Since this weekend, much of the hockey world (and anyone else who wished to comment) made a lot of out of Mario Lemieux's comments about the incidents that occurred Friday night during the Pittsburgh Penguins/New York Islanders game. A series of fights, brawls, and bench-leaping resulted in a few suspensions and fines from the NHL.
However, the most pressing issue until Friday was the topic of headshots and concussions. While le Magnifique stresses the safety of players as a result of all-out brawls like Friday's game, the NHL cannot forget that it has this situation to take care of primarily.
So for my second guest post, I had Vinod Venugopalan (We can call him "V"), a medical researcher from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital at McGill University, shed some light from a medical perspective. I thought this was important because we hear too much from people who don't know a thing about concussions, and what better way is there to discuss the real implications of concussions than to hear it from a guy with experience in the field. He's also a Montreal Canadiens fan, so he understands from a fan perspective as well on head injuries.
Hope you enjoy and learn a bit!
First, I’d like to thank Angie for graciously giving me space on her blog to air my opinion on an issue that I feel very strongly about. My name is Vinod Venugopalan. I’m a medical researcher at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. The recent rash of concussions in the NHL is a definite cause for concern.
The loss of Sidney Crosby, Marc Savard and several others due to head injuries has prompted the NHL to re-think its policy regarding hits to the head. However, to date, the NHL’s response to the sharp increases in the number of head-injuries has been woefully inadequate and poorly reasoned. The NHL has determined that the rise in head injuries can be curbed by increasing the severity of disciplinary action against head shot offenders. What seems to be missing in their consideration of this issue is how to limit the concussions from occurring at all.
What Is A Concussion?
I think it’s important to start with a definition of what a concussion is, and what causes them. First, concussions are brain injuries resulting from a force that causes the head to snap violently. This force in turn causes the brain to move within the skull and scrape along its jagged edges to cause a brief (ranging from seconds to minutes) loss of consciousness. More alarming is that it becomes easier to become concussed the next time and the time after that. In other words once concussed, the brain is never the same.
What's wrong with what the NHL does now?
One main issue regarding how the NHL deals with concussions is that the average team medical staff is not trained effectively to recognize symptoms of concussions: Headaches, dizziness, inability to concentrate, vision, hearing sensitivity, anxiety and depressed mood are all signs of a concussion.
Case in point: Sidney Crosby has yet to return to action as a result of two seemingly innocuous hits to the head, the first by Dave Steckel during the Winter Classic and the second by Victor Hedman of the Lightning. What concerns me more as a medical scientist and clinician is not the Steckel hit on Crosby, which appeared to be accidental, but that the Penguins medical and training staff put him back on the ice after appearing dazed during a second period interview. Moreover, he was allowed to play the next game when he was injured again in a collision with Victor Hedman of the Lightning. Did the training staff not recognize that he was concussed? And if not, why not?
One of the great obstacles in evaluating the extent of brain injury following a concussion is that present brain imaging technology lacks the requisite resolution to detect brain damage caused by concussion. One improvement over the years in analyzing head injuries are new brain imaging techniques are making great headway in being able to detect microscopic injury, the type of injury caused by concussions. A recent a study on concussed athletes suffering from post-concussion depression found functional abnormalities in the frontal lobes of the brain. Five years ago this type of information that ago was not available to the medical community.
Most players who have had concussion problems have had them since they were younger. To my knowledge, there are no comprehensive programs in place at the junior and minor hockey levels that test every player for head injury. This is the ideal place to start. Neuropsychological testing (or testing of cognitive functions, such as memory, attention, verbal reasoning and planning) can and should be assessed in every player from Midget onward. This data should be recorded in a medical database and used for future reference. Players should be tested at least twice a year and flagged for more extensive testing if there are performance decrements from one testing period to another. This type of continuous follow-up will help to detect or at the very least manage these head injuries more effectively.
Revisiting the Crosby case, my first impression is that Sidney Crosby was concussed much earlier in his career, perhaps as far back as his days in QMJHL. I suspect that a great percentage of players come to the NHL with un-reported head injuries. Part of the responsibility lies with the player who is reluctant to tell the trainer he’s hurt for of fear of losing ice-time, his job, draftability, or just simply appearing weak. In a game whose very ethos is defined by resilience and toughness, admitting weakness is career suicide.
