Two And Done: Kovalev Wants To Retire A Hab?

Perhaps this wasn't the best way to endear yourself to a new city, but he's Alexei Kovalev, right? During a charity event in the city he called home for five years, Kovalev mentioned his visits back to Montreal throughout the off-season and stated the following,

"Every time you see a fan on the street, they're really disappointed. That's why I say, maybe after two years I'll be back again. It definitely would be nice to retire here.".

Simply put, the Ottawa Senators are quickly becoming the NHL's biggest mess. Between Dany Heatley's riff with the organization becoming so personal that the superstar refuses to go to teammates weddings and the fact that Ottawa's completely fallen from grace following their near capture of the 2007 Stanley Cup, it appears that the hope for the 2009-10 Sens is already fading.

Perhaps it wasn't the quote that got under the skin of Senators fans (okay, it definitely was) but doesn't it already seem as if the 36-year old sniper has no interest in becoming the leader in Ottawa that he initially billed himself as to the fans of the red and black?

To go from "wanting to have a sit down talk with Heatley to keep him a Sen" to "longing to retire in Montreal" is simply Alex being Alex. He's seemingly taking his rather strangely mysterious approach to the game of hockey of flipping, flopping (and diving) between efforts on a given night and applied it to how he feels about being a Senator.

In the interview, Kovalev went on to mention his desire to return to Montreal during this off-season until Bob Gainey pulled the offer from the table following his signing of Brian Gionta to a five year contract. Kovalev went on to wait for what felt like weeks before signing a two year deal with the Ottawa Senators worth 10 million dollars. Despite these comments, Kovalev reiterated his desire for Heatley to remain in Ottawa with him. If his desire becomes reality, Kovalev's addition into the Ottawa line-up gives the Senators some greatly needed secondary scoring to complement their top line of Heatley-Spezza and captain Daniel Alfredsson.

However, I'm not expecting this to be the case. This an Ottawa club already starting off in the hole and relaying on Pascal Leclaire and a weak defense to compete in the high-powered goal scoring Eastern Conference.

Have fun Ottawa, you're going to losing one Heatley headache and take on a new home-sickened Kovalev one.

Odd Manny Out: Where Will Fernandez Sign?

For Bruins netminder Manny Fernandez, the 2008-09 season was a renaissance of sorts. No, he didn't win the Vezina, play in the playoffs or be a consistent starter (due in large part to the spectacular play of Tim Thomas). However, what Fernandez did do was revitalize the idea of a future in the NHL.

Coming off a disasterous 2007-08 campaign where Fernandez played in just 4 games, going 2-2-0 with a 3.93 GAA before injuring his knee during practice. The knee, an injury that nagged the butterfly goalie in Minnesota would go on the keep Fernandez out of the Bruins next 73 games of the season. To put it simply, 2008-09 was in all likelihood Manny's last chance to put together a strong season if he had hopes for another contract in the National Hockey League.

Fernandez answered the call in 2008-09, putting together a solid season inbetween the iron for the Bruins, going 16-8-3 with a .910 SV%. Fernandez's best stretch for the black and gold came in November through December. In these two months, as the Bruins were on a tear Fernandez posted a 12-1-0 record with a 1.47 GAA.

Despite the success in 2008, Fernandez was unable to post stats on par with that into the second leg of the season in 2009. In 2009, Manny went 4-6-2 and was held to limited ice time due to a nagging back injury and Thomas' Vezina-worthy play. However, with Fernandez currently still among a vast sea of free agent goaltenders, where will Manny be playing in 2009-10?

One thing's for sure, it won't be Boston. After another year of seasoning in Providence, it's officially Tuukka Time (to ride the bench) in the Hub of Hockey. Rask is coming off yet another successful season for the Baby B's. In two seasons with Providence, Rask boasts a 60-33-6 record with five shut-out's and a .910 SV%. If Tuukka flops in this contract year, the Bruins have Dany Sabourin waiting in the wings down in Providence on a two-way contract.

As the Fernandez era draws to a close in Boston, what seems next for the 35 year old?

Recently, rumors have ran rampant about Fernandez signing a deal with the Montreal Canadiens. This rumor was generated largely because of the report that Fernandez was buying a home in Montreal. Despite this rumor's emergence, Fernandez is a Canada native and it's entirely possible he just enjoys the city of Montreal. However, an idea that gives this rumor some possible validity is the idea that Montreal is willing to send Tomas Plekanec along with back-up netminder Jaroslav Halak to San Jose in exchange for number one center Patrick Marleau.

Speaking of everyone's favorite northern California team, the San Jose Sharks are a team who could also use the services of Manny Fernandez as an insurance option to Sharks M.V.P Evgeni Nabokov. Although Nabokov has averaged 67 games in between the iron for the Sharks, one would think the lack of success in the playoffs has left Sharks GM Doug Murray contemplating whether or not more rest for Nabokov would be better for the Sharks come April, May and hopefully for them, June. If so, the Sharks best bet may not be to rely on Thomas Greiss in the event of an injury to Nabby, who currently has just three games of NHL experience under his belt, where he's gone 0-1-1 and has allowed 7 goals in 50 shots.

