Fancy (Almost) Passes + No Power Play Goals = Why the Ducks are in an 0-2 Hole
Last night's Game Two of the Western Conference Finals could have, and should have, been an easy win for the Ducks. The Oilers came in to Game Two not only tired, but fighting a flu bug as well. Raffi Torres and Marc-Andre Bergeron didn't even arrive at the rink because their symptoms were so bad, defenseman Jason Smith was playing against the Ducks 4th line, and Shawn Horcoff, in the words of Head Coach Craig McTavish during the post-game press conference, "was (as white) as this sheet of paper during the third period." On the ice, the Ducks dominated the game territorially, getting the majority of quality scoring chances. They were able to cycle the puck in the offensive zone, got traffic in front of Oilers goalie Dwayne Roloson, and for the most part, kept the puck in the zone during their power play.
So what went wrong?
Simply put, the Ducks got too cute moving the puck around. Head Coach Randy Carlyle said as much during his post-game press conference. Instead of putting the puck on net, the Ducks tried to pass the puck one too many times. Credit the Oilers defense for blocking shots and getting sticks into the shooting lanes to be sure; however, trying to get too creative against a team that plays solid defense (not to mention having Chris Pronger) only works against you in the end. Don't believe me? Watch the highlight that led to Edmonton's second (and eventual) winnng goal. RW Teemu Selanne tried to stick handle and deke around one too many an Oiler, had the puck stripped from him, and the Oilers were able to move the puck in thier zone to set up Fernando Pisani's rocket of a shot from about 30 feet out.
The Oilers have many a skilled player, but simultaneously, their defense, much like the Calgary Flames, are their backbone. They find ways to keep teams to the outside, limiting the amount of quality scoring chances.
This "too cute" mentality also prevented the Ducks from getting the power play working as well. The Oilers are no slouch on the penalty kill either, and will sacrifice the body each and every time a shot is made. It's time to go back to basics on the power play, guys. Shoot the puck from the point, get traffic to the net and hope for a rebound. If it can work against a Hart and Vezina Trophy candidate like Miikka Kiprusoff, surely it can work against Roloson too.
The Ducks need to dig deep and get it together quick, or else they will be the next victim of what happens when your special teams fail. Maybe Carlyle should call upon Colorado and Ottawa to see what he can do...oh, wait, their teams suffered the same kind of fate. I'd forgotten about that.
Tampa Bay Signs Brad Richards to a 5 year, $39 million extension.
It was announced earlier today that C Brad Richards of the Tampa Bay Lightning signed a 5 year, $39 million extension with the team. The completion of this deal ensures that the Lightning's top 3 forwards (Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Richards) will be together for the next 4 years minimum. Lecavalier signed a four year extension last August, while St. Louis signed a 6 year deal days later.
Richards' deal means he will be paid $7.8 million US per year. What it also means is that a guranteed $20 million is tied up among those 3 players alone. While the salary cap ceiling is expected to go up next season upwards of $43-45 million dollars from the current $39 million, that still means that just about half of the Lightning's money is tied up on just the top line.
I can understand the Lightning wanting to keep Richards, one of the best two-way players in the game, away from the free-agent market (he was set to become a restricted free agent, meaning Tampa Bay would have to match any other offer sheet provided by another team if they wanted to keep him). However, goaltending is the situation that seriously needs to be addressed in Tampa Bay. The two headed monster of John Grahme and Sean Burke failed miserably this post-season, and GM Jay Feaster's inability to get a goaltender at the trade deadline a la Kevin Lowe of the Oilers sealed their fate this season.
Signing Richards effectively means Feaster will be looking to trade for a goaltender, perhaps Evegeni Nabokov of the San Jose Sharks or JS Giguere of the Mighty Ducks. With $31 million total against the cap for next year already in place, I find it hard to believe that one of these players, if not more, get traded. If they don't, the Lightning will find themselves in the same position this time next year
Hasek Upset with Murray, Wants to Remain in Senators Uniform
According to a report on Sportsnet.ca, Senators' G Dominik Hasek doesn't want to play for another team next year; in fact, he is ony interested in playing for the Ottawa Senators to "finish what he started this year."