In an interview with Eric Duhatschek of Globe and Mail, Pierre-Marc Bouchard of the Minnesota Wild who missed more than a year after sustaining back-to-back concussions talked about how difficult it was as a player to overcome the natural urge to compete and block out any obstacle to playing. “As hockey players, we don’t like to miss games,” said Bouchard. “You think you can play through it. You think you’ll be able to get rid of it the next few days - and you might. But if you get hit again, there’s that danger - that you could get an even bigger concussion." That is exactly what happened to Bouchard.
There are ways, however, to prevent or manage head injuries.
Concussion Prevention
In order to prevent and diagnose head injuries, early detection is key. The NHL should make use of new technology to have every individual brain-scanned before entering the league and scanned a minimum of twice a year, and collect data on the incidence of concussion. The more information we have at our disposal, the better we can use this data to inform NHL policy regarding head injuries.
Once we have this information, it is important to educate all NHL players and staff about what concussions are and the real-life implications of head injuries. It is this way that the players will be more aware of the dangers they are subject to on the ice on both the giving and receiving end of hits.
In Conclusion...
Hockey is a game of hitting and contact; that will never change. As a fan, I do not want it to change. It’s a big reason why many of us watch the game in the first place. That said, I think it’s time for the NHL to change tack. Instead of trying to legislate hits to the head, it must shift its priorities to prevention through the methods explained: education, early detection, and technology.
If you would like to contact Vinod directly, feel free to send your questions or comments (or fan mail) to:
Montreal Neurological Insitute Room 276
3801 University #276
Montreal, QC, Canada
H3A 2B4
or you can just simply email him at vinven55@hotmail.com.
Showing posts with label Montreal Canadiens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Montreal Canadiens. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
LiveHockeyChat.com: a place to talk about pucking while you puck
Hey! You... yes, [insert your name, reader]. You see that ad up there above this post? You should click it every once in a while. It goes to this pretty cool site that I plan to use soon to talk hockey live during games.
As you all know, all I do on here is puck and talk about pucking. While I enjoy talking about hockey on my Twitter feed though, I would enjoy it much more if I was in constant conversation about it with other people. I mean, I know I'm not the only one who likes to talk pucking, so I would like folks to join me. I love to hear the trash talk go back-and-forth in real-time. I feel like trash talk is more effective that way anyway.
I plan on chatting on LiveHockeyChat.com on Monday, February 1 when the Washington Capitals faceoff at home against the Montreal Canadiens. It would be totally awesome too if I could have some of you all join me in discussion. It should be fun, for sure.
Of course, I understand that not all my readers are Caps or Habs fans, so guess what: you have the option of going to OTHER games as well. How convenient! You can choose which game you'd like to join a chat in. On a given day, there is one chat room that is open and started for each game 30 minutes before each game respectively, and then the chat room will close 30 minutes after the game is finished -- you know, so you can talk about how awesome or how terrible that puck session was.
So how do you start talking with me about hockey on the site? Since I've dearly asked you to join discussion with me then, you can either create a username and password and confirm your email address.
And if you happen to like other sports, like futbol, American football, college sports, baseball, basketball, squash... you can use the same account username & password that is used on http://www.LiveHockeyChat.com for the rest of them.
Hope you also find time to visit The Hockey Writers' new forum soon as well. Lots of good topics. And don't be shy! You can start a topic, too!
Hope to see you all February 1! Until then, enjoy the NHL All-Star Game (and don't focus too much on the snubs -- they've got next year for sure).
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
Don't Expect Me to Slip This Under the Rug
I'm about to put myself in the minority-room...
I'm not interested in trying to get anybody any bad press, or to necessarily expect people to agree with me, or to provide you all with a homily. I just need you to listen and to think from another person's perspective on this
As much as I have entrusted my hockey learning, my hockey life, and my old hockey video game color commentary with former goalie Darren Pang, I am quite disappointed in him as of tonight.
For those who are unfamiliar with the incident, this evening on TSN, Darren Pang was talking about the emergence of the young and talented defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens, PK Subban. As a player who is not only known for his on-ice performance but his often controversial" behavior, PK has, of course, caused concern for the conservative hockey community.
Here are the comments by Panger:
Of course, what everybody is going to think I'm referring to is the Freudian slip Pang makes, but you wouldn't listen to me if I just told you he's racist because he said that Alex Pietrangelo does things the "white way."
Instead, I have more issue with the things he said leading up to it. Implying that there is a "right way" for one, when there are other paths other players have taken to make it to the NHL is a problem for me. For all the players who made it to the NHL a not-so-mainstream way, through different programs, did they not do it "right?" Does that make them a lesser player?
