NHL Game Seven - June 19, 2006
Carolina and Edmonton play Game 7 on
the Stanley Cup finals tonight with
history on the side of the Hurricanes.
Edmonton (+150) at Carolina
Of the 13 Game Sevens in Stanley Cup
history, the home team has an 11-2
record. Edmonton is also trying to
become the first team since the 1942
Maple Leafs to overcome a 3-1 deficit in
the finals.
Whatever the final outcome of this
series is, you have to give credit to
the Oilers. They could have folded their
tents after a 2-1 loss in Game 4. That
put them one game away from elimination,
and they were already playing without
their injured goaltender, Dwayne Roloson.
Instead, they won Game 5 in Carolina,
4-3 in overtime. They also won Game 6 in
Edmonton, 4-0. 31 year-old goaltender,
Jussi Markkanen has stepped in nicely
for Roloson and saved his best work for
Game 6 when he stopped all 16 Carolina
shots. The most incredible thing about
Markkanen is that he had not played
since March 1 before getting the call in
the finals.
For Carolina, goaltender Cam Ward
hasn’t been bad, it’s just that Edmonton
has played hungry and desperate the last
two games, while Carolina has been far
too tentative. The good news is that
Carolina has lost two games in a row and
can still win the Stanley Cup in a home
game.
Stanley Cup Notes:
The Hurricanes (formerly the Hartford
Whalers) are trying to win the
franchise’s first Stanley Cup. Edmonton
is going for their 6th Stanley Cup
championship, the last coming in 1990.
This is the third straight Stanley
Cup Finals in a row that has gone seven
games. That is amazing considering that
is has been rare throughout history. In
2004, Tampa Bay beat Calgary 2-1 to win
the title. In 2003, New Jersey defeated
the Mighty Ducks 3-0 for the
championship.
Last year, there was no Stanley Cup
due to the strike, but this playoff
season has more than made up for that.
Expect another classic game tonight.
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