Posted by admin on 12th, 2008
Joe Pavelski and Milan Michalek led the San Jose Sharks to a new record tonight, defeating the Nashville Predators 2-1 on the road. The win, the Sharks 10th in row has them sitting atop the Pacific Division, 1 point ahead of the Dallas Stars and 4 points ahead of the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Anaheim Ducks.
The Sharks, 10-0-0 in their last 10 games have been surging since acquiring Brian Campbell from Buffalo at the Trade Deadline. They have been favorites to win the cup since the beginning of the season, and are starting to make the push at the right time of the season.
Ross McKeon commented in his latest column…
“It is a battle in that Pacific Division,” said Joe Thornton, the team’s leading scorer. “I believe we’re going real good right now, and it’s a good time to play those good teams and see how good we actually are.”
Three key factors have put San Jose on track. First, Jonathan Cheechoo is healthy. Second, Patrick Marleau rediscovered his game. And last, the addition of defenseman Brian Campbell at the trade deadline added a new dimension to the team.
- Yahoo! Sports
Threatening the Sharks for the Division Title are the Dallas Stars who are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games. The Stars made big news recently by acquiring Brad Richards from Tampa Bay in a blockbuster move at the Trade Deadline. The Stars have been leading the Division for the last month, but a few recent losses now see them having to compete hard to win the Division.
4 points back from the Sharks sit the Anaheim Ducks, who have also started to make a push. They are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games. The Ducks have been on again off again however and will need to push harder if they wish to compete with the Sharks and Stars.
The Sharks have 2 games in hand over both the Stars and the Ducks which could put them a few points ahead of their Division Rivals come the end of March.
Posted by admin on 1st, 2008
After such a blockbuster trade on the day of the trade deadline, Penguins and Hossa fans gasped in horror as Hossa was injured in his Penguins debut.
News out of Pittsburgh is good however, and Hossa is said to only miss 1 week with his sprained knee injury.
Posted by admin on 27th, 2008
Ross McKeon of Yahoo! Sports has been busy today, grading all 30 teams of the NHL according to how they did with the Trade Deadline.
It may come as a suprise to some that Dallas and Pittsburgh, the 2 teams who made the blockbuster trades yesterday are graded so differently.
McKeon grades the Dallas Stars at #1, citing their trade as “the big strike”.
1. Dallas Stars – Grade: A+: The Stars made the big strike by acquiring arguably the best player available for now and moving forward. Center Brad Richards was the Conn Smythe Trophy winner when Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup in 2004. He’s 27, skilled and durable – just a perfect fit for any team. Never mind that $7.8 million owed for each of the next three years. The Stars parted with backup goalie Mike Smith, who may emerge as a No. 1 with the Lightning, Jussi Jokinen, Jeff Halpern and a fourth-round pick. Dallas did not have to surrender any of its young defense, another key. That deal makes a lot more sense than what Pittsburgh gave up to Atlanta in the day’s other blockbuster.
The Pittsburgh Penguins however, failed to gain such a high ranking, coming in at #22 with a D+ grade.
22. Pittsburgh Penguins – Grade: D+: No one can accuse the Penguins of being shy at the deadline. Pittsburgh changed more than any team by adding three players and deleting two from the roster and one from the pipeline and parting with three draft picks in two separate deals. Pittsburgh got rental Marian Hossa to play alongside either Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby. They got versatile and dependable Pascal Dupuis in the same deal with Atlanta but surrendered young, popular teammates Colby Armstrong and Erik Christensen and prospect Angelo Esposito. You have to wonder what team chemistry will form out of all these moves. In addition, Hal Gill comes aboard to add size and a physical element on defense. First-, second- and fifth-round picks were dealt away.
Filling out the top 10 are:
2. Atlanta Thrashers – Grade: A
3. Washington Capitals – Grade: A-
4. Colorado Avalanche – Grade: B+
5. San Jose Sharks – Grade: B
6. Columbus Blue Jackets – Grade: B
7. Carolina Hurricanes – Grade: B
8. Chicago Blackhawks – Grade: B
9. New York Rangers – Grade: B-
10. Buffalo Sabres – Grade: B-
Posted by admin on 27th, 2008
2 Blockbuster trades highlighted todays Trade Deadline, with Tampa Bay moving Brad Richards to the Dallas Stars in a 5 player deal and also Atlanta Thrashers doing a 5 player deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Here is a full list of todays known trades.
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING traded Brad Richards & Johan Holmqvist
to the
DALLAS STARS in exchange for Mike Smith, Jeff Halpern, Jussi Jokinen & a 4th round draft pick
ATLANTA THRASHERS traded Marian Hossa & Pascal Dupuis
to the
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS in exchange for Erik Christensen, Colby Armstrong, Angelo Esposito & a 1st round draft pick
LOS ANGELES KINGS traded Jean-Sebastien Aubin
to the
ANAHEIM DUCKS in exchange for a 7th round draft pick
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS traded Chad Kilger
to the
FLORIDA PANTHERS in exchange for a 3rd round draft pick
NEW YORK RANGERS traded Al Montoya & Marcell Hossa
to the
PHOENIX COYOTES in exchange for David LeNeveu, Fredrik Sjostrom, Josh Gratton & a Conditional Pick
NEW YORK ISLANDERS traded Marc-Andre Bergeron
to the
ANAHEIM DUCKS in exchange for a 3rd round draft pick
NEW YORK ISLANDERS traded Chris Simon
to the
MINNESOTA WILD in exchange for a 6th round draft pick
LOS ANGELES KINGS traded Brad Stuart
to the
DETROIT RED WINGS in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick and a 4th round draft pick
ST LOUIS BLUES traded Christian Backman
to the
NEW YORK RANGERS in exchange for a 4th round draft pick
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS traded Hal Gill
to the
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick and a 5th round draft pick
VANCOUVER CANUCKS traded Matt Cooke
to the
WASHINGTON CAPITALS in exchange for Matt Pettinger
SAN JOSE SHARKS traded Rob Davidson
to the
NEW YORK ISLANDERS in exchange for a 7th round draft pick
WASHINGTON CAPITALS traded Ted Ruth
to the
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS in exchange for Sergei Fedorov
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS traded Adam Foote
to the
COLORADO AVALANCHE in exchange for a 1st round draft pick
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS traded Martin Lapointe
to the
OTTAWA SENATORS in exchange for a 6th round draft pick
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS traded Tuomo Ruutu
to the
CAROLINE HURRICANES in exchange for Andrew Ladd
FLORIDA PANTHERS traded Ruslin Salei
to the
COLORADO AVALANCHE in exchange for Karlis Skrastins & a 3rd round draft pick
MONTREAL CANADIENS traded Cristobal Huet
to the
WASHINGTON CAPITALS in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick
SAN JOSE SHARKS traded Steve Bernier & a 1st round draft pick
to the
BUFFALO SABRES in exchange for Brian Campbell & a 7th round draft pick
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS traded Wade Belak
to the
FLORIDA PANTHERS in exchange for a 2008 5th found draft pick
ST LOUIS BLUES traded Byrce Salvador
to the
NEW JERSEY DEVILS in exchange for Cam Janssen
