Will we bid farewell to the Rangers tomorrow?

Last night the Boston Bruins denied the New York Rangers for the third time during their round 2 series match up in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Rangers came into last night’s game down two games and on home ice they were gunning for a win.  Henrik Lundqvist played an exceptional game in net for the Rangers but it was not enough to win Game 3.  Early on the game looked promising for the Rangers, who opened up scoring, until they gave up two critical goals to the Bruins in the third period losing their third straight game of the series to the Bruins.  The Bruins dominated the first period but the Rangers found a way to put the pressure on the leaders.  Both teams had ample scoring opportunities in the second period, the Bruins out shot the Rangers 14-5 testing the skills of Lundqvist but trailed 1-0 after 40 minutes of play.  The Rangers had a very physical defense in the third period and with the Bruins leading on shots (23-16) and faceoffs (19-16) the ice was leaning in their direction. Boston’s momentum shift came when Boychuk scored through traffic and he set off the electric final 16 minutes of play.  Nearing the end of the third period with 3:31 remaining, Lundqvist blocked a shot by Thornton that popped up and landed just short of the red line. Daniel Paille poked the rebounded puck into the net, taking the lead 2-1 for the Bruins with time running out the Rangers were in trouble. The game ended in regulation with the Bruins claiming the series 3-0, with one more victory the Bruins will knock the Rangers out of the playoffs. This game was not easily won, there was some casualties, rough and determined play on each end of the ice. The Rangers have been struggling with the power play during this series.  With their playoff dreams hanging by a tread and not much time to adjust the power play what will John Tortorella do? Tortorella had been very vocal about Hagelin who, “sucks on the power play” but Tortorella put Hagelin on the power play during the game last night and he had a lot of positive momentum and a really nice shot on goal.  It seems that the Rangers power play just “sucks” in general.  The Bruins and the Rangers will face off again tomorrow.  Will we bid farewell to the Rangers tomorrow?

Senators beat Penguins in 1 1/2 periods of Over Time

The Pittsburgh Penguins and the Ottawa Senators battled through 87:39 minutes of playoff hockey last night, the longest game of the 2013 playoffs yet.  The first period was scoreless but leaning towards to Penguins, and then late in the second period Tyler Kennedy scored taking the lead for the Penguins.  The Senators were playing flawless hockey but the Penguins took advantage of the first mistake and it cost the Senators. The game looked like it was in the bank for the Penguins, although they were barely avoiding close calls, especially one by Chris Neil in the end of the third period.  With a slashing penalty for the Senators at 18:33 in the third period, it looked like the Penguins would take this series but Craig Anderson was sent to the bench and it was still 5-on-5 hockey.   The Senators finally broke Tomas Vokoun down, who gave up a deflection to Daniel Alfredsson, who scored a short handed goal with 28 seconds remaining in the game. The game was pushed into the first over time period, where Evegin Malkin missed an incredible scoring opportunity for the Penguins.  The first period of overtime revealed opportunities for both teams and a lot of back and forth hockey but with no goals.  The goaltenders played a solid overtime period, blocking shots and denying opportunities on each end of the ice. Craig Anderson recorded 49 saves in net for the Senators and Tomas Vokoun 46 saves for the Penguins, both goaltenders definitely had the pressure of them, not such an easy day at the office for either.  Center Jason Spezza was back in the game for the Senators after being out for three months to under go back surgery.  He was expected to create some momentum for the team, he did create a few chances but his shifts were short and he appeared to tire easily. Seven minutes into the second over time period Vokoun rebound another shot and couldn’t get to Greening's in time, who scored the game winning goal for the Ottawa Senators.  A similar mistake from the end of the third period that also ended up in a goal, this time ended up in the loss of a critical game that could have put the nail in the playoff coffin of the Senators.  Last night was the second straight time that the Ottawa fan’s saw a last minute game tying goal, the first was in Game 4 against the Montreal Canadiens.   The Ottawa crowd erupted into hysteria at the end of this critical game where the Senators could have either kissed their playoff chances good-bye or cut the Penguins series lead in half. The Penguins still lead the series 2-1, the Senators and the Penguins will faceoff again on Wednesday.  

Amazing Playoff Hockey: Red Wings vs. Blackhawks Game 2

In the Western Conference Semifinals the Detroit Red Wings played an outstanding hockey game to tie their series, 1-1, against the Chicago Blackhawks.  This game was the definition of amazing playoff hockey with the Detroit Red Wings playing a strong hockey game. The Wings came out rested with a good first period and built on that, just like they built on their game during the regular season.  Kane banked the first goal for Chicago during the first period.  The third line for the Red Wings pulled through again to create the momentum for their game tying goal in the second period, scored by Defenseman  Kindl.  Then late in the second period the Red Wings found a break and Smith scored claiming a 2-1 lead.  The Wings ran away with the game during the third period banking 2 goals by Franzen and Flippula.  Game 2 favored the Wings, who had 30 shots on goal compared to the Blackhawks 20. The Wings out played the Blackhawks in the first period during Game 1, then sizzled out losing the game 4-1, but in Game 2 they were able to come back rested and play the remainder of the game equally as strong to take home a great win.  The Blackhawks were playing from behind for the entire game, chasing the puck around the ice as the Wings held possession. During the third period the Blackhawks did not make any kind of substantial push in an attempt to win the game, they appeared very frustrated.  The Wings head home for home ice advantage in Game 3. The series is now on between these two teams.  The favored Blackhawks have a day to get their team in order, no rest for the weary they will have 3 days between game 3 and 4 for rest. These teams know that winning this series will not be easy and some intense hockey is in their future.  

