Final Week and Playoff Preview

The playoffs are upon us and the third season is behind us.  Here is a recap of last week's action and a look at the upcoming playoffs

USSR vs. Goon Crew (3-2-1)
In the biggest game of the week, the USSR needed some wins to capture the last playoff spot.  The Crew were just playing for pride.  The Crew controlled most of the game until the final day, starting out with 15 PIM from Blake Wheeler.  The Soviets got their top performance from an unlikely place, at the blue line with Mark Giordano who had 1 goal, 3 assists and a +3.  The other unlikely hero of this game was goalie Chad Johnson, who usually is only a back up, racked up 2 wins and a .964 SV%.  The win propelled the USSR into the playoffs in the final spot.

Johnson coming up big

Nyquist earned MVP of the week honors

Around the league...Assassins tuned it up for the playoffs tying the Krampus Carols 3-3.  Assassins had two players score 3 goals each, Hartnell and Backes, while Matt Moulson "ice"  tallied 3 goasl, 3 assists for Krampus.  Goalies forgot to play in this game...Bunnies finally get back on the winning track beating the AshBusters 3-2 behind Flippula's 3 goals, 2 assists and 2 PIM.  AshBusters finished the season strong in net getting 6 wins between Lundqvist and Howard....The Enforcers knocked out the Mayhem from the playoffs.   Iginla for the Enforcers had 5 goals on the week while Getzlaf had 5 assists....Checkers were on auto pilot tying Who Gives a Puck 3-3.  The scariest part of this game?  As if the Checker's weren't good enough, Stamkos is back and scored 5 goals 2 assists, +2 and 2 PIM against Who Gives a Puck. Nyquist however out did him, scoring 6 goals, 1 assist, a +5 for the Puck.  SLVB ends Heisenberg's Ice season 4-2 sending Sid "The Kid" Crosby home for the playoffs.  Bishop for SLVB was the only Goalie to post stats in this game.  Whats up with that?

Round One Playoffs:

The Enforcers (3) vs. USSR (6)

Iginla has been on fire

The Enforcers are entering the playoffs hot.  Iginla has ben red hot scoring 8 goals in the last 2 weeks.  After being shut out by the Checkers 6-0 the Enforcers enter the playoffs on a 3 week winning streak.  They are a dangerous team with Getzlaf, Toews, and of course Iginla.  To counter the Enforcers, the USSR will need to have Ovechkin live up to his reputation considering The Enforcers lead the league in goals scored.  In goal the edge might go to the USSR who will be putting in net Louongo, now with Florida, and back up Chad Johnson, in hopes the Bruins will continue to rest Rask from time to time.  The Enforcers on the other hand will rely on the goalie glove of Mike Smith.  The other goalie for Enforcers is a rookie Darcy Kuemper who has had 1 win in his last 6 starts.
Outlook:  Despite the questions in goal for the Enforcers, its hard to go against them as they are on a roll and lots of fire power.  Even if Ovechkin tries to put the Soviets on his shoulders the same result will likely happen as did the Olympics; early exit.

Fluffy Bunnies (4) vs. SLVB (5)
This should be a good one.  Inter-office rivalry.  Both teams have some strong skaters.  Seguin and Kunitz are top scorers for the Bunnies and you can't forget about Flippula and MacKinnon with the big Center Joe Thornton.  SLVB are hoping Steen and company can match the Bunnies offensive power.  T.J. Oshie adds a good offensive threat while Milan Lucic brings some nastiness to the game with 78 PIM.  Radko Gudas might have to say something about that for the Bunnies as he has 138 PIM on the season!  Would like to see these two heavy weights go at it!  In net, the Bunnies have Rask and Price, rivals in the NHL, teammates in the CFHL.  They are potentially the best goalie duo in the league.  Bishop is solid for the Killer Smurfs and has carried the goalie stats as Bernier has been struggling.

Gudas getting a noogie from Iginla

Outlook: This one will be close.  Can the Bunnies get their offense scoring again and if they do will the SLVB be able to keep up?  If most of the skater stats end up being close or tied, the edge would go to the Bunnies with Rask and Price.

