The Witch Is Back! | Witchcrafting 2012 | Stanley Cup Predictions

*macchiato done, cookies collected, time to write*

Ah, just when you thought I would never post again, I raise from the Ashes. Probably not for long. This blogging is so timeconsuming for me, that since late November, I have found zero time to write something. But how could I not return for my favourite pastime of the season: utterly and completely misreading the stars and other omens and failing in predicting the winner of the Stanley Cup!

But the Witch is back! And as last year, you can feast your eyes on a mix of wishful thinking, absurdity, hoping, runewatching, coin-flipping and crystal-ballery!


EASTERN CONFERENCE
[Senators #8 vs Rangers #1]
Last year the Rangers fought with all their might to make it to #8 ahead of the Canes. What a difference a year can make. This year they had several great runs and at times I had to admit they looked strong. Definitely stronger than I like seeing them. And they have King Henrik. Oh boy. But they also provided me with some fun moments and although I have no love for this squad at all, Torts definitely made my day the other week when he so openly dissed the Pens Prima Donnas. Nice. The Sens, ugh. So unless the Rangers decide to fail again in the first round, I can see them win this one quite easily. 4-2 Rags, I mean Rangers.

[Caps #7 vs Bruins #2]
Oh no. I hate this match-up this early in the Playoffs *wince*. Once the Flyers had 'left the building' last year, I totally jumped on the Bruins bandwagon. They were playing the game the way I had expected to see my Flyers play. But I have a soft spot for the Caps too. And correct me if I'm wrong, but there were some sparks in those last few games ... *ponders deeply* ... I can't think of bad things to say about the Bruins, such a complete team. And the Caps, do they even have a goalie?! But a little voice in my head is telling me to expect the perhaps unexpected and that maybe the Caps won't choke this time around. I am going to upset my buddy Sven with this and myself a bit too to be honest. 4-3 Caps.

[Devils #6 vs Panthers #3]
I have no particular interest in this match-up. Hate the Devils though, Panthers are so-so. So this is easy to decide on. The series score has nothing to do with me thinking the Panthers are THAT good, no, it's just a reflection of my dislike of the Debs. 4-0 Panthers.

[Flyers #5 vs Pens #4]
Oh boy. Really? In the first round? *sigh* Look. After the crazy trades that happened after the post-season I was really worried about how things would pan out for my Flyers this season. But I must admit, I am quite pleased. The season hasn't been perfect, but I had good hopes for a good Playoffs run. Hmm, well, if nothing else, I expect fireworks between the two. No love lost there! I don't mind seeing another bout of Lavvy trying to climb the boarding in order to give Bylsma a good talking to :D ... but the Pens, if they keep a healthy team, are quite formidable. Vomitted a bit in my mouth there :S ... so I am going for a mix of hoping and love for my Flyboys. 4-3 Flyers.

 
WESTERN CONFERENCE
[Kings #8 vs Nucks #1]
I just don't like the Nucks. Well, maybe Ryan Kessler, but that's it. The Kings have Anze! And Richie! And oh no, Carter, but I won't hold it against them. So simply because I hate the Nucks. I say. 4-2 Kings.

[Sharks #7 vs Blues #2]
Eh the Sharks made it again, eh? And the Blues too this time. What a lousy series, both are just such non-entities for me. So I am going to consult The Coins! Tail is Sharks. *flips a coin several times* Oh, The Coins like a full series! 4-3 Blues. Whatever.

[Blackhawks #6 vs Yotes #3]
What is that? The Hawks are still here? I blotted them out last year. So pesky of them to return again ... *continues pretending the Hawks do not exist* ... guess that's a by for the Yotes. Lucky bastards. 4-0 - as they had no opponents - Yotes. 

[Red Wings #5 vs Predators #4]
Red Wings, my fave Western team. So, easy for me. Wings of course win. Don't want them to get too tired. 4-2 Wings.


EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS & FINALS
[Rangers vs Caps]
Ohhhh, with the Sens out of the way it is time for the Rangers to say bye bye. Come on Caps! 4-3 Caps.

[Panthers vs Flyers]
Yeah no rocket science required to figure out what I am going to predict here ;) ... 4-1 Flyers.

[Caps vs Flyers]
Caps, I love you guys, but my Flyers will get stronger with each series. 4-2 Flyers.


WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS & FINALS
[Kings vs Blues]
As The Coins helped me out during the first round, let me consult them again. Kings are tails. Oooooh nice, I would have gone with the Kings here. And The Coins agree strongly. 4-1 Kings.

[Yotes - Red Wings]
No contest. Red Wings march through and quite easily too with lots of Datsyukian dekes. 4-1 Wings.

[Kings vs Red Wings]
You may know I am an Eastern Conference girl myself, but this is a sexy Western Conference Finals match-up. Delish! My Western faves have to win this one though, would love to see them in the SC Finals! But the Kings won't just give it up and will take it all the way to game seven, before gracefully bowing out. 4-3 Wings.


STANLEY CUP FINALS
[Flyers vs Red Wings]
Hahah, this is the exact same final series I predicted last year. My my, how wrong I was. But hey, a mix of wishful thinking, absurdity, hoping, runewatching, coin-flipping and crystal-ballery can be very potent and maybe this year that dream really will come true xD ... last year I predicted a 4-2 Flyers win and I see no reason why it should be different in this SC dream. So yeah. 4-2 Flyers. And I will be in Hockey Heaven!

So what do you think?

Season 2011 - 2012 | My 1st Night With NHL Gamecenter

And what a glorious night it was. Could have been even better, but more about that later.

My Gamecenter view - and a nice 7-1 win for the Leafies

If like me, you are European, you will know that getting your hockey fix has been problematic at times. If not, in short: at the end of last season ESPN lost the international NHL broadcasting rights to some shady consortium. I am sure it's not as shady as I make it out to be, but it has definitely less cachet than ESPN in my opinion. Up until the very last week before the season start we had no idea if and where we'd be able to watch hockey, but then word came that we could all sign up for NHL Gamecenter. Since then, in some countries, hockey has returned to television which actually messed up people's access to their Gamecenter accounts (if they got one of course). And ESPN America does on occasion air a game or two (weird stuff), but OK, the Netherlands are not much of a hockey market so I don't have to worry about any TV station acquiring the Dutch broadcasting rights anytime soon ;)

I didn't get Gamecenter straight away. I have very little opportunity to watch games live and I wasn't sure if it would be worth the investment. I have caught a few games online, but stream hunting is not really appealing and quite illegal as well ;) ... so yesterday I decided to give myself an early Christmas present and ordered a year's worth of yummie NHL games!