Even as a player who came up through the juniors, how did he not do it the "right/white" way? Why should he have to follow the example of another player?
Well, notice how Pang, and of course everybody else comments on Subban's behavior, need of "settling him down." The same conversation has happened with Russian Alex Ovechkin's personality and party-boyish ways. While it is understandable in the case of Subban in a community where everyone else doesn't act the way he does that he should be mindful of this for the betterment of his team, it is still troublesome that he has to do so.
This all goes under this concept of "conformity"... the idea that the right, proper way to do everything is to assimilate by conforming to the Anglo-Canadian style of play, attitude, training, etc. And this concept appears in many forms in our daily lives, and it is hard to detect by others on the outside because of the idea of privilege... unfortunately, this is All We Do Is Puck and not sociology class, so I won't explain all of it here, but it is something to be aware of.
Hockey is obviously still a sport run almost entirely by old white men, with a majority of white players in 2010. So yes, the ideas will be antiquated, with a fear of the game being taken away from them, the game changing too much, new types of players and personalities coming in, Ochocincos and T.O.s, and all of these things if non-traditional types come into the game. Still, you cannot ignore the concept of race in this, because who are they scared of t going to? Yeah, I said it - race. Say it with me now! I'm not scared of it!
Even though this issue goes much deeper than what was said here, and it seems like a "gregarious" problem to fix, do understand that it can't be totally ignored, denied or minimized either to make it okay. It is the way it is, but that doesn't make it right. It's Subban doing all the talking, but let's try not to blame the victim or his "ways," or call it something else Let's not say "it didn't count because he didn't mean it." Trust me, it won' get you off the hook.
As much as people are going to label this incident as "just a slip" and that "he didn't mean anything by it" are missing the bigger picture; that this isn't okay, and that he had to apologize because it's inherently wrong to say. However, not just the slip, but everything else before that, which leads me to believe that of course Pang wouldn't want to say "white way" on television. I still trust Panger with my hockey analysis -- after all we short goalie-types must stick together -- but I call it like I see it and this was inexcusably wrong.
Sermon - done.
Stay tuned later for a post on the polling of YOUR favorite defunct NHL team. Cause I know I have one, and I'm not telling you until I post!
I'm not interested in trying to get anybody any bad press, or to necessarily expect people to agree with me, or to provide you all with a homily. I just need you to listen and to think from another person's perspective on this
As much as I have entrusted my hockey learning, my hockey life, and my old hockey video game color commentary with former goalie Darren Pang, I am quite disappointed in him as of tonight.
For those who are unfamiliar with the incident, this evening on TSN, Darren Pang was talking about the emergence of the young and talented defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens, PK Subban. As a player who is not only known for his on-ice performance but his often controversial" behavior, PK has, of course, caused concern for the conservative hockey community.
Here are the comments by Panger:
Of course, what everybody is going to think I'm referring to is the Freudian slip Pang makes, but you wouldn't listen to me if I just told you he's racist because he said that Alex Pietrangelo does things the "white way."
Instead, I have more issue with the things he said leading up to it. Implying that there is a "right way" for one, when there are other paths other players have taken to make it to the NHL is a problem for me. For all the players who made it to the NHL a not-so-mainstream way, through different programs, did they not do it "right?" Does that make them a lesser player?
Even as a player who came up through the juniors, how did he not do it the "right/white" way? Why should he have to follow the example of another player?
Well, notice how Pang, and of course everybody else comments on Subban's behavior, need of "settling him down." The same conversation has happened with Russian Alex Ovechkin's personality and party-boyish ways. While it is understandable in the case of Subban in a community where everyone else doesn't act the way he does that he should be mindful of this for the betterment of his team, it is still troublesome that he has to do so.
This all goes under this concept of "conformity"... the idea that the right, proper way to do everything is to assimilate by conforming to the Anglo-Canadian style of play, attitude, training, etc. And this concept appears in many forms in our daily lives, and it is hard to detect by others on the outside because of the idea of privilege... unfortunately, this is All We Do Is Puck and not sociology class, so I won't explain all of it here, but it is something to be aware of.
Hockey is obviously still a sport run almost entirely by old white men, with a majority of white players in 2010. So yes, the ideas will be antiquated, with a fear of the game being taken away from them, the game changing too much, new types of players and personalities coming in, Ochocincos and T.O.s, and all of these things if non-traditional types come into the game. Still, you cannot ignore the concept of race in this, because who are they scared of t going to? Yeah, I said it - race. Say it with me now! I'm not scared of it!
