Osgood is the difference

Many poolies figured the Detroit Red Wings had a decent shot at advancing to the Stanley Cup final, or even drinking from the storied jug and loaded on players from the Motor City. One or both of Datsyuk and Zetterberg are on almost every roster and many poolies doubled up taking both. Lidstrom and Rafalski were popular blue-line choices. Some wise poolies rolled the dice on Johan Franzen, and have been duly rewarded. Another poolie (who shall remain nameless) rolled the dice on Daniel Cleary and has learned his lesson. In net Dominik Hasek was the popular choice, and it made sense given he had been anointed the playoff starter by Red Wings coach Mike Babcock. But our new pool leader Cliff Hosfield, a Sons of Manitoba rookie, took the biggest gamble of them all. Knowing the Chris Osgood had been the Red Wings starter earlier in the year, Cliff decided to go with his fellow Albertan. Needless to say it has paid off big time.

I should also point out that Mr. Osgood saved Janet Chapman from last place. Janet was thinking outside of the box with a lot of her picks this year, and most of them didn't work out so well, but Osgood is the exception. At one point I figured she might set a record for least number of points in a pool season, but with Ozzie rolling, she's moved past three poolies in the past two updates.

1) Cliff Hosfield 217 That Osgood pick was pure gold
T2) Brad Bouzane 214 I have to admit, I'm getting sick of the first Stanley Cup winner from Newfoundland storyline. Sorry.
T2) Terry James 214 All these Osgood shutouts are killing your chances
4) Jason Anthony 209 As you've probably figured out by now, the pool has come down to three contenders
5) Sean Hutchinson 207 So despite an impressive run, you won't get your name on the Sons of Manitoba trophy
T6) Mary Kay Hosfield 204 We don't really have a trophy
T6) James Peters 204 But it would be cool if we did
8) Arthur Casement 200 Welcome to the 200-point club
T9) Justin Lee 199 You are oh so close to reaching the above club
T9) Jordan Stein 199 But let me warn you, there are no special benefits
11) Lloyd Mack 195 Has the countdown to KBI started yet?
12) Rob Shaw 187 Good luck with the course
13) Mike James 189 One of the few people to actually drop a spot
T14) Richard Warnica 185 I'll run that fly route on you all game long
T14) Kim Landon 185 One more month until school is out for the summer
16) Steve McKinley 182 Who is your pick for Euro 2008
17) Ron Strate 180 Notice how there isn't much movement in the pool this update
18) Jack James 179 Almost everyone has the same players left
19) Jennifer Hosfield 178 And the Penguins lack of scoring isn't helping anything
20) Colleen Turnbull 177 Franzen is back, but it's too late
21) Julianna Nowaczek 173 How are the centre piece/timer designs coming?
T22) Liam Lynch 172 Forwards very good, defence and goaltending, not so much
T22) Dale Oviatt 172 How about that Shean Donovan, eh
24) Dave Washburn 171 I was tempted to start 10 more Scrabulous games last night. But I didn't
25) Mark Brennae 168 What's the latest on the Gargoyles? Inquiring minds want to know.
26) Ryan Plesko 165 Malkin but no Crosby? Datsyuk but no Zetterberg?
27) David Forbes 166 Hope you enjoyed Lethbridge
28) Scott McCleery 156 You're jump in score really baffles me. There must have been an error in the last update
T29) Adam Fulton 154 I won three bottles of wine on the weekend.
T29) Barry Horeczy 154 Name the only team to win the first two Cup final games at home and then lose the series?
31) Neil MacKinnon 153 Montreal may have flamed out, but Carbo might win the Adams
32) Colleen Racine 150 Only 67 points away from victory
33) James Gordon 138 I've got my sights set on you
34) Peter James 133 My very slow, yet steady rise continues
35) Don McGowan 131 Whitney among Penguins who aren't scoring
36) Janet Chapman 120 I shake my head every time I see you not in last
37) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
38) Debb Coghlin 115 Making a late charge for 37th
39) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!

Pre-Stanley Cup final update

UPDATE: Perhaps I should have called out Cleary earlier, he just iced Game 1 with a short-handed goal.

Just as the NHL took a nice long layoff between the end of the third round and the beginning of the Stanley Cup final, so did the Sons of Manitoba.

But with Sid, Eugene, Pavel and Henry ready to go, so are we.

