Maple Leafs Dominate Senators

It was evening that James Reimer didn't want to stop but who really could blame him.

The Leafs handily beat the Ottawa Senators 5-0 in the Canadian Capital on Saturday evening in front of a robust crowd of Leaf fans and Sens fans who even though about duking it out themselves!

Reimer made 49 saves while his counterpart, Anderson faced 40 shots who had very little help from his teammates this evening.

Phil Kessel who had a three point night, including a game winning goal. Along with Kessel getting the job done a few of his teammates chipped in as well. Dion Phaneuf, Tyler Bozak, Luke Schenn and Cody Franson also scored.

With this win the Leafs sit in eighth only one point back of the Sens who remain in seventh.

One aspect of the game for the Leafs that seems to be improving as we go deeper into the final stretch is the Leafs penalty killing. They have not allowed a goal against in the last 14 games, again last night it was really big!

As every hockey fan will tell you, going into the playoffs you need special teams firing on all cylinders to make a dent. As it looks now the Leafs are going strong and if the stars can stay aligned then this could be the year at least the Leafs may see some post season action.

Next Leafs game is Feb 6th 2012 vs Edmonton.

Written: Warren 'Coach' Nye
http://ultimatehockeysource.com

Spud Tournament Down to Last Day

Round Robin play at the 37th Annual Spud AAA Hockey Tournament wrapped up today and playoffs began. In the Novice division Western will face off against the host Charlottetown Abbies in the final on Sunday. These two teams met in round robin play and Charlottetown came out on top 3-1. In Atom play Summerside will meet in semi-final #1 and semi-final #2 will see a cross harbour battle as Halifax and Dartmouth square off. Quarterfinal action in the Peewee division finished up on Saturday night and Dieppe and Summerside will meet in one semi-final while Western Warriors will play Western Valley in the other.

Bantam semi-finals are set to go Sunday as well. KV Rangers are in tough against defending champion Western Hurricanes and Chebucto/TASA will play the Scotsburn Crushers. Three of four semi-finalist in Midget AAA are from Prince Edward Island. Kings County Kings defeated the Pownal Red Devils 2-1 and will face off against the #1 seed Midisle Matrix, who needed double overtime to beat the Halifax Hawks 3-2. The Host Charlottetown Abbies pounded the Kenn Valley Spartans 7-1 and will meet the East Hants Penguins who gained a victory over their league rival Bedford Blues 1-0.

Action kicks off on Sunday at 8am with the Atom and Peewee semifinals followed by the finals at noon. Bantam semi's start at 8:30am and final at 1:30pm. As for the Midget semifinals, 9:45am is game time and 2:30pm is the scheduled time for the final. All championship games will be played at the UPEI campus.

- Mike Lord

The Penguins Have All-Star Performers Throughout The Organization

The Pittsburgh Penguins rolled into the All-Star break winners of 7-straight games and sending 3 of their own to Ottawa for the festivities.  Those 3 were NHL leading point getter Evgeni  Malkin, star defenseman Kris Letang, and the winger having the season of his career James Neal.  Malkin scored a highlight-real goal and added an assist while logging 15:34 of ice time for victorious Team Chara.  Letang and Neal both recorded an assist while on the losing end for team Alfredsson. 

In their first game after the All-Star break Tuesday January 31^st, the Pens looked to be in trouble.  They trailed Toronto 4-1 in the third period and the fans were about to give up on the game, however the team on the ice was not.  Steve Sullivan raced in alone and hammered home a slapper to cut the Leafs lead to 2, and then Joe Vitale sent home a rebound to make it 4-3 and give the pens life.  It didn’t look promising as the clock wound down to under ten seconds to go with Toronto still leading but an All-Star duo was about to change that.  James Neal fired a shot that hit Malkin up high and deflected into the net to tie the game at 4 with 6.6 seconds remaining.  Malkin, who has emerged as the Penguins hero time and time again scored the shootout game winner to complete the amazing comeback.  The next night the winning streak would end at 8 when the Leafs beat the Pens 1-0 in a game where Penguins net minder Brent Johnson played really solid.  The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins leading point getter, Colin McDonald earned a trip to the AHL All-Star game.  McDonald has 38 points in 41 games with the Baby Pens this year.  The fifth year pro and Providence College product was a 40+ goal scorer a year ago with the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons and has seen NHL action with the Oilers in the past and this season with the Penguins. In fact, he was recalled to the Penguins following the AHL All-Star game. 

The Penguins ECHL affiliate in Wheeling received a familiar face from their parent clubs January 25^th.  Last year’s team leading point getter and Penguins 2009 4^th round draft pick Nick Petersen is a Nailer again.  Before turning pro, Petersen played 3 seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. He spent 2 seasons with the Shawinigan Cataractes and finished his junior career with the Saint John Sea Dogs.  His highest point total came in his second season with Shawinigan when he recorded 90 points and was a +56.  He set his career high in goals his final season with the Sea Dogs when he scored 39 times.  Last season with Wheeling he scored 24 goals and 33 assists for 57 points and was a +17 before joining Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for 23 games, scoring 14 points (5 goals – 9 assists) and registering a +7 rating.  This season Petersen has 6 goals and 6 assist for 12 points and a +6 rating in 28 games with the Baby Pens.  In his first 6 games with Wheeling, Petersen has 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points and is a +5.  Since joining the Nailers Petersen’s game has looked really good as he works hard to get back to the next level.  