The first game I watched was the FLYERS-JETS game and this is why the night was not as glorious as it could have been ...
♦ They lost 6-4. To the annoying Thrashers, ah, I mean Jets. Whatever. What is it with these guys that makes my guys choke? The last nine encounters between the two, the Jets won eight times :p
♦ Bobs was in net. I saw people demand his head on a plate. Sure, I will not deny he let in a few soft ones, but lets face it, those first ten minutes of the game the whole team was playing in a most disgraceful manner. This was his first loss in regulation and he still came out of this game marginally better than Pavelec ... .872 vs .871 ;)
♦ So the first ten minutes were horrible, unfortunately the same was true for the second period. At this time I was ready to just ignore the game and solely focus on the Kings-Red Wings game. But I gave it another go as the third period started and was happy enough to find the guys were playing are more focused game and managed to score a few goals to make it 5-4. Actually, I made that sound a bit dull, but it was actually a pretty exciting third period. And damn, Matt Read. Two awesome goals, a huge slapshot followed by a precise wrist-shot. Nice, I was on the edge of my seat. One to watch for sure :D
♦ I will never understand why Lavvy then chose to go for an early - if you ask me - empty net ... a huge gamble if you ask me. It looked uncomfortable from the get go and yeah, that didn't work out well at all
♦ And a final musing about why Bryzgy didn't play this game. Looking at the losing trend we have when meeting the Jets and that horrible game in October - yeah, the one that we lost 9-8 and which had the highest number of goals in one game in the last 15 years and made both teams look crap - and Bryzgy's subsequent loss of confidence ... I am not surprised at all that Lavvy sent in Bobs. Better to preserve Bryzgy's new-found confidence right?


During this game I also kept an eye on the RED WINGS-KINGS game. Gamecenter makes it so easy to switch between games! I needed myself a bit of Mike Richards and Anze Kopitar and of course the Red Wings, who are my fave Western Conference team.
♦ So what a stroke of luck that I changed to that game just in time to see Richie score an awesome shortie! Speed, cunning and precision execution. It was beautiful to see. And he seems happier in LA. He wasn't even grumpy during the intermission interview! :D
♦ And then the Red Wings went on to score four goals, unanswered by the Kings. My hero Datsyuk got two goals. So all is good in the West in my book
♦ And can I just say that the Kings' black home jersey is the most awesome jersey in the league? I see a Richie or Anze jersey in my future lol


At this point I was a bit tired, but decided to wait for the 1am start of the CAPS-LEAFS game. I was a bit scared, what with the November slide and all. And eventhough the Caps are having a bit of a struggle too at the moment, it's still the Caps! 
♦ So, although I had plenty of reasons to be worried (Reims still out; Armstrong, Grabovski, MacArthur, Lombardi *and* Komisarek as well, the Monster in net, a few annoying losses in the last couple of weeks) I needn't have worried. My Leafies looked just fine in the first period and went into the second period with a 2-1 lead. And that's when the schooling started. Four awesome goals, three of which on the PP! And to finish things off, a third period short-handed goal. BOOM! 7-1! I mean I have a soft spot for the Caps and don't like to see them struggle, but when my guys win this big, I can't help but feel elated!
♦ Who did all this scoring you ask? Ah, it started with Connolly, not even two minutes into the game. Then Frattin scored his first NHL goal. Grats! In the second period we saw awesome goals by Bozak, Kessel (14th this season, still leading the League *kiss*), Lupul and Franson. Steckel scored against his former team in the final minute of the game and celebrated like it was a game-winning goal. But hey, he hadn't been involved in a goal in eleven games, so who can blame him. Nice going
♦ Monster looked confident in net and made some awesome saves, and didn't play so messy on the rebounds; lets hope he can keep this up till Reims returns!
♦ And I need to put the spotlight on Lupul for a bit. A goal and three assists! And the game's 1st Star. I liked the way he played at the end of last season and I am glad to see him progress this season as well. Love him! *let me fawn for a bit* Love the Kessel-Lupul-Bozak line in general


Today I also watched the OILERS smash the BLACKHAWKS. Yeah! And BOSTON had a great evening as well, schooling those pesky ISLES.
♦ Love all those youngsters at the Oil. Hall, Eberle, Hemsky all scored goals. Nugent-Hopkins didn't, but he was certainly a driving force with 5 assists, creating great opportunities for his teammates. And some of the goals were so beautiful. Just for a certain tic-tac goal I think I will have to post a second article to feature some of my fave goals last night, cause there were plenty all across the league 
♦ The Bruins had an uncharacteristic start of the season, dwelling near the last place in the Eastern Conference, but they are on a huge winning streak ... won last eight games now. And I haven't seen an Isles game in a while, but this is the weakest I have seen them play. They hardly gave any resistance at all and the Bruins just trampled all over them. The scoreless second period was odd, but hey, still got six goals in the end


*reads back*

Whoa, apologies for that waterfall of words, just couldn't stop myself ;) ... so just a few final observations and then I'm posting this monster!

Other noticeable occurances:
♦ Thank you Yotes for denying the Sabres aka BKK aka Blunt Kitchen Knives the win
♦ BizNasty scored. A goal I mean. And this is sweet, his mother was there for the first time ever to witness it. Biz told us she has been ill for the past two years but for the first time felt good enough to make the trip to the rink (yay for Mum)
♦ BOOOO! The Habs won. Don't like the Rags either, but I like the Habs even less (and I am putting that politely lol)   


PS ... I hope the Leafies have an awesome game tonight versus the Canes ... *keeping fingers crossed*

Playoffs Daily | SCF Game 7 | June 17th, 2011

OMFGWTH was Don Cherry wearing? Yeah, that was the first question that hit me when I started watching Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. Words cannot describe it, so here is a pic lol


Don Cherry's Floral Arrangement - Should Have Left It In The Vase

[Bruins-Nucks] 4-0. Bruins win the series and get to hoist the Cup! What an awesome night for Thomas. To finish the season off with a shutout. It is stuff movies are made off. I just read he is the first goalie to win with a shutout whilst on the road and he is the fourth goalie in the history of the NHL to have a shutout in Game 7. The Bruins needed 21 shots to get four goals. The Nucks had 37 shots on goal and got none. Thomas made sure of that!

♦ I am always on the edge of my seat the first few minutes when the Bruins play. They have had some really bad first few minutes these Playoffs. So any time the Bruins do not get scored on in the first few minutes I know we are going to see a good game from them at least. The Nucks did get the first few shots on goal, but nothing special. Earlier games showed a much more energetic Nucks start, but looks like the Bruins have found a way to disrupt the fast Nucks play early on. The first goal sort of hit me unawares. Not a particularly interesting build up or a rush, but in itself a nice feed to Bergeron by Marchand. After the first I goal I was waiting for the Nucks to bring more energy to the ice, but fizzled out

♦ Second period started off interestingly enough. The Nucks seemed to be a bit more into the game and they were definitely hunting for a goal, but then Marchand twisted and turned and scored a marvelous goal. That was some nifty work. Recchi must have felt inspired because a few seconds later he broke free of the Nucks D and nearly scored a goal. He was darting across the ice like a young kid. Amazing to see this 43-year old guy display this type of energy and eagerness! Unlike after the 1-0, the Nucks actually amped up their game and started to be a bit more threatening in front of the Bruins' goal and Timmie was definitely called on for some top saves. The Nucks had one PP this game and perhaps pre-SC they would have used this opportunity to score and switch momentum. Instead, Bergeron scored a shorthanded goal and that made 3-0!

