Winter Classic a Slippery Success

Once again, the Winter Classic was everything it was hyped up to be. Neither superstar (Ovechkin or Crosby) showed up big on the stat sheet, but the game definitely had a playoff vibe. Whether you sat through the rain at Heinz Field or watched at home, it was an enjoyable experience for many reasons...

Hockey Under The Lights: The NHL should make this a New Years Night game from now on. During the day is nice, but there's less college football to compete against at night. Also, how sweet did outdoor hockey under the lights look. The move was made due to weather, but this should be a permanent fixture at every subsequent Winter Classic.

Semyon Varlamov: One item that didn't get a lot of attention going in to the game was the Capitals goaltending situation. This has been a continuing theme for the Capitals all year. Both candidates are young (Both Varlamov and Neuvirth are 22) and both have had their peaks and valleys this season. Varlamov made 32 saves (many of them were tough) and played very well on a big stage. Semyon has given Caps coach Bruce Boudreau every reason to give him the chance to be the #1 guy this year.

Physical Play: The ice conditions didn't water down the physicality between these two hated rivals. The fight between the Pens Mike Rupp and Caps John Erskine (a great heavyweight bought) in the 1st period was a microcasm of the beating and banging that went on all game. The David Steckel hit on Sidney Crosby at the end of the 2nd period wasn't dirty. Crosby happened to be in Steckel's way. Crosby's comments on the hit after the game ""He got my head, for sure," Crosby said. "But I can't comment on it. I don't even know. Maybe it was so far behind the play the officials didn't see it." Stop being such a cry baby and look at the tape before you automatically assume that someone ran you.

Weather/Ice Conditions: No one expected rain and high 40s to be the forecast in early January in Pittsburgh, but that was the hand that was dealt. Both teams adapted to the conditions well. You could see some tentativeness with the puck in the 1st period on both sides of the ice, but the puck control and passing became better as time went on.

Eric Fehr: Good karma for Fehr. In the 3rd installment of HBO's 24/7 series, we see that him and his wife adopted a family for Christmas shopping and bought all the presents for a family. No, that has nothing to do with what happens on the ice, but he worked hard all game and took advantage of the opportunities given to him.

Marc Andre-Fleury: 29 Saves isn't bad at all and two of the goals he gave up were tough shots. But Fehr's goal to make it 2-1, that is just an awful decision by The Flower to go behind the net and play the puck in those conditions. Fleury is a good puck-handler and that is a big part of his game, but he has to be more aware of adjusting to the ice conditions.

Overall, the 4th Winter Classic was just as great as the previous three. Where they should do it next year, who knows? Do the Rangers fans finally get the game they've been wanting forever (it would have to be at Citi Field, Yankee Stadium has the Pinstripe Bowl going on the week leading up to the game and the new Meadowlands Stadium would be home for a Devils game, this isn't the Jets or Giants we're talking about here)? Maybe the Avs host a mile-high match-up? The Wild hosting an outdoor game in Minnesota, the Blues going to new Busch Stadium, there are many ways the NHL could go. It will be interesting to see who gets the 5th installment of the Winter Classic on 1/1/12.


Other random notes...

The Tampa Bay Lightning acquiring goalie Dwayne Roloson was a VERY good move. Both Mike Smith and Dan Ellis have been mediocre, at best, this year and Rolly provides stability between the pipes. Fun fact - Roloson is two years older than head coach Guy Boucher. As for the Isles, they get young defenseman Ty Wishart which replaces the space left by the James Wisniewski trade.

Look out for the Calgary Flames...they've won four games in a row, have reached .500, and are now only five points out of 8th in a tight Western Conference.

Random thoughts from the week so far...

Crosby's consecutive games points streak ends at 25 - I have a feeling this will be the first of many extended points streaks in his career. The irony of it is it stopped against the Isles, the team he's been the most productive against in the league. You know that's burning him up inside.