Bunny fans ready for the playoffs

Tax Increase on Cigars in Ohio Not Right

It came to my attention the other day while listening to The General Cigar Dave, that here in Ohio, Governor Kasich has proposed, as part of his budget bill, an increase to the tobacco tax.  The plan for this increase, among other tax increases, is part of an effort to help fund a state income tax cut.  This increase in tax on tobacco is not only focused on cigarettes, but other tobacco products, including cigars, pipe tobacco, and even e-cigarettes.  (E-cigarettes too?  Really?)

Tobacco is the easiest tax to increase, with only 23% of Ohioans as smokers, leaving a hefty 77% of non-smokers who would likely favor this tax increase since it doesn't affect them at all.  But lets take a deeper look at the real reasons for these tax increases.

This is truly an effort for the Ohio government, with pressure from anti-smoking organizations, to try to dictate how people should live their lives and live healthier.  Hey, no one disagrees that smoke free is healthier than not.  No one says that smoking is good for you.  However, everything in moderation is just fine and is the given right and freedoms we have here in the USA.  And this is why cigars should not be included in with cigarettes, that contain addictive qualities, while cigars are enjoyed in moderation and are not addictive, nor do most people have to chain smoke them one after another like cigarettes, but I digress.

"Tobacco tax increases are a highly effective means of reducing smoking and other tobacco use, but the increase must be large enough to have the desired public health impact."  This was a statement made by the American Lung Association in a joint statement with the American Cancer Society.

In another interesting comment, and this is the one that really shocked me, made by Ohio Tax Commissioner Joe Testa, Joe Testa said, "These tobacco taxes will absolutely help people decide to quite or not start a tobacco habit."  Really?  What kind of country are we living in where the government starts calling the shots, or passes ridiculous bills to force people to live the life THEY want us to live.

Government dictating how we live.  How we should live.  Deciding whats best for us.  Hmm.  Sounds a bit like Communism, wouldn't you say?

The exorbitant increase in tobacco tax would be an increase from 17% to 49% on wholesale prices.  While I am not a cigarette smoker, I certainly enjoy a fine hand rolled premium cigar from time to time.  And this proposed tax increase in Ohio it would increase the retail price of an $8 cigar to nearly $12 per stick.  That is just simply unacceptable.

Now some people might say, "Well I don't smoke at all," said 77% of Ohioans.  "This is good if it helps reduce the number of people that smoke, because smoking kills."  Okay, well whats to stop the Government to come after the next thing that is not "good" for you?  Why not increase tax on sugar, candy, soda pop, butter, crisco oil, red meat... I guarantee that there is something that everyone of us enjoys that would be deemed unhealthy in some fashion.  Remember Mayor "Bloom"berg of New York City that wanted to pan 40oz sodas?

I am, or at least I used to be, a fan of Governor Kasich.  I liked his no-nonsense attitude.  I liked his support for the disabled, the veterans, the elderly, the mental health, and developmental disabilities.  But this stance on increase tax on tobacco to help the "health of Ohioans" is too much government control and begins a slippery slope.

So as I conclude this, while smoking a fine cigar and sipping on a wonderful scotch, consider what this tax really means and the direction we are heading.  Speak out and be heard.  Don't let our freedoms continue to be diminished.

Week 18

3 wins this week for Niemi

Quick recap on Week 18 and an update on how the final week is shaping up and who will make it to the playoffs....

Goon Crew 4 Who Gives a Puck 1 - Goon Crew pick up a nice win but too little too late.  They dominated the goalie category tallying 5 wins and a .943 SV% with Mason and Niemi while Puck's goalie woes that started the season seem to be rearing their ugly head as they had no wins at all.

Krampus Carols 3 Heisenberg's Ice 3 - In another meaningless game as both teams are out of playoff contention, Carols and Ice tie it up.  If it wasn't for the huge difference in goalies, the Krampus might have not fared as well as they only tallied 2 goals and 9 assists.  Sidney Crosby had 2 goals and 2 assists to lead the Meth Dealers.

