CFFL 10 Point Connections

The 10 point connection.  Something that has been an establishment of the CFFL since the mid to late 90s.  This year there are now 14 out of the 16 teams have a 10 point connection and even some have a back up 10 point connection!

Probably the greatest 10 point connection of all time was the Chislers of 1998. They had two 10 point connections for Randall Cunningham of the Vikings; Cris Carter and Randy Moss.  In fact of the 34 TD passes Cunningham threw 29 of them went to either Moss or Carter (17 and 12 respectively).  That was pretty impressive.


The Crew were famous for the Colt connection with Peyton Manning.  In 2003 they had Manning and Harrison who connected 10 times and in 2004 it was Manning along with Brandon Stokely and Dallas Clark (10 and 5 TDs).

The Ferrets in 2007 took the field with Tony Romo and Owens who connected for 15 times, perhaps the second best duo.  That same year the Mafia struck gold with Favre and Jennings who hit paydirt 12 times. 

Then there was the invention of the 11 point connection, drafting the kicker of the same team to go along with the 10 point connection.  This began with, of course, the Chislers in 2009 with Rivers, Gates and kicker Kaeding (aka Gabe).  This gave them 11 point connections with TD passes and relieved the pressure when the Chargers would stall in the red zone. 

And let's not forget the very latest trend, the Sideways Connection.  This is defined as having the QB and RB from the same team, getting a 10 point connection with a pass to the RB, plus you are in good shape if they run instead. 

Of course the disadvantage of all of this is if you pick a connection from a lame ass team that doesn't get many chances.  Then you are in trouble.  Take for example the year I drafted Carson Palmer and Chad Ochocinco.  That was brutal!

Here are this years 10 point connections starting with what I believe are the top 2 10 point connections followed by the rest in really no particular order.

Roulette:  Matt Ryan and Julio Jones - Really the only one that has the QB paired with their number one WR.

Titans:  Tannehill, Jennings and Jordan Cameron - Despite all the good natured ribbing of the Titans they probably have the second best 10 point connection since they have 2 main targets.

Chislers: Rivers, Melvin Gordon (sideways connection), Floyd, plus the kicker for the 11 point connection.


Crew:  Brees and Colston

Animals:  Romo and Williams

Ferrets:  Brady and "Queen" Amendola

Cocktails:  Luck and Allen

Mafia:  backups Kaepernick, Smith, Davis, and Hyde (sideways)

Mayhem: Stafford with Corey Fuller and Eric Ebron


Juggernauts:  backup Bradford and Matthews

Krauts:  Rodgers and Ty Montgomery

Dragons: Newton and Funchess and backups Palmer and Gresham

Bums: Bridgewater and Patterson - this could be a good one this year

CFFL 2015 Preview

It's the 31st year for the CFFL and will it be yet another Cherry lead team to win the Fantasy Bowl for the 5 year in a row???

Great White North

Rivers in mid season face form already!

The Chislers are again defending their title.  And was it any surprise that Phillip Rivers would be again at QB?  He led the team to their 5th Fantasy Bowl Championship last year and will try to do it again.  However it won't be easy with the Chislers being bit by the injury bug as they lost their top WR Jordy Nelson for the season with an ACL tear.  Lots of questions are in store for the Chislers.  Will it pay off to draft rookie running backs (Gordon and Gurley)? Will Malcom Floyd be a key 10 point connection? Can Golden "Taint" Tate get the tickle the taint treatment?  Will the Chisler luck finally run out? 
Big Three:  Rivers, eh..Floyd? Gordon?  Ugh

Didn't know Brees was a bad ass psycho

The Crew fell short of repeating last year and were at the mercy of the Bears all year.  This year they went with Drew Brees to lead the team and while seems to be on the downward end of his career, still can put up some big numbers.  They also took a chance on Doug Martin, who was awful last year, but has looked good in preseason.  Back with the Crew is Brandon Marshall but now is playing for the Jets who have QB issues.  Outside of that their WR corp is all second tier talent with hopes that Sammy Watkins continues to trend up and Colston gives them a decent 10 point connection. 
Big Three:  Brees, Marshall, Martin

Not sure why Lacy is so happy....