♦ If you were supporting the Bruins, the third period was a much less stressful event than the start of the previous two periods. A 3-0 does not mean you are safe, but it sure is confidence inspiring. This period was still exciting, it was after the final twenty minutes of the season, but the Bruins were just making sure they had good puck possession and a tight defence and the Nucks just could not muster up the necessary energy to create extra chances. And as time started to slip through their hands you could see the faces get sadder and sadder on the Nucks' bench. With three minutes to go, Luongo was pulled to add an extra attacker, but Marchand made sure that was punished straight away by scoring an empty-netter within seconds. And that was that. No usual last minute frenzy, it was just over and here and there you could see little celebrations starting

♦  Some extra kudos to my fave Bruins D-guys: Seidenberg & Chara. Both again put in most time on ice, 28:51 and 27:12 respectively. Chara actually made a few awesome saves there and Seidenberg had two assists

♦ I liked the almost 'don't care if you guys kill eachother but we are not going to hand out a lot of penalties'-approach the refs had to this game. The first penalty was dealt way back in the second period (Chara interference on Kesler) ... but some hits should have been punished though. A few stuck out:
1st period: Higgins on Chara, elbow to the head
3rd period: Timmie 'gently' pokes Hansen with his hockey stick ... could pass it off as an accident I suppose, but still, that was naughty ;)

♦ The standing ovation Thomas got was really nice

♦ Need I mention the riots that took place in Vancouver after the home team lost? I will just drop it. Because us true sports fans know that that crap has nothing to do with being a fan

♦ I called this is one right in my last prediction!

Well, that concluded a very interesting post-season. I feel a bit deflated. What to do next? How will we get through the Summer without watching our beloved hockey? I will have to figure out something ... for now, let me close this article with the Stanley Cup Presentation :)

Playoffs Daily | Game 5 & Game 6 | June 14th, 2011

Say you are a regular reader of my little scribblings, in that case I apologise for the infrequency that snuck into my postings. Work has been unbelievably hectic and personal time as well. In itself not a bad thing, but it has kept me from watching games as soon as I can and writing them up. So here with some delay my shorter than usual views on both games.


[Game 5: Bruins-Nucks] 0-1. Nucks lead series 3-2. I hate 1-0 games. I hate them just a bit less if the team I root for wins. But I hate them nonetheless. Upon seeing the result on my NHL applet I decided against watching this one. I am sure it had it's moments, but I just refuse to watch it. There you go. Nucks are a game ahead at this point and could have claimed the Cup in Game 6.


[Game 6: Nucks-Bruins] 2-5. Series tied, again. On home ice there is just no stopping the Bruins. They do not just play and somehow win, they dominate.

♦ That was an awesome first period. If you are a Bruins fan anyways. Everything went right for the Bruins here and they scored four goals in this one period. Marchand, Lucic, Ference scored in quick succession at which point the suffering Luongo was replaced by Schneider. Not that it helped much, as just a minute later Ryder (although at first it looked as if it was Kabby) scored the fourth one
♦ The second period was scoreless and apart from some hacking, slashing, checking, you could say not much went on it this period
♦ The third brought some more excitement. At least the Nucks got on the scoreboard. Sedin (Henrik) scored just seconds into the third. But Krejci made sure the message was clear and scored the fifth goal for the Bruins. Lapierre added a second goal for the Nucks, but for this game it was just not in the cards for the Nucks

Other stuff.
♦ Hits. Yes. Some took place. Some bad too. Of course I will mention the Boychuck hit on Raymond. By now we know that Raymond has a few fractured vertebrae and that he will be out for a few months. I wish him all the best and hope that he will have a quick recovery. As for the hit itself, I am a bit on the fence here. Both guys were fighting for the puck and Raymond was doing some weird contortionist act to get to the puck before Boychuck would. He sort of folded his own body around and underneath Boychuck's. And that is a big dude, so that close to the board it was an accident waiting to happen. I do not even want to imagine what that hit would have looked like at full speed, I am just glad the speed had already dissipated a bit. Still, I wonder if Boychuck maybe could have tried to avoid it, but I am sure he would have if he could 
♦ But the nastier hit was performed by Eidler. He thorougly boarded Pev. On an icing! Right. Eidler, read up on rules will you? Hmm and Bergeron had mean elbowing going on against Ehrhoff. Not very nice either

Some final thoughts:
♦ Does anyone else thinks that the Sedin twins are airing their frustration with lots of nasty mean little hits and pokes, of which most go unpunished?
♦  Who else misses Kesler? Well he is there, but he must be in some serious pain due to some sort of injury. He has been a ghost of his former self the past few games. Damn, I hate when such a great player is pretty much sidetracked due to some undisclosed injuries :(
♦ OK. So the Nucks barely win, but still, win, at home. The Bruins utterly dominate on their home ice. I am not so sure what to make of this. If the Bruins can bring even a bit of that extra energy they seem to have at home to Vancouver for Game 7, I can just see them win the Cup. Would be nice!

Playoffs Daily | SCF Game 2 & Game 3 | June 7th, 2011

A very busy weekend kept me from watching Game 2. Usually I manage to catch up eventually, but not this time. But better luck for Game 3! I have seen the result, but I cranked up the DVR and am watching it now. As the intro takes place I will spend a few minutes wrapping up Game 2, but it will be very short.

Game 2
[Bruins-Nucks] 2-3. Nucks lead series 2-0. Well, another close game with amazing goaltending on both sides. The game went into OT, although you could hardly call it an extra period as Burrows scored after just 11 seconds with an admittedly nice wrap-around. I am sure Timmie should have made other choices in how he chose to defend this attack, but I am sure he knew what he was up to despite the bad outcome. And let me quote Thomas himself: "I've got a pretty good idea of how to play goalie. I'm not going to take suggestions or advice at this time." I like it.


Game 3
[Nucks-Bruins] 8-1. Nucks lead series 2-1. That was an awesome way to get back into the round I think. 8-1 is a definite punishment this far ahead in the Playoffs and this large a goal difference does not happen often.

♦ The game started of pretty fine, no early goals and you could see by the intensity of the players that this might be an emotional game. Just when I settled in nicely to watch this game, that late hit by Rome on Horton happened. I had seen footage of the hit earlier today but it still hit me hard. What struck me most was the dazed look on Horty's face and I immediately felt very worried. By now we know that Rome has been suspended for four games. Maybe a bit much, but well Horty is out for the rest of the Playoffs and now so is Rome. These things are always up for debate. Horty should perhaps have kept his head up, but Rome was after him with a purpose and the shoulder was set for a big hit. Horty really flew backwards on impact. And it was a LATE hit. Yeah. I still see that dazed look on Horty's face. Creepy

♦ OK, the game continued with a five minute PP. But the Bruins could not turn it to their advantage. It was not a bad period really. The Nucks had some good shots, but Timmie was not having it. He made some top saves. The Bruins were playing well enough too, but missed a certain sharpness

♦ Second period and just a few seconds into the period Ference scored the first one for the Bruins. Minutes later Recchi scored on the PP, although lets face it, that was a very unfortunate assist/goal by Kesler. What a difference from Game 1 though (and quite possibly from Game 2 as well, but I have not seen it in full so I cannot be sure), the Bruins were not only strong on the defence, but their offence looked very alive as well in this period. Next up to score was Marchand, a marvelous short-handed goal no less. Krejci closed the scoring during this period with a nice wrist-shot. The Nucks played decent enough too, but Timmie was on fire. Of course the period ended with a bit of a skermish. That is how emotional this game was

♦ Third period continued much the same. Some good chances by the Nucks again, but Timmie was just a rock. The game that I thought was physical enough, got grittier in this period and there were a lot of game misconducts and fighting majors, especially after a fight that occured around the 11 minute mark. Lucic, Kesler, Seidenberg and Burrows all vanished into the locker room. And was Lucic trying to feed Burrows his fingers as a little snack during the fight? My word, not very classy, but I found myself giggling a bit anyways. All this fighting fueled the Bruins even more and shortly after the game was resumed Paille scored a short-handed goal making it 5-0. Hansen then scored to make it 5-1, but that was all Timmie was willing to give away. Next three goals - all within a span of two minutes - were by the Bruins (Recchi, Kelly, Ryder), giving them an amazing 8-1 win!

