Nabokov key to Sharks' Stanley Cup hopes...

Rewind back to May of 2006 and Evegeni Nabokov's story is completely different from now.

After a few sensational starts in the first half of the season, Evgeni Nabokov's play began to physically deteriorate.
At the all-star break, he boasted mediocre numbers for a goalie of his calibre...his .892 SPCT% and 2.95 goals-against average were HUGE dissapointments.

Lucky for the Sharks, they had a guy named Vesa Toskala to save the season.

His pre all-star game numbers were even shakier than Nabokov's, his inconsistent play cost his dearly in the numbers category.
A glaring .883 SPCT% and 3.12 GAA kept him on the bench.

However, he turned it around in the second half, his strong play netted him the no. 1 job down the playoff stretch and heading into the 2006-2007 season.
He proved to be durable and reliable, starting the 19 of the team's 26 games down the stretch and posted awesome numbers.

Toskala won over fans' hearts, heck he won over mine too.

Evgeni Nabokov shouldn't have been happy, but he was after signing a five-year $25 million deal, just as Vesa Toskala stole the starting job from him.

Injuries and inconsistency led to the Russian-born goaltender's worst season ever, he finished off with a 16-19-7 record, hardly spectacular, to go along with a 3.10 GAA and .885 SPCT.

The Sharks ended up being eliminated by the fairy-tale Oilers in the Western Conference semi-finals but Toskala was not to blame.

Trade rumours dogged Nabokov entering the new campaign, a report here, a report there...there was even a rumour he was to be dealt to the Bruins in November.
Wilson was doing everything he could to get rid of the hefty salary that was dragging down his team's free cap space.

WAIT!

Vesa Toskala started well but not well enough to hold onto the no.1 job.
He was VERY streaky and never seemed to be able to post consistent numbers game-in-and game out like he did in the second stanza of the previous season.


Evgeni Nabokov meanwhile, waited patiently.

The wait paid off for Nabby, Toskala went down with an injury and in he came.
And when Toskala returned, he did not show the same spunk he had earlier in the season.

Ever since he's taken over the no. 1 job, Nabokov's put up a spectacular show for Sharks fans...

He's been consistent all year long, that was something that hurt him last season, and his 2.25 GAA and .914 SPCT clearly show it.

He also has 7 shutouts, 4 of which he posted in the second half.

I recently asked Sharks fans a question...who should start in the playoffs?

Sure Nabokov is looking like Brodeur now, but you can't forget about Toskala.
Despite the fact he went down with an injury, he's been able to keep up respectable numbers...

The answer was unanimous.

Sharks fans agree...Evgeni Nabokov is the number one guy, he's hot right now and you play him.
Ehh ehh! No buts!

Nabokov is playing awesome now and that's what your team would love to have, heading into the Stanley Cup playoffs, a hot, confident goalie.

And should Nabokov fail, Toskala's always there to help.

It would be sad, however, to see him fall like that after a great season...

Heard from the Rafters

News and Notes:

- Lindy Ruff was quoted yesterday on WGR 550 saying that when Max Afinigenov, Ales Kotalik and Tim Connolly return they will not automatically supplant anyone from the team's top three lines. He stated that he will not break up the Briere or Roy lines and that Danius Zubrus and Chris Drury had developed a nice chemistry he was loathe to mess with. He then stated that the three could likely form a 4th line.

- The Sabres, in the midst of a 5-game unbeaten streak, face the Leafs in back-to-back games this weekend. They maintain a 5 point lead on Ottawa for first in the conference with two games in hand on the Senators. If the Sabres sweep the weekend set it appears likely they will all but seal up 1st overall in the Eastern Conference.

- On a side note, Leafs defenseman Thomas Kaberle is expected to play tonight for the Leafs. It will be his first game since being hit from the blindside in New Jersey.

- Ryan Miller has appeared noticeably sharper in the last two games. It is expected he will play both games this weekend.

- Danny Briere scored his 30th goal of the season Wednesday night against the Capitals. He marked the 4th Sabre to reach the 30 goal plateau. The others are Chris Drury, Thomas Vanek and Jason Pominville.

On the Injury Front:

Dan Paille - Lindy Ruff is quoted as saying Paille needs to get a few conditioning practices in prior to his return. It is expected he will be available by midweek.

Toni Lydman - Skated with the team Thursday. He appears to be about a week away from returning his upper body injury which many believe was a concussion.

Ales Kotalik - He is also skating with the team and could be a week away.

