Game Preview NYR at WPG: Wolski returns

Tonight, the Rangers will visit Winnipeg for the first time since NHL '96 was in stores. Sega Genesis was hot along with Super Nintendo. There were no PS3's, Ipods, Iphones or Ipads.

Fifteen years later, the rebirth of the Winnipeg Jets has been evident with every seat sold filled with tremendous support. When they defeated the Pens for their first home win last week, it was 15 years in the making. Fans went wild as the final minute wound down. This is the kind of atmosphere the Blueshirts must contend with tonight in their final road game before arriving for Thursday's home opener at the World's Most Renovated Arena.

Known as the former Thrashers, who have made a living tormenting us, Winterpeg hosts the first of four meetings. Last year, they took three of four including a damaging win at MSG that nearly ended our season. Indeed, players like Andrew Ladd, Evander Kane, Dustin Byfuglien, Tobias Enstrom, Alex Burmistrov and Nik Antropov gave us fits. Even Jim Slater did. Don't forget Ondrej Pavelec, who can make the highlight reel save look routine. If only he got more help. Winnipeg plays an exciting style based around their speed and skill. They can really come at you in waves. Given our D issues, this should be a stiff test. Can they prevent the new Jets from dominating down low?

Much depends on the invisible Draft Line of Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov and Ryan Callahan, who really need to get their act together. I already got on Cally and Dubi, who are two of our leaders that haven't been pulling their weight. I realize they have hefty raises. But there are no excuses. Anisimov hasn't been bad but you'd never know it by his statline of just two assists. He hasn't taken foolish penalties and filled in admirably on the PK, which btw needs our top forward American duo out instead of in the box watching teams capitalize. After how John Tortorella erupted in Edmonton, everyone must respond. The slow starts are disturbing. We can't be stuck on 8-9 shots with nearly 40 minutes played.

Henrik Lundqvist cramped up the other night and was replaced by Martin Biron, who at least saw his first action since preseason. I'd hardly call three saves much to go by. But it's a virtual lock that our capable backup will get the call later. At times last year, the team played better in front of him than King Henrik. I'm hoping for a similar game.

I know Tort shook up the lines the other night. With Wojtek Wolski finally returning from a groin injury that caused him to miss the opening six, no more Erik Christensen. Wolski's best assets are his size and forecheck ability. Something that's been lacking. Figure Tort to slot him in on the fourth line with Kris Newbury and Mike Rupp. If Christy plays over Newbury, I might toss an object at the wall. Newbury is a much better fit for that line. EC doesn't fit anymore. He's too perimeter oriented and inconsistent. It's hard to fathom that this waste is still on the roster while Sean Avery is banished to Hartford and Mats Zuccarello the same.

I'd like the coach to keep Derek Stepan with Brad Richards and Marian Gaborik. With Brendan Bell struggling in his Ranger debut, figure Jeff Woywitka to be back in.

Projected Lines:

Stepan-Richards-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Anisimov-Callahan
Fedotenko-Boyle-Prust
Wolski-Newbury-Rupp

McDonagh-Girardi
Del Zotto-Erixon
Eminger-Woywitka

Biron
Lundqvist

Byfuglien makes it unlucky 13 for Islanders

They played better but it still wasn't enough. Dustin Byfuglien's big blast at 1:30 of overtime proved the difference in the Thrashers' 2-1 win, extending the Islander losing streak to an unlucky 13. At least they earned a point. Only the second time during their worst stretch of hockey since a 14-game winless slide 20 years ago (2/13-3/15, 1990).

“We had several chances to win,” club leader Matt Moulson said after calling out some teammates during Saturday's 4-1 home loss. “We have to score goals. … You can’t take comfort in getting just one point.”

The team's offensive woes have seen them score just 12 times over the last 11 games. On a night Rick DiPietro returned to the net for the first time in 18 days and was surprisingly sharp, only Michael Grabner lit the lamp late in the second, deflecting home a Frans Nielsen shot for a 1-0 lead with a period left. But they couldn't hold it with one-time Ranger Nik Antropov blasting one past DiPietro on the power play 2:25 into the third.

