What else but more NHL Playoff Talk? Let go Red Wings

a World Championship update, NHL playoff Conference Semifinals wrap-up, and Conference Final talk...

Yet more NHL playoff talk plus a little World Championship talk...

Just some more NHL playoff talk...

MSU is the NCAA Champs, our NHL Playoff breakdown, and Sopel's run in with the cracker...

Because of issues with Feedburner or whatever the hell that is called we had to move the blog to a new site. All my blogs were not allowing many episodes to show up on iTunes so we moved to

http://www.lthpodcast.com/blog/

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Here are two sites that are legit sites to watch NHL Playoff games.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl (US Only) Tonight Minnesota at Anaheim will be on

http://www.comcast.net/sports/ (Not sure if this is US only or not so check it out post comments to let our listeners know) Right now Sharks at Predators.

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First I said in a blog last week that if the Islanders make the playoffs we all need to raise a glass to Wade Dubielewicz. Today we raise a glass to Wade!

Let's start with Wade and the East

1. Buffalo vs 8. New York Islanders

Buffalo has pretty much been the leader in the East all year while the Islanders have been on and off all year. Although you have to give the Jack Adams Award to Ted Nolan. Who expected the Isles to have this much success with the roster they had. Also Garth Snow did an incredible job to build the team. The Sabres may only have one chance to compete at the level that they have the past two years. They will lose on of Drury or Briere this off season because of the cap. In this series though I cannot see the Islanders mounting much of an attack. I don't think they'll lose in 4 straight because Wade Dubielewicz will steal at least one game from Buffalo. The Sabres are too strong and too good not to make it past the Isles.

Buffalo in 4

2. New Jersey vs 7. Tampa Bay

Lou takes over NJ for the last three games and this is when it is really going to count. If Tampa pulls off the upset it was the wrong move. Even in the 2nd round it may still be considered the wrong move. This series is New Jersey's defense against Lecavalier, Richards, and St. Louis. Who wins this series will look at this to see who won. The only way Tampa Bay is going to win is if they out score the Devils every game. Their goaltending is not good enough to get them past the Devils. Look at last year against Henrik Lundqvist the Devils took him out in four games. Personally I don't think you mess with NJ's defense. It is hard to pick against them as they have an amazing track record. Tampa Bay needs a goaltender bad and Holmqvist and Denis are not going to be answer whether it be this year or next year.

New Jersey in 6

3. Atlanta vs 6. New York Rangers

Atlanta has made the playoffs for the first time in history and it was key for Don Waddell. I said early in a blog that if they did not make the playoffs he would be fired. Well his job maybe safe for one more year. For the Thrashers the key is going to be scoring on Henrik Lundqvist. Henrik has been on top of his game for the last month. If Hossa, Kovalchuk and Kozlov can get through King Henrik they will have a chance. The three of them are all good scoring forwards and they have to score quite often. Now for the Rangers I think this series will all depend on Sean Avery. If Avery can harness his craziness for the good of the team it will drive Atlanta nuts. On the Thrashers the only two players who have seen Sean's act close up is Eric Belanger and Jon Sim who both played with Sean in LA. I think this series is going to be a nail biter since they are so closely matched. I think Atlanta is going to move on

Atlanta in 7

4. Ottawa vs 5. Pittsburgh

Now in the East this is the series to watch. How will Sid the Kid take on his first playoffs. I've said the Penguins are only going to go as far as Sidney Crosby takes them. He is going to have to play out of his mind to get the Penguins past the 2nd round. The goaltending for both teams are question marks in my opinion. Ottawa is facing a harder opponent than last year and it's not going to be easy for Ray Emery. Then again same goes for Marc-Andre Fleury as he is facing his first playoff games. This is going to be the best first round series in the East. This one has the potential to be a classic series as both teams are evenly matched. For Ottawa they have to stop Crosby. If you stop Crosby you have a damn good chance to win. Of course stopping Sid the Kid has not been easy. It just has not even for multiple defensemen.

Pittsburgh in 7

West

1. Detroit vs 8. Calgary

Calgary backed into the playoffs. There is no other way to explain it. How Colorado almost caught them was amazing where they were near clinching for almost two weeks. They are not playing playoff hockey and besides Kipper and Iginla you have to question the work ethic of the team. Detroit on the other hand is going to come into the playoffs strong and have the ability to make quick work with the Flames. Hasek maybe old but the guy has proven that he can win. As long as he does not get hurt the Wings look to be a lock in this series. I cannot see Detroit losing to Calgary like they did in 04. This is a totally different Flames team and they do not have the heart like they did back then.

Detroit in 5

2. Anaheim v 7. Minnesota

The good old "2-7" match up. The "2-7" is one of the most common to produce an upset. I really think this one will also produce an upset. Minnesota's team is not a 7th place team if they had a healthy Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra the whole season. They have a terrific power play with Brian Rolston on the point and Brent Burns has been playing amazing hockey lately. For Anaheim the question is can they get scoring from Penner, Perry, and Getzlaf. Lemaire's defensive system will shut down Selanne, Kunitz, and McDonald as that will be the job of Wes Walz. Unlike in the 2003 Western Conference Finals the scoring threat of Gaborik, Demitra are going to prove deadly. I do not think the Ducks have the depth on the 3rd and 4th lines to get past Minnesota. Of course Pronger and Niedermayer will never leave the ice in the third period. The biggest problem with the Ducks is they have three levels of defensemen. Tier 1(Pronger, Niedermayer) Tier 2(Beauchemin, O'Donnell) Tier 3(Huskins, Jackman). It is going to be tough for the Ducks even though they have a strong team.

Minnesota in 6.

3. Vancouver vs 6. Dallas.

If Dallas wants to win this series Marty Turco is going to have to steal it from Vancouver. I cannot see them winning without winning games 2-1, 1-0, 2-0. Luongo is not going to allow enough goals for fire wagon hockey. It is going to be a goaltending match up. If Turco can't do it Dave Tippett is going to have to try Mike Smith. Tippett will have no other choice if Dallas goes down 0-2 going back to Dallas with two bad Marty Turco games. Mike Smith is going to have to out duel Luongo. It is going to come down to that. Offensively Vancouver is better too which is not going to help anything out. Vancouver's defense is too strong and I don't see Turco or Smith doing it. If Dallas does win look at one of those two as the reason.

Vancouver in 6.

4. Nashville vs 5. San Jose

It's like Deja Vu all over again. For the 2nd straight year this is where San Jose and Nashville fall. Although the question is will the result be the same. Nashville was not as deep last year as they are now. Peter Forsberg is going to be huge when he plays. The guy is a playoff player and is simply amazing. Now last year Chris Mason had to come in when Tomas Vokoun went down with a Blood Clot. This year Vokoun is going to lead this team. San Jose has a Vesatoskala condition but you never know if Nabakov plays. San Jose could put either goalie in net and still be able to win the series. Again like the "4-5" match up in the East this is going to be the best series in the West.

Nashville in 7.

I cannot see this year having the amount of upsets like there were last year in the west. I think the "4-5" could go either way though but with those two teams I doubt it will be an upset to be honest. Both teams are so strong. It is an interesting playoff year. Most teams have been playing their best hockey right now. Get ready for this ride because it is going to be fun.

Now some other stuff.

Chicago wins Draft Lottery.

The bottom five teams all have a chance at the No. 1 pick and Chicago won the lottery and that pick. Sadly the Flyers fans the junk hockey you had to watch all season did not even pay off with the No. 1 pick.

1. Chicago
2. Philadelphia
3. Phoenix
4. Los Angeles
5. Washington

Eddie the Eagle runs wild.

Well Eddie Belfour is at it again. At least this time he is not bribing cops with $1 Billion Dollars(Insert Evil Laugh here!). Eddie and Ville Peltonen were both arrested a couple days back after being a little too drunk at a bar. So here is the news and some fun about it.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=203471&hubname=nhl

Fly Eddie Fly

How to convey that Eric Staal is a Diver. In case you have not seen it already.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLY8JMV1eTw

All for today. Enjoy the playoffs!

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Devils fire coach with 3 games left, The playoff race, Datsyuk in Detroit for 7 years, and Scott is going to London!

I'm going to type up a playoff synopsis on Wednesday so today you're going to get a lot of Links of places that have good hockey news.

www.thehockeynews.com
http://video.google.com/nhl.html (Video of past games)
www.thefourthperiod.com
http://thefourthperiod.com/columnists/bernstein.html (Dennis is a good friend of mine and overall a good guy)
http://www.insidesocal.com/kings/ (Daily News writer Rich Hammond's Kings blog)
www.hockeybuzz.com
www.gamewornjerseys.com
www.tsn.ca
www.sportsnet.ca
http://spectorshockey.tripod.com/spectors_trade_rumours.html (Spector's site the best out there Thanks for having the Blog on there during the Trade Deadling)
www.viewimages.com (Look for pictures if you'd like)
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/instigator/index.html (Funny Comics)
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/stanleycup2007/
www.HFboards.com
www.hockeysfuture.com
http://www.isshockey.com/ (Prospect Scouting page. One of the best)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdf4GeT4ELA (Clark the Canadian Goalie)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xFbO4sQjPw (How a Puck is made)
http://hockeyfights.com/
www.IIHF.com
www.LTHPodcast.com (Those guys are Brilliant!)

If you have any sites you check out add a comment and put them on there.

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First a Little Fun. Clark the Canadian Hockey Goalie!



The guy who plays Clark is Nick Vachon. Recognize the last name Vachon, Nick is the son of the Great(And should be in the Hall of Fame) Rogie Vachon.

Well it was a fun night last night in the NHL so lets go over it.

Colorado Hanging Around

Peter Budaj had a great night and Hedjuk had a Hat Trick in a 3-1 win for the Avs. Calgary lost 4-3 after a late Jarome Iginla rush did not get them ahead of San Jose. So Colorado is still alive and they still need to win against Nashville and Calgary and for Calgary to lose against Edmonton and Colorado. It is nothing short of amazing what they are doing to stay alive.

Eastern Conference

Dubie Dubie Do

Wade Dubielewicz is keeping the Islanders alive. Now in order for the Islanders to make it they need first off Toronto to win in regulation against Montreal on Saturday. That is one and the other is they need to win their remaining two games against Philadelphia and New Jersey. Dubielewicz has won his last two in outstanding fashion to keep the Islanders alive. If the snowball's chance in hell comes true we all need to raise a glass to Dubie.

Toronto and Montreal

Both teams lost last night and neither team looked particularly good in losing. So this brings it all down to game 82 on Hockey Night in Canada this Saturday. Montreal clinches with a win in this game. Now if they lose in OT they will have the tiebreaker over the Leafs but their 91 points could still be beaten by the Islanders who can finish the season with 92 points. Toronto can clinch with a win in regulation along with an Islanders lose. Even if the Leafs and Islanders end with 91 points Toronto clinches on a tie breaker. Should be a great weekend in the NHL.

Datsyuk gets Paid!

Well if you are a Detroit Red Wings fan you should be happy to hear that Pavel Datsyuk has been resigned by the club today for an additional seven years. TSN.ca has the deal in around the $6 to $7 Million dollar range per season. An expensive raise but he is going to be the catalyst for this Red Wings team for years to come. Get your Datsyuk "13" jerseys next year when you get the chance. You know it has a good shelf life.

TSN Link- http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=203000&hubname=

London In My Sites.

