A Post Previewing the 2009-2010 Washington Capitals
September 27, 2009 at 12:00 pm | In Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, David Steckel, Frostee Does Predictions!, Lars Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Green, Mike Knuble, Players, Semyon Varlamov, Washington Capitals | Leave a CommentWatch out, Pittsburgh. We’re coming for blood.
(Also, Michael, get your act together; Sasha, for the love of vodka, don’t get hurt; David, I love you unconditionally and can’t wait to see you win EVERY SINGLE FACEOFF you take; Lars, y’all gonna be crazy good this year; Varly, I have faith that you’ll be the starting goalie; Mike Knuble, I’m counting on you to make the top line [Ovechkin-Backstrom-Knuble] the most insane line evah; the defense, collectively, please play a teeny tiny bit better [read: learn how to play defense]; Alex, score 60 goals, repeat with the Hart and Maurice Richard trophies, and steal that Art Ross away from Geno.)
Let’s go Caps!
A Post Previewing the 2009-2010 Buffalo Sabres
September 26, 2009 at 12:00 pm | In Buffalo Sabres, Chris Butler, Dan Paille, Derek Roy, Frostee Does Predictions!, Henrik Tallinder, Jason Pominville, Jochen Hecht, Mike Grier, Nathan Gerbe, Patrick Kaleta, Paul Gaustad, Players, Ryan Miller, Thomas Vanek, Thought-provoking Stuff, Tim Connolly, Tim Connolly must be made of toothpicks and chewing gum, Tim Kennedy | Leave a CommentSo. The time has come to prepare a post previewing the Sabres. Where to begin? The Sabres were a mess last season, to be perfectly honest. Playoffs two years in a row, then no playoffs two years in a row, then they beat the Red Wings and the Caps in the preseason. Yes, I know we lost Drury and Briere, but seriously, dudes? Get over it. They weren’t the only players on this team.
The thing with these Sabres is that I can never decide if any of them have individual talents, or games like that 10-2 win over Edmonton are just a complete fluke. Yes, Thomas Vanek is good at putting the puck in the net. Yes, Tim Connolly is fabulous when he’s not lying in a hospital bed in a full body cast. Ryan Miller is frustratingly inconsistent, but when he’s on, good grief, is he on. Patrick Kaleta isn’t half-bad at throwing hits. Sir Christopher has a bright future ahead of him.
But I’m not sure if these Sabres are good enough to take the next step. Yes, if Gomez hadn’t taken out Miller we probably would have made the playoffs. But after seeing how the other teams played in the postseason, there’s an excellent chance that the Sabres would have been slaughtered in the first round. It would have painful, and it would have been ugly.
Darcy promised big changes this summer, so he let my Caveman go and signed Steve Montador in his place, and he brought back Mike Grier. Woo. Way to go, Darcy. Grier will (hopefully) be able to keep the whiny brats on this team in line, but that’s about it. He also signed about 27 enforcers and “gritty” players, so, you know, watch out, league. (I actually have a theory that Darcy watched Slapshot one too many times before free agency started and he wanted to be like the Chiefs and just beat up every team. If it’s old time hockey we’re going to be putting up with, I at least want a Killer.)
One thing Darcy didn’t do that we were all expecting was dump some of our dead weight. Yes, Max is gone, but we still have Hank and Jochen. Man, did those two frustrate me last season.
You know who else frustrated me? Jason Pominville. Jason effing Pominville. He was all cute and adorable and point-producing two years ago and then last season he completely sucked. It was awful.
Thomas Vanek was on track for fifty goals last season (remember when I was all freaked out that he would score more goals than Alex? Heh.) and then he broke his jaw. He’s definitely our best goal-scorer and I’d appreciate it if he could keep that up this year. I’m also counting on Derek Roy to be our best point-producer. Come on, Royzie. Do it for Kyle.
I’d really like some of the Portland kids to get a chance up here, but I’m not sure if that’ll happen or not since we don’t exactly have loads of roster space to give away. Gerbe and Kennedy might be ready to make the jump, but it really depends on who plays well in training camp and who else undergoes surgery right before the start of the season. Adam Mair.
Another concern is the Olympic Break. Yes, it will give some of our guys a chance to rest up, but not Ryan Miller. It became rather apparent two seasons ago that our fragile little goalie can’t handle playing a long season. The Olympics are kind of intense, and they’re going to exhaust him if he ends up being named the starting goalie.
I’m not going to make any predictions about this team, because I honestly don’t know where they’ll end up in the conference. What I do know is that they really are quite similar to the team we saw last year, and that team didn’t do a whole heck of a lot. Out of the playoffs is out of the playoffs, no matter what place you’re in.
