Who's Tired?

The Montreal Canadiens have come back to life in Montreal. That's saying a lot considering how hard it is to play in this city. The Habs rallied for a win over Pittsburgh to tie up the series at 2 and this is one heck of an achievement when you consider the following things that they've overcome:

-Being the 8th seed and getting that final place in the playoffs
-Facing the top seed, the Washington Capitals and their monster of a Captain, Alexander Ovechkin
-Losing Markov, their best defenseman
-Playing at home to a rabid crowd with sky-high expectations
-the goalie debate that never should have happened and hopefully will now remain closed
-bad officiating in last night's game
-Facing the defending Cup champions (all healthy, all there)

Are the Pens really all healthy and all there? Jordan Staal did come back to play after having surgery on his foot, but did he play up to his normal level? He didn't look slow, but he didn't look fast either. Evgeni Malkin took himself out on the boards a couple of times and was slow to get up afterwards. Given that he's not prone to theatrics, I don't think those slow recoveries were sympathy bids. And what happened to Crosby? This man's been wearing a target on his back since day one, but he's found ways to bury it and overcome that. But he's letting the Habs get to him and you have to wonder whether or not he's going to change up his game.

The refs didn't bother to call a lot the other night and some of the things that they did call were questionable. It appears that there are some identical errors being committed by both teams, but only one of them, (Montreal), is getting called for them. I can't explain this kind of discrepancy other to say that this does look familiar (Ottawa-Pittsburgh series) and you can't help but think that the refs are somewhat partial.

The Habs can do great things when they play together and it looks like they're doing just that. They seem to understand now how to surround Crosby, but they're still having a bit of trouble keeping an eye on Malkin. Malkin was given the run of the ice the other night, getting lots of chances on the side of the goal, which is right where he likes to be to unload that hip shot. That's a dangerous shot, and if it weren't for the fact that Halak is rock solid, that game would have been as good as lost.

If the Habs were to continue leaving Malkin with so much time and space, that would be the end for them. You can only play with fire so long until you get burned and this guy will burn them if they don't learn to contain him better. This isn't just the Crosby show they're up against. This is a two-headed offensive monster and they need to keep an eye on both.

Fleury has gone back to being adequate. This was not his game, either. That first goal that slipped by him was just unforgiveable. There was no good reason for him to let that shot go in. That was just a slow, weak reaction from a goaltender who has had little to do in the playoffs. Fleury's better than this and if he doesn't step up, the Pens are lost.

Crosby's had more stick malfunctions in the past few games than anyone I've seen. They keep breaking up in his hands, once on the slash that didn't get called and another time, just off a shot he fired. Of course, we can't forget the one that he actually broke off the net in that Sunday game loss. Is he falling apart like his sticks?

For the Habs to win, they have to keep going the way that they've been going so far. They have to keep playing together, keep their defense very active and scrappy, contain both Crosby and Malkin, and keep a bubble shield around Halak to protect him.

For the Pens to win, their two-headed offensive monster needs to be recharged and ready to fight, Fleury has to step up his game and keep his attention on the game, Staal has to get himself back to his regular standard of play, and their defense needs to be better organized.

And Crosby's going to need another 20 sticks.

Turn Around, Let Down, Coin Toss

What a turn around for the Boston Bruins and the San Jose Sharks. What a let down for the Vancouver Canucks. What a coin toss for the Montreal Canadiens.

The Boston Bruins have taken full advantage of a seriously star depleted Philadelphia Flyers squad, missing Jeff Carter and Laperriere. Tuuka Rask has come out for the Bruins in a big way, delivering with great saves and making everyone wonder how Boston managed to get two such great goalies on the same bench. Tim Thomas and Tuuka Rask could have both been starter goalies for this team; there is no clear back up goalie type for Boston. Coming from Ottawa, where our situation always seemed to revolve around two back up goalies rather than a real starter and a back up, I have to say that I feel just about every shade of green.