Here is where the player side of the pool stands heading into the final:

1) Brad Bouzane 211 Nine players eliminated
2) Terry James 209 Five players eliminated
3) Cliff Hosfield 208 Eight players eliminated
4) Jason Anthony 206 Nine players eliminated
5) Sean Hutchinson 204 Nine players eliminated
T6) Mary Kay Hosfield 201 Eight players eliminated
T6) James Peters 201 Nine players eliminated
8) Arthur Casement 197 Eight players eliminated
T9) Justin Lee 196 Eleven players eliminated
T9) Jordan Stein 196 Seven players eliminated
11) Lloyd Mack 192 Eight players eliminated
12) Mike James 188 Thirteen players eliminated
13) Rob Shaw 187 Ten players eliminated
T14) Richard Warnica 182 Ten players eliminated
T14) Kim Landon 182 Eleven players eliminated
16) Steve McKinley 179 Eleven players eliminated
17) Ron Strate 177 Nine players eliminated
18) Jack James 176 Ten players eliminated
19) Jennifer Hosfield 175 Ten players eliminated
20) Colleen Turnbull 173 Ten players eliminated
21) Dave Washburn 171 Eleven players eliminated
22) Julianna Nowaczek 170 Ten players eliminated
T23) Liam Lynch 169 Eleven players eliminated
T23) Dale Oviatt 169 Fourteen players eliminated
25) Mark Brennae 168 Fourteen players eliminated
26) Ryan Plesko 164 Thirteen players eliminated
27) David Forbes 163 Twelve players eliminated
28) Adam Fulton 152 Twelve players eliminated
29) Barry Horeczy 151 Twelve players eliminated
30) Neil MacKinnon 150 Thirteen players eliminated
31) Colleen Racine 147 Twelve players eliminated
32) Scott McCleery 145 Ten players eliminated
33) James Gordon 138 Fourteen players eliminated
34) Don McGowan 131 Sixteen players eliminated
35) Peter James 129 Ten players eliminated (plus Cleary, who's playing like he's been eliminated already)
36) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
37) Debb Coghlin 113 Sixteen players eliminated
38) Janet Chapman 111 Ten players eliminated
39) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!

End of Round 3 update

The third round is over and the Stanley Cup final is set and an impressive group of six poolies correctly called a Detroit/Pittsburgh final. But after some number crunching I can tell you we will have a first-time winner in the team side of the pool this year. Brad Bouzane has moved back into first place and can finish that way if Nick Lidstrom leads a Stanley Cup parade in Motown. However if the Pittsburgh Penguins prevail Terry James will be the last member of my immediate family to win. Needless to say, I'm cheering for the Wings.

Below you will find a team side update. In the coming days (sometime before Saturday's Game 1 of the final) you will receive a player side update.

Enjoy:

1) Brad Bouzane 47 Trying to pull off the elusive double
T2) Terry James 45 Poised for success if the Pens win
T2) Ron State 45 Congratulations on calling both finalists
4) Lloyd Mack 44 Also two-for-two in Round 3
5) Rob Shaw 38 You've become a regular contender in recent years
T6) Sean Hutchinson 37 Looks like close but no cigar for you on both sides of the pool
T6) Mike James 37 Sorry 'bout the Flyers, but congrats on the new job
T6) Jordan Stein 37 Belated Happy Birthday
T6) Mary Kay Hosfield 37 Your standing belies the fact you nailed the third round perfectly
T10) Jason Anthony 34 Could win the First Dundas prize
T10) Peter James 34 But I'll give you a run for your money
12) Adam Fulton 33 A top-10 spot will elude you this year
T13) Dave Washburn 32 You tallied seven points this round
T13) Kim Landon 32 Chocolate money only takes you so far
T13) Cliff Hosfield 32 An impressive rookie performance
16) Julianna Nowaczek 31 I will not point out I just beat you at Scrabulous. Oops, I just did.
T17) Liam Lynch 30 Hope the poll numbers were in your favour
T17) Mary James 30 Fourth place was your season high
T17) Arthur Casement 30 Casement and midpoint doesn't have the same ring as Casement and basement
T17) Natalie James 30 Seventeenth place, just like your birthday day
21) Justin Lee 29 I'll look over that summer movie list
T22) Jack James 28 I think the Stamps might challenge the Lions for first in the West this year
T22) Mark Brennae 28 It being baseball season, your slide down the standings probably doesn't concern you
T22) Ryan Plesko 28 It's not going to get better, it's only going to get worse
25) Jenn Hosfield 27 Think we can get five Hosfields in this pool next year?
26) Richard Warnica 26 I scouted out a potential new football field
27) Janet Pringle 25 Things are much better on this side of things
T28) Barry Horeczy 24 Class of '86, eh?
T28) Don McGowan 24 So pools aren't really your thing, are they?
T30) Dale Oviatt 23 I would list the top Canadians in this pool too, but I think that includes everyone
T30) James Peters 23 You must be missing writing all the updates at this point, no?
32) Jeff Sandelli 22 It's been a rough couple of years for you in this pool
T33) Scott McCleery 21 Beating your mentor, Debb
T33) Colleen Racine 21 A long way from the 0-fer start
T35) Neil MacKinnon 20 The number of Montreal rumours is astounding
T35) Debb Coghlin 20 Losing to your protegee, Scott
37) Colleen Turnbull 19 Who is your pick for Euro 2008?
T38) David Forbes 18 You can read this update on the new computer
T38) Steve McKinley 18 Leafs miss the playoffs AND you're last among the CNSers
40) James Gordon 16 I must admit, I expected more from you
41) Ali Hewitt 15 Hawaii looked like a lot of fun
42) Chris Chapman 13 I bet you'll be back in contention next year
43) Stacey Tomlinson 12 Thanks for coming out