I plan on putting the deposit down today for the Kings package to head out to London, England and the O2 Arena for the opening night of the NHL between Anaheim and Los Angeles. The package is kind of expensive but I really wanted to do this and I am doing it. Here is what the package includes for $1,545(USD)

• Accommodations – Five (5) days and four (4) nights at the 4-plus star “Hilton Canary Wharf” (www.hilton.co.uk/canarywharf )
• Transportation – to and from airport and to both games at the O2
• Two (2) Lower Bowl Tickets to the NHL Premiere games on Sept. 29 & 30
• Half-day Private London Tour
• Daily breakfast at the Hilton Canary Wharf
• Exclusive VIP reception with Los Angeles Kings front office and players
• Watch a Kings practice at the O2 followed by a private tour of the facility
• Limited Edition Los Angles Kings NHL Premiere merchandise package
• Personal travel hosts and services also included

The only thing not included with the package is Airfare as they want $1,000 more for the Air and Land package and my friend and I believe we can get it for less. This is the way I think of it. The tickets are $200 so that makes it around $1,300 plus we get to watch some exclusive stuff. Also I am a lazy bastard hence booking the package and having the Kings do everything for me. Now I need to go get my Passport ASAP to make sure I'll be let into London.

Here is the Tentative Schedule from LAKINGS.com

Wednesday , Sept. 26 – Depart LA for London

Thursday, Sept. 27 – Arrive in London – VIP Check in Free Day

Friday, Sept. 28 - London Tour in the morning with an Exclusive VIP reception in the evening.

Saturday, Sept. 29 - Open Practice in the morning with the Kings Game that evening.

Sunday, Sept. 30 - Free day in the morning, Kings game in the afternoon and an optional Kings get together in the evening.

Monday, Oct. 1 – Depart London and return to Los Angeles.

Talking with my buddy Sean we may fly out early and get a cheap hotel for a couple of days just to spend more time in London. Also besides visiting around London I want to try to catch an English Premier League game. Most likely it will be Tottenham Hotspurs because their Home Pitch is near the Hotel and the O2 Arena.

One place I am going to try to check out is the Maple Leaf Pub. This was mentioned by one of our readers/listeners in an email to me. Now I'll give you credit with your real name if I could access the LTH account from school but I cannot. So I'm not even sure where this place is but it sounds great and a place to check out. Also I'd love to see if I can get to Big Ben, Wimbledon, and many other places in England.

Closer to September I will post more of what we are doing so if any of our UK listeners want to say hi at a Pub we'll see if it can happen. I may have a hell of a week as right now I maybe going to Frozen Fury a week early

Frozen Fury is the annual Kings game in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. So Vegas on Sept 22nd and then England a week later. So I have a goal for Vegas. Win enough money to pay for my England trip. Come on Triple Sevens!

We're podcasting today just to let you know.

For all of you that celebrate Easter we wish you a Happy Easter. Although Dave and his Atheist views may say otherwise but I don't know about his opinion on Easter. So to all listeners have a Happy Easter and a great weekend.

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Well Sunday is the end of the regular season. It will mark the start of the playoffs and the end of the miserable seasons of Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

Claude Julien Fired

With three games left in the season New Jersey has fired coach. General Manager Lou Lamoriello decided that his team was not moving in the right direction. Lou decided to make himself manager for the final three games. For Lou he is not in unfamiliar territory as in 2000 he fired Robbie Ftorek with 8 games left in the season and Larry Robinson took over the team and lead them to a Stanley Cup win. Lou is not scared of making a move like this. When I heard the news I was shocked as I've never seen it happen to a playoff team but that is Lou. Lou does what Lou wants and he has a trust in there that people believe in. He won three cups since 1995 so he has to be doing something right. New Jersey won last night against Ottawa in a very entertaining shootout.

Joe Sakic

If you've had a chance to watch the Colorado Avalanche this year you've been treated to watching Paul Stastny's rookie season. If you've had the Altitude feed you would hear the love affair that color commentator Peter McNab has with Paul. What has gone unnoticed by many is the season that "Super Joe" is having this year. With a four point night last night(1-3) Joe now has 95 points on the season(35-60). With two games to play Joe Sakic could hit 100 points for the first time since the 00-01 season when he had 118 points. With all the young guys getting press I feel that Joe is not given as much as he should outside of Colorado. Colorado kept their slim playoff hopes alive last night and still has to win out and have Calgary lose their remaining games. If Colorado sneaks into the 8th spot(Which would possibly produce a Detroit Colorado 1st Round) I think Joe Sakic needs to have consideration for the Hart Trophy. Without Joe where is Colorado?

East Playoffs

Carolina is gone and so are the Islanders so now we are left with Toronto and Montreal. Both teams have two games but the main attraction is going to be Saturday night most likely. Here are our scenarios

Thursday Night, Canadiens play Rangers and Toronto plays Islanders.
Team Decision Points

Montreal Win 92
Toronto Win 91- Saturday night decides

Montreal Win 92- Montreal clinches playoff spot
Toronto Loss 89

Montreal Win 92-Montreal clinches playoff spot(Toronto has less wins so Montreal wins Tiebreaker)
Toronto OT/SO Loss 90

Montreal OT/SO Loss 91
Toronto Win 91- Saturday decides

Montreal SO/OT Loss 91
Toronto SO/OT Loss 90- Saturday decides

Montreal Loss 90
Toronto Win 91- Saturday decides

Now when we get to Saturday night Toronto must have a one point lead at the end of the night. The Leafs lose the first tie breaker to Montreal so if both teams have 92 points it does not do Toronto any good. Basically for Toronto they have to win both games. Even though there is the OT loss scenario Toronto has to look at it as win or go home. Montreal can error on Thursday night but they cannot on Saturday night. It maybe all done tomorrow or we may decide the playoffs in the 82nd game of the season.

West Playoffs.

Besides seeding we're just waiting on Colorado and Calgary. Calgary needs two points and or a Colorado loss to clinch. They cannot gain only one point as if Colorado wins out they would win the first tiebreaker which is total wins.

Flames
Thursday @ San Jose
Saturday Oilers
Sunday @ Colorado

Avalanche
Thursday @ Vancouver
Saturday Nashville
Sunday Flames

It looks bleak for Colorado as they need to beat two tough teams in Vancouver(On the road) and Nashville at home. Calgary also plays Edmonton who has been almost a give me game in the last month as Edmonton's injuries have been awful. Hemsky is back but cannot lead the team. Good Luck to Colorado you have a large hill to climb while the other side of that hill needs to crumble.

Playoff Pool

If you are interested in a Playoff Pool please e-mail me and if we get enough we'll do a pool. Let me know ASAP

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Well I had my Spring Break last week and along with starting my new job I really did not have time to blog. My new job has me starting at 7:30am. Which for me anything early then 10am is early then hell. So imagine how I felt getting to work at 7:30. I was completely done when I got home. Usually just ate and then fell right to sleep. Then on Friday and Saturday my friends and I planned our Paintball outing so that is the reason why we did not have a podcast this week.

East Playoffs

Well the newest team to clinch is the Atlanta Thrashers. This is great as this is their first trip to the playoffs. Waddell made a lot of moves at the deadline, a lot that I was very critical of because of the youth he gave up, but he made the playoffs and that is the most important thing. So good for them. Personally I hope they don't do too well as the Price of Belanger's jersey will go up. If the Thrash make the finals I do not know if I can afford his jersey.

Now the bottom of the East is as crazy as ever. I made my predictions last show and it looks like two of the three are going to make it. The Islanders' season ended it seems when Steve Begin's knee met Rick DiPietro's head. They are not playing good hockey and sadly they are not going to make it. I still do not blame Garth Snow for his move at the deadline bringing in Ryan Smyth. It was still a great trade for them to get towards the playoffs. If DiPietro stayed healthy they would have had a better shot.

So this opens up a spot between Montreal, Toronto, and Carolina. Carolina in my opinion is already floating in the dead pool. They had to battle back to beat Florida yesterday in the 3rd period after being down 3-1. They won it in OT when they were awarded a two-man advantage. Now in OT they do not play 4 on 2 they go back to regular 5 on 3. It is amazing how much the loss of Matt Cullen and Aaron Ward was to this team.

So that leaves a battle between the two most storied teams. Toronto and Montreal. Toronto pulled out a victory on Saturday against Pittsburgh after blowing a lead with 4 seconds on the clock and causing a fan to have a heart attack(He was revived and is in stable condition). Kaberle won it in overtime to keep them alive. Then they played the Rangers on Sunday and got smacked around. Seven goals scored against Toronto. They have three games left and sitting in ninth place with 87 points. Their final games are against Philadelphia, Islanders in NY, and Montreal. That last game against Montreal could be the deciding game.

Montreal on the other hand is riding the hand of Jaroslav Halak. Halak has been playing great allowing Montreal to get into the race. Right now I think they are the odds on favorite to make it. They have Boston at home then they move on to play the Islanders and Toronto on the road. Personally I think they have a good chance to sweep all three.

Western Ho

Colorado is knocking on the door step of doom and will most likely not make the playoffs. Any Calgary win or Colorado loss will spell disaster. Eight games between the two and that one win or loss ends the season.

The rest of the west is fricken crazy. Right now there are three teams with a chance of winning the division. Anaheim(106), Detroit(108), Nashville(105). Personally I hope Detroit gets it because I'm not a fan of the other two. Besides that San Jose and Dallas are both at 102 points Vancouver is right there with 101. Minnesota in knocking on the door at 98. There is a good chance all eight playoff teams in the West will have 100+ points. Most likely teams will not know who they play and if they have home ice till the last two days of the season. There could be some interesting match ups. San Jose and Anaheim, Detroit and Calgary, Dallas and Anaheim, maybe even Minnesota and Dallas is possible. Should be a great time.

Vinny hits 50!

Vinny Lecavalier put in his 50th goal this season against Carolina. It has been a great year for Vinny and he is leading the NHL in goals and is looking like he'll be the Rocket Richard Trophy winner barring a goal scoring output from Dany Heatley(For fantasy reasons I'd love for this to happen). Heats needs two goals in his final three games to hit the 50 mark. Teemu Selanne is the only other player who in my mind has a chance. He needs five goals in three games to hit the mark. It will be tough but the Finnish Flash always preforms well under pressure.

It also looks like Sid the Kid will lead the league in Points. He has 117 now and is eight ahead of Joe Thornton(109) who had a four point game on Sunday against the Kings. Hitting 100 I think the best chance goes to Marian Hossa who needs three points in three games to hit the century mark.

That is all for now.

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Cheap shots from Tootoo and Simon, a little fighting talk, the NCAA Hockey tournament, and Scott made a kid cry...

Lets start with a little nostalgia

It was on this day in 1994 that Wayne Gretzky scored NHL goal number 802 to pass Gordie Howe. The Kings that night were playing the Vancouver Canucks an Gretzky got his goal on a power play. If you are wondering who assisted on the goal it was Marty McSorley and Luc Robitaille. The big joke though that always comes up was. Luc was in the crease when Wayne scored. Also for note. The goaltender that game for Vancouver was Kirk McLean.

Wild and Crazy the Eastern Conference.

There are six teams that have a chance to make the playoffs. Only three of these teams will make it. These six teams are separated by only six points. Lets start with the hottest team the New York Rangers.

With the play of Henrik Lundqvist the Rangers have come out of the dark to look like they are on there way to the playoffs. Henrik is playing like a man possessed and he is leading his team. Not to mention the offense is finally there. Rangers currently have 83 points and sitting in 7th. Tampa Bay in 6th place and their biggest problem is goaltending.