AshBusters 3 SLVB 3 - The Killer Smurfs struggled against the last place AshBusters as they continued to hold onto the 5th spot.  It was an Assist Fest as the two teams combined for 41 assists with the AshBusters coming out on top 24-17.  Giroux had 5 and Karlsson had 4 for the AshBusters while Okposo lead the Smurfs with 6!

Giroux' Girlfriend...oh these hockey players...

Mayhem On Ice 2 Checkers 1 - Checker were playing for nothing while the Mayhem are fighting for the final playoff spot.  And the showed.  The Mayhem took it to the Checkers punching them right in the neck with 40 PIM! Two guys for the Mayhem were in double digit PIM; Jamie Benn with 14 and Erik Johnson with 10.

Assassins 4 USSR 2 - The Soviets continue to fight to try to catch the Mayhem, and even with a only 2 win week for the Mayhem, USSR couldn't take advantage of it getting only 2 wins of their own and still remain 2 points behind.  The Assassins are pretty much locked into the 2nd playoff spot. Ovechkin took a shit this week with only 1 goal and a -6.

Ovechkin had a bad hair week too I guess

Enforcers 4 Fluffy Bunnies 2 - Enforcers move to the 3rd playoff spot with the victory over the somewhat mild Bunnies.  However the game wasn't mild with a combined 53 PIM.  Dion Phaneuf lead all players with 20 PIM for the Enforcers, and we all love it when Phaneuf makes the news letter, don't we??

Dion we love when you play well! Hi Elisha!

Playoff Picture...Checkers game really doesn't matter as they have #1 spot locked up and with Stamkos back it might be a third time in a row with the Cup...Assassins have a 5 point lead over the Enforcers for the #2 spot and are in the lead over Krampus Carols 4-2.  Only 2 goals and a +1 separate them from the Krampus so still up in the air...Enforcers are doing all they can to capture the second spot, and the bye, as they are up 5-1 (was 6-0 earlier).  With big leads in goals, +/- and SV% Enforcers are gunning for the Assassins...The Bunnies are not exactally entering the playoffs at their peak as they are down 3-1 to the last place AshBusters and facing their 4 straight losing week...SLVB is content with the 5th spot but as the Bunnies falter they will likely move up to the 4th spot...

Fluffy Bunnies may have the best fans in the league

Biggest race is for the 6th and final spot as the USSR are outside looking in on the Mayhem as the Mayhem lead by 2 points.  Mayhem are getting it handed to them by the Enforcers right now 5-1, that's not good.  The USSR are tied with the Goon Crew 3-3, that's good! If scores hold the USSR sneak into the final spot.  With lots of games left for both the Crew Goalies and the USSR its still in question and will come down to the end of the week, but looking good for the Soviets thus far (Putin needs some good news these days)

CFHL Week 17

SLVB owner apparently was
distracted late in the game.

Only 2 weeks left in the regular season left.  There are only 7 teams still alive as 5 of the 12 are eliminated and one has already clinched the number one seed.

Checkers vs. SLVB (3-2-1)
The Checkers are just waiting for the playoffs to begin. They have wrapped up everything they can in the regular season.  But that didn't stop them from making a comeback on Sunday to beat the Killer Smurfs who were leading going into Sunday Evening.  But in typical Checker fashion their late night Kings came through.  This time it was Jeff Carter who not only tallied 2 goals but 10 PIM to give the Checkers the victory in PIM which was the difference in the game.

Ball sack had 2...goals that is.

Assassins vs Heisenberg's Ice (4-1-1)
The Assassins continue their strong play and would be leading any other division but they happen to be playing in the Norris with the Checkers.  They had 3 guys tally 2 goals a piece!  Bozak "Ball Sack", Corey "Dog" Perry, and "Stig" Maatta.  Fleury and Varlamov were both strong in net combining for 3 wins and a .938 SV%.  If they hang on to their current spot in the standings they could get a bye in the first week of the playoffs along with the Checkers, both from the Norris Division.

