NHL Match Preview Roundup for Friday March.25.2011 Part 1
There are just a little over two weeks remaining until the regulation season ends. For a few it will be a time to focus more and work even harder, while for others, it will be a time to ponder upon the past season and improve their game for the next.
Many teams have been shifted out of the elite-eight of both conferences these past few days. As the postseason comes closer, it looks like the teams that have secured a spot since the start will now be watching the action from home.
Friday brings many opportunities to different teams. Some will either have the chance of gaining those precious two points to re-enter into the top eight, as others can secure themselves even further.
These are the matches that will take place on Friday along with a little preview of what we could expect.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Atlanta Thrashers
This could genuinely be Thrashers’ worst nightmare coming true and that too before the playoffs, when each game is of immense value.
The last time both teams met was in late 2009, as Vancouver thrashed them 4-2 at the Rogers Arena.
Canucks will fly out to Atlanta on Friday to face Thrashers at the Philips Arena at 7:30pm ET.
Atlanta is a team that is fighting with everything it has to at least smell the scent of the playoffs, but it does not seem like it will happen.
It is 11th right now in the Eastern Conference with 74 points. They still need seven points if they even want to tie it with the eighth placed Buffalo Sabres.
Vancouver, on the other hand, is the best team by far in the NHL.
It has played an incredible season, and nothing looks to be able to slow it down.
Despite a few injuries that they are facing, the Canucks line-up is still one of the strongest out there.
You could say that they rebounded from their 8-2 loss against Buffalo on Saturday by defeating Islanders on Thursday, but you have to remember that Islanders are four points lower than Atlanta, so that does not match up.
The Sedin twins have rocked it for Vancouver, as one is the league leader in points and the other in assists.
Their performance has shot through the roof these past couple of days as Daniel Sedin looks to be a promising candidate for MVP like his brother Henrik who won it last season.
"I think we all know math a little," Captain Henrik Sedin said when asked about the rankings and matchups against other teams. "It's going to be tough for the other teams to catch up."
New Jersey Devils vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
The Devils and Penguins face each other for the fifth time this season, with another match up still remaining in April.
It could be described as an Atlanta vs. Vancouver type of situation, but New Jersey has won the past two times these teams have played against each other.
Although Pittsburgh did win the first two contests, Devils answered right back in the following two, and once just recently this month in an overtime win.
Both teams will gather at the Consol Energy Centre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at 7:00pm ET.
Penguins is a great offensive team but it is dealing with some major problems in respect to its line-up. It is missing a number of players who are out with injuries including Sidney Crosby, Brooks Orpik, Evgeni Malkin, along with a few others.
Matt Cooke was recently suspended and is out for the remainder of the season including the first round of playoffs.
New Jersey can really take advantage of the gap within Pittsburgh’s roster. Rookies, Jacob Josefson and Mattias Tedenby, have led Devils to victory these past couple of weeks and are capable of continuing to do so against Penguins.
"The guys, they know our position," New Jersey Coach Jacques Lemaire told the Devils' official website in an interview. "Right now, we just want to play the best we can. We've got big games -- it's good for us."
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