Quick Hits

November 10, 2008   ·   Derek Felix   ·   Jump to comments

Another weekend has come and gone and believe it or not, we’ve played a month of hockey. Hard to believe. We’re a couple of weeks from Thanksgiving. Anyone got anything planned? I’m sure we’ll probably just have a home cooked meal here. I make turkey soup.

Anyway, I love this time of season. Just the right weather and feel in this area. So, what’s on the agenda? Let’s take a look:

-It’s hard to get too excited about the play of any of the three locals right now. The Rangers got off to the good start but there are way too many pieces who aren’t contributing and it’s starting to show. They haven’t played a consistent brand of hockey and fans are starting to murmur.

The Devils can at least use the injury excuse. Have you ever seen a team turn into a Mash Unit? At this point, they should rename themselves the New Jersey Parises because without him, they’d be pretty bad. He’s been brilliant. After that, there’s not much to say especially when Martin Brodeur suddenly is shelved for three months for what Lou Lamoriello termed as a “bruised elbow.” Some bruise, eh?

As for the Islanders, they’re just not going to win much. They’re playing better lately and being competitive but this team should challenge for last overall and be in the John Tavares sweepstakes.

-Close buddy and Puck Daddy’s own Greg Wyshynski had an interesting take on the Rangers regarding Tom Renney’s reaction following a recent home win over the Lightning that goalie Mike Smith’s actions on Aaron Voros in which he slashed, high sticked and even threw punches warranted a suspension. Here’s the video. You be the judge:

Smith earned his nine penalty minutes handing the Rangers a power play when it appeared Voros didn’t do anything out of the ordinary to deter him. He went to the front of the net and effectively screened the Lightning No.1 starter remaining outside the crease and that was enough for him to lose it.

Greg felt it was ridiculous for Renney to suggest a suspension but was it really or was this just disdain coming from a guy who doesn’t have much love for the Rangers? In my book, there at least should’ve been a fine maybe letting Smith off with a warning. The last I checked, goalies aren’t above the law.

By the same token, how come nothing on Henrik Lundqvist getting run over by Alex Semin who he covers? It’s a little different when a goalie gets run into and nothing is called. That’s when goalies should be protected. Asking our league officials to be consistent on it is another matter.

The one part of Wyshynski’s take we are on the same page on is this silly idea the Ranger organization has that they can get a compensatory draft pick because they never signed now dead Russian Alexei Cherepanov. That Glen Sather would stupe so low is embarrassing. The kid is dead. This is about as low as it gets even having the nerve to ask the league. Let it go.

-This was the latest example of a dangerous open ice hit in which a player going full throttle wound up boarding an opposing player hard into the boards without any protection. Montreal’s Tom Kostopoulos was the guilty party who got a boarding major and game misconduct for this dangerous play which put Mike Van Ryn out a month during Saturday’s 6-3 loss to the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Center.

What made it worse was that it was another case where a player turned at the last split second putting Van Ryn in a more vulnerable position. However, Kostopoulos could’ve let up which was what made things worse. To the Montreal antagonist’s credit, he took full responsibility afterwards even apologizing:

“I was trying to get in there, get a hit and get the puck. Like I said, I didn’t anticipate him turning and I couldn’t stop myself. And I hope he’s all right.”

As CBC’s Kelly Hrudey and Mike Milbury pointed out during Coast to Coast, Kostopoulos has a history. So expect him to be suspended a few games for this latest incident which gave Van Ryn a concussion, broken nose and broken finger.

-Also Saturday on HNIC, Ron MacLean and Don “Grapes” Cherry paid tribute to Canada’s Fallen Heroes on a special Remembrance Day Edition. This is a very worthy cause and extremely nice to pay tribute to those who put it all on the line for their country. I really admire Cherry for his passion about the soldiers for his country. Patriotism is such a great thing. We all have so much to be thankful about.

-Before the season, our Vezina pick was Roberto Luongo, who was due for a big bounceback season after how the last week ended with him falling apart and the team missing the playoffs. How does three consecutive shutouts sound and a league-leading five already?

-How is it that the Canadiens can trade Mikhail Grabovski to their nemesis Toronto when they play in the same division? The former 2004 fifth rounder has suddenly blossomed into one of the Leafs’ best forwards victimizing the Habs with a goal and an assist Saturday extending his point streak to four (6-2-8). Apparently, a crowded and talented Montreal roster had no room for the 24 year-old pivot from East Germany who now looks like a future star on a rebuilding Maple Leaf roster. They acquired him for prospect Greg Pateryn and a 2009 second round pick. So far, Grabovski’s 10 points (7-3-10) in 15 games place him in the top five in team scoring. Not a bad return thus far.

