Roblogg’s Panthers Portal

A mere few minutes prior to the first puck dropping in anger, in the Stanley Cup 2009 Playoffs, I shall dare a preliminary prediction of what will unfold in the first Round of 16. Ready to eat my words in a week or two; here is my initial bet:

East

Boston vs. Montreal

What a match-up! Two rivals going head-to-head in the first round. Montreal celebrating 100 years; whilst Boston celebrates winning the Eastern Conference, this year. It will most likely be a tough series with sparks flying. However, Boston has, in my view, the upper hand both when it comes to physical strength and overall quality – and last but not least – goaltending.

My bet: Boston wins the series 4-1.

Washington vs. NY Rangers

Will the offensive prowess of the Capitals trump the gritty grinding Rangers down? I think that this will be a game that goes all the way down the wire, but the New Yorkers superior goaltending in the form of Henrik Lundqvist may very well be the difference in the end.

My bet: NY Rangers win series 4-3.

New Jersey vs. Carolina

Two teams similar in many ways and with plenty of tools to make a concerted run in the playoffs. However, one of them must be eliminated and odds are it will be fellow Southeasterners Carolina which is forced to fold in the end. Considering both sides have superb goaltending, it will be many close games, probably with a few overtime victories that will be decisive. My guess is that the Devils have the extra manpower and grit to grind down the Hurricanes.

My bet: New Jersey win series 4-3.

Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia

A resurgent Penguins side should have the quality to see of a Flyers side that lack either good goaltending or a solid defense. Too many penalties from their aggressive style brand of hockey – could also be costly if the Pittsburgh superstars are given too much room to operate in. Pittsburgh is a dark horse in this year’s Stanley Cup and will be a threat to anyone in the East anyway. Should be able to see off Philadelphia rather comfortably in the end – although it may hurt along the way…

My bet: Pittsburgh win series 4-1.

West

San Jose vs. Anaheim

Probably the one team the Sharks didn’t want to meet and the one they could have problems seeing off in the end. The power of a resurgent Ducks’ side is not to be underestimated. Although, I can’t quite see the President Trophy winners being eliminated in the first round, they could come too close for comfort.

My bet: San Jose win series 4-3.

Detroit vs. Columbus

So, Columbus finally made it to the postseason, aye? Well, hope they enjoyed the ride up until this point; because it’s likely to be a case of “here, but no further”. The reigning Stanley Cup champions should, despite a shaky penalty kill and goaltending, have enough juice to see off the Jackets. Might be a spill or two along the way, but this should be one for the bank.

My bet: Detroit win series 4-1.

Vancouver vs. St. Louis

Like their fellow Central Division foes Columbus, St. Louis will be thrilled to be in a playoff at all, but are unlikely to progress – despite an impressive end to the regular season. Could be a premature closing stage for the Blues, after a mere four games played, but that would be too cruel wouldn’t it?

My bet: Vancouver win series 4-0.

Chicago vs. Calgary

This is likely to be the most interesting game from a neutrals perspective. Chicago are a young up-and-coming side that have done exceptionally well to get this far and in the manner they have achieved their success. Calgary made the biggest splash on transfer deadline day by acquiring the old Panther captain Olli Jokinen. Whether he’ll be the Flames’ answer to playoff success I’ll leave unsaid, but at least the guy gets to play in the playoffs once… Would expect the grit and strength of Calgary to be the tipping point somewhere along the road in this series, question is if skill and style can overcome muscle hockey and cause what, despite ranking, must be seen as an upset. I don’t think so, but I hope I’m wrong…

My bet: Calgary win series 4-2.

With the upcoming Florida schedule brimming with top-opposition, this was a game the Panthers needed to win: Especially after losing that tight game to the Capitals on Sunday.

New Jersey entered the Bank Atlantic Center full of confidence after beating the best teams in the league over the weekend (Boston and San Jose) and winning 13 of their last 15 games. The Cats meanwhile have played fantastically well since the New Year, but the stats didn’t favor them going in to this game nonetheless. However, games aren’t won on statistics alone and the Panthers stepped on to the ice with purpose and determination written all over their collective faces.

