Awesome Audio of Tom Kostopoulos Chirping Corey Perry

Listen here for some great audio of Calgary Flames forward Tom Kostopoulos chirping Anaheim Ducks Hart Trophy candidate Corey Perry. The incident occurred after Cam Fowler scored to put the Ducks ahead 2-1 at that point in the first period.

Two things I love about this:

1. The language used at about 20 seconds into the video.

and

2. Chicken-Parm-Ray Ferraro pausing so his mic can pick up this fantastic gem - God bless you Razor.

Tonight's Matchups

Huge night in the NHL on Thursday as 18 teams are in action with many games having playoff implications.

Out in the Easten Conference:

Penguins vs Flyers - inner-state rivals faceoff in the City of Brotherly Love as the Pens look to gain some ground on the conference-leading Flyers.

Montreal vs Boston - all eyes (especially of league officials) will be on this game as the two teams take to the ice for the first time against each other of Chara's hit on Max Pacioretty. The Montreal forward suffered a fractured vertabrae and a concussion on the play. More importantly, the Canadiens sit just three points behind the Bruins for the division lead though Boston has two games in hand.

Toronto @ Colorado - the Leafs look to keep their playoff chances alive in a critical matchup against the struggling Avalanche. Toronto sits 5 points out of the 8th playoff position with only eight games remaining; every game is a must win for them.

Let's take a look at the Western Conference cluster-f###:

Anaheim vs Nashville - If the Stars' loss to Anaheim in OT last night that kept them on the outside looking in wasn't bad enough, the last thing they want/need tonight is this game decided in OT or a shootout. The Predators play 6 of their remaining 8 games at home. The Ducks' oldest player, Teemu Salanne, scored the game-tying goal with just over 5 seconds left in regulation last night in Dallas, and their youngest player, Cam Fowler, scored the winner in overtime off a 2 on 1 feed from Bobby Ryan.

Columbus vs Phoenix - At 7-2-1 in their last ten, the Coyotes look to keep pace with the Sharks as they continue to press for the Pacific Division lead. The title could come down to their home-and-home against San Jose to close out the regular season but it starts tonight against Columbus.

San Jose @ Los Angeles - Speaking of the Sharks, they'll play their second game in as many nights against the Kings. If the playoffs started today, these two teams would be a first round matchup so expect both teams to bring their 'A' game. Since the Sharks are on the back-end of back to back games, Antii Niemi may get the night off. A win for the Kings will put them ahead of idle Chicago for the fifth seed.

I know the NCAA basketball tourney has some big games tonight, including my alma mater, but we're all about hockey here at Talkin' Puck!

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Quick Thoughts on the East

I was talking to a friend about the Pens and the Eastern Conference today. Here is a quick blurb on the way I see things as they stand now:

Boston and Philly are the beasts in the east. Montreal isn't big enough to go deep especially if they go 7 games in round 1 but have potenial to upset like last season. Washington is garbage. I'm done thinking that they are just having trouble executing new systems -I think its more on coaching. Atlanta, Carolina, TO, and Buffalo all have a chance to finish in the bottom two seeds but will most likely get smoked in round 1. TB is sitting pretty, they weren't supposed to be as good as they are right now but with Stevie Y at the helm, Boucher selling his ways to his team, and talent like Stammer et al they're kind of a sexy pic if Roli can stay healthy and consistent.

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2011 NHL All-Star Game Thoughts and Musings

The following are some notes I took while watching the ASG last night. I'm so happy god created DVR's:

Should just be renamed: World’s Greatest Game of Drop-in

Positionally, Ovechkin didn't play too differently than he does in a regular season game. Worriesome.

Kane’s sauce pass on Byfuglien’s first period goal was filthy.

I’d be surprised if Ed Olczyk can walk and chew gum at the same time. I’m sure he has some very entertaining stories from his playing days though.

Every time Doc Emrick couldn’t tell which player had the puck, he just called said player, “Toews”.

To say the players overpass is an understatement, but most of the passes are, down right, sick.

The Ron Francis interview during the second period was great because a) Ron “The Franchise” is awesome and b) because Doc Emrick barely spoke for about 10 minutes.

A lot of shots off the post. Hot.

Kesler’s microphone coming loose then flopping around behind him during play then Ovi passing it out of the zone once it fell to the ice was painful yet hilarious to watch.

Crowd cheered loudest when Staal scored in the third – to be expected.

Love it that Ovi threw his stick at Matt Duchene while he was on a breakaway – the first ever in All-Star Game in history.

I love Charissa Thompson.

I don’t remember if Nash-Staal-Perry were used on a line in the Olympics but that’s one scary line.

Prior to Dan Boyle’s assist very late in the 3rd, I had forgotten he was even in the game.

Glad it was a close game and happy to see Patrick Sharp win MVP.

Now that the show is over, teams now realize that there are 28 days until the trade deadline and every point counts going down the stretch.

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Comeback Kids (or Vets)

The NHL pre-season concludes Wednesday with exhibition games matching NHL teams with European clubs. After these challenge games, the contests will count and I can stop banging my head against the wall.

Here are five players I expect to bounce-back from disappointing 2009-2010 campaigns:

5. Brad Boyes

After career-highs in goals (43) in 2007-2008 then points (72) in 2008-2009, the St. Louis Blues' sniper posted just 14 goals and 42 points last season. Boyes, who's in his third year of his 4-year $16 million contract, struggled - as did his team - to find the back of the net all season and was probably shopped at the trade deadline by the Blues but he comes with a hefty cap hit. I think finding more consistency as a team, will allow Boyes to get back on track as the goal-scorer we've become acustomed to.

