Alumni in the Playoffs - 2010

NHL

Douglas Murray and the top-seeded San Jose Sharks play the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs starting tonight. The first five games of this series are scheduled to be televised on Vs., though the times aren't ideal for Eastern Time Zone viewers.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Montreal Canadiens squeaked into the Eastern Conference playoffs and start their series against the Washington Capitals tomorrow. Games 1, 2, 5 and 6 of this series are also scheduled to be televised on Vs. O'Byrne was in the lineup for each of the Canadiens' last five regular season games, but in their final game on Saturday he was the seventh defenseman and played only 1:46, so it might be that he'll be the odd man out in the postseason.

Byron Bitz's Florida Panthers missed the NHL playoffs.

AHL

Ray Sawada's Dallas Stars also missed the NHL playoffs, but he's currently listed on the roster for their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars, who start their first-round playoff series against the Rockford IceHogs on Friday.

Jon Gleed and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers start their playoff series against the top-seeded Hershey Bears tonight.

Ryan Vesce and the Worcester Sharks finished first in the Atlantic Division of the AHL, and start their first-round playoff series against the Lowell Devils tonight.

ECHL

After short stints with the AHL's Portland Pirates and Manitoba Moose earlier this season, Mark McCutcheon rejoined Evan Barlow with the Idaho Steelheads. The team won the Brabham Cup for the best regular-season record in the ECHL this season and earned a bye into the second round of the playoffs. Their first series, against the Utah Grizzlies, starts on Friday. Barlow, incidentally, was 2nd on the team and 7th in the league with 75 points this season.

Sasha Pokulok and the Bakersfield Condors won their first-round playoff series against the Victoria Salmon Kings three games to two, and will play the Stockton Thunder in the second round. Pokulok had no points and was -4 over the five games.

CHL

Dave McKee's Allen Americans, in the team's first year of existence, finished second in the CHL's Southern Conference and earned a bye to the second round of the playoffs, where they beat the Laredo Bucks four games to three. They're now tied 1-1 with the Odessa Jackalopes in the Southern Conference finals. McKee, however, has been backing up Chris Whitley, and his only game action came in relief in a 5-1 loss in the fifth game of their first series, when he allowed 2 goals on 14 shots over 36:54 of ice time.

Topher Scott and the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees missed the CHL playoffs.

Europe

Mike Iggulden and Dynamo Riga upset SKA St. Petersburg in the first round of the KHL playoffs, but were eliminated by HK MVD Balashikha in the second round. Iggulden seems to have played in most or all of Dinamo's playoff games, but was held off the scoresheet.

Charlie Cook and Rauman Lukko finished third in the regular season of the Finnish SM-liiga, but were swept by TPS Turku in their first playoff series. Cook didn't have any points in the four games, but his whole team only scored four goals in the series. He also had two penalties for koukkaaminen, and one for pelin viivyttäminen - kiekko katsomoon. I have no idea what those mean, but Finnish words are funny so there they are.

Mike Knoepfli and Fribourg-Gottéron were eliminated by Genève-Servette HC in seven games in the first round of the Swiss National League playoffs. Knoepfli had no points in the series.

David LeNeveu and Red Bull Salzburg won the championship of the Erste Bank league, the top level in Austria, for the third time in the last four years after defeating Black Wings Linz in the finals. LeNeveu played all four of Red Bull's wins in the finals, beating Yale alum Alex Westlund (who was the league's MVP) in the process. Red Bull also won the IIHF Continental Cup back in January.

Cam and Chris Abbott and Lulea HF missed the playoffs in the Swedish Elitserien.

I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Josh '99
NHL

Douglas Murray and the top-seeded San Jose Sharks play the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs starting tonight. The first five games of this series are scheduled to be televised on Vs., though the times aren't ideal for Eastern Time Zone viewers.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Montreal Canadiens squeaked into the Eastern Conference playoffs and start their series against the Washington Capitals tomorrow. Games 1, 2, 5 and 6 of this series are also scheduled to be televised on Vs. O'Byrne was in the lineup for each of the Canadiens' last five regular season games, but in their final game on Saturday he was the seventh defenseman and played only 1:46, so it might be that he'll be the odd man out in the postseason.

Byron Bitz's Florida Panthers missed the NHL playoffs.
...

I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Amazing work. One omission: Matt Moulson's New York Islanders missed the playoffs

Josh '99
I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Free time at work today? :D

judy

Josh '99
I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Free time at work today? :D

I think that's a, more than today, report.

Thanks for doing it. You should submit it to CU.

Also:

Kevin McLeod's Texas Brahamas were eliminated in the second round of the CHL playoffs.
Doug Krantz's Cincinnati Cyclones are still alive in the ECHL playoffs, playing the Charlotte Checkers.
Tony Romano's Toledo Walleye were eliminated from the ECHL playoffs in the first round.

pfibiger
Also:

Kevin McLeod's Texas Brahamas were eliminated in the second round of the CHL playoffs.
Doug Krantz's Cincinnati Cyclones are still alive in the ECHL playoffs, playing the Charlotte Checkers.
Tony Romano's Toledo Walleye were eliminated from the ECHL playoffs in the first round.

Damn, I missed a few.

Also: Go Marv!

pfibiger
Amazing work. One omission: Matt Moulson's New York Islanders missed the playoffs

The Islanders missing the playoffs goes without saying.

Not too far off topic since it involves me not being able to watch Murray and O'Byrne. Apparently Comcast's version of NHL center Ice does NOT include the playoff games that are not being carried on VS and NBC. Thus, like for tonight, I cannot watch Philly/NJ or SJ/Col.

When I had NHL Center Ice with DirectTV I could watch these games. I called Comcast and they said terms were for regular season only. So does anyone else have Comcast's NHL Center ice and getting Philly/NJ? Are the Direct TV people getting the Philly game?

I'm so dropping Comcast () in August (in time for the NFL Sunday Ticket).

Josh '99

Charlie Cook and Rauman Lukko finished third in the regular season of the Finnish SM-liiga, but were swept by TPS Turku in their first playoff series. Cook didn't have any points in the four games, but his whole team only scored four goals in the series. He also had two penalties for koukkaaminen, and one for pelin viivyttäminen - kiekko katsomoon. I have no idea what those mean, but Finnish words are funny so there they are.

Thanks Josh!

Google translate says:
"hooking"
"delaying the game - puck in the stands"

Josh '99

pfibiger
Amazing work. One omission: Matt Moulson's New York Islanders missed the playoffs

The Islanders missing the playoffs goes without saying.

We were only talking about pro teams.

Josh '99

pfibiger
Amazing work. One omission: Matt Moulson's New York Islanders missed the playoffs

The Islanders missing the playoffs goes without saying.

This whole thread was just a set-up for that, wasn't it?

Rita
Not too far off topic since it involves me not being able to watch Murray and O'Byrne. Apparently Comcast's version of NHL center Ice does NOT include the playoff games that are not being carried on VS and NBC. Thus, like for tonight, I cannot watch Philly/NJ or SJ/Col.

When I had NHL Center Ice with DirectTV I could watch these games. I called Comcast and they said terms were for regular season only. So does anyone else have Comcast's NHL Center ice and getting Philly/NJ? Are the Direct TV people getting the Philly game?

I'm so dropping Comcast () in August (in time for the NFL Sunday Ticket).

I have the Philly/NJ game. Game 13. It's been good so far too. Go Flyers!

as a side, SJ/COL is on VS. tonight....

Flyers1037

Rita
Not too far off topic since it involves me not being able to watch Murray and O'Byrne. Apparently Comcast's version of NHL center Ice does NOT include the playoff games that are not being carried on VS and NBC. Thus, like for tonight, I cannot watch Philly/NJ or SJ/Col.

When I had NHL Center Ice with DirectTV I could watch these games. I called Comcast and they said terms were for regular season only. So does anyone else have Comcast's NHL Center ice and getting Philly/NJ? Are the Direct TV people getting the Philly game?

I'm so dropping Comcast () in August (in time for the NFL Sunday Ticket).

