Mike Chen's Hockey Blog

Looking For A Hangover Cure

by Mike Chen on 01/06/09 at 12:58 PM ET
Comments (2)

With the Pittsburgh Penguins sliding out of a playoff spot after their recent shutout loss to the New York Rangers, it’s time to start talking Stanley Cup hangover. No, it’s not just teams that win the actual Cup that seem to have a hangover. Take a look at what’s happened to the finalists since the 2000-01 season—it ain’t pretty:

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Playoffs,

The Perils of Sidney

by Mike Chen on 01/04/09 at 03:32 PM ET
Comments (3)

Since Saturday night, Sidney Crosby’s been called every name in the book – either positive (“What a leader!”) or negative (“What a dirty player!”), depending on your view of his bout with Florida’s Brett McLean. I’m guilty of it too, as I joked about Crosby’s pretty apparent lack of fighting skills. But stepping back from that and looking at the bigger picture, one could pretty easily see that the whole symbolizes just how frustrating this Pittsburgh Penguins season has been.

Where do the Penguins go from here? Let’s look at some of the burning questions facing the team, both from the outsider’s perspective and inside the locker room.

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Pittsburgh+Penguins, Sidney+Crosby,

Sidney Crosby Dances, I Mean, Fights

by Mike Chen on 01/03/09 at 06:16 PM ET
Comments (18)

A lot of people hate Sidney Crosby. I’m not one of them. I think he’s extremely talented, has a great work ethic, and is one of the most creative players in the game. So this isn’t just flat-out “Crosby’s a (expletive)” bit of bashing.

But seriously, what the hell was he doing when he, um, attempted to fight Brett McLean? If you haven’t seen it, here’s the video.

Filed in: | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Sidney+Crosby,

Planning Future Winter Classics

by Mike Chen on 01/02/09 at 01:59 PM ET
Comments (8)

I should start off with a disclaimer that I don’t think this idea will necessarily please everyone, nor will it necessarily bring the biggest ratings and/or revenue to the NHL. Heck, I’m not even sure I’d vote for it if I was on the Board of Governors but it’s an idea that got me thinking after it popped in my head, so it couldn’t have been the worst idea in the world. At the very least, it’s an interesting idea that tries to fulfill a few different things.

That being said, here’s a proposed way to spread the Winter Classic love around the league without getting into arguments about what’s a hockey market and what’s not (re: who “deserves” it and who doesn’t). It’s also a way to not kill the Golden Goose of the WC through overexposure.

What if the Winter Classic becomes an every-other-season regular season contest between the last two winners of the Stanley Cup? The team with the better the overall head-to-head record over the past two seasons has the option to host (and considering the revenue/publicity, who would turn it down?).

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Winter+Classic,

Peace & Love, Hockey-Blogger Style

by Mike Chen on 01/01/09 at 02:05 PM ET
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What do some of hockey’s top bloggers wish for come New Year’s Day?

This may be a pipe dream, but I wish for the mainstream media to recognize the N.H.L. for the beautiful moments we all enjoy. An Alex Ovechkin goal, a Sidney Crosby pass, a Henrik Lundqvist save, that’s what we live for, so much more than the uncontrolled mouth of an idiot or a random act of stick-assisted violence.

Read more over at the New York Times Slap Shot Blog, and a big thanks to Jeff, Stu, and company for letting me be part of the fun for 2008.

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: New+Year,

A California Classic?

by Mike Chen on 12/31/08 at 01:05 PM ET
Comments (16)

On the eve of the Winter Classic (oh, there’s something about a new calendar year happening tomorrow too), I took a look out the window to the gray skies and morning frost of this early Northern California day and pondered whether the NHL would ever bother trying something like that in Sharks territory. I know Sharks ownership actually inquired about it, including proposing a few feasible locations, but I imagine a California Winter Classic is way, way down on the NHL’s selection list. If it ever happened, I’m guessing we’d have already exhausted the Original Six and Canadian teams several times over.

Still, just like Jim Carrey said in Dumb and Dumber, the fact that the league actually listened to the Sharks means that there is a chance. Ok, but are the logistics feasible?

