Obviously, these storylines are about as likely to change as the Toronto Maple Leafs fortunes so far this season (#2), but that doesn’t make them any less fun to read about. Take for example number five, which reads like a success story but is most likely to derail into one of an ended career burst aflame like a $2-million mansion for the insurance money, once its owners realize that the housing market was as much a fad as Britney Spears, Crocs, and New Jersey Devil Ilya Kovalchuk’s wanting-to-go-to-Russia phase. But I digress...
5) Anthony Stewart: The Atlanta Thrashers have somehow, at least temporarily, managed to find the talent in this one-time promising Florida Panthers prospect turned preyed-upon deer carcass by the roadside. Apparently there was something there after all, with Stewart scoring his first-ever NHL hat trick on October 15 against the Anaheim Ducks. What’s most impressive is that before this season he only had four goals total scattered throughout a total of 105 games in parts of four previous seasons in the NHL. Therefore, the real surprise is not necessarily his four goals in five games... it’s the fact that he made the team in the first place.
4) Ondrej Pavelec collapsing: Sticking with the same team, goaltender Ondrej Pavelec suffered a fainting spell in the Thrashers’ first game against the Washington Capitals. No one was near him on the ice at the time, giving the incident an eery air of mystery. There’s nothing funny here, except for the fact that he must have had a premonition that the Thrashers would actually win that game (4-2) and got so shocked he got a little too lightheaded. Thankfully, he’s okay now, at least okay enough that we can joke about it. He’s rejoined the Thrashers, but his teammates aren’t letting him in on the fact fact that they actually have a winning record for obvious reasons.
3) The Philadelphia Flyers and their goaltending situation: We all knew it was bad, but to hand the starting job to an unknown Sergei Bobrovsky over Brian Boucher, once Michael Leighton went down with injury? Really? The plan has admittedly been somewhat successful, with Bobrovsky currently 2-1, but that lasting is about as likely as defenseman Chris Pronger ever getting his hands on the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, any way short of knocking out Detroit Red Wing with a clothesline and stealing it from his that is. Datsyuk earning a Gordie Howe hat trick against the Anaheim Ducks a while back just narrowly missed our list.
2) The Toronto Maple Leafs and their quick start: It’s actually their quickest start since the 1993-94 season, during which they won their first 10. Nobody is predicting the Leafs to stay undefeated during regulation the rest of the season, right now at 4-0-1, but credit is definitely due their way after it took them eight games to earn their first win last year. Are the Leafs for real? Well, let me answer that question with another: Do pigs fly? Do flying pigs eat bacon all the while flying around in this little fantasy world made up of sunshine, lollipops, and gumdrops? Technically that’s two questions, but I think I made my point.
1) Marian Gaborik getting injured: just kidding. Really, goalie Tim Thomas regaining his number-one spot with the Boston Bruins: It’s still early in the year and anything can happen, but it looks as if either the hip surgery he had last off-season has really helped or Tuukka “Two ‘U’s, Two ‘K’s, Two Points” Rask has lost head coach Claude Julien’s confidence and is poised to suffer through a sophomore slump after allowing four goals in the team’s first game. Thomas has conversely allowed just one goal in two games played. Whatever happens, it’s clear that the Bruins have great depth and either goalie makes for a very risky choice in your fantasy pool, whether you’re a Bruins fan or not. I think that would be akin to Torontonians snatching up Clarke MacArthur, ignorant to the fact that his early-season scoring binge can’t possibly last.
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