Just a few personal letters to some of the players:
Dear Paul,
You just keep doing what you’re doing.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Timmy,
Don’t break.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Jason,
Come back.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Jochen,
We gave you that contract extension because we believed in you, but you were kind of awful last season. Let’s just put the past in the past and move on. You can play better than you did. I believe in you.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Mike,
Keep the little bastards in line.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Sir Christopher,
I decided to make you my project this year, which means I love you even more and pay extra special attention to you. Not that there’s any pressure, I promise. I thought you were chivalrous and great player last year, and with even more time to grow and develop, you’ll get even better. Good luck, my young knight. May the force be with you.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Danny,
Don’t forget your toothbrush on the road trips, sweetie!
With Love,
Frostee
Heeeeere We Go!
May 30, 2009 at 1:02 pm | In Detroit Red Wings, Frostee Does Predictions!, Pavel Datsyuk, Pittsburgh Penguins | Leave a CommentI thought about it, and I realized that I actually am leaning towards the Red Wings winning this series. Come on, guys. It’s the Red Wings. This series is by no means going to be a blow-out, but I think the Wings will come out alive. So, Detroit in seven. Partially because, as I said, this series will be wicked close. Partially because a seven-game series would work best with my schedule. Game Seven would be on a Friday and I’ll be able to pay close attention to it. Five games would work too, but a six-game series would be awful. If that were the case I might have to miss the last game.
Candy Corn Head is out again tonight, which worries me that his injury is quite serious. We can only hope that when he does return, it’s with oodles and oodles of goals. Please, Candy Corn Head. Your lack of scoring is killing me.
On To The Conference Finals!
May 15, 2009 at 4:35 pm | In Alex Ovechkin, Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, Frostee Does Predictions!, Hockey Gods, Jose Theodore, Pittsburgh Penguins, Randomness, Semyon Varlamov, Sergei Fedorov, Washington Capitals | Leave a CommentBut first, a few things from the Caps’ locker clean out.
When they were interviewing Jose Theodore the goaltending position came up. Jose was pretty much, “I may have been benched from the second game of the playoffs on, but that #1 job is mine, bitch.” What he actually said when asked about Simeon is “Well, he’s the goalie of the future.”
Dear Hockey Gods,
If you provide us with a major bitch fight between Simeon Varlamov and Jose Theodore during training camp next year, I will never say anything against you ever again.
With Love,
Frostee
Alex was wearing the same shirt he wore in Beijing last summer. It says Sochi 2014. I stared at it or a good five minutes before I realized where I had seen it before, and then I hurried to check my archives. Don’t judge me. I have a freaky memory when it comes to clothes. I could probably tell you what you were wearing last time I saw you (if I’ve ever hung out with you before). It’s weird.
And he’s leaving for Moscow tonight?!? SOB! I’m so sad that he’s not going to be on this continent. Can they make him come back and do another intermission report during the Stanley Cup Finals? That was horrific awesome. Why do I love European players so much? They only leave me for Europe in the summer, and I am left alone in this country. What does Russia have that we don’t?
Dear Alex,
I appreciate your decision to not go to Turkey since it’s “bad for you.” Heh. We wouldn’t want you getting into any trouble.
With Love,
Frostee
Dear Sergei Fedorov,
As you’ve stated your desire to play next yera, and the entire Washington Capitals organization seems to have a massive man crush on you, you’ll totally come back next year, right??
With Love,
Frostee
Okay, on to the Game Sevens last night.
Detroit won – big surprise – and so did Carolina. Wow. I was definitely rooting for the Hurricanes, but I didn’t think they’d actually come out alive. Cam Ward is now undefeated in Game Sevens in his career. Nice stat, Mr. Ward.
As much as I’d like to think Carolina could beat Pittsburgh, I just don’t know. They’re going to have to be fantastic to beat the Pens.
I really want the Detroit/Chicago series to be like one long string of Winter Classics. That game was highly enjoyable, and I’m hoping for an exciting series.
My picks for the Stanley Cup Finals are….drum roll…Detroit and Pittsburgh. Rematch of last year. I just don’t see anyone beating Detroit, and I think Pittsburgh will come out alive in their series, unless Eric Staal manages to score in four straight games.
Dear Detroit Red Wings,
If you beat Pittsburgh for the second year in a row to win the Stanley Cup, I will love you forever. This is not an exaggeration.
