A Knockout And A Beatdown

It was a busy night in the NHL and there was certainly a lot to talk about when all 10 games wrapped up. But the games that had the most tongues wagging were the Pittsburgh Penguins vs Washington Capitals and the Calgary Flames vs Montreal Canadiens.

The Pens-Caps game got of to a quick start when James Neal drew first blood for the home team and got the Consol Energy Center roaring. But the crowd was silenced in the second when Mike Knuble evened up the scoreboard, and early in the third Pittsburgh's Public Enemy No. 1 Alex Ovechkin scored the go-ahead goal to bring the tally to 2-1 Washington.
The highlight of the game, which was more of a lowlight in actuality, was the FIGHT between Arron Asham and Jay Beagle. After roughing up Kris Letang hard enough to send Letang’s helmet flying, Beagle found himself squaring off in a fight with Asham. It was a fairly good tilt until Asham KO’d Beagle, then skated off to the box while making a ‘sleeper’ motion as if to taunt Beagle for passing out. The incident caused an uproar; later Asham admitted that the gesture was classless and apologized for it.
After 16 scoreless minutes, Neal got himself a tying powerplay goal to prevent the game from ending in regulation. The extra frame saw Dennis Wideman shoot a wrister to beat Brent Johnson. But it wasn't all bad for the Penguins; the extra point they earned kept them atop the Eastern Conference in standings, and today it was officially announced that captain Sidney Crosby has finally been cleared for contact.

In their home opener, the Montreal Canadiens hosted the Calgary Flames, and in the first 5 minutes of the game the Habs’ Andrei Kostitsyn threw a goal past Miikka Kiprusoff. Considering how the Flames had been playing of late, this early goal was almost unanimously thought of as an indication of how the rest of the game was going to play out.
But something sparked the Flames and there was an offensive explosion shortly after, with 2 powerplay goals by Rene Bourque and Niklas Hagman, and a pretty wristshot from David Moss.
The Flames padded their lead in the following period, thanks to Bourque’s second of the night, and despite a flurry of chances, the Habs could not beat Kiprusoff, who made several amazing saves in the third, particularly one complete robbery of a shot by Habs captain Brian Gionta.
At the sound of the buzzer, the final score was 4-1 for the Flames. With their first win of the season, the Flames hope to gain momentum and start climbing the ranks of the Western Conference, where they are currently second-last, just above the Columbus Blue Jackets.

There were 2 potential milestones to be reached in tonight’s game, involving both teams' goalies. If the Habs had won, Carey Price would have earned his 100th career win. But instead it was Miikka Kiprusoff who made his mark, surpassing Mike Vernon for the franchise record with 263 wins.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs Washington Capitals, October 13th, 2011

The Evolution Of Carey Price

During last year's Stanley Cup Playoffs, Carey Price played only one game throughout the Montreal Canadiens' remarkable run. The hockey world was in shock when the team traded off their playoff star Jaroslav Halak and named Price their starting goaltender. And it seems like it was just yesterday when, during the 2010-2011 preseason, the crowd at the Bell Center in Montreal emphatically booed him as he skated on and off the ice.

After the notorious booing incident, Price issued a statement to Habs fans via the media: "Chill."
For the passionate hockey fans in Montreal, this was a bold, almost insolent statement. After all, they live and breathe hockey over there, and no self-respecting Canadiens fan is willing to sit back and "chill" when the playoff future of their beloved age-old franchise is at stake.
But things have certainly changed for the small-town British Columbia native. Since then, it seems Price has taken his own advice and has become more calm, more steady, and more confident in net as the Habs' starting goaltender. In the span of 82 games we have watched the young goalie grow into a player who could very well be the reason the Habs repeat last year's extrordinary post-season story.

He's a candidate for the Vezina Trophy, though that honor is sure to go to veteran Tim Thomas and his incredible comeback. Price was a few games short of reaching and breaking several franchise records, needing only 9 more wins in the regular season to catch up to the legendary Jacques Plante for most victories in a season at 42. He played more minutes than any other goaltender in the league during the 2010-2011 season. Not to mention that his shutout total for the season is double the amount of shutouts he's had in his previous 3 years in the NHL combined.

12 months ago, Price was merely the backup netminder for his surging Habs, sitting meekly on the bench, while all eyes (including his own) were on Halak. But through the course of the year, he has stepped up to the plate and assumed the responsibility given to him of being the starting goalie for a team that represents the very essence of Canadian hockey. It's a lot of pressure, but somehow he's done it.

Price is almost a completely different person on the ice nowadays, known for his acrobatic saves, humorous gestures and memorable celebrations. Forget the captain Gionta, the cocky but dynamic rookie Subban or the learned veteran Gill. Carey Price runs the show on the Canadiens roster. And if he continues to play the way he did in the first game of the 2011 NHL Playoffs, it won't be long until he's running the entire province of Quebec.