Hold on a second. He wants to finish what he started? You mean he wants to create even more turmoil and controversy around a team that yet again failed to accomplish the goal of even making it to the Stanley Cup Finals? He wants to give Sens' fans a reason to be disgusted with this team even more by hanging around and stirring up trouble? He wants to finish giving Sens' fans a false sense of hope?
Hasek is reportedly also upset with Head Coach Bryan Murray's comments after the Sens' were eliminated in 5 games by the Buffalo Sabres, saying he didn't understand why only 40 hours after their series defeat Murray would make those comments. (To see Murray's take on Hasek, click here).
While Hasek took Murray's comment as a slight on him, it didn't come without merit. Hasek's past history with Buffalo and Detroit speaks volumes about Hasek's motives, which is strictly his ego. The power of persuasion can lead to ill-advised decisions. Ask Lindy Ruff. Ask Ken Holland. Ask Curtis Joseph. Ask John Muckler.
Sens' fans can only hope that Bryan Murray will put his foot down with GM John Muckler and tell him he doesn't want Hasek back next year. As a former GM himself, Murray is no stranger to what one person can do for the morale of a team. As the Head Coach, he should have a say in who he wants back next season. It would be wise for Muckler to listen. And for Hasek to just go away, again.
Memo to the NHL: Force OLN to Release the Exclusivity Rights
A report in the Los Angeles Times last week indicates that 49% of homes in the Los Angeles area do not receive OLN because it is only offered on premium tiers.
49% in the L.A. area. Considering the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, which is only 45 minutes south of L.A. proper, are in the L.A. market, one would think that the number would be a lot less than 49%.
And then fans outside of the hockey world wonder why no one is paying attention to these playoffs. Or why fans inside the hockey world feel Anaheim has no fan base.
Look, I understand that the league and OLN want to make money, and that exclusivity rights have always been a part of the playoffs even when ESPN owned the rights. However, ESPN can be found on basic cable, while OLN for most viewers is somewhere in the 600 range. But the NHL, who so desperately needs to promote this game in order to attract people to the game, should not allow a number like 49% in the L.A. market to even be a thought.
By selling the rights to local broadcasters, such as FSN or even over-the-air networks that usually carry NHL games, the NHL can then draw upon a wider fan-base. People in the LA area should get to know a team like Anaheim, who are built not only to be good this year, but for the next few years at the very least. If this season was supposed to be about the fans, the NHL has done a poor job with that in these playoffs. It only shows me that the bottom line is still, in reality, the bottom line.
Buffalo Sabres vs. Carolina Hurricanes: Game Two
If you are a hockey fan, you are itching for this game to get underway tonight. Look for Carolina to tighten up it's defense just a bit to try and prevent Buffalo from scoring first. (Or at least, within the first 5 minutes of the game). And look for Buffalo to change...well, nothing. What do they need to change? Even if they do insert different players into their lineup, who would know? They win with whomever, whenever, wherever. It's great for hockey. Maybe other teams in the Northeast Division (Ottawa, Boston, Toronto, I'm looking at you) should take note: big names don't always equate to big plays.
And finally...
Congratulations to the sixteen finalists in the NGSII. All very deserving candidates to be sure, and I look forward to the rest of the competition. As for me, even though I didn't make it, I have found a home and a voice here at FOXSports blogs and will continue on. Maybe one day, I can actually get paid for my thoughts. Good Luck to all!
With the NHL playoffs not resuming until Friday evening, I had my choice last night of sporting events: Watch the L.A. Clippers try to keep their series alive versus the Phoenix Suns in a pivotal Game 6 matchup, or watch the L.A. Angels of Anaheim of Southern California of the United States of America continue to stumble against the Toronto Blue Jays and the rest of the American League.
My husband made that decision easy. “I can only watch basketball the last 5 minutes of the game, even during the playoffs, so we are watching the Angels.”
Guess I had no choice really, although I can’t say I blame him. I haven’t been able to watch a full game of basketball in recent years, although I must say these second round matchups have been nothing short of compelling.
