Sunday, May 18, 2003
Next up, Galveston? (thanks to Marc Foster by way of Brian Slagel for the link).
So it's finally time to give the Ducks some credit. I can't believe they'll still be considered the finals underdog. Who else do they have to beat? How much more do they have to do? Nobody thought New Jersey or Ottawa was way better than Dallas or Detroit a month ago, so why should either team present a bigger obstacle?
Not that I'd make Anaheim a heavy favorite either, but it's funny that the perception of them as unlikely Cinderellas just won't go away. Since January 1 they won one fewer (regular season) game than the Stars or Red Wings, and made it to the finals with two sweeps and just 14 games of playoff wear and tear. The Devils can still get there in 15, while the Sens now have to get to 18.
Of course, there's also the possiblity that the Devils or Sens (ok, the Devils) could raise the Stanley Cup while Giguere follows in Ron Hextall, Reggie Leach and Ron Crozier's Conn Smythe footsteps.
By the way, how did Ottawa acquire Roman Cechmanek right in the middle of the playoffs?
Yet another way in which Joe Thornton's career is going better than the guy he always got compared to, Eric Lindros -- getting in trouble at a place called "Burty Bob's Two" is slightly less ridiculous than getting in trouble at a place called "Koo Koo Bananas."
New Mexico has re-signed all-time scoring leader Peter Ambroziak as well as a rookie who had 523 penalty minutes last year.
It's absolutely true that the NHL lacks star power. And we can always blame the trap. But here's another truth that rarely gets acknowledged: some people simply don't like hockey.
So it's finally time to give the Ducks some credit. I can't believe they'll still be considered the finals underdog. Who else do they have to beat? How much more do they have to do? Nobody thought New Jersey or Ottawa was way better than Dallas or Detroit a month ago, so why should either team present a bigger obstacle?
Not that I'd make Anaheim a heavy favorite either, but it's funny that the perception of them as unlikely Cinderellas just won't go away. Since January 1 they won one fewer (regular season) game than the Stars or Red Wings, and made it to the finals with two sweeps and just 14 games of playoff wear and tear. The Devils can still get there in 15, while the Sens now have to get to 18.
Of course, there's also the possiblity that the Devils or Sens (ok, the Devils) could raise the Stanley Cup while Giguere follows in Ron Hextall, Reggie Leach and Ron Crozier's Conn Smythe footsteps.
By the way, how did Ottawa acquire Roman Cechmanek right in the middle of the playoffs?
Yet another way in which Joe Thornton's career is going better than the guy he always got compared to, Eric Lindros -- getting in trouble at a place called "Burty Bob's Two" is slightly less ridiculous than getting in trouble at a place called "Koo Koo Bananas."
New Mexico has re-signed all-time scoring leader Peter Ambroziak as well as a rookie who had 523 penalty minutes last year.
It's absolutely true that the NHL lacks star power. And we can always blame the trap. But here's another truth that rarely gets acknowledged: some people simply don't like hockey.
# posted by JC @ 1:07 AM 
