Hossa

Hossa is a superbeast this season. The clip above is from Monday's 3-2 OT win over the Blues. Let it simmer for a moment and let's break down the nastiness.

1


I give Turco some grief for trying to do too much with the puck but this is what he can do for you. Down 2 in the 3rd Turco delivers a strike to Hossa with a better pass than half of the Dmen in the league can make.

2


Hossa catches a beat running like Randy Moss as the Blues are caught in a change.

3


Hossa is down 2 with less than a minute to go in the PP. I'd say 85% of the league's forwards would have put this puck either to the net or tried to crow bar the puck to the man in front. Hossa has too much swagger this season. Credit to the St. Louis dmen for both laying out to take away that lane and getting a body on the Hawk in front.

4


Hossa takes his time with a little deep Gretzky curl and sees a lane across the slot. The St. Louis PK box isn't as tight as they'd like as they were scrambling to get back into the play but that forward is trying to get his "active stick" in the passing lane. Eddie O would have a semi just thinking about it.

5


The pass makes it through. You get those bounces when you are playing with a full tank like Hossa. Now the guy with the puck has options. Walk in from the dot before young Oshie comes to lay him out? Hit Bolland who is geared up to unleash some serious torque? Throw one on net through traffic? How about he waits until Bull Hossa drives to the net and feed the hot hand?

6


Hossa wants it. He's a big dude and BJ Crombeem or whoever is not keeping him from a tally tonight. He's impressed me with his toughness. He's in the grimy areas and he's got his feet up on the good furniture.

7


Again the pass gets through and Hossa has a backhand layup. It doesn't happen if he's playing the perimeter just hanging around for a one-timer. It also doesn't happen if Roman Rolak doesn't poo his diaper and let that puck get past him.

Let's review:
1) Turco converts on 3rd and long
2) Hossa has room thanks to a Blues change
3) Hossa doesn't rush the play
4) Hossa nearly trips on his cock as he looks for an outlet
5) Bullrush to the net
6) Shake off the haters
7) Mazel Tov

If you don't think Hossa has that extra badass spark to him check out how he ties the game a few minutes later.



The guy wants it again this year.

- Nemmy

What you missed last night while you were talking someone out of single ahandidily reruining the economy

Stars beat the Capitals in the shoot-out, 4-3: Turco made 49 saves, the Stars came back. Yadda yadda yadda. Stephan Robidas got walked twice by Ovechkin. It was awesome. In the first period Ovy, beats him to the outside, but gets stoned by Turco. In the 3rd period, Ovy fakes outside then goes in and rips a wrist shot by Turco. Thats called thinking mans hockey.







Kings shut-out the BJs 6-0: This was embarrassing for the Jackets and Mason.

What you missed last night while you were taking in all that Le Parker Meridien has to offer

Last Friday Hockey Haikus for a while

Senators beat the Capitals, 6-5:
Semin's hat-trick goals
were all high glove snipes. Has that
been done before? Wow!

Canucks shut out the Panthers, 3-0:
Alex Burrows knows
to go to the front of the
net with his stick down.

Oilers beat the Kings in the shoot-out, 3-2:
Why was Quick resting?
He's going to have 2 weeks
of rest in B.C.

Stars beat the Flames, 3-1:
Turco leads the league
in agressive poke checks. Flames
will have the most trades.

Sharks beat the Red Wings in the shoot-out, 3-2:
Jason Williams toe-
drag and snipe were pure sauce. The
Mules release is prompt.

Bruins beat the Lightning, 5-4:
Steve Downie is the
new Claude Lemieux. No, thats
not a compliment.

Hurricanes beat the Sabres in OT, 5-4:
I feel like these two
teams have a rivalry. Why?
Did they meet in spring?

What you missed last night while you were preparing for the snowstorm's rereturn

Senators beat the Flames, 3-2: Niklas Hagman's goal for the Flames was pure quick release SNIPE. Iginla fed it to him in the slot and a shortback swing later, the puck was high glove and in.

