Bleacher Report - Articles by Matt Ellenberger

State of The State (of Hockey): New Year’s Eve Edition

Matt Ellenberger — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 13:39:29 -0500

Hot off the presses!! There’s life—the Wild finally showed up, against the best team in the NHL no less. Let me try to recap the game for you guys quick.

Owen Nolan started the scoring for the Wild on the powerplay when he got in front of a Brent Burns shot from the point. Play went back and forth for the rest of the period, and despite a flurry of action by San Jose, the period ended with a 1-0 Wild lead.

San Jose evened the score on a shot by Devin Setoguchi on the power play. It was a shot that snuck between the legs of Martin Skoula (who else?), and then between the pad of Backstrom and the post.

The team of 18,000 thought the score was tied nearly a minute later when Derek Boogard missed the net with a shot, Burns hit the post, and Andrew Brunette tapped it home- but apparently the whistle had already blown.

The Wild then actually tied the game on the powerplay—twice. First (this was the goal that actually counted), Kolanos ripped a wrist shot past Nabokov with an assist to James Sheppard, although the puck quickly caromed out of the net and was waived off (but was reviewed and counted shortly after).

Then, the Wild struck again 30 seconds later (though this one didn’t count), and this time it was Sheppard one timing a Kolanos pass past Nabakov at the top of the crease.

With the Wild up 2-1 with time dwindling in the third, Devin Setoguch potted his second goal of the evening with 25 seconds left to tie the game.

With an almost playoff like atmosphere at the X, the Wild headed into OT knowing they’d played their best game of the season. Just one and a half minutes into OT, Mikko Koivu pulled up in the offensive zone, making a move to get around a Shark Defenseman.

He then fed a cross- ice pass to Brent Burns, who put it top shelf, just over the glove of Nabokov.

A few quick notes on the game, then on to other important stuff. Firstly, Kolanos’ goal is his second in a Wild sweater, and his second against the Sharks. Lastly, with the win tonight, the Wild snapped a 12 game winless streak; a stretch in which they went 0-6-4-2.

According to Russo’s blog, Nolan was playing at 80%. Big deal, right? Well it turns out, Nolan went up to Jacques Lemaire and asked him to play. Meanwhile, Marian Gaborik will not play unless he’s 100%. Gaborik skated before the team skate this morning, but the team decided to hold him out—bad news for Wild fans, and Marian Gaborik trade value stockholders.

Also, the Wild are supposedly in trade talks with L.A.

Marc-Andre Bergeron skated this morning, although the Wild placed him on the IR to make room for Nolan.

State of the State (of Hockey): 12/30/08

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 11:35:38 -0500

For one, I’m sick of it. The period ends, and the fans start booing the home team of the ice. It's classless in my opinion, although I can totally understand everyone’s frustration.

The Wild come back on the ice after the intermission, and play just as bad as they did in the last period, and leave to an even louder chorus of boos. Nothing changes from period to period, which is why this team is so difficult to watch.

What the Wild need is a captain. Someone who stands up in the dressing room between periods and demands accountability. A captain is not only all fire and brimstone, but he’s got to lead by example as well.

Which brings me to my next point, the Wild’s captain for January. I was really happy with the Wild’s choice for November, Mikko Koivu, and it reflected in the 8-5 record the Wild put up during the month of November.

During Koivu’s captaincy, the Wild held together an impressive three- game winning streak against the Coyotes, Blue Jackets, and Penguins. Obviously, good captains have “intangibles” that are, by definition, immeasurable, but judging solely by record and individual statistics, I can conclude that Koivu’s captaincy was a successful one.

So, now we know what a good captain should be, so why didn’t we just give the “C” to Koivu again for December? I don’t think you could find a harder worker on the ice than Mikko Koivu, other than… (we’ll get to that later, it would ruin the rest of the article if I told you now).

Instead, Jacques decided to keep the captaincy rotating and gave the “C” to Kim Johnsson. Personally, I’m not all that crazy about Johnsson’s play on the ice, and I’m sure a lot of people agree with me. He’s put up a ton of minutes on ice, but mediocre numbers—certainly not “team leader” caliber numbers.

Johnsson has one goal and nine assists in 34 games, which ranks fourth among Wild defenseman. Decent, but not worth the “franchise defenseman” 5.3 million we’re paying him, nor good enough numbers to earn a captaincy, in my opinion.

As long as we’re using month-by-month records for judging captaincies (though I realize that isn’t the end all and be all of judging captaincies), the Johnsson has captained the Wild to a 3-8 month*, including a streak of six straight losses.

The Wild are suffering from a lack of leadership, no one demands accountability between periods, and Johnsson sure isn’t leading by example with his shaky play and ten points on the season.

So, throw out this month? With two games yet to play against the West’s best- Calgary and San Jose- I don’t think we have a choice. So, now you see how a captain can change a teams outlook game to game and month to month, so who’s wearing the “C” in January?

If it was my call, I’d give it to the rookie Cal Clutterbuck. The kid’s been what you call an energy player. He’s not too terribly skilled offensively, but the team doesn’t need someone who can score all the goals for them, they need someone to set the tone of play.

Clutterbuck is an expert in banging the bodies; he’s the NHL rookie leader in hits, set the Wild team record in hits, and is tied for seventh in the NHL in hits. If captaincy is all about setting examples for others to follow, Clutterbuck is the one you want at the helm, setting the tone.

Second order of business: Mr. Marian Gaborik. Gaborik is not feeling very well, I believe “soreness” was the word the Wild used. They said they are keeping him out against Chicago and Calgary*, although it could be longer.

Of course, let the trade speculation begin. There have been reports that the Wild have been in talks with Atlanta, although these talks don’t include superstar Ilya Kovalchuk. Then there was talk of a Angelo Esposito plus a pick for Gaborik trade, but the general consensus, at least that I’m hearing, is that Esposito is a bust.

If you ask me, don’t count on a trade between now and whenever Gaborik starts playing again, although if Risebrough knew what’s good for him it would be soon. Reason being, Gaborik’s played six games this season. That’s not enough time for teams to go out and scout him fully and put together a good offer, let alone the teams we want doing all that.

