Posts filed under 'NHL Hockey'
After sealing the Anaheim Ducks’ fate on Monday night with a 6-3 victory, the Nashville Predators made team history by qualifying for the franchise’s first Stanley Cup Final, which is set to begin May 29.
The recipe for success in the playoffs has been two-fold for the Predators: a balanced offensive attack and all-world goaltending. The Predators have seven players on their roster with double-digit points, which leads all NHL clubs.
Their top line of Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg and Viktor Arvidsson has been an offensive powerhouse (38 points collectively), while their top four defensemen have contributed an astounding 39 points as a group.
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To understand the other half of Nashville’s success, look no further than their goaltender, Pekka Rinne. The Fin leads all playoff goaltenders in goals against average (1.70), save percentage (.941), wins (12), and is tied for the lead in shutouts (2).
There is no question that Rinne has been the league’s most valuable player thus far in the 2016-17 playoffs, and if he continues that pace, fans can expect not only a Stanley Cup, but also a Conn Smythe Trophy to be paraded down the streets of Nashville.
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May 24th, 2017
There’s one more game left in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It’s a “Game 7” decider as the Nashville Predators will visit the Anaheim Ducks Wednesday night (10 PM ET, NBCSN) in their Western Conference quarterfinal; Nashville won Game 6 on Monday with a 3-1 victory, as Pekka Rinne made 26 of 27 saves for the Preds.
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The Ducks (46-25-11 during the regular season) were expected to make short work of Nashville (41-27-14) after winning their fourth straight Pacific Division title, all under head coach Bruce Boudreau. Anaheim was available at +800 on the Stanley Cup futures market going into the playoffs, compared to +2500 for the Predators. But Nashville has tied this series despite getting outscored 17-12.
The Preds might have already eliminated Anaheim had forward Craig Smith (21 goals, 37 points) not gotten injured early in Game 3, after Nashville won the first two games at the Honda Center. Smith returned Monday and played right wing on the second line with Calle Jarnkrok (16 goals, 30 points) on the left and Mike Ribeiro (seven goals, 50 points) in the middle; Smith also took his usual turn on the power play, logging 14:23 of total ice time.
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April 26th, 2016
The NHL All-Star Player Fantasy Draft will be held for the first time in NHL league history on Friday, January 28th 2011 in anticipation of the All-Star Game in Raleigh, Carolina two days later.
The fantasy draft is a new format for the NHL and one that has hockey fans excited about an All-Star game that has been growing stale for quite some time. The premise is simple and goes back to the schoolyard or backyard rink when teams were decided by two captains picking the players. The best player goes first, as captains pick players alternately.
Bodog have put together odds and betting lines on which player will be the first one taken and, also, who will be the last one drafted. Now, it is worth noting that the last selection must be a forward since all goalies and all defencemen have to be chosen before Round 15 of the draft.
The two team captains are Eric Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes and Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings, so they’re out of the running for both categories. In addition, two alternate captains for each team will be named later and will assist the captains in the selection process.
So let’s get to which player is likely to go first. There are two favourites, Vancouver’s Henrik Sedin, the reigning MVP of the league, and Washington’s Alex Ovechkin, a fairly decent player himself. Both Sedin and Ovechkin are getting 4/1 odds to be selected first overall. After that it’s Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby at 5/1, followed by the Lightning’s star sniper, Steven Stamkos, at 7/1.
It will be interesting to see how the captains play this.
You have to think that if Lidstrom gets the first pick, which will be determined by a coin toss, that he might be tempted to look at his fellow Swedish countryman Sedin.
And if patriotism plays any part, Staal, a Canadian, might be pressured into picking Crosby first. Of course, Sid the Kid is widely considered the best player in the world, so it’s not like anyone would accuse Staal of favouritism.
As for Ovechkin, the Capitals’ sniper is suffering through a rather disappointing season to date. One of the most dangerous goal-scorers in the game today, the Russian superstar has failed to match the torrid pace of his previous campaigns.
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January 25th, 2011
Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers
In the world of NHL betting odds the Flyers are favored in this home game to beat the Canadiens. The slow development of goaltender Carey Price has been a constant source of inconsistency for the Canadiens. Instead of being the number one goalie, he has been sharing time with Jaroslav Havlak. The two teams are battling for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and both teams come into this game with winning records in their last 10 games. The Flyers offer a more consistent and punishing scoring attack with power forwards such as Jeff Carter. At this point the Flyers may be more than the Canadiens can handle.
Pick: Flyers 4-2
New York Rangers @ Pittsburgh Penguins
Those who bet on sports know that for years the Rangers have tried to tip the winning scales in their direction by investing in what appeared to be top-flight talent. Chris Drury and Scott Gomez were brought in to add some toughness to the scoring attack of the Rangers. But those who give sports betting tips weren’t falling for it, and when Jaromir Jagr left to go play hockey back in his home country the Rangers fell apart. Scott Gomez left the team at the end of last season, and now the Rangers are a shell of what they used to be. Even though the Rangers are favored in this game, they don’t have the fire power to hang with the Stanley Cup champs.
Pick: Penguins 3-1
Toronto Maple Leafs @ St. Louis Blues
Oh what a difference a trade can make. When the Leafs acquired goaltender JS Giguere and hard-nosed defenseman Dion Phaneuf people knew the Leafs would be a better team, but few expected the effects of the trade to wear off. But for some reason, even though the Leafs have only won 2 of their last 10 games, they continued to be favored in these away games since the trade. The Blues have a gem in goaltender Chris Mason and even though Mason is not posting great numbers, when set in the context of how awful the Blues are it is amazing that Mason has a winning record. Keith Tkachuck is about the only person on the Blues roster capable of putting the puck in the net on a consistent basis. But even with all of that going against them, the Blues are still a better team than the new and improved Maple Leafs.
Pick: Blues 4-1
Coyotes @ Colorado Avalanche
This will easily be the best game of the night. The Avalanche and the Coyotes both play a hard-nosed and fast paced brand of hockey that is fun to watch. The visiting Coyotes are favored, but the Colorado Avalanche are a much-improved bunch compared to last year. Colorado goaltending standout Craig Anderson has put the Avalanche in a position to challenge for the Northwest division lead. The Coyotes have the misfortune of being stuck behind the runaway train known as the San Jose Sharks, but the Coyotes have put up enough points to lead in 3 of the 6 divisions in the league. Both teams are solid defensively, they both have great goaltending and they both have rising stars and veterans on offense that know how to play the game. This game will come down to a shoot out.
Pick: Avalanche 3-2 (shootout)
February 13th, 2010