The State of Hockey and Chicago are the 'home' to two of the most memorable group of brother's in the history of American cinema.  For the Windy City its Jake and Elwood Blues played by Saturday Night Live original cast members John Belushi and Dan Akroyd.  The pair of trouble-making musicians who go on a mission from God to save an orphanage they once belonged to formed the plot for the film the Blues Brothers.  For Minnesota you have a trio of brothers from the "Iron Range" of Dave, Jeff and Steve Hanson played by real life professional hockey players Steve and Jeff Carlson from Virginia, Minnesota and St. Paul's Dave Hanson.  The brothers from the cult classic hockey film Slap Shot who loved playing with toy cars when they weren't beating the hell out of their opponents on the ice as they hoped their thuggery could save their hockey team from being dismantled.  The brothers and their films share some interesting comparisons.  Both sets of brothers were made famous in part due their choice in eyewear.   The Blues' and their classic sunglasses which they even wore at night and the Hanson's for their taped up coke-bottle glasses which the players did their best to keep on even in the middle of a hockey fight.  Both sets of brothers were no strangers in getting into trouble with the law and both were great crowd pleasers.  But which group of brothers kicked more ass?    

Which 'brothers' kicked more ass, the Blues brothers or the Hanson brothers?

The Blues Brothers certainly started their share of fights but they spent most of their time running or morte often driving away.  It was in their various car chases that they managed to send a whole group of Illinois Nazi's jumping off the side of a bridge as well as the destruction of a shopping mall in addition to countless police, sheriff and state patrol cars as they raced to the Cook County Assessor's Office in downtown Chicago.  So on a property destruction level, the Blues Brothers win hands down.  While the Hanson Brothers didn't have an old police car to drive, they road a bus with holes bashed in the side to make it look mean.  And unlike the Blues who ran away from the fights they created they fought ferociously making the Charlestown Chiefs one of the most feared teams in the Federal League standing up to such thugs as Ogie Oglethorpe, Tim "Dr. Hook" McCracken and Gilmore Tuttle.  Only the national guard could finally reign in the Blues Brothers while the only thing stopping the Hanson brothers was the flagging economy in Charlestown.  So which group of brother's kicked more ass?  That's up for you to decide.  Meanwhile in the NHL, the Western Conference's top team faces off the upstart Minnesota Wild.  Will the Blackhawks be singing Sweet Home Chicago by game's end or will they be singing the blues? 

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

Minnesota Wild (22-14-2)  46pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.60 Goals For (16th)

2.53 Goals Against (11th)

18.5% Power Play (13th)

82.4% Penalty Kill (13th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 17A = 32pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 4G 25A = 29pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 11G 16A = 27pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 98 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (20-10-2)  2.44GAA  .913%SP  2SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .923%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1SO

Vs.

Chicago Blackhawks (29-5-4)  62pts  1st in the Central

3.24 Goals For (1st)

2.08 Goals Against (2nd)

16.9% Power Play (21st)

85.6% Penalty Kill (5th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #88 Patrick Kane ~ 20G 26A = 46pts

2. #19 Jonathan Toews ~ 19G 21A = 40pts

3. #81 Marian Hossa ~ 13G 10A = 23pts

4. #20 Brandon Saad ~ 9G 13A = 22pts

5. #2 Duncan Keith ~ 2G 20A = 22pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #52 Brandon Bollig ~ 47 PIM's

2. #65 Andrew Shaw ~ 30 PIM's

3. #2 Duncan Keith ~ 29 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #50 Corey Crawford (15-4-4)  2.01GAA  .922%SP  2SO

2. #30 Ray Emery (14-1-0)  2.02GAA  .920%SP  2SO

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

The monotone voice, the blazing speed, the lack of variety in his one on one moves, and the glass groin he possessed dazzled and frustrated Wild fans for years.  He teased you with his skill, a streaky player who in certain moments could look like one of the most gifted players in the league and at other times a player who was disconnected and genuinely didn't want to be there.  Then of course there was the man who brought him here, Doug Risebrough.  The former Wild general manager who did about all that he could to try to assist the Trencin, Slovakia-native's health but in the end couldn't get a deal done and the Minnesota Wild were forced to watch the most talented player they have ever drafted walk away for nothing in return.  The void left by Marian Gaborik's departure hurt the team for years (as well as poor drafting) and ultimately it cost Risebrough his job.  Now Gaborik has been traded for the first time in his career, in a deadline day deal by the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets who have been scratching and clawing their way towards the Western Conference playoff picture under new GM Jarmo Kekalainen and Team President John Davidson.  Former Wild coach Todd Richards has managed to spark his bizarre collection of veterans and youngsters into being one of the most successful teams in the league through the month of March.  There is as much hope in Columbus now as there has been since the team hired Ken Hitchcock as coach and who led the team to its first and only ever run to the playoffs.  The playoff 'run' was a 1st round sweep at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings, and the team spiraled downward ever since.  The red-headed stepchild of the NHL has had plenty of bad luck along the way, including losing its franchise player Rick Nash in summer trade and the disastisfaction of Jeff Carter to stay with the Blue Jackets who was dealt to Los Angeles at last year's deadline.  The Blue Jackets faithful, the few that are left, feel their team has paid its dues and taken its lumps and now its time for its fortunes to turn around and Gaborik is supposed to push them over that last hurdle.  Wild fans can tell any Columbus fan what happens when you rely on Marian Gaborik.  You end up disappointed.    

