Friday AA Preview

Blaine gave Edina a run for their money, and East (as I predicted, pat myself on the back) won in OT over White Bear. Game one tonight should be a darn good one as Edina takes on East. I wish I could come up with who will win and why, but I think this is going to be a tossup. I think Edina has another gear if they need it, they still seem a little lazy, so I will have to give the edge to them.

Ok I’m not spending a lot of time on these games, because they put me to sleep last night, almost literally. EP killed Lakeville, and don’t let the score fool you, Eagan beat down Moorhead.  I will admit Eagan looked a lot better than I saw in the section game, and they will make it a good game tonight. However, EP was by far the best team I saw yesterday, and I don’t think anyone will stop them this year.

Class AA Preview

Well……that was a pretty interesting day one of the State Hockey Tournament. We are here to give you a rundown of the first round of the AA tournament, and hopefully, if the tournament doesn’t wear us down, give you an article tomorrow on a recap of the day and a preview of the day to come.

Game 1: Blaine vs. Edina. I saw both of these section final games, and I know everyone is giddy about Edina, however one term comes to mind when I think of them in that game, LAZY.  Now I am going to chalk up the idea that it was one game, and probably not their best, against a good team.  However, I think that even if Edina comes out lazy again in this game it shouldn’t be too much of a problem as I really didn’t see much from Blaine. Yes I know they beat a good Maple Grove team to get here, but lack of size and speed just isn’t going to match up well against the Hornets. 5-2 EDINA.

Game 2: Duluth East vs. White Bear Lake.  Well…to we get sucked in again, do we believe that maybe the bears are going to get out of the first round, do we believe? The answer is no, but we HOPE so, so we can stop hearing about it. I haven’t seen East in a while, but I did watch WBL take down Hill and they looked pretty darn impressive.  However I am hearing great things about east, and it sounds like it may just be too much in the end for WBL. They could win, but I just don’t know, I will classify this as the game of the day. EAST 4-3 IN OVERTIME.

Game 3: Eden Prairie vs. Lakeville North………………I will probably be coming out of a food coma from dinner time during this game, good thing too. EP 9-Lakeville 1…maybe.

Game 4: Eagan vs. Moorhead. I saw Eagan in that section championship game. And they were meh, so so, just blandish.  So I don’t want to extend myself on a preview of this game, but I think it will be a good one, and a close one. AND in traditional Thursday night action, probably go to 2 OTs. Moorhead 3-2. Just a hunch.

See you at the games! Check back tomorrow for a recap of the day’s action and a full preview of Friday. 

How To Fix The NHL (Part 3)

Back again for Part 3 as the NHL's new commissioner. Here's a recap:
Part 1: Contract Phoenix & Florida
Part 2: Relocate Atlanta to Winnipeg & Carolina to Quebec

As important as it is to get rid of hockey in the south where people don't care much about it and return it to Canada and the passionate fans up there, it is equally important to keep rivalries intact and peak interest in the NHL. With the relocation comes the challenge of realigning the divisions to better reflect the geographic alignment of the league.

Realignment-
Much of the NHL and it's divisions will stay the same, but a few key moves will help to ignite more fan interest in a few areas. The Eastern Conference will see the biggest changes, especially the Southeast Division as 3 of the teams have changed locations or been eliminated. I'll go through each division individually and explain why teams should be placed there. 14 teams in each conference and 7 teams in 2 divisions.

Eastern Conference:
-Northeast Division
Boston
Montreal
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Ottawa
Quebec
Toronto

This could also be named the Canada Division. Or the Old Tyme Division. Or many other things that have to do with tradition. These are all teams that don't like each other and fan bases that despise people who cheer for another team. Canadians take pride in their city and their team, some of the rivalries up there are legendary. Boston and New York dislike each other with a passion. All cities are close to each other as well providing for a good fan following at away games. Every game in this division will have a playoff atmosphere.

-Atlantic Division
Buffalo
Columbus
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay
Washington

While there are a few teams that don't like each other in this division, it will be mostly made up of sprouting rivalries. It will be very competitive and provide for some exciting hockey. This division is currently made up of superstars on their respective teams and with a wide open feel, those players should prosper.

