Ty Conklin To Start 3rd Straight Outdoor Classic?
December 29, 2008
Total Pro Sports - I bet that you did not know that Ty Conklin started both the Heritage Winter Classic in Edmonton and the Winter Classic in Buffalo. On December 30, 2008 he may have the chance to do it again when the Detroit Red Wings visit the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field in the 2009 Bridgestone Winter Classic.
The Heritage Classic in Edmonton celebrated 25 years of Oilers hockey in the NHL. The game was played between the Montreal Canadiens and the Edmonton Oilers, a game that the Canadiens won 4-3. Richard Zednik was the hero on that night as he opened the scoring and had the eventual game winner. The game was an all-round success as it drew in over 57,000 fans and over 2.7 millions viewers.
The 2003 Heritage Classic was succeeded by the Winter Classic of 2008, a game that was played by the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres. Ty Conklin started this game for the Pittsburgh Penguins who eventually won the game in a shootout with the final goal scored by Sidney Crosby. he game was yet another huge success and so the NHL has decided to have another game this year.
This years game will be played at Wrigley Field, between the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks. This game will feature the defending Stanley Cup Champions and the high flying youth of the Blackhawks, it has the making of yet another great game. Ty Conklin should start based on his past experience in outdoor games, he holds a 1-1 record with a GAA of 2.50 in outdoor games.
If I were the Coach of the Red Wings Conklin starts and Osgood takes over the second half of the game.
2009 Winter Classic Transformation Live
December 20, 2008
Total Pro Sports - An ingenious idea that was started back in 2001 when the Michigan Wolverines faced off against the Michigan State Spartans it what was labeled as the "Cold War Game". In that game 7 years ago, 74,554 fans attended the game which finished in a tie.
"It may not go in the record book like a national championship, but it was like a national championship environment," Michigan coach Red Berenson said.
7 years later and 2 NHL Winter Classic games in the books, the city of Chicago will host the 3rd ever Winter Classic at Wrigley Field. The game will face the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings.
The hottest ticket in Chicago, crews are working frantically to finish all the construction for the game for January 1st. Construction crews will work from December 15th-31st, having 3 days off at Christmas to change the baseball diamond into an ice rink.
So far everything seems to be going ok, except for one little accident. The Zamboni driver forgot to check if the flatbed truck was level on the ground before driving it off the truck. The Zamboni fell off the truck and nobody was injured.
If you are interested in watching the transformation live on web cam be sure to check out at NHL.com.
NHL Fantasy 3 Stars: Week 3
October 28, 2008
Total Pro Sports - In what will become a weekly event just like the Power Rankings, we'll be taking a look at the top 3 performers from the week. Not only were these players big fantasy hockey performers, they helped their own team win on the ice.
Lets take a look at the NHL 3 Stars for Week 3.
3rd Star - Marian Hossa, Detroit Red Wings
If you own Marian Hossa in your fantasy hockey league you breathed a sy of relief last week. After getting off to a slow start Hossa managed 6 points in Detroit's 3 games. Three of those points came against his former...former team the Thrashers scoring 2 goals and adding 1 assist. Seems like he's starting to get used to playing with his new teammates and things should only go up from here.
2nd Star - Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary Flames
If you're a fantasy hockey owner that managed to buy low and get Kiprusoff via trade then you were laughing last week. Kipper won all 3 of his games while posting a 1.67 GAA and making 88 saves for a .946 SAV%. Hopefully this is a sign that the Veznia winning version of Kiprusoff is back. Only time will tell.
1st Star - Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames
What better way to top off the week for the Flames than by having Jarome Iginla as the league's best player for Week 3 of the 2008-09 NHL season with 7 points in 3 games. As I'm sure you've seen in the Week 3 Power Rankings the Flames had a big week and Iggy was a big reason why. Iginla scored a hat-trick against the Predators and followed that up with another 3 point night (1 goal & 2 assists) against the Coyotes.
Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL 3 Stars will be for Week 4.
