Canucks lose to Flyers but gain Jason Labarbera

I missed tonight's game and that is good. Why? Because it doesn't sting as much when you don't invest your time watching them lose.

The acquisition of Jason Labarbera is interesting. I would like to know WHEN exactly they made that deal, rather than when it was announced (during the 1st intermission).
So we know Curtis Sanford has a groin injury now. But was this acquisition more about:
a) the Canucks not having faith in Cory Schneider
b) the Canucks knew Sanford was a leg kick away from his balls breaking
c) Luongo is going to be out of action for a fair bit longer yet
d) all of the above

More will be revealed soon. Here is a good interview with Assistant GM Lorne Henning about the trade.

How much faith do any of you have in BC Boy Jason Labarbera?

The jury is out for me. At least he's a big presence in net, unlike Sanford.

“I’m ecstatic,” LaBarbera said during the middle of Tuesday’s third period. “It’s something I’ve always dreamed of, being from the Lower Mainland. It’s huge for me. It’s going to be a lot different than playing in L.A., that’s for sure.”

OK, Barbie, just kick some butt between the pipes for us.

Here is some insight from a Kings fan's perspective over at A Queen Among Kings. Nice parting words for Labarbera (Barbs) there.

Canucks face Kings tonight as both teams try to get back to 500

KNOW YOUR ENEMY

- The Kings and Canucks rank almost exactly the same in goals per game (3.12 and 3.11 respectively.
- The Kings are a surprising 11th in the NHL in goals against per game (2.75). The Canucks are 23rd (3.22)
- The Kings are 15th with PP efficiency (17.5%). The Canucks are 21st (16.7%)
- Los Angeles is an astounding 3rd in the NHL on the PK (91.4% kill rate). The Nucks are 20th (78.6%)

So the Kings have the edge with special teams thus far, and Frolov has only 1 PP goal while Kopitar has none.

- Kings goalie Jason Labarbera (pride of Prince George) has played 8 games. He was won 3 and lost 3 with 1 OT loss. He has a 2.86 GAA and a .896 save %.
- Luongo has played in 8 games, won 4 and lost 4, with a 3.00 GAA and a .900 save %. He numbers are slowly improving.

LINEUPS

Word is that Mike Brown could draw into the Canucks' lineup and Jason Krog could sit. Mason Raymond and Kyle Wellwood and regoing to see time on the top unit with the Twins, as mentioned in an earlier post. In regards to Raymond getting top line duty, Vigneault said today:

"Obviously we need to find a way to get Daniel and Henrik to contribute offensively and, right now, Mason has been getting a lot of chances and been getting to open ice with his skating. We’ll try that and see what we can come up with."

Now Steve Bernier is going to have to find someone else to click with. It's actually a major disappointment that he so far is not the next Anson Carter. I thought he would be.

The Kings are without Jack Johnson (shoulder repair) for a long period of time. But we don't have Jan Bulis in our lineup to pick on him anymore so there is no fun in that.

The Canucks played well against the Bruins last game but could not capitalize on their chances. But Labarbera is no Tim Thomas. Vancouver should be able to score more often tonight and come out with a win.

GAME TIME: 7:30 PST
TV: Canucks PPV (no way am I getting that)

Kings on Price is Right

Derek Armstrong, Denis Gauthier, Kyle Calder and Dustin Brown made an appearance on The Price is Right. It was taped on September 9 so I suppose it hasn't aired yet? Wouldn't mind seeing it. Scroll down the TSN page for more of the gallery.

T Tags: Los+Angeles+Kings+on+Price+is+Right TV photos

The Bulin Wall isn't toast yet

The deadline teams have to pick up Khabibulin on waivers (and at his whopping salary) has come and gone (12:00 EST). Unless a late report comes out, no one has taken the former Cup winner.
Too much dough. And obviously teams are not willing to pay it. I can't imagine what Chicago was trying to get for him before they put him on waivers....but no one bit.
Now The Bulin Wall will most likely get demoted and then put on re-entry waivers, where most people believe he will be claimed at half of his $6.75 million salary. That makes Khabibulin cheap for the taker and knocks just over $3 million off the Hawks' cap spending.
So who is going to gamble on the netminder?
Rumors persist that Ottawa will trade for him. I say bunk to that. Gerber is getting his chance.
It seems that the Kings is his best fit. Sure, they are rebuilding, but when was the last time the Kings actually had a bonafide starting goalie?
It's all going to go down in the next several hours.

