Top 5 Tuesday:Small in size-super skilled

Martin St. Louis-undrafted, Derek Roy-2nd round 2001, Theo Fleury-8th round 1987.

These 3 guys are all pint size players who did and are doing great things in the NHL. St. Louis is 5.09 and is a past Stanley Cup champ and Hart Trophy winner, Buffalo's Derek Roy who stands 5.08 scored 32 goals and 81 points last year and is one his way to another 30 plus goal season right now, and Theo Fleury won a cup with the Flames, and racked up 1088 points in 1084 games, while playing a bigger than his 5.06 height. Here are 5 vertically challenged players for the upcoming draft who could emulate the above 3 and other small players who are rising above the short comings others might think will keep them down.

5. Chris DeSousa-5.09, 191 pounds-Niagra-OHL
DeSousa has proven he can score with 33 goals in 67 games this year for the Ice Dogs. Last year he had 23 in 64 games. The left winger is a shoot first ask questions and pass later type of guy with only 18 assists this year but he's not afraid of tough areas. DeSousa racked up 100 plus penalty minutes for the second straight season. DeSousa has fast hands and can dart into open areas giving him space to light the lamp. ISS doesn't have him ranked in their top 195 for this June, but Martin St. Louis wasn't drafted either after 4 playing 4 years of NCAA hockey with Vermont.

4. Garrett Mitchell-5.10, 180 pounds-Regina-WHL
He doesn't score a ton of points, just 5 goals and 10 helpers in 71 games with Regina this year, but he's as tough as nails and makes it hard for the other teams top players. Mitchell played on a line with a couple of Europeans this year and by all accounts was the protector with 140 penalty minutes. The hometown Regina product fought 9 times last year and 14 times this year. While 2008 first rounder Jordan Eberle and 2010 draft prospect Jordan Weal get most of the attention when people think of Regina you can bet other WHLers can remember games against Regina because of Mitchell's hard checking style. ISS has the good skater ranked 90th for this June.

3. Toni Rajala-5.09, 163 pounds-Ilves-Finland
Once thought to be a top ten pick for this year's draft, Rajala didn't exactly light it up at the World Juniors in Ottawa. He did shoot alot leading Finland with 23 shots, but finished just twice adding one assist in 6 games. But let's remember he was a young player in a 19 year old tournament. Rajala has terrific speed, a great shot but some say he's to much of a perimeter player. Rajal has split this year between the top Junior A team in Ilves Tampere where he was a point per game player and the senior team. Some say he's the most talented Fin in years. ISS has his ranked 39 which could make him a second round steal.

2. Kyle Palmieri-5.10, 190 pounds-No Where
Palmieri is a very interesting prospect. He was a member of the U.S. National program until getting kicked off a few weeks back. Some say it had to do with an issue while in Sweden for a tournament. So for now, Palmieri waits for the NHL draft and hopes that not playing right now won't hurt him. One scout told me he doesn't think it will, as they've seen him play already. But you have to wonder about why he was kicked off and if his reputation takes a hit from it. TPS spoke to Palmieri while he was a member of Team USA, you can here the interview here. As for his on ice play, Palmieri has been compared to Zach Parise which should make every NHL team thinking of passing on him because of his size reconsider. ISS has him ranked 21st.

1. Ryan Ellis-5.09-183 pounds-Windsor
Hockey Canada took an extra blueliner to the World Junior Championship because they weren't sure about Ellis could play a regular shift. Their fears were dismissed pretty quickly though. Aside from running the power play extremely well, Ellis was so strong positionally that he didn't become a liability. He's a fantastic skater and his shot looks like it's coming from a guy who's 6.04. Ellis was key in Jordan Eberle's tying goal against Russia doing a great job keeping the puck in at the point. His 22 goals and 89 points in 59 games with Windsor were 3rd among draft eligible players in the CHL behind only Evander Kane and John Tavares. Some think he could turn into a Brian Campbell type player. ISS has him ranked as the 4th best defenceman and 13th overall.

Hello Edmonton... Are You There?