DiPietro, who finished with 33 saves for his most in two years, came up large with under seven minutes left in regulation when he stoned Jim Slater on a breakaway, flexing his right pad to keep it tied. Unfortunately, a breakdown during OT allowed Byfuglien to get loose in the slot and bury the winner. On the play, John Tavares fell down at the blueline which gave Big Buff plenty of room to use his wheels to skate in and step into a perfect laser high blocker that sent Atlanta fans home happy.

“I’m not sure what happened,” DiPietro said. “He made a nice shot. ... It’s unacceptable for us. We need to win games. There are no excuses. … It’s frustrating, because we know what we’re capable of doing.”

“He [DiPietro] was our best player,” praised interim coach Jack Capuano who slipped to 0-3 since relieving Scott Gordon. “He was outstanding. He was what I thought he was going to be.”

The Islanders have been outscored a preposterous 48-18 during the futile stretch which interrupted a 4-1-2 start. Under Capuano, the offensive woes have continued with the team only able to muster four goals while giving up 10. At some point, it has to stop. Their effort was much better yesterday. Unfortunately, they ran into a hot goalie in Ondrej Pavelec who's allowed just three in three straight starts. His best save was a highlight reel one on P.A. Parenteau with under five minutes to go in the third. The Isles were on a power play and a Mark Eaton shot rebounded right to Parenteau, who quickly fired for what looked like a sure goal only to see a sprawling Pavelec somehow reach with his glove to snatch it away. The former Ranger could only look skyward in disbelief. The Atlanta goalie made 28 saves in posting a second consecutive win.

DP expressed even more to MSG's Rob Carlin via Twitter on how difficult it's been on the team:

“This eats at us. This is keeping guys up at night and making us sick to our stomachs."

The Islanders also lost vet defenseman Mike Mottau to an eye injury. The ex-Devil was struck by a puck in the right eye and taken off on a stretcher to an Atlanta hospital where he remained before returning home this afternoon. Hopefully, he'll be alright.

"First off, you pray that (Mottau) is alright and that it's nothing career-threatening or anything like that," concerned teammate Mark Eaton told Newsday. "Hopefully we'll get some idea pretty soon that he's alright."

If he does miss time as expected, he'd become the fifth Islander regular on the blueline to sit out joining top D Mark Streit, Milan Jurcina, Jack Hillen and Andrew MacDonald. It's hard to compete when you are injury-plagued. This happened last year too. Makes ya wonder if there's a curse.

In the mean time, the Islanders get two days off before hosting the improved Blue Jackets on Thanksgiving Eve followed by the equally struggling Devils on Black Friday for an early 1 PM start. Hopefully, they'll finally score enough to get the monkey off their back.

Uneven Rangers Thrashed

There are going to be nights like this. You just hope they don't come at the expense of players as was potentially the case for an already shorthanded Ranger club, who were thrashed literally and figuratively by a more determined Atlanta bunch who after nearly blowing a 5-2 third period lead, held off the Broadway hosts 6-4.

The loss halted a three-game win streak. What John Tortorella's guys did so well during it is what they didn't Tuesday. In spite of a strong start in which alternate captain Ryan Callahan scored his second in two in the opening minute, the Blueshirts were often sluggish by Craig Ramsay's more physical squad that won battles all night. It all added up to a deserved defeat, which had Tort fuming afterwards. If this team wants to be taken seriously, they can't take nights off. In this case, at least two periods and that maybe generous. Already without Marian Gaborik, Chris Drury and Vinny Prospal, they now could be facing life minus second-year pivot Artem Anisimov, who left the contest with an ankle injury. Early word is it's not too promising. They also could be without Michal Rozsival, who hyperextended his knee. He's a gamer. So, if he misses any time, then you know it's bad.