After Montreal and San Jose, a possible option for Fernandez may reside in Detroit. Considering the departure of Ty Conklin to St. Louis and Detroit's love of experienced NHL goaltenders, Fernandez could possibly be an option to ride the pine and fill in for Chris Osgood when needed. However, the age of both Fernandez and Osgood could play a factor in durability, a potentially large issue for the defending champions of the Western Conference.

A dark horse in Manny's search may be the Los Angeles Kings. While the Kings appear to have their man of the future in Jonathan Quick, a veteran such as Fernandez could be a positive mentor to the 23 year old goalie who nearly snuck the Kings into the playoffs.

Wherever he goes, Manny Fernandez is sure to provide a solid spot as a netminder who could easily play 20 to 30 games at a highly competitive level for a playoff caliber team. Given his injury history it's near impossible that Fernandez can be a full time starter for any NHL club. Given the rather barren market and dwindling cap space, it is very likely that Fernandez could be had on the cheap and as it currently stands he is perhaps the best available goalie still on the market considering the struggles of both Manny Legace and Olaf Kolzig in 2008-09.




While he may not have an NHL team yet, it appears as if Manny Fernandez landed a job doing commercials to get his name out there for potential suitors. (No, it's not really Mandez in the commercial, although this goaltender does sport a number 35 on his jersey).

10 Bruins Games You Need To Watch Not Played At Fenway Park

As jubilant as Boston is that they'll be the host of the third Winter Classic, there's still 81 more games to be played in the Bruins quest for a Stanley Cup. Despite these games having roofs over their heads and lacking a 37 foot tall monster (although they do present us with a near seven foot tall captain), there's no denying that there's still a lot of buzz generating around these games.

10. New York Islanders at Boston Bruins (Saturday Oct. 10th: 7 PM)
Rarely is it a big deal when the 15th place team battles against the 1st place team from the year before, but the buzz about the newest Islander makes it worth the viewing. This game marks the debut of Jonathan Tavares at the TD Bank Garden. If the hype is correct and this kid is on the same level as Sidney Crosby was in his first year, then this battle between the rebuilding Islanders and Bruins should be a good one.

9. Ottawa Senators at Boston Bruins (Saturday Nov. 28th: 7 PM)
Will Dany Heatley still be a member of the Ottawa Senators come November 28th? I suppose that doesn't really matter because the story here is created by Boston's favorite player to hate, Alexei Kovalev. The long despised Canadien traded in his Montreal sweater for a divisional foe Sens jersey, but I'm sure that won't change the way the Garden faithful views him. It'll certainly be interesting to see how loud and long-winded the boo's are for L'artiste, even without the Montreal jersey on.

8. Vancouver Canucks at Boston Bruins (Saturday Feb. 6th: 1 PM)
Much of the excitement behind this game in my opinion, comes from the fact that this is Vancouver's second trip back to Boston since the lockout ended. Since then, both teams have found a new jersey styles and along with new directions for the better within their franchise. This game will also likely pit two of the best goaltenders in the NHL against one another.

7. Montreal Canadiens at Boston Bruins (Thursday Nov. 5th: 7 PM)
It's hard to make the case that any Bruins vs. Canadiens game lacks excitement because, well it's just plain not true. This will be the first regular-season meeting between the two teams since the Bruins four game sweep of the Canadiens in their centennial season. With the Habs adding two former Bruins in Paul Mara and Hal Gill while the Bruins add former Canadien tough-guy Steve Begin, expect things to get awfully chippy (per usual) in this Original Six clash.

6. Boston Bruins at New York Rangers (Sunday Nov. 1st: 1 PM)
This game may be competing against the time slots of most NFL teams, but I'm already locked in on this match-up. The Rangers are coming off a frustrating end to their season as they blew a three-game series lead to bow out of the conference quarter-finals and always provide great competition against Boston. A stat worth mention is the fact that seven out of the last eight meetings between these teams were decided by one-goal, including four over-time thrillers. In these eight match-up's the Bruins are 5-1-2.

5. Toronto Maple Leafs at Boston Bruins (Saturday Dec. 5th: 7 PM)
Fairly new Leafs GM Brian Burke is already putting his pattened Burke-stamp on the Toronto Maple Leafs. As he did in Anaheim, where he put together a Stanley Cup winning team, he's loading the Maple Leafs up with good ole' fashioned North American bruisers. Undoubtedly, his biggest splash came with the robbery of defensemen Mike Komisarek away from, Montreal, a player loathed by Boston fans and players alike. Along with Komisarek, the additions of Colton Orr and Garnet Exelby make the Leafs a lot scrappier and will ultimately provide a great physical contest when they come to the Garden for a Saturday night in Boston. Doesn't this one have Dallas Stars at Boston Bruins Part II written all over it?