I have the Philly/NJ game. Game 13. It's been good so far too. Go Flyers!

as a side, SJ/COL is on VS. tonight....

My TV guide and the VS talking heads say it is Det/Phx. The Comcast tech support person I talked to said it should be on Game 13, but I have the "this is a subscription service". I went through all my 700 channels and no game.

More phone calls tomorrow. Maybe I can get some answers during business hours especially when I point out that Washington DC's comcast got it right. Thanks for the info.

Rita
Not too far off topic since it involves me not being able to watch Murray and O'Byrne. Apparently Comcast's version of NHL center Ice does NOT include the playoff games that are not being carried on VS and NBC. Thus, like for tonight, I cannot watch Philly/NJ or SJ/Col.

When I had NHL Center Ice with DirectTV I could watch these games. I called Comcast and they said terms were for regular season only. So does anyone else have Comcast's NHL Center ice and getting Philly/NJ? Are the Direct TV people getting the Philly game?

I'm so dropping Comcast () in August (in time for the NFL Sunday Ticket).

unless you want to follow a specific team, the best channel by far within the nfl sunday ticket is the red zone channel which switches from game to game based on what is going on. i subscribed to the sunday ticket last year and the red zone was what i watched 99% of the time

as part of a deal cut with directv last year, the nfl now runs their own red zone channel which they offer through other (non-directv) pay tv providers. i know that dish network has the red zone channel as part of their multisport package which you can get for $7 per month or $69 per year. that compares to directv's sunday ticket which costs $300 for the season if you want it in hd

dish's version of center ice includes the playoffs

Josh '99
I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Dan Ratushny is coaching Olsten (Swiss B league). I think they finished second in the regular season but lost in the second round of the playoffs. It seemed like he did a credible job as a coach but I can't read any of the articles......foreign languages aren't my strength!

RatushnyFan

Josh '99
I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Dan Ratushny is coaching Olsten (Swiss B league). I think they finished second in the regular season but lost in the second round of the playoffs. It seemed like he did a credible job as a coach but I can't read any of the articles......foreign languages aren't my strength!

Brian McCutcheon is in the playoffs with the Sabres.

Lauren '06

Josh '99

pfibiger
Amazing work. One omission: Matt Moulson's New York Islanders missed the playoffs

The Islanders missing the playoffs goes without saying.

This whole thread was just a set-up for that, wasn't it?

I wish I could take credit for having that in mind from the beginning, but it was just a happy coincidence.

O'byrne did not get to play in tonight's game. It seems they are going for more offense from their defense due to playing the high scoring capitals.

Do you get more than 10 minutes for morning break, or do you type fast? Either way, this is awesome.

RatushnyFan

Josh '99
I think that's everybody, but let me know if I missed anybody.

Dan Ratushny is coaching Olsten (Swiss B league). I think they finished second in the regular season but lost in the second round of the playoffs. It seemed like he did a credible job as a coach but I can't read any of the articles......foreign languages aren't my strength!

I'm too lazy to look it up, but should that be Olten, without an 's'?

Yes, typo. Good catch, you're up on your Swiss B league spelling!!

Here are some updates:

Douglas Murray and the Sharks were on the verge of going down 2-0 in their series against the Avalanche, trailing five separate times (1-0, 2-1, 3-2, 4-3 and 5-4) in tonight's game 2 after losing game 1 2-1 on Wednesday, but tied the game at 5 with 32 seconds left in regulation and won 5:22 into overtime. Murray was -1 in tonight's game (even on Wednesday) and had a bad giveaway in OT leading to a rush for the Avs, but he's regularly up there in minutes and I expect that to continue regardless.

Ryan O'Byrne was scratched from the lineup as the Canadiens beat the Capitals 3-2 in overtime in game 1 of their series.

Raymond Sawada scored a power play goal and the Texas Stars beat the Rockford IceHogs 2-1 tonight in the first game of their playoff series.

Jon Gleed's Bridgeport Sound Tigers are down 2-0 in their series against the Hershey Bears; they lost 4-3 in overtime on Wednesday and 3-2 tonight. Gleed played in both games but had no points, no penalty minutes, and even +/-.

Ryan Vesce's Worcester Sharks are tied 1-1 in their series against the Lowell Devils. On Wednesday Vesce had an assist but the Sharks lost 3-2; last night he scored in overtime in a 3-2 win. Also, I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but Vesce is the captain of his team.

Doug Krantz was scratched from the lineup when the Cincinnati Cyclones beat the Charlotte Checkers 4-3 in the first game of their playoff series earlier tonight.

Evan Barlow, Mark McCutcheon and the Idaho Steelheads won the first game of their series against the Utah Grizzlies 7-2 earlier tonight. McCutcheon had two goals, one on the power play, and Barlow had a goal and the assist on McCutcheon's power play goal.

Sasha Pokulok's Bakersfield Condors lost 3-2 in overtime in the first game of their playoff series against the Stockton Thunder. Pokulok didn't have any points, but had 6 shots on goal, and was getting some important power play time during a short segment of the game that I listened to online at the end of regulation.

David McKee's Allen Americans lead their series against the Odessa Jackalopes 3-1 after winning last night and tonight; McKee continues to serve as the backup.

And in coaching news, Brian McCutcheon's Sabres beat the Bruins 2-1 in the first game of their first-round playoff series on Thursday night.

I guess we'll see whether I have the attention span to keep this going throughout the playoffs.

Thank you for taking the time to do this.

Nerds for Matt.

Murray had a couple of high-profile mistakes in that game (1 that led to an Avs goal and the OT giveaway) but overall I thought he played pretty well. It's always hard to tell on TV, but he was getting a lot of ice time and had some good shifts on the PK. I think he's one of SJ's top 4 at this point.

That game was nuts. The Avs scored in the first minute of the first and second periods. The Sharks scored in the 19th minute in every period in regulation.

RatushnyFan
Yes, typo. Good catch, you're up on your Swiss B league spelling!!

I remember Olten being a nearby village when I lived in Bern, and then Wangen bei Olten was in the news because of the Swiss minaret ban.

Tom Lento
It's always hard to tell on TV, but he was getting a lot of ice time and had some good shifts on the PK. I think he's one of SJ's top 4 at this point.

Box score shows him with the 3rd most minutes (20:29) on ice among San Jose D, behind Boyle (nearly 31 mins!) and Blake (24:29). He was 4th among the D in TOI in Game 1.

Not alumni in the playoffs per se, but an article about the Abbotts.

[www.theobserver.ca]

Unfortunately Murray has an unofficial assist on a Sharks own goal against the Avalanche. Murray passed it to Boyle who tried to sling the puck behind the net but missed and landed it in the net during OT. Puts the Avs up 2-1 in the series.

munchkin
Unfortunately Murray has an unofficial assist on a Sharks own goal against the Avalanche. Murray passed it to Boyle who tried to sling the puck behind the net but missed and landed it in the net during OT. Puts the Avs up 2-1 in the series.

It wasn't in any way Murray's fault, though.
That whole play was just weird. I thought at the time it must have gone off a stick, but on the replay it just looked like a great jai alai shot.

I was at the game and it was one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. San Jose just dominated the Avs. Didn't see Murray much because Colorado barely played any offense. SOG was 51 to 16 then San Jose toss it in their own net. Unreal.

scannon
I was at the game and it was one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. San Jose just dominated the Avs. Didn't see Murray much because Colorado barely played any offense. SOG was 51 to 16 then San Jose toss it in their own net. Unreal.

I adopted the Sharks as my NHL team when I moved out to the Bay Area. I suppose this is what I get. Sigh.

The few times I saw Murray on TV he was playing pretty well. He almost created a goal late in the third at the end of that last PP - got a good shot on net through traffic but as the Sharks couldn't get to the rebound.

Only the Sharks. As Munchkin pointed out, Douglas Murray's team is down 2-1 in their series thanks to a great flub by Dan Boyle after the Sharks had totally dominated the game. Game 4 is tomorrow night in Denver.