The Flyers are about as close to a mean team as you can get in the league. Led by the always kind Chris Pronger, the perfectly coiffed Hartnell and the not-creepy mustache of Carcillo, it was my sad belief that this team would overcome the Bs not with good play, but with traditional, old style, bad play. You know the kind of bad play that I'm talking about; the kind that earned Anaheim the title of Dirty Ducks back in Pronger's days with them. For those of you wondering where this Pronger bashing comes from, let's just say that I find it somewhat difficult to respect a guy who stepped on a guy's neck with his skate- twice.

But Boston has taken total control of this series with its great goaltending, the big reach of Chara who can definitely do more than defend, and the triumphant return of Marc Savard. Who would have believed that this guy was almost a vegetable a month or so ago? He's come back better than ever, skating, scoring, checking, fighting and even...biting?

Well, the Cup finals always has at least one case of unusual defensive play and in this case, it seems to be the biting, a defensive move best used by babies and dogs. Personally, I saw what could be seen of the so-called bite incident and I don't think that I would blame Savard if he did bite Carcillo during that scrum in the corner. To be fair, if I was a player returning to the ice after recovering from attempted murder in March by Matt Cooke and my block had almost been knocked off and turned into eggplant, I would defend myself vigorously against anyone who put me in a headlock. And I would use any defense that I could and that includes biting.

Regardless of how you feel about this incident, it's nowhere near as flaboyant as incidents past. Anyone remember the hair pulling? There have been a couple of those too, and that has to be worse than biting simply because it's embarassing. And who can forget Semin's I'm-going-to-slap-you-silly routine?

There haven't been major fight incidents of this type with the San Jose Sharks, although there has been a fair amount of scrapping with the Detroit Red Wings. What has happened to this once-dominated Sharks team and this once-dominant Wings team? The Curse has been lifted off San Jose's shoulders and they are out for blood. Detroit, on the other hand, is looking tired. Maybe they're starting to experience the lag of a long season? This is a scrappy, hard working team, but they need to play a smarter game if they want to beat San Jose. Save some of that great energy and simplify your game.

Looking at a 3-0 hole, though, it could be lights out soon for Detroit and Philadelphia. That would mean that San Jose and Boston would move further into the playoffs, something that neither team has been able to boast in a long time. What a turnaround if that happens. What an achievement.

It would be a great achievement too if Vancouver could turn their series around with Chicago. Granted, this is a hard team to beat and they have a great offensive game, but Vancouver is probably still Canada's best hope for the playoffs, not to take anything away from Montreal. Vancouver's played a great season and they seem to have all their stars aligning for a great post-season with fantastic goaltending by Lou, the offensive power of the Sedins, good support by Samuelsson and Bieksa and the endless chatter of Burrows.

This series started off great for Vancouver because they were playing a confident and disciplined game. But the emotions have started to run high in this series for Vancouver and they're not the good kind. Players are acting up and getting riled up during the games and even Lou is getting in on the bad blood. The last thing that I want to see is the look of self defeat and hear the loser talk in the locker room after this series is done.

The Canucks are a good, solid team and if they play a game without being drawn into scuffles and trash talk, they can beat this Chicago team. They have the potential to beat them right into the ground. But they're shooting themselves in the foot by getting sidetracked and letting themselves be suckered into useless bickering. Show us all that you're a team of champions who doesn't need to fight the petty battles on the ice. Let it slide. Focus on making them play your game. Out play them. Stop talking.

This is one of the reasons why Pittsburgh turned it around in their series. They let Montreal get to them in that Sunday matchup where they lost and Crosby had that uncharacteristic display of bad emotion. But they bounced back from that and they learned that the real communication had to be between each other and not against the other team.

It's still a coin toss for the Montreal-Pittsburgh series, but that's because you never know which version of the team is coming out to play. All of the gamblers will still take Pittsburgh to win because they have the best odds, but anything can happen during the playoffs. If Crosby continues to play like a real Captain and gets Malkin to follow suit, the two-headed monster could come back to crush Montreal, despite the best efforts of Halak and Cammalleri. But if both Halak and Cammalleri get on a hot streak, it could be lights out for Pittsburgh with a shut-out for the great Slovakian and a hat trick for Michael, as he likes to be known.

