With free agency just around the corner there has been a lot of chatter about the pro’s and cons of buying out a number of players. Names like Chris Drury, Dany Heatley, Scott Gomez and Sheldon Souray continue to show up in reports, while, on the Toronto Maple Leafs front, the name of defenseman Mike Komisarek has found its way into a few buyout rumors. Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke brought Komisarek to the Blue and White via free agency in the summer of 2009. At the time of the signing Komisarek had just come off an impressive season with the Montreal Canadiens which saw him lead the Habs in blocked shots (207) and hits with 191. The Hockey News ranked Komisarek as the ninth most desirable free agent that summer, but also warned that “whichever team signs

Looking back at the Washington Capitals 2009-10 and 2010-11 early playoff exits there is no way to sugar coat it—they were/are an epic fail. After winning the Presidents Trophy as the NHL’s top regular season team in 2009-10, the Capitals lost a first round matchup against the eighth seeded Montreal Canadiens. The seven game series raised a number of eyebrows both in the dressing room and with the Caps upper management—both of which demanded change for the upcoming 2010-11 season. Head coach Bruce Boudreau did his best to change the culture and the way his troops approached the game this season by asking them to play a tighter, more defensive minded style of play, which, in the minds of many, would help the Caps become a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. As a result of the changes, the Capitals found themselves

With the San Jose Sharks officially eliminating the Los Angeles Kings from the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Monday night it ends what can only be called a disappointing season for the men in black. Prior to the start of the 2010-11 NHL season many experts were looking for the Kings to be this season’s breakout team. High hopes and even higher expectations were bestowed upon the Kings who were thought to be a Stanley Cup favorite early on. The Kings got out of the gate quickly, collecting a record of 9-3 with one overtime loss in October. The Kings followed that up with 5-7 record in November before adding another nine wins in December. While the Kings record looked good on paper, few people felt the Kings looked like a cohesive unit, even fewer felt they were a Stanley Cup team.

With the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs in full swing there have been a number of terrific storylines that have emerged. The Nashville Predators moved on to the second round for the first time in franchise history, the Vancouver Canucks are close to an epic failure in their series against the Chicago Blackhawks and there are goaltending controversies in Vancouver and with the Philadelphia Flyers (what else is new?). For the most part, the playoffs have been very dramatic as several series are headed to a seventh game; with a few others still a candidate to do the same. As the playoffs roll along each game gets more important, each game is more of a grind for the players and the injuries start to mount up, which brings into question the NHL’s puzzling scheduling. For example, the Montreal Canadiens and Boston

Ahh, the Stanley Cup Playoffs. A place where some players ‘bring it’, while others fall well short of the so-called “experts” expectations. Heading into the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs several reports were calling for Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne to have a huge playoff; others were a lot more realistic about his talent and the talents of the team in front of him. Rinne brought a career playoff record of 2-4 to go along with a marginal .911 save percentage and a goals against average of 2.68 into this years playoffs. Needless to say, with those kind of numbers it would be hard to suggest that Rinne was going to catch fire against an offensively explosive team like the Anaheim Ducks, yet there were still some reports out there that suggested Rinne would do exactly that. Through four playoff games

Heading into the 2010-11 Stanley Cup Playoffs many experts were on the fence as to whether or not the Boston Bruins or Montreal Canadiens would emerge victorious from their first round matchup. The Bruins finished seven points ahead of the Canadiens in the regular season standings, which gave them home ice advantage, scored 30 more goals than the Habs (246-216) and allowed ten less goal than the Canadiens as well. For all intents and purposes, when you looked at the numbers, it appeared, on the surface, that the Bruins had the upper hand in this series. Where the Montreal Canadiens looked to have the upper hand over the Bruins was on special teams, or more specifically, the power play. The Habs owned the seventh best power play during the regular season with a 19.7 percent success rate. The Bruins? They