Talkin’ Hockey

For the first time since 1995 the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks will meet in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. That year saw the Red Wings advance easily beating the Blackhawks 4-1 to advance. This season the young Blackhawks will look to continue their impressive run which has excited their fan base and caused a large increase in Chicago Blackhawks hats & merchandise sales. Red Wings clothing & apparel is always a top-seller, outpacing most every other NFL franchise in apparel sales, and their Stanley Cup Playoff success boosts these sales each season.

So who will win the NHL’s Western Conference Finals in 2009? The Red Wings seem to be the favorite due to experience, but the young Blackhawks have a lot of fire and may just pull the upset.

The NHL’s Eastern Conference Finals are set after two game 7’s this week which saw the Pittsburgh Penguins and Carolina Panthers both prevail on the road to advance. After Pittsburgh’s win as Washington, the Penguins appear to be the team to beat in this series, and Penguins apparel is flying off the shelves. However Carolina jumped out to a quick 3-1 series lead on the #1 seeded Boston Bruins, and the Hurricanes should not be overlooked. It always seems that Carolina Hurricanes hats & merchandise is a little slower in sales since they are not in such a hockey-crazed town as Pittsburgh, but online stores are reporting nice traffic gains and sales increases.

Pro Hockey Fans has released their Eastern Conference Finals preview and makes their pick for who will play for the Stanley Cup in 2009. Will it be the Penguins or the Hurricanes? Find out!

There you are in the locker room getting pumped up for another NHL game. You’re sitting there tying your skates, taping your socks, strapping your shoulder pads and you proudly put on that professional jersey that you have dreamed about all your life. Standing at the door you can hear the crowd screaming loud and now the adrenaline is flowing through you at an incredible speed. You get to lead your team on the ice and reality sets in. Everybody in the arena hates you; maybe not as person but certainly as a hockey player.

People prove this with signs, finger gestures, throwing garbage and of course, many creative yelling comments. The opposition and their fans contemplate how to murder you and your own teammates only like you because you are on their team.

This top 10 list is based on the players who have earned the right for either that one stupid moment in their professional life or for the career of pestiness, annoyance and grit that defined who they are on the ice. The word “respect” no longer linked to or from these players and will they never have a chance to regain it.

Also, there is no one on this list that played prior to the 1980’s since hockey was different then and everybody hated everybody for no reason besides the fact that they were on the other team.

The bottom line is that every player on my list is either hated for their agitation or for those famous moments when they forgot to think.

And now, the Top 10 most hated players in NHL history…

Can the Red Wing repeat? Will Detroit once again hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup in 2009? This question is asked and answered in the latest article from ProHockey-fans.com Staff Writer Tanner Markell. After losing very few pieces of their Stanley Cup-winning teams from 2007-2008, will the Red Wings repeat as the Stanley Cup Champions is indeed a appropriate question considering the signing of Marian Hossa to a 1-year deal. “Hossa signed with the Wings in hopes of winning a cup for the first time in his career but he has noticed the hangover that has affected all Stanley Cup camps before, over his past 10 seasons” states the article. In addition to the article, the NHL preview has been released as we take a look at the Red Wings in the 2008-2009 NHL Central Division preview. So will the Red Wings repeat? Only time will tell, but I know we all should be excited for another great NHL season.

ProHockey-fans.com is always working to be the best NHL fan site online, and our 2008-2009 NHL preview has begun. Hockey expert and Director of Content Kevin Chaves started the NHL preview with a look at the Pacific Division and has continued the preview with a look at the Atlantic & Central Divisions. You can find expected results for each team, major additions and changes to each team and more. Check it all out online at ProHockey-fans.com.

Continuing in our The Best of the NHL theme over at Pro Hockey Fans, NHL expert Kevin Chaves has identified his list of the best defensemen in NHL history. There have been numerous defensemen who were perennial all-stars, but where does Chris Chelios, Ray Borque or Nicklas Lidstrom rank on the all-time list? Find out today at ProHockey-fans.com!

Pro Hockey Fans was launched with hockey fans in mind, and in almost a year they have brought fans a variety of great features & articles. From the 2008 offseason reports for every NHL team to the newest addition, The NHL’s All-Time Best, ProHockey-fans.com is quickly growing into one of the premeir fan sites for NHL fans online. The NHL’s All-Time Best is a collection of articles ranking the best (or worst) all-time players for each specific topic.

Pro Hockey Fans kicked off the NHL’s All-Time Best in June with the Top Goons on NHL History where Director of Content Kevin Chaves analyzed the biggest and best enforcers/goons in the history of hockey. Check out the Top Goons in NHL History article and leave your feedback and be sure to check back for more of the Best of the NHL in the coming months.

Pro Hockey Fans is dedicated to providing NHL fans with great coverage of the hockey world, and despite the fact that this is the NHL’s offseason we are not going to slow down one bit. Head writer Kevin Chaves has begun his 2008 NHL Offseason Report and has already provided reports for the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Carolina Hurricanes. Check out both of these NHL offseason reports using the links below and feel free to comment!

• 2008 Tampa Bay Lightning offseason report
• 2008 Carolina Hurricanes offseason report

In what turned out to be a thrilling series, the Detroit Red Wings emerged as the NHL’s top team with a 3-2 Game #6 win on Wednesday night as they top Pittsburgh 4-2 to win the 2008 Stanley Cup. A late flurry of shots made this game a nail-biter down to the final second, but Chris Osgood was able to seal the win for the Red Wings for the franchise’s 11th Stanley Cup Championship. As Detroit Red Wings Championship apparel will no doubt be a hot item in Detroit and throughout the nation, fans are already talking about next year in every other NHL city.

 Celebrate the 2008 NHL Champion Detroit Red Wings with a Fathead today!
 

While both teams led their conference finals series 3-0, there was no sweep for either the Penguins or the Red Wings. Lucky for both teams, the 33-year trend of teams coming back from a 3-0 deficit appears to have likely been broken as well. On Sunday, the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in 5 games to take the Eastern Conference Finals and advance to play for the Stanley Cup. One night later, the Detroit Red Wings finally put away the Dallas Stars with a 4-1 road win. After taking a 3-0 series lead, Detroit lost Game #4 @ Dallas and Game #5 in Detroit, but with Monday’s win, the Red Wings take the series in 6 games.

DFN Sports features great sports merchandise including Pittsburgh Penguins hats and Detroit Red Wings apparel and more!