Game of the Night 10/06/2007 (And Last night's recap)

Maybe I'm feeding the fire? What are you gonna do about it? :)

Good night in the NHL last night, but boy was I off in my predictions! here's a quick recap of last night's matches followed by tonight's previews:

New York Islanders 6 - Buffalo Sabres 4
Wow was I off on this one... High scoring, high octane game, whereas I thought originally it was be a lot slower and cautious, focused on goaltending. Will tonight's match-up be similar? Comrie has a big night, and Vanek gets my stamp of approval for slapping it 4 feet away from the net, that was just awesome.
Gold Stars: Mike Comrie (2G - 2A), Thomas Vanek (1G - goal of the season so far).

Pittsburgh Penguins 1 - Carolina Hurricanes 4
I was wayyyy off yet again. Pens get romped by the Canes. Staal keeps pushing for that spot as a top 10 player in the league, and Jeff Hamilton showed us that the 'Canes can roll more than just their top two lines.
Gold Stars: Eric Staal (2 Goals), Jeff Hamilton (1G - 2A), Cam Ward (34 saves), Mark Recchi (1G, 6 shots... for still having it)

Anaheim Ducks 0 - Columbus Blue Jackets 4
Yup... don't know what's going on here. The Ducks just stank. Their defense let 37 shots in, their forwards failed to produce a goal, and against the Blue Jackets of all teams. Something needs to change in Anaheim and soon. One thing's for sure though, if Nash can stay healthy and play the way he did last night, Columbus might not be so bad down the stretch.
Gold Stars: Rick Nash (2G - 2A), Pascal Leclaire (28 saves, Shutout), Ilya Bryzgalov (33 Saves... his team just wasn't there tonight).

Washington Capitals 3 - Atlanta Thrashers 1
Hey look Prax got one right! The new guys proved their worth here tonight, with Kozlov and Nylander both chipping in goals for the Caps, giving them the good ole vic. Now to see if they can keep it up.
Gold Stars: Viktor Kozlov (1 Goal - 7 Shots), Alex Ovechkin (1 Assist - 6 shots - leading this team like always), Kari Lehtonen (36 saves... again not the reason his team lost... almost seems like it's becoming a trend early in the season).

Boston Bruins 1 - Dallas Stars 4
Anyone really surprised here? Is there any reason to think Boston's going to go anywhere again this year? 4 goals on 18 shots is just unacceptable for a goalie like Manny Fernandez. You say something has to change in B-town but the more things change the more things stay the same there, it seems.
Gold Stars: Marty Turco (24 saves), Brendan Morrow, Sergei Zubov (1G - 1A each)

San Jose Sharks 3 - Vancouver Canucks 1
Sharks bounce back from their shootout loss vs. Edmonton the night before and knock off the Nucks with the help of Joe Thornton who again (*gasp*) scores. And guess what? JEREMY ROENICK HAD 2 GOALS! That's right! JR's back baby! Well it's only one game, but hey, might as well celebrate it while it lasts.
Gold Stars: Jeremy Roenick (2 goals, for not walking out of the game to go grab some ribs), Douglas Murray (2 Assists, +3), Bobby Lu (28 saves, for being the only Nuck who didn't completely suck)


Gold Stars of the Night:
1) Jeremy Roenick (hey, let him enjoy it while he can).
2) Rick Nash (could be seeing a lot of him here if he stays healthy).
3) Mike Comrie (almost didn't put him on here out of spite for dating Hilary Duff... lucky bastard).
Honorable Mention: Thomas Vanek (for what's so far, in three nights of play in the NHL, the goal of the season).

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On to tonight's predictions:

Professor Prax's Win Prediction record: 8-10 (ouch).


First Saturday night of the schedule and it looks like we have some good match-ups on tap, but none even come close to beating this one:

Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
Ahh Hockey Night in Canada. A tradition reborn as the rivals of all rivals face-off in the first of 8 regular season meetings. The drama for this one won't be nearly as high as last April's game (which I still stand by as being the match of the decade), but emotions will be running high. While a lot of players in white and red will be looking for revenge for last April's loss, the Leafs will be looking for their first victory.

In a recent interview, many Canadiens players as well as the coaching staff said that it was still a difficult loss to swallow. It was the first time in Matthieu Dandenault's career that he missed the playoffs. It was a tough way to end an up-and-down season for the Montreal squad. Many still think that Cristobal Huet wasn't physically ready to start that game, and now he steps on the ice against the Leafs looking for revenge and looking to make up for the six goals he allowed in last year's loss.

