Shadowmen managment style adopted by NHL's Devils

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=202500&hubname=nhl

Highlanders Win Challenge Cup

The Highlanders captured the first jewel in their bid for the FunHL Triple Crown yesterday, sweeping the Bladerunners in two straight games to win the Challenge Cup. In the end the depth of the Highlanders line-up proved too much for the defending champions with 10 players garnering 3 or more points on the week. Led by D.Hasek's 8.33pts in net, the Highlanders were able to outscore the Bladerunners at every position, save right wing. In the end the much criticized decision of the Bladerunners to bench M.Kipprusoff and J.Iginla didn't matter, their contribution would have helped but would not have been enough. The final score in game two was 55 to 41, a 14 point win. The Highlanders celebrate their first major FunHL award since they last hoisted the Predator Cup in 1993. They will be able to quench that 14 year drought in one week's time if they can maintain thier now 38pt lead atop the Predator Cup standings.

The final award storyline that remains is the race for the Omnivore. The Scourge and Highlanders have been trading places for the last few weeks but Hasek's performance this past week was part of the reason that the Highlanders have been able to pull 9 points ahead. Still a 9 point lead can disappear in a flash. The Scourge have been relying in the timly scoring of Tkachuk and Blake on lw, Satan on rw and Poti, Markov, Redden and Rafalski on d to power their run. Ironically Blake and Selanne have a double impact on the race. Blake is on the Highlander baseline and has been a big part of the Scourge's quest while Selanne has been a huge part of the Highlander's run this year but every point he gets is part of the Scourge baseline. 7 days to go, expect the Omnivore to go down to the final day.

The Knights Templar become the latest team to cross the 900pt mark and could be joined by as many as 4 more teams before the season is out. Only the Scoure and Edge seem unlikely to reach the mark though the Scourge could make it with another 40pt week. If they do it would put 11 teams over 900pts making this one of the highest scoring seasons across the board in recent memory.

The race for draft positioning is also close for a lot of teams. The Wolves are in 4th and probably can not catch the 3rd place Great Whites but they are only 9pts ahead of the Shadowmen. The Shadowmen are themselves less than 7pts up on the Knights Templar. The Knights are similarly only a dozen points ahead of a trio of teams: the Personal Vendetta, Severed Heads and Ramapithicines who all enter the final week separated by little more than 3pts. Add to this mix the 10th placed Lost Boys who are only a dozen points out of 7th and you have the makings for a lot of shuffling over the course of the next seven days.

The battle for the Herbivore should be over by now but the Edge refuse to go away. Last week the Edge closed the gap by some 8pts however with a 20pt difference still to be made up the Edge are running out of time. The difference between last place and more last place is not that much so expect the Edge to pull out a Dog-like +/- effort to lunge up the standings - it was Volchenkov's +6 week that helped to close the distance last week so with a huge helping of luck it can be done.

Here are the unofficial stats as of Week 26:

For Richard

Bladerunners can't make up ground in spite of strong night

The Bladerunners can't catch a break. They pull of an impressive 15pt night on Saturday and barely make up on point on their rivals, the Highlanders. It may simply be too steep a hill to climb at this point but the Bladerunners don't have any quit in them, they have 5 players dressed for Sunday's games to try and make up the 9pt deficit in the Challenge Cup final and one more week to try and make up the 33pt lead that the Highlanders hold in the Predator Cup. It won't be easy but nothing worth doing ever is.

In the Omnivore, the Highlanders continue to cling to a 5pt lead but notice that 4 teams have now crossed the 1000pt baseline. The Severed Heads are the only other team that has a shot of hitting that target but will need a very strong final 8 days to do it. The Scourge, still threatening to win the Omnivore, look likely to pass 800pts on the baseline but that's about it.

Here are the unofficial stats as of Saturday's action:

Highlanders extend lead; Edge make charge

The Highlanders now lead the Bladerunners by almost 10pts on the week and over 33 on the season. The defending champions will need a big Saturday night (something they have been able to rely on a lot this year) if they hope to get back into the fight.

