Stars Down 2-0

The Dallas Stars played better, but could not capitalize on their chances. In fact, it wasn't for Chris Osgood making some brilliant saves early, the outcome would have been much different.

Unlike the previous two series, Marty Turco lost his focus on concentrated on Tomas Holmstrom that agitated him in front of his crease. It's Holmstrom's job and he's damn good at it. However, instead of making the brilliant save of his own, Turco fought back and when he did so, the second goal went by him.

In game one of this series, the Stars could not stay of the box. In game two, Turco tried to do too much and the Stars could not bury their chances. Now, they face a daunting task climbing up from a two game deficit.

The best line of the night was the fourth line with Steve Ott and Brad Winchester. They were everywhere trying to spark their team. Brad Richards was also terrific putting the puck on the tape of the Stars sharpshooters, but they could not connect.

At the end of the contest, some fireworks started with a Mike Ribeiro slash to Osgood. The stick came up close to this throat and Osgood went down. Stars head coach Dave Tippet said after the game that Osgood must have done something because Ribeiro would not have slashed Osgood without a reason.

NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell was in attendance and I fully expect Ribeiro not to play game three. In the first two series, Ribeiro was outstanding making plays and scoring. He has been cold since, but having him sit for a game will not help the Stars.

Update: Deadspin has a video of what went down between Ribeiro and Osgood.

It's Been Awhile...

Even though that I haven't written about hockey, I'm still watching the playoffs. Thanks to the easing of my schedule, I can now focus a little bit on writing about one of my favorite things:

Hockey.

A few observations so far...

The San Jose series with the Dallas Stars surpassed my wildest expectations. I thought that the Anaheim series would be tough but it turned out due to the sheer force of will exhibited by both the Stars and the Sharks, it took quadruple overtime in the elimination game to work it out.

So after the Stars lost their first game against the Detroit Red Wings, I have come to this conclusion:

The Detroit Red Wings are on a roll and no one will stop them. The Stars made mistakes in the first game that they did not make against the Sharks or the Ducks and it was the Red Wings who forced them into those mistakes.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are equally hot and thanks to the toughness exhibited by Gary Roberts during the opening round against the Ottawa Senators, the Penguins have learned how to be tough. Last night comparisons were made between Evgeni Malkin and Peter Forsberg and I could not agree more. Malkin is dangerous and the series between the Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers should be an intense one.

I didn't think I would feel this way, or even write the next few statements, but it does feel good to be back. There are ebbs and flows in life, and certainly I have had my share. I'm looking forward to adding my voice back to the conversation and I certainly missed being away.

Thoughts on Round One

The Stanley Cup playoffs bring out the best in hockey teams, and so far I have not been disappointed in the slightest bit. There have been many incredible games, but there are three series that I have been closely watching.

It seems that the Pittsburgh Penguins learned valuable lessons from last year's experience. They refuse to be steamrolled by the Ottawa Senators and thanks to Gary Roberts, they understand what intensity truly means. If the Senators have any notion that they can intimidate the Penguins this year, they will have to answer to Roberts first.

The Dallas Stars returned to the playoffs this year with a new sense of focus. The tactics of the Anaheim Ducks are not working against this Stars team and the hockey club that wins this series will be a force to be reckoned with in the later rounds. They are allowing the Ducks to take penalties and in return the Stars have converted 6 of 13 chances.

Sunday night's game between the San Jose Sharks and the Calgary Flames was a classic in the making. Even though the Sharks scored three goals in the first three minutes of the game and chased Miikka Kiprusoff from the net, last night's contest shows any fan that anything can happen in today's NHL.

The turning point of the game was the crushing check that Flames defenseman Cory Sarich gave to Sharks' forward Patrick Marleau. The tide turned seconds later on the goal that ricocheted off of Jerome Iginla which started the Flames comeback. Former Sharks and Phoenix Coyotes player Owen Nolan had the game winner and the Flames won 4-3.

No one should question the physical or mental toughness of Patrick Marleau, however. Dion Phaneuf crushed him into the boards earlier in the first period and split his eye open and after the hit by Sarich, he either broke his nose, or a deep cut was opened underneath. Marleau got up each time and looked at the bench expecting his troops to answer.

If these early games are any indication of what we can expect later in the playoffs, true hockey fans will not be disappointed.