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  1. oilfieldhockey
    With the official 2012-2013 NHL season starting a whopping 4 months late because of legal, union and disclaimer issues fans miraculously got the best available outcome from a labour dispute, a shortened season. 48 games played by each club isn’t that bad and it’s enough games for teams to make a statement and there were plenty in a short amount of time.

    2013: Year of the Win Streak
    This is not an official title but I figured it was fitting because a few teams had some great regular season success most notably the Chicago Blackhawks and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Blackhawks broke the record for most consecutive games without losing in regulation with 24 straight games (exactly half of this season) with either a win or overtime loss. That beats the previous record of 15 games that was set by the 2007 Anaheim Ducks who actually won the Stanley Cup that year. Later on the Pittsburgh Penguins tried beating their own record of most consecutive wins with 17 recorded in 1993 but they came just shy by winning 15 in a row which is still pretty darn impressive. Another notable streak was the hard working Columbus Blue Jackets’ 12 game point streak where they went 8-0-4 in March and that’s what made this playoff race one of the most interesting in a long time against Minnesota and divisional rival Detroit Red Wings. Another team that had a poor start but strong finish is the Washington Capitals who looked liked they were down and out decided to play some great hockey by winning 8 games in a row to secure the Southeast division and a much needed playoff birth. A couple of win streaks that need to be noted are the Vancouver Canucks’ 6 game win streak and the Anaheim Ducks’ 12 game point streak. Even though these records are great achievements, they mean absolutely nothing when playoffs come around.
    Special teams mean a lot in determining an outcome in a game and if you’re good on the powerplay, you want to draw a lot of penalties and if you’re a good penalty killing team, you can gain great momentum after a successful kill but no team wants to kill penalties even though some teams are good at it.
    I want to highlight the teams with good special teams so I am going to start with the powerplay and the team with the best PP were the Washington Capitals with 26.8%. The other top five teams in that department were the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, Anaheim Ducks and Montreal Canadiens. The top penalty killing team this season were the Ottawa Senators with an 88% success rate. The other top PK teams are the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers.
    Best Players And Goaltenders
    There have been a ton of unsung and heroic goaltending performances this season and it is a fact that those teams the goalies played for wouldn’t be where they are without them. The best goaltending performance I have seen this season is from Craig Anderson. He is no doubt the Ottawa Senators most valued player and they wouldn’t of made the playoffs without him. His save percentage is .941 which is a league high plus he boasts the league’s best goals against average of 1.69. His winning record is just 12-9-2 but that’s because his team in front of him have been struggling to score goals. Another surprising goaltending performance I found amazing was Sergei Bobrovsky from the Columbus Blue Jackets. He was the reason why his team’s playoff surge even started and he kept the resilient Blue Jackets alive every game he played in net. He only allowed an average of 2 goals a game and his save percentage was very high with an .932. Another great goaltending campaign was by Vezina trophy nominated Antti Niemi. He was tied with Niklas Backstrom for the league in wins with 24 and a lot of those wins came when he was the first star in all the Shark’s games. Unlike the other goaltenders I mentioned before, Niemi has a wealth of playoff experience and he knows what it takes to win because he has won the Stanley Cup before. A few more honourable mentions with unsung goaltending are Victor Fasth from the Anaheim Ducks, Braden Holty from the Washington Capitals and Tuuka Rask from the Boston Bruins. Meanwhile superstars Carey Price and Henrik Lundqvist still had pretty good seasons.
    Unlike the unexpected goaltending performances we’ve seen, the player scoring race is what most people thought it would be. Not too many surprises here except the new record that was broken this year and that was by Tampa Bay’s very own Martin St. Louis for being the oldest player to win the scoring title at age 37. He scored 60 points in 48 games as he barely edged his sharpshooter teammate Steven Stamkos and a rejuvenated (and happily engaged to a famous tennis player) Alex Ovechkin who was 3rd in points and he led the league in goals with 32 and with most of them coming late in the season when Washington dominated as they made the playoffs as a 3rd seed. Sidney Crosby was 4th in points but he easily would of taken the point scoring title if it wasn’t for injuries. John Tavares, Taylor Hall, Nazem Kadri and Derek Stepan all enjoyed great breakthrough seasons as they nearly averaged a point a game. Players who rebounded nicely were Thomas Vanek, Mike Rebeiro, Ryan Getzlaf, Niklas Backstrom, Patrick Kane, Eric Staal and Alex Semin. Players on a slow decline are Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Joe Thornton, Brad Richards, Mike Richards, Jerome Iginla and Patrick Marleau.
    For defence, scoring was led by P.K Subban with 38 points in 42 games, Kris Letang with 38 points in 35 games and Ryan Suter with 32 points in 48 games. Scoring was very good by defence this season with many of them going above half a point a game. 25 defenceman went above half a point a game while playing a good chunk of the year. As for the defensive aspect of the game, the better shutdown pairings this season were by Francois Beauchemin and Sheldon Souray who played most of the year together, Kris Letang and Paul Martin were a great pairing, Jason Garrison did great for the Canucks and the entire Chicago Blackhawks top 6 was very good. Another honourable mention was Anton Stralman and Ryan Mcdonaugh as a good shutdown pair for the New York Rangers.
    Shea Weber had a tough year as he didn’t thrive like he used to with Ryan Suter as his defensive partner.
    I won’t go too far with disappointments but I got to say that the Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay, Buffalo and Edmonton could of done better as I thought they were good enough teams to reach a playoff berth even though Philadelphia and Edmonton had very good special teams and Tampa Bay had players winning scoring titles. Last but not least the team with the worst powerplay were the Winnipeg Jets and the team with the worst penalty kill were the Florida Panthers.
    So that sums it up. That was your basic outline of how this year went but I won’t get any further than this because it would take many, many days write every little last detail down and I won’t bore you into reading all that but you can always come back to read more articles at the Oilfield Hockey Blog.
  2. oilfieldhockey
    The 41 game mark. It’s that time of year where many see where we are in our pools and if any of us made good on our pre-season predictions. Let’s be honest, most of us get pre-season forecasts wrong including many from established hockey news outlets. Since all of the NHL teams have played their first 41 games, we can now finally do this report.
     
    Today we’re talking about who would win the trophy’s if the season ended today and who we think will actually win it at the end of the season. Only season rewards without playoff appearances and reiterating accolades 
    are listed so the Conn Smythe, Lester B. Pearson and Bill Masterton trophys are out.
     
    HART MEMORIAL TROPHY


    The Hart Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association in all NHL cities at the end of the regular season.
    Winner if season ended today: Johnny Gaudreau 
    Winner at the end of the season: Marc-Andre Fleury
     
    This is the MVP reward. This trophy, in layman’s terms, goes to the player who can carry their team on his back. Last season, Taylor Hall and Nathan Mackinnon were outstanding and were easy choices as the top 2 candidates with Hall eventually winning. This season, there are no standouts. Many players are having terrific seasons offensively which makes it hard to choose a forward. Johnny Gaudreau is an exemption because he is the main offensive cog for the Flames. He is the best at creating and finishing plays for the team plus his linemates play much better with him as a result of their success. If he goes down with an injury for a significant amount of time, the Flames risk losing their division lead and will be sorely missed in the dressing room by his teammates.
     
    Why Marc-Andre Fleury will win the Hart Trophy at the end of the season is because he has the ability to carry an average scoring team to the playoffs. Vegas started the season poorly but have put together a run to get back into playoff contention. That is all thanks to Fleury. Vegas is 14th in scoring and 4th in goals against, but yet, are 3rd in the West. Vegas does not score many goals and they don’t have a game-changer on both the offensive and defensive side of the ice. Fleury needs to be the backbone of this team to get Vegas over the top and into the playoffs. That is achievable.
    CALDER MEMORIAL TROPHY

    An annual award given to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the NHL, selected in a PWHA poll
    Winner if season ended today: Elias Petterson
    Winner at the end of the season: Rasmus Dahlin
     
    Petterson has been the best thing to come to Vancouver since sliced bread. The problem with Petterson is that he is already injury prone. I want to hand the rookie-of-the-year honours to Petterson but he poses a lot of risk in doing so. He’s not very big and has yet to fill out. Dahlin on the other hand has been as steady as they come and he has been a consistent producer for the Sabres. He won rookie of the month honours in November and I don’t doubt that he’ll win another rookie of the month award before seasons end. Dahlin is a safe bet and that’s why he’s the guy to win the Calder.
     
    VEZINA TROPHY

    The Vezina Trophy is an annual award given to the goalkeeper adjudged to be the best at this position as voted by the general managers of all NHL clubs.
    Winner if season ended today: Marc-Andre Fleury
    Winner at the end of the season: Marc-Andre Fleury
     
    No goaltender has gotten close to get as many shutouts or as many wins as Fleury so far this season. He has carried Vegas to a place where they can push for the playoffs once again. Fleury has been so good that Dunkin Donuts is going to need him as a spokesperson because of all of the shutouts (six donuts so far) he’s been getting.
    JAMES NORRIS MEMORIAL TROPHY

    An annual award given to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position.
    Winner if season ended today: Mark Giordano
    Winner at the end of the season: Kris Letang
     
    This was a tough one because there’s a feeling of cognitive dissonance for giving this award to guys who only rack up assists because their star forwards convert the breakout passes into goals. I look at both defensive and offensive stats when it comes to this one and that’s why I chose Mark Giordano (+/- 30, 6G, 34A, 40PTS and 38 HITS 85 BS). Those numbers tell you he’s very well rounded defenceman who can do it all. He’s having a terrific season for the Flames and is on pace for a career best.
     
    Kris Letang, meanwhile, has had an excellent first half for the Penguins after a slow start to their season. With Crosby, Malkin and Kessel playing their best hockey right now, Letang can help jumpstart their offense from the backend much easier now than before. The Penguins have a history of playing great hockey in March and there is no reason why they can’t do it again. Letang is physical and blocks shots at a rate to match the NHL’s best. Another great two way defender who doesn’t get the accolades he deserves.
     
    ART ROSS TROPHY

    The Art Ross Trophy is an annual award given to the player who leads the National Hockey League in scoring points at the end of the regular season.
    Winner if season ended today: Nikita Kucherov
    Winner at the end of the season: Connor McDavid
     
    Regardless if the Oilers make the playoffs or not, one thing is for sure. McJesus will score at will. Now that Brandon Manning is sitting in the Oilers press box, Connor won’t have to worry about him breaking his collarbone like he did in his rookie season (Oh how the tides have turned). On a serious note, if McDavid plays all 82 games, he’ll likely beat his previous career best of 108 points and get 120. He’s on pace 134 right now but that’s stretch, even for a guy like him.
    Kucherov has been on a tear as of late but I think he’ll settle down near the end of the season.
    FRANK J. SELKE TROPHY

    The Frank J. Selke Trophy is an annual award given to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.
    Winner if season ended today: Sasha Barkov
    Winner at the end of the season: Alex Barkov
     
    If you’re wondering if these are different people, they’re not. And he’s Finnish, not Russian.
    MAURICE ROCKET RICHARD TROPHY

    An annual award given to the NHL’s top goal scorer by the NHL Board of Governors. The winner(s) are determined based on regular-season play.
    Winner if season ended today: Alex Ovechkin
    Winner at the end of the season: Patrik Laine
     
    Ovechkin could be the oldest player to win the Richard trophy at the age 33 unless Patrik Laine stops playing Fortnite until 3.A.M. and actually decides that he wants to score again. That pretty much sums up the situation.
    KING CLANCY TROPHY

    Given to the player who best exemplifies leadership on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.
    Winner if season ended today: Brock Boeser
    Winner at the end of the season: Brock Boeser
     
    It’ll be hard to top Brock Boeser taking the girl with down syndrome out to a prom date which happened before the season started. He’s definitely a sweetheart.
    WILLIAM JENNINGS TROPHY

    An annual award given to the goalkeeper(s) having played a minimum of 25 games for the team with the fewest goals scored against it, selected based on regular-season play.
    Winner if season ended today: Pekka Rinne/Jusse Saros
    Winner at the end of the season: Pekka Rinne/Jusse Saros
     
    Pekka Rinne is an absolute brick **** house in net. Nashville’s defense is near impassable on most nights and there is no sign of them slowing down. Expect Nashville to be the defensive team of the year.
    PRESIDENT’S TROPHY

    An annual award to the club finishing the regular season with the best overall record.
    Winner if season ended today: Tampa Bay Lightning
    Winner at the end of the season: Tampa Bay Lightning
     
    To put in perspective on how dominate the Lightning were in the first half, the Lightning could play at .500 from here on in and still have a better chance at winning the President’s Trophy than the Leafs, Flames and Golden Knights.
     
    For authentic NHL gear, visit https://oilfieldjerseys.com/ for your fan needs today!
     
     
     
