No, we aren’t going anywhere, but we do have a new email newsletter policy which will result in fewer emails sent from MyOfficePool.ca (MOP). Let me explain…
The MOP mailing list was built from people who at some time in the past six years registered a free member account at either www.myofficepool.ca or www.draftbuddy.com. I created a website feature at MOP which allowed all members to specify what topics they were interested in, whether it be our football pools, March Madness Survivor pool, fantasy baseball or what have you.
Working together, the feature allowed me to segment the mailing list and send newsletters to users about topics they wanted to read or be reminded about.
This worked pretty well, but with the great turnout in the recent World Cup Pool, I jumped into a new higher cost service bracket for the mailing list program. Kind of like jumping into a new tax bracket, which everyone tries to avoid like the plague.
While it is a cost of doing business, just looking around most people can sort of tell I’m not making much money on this website/hobby (click an ad people, click an ad please). As a result of this unexpected extra cost, plus the new pool features to allow people to create their own pool groups, which should result in more communications between the group admin and their friends in the group, I got to thinking, “why not just can the email newsletters?” Who likes email anyway?
So, I’ve decided to do away with the large mailing list and in the future will only email the following people:
- Pool group admins, otherwise known as members who create their own groups to invite their friends to play in their own private pools
- Members who join the official MOP $20 Poolies group, otherwise known as our low stakes degenerate gamblers like myself
Of course, exisiting and new members still need a valid email address to receive pick confirmations from the pools, but most of you can expect fewer emails from MOP in the future as a result of this change. Less writing for me; less clutter in your inbox. Sounds like a win-win idea… just don’t go forgetting us now, ya hear?
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(1) San Jose Sharks vs. (8) Colorado Avalanche
Could this finally be the Sharks’ year? Probably not, but at least a first-round upset isn’t in the cards for them again this year. This series lacks the upset potential that some of the other quarter-final matchups have, but the young Avs won’t go down without a fight.
It’ll be interesting to see how players like Matt Duchene and Chris Stewart fare in their first NHL playoff series. While Colorado would get an enormous boost from the return of Peter Mueller, he remains out indefinitely recovering from a concussion.
The Sharks on the other hand are healthy and primed for a deep playoff run. Dany Heatley has 35 points in 34 career playoff games and the Sharks will need him to continue that trend if they’re finally going to silence the critics. The Sharks and Avalanche split the season series 2-2.
Prediction: Sharks in 5
Players to Watch:
Evgeni Nabokov, G, SJ—Following years of stalled playoff runs and a recent early elimination from the Olympics, Nabokov has gained the reputation as one of the game’s most notorious chokers. The pressures of playing on powerhouse teams like the Sharks and team Russia could be getting to the former Vezina Trophy finalist, and if he falters against Colorado in the first round, this could be the last we see of him playing for the Sharks. He is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Chris Stewart, RW, COL—Stewart was the Avs’ trigger man this season and they will need him to score in bunches if they are to advance to the second round. Stewart doesn’t have extensive playoff hockey experience at the pro or even semi-pro levels. He has just 11 postseason matches under his belt at the OHL level, one at the AHL level and until now, no NHL playoff experience.
(2) Chicago Blackhawks vs. (7) Nashville Predators
At the start of the season, the Blackhawks had an excess of skilled defensemen and not enough ice-time to go around. Now they face the opposite dilemma. Defensemen Brian Campbell and Kim Johnsson find themselves sidelined with injuries and are expected to miss the series. Luckily for the Hawks, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are capable of logging big minutes.
While Pekka Rinne might be capable of stealing a game for the Preds, the Hawks from the Windy City should breeze through the quarter-finals. The Blackhawks won the season series 4-2.
Prediction: Blackhawks in 4
Players to Watch:
Marian Hossa, RW, CHI—Could this be Hossa’s third straight season as a Stanley Cup finalist? It’s certainly possible, and with three different teams no less. Cup losses aside, Hossa has an impressive playoff track record the last couple years—41 points in 43 games—and the Hawks will need their $63-million man to start earning that contract with his postseason play.
Shea Weber, D, NAS—The Preds will need Weber to log considerable minutes if they are to contain the ever-dangerous Patrick Kane. Weber had just one assist and a -1 rating in five games against the Hawks this season, so he’ll need to elevate his play if the Predators are to knock off the second seed.