Johan Homqvist is the current number 1 goaltender and has not been stellar. Of course what has been stellar is the offense for the Lightning. Lecavalier, St. Louis and Richards are offensive power houses. The offense will lead them to the playoffs.

Sitting in the final playoff spot as of right now in 8th place are the defending Stanley Cup Champions in the Carolina Hurricanes. Unlike last year with Ward and Gerber the Hurricanes goaltending as not been as strong. Also Eric Staal is not lighting the league up like he did last season. Those two factors have lead the Hurricanes into a tail spin towards the bottom of the playoff race.

Montreal is in 9th place and they have been winning with Jaroslav Halak in net. Halak who was called up from Hamilton when Cristobal Huet went down with an injury has saved Montreal. David Aebischer who they acquired last year for Jose Theodore was not getting the job done and Halak was. They still have a large hill to climb in Montreal. Currently they have 82 points.

With 81 points and sitting in 11th place are the New York Islanders. Rick Dipietro went down for a couple of games and so did the Isles. This is a make or break time for the Isles who have not looked as good as they had since Chris Simon's two handed slash at Ryan Hollweg. It also did not help them to lose back to back games against the Rangers. The ship is sinking quick and will they be able to get the water out.

Toronto is the final team in the equation and they are sitting in 11th with 80 points. Yet they are two points back of tying Carolina and Montreal with 82 points. Toronto is getting Tomas Kaberle back tonight after his run in with Cam Janssen. Adding Tomas back to the point will be huge. For Toronto the question is where will Andrew Raycroft lead them. His goaltending will be the key if Toronto makes it to the post season.

If I had to pick three teams I'd say right now: Tampa Bay, NY Rangers, NY Islanders.

Avs and Flames going toe to toe.

Colorado and Calgary are matching wins making the playoff race even more exciting. Colorado who I wrote off two weeks ago have had a miraculous come back. The goaltending from Peter Budaj has been amazing and Joe Sakic is leading the offense. Calgary is getting through with hard work. They pulled a tough overtime victory over Nashville to keep their lead. Colorado plays Edmonton again which is a likely two points.

Speaking of Edmonton. Still winless since trading Ryan Smyth. By far the worst team I've seen this year. Make note. I've watched the Kings all year and I still consider the Edmonton team of the last month to be the worst in the NHL.

College Hockey Tournament!

Screw those basketball playing fools! Here is the NCAA Hockey Tournament draws

http://www.uscho.com/ncaad1/

Now the Hockey tournament is only 16 teams compared to the 64 that play in the NCAA Mens and Womens basketball tournaments.

The top two seeds are the Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Golden Gophers won the WCHA Tournament on a goal by Phoenix draft pick Blake Wheeler.



The Fighting Irish who are not known for their hockey players compared to their Football Quarterbacks won the CCHA against Michigan. Notre Dame is lead in goal by David Brown who is property of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brown has been outstanding this year and is in the running for the Hobey Baker Trophy(Hockey's version of the Heisman). Now there are some great players in this tournament and a lot of future NHL players. Jack Johnson, John Toews and others are all playing in this tournament. Watch for when teams lose for Seniors and even under classmen who will leave early. Cory Schneider, Brian Boyle and many others are in their final year and will leave school when their teams bow out. Jack Johnson is rumored to be leaving Michigan and joining LA when the Wolverines face their untimely end.

That is all for today

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Well today is Wednesday and here are a couple of updates.

Dave is on Spring Break and is in Las Vegas. So we'll have to see what kind of condition he comes back in. Considering he was cheap enough that he decided to stay at a Motel 6. Come on! You need to at least stay at a crappy place on the strip. Just don't do what I had to do which was get stuck going to Denny's because you're friend is a moron and his cousin is even stupider than dirt. The man got lost looking for the spa and he was right in front of it. So with Dave drinking the days away it means one thing. No show until he comes back. Now the greatest thing is I have no clue when he comes back. I imagine it's no more then three days as more then three days in Vegas starts to wear on you. Or well you wear yourself out.

Tootoo gets five games.

Jordan Tootoo got only five games for his round house sucker punch on Stephane Robidas. It was disappointing to see him get such a little suspension. His first game back is against Dallas in a week or two. Wonder who finishes that tilt for Dallas. I think they'll call someone up because I believe Barnaby and Ott are still out of the line up. Should be a good tilt.

Belak finishes the play.

Wade Belak had a job last night to do against the New Jersey Devils. It was a simple job, take on Cam Janssen. This is of course the retaliation fight for the hit on Tomas Kaberle. It was a good tilt but no one really got the upper hand in my opinion. Remember when watching a hockey fight a lot of punches do not land. So when Belak is swinging watch the punches miss. It doesn't count if you smack the guy in the shoulder pad.



Calling 50

Coming into our final weeks of the season we have a couple of players looking at the 50 Goal Mark. The first one that should hit the mark is Lightning forward Vincent Lecavalier. Vinny is sitting first in the NHL with 49 goals. Vinny would be a first time member to this category. He is also only 3 points away from 100 on the season. There are four other players who have a chance. Teemu Selanne has 44 goals so he needs to find the back of the net six more times. Dany Heatley has 42 goals, Marian Hossa and Alexander Ovechkin both have 41. Time to start lighting the lamp if they want to hit 50.

That is all for now just a couple of notes.

If you're reading this from England send us an e-mail. Feedback@lthpodcast.com letting me know about the area in the O2 Arena vicinity. Hotels and so forth. Hell even good pubs. I want to know! Hit me up guys as I'm still planning this.

Thats it

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Hope everyone had a good weekend. I think we're going to do a show soon but not sure. Haven't talked to Dave in a while.

Well after the Chris Simon incident the last thing the NHL needed was the Jordan Tootoo sucker punch on Stephane Robidas. Tootoo who is starting to gain a reputation that may be worse then the Sean Avery reputation. So Saturday night he went and hit Mike Modano. It was a clean hit and it was a solid hit. Of course Dallas is not going to let their Star Player get hit at any time so Stephane stepped in but before he could Tootoo swung around with a round house punch which landed directly to Robidas jaw. Here is the video you can form your own opinion



Now in my opinion after the Simon incident Tootoo is going to get a heavy suspension. After hitting Modano in my opinion Tootoo needs to realize he has two options. Square up and or turtle. You're going to get hit as you hit Mike Modano do not throw a cheap shot because you cannot handle the up coming fight. There is no place for that in hockey.

Of course now the Pro-Tootoo people have to mention that Modano swung his stick. Making a mountain out of a mole hill. Suspend Mike for a game and it's over with. He swung it with one hand and at Tootoo's back. If you're going to complain about that then every slashing penalty in the NHL becomes a suspend able offense. In the end I think Tootoo's going to get it handed to him one day. He's a dirty player and one day he's going to get caught like McCarthy caught Claude Lemieux.

Avs Red Hot

The Avs keep winning and they are making the West race a lot closer than anyone thought they would. They are 4 points out now with 10 games to play. Calgary also has 10 games left. Calgary's magic number is 17 points. Now the 17 points is lost points by Colorado and points gained by Calgary. It will be an interesting race but to be honest. Calgary is getting into the playoffs.

Thats all for now

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Posting another blog today after one yesterday hope you enjoyed the lawn gnomes and here we go.

Mike Modano scores 500.

Modano found the back of the net for the 500th time in his NHL career last night against Philly. Modano became the 5th player this year to score his 500th goal this year. Selanne, Sundin, Recchi and Bondra are the other 4 to already hit the mark this year. Modano has scored all of his goals for the Stars franchise whether in Minnesota or Dallas. He becomes now only the 2nd American player to hit the magical mark. Barring a disastrous breakdown he will become the all-time leading goal scorer amongst American players. Joe Mullen is currently sitting at 502 goals and Modano may have that record by the end of the year. Now as much as I dislike Modano you have to give him credit for his skill all these years. Most interesting Mike Modano stat: He has never had a 100 point NHL Season. I Believe he is one of the very few 1,000 point scorers without having a 100 point season. In Modano's two best seasons he scored 93 points.

Now while watching the game what I considered the most interesting stat was mentioned by color commentator Darryl Reaugh. There are 39 NHL Players who have scored 500 goals or more in the NHL. Out of those 39 players 32 of them are Canadian which leaves only seven Non-Canadians. So I've already mentioned the two who are American, Mullen and Modano, which leaves five players. There is one Czech, a Slovak, two Fins and a Swede. The players that fit those countries is Jagr, Bondra, Kurri and Selanne, and Mats Sundin. I considered this one of the most intriguing stats that had been said. Now there are some Non-Canadians closing in on the mark. Jeremy Roenick is nine goals away from the mark. After that we drop down to Keith Tkachuk who has 470 and Sergei Fedorov who has 460 goals. After that the market is pretty bare for Non-Canadians and even for Canadians as the only one close is Gary Roberts and he is 74 goals away from 500.

If your asking yourself which NHL player was closest to 500 without getting 500 the answer is Glenn Anderson who finished his NHL Career with 498 goals.

For British Eyes Only

For those of you that read who are from London I'll give you a quick update on the trip I want to take. I'm waiting for the Kings to have their prices for packages to go over. If not I'll try to find a hotel and a flight with a friend. I really want to make it over so I plan on this. If any of our England fans read this please email me with insightful tips as I've never been to England. Or send me a message on AIM. Right now besides the games I want to do some sight seeing and catch an English Premier League game. So here is another part I need some help with is the EPL game. Judging by Mapquest I've come to believe the closest team is The Tottenham Hotspurs which looks to be about 10 minutes away. The question for England listeners is what other EPL teams are in the vicinity that I can go see. I am aware tickets may not be easy but I need to see one match.

Thanks for reading for today!

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So I've slacked in posting the picture of the lawn gnomes as they have been called. So without further ado here they are.









You can see the Blake in that third shot. Also you can kind of see the size of the damn things. They are huge really.

Penguins stay in Pittsburgh

Well the two sides finally decided not to dance around the subject and just get it done. This was like one of those cheesy love movies. You know they love each other and they will not go anywhere else. They test the waters and try new things and in the end they find love in each others arms. ::Tear:: Cue cheesy porn music.

The arena will be financed through the Penguins and revenue made from slot machines. Obviously this is important for the city of Pittsburgh and the Penguins. My belief is still shame on the City of Pittsburgh. They were able to get new arena's for the Steelers(Heinz Field) and Pirates(PNC Park) but they basically screwed the Penguins over for many years. The Penguins arena has been dilapidated for the better part of 10 years now. Not only that it was originally built for Opera. Also whoever buys the naming rights should make sure it's the Igloo. Pittsburgh 9th National Bank Igloo!

Chris Simon suspended 25 games.

This one was quite obvious that it was going to be a huge suspension. I happened to be watching the game live when it occurred and my first thought was Hollweg is dead. Of course he was not dead, thankfully, but I still think that he embellished the play. While it was a serious play for a cut on the chin he sure stayed down for a while. Maybe it's just me I've seen people take pucks to the face and get up quicker then Hollweg did.

Simon was given a 25 game suspension. There are 15 remaining Islanders games in the regular season so Simon will miss the next 10 Islanders games whether in the playoffs or at the start of the 07-08 season. It was a stupid play by Simon and he knows it of course but his emotions took the best of him at the moment. Personally when I saw it I said that it was a 15 game suspension. I still think 25 was a little bit much but it is still the right call by Gary Bettman.

