David Titanic's Heroics Help Oswego Sweep Weekend Games

The Oswego State Men's Hockey team continued their final homestand of the season. Brockport and Geneseo were the opponents, and just like when the last times these clubs met, the games were highly entertaining. Last time Oswego played Brockport was in Brockport back on November 2nd and it resulted in a 2-0 Oswego victory. This time at the Campus Center, the scoring was a bit more wide open, and Oswego skated away with a 5-1 victory. The only goal of the opening period came of the stick of David Titanic, his 5th of the season at the 19:27 mark of the period. Brockport had controlled a chunk of the play in the opening period, but the Titanic goal took away that momentum heading into the locker room.

To the 2nd period we go and it was a much tighter checking period, as Oswego outshot Brockport 9-4, and once again the Lakers got a late goal to take a two goal lead. Chris Carr scored his 5th of the year at the 17:47 mark to give the Lakers the important two goal lead heading into the 3rd period. Once the 3rd got started, it didn't take Oswego as long to find the back of the net as it had in the first two periods. At the 4:59 mark of the 3rd, Chris Ayotte scored his 13th of the year to increase the lead to three. Brockport finally got on the board when Kody Vaisanen scored his first of the season, a shorthanded goal, at the 13:16 mark to cut the Lakers lead down to two. Oswego would put the game away in the final five minutes of the hockey game. Brockport closed out the game shorthanded when Shane Cavalieri was given a five minute major for contact to the head and a ten minute misconduct penalty. Oswego scored twice on that powerplay, when Luke Moodie scored his 14th of the year and Chris Muise score his 5th of the year, a little over a minute apart to seal the deal on the 5-1 win.

Jared Lockhurst look the loss for Brockport, dropping his record to 2-6-2 for the year, as he made 22 saves in the loss. Andrew Hare picked up the win for Oswego, improving his record to 12-3-0, as he made 20 saves in the win. Zach josepher (two assists) and Chris Muise (goal two assists) were the only Lakers to record multi-point games. For Chris Carr, it was his first game winning goal of the year.

So after taking down Brockport, the Geneseo Ice Knights came into town for the 2nd and final meeting of the year between the two clubs. In the first meeting of the yea between the two back on November 3rd in Geneseo, the Lakers offense exploded in a big way as they walked away with a 10-1 victory. This night would be a much tighter hockey game. Geneseo was embarrassed on their home ice last time around, and they jump all over Oswego in the first period of this game. the Ice Knights got on the board first 1:01 into the hockey game when Corbin Rosmarin scored his 9th of the year. Oswego got things even at the 11:23 mark when Paul Rodrigues scored his 14th of the year, a powerplay goal, to tie the game. Genseso would not go away so easily, as at the 19:02 mark of the period Carson Schell scored his 2nd of the season to give the Ice Knights the 2-1 lead.

Geneseo held the lead into the 2nd period, but that lead would not last very long. Oswego would even the score at the 6:21 mark when Zach Josepher scored his 7th of the season. For Josepher that was his first goal in eleven games. the last time he scored was back on November 30th, a 6-0 home win over Potsdam. So Josepher games Oswego the tying goal. Oswego would take the lead at the 9:00 mark when Jon Whitelaw scored his 6th of the season. Oswego carried the one goal lead into the 3rd period.

The Lakers held the lead well into the 3rd period but at the 12:32 mark Corbin Rosmarin scored his 2nd of the game and 10th of the year to pull the Ice Knights even. Then a hero would emerge for the Lakers as at the 15:16 mark David Titanic scored his 6th of the year, which would prove to be the game winner. It happened of a broken play near the left wing circle, and Titanic just threw it on net and caught Adrian Rubeniuk sleeping and beat him glove side for the winner.

Rubeniuk took the loss for Geneseo, dropping his record to 6-3-1, as he made 14 saves in the loss. Andrew Hare picked up the win for Oswego, improving his record to 13-3-0,a s he made 23 saves in the victory. For David Titanic the goal turned out to be his 2nd game winner of the season, the other coming Jaunary 4th against Elmira.

Next up for the Lakers is one game this weekend and it's Friday February 1st against the Morrisville Mustangs as it will be senior night. faceoff is set for 7PM as the team will see the last regular season home game played for 14 seniors!

(Photo provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department)

Oswego Women's Hockey Split With Stevenson

This past weekend, the Oswego State Women's Hockey team hosted their annual Pink at the Rink weekend, where the team wore pink hockey jersey's to raise money for breast cancer awareness. Opposing the team that weekend was the Stevenson Mustangs, the first time these two programs have ever played each other. First up was the a Saturday matinee between the two clubs, and it was Oswego skating away with a 5-1 victory. The opening period, the two clubs traded goals. Oswego got on the board firs at the 4:25 mark when Melissa Seamont buried her 8th of the season, with Jayme McCreary picking up her first collegiate point. Emma Smetaniuk picked up the 2nd helper on the goal. Stevenson evened the scored at the 16:14 mark when Rachel Martell scored her 2nd of the year. So after one period the score was tied at one, and shots were close at 7-5 in favor of Oswego. But that's about as close as things would get on the afternoon.

Oswego took control of the game early in the 2nd period. It took only 46 seconds for Oswego to retake the lead, thanks to Olivia Boersen's 6th of the year. The Lakers would extend the lead to 3-1 thanks to Emma Smetaniuk's 4th of the year at the 13:34 mark. Oswego controlled the play in the middle frame, outshooting Stevenson 19-6 in the period. So to the 3rd period we went with Oswego up by a pair. Olivia Boersen scored her 2nd of the game and 7th of the year to give Oswego a 4-1 lead at the 9:28 mark of the 3rd. Then to put the final touches on the scoring for the day, Lizzy Marks scored her 3rd of the year, this one a powerplay goal, at the 13:57 mark to put the game away and seal a 5-1 win. Oswego again dominated play in the 3rd period, outshooting Stevenson 15-7.

Mackenzie Bruch took the loss in net for Stevenson, dropping her overall record to 2-5-1, as she made 36 saves in the loss. Bridget Smith picked up the victory for Oswego, improving her record to 9-5-1, as she made 17 saves in the win. Stevenson went 1 for 3 on the powerplay, while Oswego went 1 for 6 with the man advantage. Emma Smetaniuk (goal two assists), Melissa Seamont (goal assist) and Olivia Boersen (two goals) had the big days offensively for Oswego.

So with the Lakers dominating things in Saturday's tilt, they looked to do the same in Sunday's game. Oswego had controlled play for the first two periods but it wasn't quite enough as Stevenson walked away with a 1-0 victory. The only goal scored in the hockey game came at the 2:43 mark of the 2nd period when Megan Donahue connected for her 3rd of the season. Oswego had controlled play for the most part during the opening two periods. Shots went 10-7 in the first and 16-3 in the 2nd, both in favor of Oswego, but Stevenson outworked the Lakers in the 3rd and out shot them 12-3.

Both goaltenders, Sarah Modzelewski for Stevenson and Tori Trovato, played great but Stevenson was the only team to find the back of the net. The 1-0 win for the Mustangs was the first time in program history they had been able to shut out an opponent. Oswgo had plenty of scoring chances in the hockey game, but none of really outstanding quality. When they did have their great chances, Modzelewski stood on her head for the win.

Melissa Seamont still leads the team with 8 goals and 14 assists for 22 points. Right behind her with 7 goals each are Mady Paul and Olivia Boersen. Nobody else has reached double digits in assist yet this season, and the closest is Olivia Boersen with 8. Aside from Seamont the only other Lakers to have double digits in points are Boersen (15 points), Megan Hagg (11 points), and Mady Paul (10 points). Melissa Seamont is now in possession of the school record for assists in a single season with 14 (and still counting) and is now just two points away from the school record for most points in a single season (the record is 24 by Mackenzie Lee set in 2010-11). Now Seamont is in sole possession of 4th place on the school all time scoring list with 44 points, and she still has her senior year to go, so congratulations to Melissa Seamont on those accomplishments.

Oswego State has this weekend off. Their next scheduled games are February 8th at 7PM and February 9th at 3PM as it will be senior weekend for the women as they take on the Elmira Soaring Eagles!

(Photo provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department)

Oswego Men's Hockey Dominates, Move Up in Polls

After a strong showing last weekend against Nazareth College, the Oswego State Men's Hockey team took to the ice again this past weekend, hoping to build momentum off that win. First up for the Lakers was a trip to Alumni Arena in Cortland to take on the Red Dragons Friday night. When these two teams played on opening night back in October, the Lakers had a little trouble out of the gate but were able to come away with a 7-4 win. This time Oswego had no trouble coming out of the blocks and cruised to a 5-2 victory.

The opening period saw a huge outburst as Oswego exploded for four goals before the game was even nine minutes old. Chris Ayotte got the party started 1:09 into the hockey game with his 10th of the year. Oswego would later increase their lead by two in a span of 1:35. First at the 4:01 mark Paul Rodrigues scored his 12 of the season, then at the 5:36 mark, Tyler Leimbrock snapped out of a mini-slump with his 6th of the year. For Leimbrock that was his first goal since new years eve in the Pathfinder toruney championship game. Chriss Ayotte would score his 2nd of the period and 11th of the year at the 8:43 mark of the period to give Oswego a 4-0 lead.