Tonight's game will be decisive for the Montreal-Pittsburgh series. Montreal has the potential to make a comeback on their home ice, sending the city in a riot style frenzy, or Pittsburgh could rally and push them to the brink.

Can't wait to see which teams come out tonight.

More than Adequate

Pittsburgh 2, Montreal 0

I will start this post by admitting that I didn't see the whole game, just the third period where all the scoring occurred. Admitedly, it was nice to catch that third period, as it appears that the first two were grinding hard fought battles with a few real time shmozzles full of trash talking and face washing. But we all knew that going into Montreal, that it was going to be a fight with emotions running high.

What I really loved about watching the highlights were the mini-conferences held by the Pens Captain and other members of the team. I don't think that I've seen Sidney talk that much ever. Being a Captain means more than watching everyone, scoring goals and directing traffic. It also calls for a lot of communication and this appeared to be the healthy kind, the constructive communication that helps keeps relationships alive. If only men talked that much to their wives in such detail and with such emotion. It would be the end of divorce. Of course, that would only work if the issues were all hockey-related.

The true player of the game, though, was Marc-Andre Fleury with a shut out win. Up until this point in the playoffs, he's only had to be an adequate goalie. He hasn't faced the kind of firepower that other goalies have had to contend with during the playoffs (hats off to Nabokov for facing missiles from ALL of Detroit and Lou with the Blackhawks charging), nor has he had to make spectacular plays (the most spectacular save in the Ottawa series was actually Crosby's, not Fleury's.) His defense has also been tight in front of him, blocking a lot of shots along the way, reducing him more or less to a post-like function. You know your defense is good when you're not getting a lot of action in your zone and you have plenty of time to consider what you want for dinner that night.

The commentators have warned us all not to underestimate Fleury and assured us that he would eventually steal a game. And who would have thought that the game he would steal would be the first faceoff in Habs territory for a crucial 2-1 lead in the series? He admits, like everyone, that Montreal is a hard city to win in and he went above and beyond for this. The Stanley Cup ring is rarely placed on an undeserving hand and Fleury definitely showed how he earned his.

All of the goalie talk before in this series was centered squarely on Halak and the Halak/Price debate that never should have taken place. I still believe that Halak is Montreal's best shot in this series and there really wasn't much that he could do about this loss. The offense didn't show up to support him and the bad calls were what led to the man advantage that allowed the Malkin goal.

It seems that the Habs fought hard in this game, but it also seems that they fought hard not to lose rather than fighting hard to win. They should have concentrated on scoring early in the game and lighting up the crowd for momentum. They also should have played a more disciplined game.

High emotions and lackadaisal play was the downfall of Pittsburgh in their Sunday game loss and the same story goes for the Habs loss last night. The Pens kept their emotions in check for this one and that's how they won. You can't win games without controlling the play and you can't control the play without controlling yourself.

Self-control should be the name of the game for both benches as the series continues. And keep your smelly gloves on.

Home Team Disadvantage?

A lot is made of the home ice advantage, but how much does it really matter? Does being in another person's stadium really affect your game that much, when you're already a highly skilled professional that visits dozens of arenas a year? After all, how much do these arenas differ? It's all just ice and empty corporate arena names that have stripped most arenas of any original character or history.

Home ice can also be a factor if you're entering a new time zone (jet lag is a major disadvantage for any visiting team) or if the ice itself is changing (NHL vs. olympic size ice).

But what about the fans? Are they really the X factor? Do they really have an influence? What about their cheers, jeers, goalie taunts, swag, flags and the dying art of the wave?

As a fan myself, I know that we're all inclined to say that we do make a difference. Our passion, our drive, our emotional investment into our teams, apart from the time investment of following games and the financial investment in gear and tickets if we're lucky, surely all of that has to count for something?

I hate to burst bubbles here, particularly my own, but I don't think that we have as much of an influence as we'd like to think we do. Sure, it's demoralizing to play for empty stadiums and fan membership helps to pay the bills too. Sure, it's amazing to hear the roar of the crowd when a goal is scored, but are they really doing this just as much for us as for themselves?