The Edge have a huge night, including a +5 performance by +/- defensive prospect A.Volchenkov, to slash the Scourge's lead by a third. Still, it is a very steep road ahead and they can't let up for a second if they are to have any hope of avoiding the Herbivore. The gap between 11th and 12th is now less than 20pts but that is still a lot of ground to make up in a little over a week.

Heading into Saturday's action, here are the unofficial stats:

Wide Open: The 2007-08 Entry Draft lacks consensus

With our FUNHL season rapping up (with kudos, congratulations, etc. ever more likely owed to Doug) our eyes turn towards the next big NHL event of mega-importance.

No, not the playoffs (cuz really, who cares?), no I'm talking about the NHL Entry Draft!

This draft has long been suggested to lack a 'franchise' talent (more on that later), but that it does have some very talented players available.

But just how lacking in obvious talent is this draft? I reviewed the following sources;

TSN (International Scouting Services)

1. Cherepanov
2. Kane
3. Turris
4. Van Riemsdyk
5. Voracek
6. Alzner
7. Couture
8. Gagner
9. Ellerby
10. Mayorov

The Hockey News has it;

1. Kane
2. Van Riemsdyk
3. Alzner
4. Turris
5. Gagner
6. Esposito
7. Cherepanov
8. Voracek
9. Sutter
10. Ellerby

(turns out the Hockey Prospects list is currently the same as ISS)

As you probably know, the Great Whites currently hold the contract rights for Angelo Esposito, and the Severed Heads currently have the rights to Logan Couture.

Let me add that not only has no player risen to the top to be the clear talent, but the words used by scouts everywhere were 'uninspiring'.

The Cameron Theory of Franchise Players Alert!

Under my theory, the first forward taken in any given NHL ED year will be 'Franchise Player' calibre 75% of the time (there are two corollaries, avoid the first forward chosen in any draft where the first two players picked are defensemen, or goaltenders, and use caution in drafts scouts consider 'weak').

This is now officially a 'weak' draft. You've been warned.

My FUNHL bets are;

1. Cherepanov
2. Esposito
3. Kane
4. Van Riemsdyk
5. Couture

Highlanders press advantage across the board

Selanne, Crosby and Pronger combined for 10 pts on route to a 12pt evening for the Highlanders which may go a long way to cementing their position in all three awards. The Bladerunners had a solid 7pts last night but again left points on the table in Minnesota as Jerome Iginla's hat trick was not able to help the Bladerunners out. Just as with last week, had the Bladerunners dressed Iginla and Kipprusoff this week instead of Williams and Giguere, they would have an additional 4.5pts. Not enough to make much of a dent in the Predator Cup standings perhaps but enough to keep the Challenge Cup game close. As it stands now, the Highlanders hold a 30pt lead in the Predator Cup, a 6+pt lead in the Challenge Cup and (thanks mostly to thier Ducks, especially Selanne - who is on the Scourge baseline) an impressive 11pt lead in the Omnivore standings. Things are certainly falling into place for the Highlanders but the Challenge Cup is far from decided and the Omnivore could, again, turn around on a weekend.

Speaking of Omnivore baselines, picking up on an observation Chris made, the Wolves and Highlanders are now the only teams with +1000pt baselines however it is the Wolves who must be most disappointed. The Wolves went from drafting the best team in the league, 1004+pt baseline, to sitting in fourth place some 168pts out of first and over 93pts down from their starting point. That said, with FPs Niedermayer and Luongo and prospect stars Kopitar, Stastny and Phaneuf the future looks very promising for the Wolves for years to come.

Going into Friday night's games, here are your unofficial stats:

Thursday's Games Explained

Sorry Brian, couldn't resist.

Wolves Top 900pts

The Wolves become only the fourth team to cross the 900pt mark last night, a feat their baseline accomplished almost 100pts ago. The Great Whites are finishing out the season in style by sporting a league best 22pts as of Wednesday's action.

The Highlanders continue to lead but with the exception of the Predator Cup race, their lead is very narrow. They have a 1.07pt lead over the Bladerunners in game two of the Challenge Cup final and a mere 0.5pt lead on the Scourge in the Omnivore.