Getting a good start is essential when playing the Devils and Florida got that crucial break when a Bryan McCabe shot was spilled by Scott Clemmensen and Stephen Weiss found himself with the puck in possession in front of the goalmouth. Clemmensen cheated slightly to his right and Weiss coolly slotted it home to his left. 1-0 after 4.18 of the first period and the Cats got that influential opener that would allow them some space to maneuver in; whilst NJ was forced forward.

Tomas Vokoun now came to the fore with some wonderful saves to keep the fragile lead intact. New Jersey poured on the pressure, as the first period progressed, but Vokoun was staunch in his rearguard action. No puck was out of his control on the night it seemed and would soon be proved with a brilliant shutout. Tomas appears to be in the form of his life and as long as he plays this way, and has the stout defense to back him up, it’s hard to see anyone scoring on him (although Ovechkin did prove it is possible, after all).

It was a good all-round contest from both teams with plenty of chances and nice offensive plays. It can clearly be seen that the two coaches not only know each other well, but also have a similar hockey-philosophy and preferred style of play. Panthers were pressed at times but held their own and in the end it was only the crossbar that prevented Keith Ballard from doubling Florida’s lead – mere seconds before the first interval.

The game was won in the second period when, half way through, the Cats capitalized on a rare power-play advantage. A shot from Michael Frolik fell to David Booth who, under immense pressure in front of the crease, managed to steer the puck to Richard Zednik; whom in turn was left alone by the goalpost and was presented with an open net to effortlessly stuff the puck in to.

A couple of minutes later Richard Zednik found himself with the puck behind the goal, waited patiently for the right set up, and then flicked the puck behind his back and in to the crowded slot. Nathan Horton had meanwhile held back and now skated in to take the Zednik pass, put it on the blade of his stick and with a swift movement flick it in at the far corner – well out of Clemmensen’s considerable reach.

The Florida Panthers were three goals up with only twenty-five minutes to go, but the Devils – to their credit – never gave up and continued to press forward in search of what could have been a releasing goal on another day. Tomas Vokoun and his able defense however had other plans and had their eyes set on the prize of a shutout. 10 saves in the third period later (36 saves in all) and a Cory Stillman goal from a marvelous Stephen Weiss assist to effectively punctuate the game – Vokoun had his well deserved shutout and left the contest with another first star.

Whilst one can’t say too much about Tomas Vokoun’s performances of late, and in this game in particular, it should nonetheless be noted that this was a complete team effort from the Cats. Everyone was top of their game and pulled their own weight in their respective roles. Special mentioning, as always, goes to Karlis Skrastins and his solid defensive work and painstaking blocks. Jay Bouwmeester and Keith Ballard have been equally impressive in the defensive toil; it seems they’ve been asked to do focus on their defensive duties in these games against the best teams of the NHL and they’ve done it very assertively.

Among the forwards, one must mention the first two lines with rising respect: Booth – Horton – Zednik, and, Stillman – Weiss – Frolik. And what is truly impressive is that these two top lines have been not only producing when going forward, but have displayed some real grit and played compact hockey defensively as well (characteristics we are already well acquainted with from the third and fourth lines – night in and night out). Each of those players have upped their individual games of late and has started to find the net on a more regular basis.

That the lines have been kept intact in many consecutive games now has probably helped the players a lot in this respect. Chemistry is developing and the lines are started in play their notes more in sync with each other, feeling increasingly comfortable in their roles within the team.

Nonetheless, while this was a very important win, fact is that all games now are crucial. And there is no let up in the schedule either. Next follows a rejuvenated Chicago Blackhawks tomorrow and then the league pacesetters Boston Bruins come to town on Saturday. Yet, if the Panthers play like they did yesterday, against the hottest team in the NHL, there is no reason to believe we can’t pick up important points against these top-notch teams as well!