(3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Los Angeles Kings
The Kings head to the playoffs for the first time since the 2001-02 season, and hope 24-year-old netminder Jonathan Quick will be able to shut the door on the Canucks’ high-flying offense. While the Kings’ team features a trio of young stars in Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty and Quick, they’ll likely be overpowered by the Canucks deep roster. Secondary scoring should be the difference in this one. The Canucks won the season series 3-1.
Prediction: Canucks in 5
Players to Watch:
Roberto Luongo, G, VAN—Since his gold medal performance at the Olympics, Luongo has been rather shaky. During the last three weeks of the regular season, Luongo went 3-3-2 and allowed three or more goals in seven of eight starts. He doesn’t need to be spectacular in the quarter-finals for the Canucks to win the series but his recent level of play won’t suffice.
Drew Doughty, D, LA—If it were up to me, Doughty would take home the Norris and Hart Trophies for his outstanding contributions this season. The 20-year-old has been blessed with tremendous skill and hockey sense, and will probably be asked to play around 30 minutes per game in his first series of NHL playoff action.
(4) Phoenix Coyotes vs. (5) Detroit Red Wings
Many are picking the veteran Red Wings to “upset” the Coyotes during this year’s quarter-finals but I think youth and skill will outweigh age and experience in this one. The Red Wings team features a host of former Stanley Cup winners skating in front of rookie netminder Jimmy Howard. While Howard was nothing short of phenomenal for the Wings during the regular season, he’s never been tested during the playoffs.
Ilya Bryzgalov has a brief but impressive playoff resume with a 9-5 record, a .937 save percentage and a 1.68 goals against average. The Yotes should win this battle of the backstoppers. The Coyotes and Red Wings split the season series 2-2.
Prediction: Coyotes in 7
Players to Watch:
Lee Stempniak, RW, PHO—Stempniak could further cement himself as the smartest acquisition at this year’s trade deadline if he can continue his scoring prowess against the Wings. Like many of the younger Coyotes, Stempniak has no playoff experience.
Johan Franzen, RW, DET—With 25 goals accumulated over the Wings’ past two playoff runs, “The Mule” definitely has a flair for the dramatic. However, he’s scored just three goals in 14 meetings with the Coyotes during his career.
~ Pick the team to win each series
~ Pick the games for each series
~ Pick 5 players to score points
~ $20 to enter ~ 1st, 2nd, 3rd place
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(1) Washington Capitals vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens
The Habs fan in me is hopeful that the Canadiens 2-1-1 record against Washington this year is a sign that an upset could be in the cards for this season’s President’s Trophy winners. The realist in me doesn’t see any way the Habs can make this a real series unless Jaroslav Halak puts up a brick wall and the Caps’ goaltending falters.
While there is a slight chance of that happening, it’s worth nothing that not only has Halak not looked particularly strong of late, but he has not faced the Caps at all this season! Carey Price was in net for all four contests between the two teams, so Halak might be in for a rude awakening.
Prediction: Caps in 5
Players to Watch:
Scott Gomez, C, MTL—Gomez is a veteran of three trips to the Stanley Cup Finals, and has two rings to show for it. He has 30 points and a +7 rating through his last 28 playoff games. Plekanec’s line will draw a significant amount of the Caps’ attention, and Gomez is going to need to take some of the pressure off him if the Habs are going to go anywhere.
Mike Green, D, WAS—Green was abysmal in the playoffs last year, but he posted seven points during the Caps first round exit the year before. It will be interesting to see which Green we get to watch this year.
(2) New Jersey Devils vs. (7) Philadelphia Flyers
Most pundits have written off the Flyers, but I don’t expect them to go quietly. The Flyers actually took 5 of 6 meetings from the Devils this year. Most recently, Brian Boucher was in net for a 5-1 win on March 28th. Chris Pronger has led an 8th seeded team on a deep playoff run before, and even Brian Boucher has been to an Eastern Conference Final.
The Devils’ roster boasts an impressive 14 cup rings though, compared to just one for the Flyers. Special teams also tend to play a key role in the post-season, and while the Devils are the third-most disciplined team in the league, the Flyers are the second-most penalized. The Devils defense, discipline, and experience should get them past the Flyers in what promises to be a hard-fought series.
