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The 2015 NHL playoffs are drastically different than they have been in recent years, and it’s exciting! Five out of seven Canadian-based NHL teams are in the hunt this year. For the first time since 2007, a defending Stanley Cup champion failed to make the playoffs. Another big change – and without a doubt my favorite – the Boston Bruins have missed the playoffs.
Celebrating Daniel Sedin’s 1000th game, the Canucks faced the Blackhawks for a thrilling Sunday night in Rogers Arena.
Round 2 of the 2014 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs was a barn burner all-round. Every series felt like a legitimate rivalry even though some of these teams, like the Anaheim Ducks and the LA Kings, had never met in the playoffs before. Here’s the best and worst of it. Best Series: Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens Original Six. Longstanding rivals. Good versus evil. These games had everything – the good (Carey Price and PK Subban’s performances), the bad (Thornton spraying Subban with water mid-play), and the ugly (the racist rantings of some Bruins fans). In the end, the intensity elevated...
The Bruins have been eliminated. That’s pretty much all we cared about. Now on to the conference finals. Western Conference Chicago Blackhawks vs. Los Angeles Kings Victoria: Kings in 7. Because the Kings are the Goonies, they never say die. Chris: Blackhawks in 7. I will give credit to the Kings at knowing how to clutch up when elimination is in sight. Unfortunately for them, doing it the hard way has likely warn them down and they’ll be facing a ready and rested Blackhawks team. Remember, even Joffrey Baratheon finally met his maker. J.J.: Blackhawks in 7. Because the penny...
We have to admit, the first round of the 2014 NHL playoffs was pretty darn exciting. Let’s see how the second round stacks up. Western Conference Chicago Blackhawks vs. Minnesota Wild Victoria: Blackhawks in 4. Hawks have had some rest. Wild fought tooth and nail for 7 games. Wild will be tired and aren’t as strong a force as the Hawks to begin with. Matt: Blackhawks in 5. The Wild are simply outmatched and outclassed by the defending champions at every position. Ryan Suter will likely be matched against some combination of Jonathan Toews and/or Patrick Kane, but Chicago’s immense...
With the puck ready to drop for the 2014 NHL playoffs, a few of us at CHB make our predictions for the first round. At least with the Canucks not making it, we can make our picks with our brains, rather than our hearts. Well, mostly our brains. We flipped coins, drew straws and other things too. Western Conference Colorado Avalanche vs. Minnesota Wild Victoria: Avalanche in 5. This prediction is based on the real fear that if Minnesota makes it too far in the playoffs we’ll all fall into a coma. Most boring hockey ever. So come on Avs,...
Man, these losses seem to be getting more depressing by the day. After taking a quick 2-0 lead on the Chicago Blackhawks, the Blackhawks scored 4 unanswered goals in a 7-minute span in the second period. The end result? Another loss – the Canucks’ 10th loss in January versus just 3 wins. But hey, at least Tom Sestito scored again. The Boxing hobo strikes again!!! How do you like that @KeithOlbermann #tgatt — Sean Holmes-Smith (@holmes156) January 29, 2014
The Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks usually bring the best out of each other. That’s hopefully the case tonight. The fact is, neither team is playing their best hockey right now. The Canucks’ woes are well-documented, having lost 10 of their last 14 games, including a disheartening 4-2 loss to the last place Edmonton Oilers. Meanwhile, the Blackhawks, after dropping a 5-4 decision in OT to the Calgary Flames last night, have now lost 4 games in a row. They’ve also lost 6 of their last 7 road games (1-1-5), though despite that, the Blackhawks are still a top-3 team...
Photo credit: canada.com Love em’ or hate em’ no one can deny the pure entertainment value of a good old-fashioned dust-up. Young and old, alike, left their seats on Saturday to take in a few minutes of rock em’- sock em’ hockey as the Canucks and Flames unexpectedly erupted into a brawl seconds after the opening faceoff. Was it neccesary? Probably not. Did it make the league and the teams look bad? Probably. But we all know this league isn’t a morality convention – it’s a business. And until something can usurp the popularity of fighting, we’re sure to see...
With the Canucks just past the halfway point of the season it seems as good a time as any to try and predict where the team may finish at the end of the season in April. Despite a number of gut-wrenching losses in the last few weeks you should still feel pretty good about the Canucks chances to make the playoffs and I’ll breakdown where I think the team will realistically finish in the standings and whether they have much of a chance to pass teams in their division. Introduction The chart below shows team’s Fenwick percentages for all 5-on-5...