4. Washington Capitals at Boston Bruins (Thursday Oct. 1st: 7 PM)
Opening night always has a great feel to it. From the fan fare outside the stadium, to the anticipation of the fans within the building. With Alexander Ovechkin and the rest of the Southeast Division winning Capitals in town, additional excitement may not be needed for most fans.

3. Chicago Blackhawks at Boston Bruins (Thursday Jan. 7th: 7 PM)
The excitement around this one is stemming from this being my pick for the 2010 Stanley Cup. It may be early, but I fully feel that with the additions these teams have made and the continuing development of their young stars into NHL studs that this game has all the makings to be a fine preview of what could be come June.

2. Carolina Hurricanes at Boston Bruins (Saturday Oct. 3rd: 7 PM)
The villian of all villains, Hurricanes forward Scott Walker and the rest of those Cardiac 'Canes will be making their first trip to Boston on October 3rd, the Bruins first Saturday night game and second game of the season. The reception for the boys from Raleigh will certainly be unwelcoming, as a sure to be rowdy Saturday night Garden crowd will let their feelings be known to the team that knocked the Bruins out of the second round. Also, it'll be interesting to see how the Bruins handle their (not announced, but sure to happen) retribution to Scott Walker for his sucker punch to Aaron Ward in Game 5. The series may be over, but as Shawn Thornton said "We (hockey players), have long memories.".

1. Boston Bruins at Montreal Canadiens (Friday Dec. 4th: 7 PM)
This will be the final send off to the Montreal Canadiens centennial (we can only hope) as the Bruins will square off against their most hated rival at the Bell Centre for the first time in the 2009-10 season. This date also marks the first game the Habs ever had in the league, making it the true centennial. With the crowd of 21,000 plus screaming Canadiens fans sure to give this game a playoff feel, expect the players to have an extra jump in their stride. One query I've pondered is whether or not the Habs will break out their prison-jumpsuit throwbacks for this one? We can only pray not.

Stealing The B's Thunder: Montreal To Have Outdoor Game?

Let me preface this piece by saying I hate the Montreal Canadiens. Let me preface that preface by saying I've learned that hating the Montreal Canadiens is like riding the biggest rollercoaster at (Original) Six Flags. One week, they're the cousin whose pants you hide in the tree during vacation just to see him get mad, but you'll help him because he's family. The next week they're the brother who decides to reveal your secret fascination with Hello Kitty products to a girl you fancy on the first date, causing you to curse his name and buy voodoo dolls in his honor.

This one though, this one hits a nerve.

Rumor's are growing that tomorrow when the NHL schedule is released, it'll be revealed that the Montreal Canadiens will take on the Washington Capitals at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, former home of the now extinct Montreal Expos on November 28th. Surely you jest, right? If the NHL really decides to take the spotlight of the outdoor game away from Boston, Montreal's biggest rival, by awarding the Habs an outdoor game to close out their centennial celebration, I for one, will probably require a bucket to vomit in.

The Montreal Canadiens centennial season, or apparently never-ending centennial season is going to continue into the 2009-10 season? Seriously? I guess the All-Star Game and NHL Draft weren't enough to appease the Habs faithful, now you're going to give them an outdoor game before the 2010 Winter Classic? I firmly believe that we've all had enough of this Montreal 100 season brouhaha. It's bad enough we had to watch Mike Komisarek become an All-Star thanks to the Habs voting scam, it's bad enough we had to see the Habs wear their red, white, and blue prison uniforms this season and to make this short (like the Habs newest top line) and to the point: The fans of the other 29 teams in the NHL have had enough.

Congratulations on being 100 years old Montreal, you guys really deserve it.

That doesn't make much sense, does it? Neither does rewarding Montreal an outdoor game after they've been rewarded with every other fan attraction possible for a team who finished in eighth place in the Eastern Conference and underachieved throughout the entire season. Legacy and longevity doesn't mean anything when you look at the Habs recent fortunes. They've boo'd their own goalie, chanted the name of the coach they ran out of town when the team faltered to win with a new coach, have gone 1-8 in their last nine playoff games, and currently have a plethora of question marks heading into the 2009-10 season.

They invade Boston three times a year and in the playoffs with their whistles, bells, face-paintings, and signs in French. Despite the Bruins recent success against the Habs, truth is that they've broke the hearts of Boston fans time and time again and now could be in line to steal the thunder away from Boston and the Winter Classic with an outdoor game of their own that could ultimately seat more people. If Bettman realizes the success he and the marketing department of the NHL have had with these outdoor games, he'll make the right choice (and make Boston a slightly less angry city) and limit it to just one game per year and keep Montreal out of this.

Honestly, when it boils down to it, no one outside the province of Quebec cares how old the Montreal Canadiens are.

Flyers At Fenway On New Year's Day?

Simply put, it's the worst kept secret in the National Hockey League. The Winter Classic on January 1st 2010 will be played at America's Most Beloved Ballpark and home to the Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park. We already know the Bruins are set to play (obviously) as the home team but the B's opponent has been rumored and been a topic for discussion for months now. Currently, the newest rumor gaining legs is the idea that the Philadelphia Flyers will be skating against the black and gold on News Year Day.