Up one, the Rangers didn't finish the first period well. After a shaky start, the Thrashers began to dictate with their speed and forecheck, which was an issue. Especially grinders like Chris Thorburn and Ben Eager, who gave our D fits. They nearly combined to set up one-time Ranger Nik Antropov but surprise starter Martin Biron snuffed it out. Eventually, Atlanta's hard work paid off with a superb second which saw Rangers caught flatfooted while doing too much stick checking. Never was this more apparent than on Bryan Little's tying marker in which he took an Andrew Ladd pass in his end and then went coast to coast by Sean Avery and undressed both Marc Staal and Biron for a highlight reel goal, going to the backhand. Amazingly, it was his first. Why does that always seem to happen to us? Adding insult to injury, pest Eric Boulton scored later.

The Thrashers continued to outplay the Rangers, who couldn't be bothered to take the man. This time, a turnover led to a four-man rush with a streaking Evander Kane intercepting a pass from a teammate before turning Anisimov inside out and then wiring his sixth off the right post for Atlanta's first lead. It was at that point that Tortorella had seen enough, calling timeout and then chewing out the bench. At least they responded thanks to Sean Avery, who again had a standout performance. Boy, has he ever been a different player. This time, he outhustled Brent Sopel behind the net. A pinching Dan Girardi kept the play alive and then Avery did the rest, stuffing one home past Chris Mason for his first of the season.

However, they couldn't sustain thanks to a horrible pinch by Staal who was just brutal. Not to kill what's supposed to be our No.1 defenseman. But he has been less than adequate so far. There have been too many instances where our "shutdown guy" has gotten beaten. He is earning close to $4 million because Glen Sather overpaid Girardi, who at least is holding up his end of the bargain. This is Staal's fourth year. It's time for him to start earning that raise. Back to the pinch from Hell. Let's just say it led directly to another first goal. This time, it was ex-Devil Niklas Bergfors who picked high glove on Biron to give Atlanta the lead for good. Our backup was honest, admitting that he could've done more. In particular, Dustin Byfuglien's unscreened power play blast from the right circle which followed Boulton's early tally 49 seconds into the third was the back breaker. His glove was again victimized.

Suddenly up by three, the Thrashers couldn't handle prosperity. With Anisimov out, vet Todd White stepped up and scored his first in just his second game. Off a turnover which both Callahan and Brandon Dubinsky forced, White put home a rebound cutting it to 5-3. Before you knew it, as Dad and I were watching his Giants end Cliff Lee's night, it was suddenly a one-goal game thanks to do everything forward Brian Boyle. You really have to admire what he's done thus far. He came into camp in better shape, having improved his skating and finishing checks. Something, we rarely saw last year. He no longer is a waste. Also elevated with rookie Derek Stepan struggling again at MSG, Boyle combined with Avery and revelation Ruslan Fedotenko to make things interesting. Off some grunt work by his linemates, Boyle cleaned up in front for his third, giving the home club two goals in 131 seconds, pulling within one.

Unfortunately, that was as close as they got with Atlanta doing just enough to hold off the comeback. In particular, Byfuglien was a beast not only notching the winner and firing rockets but from a physical standpoint, he broke up plays and did a stellar job taking our smurfs off the puck. That kind of attention to detail from one of four former Cup champion Hawks resulted in the bad guys coming out of Manhattan with two points. Big Buff's familiar teammate Ladd sealed it with an empty netter.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Sean Avery, NYR (1st of season, assist in 15:43)
2nd Star-Alex Burmistrov, Atl (1st career NHL point-assisted on Kane's 6th, penalty drawn in 17:18)
1st Star-Dustin Byfuglien, Atl (PP GW w/14:59 left, game high 6 SOG, +1 in 23:24)

Let the fun begin

Now that we're finally back and better than ever with our new more reader friendly design, already the fun has just begun. We're 48 hours away from Friday night's much anticipated first round. What will Edmonton do? Is it Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin or do they trade with Florida down for No.'s 3 and 15 and select Cam Fowler and possibly sliding Russian Vladimir Tarashenko. Whatever they decide, it'll be under the leadership of familiar face Tom Renney, who replaces Pat Quinn behind the bench this Fall. The former Ranger coach will get to work with more talent with Calder hopeful Jordan Eberle on the way and possibly Hall or Seguin, etc which should significantly improve the Oilers.

