritated me greatly.

-Unfortunately, I will not be able to fulfill Justin's request that I liveblog the hockey games during this tournament. Not only would that require a lot of running (the television and the computer are in two different rooms), but I will be out of town for the semi-finals and the Gold and Bronze medal games. Sorry, Pippy.

-Finally, the three sports commentators I could definitely live without:
3. Greg Millen: Talk, talk, talk, and he doesn't say anything. It's like he's watching a different game.
2. Pierre McGuire: Can this guy get any more excited about absolutely nothing? It's MCGUIRE TO THE MAX! It's MCGUIRE'S MONSTER! It's SOME PRETENTIOUS MORON WHO NO ONE TAKES SERIOUSLY, THINKING THAT BEING LOUDER WILL MAKE HIM CREDIBLE! An actual quote from the World Juniors, after a Russian player took a dive: "That is just the personification of embellishment." (Five second pause) "That is just embellishment personified."
1. Brian Williams: Please, yap some more about how Wayne Gretzky shouldn't be at the Olympics. And when you're on with Don Cherry, roll your eyes constantly; it makes you seem clever. Hopefully for the closing ceremonies, this idiot shuts up and lets Peter Mansbridge do the whole thing...at least Peter can pronounce the countries' names. Who knew Ku-ZAK-uh-stan had a hockey team?