At first, we thought it would surely be the Montreal Canadiens, the Bruins most bitter rivals since their introduction into the NHL, but we learned soon after that NBC and the NHL would like to keep the Winter Classic showcasing the American clubs. By simply looking at a map we'll realize that Montreal and Toronto are not in the race.

Surely, it'll be an Original Six team, right? It won't be Chicago or Detroit, they just played a game against each other at Wrigley so who's left? Insert the New York Rangers. Oh that's a classic, the iconic Boston versus New York rivalry that takes place on the Fenway Park diamond only this time the Red Sox and Yankees aren't involved. The history of the two clubs, talent level and television markets would surely go for this, right? The NHL's possibly planning to have a game at Yankee Stadium in the coming year (or two) and there's no way the Islanders are selling that out, so cross the New York Rangers off the list.

The options are dwindling by the minute. Then we learned about the Washington Capitals, an option that sort of left B's fans puzzling "Do we have a rivalry with Washington? I know they're good, but we only play them four times a year?". The thought of Ovechkin and the Caps coming to Fenway hit a nerve with some Bruins fans, feeling that this would give the NHL an excuse to spotlight Ovechkin more than the Bruins and the idea of a game at Fenway Park. No offence to Ovie, but he is quite the show stealer.

However, due in large part to the poor ratings on NBC during Ovechkin and the Capitals Eastern Conference Quarterfinals match-up against the New York Rangers the NHL on NBC has decided to go with someone besides the Caps. The next option in line, the Philadelphia Flyers, intrigues Bruins and NHL fans for quite a few reasons.

These teams may not be in the same division, but there's still a large share of bad blood between the two franchises. The base of the hatred stems from that fateful Saturday matinee against the Flyers on October 27th, 2007. In the first period of a scoreless game, Patrice Bergeron was leveled into the boards on a more-than-questionable hit by Flyers blue-liner Randy Jones. The Bruins went on to lose the game and Bergeron for the next 72 games of the regular season and entire playoffs. However, the rivalry didn't end after that contest.

Later in the year, when the teams met in the City of Brotherly Love (irony), Flyers forward and Sideshow-Bob-look-a-like Scott Hartnell decided he wanted to continue the Flyers team motive of board-and-run when he boarded Bruins defensemen Andrew Alberts, giving Alberts a concussion and ending his season prematurely. He followed that up with an attempt at boarding Bruins captain Zdeno Chara when an agitated Aaron Ward took matters into his own hands with some vigilante justice against the Flyers.

At the end of 2007-08, it was the Bruins who had the last laugh as they went 3-1-0 against the Broad Street Bullies including two over-time thrillers. The hatred between this team's has continued into the 2008-09 season where all four match-ups between the two Eastern Conference contenders was filled with hard hits, penalties and fisticuffs.

As a fan of thriving franchises in the NHL, these two teams match-up perfectly for the contest. Both teams can hit, score and make exceptionally great plays. Both clubs are back to competing at a high-level and are trying to return to the glory they brought to their cities in the 1970's. This may not be Clarke vs. Orr, or the Big Bad Bruins vs. the Broad Street Bullies, but this is as close as we're going to get if Montreal's not coming to Boston.

Michael Ryder: The Boston Bruins X-Factor

On July 1st, the Bruins struck out on landing right-winger Marian Hossa. The rumored max-level contract offered to Hossa didn't quite work out for him as he chose to instead sign with the defending Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings. Rather than going after another top tier player, the Bruins instead made an offer to a familiar foe. Michael Ryder, a 29 year old Newfoundland native ended his career in le blue, blanc et rouge to sign with the Boston Bruins for 3 years at 4 million dollars a season.

The price was oft criticized following a significantly sub-par season for Ryder, who scored 14 goals and finished with just 31 points in 70 games for the Montreal Canadiens. Early in Ryder's career, he became one of Montreal's most powerful powerplay weapons. In Ryder's first 2 seasons, under at-the-time Habs coach Claude Julien, Ryder scored 118 points total in these 2 years, including a total of 55 points on the powerplay. Despite performing well under Guy Carbonneau in the 2006-07 season, 2007-08 was a polar opposite for Ryder as he found himself a healthy scratch in 5 of the Canadiens 9 playoff games.

Despite the poor season, GM Peter Chiarelli and Claude Julien were confident they could return the sniper to this high level of play he established in his career. The signing looked good from the beginning, as Ryder put up 5 points in his first 4 games as a Bruin. However, Ryder went through his cold streaks, showing his inconsistency. Ryder would often get as cold as he would hot, going scoreless in as many as 4 games but follow that up by scoring in bunches.

As the playoffs approached, Boston looked to Ryder to be that 2nd line scoring threat the Bruins hoped he would become. Ryder didn't disappoint. In the series against Montreal, Ryder posted 7 points in 4 games. As the Bruins eliminated the Montreal Canadiens, helped in part by Michael's 2 points, the former Hab felt avenged as he scored his 4th goal of the playoffs, 1 more than he ever scored in 17 career playoff games as Canadien. Ryder doesn't appear to be done, as in Friday night's Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals Ryder scored another goal and added an assist in the 4-1 rout of the Hurricanes, continuing the idea that Ryder is the Bruins x-factor to success in their quest for the cup. Currently, Ryder is tied for 2nd in the NHL for points in the playoffs, tied with Penguins star Sidney Crosby.