The new look Ferrets with newly hired Director of Football Operations, James Wening drafted a good team, took a chance on  drafting Brady and it paid off as his suspension for deflate-gate was overturned.  Eddie Lacy, former Chisler star from last year, joins the Ferrets and is a top 5 RB that will get 10+ TDs.  At wide out they are no slouch either as Calvin "Megatron" Johnson returns and is always a threat to score every week, is joined by another former Chisler, Emmanuel Sanders and Owen Daniels as the Ferrets look to capitalize on the high powered Broncos. 
Big Three:  Brady, Lacy, Johnson

The Animals keep getting better each year and seem closer and closer to winning that elusive Fantasy Bowl title.  Tony Romo will quarterback this team to the playoffs and will probably throw the ball more this year without Murray. Now look at this list of WRs; Antonio Brown, AJ Green, Hopkins, plus a secondary 10 point connection Terrance Williams.  Running the ball is Chris Ivory, while playing for the dumpster fire Jets, he has looked strong and with no other competition in the back field for the Jets, will likely get 20+ touches a game and find the endzone 10 times or more. 
Big Three: Romo, Brown, Green

Romo says F you North we are winning it!

Outlook:  It looks to be a different year for the North but still may have a Cherry on top of the division as the Animals have a potent air attack.  Ferrets were looking good mid season before the overturn of the Brady suspension, now they look good all year.  Crew and Chislers were victims of traded draft picks and injuries. 
Division winner: Fez's Ferrets
Potential Playoff teams:  Alex's Animals
On the bubble: Crew

Eastern Bloc

Mussolini looking at all his draft picks!

Juggernauts had the most picks ever in a CFFL draft getting 2 picks a round for the first 5 rounds.  What did they do with all those picks? Drafted a QB that only throws about 20 TDs a year and one that breaks easily (Wilson and Bradford). Drafted 2 RBs that were either suspended or injured (Bell and Foster) and didn't draft any of their handcuffs... wait what?  With that all being said, all of those mentioned could be big producers at some point.  Wilson runs them in, Bell when back is a beast and Foster once he gets back if healthy will score regularly. High hopes on Matthews, Cooks and Keenan Allen is yet to be seen at wide out. 
Big Three:  Wilson, Bell, Foster

Hitler smirking about the false intel he feeds the Juggs 

The Krauts goosed stepped to the top of the East last year and are poised to do it once again.  Hard to argue that when you have one of the best QB in the league in Aaron Rodgers.  Then at RB you have Jeremy Hill who looks to be the main guy in Cincy and Andre Williams who may be a goal line back in New York.  TY Hilton is a threat deep.  Mike Wallace is a double digit scorer.  John Brown is no slouch either. Could be another Blitzkrieg on the East by the Krauts.
Big Three: Rodgers, Hill, Hilton

Lenin sees a FB in his future

Russia may have a new powerhouse in the Cocktails who scored one of the highest points in CFFL history last year as an expansion team but failed to make the playoffs.  Not sure I would count on missing the playoffs again with Andrew Luck and Adrian Peterson leading this team.  These two could win games on their own.  Peterson should be the freshest and most healthy he has been in his career.  They decided to go with a rookie who could be a big star in Amari Cooper who is playing for the up and coming Raiders.  Then a trio of TEs that could be a force in Dwayne Allen (a nice 10 point connection), Bennett and Rudolph.
Big Three:  Luck, Peterson, Bennett

Stalin starting to have
issues with Lenin

Have the Russian Roulette been replaced as the best team from the Mother Land?  Well only the season will tell and will be up to a strong running attack with Jamaal Charles "in Charge" and Shady McCoy.  Backups here are decent too in Spiller and McFadden.  Julio Jones is back and is a top WR and paired with QB Matt Ryan gives them a very potent 10 point connection.  With him is a group of guys that are mediocre at best with Witten, Floyd, Ertz and Donnell.  An alert pick up this week of James Jones who just signed with the Packers might be a steal.
Big Three: Charles, Ryan, Jones