After the Caps doubled up on the Cats 4-2 on Sunday and having previously played, and beat, Carolina and NY Rangers – you’d think the schedule would start to ease up a little; but no such luck. In the next seven games, five of them will be against teams that are a-top of their respective divisional standings (New Jersey x2, Boston x2 and Washington – again). And the two that aren’t top of their respective divisions; are both in playoff positions at the moment (Chicago and NY Rangers).

The day before the trade deadline of March 4; it temporarily eases up for Florida with a game at Atlanta, but then we’re right back at it again with a full-on playoff contest with the Penguins the day after the deadline. It is truly a devil of a schedule – for several reasons…

The most obvious one is that the Panthers risk losing games and ending up on the wrong side of the playoff line – once the no-trade period kicks in. Secondly, a loss of momentum could lead to an equally detrimental loss of confidence going in to that vital last period of the season. Thirdly it could have an adverse effect on Florida’s potential trade deadline dealings. If we start losing games – that may very well convince Jay Bouwmeester to not sign a new deal and the management could then be in a situation of having to trade our arguably best player for picks and promising youngsters or lose him for nothing in the summer.

Now these are all possible scenarios, but equally possible (well, maybe slightly less if you pay much mind to the current standings) is that things go the other way: Panthers string together some wins, gain confidence from beating some of the best teams in the league and maybe convince Bo to stay instead.

I guess we’ll all see soon enough what happens and meanwhile what we hope – or fear – when looking at the upcoming schedule; will probably be more determined of our personal outlook (is the glass half empty or half full) then actual facts and rational predictions. Nonetheless, this will be an important time and stretch of games that could very well determine how the season ends – in celebration of making a run in the playoffs or lamenting of missed opportunities (again)?

Either way, today the test will be a New Jersey Devils side that has been in scintillating form of late; winning four consecutive games and eight out of their last 10 games. Over the course of the weekend they re-established their title credentials by beating both conference leaders Boston (1-0) and San Jose (6-5). Brodeur’s back-up Scott Clemmensen has continued his outstanding play between the pipes and has 25 victories on the season and two shutouts in his last three games. To add to that he is 2-0 and has 1.45 goals against average against the Panthers this season.

Meanwhile, all I can do is hum along to and echo the sentiments of a Sheryl Crow song:

“No one said it would be easy

But no one said it’d be this hard

No one said it would be easy

No one thought we’d come this far”

Hopefully the mood tomorrow will be sung in a less bittersweet tune and more to the up-beat tempo and vibrancy that would accompany a Latin dance. Or why not celebrate with the dancing cowboy in the Bank Atlantic Center tonight, if all goes well. The Cats could sure need any vocal support you’d be willing to lend.

And me, I’m still nursing a sore throat after some rabidly incessant screaming when unexpectedly beating the Rangers in that thrilling shootout on Friday….

The Florida Panthers players, staff and fans are in the midst of gearing up for an epic combat in Raleigh this evening. The eighth spot is up for grabs and whoever wins the contest will set themselves in pole position, as we enter a hectic and very thorny stretch of games here in February for the Cats and the other playoff hopefuls.

Neither combatants saw action last night, but there were skirmishes elsewhere with massive implications for the Eastern Conference playoff race. Let’s take a look at the results and standings to see what the repercussions are for Florida.

New York Islanders @ New Jersey Devils 2-4

The Islanders put up a good fight, especially their goaltender MacDonald saved any potential blushes with an impressive performance. However, the Devils proved too good for the New Yorkers and especially Langenbrunner and Parise continued their goalscoring ways with two each; winning the game for New Jersey 4-2.

This shouldn’t have too much bearing on Florida as New Jersey look far too classy to ever get involved in the playoff race, they are more comfortable up-front among the Divisional leaders.

