New Jersey on an Incredible Run

If one were to look at the New Jersey Devils this year it would be a tale of two seasons, the pathetic one before Jacques Lemaire took over as coach, and the current one that has been the hottest team since then. To think that the Devils would have been in contention for a playoff spot back on January 15 when they were like 13-30 truly boggles the mind as they have loss just three times since then! Whether or not they continue at this torrid pace is questionable but their turnaround has to be one of the most amazing in hockey history. While they are still a long shot to make the playoffs having so many teams to jump over with a month to go, if they manage to accomplish it, Jacques Lemaire and the 2010-2011 team will have earned their place In Devils history regardless of what happens in the postseason. I know that there are more than a couple of teams at the top of the standings that are hoping that the Devils don't manage to reach the playoffs, as they would be one tough team to have to face in the first round.

6 hours until the deadline

Here we are six hours until the deadline, and things should really start heating up now. The thing that makes this year interesting is that there are so many teams on the bubble, that it's hard to say who is going to be sellers and who buyers. In the Western Conference, there's only six points separating the 5th place team from the 12th. As we saw last year with Montreal and later Philadelphia, the whole idea is to just make it into the playoffs, and from there anything can happen. With so many teams competing for playoff spots, will it make teams more hesitant to make the big trade or push many to try and add the key player or two to propel them into the playoffs?

In the Eastern conference, Atlanta and Toronto have already started the process by becoming sellers but these two teams are also within playoff contention only being out of the 8th spot by 4 points. Meanwhile the New Jersey Devils just a month ago looked to be a sure bet to unload some players come the trade deadline, but they have been on an incredible run since changing coaches, and have an outside chance of squeezing into the playoffs and from this perspective will most likely stand pat. As always, it will be interesting to see which teams pull the trigger and make the big trade, and which stand pat. We'll all know shortly.

Ongoing issue with concussions

With the problem of concussions becoming more in the spotlight with each injury, one wonders how far the NHL league office will go in trying to curtail the kind of injuries that are putting players out for extended periods and in some cases ending careers prematurely. With the NHL poster child, Sidney Crosby having been out for a couple of months, this could be the impetus for the NHL to take a much tougher stance on what they consider to be blatant hits to the head. The problem is however, that the meting out of penalties has been so subjective, with some players given suspensions and fines while other players escape punishment completely for questionable hits. It seems as if there will always be this element of subjectiveness as there is no cut and dried standard as with offsides, icing, etc.

Hockey, by its nature, is a very physical fast moving game, and things like this are bound to happen. With marquee players such as Mark Savard and now Sidney Crosby sitting on the sidelines, it behooves the NHL to be more pro-active in trying to limit these types of hits and injuries. Still, if the league goes to what may be considered an extreme in issuing suspensions and fines, will it have such profound impact that it might change the very nature of the game?