While the draft gets going in two nights, tonight is the NHL Awards out in Vegas a second consecutive year. Can Ovie three-peat or will Henrik Sedin steal Alex and Sid's thunder? With that in mind, here's a quick glance at my picks:

Hart-H. Sedin
Pearson-Crosby
Norris-Keith
Vezina-Bryzgalov
Calder-Howard
Selke-Datsyuk
Byng-Datsyuk
Adams-Tippett
Masterton-Ortmeyer
Leadership-Miller
Foundation-Brown

My heart says Jed for Comeback Player but head says Kurt Foster. I just can't go against Ort. I went with Bryz over Miller for the Vezina due to his team. Keith over Doughty though I wouldn't be shocked if the super LA soph takes it. For me, Sedin was the best player and stepped it up when twin bro Daniel was out. Giving it to Crosby or Ovechkin is too easy. Henrik's most deserving. I happen to love all three Selke candidates. Huge fan of both Kes and J. Staal. But Datsyuk's remarkable in every facet. So, he probably wins again. Best of luck to all.

Now, for some moves. I'll just post and make a quick comment.

1.Flyers acquire rights to D Dan Hamhuis + '11 conditional seventh from Preds for rights to D Ryan Parent.

Genius move by Holmgren if they get Hamhuis signed. This was rumored back at the deadline. Imagine a Flyer front four of Pronger, Timonen, Hamhuis and Carle with Coburn on the third pair? Ugh. As for Nash, it's obvious they're dumping salary. Better hope Parent turns it around back in Music City.

2.Devils reacquire C Jason Arnott from Preds for F Matt Halischuk + '11 second rounder.

As Hasan already noted, remember when Lou had the infamous M&M reunion post-lockout? Only difference is '00 Cup hero Arnott's still got something left and fills a void. Arnott and Elias reunited. When's Sykora coming back? Couldn't resist. The pluses are nice but what does it mean for Kovalchuk and Martin? Arnott makes $4.5 M. For Nash, guess they're content to revamp with the most underappreciated coach in the biz. The Czar!

3.Panthers acquire D Dennis Wideman, Bruins' No.1 (15th) + '11 3rd for F Nathan Horton and F Greg Campbell.

On one hand, you ask what are the Panthers doing? They already lack offense. Though adding Wideman ain't a bad pickup for a solid blueline even if he's an adventure. However, Horton makes $4 M and has not come close to fulfilling his power forward potential. Maybe a change of scenery playing with Savard and Krejci helps. Campbell is a solid citizen who provides energy. For Florida, it's a win if they can parlay their 3 and the 15 into either Hall or Seguin.

4.Thrashers acquire F Dustin Byfuglien, F Ben Eager, D Brent Sopel and F Akim Aliu (try saying that 10 times in a row) from Blackhawks for F Marty Reasoner, F Jeremy Morin and the rights to NJD '10 No.'s 1 (24th) & 2 (54th).

Credit everyone's favorite Eklund for nailing this trade. Seri---ous---ly. Kudos to Bob McKenzie giving props. Well, we all knew the Hawks had to dump salary, breaking up their newly minted Stanley Cup roster. It sucks. But such is cap life even with it going to a reported $59.4 M. There was no way they could keep everyone. I guess when push came to shove, they just decided to maximize Big Buff's value after a Conn Smythe-esque performance. No doubt Chicago will miss him. But they saved nearly $4 million even if it had to break Sopel's heart. It was not only his day with the Cup but also his first day on Twitter. Ouch. Give the vet credit for this very strong perspective on today's events. Eager was also a solid citizen but the Hawks are plenty tough. Great deal for Atlanta even if it meant moving the picks they got from the Devs for Kovalchuk. Now, they traded him and Salmella, Morin for Bergfors, Big Buff, Patrice Cormier, Reasoner and Sopel. Wacky. The deal works for both sides with Chi-town doing well getting good value back in the picks and a decent prospect drafted last year. It should be a fun deal to track.

