Islanders vs Rangers: The Throwdown

This is it, what they have been waiting for. The Islanders and the Rangers play Sunday for the first time since the Chris Simon stick swinging incident.

This was the first incident in recent memory (followed quickly by the Jordin Tootoo sucker punch) that occured outside of Vancouver. Both the Marty McSorley and Donald Brashear attach and the Todd Bertuzzi ambush on Steve Moore both occured in Vancouver.

Why is this important? For a few reasons:
1) If you own or can grab Aaron Asham, Brendan Witt, Colton Orr or Ryan Hollweg off of your leagues waiver wire you are likely to get a few PIMs out of tomorrow's game
2) The NHL and the entire hockey world will be watching to see what happens.

In case you missed it, Chris Simon is out for the rest of the season so the remaining tough guys on both teams are Aaron Asham and Brendan Witt for the Islanders and Colton Orr and Ryan Hollweg for the Rangers. After Colton Orr's demolition of Todd Fedoruk and Ben Eager last week I pity anyone who steps up to the plate with Orr.

This game has larger implications than just who will fight who. The plethora of incidents over the last several weeks include: Wade Belak fighting Cam Janssen, Colton Orr fighting Todd Fedoruk and Ben Eager in retaliation for incidents which occured weeks in the past. Not to mention the Jordin Tootoo sucker punch that sent Stephan Robidas to the hospital with a concussion.

Todd Fedoruk was removed from the ice on a stretcher after being KO'd less than a minute into the game on Wednesday night and the following night John Sim was sent to the hospital with a fractured orbital bone after tangling with Mark Bell.

This rash of fighters injuries and retaliation has prompted Directory of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell to suggest that the NHL needs to take a look at fighting in the game and implement procedures to limit it.

So the question becomes... will there be a fight in tomorrow's game? And if there is, what will be the repercussions?

Perhaps even more importantly, if a hockey fight occurs in New York in the middle of the day and no one is watching... does it make any noise?

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Saturday, March 24

Below are the reported starters for Saturday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)
Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist vs Bruins - Joey MacDonald
Islanders - Rick DiPietro vs Flyers - Martin Biron
Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen vs Penguins - Jocelyn Thibault
Blues - Jason Bacashihua vs Red Wings - Domink Hasek
Sharks - Evgeni Nabokov vs Hurricanes - Cam Ward
Capitals - Olaf Kolzig vs Canadiens - Jaroslav Halak
Sabres - Ty Conklin vs Maple Leafs - Andrew Raycroft
Devils - Martin Brodeur vs Panthers - Ed Belfour
Senators - Ray Emery vs Lightning - Marc Denis
Kings - Sean Burke vs Wild - Josh Harding
Predators - Tomas Vokoun vs Oilers - Jussi Markkanen
Stars - Mike Smith vs Coyotes - Mikael Tellqvist

How did I do last night?
8-8 for starters, 2-4 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)
Maple Leafs - Andrew Raycroft vs Sabres - Ryan Miller
Kings - Mathieu Garon vs Black Hawks - Nikolai Khabibulin
Avalanche - Peter Budaj vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson
Stars - Marty Turco vs Ducks - J.S. Giguere

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Friday, March 23

Below are the reported starters for Friday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)

Maple Leafs - Andrew Raycroft vs Sabres - Ryan Miller
Kings - Mathieu Garon vs Black Hawks - Nikolai Khabibulin
Avalanche - Peter Budaj vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson
Stars - Marty Turco vs Ducks - J.S. Giguere

How did I do last night?
18-20 for starters, 5-9 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)

Capitals - Brent Johnson vs Hurricanes - John Grahame
Sharks - Vesa Toskala vs Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen
Senators - Ray Emery vs Panthers - Ed Belfour
Blue Jackets - Frederik Norrena vs Red Wings - Chris Osgood
Penguins - Marc-Andre Fleury vs Islanders - Rick DiPietro
Canadiens - Jaroslav Halak vs Bruins - Tim Thomas
Devils - Martin Brodeur vs Lightning - Johan Holmqvist Marc Denis
Blues - Curtis Sanford vs Wild - Niklas Backstrom
Predators - Chris Mason vs Flames - Miikka Kiprusoff
Ducks - Ilya Bryzgalov vs Coyotes - Mikael Tellqvist Curtis Joseph

Does Ray Emery wear women's shoes

This is a bit of a strange trip, but trust me and follow along.

