The Hot Seat

By: Mike Rifkin The 2021-22 Calgary Flames won the Pacific Division and an epic seven-game series against the Dallas Stars before losing to their rival Edmonton Oilers in five games. Then in the offseason, the Flames lost their top two-point scorers. Johnny Gaudreau left for Columbus in free agency, and Matthew Tkachuk was traded toContinue reading “The Hot Seat”

Reconsider?

By: Mike Rifkin The Winnipeg Jets are one of the more intriguing teams in the NHL this upcoming offseason. Centers Pierre – Luc Dubois and Mark Scheifele, Winger Blake Wheeler, and goaltender Connor Hellebuyck have one year left on their contracts.  Last week I wrote about how the Jets should approach this offseason (https://thesportsinsanitynetwork.com/2023/06/05/failure-to-launch/), andContinue reading “Reconsider?”

Failure To Launch

By: Mike Rifkin In 2018 the Winnipeg Jets lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in the Western Conference Finals. This year, the Jets again lost in the first round of the playoffs when the Golden Knights dispatched them in five games. Since their appearance in the Western Conference Finals, the Jets haveContinue reading “Failure To Launch”

Golden Knights 

By: Mike Rifkin The Vegas Golden Knights have had a rich history since their inception in 2017. Now they will be making their second appearance in the Stanley Cup Final. Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith have become cogs in the lineup for Vegas since the expansion draft; both players were acquired from the Florida Panthers,Continue reading “Golden Knights “

Leafs Of Change

By Mike Rifkin On Friday, Toronto Maple Leafs President Brendan Shannahan announced the team would not renew the contract of General Manager Kyle Dubas after five seasons as the team’s General Manager and nine years with the organization. In the regular season, the Leafs had a record of 221-109-42. This year the Leafs won theirContinue reading “Leafs Of Change”

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF PREVIEW: WESTERN CONFERENCE 

By: Mike Rifkin Central Division Prediction: Avs in five  (2) Stars vs. (3) Wild: These two teams split their four regular-season meetings. Roope Hintz led the way for the Stars by having four goals and seven points in the four meetings. Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, both of whom had bounce-back seasons combined for fiveContinue reading “STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF PREVIEW: WESTERN CONFERENCE “

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF PREVIEW: Eastern Conference

By: Mike Rifkin The most incredible playoffs in all of sports are upon us. Here is a preview of the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Eastern Conference  ATLANTIC DIVISION : (1) BRUINS VS (WC2) PANTHERS: The Bruins had a historic regular season, having the most wins and points in a regular season. TheContinue reading “STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF PREVIEW: Eastern Conference”

Same Team, Different Direction

By: Mike Rifkin Two of the three longest playoff streaks in the NHL belonged to the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals. Both teams have missed the playoffs for the first time since 2005-06. Pittsburgh won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017, and Washington won the Cup in 2018. Since winning these Cups, neitherContinue reading “Same Team, Different Direction”