The What If's Of Round One

For teams like the Calgary Flames and New Jersey Devils, it's another year of disappointing first round exits. For the Sharks and Flyers, it was a step back in their movement towards a Stanley Cup when considering their playoff success last year. Then you have teams such as the Columbus Blue Jackets and the St. Louis Blues it was a step in the right direction, as their years of development and trips in last place are seeming to pay off as they found themselves in the playoffs. However, for the losers, they can't help but ask "What if...?"

Eastern Conference

David Putty may be on the New Jersey Devils side, but for the second year in a row, Marty and company were sent packing in the 1st round. What if right winger Jamie Langenbrunner didn't miss 3 crucial games of the series with a lower body injury? The Captain posted 3 points in 4 games, despite the Devils only winning 1 of the 4 games he played in. What if the Devils powerplay played up to their potential and did better than the pathetic 3-25 they ended with?

The Philadelphia Flyers may believe they have the "toughest fans in hockey" (they even make t-shirt's that say it) but it couldn't stop them from losing their series to the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice in 6 games. The biggest what if for the Flyers has to be what if leading goal scorer Jeff Carter actually showed up? Carter had just 1 goal with a -1 in the 6 game series, compare that to his 46 goals in the regular season. What if Captain Mike Richards wasn't playing through 2 injured shoulders? Despite his injury, the 24 year old Richards put up 5 points, making us wonder what he could have done if he were at 100%.

John Tortorella was the driving force behind the re-emergence of the New York Rangers, but one bottle throwing incident later the Rangers were sent home on a disgusting Sergei Federov wrist-shot. As Ranger fans pack up their rally towels into their closet along with their Mark Messier jersey, they have a few questions they should ponder. What if Henrik Lundqivst played less than 70 games during the regular season, would he have been better? That argument could be easily shut down as he's played over 70 games in 3 straight Regardless of Henrik, what if John Tortorella didn't throw the bottle at the crowd that was heckling him? The Rangers coach was suspended for Game 6 at Madison Square Garden, a game they could have arguably won had they had their head coach behind the bench. The fact that Sean Avery showed everyone else on the Rangers roster up with his high level of intensity in his play after being benched is a knock to the entire Rangers rosters heart.

What a 100th year celebration for the Montreal Canadiens, in case you didn't know, it was their 100th season. It was rarely talked about (note the sarcasm.). In fact, it was actually their 99th season for those who are curious, but that's a discussion for another day. What if the Montreal Canadiens had a healthy Andrei Markov? In my opinion, that still wouldn't have mattered. The Bruins went 4-0-1 against Montreal with Markov in the line-up. The biggest what if in my opinion was, what if Carey Price was as good as everyone billed him as? The simple answer is, he's just not that good. He's looking a lot more like the next Andrew Raycroft rather than the next Ken Dryden or Patrick Roy with his head-case like attitude and inconsistency.

Western Conference

Yet another year where the San Jose Sharks come into the NHL Playoffs as favorites in the West, and yet another year of disappointment. The team added Anaheim Ducks forward Travis Moen, who went pointless in the 6 game series with a -4 as he got ousted by his former team. What if Joe Thornton decided to show up for more than just Game 5? Excluding Game 5, Jumbo Joe had 0 goals and just 2 assists in the other 5 games, continuing to gain his reputation of being a playoff choke artist. Also, what if the Anaheim Ducks had gone with J.S Giguere as their goaltender? Jonas Hiller absolutely stole the series, the 27 year old Swiss goaltender went 4-1-1 with a 1.65 GAA and 2 shut-outs in the 1st round.

How is Mike Keenan still the coach of the Calgary Flames? The team sputtered in Game 6 against Nikolai Khabibulin and the Chicago Blackhawks and found themselves out in the 1st round for the 4th year in a row. Rumor has it that Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff has a bit of a "problem", whether that's drugs or alcohol isn't really talked about, but at the same time, you can't blame his struggles on a drug rumor. However, what if Kipper didn't play in 76 of the Flames games this season? I don't care if you're Patrick freakin' Roy, that's an absurd amount of games to play and still be effective in the playoffs. It was clear that Miikka was spent, his play spoke for itself as he finished the series with a 3.52 GAA. Also, what if the Flames didn't trade for Olli Jokinen? Jokinen played well in the series, but it's a very possible theory that the Flames lost more depth than they gained when they traded for Olli.