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: San+Jose+Sharks, Winter+Classic,

2008’s Biggest Story

by Mike Chen on 12/29/08 at 01:04 PM ET
Comments (1)

I’m back from a week of non-stop holiday stress interspersed with a few hours of catching up with friends and family. Here’s a lesson I learned this year—if you’re already pressed for time due to various commitments, making two time-intensive holiday gifts is a bad idea. Only one per year from now on.

In any case, I always find year-end stuff to be a little awkward because hockey season is split into two calendar years. How does one judge what’s the biggest story of the year? Do you go with the Stanley Cup champs and ignore the start of the 08-09 season? Do you select a single incident like Sean Avery’s potty mouth? How about an ongoing fiasco like the ridiculous shenanigans happening in Tampa Bay?

No to each of those, I say. I think the biggest hockey story of 2008 is also the biggest global story of the year (no, not Sean Avery).

Filed in: Salary Cap | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: 2008, Attendance, Business, Economy,

Who’s Still In It?

by Mike Chen on 12/23/08 at 05:36 PM ET
Comments (3)

I’ve often said that the Christmas break (or the days after Festivus, for you true believers) is the turning point in the NHL season. Before that time, teams still have a chance of making a come back. Come December 24-25, all teams are somewhere in the 30-35 games-played mark and large gaps in the standings become too much of a chore to overcome.

With that in mind, who’s still got hope? I used to say that .500 teams at Christmas are still in the hunt for a playoff spot. However, I’ve tweaked that a little bit this season because the log jams are so immense, especially in the Western Conference. Instead of being .500 (having the same amount of points as games played), I’ll change that to say that if your team is within two points of .500, you’re still in it.

Let’s look at the bubble teams with just a few hours to go before tonight’s games:

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Standings,

What’s Motivating The Coyotes?

by Mike Chen on 12/22/08 at 12:51 PM ET
Comments (0)

You might have noticed that those pesky Phoenix Coyotes have risen up the standings and now have a precarious hold on a playoff spot. A big part of this is their recent surge in play, coupled with win-one-lose-one patterns of the Nashville Predators and the free fall of the Minnesota Wild.

But I know the truth. It’s not just Ilya Bryzgalov returning to form or the emergence of Martin “He’s So Hot Right Now” Hanzel or the leadership of Shane Doan.

No, Don Maloney motivated the Yotes with this simple threat: play well or Gretzky leaves and you get coached by this guy. (Sorry for not getting the embedded video, I could only find a link.)

Filed in: NHL | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Phoenix+Coyotes,

Humble Pie

by Mike Chen on 12/19/08 at 11:21 AM ET
Comments (1)

If you were a child of the 80’s (or if you just have a strange fascination with cartoons from that period), you might recall an episode of GI Joe where Gung Ho, the rugged marine with a porn-star mustache, was being upstaged by a former protege of his. The tension built up to the inevitable fist fight between the two, where Gung Ho’s adversary touting how he was younger, faster, and stronger with each punch. Gung Ho, however, got the upper hand, throwing the cocky whippersnapper down and giving him a good dose of humble pie.

“You forgot one thing,” Gung Ho said. “I’m better.”

That little life lesson (and knowing is half the battle) reminded me of last night’s Detroit-San Jose game. It’s funny how one complete smackdown can make a Sharks fan forget the record-setting start (is it really a start 30 games in?) to the season. Still, the 6-0 drubbing at the hands of the Red Wings showed that the Sharks aren’t invincible, that their system can’t come back and dominate everything, and that they can get run out of town just as easily as they’ve run over some opponents.

Still, this isn’t exactly a bad thing.

Filed in: San Jose Sharks | Mike Chen's Hockey Blog | Permalink
Tags: Detroit+Red+Wings, San+Jose+Sharks,

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About Mike Chen’s Hockey Blog

Mike Chen prides himself in being the only hockey writer integrating puck discussion with both Morrissey quotes and Star Wars references. Since 2004, he’s blogged about all things hockey and currently contributes to FoxSports.com, the Battle of California, and RotoRob.

Questions? Comments? Hate mail? Contact Mike here.