Who Gives a Puck fan!

Who Gives a Puck vs. Fluffy Bunnies (5-1)
In the upset of the week, Who Gives a Puck took it to the Bunnies winning all but goal categories.  In an otherwise disappointing season for the Puck this one might have made their season, knocking off one of the top teams in the league.  "Hard to take this loss," said Bunny owner Fluffy Tyler,"when you have the best player of the week!"  He was referring to Tyler Seguin who had 4 goals and 5 assists and a +2 (how do you have 9 points and only a +2?).  Puck goalie Quick singlehandedly won the goalie stats with 3 wins and a .937 SV%.

Enforcers vs. Krampus Carols (4-2)
This was a tale of two weeks.  Last week the Enforcers got shut out by the Checkers and the Krampus beat the Goon Crew 5-1.  This week it was Enforcers turn.  They were lead by Toews 4 goals and Weber's 12 PIM.  Hard not to mention Krampus Carol's goal tending.  They had 5 wins between Ryan Miller (who now with the Blues should get plenty of wins), and Old Man Brodeur.

USSR vs AshBusters (5-1)

Holtby struggling (can't say I mind that)  

USSR has been playing playoff hockey for the past few weeks and this week played hard enough to take a 1 point lead for the final spot over the Mayhem.  Its not like they had a tough match up with the AshBusters the worst team in the league.  If the USSR are going to continue their quest they will need to get a little more goal production (no one scored more than 1 goal) and get better goalie play.  That might be tough.  Luongo is now playing for the Panthers (not exactly a power house) and Holtby might lose his job to Halek.

Bergeron and wife Stephanie
Very Sharp!

Goon Crew vs. Mayhem on Ice (2-2-2)
In a game where the Mayhem needed a win to keep in front of USSR, the Goon Crew managed to tie up the game late in the week on Sunday.  The game was 4-1-1 for the Mayhem going into Sunday.  Bergeron  tallied a goal to tie goals and had a +2 to go along with McDonagh's +2.  This ended up being a +5 swing in favor of the Crew to give them the +/- category and tying the game at 2s.

Player of the Week: Tyler Seguin, Fluffy Bunnies - 4 goals, 5 assists +2

Goalie of the Week: Jonathan Quick, Who Gives a Puck, 3 wins, .937%

CFHL Week 16

Checkers and Goon Crew owners
enjoyed some sun during the break

Welcome back from the Olympic break.  Was a break for me too.  Plus by this time, as its the 16th week, I realize that the Fantasy Hockey League is a rather long season (and we didn't even start at the beginning of the NHL season)

So now that I'm done bitching...here is Week 16 round up.  Its getting down to the final week of the regular season and the separation in the league standings is quite evident.  Quite evident of who is not going to make the playoffs (looks like me) and who still will.

Checkers vs. Enforcers (6-0)
The Checkers picked up right where they left off and shut out the Enforcers solidifying their dominance as the number one team in the CFHL.  The Checkers now have 127 points 17 more than the second ranked Fluffy Bunnies.  I think we could say that the Checkers will be the number one seed in the playoffs.  In fact they seem even stronger than their two previous championship seasons.  This week against the Enforcers, it was the Checker's centers that lit it up.  Kopitar the Zombie and Pavelski, both fresh off the plane from Sochi, combined for 5 goals, 4 assists, and a +7.  The Enforcers got little help from anyone, including their goalies who had no wins.  Getzlaf had an Olympic hangover, no goals, only 1 assist.  Despite the loss, the Enforcers are still in the playoff hunt at the number 4 spot.

Enforcers' owner with the Checkers Mascot

Hartnell had 20 PIM

Assassins vs. Fluffy Bunnies (4-2)
The Assassins made a big move to try to capture the 2nd seed and bye as they beat the currently 2nd ranked Fluffy Bunnies, pulling to only 2 points behind.  In a rather low scoring game (only 8 goals between both teams) it was the sin bin that was the difference as Scott "Side Show Bob" Hartnell racked up 20 PIM leading the Assassins 42 PIM to only 8 from the Bunnies.  Varlamov, after a disappointing Olympic run for Russia, felt back at home with the Assassins tallying 2 wins and a .934 SV%.  The Bunnies just looked flat getting only 3 goals and only 1 goalie win.

