The Ice Sheet: Is America Waking Up to the Stanley Cup?
Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.I think it's time for hockey fans everywhere, and that includes the fans of the Detroit Red Wings, to stand up and give a sincere round of applause to the Pittsburgh Penguins for putting in a performance on Monday night/Tuesday morning that has helped the NHL -- if only for a moment -- grab a significant chunk of the American sports spotlight.All over the place yesterday, folks couldn't stop talking about Pittsburgh's heart-stopping 4-3 triple overtime win on Monday night, a win that breathed new life into the Penguins, the series and maybe even the NHL.Yesterday for the first time I could remember, Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon spent a few moments on Pardon the Interruption talking about hockey, and talking about the Finals in terms that fans of the game wouldn't find insulting. To say it was a breath of fresh air would be an incredible understatement. And after doing nothing but bashing hockey for years, why did these guys decided to cut the sport an even break.I hate to be cynical about it, but do you think the television numbers might have something to do with it? All Spring long, the news from Versus and NBC has just gotten better and better: After taking a battering since the lockout -- a battering exacerbated by a dedicated knot of sports editor and writers who would like to see the league fail -- the NHL is starting to show some life on television once again. Every game of the Finals, even the ones that were carried on Versus, experienced huge gains over 2007. And on Saturday night in the face of competition from the EliteXC on CBS, the NHL still managed to hold its ground. While the debut of MMA on network television might have averaged a larger total audience over the course of the evening, hockey won the night in the critical 18-39 and 18-54 male demos.That all helped to set the stage for Monday night for what looked like a possible Cup clincher. Instead, the Penguins simply refused to die -- and 6.2 million Americans were more than happy to watch them stave off defeat.Now, are these numbers a perfect gauge of America's real interest in hockey? As my colleague Bruce Ciskie, a veteran of the radio business, has pointed out, there are all sorts of flaws in the Nielsen ratings system. But there should be little doubt that when the numbers turn in the right direction, a whole lot of other dominoes start falling in the same direction too.So thank you, Sid, Geno, Petr, Gary, Marian, Marc-Andre, Ryan, Rob and all the rest. Thank you for holding off the dawn and living to fight another day. When you did, you forced a whole lot of folks normally too busy to notice to realize just how great a game it is that you play. And whether or not you come back to win the series or even just force a Game Seven, hockey fans owe you a lot today.And About That Pizza ... As our buddy G-Dub mentioned yesterday, the Penguins were fueled during overtime on Monday with Domino's PIzza, while the opposition in the Red Wings locker room was eating Little Ceaser's, which of course is owned by team owner Mike Illitch. As you might suspect, some enterprising folks from Pittsburgh are already taking advantage, producing this amusing little video: Got a Tip ... or a link you'd like to share with us? Just use this form to let us know.
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Pittsburgh Penguins hockey player Adam Hall is interviewed Thursday, May 29, 2008 at the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh. The Red Wings lead the Stanley Cup Finals best-of-seven series 2-1 after the Pittsburgh Penguins won game three Wednesday night. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Chad Kroeger here just livin' the life. What's goin' on dudes and dudettes?Did you see that hockey game the other night? Yeah, you did? Totally gnarly, man. I mean, my Red Wings lost and I'm pretty bummed about that. Gotta hand it to the Penguins, though. They really fought hard. They played some good hockey. I've been a fan for so long dude you have NO idea. I'm so glad that they finally have a chance to win another Stanley Cup. It's been forever since they've won a Cup. 1955 I think. Wow. That's almost as bad as being a Cubs fan.I'll be honest though, dudes. I didn't get to see all of the game. I left after the first overtime cause I had to get up early this mornin' and do TOTALLY GNARLY and BAD *** stuff! WOOOOOO!!! Kidding. Kidding. You thought I was a lameo didn't you, bro? Nah. My boy Kid Rock and I were out hittin' the clubs all night looking for hot babes. There weren't enough at the game, know what I'm sayin'? It was great. I got six different phone numbers. It's amazing how easy this is once you're a big famous rock star like me. You should try it. It's great. But hey, I figure I should get back to bein' totally awesome now. It's what I do, bro. It's what I was put on this earth to do. But before I go I just need to say one thing. Go Wings! WOO! Craig Ozgood is THE MAN! Can't stop the Big Red Machine!Peace out, bros.If you couldn't tell, that's not actually Chad Kroeger of Nickelback fame. It's actually just me, Kevin Schultz, pretending to be. But doesn't it all seem plausible nonetheless?The Wings are Like Totally Awesome, Dude! originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:03:00 EST . .