Can anyone catch Bouzane?

Not much for a preamble today, just the goods:

1) Brad Bouzane 198 Looking to breakthrough the 200-point barrier tonight
2) Terry James 194 Close to end your 16-year Sons of Manitoba pool drought
3) Sean Hutchinson 193 You grip on a podium position is tenuous
4) Cliff Hosfield 192 This tight race at the top is very interesting
5) Jason Anthony 191 Just enough difference on the roster to allow some movement
T6) Justin Lee 188 I hope you enjoyed your time at the top
T6) Mary Kay Hosfield 188 You'll get at least one more game out of Morrow
8) James Peters 186 Looks like a heat wave headed your way for the weekend
9) Arthur Casement 182 Two players with one point each, yet you're in the top 10?
T10) Lloyd Mack 181 For the sake of Paul, I'm rooting for Hull this weekend
T10) Jordan Stein 181 Sykora gets a point and you crack the top-10
12) Rob Shaw 177 Looking forward to your visit
13) Mike James 175 The Flyers last gasp tonight
14) Richard Warnica 174 You likely won't lose any players this round
15) Kim Landon 172 Moving on up, slowly but surely
16) Steve McKinley 171 Whoo-hooo!
17) Ron Strate 166 Pneumonia for Roberts? What are the chances?
18) Jennifer Hosfield 165 You have decent shot at making the top 15.
T19) Dale Oviatt 164 Hopefully you have more luck in the lottery than in the hockey pool
T19) Mark Brennae 164 Weren't you winning at one point?
21) Colleen Turnbull 163 The battle of former Res Fellows intensifies
T22) Liam Lynch 162 Like Hilary, you are trending downwards
T22) Jack James 162 What's with the sudden logjam for 22nd?
T22) Julianna Nowaczek 162 What's with you matching Mr. James stride-for-stride
25) Dave Washburn 160 I said, "Ha, ha."
26) Ryan Plesko 159 A drop of three spots over the past two games
27) David Forbes 157 Any news on the apostrophe front?
28) Adam Fulton 146 Good looking tulips
T29) Barry Horeczy 145 You're like the Blackhawks of the pool. Poor start, followed by late, but fruitless charge near the end
T29) Scott McCleery 145 And here you are in the top 30!
31) Neil MacKinnon 144 Kolzig to Montreal? How about Selanne?
32) Colleen Racine 139 Holding strong in 32nd
33) James Gordon 134 Do you have your Rapidzzz season tickets yet?
34) Don McGowan 131 You're one player got a point again
35) Peter James 123 Watchout McGowan, here I come
36) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
37) Debb Coghlin 111 Enjoy the cottage
38) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!
39) Janet Chapman 106 Maybe after Wednesday's loss the Wings will call up their farm hands

Third round over before it began?

I'm hardly the first person to suggest this, but could Chris Osgood be one of the leading contenders for the Conn Smythe Trophy?

