The NHL season is finally over! After an 82-game regular season, plus eight arduous playoff series, one might suspect that the culmination of the 2005-2006 season would be eagerly anticipated, if not a welcomed relief. However, this season was filled with pure, electric excitement.
From the increase in offensive production to the off-ice deals, the playoff quarrels between coaches to the surprise run of the Edmonton Oilers, 2005-2006 was the comeback season the NHL needed to help restore its image and make amends with its alienated fans with a supremely-enhanced product.
The games were fast-paced and kept that way with adherence to the time restraints imposed by the NHL on face-offs and prohibiting line changes by teams that rely on icing the puck as a way out of a tough defensive struggle. Officiating was consistent from the drop of the first puck last October to the final buzzer of Game 7 at RBC Center.
In its initial planning stages and rule changing discussions, it's unlikely that the NHL's owners and front office big wigs had expected the season to be such a success, regardless of their intention. The reality that hockey was — and still is in some markets — the least popular of the unpopular sports, could not have provided a copious supply of optimism at the onset of this past season. Now that it has, the challenge becomes figuring out the appropriate steps to make sure it remains at a high level, ensuring that its first post-lockout year was not a fluke and that skillful displays of hockey excellence are now the norm.
Considering that most fans and analysts conclude that this season was successful beyond expectations, there will be great speculation during the summer about how teams will revamp for next year.
Just over a week removed from the Finals and a few days from the entry draft in the beacon of British Columbia, let's take a look at some of the interesting goings on in the NHL:
First and Foremost: The Stanley Cup Finals
The completion of the first round of the playoffs made for an interesting remainder. In the East, the top four teams in the conference moved onto their respective semifinal matchups. In the West, it was the bottom four. Out of those eight teams, the rankings indicated that Carolina, then number two in the East, would be a reasonable prediction to reach the Cup Finals.
Conversely, out of the Western Conference's basement, Edmonton was surely not. But when the teams lined up in Game 1, there was the Oil, refusing to allow their eighth seed to imply immediate defeat at the hands of the second.
And what a series it was. It appeared as though the morning after a 5-4 loss to Carolina and an even bigger loss of goalie Dwayne Roloson to a stomach turning knee injury, everyone in the hockey world had written off Edmonton. However, Edmonton failed to get the memo — although the shellacking Carolina gave them in Game 2 did nothing to smother the naysayers.
But amid the uncertainty and constant scrutiny, the Oilers played with an unrelenting sense of urgency after their Game 2 disaster. They made it a series in which both teams had a chance with no discernible "better" team.
That being said, though both teams were often evenly matched in skill, the level of experience in the Hurricanes' locker room was unparalleled. Rod Brind'Amour, Cory Stillman, Glen Wesley, and Marc Recchi — read those names again. There is an invaluable wealth of postseason wisdom that was served buffet-style to the entire Hurricanes roster. And lest readers not look any deeper, don't forget Bret Hedican and Mike Commodore (who each lost in previous Cup finals) and the gritty, shoulder-battered Doug Weight. The Oilers' inexperience made them vulnerable.
The composure and focus that was evidently on tap for Carolina helped shutdown the Oilers' barrage of shots in the third period of Game 7 when Cam Ward wasn't standing on his head or Edmonton wasn't busy missing the net.
Bottom line: great series! Edmonton battled back and made it close. Had they converted on any number of the plethora of power-plays they had, this column might have a different tone. Each team bounced back from its losses with determination. It just so happened that Carolina had more bounces (and leading playoff scorer Eric Staal) go its way.
But as ESPN hockey columnist Terry Frei recently wrote, "It was the NHL's fourth finals Game 7 in five seasons, and all four have ended with the home team hoisting the Stanley Cup, so this should have been familiar." The Carolina Hurricanes are no doubt enjoying the familiar.
Canadian Teams Carrying the West
The last two Stanley Cup Final losing teams have been Canadian — the previous being Calgary in 2003-2004, who went down in seven to Tampa Bay. Aside from the outcomes of both series, the emergence of Canadian NHL teams from the Western Conference (Northwest Division, more specifically) can only revitalize hockey in the sport's native land. With constant speculation about the financial stability of the NHL in Canada — and a source of the hotly-debated concept of revenue sharing — having Edmonton and Calgary make it all the way to the final game of the post-season shows that hockey can still work in Canada.
The accomplishments of those teams also help keep players on the team and entice others who may be floating in free-agency limbo. That's not to ignore the financial implications that come along with making to the Stanley Cup finals. Win or lose, it's a good thing for Canada- and Alberta especially.
On the Flip Side
Although Edmonton's run was nothing short of stellar, if unexpected, it was not enough to keep Chris Pronger from leaving. Equally as unexpected was Pronger's request to be traded after only one season with the Oilers, its amazing playoff run, and four years left on his $6.25 million per season contract. This revelation came last Friday night and seemed to loom over Edmonton's table in Vancouver at this year's draft.
Rumored to have requested the trade because of his wife's discontent with the Alberta capitol, Pronger's demand becomes problematic for Edmonton for a few reasons.
First, Oilers GM Kevin Lowe now has to shop around, bargain-hunting for the best deal on Pronger. Compounding matters further, Lowe also has nine unrestricted free agents to negotiate with this summer. No easy task.
Secondly, replacing a defenseman the caliber of Pronger is tantamount to finding someone to replace your starting goaltender in the third period of the Stanley Cup Finals.
