1. NHL Playoffs 2012: 5 Reasons the Capitals Will Defeat the Bruins

    The Washington Capitals defeated the Boston Bruins last night 2-1 in a game that they absolutely needed to win. Boston seemed to sit back on its heels for large parts of the game while the Capitals attacked...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 794 reads 1 comments

  2. NHL Playoffs 2012: 9 Grinders That Will Shine in This Year's Playoffs

    A grinder is typically a bottom-six forward who does the dirty work that is both unpopular and unpleasant. Their role on the team is invaluable, providing energy, grit, toughness and sometimes enforcement...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,322 reads 4 comments

  3. NHL Playoffs 2012: Is It Time for the Detroit Red Wings to Worry?

    Ladies and gentlemen, please feel free to insert "fat lady warming up in Nashville" joke here. As much as it pains me to say it, the Detroit Red Wings are being beaten by a better team in this year's Stanley Cup playoffs...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 502 reads 19 comments

  4. NHL Trade Scenarios: 5 Players from Playoff Teams Moving This Offseason

    With the first round of the playoffs under way, there have been some surprises. While some teams have performed worse than expected, others have done well for themselves...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 639 reads 3 comments

  5. NHL Playoffs 2012: Sidney Crosby, from Prodigy to Punk

    Toward the end of Pittsburgh's loss to the Flyers on Sunday, the ever creative Flyers fans began a chant of "You can't beat us!" As the NBC cameras scoured the Penguins bench ...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 4,727 reads 67 comments

  6. NHL Playoffs 2012: 5 Changes the Detroit Red Wings Need to Make Before Game 3

    The Detroit Red Wings accomplished more than just taking home ice from Nashville Friday night. Todd Bertuzzi wasted no time seeking out Game 1 villain Shea Weber 1:36 into the game...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 940 reads 11 comments

  7. NHL Playoffs 2012: 5 Changes the Washington Capitals Need to Make for Game 2

    There is nothing quite like overtime playoff hockey. Every rush up the ice brings the crowd to its feet. Every shot on goal could be the one that ends it. Heck, I don't think the referees even use their whistles in overtime...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 647 reads 4 comments

  8. Shea Weber: Was Decision Affected by Shanahan's History with the Red Wings?

    The NHL has promoted a safety-first workplace over the past four years. With intense scrutiny on one of the more violent mainstream sports today, and the increased awareness of concussions, the league has buckled down on illegal contact to the head...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,685 reads 30 comments

  9. What the Top 10 NHL Free Agents Can Expect to Be Paid This Summer

    June is a unique time of year in the National Hockey League. While one team celebrates a Stanley Cup victory and a season that ended in success, 29 other teams are left to figure out what went wrong...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,964 reads 10 comments

  10. NHL Playoffs 2012: Key Takeaways for the Detroit Red Wings Following Game 1

    With Game 1 in the books, Nashville can start crossing games off the chalkboard on their sojourn to Stanleytown. They made the most of their opportunities and held off a heavy Detroit attack...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 611 reads 8 comments

  11. NHL Playoffs 2012: 10 Important Players in the Predators vs. Red Wings Series

    The time to speculate is coming to a close. The puck drops tonight on a Nashville-Detroit playoff series that could be one of the best in the NHL playoffs and have significant ramifications for both teams...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,195 reads 3 comments

  12. Peter Laviolette and the Best in-Game Coaching Tirades in Hockey History

    When a coach's intensity is matched on the ice by his players, great things typically occur. The coach's job goes beyond drawing up a game plan and coordinating lines. He has a set of ideas of how a game should play out...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 597 reads 0 comments

  13. 2012 Detroit Red Wings: A Tale of 2 Seasons Earns the 5th Seed

    Being the team that makes the playoffs every year for the last 21 means there are certain expectations when the Winged Wheel adorns your sweater. Annually challenging for the President's trophy and Division title puts a bullseye on your back as well...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 593 reads 8 comments

  14. 2012 NHL Entry Draft: How Does This Year's Class Match Up with the Last 5?

    Every year the promise of stardom ascends upon a crop of youngsters from around the globe as they wait to hear which NHL franchise will anoint them as the "Next One." The No...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 3,745 reads 26 comments

  15. NHL Free Agency 2012: 10 Potential FAs Teams Will Attempt to Trade at the Draft

    The hockey world prepares itself for the best part of the year in the coming weeks. The NHL playoffs are universally regarded as the most intense, exciting and difficult road to it's respective championship...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 3,211 reads 14 comments

  16. Philadelphia Flyers: Brayden Schenn Has a New Best Friend

    In case you were living under a rock for the past 48 hours, the hockey world is all a-buzz about the fracas-filled conclusion to the Penguins - Flyers game on Sunday afternoon...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,546 reads 3 comments

  17. NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs: 5 Postseason Battles Still to Be Decided

    With a week to go in the regular season, the race for Lord Stanley's Cup has already begun in some cities. The missed opportunities of an 82-game regular season can all be washed away with a last-minute push to get in the postseason...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,154 reads 6 comments

  18. Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins: Preview of 1st Round?

    Today's matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers will be the second of three games over a three-week period. Familiarity breeds contempt, and these turnpike rivals certainly don't like each other...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 946 reads 2 comments

  19. NHL Fights of the Year 2012: Let's Get Ready to Rumble

    "I went to a fight, and a hockey game broke out"—some jackwagon As a kid what first drew my attention to hockey was an all-out brawl between the Detroit Red Wings and the Boston Bruins that featured eight fights...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 2,925 reads 47 comments

  20. Detroit Red Wings: How Do the Wings Matchup Against the Best of the West?

    In a tale of two seasons, the Detroit Red Wings are looking to recover some of the brilliance of the first half heading into the playoffs...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 2,083 reads 12 comments

  21. Detroit Red Wings Need to Find Their Game Before Playoffs

    The Detroit Red Wings are getting healthy, but not fast enough and not healthy enough. Beset with injuries since the first week of February, a season of great achievement and record-setting potential has now been put into question...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 951 reads 9 comments

  22. NHL Trade Scenarios: 10 Teams with Cap Room to Deal at the NHL Draft

    With the 2011-12 trade rumor mill producing nothing more than a few minor deals, the next spot for teams to start adjusting their rosters will be at the NHL Draft...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,255 reads 5 comments

  23. NHL on Twitter: The One Player on Each Team You Need to Follow

    The age of social media is upon us, whether we like it or not. These days there are so many different ways to communicate with people without using conventional methods; see telephone calls and face to face conversation...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 3,605 reads 8 comments

  24. Tampa Bay Lightning: Why Steven Stamkos Might Need to Get out of Tampa

    The best player in hockey this year is playing in a city that should care more about him. A year removed from a Game 7 loss to eventual Stanley Cup winner Boston , the Tampa Bay Lightning are not going to make the playoffs...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,415 reads 20 comments

  25. Philadelphia Flyers: BryzNasty-Ilya Bryzgalov Leading 2nd-Half March to Playoffs

    There is a good bit in common between Philadelphia goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov and former Phoenix Coyotes teammate, winger Paul Bissonette...

    Rob Kirk Written by Rob Kirk about 1 year ago 1,083 reads 9 comments