Since he took over for Dominik Hasek the Wings have won nine straight games, and I wouldn't be surprised if they made it 10 straight and swept the Stars on Wednesday. Should the Wings somehow sweep the Eastern Conference champion (read: Pittsburgh Penguins), it would be easy to make a case for the veteran netminder.

And yes although it's only midway through the third round, the only way to keep things exciting is to start throwing around potential playoff MVP candidates.

The other big news in the hockey world today was the San Jose Sharks' decision to fire head coach Ron Wilson. You can read my account of the conference call to announce the news here

Here are the standings:

1) Brad Bouzane 189 Your lead is less safe than it was a few days ago
2) Sean Hutchinson 186 I don't foresee you hanging in much longer
3) Terry James 184 You might just break through for your first win this year
4) Cliff Hosfield 183 You're still in the running for rookie of the year
T5) Justin Lee 182 So long Justin's wall
T5) Jason Anthony 182 Catch any of the world championships in Halifax?
7) Mary Kay Hosfield 179 Have you ever been this high in the standings, this late in the playoffs?
8) James Peters 177 Strong results from Hossa will keep you in the top 10
9) Lloyd Mack 174 I bet the party is still going on in Humboldt
10) Arthur Casement 173 First place among Toronto-based poolies
11) Jordan Stein 171 You're fate rests with Sykora
12) Rob Shaw 170 Why does Winnipeg have an earthquake search team?
13) Mike James 169 Can Flyers compete without Timonen AND Coburn
14) Richard Warnica 168 Football?
15) Steve McKinley 165 Leapfrogged a pair of fellow Canwesters
16) Kim Landon 164 Bribes or not, you're moving up the leaderboard
17) Dale Oviatt 161 I heard a rumour about you and a garage sale
18) Mark Brennae 160 You're still dropping and you will likely continue to drop
T19) Jennifer Hosfield 159 Outdoor field hockey season must be underway by now, eh
T19) Ron Strate 159 Hey! Gary Roberts is back!
T21) Liam Lynch 157 Look who you're tied with.
T21) Colleen Turnbull 157 You've caught Liam. Let the gloating begin.
23) Ryan Plesko 155 Ron Wilson gets fired, yet MacT keeps his job? Go figure.
T24) Jack James 154 Zetterberg without Datsyuk is like Brad without Angelina
T24) Julianna Nowaczek 154 You should take on the guy below you in the standings in Scrabulous
T26) Dave Washburn 152 I should have known better than to leave an exposed triple-word against you
T26) David Forbes 152 I don't understand gibbled
28) Adam Fulton 141 Big gap between top 27 and bottom 11.
T29) Neil MacKinnon 140 Ryan White could be in the bleu-blanc et rouge quicker than you think
T29) Barry Horeczy 140 Leaving McGowan in your dust
31) Scott McCleery 139 Closing in on the top 30
32) Colleen Racine 135 You passed one poolie, but one poolie passed you
T33) Don McGowan 130 You're not officially frozen, but you might as well be
T33) James Gordon 130 Ron Wilson would look good behind the Sens' bench
35) Peter James 119 I'm making my move
36) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
37) Debb Coghlin 110 You'll need luck to hold off a surging Mrs. Chapman
38) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!
39) Janet Chapman 104 I never though I'd say this, but you're not going to finish in last.

The difference makers

The third round is underway with Detroit and Pittsburgh winning their respective opening games. With most of the leaders having the same combination of Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Lidstrom-Rafalski-Malkin-Crosby-Gonchar-Fleury there isn't a lot of change in the leaderboard. However some poolies have mixed in an Osgood, or a Richards or even a Holmstrom and Sykora. At this time of year, it's those players can be the difference makers.

For the record, I went out on a limb and took Dan Cleary to be that type of breakthrough player this year. As my standing no doubt shows, it hasn't worked out. My first indication that it was a foolish decision should have been when the one poolie who shares a hometown with Mr. Cleary, our fearless leader Brad Bouzane, did not take his fellow Newfoundlander. Of course, had I rolled the dice on this Johan Franzan character, I'd be a genius.