Moving on to the 2nd period, Cortland would score the only goal of the period at 2:17 thanks to Matty Davie's 2nd of the year. So the score stood at 4-1 Oswego heading into the final period. Oswego would re-take their four goal lead at the 7:03 mark when Eli Kim-Swallow scored his 3rd of the year, giving Oswego a 5-1. Cortland would cut it to 5-2 at the 12:16 mark of the 3rd, thanks to a goal from Greg Ryan, his first of the season. However Cortland wasn't able muster anything else and Oswego held on to the 5-2 victory.

Lyle Rocker took the loss for Cortland, dropping his record to 6-8-2, in which he made 4 saves before being pulled after the Lakers 4th goal. He was replaced by Geoff Sadjadi, who played the rest of the night and made 19 saves. Justin Gilbert picked up the win for Oswego, improving his record to 2-0-0, in which he made 28 saves. Both clubs went 0 for 2 on the powerplay. The newly formed C-Cubed line of Chris Brown (two assists), Chris Muise (two assists), and Chris Ayotte (two goals) were the big offensive unite for Oswego Friday night.

So after taking down the Red Dragons on Friday, Oswego returned home Saturday night to take on the Hamilton Continentals. These two teams have a nice history together, having played each other 75 times, Oswego hodling the advantage in the series with a record of 44-29-2. Unlike the night before in Cortland, this night it was all Oswego from start to finish, with the Lakers coming away with an 8-0 victory.

Oswego scored three times in the opening period. Luke Moodie got things going 0:39 in with his 13th of the year. Then at the 12:54 mark Chris Ayotte scored his 12th of the year on a great individual effort. Finally to cap the scoring in the opening period, at the 14:16 mark, Paul Rodrigues connected for his 13th of the year. So the Lakers carried a 3-0 lead into the locker room. To the 2nd period we go and once again Oswego managed to connect for a trio of goals. Jon Whitelaw scored his 5th of the season 0:18 into the middle frame. Peter Rodrigues scored his first of the year at the 3:08 mark to increase the lead to 5-0. Oswego pushed the lead to 6-0 at the 6:04 mark thanks to Tyler Leimbrock's 7th of the year and 2nd in as many nights. So the Lakers had a 6-0 lead after two periods. Then in the final frame of the night Oswego scored twice more to salt the game away. Tyler Leimbrock's 2nd of the game and 8th of the year came at the 2:34 mark, and to finish off the scoring, at the 10:46 mark, was Taylor Farris with his first of the year. It was domination from Oswego from opening puck drop to final horn and the 8-0 win reflected that.

Joe Quattrocchi took the loss for Hamilton, dropping his record to 4-7-3, making 12 saves in the 20 minutes he played. cam Gibbar played the final 40 minutes and made 21 saves. Andrew Hare picked up the win for Oswego, improving his record to 11-3-0, as he made 18 saves for the shutout win, his 4th this season.  Tyler Leimbrock (two goals), Jon Whitelaw (goal two assists), Luke Moodie (goal two assists), and Paul Rodrigues (goal assist) had the big nights offensively. Chris Brown was surprisingly out of the Hamilton game Saturday night due to an unknown injury. The extent of the injury is unknown at this time.

Psaul Rodrigues and Luke Moodie are tied for the team lead in goals with 13 each, while Chris Ayotte is right behind them with 12. They are currently the only Lakers in double digits in goal scoring. Rodrigues still leads the team in assists with 21 and points with 34. With the wins this weekend, oswego has moved up to 4th in the latest USCHO Coaches Polls! Oswego continues a four game homestand this weekend, as Friday January 25th they host Brockport at 7PM, then Saturday January 26th Geneseo comes to town for another 7PM faceoff!

(Photo provided by the Oswego state Sports Information Department)

Oswego Women's Hockey Sweep Buffalo State

After a tough weekend last week in Plattsburgh, the Oswego State Women's Hockey team returned to the friendly confines of the Campus Center as they got set to play the Buffalo State Bengals in another ECAC West matchup. In program history, Oswego is 8-3-1 against the Bengals and 4-2 all time at home. Coming into the weekend, Oswego had won seven straight against the Bengals. This year the Lakers were 4-3-0 on home ice this year. The winning streak would be continued this weekend with a pair of shutouts starting Friday night.

Friday night was, as it usually is in games betwwen Buffalo State and Oswego, a low scoring game, which Oswego was able to skate away with a 3-0. Melissa Seamont scored the only goal of the opening period, her 6th of the year, at the 18:22 mark. Oswego kept control of the play through the 2nd period, and at the 15:47 mark of the 2nd, Mady Paul scored her 6th of the season. The goal was important for two reasons, one it gave the Lakers a 2-0 lead and two the 2nd assist on the play went to Bianca Camillaci, her first collegiate point. Once the 3rd period got underway, the Bengals began to press more on the attack trying to get on the board. Oswego would have none of it and at the 19:52 mark Mady Paul scored an empty net powerplay goal, her 2nd of the game and 7th on the year, to cap off the 3-0 Oswego victory.

Jordan Lee took the loss in net for Buffalo State, dropping her record to 5-10-1, making 29 saves in the loss. Bridget Smith picked up the win, improving her record to 7-5-1, making 18 saves in the shutout win. Smith shutout was her 2nd one this year. Oswego went 1 for 9 on the powerplay while Buffalo state went 0 for 2 with the man advantage. Mady Paul (two goals) and Melissa Seamont (goal two assists) had the big days on offense, while Bianca Camillaci chipped in her first ever point in college.

The next day, these same two teams met again in Oswego, and the result was much the same as the day before, as Oswego came away with a 2-0 victory. Unlike the Friday game, Saturday's tilt wa much more physical, as both teams made plenty of trips to the penalty box. Nobody was able to find the back of the net in the opening period, but it took only 3:28 of the 2nd before Melissa Seamont scored her 7th goal of the year. And for the 2nd straight day, Bianca Camillaci picked up an assist. Leslie Jarvis had the primary helper on the Seamont goal. So Oswego held a 1-0 lead into the 3rd period, and that's when the physical and chippy play really started to pick up. The only goal scored in the 3rd period came off the stick of Megan Hagg, who scored her 5th of the year on a breakaway at the 19:56 mark. Of note in that 3rd period a total of eight penalties were called, and three of them came at a scrum at the final horn. After things finally calmed down, Oswego had walked away with a 2-0 victory.

Jordan Lee again took the loss for Buffalo State, dropping her record to 5-11-1, in which she made 25 saves in the loss. Bridget Smith again got the victory for Oswego, improving her record to 8-5-1, in which she made 18 saves in the shutout, her third of the year. Melissa Seamont, Megan Hagg, Olivia Boersen, Bianca Camillaci, and Leslie Jarvis (two assists) all picked up points for the Lakers.

With the weekend sweep, Oswego improves their record overall to 9-8-1 and 8-4-0 in ECAC West play. Melissa Seamont and Mady Paul are now tied for the team lead in goals with seven each. Seamont continues to lead the team in assists, with 13, and points, with 20. Up next for Oswego is another weekend home series. This time Stevenson College is the opponent. The two teams will meet at the Campus center Ice Arena Saturday January 26th and Sunday January 27th, both games scheduled for a 3PM puckdrop!

(Photo provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department)

NFC and AFC Championships In The Books

So now that another week has gone by, the Superbowl has been set. After two GREAT football games this past weekend, we know who will be playing for the Lombardi Trophy the first Sunday in February. So now lets look at how we got to the Superbowl.

First up was the NFC Championship game between the Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco overcame a 17-point deficit, the largest comeback ever in an NFC championship game, to earn their sixth Super Bowl appearance in franchise history.

Atlanta dominated the first quarter, mainly on plays by receiver Julio Jones, who caught 5 passes in it for 100 yards, including a 46-yard touchdown catch on their opening drive, and a 27-yard reception on their next drive to set up a Matt Bryant field goal. Following a punt, Matt Ryan hit Roddy White for a 23-yard gain on the last play of the first quarter. Then he threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jones on the first play of the second, giving the Falcons a 17–0 lead.

This time San Francisco struck back with an 80-yard scoring drive, with Frank Gore rushing for 20 yards and Vernon Davis catching a pass for 27. LaMichael James finished the drive with a 15-yard touchdown run. Then, after forcing a three-and-out, Colin Kaepernick rushed for 23 yards and completed three passes to Davis for 48 yards, the last a 4-yard touchdown pass to make the score 17–14. But Atlanta stormed back as Ryan completed five passes for double-digit gains on their next drive, the last one a 10-yard score to tight end Tony Gonzalez with 25 seconds left in the half.

