College Hockey
Birthday Nightmare — April 13th
Yes this picture was taken a couple years ago…but it is a favorite of mine. It is me and my niece, Daniella. The birthdays keep coming….and Daniella’s is tomorrow but today is well…my birthday. I am 33…scary but true…go figure. This is more about what has become a birthday nightmare….my sports teams can’t win on or around my birthday…and some years it seems to be even worse than others.
So it’s a good idea to go back to the day where this is all believed to have started. It is a day that will live in infamy in Wassel family lore. The sad day was 12 years ago today….April 13th, 1996. All the New Jersey Devils needed was a win against the lowly Ottawa Senators. Yes the Sens were lowly then…really low. They were perennially one of the worst teams in the mid 1990’s. The Devils had just won the Stanley Cup the year before. It was an afternoon game and my brother and I had a wedding to go to that evening. This seemed like the perfect day to watch hockey and a good night of drinking but boy was I wrong.
The Senators were playing the Devils tough…tied at 2 in the third period when the unthinkable happened. Tom Chorske, who the Devils had let go as a UFA in the offseason, scored midway through the period. 3-2 still wasn’t that bad…the home team could come back….NOPE! Ottawa would add another goal and Chorske would end the scoring on an empty netter to make it 5-2…the final. Ottawa of all teams had ended Jersey’s season. New Jersey was the first team in the modern era to miss the playoffs after winning the Stanley Cup. Bluntly put, it was a nightmare leaving the arena that afternoon. I think my brother and I spent the whole night at the wedding drinking the day away. It didn’t work by the way!!
That was the beginning…the Devils and Mets have lost enough times since then that the day is referred to as Black Birthday around here. So with the Devils at MSG to play the New York Rangers this evening (Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quaterfinals)…and honestly I am not looking forward to it.
So let’s see…yesterday I came home and Notre Dame was only down 2-1 to BC…so I turned the game on for my dinner break and this is what happened….Smith and Gerbe from BC..and BANG….it was 4-1…game over!! BC won another national title. Congrats to Jerry York on winning his second title at BC….and to Jeff Jackson for guiding Notre Dame to the finals….amazing effort by both teams.
Then earlier in the day I watched Johan Santana come undone against the Brewers of all teams. He gave up 5 runs in 6 2/3 IP in a 5-3 Mets loss. The Mets had ample chances to come back but just could not deliver in the clutch…sorry for the non hockey moment folks but it lends to the theory just a bit more.
Now what will happen today? I am not looking forward to the Devils game at all….I cringe at seeing the text updates and then some of the game on VS. Hopefully something goes right and reverses the trend today but for once I do not feel very optimistic at all.
Okay…okay…on to the predictions……
I went 3-0 yesterday….lifting my record up to 11-4….here are today’s….
Washington Over Philly 5-2
Montreal over Boston 3-2 (OT)
Calgary Over San Jose 3-2 (OT)
NY Rangers Over New Jersey 3-1
Thank you everyone and enjoy the hockey today!!!!
The Eagle And The Irish….
This is what it comes down to in deciding the men’s national title……….
#5 Notre Dame (27-15-4) vs. #3 Boston College (24-11-8)
Saturday, April 12, 2008 - Pepsi Center
NCAA Frozen Four National Championship Game - Denver, Colorado
This is Notre Dame’s first appearance while this is BC’s ninth…they have brought the hardware home twice. Calle Ridderwall’s OT heroics propelled the Irish into the final while Nathan Gerbe scored a hat trick in a 6-1 rout over North Dakota. Gerbe will have to be a high priority for BC and for Notre Dame as well. Jeff Jackson said it best “If we do not stop Gerbe…we are in for one hell of a long day.”
While Notre Dame has more of a balanced attack….BC relies more on the Gerbe line than anything else really. It will be interesting to see how the Irish come out. Against Michigan…they came out firing from everywhere and it was extremely effective. They will have to come out with the same intensity tonight. Honestly BC will have to weather the storm as oddly enough, I think Notre Dame may be the better team here.
What does BC have to do? Well head coach Jerry York put it this way…”we are short on raw talent but very long on chemistry.” He is very right on that. When you lose three key players like BC did and can still get back to the big game….that takes a hell of a coaching job. The keys will be how Ben Smith and Nathan Gerbe play against the Notre Dame pace. That will go a long way in determining who wins this game. Also, how BC’s offensive thrust does against Irish goalie Jordan Pearce (Freshman)…will be another deciding factor.
So who to pick here? This is quite tough. BC definitely has the experience edge in ample supply but these Notre Dame kids are hungry…and they can fly. Gerbe is going to do his damage I am pretty sure but Pearce may be the one that steals enough of this show albeit in a losing effort. Experience will eventually win out but it may take extra time to do so.
