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The Hamilton Bulldogs are heading onto the 2nd
round, after winning their first round series against Rochester in what many
would call somewhat of a significant upset.  We’ll look at the numbers for
the week for them, as well as our continual look into the CHL playoffs.  In
our final thought segment, we have some fun and look at 5 keys in determining
whether you have early-offseason-itis, in the Recap.

The Dog
Pound

Hamilton once again went 2-1 this week, winning
their series vs Rochester by a 4-2 count.

Scores:

Game-by-game, series games 4-6.


April 24		 1 2 3 Tot PP SOG
Rochester 1 2 1 4 1/2 19
Hamilton 2 1 0 3 0/4 23

Attendance:  2,145
3 Stars:  1) Stewart – ROC  2) Urquhart – HAM  3) Swanson –
ROC


April 26		 1 2 3 Tot PP SOG
Hamilton 2 1 1 4 1/5 40
Rochester 2 0 0 2 0/6 32

Attendance:  3,086
3 Stars:  1) Manlow – HAM  2) Manlow – ROC  3) Groulx – HAM


April 28		 1 2 3 Tot PP SOG
Rochester 1 1 0 2 0/3
27
Hamilton 1 1 4 6 1/6
33

Attendance:  3,221
3 Stars:  1) Lapierre – HAM  2) O’Byrne – HAM  3) MacArthur –
ROC

Weekly
Stats:

A pair of Bulldogs scored their first goals
with the team…and it only took them 80+ games to do it, d-men Danny Groulx and
Ryan O’Byrne.

SKATERS
# Player GP G A +/- SH PIMS
2 Ryan O’Byrne 3 1 1 +5 7 4
4 Dan Jancevski 3 0 0 -2 5 0
7 Eric Manlow 3 2 0 +2 4 0
10 Cory Urquhart 3 1 0 +1 2 0
16 Andre Benoit 3 0 1 +4 5 0
17 Kyle Chipchura 3 1 1 +3 3 2
19 Duncan Milroy 3 0 4 +2 8 0
20 Zack Stortini 3 0 0 -3 2 0
21 Jonathan Ferland 3 1 1 +2 6 0
22 Matt D’Agostini 3 0 1 E 0 4
24 Francis Lemieux 3 0 1 E 3 4
26 Maxim Lapierre 3 3 0 +1 8 0
27 Danny Groulx 3 1 0 +1 7 2
31 Mikhail Grabovski 3 0 1 -2 10 2
32 Ajay Baines 3 1 0 +1 5 0
34 Mathieu Biron 3 0 2 E 7 0
55 Andrew Archer 3 0 1 E 2 4
84 Corey Locke 3 2 3 +2 12 0

GOALIES
# Player MINS SF SVS GA
29 Carey Price 179 78 70 8

Playoff Leaders: 

Goals:  Locke (5)
Assists:  Milroy (5)
Points:  Locke (8)
+/-:  O’Byrne/Benoit (5)
PIMS:  Stortini (18)

Schedule:

May 5th: 
Hamilton vs Manitoba
May 6th: 
Hamilton vs Manitoba

A Closer
Look

Here, we’ll take a look at some of the key
players on the Moose.

Jason Jaffray:  The only player to have more goals than Corey Locke
in Round 1.  Also led Manitoba in goals and points during the regular
season.

Michael Grabner:  The 2006 1st round pick is currently on an ATO,
but has seen spot time thus far in the postseason.

Yannick Tremblay, Alex Edler:  Both
d-men have been up and down this season with the Canucks, the latter still sits
on their roster at the moment.

Mike Keane, Marc Chouinard:  A pair of veterans who have contributed
both during the regular season and playoffs.

Drew McIntyre:  Currently has a 1.65 GAA and .939 SV% in postseason
action.

In the
System

By Jason Brisebois

The final bell finally rang for the
prospects this week, despite having three prospects still in contention at the
start of the week. All three of them and their teams would fall behind early in
their respective series, and never be able to come back in those series. In all,
though, it was a very successful run. Most of the prospects performed admirably,
and certainly give off a good indication of what they may be able to bring to
the organization in the future.

WHL

Medicine Hat vs Calgary
Medicine Hat wins series 4-1

C Ryan White (Calgary)

Though winning game three, the Hitmen were never able to overcome their early
two game deficit in the series. After that win, they would not win again, losing
in five games. That would end White’s season, but not after a fairly successful
playoff run. He notched 6 goals and 8 assists for 14 points in 18 games.

OHL

London vs Plymouth
Plymouth wins series 4-1

RW Sergei Kostitsyn (London)

The London series was very similar to the Calgary series. The Knights were
behind early in the series, and could never recover. They lost their first three
games, but managed to destroy hopes of the sweep. It was not enough though, as
Plymouth would finish it in five games. Kostitsyn had an extremely successful
post-season, certainly giving the Habs’ brass a lot to look forward to. He had 9
goals and 12 assists for 21 points in 16 games. Plymouth now advances to face
Sudbury, and as a Sudbury native, I can only hope my Wolves avenge Sergei.

QMJHL

Rouyn-Noranda vs Lewiston
Lewiston wins series 4-0

D Mathieu Carle (Rouyn-Noranda)

The final of the three series, and the last hope for the Habs to have a prospect
advance. This series was yet another disappointment though, as it was perhaps
the most lob-sided of the three. Rouyn- Noranda would lose all four games, and
get swept by Lewiston. Carle had 6 goals and 10 assists for 16 points in 16
games, which is certainly no small feat for a defensemen. As of today, he is
still tied for 3rd in scoring by a defensemen in the QMJHL.

Final
Thought

Rather than going off about Alexei Kovalev’s
most recent spouting, we’ll have a little fun this week, and look at the top-5
cases of early-offseason-itis that many Montreal fans seem to be experiencing. 
You know you’re suffering when…

1–  Alexander Perezhogin’s alleged signing with Russian team
Avangard Omsk creates a stir, but only after fans try and remember what
Perezhogin actually contributed to the team to see if this is a good or bad
thing.  (The rumour was a false one by the way.)

2–  Fans who last season would’ve traded Radek Bonk for a bag of
pucks are now advocating for him staying, since he’s such an integral part of
the team.

3–  Vincent Lecavalier to Montreal rumours are aplenty,
despite the fact Jay Feaster has said unequivocally that he will be not be
traded.

4–  Every junior player who’s eliminated from their playoff team
sparks discussion about whether they should sign a tryout contract to play for
the AHL Bulldogs…and no one talks about the fact any of them have yet to sign
an NHL deal.

5–  We couldn’t forget about this one, the constant "potential
lineup talks" that involve no fewer than 75 players, all of whom could become
Habs at some point in free agency or that could be traded for.