Speaking of waivers: Is anybody going to claim Michel Ouellet, who was put on waivers yesterday by the overloaded Lightning?

Tags: Khabibulin+clears+waivers? Kings Senators Blackhawks

Jarret Stoll and Rachel Hunter to wed next spring/summer

Kiwi supermodel Rachel Hunter is all set to tie the knot with her lover Jarret Stoll - ten years after dumping ex-husband rocker Rod Stewart. Hunter, 38, revealed her plans to tie the knot with Stoll, 26, a professional ice hockey player, on August 12, as she showed off a huge diamond ring in her native New Zealand.

The wedding is set to take place next spring or summer. The couple had met two years ago through Hunter's son Liam, 13, a talented ice hockey player coached by Stoll. "He's my first true love since Rod, and the age difference isn't an issue," the Sun quoted her as saying.

Why would the age difference be an issue when she looks like this? Don't let me give you the impression that there is no more substance to the relationship than just looks.
But let me ask: Does this news play any role into Stoll's trade to Los Angeles this summer? Just asking.

T Tags: Jarret Stoll+and Rachel+Hunter+to+marry

Kings' GM Dean Lombardi threatens all who try to poach his RFA's

From The Sporting News, via Kukla's Korner:

"We're not only going to match any offer sheet, we'll have enough space to go after your guys. Go ahead and make our day. If you sign our guy, we're coming back with both barrels firing. You'd better be damn straight that you have the cap space and all your guys are signed."

That is what Lombardi told The Sporting News' Craig Custance about any teams that dare to throw lucrative offers at Kings' RFA's Anze Kopitar and Jack Johnson. What an awesome threat. The Kings do have the cap space to go after someone else's free agents, but really, I don't think Lombardi is going to do something like that anytime soon as he is rebuilding the team.
Don't ever sell Lombardi a gun though! HA!

T Tags: Dean+Lombardi+threat restricted+free+agent+poaching guns+ablazing

The Kings and Oilers make a trade

We have a trade to announce....(applause).....

The Edmonton Oilers have acquired defenceman Lubomir Visnovsky from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forward Jarret Stoll and defenceman Matt Greene.

This is a great trade for both sides. The Kings lost some offence by trading Mike Cammalleri at the Draft and hope Stoll can step it up. Matt Greene is a menacing presence on defence.
Think of how much better the Oilers' powerplay will be now with both Sheldon Souray (if he remains healthy) AND Luby Visnovski manning the points. That's a tonne of potential powerplay points sitting right there.

T Tags: Oilers+Jarret+Stoll+Matt+Greene+to+Kings+for+Lubomir+Visnovski

Marc Crawford fired

“We appreciate Marc’s commitment the two seasons he has been here,” said Kings' GM Dean Lombardi. “However, we believe that in evaluating where we are at and, more importantly, where we are going as an organization, we feel this coaching change was the right decision to make. We wish Marc the best in his future endeavors.”

In 162 games coached with the Kings, Crawford coached the Kings to a 59-84-21 record. The Kings are primed to turn a corner with all the youth they have, but Crawford will not be the one to coach them along.
It has been rumored in the past that Crawford did not handle rookies and younger guys well, but I'm not sure if that's the case here. I think the record speaks for itself. Plus, firing coaches is the flavor of the month.
Think anyone will come knocking on Crawford's door now?

