Down Goes Brown

Grantland: How did the Leafs almost beat the Bruins when nobody else can?

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:50:00 +0000

The Boston Bruins are starting to look unstoppable. After shutting down the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday night, they hold a 2-1 series lead in the Stanley Cup final heading into Game 4 at home tonight. They’re two wins away from a championship that would cap off one of the most impressive playoff runs in recent history.

A quick recap: In the first round, the Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs. Since then, they’ve found themselves facing the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and now the Blackhawks. Or, to put those matchups in some perspective: last year’s top seed in the East, this year’s top seed in the East, and this year’s top seed overall.

Heading into tonight’s action, here’s how those teams have fared against Boston:

Without putting too fine a point on it, those numbers don’t make any sense. How could the Bruins be rolling over three of the best teams in the NHL so easily, when they needed a historic Game 7 comeback just to survive against a very average Toronto team?

Or, to rephrase the question in a more intriguing way: Is it possible that the Leafs knew something that everyone else has missed?

The good news is that, as a Maple Leafs fan, I watched that first-round series closely. The bad news is that, as a Maple Leafs fan, my therapist has ordered me never to discuss it again. So if he asks, the next few thousand words never happened.

I floated a version of the question — What the hell happened in that Leafs series? — on Twitter a few nights ago. Here are some of the most common theories I got back in response, and my thoughts on whether there could be some truth to them.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

The New York Rangers head coaching vacancy questionnaire

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:46:00 +0000

Messier aced the "Where is the
faceoff after every shot on goal
against the Flyers" question.

The New York Rangers have apparently found their new head coach. While the deal hasn't been formally signed, reports say that the Rangers have settled on former Canucks coach Alain Vigneault and will make the official announcement soon.

Assuming those reports are true, it will conclude a lengthy and at times bizarre search that involved plenty of big names. In addition to Vigneault, the Rangers were rumored to be considering legendary former players like Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky, and even names like Ulf Samuelsson and Brian Leetch were mentioned.

According to reports, GM Glen Sather had each of the candidates fill out a questionnaire prior to being interviewed. It goes without saying that DGB spies were quickly able to locate a copy and pass it along.

***

Thank you for your interest in becoming the next coach of the New York Rangers. To help us process the many candidates we expect to apply, please fill out this brief questionnaire to help us get to know you.

Your first name: ________________
Your last name: ________________
Your nickname when you played with the Rangers, which we're just going to go ahead and assume you did: ________________

Date you are available to start work: ________________
Date you are available to stop work, if you make Henrik Lundqvist mad: ________________

Your salary demands: ________________
(Note: this form will be reviewed by Glen Sather, so just go ahead and write in literally anything for that last one.)

Do you have any experience as a head coach in an NHL market?
( ) No.
( ) Nope.
( ) None at all.
( ) Coached in Montreal and Vancouver for a total of 11 seasons
( ) Coached in Phoenix for four seasons, so… no.

What would you say is the most important skill that a New York Rangers coach must possess?
( ) Familiarity with the CBA's buyout section
( ) Ability to resist punching Larry Brooks
( ) Willingness to attend Stanley Cup parades every half-century whether you want to or not
( ) Staying calm during difficult times by quietly mumbling "Well, at least we're not the Sabres".

What do you like best about the current New York Rangers organization?
( ) Notice you have decided to go with one and only one starting goalie; kind of wish my old boss had thought of that.
( ) Love Ryan McDonagh's two-way game, and sure hope we have more guys like him being developed by our farm team in Montreal.
( ) Really like the way you always keep your "Days since we last employed Sean Avery" sign updated.
( ) Have so many good young leaders that a New York Ranger player will definitely be winning the Mark Messier Leadership Award every year for a long long time, if you play your cards right.

Do you have any unique talents or abilities that you feel we should be aware of?
( ) Was the best hockey player in the world and the only reason Glen Sather has all those Cup rings that keep him employed to this day, but don't let that affect your decision or anything.
( ) On free agency day, can repeatedly hit my general manager on the nose with a rolled up newspaper while yelling "NO!" every time the phone rings.
( ) Don't want to get into it, but let's just say I'm on a first name basis with like half the local riot squad in two different cities.
( ) When I set my mind to it, can achieve the impossible. For example, have occasionally succeeded in eating just one.

