Hockey

CHICAGO - Jonathan Toews got the puck on his stick, settled it down, and took aim; you expected him to swing and miss. He'd been having an awful time to that point. No goals all playoffs. Stymied by the Red Wings' defense. In Game 4, he took three straight penalties, during which the winning goal was scored. Three straight in the box? It was like he forgot his keys and kept coming back. And he's the captain!

Why did we lose tonight? Why did we lose in the playoffs? Why did this season which started with so much promise end on such a down note? It’s really effing simple to explain…. Gaborik & Richards. People want to blame Torts, and to be honest, he does shoulder some of the blame, I just don’t like the way we play the oppositions D in our own zone…but we’ll get to that in a few days after I’ve had a chance to digest everything. The real problem is simple. Your #1 Center and your #1 Left Winger, who combined for 1.7 points per game last year only gave us 1.28 points per game. Over the course of 82 games, we’re talking about a MASSIVE 34 point drop off between the 2. That’s not taking into account that both Gabby and Richards did almost all their damage in a handful of games and were complete no-shows for the rest of time. Oh, yeah, and, for the Rangers elimination game, Gabby was sipping margaritas on a beach somewhere, and Brad Richards was a healthy scratch thanks to his PUTRID play. That’s the single biggest reason we lost. The 2nd? Injuries. I get that all teams have injuries, but we’re without Staal, Sauer, Stralman, Clowe, and Powe for that elimination game tonight. That’s a #1, a #3, and a #4 defenseman, a top 6 forward, and a strong penalty killer (who really would have helped us in this series). The 3rd reason? The Boston Bruins are a fraking good team. Give those guys credit, they are a REALLY, REALLY good team. This isn’t like many of the other losses we’ve had over the years, this was complete and utter domination that even a God-like Henrik Lundqvist couldn’t stop. There have been many series we’ve lost where Henrik sorta ran outta gas from bailing us out…no, Henrik didn’t run out of gas..he was miraculous at times, and STILL we got beat. That team is REAL good…and you know where, they’re still going to get slaughtered by Pittsburgh. Nobody is beating the Pens, they are just too damn good. That’s neither here nor there though. There are a lot of positives for this team, and there are a lot of places we can improve. Lots of big time decisions to be made this offseason, and some of our kids are going to start getting paid. Will be interesting to see it all unfold. I’ll post a more thorough breakdown of this year in the next few days…maybe after breakup day when we find out who was injured with what. Later!

I want you all to know that this website takes up at least 30% of my life. Probably more. I'm on here every day, for multiple hours, either writing stories, bantering with you in the comments or trying to make this place better for all of you guys. And it's not just me, it's the fantastic staff we have on the site, too. I want you all to know how enjoyable YOU make this experience. I say it all the time, but I need you guys to know how much I mean it: This site would be NOTHING without all of you. You're our engine that keeps us running. I have a desire to do this and I love to do this because of you guys. Getting your e-mails (when they're not threats), fighting in the comments, laughing in game threads, interacting on Twitter and even meeting on the street or in the Garden makes this worth doing. I'm so appreciative and so humbled by all of your support and loyalty I honestly can't put it into words aside from thanking you guys a million times. Mike and I are in the process of putting together a story to get your input on how to make this site better, but that might take a few weeks. We're also planning a meetup sometime this summer so we can all meet face-to-face and stop being creepy internet friends. You know, the people you know without ever meeting. Anyway, from the bottom of my heart, thanks for making this place what it is. Thanks for the support. Thanks for the kind words. We're nothing without you guys. Thanks from me and the staff!