But enough about me, here are the standings:

1) Brad Bouzane 173 Should I start inscribing your name on the Sons of Manitoba silverware?
2) Sean Hutchinson 170 Keeping pace, but not gaining ground
3) Justin Lee 168 Much like the two poolies in front of you, you got 10 points over two days
4) Jason Anthony 167 Did everyone get 10 points?
5) Cliff Hosfield 166 Bucking the trend, Osgood gives you an 11th point
6) Terry James 165 You're making a run for it
T7) James Peters 162 Back to the 10-point brigade
T7) Mary Kay Hosfield 162 Another Hosfield with an 11-point gain
T9) Mike James 160 Timonen injury hurts your pool team and your real team
T9) Rob Shaw 160 Welcome to the 10-point club
11) Arthur Casement 158 The 10 points moves you up a few spots, but no gain on the leaders
12) Lloyd Mack 157 Two points from Richards allows you to break through the 10-point glass ceiling
13) Jordan Stein 156 Sykora's point also allows you to get one more point than average
T14) Dale Oviatt 155 I humbly accept the hard hat
T14) Richard Warnica 155 Breaking news: You will not catch Bouzane
16) Mark Brennae 153 How low will you go?
17) Steve McKinley 152 Quenneville to coach the Leafs?
18) Kim Landon 149 Hope you had a safe drive
19) Ryan Plesko 148 This is when you begin to feel the lack of a Crosby
T20) Liam Lynch 147 Unable to crack the top 50 per cent
T20) Jennifer Hosfield 147 Another 10-pointer
T22) Dave Washburn 145 You won't be able to Bingo your way up these standings
T22) Colleen Turnbull 145 Your moving up, little by little
T24) David Forbes 144 Sushi, eh
T24) Ron Strate 144 Strate and Forbes, teamed up once again
26) Jack James 143 Jokinen rumours heating up again
27) Julianna Nowaczek 142 Congratulations on the win
28) Adam Fulton 132 You're still at the top of my alphabetical-by-first-name list
T29) Don McGowan 130 Your one remaining player got one point
T29) Neil MacKinnon 130 Will the Habs go after Hossa this summer?
T29) Barry Horeczy 130 Hope you enjoyed the flowers
32) Colleen Racine 126 May still crack the top 30
33) James Gordon 125 Qunneville to coach Sens?
34) Scott McCleery 124 You won't finish any lower than this
35) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
36) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!
T37) Debb Coghlin 106 Your one player also got you one point
T37) Peter James 106 Finally, I'm out of 38th place
39) Janet Chapman 94 See you tonight

Wait for it. . .

Hello Poolies: I figure I've kept you in suspense long enough. With the third round about to begin, it's about time I chime in with a player side update. The team side was updated a few days ago and you can see the standings here.

The third round pits the Dallas Stars against the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference. The biggest subplot on the player side are the few poolies who took a flier on some Stars. Brendan Morrow, with two overtime goals already, Mike Ribeiro, Brad Richards and Mike Modano have all been great selections so far and will likely get even more points in the conference final. By contrast so many people took players like Datsyuk and Zetterberg that it will be tough to make up any ground. Although Johan Franzan could be the real wild card.

The same is true in the Eastern Conference where the Pittsburgh Penguins face off against the Philadelphia Flyers. Evgeni Malkin, Sindey Crosby and Marian Hossa were all popular picks. Daniel Briere, Mike Richards and Vinny Prospel only appear on a few rosters. No one, not even the one poolie who loaded up on Flyers, took a chance on Canadiens' killer R.J. Umberger.

Strange pool fact: After Round 1, Don McGowan was one of only two poolies to have zero players eliminated. After Round 2, Mr. McGowan is one of only two poolies to have 16 of his 17 players eliminated. Although 2004 champions Chris Chapman and Jeff Sandelli are the first poolies to lose all 17 of their players.