However the Wild as of late haven't had much more success than its expansion cousin.  So the Wild probably shouldn't be talking too much trash when they venture to Nationwide Arena Sunday night, an arena where they've typically struggled to win games.  The Blue Jackets will be hungry and motivated and hoping to extend the Wild's 3-game losing streak.  Can the Wild dig deep and stem the tide with a crucial win in Columbus or will the Blue Jackets and Marian Gaborik have the last laugh?  

Click on "Continue Reading" in the rest of the article...

Minnesota Wild (21-14-2)  44pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.60 Goals For (18th)

2.60 Goals Against (15th)

17.3% Power Play (18th)

81.7% Penalty Kill (15th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 16A = 31pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 3G 25A = 28pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 10G 15A = 25pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 96 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (19-10-2)  2.52GAA  .910%SP  1 SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .923%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1 SO

Vs.

Columbus Blue Jackets (16-15-7)  39pts  4th in the Central

2.29 Goals For (30th)

2.55 Goals Against (12th)

14.8% Power Play (27th)

85.6% Penalty Kill (5th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #10 Marian Gaborik ~ 10G 12A = 22pts

2. #22 Vinny Prospal ~ 10G 12A = 22pts

3. #55 Mark Letestu ~ 9G 11A = 20pts

4. #51 Fedor Tyutin ~ 2G 15A = 17pts

5. #42 Artem Anisimov ~ 10G 6A = 16pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #40 Jared Boll ~ 86 PIM's

2. #17 Brandon Dubinsky ~ 53 PIM's

3. #24 Derek McKenzie ~ 32 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #72 Sergei Bobrovsky (13-9-6)  2.09GAA  .929%SP  3 SO

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article"....

"Well you're the real tough cookie, with the long history, of breaking little hearts, like the one in me, that's ok, let's see how you do it, put up your dukes, let's get down to it, hit me with your best shot, why don't you hit me with your best shot, hit me with your best shot, fire away," are the lyrics to Pat Benetar's famous song Hit Me With Your Best Shot.  Last night Dany Heatley took Marc-Edouard Vlasic's best shot after the game concluded last night in San Jose and after a cross check to the back, Vlasic then gave a two-handed chop to the forearm of Heatley that left him skating back to the Wild bench in immense pain.  At the time a few Wild players verbally abused Vlasic and the Sharks' over the dirty play but that was about it.  When asked about it, Vlasic said that he was only 'defending himself' and that an attempted slash by Heatley that missed had to be answered back but that he did not intend to hurt him.  I wonder if Vlasic thought the same thing when he delivered this hit to Philadelphia's Danny Briere last season.  Seems a bit dirty doesn't it?  Unfortunately, the NHL chose not to suspend 'Pickles' as he's known by his teammates for that hit and makes you wonder if he'll draw a suspension from the NHL Department of Player Safety this time around.  Had Vlasic had that official history of a suspension I would think the likelihood of him being forced to sit a few games would've been considerably higher.  My guess is Vlasic has a 30-70 chance of being suspended.  Even if Vlasic is suspended for A game, the Wild are likely to be without the services of Dany Heatley of at least a couple games if not more so it hardly seems like fitting justice to me.  Its just a little slash on the wrist to Vlasic, but the league didn't mean to hurt him.  Really, it didn't.       