Game 1: Edmonton @ Calgary, Thursday March 19th. Attendance: 10,135
Game 2: Edmonton @ Calgary, Sunday March 22nd. Attendance: 11,122
Game 3: Calgary @ Edmonton, Monday March 23rd. Attendance: 3501

"Embarrassing", that was the word going around press row last night as the City of Champions flocked to Rexall Place by the thousands hundreds to watch the first ever playoff game of the Edmonton Oil Kings.

Let me get this out right up front - I don't pay to take my seat in the press box. I live in a bit of a bubble when it comes to the Oil Kings because with The Pipeline Show, it's my job to follow the team so I'm at the games regardless of prices, weather, promotions, etc.

If someone out there wants to tell me to shut up because I get through the door for free... you've got me, it's true. I don't know what it's like to pay for season tickets. However, I have purchased single tickets several times this year, taken my kids and sat in the seats like everyone else though so I'm not completely ignorant of the experience (which certainly isn't without it's flaws).

3501?

The Oilers weren't playing on the road so fans weren't staying home to watch them on TV. The weather was beautiful, but it's not exactly beach season yet so that wasn't the problem. Ticket prices didn't go up for the playoffs (unless I missed something). So where was everybody last night?

There were 11,410 butts in the building on March 15th when the Oil Kings were hosting Red Deer in the final game of the regular season as they tried to get into the playoffs. Yet a third of that showed up for an actual playoff game, the first one in the team's young history?

Did the organization drop the ball here somehow? The team clinched their playoff spot a week ago in Prince Albert, was there not enough time between then and Monday to promote the heck out of the playoffs? Are the Oil Kings guilty of simply believing that with the big numbers near the end of the year that playoff ticket sales would just naturally follow? If so... was that wrong?

Last night on the catwalk I had a between periods conversation with someone in upper management who told me he had talked to "hundreds" of people last week who told him "congratulations on making the playoffs, you should have great crowds" yet at the same time were not going to be attending the games themselves.

I'm also told that of the 3300-ish season ticket holders, around 1000 didn't pick up their playoff option. There was about the same number of tickets sold in walk up yesterday but all in all, 3501 represents one of the smallest announced crowds of the entire season... and it's the playoffs!

Part of me wants to be saying "Shame on you Edmonton!" but I honestly can't because I don't know who or what is to blame for the poor showing. I was expecting a crowd in the 10,000 range considering the historical importance, the playoff excitement, the quality of the opposition, (the Hitmen are a legit Memorial Cup contender as the #1 ranked team in the country), and the fact that Edmonton is so well known for being an event city. To me, this qualified as an event.

TEAM 1260 program director Bryn Griffiths pointed out that the group ticket sales from the regular season aren't there in the playoffs, a great point by him. It was a school night and the team has clearly targetted families with the teen and younger children demographic so a Monday night didn't help.

But is that it? Will Wednesday be any better? I certainly hope fans aren't waiting for Friday night's Game 5 because there is no guarantee that Edmonton is going to avoid the sweep as Calgary is proving their dominance.

I can only guess about what kept the general public away because as I said earlier, it's my job and I get in free so I'm not facing the same realities as the casual fan. So let this be your forum; you tell me why you didn't go on Monday night and I'll make sure someone in the organization reads your thoughts.

I don't work for the Oil Kings so their P&L statements aren't my concern but watching playoff hockey at Rexall can be an awesome experience, unless the building is only 25% full.

Fans of quality hockey are missing out - the Hitmen are ridiculously good and Edmonton goalie Torrie Jung has been playing out-of-his-mind in the net for the Oil Kings. I wish that was the only story from Monday night.

(all photos courtesy Edmonton Oil Kings and Andy Devlin)

NCAA Should be Embarrassed

Welcome to NCAA hockey where you can absolutley choke in the playoffs and still potentially become National Champions!

Dean had a terrific post on this same subject last night and at the risk of adding nothing new I felt compelled to chime in with my own rant .

"Selection Sunday" was yesterday and the 16-team national tournament bracket has been set. For those who aren't well versed in the process south of the border, here's a really basic overview (die-hards correct me if I go wrong).