The Penguins Crusing to Victory in Game 2

The Pittsburgh Penguins are cruising through their Round 2 Series against the Ottawa Senators with the help of Sidney Crosby’s hat trick yesterday. Crosby the most amazing player in the NHL has come back stronger and even better than before leading his team to victory last night in Game 2 against the Senators.  The Penguins and the Senators are full of talent but the advantage the Penguins showed was their depth and experience.  Crosby opened up scoring early in the game.  The Islanders would come back to score, tying up the game 1-1.  Then Senators left a wide open opportunity for Crosby and took the puck to the net, claiming a 2-1 lead.  During the first period the Senators had poor plays and they gave away too many penalties. Early in the second period Crosby scored his hat trick goal, at which point the Senators took Anderson out of the net for the night. Crosby has reached his 100th goal in his 75th game of the post season.  Four players in the NHL have reached 100 points in the postseason faster: Wayne Gretzky 46 games, Mario Lemieux 50 games, Jari Kurri 67 games and Mike Bossy 74 games. The Senators were targeting the major talent but Crosby was scoring with ease, proving how dangerous he is with the puck.  Greening responded to the Penguins, scoring, 2-3 making this a 1 goal game. The Penguins would come back taking a two point lead, 4-2 they were ready to run away with this game.  During the third period the Penguins started taking penalties, the game changed a little and it could have been any teams chance to win.  The Senators came back with a point but then could not use any power plays to their advantage to put a nail in the coffin. The Penguins took home the victory for Game 2, 4-3.

The Penguins have played such great games, building upon their successes and coming back stronger.  Going into this series against such a great team, it did not appear it would be as easy to beat the Senators as it has been. The Senators are really in danger of being eliminated in 4 games, which would be such a shame for this young team that is filled with great talent. The Senators need to focus on staying out of the penalty box, covering Crosby, closing lanes and playing a solid 5 on 5 game.  Looking back to the regular season when the Penguins were on a month long winning streak, could this be another solid streak for the Penguins? It would be impressing to see them shut the Ottawa Senators down in 4 games.

Round 2 Conference Semifinal Predictions

In the Eastern Conference, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Ottawa Senators will go all the way to a game 7 with the Penguins winning.  The Sens will be tight competition and no doubt kick a puck into the goal during this series but the experience on the Penguins bench will help them win.  The Senators stand to be Canada’s only hope, and with that added pressure there might be a resurgence with this team, especially after they lost Game 1, 4-1. The two most despised and physical hockey teams, the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers face each other during round 2 for what will be a brutal match-up.  The Bruins’ 3 top-line defense men were absent from practice today, Ference, Redden and Seidenberg.  If these 3 players don’t make the line up, the Bruins game could have a much different feel to it but Chara will step up, like he did in Game 7 and lead this team to a series victory. There will be brutal competition in the Eastern Conference.  These four teams: Penguins, Senators, Bruins and Rangers are very physical, relentless teams. Regardless of the slow start that the Ottawa Senators had in Game 1, they will be back to play hockey soon and their exit from the playoffs will not be as easy as it appeared last night.  

In the Western Conference, the Chicago Blackhawks take on the Detroit Red Wings. The Blackhawks had some consistent momentum in series one against the Minnesota Wild, winning the series 4-1. The Red Wings struggled against the Anaheim Ducks in series one, winning a close 4-3 series.  The top two players for the Wings, Toews and Kane, have yet to score during the playoffs but contributed to assists.   During the regular season the Wings pushed the Blackhawks to over time in three of their four meetings, this match-up shouldn’t be underestimated, it could be close.  The Blackhawks and the Redwings are both full of talent but the Blackhawks have the depth that will help them win the series. The L.A Kings blanked the San Jose Sharks 2-0 during Game 1 last night. The L.A Kings are here to defend the Stanley cup and coming off of a very impressive round 1 performance against the St. Louis Blues, they will gain momentum to push them through to round 3. The San Jose Sharks who have not had a chance to compete for the Stanley cup, easily made it to round 2 but will now have to assert themselves against the L.A Kings if they plan to be a contender.  The Western Conference is full of talent; the Blackhawks and the Red Wings have a nice match-up talent wise.  But the experience on the L.A Kings bench is going to trump the San Jose Sharks in their quest for the Stanley Cup. There were a few upsets during Round 1 that show us anything can happen in the playoffs. Let’s watch and see tonight as the Detroit Red Wings take on the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 1.