Blues win past due

The St. Louis Blues finally took one Thursday night against the Coyotes.  A goal by Eric Johnson in OT takes the cake to give the Blues two points.  This win comes at the right time as a week ago owner Dave Checkett's called out the team on their recent struggles.  Goaltender Chris Mason stood strong again giving the team the chance to win.  Mason made unbelievable saves stopping 34 of 36.  Tkachuk got on the score sheet as did T.J. Oshie.  The win was not much but it is an improvement for the struggling Blues.  Next game is at Saturday at 7p.m. against rookie John Tavares and the New York Islanders.

Nashville's New Threads

Wayne's Out

The Great One is out of Pheonix.  He may be the best to every play the game, but as a coach his stint was awful.  Wayne had poor draft picks that could never truly develop.  Maybe him being gone isn't so bad.  I'm sure the NHL will keep him around somewhere.  Maybe he could take over for Gary Bettman as the Commish?  That would be quiet an upgrade.  

Pacific Breakdown with Kich

The Pacific Division:

1) Anaheim - 1 win away from a Conference finals berth last season, the Anaheim Ducks lost arguably their #1 and #3 defensemen with Chris Pronger and Francois Beauchemin through trades and free agency respectively. However, 5 of the starting 6 D are all under 30, with the returning grey beard being future Hall of Famer Scott Niedermayer. His leadership and the offensive abilities of Ryan Whitney and James Wisnewski will have the Ducks looking strong from the blueline. The Ducks may be the strongest  offensively in the Pacific with a line of all-stars with Big 15, Bobby Ryan and Corey Perry, each having the potential of having 100+ pts seasons.  The only question will be between the pipes, as Jonas Hiller and J.S. Giguere will battle for the top job.

2) San Jose - San Jose has been a dominant force in the Western division for the last 2 years, getting off to great starts to take a stranglehold on the Pacific. Evgeni Nabokov has been rock solid in the regular season between the pipe for the Sharks, and barring injury will be a staple in the net for the future. Jumbo Joe Thornton will have to lead the offense for the now captain-less Sharks, as one-time 50 goal scorer Jonathan Cheechoo is now seeing action on the 3rd line, and Patrick Marleau will have to be mentally strong to battle the never ending trade rumors that follow him season after season.  Rob Blake and Dan Boyle will have to be rock solid on the blue-lines as both Christian Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich were dealt to Vancouver.

3) LA Kings -  getting better

4) Dallas - Sucks

5) Phoenix - Sucks and should be moved 

NHL Breakdown: Western Conference Central Division

Detroit:  Detroit is coming off yet another Cup run, and this time they fell short.  Is it time that back to back extended seasons through the playoffs catches up to these guys.  Afterall, Lidstrom isn't as young as he once was, and they loss of Hossa, Kopecky, and Conklin to division rivals in the offseason.  Hossa lead the Wings in scoring last season, as Kopecky filled in as a solid third liner, tallying 19 points.  Ty Conkiln who filled in as a solid backup, won one fewer games than starter Chris Osgood.  Is James Howard going to be able to equal that? I think not.  As if those three weren't big enough losses, Jiri Hudler has headed off to Russia to play.  Hudler played in every regular season game and put up 57 points.  It will be interesting to see if playoff sensation Justin Abdelkader can pick up for these loses.  The Michigan State forward did great work in the Finals for the Wings but as we all know it wasn't enough.  Now with these loses, we all still know the Wings do still fair well in with three top forwards in Datsyuk, Zetterberg, and Franzen, but are these three enough to carry the weight for an older defensive corps and a seasoned net minder.  Perhaps we will find out, but I look for the wings to take second in the Central this season.

Chicago:  The Blackhawks are my pick to take the Central if goaltending by Huet can be solid.  The offense of Toews and Kane just got better with the addition of Marian Hossa.  Respectfully they lost out on Havlat to the Wild, but Havlat has had a much injury plagued career.  He did finally stay healthy last season, but taking the leading goalscorer, Hossa from a division rival is undoubtably a great move.  The Hawks also have a highly regarded sophomore in Kris Versteeg coming off an excellent rookie season.  Versteeg tallied 53 points in 78 games.  If that offense isn't enough, the blueline is sharp for the Hawks as well.  They have veteran Brian Campbell who can add to the offense, and Duncan Keith who is growing into a solid defenseman.  This club has a great mix of players and a very solid coach in Joel Quennville.  The Hawks are gonna be the team to take the Central this season.

St. Louis:  Trailing just behind the Hawks and Wings will be the beloved Blues.  The Blues whom have had a rough go at things through the Mike Kitchen era are back on their feet.  John Davidson has drafted well and has the club rolling, making the playoffs last season in the 6th spot of the West.  This club has a great corps of young goal scorers in Perron, Berglund, and Oshie, and have the veteran leadership necessary to be a successful team in the NHL.  Keith Tkachuck is back for another season, and Paul Kariya is back healthy.  Andy McDonald and Brad Boyes look to lead the team back to the playoffs with their scoring ways.  While the defense appears to be anchored by Barret Jackman, look for Eric Johnson and Alex Pietreangelo to take the reigns.  The Blues are backed with solid goaltending is Chris Mason and Ty Conklin, which gives the Blues a chance to win every night.  Watch out for the boys in Blue as they look to make a run at the Central foes and possibly take the Central.  When all is said and done though, I look for the Blues to finish up in third and make the playoffs in 5th or 6th.  

Wild Release New Thrids

The Minnesota Wild unveiled their new third jerseys on Sunday. They are a sharp looking sweater, with a classic touch to it. Tell me what you think.

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