Ryan O'Byrne was again a healthy scratch as the Canadiens lost to the Capitals 6-5 in overtime on Saturday. Game 3 is tonight in Montreal.

Raymond Sawada scored a goal for a second straight game, and his Texas Stars beat the Rockford IceHogs 3-1 to take a 2-0 series lead. Sawada also took a 10-minute misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct late in the third period. The series resumes in Illinois on Wednesday.

Jon Gleed's Bridgeport Sound Tigers trail the Hershey Bears 3-1 in their series, falling behind 3-0 with a 7-2 loss on Saturday before staving off elimination with a 4-1 win yesterday. Gleed was even with 1 SOG in the loss, and -1 with a roughing minor in the win. Game 5 is in Pennsylvania on Wednesday, with the series returning to Connecticut on Friday if the Sound Tigers win.

Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup as the Worcester Sharks beat the Lowell Devils 3-2 yesterday afternoon to take a 2-1 series lead. I haven't been able to find an explanation as to why he missed the game, or prediction as to whether he'll play in game 4 in Lowell tomorrow night.

Evan Barlow, Mark McCutcheon and the Idaho Steelheads beat the Utah Grizzlies 4-3 on Saturday to take a 2-0 lead in their playoff series, which resumes in Utah tomorrow night. Barlow had another 1 G, 1 A game, his second in a row in the series; McCutcheon was held off the scoreboard, but was +1 with 5 shots on goal.

Sasha Pokulok scored his first goal for the Bakersfield Condors on Saturday, but the team lost to the Stockton Thunder in overtime for a second consecutive game and trail their series 2-0. The series resumes in Stockton on Wednesday night.

Doug Krantz was again out of the lineup as his Cincinnati Cyclones fell to the Charlotte Checkers 5-0 on Saturday; the series is tied 1-1 and resumes in Cincinnati on Wednesday night.

Dave McKee continued to serve as the backup goalkeeper as his Allen Americans lost 6-3 to the Odessa Jackalopes on Saturday night. They still lead their series 3-2, but will have to try to win it on the road as games 6 and (if necessary) 7 will be played in Odessa, starting tonight.

Tom Lento

scannon
I was at the game and it was one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. San Jose just dominated the Avs. Didn't see Murray much because Colorado barely played any offense. SOG was 51 to 16 then San Jose toss it in their own net. Unreal.

I adopted the Sharks as my NHL team when I moved out to the Bay Area. I suppose this is what I get. Sigh.

The few times I saw Murray on TV he was playing pretty well. He almost created a goal late in the third at the end of that last PP - got a good shot on net through traffic but as the Sharks couldn't get to the rebound.

Phew. I thought the Sharks poor performance in the playoffs was my fault and due to my decision to root for them when they signed Murray . Now I can blame it all on Tom .

Josh '99


Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup as the Worcester Sharks beat the Lowell Devils 3-2 yesterday afternoon to take a 2-1 series lead. I haven't been able to find an explanation as to why he missed the game, or prediction as to whether he'll play in game 4 in Lowell tomorrow night.

I would assume one of two things. Either he suffered an injury (though he scored in overtime the previous game so no indication that he left that game), or he's getting called up to San Jose. The captain of the team and one of its leading scorers wouldn't just be a normal healthy scratch. But I haven't been able to find any confirmation of the actual reason.

He's mentioned as scoring the OT winner in game 2 in this preview of game 3: [www.sharksahl.com]

Weird that I can't find a note anywhere as to why he wasn't in the lineup game 3.

Ronald '09

Josh '99


Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup as the Worcester Sharks beat the Lowell Devils 3-2 yesterday afternoon to take a 2-1 series lead. I haven't been able to find an explanation as to why he missed the game, or prediction as to whether he'll play in game 4 in Lowell tomorrow night.

I would assume one of two things. Either he suffered an injury (though he scored in overtime the previous game so no indication that he left that game), or he's getting called up to San Jose. The captain of the team and one of its leading scorers wouldn't just be a normal healthy scratch. But I haven't been able to find any confirmation of the actual reason.

Could reverberations from the Heatley injury result in them needing to bring him up? Probably not since he's a center I would think but others would probably know better than me.

San Jose may well have entered the "don't just stand there, run screaming!" stage.

Rita

Tom Lento

scannon
I was at the game and it was one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. San Jose just dominated the Avs. Didn't see Murray much because Colorado barely played any offense. SOG was 51 to 16 then San Jose toss it in their own net. Unreal.

I adopted the Sharks as my NHL team when I moved out to the Bay Area. I suppose this is what I get. Sigh.

The few times I saw Murray on TV he was playing pretty well. He almost created a goal late in the third at the end of that last PP - got a good shot on net through traffic but as the Sharks couldn't get to the rebound.

Phew. I thought the Sharks poor performance in the playoffs was my fault and due to my decision to root for them when they signed Murray . Now I can blame it all on Tom .

Hey, you can't blame *all* of it on me. Just the last 2 years.

Habs fans on HFBoards.com are clamoring to have O'Byrne back in the lineup for some physicality and toughness after a disappointing showing by the Montreal D in Game 3.

Ronald '09

Josh '99


Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup as the Worcester Sharks beat the Lowell Devils 3-2 yesterday afternoon to take a 2-1 series lead. I haven't been able to find an explanation as to why he missed the game, or prediction as to whether he'll play in game 4 in Lowell tomorrow night.

I would assume one of two things. Either he suffered an injury (though he scored in overtime the previous game so no indication that he left that game), or he's getting called up to San Jose. The captain of the team and one of its leading scorers wouldn't just be a normal healthy scratch. But I haven't been able to find any confirmation of the actual reason.

He's mentioned as scoring the OT winner in game 2 in this preview of game 3: [www.sharksahl.com]

Weird that I can't find a note anywhere as to why he wasn't in the lineup game 3.

Yeah, I figured one of those would have been the explanation. I have to assume if he were being called up it would've been mentioned on either the SJ Sharks or Worcester Sharks websites, and there isn't anything on either to indicate that. Seems to be likeliest that he either suffered a minor injury during game 2 that wasn't bad enough to keep him out of the rest of the game, or something in between games 2 and 3. Even so it's little odd because you'd expect a game story to explain why the team captain was out, even if it were just to say "day-to-day with a lower body injury" or something along those lines.

And here we go, from the preview of tonight's game 4:

Ryan Vesce had two points (1-1-2) – including the overtime winner in Game 2 – before missing Game 3 due to injury...

Nothing about whether he's expected to play tonight, though.

sah67
Habs fans on HFBoards.com are clamoring to have O'Byrne back in the lineup for some physicality and toughness after a disappointing showing by the Montreal D in Game 3.

They made a comment on Versus last night that the Montreal defense just wasn't physical enough. My thought was "That's what you get for leaving O'Byrne out of the lineup." I guess others think the same.

Trotsky

munchkin
Unfortunately Murray has an unofficial assist on a Sharks own goal against the Avalanche. Murray passed it to Boyle who tried to sling the puck behind the net but missed and landed it in the net during OT. Puts the Avs up 2-1 in the series.

It wasn't in any way Murray's fault, though.
That whole play was just weird. I thought at the time it must have gone off a stick, but on the replay it just looked like a great jai alai shot.

I may be nitpicking but I thought that Murray put the puck in a place where Boyle would be under immediate pressure. That doesn't mean that you shoot it into your own goal but I thought Murray could have made a better play there. Take it with a grain of salt, whenever you watch something 5 or more times you tend to get hyper critical.

RatushnyFan

Trotsky

munchkin
Unfortunately Murray has an unofficial assist on a Sharks own goal against the Avalanche. Murray passed it to Boyle who tried to sling the puck behind the net but missed and landed it in the net during OT. Puts the Avs up 2-1 in the series.

It wasn't in any way Murray's fault, though.
That whole play was just weird. I thought at the time it must have gone off a stick, but on the replay it just looked like a great jai alai shot.

