Round 2...fight, fight!

I'm pretty pleased with my first round picks. I got the lengths of the series incorrect, but I did pick 6 of 8 correctly, including all 4 in the East. So I'm sticking with my picks in the East - Carolina over Boston (in 6) and Washington over Pittsburgh (7). In the West, I'll take Vancouver over Chicago (6) and Anaheim over Detroit (6). Thoughts?

Wild week in Minnesota

In less than a week, the Minnesota Wild's organization was flipped around. The only coach in club history, Jacques Lemaire, resigned earlier in the week, and then the team told the only GM in club history, Doug Risebrough, that his contract would not be renewed for next year. The Wild have had that tandem working together for a decade with a fair amount of success: a run to the conference finals in 2003, a team that has been competitive almost every season, and a strong developmental system that has produced Marian Gaborik, Nicklas Backstrom, and Brent Burns, among others. So the question is whether the Wild made the right decision in letting Risebrough go; the initial answer seems to be that they did. With Lemaire and his stifling defensive style moving on, it seems to be a natural time for a shift in philosophy in Minnesota, and that meant that Risebrough had to go. The Wild should look at bringing in a GM and coach who will work on the offense, especially with Marian Gaborik debating his future. New owner Craig Leipold has said that he has candidates with experience (like Pat Quinn) on his list, as well as new faces. I think he should look for a newer face for the GM, but hire someone with experience as the coach: perhaps the maligned Paul Maurice, who is known for his offensive schemes and working with role players. I think the Wild will respond well to the change, and that they will be back on top of the division as soon as next year, especially with the problems in Edmonton, Calgary, and Colorado.

Turner's first-round picks

Eastern Conference:
Boston vs. Montreal - I am almost tempted to pick Montreal. Almost. Bruins in 6.
Washington vs. New York Rangers - Washington in 5. Ovechkin 5 goals.
New Jersey vs. Carolina - The red-hot Hurricanes against the slow but steady Devils. I think momentum wins out. Carolina in 7.
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia. The rematch of last year's conference finals comes way too early for both teams, but especially for Philly. Pittsburgh in 6.

For the record, that makes my second round Boston vs. Carolina and Washington vs. Pittsburgh, which I think will lead to a third round of Carolina vs. Washington, with Washington as the finalist.

Western Conference:
San Jose vs. Anaheim - The best possible match for the Sharks and the worst for the Ducks. San Jose in 5.
Detroit vs. Columbus - Columbus will put up a fight, but Detroit is too strong. Detroit in 6.
Vancouver vs. St. Louis - The Canucks are hot; though the Blues are too, they are no match for Luongo. Canucks in 6.
Chicago vs. Calgary - Easily the toughest series in the West to predict and for the players. I pick Iggy to will the Flames to the win in 7.

That would make my second round as San Jose over Calgary in 6 and Vancouver over Detroit in 7. San Jose and Vancouver battle it out in 7 games in the Conference final, which Vancouver wins. Yes, I'm seriously picking Vancouver to come out of the West. And it's not just the coastal air.

So I think Vancouver and Washington will play in the "someone's finally getting a cup final", and the more I think about it, I think Vancouver is winning the Cup. It sounds ridiculous, so call it a gut feeling.

The Mule Stays

Every time I think the Detroit Red Wings are pooched for cap space GM Ken Holland finds a way to squeeze another player under it. His latest signing is Johan Franzen, who signed an 11 year 43 million dollar contract. I personally am against long term contracts like this one, unless the player is question is a franchise player (Mike Richards - good, Daniel Briere - bad) and I wouldn't put Franzen in the franchise player category. Given the economic downturn, and the possibility that the cap will drop over the next few seasons, this is a questionable move, but long term contracts are always high-risk high-reward propositions. If the cap suddenly jumps a few million Holland will look like a genius. I'm not worried about the Wings depth either. Detroit is very good at taking other teams cast-offs and turning them into solid everyday players (i.e. Dan Cleary).

Sometimes They're Top Notch Players After All

It's easy to be skeptical or doubt your players especially with the fact that they are drafted so young. The chances for a 1st or 2nd rounder to make the NHL and have an impact are 50/50 at best. Early this year there were many highly touted youngsters who struggled, some have turned it around, while others haven't. Then there are the few highly touted youngsters who have struggled and are now proving that they were worth the hype. Here are 6 such youngsters who look like they'll be top line players after all.


