Its' Here! NHL 2008 Playoff Thread

[Schmidty]

I am semi-trashed. Got to go to work in 3 hours. That's bad, but it'll be a first. I can walk, and I don't see a soul all night.

Wooot!!! Go Wings!!!!

[Maple Leafs]

Congratulations to the Red Wings. This is a team that has built a winner the right way.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Congratulations to the Red Wings. This is a team that has built a winner the right way.

Leafs are my adopted team, and I can only hope we get to see the Wings vs Leafs for the Cup soon.

[DeToxRox]

I can't believe Dan Cleary is the first player ever from Newfoundland to win a Cup.

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by bsak16

The Pens fans shouldn't boo Bettman. If not for him they would be out of Pittsburgh. He wouldn't sign the papers to let Basillie buy the team and move them.

I love how Bettman grew a heart and started trying to save teams after he all but paved a path for the exodus of Quebec, Winnipeg, and Hartford. Fucking weaselly little douchebag.

[Fidatelo]

Dola

Wings in six as I had guessed, and they deserved it. They were the better team all series, but I'm really, really glad that pittsburgh stepped things up after the first two and gave us all something to watch.

Also nice to see Malkin play a good game, I was feeling pretty bad for the kid the last couple. Hopefully he and the rest of the team can build on this and make their way back a couple times. It's going to be a challenge without Hossa though, that guy is really, really good.

[Suburban Rhythm]

I was at the game-- my quick thoughts before i get some damn coffee

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

I know this is off topic, but doesn't Kevin Lowe salivate looking at the potential RFA's Pittsburgh could have. He is going to poison pill this team to death lol.

No big RFA's this year, except Fleury. Staal and Malkin each have 1 year left on their entry level deals, only the Pens can negotiate with them beginning July 1.

Originally Posted by bsak16

They'd still find a way to lose the lottery.

Of course, Pens are tanking...but I think Hedman has overtaken Tavares the the conensus #1 in 2009.

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

I can't believe Dan Cleary is the first player ever from Newfoundland to win a Cup.

All in all, Detroit was all class last night after the final whistle...except Cleary. He was yelling, screaming, pointing into the stands about 30 seconds after it ended...did he forget they weren't in Detroit?

[Suburban Rhythm]

Other things I learned at the game-

Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill were a good pairing to matchup agains the Jagr line in the NYR series. In the Finals, they could not get the puck out of their own end. EVER.

I don't know if getting rid of Bettman is the answer, but live you can see 10X the amount of crap behind the play the camera misses. I know it's the finals, and you don't want the officials deciding the games...but for the love of God, call the penalties. There were another 40 hooks and interference calls, both ways, on both teams last night. Hell, Cleary got tackled with about 17 seconds left.

I said this earlier in the thread...but does Draper jump on EVERY faceoff? Wings and Pens both getting tossed from faceoffs repeatedly in the 1st pd...except Draper. I thought the guy was going to jump ahead of Lidstrom to grab the Cup first.

For a guy who missed time with a concussion (er, sorry...concussion-like symptoms), Franzen sure likes to go after other guys high.

Bsak-- I saw Mark madden last night, with press credentials. No clue from where...he was looking rough, worse than usual.

The call on Z's goal was obviously correct...my end of the ice, and you could see it sitting there. Ref behind the net was is perfect position. However, the ref by the blueline comes skating in waving his arms. Why is he even making a call there??

Just as a hockey fan, you have to love seeing guys like Drake carry the Cup. That is good stuff.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Bsak-- I saw Mark madden last night, with press credentials. No clue from where...he was looking rough, worse than usual.

Some local station has to pick him up. I'm surprised Fox 970 hasn't yet. He was pulling in killer ratings and I'm sure some station in this city would take a flier on him.

[Honolulu_Blue]

YOUR 2008 STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS: THE DETROIT RED WINGS

Wow.

A long, late night, but a good one.

The Wings definitely decided to make it interesting at the end there. I have no idea how Pittsburgh managed to two great opportunities with such little time left (well, one, since the second came after time had expired).

Two bad goals by Fleury. He couldn't do anything on the first, that was just a deflection, but he gave up a juicy rebound on the second and then was caught a bit out of position on Filppula's shot (Oprik also did a horrible job of tying him up, one of the rare bad plays by Oprik, he was a force out there all series), and the third goal was just a bad break, but it was an easy shot and it should have never trickled through him.