*Note: The Majority of this article was written yesterday, and doesn’t include the results for the game 12/29 against Calgary

Minnesota High School Hockey Report: Dec. 18-20, Edina Holiday Classic

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 07:32:44 -0500

First off, I want to apologize for my absence over the last couple weeks. I just got finished with final exams last week, and lately all I’ve wanted to do lately is sleep. Although, I recently got promoted to Minnesota Wild Community Leader (cheap plug), so you’ll be seeing a lot more of me.

Enough being humble, let's talk some high school hockey.

These six games I saw over the weekend were the first high school games I’ve been to where I haven’t been standing in the student section. I mean to tell you, you see a lot more of the game when you’re standing at the top of the arena looking down rather than hanging over the boards shouting obscenities.

The perspective was a lot different, and I think it helped a lot not having that much of a vested interest in any of the games. I can’t stress how different it was—I mean, last year when I was a senior at Edina, I tended to believe we were the end all and be all of hockey.

It was nice to look at our boys (being Edina) with an objective eye and being able to pick out flaws in Edina’s game.

Enough talk—to the first opening round game. The first game on Thursday pitched Elk River against No. 9 Eden Prairie. I got to Breamar Arena during the second intermission because I had to drive back from St. Thomas, but stay with me.

Ben Jaremko got the scoring started for Elk River with a short-handed goal with an assist to his brother Ryan Jaremko. Eden Prairie evened the score with a Taylor Wolfe goal, his third of the season.

Wolfe opened the scoring in the second as well, but Chad Hennum answered for Eden Prairie midway through the period with his seventh point in four games.

The game stayed tied at two into the third period when Kyle Rau tallied for EP to give them the lead not even five minutes in, and they would not give it back. Kyle’s brother Curt Rau tallied an empty net goal at 15:51 (yes, you read that right) to put the icing on the proverbial cake.

Interesting note coming out of this game—actually all three games Eden Prairie played. Kyle Rau’s tallied at least a point in all of the five games he’s played this season: he’s recorded two points against Lakeville North, Elk River, and Grand Rapids, and a point apiece against Chaska and Edina. And here’s the kicker—He’s only a Sophomore—but then, its early.

The second game Thursday saw No. 2 Edina take on Grand Rapids. Before I start, I should mention that Grand Rapids may have the ugliest away jerseys ever.

They’re those tight fitting Nike jerseys that Team USA wore in the Olympics, except they are all orange. They have an orange stripe on their breezers and orange socks. I mean to tell, you they are some of the ugliest jerseys I have ever seen.

That is not to say the Edina jerseys were pretty either—because they weren’t. White jerseys, with about 500 million green stripes on them, green breezers, and “hornets” written very crudely in cursive on the front of their jerseys. Thank god they’re only wearing those twice this season: that Thursday and Saturday.

Now that we’re done with the fashion show, let's talk hockey.

Edina dominated the first period, outshooting the Thunderhawks 13-5, but were stymied for the most part. The only goal of the period came on a Connor Gaarder goal on a nifty move swinging around the net.

The second period was a very uneventful one. I had the “this is the No. 2 team in the state?” thought cross my head more than once during the period. The Hornets outshot the opposition again, 9-8, but it was almost like the Hornets thought they would get the victory for just showing up.

The only goal of the period came from Grand Rapids’ Austin Anderson tucked a lose puck past Edina Goaltender Johnny Ankeny one minute in.

What I would like to call the “holy s***, we might lose this game factor” kicked in hardcore for Edina in the third.

Edina’s John Eppel tucked a puck past Grand Rapids goalie A.J. Underwood one minute into the third to give Edina the lead for good, and it was all Hornets after that.

Edina then put their 49th-ranked power play (23.5%, they were one–for even on the night) to work for them. Edina’s Brendan Baker then put away a pass from Marshall Everson to put Edina up by two.

The Hornets had one more goal in them though, as Charlie Taft put away a loose puck while getting absolutely creamed at the top of the crease to round out the scoring.

I will credit Grand Rapids with a very solid penalty kill unit. Their PK unit was at 75 percent, but they played incredibly solid against Edina. They fell back into an incredibly solid passive box system, and held the majority of Edina attacks to the blueline and side boards.

The first game on Friday saw Eden Prairie play Grand Rapids. In short, Grand Rapids just got destroyed. Grand Rapids never got more than ten shots in any period, and the final shots were 46- 25.

Tom Hammann scored the only goal for Grand Rapids at the 9:22 mark of the first period, and then the onslaught was on. Power-play goals by Kyle Rau and Mike Erickson, both assisted by Nick Leddy.

Second period goals by David Rath and Kyle Rau put the game away, and Eden Prairie packed the tent in the third period.

This just in (actually, not just in, everybody always new this)—Mike Erickson is really good. He has a point in every game, except one, including three against Lakeville North. He also has a goal in every game except one.

The senior captain is really getting himself noticed by NHL scouts; he has amazing speed, the only downside is he’s a little undersized, he’s 5’9’’.

The second game on Friday saw Edina play Elk river. It was more of the same for Edina—ugly, sloppy, play and then the “holy s***, we might lose this game factor” kicked in again in the third.

We were only playing a 20 minute game, which had me worried. I and everyone else knew we would get run out of the rink if we played Eden Prairie like we played Grand Rapids and Elk River.

Nick Filipovich scored for the Elks at the 9:22 mark of the first period, and even though Edina thoroughly dominated the shot chart through two periods (they were up 21-13 after two, and ended up leading in shots by a wide margin; 33-17), they were stymied by Elk goaltender Anders Franke.

Its safe to say Edina woke up in the third. The scoring opened with Senior Anders Lee deflecting home a shot from David Jarrett to tie the score.

Marshall Everson then tapped home a shot at the far post to put the Hornets up for good, and then Connor Gaarder added the insurance marker, working the two-on-one perfectly. Gaarder faked the pass to Everson, then ripped a wrist shot past the Elk goalie for the short-handed tally.

The player that impressed me the most on Elk River was their Freshman goaltender Anders Franke. He got the short end of the stick in the tournament going 2-1, and he’s a little undersized—his height isn’t listed, but I’d guess he’s no taller than 6’1’’ or 6’2’’.

Through seven games (he’s started all Elk River’s games as a freshman), he’s posted a 90 percent save percentage and a very good 2.14 GAA. He’s 4-3 on the season, with one shutout, a 3-0 blanking of Andover where he made 20 saves.