Outlook:  The East will again be a tough division with all teams with playoff potential.  Krauts with Rodgers could be the favorite, but hard to count out the Cocktails with the inaugural season they had last year and now with Luck and Peterson on the team!  Was all those picks the Juggs had make a difference?  I'm going to say it did not
Division Winner: Cocktails
Potential Playoff Teams;  Krauts, Roulette
On the bubble:  Juggernauts

Sad Sack South

The Killer Bees continue to be a thorn in the side of the South and now will have Manning and if he has anything left in the tank will be a 35-40 TD QB. However that's where it ends I am sorry to say.  At RB it may be both Lion RBs starting, Bell (when healthy) and Abdullah "Oblongata" .  Julius Thomas was great last year but will be playing for the Jaguars now and is having surgery on his finger and may not be back till week 4.  Roddy White is past his prime, and then they drafted two WRs from the other dumpster fire in the NFL; the Redskins (Jackson and Garcon).
Big Three:  Manning, Gostkowski, um.... Abdullah? Thomas? Who knows.

The Mayhem will be looking to get back into contention in the South with Stafford back at the helm.  Stafford, when he's not partying, can put up some big numbers and should aging this year.  At RB, CJ Anderson could be special this year and Joseph Randle, while it will be a running by committee in Dallas, gets the benefit of running behind one of the leagues best O lines.  WRs are a mix of middle tiers wide outs.  Landry could become a top WR.  Edelman, Ebron, Walker, Royal, Hill are all mid WRs and Fitzgerald best days are behind him, but should benefit if Carson Palmer stays healthy. 
Big Three:  Stafford, Anderson, Landry

Oh that party boy Stafford...nice!

Whats the matter with my hair?

The Dragons, trying to change things up by not drafting directly next to his brother the Titans (instead was directly across form him) have a good chance to win the South with a back field of Lynch and Lamar Miller.  Both could start and both could combine for over 20 TDs.  They took Beckham in the first round and if he plays like last year will spell good things for the Dragons.  Then with the injuries to the Packer WRs, Davante Adams should be at the receiving end of Rodger TD passes.  QB could be a weak point for them with Newton and Palmer.  Actually Palmer may be the better start if healthy.  They do have a couple of lame 10 pt connections in Funchess and Gersham.
Big Three:  Lynch, Beckham, Miller

Any opportunity we have to put Tannehill's wife in here...

What's the over under on Titans wins?  2?  3?  Got to get better at some point don't you think?  Best player on this squad is Demaryius Thomas, which is pretty damn good.  They will need him to get more than 3 wins this year.  Tannehill was the predicted QB for the Titans, and there are some high expectations for him this year.  He may live up to those expectations and throw over 30 TDs.  RBs are weak with only one true starter in Ingram and then a bunch of backups and handcuffs.  Andre Johnson might do well having Luck as his QB this year and 2 potential 10 point connections with Jordan Cameron "Cameron Jordan" and Greg Jennings gives them a little hope.
Big Three:  Thomas, Tannehill, Cameron

Outlook:  This Division will come down to the bitter rivals of Mayhem and Dragons.  Cannot count out the Bees as long as Manning is still playing well and putting up points.  And the Titans, well Titans being Titans... but I do expect a few more wins than in the past and at least they didn't draft same players from last year.
Division Winner:  Dragons
Potential Playoff Teams:  Mayhem
On the Bubble:  Bees

Samething about Bibi Jones...
Hell I don't even know if Gronk and her are
still together, but who cares...