For some strange reason I decided to type the words 'puck bunnies' into Google and see what happened. I am at the office today so I wasn't trying to find pornographic pictures of amorous hockey females.

Oh, wait, for those of you who don't know what a puck bunny is...

According to Wikipedia: "A puck bunny is a female ice hockey fan, often one whose interest in the sport is primarily motivated by sexual attraction to the players rather than enjoyment of the game itself."

So, back to my original train of thought.. a naked blonde walks into a bar with a foot long salami under one arm and a poodle under the... wait, wrong conversation.

I type puck bunnies into Google and the first result I get is to an online forum for puck bunnies... no really this actually happened. (Check out http://www.voy.com/193541/)

So I get sucked in and start to troll around reading posts from various puck bunnies, puck bunny haters and puck bunny wannabees. Oh, yeah, and the venerable retired puck bunnies (aka gray hares). I must admit that I probably spent close to an hour reading about the exploits and conquests of various puck bunnies. Did you know that Wojtek Wolski is very well hung but has an extremely hairy ass? Neither did I, and I apologize for putting that information into your brain.

Back to the point... I stumbled across a thread about Ray Emery here. The discussion begins around Ray Emery's shoe collection, apparently he has around 500 pairs of shoes, and one pair of women's boots! I became entranced with their discussion about why Emery would have a pair of ladies boots in his closet. Opinions ranged from an ex girlfriend leaving them behind to his penchant for wearing women's shoes.

Just let me say that it was an enjoyable afternoon spent rolling around in the dirt with a bunch of puck bunnies. I hope you enjoy it too.

Orr drops Fedoruk onto his ass in 21 seconds

The New York Rangers vs Philadelphia Flyers matchup started off on the wrong foot last night.

Colton Orr went after Todd Fedoruk a mere 21 seconds into the 1st period and very shortly afterwards dropped Fedoruk to the ice with a big overhand right. Watch the fight below:



This is the second time in three nights that two NHL heavyweights have dropped the gloves in an effort to 'send a message' to the other team and the rest of the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs Wade Belak went after the New Jersey Devils Cam Janssen on Tuesday night in retaliation for the late hit that Janssen put on Tomas Kaberle in the last meeting between those two teams.

This fight was eerily similar as Orr was going after Fedoruk in order to 'send a message' about the hit that put Brendan Shanahan out for 15 games in the two teams last meeting, even if it was accidental.

Still in the first period Orr challenged Ben Eager minutes after coming out of the penalty box and two went at it by the boards between the two benches. You can watch this fight below:



These retaliatory fights seem to be getting a little bit out of hand. Colton Orr is regularly sitting in the press box for the Rangers and was clearly inserted into the lineup tonight just to take the fight to the Flyers. It would be nice to see some suspensions or fines for this type of thing but I don't plan on holding my breath.

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Thursday, March 22

Below are the reported starters for Thursday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)

Capitals - Brent Johnson vs Hurricanes - John Grahame
Sharks - Vesa Toskala vs Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen
Senators - Ray Emery vs Panthers - Ed Belfour
Blue Jackets - Frederik Norrena vs Red Wings - Chris Osgood
Penguins - Marc-Andre Fleury vs Islanders - Rick DiPietro
Canadiens - Jaroslav Halak vs Bruins - Tim Thomas
Devils - Martin Brodeur vs Lightning - Johan Holmqvist
Blues - Curtis Sanford vs Wild - Niklas Backstrom
Predators - Chris Mason vs Flames - Miikka Kiprusoff
Ducks - Ilya Bryzgalov vs Coyotes - Mikael Tellqvist

How did I do last night?
10-12 for starters, 4-5 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)

Capitals - Olaf Kolzig vs Sabres - Ryan Miller
Flyers - Antero Nittymaki vs Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist
Sharks - Vesa Toskala Evgeni Nabokov vs Blawk Hawks - Patrick Lalime
Avalanche - Peter Budaj vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson
Predators - Tomas Vokoun vs Canucks - Roberto Luongo
Stars - Marty Turco Mike Smith vs Kings - Mathieu Garon

Wade Belak gives Cam Janssen a warm welcome

So it did actually happen. Wade Belak challenged Cam Janssen in last nights Devils vs Leafs game.

Mere seconds after Janssen hopped over the boards Wade Belak began chirping at him and in short order the gloves were off and the two heavy weights went at it.

Belak got the upper hand early in the fight but never seemed to be able to capitalize on his dominant position. As fights go, this was not much of one, but the effect this fight had on both benches was positive. Both teams should now be able to put the late hit by Janssen on Tomas Kaberle behind them and go on to finish off their respective seasons.