4. Jerome Iginla

The two-time fifty goal-scorer saw his point totals drop off by twenty last season after the Flames missed out on a playoff birth for the first time since the 2002-2003 season. Management failed to find a suitable center that meshed with 'Iggy' even after Olli Jokinen came and went through Calgary. Though Jokinen is back for his second stint with the Flames, Iginla will likely start the season with youngster, Mikael Backlund, at center. The Flames will need Iginla to start the year strong as forwards David Moss, Ales Kotalik, Matt Stajan, and Daymond Langkow are all out with injuries.

3. Vincent Lecavalier

Granted, the Lightning haven't made the playoffs in three seasons but Vinny Lecavalier's goal totals have dropped from 40 in 2007-2008 to 29 in 08-09 and just 24 in 09-10. You would expect the former Rocket Richard winner to score more than twenty-four goals when he's making $10 millions dollars this season and is only in his second year of his 11 year $85 million extension. With the management overhaul in Tampa Bay, the addition of Simon Gagne, and the continuing ascension of Steven Stamkos, Lecavalier is poised to bring this franchise out of the depths of the South-Least division.

2. Dion Phanuef

The newly appointed captain of the Maple Leafs saw such a drop off in his play, that he was traded from Calgary in just his 5th NHL season. With a defensive group in Toronto big enough to concuss all of Buffalo's top 6 forwards, Phanuef can regain his confidence and re-establish his game in a city where the team is under the microscope but still expected to miss the playoffs.

1. Steve Mason

A true testament to the 'Sophomore Slump', Mason followed up his Calder-winning season with a dismal performance in 2009-2010. His GAA swelled from 2.99 in 08-09 to 3.06 in 09-10 along with an increase of his SV% from 0.916 to 0.901. Mason will certainly have to perform better if the Blue Jackets are to make the playoffs for only the 2nd time in this being their 10th season. The 6'4 net-minder reportedly came into camp in tremendous shape and started skating much earlier this off-season.

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Let's Drop the Puck

Back to work for NHL players Friday as training camps open league-wide. Players will report to their respective teams for physicals and testing then hitting the ice tomorrow. 

The end of this interesting off-season was capped off by rookie camps and tournaments with many of the rookies/prospects earning a roster spot for main camp. The Vancouver Canucks hosted a YoungStars tournament in Penticton, British Columbia, my old stomping grounds when I attended an international tournament at the Okanagen hockey school. Fans were treated to some very entertaining games and were able to catch a glimpse of many first-rounders including Taylor Hall and Cam Fowler. Anaheim, San Jose, Calgary, and Edmonton were among the teams that were invited by Vancouver. 

For the players already with positions secured with the big clubs, some will sport a sweater with a new logo in the front for the first time ever - Mike Modano, Marty Turco, and Alex Frolov are to name a few. How will these players prove they still have what it takes to make impacts on their new teams?

Expectations will be high for Ilya Kovalchuk after his contract saga that resulted in rejections, investigations, a mandate on future long-term contracts, and fining his new team the New Jersey Devil for $3 million plus some draft picks. Kovalchuk's $100 million contract will certainly send a current Devil packing in order to move the team under the cap - you have to wonder how that's going to impact the Devils' locker room dynamic. I personally think the whole situation is setting itself up for a bust, but that's me. 

The Washington Capitals will do their best "San Jose Sharks" and "San Diego Chargers" impressions as it won't matter how their regular season finishes, they'll be measured in post-season success. Capitals' forward, Niklas Backstrom, told the media yesterday that after going up 3-1 against the Canadiens, the team relaxed which ultimately lead to the come-from-behind win by Montreal. 

Pre-season games will start next week and the regular season will begin the first week of October. It's finally starting to feel a lot like hockey season. 

Look to the East

We have a tighter playoff race in the Eastern Conference as there is more of a chance for teams to slip in an out of the cut coming down the stretch.

Before action got underway tonight, teams 6th-8th were all tied at 82 pts with 6 games remaining for all three teams. Atlanta, currently on the outside looking in, has 5 games remaining with 3 of the 5 on the road and will face Washington twice, Pittsburgh twice, and New Jersey once. So mathematically they're very much in the hunt, but those are very tough opponents to face especially with only 2 wins in their previous 5 games. I see them falling short.

The Rangers have more of a chance to find their way into the post season with 3 of their last 5 against teams that will miss the playoffs and 2 of their games against the Flyers for 4 VERY important points up for grabs. The Flyers are one of the teams mentioned tied at 82 pts. I believe the Rangers fate will be determined by these two final games and I think they'll sneak into the playoffs for a possible first round rematch of last year's quarterfinal against Washington.

We'll know more on Sunday when Philadelphia will have played 3 of their remaining 5 games by the time we are dreading going to work on Monday.

3/30 Results and notes...

Amongst the victors last night emerged St. Louis, LA, Detroit, and Vancouver. The Detriot win and LA loss moved the Wings into 6th and sent the Kings into 7th place in the Western Conference standings.

Phoenix and Chicago look to avenge the losses they incurred last night as they faceoff against Calgary and Minnesota respectivley. A must win game for the Flames tonight as they trail Colorado by 4 points for the 8th and final playoff spot. Colorado hosts Anaheim tonight.

More to come on the Eastern Conference playoff picture.