Accosted for his “cocky” play by Philadelphia Flyers captain Mike Richards, Montreal Canadiens rookie defenseman P.K. Subban must be having a hard time holding back his laughter. Afterall, it’s not often a player of Richards “reputation” calls out a player for his play, which, in retrospect, looks to be more a combination of confidence and vigor rather than the “cocky” label Richards chooses to put on Subban. In a statement made after Tuesday nights game between the Orange and Black and the Canadiens (a game in which Philly lost 3-0), Richards said Subban thinks he’s “better than a lot of people”. Richards went on to make a more detailed statement, saying, “It’s just frustrating to see a young guy like that come in here and so much as think that he’s better than a lot of people. You have to

With the news of Claude Giroux’s three-year $11,250,000 contract hitting the airwaves today many Philadelphia Flyer fans are jumping for joy. At just 22-years old, Giroux is quickly establishing himself as a legitimate NHL super star. Averaging just under a point a game this season (seven goals, seven assists in 15 games), Giroux looks poised to destroy his 2009-10 totals which saw him post 47 points (16 goals, 31 assists) in 82 games. As much as the 2009-10 regular season is viewed as Giroux’s coming out party, the 2009-10 playoffs in which Giroux scored ten goals and 21 points in 23 playoff games let everyone in hockey know that this 22-year old kid was/is the real deal. Giroux’s new contract looks to be an extremely affordable one that, if Giroux continues to develop, should turn out to be a steal. That

Net Gains: With about a dozen games in the book in the 2010-11 NHL season there are a ton of surprises out there, none more prevalent than the number of goaltenders that are succeeding early on. Boston Bruins netminder Tim Thomas (one season after losing his starter’s role) is putting up some pretty unbelievable numbers, going an incredible 7-0-0 to start the season to go along with his mind blowing .977 save percentage and minuscule 0.72 goals against average. As good as Thomas has been, there are a number of goalies out there that have been lights out. St. Louis Blues goaltender Jaroslav Halak is putting to rest any debate over which goaltender (Carey Price or Halak) is the better goalie, posting a 7-1-1 record, 1.53 GAA, .940 save percentage and three shutouts. The biggest surprise would be the play

While it is still very early in the 2010-11 NHL season there are already more than a few surprises in the overall standings. Teams that were supposed to be world beaters are sitting in the basement, while other teams that were supposed to struggle have come out flying right out of the gate and sit amongst the NHL’s best. Let’s take a look at the Ten Most Surprising NHL Teams Thus Far, for better, or for worse. New Jersey Devils: Ok, so not everybody thought the New Jersey Devils would be world beaters this season, but there sure were a fair amount of experts out there that were suggesting the Devils would be a contender for the Atlantic Division title and/or the Eastern Conference’s top team. Through 13 games the Devils sit dead last in the NHL standings with a

Three weeks and one calender month into the 2010-2011 NHL season, we’ve already begun to be able to pick out the surprises and disappointments of the year. Teams like Buffalo and New Jersey, two top-ranked teams from the Eastern Conference last season, have both struggled to get going and posted a combined 0-8-2 home record, while franchises such as Montreal, Boston, and Tampa Bay have burst onto the stage with a combined 20-7-2 record. Meanwhile, in the West, Nashville, Edmonton, and Dallas started out strongly but have faltered lately, while, on the other hand, youthful squads such as St. Louis, Colorado, and Los Angeles have already begun to prove their legitimacy. But how does the NHL look from a divisional standpoint? Which five-team groups have been the toughest to play in so far, while which divisions have struggled despite their

With the NHL pre-season behind us it’s almost time to start the regular season where all 30 NHL teams will drop the puck in anger for the first time. There was plenty of movement this summer, which should help change the landscape of the NHL standings in a big way from where the teams finished in 2009-10. Sure, the Washington Capitals, Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, Vancouver Canucks and New Jersey Devils are bound to be amongst the NHL’s elite teams, it’s in the bottom ranks that we will see the most change. Off-season improvements from teams such as the Tampa Bay Lightning, Atlanta Thrashers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins should equate to big changes in the Eastern Conference, while Western Conference teams such as the Los Angeles Kings, Calgary Flames and Phoenix Coyotes should help determine the playoff