  3. oilfieldhockey
    These are hockey’s most triumphant winners in their own style. They exude confidence, push others around them harder and they dig deep when the team needs them to be clutch. Some of these talented people get to the top by either leading by example, taking charge at key moments or just simply by having a strong character. One trait that they all have in common is they are true motivators and they leave an everlasting impression. My top five choices for most inspiring hockey people is based on the magnitude of their significance in beating the odds, captivating audiences and the level of compete they had to get where they were at.
    5. Josh Harding
    Josh Harding is the current back-up goaltender for the Minnesota Wild and is considered one of the best at that echelon. He is a fighter and he never had it easy in his pro career at the NHL level. At first he had to compete with the talented Finnish goaltender Niklas Backstrom which was always interesting to watch since both Harding and Backstrom have the desire to succeed. He never got the starting job for the Wild and when that wasn’t bad enough it got worse when was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in September 2012. In his first game back post-diagnosis, Harding stopped all 24 shots he faced in a 1-0 shutout win over the Dallas Stars. During the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs against the President’s Trophy winning Chicago Blackhawks as the 8th seed, Niklas Backstrom injured himself during warm ups before Game 1. Harding would replace him in a 2-1 overtime loss stopping 35 shots, which brought praise not only from his teammates but also from players on the Blackhawks for his incredible play despite still being affected by Multiple sclerosis. The Minnesota Wild however would lose the series 4-1, but Harding would win the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in recognition of his efforts. He still plays for them Wild to this very day.
    4. Phil Kessel
    Phil Kessel is one of those players that just keep on trying no matter how bad his situation gets. Prudence is the very definition to describe him and after all he is a Rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac and Prudency is one of their staple trademarks. He is a player who oozes skill and isn’t afraid to show off his deking abilities. He also has a laser of a wrist shot and combine that with his unmatched speed you got one heck of a fireworks display. He played for the Minnesota Golden Gophers in his junior years and was drafted 5th overall by the Boston Bruins in 2006. He immediately made the team as a rookie upon being drafted as an 19 year old but unfortunately on December 11, 2006, his family announced that he had testicular cancer. It was scary news at first because this made his future in hockey uncertain but incredibly he made a swift recovery after just five days of having this cancer. He had surgery to treat the illness which required some time off playing for the Bruins but returned after missing just 11 games and that is something that is difficult to deal with as a young rookie. He finished his season off with 29 points in 70 games and won the Bill Masterton Trophy for his short but courageous battle against testicular cancer.
    On September 18, 2009, Kessel was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a first round pick in 2010 (Tyler Seguin was selected 2nd overall), 2011 (Dougie Hamilton was selected 8th overall) and a 2nd rounder in 2010 (Jared Knight was selected 32nd overall). He was surpised and happy when he learned he was traded to Toronto but that came at a price. He was heavily scrutinized and was expected to perform with high expectations every night and with facing his former team Boston 6 times a year, he struggled to be consistent with his scoring and as a result he tallied only 55 points that season.
    For 9 straight seasons the Maple Leafs failed to make the playoffs between 2003 and 2012 until they broke out as the 5th seed in 2013 and it just so happens they were facing a very physical and heavily structured Boston Bruins squad. Kessel never had great success facing his former team but what was expected to be a clear cut series sweep for the Bruins, turned into a dramatic 7 game back and forth action-packed affair. Kessel solved the Bruins at the right time as he racked 4 goals and 2 assists in 7 games so all in all he defeated the critics and performed as a key player at the right time after 3 years of failing to help Toronto make the playoffs.
    3. Steve Sullivan
    Steve Sullivan is one of those small but skilled players that nobody believed into him having a career in the NHL. It didn’t look promising from the start when got drafted as low as 233rd overall in 1994 by the New Jersey Devils. He did make the team 1995 and started coming into form as a speedy winger with an accurate shot and got an opportunity with the Chicago Blackhawks in the year 2000 to step up and became a regular goal-scorer for the team and capitalized on it. He established himself as a tier 2 point-scorer and proved the critics wrong by not letting his 5′ 8”, 160 lb frame slow him down.
    He was traded to the Nashville Predators in 2004 and carried on where he left off scoring more often in Nashville than he did for the Blackhawks. Unfortunately in 2007 he faced a severe back injury and not only was he out for the remainder of the 2006-07 season, he was sidelined for the entire 2007-08 season and half of the 2008-09 season. That equates to about almost 2 years of being injured. He returned for the last half of the 2008-09 season and tallied 32 points in 41 games which is impressive considering he rarely skated in those 2 years he was out. Needless to say he won the Bill Masterton Trophy for his long-awaited triumphant return to the NHL after fully recovering from his jury after being away for so long.
    2. Saku Koivu
    Saku Koivu was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in 1993 as the 21st overall selection. He plays the centre position and is a two-way playmaker with great offensive instincts. He first played for the Canadiens in 1995 as a rookie and played well enough to be named the first European captain of the club at the start of the 1999-2000 season. Koivu received some very bad news on September 6, 2001 when the doctors diagnosed him with Burkitt’s lymphoma. He was expected to be out for the entire 2001-2002 season plus facing uncertainty whether he would play again but remarkably on the 80th game of the regular season for the Canadiens, Koivu shockingly dressed for the game in Montreal. It was a surprise to everyone especially with the severity of the cancer. Upon entering onto the ice, Koivu received a standing ovation for 8 full minutes while fans were screaming his name relentlessly. He helped the Canadiens into getting a playoff spot and was a catalyst in upsetting the Boston Bruins in 6 games in the quarter-finals that season. Koivu continued his inspirational play with setting a new career high in the following 2002-2003 season with 71 points (21 goals, 50 assists). He also won the Bill Masterton Trophy that year for his perseverance and dedication.
    After being captain of the Canadiens for 10 years Koivu decides to play out his contract to sign with the Anaheim Ducks in 2009. On January 22, 2011 Koivu returned to Montreal for the first time as an opponent of the Canadiens and was welcomed with a standing ovation as the fans there loved him when he served as captain for his tenure with the club.
    Koivu deserves great respect for his dedication to the game and determination to help his team out when it mattered. No matter who you are, you can’t say anything negative about him; he is a class act and an inspiring leader.
    1. Mario Lemieux
    Mario Lemieux isn’t number 1 on my list because he is the best player out of my choices for this article. It’s because of what he went through to became the best and win. Lemieux was always considered a talented prodigy of hockey. Being the uncontested 1st overall pick in 1984, he went on to have many spectacular seasons throughout the 1980′s but it wasn’t until 1991 when he won his first Stanley Cup championship. He also captained the Pens to another Cup the year after in 1992 establishing the Pittsburgh Penguins as a dynasty. He also scored an unbelievable career high of 199 points in 1989. After accomplishing so much, his life suddenly took a turn for the worst when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1993 and underwent numerous radiation treatments and even had some of those treatment sessions on the same day he had to play for the Penguins. That wasn’t all he had to face as he went through many surgeries for his back as he injured it twice in 2 years between 1994 and 1995. He even took a leave of absence because of the fatigue that settled into him after many radiation treatments and understandably so. He did return in 1996 and miraculously played at the level he was competing at before his diagnosis of Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Eventually his body couldn’t take any more stress as he decided to hang the skates in 1997 and was immediately inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
    Shocking rumors were brewing as there were hints of Lemieux attempting a comeback in the year 2000. He did comeback after rehabilitating himself for 3 years and was the same old scoring machine like he was before notching 76 points in 43 games in his triumphant return helping the Penguins squeak into the 8th seed after everyone thought the Pen’s season would be a write off. Once again, Lemieux wasn’t healthy for long as he sustained a nagging hip injury and kept him in the pressbox for most of the 2001-02 season. He didn’t miss too many games in the 2002-03 season but at the beginning of the 2003-04 season Lemieux suffered Atrial Fibrillation and was out for 71 games for that year. The 2005-06 season would be his last as he did recover from the injury the season before but only to have it occur again in late 2005. On January 24, 2006 Lemieux officially made his second retirement from the NHL and was done for good in his playing career.
    Despite after all of his success when he was healthy, Lemieux just had that desire to play hockey injury after illness after ailment. There was absolutely no quit in this person and to me is the very definition of what determination is in a human being. He will never be forgotten on how he played on the ice and battled off of it. He is the only player to return from retirement after being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and has a very decorated set of achievements and records including 6 Art Ross Trophies, 3 Hart Memorial Trophies, 2 Stanley Cups as a player (1 in 2009 as an owner of the Penguins), 4 Lester B. Pearson Trophies and numerous gold, silver and bronze medals while representing Canada in international hockey.
  4. oilfieldhockey
    It is a principle that I apply full-respect in writing on 3rd party websites such as Hockey Forums to be clean to abide with the rules and regulations that Hockey Forums mandate.
    To read this article in the full version with pictures, video and fan poll, please go to the link below:
    Oilfield Hockey Blog: 5 Reasons Why The Stadium Series and Winter Classics are great.
    99% of the time that we see NHL games on live-streamed on your mobile device or your television, they take place indoors in an arena where you have the technology to make the perfect ice, great crowd atmosphere. It also provides protection from rain, snow, warm temperatures plus freezing temperatures. But wait. Protection from snow and freezing temperatures? Yea it seems counter intuitive doesn’t it? After all, the game of hockey was first played outside shortly after it was invented. Before the National Hockey League existed games were already played indoors. It was to accommodate the fans, maintain ice conditions, avoid legal troubles and so on.
    If true hockey fans had it their way, every game would be outside but unfortunately Florida and Carolina almost never get freezing temperatures plus most of the snow will melt in Canada once playoffs start.
    Basically, reality stinks so we have to improvise.
    It was decided that hockey needed to go back to it’s roots like how it was first played in the 1800’s on a small patch of ice where a group of geniuses decided it was great idea to slap around a 3 inch chunk of rubber with skinny pieces of lumber while puttering around on steel blades 5mm wide by 2 inches high. And no I’m not being sarcastic, I genuinely think its genius.
    Pretend we’re going back to 2003, the year before the first NHL outdoor game took place in the modern era and we’re asking ourselves this question:
    “How do we make outdoor NHL games work?”
    In order to make it work, conditions have to be met. First off, the weather has to be cold enough. Second, the technology has to be in place for the ice to hold just enough in case the weather gets a little warm. It can only take place in December, January or February because it’s obviously cold in those months. Someone has to make money so the owners need to be convinced that it’s a good idea (Fast forward to 2016, every NHL team wants an outdoor game now). It has be made into a massive, hyped-up event so seats, jerseys and other merchandise will sell out. Fans have to express interest in it but most importantly, there has to be an emotional connection for the fans.
    I can come up with a million more reasons but you get the drift.
    As this article is written (February 19th, 2016), both the Stadium Series and the Winter Classics have been insanely successful since the first official Winter Classic in 2008 when Buffalo hosted Pittsburgh. T.V. ratings have been declining slightly for 3 consecutive years but merchandise sales and tickets mostly sell out.
    Reason #1: Great excuse for goalies to get new gear JUST FOR ONE GAME!!
    Okay there is a greater purpose why the goalies get the gear made just for the big date. Some of the goalies sign their gear and auction it off to their favourite charities and that’s awesome. Some of them just want to because you only live once (YOLO). The outdoor games have truly inspired some great pad designs and goalie masks as well. Just look at Bryzgalov’s 2012 Winter Classic mask when he played for the Flyers. He has some of the greatest Philly sports icons infused in one mask. I think he designed the mask like that because he wanted his mask to be the center of the universe just for that game but who am I to judge?
    Reason #2: HBO’s Road To The Winter Classic Series – MUST WATCH!!!
    If you haven’t watched any of the ‘Road To The Winter Classic’ episodes, you need to because they are that good. If you want to see personality and an in-depth glimpse into the life of NHL players, then look no further than this documentary series because it will enlighten you on how some of these characters are really like in their personal lives. You will see some of these guys at their best, but also, at their worst. Unless you have NHL All-Access or Center-Ice, this won’t amaze you that much but without the Winter Classic, these mini-series wouldn’t exist.
    Reason #3: The new jerseys introduced for the game. SOME ARE WACKY AND WICKED COOL!
    It’s hard to believe that there are already 29 jerseys introduced between the Stadium Series and the Winter Classics going back to 2008. Why so many? Using the outdoor games is honestly more of a way to test the market for new designs and concepts for the jerseys. Only a handful of teams wear these new jerseys once a year outside and maybe a couple more times indoors so why not?  The 2015 Stadium Series game between Los Angeles and San Jose were especially a new twist on design because nobody is used to seeing a 3-layered ice cream trifle design on a hockey sweater. Too me, they look better once the game happened when players were wearing them on the ice. The Philadelphia Flyers were inspired to bring back their old 1970’s uniforms permanently after they were reintroduced in the 2010 Winter Classic against Boston. It was the same case with the 2008 Winter Classic as Buffalo brought back their own version of their 1970’s jerseys permanently also. Most of these jerseys introduced are great designs with a lot of symbolism and have been getting many positive reviews.
    Reason #4: Creates unforgettable experiences.
    For those that have actually attended an NHL outdoor game, congratulations, I hope you had a wonderful time and I am sure it’s an experience you’ll never forget. For those that haven’t including myself, we’ll get our day eventually and I would go to one no matter how cold it is outside. As is tradition for myself and a couple members of my family and friends, we actually celebrate our very own “Winter Classic Day” by having breakfast while watching the game after a long night of partying. I made this tradition within my inner circle and we love it. Can’t wait until next year and hopefully my favourite team (Winnipeg Jets) will get their date. I don’t even care if it’s just a Heritage Classic, I’d still go.
    Reason #5: Great promotion for the game of hockey.
    This is perhaps the most ambiguous reason on the list so I’ll explain. As I mentioned in the beginning of the article, the main root of hockey is outside on a frozen patch of ice and how it was first played. It took almost 100 freaking years for somebody to say that maybe a handful of NHL games should be played outside just like the old days when the NHL didn’t exist yet. At first, some of the owners, NHL board members and others thought it was too risky to have an outdoor NHL game at such a big scale. When it was first tried in 2004 between the Edmonton Oilers and the Montreal Canadiens, it received great reception. Almost every fan bared through the -20 degree Celsius temperatures with great enthusiasm.
    Due to the mess the infamous 2005 NHL lockout created, other priorities took over the league agenda but finally in 2008, the first “official” Winter Classic was hosted in Buffalo as the Sabres hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was wildly successful and everybody wanted a piece of that frozen, outdoor money pie. It was successful because big league hockey finally went back to its “roots”. People loved it because it expressed the fans’ emotional and historical connection to the game. The players felt it was an honour to play outside as well. The merchandising and marketing of the event was very well done and everybody (Most importantly the fans) were happy at the end of the day.
  5. oilfieldhockey
    The trade deadline may not seem very significant at first considering that the NHL has the playoffs, draft and the all-star game. The trade deadline is more important than you may think because the outcome from the moves made by teams during that time can vary in extremes but the only thing that comes to mind as to why teams make key trades at that time. Because it’s the Stanley Cup. The media love to make a big deal out of it and it becomes more of a spectacle of entertainment more than anything and it’s sometimes hilarious watching the analysts making the trade announcements as dramatic as possible. But regardless, I admire they’re passion.
    The choice between buying and selling at the deadline is easily made if you’re a team that’s contending (buying) and a teams that’s rebuilding (selling).
    Then you have those bubble teams who are between 7th and 11th place give or take. A team has to be in 8th place or above to make the playoffs. Those teams that are on the bubble make the situation very interesting because the general managers for those teams now have a tough choice between buying and selling.
    Remarkably, some of the teams that did buy as a bubble team went on to either go to the finals or win the Stanley Cup. It has happened a few times before and sometimes those trade acquisitions at the deadline paid huge dividends. What if those bold trade deadline moves weren’t made? What if a team decided to sell instead? A lot of general managers don’t like to sell if they’re a bubble team because if they decide to take that route, it would most likely mean that the rebuild would extend by 1 to 3 years. There’s always the odd case where there’s a nagging contract issue with a star player. The 2 parties might come at a wits end and no matter what team he’s playing on, most GM’s would opt to trade him to salvage what they can get back from him instead of letting him walk to free agency with nothing in return. Others keep that player in hopes of a deep playoff run but that has it’s own set of risks.
    For the purposes of this list, we’re focusing on the trades that involved players that made a impact for the rest of that season and performed exceptionally well in the playoffs. Only one team per season will be counted on the list as well.

    Edmonton Oilers trade their 1st and 3rd round picks to the Minnesota Wild for Dwayne Roloson on March 8th, 2006
    When the 2006 Edmonton Oilers had to make the choice between buying and selling at the deadline, GM Kevin Lowe decided to aggressively buy despite the fact that the Oilers were in the middle of the standings. What made this trade so scary is that Roloson was just 6-17-1 with a GAA of 3.00 that season. That record alone is enough drive away most shoppers. But with Lowe taking the chance to acquire him, he made himself look like a genius. While the results didn’t pay off immediately for the rest of the season (8-7-5 record with .905 sv%) with Edmonton barely making the playoffs by taking the last seed. Roloson absolutely put on a tear in the playoffs with him and the Oilers beating the Detroit Red Wings (President’s Trophy Winners) in 6 games of the quarter finals. It shocked the hockey world.
    Maybe they got lucky? Maybe they were onto something as the Oilers made victims of the San Jose Sharks and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the semi-finals and conference finals respectively.
    Roloson’s record for the first 3 rounds dramatically improved to 12-5-0 with a GAA of 2.33 and SV% of .927. That is a fantastic record considering how not so great his record was during the season.
    Unfortunately for Roloson, he got injured in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Carolina Hurricanes and wasn’t able to return to the rest of the series. The Oilers would still go the distance against an aggressive Hurricanes team but ultimately falter in game 7 as the Canes won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Jussi Markkanen was the designated goaltender for the Oilers for the rest of the series. A lot of people have questioned if the Oilers would have won the Stanley Cup if Roloson didn’t get injured; We unfortunately will never know that fate.

    The Carolina Hurricanes trade Krystofer Kolanos, Niklas Nordgren, and a 2007 2nd round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Mark Recchi on March 9th, 2006. (Day after Dwayne Roloson trade)
    Recchi was a great high-scoring winger in the 1990’s and early 2000’s but he was a older player in 2006 and his production wasn’t what it used to be. It was still a great trade for Carolina to make because they didn’t pay that much to acquire him. Regardless, Recchi is a great leader on and off the ice and his leadership was needed to vault the Carolina Hurricanes to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
    Recchi totalled 7 points in 20 regular season games for the Hurricanes as well as contributing 16 points in 25 games and a lot of points came in critical moments during a few of their games which made him a clutch performer.
    This trade deadline deal is not a prolific or exciting one but the value gained in leadership, delivering in critical moments while not giving any roster players from the trade is a damn good deal for the Canes.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins trade Erik Christensen, Colby Armstrong, Angelo Esposito and a 1st round pick to the Atlanta Thrashers for Pascal Dupuis and Marian Hossa on February 26th, 2008.
    There was no doubt at that time that the Pittsburgh Penguins found their glory days again. It was the first time since the early 1990’s that the Penguins had a team that had two franchise players to build around in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. With the Penguins acquiring Hossa, they ensured themselves they were getting a high-calibre two-way sniper. The Pens sure hit the mark in getting Hossa but he suffered an injury in his MCL on his first game as a Pen. Many thought he was going to be out for the rest of the season and the playoffs but luckily he returned to the line-up just a few weeks before the 2007-2008 regular season ended and he looked like he was still in top form as he scored 10 points during the final 12 games of the season.
    With Hossa returning to the lineup, the Penguins ensured themselves that they were a powerhouse contender for the Stanley Cup. Pascal Dupuis was a great addition in the trade as well because him and Sidney Crosby had excellent chemistry playing together but it was Hossa who stepped up large in the playoffs that year. Hossa shook off the criticism of not performing in big games by registering 26 points including 14 goals in just 20 games during the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs. It wasn’t enough as the Detroit Red Wings out-duelled the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals as the Wings won the Stanley Cup in 6 games.
    The Pens not only won with the services of Hossa, they found long-term chemistry for Sidney Crosby as Pascal Dupuis stayed with the Penguins for the rest of his NHL career. Hossa went on to sign with the Red Wings for one year just after the Stanley Final loss. Ironically, the Red Wings would face the Penguins once again in the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals where the Penguins avenged last years loss by defeating the Red Wings in 7 games. Pascal Dupuis played a pivotal role in helping the Penguins win the cup and once again Hossa was on the losing side but this time with the Detroit Red Wings.
    Hossa would more than make up for his losses by signing with the Chicago Blackhawks where he has won 3 Stanley Cup championships so far.
    What the Atlanta Thrashers acquired in the trade with Hossa didn’t materialize into what they were expecting as Christensen and Armstrong didn’t develop into the players that the Thrashers were hoping. Also, highly touted 1st round pick, Angelo Esposito and their 1st round draft choice, Daultan Leveille didn’t even crack the NHL line up as both were considered draft busts just a few years.

    The Los Angeles Kings traded Matt Frattin, a 2nd round draft pick and a 3rd round draft pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Marian Gaborik on March 5th, 2014.
    Unlike the 2012 Los Angeles Kings, who were considered underdogs, the 2014 Los Angeles Kings team were a known threat to other NHL teams then. But once again they still surprised many as they dominated in the playoffs.
    During the 2012 trade deadline, the Kings acquired Jeff Carter from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Jack Johnson and a 1st round pick. It was a genius move by Kings GM Dean Lombardi as the Kings went on to win the Stanley Cup that season despite the fact that were 3 head coaching changes plus they barely made the playoffs as an 8th seed in the western conference.
    The Jeff Carter trade was a great trade deadline deal for the Kings but the Marian Gaborik trade was a much better deal as he performed way better than Carter in their 2014 championship season plus the Kings gave up less for Gaborik than they did to get Carter.
    Gaborik came from the Blue Jackets playing just a handful games because he was injured for the rest of the time. Gaborik finished the 2014 regular season with 16 points in 19 games which is pretty good. In the playoffs he was even better as Gaborik absolutely dominated by scoring 14 goals and mustering 22 points in 26 games. Once again, the Kings have won the Stanley Cup for the 2nd time in 3 years. Without Gaborik, I don’t think the Kings would have that kind of run to be honest.
    This trade was also interesting because the Jeff Carter trade and the Marian Gaborik trade came from the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets both times making themselves look foolish at their expense as the Kings made themselves look like geniuses. Maybe the Kings should get another deal with the Jackets again?

    The Colorado Avalanche trade Brian Rolston, Martin Grenier, Sammy Pahlsson, and a first-round draft pick to the Boston Bruins for Raymond Bourque and Dave Andreychuk on March 6th, 2000.
    This was a trade that was led to believe that the Avalanche were going all in for the 1999-2000 season but the fruition of the trade didn’t transpire until the following season. The Avalanche landed Boston’s franchise defenceman of nearly 20 years who many thought was unmovable. Bourque comes in as an outsider but fit into the club right away as he scored 14 points in the final 14 games of the 1999-2000 regular season. The Avs once again were poised for a deep playoff run but in the conference finals against the Dallas Stars, they fell just short but in the meantime Bourque racked up 9 points in 13 playoff games. That’s incredible for a player that was 39 years old at the time.
    When many thought it was going to be Bourque’s last season before retiring, Bourque signed a one year deal with the Colorado Avalanche in hopes of winning the Stanley Cup. It was an unexpected signing considering how long he has played in the NHL already, but his desire to win was stronger than his ability to say ‘”no” to hockey.
    The following season, Bourque amassed 59 points in 80 games which is pretty impressive at the age of 40. Bourque established a strong leadership presence in the locker room and became an alternate captain. In the playoffs, Bourque once again made invaluable contributions towards sending the Avs to the 2001 Stanley Cup Final as he still defended well while still accumulating 10 points in 21 games. The Avs ultimately won the Stanley Cup against the reigning 2000 Stanley Cup champions, The New Jersey Devils.

    A special moment in history was made right after the final moments of the last Stanley Cup Final game of 2001 was played. When NHL commissioner Gary Bettman handed the Stanley Cup to Joe Sakic, Sakic didn’t raise the Cup right away. Instead, he called over Ray Bourque to hoist it. It was a very classy move by Sakic as he knew Bourque waited 20 NHL seasons to win the Cup and he finally got his wish. It was a fairy tale ending to an illustrious and legendary career by none other than Raymond Bourque.
  6. oilfieldhockey
    The rule for this list of NHL jerseys is only for home, road and alternate jerseys that were introduced in the 2010’s. Winter Classic and Stadium Series jerseys will get their own list soon.
    2010: NEW YORK RANGERS ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    The dark navy blue blended with the union state red and the cream collared white goes together like peanut butter and jelly. It’s not about the design of the jersey that makes it great, it’s about how the colours gel together that makes this sweater so stunning.
    2011: TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    There weren’t a lot of jerseys introduced in 2011 but the the Leafs new alternate is a standout. A modern rendition of an old time favourite, this historically inspired sweater is simple and elegant. Easily the top choice for best new jersey in 2011
    2012: NONE
    No new jerseys were introduced in 2012 due to the lockout shortened season. The Winter Classic and All-Star games were cancelled and therefore, no new jerseys from those events either.
    2013: CALGARY FLAMES ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    Lots of great elements to look at here. The “Calgary” wordmark combined with the C logo blends together well. The shoulder patch that depicts the view of Calgary overlooking the Rocky Mountain sunset is iconic. The striping is a bit overdone with the choice of colours and different thicknesses of each colour along it. Other than that, it’s a well done tarp.
    2014: PITTSBURGH PENGUINS ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    At the time it was introduced it was just used as an alternate sweater but now it’s their full-time home jersey. The combination of bright yellow and black to go along with the huge penguin logo makes this jersey bold and memorable. Great move by the Pens organization.
     
    2015: WASHINGTON CAPITALS ALTERNATE JERSEY
     

    It was either going to be this jersey or the Colorado Avalanche alternate that was going to be the best choice of 2015. The Capitals jersey was the best jersey introduced in 2015 because the colours go together and the stars that reside above the logo are make it unique and iconic. They are also the Caps’ current alternate sweater and they still look great in Adidas threads.
    2016: FLORIDA PANTHERS HOME & ROAD JERSEYS

     
    This sweater change was a welcoming site for the Panthers. Their previous jerseys were cool but these threads take it to another level. The Florida shield logo looks strong and their shoulder patch of the state flag is very patriotic. The colours go together well and they’re clean.
    2017: COLORADO AVALANCHE HOME JERSEY

     
    A huge sigh of relief happened when the Avs changed their former home and road jerseys to the sharper, refined versions we see today. The old version of this jersey had the straight piping running along the chest and it looked hideous. The change to go with the current home and road jerseys was pivotal when Adidas had taken over the jersey production contract from the NHL. Many teams made tweaks and changes to their sweaters but out of all them, Colorado stood out on top.
    2018: ARIZONA COYOTES ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    The past has came back to life in the desert as these beauties were brought back as an alternate from the 90’s. Back then these jerseys were considered to be atrocious but nowadays they’re considered to be the peak of modern jersey fashion. The striping pattern is unlike anything else seen on a hockey jersey and the logo is one of the most detailed in the league. They’re a winner.
    2019: BUFFALO SABRES ALTERNATE JERSEY

     
    The Sabres have taken a risk in using a golden element to their sweaters but it has paid off. The 5 stripes along the waist and the sleeve represent 5 decades of the Sabres being in existence. Sadly, they’ve won no cups yet. The gold and dark blue work on the white because it pops very nicely. This jersey will be a one off as it’s only meant to be worn during their 50th season.
     