Boston College 4Â Notre Dame 3Â (OT)
Holy Leprechauns!!!
Can you believe it? The team that was on the bubble after their CCHA tournament loss is now just one win away from winning the national title. Notre Dame played undoubtedly the wildest game of the college season and came out of it with a 5-4 OT win over #1 overall Michigan. I watched the replay of the game…couldn’t catch it live sadly. But what I saw was downright amazing.
Notre Dame had the jump from the drop of the puck. They scored three times in the first period and it reminded me of the onslaught in the third period against University of New Hampshire. Goalie Billy Sauer (Michigan) was chased after the first. It seemed like it was going to be a Notre Dame rout right? WRONG! The game turned early in the second period when Ben Ryan got wide open in front but whistled a backhander just wide of Bryan Hogan and that seemed to rally Michigan.
Chad Kolarik and Aaron Palushaj tallied goals 15 seconds apart for Michigan to make it a one goal game. Notre Dame still had tons of scoring chances throughout the second period. Then the third period came and things just got wilder still. The best way to describe it would be like the movie Blazing Saddles where they are having the great pie fight. You couldn’t see this coming even if you tried. Michigan proved worthy of every accolade and Notre Dame was there to match it. Both Jordan Pearace and Bryan Hogan played great matching each other save for save. But Michigan tied it early in the third when Notre Dame could not count. That Power Play led to a goal by Max Pacioretty. Kevin Deeth for Notre Dame scored one of the prettier goals of the tournament when he made a brilliant inside move and chipped a shot off the far post with 8:30 left past a fallen Hogan to give the Irish the lead back. Then Michigan tied it again minutes later. Carl Hagelin got credit for what could be described as a weird goal. He beat an Irish defender to the puck and tossed a shot on goal that handcuffed Jordan Pearce…and the puck found its way in.
The teams would trade scoring chances throughout the rest of the third period and in OT before the climatic game winner….that left me wanting more. This game was too good to be a semifinal…I swore this was the final…and yet it ended so quickly that there felt like there was no closure to it. That is the beauty of sudden death…just when you think it will keep going and going…it usually ends. At 5:44 of the overtime, Calle Ridderwall blasted a rebound that came off Hogan right back past him. It was almost like a rapid fire competition…as Dan VeNard’s shot was so fast…and Ridderwall’s blast seemed even faster that you had to catch it on instant replay just to see what Hogan was facing. He didn’t have a prayer.
Just like that it was over…as coach Jack Johnson was tearing up on the bench…the players were going nuts on the ice. The Michigan side went off dejected as could be. They fought back admirably against what seemed like insurmountable odds. I give them a ton of credit. Notre Dame now moves on to face Boston College (3 years in a row as a finalist). BC routed North Dakota 6-1 as Nathan Gerbe (likely Hobey Baker Award Winner) netted a hat trick. He will be a handfull for the Irish and this has the makings of being a really awesome game. Time will tell. The game is at 7pm EDT on ESPN…..do watch it!!
College Day….
Yes I enjoy days like this…..college hockey is fun to watch and sometimes you never know what to expect. A different kind of madness is what the college hockey game presents. Thankfully some weird hockey god got me ESPNU at the bar so what I was able to watch was something amazing. Yes I know there is nothing like watching 16 college basketball games in a day…but the college hockey is where its at. There were some regional final games and a few first rounders that got underway. So to get to the first rounders that happened yesterday.
Miami of Ohio was trying to silence their critics but their effort yesterday left more questions than answers.  Thankfully they did come thru in OT to win 3-2 yesterday. Justin Mercier saved Miami with a huge goal with under five minutes left in Overtime to extend their season and end Air Force’s run. Andrew Volkening could not stop his wrister which just seemed to come off Mercier like a patented Mark Messier wrister. It was unexpected and left Air Force stunned. I was surprised as really I was expecting a second OT but that came up about 4:39 short. What was more shocking was just the fact that Air Force had a 2-1 lead in the third period. Miami had scored on the first shift but Air Force had actually controlled play up until a dumb penalty late in the third period for too many men on the ice of all things. Miami converted that Power Play to tie the game and send it into Overtime which eventually led to Marcier’s heroics.
Next up….BC vs. Minnesota…and it wasn’t that close. Benn Ferriero had three points and John Muse snatched 31 shots as BC tripped up Minnesota 5-2. Even better was this was the 800th victory for BC coach John York…now that is what I call a milestone. The key in this game was the third period where BC scored two goals within the first nine minutes to make it 4-1 BC and from there the competitive part of the game was pretty much over. Muse was particularly outstanding in the second period making 13 saves and keeping BC in the game because Minnesota had several glorious point blank chances that rightfully should have went in the net. If Muse wasn’t the MVP of this game I don’t know who else could have been other than Ferriero really.