It was really great to see them win it. The Wings came out in the 3rd like a team on a mission. They dominated most of that period, out-shooting the Penguins 2-1.

I can't believe it has taken this long, but it's good to see the whole "European Captain"/"Can't win the a team dominated by Europeans" finally put to bed. The whole thing is silly.

You can't say enough about the way the Wings built this team and were able to make all the necessary adjustments after the lockout. They were able to find the pieces necessary to remain at the top of the league. It's good to see it all payoff. A lot of the Detroit "redneck" (thanks, Grapes) hockey fans have been very critical of Holland. They don't think he deserved any credit for the first two cups, he had an unlimited payroll for the third, and people complained about the Wings not being agressive enough in the UFA market and at the deadline, oh, and they were pissed that the team wasn't tough enough. Well, kudos to Holland and his staff. They did things right.

Also can't say enough about the Ilitch family. A totally class owner. They chartered planes for all the Wings' families to attend the game in Pittsburgh. Ilitch didn't have to, but he did. It's little things like that make players want to play for Detroit and take less money to do so. It's a nice advantage, especially with the cap.

I don't know what I'll do without my daily dose of the following commercials: the "Share the Good" Heiniken commercial, that Dockers commercials with that "Sun up to sun down" song, that "Coming out" Dodge whatever the hell it is waterslide down the street commercial, and, of course, the Edge Shave Energy Gel commerical, I will miss you most of all hot girl who looks so determined as she flies up my nose to party.

I know someone mentioned Don Cherry a few posts ago. I love the guy, he entertains, but he is what he is. He did get a bit out of control on the Gary Roberts love (I can't really blame him, though, because Gary Roberts is, well, Gary Roberts). After the game tying goal in Game 5, Cherry went on and on about how great Roberts was because he looked at the clock twice after the goal was scored. Yes, looking at the clock. It reached all new heights of madness when Cherry went on and on during "Coaches Corner" last night about how the reason Maxime Talbot scored the game tying goal was because... he was sitting next to Gary Roberts on the bench just before it. Yes, just sitting next to Gary Roberts is enough to make someone that much better. Cherry commented that Roberts told Talbot what to do, when it was clear from the replay all Roberts said was "Let's go, boys!", which, based on the ever so informative "Sounds of the Game" is pretty much all NHL players say 90% of the time.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Pittsburgh during the off season. The battled really hard all series long. It was pretty clear after the first two games that the Wings were the better team. They were more disciplined and their top guys are, at this stage, just better all around players. Still, the Penguins stuck around and continued to make it interesting. I was glad to see it end when it did, I started getting nervous when Malkin assisted on the OT goal and then scored. The Wings did not need to have that guy starting to warm up. Also, what in the hell happened to Sykora? He scores the OT winner, he has an amazing opportunity right in front of Osgood about 2 and a half minutes into the game and then.... never heard him again. Did he get hurt or something?

GO WINGS!!!!

Parade is tomorrow at 11:00 am!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

All in all, Detroit was all class last night after the final whistle...except Cleary. He was yelling, screaming, pointing into the stands about 30 seconds after it ended...did he forget they weren't in Detroit?

Cleary's family was at the game as were some of his buddies from Newfoundland. Maybe he was yelling at them?

[Dr. Sak]

I don't know what I'll do without my daily dose of the following commercials: the "Share the Good" Heiniken commercial, that Dockers commercials with that "Sun up to sun down" song, that "Coming out" Dodge whatever the hell it is waterslide down the street commercial, and, of course, the Edge Shave Energy Gel commerical, I will miss you most of all hot girl who looks so determined as she flies up my nose to party.

Your mama's so ugly they renamed Halloween to Yourmamaween.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Other things I learned at the game-

Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill were a good pairing to matchup agains the Jagr line in the NYR series. In the Finals, they could not get the puck out of their own end. EVER.

Yeah, Scuderi had some ok moments in the series, but his best play by far was getting highsticked and bleeding. His failure to get the puck out of the zone led to the Wings' first goal.

