The Fifth Liners

This week it was out with the old and in with the new this week in the state of Springsteen as New Jersey Devils sacked head coach Peter DeBoer and swiftly replaced with him former Capitals coach Adam Oates and former captain Scott Stevens . A storm of controversy soon followed as the Caps protested that NJ should have asked permission first, but the matter was quickly settled with the minimum of fuss. After leading the Devils to an unlikely Stanley Cup final appearence in 2012, DeBoer has struggled to bring consistency to his aging side and has left his side seventh overall in the Eastern Conference and over nine points adrift from the wild card slot! In his four years as coach, De Boer only registered a solitary playoff appearance. But his sacking doesn't appear to be been solely based on results. Since the departure of stars Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk , New Jersey has failed to replacement them with a consistent goal scorer. This season in particular has been a pretty...

In a slightly surprising move, Minnesota Wild centre Zach Parise has been named as captain of the US Olympic Hockey for the upcoming Sochi 2014 games! Dustin Brown and Ryan Suter have been named as Alternates for the team. Have to say I was expecting someone with more leadership experience to lead side for the games and part of me feels that Brown might have been a more steady candidate seeing as in 2012 he led the LA Kings to the first ever Stanley Cup. Parise to be fair has previously been captain of the New Jersey Devils before his move to St Paul but he only has the 2011-12 season under his belt and his selection over more experienced candidates David Backes and Ryan Callahan does beg a few questions? Though Parise was an alternate at NJ before his promotion and currently serves as one at Minnesota so I suppose that aids his case slightly, but many will frown up this selection. Parise is a great talent, there is no question of that but I have say I do not feel he is ready...

Today the Olympic Ice Hockey rosters for the upcoming Sochi 2014 games have been officially confirmed, after much speculation surrounding them there has been some interesting selections made and no doubt this will spark furious debate among hockey fans, let's take a look at the main contenders. Canada  The 25 man Canadian squad certainly isn't lacking in depth, and this year they will be the team to beat and 11 of 2010 Gold Medal team will make a return journey! The defensive selection is one I highly commend as they have mixed youth of players like PK Subban along with defensive quality like Jay Bouwmeester. The St Louis pairing of JB along with Pietrangelo could well be a wise selection! Offensively the star count is ridiculously high with Crosby, Toews, Perry, Stamkos and Kunitz among others being featured and Canada will rely on this goal power to see them through! There are few surprise selections with Marc-Andre Fleury missing out in favour of Roberto Luongo and the ...

The great state of New Jersey maybe have brought us the music of Bruce Springsteen but right now the New Jersey Devils are starting to dwindle! After a glorious period from 1995 to 2003 which included 3 cup wins, the Devils have only been the finals once since in 2012 when they lost in six games to the LA Kings. Last season they finished only 11th in the Eastern conference and the seasons only real highlight was Martin Brodeur being selected for the new NHL 14 cover! Problem with this team is the key elements that them such a threat are either long gone or about to leave, missing are the days of the tough defensive pair of Scott Stevens and Scott Neidermeyer. Right now NJ doesn't have that back line that makes a difference and with Brodeur now 40 and seemingly on the verge of ending his great career, it seems that their fail safe options are thinning out! So should this team look to the future? Well right those options are looking scarce, kid wonder Zach Parise bolted to Minnes...

The Chicago Blackhawks stuttering start to their new campaign continued with a 5-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild at the United Centre last night- this defeat leaves the Hawks record as 6-1-3 which after their glorious start last year, is making them look slightly awkward. Zach Parise got the Wild started after he scored a rebound on a powerplay after 12.39 of the 1st period played after Corey Crawford had saved the initial effort! But then Niklas Backstrom made an excellent save from Marion Hossa on the break away with six minutes remaining! Minnesota's lead was then increased to 2-0 when after only 1.03 of the second period, Kyle Brodziak tipped in Marco Scandella's shot to leave Hawks fans bewildered! Their frustration grew when Backstrom denied Jonathan Toews and then the post denied another potential goal to still leave Chicago behind, they also had a goal waived off for a high stick before Bryan Bickell finally smashed one in for the home side to reduce the scores to 2-1 ...

After Sidney Crosby's horrific jaw injury suffered a few weeks ago, it cut short what was so far a stunning season and has officially ruled him out for the remainder of the year. Also it prevents him from being able to add another Hart Trophy is his already impressive collection! So with Sid the Kid out of the picture we must turn to another of the excellent candidates on show in the 2012/13 NHL Season. Ladels and Jellyspoons, here are your main contenders... Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning) The closest overall to Crosby points wise with 49 and the top overall goal scorer with 26 goals, Tampa Bay's renowned centre has proved to be a bright spot in their otherwise horrible season. With a goal scoring touch like this, we can only shake our heads in disbelief that his team doesnt follow his good example. Would be nice to Stamkos rewarded for his continually excellent play. Patrick Kane (Chicago Blackhawks) This man is by far the most talente...