So we settled in to watch the game, although in my heart of hearts, I knew the Angels weren’t going to win. They remind me very much of the NY Mets of the late 1990’s and early 2000’s- they get your hopes up, until someone makes a bad pitch or there is a brain cramp in the field that leads to a minimum of 4 runs in the inning.
Not to be proven wrong, the Angels did just that- after tying the game late on a solo home run by Mike Napoli (a recent call up from the minors in place of a dismal Jeff Mathis), the Angels had the bases loaded in the 9th inning, only to have Tim “Mr. Angel” Salmon strike out to end the inning. The top of the 10th inning led to 4 runs by Toronto and another home loss for the Angels, who sport a home record of just 8-12, and 17-24 overall. That would almost be good enough for last place, but the Seattle Mariners, having played (and lost) one more game than the Angels, currently hold that distinction.
My husband, after the game was over, looked at me and said “What happened to this team? I know they didn’t go out and get any hitting, which was stupid, but what is with all the errors? Where is the defense? Where is the pitching? What happened to being in contention?”
My poor husband. At that point, I didn’t have an answer for him. All I could say to him was “Welcome to the West Coast version of the old Mets.” Not that he would ever understand, as he was never a Mets fan, but after all the stories I’ve told him over the years, I think he might have taken a hint.
Later in the evening, while watching ESPN news, a highlight of the Devil Rays and Chicago White Sox was shown. Right before they started the actual game highlight, they showed D-Rays manager Joe Maddon, standing at the top of the dugout with his game face on.
There it was, the answer to my husband’s question, like a sledgehammer to the face.
What ails the Angels isn’t completely a lack of power, mental errors which lead to physical errors in the field, or even the injuries suffered by many of their starting players this season.
No, what ails the Angels this season is the loss of Joe Maddon, bench coach extraordinaire to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
Maddon, long regarded as one of the most knowledgeable men in baseball today, took over for Lou Pinella as the manager of the perennially basement dwelling Devil Rays this season. Though his choice to move to such a club may have been questioned, the similarity between these two teams currently bears more than just a striking resemblance to one another.
Both teams sport a 17-24 record, and both have had recent struggles as of late. While this is a common practice in Tampa, the Angels haven’t been this bad since their hangover World Series season of 2003. These two teams rank 13th and 14th in the American League in team batting, with the Angels sporting a .246 and the Devil Rays a lowly .233. Their home and away records are practically identical, with the Angels having an 8-12 record at home and a 9-13 record on the road. The Devil Rays? 9-11 at home, 8-13 on the road.
Where these two teams differ is pitching. The Angels are ranked 4th in the AL in team ERA with a 4.43 while the D-Rays 5.19 ERA signifies why they are losing games at their current pace. With no real number one starters on the Devil Rays staff, and a bullpen by committee, it is understandable.
But one thing I’ve noticed is the lack of big names the D-Rays have, and given a new ownership change and lack of a significant fan base, one can easily argue that playing games at home is just as bad, if not worse, than playing games on the road.
But the D-Rays have shown, both last year and this year, that they will try and compete with anyone. While they may not have the best talent, these guys compete. Carl Crawford is probably one of the most underrated players in baseball right now, given his speed, athletic ability, and his power. The Angels heart is, well, I’m still unsure.
Maddon was the cheerleader in the clubhouse in Anaheim, a guy with a love and passion for the game, and a passion to watch his players succeed. It was Maddon’s responsibility as the bench coach to put up a quote every day over the lineup card in the dugout, chosen from many classic authors and writers, to provide inspiration. He was the reason that even though the Angels never have anybody to protect Vladimir Guerrero in the lineup, would find a way to help Mike Sciosia motivate those boys to play hard and win. He has since taken his act to Tampa, where the players, at least not at this stage of the game, have found that same place. But they will. As young as they are, there really is no other place to go but up.
Ron Roenicke took over as the bench coach in Anaheim, moving from his long time position as the third base coach. But I don’t see that same type of fire that Maddon showed for many years. He is more of what you call a quiet leader, and I don’t think that is helping a broken Angels team right now. His replacement at third, Dino Ebel, is trying hard, but has made some questionable calls with the base running early in his stint with the Angels. Only time will tell how he really handles his new position.