NHL Draft Change

The general managers decided the draft is now decided by where teams finish in the playoffs. The 14 teams that do not make the playoffs still play by the same rules. The 16 teams that make the playoffs now are based by Division leaders and where they end up in the playoffs. It's complicated and until the playoffs are finished I have no damn clue how it really works. The article I read does not really do a good job of describing it. When I understand it I'll let you guys know.

That's all for now

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Scott's adventure at "Tip-a-King" and plenty of Trade Deadline talk

Wow it was a crazy last week with the trade deadline and after typing 3,000 words I had no will to post another blog. I really still do not but will have a couple of Words.

Edmonton struggles

Edmonton is 0-3 since trading Ryan Smyth and have a total of 2 goals each of which were scored by Fernando Pisani. They were shut out in back to back games and finally got two against Calgary in a 4-2 lose. I watched parts of the game last Tuesday night and saw how poorly Edmonton played. Smyth was everything to that team and without him they played flat uninspired hockey. It was actually quite sad to watch.

West Playoff race.

In the West everything is pretty much decided except where 1 to 8 will fall. We know the eight teams barring a magical comeback by the Colorado Avalanche. Personally I do not think they can do it.

East Playoff Race

There is a log jam down at the bottom of the division looking at the 7th and 8th spot. I think Atlanta will take the 6th spot and the Islanders with Ryan Smyth will get the 7th seed. I say the 8th seed goes to the Carolina Hurricanes. Without Huet the Canadiens are too iffy and losing Kaberle was a huge lose for the Leafs. Personally I do not like how the Rangers are playing so that is it with them. Boston is too much of a wild card. I have no clue what the hell will happen there. Florida maybe next year.

Janssen on Kaberle

I thought this was a dirty hit as it was unnecessary for Janssen to hit him. Kaberle is at fault as well as he should have not watched his pass. Sadly his head hit the boards which caused the injury and caused the suspension. In the NHL if the player is injured there is a better chance a player will be suspended.


Thats all for now

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Wow, was it a nutty day or not. I am so glad I did not have anything to do today besides watch the madness. We'll start as the day began with Buffalo and Philly.

To Buffalo: 2007 2nd round pick
To Philadelphia: Martain Biron

It was rumored for a long time that Biron would be traded as he in the minds of many(including me) that he is a number one goaltender in the NHL. So for the rest of this year Philadelphia will be carrying three goaltenders with Niittymaki and Esche. Esche is a UFA in July so expect him to go somewhere else. Biron will have to be resigned by Philadelphia but they must imagine they can or else they would not have done it. The 2nd round pick that Buffalo receives is Philadelphia's pick so the way the Flyers are playing that will be pick #31 in the draft. Good deal for both teams in my mind.

To Buffalo: Ty Conklin
To Columbus :2007 5th round pick

I'm not sure what exactly to make of this deal for Buffalo. How they paid even a 5th round pick for Conklin is quite surprising and I thought he'd be a lot cheaper. Just look how things were for Ty in Edmonton last year. He is not a strong goalie but is a good backup. For Columbus rejoice! Somehow you got a 5th round pick for Ty Conklin.

To Pittsburgh: George Laraque
To Phoenix: Dan Carcillo and 2008 3rd round pick

Pittsburgh has the best crop of young stars in the game. Although they may have a bunch of bright young stars they did not have the guy to make sure those players were protected. Laraque will free up space for Malkin, Crosby, Stall and others. Laraque is also a very good hockey player as well and can do other things. For the Coyotes getting a return for an enforcer is always a good deal. Carcillo has 21 goals this year in the AHL with the Baby Penguins but has only nine assists. He may play a couple NHL games but do not expect too much out of him. The third round pick is always a welcome addition and could always be used in later trades.

To San Jose: Bill Guerin
To St. Louis: Ville Nieminen, Jay Barriball, and 2007 1st round pick

How scary is San Jose. Not only do they have Joe Thornton, Marleau, Cheechoo and a cast of others now they add big Bill Guerin. With Toskala and Nabakov you may have to wonder if they are the odds on favor to win the Stanley Cup. Guerin brings everything you want in a forward and has been in the Finals and has won the Cup before. Great addition for San Jose and they did not lose Bernier, Carle, or Michalek. Amazing deal by Doug Wilson in SJ. For the Blues you have to say it was a good deal. They were not guaranteed of keeping Guerin and besides the high amount of drugs Don Waddell was on this week it was a good deal. They could not have imagined the return for Guerin like they got with Tkachuk. Nieminen is a pest and a good player and a favorite of John Davidson when he played for the Rangers. Barriball is interesting as he is having a good freshman year at the University of Minnesota with 16 goals and 20 assists. What is most interesting is most places only have this guy as 5'9" and only 155 pounds. If he bulks up and he is still skilled you always hope that he turns out like Brian Gionta or Mike Cammalleri who are two NHL players who are listed at 5'7" and 5'9" respectively. Also a 1st round pick is always nice and they are always welcomed by a team rebuilding.

To Minnesota: Dominic Moore
To Pittsburgh: 2007 3rd round pick.

For Minnesota they gain someone who is a Lemaire type of guy. Lemaire who always loves a hard checking skilled third line center he acquired just that in Moore. Will he do anything spectacular, no. He will be a constant attacker and wont give up. For the Penguins they have to make room for Laraque and have Ruutu and Petrovicky so they can part with Moore. It is never bad to get a pick for a player that another team can use more effectively.

To Boston: Aaron Ward
To NY Rangers: Paul Mara

This is one of those trades where both players might be better off in a new location. Mara and Ward signed with their teams in the off season and nothing has really worked out for either. Mara who had 15 goals last year is no where close to that mark and Ward seems to be in a Stanley Cup hangover. While the Rangers get a younger player they add in cap and the Bruins get older but cheaper. Both solid players who should help their new teams.

This is Part 1 as I woke up at 7 and I am so tired I am falling asleep while I write this. I will get the rest when I wake up. You will get more later.

Ok I'm back I don't have much time but will do as many as possible here.

To Ottawa: Oleg Saprykin 2007 7th round pick
To Phoenix: 2008 2nd round pick

Saprykin has had so far had his best NHL season this year in the desert. Hopefully Ottawa believes he can continue playing well and be a player come playoff time who will get a couple key goals. Oleg is a solid hockey player and will contribute to the Sens. For the Coyotes the rebuilding continues and any time adding a 2nd round pick will be helpful as long as they pick right come 2008.

To Anaheim: Brad May
To Colorado: Michael Wall

Burke knows what May can do and will do and that is be a gritty hockey player. Where he'll fit in the Anaheim lineup is still to be figured. I think they may put him with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry as usually they have put an enforcer with those two. May will add a veteran leadership to that line if he does indeed find himself there. He will add more skill then Parros or Thornton could. Wall is an interesting player for Colorado. You have to imagine Colorado is going to go with Budaj and Theodore as they can't get rid of Theodore due to his huge price tag. Budaj is still a young goalie so you cannot get rid of him unless you try to trade for a number goalie. So where does Mike Wall fit?

To Detroit: Todd Bertuzzi
To Florida: Shawn Matthias, Conditional 2007 draft pick, Conditional 2008 2nd round pick

Detroit adds the big threat that the Wings always try to add at the deadline. This year getting Bertuzzi is intriguing as you cannot be sure how much he is going to play. For being trading in the big Luongo deal he never played in Florida because he got hurt early in the season. Florida says that he is fine and that the back is ready but no one has seen it for sure yet. Of course Florida hopes that Bertuzzi plays as well. Bert will add the scoring that Detroit wants to add as long as he stays healthy. According to TSN it seems like Florida will receive picks depending on how many games Bertuzzi plays in, how far Detroit goes in the playoffs, and if Bertuzzi resigns with Detroit. Really in order to see what happens you will have to wait till draft day and see how many picks go to Florida

To Atlanta: Pascal Dupuis, 2007 3rd round pick
To NY Rangers: Alex Bourret

This deal baffles the hell out of me. Dupuis who was just picked up by the Rangers for Adam Hall on Feb. 9th moves on to Atlanta. I am really starting to wonder what Waddell is thinking these last couple of days. To me this is the plight of a general manager who will be fired if he does not make the playoffs. The Thrashers have not made the playoffs in their history and have under achieved in past seasons. He was given an extra chance because of the goaltending injuries last year. Looking at the last couple of days here is how it breaks down.

To Atlanta: Keith Tkachuk, Pascal Dupuis, Alexei Zhitnik
To Other Teams: Braydon Coburn, Alex Bourret, 2007 1st round pick, 2007 3rd round pick, 2008 2nd round pick and a conditional 2008 first round pick if Tkachuk resigns with Atlanta.

Coburn and Bourret were both 1st round picks and they traded their next 1st round pick and may lose another 1st rounder(Highly doubtful but still possible). They are sacrificing the future to win now. If they don't win now Waddell will be gone for sure and most likely Bob Hartley. So if you haven't figure this out yet I love this deal for the Rangers. Bourret has good numbers so far this year in the AHL with 32 points in 45 games. He needs time to mature and he'll be on the Rangers.

To Toronto: Yanic Perreault, 2008 5th round pick
To Phoenix: Brendon Bell, 2008 2nd round pick

Toronto needed a face off man and Yanic is the best. Yes Yanic is better than Rod Brind'Amour. Yanic has been great this year in Phoenix and will be a huge help to the Leafs. The big question of course is will it be enough to get the Leafs into the playoffs. For Phoenix this deal is great as they signed Yanic after the season already began and they were able to get a player in Bell and a 2nd round pick. Bell who has been in a taxi all year between the AHL's Toronto Marlies and the NHL's Leafs that he has not played that much. Hopefully he can learn something from Jovanovski in Phoenix.

To Buffalo: Dainius Zubrus, Timo Helbling
To Washington, Jiri Novotny, 2007 1st round pick

Buffalo with the amount of injuries they have had on their front line it is very important for them to add depth. Come playoffs they could be a really really dangerous team is everyone gets healthy and stays healthy. Washington wanted to keep Zubrus but could not agree on a contract so they had to get what they could. Right now I think it is great for Washington to add picks because they have a lot of depth and they are going to add to it with two great picks in this draft. Novotny is not a bad player either so it will really help that he'll be able to play in Washington and get more ice time then he did in Buffalo.

To Colorado: Scott Parker
To San Jose: 2008 6th round pick

Parker is about as goon as you can get. No skills pure goon. To imagine Colorado drafted him in the first round. Wow! Then again that year they had four first round picks(Tanguay(12), Skoula(17), Regehr(19), and Parker(20). Which one of these things is not like the other?). On the base that getting anything for a player like Parker is a positive San Jose wins this deal.