There are 6 Conferences in NCAA hockey, most hockey people you ask would say that 3 of them are very, very good... 2 are generally pretty bad and one is somewhere in between. The teams play a season consisting mostly of games against teams in their own conference but have a select number of "non-conference" games as well. The non-conference games have zero impact on conference standings but do play a major role in "the pair-wise rankings" which is a beast to try and explain so here's a link to USCHO where you can educate yourself.

Anyway, let's stick with the conferences for a minute. You play the regular season to establish the seeding for the year-end Conference tournament, the opening round of which is normally a best-of-3 series. The teams that survive the first round then play the following weekend in single-game elimination semi-finals and a final game to determine a Conference champ.

The WCHA Conference actually has 5 teams surviving the opening round, the bottom two then have a mid-playoff "play-in" game to get into the semi-finals. Sound confusing? It is. Why they don't just have 8 teams making the playoffs like normal... ah, but that would make sense.

Most of the Conferences crown a champion and decide a third place team by having the two semi-final losers play each other. Think of that as the bronze medal game. Hockey East apaprently doesn't feel it's important enough so Boston College and Northeastern are left to settle the debate using the old standby of rock-paper-scissors.

Even more perplexing; St. Lawrence and Princeton actually did play a third place ECAC Conference game but it ended in a tie! Someone tell me what the hell the purpose was for even playing it if you weren't going to play until someone won it??

The 6 Conference tournament champions automatically qualify for the even more important NCCA National Tournament. 16 teams will make up the bracket so there are ten other teams that get an "at large bid". But get this but of stupidity - the 10 teams that qualify don't actually get there based on their performances in the playoffs but on how they did during the regular season! This is where the old "pair-wise rankings" come into play.

As a result, you get teams like New Hampshire and Vermont getting into the big tournament with a chance to become National Champions while UMass-Lowell and B.C. are done like dinner. What's wrong with that you ask?

Heading into the Hockey East Conference playoffs, Vermont and New Hampshire were 3rd and 4th seeds and had home ice advantage in the first round; UMass-Lowell was 5th and had to play on the road, ironically against Vermont, while Boston College faced UNH.

New Hampshire and Vermont were promptly swept and Boston College and UMass-Lowell continued on to the the semi-finals. Boston College lost a hard fought 3-2 game to #1 Boston University while UMAss-Lowell knocked off #2 seeded Northeastern in an exciting last minute comeback, overtime winner. UMass-Lowell then narrowly lost to BU in the title game by a 1-0 score.

As it turns out, UMass-Lowell was that one goal away from getting an autobid to the National tournament as Hockey East champs but lost and now they, and B.C., are somehow done for the year in favor of two teams that choked in the playoffs including ones that they themselves beat! Oh and get this... UNH now gets to play their regional series AT HOME!

On what planet does any of that make sense?

"I'm sorry UMass-Lowell and Boston College but just because you were better than Vermont and New Hampshire in the playoffs, when it counts, you can't get into the big dance. Afterall, they were better than you in November."

Ridiculous!

Here's another example of NCAA insanity: Minnesota-Duluth wins the WCHA championship on the stength of a semi-final shutout over North Dakota and another blanking of Denver in the final yet aren't the #1 seed out of their conference??? Listen, The Pipeline Show has made some friends in Denver over the years and it's become a program we like a lot but come on... Duluth just spanked your ass in the biggest game of the year and therefore deserve to be ranked ahead of you and every other WCHA team that qualifies for the National bracket. Simple as that.

Wisconsin won the WCHA third place game - the bronze medal - yet they don't get into the big dance either.

The regular season should set up the Conference playoffs and the Conference playoffs should set up the National Tournament. Why you would reward regular season performance over playoff performance is beyond me.

In the CHL, if the Calgary Hitmen (ranked #1 in Canada) somehow lose their opening series to the Edmonton Oil Kings, the CHL isn't going to say "Golly gee Calgary, you really blew it in the playoffs but you were so good all season... don't worry about it. Here's your ticket to the Memorial Cup."

That obviously would never happen because it makes zero sense.

You also can't possibly finish at the top of your graduating class if you fail your final exam.

