The Top 10 Hockey Stories of 2011

On the other hand, here's a guy who hasn't been in the news at all this year...

2011 is on life support today, and by tomorrow night, it'll be just another year that has come and gone.  It did, however, produce a tremendous number of dramatic news stories in the hockey world.  Let's have a look at the 2011 Year in Review in the hockey world (stories are in chronological order).


1. SIDNEY CROSBY'S CONCUSSION - The 2011 NHL Winter Classic was supposed to be a celebration of the league's two best players: Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.  Neither player was relevant in the game itself, except for Crosby getting drilled in the head by David Steckel, which is the likely initial trigger of Crosby's concussion.  Luckily for the Penguins, if you add up the rest of their roster, they almost come close to the offensive production of Crosby.


2. THERE'S A NEW OWNER IN BUFFALO - In February 2011, Terry Pegula was approved to be the new owner of the Buffalo Sabres.  He seemed to bring a new attitude to the franchise and emphasized winning multiple championships.  The Sabres went on a shopping spree in the summer, but let's just say that Ville Leino probably wasn't worth 6 years...or even one.  Pegula says he wants to win in Buffalo, but he never really provided a time table...


3. THE BOSTON BRUINS' RUN TO THE CUP - The Bruins run to the Stanley Cup wasn't easy: they were taken to a Game 7 three times, including the Finals themselves.  Rookie sensation Tyler Seguin exploded when he entered the lineup, thus...gaining on Phil Kessel in terms of playoff points with the Bruins.  What's more: Tomas Kaberle became the first player - other than his own brother - to win a Stanley Cup despite doing absolutely nothing for the team he won with.


4. VANCOUVER CHOKES, CITY RIOTS - Despite finally getting past the Chicago Blackhawks in the playoffs, the Canucks failed to win the Cup again.  Although they were the number one team in the league in the regular season, Roberto Luongo insisted that he wanted to retain the honor of being the laughing stock of the league.  To celebrate the Canucks' epic Stanley Cup Finals collapse, Vancouver fans took to the streets and rioted violently all over the city, but they can do that because that shows that they're passionate, right?

Frequently Asked Questions about the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals

The stage is set for the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals.  The Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins will meet and one of them will snap a long championship drought.  It has come to my attention that some people may want some insight into the series, so here’s a little FAQ for you, with the likely answers you’d get from a pro.

Who is going to win the Finals?

I have the Heat winning, but the Mavs are gonna make it a series……oh, wait, those Finals...say, who’s playing?

Can Luongo be the difference for Vancouver?

Many people would argue that if Vancouver wins the Stanley Cup, it would be in spite of Luongo.  Vancouver is facing a difficult goaltender in Tim Thomas.  Luongo must be on his A-game, barring that Keith Ballard doesn’t cut off his hear…

Is Ryan Kesler the best American hockey player in the world?

He’s the best *sober* American hockey player in the world.

Isn’t it ironic that Vancouver has been carried to the Stanley Cup Finals by an American and two Swedes?

Shhhhhh!  Don Cherry is listening…

Can Sami Salo stay healthy for 7 straight games?

I don’t know, can you juggle four tennis balls constantly for 7 days?

Will Manny Malhotra be able to play?

If he does, I sure hope his vision is 100%.  You need to be aware when Zdeno Chara is on the ice…not that he’s that difficult to see…

Who is David Krejci?

He’s Phil Kessel in disguise.

What’s something most people don’t realize about the series?

A former Islander is guaranteed to win the Cup (Luongo, Chara) and a former Canadiens coach is guaranteed to win the Cup.

Who has the better goal song, Vancouver or Boston?Is Zombie Nation even a song?

Can the home crowd be a factor?

Of course not, unless two clever men dressed in green spandex suits show up…

Who has the edge in the series?

Vancouver, simply because they can afford to take double the minor penalties as Boston just to balance power play goals.

Which team would Gary Bettman rather see win the Cup?

Pittsburgh Penguins.

But…

Exactly.

True or false: Brian Burke is campaigning to get the Olympics held in Toronto since Vancouver made the Stanley Cup Finals the year after they hosted the Olympics?

False, he’s sly, but not that sly.

Finally, who is less annoying: Pierre McGuire or Mike Milbury?

Spongebob Squarepants.

Is it time to panic for the San Jose Sharks?

The San Jose Sharks were slaughtered by the President's Trophy winners, the Vancouver Canucks, in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals last night, and they now find themselves down 2-0 in the best-of-7 series.  As NHLNet's David Amber points out, no team has overcome a 2-0 series deficit since the 2005 lockout.  So, is it time for the Sharks to panic?  Today, I offer San Jose some advice.

• They might want to take some advice from Philly, Chicago and Detroit by losing Game 3 and then winning out.  More teams have overcome 3-0 series deficits than 2-0 since the lockout.
• When Patrick Marleau is gutless, the Sharks win, so Marleau has to stop checking, scoring and certainly stop fighting for San Jose to have success.
• Somehow, the Sharks have awakened Vancouver's twin-giant, the Sedins.  Therefore, at least Ben Eager tried to shut a Sedin down by drilling him from behind last night.
• Antti Niemi needs to remind the Canucks who he played for last season and which team beat them for the past two playoff seasons.
• The Sharks need to stop playing Green Day on the team bus en route to Rogers Arena.
• The Sharks have scored first in both games, which is good.  Their defensemen now need to stop imitating Jason Demers and actually clear pucks from the crease.
• Todd McLellan also needs to remind his team that Kevin Bieksa is, in fact, not a forward.
• The Green Men may not have been at the game last night, but that doesn't make it acceptable to take dumb penalties.
• Even though Joe Thornton sent his down payment for his annual May resort house, his team is still playing hockey.
• Any San Jose Shark watching reruns of the game on TV might be confused that this is actually the playoffs, since Pierre McGuire's expertise has been blatantly missing on Versus.
• Any San Jose Shark that the last comment applies to should scan the arena and locate Don Cherry's colorful suit, which would reverse the previous comment.
• Finally, the Sharks might be confused that the Conference Finals didn't begin in San Jose, but that's simply because Vancouver is a higher seed.  Maybe they think the series starts in Game 3?
• Hey, look at the bright side, at least the Sharks know that they won't have to relocate this summer...