Prediction: Devils in 6
Players to Watch:
Claude Giroux, RW, PHI—Pronger, Richards, Gagne and Carter will all need to produce for the Flyers to have success, but Giroux may very well be the X-factor. He was arguably the Flyers’ best forward during last year’s playoffs, but he had underwhelmed most of this year.
Ilya Kovalchuk, LW, NJ—Kovalchuk’s goal-scoring has slowed since he joined the Devils, and he has disappointed in his brief playoff career so far. That being said, he should see plenty of power play ice time and as a result could post some big numbers in the first round.
(3) Buffalo Sabres vs. (6) Boston Bruins
To me, this is a pretty simple one: the league’s second-worst offense (Boston) heads to the playoffs without their best offensive player (Marc Savard), and is forced to face the league’s best goalie (Ryan Miller) in the first round. I simply don’t think the Bruins have enough firepower to get by the Sabres.
That being said, the Sabres don’t exactly boast a high-powered offense, and Tuukka Rask has been pretty spectacular so far this season. Rask is an unproven commodity come playoff time, but he certainly has the potential to make things interesting.
Prediction: Sabres in 5
Players to Watch:
Tomas Vanek, LW, BUF—Vanek has been a huge disappointment this year, scoring just 27 goals. The uber-talented Austrian has five in his last two games though, so he could be poised to explode in the playoffs.
Tuuka Rask, G, BOS—Any hope Boston has rests squarely on the shoulders of Rask. The Finn has never played in an NHL playoff game though, so it will be interesting to see how he responds.
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) Ottawa Senators
This strikes me as the most interesting of the first round matchups in the East. The two teams split the season series with two wins apiece. Ottawa heads into the playoffs playing inspired hockey, going 7-2-1 in their last ten.
The Pens, on the other hand, have gone 5-4-1 in their last ten, and it’s worth pointing out that they needed a five point night from Sidney Crosby just to beat the Islanders 6-5 in a shootout for that last win.
Pittsburgh still has that same young core that has been to two consecutive Stanley Cup Finals, so it’s tough not to like them to get by the Senators. The Pens get my vote, but this series also gets my vote for “most likely to end with an upset”.
Prediction: Penguins in 6
Players to Watch:
Alex Goligoski, D, PIT—Goligoski’s ice time has almost matched that of Sergei Gonchar’s of late, and he has 34 points in 32 career AHL playoff games. He could really make a name for himself this spring.
Brian Elliott, G, OTT—This is a bit of an obvious one. Elliott has provided the stability that many hoped Pascal Leclaire would provide between the pipes, but he still remains untested in the playoffs. J.S. Giguere made himself a household name during the Ducks’ 2003 playoff run, and who knows, Brian Elliott may just do the same.
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The regular season is winding down, and a good number of fantasy junkies are gearing up for playoff pools. These pools offer a shot at redemption for those of us who have been out of contention in our pools for awhile now, and a chance to hold ultimate bragging rights for regular season victors.
With this in mind, let’s have a look at a few of this season’s stars, and how they tend to perform in the postseason.
Captain Clutch
These guys have produced when it matters in the past, and there’s no reason to think it won’t happen again.
Evgeni Malkin, C, PIT—Last year’s Conn Smythe trophy winner has a total of 62 points in 49 playoff games. It’s been a tough year for Gino, but don’t let that make you pass him up for the playoffs. Sidney Crosby also gets an honourable mention here, since his re-invention from playmaker to sniper really began during last year’s playoff run.
Alex Ovechkin, LW, WSH—Same old Ovie come playoff time…
Nicklas Backstrom, C, WSH—Backstrom’s playoff performance last year closely mirrored his regular season production. He’s been even better this year, and become a pretty responsible defensive player too. I expect him to turn a lot of heads this postseason. That is, of course, if the Caps make it anywhere in the post-season, and that’s all up to Jose Theodore and Semyon Varlamov.
Patrik Elias, C/LW, NJ—Elias falls into the sleeper category for this year’s playoffs, as he’s had a pretty unremarkable season. His playoff resume is impressive though. He currently sits 5th among all active players in playoff points with 113. The Devils look poised to make a decent run come playoff time, and I would expect Elias to be a big reason why.