    This article is brought to you part by oilfieldjerseys.com. Head there for authentic NHL & NFL fan gear.
     
     
  7. oilfieldhockey
    You know it’s that time of year again when there is no other juicy hockey news besides off-season player SCANDALS. But there hasn’t been any of that either. Unlike in years past, there have been no Patrick Kane rape allegations, no Dustin Byfuglien driving his boat wasted, no Jarret Stoll snorting coke on the 3rd line, and no Ryan O’Reilly driving his truck through Tim Horton’s desperate for a double-double. It’s so boring this year!  And when there are no player scandals, August and September will have very boring T.V. for most hockey fans. At least the World Cup will will keep the off-season interesting right?
      Due to off-season inactivity, there is a demanding need for “hockey salvation.” Everything from ball hockey, playing in summer camp, trolling the GGSU Facebook page and even reading little articles on fantasy standings such as this one do offer some sort of satisfaction. The great and terrible aspect about fantasy prediction articles is that it offers bold, fanatical, baseless insight that never pleases anybody and triggers everybody.
    As a writer, I don’t aim to win some “best blog post of the year” award and I probably never will. I aim to pioneer conversation and that is why I love the comments section. With the 2016/17 NHL season set to begin very soon, all I want to know is, how crazy am I with my own predictions?
     

    Winner of the Atlantic Division: Tampa Bay Lightning The only reason why the Lightning didn’t go to the Stanley Cup Finals last season is because they got cocky facing the Pittsburgh Penguins in Games 6 and 7 of the Eastern Conference Final. The team acted like they had the series in the bag and that lack of willpower towards the end of the series came back to bite them in the ass. Regardless, this is the most talented team in the East.
    The General Manager of the Lightning, Steve Yzerman, has done some amazing work retaining Drouin and Stamkos which is worthy of winning the ‘GM of the year award’ alone. They have a superior offence, dominating defence and great goaltending from big Ben Bishop. Not an overly physical team, The Lightning play a smart and fast brand of hockey that makes it hard for defenders to keep up to. Their Powerplay was weak last season ranking 26th in the league but that won’t be a problem anymore with Stamkos healthy and Drouin playing with a good attitude.
    There won’t be any holes in the Lightning’s game as long as they focus and keep their eyes on the prize. A sure-fire Stanley Cup favourite in the Eastern Conference.

    Winner of the Metro Division: Washington Capitals After a very disappointing playoff performance where the Caps got ousted by the Penguins in the second round, the Caps are coming into this season with pretty much the same team. The smartest thing that General Manger, Brian MacLellan did was NOT make any drastic roster moves. Just because you exit the playoffs early doesn’t mean you have to panic and blow up the entire team. The Caps will get their breakthrough but they need to be patient and play it smart. They’re already an offensive powerhouse blessed with a tonne of creativity backed by a very reliable and stable defence. Goaltending is phenomenal too.
    Holtby is also one of the top goalies in the league so that doesn’t hurt either as they ranked 2nd in goals-against with only 193 goals allowed. Their special teams are also rock solid as they ranked 2nd in PP% and 3rd PK% last season.
    They play a very balanced game under Head Coach Barry Trotz and he has done an excellent job coaching during his 2-year tenure with the team so far. Hell, he even got Ovechkin to play defence! That is a major accomplishment in itself.
    As long as this team doesn’t have any locker room distractions, they’ll be sure to keep the mood light as they have fun playing very exciting hockey this season. Playoffs is a 99.99% sure thing for them but the playoffs are the Caps biggest challenge.

    3rd in the Eastern Conference: The Pittsburgh Penguins This team made a compelling statement, shutting the haters up when they won the Stanley Cup on June 12th, 2016. Once again, Sidney Crosby and the gang asserted themselves as true winners as they defeated the San Jose Sharks in 6 games during the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals. After a bad start at the beginning of the season, the Pens fired their coach Mike Johnston and replaced him with Mike Sullivan midway through the season. Boy that was the best move GM Jim Rutherford made all season as the Pens started to work much harder on the ice. That hard work showed as they amassed the best team record since December. They also played a more aggressive style of hockey as they got way more odd-man rushes than before.
    Sully couldn’t have gotten any more out of his players as the PP% and PK% ranked 3rd best by the end of the season after posting disastrous numbers in the first half of the year. What vaulted the Pens to Stanley Cups champions was their speed. They were way faster than the Sharks during the Stanley Cup Finals and as a result, won more foot races than the Sharks. Matt Murray was incredibly solid and poised as he won the #1 goaltending job away from Marc-Andre Fleury as a rookie.
    Nobody knows if Fleury will be traded but so far nothing has happened yet so stay tuned. The Pens will be making sure there will be no Stanley Cup hangover this season.

    4th in the Eastern Conference; Florida Panthers After surprising hockey fans around the globe (Not me, I predicted them to make it in 2015), The Florida Panthers have made the playoffs for the first time since 2012. The aura in Florida is different this time. They now have a bonafide franchise player in Aaron Ekblad, who just locked up a 8 year, $60 million deal. They have a great mix of veterans and youngsters that have great chemistry together. God Emperor Jagr and Strombone1 (Luongo) have been excellent locker room presences. The God Emperor has taught young studs like Barkov, Huberdeau, Smith and Trochek to be better players and all of whom have scored a minimum 20 goals this past season.
    Losing Kulikov, Gudbranson and Campbell is nothing to scoff at; they’re pretty good defensemen, however, GM Dale Tallon has filled the void by acquiring Keith Yandle, Jason Demers and Jakub Kindl. What’s better? The former group of defensemen that they lost (Campbell, Kulikov, Gudbranson) or the latter group of defensemen who they picked up (Yandle, Demers, Kindl)? The latter is more offensive minded than the former which suits Florida’s playing style well. They like to move the puck up quickly plus Florida isn’t a shot-blocking team so that made defensive defensemen like Gudbranson expendable.
    The Panthers didn’t have good special teams last season and they still won’t this year but regardless, they’ll still be a good team to watch.

    5th in the Eastern Conference; The New York Islanders For the first time since 1993, the New York Islanders have advanced to the second round of the playoffs. They eventually lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 5 games, however, fortunes are changing on the ice for the Islanders. They’ve had the best roster in many years in 2016 with John Tavares leading the way. He has already proved to be a clutch player scoring overtime and game-tying goals. The Islanders are not an analytics darling but they’re very physical (2nd in team hits), exceptional on special teams (8th in PP% and 4th in PK%) and play a very exciting, run n’ gun brand of hockey.
    Losing Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielson to free agency is a big blow to the offence. Despite that, they’ve replaced Okposo with Andrew Ladd plus they have guys like Matthew Barzal, Josh Ho Sang and Michael Dal Colle that can make the team as very talented rookies. You also have sleeper picks like Ryan Strome and Josh Bailey who have the ability to surprise as well. Offense shouldn’t be a struggle despite what most pessimists think.
    On defence, they’ll improve greatly from within as Ryan Pulock and Calvin de Hahn continue to improve their skillset on the back-end. Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk are still their go-to-defenders plus they have solid defensive support from Travis Hamonic and Thomas Hickey. As a whole, this group of defenceman will have a great mix of physicality and puck-moving ability which will serve the forwards well. Goaltending will be very stable as Greiss and Halak man the crease. They’ve posted good numbers last season and will continue to do so this season so expect another playoff berth for the Islanders.

    6th in the Eastern Conference; The Montreal Canadiens Last season for the Canadiens was a complete and utter disaster of biblical proportions. Having the worst team record since Christmas will definitely land you at the bottom of the standings. They’ve had a terrible season in 2012 but the 2015/16 campaign was far worse because of how it happened. The major X-factor for this season is Carey Price by far. The entire collapse of last season started when Carey Price went down with an injury in early December. The Habs boasted a 1st place record at that time but they eventually fell down to 12th by the end of the season. Not only did Price go down, P.K. Subban was having hissy fits and temper tantrums almost every shift he was on the ice plus the atmosphere in the locker room was absolutely depressing.
    As long as the Canadiens have a healthy Carey Price, they’ll go places. Trading away P.K. Subban for Shea Weber will prove to be interesting, and the signing of Alex Radulov is also a curious one. The reason why these moves were made is because the Habs have nowhere to go but up and with the type of team they have now, they’re way better off to improve the team on short-term needs instead of long term. Basically what I’m trying to say is YOLO, you got to go for it when you have the chance. I won’t go into the analytics because this team will only go as far as their emotions reveal.
    With a steady presence like Weber, he’ll be able to settle the locker room down with his poise and equilibrium. He is the exact opposite of P.K. Subban and that’s why they traded for him.
    Radulov has matured since his party days in Nashville and he knows this is his last shot at making a good impression at the NHL level so expect a compelling push in March as they’ll make the playoffs for the first time in two years.

    1st Wild Card Seed; The Ottawa Senators Last season was definitely not like the captivating 2015 campaign which saw Andrew Hammond (The Hamburglar) go on a ridiculous run that vaulted the Senators to the playoffs even after all hope was lost. Last season, we saw an uninspired and lackluster Sens team that has lost its competitive edge against other teams despite remaining physical (3rd in hits).
    They still had some offense as they ranked 13th in goal scoring last season but everything else about Ottawa’s game outright sucked. They were near the bottom in goals against, penalty killing and powerplay. Erik Karlsson posted terrific numbers as he acquired 82 points in 82 games. Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman were tearing it up offensively but the bad news is that Bobby Ryan and Kyle Turris had disappointing seasons. Curtis Lazar and Cody Ceci have yet to have good seasons but they’re primed for a breakout right now.
    With Dion Phaneuf and Derrick Brassard now in the mix for a full year, the defence will improve slightly but they won’t be stalwarts on the back end. Anderson and Hammond will bounce back from mediocre seasons as they look to get back in the playoffs.
    Overall this team will improve from within as they have the skill, work ethic, physicality and big-body presence on the wing so expect a wild card seat from the Senators although this choice is a bit of a gamble.

    2nd Wild Card Seed; The Columbus Blue Jackets The choice for the last playoff seed in the Eastern Conference was a hard choice between Carolina and Columbus for me. At the end of the day, I chose Columbus based on defensive improvements from within. It was an absolutely miserable start for the B.J’s last season as they couldn’t recover from their terrible on-ice impression. The defence was non-existent and it was so bad that even mediocre teams like Vancouver and Toronto were having offensive heydeys against them. Last season, Columbus made some changes as they brought in Seth Jones as they shipped Ryan Johansen to Nashville.
    Columbus had the 9th best offense, but yet, some of the worst defense last season. That will change this year as Ryan Murray, Seth Jones, Jack Johnson and David Savard have a real chance to gel this season. Columbus won’t miss Ryan Johansen too much as Alex Wennberg has come into his own replacing him. The top six forward group has a good mix of grit and skill as Boone Jenner, Nick Foligno, Brandon Saad, Cam Atkinson, Scott Hartnell and Alex Wennberg make up the top forward cast.
    With John Tortorella as Head Coach, this team will be gritty and defensively active. They will block a lot of shots and play “in your face” type of hockey. With goaltending, Joonas Korpisalo posted good numbers despite the adversity last season so expect him to be the starting goalie unless Bobrovsky can prove himself otherwise.
    Overall the Blue Jackets will be a team you’ll want to keep an eye on because they can make John Tortorella look very good behind the bench. I believe Tortorella, as controversial as he is, can coach a young hockey team as long as the kids have thick skin. Expect a trip to the playoffs as the Jackets will have improved structure and focus this year.
     As far as non-playoff teams are concerned, there isn’t much to talk about but I will highlight who will be finishing near the bottom.
    Here is the list of the teams who will be golfing early this season:
    9th: Carolina Hurricanes 10th: Toronto Maple Leafs 11th: Philadelphia Flyers 12th: Detroit Red Wings 13th: New York Rangers 14th: Boston Bruins 15th: Buffalo Sabres 16th: New Jersey Devils As far as the Stanley Cup Finals are concerned, we have the Tampa Bay Lightning edging out the San Jose Sharks in 7 games after the Sharks take a 3-0 series lead only to blow it in the end! I would not blame the entire Sharks team if they retire if a scenario like that would happen but history does repeat itself in mysterious ways, doesn’t it? As far as I can recall, the Sharks did flop a 3-0 series lead before, didn’t they? 
     
     
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  8. oilfieldhockey
    The West is best and the East is yeast, right? That’s typically the case when it comes to comparing the Western and Eastern conferences. The West has dominated the East with the Western Conference teams winning the Stanley Cup 5 times in the last 7 seasons. The Western Conference teams in the not-so-distant past have beaten most Eastern Conference teams in the regular season as well.
    Last season was an exception. The records have indicated the East vs. West battle in the regular season was pretty even. The Eastern teams have improved significantly over the past season and it’s not looking like a tier II hockey league anymore. That means the Western teams can not rely on easily beating the Eastern teams for an easy 2 points anymore.
    With 2016 being one of the most boring and non-existent off-seasons in recent memory, I’m hoping to take some of the boredom out by offering ridiculous standings predictions some may find far-fetched, and maybe even shocking.

    Winner of the Pacific Division: San Jose Sharks Last year, the hockey world seen the unexpected resurrection of the San Jose Sharks. Following the traumatic experience of the 2014 reverse sweep against the Los Angeles Kings, the Sharks had a demotivated 2015 campaign. Everybody thought 2016 was going to be much of the same but the Sharks dug deep and found ways to win games towards the middle of the season and have since surprised hockey fans everywhere by beating the Kings, Predators and Blues to become Stanley Cup finalists.
    The Sharks have kept almost the entire roster from last season and in fact, they added more speed in the lineup by signing Mikkel Boedker to a contract. The reason why the Sharks wanted more speed is because the Penguins used to their speed to win the Stanley Cup against them last year during the Stanley Cup Finals.
    With Thornton and Marleau entering their contract years, they know it’s their very last shot at winning the Stanley Cup as they both turn 38 next year. This is the season that they’ll be both more motivated than ever as time is ticking closer and closer towards the end of their contracts and eventually, retirement. The good news is that the team they’re on right now is going to be the best in the West because of the arsenal of players supporting them.
    With Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Marc-Edourd Vlasic rounding out the star cast, the Sharks will be fun and exciting to watch. The Sharks were offensive powerhouses last year ranking 2nd in team scoring and 5th in goals against. Expect similar numbers this season as the team improved by signing Boedker to a multi-year deal.

    Winner of the Central Division; Chicago Blackhawks Last year, the Hawks exited early from the playoffs as the Blues ousted them in 7 games in the Western Conference Quarter Finals. Patrick Kane was electric last season as he ammased 106 points taking home the Art Ross Trophy in the process.
    Once again the Hawks dumped salary in the off-season as they got rid of Bickell and Teravainen. That was the bad news. The good news is that they signed Brian Campbell for only $1.5 million and that is a steal considering how well he played for the Florida Panthers last year.
    The Hawks are perennial contenders for the Stanley Cup and they had the best powerplay last season. They are an extremely skilled, aggressive and fast-paced team that will take advantage of other teams mistakes every time opportunity presents.
    With above-average goaltending with Corey Crawford and a great defensive core with Keith, Campbell, Seabrook and Hjalmarsson in the mix, they’ll continue to provide exceptional puck-moving ability and scoring support from the back-end to Toews, Kane, Panarin (AKA Bread Man) and Hossa.
    It’ll be no surprise the Hawks will win a tough central division this year.

    3rd in the Western Conference; Los Angeles Kings The Kings are a very big, powerful and physical team. They ranked 1st in hits last season but besides that they didn’t post overwhelmingly great scoring numbers. They’ll miss Lucic for sure because he was one of the very few players to provide physicality the way that he did.
    The Kings are still a deep team up front with Kopitar, Toffoli and Carter leading the way. If guys like Brown and Gaborik come back from disappointing seasons, the Kings will be a force to be reckoned with.
    The back-end isn’t too shabby when you got Doughty, Muzzin and Martinez leading the defensive corps. Besides that, the rest of the group of D gets thin. The signing of Tom Gilbert helps marginally. The Kings have to rely on somebody standing out from training camp to make a good impression but if you know anything about the Kings, it’s that they always find a way to make something work.
    Even if your defensive corp isn’t deep, you still have the most aggressive and acrobatic goaltender in the world in Jonathan Quick backing the Kings up every step of the way.
    Look forward to the Kings taking complete advantage of a weak Pacific Division and cementing their playoff spot early this season.

    4th in the Western Conference; Nashville Predators When you add P.K. Subban to your team, the aura of the locker room is instantly more passionate and emotional. This can be good or bad depending on how it plays out. The Preds may have lost Weber in the trade but getting Subban back in return is better in the long-term. P.K. is a great puck mover just like teammate Roman Josi. He’ll provide speed and physicality as well – a very dynamic player. They’ll most likely be playing in separate pairings to spread the dynamics around.
    The offense looks good as well with Forsberg, Neal and Johansen leading the way up front. Scoring from the back end will be great as Subban, Josi, Ellis and Ekholm have great puck-moving ability and scoring prowess.
    This team will be faster and more skilled than a year ago. Speed will serve the Preds well when facing divisional foes with great speed like Chicago and Dallas because they’ll be able to keep up with them. Unlike Chicago and Dallas, the Preds play a more structured and defensive game that will frustrate opposing teams scorers.
    On a side note, we might see Viktor Arvidsson raise a few eyebrows and have a break out season. At times during the playoffs last season against Anaheim and San Jose, we was the best player on the ice and was an extremely hard worker. You never know if that hard work will pay off this season.
    The Predators will be the most interesting team to watch early in the season just to see how P.K. Subban will be adjusting to his new team.

    5th in the Western Conference; Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are the most explosive team in the NHL. The fire-power up front is salivating with Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin, Jason Spezza, Patrick Sharp and John Klingberg leading the charge. Those guys were the reason why they scored the most goals last year.
    The big concern for the Stars is the defensive corp. They lost Goligoski and Demers to free agency and that is a big deal considering that the Stars don’t have anybody else to replace them from within the system. Oleksiak isn’t ready unless I’m proven wrong but I think he’s a few years away from breaking out. Despite that, they did sign Hamhuis and they might sign Russell still, but the depth on defence is still pretty weak for the Stars.
    Despite the woes on defence, Dallas still does have good goaltending with Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. They were good as a goaltending pair last year and will be good again this year. Who knows if one of them will be traded for a defenceman.
    Despite the defensive shortcomings, I’m still pretty confident with this team. As long as they’re on the powerplay and don’t play defence as much, they’ll get a lot of opportunities on the powerplay because of their discipline. They won’t be as good as last season but still good enough to make the playoffs nonetheless.