In other news, the Sharks have decided Evgeni Nabokov is done in San Jose. No real surprise here. I expect him to land in D.C. where they'll soon be renamed the Washington Russians. Who replaces Nabby? Turco or Mason? German backup Thomas Greiss performed respectably but he's not ready to carry the load. There also was a Tim Thomas rumor but eh. Why would they do that? He couldn't deliver in Beantown and is getting up there. Not to mention his $5 M tag. I'd pass.

Happy trails to Scott Niedermayer, who finally called it a career at a nice gathering at Honda Center yesterday. Kudos to NHL Network for picking up the coverage. The classy defenseman who won three Cups with the Devils and then captained the Ducks teaming alongside little bro Rob for a fourth Cup thanked everyone from coaches, teammates to fans. What an outstanding career the guy the Devils turned Tom Kurvers into back in 1991 had. Among the highlights were winning Olympic gold for Canada twice including close to home in Vancouver at this year's Olympics. Plus a Norris on his way out of the Garden State. What a tremendous player, who also handled himself with class on and off the ice. Just the latest player we lose from our era growing up. Sure is sad. Nieds will be missed.

One other note to pass. The Habs re-signed C Tomas Plekanec to a six-year $30 M contract. The terms are about right for their do everything player. But the length is a bit steep. Still, love the loyalty and good on Les Habitants keeping him.

A big boo to Toronto for not including Pat Burns or taking either Doug Gilmour or Eric Lindros over Dino Ciccarelli for this year's HHOF class which also includes very deserving Cammi Granato, Angela James and Jim Devellano plus Darryl "Doc" Seaman. It is utterly ridiculous that Burns isn't in. What are they waiting for? The poor man has cancer and dying. As for Ciccarelli, while I respect the production (608 goals, 1,200 points), he was never really a dominant player. A superb finisher but he couldn't take over games a la Gilmour or The Big E, who's being unfairly treated for how his career ended. Taking it one step further, why isn't Pavel Bure considered? At the end of the day, it is what it is. Hopefully, some great players will eventually get recognized.

The NHL also released the 2010-11 schedule. And already, it didn't take me long to predict the Rangers' first loss when they open the season at our Buffalo contingent. Can you say midseason form or what?!?!?!?!?!

It's nice to be back!

Better Late Than Never

It's hard to believe we finally return and a wild 2009-10 has commenced with the Chicago Blackhawks ending a long drought- thanks to Patrick Kane's sudden death sneaker thru Michael Leighton's wickets which only he knew was in, stunning Philadelphia, Doc Emrick and NBC to deliver the Original Six franchise's first Cup since 1961.

Kudos to Conn Smythe captain Jonathan Toews and dynamic running mate Kane, who helped lead one of the league's most riveting young teams to the sport's pinnacle. Amazing how quickly Joel Queenville's club did it too, going from last Spring's rise to the Conference Final all the way to champions in two postseasons. Awesome stuff from arguably the most talented, rich roster in the game. Duncan Keith was a beast all year teaming with overlooked partner Brent Seabrook to form the best tandem. The third time was the charm for Marian Hossa, who overcame the fluky Scott Hartnell equalizer off his skate after Queeneville foolishly sat back, forcing dramatics. Good for Hossa, who this time was much more effective these playoffs. Though he only lit the lamp three times, the star was superb in all facets, hustling all over the ice and setting example.

While Hossa redeemed himself, what could be said about Dave Bolland and Dustin Byfuglien? Both were money during the magical run, scoring and setting up big goals as well as throwing their weight around. You could easily make the argument that Bolland- not Toews- was Chi-town's best player and deserved playoff MVP. But they went with the overall playoff leading scorer who certainly dominated Vancouver and San Jose as these Blackhawks went through a tough trio of Nashville, Vancity and San Jose. Remarkably, the division rival Preds pushed them the most, coming very close to leading 3-2 before the Hawks rallied to win it.