Washington Capitals @ New York Rangers 4-5 SO

The big story here was that Washington defenseman Mike Green continued scoring (2) to tie the record consecutive goals scored for a defenseman in the league. Nonetheless it proved not to be enough for the Caps as the Rangers – for the ninth time this season – prevailed in the shootout. If they ever do make the playoffs they owe a debt of gratitude to goalie Lundqvist who keeps winnings those shootout challenges for his team. Another positive for Rangers was that they finally managed to score some goals(!)

Disappointing for the Cats as we would have hoped a dejected Rangers side would show up here in Sunrise tomorrow and that we then would be able to rise past them in the standings. Yet, by getting another shootout win in New York, it should see their confidence levels markedly increase and it will now be another tough game for the Panthers. No one seriously doubts at this moment in time that Washington won’t win the Southeast Division and qualify for the playoffs, but they can nonetheless not afford to start relaxing quite yet.

Chicago Blackhawks @ Atlanta Thrashers 3-1

The Atlanta Thrashers are of course dead and buried as far as the playoffs are concerned, but they did put up a massive effort against the Hawks and only an stupendous string of saves from Khabibulin could stop them from winning this game. Chicago are not as comfortable away from home, but have now strung together some nice victories on this latest 8 game road trip they’ve been on.

Blackhawks will grace the Bank Atlantic Center ice next Thursday, and looking at this result it will be a tough game for the Panthers. They are young, hungry and aggressive – it will certainly be a good test for Florida to see how well we match-up with the better Western teams. As for Atlanta the best they can wish for at the moment is getting that No.1 draft pick this summer…

Ottawa Senators @ Buffalo Sabres 3-1

The Sabres were let down by their bungling power-play and could not get enough pressure on the Ottawa net to score plural goals and win this game. The Senators meanwhile had a good game as their top-line was in the mood to play. That is not always the case, but when they are – Ottawa win more often than not. Shame for them it happens at a point in the season when it doesn’t really mean that much; the playoffs remains firmly out of the Senators reach.

Ottawa win one for the books and Panthers fans will be delighted. This means we are merely two points behind the Sabres with two games in hand! Also, it must be mentioned, the loss of top-scorer Vanek for several weeks will be a very tough blow to Buffalo’s hopes of making the post-season. But then again that is the risk you take as a club if you are too dependent on one or a couple of players to perform. Maybe Ottawa should take some notes here…

San Jose Sharks @ Pittsburgh Penguins 1-2 SO

After affirming their Stanley Cup credentials against Boston (5-2), the Sharks came up empty handed against a more desperate Penguins side. It was a goalie match-up that went all the way to a shootout; were Crosby scored the winner on Sharks goaltender Boucher. Both netminders had spectacular games between the pipes, but it was Fleury that claimed the bragging rights at the end of the tiebreaker.

Not good for Florida as the Sharks again let us down badly. They have now in short time lost both against Carolina and Pittsburgh and San Jose have certainly not been helping us in the playoff-scramble one bit. (Maybe it is there revenge on us for beating them earlier in the season…) Anyway, Pittsburgh win and put themselves within a point of the Panthers, but with more games played. The Penguins may prove to be a difficult team to shake off; which makes it all the more important to beat Carolina and catch up with Buffalo tonight.

Montréal Canadiens @ Edmonton Oilers 2-7

Montreal’s woeful trip to the Northwestern parts of Canada continued with another hammering; this time against Edmonton. In truth the Oilers just had one of those days were all the pucks bounced their way and the Canadiens couldn’t get any breaks whatsoever (especially not the poor goaltender Price). Nonetheless a disturbing loss if you are a Montreal fan – hoping for centennial celebrations at the end of this year. The Oilers meanwhile put themselves back in to the playoff contention in the West with this win.

Losing seven straight games on the road is not the way to get yourself in to the playoffs, and indeed, Montreal may now be on the way of not only getting embroiled in the playoff race – but also slide down to the wrong side of the standings if nothing changes dramatically and soon. This is good news for the Panthers as it means we have another team locked in sight that we can catch up with – and pass – down the stretch.