    6th in the Western Conference; Calgary Flames Last season for the Flames was nothing short of atrocious. They were dead last in goals against and penalty kill. Fans had expectations for the Flames last year as they made the playoffs in 2015. Good news for the Flames is that the Pacific Division is still pretty weak in comparison to the Central which means the Flames have the best shot at winning some easy games against the Canucks, Oilers and Coyotes.
    The Flames have a great infusion of skill upfront and defensive acumen on the back-end. With Gaudreau, Monahan, Bennett and Backlund leading the charge upfront, they’re going to get some grade “A” scoring chances often. The Flames also have some grit as Ferland, Jooris, Frolik, Bouma and possibly Tkachuk rounding out the checking lines.
    There is a lot to like on the back-end with Giordano, Brodie and Hamilton leading the way with their puck-moving ability and smarts. They’re a very poised group of defenceman and play a very well-rounded game.
    The main reason why the Flames will make the playoffs this season is because they brought in goaltender, Brian Elliott from the Blues. I know a lot people don’t have faith in the Flames after what happened last year but I do. They’re a good team on paper and I think a lot of the young guns have learned their lessons so expect them to step up in a big way this season.

    1st Wild Card Seed; St. Louis Blues If the Blues were in any other division, they’d dominate but they’re in Central Division, and that is tough.
    The Blues are a very balanced and depth driven team with a lot of grit and sandpaper. The exception to that rule is Vladimir Tarasenko and all he does is snipe pucks top shelf all day long. He’ll be good for 40 goals and 80 points again.
    The Blues were in the top 10 in everything from goals scored, goals against to special teams last year. Expect the Blues to be great this year but there will be hiccups along the way. Competing with the rest of the Central Division will not be easy and with Alex Pietrangelo being captain, there’ll be some leadership adjustments and growing pains along the way – especially if you lost somebody like David Backes who had exemplary leadership qualities.
    With Brian Elliot gone, Jake Allen will have to take full-time responsibilities in the crease and I’m not sure if he’ll handle it well. He’s a great goalie but I think he’ll have some work to do in adjusting to his new role as the unquestionable starting goalie.
    Overall the Blues will do fine but don’t panic if it looks like at certain points that they won’t make the playoffs because they’ll find a way.

    2nd Wild Card Seed; Winnipeg Jets A return to the playoffs for the Winnipeg Jets shouldn’t be out of the question. Most people don’t have faith in them but i am one of the few that do. So why is that? That is because the Jets are in the middle of priming their prospect pipeline for a boost to the big leagues. With Patrik Laine, Kyle Connor and Josh Morrisey on the rise, expect some heads to be turned towards their direction. You also have Adam Lowry, Nikolaj Ehlers and Mark Scheiffle still improving and what all that means is that the Jets will establish themselves as a deadly scoring threat when no one else will expect it.
    As far as defence is concerned, there actually isn’t too much to be concerned with. Byfuglien, Trouba, Myers and Morrisey will most likely round out the top 4 on the back-end and that isn’t too bad. The only knock on them is that they aren’t as fast as other teams defensive corps like to what Nashville, Chicago and St. Louis have. But the good news is that they’re more physical and that can be a big advantage if they’re able to land the hits.
    Goaltending will be a mystery until the start of the season because Pavelic, Hutchinson and Hellebuyck all have cases to be starting goaltenders for the Jets. We might see an early season trade ensue if one of the goalies doesn’t make the cut because they’re all NHL calibre but you can only have 2 goalies on the starting roster.
    The Central Division is full of powerful teams but I think the Jets have a great shot to barely squeak into the playoffs. They won’t be as good as Nashville, Dallas or Chicago but Winnipeg has a case to beat them on some nights bounces go their way.

    You might be slightly shocked as to why I didn’t choose Anaheim to make the playoffs.
    Every once in awhile, when a great team has made the playoffs for many consecutive years, there is sometimes an off-year. When Anaheim lost it’s 4th consecutive game 7 in the playoffs against Nashville, there was an aura of devastation amongst the entire team. The blame game was played by almost everybody and everything was left on a sour note. With Bruce Boudreau released from his head coaching duties, Randy Carlyle is stepping back in to coach the Ducks for the first time since 2011. I don’t know how that is going to workout because the outcome in Carlyle’s coaching usually goes one of two ways. Either every player buys into the system or they don’t at all.
    My belief is that they don’t because of how Carlyle left the team last time in 2011. Players weren’t buying in, they weren’t particiapting in Carlyle’s practices and that caused a cancerous type of mood in the locker room. I think old memories between Perry, Getzlaf and Carlyle will come back but not in a good way. They might do well early in the season but bad relationships might form because of the memories and that can cause havoc.
    It was just like the Montreal Canadiens last year when they collapsed after doing well. It wasn’t just because of Carey Price either, it was because of the bad relationship between Subban, teammates and the coach. I see a scenario just like this play out for the Anaheim Ducks.
    Here’s how the rest of the Standings might play out:
    9th: Anaheim Ducks 10th: Edmonton Oilers 11th: Minnesota Wild 12th: Colorado Avalanche 13th: Arizona Coyotes 14th: Vancouver Canucks Click here for full article with voter poll
     
    Click here to read the Eastern Conference Standings and Stanley Cup Predictions
  9. oilfieldhockey
    The Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks both unveiled their 2019 Winter Classic jerseys on Thursday. As is tradition, the two teams, with the help of Adidas, designed very classic looking uniforms that they’ll wear when they head outdoors for the annual New Year’s Day event, which is set to be played at the iconic Notre Dame Stadium this season.
     
    As the visiting team, the Bruins were first to unveil their sweaters, which are a throwback to the club’s uniforms in the 1930s. They’re not identical to that look, as they have new sleeve striping, but the overall aesthetic is a tribute to that era. One of the most remarkable details about this uniform is that the logo, name and numbers uses a felt material similar to an old school letterman jacket. (Each of the Bruins’ previous two Winter Classic jerseys included felt as well.) If you have “felt the felt” on the Bruin’s previous Winter Classic jerseys before, you know that it feels amazing.
     

     
    The only real reference to Notre Dame comes inside the the collar, where six shamrocks are featured to highlight each year in which the Bruins have won the Stanley Cup. A subtle feature that standouts because of the contrast from the green shamrocks to the overall colour scheme.
     

     

     
    The Chicago jersey will also feature all their championship years inside the neckline, but those years are displayed in between the hashmarks that are typically featured in the end zones of Notre Dame Stadium. This is one of the first features of the jersey that is referenced to American Football of any kind.
     

     
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  10. oilfieldhockey
    October 1st, 2018 marks a big day in the Islanders world as another Adidas alternate jersey was beautifully delivered to the world. I want to be the first to show you how the elements of this jersey design come together (in this case, deconstructed) with meaning and significance.
     
    The jersey itself is very simple in design, but the colours blend nicely together. The overall body of the jersey was inspired by the 2014 Stadium Series jersey the Islanders released in their first two outdoor games against the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers.
     
    As soon as the video of the unveiling of the jersey was released on the official New York Islanders Twitter feed, it became noticeable right away that the primary logo was broken into three key pieces and placed on important areas of the sweater.
     

     
    3 key areas of importance:
    -The “NY” abbreviations
    -The “Islanders” lettering
    -The geographic image of Long Island itself
     
     

    THE “NY” STAYS FRONT AND CENTER:
    The “NY” is a direct adoption from the Islanders primary logo. The only difference is that the “Y” is flat on the bottom instead of leaving it on a sharper angle. The four orange strips that were previously on the shaft, are now on the blade of the “Y”. The strips represent the four Stanley Cup championships the Islanders won in 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983.
     

    ON THE NECK OF LONG ISLAND:
    The image of Long Island, familiar to the one seen on the primary logo, is now tucked on the inside portion of the neck. Utilizing the neck has been a popular amongst teams in recent years as each team is trying to offer a bit of extra insignia to the overall complexion of their outlook. The only difference between this sketch of Long Island compared to the one seen on the main logo is that it’s now blue instead of orange. It’s blue so that it offsets the white and orange trim in a crisp fashion.

    “ISLANDERS” LETTERING NOW ON BACK OF NECK:
    If you can’t tell already, this sweater strongly favours the neck. The “Islanders” lettering is the last adoption from the main logo. It has a different font than the one on the main logo but it had to be bolder in order to stand out since its such a small detail. The inscription sits nicely along on the brim and once again the font is blue to offset the white and orange trim on the collar.
     
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  11. oilfieldhockey
    There is a common theme with most of the NHL 3rd jersey releases in 2018. They're nostalgic and simple. Many of the 3rd jerseys were alterations of the previous Stadium Series jerseys worn by some of the teams. Others, were completely new with a resemblance of Deja Vu infused in the sweater. It's definitely familiar, except now Adidas is branded onto the jersey where as before, it was Reebok's duty.
     

    Anaheim Ducks
    This modern classic was released for the 25th anniversary season for the Anaheim Ducks and it tried to touch as many parts of the Ducks history as it could.
    Anchored in black, the third jersey features the original "Mighty Ducks" crest with eggplant and jade striping from the Ducks iconic look of its inaugural 1993-94 season. Linking the team's past and present, the jersey incorporates new into old with a touch of the Ducks current orange coloring represented in the crossed hockey sticks of the team's original mark. Anaheim's current jersey number and letter styling is used in the new third sweater, providing a cohesive and integrated look to the team's 2018-19 uniform kits, while the interior collar denotes the franchise's 25th silver season. The first of its kind to subtly incorporate each of the seven colors (Eggplant, Jade, Anaheim Ducks Orange, Anaheim Ducks Gold, Anaheim Ducks Silver, White and Black) the Ducks have worn throughout the club's 25-year tenure, the jersey also features silver as a primary accent color in both the triangle of the crest and yoke, paying tribute to the team's generational milestone.
     

    St. Louis Blues
    This is the exact same jersey the Blues wore in their Winter Classic game versus the Chicago Blackhawks in 2017. These sweaters were the original jerseys that the Blues wore when they became a team in 1967. A great choice for a winter classic.
    The only main difference is the neck. This version bears the silver NHL logo that Adidas has placed on all their jerseys. The inside of the neck also has the St. Louis flag design that has been on the inner portion of all the Blues jerseys since Adidas took over jersey manufacturing for the NHL.
     

    Colorado Avalanche
    Inspired by the logo of the Colorado Rockies hockey team that played in Denver from 1976-82, as well as the state's topography, the Avalanche's third jersey is both a statement of regional pride and hockey history. By fusing the terrain of the Rocky Mountains with elements from the state flag, the crest features the "C" from Colorado's state flag and places it in the center of a triangular mountain design. Additionally, the navy-base jersey has white shoulder yokes to evoke the look of snow-capped mountain peaks, while a shoulder patch of the Colorado state flag sits atop the left shoulder.
     

    Columbus Blue Jackets
    Now on the more modern Adidas jersey cut, the uniform features a main crest which includes a depiction of the 1857 Napoleon Cannon stationed at Nationwide Arena, the cannon in/famous for firing after every Blue Jackets goal at home. The cannon is surrounded by a Civil War medal-inspired ribbon with a star at its base in recognition of Columbus being the state capital of Ohio.
    The logo features the team name on a banner that circles around a cannon – a symbol iconic to the franchise. The Blue Jackets first debuted the cannon in 2007 and fire it off when the home team scores a goal. They have even incorporated the cannon into their goal song, AC/DC’s “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)”.
    All the other details from this jersey’s first go-round have been carried over to the new uniform, the inside collar again says “We Fight, We March!”; the name and number font remains the same as the home and road set. The interior of the jersey has ten embroidered stars which were originally added in recognition of the club’s tenth anniversary from 2009.
     

    Winnipeg Jets
    Going with their lighter “aviator blue”, a secondary colour from the team’s home and road set as the base, it’s the new word mark across the chest that’s the star of this design. This new word mark features “Jets” in a new white script with the “t” crossed using the outline of a fighter jet. This wordmark also becomes the new official team word mark logo, replacing the previous logo introduced in 2011.
    The large white stripes on each arm and around the waist were directly inspired by the jersey the original Winnipeg Jets wore in their final few seasons before moving to Phoenix in 1996.
    There are no shoulder decorations as this jersey is a very simple and low-key design. A nice touch is added to the inside collar, “WE ARE TRUE NORTH”, a nod to the fans who scream out “True North!” during the Canadian National Anthem before each home game.
     

    Calgary Flames
    A throwback to the road red uniform the team first wore as they moved from Atlanta in 1980, Calgary had originally worn this uniform for their first fifteen years, including for two trips to the Stanley Cup Final and a championship in 1989. The design has, of course, been updated to fit on the Adidas jersey style.
    It’s that Stanley Cup anniversary that’s being cited as the reason for the return of this classic uniform (30 years since they last won), the Flames were wearing these road reds in Montreal as they hoisted the Cup for that first and only time in franchise history; in fact, it’s the only time a visiting club ever won the Stanley Cup at the Montreal Forum.
    Like the 1980-94 design, this uniform is red with white and gold striping at the waist and on each sleeve; on the chest is the Flames familiar flaming-C logo in white with gold trim. The Flames had previously brought this uniform back as a “throwback” for their 30th anniversary season in 2009-10 before making it their official alternate uniform for 2010-11 through 2012-13, the uniform was brought back a second time as an alternate uniform for the 2016-17 season.

    San Jose Sharks
    The Sharks are calling it their “Stealth Jersey” becuase it has been "blacked-out". Its colours and re-coloured logos, all traces of orange from their primary logo on the chest has been eliminated aside from the eye of the shark, replaced with black and teal, even the hockey stick is now teal. The team’s classic shark-fin logo returns for the first time in over a decade, also re-coloured. The popular secondary logo graced the shoulder of the Sharks uniforms from their inaugural season in 1991 through 1998 and then returned for their alternate uniform from 2002 to 2007.
    It’s not all about the “stealth” with this new set, there’s also a nod to the San Jose area’s important role in the world of technological advances with the addition of a subtle microchip pattern in between the two teal sleeve stripes; they’re saying the pattern forms a series of “SJ". The incorporation of this microchip pattern is also to establish the Sharks as “the team of the future”.




    Washington Capitals
    Throwing back to the road red uniform the club wore for their first 20-odd seasons, the jersey features the original team logo across the chest in white with a blue hockey stick, and six stars alternating between white-and-blue across the top and five down each sleeve. The collar is white with a white shoulder yoke, at the waist are two large stripes, one blue and one white. Blue pants and red helmets will be worn, the pants also with the star pattern down each side.
    The uniform is the same design the team wore as their alternate uniform during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons, even carrying over the incorrect colouring of the WASHINGTON word mark on the logo; during the original run of this uniform design, this element of the logo was actually blue.
    Washington began wearing this uniform style for their expansion season in 1974-75, with a few minor tweaks over the years it was worn through the end of the 1994-95 season before being radically replaced with a blue/black/bronze design featuring an eagle on the chest and diagonal striping. In 2007-08 the Caps returned to a modernized version of their original set and brought back their white version as an alternate uniform in 2011-12; the white alternate was worn for four seasons when it was replaced with a more practical red version allowing the team to wear it for home games.

    New York Islanders
    Creating a new signature look, the alternate jersey features a re-designed "NY" crest, modernized to be more symmetrical. The descending "Y" hockey stick has been shortened and strengthened to give it a more balanced appearance. The four iconic stripes have been moved down to the blade to prominently celebrate the Islanders' historic consecutive Stanley Cup Championships. The jersey includes subtle nods to the team's heritage with a color palette, refined striping system, and orange numbering reminiscent of the team's inaugural 1972-1973 blue sweater. Other subtle details include a graphic of Long Island on the interior neckline, a designation of Long Island pride, and a block-lettered "ISLANDERS" moniker that sits just above the Adidas logo on the exterior neckline.

    Philadelphia Flyers
    The jersey is a direct copy of their 2017 Stadium Series uniform, minus the commemorative patches. The all-black uniform with large orange stripes was already alluded to as being their third jersey during a fan event early in 2018.
    The difference between this jersey and the Stadium Series version is the imprint of "PHILADELPHIA" inside the neck portion of the jersey.
     

    Pittsburgh Penguins
    The new design incorporates elements from the popular 2017 Stadium Series uniform while acknowledging the heritage of gold jerseys worn by Mario Lemieux and the Penguins in the 1980s.
    Creating a signature look for these new thirds, the crest spotlights the standalone skating penguin on a single-toned gold sweater. Mixing the past with the present, the contrasting black sleeves are highlighted with white and gold striping that are inspired from the Penguins' 1984 jerseys, while the letters and numbering mirror the current home and away jerseys. Additional design details include the sleeve numbers being raised to the shoulder of the jersey to mimic the 1980s look.

    Carolina Hurricanes
    The Carolina Hurricanes are advising you take warning to the fact the club has unveiled their new alternate/third uniform, one which updates some old looks worn by the club while also introducing some North Carolina state pride.
    Like their previous one, the Canes use the secondary team colour of black as the base while also modifying the logo on the chest.
    Front-and-centre we see a new hurricane warning flag logo, yes – it’s actually a hurricane warning flag this time – with two flags flying from the stick instead of one, another nod to North Carolina hidden in-between the two flags.
    The shoulder yoke is now a storm grey with a red trim and includes two “ghosted out” tonal grey logos – the Hurricanes primary logo on the right shoulder and the state flag of North Carolina on the left shoulder.
    Throughout the uniform we see several red stripes, all of which include a heathered pattern.
     

    Arizona Coyotes
    Like some sort of mythical bird whose name I just cannot recall, the Phoenix Coyotes original Kachina uniforms have returned.
    Banking on a wave of 90’s nostalgia, the Arizona Coyotes introduced their new throwback third uniforms tonight at their NHL Draft party. The uniform was worn originally for the Coyotes first seven seasons following their relocation from Winnipeg in 1996 before it was replaced in the fall of 2003 as the current logo made it’s debut.
    The uniform is a fairly faithful reproduction of the original Coyotes uniform, even nailing the unique striping pattern around the waist, sleeves, and at the collar. Both logos are back, the coyote on the chest as well as the moon mark on the shoulder, albeit updated to no longer read “Phoenix” instead leaving it blank above "Coyotes", due to the name change the team underwent in 2014.

    New Jersey Devils
    The New Jersey Devils this afternoon announced and unveiled a heritage uniform which the club will wear during the 2018-19 season.
    Based off of the Devils red and green home uniform worn during the club’s first ten seasons in New Jersey, the uniform is white with red shoulders, the shoulders trimmed in white and green, the Devils familiar primary logo on the chest in red and green.
    It may have been slightly re-coloured or even chromified but in their 36 years playing in the Garden State, the New Jersey Devils have never played a game with anything but the “NJ” logo featured prominently on their chests. Not once.

    Edmonton Oilers
    The Edmonton Oilers unveiled their new throwback heritage uniform, their home jersey from two seasons ago… that’s all, the only difference is that it’s now on the Adidas jersey cut. Because it’s not officially classified as an alternate or “third uniform” it’ll only be worn four times this year.
    Edmonton is bringing back the long-buried uniform (sarcasm implied) for the 2018-19 season to help celebrate the 40th anniversary of the team joining the NHL in 1979.
     

    Carolina Hurricanes....(again)
    the Carolina Hurricanes, who previously played as the Hartford Whalers from 1979 through 1997, announced they would wear a Whalers road green throwback uniform for two games in the upcoming 2018/19 season.
    Going with the design the Whalers wore from 1985-89 (and then again for the 1990/91 season), the Hurricanes will be in green from head-to-toe, helmets, pants, socks, gloves all match what the Whalers wore during this era.
    Carolina was able to work in a subtle reference to tie-in with their current identity, a tonal black and blue storm warning flag pattern on the inside collar.
     
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  12. oilfieldhockey
    Usually any NHL outdoor game creates a lot of anticipation for fans. The Winter Classics and the Stadium Series are an event almost every fan, regardless of what team you cheer for, take interest in. The one thing that piques the most curiosity on these games is always the grand, jersey reveal.
     
