The Fifth Liners

Playoffs are here!!!! What a crazy six months it's been in the NHL, Boston and LA failed to make the playoffs and we gathered in Columbus to watch two teams of all-stars go to battle in the most offensive neon jerseys seen in recent years. On a positive note, Washington delivered a superb Winter Classic, Jamie Benn finished top of the points table and the Vancouver Canucks BEAT teams from warm places, IN warm places to make the playoffs; but that's for another post. Let's look at the East! 1. Montreal Canadiens Vs 4. Ottawa Senators The Habs have been dominant all season, finishing the regular season with a 50-22-10 record, thanks in no small part to a squad depth that any team would be enviable of. Having megastar netminder Carey Price guarding the net is the reason I think Montreal will take this series in four games. This takes nothing away from the good work the Sens have done this season, 99 points is very respectable, but the squad can't match the fire...

In Ottawa Senators win over the Montreal Canadiens last night, rookie goaltender Andrew Hammond made a big impression in his debut, making over 42 saves to secure a 4-2 win for the Sens. But more than anything, it was his cool Hamburglar helmet design that made him stand out, try finding a cooler display this year!

After their 4-3 overtime win over the Vancouver Canucks on home turf at the Canadian Tire Centre last night, the Ottawa Senators have dropped a bombshell. Today was announced that head coach, Paul MacLean has been dismissed after three seasons! So far there has been an massively negative reaction to this decision. Particularly by Senators fans who dearly loved the coach with the most impressive facial hair in the league! Winner of the Jack Adams Award in 2013 (albeit a lockout shortened season), MacLean has been highly praised for his development of Senators and has guided them to the playoffs twice in only three years, making the second round in 2013. Last season was one to forget in Ottawa as they finished 5th in Atlantic Division with a record of 37-31-14. This season there has been signs of life such as the form of new captain Erik Karlsson and the surprising goal scoring of Clarke MacArthur . Overall the Senators lie 6th in the Atlantic and 10th in the Eastern Conference where...

It has proven to be a big day for the Ottawa Senators so far as they have re-signed star right winger Bobby Ryan to a brand new seven year contract reportedly worth over $50.75 million and finally they have announced a new captain in the shape of defenseman Erik Karlsson . Debate has been raging today about whether the 24 year old Swede is the best man for the job? Ever since former captain and longtime Ottawa star Jason Spezza was traded to Dallas, the Sens management has been taking their time over announcing his replacement. In retrospect I think the selection of Karlsson is a fine one because he is a young man who is coming into his own and is fast becoming considered one of the leagues finest defensemen. So far Karlsson has spent six seasons in Ottawa, he has 63 goals and 237 points scored in 315 games, also he was awarded the James Norris Trophy in 2012. On these kind of stats alone combined with his committed play, I can think of no other candidate who was more qualified ...

Every player wants his shot at the cup.  It's been a few days since Ottawa Senators' Captain Jason Spezza asked to be traded , and it's since emerged that he's given the Sens a list of ten teams he doesn't want to go to. The actual list hasn't been released, but which teams should be queuing up their cheque books to sign Spezza? Given the fact that Jason has never won anything of note with the Sens, he's going to be looking for a team that's had recent success. So that pretty much rules out all but one of the Canadian teams: Montreal Canadiens The Habs might not have lifted the Stanley Cup since 1993 but if Spezza wants to stay north of the border then the NHL's winningest team are the best option. The real question is are the Habs interested in Spezza? There's no doubt that he's a quality center, guaranteed to bring home at least a point per game, but unless he's willing to settle for a place on the third or fourth line, th...

Over this weekend we saw an interesting experiment which seemed to go down very well with fans of the great sport of Hockey as we saw the Coors Light Stadium Series get under way with the Anaheim Ducks humiliating the LA Kings on their home turf as they won 3-0 win Dodger Stadium! Seems despite have Cee Lo Green among others as the warm up act, the Kings became yet another victim to the currently unstoppable Ducks side! The New York Rangers tie against the New Jersey Devils at Yankee Stadium proved to a far more entertaining affair as the Broadway Blues came out on top 7-3, which included come back from 3-1 down mid way through the first period, but thanks to a first star performance from Mats Zuccarello they clawed their way back into contention. Up next is the next New York instalment as the Ranger welcome fellow local rivals the New York Islanders on January 29th. But after that we have the potentially thrilling showdown between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburgh...

The Ottawa Senators are having a tough time of it recently. With each loss, that playoff spot keeps slipping away. Coming off the back of two homes losses (San Jose and Anaheim), the team needed to rekindle the same spirit that beat the Detroit Red Wings 6-1 a week ago. Current Stanley Cup holders Chicago aren't exactly having a walk in the park either. A few overtime losses means that the Blackhawks trail the Colorado Avalanche in the Central Division chase. Last night the Blackhawks welcomed the Senators to the United Center and the high scoring affair meant that for either team to take the edge, the game would require something a bit special. Step up Jonathan Toews . Last night Toews earned the right to drink for free in any tavern in Chicago. Except that one in Chicago Fire, cos it isn't real. Andrew Shaw opened the scoring early in the first to give Chicago the lead, only for Milan Michalek to restore parity with one minute left on the clock. The game stayed tigh...