Playoff Busts
The following gents have a reputation of underperforming come playoff time. They may still give you some production, but don’t expect the same player you saw in the regular season.
Joe Thornton, C, SJ—Jumbo Joe’s playoff struggles are well-documented. For his career, the perennial regular season assist-king has just 53 points in 76 games, with a -12 rating. The Sharks are pegged as contenders year after year, and Thornton’s annual disappearing act is a major reason why they’ve never made good on their contender status. Dany Heatley’s arrival in town should change all that, right?
Dany Heatley, W, SJ—Heatley has 10 goals in 34 playoff games. Extrapolate that over a full 82 game season and you get 24 goals. When was the last time you remember Heatley scoring 24 goals in a regular season? Heatley also seems to disappear when the going gets tough. Shark fans had better hope that Heatley and Thornton can cure each other’s playoff woes, or it will be another disappointing season in San Jose.
Jeff Carter, C, PHI—Carter has 12 points in 29 career playoff games. The Flyers’ goaltending situation is a mess, and if the team has any aspirations of contending, they’ll need better from Carter.
Wildcards
These guys have had somewhat checkered playoff pasts, but that may change this year.
Ilya Kovalchuk, LW, NJ— Kovalchuk has only been to the playoffs once before, and his performance in the Thrashers’ four game exit was forgettable. He’s starting to hit his stride with the Devils though, and he’s surrounded by guys who know how to get it done in the playoffs. It’s tough to bet against him putting up big numbers now that he has an actual supporting cast.
The Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik—Yes, we’ll examine them as one player; they wouldn’t have it any other way. Henrik has received a ton of fanfare this season, and it’s very much deserved. Quietly though, Daniel has actually scored at an almost identical pace to brother Henrik! Over a full season, Daniel’s current pace would get him 107 points.
Last season, the Sedins had their best playoff showing yet, each posting 10 points in 10 games, with identical +4 ratings. Seriously, do these guys do anything differently?
That playoff showing was right on par with their regular season performances last year, and both brothers seem to have added a bit of sandpaper to their game this year.
I like the Canucks for a long playoff run if Roberto Luongo can find his game, and I like the Sedins to keep up their pace through the playoffs.
Mike Green, D, WSH—Mike Green’s first trip to the postseason was actually reasonably productive, and he scored at a point a game pace. Last year though, Green looked completely out of place. Green didn’t seem to want the puck on his stick at all, and I suspected he was hiding an injury throughout the Caps’ playoff run. He has yet again been the most productive NHL defenseman during the regular season though, so it will be interesting to see how he performs come crunch time.
Paul Stastny, C, COL—Stastny only has 9 games of playoff experience, and while he was completely underwhelming, his role on the team then wasn’t as prominent as it is now. I can’t say I expect the Avs to make a deep run, and Stastny isn’t the grittiest of players, but it’s not fair at this point to put him in the playoff bust category.
New to the Dance
Gut check time. The following regular season standouts have never played in the NHL playoffs:
Anze Kopitar (LA)
Chris Stewart (COL)
Craig Anderson (COL)
Drew Doughty (LA)
Jonathan Quick (LA)
Patric Hornqvist (NAS)
Another sharp week in the survivor pool that saw none of our remaining competitors eliminated. The Washington Capitals are the obvious safe pick this weekend matching up against the woeful Edmonton Oilers. Unfortunately, our three finalists have already used the Caps, and will really need to do their research this week. Here are my top three survivor picks for this Saturday:
New Jersey Devils at Atlanta Thrashers (Saturday at 7:00 PM) – The Devils are red hot – pun fully intended. Martin Brodeur is showing that age is not a factor, winning six of his last seven starts, while Swedish rookie Niclas Bergfors now finds himself ranked second among first year players in both goals and points (only wunderkind John Tavares has more). They’re 11-2-1 on the road this season, and should only better that record Saturday night against a Thrashers team averaging 3.7 goals against over their last 7 games. Look for Zach Parise to break an 8 game goalless drought.