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

I don't know if getting rid of Bettman is the answer, but live you can see 10X the amount of crap behind the play the camera misses. I know it's the finals, and you don't want the officials deciding the games...but for the love of God, call the penalties. There were another 40 hooks and interference calls, both ways, on both teams last night. Hell, Cleary got tackled with about 17 seconds left.

Datysuk was also tripped horribly with about 13 second left that led to Pittsbrugh's final chance. Without that blatant trip Datsyuk likely scores an empty netter.

Not only were there dozens and dozens of non calls, the calls that were made were pretty silly. The charing on Drake? Come on! It's a tough job trying to call the game, but I don't think the league makes it any easier on the refs.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill were a good pairing to matchup agains the Jagr line in the NYR series. In the Finals, they could not get the puck out of their own end. EVER.

I'm glad you got to experience that, considering we went through the same thing in that series.

[Suburban Rhythm]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Cleary's family was at the game as were some of his buddies from Newfoundland. Maybe he was yelling at them?

And I did consider that, but it was multiple sections...I could see if it was a quick point up. It was like he skated blueline to blueline.

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Datysuk was also tripped horribly with about 13 second left that led to Pittsbrugh's final chance. Without that blatant trip Datsyuk likely scores an empty netter.

Not only were there dozens and dozens of non calls, the calls that were made were pretty silly. The charing on Drake? Come on! It's a tough job trying to call the game, but I don't think the league makes it any easier on the refs.

That is the biggest thing. A penalty in the the first game of the season should be a penalty game 82, should be a penalty round one, should be a penalty game 6 of the Finals. ZERO consistency.

I might be missing one here, but Sydor was off for interference on Rafalski's goal (about 5 mins in) and Hudler off for hooking with under 2 mins left. I don't think any of the other calls were hooking/interference for the middle 50 minutes--pretty unbelievable for the amount of stuff that went on in the neutral zone by both teams.

Also...maybe we are talking about the same call. I thought it was Cleary with the puck, but may have been Dats.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by bsak16

It shot out like a wet bar of soap.

From a Leafs blog:
He Score, He Shoot!: Wings In 6. Everybody Wins The Pool

I've never seen anyone's ass take a slapshot before. That puck wasn't rolling or sliding. It was flat and still. Fleury's ass comes down on it, and it FLIES into the net. Literally. I think his ass roofed it.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

From a Leafs blog:
He Score, He Shoot!: Wings In 6. Everybody Wins The Pool

I agree. It gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "crap goal".

[Fidatelo]

Kelly Hrudey called it before the game, said Fleury would likely start strong but then fade as the game went on (due to fatigue from the game before). That was pretty much how it looked to me.

[Honolulu_Blue]

There was some great post-game interviews. The highlight was McCarty interviewing Osgood.

Another gem was an interview with Holmstrom where he said something along the lines of "My hamstring is hurt, I have a sports hernia... I am a bad enough skater as it is, I don't need this shit."

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Kelly Hrudey called it before the game, said Fleury would likely start strong but then fade as the game went on (due to fatigue from the game before). That was pretty much how it looked to me.

I agree. Kelly Hrudey is as good an analyst as they come. He's always spot on, even if he spends many long minutes on the seemingly mundane.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Woah.

This should probably deserve it's own thread, but...

http://www.canada.com/story.html?id=...3-27ea357fe4b9

Canada's 'second national anthem' silenced
CBC yanks Hockey Night theme

Bal Brach
Canwest News Service

Thursday, June 05, 2008

What has long been known as Canada's "second national anthem," CBC's Hockey Night in Canada theme song, will no longer be used.

Thursday night's Stanley Cup final game six was the last time "dunt- da-dunt- da-dunt," was played, according to the song's composer. CBC has announced the corporation is moving in a "new direction."

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation advised the composer, Dolores Claman, that it is not prepared to enter into a new license agreement with respect to the use of the theme.

"I am saddened by the decision of the CBC to drop the Hockey Night in Canada Theme after our lengthy history together," said Claman in a statement Wednesday.

"I nevertheless respect its right to move in a new direction," she said.
The composition was written by Claman in 1968. The current license agreement expired at the end of the 2007-2008 NHL playoffs.

The news release said the CBC has been offered a new license on terms that are virtually identical to those that have existed for the past decade, but the broadcaster has decided not to renew.

