The NHL playoffs and summer is around the corner. It doesn't get any better than this.

The NYI did the unbelieveable last week when they won against Philly choosing the Leafs over the Canes. I was dumbfounded but oh well, at least the Leafs don't have to face off with the Devils right off the bat.

With a possible knockoff of Boston by the Canadiens and a re-seed of the standings for the second round, the Leafs wouldn't meet the Devils until the conference finals. Sweet! Assuming of course my wishes are granted. :-)

Nothing like watching a playoff game at ACC/MLG or at a bar with friends. Great atmosphere! I hope the Leafs get a shot at the Cup against the Wings. Both buildings would be great to hear and experience.

As for the Rangers, well sorry man, I don't think they're going to fare too well next season either. Bure seriously needs to have his ass kicked to get his attitude straightened out. I'm looking over the roster and it doesn't look pretty outside of Lindros and Blackburn. (How could Sather have traded for that suck Barnaby?!)

Can't cheer for Chicago due to the old Norris days. Nor St. Louis for that matter... :-)

> Blackburn? BLACKBURN?
>
> Sorry, but I saw him in the game that the Rangers played here in Chicago.
> Granted, the entire Rangers team forgot to show up (5-1 Rangers loss), but he
> was included in that. Let some damn easy shots get by.

One game. From what I've seen and heard about the guy is that he has the potential to be a very solid to a very good goaltender. He's 19! He has lots of time to further develop as goaltenders are usually at their peak in their early thirties. The team just needs to start playing better in front of him and Lindros should pound on Bure a bit to straighten him out. He's 31 now and he's still fucking around like in his younger years.

I've never understood what that black out thing was in Chicago. It's the ol' chicken and egg thing. How do you expect to further grow your fan base (and sell out the stadium) if casual or non-fans can't see the product. Bizarre. Toronto had the own weird whacky owner in Harold Ballard who destroyed the team during the '80s. Even though I was relatively young at the time, I remember the long losing streaks. Very sad. And the team didn't even take advantage of early draft picks as they drafted poor. Except for Wendel Clark.

You wouldn't know a good sport if it kicked you in the ass.

Aside from long-time fans in the original four US markets, I honestly don't know why the NHL has let itself get so bad trying to appeal to non-hockey people like yourself. The NHL will never be the NFL, NBA or MLB and that's a good thing.

Columbus, Nashville, Anaheim, Tampa Bay, Florida and Atlanta should all be folded and the players dispersed to the remaining clubs. First dibs on Paul Kariya and Ilya Kolvachuk! :-)

He's pretty good though I've never been entirely sold on having a European number one goalie. If I was nice I'd say let the Flyers get him so that they will finally have a real goaltender but since Bobby Clarke is a prick, screw 'em.

He's had every opportunity to sign a real number one goalie. He could have gotten Joseph but didn't pony up enough money. He could have traded for Hasek though I can't stand how he plays (The Flopinator.) They even could have quietly thrown a lot of money at St. Patrick before he resigned with the Avs. Clarke knows that trying to get by without a bonafide number one goalie rarely works. Detroit of course with Osgood was an exception. No need to explain that one. :-)

I'm not so sure that signing Belfour during the offseason would be a good idea. I've never really liked how he plays nor his temper. They wouldn't gain much with Richter either IMO.

I've never been a big fan of a goaltending tandem. The big guy should get the lion share of games while the backup is there for breather fill-in time. It's almost like the Flyers are giving each guy an opportunity and hope one runs with the ball. Neither of whom really seem to want it or are capable of being the number one guy on a team like the Flyers.

In the end though I've got to cheer for the Senators to win even though I can't stand the team much. Same goes for Montreal and Vancouver. (Canadian thing, sorry. We haven't had a Canadian Stanley Cup winner since Montreal in 1993. It cheeses us to no end when you guys win it. The early '90s was a bit of a shock for me when there wasn't even a Canadian club in the final.)

I was watching that TSN interview when Clarke said that Neilson went "goofy" and that "we didn't tell him to go get cancer." My mouth just dropped in amazement. I mean I'm not a big fan of how Neilson coaches (boring!) or his public religious stuff (commercials) but that was just an awful thing to say and do to the guy. I'll be a little amused when what goes around comes around for Clarke.