PLAYOFF REFLECTIONS: NIGHT TWO

Although it is impossible to truly follow all of the games here are some reflections and opinions from the second night of playoff action:

1)     Are the Canadiens in the Bruins head? A shutout in game one on the road is a huge statement. Carey Price was very sharp, and the Habs looked like a team that was willing to sacrifice to win. Games will be tight and if the Habs continue to block shots and play disciplined they can win this series. The Bruins are supposed to be much stronger and more physical than Montreal. They will need to adapt a much more rough and tumble game plan to win game two.

2)     The Flyers/Sabres game was one of the most dull playoff games in recent memory. Not much happened, and that’s just the way Lindy Ruff and the Sabres would love to have it the rest of the series. The Flyers questions coming into the game were mostly surrounding Sergei Bobrovsky, and the absence of Chris Pronger. After game one, some heart and character questions should be thrown out to Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. Stars have to be stars in the playoffs. Both Richards and Carter looked like passengers in the game. Ryan Miller played stellar, but didn’t need to be fantastic. The Sabres were quite content to let the Flyers stay to the outside and block a bunch of shots.  Bobrovsky kicked out a fat rebound on the lone goal scored by Patrick Kaleta, but it is completely unreasonable to put any blame on the rookie netminder.

3)     Ryan Miller is fine. Injury concerns were the story in Buffalo leading up to the series. Miler missed 4 of Buffalo’s last 6 regular season games, but didn’t show any concern in shutting out the Flyers.  The Sabres defencemen made life easy on Miller limiting second chance opportunities and allowing him to see the puck.

4)     Jarret Stoll of the LA Kings should be suspended for his hit on Ian White of San Jose. The hit happened behind the net, late in the first period. It was a clear forearm to the head of the Sharks defenceman. This is the exact kind of hit that the NHL needs to rid itself of. Stoll is not know as a dirty player, but careless play on the ice, especially when going right to the head will not be tolerated.  White’s status is not known, but he did not return to the game. Stoll should get 1-2 games in this series.

Here is the schedule for tonight’s games.

Tampa Bay @ Pittsburgh 7:00pm EST

NY Rangers @ Washington  7:30pm EST

Chicago @ Vancouver   10:00pm EST

Nashville @ Anaheim  10:30pm

No live tweets from me tonight.  I will be back tomorrow tweeting the Flyers/Sabres game  @getrealhockey.

Follow my articles and tweets and send questions to @Chyz1 on TWITTER.

-Mark Chyz

Niemi Joins Fellow Finn Niittymaki in Sharks’ Crease

It’s hard to believe goalie Antti Niemi signing with the San Jose Sharks on Thursday wasn’t the end-game of general manager Doug Wilson’s master plan:

Step 1: On June 18, have captain Rob Blake announce his retirement, opening up a spot on defense.

Step 2: On June 22, announce in a pre-draft press conference that goalie Evgeni Nabokov won’t be brought back to spread his rare case of untimely mediocrity around the locker room any longer.

Step 3: On July 1, sign career back-up Antero Niittymaki to a two-year, $4-million deal, under the guise that he’ll become the team’s new starter. Then smile and laugh maniacally behind closed doors.

Step 4: On July 7, hold a farewell party for Nabokov, as he leaves the NHL to sign with SKA Saint Petersburg of the KHL... and strangely leave Nabokov off the guest list.

Step 5: On July 9, sign Chicago Blackhawks at-best second-pairing defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson to a four-year, $14-million contract offer sheet (to supposedly fill the hole left by Blake’s retirement), prompting the Hawks to match it as a big screw you to Sharks management. Then laugh again as the Hawks unwittingly shoot themselves in the foot and press up further against the salary cap.

Step 6: On August 2, watch as the Blackhawks walk away from Stanley-Cup-winning-goalie Niemi’s arbitration-awarded salary of $2.75 million. Then, playfully imitate Hawks gm Stan Bowman while looking in a mirror and saying: “If only I didn’t match Hjalmarsson’s offer sheet. Damn you, Wilson!” and scream upward into the sky while yelling out “Wilson” for added effect. Then laugh manically to close the evening.

Step 7: On September 2, sign Niemi for $2 million on the cheap by offering him the chance to deliver a bigger screw you to Chicago as a signing bonus, all the while knowing the Hawks could and would have kept him for that much.

Step 8: Sit back and enjoy the fruits of labour. Laughing maniacally is just one of many options at this point.

Wilson may not actually be moonlighting as a diabolical genius, but no one can deny that he is a first-rate gm, or at least that he’s been as much this off-season. He cut ties with Nabokov and saved his team $2 million by signing both Niittymaki and Niemi to $2-million contracts. That the Sharks ended up picking up the Hawks’ number-one goalie is at the very least the icing on the cake this summer, perhaps the one that was served at Nabokov’s going-away party.

In Nabokov, the Sharks are losing a very good goalie who has consistently been among the league’s top performers during the regular season but could not keep it together come playoff time. In Niemi, the Sharks are getting the goalie that helped to eliminate them in the Western Conference finals this past spring.

Despite having only played one full season in the league, he’s already won a championship. Niemi is also eight years younger, which pretty much makes the move a win on all levels. The only thing left for Wilson is to bring the Sharks to the point that they can win at the next level.

In that regard, he still has a ways to go. While San Jose has improved in goal, they still have that aforementioned hole on defense to fill. While this late in the free-agent season few quality defensemen are left, Paul Mara and Marc-Andre Bergeron represent two cheap possibilities. Mara is of course more of a stay-at-home defenseman at this stage of his career and Bergeron can still man the point on the power play with the best of them, despite his defensive deficiencies.

And if Wilson really wants to prove himself as one of the league’s premier gms, he should maybe try and wrest away a top defenseman from another team. I hear the Maple Leafs’ Tomas Kaberle is available, but that’s a story for another day.

So, this latest coup by Wilson needs to take an immediate back seat to what should be his next top priority. The Sharks may still be a top-tier team in the league, but they’re far from a legitimate contender. The Sharks’ ultimate goal of finally winning a Cup after years of falling short and flat on their faces is far from set in stone. San Jose should be alright though, as long as Wilson takes it step by step, along with a few intermittent breaks of laughing his ass off in between. He’s earned that much at least.