-           Andrew Grimm

                                   

Bruins and Blackhawks Run into a Wall - Even the best stumble at times

This NHL has been full of surprises this year.  We have seen the Sabres and Habs implode.  We have also watched the Ducks and Capitals go from excellence to mediocrity. Parity is the name of the game in 2011-2012.  Good teams can become bad overnight and the bottom feeders can look like Cup contenders when they want to.

That trend continued recently with the implosion (or semi-implosion) of the Bruins and Blackhawks. Both these teams are built to win and their recent loses have the league humming.

The Bruins fell to the last place Carolina Hurricanes this week and got booed off the ice. This loss to the Penguins has only made issues worse.  

http://boston.sbnation.com/boston-bruins/2012/2/4/2771372/bruins-vs-penguins-pittsburgh-holds-on-for-2-1-win/in/2534673

Expectations are high in Beantown.  The Bruins are expected to repeat and nothing else would be good enough for the fans of the Black and Gold. Between November and January, Boston looked unstoppable.

http://getrealhockey.blogspot.com/2011/12/bruins-should-be-new-spelling-for.html

Chicago's issues are more serious than Boston's.  Their loss to Edmonton this week was epic.  Sam Gagner became the talk of league as he scored 4 and assisted on 4 as the Oilers destroyed the Hawks.

http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/sports/nhl/blackhawks/chicago-blackhawks-destroyed-in-edmonton-oilers-reality-check-time-20120203

Chicago has some of the best forwards in the NHL and we should see a turnaround fast enough.

http://getrealhockey.blogspot.com/2011/12/chicago-blackhawks-have-best-forwards.html

We think that Bruins and Hawks fans have nothing serious to worry about.  Any continued weakness for either the Bruins or Hawks will initiate quick actions by the GMs of those teams as the trade deadline approaches.  Both these teams are winners because they have been well managed and good management does not sit on their laurels.

The Nashville Predators Deserve the Respect of the NHL

As a team from a nontraditional hockey market the success of the Nashville Predators has been widely overlooked over the course of the franchise's history.  The Predators have never quite received the publicity or respect that the Chicago's, and Detroit's have.  However, with the recent string of strong play going 8-2 in their last 10 games the national media, and other teams around the league have begun to take notice. 

Recently when the Predators took on the Philadelphia Flyers the media began to acknowledge the strong play of the Predators calling the match up a game between two of the leagues elite.  Not a bad titling if you think back to the times that the media ripped the Predators apart.  There were times when everything was said from they don’t deserve to be in the playoffs, they’ll never win a playoff series, their style of play will never be effective in the NHL.  Well now it is the Predators who are getting the last laugh.  Barry Trotz has been a finalist for the Jack Adams trophy and looks to be in the running again this year.  Their scoring by committee style of play has landed them in 5^th place in the conference at the moment and number three in the most recent NHL power rankings.

The Predators have always been and will continue to be overshadowed by the other teams in the Central Division.  However with realignment imminent even though the first attempt was squashed the Predators could be moved out of the Central division and into a weaker division allowing them to become an even more consistent league powerhouse.  So next time when you start to think about the elite teams in the NHL make sure you take time to consider what’s going on in Nashville because its something special this season.  And if you have not gotten a chance to watch the Predators play this year take some time and just watch a period or so if not a whole game.  You will be surprised by the boys from the south who still don’t get the respect they deserve. 

- Isaac Berky

Spud AAA Hockey Tournament (Update)

All participants have played their first 2 round robin games and there are some interesting story lines going into Saturday mornings play. In Novice play Kings County and North River will play to determine the winner of their division as they both have 2 and 0 records. Charlottetown Abbies are 2 and 0 as well and sit atop their division. In the Atom Division, Antigonish Bulldogs and Halifax Hawks are both undefeated and will meet at 9:30 to determine who wins that pool. Western and Acadia will play with the winner finishing 1st in their pool as well. Summerside and Dartmouth both need a point to wrap up their respective pools.

In the largest division of the tournament, Peewee, 5 divisions are going as planned as Western, Pownal, Dieppe, Western Valley and Summerside are all undefeated and are the front runners to win their pools. The last pool sees 4 teams with identical 1 and 1 records and tomorrow will be very interesting. Fredericton meets Kings County and Acadia plays the host Charlottetown Abbies.

The New Brunswick and Nova Scotia teams are dominating the Bantam division as all pools are led by teams from the mainland. Western Hurricanes have on both their games by 7 goal margins and face the 1-0-1 Midisle Matrix. New Brunswick's District 6 Flyer's square off with the Nova Jr X-Men to decide their pool. Chebucto/Tasa, Scotsburn and KV Rangers all have 2-0 records to lead their pools.