1) Brad Bouzane 163 Eight players eliminated
2) Sean Hutchinson 160 Ten players eliminated
3) Justin Lee 158 Eleven players eliminated
4) Jason Anthony 157 Nine players eliminated
5) Cliff Hosfield 155 Eight players eliminated
T6) Mike James 152 Four players eliminated
T6) James Peters 152 Nine players eliminated
T8) Terry James 151 Five players eliminated
T8) Mary Kay Hosfield 151 Seven players eliminated
T8) Dale Oviatt 151 Fourteen players eliminated
11) Rob Shaw 150 Ten players eliminated
12) Mark Brennae 149 Thirteen players eliminated
13) Arthur Casement 148 Nine players eliminated
14) Richard Warnica 147 Eleven players eliminated
T15) Lloyd Mack 145 Seven players eliminated
T15) Jordan Stein 145 Seven players eliminated
17) Steve McKinley 144 Eleven players eliminated
18) Ryan Plesko 142 Twelve players eliminated
19) Kim Landon 141 Nine players eliminated
20) Liam Lynch 140 Eleven players eliminated
T21) Jennifer Hosfield 137 Ten players eliminated
T21) Dave Washburn 137 Eleven players eliminated
23) David Forbes 136 Eleven players eliminated
24) Ron Strate 135 Eight players eliminated
T25) Colleen Turnbull 134 Ten players eliminated
T25) Julianna Nowaczek 134 Eight players eliminated
27) Jack James 133 Ten players eliminated
28) Don McGowan 129 Sixteen players eliminated
T29) Adam Fulton 126 Twelve players eliminated
T29) Neil MacKinnon 126 Thirteen players eliminated
31) Barry Horeczy 125 Twelve players eliminated
32) Colleen Racine 122 Eleven players eliminated
33) James Gordon 120 Fourteen players eliminated
34) Chris Chapman 117 FROZEN!
35) Scott McCleery 115 Eleven players eliminated
36) Jeff Sandelli 107 FROZEN!
37) Debb Coghlin 105 Sixteen players eliminated
38) Peter James 99 Nine players eliminated
39) Janet Chapman 90 Ten players eliminated

The red ink spills

Hello Poolies: There wasn't much carnage in the streets of Montreal after the Canadiens lost the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night, but that wasn't the case as I marked the hockey pool sheets. The red ink was flowing as the Habs, the top choice to win the Cup, were eliminated. The same thing happened Sunday when many people's Western Conference darlings the San Jose Sharks bit the dust.

This means that there are precious few poolies who still have a chance to win this, at least on the team side. Of the final four teams, the Detroit Red Wings are the most popular as eight poolies (including Your Truly) predicted the Presidents' Trophy winners would win the big prize. Five people took the young kids in Pittsburgh and one, our current leader, has the Philadelphia Flyers drinking from Lord Stanley's mug. Not a single poolie took the Stars to win this thing, in fact only Mark Brennae has them making the third round.

As for the final four, no one called all four teams correctly. Only one, Mike James, got three out of four and for the first time in a long time a handful of people were skunked.

So without further ado here are the team side standings after the second round. The player side will be updated before the third round starts on Thursday.

1) Mike James 37 Only poolie to hit three of the final four teams correct
T2) Kim Landon 32 I take cash, cheque or money order
T2) Brad Bouzane 32 The smart money is on you
T4) Jordan Stein 30 Still very much in the hunt
T4) Liam Lynch 30 Don't get your hopes up
T4) Lloyd Mack 30 Both your conference champs are still alive
T4) Ron State 30 Campbell was the goat again
T4) Mary James 30 Happy Birthday (a few days early)
T4) Terry James 30 Still a chance this could be your year to break into the winner's circle1)
10) Sean Hutchinson 29 You went 7/8 in round 1, but only 1/4 in round 2
T11) Mark Brennae 28 I remember when your were a contender. Note the past tense.
T11) Ryan Plesko 28 This is your high-water mark
13) Jason Anthony 27 Mediocre no more
T14) Peter James 26 At least this is respectable
T14) Adam Fulton 26 That Sharks loss is enough to drive a man to drink
T14) Richard Warnica 26 Congrats on the new gig
17) Dave Washburn 25 You will not win the pool, but your team could
T18) Barry Horeczy 24 Don't worry you're not the only person to lose both your conference champions
T18) Cliff Hosfield 24 Your Cup champion is still very much in the running
T18) Don McGowan 24 Much better than the player side, but you can only go down from here
T21) Julianna Nowaczek 23 I have yet to look at your pictures from your trip, but I will
T21) Mary Kay Hosfield 23 The Hosfields are really high on the Penguins this year
T21) Rob Shaw 23 You're in Ottawa when?
T21) Dale Oviatt 23 I hope you didn't bet using your picks from this pool in Vegas
T21) James Peters 23 I'm now beating you in one side of the pool
T21) Arthur Casement 23 As an Oilers fan, does that Dallas win make you angry?
T27) Natalie James 22 Great pictures from your trip
T27) Justin Lee 22 That game Sunday was indeed amazing
T27) Jeff Sandelli 22 How did the run go?
T30) Scott McCleery 21 Not a bad rookie showing. You'll improve next year
T30) Jack James 21 Giordano will be a good, and cheap, addition to the blue-line
T32) Neil MacKinnon 20 Did you have a sympathy riot in Calgary?
T32) Debb Coghlin 20 Morrow snuffed out your last chance at any points
T34) Jenn Hosfield 19 A Penguins run will move you up considerably
T34) Colleen Turnbull 19 This was perfect 'blading weather today, eh
T36) Janet Pringle 18 You still have room to grow
T36) David Forbes 18 An all-Canadian final would have been nice, but it wasn't to be
T36) Steve McKinley 18 Your knees are holding up better than your pool picks
T36) James Gordon 16 You got the number of games right on 50 per cent of your correct picks
40) Ali Hewitt 15 I will get to mock your picks in person this weekend
41) Colleen Racine 14 A Wings win will allow you to catch the other Colleen
42) Chris Chapman 13 Zero points after the first round
43) Stacey Tomlinson 12 The whole big upset thing backfired big time