But then, it's still early. The main concern about young goaltenders is their consistency, and being able to play night in and night out. Still, he’s a solid butterfly style goaltender who’s only going to get better with age.

The first game Saturday, the Elk River-Grand Rapids game, was a mismatch. Elk River ended up winning 6-3, but it wasn’t even that close. Grand Rapids never got more than ten shots in any one period, and Elk River put up at least a goal in every period, and four in the second.

Grand Rapids scored two quick goals in the first, Duston Schulte at 2:45, and Patrick Moore at 10:37. CJ Pullar opened the scoring for Elk River, his first of two points in the game, and his eighth and ninth points in as many games.

The second period was all Elks, with three very quick goals to chase goaltender A.J. Underwood from the game. Ryan Jaremko notched his second goal and tenth point in nine games at the 1:08 mark, then Nick Filipovich scored, followed by Levi Lutz 23 seconds later.

Ryan Larson then came on to play goal for Grand Rapids, and he didn’t do much better than Underwood. He didn’t even flinch when Nick Filipovich scored his second goal of the evening to round out the second period scoring.

With the game more of less in the bag, Elk River packed up the tent in the third. Chad Hennum scored for Elk River followed by Grand Rapids’ Sam Rendle with his 13th point in nine games, but this game was decided a long time ago.

The last game of the tournament featured the marquee match up of Edina Vs. Eden Prairie, a very heated rivalry at that. Heading in to the game, I thought Eden Prairie had the game in the bag, considering how Badly Edina played in the first two games of the tournament.

The action was back and forth all game, although Eden Prairie got off to a slow start in the first. Eden Prairie got outshot 15-6 in the first, but only ended up down by one goal, with Brett Stolpestad tallying an early marker for Edina.

Eden Prairie came out with guns blazing in the second, as the Eagles scored twice on the powerplay, once by Mike Erickson at 6:50, and again by Kyle Rau at 8:43. Edina had their own special teams scoring fest going on though, led by defenseman Brendan Baker, who had a whale of a game.

Baker tallied his first of the game at 13:12 of the second period on the power play to tie the game, then again at 6:21 of the third period, also on the power play, for the game winner. Final shots in the game were 33-39 Edina.

Wild-Stars: Minnesota Crashes and Burns in the Third...Again

Matt Ellenberger — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 12:39:20 -0500

Same story—second verse? Third? Fourth?

We’ve blown so many third period leads in the last few games I can’t remember how many it is now. Its almost as if the game plan is to stockpile a lead in the first and second periods because we’re bound to give up two or three in the third.

You know that adage that coaches all the time “play 60 minutes”? Well, the Wild have got into a habit of playing 30 minutes, if that. They play like world-beaters for about a period and a half, then start to crumble for the last half of the game.

Yesterday’s debauchery came against former Wild player Mark Parrish and the Dallas Stars.

The Wild and Stars traded goals in the first period by Neal and Belanger.

The first half (the good half) of the second period was just as good, if not better, than the first. Turco was under siege, and we had the Stars just where we wanted them.

First, a no-goal by Koivu on an absolute rocket of a slap shot from the right circle—I mean, that would’ve made Bobby Hull proud. The way I saw it, it rung around the inside of the crossbar and far post, but disappeared from view in the process. I thought it was a goal for sure, but what seemed like a 20-minute call to Toronto proved otherwise.

A Nolan goal, and then a goal by Brunette (which was credited to Skoula for a while) closed out the game for the Wild.

Unfortunately, the Stars kept on playing—because, like always, the Wild pack the tent halfway through the game.

A late goal by Neal, which was pretty crafty—Backstrom bobbled the basket catch, and Neal whacked the puck out of midair—got me nervous. We headed to the dreaded third period with a one-goal lead. Bad news.

A Richards goal tied the game at three apiece, and then a late goal by Loui Eriksson put a cap on the thoroughly disgusting night.

The controversy doesn’t stop there, though. A third-period goal by Koivu got waived off because Turco “inadvertently” knocked the net off. Now, not many people that I’ve talked to remember this, but Turco got in trouble two or three years ago for the same thing.

Obviously, the NHL didn’t do anything then, and the NHL won’t do anything now. But I mean, come on—he knocks the net off himself! One, that should be a delay-of-game call, and two, the play should’ve been whistled dead right then when the net gets knocked off.

I mean, if Koivu hadn’t “scored” right the play might have gone on for the whole period, and any time the Wild score it wouldn’t have counted.

Epic Division III Football Battle Comes Down to Six Inches

Matt Ellenberger — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 18:00:30 -0400

One of the best Division III football rivalries ever is played every October between two Catholic universities, St. Thomas and St. John's—an MIAC showdown that usually decides the division champion.

Obviously, this article will be biased, but since the vast majority of you probably didn't see the game, I can spin it any way I want—still, I'll try not to.

The game started out perfectly. A Tommies interception on the Johnnies' own 20 should be an easy six. Apparently not. A 4th-and-long and no sign of the punt unit or field goal team. What came next would have any football fan on their feet.

A triple-reverse left the St. Thomas quarterback wide open in the back of the end zone for a somewhat easy, somewhat stressful six.

I must admit, this is where my mind gets a little fuzzy. Maybe because I was a tad hung over from Friday night, or the fact that I was babysitting a friend who thought it was a good idea to have six shots of Everclear in six minutes. If you were wondering, that's not a good idea at all.

So, basically, I don't remember the rest of the first half, but I do know it involved a pooch punt by the Tommie quarterback, as well as a bunch of unsuccessful draw plays by the Tommies on 3rd-and-forever.

After a botched extra point by the Johnnies, halftime saw the Tommies up, 7-6.

Again, more babysitting by myself and convincing my friend not to puke in the middle of the stands, so we'll fast forward to the end of the third quarter.

The Johnnies scored another touchdown, and this time it was a botched two-point conversion, but it put them up, 12-7.

Again, more unsuccessful draw plays on 3rd-and-forever. Pandemonium ensues as the Tommies go three-and-out after three-and-out.

Then, hope. The Tommies pinned the Johnnies down inside their own 10 with time dwindling in the fourth quarter. It was fourth down, too, so St. Thomas was guaranteed good field position. Then, obviously a call from the sideline, the punter runs out of the back of the end zone untouched for a Tommies safety, 12-9.