Don't get me wrong, both Dean and I really, really like NCAA hockey. Afterall, there's a reason we dedicate a segment on our show every week to NCAA hockey and as far as we know, we're the only ones north of the border who do that. This isn't a criticism of quality of play or anything else, we just take issue with how the big tournament is set up.

On behalf of the UMass-Lowell River Hawks, the Boston College Eagles, the Wisconsin Badgers and thinking hockey fans everywhere... to the NCAA brainiacs who came up with this horribly flawed sytem, The Pipeline Show gives you two big thumbs down.

But hey... you had a great November so apparently you're off the hook!

Sweet 16....sort of: NCAA gets some of it wrong

First of all, I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on NCAA hockey and I understand that there is history and tradition behind the moves, but I think some of the teams in the NCAA tournament shouldn't be there. But atleast they aren't the bull#$%@ that the BCS is in football. First of all, here's the schedule with things starting up this Friday.

Northeast Regional-Manchester
(1) Boston University Vs. (4) Ohio
(2) North Dakota Vs. (3) New Hampshire

East Regional-Bridgeport
(1) Michigan Vs. (4) Air Force
(2) Yale Vs. (3) Vermont

West Regional-Minneapolis
(1) Denver Vs. (4) Miami
(2) Minnesota-Duluth Vs. (3) Princeton

Midwest Regional-Grand Rapids
(1) Notre Dame Vs. (4) Bemidji
(2) Northeastern Vs. (3) Cornell

What I have a problem with is teams that have a great playoff run and don't make it to the big dance. Why the hell do they even play conference playoffs then. UMASS-Lowell has a terrific comeback win over Northeastern in the semi-final, then loses by a goal to the nations top team (after this weekends play) Boston University, and THEY DON'T MAKE IT IN????? To rub salt in their wounds, the team they beat in the semi's did, and didn't even have to win another game after losing Friday night because Hockey East doesn't have a 3rd place game. In the WCHA, Wisconsin beat North Dakota in the 3rd place game, but it's the Fighting Sioux who are moving on and the Badgers who are going home.

To me that's not the worst crime though. Ohio State and New Hampshire didn't even make the conference semi-finals in the CCHA and Hockey East respectively, but there they are, sharpening their skates and taping their sticks for tournament play.

Here's how I would fill up the 16 dance cards. There are 6 conferences. CHA and the Atlantic get one spot each, the conference playoff winners, like it is now. The other 4 :WCHA, Hockey East, CCHA and ECAC get 3, the playoff winner, 2nd and 3rd place teams. That brings us to 14. After that I would award 2 wild card teams, however, they would have to be teams that reached their conference finals. So here's the 16 teams that would be in my tournament.

Boston University
UMASS-Lowell
Boston College/Northeastern-winner of these 2 if they had a 3rd place game
Minnesota-Duluth
Denver
Wisconsin
Cornell
Yale
St. Lawrence/Princeton-game ended in a tie, not sure if there is a curfew for ECAC
Michigan
Notre Dame
Northern Michigan
Air Force
Bemidji
My two wild card teams this year would be

North Dakota
Northeastern/Boston College-loser of 3rd place game

This way I think it's less subjective and more about results, but I'm just a dumb Canadian and what do we know about hockey eh?

Tuukka Goes Bananas and 3 Outstanding Goalies from this weekend

The Providence Bruins lost to Bridgeport last night in a shoot out. That's not really that odd, but what happened after the shoot out was. Tuukka Rask went absolutely nuts. Not great composure for a goalie some think has a bright future with the Bruins. Watch for yourself.

I've seen some freak outs before, and had a few as well, but not really like that. I always find it funny when a guy gets so mad he falls over. For another funny freak out, check out Waterloo Head Coach P.K. O'Handley of the USHL, courtesy of The Unofficial USHL Hockey blog.


Speaking of goalies, how about these 3 guys over the weekend. Alberta Golden Bear goalie Aaron Sorochan makes 31 saves to shut out Saskatchewan 7-0 in the Canada West final. The Bears win their 2nd straight, and 7th Canada West title in 8 years. It's also their 47th total. This is Sorochan's last year with the Bears and he should get a pro contract next year. Despite the 7-0 score, the Bears last line of defence was brilliant, making big saves when the game was close to keep the dogs at bay.