24/7 Winter Classic - 3rd Installment - A very entertaining episode but it was too much about the Pens-Caps game in Washington last Thursday. You get the sense that if the Caps win the game at Heinz Field, it could turn their season around. Everyone needs to stop worrying about the potential weather issues. The NHL will find a way to have it run smoothly.

James Wisniewski - I can't believe the Isles traded him. He's your best defenseman that's healthy and has shored up their back end as much as he can. I know you're a team that's perennially building towards the future, but c'mon. Great pick up for Montreal, though. Their power play should be firing on all cylinders soon.

Marek Svatos - What a genius move by the Predators. They wait for another team to sign him (division rival St. Louis) and grab him before he clears waivers, and only have to foot half the bill. Anytime Marek scores against St. Louis, it will cut just a little deeper. Svatos isn't what he used to be, but in an anemic offense like Nashville's, he'll provide a spark.

Bye Bye Sutter - The Flames axed GM Duane Sutter. It's about damn time. He wasted Miika Kiprusoff's career and didn't know how to follow up their Cup run after the strike. Calgary needs to officially go in to rebuild mode. If they can get a great offer for Jarome Iginla at the deadline, they need to think about it. If Ray Bourque can leave Boston to go win and have the Bruins fans behind him, Jarome should mean the same to Flames fans.

NHL Weekly TV Viewer Guide

MONDAY - Minnesota @ Columbus - 7:30PM - Versus

It boggles my mind how Versus picks their nationally televised games sometimes. I thought the goal was to grow the popularity of the game, not stiffle it. This is a match-up of the 12th and 13th place teams in the West. Columbus has only earned four points in its last eight games. The Wild come in to the game having won three of its last four. The teams have split 3-2 regulation victories in each others buildings. While the Wild have been a fun team to watch this year, I can't imagine why they wouldn't take Detroit @ Coloraod or Islanders @ Rangers instead (luckily I will be at the Rangers game)

TUESDAY - Boston @ Tampa Bay - 7:30PM - Versus

The Lightning have a slim edge on 1st place in the Southeast Division and are in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference while the Bruins have a hold of 8th place in the Conference by four points. Boston is in the midst of a 4 game swing against the Southeast Division. They beat Atlanta on Thursday night 4-1 and will travel to play the Panthers tonight before heading to Tampa. The Lightning finished up a 3 game road trip in Atlanta last night and earned five points on the trip. The teams have split the two meetings so far with Boston dominating Tampa 8-1 in their last meeting

WEDNESDAY - NO GAME

THURSDAY - NO GAME

FRIDAY - Phoenix @ St. Louis - 8:30PM - Versus

This is another game that features two non-playoff teams in the West (St. Louis is in 10th, Phoenix is in 11th), but both of these teams are competitive and can hang with the best teams in the conference. The Coyotes went 2-3-1 on a 6 game road trip heading in to the week while the Blues have won three in a row heading in to Tuesday's game against Chicago. The Coyotes won 5-3 in their only meeting of the season back in November.

SATURDAY - Washington @ Pittsburgh- 1PM - NBC (WINTER CLASSIC)

This is the game everyone has been waiting for whether you're an avid hockey fan or a casual sports fan. The Winter Classic has been a big success so far and now the NHL has their two poster boys facing off at Heinz Field. The Penguins won 3-2 in a shootout in Washington this past Thursday in their first meeting of the season.

SATURDAY - Toronto @ Ottawa - 7PM - NHL Network

Another match-up of two teams below 8th place in their respective conference (not a banner week for the NHL to close out 2010). The Maple Leafs would get talked about more as the worst team in the NHL if it wasn't for the injury-ridden Islanders and the just plain awful Devils. Ottawa is in better shape than Toronto and is only four points out of a playoff spot. This will be their 4th meeting of the season and Ottawa has won the past 2.

SUNDAY - NO GAME

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM THE HOCKEY PRESS!