Do you have any concerns about taking this position?
( ) Ryan Clowe and Darroll Powe's names don't rhyme and that's always just really bothered me for some reason.
( ) Would like to put together a long-term strategic plan, so it would be cool if we could eventually get one or two players signed past next season.
( ) Realize that part of the New York sports scene involves dealing with celebrities, but still not sure why the lead singer from this horrible band is always walking around MSG like he owns the place.
( ) Sort of creeped out by how realistic those mounted heads of sportswriters hanging in the old coach's office are

What would you say are the odds that you get this job?
( ) Pretty good.
( ) Just OK.
( ) Definite longshot.
( ) Not sure, let me ask my wife.

Finally, if you are the successful candidate, what would you do on your first day on the job?
( ) Get to work preparing a game plan for next year's playoff series against the Capitals.
( ) Try to cheer up that depressed looking usher by asking him if he knows how much he looks like Brad Richards
( ) Take off pants; sit on photocopier; fax results to Mike Gillis.
( ) Probably Google "How to be a hockey coach" since that is something I have never been in my entire life.

Thank you for your interest in this position. Please note that the successful candidate will be contacted next week. The unsuccessful candidates will be contacted next season, during our first losing streak.

Featuring 70 posts including 24 chapters of exclusive new material, The Best of Down Goes Brown is now available.

Grantland: The 1-1 Stanley Cup Series: A Historical Analysis

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:24:00 +0000

After the opening two games between the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins, the Stanley Cup final is tied at one game apiece for the first time since the lockout.

Well, not this year’s lockout. I mean, that would be true, but it wouldn’t be very interesting. And because we need to be more specific in Gary Bettman’s wonderful world of perpetual work stoppages, let’s try this again: This year’s final is tied 1-1 for the first time since the lockout that wiped out the entire 2004-05 season. Much better.

Yes, in all seven Stanley Cup final series since 2004, the team that won the first game also won the second. (Although two of those teams still ended up losing the series.) Given that, I thought it would be worthwhile to look back at the most recent 10 times that we’ve found ourselves even after two games, and to see if the past has anything to teach us about what we might be able to expect this year.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland grab bag: Settle down, goal horn guys

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 00:41:00 +0000

In this week's grab bag: Criticizing the refs during the playoffs, Jagr’s brilliant goal from 1992, Darin Kimble vs. The Grim Reaper, and enough with the goal horns.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland: The 25 Stages of a Marathon Playoff Overtime

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:20:00 +0000

The Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins needed a third overtime to decide Game 1 of their Stanley Cup final this week. It was the longest game of the 2013 playoffs. (The series picks up again Saturday night in Chicago.) Now it goes without saying that if you’re a fan of one of the teams involved, watching sudden-death overtime is torture. But if you’re a relatively neutral observer who wants to see an entertaining game, overtime is just about the best possible result. And the longer it drags on, the better.

But while you never know exactly how a long overtime game will turn out, veteran hockey fans should have a good idea of what to expect along the way. Here are 25 moments that you'll probably experience at some point in every multiple-overtime NHL playoff game.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

2013 Stanley Cup Final preview

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 17:41:00 +0000

Even Hossa agreed that his stick's Gregory
Campbell impression was in poor taste.

The Stanley Cup Final start tomorrow, which means it's time for an in-depth preview of the two teams that will be competing to be crowned champion.

With the Bruins and Blackhawks this evenly matched, even a small advantage in one area can become the key to victory. Here's a look at each of the crucial matchups that could end up deciding the series.

Coaching

Blackhawks: Joe Quenneville is a savvy veteran who can be counted on to avoid rookie mistakes, like picking up when his general manager tries to Skype him.
Bruins: Claude Julien has turned the Bruins into perennial Cup contenders thanks to the patented strategy he calls "Always make sure you have pretty much the best goalie in the entire league".

Forwards

Blackhawks: Patrick Kane has been on fire lately, which is pretty much what you'd expect from something greasy that's frequently soaked in alcohol.
Bruins: Brad Marchand has established himself as one of the best agitators in hockey, in the sense that watching a guy rack up goals and assists against your team in crucial situations can be really agitating.

Defensemen

Blackhawks: Duncan Keith is so talented he can beat you with one hand behind his back, assuming the game you're playing is "slash the other guy in the face from behind".
Bruins: Not many teams have the luxury of sending out two different pairings of 250+ pounders, but the Bruins can, as long as you're willing to count each of Zdeno Chara's limbs.

Goaltending

Blackhawks: Corey Crawford is really excited about the chance to lead the Blackhawks to a Stanley Cup, since he's pretty sure the franchise would be so happy about that that they'd keep him around forever.
Bruins: The Tuukka Rask trade is often called one of the worst in Maple Leafs history but really wasn't that lopsided since Andrew Raycroft was pretty darn good, according to this vaguely familiar-looking Tim Hortons cashier who keeps letting the bagels trickle through his five-hole.