Prediction: New Jersey wins 4-2
Detroit Red Wings at Dallas Stars (Saturday at 3:00 PM) – The injury-plagued Red Wings are finally stringing some wins together, and owe a large portion of their recent success to the play of goaltender Jimmy Howard, who’s allowed two or fewer goals in five of his last six starts. The Red Wings’ Todd Bertuzzi has 5 goals over their current four game win streak. Conversely, the Stars have lost five of six, struggling to keep the puck out of their net during that stretch (23 goals allowed).
Prediction: Detroit wins 3-1
Minnesota Wild at Ottawa Senators (Saturday at 7:00 PM) – Not that he’s been a significant factor for the Senators so far this season, but the loss of Jason Spezza for a couple months with an MCL tear is a definite blow. Mike Fisher will take over the first line centre role, and though he’s performed admirably so far this year, things are about to get more difficult for him matchup-wise. The Wilds’ stud netminder Niklas Backstrom shouldn’t have too much trouble fending off the Senators’ few remaining healthy scoring threats.
Prediction: Minnesota wins 2-0
This actually looks like one of the better matchup weeks this season to survive in Hockey Survivor II as far as I’m concerned. Sidney Crosby’s apparently decided he wants to add a Rocket Richard trophy to his collection, Alexander Ovechkin loves the big-stage Saturday night games, and somebody has got to remind those Coyotes that they are not cup contenders.
Florida Panthers at Pittsburgh Penguins (Saturday at 7:30 PM) – The Panthers have won just once in their last 10, while the Penguins have won 6 times in that span. Sidney Crosby has also apparently decided that he is sick of all the attention Ovechkin is getting. He’s shooting the puck more, and is on pace to beat his career for goals in a season by a whopping 15. Add to that the fact that Marc-Andre Fleury’s game is starting to round into shape, and this should be an easy Pens win.
Prediction: Pittsburgh wins 5-1
Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs (Saturday at 7 PM) – I’m not necessarily a fan of picking the Maple Leafs to lose right now, as they’ve been playing some inspired hockey of late, but I’d pick the Caps to beat just about anyone on a Saturday night right now. Ovie’s suspensions and minor injuries haven’t hampered his play in the least when he’s been in the lineup, and he seems to love the atmosphere of Saturday night games in Original Six buildings. Look for Ovechkin and Co. to fill the score sheet in this high-scoring affair.
Prediction: Washington wins 6-3
San Jose Sharks at Phoenix Coyotes (Saturday at 8:00 PM): – The Coyotes are red-hot, and have won 5 straight leading into Thursday night’s game against the Kings. The Sharks on the other hand, are mired in a 3 game losing streak. The Sharks are, however, way too good to lose like this, and the Coyotes can’t keep this up forever. Look for the Sharks to snap the ‘Yotes’ winning streak if the Kings don’t beat them to it tonight.
Prediction: San Jose wins 3-2
We had no losers in the pool last week, which has been something of a rarity so far this year! This week’s top matchups will be decided by the play of some hot (and not) goaltenders.
Vancouver Canucks at Carolina Hurricanes (1:30 PM, Saturday) – Roberto Luongo is bolstering his case to win the starting goalie job with Team Canada, as he outdueled Martin Brodeur to a 5-2 victory Wednesday night, and followed it up with a 38-save shutout victory against the Flyers on Thursday. The Canucks should have no problem visiting the basement-dwelling Canes, whose defensive lapses should only continue now that they’ll be without top defenseman Joe Corvo for 8 to 12 weeks after he suffered a lacerated calf earlier this week.
Prediction: Canucks win 4-0
Atlanta Thrashers at Florida Panthers (7:00 PM, Saturday) – Panthers’ fans can blame this one on the homerun-swinging Keith Ballard. The injured Tomas Vokoun’s replacement, Scott Clemmensen, has had a gruesome go as Florida’s new starting goalie, allowing 7 goals on just 45 shots in his two starts since Ballard’s stick incident. Thrashers’ accurate sniper Ilya Kovalchuk is scoring on 23.1% of his shots right now and should feast on the struggling netminder.