T Tags: Marc+Crawford+fired Los+Angeles+Kings

The Power of Kesler Compels You

AFTER 2

Here go the Canucks taking the Kings somewhat lightly again. Yes, they are outshooting the lousy Kings 26-12, and Cloutier is playing solid, but the quality of the shots aren't all that thrilling.
I remember now why Cloutier was so ineffective in Vancouver....he lets out so many rebounds!! Yet the Nucks are not capitalizing on them. They are passing the puck around more now, looking for a perfect play. But I'd say they should crash the net harder and look for a deflection/rebound goal. How about shooting top corner?
The Canucks are flirting with disaster tonight, as the Kings look to put a ping pong shot past Luongo and steal a win here, while the Canucks waste a game in hand.
We'll see. The 3rd is up next.

---

PERIOD 3

OK, so actually, Willie Mitchell breaks his stick from a point shot and the Kings break up the ice 2-on-2...Mitchell can't block the pass across and Bieksa makes a dumbass covering play and Patrick O'Sullivan makes it 1-0. You could almost see this coming. The Canucks are 11:00 away from getting swept by the worst team in the NHL. This is atrocious.
Go figure, Burrows puts the puck on net and Kesler bags a rebound goal. Why wasn't this done earlier?? 1-1. I'm less pissed off right now. The Canucks lacked desperation to win this game in regulation. They looked poised, just not desperate.

---

OT

Kesler has just tipped a point shot by Willie Mitchell and the Canucks win this one 46 seconds into OT! Talk about doing things the hard way. Burrows assisted on that one too.
Amazing how the tying goal really kicked the Canucks into an extra gear and from there they buried a team they had to bury.
Can you say enough about Burrows and Kesler?
Markus Naslund had a ton of chances, but scored none.
The Sedins looked a tad better, but the one-trick pony express showed just that again tonight. Like Temujin just said to me: The Sedins are like Canadian Tire, not Ikea. They look good on the outside, but it's a low quality product." Nice one.
By the way, Bieksa IS Jovo the 2nd. I think he has a brain fart problem. I was saying earlier that they should just make him a forward.
Brendan Morrison was limited to just over 8:00 of play but showed a bit of flare.
How about Sami "Glass" Salo? He trips on Mitchell's skate, falls on his ass, and goes off with an injury. This guy is pathetic fragile. What did he injure, his glutimus maximus?
Final shots on goal in this one: 40-18 Canucks. Yeesh. Cloutier almost got his revenge.



BOXSCORE


HIGHLIGHTS

T Tags: Canucks Kings Review Kesler+rules Burrows Bieksa+sucks Cloutier

Sunday's games provide a parting of the Red Sea for Vancouver

Yesterday turned out to be Super Sunday for the Vancouver Canucks.
-Dallas (who we aren't going to catch anyway) beats Colorado 3-0. Apparently Forsberg missed the game with a groin injury...Foppa's fragility continues.
-San Jose (who we also are not going to catch) beats Minnesota 3-2.
-Detroit beat Nashville 4-3.
The Canucks maintain 8th spot in the West and once again have 2 games in hand over the pesky Predators and the Wild.
Now is our chance to make a move. Now begins a crucial week, as the Canucks take on the Kings tonight, the Ducks on Wednesday, the Coyotes on Thursday, and the Stars on Saturday. Talk about a busy schedule! Every single one of this week's games are on the road. So we'll see the resolve of this Canucks squad.
One game at a time. The Kings look to be trying to finish last in the NHL for the 1st overall draft pick. But I wouldn't count these guys out or take them lightly. Can you believe the Kings have beat us 3-out-of-3 times this season? What the hell is up with that? If there's a motivation factor for the Canucks beyond a playoff spot, it should be to not let these guys sweep the season series. Unreal.
The Kings have only won once in their last 5. That was a shocking 2-0 victory over Ottawa. The Nuckleheads have won 2 in a row, scoring 10 goals and only allowing 4 against in the process.
Vancouver looks fairly confident on the ice. They get caught running around in their own zone more often lately but hopefully that changes.
Is Dan Cloutier going to play for the Kings? Or will 26-year old Swedish suprise Erik Ersberg, who is rolling, keep his spot between the pipes? We shall see.
Brendan Morrison will be accompanying the team on the road trip, but it is unknown when he'll make his debut. I am formally welcoming his return, just for the added offence. Maybe he'll kickstart Naslund, who is playing perimeter-useless hockey lately and hasn't scored in 8 games.
Let me make one thing clear about Markus: I hack him constantly because I expect more of him on the ice as the captain, and I will continually do so. At he same time, it's easy for me to sit behind a laptop and heckle the guy, but in reality, I would love to meet him, go for a beer with him and talk to him about it. I don't like to see him struggle, but he is human. And I'm sure he's a standup sincere guy. But Markus, please, show some grit. Stop trying to shoot from the top of the circle. People know that trick. Shoot the puck more, and from different angles. I know deep down he's hating the slump, and it's easy to call him gutless because he looks so timid all the time and shows no emotion. But I can't wait for him to snap out of it. OK, no more nice stuff.
Empty net goal or not, the Sedins are a one trick pony and it is continually grating on my nerves. It's amazing how we are getting the secondary scoring right now, but the Sedins need to become a factor SOON, as the secondary scoring may dry up.
Is Kevin Bieksa Jovo the 2nd? At times he's brilliant. Other times he's a liability and coughs the puck up too much out there. If he keeps this up, I'm thinking we'd be better off tossing the guy and keeping Luc Bourdon out there.
A nasty stat from Canucks.com:

The Canucks enter tonight’s game with a 5-9-1 record against the Pacific Division, going winless in their last five games against that division (0-4-1).

Will the Canucks beat the Kings? Are we going to see continued consistent effort?
I say "yes" and we beat these bottom-dwellers 3-2 tonight.

T tags: Canucks Kings Preview Naslund+slump Sedins+slump Western+Conference+Standings

Canucks-Kings Preview

I'm not even sure if I am going to be able to see this game, as I am entering a poker tournament tonight. But I get this feeling that the Canucks are going to "snap out of it" tonight. "It" being their current mini-slump in which they have lost 2 straight games. Hell, the Kings have beat us 4-2 twice this season already. In both games, the Kings scored 3 unanswered goals in the middle of the game.
The Canucks have lost 4 of their last 5.
The Kings have won 3 of their last 5.
"Every point is critical now so we'll have to be ready Saturday," Hank Sedin said today. No shit. We are slowly tumbling down the standings.

Mattias Ohlund will make his return tonight after an extended absence because of a concussion. His physical presence has been missed. His dumb penalties haven't.


The Kings will still be without Mike Cammalleri, who has a rib contusion.

My call? So many of the Canucks' recent games have been decided by 1 goal. I say tonight they don't underestimate a lousy Kings team and bury them 5-2.

NUMBERS from Canucks.com:

2 - Wins on the Canucks this season when trailing after the first period (2-11-3).

3 - Shootout wins for the Canucks this season (3-5). The Canucks had their three-game win streak in shootouts end on Thursday when they fell to the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in a shootout loss. The Canucks have an all-time record of 12-13 in shootouts since its inception in the 2005-06 season.

3 - Wins and five losses (3-5-0) for the Los Angeles Kings in the second half of back-to-back games on consecutive nights.

4 - Game point streak for Henrik Sedin entering tonight’s game (2-4-6).

5 - Wins this season for the Canucks when appearing on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada (5-0-2). The Canucks make their first appearance on HNIC since December 27th when they scored a 5-3 victory on home ice over the Calgary Flames. Tonight will be their eighth of 14 total appearances on HNIC this season.

5 - Wins for the Canucks when tied after two periods (5-2-4).

12 - Wins for the Canucks in one-goal games this season (12-5-5).

Love that CBC stat.