Wild Wild West

Bums who seem to win this division every year might be in trouble this year in repeating.  Teddy "Two Gloves" Bridgewater will likely be the starter, the starter.  He played well at the end of last season and pretty good this preseason.  He has more weapons and Peterson is back.  Bums RBs are, pretty much just that, a bunch of bums.  Alfred Morris, who has played well in the past, but you just can't count on Redskins players this year.  The other are Jennings and Bush.  If Cobb gets back from his shoulder injury, they will have a nice 1-2 punch with Cobb and Gronkowski.  Patterson adds that 10 point connection.
Big Three:  Cobb, Gronkowski, Bridgewater

The Crush who snuck into the playoffs last year, hope to do better than just sneak in this year.  Eli Manning, who threw for the most TDs in his career last year, is set to have another great year.  But you know that mouth breather can collapse at any given moment in the regular season. Frank Gore might have some gas left in the tank and playing for the Colts this year should improve his chances.   Alshon Jeffery "I WIN" hopes to get more targets in the endzone now that Marshall is gone from Chicago.  If not it will be up to a bunch of TEs.  2 former Wrecking Crew TEs in Graham and Gates will lead the way.  Graham should be healthier, but now with Seattle will see less targets and Gates won't play until Week 5
Big Three:  Manning, Graham, Jeffery

Manning when told was drafted to the Crush

Mafia hoping for another big season from Evans

The Mafia, who were one game shy of the Fantasy Bowl, will look to get back into the playoffs once again.  Roethlisberger had a great year last year and there is no sign that it will be any different this year.  They have 4 starting RBs in the back field (Forte, Hyde, Stewart and Sankey).  Look for Forte and Hyde to start the season.  Mike Evans is a beast and actually might have a QB to throw to him this year.  LaFell and Torrey Smith both could be top WRs.  For a team they typically is a Florida or Tampa Bay team have 5 49ers on their team (Kapernick, Hyde, Smith, Davis, Dawson), not necessarily good.
Big Three:  Roethlisberger, Evans, Forte

"What the hell is a Sinistar anway??"

The Sinistars will rely on two former Cowboy team mates, Dez Bryant and DeMarco Murray.  Bryant is a can't miss top tier WR and Murray a top tier RB.  There are more question with Murray than Bryant, as the Eagle Offense spreads it around, will reduce the touches Murray has and not playing behind the Cowboy O line anymore.  The Sinistars took some chances and hope that they payoff as they grabbed another Murray in Latavius, "Christina" Agholor, Maclin (who looked good in preseason) and Allen Robinson.  Oh at the QB position will be Jay Cutler.  He was actually not bad last year throwing 28 TDs, but when he plays its wither a dumpster fire or he is lights out... but mostly a dumpster fire.
Big Three:  Bryant, Murray, Cutler

Outlook:  The West was as advertised, the wild wild west last year and could be more of the same as all teams could fight for playoff spots.  My money is on the Mafai to win the West with a strong running attack.  The Bums seem to always be in there and while they might not have the strongest team compared to other years, they always seem to put it together.  Crush have a chance to squeak in once again and the Sinistars will rely heavily on their two stars.
Division Winner:  Mafia
Potential Playoff Teams:  Bums, Sinistars and Crush

Season Outlook:  It looks like the only chance of another Cherry family picture getting the trophy will be the Animals this year....Chislers might miss the playoffs...but then again they looked like that last year and ran off 8 straight wins!...Could this be the Ferrets year to finally win it all?...Russians gives the Krauts the most trouble since 1944...Dragons could make a run at it if they get good QB play...The west will be wild.  This year the field is much more diverse at opening season as I have 6 teams this year that could win it all:  Ferrets, Krauts, Cocktails, Roulette, Sinistars and Mafia.

FANTASY BOWL XXXI

Kretz's Krauts 42  Cocktails 23

Second Battle of Kharkov or Krauts defeating Cocktails

The Krauts relive the Second Battle of Kharkov (look it up) where they destroyed over 280,000 Red Army troops.  This year they just need to destroy 8 Cocktail starters.

CFHL Playoffs

Two close games came down to the final day, Easter Sunday...

Who Gives a Puck vs. Goon Crew 3-3

Stamkos celebrating one of his two goals!

This was a wild one that took a few turns and came down to one of the final games on Sunday.  Going into Saturday the Goon Crew held a solid 4-2 lead in the match up, but Who Gives a Puck had a huge day getting 5 goals, 6 assists, a whopping +10 vs. Goon Crew's 2 goals, no assists and a -1.  This flipped the score to 4-2 in favor of the Puck.  Stamkos had 2 goals an assist and +2 on Saturday to help the cause.

