Best & Worst of Round 2

Round Two has come and thankfully gone. Overall it was way too short on the East and way too long on the West. Here are the best and the worst of Round 2 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals.

Best Series
For the same reasons I picked Canucks-Hawks in Round 1 as one of the the best series, I'm picking Sharks-Wings for the best of the best in ROund 2. Watching Detroit battle back was not only entertaining but a true example of great hockey and great coaching. I think the Sharks got lucky because Detroit is the team that deserved to win.

Worst Series
Every playoff year at some point the Washington Capitals win this title. This year it was in Round 2. Last year Round 1. It's a good thing they win this because they will never win a Stanley Cup. Not with Bruce Boudreau as the coach or pissy primadonna players like Alex Semin taking up their bankroll and useless ice space in the playoffs. Watchign them fall four in a row to the Lightning was pathetic - and boring. Even I, a true Ovechkin/Boudreay hater, am sick of reveling in their collapses.

Biggest Hero
Pekka Rinne. No his team did not advance but the only reason they survived as long as they did was because he is a freaking superhero. He stopped the best team in the league over and over. He never lost his cool. He never got his feather ruffled despite Ryan Kesler's repeated taunting attempts. He may not have won the Stanley Cup this year (because of his team) but he pretty much earned the Vezna this year.

Biggest Goat
Alexandre Semin. What sealed his deal? For me it was when he got knocked to the ice, didn't get a penalty, and instead of continuing on with the game - like both the Lightning and the rest of the Capitals did - he just stood there and made a pissy face at the referee. Way to go you whiny bitch. The Lightning went on to score. I'm not the only one who thinks he's a overpaid, underproducing waste of NHL space, Team Russia rejected his offer to play for them. None of this should be surprising though, Semin showed his true ways years ago when he tried to bitch-slap his way through a hockey fight with Marc Staal.

Worst Playoff Beard
Logan Couture. I'm not exactly sure what is happening on his face. I'm sure he's a lovely person (I have no idea honestly) but he's not one of hockey's hottest normally. Now, with that sporadic fuzz growing on his face, he looks like a cast member from Napolean Dynamite or an extra in a 1970s After School Special. He looks like he should be leaving the rink in a white polyester pantsuit and a Firebird.

Best Playoff Beard
Kevin Bieksa. He looks like a full-on beast. A full-on, sexy, I'm-gonna-eff-you-up-and-you're-going-to-like-it BEAST. He's one of hockey's hottest normally, and the playoff beard just makes him even hotter.

Verbal Slapshots of 2009-2010 Season

A small collection of some memorable quotes from players, coaches and hockey gurus. All quotes happened between August 2009 and August 2010. And yes, it's Canadiens-Canucks-centric because that's who I love, so deal. I mean, enjoy!

1) "I want to be in Toronto for a long, long time. I'd like this to be my last job in hockey. I just hope it's not after the next month or two." Brian Burke after the Leafs began the season 0-6-1.

2) "I can't complain because I was trying to sucker-punch (Alex) Burrows. It's karma." Canadiens forward (at the time) Gregory Stewart after being asked if he was upset about being sucker-punched by Vancouver Canucks defenceman Shane O'Brien.

3) “I pretty much have one comment and maybe I'll regret it. But they can go fuck themselves. That's what I really think.” Canucks Mikael Samuelsson after being left off the Swedish Olympic team for the 2010 games.

4) "I met a couple of homeless guys on the street who know who I am. If a homeless guy
knows his hockey, then you know you're in Montreal." Canadiens, Hall Gill.

5) "I am day-to-day with hurt feelings." Chris Pronger after he was asked how he felt after a game loss during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

6) "I hate them (Canadians). It's a big rivalry. I wouldn't say I hate them; you have respect for the other team. Canadians expect to win the gold, and anything less is not good enough. It's going to be fun to try and knock them off." - Vancouver Canuck Ryan Kesler when he was playing for Team USA in the 2010 Winter Olympics. (I love it because a) it spawned this. and b) In the end Princess Ryan wasn't happy with anything less than Gold either. So HA! )

7) “Not as much as people think. I think he's got a natural kind of grease to it.” Bieksa on how much product Canucks goalie Robert Luongo puts in his hair to get it to look shiny.