    There’s just one problem:
     
    The Flyers jersey was leaked. Not once, but twice. Also, the Penguins jersey was leaked along with the second time the Flyers jersey was leaked. Ouch! Someone was way too excited to show these off! The leaks soured any excitement fans had left about the official reveal. It was a bad kept secret.


    We got wind of these photos 4 days before the official unveiling and it was reported everywhere amongst Hockey focused Facebook pages and Instagram fan pages.   It is clearly stated that these Stadium Series jerseys are supposed to resemble the “black and yellow construction signs” of Steel City to honour Pittsburgh’s history and all of those bright yellow bridges the city is famous for. What came out was an NFL colour rush jersey which is coincidentally similar to the Pittsburgh Steelers jersey they wore this season. The fade between the yellow and black along the detailed parts of the jersey is a nice touch to modernize the look. The “A Great Day For Hockey” punchline along the neckline is unoriginal for two reasons: 1) The font used for the lettering is the same as the letter font as the name lettering used for the 2017 Stadium Series jerseys. 2) The punchline itself is very generic and doesn’t pay tribute to anything connected with anything Pittsburgh specific at all. The Penguins would of made up for the blandness of the sweater by adding a patch honouring their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships during the 2016 and 2017 cup runs. That is missed opportunity because there isn’t knowing when the Pens will get another chance of participating in an outdoor game.
     

     
    Besides the differing shades of yellow and the striping, there isn’t much of difference between the Steelers Color Rush and Penguins Stadium Series jerseys.
    POSITIVES:
    The fade of the logo is a nice touch Modernization is apparent and distinguishable Letter kits are simple and match the jersey seamlessly CRITIQUES:
    Slanted yellow sleeves makes the overall pattern of the jersey awkward Punchline along neck is generic and cheesy Missed opportunity to utilize patch for back-to-back Stanley Cups (stripes along sleeves don’t count) Looks too much like the Steelers Color Rush jersey  
     
      PHILADELPHIA FLYERS   To go with the theme for the 2019 Stadium Series, the Flyers added a nice fade along the logo cutting out the white between the wing and orange dot in the middle of the logo. It’s clean and the orange and black were utilized the right way. The black name plate is a great touch to with the Flyer’s unique theme of adding offsetting name plates on most off their jersey designs. The black stripes along the sleeves are simple yet welcome feature about the jersey. The “Philly” signature along the neckline is used with an original font and it’s crisp. That feature might be used in future marketing efforts on how to effectively use it as a shoulder patch or along somewhere on the neck for a new jersey in the future.
    POSITIVES:
    Orange and black go well with modern twist on the jersey overall Black stripes along lower sleeve fit in nicely Fade along logo is clean Capitalized opportunity of the off-setting nameplate “Philly” along the neckline is a good touch CRITIQUES:
    A patch or punchline along the neck commemorating the “The City of Brotherly Love” would of been a great add-on since the Flyers are hosting.
  13. oilfieldhockey
    Hey everybody,
    As some of us know as hockey fans, we definitely have our favourite team and we definitely have our favourite jersey.
    How some of us view or make use of our jerseys are sometimes very different from each other.
    Some of us are very happy with just getting our favourite team’s home jersey with no name on the back. They just show support for the team they’re cheering for. Some of us want the authentic-cut jersey that the players wear on the ice; that’s if you’re a hardcore fan.
    It doesn’t matter how you wear it, it doesn’t matter when you wear it, all what matters is that you’re doing it for the game that you love and nothing else.
    Once in awhile, you might see a jersey and think; “Hey, that is an interesting design.” Someone may post a picture of it on the internet and it might get some buzz on social media. Some of you might stop scrolling and take a good look at it and give it a quick like. Some of you may look a little more into it and find out the jerseys are for a charitable cause. Some of these jersey designs are cool and some are downright ridiculous but it’s worth a good chuckle or a jaw-dropping reaction. A lot of these jerseys are made for promotional efforts and auctioned off for charity and that’s just another reason why hockey is one of the greatest sports on Earth. Sometimes though, the cause goes deeper and beyond the colours of the jersey There is definitely cultural symbolism with some of these jerseys. Some of which have caused some controversy.
    Military Inspired Camouflage Jerseys:
     
    A lot of NHL teams are on board with wearing these military inspired jerseys during warm ups to support and recognize the national military. Fans have polarizing views of these jerseys but they’re not meant to promote style, it’s to promote a good cause. Some people have said that these jerseys don’t serve a purpose and don’t help the military BUT if you care about how it helps the military then you have to know where your money is going before you buy military inspired merchandise.
    The MSE Foundation recently raised $46,000 during a Washington Capitals home game on February 5th, 2016 by auctioning military-inspired Washington Capitals jerseys. The funds acquired are used to help family members of soldiers who serve in the military, soldiers with PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder) and war amputees. The jerseys were autographed and sold during the event. Not only were these jerseys sold to raise funds; equipment such as pucks, helmets, sticks and others were also sold to raise funds for this honourable cause.
    It’s mostly just at these private auctions where money is raised for these kinds of charities. Most official sports retail outlets that offer military camouflage jerseys are only sold for profit unless otherwise stated that proceeds from each sale goes towards a charity. Some retail outlets do sell these jerseys but some don’t because they don’t want a controversial image of using the military fashion to cash in on a quick profit. It’s not just jerseys where the camouflage design is used, it’s on hats, toques and shirts as well. Soldiers who have served in the military dislike the fact that retail outlets use the military image for profit because its a weak expression of support for the military plus the image of the military is taken advantage of for promotional purposes so corporations can make a profit.

    *Do you agree with sports merchandisers selling military camouflage jerseys for profit?
    Here is the link to the comments about the jerseys made from members of the military:

    Star Wars Themed Jerseys:

    It’s easy to admit that these jerseys are ‘out-of-the-box’ in terms of jersey design. For Star Wars fans who love hockey, they are some of the most epic jersey designs ever. The Vancouver Giants and Saskatoon Blades of the WHL each had a Star Wars night in honour of the most successful 2015 box office hit; Star Wars – The Force Awakens.
    Star Wars night for the Saskatoon Blades was held on November 28th, 2015 and the entire Saskatoon Blades team wore these jerseys for their home game against the Edmonton Oil Kings. The jerseys were not just meant to bring nerds to hockey games but it was for charity. The player-worn jerseys were signed by the players and auctioned after the game. Proceeds from the auction went towards the Food Banks of Saskatchewan.

    The Vancouver Giants had their own version of these beautiful Star Wars jerseys as well but unlike the Blades, the Giants went to the “dark side”. The Giants wore them for their home game on December 4th, 2015 against the Kootenay Ice. Just like what the Blades did, the Giants team also signed these jerseys and auctioned them off for charity. The proceeds went to the Shriners Hospitals for Children.
    L.A. Dodgers Pride Night Jerseys:

    *Dustin Brown and Drew Doughty of the L.A. Kings wearing these Dodgers inspired practice jerseys during warm-up. 
    The Los Angeles Kings have a ‘Dodgers Pride Night’ once per season. It’s based from the partnership agreement between the Los Angeles Kings and the Los Angeles Dodgers, a Major League Baseball team. It’s a promotion as much as it is a charitable cause for both major sports teams. Fans that go to this annual event don’t only  watch the game but get a L.A. Kings themed baseball and a chance to win prizes at the game.
    The Dodger’s inspired hockey sweaters that were used for warm up were signed and auctioned after the game. Proceeds went to the Kings Care Foundation.
    Flint Firebird “Tropics” Jerseys:

    Based from the 2008 box office hit Semi-Pro, these jerseys were an excerpt from the Flint Tropics, the name of Basketball team in the movie. Since it’s the Flint Firebirds we’re talking about here, wouldn’t it be convenient to have the “Jackie Moon” approved Flint Tropic hockey jerseys for a promotional event?
    That’s exactly what the Flint Firebirds did as they hosted a “Flint Tropics Night” in Flint, Michigan. The Firebirds hosted the Owen Sound Attack on February 13th, 2016 for the event. It was a big highlight for the Firewoods as they were having an awful season dealing with numerous ownership disputes and a lot of losing games. The jerseys were auctioned off after the game for charity and it was one night the Firebirds and the fans had fun regardless on the outcome of the game.
    St. Patty Day Hockey Jerseys:

    Like the military jerseys, the St. Patty Day jerseys are used by many NHL teams for pre-game warm ups but without the controversy. It’s great promo as St. Patty’s day is very popular and if you didn’t guess already the pre-game warm up jerseys are signed and auctioned off for charity by many teams. Whether its an NHL team or some junior league team partaking in this, it’s a very popular event in Canada and the United States. It always produces great results because it’s a great excuse to celebrate Spring and a great reason to order up a few pints of Guinness for yourself and your friends.
    How could someone hate St. Patrick’s Day?
  14. oilfieldhockey
    Phoenix Coyotes
    As most hockey fans may know, the Phoenix Coyotes are losing money every single year and the loses have been increasing in huge increments as seasons go by no matter how well their team's performance is. The worst recorded financial loss came just last year with an excess of $25 million down the tubes and the first question that comes to everyone's mind is why are they even still playing in that barren desert? The answer is simple, the NHL still wants this failing team to remain in Glendale, AZ. As the NHL announced their rescheduling of the forfeited 2013 Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs to New Year`s Day 2014, they also mentioned that they are adamantly interested into keeping the Phoenix Coyotes Franchise in Glendale despite negative media attention and the criticism from other NHL owners about their intended outlook and I don`t blame the owners one bit as they each have to pitch in their recorded profits to bail this team out and keep it running. Since the NHL took over the franchise in 2009, there has been a ton of court stalemates, bid proposals from interested buyers and even legal battles on what to do with the franchise. I personally don`t understand why Gary Bettman and the NHL would want to keep this team in Phoenix but one thing I know that needs to be done is that there needs to be a court appeal by someone interested in buying the Coyotes about allowing the NHL to irresponsibly run this franchise as it affects all 30 NHL teams because they are in a collective bargaining agreement. When billionaire Jim Balsillie wanted to buy the franchise so he could move it to Hamilton, the NHL refused to allow the sale to go through and got help from a U.S. bankruptcy judge to solidify all legal rights for the NHL to take control of the team. Since then there have been many purchase proposals from various investment firms to control of the franchise but only to move it elsewhere and that's why the NHL is still keeping this franchise in Phoenix. Unless there is another court battle about the sale, the judge might think twice this time about allowing the franchise to stay because of the recorded financial losses, poor economic state of Arizona and the disapproval from the NHL owners on the sale. We will find out this off-season whether the Coyotes can hang on to their place in Phoenix or sent packing to a different town.

    NHL Winter Classic 2014
    As I mentioned earlier, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings will play January 1st, 2014 in Detroit but now there has been interest by the Los Angeles Kings of all teams to host an outdoor game against the Anaheim Ducks in Los Angeles. My question is it even possible to host a hockey game outside in a very warm acclimatized city such as L.A. Surely they wouldn't be mentioning this unless they the technology and capability to do it. One thing for sure is that it`s going to take a lot of air conditioning keep that ice cool. Maybe there will be dry ice imported from Antarctica to keep the rink from melting as fast, who know`s? I seriously don`t know what they have in mind but I would like to find out! Of course the major issue involving this (besides how they are keeping the rink from melting) is having too much of a good thing. The NHL and participating franchises have been very successful in all of the Winter Classics hosted since the very first one in 2008 and whether they want to expand into having 2 or 3 winter classics a year instead of one is an important question. The negative just of having multiple Winter Classics is that the novelty might be worn out as soon there have been a few games played outside in just a span of a few short days but the upside is huge as teams that have participated in the Winter Classic have made very lucrative sums in just a couple of hours during the big game! The memories from the people have been to the Winter Classic say that it is a once in a lifetime experience with much joy and elation. My personal vote would be to support multiple Winter Classic games per year but I think they should be rival teams or past Stanley Cup competitors like Detroit versus Pittsburgh or Philadelphia facing Chicago, what an epic battle that would be. Once again that is an issue that needs to be decided by this summer in order for something to happen.
    One more thing, I also have a sneak peek of these very sleek jerseys that have just been unveiled!

  15. oilfieldhockey
    The Chicago Blackhawks have participated in the most NHL outdoor games with five appearances including it’s 4th straight in as many years. The Blackhawks showcased two very bold black jerseys in their first 2 appearances in 2009 and 2014. For the last 3 outdoor showings, the Hawks have featured sleek white jerseys in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
    If you’re a Hawks fan that loves collecting all their jerseys, this post is dedicated for you!

    Chicago Blackhawks 2009 Winter Classic
    Worn on January 1st, 2009 in Wrigley Field – Chicago, Illinois
      This jersey was a great first choice to use for an outdoor game for the Hawks. The jersey used for this Winter Classic date with the Detroit Red Wings was the throwback retro uniform Chicago used in the ‘Original Six’ days during the 1936-37 NHL season. This particular jersey design is very bold for a classic uniform as the engraved “Blackhawks Chicago” circled around the vintage Hawks logo show a sense of branding, honour and pride about it. The black base combined with the red and beige stripes add to the boldness of this uniform plus it suits the iconic center logo very well.

     
    Chicago Blackhawks 2014 Stadium Series
    Worn on March 1st, 2014 in Soldier Field – Chicago, Illinois
    The Blackhawks 2014 NHL Stadium Series jersey is the reintroduction of Chicago’s first alternate jersey that debuted in 1996. Eventually, they were retired after 2011. Three years later, the Hawks brought back the black alternates with very subtle changes to match with the Stadium Series theme.
    These NHL Stadium Series uniforms utilize colors within the teams’ existing color palates. Each jersey features chrome-treated logo designs that are unique to the NHL Stadium Series and inspired from the chrome details in the NHL shield, bringing a dynamic and modern perspective to conventional team identities. The chrome crest was developed using new technology that fuses print and embroidery and allows logos to be displayed as a high-resolution image incorporated into the crest. This technology also reduces the weight of the crest, resulting in a lightweight jersey to help improve athlete performance.
    Numbering on the back of the jersey is enlarged and sleeve numbers are angled to improve visibility in outdoor venues.
    Overall, this is a great jersey, especially for the young fans. Not too many jerseys based from old school designs blend in very well with any new school tweaking but this uniform was done just right.

    Chicago Blackhawks 2015 Winter Classic
    Worn on January 1st, 2015 in Nationals Park – Washington, D.C.
    Inspired by the 1957 jersey worn by the Chicago Blackhawks, the white Winter Classic jersey features a lace-up collar and secondary logos on each sleeve; the secondary logos overlap the top two stripes on the sleeve rather than the traditional shoulder placement. The vintage logo in the 1957 jersey will not used. Instead, the current logo will be used to add a dash of modern to it even though the current logo has been used since 1964.
    Another detail about the jersey is on the inside portion of the neck it inscribes “2015 NHL Winter Classic” in white letters. Besides that small detail and the placement of the secondary logos, this sweater looks just like the current road jerseys used today.

    Chicago Blackhawks 2016 Stadium Series
    Worn on February 21st, 2016 in TCF Bank Stadium – Minneapolis, Minnesota
    The white NHL Stadium Series jersey pays homage to Chicago, featuring four, six-pointed red stars on the white collar, which are derived from the City of Chicago’s flag and were incorporated as a symbol of regional fan pride. Additionally, the black shoulder yoke serves as a visual representation of the city’s nickname, the “City of Big Shoulders.” The team’s secondary logos overlap the top three stripes on the sleeve rather than the traditional shoulder placement.
    The stripes, letters and numbers were purposely made bigger to match the Stadium Series theme plus it improves visibility in outdoor venues.

    Chicago Blackhawks 2017 Winter Classic
    Worn on January 2nd, 2017 in Busch Stadium – St. Louis, Missouri
    Very similar to the 2015 Winter Classic sweater, the 2017 Winter Classic jersey was also inspired by the 1957 original. This time they used the vintage logo instead of the current one plus the secondary logo is more modern than the one used in 2015.
    This sweater is not only inspired by the 1957 originals, it was also inspired by the playing era of legends Stan Mikita and Bobby Hull. The uniform stands as an homage to the legends of the past while preserving the classic aesthetic of the franchise by using details from uniforms of the late 1950s and early 1960s.
    Just like all of the other white uniforms used in the outdoor games, the Hawks once again used single-layer black lettering because black is the perfect contrasting colour to the white body of the uniform.
    THE 2016/17 NHL OUTDOOR JERSEY CLASS – ALL ABOUT LEGACY
     
     
  16. oilfieldhockey
    My 2014-2015 NHL Standings Predictions
    If you want to read this article with pics and poll, you can always view via my blog: Oilfield Hockey Blog
    2013-2014 Mini Review
    It’s that time of year again where hockey fans everywhere anticipate another great and compelling season just like how it was last season. Last years’ 2014 NHL playoffs was marked as one of the most dramatic and entertaining post-seasons in many years because of the suspenseful 3rd period comebacks and constant momentum changes within almost all of the series’ played.
    There weren’t too many surprises with what teams had a good regular season and good playoff runs except for Colorado and Tampa Bay who made great strides in returning to the post season. Of course Chicago, San Jose, Boston, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles who won their 2nd Stanley Cup in 3 seasons are perennial playoff teams but surprisingly the New York Rangers made it to the Stanley Cup Finals even though they were dominated by the Kings in the series finale.
    Pacific:
    1. Anaheim Ducks
    Addition of Ryan Kesler makes this team a legit Stanley Cup contender.
    2. Los Angeles Kings
    Didn’t lose anybody with significance and once again will challenge for the Stanley Cup
    3. San Jose Sharks
    Will play with a lot more fire this year due to blowing a 3-0 series to the cup champs; Los Angeles Kings
    Central:
    1. Chicago Blackhawks
    Will again be dominant this season especially with the addition of Brad Richards to their explosive top 6 forward group.
    2. St.Louis Blues
    Another team contending with the big boys for the Stanley Cup. They have one of the best defensive core in the league.
    3. Dallas Stars
    I love how this team is turning it around. Acquiring Spezza and Hemsky will make this team an offensive juggernaut.
    Metropolitan:
    1.Pittsburgh Penguins
    Management for this team has decided to spread the talent to increase their depth up front but sacrificed pure sniper, James Neal to do this. Regardless of losing Orpik and Niskanen, they will still be one of the top teams in the East.
    2. New York Rangers
    Not too many changes besides adding Dan Boyle. They will be one of the fastest skating teams this year.
    3. Washington Capitals
    Gambling on the investments of Orpik and Niskanen, they will help get this team allow far fewer goals than they did last season.
    Atlantic:
    1. Boston Bruin
    Physically superior to most other teams, they will take the Atlantic Division again this year.
    2. Tampa Bay Lightning
    Jonathon Drouin, Ondrej Palat and Brett Connolly are primed to have breakout seasons as the youthful Bolts look fresher and more talented than they did last season.
    3. Toronto Maple Leafs
    Regardless how much negative press they get, they have a good team and they can make the playoffs when they put their minds to it if they amid the distractions.
    Wild Cards For West:
    x-Edmonton Oilers
    They have pure goal scoring ability, good goaltending tandem and an alright defensive core. To me it’s just enough to make the playoffs.
    x-Minnesota Wild
    Will be a very exciting team to watch as they have a great mix between experience and youth. Will make a strong playoff run as an underdog.
    Wild Cards For East:
    x-Detroit Red Wings
    Will extend their playoff streak to 23 years because of their emerging youth in Nyquist, Jurco, Smith and Dekeyser.
    x-New York Islanders
    The only reason this team will make the playoffs will be because of offense and they have the ability to score more than their opponents amid average goaltending and mediocre defense.
    Bottom Dwellers: Carolina Hurricanes, Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames and New Jersey Devils
    I know that some people will have their thoughts and suggestions about the standings (Can put in your input in comment section by the way) but there is a reason why had predicted the standings this way. I have the Capitals, Islanders, Oilers and Leafs as new entrants in this years playoffs because I feel they have something to prove after long rebuilds and past disappointments. It is a year of redemption for them and I believe those teams are ready to take the next step unlike the Canucks, Sens, Canes and Jets whom I believe need a couple of star players to push themselves just enough to compete for Lord Stanley’s Cup.
    With new teams rising there has to be old teams that fall. The Blue Jackets, Avalanche, Canadiens and the Flyers in my eyes have not done well enough to improve from last year and will likely slip out of the playoff picture. As impressive as the Avs were last year, I don’t think they’ll do well because of improvements in the Central Division with all the new free agents that signed up with teams in their surrounding area.
    A few miscellaneous predictions I have is that Anaheim will win the President’s Trophy, Jonathon Drouin will win the Calder Trophy (Rookie of the year), Sidney Crosby winning the Art Ross Trophy (Leading scorer in the league) but I truly think Pavel Datsyuk will be the most valuable player to his team; The Detroit Red Wings winning the Hart Trophy as he will be essential to helping the Red Wings make the playoffs.
    The usual regular season dominance from the Blackhawks, Sharks, Blues, Pens and Bruins will continue but I think the Blackhawks in particular will win the Stanley Cup beating the Red Wings in the Cup Final in an epic 7 game war. The Flames, Panthers, Sabres and Predators will continue their long rebuild cycle as it looks like they won’t be crawling up from the bottom anytime soon.
    If you wanrt to read more of my articles, I have a list of links below which you can access
    Top 5 NHL Players Who Can Switch Positions And Be Good At It