I may be nitpicking but I thought that Murray put the puck in a place where Boyle would be under immediate pressure. That doesn't mean that you shoot it into your own goal but I thought Murray could have made a better play there. Take it with a grain of salt, whenever you watch something 5 or more times you tend to get hyper critical.

The more I watch the replay, the more I think it was just great forecheck by OReilly. I mean, Murray wasn't able to pick up which side of him OReilly was going to go to. He put his stick on Murray's right side to make it look like he was going behind the net, but was able to cut back and interrupt the pass to Boyle. Either way, I don't think the blame is squarely on anyone's shoulders on the sharks (Murray, Boyle, Nabakov), and it was still great pressure from OReilly. 999 times out of 1000 Boyle's pass goes right to Murray. That's playoff hockey...

Douglas Murray the "Wedge Buster" (according the SJ tv guys), gets an assist, and possibly credit for a couple of blocks, on the Sharks game-winning OT goal v. Colorado.

The post-game comments on Home Ice on XM made it sound like the goal was essentially driven by Murray's acceleration. He got a lot of love.

It was a nice play, very aggressive and effective. He picks his spots. About 5 minutes earlier he pulled up on a 3 on 2 rush, I think he wanted to get off the ice at the end of a shift.

The ladies have to be loving that hockey hair.

The Sharks commentators have an amusing series of you tube videos done in their hotel after the games. This most recent one also has a lot of Murray love.

&hl=en_US&fs=1&

munchkin
The Sharks commentators have an amusing series of you tube videos done in their hotel after the games. This most recent one also has a lot of Murray love.

&hl=en_US&fs=1&

The Sharks and the Blackhawks are probably the only two teams that can stop and laugh at themselves. They have the most hilarious videos.

Trotsky
The post-game comments on Home Ice on XM made it sound like the goal was essentially driven by Murray's acceleration. He got a lot of love.

Everyone should take this rare opportunity to enjoy the use of the phrase "Murray's acceleration" without it immediately being followed by "or lack thereof".

According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Rita
According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Actually those of us near Philly are lucky, too. CSN Philly is still covering the Flyers games. And occasionally, when the Flyers haven't been on, they feed the Caps broadcast from CSN DC.

Jeff Hopkins '82

Rita
According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Actually those of us near Philly are lucky, too. CSN Philly is still covering the Flyers games. And occasionally, when the Flyers haven't been on, they feed the Caps broadcast from CSN DC.

Actually, those of us in the DC area don't have CSN blacked out. If they blacked it out, there would be an uproar. We already bitch enough as it is when they put the Wizards on CSN (HD) and the Caps on CSN+ (crap ass standard)

Jon Gleed's Bridgeport Sound Tigers were eliminated from the playoffs last night by Hershey. They were outshot 34-7 in the game, though in fairness their only first-period shot was a goal.

[theahl.com]

judy

Jeff Hopkins '82

Rita
According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Actually those of us near Philly are lucky, too. CSN Philly is still covering the Flyers games. And occasionally, when the Flyers haven't been on, they feed the Caps broadcast from CSN DC.

Actually, those of us in the DC area don't have CSN blacked out. If they blacked it out, there would be an uproar. We already bitch enough as it is when they put the Wizards on CSN (HD) and the Caps on CSN+ (crap ass standard)

The caps and flyers game are through your local sports channel and not center ice correct? So, are you able to watch the Sharks (or Detroit, Chicago, Boston etc) when they play and when that game is not carried by Versus?

If the local Florida Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightening were in the playoffs, I believe those games would be carried on the local SunSports network, the same network that carries the Heat, Marlins and Rays. If I tune into the NHL Center Ice stations (now being co-shared with MLB extra inninigs), I see listings for the hockey games not being carried by Versus, and the notice that viewing this event requires a subscription. I spent over an hour with Comcast explaining how NHL Center Ice does indeed carry through to the first 2 rounds of the playoffs, but they were adamant that it ended with the regular season.

Fortunately, Versus has been doing a good job in cutting into the other games still in progress after their main game(s) of the night end.

Rita
Fortunately, Versus has been doing a good job in cutting into the other games still in progress after their main game(s) of the night end.

The Versus schedule is predetermined. Even what they call "bonus coverage" is already listed on NHL.com as being covered by Versus, either from the beginning or joined in progress. I haven't seen any JIP's of games not already on the schedule.

Not sure what that contributes to the conversation, but there you go...

Updates updates updates:

Douglas Murray's Sharks evened their series with the Avalanche at two games apiece on Tuesday night, winning 2-1 in the third consecutive overtime game in the series. Murray was +1 and had the primary assist on Joe Pavelski's overtime goal, carrying the puck up the ice, dishing to Pavelski, and then setting a screen and simultaneously driving two or three Colorado defenders out of the way. (In hindsight, it might have been interference, but oh well.) Game 5 is tonight in San Jose and will be televised on Vs. (maybe joined in progress after the end of the Chicago-Nashville game).

Ryan O'Byrne was in the Canadiens' lineup for the first time in the playoffs last night, but the result was the same as the Capitals won 6-3, pulling away with two quick goals midway through the third period. O'Byrne was +1 in just 13:05 of ice time (on a night when many Canadiens skaters were -2 or -3), with two shots on goal and no penalties. The series, which the Capitals now lead 3-1, continues in Washington on Friday night; game 5 will be televised on Vs.

Raymond Sawada's Texas Stars stretched their series lead over the Rockford IceHogs to 3-0 with a 6-1 road win (powered by a four-goal second period) last night. Sawada was held scoreless after goals in each of the first two games, with an even +/- and two shots on goal. The Stars will attempt to complete the sweep in Illinois tomorrow night.

Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup again last night, but his Worcester Sharks beat the Lowell Devils 5-1 to win their Division Semifinals series four games to one. They will play the Manchester Monarchs in the Division Finals, with game 1 scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Worcester; hopefully Vesce will be ready to go by then.

As Amerks127 pointed out upthread, Jon Gleed's Bridgeport Sound Tigers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Hershey Bears, losing both the game and the series 4-1. Gleed had another quiet game; he took an interference penalty (during which the Sound Tigers scored shorthanded, their only goal of the game) but had no points, no shots on goal, and an even +/-.

Mark McCutcheon, Evan Barlow and the Idaho Steelheads pushed the Utah Grizzlies to the brink of elimination with a 6-1 win in Utah on Tuesday night; they will attempt to complete the sweep of the best-of-seven series on the road tomorrow night. In game 3, McCutcheon had a goal and an assist, and Barlow had an assist.

Sasha Pokulok's Bakersfield Condors reduced their deficit in their series against the Stockton Thunder to one game with a 3-0 win on the road in game 3 last night. Pokulok had the primary assists on the Condors' first two goals, the second coming on the power play, and was +1 with one shot on goal and one minor penalty. Game 4 is in Stockton tomorrow night. Incidentally, if the Condors come back to win their series, they and the Idaho Steelheads are bracketed together in the conference finals.

Doug Krantz returned to the lineup for the Cincinnati Cyclones and had a goal and was +1 in a 9-5 goalfest that gave the Cyclones a 2-1 lead in their series. (Krantz may have missed the first two games of the series due to injury; he played all five games of the Cyclones' first-round playoff series against the South Carolina Stingrays, but, according to the recap, was boarded in overtime of the clinching game.) The series continues in Cincinnati tomorrow night.

David McKee's Allen Americans lost game 6 of their playoff series against the Odessa Jackalopes 4-3 in overtime on Monday night, but won game 7 by a 4-2 score in Odessa last night to advance to the Ray Miron President's Cup Finals against the Rapid City Rush. However, McKee was not dressed for either game 6 or game 7. The championship series begins in Rapid City tomorrow night.

Rita

judy

Jeff Hopkins '82

Rita
According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Actually those of us near Philly are lucky, too. CSN Philly is still covering the Flyers games. And occasionally, when the Flyers haven't been on, they feed the Caps broadcast from CSN DC.