Game Time: 7:00 PST
TV: CBC High Def

T Tags: Canucks Kings Preview Ohlund+returns CBC

Canucks-Kings Preview

Yeah, I'm still mad about the Nucks' loss to Pittsburgh. And yes, I still hate Crosby, and anyone who wears a Pens jersey (except Gary Roberts).
Anyway, I just need to get over it. A win tonight over the Kings will help ease my relentless anger.
The Canucks are back on the road to California to take on the Kings, Ducks and Sharks. The Ducks and Sharks games are on Wednesday and Thursday. Busy week, because they end their road trip in Edmonton on Saturday night and return home to play the Devils the following Tuesday.
So let's see how much resolve this bunch has on a busy road trip. And let's see how much resolve they have after losing a heartbreaker to those fucking Penguins.
The Kings are on a bad slide. They have lost 4 of their last 5, and are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games, securing a spot in the Western Conference basement.
The Canucks are still leading the Northwest by 2 points over Minnesota, and hold 2nd place in the West. Both teams have played 29 games.
The last time the Kings and Nucks played was October 18, when the Canucks were in their rough start. We outshot the Kings 28-17 and lost the game 4-2.
What can we expect tonight? To be honest, I foresee a motivated Kings team and a Canuck team that is slow out of the gate. I can see the Kings getting ahead early and the Canucks battling back....but it will be too late...Kings win this one 4-3.
Feeling a little pessimistic right now.
Oh well, Go Nucks!












The Canucks land in L.A. (photo from Canucks.com The team has a photo-road diary going on for their road trip. Some good picks there.)

T Tags: Canucks Kings Game Preview

Early contract extensions are genius

It seems to be the trend over the past few weeks. GM's are signing their prospects to contract extensions to avoid free agency. The Flames signing Kipper to a 6-year $35 million deal is wise, even if Kiprusoff is currently struggling. That's only $5.8 million per year long term.
I like the Kings' signing Dustin Brown to a 6-year $19.05 million deal. That's $3.175 per season. Brown is going to be a beauty, and that will be a steal when he does.
The same applies to the Wild re-signing Brent Burns to a 4-year extension worth $3.55 per season. Burns had 22 goals last season and looks to be a player on the rise.
But you know the biggest reason for all this....yeah, that damned Kevin Lowe trying to pry players away for stupid money. Teams are better off locking up their commodities early rather than let them hit free agency and get bought away.
So good on these GM's for bucking up and avoiding the stresses that morons like Kevin Lowe bring about during the offseason.

T Tags: Wild re-sign Burns Flames Kiprusoff Kings Brown contract extensions

Kings 4 Canucks 2: Period by period

Period 1

You almost couldn't ask much more out of the Canucks in period 1. They controlled the play for most of the period, outshooting the Kings 10-7 and leading 1-0.
-You gotta love Taylor Pyatt sticking up for Hank Sedin and fighting Ivanans and beating him to a bloody pulp.
-The Cooke-Burrows-Kesler line is paying huge dividends early and may put up some more points yet. Not only were all 3 in on the fitst goal, but they really set the tone in the first period by having a great first shift when the puck first dropped in this game.
-Aside from that, the Kings were short handed 3 times in the opening frame. Expect a different Kings effort in the 2nd, and see if the Canucks can hold them off.

Period 2

And now for a completely different story....
The Kings storm back in the 2nd scoring 3 unanswered goals. The Canucks missed an in-close 2-on-0 and the Kings score soon after when Jack Johnson scored his first NHL goal on a Kings 2-on-1. Almost payback for JJ, considering Jan Bulis sent him ass over tea kettle with a hip check last season in I believe his first NHL game last season.
- Rypien's highsticking double major put the Canucks in an even bigger hole, as Mike Cammalleri had multiple swipes at the puck in front of Luongo and scored, as Bieksa just watched basically. Ah, tough night for Bieksa. The puck took an unfortunate bounce off his skate 4 minutes later, onto the stick of Luby Visnovsky who made a perfect slap pass to Frolov. 3-1 Kings.
The Canucks looked lost for most of the period, and the crowd let them know their displeasure, booing the Nuckleheads off the ice at the end of the 2nd period.
The Kings outshot the Canucks 8-5 in the middle frame.
Expect a better Canucks effort in Period 3, but I can see the super skilled Kings offence making them pay for any times they are caught up ice pressing to tie this one up.