    25 Hilarious NHL Memes

    Sexiest Hockey Girls I Found On The Internet

  17. oilfieldhockey
    Yes I know it's a little late to publish this but people are still trying to get the hang of the concept.
    The “Wild Card” Playoff Race
    The top three teams in each division are the first 12 teams to qualify for the playoffs. (Six in each conference.)
    The remaining spots go to “wild card” teams: the two highest finishers in each Conference, regardless of division.
    That makes eight playoff qualifiers in each Conference, with the possibility of up to five playoff teams from one division.
    The Playoff Format
    Wild card teams are seeded seventh and eighth in each Conference.
    Teams finishing second and third in each Division play the first round of the playoffs within the Division.
    The winners of each series play for berths in the Conference Championship series.
    The two divisional champions in each conference play the Conference Finals to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
    The Changes
    For those of you who visit my blog often, this picture above this text is everywhere. The reason why I post this picture is because the new division format is new and a lot of people don’t have it memorized yet and it’s also a geographical segmentation of how the NHL plans to boost the ticket sales of financially inferior teams like Phoenix, Florida and Carolina. You see, when a few certain teams are in the same division, they play each other more often and when top market teams like Toronto and Montreal are put in a pool with Tampa and Florida, they`re going to be travelling to the Sunshine State more often. The loyalty and following of the Maple Leafs and Canadiens combined with the beneficial currency exchange rate between Canada and U.S.A. coincides with their willingness to travel to Florida to watch these games and that makes yield capacity management easier for the marketers there. It`s the same situation with Phoenix and Anaheim where they badly need people to attend games to make a profit so why not put these teams in the same division with Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver where fans there have the money to buy cheap airline and game tickets to see their favourite teams play there.
    Besides the money, the NHL badly needed to reconfigure the division settings. It doesn’t make any sense to keep Winnipeg in the southeast division so making the transition to central division is a welcome and practical one but they have to play stronger teams like St. Louis and Chicago. Columbus and Detroit asked to be in the Eastern Conference for years and they finally got their wish. Detroit’s reason to make the switch is because they will play more Original Six teams more often like Boston, Toronto, New York Rangers and Montreal. They will also now enjoy a lighter travelling schedule as it will save valuable travel money. Columbus believes they will have a better chance to make the playoffs if they play in east as well as enjoying an easier travel schedule.
    Pittsburgh and Washington are finally in the same division and that’s a plus for the league as Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby get to play each either in their heated rivalry more often. They couldn’t of picked a better time to put these teams in the same division as both Ovechkin and Crosby are playing their best hockey in their careers. Let’s bring on the rivalry!
    I do have to admit that there is a negative aspect about this division transition and it’s because Chicago and Detroit are in opposite conferences and that’s a bummer they will still play each other once in awhile.
  18. oilfieldhockey
    Another year has gone by and oh what a year it was. There was a plethora of alternates introduced from NHL teams during the fall of 2018 and 2019 will be no shortage of new jersey releases either. Icethetics is offering the expected changes that might during the next year and we’ll give you our take on what the new jerseys could look like and in some cases, what it should like look like.
     
    ANAHEIM DUCKS
     
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Yes, we’re going on this ride one more time! The Ducks debuted a new third jersey with some throwback elements for their 25th anniversary — but this is a one-off jersey for the 2018-19 season only. It’s been reported that the Ducks will return to their orange third jersey in 2019-20 and I think that’s a safe bet. Our take: We think the orange eggplant jersey will come back as well. Knowing Adidas and how they love to utilize the neck, they’ll throw in “Anaheim” in gold writing along the inside of the collar as well as adding an “OC” shoulder patch on one side. OC meaning Orange County which is based in Southern California. Ducks third jersey in 2015.
    BOSTON BRUINS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Bruins will rejoin the third jersey fray in 2019-20, but what design will they use? They have no shortage of outdoor jerseys from recent years. Will they go with something familiar or completely new? Our Take: We think it’ll be the 2019 Winter Classic jersey. It is arguably the best looking Bruins Winter Classic jersey released to date. Lots of teams have used their previous outdoor game jerseys as alternates this season and that list includes the Flyers, Penguins, Blues, Kings, and Senators. The Bruins and Blackhawks 2019 Winter Classic Jerseys
    BUFFALO SABRES
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Buffalo is in the mix for a third jersey in 2019-20. Could it finally be the royal blue throwback fans have been begging for? 50TH ANNIVERSARY: The Sabres will turn 50 in 2020, so the question is whether the team will mark the milestone anniversary in 2019-20 or 2020-21. I haven’t seen anything definitive yet. (For what it’s worth, they marked their 40th in 2010-11 along with the Canucks. But the Canucks have already made plans to celebrate their 50th in 2019-20. So take that however you choose.) Our Take: We’re going out on a limb with this one and say that it’ll be a brand new jersey combining elements of the 2018 Winter Classic except it’ll be the home version of it. It’ll have a graphic of New York State along the shoulders plus the jersey itself will have a royal blue body with a large yellow stripe along the waist that has a white outline along the top and bottom of the yellow.   Imagine something like this but with with an additional white stripe along the bottom of the yellow
    CALGARY FLAMES
    40TH ANNIVERSARY: The Flames celebrated 30 years in Calgary during 2009-10, so in my mind the 40th is possible in 2019-20. The franchise relocated from Atlanta in 1980. It doesn’t mean much other than possibly some shoulder patches. They’re already wearing their original jersey as a third. Our Take: Despite no news of any changes, we think Calgary will make a surprise move with the direction on what they’ll wear for their home and road game jerseys. Just like Philadelphia in 2012, Edmonton in 2011 and Pittsburgh in 2016, Calgary will use their alternates full time and introduce the matching road jersey along with it. They should do it for their 40th anniversary. The timing couldn’t be better. Would a modernized version of this beauty be a better replacement than their current road jerseys?
    CAROLINA HURRICANES
    2019 ROAD JERSEY: Redesign expected. It’s been reported that Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon is not a fan of his team’s white road sweater. That’s been backed up by the new Adidas catalog which indicates a new design is coming in 2019-20. Will they redesign it to match the home sweater or try something new? What if it wasn’t white at all? What if it was a light grey like the outline of their logo? As an aside, the Hurricanes are the first team in years to provoke a regular season color-vs-color game by wearing their home red jerseys on the road against the Ducks who wore black. And with the Whalers jersey coming back this year, I’m not sure any Canes jersey prediction is safe! THROWBACK JERSEY: Speaking of the Whalers, the green jerseys will show up at least once more in 2019 (March 5 in Boston). But given the very mixed reaction — the displeasure of many New Englanders in particular — do we think we’ll see these again beyond the 2018-19 season? For what it’s worth, 2019 marks 40 years since the Whalers originally joined the NHL after the WHA folded in 1979. Our Take: We agree with the road jersey redesign. The current roadies aren’t as good as the home sweaters. As for the Whalers jerseys, they’ll be back for another 2 matches next season. They’ll keep the current 3rd jerseys as it is. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
    2019 HOME & ROAD JERSEYS: Expected. The biggest surprise of the catalog was seeing new primary uniforms listed for the Blackhawks in 2019-20. That would be insanity! Or would it? Chicago’s jerseys are untouchable and everyone knows it. Don’t forget Montreal was in this position in 2015 before they simply revealed a new collar design, leaving everything else alone. Is that what the Hawks are doing? They haven’t used a lace-up collar since 1965, but could it be back in 2019-20? As much as I dislike the Adidas collars, some have grown on me. Chicago’s has not. At all. Our take: We think some tweaking will be done on the neck but nothing more than that. If anything, they’ll make a black alternate jersey just like the two previous times they had alternates in 2003 and 2009. the 2014 Chicago Blackhawks Stadium Series jersey.
    DETROIT RED WINGS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Red Wings have never had a regular third jersey so this is big news! Like the Bruins, they have a number of outdoor jerseys to consider but they could also surprise us with an entirely new design. Time will tell. Our Take: We think that the Wings will come out with something new but with the big D as the centerpiece on a new concept, similar to the Winter Classic in 2009, except, it’ll be in red. We think this the jersey they’ll as a starting point with more details following up later.
    EDMONTON OILERS
    THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Oilers are lined up for a new third jersey in 2019-20, but there’s really only one of two ways to go. Either they promote the royal blue retro jersey from this season or they try a navy blue version of their home jersey — much like the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors have. But since I’ve never seen an NHL team follow an AHL team’s lead in terms of jerseys, the former is more likely. Our Take: No way, Jose. We believe the latter is expected. The dark blue will look really good on the body and having a orange stripe along the bottom will make it all the better. FLORIDA PANTHERS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Just three years after their rebrand, the Panthers will add a new third jersey! The most obvious choice, would be a navy blue design with the modernized leaping cat front and center. Our Take: We agree with this one. A dark blue body will look really good with a gold and white stripe along the waist. The possible logo for the alternate uniform in the 2019-20 season.
      MINNESOTA WILD
     
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Wild are in the mix for a new alternate uniform in 2019-20 but as for what it will look like, your guess is as good as mine. Will they go back to red again like their first third jersey in 2003? 20TH ANNIVERSARY: I know, last time. Like Columbus, the Wild turn 20 in 2020. But also like Columbus, their 10th anniversary was in 2010-11, so we’ll probably see this in 2020-21. That is all. Our Take: Knowing the Wild, they’ll always try something new with their design. I think they’ll slap a giant M (Just like the one on their shoulder patch) on the front of their jersey with a couple of stars engraved on the letter. Having a circle around it and on the outline it’ll say something like “Minnesota Wild Hockey Club.” The body of the jersey should still be green. The current shoulder patch for the Wild
    NASHVILLE PREDATORS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Predators will be back in the third jersey fray for 2019-20! They haven’t used one since redesigning their logo and uniforms in 2011. An obvious design choice would be navy blue, but as with the Panthers, I hope they do something a bit more interesting. Our Take: Please do make the navy blue uniforms. Those were some the best looking alternates that Reebok ever designed. The Preds alternates in 2011
    NEW YORK RANGERS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Another Original Six team will add a new third jersey in 2019-20! Will the navy blue Heritage jersey return? Maybe the Lady Liberty design from the late ’90s? Or will we be treated to something all new? Our Take: We see Navy Blue being a big trend in 2019 so it’ll be no surprise if the Rangers make a Navy Blue alternate as well. The Rangers are also very good at designing Winter Classic uniforms so they might just throw in the 2018 Winter Classic as their alternate. We can see this coming back.
    OTTAWA SENATORS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Because the Adidas catalog lists the Senators with other teams getting new thirds in 2019-20, I don’t think we’ll see the red NHL100 Classic jersey again. It’s more likely the Sens get something new. Our Take: The Sens need new primaries, period. The leftover Reebok uniforms they currently wear aren’t doing it anymore for the Sens and they really need to do some soul searching. Even having the vintage “O” jerseys they wore as alternates would be a better fit for a primary. At least that represents history. The Sens also released 6 different logos to their season ticket holders and they had a vote on what designs looked the best. The winning designs would be used for future consideration when designing their next uniforms. Spoiler alert, the fans have already voted the current Sens logo as the best design on the list.
    Home.
    And Road. 
    TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
    2018-19 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. Icethetics obtained images of the new Lightning third jersey in November. At that time, I was told by multiple sources that the jersey was still a work in progress and that certain elements had yet to be finalized — elements not seen in the leaked image (could mean things like number font, nameplate, helmet color, pants, or socks). LAUNCH DATE: I’ve also been told a January launch is likely, though the Lightning have yet to say anything official on the subject. It could be the NHL’s first January third jersey debut since 1997 when the Bolts introduced their first-ever alternate uniform. Our Take: The photos that Icethetics released will only be a starting point to what Tampa will do with their alternate uniform. The fade from grey to black doesn’t look nice and one can only hope that will be changed until the official release. The official photo released from Icethetics.
    TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
    2018-19 THROWBACK JERSEY: Expected. Icethetics obtained images of a Toronto St. Pats throwback jersey in the Adizero cut. A source told me the St. Pats jerseys could be returning late in the 2018-19 likely as a one-off throwback for St. Patrick’s Day rather than a proper third jersey worn more often. NOTES: The Leafs wore the St. Pats uniform for a game during the 2016-17 season as part of their 100th anniversary celebration. Our Take: The Leafs should wear these uniforms during Patrick’s Day. They are gorgeous and resemble a lot of team history. Other than that, we expect no changes from here on in. The leaked St. Pats jerseys
    VANCOUVER CANUCKS
    2019 HOME & ROAD JERSEYS: Expected. After the Blackhawks, the other big surprise from the Adidas catalog was seeing new primary sweaters listed for the Canucks in 2019-20! It’s unclear whether the Canucks are working on sweeping changes or maybe just updating the crest to remove the superfluous “Vancouver” arched across the top. But I also wouldn’t be that shocked to see a new primary logo to coincide with the 50th anniversary. 2019 THIRD JERSEY: Confirmed. Canucks COO Jeff Stipec told TSN in August that there will be a new third jersey in 2019-20 — in addition to the throwback sweater fans voted for over the summer. The Adidas catalog does corroborate this. 2019 THROWBACK JERSEY: Confirmed. In addition to the new third, the Canucks will wear a throwback jersey for select games in 2019-20. After an online fan vote, the team determined they will use their 1989 “Flying Skate” design. Our Take: There’s a lot to digest here. The Canucks are on the verge of celebrating their 50th anniversary. My guess is that the Canucks want to make the anniversary a grand all-year party. I believe the Canucks will do something completely new with the primaries. There is no real projection as to what they’ll do but I think Johnny Canuck grabbing an Orca by the fin would be epic. And if you somehow mix in some black from the flying skate jersey and some blue and green from the current jersey in, a masterpiece can be created. Having a third and throwback adds to the already big changes coming to Vancouver. A move that Vancouver might make for their thirds is having a green jersey with a white faded Orca on the center to make it look like whitecaps in the water. Eventually, I think Vancouver will make a jersey that’ll bring the Seattle/Vancouver rivalry to life. VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
    2019 THIRD JERSEY: Expected. The Golden Knights are not the kind of team to waste time. They went to the Stanley Cup Final in their first season and in their third they’ll add a third jersey! There are so many great possibilities for a Vegas third jersey so I’m eager to see where they end up. Our Take: Vegas’ third will be red with an alternate logo. A sword and shield combo is likely as well as a knight on horseback characterization. A must is to incorporate gold and black to make it look intimidating. If not, let’s hope they have a better idea. WINNIPEG JETS
    THROWBACK JERSEY: The Jets are breaking out their Heritage Classic jersey twice in 2018-19 and the team says it will be used at least once a season going forward. Keep an eye on that for 2019-20. Our Take: Stay the course with heritage throwbacks. They look amazing. I really wish the Jets would change the road uniforms. Having the light blue stripes going over the blue arm stripe is a poor taste. Change that and the dark blue arm striping to a something simpler would make the jersey way better. Unfortunately, there are no plans for the Jets to change that.  
    Original Source: Icethetics 2019 Jersey Watch
     
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  19. oilfieldhockey
    #1 SAN JOSE SHARKS
    Coincidence is funny sometimes. A few hours before I was writing this article, news broke out that Erik Karlsson gets traded to the Sharks. I also had San Jose slotted in to go #1 even before the announcement of the blockbuster trade so this was mean’t to be.
     
    This team keeps finding ways to get good players on the team whether it’s trade or drafting, GM Doug Wilson gets the job done and he is the reason why the Sharks have been a consistently great team. Even with Thornton, Pavelski, Burns and Couture getting older, the Sharks keep drafting excellent talent that will back those players up and provide a great future for the club. Tomas Hertl, Timo Meier, Joonas Donskoi and even Kevin Labanc have provided great secondary support for Couture and Pavelski, who had average seasons compared to what they can achieve.
     
    The Sharks now have Evander Kane for a full season as well. He came in as a late season pick up from Buffalo and was able to fit in like a glove in Northern California.
    This is easily the best team the Sharks had on paper in many years and I’ll bet this team is better than the one they had in 2016 when they went to the Stanley Cup finals against the Penguins. Expect them to take advantage of a very weak Pacific division and tear up the Western conference.

    #2 CALGARY FLAMES
    The Flames I see as a team that can come together and play well as a cohesive unit if they put their mind to winning. The Flames have a very good team on paper but last year they had no emotion nor spark to drive them to a playoff spot. That prompted a shake up in the off-season as the Flames acquired two players who feel they have something to prove in Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin. They’ll provide the fire the Flames need as it’s their last chance to prove they can play up to their potential. Dougie Hamilton and Michael Ferland were subsequently shipped to Carolina as a result of the trade. The Flames also signed James Neal, who has been to the Stanley Cup Finals in two straight seasons, offers character and an insight of what the finals are like. He’ll be an asset going forward.
     
    The Flames have a very good defensive core plus a fast, skilled, and speedy top 6 forward group. If they can find chemistry and get a good rhythm going, they’ll easily be a playoff team. I think they’ll struggle early on in the season but will find their groove from there on in.

    #3 VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
    The best expansion season from a major league sports team in history is under the books and what a thrilling journey it was for the Vegas Golden Knights. The team of “Golden Misfits”, a team that had players that were outcasted by their former NHL clubs came together and played an incredible brand of hockey that nobody expected.
    Now we’re in year two and already this team is going through a shakeup. Perron and Neal are gone but they now have Pacioretty and Statsny. If you ask me, I think the latter is far more valuable than the former. Patches needs a rebound year and he’ll get one with Vegas without question.
     
    Fleury needs to continue to be his superstar self if Vegas wants to make the playoffs this season and I think he’ll be successful. He’s been better in the last 3 seasons than he has been his entire career. Signs point that he’s one of guys who goes through his prime later than most athletes. Luckily for Vegas, that time is now.
     
    It’ll be a tougher year for Vegas, as they can’t sneak on opponents anymore plus Nate Schmidt is suspended 20 games for a supposed drug violation. Schmidt was a valuable asset for Vegas last season and his services will be missed for the first quarter of the season. That’s unless they prove the suspension was unjust and reversed during training camp.
     