With Love,
Frostee
Admitting Something Sad
April 30, 2009 at 4:52 pm | In Alex Ovechkin, Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Evgeni Malkin, Frostee Does Predictions!, Pittsburgh Penguins, Sidney Crosby, This Irks Me, Vancouver Canucks, Washington Capitals | 2 CommentsI know people are saying that since the Caps managed to win a 2-1 game when it mattered the most, they’ll be able to play with Pittsburgh, but honestly, I’m not so sure. I don’t think Washington will win this series, which means that all of those crazy Crosby fans will make it seem like the ONLY REASON Pittsburgh managed to win is because CROSBY IS THE BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD AND NO ONE COMPARES. Forget that the Pens have a great goalie and Evgeni Malkin, the player who I actually think is better than Crosby. Merely because the Penguins have Sidney, they’ll win. Trust me. I know these things. My grandfather is one of those Crosby fan boys. A Don Cherry type, if you will. All he does is get on my case and tell me that if I think Alex is better than Crosby, I clearly don’t know hockey as well as he thought I did. And then when I go and tell him that Malkin and Alex are the two greatest players in the league – I’ll relent that Crosby is third – and so Crosby isn’t even the best player on his own team, he leaves the room. Yo, Grandpa, just because Alex and Geno are Russian doesn’t mean they’re automatically below Sidney on the list. Being Canadian does not equal being the best. Last time I checked, Sidney wasn’t even one of the three finalists for the Hart. They’re all Russians. Um, so, yeah.
But I digress. I have faith in Washington’s goaltending, which is an odd feeling to have, but they don’t have as much experience as Pittsburgh and they need to get their defensive game down perfectly. The Penguins have a tad bit more offense than the Rangers did. Washington needs keep their power play clicking and make sure their penalty kill is solid. Alex needs to try doing a little less, Nicklas needs to keep up his fabulousness, Michael needs to start playing like Michael, etc. I just…don’t like this match-up. I don’t like it one bit.
That being said, I think this series could be highly entertaining. The regular season games between these two always were, and I can’t wait to see Alex lay somebody out. I also can’t wait to see if Michael really has returned for good. I have a theory that he had some sort of cold. He sounded really congested when they interviewed him before Game 2, and sounded less stuffy before Game 6.
Carolina vs. Boston will be almost as good as the Pittsburgh vs. Boston series I had been hoping for. It’ll be interesting to see if Carolina’s momentum can carry over.
My apologies to the Hawks fans reading this, but I think Vancouver’s going to come out on top for this one.
Finally, Detroit over Anaheim. I love the Ducks, but come on. It’s Detroit.
Changed My Mind
April 18, 2009 at 4:51 pm | In Frostee Does Predictions!, Losing Sucks, Semyon Varlamov, Washington Capitals | Leave a CommentSo, remember when I said I was worried but thought the Caps would be able to take the series in six?
Yeah, well, that is so not happening. Rangers fans, get out your brooms. Simeon, I’m sorry. You deserved a better playoffs debut than this.
I Approach These Playoffs Hesitantly
April 15, 2009 at 11:23 am | In Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Frostee Does Predictions!, Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Washington Capitals | Leave a CommentLast year, I didn’t know what to expect when I started rooting for the Caps. I didn’t know a lot about the team and probably couldn’t even have named all the players. I didn’t know how they would handle the playoffs and didn’t know if they could survive a series.
This year, I know this team. I know this team even better than I thought I did. That’s why I’m worried. Some people are saying the Caps will have no problem with the Rangers, but I’m more on the side of those who say they need to be careful. That’s why I’m picking the Caps, but I’m saying it’ll take them six games. Everyone is making a bid deal about how Sean Avery’s going to get in everyone’s head but the only player I’m worried about is Jose Theodore. Avery could probably psyche him out, but Alex doesn’t really seem like the kind of player who would let him get inside his head.
I honestly don’t know if they can win the Cup this year. Let’s be honest, their goaltending is questionable, they need to cut down on penalties, and need to improve their penalty killing. But they have to at least win a round. I might cry if they don’t.
I also might cry if Semie and Staal don’t fight again.
If they do win a round, but then lose to the Penguins, I’ll jump off a bridge.
My other picks:
Boston (1) vs. Montreal (8)
Boston hasn’t been as fantastic as they were earlier in the season, but as shaky as they’ve been, Montreal has been worse. The only reason the Habs even made the playoffs is because Florida and Buffalo blew it.
Bruins in six.
New Jersey (3) vs. Carolina (6)
A few weeks ago, I was talking to my grandfather on the phone. He’s 90, and is easily confused by the standings. I was explaining to him what the Sabres needed to do to move into the playoffs, and what games other teams needed to lose. At one point New Jersey came up, and I told him that beating New Jersey would be tough because I thought they would win it all this year.