Travis Rolheiser made 20 saves for the Spruce Grove Saints last night, as they clipped the Olds Grizzly's 2-1 in game 2 of the AJHL semi-final. Rolheiser was especially good in the 3rd period where the Saints were outshot 10-4. The AJHL's top team also received 33 saves from the netminder in a 4-1 win Friday night as they lead the series 2-0.


Boston University will enter the NCAA tournament as the top seed (more on that later today) thanks in large part to goaltender Kieran Millan, a past guest of TPS. The Edmonton product and former Spruce Grove Saint was named MVP of the Hockey East tournament. Millan made 32 saves as the Terriers shut out UMASS 1-0 in the clincher. He turned away 8 River Hawk power play chances as well. The Freshman was also solid in BU's opening game, making 21 saves in 3-2 victory over rival Boston College.

What do these 3 goalies have in common? They are all products of Lyle Mast's ORSPORTS. You might have heard me mention the program a few times on our show, in fact Millan himself as well as Spruce Grove assistant coach Ryan Marsh spoke glowingly about it as well. It's a system that worked for Mathieu Garon when he was with the L.A. Kings, and one that Kings goaltending coach Bill Ranford is still using. It's also one that I think could help struggling Montreal goaltender Carey Price. Watch for more on the system that's gaining steam this week on Global Edmonton Sports.

Farm Report

With 11 games to go in Springfield and 7 to go (both entering play Saturday night) for Stockton, it seems as good a time as any to find out how the future is shaping up for the Oilers with their minor league teams.

In Springfield the overall stats don't paint a very good picture. Not one player is even close to being a point per game player. Only 3 who have played a decent amount of games are on the good side of the plus/minus rating - Ryan Stone +3, Stephane Goulet +2, and Jake Taylor +1 - Stone was a late season addition, Goulet has only played 18 games, and Taylor was injured for all but 28 contests this year.

But for the sake of the future, let's take the last 18 games (heading into Saturday )into account, as that's when current head coach Rob Daum has been behind the bench. Since Daum took over, the birds are 5-9-4. They have picked up 6 points in their last 4 games, but that was after a 6 game losing skid where they were outscored 26-12 during the stretch.

As far as individuals go, the Falcons top 3 scorers this year, haven't exactly caught fire under Daum. Ryan Potulny leads the team in goals and points with 29 and 47 respectively and has just 11 points in 18 games since the coaching change. Ryan Stone is a little better with 14 points in 19 games. While Rob Schremp, who started with a 3 point game and 8 in the first 10 for his new coach, has just 11 in his last 18, and zero points in Springfield's last 4 games.

So who is benefiting from Daum behind the bench? Charles Linglett who Springfield traded Carl Corrazini for in February has 13 points in his last 14 games. The 6.02, 215 pound Montreal product has certainly agreed with his change of scenery and new coach. Linglett had just 9 points in 37 games with Peoria before the deal. D-man Taylor Chorney has 9 points in the 18 games with Daum calling the shots, and 6 points in the 8 games during the month of March, but he's also -4 in 18 games, adding to his team leading -25. Chorney's D partner since Daum replaced Jeff Truitt has been Cody Wild, and while his 6 points in 18 games are earth shattering, when you consider he had just 9 in 31 games before the change, you can see Wild is agreeing with Daum's coaching philosophy of getting his blueliners more active.

Maybe the biggest bright spot for Springfield this year - you might say the only one - is the play of Devan Dubnyk. The first round pick from 2004 has 17 of Springfield's 21 wins and has faced more than 1700 shots while earning a save percentage over 90.

As for Stockton, the Thunder are battling for a playoff spot in the Pacific division. Their top gun this year has been Ryan Huddy who has 29 goals and 66 points. Saturday night was Garet Hunt bobblehead night. The 6.0, 200 pound slugger has racked up 230 penalty minutes in 56 games, a number that leads the ECHL in his rookie season. Like the Falcons, Stockton has struggled to score goals, they're 19th out of 21 teams with just 190 goals, but they have received good goaltending from Andrew Perugini. The goaltender who earned a minor league contract after a great rookie and main camp with the Oilers, has 19 wins, a goals against average of 2.76 and a save percentage of .911 in 33 games. Numbers that might earn him a promotion to the AHL for next season.