USSR vs. SLVB (4-2)
Possibly the only "bubble" team, the USSR made a case for themselves in being that bubble team that might sneak into the playoffs.  After all, the fans from the Mother Land have to have something to cheer for, considering the let down in Sochi.  Ovechkin lead the Soviets with 3 goals and 2 assists, while Duchene added 5 assists.  The victory puts the USSR in 7th place, 3 points from the 6th and final spot.  SLVB seem to be pretty secure in the 5th spot with 104 points.  However it appears the Ginger Twin Experiment is over as one is on IR and the other has been benched.

Ovechkin in Sochi

CFHL Ice Girl or Blue Martini Bartender?

Around the League...Mayhem on Ice have moved into the final playoff spot only 3 points ahead of the USSR, after their win over Heisenberg 4-1.  Jamie Been had a goal, 2 assists a +3, and 2 PIM to lead the Mayhem....Krampus Carols beat up on the Goon Crew and probably have smashed their playoff hopes.  St. Louis had 4 goals for Krampus and Ryan Miller tallied 2 wins and a .937 SV%...The two cellar dwellers, Who Gives a Puck beat the AshBusters 4-2. Jonathan Quick was strong for the Puck with 2 wins and a .980 SV%, a little too late however for Who Gives a Puck....

CFHL Week 15

Corey Crawford's Girlfriend
doing a psycho selfie

Well we have arrived at the Olympic break and now no games for two weeks.  The playoffs are starting to shape up and it will be a mad dash for those on the bubble heading into the final weeks of the season after the break!

Checkers vs Heisenberg's Ice (3-1-2)
The Checkers enter the break as the number one seed in the league and it doesn't seem like that will change anytime soon.  They have 115 points and the Bunnies are behind them by 9 points.  This week the Checkers were lead by Corey Crawford in net who had 2 goalie wins and a .944 SV %.  This game was amazingly close and Heisenberg could have easily won this game.  They ended up locked at 5 with goals, 11 with assists and only 2 PIM separated the two teams.  But as always Checker luck prevails.

Bunnies vs. Krampus (3-2-1) Enforcers vs. AshBusters (5-1)
In the number 2 and 3 spot are the Fluffy Bunnies and Enforcers and the Enforcers are breathing down the Bunnies neck and are now only 2 points behind them for the #2 spot and a first round bye.  The Bunnies escaped defeat from the Krampus who stormed back on Saturday with 9 assists to win Assists but the Bunnies were able to get one last goal to tie goals at 3.  Yes only 3 goals by each team.  PIM and Goalie stats were the difference as the Bunnies dominated with Carey Price's 3 wins and .971 and Radko Gudas 14 PIM (12 in one game, second time in two weeks he did that.

Enforcers dispensed the AshBusters easily 5-1.  They were lead by their Three Stars of Getezlaf (3 goals), Iginla (2 goals, 3 assists, +5 and 2 PIM), and Landeskog (2 goals, 3 assists, +4 and 6 PIM).

Iginla scores 2 for the Enforcers

Nice to use him on defense or a forward...

Assassins vs. Who Gives a Puck (5-1)  SLVB vs. Goon Crew (3-1-2)
The 4th and 5th spots are held by the Assassins and SLVB both tied at 100 points.  The Assassins big 5-1 win over the Puck helped propel them to the 4th spot.  Every one of the Assassins Centers and Forwards scored at least 1 goal except for Jagr.  Byfuglien, playing as a "defenseman" had 2 goals....The Killer Smurfs won a tough fought game against one of the bubble teams in the Crew.  Neither team could manage one more goal on Saturday night leaving goals tied at 6, and SLVB got a late win by Ben Bishop to tie Goalie wins at 3.