Actually, those of us in the DC area don't have CSN blacked out. If they blacked it out, there would be an uproar. We already bitch enough as it is when they put the Wizards on CSN (HD) and the Caps on CSN+ (crap ass standard)

The caps and flyers game are through your local sports channel and not center ice correct? So, are you able to watch the Sharks (or Detroit, Chicago, Boston etc) when they play and when that game is not carried by Versus?

If the local Florida Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightening were in the playoffs, I believe those games would be carried on the local SunSports network, the same network that carries the Heat, Marlins and Rays. If I tune into the NHL Center Ice stations (now being co-shared with MLB extra inninigs), I see listings for the hockey games not being carried by Versus, and the notice that viewing this event requires a subscription. I spent over an hour with Comcast explaining how NHL Center Ice does indeed carry through to the first 2 rounds of the playoffs, but they were adamant that it ended with the regular season.

Fortunately, Versus has been doing a good job in cutting into the other games still in progress after their main game(s) of the night end.

From what I understand of the Directv/Center Ice deal, the only NHL hockey I can watch without Center Ice is anything shown on Versus, NBC, and what is shown to me on my local sports network (CSN, CSN+- channels 642, 643). Everything else is blacked out. So for example, tonight's San Jose game, I will only get the Versus join in progress portion of it, unless I find some feed on the internet. Way back when I first got directv, I don't know if they had my programming wrong or if Center Ice didn't have such a strangle hold on the NHL broadcasts but I remember having a center ice subscription and the games on the sports pack were not blacked out so I could watch it either through the various local channels or through center ice.

judy

Rita

judy

Jeff Hopkins '82

Rita
According to NHL.com, Ryan O'Byrne is seeing some playoff action tonight. He is a +1, no PIMs with 8:42 of ice time through 2 periods.

Unfortunately, I can't watch him play, because the Assholes at Comcast Miami say that my Center Ice package ended on 4/12 and that playoffs are not included . So those of you with Comcast in DC are pretty darn lucky that your Comcast flunkies haven't shut down the hockey feeds.

Actually those of us near Philly are lucky, too. CSN Philly is still covering the Flyers games. And occasionally, when the Flyers haven't been on, they feed the Caps broadcast from CSN DC.

Actually, those of us in the DC area don't have CSN blacked out. If they blacked it out, there would be an uproar. We already bitch enough as it is when they put the Wizards on CSN (HD) and the Caps on CSN+ (crap ass standard)

The caps and flyers game are through your local sports channel and not center ice correct? So, are you able to watch the Sharks (or Detroit, Chicago, Boston etc) when they play and when that game is not carried by Versus?

If the local Florida Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightening were in the playoffs, I believe those games would be carried on the local SunSports network, the same network that carries the Heat, Marlins and Rays. If I tune into the NHL Center Ice stations (now being co-shared with MLB extra inninigs), I see listings for the hockey games not being carried by Versus, and the notice that viewing this event requires a subscription. I spent over an hour with Comcast explaining how NHL Center Ice does indeed carry through to the first 2 rounds of the playoffs, but they were adamant that it ended with the regular season.

Fortunately, Versus has been doing a good job in cutting into the other games still in progress after their main game(s) of the night end.

From what I understand of the Directv/Center Ice deal, the only NHL hockey I can watch without Center Ice is anything shown on Versus, NBC, and what is shown to me on my local sports network (CSN, CSN+- channels 642, 643). Everything else is blacked out. So for example, tonight's San Jose game, I will only get the Versus join in progress portion of it, unless I find some feed on the internet. Way back when I first got directv, I don't know if they had my programming wrong or if Center Ice didn't have such a strangle hold on the NHL broadcasts but I remember having a center ice subscription and the games on the sports pack were not blacked out so I could watch it either through the various local channels or through center ice.

I have Center Ice (DC/Baltimore Comcast) and I have all the playoff games. If VS. is the one actually broadcasting the game, then I won't get that on Center Ice. Also, I don't get the Caps games on Center Ice. I DO get all the other games even if VS is showing the game courtesy of another TV network. So I can watch Douglas play from the start of the game to the end of the game, regardless of what VS. does. So yes, I guess I am really lucky. Watching the Flyers tonight. Go Flyers!

Murray on ice for the 3rd San Jose goal of the night (not sure about the other 2, VS hadn't cut to the game for them).

Murray scores his first career playoff goal into an empty-net to finish off the Sharks 5-2 win over Colorado. San Jose takes the series 4-2.

sah67
Murray scores his first career playoff goal into an empty-net to finish off the Sharks 5-2 win over Colorado. San Jose takes the series 4-2.

Add to that 2 assists and a +3 for the game, all coming in the 3rd period!

Updates:

As mentioned upthread, Douglas Murray and the Sharks won their series over the Avalanche in six games, blowing out the Avs 5-0 in San Jose on Thursday and then clinching the series with a 5-2 win last night. Murray had an assist and was +2 in Thursday's game, and then an empty net goal and two assists (one also coming on an ENG, the other on Joe Pavelski's game-winning goal) and was +3, though he was probably also guilty of puck-watching on the Avs' first goal. Because the NHL re-seeds between rounds and the other three Western Conference series are ongoing, their second-round opponent is still uncertain; it could be the Coyotes, the Red Wings, the Kings or the Predators.

Ryan O'Byrne remained in the lineup and saw more ice time (16:53 vs. 13:05 the previous game) as his Canadiens beat the Capitals 2-1 on Friday. O'Byrne had no points, an even +/-, 3 shots on goal and a holding minor. The Canadiens still trail the series 3-2, but have game 6 at home in Montreal tomorrow night; the game will be televised on Vs.

Raymond Sawada's Texas Stars completed a four-game sweep of the Rockford IceHogs with a 4-2 win in Illinois on Friday night. Sawada again found the scoresheet with an assist (on the Stars' series-clinching empty-netter) and was +1. Their second-round series will be against the Milwaukee Admirals or the Chicago Wolves, who are tied 3-3 and play game 7 in Chicago tomorrow night. The Stars will have home-ice advantage in the next series if Milwaukee wins, but not if Chicago wins.

Ryan Vesce was still out of the lineup as his Worcester Sharks began their Division Final series against the Manchester Monarchs with a 4-3 win in Worcester this afternoon. Game 2 will also be in Worcester on Wednesday night.

Mark McCutcheon, Evan Barlow and the Idaho Steelheads also swept their first playoff series, eliminating the Utah Grizzlies with a 4-1 win in Utah on Friday night. Barlow had a goal in the clincher, and McCutcheon was named the game's second star for tallying a goal and two assists (one on Barlow's goal). They'll start their Conference Final series against the Stockton Thunder on Friday night in Idaho.

Unfortunately, if you've been paying attention, you know that means that the Thunder eliminated Sasha Pokulok's Bakersfield Condors in the Conference Semifinal series. The Thunder took game 4 6-2 on Friday night and game 5 7-4 last night to wrap up a 4-1 series victory. Pokulok was -1 with a fighting major on Friday, and had one shot on goal in an otherwise empty personal scoresheet on Saturday.

David McKee was back in the lineup as the backup goalie for the Allen Americans in the first two games of the CHL championship series against the Rapid City Rush. The Americans won game 1 4-1 on Friday night and lost game 2 5-4 in overtime last night, both on the road. The series continues with three games in Allen this Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and (if necessary) will conclude with two more games in Rapid City next Tuesday and Friday. If you're curious, the goalie McKee is backing up is 27-year-old Chris Whitley, who played collegiately for Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario until 2008-09, and had a one-game cup of coffee for the AHL's Lake Erie Monsters earlier this season.

O'Byrne just took a high-sticking penalty with 1:40 left leading 2-1. Now :40 left with Washington's goalie out of net

scoop85
O'Byrne just took a high-sticking penalty with 1:40 left leading 2-1. Now :40 left with Washington's goalie out of net

Montreal hangs on and now will play Pittsburgh. Right before OB took that penalty, Sam Rosen gave OB a lot of praise about the quality minutes he had given the Montreal D, especially since the Habs were mainly going with 4 defensemen in the 3rd period. Ryan had just under 20 minutes (19:39) in ice time tonight.