So to review, both minor league teams can't seem to score but are bailed out more often than not by goaltenders. Is it a statement of how poor the Oilers prospects are? Or that the system is still a little green? I'd say a little of both, but it should be cause for concern for the Oilers brass.

Eberle Still Hoping to Play

The Regina Pats may be done for the year but Jordan Eberle still wants to play. The Oilers 1st round pick is at home in Calgary awaiting word that a deal has been worked out so that he can head East and join the AHL's Springfield Falcons for the rest of their season.

The problem is, as Jim Matheson reported yesterday, that the Oilers are once again up against the wall in terms of NHL contracts they can had out. While an amateur tryout deal wouldn't count against that rule, I was told earlier today that it was an entry level deal that the Eberle camp was seeking.

You can't get blood from a stone though so an ATO is all that Eberle can reasonably hope to get... for now. That doesn't mean he can't be signed ASAP this summer once some player agreements come off the books though and that might be part of the ongoing negotiations occuring right now.

Eberle headed back to Calgary once the Pats' regular season ended and has been fighting off a flu for the last few days, although he tells me that he's now back healthy and ready to go.

"I just want to get something done so I can go and play some hockey," Eberle told me at lunch time from Cowtown.

An agreement has yet to be finalized but that doesn't mean one isn't in the process of being completed - just that it isn't quite yet. Oiler fans who were hoping to see Eberle in Falcons silks this weekend will have to wait a bit longer, not tonight when Springfield hosts the Manchester Monarchs, but perhaps in time for tomorrow's contest against Hartford.

Stay tuned as an announcement could literally happen at any time. The Oilers want to get it done, Eberle wants to get it done... all that's left to do is GET IT DONE.

The Down-Low with Bristowe--Western Conference 1st Round Playoff Preview

The Down-Low with Bristowe
Posted by Allan Bristowe

Western Conference Playoff Preview

Where will the West be won? The Western Conference playoffs appear to be a 4 horse race. You may have heard our predictions on The Pipeline Show on Monday night where I had a chance to share my opinions with Guy Flaming and Dean Millard. First and foremost I promise not to go on and on (and on) about the Cougars in their series with the Vancouver Giants.

(1) Vancouver Giants vs. (8) Prince George Cougars

I won’t go on and on….because this series won’t go on for very long. There was a 66 point difference in the standings between the teams in the regular season. The Giants feature arguably the best defence in the league and the Cats main go to player is 16 year old forward Brett Connolly. The Cougars lost the season series 8 games to none and were outscored 40-11. In their last contest over the weekend the Cougars were shut out by the Giants back-up goalie. The Giants will use the series to get their game on track after going 4 and 4 in March. The Cats will use the post season to gain some valuable playoff experience for their young team. Giants in 4.

Key Match-up in the series: Brett Connolly vs. Jonathon Blum

(2) Tri-City Americans vs. (7) Everett Silvertips

This series on paper appears to be a mis-match. The Americans claimed their second straight US division title, while the Silvertips were one of the big sellers around the WHL trade deadline making a block buster deal with Lethbridge where they unloaded Kyle Beach. Tri-City won the season series 8-1-0-1 and held the Tips leading scorer Kellan Tochkin to only 6 points in the 10 games. There is some question about Americans goalie Chet Pickard after suffering a concussion late in the season but he was the teams back-up in their final two regular season games. This is another series where the top team is going after another league title and the lower seed is looking to gain from the post season exposure. Americans in 4.

Key Match-up in the series: Kellan Tochkin vs. Mitch Fadden

(3) Kelowna Rockets vs. (6) Kamloops Blazers

The battle of the K town teams was one sided during the regular season. The Rockets blasted the Blazers this season winning all 9 meetings and had 30 more goals. Kelowna is looking to make a run this season while the Blazers were a middle of the pack team all season and had trouble finding their consistency. I do think the Blazers might give the Rockets a better run in the playoffs. Goalie Justin Leclerc might be able to pull out a game or two. Plus the Blazers do have some guys that could surprise. C.J. Stretch had 86 points while Tyler Shattock was a point a game player. Rockets in 5 or 6 at the most.