With all of the Vlasic / Heatley Incident speculation aside the Wild are going to have to hit control, alt, delete in their minds after last night's game and re-focus and come ready to play in Los Angeles this evening.  The Wild escaped with a come-from-behind shootout victory when the two clubs played in the friendly confines of Xcel Energy Center on March 30th.  The Kings will no doubt want to avenger their loss plus continue to gain ground on what is a very contentious race to the playoffs.  The Kings, perhaps more than any other team in NHL history realizes just how much one point can mean in a season after having qualified for the playoffs last year by just one point and then making a magic run to its first ever Stanley Cup.  The Wild would be smart to learn from this example and understand there are no mulligan hockey games anymore.  They need to try to earn points in each and everyone of them if they want to qualify for the post season and let's face it that was the real underlying message of Minnesota's siginificant splash at the trade deadline yesterday.  So will the Wild fight back or will they hobble back to Minnesota, a little dazed, confused and banged up? 

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

Minnesota Wild (21-13-2)  44pts  1st in the Northwest

2.67 Goals For (14th)

2.58 Goals Against (14th)

17.5% Power Play (21st)

81.4% Penalty Kill (14th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 16A = 31pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 3G 25A = 28pts

4. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

5. #10 Devin Setoguchi ~ 12G 11A = 23pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 96 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (19-9-2)  2.45GAA  .913%SP  1 SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  2.22GAA  .924%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1 SO

Vs.

Los Angeles Kings (20-13-3)  43pts  3rd in the Pacific

2.86 Goals For (8th)

2.47 Goals Against (9th)

19.0% Power Play (13th)

81.7% Penalty Kill (11th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #11 Anze Kopitar ~ 10G 22A = 32pts

2. #14 Justin Williams ~ 8G 17A = 25pts

3. #77 Jeff Carter ~ 20G 4A = 24pts

4. #23 Dustin Brown ~ 14G 9A = 23pts

5. #10 Mike Richards ~ 8G 14A = 22pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #5 Keaten Ellerby ~ 50 PIM's

2. #13 Kyle Clifford ~ 41 PIM's

3. #10 Mike Richards ~ 40 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Jonathan Quick (12-11-3  2.54GAA  .896%SP  1 SO

2. #45 Jonathan Bernier (8-2-0)  1.95GAA  .919%SP 

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

To trade or not to trade, that is the question teams are pondering as they consider whether they should make some sort of roster move before the deadline's official arrival on Wednesday.  The phones are no doubt busy at just about all of the NHL's 30 clubs including the Minnesota Wild.  While there is plenty of talk and 'interest' here and there its tough to say its all worthwhile interest.  Savvy GM's are going to look for the best deal possible and if they can pawn off their toxic contracts and 'projects' on others the trade deadline is a great time because desperation is usually high and that means teams often are perhaps a bit blinded to the pitfalls or shortcomings a player may bring with them.  A savvy GM like Penguins GM Ray Shero managed to 'sell' a 1st round pick and two prospects that were pretty far down in their prospect pool in Ben Hanowski and Kenny Agostino to the Calgary Flames for Jarome Iginla.  Yet not all deadline moves are so nice or come with so much promise.  Former Wild General Manager Doug Risebrough pulled off a deadline bummer when he traded a 6th round pick to the New York Islanders' for Chris Simon.  It was meant to be a trade to help boost the clubs' toughness and improve their chances in the post-season instead it angered a fanbase who felt the addition of a troubled enforcer wasn't the sort of help the team needed.  The deal made Islanders GM Garth Snow look like Let's Make A Deal's Monty Hall as he got the Wild to gamble on what was behind door #2.  And just like that the Wild was stuck with a jalopy.  So as the deadline deals unfold, what trades will actually help and which may even be so bad that the Wild might feel they got lucky with a guy like Chris Simon?   

Some NHL GM's make deals that would make Monty Hall jealous.  

By the time the Wild hit the ice in San Jose the deadline will have come and gone and teams will have more or less have their final roster for the run for the playoffs.  Did Buffalo GM Darcy Regier force the Wild to part with too much to see what was behind Door #1?  With just 7 points separating 3rd place Minnesota from 9th place Edmonton the deals of course are a sign of the trajectory the team feels its in.  Teams that do little or nothing often do so as they feel they like the chemistry of their team and don't wish to shake it up or they lack the assets to do so.  The Wild have plenty of assets to deal, so if the Wild don't do anything (as some expect them to do) its because they really like what they have.  Minnesota is in a good place right now, but the great momentum they've built from a 7-game winning streak has for the most part cooled off and the team may feel a move is necessary just to give them another boost.  Will the Wild be able to stop the Sharks' current feeding frenzy or will they just chum the waters even more? 