Special teams

Blackhawks: Have been excellent when a man short, which will come in handy since this is a crucial playoff series so the Bruins will inevitably spend half of it with too many men on the ice.
Bruins: Boston sources credit their ability to completely shut down the Penguins powerplay in the conference finals to the outstanding work of goaltender Rask and defenceman Chara and double-agent Iginla and… wait, don't write that last part down.

Historical precedence

Blackhawks: Have not lost a Stanley Cup Final series since facing the Penguins in 1992, which to put it in perspective was so long ago that Jaromir Jagr was still scoring playoff goals.
Bruins: Will be facing the pressure of ending one of the longest championship droughts in the city of Boston's sports history, according to this 12-year-old child you now find yourself repeatedly punching.

Intangibles

Blackhawks: Have been able to overcome heroic individual efforts from opponents who seemed determined to defeat them single-handedly, which will come in handy if Stephen Walkom gets to referee any more games.
Bruins: Continue to be inspired by the dressing room presence of Gregory Campbell as he crawls around on all fours while repeatedly asking whether anyone can give him a ride to a hospital or something.

Fan support

Blackhawks: The experience of hearing the Chicago crowd's reaction to the national anthem has been described as one-of-a-kind, since it's rare to hear that many people all screaming "Thanks for not ruining this moment by spastically fist-pumping, unlike some people we could mention".
Bruins: Opponents are often intimidated by constant barrage of screaming and cheering from the most diehard fan-base in the entire league, although occasionally Jack Edwards quiets down enough that you can hear the spectators as well.

Featuring 70 posts including 24 chapters of exclusive new material, The Best of Down Goes Brown is now available.

Grantland: How Disappointing Was Your Team's NHL Playoff Run?

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:11:00 +0000

This is the time of year when you can expect to repeatedly encounter some variation of these words: We’re down to just two teams left standing in the NHL playoffs.

That phrasing always seemed oddly appropriate, since it implies that the rest of the league must be on the ground. And metaphorically speaking, that’s true. By the end of the third round, the floor is littered with failed playoff teams. Some may have collapsed from sheer exhaustion, others are sprawled out after a swift and bruising knockout, and a few are curled up in a little puddle of tears, wondering how it all went so wrong.

So before we move on to praising Boston and Chicago, let’s spend a few minutes picking through three rounds of postseason wreckage. Here are the 14 playoff teams that have been eliminated, ranked in order of how disappointing their playoff runs ultimately were.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland grab bag: Are we supposed to hate Sidney Crosby?

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 15:18:00 +0000

In this week's grab bag: The Great Pens/Bruins War of '91, mocking bad uniforms, feeling sorry for Bill Muckalt, and the Sidney Crosby debate.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland: A visual guide to four decades of Bruins/Penguins hatred

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 19:54:00 +0000

The Bruins and Penguins are three games into their conference finals matchup, and the series has already produced its share of bad blood. We’ve seen Matt Cooke ejected for hitting Andrew McQuaid from behind, a fight between Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron, and Sidney Crosby going nose-to-chest with Zdeno Chara. And that was just Game 1. As the series continues, it’s become clear that these two teams just don’t seem to like each other.

The animosity doesn’t come as much of a surprise, given which teams we're talking about. And we don’t just mean this year — Boston and Pittsburgh have a history that goes back decades, and it has featured some memorably nasty moments.

Here’s a visual guide to the history of the Penguins and Bruins hating each other.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

A brief history of the Conference Finals

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:32:00 +0000

Ever the sportsman, Chara decided he wouldn't hit the
guy until he’d given him a chance to stand up.

The Conference Finals are underway, and so far they haven't exactly been the most entertaining. The Penguins and Bruins may be headed for a sweep, and the Hawks and Kings have so far served up a predictable series of home team wins. While there's still time for some excitement, so far the two series haven't served up much.

That's unfortunate, and it's also at least somewhat rare. Over the years the Conference Finals have often proven to be the most interesting round of the NHL playoffs, and have featured some of hockey's most enduring moments.

Let's take a look back through the NHL history book at some memorable Conference Finals matchups.

1979 - Don Cherry's Bruins take a too-many-men penalty during game seven against the Habs, which must be some sort of call that they've since taken out of the rulebook according to current Penguins players who are pretty sure the Bruins have been using an extra guy this entire series.