Prediction: Thrashers win 5-2
New York Rangers at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM, Saturday) – By leaps and bounds, Ryan Miller has been the best goaltender in the NHL so far this season, leading the league with a 1.84 GAA and .937 save percentage. The Rangers on the other hand, have had trouble keeping pucks out of their net lately. They have been outscored 18 to 6 during their current three game skid, and their woes won’t end in Buffalo. The Sabres have won four straight, and seem to be rounding into shape offensively with 18 goals during the win streak.
Prediction: Sabres win 3-1
Yikes, massacre in the very first week of Hockey Survivor II! We only had 13 willing to throw caution to the wind and try to predict the highly unpredictable NHL, and just 5 lived to make a pick this week. We’re thinking a double knockout system might be in order for the next hockey survivor pool.
John did hit on two of his three picks last week, even though he himself unfortunately used the wrong one for his pick in the pool. The games look tough again this week but here are my top three best guesses.
Chicago Blackhawks at Los Angeles Kings (10:30 PM, Saturday) – The Kings have cooled off some after a hotter than expected start. They are 5-5-0 in their last 10, currently riding a 2 game losing streak. They’ve also been mediocre at home, with just a 5-4-1 record. The Blackhawks, on the other hand, look like legit Stanley Cup contenders, and are winners of 7 straight. Chicago also won the only two meetings between these two teams this year by a decisive 4-1 margin. Add Marian Hossa to the mix, and the Hawks look downright scary.
Prediction: Hawks win 5-2
Calgary Flames at Columbus Blue Jackets (7:00 PM, Saturday) – The Flames were downright embarrassed at home by the Blackhawks in a 7-1 drubbing, and have looked like a team on a mission since. They beat the Kings decisively, and then fell victim to a stellar performance by J.S. Giguere in a shootout loss to the Ducks. Mikka Kiprusoff has been very sharp in both games since the blowout, and playing on the road doesn’t bother the Flames one bit; they’ve lost just once in regulation as the visiting team.
The Blue Jackets, on the other hand, are losers of 3 straight, and have been getting very suspect goaltending. Look for the Flames to light the lamp early and often in this one.
Prediction: Flames win 4-2
Carolina Hurricanes at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM, Saturday): If you’re a Canes fan, then today’s news that Eric Staal was taken off the IR was certainly a relief. If you’re a Canes fan, that’s also about as far as you should read. The rest of this blurb isn’t kind.
Before going on the IR, Staal had an abysmal 5 points in 13 games. He’s never been a fast starter, and coming off the IR certainly isn’t going to help his cause any. Mr. Staal also rejoins a team that has yet to win even a single game on the road.
The Sabres, on the other hand, have been dynamite at home, posting an impressive 7-3-2 record. My only worry with this game is that Ryan Miller might get the night off.
Prediction: Sabres win 3-1
It seems like just over a month ago we were starting our first ever NHL survivor pool here at MyOfficePool.ca… What’s that? It HAS been just over a month?! With the wild swings of NHL hockey this season, we learned very quickly that anyone can win (or lose, ugh) a survivor hockey pool on any given Saturday.
Well, with the quick end yet successful first pool in the books, we were all too ready to take another crack at survivor hockey, so we’ve quickly given the green light to a second pool. The deadline to enter is this Saturday at 7:00 pm, so come get in on the action!
This weekend we have a trio of David and Goliath-like matchups, all suggesting picking teams that are playing on the road. Yes, I am fully aware that David ended up slaying Goliath, but for the sake of choosing a survivor pick, we’ll stick with the favourites:
Chicago Blackhawks at Edmonton Oilers (Saturday at 10:00 pm) – Recent reports have surfaced that Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith are all close to signing contract extensions with the ‘Hawks, which means that you should expect increased production from the trio from now until the signings occur, as they make a final push to boost their value. Are you skeptical that players are that financially-driven? They’re not stupid folks –Toews, Kane and Keith have combined for 14 points over their last 4 games. Chicago’s reeled off 4 straight victories and are 4-1-0 against the Oilers in their last 5 meetings, outscoring them 23-11 over that span. The Oilers on the other hand are in a big slump. Prior to last night’s 6-4 win over Colorado, they had lost 4 straight, and won just once since October 29th. First star Toews, second star Kane, third star… hmm, let’s go with Keith.
