Torts, Jumbo Joe and Comeback Kids

Torts Lands in Hot Water

The NHL has suspended New York Rangers head coach John Tortorella for one game after a dispute involving a fan Friday night in Washington. Tortorella responded to a fan who allegedly poured beer on him during the game.

Tortorella squirted a water bottle at a fan and also took a stick from the bench and shook it at the spectator, who was directly behind the Rangers’ bench in Game 5.

Maybe Sean Avery can recommend a good anger management therapist!

Ducks Wake Sleeping Giant!

Patrick Marleau scored his second game-winning goal of the playoffs 6:02 into overtime, and the top-seeded San Jose Sharks avoided first-round elimination with a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 5 on Saturday night.

The Sharks needed a big victory and Nabakov stepped up to the plate with some huge saves.   Sharks superstar, Joe Thornton, has been almost as absent as the Sharks third jersey during the first round of the playoffs.  However, the Ducks may have awoken the sleeping giant as Jumbo Joe exploded for 3 points Saturday night.

Penguins Cap Comeback – Eliminate Flyers

After staring the game out with what seemed to be an insurmountable 3-0 lead at home, the Philadelphia Flyers squndered the lead and their season – losing 5-3 to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Penguins started the comeback after Max Talbot took on Flyers tough-guy Dan Carcillo in an attempt to turn the tide. While Carcillo easily got the best o f Talbot, it was the Penguins that grabbed the momentum, finishing off the Flyers with 5 unanswered goals!

Blackhawks Don’t Mind Physical Play

Adam Burish doesn’t agree with those who say the Chicago Blackhawks are intimidated or cowering from the Calgary Flames’ aggressive play.

Easy for Burish to say as he breaks his stick over Rene Bourque with a cross-check! It is ridiculous that the only player suspended in this rough and tumble series was Andre Roy for an incident that didn’t even happen during the game.

The Playoff Game That Never Ended!

My favorite Hockey Historian, Joe Pelletier, writes about the playoff game that never ended.

On March 31st, 1951 the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins battled in what was described as “one of the most gruelling NHL playoff games on record.” The game went into overtime, but was never completed.Why was it never finished? Because of Sunday.Back in those days the city of Toronto had a municipal bylaw that forbade events such as professional sports on a Sunday.

With two games on the schedule today, we can certainly see that times have indeed changed!

Flyers Battle Back

In typical Philadelphia hard-nosed hockey style, the Flyers managed to claw out a win at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Philadelphia Flyers avoided elimination, scoring three times in the first period in a 4-2 victory over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference final at the Wachovia Center.

Pittsburgh spotted Philly a 3-0 lead that lasted until the third period when Jordan Staal and his Easton Stealth S17 took over! Staal managed to pot two goals in the final frame, both assisted by linemates Tyler Kennedy and Max Talbot, but it was too little too late for the Penguins. This was a gutsy performance turned in by Staal, who just returned from Thunder Bay after attending funeral services for his grandfather.

Where Were Crosby and Malkin?

Evgeni Malkin was a dominate force early in the series, but if you watched game four with your television muted, you would swear Malkin was in the press box with Gary Roberts and his flu bug!

Sidney Crosby had a decent game, but was mentally beaten by Mike Richards, who was successful in agitating Crosby almost from the drop of the puck. It was clear that Sid had lost his focus and was unable to dominate the play as he had in game three. A prudent fan will also notice that Crosby tends to whine to the officials more often and will get involved in unnecessary shoving matches after the whistle when he is mentally off of his game. There is no better evidence of this fact than watching the tape of last night’s game four.

Here is what Sidney had to say following the game:

“We really believed we’d come back here tonight,” said Penguins star Sidney Crosby, who was held pointless. “We came up a little short. But you never want to put yourself behind the eight ball like that.

Richards Plays Both Sides

I have been extremely impressed with the play adn the character of Mike Richards throughout these playoffs. He has had some very clutch performances offensively and game four proves that he can play just as well in a defensive role. What a great all around player!

Here is what fuels the fire for Richards:

“It is frustrating to hear Pittsburgh this and Pittsburgh that,” said Flyers captain Mike Richards. “We have a good team in here and we wanted to come out and prove it tonight.”

A class act and a great player.

Looking to Game Five

It will be interesting to see if the young Penguins can find their killer instinct and finish off the Flyers in game five, or if this was just the momentum boost that the Flyers needed to start a rally in this series.

Canadiens Catch a Break

As a known Canadiens fan, I am overjoyed at the outcome of Game 1 between the Habs and the Flyers. That said, I will admit that the Canadiens caught a break from the boys in stripes.

No, I am not talking about the goal that Alexei Kovalev scored to tie the game at two. That goal was legitimate and it was proven that the puck was struck by Kovalev’s stick below the crossbar. The following video includes the slow motion replay that proves the goal is legitimate.

An NHL Digest subscriber (and obvious Habs Hater) sent the following quote after watching this video:

“Not only can’t I understand anything in the video… the Habs are pure Euro-rubbish.” 

While he is obviously concerned about Kovalev’s goal, I am more concerned with the questionble kneeing call on Richards when he caught Kovalev cutting to the inside near the blueline.

I will not deny that Richards’ knee was out, but it was that way because he was cutting back to make the hit. I will ask you to focus on the contact between Richards and Kovalev. The following video (about 6-7 seconds in) clearly shows that Richards’ lower arm and hip made contact with Kovalev’s hip.

This penalty sparked the downfall of the Flyers.

Making Kovalev angry is like waking a sleeping giant! Just ask the Boston Bruins, who felt the wrath of a helmet-less and angry Kovalev after being mulled by Chara along the boards.

I expect this series to be a hard fought battle that will last several games. The Flyers should be out for revenge in Game 2 and Carbonneau will have the Canadiens on point with something to prove to the hometown fans!

If you can locate the CBC feed for Game 2, I highly suggest that you watch it – It’s going to be a dandy!