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Top 10 NHL 2009 Entry Draft Scouting Performances

By The Hockey Spy | July 8, 2009 | The Hockey Spy

Christopher Ralph is a hockey writer with a focus on prospects and the entry draft, as well as the Leafs' correspondent at THW. Well over a week has passed since hockey's version of Christmas (that is, NHL entry draft) has come and gone followed by hockey's version of a Boxing Day sale (that is, Free Agent Frenzy, aka Canada Day!) which commenced last week. As I gradually recover from withdrawal of these major events, I thought I'd take a look back to see which NHL franchise's scouting teams' performances seemingly stood out from the rest. Here's my latest article hosted at The Hockey Writers (THW): http://thehockeywriters.com/top-10-nhl-2009-entry-draft-scouting-performances/ Feel free to comment below or email me at hockeyspy@gmail.com You can also follow me at Twitter: http://twitter.com/hockeyspy...

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Anaheim Ducks, Atlanta Thrashers, Colorado Avalanche, John Tavares, Matt DUchene, Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, New York Islanders, NHL, NHL 2009 entry draft, NHL draft, NHL entry draft, Toronto Maple Leafs, Victor Hedman

The missing piece

By Colin Jeffrey | July 7, 2009 | Colin Jeffrey's 301

Howdy from an 'Earl Grey' kinda day in Ottawa. Ok. Alex Koavlev spoke to reporters today, but can't go by 'The piece' as it belongs to former Pens now Kings D Rob Scuderi. Maybe he can go by 'The link'? Or Heatley's older replacement by 8 years? News now has come out that Kovy was offered the SAME terms by Montreal as Ottawa offered, yet he still choose to move his kids out of school and himself from a fanbase in MTL that LOVED him. He says it came down to communication...I'm not sure what to think. Any thoughts? Alex also hinted at playing on...

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Alex Koavlev an Ottawa Senator for $5 million a season

By Colin Jeffrey | July 6, 2009 | Colin Jeffrey's 301

Howdy from the nation's capital. 2-year deal worth $10M ($5 mil./yr.) reports are saying. But he's a top 6 forward for sure. The best offensive player not yet signed (maybe of the whole FA group) and creates a hole for our divison rivals, Montreal where he supposed signed a few times in the past week. I have a feeling this signing signals Heatley is going to be dealt and the $4 mil. bonus along with him. He has to...how can we afford the Big 3 + 1? Koavlev had a solid yet below par season last year collecting 26 goals and 65 points...

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A Week of NHL Playoffs Has Taught Us...

By Alan Smodic | April 22, 2009 | MVN Outsider

A week into the NHL Playoffs and only one series has been decided as of today -- a sweep of the St. Louis Blues by the Vancouver Canucks. I didn't think the Canucks would sweep, but I did believe they'd win.With their series win in mind from last night, we'll begin there.Vancouver wins 4-0 against St. Louis - Hockey fans knew at the beginning of this series that Roberto Luongo was good. The sweep just cements that fact. Luongo is a beast between the pipes and it's not out of the question to think that he could carry the Canucks to another series win. It's too early to tell what team Vancouver would play in the second round, but don't be surprised if it's able to advance.Detroit up 3-0 against Columbus - This series is over. If it doesn't end in a sweep Thursday night, I'll be surprised. I picked...Read more

Read more | 2 Comments | Tags: NHL, NHL Playoffs

Quest for the Cup, Who's Your Pick?

By Alan Smodic | April 14, 2009 | MVN Outsider

In keeping tradition with the bracketology craze of college basketball, Faceoff-Factor and The Pensblog joined forces with an idea to create "Rinkotology" in an effort to raise money for the Mario Lemieux Foundation.As the name suggests, it works just the same as your NCAA March Madness pool... simply go to Rinkotology and fill out a bracket. But please donate at least $5 -- the foundation is a very worthy cause.With the introduction out of the way, let me break down my Rinkotology picks and see where I think this NHL Playoff season may be headed. Keep in mind that I've never once won a pool like this and my picks will probably not even happen. And as a Pens fan, I hope they don't happen, because I'd like to see them win it all. But I digress...Western Conference:The West is always Detroit's to lose. Just because San Jose finished the...Read more

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NHL Rumor Mill - The Habs on the Block?

