Mike Maniscalco
Mike Maniscalco is the co-host of "The Insiders" from 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on 620 The Buzz. He is also the host of the Carolina Hurricanes pregame and postgame shows on 99.9 FM The Fan ESPN Radio.
By Mike Maniscalco
Jun 17, 2013
Boston Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk (55) stands up against Chicago Blackhawks center Michal Handzus (26), of Slovakia, and during the first period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals in Boston, Monday, June 17, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
The Stanley Cup Finals between Chicago and Boston is going to answer the question of ‘Is it better to be the best team or the hottest when trying to capture a title?’
It is an observation of the last few years, that in most pro sports ,the regular season’s ‘best’ team is rarely the one celebrating at the end. That bit of information is not good for the Blackhawks.
To show where this idea has stemmed from, the 2007 New England Patriots were clearly the best team in the NFL, 16-0 regular season and a run to the Super Bowl, but it was the New York Giants that got hot at the right time and will be remembered as the champs. The 2008 Arizona Cardinals were a toenail away from winning the Lombardi trophy, yes the Cardinals.
In baseball, it is hard to say the San Francisco Giants were the best team in either of the franchise’s recent two World Series victories, or that the St Louis Cardinals were greater than the Tigers or Rangers. Come to think of it, maybe it is in the names - Giants and Cardinals - but I digress.
Back to the Stanley Cup Finals where last season it was the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Kings that won the prize, riding the wave of great play by goalie Jonathan Quick – similar to the way the Boston Bruins were led by Tim Thomas to its first Cup win in 39 years. Goaltending can do that during the playoffs; cover up a lot of weak spots and steal games, which does lend itself to the hot team is better than the league’s best.
The
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By Mike Maniscalco
May 29, 2013
Mike Krzyzewski cracked open the door for a return to the USA basketball sideline. On Thursday, he made it official that he will be back to lead Team USA for the 2016 Olympics. It is a task that the Duke Blue Devil head coach has enjoyed taking on. Winning two gold medals and restoring the U.S. as the dominant basketball power has cemented his legacy as one of the best coaches, not just in basketball, but in the overall debate.
After guiding Team USA to a second gold medal at the London Games, Coach K said that it was time to pass the baton. But sometimes it is hard to let a good thing go. It is a good thing that he did not.
He is the best man for the job. Can you think of another coach right now that is willing to give the time commitment, knows what is involved in coaching that kind of team and has the coaching cache of Krzyzewski? He understands what it takes to run the program and keep America on the gold medal platform.
Krzyzewski has a strong bond with USA Basketball Chairman Jerry Colangelo, it scratches the itch of coaching NBA players and he loves coaching for the Stars and Stripes. Remember, the kid from Chicago attended West Point.
Duke fans should love this. because as long as Mike Krzyzewski is coaching, he will be on the sideline for the Blue Devils. He made a point of saying that the coach for Team USA should be an active coach. Four more years of having Coach K on the bench is a good thing for basketball – both in Durham and wherever
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By Mike Maniscalco
May 16, 2013
Think back to when you were making your college decision. Odds are thousands of people weren’t anxiously awaiting the word on which place of higher learning you would be off to. Unless, of course, you were a highly touted athlete with a fan base eagerly awaiting your arrival to deliver yet another national title to their school.
The latter is the case of Andrew Wiggins, the extremely talented basketball player from Huntington, WV.
Wiggins had narrowed his list down to the University of North Carolina, Florida State, Kentucky and Kansas. The small forward, ranked by almost everyone as the No. 1 high school recruit in the nation, chose the Jayhawks.
There were no magic tricks or Skype shows or marching bands. He made the decision at a private ceremony at his school, Huntington Prep, and that should be the end of the story until he hits the floor at Phog Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan.
But recruiting has become a much more public and much more vicious event than in years past. It is no longer schools and boosters trying to sway a high school player to ‘their’ school, it is everyone with a Twitter or Facebook account, praising the talents of the player and how good he would look in the uniform with their favorite colors. It can be a bit overwhelming to be sure and making a decision that you know is going to disappoint people is hard enough to make without the public scrutiny.