Lightning beat the Canucks, 3-1: Stamkos and St. Louis have creepy good chemistry. I imagine there are awkward moments in the shower where Stamkos just puts out his hand and St. Louis no look tosses him the shampoo.

Hawks beat the Stars in the shoot-out, 4-3: I bet Marty Turco leads the league in sliding 2 pad stacks.

Blues beat the Wings in the shoot-out, 4-3: Is St. Louis the Wings regional rival or is it Chicago?

Bruins beat the Sabres in the shoot-out, 3-2: Damn, there were a lot of shoot-outs last night.

Hurricanes beat the Panthers, 4-1: All I can remember from this game are the 2 fights.

Islanders beat the Predators in the shoot-out, 4-3: I definitely was resigned for the Islanders to lose this game last night. I did not expect the last second goal at all. Mark Streit looked more relieved than excited after tying the game with 11 seconds.

What you missed last night while you were dissecting Teen Wolf

Canadiens beat the Senators, 4-1: Is Alexei Kovalev even dressing for the Senators? He was a guy you couldn't miss last year. The power play ran through him and now, I don't even know if he's out there.

Predators beat the Canucks, 4-2: Martin Erat is probably the most underrated player of the decade. Ok, maybe not, but for 7th round pick, he quietly picks up around 50 points a year since the 2001 season.

Flyers beat the Islanders, 6-2: As usual, the cure for an ailing team is to play the Islanders.

Ducks come back to beat the Stars, 4-3 in OT: Neither goaltender was particularly good in this game, but Turco was worse because he got the loss. Also he did one of those things where he saved the breakaway but than slid into the net anyway for a goal.

What you missed last night while you were coming up with bad top 10 lists

Penguins beat the Hurricanes in the shoot-out 3-2: 2 best young goalies in the NHL + 2 fast, skilled teams = GREAT hockey game. This highlight sums it up:


Rangers beat the Kings, 4-2: Are these really the 2 hottest teams in the NHL right now? I smell a conspiracy - NY and LA, come on! It was an entertaining game. Gabby scored with his patented no-release snipe. Lundqvist is the Ranger's D.

Blackhawks beat the Oilers, 4-3: Khabibulin played well against his old teammates, but just couldn't get it done. Chicago's offense is a well-oiled machine. When they aren't scoring pretty goals, they get gritty a la Jack Skille's goal.

Stars shut-out the Predators, 6-0: Marty Turco uses the 2 pad slide very liberally.

Ducks beat the Wild, 3-2: Corey Perry scored 2 really really nice goals. The backhand, reachback move on his first was great invention. The snipe for goal 2 is just really really good skill.

What you missed last night while you were learning to sweep the leg

Its high-light of the night... day:

Canadiens beat the Thrashers, 6-3: Tanguay's night - 2 goals and three assists. He did have some sweet sauce passes, but his first goal was patience, hands, and a little bit of luck. He deked by 2 sliding Thrashers d-men, and another sort of took out goaltender Kari Lehtonen. Still, he had to control the puck in tight and tuck it far side.

Canucks beat the Stars, 5-2: The 2nd period - Ott was sent to the box for something and his time ran out just as Canuck D-man Kevin Bieska was rushing up the ice with the puck. A well timed hip check from Ott led to a skirmash. After that, Darcy Hordichuk put a pretty good body on Marty Turco and Trevor Daly decked him. Finally, late in the period Ott got laid out on an after the whistle hit by Willie Mitchell. I expected this all to escalate in the third, but the Canucks scored and ran away with the game. Did anyone else see the talent behind Dave Tippet? WOW

Maple Leafs beat the Capitals in the shoot-out, 3-2: Ovy's 51st - Recipe Ovechkin. Take the nice saucer pass down the wing. Cut in with speed (no one can catch you). Beat the goalie. Tuck in puck on the wide side.

Rangers win over the Wild, 2-1: Zherdev's goal - He had no angle and had to get it upstairs. One sitck handle and then the puck finds the little bit of available twine. Pretty play in an ugly game.

