THE CANUCKS TRAIN KEEPS ROLLING ALONG - VANCOVER LOOKING LIKE CHAMPS !!!

As predicted Roberto Luongo keeps playing tight like a drum and the Canucks are taking the Predators to school.  The Sedin brothers are non-existent tonight but guys like Kesler and Higgins are giving Nashville fits.  The "Blackhawks" scare has brought this Canucks team together and now anything seems possible.  Alain Vigneault has been forced to go with character  over flash and the Canucks are playing like champs.  The Predators are the epitome of team play and they still have not been able to break the spell from this team of destiny.

Nashville has been trying everything to shake up the formula with no success.  Tootoo and "Mr.Underwood" are doing what they can but the deck seems stacked against the Predators.   Legwand and Sullivan are also having zero luck against the Canucks and the Vancouver freight train shows no sign of slowing down.  If the defence or goaltending cracks for the Preds; this could become ugly.  Luongo has held opponents scoreless for five periods now and he gets stronger minute by minute.   This game is steady and boring but hell if Vancouver comes out on top, who cares !!!  This is going to be short and sweet business if Nashville goes home down 2-0. Nashville is not Chicago

THE BRUINS BULLDOZER KEEPS ROLLING ALONG AND CRUSHES THE FLYERS

The Black and Gold tidal wave which swept aside the Canadiens slammed into the Flyers in the first game of their post season series.  The Bees are on fire and the Flyers were just thumped 7-3.  Boston's attack made the Flyers look stupid.  The Flyer goalie merry go round was spinning on high when Brian Boucher was blown apart and his replacement could no better.  Horton, Campbell and Marchand are leading a team that is making a credible case for a run to the end.  It will be interesting to see if Philadelphia can wake up.  Today they looked tired.  Briere and the boys could be hitting the gold links if they don't wake up.  The Bruins can match the Flyers on size and firepower.  This could be ugly if there isn't a 360% turn by Philly. 

The Canucks and Preds should put on a good show for those of you who are going to tune in tonight.  Both these teams are very well balanced and a blow out is unlikely.  Luongo has tightened up his game and the Canucks are going to be tough to beat.  The crew from out West is carrying the hopes of a nation on their shoulders.  These guys have stared elimination in the face (vs the Blackhawks) which makes them game ready for just about anything the Predators can dish out.  Nashville is going to need some big plays tonight to shake up their opponent.  I don't think guys like Kessler, Higgins and Lapierre are going to let that happen.   If the Sedins come to life, it could make life very hard for Barry Trotz's men.  The Canucks look like a team of destiny and destiny should turn into a hand grenade for Nashville.

Philly is Ready To Ride !!!!

The 2010 Philadelphia Flyers came within two wins of hoisting the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1975. They were beaten by a strong, talented Chicago Blackhawks team led by the trio of Patrick Sharp, Patrick Kane, and Jonathan Toews. Flyers faithful all over the country are hoping for those last two wins this season. However, doubts have risen amongst Flyers fans. Will another year of goalie shenanigans, the trade of Simon Gagne, and the limited playing time of Chris Pronger eventually end the team’s playoff steak, or will they be drinking champagne out of the Cup come June?

On Tuesday the Flyers finished off the Buffalo Sabres with a dominant, offensively strong win. There were times throughout game 7 when the Flyers looked like a team on a one way street to the Stanley Cup Finals. With the Bruins finishing off the Canadians, we will see a rematch of last year’s unforgettable Eastern Conference semi-finals. There are big differences between the Flyers and Bruins this season. The Flyers, a balanced, deep team focuses on aggressive fore-checking and solid team defense. However, consistency in net could be a problem for the Broad Street Bullies. The Bruins on the other hand have a world class goaltender in Tim Thomas, but not much more than that. Chara is an overrated, soft defenseman, who supposedly “leads” the team. Offensively, they’re about as boring as a weekend trip to the grocery store. In my opinion the Bruins are soft, untalented and HIGHLY overrated. Watch for Philly to ride their momentum through Boston, and into the Eastern Conference finals. Flyers win the series in five.

From there the Flyers would face the winner of the Washington/Tampa Bay series. Both of these teams would test the Flyers. Washington is just as deep as the Flyers, however they also have questions about their netminder. The other possible matchup in the Eastern Conference finals is Tampa Bay, one of the most underrated teams in the playoffs. They have an amazing power play unit, and an experienced goalie in Dwayne Roloson.  Defensively the Bolts are just too undermanned; Capitals win the series in 6.