1989 - Ron Hextall earns a 12-game suspension after charging from his net and viciously attacking Montreal's Chris Chelios. Or, as an entire generation of Philadelphia sports fans will grow to refer to it, "the most sensible thing a Flyers goalie has ever done in my lifetime".

1993 - While it's normal to want to celebrate taking a 3-2 series lead with a little bit of music, the Maple Leafs will later regret asking Wayne Gretzky if they could borrow that piano he's been carrying around on his back.

2000 - Scott Stevens cements his status as the league's hardest hitter on a devastating open ice check on Eric Lindros, and by "status" we mean "shoulder pad" and by "cements" we mean "fills with actual cement".

1980 - The Islanders sweep the Rangers in a series best remembered for Denis Potvin's folksy and self-effacing demeanor in the face of adversity, we assume, since MSG fans spent the rest of his career chanting "shucks" at him.

2002 - The series turning point between Colorado and Detroit comes when the Red Wings score on a goal mouth scramble while Patrick Roy is frantically waving his arm in the air. Critics initially accuse the Avalanche goaltender of hot-dogging, although he'll later explain that he just overheard someone ask "Who wants to coach a hopeless last place team in about ten years?"

1988 - Proving that absolutely anything can happen in the playoffs, the NHL witnesses the world's only known instance of somebody being unhappy about being offered a delicious donut.

1999 - The Maple Leafs lose to the Sabres in five games after realizing there's no point fighting and clawing their way back from a 3-1 series deficit to force a game seven just so the hockey gods can make something even more horrible happen.

1996 - Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins lose a seventh game to Scott Mellanby and the Florida Panthers and wait that can't be right I'm pretty sure somebody has been messing with Wikipedia again.

1994 - Facing elimination in New Jersey, Rangers' captain Mark Messier tells the assembled media "I guarantee we're going to go in and win Game 6, and bring it back here to the Garden for Game 7, and then you're all going to beat this moment into the ground for two straight decades", although everyone later agrees to just leave that last part out.

2007 - Daniel Alfredsson scores in overtime to eliminate the Sabres, although he'll later come to regret bragging so much to Chris Phillips about how much fun scoring a series-winning goal can be.

1996 - Detroit players are reluctant to shake Claude Lemieux's hand after his hit on Kris Draper, marking the last time he'll ever cross paths with the Red Wings without being enthusiastically offered a series of right hands.

1978 - The Canadiens easily sweep the Maple Leafs for the first of two consecutive years in a playoff matchup that's so dull and anti-climactic that everyone agrees they have no interest in ever seeing it again, a young Kerry Fraser assumes.

1991 - Ulf Samuelsson's game three body check on Cam Neely marks the turning point as the Penguins come back from a 2-0 series deficit to beat the Bruins, mutters Douglas Murray innocently as he circles photos of Milan Lucic's knee with a yellow highlighter.

Featuring 70 posts including 24 chapters of exclusive new material, The Best of Down Goes Brown is now available.

Grantland: What's Wrong With the L.A. Kings? (And Can They Fix It?)

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 18:19:00 +0000

The old sports cliché says that you’re never really in trouble in a playoff series until you lose at home. But, with all due respect to the wisdom of old sports clichés, right now the Los Angeles Kings look like a team that’s in a lot of trouble.

They’ve dropped the first two games of their Western Conference finals matchup with the Blackhawks, including a surprisingly easy Chicago win Sunday that saw L.A. trailing 4-0 before the midway mark. While the series has returned to Los Angeles for the next two games, the prospect of the Kings coming back to win four-of-five against the Presidents’ Trophy winners seems slim.

Or does it? After all, the Kings are the defending Stanley Cup champions, and they’ve already come back from a 2-0 series deficit this postseason (against the Blues in Round 1). Counting them out after two games of a seven-game series seems like a reach.

Here are eight things that are going wrong for the Kings right now, and our best guess as to whether they’ll be able to fix them in time.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland: What happens after an ordinary action causes an unforgettable injury?

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Fri, 31 May 2013 03:08:00 +0000

ESPN recently produced a 30 for 30 mini-documentary on the horrific injury to goaltender Clint Malarchuk, and his subsequent struggles to put his life back together. It's a great film, and I highly recommend it.

As a companion piece, I wrote about the other side of the equation: the players who caused some of the most infamous injuries in NHL history. From Malarchuk to Trent McCleary to Richard Zednik, hockey fans have seen innocent plays go horribly wrong in an instant. What can it be like to realize that you're responsible?