Max Afinigenov - No definitive timetable has been announced but appears he could return for the last few games of the regular season.

Tim Connolly - Has begun skating with the team. Lindy Ruff appears hopeful for a return about the same time as Afinigenov but has been unwilling to set a time frame.

Habs to get Huet back soon?

Goalie Cristobal Huet, still recovering from hamstring surgery, practised for about 40 minutes with goaltending coach Roland Melanson and strength and conditioning co-ordinator Scott Livingston, and took shots from both Tomas Plekanec and Steve Bégin. He then was on the ice for about 15 minutes with the entire team, which very pleasantly surprised head coach Guy Carbonneau.

Great news for Habs fans!

I expect him to be back next week, when the Habs will need him most...

Matthew has more about the Canadiens above...

Canes' Cam Ward Out Indefinitely....oh just kidding, really only a week!

That's right folks, so adjust your fantasy teams accordingly.

In yet another blow to the Canes attempt at defending their Stanley Cup Championship, Cam Ward is going to have to take a little break.

In yesterday afternoon's 2-1 shoot out loss to the Rangers, Cam Ward was injured during the 2nd period. Who injured him? None other than Brad 'I wasn't good enough to make the Canes" Isbister. Isbister displayed those same great skating skills that he showed off during the Canes training camp, sliding feet first into the crease, directly hitting Cam Ward's knee. The result was 11 stitches and more despair for the Hurricanes team and the fans.

"It's right on the top of the knee, so if I bend my leg, the stitches would probably come right out," Ward said.

Ouch. Along with the fact that he can't bend the knee - playing with a cut that deep you run the risk of infection. Remember Jay McKee? The latest reports have him as being out "indefinitely", but with a cut like that, right above the knee I can't see him returning anytime soon. Cam Ward said the cut was so deep, he could see the muscle.

So, who is going to be manning the pipes for the Canes now?

John Grahame.

Ok, you can stop laughing. Grahame has been pretty stellar for the Canes this season and I have faith in him that he can continue that play. This is his time to shine. The most likely call up to warm the bench is Justin Peters. The Canes other decent goaltender prospect, Craig Kowalski, is playing in the ECHL and is a huge part of his teams great performance this year. I doubt they will recall him when his team is in first place just to have him ride the pine.

This is just another disappointing blow to the Canes already injury riddled roster.

UPDATE:

Cam Ward is only going to be out "until he can have his stitches removed". Craig Kowalski has in fact been stolen away from his #1 team (a team he has been a huge part of) to sit on the bench until Ward can return in just 5-7 days. I'll believe it when I see it. I can't imagine what a cut like that would do to goaltenders dexterity, especially a butterfly goaltender like Wardo.

CG12

Catchin' up with the Canes....

The Hurricanes are currently on a not so well deserved 2 days of vacation. Practice doesn't pick back up for them until Wednesday, where Laviolette has stated they will be focusing on the PP and the PK mostly. Really Lavs, ya think?

While the Canes PK has been stellar (killing off 25 straight PK's), the PP has really left something to be desired. Scoring one goal out of 35 attempts is really....well, bad.
Unfortunately, its not just scoring on the PP that is really causing the Canes to struggle. It's never good when your top 2 lines are in something of a scoring drought to begin with.

The injury front isn't getting much better either.
Erik Cole was originally expected to be out for only 2-4 weeks after tearing his hip muscle during a pre-game skate. He has already missed 6 games and he isn't expected to be back any time soon.
Ray Whitney is nursing a nagging ankle injury which caused him to miss the game in Atlanta on Sunday. Rod Brind'Amour is also trying to kill the aches and pains (and after the Laraque hit on Friday, most pains) and injuries he has been battling with all season. Bret Hedican is also trying to heal a nagging injury (after an already injury filled season) to his "lower body".

On other Bret Hedican news, the rumour in Raleigh is that Hedican is thinking about hanging them up at the end of the season. He has had an extremely bad year with injuries, surgeries and aches and pains that just won't go away.

To help replace Bret Hedican, Anton Babchuk has been recalled from Albany.
After a bit of a temper tantrum when he was sent down and some time to "think it over", he will be back for Friday's game against Washington.
Babs has posted 1 goal and 6 assists in 9 games with Albany.

There won't be any trips to Vegas, quick vacations down to Florida or any of the like for the Canes during these 4 days off.
The guys are just relaxing and resting for two days, focusing on the huge 14 games coming up.

CG12