To paraphrase Winston Churchill – never have so many owed so much to one goaltender. If I were Henrik Lundqvist, I would sue my New York Rangers teammates for lack of support. It was pretty disappointing for this Rangers fan to watch The King try to will his team to victory only to watch the rest of the team fall short of the urgency and desperation they showed in Game 4. Leave it to Lundqvist to sum up the feelings of the Rangers faithful. “I expected more for us and I hoped for more,” The Rangers goalie explained to BlueshirtsUnited.com. “It’s an empty feeling. The hardest thing is realizing that it’s over.” While Lundqvist showed up to play all 14 playoff games, sadly the Rangers offense did not. The Blueshirts played nine one-goal games if you factor in empty net goals turned three games into two-goal decisions (ironically enough, all three were 3-1 losses). Of those one-goal decisions, the Rangers were 4-5. Even more telling was the fact the Rangers were either shutout or scored just one goal in 6 of their 14 games, posting a 1-5 record, Far too many times the Rangers were spending more time in the offensive zone looking to make the extra pass rather than put shots on goal, get traffic in front and hunt down rebounds and deflections. “The last two games, we gave ourselves a chance to win,” Lundqvist said to Dan Rosen of NHL.com. “But it took us a couple of games to get there. “I expected more from us,” he said. “Last year, a lot of things went our way. This was a different season. We have to learn from this.” While the Rangers lost the series in five games, the two teams were not separated by much – even though Boston was the better and deeper team. Outside of the Rangers Game 2 loss, the other three defeats were games where the outcome could easily have swung the Blueshirts way. Rosen offered the following take from Bruins center Gregory Campbell. “They played hard. They’re built similar to us,” Campbell told NBC Sports Network. “They rely on everybody, and they really play a man’s game. It was a physical series; most of the games could have gone either way.” For his part, Rangers coach John Tortorella fell on the sword for his team and took the blame in his post-game press conference. “One of the big things in this series, and it falls on me it’s a big part of my job, is that I couldn’t get my top players to play consistently,” Tortorella lamented. “I need to take some responsibility to try and get them into spots to help us here. I thought that hurt us a bit.” I am not sure what Torts could have done differently to get the likes of Rick Nash and Brad Richards to score more than one goal apiece or The bugaboos that plagued the Rangers throughout the playoffs were in full force in Game 5. While the Rangers power play struck for a second straight game, they never were able to turn a one goal lead into a two-goal lead. Unfortunately, the Rangers did not heed the lesson of that power goal which saw Dan Girardi’s shot from the point beat Tuukka Rask thanks to Brian Boyle’s screen. The Rangers, once again, failed to get enough traffic in front of a goalie. The Rangers style of play in their defensive end cost them yet again as the Bruins forecheck pinned the Rangers deep in their own zone for stretches at a time. They expended so much energy getting out of their own zone that they were unable to launch any counterattack against the Bruins and the Rangers own forecheck was found wanting. The Blueshirts are going to have to consider redesigning their defensive zone coverage next season. They need to stop constantly dropping sown low to clog up the shooting lanes because that style leaves the point men WIDE open. It is a big reason why the Bruins defensemen scored seven of Boston’s 16 goals in the series – including Torey Krug’s record-setting coming out performance. The Elias Sports Bureau confirmed Krug is the first rookie blueliner t

CHICAGO - The Blackhawks looked their regular-season selves Saturday night, deep and determined and unwilling to line up and shake hands with the Red Wings just yet.

All good things... WBS-4 SYR-4 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Leads the Series 1-0 Cedrick Desjardins allowed 4 goals on 23 shots for the loss. First Period WBS Grant, (1) (Nesbitt, Smith), 1:55 SYR Mikkelson, (1) (Taormina, Brown), 16:41 WBS Smith, (5) (Gibbons, Kolarik), 17:12 (PP) Second Period SYR Johnson, (8) (Connolly, Barberio), 5:38 (PP) WBS Minella, (1) , 9:24 WBS Grant, (2) (Nesbitt, Holzapfel), 19:04 (PP) Third Period NO SCORING Brendan Mikkelson was the game's third star. Syracuse tastes adversity now for the first time in these playoffs by yielding home ice to the Pens. In the process, their top line was largely held off the board and Syracuse looked vulnerable in a close game where the other team's goaltending, on paper, is better. Now the real challenge begins. Game Two is tomorrow night and the Pens will be playing with house money in a game where the Crunch absolutely need to win. Box score from TheAHL.com. read more