The Goon Crew would not be counted out however on Sunday.  Holtby and Price both started for the Goon Crew between the pipes and combined to save 59 of 61 shots on goal.  This lifted them to .901 SV% to take that category.  Unfortunately for the Goon Crew, Who Gives a Puck had the tie breaker since they won the season series 1-0-1.

Price and Holby were the reason for the Crew success

McDonagh had 5 assists!

But the Goon Crew still had some fire power left with Hossa and Pietrangelo up against Backes.  Hossa and Pietrangelo would get 2 assists after two periods and would need only one to tie Assists and move the score to 3-2-1, but they could not maintain another assist and the Who Gives a Puck won to make it to their first ever Cherry Cup.

While Stamkos played well for the Puck, Ryan McDonagh had 5 assists and a +3 to help the Puck to victory.



AshBusters vs. Assassins 3-2-1
The AshBusters edged the Assassins thanks to some outstanding net play from their goal tenders Halak and Bishop as they combined for 3 wins and an impressive .949 SV%.  Now wait...shouldn't that have been the stats for two of NHL's top Goalies, Rinne and Fleury from the Assassins?  Nope.  They had no wins and a lame .860 SV% and truly cost the Assassins the game.

Bishop came up big for the AshBusters

Malkin...epic fail!

But talking about costing the Assassins the game, they still had the game won going into Sunday with the game tied 3-3 and the Assassins holding the tie breaker as they beat the AshBusters in the regular season series.  Early on Malkin, who had been hurt earlier in the week got back in the line up and ended up with just a -1 on the day which tied up the +/- with the Assassins.  They would later get a +1 from Shattenkirk but so would Subban from the AshBusters.  They couldn't manage another point after that and fell to the AshBusters.

Their loss would ensure that a different name other than a Cherry would finally grace the Cherry Cup.  Booooo!

Cherry Cup Final:  Who Gives a Puck vs. AshBusters

Centers: Stamkos and Backes, Who Gives a Puck vs. Backstrom and Crosby, AshBusters
While the Puck has goal scorers at Center, the AshBusters have the advantage in assists at the Center position as they have combined for 111 assists.  Stamkos has 42 goals on the season.  Where the big difference is in PIM as Backes has 100 PIM.  Slight advantage to the Puck with the PIM advantage.

Backes leads the way for the Puck

Wings:  This one is close due to Simmonds listed as Day-to-Day.  Both teams have several wingers with over 20 goals.  AshBusters have advantage in assists with two players over 30 assists in Ladd and Kucherov.  AshBusters have more bruisers at the wings with a combined PIM of 202 compared to Who Gives a Pucks' 161.  Doesn't hurt to have Pavelski too with his 37 goals for the AshBusters.  I still give a slight advantage to the AshBusters.

The Kuch!!

Blueline:  This one not so close.  The AshBusters have all 4 D-men with over 10 goals each and and two with 40+ assists (Subban and Letang).  Chara for the Puck hasn't exactly lit it up this year.  Chara will have to step it up and McDonagh hopefully has a week like he had last week.  Advantage goes to the AshBusters,

Goalies:  Dubnyk and Lundqvist for Puck vs. Halak and Bishop for AshBusters.
Lundqvist is starting to get back to form and Dubnyk has really come on as of late.  Halak has struggled some as of late but Bishop is solid.  Advantage goes to Who Gives a Puck.

Dubnyk has been a pleasant surprise for the Puck

Prediction:  It will be a close one but Who Gives a Puck edges out the AshBusters 3-2-1.

CFHL 2 Weeks Go!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

  With two weeks to go it would appear that the 4 playoff teams are set but in one week seeds changed as the Who Gives a Puck took a solid 4 point lead now in the Norris over the Goon Crew.

Who Gives a Puck vs. USSR 5-1
Who Gives a Puck handed the USSR an ass whipping taking all but one category despite losing in goals.  With Lundqvist out for the Puck, Talbot has picked up the slack nicely in net getting 3 more wins and a .969 SV%.  Stamkos led all players with 12 PIM.  Backes had 3 assists a +3 and 4 PIM.  The victory put them back in first in the Norris and have pretty much eliminated the USSR from a playoff bid.

