* Results *
As I promised in my last entry, today made for an interesting day in terms of the NHL's current standings. My Philadelphia Flyers played a pretty decent game and lost only due to a shootout. I really thought they were going to come back and win the game. They had the Rangers against the wall for the last five minutes of the game, as well as during overtime. Huge props to Claude Giroux who is clearly the best forward on the Flyers this year. I also have to give kudos to James van Reimsdyk. He played a monster game by driving to the net and creating opportunities. For a second I thought Keith Primeau was back in the orange and black. Unfortunately, the Flyers aren't very good at shootouts where the New York Rangers are. The Rangers beat the Flyers in that fashion 3-2. As a result of earning a point from a shootout loss, the Flyers regained the Eastern Conference lead from the Washington Capitals. The teams actually both have 103 points in the standings, but oddly enough, the tie breaker is shootout wins subtracted from wins. Philadelphia has more wins in regulation and in overtime than the Capitals. The Rangers win helped keep them from losing their playoff spot....for now. Buffalo had a huge 2-1 win in overtime over the Carolina Hurricanes. Both wins by Buffalo and New York basically keep each team in their seventh and eighth spots. Carolina did earn one point by getting to overtime, but they lost a chance to come dead even with the Sabres. The Eastern Conference is a mess at the moment, but it's making for some great hockey.
In other games, the Red Wings disposed of the Wild 4-2 as expected. I expect Detroit to be hitting their playoff stride now to make a serious run. Great team right there. The Minnesota Wild have been officially eliminated so their games mean nothing other than for the sake of pride. Better luck next year to them. I truly believe they'll be back. In Columbus, the Blues handed out another beating. They slaughtered the Blue Jackets 6-1. I picked the Blues truly feeling that they've been playing good hockey, but would have expected the Blue Jackets to do better than that. The Blues are actually one point ahead of the Jackets, but both teams have already been eliminated. If the Blues play as well as they have been lately next season, they could be a team to watch out for. In Chicago, two playoff teams faced off in what I considered a tough game to decide between. Tampa Bay, anchored by a heavy scoring attack, pulled out as the victor in a 2-0 win. The Flames beat (barely) the Avalanche 2-1. The win technically keeps Calgary alive, but they'll need Anaheim and Chicago to lose a lot of their remaining games while Calgary wins all of theirs to have a chance. I don't see that happening, but both Chicago and Anaheim did lose tonight. I guess anything is possible. Finally, the Stars pulled out a huge win against Anaheim, beating them 4-3. Dallas is in a similar situation as Calgary except they have the luxury of two extra games in hand (Calgary has played 80, Dallas is at 78). If Dallas can win all of their games and receive the same help Calgary requires, then they also still have a chance. Again, I just don't see that happening.
I went 3-4 on the night which is far from ideal, but I appreciated a good hockey night. A lot of good matches filled with tons of implications. I did lose one game through a shootout and another through overtime, so I'm not as sore about those. Almost .500 works for me tonight. Results for Sunday can be seen below.
4/3/2011 - Sunday
Rangers at Flyers : Pick - Flyers : Result -- 3-2 Rangers : Wrong (SO/L) : 216-164
Wild at Red Wings : Pick - Red Wings : Result -- 4-2 Red Wings : Correct : 217-164
Sabres at Hurricanes : Pick - Hurricanes : Result -- 2-1 Sabres : Wrong (OT/L) : 217-165
Blues at Blue Jackets : Pick - Blues : Result -- 6-1 Blues : Correct : 218-165
Lightning at Blackhawks : Pick - Blackhawks : Result -- 2-0 Lightning : Wrong : 218-166
Flames at Avalanche : Pick - Flames : Result -- 2-1 Flames : Correct : 219-166
Stars at Ducks : Pick - Ducks : Result -- 4-3 Stars : Wrong : 219-167
=Dumbest Pick of the Night=
None tonight. Two of the games I lost were determined in overtime or a shootout. The other games had close scores in evenly matched games.
=Hardest Pick of the Night=
Lightning at Blackhawks : Both teams lack solid goaltending but boast a lot of scoring. I had trouble feeling out which team would be the better one today. I wanted to say Tampa Bay since they have a lot of guys capable of scoring but ultimately I went with Chicago because of their defense (Seabrook and Keith). Obviously not the right choice.
=Easiest Pick of the Night=
Wild at Red Wings : I had figured Detroit would run Minnesota over. They didn't kill the Wild, but a 4-2 win in Detroit is convincing enough. I was going to put the Flames and Avalanche game here, but I'm not always sold on Calgary. Colorado gave them a decent game tonight even though Calgary won.
=Got Owned Game of the Night=
Blues at Blue Jackets : After putting up pretty good games against the Capitals and Blackhawks, I really thought Columbus could have beat St. Louis. Fortunately for my picks, I went with St. Louis who has been impressing me with their play lately. They backed up my pick with a 6-1 slaughtering of the Jackets. Columbus must just be worn down after those tough games. St. Louis owned them all the same.
-Results Format-
Game : Pick : Result : Pick Result (OT or SO W or L based on my pick) : My Season Record
OT/W or OT/L - My pick won or lost in OT.
SO/W or SO/L - My pick won or lost in a shootout.
* Picks *
Only two games on the schedule for Monday. The Bruins and Rangers will be heavily watched by Buffalo, Carolina, and Toronto as the trio teams hopes for a Boston victory. The other game is a Pacific Division match between the Kings and Sharks. Despite the fact that San Jose has already clinched the division, this game could still have a play in the standings. Detroit and San Jose are basically fighting each other for the second and third seed. A Sharks victory puts them ahead of Detroit into the second slot. The Kings also have something to gain from the game. They're currently tied with divisional rival Phoenix for fourth. A victory gives them sole possession (they hold the tie breaker currently) and would put space between the two teams. Not much quantity, but here's another night filled with interesting scenarios. One has to love this time of year. As a Flyers fan, I'm having a tougher time! Here are my picks for Monday.
4/4/2011 - Monday
Bruins at Rangers ==> Bruins
Kings at Sharks ==> Sharks
Night!
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