NHL at the All-Star Break

Well the NHL All-Star break is finally upon us. Over the next five days the best players the NHL has to offer will have the opportunity to showcase their skills in Raleigh, North Carolina before they resume the 2nd half of the season.

Once the 2nd half resumes teams will either be trying to solidify home ice for the playoffs, clinch a playoff berth, or start preparing for next season.

I'll have a review of the All-Star game & my list of teams to watch in the 2nd half next week but today I want to take a look at some of the surprises & disappointments in the NHL this season. 

Surprises: 

Dallas Stars- When the season started I thought the Stars would be the worst team in the Western Conference. Letting Mike Modano, Jere Lehtinen & Marty Turco leave signaled the team was rebuilding.

Instead of rebuilding the Stars started the season winning four of their 1st five games. Combine that with a six game winning streak around Thanksgiving, the Stars have resided in 1st place in the Pacific Division for most of the season.

Kari Lehtonen has been solid in goal this season going 22-11-5 with a save percentage of .917 and a GAA of 2.58. Compare that to Turco, who has struggled in Chicago with a save percentage of .898 and a GAA of 3.02 and is now sharing time with Corey Crawford in net, and you can justify GM Joe Nieuwendyk's decision to go with Lehtonen.

Another reason for the success of Dallas is the play of Brad Richards who is playing like he did when he won the Conn Smythe trophy with Tampa Bay in 2004. Richards is 2nd on the team in goals with 20 and leads the Stars with 57 points. Not bad for a guy thought to be the most sought after player at the trade deadline.

With the Stars in 1st place in the Pacific & the acquisition of Jamie Langenbrunner from New Jersey earlier this month the Stars are putting rebuilding on hold and making a push for the playoffs. 

Tampa Bay Lightning- With the Lightning getting new ownership & Steve Yzerman taking over as GM I knew better days where ahead for Tampa. I had no idea they would have the 2nd best record in the Eastern Conference at the All-Star Break.

But there the Lightning are with a record of 31-15-5 on the season. That is good for 67 points and the lead in the Southeast, four points ahead of Washington.

Why has the Lightning been so successful? It's because it has become Steven Stamkos's team. Stamkos is the leading scorer in the NHL at the All-Star break with 38 goals & 67 points on the season. At one point this season he was being talked about being the first player to score 50 goals in 50 games since Brett Hull did it in the 91-92 season.

While that won't happen this season Stamkos looks likely to score 50 plus goals for the 2nd year in a row. Add Martin St. Louis (20 goals & 40 assists) who is playing like he did when he won the Hart Trophy in 2004 and Lightning fans are thinking about another Stanley Cup run.

What can't be lost in all of this is the job Yzerman has done as GM. He hired Guy Boucher who was the hot coaching prospect on the market this season. Boucher is one of the favorites for the Jack Adams trophy this season.

With their goaltending still less than subpar Yzerman acquired Dwayne Roloson from New York to shore up the position. While it isn't a long term solution Roloson will provide solid play in net while the Lightning are able to consider their options down the road.

I'm not sure if the Lightning are going to be able to hold off Washington and win the Southeast. What I am sure of is that Tampa should return to the playoffs for the 1st time since 2006 and the Lightning will be a tough out to whoever they face in the 1st round. 

Tim Thomas- Last season Thomas was a forgotten man in Boston. He went 17-18-8 last season and lost his job in net to Tuukka Rask.

This season Thomas has rebounded to reclaim the starting job in goal with a record of 24-5-6, a save percentage of .945 & a GAA of 1.81 both of which are best in the NHL this season.

Most importantly his play has led Boston to the top of the Northeast Division with a record of 28-15-7 and a four point lead over Montreal.

Thomas right now is the odds on favorite to win the Vezina trophy for the 2nd time in his career. His play in net might be what it takes for Boston to overcome their playoff demons. 

Disappointments: 

New Jersey Devils- There are disappointments and there are disasters. The 2010-2011 New Jersey Devils fall into the latter category.

This is a franchise that has made the playoffs in 19 of the last 20 seasons with three Stanley Cup wins in four appearances in that time span. Yet the team this season resembles nothing similar to those great Devils teams from 1994-2004. While there has been a slow decline since the lockout the Devils have fallen off the cliff this season.

The Devils started the season 3-10-1. It took 33 games before John MacLean was mercifully shown the door. When he was let go the Devils were 9-22-2 and had the worst record in the NHL.

Things have gotten a little better since Jacques Lemaire took over. The Devils have gone 7-8-1which included a four game winning streak. However being 22 points out of the final playoff spot means the Devils will miss the post-season for the 1st time since 1996.

The signing of Ilya Kovalchuk has not worked out this season. Kovalchuk has 14 goals & 15 assists this season. He is on pace for his worst season since his rookie year with Atlanta (29 G, 22 A) in 2001-2002.

The loss of Zach Parise to a knee injury & the inability to replace Paul Martin on the blueline have derailed the season for the Devils. Lemaire stated earlier this week he would not return to coach next season. Needless to say Lou Lamoriello has a huge mess to clean up before next season. 

Buffalo Sabres- Going into the season I thought the play of Ryan Miller in goal would be enough for the Sabres the win their 2nd straight Northeast Division title.

Well Miller's play has been average this season. Combine that with the Sabres inability to score and it's easy to see why Buffalo is on the outside looking in at a playoff berth.

Losing Derek Roy for the season with a torn quad does not help Buffalo at all. They are only six points out at the break so the playoffs are not out of reach. However Miller must play better in net & someone has to step up and fill the scoring void left by Roy's injury. 

Los Angeles Kings- This might be the biggest disappointment of the season. Since 2006 we kept hearing how the Kings were a team on the rise and it was only a matter of time before they became the next great team in the NHL.

Last season they made the playoffs for the 1st time since 2002 losing a hard fought series to Vancouver in six games. I thought they were ready to turn the corner this season by winning the Pacific Division and make a Stanley Cup run.

Instead the Kings sit in last place in the Pacific with a record of 27-22-1, 10 points out of 1st place.

While catching the Stars looks unlikely to happen this season the playoffs are still within reach. The Kings are only one point out of the final playoff spot and only five points behind Nashville who sits at number four in the Western Conference.

The problem for Los Angeles is that there are five other teams in the same situation that they are in. Not what I expected from a team I considered a Stanley Cup contender.

The Kings are one good winning streak away from pulling away from the pack & solidifying a playoff spot. Unfortunately for them so are the other five teams around them.

Instead of taking that next step forward the Kings have taken a  couple steps back. Starting on Tuesday they will have 32 games to straighten things out.

That's all for today. I'll be back next week with a review of the All-Star game & a look ahead to the 2nd half of the season. Until then, thanks for reading & enjoy the hockey.