Colorado Avalanche…King of the Mountains

As we approach Christmas it is becoming more and more apparent that the Colorado Avalanche are indeed for real. Picked to once again miss the playoffs this rebuilding team defeated the Calgary Flames 3-2 at home on Sunday night to take sole procession of first place in the Northwest Division. What’s so amazing about all this is that last year the Avalanche finished dead last in the Western Conference basement. “We’re 35 games into the schedule now and we’re on top of our division for a reason,” Avs rookie coach Joe Sacco said. “We work hard, there’s lots of energy in our game and the guys believe in the locker room. They believe that we can win the division, and that’s our ultimate goal, to be on top of our division.”  Colorado who are now 3-0 against the Flames this year took control in the second period in taking a 2-0 lead on goals from Wojtek Wolski and Chris Stewart. Late in the second with the Avs lead cut in half veteran grinder Darcy Tucker who missed some time due to a concussion scored his first goal since October 21 at Minnesota against the Wild. Mark Giodano scored Calgary’s second goal. “I thought tonight’s game was a very, very important game,” Flames coach Brent Sutter said. “But obviously it was just the coaches who thought that. It’s a tough league to be average in.” Expect a more complete game for the Flames on Tuesday when the are in St. Louis to take on the Blues.

Alex Kovalev Answers the Critics

Alex Kovalev showed that he still has the ability to turn boos into cheers as he did on Saturday night at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa. Lately this 36 year-old goal scorer has been taking criticism from fans for his lack of scoring but the fans showered the first year Senator with cheers after he made some history against the Carolina Hurricanes. Coming into action with only four goals this 16 year veteran scored his 82^nd career hat trick and in the process surpassed the 400 goal milestone in leading Ottawa to a 4-2 win against the Hurricanes. “It’s always great to pass that point,” said Kovalev who now has 401 for his career. “I know it’s been 14 or 15 (games since he’s scored) or something like that so I could have done that early but now I can forget about it.” Ottawa management and fans alike got to see not only Kovalev but another star forward in Jason Spezza have his best game of the season. Spezza who along with Kovalev drew some criticism earlier on from Sens owner Eugene Melnyk scored a goal and made a great defensive play in saving a goal. Not exactly known for defence Spezza pulled a loose puck off the Sens goal line moments before Kovalev scored the winning goal. “The puck just kind of squeaked between (Elliott’s) arm and lucky enough I got to it before it went in and then we get the goal,” said Spezza. “When things are going good it happens that way and when things are going bad that one trickles in and we don’t get score that goal.”

Patrice Bergeron Should be in Vancouver Olympics 2010

Without question the biggest feel good story this season has come out of Boston where Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron is finally injury free. It was only two years ago that this 24 year-old missed 72 games and had his career placed in serious jeopardy after suffering a serious concussion against the Philadelphia Flyers. After enduring two injury plagued seasons Bergeron is finally healthy and as of early December is working himself into being a serious candidate for Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics. This former 2003 second round pick is having his best offensive season since 2006 as he has scored 24 points in 30 games. “He’s carried our team from the start of the season up until now,” said teammate Derek Morris. “We had a lot of key injuries and we could have easily gone in the tank and he stepped up his game and really kept us afloat.”    Bergeron who has scored six points in his last four games also has a big supporter in teammate Mark Recchi who strongly believes that Bergeron should be donning a Canadian Olympic sweater this coming February in Vancouver. “I get to play with him every day I see how good of a player he is,” Recchi said. “He’s gonna make it (On Olympic team) because he’s a great face-off guy, he’s a great penalty killer and he’s a great two-way guy.” In explaining the reason for his success Bergeron talked about confidence and how he appreciates the game even more after suffering so many injuries the past two seasons. Besides for scoring goals Bergeron is a top face-off guy who also excels defensively while playing against the opposition’s top line on a nightly basis. You can bet that even though Bergeron wasn’t invited to the August Team Canada Orientation Camp in August that he will get some heavy consideration on going to the Olympics.