As Mike's previous two post pointed out, the NHL will be a very different place come the 2013-14 season with the Eastern and Western conference have undergone a dramatic re-alignment and now it has become far more simplied with the East sporting two separate divisions with the Atlantic and Metropolitan Divisions and the West also having two divisions with the Pacific and Central Division. With new leagues come new rivalrys are long gone are the days of the dull Southwestern Division and sadly Vancouver will not fight for a sixth straight Northwest Division. But what will the big match ups be? Let's take a look in more detail. Atlantic Division  This division promises plenty of thrills with the Detroit Red Wings , Boston Bruins , Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens doing battle for a playoff place- there is no love lost between Leafs and Habs fans and this fixture never fails to entertain. But the clash that will have everyone talking will be when the Ottawa Senators...

Here we looked at the teams in the Western Conference, now let's look at the Eastern. Detroit and Columbus move from west to east and Winnipeg makes the trip the other way. So what does this look like in reality? Metropolitan Division Carolina Hurricanes Columbus Blue Jackets New Jersey Devils New York Islanders New York Rangers Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins Washington Capitals Atlantic Division Boston Bruins Buffalo Sabres Detroit Red Wings Florida Panthers Montreal Canadiens Ottawa Senators Tampa Bay Lightning Toronto Maple Leafs

My brain melted a little bit yesterday when I saw the news that Daniel Alfredsson had left the Ottawa Senators to move to the Detroit Red Wings . We've discussed on this  here blog  what the Gothenburg native would do when his contract came to an end. Although at the time the speculation was that he'd probably retire. Of course as part of the Detroit faithful, I'm pleased with the signing, although there are echoes of Mike Modano's final NHL season. While Modano lifted the Stanley Cup with the Dallas Stars, Alfredsson has never lifted the cup and despite playing over 1000 games with the Sens, he's only been to the final once.  Hence why he's made the move to the Joe instead of hanging up his skates for good. Alfredsson wants his shot at getting his name engraved on Lord Stanley's Cup. The 1 year deal is worth 5.5 million. Like Daniel Alfredsson, Stephen Weiss  has also spent his whole NHL career at a single club. The 30 year old has been at t...

The Ottawa Senators might be starting the new season with a new captain. Daniel Alfredsson officially becomes a free agent on July fifth this year.  According to the Ottawa Sun, Alfredsson needs more time to decide if he's he's going to hang his skates up for the last time. The 40 year old right winger has been with the Sens since he was picked 133rd overall in the 1994 draft. 

The Pittsburgh Penguins have successfully seen off the Ottawa Senators to advance to the Eastern Conference final. Game three saw the only dip in the Pen's performance when Ottawa thoroughly outplayed Pittsburgh to take their first win of the series but Dan Bylsma was able to inspire his team to take two convincing wins. The first was on Wednesday when the Penguins came out of the game with the win after James Neal , Chris Kunitz, Jarome Iginla, Pascal Dupuis and Sidney Crosby all found the net. Milan Michalek , Kyle Turris and Daniel Alfredsson netted for the Senators but it was wasn't enough. The Pens finished the game winning 7-3. Last night the action shifted back to the Consul Energy Center for game five. Pittsburgh controlled the game with Brendan Morrow 's controversial goal opening the game. James Neal and Kris Letang then put the game at 3-0. Milan Michalek was on hand to grab a goal for the Sens but Evgeni Malkin and James Neal responded with ...

It took a double overtime period to give the Ottawa Senators a vital 2 - 1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins! This result has put them truly back in the hunt. At first it appeared this would be another straight forward game for the Pens as Tyler Kennedy put them in front during the first period. But thanks to the heroics of Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson and Pittsburgh stopper Tomas Vokoun any further scoring was prevented. But with only seconds remaining of the third period, Senators Captain Daniel Alfredsson slotted the puck past Vokoun to push the game to overtime! In overtime, the first period remained scoreless due to some more excellent goal-tending and it was until mid way through the second overtime period that Colin Greening scored to earn Ottawa victory in game 3 and break Pittsburgh's hearts! It appears will not be as straight forward a series as we expect and Pens should prepare for things to get tense! Mike's edit. Just watched the game and my first questio...

