03/20 Road Music: @ New Jersey Devils
Leaving the Garden behind, we now go to the Rock for tonight's game. Hate the Devils all you want (are we "over" the Stevens deal, yet?), but you definitely have to respect them. This is a consistently tough team to play against, and tonight will be no different.
The Devils are hoping to bounce back from an OT loss to Toronto on Thursday. Martin Brodeur was off that night, so expect him back between the pipes tonight. Defenseman Paul Martin has just returned to the lineup, giving them a lift, and we are all well-acquainted with former Blue Bryce Salvador. With Lemaire back as coach, the fans of the NHL were prepared for the return of NJ Trap hockey. What might come as a shock to some is that NJ has youth and speed on the roster now: the top line features Zach Parise and Travis Zajac, as well as Olympic captain Jamie Langenbrunner. The second line of Patrik Elias, Dainius Zubrus, and some Russian guy, has some zip, too.
These guys can skate, and if we have any hope to extend our "streak" to 2 games in a row, we need to keep up with them. We're going to spend the night running with the Devils.
Runnin' with the Devil / Van Halen
(note: my new toy box includes being able to upload the tune directly to SBN. Clicking on it will launch the audio file in a new tab/window. To hear it on my Blip.fm page, like usual, you can click HERE).
A good summary of the remainder of our season...
I live my life like there's no tommorow
All I've got I had to steal
At least I don't have to beg or borrow
Yes I'm living at a pace that kills
One thing in our favor is that the Devils PP has been cold as of late - 0 in their last 14 opportunities. That plays into our strength, as our PK is among the league leaders (even more so on the road). As long as we take care of business 5-on-5, we'll have a good shot at 2 more points in the standings. The Devils are a solid team, currently 4th in the Eastern Conference and only 1 point behind Pittsburgh for the Atlantic Division lead. They are 5-4-1 in their last 10. Certainly not a pushover, but do-able. You know how to do it guys - get it done.
Further Reading:
(excellent, very thorough game preview at ILWT, BTW)
As always, this is your pregame pre-party. The game begins at 6:00 PM St Louis time. Until then, work out your frustrations with last night's games (EDM, really? .2 seconds? Really?) and dust off your Admiral Ackbar jokes.
Until then, LGB!
-CrossCheckRaise
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Saturday Links: "God willing, we'll all meet again in Saturday Links 2: The Search for More Points" Edition
Aw, buckle this: Ludicrous speed, GO! (side note: If we actually turn this thing around and qualify for the playoffs, I'm taking full credit for starting the late season rally with a Spaceballs reference)
Blues News:
- Score your 400th career goal and suddenly the Blues give a shit about re-signing you. JR nails it by describing Kariya as someone who is no longer a scoring threat but can still be more useful than other guys, especially if he's willing to play for a little less than he could get elsewhere. I'll welcome him back at about the $3 million dollar range.
- EARLY START ALERT: 6 PM in New Jersey on FS-MW.
NHL News:
- Canucks re-sign Ryan Kesler for 6 more years at an average of $5 million per year. This'll really fan the flames of future Blues/Nucks contests once the Blues ink David Backes long term. Also, what sort of benchmark does this set for the Blues efforts to retain guys like EJ, Perron, Steen, Osh, Bergie, and Backes (among others) in the next couple of off-seasons?
- Nucks Misconduct has their say on the matter. Something about him endorsing some obscure non-EA sports NHL video game franchise in the caption.
- Mike Milbury interviews Colin Campbell. "But I wanted to suspend Cooke" excuse doesn't fly with me.
- Wendel Clark has an interesting take on the changes in physical play compared to decades past: Could the equipment designed to protect actually be encouraging a player to hit with more fearless abandon? It's certainly food for thought.
- Stanley Cup of Chowder is mad as hell, and they're not gonna take it anymore. They're advising Bruins faithful to stay home to protest a tumble in the standings.
- Scores. Detroit gets a charity point, the Flames win, Anaheim wins. But, hey, Minnesota lost, so we got that goin' for us, which is nice.
- Schedule. Root for Ottawa over Dallas, Columbus over Nashville (there's no way the Jackets climb back in this thing, right?), Vancouver over Detroit, and the Islanders over Los Angeles.
- Standings. Need to find a spare 6 points in the couch cushions to get us back in.
Other Stuff:
- This sort of shit's always at Goodwill.
- Fozzie Bear's my favorite to win it all.
