Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 4.28

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Even now, over a week after the infamous “celebration” of Alex Ovechkin following his fiftieth goal of the season, the debate regarding that celebration rages on. Just ridiculous it is that something so small and insignificant has forced such an outcry from people on both sides of the argument so as we are apt to do here on A Foot In The Crease, here is the correct opinion.

Alex Ovechkin scored fifty goals. He is by far the most dynamic, electrifying player in the game. In just four years in the NHL, three times he has surpassed the fifty goal plateau including one season of sixty five. The other season, he finished with a paltry forty six. He has personality, presence and a passion for the game that is unparalleled with any other player. Not only is he one of the top scorers in the game but he checks with the force of the freight train. Best of all, Ovechkin is low-maintenance. He simply goes out, dominates, and goes home. When you boil it all down, quite frankly yes, he and his stick are hot.

Ovechkin came into the league with Sidney Crosby and since then, the two have continuously been compared. At this point, I think it is as clear as it has ever been when you think which player you’d want to build a team around. For me, it’s Ovechkin, hands down. In fact, it’s not even a close call.

If anything, the NHL needs attention and Ovechkin is the perfect player to attract that attention. His celebration was not disrespectful, he didn’t skate out to centre ice and do it on the Lightning’s logo, he wasn’t in the face of his opponents. He was just purely happy that once again he reached a very impressive milestone while realizing the rest of the league is nowhere close to catching up to him. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.

Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 4.27

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Three months ago when Marty Brodeur and Roberto Luongo were out with serious injuries that left the extent of their recovery somewhat unknown and Marty Turco was going through one of the toughest stretches of his career, people were suggesting how lucky Canada was that the Olympics were in February 2010 and not this past February with the top three goaltending candidates out of commission.

Now fast forward three months, Martin Brodeur is once again at the top of the goaltending heap after breaking Patrick Roy’s record for all time wins and seemingly regaining his previous form, Roberto Luongo and his Vancouver Canucks are coming off ten straight home wins, Marty Turco and his Dallas Stars are in the midst of a resurgence that has seen them play themselves back into the playoff picture and all of a sudden rookie goaltender Steve Mason has played himself into the debate with a 29-17-3 record with a 2.25 goals against average, a .918 save percentage and nine shutouts.

Today many of those same people who expressed such relief the Olympics were a year away are now wishing they started tomorrow. If by the end of 2009 the current goaltending situation remains the same, Team Canada Executive Director Steve Yzerman and his staff are going to have a very difficult, albeit pleasant decision on their hands.

Brodeur should be the go to guy over Luongo because of his past Olympic success, his ability to still stop the puck as well as anybody and Luongo’s puck handling which actually may be worse than Curtis Joseph’s. However if Steve Mason shows he is not just a flash in the pan (think Carey Price for the time being, not that he won’t eventually find his form again), he should earn serious consideration for the third spot because he could quite likely be the goaltender to whom the torch is passed when Brodeur and Luongo call it a career. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.

Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 4.26

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With about a month remaining until the end of the 2008 / 2009 NHL regular season, it’s proving to be harder than it’s been in recent memory to start projecting which teams are likely to have playoff success because quite frankly, we don’t know which teams are going to be in the playoffs for the most part yet. Right now the NHL is experiencing great parity in both conferences – certainly a good thing to hold interest down the stretch in the final month.

In the Western Conference, all but two teams – the Phoenix Coyotes and Colorado Avalanche – are still legitimately in the playoff picture. Seventh through thirteenth place is separated by just four points, perhaps a reason there was not as much selling of big names at the trade deadline as we’ve come to expect. There simply were not as many sellers as there have been in past years. Involved in that mix of seven teams are the seventh place Edmonton Oilers, twelfth place St. Louis Blues and the thirteenth place Los Angeles Kings, all no doubt ready to slide out of rebuilding mode and see what all the building they’ve done can do with the chips on the line in the playoffs. Unfortunately, the odds are low as only two of that pack of seven teams will likely make it to the big dance unless the sixth place Columbus Blue Jackets can be tracked down.

In the East, while fewer teams can entertain playoff hopes, higher seeds are still available. Due to the recent slides of early season Stanley Cup picks, the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens, the gap between fifth and tenth place is only six points. With a win the eighth place Florida Panthers can jump all the way to fifth place and tie the Montreal Canadiens.

All of a sudden, games late in the regular season that may have seemed meaningless just a few weeks ago hold the potential for extreme impacts on the playoff picture in both the Eastern and Western Conference. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.