The Tommies then mounted a surprisingly successful clutch drive that led them to the St. John's 1-yard line. The first try, I thought they broke the plane (I was standing right on the goal line), but apparently not. They get a bad spot, whatever.

Second down, inside 30 seconds left. The Tommies are inside the 1, but at this point it doesn't matter much. Their second push again appears to cross the goal line by quite a wide margin, but, again, no. The crowd, including me, is going ballistic at this point. It's nuts.

Third down. The running back gets a bad snap, and it's bad news. As the running back jumps up and over the pile, the ball (which he had cradled on his thigh because of the bad snap) pops straight up into the air, Johnnies recover, bad guys win.

So there you have it, and the St. John's reign of terror against St. Thomas continues.

Don't like my take? you can read about the game at Tommie Sports, or on the Star Tribune Website.

Minnesota Wild Finalize Roster Shakedown

Matt Ellenberger — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 15:15:38 -0400

Preface: My apologies for not writing for a long while. When you’re writing three or more papers a week for school, as I am now, I don’t have much spare time to do anything, let alone write more. That is coupled with the fact that I don’t have a radio in my dorm, so I couldn’t listen to any of the Wild's preseason games.

With the NHL’s regular season looming just mere days away, the Wild have made their final cuts, packed their bags, and moved from Parade Ice Garden to the cozy confines of the Xcel Energy Center to await the Boston Bruins on October 8.

There were a few surprises cracking this year’s version of the Wild, as Jacques once again put together his patented mix of skilled youngsters and muck-and-grind veterans. Here’s what the roster looks like this year:

Eric Belanger
Derek Boogaard
Pierre-Marc Bouchard
Andrew Brunette
Marian Gaborik
Colton Gillies
Mikko Koivu
Antti Miettinen
Owen Nolan
Benoit Pouliot
James Sheppard
Stephane Veilleux
Craig Weller
Marc-Andre Bergeron
Brent Burns
Kurtis Foster
Kim Johnsson
Tomas Mojzis
Erik Reitz
Nick Schultz
John Scott
Martin Skoula
Marek Zidlicky
Niklas Backstrom
Barry Brust
Josh Harding

On the forward side, it seems that the Wild will have a tough time scoring many goal.

As I’ve preached before, the Wild will need a solid performance from sophomore center James Sheppard, who is due for a breakout year.

I’m happy to see Gillies make the roster. He’s sure to spark the offense, and is a good guy to have around for that energy shift, or on the penalty kill.

On the defensive side of the puck, I wonder why Jacques hasn’t cut Skoula yet, but I guess depth on the blue line is a good thing to have.

John Scott must have really impressed in training camp and the preseason. I have to confess I’ve never heard of him before.

The Wild have three goalies on their roster, but this is because Skoula injured Harding’s eye late in the preseason (yet another reason to get rid of Skoula).

I’m a little perplexed as to why Brust is backing up Backstrom instead of Schaefer. Brust has more NHL experience, perhaps? Maybe Brust showed something in the preseason, but I missed it because I don’t have a radio.

I guess it doesn’t really matter, because Brust will be sent back down to Houston when Harding gets healthy anyways.

Minnesota Wild Preview, Part 4 of 4: Goaltending

Matt Ellenberger — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 13:56:51 -0400

The Minnesota Wild goaltending corps stays much the same from last year with Backstrom starting and Harding backing up.

Barring a major surprise in training camp by highly touted prospect Nolan Schaefer, Texas Wildcatters' starter Anton Khudobin, or veteran Barry Brust, the Wild goaltending situation will be exactly the same as last year.

Schaefer, the outside favorite, has seven games of NHL service under his belt with the Sharks in 2006 where he backed up Nabakov and played very well. He’s shuttled around the AHL since then, playing 34 games for the Aeros, posting a 2.06 GAA.

Brust also has 11 games of NHL experience in 2006 and has also been kicked around the AHL quite a bit. He was Minnesota’s third round pick in ’02 and he played 43 games for Minnesota’s AHL affiliate, the Houston Aeros, posting a very good 2.27 GAA.

Then there’s long shot pick Anton Khudobin, the last goalie the Wild brought into camp. He was a seventh round low risk, high reward pick in ’04, who got demoted from the AHL to the ECHL last year. It might be said, since Khudobin only has two years of North American hockey experience, he might be still transitioning from the Russian to the North American game.

For some reason, Wild goalies tend to go in the toilet after signing a new deal with the Wild. We saw it with both Fernandez and Roloson. Both Harding and Backstrom are due for new contracts at the end of the 2009 season, so watch out for that.

Personally, I’m a big fan of Josh Harding and think he has loads of potential. I don’t see the Wild moving Backstrom, but I sure think that it could be feasible. Harding needs a chance to be a starting goalie in this league.

Minnesota Wild Preview, Part Three of Four: Who's Gonna Score?

Matt Ellenberger — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:22:09 -0400

The Wild are going to have trouble scoring goals this season—real trouble.

Minnesota just doesn't have that many offensive weapons, which might make them easy pickings for opposing defenses.

Star forward Marian Gaborik will always put up good numbers, but the lack of other scoring options might hurt him, as well as his notorious glass groin that seems to always hold him out for part of the year.

Pierre-Marc Bouchard is coming into his own as a decent scoring threat, as well as James Sheppard, and to an extent, Eric Belanger.

The Wild have a bunch of “fringe” scorers who could make or break the team as far as offense goes.

Mikko Koivu could surprise some people this year, if he hasn’t already. He’s got more talent than his brother Saku, in my opinion. He’ll challenge Gaborik for the team scoring lead; he even reminds me of a young Gaborik with his speed.

The Wild have some scoring talent in the AHL, as well, but we shouldn’t count our chickens before they’re hatched: Colton Gillies, Morton Madsen, and Benoit Pouliot (although he might make the team right out of camp).

Bottom line, someone has to score the goals, and if it’s only Gaborik, we’re in trouble. Gaborik’s ether going to get traded around the deadline if he doesn’t resign, or get injured again and not play a full season.