To Los Angeles: Jaroslav Modry, Johan Fransson, 2007 2nd and 3rd round picks, 2008 1st round pick
To Dallas: Mattias Norstrom, Konstantin Pushkarev, 2007 3rd and 4th round picks

Dallas wanted to improve their defense and they did just that by acquiring Norstrom. Norstrom who had been a King since 1996 after a trade deadline deal that sent him to LA from the Rangers. He has been effected by the lockout but not like the Hatcher's of the world have. He will be a huge help to the Dallas point. Pushkarev is interesting as he is a very skilled player but you have to wonder how much of his head is in the game. He often seems uninterested, bored and annoyed. Pushy has a complex that he is great and should be playing a lot more then he is which leads to dismal play. The picks will be helpful as they have given up a lot. For the Kings I'll start with Modry. I HATE MODRY! He is one of the few players that I have hated so much when he played for LA. I thought he sucked and would yell at him all game about his play. That and he never shoots on the power play. I used to say that a Modry goal was an accidental pass. I also remember yelling at him when he dumped the puck into the zone. He dumped the puck right into the stands and it was clean as possible. Fransson I will hold comment as he has not left Europe and I've never seen the guy but he was a 2nd round pick. He may have some skill but I'll find out. Of course to Lombardi the picks are the most important thing as that is how he wants to run his ship. It's a gaming ship. Ok besides Arrested Development quotes it is how LA is going to be. They also dropped a lot of cap($4.25 Million) of the next couple of season.

Good Luck Matty!

To NY Islanders: Ryan Smyth
To Edmonton: Ryan O'Marra, Robert Nilsson, 2007 1st round pick

When this trade first broke my first thought was "WOW". I never thought that Edmonton would trade Ryan Smyth. Even though we heard they had not gotten a contract done in Edmonton I really thought they'd work it out and they had time especially with the Oilers out of the playoffs right now. They traded the heart and soul of their team and it is still shocking. What they got in return is still a very good return O'Marra and Nilsson are both terrific prospects and Edmonton added a 1st round pick. Basically they picked up three first round picks as O'Marra and Nilsson were both first rounders. If you were able to watch Edmonton last night you can see the deal took a major toll on the team. They looked flat last night against the Coyotes on Mark Messier night and they did not have a strong game. Fernando Pisani was put with Horcoff and Hemsky now that Smyth has been traded. They were beat 3-0 and if you watched the game Phoenix made it look easy. For the Islanders they made a huge push for the playoffs and adding a player like Smyth will complete that push in my mind. He is a tremendous player and will help the Islanders power play. Great pickup for the Islanders.

To Boston: Dennis Wideman
To St. Louis: Brad Boyes

Boyes who was third in rookie scoring last year really fell out of favor in Boston. He is still a very good player and will be a good player under the Andy Murray system in St. Louis. Wideman is a strong defensive player and will help the Bruins back end. They have a lot of defensemen in Boston but that is where you want to start.

To Buffalo: Mikko Lehtonen
To Nashville: 2007 4th round pick

Buffalo was looking for defensive depth and picked it up in Lehtonen. He probably will not play much but he is there for depth. Nashville just added a pick for a spare part.

To Calgary: David Hale, 2007 5th round pick
To New Jersey: 2007 3rd round pick

I really like this trade for Calgary as I've always seen Hale as a strong defensive player. Hopefully Hale gets some ice time in Calgary and will be important down the playoff stretch. New Jersey clears some cap space with this deal and gets a pick in the process

To Florida: 2007 4th round pick
To Pittsburgh: Joel Kwiatkowski


Pittsburgh adds Kwiatkowski for depth during the playoffs. At least he'll get to go to the playoffs compared if he was in Florida. Florida didn't want much in return but got a pick.

To Chicago: Nikita Alexeev
To Tampa Bay: Karl Stewart, 2007 5th round pick

Tampa gave up on Alexeev who was their 1st round draft pick the 2000 draft is not a bad player but he is not living up to his first round status. If he does improve in Chicago it will be an amazing pickup compared to right now where it is a good pickup. Stewart has bounced around on waivers so trading for him is quite interesting that he could have been obtained for free.

To Los Angeles: 2007 5th round pick
To Tampa Bay: Jason Ward

Ward who was in the Sean Avery deal was barely seeing any ice time. Also when I met him at Tip-A-King it looked like he was very blah. Maybe a change will be best for him. For the Kings adding picks continues!

To Pittsburgh: Nolan Schaefer
To San Jose: 2007 7th round pick

I really like this deal for Pittsburgh as after Thibault leaves I can see Schaefer being the backup goaltender for the Penguins. They also only got him away for a 7th round pick is interesting. I would have paid more for Schaefer.

To Los Angeles: Jamie Heward
To Washington: Conditional 2007 5th round pick

Who knows if the conditional is the pick LA acquired for Jason Ward or what the conditions are. Heward will be used till the end of the season as a replacement as Kevin Dallman and Mike Weaver are now in the lineup and without Sopel and Norstrom someone had to fill in.

To Anaheim: Doug O'Brien
To Tampa Bay: Joe Rullier

Minor league deal. Nothing to see here.

Wow. Ok everything is now broken down. Hope you enjoyed the read.

Kings Trade Jason Ward to Tampa Bay for a 5th Round Pick

Calgary Trades a 3rd round pick in 07 to NJ for David Hale and a 5th in 07

Tampa trades Nikita Alexeev to Chicago for Karl Stewart and a 6th Round pick

Nashville trades Mikko Lehtonen to Buffalo for a 4th round pick in 07

I've already read the Kings acquired Jamie Heward from the Capitals.

The final Norstrom deal is Norstrom, Pushkarev and a 3rd and 4th in 07 for Jaroslav Modry, Johan Fransson, 1st in 08 2nd and 3rd in 07.

Will have updates Later on analysis.

Interesting depth move here. Boyes has had a poor year in Boston but he is a damn good player. Behind Crosby and Ovechkin had the third most points last year as a rookie. Wideman improves the Boston Defense.

WOW! This was talked about but no one ever thought that it was going to happen. But it did so here is the break down

Islanders Get:
Ryan Smyth

Oilers Get:
1st Round Pick
Robert Nilsson
Ryan O'Marra

Amazing Deal. Ryan Smyth wont be there for Mark Messier night tonight. Wow the fallout in Edmonton is going to be huge.

Parker goes from San Jose to Colorado

TSN is reporting Matty Norstrom has been traded to where I don't know. I feel bad because I love Matty. Hopefully the return is good for LA. Dallas is the winner. Who knows what has the Return

Godspeed Matty!

According to TSN a team has informed TSN that Smyth has been traded for Edmonton to the Islander. Holy hell that would be shocking if that is the truth. Wow!

For the second time this month Dupuis has been traded and he'll look to add to the offense in Atlanta. Return will be reported on when it is available.

Toronto has traded Brendon Bell and a 2nd round pick for Toronto Maple Leafs for Yanic Perreault and a 5th round pick. Great trade for Toronto.

Zubrus will be headed to Buffalo for a first round pick and Jiri Novotny. Great pick up again for both teams. TSN also has a prospect going back to Buffalo as well. Prospect is Timo Helbing

Wow a lot happened really quickly right there.

The Bertuzzi deals has more clauses then anything I'll cover that later. Florida also got Shawn Matthias

Bertuzzi has just been traded to The Red Wings. Most of this trade is conditional because of Bertuzzi's health. More to Come.

Brian Burke picks up a good friend in Brad May. Currently the return to Colorado has not been announced.

We are now in the final 45 Minutes of craziness.

Ottawa adds a little offense with the addition of Oleg. Ottawa also adds a 7th round pick and Phoenix adds a 2nd round pick to the fold. Good pickup for both teams.

TSN just reported that Aaron Ward has been traded to the Boston Bruins. Ward who won the Stanley Cup last year with Carolina and signed with NY in the off season. He was not a good fit in New York. Overall a solid pick up for Boston. According to TSN as well it will be a rosters Bruins player who has not be notified as of yet.

More to Come!

Pittsburgh traded Dominic Moore to Minnesota for a 3rd Round Pick.

Good pickup for the Wild.

Pittsburgh traded Dominic Moore to Minnesota for a 3rd Round Pick.

Good pickup for the Wild.

According to TSN they are just working out the final details of the deal. Where will Billy go?

TSN is now reporting that it is San Jose who has most likely nabbed Guerin. Apparently it may be a Three-way trade.

Latest at 9:05 is the trade does not involve any rostered SJ player. Could it be Devin Setoguchi? Also the Sharks are trading their 1st Round Pick they got for Malakov earlier this year. More Later as who is the 3rd team?

Now it is being reported that it is NOT a 3-way deal. Still no clue on the return

Latest is from Andy Strickland of Hockeybuzz.com who is reporting it is NJ 1st Round Pick in 07, Ville Nieminen and Jay Barriball who is currently the leading scorer at the University of Minnesota. When it is final I'll let you all know.

Big George waived his No Trade Claude is now a Pittsburgh Penguin according to TSN. It will be for Daniel Carcillo and an 8th Round pick

Will have more later.

Darren Dreger of TSN just reported that a source told him that Biron has been told that he has been traded. More details will follow as right now nothing much has really been said. They are working on it.

Biron is off to the Flyers for a Draft Pick. The official trade hasn't been released but you have to imagine that it will be a 2nd round pick going to Buffalo. Obviously Philly is not giving their first round pick. It also maybe for a 2nd next year.

Just breaking that the Sabers have acquired Ty Conklin from the Blue Jackets. Return will be posted later.

I'm trying to cook breakfast. Note to self. Don't burn the bacon

Welcome Everyone Reading this! I will be updating as quick as I possibly can and hope everyone enjoys reading. Starting off with Trades from Yesterday.

Vancouver Acquires Brent Sopel for 2nd and 4th Round Picks.

Vancouver bolsters their defensive line by adding a player who has played there before. Sopel who left Vancouver to get away from Marc Crawford. He was only able to do that for so long before getting reunited. I was told by a source that Crawford and Sopel really hated each other so it was not surprising that he was traded. I really liked Sopel earlier this season in LA and I thought he was actually playing better with a broken wrist. He is a solid pick up whether you like "Rat Boy" or not. The picks that went to LA are both strong picks. The 2nd Round Pick is conditional either in 07 or 08. Not sure if it's the Kings pick which 2nd Rounder or if there is a condition that has to be met. I have not heard so far but I would not be surprised if it is 08. The Kings also get a 4th Round Pick in 2008. The Kings now have four 4th Round Picks(Tampa, Vancouver, LA, Calgary) in the 08 draft. They will be busy either trading those picks and or drafting players. Overall I really liked the move for both teams.

Vancouver Acquires Brian Smolinski for a conditional 2nd Round Pick

Another solid pick up for the Vancouver Canucks. Besides picking up former LA Kings who are on the list of players I like they are picking up solid players. Smolinski is a solid character guy and can play well where ever you need him. Defensive Center he can do it and if you want him as an offensive center he can pitch in there too. I've been a big fan of Smolinski since he has been in LA. The 2nd Round Pick is apparently conditional. Again I'm not sure what the condition is. I have a feeling it deals with whatever LA chooses. If LA wants the pick in 07 then Chicago gets the pick in 08. NHL.com has it as a 2nd in 07. Vancouver had three 2nd Round Picks so they have the availability to trade it. Again I like what both teams did here.

Chicago Acquires Jason Williams Detroit Acquires Kyle Calder and Flyers Acquires Lasse Kukkonen

In a three-way-deal three teams each get a little piece of the puzzle. For the Flyers they continue to acquire defensemen. Lasse is currently 25-years-old(26 in September) and he has had a successful year in Chicago where he is actually a plus player. Overall he is a very solid player and Kyle Calder has not been doing anything in Philly. I like Kukkonen and watched him down the Kings in OT on Feb 1st. Calder who if he decided to play hard this year could be a damn good pick up for Detroit. He has been terrible on a last place team maybe he can be a good player on a first place team. I think this may change Calder's season. Now Chicago in my mind got the best part of this deal in Jason Williams. I really like Williams and he is a very good two way player and since Chicago is not in the playoff hunt he will help the Chicago team. He'll bring a leadership which will help after the lose of Smolinski. Great trade for Chicago.