Prediction: Chicago wins 5-1
Tampa Bay Lightning at Carolina Hurricanes (Saturday at 7:00 pm) – The rising Tampa Bay Lightning have gone 6 straight games with a point, which makes them an excellent survivor pick facing the last placed Canes this weekend. The Bolts are receiving some top-notch goaltending (11 goals allowed over last 6 games) and don’t look now but Vincent Lecavalier could be rounding into $85 million form after a 2 goal, 3 point effort Monday in Phoenix. Taking the Lightning this week could be a strategic survivor move, as few people, if any, consider them to be a powerhouse, and using them now would leave you with dominant teams like the Capitals, Blackhawks, and Flyers in later weeks. Of course if you save too many strong teams for the long run and don’t survive long enough to use them, it’ll all have been for not. The agonizing Hurricanes will once again be without Eric Staal and Cam Ward, which should be reason enough to bet against them.
Prediction: Tampa Bay wins 4-0
Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs (Saturday at 7:00 pm) – That’s right I’m picking on those awful Maple Leafs once again. The losers of 4 straight have scored just two goals in each game over that span, and a similar performance Saturday against the surging Capitals simply won’t cut it. After this coming Saturday’s tilt with the Caps, Brian Burke’s Leafs will officially be past the quarter mark of the season, and at best, will find themselves in 29th place. While Phil Kessel has been nothing short of remarkable for the struggling Leafs, the 2010 NHL draft is looking stronger by the day (i.e. Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin, Cam Fowler) and you just know that “The Deal” with the Bruins will be increasingly scrutinized as the season wears on, particularly if the Blue and White’s woes continue and they remain in the lottery. Washington’s Semyon Varlamov has been heating up and should get the call in net. The rookie has an outstanding career record of 12-1-1, which means that 93% of the time, he will get you through to the next round in our survivor pool. If only it worked like that. Oh yeah, and that guy named Ovechkin is healthy and in the Caps’ lineup again. From what I’ve heard, he’s a decent hockey player.
Prediction: Washington wins 4-2
Well that was short and sweet, wasn’t it? After a disastrous fourth week in the first ever regular season Hockey Survivor Pool, in which we lost 13 of 18 alive entries on a five different teams, the final five headed into the next week each wondering how long it would take to dispose of the other four.
Not long. Three picked the Los Angeles Kings to knock off the Nashville Predators, in an early game even, 4:00 Eastern, but the Kings dropped 3-1 to the Preds. We bid goodbye to darosa7, John and NickyJ.
Okay then, arseneau and Jmoore are the last two standing. arseneau is looking good picking the Detroit Red Wings to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sure it is Hockey Hall of Fame celebration weekend in Toronto, but of the five inductees, three were former Red Wings – Luc Robitaille, Brett Hull and of course longtime captain Steve Yzerman. Note all three played together on the 2002 Stanley Cup Champion Red Wings squad. Sure the Wings would be “up” for this game against the lowly Leafs? Ugh… Wings lose 5-1.
And that brings me to Jmoore. Jmoore didn’t make a pick this week. Per the rules, when an entry does not make a pick by the deadline, then a pick is assigned based on the alphabetical order of teams by city and then team name (so Islanders would come before Rangers). First up for a default pick, the Anaheim Ducks. Was Anaheim playing that weekend? Yes. Did Jmoore use them yet? No. Anaheim it is!
Anaheim was taking on the Phoenix Coyotes, which based on the season so far was not going to be a walk in the park. Anaheim started the season slow, but they had started to turn it around. Would they come through? Yep. They built a 4-0 lead, just about let it slip away in the third period, but held on for a 4-3 win and survivor pool win for Jmoore.
Interesting enough I still haven’t heard back from him. I wonder if he knows he won?
All in all, I think that went pretty well. It was a little shorter than I would have hoped, but it made constantly checking the NHL scores on Saturday nights via the iPhone a necessary if not agonizing experience. I’m willing to roll the dice again, are you?
I’ve set up Hockey Survivor II at the website, and we’ll kick off this pool next weekend, Saturday November 21st. The first game that day starts at 4:00 Eastern. Same format, everyone starts with a clean slate. Get over to the website to sign up, and I’ll get on Iain and John to keep posting their top three survivor picks as well for some extra informed opinion on the matter.
Thanks for participating, and hope to see you in the sequel.
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