#27

Biscuits and Breezers

    Welcome back to another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! In this episode we will be talking about Alexander Semin (formerly) of the Washington Capitals signing with Carolina and Marc-Andre Fleury's Wedding! Starting off with Alexander Semin. Carolina will definitely be a playoff contender I think because the two Staal brothers are joined by one of the Washington Capitals top scorers Alexander Semin. Semin signed a 1 year $7 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. It appeared that Hurricanes have certainly been hunting the free agent market for potential NHL stars to sign. Well it was a swing and a miss in the chase after Zach Parise after he signed with the Minnesota Wild and another disappointment came when another potential signing ended after Columbus Blue Jackets star player Rick Nash decided to go to New York to play with the Rangers. It seems that the Hurricanes will continue to pursue players until the very end. In my opinion Carolina is going to rise to the top and show the rest of the league that they aren't going to be pushed around anymore and that they will rise above their rivals such as the Capitals and the Devils. I think the Canes are on a hot streak and will continue this until they reach the point that they won't be pushed around anymore. All the luck to them!

      The next thing we will talk about is very exciting and I think I hear wedding bells! Goaltender for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Marc-Andre Fleury, has gotten married over the week! The wedding took place at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal to long time girlfriend Véronique Larosée. The two have been dating since he was 15 years old when he came to Cape Brenton to play hockey. Including in the guests were his billets from Cape Brenton Bob and Angela Hawkins, their son Jeffery and daughter Janelle. His billet family from the year he left Quebec to play bantam hockey also attended. Including in the guest list were fellow team mates Sidney Crosby, James Neal, Kris Letang, Chris Kunitz, Max Talbot, Hal Gill, Jordan Staal, Pascal Dupuis, and Colby Armstrong. Some of the venues for the wedding was the Montreal Science Centre for a 5 course meal and a 45 minute firework show over the Port of Montreal during their reception. Max Talbot showed up in a bright red bow tie and matching shoes and Kris was accompanied by long time girlfriend Catherine Laflamme and who is speculated to be pregnant with a baby due in the fall! That is very exciting in its self! Best of luck to the both of you and congratulations on the marriage!

      From that exciting news, we will move onto the "Players of Today". For the goalie pick we have Oskarshamn and AIK Super Elit goaltender Niklas Lundstrom. For the NHL pick we have Carolina Hurricanes center Jeff Skinner. For the European pick we have Limhamn HC and IK Pantern J20 player Oscar Nyquist.

     Starting off with the European player! Oscar Nyquist is 6ft. 1in, 174lbs, and is from Malmo, Sweden. Now, I couldn't find any stats for the 2011-2012 season, but I did find some for the 2010-2011 season. So here they are. In the 2010-2011 season, Oscar had 2 goals in 16 games played, 6 assists, 8 TPs, and 14 PIMs playing for the Limhamn HC J18 team. Recently, news came up that Oscar will be making the transition from Sweden to North America to play for the Wilkes/Barre Scranton Knights of the AJHL in the 2012-2013 season. That is a big step in a young European hockey players career because it will get them used to North America and they will have a better chance to get noticed by potential scouts, a better chance to get into the NHL. Oscar is a very good defenseman on the ice playing the blue line very tight and has very keen eyes on the ice. He has quick skates and sharp, tuned skills. Good luck Oscar with the Knights and in your future hockey career!

    Next, we have the goalie. Niklas Lundstrom is 6ft. 2in, 190lbs, and is from Varmdo, Sweden. He was drafted round #5 132nd overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues. In the 2011-2012 season, Niklas had with the AIK J20 Super Elit team 31 games played, 2.52 goals against average, and a save percentage of .923. He is signed with the AIK Elitserien through the 2012-2013 season. Niklas has great butterflies techniques, glove saves, and five-hole coverage. He plays the net to his size and really extends to reach all corners of the net. Niklas is very good in the cage and very dependable. Good luck Niklas with the AIK and in your future hockey career!

    Lastly, we have the NHL player. Jeff Skinner is 5ft. 11ins, 193lbs, and is from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was drafted 1st round 7th overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes. Jeff has participated in the 2011 NHL All Stars team, played for the Toronto Young Nationals in the GTHL and the Kitchener Rangers in the OHL. In the 2011-2012 season, Jeff had 20 goals in 64 games played, 24 assists, 44 TPs, a +/- of -8, 56 PIMs, 4 power play goals, 0 shorthanded goals, 5 game winning goals, 210 shots on goal and a S% of 9.5. Jeff is a very good center on the ice because he knows exactly what to do on each shift and will get done what needs to get done. His skates are fast, hands soft, and skills sharp. Jeff really tries his hardest on each shift and proves to everyone why he should be out there. Good luck Jeff with Carolina and in your future NHL career!

   Thanks for reading another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! Every blog will be filled with updated hockey news, player reviews, and much more! Until next time remember don't get your breezers in a bunch because hockey is always around the corner! Remember, it's always a great a day for hockey and it's a lifestlye not just a sport!