NHL Draft - Transactions

NHL

The NHL draft was held this past weekend (June 20-21), and while a few things were certain to happen, hardly anyone expected the trades that always occur on draft day to be as big as they turned out to be...

1) LA traded Michael Cammalleri to Calgary for their 17th overall pick & their 2nd round pick in 2009

2) Florida traded Olli Jokinen to
Phoenix for Keith Ballard, Nick Boynton, and their 49th overall pick

3) Calgary traded Alex Tanguay to
Montreal for their 25th overall pick

4) Philadelphia traded R.J. Umberger's rights and their 118th overall pick to
Columbus for their 19th overall pick & their 67th overall pick

Calgary did a wonderful job of shedding Alex Tanguay's large salary cap hit (5.25 million) and replacing him with Cammalleri who is a younger, more skilled (in my opinion) player with great potential and a smaller salary.

Phoenix got away with highway robbery when they acquired the much sought after, game-breaking Jokinen for two depth defenders (with potential) and a 2nd round pick.  They maintained ownership of their 8th overall draft choice in this year's 2008 draft.

Montreal gains a quality play-making wing for their top line that will compliment their play style and Alexei Kovalev nicely.

If Columbus can resign Umberger to an extension (he's a restricted free agent this summer), they'll gain a big, two-way forward that can play at both the wing and center positions.  He'll add depth to a maturing, but talented offensive squad that is home to some of the better young players and prospects in the league.

It will be wonderful to see how all of these players impact their new teams.

NHL Draft - Transactions

The Epic Game 5 - Stanley Cup Finals

NHL

What drama!  What a show!  Even the casual hockey fan and his/her
uninterested spouse should be able to appreciate the quality of game 5
of the Stanley Cup Finals in Hockeytown - Detroit.  At this point, the
series has turned into David vs. Goliath... the young Pittsburgh team
vs. the veteran Detroit team.  

The odds are still stacked in Detroit's favor, but one has to think that 
this last loss is crushing to even this seasoned team.  Detroit was less 
than a minute from winning the Cup and ending their season on a 
victorious note in front of their home town fans...  Instead Pittsburgh 
ties it up, and wins in the third overtime.  Detroit came out hard in the 
first overtime, and limited Pittsburgh to just 2 shots on goal... but they
weren't particularly effective in either the second or third overtime on
offense or defense. They seemed to lose steam.  Whether this was 
because of their high average age, or something mental, no one will 
probably ever know... but you just have to feel like Detroit is damaged 
by coming so close and having the Cup slip through their fingers.  
Something that disappointing has to effect even the most composed of
athletes...  Pittsburgh on the other hand couldn't be flying higher.

The young team led by captain Sidney Crosby still needs two straight
wins before they can sleep well at night, but you have to think that this
team will do everything in their souls to avoid disappointing their home
crowd twice in a row (something they haven't done in over three months
of NHL play).

The Penguins seem to finally understand what it takes to beat Detroit 
and have a chance at winning the Stanley Cup.  As I previously stated,
the Penguins have conquered every challenge so far these playoffs...
They have learned from their mistakes and have done what needed to be
done to win each series.  Detroit has presented the hardest challenge to
overcome to date, but it seems like the Penguins at least understand now
HOW to overcome these stingy Red Wings.

It doesn't have to be pretty, it doesn't have to be a highlight reel.  Goals 
are goals and wins are wins.  Detroit is too good to score tic-tac-toe 
goals against.  You win against Detroit by pressuring them, playing hard 
at the boards, crashing the net, and playing dirty, gritty, trench hockey.  
Pittsburgh did this in overtime as desperation entered their game, and it 
was a GOOD thing!  They threw their bodies to win pucks, they squeezed 
their legs for that extra juice to get them back on defense.  This is how 
they need to play the first 60 minutes of these Stanley Cup Finals games!  
Hold nothing back!  This is when you leave everything on the table!  You 
have the whole off-season to recover from your fatigue.  This is the time 
for glory; and glory is not given.  It's earned.  Last night Pittsburgh 
earned their win.  If (and this is a big "if") they play with the same 
urgency in game 6 as they did last night in overtime of game 5, these 
two teams will be headed back to Detroit for a series (and Stanley Cup) 
deciding game 7.

Mark my words.  

Before the Finals started I predicted Pittsburgh in six, and while I am
off by one victory at this point, I laughed at the analysts who had the
audacity to suggest that Pittsburgh would lay down and lose in four
straight contests.  Neither Pittsburgh's nor Detroit's trips to the finals
were given to them.  These teams both deserve to be playing for the
cup, and hopefully the series will become only more dramatic with the
conclusion of game six.

The Epic Game 5 - Stanley Cup Finals