I've sat behind a player's bench once with tickets that I won in an auction and I can tell you right off that they don't hear as much of the stadium roar at ice level. So that heckler in the third level? I'm sure the guys around you are entertained.

As professionals, I'm sure that most players have learned to block out most of those sounds, particularly the goalies whose names regularly turn into boos. It's pretty convenient when your name actually has Boo in it (Boucher) and a little harder when the name is a bit of a trick (Varlamov everyone).

Then there's the role of the heartening crowd that's supposed to inspire the players for that final push. After seeing my own team go down in every home game (Ottawa), I can tell you that's some clear fan fiction too. If the players don't have it in them to fight, there's nothing that the fans can do to instill it. We can only influence what's already there, not replace what's lost.

I think the ultimate home team disadvantage occurs for those teams with the rabid fan base. You know which teams I'm talking about. The stadiums that shake with rage-fueled energy, where emotions take charge and the weight of about a thousand expectations are heaped onto the backs of every player wearing the right jersey.

I always imagined that these arenas are the perfect example of how fast rage can transfer and turn normal people into crazed monsters. You know that fantastic horror film 28 Days Later where the rage infects the monkeys and then the monkeys attack a group of do-gooder humans who want to rescue them from science and then the infection spreads and takes over England with horrific apocalyptic results? It's a big, bloody, suspenseful, haunting mess. I always figured that those rages occur in hockey arenas. The worst is if the crowd 'turns.' That's enough to make your blood chill just thinking about it.

Cities like Montreal and Toronto are known as the hardest cities to play in. That's because if you're winning, you're the toast of the town and if you're losing, you're poop on a stick. The fans also feel perfectly comfortable booing their own players when things don't go right. I'm not sure how this is a sign of loyalty or if the boos are meant to incite them to do better the same way that spanking's supposed to teach you a lesson?

In any case, logic and reason don't rule this discussion. If the home team advantage does have any lasting effect, the true effect is in the memories. There's nothing better than a win in life, unless it's a win at home.

Where's Sidney?

Yesterday's win by the Montreal Canadiens over the Pittsburgh Penguins may have you asking that question: Where's Sidney? We have the feeling that he's around here somewhere, like the wandering Waldo with his signature red hat and striped shirt, waving happily from behind a cast of about a thousand people on a single page.

It's said that the Penguins squad doesn't work well without its Captain. It's like those alien guys in the Fifth Element who won't negotiate without their Leader. Fair enough, most teams need their Captain like ships do when they set out to sea. But this doesn't explain the game loss entirely. Crosby's high ankle injury which sidelined him a few years ago wasn't enough to slow down the Pittsburgh machine and Malkin stepped it up big time as alternate Crosby, all while still learning English. That was impressive.

But the Pens game yesterday afternoon was less than impressive. There's the Staal factor, as the loss of the big man was felt. And then there's the Captain seemingly MIA and his Russian counterpart fading off. A lot of effort was put in by everyone else, but it didn't result in goals.

What can this be attributed to?

A couple of smart decisions on the part of the Habs, at least, the smartest of them to start Halak over Price and hopefully put an end to this game of goalie roulette. Halak still has the poise, patience and skill to move the team forward and showing him a little respect and confidence is going to go a long way for the Habs, in this playoffs and well beyond. He is the real reason that they're a contender in this series at all.

Marc-Andre Fleury on the other end of the ice still has the potential to steal a few games, but so far in this whole playoffs, he hasn't had to be much more than adequate. The defense in front of him is so tight and the Pens are so good at blocking shots, there's not that much left for Fleury to do other than stand still and look big.

But the Pens defense in the matinee game was seriously lacking. It seemed as if they were a bit slower than usual going into the neutral zone and that they were giving Montreal a lot more time and space than they should have. The Pens play best when they're not giving anyone respect and the biggest mistake they committed was giving it to the wrong person, namely, Mike Cammaleri. He is one guy that has been so hot in the playoffs so far that you cannot afford to leave him alone anywhere. You have to babysit this guy if you want to move ahead. He's small, sneaky and fast, and good at getting into the zones where people aren't expecting him to be. The Pens have to be more aware of him.