Even though this issue goes much deeper than what was said here, and it seems like a "gregarious" problem to fix, do understand that it can't be totally ignored, denied or minimized either to make it okay. It is the way it is, but that doesn't make it right. It's Subban doing all the talking, but let's try not to blame the victim or his "ways," or call it something else Let's not say "it didn't count because he didn't mean it." Trust me, it won' get you off the hook.
As much as people are going to label this incident as "just a slip" and that "he didn't mean anything by it" are missing the bigger picture; that this isn't okay, and that he had to apologize because it's inherently wrong to say. However, not just the slip, but everything else before that, which leads me to believe that of course Pang wouldn't want to say "white way" on television. I still trust Panger with my hockey analysis -- after all we short goalie-types must stick together -- but I call it like I see it and this was inexcusably wrong.
Sermon - done.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stay tuned later for a post on the polling of YOUR favorite defunct NHL team. Cause I know I have one, and I'm not telling you until I post!
Monday, May 24, 2010
That Was Quick - On to the Stanley Cup Finals
So I tried to make a successful round in picking teams again, and yet, again, I failed. At least it couldn't have been as astronomically bad as the last round since there aren't as many teams to scout, analyze, and pick. However, I still managed to be wrong.
Out West, I figured the Blackhawks were too good for the San Jose Sharks. Chicago in previous series looked a little bit inconsistent, as they did during the season. Nonetheless, I just didn't see the Sharks being better than the Hawks. It was as easy as that.
I still thought that the series would be a little more competitive, predicting the Hawks winning in six or seven games, but the Sharks ended up completing a four-game sweep of San Jose. The individual games featured a Sharks team that was very good and had a lot of fight, but the Hawks were just that much better.
Chicago looked dominant, despite their slow starts. Three out of the four games, the Sharks scored first, although Chicago would often get their legs moving later in the game and dominate the remaining time.
The Blackhawks, at least, were the one team I can say I picked correctly all the way through, as I had them in the Stanley Cup Finals since the beginning of the playoffs. In fact, my Western Conference picks were not that heinous throughout the entire playoffs, so congratulations to me!
In the East, however, the mess continued for my predictions. I assumed that the Flyers would struggle mightily, as they still didn't have Jeff Carter and lost Maxim Lapierre, and thought that they spent everything they had completing the historic 3-0 comeback against the Boston Bruins. I also thought that the Canadiens would have had luck on their side, and the continuing stretch of Jaroslav Halak's impenetrability.
Boy, I was wrong...
The Canadiens decided to play dead and lose 6-0 in Game 1 to the Flyers in Philadelphia. But I wasn't moved because in the last series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Habs lost 6-3 in Game 1 and won that series in seven games. So I had no worries.
Again, I was wrong...
The Flyers continued to punish the Canadiens, winning Game 2 by the score of 3-0, giving them another record in the books in having the longest scoring stretch. I had faith after Montreal returned the favor by winning Game 3 5-1 on home ice, and figured that they just needed to change the venue.
Then came Game 4 and the Habs went back to the same crappy-crap-crapshoot style of hockey, losing that one 3-0 in another scoreless effort with only 17 shots (they call that something like the Diffusion of Responsibility in psychology). You must give credit when it is due, though. Michael Leighton, goaltender of the Flyers, has been outstanding in the place of Brian Boucher. Just imagine if he went down - Chris Pronger or something would have had to play goalie.
*Lester Patrick for the New York Americans anyone?
Game 5 was hopeful for those who picked Montreal to win, as they seemed to win every game where they faced elimination. This hope was built up when they scored first in Philadelphia. But once they let in an unfortunate goal (video coming soon), it went downhill from there. The Habs regained life after being down 3-1 coming within one goal at 3-2, but they were unable to get the equalizer and there it was - the #7 seeded Philadelphia Flyers were the 2010 Eastern Conference Champions in the playoffs.
How the hell this happened is beyond me; it baffled me enough a #7 seed got home-ice advantage in the Conference Finals.
Oh well, I am on my knees with this one to be right...
STANLEY CUP FINALS
#2 Chicago Blackhawks over #7 Philadelphia Flyers in 5 games
The Blackhawks are too legitimate to lose to the Flyers in the Finals. The Western Conference has shown to be much stronger, and that the best teams truly do win out. I will give the Flyers credit to steal one game from them, but I highly doubt they have enough to win, even though they got almost their whole team back, minus Boucher.