The Flyers have to focus on playing physically, while staying out of the penalty box. If they can do this and their power play continues to produce like it did against Buffalo, the Flyers will be a tough matchup for any team remaining. However, Brian Boucher will have to be consistently at the top of his game for Philadelphia to make a run for the cup. Anything short of a strong performance from “Boush” and the Flyers will fall short. There are eight teams remaining, can the Orange and White rise again this year and fight through the Eastern Conference into June? Beginning Saturday at 3:00pm Eastern Time we’ll begin to get a sense of just how far they will go. Get up Philly!

- Matt Gamelin

FANTASY PLAYOFFS – ROUND 2

Some playoff hockey pools allow for a redraft in round 2. Once again, you must keep in mind how many games you think each team will play and draft accordingly. The only series that will not go very long with be Washington and Tampa Bay. Past that, each series will go 6 or 7 games.  Here are my suggestions:

TOP 25 FORWARDS

       1)Danny Briere - Phi

       2)Claude Giroux - Phi

       3)Pavel Datsyuk - Det

       4)Henrik Zetterberg - Det

       5)Daniel Sedin - Van

       6)Henrik Sedin - Van

       7)Alex Ovechkin - Was

       8)Ryan Kesler - Van

      9)Martin St.Louis - TB

     10) Johan Franzen - Det

     11) Patrick Marleau - SJ

     12) Joe Thornton - SJ

     13)  Steve Stamkos - TB

     14) Mike Richards – Phi

     15) Patrice Bergeron – Bos

     16) Alex Burrows – Van

     17) Dany Heatley- SJ

     18) Vincent Lecavalier – TB

     19) Logan Couture – SJ

     20) Ville Leino – Phi

     21) Alex Semin – Was

     22) Ryan Clowe – SJ

     23) Tomas Holmstrom - Det

     24) Mike Fisher – Nas

     25) James Van Riemsdyk - Phi

TOP 10 DEFENSEMEN

           1)Niklas Lidstrom - Det
           2)Shea Weber – Nas
           3)Mike Green – Was
           4)Dan Boyle – SJ
           5)Christian Ehrhoff – Van

6)Zdeno Chara – Bos

7)Brian Rafalski – Det

8)Chris Pronger – Phi

9)Alex Edler – Van

10) Andrei Meszaros – Phi

GOALIES

            1)Mikael Neuvirth – Was
            2)Jimmy Howard – Det
            3)Roberto Luongo – Van
            4)Tim Thomas – Bos
            5)Pekka Rinne – Nas
            6)Dwayne Roloson – TB
            7)Antti Niemi – SJ
            8)Brian Boucher – Phi

SLEEPERS – The playoffs have a way of bringing out the best in some players. Here is a list of players that may surprise you!

1)James Van Riemsdyk – Phi

2)Marcus Johansson - Was

3)Steve Downie - TB

4)Nathan Horton - Bos

5)Jordin Tootoo – Nas

6)Kris Versteeg - Phi

7)Chris Kelly – Bos

8)Valteri Filppula – Det

9)Darren Helm – Det

10) Rich Peverley - Bos

Send your questions or comments to me at twitter.com@chyz1

CANUCKS DELIVER BIG - THE BEAST IS ON THE LOOSE

Last night was a night of deliverance for Roberto Luongo.  Everyone and his uncle were doubting his ability to come through in the big game and he finally put all the naysayers down by leading his team to a 2-1 victory, in overtime.  Cinderella abandoned the BlackHawks and the boys from ChiTown will now be hitting the gulf links.  Ryan Kesler was a thorn in Chicago's side all night and we think he could be a big factor in the next series encounter for the Canucks.  Vancouver went from a team of destiny to chokers to a team of destiny in just two weeks.  This kind of reversal is a solid sign of things to come.  The future looks bright for Canucks fans and a run to the finish line for Vancouver seems to be a definite possibility.

Another big game for Canadians last night was the showdown in Montreal between the Habs and Bruins.  Just like the Canucks, the Habs gave up a huge series lead to the Bruins and found themselves in a must win last night.  Carey Price has been nothing but amazing and he has kept the Canadiens in the series.  Last night, the Habs took it 2-1 and set the stage for a final game in Boston tonight.  This one is a toss up.   The Bruins have been unable to score on the power play during this series.  This could be the decisive point for game 7. Which ever way it turns out, the game will be one to watch.  This year's Cup race has been a real treat for hockey nuts and tonight's game in Boston won't disappoint.         

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