Alex Kovalev is Struggling

If I was an Ottawa Senators fan I wouldn’t know what to think of Alex Kovalev’s recent comments regarding his ugly goal scoring drought. It’s no top secret that when the Senators went out and signed the 36 year-old forward to a two year 10 million dollar contract this summer it was to score goals and be a top point producer on the team. Kovalev who has 398 career goals has scored only four goals in 26 games this year and has currently gone 15 straight without scoring. “It doesn’t bother me,” Kovalev whose last goal came on October 29 against the Tampa Bay Lightning said. “What bothers me the most is that we can’t put up the points.”  It appears that the honeymoon in Ottawa might be over as fans on call in radio shows and internet message boards have been getting on Kovalev who has scored only 14 points this season. When Ottawa was in the middle of what turned out to be a recent disappointing road trip where they went 1-3-1 their owner Eugene Melnyk wasn’t shy in telling the media that he expected more from his star players. He didn’t come out and specifically say Kovalev but most believed that he was talking about him along with star forward Jason Spezza who has only three goals in 27 games. While Kovalev just shrugged off the comments Spezza seemed to take it more to heart. “It just shows how passionate (Melnyk) is about the team,” Spezza said. “Thirty games in, me and Kovy have seven goals combined. We expect more of ourselves, too.” This four time 30 goal scorer has been criticized for taking only 35 shots this season which is miles behind his career pace. “He’s so skilled, he’s got to get more of a shooter mentality and in the past he’s had that,” Senators coach Cory Clouston said. Currently both Spezza and Kovalev have been playing together on the team’s second line. These two need to find their game if the Senators are to have post season success.

Boston Bruins Too Much For Maple Leafs Again

Pretty soon the Boston Bruins will have to make some tough decisions regarding their goaltending. On Thursday night Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask continued to show management that he is NHL ready as he stopped 32 shots in helping Boston to a 5-2 win against their divisional rivals the Toronto Maple Leafs. Rask who was also dominant in a 7-2 win last Saturday night against these same Leafs has on the season registered a 1.97 GAA and .932 save percentage. Along with the 22 year-old Rask the Bruins who are 8-1-1 in their past ten games also have as part of their goaltending tandem the reining Jennings Trophy winner in veteran Tim Thomas. This veteran has also been solid this year in putting up a 2.48 GAA and .914 save percentage. For now Boston fans and management alike are just hoping that these two could lead Boston to a Stanley Cup victory this coming spring. Besides for the reliable Rask stepping up on Thursday against Toronto the Bruins also got a great performance from veteran forward Mark Recchi who put the game away with two goals in the final three minutes. “We’ve only got one win in our division, which is awful,” Leafs defenceman Ian White said. “We got spanked by these guys not even a week ago. We were expecting to come in here and have a different showing.” The only consolation for the Leafs is that after falling behind 3-0 entering the third Toronto scored the next two goals but couldn’t complete the comeback. “The third period we went back on the attack and did the things we needed to do,” said Leafs coach Ron Wilson.. “Obviously, scoring 18 seconds in got our team fired up and them back on their heels a little bit so it opened up the game.” As with last Saturday’s game the Boston crowd booed Leafs forward and former Bruin Phil Kessel every time he had the puck. This 22 year-old was once again shut out by his former team who drafted him first round back in 2006. Besides for Recchi’s two goals other Bruins to score were Derek Morris, Mark Stuart and David Krejci. Meanwhile scoring for Toronto was Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin.