Now to a team that showed how to handle the 1 seed (kinda)….North Dakota throttled the Princeton Tigers 5-1 yesterday as Ryan Duncan (last year’s Hobey Baker Award winner) scored a hat trick and Senior Jean-Philippe Lamoureux made 38 saves. Princeton really didn’t have a chance in this game as North Dakota is strong up front and in back but they fired from every angle possible. Lamoureux nearly had the shutout but that was foiled with 33 seconds left when PU’s Cam McIntyre fired a wrister past him. North Dakota’s Power Play went 2-4 but the strange part was they only had 18 shots as Princeton dominated scoring chances but couldn’t convert. It was odd game as Princeton played a full 60 minutes but the net was unkind to them.
Then there was Wisconsin who was a .500 team all year, found a way to get into the tournament and then shocked and awed Denver 6-2 yesterday. Simply it was a close 2-1 game going into the third until Wisconsin’s breakout just kept going and going and going. The best, being a goal, from John Mitchell, who netted a sweet breakaway goal to make it 4-1 Wisconsin then added two more goals as the game became less and less close with each passionate Wisconsin shift. Denver really had no answers to Wisconsin’s aggressive forecheck all game and that is why Denver is going home and Wisconsin is playing North Dakota tonight.
Lastly in regional final action….Notre Dame and Michigan advanced to the Frozen Four with 3-1 and 2-0 victories respectively. Both teams played great defense and solid goaltending to advance. The key for Notre Dame was simply solving Michigan State’s Jeff Lerg. For those of you who don’t know Lerg quite literally single handedly guided MSU to last year’s national championship.  But Notre Dame and Matt Van Guilder were just too much as Van Guilder netted the game winner early in the third period and the goal stood up as the Irish would add another tally later in the stanza. Michigan, on the other hand, used a little more D in its win over Clarkson than they normally do. However, it was extremely effective. Billy Sauer was especially solid in stopping 27 shots for UM. Aaron Pulashaj netted a power play marker for Michigan and that was the game winner in the first period as both teams traded chances throughout the game but neither could really find an answer till Michigan got some insurance in the third for the 2-0 margin.
Honestly I like both of these teams but I have a feeling that North Dakota will defeat Wisconsin and BC will upend Miami (Ohio). I could be wrong but those are my two choices to complete the Frozen Four. Now the Frozen Four will be electric…that is a given!! Hooray hockey!!!
A Win Win Situation…Sort Of
What a great day of hockey yesterday…from college to the AHL to the NHL…there was a little something to see for everyone. The best part was it started with the stuff from college ice….as the tournament began yesterday. Everyone’s consensus seems to be #1 overall Michigan but I think there may just be a few surprises. Time to get into yesterday’s action a bit.
Notre Dame came into a tournament reeling a little bit but New Hampshire despite being a #1 seed in the West had to feel a little uneasy and they certainly had reason to. The Wildcats were in it…only down 4-3 in the third period against the Fighting Irish when the Irish unloaded for three goals putting the game out of reach and winning 7-3. Jordan Pearce, who I thought was outstanding stopped 32 shots in what was a high paced up and down type game. Despite the score I thought this was the game of the day just as far as offense is concerned. Joey Pollastrone was incredible for New Hampshire scoring twice had 5 scoring chances and finished with 6 shots overall. He was all over the place and really had a chance to nab another goal or two if it hadn’t been for the great goaltending of Pearce. The Irish next face Michigan State at 7pm PT, who downed Colorado College 3-1 behind 41 saves from Jeff Lerg who anyone knows can almost win a national title by himself. He did it last year for the Spartans so look out this regional final will be a damn good one.
Not surprisingly, Michigan rolled yesterday to a 5-1 win over Niagara. Clarkson also defeated St. Clould 2-1 in what could be considered a mild upset. What is on tap for today? Well North Dakota begins its run in less than an hour against an upstart Princeton team. Expect the Fighting Sioux to come out firing on all cylinders…they saw what happened to New Hampshire and anything can happen in this tournament. Miami (Ohio) tries to silence the critics as they face Air Force in a first round tussle. In 2nd round action, Michigan faces Clarkson, Notre Dame faces Michigan State, and Minnesota faces Boston College. It is going to be a fun day for college hockey and if you do not get ESPNU for whatever reason you can follow the action on CSTV (CBS College Sports).
