The CBJ's weren't given much of a chance against the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings in their first-round match-up, but you would have thought they'd put up somewhat of a fight (even attempting to equip players with two sticks at a time). No power-play goals in seven chances, outscored 8-1 through two games, and a rookie goaltender who's now lost right of his last ten starts, the Blue Jackets are seeing their flame quickly burn out. We're only two games in, but how damaging could an embarrassing exit be for the Blue Jackets?

Rewind two years ago to the 2006-07 post-season. There was a first-time team in the playoffs, led by one of the NHL's young superstars, backstopped by a stud goalie prospect and under the guidance under a Stanley Cup winning head coach.

At the time, there was a lot of promise surrounding the Atlanta Thrashers. With Ilya Kovalchuk as the face of the franchise, a potential goaltender of the future in Kari Lehtonen, and Bob Hartley instructing behind

Toss up "Pierre McGuire sucks" into your favorite search engine and you'll come across thousands of links describing the TSN and NBC analysts swooning over Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby, his eery resemblance to a turtle, or his knack for standing uncomfortably close to colleague Darren Dutchyshen.

Very, very close.

With the changes going on in Colorado, the Denver Post's Adrian Dater throws out Pierre McGuire's name as someone who he would give a long thought about in regards to the Avalanche's open general manager position. Despite being out of the game for 15 years, Dater thinks that McGuire's current job as a hockey analyst helps boost his resume:

"After all - can you name me anyone who has seen more NHL games in the last few years than McGuire has most likely? Can you name me a person who has a more varied menu of personnel he's spoken to in the last few years - among players and coaches and everybody else in hockey? It's part of his job description to talk to

It was only a matter of time before the intensity of the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh series boiled over into suspension-territory. The waning moments of Game One last night got ugly as 26 minutes of penalties were handed out, including a fight between Bill Guerin and Braydon Coburn with seven seconds to go in the game.

News broke this morning that Daniel Carcillo was summoned to a hearing for his actions at the end of last night's opening game. Despite not being assessed a penalty, Carcillo was suspended this evening for Game Two and Flyers head coach John Stevens was fined $10,000 as part of the NHL's venture to stop "message sending" in games in which it's pretty much decided who will be victorious.

Carcillo was determined to have butt-ended Penguins forward Max Talbot in the face towards the end of the game. The League reviewed the incident and determined that punishment was necessary.

The NHL's Senior Executive V.P. of Hockey Operations, Colin Campbell, held a conference call with

Our previews of the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs' opening round, featuring pretty pictures and a special guest video by the great Steve Dangle at the end.

It's been eight long years since the Chicago Blackhawks have been playing hockey deep into April. Rocky Wirtz and John McDonough have changed the entire culture surrounding the franchise. Gone are the days of Rocky's father "Dollar Bill" Wirtz. Now, the Blackhawks aren't afraid to spend, or overspend (see: Campbell, Brian), on free agents or be seen on television.

Currently in a franchise renaissance, Chicago isn't just happy to be in the playoffs after a long absence. The Hawks have been consistently towards the top half of the Western Conference all year long; whatever head coach Joel Quenneville instilled in his players, after he took over after the team's fourth game of the season, has worked.

For the Calgary Flames, they came within one game of taking home the Stanley Cup back in 2004 and haven't been past the first round since.

Our previews of the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs' opening round, featuring pretty pictures and a special guest video by the great Steve Dangle at the end.

Is the world ready for another Battle of Pennsylvania?

Last season's had the makings of a classic encounter between these two hated rivals, but in the end turned into a one-sided affair that gave the Pittsburgh Penguins a trip to their third Stanley Cup Finals and a year of bragging rights.

Instead of meeting for a chance at the Stanley Cup on the line, it's a 4/5 matchup between a team that's stayed in the pack of the Eastern Conference standings for most of the season, and one who went through upheaval and got things back on track on their way to the playoffs.

The 'Keystone Clash' will be its usual intense, physical self; and you can be sure that the Sidney Crosby hating will be turned up a notch when things get to Philadelphia for Game 3.

Will the fact that this series could be survival of the fittest hinder either team's progress

(Ed Note: Exotic Wagers looks at the unusual ways through which the outcome of the Stanley Cup playoffs can be predicted. Join us in the next two days for more peculiar experiments regarding fate, probability and utter coincidence.)

It's been 37 years since Boston Bruins fans have had a chance to celebrate a Stanley Cup championship; but if you're one to believe in both the Easter Bunny and video game simulations, then start lining Cambridge Street in anticipation of the coming parade.

In their annual virtual experiment, the gaming gods at EA Sports have simulated the 2009 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs and came to an 'Original Six' match-up with the Bruins defeating the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. Phil Kessel took home Conn Smythe honors and Marc Savard providing the theatrics with two overtime goals in the finals.

If you recall last year's playoff simulation, EA Sports told us that the San Jose Sharks were going to dispatch the Montreal Canadiens in a classic seven-game series to

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Tonight's NCAA championship game at Verizon Center will be a battle between a frequent guest and a brand new visitor. The Terriers of Boston University will be making their 10th title game, while the RedHawks of Miami University appearance will mark the first time, in any sport, that the school will have a chance to win a national championship.

Boston University has the history. They have the coach with over 800 wins. They have the current players who are top prospects and the numerous alumni who went on to the National Hockey League. They're an annual contender for the NCAA title and a team that college hockey fans love to hate.

Miami University has never been in a bigger hockey game than the one it will play tonight.

Nerves might overtake Miami Head Coach Enrico Blasi's players at the start; but according to Blasi, the pressure of being contenders could affect BU more than his club, who weren't expected to get this far:

"Sometimes when you're out in front and

Mired in a rebuilding process that wasn't officially admitted to by the front office at first and struggling to secure approvals to rebuild their existing home, the New York Islanders are now a ping-pong ball away from turning around their fortunes in a hurry.

Should NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly announce on Tuesday night that the Islanders have won the Draft Lottery, it will be the first in a string of dominos that will fall in favor of the much-mocked team.

Just four years ago, the Pittsburgh Penguins were dealing with a poor on-ice product in the wake of the Jaromir Jagr trade as well as the possibility of uprooting their franchise. Enter the 2005 NHL Draft Lottery. When Gary Bettman announced that the Penguins had won the Sidney Crosby sweepstakes, you could hear a shovel hitting the ground at the Pens new arena (along with a serious show of relief by Penguins CEO Ken Sawyer) as well as the cash registers ringing with the sounds of season tickets being purchased until sold