- Luvhockey sends an eclectic link that has plenty of laughs. Some highlights include: Farts are like snowflakes, Zodiac Crayons, and a Muppets tattoo about halfway down the main page.
- NateTheGreat gives us Baby Dictators. That's right...baby dictators.
- Exactly how college works.
- You wanna know how I know you're a puck bunny?
Video:
When making a late-season run at playoff contention, it's important to focus on the present. Let's not get too bogged down with what might happen in the next game or what happened last game. We're at "now" now.
Newly minted "Coffeemaker" (or whatever the hell title it is now) CrossCheckRaise brings you his musical stylings for tonight's road game. Game Thread will follow.
Send me anything you find that's link-worthy at gametimelinks (at) gmail.com
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Score board watching Fri Mar 19th
Here we go...
C-bus just tied the Wild and then Rick Nash got a break away and scored with a heel lift fake. 3-2 BJs.
Several other games that will effect the Blues tonight. SJ and Cal-Gary just started. Detwat is playing the Oilers and the Ducks play the Islanders for the late game.
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Hockey's Future Blues Top 20 prospects, Spring 2010
Blues top 20, according to HF. Don't trust em like our own prospect resource, but still, worth noting I suppose.
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You Write The Comedy Friday
Erik Johnson and Sean Avery get to know each other Thursday night. What do you think is being said/thought here?
Your best guesses in the comments, if you please.
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Friday links: Celebrating Mike Weaver's goal by trying to grow an awesome beard edition
Mike Weaver scores a goal a short time after Matt Walker potted two. It's a great time to be a journeyman defenseman.
Blues news
- Paul Kariya now has 400 goals. [LA Times]
- Who cares that Paul Kariya got his 400th career goal: Mike Weaver got his first as a Blue. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]
- Keith Tkachuk might be on his way out. I think the freak injuries may have soured the old guy on staying in the league. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]
- Jeremy Rutherford chatted. [STLtoday]
- The Blues are hoping to have another miracle run. [Blues]
-
Playoff chances: Still very slim. [Sports Club Stats]
Hockey news
- Thursday's games. What we wanted: St. Louis over NYR, Nashville over Minnesota and Philly over Dallas. We got: STL over NYR, Nash over Minne and Philly over Dallas. [Yahoo Sports]
- Friday games. We want: San Jose over Calgary, Edmonton over Detroit, C-Bus over Minne and the Isles over the Ducks. [Yahoo Sports]
Boston got revenge on Matt Cooke for his hit on Marc Savard ... kinda. [ESPN]- The Phoenix Coyotes have set a franchise record for wins. Yet another team that has passed the Blues. [TSN]
- The Blackhawks are doing just fine with a depleted d-corps. [TSN]
- James Wisniewski gets eight games for his hit on Brent Seabrook. I think it's fair for his cheap shot, but not fair in the context of the other fines/suspensions tossed around this season. [TSN]
Other links
- Should I be proud that I got a 7-out-of-10 on the movie fart quiz? [Liquid Generation]
- The Mona Lisa has long needed a makeover. [Top Cultured]
- Who knew an abandoned amusement park would be so haunting? Don't worry, Cam Janssen, this Six Flags isn't the Eureka one. [theChive]
Video
I've often said, that the one thing in the Ninja Turtles movies is swearing. Someone has made my dream come true. I think you'll agree, it's better.
It's Friday that means tomorrow is the freakin' weekend which means Poor College Student is going to be here to have some fun. Send some links to gametimelinks(at)gmail.com
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The Late Night Poll: Pauly Walnuts' Legacy.
Paul Kariya scored his 400th NHL goal tonight, becoming the 83rd NHLer in history to hit that mark.
Which begs the question of tonight's poll....
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Blues at Rangers GDT
A week ago today the Blues were on Long Island to take on the Islanders. Tonight, the Note is at the world famous Madison Square Garden for a tilt with the Rangers.
The Rangers, like most Eastern Conference teams, are a mystery to me. I can tell you something about almost any West team. But the East? No dice.
Here's what I know: They have coach who likes to swear a lot. They have Sean Avery. They have Henrik Lundqvist who, according to my sources, goes by Hank. And that's about it.
Like every game from here on out, this one is a must win for the Blues. If St. Louis is going to pull another playoff berth out of its ass, it has to start tonight. The Blues need to play like their collective asses are on fire. If not, it's another early exit.
This is your Game Day Thread. Chat about life, hockey, and your playoff hopes.
You know what to do, now do the damn thing.
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