**Anyone see Dany Sabourin's efforts against Carolina tonight? Wow. Super glove save in the shootout to preserve the win. He was amazing in goal for Pittsburgh tonight.**

Period 3

The Nucks put up somewhat of a valiant effort to try tie this one up. Kesler nicely set up Ohlund, who roofed a beauty to make it close. But it was all scrambly from there. Dustin Brown put the nail in the coffin after being awarded with an empty net goal even though he didn't actually put the puck in the net (Naslund tripped him, Luongo was on the bench.)
Canucks outshot the Kings 13-2 in the 3rd but Jason Labarberra was solid.
Total shots on goal: Canucks 28 Kings 17

Gotta love the Kings' explosive defence. They buried their chances. The Canucks just couldn't.

Good to see Kesler get the 2 assists as well. He showed an assload of hustle.

Vigneault mentioned post game that the Canucks are doing a lot of things right, but are not playing a full 60 minutes. When they stop playing well they are getting burned and are unable to come back.
The Canucks will get their game back, but it may take a little while yet. Maybe heading out on the road for 4 games will help. It must not be fun playing in front of a graveyard-like GM Place.


BOXSCORE


T Tags: Canucks Kings Review

Moose loves Buffalo Statue...too much / Canucks-Kings Preview

Couldn't resist. Someone sent me this today.

Damage Report below,
We need to tell you that there was some damage to the statue of the
American Bison in front of the house in Big Sky. We did attempt to
prevent the damage, throwing stones at, and hitting, the attacker. The
attacker could not be dissuaded, and kept up his assault for eight
hours. The incident even caused a traffic situation in front of the house.

The damage consisted of:
1) The loss of about two inches from the left horn. The broken piece is
on the work bench in the garage.
2) Hoof scratches on the side of the Bison.
3) Some chips in the right rear hoof.
4) Blood stains behind the Bison.

---

So, on to the game tonight between the Kings and Canucks. An interesting scenario here is that the Kings have lost 3 straight road games. The Canucks are 1-3-0 at home this season.
The highest scoring Canuck so far is Daniel Sedin with 8 points. Anze Kopitar leads the Kings with 11 points.
Both teams are coming off losses tonight, so it should be a spirited affair, so they say.
The Canucks won 3 of 4 games against the Kings last season, but the Kings have gotten much better on paper.
I picked the Kings to win on Facebook's sports betting application, so I had better stay with that. I say they win 4-2 tonight.
So I'm pessimistic.....suck it! I don't even have a great valid reason to pick the Kings winning. It's just a hunch.
It will be a treat to watch Cammalleri, Frolov and Kopitar though.

T Tags: Moose humping buffalo Canucks Kings Preview

Who's this Jonathan Bernier kid?

The 19-year-old Bernier was solid for the Los Angeles Kings today in a 4-1 win over the Ducks in London England, the first game of the regular season.

“Jonathan, you couldn’t have expected a better game from him,” Kings coach Marc Crawford said. “There was a lot of pressure on him tonight, and he looked like a real solid, solid goaltender,” Crawford said. “Not many pucks bounced off of him, and he made a couple of great saves.”

Bernier was drafted 11th overall by the Kings in 2006. He has spent the last few seasons with the Lewiston Maineiacs of the QMJHL. Last season in Quebec he played 37 games, with a 26-10-0 record, 2.58 GAA (pretty good for the high scoring Quebec League), a .905 save percentage and 2 shutouts.
He had a 16-1 record in the playoffs as the Maineiacs won the President's Cup.
The talent analysis on Bernier from Hockey's Future is as follows:

Bernier is a hybrid stand-up and butterfly goaltender with great reflexes, is very quick moving from post-to-post with tremendous puck-handling skills around the net. He plays big in big games – save his performance in the 2006 CHL Top Prospects game, wherein the young goaltender allowed six goals on 31 shots in 32 minutes work. He is occasionally prone to get agitated in net when facing intense traffic, but generally manages to keep a level head.