The 49ers took the opening kickoff and drove 82 yards, with Kaepernick completing two passes to Randy Moss for 38 yards and one to tight end Delanie Walker for 20. Gore completed the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run, cutting their deficit to 24–21. On Atlanta's ensuing possession, defensive back Chris Culliver gave San Francisco a great chance to tie or take the lead by intercepting a pass from Ryan and returning it to the Falcons 25-yard line. But San Francisco failed to gain a first down and came up empty when David Akers hit the uprights on a 38-yard field goal try. Later on, the 49ers got another scoring opportunity when defensive lineman Aldon Smith recovered a fumble from Ryan on his own 40-yard line. They subsequently drove deep into Falcons territory, but once again they failed to score when defensive back Dunta Robinson stripped the ball from Michael Crabtree on the 1-yard line as he trying to get in for the go-ahead score, and linebacker Stephen Nicholas recovered it.

With 12 minutes left in regulation, Ted Ginn, Jr.'s 20-yard punt return gave San Francisco the ball on the Falcons 38-yard line. Five plays later, Gore scored his second touchdown on a 9-yard run, giving the 49ers their first lead of the game at 28–24. Atlanta responded with a drive to the 49ers 13-yard line, but consecutive incompletions on third and fourth down caused a turnover on downs with just 1:13 left in the game.

Atlanta managed to force a punt and get the ball with 13 seconds to go. Ryan completed a pass to Jones on the final play, but he was tackled at the 49ers 35-yard line as time expired.

Kaepernick finished 16/21 for 233 yards and a touchdown, along with 21 rushing yards. Davis caught 5 passes for 106 yards and a score. Gore rushed for 90 yards and two touchdowns. Ryan completed 30 of 42 passes for 396 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. Jones caught 11 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns, while White had 7 receptions for 100 yards. Gonzalez caught 8 passes for 78 yards and a score.

So now that we found out who will represent the NFC lets look at awho will play for the AFC in the Superbowl.

It was the Baltimore Ravens taking on the New England Patriots. Baltimore's defense forced three turnovers, held the Patriots to just 13 points, and shut them out in the second half en route to their first Super Bowl in 12 years, avenging their previous year's AFC title loss. The Patriots suffered their worst loss of the season and their lowest scoring total of the season despite six trips inside the Ravens 25-yard line.

In the first quarter, New England receiver Brandon Lloyd caught two passes for 29 yards on a drive that ended with a Stephen Gostkowski field goal. In the second quarter, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco completed 5/6 passes for 64 yards on an 87-yard drive that ended with Ray Rice's 2-yard touchdown run to take the lead. New England struck back with a 79-yard touchdown drive. The key player on it was Wes Welker, who caught a 24-yard pass and later finished it with a 1-yard touchdown reception from Tom Brady. Baltimore was forced to punt after three plays on their next drive, and Welker returned the ball 15 yards to the Ravens 43-yard line. New England then drove to the 7-yard line where Gostkowski kicked his second field goal as time expired in the half, giving the Patriots a 13–7 halftime lead.

In the second half, New England managed several drives deep into Ravens territory, but were unable to convert any into points. First, they drove to Baltimore's 34-yard line, but were halted there and decided to punt rather then attempt a 52-yard field goal. Tight end Dennis Pitta subsequently caught 3 passes for 32 yards on Baltimore's ensuring 87-yard drive, the last a 5-yard touchdown catch. New England was quickly forced to punt and Jacoby Jones returned it 11 yards to the 37. Baltimore then drove 63 yards, featuring a 23-yard reception by Torrey Smith and scored on Flacco's 3-yard touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin on the first play of the fourth quarter.

The Ravens dominated the final period, forcing a turnover on every New England drive. First, Pats running back Stevan Ridley lost a fumble while being tackled by Bernard Pollard and defensive end Arthur Jones recovered it on the New England 47-yard line. Three plays later, Flacco threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Boldin, making the score 28–13. The Patriots then drove to the Ravens 19-yard line, only to turn the ball over on downs after failing to convert a 4th down and 4. Following a punt, New England moved the ball back to the Ravens 19, only to lose it again when Brady threw a pass that was tipped by Pernell McPhee at the line of scrimmage and intercepted by Dannell Ellerbe. After another Ravens punt, Baltimore defensive back Cary Williams put the game away by intercepting a pass from Brady in the end zone with 1:13 left in regulation.

Flacco threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns. Linebacker Ray Lewis had 14 tackles, giving him a staggering 44 total tackles in the Ravens three playoff games. Brady threw for 320 yards and one touchdown with 2 interceptions. Welker caught 8 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown, while also returning 4 punts for 56 yards. Pats linebacker Brandon Spikes had 11 tackles. Tom Brady suffered his first career loss at home when leading by halftime, in which during that span he was 67–0 when leading at halftime at home.

So there you have it. Its a battle of brothers in this years Superbowl. Official game preview will be up in two weeks!

2013 NHL Eastern Conference Preview

At long, long last the National Hockey League will return to the ice this Saturday night to kick off the 2013 regular season. So with the new CBA in place, the length of the new agreement is ten years, so fans won't have to worry about another possible lockout for a decade. So now with hockey back on the ice, there is a few changes made for this season. Obviously there isn't enough time to play a full 82 game schedule so their will be a 48 game season that starts on January 19th, with the regular season concluding on April 27th. The Stanley Cup Finals will be concluded the latest June 28th. Also because of such a short schedule there will be no games played between conferences. It means that teams from the Eastern Conference will play only teams form the East, and the Western Conference can play only teams in the West. Since I don't want to bore anybody with the exact details of the CBA, we are going to skip that and go straight into predictions for all 30 NHL teams for this upcoming season. We are going to look at each division and predict where each team finishes in the division and why. We already predicted how the West would play out, so now we are set for our predictions for the Eastern Conference.

We start off our East predictions with the Southeast Division. Last year the panthers won the division and them and the Washington Capitals were the only two teams from the division to even make the playoffs. Here is how the Southeast plays out this year.

1. Washington Capitals
-Last year the Caps finished 2nd in the division and 7th in the east to get into the playoffs but they bowed out in the opening round. Since that playoff loss last year the Capitals have done some big time re-tooling. They fired Dale Hunter as head coach and replaced him with Adam Oates. As far as the players are concerned, the Caps lost a good number of talented players in Alex Semin, Jeff Halpern, Denis Wideman, Tomas Vokoun, and Mike Knuble. To replace the offensive punch that was lost, the Caps were able to pick up Mike Ribero, and Wojtek Wolski. This will help an already loaded offensive unit that still has the likes of Alexander Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, and Brooks Laich, so scoring doesn't seem like it's really going to be an issue. As for the defense, yes it hurt losing Weidman, but the Caps are still deep enough on defense with guys like Roman Hamrlik, John Carlson and Tom Poti to be able to hang around for a while. Finally with the goaltending, with Braden Holtby seen as the front runner for the #1 job with a very solid #2 goalie in Michael Neuvirth right behind him. The Caps are poised to make another strong push for a division title this year and are indeed a playoff team.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning
-Last season was a down year for the Lightning, finishing 3rd in the Division and 10th in the east after going to the Conference finals the year before that. Everybody knows the Lightning know how to score goals, espically when you have guys like Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis, and Vincent Lecavalier in the lineup. Tampa Bay still has enough firepower for a run at the playoffs. The weak spots from last year were in goaltending and defense, both issues which were addressed in the offseason. Dwayne Roloson is gone in net and Andres Lindback was brought in to split the netminding duties with Mathieu Garon, so the lightning have a solid goalie tandom. As for the blueline it got some much needed depth added to it in the additions of Sami Salo and Matt Carle. Throw those guys in the mix with the likes of Marc-Andre Beregeron, Victor Hedman, and Mattias Ohlund and the Bolts are looking good. Expect Tampa Bay to be back in the playoffs once again.

3. Carolina Hurricanes

-Last year the Hurricanes finished last in the division and 12th overall in the East. This year head coach Kirk Muller is going to have a few new faces to work with. In the offseason the Canes were pretty busy. They lost Brandon Sutter and Jaroslav Spacek so they blue line took a bit of a hit. Carolina did get deeper with some of their big moves, like picking up Jordan Staal from the Penguins for Brandon Sutter. They also signed free agents Alex Semin, Joe Corvo, and Marc-Andre Gragnani. With adding Semin and Staal, the Canes offense just got a lot more lethal. Throw those talents in with Eric Staal, Chad Larose, and Jussi Jokinen. Carolina has plenty of scoring punch to hang in there in the plyaoff hunt. Goaltending too is a Canes strong point, espically with Cam Ward back and healthy. Dan Ellis is a great backup to complement Ward. The only question mark I have for the Canes is how deep they are on the blue line. Carolina's defense is the reason I have them as a possible bubble team for the playoffs.

4. Florida Panthers
-Last year was a big year for the Panthers, as they won the division for the first time ever and made the playoffs for the first time since 1997 before losing in the opening round to the Devils. Florida took a big hit in the offseason, losing players like Marco Sturm, John Madden, Jason Garrison, and Wojtek Wolski. Florida was able to pick up Peter Muller but that won't really replace a lot of what was lost. The Panthers have alright goaltending in Jose Theodore and Scott Clemenson but they can only do so much, they aren't going to steal a lot of games for you. Leading the charge on the Panther blue line is Brian Campbell and Ed Jovanoski but outside of them, the Panthers aren't very deep on the line and that might hurt them just a bit. The Panthers still have a bit of a scoring touch with guys like Stephen Weiss and Sean Bergenheim but there isn't enough there. Sorry Panther fans but they fall back to reality and will miss the playoffs this year.

