Halpern, Sliced Bread in Tampa

Posted by admin on 26th, 2008

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Change.  Often said to be as good as a holiday, sometimes said to be a hockey players best friend.  For Jeff Halpern, the change of teams from Dallas to Tampa Bay seems to have litten a spark within him, and he’s been shining on a regular basis since.

You could go as far as to say that for the moment, Jeff Halpern is the best thing since sliced bread for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In the 64 games Halpern played with the Dallas Stars this season, he put up seemingly good numbers of 10 goals, 14 assists for 24 points.  Halpern, the checking center on the Stars roster was not expected to be a top line goal scorer.

The trade deadline however saw Halpern shipped to Tampa Bay Lightning along with team mates Jussi Jokinen and netminder Mike Smith.  Halpern has not looked back!  In the 13 games with the bolts this season Halpern has put up 7 goals and 8 assists for 15 points… better than a point a game!

In todays 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers, Halpern netted a goal and 2 assists.

Jussi Jokinen has 1 goal and 9 assists for 10 points in 14 games with the Lightning, down on goals from his average with the Stars, but up on points.

*** image courtesy of gettys images .
*** Original location of image: http://lightning.nhl.com


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Cinderella Teams

Posted by admin on 23rd, 2008

As we head towards the NHL Playoffs we start to hear phrases like underdogs, rental players or cinderella stories.  The trade deadline is where these phrases really start to be thrown around.  Teams battling for 7th and 8th spot on the ladders start looking to bolster their lineups with trades, often picking up players they know they will only keep until the end of the season. ie. rental players.

The most recent cinderella story team was the Edmonton Oilers who 2 years back went into the playoffs in 8th spot in the West and battled hard to make it right to the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, only to be beaten by the Carolina Hurricanes.

While the cinderella story teams are fantastic to watch, the fact is, the chance of them actually winning the cup is minimal.  30% of the time, top 3 teams have won the Cup.  80% of the time, teams in the top 5 have ended up hoisting the cup.  In fact in recent years i believe only 1 team who started the playoffs in 8th place have won the cup.

But in a world of battlers, doing it hard and fighting to the end, there will always be that spark of belief that says the underdog, the great Cinderella team will once again be victors come June/July.


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