Matt Moulson is guest host on The Daily Line, now on Versus. (now = Wed 4.28)

Rita
Matt Moulson is guest host on The Daily Line, now on Versus. (now = Wed 4.28)

I thought I recognized that guest commentator!

What a game. It reminded me of another team I think some of us have seen: score a couple opportunistic goals, bend but don't break and hang on for dear life with great defense and goaltending.

I can't believe I was rooting for the Habs, but now the B's have home ice against the Flyers and they will have Savard back! Whooot

(I just wish Bitz hadn't been traded. He was a joy to watch with his tough work in the corners and behind the net.)

cth95
What a game. It reminded me of another team I think some of us have seen: score a couple opportunistic goals, bend but don't break and hang on for dear life with great defense and goaltending.

They might win a series here and there but they'll never win it all with that strategy.

ugarte

cth95
What a game. It reminded me of another team I think some of us have seen: score a couple opportunistic goals, bend but don't break and hang on for dear life with great defense and goaltending.

They might win a series here and there but they'll never win it all with that strategy.

Yeah, I don't know why they don't start recruiting some of those blue chip forwards. After all, they don't have to worry about scholarships.

Rita

scoop85
O'Byrne just took a high-sticking penalty with 1:40 left leading 2-1. Now :40 left with Washington's goalie out of net

Montreal hangs on and now will play Pittsburgh. Right before OB took that penalty, Sam Rosen gave OB a lot of praise about the quality minutes he had given the Montreal D, especially since the Habs were mainly going with 4 defensemen in the 3rd period. Ryan had just under 20 minutes (19:39) in ice time tonight.

and I'm sure he's the happiest that the Caps couldn't score.

O'Byrne had a nice shout out from the Vs announcers - he gave the team a lot of quality minutes. Nearly 20 minutes in game 7, impressive. I was surprised they called the penalty with less than 2 minutes remaining (even though it was a penalty), I thought there was an unwritten rule that you don't call penalties at that point in an elimination game. It's not like his victim lost seven or eight teeth.

Updates, which thankfully get shorter as the playoffs proceed:

Douglas Murray and the Sharks will take on the fifth-seeded Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference semifinals; the Wings, who won Tuesday's game 7 in Phoenix 6-1 behind three points each from Henrik Zetterberg and future Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom, were the only lower seed in the West to advance win their first round series. For what it's worth, Detroit won three of the four meetings between the two teams during the regular season. Their series starts with tonight's only NHL playoff game, starting at 9pm EDT and to be televised live on Vs.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Canadiens completed an improbable upset, becoming the first eight-seed in the history of the NHL playoffs to win a series against a one-seed after trailing the series three games to one when they beat the Capitals 2-1 in Washington last night. (For the sake of goodwill, you should hug the next Capitals fan you see.) O'Byrne took a late high-sticking minor after Harvard alum Dominic Moore scored to give the Habs a 2-0 lead, allowing the Capitals to play 6-on-4 for the last minute-plus, but the Canadiens were able to kill off the penalty to clinch their victory; hopefully, the penalty won't cloud the fact that O'Byrne has impressed since returning to the lineup in game 4. In contrast to the West, in the Eastern Conference only one higher seed, the Penguins, won their first-round series; the Habs, as the eighth-seed, will play the Pens, with game 1 in Pittsburgh tomorrow night at 7pm EDT and also to be televised live on Vs. Montreal and Pittsburgh met five times in the regular season, with the Habs winning twice and the Pens three times.

Both of the above series continue on Sunday, with Pittsburgh-Montreal set to be televised on NBC at 2pm EDT, and San Jose-Detroit following at 8pm EDT on Vs.

Raymond Sawada's Texas Stars will play the Chicago Wolves in the AHL Division Finals, after the Wolves won Monday night's game 7 against the Milwaukee Admirals by a 2-1 final score. Their series starts in Chicago tomorrow night.

Ryan Vesce was out of the lineup once again last night as the Worcester Sharks fell in overtime 3-2 to the Manchester Monarchs, who are captained by St. Lawrence alum Drew Bagnall. The series is now tied 1-1 and resumes in Manchester tomorrow night; I haven't seen any predictions about when Vesce might be able to return to the lineup.

As I previously mentioned, the Idaho Steelheads, featuring Mark McCutcheon and Evan Barlow, start their Conference Final series against the Stockton Thunder tomorrow night.

Doug Krantz and the Cincinnati Cyclones were left out of my last update; sorry about that. Since I last mentioned them, the Cyclones lost game 4 of their series against the Charlotte Checkers 4-1, won game 5 2-1, lost game 6 on Tuesday night 3-0, and last night won game 7 on the road against the top-seeded Checkers 2-1. Notre Dame alum Mark Van Guilder scored both goals for the Cyclones and Jeremy Smith made 33 saves in the clincher. Krantz played all four games, had no points, was -2 with 5 shots on goal, and took no penalties. There'll be no rest for the weary Cyclones, who've played four games in the last six days, as their American Conference Final against the Reading Royals starts with another pair of back-to-back games tomorrow and Saturday nights in Cincinnati.

Finally, last night David McKee's Allen Americans won the third game of the CHL championship series 5-2 last night in front of their home crowd, and now lead the series 2-1. McKee once again backed up Chris Whitley, who made 35 saves on 37 shots, and the Americans were led offensively by Colton Yellow Horn's hat trick. (Colton Yellow Horn is an awesome name.)

Josh '99
(For the sake of goodwill, you should hug the next Capitals fan you see.)

Aww thanks :D

Can't say I didn't see it coming but really, as some of you heard from me last night, did it really have to be Dominic Moore? It would've hurt less (for me at least) had it be OB who scored that gwg but DMoore?

Sharks win the first game of the series with Detroit 4-3.

Versus announcers said Murray's nickname is Crankshaft. What's that about?

Jeff Hopkins '82
Versus announcers said Murray's nickname is Crankshaft. What's that about?

Oh, I think it's more fun not knowing.

Lauren '06

Jeff Hopkins '82
Versus announcers said Murray's nickname is Crankshaft. What's that about?

Oh, I think it's more fun not knowing.

It's no secret. There was a whole article about him in the Sharks Program/Magazine a while back. Basically, it is because he is built like a crankshaft.

Lauren '06

Jeff Hopkins '82
Versus announcers said Murray's nickname is Crankshaft. What's that about?

Oh, I think it's more fun not knowing.

Oh behave.

Murray and the Sharks win again to make the series 2-0 in favor of San Jose. They're heading to the Joe Louis Arena for their next game in Detroit.

munchkin
Murray and the Sharks win again to make the series 2-0 in favor of San Jose. They're heading to the Joe Louis Arena for their next game in Detroit.

Murray picked up his 5th () playoff assist in the win. Douglas logged 17:38 of ice time and was even in the +/- column, and had 2 PIMs.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Habs tied up their series with the Pens. OB was a -1 in 13:37 min of ice time.

Updates:

Douglas Murray and the Sharks lead their series against the Red Wings two games to none, after holding serve in San Jose in games 1 and 2 by winning both games 4-3. Murray had an assist in game 2 and had an interference minor in each game; Joe Pavelski has continued to lead the way offensively for the Sharks, with two goals and an assist in each game. The series continues with games in Detroit tomorrow and Thursday.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Canadiens are tied 1-1 in their series against the Penguins, winning 3-1 yesterday afternoon after losing 6-3 on Friday night. The first game saw the Penguins score 4 power play goals on 4 chances, with O'Byrne playing the third-most PK minutes of any Habs defenseman; yesterday O'Byrne was on the ice for the only goal against, and played only 13:37 in total, the fewest of any defenseman. The series moves to Montreal for games 3 and 4 tomorrow and Thursday.

Ryan Vesce's return to the Worcester Sharks lineup was an unhappy one, as the Sharks lost 5-0 to the Manchester Monarchs in Manchester to fall behind 2-1 in the series. Vesce was -1 and had 4 of the Sharks' 26 shots on goal. On the bright side, Vesce sparked the Sharks in Saturday's game, scoring the game's first goal on the power play 11:12 into the first period; the Sharks went on to win 3-2, with Derek Joslin's game-winner coming at 19:26 of the third period, to even the series at two games apiece. Game 5 is Wednesday night in Worcester, game 6 Friday night in Manchester, and game 7 (if necessary) Saturday night back in Worcester.