5. Winnipeg Jets
-Last year was the first for hockey back in Winnipeg since 1997 and the Jets finished in 4th place in the division and 10th overall in conference, surprising a lot of people. The Jets did a nice bit of retooling in the offseason. They didn't lose much in the free agent market but the did stockpile talent. In goal Ondrej Pavelec is gonna be the #1 guy but they signed Al Montoya as his backup. This isn't the greatest goalie tandum in the league but its not horrible either. It may be able to keep them in a few games. Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Endstrom lead the blue line crop in Winnipeg and that defense seems to be lacking real solid depth, which may end up hurting thhe Jets.  Winnipeg retooled their offense a bit. Their two biggest signings were Alexei Ponikarovsky and Olli Jokinen. Throw those guys in the mix with Evander Kane and Nik Antropove and the Jets have a decent core on offense. Sadly though it won't be enough and the Jets will miss the playoffs.

So now that we have the Southeast Division covered, lets move on to the Northeast Division. Last year the Boston Bruins won the Northeast and they and the Ottawa Senators were the only teams to make it into the playoffs. Here's how I see the Northeast playing out this year.

1. Boston Bruins
-The Bruins are the defending Northeast Division Champions and finished 3rd in the East last year, coming up short in the playoffs. Boston still has most of their 2010 Championship team still in Beantown. A few guys like Joe Corvo and Marty Turco, who were on the club last year are now gone. Boston brought back considerable talent when they resigned Gregory Campbell, Chris Kelly, Tuukka Rask, Brad Marchand, Tyler Seguin, and Milan Lucic. The biggest thing the Bruins will have to deal with this season is having to play without Tim Thomas in net. Thomas is taking the year off in Sabatical so he can figure a few things out. So the Bruins are going to be relying heavily on Tukka Rask in net, and that isn't a problem as Rask has shown in the past he can handle the workload. The Bruins are going to once again be a force in the Northeast Division.

2. Buffalo Sabres
-Last year Buffalo finished 3rd in the division and 9th in the conference just missing out on the playoffs. Buffalo lost a bit of their core on offense during the offseason, seeing Derek Roy and Brad Boyes leave town. The Sabres replaced some of that with the additions of Steve Ott and Mark Mancari. Buffalo still has the best goalie in the entire division in Ryan Miller, who is looking for a repeat of the type of year he had back in 2010. Along with Jonas Enroth, Buffalo ha a solid goalie tandom and will be just fine in that regards. Also the Buffalo blueline is still mostly in tact. Tyler Meyers and Jordan Leopold will be looking for bounce back seasons, as is Christian Ehrhoff. But the Sabres are set on the line and should do fine. Scoring won't be a problwem in Buffalo either. With Stafford, Vanek and Pominville back in the fold, they have a nice mix of size and scoring touch in Western New York to get back into the playoffs.

3. Ottawa Senators
-Last year the Senators surprised a lot of people by making the playoffs as the 8th seed thanks to the surprising play of Erik Karlsson. The Ottawa blueline took a bit of a hit losing Carkner and Kubina, but with Karlsson, Gonchar and Philips still in the mix, plus throw in newcomer Marc Methot, the Sens look set on the blueline. Ottawa has an alright goaltending trio in the form of Craig Anderson, Ben Bishop, and Robin Lehner but the question will be are they good enough to keep Ottawa as a playoff team. As far as offense goes,adding a guy like Guillaume Latendresse adds to an already lively offense. Ottawa adds him in with guys like Jason Speeza, Daniel Alfredson and Milan Michalek, which gives then sens a tough offense that will keep them around the playoff hunt. Ottawa is the bubble team in the East.

4. Montreal Canadiens

-Last year the Canadiens finished last in the Eastern Conference and this season it doesn't look much better for the Habs. Montreal didn't lose much talent from last year, but new head coach Michel Therrien, who is now in his 2nd stint as Habs head coach, has an uphill climb ahead of him. Montreal still has a good tandom of goalies in Carey Price, their #1 goalie, and Peter Budaj, a solid netminder in his own right. Both goalies can help keep Montreal in most hockey games. Same thing can be said about the Habs blueline. P.K Subban, Andrei Markov and Tomas kaberle are the anchor of the Montreal line and they should be able to take some of the pressure off of Price and Budaj. Montreal's biggest problem is lack of balanced scoring. Sure they signed Brandon Prust to help add some size to the offense, but outside of Gionta, Cole, Pacioretty and Plekanec, there isn't enough balance on this club to get them where they want to be. Montreal will once again miss out on the playoffs this season.

5. Toronto Maple Leafs

-Last year the Leafs finished 2nd to last in the Division and 3rd worst in the Conference. This year isn't going to be much better for the Leafs. Toronto lost Jonas Gustavsson to the Jets and are now going to have to rely on James Reimer and Ben Schivens in goal. Reimer is going to be the undisputed #1 goalie in Leafs Country but the backup isn't really proven in the NHL yet and shows a weakness in Toronto. The Leafs blueline is somewhat decent. They are still lead by the likes of Dion Phaneuf, Jean-Michael Liles, and Mike Komisarek. After that the only defenseman the Leafs have that has proven himself is Mark Fraser who won the cup last year with the Kings. Toronto is average on the blueline. As for offense they Leafs made a little bit of noise when they traded Luke Schen to the Flyers for James van Riemsdyk. JVR joins Phil Kessel, Joffery Lupul, Tim Connolly, and Mikhail Graboviski as the only even remote threat the Leafs have. They don't really have much of a balanced attack and it will cause them to miss out on the plyoffs once again this season.

Finally we take a look at the last Division in the East, the Atlantic Division. Last year four of the five teams in the division made the playoffs. The Rangers, Penguins, Flyers and Devils all made it in and the Islanders were the lone team to miss out. Here is how the Atlantic will play out this year. 

1. New York Rangers
-Last year the Rangers won the Atlantic Division and were the best team in the eastern Conference. This year expect much of the same from the Blueshirts, despite some big Cchanges made on Broadway. The Rangers took a hit in losing guys like Dubinsky, Anisimov, and Feditenko. In return however the Rangers snagged the biggest fish on the market in Rick Nash from the Blue Jackets, but we'll touch on offense in a moment. The Rangers still have the best goalie in the Division and quite possibly the best goalie in the league at the moment in Henrik Lundqvist. Along with him and Martin Biron in goal, the Rangers will have no problem there for a long time. As for the blueline, with the likes of Mark Staal, Michael Del Zotto, Dan Girardi, and Stu Bickel, the rangers won't have too much trouble there either. Now as for the offense, the Rangers just got a lot deeper with the addition of Rick Nash. Throw him into the mix with guys like Brad Richards, a healthy Marion Gaborik, Jeff Halper, and Ryan Callahan, there is plenty of scoring to go around. Also add in the toughness of guys like Aaron Ahsam and Mike Rupp, the Rangers have one of the most balanced teams in all of hockey. They will be a strong favorite to come out of the East this year.

2. Pittsburgh Penguins
-Last year the Pens fell a few points short of catching the Rangers, and still had a great season, all of this without star Center Sidney Crosby. This year will be a different story. The Rangers and Penguins will again be fighting it out for the Division Title. A few things have changed for the Penguins. Jordan Staal was traded to Carolina, and in return the Pens picked up Brandon Sutter. The other move worth really noting was the Penguins signing Tomas Vokoun from Washington. Now with Vokoun and Marc-Andre Fleury tending net, the Penguins may have the best combo goalies in the Atlantic. Fleury is still the #1 goalie in the Steel City, and Vokoun provides a stability behind Fleury in case he stumbles. The defense in front of Fleury and Vokoun still looks like it can hold its own. Paul Martin and Brooks Orpik are the top defenders on the Pens blue line, and now they have a little bit of depth to them with the likes of Kris Letang and Ben Lovejoy. They may not have the best overall defense but they have a pretty balanced one. As for the offense, it has both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin healthy from the beginning of the season. Throw in the likes of James Neal, Matt Cooke, Brandon Sutter and Tyler Kennedy, just to name a few, the Penguins are a forced in the division and conference. The only reason I have them behind the Rangers is I think the Rangers have a better team defense and goaltending.

3. Philadelphia Flyers
-Last year was another good season in the City of Brotherly Love as they made it to round tow of the playoffs before getting bounced by the Devils. Philly has seen a few changes made, first it saw the departure of Jaromir Jagr, Sergei Bobrovsky, James van Riemsdyk, Matt Carle, and Pavel Kubina. In return the Flyers picked up Luke Schen, Ruslan Fedotenko, and CKurtis Foster. As it has been in the past, goaltending is going to be a question in Philly. With Michael Leighton and Ilya Bryzgalov tending nets for the Flyers, they have a good pair. Only question withi them is how well can they play in the playoffs, as in the last few years Flyer goalies have struggle badly in the post season. As for the Flyers blueline, it looks a little bit thin. Chris Pronger is still out hurt, so that means Kimmo Timmonen and Kurtis Foster are leading the charge. Philly looks really thin on their blueline and that will hurt their chances against the Penguins and Rangers. As for the Flyer offense, that hasn't really changed. Danny Birere, Claude Giroux, and Scott Hartnell still lead that charge. Also throw in role players like Max Talbout, Matt Read, and Jakob Voracek, the Flyers can match the Penguins and Rangers as far as scoring depth. The goaltending and thin blueline is why I have them placed at 3rd.