Enough can't be said about Patrick Sharp, who notched timely goals during the run, including some daggers against his former team for Lord Stanley. The Flyers didn't exactly come out on top in that trade. Hell. Even former pest Ben Eager got them early in the series, helping the Windy City go up two-nil before Peter Laviolette's pesky bunch got back in it. If ever a team deserved a better fate, it was this tough Flyer bunch who never heard the words 'give up.' No matter what obstacles (injuries, 0-3 down), they were a T-E-A-M, proving it with determined play that even won over this rival fan. Anyone who knows me knows I got no love for the Flyers but they really get mad props. You represented our conference proudly, showing that never say die attitude that only Rocky could appreciate. And you can bet the legions of Philly fanatics who booed Santa stood proudly even after Kane's stunner, leading to the most anti-climatic ending in Cup history. Yeah. Elias to Arnott was a lot better a decade prior.


Kudos to Jeff Carter, Ian Laperriere and especially Simon Gagne for igniting the orange and black back with the OT winner staving off elimination at Wachovia in Game Four versus Beantown. We all know what happened afterwards. One of the most historic playoff comebacks ever. And to think, they dismantled the Habs and had Chicago concerned before the wild end to the Cup. Would it have shocked anyone if the Flyers had pulled that out, they go into United Center and win the series? Considering how tough they were led by Mike Richards and royal pain Chris Pronger, not at all. Look at the contributions they got from Scott Hartnell, Claude Giroux and former Wing Ville Leino, who really came of age during the special run.


And what of the unlikely netminding duo of Leighton and Brian Boucher? Two journeymen taking this team who snuck in thanks to Bouch outshining Henrik Lundqvist in the shootout, nearly doing the unthinkable. Who needs goaltending? When one of his netminders seemed off, Laviolette had the magic touch or even a weird injury like to Boucher versus Boston allowing Leighton to come in and steal the show. When you have a blueline led by Pronger and big minute logger Kimmo Timonen, it really helps.
As Hasan noted much earlier during his team's first round ouster, this wasn't your normal low seventh seed that just made the cut. They had star power up front and on D and it showed all Spring.


There also were heart and soul types like Blair Betts and Laperriere risking themselves with tenacity on the PK. Hence. Lappy taking one to the eye when the Devils were all but finished. The kind of yeoman work you need to go deep. It was that kinda gritty effort that made Philly so proud of these Flyers, who brought that Broad Street mentality with them. In the end, even though they came up a little short of delivering the franchise's first Cup in 35 years, the orange and black were winners.


No wonder the series was so popular, garnering excellent ratings which demonstrate just how far the game's come. It helped to have two of the largest markets, who boast strong fanbases. However, the action was fast, furious and ferocious. Precisely the kind of in your face playoff hockey we can appreciate. In the end, the best team won.


As it turned out, Antti Niemi was a little better than Leighton, who the Hawks chased a couple of times en route to becoming champions. A Finn getting his name on the chalice who wasn't exactly a household name. He didn't have to be.


A toast to both cities on an outstanding Cup Final.





Sincerely,






BONY's Derek Felix

About those Canucks

Well, it looks like it's another wasted year for the Canucks. They couldn't follow up a fantastic season with a deep playoff run as both Hasan and myself foresaw. Ironically, each of us (Devils/Rangers) took them to the Cup Final with Has having them fall to the Ovechkin Caps while I had the 'Nucks winning it all over the Sabres. That collective thud you just heard was our predictions going right into the dumpster.

Hey. Who had the Habs over the Caps and pushing the Crosby Pens to Game Seven tonight? Did anyone take the Bruins deep and figured things were okay until the banged up Flyers woke up? Can they really comeback from 0-3 down?!?!?!?!?! You better believe the B's want no part of a deciding game even if it's in their building.

Yes indeed, these playoffs have been wackier than usual. At least the Sharks as Has accurately predicted are in their second Western Conference Final- not first Versus! Can they ever get their facts straight instead of making their talent look like morons? Almost as bad as having two games going at the same exact time in the East. Thanks for nothing NBC. Take your beloved golf and shove it. Especially Tiger. Thankfully, we won't have a repeat of Monday with the win or go home Montreal/Pittsburgh tilt going off at 7 while Boston/Philadelphia starts an hour later. Before I get to the original subject, let me just point out that the Bruins and Flyers are playing Game Six after the Canadiens and Penguins face off for their series conclusion. How does that work exactly? Okay. Enough about the Bettman-ization of the NBA errrr NHL.