Raymond Sawada and the Texas Stars are tied 1-1 in their series against the Chicago Wolves; both games ended 4-3 in overtime. Sawada has yet to register a point (or even be on the ice when a goal was scored) or a penalty in the series, but has had a couple of shots on goal. The series moves to Texas for the next three games, tomorrow, Wednesday, and Friday nights, before returning to Chicago for the last two games if needed.

The Idaho Steelheads are off to a good start in their conference final series against the Stockton Thunder, taking advantage of some home cooking to win game 1 4-2 on Friday night and game 2 4-0 on Saturday night. Mark McCutcheon was named Friday's first star after tallying a pair of goals, one on the power play; Evan Barlow had two assists, one coming on McCutcheon's even-strength goal. Steelheads goalie Richard Bachman was the game's first star on Saturday, after stopping all 28 shots he faced, but the Cornell boys rounded out the game's three stars: McCutcheon, with assists on the game's first two goals (both shorthanded), was the second star, while Barlow, who scored the third goal, was the third star. The series continues in California with games Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.

Doug Krantz and the Cincinnati Cyclones are going to have some work to do if they want to meet the Idaho-Stockton winner in the ECHL championship series, unfortunately, after losing the first two games of their series against the Reading Royals at home. On Friday night, the Cyclones fell 5-2; Krantz had no points and an even +/- with one shot on goal. The situation didn't improve any on Saturday as the Royals won 3-1, with Matt Dalton (many of us may remember him unpleasantly from this game) making 45 saves on 46 shots; Krantz was -1 with one shot on goal. The series heads to Reading for games tomorrow, Saturday and (if necessary) Sunday.

David McKee's Allen Americans have lost games 4 and 5 of their CHL championship series against the Rapid City Rush, and now trail three games to two. McKee was the backup for both games; he saw some action for the first time in a while, playing the third period of Allen's 7-2 blowout loss in game 5, but didn't make much of the opportunity, allowing two goals on just seven shots. The Rush will have two opportunities to clinch the championship in front of their own fans; games 6 and (if necessary) 7 will be played in South Dakota Tuesday and Friday.

Ancient history now, but The New York Times recalls Ken Dryden's Smythe-winning 1971 Stanley Cup performance in this piece on Jaroslav Halak: [www.nytimes.com]

Updates:

Douglas Murray and the Sharks are on the verge of a trip to the Western Conference finals, which would be just their second ever. On Tuesday night in Detroit, they came back from a 3-1 deficit at the start of the third period to tie the game and force overtime, and then won the game on Patrick Marleau's goal 7:07 into the overtime to take a 3-0 series lead and push the Red Wings to the brink of elimination. Murray had no points and was -1 in Tuesday night's game. The Sharks will attempt to finish out the sweep tonight; if necessary, the series will return to San Jose on Saturday night.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Canadiens were unable to take a series lead on Tuesday night after winning game 2 on the road in Pittsburgh; they lost 2-0 and now trail their series 2-1. O'Byrne had no points and an even +/- in 16:48 of ice time. The Habs will try to even the series tonight in front of their home fans.

Ryan Vesce and the Worcester Sharks were foiled by a hot goalie last night; Jonathan Bernier stopped all 30 Sharks shots and the Manchester Monarchs won 1-0 in Worcester to take a 3-2 lead in their division final series. Vesce had no points (obviously) and was on the ice for the lone goal in the game. The Monarchs will attempt to clinch the series in Manchester on Friday night; if the Sharks are able to stave off elimination, game 7 would be played in Worcester on Saturday night. The winner of the series will take on the defending champion Hershey Bears in the conference finals; the Bears swept the Albany River Rats in their conference semifinal series.

Raymond Sawada and the Texas Stars are now tied 2-2 in their conference final series against the Chicago Wolves; games 3 and 4, played in Texas, ended 5-3 Chicago and 3-2 Texas, respectively. Sawada had his only point of the two games on an assist in the 5-3 loss. The teams are off tonight and play for a 3-2 series lead in Texas on Friday. Games 6 and (if necessary) 7 will be in Chicago on Sunday and Tuesday of next week. (It would appear that the AHL chooses between a 2-3-2 format and a 2-2-1-1-1 format on a series-by-series basis, based on the proximity of the two teams involved; two extra trips between Worcester and Manchester involve less time and expenditure than two extra trips between Chicago and Austin.)

The Idaho Steelheads were unable to stretch their series lead to 3-0, as the Stockton Thunder prevailed 1-0 in 3 OTs in California last night; the game was the 12th-longest in the history of the ECHL. Ryan Constant netted the game's only goal on the power play 36 seconds into the third overtime, with Steelheads captain Marty Flichel in the box after a tripping minor late in the second overtime. Bryan Pitton was the game's deserved first star, though, stopping all 49 shots he faced. Needless to say, Mark McCutcheon and Evan Barlow were both scoreless; each took one minor penalty (Barlow for roughing in the second period, McCutcheon for interference in the second overtime), and they were the two players with the most shots on goal for the Steelheads, with 7 for Barlow and 6 for McCutcheon. The next two games of the series will be played in Stockton tomorrow and Saturday nights; games 6 and 7, if necessary, will be played in Idaho next Tuesday and Wednesday.

Doug Krantz and the Cincinnati Cyclones have a huge uphill battle on their hands; they trail 3-0 in their conference final series against the Reading Royals following a 4-2 loss on Tuesday night. Krantz did not play in the most recent game. The Royals will have two chances to clinch the series in front of their home fans, Saturday and Sunday nights.

Finally, David McKee's Allen Americans lost the CHL championship series in six games, falling to the Rapid City Rush 4-3 in double overtime in the clincher. Scott Wray scored the series-winning goal for the Rush. McKee was out of the lineup after his brief cameo appearance in game 5; it will be interesting to see where he lands next year.

Josh '99
McKee was out of the lineup after his brief cameo appearance in game 5; it will be interesting to see where he lands next year.

Prison?

[www.ocregister.com]

And the Sharks advance over Detroit with a 2-1 victory. Murray will be playing for the Western Conference championship.

Updates:

Douglas Murray and the Sharks were unable to complete their sweep, taking a 7-1 shellacking at the hands of the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena last Thursday night (Murray -2 with 2 shots on goal and a roughing minor), but clinched the series with a 2-1 win in San Jose in game 5 (Murray -1). Their opponents in the Western Conference finals will be the Chicago Blackhawks or the Vancouver Canucks. Down 3-1 in the series, the Canucks won 4-1 in Chicago last night to force game 6 in Vancouver tomorrow night; game 7, if necessary, will be in Chicago on Thursday night.

Ryan O'Byrne and the Canadiens trail their series against the Penguins 3-2, and will take the ice in Montreal tonight hoping to fight off elimination; game 7, if necessary, would be in Pittsburgh on Wednesday night. O'Byrne was +1 in Montreal's 3-2 victory in game 4, and even with one shot on goal in their 2-1 loss in game 5.

Ryan Vesce and the Worcester Sharks were eliminated from the AHL playoffs by the Manchester Monarchs on Friday night; the Monarchs won 2-1 in overtime to take the series 4-2. Vesce, named the third star of the game, scored the lone Sharks goal 1:45 into the first period, but was also on the ice for Viatcheslav Voynov's overtime winner; Jonathan Bernier made 28 saves for the Monarchs.

Raymond Sawada and the Texas Stars are tied 3-3 in their division final series against the Chicago Wolves. Despite being outshot 46-23, the Stars won 5-3 in Texas on on Friday night to bring a 3-2 series lead back to Chicago; the Wolves evened the series with a 2-1 win yesterday afternoon. Sawada had two assists and was +2 in game 5, and was -1 in game 6. Game 7 will be played in Chicago tomorrow night. The winner will advance to play either the Hamilton Bulldogs or the Abbotsford Heat in the Western Conference finals; the Bulldogs won 5-2 in Abbotsford on Saturday night to take a 3-2 series lead and will have two opportunities to win the series on home ice, tonight and tomorrow night.