The piece includes an interview with Chris Therien, whose slapshot ended McCleary's career, as well as rare public comments from Steve Tuttle, whose skate blade sliced Malarchuk's throat. Needless to say, it's far from the usual light-hearted stuff I normally do, but I hope you'll find it interesting.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland grab bag: Calm down, NHL refs. You too, Patrick Roy.

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Thu, 30 May 2013 19:04:00 +0000

In this week’s grab bag: Why referees need to calm down with the PIMs, debating mid-game coach interviews, Yashin's contract, Bill McCreary (no, the other one), and breaking down the Roy/Vernon brawl.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

At the combine: A look at the top prospects for the 2013 NHL draft

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Wed, 29 May 2013 19:07:00 +0000

In hindsight, the photographer picked a weird
time to ask Drouin and MacKinnon where they
thought Seth Jones would get picked

The NHL scouting combine is being held this week in Toronto, which makes this as good a time as any to have a look at the top prospects for next month's draft.

Well, technically a better time would be right before the draft. But thanks to the lockout, there appears to be a good chance that this year's draft will be start 15 minutes after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup finals, so we might as well go ahead and do the preview now.

Here are sixteen top prospects who can expect to hear their names called at the 2013 entry draft in New Jersey.

Seth Jones - This big strong defenceman would be a perfect fit in Colorado thanks to his ability to protect goaltenders from traffic in the crease and forwards driving the net and crazy coaches who keep trying to fight them.

Nathan MacKinnon - Scouts in Florida say he's exactly the kind of player who could really bring Panthers fans out of their seats, so based on recent attendance figures he's apparently already been playing there for a few years.

Jonathan Drouin - Oh sure, he racked up the points in Halifax playing on a line with MacKinnon, but let's see what he can do when he's stuck in Tampa Bay playing with Steven Stamkos and wait actually he'll probably be pretty good at that too.

Nikita Zadorov - The 6'5" 230 pound teen did very well on the Wingate cycling test, assuming that the bicycle immediately exploding is considered a good thing.

Max Domi - Is well-known for having grown up with famous NHL bloodlines, in the sense that every time his dad came home from work he'd leave a trail of the blood of famous players all over the house.

Valeri Nichushkin - The potential Predator draft pick is said to be excited by how knowledgeable Nashville fans are about his KHL experience, since everyone he meets down there immediately starts talking about the virtues of Traktor ownership.

Anthony Mantha - Would have been eligible for last year's draft if he had been born one day earlier, so since he's already good at missing deadlines let's just pencil him in as the next prospective owner of the Coyotes.

Darnell Nurse - Scouts agree that he'll have to adjust to the increased challenges of playing at the next level, such as opposing players making hilarious jokes about his last name that he's no doubt never heard before.

Sasha Barkov - Is considered a strong north-south player who can also play an east-west style of game, although some scouts suggest he'd be even better if he kept his head up instead of constantly consulting his pocket compass.

Andre Burakowsky - Has developed a reputation as a selfish player who won't pass the puck to skilled teammates, so he'd probably be a good fit on a team like Buffalo where he wouldn't have any.

Bo Horvat - Is known as a player who can hurt you in many ways. For example, if you go up to him and laughingly say "Bo knows hockey!" he'll just stare at you before explaining that that commercial came out six years before he was born, at which point you will need to sit down in your rocking chair and cry.

Michael McCarron - Was every bit as good as Nathan MacKinnon according to some of the modern-day advanced statistics, although come to think of it nobody's really sure why we have a "capital letters per name" stat in the first place.

Sean Monahan - Has spent the last year running his own blog, so at this point he's probably just figured out how to aggregate the hard work that all the other players do and get all the credit for it.

Rasmus Ristolainen - Is considered an above-average skater, which will be a big deal to the 10 or 12 teams left in the NHL who still play their home games on something resembling ice.

Elias Lindholm - Since the draft is being held in New Jersey, will probably get a big hand from Devils fans looking for one last chance to feel good about an Elias before the next week when Patrik signs with the Rangers in free agency.

Kirby Rychel - Yes he is the son of a former NHL player, but it's ex-Kings enforcer Warren and not whoever this Robert guy is, he tries to yell over his shoulder as he runs from all those Maple Leaf fans pelting him with garbage.

Featuring 70 posts including 24 chapters of exclusive new material, The Best of Down Goes Brown is now available.

Grantland: NHL Playoffs Stock Watch

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 28 May 2013 19:43:00 +0000

The NHL playoffs can define a player’s career. It’s when some elevate their games while others crumble, when legacies are made and lost, and when we separate the clutch performers from the choke artists.