Key Match-up in the series: Justin Leclerc vs. The entire Rockets offense

(4) Spokane vs. (5) Seattle

The 4 versus 5 series is usually the closest and that should be the case here. Spokane won the season series with 5 wins in 9 games. The Seattle Thunderbirds could be the team to dethrone the defending Memorial Cup champions. With Canadian World Junior captain Thomas Hickey anchoring their blue line and forwards such as Ottawa Senators first rounder Jim O’Brien up front the T-Birds have more talent than some people might realize. The Chiefs have the experience of knowing how to win going all the way last year. Spokane has the Canadian World Junior goalie in Dustin Tokarski who some how finds a way to get the job done when the games are on the line. I think this will be a hard fought series with Spokane prevailing in either 6 or 7 games.

Key Match-up in the series: Thomas Hickey vs. Drayson Bowman

That’s the Down-Low with Bristowe for the opening round of the Western Conference Playoffs.

One on One: Zach Boychuk

When it comes to Zach Boychuk and the NHL one thing is for sure, it won’t be hard for him to get used to saying the name of the team he plays for.

The star forward of the Lethbridge Hurricanes was chosen 14th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2008 and stuck around with the team for a few games at the end of training camp.
The Aidrie, AB native had an exceptional draft year beginning with the Canada-Russia Super Series followed by the 2008 World Junior Championship. At the end of the WHL regular season he had amassed 33 goals and 72 points in 61 games with the ‘Canes but it was in the playoffs that he took his game to another level.

Boychuk led the Hurricanes in postseason scoring with 21 points in 18 games including a whopping 13 goals – 8 more than the next highest shooter on his team. Lethbridge was the Eastern Conference champions but could not get passed the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL finals.

This year began slightly late for Boychuk who missed time early on with an wrist injury. He did get the chance to play in a couple NHL games with Carolina before returning to Lethbridge for the rest of the season. As the 2008-09 regular season schedule came to a close, Boychuk was fourth in team scoring with 57 points but only appeared in 43 games. His +16 rating sticks out like a sore thumb – but in a good way.

Recently the Hurricanes blew into Edmonton for a late regular season game against the Oil Kings and I had the chance to speak with Boychuk about a myriad of issues. We went back to the fall and he spoke at length about training camp in Carolina and getting a chance to wet his appetite at the NHL level.

We also spoke about the 2009 World Junior Championship in Ottawa and how winning at home compared to winning for the first time a year earlier. He was to play a much bigger role in 2009 than he did in Prague but was slowed by injuries... was it still everything he hoped it would be?

I asked Boychuk for a scouting report on 2009 eligible prospect Carter Ashton. Having just gone through the draft year experience, it was interesting to get Boychuk’s impression of the Hurricanes top prospect this year. We also compared how Ashton’s draft ranking differs from his from last year!

Lethbridge was a busy team at the WHL trade deadline and added controversial forward Kyle Beach from the Everett Silvertips. It was a move that many suggested would either vault the ‘Canes into legit contender status or have the complete opposite effect and destroy the room. I asked Boychuk about the addition of Beach and how the WHL’s bad boy has meshed with the rest of his new team.

Finally, with the playoffs looming I asked Boychuk if he felt that with a line up consisting of himself, Beach, Ashton, Colton Sceviour, Carter Bancks, Dwight King, Ben Wright, Juha Metsola and Luca Sbisa fresh from Philadephia in the NHL… if he felt the Hurricanes were the team that could potentially eliminate the top clubs like Calgary and Saskatoon.

We now know that Saskatoon will be the first round opponent of the Lethbridge Hurricanes and if you want to know how Boychuk feels his club matches up, plus the answers to the rest of the topics I mentioned above… CLICK HERE.

There are a few different reasons that Lethbridge is being considered the team that no one wants to face this year in the WHL playoffs and the biggest of them might be Zach Boychuk.

TPS Contest Announcement!