Kyle Okposo 63 GP, 18 G, 20 A, 38 Points on NYI
Through December 20th, his first 21 games he had only 2 goals, 3 assists, since then he has had 16 goals and 17 assists in 42 games. This young kid is developing some chemistry with Josh Bailey and if the Islanders could add another scoring forward to this line, they could be one of the best in hockey in a couple years. Expect Okposo to score 30 to 40 goals ten times in his career.

Steven Stamkos 74 GP, 20 G, 22 A, 42 Points for TB
Through January 8th, his first 40 games he had just 4 goals and 10 assists, since then he has had 16 goals and 12 assists in 34 games. It took some time for him to get his confidence back after the Barry Melrose debacle but it seems like Stamkos is as good as we all thought. His slapshot on the power play is phenomenal.

Tobias Enstrom 77 GP, 5 G, 24 A, 29 Points for ATL
Through Feb. 23rd, his first 60 games he had just 1 goal and 11 assists, since then he has had 4 goals and 13 assists in 17 games. He was a solid offensive defenseman last year but lost a lot of his opportunity with Mathieu Schneider around. Since Schneider's departure he has produced exceptionally.

Sam Gagner 71 Gp, 14 G, 23 A, 37 Points for Edmonton
Through Dec. 16th, his first 22 games he had just 1 goal and 5 assists, since then he has had 13 goals and 18 assists in 49 games. Through the first quarter of the season it looked like Gagner was going to endure the dreaded sophomore slump. Instead he's turned it around and though his stats haven't improved over last season, he's proven he can deal with adversity.

David Backes 77 GP, 26 G, 21 A, 47 Points for St. Louis
Through Dec. 3rd, his first 23 games, he had 4 goals and 4 assists, since then he`s scored 22 goals and 17 assists in his last 54 games. Backes has been around for a couple seasons but finally seems to be transforming into a solid power forward. He also has 159 penalty minutes and has really developed as a premier physical force.

Andrew Ladd 76 GP, 13 G, 30 A, 43 Points for Chicago
Through Nov. 29th, his first 22 games, he had 3 goals and 5 assists since then he`s had 10 goals and 28 assists in 54 games. Ladd finally looks like he`s producing like we all hoped he would. He`s already broken his previous best in games played:76 from 65, goals: 13 from 11, assists 30 from 10, and points: 43 from 21.

Team Canada: In Position

Eric Duhatschek, Pierre Maguire, and Scotty Bowman recently made their selections for the 2010 Men's Olympic hockey team. Here is their projected roster:

GOAL: Martin Brodeur, Roberto Luongo, Steve Mason

Others getting votes: Cam Ward, Carey Price

DEFENCE: Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Dion Phaneuf, Shea Weber, Duncan Keith, Jay Bouwmeester, Mike Green

Others getting votes: Robyn Regehr, Dan Boyle, Brent Burns, Marc Staal

FORWARDS: Jarome Iginla (C), Sidney Crosby, Vincent Lecavalier, Dany Heatley, Ryan Getzlaf, Rick Nash, Mike Richards, Joe Thornton, Shane Doan, Jeff Carter, Martin St. Louis, Patrick Marleau, Eric Staal

Others receiving votes: Simon Gagné, Ryan Smyth, Jonathan Toews, Derek Roy, Corey Perry, Marc Savard, Brenden Morrow

There are a lot of things to like about this team. There's a solid mix of grit and skill, and there are enough specially skilled players included (ie. faceoff men, penalty killers). There seems to be a good mix of youth and veterans, and there are a number of intermediate veterans who have significant international experience but are still in the prime of their careers (Iginla, Lecavalier, Heatley, Bouwmeester). There are no "Rob Zamuners" on this team (over Mark Messier in Nagano? I still shake my head at that one), nor are there any players who are there because of their past (though Smyth and Gagné were still considered). It's a solid team from top to bottom.
There are a few minor things that are questionable, though. It's very heavy on centres and left-handed shots (as the analysts admit); though it likely will not pose a problem, it's something to consider. I think that Toews should be included, but I'm not sure at whose expense. More notably, one of the primary problems in Turin was our slow defense (which seems to have been addressed), but also the lack of a shutdown defender. This may lead to Regehr being included in favour of someone like Keith.
I think the that most important decision (not discussed there) is the coach. Pat Quinn was very outclassed in 2006, and I'm not sure that Ken Hitchcock is the man to do it in 2010 (though he has done well in Columbus). My vote is for Mike Babcock, with Hitchcock assisting. The only question that's left is who makes up the injury replacement squad. I like Ward, Boyle, Burns, Gagné, and Marc Savard.