The Idaho Steelheads lead their series against the Stockton Thunder 3-2; the Thunder won big in front of their home crowd on Friday night, knotting the series with a 7-2 win, but were unable to take a series lead the next night as the Steelheads rebounded to win 6-3. Mark McCutcheon had an assist in Friday night's game, during which both he and Evan Barlow were -1; on Saturday, McCutcheon had a shorthanded empty-net goal and an assist and was +1, and Barlow had a goal and was even. Games 6 and (if necessary) 7 will be played in Idaho, tomorrow and Wednesday nights, and the winner of the series will advance to the ECHL's Kelly Cup Finals.

The Cincinnati Cyclones have fought back from a 3-0 series hole to a more manageable 3-2 deficit with road wins each of the last two nights, 6-4 on Saturday and 5-0 last night. Unfortunately, Doug Krantz remained out of the lineup for both games. The Cyclones will have the opportunity to complete an improbable comeback on home ice, as games 6 and (if necessary) 7 will be played in Cincinnati tomorrow and Wednesday nights. The winner of their series will take on the winner of the Steelheads-Thunder series in the finals.

Lots of Red Wing fans complaining about the blind hit Murray gave to fellow Swede Franzen in game 5. A couple of Red Wing players doubled teamed Douglas later in the game and he seemed pretty woozy going back to the bench. Hopefully Douglas is ok.

Separately, last night during the Blackhawks/Canucks game intermission report Brian Engblom raved about Douglas' game, i.e. his physical edge and ability to consistently make the simple play allows Boyle to skate all over the place and focus on being aggressive offensively.

Habs shake up their D pairings tonight and O'Byrne may be oat.

RatushnyFan
Lots of Red Wing fans complaining about the blind hit Murray gave to fellow Swede Franzen in game 5.

Lots of Red Wing fans are complaining about lots of things nowadays.

O'Byrne playing after all with the Habs' pairings all screwed up with Hal Gill hurt.

Murray was cheap shot back on the next shift, so Detroit got theirs back.

Habs force game 7, O'B will play another game. And really, the Pens suck so the Habs need to win this one.

munchkin
Habs force game 7, O'B will play another game. And really, the Pens suck so the Habs need to win this one.

The Quest for the O'Byrne vs Murray Stanley Cup final proceeds as planned.

Trotsky

munchkin
Habs force game 7, O'B will play another game. And really, the Pens suck so the Habs need to win this one.

The Quest for the O'Byrne vs Murray Stanley Cup final proceeds as planned.

This can't happen, because the Blackhawks have to get into the finals out of the West so Hossa can lose the cup for the third year in a row with three different teams.

ugarte

Trotsky

munchkin
Habs force game 7, O'B will play another game. And really, the Pens suck so the Habs need to win this one.

The Quest for the O'Byrne vs Murray Stanley Cup final proceeds as planned.

This can't happen, because the Blackhawks have to get into the finals out of the West so Hossa can lose the cup for the third year in a row with three different teams.

The time for Hossa to lose was the first round so he could have been helping Slovakia in the IIHF.

Trotsky

ugarte

Trotsky

munchkin
Habs force game 7, O'B will play another game. And really, the Pens suck so the Habs need to win this one.

The Quest for the O'Byrne vs Murray Stanley Cup final proceeds as planned.

This can't happen, because the Blackhawks have to get into the finals out of the West so Hossa can lose the cup for the third year in a row with three different teams.

The time for Hossa to lose was the first round so he could have been helping Slovakia in the IIHF.

Not to be rude to those who care (read: JTW), but... is there anything less interesting than the IIHF Worlds in an Olympic year? Not only are the rosters lacking guys from the NHL playoffs, but we just saw all these teams with their full complement of players competing for Olympic gold three months ago.

I'm amused watching the rosters change as teams get knocked out and those players go join their respective national teams. Detroit losing yielded quite a few players to the tournament.

If any of you watched the Chicago/Vancouver series, Chicago physically kicked the living crap out of Vancouver. It was unbelievable. I for one am excited to see how Dustin Byfuglien (sp?) fares against Murray. Murray needs to set a physical tone at the outset, I think the way Chicago is playing bodes well for his ice time and ability to play a really meaningful role in the series.

Chicago's first two offensive lines and all of their defensemen are unbelievably talented. Third line is looking pretty good and Madden is a great PK player. Stupid Hossa contract, why I oughta......

And in other news, I found this amusing. Luongo - For Sale

Lots of ink for Ryan O'Byrne, but no ice in game 7. I missed the start of the game so didn't hear why he isn't in the line-up. Healthy scratch? Or the ambiguous "upper/lower" body injury?

Rita
Lots of ink for Ryan O'Byrne, but no ice in game 7. I missed the start of the game so didn't hear why he isn't in the line-up. Healthy scratch? Or the ambiguous "upper/lower" body injury?

Healthy scratch I think. Most of Montreal's injured defensemen are playing tonight...namely Jaroslav Spacek and Hal Gill, while PK Subban is playing in the NHL after playing the regular season with Hamilton.

And O'B advances. Now I REALLY want to see a Sharks/Habs final round. One round from seeing it happen.

Updates:

Ryan O'Byrne's Canadiens completed a second upset in a row, knocking off the Penguins in games 6 and 7 to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. O'Byrne played 12:24 in game 6, a 4-3 win for the Habs, with no points, no penalties, and an even +/-; as mentioned upthread, he was a healthy scratch in game 7, a 5-2 win paced by Boston College alum Brian Gionta's two goals. Montreal will play either the Bruins or the Flyers in the conference finals; game 7 of their series will be Friday night in Boston.

Douglas Murray and the Sharks will meet the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference finals; the Hawks won their previous series against the Canucks 4-2. The Sharks had the best regular season record of any team left in the playoffs, and will have home ice advantage in the conference finals and (if they advance) the Stanley Cup finals. The schedule for their series won't be finalized until after the Flyers-Bruins series ends on Friday night.

Raymond Sawada and the Texas Stars knocked off the Chicago Wolves on the road in game 7 of their series to advance to the AHL's Western Conference finals. The Stars came from behind three separate times in the clincher, rallying from deficits of 2-0, 4-2 and 5-4 to send the game to overtime at 5-5, and won on Jamie Benn's unassisted goal 4:57 into the overtime period. They'll take on the Hamilton Bulldogs, who had the best regular season record in the AHL's Western Conference; the series begins with games in Hamilton tomorrow night and Sunday afternoon.

The Cincinnati Cyclones accomplished the improbable, coming back from a 3-0 deficit in their American Conference final series against the Reading Royals to win the series 4-3. Doug Krantz returned to the Cyclones' lineup for game 6, a 6-3 win, but was again scratched from their 1-0 win in last night's game 7; Niagara alum Barret Ehgoest scored the game's only goal in the first period, and Robert Mayer stopped all 25 shots he faced to preserve the victory.

If he's in the lineup during the Kelly Cup finals, Krantz will see some familiar faces as the Cyclones' opponents will be the Idaho Steelheads, featuring Mark McCutcheon and Evan Barlow. The Steelheads won their National Conference final series against the Stockton Thunder in six games, closing it out with a 7-5 victory in Idaho on Tuesday night. Barlow had 3 assists, 4 shots on goal, was +2 and was named the game's second star; McCutcheon scored a power play goal, assisted by Barlow, and was +1 with 6 shots on goal. John-Scott Dickson, the game's first star, scored a natural hat trick over a span of less than six minutes early in the second period to turn an early 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 Steelheads lead; Barlow also assisted on Dickson's second goal.

The Kelly Cup finals start tomorrow night. The Steelheads, who had the ECHL's best regular season record, will host games 1 and 2 tomorrow and Saturday nights; the series will continue in Cincinnati next Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.