4. New Jersey Devils
-Last year the Devils fell two wins short of winning the Stanley Cup, and this year are hoping to try and repeat. Things have changed in Jersey over the offseason. Zach Parise and Alexei Ponikarovsky are both gone, leaving a few holes that need filling. One big problem facing the Devils right now is age. Both of their goaltenders, Martin Brodeur and Johan Hedberg are up there in age. Brodeur is 40 and Hedberg is 39. So that could turn into a weakness for the Devils. New team Captain Bryce Salvador is leading the charge on the blueline which still has Hank Talinder Marke Fayne and Andy Greene, but it looks like they may have trouble keeping up with some of the other teams in the East. As far as the Devils offense goes, Ilya Kovalchuck is now the biggest weapon on the team, leading the club last year in scoring. Besides Kovy, the Devils will look for Patrik Elias, Stephen Gionta, David Clarkson, and Adam Henrique to contribute. Henrique will miss a month due to injury but will have an impact apon return. Basically the Devils have enough talent and balance on offense to be able to score, its just the team defense and goaltending that has me worried. Sorry Devils fans but it looks like Jersey may miss out on the playoffs this year.

5. New York Islanders
-Once again last season was a dissapointing one for the Islanders. Although they have improved over the past few seasons, the team isn't where it wants to be in regards to chasing a Stanley Cup. The team lost some talent from last season in seeing Parrenteau, Eaton, Staios, Montoya, Haley, and Gillies all leave. The Islanders did make a few moves of note. First they traded a few picks to the Ducks for Lubomir Visnovsky, but he has since not reported to the team and has been suspended. Then the Islanders signed Eric Boulton, Radak Martinek, Keith Aucoin, Brad Boyes, Matt Carkner, and Brian Strait. The goaltending on the Island is once again going to be a point of question. Rick Dipietro is still a question makr because of his past history of injury problems, so he is not a lock to produce. Evgeni Nabakov will see the bulk of the playing time in the Islanders net. The Islander blueline looks a lot different from last year. Captain Mark Streit is still leading the charge, along with Travis Hamonic and Andrew MacDonald. Now throw in Radak Martinek, Matt Carkner, Thomas Hickey and a few others, the Islanders blue line MIGHT be able to keep them in games. New York's offense is still powered by their one two punch of John Tavares and Matt Moulson. Behind them now are Brad Boyes, Frans Nielsen, Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey, and Michael Grabner. Grabner had a drop off last year and so did Okposo so look for those two guys to bounce back. The Problem here on the Island is that they aren't a deep enough hockey team to really be able to compete in as loaded a division as the Atlantic. As much as it hurts me to say this, once again it looks like a last place finish on the Island.

So now that the Eastern Conference has been covered, here is the final prediction for the East and its playoff teams.

1. New York Rangers
2. Boston Bruins
3. Washington Capitals
4. Pittsburgh Penguins
5. Tampa Bay Lightning
6. Philadelphia Flyers
7. Buffalo Sabres
8. Carolina Hurricanes
9. Ottawa Senators
10. New Jersey Devils
11. Florida Panthers
12. New York Islanders
13. Winnipeg Jets
14. Montreal Canadiens
15. Toronto Maple Leafs

There you have it, my preview and predictions for the 2013 NHL Season! So just kick back, relax and enjoy a great year of hockey ahead!

2013 NHL Western Conference Preview

At long, long last the National Hockey League will return to the ice this Saturday night to kick off the 2013 regular season. So with the new CBA in place, the length of the new agreement is ten years, so fans won't have to worry about another possible lockout for a decade. So now with hockey back on the ice, there is a few changes made for this season. Obviously there isn't enough time to play a full 82 game schedule so their will be a 48 game season that starts on January 19th, with the regular season concluding on April 27th. The Stanley Cup Finals will be concluded the latest June 28th. Also because of such a short schedule there will be no games played between conferences. It means that teams from the Eastern Conference will play only teams form the East, and the Western Conference can play only teams in the West. Since I don't want to bore anybody with the exact details of the CBA, we are going to skip that and go straight into predictions for all 30 NHL teams for this upcoming season. We are going to look at each division and predict where each team finishes in the division and why. We start things off in the Western Conference.

We start things off in the West with the Pacific Division. This division is home to the defending Stanley Cup Champions the Los Angeles Kings. Two other teams made it out of the Pacific from last year, that being the Sharks and Coyotes. Here is how I see the Pacific Division playing out this year.

1. Los Angeles Kings
-Absolutely nothing has change for the Kings since they won the Cup last June. The entire roster is in tact and its healthy. This time last year the Kings had a bit of a banged up hockey team with Simone Gagne and Jeff Carter hurt, plus had an early distraction with Drew Doughty and his contract dispute. Now that is all behind them, and everybody is healthy and on the same page. Kings are almost a lock to win the Pacific and make the playoffs again.

2. San Jose Sharks
-The Sharks have experience on their side with the likes of Joe Thorton, Patrick Marleau and Martin Havlat, although those guys aren't putting up numbers like they used to. Still with the likes of Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski and Ryane Clowe it will help take the pressure off the big three to produce. The only question mark I have is how deep the goaltending is behind Antto Niemi. Despite that San Jose is looking like a solid contender for the playoffs again.

3. Dallas Stars
-Dallas took a bit of a hit in the offseason losing the likes of Sheldon Souray, Steve Ott and Mike Ribeiro, but they made up for it by adding in talent like Derek Roy, Jaromir Jagr and Ray Whitney. Goalie Kari Lehtonen is going to take the load of the goaltending once again, but it looks as though the Stars aren't very deep in goal. Dallas looks like it has enough to make a solid push for a possible playoff spot this year.

4. Phoenix Coyotes
-The Coyotes shocked everybody last year in getting all the way to the West finals against the Kings. This year the goaltending in Phoenix is still the same as last year. Phoenix still has a solid blue line to work with too with the likes of Keith Yandel, Derek Morris and Rostislav Klesla. Only problem in Phoenix is they lost a lot on offense to compete, as they lost Lankow, Rosoval, and Whitney.n Phoenix has enough on defense to compete but it won't be enough to get them into the playoffs.

5 Anaheim Ducks
-The Ducks still have some firepower up front with guys like Teemu Selanne, Ryan Getzlaf, Sakiu Koviu, Bobby Ryan, and Cory Perry. Outside of those five guys there isn't much more in terms of scoring depth. Anaheim's blue line looks to be average at best and in goal Jonas Hiller will be carrying the bulk of the time in net. Anaheim will finish last once again in the division.

Next up we move on to the Northwest Division. Last year only one team made the playoffs coming out of the Northwest and that was the Vancouver Canucks. Here is how I see the Pacific Division playing out this season.

1. Vancouver Canucks
-Vancouver has virtually the same lineup they did last season, except they took a bit of a hit on the blue line. Sami Salo and Aaron Rome are both gone via free agency. To replace the loss Jason Garrison was brought in as a free agent from the Panthers. With his playmaking ability and big shot, Garrison can add some stability to the blueline. Vancouver still has a powerhouse offense in tact and they can light it up on any given night. The Canuck offense is very well balanced. Only question marks in Vancouver is what to do about goaltending with both Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider fighting for playing time. Despite a possible goaltending battle Vancouver is set for another playoff bound year.

2. Minnesota Wild
-Minnesota totally reworked their team after last season. Last year the Wild were average on defense but had the worst offense in the NHL. Adding in guys like Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, who were the two biggest free agent signings from the offseason, will really help the Wild out. Goaltending in Minnesota is going to be set for a long time. Offensively the Wild look vastly improved and have a pretty good balance to them. They have a scoring touch with guys like Parise, Koivu and Setoguchi, as well as grinders like Clutterbuck and Konopka. Wild will make a strong showing and look like a playoff team.

3. Calgary Flames
-The Flames missed the playoffs last year by 5 points and looked like they were close to getting in. Over the offseason they took a bit of a hit loosing both David Moss and Olli Jokinen. With the loss of Jokinen, it was replaced by Jiri Hudler from Detroit, and to replace Moss the Flames brought in Denis Wideman from Washington. New Flames coach Bob Hartley has a decent, but aging, team on his hands. He still has the heart and soul of the club in Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff. Kiprusoff has nothing really behind him in net and he isn't getting younger. Calgary still has a solid blue lien to keep them hanging in. The offense has a decent mix but doesn't look like it might be enough to get the Flames into the playoffs.