I don't care that Barry Melrose predicted this final from the start. I still am bitter, I will admit. Considering the Flyers ran through a team they owned during the regular season a million times in New Jersey, then played a #6 seed and an #8 seed, they were given a better path than most of the other teams playing in the playoffs for an extended period of time. Nonetheless, they got past it, and I will give them that.
Still, the Blackhawks are winning, and I'm going to need them to win anyway. I live in a place there are wayyyyy too many Flyers fans right now.
The Finals will begin Saturday, May 29 at 8 p.m. on NBC at Chicago.
And no worries Red Sox fans, hockey season is almost over, and I will be getting to baseball soon :).
Out West, I figured the Blackhawks were too good for the San Jose Sharks. Chicago in previous series looked a little bit inconsistent, as they did during the season. Nonetheless, I just didn't see the Sharks being better than the Hawks. It was as easy as that.
I still thought that the series would be a little more competitive, predicting the Hawks winning in six or seven games, but the Sharks ended up completing a four-game sweep of San Jose. The individual games featured a Sharks team that was very good and had a lot of fight, but the Hawks were just that much better.
Chicago looked dominant, despite their slow starts. Three out of the four games, the Sharks scored first, although Chicago would often get their legs moving later in the game and dominate the remaining time.
The Blackhawks, at least, were the one team I can say I picked correctly all the way through, as I had them in the Stanley Cup Finals since the beginning of the playoffs. In fact, my Western Conference picks were not that heinous throughout the entire playoffs, so congratulations to me!
In the East, however, the mess continued for my predictions. I assumed that the Flyers would struggle mightily, as they still didn't have Jeff Carter and lost Maxim Lapierre, and thought that they spent everything they had completing the historic 3-0 comeback against the Boston Bruins. I also thought that the Canadiens would have had luck on their side, and the continuing stretch of Jaroslav Halak's impenetrability.
Boy, I was wrong...
The Canadiens decided to play dead and lose 6-0 in Game 1 to the Flyers in Philadelphia. But I wasn't moved because in the last series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Habs lost 6-3 in Game 1 and won that series in seven games. So I had no worries.
Again, I was wrong...
The Flyers continued to punish the Canadiens, winning Game 2 by the score of 3-0, giving them another record in the books in having the longest scoring stretch. I had faith after Montreal returned the favor by winning Game 3 5-1 on home ice, and figured that they just needed to change the venue.
Then came Game 4 and the Habs went back to the same crappy-crap-crapshoot style of hockey, losing that one 3-0 in another scoreless effort with only 17 shots (they call that something like the Diffusion of Responsibility in psychology). You must give credit when it is due, though. Michael Leighton, goaltender of the Flyers, has been outstanding in the place of Brian Boucher. Just imagine if he went down - Chris Pronger or something would have had to play goalie.
*Lester Patrick for the New York Americans anyone?
Game 5 was hopeful for those who picked Montreal to win, as they seemed to win every game where they faced elimination. This hope was built up when they scored first in Philadelphia. But once they let in an unfortunate goal (video coming soon), it went downhill from there. The Habs regained life after being down 3-1 coming within one goal at 3-2, but they were unable to get the equalizer and there it was - the #7 seeded Philadelphia Flyers were the 2010 Eastern Conference Champions in the playoffs.
How the hell this happened is beyond me; it baffled me enough a #7 seed got home-ice advantage in the Conference Finals.
Oh well, I am on my knees with this one to be right...
STANLEY CUP FINALS
#2 Chicago Blackhawks over #7 Philadelphia Flyers in 5 games
The Blackhawks are too legitimate to lose to the Flyers in the Finals. The Western Conference has shown to be much stronger, and that the best teams truly do win out. I will give the Flyers credit to steal one game from them, but I highly doubt they have enough to win, even though they got almost their whole team back, minus Boucher.
I don't care that Barry Melrose predicted this final from the start. I still am bitter, I will admit. Considering the Flyers ran through a team they owned during the regular season a million times in New Jersey, then played a #6 seed and an #8 seed, they were given a better path than most of the other teams playing in the playoffs for an extended period of time. Nonetheless, they got past it, and I will give them that.
Still, the Blackhawks are winning, and I'm going to need them to win anyway. I live in a place there are wayyyyy too many Flyers fans right now.