Despite losing half of their salary cap to injuries, the St. Louis Blues salvaged their way into the 6th seed in the Western Conference led by head-coach Andy Murray. The biggest what if of course is, what if the St. Louis Blues were a healthy team? They were without top defensemen Erik Johnson before the season even began and lost LW Paul Kariya in the 1st month of the regular season. Another question Blues fan could ask was, what if the Blues stayed in the 8th seed and faced San Jose? Roberto Luongo proved to be impossible to beat for the Canucks, but if the Blues had drawn San Jose in the 1st round, one could make the argument that the Blues could have pushed the Sharks to 6 or 7 games, and win.

Perhaps there was no team happier to be in the playoffs than the Columbus Blue Jackets. Despite their spectacular season anchored by rookie goaltender Steve Mason, the Jackets fell in 4 games to the defending Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings. Nobody really expected them to take the series, but their lack of a hard-fought 6-7 game series was somewhat of a letdown. However, what if Rick Nash scored more than 1 goal in the 4 game sweep? Nash's only goal came in Game 4's 6-5 loss, certainly a disappointing series for the Columbus Captain. Despite their loss, all is not lost for the Blue Jackets. Steve Mason is a Vezina finalist at just 20 years old and the future is definitely bright for the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Model of Inconsistency: Colin Campbell

It's safe to say NHL VP and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell has already had a busy playoffs. He's already suspended Flyers enforcer Daniel Carcillo for 1 game following his face-off punch to the head of Penguins forward Maxime Talbot. He followed this up by not suspending Flames forward Michael Cammalleri for his in my opinion, far more vicious punch to the head of Martin Havlat. Following last night's battle in Boston, Colin's work is just beginning.

Following Phil Kessel's empty net goal that secured a Bruins victory in Game 1 against the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal agitator Maxim Lapierre took a run at Kessel. Following a scrum in the corner of the ice (and Alex Kovalev losing his stick to a fan reaching through the glass) play resumed with just a few seconds left. The Bruins won the face off and took the puck into their own zone when Montreal "tough guys" Tom Kostopoulos and Mike Komisarek decided to take a run at Bruins players.

Kostopoulos took a run at Matt Hunwick, going for a vicious elbow attempt to the Bruins rookie's head. The attempt was soon followed by mayhem. Komisarek then went at Hunwick and looked to be going for Hunwick's eyes with his fingers (Eye poking? Really Montreal, really?), as if that wasn't enough to get you miffed, they did this of course without Zdeno Chara or Milan Lucic on the ice.

Surely as a bloody eyed Matt Hunwick left the ice you would think some repercussions would be taken against the sore sportsmanlike conduct of the Canadiens. Following Carcillo's late game punch, Campbell went on a rant about the non-toleration of "message sending" in games that were decided. How was this any different? Going at a players eye when the game is out of reach and in it's final seconds isn't Montreal's feeble attempt at sending a message to Boston?

Fact is, Montreal was frustrated. They dressed Laraque, they even put the guy on the top line and they still couldn't beat Boston. They tried playing Boston's style of play, and still lost. They're without Markov, still. In a game where the Bruins played like garbage for almost two whole periods the Habs still could not pull off the upset. So what happened? Quite simply, Montreal lost it. What's your thoughts on their actions Mr.Campbell?

"You've got to let the games unfold. You've got to let hockey be hockey, playoffs be playoffs. You've got to let the energy flow. And then, when they cross that line, you do what you have to do." a somewhat-comical Campbell said about the incident in Boston. So what will he do when that said line was crossed? Nothing.

Eye-gauging and eye-poking is nothing new to Colin Campbell. In March 2009, Campbell suspended Dallas Stars pest and Boston nemesis Steve Ott following an attempted eye gauge of Ducks forward Travis Moen. Ott's suspension was for one game. However by Campbell's standards, a bloody Hunwick leaving the ice doesn't prove to be enough to send a message to the cowards of Montreal. Colin Campbell once again proves himself as the model of inconsistency in the NHL.

Big Georges Laraque Talks Big About Series

One can argue this is the series that Bob Gainey signed him for. Him, is of course "Big" Georges Laraque, the oft-named best enforcer in the NHL. When the Montreal Canadiens signed the 32 year old enforcer to a 3 year contract that payed him 1.5 million dollars a year the reason was evident: to try and match the Boston Bruins physical style of play. Gainey gave a quite simple explanation to the media for the signing on July 3rd, 2008 stating "We reached the point last season where our players got better and they attracted more attention from the opposition, we thought it would be good if we could sign a robust, physical player like Georges.".

Although the signing seemed like a plus at the time, it's safe to say things haven't really worked out the way Georges expected. When Georges wasn't hampered by a groin injury, he often found himself in the Press Box. In fact, Laraque suited up in just 33 games for the Habs, his lowest total since his rookie 1997-98 season. Even in those 33 games, Laraque found a dance partner just 9 times, posting a 6-2-1 record according to HockeyFights.com. One of those losses came against Bruins tough-guy Shawn Thornton, but even in Laraque's worst season of his career, he's still finding time to mouth to the press.