To help commemorate the first playoff season of the Edmonton Oil Kings, The Pipeline Show is giving away an XL Authentic Replica jersey autographed by the entire team. It's a white one like you see above and it was generously donated by the good folks over at The Sports Closest in Sherwood Park.

Contest Rules: All you have to do is email us with your prediction of how many goals Edmonton will score against the Calgary Hitmen in the entire opening series. We don't care about breaking it down by individual games, we're just looking for the grand total of Edmonton goals scored in Round 1.

How to Enter: Email us with your prediction at mailto:pipeup@thepipelineshow.com and be sure to include your full name, address, phone number and obviously an email address should already be attached. In the subject line of your email put "Oil Kings jersey contest"

That's it... deadline to enter is the opening puck drop of Game 1 and as always on our show, the earliest entry will win any tie breaker so don't delay - ENTER TODAY.

Here is the WHL's series breakdown for your convenience:

(1) CALGARY HITMEN vs (8) EDMONTON OIL KINGS

2008-09 regular-season record: (W-L-OTL-SOL, PTS)
Calgary: 59-9-3-1, 122pts
Edmonton: 29-34-4-5, 67pts

2008-09 head-to-head record:
Calgary: 5-1-0-0, 10pts
Edmonton: 1-5-0-0, 2pts

2008-09 head-to-head top scorers:
Calgary:
Brett Sonne 5gp-6g-4a-10pts
Paul Postma 5gp-3g-7a-10pts

Edmonton:
Brett Breitkreuz 6gp-3g-2a-5pts
Brenden Dowd 6gp-2g-3a-5pts

The Calgary Hitmen the Edmonton Oil Kings meet up for their first playoff series. The last time the two cities met up in a WHL playoff series, Mike Rodgers’ Calgary Centennials defeated Mike Will and the original Edmonton Oil Kings four games to one in the first round of the 1974 Playoffs.

The Hitmen are making their 12th consecutive playoff appearance, and enter the post-season having enjoyed one of the most successful regular-season campaigns in WHL history. The Hitmen won an astounding 59 games, posted 122 points, and scored 330 goals. Their outstanding season was due in large part to their powerful and dynamic offense. The Hitmen boasted three players who scored 40 or more goals and nine players with 50 or more points. In addition, their power play clicked at over 30 percent efficiency. Calgary’s defense corps, led by Paul Postma, allowed the third-fewest number of goals in the League, and also produced a whopping 72 goals. Goaltender Martin Jones won 45 games in 55 appearances this season.

The Oil Kings booked their ticket to the post-season with a dramatic 2-1 overtime victory over the Prince Albert Raiders in a rare tiebreaker game after the teams finished tied on points for the final playoff berth in the Conference. Of all 16 playoff teams, the Oil Kings scored the second-fewest number of goals during the regular season. Only two players topped the 20-goal mark while only six Oil Kings managed to hit double digits in goals. Edmonton’s penalty killing unit ranked 15th in the WHL this season. They will need to be stronger on the PK to limit Calgary’s lethal power play. Goaltender Torrie Jung has the ability to be a game breaker, and usually plays his best in big games.

Series Schedule

#1 - Edmonton @ Calgary; Thursday, March 19 (7:00pm MST)
#2 - Edmonton @ Calgary; Sunday, March 22 (2:00pm MST)
#3 - Calgary @ Edmonton; Monday, March 23 (7:00pm MST)
#4 - Calgary @ Edmonton; Wednesday, March 25 (7:00pm MST)
#5 - Calgary @ Edmonton; Friday, March 27 (7:00pm MST)**
#6 - Edmonton @ Calgary; Sunday, March 29 (2:00pm MST)**
#7 - Edmonton @ Calgary; Tuesday, March 31 (7:00pm MST)**
**If Necessary

GOOD LUCK... 1 entry per email but you could enter more than once... we'll cap it at 3 entries per person. EDIT: this last sentence was poorly worded on my part and I apologize for the confusion. What I wanted from those who entered was their 3 choices so that if your first pick was already taken I could automatically alot you your second choice. I am in the process of contact you all individually in order that you entered, to fix the problem. What we ended up with was about 35 people picking the same 4 or 5 numbers... which obviously isn't what we wanted. Again, sorry for the confusion, it was my fault.