2011 Stanley Cup Finals!

I'm really excited for the game to begin in a few minutes.

Also, I read this Down Goes Brown article earlier today and all I can say is that it is absolutely brilliant!

Good luck Canucks :)

2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Round 3 Summary

The trouble with procrastination is that you are prone to forgetting things.  I delayed writing a post about the conference finals for so long that I kinda forgot what the hell I wanted to say about it in the first place.  Anyways, here are my thoughts.  As they say, better late than never, right?

Eastern Conference

(3-5) Boston-Tampa Bay: So I was hoping that Tampa would be the team to take out the Bruins. I thought that they could do it.  I mean, I don’t think that Boston’s forwards are that good. Obviously, I am aware that must be good enough to have made it this far but they just don’t impress, you know.  On the other hand, Tampa’s forwards are just incredible.  Martin St. Louis, my little man, you are so awesome it’s beautiful.  Also, Lecavalier totally found his groove throughout the playoffs and Sean Bergenheim?  Where the hell did he come from?  No, seriously.  Where did he come from?  When it came to it Dwayne Roloson, as good as he was, Tim Thomas was just better.

The Bruins might have won but in the end, it was pretty close.  It’s not like it was lopsided or anything.  They took the series on third period Nathan Horton goal in game 7.

Side note: I remember going into game 4 the series was in the Bruins’ favour 2-1.  I remember thinking that if Tampa didn’t take that game it was pretty much certain that the Bruins would advance if they had a 3-1 chokehold.  At the end of the first period the Bruins were up 3-0 and I had very little hope for the Lighting.  Anyways, something came up that took me away from the tv until the dying minutes of the second period.  Long story short, I saw that the scoreline was now 3-3 and all I could think was wtf?  Tampa went on to win the game 5-3.  From the beginning until the end, Tampa Bay confused the heck out of me.  It was an interesting ride even if it was a series shorter than I would’ve liked.  Either way, it can’t be denied that they entertained me along the way.

Western Conference

(1-2) Vancouver-San Jose: Now this series was pretty lopsided.  And unbelievably wacky.  First off, Vancouver finally began to score more.  Yay Vancouver.  In a five game series they managed to score 20 goals.  That’s more than either the Chicago series (7 games, 16 goals) or the Nashville series (6 games, 14 goals).  It’s mostly due to game 2 where they scored 7 goals alone (thanks to Ben Eager’s epic meltdown).  By the way, while Eager taunting Luongo on his goal was absolutely petty and mean spirited, I aint gonna lie, it was hella funny.  Game 4, in particular, was hilariously wacky, that is, if you aren’t a Sharks fan.  Here’s a pretty good recap of the game from this CBC article:

“Blowing five consecutive power plays in 21 minutes was enough on its own to doom any team, but San Jose then compounded its death wish by committing four indisputably bad penalties of its own in 2:46 of the second period, leading to three 5-on-3 advantages for the Canucks that within 37 seconds became three goals, a post-season record stretching back even to before the Seattle Millionaires and the Ottawa Silver Seven.”

And as if it were the icing on the proverbial cake, Kevin Bieksa’s series winning goal was also strange with no one being able to see the puck except Bieksa himself.  Tip of the hat, monsieur, tip of the hat.

P.S.: did anyone catch Logan Couture’s post-game interviews?  Maybe it’s that he’s young and new to the experience that he took it so hard, but he seemed so fragile.  Dude needed a hug, just saying.

Awesome Name Award: Anton Volchenkov

While the face doesn't necessarily look menacing, doesn't the name sound like it is?

A(nother) Note to Hockey Commentators

A few other hilarious pronunciations from Monsieur Don Cherry:

1. Kevin Biekeksa
2. Roberto Lulongo

I would love to hear what Bieksa thinks about Cherry constantly mangling his name :)

2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Round 2 Summary

Ok – going into the second round if you asked me which team was the weakest I would’ve said Nashville.  I didn’t think any team was going to be swept but if I had to guess, I would’ve grudgingly guessed Nashville, particularly if Vancouver’s offense turned on.  Who would’ve known that of Nashville, Philadephia, Detroit and Washington, Nashville was the only one that didn’t lose its first three games?!