But not all hope is lost with the development. Pronger came off a terrific performance in the playoffs and logged more ice time than most players. What does that mean? It means his stock has sky rocketed. The fact that he's still under contract, as opposed to a free agent, means Lowe and Oiler coach Craig MacTavish can study all their options and get premium value for Pronger.
Whether it's spreading around Pronger's team high salary to add greater depth or to acquire another big name to fill the 6'6", 220 lb. void, the front office of Edmonton appears to have the advantage in this scenario. And looking on the bright side, Jussi Markkanen almost worked out, replacing Pronger just might, too.
(Trading) Block Party
Saturday was a day of big moves — jockeying for potential draft pick positioning — draft day always is. The biggest trade of the day belonged to the host club, Vancouver, which sent a vilified Todd Bertuzzi to the Florida Panthers for number one netminder and 2006 Canadian Olympian, Roberto Luongo. Each team parted ways with a few insignificants when they dealt away their stars.
Luongo is coming off of a sub-par season in which he was only five games over .500 (35-30-9), but he did post more than mediocre stats with a 2.97 goals against average and a .914 save percentage — pretty good for someone who played in 74 games and the most famed hockey team at the Olympics.
Bertuzzi, Luongo's Team Canada teammate, also had a less desirable year with 25 goals and 46 assists in 82 games. The Canucks failed to make the playoffs. And Bertuzzi, fresh from his 18-month suspension for literally breaking Colorado Avalanche centerman Steve Moore's neck, Bertuzzi seemed as though the constant demonizing of the assault was constantly haunting him. It may have been due to the press's inability to question Bertuzzi on any other topics. Still, at $5.2 million, players can't afford to be scared by ghosts.
Regardless, both teams come out of this deal with positives. Florida gets a big power forward still in his prime that will intensify its offense lead by Olli Jokinen (38 g, 51 a, 89 p). Bertuzzi gets a fresh start in a new franchise that will hopefully allow him to rid his devils and regain the dominant stature he once held when playing next to Marcus Nasland.
Luongo gets a fresh start in the contract department. Panthers GM Mike Keenan said the team had failed to reach a deal in negotiations with Luongo, who "wanted the team to make a public statement they would not trade him, [they] would hire Francois Allaire as his goaltender coach, and [they] would sign goaltender Jamie McLennan as his backup," according to Jim Morris of the Canadian Press. Luongo has commented that he thought both sides were close to an agreement.
Keenan's explanation was simple: Luongo wanted too much money. "He did ask for significantly more money than what we had offered," said Keenan. "We at that point decided we're now going to make a hockey deal that we feel will make our team better."
The Canucks must take the good with the bad. In finally acquiring a number one goaltender, they now must figure out what to do with Dan Cloutier. His playoff struggles and proneness to injury aside, dealing him elsewhere seems a more viable option for Vancouver now the Luongo is on board.
On a side note, the Colorado Avalanche made news by trading the team's 2005-2006 second leading scorer to the Calgary Flames. Alex Tanguay had 78 points last year and scored 400 points in 450 games with the Avalanche since first entering the league back in 1999. This is a big pickup for the Flames who may see its offense increase if Tanguay is paired up with sniper Jerome Iginla.
The Flames might now consider focusing on replacing the solid Jordan Leopold, who anchored their defense for past three NHL seasons. They also relinquished two second round picks for Tanguay which may have hindered their chances of importing young defensemen in hopes of replacing Leopold. But that may all take a back seat until Calgary actually signs Tanguay, a restricted free agent who made $3.2 million last year.
The Wrap-Up
There were countless events that occurred this year that warrant further elaboration — the outstanding rookie class; Joe Thornton's breakout year; Carolina rightfully signing Captain Rod Brind'Amour, head coach Peter Laviolette and his staff to five-year contract extensions; Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff's banter with coaches throughout the playoffs; the recognition of the spectacular achievements at the NHL awards ceremony last Friday evening. The list could go on and on.
Suffice it to say that this year was a great success for the NHL. Despite abysmal TV ratings — something that hockey has suffered for quite sometime — the new style that evolved from the rule changes and their subsequent implementation has turned a once sluggish game of immobile tree choppers to a work of art composed of speed, agility, great offense, and equally remarkable defense.
The NHL's goal must now be to maintain this high quality product and hope that maybe, one day, sports fans in the U.S. will start to care.
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Author's side note: This year's draft weekend was interesting from my perspective for two reasons:
1). Alex Tanguay and I worked together in the summer of 1999 as camp counselors for current Atlanta Thrashers coach, then Colorado skipper, Bob Hartley in Hershey, PA (home of the American Hockey League 2005-2006 Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears). To see his name on the headlines was surreal. All the best to him in Calgary.
2). The Ottawa Senators drafted the son of Mike Foligno, an NHL veteran, former Hershey Bear Coach, and current GM of the Ontario Hockey League's Sudbury Wolves. Foligno's son Nick went 28th overall.
The relevance? In his post draft remarks, the young Foligno referenced his "youth" years playing for the Hershey Jr. Bears and the Central Penn Panthers Junior B teams and under coaches Mike Cleveland and former NHLer Tim Tookey — a pair of teams and coaches for whom the author played during his "youth" years.
Seeing those you know make it to the pros relegates writing about them undeniably bittersweet.
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