Garret Craig

On Sunday night in prime time, the preliminary round hockey game between USA and Canada went far beyond expectations. The most anticipated Olympic event to take place thus far in the 2010 Winter Games (According to Nielsen, 30.6% of all internet postings related to the Games were linked to hockey) was an instant classic; a thrilling, high-scoring affair which resulted in the American upset of Canada in the Olympics for the first time in 50 years.

But this game, which sent the entire nation of Canada spiraling into a severe state of depression, was replaced on the main American network by–wait for it–Ice Dancing, the middle of three rounds, in conjunction with an exhilarating combination of tape-delayed Bobsled, Skiing, and Speed Skating. (more…)

The Frank J. Selke Trophy is awarded annually “to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game” as judged by the approximately 400 member Professional Hockey Writers’ Association. The NHL Awards are voted on at the end of the regular season, so the writers did not, unfortunately, get to take into account Detroit Red Wing Pavel Datsyuk’s incredible first-round performance against the Phoenix Coyotes. Nor could they factor in Ryan Kesler and Jonathan Toews’ significant contributions in the seven-game battle which their respective teams, the Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks, recently fought.

Pavel Datsyuk has claimed the trophy each of the last three years, and every time he has been nominated. If he were to win again, he would be first player to do so four consecutive times since Montreal’s Bob Gainey won it from ‘77-78 to ‘80-81, the first four seasons the award was presented. (more…)