Honestly, what was up with the Eastern Conference this year?!  Two series were sweeps?  What the hell?  This round ended so quickly I felt like I got cheated out of a lot hockey (not to mention my fantasy pool).  But I guess unpredictability is part of what makes the playoffs exciting …

Eastern Conference

(1-5) Washington-Tampa Bay: I don’t have much else to add about this series as it was already over by the time I wrote the previous post.  I still can’t believe that Washington got swept, though … what a shame.

(2-3) Philadelphia-Boston: Lol!  Ok so not only was I betting on Philly beating Boston, I was hoping it would be in a dramatic fashion given what happened last year.  I can laugh at it now but going in, I really thought Philly was one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference and that they probably had a good shot at Vancouver for the final.  Whoops.  I most certainly did not predict that they would get swept.  Philly getting swept hurt a hell of a lot more than Washington getting swept.  Why?  Because I don’t mind Tampa – they’re alright.  But Boston?  I really can’t stand that team.

Western Conference

(1-5) Vancouver-Nashville: This series started off a bit on the boring side and got slightly better with each game.  It wasn’t extremely exciting playoff hockey for the Canucks of whom I expected more.  The Predators play a very defensive style and the Canucks were just a bit more offensive than them.  Shea Weber and Ryan Suter played quite well and Pekka Rinne is a great goalie.  BUT, the most awesome player of the entire series was, of course, Ryan Kesler.  Wow, it’s like he single-handedly willed Vancouver to win the series.  Vancouver took it in six games but kudos to Nashville in any case.

Last year, I (as an outsider, of course) didn’t get how Kesler was even considered for the Canucks captaincy.  This was after he notoriously trash talked Team Canada after the Vancouver Olympics and he had a lot of local fans turning on him.  I wondered after all that shit he said about Canada why he was so eager to captain a Canadian team.  Now, I think he is worthy of captaincy after he quit his trash talking full stop this year.  Whether he is worthier than Henrik Sedin is another question (imho, based on the regular season, no – based on the post-season, most definitely) that Vancouverites can argue amongst themselves.

P.S.: Looks like the pattern I noticed here did not hold L

(2-3) San Jose-Detroit: Wow this series was awesome!  Hands down, it was my favourite series of the second round.  Both teams played hard and quite well every game.  Earlier, when San Jose was up 3-0, I wrote here that I would like the Wings to win a few more to take the series to seven games but that I doubted it.  I can’t believe that it happened and that the Wings were able to tie the series after that hole!  Not only did I get to watch more hockey but it was great hockey to boot.  Honestly, I was rooting for the Red Wings to win slightly more given the dramatic fashion in which they came back but it’s not like I dislike San Jose.

A few useless observations:

• Detroit has some of the best stadium music.  Unsurprisingly, it’s a bit Eminem heavy but it’s still better than what’s played at a lot of other stadiums
• I don't know who he is but the Bruins have the worst anthem singer
• Logan Couture had a seriously awesome blowout for game seven.  I saw him without his helmet on during the national anthem and he looked like a damn Pantene ad …
• Joe Thornton’s pre-game suit for game seven was a beauty.  What a flattering suit … too bad I can’t find a photo to post L

Randomness

Every time I watch a San Jose game and I either see Danny Boyle or hear his name I think of this picture.  Seriously.

He can check a guy, get a goal or even deflect one into his own net (no, I haven't forgotten how funny that was) - no matter what he does, my mind involuntarily conjures this picture.  It's unforgettable and not in a good way.

Just thought I'd share.

Looking forward to tonight's game.

Shea Weber 2011 Playoff Beard Watch ...

Shea Weber 2011 Playoff Beard Watch is officially over

It was good while it lasted but it's done now, my little chickens