Atlantic Division Recap

Standings
*Philadelphia (47-23-12-106)
*Pittsburgh (49-25-8-106)
*NY Rangers (44-33-5-93)
New Jersey (38-39-5-81)
NY Islanders (30-39-13-73)

Statistical Leaders
Goals- Jeff Carter, PHI (36)
Assists- Claude Giroux, PHI (51)
Points- Claude Giroux, PHI (76)
plus/minus- Andrej Mazaros (+30)
Save PCT- Henrik Lundqvist (.923)

All-Atlantic First Team
LW- Matt Moulson (NYI)
C- Jeff Carter (PHI)
RW- Claude Giroux (PHI)
D- Kris Letang (PIT)
D- Matt Carle (PHI)
G- Henrik Lundqvist (NYR)

All-Atlantic Rookie Team
LW- Mats Zuccarello (NYR)
C- Derek Stepan (NYR)
RW- Michael Grabner (NYI)
D- Travis Hamonic (NYI)
D- Michael Sauer (NYR)
G- Sergei Bobrovsky (PHI)

Division Awards
Hart Trophy- Claude Giroux (PHI)..Played in all 82 games for the Flyers, was 8th in the NHL with 51 assists to go along with 25 goals, and was fifth in the Eastern Conference with 76 points.

Vezina Trophy- Henrik Lundqvist (NYR)..Tied for third in the NHL with 36 wins and had an NHL-leading 11 shutouts between the pipes for the Rangers, who finished 8th in the Eastern Conference

Norris Trophy- Matt Carle (PHI)..Was tied for 4th among NHL defenseman with a +30 rating and was 5th in the Eastern Conference with 39 assists while averaging about 22:00 of ice time.

Calder Trophy- Michael Grabner (NYI)..Led all NHL rookies with 34 goals and was third with 52 points, was nominated for NHL Calder Trophy.

Lady Byng- Patrik Elias (NJ)..One of the NHL's most respected veterans, had just 16 PIM in 81 games.

Selke Trophy- Mike Richards (PHI)..tied for 7th in the NHL with 73 blocked shots and had a +11 rating.

Jack Adams- Dan Bylsma (PIT)..led the Penguins to a 106-point season without having stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin after January 5th, won the NHL Jack Adams Award as well.

Masterton Trophy- Ian Laperriere (PHI)..How quickly he came back from that injury last year was an amazing story; big reason why he won the NHL's Masterton Trophy.

Players in the Penthouse
Patrik Elias (NJ)
Michael Grabner (NYI)
Frans Nielsen (NYI)
John Tavares (NYI)
Andrew McDonald (NYI)
Ryan Callahan (NYR)
Brandon Dubinsky (NYR)
Michael Sauer (NYR)
Henrik Ludqvist (NYR)
Claude Giroux (PHI)
Danny Briere (PHI)
Jeff Carter (PHI)
Mike Richards (PHI)
Scott Hartnell (PHI)
Matt Carle (PHI)
Kimmo Timonen (PHI)
Sidney Crosby (PIT)
Kris Letang (PIT)
Chris Kunitz (PIT)
Tyler Kennedy (PIT)
Pascal Dupuis (PIT)
Marc-Andre Fleury (PIT)

In the Elevator
Travis Zajac (NJ)
PA Parenteau (NYI)
Matt Moulson (NYI)
Travis Hamonic (NYI)
Al Montoya (NYI)
Derek Stepan (NYR)
Artem Amisov (NYR)
Brian Boyle (NYR)
Marc Staal (NYR)
Ville Leino (PHI)
James Van Reimsdyk (PHI)
Andrej Mazaros (PHI)
Sergei Bobrovsky (PHI)
Alex Goligoski (PIT)
Jordan Staal (PIT)
Craig Adams (PIT)
Brent Johnson (PIT)

In the Doghouse 
Ilya Kovalchuk (NJ)
Jamie Langenbruner (NJ)
Matt Martin (NYI)
Rick DiPietro (NYI)
Marian Gaborik (NYR)
Daniel Carcillo (PHI)
Michael Rupp (PIT)
Matt Cooke (PIT)

Thoughts on the 5 Teams

Philadelphia Flyers
- The acquisition of Bryzgalov was big, but did they need it so bad that they should've given up their captain and one of their top scorers for it?
- If the Flyers had a goalie this year, a second consecutive Prince of Wales would've been within the realm of possibility

Pittsburgh Penguins
- Dan Bylsma did one of the finest coaching jobs in recent memory, getting Pittsburgh to a 106-point season missing Crosby and Malkin the whole second half of the year
- If Crosby wants to stop getting concussions, Matt Cooke must go because I believe the cheapshots on Crosby are a direct result of Matt Cooke's on-ice antics.  Players aren't going to go after Cooke, a third-line type of guy, they're going to go after the star player.

New York Rangers
- Henrik Lundqvist is quietly being one of the NHL's best goalies despite playing under the bright lights of New York. Not something you see too often.
- This team has alot of good young players, could have possibly made some noise in the playoffs if not for the injury to Callahan.

New Jersey Devils
- This year was a big wake up call that the Devils are getting old quick, which could mean Lou Lamorello's next project could be a rebuilding project.
- Martin Brodeur's days are now past him, the question now is how many more years does he play before he walks off into the sunset?
- There may very well be quite a few people in Newark thanking the NHL for not approving Kovalchuk's 17-year deal.

New York Islanders
- If this team stays on Long Island, there will be alot of excitement in Uniondale for many years to come.
- Rick DiPietro needs to figure it out, but lucky for him he still has 10 years to do so before his contract expires.