Now, after the season is over, I think New Jersey has kind of crashed and burned, and I really don’t think they’ll go far. I feel bad for Devils fans, but I’m no longer seeing a Red Wings/Devils final with the Devils winning.
Carolina in six.
Pittsburgh (4) vs. Philadelphia (5)
As much as I hate Philadelphia, I hate Pittsburgh more. That being said, Philly’s goaltending is even more questionable than Washington’s and Pittsburgh has been on a tear. It’ll come down to whether or not Philly’s defense can keep Pittsburgh away from Biron, and then if their offense can get to Fleury.
It’ll take seven games, and as much as I hate to say it, I think Pittsburgh will move on to the next round.
San Jose (1) vs. Anaheim (8)
Yes, I know that San Jose won the Presidents’ Trophy. But I also know that the Sharks are some of the biggest chokers I have ever seen. Anaheim’s been pretty good as of late, and I honestly think they could beat the Sharks if they tried.
Anaheim in seven games.
Detroit (2) vs. Columbus (7)
Apologies to the Blackhawks fans out there (and there are more and more of you every day), but I adopted Columbus as my Western Conference Team a couple weeks ago. They’re cute, and they made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. And I had to write an article review about an article on them for gym, so I know all about these little Blue Jackets. Detroit is a scary postseason team, but Columbus beat them 8-2 earlier in the year. They have Steve Mason, and Detroit has their entire offense and defense.
This series will go one of two ways. Either Columbus finds that spark that got them to the playoffs and upset the Red Wings in seven games, or Detroit sweeps them.
Vancouver (3) vs. St. Louis (6)
Honestly, I have watched very little of either team this year. Like, I think I saw two games from each, and the St. Louis games were back when they sucked. I know very little about either of these teams, other than Jay McKee players for the Blues and the Sedins play for the Canucks. Hey, didn’t that bald Swedish guy sign with the Canucks halfway through the season too?
St. Louis in six.
Chicago (4) vs. Calgary (5)
I feel kind of bad for Calgary. They had a 13-point lead in their division and then kind of crapped out. And, um, 0-42 on the power play to end the season? That’s awful.
Chicago, on the other hand, has been pretty darn good for most of the season. AND they finished off the season by shutting out Detroit. That’s pretty good, ‘Hawks. They’ll win this series, but – and don’t kill me, Cari, Kim, or Clare!! – I’m not sure how much deeper they’ll get. Making the playoffs alone is a huge accomplishment for them, and winning a series would be great, but they still are a young team, and they’ve kind of looked young at times this season. But still, they’ll be fine against Calgary.
Chicago in five.
But I’ll still be watching the Caps the most. Let’s go Caps! Woo!!!
Alex Has No Problem With Shameless Self-Promotion (#61)
April 3, 2009 at 4:20 pm | In 65 Reasons I Love A.M.O., Alex Ovechkin, Buffalo Sabres, Frostee Does Predictions!, Frostee Loves Way Too Many Guys, Lars Nicklas Backstrom, Paul Gaustad, Players, Stick a fork in it, Washington Capitals | Leave a CommentSo, apparently Alex and Nicklas met one Mr. LeBron James. Awesome stuff, awesome stuff. This is a picture of the three of them:
(Picture taken from D.C. Sports Bog)
I would like to point out that while Nicky has a nice black zip-up hoodie on, Alex has one of his – shudder – Streetwear hoodies. Honestly, going on that website makes me cringe. (And yet, I still desperately want one of the hats. It’s killing me.) Alex has no problem advertising that in addition to being a badass hockey player he’s also a successful designer, whose clothes all have his name on them.
I actually haven’t told Alex about my insane love for Nicklas, but if I did I would imagine it would go something like this:
Frostee: I’m in love with your teammate, Nicklas Backstrom.
Alex: Like, in the way you love me?
Frostee: No. I want to take him to the zoo.
Alex: Okay. Can we go get sushi now?
He’d be totally cool with it, as he should be. He shouldn’t feel threatened in any way.
_______________________________________________________
I would just like to point out that the right thing to do tonight is to root for the Capitals. Think about it for a minute. The Sabres are done. They are not going to make the playoffs this year, especially if they go 0-0-4 against Atlanta. The Capitals need to solidify their second place seed in the conference and make sure they lock up the division. It’s not even like it’s rooting for the better team, it’s rooting for the team that deserves it. I’ve seen a lot of Caps games this year, and very rarely have I walked away from one at the end saying, “Wow, what a crapfest. Those arrogant bastards didn’t even show up tonight.” I’ve said that only a few times, as opposed to the Sabres, where I walk away from games saying that once a week.