As usual the Midget AAA division had some unusual results. The Midisle Matrix won both their games by 7 goal spreads and face the East Hants Penguins on Saturday to determine their pool. East Hants also have 2-0 records. The Kenn Valley Spartans, one of the favorites, defeated the TASA Ducks 6-2 but fell to the Kings County Kings by a score of 2-1. Kings County started the year off slow but have played better as of late and sit at 1-0-1 after a 4-4 tie with Sherwood on Thursday night. The defending champion Charlottetown Abbies are 2-0 and face the 2-0 Halifax Hawks to determine the winner of the pool. Bedford Blues and the Cumberland Ramblers tied Friday morning and both need wins and the tie breaker to win their pool. Pownal Red Devils need 1 point to secure their pool.

The top 4 teams in the Novice Division advance to the semi-finals Saturday evening. The other 4 divisions see 8 teams playing in the medal round as the quarterfinals begin between 5 and 6 pm Saturday night. Semi Finals are played Sunday morning with the finals in the afternoon.

- Mike Lord

GetRealHockey's Mid-Season NHL Draft Rankings

After Team Orr defeated Team Cherry 2-1 on January 31st, it marked the halfway point to this Junes NHL entry draft. Back in September Nail Yakupov and Mikhail Grigorenko were the early candidates to go 1st overall. 5 Months later not much has changed.

GetReal Hockey's rankings have Nail Yakupov at the top even though he is nursing a left knee injury he suffered during the overtime period of the gold medal game at the World Juniors. The injury does not appear to be serious and Yakupov's 9 point performance at the tournament was slightly better than Grigorenko's 6 points in 6 game's. As a result we have Grigorenko second on the list.

Mathew Dumba from the Red Deer Rebels had a very impressive prospects game as he delivered several big hits and even got involved in a fight. The 5'11 defenceman may be a little on the small side but he proved he plays bigger than he is.

Rounding out the top 5 is Filip Forsberg, a right winger with Leksand in the Swedish Junior League and Everett's defenceman and captain Ryan Murray. Murray was as high as 3rd on most lists at the start of the season but a high ankle sprain and a rough WJC see him slide to the 5th spot.

Some other notables on the list are Alex Galchenyuk at #11. Galchenyuk could turn out to be the steal of the draft as he has not played a game this season due to a torn ACL suffered in the preseason. #17 Andrei Vasilevski from Russia is the first goaltender on the list. Vasilevski had a very impressive World Junior,s going until the 3rd period against Canada. First North American goaltender is Malcolm Subban, younger brother of Montreal's P.K. Subban. The Belleville Bull has an impressive 1.93 GAA and .938 save percentage in 19 games. Rounding out the first round is Tanner Pearson from the Barrie Colts. Pearson was passed over in last years draft, but a fast start to the year and a World Junior appearance for Canada put him on the radar.

Here is GetReal Hockey's top 30 draft prospects.

Rank Player Pos Team Size 1 Nail Yakupov LW Sarnia, OHL 5'10, 189 2 Mikhail Grigorenko RW Quebec, QMJHL 6'3, 200 3 Mathew Dumba D Red Deer, WHL 5'11, 175 4 Filip Forsberg RW Leksand, Swe-Jr  6'2, 181 5 Ryan Murray D Everett, WHL 6'0, 201 6 Jacob Trouba D USNTDP 6'2, 196 7 Morgan Rielly D Moose Jaw, WHL 5'11, 190 8 Brendan Gaunce C Belleville, OHL 6'2, 215 9 Olli Maatta D London, OHL 6'1, 202 10 Griffin Reinhart D Edmonton, WHL 6'3, 202 11 Alex Galchenyuk C Sarnia, OHL 6'1, 197 12 Sebastien Collberg RW Frolunda, Swe-Jr 5'11, 176 13 Pontus Aberg LW Djurgarden, Swe 5'11, 194 14 Matt Finn D Guelph, OHL 6'0, 195 15 Radek Faksa C Kitchener, OHL 6'3, 202 16 Derrick Pouliot D Portland, WHL 5'11, 181 17 Andrei Vasilevski G Ufa, Russia-Jr 6'3, 200 18 Cody Ceci D Ottawa, OHL 6'2, 208 19 Tomas Hertl C Slavia, Czech 6'2, 198 20 Zemgus Girgensons C Dubuque, USHL 6'1, 197 21 Malcolm Subban G Bellevill, OHL 6'1, 189 22 Jarrod Maidens LW Owen Sound, OHL 6'1, 175 23 Andreas Athanasiou C London, OHL 6'0, 179 24 Slater Koekkoek D Peterborough, OHL 6'2, 183 25 Stefan Matteau C USNTDP 6'1, 210 26 Oscar Dansk G Brynas, Swe-Jr 6'2, 186 27 Hampus Lindholm D Rogle, Swe-Jr 6'2, 196 28 Phillip Di Giuseppe LW Michigan, CCHA 5'11, 176 29 Martin Frk RW Halifax, QMJHL 6'0, 204 30 Tanner Pearson LW Barrie, OHL 6'0, 198
- Mike Lord