It costs the CBC $500 to use the theme for each game broadcast of Hockey Night in Canada.

The theme song, one of the longest running in broadcast history, was originally commissioned by the MacLaren advertising agency in Toronto, according to the website hockeytheme.com.

The agency was looking for a powerful commercial jingle suitable for the big game of hockey.

It soon became used as the theme song for the CBC hockey broadcasts and has been running ever since.

[NamelessOnew/oPW]

WHAT!

[NamelessOnew/oPW]

Oh what the hell I'm still logged in as this guy.

[Maple Leafs]

CBC could not possibly be that stupid.

It sounds like this guy is having a hard time getting anyone at CBC to pick up a phone, so he figures he'll light a little fire.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

CBC could not possibly be that stupid.

It sounds like this guy is having a hard time getting anyone at CBC to pick up a phone, so he figures he'll light a little fire.

Looking into this a little more, I believe the following puts it all into context

http://www.canada.com/topics/news/na...8-5c061899329d

Composer sues over Hockey Night theme

Friday, November 19, 2004

TORONTO - The woman who composed Canada's unofficial national anthem the theme song that has opened every Hockey Night in Canada broadcast since 1968 is suing the CBC.

Dolores Claman alleges the public broadcaster has repeatedly used the distinctive theme song in broadcasts not covered under her licence agreement and has refused requests to negotiate additional fees, according to a statement of claim filed in an Ontario court this week.
"The conduct of the CBC is high-handed, reprehensible and oppressive,'' says the lawsuit, which asks for damages totalling $2.5 million.

Ruth-Ellen Soles, spokeswoman for the CBC, confirmed the company received the statement of claim Thursday and is reviewing it, but wouldn't comment further.

The allegations haven't been proven in court.

Claman's lawyer, Kevin Kemp, said his client is "disappointed and frustrated with how this has developed'' and had hoped a lawsuit could have been avoided.

Claman, 77, now lives in Britain. She wrote the theme song in 1968 while working with a Toronto advertising agency. It was to be used as the lead-in to Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts for a period of a year, but Claman retained copyright to the piece of music, the statement of claim says.

In 1998, the CBC entered into a licence agreement with a corporation to which Claman had transferred ownership of the music. She also has a stake in the corporation.

The statement of claim alleges that agreement allowed the CBC to use the theme song on all English- and French-language broadcasts of Hockey Night in Canada, but only in Canada, and it allows Claman to licence use of the song to third parties "as long as they did not conflict with productions of the CBC.''

The lawsuit says Claman discovered in February 2002, that the CBC had broadcast a Hockey Night game in the United Kingdom that included the theme. It's alleged that after the CBC was asked about the broadcast, it confirmed the NHL provided "England with two or three games per year. Some games are also provided on a sporadic basis to Japan and Scandinavia.''

"As we have stated to you, these are not significant and are aimed at increasing the visibility of HNIC in markets outside of Canada,'' the lawsuit quotes the CBC as saying.

The statement of claim also alleges the CBC has used the theme song on various other productions in violation of its licence agreement, including commercials for Hockey Night in Canada, an advertisement for Ford Motor Co. and broadcasts including the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, curling competitions, the Royal Canadian Air Farce, a Guy Lafleur tribute, and a Rick Mercer special.

A source of particular acrimony appears to be Claman's right to licence use of the song she wrote to companies other than the CBC.

Claman's company authorized a cellphone company in November, 2002, to provide a version of the theme song as a "ring tone'' option to its customers, and said it notified the CBC of the decision as a courtesy.

"In breach of the terms of the [licence agreement], CBC refused to approve the mobile telephone proposal unless the telephone provider purchased several hundred thousands of dollars of advertising time on CBC,'' the statement of claim says.

Bell Mobility began offering the theme song as a ring tone to its cellphone subscribers on Nov. 28, 2002.

---------

Hopefully they will put all of this legal nonsense behind them and get things squared away by October or so.

[Fidatelo]

This is incredibly stupid. At the same time, I'm not surprised. CBC has shoved the "dunt da-dunt da-dunt" song behind their little opening video package of late and I did get the impression that they were sort of minimizing it's importance.

Still, incredibly stupid.

[Maple Leafs]

There are very few things that Canadians will get worked up over.

This is one of them.

