See you next game... we hope (c/o flickr.com/bridgetds)

I turned the game off when Jeff Carter got his Natty Hatty, which is a shame, because it seems like I missed a lot of truculence mere seconds later. In the end it didn’t matter, because Jonny Quick and the monarchy pretty much coasted to their 7th straight playoff win.

The Yotes didn’t look great right from the start. The Kings’ first shot came in about 5 seconds and it was only through the grace of Mike Smith that they didn’t score until 13:15. They were outplayed in every area except goaltending, and one man can only do so much. (Frankly, I think Quickster suffered from the same problem as Holtby did in game 1 against the Rangers: that is, he didn’t face enough shots to keep focused. He did not, however, let Derek Morris’ center ice slapshot fool him again. In fact, the Coyotes’ new strategy seems to be “shoot mostly junk at Quick and hope it takes him by surprise,” which is, umm, creative.)

As usual, the Kings’ PP was bland, but when you’re given a thousand of them, as well as considerable time 5-on-3, something is bound to happen. And that something is 2 Jeff Carter PPG. Look, I know the Coyotes were being fairly dirty*, but I can’t help feeling that Gary Bettman is also licking his chops over the prospect of an LA-NYC finals…
» Continue reading “Coyotes Down 2-0 Heading To Los Angeles”

I have never been so satisfied with a last-minute decision as when I volunteered to cover the Coyotes on an emergency basis. They are my beloved furballs, and they provide a lovely amount of comfort when they go out and decisively win hockey games.

I was as unhappy about the Klesla suspension as any right-thinking individual was. That is, I was pretty sure he should get a game, but I didn’t actually want him to. I wanted a Shea Weber situation, in other words. After all, it would be cruel to suspend an important part of a dominant team in a decisive game.
» Continue reading “Coyotes Beat Predators, Advance to Western Conference Finals”

On the brigth side, Wilson had his first playoff goal tonight! (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

Umm… how do I say this with the least amount of pain? I guess it’s like a Band-Aid and you just have to rip it off.

The Preds fell in Game 5 to the Phoenix Coyotes in a 2-1 game.

Okay no, that still hurt. No more ripping off bad news like Band-Aids.

I know hopes were high for this game. We had Radulov and Kostitsyn back in the line up and Phoenix was missing one of their top D-men, Klesla. Coach Trotz kept the anticipation up for the crowd, throwing together seemingly random lineups for each period to see who might give the Predators the right opportunity for scoring.

Can I just say it was interesting to watch Sergei Kostitsyn play on the fourth line? I mean what the what? He’s been on the first line for what seems like forever!

Line changes aside, Nashville brought the pressure tonight, outshooting the ‘Yotes 33-17. The Preds even managed to keep the penalty count down to one in this game! Did anyone know that could actually happen? But even with all the awesomeness from the team in the first period, they just couldn’t hold on for a Game 6.

The second period was all Phoenix. Derek Morris took home the first goal of the night four minutes in, going five hole after a teammate took a breakaway attempt. Martin Hanzel was up next on the board, again going five hole on Rinne with five minutes left in the period.

While Nashville had plenty of chances to score in both the first and second periods, their time didn’t come until the third with Colin Wilson. Wilson had his first playoff goal tonight on a tip-in from David Legwand, keeping the Preds from being shut out in their final game this season.

Well Predators, we’ve had a good run. I know I stand with you through good or bad and I already can’t wait for the new season to start! Let’s Go Preds!

Coyotes celebrate a game 2 victory (Photo: Bridget Samuels/Flickr)

Phoenix Coyotes played a different game in Game 2 as they outshot and outplayed the Nashville Predators. The Coyotes won 5-3 in game 2 and take a commanding two to nothing series lead over the Predators. Coyotes got goals from Antoine Vermette, Martin Hanzal, Radim Vrbata, Taylor Pyatt, and their captain Shane Doan. Here are some of the highlights from Game 2: » Continue reading “Coyote Ugly: Coyotes Dominate Game 2, Win 5-3″

Boedker, Vrbata and Hanzal ready to take on the Preds (Photo: Bridget Samuels/Flickr)

The Phoenix Coyotes and Nashville Predators are facing one another in the second round and it will be the battle of the goaltending. The Coyotes are coming off a 4-2 series win over the Chicago Blackhawks while the Predators are coming off a 4-1 series win over the Detroit Red Wings. This series will start tomorrow in Phoenix, the home of the Coyotes and people wonder who will come out top of this series and who will not. But for right now we should look at the keys in this series preview:

» Continue reading “Coyotes-Predators: Series Preview”

Ekman-Larsson: the new Phoenix defense. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

As we all prepare for the next round to begin, I thought I would take a look at what Phoenix has to offer before the first game this Friday. Yes, the NHL and NBC finally set the schedule for the next round. Took long enough right?

So who does Phoenix have protecting their net?

On the blue line there is a decently potent lineup in Phoenix. The top pair of Keith Yandle and Derek Morris has shown they can match up to the offense some of Nashville’s top D-men; Yandle has had five assists in his six playoff games this season. Yandle has an impressive total of forty-three points in the regular season as well, right in line with Weber’s forty-nine.

A surprising turn, it isn’t the top line that Nashville will need to keep an eye out for. Rather, everyone will have to watch out for young D-man Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who has a goal and two assists for the playoffs, plus a regular season total of thirteen goals. Well heeeeello competition.

In what is sure to become a battle of the net minders, Mike Smith will be tough for the Preds to push past. Smith and Rinne are about even in their stats, but you have to consider that Smith faced almost 250 shots from Chicago during their series– Rinne faced far less at 160. Smith has also managed a shut out; that was only a dream when it came to Nashville playing Detroit.

So what will happen come Friday night? Hopefully both blue lines will be up to standard and will give us an exciting showdown. With a Nashville win of course.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson ready for the Hawks (Photo: Bridget Samuels/ Flickr)

When you look at the back end of the Phoenix Coyotes, you do not see names like Nicklas Lidstrom, Kris Letang, or Duncan Keith on the blueline. Instead you see the likes of a Keith Yandle, Derek Morris, and the young rookie, Oliver Ekman-Larsson. The Coyotes and their defenseman are very underrated and do not get the recognition that many of the other teams do. Now you all wonder how they even made the playoffs with a defense core like them. Look at what the Coyotes can bring into this playoff match with the Chicago Blackhawks and it’s their defense.

For example, look at Adrian Aucoin, Michal Rosizval, Derek Morris, and Rostislav Klesla, who has been injured for the most part of the season, as they will bring that experience and leadership. This entire defensive core besides the ones I have named, were 5th in the league in goals against at 2.37. If this team wants to make noise down the stretch in the playoffs, their collective ability to shut down the top lines for the Hawks will be huge and staying healthy will also be a key factor too.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who is one of the young promising defense for the Coyotes, led the Coyotes in goals with 13 goals while Keith Yandle led the Coyotes in points with 43 points. These two will be relied on more for offense for the game while Morris and Aucoin will be relied on stopping the Hawks offense and their veteran ship on the blue line also. Hopefully this defensive core will stay healthy and have a long run in the playoffs.

Look for the Coyotes defense to help Mike Smith out in the back and lead this team to a first round victory over the Hawks. Look for Morris, Aucoin, Yandle and the rest of the Coyotes to bring that edge in the game.