Johan Franzen Out A Month
October 26, 2008
Total Pro Sports - Johan “The Mule” Franzen, will be out of action for 3-4 weeks with a left knee sprain. Johan Franzen injured his knee this past Saturday after a knee-on-knee collision with Chicago Blackhawks Brent Sopel. It was nothing to severe, the two players just ran into each other. Sopel was skating off the ice and Franzen was skating into the play.
"We're disappointed Johan will be out for a period of time, but it could have been a lot worse," general manager Ken Holland said.
On Sunday Johan Franzen was taken for an MRI, it revealed no ligament tear or damage, but did show a Grade 2 sprain. This is the second consecutive season that Johan Franzen is out with an injury, last season he again suffered an early season knee injury. Keeping him off the ice for again 3-4 weeks.
Johan Franzen was off to a great start this season for the Detroit Red Wings scoring 5 goals in 8 games, on pace for 51 goals this season.
"It's disappointing for Johan," Holland said. "He was off to such a good start."
Well just have to wait and see when he comes back if he continues on this torrid pace. If you have Johan Franzen on your fantasy hockey team, don't be scared to bench him or place him on the IR if you have that option available in your fantasy hockey league. Do not waive Johan Franzen!!!! When he comes back he will be sure to be a big contributor to your fantasy hockey team.
2008/09 Detroit Red Wings Season Preview
September 30, 2008
1. Detroit Red Wings
Of course not a shock here. Ken Holland did a great job building this team and it showed with their Stanley Cup victory last season. Whats even more impressive is that he kept all the players together and added Marian Hossa for this season.
Their forwards are among the best in the league with the likes of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Marian Hossa and Tomas Holmstrom. There's also the young guys like Jiri Hudler and Valtteri Filppula and the role players in Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby and Dan Cleary.
Their defence looks as solid as ever with Nicklas Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski, Brad Stuart, Niklas Kronwall, Andreas Lilja, Brett Lebda and of course ole dependable Chris Chelios.
Goaltending is far from their strong point, but if Chris Osgood has another solid season and Ty Conklin plays like he did in Pittsburgh the Red Wings wont have anything to worry about.
Unless they suffer from injuries or weak goaltending, I don't see why Detroit wont at least be back in the Cup final again this year.
2008/09 NHL Central Divison Standings Preview
September 30, 2008
Since we're a couple days away from the start of the NHL season I figure now is as good of time as any to start my preview of all the teams.
To prevent massive articles I'll be going by division each day. Instead of predicting each team's record I'll just be posting the teams in order of how I think they'll finish in their respective divisions.
I'll start off my series of previews with the NHL Western Conference Central Division.
NHL Western Conference Central Division
| Rank | Team | Rec | PRV | Name/Previews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
54-21-7 | - | Detroit Red Wings |
| 2 |  |
40-34-8 |  1 |
Chicago Blackhawks |
| 3 |  |
41-32-9 |  1 |
Nashville Predators |
| 4 |  |
34-36-12 | - | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| 5 |  |
33-36-13 | - | St. Louis Blues |
Chris Chelios Signs A One Year Deal
September 9, 2008
This guy just keeps on going he reminds me of an energizer bunny. I guess when your in tip top shape as Chris you can play till your 50. Chelios is known in the off season to train with a stationary bike in the sauna on a daily basis with a trainer present.
The Detroit Red Wings will have Chris Chelios back in the fold, as the club signed the 46-year-old blueliner to a one-year contract on Tuesday.
Chelios had three goals and 12 points in 69 regular-season games for the Wings in 2007-08.
However, due to nagging injuries, he was limited to zero points in 14 games and did not skate at all in the six-game Stanley Cup Finals as the Wings topped Pittsburgh.