His future at the same site states:

Showing no flaws in his game, and great consistency, Bernier should be a starting netminder in the future. In the Q, Bernier will face many shots and see an abundance of different schemes and looks from the opposition. He still has another year of juniors eligibility left, but has already signed an entry-level contract with the Kings.

He is graded an 8.0.
The Laval, Quebec native is only 19. Can he get a permanent spot in the King's lineup? That will depend on the play of Jason LaBarbera and J.S. Aubin. The Kings signed LaBarbera to a 2-year deal in July, signed Aubin as a free agent, and then dumped Dan Cloutier. It looks as though Bernier may be fighting Aubin for a backup role. But then again, if he keeps putting up performances like today's, he may be battling LaBarbera for the starting role between the pipes. Remember, Aubin was shakey last year in Toronto. Keep your eyes on this kid. The King's goaltending woes may soon be over.
Bernier was signed to a 3-year entry level by the Kings last October in a deal rumored to be worth $2.55 million.

BernierTube

Great save by Bernier with the Maineiacs.
Interview with Bernier "Life in Hockeywood."

T Tags: Los+Angeles Kings Jonathan+Bernier info

Bye bye Cloutier / PS3 rules / Quick Canucks-Oilers recap

The Kings have placed Dan Cloutier on waivers today, due mostly to his injury problems and poor play when he wasn't hurt. This solves the crowded crease dilemna for the Kings. Is anyone going to take Clouts on now? Who? Probably stay in Manchester so that his contract doesn't count against the Kings ($3.1 MILLION. Sorry Crow, but that was a bad hunch you had of the netminder.

---

Just got my Playstation 3 in the mail yesterday, and I already had NHL 08, just waiting for the system to come in. Let me say, I am damned impressed with both. I just can't score goals yet in 08. It's tough! The AI is just terrific. I just need to get used to the controls and all of the playmaking skills and concepts.
The game looks absolutely brilliant. But if you don't tighten up defensively, you get smoked. Ales Hemsky scored 5 goals against myself and Temujin last night because we played like the Canucks of 1996. Not even Luongod could save us.
The new jerseys for each team look good. But you have to insert a code to open the RBK jereys and then save it. That code is: h3oyxpwksf8ibcgt
Amazing how you can now pit any European or even minor league team against NHL squads. How about the Moose against the Canucks? Coolness. How about playing Dynasty mode with AHL teams and make a run at the Calder Cup? So many options.
But the greatest part about this game is how the AI adjusts to your style of play and forces you to change up your strategies, and how Bill Clement actually offers intelligent information during the game. He analyses your teams' strategy during game play and will actually mention when the opponent is catching on. And then he offers advice on how to change up basically. Ah, no more stupid Craig Simpson inputs. That guy grated my nerves in NHL 07.
Unfortunately, the above-mentioned pros do not exist in any consoles lower than the PS3, XBox 360 or PC. So upgrade your gaming system dammit, it's worth it!

---

At least the Nucks beat the Oilers in real life, 5-4 last night. Good to see Isbister be a last second hero, and Kesler pick up 3 points as the game's first star.

HIGHLITES

COMPLETE BOX SCORE/ SCORESHEET



T Tags: Dan+Cloutier waivers Playstation3 NHL 08 RBK+jersey+code Canucks Oilers recap

Happy Retirement, Sean Burke

After not attracting much interest in the free agent market this summer, the 40-year-old Burke announced his retirement today.

"I have been very fortunate to enjoy a long and eventful professional hockey career," said Burke.
"In retirement, I will certainly miss the camaraderie with my teammates and the interaction with the fans most of all."

BurkeTube

- Burke and Steve Shields do a little dance.
-Burke scores a goal in Sega's NHL 94.
-Oh, check out this save by Burke on Konowalchuk in his Hartford days. The announcer drops his nuts on the floor.

Burke Links

-everything Burke at Hockey Goalies.org Great site.
-Burke's fighting record at Hockey Fights.com.