Mayhem on Ice vs. USSR (5-1)
This was a battle to move into the final spot of the playoff race and the Mayhem dominated the game losing only goals and winning the rest with relative ease.  Patrick Sharp lead the Mayhem with 3 assists, +2 and 4 PIM.  Netminder Lehtonen was solid in net with 2 wins and a .947 SV%.  Apparently the USSR were too busy with hosting the Winter Olympics and may cost them a shot at the playoffs as they now trail the Mayhem by 2 points.



Player of the Week:  Carey Price, Goaltender, 3 wins, .971 SV% - Fluffy Bunnies
Carey Price was a brick wall this week.  He was 3-0 and only gave up 3 goals in three games for the Bunnies.  Too bad he's a Hab (HABS SUCK)

Price was a brick wall for the Bunnies

See you all after the Olympics!  GO USA!!!!!!!!

CFHL Week 14

Take a look at this weeks action:

Assassins vs. Enforcers (3-3)

Varlamov has 28 wins on the season!

Assassins and Enforcers skated to a tie this week and if it wasn't for the goalies for the Assassins it could have been bad for the Assassins.  Between the pipes for the Assassins were Varlamov and Fleury.  Varlamov was impressive getting 3 wins and a .925 SV%.  Goals and assists were close and the Enforcers came out on top by only one goal and 2 assist.  It helped having Iginla tallying 5 assists and a +6.

USSR vs Checkers (3-2-1)
The Soviets upset top team in the league the Checkers, although it truly didn't mean too much for the Checkers since they have such a large lead over the entire league.  The Checkers have been hurt lately of the poor offensive play by the Kings, in which they own 5 on their team.  So they have promptly benched 3 of them next week.  Ovechkin seems to be tuning up for the USSR Olympic team as well, earning Number 1 star honors in this game with 3 goals, 3 assists and 2 PIM.  Checkers countered nicely with B.Saad's 3 goals 2 assist performance.

Toothless Ovechkin is ready for Sochi!

Fluffy Bunnies vs. Goon Crew (4-2)

Seguin had another big week for Bunnies

The Bunnies got back on the winning track and after a small run to move into playoff contention, the Crew have struggled falling to the 8th spot in the league. Offensively the offense was, just that for the Crew...offensive.  No player scored more than 1 goal and only 2 had 2 or more assists.  The Bunnies on the other hand had a double barrel attack with Seguin and MacKinnon who both had identical stats with 3 goals, 5 assists and a +5 each!  Again the goalies for the Crew are the only bright spot, in particular Mason getting 2 wins and a .958 SV%

SLVB vs. Mayhem on Ice (5-1)
Killer Smurfs had a big week getting 5 wins!  Johansen for the SLVB had a great week scoring 3 goals, 2 assists and a +5.  His reward for such a performance, a trip to the bench for this weeks action as the psychotic line up moves by the SLVB management continues.  Somehow it has worked as the Killer Smurfs are in the 4th place overall.  Bernier tallied 3 wins and a .925 SV% as the Mayhem on Ice got no wins at all.

In other action....Krampus Carols put the Who Gives a Puck to the bottom of the league with the 4-1-1 win this week.  The two teams scored only 8 goals total with the Puck only getting 3.  The most exciting category in this match up was PIM that saw the Puck make a big comeback on Saturday getting 8 PIM to Krampus' 2. But in the end Brouwer got 2 PIM to put the Krampus Carols on top of PIM by 1 minute...AshBusters came away with an upset win over Heisenberg's Ice 4-2. Van Riemsdyk played well for the AshBusters getting 2 goals, 3 assists and a +4. He would be outdone, however, by Phil Kessel who had 3 goals, 4 assists, +4...

It was CFHL Stars and Star Wars week in the CFHL!

This is the last week before the Olympic break and its a short week with only 6 days in the week (No Sunday February 9 games).  Once we come back its only 4 weeks to go till the playoffs.  In the meantime.... GO USA!  BRING HOME THE GOLD!!