#8

Biscuits and Breezers

                        Welcome back to another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! In this episode, we will be talking about the Washington vs. New York series and the IIHF World Hockey Leagues. Starting with the Washington vs. New York series. This series has DEFINTELY taken a turn for the unexpected. With the Capitals winning Game 6 2-1, the series ending Game 7 will take place at Madison Square Gardens this week. The Caps are definitely trying to win this thing. Braden Holtby definitely played his best with a save percentage of .968 and made 30 saves! Great job Braden! Having two-time NHL MVP Alexander Ovechkin and playoff rookie goalie Braden Holtby on the same team really proves that a team is very complex and if you work hard enough can accomplish anything. The Caps had one goal in the first period at 1:28 by Russian left winger and Captain Alex Ovechkin as power play goal assisted by probably, in my case, the best players on the Caps Swedish center Nicklas Backstrom and Canadian defenseman Mike Green, then Washington had a goal in the second period from Canadian left winger Jason Chimera at 10:59 assisted by Swedish center Nicklas Backstrom and American defenseman John Carlson. Then in the third period, the Rangers got one goal past Holtby from Czechoslovakian right winger Marain Gaborik at 19:09 in the third period assisted by Canadian defenseman Daniel Girardi and American center Derek Stepan.  In the tie breaking game #7 we will really see who is top dog between the Rangers and the Capitals. Between Ovechkin and Callahan. Good luck to both teams and we will see who wins the next chance to win the Stanley Cup.

Next off, we have the IIHF world hockey Championships. These tournaments being held in Finland and Sweden will decide the seeding for the men’s Olympic ice hockey tournament for the 2014 winter Olympics. The tournament is from May 4-20 and there are 16 teams, eight on team Finland, and eight on team Sweden. Many NHL players are involved with their countries during this. The Lead scorers currently are Evgeni Malkin for Russia, Loui Eriksson for Sweden, and Max Pacioretty for U.S.A. Finland and Sweden will co-host both the 2012 and 2013 world championships. They are being played at the Hartwall Areena in Helsinki and the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm. Group A preliminary and quarterfinals will be played in the Hartwall Areena and the Group B preliminary and quarterfinals will be played in the Ericsson Globe. All semifinal and medal games will be played in the Hartwall Areena. The countries competing in the world Championships are Kazakhstan, Belarus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, and the U.S.A. The countries in Group H (Helsinki) are Finland, Canada, U.S.A, Slovakia, Switzerland, Belarus, France, and Kazakhstan. Finland Is currently winning with 4 games won in 4 games played, Canada is second with 3 in 4, and the U.S.A is third with 2 in 4. In Group S (Sweden) the countries are Sweden, Russia, Czech Republic, Latvia, Norway, Germany, Italy, and Denmark. Sweden and Russia are tied with 4 in 4, and the Czech Republic in third with 2 in 4. There are some MAJOR rivalries going on during this tournament especially with Canada-Switzerland and Germany-Russia. As a hockey fanatic, I love nothing more than a heated rivalry. We shall see how these competitions go. Good luck to all of you and way to represent your countries!

Next, we move onto the “Players of Today”. Today for the European player and prospect player is Frolunda J18, J20 Allsvenskan SuperElit player Sebastian Collberg. The goalie pick for this week is NHL prospect and Brynas J18, J20 SuperElit Allsvenskan goalie Oscar Dansk. Then for the NHL pick of the week we have Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang.

Starting off with the European pick. Sebastian is 5 ft. 11in, 174 lbs, and is from Mariestad, Sweden. Collberg is a right/left wing that is signed through 2012-2013 with Frolunda He is playing for the Frolunda J18, J20 Allsvenskan SuperElit. He is expected to get drafted to the Dallas Stars. Sebastian has 9 goals in 21 games played, 8 assists, 17 TPs, and 18 PIMs. When he played for the Sweden U18 WJC-18 team, he was alternate captain and had 4 goals in 6 games played, 5 assists, 9 TPs, and 14 PIMs. Sebastian is very skilled and is a great skater. He isn’t afraid to go into the real chippy areas and has great wheels. Collberg will check defenseman no matter and can go solo at times when needed. He has a great wrist shot and can really release at the right moment. Good luck Sebastian with your future hockey career and with the NHL! You’re doing great!

Next off, we have the goalie pick. Oscar is 6ft. 2in, 187lbs, and is from Stockholm, Sweden Oscar has played on the Shattuck-St. Mary’s Midget hockey team and U16 team, Sweden U16, U17, U18, J18,J20, and Brynas teams. For the 2011-2012 has 28 games played, a 2.82 GAA, and a save percentage of .910. His highest save percentage was .947. He has really good on ice vision and can really make those saves that really benefits the team. Good job Oscar and keep up with the good work!

Lastly, we have the NHL pick. For our pick today we have Kris Letang of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He is 6ft. 0 in, 201 lbs, and is from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Kris is a defenseman, who played for the College Antoine-Girouard-QAAA, Val-D’or Foreurs-QMJHL, Canada-WJC-A., and the Wilkes-Penguins. His nickname is Tanger. In 51 games played he has 10 goals, 32 assists, 42 TPs, a +/- of 21, 34 PIMs, 4 power play goals, 1 shorthanded goal, 3 game winning goals, 142 shots on goal, S% of 7.0. Kris is a great defenseman who is constantly following the puck and will chase it down no matter what it takes. He is a great player who can hold his own and will put forth an amazing amount of effort towards winning and his team mates. Good luck with the Pens and with your future hockey career Kris! You are amazing and so is the entire Pens team!

Thanks for reading another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! Every blog will have updated hockey news, player reviews, and much more! Until next time, don’t get your breezers in a bunch because hockey is just around the corner. Also remember it is always a great day for hockey and it is a lifestyle not just a sport!