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Post by achebeautiful on May 28, 2006 11:16:14 GMT -5
I wonder if these games will be televised here. I couldn't watch any of the series against Anaheim because they weren't on here. Being the finals, I sure hope they are!
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Post by ocelot on May 31, 2006 17:22:37 GMT -5
Oilers skip town for alone time in advance of Stanley Cup final
31 May, 6:08 PM
EDMONTON (CP) - The Edmonton Oilers are looking to slip into a place called Tarrytown hoping nobody knows their names.
Needing a break from the fishbowl that the Alberta capital has become, Edmonton leaves Thursday morning for a suburban practice facility 35 kilometres north of New York City used by the NHL Rangers for two days of workouts.
"There are a lot of distractions here with the players and their families," Oilers coach Craig MacTavish said Wednesday after a vigorous hour-long skate, Edmonton's first hard drilling since winning the Western Conference in Anaheim on Saturday.
"We don't want to get stale in any one place."
Edmonton, just four victories away from its first NHL championship in 16 years, needs some alone time.
"It's a great idea for us to get away," said goaltender Dwayne Roloson, who leads the league with 12 playoff wins but is sick of hearing how he is a hero with the most important stretch of the season still hanging in the warm spring air.
"It's nice for us to be here and enjoy the surroundings with the fans but realistically we have a job to do."
The Oilers have maybe gained too many new friends since being crowned champions of the west. Requests for interviews, autographs, appearances and tickets have been pouring in as people have rallied behind the team.
The athletes are simply being pulled everywhere but the rink.
"Get away from the mania that is here," said defenceman Chris Pronger, tied for the team lead with 17 playoff points ahead of his first league final. "It will help us concentrate on the task at hand."
MacTavish said getting caught up in the hype and not closing the deal by winning the Stanley Cup will mean ultimate disappointment for the eighth-seeded club.
"We are in this situation because these players are outplaying the players that they are playing against," said MacTavish. "We don't want to forget how difficult it is to have success."
The Oilers will have had eight days off - their longest break since the Olympics in February - before opening the Stanley Cup final in either Buffalo or Carolina on Monday night.
"Now it's time to get back to work," said captain Jason Smith. "We are going to use these next few days to make sure we are mentally ready."
By leaving early the team will adjust to a two-hour time change and can also get used to the humid air and skate-stifling slush that passes as late-spring ice.
"We know the buildings are going to be warm," said Smith. "This will give us time to adjust."
Pronger said he'd rather get used to the challenges of playing slush hockey with the team in solitude than stay on Edmonton's better ice basking in the glory of the team's Western Conference title win.
"That extra second it takes to settle the puck, you are going to have a guy on you," Pronger said.
Notes: Dora the Explorer strikes again. After the Ottawa Senators had to reschedule a second-round home playoff date with Buffalo because of a concert by the popular children's entertainer at ScotiaBank Place, Edmonton Northlands has a similar dilemma with a concert and possible Game 6 of the Cup final scheduled for Rexall Place on June 17. A Northlands spoksperson said a solution is in the works . . . Oilers left-winger Ales Hemsky was absent from practice getting a biopsy done on a throat lymph node that is said to not be serious.
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Post by achebeautiful on May 31, 2006 17:42:43 GMT -5
I have to thank you Leona for renewing my interest in hockey. I'm really looking forward to the Stanley Cup Finals! And you can bet I will be rooting for Edmonton!
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Post by ocelot on Jun 7, 2006 14:51:53 GMT -5
EDMONTON (CP) - As the Edmonton Oilers and their loyal fans struggle to come to grips with the loss of standout netminder Dwayne Roloson, they can look to history for inspiration that backup goaltenders can get the job done when it counts.
Andy Moog replaced injured starter Grant Fuhr after Game 3 of the 1984 Stanley Cup final, and helped the Oilers get the final two victories they needed against the New York Islanders to secure the team's first championship.