[Fidatelo]

In a similar vein, did anyone else watch the CBC broadcast right to the end last night? Ron MacLean's little tip of the hat to Bob Cole makes me think we may have heard the last of him as well.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

There are very few things that Canadians will get worked up over.

This is one of them.

Would this be like the Government shutting down every Tim Horton's in the country because they found out TH puts crack in their coffee?

[Wolfpack]

One of the drawbacks to moving back to NC is I don't get to see the CBC broadcasts anymore. While they were very pro-Edmonton in the '06 series, I thoroughly enjoyed the lengthy postgame they had after Carolina won the Cup. Right up until I moved, I still had the Game 7 broadcast on my DVR and would re-watch it every so often, just to get that feeling back again. I've wondered if it's possible to get a copy of that game (as well as a couple of select others from that playoff run) on DVD. I do have the DVD that the NHL put out that includes the Game 7 as carried on NBC, but I've never watched it, just the CBC one.

[Galaxy]

Any word on the ratings of the Finals (and regular season and playoffs in general)?

[Wolfpack]

I think I read somewhere that Game 6 managed a 4.4, which was double the last Game 6 in '06 with Carolina at Edmonton drawing a 2.2. I believe in general the ratings were up across the board as people finally are beginning to find the games on Versus, though still it's pretty far down the line from any of the other major sports.

JIMGA should be along sometime soon with the actually data, I'm sure.

[Suburban Rhythm]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08158/887855-61.stm

One of the major mysteries of the Penguins' playoff run has been solved.
Evgeni Malkin's performance level declined late in the postseason, at least in part, because he had a flu-like ailment that made it difficult for him to keep food down early in the Stanley Cup final against Detroit.
He also is believed to have been bothered by the effects from a crushing check he got from Philadelphia center Mike Richards in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final.
Malkin had 17 points in the Penguins' first 10 playoff games, but only two over the next eight before closing out the Cup final with a goal and two assists in the final two.

[Dr. Sak]

See what happens when you piss off Richards!

I figured that hit hurt Geno. He immediately started holding his shoulder afterwards.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Yeah, you had to figure something was wrong with Malkin. That said, injuries are a part of the playoff grind. Stanley Cup isn't the hardest trophy to win in sports for nothing. You have to be able to play through that. Filppula had a strained MCL, Holmstrom had a sports hernia, the list goes on and on...


Then again, that's easy for me to say, I sit behind a desk all day. The biggest physical obstacles I have to over come are walking to the water cooler or to Starbucks.

[Suburban Rhythm]

Originally Posted by bsak16

See what happens when you piss off Richards!

I figured that hit hurt Geno. He immediately started holding his shoulder afterwards.

Immediately after the hit? Or immediately after blowing one past Biron? He may have hurt the shoulder winding up on that bullet he fired SH.

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Yeah, you had to figure something was wrong with Malkin. That said, injuries are a part of the playoff grind. Stanley Cup isn't the hardest trophy to win in sports for nothing. You have to be able to play through that. Filppula had a strained MCL, Holmstrom had a sports hernia, the list goes on and on...


Then again, that's easy for me to say, I sit behind a desk all day. The biggest physical obstacles I have to over come are walking to the water cooler or to Starbucks.

That was a huge key. As much as they dealt with injuries during the season, the Pens were very healthy (lucky) in the playoffs. The only guy to miss significant time (6 games?) was Roberts.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Immediately after the hit? Or immediately after blowing one past Biron? He may have hurt the shoulder winding up on that bullet he fired SH.
.

The hit had a much longer lasting effect than that one goal did.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

That was a huge key. As much as they dealt with injuries during the season, the Pens were very healthy (lucky) in the playoffs. The only guy to miss significant time (6 games?) was Roberts.

That is a key to any successful playoff run. The Wings were completely derailed last year when both Kronwall and Schneider went down. Other than Franzen missing a handful of games and Holmstrom missing one, they stayed relatively healthy, especially along the blueline where only Chelios had to sit.

[Fidatelo]

So was Chelios sitting in the final because he was hurt, or because he was the odd man out talent-wise? I was disappointed he didn't play at all.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

There are very few things that Canadians will get worked up over.