The Finals will begin Saturday, May 29 at 8 p.m. on NBC at Chicago.
And no worries Red Sox fans, hockey season is almost over, and I will be getting to baseball soon :).
Friday, May 14, 2010
NHL Playoffs Round 3 - This is getting old...
"It's the NHL Playoffs," you say. "Why would you be getting tired of this!?"
Simple answer. It's not the playoffs I'm tired of, it's that I CONTINUE TO BE WRONG EVERY TIME!
We already went through how in Round 1, the Caps, Devils, Senators, and Coyotes were my downfall, and how the Caps were the source of intense grief.
I was at least content with my Western Conference picks. The West was much more predictable since they all seemed to be seeded at their appropriate talent level.
The East, however, was a mess. According to my Crashing the Net post, I would have only predicted one series correctly. But I covered my tracks by claiming on fellow sports guy Jay Scott's radio show that the Flyers would have a very high chance of defeating the Devils because of the Devils' failure to match up well against them.
So we move on the Round 2. I should have gotten through the tough part, right? Well, not so.
I easily explained away how the Canadiens would be too tired. The Habs would have spent too much energy to come back against the Caps with all that shot blocking to play the Penguins, who seemed to handle the Senators pretty well.
Flyers were too battered after losing two big players in Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne during Round 1. Secondly, the other underdog, the Bruins beat the Sabres in five games (at least I called that one), and would probably finish off the Flyers easily.
Out West, I expected the Sharks to choke in the second round like they normally do, and predicted the Blackhawks would have just a little bit more for the Canucks in a tough six or seven game series.
So much for all of that!
Caps fans were quite frustrated after the Penguins beat the Habs 6-3 after three straight games of the Caps scoring only one goal against Jaroslav Halak. The following game, Montreal turned back to form, winning 4-3. The rest of the series the two teams traded one-goal wins and losses until the Canadiens won Games 6 and 7, winning Game 7 convincingly by a score of 5-2, now dethroning the defending Stanley Cup champions.
The Bruins were handling the Flyers pretty well, and were on the verge of sweeping them going up 3-0 after Game 3. However, Simon Gagne returned to the Flyers, and so did their ability to win. Philadelphia would take over the pace early on in the next three games, and tied the series at three-all. The Bruins turned the tide very early in Game 7, and led 3-0, taking a 3-1 lead after the first period. The Flyers took the game completely in the second period though, and went on to win the game and the series 4-3 in regulation. Much to the dismay of the Bruins' home fans, Philadelphia became the first team in 35 years and only the third in NHL history to come back from a 3-0 series deficit and win.
For the Sharks, I just sounded really stupid, as they ran through Detroit, beating them in five games. Needless to say, I had no founding for picking against them, and I will admit that.
At least I was accurate for once, choosing the Blackhawks to win over the Canucks in six games. I expected the individual games to be closer, as the Hawks were able to average 3.83 goals in the series (about five in every win) and won games like Game 7 5-1 and Game 4 7-4. But Game 1, the Canucks won 5-1 and won Game 6 by a score of 3-1, making me question their consistency like I did before.
So here are the Conference Finals predictions (sigh)... here we go...
Eastern Conference Finals
Round 3
#8 Montreal Canadiens defeat #7 Philadelphia Flyers in 6 games
Western Conference Finals
Round 3
#2 Chicago Blackhawks defeat #1 San Jose Sharks in 6 or 7 games
STANLEY CUP FINALS
#2 Chicago Blackhawks defeat #8 Montreal Canadiens in 5 or 6 games
I look forward to the possibility of an Original Six Stanley Cup Final. It's great for hockey to see these teams experience the glory again.
Many can make the sentimental pick for the Blackhawks considering the following circumstances: The Hawks had classic greatness in the days of goaltender Charlie Gardiner (who died after winning the 1934 Cup, in case you didn't know, new hockey fans) in the 1930s, and then in the 1960s with Tony Esposito, Bobby Hull, and Stan Mikita (need I go on listing?). Then the Blackhawks had their more recent years of sucking, and now experience the possibility of winning a Cup with young superstars.
However, the way Montreal has gone back to the old ways of playing and added the confidence in young players i.e. PK Subban. You can almost put behind you the fact that they won 24 Stanley Cups, including their last one coming in 1993. Either way, it would be a great series, and definitely the best for viewers watching.