Six years later, it was Bill Ranford who stepped in for Fuhr at the start of Edmonton's playoff run. He ended up earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the team won its fifth and last Stanley Cup.
Ranford is sympathetic to the situation backups Ty Conklin and Jussi Markkanen now find themselves in.
He says the biggest challenge will be shedding the rust that has built up after not playing for several months. "Every way you look at it, it's a tough thing they're dealing with," Ranford said in an interview from his home in New Westminster, B.C.
"There's pressure, but realistically no one is expecting a lot from either guy because of the situation. You just have to go back and think about what you did to be successful when you did play and find your game - and find it quickly."
Oilers head coach Craig MacTavish refused Tuesday to divulge his choice for Wednesday's Game 2 of the Stanley Cup final.
Either way he made it clear he won't revisit Conklin and Markkanen's earlier struggles from the regular season.
"They're coming in with a clean slate whoever it is," MacTavish told a news conference.
Ranford said he doesn't believe Roloson's injury - a strained knee ligament and hyperextended elbow - will sap the team's morale given the Oilers have already made it to the big show after barely clinching a playoff berth on the second-last day of the regular season.
Like this year, the team's 1990 successful playoff run was also somewhat of a surprise to the city, which had not planned a victory parade for the Oilers, unlike the four previous finals.
But this time around, Edmonton has been bursting with believers confident the 16-year championship drought is about to end.
Roloson has been instrumental in the team's post-season success. After Conklin, Michael Morrison and Markkanen struggled in net, Edmonton acquired Roloson on March 8 from Minnesota for a first-round draft choice and a conditional pick.
Roloson allowed 13 goals in losing his first three games with the Oilers but dramatically improved when it counted.
Oddly enough, Roloson himself has been where either Conklin and Markkanen could be asked to go - although not in the Cup final.
As a Buffalo Sabre, Roloson took over from Dominik Hasek for the first two games of the Eastern Conference final in 1999, chalking up a win and a loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs before Hasek returned for Game 3.
Ray Turchansky, author of the book Edmonton Oilers Hockey Club: Celebrating 25 Years in the Heartland of Hockey, said the loss of a hot goaltender can mean two things for his teammates.
They usually either throw up their hands and realize they're faced with an almost impossible task, or they "suck it up" and work that much harder.
"This will kind of be a real test of the old intestinal fortitude of these guys," said Turchansky, a former sports reporter with the Edmonton Journal.
"That will be a sign of their maturity, to see if they fold or if in fact they just get more gritty."
Turchansky said it will fall to players such as veteran defenceman Chris Pronger and star winger Ryan Smyth to be leaders and help the team focus on winning.
As for Ranford, he admits his loyalties are somewhat divided, since he has former teammates on both the Oilers and Hurricanes squads.
But he added it would be nice for Edmonton's 16-year drought to end - and he's not giving up hope.
"You still have that soft spot as an Oiler," said Ranford. "It's only Game 1. There's a lot of hockey left and they've been resilient throughout so I don't think this will be any different."
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Post by ocelot on Jun 7, 2006 14:56:49 GMT -5
Oilers Look to Rebound In Game Two
RALEIGH, North Carolina (Ticker) - Rod Brind'Amour and the Carolina Hurricanes pounced on an opportunity when it was revealed to them in the opener of the Stanley Cup Finals. Game Two also should bring great chances.
Brind'Amour and the Hurricanes will try to take advantage of the absence of goaltender Dwayne Roloson when they look to open up a two-game edge over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.
Making their first appearance in the Stanley Cup since 1990, the Oilers had everything going their way in Game One after taking a 3-0 late in the second period. However, the Hurricanes scored four straight goals to take the lead and Roloson, who had nearly carried the Oilers through the postseason, suffered a strained right MCL with 5:54 remaining. He will miss the rest of the series.
Forced to turn to unheralded replacement Ty Conklin, the move proved disastrous for Edmonton, as Conklin committed a pivotal turnover that allowed Brind'Amour to score the game-winner with 32 seconds left.