Chara added a goal for the Puck

Mayhem on Ice vs. Goon Crew 4-2
After a strong couple weeks the Goon Crew fell short and lost first place to the Puck in the Norris after the Mayhem gave them all they could handle.  The Goalies let the Crew down getting only 2 wins and a SV% of .924 compared to the Mayhem's 3 wins and .956 from Crawford and Mason.  Getzlaf was able to tally 3 goals for the Crew.  Datsyuk manged a goal and 3 assists for the Mayhem.

Ovechkin tallied a goal and assist for the Mayhem

Tavares netted a goal and assist in losing cause

Assassins vs. Krampus Carols 4-1-1
The Assassins took care of the Krampus Carols and solidified their playoff position.  Kunitz went goon crazy getting 18 PIM.  Unfortunately that was about all he did with no goals and no assists and a -1.  Zetterberg had a great week with a goal and 5 big assists.  Krampus Carols just couldn't muster enough offense as only one player had more than one goal and only 2 players had more than one assist.

Checkers vs. AshBusters 4-2
The Checkers pulled off the upset of the Smythe leading AshBusters and kept their slim playoff hopes alive.  They are basically out of it but if the Assassins go win less and the Checkers get at least 8 wins in the next two weeks they might be able to knock the Assassins out.  You just never know...They paid a price however, as the AshBusters put the smack down on them racking up 55 PIM.  Simmonds had 14, Subban had 15 and Letang had 24!!

Rask finally living up to his billing

CFHL: 3 Weeks to go

"Let me tell ya something, eh?"

With three weeks to go its still and probably will be Goon Crew, AshBusters, Assassins and Puck in the playoffs.  USSR is mathematically still alive but will need things to go just right for them to catch the Assassins.  Here's a quick re-cap on last weeks action...

Krampus Carols vs. Who Gives a Puck 4-2
The Krampus Carols come away with an upset victory over the Puck and are beginning to enjoy the role of spoiler.  Tavares continues his MVP season racking 2 goals and 3 assists for the Krampus.  In a losing effort Who Gives a Puck had an incredible week between the pipes as Talbot and Dubnyk combined for 5 wins and a .951 SV%.

Tavares has played well for the Krampus

Goon Crew vs. USSR 3-2-1
Crew took advantage of the Puck losing to the Krampus Carols and took first place in the Norris and number one seed...for the time being.  It was an ugly win, but they will take it.  Both teams tied in goals at a pathetic 3 each.  Getzlaf and Perry didn't team up for much offense but did combine for 13 PIM.  Crew now 2 points ahead of Who Gives a Puck, but with 3 weeks left to go, anything could happen in the Norris Division.

Assassins vs. AshBusters 3-2-1
The Assassins knocked off the Smythe leading AshBusters to strengthen their hold on the 4th and final playoff spot.  Malkin led the Assassins with 2 goals, an assist and +2 while "Montgomery" Burns had 3 assists.  Sid the Kid tallied a goal and an assist in a mediocre week for Crosby.

Assassins Fan

Checkers vs. Mayhem on Ice 3-3
Checkers and Mayhem spit the week each winning 3 as the window is just about closed on the Checkers bid for their 4th title in a row.  A well rounded effort with 5 players on the Checkers scoring both goals and assists with Kopitar the Zombie getting 1 goal, 3 assists and a +5.  Ovechkin and Parise combined for 4 goals and 4 assists for the Mayhem who are just playing for pride now.

Checker Ice Girls!

CFHL Update

CFHL Regular season coming to an end...

I know its been a while since the last CFHL update so here is a recap on the teams in the Cherry Fantasy Hockey League as we head down to the final 3 weeks of the regular season.

With only 3 weeks to go the playoffs are already starting to take shape as the Norris Division will likely have three representatives in the playoffs.

