Category Archives: philadelphia flyers

NHL Talk: Trade Deadline Special

Two hockey guys talking hockey.

Joe Pasquali and Eddie Theisen are two die-hard NHL fans. They both watch every hockey game, every night (almost).

The guys talk about the NHL trade deadline and which teams are the winners and losers.

My Columbus Blue Jackets were really active, but the pieces they traded in exchange for Marian Gaborik could leave diehard fans a bit sad. They traded away three homegrown talents for only 1.5 guaranteed seasons of Gaborik.

This is their email conversation this afternoon. Continue reading →

NHL Talk: Dziurzynski, Zamboni Rides & Breakfast Cereal

Two hockey guys talking hockey.

Joe Pasquali and Eddie Theisen are two die-hard NHL fans. They both watch every hockey game, every night (almost).

The guys talk about Dziurzynski getting knocked the f*ck out, if certain AHL teams could beat their NHL affiliate, paid zamboni rides, and which breakfast cereal is the all-time best.

My favorite cereal is a mixture of Apple Cinnamon Cheerios & Cinnamon Toast Crunch. If a Cereality store was near me, I’d weigh 400 pounds.

This is their email conversation the following morning. Continue reading →

Blue Jackets Draft Ryan Murray #2 Overall, No Rick Nash Trade

The NHL Draft began last night with the usual suspects owning the top picks. The Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, and Columbus Blue Jackets have found themselves drafting in the top 5 too many times. They have whiffed on many picks over the last decade, with Columbus having the worst drafting record in the entire NHL.

Going into the draft, everybody knew that Columbus would be drafting a defenseman and a Rick Nash trade would be imminent. The CBJ drafted defenseman Ryan Murray, but has yet to pull the trigger on a Nash trade.

I will give you the lowdown on Ryan Murray and when/where will Rick Nash be traded.

Columbus drafted Ryan Murray, who played for the Everett Silvertips of the WHL, over a group of defensemen that includes Griffin Reinhart, Moran Reilly, and Hampus Lindholm.

Murray is only 18 years old, but has great leadership skills. He played for Canada in the recent World Championships. A couple defensemen drafted after Murray have a better two-way game at this point, but the leadership ability is coveted by a team who will be searching for a leader once they trade Nash.

Here is a video of NHL Network’s scouting analysis on Ryan Murray…

Nash could be traded this weekend, but you shouldn’t hold your breath. Over the last two years, I think every team in the NHL has been rumored to be trading for him. The San Jose Sharks is the current rumored team to be close to trading for Nash. The package Columbus would receive in return would include center Joe Pavelski and other compensation to sweeten the deal. This trade would fill a need on the Blue Jackets, but I say that sarcastically because they have a need at every position.

In the long run, it is hard to see Columbus coming out as a winner in any trade that would include Nash. There is no doubt when he gets traded to a better team, insane numbers will fill up the box score next to his name. Nash has always looked great in Olympic competition and in every All-Star game he played.

No matter where Nash winds up, he will get a standing ovation when he returns to Columbus to play against his former team.

The only trade the Blue Jackets made last night was with the Philadelphia Flyers. They traded three draft picks for goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. They needed help at goalie since Steve Mason can be a basket case in the net. Mathieu Garon had success splitting time with Mason a few years ago and GM Scott Howson is hoping that competition will bring out the best in Mason.

Let’s just hope this trade will turn out better than their trade with the Flyers last off-season. The ‘Jakub Voracek + others for Jeff Carter’ trade may go down as one of the worst trades this decade. Carter whined his way out of Columbus and the Blue Jackets traded him to the Los Angeles Kings for 20 cents on the dollar. Oh, by the way, the Kings won the Stanley Cup this year.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

NHL: 2009-10 Atlantic Division Preview

Our NHL fanatic friend, Joe Pasquali, has written an Atlantic Division preview for the 2009-10 season. He is a Red Wings fan, so you would think that he has some stinging hatred for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Where does he think the Penguins will finish this season? Who makes the playoffs out of the Atlantic? Can the Rangers contend for the division crown? Pasquali discusses these questions and much more.

The Penguins have owned the Eastern Conference the last two seasons with the production of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. If those players can stay healthy, you have to think that they will go deep into the playoffs once again.

Predicted Finish
Pittsburgh Penguins*
New Jersey Devils*
New York Rangers*
Philadelphia Flyers
New York Islanders
(* denotes playoff birth)

1. Pittsburgh Penguins – The defending champs return a team that is in their prime at all the right positions. Your captain, your leading scorer, and your goalie have all made strides through their early seasons and are now seasoned all-stars. The only question for Pittsburgh is how big of a Cup hangover will they have? This has not been a “great” regular season team, still with the talent they have they should win the Atlantic. Barely.

2. New Jersey Devils – They don’t have the star power as the rest of the big boys in the Atlantic, but the Devils play great defense and still have one of the best goalies around in Brodeur. Rob Niedermayer will bring a grit to a team that desperately needed it late in the season. Also, coach Jacques Lemair is back in New Jersey after being away for 11 years. When he was in town New Jersey played the best defense in the league.

3. New York Rangers – Every year, this is the toughest team to predict in the NHL. On paper, the Rangers can hang with everyone. But, inconsistency from their 2nd and 3rd lines, injuries, and spotty goaltending has kept them from breaking into real Cup contention. The addition of Marian Gaborik should have hockey fans in the Big Apple excited this year. If he is healthy, he is still one of the best goal scorers in the league.

4. Philadelphia Flyers – Chris Pronger will make an immediate impact in the Eastern Conference. Besides Zdeno Chara, Pronger now becomes the best defenseman in the East and the best in the Atlantic Division. He brings grit and a mean streak that has really embraced that style of hockey the last few seasons. With less physical teams like the Penguins and the Rangers in the division, Philly could really make some noise by being the perennial bad boys of the Atlantic.

5. New York Islanders – One of the worst run franchise in the NHL, the New York Islanders have few bright spots heading into the 2009/10 season. If Rick DiPietro can return for the Islanders, he’ll make a big impact. Dwayne Roloson is a decent back up, but can’t be an everyday goalie if the Islanders want to get out of the cellar. John Taveres and Kyle Okposo should put up good numbers playing on the first line. These two youngsters should give Isles fans some hope for the future.

On a side note, for news on the Columbus Blue Jackets, go to Fanball’s Stingers On Ice, where America’s White Boy’s sweetbob updates regularly.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.