The Fifth Liners

Goalie: Ben Bishop He may have missed out on a Stanley Cup ring, but Bishop was the glue that held Tampa Bay Lightning together during their play-off run. Notching up 13 wins including 3 shutouts, a save percentage of .921 and a GAA of 2.18, Bishop was remarkable in net.  Defense: Duncan Keith The rightful Conn Smyth Trophy winner, Keith was remarkable on the blue line. Scoring the first goal in game 6 was a tribute to his dominance. Scoring 21 points which included a staggering 18 assists, Keith had the highest plus minus rating of +16. The Chicago Blackhawks have been well served by this man and his importance was truly demonstrated in this final. Defense: Victor Hedman   Behind Keith, Hedman was the second highest plus/minus rating of +11. His great defensive quality helped back up Bishop in net. During this series, Hedman broke the record for the most points scored by a Lightning player in a single playoff year with 13. Heavily favored to win the Jam...

Last season the Chicago Blackhawks as celebrated Dave Bolland's goal to seal the 2013 Stanley Cup against the Boston Bruins, you could be forgiven for thinking for thinking that the good times were only just getting started! This season the Blackhawks seemed to be suffering for a severe case of post cup winning hangover and after last night's 3-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, this once destructive Illnois crew seems have run out of petrol! But what has caused this team to decline so quickly? With the playoffs looming, Chicago currently lies 5th overall in the Western Conference, over 8 points drift of surprise leaders the St Louis Blues and they have racked up a whopping 15 losses so far! This is more than double the amount than during the 2012-13 regular season where they only recorded an incredible 7 losing games. Also their defence is leaking goals faster than the faulty pipe in my boiler at home and their goals against figure stands at 182 conceded! Compared to last se...

When Steven Stamkos suffered a broken leg back in November (coincidentally the same day I arrived in Toronto!) many people believed the Tampa Bay Lightning's season was done like the turkey. Well it appears that there is hope for the Sunshine State after all, because this season Tampa Bay look like a revitalised team and right they stand 4th in the Eastern Conference with 25 wins to their name! Last season, the 2004 Stanley Cup champions were derided by hockey fans as a spent force, and in fairness a lot of this criticism was justified as the Bolts limped home 14th overall in the East, only place up from their sister team, the Florida Panthers and the jokes about Florida hockey team increased dramatically! Guy Boucher for his efforts (or lack of efforts in this case) was given the chop by Steve Yzerman and replaced by Jon Cooper. Under the new leadership, Tampa Bay have looked a genuine threat offensively and although losing star man Stamkos has been a blow, the team had ralli...