♦ Amusing moment: Timmie not only did his share of saving ;) ... he also got in a hit on Sedin: Hit & Save!




♦ Some stats to finish off ... Bruins had 38 shots on goal, the Nucks had 41. And the Bruins looked more physical on the whole and that reflects in the PIM and hits. PIM was 75 for the Bruins and 70 for the Nucks. The Bruins had 39 hits and the Nuck 31. Very intense!

Looking forward to Game 4. I hope the Bruins bring the same energy!

Playoffs Daily | SCF Game 1 | June 2nd, 2011

I was so excited for Game 1 of the Final! I spent the entire evening fighting off sleep and sure enough, the clock struck 2am and I was still up. Hockey Night In Canada tune ... anthems ... puck drop. So exciting, even more so than the previous games!

[Bruins-Nucks] 0-1. Intense game. Not exactly because of gameplay, but just because of what is at stake and both teams really wanting to win but obviously getting frustrated as time went on and no goals were scored ...

♦ But it started off with a barrage of shots by the Nucks in the first few minutes. Timmie had to show up early and in the first two minutes alone made about 5 saves, but at least the Bruins made it through the first minute without allowing a goal. If you have been following them these Playoffs, you will know it is not uncommon to happen
♦ It took the Bruins a bit longer to get the first shot on goal, well into the third minute but Luongo managed to deflect the puck with his skate. Would have been an easy tap in otherwise
♦ D. Sedin then performed some nasty high sticking on Chara giving the Bruins their first powerplay, all 4 minutes of it. The Bruins moved the puck around pretty well, but it was not really offensive and the Nucks had a very effective PK. Rather tame four minutes actually, instantly livened up by Sedin's return to the ice ... Timmie had some blistering saving to do straight away. What followed were a lot of intense moments and quite a lot of PPs
♦ The game settled in the last few minutes though, only to be livened up by a skermish right after the whistle was blown. Bergeron and Burrows got into it and I just read that Burrows bit Bergeron. What?!
♦ This period was the busiest in terms of SOG: 17 Bruins, 12 Nucks 

♦ Onto the second period. This one started with a rush again. But the Nucks were - in my opinion - even less disciplined this period and soon the Bruins found themselves on a two man advantage once more. Unfortunately, again the special teams failed to monetise
♦ This period brought us the best hit of the game: Lucic got flipped over by Hamhuis (perfectly legally), but in the process Hamhuis managed to get himself hurt and he did not return to the ice once he finally skated off. Krejci did also crosscheck him as a bit of retaliation, but that was pretty gentle, so yeah, I am going with a self inflicted injury due to lifting a taller and heavier opponent. Still. Awesome hit, see for yourself (courtesy of NHL.com)

♦ Halfway through the period the Nucks to me looked just a bit more feisty, but the Bruins just grunted and beared it. Thinking back, Kesler had the biggest chance of this period shortly after that hit on Lucic
♦ The hit also served as a bit of a catalyst for the Bruins. They already had their share of penalties in the first period but seemed to have calmed down significantly, but the bear was loose again. Marchand wanted to retaliate a bit I suppose and made a great hit on Raymond, another flip. Seidenberg saw an opportunity to break away and did so but not without some kneeing first and was sent to the penalty box. Seconds later Peverley followed for hooking, giving the Nucks a 5-on-3 advantage. You would think that the Nucks would finally get a PP goal now, instead pesky Burrows got a penalty for tripping Timmie, making it a 4-on-3. Not nearly as exciting. This penalty seemed a bit unfair though, but Burrows had been a nuisance throughout the game, there had to be payback at some time. The game got very gritty
♦ But eventually things settled down a bit and we entered a much quieter part of the game, although by no means boring. Both teams were hunting for that first goal. What struck me towards the end of the second period is that neither team had a strong grip on strategy. Both Bruins and Nucks seemed to have a haphazard approach towards offence. Maybe it was the unsettling amount of PPS on which neither team managed to capatilise. End of second period and still no goals scored. Both teams had 9 shots on goal

♦ Third period, much of the same and the first big chance was generated by Hansen, who broke loose and went full speed ahead towards the Bruins net, but Timmie performed yet another awesome save. As we went to the final 10 mins of regulation, the Nucks picked up speed for a good five minutes, generating a few chances, but nothing paid off. Once again things settled down for the remainder of the third period and I think everyone had accepted the idea that the game would go to OT, but then Torres struck. 1-0 Nucks. Great goal too, but then it would take something special to beat any of the goalies this night
♦ The final period saw 10 shots on goal by the Bruins and 14 by the Nucks

♦ Funny moment 1: Thomas turning his back on the skermish at the end of the fist period and hitting imaginary posts (embedded via NHL.com):



♦ Funny moment 2: After the hit on Lucic and subsequent crosscheck on Hamhuis by Krejci, they replayed a barrage of crosschecks of Seids on Burrows I think it was (sorry, was too lazy to rewind during the game to ascertain) ... but no penalty awarded there. Could not find footage of this, but take my word for it, it was amusing

Final words. Not sure what to make of this game really. Great goaltending, that is a certainty. Both Timmie and Lu played an awesome game. The Nucks were a bit feistier. But the Bruins were steady and did not allow for much space. Both teams had 6 PPs and failed to score. For the Bruins this was expected, but for the Nucks less so. In the end I think the game was pretty even and either team could have/should have won. The Nucks got it this time, hopefully the next one will be for the Bruins. But both teams will have to work on some elements of their game and I want to see a bit more fireworks next time. Not talking about the goalies here, like I said, they were splendid!

Playoffs 2011 Predictions | Witchcrafting Part IV | May 30th, 2011

My Whimsical Playoffs Predictions - New & Improved For The Last Time

This time, I will not let The Coins interfere with my predictions. Instead I will just go with my emotions and wishful thinking. The Coins called the Nucks-Sharks wrong, so they get to sit still in my wallet.

STANLEY CUP FINAL
[Nucks-Bruins]
A far cry from my dream final: Flyers-Red Wings. But you have to appreciate the hard work of the teams that did make it this far. Still not a fan of the Nucks. I can appreciate the talent and all, but apart from Ryan Kesler, I find them bland. Personally. I know a couple of die-hard fans, so good luck to you guys! Jeffrey in particular! But I like the Bruins a lot. I like their style. I like Lucic. I like Bergeron. I like Ference. I like Chara. I like Kabby. I have started to like Seidenberg. I like the floppy Timmie as much as the magical Timmie. There is no one on the team that I do not like. So yes. Emotionally I want the Bruins to win. And because they like their wins hard worked for ... 4-3 Bruins.