NHL Short Notes

1.    CLEARY SIDELINED

It hasn’t been a fun season for the Detroit Red Wings who on Wednesday night lost veteran forward Dan Cleary for at least a month with a separated shoulder. Having this former 1997 Chicago Blackhawks first round choice injured is just the latest of a long list of setbacks for a Wings team who currently sit ninth in the Western Conference. After losing last spring in the Stanley Cup finals the Red Wings lost a consistent scorer in Marian Hossa who signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Chicago Blackhawks. Prior or Cleary, the Red Wings disabled list has been full with prominent names such as Jason Williams, Johan Franzen, Valtteri Filippula and Niklas Kronwall.

2.    FETISOV COMING OUT OF RETIREMENT

After hanging up the skates and calling it a career 11 years ago two time Stanley Cup winner Slava Fetisov has been talked into coming out of retirement to play one game on Friday with CSKA Moscow in the Continental Hockey League. Being short a defenceman due to injuries Fetisov who won the Stanley Cups with the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998 agreed to play when approached by the coach Sergei Nemchinov. “Fetisov practices constantly and has agreed to help the team,” Nemchinov said. “We just need to settle some legal procedures.” Prior to playing with the New Jersey Devils and Red Wings in the NHL this 51 year-old helped Russia earn a gold medal at the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo and another gold four years later in Calgary.

Is Steve Mason Back?

To say Wednesday night’s shutout was huge for Steve Mason is a complete understatement. This 21 year-old Columbus Blue Jackets goalie who took home the Calder Trophy last season has unexpectedly  struggled this season in posting a .886 save percentage and a 3.44 goals against average which has concerned management. Mason who led the NHL with 10 shutouts last season has given up an average of 3.5 goals per game and has admitted to be pressing and feeling the pressure. “It’s been kind of weighing on me the last little while,” Mason said. One can bet that not only Mason but also management was breathing a sigh of relief on Wednesday after what was a 3-0 Blue Jackets home win against the Florida Panthers. In reflecting on the game Mason who stopped 32 shots was especially relieved to get that shutout. “Obviously, every goaltender likes to have a couple of goose eggs throughout the year,” Mason said. “I was having trouble getting the first one but it’s nice to get it out of the way.”Another good sign for a Columbus team fighting for a playoff spot is that young forward Derick Brassard scored for the first time in 14 games. ”I was not playing bad,” Brassard who has season ending shoulder surgery last year after 31 games said. “I was just not playing like a great player, which is what I want to be.” Besides for Brassard also scoring for Columbus was Jason Chimera and Samuel Pahlsson. Mason was most impressive when the Blue Jackets blanked the Panthers on three straight power plays in the third period. “He looked like the same Mase as last year,” Columbus coach Ken Hitchcock said. “He gave us a chance tonight.”

Even A Car Can’t Stop Brendan Witt

No one can ever question the leadership skills and pure dedication that veteran defenceman Brendan Witt shows towards his team the New York Islanders. This 13 year veteran who specializes in blocking shots and throwing his body on the ice showed a different kind of toughness on the streets of Philadelphia on Tuesday morning. While on his way to the Wachovia Center for practice Witt who is a big man at 6 foot 2 and 223 pounds was hit by a gold Yukon truck that apparently made an illegal turn. To the amazement of onlookers Witt who has three points this season and 37 penalty minutes got up and declared him self fine. “I just got lucky,” Witt who at the time was crossing the street to get a coffee said. “Fortunately nothing bad happened. I’m just a little sore.” Apparently this former 1993 Washington Capitals first round pick tried to jump on the vehicle’s hood just before impact but ended up being thrown violently to the ground at impact. The amazing part was not just that he walked away and didn’t need medical care but that he played a regular shift that night despite being sore. As he put it “I’m a hockey player. I’m okay and it’s no big deal.” Witt who might want to think about acting in stunt movies when his career is over couldn’t prevent his Islanders from dropping a 6-2 decision against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Chris Osgood’s Stock is Falling