Then it was onward to some good old AHL hockey. Portland did battle with Lowell last night in a battle of my wife and I’s favorite minor hockey league teams. Both teams have taken their share of lumps this year with both likely not making the playoffs. However, it doesn’t make the two points any less sweet. Lowell would ultimately prevail over Portland 4-1 in a game that saw Lowell really capitalize on opportunities while Portland did not. Petr Vrana had another great effort for the baby Devils with 2 goals and an assist. It makes you wonder if he will get a spot on the big club next year. I think he may just be ready. Ryan Murphy chipped in with 2 assists and David Caruso made 26 saves in a solid effort. Sure teams like Providence and Chicago are the class of the league but it is fun to see the kids play no matter what their records are and the effort from this game showed that it still matters…even when a playoff spot is far out of reach.
Next up the big boys….in a Battle Of California showdown…the San Jose Sharks defeated the Anaheim Ducks 3-1 last night in front of a sold out, raucous crowd at the Honda Center in Anaheim. It was nice to get to listen to the game at work…thank you bluetooth technology…thank you so much. JS Giguere missed his 4th straight game with back spasms as Brian Boucher only gave up 1 goal as he made 23 saves. The game turned on a weird Doug Weight penalty midway into the second period as he fell to the ice he hooked down a Sharks player. It was a cruel way for a game to turn but it did…as Jeremy Roenick swatted home a rebound that bounced off Jonas Hiller’s chest for the game winner. Just like that the team that was in third place all year…clinched the division. Congrats to the Sharks on clinching the 2 seed in the West. As for the Ducks it looks like the 4 seed is their fate now…question is who will they play next.
This game was very physical….hits were fierce and from all over the ice…and yet it was a clean game for the most part. That is the way old time hockey is meant to be played. This picture captures the essence of this playoff-like battle perfectly. Thank you Getty Images once again and the AP.
Battle of California tough!!!
Last but not least a happy moment in my sanity for the night. The New Jersey Devils beat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 in a wild game via shootout. Yes the Devils blew leads of 3-1 and 4-3 pushing my sanity nearly to the breaking point. Thankfully this time they did not break it like previous efforts this week. See the Rangers as Exhibit A and B for the judge. Gionta, Elias, and Langenbrunner all scored in the shootout on Marty Biron (who may be the league worst at shootouts). One of these days we are going to come up with a stat for that one. That being said, the game did kind of mask another amazing effort from Johnny “Orr” Oduya who seems to do this lately when the Devils and Flyers play. He had 2 goals in the first period and was all over the ice on the night. If only he could do this more often, damn that would sure reduce this fan’s stress level considerably.
All that is left now for the Devils is a 4 games in 6 day stretch against the Islanders, Bruins, Flyers, and Rangers and then the playoffs will begin and the energy level will be all cylinders on high. It is funny what a difference a day makes…so I leave you with a drink of cider.
Enjoy the night of hockey everyone!!
There will be blood…..
Throw the records straight out the window…the stakes are just too high. The crescendo that is the NHL season is building toward the playoffs. In less than three weeks, we will know the seedings….where will your team be? That is the question evey fan asks me. I can tell you emphatically that it really is too early to tell. This has been a season full of parity…a year where two teams were thought to be untouchable and it turns out the teams gunning for them may have a better shot at that silver cup. Now to add some chum into the tank and throw some more blood into the mix. Here we go……
How demented would it be if the Edmonton Oilers made the playoffs?  Now imagine the look of Brian Burke if the Ducks faced the Oilers in the first round. Horrified yet? Oh no, that’s nothing. That first round pick that Burke was drooling over is rapidly turning into a mid round pick that won’t nearly be as good as he was hoping for. So gaining Penner via the restricted route maybe wasn’t as big a gamble for Lowe as people thought. Praise also goes out to Craig MacTavish…who has to be quietly considered for the Jack Adams (Coach Of The Year). Not many thought after all the injuries and already depleted talent pool…that Edmonton would be anywhere near where they are now. Sure enough, they are…and he is the reason. Though I feel sorry for him for all the grey hairs he received this season…..the coach has managed to get Cogliano and all these young guys along with a resurgence from Dwayne Rolosson within an earshot of the playoffs. Many will say Sutter, Julien, and maybe even Wilson are more deserving but MacTavish is getting my vote if the season ended today.