This is one of them.

yeah, if they freaked out over the Ron MacLean thing, this must have their poutin in a boil!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

So was Chelios sitting in the final because he was hurt, or because he was the odd man out talent-wise? I was disappointed he didn't play at all.

Chelios first sat in the Dallas series because of a lingering injury. He was pretty much healthy throughout the Finals, but Babcock wanted to stick with Lilja. So, for the most part, he was the odd man out talent-wise.

[Draft Dodger]

btw, you may not be aware, but you are all within a few Kevin Bacon steps of that song...

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Chelios first sat in the Dallas series because of a lingering injury. He was pretty much healthy throughout the Finals, but Babcock wanted to stick with Lilja. So, for the most part, he was the odd man out talent-wise.

That sucks. So what do you think will happen with him then? Will he give it another go? Or is he pretty much done if he can't even be a 5 or 6?

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

That sucks. So what do you think will happen with him then? Will he give it another go? Or is he pretty much done if he can't even be a 5 or 6?

During post-game interviews he indicated that he wanted to come back. I doubt he'd play anywhere other than Detroit at this juncture of his career. If he was to come back, he'd be anywhere from the 6th to 8th defensemen. The Wings have a couple of young guys, Quincey and Meech, who'd have to clear waivers before heading back down to the minors. I think the Wings may also try to re-sign Lilja.

The Wings will either re-sign Stuart or go for another #4 defensemen. That leaves Lebda + ? as the last pair.

To summarize, he may be back, but if he is it's unlikely he'd see a ton of ice time.

[Fidatelo]

Thanks for the 411!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Sitting here in my office in downtown Detroit. It's a hot (pushing 90), sunny day. The window's open and I can hear the sounds of revelry and the parade outside. The office down the hall has a nice view of Woodward.

Not a bad day to be working downtown...

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Also, a bunch of us went through this at work today, trying to match up the lineups on each team. Again, I'm looking through black and gold glasses, but I'll bold who I think has the edge:

Crosby - Datsyuk
Malkin - Zetterberg
Hossa - Franzen
Malone - Holmstrom
Staal - Draper
Sykora - Filppula (even)
Ruutu - Maltby/Samuelsson
Kennedy - Hudler (even)
Dupuis - Cleary
Talbot - Helm
Roberts - Drake
Laraque - McCarty (nearly even, but edge McCarty based on skating)

Gonchar - Lidstrom
Whitney - Rafalski
Letang - Kronvall
Orpik - Stuart
Gill - Chelios (leaning towards Gill, but trying to remain unbiased)
Scuderi - Lebda/Lilja

Goaltenders I am calling a draw, because both playing extremely well.

Most are really close. I could easily give the edge to Malone. Holmstrom does what he does (get in front of the net) very well. But Malone kills penalties, fights, hits, and gets to the front of the net.

It's interesting taking a look back at this analysis. It was before the series began and I think a completely fair one. Looking back at just the finals, I think it'd look like this:

Crosby - Zetterberg
Malkin - Datsyuk
Hossa - Franzen
Malone - Holmstrom
Staal - Draper
Sykora - Filppula
Ruutu - Samuelsson
Kennedy - Hudler
Dupuis - Cleary
Talbot - Helm
Roberts - Drake
Hall - Maltby

Gonchar - Lidstrom
Whitney - Rafalski
Letang/Sydor - Kronwall
Orpik - Stuart
Gill - Lilja
Scuderi - Lebda

Goaltenders I am calling a draw, because both playing extremely well.

[Fidatelo]

MAF was better than Osgood, don't be fooled by the game 6 exhaustion.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

MAF was better than Osgood, don't be fooled by the game 6 exhaustion.

MAF had an amazing Game 5. His performance in that game was one for the ages. But other than that I don't recall him really standing on his head in any of the other games and he had a pretty bad Game 6, due to exhaustion like you said.

Osgood had 2 shutouts and didn't really have any bad games. He was steady as they come, made almost all the timely saves, including a number of great ones.

I'm callin' evens.

Poor Osgood. He'll just never ever get the respect he deserves.

[Schmidty]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

There are very few things that Canadians will get worked up over.

This is one of them.

I must be meeting different Canadians, because around here, Canadians walk around town perpetually worked-up. Maybe it's a BC thing or something, but they are some of the most rude, grumpy people I have ever met.