Now to the latest Vancouver mess again proving what a fraud Roberto Luongo is. Like many including Puck Daddy Greg Wyshynski, who also had these Canucks all the way, I thought this batch were better. It all seemed lined up. A dominant top line that featured probable MVP Henrik Sedin, twin brother Daniel Sedin and fired up fellow Swede Mikael Samuelsson. Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows, Mason Raymond, Pavol Demitra, Steve Bernier and Kyle Wellwood along with a balanced blueline that included Sami Salo (insert balls joke), Kevin Bieksa, Christian Ehrhoff, Alex Edler and Shane O'Brien should've been enough to take them further. Even without top defender Willie Mitchell, this is a bitter pill to swallow for Alain Vigneault's crew which finished off a hat trick falling 5-1, dropping all three home games to the grittier Blackhawks in the series.

Make it two consecutive Springs Chicago has ended their season. Both in six. Last year as a lower seed highlighted by Patrick Kane's hat trick. This time, as a No.2 to Vancouver's No.3 coming back from a blowout home Game One loss to take four of the next five. Unthinkable. Not taking anything away from Joel Queeneville's talented bunch that prominently features Conn Smythe candidate Jonathan Toews (6-14-20), Kane, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, series tormentor Dustin Byfuglien, Kris Versteeg, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Brian Campbell and Antti Niemi. The Hawks are formidable and worthy of a second straight Final Four appearance where they'll battle the Sharks for the Campbell Trophy.

While it will be refreshing to see new blood vying for Lord Stanley, it doesn't take the Canucks off the hook. They lost to a more disciplined team who turned the series around thanks to Byfuglien. It was his first career playoff hat trick in a Game Three 5-2 win which shifted the momentum. The big 6-4, 257 pound American was moved up by Queeneville to the top line flanking Toews and Kane. Entering that pivotal game, he previously had no points in Chicago's first eight postseason games. From that point, Big Buff recorded four goals and two assists while racking up 10 penalty minutes. Even with it, he used his big frame to make life difficult on Luongo, doing whatever it took to get to the Vancouver netminder. Textbook screening, strong skating, grit that drove the Canucks crazy and finishing. It was in Game Four that the 'Nucks anger boiled over losing their heads by going after Byfuglien. The result was three power play goals allowed and an ugly 7-4 loss putting them on the brink. Though they responded with a 5-2 win in enemy territory, the Canucks couldn't follow it up with a first win in British Columbia. Instead, the 5-1 disgrace further teased their fans who roundly booed. In three home games, they were outscored 17-7. Just brutal.

So, what went wrong? Aside from Niemi outplaying Luongo, the Hawks got strong performances from Toews, Kane and Hossa who despite three points, was very effective on the forecheck. With Toews torching Vancouver for 12 points (4-8-12) including a five-point explosion that included a hat trick, it was one of the Olympic standouts who outshined The Sedins. They didn't get much help with Samuelsson and Daniel only netting one goal apiece, Kesler none and little from first round heroes Bernier and Demitra. Meanwhile, Chicago saw Byfuglien and Versteeg come to life while Dave Bolland also picked it up. Lineup addition Troy Brouwer notched his first goal starting it off yesterday followed by Versteeg 36 seconds later in the second. Louie had little chance on either but Bolland's shorthander with 45 seconds left was a back breaker. He was pressured from behind but still snuck the puck thru Roberto's wickets. One he definitely should've had. At that big moment, you expect a goalie of his caliber to make a momentum turning save. Instead, it flattened their chances.