There are two schools of thought on all this, and one of them is that everything in that last paragraph is complete nonsense. The playoffs are far too small a sample size to draw any meaningful conclusions, and because there’s little evidence that “clutch” even exists in sports, all we're really doing is just crafting lazy and often unfair narratives out of statistical blips that should actually be credited to random chance.

The other school of thought is that while all of that might be true, we don’t care because overreacting to the playoffs is part of the fun of being a sports fan.

For the purposes of this post, we’re going with option no. 2. So here are 10 players that have seen their stock move significantly up or down during the first two rounds.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

The Kerry Fraser game: 20 years later

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Mon, 27 May 2013 10:38:00 +0000

Today marks the anniversary of one of the most infamous, painful and downright soul-destroying games in Maple Leafs history. No, not the two-week anniversary of that game. The other one. Yes, that one.

It’s been 20 years since Game Six of the 1993 Campbell Conference Finals between the Leafs and the Kings. The Kerry Fraser game.

I thought about doing a big long post to mark the occasion, but decided against it for a couple of reasons. One is that even acknowledging that it’s been 20 years makes me feel roughly a million years old. And the other is that I feel like I’ve pretty much covered this topic over the years.

So if you’re a Maple Leafs fan who feels the need to make yourself miserable (like there’s any other kind), here’s a roundup of some of what I’ve written about the game over the years:

From The Archives: The DGB Leafs/Kings game six liveblog - My best attempt at recapturing what it was like to experience that game in real time. One of the most popular posts in site history.
Shocking revelations from Kerry Fraser’s book - True story: I own an autographed copy.
Good things about Kerry Fraser - When he retired in 2010, I decided to be classy and say goodbye by focusing on the good times.
Why Leaf fans will never “just get over it” - No doubt you’ll hear from plenty of people today who urge Leaf fans to finally, mercifully, get over the Fraser game. It should never happen, and this is why.

And finally, in an attempt to end on a somewhat positive note:

A look back at Wendel Clark’s hat trick - A reminder that Game Six may also have been the greatest individual playoff game any Maple Leaf has ever played.

Grantland Grab Bag: There is no Canada's Team

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Sat, 25 May 2013 02:44:00 +0000

This week: Canada's Team, the Messier Award, Per Djoos, and a 1992 profile of Jaromir Jagr's mullet.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland: The second round is the worst but these ten moments from past years were fun

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:13:00 +0000

Hockey fans have an uneasy relationship with the second round of the NHL playoffs. Don’t get us wrong. We like it. It’s fun. No complaints. It’s just that … well, if we have to be honest, it’s probably the postseason’s least interesting round.

We can all agree that the first round is pretty much the greatest thing ever. With eight series going on at the same time, there’s always a game on. The action is unbelievably intense, every other game goes into overtime, and the matchups feature a nice mix of powerhouse favorites and plucky underdogs.

By the time the third round rolls around, every game is crucial and every remaining team is a legitimate Cup contender. And most years, the finals are packed with enough tension and drama to make up for the fact that the league schedules each game nine days apart to make sure there’s never any momentum.

But Round 2 is just kind of … there. There are still a lot of games, but after Round 1 it feels like it’s not enough. There are always a few underdog teams who have almost worn out their welcome. And injuries are starting to tilt a few of the series in unfortunate ways (as opposed to the later rounds, when everyone is hurt so it doesn’t matter).

It wasn’t always like this. Prior to 1994, the second round was actually the divisional final, which meant guaranteed intensity and gave us clutch goal scorers like Doug Gilmour, Peter Stastny, and Steve Smith. But since the league ditched its divisional playoff format, Round 2 has become the NHL playoffs' unloved middle child.

It doesn’t have to be that way. We can learn to love the second round. To help, here’s a look back through 10 great second-round moments since the NHL moved to a conference-based system:

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland: The 20 types of sports fans you meet as your team crashes and burns

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:35:00 +0000

By now, hockey fans have probably seen the video of a group of Toronto Maple Leafs fans watching last week’s Game 7 loss to the Bruins. If you haven’t, it’s below. Fair warning: It’s downright painful to watch.

You don’t have to be a Leaf fan or even follow hockey to understand what you’re witnessing. If you’ve been a die-hard fan of a team in any sport for long enough, chances are you’ve suffered through watching a game like that. Depending on which teams you follow, you may have been there far more often than you’d care to remember.

