Important players ahead of the 2011 National Hockey League play-offs - Part 2
Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning
Steven Stamkos is still young and still has a lot to offer to the Lightning. Martin St. Louis found Stamkos on the end of his assists, as he found the back of the net consistently.
Last year, Stamkos was the joint leading scorer in the league which saw him sharing the Rocket Richards Trophy with Captain of the Penguins, Sidney Crosby. This time he wasn’t the top scorer but the diversity he has brought to his game by coming up with
assists has been great to watch.
Corey Perry of the Anaheim Ducks was the top scorer of the league this time with 50 goals, but Stamkos wasn’t far behind as he scored 45. However, one thing that makes him more important of an inclusion in the Lightning starting line-up is the fact that
he also came up with 46 assists. These statistics place him in the fifth spot in the list of total points during the season for his 91 points.
Stamkos is expected to raise his game and score goals as he is one of the main offensive weapons of the Bolts. The Bolts need him to perform and if he is successful in doing so then expect him to go a long way forward in the play-offs.
The Lightning is up against the Pittsburgh Penguins as part of their first round clash. The Penguins won the first game and they will certainly look to Stamkos to lead the team offensively, as they face each other in the game two at the St. Pete Times Arena.
If Stamkos brings out his best then the Penguins are in for some trouble. The team is without the services of their star players in Matt Cooke, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
Ilya Bryzgalov, Phoenix Coyotes
Bryzgalov is not only one of the hardest working goal-keepers in the National Hockey League, but was also among the busiest goalies during the course of the regular season. Bryzgalov was part of the Coyotes line-up on 68 out of the 82 occasions they went
on ice.
He was fourth in the list of goal-keepers to face most shots during the season, which means that the back-line was weak.
Still he was able to post up several shutout performances that place him in the fifth position for doing so. This is coupled with the 36 wins that he bagged with his incredible displays while guarding the goal. The Coyotes are up against the Detroit Red
Wings in the quarter-finals.
Bryzgalov will be trying his level best to come up with a good performance this time out as last year it was the Red Wings who knocked them out. The series went into seven games with the Red Wings defeating the Coyotes.
The goalie will surely need to be more aware and competitive this time and the glimpses of brilliance that he has shown during regular season needs to be capitalised on. He will play a key role in restricting the Red Wings, as he tries to decrease the opponent’s
average 3.44 goals per game from last year’s series between the two teams.
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