Scooter Chronicles

Watched a little bit of hockey last night. Not whole games, but good portions of a few.

Devils 4, Panthers 3
The Devils stopped their skid. Boy were they looking terrible. Martin Brodeur was looking nothing like the best goalie in the league. But they finally got things rolling. Of course they beat the Panthers, so it’s not like they beat much of anyone.

Devils’ Alexander Mogilny puts the winning goal behind Panthers’ goalie Roberto Luongo.

Roberto Luongo, Panther goalie, has been having a rough couple of games now. He may be heir to Brodeur’s throne soon. But he won’t get there playing in Ft. Lauderdale with the Cats. I think this team is overrated. The only thing they have going for themselves, other then Luongo, is coach Jacques Martin.

Habs 4, Bruins 3
From what I saw of this game, it was rather back and forth. The Habs are looking much better then I expected them to. Good to see. Been too long since they were a threat.

Habs’ Alexei Kovalev celebrates scoring the winning goal against the Bruins.

Meanwhile the Bruins continue to struggle. They had their chances over the last couple of seasons, but just haven’t seemed to be able to get over the hump. They are missing Joe Thornton right now. Thankfully for B’s fans, Nick Boynton is back.

Coyotes 4, Oilers 3 - OT
Two teams that might have potential. Not sure how Gretzky is going to be as a coach. He knows he has a lot to learn. But given his knowledge of the game, it might work out. At least the team is taking the chance now. If they had more potential to do some damage in the playoffs, then they would be better off with a coach that has experience. From the few minutes of the game I saw, the Coyotes were playing well in the first period.

Oilers Retire No. 7 for Coffey
Hall of Fame defenseman with the glory scoring days of the 80’s Oilers team, Paul Coffey became the fifth Edmonton Oiler to have his number retired (along with Gretzky, Fuhr, Kurri, and Al Hamilton). Coffey broke Bobby Orr’s record for goals in a season, scoring 48 in 1986. He was the quarterback of the team during three of their five Stanley Cups. You can read more about his overall career from an earlier POST of mine after his HHoF induction.

What I saw of the ceremony, it was pretty cool. Coffey was wearing the old Oilers’ sweater and the rest of the uniform from the 80’s. He did a lap around the ice waving to fans. Oilers’ GM and former teammate of Coffey’s, Kevin Lowe gave a nice speech. Then with “Fanfare for the Common Man” blaring and Coffey in tears, they raised his number to the rafters.

Bobby Orr is still considered the premiere defenseman the league has ever seen, using offensive skills as well as being a great blueliner. Paul Coffey took the offensive side so much further, and it was a key to the Oilers’ dynasty.

Salary Cap Woes
So the Flyers are already feeling the sting of the salary cap. They have lost two of their forwards to long injuries. Sami Kapanen to shoulder surgery and Turner Stevenson to hip surgery. That leaves them with only 12 forwards. But GM Bobby Clarke says they can’t call anyone up or get anyone to fill in, because it counts against the cap. Even a 5 day or 10 day contract. Gonna make it tough on teams that have a lot of injuries to see what kind of strategies GM’s use. (Obviously Clarke’s thinking is that it’s early in the season and wants to keep the cap room until they absolutely have to make a move.)