Sure. O'Brien scored 3:44 into the third giving the league's best come from behind team life. However, despite tons of pressure, they couldn't get another past Niemi, who got help from his D. Before you knew it, there was Kane breaking in and beating Luongo with a change up, letting the air out of the balloon. Only 25 ticks later, Byfuglien broke in on the pedestrian goalie and easily whistled one upstairs for 5-1. On it, it seemed that Luongo gave up, totally off his angle. If he really did and only he knows, it was a sad display. He may have won Olympic gold in relief of Martin Brodeur on a stacked Canada but he was never the same afterwards. The five rebound goals he permitted in Game Three summed it up. For a goalie who always receives high accolades as one of the game's elite, Luongo has advanced past the first round three times. Three series victories before falling apart. Not the kind of playoff resume one would expect. Of course, it wasn't all his fault. His teammates didn't perform well. Perhaps this quote tells you everything.

"I don't think they're a better team than us, but maybe a smarter team."

In the playoffs, you can't just rely on talent. There's also work ethic and discipline plus consistency. Without those three, you morph into the Devils. The one team who didn't come to play. Though we're learning more about why they didn't bother. How is it that Jacques Lemaire resorted to text messages to inform players he earlier told were playing that he changed his mind? Is this the issue in Vancity? Hardly. Do they got the right mix? We believed they did. Was Mitchell missed that much? He sure wouldn't have allowed Byfuglien to run rampant. Right now, the Canucks are as much a mystery as the post-lockout Devs. Difference is one franchise has three Cups. When does it finally change for Vancouver? Will they ever make it back? 1994 is a long time ago. Try telling Dolan.

Until they get H-E-A-R-T, it looks like the Vancouver Canucks have officially replaced San Jose as playoff Tinmen. They sure had us fooled.

Rangers fall short in Windy City

A bit late to the fray. But also, didn't see much of the Rangers' latest loss- by a count of 2-1 to the Blackhawks in overtime. A game in which they got outshot severely and couldn't nurse a one-goal lead with Jonathan Toews (PPG) and Dustin Byfuglien (OT winner) to make it five losses in six.

Who cares if we got a point? Based on the little we caught, they hardly had the puck with Chicago in an all out attack which led to three power plays that eventually came back to bite the Blueshirts, who basically hoped Henrik Lundqvist would get a shutout because it was the only chance in Hell. Indeed, he was under siege all night and kept the Hawks at bay until he flopped around like a fish, allowing Toews to flip one upstairs with under six minutes left. We're not saying it was his fault but being down doesn't usually help keep the puck out. Especially on a goalmouth scramble with our exhausted penalty killers.

Not surprisingly, the Hawks won it after Vinny Prospal couldn't bury a great chance, which Duncan Keith got a piece of. Keith, who in our view is the best defenseman this season, then passed to an onrushing Byfuglien who did the rest- abusing Matt Gilroy before deking Lundqvist for the decider. Now, Gilroy made an awful read which can sometimes happen for first-year players. Marian Gaborik tried to get back but it was too little too late which leads us to the goalie. Why wasn't Henrik more aggressive there? If he had come out and pokechecked, Byfuglien never scores and the game probably gets to the skill comp. Just saying.

On a night of little positives, Chris Higgins scored the Rangers' lone tally from Gaborik and Michal Rozsival, who had a strong game. Wade Redden was decent in his return after missing six games. The problem was they had no attack with John Tortorella irate. Hell. Even Mike Keenan on MSG supposedly blasted the lack of effort. Pretty sad considering the days off they had. I could care less if they hate the coach. When you wear that jersey, you play for New York and all the legions of Ranger fans, who live and die with this team. One Cup in 69 years. Is it too much to ask these overpaid stiffs to earn their keep? When Donald Brashear gets more shots/chances than most in his return, that speaks volumes.

Also of note, as we were headed back from The Slope, Dave Maloney chewed up Tort for having no center out during a Blackhawk sequence where they had our guys on their heels. Sometimes, I really wonder what the coach is thinking. Why doesn't P.A. Parenteau get more ice-time? And why is Artie Anisimov getting so little along with Erik Christensen? We're not exactly an offensive juggernaut. One word comes to mind. Popgun.

Well, the Sabres visit MSG Saturday and then the Thrashers. Both of who are much better teams. Will it ever end?