Ducks beat the Predators, in the shoot-out, 2-1: Shea Weber's game tying goal: Weber is a right-handed defensemen, playing the right side. He time his cut perfectly and recieved the pass in between the top of the circle and the dot and some how one timed the puck to the far side. That is difficult. I've only seen a few other super shots like that beating a goal wide, when you are on your strong side. If you play hockey, I'm pretty sure you get what I'm saying.

Red Wings beat the Oilers, 3-2: Hossa's GWG: The finish was nice a one-timer wrister that beat Rolosson low, but it was Franzen's work in the neutral zone and pass that made the play happen.

Lightning win over the BJs in OT, 2-1: St. Louis' GWG: Great pass from Stamkos through the neutral zone to a speeding St. Louis started the play. Now, Marty is cutting across opens up for the snap shot, but a tricky release fools Mason and he is beaten back on the far side. It defined sneaky.

Blues beat the Kings, 2-0: No highlight worth typing

What you missed last night while you were making sure you fax works and that your clocks were set to time.gov

So, similar to last year, I'll be do a quick analysis of every trade that goes down today.

Here are some quit hits about last nights game and what each team who played last night could use.

Canucks beat the Wild 4-2: The Wild should move Marian Gaborik. The Canucks need a puck-moving d-man.

Devils beat the Maple Leafs in OT, 3-2: I think the Devils should stand pat, with the Havelid acquisition. No reason to mess with the best team on ice the past week. The Maple Leafs will not get the picks or prospects they want for the garbage on that roster.

Flames beat the Senators, 6-3: The Flames always seem to need more scoring depth. The Senators obviously need some toughness as Jason Spezza was fighting last night.

Predators win over the Oilers in OT, 6-5: The Oilers need some veteran leadership after Moreau went down. The Predators could probably use scoring depth, like a 2nd or 3rd liner.

Red Wings shut-out the Blues, 5-0: Regardless of last nights result, I don't see the Wings going far in the playoffs without some real goaltending. The Blues should probably stand pat. They are in the hunt, but have a good a young squad and shouldn't give up anything to lose in the first round to said Red Wings or Sharks.

Stars beat the Sharks, 4-1: No need for the Sharks to add anything and mess up their great season. The Stars could use a stay-at-home-help-marty-out d-man.

Blackhawks win in OT over the Ducks, 3-2: The Ducks could stock pile some picks and prospects if they move their big guns. The Blackhawks need someone who has been through the play-offs to help out the kids.

Flyers beat the Bruins, 4-2: They Flyers could use some more cap room or they won't be able to add anyone. The Bruins need a small shake up. They have been faltering lately.

Penguins beat the Lightning, 3-1: The Kunitz deal is already paying off wonderfully for the Penguins and they get Sidney back soon. I'm not sure what else they want to do. The Lightning think they thet get back something for waivers, but they don't.

BJs beat the Kings, 5-4: The Jackets need a forward to help out Nash. The Kings should sit tight like the Blues and wait for next year.

Panthers beat the Thrashers, 4-3: The Panthers should hold onto Bouwmeester unless they can get a top 6 d-man in return. The Thrashers should blow their team up.

Hurricanes beat the Capitals, 5-2: The caps need a shake-up and probably a goaltender. The Hurricanes need to much.

Unless you don't get Versus and also don't live in Dallas or NoCal, there was no reason to miss this game last night

Sharks shut-out the Stars, 1-0:
Devin Setogouchi's goal was all it took. He took a pass in the neutral zone with SPEED and easily side stepped Darryl Sydor (old man is a step behind). On his strong side, Setogouchi's wrister went bar and in. And that was all it took for Sharks to win. Nabakov's best save was probably the two-pad stack he pulled on Fabian Brunnstrom (with an added Mystery, Alaska spin). Of course, I wanted the Stars to tie up (otherwise I was obligated to watch Hills spin-off, The City with the gf). I felt they were being pretty low-energy and even with various face-off wins could not get the puck on net (maybe Robidas can only really really cleary see through the cage) and when Mike Ribiero casually lost the puck at the red line, I was ready to change the channel. However, that last second rush and passing play and shot were high level hockey and the block by the Sharks d-man sealed the shut-out.