With 30 teams and 700 players in the league, you'll have to forgive me if I don't know the names of every single player on every single roster.That said, I ought to know something about who is on the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. Besides being awesome teams, the players that fill out the lower reaches of each roster tend to be much better than the chaff that popular such bottom-feeders as the Tampa Bay Lightning.To my own shame, I had never heard of Red Wings forward Darren Helm until late into these Stanley Cup playoffs, and now this so-called "no-name" has made quite an impact in these finals.Just who is this guy? Let The Windsor Star help fill us in. Two months ago, Darren Helm was still a project in the eyes of the Detroit Red Wings. Now, he's a player. Helm had his finest game as an NHLer Monday in the Wings' 4-3 triple overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins ... Helm scored a goal, led all players with six hits, was a plus-one and a noticeable presence in each of his 21 shifts centering Detroit's fourth line. "I definitely realize how hard it is for a lot of players to get this chance," said Helm, who earned a late season callup after a fine rookie campaign for the Wings' AHL farm team in Grand Rapids. You'd figure Helm would be a journeyman type, wouldn't you? He looks gruff, plays a physical game, and looks like he's been through more than a few battles.Well, it turns out that this Helm fellow is just 21 years of age, and is still in his first year of pro hockey. Yoikes!Darren Helm facts:
Selected by Detroit Red Wings round 5 #132 overall 2005 NHL Entry Draft. The Wings know how to scour the late rounds for gems, don't they?
Put up about a point-a-game during his final two years of junior. Impressive, but not the type of numbers that exactly scream "Top Prospect!"
Played for Canada's squad at the 2007 World Junior Championships.
Played 67 games with the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins, putting up a respectable, but not jaw dropping, 31 points.
Played just seven regular season games with the Wings, before playing 17 (so far) playoff games for the Wings. Talk about being thrown into the stampede.What impresses me most about Helm is that the fact that his penalty totals are so low for the type of game he plays. Thus far, Helm has just two penalty minutes in his 17 playoff games, and has a career average of just about .5 PIM's per game. For a player to deliver that much physical presence and stay out of the penalty box is an asset to any team. Who the Hell is Darren Helm? originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:20:00 EST . .
After 104 games (for the Red Wings, 102 for the Penguins), the NHL season has come to a close. With a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Detroit Red Wings are hoisting the Stanley Cup tonight. For every hockey fan that wanted an exciting game, they certainly got their fill tonight. The Wings jumped to a 2-0 lead on goals by Brian Rafalski and Valtteri Filppula, the Pens fought back with a big goal by Evgeni Malkin to close out the second period. With the Pens' buzzing early in the third, Marc-Andre Fleury let a puck trickle through his legs, then knocked it into the net. The goal was credited to Henrik Zetterberg and it proved to be just barely too much for the Penguins. Marian Hossa added a goal minute and a half to go, then Sidney Crosby snuck one past Chris Osgood that trickled in the crease and very nearly crossed the line with about 0.2 seconds on the clock.Still, almost counts for nothing and there's really no question that Detroit has been the best team during both the regular season and the playoffs. Nicklas Lidstrom becomes the first European captain to hold the Cup, Henrik Zetterberg wins the Conn Smythe, and it's hard to argue that they don't deserve it. Congrats to the Wings, the 2008 Stanley Cup Champions.The Detroit Red Wings Win the Stanley Cup originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:42:00 EST . .
Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.The Stanley Cup has escaped the clutches of its caretakers, preferring to rest in the hands of sweaty, bearded men (except for Chris Osgood, who doesn't do beards, apparently) wearing white and red.Detroit overcame Pittsburgh's home ice advantage and skated Stanley after a 3-2 win in Game Six Wednesday night. The Wings have now won an incredible 13 straight Game Sixes when leading series 3-2. 10 of those 13 have been on the road.That stat should tell you all you need to know about Detroit's dominance, both in these playoffs and in this league over the last 11 playoff seasons. They have four Cups in that span, which is probably as close to a dynasty as you're going to see in this era of salary caps and parity and all that stuff.Game Six didn't start well for the Penguins. An early Detroit power play was converted when Brian Rafalski's left point shot went in off Pittsburgh defenseman Hal Gill. Rafalski was open after the Penguins collapsed on Henrik Zetterberg in the right circle. Zetterberg dished the puck back to Rafalski for the shot. The period was closely contended, but Detroit had a 1-0 lead after one.It was enough to silence the Pittsburgh fans a little bit, but in all honesty, the Penguins played well enough to make one think they still had a shot. Even after falling behind, they didn't lose their compusure, as they had in the first two games of the series.(Coming up: More on Game Six, the officials remain in the spotlight after the drama of Game Five, links you can enjoy, and a YouTube of some sort)Detroit really put a defensive clamp on the Penguins in the second period. They were all over Pittsburgh's skill players, and with the ice being awful in Pittsburgh, life wasn't easy for the likes of Crosby, Hossa, and Malkin.