What do you think? Feel free to post your own predictions in the comments, anonymous our not ;)

Playoffs 2011 | Witchcrafting Revisited - Post SF | May 5th, 2011

{edit: totally forgot to post this one on May 5th, adding it now for future reference ;)}

After the Quarter Finals I had to redo part of my initial predictions. And had fun with those too. But I did not do to well! The Semi Finals were definitely a torture to watch! So how did I do?

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS
[Caps vs Bolts] Yeah, did not see that one coming at all. Nor did Ovi. Never seen someone look so sad in a post-game interview. I felt like crying. But I think the Hockey Gods new. As I was writing my Whimsical Playoffs Predictions | Part Deux on April 28th, just as I posted the articled, huge thunder bolts lit up the sky and I edited the post back then, wondering I was wrong ... and boy was I ever!
My prediction: 4-2 Caps
Reality: 4-0 Bolts

[Flyers vs Bruins] - Not going to relive this one. I have written all I want to say at this stage the day after. We lost. Bruins swept us ... *sigh* ... I knew it would be a tough series ... but I was not ready for what really happened :) and The Coins were wrong on this one too.
My prediction: 4-2 Flyers
Reality: 4-0 Bruins


WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS
[Nuck vs Preds] - Yeah, this one exactly the way I predicted, cool.
My prediction: 4-2 Nucks
Reality: 4-2 Nucks

[Sharks vs Red Wings] - This one hurt, as much, or maybe even a bit more than the Flyers loss.
My prediction: 4-1
Reality: 4-3

The result:
I called one right. But when I am right, I really am right ... called the number of games correctly as well ;)

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 7 | May 28th, 2011

Hell yeah! I managed to watch nearly two periods before I had to call it quits and get some sleep. Hey do not judge me, the game started at 2am my time! So when I woke up this morning and saw the result I was relieved, happy for my buddy Sven who is a huge Bruins fan and pretty damn happy for myself as well as I preferred for the Bruins to claim the Prince of Wales Cup.  

[Bolts-Bruins] 0-1. Bruins win series 4-3. I did not know this, but it is the first time in 21 years that the Bruins have reached the Finals again. And they have not won a Cup since 1972. My year of birth. A good omen? lol




Courtesy of me shooting pics of the ESPN America CBC broadcast ;)


♦ A very tense first period! But at least no goal against for the Bruins in the first minute like the past couple of games. What followed was a pretty even game. Hard for either team to get through the neutral zone and near the goal and a lot of time was spent along the boarding. But the atmosphere was thick with tension! Both teams wanting to win, not wanting to lose. I think the Bruins had the best chance in this period. Happened around the fifteen minute mark with a breakaway by Lucic, but Roloson made one of many big saves right there. Moments before it was Timmie who had a a busy spell as the Bolts took a few shots on net. Timmie was butterflying all over the crease. Shots on goal: Bruins 15, Bolts 9

♦ Second period was scoreless as well, but not because the teams were not trying. Timmie made some great saves (8), but Roloson even more. He fended off 14 shots. Apart from some great hockey, this period saw a crazy helmet save by Roloson and quite painfully, Stamkos took a hard shot right in the nose. After treatment he returned to the game, but that looked extremely painful

♦ Both teams continued playing great in the third, but you could see the Bruins pushing just a bit harder. Or maybe that was wishful thinking on my part ;) ... but it sure kept me on the edge of my seat. There were 9 shots on goal by the Bruins and 8 by the Bolts. After Nathan Horton scored the winning goal, the Bruins went into lockdown mode and hardly gave the Bolts room to get out of the neutral zone. Ferocious forechecking by the Bruins! So much so that pulling Roloson in the final minutes was problematic. He spent 59:34 on ice! You know how in the final minutes the team lagging will pull out any magic trick they have and cause a frenzy in front of the opposing goalie. No such thing in this game. The Bruins' defence was so tight, that even the top guys in the Bolts line up could not get past them and did not even manage to fire a shot at Timmie. Wow. So impressed. Goosebumps!

♦ This was as much a goalies game as you will ever see. Both Timmie (sv% 1.000) and Roli (sv% 0.974) peaked. Both guys made some amazing saves, but Roloson was unable to stop that one goal.  Bruins' whole D-squad was awesome, but yeah I will point out once more how great Chara and Seidenberg are. Seidenberg again clocked most time on ice with 27:57

♦ Amazing fact: NO PENALTIES! It is so easy to forget that a game CAN be played with ferocity, intent and passion without shoving the opponent into the glass panels, illegal hitting, hooking and whatnot. OK, there were some moments that could have ended up in a penalty, but the refs really did a great job by letting the game evolve on its own but still keeping a grip on proceedings. Other ref teams should take note. Anyways, this game was intense without nonsense. Kudos to both teams. With PPs suddenly leading to goals more often again, it is not a bad idea to keep your players out of the penalty box anyways

♦  The goal. That was just a precision attack and beautifully executed. Horton skillfully finished what was set up by Krejci & Ference!  *courtesy of NHL & CBC*

Well, I got my wish. The Bruins have made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. As for the Nucks. I should not have listened to The Coins, who predicted the Sharks would win. I said Nucks, but they said 'no way'. Wonder what the hell I am talking about?

Check my Whimsical Playoffs Predictions | Part III HERE. I will have to redo them now that The Coins let me down again ;) 


{edit: why did noone tell me I had written 'Prince of Whales Cup'? WHALES?! lol ... glad I saw that, after a while ... }

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 6 | May 26th, 2011

Hmm. The Bruins sure like to make things suspenseful. I am looking forward to a Nucks-Bruins Stanley Cup Final, but I will have to wait another game to see if that will become reality.

[Bruins-Bolts] 4-5. Series tied at 3-3. Another Game 7. I have to say the more hockey the merrier, so a Game 7 is cool! I just hope the Bruins will nail this one. Guys, my day was so hectic that I did not get around to actually watching the game and I only just managed to read up on the outcome. So this is going to be a short one - no really, I mean it this time! - for future reference and I will just list the basics. In all honesty, you might as well head over to the NHL site :D

♦ Considering the amount of goals, the actual number of shots on goal is low. Bolts had 26 and the Bruins just 20. Not a surprise then that the save percentages of both goalies are low. 0.800 for Roloson and 0.808 for Timmie. Definitely not a goalie game ;)

♦ Goalscoring for the Bolts: Purcell (0:36), St. Louis (27:55), Purcell (33:35), Stamkos (40:34) & St. Louis (50:15). Yeah you are seeing it correctly. Another very early goal against the Bruins. Still not doing their best from the get go. I really dislike goals when they are still showing the line-ups for the game

♦ Goalscoring for the Bruins: Lucic (7:09), Krejci (16:30), Krejci (49:46) & Krejci again (53:28)

♦ Yes, Krejci got himself a hat trick *throws a virtual hat on the ice* ... great job!

