Pavel Datsyuk has owned the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy the past three seasons, and he's going to have an opportunity to claim another one as the Red Wings' star is, once again, one of the top vote-getters in 2009. Joining Datsyuk in the top three are New Jersey's Zach Parise and Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis.
The 30-year-old center matched a career-high with 97 points this season, fourth best in the NHL, while also setting a new personal-best with 32 goals. One of the best -- and most underrated -- players in the NHL, Datsyuk is the total package as a player, and is also one of the all-time great draft day steals, going in the sixth-round of the 1998 draft, 187th overall.
They might not be getting love on Versus or NBC, relegating live television coverage of their series to those who get NHL Center Ice or live in their respective areas.
However, there hasn't been a more competitive series than the one between Carolina and New Jersey. The teams were tied 1-1 heading into Game Three Sunday night, which became the second straight in the series to require overtime. After losing home-ice advantage with a 2-1 defeat Friday, the Devils took it back with a 3-2 overtime win Sunday in Raleigh.
The New Jersey Devils lost home-ice advantage Friday, and they lost their captain in the process. Game Two of their series against the Hurricanes went to Carolina in overtime. That leveled the series at a game apiece, and Game Three is Sunday night in Raleigh.
Exactly 1,230 regular season games have been played. We're down to the best eight teams in each conference. The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin Wednesday night with four series lid-lifters.
In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Bruins rallied from a bit of a swoon around the All-Star Break to easily win the top seed. Even if you subscribe to the idea of Boston being favored because of their strong overall record, there are no sure things in these here playoffs. Who will threaten to knock the Bruins off their pedestal?
As the Frozen Four begins late Thursday afternoon, there will be 22 players showcasing their skills that have been drafted by NHL teams. While many of the others will be, as the NCAA says, "going pro in something other than sports", a good number of them will showcase their talents in an effort to join a growing population. Every year, more and more college players end up getting a shot at the NHL. Not only that, but a greater number of them are making a real name for themselves when they get there.
Thanks to his two-goal, two-assist effort in Washington's 5-3 win over Tampa Bay on Friday night, Alex Ovechkin hit the 100-point plateau for the second consecutive season and third time in four years.
He's essentially clinched his second Rocket Richard award as the league's leading goal scorer, and is within six points of Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin for the Art Ross Trophy for most points overall. His two goals on Friday also pushed him past Mario Lemieux's mark of 215 goals in the first four years of his career.
In the process, Ovechkin joins a list of all-time greats.
The defending champs claim the top spot in this week's power rankings, while the Anaheim Ducks and Carolina Hurricanes make jumps of their own as they look to earn playoff berths in their respective conferences.
There's also a new team taking over the basement, thanks to a pair of blowout losses on home ice in the past week.
Each Friday throughout the season, I'll provide you with my predictions on whose stock is on the rise and whose is failing miserably like the American job market pretty much everything these days. It's a neat little segment entitled Buys and Sells. There are a few teams/players/issues to buy and a few to sell.
Alex Ovechkin is arguably the biggest star in the NHL today and, like anyone on top, he takes his fair share of criticism along with his fair share of praise. Last night, Ovechkin scored his 50th goal of the season. There's the distinct possibility that Ovechkin may be the only NHLer to reach that mark this year, as New Jersey's Zach Parise is the next closest at 41 goals with 12 games to go. So, for someone who scores so much more than his competition, is it right that Alex Ovechkin celebrates every goal like it is his last?
On Tuesday, ESPN hockey writer Pierre Lebrun penned an entry on his blog about Dallas Stars forward Loui Eriksson and his under-the-radar, meteoric rise to 30-goal scorer in the NHL.
The basic premise of the article was essentially: this guy has more goals than a host of star players, and you probably don't know who he is.
You might not have noticed while the Devils have made a case for themselves as legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, winning 16 of their last 19 games and residing squarely amongst the league's top-10 offenses, but the team has gone through a bit of crisis of identity with their offense lately.
Basically, the line of Travis Zajac, Zach Parise, and Jamie Langenbrunner had been carrying the team. Entering Saturday, that line had combined for four of the team's six goals in the team's last four games including two ugly shutouts by Florida and the Islanders. Coach Brent Sutter reshuffled his bottom three lines in the most recent contest against the Panthers. Judging by the box score of Saturday's 7-2 win, it seems to have worked.
Pavel Datsyuk has owned the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy the past three seasons, and he's going to have an opportunity to claim another one as the Red Wings' star is, once again, one of the top vote-getters in 2009. Joining Datsyuk in the top three are New Jersey's Zach Parise and Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis. 
They might not be getting love on Versus or NBC, relegating live television coverage of their series to those who get NHL Center Ice or live in their respective areas.
The New Jersey Devils lost home-ice advantage Friday, and they lost their captain in the process. Game Two of their series against the Hurricanes went to Carolina in overtime. That leveled the series at a game apiece, and Game Three is Sunday night in Raleigh.
Thanks to his two-goal, two-assist effort in Washington's 5-3 win over Tampa Bay on Friday night, 
The defending champs claim the top spot in this week's power rankings, while the Anaheim Ducks and Carolina Hurricanes make jumps of their own as they look to earn playoff berths in their respective conferences.
Each Friday throughout the season, I'll provide you with my predictions on whose stock is on the rise and whose is failing miserably like 
On Tuesday, ESPN hockey writer Pierre Lebrun penned 
You might not have noticed while the Devils have made a case for themselves as legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, winning 16 of their last 19 games and residing squarely amongst the league's top-10 offenses, but the team has gone through a bit of crisis of identity with their offense lately.