By Grant Beery | March 25, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Canadiens for Sale?It's been an interesting 100th year for the Habs. They've hosted a successful All-Star Game, paraded jerseys from the team's entire past (no matter how unfortunate looking they are now), fired their coach, and are now in danger of missing the playoffs. How else could the team possibly make the paper again? How about the classifieds?"For Sale - 100 year old vintage hockey team. Needs new coach, otherwise runs great. Collector's item!"That's right, owner George Gillett is considering selling the Canadiens amid talks with financial advisers about the many assets his company owns. Forbes' annual ranking of sports teams put the Canadiens as the third most valuable in the league, saying the franchise is worth right around $334 million. Of course, Jim Balsille, CEO of Research In Motion and the notorious courter of the Penguins and Predators, is among the names reported to be interested. Others include Celine...Read more

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Washington Capitals

NHL Stock Market - Playing the Postseason Odds

By Grant Beery | March 16, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Now that the last full month of the season is upon us, division matchups and battles for points are the norm. There is high potential for some dramatic changes in the standings, but who survive the intense battles at the middle of each conference? RisingNashville Predators The Preds are really playing like a team that wants to keep their playoff spot. While they haven't shown the same stroke of brilliance as their 8-0 drubbing of the Wings recently, they are 7-2-1 in their 10 games. Their final stretch is all in the West and includes mostly division matchups, meaning as long as the Preds stay on their current path, there's a chance for some potential shakeups in the standings. Nashville currently sits 7th in the Western standings and is only 2 points ahead of 9th place Edmonton. What is one of the keys to Nashville's success? Timely shutouts. The Preds...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Mikka Kipprusoff, Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, NHL

Top 10 Nice Guys of the NHL

By Grant Beery | March 14, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Last week, I brought you the black sheep of the NHL. This week, to give both sides a fair shake, I'm going to show you the nicest fellas ever to play the game.10. Alexander OvechkinOvechkin is probably the one player that enjoys playing the most. With every goal he scores he shows sheer excitement in his celebration. At the most recent All-Star Game, Ovechkin took the opportunity to have fun and put on a show for the crowd. While some have criticized Alex's casual attitude as showboating, it's really just a player enjoying his time in the NHL.9. Mark MessierPlaying 25 years in the NHL and the last active WHA player, Messier exemplified an older style of hockey. One of the most accomplished players in the league as well, Messier won 6 Stanley Cups and is the only professional athlete to be the captain of two different championship teams.Off the...Read more

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NHL Rumor Mill - What Exactly is a Staged Fight?

By Grant Beery | March 10, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Right now the 30 general managers of the NHL are meeting in Naples, FL to discuss a multitude of topics, but fighting will be at the forefront. The GMs would like to get rid of staged fights during games, which are predetermined bouts between two players that aren't in retaliation for anything; they just fight because that's what they're paid to do.At least that's what I think it is. I asked some fellow hockey fans on Twitter to give me their take on what they think a staged fight is."A boxing match""Wrestling"Okay, so apparently the people I follow on Twitter are just a bunch of smart asses. Moving on...Number CrunchersHere's some data the league put together on fighting in the NHL:21.6% - Number of fights this season have happened immediately following a faceoff, which is a 30 percent increase since 2000.23.6% - Number of fights started in defense of...Read more

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Deadline Passes Without Blockbuster Deal

By Alan Smodic | March 4, 2009 | MVN Outsider

The 2009 NHL trade deadline passed about three hours ago. The top story this year? ... well, take your pick. It pretty much depends on what team you follow.This time last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins made the splash of the day, acquiring Marian Hossa from the Thrashers for a slew of players. A "sexy" deal, as one radio personality put it. An equivalent to that one was not pulled today.But that doesn't mean that some playoff-bound, or playoff-dreaming teams didn't improve their rosters. Some notables today:The Calgary Flames made arguably the biggest move, adding F Olli Jokinen and D Jordan Leopold. The Pittsburgh Penguins were back at it again. GM Ray Shero already added Chris Kunitz in the Ryan Whitney trade last week. Today, amid some other small moves, he added veteran winger Bill Guerin in exchange for a conditional draft pick.Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins added some veteran presence...Read more

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The NHL Trade Deadline Edition of the Power Poll

By Bryan Thiel | February 26, 2009 | MVN Outsider

With the Trade Deadline just around the corner in the NHL season, you can imagine what this week's theme is.This week we took a look at who each team might be trading (which is for a majority of clubs because they either feature a tradeable player or are on the fringe of decided whether they're buying or selling) or in a few cases, what the team needs. We also tossed in a few speculations just for fun.30. New York Islanders--(-19 points, Last week: -20 points): The New York Islanders could've been making a few moves at the deadline, but after getting ravaged by the injury bug, it's hard to finger who might be moved.Both Doug Weight and Mike Sillinger had potential (being free agents this offseason) but a season-ending injury for Sillinger and a sprained MCL for Weight means the probability for a deal is low (for Sillinger there's nothing,...Read more

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