We all saw that coming, right? I mean, I know we all wanted the Wings to win, but the Blackhawks had the type of regular season that shows that they're, you know, kind of good. And tonight, for the first time all season, they had to play with the kind of desperation that the Wings have experienced for a month but the Hawks had been able to avoid. At home, facing elimination, against their biggest rival and the lowest remaining seed in the playoffs, the Hawks came out with the kind of effort we all expected. But what we didn't expect was the Wings to pretty much just roll over about halfway through the game and start prepping for Game 6 so early. Clark said it best: Backs against the wall, playing at home... If the Hawks hadn't played like this they'd have been the jokes we wish they were — Clark Rasmussen (@detroithockey96) May 26, 2013 I know the narratives are coming, but tonight was about the Wings not matching the Hawks' desperation and looking like they were skating in quicksand all night. It was very reminiscent of Game 1, only without the Jimmy Howard heroics (although he did make 41 saves). Everything that the Wings did right in the last 3 games they did horribly wrong tonight, including failing to make life difficult for Corey Crawford. Coming in to the game, the big worry was whether the Wings could handle the Hawks over the first 10 minutes of the game. While the Wings were on their heels for most of the first period, they were able to escape without giving up too many quality chances. It was the start we all expected, but the Wings looked a step behind through most of the first period. We've said a lot of good things about a lot of players on the Wings this series, but I haven't been super impressed with Johan Franzen. He hasn't been bad at all (his goal in Game 2 was a beauty) but I'm waiting for him to do.......something. In a series that has been this contentious and physical, Mule should be a force because it's the playoffs and he likes that stuff. Yet outside of the one goal he's just kind of been "there" and he could be the difference in Game 6. You know who has been having a good series? Dan Cleary. Goals in consecutive games have him tied with Pavel Datsyuk in points in the playoffs with 8, which is only 7 less than he had all season. How's that for a scary stat? I have never seen a team struggle to clear the puck out of their own zone on the PK like the 2013 Red Wings. Twice the Wings had open opportunities to get the puck down the ice and both times it led to Blackhawk power play goals. It's not like this is a new thing, either. this year's slogan could be "Detroit Red Wings hockey: GET IT OUT MOTHER FUCKERS!!!" Oh Justin Abdelkader. This was not a game to remember for him. He negated a Wings' PP when the Wings were only down 1 early in the second period, then took a terrible cross-checking penalty that led to the Hawks' third goal. Abby's been effective at getting in the face of the Hawks, but tonight showed that sometimes he can cross the line and play stupid. Get ready for the narratives, because they're coming, and they're not going to be pretty. Jonathan Toews scored a goal, so the pressure is off him and he's going to light the Wings up. The Hawks finally got a PP goal so it's going to be amazing in Game 6. The Hawks have all the momentum and have "re-discovered" how to beat the Red Wings. The Wings are in serious trouble and they might as well just forfeit the next couple of games because the Hawks are too good and powerful and will steamroll the Wings in Games 6 and 7. Here's the thing: the next game is in Detroit, and Quenneville isn't smart enough to figure out how to keep Toews away from Zetterberg. The Blackhawks were better tonight, no question, but it was because they played with a desperation that hadn't been required in any game up to this point. And to my eye, Chicago looked as good tonight as they did in Game 1, and we all remember how the Wings respon

The power play returned in the second half of the second period. All it took was one brilliant tip by one of the youngest players on the ice and a well-placed shot by the captain of a team in trouble.