Fire On Ice

Over 40,000 hockey fans braved the bitter cold on Sunday, February 2oth, to watch the much-hyped Heritage Classic. Old rivals met again as the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens squared off to play outdoors in Calgary's McMahon Stadium.
The 2 most prominent meetings between these clubs happened in 1986 and 1989, both of which were Stanley Cup Finals. The Habs won the '86 Championship, while the Flames were the very first team to hoist Lord Stanley in Montreal's Bell Center in '89.

Despite the -15 degree weather, McMahon Stadium was filled from end to end in jerseys of red, with a surprising amount of blue and white as well. At least the sun was shining and the beer and hot chocolate flowed freely.
Opening ceremonies included a quick aerial show of 5 jets above the stadium, performances by Tokyo Police Club, Paul Brandt singing the national anthem, and the ceremonial puck drop that saw legends Bob Gainey and Lanny McDonald on the ice with Jarome Iginla and Brian Gionta.

It was an exciting game, with both teams playing well but there were 2 key factors that determined the outcome.

1. Calgary's offence was just too much for Carey Price. Rene Borque's two goals and Anton Babchuk's slick move boosted the Flames to a 4 goal lead over the Habs.

2. Kiprusoff was a door. Despite windy conditions going against him, Kipper denied any chance of a Habs goal and earned his 41st career shutout.

In NHL outdoor game history, the visiting team was usually the one to skate away with a victory, but the Flames, who have been very hot of late, picked up the two points this time around. A home win over a storied rival helped add to the electric "C of Red" atmosphere.

It had been 8 years since the last outdoor NHL game was played in Canada, but it seemed to be well worth the wait. Overall, the Heritage Classic weekend was a success, and it became clear early on that hockey fans are unlike any other; willing to sit for hours in weather well below freezing, all for the love of the game.






Calgary Flames vs Montreal Canadiens, February 20th, 2011

Let's Take It Outside

A long-awaited outdoor hockey game has finally been scheduled in Canada for the NHL. 8 years after the very first Heritage Classic was played in Edmonton by the Oilers and the Montreal Canadiens, the first nation of hockey can once again enjoy the thrill of watching an NHL game outdoors, not to mention the vicious wind and bitter cold that come along with Calgary's notorious winters.

That's right. The 2011 Heritage Classic will be held at Calgary's McMahon Stadium on February 20th, where the Montreal Canadiens get their second chance at the epic outdoor game, this time against the Calgary Flames.

There's no question that the city of Calgary is ecstatic to host the event, which originated in Canada and had been played every single year after its debut, just never in Canada. But many are questioning the timing and the teams involved.

It seems unfair to the hockey fans of Vancouver, Ottowa or Toronto that the Montreal Canadiens get a second crack at the Classic. And given the hype that usually comes with the game, people are wondering why the NHL didn't choose two teams with a more storied rivalry.

It would make more sense to pit the Flames against the Canucks, or the Canadiens against the Maple Leafs. And while the Flames are well-deserving of the honour of hosting the game, the winters in the city are among the worst in Canada. Fans in attendance will need to be prepared to sit in the stands for 2 hours in weather that could be well into the minus 30s.

Still, there is no shortage of excitement among Flames and Habs fans, and there is no doubt that even in the dead of winter, the streets of Calgary will be packed with a party come February 20th.

The Montreal Canadiens' Josh Gorges and the Calgary Flames' Steve Staios were present at McMahon Stadium for the official announcement of the 2011 Heritage Classic on Wednesday, August 4th.

Halak Gets The Blues

Jaroslav Halak was arguably the key factor in the success of the Montreal Canadiens this past post-season. His goaltending contributed to the elimination of both the top-seeded Washington Capitals and the defending Stanley Cup champions the Pittsburgh Penguins. For a brief while, Halak's name even became synonymous with the word STOP, and sports stores all over Montreal began selling stop signs printed with his name on it.
So you'd think the Habs, grateful for Halak's help in the 2009-2010 Cup run, would protect their greatest asset for the season to come. Clearly, that wasn't the case.
It was announced today that Jaroslav Halak was traded to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for forwards Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. Rumour has it that ever since their elimination by the Flyers, the Canadiens managing team barely kept in contact with their starting goalie, and Halak was informed of his trade via a phone call from head coach Jacques Martin.
Habs fans are understandably outraged, as they credited Halak with the team's playoff success. But this isn't the first time the Montreal franchise has given a player the cold shoulder with little or no explanation. Earlier in the year, the team bought out forward George Laraque's contract and asked him to stay away from the team until the end of the contract. Laraque was officially let go from the team on June 15, 2010.
As for Halak's departure from the Canadiens, most see it as a mistake on the part of the team. While Lars Eller has shown some potential to be beneficial to the Habs, the loss of Halak will most likely injure the team rather than strengthen it.

Player Of The Post-Season - Jaroslav Halak

Jaroslav Halak, Montreal Canadiens
Goalie

Round 1, Stanley Cup Playoffs:

Saves Against: 189
Goals Against: 13
Save Percentage: 93%