    #4 EDMONTON OILERS
    Last season, a lot of people have claimed high expectations that the Oilers were going to be a force to be reckoned with last season. Sadly for the Oilers, it didn’t come to be. McDavid was the only bright spot the Oilers had last season as he won the NHL scoring title even on an under-performing team. Not much has changed since the off-season and the same glaring holes in the Oilers weak spots are still there.
    The special teams were dreadful for the Oilers the prior season placing dead last on the powerplay and 25th on the penalty kill. Goaltending isn’t where it’s supposed to be and the defencemen for the club give opposing forwards too much space on the ice.
    A big positive is the fact that the Oilers have the best player in the world in Connor McDavid and studs such as Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Regardless, this team still needs a few areas improved if they want to be a playoff team and I doubt this year will be their year.

    #5 LOS ANGELES KINGS
    The Kings pride themselves by playing very sound defensive hockey. They were #1 in both goals against (203 GA) and penalty kill (85%) last season. When you’re the best at both of those categories, your defense is like a wall that can’t be run through or climbed over. Goaltender Jonathon Quick has been outstanding plus the coaching structure contributed to the success on defence.
     
    L.A. will continue to be great defensively but not as good as they were a year ago. It’s hard to see Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown continue their amazing play as they age. Even with Ilya Kovalchuk signed to a 3-year deal in July, teams like Calgary, St. Louis and San Jose have made strides ahead of L.A. this summer as they’ve acquired more impact players than the Kings. The team itself isn’t worse, but they did get 1 year older and in today’s game, age means a lot and is more crucial than ever before as players are having shorter careers because of how fast the game is played. Unfortunately, the Kings are not a fast skating team so that could be a problem for them. Signs indicate that this might be a trying time for the Kings this season.

    #6 ANAHEIM DUCKS
    The Ducks were one of the better defensive teams last season. They’re usually in the playoff hunt more times than not but were easily dismantled by the Sharks in 4 games last season during the Western conference quarter-finals last season. Fast forward 5 months and the Ducks haven’t changed their team very much. Their outlook isn’t overly favourable because Getzlaf and Perry are already 33 years old. Their best years are behind them. Kesler has a brutal hip injury he may not ever recover from. He may even miss the entire 18/19 season because of it.
     
    Their defensive core is in good shape and are a tough group for forwards to compete against but their depth up front is an issue. Rickard Rakell is Anaheim’s only bonafide goal scorer and besides Getzlaf, nobody on the Ducks scored over 50 points. The scoring won’t go up with the current group and that lack of offensive punch is what will bite the Ducks during the season. Goaltender John Gibson has to be outstanding in order to give the Ducks a chance but he is simply not a brick wall. Expect a downward trend for the Ducks this season.
     

    #7 ARIZONA COYOTES
    Another year, another chance of scoring a draft lottery pick. I want to be excited for the Coyotes. I really do. But, even for a rebuilding team, they don’t have a lot of high-end prospects. Dylan Strome is the exception and he has a fantastic opportunity to make the team this season. Clayton Keller can build off his successful rookie campaign plus Alex Galchenyuk is away from the drama that’s happening in Montreal. He has a chance at a fresh start and be an integral part of the Coyotes in the future.
    If the Yotes can get a win in their first 10 games of their regular season this season, they can consider themselves more successful compared to the same stage of last season. It took the Yotes 12 games to get their first victory and it took them 21 games to get their first win in regulation during the 17-18 campaign. Surely they can do better right? Let’s pray for them.
     

    #8 VANCOUVER CANUCKS
    Let’s face it, the Canucks suck. But, it’s not all that bad. Unlike bottom-feeders like the Coyotes, Habs or Senators, the Canucks have an amazing list of prospects that tell the tale of what the future is in store for them. Elias Petterson is an insanely great talent and will make the team out of camp (pending injuries of course) and Thatcher Demko is arguably the best goaltending prospect in the NHL. They also have a great defensive prospect in Olli Joulevi as well. They have players currently on the roster that are still growing in their own too. Brock Boeser and Bo Horvat shined last season and have a great opportunity to be the leaders of this club as the Sedin twins are now retired.
    The 2019 draft is in Vancouver next June and consensus is that the Canucks will be very involved in that draft. They might even score a lottery pick and draft Jack Hughes as their new franchise centerman.
     
    Regardless how Vancouver performs this season, the future is bright on the West Coast and they’ll be a great team once again.
     
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  20. oilfieldhockey
    #1 TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
    There isn’t a team with as much top end talent backed with great depth as much as the Lightning. Their forwards are fast, skilled and very opportunistic, especially with Kucherov and Stamkos leading the way up front. They were first in scoring with 296 goals last season. That was the highest amount of goals recorded in a regular season since the Washington Capitals filled 318 pucks in the net during the 09-10 season.
    Their defense is filled with workhorses as Hedman, Sergachev and newly acquired McDonagh are in for a full season. They can each run the powerplay and cover their man in the defensive end very well. Most teams are lucky to have just one of those guys as good as they are. Tampa has three. That will be very scary for opponents to deal with.
    Great goaltending from Vasilevskiy will once again vault this team over the top. He was outstanding for the Lightning last season and is likely going to do work his magic again this year.
    Overall Tampa will be one of the best teams in the league with a very dangerous team up and down the roster. Their weakness is the penalty kill as they just averaged 76% last season and was a direct result as to why they lost the very few games they did lose last season. Other than that, they’ll be a deadly team all season long.
     

    #2 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
    Fans have been gushing over the John Tavares signing in early July of this year. Why not? This is a great times to be a Leafs fan. The turn around of the team started with great management as Brendan Shanahan, Lou Lamoriello and Head Coach Mike Babcock turned water into wine with their consulting, drafting and signings they’ve made in the last three seasons. Rookie GM Kyle Dubas made a great first impression by landing the big fish in John Tavares. Dubas hasn’t even been GM for a month and he already signed him for 8 seasons on contract to play for the Buds.
    Toronto is a team that boasts a great top 6 forward cast with Matthews, Tavares, Nylander, Marner, Kadri and Marleau as the main scoring weapons up front. With a group like that, you’ll have a solid chance of getting 3+ goals per game average and score one out of every four powerplays (25%) which will most likely make you a top 3 scoring team in the league.
    On paper, their defense doesn’t have a bonafide powerplay quarterback or even a defensive stalwart but they’re still alright as they averaged over 80% on the penalty kill. They were slightly above average in goals allowed (232 GA, 12th in league) which is still good considering the weapons they boast up front. Having a goaltender like Frederick Anderson saving your butt combined with Mike Babcock’s excellent coaching will boost the team’s defensive prowess too.
    Overall, you’ll see the Leafs in high scoring games, they’ll be fun to watch, but they will need an additional defenseman at the trade deadline. They will get their man next Spring if they want to push for a deep playoff run.

    #3 FLORIDA PANTHERS
    Ok, so this a gamble and some of you will say I’m crazy for writing this but there is a lot to like about the Florida Panthers being a playoff team this year. My reasoning is that the Panthers young nucleus of Ekblad, Barkov, Dadonov, Huberdeau and Bjugstad still have the best years ahead of them. I wouldn’t be surprised if Huberdeau, Barkov and Trochek all had 80 point seasons and they are talented enough to make it happen. They made a terrific late season push last year and were just one point away from making the playoffs.
    Florida doesn’t have a ton of depth but they do have Borgstrom and Tippett on the verge of making the team and if they do, they’ll have a chance to make a great impression on the checking line and even special teams as well.
    Goaltending is a bit uncertain as Luongo is getting up there in age and James Reimer still needs to post better numbers to be a solid #1 goaltender. It’ll be interesting to see how this pans out.
    The Panthers are not known to be strong starters but they tend to play better late in the season. That’s the best time to watch them play.

    #4 BOSTON BRUINS
    There is no doubt that everything worked out for Boston last season. They were scoring, defended well, plus they were converting powerplays and killing penalties at a high-caliber rate. Sometimes, I wonder about Boston because they’ve had some great seasons with the same core of players. Sometimes, they’ve had some mediocre years where they’ve finished 9th in the conference two years in a row. Finishing 9th is really bad because it not only means you’re not in the playoffs, you don’t get a high draft pick either.
    Boston is still a really good team and they definitely do have talent but I think they over-achieved last season. We might see a correction in their stats. Marchand is a slippery player and hard to play against but it wouldn’t amaze me if he drops 10-15 points. Same goes with Pastranak and Chara. I can see the team trending sideways or even down because of how much better teams like Florida is getting plus with division rivals Tampa Bay and Toronto making strides in the off-season.
    Boston will be at least be a wild card team but their path to the playoffs will be inconsistent especially if Rask has a few off games but overall, it shouldn’t be anything to worry about.

    #5 BUFFALO SABRES
    The Sabres will not focus on making the playoffs this year, they will focus on development. What’s positive about the Sabres is that unlike the other teams not making the playoffs in the Atlantic Division, they’re trending up, not down. Buffalo boasts the best prospect pool in the league with Rasmus Dahlen, Casey Mittelstadt, Alex Nylander and Brendan Guhle all projecting to make the team next season.
    The Sabres already have Eichel, Reinhart and Ristolainen on the team showing great play and excitement but the issue will be how they will gel playing with new players making the cut.
    I believe they’ll have a great nucleus in the future. They might surprise with a couple winning streaks this year, especially once the kids find their way playing in the NHL. They’ll show a huge improvement between now and April of 2019 but they’ll be golfing after that time.

    #6 OTTAWA SENATORS
    Let’s not talk about last season. That’s a topic for another day. This prediction is made assuming Erik Karlsson is finally out and it was a sad ending for him in Ottawa. They still have some good players in Stone, Duchene plus up-and-comer Chabot but the atmosphere in the locker room needs to be addressed. There are still controversies and issues that haven’t been settled since last season and that can affect the team this season. Some more moves on the roster will have to be made in order to clear the air to start fresh and no team needs it more than the Sens.
    Despite their shortcomings on the current roster, Ottawa does have a few good prospects. Brady Tkachuk is their top gun that can make camp this year as well as Logan Brown. There are spots available so look for them to make an impression right out of the gate.
    The Sens might be in for another fiasco if the garden hose is still kinked but I think it’ll be a little bit more stable this season, but just a little.

    #7 DETROIT RED WINGS
    If there was a word that would describe Detroit right now, it would be ‘underwhelming’. Nobody on Detroit was an impact player last season. Forwards like Larkin and Mantha are good, but they are better suited for secondary scoring roles, not top line duties.
    If this team gets one or two studs that can plug and play into the lineup(most likely won’t happen), the whole dynamics of this team will change for the better but it’s wise to go for the rebuilding strategy since Detroit is excellent at drafting. They got Pavel Zadina at the draft this Summer. He’s a pure goal-scorer who can make the team but he won’t a impact right away. Michael Rasmussen is very intriguing as well. He will most likely make the team with a great impression but overall the Wings won’t be taken seriously this season. They don’t have any established elite players at this point in time.
    Give it another year for Detroit be a much better team who can quietly make a massive leap forward if the development of Zadina and Rasmussen goes well.

    #8 MONTREAL CANADIENS
    I wish I could say that the Habs have something going for them but I’m afraid they don’t have much at this point, at least for now. The team on paper looks like it’s rebuilding especially with Pacioretty recently traded to Vegas for Nick Suzuki, Tatar and a 2nd round pick. Looks like a type of trade for a rebuild to start but GM Bergevin says otherwise. He still wants to keep Weber and Price on the club despite the club going on a downward trend. Drouin and Gallagher still had good seasons despite how poorly the team performed but they need a wealth of support around them if they want to improve their numbers.
    If the Habs want to trend upward, they have to focus on developing their current prospects. They have a long list of centers that are in development and that’s an area where they need top get much better at. They do have Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Ryan Poehling aa their top center prospects but they won’t be ready for awhile yet. Now that they have Suzuki, it should be interesting where he slots in if he makes the club. Nikita Scherbak is talented and will challenge for a wing position as well.
    Victor Mete and Noah Juulsen saw some action last season and made an impression to the coaching staff. They’ll have an advantage in training camp because of the experience.
    The Habs have a much better prospect pool than what most people think and they still have decent pieces in place to make a good team down the road but their locker room is filled with distraction. The media always puts a spin on the team’s affairs which makes it difficult to focus on playing hockey. Because of that, they’ll have a rocky season ahead of them.
     
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  21. oilfieldhockey
    #1 WINNIPEG JETS
    It wasn’t a matter of how, it was a matter of when. When the Jets will finally play as a great hockey team. Many years of building a prospect pipeline is finally paying dividends and they are ready to contend for a Stanley Cup for years to come.
    In the most competitive division of the NHL, the Jets have what it takes to be #1 in the Central. Their offense is oozing with speed and skill. They play an aggressive up-tempo game and they have size to win key puck battles in the corners.
    The X-factor for the Jets will be goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who had an amazing 17/18 season. He had a really good playoff showing as well. Not many goaltenders make the conference finals in their first full season and there isn’t a reason why he can’t do it again.
    The Jets are poised to be a Stanley Cup contender this season and as long as distractions or the injury bug keep away, they’ll have a great chance to go the distance.

    #2 NASHVILLE PREDATORS
    Arguably the most well structured team in the league, the Preds had a disappointing playoff exit against the Jets in the Western conference semi-finals last season. They’ll look to bounce back and if they want to go anywhere in the post season, they’ll most likely have to go through the Jets again. They have the team to do it but they do have to keep themselves in check and make sure they’re prepared to match the up-tempo game the Jets like to play.
    Nashville’s strength by far is their blueline. They have the best defensive core in the entire NHL with Josi, Subban, Ekholm and Ellis rounding their top 4. They all play sound defensive hockey. With Rinne as their goaltender backing the defense, it’s very difficult to score 3 goals in a game against them.
    Their offense is really good but it’s not at the same caliber as their defense and that’ll be their weakness if they start scoring in streaks. Forsberg, Turris, Arvidsson and Johansen are solid contributors offensively but they are not at the same level as the Penguins, Capitals, Leafs, Lightning and Jets when it comes to fire power up-front.
    The Preds will most likely be a playoff team and maybe a Stanley Cup contender if their scoring gets hot at the right time but it’ll be a wait-and-see approach from here on in.

    #3 ST. LOUIS BLUES
    It was a disappointing season for the Blues as they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2011. It’s the Central we’re talking about so it’s tough for every team to get an advantage over their divisional rival. Blues management knows how hard it is to play in the Central so that’s why GM Doug Armstrong acquired Ryan O’Reilly, Tyler Bozak and David Perron in the off-season. That’s a nice score for any team in an off-season, but it’s extra sweet for the Blues because those players play Blues style hockey; a blue-collar, chip-and-chase brand that’s very aggressive on the forecheck.
    The Blues aren’t very good on the powerplay as they ranked 30th in that department last season. That’ll still be a concern when the season starts on October 3rd and will be their biggest weakness. None of the guys they acquired in the off-season are true powerplay specialists but their 5-on-5 game will be a huge plus. They’ll be much better even-strength.
    With a nice rest in the off-season, they’ll have a fresh start to what looks to be a promising campaign for the Blues in the 18/19 NHL season.

    #4 DALLAS STARS
    The Stars are an interesting case to look at because what you think the Stars are known for, their offensive talent, wasn’t their strength last season. The Stars were remarkably ranked 6th in goals allowed last season and that wasn’t expected from them whatsoever, but that was with Ken Hitchcock as coach. He’s retired now so Jim Montgemery will takeover. He’ll have an improved team to coach because Valeri Nichushkin is back with the team and they could have talented defensive prospect Miro Heskanen making an impact right away.
    Ben Bishop was a great goaltender with his first season with the Stars last season but injuries limited him to just 53 starts in 17/18. If he has a full season, he can push the Stars to the playoffs and that’s very achievable.
    The Stars will compete for a wild card spot next season and if their off-season acquisitions can improve their depth, they’ll make some noise this season.

    #5 COLORADO AVALANCHE
    Besides Vegas, the Avs had the best Cinderella story of last season. Mackinnon was a beast and Rantanen played his role as shotgun perfectly for Mackinnon. The Avs had the best comeback season in recent memory after having a dreadful season in 16/17.
    The Avs established themselves as playing very explosive hockey and Mackinnon thrived in that environment. He carried this team to it’s first playoff birth since 2014 and although they were defeated by Nashville, they show promise for the future. Tyson Jost is primed for a breakout season and they’ve added defenceman Ian Cole to shore up their blueline.
    The Avs are in a very good situation with how they are growing and they still have an elite prospect with defenceman Cale Makar primed for the future. As for this season, they’ll build off their success they had last year and will compete for another playoff spot this year.

     
      #6 MINNESOTA WILD   The Wild had a good season last year. They made the playoffs and were contending to advance once again. The problem is more teams in the Central have improved are in the toughest division in the league because of it. The Wild have a good team and have got the most out of Eric Staal and Devan Dubnyk, who performed way above expectations. Good for them but the team didn’t improve at all in the off-season while other teams were making moves. That’ll hurt the Wild this season.
    The Wild aren’t great at any particular part of their game but they’re not terrible either. What’s bad is that they are average in special teams and 5 on 5 play. While that may have worked in the past, it won’t cut it this season. Will a rebuild be in order after next season? Let’s hope for the Wild, that’s not the case.

    #7 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
    The main core of the team is still in tact as Kane and Toews still play good hockey. Seabrook and Keith had seasons they want to forget but their play was severely hampered because of the lack of depth they used to when they were on top of the hockey world with 3 Stanley Cups in 5 seasons. The depth drops off very fast from their first line and had to use their 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines as a season long tryout camp for their prospects, with most of them not ready to make the leap. Alex DeBrincat was a diamond in the rough and was the only bit of good news the Hawks had all year. He led the Hawks in goals in his rookie season and is looking to build off that.
    If the Hawks want to make an impact this season, Corey Crawford needs to overcome vertigo plus Kane, Toews, Seabrook and Keith need to have monster seasons. In a division like the Central, it isn’t likely.
     
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  22. oilfieldhockey
    #1 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
    The perennial offensive powerhouse is back and ready to attack once again for another exciting season coming our way! It was a relatively quiet off-season for the Pens but they didn’t need to make many moves. They signed Jack Johnson to a multi-year deal to shore up the blueline which is one of the team’s weak spots.
    It wouldn’t be surprising if the Pens make it to another Stanley Cup Final and what’s different this year compared to the last couple of seasons is that they’re on the outside looking in. They were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup winners, the Washington Capitals, in 6 games of the Eastern conference semi-finals.
    The Pens will be fresher because of the extra rest compared to years before when they won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. There’s no doubt Crosby, Malkin, Kessel and company will still be at the top of their game to cement another great season in the best era of Penguins history. They have the deadliest powerplay as they were ranked #1 in that department last year plus they were #5 on offense. There’s no reason why that won’t change as of right now. Look for some exciting, high-flying games by them, especially against the Flyers and the Capitals. Mark it on your calendar when they play!

    #2 PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
    This might come as a surprise to some but I think the Flyers have a team that is a force to be reckoned with. Giroux, Voracek and Couturier had outstanding seasons last year. With Nolan Patrick on the verge of a breakout plus the signing of James van Riemsdyk, they now have a very scary offense that has great mix of skill, physicality and speed.
    On the back end, Ivan Provorov has established himself as a solid two-defender for years to come and Gostibehere (aka Ghost Bear) had a terrific season as well. Ghost Bear’s numbers might see a dip but he’ll still put up big numbers from the back.
    The Flyers aren’t as deep as the top contending teams but from what they lack in depth they make up for in prospects. Carter Hart is arguably the top goaltending prospect in the league and he’ll get a shot at training camp. Defenseman, Phillipe Myers has a great shot at making the team as well as centerman, Morgan Frost, a very explosive skater.
    Penalty Killing and goaltending are Philly’s weak spots but with an improved roster from within, they will get better in those departments. Their offense should make up for those deficiencies.