So to answer my husband’s question, I told him this morning that he needs to look no further than the loss of Joe Maddon to help explain away what ails the Angels. And unfortunately, at the present, it doesn’t look like there will be any suitable replacement for Maddon, and most likely, there won’t ever be.
A few years back, ESPN began running little promotional ads that would always end with "Without Sports....". There was one in particular, in which a little boy was attached to his St. Louis Cardinals blanket, not unlike Linus of the Peanuts comic strip. As they show him growing up, in various different situations (playing poker in college, moving out of his parents house, etc.), the blanket is prominant in every scene. At the end of the commercial, it shows the man, all grown up and presumably married, with his daughter, now carrying around the very same blanket her dad was given as a child.
Though it has been quite sometime since I've seen that commercial (I give it a few months until it re-airs, when baseball becomes the dominant sport until football season), I was reminded of it yesterday while I was talking to my dad.
Every day, my dad, who also happens to be one of my best friends, not to mention my next-door neighbor, picks up my daughter from school and drops her off at my house. Every day, he will call me when he enters my apartment complex to let me know he is there and to get my lazy butt downstairs so I can talk to him and retrieve my filthy child.
By the time I arrive downstairs, my father has already opened the door for my daughter to get out of the car and is standing there waiting to ask my how my day has been, what have I been doing all day, and am I planning to watch or tivo the NY Mets game. No matter what, the conversation always turns to baseball, mainly the Mets, between my father and I. Always. It has been that way from the time I was a little kid.
Yesterday was no exception. By the time I walked down the three flights of stairs, my father was already standing near the bottom of the staircase with my daughter. After the pre-requisite "Hi, how are you?", and my daughter clamoring all over me with the dirt that she has procured from the school yard, my father blurts out "So, Florida isn't ready to part with Dontrelle Willis yet, damn it."
Having not even given me a chance to pull a cigarette out of the pack, I gave him a quizzical look, proceded by "What the hell are you talking about??"
"Florida's GM isn't ready to put Dontrelle on the trading block yet, so now we are stuck with good old (Aaron) Heilman probably going back to the starting rotation. How much trouble are the Mets going to be in now? Although I'll be happy to see him get out of the bullpen. He sucks. He just sucks. Now the damn team is going to go down the tubes," my dad lamented.
"Oh, they'll be fine. If (Cliff) Floyd ever learns how to hit the ball again, this team will be fine. So the Mets will win every three games out of five, because you know they will never win when Trachsel or Heilman pitch. They hardly ever win when Trachsel pitches...he's not pitching tonight, is he?" I asked.
"No, no, no, Glavine's pitching tonight, so we actually stand a chance of winning," my dad concluded.
"Okay, good," I said. After taking a pull of my cigarette, I asked, simply "5 o'clock, right?"
"Right. Okay, well, I have to go home now and go walk the dog. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Okay, enjoy the game, I'll talk to you tomorrow. Love you."
"Love you too. Bye Laurie (my daughter), I love you."
"Grandpa, I love you too, but you need to get home or you're going to miss the game and then get mad that you missed it. I don't want you to be mad. And I don't want Mommy to be mad either. So go, go home and watch the game so we can go upstairs and Mommy can watch the game," said my daughter, all of 6 and a half.
It was in that moment that I realized just how much baseball connects the three generations of my family. It was at that moment how much sports really does bring families together.
So while all us bloggers sit here and rant and rave and analyze every little bit about the sports that we love, remember that it was most likely someone very close to you who developed you into the sports fanatic that you are. Because while those sports will most likely be around forever, the people who you love won't be.
A woman with a love and passion for all things hockey, baseball and writing. Ergo, here I am. I will primarily be focusing on hockey and baseball, but if another sport so warrants my attention, I will put my thoughts and opinions here, in this space. Well, it would actually be in the space to the left, but you know what I mean.
Allow me to apologize up front if some of my blogs are long...I'm working on that. For the record, should you see any slanted articles towards the following teams: New York Mets, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County of Southern California of the United States of America, or the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, that would be cause those are the teams I'm truly a fan of. But I will try to be as fair and unbiased as possible.Than ks in advance for reading!