Dwayne Roloson Subject to Rumours

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 07:49:07 -0400

From spectorshockey.net:

Jim Matheson reports Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers intends to battle for a spot in the Oilers goaltending rotation, battling with Mathieu Garon and Dwayne Roloson. "Drouin-Deslauriers can't be sent back to the minors, unless he clears waivers, and the Oilers, after investing four pro years and signing him to a new two-year contract this summer, may keep three goalies to start the season no matter how he plays in the exhibitions" writes Matheson.

I don't think the Oil will carry three goalies, which means Roloson will probably be the odd man out. Begin rumour mill. I've heard Roloson to LA a lot, but that's the biggest load of garbage I've ever heard, and here's why:

1. The Kings have good, young goaltenders in the NHL and in the minors. Labarbera and Ersberg make a combined $1.5 million. Why would they want to add another $3 million to that?

2. I see this as just another Khabibulin rumour. The Kings don't need an old, overpriced goalie just to get above the cap floor.

3. The Kings have a bad history with old goalies, namely and recently Dan Cloutier and Roman Chechmanek.

4. Roloson is 38 and on the downside of his career. The Oilers will have a tough time getting rid of him, for any value anyways.

Minnesota Wild Season Preview, Part Two: Defense

Matt Ellenberger — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:30:06 -0400

Its no secret that the Wild put a ton of emphasis on team defense over the seven years the franchise has been in existence—especially last year.

Lemaire’s strategy is pretty simple—if you don’t let the other team score, as long as you score one goal, you’ll win. You saw that strategy come to fruition with the first-round pick of defensive defenseman Tyler Cuma.

As they sit now, the Wild look like one of the better defensive teams in the division, but they still have many holes to fill.

The Wild picked up both Marc-Andre Bergeron and Marek Zidlicky to help on the blue line, and still have the services of Brent Burns—who is a top-five defenseman. They also have a so-so defenseman in Nick Schultz.

Also returning is Kurtis Foster, who is coming off a broken leg in a playoff game against San Jose. An aging Kim Johnsson also returns. Johnson is a solid second- or third-paring defenseman, but he really hasn’t showed the team anything.

Oh, and then there’s Martin Skoula, who isn’t what you would call a fan favorite. Minnesota fans—including myself—have been calling for his head on a platter from day one, but apparently Jacques likes something about his play.

The Wild have depth at the position, which is a really good thing. Minnesota has Erik Reitz, Clayton Stoner, and newly-acquired Tomas Mojzis waiting in Houston.

The Wild will have to send down or trade one of Johnsson, Foster, Schultz, or Skoula, assuming all four are healthy to start the season.

No NHL Olympians After '10?

Matt Ellenberger — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:08:01 -0400

It appears the NHL’s history in the Olympics is in jeopardy after all. According to a CBC article, Gary Bettman is rethinking its policy of a midseason Olympic break.

It’s a “strain on all the players,” according to Bettman, which makes sense.

That might have been the case with Free Agent center Peter Forsberg, who has played for four NHL teams, as well as three Olympics, six World Championships, and two World Cups of Hockey. Along with 706 NHL Games, 59 international games, it does a number on you, and makes you more susceptible to injury.

If NHL players don’t go starting with the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, I’m sure the popularity of Olympic Hockey wouldn’t drop off the map, or drop off at all. I’m sure this would spell the end for the World Junior Championships, and extend Canada’s dominance.

In the last ten Olympics, six different countries have won the gold medal: The Soviet Union, United States, Unified team, (a collection of Soviet Republics), Sweden, Czech Republic, and Canada.

Conversely, over the same ten-year span, only four different teams have won gold in the WJC: Russia, Czech Republic, The United States, and Canada. Canada is currently on a winning streak that spans a total of four years.

The NHL already has world tournaments in place to showcase NHL talent in the global realm, so I think it would be a plus if the IOC brought back the pre-1994 Olympics for college and junior hockey players to show their talent.

It might put Team USA at a disadvantage, but that’s okay with me.

Paintball An Olympic Sport?

Matt Ellenberger — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:48:40 -0400

I was surfing around on Al Gore’s internet, and found an article that was a bit shocking to me. The Article I found was about bringing paintball into the Olympics.

My initial reaction was one of shock and surprise. I remember seeing paintball on TV once, but only once, and so I believe paintball isn’t even close to having the kind of popularity needed. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing paintball with the guys every couple weekends, but an Olympic sport might be taking it a little far—make that a lot far.

They took Softball out of the Olympics because it was “too American.” I don’t think you can get more “American” than paintball. I’m no paintball history buff, but didn’t we invent paintball? Aren’t we pretty much the only country to play it? The whole “too American” argument might be moot though with the induction of BMX into the Olympics, I’m pretty sure we made that one up also.

On a lighter note, can you imagine the epic matchups?

Iran Vs. USA

North Korea Vs. South Korea

Iraq Vs. Iran

I’m telling you, forget ping pong diplomacy, paintball diplomacy is the next big thing.

NHL Northwest Division Preview

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:49:34 -0400

With the 2008- 2009 NHL season drawing closer, I figured I would jump on the bandwagon and do a division prediction. I’m going to do a Wild team prediction as well, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

I’ve seen a bunch of season predictions, most namely from The Hockey News, and they barely have anything in common.

That said, here are my predictions for how the Northwest division will shake out this year:

1. Edmonton Oilers
2. Calgary Flames
3. Colorado Avalanche
4. Minnesota Wild
5. Vancouver Canucks

Before you start bashing me (and you know you will), let me defend my predictions, or at least try to:

1. Edmonton Oilers

They are the epitome of the term "solid." The Oil are set from the first line all the way through the fourth. You really can’t find a glaring hole on this team, and they have Potulny, Strudwick, and Schremp waiting in the wings.

You could argue that they might have problems in goal with Garon and Roloson, but I think they’ll be all right. They’re really well balanced—they kind of remind me of the ’03 Wild, to an extent.

2. Calgary Flames

The Flames are a one-line team, maybe two. Iginla’s still one of the best in the league, Bertuzzi’s fading, then guys like Langkow and Lombardi are solid. And then there’s Andre Roy?

Their defense is pretty solid, with Phaneuf headlining, as always. They could fill out two good defensive pairings, but you’ve got to score goals to win games. Plus, they’ve got one untested backup, Curtis McElhinney.