Some other stuff:

• Ok, so if the Lightning fired John Tortorella, why can't coach where he wants? I could understand if he quit, but....
• Versus, please shoot promos for games with more than one player in case said player gets run into by Scott Gomez and sprains his ankle... be sure to watch the Ducks plays Ryan Miller and the Sabres tonight on Versus!
  

Weekend Wrap Up OR Frost/Nixon was robbed!

Friday night I was back at my folks house, so forgetting that there was a free preview of the Center Ice Package, I got all my updates via a DVRed NHL: On the Fly on Saturday.

Zetterberg really did the most damage to the Ducks Friday night, but I really love the cherry on top (appropriate because Draper has read hair) that Kris put on the game by beating Giguere with the slap shot on a breakaway.


Am I the only one surprised by Joe Corvos cannon? He had 2. Heres the final one versus the Lightning



Saturday was Hockey Day in Canada. So for me it was Hockey Day on my Couch watching the NHL Network.
Chris Campoli and Mike Comrie were traded to the Senators on Friday and both were in uniform on Saturday afternoon. The Comrie addition gives the Senators a dynamic duo of girlfriends with Duff and Underwood. Can't wait for that CD.
Anyway, Comrie probably felt good being back and Campoli must enjoy dishing passes out to guys that can finish. However, Mr. Kovalev was back and killed penalties well and also dished:


Other Saturday games included Marty Biron dropping the ball (or puck) with this mistake that lead to Penguins win

There were Flyers highlights, like this so subtle, so sweet move from Mike "I love being shorthanded" Richards.

Quite possibly the worst D-to-D pass ever.

Is the Nashville/St. Louis "Rivalry" the lowest scoring rivalry in history. God, even the "highlights" from the game are boring: Kick save from Rinne... Onto the 2nd period, great breakout pass to Tckachuk... and a goal... Onto other action from Saturday.

Jimmy Howard is NOT NHL ready. How much more "rest" does Osgood need?
At least t2MA! man crush Owen Nolan scored by simply crashing the net.


Johnny Toews and the Snake Bitten Weekend:




NBC could have renamed "Game of the Week" to "The Ovechkin Show"
Enjoy:







What did I miss?

-Bress

Ladle and Soup - Fantasy Cross-Section

This is what I see from the bell tower people.

Pierre-Marc Bouchard who I recently dropped has been out-performing the Dow Jones with a nice little game log as of late. 3 goals and 6 assists in his last 4 games. He is known for patches of greatness than patches of sadness so keep a watchful eye...maybe trade him for someone at a peak?

Dominic Moore on Toronto has been involved as of late. 2 goals and 7 assists in his last 6 with 6 pims. Yea....yea!

Not that there is a play to be made here but Marty Turco as of late. How about that? Somehow he is still getting by over there in Dallas. Nice little win streak going at 5 games with only 7 goals allowed. OK Marty! Fantasy owners need a reprieve at some point. If it gets significantly better...get off the train and sell him high for someone better.

Jere Lehtinen is in the house. 11 points in 13 games. Pay attention. Mo loves passing to this guy and he CAN score goals...especially on the powerplay. Little Jere a Seinfeld!

Kyle OOOOOOOOposooo - 5 goals and 1 assist in his last 5 games. There is always value. ALWAYS! He has the goods, just hasn't figured out how to use them. When he does...he will be a nice addition to any fantasy squad.

Dave Bolland - Little David Black Betty Bolland is involved and alive over in Chi-town. I think he is playign alongside Havlat a little which is positive...throwing up a couple of shorties and booby miles.com. If you need a Dave Bolland, pick up a Dave Bolland.

- Scotty