Kings-Blackhawks depression; Alberts could retire; hockey player or hipster? (Puck Headlines)
Here are your Puck Headlines: a glorious collection of news and views collected from the greatest blogosphere in sports and the few, the proud, the mainstream hockey media.
• Ladies and gentlemen: Bon Ovi.
• The Kings can hardly put this postseason into words. [LA Times]
• Katie Baker on the fall of the Blackhawks and yet another comeback victory by the Los Angeles Kings. [Grantland]
• He won't be quite as heroicized as Stephane Matteau -- largely because his series-winner was actually sort of lame, if we're being honest -- but let's meet Alec Martinez, who pushed the Kings past the Blackhawks, anyway. [The Hockey News]
• The best team tends to win in the NBA. Not so in the NHL, where puck luck governs our lives. [1500 ESPN, via Kukla's Korner]
• Don Maloney on trying to construct a roster that could beat the Kings or the Blackhawks: “It’s so depressing. Both teams. I mean, you’re not going to get any better -- reigning Stanley Cup champ against the prior Stanley Cup champ. They’re both in their prime, the best players are in the prime of their career. Where do they go? It’s daunting and it’s challenging. I think it’s good for all of us. Competition makes us all better.” [ESPN]
• Cup Final tickets are nearing Super Bowl prices. And there will be four of these games instead of one! That's right. You heard me. Four. [CNBC]
• One thing the Western Conference Final taught us: a lot of teams are paying too much for their goaltending. [The Globe & Mail]
• Playoff beards make it difficult to tell hockey players from hipsters. Can you do it? Take this quiz! [HuffPo]
• Still waiting for a day without headaches, Andrew Alberts, who was concussed early last season, is likely to retire. [Vancouver Sun]
• Sharks GM Doug Wilson, with the ominous statement of the weekend: "I want players that want to play here, not just live here. [Mercury News]
• PK Subban isn't perfect. He'll probably get paid like he is, though. [The Globe & Mail]
• The Panthers fired a lot of people today. [Andy Slater]
• Hey, remember Keith Carney, the defenseman who looked nearly identical to Todd Bertuzzi? He's about to embark on a seven-month camping trip. [Greatest Hockey Legends]
• Ales Hemsky is off to join the Czech Republic at the inline world hockey championships. [SI Home Ice]
• Bob Woods is leaving his post as an assistant coach for the Anaheim Ducks to join the Saskatoon Blades as coach AND General Manager. [Buzzing the Net]
• Here's a question that would have been unthinkable a year ago: do the Canucks need to sign a goaltender this offseason? [Pass it to Bulis]
• Knowing there was no way they could follow up Sunday night's incredible Game 7 with any sort of meaningful programming, the CBC gave up, and cut to farts already in progress.