3. Colorado Avalanche

Too many questions surround the Avalanche this year. Their success hinges on Sakic and Forsberg—Sakic returning to the Avalanche, and both of them staying healthy. T

he question marks are even bigger in goal. Budaj is a solid backup—but just that—and Raycroft is a mystery. If they can get the Raycroft that played in Boston and not the one that played in Toronto, then the Avs will be way better off.

If everything breaks right for Colorado, this could be a breakout year for them. I just don’t see it happening though—they’re too old.

4. Minnesota Wild

The Wild are my team, but the moves they've made this offseason make no sense to me.

The ownership took a mediocre team and made it worse. Yes, they have an okay team on paper, but they’re one major injury away from disaster.

I won’t go into the Wild situation too much here, but keep your eyes peeled for my Wild preview.

5. Vancouver Canucks

I’ve heard people call this a rebuilding year in Vancouver, but I don't buy into it. Yes, I picked them last, but that doesn’t count for much—the Canucks are still going to be competitive this year.

The Canucks still have the Sedins (at least this year), a solid defensive corps, and any team that has Luongo in net will always be competitive.

The Wild Want More Money Out Of Their Fans

Matt Ellenberger — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 15:27:34 -0400

Like most NHL Clubs, make that most major sports clubs, the Minnesota Wild have introduced “premium pricing” for some of their home games, 12 to be exact.
“Premium pricing” is just a way to sugar- coat saying, “We’re going to charge you more,” as much as $20 more.

According to sportswriter Michael Russo’s blog, “Single-game ticket prices will range from $24.00 to $98.00 and premium game ticket prices will range from $29.00 to $118.00 (Facility fee and Ticketmaster charges not included).” Why all this? The Minnesota Wild organization is already the most profitable in the NHL, and I’m no financial mind, but I know the Wild walk a fine line here.

The Wild play a very high stakes poker game, with their fans’ money. Its easy economics, really. Drive ticket prices up, and therefore less people who are able to afford to go. I’ll use myself as an example. I’ve been to about 20 Wild games last year, and I sit in $80 club level seats most of the time. (I don’t pay that, my dad gets them through his job.)

If I had paid for all those, that’s $1600 just for me. Say, tickets to “premium games” are $820, and 12 games are “premium,” that’s $9,840 for just those twelve games. As you see in my example, $9,840 is a chunk of change.

If the “New NHL” is all about branching out to the “casual fan,” you can’t tell me the majority of “casual” fans can afford that. Heck, the majority of diehard hockey fans aren’t able to afford to see games at those prices.

Minnesota Wild All-Time Team

Matt Ellenberger — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 15:15:22 -0400

I saw this was an “open mic” prompt on Bleacher Report a while ago, and it got me to thinking. Apparently, I didn’t think hard enough or long enough on it, because I forgot about it.

Well, here it is again, I finally got around to it. I’m only going two lines deep, two defensive parings, and two goalies. I chose those numbers because with only seven years under their collective belts, the Wild’s talent pool just isn’t that deep. So, with out any further ado, here it is:

Gaborik- Walz- Brunette
Parrish -Hendrickson- Vorros
Mitchell- Burns
Bombidir- Nummelin
Fernandez
Harding

Before you start yelling at me, let me back up my selections. My criterion for selecting players was team chemistry. I was looking for the “All-Heart Team”, so to speak, and I did that because most all Wild teams aren’t put together on skill at all. Here’s a player-by-player breakdown of why they are on the “All-Heart Team:”

LW- Marian Gaborik: Self-explanatory, he’s been the heart and soul of this team since conception in 2000. The Wild’s first pick in the expansion draft, and was he ever worth it.

LW- Mark Parrish: Okay, so he’s a right wing, but I had to get him on the team somehow. He might not be the best scorer ever (he has a nose for the net though), but I’m not basing on talent, like I said. He leads by example, and is a lot like Wes Walz.

C- Wes Walz: Yes, on talent alone, he isn’t a first line center. In the words of the late great Herb Brooks, “we don’t have enough talent to win on talent alone.” I read an article in The Hockey News about a year ago, and they said “Walz will have 50 goals this year; score 20 and prevent 30.” He’s a great two-way forward, him and Parrish.

C- Darby Hendrickson: This is kind of a hat-tip to him. He was a good, but not great player, but will forever go down in Wild history. Hailing from Richfield, Minnesota, he was already a fan favorite. He also scored the first regular season goal in Wild history, in 2000 against the Philadelphia Flyers. He had to get on this team.

RW- Andrew Brunette: A hard nosed, down and dirty player who is a great playmaker. He had great chemistry with Gaborik, not to mention scoring one of the most important goals in wild lore, against the Avs in the 2003 playoffs, game seven. Not to mention, he pretty much destroyed the Wild, playing for those same Avalanche last season.

RW- Aaron Vorros: He plays the game with some kind of energy. If you’re looking for an “energy shift,” he’s your man. My mom calls him a psycho, but I like him. He’s always in the middle of everything, banging the bodies and creating scoring chances; he's a real catalyst.

D- Willie Mitchell: Probably the best defenseman the Wild has ever had, next to Brent Burns. I still remember in the ’03 playoffs when he played a whole series with a broken jaw, I thought he was the coolest guy ever. He isn’t afraid to muck and grind in the corners ether.

D- Brent Burns: He hits, he scores goals, he makes plays; he’s pretty much superman. One of the NHL’s best young defenseman.

D- Brad Bombidir: He was called “the bomber,” and for good reason. He wasn’t that kind of defenseman who you’d remember for his defensive ability (which in Lemaire’s mind is a one way ticket out of town.) Nonetheless, he had a booming slapshot from the point.

D- Petteri Nummelin: Most people don’t like him, but I do. I really think he’s a great skater and a good playmaker, not to mention a versatile asset. He played wing on the power play last year, and really impressed me. Not everybody, but hey, it's my list.

G- Manny Fernandez: Really solid, until he signed his new contract the year before we got rid of him. I know he’s been plagued by injuries, but the first couple seasons we had had him, there was no one better.

G- Josh Harding: He can be a starter in this league, no doubt. We saw flashes of it last year when Backstrom played badly. He can really step up his game when he wants to, this kid’s a great young talent.