4. Edmonton Oilers
-The youth movement in Edmonton is still taking shape. They re-signed a lot of their young talent back into the fold as well as some of their returning veteran players. Goaltending in Edmonton is still in question. Nikolai Khabibulin is 40 and isn't as great a netminder as he once was. Devan Dubnyk hasn't himself to be truly ready to take the #1 goalie job in Edmonton. Offensively the Oilers look like they should be able to stick around for a while. Ryan Smyth seems to still have something in the tank and guys like Shawn Horcoff, Ales Hemsky, Sam Gange, and young guns like Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will step up to help fill the opposing net. However the Oiler blueline looks like it has a few holes still and as mentioned before goaltending is still a question mark. Sorry Oilers fans but it looks like it might be another year out of the playoffs.

5. Colorado Avalanche
-Colorado seems to have fallen off the radar a bit in the West. You look back ten years and the Avs were once a dominant team in the conference. Now things have kinda fallen off for the Avs. This past offseason Colorado didn't loose too much talent wise, and they did spend a bit of money. The biggest acquisition for Colorado was P.A. Parrenteau from the Islanders. The team also spent money to bring back guys like Milan Hejduk, Matt Duchene, and Erik Johnson. There is a nice mix of veterans and youth in Denver. But there a few problems the Avs are faced with. Between Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Semyon Varlamov, there is no clear cut #1 goalie.Colorado's blue line looks spotty and there doesn't seem to be a clear cut leader on offense, or even a balanced attack for that matter. Colorado has gotten better but they still have a ways to go before becoming real contenders.

We wrap up this Western Conference preview with a look at the final division in the West, the always tough Central Division. Last year four of the five teams in this division made the playoffs, the only one who missed out was the Columbus Blue Jackets. Here's how I see the Central Division playing out this year.

1. St. Louis Blues
-Last year the Blues won the Central and came within two points of being the best team in the entire conference. This year will be different. St Louis didn't lose much talent in the offseason, only losing Jason Arrnot and Carlo Colaiacovo. The rest of the team from last year is back in Szt Louis and ready to go. The Blues have the best one two punch in the West as far as goalies go in Brian Elliott and Jaroslav Halak so stopping the puck doesn't seem to be much of an issue. The blueline is a tad bit weaker than it was last year but with Alex Pietrangelo leading the charge they should be able to hold up. The Blues offense clicked nicely last year and they look to do it again this year. St Louis still has guys like David Backes, Alex Steen, Andy McDonald and Jamie Langenbruner to lead the charge. Now they have an added element into the mix in the form of rookie Vladimir Tarasenko. The Blues look to be one of the front runners to come out of the West this season.

2. Chicago Blackhawks
-Last year the Hawks came away with a 4th place finish in the division and 6th overall in the West. Chicago got a lot better on the blue line this past offseason with the signings of Michal Rozsival and Sheldon Brookbank. Throw those guys in with the likes of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook and Chicago has something good going on their blue line. As far as goaltending goes, it still seems to be a bit of a question mark. The Hawks had a true #1 goalie in Antti Nimi when they won the Cup in 2010, but after letting him go the following offseason the hawks have struggled to find a #1 goalie. Ray Emery doesn't seem like he really wants the job and Corey Crawford doesn't look ready to take the job outright yet. Chicago still has a potent offense with guys like Kane Towes and a healthy Hossa. Chicago has enough talent to make it back into the playoffs again this year.

3. Detroit Red Wings
-Last year Detroit finished 3rd in the Central and 5th overall in the West. This past offseason was a total disaster in the Motor City. The Wings saw the retirement of Nick Lidstrom, and Tomas Holmstrom, plus the departure of Ty Conklin, Brad Stuart and Jiri Hudler. With Lidstrom and Stuart both gone, they needed to be replaced, so the Wings went out and drafted Brendan Smith and picked up Carlo Colaiacovo. With all that being said, the Wings defense is in trouble this year. Their is an upside though. Jimmy Howard is still the starting goalie for the Wings, and he now has Jonas Gustavsson as his backup. Detroit still also has one of the deepest offenses in the entire league. Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg still lead the charge, and have a good supporting cast with the likes of Todd Bertuzzi, Johan Franzen and Valtteri Filppula. The Wings will make the playoffs again, but I really don't see them as a strong contender for the cup.

4. Nashville Predators
-Last year Nashville was the 2nd best team in the division and finished 4th in the conference. But since their season ended in the 2nd round of last years playoffs, things have taken a slightly negative turn. The Predators lost one of their top defenseman in Ryan Suter, who signed with the Wild, and one of their more dynamic scoring threats in Alexander Radulov who signed to play back over in Russia. Still there are plenty of good things to look forward to in Nashville this year. Vezina finalist Pekka Rinne will be back tending nets again in the Music City, so goaltending won't be an issue. As for the blue line, they still have captain Shea Weber roaming the lines and along with Hal Gil and Scott Hannan, they defnese isn't as good as it has been but it can still be a force. Offensively, the Preds should be able to keep them in the playoff hunt the entire year. They still have scoring punch with guys like Mike Fisher, Martin Erat and Sergei Kostitsyn. But it won't be enough to get them over the final hump.

5. Columbus Blue Jackets
-Last year the Jackets finish with the worst record in not only the Eastern Conference but the entire league. So what do they do this offseason? Oh they just trade away their best player and the only star on the team in Rick Nash to the Rangers. In return for Nash, the Jackets picked up Artem Anisimov, Brandon Dubinsky, Tim Erixon and draft picks. The Jackets had no offense last year and again it will be the same problem this year in they will have a lot of trouble scoring. Columbus was able to bolster their blue line just a bit when they signed Adrian Aucoin. With Aucoin, Jack Johnson and James Wisniewski the Jackets have a decent looking defense corps this season. And with Steve Mason and Sergi Bobrovsky set to be stopping the pucks, Columbus has a decent tandem in net. But with the lack of scoring the Jackets have, they will once again be in the basement of the West.

So at long last the divisions in the West have been broken down. We end this prediction page with how I see the Western Conference finishing this season.

1. St Louis Blues
2. Los Angeles Kings
3. Vancouver Canucks
4. Minnesota Wild
5. Chicago Blackhawks
6. San Jose Sharks
7. Detroit Red Wings
8. Dallas Stars
9. Nashville Predators
10. Phoenix Coyotes
11. Calgary Flames
12. Anaheim Ducks
13. Colorado Avalanche
14. Edmonton Oilers
15. Columbus Blue Jackets


So there you have my predictions for the Western Conference! Stay tuned for predictions for the Eastern Conference!

Oswego Hockey Downs Nazareth as Gosek Collects #200

For the first time ever the Oswego State Men's Hockey team faced off against the Nazareth Golden Flyers. This night had two big implications to it. First it was the return of former Oswego State head coach George Roll, and second Oswego State's current head coach Ed Gosek was sitting on 199 career wins. Oswego was also looking to bounce back after a tough 6-0 loss to Utica last weekend. Well all questions would be answered on this night as the Lakers downed the Golden Flyers by a 4-1 score and Ed Gosek picked up career win #200 as head coach of the Lakers.

Oswego looked to make a statement early on as they jumped out to a 1-0 lead thanks to Paul Rodrigues 11th goal of the year. It came short handed at the 10:07 mark of the opening period and was his 1st shorty of the year. Naz would tie the score before the end of the period, when at the 11:26 mark Tom Seravalli scored his 2nd of the year for the Golden Flyers. So the teams headed into the locker room at the end of one tied at one.

In the middle period, Oswego's offense exploded for three goals to take a commanding lead in the hockey game. At the 5:21 mark Chris Muise would connect for his 4th of the year to give Oswego a 2-1 lead. The Lakers would put the game out of reach thanks to a pair of goals from Chris Brown. Brown's first goal was scored at 10:29 and his second came at 17:29. That 4-1 score held up as nobody was able to find the back of the net in the 3rd period.

Ed Zdolshek took the loss in net for Nazareth, making 44 saves, and dropping his record to 4-6-0. Freshman Justin Gilbert picked up his first career victory in an Oswego uniform, making 21 saves in the win. Also with the win Ed Gosek career win number 200.

Gosek reached the 200-win plateau in his 270th game behind the bench as a head coach, as his career mark improved to 200-54-16 (.770) in the midst of ten seasons. with the win, Coach Gosek becomes only the 2nd coach in program history to hit 200 victories, the other one being Don Unger who sits atop the list with 289. Ed Gosek does have the distinction of having the highest winning percentage of any coach in school history. Congratulations to head coach Ed Gosek on career win #200!

Oswego State returns to the ice this weekend for a pair of games, one at home and one on the road. First up on Friday night the team travels to Alumni Arena to take on the Cortland Red Dragons. Faceoff in Cortland is set for 7PM. Then on Saturday the team kicks off the final homestand of the season as they host the Hamilton Continentals at 7PM!

(Photo provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department)

Oswego Women's Hockey Falls Short Against Plattsburgh

This past weekend, the Oswego State Women's Hockey Team made their annual visit to the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena in Plattsuburgh for a weekend series against the #1 ranked Plattsburgh State Cardinals. Oswego going into the weekend was hoping to come away with points from the north country trip. Sadly that wasn't the case as Plattsburgh not only won both games, but shut Oswego out over both games.