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

I must admit I thought the Wild would be quiet during the trade deadline and as the hours ticked by with little to know activity it appeared as though my expectations would be fulfilled.  Then late in the afternoon, the rumors began flying the Wild were pushing hard for Buffalo Sabres right winger Jason Pominville and lo and behold they came true.  However the move did not come without a price, a steep one as it cost the Wild promising goaltender Matt Hackett and intriguing two-way forward Johan Larsson along with a 1st round pick in 2013 and a 2nd round pick in 2014.  The Wild also got a 4th round pick in 2014 from the Buffalo Sabres.  Minnesota wasn't done there picking up goaltender Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers for a conditional pick to the Anaheim Ducks.  So what does this mean for the Wild?  

All humor aside the Wild clearly want to win now.  With a $5.3 million cap hit for this year and next year makes Pominville more than just a rental player.  Pominville currently has 10 goals and 15 helpers on the season and brings a coveted right handed shot.  The former Sabre was the team's captain which gives the Wild its 3rd team captain along with Mikko Koivu and former New Jersey Devils captain Zach Parise.  So what does this mean for the Wild's future?

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

Minnesota Wild (21-12-2)  44pts  1st in the Northwest

2.69 Goals For (14th)

2.54 Goals Against (12th)

17.6% Power Play (18th)

82.4% Penalty Kill (11th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 15A = 30pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 3G 25A = 28pts

4. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

5. #10 Devin Setoguchi ~ 12G 11A = 23pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 96 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 36 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (19-8-2)  2.40GAA  .914%SP  1 SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  2.22GAA  .924%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1 SO

4. #31 Matt Hackett (0-1-0)  5.08GAA  .848%SP

Vs.

San Jose Sharks (18-11-6)  42pts  3rd in the Pacific

2.34 Goals For (28th)

2.37 Goals Against (6th)

18.7% Power Play (15th)

86.8% Penalty Kill (3rd)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #19 Joe Thornton ~ 6G 27A = 33pts

2. #12 Patrick Marleau ~ 16G 10A = 26pts

3. #39 Logan Couture ~ 15G 11A = 26pts

4. #8 Joe Pavelski ~ 11G 12A = 23pts

5. #22 Dan Boyle ~ 5G 11A = 16pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #29 Ryane Clowe ~ 79 PIM's

2. #10 Andrew Dejardins ~ 57 PIM's

3. #9 Martin Havlat ~ 26 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #31 Antti Niemi (17-8-5)  2.12GAA  .924%SP  3 SO

2. #1 Thomas Greiss (1-3-0)  2.78GAA  .906%SP  1 SO

3. #32 Alex Stalock (0-0-1)  2.86GAA  .846%SP  

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...

One of my favorite broadcasters is ESPN's Chris Berman.  Berman has always seemed like a guy who just loves his job and he has kept the same sometimes corny style throughout his career which is both shameless and often chuckle worthy.  While I wouldn't say Berman is a great play-by-play man but I think he's great as a studio host where he consistently finds ways to add an element of levity to contrast against the big egos and opinions of retired professional athletes and coaches.  One element of Berman's old school approach to sports is the nicknames he gives players.  Instead of the boring shortening of names like A-Rod, RG3, or hockey's compulsion with adding a y to a player's first name or some condensed last name Berman opted to play on words.  Eric "sleeping with" Bienemy or Ben "Technicolor dream" Coates and during the Wild's improbable playoff run in 2003 he even chimed in with a few including Andrei "suddenly" Zyuzin.  He doesn't give out those kinds of nicknames as frequently anymore, but I think one axiom of his stays with me more than anything else.  When he goes through highlights, and he's talking about a game that from the outset seems like an obvious shutout he prefaces it with "that's why they play the games" to foreshadow the outcome may not match what you think.  I think that applies perfectly for the WCHA teams playing in the NCAA tournament.  No conference had more teams in the tournament than the WCHA which was a tip of the hat to the 'strength' of the conference and the NCAA may be questioning that decision a bit after what has been lousy weekend.  For Minnesota, Wisconsin, Denver, North Dakota, and Minnesota State they all went to the tournament feeling pretty confident and of those clubs on North Dakota managed to advance beyond the first game.  St. Cloud State, a 4th seed in their respective region was the only WCHA team to advance to the Frozen Four in Pittsburgh next weekend.  Good for the Huskies, well deserved, but overall a pretty dismal performance for the WCHA as a whole.  

Last year, the Blues were like a steamroller in the Western Conference after the arrival of Ken Hitchcock as coach.  A super stingy defense and plethora of big bodied, gritty forwards with a dash of skill made for a killer combination in the regular season.  The Wild were not able to match that level of intensity, but things are different.  The Wild are demonstrating they can play with anyone and the once super stingy defense of the Blues isn't quite so air tight.  Can the Wild earn another home victory against a strong opponent like the Blues or will St. Louis give Minnesota a few sour notes?  

Click on "Continue Reading" for the rest of the article...