Today during an interview with KCAC in Montreal, "BGL" went on to say that Shawn Thornton was "not in his league" and was too small to compete with Georges. Really Laraque? Have you noticed this from your seat in the 9th level of the TD Banknorth Garden? How about all 2 of the games you've played against Boston, was Thornton too afraid to fight you? Oh, you have an answer..great! "A few of his teammates told me that he was scared of me before the October 15th game in Montreal". Really, so let me get this right, Shawn Thornton's teammates told you they're afraid of you? I have an incredibly hard time believing that.

Laraque wasn't done just yet as he went on to further talk about Thornton, "If he wants to step up to me, especially in Boston, I'll be more than happy to go with him because I'll shut up the fans at the Garden.". Wow Georges, those are pretty tough words for a guy who has averaged just over 7 minutes a game, when he actually plays. To quote UConn basketball Coach Jim Calhoun "My best advice to you? Shut up."

Fact is Georgy, your goon hockey doesn't happen in the playoffs. So yeah, go ahead and go after Thornton, I'd love to see Bob "Oscar The Grouch look-a-like" Gainey suit you up for Game 1 because in order to do that, he'd have to take an actual hockey player out of the line-up. As for "shutting the fans at the Garden up", it's going to be pretty hard to shut us up when you're in the box for interference as the Bruins are on the powerplay.

2009 NHL Playoffs: Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Predictions

In the Eastern Conference, it was the year of the Bruins. Bruins stood atop of almost every offensive and goaltending catergory in the NHL and even Coach Claude Julien is considered the odds on favorite to win the Jack Adams Award. This year in the East also gave fans of teams like the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens severe heart attacks as their teams fell in and out of the playoff race as the season went on, but all three find themselves in the dance. It was also a year of disappointment as the Florida Panthers became so close to capturing their first playoff berth in 8 years, only to be denied by a Montreal overtime loss.

(1) Boston Bruins vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens - Seriously, what would the NHL Playoffs be without a Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens showdown? The Bruins come in as the East's top seed, led by Norris-favorite Zdeno Chara and the best offense in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the Habs late season push has to be credited to the revival of the powerplay in Montreal. However, the Habs are without leader of the powerplay Andrei Markov, who's sidelined with a knee injury and Mathieu Schneider is playing through what was at one point considered a season ending shoulder injury. With Montreal putting their three best offensive players on the same line (Tanguay-Koivu-Kovalev) their offense will surely lack depth and the inconsistent goaltending of Carey Price will ultimately make them unable to get the job done. Prediction: Bruins win in 5.

(2) Washington Capitals vs. (7) New York Rangers - Perhaps one of the most intriguing series in the NHL Playoffs is the battle between the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers. The Rangers have proved to be a worthy adversary for every team they face since the trading deadline. For Washington, the juggernaut that is Alexander Ovechkin is coming off yet another MVP-like season and has one of the NHL's best supporting casts with Niklas Backstrom, Mike Green and Alexander Semin skating alongside him. The biggest question mark for the Capitals will be in net, Jose Theodore. Theodore has lacked the consistency he had throughout his tenure in Colorado and is by far less superior to Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. Prediction: Rangers win in 7.

(3) New Jersey Devils vs. (6) Carolina Hurricanes - Is this not the most boring series in the entire playoffs? Combine the Devils sleep-inducing defensive trap style of play and the over all bland team that is Carolina Hurricanes and what do you have? This series. The mystery for the New Jersey Devils is which Martin Brodeur will show up? Will it be the Marty of old Devils fans know and love or the Marty who's struggled since returning from his bicep injury. The Hurricanes have been on a tear since acquiring Erik Cole from the Oilers, and Cole has responded well to his return to Raleigh, posting 15 points in 17 games with the 'Canes. Prediction: Hurricanes win in 6.

(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) Philadelphia Flyers - The interstate rivals meet again in a rematch of the Eastern Conference Finals. There's no doubting that these two teams hate one another, as the battle for Pennsylvania continues in the 1st round. The Penguins are on fire since the hiring of Dan Bylsma behind the bench while Sidney Crosby has found his stride just in time for the playoffs. With the offensive additions of Bill Guerin and Chris Kunitz, and add in Russian sensation Evgeni Malkin, the Penguins have surely regained the offensive strength they had during last years Playoff run. Meanwhile, across the state in Philly, the Flyers late seasons struggles due to lack of strong goaltending left them in the fifth seed and without home ice advantage, something they fought for all season long. Prediction: Penguins win in 7.

Bruins vs. Canadiens: Is It Fate?

Hatred. That's the one word and emotion most Bruins fans become consumed with when analyzing the Boston vs. Montreal rivlary. There is no debate, the Bruins vs. Canadiens rivlary is the head-liner of the NHL. These two teams have played head to head against eachother more than any other pair of teams in NHL history, and their 32 all-time playoff matchups is an NHL post-season record. Now, with just five days remaining in the NHL season, could the Bruins and Canadiens be set for playoff match-up number 33?

