It's Not Easy Being on the Playoff Bubble

Have you noticed in the past few seasons that the race for the playoffs has been getting tighter and tighter? Friday night (March 19) was a good example.

Calgary faced off against San Jose, which pretty much has a lock on the playoffs, although the Flames handed the team its fifth consecutive loss. It won't take the Sharks out of the playoffs, but it doesn't do much for morale coming into the final stretch, unless things turn around.

Going into Friday's NHL games, there were seven points separating the Western Conference's ninth place team (Calgary) from the fifth place team (Colorado). Sixth and seventh were Los Angeles and Nashville. The Wings -- one point ahead of the Flames in the eight spot -- played the lowly Oilers, a team that could only act as spoilers (no rhyme intended) sitting dead last in the league's overall standings.

The Flames took care of business at their end. Many of the players were watching with interest at the score in Edmonton. The Oilers were up 2-1 at this point, and Mark Giordano uttered what would be some profound words.

"No lead is safe in this league. You see it every night. Definitely cheering for the Oilers."

The Oilers led the Wings through much of the game. Until two seconds remaining and Brian Rafalski tied the game, sucking the wind out of Rexall Place and Devan Dubnyk's first win of the season. That meant overtime and a point for Detroit. So much for Calgary sneaking ahead into that eighth spot.

At this time, Flames coach Brent Sutter came into the media lounge to address the reporters.

"You can't control anything outside of what we've got to do. There's no point in getting upset about it. We just have to worry about ourselves."

The Oilers won in a shootout, Devan Dubnyk received is first W, and going into Hockey Night Saturday, not much had changed in the Conference.

The standings will yo yo a bit until it comes down to the 82nd game. And regardless of the teams each has yet to play left in the schedule, no game can be considered a lock.

It's hard not to like. It's never the same teams that get in, and when a team does get in, anything can happen. 

That Elusive Eight Place in the NHL Conference Standings

It’s crunch time. April is looming and there are a number of National Hockey League teams teetering on the edge of a playoff spot. On any given night, one team gets in, another gets knocked out.

The conference races have been extremely tight the last couple of seasons – so tight, that the final lineup will come down to the last game.

In Alberta, there is the tale of two teams. The Edmonton Oilers couldn’t have had a worse season and is dead last in the league’s standings.

Enter defenseman Steve Staios. In a history-making trade between Edmonton and Calgary (these teams have never entered a direct transaction with each other before), Staios found himself looking down a very long and dark tunnel and is now right up to the edge of the opening with the light beaming in.

“Just a feeling of waking up, knowing you have a chance to play in the playoffs, it feels great. It’s been a long time since I felt that.”

Staios was surprised at how many familiar faces he saw in the Flames’ locker room – players he played with in World Championships and other teams. He observes the playing system is similar to Edmonton’s and feels like his comfort level is on the fast track – much needed for this time of year.

“It’s a great situation. I know from the outside, it’s unique. As a player, you don’t have control over a lot of things, but I can control the way I prepare and the way I play.”

Because every game counts at this point, it’s a difficult balance for the players to maneuver.

Eric Nystrom: “We obviously have to be confident. There’s no time to be tense. No fighting the puck. We’ve got to play like we’ve just won 10 in a row, when we’re feeling confident and the pucks are going in. When you’re playing like that, that’s when you feel great with the puck and you’re confident and making the right plays, as opposed to just getting rid of the puck.”

Staios adds: “They’re all like playoff games for us. If you start looking too far ahead, you can wear yourself out. You can’t look past the game in hand.”

Jarome Iginla reads and hears that a lot of people have already written his team off.

“Lots of teams are further out and don’t have a chance. Sometimes you get frustrated as a group when it doesn’t go in. You put your hands up. You have broken sticks with good chances. There’s no time to feel sorry for ourselves. If we’re getting five scoring chances, or seven in a period – we need eight.”

At this point in the season, even a single point from an overtime game can make or break a team’s chances for the post-season. And if any two players know about the anything-can-happen scenario once you make the playoffs, it’s Steve Staios and Jarome Iginla. In 2004, the Flames were a sixth place team that went to seven games in the Stanley Cup final. In 2006, the Oilers were the only eighth seeded team to ever play in a Cup final, and they, too, went to a seventh game.