Of course, as a hockey fan, we all know I'm going to watch regardless, and I'm going to enjoy it. I'm just going to boycott a Flyers entrance to the Finals a different way.
p.s. I am working on fixing my East Coast bias, so no worries, West Coasters, I've got your coverage this round!
Simple answer. It's not the playoffs I'm tired of, it's that I CONTINUE TO BE WRONG EVERY TIME!
We already went through how in Round 1, the Caps, Devils, Senators, and Coyotes were my downfall, and how the Caps were the source of intense grief.
I was at least content with my Western Conference picks. The West was much more predictable since they all seemed to be seeded at their appropriate talent level.
The East, however, was a mess. According to my Crashing the Net post, I would have only predicted one series correctly. But I covered my tracks by claiming on fellow sports guy Jay Scott's radio show that the Flyers would have a very high chance of defeating the Devils because of the Devils' failure to match up well against them.
So we move on the Round 2. I should have gotten through the tough part, right? Well, not so.
I easily explained away how the Canadiens would be too tired. The Habs would have spent too much energy to come back against the Caps with all that shot blocking to play the Penguins, who seemed to handle the Senators pretty well.
Flyers were too battered after losing two big players in Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne during Round 1. Secondly, the other underdog, the Bruins beat the Sabres in five games (at least I called that one), and would probably finish off the Flyers easily.
Out West, I expected the Sharks to choke in the second round like they normally do, and predicted the Blackhawks would have just a little bit more for the Canucks in a tough six or seven game series.
So much for all of that!
Caps fans were quite frustrated after the Penguins beat the Habs 6-3 after three straight games of the Caps scoring only one goal against Jaroslav Halak. The following game, Montreal turned back to form, winning 4-3. The rest of the series the two teams traded one-goal wins and losses until the Canadiens won Games 6 and 7, winning Game 7 convincingly by a score of 5-2, now dethroning the defending Stanley Cup champions.
The Bruins were handling the Flyers pretty well, and were on the verge of sweeping them going up 3-0 after Game 3. However, Simon Gagne returned to the Flyers, and so did their ability to win. Philadelphia would take over the pace early on in the next three games, and tied the series at three-all. The Bruins turned the tide very early in Game 7, and led 3-0, taking a 3-1 lead after the first period. The Flyers took the game completely in the second period though, and went on to win the game and the series 4-3 in regulation. Much to the dismay of the Bruins' home fans, Philadelphia became the first team in 35 years and only the third in NHL history to come back from a 3-0 series deficit and win.
For the Sharks, I just sounded really stupid, as they ran through Detroit, beating them in five games. Needless to say, I had no founding for picking against them, and I will admit that.
At least I was accurate for once, choosing the Blackhawks to win over the Canucks in six games. I expected the individual games to be closer, as the Hawks were able to average 3.83 goals in the series (about five in every win) and won games like Game 7 5-1 and Game 4 7-4. But Game 1, the Canucks won 5-1 and won Game 6 by a score of 3-1, making me question their consistency like I did before.
So here are the Conference Finals predictions (sigh)... here we go...
Eastern Conference Finals
Round 3
#8 Montreal Canadiens defeat #7 Philadelphia Flyers in 6 games
Western Conference Finals
Round 3
#2 Chicago Blackhawks defeat #1 San Jose Sharks in 6 or 7 games
STANLEY CUP FINALS
#2 Chicago Blackhawks defeat #8 Montreal Canadiens in 5 or 6 games
I look forward to the possibility of an Original Six Stanley Cup Final. It's great for hockey to see these teams experience the glory again.
Many can make the sentimental pick for the Blackhawks considering the following circumstances: The Hawks had classic greatness in the days of goaltender Charlie Gardiner (who died after winning the 1934 Cup, in case you didn't know, new hockey fans) in the 1930s, and then in the 1960s with Tony Esposito, Bobby Hull, and Stan Mikita (need I go on listing?). Then the Blackhawks had their more recent years of sucking, and now experience the possibility of winning a Cup with young superstars.
However, the way Montreal has gone back to the old ways of playing and added the confidence in young players i.e. PK Subban. You can almost put behind you the fact that they won 24 Stanley Cups, including their last one coming in 1993. Either way, it would be a great series, and definitely the best for viewers watching.
