At the end of an exhausting series, New York Ranger's Sean Avery gave his hand in an honest gesture to New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur. It was a sign of peace.

The New York Rangers scored 5 goals against the New Jersey Devils in the last game and Martin Brodeur might have felt responsible for the loss. Brodeur wasn't playing to his full potential. The future hall of fame recipient was criticized for not making stellar saves during the series. He did not take personal responsibility for his performance and blamed the referees for not making the calls. The Rangers strategic tactic was to strike and crash the goaltender Martin Brodeur's net with force. Taken away, Brodeur was obviously upset.

Both teams play hard. The net is the end point. What are we supposed to do? Stand off to the side and throw pucks at him? - New York Ranger's Head Coach Tom Renney on Brodeur's performance (AP)

Brodeur also became victim of Sean Avery's childlike antics of harrasment which included bringing up his divorce from 2003. Brodeur was also instigated with Avery's swinging hockey stick which was termed as unsportsmanlike. But at the end, when given the chance to forgive and forget, he refused to shake Sean Avery's hand.

If given the chance, why isn't he the better man?

The playoffs are like an episode of Project Runway without Heidi Klum

"One day you are in and next day you are out." That's exactly how it tunes out for the teams seeking the Stanley Cup.

It's interesting how many hockey writers voted the Caps leading the Flyers and placed Ovechkin as a top scorer. Blame me, but I truly believe that Ovechkin is overrated. Caps fans which include half of my friends claim that the team is now on the low down since the team is in 911 mode and needs more stars. They say that the Caps depend too much on Ovechkin. I guess they are not counting on Federov to make any plays in the second line.

It might be premature to make that call in the series but Ovechkin has yet to play consistent hockey. When Ovechkin body checks, grabs and battles for the puck then he is able to make it work.

Is Ovechkin truly a "team player" or just another superstar like Jagr on the Caps or old school Lindros?

Both the Flyers and the Pens play more like a unit. They are fast skating teams that finish their checks. They do not seek many penalties either. In fact, they make the opposition take the penalty like Mike Richards in game 4 when Eminger chased the puck and almost chipped his stick. Both the Flyers and the Pens also depend on their special teams. After the "I am Gladiator" Ottawa pre-game show on center ice, the Pens showered in power plays. The Capitals know that it could be done but despite a pep talk by Coach Bruce Boudreau they fall short during game 4.

I don't reason much anymore. I just watch hockey.

Forget Sean Avery and his childlike antics! If Curtis Joseph made a comeback for the Calgary Flames then so can this abandoned blog. I tried to convince myself that a comeback is possible even after watching scoreless periods and goaltending nightmares like that of Kiprusoff on home ice. For the million of Flames fans and viewers yonder, Kipper looked more like a nervous schoolboy asking a girl for a date during the first period. It wasn't until sly CuJo managed to make a move that the fans proclaimed that he "still has it " referring to the mo-jo. There are no has beens in hockey just old cougars in my book.

So do the Ottawa Senators have a chance for a comeback?

I was reading the morning daily smack on Canoe and Sens Captain Daniel Alfredsson definitely thinks that a miracle is possible. (Miracles? I digress. I have no idea why hockey followers are so religious and superstitious to start out with in the first place. Let's smuggle a catfish in a Coach bag and throw it on the ice after the first goal and hope the team wins. It spelled comeback for the Nashville Predators against the Red Wings.) Bruce Garrioch, the writer of the article, made it clear that this task is close to impossible but that it has certainly been accomplished by the '42 Toronto Maple Leafs and the '75 New York Islanders.

Don Cherry even wore a yellow rose during the Coach's Corner of the Ottawa Senators vs. Penguins series last night. He even managed to divert questions about his allegiance to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Is it possible? Maybe I don't believe in miracles against Crosby and Malkin.

So, Trent Yawney was fired today.   It came right before Christmas and after my Thanksgiving meal which is what I projected a year ago while writing about the team.  Now don't get me wrong Trent Yawney is a good coach and a family man who stood up for his team and vision.  He is also an expert at tactics but again under an older  NHL system.  I stand by my thoughts of his defense minded trapping and with the fact that the Chicago Blackhawks needed a change. 

Bruce Cassidy was let go in early July and it was inferred in hockey circles that the coaches had clashes of power.  It was clear to me that Cassidy was best suited to be "head coach" like Tallon said, and it won't come too soon in the NHL.  Cassidy went to the OHL for "seasoning" and now is the head coach of a team in Kingston beating their own personal consecutive winning record. Kudos!   He's a happy camper teaching young kids and making them into future NHL players under an offensive minded skating style which is what it all will come down to with the league.

Meanwhile the saga in Chicago continues.   Denis Savard now took the head coaching position and Wirtz believes he can handle the job and turn it around.  

Trent Yawney should be devastated but he must realize that he went down doing it "his own way" just like he said he would go down.  Well, at the end, he still gets a paycheck for the remainder of the three year contract. 

It's a tough job being a coach in the NHL and it's even tougher if you criticize the refs.  Back when he coached the minors, the new head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers, John Stevens, made a comment about how despite the fact that he is almost blind from an eye injury as a player he could tell that it was a bad call.  "I can see it from my one good eye," he remarked jokingly.

This past Saturday, the Oilers head coach, Craig MacTavish was fined for pointing out a "bad call" during a home loss to the Dallas Stars.  "It was a retarded call," MacTavish snapped after the game when interviewed by reporters.   "There is no other explanation for it. I know he is a veteran official and at times I have found his antics humorous..."He should be suspended." 

For his verbal outrage, MacTavish must dish out $10,000.

According to CBC, the league admitted that they made the wrong call.  Yes, the NHL shamefully admitted they made an error and that official Mike McGeough missed the right play.

It was innocent enough but not to the eyes of Oiler fans or to those of Craig MacTavish.  He waived off a game tying goal from Ales Hemsky with a total of 4.1 seconds left on the clock. The play was halted just before the puck crossed the crease after deciding that  Edmonton's Shawn Horcoff had glove passed the puck from the preceding faceoff.   The whistle blew.  It was the wrong call and the league's correction does not change the final score or the fact that Coach MacTavish was fined. Everyone now knows that in the new NHL, teams must grab points as early as possible.  Playoff status is determined way before the Christmas run and at times it is hard to catch up.

Will this error affect the Oilers in possibly not making the playoffs?