Another team left for dead by many is the Florida Panthers.  The past few years this team starts out slower than a 1928 Roadster and comes in screaming like a 2008 Porsche but it is entertaining how they do it. This year was no exception…hovering right near or below .500 for most of the season before finding the groove and reeling off seven straight wins. Tomas Vokoun (a star of the week with 3 wins and a jawdropping GAA) is finally playing like he did in Nashville and Olli Jokinen is back to giving teams nightmares. Maybe it did take them awhile after all to get over the Richard Zednik incident…but here they are…just two points out of a playoff spot. The kicker is even though they only have 8 games left….they are just five points out of the division lead. Further proof that indeed with the parity in the NHL, anything is possible….even for a coach like Jacques Martin to get lucky…..who knew?
Time to throw in a knuclepuck so to speak. Tonight’s Leafs-Islanders matchup will also mean something not in the standings so much….but these are two teams that detest each other.  More importantly for Isles fans…Kyle Okposo will make his debut. At 195 pounds, his size doesn’t seem that impressive. But alot like Zach Parise…his tenacity around the corners is his calling card. He is not afraid to play tough and his 24 points in 29 games at Bridgeport (AHL) is impressive. He is only 19 and this is more or less a nine game audition with the big club but he will make an impact tonight…at the very least in the stands. The University of Minnesota standout may just surprise some people, including the Maple Leafs as he can definitely hit. So expect a physical game on Long Island tonight with maybe a twist.
Pittsburgh travels to MSG to play the Rangers tonight in what is a must win for the Rangers. Their brain fart in Florida may have cost them a top seed in the Eastern Conference. The loss to Tampa was probably worse than the one to Florida as well they got shutout by a Tampa team that couldn’t stop Winnie The Pooh from honey in sub-zero cold. So it is time for Henrik Lundqvist to step up again and hope he gets some goal support from what has to be the most enigmatic offense in the NHL. The Pens come in at 89 points…right behind New Jersey with Marc-Andre Fleury in net who the Rangers have had some success against. No Sidney Crosby again tonight as he is still nursing a swollen ankle…he may be back by the weekend or sooner but no one seems to really know. One thing is for sure…I am surprised this game is not on Versus…that would be their normal motus operandi wouldn’t it? At any rate…I like the makeup of this game for some reason…I will definitely watch it. Expect a surprisingly physical contest from these two.
Tomorrow is the real cap to the deal as the Rangers play the Devils for the 6th time this season. Yes the Rangers have taken the first five but you have to feel the Devils gear up for this time of year and this type of schedule. Like someone sevrely scorned, this will be INTENSE! There will be much coverage on The NHL Arena, Battle of New York, 2 Man Advantage, and all the usual suspects. Brodeur Vs. Lundqvist….Pandolfo Vs. Jagr….Gomez, Avery, and a cast of characters all will be at The Rock tomorrow night…don’t miss it!
Coming soon will be Hockey Around The Horn’s 6th episode…the banter of four people entering and only one emerging victorious. It should be up and ready in the coming days at The NHL Arena. So the blood will be shed this week and heading throughout the playoffs. Now the intensity ramps up and it is for keeps!! Good fight…..good night!!
The Top 5 Hockey Movies of All-Time
#5) 
Mystery Alaska- Okay, so the hockey scenes were comical at best. And maybe Russel Crowe was atrocious on skates and in the film. And maybe a bunch of drunks from a mysterious town in Alaska playing the New York Rangers is a little far-fetched, but you know what? I watched this film for the third time in the past month on cable. Surprisingly entertaining.
#4) 
Miracle- Just well done all around by Disney. Great idea to hire some real players to go along with the actors as the hockey scenes were fantastic. By dubbing over the actual commentary from the game and getting the actual call by Al Michaels, Disney had my theater standing and chanting U-S-A. “Nine out of ten times, they’ll beat us. But not tonight!”
#3) 
The Mighty Ducks- I know I know, how can I rank mighty ducks ahead of Miracle. I was born in 1981, that’s how. What was better than the flying V, Gordan Bombay finding hockey again, and a young Josh Jackson and his hot Mom. It was also the beginning of Shaun Weiss’ esteemed career. Goldberg went on to star in the sequels, Heavyweights, and most recently a fast food commercial for Sonic, just awesome!
#2) 
Young Blood- Come on, too easy. Rob Lowe AND Patrick Swayze AND a young Keanu Reeves! Whoa! If the moral dilemma is not enough drama for you, just know there are some great hazing scenes and did I mention Keanu Reeves. True hockey fans know this belongs at #2.
#1) 
Slapshot- The quintessential hockey movie. Not only does Paul Newman prove he’s a cool cat, but the movie gave us a plethora of sidekicks that are still talked about to this day. I just found out you can still see the Hansens http://www.hansonbrothers.net/ at minor league games and during the Winter Classic last week, NBC ran a story on the real life motivation for Oggie Oglethorpe. Now if you could only rent all four guys for a party. Just putting on the foil coach.