In Wiggins' case, both his mother and father were tremendous athletes
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By Mike Maniscalco
Apr 27, 2013
It wasn't supposed to end like this.
The Carolina Hurricanes added a highly-skilled winger to play along side Eric Staal. The organization traded for a rugged center to make them tougher up the middle and brought in a back-up goalie that had No. 1 experience.
A young coach with a winning pedigree and system that led to a big turn around last year was ready to take another step forward. A 48-game sprint to the playoffs would favor a young team.
But it comes to an end in Pittsburgh, with no playoffs yet again for the Hurricanes. The reality is the franchise will miss the post-season for the fourth straight year.
The front office will have extra time to address the concerns that this season exposed – the fact that there is not a lot of scoring depth and a lack of hard edged play from this team. The one dimensional offense made the Canes an easier team to play against. When the opponents only had to worry about the production of the Eric Staal-Alexander Semin-Jiri Tlusty line, their numbers cooled from record pace.
The trio, in just over half a season, put together one of the more impressive years from a top line in the organization's history. The second line that had visions of Jordan Staal and Jeff Skinner providing even more goals never clicked and third and fourth lines lacked consistent offensive punch. The defense lacked intimidation, and the goaltending without Cam Ward was inconsistent.
This is revisionist history, but if
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By Mike Maniscalco
Apr 11, 2013
Kirk Muller has to feel like he has been cast in the sequel to “Groundhog Day."
Since March 14, it has been pretty much the same thing over and over for his club. Good effort, high compete level and a loss. There are lots of reasons why the Hurricanes are in this spot. The tough thing to fathom is that this is the same team that a month and a half ago – the fans thought – had the front office executive, coach and player of the year with a team that was going to win the division.
Of course no one saw that team going through a stretch of 1-12-1. There is no one explanation to say how this happened. Injuries, lack of depth, lack of confidence, lack of scoring and a lack of big saves has added up to the lack of wins.
So how, in a few weeks, did the team go from penthouse to the well, you know…?
Losing Cam Ward to what equates to basically a season-ending injury jumps out. If this season does show anything, it is the value of goalie play. Goaltending in the NHL is like pitching in MLB and quarterback play in the NFL – if you don’t have it, it is hard to win trying to find it. This isn’t to put all the blame on Dan Ellis and Justin Peters, however, the save at the crucial time in the game has been missing in this streak.
That doesn’t mean that either player needs to be perfect, but making the save to keep a game tied or within striking distance has not been there. NHL teams have confidence from the net out, and when that
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By Mike Maniscalco
Apr 3, 2013
Jussi Jokinen (36) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals hockey game in Raleigh, N.C. Friday, January 20, 2012.
The NHL trade deadline has as much to do today with where teams are at relative to the salary cap as it does with where a team is in the standings.
The Carolina Hurricanes, just four points out of first place in the Southeast division, have been in a tailspin the last 10 games. Whereas the deadline used to be just the thing to pull a team out of a slide, modern day deals are seen through a different lens, and what the Canes front office is seeing has them in a tough place.
"Based on the position we have put ourselves in the last two or three weeks, I wasn’t going to trade younger players or high draft picks for somebody that may or may not make a difference here in the last month," said president and general manager Jim Rutherford.
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By Mike Maniscalco
Apr 2, 2013
Jamie McBain (4) holds back Joel Ward (42) during the Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals hockey game in Raleigh, N.C. Friday, January 20, 2012.
Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. is a big moment for NHL general managers. It is the NHL trade deadline and this year, figuring out who the buyers and sellers are, is not that easy.
Six points separate seven teams in the East for the final playoff spot and out West, four points is the difference between the eight spot and 13th.
The Carolina Hurricanes stand outside of the playoffs for the moment, trailing the New York Rangers and Islanders by three points for the final spot, but that might not be the clubs' easiest path to the post-season.
Carolina trails Winnipeg by four points for the Southeast Division lead and the No. 3 seed in the conference, the Hurricanes also have three games in hand on the Jets. Tracking down the Jets is no sure thing, especially when the Washington Capitals are overcoming a horrendous start to get back into the picture.