First up was an afternoon matchup on Saturday, a day in which Plattsburgh's offense opened up to the tune of an 8-0 victory on home ice. Shannon Stewart and Allison Era scored for Plattsburgh in the opening period to give the Cards a 2-0 lead.In the middle period, the Plattsburgh offense exploded for five goals, including a hat trick in the period from Shannon Stewart. Chelsea VanGlahn and Giovanna Senese also scored goals for Plattsburgh in the 2nd period. The scoring for Plattsburgh was capped off in the 3rd period by Teal Gove.

In the contest Plattsburgh outshot Oswego 42-18 and both teams went 0 for 3 on the powerplay. Sydney Aveson got the win for Plattsburgh, improving her record on the year to 9-0-1, making 18 saves in the victory. Bridget Smith started the game for Oswego but was pulled about halfway through the game and replaced by Tori Trovato. Smith took the loss, dropping her overall record on the season to 6-4-1, and she made 14 saves but gave up five goals. Trovato made 20 stops and allowed 3 goals in the 31:24 of ice time she saw in the game.

Things didn't get much better for Oswego State on Sunday as again they fell to the Cardinals in Plattsburgh, this time by a 2-0 score. Morgan MacInnis scored what would turn out to be the game winner at the 3:39 mark of the 2nd period. Plattsburgh would put the game away thanks to a powerplay goal from Shannon Stewart at the 14:18 mark of the 3rd period. For Stewart, she finished the weekend series with five goals and two assist for a total of seven points.

Plattsburgh outshot Oswego 40-18 in the Sunday 2-0 win. Sydney Aveson once again picked up the win for Plattsburgh, making 18 saves in the shutout and improving her record to 10-0-1 on the year. Bridget Smith took the loss for Oswego, making 38 saves, and seeing her record drop to 6-5-1 on the year. Plattsburgh went 1 for 3 on the Powerplay while Oswego was 0 for 3 with the man advantage.

This past weekends losses have dropped Oswego below the 500 mark for the first time since the opening weekends of the season. The Lakers have hit their first three game loosing skid of the season, and haven't lost three in a row since February of last year. Oswego now stands at 7-8-1 overall and 6-4-0 in ECAC West play. Oswego returns home for the first time in 2013 this weekend to play host to the Buffalo State Bengals. The first game of the series is Friday Night at 7PM and the weekend wraps up Saturday afternoon at 3PM!

(Photo provided by Oswego State Sports Information Department)

NFL Divisional Round In The Books

The Divisional Round of the 2013 NFL playoffs has come and gone, and it was way more dramatic of a week then wild card weekend. Quite honestly it was some of the more dramatic football seen in the NFL in quite a long time. We had high scoring affairs all over the place, and an exciting double overtime game that had most fans on the edge of their seats.b Every team scored over 25 points in each game, and two clubs scored over 40 points in a game. Interested to see the results? Well if you missed any of the exciting action from this past weekend, don't worry we'll be recapping all of it for you right now.

We start things off with by far the closest game of the entire weekend, the double overtime thriller between the Baltimore Ravens and Denver Broncos. Baltimore defensive back Corey Graham's interception from Peyton Manning set up Justin Tucker's 47-yard game winning field goal 1:42 into double overtime to stun the heavily-favored Broncos. This brought Denver's 11-game winning streak to an end and sent the Ravens to their third AFC title game in the last five years. It was the sixth double overtime game in history, the first since 2003, and the fourth-longest game in NFL history[9] which coincidently also featured head coach John Fox. With the loss, the Broncos became the seventh #1 seed in the last six years to lose their first playoff game. The other six were, the Dallas Cowboys in 2007, the New York Giants and the Tennessee Titans in 2008, the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots in 2010, and the Green Bay Packers in 2011.

Broncos receiver Trindon Holliday opened up the scoring by returning a Sam Koch punt 90 yards for a touchdown, the first postseason punt return score in franchise history. Things seemed to get even better for Denver when Jacoby Jones fumbled the ensuing kickoff and was downed on the 6-yard line. But two plays later, defensive back Tony Carter was hit with a 25-yard pass interference penalty on third down. Then Joe Flacco tied the game with a 59-yard touchdown pass to Torrey Smith. The situation only got worse for Denver on the next drive, as Graham picked off a deflected pass and returned it 39 yards for a touchdown, making the score 14–7. But Manning rallied his team back, completing 5/7 passes for 69 yards on a 74-yard drive that ended on his 15-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Stokley.

Later in the second quarter, a 32-yard reception by Broncos receiver Eric Decker set up Manning's 14-yard touchdown pass to Knowshon Moreno. Denver then forced a punt and drove to the Ravens 34-yard line, but this time they failed to score as Matt Prater missed a 52-field goal. Taking the ball back on their own 42 with 1:16 remaining, Flacco hit Anquan Boldin for 11 yards and tight end Dennis Pitta for 15 before finding Smith in the end zone on a 32-yard score, tying the score at 21 at the end of the half.

Holliday quickly broke the tie just 13 seconds into the third quarter by returning the second half kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown, making him the first player ever to return a punt and kickoff for a touchdown in a postseason game since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger. Later in the quarter, Manning lost a fumble while being sacked by Pernell McPhee, and Ravens lineman Paul Kruger recovered it on the Broncos 37-yard line. Running back Ray Rice took it to the end zone from there with five consecutive running plays (one of them for 32 yards), the last one a 1-yard touchdown run to tie the game back up at 28.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Denver drove 88 yards and scored on a 17-yard pass from Manning to Demaryius Thomas, taking a 35–28 lead with just over 7 minutes left in regulation. Baltimore responded with a drive to the Ravens 31-yard line, but turned the ball over on downs with 3:16 left. The Ravens defense had to use all their timeouts on Denver's ensuing drive, but managed to force a punt and get the ball on their own 23-yard line at the 1:09 mark. After an incomplete pass and a 7-yard scramble, Flacco tossed a 70-yard touchdown pass to Jones, sending the game into overtime.

After the first three drives of overtime ended in punts, Graham intercepted a pass from Manning on the Broncos 45-yard line. On the last play of the first overtime period, Rice's 11-yard run moved the team into field goal range. A few plays later, Tucker kicked a 47-yard field goal to win the game.

Flacco threw for 331 yards and 3 touchdowns. Smith caught 3 passes for 98 yards and two scores. Rice rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown. Graham had 8 tackles, 2 interceptions, and a touchdown. Linebacker Ray Lewis had 17 tackles, the most by any player in the postseason up to this point, while linebacker Terrell Suggs recorded 10 tackles and 2 sacks. For Denver, Manning finished 28/43 for 290 yards and three touchdowns, with 2 interceptions. Holliday's 90-yard punt return and 104-yard kickoff return were the longest ever in each NFL postseason category. His 248 total special teams return yards were an NFL postseason record as well, breaking Andre Coleman's record of 244 return yards in Super Bowl XXIX (and later tied by Desmond Howard in Super Bowl XXXI).

If that game wasn't exciting enough for fans on Saturday, the next game tried to top that one. Great football game closed out the day Saturday between the Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers. In his first career playoff game, 25-year old 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick rushed for 181 yards and two touchdowns, setting the NFL single game record for rushing yards by a quarterback, while also adding 263 yards and two scores through the air. Overall, San Francisco racked up 579 yards, including a franchise record 323 rushing yards, and scored a touchdown in every quarter to earn their second consecutive trip to the NFC championship game.

However, Kaepernick didn't get off to a good start. Less then two minutes into the game, he threw a pass that was intercepted by Sam Shields and returned 52 yards for a touchdown. But he quickly rallied his team back, completing a 45-yard pass to running back Frank Gore before taking the ball into the end zone himself on a 20-yard run. Later in the period, Green Bay took a 14–7 lead with Aaron Rodgers' 44-yard completion to James Jones setting up an 18-yard touchdown run by DuJuan Harris. The Packers then forced a punt, but returner Jeremy Ross muffed the kick and C. J. Spillman recovered it for San Francisco on the Packers 9-yard line. Two plays later, Kaepernick tied the score at 14 with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree. Then defensive back Tarell Brown intercepted a pass from Rodgers, setting up Kaepernick's second touchdown pass to Crabtree, this one from 20 yards out.

With 2:39 left in the half, Rodgers' 20-yard touchdown pass to Jones tied the score at 21. But on the 49ers next drive, a pair of runs by Kaepernick for gains of 19 and 17 yards enabled David Akers to kick a 36-yard field goal, sending the teams into their lockers rooms with San Francisco leading 24–21.

In the third quarter, Green Bay drove 76 yards in 9 plays, featuring a 30-yard reception by Greg Jennings and scored a Mason Crosby field goal. But the tie turned out to be short lived. On the third play of their next drive, Kaepernick faked a handoff, rolled right, and took off for a career long 56-yard touchdown run, retaking the lead at 31–24. Then after a punt, he completed a 44-yard pass to tight end Vernon Davis, setting up Gore's 2-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter. Following another punt, Kaepernick led the 49ers back for more points, this time on a 93-yard drive. First he ran for a 16-yard gain, and later he completed a 17-yard throw to tight end Delanie Walker. On the next play, Gore's 26-yard burst moved the ball to the Packers 27-yard line. Anthony Dixon eventually finished the 11-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run, making the score 45–24.