Click here to read more on this article: TSN.ca
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Zetterberg and the Wings give doubters something to choke on
June 6, 2008
So the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs are complete and the last team standing is the Detroit Red Wings. They have successfully defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 4 games to 2 (Sorry Malkin but it is not 1-0 and game two is not tomorrow. Just because you show up in game 6 it doesn't mean the previous 5 games don't count). Congratulations to them on winning the 11th Staley Cup in their history and in doing so putting an end to the questions surrounding their playoffs abilities. But my question is why was there ever really any doubt in their post season performances? They have now won 4 Stanley Cups in the past 11 seasons. The only other team in the four major North American sports leagues (NHL, MLB, NBA, NFL) to win that same number of championships is the San Antonio Spurs (and the Lakers are looking to do the same if they can defeat the Celtics in this years finals). How can such an accomplishment be achieved by a team labeled as playoff chokers? Now i understand that in the past four seasons the red wings may have bowed out of the "2nd season" earlier than expected after finishing atop the Western Conference, but in a 30 team league where no game is a guarentee and everyone is battling for the same reward at the end of the season, you can not expect the same team to win the Cup every year, nor can you feel that the team that comes in first in the regular season should undoubtebly win the Cup. If that was the case then we would not need to play the 4 rounds of best of seven series' that make the playoffs what they are. There are always teams that rise to the occasion or get hot in the playoffs and that is the beauty of sports.
Now with that being said, the wings may have had disappointing endings in the past four years, but just look at what they all have in common. In the '07 playoffs they lost to Anaheim, the eventual champions. In '06 they were defeated by the Oilers who would go on to lose in the finals to Carolina in 7 games. In '04 ('05 was a lockout year) they lost to Calgary in the second round. The Flames lost in the finals that year to the Tampa Bay Lightning. And in '03 the Wings, suffering from an '02 Stanley Cup hangover, would lose to the Ducks in the first round, and guess who ended up representing the West in the finals before losing in 7 ot the Devils? Yes, those same Ducks. What becomes evident here is that the wings consistently reach the finals (and win) else they will lose to the team that will end up going to the finals (this can become a good betting strategy in the playoffs for years to come. wink, wink).
All that i am trying to say is that this is a team that CAN win in the playoffs and they have repeatedly proven it, despite the many doubters that dont want to believe so. In a sport of such parity, they continue to win. Before the lockout, everyone bombarded them with criticism stating that they bought their championships (like the leafs, avelanche, stars, flyaers, rangers, etc. weren't trying to do the same). Well they still won. But then came the lockout and after that the salery cap was introduced. That was supposed to be the end of the spending advantage for the red wings, and with it their fall from grace. Instead they just became more dominant as their superior playing ability, drafting skills and player development helped them remain on top of the league while their main competitors (in the standings and on the market) fell hard. Teams such as the leafs, flyers, and avalanche have all fell on hard times in comparison to their pre-lockout days but the wings just keep chuging on in an even more dominating fashion. They have found a pool of wealth in Sweden and the emergence of young great players such as Zetterberg, Franzen, Datsyuk and Kronwall along with great veterans like Draper, Lidstrom and Rafalski have Detroit fans celebrating in the streets today as the Cup goes through.
With this being said there is just one more comment that needs to be made. In today's Toronto Star there was an article titled "King Henrik of Hockeytown". In the article written by Damien Cox he states that Hank Zetterberg's performance in the playoffs has earned him recognition and respect in the hockey world and he should now be seen as a top ten player in the league. Maybe even a top 5 player. Maybe top 5? After seeing what he has done, i would think that many would question whether he should be considered the number one player. Cox names Crosby, Jagr, Iginla, Ovechkin and Lecavalier as other possible suitors. I would say that Zetterberg has proven his abilities to be higher than most of those listed. Not only did he show that he can shut down Crosby (Sid was not much of a factor in Detroit when matched up against Henrik) but in last years playoffs he did the same to the mighty Iginla, continuously frustrating him. He not only stops the oppositions best, but he also does his own scoring. The only one who can stop him is himself at times when he overfocuses on defense. If i had to rank the top 5 forwards in the league, heres how i would go about doing so:
1. Crosby 2. Zetterberg 3. Ovechkin 4. Iginla 5. Lecavalier
What do you think?
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