Steak, Mutton, or Filet Mignon? – the NHL Trade Deadline

It was the 2002-03 season – March 11 – game day – and there were three teams located in Calgary: the Flames, of course, the Edmonton Oilers (who were playing that night), and the Toronto Maple Leafs (in town early for their game against the Flames).

Before the morning skate, Oilers fan favorite Anson Carter had learned he was traded to the New York Rangers. He had an idea before it was official but how he learned about it was quintessential NHL.

“What happened is one of my friends from a sports radio show in Toronto called me and gave me the heads-up. It hadn’t been announced yet. He was pretty sure a deal went down. I contacted my agent and he hadn’t heard anything yet. Next thing you know, I got a call from the guys with the TV shows who wanted to know my reaction to the trade.”

The irony was, after talking to Carter, Janne Niinimaa offered his reaction to his teammate leaving the Oilers, standing in front of a large television screen that featured TSN and the latest news of the day. “It’s tough to see a good friend go. It hurts. He was a big part of our club. It’s hard to comment. It happened and we have to move on.”

It wasn’t even a minute after the media left the Oilers’ room when Niinimaa learned he was traded to the Islanders – via that same TV.

The teams’ general managers never seem to pick up a phone to inform the players.

Late in the day, Rob Niedermayer learned he was traded to Anaheim. Because the Flames were in the midst of their eight-season playoff drought, his reaction was a positive one.

“I’ve been smiling ever since the trade went down. There’s nothing worse than not playing for a playoff spot in the last 10 or 15 games. I had a chance to play with Paul (Kariya) with the World Junior team over in Sweden. He’s a great guy and you all know what he can do out on the ice (smiling). I’m really looking forward to playing with a guy like him.”

Lo and behold, the Ducks made a run to the Stanley Cup final.

Trade Deadline shows that professional sports comes all down to business. Regardless of how signing announcements might be launched as sugar and spice, the players are just commodities, and it’s about the bottom line. The human side of it doesn’t count. And yes, it’s what you sign up for when you want to be a professional athlete. Even so, it’s an emotional day for both the players that are traded and the ones left behind.

“It’s always so abrupt,” says Jarome Iginla. “Buddies leave and buddies come the other way. There are rumors. We don’t know what’s going to happen. We can’t control that.

You hear things that were close that weren’t done. People run with rumors. And you don’t know. I imagine there’s some truth to them and some not. Fans enjoy saying, what if we put this guy here and there and another team has no intention of moving a guy but people run with it.”

Iginla also admits a player is last to know. “It may happen that way. I guess it’s easier to get a hold of guys now with cell phones. I remember guys saying they were reading the Ticker (Sportsticker) and the trade deadline was over. The trade went through a couple hours later, and they read the Ticker and see they’re gone when they already thought they were staying.”

One player that knows how that feels is Olli Jokinen. The rumors ran amuck and all but seemed certain. He dressed for a game in Calgary, and the trade came through before he left the rink. It still shocked him.

“I wasn’t expecting to get moved. It’s tough. This business is about winning. You’ve got to play hard every time you go on the ice, no matter what kind of distractions you have. You play for that sweater, that logo on the front of you as long as they tell you you’re part of the team. I just got the news I’m not part of the team anymore. It’s a cruel business. It comes with the salary. It’s definitely a slap in the face to get traded.”

The players do understand it’s a business. They know all about no-move clauses, unrestricted free agency at the end of the season, salary dumping, and all the aspects that impact how a team wheels and deals with their lives.

“You learn early on in this game that you are a piece of meat,” adds Chris Pronger. “You don’t really have a say unless you’re an unrestricted free agent, but then you have to be wanted as well. It is what it is.”

Players have no time to think about logistics. Once they’re traded, it’s get to B from A in the quickest time possible. Jokinen, who initially thought he was just going home from a game to spend time with his family, ended up packing a bag and heading to the airport for the next possible flight.

A lot of the details are passed off to the wives, girlfriends, or friends. If there is a family, chances are the wife and kids will stay behind until the end of the school year, and the player will move into a hotel at his new destination.