With under a minute left, Rodgers threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jennings. But any hope of a miracle comeback was dashed when Walker recovered the ensuing onside kick attempt.

Crabtree was the top receiver of the game, with 9 catches for 119 yards and two touchdowns. Gore rushed for 119 yards and a touchdown, while also catching two passes for 48 yards. Linebacker Patrick Willis had 7 tackles and a sack. Rodgers finished 26/39 for 257 yards and two touchdowns, with 1 interception, while also rushing for 28 yards. Kaepernick finished the game responsible for more yards gained (444) then the entire Packers team (352).

So that takes care of the action from last Saturday. But wait there is still two more football games from Sunday. First up was the down to the wire nail bitter between the Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks. The Atlanta Falcons built up a 20–0 first half lead, but had to overcome a furious Seattle comeback to earn their first trip to the conference championship game since 2004. Trailing 28–27 with 25 seconds left, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan's completions to Harry Douglas and Tony Gonzalez moved the ball 41 yards in just 12 seconds of game time to set up Matt Bryant's 49-yard game winning field goal. For Gonzalez, the NFL's all time leader among tight ends in nearly every receiving category, it marked the first playoff win in his 16-season career.

Atlanta scored on their opening drive, moving the ball 55 yards on the way to a 39-yard field goal from Bryant. Later in the quarter, Seattle got a scoring opportunity when linebacker Bobby Wagner intercepted a Ryan pass and returned it to the Falcon's 33-yard line. But running back Marshawn Lynch fumbled the ball while being tackled by Sean Weatherspoon and defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux recovered it. On Atlanta's ensuring drive, a pair of 16-yard receptions by Roddy White and tight end Chase Coffman set up Ryan's 1-yard touchdown pass to Gonzalez.

On the last play of the first quarter, Atlanta running back Jacquizz Rodgers ran the ball 45 yards to the Seahawks 42-yard line. Atlanta then continued on to the 19-yard line where Bryant kicked a 37-yard field goal. Seattle responded with a drive to the Atlanta 11-yard line, but turned the ball over when fullback Michael Robinson was dropped for a 1-yard loss by safety William Moore on fourth down and one. Taking the ball back on their own 12, Michael Turner ripped off a 33-yard run before Ryan's 47-yard touchdown pass to White increased their lead to 20–0. Seattle responded with a drive to the Falcons 11-yard line on a drive that used up all their timeouts. With 17 seconds left in the half, they attempted one last play before sending in the field goal unit, but quarterback Russell Wilson was sacked by Babineaux and the clock ran out before they could run another play.

Seattle started out the second half with an 80-yard touchdown drive, with Wilson rushing for 19 yards and completing a 19-yard throw to tight end Zach Miller before tossing a 29-yard touchdown pass to Golden Tate. Atlanta countered with an 80-yard drive of their own, featuring a 21-yard reception by Julio Jones and scoring on Ryan's 5-yard pass to fullback Jason Snelling. But it wasn't long before Seattle completed the third consecutive 80-yard possession, Wilson hit Tate for 24 yards, rushed for 12, and then completed a 26-yard pass to Miller on the Falcons 13-yard line. A few players later, he took it into the end zone himself on a 1-yard run, making the score 27–14 with 13:06 left in regulation.

Three plays into Atlanta's next drive, safety Earl Thomas intercepted a pass from Ryan at the Seattle 38. Wilson then moved the ball into the Falcons red zone with a 24-yard completion to Sidney Rice and a 30-yarder to reserve running back Robert Turbin. On the next play, his 3-yard touchdown pass to Miller cut the deficit down to one score, 27–21.

With 3 minutes left in the game, Seattle's Leon Washington returned a punt 15 yards to his 39-yard line. Then Wilson went back to work, with completions to Tate and Lynch for gains 19 and 24 yards. Then with just 31 seconds left, Lynch's 2-yard touchdown run gave them their first lead of the game, 28–27.

Rodgers returned the ensuing kickoff 34 yards to the 28-yard line, giving the Falcons the ball with 25 seconds and two timeouts left. On their first play, Ryan completed a 22-yard pass to Douglas near the left sideline, running just 6 seconds off the clock. Then he found Gonzalez over the middle for a 19-yard gain to the Seattle 31-yard line that used up just six more seconds before the clock was stopped on their final timeout. With only 13 seconds left in the game, Atlanta decided to try the game winning field goal on their next play. Shortly before the ball was snapped, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll called a timeout, giving Bryant a "practice kick" on the field, which he missed. But after the timeout, Bryant's 49-yard field goal kick was good, retaking the lead for Atlanta with 8 seconds left on the clock.

However, Seattle was not quite out of the game. Taking the ball on their 46-yard line after Atlanta's squib kick, Wilson's 6-yard completion to Doug Baldwin moved the ball to the Atlanta 48 where he went out of bounds at 00:02. Rather then attempt a 65-yard field goal (which would have been two yards longer then the NFL record for longest field goal ever made), Seattle decided to try a Hail Mary pass with their final play. Wilson heaved the ball into the end zone, but Jones, who had been brought in as an extra defensive back, intercepted the pass to seal the victory.

Ryan finished 24/35 for 250 yards and three touchdowns, with two interceptions. Turner rushed for 98 yards. Rodgers rushed for 64 yards, and added 104 more on five kickoff returns. Wilson threw for 385 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 interception, while also rushing for 60 yards and another score. Miller was the top receiver of the game with 8 receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown, while Tate added 6 catches for 103 and 1 TD. Wagner had 8 tackles and 1 pick.

Now for the final game of the weekend. The first three games had all been exciting, tight games. However the final game wasn't able to keep up the intensity level of the first three games. The last game Sunday was the Houston Texans and the New England Patriots from New England. In week 14 of the regular season, New England defeated Houtson 42-14. This time around, the Texans managed to keep the score tighter, but the final result didn't change. New England quarterback Tom Brady passed for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns as he led the team to their seventh AFC championship game in his 12 years as a starter. This was also his 17th postseason win, surpassing the NFL's all time record held by Joe Montana. However, the win did come with a price: Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, who suffered a season ending arm injury.

Houston started out with a huge burst of momentum when Danieal Manning returned the opening kickoff 94 yards to the New England 12-yard line. But a dropped pass by James Casey and an overthrown pass in the end zone forced them to settled for a 27-yard field goal from Shayne Graham. Later in the quarter, Brady completed 3 consecutive passes for 51 yards on a 65-yard drive on the way to a 1-yard touchdown run by Shane Vereen.

On their next drive, a 30-yard completion to Wes Welker, along with Vereen's 22-yard run and 12-yard reception, set up a 37-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski. Following a punt, Brady completed a 47-yard pass to Welker, moving the ball to the Texans 8-yard line. On the next play, he threw a touchdown pass to Vereen, making the score 17-3. On the ensuing kickoff, a 35-yard return by Manning and a 15-yard penalty against Gostkowski for a horse collar tackle gave Houston the ball at the Patriots 47-yard line. Arian Foster took the ball to the end zone from there with five consecutive running plays, the last a 1-yard touchdown run. Then after forcing a punt, quarterback Matt Schaub completed three passes for 25 yards in a span of just 22 game seconds, moving the ball to the Pats 37 where Graham made a 55-yard field goal as time expired in the half and cutting the score to 17-13.

However, New England dominated the second half with 21 unanswered points. On the first drive of the second half, Brady's 40-yard completion to tight end Aaron Hernandez set up Stevan Ridley's 8-yard touchdown run. Later in the quarter, Patriots linebacker Rob Ninkovich intercepted a pass and returned it to the 37-yard line. Ridley then rushed 4 times for 37 yards on a 63-yard drive that ended with Brady's 5-yard touchdown completion to Brandon Lloyd. Early in the fourth quarter, Houston failed to convert a fourth down and one on their own 33-yard line, and Brady threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Vereen on the next play.

Now trailing 38-13, Houston made one last comeback attempt. Manning's 65-yard kickoff return gave them the ball on the Pats 37-yard line, where they scored on a five play drive that ended with Schaub's 25-yard touchdown pass to receiver DeVier Posey. Then after a punt, they drove 79 yards, including a 24-yard catch by tight end Owen Daniels and scored on Schaubs 1-yard completion to Foster. On the next play, he completed a 2-point conversion pass to Andre Johnson, making the score 38-28 with 5:11 left in the game. But New England ended their comeback chances when Ninkovich recovered their onside kick attempt, leading to Gostkowski's 38-yard field goal to put the game away.

Vereen finished with 124 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns. Welker caught 8 passes for 131 yards For the Texans, Schaub threw for 352 yards and two touchdowns, with 1 interception. Foster rushed for 90 yards, caught 7 passes for 63 yards, and scored two touchdowns. Johnson caught 8 passes for 95 yards.


So there you have it, a very long but full recap of the Divisional round of the NFL playoffs. Check back here later on this week for a preview of the NFC and AFC Championship games!