Of course, as a hockey fan, we all know I'm going to watch regardless, and I'm going to enjoy it. I'm just going to boycott a Flyers entrance to the Finals a different way.
p.s. I am working on fixing my East Coast bias, so no worries, West Coasters, I've got your coverage this round!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Webisode #72 - Real Talk on Sports w/Jay Scott 4/13/2010
Well hello there everyone! The NHL playoffs begin tonight, April 14 and I expect all of you to watch the games tonight. The Capitals start tomorrow against the Montreal Canadiens. It should be fun to experience this historic run for the Stanley Cup for the Washington Capitals.
Before you commence your playoff rituals for your teams though, do check out my appearance on Jay Scott's Real Talk on Sports radio show, talking about the NHL playoffs, making predictions, and giving you reasons why the NHL playoffs are so exciting. It's all here --> Webisode #72 - Real Talk on Sports w/Jay Scott 4/13/2010... for those of you who are part of BGLOs, Jay is a man of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., so support him and listen!
For a full account of my picks throughout the playoffs, let's go with this:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Round 1
1 Washington Capitals over 8 Montreal Canadiens in 4 or 5 games
2 New Jersey Devils over 7 Philadelphia Flyers in 6 games
3 Buffalo Sabres over 6 Boston Bruins in 5 or 6 games
5 Ottawa Senators over 4 Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games
Round 2
1 Washington Capitals over 5 Ottawa Senators in 6 games
2 New Jersey Devils over 3 Buffalo Sabres in 6 games
Round 3
1Washington Capitals over 2 New Jersey Devils in 5 or 6 games
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Round 1
1 San Jose Sharks over 8 Colorado Avalanche in 5 or 6 games
2 Chicago Blackhawks over 7 Nashville Predators in 6 games
3 Vancouver Canucks over 6 Los Angeles Kings in 5 games
4 Phoenix Coyotes over 5 Detroit Red Wings in 6 games
Round 2
4 Phoenix Coyotes over 1 San Jose Sharks in 5 or 6 games
2 Chicago Blackhawks over Vancouver Canucks in 6 or 7 games
Round 3
2 Chicago Blackhawks over 3 Vancouver Canucks 6 or 7 games
STANLEY CUP FINALS
1 Washington Capitals over 2 Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games
If you have questions as to why I took this route to see the Capitals in the Finals, PUT IT IN THE COMMENTS SECTION! I'll be more than happy to read your comments/questions/criticisms and foster some discussion on the topic. Enjoy the read and hope you enjoyed listening to Jay's show!
If you want in-game updates on Capitals games, news on the team, or you want random bits of life's occurrances, follow @LadyHatTrick on Twitter!
Before you commence your playoff rituals for your teams though, do check out my appearance on Jay Scott's Real Talk on Sports radio show, talking about the NHL playoffs, making predictions, and giving you reasons why the NHL playoffs are so exciting. It's all here --> Webisode #72 - Real Talk on Sports w/Jay Scott 4/13/2010... for those of you who are part of BGLOs, Jay is a man of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., so support him and listen!
For a full account of my picks throughout the playoffs, let's go with this:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Round 1
1 Washington Capitals over 8 Montreal Canadiens in 4 or 5 games
2 New Jersey Devils over 7 Philadelphia Flyers in 6 games
3 Buffalo Sabres over 6 Boston Bruins in 5 or 6 games
5 Ottawa Senators over 4 Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games
Round 2
1 Washington Capitals over 5 Ottawa Senators in 6 games
2 New Jersey Devils over 3 Buffalo Sabres in 6 games
Round 3
1Washington Capitals over 2 New Jersey Devils in 5 or 6 games
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Round 1
1 San Jose Sharks over 8 Colorado Avalanche in 5 or 6 games
2 Chicago Blackhawks over 7 Nashville Predators in 6 games
3 Vancouver Canucks over 6 Los Angeles Kings in 5 games
4 Phoenix Coyotes over 5 Detroit Red Wings in 6 games
Round 2
4 Phoenix Coyotes over 1 San Jose Sharks in 5 or 6 games
2 Chicago Blackhawks over Vancouver Canucks in 6 or 7 games
Round 3
2 Chicago Blackhawks over 3 Vancouver Canucks 6 or 7 games
STANLEY CUP FINALS
1 Washington Capitals over 2 Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games
If you have questions as to why I took this route to see the Capitals in the Finals, PUT IT IN THE COMMENTS SECTION! I'll be more than happy to read your comments/questions/criticisms and foster some discussion on the topic. Enjoy the read and hope you enjoyed listening to Jay's show!
If you want in-game updates on Capitals games, news on the team, or you want random bits of life's occurrances, follow @LadyHatTrick on Twitter!
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