Kudos to Belak for stepping up to the plate and handling himself well and even bigger kudos to Janssen for not turtling or running away from the fight. As expected the rest of the game was business as usual (althought the 3rd period did get a little chippy) and both teams focused on trying to get the two points.

Hockeyfights.com currently has the fight going to Wade Belak with 59.4% of the vote.

You can see the fight below:




For the most part I tend to think that fighting in hockey is useless and pointless. However, in this case it serves a purpose. It tells opposing teams that you will not let them get away with questionable actions without penalty and it serves to juice up your teammates and your fans. Oh, yeah, and it IS fun to watch.

Tyler over at NHL Digest is trying to win an Edmonton Oilers fan picture contest and plans to give away the prize (a Sirius satellite radio and 6 month subscription) to readers of his blog.

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Wednesday, March 21

Below are the reported starters for Wednesday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)

Capitals - Olaf Kolzig vs Sabres - Ryan Miller
Flyers - Antero Nittymaki vs Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist
Sharks - Vesa Toskala vs Blawk Hawks - Patrick Lalime
Avalanche - Peter Budaj vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson
Predators - Tomas Vokoun vs Canucks - Roberto Luongo
Stars - Marty Turco vs Kings - Mathieu Garon

How did I do last night?
15-16 for starters, 5-8 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)
Black Hawks - Nikolai Khabibulin vs Blue Jackets - Frederik Norrena
Bruins - Tim Thomas vs Canadiens - Jaroslav Halak
Panthers - Ed Belfour vs Flyers - Martin Biron
Devils - Martin Brodeur vs Maple Leafs - Andrew Raycroft
Islanders - Rick DiPietro vs Lightning - Marc Denis Johan Holmqvist
Senators - Martin Gerber vs Blues - Curtis Sanford
Coyotes - Curtis Joseph vs Wild - Niklas Backstrom
Red Wings - Dominik Hasek vs Flames - Miikka Kiprusoff

Kaberle will NOT play tonight

This just in from TSN, Tomas Kaberle will be rested for at least one more game prior to returning to the lineup for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Kaberle returns, hopes Janssen doesn't shoot the messenger

The rumors out of Toronto are that Tomas Kaberle will return to the ice tonight, ironically against the team that knocked him out of the lineup earlier this month.

Kaberle is the offensive catalyst for the Toronto Maple Leafs and arguably there best defenseman to boot. If you have been sitting the Leaf players on your roster tonight might be a good time to put them back in your starting lineup... ummm Maybe Not.

Martin Brodeur was pulled from his last start after allowing 4 goals on 12 shots. If history has any bearing Marty will be on fire tonight and a shutout is a distinct possibility.

On the PIM side, all reports out of the Leaf dressing room say that no Leaf player will be looking for revenge on Cam Janssen, not even Darcy Tucker. I'm not sure how much of that medicine you are willing to swallow but I tend to believe it. More because the Leaf's don't truly have a player capable of taking Janssen to task than anything else.

Both Darcy Tucker and Wade Belak have dropped the gloves with Janssen this year and both fights went to Janssen, although Tucker did give a good account of himself (if my memory serves). It can be difficult to send a physical message when you get the snot beat out of you by the guy you are trying to give the message to.

If there is an attempt to send a message tonight, expect Janssen to shoot the messenger.

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Tuesday, March 20

Below are the reported starters for Tuesday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)
Black Hawks - Nikolai Khabibulin vs Blue Jackets - Frederik Norrena
Bruins - Tim Thomas vs Canadiens - Jaroslav Halak
Panthers - Ed Belfour vs Flyers - Martin Biron
Devils - Martin Brodeur vs Maple Leafs - Andrew Raycroft
Islanders - Rick DiPietro vs Lightning - Marc Denis
Senators - Martin Gerber vs Blues - Curtis Sanford
Coyotes - Curtis Joseph vs Wild - Niklas Backstrom
Red Wings - Dominik Hasek vs Flames - Miikka Kiprusoff

How did I do last night?
4-4 for starters, 1-2 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)
Penguins - Jocelyn Thibault vs Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist
Canucks - Roberto Luongo vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson

NHL Weekly Wrapup - Who's Hot and Who's Not

Centers: Patrick O'Sullivan is currently on a 5 game point streak (1 goal, 6 assists) for the Los Angeles Kings. The rookie center scored his first goal since January 27th on Sunday, the game winner no less, to go along with 2 assists on the night. If you are looking for a flavour of the week you might do well to snag O'Sullivan while he is hot.