Western Conference:
-Central Division
Chicago
Colorado
Dallas
Detroit
Minnesota
Nashville
St. Louis

The main factor in this division is geography, but along with that comes rivalries from other sports as well. With Colorado being the only team outside of the Central Time Zone, fans won't have much of a problem catching their teams on TV when they are on the road. Most fans in these markets also travel well and will make their presence known on the road. There will be some great hockey played here.

-Pacific Division
Anaheim
Calgary
Edmonton
Los Angeles
San Jose
Vancouver
Winnipeg

As with the Central Division, the teams here will be mostly in the same time zone and this is a huge factor as the teams are spread out along the coast so travel won't be as prevalent. This doesn't mean the atmosphere at the games won't be any less spectacular. Three of the most passionate Canadian fan bases are in this division along with some very good California teams. Basically Canada vs California, teams won't be given any breaks by their fans and will be expected to compete every year.

Now that you are able to see where the teams will be and who they'll play the majority of their games against, there is only 1 part left in this series. Be sure to check back soon to see the finale.

Class A Preview

Alright, happy Wednesday everyone! Start of the state boy’s hockey tournament is today, and before our quick preview of the Class A tournament a few housekeeping items to address. First, the number of brackets we received was HUGE so thank you, however, very few of you have “liked” us on the facebook or registered to follow the blog, so those of you that have…..if your bracket gets obliterated stay tuned, you may still be eligible to win if anyone ahead of you isn’t following us. 

We were debating doing a huge write up on the tournament, but we decided to do a quick recap of the A games, and then a longer write up on the class AA games, which you can read tomorrow. There really was only one reason for this, its not that we don’t love class A, it’s just that we don’t know as much because we attended the majority of class AA section games.  So without delay, our recap of your brackets.

People’s champions: I will have to go and look back to be sure, but I am nearly positive only a few of you had an upset in the first round, which is craziness. Also, the majority of the chosen winners of class A were Hermantown, St. Thomas, and Breck…and of those three we had more people picking Hermantown to win it all than anyone else….again, craziness.  I think Hermantown is good, however, I don’t see them getting past a strong team out of Rochester in the semi finals. I also don’t believe you will see an upset in the first round, so I guess I am a little crazy too. The Friday day games(class A semi finals) look like they will be great ones, four 20+ win teams, Breck vs. St. Thomas equals an epic match up that could prove to be the best game of the whole class A tourney. In short, I believe the class A champion will come out of that game…..and while I believe that my bracket still has Rochester Lourdes winning it all, don’t ask, its just a hunch. 

Upset to look for: Thief River Falls is good, but good enough? I think they might be, I sense an OT game, possibly in Thief River Falls’s favor.

Check back tomorrow for a much more detailed game by game of the Class AA Tournament, and also, there’s some weather out there so wherever you are coming from, drive safe to the games!

The 2011 Minnesota Boy's High School Hockey Tournament Bracket Challenge




Enter your bracket for a chance to win 2011 tournament gear

 

Here at ThePlayer2BeNamedLater we wanted to do something special for the greatest, and largest, high school tournament in the country.  It’s where the heart and soul of American hockey lives for four full days of non-stop action, and this is your chance to prove you know the teams better than anyone else.   Details on how to get yourself entered can be found below, ALL ENTRIES NEED TO BE SUBMITTED BEFORE THE FIRST GAME ON WEDNESDAY.  Also, how many entries we get will depend on how many prizes will be given away SO INVITE FRIENDS, FAMILY, TEAMATES, and nail your bracket to win some 2011 Tournament Gear. 

How to enter the 2011 Bracket challenge:

-First, become a follower of the blog and/or ”like” us on FACEBOOK HERE. (Only entries that are following the blog or Facebook page will be eligible for prizes)
-Second, DOWNLOAD THE BRACKET HERE:http://www.mediafire.com/?zuse8q7kfg374zy
-Third, Save it, and Email your completed bracket to us at theplayer2benamedlater@gmail.com
That’s it! I will do my best to update a leader board throughout the tournament, but I do plan on attending most of the games, so I can’t make any promises.  One entry per person please

And keep up with the blog as we continue to try and keep track of a sports world thats lost its mind...

P.S. Your email will not be used for anything other than to inform you if you have received a prize, and will be disposed of after the tournament.