One person with a target on his back? Number 87, Sidney Crosby, but not the one that we're looking for. We're looking for the one who works harder than anyone else, handles the puck like nobody's business and makes overtime miracles happen like the gold medal game winner in Vancouver. Not the one who showed up to play on Sunday, the slow, angry team Captain getting into scraps and throwing his stick and mouthing off from the bench. That's not the Sidney we know and love. That's not the Sidney who wins.

If anyone's spotted that Sidney, could you please have him returned to the Pittsburgh Penguins organization? Preferably before Tuesday.

Most Liveable City

I have to take a break from the playoffs in order to bring up a most interesting article that I came across the other day that proclaimed Ottawa and the surrounding Gatineau area to be the most liveable city in Canada. Initially, I thought that there was some kind of mistake, until I read a little further. The article states that the different factors that were taken into consideration to determine the most liveable city included affordability, incomes, stability of the local economy, weather and social services.

The article further states that the factors that were not considered in this determination included the things that tourists often look for in a destination, such as the beauty of the city or its architecture or the numerous attractions that the city features. This can include, but is not limited to, world class museums, shopping, cultural events such as the opera or the ballet, and top notch restaurants.

On the one hand, this makes a lot of sense. Ottawa and Gatineau are both areas fuelled by a local economy of mostly stable, recession-proof, high paying government type jobs that offer a good base of benefits and salaries. It also features some of the more affordable homes in Canada when compared with the ludicrous markets of Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary.

On the other hand, this makes no sense at all. Many people in Ottawa will tell you that the city is prohibitively expensive and that the housing market is squeezing out regular public servants and relegating them to places in the outskirts such as Farrhaven and Kookie Kutter Kanata.

In the same vein, they will also tell you that property taxes have increased every single year and that services have not improved one iota. Our last mayor was elected on the promises of no increases in property taxes, but then these had to be collected due to the fees associated with his court case on the charges of corruption, a months long bus strike that literally froze the city and costs millions of dollars and the settling of our lawsuit with the Siemens company for backing out of a light rail deal that we didn't have the foresight to approve before signing off on the millions promised to the company.

Renters don't have a better story to tell in Ottawa either, as the laws that regulate increases in rent favour the landlord rather than the rights of the tenants. Granted, tenants did win a human rights court case which allows them not to be discriminated against if they have pets, which means that your landlord's hands are tied as far as bringing a cat home with you, but they have lots of leeway to jack up the rent every year to the maximum amount allowed under the Act. Score one for Fluffy, but average salaried employees need not bother.

Even with all of these housing options, such as the high rents and the pre fabricated homes in the outskirts, many people don't feel they get what they paid for. Many residents are paying the maximum allowable for their homes through the bank with mortgages over 30 years and what do they have to look forward to? Usually an hour of commute a day on a crammed bus when it bothers to show up.

Social services were another factor considered in the study, but did they bother to walk around the city and see how effective our social services really are? This is a city where daycare costs the same as a second mortgage and panhandlers are literally littering the downtown market. Recreational services also have to be bought on a per activity basis, whereas provinces like Quebec not only offer subsidized daycare at $7a day, but a one time flat rate on all their recreational services, including their pools.

Then there's weather. Because nothing is more pleasant than -40 in the winter and +40in the summer. That sounds very temperate and reasonable. Did Ottawa weather really pull ahead of mild Vancouver and Toronto? Is it because this survey decided that mildness was also not a factor? Or that mildness is not desirable? Because I think real people would beg to differ on that one.

Then there's the final and rich statement that they didn't consider anything a tourist may consider when they think of liveability. That's all the superfluous nonsense, such as beauty of the city and its attractions. Because we all know that when people rate the best places in the world to live that nobody cares about either attractiveness or cultural options. When you have reasonable house rates, a bus service and a decent job, who cares about the opera or that gorgeous heritage home, right?

Here's a few other things that the survey maybe should have considered:

Pride- The beauty of a place often instills the sense of pride in people to live somewhere. So even though this may be considered as a frivolous indicator, the beauty of a place does affect how people feel about it and this no doubt has an impact on its liveability.