The Leafs, on the other hand, are just as hungry for the win. Even though they won the now infamous game, they ended up missing the playoffs anyway. On top of that, they opened the season this week with two back-to-back loses to the Senators, so there will be a lot of pressure on Saturday night on the Toronto squad to pull off the victory.

Which team will be able to pull off the victory? Will the Habs avenge last April's devastating loss? Will the Leafs finally get their first win of the season? Whatever happens, it doesn't get much better than this, Hockey Night in Canada baby!

It's good to be Canadian!
Prediction: 5-4 Canadiens (F/SO), Hat Trick from Ryder, Komisarek knocks Darcy Tucker all over the arena.


Around the Rinks:

New Jersey Devils vs. Florida Panthers
TRAAAAAAPP (Will this be my comment for every Devils game? Maybe...)
Prediction: 2-1 Devils (I'm going to keep predicting this until it happens).

Buffalo Sabres vs. New York Islanders
The back-end of a so-far high scoring home-and-home. If both teams keep up what they've been doing so far we're in for another great rivalry this season and beyond.
Prediction: 7-4 Sabres get revenge

New York Rangers vs. Ottawa Senators
A meeting between arguably the two most powerful and stacked teams in the league, and it should be a good one. Possibly the two biggest top lines in the league right here. Will the Rangers be able to continue to mesh the way they did in their opener, or will Heatfredspezza strike again?
Prediction: 3-1 Rangers (Gerber's bound for a meltdown sooner or later, and Jagr's squad sounds liek the right team to have a meltdown against).

Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals
The 'Canes visit the Caps in Washington after romping Sidney Crosby and his squad at home last night. Will they be able to put down the other boy-wonder of the NHL or will Washington's youth and speed catch up to their high-energy short bench game?
Prediction: 4-3 Capitals

Anaheim Ducks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Two ways to look at this game: The battle of a potential stanley cup final match come next spring OR the battle of two teams that really need a victory after getting stomped on last night. The Ducks REALLY need a convincing victory here but I'm not sure they're going to get it. Game after game it seems more and more like they're missing Neidermayer and Selanne.
Prediction: 5-2 Pittsburgh, Crosby gets 1100 points.

Atlanta Thrashers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
The first of many battle between these two Southeast teams. It's looking like the Southeast is becoming more and more competitive as the years go by, and both teams will be contending for the top spot in their division. Which of these teams will get the upper hand as the first week of the season starts to wind down?
Prediction: 4-2 Lightning

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Edmonton Oilers
I refuse to predict a victory for the Flyers yet, and I still think Briere's overrated. There I said it.
Prediction: 4-3 Oilers (I don't care what Briere does!!)

Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Minnesota Wild
The Blue Jackets visit the Wild tomorrow night after romping the Stanley Cup champions last night. But the wild aren't a team to mess will, they haven't allowed a goal yet. Granted the season's 1 game old... Either way this game will be better than it looks on paper.
Prediction: 2-1 (F/OT)

Dallas Stars vs. Nashville Predators
Two teams that still have a lot to prove battle it out here. Both the Preds and Stars might have to struggle to do anything this year after disappointing offseasons for their fans. This game is a matter of momentum for both teams.
Prediction: 2-0 Preds


Detroit Red Wings vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Hawks fans better hope Havlat's latest injury isn't serious, because if it is, it's going to be another looooong season in the Windy city. Either way they aren't winning this game, the Red Wings are too strong and too hot going into this one.
Prediction: 4-1 Red Wings


Vancouver Canucks vs. Calgary Flames
If there wasn't so much emotion in the Battle of Eastern Canada, this would be a GOTN candidate. Always good to see an all Canadian Battle in Western Canada.
Prediction: 4-3 Flames (F/SO) (Calgary goes down 2 goals early and comes back to win it in a shootout)


Boston Bruins vs. Phoenix Coyotes
The Bruins continue their Southwestern road trip, and just when Bruins fans thought they had it easy after facing a tough Dallas squad the night before, the Coyotes have looked fairly strong so far this season.
Prediction: 3-2 Boston (F/OT)


St. Louis Blues vs. Los Angeles Kings
The Kings have their first game at home (although technically they've already had a home game) six days after dropping a game to the champs in London. Will the 6 day hibernation prove to be the demise of the LA squad or will they be fresh and ready to go vs. the Blues?
Prediction: Kings 3-1