-Similarly, can you imagine the Rangers, Islanders and Devils ever making such a deal? Ditto the Flyers and Devils. It would never happen.

-Ex-Ranger Ryan Hollweg hasn’t played for the Leafs since last weekend’s 5-2 win over the Rangers.

-With a 6-1 pasting of Calgary, the Blackhawks improved to 6-0-2 on home ice and are now 7-3-3 playing very well under Joel Queeneville. In fact, it’s their best start since 2001-02 which ironically was the last time they saw the postseason. Ah. My ESPN research days. I even had that series. They were swept out by St. Louis. You look at the young talent on that roster with Calder winner Patrick Kane showing no signs of slowing down and Jonathan Toews getting into the act with a goal and a helper along with talented rookie Kris Versteeg and it makes you realize just how talented this Chicago team is.

They finally look ready to be back in the postseason. Martin Havlat’s healthy and playing for a new contract. The defense all gets involved with Duncan Keith anchoring it along with Brian Campbell and Brent Seabrook. Former first rounder Cam Barker is back putting up points and even former Isles castoff Aaron Johnson has three goals and a plus-11 rating. Both Cristobal Huet and Nikolai Khabibulin have performed well in net. There’s so much to like about this team. They’re coming.

-Kudos to the Thrashers who seem to have righted the ship under new coach John Anderson posting a fourth straight victory winning 5-2 over Carolina. Ilya Kovalchuk notched a goal and an assist and Jason Williams continues to be a good addition adding a goal and a helper of his own as they also got 35 stops from veteran Johan Hedberg, who’s started in place of Kari Lehtonen the last five games. This team suddenly isn’t looking as bad because former No.1 pick Bryan Little has developed into their best center which has allowed Todd White to play more of a supporting role. Once again, veteran Russian Slava Kozlov has defied logic by continuing to put up points.

They’re also getting valuable ice-time from young blueliners Boris Valabik and Nathan Oystrick with Mathieu Schneider sidelined. You look at their D with the mobile skating Ron Hainsey who notched his third and assisted on another along with second-year man Tobias Enstrom (+2 in 23:02) and suddenly it’s not so bad. Vet Niclas Havelid has given them good production and Garnet Exelby provides the beef. With Valabik and Oystrick’s workloads increasing, why again did they take Schneider off Anaheim’s hands? He clearly doesn’t fit the team’s plans. Figure him to be on the move yet again before next year’s deadline.

The team’s sudden improvement has them a game under at 6-7-2 with 14 points- four less than Carolina. Not bad considering where they were following the Devils’ 6-1 dismantling in Newark nine days ago.

-Keep a close eye on Boston’s Milan Lucic, who is a power forward in making. So far, he’s got four goals, four assists and 34 penalty minutes. The second-year player has excellent speed and solid hands around the net. He and David Krejci are improving and with former top pick Phil Kessel starting to untap some of that goalscoring potential, suddenly the Bruins are a team to watch out for. Especially with Tim Thomas thus far proving last season was no fluke. They also just got back Chuck Kobasew up front.

-Speaking of the B’s, the early returns are in and so far the Blake Wheeler pickup has been terrific with the former Phoenix 2004 No.1 pick tallying eight points (6-2-8) including his first career hat trick in a recent win over Toronto. Why on earth didn’t the Coyotes retain him? Boy. When you go back to what Wayne Gretzky said about the kid when he selected him out of high school before he went onto star for the University of Minnesota, it makes them look pretty bad now.

-In San Jose’s great 13-3-0 start, young players such as Devin Setoguchi (7-7-14), Ryane Clowe (9-5-14), Joe Pavelski (5-5-10) and Marc-Edouard Vlasic (1-7-8) continue to be a big part of the early success making it not so much about Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau or Evgeni Nabokov. This needed to happen if this team is ever to finally take that next step and play for a Stanley Cup.

-Congratulations again go out to tonight’s Hockey Hall Of Fame inductees which include six-time Stanley Cup winner Glenn Anderson (about time), Russian ambassador Igor Larionov, referee/linesman Ray Scapinello and builder Ed Chynoweth.

For more information on tonight’s festivities in Toronto, please refer to this:

2008 HHOF Inductees