Now the Oilers must pick up the pieces even though coach Craig MacTavish has yet to select a starting goaltender. He will have to decide between Conklin or Jussi Markkanen, and neither had appeared in a game since April 17 when the series started. "There's been a pretty big stage built for this team to answer the bell, play very well and win the Stanley Cup," said MacTavish, who spent a considerable amount of Tuesday's practice working with his goalies.
Despite its limited choices, Edmonton can take solace that both Conklin and Markkanen were part of a trio of goaltenders that it used over the first five months of the season until Roloson was acquired in March.
"They have three good goalies on their team, the last time I checked," Hurricanes center Doug Weight added. "Ty is a good player and Markkanen has proven he can play in this league."
As far as the Hurricanes are concerned, they insist that the opposing goaltender does not impact their game plan and that they know they need to play better regardless.
"It's not going to change how we play," said Carolina right wing Ray Whitney, who scored twice in the series-opening 5-4 triumph. "We've always been a team that focuses on how we play, on the outcome, not the other team."
However, Carolina doubtless is pleased it once again will be playing in front of its rabid fans at the RBC Center. The Hurricanes have won their last four home games in the postseason, including Game Seven of the Eastern Conference finals against Buffalo, and are 8-3 here overall.
Game Three is scheduled for Saturday at Edmonton.
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 7, 2006 18:36:03 GMT -5
Well, the Oilers are down and out, being one game behind and without their star goalie.
But........they have already enjoyed a dream season making it to the Cup finals as an 8th seed.
Are there more dreams and miracles to come?
Let's hope!
GO OILERS!!!!
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 7, 2006 21:43:46 GMT -5
it's a long shot now for sure......just have to keep hoping!
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Post by ocelot on Jun 7, 2006 21:59:50 GMT -5
They played terrible. But they came back from a 2-0 series deficent against San Jose so hopefully they can do it again.
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 7, 2006 22:18:02 GMT -5
Carolina looks poised.....but of course they were at home. I hope things can swing the other way.
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 10, 2006 12:16:59 GMT -5
Oooh! Good luck tonight Leona! I hope the Oilers can bounce back with a victory! I'll be watching and rooting for them all the way!
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 10, 2006 21:54:56 GMT -5
Very inspiring hockey!
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Post by ocelot on Jun 10, 2006 22:05:27 GMT -5
Smyth's Heroics Get Edmonton Back in Series
EDMONTON (CP) - Ryan Smyth scored with just over two minutes left in the third period to lift the Edmonton Oilers to a 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes and get them back into the Stanley Cup final.
The win cuts the Hurricanes lead to two games to one in the best-of-seven NHL final series. Game 4 goes Monday at Rexall Place.
Smyth scored his sixth of the playoffs after linemate Ales Hemsky fired the puck at Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward. Smyth flew into Ward and managed to bang in the rebound past Ward's right pad as the 16,839 fans at Rexall Place roared in thunderous delight.
Shawn Horcoff also scored for the Oilers while Rod Brind'Amour replied for Carolina.
Markkanen was called upon to make a number of spectacular saves. The 31-year-old Finn turned aside a Justin Williams breakaway in the first period and early in the third, stopped Matt Cullen on a goal-mouth rebound while sitting on his butt.
He was making his second career playoff start and had not played in over three months when he was called upon for Game 2 after Oiler starter Dwayne Roloson tore up his knee in a collision late in Game 1.
He got some help from the crowd, who chanted ``Jussi! Jussi!'' just as they did for Roloson in the playoffs.
Horcoff scored the Oilers first goal less than three minutes into the game.
He fought off defenceman Bret Hedican in front of the net to tip a Jaroslav Spacek slapshot through Ward's legs. It was the first goal in eight games for the Oilers's first-line centre.
After the two teams traded scoring chances in the second period, Brind'Amour notched his league-leading 12th goal of the playoffs midway through the third.