Pittsburgh Acquires Gary Roberts from Florida for Noah Welch

This deal took a long long long time yesterday. The initial deal was finished at about 10AM PST but Roberts had to waive his No Trade Clause. Late last night TSN.ca finally reported that he waived the NTC. Roberts will add the veteran leadership to the young Penguins team and will be a help as the Penguins head towards the playoffs. Pittsburgh has a lot of youth on defense so they were able to give up Noah Welch. Welch is a top prospect only in his second pro season after playing all four years at Harvard and the ECAC in College Hockey. He should get some playing time in Florida which will help his development. Great deal for the back line in Florida.

That is all for now will be posting as soon as I hear more.

Well it seemed like everything started to get moving along on Saturday. A lot happened over this weekend so here we go.

Blues resign Manny Legace to a two-year contract and Eric Brewer to a four-year contract.

Huge resigning for the Blues as both men are pivotal to the team. Legace will give them solid goal tending for the next two years and Brewer will give them that same support on defense. Also this gives time for Erik Johnson to leave Minnesota(Most likely after his sophomore year) and be taught by Eric Brewer on defense. This will give Andy Murray the starting point to build the team. Brewer wanted to stay in St. Louis and it is great that he was able to stay with the Blues. Brewer, Jay Mckee, and Barrett Jackman will be the leaders on that team on the point to mentor guys like Johnson, Dennis Wideman, and Jeff Woywitka. Setting up the foundation for St. Louis' next playoff team.

The team which has been in one of the biggest free falls which has caused drastic moves are the Atlanta Thrashers. They made a couple of moves, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.

Philadelphia trades Alex Zhitnik to Atlanta for Braydon Coburn.

Another interesting deal for both sides. Zhitnik is a proven NHL defense man who so wanted out of Buffalo he left right when they were getting to their peak. This is his 3rd team this year after being traded from the Islanders to the Flyers and now to the Thrashers. Zhitnik will help the defense which is not as strong as they would have liked it to be. Then again come playoff time defense man are in short supply so every one you have will help in the long run. The cost of Zhitnik was not cheap as the Thrashers gave up former first round pick Braydon Coburn. Coburn was considered a part of the big three in the 2003 draft. Although he has not developed like the other two, Phaneuf and Suter, he is still a great defensive prospect. He is still only 21-years-old and there is a very good chance he'll get a lot of playing time with the Flyers. They Flyers through trades are starting to build an amazing blue line filled with talent. As long as they keep Joni Pitkanen and Alex Picard they will in two years also have Coburn and Parent on the defensive line. Great trade for the Flyers.

Thrashers acquire Keith Tkachuk from the St. Louis Blues for Glen Metropolit, 1st Round Pick in 07, 3rd Round Pick in 07, 2nd Round pick in 08, and a conditional 1st Round Pick in 08 if Tkachuk resigns with Atlanta.

Wow talk about a great payment for the Blues. Not only did the gain a good role player in Metropolit they got three high draft picks and quite possibly another 1st round pick. I was shocked when I saw the payout for this deal. I thought Tkachuk was going to demand a premium but he got that and more. St. Louis will do this deal any day of the week as they probably could not believe what happened down there. For Atlanta this is a make or break deal. With Tkachuk they are now expected to make the playoffs. If they do not make the playoffs consider this the swan song for General Manger Don Waddell as I cannot see him making it past the Draft in June. I would not be surprised if Bob Hartley is next on that list to be fired as well as the Thrashers are a playoff team but they have under achieved every step of the way. Unless Tkachuk leads Atlanta deep into the playoffs do not expect him to stay with Atlanta. He would have to be a tremendous help for Atlanta which is already strapped for cap space to add Keith Tkachuk as well to that line up.

San Jose acquires Craig Rivet and a future 5th round pick to San Jose for Josh Gorges and a 1st Round Pick in 07

Rivet is a solid defense man who will help the Sharks line up by adding another veteran leader to the group in San Jose. They have a very good yet young defensive core in San Jose and Rivet will be added to Hannan and McLaren as the top three on the blue line. For Les Habs Gorges is a good, heavy hitting, defense man. He is still young and with some time could develop quite well in Montreal. The key for Montreal is to gain another 1st round pick. I believe that this 1st round pick is New Jersey's which San Jose acquired earlier this year. So now Montreal can use that pick if they decide to get another marquee player. Montreal is in that Grey area where they could be sellers or they could be buyers. Bob Gainey has to make that decision with in the next 24 hours. Tonight the Canadiens play the Maple Leafs so that could make the decision easier for Gainey.

Anaheim acquires Gerald Coleman and a 1st Round Pick from Tampa Bay for Shane O'Brien and a 3rd Round Pick in 07.

The key in this trade for Anaheim is the 1st Round Pick. Coleman will probably never make an impact in Anaheim so we can forget about him. Most likely Anaheim will package that 1st Round Pick to get a player at the deadline. Anaheim is really depleting their draft as if I recall they may not have a pick until the 4th Round and that is of course believe that they trade the 1st they acquired in this deal. Look for Anaheim to make one move and this pick to be in it. O'Brien is a strong young defense man. He may not help Tampa Bay this year but he could develop into a very good hard hitting player. He not only will hit but will drop the gloves. He did not get too much ice time because of the Randy Carlyle school of defense. That school is put Neidermayer and Beauchemin on the ice and when they can't go any more put Pronger and O'Donnell on the ice and we pray to god by the time they are done we can put Neidermayer and Beauchemin back out so we don't have to put out O'Brien and Huskins. Given a little more time O'Brien could turn into a pretty damn good player in the NHL.

Overall I think the most interesting thing is the absolute disregard for a 1st Round Pick. While some teams think that a 1st Round Pick is gold other teams are throwing them in any old deal. It would not surprise me by the end of the trade deadline and come draft time for a team like St. Louis to have three to four picks in the 1st Round and maybe even seven picks with in the top two rounds. I would not be surprised to see at least five more 1st Round Picks to be traded today and tomorrow.

I will be talking to Dave about Blogging and or Chatting tomorrow. We'll let you know.

UPDATE

Here are some stories that have broke or I disregarded in the morning.

Gary Roberts to Pittsburgh?

TSN.ca has had this as their leading story for a while today. Roberts has a No Trade Clause and cannot go unless he allows it. Well Florida has found a suitor in the Pittsburgh Penguins and according to the Globe and Mail the player returning to Florida would be Noah Welch. Would be in my mind a great pick up for the Panthers. I can imagine they are chomping at the bit for him to waive his No Trade Clause to pick up Welch. http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070226.wsptnhlrdp26/GSStory/GlobeSportsHockey/home

Islanders acquire Zednik from Washington for a 2nd Round Pick in 07

A good pick up for the Islanders who need to get a little more offense for a final push. Zednik will add immedate offense once when he gets to the Island. He had been hurt for most of the year and has only 18 points but he is still an effective player. Washington more importantly gains another draft pick. The second round pick will allow them to add another key prospect which will help them in a couple of years.

Hottest current rumor is Brian Smolinski will be traded to Vancouver from Chicago for the 2nd Round Pick. Eklund reported this one as close to done and then Sportsnet.ca reported it done. Then Sportsnet retracted that statement that it was not a done deal. Many people are now reporting the deal is close but not finalized. We'll see where this one leads.

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Since we talked about it on the show here is a little bit of a recap of how Tip-A-King went.

So today the Kings held their annual Tip-a-King which is a really cool event. Similar to the carnival they hold for other teams the Kings set up autographs, silent auction, auction and a lot more. After winning four tickets at last years TAK in mystery envelopes I was back for my second year. How it all works is after admission which is $75 for General Admission you meet the players and it is $1 dollar per autograph and $2 per photo.

I was with my parents and my sister and for the most part I split with her. So our first stop we got to meet Patrick O'Sullivan, Mattias Norstrom and Jamie Lundmark. My sister decided to take a picture with our Captain.



Next we wanted to head the line of Derek Armstrong, Aaron Miller, and Scott Thornton(Or well I think). I got my Robitaille retirement night jersey signed by Armstrong so now it is signed by both Luc and Army. My sister then wanted to take a photo with Army because as she says. "They're dating" because of the way their photos come out and she likes to piss off her husband because he hates Army. You judge for yourselves.



Next we shot off to Alex Frolov and Kevin Dallman. Dallman and Frolov are both very nice and Frolov at these events is kind of crazy. Again my sister took a photo with the both of them. Now while the photo was being taken they were fighting with each other.



Now at this point we were kind of wondering about our parents. My Dad wanted to get on to the Anze Kopitar line so there he stood.

At this point my Dad told us to take my Mom to get her on the Line for Lubomir Visnovsky. Since Ian Laperriere left Los Angeles her favorite King is Lubomir. At this point I went to bought two mystery envelopes.

Now these mystery envelopes can be quite addicting. They are 50 dollars each and you win what is on the envelope inside. So I spent the $100 dollars and bought two envelopes. Well the first envelope I did not do too bad as I received a Luc Robitaille player card. Now these player cards are 8x11 and are given out at each home game. It is a pain in the *** though to get a Robitaille signature in LA though. So in my next envelope I opened it up and won a Game Worn Sean Avery glove. Key word there is "glove" as I did not win "gloves". I got just the left glove of Sean Avery. I walked back to the line where my Mom and sister was at which point they gave me some stupid balloon heart and snapped this beautiful shot. Notice the Sean Avery glove.



So here is the banner for the Visnovsky table.



My mom and sister both wanted to take pictures with Lubo and not with Sexy Sopel and here is how they came out when they were all done.




At this point my sister and mom went to the line with Tom Kostopoulos, Dustin Brown, and Alyn McCauley. While I went to the line with Rob Blake and Jason Ward. Just to let Jackson Bower who won the signed puck he will be receiving a Rob Blake puck. Thanks for reading and get in touch with us when you can. My sister got a picture with Tommy K as we have been really big fans of his this year and he is one of the nicest Kings once when you get to meet him.



So then after they went through that line we rushed back to my dad who was nearing the front of the Anze Kopitar line. Now they had paired up Anze with a rookie named John Zeiler. So far all the Kings fans have been happy with Zeiler so it was unfortunate as I would love to have taking a photo but was not waiting through the Kopitar line. So here are the pictures that go with that fun.





After that we pretty much wrapped up our day. When we left we had the winning bid on five silent auction items.
John Zeiler jersey from TAK
Kevin Dallman jersey from TAK
Marco Sturm jersey autographed
A Lubomir Visnovsky statue which is about 2-3 feet tall
The gift basket of all of Tommy K's favorite things.

Now there was some funny things looking at other players favorite things. Brent Sopel had one of the coolest baskets with a pair of his gloves, wine bottles, and my favorite.. "The Notebook" on DVD. We got a good laugh out of that. Also Dustin Brown had CD's and one was a John Mayer CD. The Tommy K basket which we were leading had a 1 Gig iPod Shuffle plus a whole bunch of gift certificates.

All and all a really fun time.

Digg us: http://www.digg.com/podcasts/Lets_Talk_Hockey, GM Meetings in Florida, Sabers and Senators Brawl: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAPhqXj_24I, and the Signed Puck Drawing!

Well today is the last day to send in entries before we have the drawing for who wins the puck

Feedback@lthpodcast.com Good Luck everyone.

