A Change In The West

Overall, the NHL’s Eastern Conference is the same as last year. Teams that have been dominant for the past few years have done so and vice versa for the weaker clubs. Of course, there are the exceptions of the Boston Bruins’ meritocracy, and the New York Islanders’ surprising 40 points in the standings. However, the real changes are in the Western Conference. An abundance of teams are both under performing severely, and greatly exceeded expectations. These teams currently have a comfortable lead in the playoffs, or are the laughing stocks of the league.

  Vancouver Canucks: After about a third of the way through the season, the Canucks sit in second place in the Pacific division. Going 7-3 in October, they got off to an unexpected well start. Vancouver has had a few off years after almost winning the Cup in 2011. Last year’s season resulted in a trade that sent their star but fading goalie Roberto Luongo to the Florida Panthers. In addition to this, the organization also fired their one-year head coach John Tortorella due to dislike among the organization and fan base. However, this year they acquired free agent goalie Ryan Miller. So far, Miller has a 16-7-0 record with a 2.69 goals against average. Daniel and Henrik Sedin both lead the team in points at 26. Their offense, while not consistent can be explosive at times. Even though the Canucks are the losers of four straight, they are still doing better than most expected.

  Calgary Flames: Arguably the biggest surprise for a quality team this year is the Calgary Flames. They have not qualified for the playoffs since the 2008-2009 season, and have not gotten past the Quarterfinal Round since losing to the Lightning in the 2004 Stanley Cup Final. In the off season, they lost one of their best players in Mike Cammalleri to free agency, signing with the New Jersey Devils. Despite this, defenseman Mark Giordano has stepped up as the leading scorer of the Flames with 8 goals and 22 assists. The goaltender job was been virtually split between Karri Ramo 8-4-1, and Jonas Hiller 9-8-1. The Flames currently rank 15^th in the NHL in goals against at 2.6. Calgary is tied for the Wild Card spot along with the Kings and Jets at this point. Compared to their last decade of play, the Flames are heading in the right direction.

  Colorado Avalanche: Last year, the Avalanche went from having the first pick in the NHL, to the second best record in the Western Conference. This was due in part by break-out star Matt Duchene, and star goaltending by Vezna Finalist Semyon Varlamov. Avalanche legend Patrick Roy joined as the head coach, and even started a trend of pulling your goalie as early as five minutes left in the 3^rd period when down. The Avalanche would eventually surprisingly lose to the Minnesota in the first round. However, this year they have been dismal. Colorado is tied for last place in the Central with the Dallas Stars, another team that had hoped to take the next step. The Avalanche rank 21^st in goals for with 2.5, and 26^th in goals against at 3.2. Last year’s Vezna Trophy Finalist is now losing the starting job to Calvin Pickard. This all coming from a team that had expectations of nothing less than a Stanley Cup.

 

 

A Day Too Remember

December 4, 2014 was a memorable day for two of the NHL’s greatest players. In Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, arguably the best goalie of all time made his first start for his new team after 21 years with the New Jersey Devils. Over 460 miles away, one of the best Ottawa Senators ever signed a one-day contract with the team, capping off a 20 year career. Combined, these two legends have played over 2,800 games (and counting), won 3 Stanley Cups, and 4 Olympic Medals. These two players are of course, Martin Brodeur, and Daniel Alfredsson.

  Brodeur started his professional career in 1990 when he was drafted 20^th overall by the New Jersey Devils. Until 1993, he played in the AHL for the Utica Devils. In the 1991’1992 season, he was called up on an emergency- basis to play in New Jersey. He won his debut, 4-2 over the Boston Bruins. In 1993, Brodeur played his first full NHL season, winning the Calder Trophy (best rookie goalie) in the process. He carried the team to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they would eventually lose to the New York Rangers in 7 games. With the starting job secured, the next year the Devils went on to win the Stanley Cup by sweeping the Red Wings. In the 1999-2000 season, Brodeur and the Devils went on to win the Cup again. He and the rest of the Devils accomplished the same feat in 2005. Brodeur also was on both the 2002 and 2010 Olympic-Gold winning hockey team for Canada.

  Apart from all of his championships, Martin Brodeur broke many records. In 2009, he earned his 552^nd career win to pass Patrick Roy for most all time. Currently, he has 668 wins. He also holds the title of most shout-outs, in both the regular season and playoffs at 148. Brodeur also has the most 30 and 40 wins seasons, along with the most goals ever by a goaltender (5). He also has the only game-winning goal by a goalie. Brodeur also has the most saves and most games played. The list of accomplishments goes on and on.

  Another player ended his career the same day Martin Brodeur started for his new team. This is Daniel Alfredsson. On December 4^th, he signed a one-day contract with the Ottawa Senators, a team he played for from 1994-2013. To commemorate the occasion, Alfredsson dropped the honorary puck at the Islanders-Senators game. Although never winning a Stanley Cup, he did win 2 medals for Sweden at the Olympics. However, he did lead the Senators to the Cup Final in 2007, where the lost to the Ducks 4-1.

  Along with Brodeur, Alfredsson holds numerous records. He holds the all-time record for most regular season goals, assists, and points. He has also played the most regular season games in Senator’s history. Alfredsson also played over 1,000 games for the Senators. In 2013, he signed a 5.5 million dollar contract with the Red Wings for one year. He did this to try to win his first Stanley Cup with a contending team. He was unsuccessful, losing to the Boston Bruins in 5 games.

  Both players have been amazing assets for their numerous teams. Both Brodeur and Alfredsson will most surely go down as some of the best to ever play the game, and will surely eventually enter the Hockey Hall of Fame.