In just a few short months many hockey experts have gone from touting Detroit Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood as a serious candidate for the 2010 Olympic team to wondering if perhaps his time as a dependable starting goalie is over. This three time Stanley Cup winner who is affectionately known as ‘Ozzie’ was a big factor in why his Wings made it last spring to the Stanley Cup finals. During the Wings run which saw them fall a game short Osgood posted a sparkling .926 save percentage and 2.01 GAA as many in the media were not only mentioning him in the same breath as the Olympics but also bringing up the issue of whether he is having a hall of fame career. Fast forward a few months later and questions are being asked about what’s wrong with Osgood and if perhaps time has caught up to the 37 year-old. Following a 4-3 shootout loss against the New Jersey Devils Osgood who has 395 career wins saw his season numbers fall to 6-5-5 with a less than impressive .896 save percentage. “For me, personally, I’ve got to get to the level I’ve been in the playoffs for this team right now,” Osgood said. “I’ve got to get to that level now, and continue it through the rest of the regular season. I mean, we’re going to get to a point here where there’s 30 games left and it’s going to be a dogfight. I’ve got to start stealing games and playing like I did in the playoffs.” Osgood who in 2008 posted a 1.55 GAA and .930 save percentage during the Wings Stanley Cup win is capable of turning his season around and stop the loud whispers of his critics. For now he has been splitting time with second stringer Jimmy Howard who has been a pleasant surprise in posting an impressive 8-5-1 record, 2.55 goals against average and .910 save percentage. “I just have to keep myself ready,” Osgood who has averaged 45.3 games a season said. “You obviously would like to play to get into a rhythm, but at the same time you have to stay ready regardless.” As of early December the Wings are in the unfamiliar position of sitting outside of a playoff spot in what is a competitive Western Conference. To salvage what has been to date a very disappointing season they will need the man known as “Ozzie” to once again step up and be a factor.

NHL Short Notes

MCCARTY CALLS IT A CAREER

Best known for his effectiveness on the ‘Grind Line’ 37 year-old Detroit Red Wings veteran Darren Mccarty decided on Monday to call it a career. Drafted second round by the Wings in 1992 this rugged forward played an important role by shutting down the opposition’s top scorers. Mccarty who is a four time Stanley Cup champion will be best remembered for his tireless work during the late 1990’s on a line with Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby. Even though he had a two year stint with the Calgary Flames Mccarty who registered 127 goals, 288 points and an astonishing 1,477 penalty minutes in a 15 year career will best be remembered for wearing the Wings jersey. His most memorable moment at Joe Louis Arena occurred during the 1997 Stanley Cup finals when in the fourth and deciding game he went around a Flyers defenceman and goalie Ron Hextall before scoring to more or less ensure a Stanley Cup victory for the Red Wings.

STEVENS GRATEFUL TO HAVE COACHED THE FLYERS

It’s not every day that a former employee comes out with lots of good things to say about an organization that fired them. That was the case on Monday when John Stevens who was fired last week by the Philadelphia Flyers lavished the organization with special praise. ‘‘You go through a process like this, the team not meeting expectations, you feel responsible,” Stevens who was offered but didn`t accept another position in the organization said. “I feel extremely lucky to be part of this organization for so many years (drafted by the Flyers in 1984), to have worked for an organization committed to winning.”  During his tenure in the city of brotherly love Stevens had a lot of success including taking the Flyers to the Eastern Conference finals in 2008 which was only a year after they finished last in their conference. Overall he finished with an impressive 120-109-34 record with the Flyers.  “I’m going to miss it here,” Stevens said. “My family (sons John and Nolan) has grown up here. The passion of the Philadelphia sports fans is unbelievable. The atmosphere at home games is something I will miss.”

DAIGLE ON CANADA`S SPENGLER ROSTER

Former 1993 Ottawa Senators first overall pick Alexandre Daigle who never reached his projected potential in the NHL was on Monday included among a list of 23 names comprising of Canada`s upcoming Spengler cup roster. This 34 year-old who scored 129 goals and 198 assists in 616 NHL games with the Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota Wild is now playing in the Swiss League.