hockey
We talk pucks and objects of that kind. We yell, complain, and analyze in the language of hockey fandom. Gretzky can do no wrong.
Boston Bruins Clinch; Is This Their Last Chance?
The Boston Bruins are back in the playoffs; they entered Saturday's action needing only one point to clinch, and they ended up getting two with their 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. For the Bruins, it has been a season of questions, inconsistency, and uncertainty, especially when it comes to their chances of winning another Stanley Cup. It was in 2011 that the Bruins won a seven-game Stanley Cup Final over the Vancouver Canucks, but with every season that has passed, that Cup becomes more and more of a distant memory. The Bruins made two additional Cup Final appearances in 2013 and 2019, but even the latter year's appearance was seen as an aberration, with some saying that the Toronto Maple Leafs should have defeated them in Round 1 that year.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Can the Tampa Bay Lightning Strike Three Times in the Same Place?
It is immensely hard to win the Stanley Cup--20 of the NHL's 32 teams have done so, that's only 62.5% of the league. However, the Tampa Bay Lightning are one of those 20 teams who have hoisted Lord Stanley's Cup. It is even harder, especially nowadays, to win back-to-back Stanley Cups, but the Lightning are the most recent team to do so--winning in 2020 and 2021. The Lightning won 4-3 in overtime against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, April 14, but prior to Anthony Cirelli's overtime goal, they had already clinched a playoff spot when the New York Islanders lost in regulation. With that, the Lightning now have a chance to do something that no team has done in 40 years: three-peat.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Sweet 16: The Penguins' Playoff Streak Continues
There are only three certainties in life: death, taxes, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs in Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Penguins had a chance to clinch a spot on Tuesday with a regulation win over the New York Islanders on Tuesday, April 12, but the game went to OT and later a shootout, with the Islanders winning. With the point, the Penguins entered Thursday's rematch with the chance to clinch with a win of any kind, but they took care of it in regulation. A 6-3 victory over the Isles, and once again, the Penguins are playoff bound.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Leafs Return to Playoffs and Auston Matthews Can't Stop Scoring
For the sixth straight season, the Toronto Maple Leafs are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, becoming the fifth team to lock in a spot, and the first Canadian club to do so this season. The last part means that the pressure is on for a Canadian club to win a Stanley Cup for the first time since 1993, but that's another story. The central focus is this team's goals; of course, the main one is the Stanley Cup, but they have to do something they haven't done in 18 years: win a playoff series.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Rangers Power Their Way to Playoffs
Start spreading the news! The New York Rangers are playoff-bound, with their 5-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators placing them in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. For the Rangers, this is their second playoff appearance in three seasons, and it comes eight years after their amazing run to the Stanley Cup Final back in 2014. That year was the first of back-to-back years that saw the Rangers reach the Final Four, but since then, the Rangers won only one playoff series, doing so in 2017. The Rangers were part of the 2020 playoffs inside the Toronto bubble, but they were the only team who was actually swept out of the Qualifying Round.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Hurricanes Clinch Playoff Spot; Remain in Two Tight Races
On April 7, 2022, the Carolina Hurricanes joined the Florida Panthers and the Colorado Avalanche as playoff teams this season, doing so with their 5-3 comeback victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Not only did the Hurricanes clinch a spot in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but they also reached 100 points for only the 2nd time in franchise history. I'm not just talking about the Hurricanes' history, I mean overall. The Hurricanes began play in the World Hockey Association as the New England Whalers in 1972, and joined the NHL as the Hartford Whalers in 1979, and in that time, the Whalers never had a 100-point season. The Whalers moved to North Carolina and became the Hurricanes, and they achieved their first (and only other) 100-point season during the 2005-06 season (112 points), which saw them win the Stanley Cup.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Clinch, but the Mission Isn't Complete Yet
The Colorado Avalanche became the second team to clinch a spot in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the first Western Conference team to do so. The Avs entered their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins only needing one more point in the standings to get in, and decided to go for two and the proverbial jugular. Colorado won 6-4 behind two goals from Nathan MacKinnon, as well as Josh Manson and Arturri Lehkonen scoring their first goals since being traded to the team, and for the Avs, it's a season series sweep, with both wins coming in a span of four days.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Florida Panthers Become the 1st to Clinch; Can They Finally Win a Series?
We finally have a playoff clinch in the 2021-22 NHL season. The Florida Panthers defeated the Buffalo Sabres by a score of 5-3, behind a pair of goals from Anthony Duclair, and a late power play goal by Mackenzie Weeger that sealed the game. With the win, the Panthers became the first team to clinch a spot in this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs, locking in their third straight playoff appearance, but only their eighth in the team's history. We know the story; the Florida Panthers debuted in the 1993-94 season, the same year as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and the same year that the Minnesota North Stars moved to Dallas. Their third season was their most successful one, as they went 41-31-10 and reached the playoffs for the very first time--a run that saw them go all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, where they were swept by the Colorado Avalanche.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
What Went Wrong: Canadiens Eliminated After Dream Season
We have our first elimination of the 2021-22 NHL season, and it belongs to the Montréal Canadiens. The Washington Capitals' 4-3 shootout win over the Buffalo Sabres on March 25 ended up eliminating the Canadiens (who were idle on that evening) from playoff contention; marking the end of a very disappointing season that has seen so many unexpected negatives. The Canadiens' last two seasons prior to this one were surprisingly stellar, and to think, the team's good seasons and good fortune were the result of the league being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
A Wild "Flower" Blooms in Minnesota
I remember learning about the Minnesota Wild's debut into the NHL two years before it actually happened. The Wild were part of an expansion wave that spread out during the 1990s and entering the 21st century; in fact they were one of four teams who debuted in three straight seasons. 1998 gave us the Nashville Predators, 1999 gave us the Atlanta Thrashers (who moved to Winnipeg in 2011), and 2000 gave us not only the Wild, but the Columbus Blue Jackets as well. It only took them three seasons to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time, and it would see them reach the Western Conference Final.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
Stand Back! The Hurricanes Are Coming Through!
Hard to believe that it's been 25 years since the Hartford Whalers moved from Connecticut to Raleigh, North Carolina and became the Carolina Hurricanes. The Whalers' relocation to Raleigh made them the 3rd straight team to move, following the footsteps of the Quebec Nordiques in 1995 (becoming the Colorado Avalanche) and the original Winnipeg Jets in 1996 (becoming the Phoenix Coyotes). In the quarter-century they've played in Raleigh, the Carolina Hurricanes have enjoyed a level of success that they never had in Hartford, which included two trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 2002 and 2006, with the latter year seeing them hoist the Cup.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
All That Glitters is Not Golden Knights
I've written two stories on the Vegas Golden Knights already. The first one centered on how the team and their fans have become immensely unlikable in less than five years of existence. The elitism that has blanketed the culture of the Golden Knights is due to the results of their inaugural year. As we all know, Year One saw the Golden Knights finish first in the Pacific Division, surpass the 100-point mark, and reach the Stanley Cup Final. They even won the first game of the Final, but lost the next four, but in spite of the defeat, just getting there on their first try was enough to pump the egos of the Golden Knights and their fans. They expected this every year. I'd go as far as to say that the team felt they deserved to be handed the Cup on the following year.
By Clyde E. Dawkins12 months ago in Unbalanced