There’s no right or wrong way to react to the sight of your favorite team self-destructing on national television. But through the years, fans seemed to have developed a variety of methods for handling it. The next time you have to sit through a sports disaster for the ages, here are 20 different types of unhappy sports fans you might find yourself in the room with.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Beyond "You Lit A Fire": Other recent newspaper ads from around the league

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:29:00 +0000

By now you may have seen the mysterious “You Lit A Fire” ad that recently appeared in a Toronto newspaper. If not, you can view a copy of the ad here. Really, I can't recommend it highly enough.

The ad is interesting for several reasons, not the least of which is that we don’t know who paid for it. But it’s that quasi-poetic and sort of creepy repeated mantra of “You Lit A Fire” that really makes it memorable. What does it all mean? Nobody seems to know for sure.

But while the circumstances around this particular ad are a little bit unusual, these sorts of paid messages actually show up in newspapers fairly often this time of year. In fact, I’ve seen several similar ads in various newspapers around the league over the past few days.

Just in case you don't believe me, I cut a few out out and scanned them for you.

For example, this recently showed up in a Colorado paper.

This one was in Vancouver...

You know, maybe this guy should just stop dealing with the media entirely...

This was in Boston, and it actually kind of explains a lot.

I admire the effort, but I don't think this is going to work.

Come to think of it, this one may appear annually in Calgary.

And finally, this one just showed up this morning in a Toronto paper:

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Grantland: 12 key battles in the Sens/Pens series

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:49:00 +0000

The Senators and Penguins opened their second-round series Tuesday night, with Pittsburgh claiming an early series lead thanks to a 4-1 win on home ice.

The no. 1-seeded Penguins are the consensus favorites over the 7-seed Senators, but nobody would be surprised if the series turned out to be a long one. In the end, it may come down to which team can manage an edge in the key matchups.

Which key matchups, you ask, since you assume that’s what you’re supposed to do? Good question! Here are a dozen battles to watch as the series resumes.

>> Read the full post on Grantland

Grantland grab bag: Son of grilled cheese edition

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Fri, 17 May 2013 13:47:00 +0000

In the weekly grab bag: A debate about conspiracy theories, why we'll miss the NHL Awards show, and multiple overtimes can do strange things to broadcasters' minds.

>> Read the full post at Grantland

What went wrong? Excuses from the NHL's losers

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:22:00 +0000

It's called Therriening. It's just like Tebowing,
except for the part where you have a prayer.

The first round of the playoffs is finally over, which means we're down to eight teams left standing. Those teams deserve a round of applause, and they'll get it… somewhere else. Because as long-time readers know, the end of the first round also means it's time for our annual tribute to the 22 teams whose seasons ended without even winning a single series.

Yes, the losers. The also-rans. The teams that, if we're being honest, basically wasted everyone's time by even bothering to show up this year.

Luckily, every loser has an excuse, and these 22 teams are no exception. So while everyone else is focused on the eight remaining teams, here's a look back at what went wrong for the rest of the league.

Anaheim Ducks - Over the last few days, every time Bruce Boudreau started a team meeting by shouting "Let's come up with a plan for finishing off those Wings!" we'd all sit there in the dark for an hour before realizing he'd just gone to lunch.

Montreal Canadiens - Should probably have let Carey Price do the triple-low-five in the playoffs against the Senators, since it would have been nice to see his glove hand actually make contact with something every now and then.

New York Islanders - When coaches urged the team to go out and match the Penguins in every area of the game during their first round series, in hindsight they probably should have made a point to exclude "terrible goaltending".

New Jersey Devils - Never got over the loss of that 29th overall first round pick we forfeited last year, we assume, because man it would have been completely ridiculous for us not to.

Philadelphia Flyers - It turns out that playing Luke Schenn 20+ minutes a night in front of terrible goaltending is a recipe for missing the playoffs, as if anyone ever could have predicted that.

Winnipeg Jets - Everyone agrees that we have the league's loudest and smartest fans, which is tough because you try playing every game in front of 15,000 fans chanting "Wow, this roster is terrible".

Carolina Hurricanes - While extensive travel is difficult in these difficult economic times, might still have to think about someday sending a scout or two somewhere other than the annual Staal family reunion.

Buffalo Sabres - Tyler Myers just hasn't been as intimidating ever since the rest of the league realized he's actually a short guy sitting on another short guy's shoulders while wearing an oversized trench coat.

Florida Panthers - Just couldn't cut it in the ultra-competitive Southeast; sure hope we get moved to a much easier division next year.