Hey Burke, from one metal head to another, happy retirement and enjoy your time with your kids. Great first name by the way.

T Tags: Sean+Burke retires

Poor Cammalleri

You can't blame Mike Cammalleri for being disappointed about the money he got through arbitration: 2 years and $6.7 million. He will make $3.1 million next season and $3.6 million in 2008-09. Cammalleri had 34 goals and 80 points last season.
Comparisons to piss him off royally:

Dustin Penner getting a 5-year $21.5 million deal from Edmonton. Penner had 25 goals and 45 points. Of course, this is a different circumstance.

Todd Bertuzzi signed a 2-year deal with the Ducks at $4 million per season. Bert has a bad back and may never score 80 points again in his career.

Patrice Bergeron has never scored more than never scored more than 31 goals and 73 points but is signed multi-year at $4.75 million per season.

Eric Cole has never scored more than 30 goals and 61 points in his career and he is making $4 million per season.

Nathan Horton has never scored more than 31 goals and 62 points and is making $4 million per season.

The list goes on and on.

But then there are the players who are in the same financial boat as Cammalleri is who put out the same amount of offence:
-Justin Williams
-Ray Whitney
-Milan Hejduk
-Shawn Horcoff
-Steve Sullivan

Players wh0 do NOT deserve Cammalleri's dollar value:
-Fredrik Modin
-Dainius Zubrus
-Mike Comrie

The lists go on and on. I am suprised that Cammalleri did not get more. But which players and prerequisites were they using to decide Cammalleri's numerical fate?

For now, Cammalleri will have to keep improving his play and wait until he becomes an unrestricted free agent. He will earn so much more when there is a bidding war for his services.

T Tags: Mike+Cammalleri arbitration+ruling

Canucks sign Krajicek / More news

It's a 2-year deal worth $2.2 million. Krajicek was a restricted free agent. He has found a home in Vancouver and fits in well as a dependable defenceman. Krajicek matured leaps and bounds in a Canucks uniform and really made the Bertuzzi trade look worse for Florida. He had 3 goals and 16 points last season.

The Leafs have signed UFA Bates Battaglia to a $1.3 million deal. I am not suprised by this. Battaglia fit in well in a checking role, scoring 12 goals and 31 points. Battaglia has played several years with Paul Maurice with Toronto and Carolina.
Now watch him get traded. The Leafs are still rumored to be chasing Slava Kozlov.

Hockey Analysis is updated as far as NHL team-by-team salaries go. Nice work, David! Now you can see where the New York Rangers stand in cap commitments. They are at about $36.7 million with big names like Shanahan, Lundqvist and Avery still to sign (and about 7 others).
Check out where the Canucks stand. It further confirms Nonis' bargain-hunting stance, or willingness to make a trade to clear a bit of cap space.

It is being reported that the Kings have signed Tom Preissing to a 4-year $11 million contract.

After not having the option of dumping the salaries of a Malakhov and Mogilny this year, Lou Lamoriello, the crafty dog, lost both Gomez and Rafalski. It is reported that Lou asked Devils' management to take him out behind the barn, shoot him, and put him out of his misery.
Really though, Lou said: "We really wanted him (Rafalski) to stay. It just comes down to the fiscal aspect of decisions and what you can afford in putting a team together while respecting the other players. We just couldn't compete with some of the numbers out there. No animosity. This is the unfortunate part of the game. Money has a way of making decisions.
We have tremendous confidence in Andy Greene, Johnny Oduya and Paul Martin."

Watch out for Andy Greene. He looks poised to take over for Rafalski.

The Hawks have signed GM Dave Tallon to a 2 year extension.

"I'm very excited that the Blackhawks have given me the opportunity to continue to work toward our goal of winning the Stanley Cup," said Tallon.

How about just making the playoffs first, Dave. The Hawks are in the worst funk in NHL history, but at least Tallon brought in guys like Khabibulin and Havlat to turn the tide a little.


T Tags: Canucks+sign+Krajicek Rangers+salary Kings+sign+Preissing