Ok now to our hockey talk. First a Trade!

Anson Carter traded to Carolina

Carolina picks up another piece which they hope will add a couple of goals in Carolina. Carter who had a great year in Vancouver last season has not been doing too hot in Columbus. Carter has only 10 goals this year which is way down from the 33 he scored last year being besides the Sedin brothers. With this trade Carter has now been traded seven times in his career and is second behind Mike Sillinger who has been traded 10 times. Hopefully Carter will work out in Carolina and have a good final couple of games and playoffs. Unlike when Carter was traded to Los Angeles and he had one point in 11 games. Way to go Anson.

The return to Columbus is the best part of this deal though. It is a fifth round pick.... In 2008! Talk about a complete dump as they only received a fifth round pick and it is not even in the up coming June draft. If this was the best deal Columbus could have received far Carter it is quite apparent that no one wanted Anson. You almost wonder if Carolina is going to get a draft pick back as well. I consider it funny.

A current hot rumor is George Laraque is on the move from the Phoenix Coyotes. According to many including David Vest of the Arizona Republic reports the trade has been approved by both general managers the only hold up is Laraque's no trade clause. The Penguins have been looking for an enforcer to protect Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and Laraque is the right man to do the job. He is one of the most respected fighters in the NHL and can take a normal shift every night in my opinion. Just look at his numbers against LA and you can see why I have this opinion. Everyone loves Big George. Except maybe Sean Avery.

We're going to Overtime!

Interesting little tidbit from last nights NHL games. There were 12 NHL games last night and eight of them went to Overtime and four of those eight made it to the shootout. Every Eastern Conference team that played last night went to overtime. Talk about it being hard to gain ground when 13 Eastern teams all received at least one point. Food for thought.

That is it for now if anything else breaks I may update it as I still have time left in class.

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Well folks you have one day left to enter to win a puck so do that now. Just send an email and we're going to have the name announced live.

Feedback@lthpodcast.com

Well watching the Rangers play the Devils, in the second half of their home and home set against each other, how Sean Avery has went back to the old Sean Avery. Early in the season in LA Avery started to play a game that was different then normal. Unlike crazy Avery that we had become accustomed to he was a lot more calm and did not hit as much as he used to. Before getting traded to the Rangers he had only been in two fights compared to the numerous amount of fights. Since he could not play with an edge he started to play more of a finesse game. Since this was not his game he lost his effectiveness. Before he was traded I always would say to myself. The best Sean Avery would be the player that could balance skill and craziness. Look at players who are most effective like Darcy Tucker, Ian Laperriere, and Matthew Barnaby who learned how to balance their skills effectively. It is looking like Avery has been let off the leash in New York. Now that he tried to learn to play as a skilled forward and now playing his natural game he has become the effective player. Looking at the last game against New Jersey he stood in front of Marty Brodeur for their only goal and then got under his skin buy running into him and causing a brawl. That is the Sean Avery that needs to play.

The trade front has still been very slow. The price has been too high at this point for players to only be rentals. I imagine it will drop eventually as teams will take something and start a bidding war.

An interesting site that I was linked to on another message board is HockeyWidgets.com Now most people know what widgets are. It's actually a very good program that you can get on PC or MAC. Here are the sites that can help you out with questions.
http://hockeywidgets.com/
http://widgets.yahoo.com/
Check it out when you have a chance. they have a lot of cool jersey features.

What I decided for the Trade Deadline is not only am I going to wake up early but blog every trade as I get a notice of a trade. I'll also be on AIM if you want to contact me there. I'm sure I'm going to have two computers working that day to make sure everything runs flawlessly.

Will see you gets tomorrow. Get those emails in.

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Well I'm back in school not paying much attention and thankfully Mr. Ass-Crack is no where to be found. Today's first positive.

Now that it is Wednesday we are officially under a week away until the NHL Trade Deadline. With the General Manager's Meetings in Naples, Fla not one trade has been made. With 30 guys in one room and nothing happens you believe to wonder what is going on. ::Ass-Crack has just arrived. Thankfully the view to his season has been blocked today:: Apparently the current feeling has been the sellers in the market are asking too much for their assets. Peter Forsberg's trade set the bar pretty damn high and you would have to wonder what other players may command. Setting the low bar with Ladislav Nagy and the high bar with Peter Forsberg it will be interesting to see what guys like Tkachuk, Guerin, and others may field. Right now with six days to go the sellers will still be selling high and with the buyers holding off I imagine the price will drop come Monday and Tuesday. Also unlike before the lockout because the deadline is pushed back that player will play more games with that team before the season ends.

For St. Louis they now have to ask whether or not they want to go for the playoffs or rebuild through free agency next year. With a win last night they are now only nine points out of a playoff spot. Way more then anyone expected they would be. Credit must be given to Andy Murray. He took a last place team and has lead them to a respectable record. A lot of credit has to goto John Davidson as well who is one of those hockey guys that you want running the operation of the team. How nice would John Davidson as commissioner be? Ultimately I believe that St. Louis will still sell but they will sell very high. Andy Murray and Davidson will start to build the team they want to build and they could be in a playoff spot next year. Just imagine how many people will sign in St. Louis because of Davidson.

One of the more interesting rumors that came out last night from TSN's Bob McKenzie is the Boston Bruins are apparently close to resigning Marco Sturm to a 4 year contract. If I was told Sturm would resign with Boston a week ago I would have said someone was drunk when they heard this. I believed Sturm was as good as gone in Boston. Boston was looking for change and I thought Marco would be packing his bag quite quickly. This would be a huge signing for Boston if they are able to keep Sturm. He is a very underrated player and would be a huge help for Boston once they rebuild correctly.

So far the other talk at the meetings in Naples are the rule changes that have been proposed. None of these changes can be officially made without the ratification of the Board of Governors. The first major subject was the instigator rule. This is one subject that has been hated by most fans and has been in the league for a long time now. The vote so far has been to increase the number of instigator penalties before that player is suspended. One of the general managers that has been leading the charge is Anaheim's Brian Burke. Burke's Ducks are currently leading the NHL in fighting majors and they have in their lineup usually 3-4 fighters. Two of these fighters are natural enforcers in George Parros and Shawn Thornton and then role players in Travis Moen and Shane O'Brien. The Ducks have been in my opinion the chippiest team in the NHL. Since they have all these fighters it allows most Anaheim players to play with an edge they would not get away with other wise.

The other ruling that has just came out today was the general managers decided against 3-point regulation wins. Like in soccer the NHL was toying with the idea of making a win in regulation time worth a full 3-points, and then making an overtime and shootout win 2-points and a single point for losing. I agree with Lou Lamoriello in New Jersey when he said "We've got some exciting races in both conferences, the parity is great. Why change anything?'' The closer the race at the end of the season the better it will be for the NHL. It will cause games to have so much more meaning and games in the middle of March will become playoff battles. Especially in the Northwest division.

In other funny related news. They always say that being a goaltender in hockey takes a different or special kind of person and with the Montreal Canadiens in the 70's any homeless man must have been an old goalie. Well here is a man who is close to the heart of goaltenders everywhere as well as fans of the movie Slap Shot.

From the Associated Press
"NORTH LOGAN, Utah - A University of Southern California hockey goalie put on a show, but it had nothing to do with stopping shots.
Mickey Meyer rode his stick like a horse, dropped his bulky pants, mooned the crowd and slapped his buttocks during a game against Brigham Young University, police said."

Reasons why we love hockey in general. Here is the rest of the link from the Fox Sports website if you are interested in reading the rest. http://msn.foxsports.com/nhl/story/6491548?MSNHPHMA

We're getting to the end of our contest. So everyone get in your entries by sending an email to feedback@lthpodcast.com in order to be entered to win a signed puck. Get those entries in!

Hope everyone has a good day.

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For all those in America I hope you had a good day on your day off. If you got one, as I know some people do not. Also I have to wish my mom a happy birthday. She may not read it but Happy Birthday Mom.

Ok now on to regularly scheduled hockey talk. I'll start with my favorite, a trade!

Marc-Andre Bergeron and a 3rd round pick in 08 to NY Islanders and Denis Grebeshkov.

Bergeron(MAB) was basically run out of town in Edmonton. Even though his offensive numbers are not bad with 90 points in 190 games. Which is not too terrible but they've run him out of Edmonton pretty much because he is not quite like what everyone wants. While he is not an amazing player I think he will be a huge help for the Islanders. He had two assists today in his first game as an Islander. I think this is a good pickup for the Islanders. Not to mention the Islanders also get a 3rd round pick in next years' draft. It's just another "chip" in the bargaining table come next summer.

For Edmonton this trade has blown open speculation. Bergeron makes roughly 1 million dollars per year and Edmonton does not have much cap room. They have room to make a move or two but they have to look at their position. They are now 8 points out of a playoff race but their most important games are against the teams they are chasing which is all ahead of them in the Northwest. Of course they can go on a huge winning streak and sneak in like last year but that team was built better. They are in the middle of a rough trip which they are currently 0-3 so far. They have four games left before the deadline so they have to make a hard decision whether to throw in the towel and rebuild and or go for it. They may decide to make their decision on February 25th when they play in Minnesota. Minnesota is currently holding down that last spot. If they beat Edmonton that game there is a distinct possibility that will be the end for Edmonton.

Also in the time being they have to resign Ryan Smyth as well at some point in time. They cannot afford to lose Smyth to another team. They also have to respect him and pay him what he deserves. They said they were looking at Visnovsky and Pitkanen trying to bolster their offensive on the back end and they trade their best player in that position. Personally I think this is the end for the Oilers as they will try to maximize their profit for their players.

Grebeshkov is a very good player but he was unusual to watch. One minute he'd make a great play and the next he would make a terrible play which would lead to a two-on-one for the other team. So after he was traded by LA last season to the Islanders he played a couple of games and then went back to Russia to play in the RSL. He needs a lot of fine tuning but he can easily be back in the NHL.

Now that I wanted people to send in e-mails letting me know that they were reading a lot wanted to me talk about their teams. Send me anything you want me to talk about and I'll talk about it. Jake wants us to talk about the Northeast so we'll try to do that on the blog and on here. It's hard when we only produce one show a week to get every one in there. We'll do what we can.

Tomorrow's blog will feature more about the on going GM Meetings that are currently taking place in Florida. Surprising is there has not been a trade yet with all 30 GMs in one room.

What I am going to do with the puck is not put a deadline on Wednesday but I will allow any e-mail that gets to us before Dave and I do the show on Friday. We usually record around 6-8 Western time so get those submissions in. We'll draw the winner live on the show and will be contacted through email after the show.

Feedback@lthpodcast.com Big Enough?

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Hello everyone,

We just posted our last episode which we recored on Wednesday yesterday. We explain in the podcast why we did it on Wednesday instead of today. Listen up and hope you enjoy it.

I'm still offering the chance to win a free signed puck to whoever e-mails me just with their full name and just telling me you are reading the blog. That is all I want you to do and there is a chance the puck is yours. The deadline is now next Wednesday to send in entries. Send them in so I can draw a winner before I goto the event where I get the puck signed.