Honorable Mentions:

Derek Boogaard: Self-explanatory as well, he’s always ready to stick up for his teammates.

P-M Bouchard: Electric player to watch, and has amazing speed. He also resurrected the Savardian Spin-O-Rama.

Jim Dowd: We couldn’t forget him and his trademark “biker shorts” look, now could we?

Matt Johnson: Pre-Derek Boogaard tough guy built in the same mold

Sergei Krivokrasov: Nothing special, I love his last name though

Richard Park: One of my favorite Wild players, and who could forget his game six goal against the Avalanche in ’03?

Cliff Ronning: Also one of my very favorites. A tireless worker and a great playmaker.

And last but certainly not least, Sergei Zholtok: A great player in so many assets of the game. RIP.

So there it is. Agree? Disagree? Don’t hesitate to chime in.

IOC Launching Investigation into Chinese Gymnastics Team

Matt Ellenberger — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:56:38 -0400

According to a Yahoo! Sports blog, the IOC is going to open an official investigation to discover the age of Chinese gymnast He Kexin. This is also confirmed in an article on Times Online.

The announcement is a really long time coming and it shouldn’t surprise anybody that He is underage. This comes after a report that He is listed in Chinese documents as being just 14 years old.

I understand the IOC doesn’t want to be the one ruining China’s “coming out party,” but the party was already ruined with the ruthless speculation that came with the Chinese women’s team gymnastics performance.

Even if the Chinese women are confirmed to be under-age (and it’s all been confirmed already), I don’t know what action the IOC can take. I’m sure they can wag their finger at China, but it seems there's not much more for them to do.

Since the Chinese government has access to everything, even private documents (including birth certificates), I’m not sure how much difference it will make should the gymnasts be under-age.

An international spectacle, a national embarrassment, yes. China might even get stripped of its women’s gymnastics medals. But who knows what the future will hold for the Chinese young (make that very young) women?

Marion Gaborik: Wild Soap Opera in Minnesota

Matt Ellenberger — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:02:08 -0400

In our last episode, we learned Wild GM Doug Risebrough and assistant GM Tom Lynn flew to Slovakia in order to talk contract with the star left-winger. Marian Gaborik’s agent, Ron Salcer, said that the Wild impressed Gaborik, in an article by The Star Tribune."I have a tremendous amount of respect for how they handled that," says Salcer about the four-hour dinner.

It also has come out that there were rumors that Gaborik might sign with Russian league team Spartak, although that has been fiercely downplayed and denied. While Salcer says his client was impressed with the meeting, whether he was impressed enough to resign is still a mystery.

Risebrough says he’s open to negotiate with Gaborik during the season; although whether that will be a distraction to the team is open for discussion. In a Wild.com story, Risebrough reveals that the Wild’s next move will come in the form of a proposal, which shouldn’t surprise anybody.

Gaborik is set to make 7.5 million this year, and the Wild are expected to offer him 8.5 million, but he could potentially get a lot more than that on a weak Free Agent market next year.

Yes, Cammalleri, Afinogenov, Cole, Zetterberg, Connolly, Zherdev, Tanguay, Gaborik, Sykora, Sullivan, The Sedins, Niedermayer, McDonald, Gionta, Franzen, Comrie, etc. Are on the potential FA market has some big names on it, but expect half to three- fourths of those guys to get re-signed.

If Gaborik doesn’t re- up with the Wild, I could easily see him going over ten million for a one year tenure.

In my opinion, if Gaborik won’t re-sign, the Wild front office won’t pony-up with enough cash, or even if his price tag doesn’t come down, the Wild should look elsewhere. Gaborik has a history of injuries, and, to be honest, Lemaire’s system doesn’t play to Gabby’s strengths at all.

I think the Wild would be better off in the long run if the Wild were to trade him around the trade deadline, and here’s why: at the deadline, Gaborik’s price comes down, so he’ll look better to other teams, which will put his trade value at a premium.

We then shop him around to a couple teams, maybe looking for three or four good young players or prospect’s that project well and that fit Jacques’ system better. That way, we could have what we really need, and let some other team worry about his contract.

Lopez Lomong: Lost Boy Finds Home

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:58:45 -0400

Track star and U.S. flag bearer Lopez Lomong has a story to tell, and an inspiring one at that.

Lomong was born in Southern Sudan in the midst of the Second Sudanese Civil War. At age six, Lomong was abducted while attending mass and pronounced dead by his family weeks later. Lomong, not dead but almost, escaped captivity and returned to his village.

Lopez was one of the “Lost Boys” of Sudan, hiding during the days and wandering during nights. Lopez finally found himself in a refugee camp in Kenya before Catholic Charities brought him to the US.

Lomong was forced to be a child soldier, a practice which the UN has deemed a war crime, yet he ran from his captors. In an interview with ESPN he said, "We could hear the soldiers talking and laughing, lighting cigarettes. The more they talked, the more we realized we could get out.

"We went through a hole in the fence and started running."

Lopez (which is not his given name) is still running. But this time it isn’t from the Sudan People’s Liberation Army.

Lomong believes in the American Dream, and in a new start in a new country. "I came all the way here, so I have to run,” he says. "This is a peaceful country, a land of opportunity, so I believe my hard work will pay off one day. If I think like that, I run a little bit faster.”

Lopez has his new start, and his hard work is paying off. One year after becoming a naturalized US citizen, Lomong qualified for the Olympics in Beijing.

During the procession of the Olympic Flame into Beijing, there were many protests over the genocide in Darfur and Sudan. The protests were put down violently by the Chinese government, although Lomong himself is a glaring reminder of the unthinkable violence and turmoil.

China’s communist government supports the government of Sudan, a fact that must be weighing constantly on Lomong’s conscious. In his interview with ESPN, he voices this concern: "I'll say it's not a good thing for China to sponsor the government of Sudan and kill innocent people."

According to the article, “The slaughter has been carried out by the Janjaweed horseback militia, a band of Arab nomads recruited and financed by the Khartoum government, which receives cash, arms, and political protection from China.”

Lomong could be angry, he could be vengeful towards China because of all they've done to his homeland. Through all this commotion, though, he has kept a cool head. Every month he sends $200 over to his family in Sudan. Long ago, he believed his family to be dead, just as they believed he had died after his abduction.