Well, that is all for now. Feel free to leave your insights about this game in the comments, will be happy to read those! And I am going to crank up the dusty Xbox and finally try my hand at Call Of Duty Black Ops ... have had the game since release date but it is still wrapped lol ... but I feel like shooting stuff after my very hectic day at work. Downside is that I am the worst gamer in the world, so I think it will be me getting shot at ;)

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 5 | May 24th, 2011

Weird game. Yet oddly exciting. Miracle goalie. Going to keep this one short. Maybe ;)

[Bolts-Bruins] 1-3. Bruins lead series 3-2. Not a great game by the Bruins at all and Timmie made the difference. Frustrated the Bolts to no end I am sure. I like this win personally, but they need to step it up in the next game.

♦ Because really? FOUR shots on goal by the Bruins in the first period?! And 14 by the Bolts. Just goes to say how well Thomas played right? Thankfully his team mates did a bit better in the second period with eight shots on goal, whereas the Bolts had nine. The third saw 14 shots by the Bolts and nine by the Bruins. But really 20-34? I want to see more effort from the Bruins next game, this is just not right

♦ Now Chara always get a lot of credit and rightly so. But guys, never forget Seidenberg. Game after game this guy puts in amazing time on ice. Had a look at his stats and in regular season he put in give or take 23 minutes per game. Come Playoffs, a TOI of 29 minutes is more regular than not and there was even a whopping 38:15 in Game 4 versus the Habs. So it is good to see he was awarded the third star for this game. The guy deserves the appreciation for all his hard work

♦ Gagne scored the only goal for the Bolts. Good one! But what is it with allowing the very early goals? How about the Bruins try starting with a solid D straight from the get-go, rather than allowing the opponent to strike first? They have the proper manpower in place, they might as well use it. Still. I like to see my former Flyer do well ;)

♦ For the Bruins it were Horton (great pass by Lucic) and Marchand (awesome feed by Bergeron) who scored in the second period. After a very frantic last few minutes in the third period, Peverley scored an empty-netter, securing this win and making it easier to breathe for everyone watching ;)

♦ Goalie time. First of all, Mike Smith got first Playoffs start. And lucky for him he only had to deal with 20 shots by the Bruins. I wonder if we will get to see Roloson start the next game. I like the 'who is net?' suspension! I am used to it of course, being a Flyers fan and all ;)

♦ Timmie Thomas. A 0.971 save percentage. And some miracle saves. He literally won this game for the Bruins. So going to finish this post with that miraculous 'holy shit!' stick save! Downie must have had a nightmare about this ...

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 3 | May 20th, 2011

I caught myself saying 'we got the series lead' this morning when I saw that the Bruins had won Game 3. We?! I am not a Bruins fan, I just like them lol ... my excuse is that I often get really caught up in the spirit of the moment. And sticking with it. No worries Leafies & Flyers, still love you most. And the Wings! ;)

[Bruins-Bolts] 2-0. Bruins lead series 2-1. After a crazy Game 2, it was nice to have a bit of normalcy. Not that the game was any less entertaining. Even knowing the outcome it was fun to watch. In my opinion both teams played very well, but the Bolts - despite home ice advantage - lacked the usual spark and energy.

♦ 'Just' two goals. Merely a minute into the first period, Krejci scored on a smart feed by Lucic. The Bolts had no quick reply, so the Bruins settled into a well-played first period. Lots of control in front of the opponents net, smart puck movement, complemented by an excellent defence. They kept this up for the next two periods as well. Not saying the Bolts were playing a bad game. Not at all, their defence was solid as well, but the Bruins were simply better at it. The Bolts definitely had a hard time getting the puck anywhere near Tim Thomas and the Boston D-guys thwarted many an attempt as soon as the Bolts crossed the blue line. Anyways, the second goal was scored eight minutes into the third period by my new hero Ference (will never forget his epic gesture during the series versus the Habs) and that gave Timmie a bit more breathing space for the remainder of the game. In total the Bruins had 25 shots on goal and the Bolts a bit more with 31.

♦ Yay! Bergeron was back. Glad the mild concussion really was mild. But his presence was highly impactful. Great on the face-off (won 18 out of 28) and great at reading the game and feeding pucks to teammates. In the post-game interview a reporter asked how he was feeling about being involved in hits and he said he was ready for any hits and that he felt confident he would be alright

♦ In the post-game interview Timmeh commented that the last game was just crazy with the constant rushes and that this game was much more normal. So he had more control, which meant we got to see a less floppy Timmeh ;) ... plus he had an awesome spinorama save!

♦ And can I just point out that the Bruins D-guys, especially Chara and Seidenberg, are awesome? Both clocked nearly 29 minutes of ice time. That is some serious effort and they got a few shots on goal as well adding extra firepower to the offence ... I checked the Bolts' stats and no one on that squad was on ice that long

♦ Biggest hit? The 'other' Bergeron hit Krejci pretty hard with his shoulder. I am not going to say Krejci was blindsided, but he certainly did not see him coming as he was focusing on receiving the puck. M.A. Bergeron got booed for quite some time, although not necessarily deserved. Lets face it, Krejci should have kept his head up

♦ Was keeping an eye on Seguin. No heroics this game, but good solid play. Excellent

♦ No big skirmishes. After Ben Eager's antics last night during the Nucks-Sharks game, it was good to watch a game without the dramatics ;)

♦ Steven Stamkos with a beard? I hope the playoffs will finish soon for the Bolts so he can get rid off that abomination ;)

Bring on the next game!

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 2 | May 18th, 2011

The second Eastern Conference Finals Game was certainly eventful. A lot happened, so I think I will just list whatever comes to mind!

[Bruins-Bolts] 6-5. Series equalised at 1-1. Lots of goalscoring, which is fun for viewing, but heavy on the goalies. Some goals were just awesome and could not be blamed on the guys. But Thomas let in a few soft ones and well, Roloson's bad roll got him pulled after the second period. The game:

♦ Hall scored just 13 seconds into the game (a cool goal too I must add), followed by some quick saves by Roloson, giving the Bolts a flying start. But things got really crazy in the second period as the Bruins scored five goals
♦ Roloson had a great first period, dealing with 18 shots on goal and letting in just one. Things went downhill for him in the second period, as the Bruins upped the intensity. The Bruins had 8 shots on goal and 5 actually went in. Roloson did not return for the third period. That actually made me sad a bit, because he was on such a great roll going into this game
♦ Timmie had some floppy moments during the game, and that last goal by Moore, whatever was going on there with Timmie and his D-man McQuaid, it did not look very good ;) ... but still, he was there when most needed as he fended of a great deal of attempts by the Bolts in the final minutes of the game
♦ Up until the third period SOG were pretty equal. Bruins had 27 and the Bolts had 26. But you could tell the urgency the Bolts felt. They were really hunting for a game equaliser and had 15 shots on goal in the final period, making a grand total of 41. The Bruins only had 8, totalling 35.

I bet Seguin had the best night. He did not get to play in the first two rounds as for obvious reasons the coach went with Bergeron and of course Julien is protecting this awesome rookie. But with Bergeron injured he got his chance in Game 1 and what a great start he had with that marvelous goal. Coach Julien is easing him into the hardships of playoffs hockey: time on ice in Game 1: 9.38. Time on ice in Game 2: 13.31. I like that about a coach. With two Playoffs games under his belt and already an impressive 3/3 in points, you cannot help but wonder if this guy is the one who will make a difference this series. Personally I do not like to put that kind of pressure on youngsters. But he looks calm and collected and he did tell us after Game 1 that the first goal took the pressure of things for him and that he is really just focusing on what he is good at: skating and shooting. He has also been listening to the advice provided by the likes of Mike Recchi and in the post-game interviews you can just see how proud his teammates are of his progress. Wonderful to see.