Calgary Flames - Finally got around to taking down that big banner reading "Remember, we went to the Finals a few years ago so let's just keep the same roster together until we hit rock bottom" from our dressing room, because it was a terrible idea and demoralized our players and also the Vancouver Canucks need it now.

Colorado Avalanche - Are patiently waiting for that one final step every struggling young team has to take before they finally become a legitimate playoff threat: losing P.A. Parenteau as a free agent.

Washington Capitals - Lost games six and seven after falling victim to a vast pro-Rangers conspiracy among NHL officials. Specifically, the ones who wrote that section of the rulebook about how teams have to be able to score at least one goal to win.

Dallas Stars - Had a room full of guys who were all working towards the same ultimate goal, and nothing will ever match the look of excitement in a player's eyes when he gets pulled into the coach's office and told he's finally earned a call-up to Pittsburgh.

Tampa Bay Lightning - We're a team that needs a top-quality goaltender and our general manager spent his whole career playing with Tim Cheveldae and Chris Osgood, so you do the math.

Minnesota Wild - Instead of irresponsibly spending almost $200 million on unrestricted free agents, should probably have spent a few bucks to retain whichever trainer had been in charge of making sure every goalie in the organization didn't get hurt at the same time.

St. Louis Blues - You hate it when your best playmaker suddenly gets all greedy and stops passing you the puck, but that's what happened with stupid selfish Jonathan Quick.

Phoenix Coyotes - They say that all teams follow the example set by their ownership, so we spent a few months pretending to be working really hard while actually having no intention of accomplishing anything.

Nashville Predators - Were under specific orders from ownership to play so poorly that frustrated fans pelted us with coins, since that's the only way they're going to be able to afford to pay Shea Weber.

Columbus Blue Jackets - Felt kind of bad about ruining all your expert "Blue Jackets finish dead last" predictions, so decided to hold off on winning the Cup for one more year.

Edmonton Oilers - Kevin Lowe responds to any criticism he hears by saying "I can't see you, I have six Stanley Cup rings jammed into my eyes", which would be funny except that's also how he does all his scouting.

Vancouver Canucks - Spent the whole year focused on getting the first goal so that we could play with the lead and wouldn't have to come from behind, only to find out at the end of the season that the NHL apparently has a different definition of "from behind" than the rest of the world.

Toronto Maple Leafs - You know how when a baseball pitcher is just minutes away from a no-hitter or perfect game or some other all-time career highlight that your fans will cherish forever, and all his teammates are supposed to just leave him completely alone? Yeah, it turns out you're not supposed to do that with your goalie.

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Grantland: On game seven, what it means to be a sports fan, and how Those Games ruin everything

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Tue, 14 May 2013 20:13:00 +0000

There’s a secret that Toronto fans aren’t supposed to talk about, but after what happened Monday night, I don’t care about anything anymore, so here it is: Heading into Game 7 against the Boston Bruins, Leafs fans were OK with losing.

Not "OK" as in we wouldn't care. Leafs fans wanted a win, were hoping for a win, and — in some cases — may even have talked ourselves into expecting a win. And we were ready for the three hours of agony we knew were coming. A Game 7 in the NHL playoffs is pure torture, and Leaf supporters were feeling that every bit as much as fans of the Bruins.

But there was an insurance policy, because the 2013 Leafs season was already a success. A team that hadn’t made the playoffs in seven years and was expected to miss them yet again had ended the drought. Young players who’d been written off as busts suddenly emerged. A franchise that floundered for a decade had finally found an identity. And though they were written off after falling behind three games to one in a series against a team that had spent the last few years kicking sand in their faces, the Leafs clawed back with a pair of gutsy wins to force a deciding game.

A loss would sting for a while, sure. But it couldn’t really hurt, not the way big losses are supposed to. It couldn’t leave a scar, whether it came in a blowout or sudden death or somewhere in between.

Unless it turned out to be one of Those Games.

>> Read the full post at Grantland

Grantland: A look back at the first round

noreply@blogger.com (Down Goes Brown) — Mon, 13 May 2013 18:51:00 +0000

The first round of the NHL playoffs isn’t over quite yet, thanks to a pair of Game 7s tonight. But since one of those games involves the Toronto Maple Leafs, I’ll be completely incapable of even basic human function all day long so we better just go ahead and do this now.

Let’s take a look back at the past two weeks of action, and hand out a few awards to the best and worst of (almost) the entire first round.

>> Read the full post at Grantland

	The Maple Leafs	Everyone Else Combined
Games played	7	12
Goals scored	18	17
Wins	3	2
Regulation wins	3	0