So where does that put general manager Jim Rutherford at the deadline? To sell or not to sell, that is the question.
The team already made a deal, acquiring power-play specialist Marc-Andre Bergeron from Tampa Bay in exchange for Adam Hall and a seventh-round pick. Essentially a move that costs the organization little as Hall was picked up on waivers from Tampa earlier this year. But Bergeron is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this year, so does that put the franchise in a buyer’s mode? Or was that move a precursor to selling tomorrow?
ESPN and Darren Dreger of TSN are reporting Carolina
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By Mike Maniscalco
Mar 26, 2013
Carolina Hurricanes center Jeff Skinner (53) celebrates a goal as the Devils defeated the Hurricanes 4 to 1 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC Thursday March 21, 2013 (Photo by Jack Tarr)
Three games does not make a season, but for the Hurricanes, the next three games could break the season.
A five-game winless streak has put Carolina on the outside of the playoffs looking in, with injuries and inconsistent efforts to blame for the team only picking up a single point during that stretch.
A scheduling quirk has given the Canes four days off, which allowed the coaching staff to give the players the weekend off to rest and hopefully recover. Will time away to refocus be the tonic for the team?
For head coach Kirk Muller, the time away from the rink should help the team remember what they are capable of.
“A couple of days to get physically rested again and look at what we are all about," he said Monday.
More
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By Mike Maniscalco
Mar 21, 2013
Ruutu celebrates after his second goal during the Penguins vs. Hurricanes game on November 12, 2011 in Raleigh, NC.
The Hurricanes received more bad news on the injury front when it was learned that defenseman Justin Faulk will be lost for two to four weeks with a second degree MCL sprain.
Faulk joins goalie Cam Ward on the injured list with that same injury. Ward’s, however, is more severe at a grade three. The other difference is how the organization will go about replacing Faulk’s presence in the line-up. In Ward’s case, the team dipped into Charlotte and called up Justin Peters, who has split time with Dan Ellis. Both goaltenders have provided solid play.
With Faulk and his team leading 23:23 of ice time on the shelf, the Canes have gone back to Charlotte and have brought up Brett Bellemore to see time on the blue line. This is the solution for now, but more help may be on the way. General Manager Jim Rutherford told me via text that the team is looking outside the organization for a defenseman to help fill the void with the injuries to Faulk and Joe Corvo.
With the condensed schedule, it will more than likely be a seller’s market come the April 3 trade deadline. The Hurricanes have shown in the past that they would rather make a deal early and set the market price than have to overpay for players in a bidding war.
Power outage
Carolina ranks 29th on the power play overall and 30th at home with the man-advantage. Considering the Hurricanes have one of the most productive lines in hockey, with Eric Staal centering Alexander Semin
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By Mike Maniscalco
Mar 16, 2013
The Hurricanes have crossed the halfway point of this condensed season and are sitting in first place in the Southeast. It brings up a chance to look at what has worked so far and the areas of concern down the stretch. There has been a lot to like, but that doesn't mean Carolina can coast into the postseason.
It is hard to say a team in the NHL has had more impact from offseason moves than the Canes.
Signing Alexander Semin to a one-year contract raised eyebrows around the league. Semin, according to teammates in Washington, had some baggage, but that evidently has not made the trip to the Triangle. Semin has been a dynamic playmaker, the exact fit for Eric Staal’s wing. Plus the reports from the locker room have been as positive as his plus/minus rating. Teammates have said that Semin has been a great addition to the club on and off the ice.
Jordan Staal was expected to make the jump to a top six forward in Carolina, and giving up Brandon Sutter a minor leaguer and a pick for Eric Staal’s brother has been worth the price. Jordan Staal has landed nicely in the role of second-line center and the chemistry between Staal and Jeff Skinner is evident most nights. The younger Staal has given the team a one-two punch down the middle and is creating match-up problems for the opposition. Much like the impact that Semin has had on Eric Staal, Jordan Staal has been able to help return Jeff Skinner to the dynamic player he was his rookie season.
Not to get lost
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