Not perfect, but definitely exciting hockey, I knew it! Looking forward to Game 3.

Playoffs Daily | ECF Game 1 | May 15th, 2011

Stayed up way too late last night and caught the first two periods and then I just fell asleep! It was not the best ever first game and I was a bit disappointed in the Bruins.

[Bolts-Bruins] 5-2. Bolts lead series 1-0. The game started cautiously. Both teams seemed to be testing the water so to speak. Some decent enough passing where the Bolts seemed to prefer a bit more speed and the Bruins were taking things more slowly, looking for opportunities and playing a much more controlled game. So the first goal the Bolts scored surprised me a bit. But not so much as the second and third Bolts goals! All within one minute and 25 seconds! Timmie was doing a great Timmie Tuna ... flopping all over the place. It makes him more human though, without these moments he would be a total awesome relentless goalie machine hahah. For a minute I thought they would send in Rask at this point, but then I remembered these are not the Flyers ;) ... other than that it was not all on Thomas, the D-guys totally let him down too there. It was nice to see Seguin score a couple of minutes later though and I thought they might do a bit better after getting rid off that zero on the scoreboard, but I must say that the second period did not impress me much. And of course I missed the third, so no idea how that one went, but the end result 5-2 tells me the Bolts' rather more energetic skating got the best of the Bruins and that the Bruins will have to ramp up their next game. Looking forward to it!

Playoffs 2011 Predictions | Witchcrafting Part Trois | May 15th, 2011

My Whimsical Playoffs Predictions - New & Improved Once Again

My post-QF predictions were horrible lol ... only got one right, so here my new predictions for the Conference Finals and the SC Finals.

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
[Bolts vs Bruins]
I thought the Caps would beat the Bolts but I think the Hockey Gods were sending me a message when I posted my previous predictions. As I hit the 'publish post'-button, huge thunder bolts lit up the sky. So let me have a look outside ... it is dark and a bit windy, but no thunder & lightning in sight. I will go with the Bruins *keeps an eye on the sky whilst posting*. 4-2 Bruins.

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
[Nucks vs Sharks]
How much I would have loved to see a Nucks - Red Wings match up. But no, the Sharks made it this far instead. I want the Sharks out. Enough is enough. Nucks will get this one. Just no idea how tough it will be. I think I will go to The Coins for help, eventhough they did not help me much with my Flyers-Bruins prediction. Damn. The Coins disagree with me. They say it will be a seven-games series and the Sharks will ultimately win. OK. 4-3 Sharks.

STANLEY CUP FINALS
[Bruins vs Sharks]
This does not even look close to my dream in which the Flyers meet the Red Wings and the Flyers bring the Cup to Philadelphia ... but I am all in for a Eastern Conference win, so goooooooo Bruins! They win the Cup in six games. 4-2 Bruins.

Playoffs Daily | SF Game 4 | May 7th, 2011

Where to start? First of all, 7pm EST is 1am my time and I was not planning on watching the games last night. Was a busy week at work so a girl needs to recuperate right? But both the Flyers and Red Wings game kept me preoccupied and I could not fall asleep and I was constantly grabbing my BlackBerry to check the NHL applet. At one point I gave up this torture and got up and tuned in to ESPN America to watch the final period of the Sharks-Red Wings game which ESPN followed up with the third period of the Flyers-Bruins game. By the time I went to sleep it was past 5am and I was a mixed bag of emotions and sleep deprivation lol

[Sharks-Red Wings] 3-4. Sharks lead series 3-1. My favourite Western Conference team lives to play another game! I liked how they quickly got to the 3-0 lead and liked it less when I saw it dwindle to 3-3 on the applet. At which point I decided to give up on this 'trying to sleep'-thing and got up to watch the rest of the third period. And it was very exciting. The Wings kept hunting for a winner and the Sharks were pretty much doing the same. It went back and forth and then Helm scored the fourth goal just as I was thinking 'Oh no, we're up for another OT'. I was on the edge of my seat for the last seconds of the game and never did time go so slowly. And I probably should not but I have admit to something very girly here. As the seconds ran out I was overwhelmed by it all and I found myself crying a bit lol ... I was so happy at least one of my faves evaded a sweep ...

[Flyers-Bruins] 1-5. Boston sweep series 4-0. Yes you probably heard about it ... my Flyers got SWEPT! Oh stop smirking at me like that! Two were emptynetters ok? But yeah, it all went downhill after game two and they never recovered. During the last two games at times I would see the Flyers that dominated the first half of the season, but all in all they were nothing but a ghost of their 'former' self. As if it was ages ago. But how else to describe it? Lines that once clicked perfectly and linemates that once found eachother blindly failed to generate goals. During the last period I saw things I have never seen before: shots on goal from the red line?! Sure, always try to take a shot, but that was just ridiculous. Bad stick-handling. Nervous undirected and even completely missed shots. Do not even get me going on the Playoffs goaltending situation. Sergei was in my opinion the saving grace in this final game. Do not blame him at all. And Lavi, who was such a rock for us seemed to have lost his coaching skills and confidence-inspiring coolness. And the Bruins were awesome the entire series. Credit where credit is due! Having said all that, I did see my guys give all the energy they had in them, but it was not enough to pull them through.

This series will be analysed to death and much better too, so I will not even attempt it, but in short this is what I think.

• Things went downhill after the ASG and got worse with the addition of Versteeg. Lines were messed up.
• The biggest WTF fuck moment of this season was when they called Leights back up for the Playoffs. Now I know our goalies were not the best, but to call up Leights? Great confidence booster for Sergei and Boosh *rolls eyes* ... that was just plain stupid and should not have happened. Not allowing Sergei back in net for Game 2 was the worst mistake. Sergei may have had the occasional bad game, but he always bounced back the next one.
• Lavi. Something is not right there. And the bad spell must have created locker-room issues. I am waiting for post-season fall-out!

So what now? At least the Wings live another day and I hope they will do what we did last year and turn things around and win the series ;)

As for the Bruins, I like these guys. Chara, Bergeron, Kaberle (yeah the Leafs were right about shipping him out, but I still like the guy), Ference (my hero eversince he flipped off the Habs fans), Lucic, Timmie ... awesome players. And the Bruins played the kind of game I was used to seeing my Flyers play. Physical to the max and dominating. So yeah, as I finally went to bed after 5am I was pissed off and ready to hate them. But with a few hours of sleep behind me and a really sunny day ahead the little bit of hate has gone and well, might even cheer for them to win the next series. What can I say, I am not a sore loser and we all deal with loss differently right? ;)

Playoffs Daily | Game 2 | May 3rd, 2011

A bit later than you are used to, but it was one hell of a hectic day. OK. Just one game last night! Unfortunately it did not bring me the result I hoped for, but for you Bruins fans a nice win for sure. Was watching the game as I was typing up this post.