8) "They gave me the belt at the parade so I was looking forward to having that thing all summer. We went out that night and I gave it to someone to wear and I haven't seen the thing since." Chicago Blackhawk Patrick Kane on the Heavyweight belt that the team passed around after each game during the playoffs. (Proof that the Hawks are retarded and Patrick is their King. ;-))

9) "Halak was, in every way, the "feel good" story of the season for the Canadiens. Nothing is engraved in stone, but he was everybody's biggest hope for the team to do even better and go farther in its 18th rebuilding year." Famed Sportscaster Red Fisher on the Montreal Canadiens' trading Jaraslov Halak.

10) "I thought we had a good chance to win the Stanley Cup this year. And I would have bet my house that they wouldn't have beaten us three games in a row and we would have only scored three goals in almost 140 shots." Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau after losing in Game 7 of Round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs to the Montreal Canadiens.

Round 2 Recap & Round 3 Predictions

Another round… another blog.

Best Series
Once again the Montreal Canadiens proved to be the most entertaining team. The Bad News Bears solidified their name as Giant Killers by taking down last year’s Stanley Cup winners. The young rookie PK Subban became Sidney Crosby’s worst nightmare. Halak was an impenetrable force once again. And Mike Cammalleri got the puck where it needed to go. It took 7 games like I had predicted (yes, I’m bragging) but it was 7 exciting, unpredictable games.

Biggest Disappointment
Do I even need to tell you? I live in Vancouver and the Canucks going down to the Chicago Blackhawks is a loss I am still recovering from. The Blackhawks clearly have no problem going as low as necessary (elbows to Roberto Luongo’s head, ripping open Shane O’Brien’s newly stitched head) and the Canucks acted like bullied 6 year olds on a playground. They’ll be a separate blog about the failure (consistent now at round 2 exits) of the Canucks and what needs to change. So for now I’ll just say they had the talent, they couldn’t pull it together and it sucked.
Biggest Surprise
Philadelphia refusing to go away and beating Boston in game 7 after coming back from not only a 3 game deficit but also a 3 goal gap in the game itself. I have no words.

Best Kept Secret
Well he’s no secret but he did really start to shine in round 2. Mike Cammalleri! He’s been a scoring machine and he’s been disciplined. That’s important for a team that, in my opinion, still take too many stupid penalties (I’m looking at you Hal “Giraffe” Gill). Coach’s Corner showed a clip of Cammalleri sitting on the bench before a game against the Penguins focusing and visualizing and it clearly pays off.

Worst Injury
If it’s true, it’s got to be Sami Salo’s ruptured testicle. Although I am fairly certain that no dude with a burst nut would be able to stand up let alone play hockey 2 days later. But whatever the degree of the injury if it involved a ball (which so far every agreed it did) he wins… and I don’t think there’s a boy out there that would stop wincing long enough to disagree.

Worst Playoff Beard
Although he’s the only member of the Chicago Blackhawks I don’t dislike immensely, his playoff beard is craptastic. Jonathan Toews. If you look at him, his whole face is clear of whiskers but he’s got these bad-ass sideburn/chops thing going. It makes him look like a pizza delivery guy in a ‘70s porno.

Best Playoff Beard
Big bad Joe Thornton has a beard that would rival that of last round’s Worst Beard Winner Todd Bertuzzi. The reason that it lands Joe on the best beard list is because Joe’s is blond and groomed. It’s big but it’s not bad!


CONFERENCE FINAL PREDICTIONS
Since there is only 2 games to predict I’m tacking it on to this blog rather than writing a whole other one.

San Jose Sharks vs Chicago Blackhawks
This series presents a moral dilemma – do I want my archenemy the Hawks (with By-Fugli-en and TwennyCent Kane) to win or the team with the murderer (Heatley).
Honestly, I think I would pick the murderer over the Dirty Birdy Hawks. But this isn’t about my personal preference, it’s about who will win. Sadly San Jose relies on its goal scoring ability more than it’s size and defensive strength. That’s why I think the Hawks and their dirty tactics will school the San Jose Sharks like they did Vancouver.
Puck Bunny Prediction: Chicago in 6.

Philadelphia Flyers vs Montreal Canadiens
This is the worst possible match up for both the Habs fans and the Flyers fans. Because both teams weren’t supposed to here. Both teams have momentum on their side, but the Flyers probably have a wee bit more. That said, Montreal has history, Tradition and now expectation (which could work for or against them). The big factor in this is goaltending and Halak will stop Philly’s momentum easy-peasy.
Puck Bunny Prediction: Montreal win in 6.