Joe Thornton: 4 goals, 6 assists, 1 GWG
Joe Sakic: 3 goals, 6 assists
Sidney Crosby: 4 goals, 4 assists
Mike Modano: 4 goals, 2 assists, 1 GWG
Patrick O'Sullivan: 1 goal, 5 assists, 1 GWG

Who's Not: Brought over from the Washington Capitals to provide some offensive talent to replace some of the injury riddled Buffalo Sabres leading scorers Dainus Zubrus has been a dissapointment. In the 9 games since the trade Zubrus has managed only 2 points, if you picked him up after the trade deadline hoping to cash in on the high scoring Sabres lineup, stop, drop and pick up someone who is hot (i.e. Patrick O'Sullivan).

Wingers: Milan Michalek has been on fire in his last 4 games with multipoint performances in each. 2 goals and 7 assists in that span make him a fantasy impact player again this season. If an impatient owner let him drop earlier this season snag him now for the stretch run.

Milan Michalek: 2 goals, 7 assists
Alexander Semin: 4 goals, 4 assists, 1 GWG
Bill Guerin: 5 goals, 1 assist
Jussi Jokinen: 1 goal, 5 assists
Keith Tkachuk: 3 goals, 2 assists, 2 GWG

Who's Not: Markus Naslund has been having a horrible season with only 54 points for a low scoring Vancouver Canucks team. In the month of March he has only produced 3 points and is now on a 5 game pointless streak. If you are still holding onto him hoping for a resurgence, stop. The time is well past to cut him loose.

Defencemen: Ryan Whitney is punishing me for letting him drop onto waivers back around the New Year. He leads all d-men over the last week with 1 goal and 5 assists for the surging Pittsburgh Penguins.

Ryan Whitney: 1 goal, 5 assists
Scott Niedermayer: 6 assists
Rob Blake: 3 goals, 2 assists, 1 GWG
Marc-Andre Bergeron: 2 goals, 3 assists
Lubomir Visnovsky: 1 goal, 4 assists

Who's Not: After a productive first half of the season Zdeno Chara has been dissapointing lately. In 22 games since the start of February Chara has only 8 points with only 2 of those in the month of March. I wouldn't suggest dropping the tallest defenceman in the league, but I would certainly suggest that you leave him on your bench. He is on mine.

Goaltenders: Peter Budaj is undefeated in regulation in his last 10 games with 2 overtime losses and 1 shutout in that span. The Avalanche are surging coming into the playoff stretch and Budaj is perhaps the hottest goalie in the NHL.

Peter Budaj: 3 wins
Marc-Andre Fleury: 3 wins
Niklas Backstrom: 3 wins
Mathieu Garon: 3 wins
John Grahame: 2

Who's Not: Would you believe Martin Brodeur? Marty lost 2 of 3 last week including a stinker in Carolina where he was pulled after letting in 4 goals on 12 shots.

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Monday, March 19

Below are the reported starters for Monday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)
Penguins - Jocelyn Thibault vs Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist

Canucks - Roberto Luongo vs Oilers - Dwayne Roloson

How did I do last night?
12-12 for starters, 2-6 on winners
(Bold is the actual winner, Italic is my predicted winner)
Lightning - Johan Holmqvist vs Capitals - Olaf Kolzig
Sabres - Ryan Miller vs Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen
Senators - Ray Emery vs Penguins - Marc Andre Fleury
Kings - Sean Burke vs Ducks - JS Giguere
Sharks - Evgeni Nabokov vs Avalanche - Peter Budaj
Coyotes - Mikael Tellqvist vs Stars - Mike Smith

Starting Goalies in the NHL tonight Sunday, March 18

Below are the reported starters for Sunday night:
(Bold is my predicted winner, Italic is an uncertain starter)
Lightning - Johan Holmqvist vs Capitals - Olaf Kolzig
Sabres - Ryan Miller vs Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen
Senators - Ray Emery vs Penguins - Marc Andre Fleury
Kings - Sean Burke vs Ducks - JS Giguere
Sharks - Evgeni Nabokov vs Avalanche - Peter Budaj
Coyotes - Mikael Tellqvist vs Stars - Mike Smith

How did I do last night?
I was hung over and shivering from the cold. It was 90 degrees in Vegas when I left and -5 when I got back to Toronto. I spent the day in bed instead of reading newspapers and trying to figure out who was starting where last night.