Who Gives a Puck has a slim one point lead for first place in the Norris and #1 seed.  Despite injuries to two of their best players in Lundqvist and Kane they continue to hang on to the top seed.  It helps when you have Stamkos as well who has 35 goals and 23 assists and Steen's 32 assists.  Backes leads the Puck in PIM with 88 and now that Yandle is a Ranger, his productivity could increase.  Puck is running with 4 goalies right now and would do well to have Lundqvist come back, but Talbot has played well in his absence.

Stamkos trying to figure out the Puck.

Getzy and Pair looking to lead the Crew to Cup

One point behind Who Gives a Puck is the Goon Crew who have been keeping pace with the Puck with lack luster performances.  They are hoping Seguin, who lead the league in Goals before he went out with a MCL injury, is back in time for the playoffs.  Despite being out for 3 weeks he has 29 goals and 30 assists.  Getzlaf and Perry have picked up the slack scroing 20 and 27 goals respectively along with 41 assists from Getzlaf.  Where the Crew have racked up wins has been between the pipes with Price and Holtby who have combined for 66 wins on the season.


The Assassins sit as the final playoff seed and are 7 points behind the Crew in the Norris, but have a 8 point lead over the USSR for that final playoff spot.  Leading the way for the Assassins has been Malkin with 26 goals and 60 PIM and Voracek's 46 assists and 59 PIM.  In fact the Assassins have several players with substantial PIM including 77 from Hamonic and 67 from Wheeler.  They also have a strong netminders in  Rinne, who was is having a career year and 35 wins despite being out with an injury earlier this year and Marc-Andre Fleury who has 29.

Which one here doesn't belong??

In the final spot of the Norris division is the 3-time Champion Checkers.  This may be the end of their run and look to miss the playoffs.  This would mean that they would not complete the first ring on the Cherry Cup.  Sitting 13 points behind the final spot, will make it difficult.  Could this mean the end of their go all Kings lineup.  At draft day it looked like the Checkers tapped into another great strategy grabbing both Rask and Quick back to back.  This looked like a sure thing and a sure 2 Wins in goalie category.  They have struggled most of the year despite putting up 50 wins between them.

The Smythe Division seems to be a one team race as the AshBusters lead the division with 95 points, 14 points ahead of second place USSR.  They are a well rounded team even if Crosby hasn't put the puck in the net as many times as they were hoping he does have 44 assists as well as the full Backstrom package with 47 assists.  Pavelski leads them with 31 goals and the blue line is anchored with an impressive duo of Subban, Weber and Letang.  And to complete their team, Halak and Bishop have 64 wins and an ice SV%.

Caps' Backstrom or Portland's Backstrom?

USSR flash back...

USSR are 8 points behind the 4th spot for the playoffs and will have a lot of work to do to make that happen.  Tarasenko and Pacioretty both are 30 goals or more and have an impressive +/- ratings.  Centers Ribeiro and Tyler Johnson have 40 and 37 assists.  Injuries have bit them at goalie with injuries to Howard earlier.  Howard only has 18 wins and "Greasy" Luongo only has 23 wins.  Elliot backs them up and has 20 wins.  Thats 61 wins between three goalies, while the AshBusters have 64 with just two.  The Kremlin has not been happy this hockey sesaon.

The final two spots in the Smythe Division belong to the Krampus Carols with 74 points and the Mayhem on Ice with 64 points.  Its too bad the Krampus Carols couldn't have built a better team round John Tavares and Jamie Benn, a few of the only bright spots for the Krampus.  Tavares has 30 goals and 35 assists while Benn has 37 assists and 58 PIM.  There for a while the Krampus Carols were not even starting two starting goalies.  Niemi, who was acquired in a trade with Goon Crew, has put up average numbers (24 wins and .912)

Even with Ovechkin and his 41 goals and 24 assists, the Mayhem have no other help and their record shows it.  Poor SV% with Lehtonen and an injury to Miller in net has lead to struggles with getting wins in goalie categories.  Rest of team is mediocre at best.  Most all players are average with their stats and Lucic leads them all with 75 PIM.  The Mayhem are looking for next season or trying to screw over teams that are looking at Playoff spots.

So there you have it.  Playoffs will be upon us soon....