    #3 WASHINGTON CAPITALS
    The 2018 Stanley Cup champions had a year to remember! After many disappointments and early playoff exits, they finally made their mark in history and Alex Ovechkin got his Stanley Cup; he hasn’t let the cup out of his sights or been sober ever since, haha.
    The Caps earned their first Stanley Cup by having the presence of two elite centers in Kuznetsov and Backstrom. In the past, the Caps didn’t have this luxury, which is why they too often eliminated early in the playoffs. Their rivals, the Penguins, always stacked themselves down the middle with Malkin and Crosby. That’s why the Penguins have 3 cups since 2009.
    The Caps still have their main core intact and they’ve signed D John Carlson to an extension this summer. They’ll be gunning for a second straight cup and their odds are terrific.

    #4 CAROLINA HURRICANES
    It was a down year in Carolina and another missed opportunity to make the playoffs. That has been the case for the last 8 season ever since they made the Eastern Conference finals against the Penguins in 2009. But that was a long time ago and none of the guys that were on that team are here today.
    There was no distinguished strengths of that team as they ranked in the mid 20’s in goals for, goals against, powerplay and penalty killing against other teams in the league.
    What they did have right was their shots for/ shots against ratio. They peppered 2780 shots on goal while having 2367 shots against. Do you realize how good that is? They had 413 more shots on goal than against. That’s huge! The problem is that they couldn’t finish opportunities and Scott Darling did not play well for the Canes last season. They easily would of been a playoff team if Cam Ward simply played more games. Now that Ward is gone, Darling will get a second chance to see if he is worth the starter’s job. We’ll see how it goes but I think he’ll improve. I believe in second chances for opportunities like what Darling has, except for getting back together with your ex. I don’t believe in that at all.
    Carolina’s strength by far is their defensive core from #1 to #6. They just got Dougie Hamilton who is very gifted offensive from the backend. Jaccob Slavin is a defensive stalwart plus Faulk, Pesce and van Riemsdyk round out a pretty solid backend.
    The Canes lack star power and they’ve especially missed it last year. Now with Svechnikov in the picture, he’ll most likely make the team. He’s the Cane’s main weapon for the future and he’ll get his feet wet this season. If he turns out to be any good, he’ll make the Canes a better team immediately.
    This team is closer to being better than what a lot of people think and it won’t be surprising if they contend for a wild card spot in April of 2019.

    #5 COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
    If it wasn’t for Panarin (aka Pan Bread) or Bobrovsky (aka Boobtitsky) the Jackets wouldn’t have a chance to make the playoffs. Consistent scoring was a struggle for them last season despite Seth Jones had an outstanding year from the backend. A lot of players experienced big drop offs including Cam Atkinson and Nick Foligno. Luckily Pierre-Luc Dubois had a nice rookie season for them and played really well with Pan Bread late in the season.
    Ever since Tortorella has taken over the head coaching job in 2016, he turned this team around and established an identity by getting his team to play a gritty, hard-nosed, in-your-face brand of hockey. Although they have depth and character, they lack someone who can score all season long. Only Pan Bread can do it and the rest of the team has streaky scoring.
    Although I like this team on paper, they are one distraction or injury away from having a bad losing streak faltering their chances on missing the playoffs. Speaking of distractions, Panarin needs a contract and he won’t likely stay with the club. They’ll miss the playoffs, but just barely.

    #6 NEW JERSEY DEVILS
    The Devils made a terrific run in the season to make the last wild card seed in the Eastern Conference. That’s how Taylor Hall won the MVP trophy this season as he shouldered this team to the playoffs. Much like Columbus, Hall is the reason why the Devils made the playoffs just like how Panarin was the reason the Jackets were successful. The depth chart falls immediately after Hall. Nico Hishier is good and will be an elite center in a couple of seasons but he isn’t at his prime yet.
    The defensive core is probably the most average in the league. Will Buthcer had a great rookie season but he may have been over-acheiving just a bit. He could drop a few points but that’s ok, he’s still a lte round steal for the Devils. Vatanen looked good for the Devils last season but he won’t be carrying this club from the backend.
    The Devils were probably the luckiest team when it came to their goaltending situation. As Cory Schneider struggled, Keith Kinkaid bailed him out and played way above expectations earning himself the starter job.
    Much like the stock market when things go much better than expected, a course correction is in Order for the Devils.

    #7 NEW YORK RANGERS
    In a letter published in a local newspaper to Rangers fans from Glen Sather and Jeff Gorton on February 8th, 2018, they basically told fans that they’re rebuilding from the ground up and that marked a significant change in the Ranger’s destiny for the coming years on that day. Rick Nash, Ryan McDonagh, J.T Miller and Michael Grabner were shipped out at the trade deadline for prospects and future considerations.
    The full rebuild is in effect at the Big Apple. They were loaded with 10 picks at the 2018 NHL Draft in Dallas, Texas including three first round draft picks. They selected forward Vitali Kravtsov with the 9th overall pick, defenseman K’Andre Miller with the 22nd overall pick, and defenseman Nils Lundkvist with the 28th overall pick.
    With those picks, they’ll have the deepest pool of prospects in a couple of years. As of now, the Rangers are in transition. Henrik Lundqvist needs an opportunity to play for the Stanley Cup and they’ll most likely have him shipped out somewhere by the trade deadline in 2019.
    The Rangers won’t be good but they now a have a direction and that will bode well for their future.

    #8 NEW YORK ISLANDERS
    I’m not going to hold back on this one. The Islanders had a wasted season that could of been completely avoided. The Isles needed to chooses a path for the club while they still had a shot at the playoffs. They either had to buy or sell. Instead, they didn’t make a single move. The Isles were in desperate need of goaltending near the trade deadline. They easily could of snagged Cam Ward. He was available. A defensive stalwart would of made a difference as well. Their penalty kill was horrible as they ranked dead last in the league. Ryan McDonagh would of been terrific in fixing that problem. He was available.
    Islanders were even better off to sell than to do nothing. They didn’t even trade Tavares away while they still could of got some value from him and now he’s moved on with the Maple Leafs for nothing in return for the Isles.
    The team had these problems because of colossal mismanagement from Garth Snow and now he’s fired. Thankfully, Lou Lamiorello took over the General Manger role. Even with him at charge of operations, the Isles won’t recover from what happened last season. Now they have to suffer a painful season trying to figure how they can get back to being a playoff contender. Time to get to work.
     
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  23. oilfieldhockey
    Once again, I’m doing an NHL’s Top 5 compilation, but this time, it’s about players who can generate goals, hits and/or saves look sensational plus compelling to watch to make lasting memories to viewers. Some of us may know already that the best players don’t do anything to ‘wow’ you, they are just so effective at they do and achieve success by doing so. Every hockey fan knows who Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are. They are 2 of the best players in the NHL. They have each scored over 100 goals over the past 3 seasons but how many of those goals were highlight goals? Not too many but there are a couple of beautiful goals and insanely creative passes they’ve made but they are just known as some of the best players in the league, not highlight reel machines. We have a special list for those who create highlight reel plays they are listed below.Oh and this list is not ranked in any particular order either. Enjoy the show!
    Vladimir Tarasenko – Winger for the St.Louis Blues
    St. Louis Blues fans know that this guy has pure offensive talent but what a lot of people don’t know is that he was taught by his father Andrei, a former scoring league champion and Olympian back in Russia. It’s nice that talent runs in the bloodlines but when it counts when playing on the ice, gut instinct takes over and it doesn’t matter what kind of family you come from, you do what you have to do to get it done and he gets it done in style.
    http://youtu.be/soHWqk8LeXs
    Pavel Datsyuk – Center for the Detroit Red Wings
    One of the few veterans in the NHL who plays just as excellent defensively as he does offensively. Datsyuk is known as one of the best stick handlers to play in the game. His shot isn’t overly intimidating but what he does with the puck overcompensates for that. What makes Datsyuk an achiever in his rank is the fact that he was drafted in the 7th round of the NHL draft in 1998 and had to battle to get to where he is at today. His mother passed away when he was just 16 years of age and it may have affected his play before he was drafted which is perfectly understandable. Despite the adversity, he still went through the trial and error process in the Detroit Red Wings and after the dreaded lockout in 2004 and 2005, he had a breakthrough campaign scoring 87 points and established himself as a star for the Red Wings.
    http://youtu.be/R0j8XCkQz60
    Bobby Ryan – Left Winger for the Ottawa Senators
    Bobby Ryan is the guy known as the person who got drafted behind Sidney Crosby in the 2005 NHL draft. Ryan is a large human being who has a poised combination of speed, size and skill. What Ryan does as well as anybody good is that he scores goals naturally and he has been doing it since he could remember. He did not start in the NHL as soon as expected but shut critics up by having a memorable campaign in 2009 for the Anaheim Ducks by scoring 31 goals and 57 points in 64 games. Since then he has been pretty steady is now enjoying his time in Ottawa, but more than that, he is a complete player. He can hit, pass and backcheck very well but is prone to scoring slumps but that `s it, he really is a true talent.
    http://youtu.be/l0BDFCJXpWs
    P.K. Subban – Defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens
    What kind of highlight reel list would this be if it was just goals and passes. P.K. Subban as a defenseman, is very fun to watch. He makes everything look sleazy easy plus he makes it look good too. He possesses a ton of confident swagger and he brings it in almost every game especially against the Boston Bruins. He already won a Norris Trophy and he is only 25. Who knows what more he can do. He can shoot, hit, pass and fight…..and hit! Oh and he laid out Brad Marchand pretty good that one time.
    http://youtu.be/6a9E87mlWaA
    Patrick Kane – Winger for Chicago Blackhawks
    The kid is cocky but he backs it up nicely. He is clutch as well winning 2 Stanley Cups because he is the guy who cores in overtime. He has 5 playoff overtime goals and he is only 26. He can possibly break Joe Sakics record of playoff overtime goals with 8 before Kanes career is done. Kane is much like Datsyuk in the way he handles the puck plus he also has a laser of a wrist shot and he can see the ice very well. Kane is also like Subban in the way he possesses confident swagger but at times will disappear at certain points of the game. He is especially good in the shootout and the videos shown below will tell you why.
    *To view this article with more highlight reels, you can visit my page with the link listed below.
    NHL’s Top 5 Highlight Generating Players - Oilfield Hockey Blog
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  24. oilfieldhockey
    Another year, another round of hype surrounding Stanley Cup contenders and their hockey fans. This is part of our Stanley Cup prediction series. The Western Conference was covered the other day and it can be viewed if you’re interested:
    OJC OFFICIAL STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS: WESTERN CONFERENCE
    TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (A1) VS COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (WC2)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Bolts Defence: Bolts Powerplay: Bolts Penalty Kill: Blue Jackets Goaltending: Bolts X-FACTOR:
    Bolts: Nikita Kucherov Blue Jackets: Sergei Bobrovsky One of the most intriguing series of the playoffs, The Jackets barely punched their stamp to the post season to have a date with the Lightning. The Lightning had one of the most dominant regular seasons in recent memory. Their speed and skill is simply unmatched and at times look like they play on a different level altogether. The only way the Jackets have a chance of winning is if Bobrovsky stands on his head every game. Kucherov has had a season to remember with 128 points which was the most anyone has scored in over 23 years. He isn’t likely to slump but it’s the playoffs,a nything can happen.
    THE VERDICT:
    The Lightning will easily handle this in 5 games. Bobs will steal one game. WASHINGTON CAPITALS (M1) VS CAROLINA HURRICANES (WC2)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Caps Defence: Canes Powerplay: Caps Penalty Kill: Canes Goaltending: Canes X-FACTOR:
    Canes: Sebastian Aho Caps: Alex Ovechkin This is pretty uncharted territory. The Canes haven’t been in the dance for over 10 years and the Caps have never met them in the playoffs before. The Canes have been the best feel-good story in a long time with the whole storm surge promotion and theatric post game celebrations. They’ve also been red hot since the new year with only the Blues having a better record since January 1st. The Caps will be looking to repeat as champs and pretty much have the same team as last season.
    THE VERDICT:
    The Caps will take the inexperienced Canes to 6 games and increase their chances in repeating as champs. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (M3) VS NEW YORK ISLANDERS (M2)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Pens Defence: Islanders Powerplay: Pens Penalty Kill: Islanders Goaltending: Islanders X-FACTOR:
    Pens: Kris Letang Islanders: Matthew Barzal The Penguins had a rough start to their season but have bounced back nicely. Never count them out because they have absolute game-breakers like Crosby and Malkin. They face a stingy Islanders team who made a surprise turnaround without their former star, John Tavares. For Pittsburgh to beat the Isles, they need to work the powerplay and Letang has to work the powerplay as a quarter back. He is the only defenceman on the team that can work it as well as he can and he holds a lot of the responsibilty on the back end for that squad as well.
    Since the Islanders play a stingy game, everyone has to play a defence first, neutral zone trap kind of game. That is why guys like Barzal and Lee have seen a dip in their scoring. Barzal is one of the guys on the team that can light it up offensively if given an opportunity. He needs to create some for his team if they have a shot. The Pens are a loose team so don’t be surprised if the Isles win at least one game in a goal fest.
    THE VERDICT:
    It is not a David vs Goliath match up and it’s going to be good with a potential for a rivalry to be made but it is going to the Pens. 6 games are needed there.
    BOSTON BRUINS (A2) VS TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (A3)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Leafs Defence: Bruins Powerplay: Bruins Penalty Kill: Bruins Goaltending: Leafs X-FACTOR:
    Leafs: John Tavares Bruins: Brad Marchand Once again, these two rivalries face each other in the first round. If history indicates anything, its that the Bruins have had their number on the Leafs and will have a good chance to beat them again this season although it will be close. Both teams have lines that can light it up offensively and have excellent powerplays. There won’t be a shortage on offence, that’s for sure.
    Brad Marchand will play a key role for the Bruins to see if he can get under the Leafs skin but he’ll be more likely to score as he has taken on a more offensive role in the last 2 years.
    THE VERDICT:
    Very tough to call but I think the Leafs will finally exorcise their demons and take this 7.
  25. oilfieldhockey
    Another year, another round of hype surrounding Stanley Cup contenders and their hockey fans. This is the time when more players finish their checks which translate to games that average 80+ hits a game instead of 30-40. Pleasant surprises and disappoints are bound to happen, it does every year. Who would of thought Vegas would go to the Stanley Cups Finals last season against a cup thirsty Ovechkin and his Washington Capitals squad. One thing is for sure; Washington isn’t cup thirsty anymore. Meanwhile, the Blues, Sharks, Jets, Preds, Golden Knights and Blue Jackets are in the hunt for their first one still (Jackets only team in the east). Can’t wait until June to see how this plays out!
    CALGARY FLAMES (P1) VS COLORADO AVALANCHE (WC2)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Flames Defence: Flames Powerplay: Avalanche Penalty Kill: Flames Goaltending: Avalanche X-FACTOR:
    Flames: Matthew Tkachuk Avalanche: Semyon Varlamov This will be a high-flying, run-and-gun series as speed and opportunity will be key for both teams for all of the games they play. The Avs are definitely an underdog but if Varlamov stands on his head, he’ll downright steal games from the Flames. Matthew Tkachuk can be a difference maker if he gets under the skin of Avs star players Nathan Mackinnon and Mikko Rantanen. This will NOT be a boring series and don’t expect a lot of structure in either team’s games which, by the way, will drive coaches crazy.
    THE VERDICT:
    The Flames will win this series in 6 games NASHVILLE PREDATORS (C1) VS DALLAS STARS (WC1)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Predators Defence: Stars Powerplay: Stars Penalty Kill: Stars Goaltending: Stars X-FACTOR:
    Predators: Roman Josi Stars: Jamie Benn It looks odd that the Stars have the advantage in almost category but they only had a slight edge in GA and PK than Nashville, who’ve been very good defensively as well. A lot of credit to the great defensive numbers the Stars have posted is because of Ben Bishop who has been outstanding all season.
    There are a few concerns with Nashville heading into the playoffs this season. Their powerplay is dead last in the league (12.94%) plus their trade acquisitions, Wayne Simmonds and Mikael Granlund have not been playing well since joining the Preds. Roman Josi is the captain of the team and needs to jump start their powerplay and his squad if they want to succeed as they’ve been flat during the late season stretch.
    The Stars have been playing clutch hockey during the stretch and have won important hockey teams against other teams vying for a playoff spot and they look very poised to do well as a darkhorse. Bishop has been their MVP posting great numbers (GAA: 1.98, Sv%: .934) all season long despite playing in front of an inexperienced defensive core. Their top scorers are scoring although their secondary scoring needs to step up a bit as the Stars are near the bottom in goals scored (29th in the league). The key will be Jamie Benn making big plays in clutch situations as that is where he thrives.
    THE VERDICT:
    The Stars will win this series in 6 games SAN JOSE SHARKS (P2) VS VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (P3)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Sharks Defence: Golden Knights Powerplay: Sharks Penalty Kill: Golden Knights Goaltending: Golden Knights X-FACTOR:
    Sharks: Brent Burns Golden Knights: Marc-Andre Fleury The Sharks and Golden Knights have become sort of a riddle that is like an enigma. During the month of March, the Golden Knights and Sharks have played great during the first half while they stunk during the last half of the month. Both teams come into the playoffs struggling but the small break between now and game 1 of their series will bring a new perspective into light.
    The Golden Knights have a great play-by-committee system where they use their depth to their advantage in exposing their opponents weaknesses in causing turnovers during their transition game. How the Sharks break out of their defensive zone (Mostly talking about Brent Burns) will be important and can’t afford any mistakes in that area. This is where the Sharks need to be clean if they want to win.
    While the Golden Knights play a great transition game, they will still have trouble with the amount of depth the Sharks have with their scorers. The Sharks have a top 9 up front that can downright snipe at will if given the opportunity. This is where Fleury will be tested and if he can fend them off he’ll steal some games for VGK.
    For the Sharks to have the best chance to win, they need to work a great powerplay and play a puck possession game down low. Luckily that is their strength but it’s going to take everything they have to beat Fleury. They need traffic in front of him in addition to taking good shots on him.
    THE VERDICT:
    Overall, this series will see a lot of strategy from both teams as the coaches will takeover the structure of the game. In the end, this will go to the Sharks in 7 games but man that was a tough choice.
    WINNIPEG JETS (C2) VS ST. LOUIS BLUES (C3)
    ADVANTAGES:
    Offence: Jets Defence: Blues Powerplay: Jets Penalty Kill: Blues Goaltending: Blues X-FACTOR:
    Jets: Patrik Laine Blues: Jordan Binnington You have to give the Blues huge credit for making an incredible comeback and saving their season. That is thanks to rookie goaltender, Jordan Binnington. He has been playing some unreal hockey down the stretch during the second half of the season and he is the MVP of this revived Blues squad. How he handles playoff hockey should come as some concern as expectations and ability to elevate your game are of most importance. His task won’t be easy on an offensively loaded Jets squad who have been playing mediocre hockey as of late but have won some key games against tough opponents during the stretch.
    The Jets boast one of the best offensive teams in the league and can score in many ways. The big issue is their penalty kill and discipline which sharply declined late in the season but luckily they have some time to work on those kinks before they kick off their series. Patrik Laine needs to get it going if the Jets want any hope on getting Binnington off his game. Will Laine start scoring again? The answer is yes.
    The Jets are a much bigger team than the Blues but it isn’t clear how much the Jets want to use their size and play a gritty game against the Blues. It is recommended that they play a more physical game against them as they players who can lay the body if they really want to. The Blues need to use their hockey I.Q. and quick feet if they want to catch Winnipeg taking some undisciplined penalties against them. That’ll be key as Winnipeg hasn’t had a good PK in quite some time.
    THE VERDICT:
    A lot in this series will depend on who can carry momentum the most and who can set the tone the earliest. Whoever is leading by game 3 will likely carry this series to the finish line. Jets in 5 games.
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