Martin Brodeur’s Olympic Collapse
Eric has had articles featured on NHL.com and CBS Sports and has also created the hockey blog Tips for Hockey
Despite the fact that Team Canada won the Gold Medal, it has not been the ideal Olympic experience for Martin Brodeur. After losing to Team USA in the last game of the round robin tournament, Brodeur was pulled and replaced with another strong goalie in Roberto Luongo.
This is forcing some of us to question how many years the NHL veteran has left in him. There could easily be a few more years before he retires (he’s 37), and he could be around in 2014. However, it’s unlikely that he’ll be the same goalie that he is now.
Because of that, he probably won’t get the starting spot for Canada in 2014, if he’s even playing. He’s always been a great goalie, but age will hit him just like it has hit so many others. Canada will probably be forced to put either Fleury or Luongo in goal because they are younger and will be more athletic. Both of these goalies will still have the talent that Canada needs to win games, and despite Brodeur’s past olympic success, he’ll be seen as a liability.
Brodeur will always be known for the great things he did with the New Jersey Devils, but his Olympic career has been less forgiving. He helped Canada win the Gold Medal in 2002, but in 2006 Canada finished in a disappointing seventh place. Torino must have been brutal for him because his team didn’t work well together. He should be one of the last people to field blame for Canada’s standings. Finally, in 2010, he was pulled before he was allowed to finish his campaign.
2010 is where Brodeur could field a little bit of blame. His mistake against the Americans was definitely not typical of the NHL veteran, especially at a crucial time. Although Babcock was looking at the tape of the game “without emotion”, that mistake must have been a factor in whether or not Brodeur played in the next game.
Despite the fact that Brodeur is one of the best goalies of all time (if not the best), his past Olympic experiences have been less than ideal. Although the mistake against the Americans won’t define his NHL career, it’s probably safe to say that his Olympic career is over.
NHL Trade Rumors: Tomas Vokoun to Chicago?
Eric has had articles featured on NHL.com and CBS Sports and has also created the hockey blog Tips for Hockey
For the past few weeks, we have heard trade rumors swirl about some of the best players in the NHL. We heard rumors about the teams that were in the Ilya Kovalchuk sweepstakes, and we’re starting to see some rumors over Ray Whitney. As important as these rumors may be, the biggest shock has come within the last week. Recently, there has been speculation about a possible trade between the Florida Panthers and the Chicago Blackhawks, which would include Panther goalie, Tomas Vokoun.
Vokoun has the best save percentage in the NHL (93.1%) and has the 11th best goals against average. He’s also one of the very few Panther players that fans are actually satisfied with. A trade involving Vokoun would make Sexton a very unpopular GM in Florida, especially with some of the theories that have been floating around.
There have been a few possible theories proposed about what either club could give, but most (if not all) of that is speculation. The most popular theory was reportedly thrown in by ESPN and has Vokoun headed to Chicago along with either Jordan Leopold or Denis Seidenberg. In return, Florida would get Kris Versteeg, Corey Crawford, and Cristobal Huet.
Personally, I’m not sure that Vokoun is going anywhere. Vokoun has not been approached by anybody in the Panthers’ organization about waiving his no trade clause, and according to Vokoun, he hasn’t had much communication with the front office at all. However, he did tell the Sun Sentinel that he would wave his no trade clause if the right deal came up.
But that doesn’t explain why the Panthers would trade Vokoun in the first place. Aside from being the most reliable player on the team, he’s also one of the best goalies in the NHL, and definitely better than Huet. The fact that either Leopold or Seidenburg would be leaving with him make’s this trade even worst for the Panthers.
Granted, Versteeg would not be a bad player to add to the team because the Panthers do need some better wingers. If Versteeg came to the Blackhawks, his 33 points would be the most out of any winger on the roster. However, that doesn’t mean that they have to give up Vokoun to do it.
It also doesn’t make sense for the Panthers to get a goaltending prospect in Corey Crawford when they already have a solid prospect in Jacob Markstrom. They simply don’t need another prospect, unless they plan on trading one of them in a future deal.
One thing’s for certain about this trade. If the Panthers make this trade with the Blackhawks, it wouldn’t be the last trade they made. Randy Sexton would surely be delivering the “shakeup” that he promised, but it would also give a crippling blow to the Panthers.
By giving up Vokoun, they are giving up a goalie that they can build a franchise around. Compared to Huet, he is a much better choice to put between the pipes. To me, Vokoun is the biggest reason that the Panthers are still in a playoff race in the first place and he should be untouchable.
More importantly, the trade that ESPN talked about doesn’t even improve the offensive depth that the Panthers need to improve. Versteeg is the only forward that the Panthers would be getting, and offense is where they need the most improvement, short term and long term, and the Panthers would be giving up a franchise goalie to make it happen.
Again, I don’t think that Vokoun is going anywhere. If he was going somewhere, it seems like somebody would have mentioned something to him already. So far, that hasn’t happened. However, one thing’s for certain, a trade involving Vokoun would be a serious blow to the morale of the fans.
Team Canada vs. Team Russia: Who Will Win Gold?
Eric has had articles featured on NHL.com and CBS Sports and has also created the hockey blog Tips for Hockey
Four years ago, the Winter Olympics were played in Turin, Italy. All of the great athletes from around the world showed up to compete in the historic event. However, the 2006 Mens Hockey Tournament was destined to make a different impact on history. The history was made, not by the teams that were at the top, but by the teams that weren’t.
Team Canada may have had it’s most embarrassing performance in it’s history and definitely in recent memory. They ended up finishing in seventh place, despite having great NHL talent on their team. However, they suffered from a lack of chemistry. Even though they had a bunch of top goal scorers, those goal scorers failed to work together.
On the other hand, Team Russia hasn’t been the same since the Soviet Union days. They no longer have the talent that they did in the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. In fact, since they changed from the Soviet Union to Team Russia, they have not won a gold medal.
Both teams are using a similar strategy. They are loading up their rosters with some of the best talent in the world. One county is trying to reestablish itself, and the other is trying to redeem itself.
Team Russia is looking to reestablish the results they saw while they were the Soviet Union. They are primarily focusing on utilizing the depth of their offensive talent. They will be putting players like Alex Ovechkin, Pavel Datsyuk, Evgeni Malkin and Ilya Kovalchuk on the ice, along with Evgeni Nabokov and Ilya Bryzgalov in goal.
Team Canada is taking a different approach and looks to have learned a lesson from 2006. This time, they are focusing on chemistry. In fact, there are some players that aren’t on this Canadian team that were on the team four years ago, most notably, Marty St. Louis and Shane Doan. They also have an influx of young talent that will be mixed with older veterans. More importantly, they have a legendary goalie in Martin Brodeur, who will probably get the start.
It’s obvious that both teams have talented players on their roster. However, once you get past Russia’s first line, the talent starts to favor Canada. I think that Team Canada has a little more depth. I’m also starting to think that Russia made the same mistake that Canada made in 2006. I’m worried about how they picked the team. It looks like they picked the players with the best stats and didn’t focus on chemistry. Yes, it can work, but it’s a risky move.
One of the reasons that I’m saying that is because the Russians are mixing players from the NHL with players from the KHL. They have less experience playing together and I’m not sure if the KHL talent matches the NHL talent that the Canadians have, even at the lower lines.
It’s all going to come down to chemistry. If the Russians are able to make their chemistry work, then they will be a threat. However, if they actually have made the same mistake that the Canadians did in 2006, then they won’t be a threat. In fact, that could stop them from medaling at all. If they want to beat the Canadians, they have to work well together.
