In response to Buffalo’s recent struggles, I present to you Coach Boron’s sure-fire guide to winning in the NHL:
1. Start the game with the score at 0-0. Spotting the other team two goals might sound like a fun challenge, but will make it more difficult to win later.
2. Don’t play your fourth line players in crunch time. Even if their line has scored recently, they’re not used to playing in those situations and are more likely to, say, take a tripping penalty than your stars are.
3. Don’t rely on crazy bounces and difficult tip-ins for all your goals. Sometimes a well placed shot to an empty part of the net or trying to fake the goalie out can be just as effective.
Follow these tips and you’ll be sure to win games against the bottom half of the league!
Another slow start costs Sabres – The Buffalo News
One of these days, the Buffalo Sabres’ trend of slow starts might disappear. Maybe when it does, their slump will, too.
A shift in the Battle of Ontario – The Globe and Mail
I’m putting this before the break because it’s interesting, the internet has gone bone-dry on Sabres articles, and to thank Toronto for beating Ottawa last night 4-1.
Power Rankings Roundup:
ESPN: #11 (updated 3/15)
The Hockey News: #13 (updated 3/15)
TSN: #10 (updated 3/15)
The numbers say NHL MVP is Ovechkin’s to lose – On the Forecheck
Predators blog On The Forecheck thinks that the MVP should go to Alex Ovechkin for his total production, however….
Campbellnomics – The Hockey News
Ken Campbell believes that Sidney Crosby’s quality of points rather than quantity makes him the MVP, and he has stats to back it up.
The Margin of Wins and Losses by the New Jersey Devils and the NHL – In Lou We Trust
In response to a user comment about the New Jersey Devils playing in one goal games, ILWT takes a look at the NHL’s data on games by goal margin to see how well the Devils performed on their own and in comparison to the league.
The NHL’s other missing items – Down Goes Brown
Now that Sidney Crosby’s gear has been found, here are ten example of high-profile ongoing investigations into NHL items that seem to have disappeared.