I had a viewer of the blog ask for some Canucks talk and I'll do that now. Although to that reader. Send in your name so you have a chance to win. Dan Cloutier puck could be coming your way. Actually I wouldn't do that for you as a Cloutier puck just down right sucks

The Canucks are currently leading the Northwest Division(They have the tie breaker over Calgary). The biggest problem for the Canucks is obviously their goal scoring as they have only scored 150 goals in 57 games this year. Considering they have the worst goals for in the West for a team sitting in the playoffs and even LA has more goals(164) than the Canucks. So at this point the question is who do you trade for. Some say that Anson Carter is a possibility as he has not played well in Columbus and would be a welcome addition with the Sedin Twins. Vancouver needs offense and I think it would be helpful if they could grab someone like Carter, Marco Sturm, and Bill Guerin. All three would add an important part to the Vancouver offense. Looking at their depth they can give up goaltender Cory Schneider out of Boston College. Once when you have Roberto Luongo as your goaltender Schneider becomes a key prospect that could be traded to a team looking for a young goaltender. They will not trade Luc Bourdon because he will be valuable to the Canucks next year. Overall Vancouver is not stacked with prospects to trade so most likely picks will exchange hands. They have LA's second round pick from the Dan Cloutier deal which would likely be pick 32(We hate you Vancouver. Stupid ass Lombardi). I can also see Vancouver trying to add a depth defense man at the deadline as they are thin past around 5-6 and something that could be brought in to play some minutes will be important. Mostly I can see Nonis offering around a 3rd to 4th round pick for a player who can help. They need to make the playoffs and then at that point their chances are all up to Luongo. He'll bring them as far as he possibly can.

Forsberg traded to Nashville.

The biggest hammer fell Thursday when Peter Forsberg was traded to Nashville. Rumors of course ran rampant when Forsberg was announced as a scratch at the Flyers game yesterday after taking the warmup before the game. The best was the Leafs broadcast which kept changing what the deal actually was. It was quite hilarious to hear them change the deal every 5 minutes on air. At the end the deal was Forsberg for Ryan Parent, Scottie Upshall, 1st Round pick and a 3rd Round pick. I'll start with Nashville.

This makes Nashville the favorite now for the Stanley Cup. Any time you can add Peter Forsberg who has been lights out in the playoffs. The top three for Nashville is now Kariya, Sullivan and Forsberg, which adds to their offense. Not to mention; Dumont, Legwand, Hartnell, Arnott, Radulov are all there for offense and they are solid on the point. They are most likely done for the year but I could see them adding a defense man just as a depth move in the case someone is injured. Nashville is going to be good the next couple of weeks and on into the playoffs. Forsberg should be in St. Louis to play his first game for Nashville tonight.

For the Flyers they got a great deal in my opinion. They added two picks which are most likely going to be in the top 100(after compensation is given out) and they gained another pick in the first round. That pick will depend on where Nashville finishes. If they win the Stanley Cup they will be 30th and if they finish first overall in the NHL it will be no less then 29th. So they gain two picks and high ones at that. Now getting to the players. Scottie Upshall is a very good player but try cracking the line up in Nashville if you are a young player. Good luck! He was born in 83 so he is still a very young player at only 23 and he doesn't turn 24 until October. This trade will give Upshall what he needs the most and that is ice time at the NHL Level. He has not been getting the ice time he needed to develop in Nashville because he was stuck behind all of the talent in Nashville. His upside as always been high being the sixth overall pick in the 2002 draft. Last year in Milwaukee with the Admirals of the AHL he had 17 goals and 16 assists in 23 games. He does not need to be in the minors any more and going to Philly will help him out. The biggest part though besides everything else is Ryan Parent. Parent is a very good defensive player and has played playoff AHL hockey after the Guelph Storm's season ended last year. He was the 18th overall pick in the 05 draft and was born only in 1987. He is younger then me buy almost 10 months. Personally he'll crack the Flyers line up immediately in my opinion as the Flyers defensive squad needs the help. He was a key part of Canada's gold medal winning team at the World Juniors just this past December and January. He'll be a part of the Flyers organization for years.

Overall I think Nashville over paid for Forsberg but given the chance to win the Stanley Cup I believe it was a move they have to make. Forsberg will be gone at seasons end and it will either be retirement or possibly back to Philadelphia as I can't see him go anywhere else as he seems to be content there or in Omsk in Sweden(Note: It was pointed out to me by listener Kevin that Omsk is actually Avangard Omsk in the Russian Super League and not even close to Sweden. Now what makes me laugh is how I made this poor of a mistake. The team is Modo of the Swedish Elite League. Oops!).

That is all for today. I hope you liked it and GET THOSE E-MAILS IN.

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Stuart to Calgary, Nagy to Dallas and the funny new NHL adds

Hello everyone, hope everything is having a good day with their significant others. If not may you be at the strip club spending the money that you would or could.

The newest news that has just broke has a major effect on the NHL Trade Deadline. According to TSN.ca, Shane Doan is about to receive a five year 23 million dollar contract to stay in Phoenix. The last remaining Winnipeg Jet to play for the franchise is staying put and this is a huge deal for them. They now will have a leader for at least the next five years. According to the article Doan has got a "No Movement Clause" in his contract. This is the second time I've heard of this clause and the first to get it was Bryan McCabe in Toronto. This clause is basically a no trade clause plus a little more. The no movement means that Doan cannot be sent to the minors as that is movement. This is huge for Doan as he knows he does not have to worry about being traded or being sent to the AHL. For the trade deadline this takes a major player off of the market. Supply and Demand will probably drive the market up for players like Doan that are still out there in Guerin, Tkachuk, and Marco Sturm.

On our last podcast I mentioned the sites that I like the best for trade rumors around this time of year. One site I mentioned is HockeyBuzz.com which is lead by Eklund. Eklund made his name during the NHL lockout when he first posted his blog about what was happening. Eklund is a sports writer in the Philadelphia area and goes by the name of his favorite Flyer, Pelle Eklund. Over time many have called him a fraud and a phony while making a site like HockeyBuzz and having many big time reporters sign on to his site. Whether you like him or not after having a site for almost two years now it is ridiculous to believe that he does not have a source reporting for him. He posts what he hears and most of the time it does not come true. What people don't realize in my opinion is trades don't happen every day and this year has been an all time slow in trades especially in the early part of the season(Unless your name is Eric Belanger). In one of his last posts he explained how he got the report that the Oilers are scouting Derian Hatcher. To me it is a good read as you see what went into this rumor.

http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=5465

If you like him or not he is here to stay. He is going to be on Sportsnet in Canada come trade deadline day to report what he is hearing. He must have some type of credentials if he is going on a major Canadian TV show on one of the most important hockey days of the year.

If you are interested in who may go at the deadline and who is available during the Free Agent Frenzy come July 1st here is a good site to reference. Cory Brolund does a great job on this list every year

http://www.geocities.com/floridapanthers2000/free2007.html

That is all for today. I may blog tomorrow as I am home and hopefully you will all enjoy. Also if you read this. E-mail us at Feedback@lthpodcast.com that you are reading it. Either that or leave a remark. Want to make sure people are reading this.

Everyone who responds to this blog through email and you must include full name in the address will be entered to win a signed puck from a Los Angeles Kings player. So email me and the puck may be yours. All entries must be sent to me by Sunday at 9 PM WST. Which is Midnight on East. Send them in.

SC

There is a Lot to talk about so this maybe a two part blog as I'm almost done with class number one.

First lets talk about the Los Angeles Kings. Usually I don't really want to talk about regular Kings news but this is not regular Kings news

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2762817

The Kings will apparently be starting next season in London, England. If this is going to happen I hope the Kings are offering packages because I will be off to London. I've wanted to goto England for a while now and what is the best time to goto England. It is me being drunk in London. I would have to miss school but it would be worth it to fly to England catch hockey in England. Any LTH listeners want to house a 21 yr old American college student?


So next we have some trade talk.

Belanger traded to Atlanta, Vitaly Vishnevski to Nashville

Belanger was traded for the second straight day and now he ended up in Atlanta. Apparently Nashville tried to get Vasicek to Atlanta for Vishnevski and that did not work out so they went after Belanger and got him to be a part of their team. When Don Waddell heard this in Atlanta he phoned Nashville and the deal was struck. Atlanta is using Belanger as a top six forward while Steve Rucchin is injured and he has been paired with Hossa and Kozlov. Vishnevski, like Belanger, was a healthy scratch recently and going to Atlanta will be huge for him. He is a big bruising hitter and that is something that Nashville really needs come playoff time. He's been deep in the playoffs and that is important to a team like Nashville. I also now have another jersey on order for his Atlanta jersey. If they made a Nashville jersey it will cost me 200 bucks for it. Not bad.

Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau and a conditional 4th round pick to Calgary, Chuck Kobasew and Andrew Ference to Boston.

Interesting deal as Stuart was the prized defensive option in this season's trade deadline. I think he is a better option then Eric Brewer. What surprised me most about this deal was Boston did not get a first round draft pick and ended up, most likely, giving up the only draft pick in a 4th round pick. The 4th round pick will be Calgary's if they cannot resign Stuart in the off season. Of course looking at this trade there is no way you cannot look back at the Joe Thornton trade. Considering that both Stuart and Primeau were in on that trade it know looks like this. Joe Thornton for Chuck Kobasew Andrew Ference and Marco Sturm. Now there is also a good possibility that Marco Sturm gets traded as well. This was a great trade for Calgary. They now have Stuart, Phaneuf, Hamrlik, Rehger and others on the blue line. They have made the first steps towards winning the Northwest division. Also getting a great defensive center in Wayne Primeau is important in the playoffs. Now if you are a Bruins fan it is okay if you want to cry a little bit. The return for Stuart was much lower than it should have been in my opinion. Ference is 27 years old and there is a good chance eventually he will also leave Boston. Kobasew has played for Boston College and is a very good fast player but he has been injured recently. He has 17 points in 40 games this year. Not great. Positive upside is Kobasew is only 24(Turning 25 in April) so there is a lot of room to grow. Great trade for the Calgary Flames. Boston could have done a lot better. Hopefully if they trade Sturm they get a damn good return to make up for this one.

Nagy to Dallas, Tjarnqvist and 1st in 07.

Nagy has been under achieving this year in my opinion as he only has 8 goals and the last of which was on January 20th. Nagy falls into the talented but often injured Slovak Pak which is around the NHL. Dallas wanted to bolster their offense and this is one way to do it. Nagy will be a help and I think getting away from Phoenix will be the best thing for him. He seemed to always have problems with Phoenix. He is a unrestricted free agent at seasons end and it is highly doubtful he would have resigned with Phoenix. I don't think he'll sign with Dallas either. I can see him going to Minnesota to be with fellow Slovak's Gaborik and Demitra and form another Slovak line in Minnesota. Phoenix knew they were not going to sign Nagy so they got back the best possible return. Tjarnqvist has four points this year and overall he is not going to be much of an impact. He is an older player too at the age of 27 so don't expect much. The key of course is the 1st round pick that Phoenix got this year. They'll probably pick between 20-30th which will be a solid prospect along with their own draft pick which will be top 5 most likely. Good pick up for both teams as both are going in different directions. The question with a trade like this is does Shane Doan get traded as well. He's the last remaining player on the roster who played with the Winnipeg Jets. There is history and tradition there but if they can't lock him up to a contract before the deadline he will most likely be traded.

That is going to be all for today as I wrote a lot about the trades and of course there are good chances that more trades will go down today as many teams will respond. I most likely will not blog tomorrow as I work and play hockey so there is not much time for me to blog. So expect an action packed Wednesday.

Someone e-mail me that you are reading this so I don't feel like I am doing this all for not. Thanks

SC