These stats have incorporated Darrell's official stats for Week 25. Here are the unofficial standings as of last night's action:

Backstrom Close To Signing

Severed Head/Washington Capitals prospect N.Backstrom is apparently close to signing with the Capitals with the expectation that he will start the season in Washington. Capitals coach Glen Hanlon was asked what was expected of the youngster when he arrives and Hanlon responded, jokingly, the Calder, Hart and Art Ross trophies. Severed Head GM, Cam Hilton, is already clearing space on his shelf for all three and a goodly number of Predator Cups with Malkin and Backstrom up the middle for years to come.

Edge Reach 800pt mark

Little tidbits.

It seems clear to me that the Edge will finish last this season but they do cross the 800pt level. The Wolves drop to 2nd in the Omnivore baseline.

Had they been able to hold that baseline, they would currently be sitting 3rd.

The Bladerunners hold thier own against the Highlanders last night but their enemy is time as much as anything else. If the Bladerunners are going to mount a comeback in the Predator Cup race, they will need to outscore the Highlanders by 27.5pts between now and the end of the season or by over 2pts a day for the remaining 12 days.

Colorado was all but eliminated last night from the playoffs after Calgary took Minnesota in the shootout and the Avs lost to Vancouver. Perhaps with the pressure of making the post season over, the Flames can concentrate on how to win consistantly on the road because they will not hold home-ice in any series.

Go Flames Go, Draft Oil Draft.

Here are the unofficial stats as of Tuesday's action:

Iginla, Benched?

Ok, I'm lost. He's your FP. He has 85pts on the season. He has 13pts in the last 11games. Twenty-four times this season he has had multiple point games. What the hell did he do to piss off the coach? Three games on the road against divisional rivals with a playoff spot on the line - you have to give your best players a chance to be your best players, don't you?

(Williams does play four games this week where he will face far more generous goaltending than offered by Vancouver and Minnesota so I may end up eating this post in a week's time, but still.)

Highlanders loudest on a quiet night

One game, one goal. Highlanders in on the one goal and the shutout have best night. Bladerunners goaltending is almost as good. Edge and Scourge both in on the goal. That's Monday's action and here are the unofficial stats. Much more going on starting tonight.

Highlanders Take Game One, Extend Lead; Scourge Are Most Improved

Game One of the Challenge Cup final goes to the visiting Highlanders. They get a chance to win their first trophy in 14 years with a second victory this week. The final switches to Stronghold for game two and the Highlander faithful have to be feeling pretty good about their team. Sunday's 3pt performance by S.Crosby helped cement an impressive 40pt week for the kilted ones (third best in the pool to the Scourge's 42pts and the Knights Templar's 45pts) but the victory was as much a product of a devestating coaching decision by the Bladerunners to bench M.Kipprusoff in net (at a loss of 5pts to J.S.Giguere) and J.Cheechoo on right (at a loss of 8pts to M.Recchi, who did get .5pts as TG). Those 12.5pts (assuming that a better tg option was not found, though A.Meszaros who had played tg the week prior got 2.5pts TG but was also benched) would have been enough to give the Bladerunners a narrow game one win and would have kept the Predator Cup race much closer. As it is, the Highlanders now boast a 25pt lead with only two weeks to go.

While S.Crosby's 3pt outburst was helpful, it has been the play of FP J.Thornton (8pts this week) that has been fueling the Highlanders success of late. Having moved to within 7pts on the NHL scoring lead, behind Crosby, his performance since the All-Star Game has been unmatched. He is simply carrying this team on his back and willing them to a victory. His job will get a little easier this week now that Gagne, Kaberle and fellow FP C.Pronger are all back in the line-up.

The Bladerunners can look to this season for some encouragement. They have outscored the Highlanders in 12 of the previous 25 weeks and on two occasions have done so by over 20pts (weeks 9 and 19 they scored approximately 21pts more than the Highalnders). That's the good news. The bad news is that 21pts is not enough and only for once all season, weeks 3 through 6, have the Bladerunners been able to outscore the Highlanders in consecutive weeks (outscoring them by approximately 12, 7, 7, and 6 pts respectively). The time to make history is now. And that time is running out.