Things to do- A place that is dynamic and has a lot of new activities and cultural life is generally a place that people enjoy living in, as there is often the option of doing something special over the weekend. And no, something special does not include a half day trip to Wal-Mart.

Happiness- take a look at the people on the bus in the morning rush hour. The sad mugs that you see all around? The frustrated commuters in their cars who flip off the buses as they jockey for position in the confusing array of one-way lanes in the heart of downtown? The haggard parents wrestling with their kids at the supermarket? Did anyone bother to ask them their opinion of the most liveable city in Canada? Determining the most liveable city in Canada without asking the people themselves is like determining the best place to work without polling the employees.

I guess that one final note that I can make on this post is the fact that the most liveable city may not be the worst statement, as liveability does not factor enjoyability with it. When we say that things are liveable, it's the same thing as saying that a meal is passable when we get it from some cafeteria on a day we're too busy and hungry to care.

Go Ottawa. Be liveable.

Momentum Shift

The second round is going to be interesting and it's going to be a fight. At least for some of the teams. But regardless of the outcome of the first games, I don't expect to see any sweeps.

The Price is Wrong

Montreal and Pittsburgh look to be the match up where a four game sweep may be possible. Nevertheless, I expect Montreal to rally for at least one win, probably in a game 4 situation when they're nearing the brink of extinction, as the expectations will be lowered and Pittsburgh seems to have trouble sealing the deal on that last game.

Things aren't looking good for the Habs, with the injury of Markov who had to head home unexpectedly. When listening to the comments by the coach, one can't help but feel a bit scared for the shaky Montreal defense, as he declares that they will need the 6 other guys to step it up. It's never reassuring to hear that 6 guys will have to do the work of 1.

And then there's the non-committal approach to the goaltender situation. As if there can be any doubt as to which starter is going to take them all the way. The Price is wrong, Bob. Instead of doing what he should be doing, namely, giving it to the defense, he's decided to switch off the one powerful player on the team.

It's been said that he wants to rest Halak. In that case, it looks like he wants to rest the entire team too, because he just threw out their best chance to win today's game. Looks like the motto for today will be "we'll get them next time." In that case, thanks for showing up guys.

Redemption in Boston

Boston and Philadelphia went head to head in an afternoon thriller as well and a lot of the emphasis was put on Philadelphia's injury woes and the return of the prodigal kid, Marc Savard, playing for the first time since his concussion. Most people would have been happy to give him a standing O just for showing up on the ice and lacing up his own skates, but Savard did one better by scoring the game winning goal in overtime. Faced with the dirty rottonest cheaters of the NHL minus their star player Jeff Carter and the mediocre netminding by Brian Boucher, good team play may actually overcome.

The Curse has been lifted

San Jose and Detroit are going to scrap their way into a seventh heaven for sure. San Jose seems to have finally shaken off the President trophy's curse and come out aggressively. It makes sense that they're playing with more strength and more swagger, considering that they've been waiting to make the second round for a few seasons now. Detroit is not the kind of team that will go softly into that good night, so this will be one worth watching.

People will feel free to make comments about the aging Detroit squad, as this is clearly a group that has no trouble growing playoff beards. But instead of slowing down, this group is just getting better and better. What can you say about the Zetterbergs, the Lindstroms, the Datsyuks of the world? Be afraid, be very afraid.

Reversal of Fortune

Vancouver and Chicago have some very recent history from last season and the wounds still show. Like a bad breakup, Vancouver's planning on getting its revenge by showing that they're better and stronger than ever before and so far, it's working. It also helps that it's true. This team is brilliant. It's getting a lot of offensive firepower to back up Lou's heroics in net. As long as he can lay off the theatrics whenever opponents charge the net, this team has a real potential to upset the highly favoured Chicago Blackhawks. And don't forget Chicago's bad joujou with their controversial mural. Advantage is definitely to the Canucks.

There is a clear momentum shift that is occurring with the second round underway. As the race gets tighter, let's hope for more of the best on best.