The Hurricane captain took a pass from the corner from Cory Stillman and shot at the net. After it bounced of an Oiler, Brind'Amour took his own rebound and wristed the puck past Markkanen on the stick side.
The Oilers finally found a way to get to Ward. The 22-year-old, who is from nearby Sherwood Park, had stymied the Oilers for the previous four periods and shut them out completely in Game 2.
His playoff record fell to six wins and 13 losses.
The Oilers also doused the Cane's red-hot power play, which had been firing at better than 25 per cent in the first two games.
The Oilers got the crowd revved up when they showed ex-Oilers, including Mark Messier, in the crowd and played scenes of Stanley Cup victories past on the JumboTron.
Messier received a standing ovation.
The Oilers, trying to become the first eighth-seeded playoff team to win the cup, are counting on history repeating itself this spring.
After losing the first two games on the road to the San Jose Sharks in the second round, they roared back to win four straight and take the series.
It was a tough start.
The Oilers outplayed Carolina for most of Game 1. They led 3-0 late in the second period when the Hurricanes roared back to beat them 5-4.
Markkanen played well in Game 2 but the Oilers came out flat, took undisciplined penalties and were given their worst drubbing of the playoffs, a 5-0 loss.
Notes: Winger Cory Stillman extended his consecutive point streak to 11 games ... Oiler defenceman Marc-Andre Bergeron was scratched from the Oilers lineup. Bergeron had a rough start to the final. He was part of the collision that sent Roloson to the sidelines in Game 1 and had the game-winning goal bounce in off his skate in Game 2 ... The Oilers are now 7-2 at home in the playoffs ... Hurricane centre Doug Weight, a former Oiler captain who played nine seasons with the copper and blue, was soundly booed whenever he touched the puck and mocked with chants of ``Dougie! Dougie! when he took a first-period penalty for interference. That's not unusual treatment for Weight, who was popular in Edmonton but has been jeered in every return trip since he was traded to St. Louis in 2001 ... For the third straight home game, anthem singer Paul Lorieau simply held up the microphone and let the crowd belt out O Canada ... Some Grade A Alberta beef was tossed at the feet of the Hurricanes during the anthem in what has become a playoff tradition this spring at Rexall ... Carolina GM Jim Rutherford arrived late in Edmonton this week after having to get off the 'Canes charter plane to be treated in hospital for a kidney stone ... Saturday was the ninth consecutive playoff sellout at Rexall ... Cam Ward is among four Alberta boys in the Carolina lineup. Mike Commodore and Ray Whitney are from nearby Fort Saskatchewan and Glen Wesley is from Red Deer.
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 10, 2006 22:14:31 GMT -5
I thought the second period goaltending was nothing less than spectacular! It's an effort like that that can inspire a team to dig deeper and emerge victorious!
It was a very exciting game, and I am glad that Edmonton won! I'm very happy for you, Leona!
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Post by S.C. on Jun 10, 2006 22:29:50 GMT -5
Congrats Leona!
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Post by achebeautiful on Jun 12, 2006 16:28:47 GMT -5
Well, before we head into tonight's very important fourth game of the Finals, I have to get something off my chest.
It concerns this modern trend of 'controversial' and 'disputed' games. I'm getting very sick and tired of the fact that it's becoming way too common in the sports world for every game to be in question.
Let me give those of you who are sports fans this advise:
Live with the decisions that are made in the game!
No game in any sport is ever decided by one singular moment. There is a period of time that each team has to come out victorious. The teams that capitalize on those opportunities win, it's that simple.
Concerning Saturday's game, Edmonton played winning hockey throughout the entire game. In my opinion, it was their's to lose. But they fought hard until the very end and came out on top. Nothing to question, nothing in dispute.
Please, please, please......let's not turn sports into politics, where there is always room for a point and counterpoint.
As the announcer said, this series won't be decided until one team wins on the other team's home ice.
Let's hope the home team wins again tonight!
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