[Bruins-Flyers] 3-2. Bruins lead series 2-0. At least the Flyers brought more energy to the game than in Game 1. And it started of great with two goals in the first ten minutes of the game, both by JVR. Then a lucky easy goal by Kelly, followed by something of a soft goal by Marchand and we were all tied again. Hmm, I have seen a lot of folks saying how soft that goal was and some dude on ESPN America agrees. I have looked at it a great number of times and call me silly or stupid lol ... but I do not think it was easy for Boosh to read that one *shrugs and sticks to her own opinion* ... I am not a Boosh-fan, but I think he did alright this game. Personally I am more annoyed by the OT goal! Lacklustre defending, lots of Bruins heading towards the net, our D was a bit invisible. Some easy puck-passing and Krejci clinched the win. Annoying! And to stay on the topic of goalies, Sergei got to play the last six minutes of the second period as Boosh was having some injury tended to (perhaps for the best as the last minutes were tough!), and Sergei looked solid and made some awesome key saves. And he seems to be standing a bit taller, or maybe I just forgot what kind of presence he actually has guarding our goal :)

Timmie. Well, he was amazing. Anyone denying that fact is not right in the head. 54 shots, 52 saves. And we could not score a few more with that much firepower? I would have given Timmie that first star.

JVR was awesome. He has been quite the force these playoffs so far and I hope he can continue his scoring streak. And eversince the waivers debacle and actually even before that, people have taken a dislike to Zherdev. I did not jump on the 'Hate-Z'-bandwagon, but neither did I expect him to have much ice-time either after all that, but I suppose Lavi trusted the man enough. And he has been getting better in my humble opinion, and I think he is doing a great job in the Playoffs. Just wanted to say that. Thanks Z!

All in all I think we outskated the Bruins and we definitely outshot them ... so what does a Flyer have to do to buy a goal ;) ... I hope our guys bring the same energy to the next game and SCORE :)

Alright, going to get ready for some World Cup hockey. Think I will watch the Russia-Slovakia game.

Playoffs Daily | SF Game 1 | May 1st, 2011

Early game yesterday and as the Bruins were playing and because there were no other games scheduled at the same time, I got to see the Flyers play live on ESPN America! It started well enough, there is always a buzz at the Wells Fargo Center. Orange & Black dominates. Watching tiny streams in the past did not always make me appreciate it, but seeing it on a large TV-screen definitely impresses the hell out of me.

Unfortunately it went downhill from there on ... lol

[Bruins-Flyers] 7-3. Bruins lead series 1-0. What?! 7-3? What?! 7-3?! Yes 7-3. What?! Horrible! More later.
[Preds-Nucks] 2-1. Preds lead series 1-0. Whoa. I might have to add a bit more later, but wow. Rinne is awesome.

OK. Flyers. I am going to keep it short.
- Boosh - and I am definitely not his biggest fan so I will hardly ever stand up for him - was hung out to dry! I felt sorry for him. And I did not see this happen myself, but one of my friends tweeted this to me: "Did you read Boosh's lips when he was on the bench? He said, I'm getting no fucking help out there."
- That said is all really. Where was our D? They certainly did not show up for the game!
- And it affected our offensive lines. My first impression was that they skated around as if it was a morning skate. But more likelye the lack of proper D messed up their gameplay too. They just could not pressure our opponent like they usually do. Roo was certainly irritated by the whole game, slashing unsuspecting Bruins ;)
- Like I said, our goalies got no D love at all, Sergei was called in to replace Boosh but it was the worse of times for our Bobs to return to the ice.
- And finally, the Bruins played an awesome game. Great work by Timmeeeeh! And his team mates :)

Phew. Better to quickly forget this one. And I am not worried, we will do better next time!

Playoffs 2011 Predictions | Witchcrafting Part Deux | April 28th, 2011

My Whimsical Playoffs Predictions - New & Improved

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS & FINALS
[Caps vs Bolts]
I had Caps versus Pens, but alas, the Pens got booted out. I like this match-up. I think we might be in for a few good games. But the Caps will get this one. 4-2 Caps. {edit: as I posted this, some huge thunder bolts lit up the sky, maybe I am wrong ...}

[Flyers vs Bruins]
I predicted this match-up, so no changes here. In my original predictions I said Sergei Bobrovksy would settle in nicely and beat Thomas. Since then we have seen Leighton and Boosh in net. We have seen Sergei in the press box. I am glad that mistake has been corrected. So Leights is apparently injured, I hope he stays the hell away from our goal. He has no business there. I can live with Boosh being the starter and I am happy Sergei is once again on the bench. Whew. With that out of the way, let me see. It will be the most physical series. Both teams have a similar style and I think that at the end of the series someone should post a video with all the hits. It might make a fine movie! Flyers are on a roll now I think and it will not be easy, but my guys will win 4-2.

[Caps vs Flyers]
Caps, I love you guys, but my Flyers will sail right past you. I just do not want to say 4-2 again. I think I will consult The Coins. Well, at least they agree with me the Flyers will win, but it will take a game more: 4-3 Flyers.

WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS & FINALS
[Nucks vs Preds]
Had the Ducks here first. But the Preds ate my Duckling and are now in the Semi-Finals. I do not like it much. Yeah, I think the Nucks will make it. I just honestly do not think the Preds are a match for these guys. But as the Nucks like to make things tough on themselves I am going to say they are headed for another seven game series. 4-3 Nucks. No, I just cannot believe it. Not against the Preds. 4-2 Nucks.

[Sharks vs Red Wings]
Got this one right. Still no contest. Red Wings march through and quite easily too with lots of Datsyukian dekes. 4-1 Wings.

[Nucks vs Red Wings]
Ha! And now the Playoffs really are over for the Nucks. They are tired and the Wings will beat them in five games! Yeah! 4-1 Wings.

STANLEY CUP FINALS
[Flyers vs Red Wings]
My dream comes true. My Flyboys totally dominate and even Datsyuk cannot save the Wings. But good effort there! 4-2 FLYERS!!

Playoffs Daily | Game 7 | April 28th, 2011

I have missed another great hockey night. Almost weekend so I am hanging in there till my next live action hockey fix. Watched the Flyers game last night. It was amazing! But lets see what happened last night.

[Bruins-Habs] 4-3. Bruins win the series. Splendid!! Happy golfing Habs! But the Bruins sure gave themselves a heart attack by allowing that annoying Subban to score with just two minutes of regulation time to go. So yes, Nathan Horton would be the 1st star for saving the Bruins' asses in OT ... well done guys! Well, my Flyers will face the Bruins in the next round. I think we are up for an interesting series. Of course my guys will smother the Bruins ;)

[Bolts-Pens] 1-0. Bolts win the series. Well talk about embarrassing!! Pens lose on home ice. But I really thought the Pens would win this series. The Bolts had a good season, but not a particularly sparkly one, while the Pens showed some true dedication by doing very well without Sid and Malkin. So prediction-wise this is a setback, but on an emotial level: WHOOOOO GO HOME PENS! Great work Bolts, glad to see them in the next rounds. Versus the Caps. Well, no contest there if you ask me, Caps will clinch the series.

OK, now that the first round is over I will have to revisit my predictions and bring out The Coins to redo them. Will post that article later today. And should I feel bored I might do a little analysis of the old ones lol

Onto the next round! Today the Nucks are back, facing the Preds. Wonder what that historic first round win will do for the Preds!