The Bruins and Habs rivalry has been signified by one thing: Montreal dominance. In the 32 playoff showdowns, Boston has left the series as the victor just 7 times. In fact, the sheer win and loss tallies aren't even kind to the Bruins as in these 32 match-ups the Habs are 90-64. The most thrilling series in recent memory is of course the 2008 1st round match-up between the two Northeast Division rivals where a Bergeron-less Bruins took the Habs to a seventh game after what's considered the greatest hockey game played in the TD Banknorth Garden's history only to be dismantled easily by Carey Price and the Canadiens in Game 7.

Boston's longest and perhaps only stretch of success against the Montreal Canadiens came in the early 90's when Ray Bourque and the Boston Bruins beat Patrick Roy and the Montreal Canadiens in four consecutive years in the playoffs. This success was short lived however as in the proceeding three series, Montreal has won all of them and in two of the three series the Bruins have entered as the higher seed with home ice advantage.

Boston hasn't always been the victim, especially not this season. The Bruins have simply made the Canadiens look foolish this season, going 4-0-1 against les Habitants in their centennial season. Boston's emergence as the Eastern Conference's top team and Montreal's incredibly disappointing season has surely felt as if the tables have turned between the two franchises. With the Canadiens fighting for their playoff lives and the teams set to due battle tomorrow at the TD Banknorth Garden, is fate about to take a favorable turn for the Boston Bruins?

The rollercoaster that has been the Montreal Canadiens season will take yet another turn tomorrow night in Boston. The Habs are coming into Boston hanging onto the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference by a single point over the New York Rangers and three points away from falling into the 9th seed and out of the playoff picture. If the Bruins were to win tomorrow night and beat the Canadiens for the 5th time out of the 6 meetings between the arch-rivals the Canadiens will surely be in a spot to slip into the 8th seed, and possibly even the 9th seed.

If the Habs are to fall into the 8th seed, we'd be seeing yet another Boston vs. Montreal series. As much as the history tortures the Bruins from a concussed Rocket Richard putting one by and beating Sugar Jim Henry to Carey Price's 5-0 shutout in Game 7 last year the idea that Montreal is in Boston's head was been made clear and sometimes overpowering. However, heading into the 2009 playoffs there's no doubting the advantage is in the Bruins corner.

The Canadiens have lost leading scorer Andrei Markov for atleast three weeks with a knee injury while Mathieu Schneider's season is over due to a shoulder injury. Without their top defensive pairing and powerplay weapons, the Habs are a significantly weaker team. Take into account the Bruins high powered offense and the inconsistency of Carey Price and this only adds to the Bruins advantage. That being said, a win tomorrow in Boston for Montreal could be a momentum boost for the Habs if they were to head into the playoffs against Boston. Like previously stated, without Markov and Schneider on defense the Habs are a much weaker defensive team and with Tim Thomas expected to be between the pipes tomorrow night and B's coming off a frustrating loss against Ottawa, don't bank on the Habs locking up the 7th seed just yet.

Ideal Match-ups: Eastern Conference

Currently, there's 10 teams in the race for the Eastern Conference playoffs. Unfortunately for 2 of them, there's only 8 spots. With the Bruins, Devils, Caps and Flyers virtually being locks for playing beyond April 12th that leaves 6 teams vying for 4 spots. With 27 days remaining in the NHL season and a break in action for 26 teams tonight it's a good time to see what our ideal match-ups for the 1st round will be in the East.

Boston Bruins (1 seed) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (8 seed) - This match-up would undoubtedly leave Bruins fans salivating. The Bruins swept the season series against Cam Ward and the 'Canes. This series would either give the Bruins an easy 1st round sweep or 5 game series win or could turn out to be a grueling 6 or possibly even 7 game series. Considering both teams high-powered offensive style of play this series would definitely be entertaining for a 1 vs. 8 match-up. Prediction: Bruins win in 5.

New Jersey Devils (2 seed) vs. New York Rangers (7 seed) - Why wouldn't like this? It'd be the rematch of last seasons 1st round match-up between the Rangers and Devils. All eyes would surely be on Sean Avery and Martin Broduer, who got into a battle during last years series which led to the "Avery Rule" being implemented into the NHL, disallowing players from deliberately screening the goalie away from the play. Prediction: Devils win in 7.

Washington Capitals (3 seed) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (6 seed) - A showdown of NHL cover boys: Alex Ovechkin vs. Sidney Crosby. The young duos of Semin and Ovechkin vs. Crosby and Malkin would definitely bring in the ratings and coverage the NHL could use to start off the playoffs. Although the Malkin vs. Ovechkin rivalry has been 'put to rest', one couldn't help but think a 7 game series would reawaken the feud. Prediction: Capitals win in 6.

Philadelphia Flyers (4 seed) vs. Montreal Canadiens (5 seed) - A rematch of last year's 2nd round match-up where the Flyers took down the Habs in 5 games. The Habs are currently in a tough spot but have been playing better under new coach and GM Bob Gainey. Prediction: Canadiens win in 6.

This would set the table for a Bruins vs. Canadiens conference semi-finals match-up and a Devils vs. Capitals semi-final. These two match-ups would certainly be two tilts for the ages. And frankly, I don't want to hazard a guess on what could happen in these series given the talent of all 4 squads.