Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007
By Lucas Aykroyd
Let’s face it: you won’t find the “Flying Frenchmen” with the Montreal Canadiens anymore. Last year’s dynamic duo of Quebec-born snipers was Vincent Lecavalier (108 points) and Martin St. Louis (102 points) of the Tampa Bay Lightning. This year, Daniel Briere and Simon Gagne have started off […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007
By Lucas Aykroyd
Life would be so much simpler for NHL coaches if every team won all its home games in overtime. In fact, it’s hard to imagine any other scenario where all coaches could succeed in keeping their jobs. However, the fans would probably start to get suspicious soon.
Since […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007
By Lucas Aykroyd
It’s fortunate for the Anaheim Ducks that they won’t be competing in the Stanley Cup finals at the start of December. If that was the case, their chances of repeating as champions would be much slimmer.
This hasn’t been a disastrous season so far. The Ducks are in […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007
By Lucas Aykroyd
After the Pittsburgh Penguins won three straight games in Western Canada, there was little doubt about two things. First, the club has rediscovered the winning chemistry that earned it 105 points last year. Second, Sidney Crosby is a god in this part of the world.
The 4-2 win […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
If Jarome Iginla maintains his current pace, he’ll crack the 100-point barrier for the first time in his career this season. Better still, the Calgary captain is in contention for his second Art Ross Trophy as the NHL’s leading scorer, battling the likes of Tampa Bay’s Vincent […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
When Scott Niedermayer returned to the lineup of the Anaheim Ducks on December 16, it marked the end of a bizarre episode in NHL history.
It’s not unheard-of for a legendary defenseman to retire after winning a Stanley Cup. Viacheslav Fetisov did it in 1998, and Ray Bourque […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Are the Vancouver Canucks a Stanley Cup contender? You might think so, simply due to the presence of superstar goalie Roberto Luongo. In addition, recent rumors claim Vancouver GM Dave Nonis could be looking to acquire Toronto captain Mats Sundin to ramp up his club’s secondary scoring […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Early in the NHL careers of Daniel and Henrik Sedin, the twin Swedish forwards were derisively dubbed the “Sedin sisters.” Despite their obvious finesse skills and chemistry together, they lacked upper body strength and footspeed. And despite the similarity between their surname and that of Mats Sundin, […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
After the NHL trade deadline on February 26, there was a lot of history to be found in the roster of the Colorado Avalanche.
If you wanted to go back to the franchise’s Quebec Nordiques era, you could look at Paul Stastny, the second-year center who is proudly […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Wayne Gretzky achieved his most famous international victory as a player with Team Canada by victimizing two Russian goalies, Sergei Mylnikov and Evgeni Belosheikin, in the 1987 Canada Cup final. Ironically, the “Great One” can credit much of his coaching success with Phoenix this season to the […]