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Gainey steps down in Montreal
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Editorial, Front Office, NHL,
Bob Gainey’s time in Montreal is over. He stepped down as general manager of the Montreal Canadiens on Monday, which is just the latest in a series of blows to the Canadiens organization as they celebrate their centennial year. This was a move that many say was planned well in advance by Gainey, and that if he wanted to, he could have stayed with the club as GM for years to come. But for Gainey, a Canadien for life, that wasn’t in the cards.
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Team Canada going for gold
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, Front Office, Olympics,
The Winter Olympics in Vancouver officially begin this Friday. The event’s most anticipated event, the men’s ice hockey tournament, starts on Feb. 16. Team Canada takes on Norway in their first game of a tournament that many Canadians not only hope, but expect will be a moment of national pride. Canada GM Steve Yzerman has assembled an all-star roster, but the most important of those might be his coaches. Leading Canada will be head coach Mike Babcock and assistant coaches Jacques Lemaire, Ken Hitchcock, and Lindy Ruff. These are the guys who will be held most accountable for Canada’s success, or possible lack thereof.
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Canadiens history of poor centennial celebrations
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Championship, Editorial, NHL,
With all of the centennial celebrations in the Montreal Canadiens camp over the past year, it seems appropriate to look back into their lengthy history. During another centennial in 1967 – Canada’s centennial – the Canadiens were battling the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Stanley Cup finals in an attempt to win their third straight championship. It would be the last Finals before the expansion and the last time two Canadian teams would face each other until 1986, when the Habs beat the Calgary Flames.
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Undrafted Bourque’s Flame burning out in Calgary
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, NHL,
In today’s NHL, it’s pretty hard to be surprised by young talent. With years of advance scouting and televised junior games, it’s not common that a young player slips under the radar. By the time the NHL Entry Draft comes around every year, all of the best young skaters are pretty well-known. Every now and then, however, a player falls through the cracks. Calgary’s Rene Bourque is one of those players. The 28-year-old Albertan broke into the NHL in 2005 and nobody knew how or why.
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Devils add Kovalchuk as trade week continues
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, NHL, Trades,
Another big trade has been completed and the New Jersey Devils have another captain among their ranks. Devils GM Lou Lamoriello completed a trade to bring in All-Star Ilya Kovalchuk from Atlanta. The 26-year-old has scored 31 goals in 49 games this season. Since debuting in 2001, Kovalchuk has netted 328 goals and 615 points in 594 games, so there’s certainly no surprise that he was as sought after as he was, and just when it seemed like the Kings would win the Kovalchuk Sweepstakes, the Devils swooped in and landed the Russian-born superstar.
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Capitals extend franchise-record streak
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Editorial, NHL,
What’s worse than chasing a team who is in first place? Chasing them when they were in first before starting an 11-game winning streak. That’s the challenge facing everybody in the Eastern Conference not named the Washington Capitals. The Caps beat the Bruins on Tuesday 4-1, running their winning streak to a franchise-best 11 games, breaking a record set in 1984. They now have a 10-point lead over the second-place New Jersey Devils, and with the way things are going, you may as well hand them the Prince of Wales Trophy now.
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New Leafs shine in debut
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, NHL, Trades,
Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke can sleep soundly. His widely publicized trades on Sunday saw his team acquire goalie J.S. Giguere, defenseman Dion Phaneuf, and forward Fredrik Sjostrom. All three players made their Leafs debut on Tuesday night, and each contributed in their own way to a 3-0 Leafs shutout victory against the slumping New Jersey Devils. Fans were excited by the trade announcements, and with introductions out of the way, both on and off the ice, it’s back to business for the Maple Leafs organization.
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The Brothers Dryden
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, NHL,
A lot of noise is made when brothers get together in hockey. Whether they play together like the Sedins in Vancouver, or the Koivus going head to head when the Ducks meet the Wild. People talk about who will outscore who, how the brothers interact, what their lives off the ice are like - all kinds of things. On March 20, 1971, a very similar moment happened in the most unique of ways. Brothers Dave and Ken Dryden faced each other from 200-feet apart.
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Oilers stop slide, finally
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Drafts, Editorial, NHL,
Plan the parade route! The Edmonton Oilers are undefeated in February! Too bad for them that they went winless in January. They picked up two points in overtime losses thanks to the NHL’s generous point structure. A 13-game losing streak dropped the Oilers far out of contention and into the basement in the Western Conference. Part of their losses included a pair to the Calgary Flames who, for the first time in history, swept the season series in the Battle of Alberta by easily taking all six games. To say things have never looked bleaker for Edmonton may be an understatement.
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Blockbuster breakdown: Calgary Flames
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, Front Office, NHL, Trades,
The Calgary Flames were part of the first of two bold trades involving the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday. The blockbuster trade saw the Flames give up defensive strongman Dion Phaneuf, as well as right winger Fredrik Sjostrom and prospect Keith Aulie. In exchange, they picked up forwards Niklas Hagman, Matt Stajan, Jamal Mayers, and defenseman Ian White. Calgary’s offensive woes have plagued them in January, and the addition of three mid-level forwards, they hope to provide a shot of adrenaline that will carry them through the playoffs.
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