Sorry this is late. Didn't check the schedule. After my reasonable success with the first round (7/8 correct) here's my predictions for the second round. If you place any bets and lose. I'm not responsible :) Chicago Vs Detroit The Red Wings were sometimes brilliant and sometimes poor in the first round against the Ducks. For this reason I reckon they'll take a game or two. However the Blackhawks are currently one of the best teams in the league and don't rely on individual performances. My heart says Red Wings a; cos I'm biased and b; The Red Wings have reasonable form against Chicago. My head says Chicago though so as much as it pains me to say it... Prediction: Chicago LA Vs San Jose At the time of writing, the Kings have already taken the lead with a 2-0 win over the Sharks. This is a tricky one. The Sharks swam circles around the Canucks in the first round but this seems to be more down to how poor the Canucks played and their general ...

There are certain things you expect to see in the playoffs. Alex has already written about how the  Canucks fell to the Sharks  but did anyone actually predict a four-nil series whitewash? I didn't. I thought it was going to be much closer. After all, the Canucks had a decent season and the Sharks lost a few key players through trades. Who would have expected the Canadiens - Senators games to be so controversial? Competitive yes, but when the allegations of diving came out, things got nasty. Unfortunately for the Habs, too many big name injuries became the team's undoing. The biggest cupset that almost happened was in the Penguins - Islanders series. Although the series was sealed last night with a 4-3 overtime win for the Pens, the Iles were able to win two of the games in the series and quite often had the Pens on the back foot. The Pens, who firmly broadcast their intentions to win the Stanley Cup at all costs by making some big trades should have won this ...

Last night saw the Chicago Blackhawks win the series 4-1. The Minnesota Wild made the journey to the United Center for game 5 in the series and lost 5-1. This means that the Blackhawks progress to the next stage. Full story  here. The Ottawa Senators completed its series victory over the injury ridden Montreal Canadiens . Full story  here.

Montreal Canadiens Center Lars Eller was stretchered off the ice and taken to hospital during the Habs' game with the Ottawa Senators . Eller received an unexpected pass in center ice and turned into Sens' defenseman Eric Gryba who maintains the hit was clean. Eller has concussion, facial and dental fractures caused by the hit and the landing on the ice. Replays show that Gryba's shoulder caught Eller in the chest and head. Coach Paul MacLean has stated that it was a poor pass that led to the collision. We wish Eller a quick recovery. Was it a bad hit or was Eller just unfortunate in the hit? Watch the video  here  and tell us what you think. Update. Gryba has been handed a 2 game ban.

The regular season is over, all the games are played and the fixtures have now been completed. Here's my quick guide to the games in the Eastern: New York Islanders Vs Pittsburgh Penguins The Pens are 4-1-0 against the Isles and are easily favourite to walk this round. Golden boy Sidney Crosby is back in training after his broken jaw but no word on if he'll make the playoff games. The is doing well enough without him though, having made some good trades this season. Prediction - Penguins Ottawa Senators Vs Montreal Canadiens This fixture is a going to be close, the Sens are 2-1-1 against the Habs this season and have recently found a run of form. The Habs on the other hand have a better defensive record and I reckon this will give the Canadiens the edge. Prediction - Canadiens New York Rangers Vs Washington Capitals 6th seed Rangers actually have the edge over the 3rd seed Washington this season. Going into the playoffs 2-0-1 against Ovechkin and Co. The te...

Very soon the Stanley Cup race shall be upon us and the bookies are currently making the Pittsburgh Penguins as their favourite to hoist the cup! But as we all know, this championship is far from straight forward and playoff time can always spring a surprise. Take for example last year where the LA Kings came from nowhere early season to being the team to beat as they swept all before them and were led by Captain Dustin Brown and goalie Jonathan Quick! Who will this year’s dark horses be? And more importantly, why shouldn’t we rule them out? Vancouver Canucks As a Canucks fan myself, I would like nothing better than a repeat of our run to the final in 2011 but this season has proven an up and down affair, not helped by the unclear goalie debate. But now things have been settled the Canucks are looking a more resurgent team and the Sedin brothers are showing the kind of form has made them a feared forward duo. Also they have been aided by the excellent play of Alex Burrows and n...

1.        Ron Hextall vs. Chris Chelios (1989 Eastern Conference Final- Game 6): Goalie Ron Hextall was never far from controversy during his career and his 699 penalty minutes are the kind of stats usual seen by season enforcers rather than a man in net! At times he could be brilliant but at times he was purely insane and it was never demonstrated better than when decided to get revenge on Montreal’s Chris Chelios 2. Patrick Roy vs. Mike Vernon (Red Wings vs. Avalanche 1997): After Claude Lemieux illegal hit on Red Wing’s Kris Draper the season prior, winger Darren McCarthy decided to get brutal revenge on Lemieux. Never one to back away from a fight, goalie Patrick Roy chose to join in and protect his team mate. Then veteran Red Wing’s goalie Mike Vernon tried to intervene which prompted Roy to challenge him to a scrap- here things became interesting!   3.        Matthew Barnaby vs. Garth Snow (Sabres v...