By Jeremy Houghtaling Already down by two with less than nine minutes remaining, a pair of penalties 20 seconds apart seemed to stifle any potential Syracuse Crunch rally. But the Crunch's Mike Angelidis, Jean-Philipe Cote and Brendan Mikkelson shut down a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins power play that had already converted twice, giving Syracuse a glimmer of hope during the final stretch. "I thought our guys did an unbelievable job of getting into the shooting lanes and blocking shots, I thought it was awesome," said Syracuse coach Rob Zettler. "I was hoping for some momentum off that, it just never really came." The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton held on during a 6-on-4 in their own end during the closing minutes, topping Syracuse 4-2 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Onondaga County War Memorial Saturday. The loss snaps a streak of seven straight postseason wins for the Crunch, and 17 straight playoff wins for the Tampa Bay Lightning's American Hockey League affiliate. read more

The Vezina Trophy is voted upon by NHL general managers, and dates back to 1927. Jacques Plante is the all-time leader with 7 victories, while among active netminders, Martin Brodeur has the most with four. Review the three finalists below, along with speculative ballots prepared by the OTF writing crew, and sound off in the comments below. How would you name the league's top goalie this season? Sergei Bobrovsky #72 / Goalie / Columbus Blue Jackets Height: 6-2 Weight: 190 Born: Sep 20, 1988 GP MIN W L OTL GA GAA SA SV SV% SO 2012 - Sergei Bobrovsky 38 2219 21 11 6 74 2.00 1084 1010 .932 4 The Blue Jackets ranked 25th in goal scoring this season, but almost made the playoffs thanks to a standout effort by Bobrovsky, who won eight of his last nine decisions, giving up fewer than two goals in four of those games. It wasn't quite enough, however, as Columbus missed the post-season once again. Henrik Lundqvist #30 / Goalie / New York Rangers Height: 6-1 Weight: 188 Born: Mar 02, 1982 GP MIN W L OTL GA GAA SA SV SV% SO 2012 - Henrik Lundqvist 43 2575 24 16 3 88 2.05 1190 1102 .926 2 The 2012 Vezina Trophy winner had another fine season, and tied for the league lead with 43 starts. Does being this season's lone Eastern Conference finalist give him an edge in the voting? Antti Niemi #31 / Goalie / San Jose Sharks Height: 6-2 Weight: 210 Born: Aug 29, 1983 GP MIN W L OTL GA GAA SA SV SV% SO 2012 - Antti Niemi 43 2581 24 12 6 93 2.16 1220 1127 .924 4 In his third season as San Jose's starter, Niemi put up his finest performance yet. Like Lundqvist, he led the league with 43 starts, and helped carry the Sharks through a February in which their scoring dried up. OTF Staff Picks Voter 1st 2nd 3rd Comment Dirk Sergei Bobrovsky Craig Anderson Henrik Lundqvist Not only did Columbus swipe a productive goalie away from Philadelphia, but they punked them with Steve Mason in a separate trade. Sam Sergei Bobrovsky Tuuka Rask Henrik Lundqvist Caroline Sergei Bobrovsky Antti Niemi Henrik Lundqvist No goalie was as important to their team this year as Bob. No one. Jonathan Sergei Bobrovsky Antti Niemi Henrik Lundqvist If you don't want Bob to win this award - that's fine, I get that. But you're wrong and I hate you. Chris Sergei Bobrovsky EVERYONE ELSE EVERYONE ELSE If anyone other than Bobs wins the Vezina, it will truly be a theft. George Sergei Bobrovsky Antti Niemi Henrik Lundqvist I'm surprised there's such unanimity among OTFers! Lundqvist is there because he's Lundqvist, and Niemi stole some games for the Sharks. But Sergei Bobrovsky proved night in and night out why he was the league's best between the pipes. 38 GP, 21 W, 2.00 GAA, and .932 SV%. Wow. Jason Sergei Bobrovsky Antti Niemi Henrik Lundqvist Niemi had a great year, but Bob meant more to his team. No wrong answer among the top two though. Poll Who should win the 2013 Vezina Trophy? Sergei Bobrovsky Henrik Lundqvist Antti Niemi 2 votes | Results