What can we learn from Lopez Lomong? His is a story of tremendous courage, maturity, and determination. I was taught, when writing articles, to keep your opinions out of it, but I think I’m going to break my own rules here.

What’s happening in Darfur is wrong, and it takes remarkable courage to speak out in the face of adversity, as Lomong continues to do. Kidnapped at the age of six, Lomong had to grow up fast.

Yes, we can all learn something from the story of Lopez Lomong—not only a word class athlete, but a world class individual as well.

Jay Bouwmeester: Should The Florida Panthers Trade Him?

Matt Ellenberger — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 13:18:33 -0400

Florida defenseman Jay Bouwmeester will go through the salary arbitration process in the next couple months. If he wins, this puts Florida in a tough spot. Lets assume Bouwmeester wins arbitration in this scenario.

Bouwmeester would then be awarded a one year deal that would take him up to the 09'-10' offseason, his first unrestricted free agent year. Given that he probably won't re- up with Florida, should they try to cash in and trade him while they still can?

He is Florida's one big name player, and in another, bigger hockey market, could be referred to as the counterpart to Calgary's Dion Phaneuf. He's the one good defenseman no one knows about, which is why Florida could really help their rebuilding process by getting a few blue chip prospects, some high draft picks or both.

Or, maybe not. The Panthers have a terrible history of pulling of really bad deals. The Luongo deal? I can't remember who they got back. The Jokinen trade? Solid defenseman Ballard and Boynton who's a decent defenseman, but not the return you'd expect from trading a franchise guy like Olli Jokinen.

The Chicago Blackhawks' Salary Cap Nightmare

Matt Ellenberger — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:39:34 -0400

Chicago has $12 million in cap space tied up in goalies between Khabibulin and Huet.

Huet will be earning more than Brodeur this upcoming season, which is crazy considering Huet isn't even close to Brodeur's caliber.

Of course, the Huet and Campbell signings put the Blackhawks over the cap ceiling.

This begs the question, should the 'Hawks start shopping Khabibulin?

The Kings need a goalie, so do the Sens, and Boston always seems to. The way I see it, the Hawks owe Khabibulin a cool $6 million this season, and let's face it: he's not the Khabibulin of old. He's been plagued with a bunch of injury problems and hasn't played that well.

I would be looking for him to move more towards the trade deadline when his price tag comes down by a lot.

And then there's the Brian Campbell signing. Chicago was in the market for a puck moving defenseman and they sure got one at a cost. Campbell now makes more than the best defenseman in the league, Nick Lidstrom. How crazy is that?

The Minnesota Wild and Their Offseason Goals

Matt Ellenberger — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 07:43:41 -0400

The Wild have a list of priorities on their "Hockey Ops" blog and have supposedly addressed all of their needs. Lets take a look, shall we?

Hockey Ops Priority—Assemble one of the top defensive corps in the Western Conference. The last two Conference champions had great defensive units that were very strong offensively and defensively.

Retained pending free agent Nick Schultz.

Added an accomplished top four defenseman in Marek Zidlicky.

Me—Not exactly. Schultz is a solid defenseman, and so is Zidlicky, but we've still got Johnsson and Hill, who are serviceable, but not top in the Western Conference by any stretch of the imagination. We also signed Marc-Andre Bergeron, which is a plus. We're getting better, but not quite there yet.

Hockey Ops Priority—Increase offense and puck possession without sacrificing the solid defensive identity of our team.

Changed from older, defensive veterans on defense to more mobile, puck-moving players in Zidlicky and Marc-Andre Bergeron.

Brought back Andrew Brunette to help offensive zone puck possession and create more goals.

Added Antti Miettinen to show more offense from the team’s two-way players.

Me—OK, mission accomplished I guess. I hate that we have a “defensive identity” though; why can't we have an “offensive identity?” Sure Bruno's going to create goals, but who's going to score 'em?

Hockey Ops- Priority—Focus on retaining and growing the young core of players on our team who will continue to get better and take us to the next level.

Did not trade young players on the team such as Mikko Koivu, Brent Burns, and James Sheppard at the trade deadline or the Draft.

Retained young prospects Colton Gillies and Benoit Pouliot at the same time and moved up in the draft to ensure the obtaining of Tyler Cuma.

Me—Nor did we trade players like Marian Gaborik or Niklas Backstrom. I think management gets the big “so what?” on this one. And oh look, another defensive defenseman!

I think management forgot that you have to score goals to win hockey games.

The Sidney Crosby- NHL- NBC Love Triangle

Matt Ellenberger — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 06:43:08 -0400

When “Sid the Kid” was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2005, he was supposed to revive the NHL. Unfortunately for him, a young star named Alexander Ovechkin claimed the “face of the league” from Crosby.

NBC, however, apparently didn’t get the message.

To say the NBC hockey announcers, Mike Emrick and Ed Olczyk, respect Crosby is an absolute understatement. While Crosby is a great player and deserves the praise of the NBC commentators, he isn’t the one who “revived the NHL,” and he isn’t the best player in the league, as the NBC guys would like to think.

Crosby is undoubtedly a star in the NHL, but he plays with the third- or fourth-best player in the NHL, Evgeni Malkin. Meanwhile, Ovechkin plays for Washington with a supporting cast of Nick Backstrom and Alexander Semin.

NBC always refers to the penguins as “Sidney Crosby and the Penguins,” implying the Penguins are just a rag-tag bunch of players, and then there’s Sidney Crosby to save the day. Maybe that's because Pittsburgh is a bigger hockey market than Washington, but NBC’s bias is showing big time.

Sidney scored a whopping six goals in the playoffs, while Ovechkin scored four in 13 less games. The point I’m making isn’t that Ovechkin is a better player than Crosby, but that Crosby isn’t the main focus that drives the Pittsburgh offense.

Moreover, I’m sick of the NBC commentators going on and on about how “Crosby has worked so hard to get the Penguins into the Cup Final.”

Two issues with that:

1) It definitely wasn’t all Crosby. There were more than a few games where Fleury stood on his head to keep the Penguins in games.

2) In the infamous words of Ricky Bobby “If you ain’t first, you’re last.”

Oh, and one more thing. I’m tired of the NBC guys praising Crosby for his lame, half-assed attempt at a playoff beard.