The other story to follow is that of the Scourge. The rookie GM with the awful draft has put together a great run to ensure that a return to the cellar would be unlikely. They hold a 30pt lead on the Edge and even after a spirited effort mid-week where they halved the gap between them, they were unable to sustain the effort. The Scourge's task of avoiding the Herbivore mostly accomplished, the task of getting some hardware worth taking home is now on the "to do" list. The Scourge have ridden T.Priessing's +/- for a lot of their Omnivore improvement and full credit to them. They have also been able to turn to recent deadline additions (Satan, Rafalski, Redden) to help pick up the slack with Zetterberg's injury. The Severed Heads and the Shadowmen are both looking at this race for how it impacts their place in FunHL History. If the Highlanders can overcome the Scourge (and the Bladerunners for the other two awards) they will join Severed Heads as the only "Triple Crown" winners in FunHL history. If the Scourge do win they will join the Shadowmen as the only teams to win back-to-back Omnivores but with the distinction that they did it with two different GMs.

Two weeks and a lot to watch for, here are the unofficial stats through Sunday's games:

Big Night for Highlanders/Scourge

Saturday night the Highlanders finally managed to put together a solid night. As a result, they now holding a ten point lead on the Bladerunners this week going into Sunday's action and are in a great position to win game one of the Challenge Cup final. Just as importantly, they have increased their margin in the Predator Cup race to over 23pts. It is the largest lead anyone has had on the Bladerunners all year. Is it enough to declare the race over, absolutely not - but it gives the Highlanders a bit of breathing space. With Pronger, Kaberle and Gagne now all back from injury the Highlanders' prospects look much rosier than they did a couple of weeks ago.

At the other end of the Predator Cup table, the Scourge continued to put together an impressive response to the early week strength of the Edge. The Scourge now sport a 40pt week, best in the pool though the Edge are second best at 37, and now hold a comfortable 29pt lead on last place. The Herbivore looks very much like it will be won for the second time by the Edge. The only bad news for the Scourge was that they slipped a bit in the Omnivore race as the Highlanders retook the lead. Its still very close but the rookie is a fraction of a point away from that goal.

Going into Sunday's action, the unofficial standings are as follows:

Bladerunners Close Gap

Not much time this morning, here are the unoffical stats as of Friday night's games:

Revenge of the Scourge

Yesterday the week looked to be owned by the Edge. They continue to have the league's best week so far but the Scourge responded to the challenge in a big way last night gaining more points in one evening than the Bladerunners have gotten all week (15pts as opposed to 13.5pts). The fine evening by the Scourge also vaulted them back into first place in the Omnivore standings, a unique back-to-back accomplishment for the rookie GM. The Edge are looking more and more destined to join the Barbarians and Severed Heads as two-time Herbivore "winners".

The Highlanders and Bladerunners continue to feel each other out. Neither team has been able to put together a solid, across the board evening which has resulted in a rather timid game in the Challenge Cup and a slow crawl in the Predator Cup race. The Highlanders have had a great showing from FP J.Thornton (who is now challengeing fellow Highlander S.Crosby for the scoring title) but Crosby, among others, have been very quiet so far this week. The Bladerunners must be feeling some doubts about the coaching decisions that went into this week. Two benchings (Cheechoo for Recchi and Kiprusoff for Guiguere) are starting to look like big mistakes. So far Cheechoo and Kiprusoff have tallied over 12 pts but they have remained on the bench, in contrast Recchi and Giguere have only 0.5pts this week. Given that the gap between the Bladerunners and the Highlanders is under 18pts, that is a huge number of points to have left on the table.

Going into Friday's action, the unofficial stats are as follows:

Would you look at the Edge's week!

Seriously, best week so far is the Edge's. Really cutting into the Scourge's lead.