Gone fishing

I'm out of town this weekend so updates with be infrequent to non-existant. It's unfortunate timing as the second round could be over by Sunday, but ces't la vie.

As of Friday morning the player side spreadsheet is update-to-date. The team side document is not (I acutally did update it, but Google documents crashed and I lost all the changes).

So enjoy I'll the Game 5s this weekend and I'll be back with an update sometime on Monday.

An update

1) Brad Bouzane 137 Back alone in first first — where you think you belong
T2) Justin Lee 135 Only one point on Wednesday costs you first spot
T2) Sean Hutchinson 135 A Rangers win would do wonders for you tonight
T2) Mike James 135 You need the Flyers to drag it out a bit to get more points (assuming they don't get shutout)
T5) Mark Brennae 133 So how about that Halak, eh
T5) Cliff Hosfield 133 Solidly in first place in the Hosfield battle
T5) Jason Anthony 133 Kostitsyn not pulling his weight
T5) Rob Shaw 133 You're continuing to climb
9) James Peters 131 Seven players on the ice tonight
T10) Ryan Plesko 129 You passed some people, some people passed you, you're still in 10th
T10) Terry James 129 Thanks for the tip
T12) Richard Warnica 128 Lost your spot in the top 10
T12) Dale Oviatt 128 Did you get a piece of cake yesterday?
T14) Lloyd Mack 127 Has your snow melted yet?
T14) Mary Kay Hosfield 127 Big game against Uruguay tonight
T16) Steve McKinley 126 So Sundin is getting hitched, eh
T16) Arthur Casement 126 Are the Oilers going after Cheechoo this summer?
18) Jordan Stein 124 Sharks survival gives you a glimmer of hope
T19) Jennifer Hosfield 123 Gained two points, dropped one spot
T19) Liam Lynch 123 Looking for big nights for Wings and Pens
21) David Forbes 121 No longer tied for 21st, now alone in 21st
22) Kim Landon 120 Made a modest little jump up the standings with a four-point day
T23) Colleen Turnbull 119 Price likely back in the net on Saturday
T23) Ron Strate 119 Do you think Brian Campbell was overrated coming into the playoffs?
T25) Dave Washburn 118 How are you coming on that novel? Got a big stack of papers there? Got a nice little story you're working on?
T25) Julianna Nowaczek 118 You probably figured this out already, but you will not be repeating as champion
27) Jack James 117 Shutout on Wednesday
T28) James Gordon 113 Foppa gamble hasn't paid off yet
T28) Adam Fulton 113 Nabokov finally back in the win column
30) Don McGowan 111 Pulling away from Horeczy
31) Neil MacKinnon 109 Get out the riot gear for Montreal on Saturday
32) Barry Horeczy 108 Sharks give you a reprieve
33) Colleen Racine 104 Thornton finally back on the board
34) Chris Chapman 101 Five point night is decent, but way too little, way too late (and it's only the second round)
T35) Scott McCleery 100 Stuck at 100
35) Jeff Sandelli 100 Welcome to the century club
37) Debb Coghlin 95 Avs season on the line tonight
38) Peter James 86 Skunked on Wednesday
39) Janet Chapman 76 You lead in the category of most players with zero points