If the family does decide to join the player, Pronger says, “You’ve got 20 extra friends and they’re stuck moving your family, cleaning up the household, and moving it all, trying to figure out where the kids are going to go to school, babysitters – all the little things that get taken for granted when you’ve been in a city for a number of years. For the most part, it’s a lot easier at the rink then at home.”

All Is Not Well in Oilerville

“I thought we were rock bottom a few games ago. We keep creating all time lows for ourselves. We’re pretty fragile right now. As much as you want to be positive on the bench and try to keep guys motivated, you can tell when we play we’re demoralized.”

The words of Ethan Moreau say it all.

In Calgary on Saturday, January 30, the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames were engaged in a different kind of Battle of Alberta: the battle of who gets to end an elongated losing streak.

The Oilers lost, thus pushing the streak to 13 games.

I don’t think I can even describe the room after the game. This team is more than defeated, the room is apoplectic. It’s beyond life support. The shock paddles have failed to jolt life back into the heart of this team.

And if it rains, it pours. The Oil have been riddled with injuries and another one popped up Saturday night. Sheldon Souray broke his hand in a fight with Jarome Iginla.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNlVwTOwOT8

Right now, I don’t really think it’s coaching or personnel that’s the problem as much as the team’s attitude – or lack thereof. Motivation out of this slump is not going to come from fear, brow beating, or rah rah. It’s a total overhaul of a mindset that has permeated each stall. And that mindset slaps you in the face when you read Moreau’s post-game comments.

I don’t know. What would it hurt to bring in an expert. As a member of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers (CAPS), I can think of many people whose job it is to revitalize corporate climates. They are really good at their jobs and for sure, the Oilers can muster up the fee – or they can borrow it from Shawn Horcoff.

If there’s any doubt as to the need for such a measure, here’s Andrew Cogliano: “When you get back to back goals…it obviously kills the confidence and kills the group. We’re trying to stay positive but that’s easier said than done. I think everyone is trying to gather themselves up and think about what our next step is.”

The First Team to Blink Wins

 

The good news for me is Edmonton is in town. That means some of my favorite people are here: JJ the PR man; Sparky the trainer; and Robert the reporter. The only one missing from the mix is Roli the goalie. (Sigh) But I'll bet anything that the Oilers wish he was still with the team.

The expectations were so high (or perhaps it was low). Both teams coming into tonight's game were in dire straights. It was as if they were allergic to winning. Edmonton was wearing a 12-game losing streak, while Calgary was not far behind with nine consecutive losses. I'll bet that's why the PA seems to be turned up a gazillion more decibles -- in anticipation of a long and winding game where fans can only do their best impression of an empty seat as they unhurry their way back from the beer stands. They needed the PA to jolt them awake and out of their seats. It's probably why one reporter felt like the press box was swaying through the night.

Dustin Boyd kicked off the scoring for the Flames at 3:45 into the first period. Sam Gagner then tied it up at 12:25, and then it was all Calgary with five unanswered goals, including a second by Boyd. 

Jarome Iginla scored his 900th career point with his assist on the first Boyd goal. Then he scored a two-man power play goal at 15:13 in the second period. In the third, he fought Sheldon Souray, thus cementing the Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist, fight). That should get some people off his back. Hey, he's the face of the franchise, but look at how many head coaches, general managers, and team presidents he's gone through during the course of his career. I dare you. Look it up. (On another note of good cheer on the Iginla name, it is interesting there was no media who noticed his wife Kara carrying the Olympic torch as it went through Calgary last week.)

Country is the theme for this game, which means, all the nice rock music I so enjoy has been thrown to the wayside in lieu of non-stop country music. Alberta's own Paul Brandt sang the national anthem and even sang a song in between the second and third period. He's good, I'll give him that. And not hard on the eyeballs for straight women and the gay guys.

So with a 6-1 finish in favor of the Flames, who get to at least put a bandaid on a massive losing streak and the Oilers going to game 13 without a win, at least the prediction as to this game's outcome has not come true. I figured because neither team seemed to want to win, that it would go to a shootout until 3:00 AM. 

But for one night, at least, all is well in Flamesville, and I need to go to the ear doctor.