I'm still angry over the way that game ended yesterday. Boyle has his stick slashed and broken in two places, which goes uncalled. Two minutes later, Hagelin stick checks Carlson, doesn't even break the stick, and the ref blows the whistle when Gaborik starts taking the puck the other way. Washington scores on the power play, largely because Callahan was tripped and couldn't get on the backcheck. All of this happened in the last five minutes of a tie game.

If this is the way the league is going to operate, I'll just root for another lockout. That was disgusting.

And there goes my Blues...

Ah, the life of a Blues fan. Only disappointment and hope for next year.

Fuck, I'm never joining a playoff pool ever again. No matter how much I plan/predict who the winner will be I always seem to be wrong. There goes my prediction of St. Louis getting of of the West...

Heart attack city! Holy shit!

Rangers trail 2-1 late in the third, and it looks like all hope is lost. Joel Ward takes a double minor high-sticking penalty. Richards ties the game with six seconds left on the front end, and Staal wins it in overtime on the back end.

The power play has been one of the Rangers' biggest failures all season, but it really came through tonight.

Can't blame the refs for that one.

Holtby had a fucking picnic back there. They could have replaced him with one of those Fathead wall clings, and nobody would have noticed.

If there's anything I can say about the Rangers, it's that they've shown the ability to come through when their backs are against the wall. Hope they have another one in them.

That Rangers/Caps game yesterday was great. Put it on one of the tvs at work for "demonstration" purposes.

Another heart-stopper, but the Rangers pulled it out. Up next, the Devils. Bring it.

Bummer.

Hell of a season, though. They made this run on minimal talent and zero depth. It's valuable experience, and they'll be better for it. They have some needs to address, and I'm sure they will.

Get 'em next time.

Yay I can change my sig back! (sorry Sevens)

So... go Kings? I really couldn't care less about the outcome of this series. I really haven't watched much hockey since the first round where I watched pretty much every series.

Sevens, if the Rangers want to win the cup soon they need to evolve past the rope-a-dope defensive style they were playing. It might win you a few rounds but the later you get in the playoffs the more worn down your body is from playing defence/blocking shots. Not to mention it's incredibly boring hockey to watch.

Watching the Rangers didn't bore me at all. Winning is never boring, and they did a lot of that this season.

The reason why they had to play that defensive style was because they simply weren't talented enough. Gaborik, Richards, and Callahan (to a lesser extent) are fairly gifted offensively. For the most part, though, they were a band of pluggers that had to grind it out, and 100+ games of that eventually took its toll.

They already have a stellar defense and the best goalie in the world. What they need is at least one more legitimate offensive threat (Rick Nash would be lovely) and an upgrade or two on the bottom six. If they can score 4+ goals on a semi-regular basis, their defense won't have to block everything that comes their way, and they won't be so worn down come playoff time.

All of this, of course, is contingent on the new CBA. Despite what I said earlier, I don't want to see another lockout, and I'm not sure the league can afford it.

I hope LA wins, but I don't really care all that much. Jon Quick would get his name on the Cup, and Philly would look dumber than they already do for trading Carter and Richards. That would be cool.

It's never boring to watch your team win. I'm saying this as a hockey fan with no ties to the Rangers: I was so bored watching their games (outside the Ottawa series). They did make it far, don't get me wrong, but that style simply won't win you a cup ESPECIALLY considering how long each series went. It's too hard on the body. Even if the Rangers won the conference final I don't think they'd have a chance against the Kings.

That being said... yay cup finals?

Never thought that the Kings would be playing for the Stanley Cup.

They're just abusing the Devils. That's awesome.

Now I don't feel so bad, because they probably would have done the same to the Rangers.

True that.

Well it's over, Kings are champs. First time an 8th seed's ever won a cup, but that's misleading as the Kings aren't really an 8th seed in my mind. They just underachieved in the regular season and then played to their potential in the playoffs.

That being said, it was a very meh final. This is coming from a huge hockey fan but I feared the day where there was a final with two teams I really didn't care about. I've been lucky for almost a decade to have at least one team (in many cases both) to cheer for in the finals but this one... ugh... I don't think I could have cared less.

Now time for the draft and free agency and praying for no lockout next year... We need to keep TGH hockey pool alive! We can't possibly lose to my girlfriend again...

Well, it's finally happened.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=401276

I'm a little concerned about the numbers and the salary cap, but from a hockey perspective, this is a fantastic deal.

Welcome to the Rangers, Rick.

Apparently Ottawa had a better deal to get Nash, but he didn't want to come here. Sounds like he has a Heatley attitude to me. You can have him.

Leafs fans said the same thing about Brad Richards when he went to the Rangers last year. Just saying.

Ottawa: Up and coming young team stocked with prospects and potential as well as a great #1 center in Spezza

Toronto: Stagnate team with very little in the prospect pool because they traded away high picks for Kessel who I guarantee won't stick around after his contract's up and have no #1 center. Just sayin'


Rangers are going to be very good next season, but I'm glad Ottawa didn't sell the farm to get Nash. Word was they offered them Foligno (who's gone now anyways), Zibanejahd and Lehner (who will be an awesome goalie in the near future, mark my words). Yeah, I'd rather have them all than Nash.