With Anaheim off to a terrible start, I don't think that pr-stunt in London gained any supporters in southern California. Since splitting the series against the Kings in London they have lost three straight, including one against the Blue Jackets, and starting goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere has yet to play, same goes for top blueliner Mathieu Schneider. Los Angeles aren't far behind with two straight losses.
I have to admit that the Edmonton Oilers, out of the blocks with two straight wins, are off to a better start than I thought they would. I am, however, predicting the Oilers will cash in their first loss against Detroit at the Joe tonight.
Washington, one of the teams I picked as a positive surprise this season, has yet to prove me, or all the others who have them as the dark horse, wrong. They are impressive, having rolled over both Atlanta and Carolina.
So far Ottawa is heading the pack out west. Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley have seven out of nine goals so far, which could raise the question of their scoring depth , but with the scoring talent available on the roster I doubt this is a concern for coach John Paddock.
The New York Islanders are also steaming full ahead. With Mike Comrie on fire they have shut down the Buffalo Sabres twice already. Pretty good for a bunch of left-overs. This leads me to think about the Sabres losing both Chris Drury and Daniel Briere before this season. Is this an indication on how big the impact of those moves will be?
Let's get a few more games under our belt and then maybe we will get a clearer picture of it all.
2 comments:
Yep for sure it's a little premature judging these teams after 2-3 games (WARNING: that's when you know you're almost a Leaf fan). Nevermind the inaugural week of NHL action, in Toronto the boo-birds came out in numbers to "welcome" Vesa Toskala and his shaky performance during the preseason. Apparently, the jeers turned into cheers after the Leafs beat the Habs two nights ago but the verdict on the Leafs' season was definitely in before the official season started.
About the Cup-Ducks, their slow start is probably the cause of multiple ailments. Like the Kings, they flew across the ocean to play games in front of crowds that were probably Canadian ex-pats because no one else gives a flying bleep about the NHL in London. This was followed by a four-day hiatus upon returning to North America. Then the Ducks' first three games were all opened by ceremonies so they had to wait whilst the opposing home teams was busy hoisting banners to commemorate last year's successes. On their roster, they are still missing two impact players who apparently (still) cannot decide if staying home is more valuable to them than lacing up the skates for another run at the Cup. Last but not least, Anaheim is suffering from its first ever Stanley Cup hang-over just like Carolina did before them.
Staying in the Western Conference, the Calgary Flames have an abundance of talent and they are off to a slow start. To that end, perhaps it's high-time to set up a pool on how long "Iron" Mike will last behind the bench.
Toronto 1 - Carolina 7
About the Ducks; Did you read my post?
Mike Keenan won't last through Christmas in Calgary.
Post a Comment