My 5-3 final prediction turned out to be incorrect, but I got two of the goal scorers right. (Actually, the two Thrashers I wanted to score most did. It was very nice.) I’m therefore changing my prediction for tonight. I think the Sabres are going to lose 5-2 instead of 3-1. Michael, Eric Fehr, and Kozie will each score one goal; Alex will get two. Erskine and Goose might fight, or at least push each other around.
Time to go put the jersey on. Puck drops at seven!!
P.S. Sabres fans, please don’t come after me with pitchforks. I DO love the team, and that’s why I was furious with them after the game on Wednesday. I love them, but I do not like them one bit right now. The Caps haven’t done anything to make me hate them in the past week or so. That’s all.
P.P.S. My condolences to Taylor Pyatt and his family. In case you haven’t heard, his fiancee died in a car crash. It’s all so tragic. Vancouver does not appear to be the luckiest team to play for as of late.
Studying < Internet, So Here’s How The Next Week Will Play Out.
March 30, 2009 at 3:06 pm | In Frostee Does Predictions!, Players, Stick a fork in it | 3 CommentsThe quarter ends on Friday and I have like six kajillion eight tests this week, but why study when the house is empty and the computer is sitting right in front of me?
I’m totally pissed at the Sabres, because last night I realized that I actually kind of want them to make the playoffs. Like, really badly. I want them to win. Watching them lose is no fun.
That being said, I’m predicting them to lose 5-3 on Wednesday to Atlanta (!!!), 3-1 on Friday to Washington (!!!!!!!), scrape out a win 2-1 in the shootout on Saturday against New Jersey, and lose 4-2 to Detroit. These are mathematically calculated randomly guessed predictions. Sort of. I can even tell you who will score some of the goals: Ilya Kovalchuk (!!), Colby Armstrong, Zach Bogosian, and Brian Little will score for Atlanta (Zach’s going to score his goal just to impress me, Ilya’s going to have a two-goal night); and Michael, Alex (<3), and Eric Fehr will score for Washington. I’m not sure who will score for the Devils but I’m feeling Zach Parise. Miller will stop all the shootout attempts and Drew Stafford will get the shootout winner (Toni will try to repeat his success but will not be able to put one past Marty). Candy Corn Head, Henrik Zetterberg, Nick Lidstrom, and Marian Hossa will score for Detroit.
Tomas Vanek will not score in any of these games, because Thomas Vanek has apparently decided that he’s done scoring this year.
As you can see from the data I have collected above, the Sabres are not going to make the playoffs. The sad thing is how sad this makes me feel.
Welcome To Rock Bottom
February 28, 2009 at 9:51 pm | In Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Buffalo Sabres, Clarke MacArthur, Dan Paille, Frostee Does Predictions!, Henrik Tallinder, Hockey Gods, Huh?, Jochen Hecht, Losing Sucks, New York Islanders, Patrick Lalime, That was absolutely terrible., This Irks Me, Thomas Vanek, Thought-provoking Stuff, Tim Connolly, Trading Madness!, Washington Capitals | 4 CommentsEmbarrassing is the only word I can really think of to describe that game. Getting shut out is bad enough, but getting shut out to the Islanders? Really?
It makes me sad that the Sabres can’t get a win for Lala. He’s been really reliable these past few games and has been making great saves, but apparently it’s way too much to ask the Sabres to actually score a freaking goal. I don’t care how many good chances they had in the first period tonight, Harry. Chances mean absolutely nothing when the team can’t actually score.
Trade deadline is Wednesday. I love the trade deadline because GMs can always be counted on to make completely wacky-doodle trades. There’s been a lot of talk surrounding a Connolly trade but I actually don’t think Timmy’ll get traded. He’s too important to this team right now and I get the feeling that Darcy will at least try to resign him. I definitely expect to see Tallinder shipped out (sorry Heather), and even though I tear up just thinking about it I worry about Pie. MacArthur has done absolutely nothing memorable lately and I really want Jochen Hecht to go away. Tallinder, Hecht, and MacArthur might seem like a good package to some of those wacko GMs who go wild on deadline day.
Semin’s OT winner in the Caps/Bruins game today was fantastic. I feel really bad for Timtom but when goals like that are scored you can’t help but laugh.
TV is supposed to be back by Wednesday. If the hockey gods have any mercy at all he will.
Don Cherry seems to think Alex’s goal celebrations make him like Sean Avery. Huh. I really don’t see where he gets that from. I do know that part of what makes the Capitals so fun to watch is their obvious love for the game and their excitement when they score. Watching them get incredibly fired up by goals makes me really happy.
Speaking of the Capitals, uh, there’s still room on the bandwagon. I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer but I’m just puttin’ it out there…
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