The Fifth Liners

So, the playoffs might be over and while the Chicago Blackhawks parade the cup around, the rest of the teams get down to trade business. The free agent season starts on July fifth and due to each team being allowed to buy out the contracts of two players before the next season starts; expect to see some big names moving. Here's three of the best players who'll become unrestricted free agents next month and why each would be worth picking up. Damien Brunner Why you would: The Swiss international may only have been Stateside for a year but he's quietly and effectively got on with his job pretty damn well. After signing an entry level contract with the Detroit Red Wings he scored 12 goals in the regular season and 5 in the playoffs. Why you wouldn't: Brunner's agent has said that Brunner wants to stay in Detroit and is happy to sign a lengthy contract. Daniel Brière Why you would: Brière might never have lifted the cup but he's an experienced forward wh...

1. Jarome Iginla  After a decade as captain of the Calgary Flames, Jarome Iginla this year made the decision to pack his bags and leave the Saddledome with his team at the bottom of the Western Conference standings to join championship chasing Pittsburgh Penguins who acquired him in exchange for one their first round draft picks in this years draft! But after a good start scoring 11 points in 13 regular season games- the Penguins were swept by the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference final with Iginla failing to step up when needed and this leaves his Pittsburgh future in doubt. At 35 Iginla still has some miles left in him and no doubt there will be a stampede of offers for him because each franchise needs a frequent goal scorer like him (take note of this Tortorella) 2. Nathan Horton  This man has been at the helm of the Boston Bruins recent success since his arrival from Florida in 2011, but recently Horton has run into trouble with Bruins management over an ar...

New Jersey Devils Goaltender Martin Brodeur will be the face of EA's next NHL game when it's released in September. Click  here  for more info about NHL 14 and  here  to see all of Brodeur's records. An honour well deserved, let's just hope he isn't affected by the curse...

The Chicago Blackhawks paraded the Stanley cup in front of a hometown crowd of over 2 million people yesterday! The party is still happening in the state of Illinois and the players along with coach Joel Quenneville  was on hand to thank the fans as well as the city of Boston for being such gracious hosts- for a review of the celebrations click here

Spoiler. Chicago win. Anyway, how did it happen? First Period After Rene Rancourt's belting national anthem, the Bruins really took the initiative, letting the Blackhawks know that today would not be a formality. The first test for Tukka Rask came three minutes in when Nick Leddy fired a laser from center ice forcing Rask to knock the puck away. Less than a minute later Jonathan Toews linked up with Patrick Kane from behind Rask's net but Kane fired wide. The Blackhawks have been working on their link up play as Alex's man-crush Michal Handzus may have struggled in the faceoff spots but his passing was on target. The Handzus-Sharp pairing proving to be one of the best in the league. The Bruins' third line kept Chicago under pressure but for what seemed like an age, couldn't find the net. That was until the seventh minute when Tyler Seguin found the 'Hawks D-men sleeping and passed the puck in front of Corey Crawford to Chris Kelly who found t...

Finally John Tortorella will be giving more referees hell from behind the bench as today it was announced by Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis that the former New York Rangers coach had finally been appointed Head Coach at the Rogers Arena! After the sacking of Alain Vigneault (who ironically was appointed coach of the  Rangers earlier this week) the Canucks have been searching for a decent replacement and it would appear that Tortorella fits the bill. In his 13 years as a coach in the NHL, he has had six visits to the playoffs and tasted cup glory with Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004. But many won't be focusing on his coaching skills and his fiery interviews will be frequently under scrutiny, all I can say is I will definitely be tuning because when JT is involved- viewing is compulsory! Upon joining the franchise, Tortorella seemed excited about the adventure ahead, "This is an adventure and it's an honor and a privilege," Tortorella said, "and I couldn...

Lots of rinks are multi-purpose and host other sports however I doubt very much anyone expected Mother Nature to turn the Scotiabank Saddledome into a swimming pool. As the flood subsides and residents are allowed to return to their properties, the Calgary Flames posted internal and external pictures of the arena and it's immediate surroundings. Needless to say it's a mess.  Click here  to view the pictures. The Flames' President Ken King has stated though that the arena will be ready for the start of the season in October. Needless to say though both our thoughts are with all the Calgary residents affected by the flood.

Patrick Kane continued his impressive playoff performance and put in a first star performance to gain the Chicago Blackhawks an impressive 3-1 win over the Boston Bruins at the United Center last night and as a result they take a 3-2 lead in the series and lie just one game away from the ultimate prize! Kane struck late in the first period and bagged his eight goal of the playoffs 17 minutes in when he backhanded the puck into the bottom left corner of Tuukka Rask ’s net when Johnny Oduya ’s shot shattered Dennis Seidenberg ’s stick and fortuitously slid into his path! The Blackhawks skilfully used their pace and made use of the extra space available to frustrate the Bruins defence- meanwhile Corey Crawford was proving a wall in a net and it would prove to be that way for the remainder of this fixture. Chicago fans didn’t have long to wait for Kane’s ninth goal as after less than 5 minutes played, he scored high into the Boston net put the Hawks 2-0 to good! But the per...

Alain Vigneault was officially been appointed as Head Coach of the New York Rangers yesterday after weeks of speculation and the ink is now dry on his five year deal after the sacking of former coach John Tortorella in May. After a solid run as coach of the Vancouver Canucks Vigneault will bring a much needed offensive minded play to the role as the Rangers seek to end their 19 year Stanley cup drought. When speaking about taking the role, the Quebec native revealed it was a chance he couldn’t pass up “"I was thinking about the opportunity to coach the New York Rangers one of the Original Six teams, in this great city, and there wasn't a chance I could pass that up," MEANWHILE...   IN BRITISH COLUMBIA John Tortorella has reportedly been offered the Head Coaching by the Vancouver Canucks management after they release Vigneault from the same position in May! Canucks GM Mike Gillis stated in a radio interview on Friday that former Rangers boss is a candidat...