Not a lot of time this morning but to me that is the headline so far this week, and these are the unofficial stats:

A Double Take on the Triple Crown

The Highlanders had an unspectacular night on Tuesday (a little less than 5pts), but it was enough to gain a bit of ground in the Predator Cup race, take a fractional point lead in the Challenge Cup final and ease the Highlanders into first place in the Omnivore standings. Trends which, if they hold out for the next two and a half weeks, would give the Highlanders their first victory of any award in the "Modern Era", a trio of Predator Cups (a feat previously only acheived by the Great Whites) and their first ever "Triple Crown" of Predator Cup, Challenge Cup and Omnivore Award (an accomplishment unique the Severed Heads up to now).

There are two obstacles to the plan, the first being last season's Predator Cup and Challenge Cup champs, the Bladerunners, continue to stick around. They remain less than 14pts behind the Highlanders in the Predator Cup race - really only one good evening given the talent these teams boast. The Challenge Cup final is even closer than that - a minor penalty separates them in the first game of their best of three. Finally, the Bladerunners are a mere 6pts back in the Omnivore standings - an amount that could change in one game, let alone a whole evening of play. The Bladerunners fell short of the triple-crowm last season with the Dogs taking the Omnivore, but it is certianly reasonable to view the Bladerunners as just as capable of winning winning it all and in the process earing their own trio of Predator Cups and becoming the first team to win three Omnivore Awards.

The fly in the ointment, so to speak, is the Scourge. Up until last night, they were the Omnivore leaders and remain a mere 3pts out. So far the week hasn't gone so well for the Scoure, the Edge (with a league-leading 13pt week so far) have started to eat into the lead the Scourge have over them in the race to avoid the Herbivore (which is still about 20pts) but there is nothing to suggest that the rookie GM and his newly minted team couldn't pull of an impressive repeat of their own - remember that it was the defending Omnivore Award Winners, the Dogs, who became the Scourge on the eve of the current season. Most Improved Team, two years in a row and under two different managements - nice trick... if you can pull it off :-)

Congratulations to the Great Whites on reaching the 900pt mark. Here are the unofficial stats as of Tuesday night's action:

Cheering when they fall (part two)!

I was going to do this as a comment to Cam's blog entry but it probably deserves one of its own. The Flames, who possess a super-star in Iginla, a world-class goaltender in Kipprusoff and a future Norris Trophy winner in Phaneuf, shouldn't be fighting the Avs for West's final playoff spot - but they are. For each of the three reasons I just mentioned, I still think that they will pull it out but it should not be this close and if their road woes continue once the playoffs begin then the Sea of Red will be a will be reduced to a gathering pool under Playfair's corpse.

Last season the Flames were the golden children going into the playoffs. Co-favorites, along with the other perenial underachieving Senators, to give us the first all-Canadian final since the Flames last won it all. Suter rode them for 82 games and when the Mighty Ducks came to town, they out worked a tired and dispirited Flames team. No problem, let up on the reins a bit and we can do this. Unfortuately the Flames' disappointment may prove to be as great as the Oilers' if they don't turn it around in a hurry.

Lowe's signings of Rolston (better save % than Hasek btw), Pisani and Horcoff can be questioned all you like but the truth is they are under contract and none are really out of the range of what comprables would be signed for. The real issue is Smyth. Both the Oil and Smyth took a pair of gambles. In the Summer the Oil gambled that Smyth would not have a career year and would cost less to sign later - lost that gamble. Smyth gambled that the Oilers would sign him at more than market price - lost that gamble. Smyth will likely still get his $ in July (heck, even from the Oilers) but if Lowe wasn't willing to overpay for Smyth - he got pretty good return for him in three first-rounders. The Oil have their own pick this season (it was last year's first that they traded to Min for Rolie) as well as the Ducks' so they will have a pretty well stocked cupboard in terms of prospects next year (they also, finally, have a new AHL team to put them on). The real question is how good will their pick be? At the rate they are diving, they could be in a top four pick position in a week and while the is bad news for today - it is how you build for tomorrow. What's the real price of losing a couple of games this week if you are already out of the playoffs when the win could be Cherpanov or Esposito? How can it hurt anyone? Oh, right, the games are against Colorado. Shall we all go down together?