As Pittsburgh began to play more and more tentatively, perhaps realizing that every mistake they made left them more susceptible to a goal than they could afford, the Wings took advantage of a rare Marc-Andre Fleury mistake (at least, as the last couple games went) to double their lead. Fleury made the initial save on a shot by Mikael Samuelsson, but Valtteri Filppula was there to take advantage of a bad rebound by Fleury. He backhanded a soft shot past Fleury before he could get back in position, and the Wings had a 2-0 lead.Pittsburgh found an answer on the power play. Evgeni Malkin (!) wristed a beautiful shot past Osgood from the left wing to cut the lead in half. It set us up for a dramatic third period, with the Stanley Cup again on the line for Detroit.Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, this wasn't Fleury's night. Having already given up one bad goal in the second, Fleury's lack of puck control and puck sense cost the Pens big-time in the third. Zetterberg took a quick wrister from the left circle, and Fleury closed the pads on the low shot. He didn't stop the puck, which trickled through and stopped in the blue paint. Fleury realized he didn't have it, flopped back to lay on it, and inadvertently knocked it into his own net, giving Detroit a seemingly insurmountable 3-1 lead.A late power-play goal by Pittsburgh cut the lead to 3-2, but the Pens got no closer, and their inability to generate even-strength chances in the third period was striking. A frantic final two minutes, keyed by the power play and subsequent quick goal, just wasn't enough for the Penguins. Their fans were total class afterward, giving their team multiple standing ovations, and chanting the name of their goaltender.Detroit was the best defensive team in the league during the regular season, and it definitely showed when their four series were decided. Nashville was gallant in their effort, but couldn't generate much of anything in the fifth or sixth games. Colorado did nothing in four games. Dallas couldn't launch any kind of comeback in their sixth game against Detroit. The Red Wings, an amazingly skilled offensive bunch, showed their two-way skill all year long. Pavel Datsyuk and Zetterberg made it clear that there is a good reason for both to be Selke Trophy finalists.Late in the third, Stanley safely exited the box and was given a quick shine for his appearance later in the evening. There was no Pittsburgh comeback on this night.Your Conn Smythe winner (playoff MVP) is Zetterberg. It's fitting that he got the game-winner, as he was clearly Detroit's best player in these playoffs. The near-singlehanded penalty kill in Game Four will be the great image of this series. It was also the turning point for the Red Wings.Congratulations, Detroit. I still don't like it when people say "Hockeytown", but right now, you are. Enjoy and savor, because your team is the best in the sport. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if they were again next season, given how well-coached they are and how awesome their top players are.Finally, I want to tip my cap to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Many wrote them off, especially after the way the series started. However, the heart and grit they showed was enough to keep them in this. They weren't as talented, or skilled, or physical, or well-coached as Detroit. But they showed they undoubtedly, unarguably, belonged on the same ice as the best team in the sport. You don't often get to do much better than that.For Fleury, there will be better nights. Hopefully, the last two goals allowed in this long journey won't haunt a tremendously talented young goaltender for years to come.The officials continue in the spotlight. After two goaltender interference penalties were called against Detroit during overtime Monday night, it was obvious that the NHL would have to field questions and criticisms about their officials. Again.Offering a defense of the controversial calls (sort of) was Mike Brophy of The Hockey News:NHL referees are damned if they do and damned if they don't. While they don't like the idea of calling goalie interference in overtime, let alone twice in extra time, they also don't relish the idea of a goalie being hit by an opponent and the winning goal being scored while the fallen goaltender is unable to do his job. It is a discretionary call. "We don't want the Stanley Cup-winning goal being scored with the goalie on his back after being crashed into," said NHL executive Kris King. The more controversial of the two was on Dan Cleary, who courageously drove to the net looking to win it for his team and become the first player from Newfoundland to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup. You would be hard-pressed to find anybody in the rink who thought his motive was to wipe out Fleury, but the call was made nonetheless. Frankly, I would have been happier if the referee stopped play to see if Fleury was OK and didn't penalize Cleary.Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau was on NHL Live (XM Radio or on the NHL Network) Tuesday, and what he said basically boils down to "Don't blame the refs; blame the rule". He made it sound as if the league has virtually no choice but to address the issue this summer.Random YouTube. Hockey is officially over. However, it's now summer. Just for fun, let Will Smith tell you about it.In case you missed it, FanHouse hosted a live chat Wednesday afternoon with Carolina defenseman Bret Hedican. He was super. I fully recommend taking a few minutes to look it over if you couldn't make it here for the chat.Got a Tip ... or a link you'd like to share with us? Just use this form to let us know.Thank yous. Eric McErlain e-mailed me in early March, inviting me to join the NHL crew here at FanHouse. I can't thank him enough for reaching out to me and allowing me to be a part of this. Thanks also to the rest of the NHL writers, who welcomed me with open arms (not literally).Thanks also to Mrs. Ciskie. My beautiful wife endures a lot so I can do work that I enjoy, whether that be here at FanHouse or at my "real job". I thank her, even though "thank you" doesn't do justice to her understanding, patience, and general coolness.I also want to thank all our readers. Without your clicks, we wouldn't be here. I hope you visit often during the off-season.The Ice Sheet: Hockeytown is Titletown originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 05 Jun 2008 07:00:00 EST . .