I suggested coach Dave Tippett would have a short leash in Dallas with new GM Joe Nieuwendyk, but I didn’t think it would be this short.

The Stars are expected to announce the Tippett-ectomy today. Marc Crawford is rumored to be the next coach of the Stars. Crawford’s up-tempo, forecheck heavy style, which he’s coached since before the lockout, when forechecking wasn’t cool, is pretty much the opposite of Tippett’s defensive style. But Crawford loses a room quickly, so I’m not sure how long he’ll last in Dallas. I would suggest renting a home rather than buying.

Tim Cowlishaw likes that Nieuwendyk is being proactive, rather than waiting for Tippett’s inevitable struggle.

Of course, if Nieuwendyk really wants to get proactive about major problems, he should probably do something about goalie Marty Turco next.

This is probably the summer to do it, too. Kevin Allen says there are more free agent starting goalies than jobs. Of course, that also makes it harder to move Turco, so I’m not sure. This is kind of why I never sell anything. I can never understand the economics of a market.

Speaking of goalies, Tim Panaccio reports on how tough things were for new Flyer goalie Ray Emery in the KHL. Players often have to be at games 24 hours before game time, staying overnight in a gym. Players have to play until April. Even if they’re eliminated from the playoffs. Then, they still have to show up and practice. So I’m sure Emery will be grateful to be back in the NHL. I’m not sure any of that KHL stuff makes him a better goalie, but at least he’ll be grateful.

Fantastic game six last night. And for all of the talk about Detroit’s defense driving their offense, Pittsburgh did a tremendous job, at least for the first two periods, of letting their defense be a catalyst for their offense.

Mike Heika said the game deserved to be on NBC. I think NBC should show the last six minutes of that game on a loop. That would have to rate better than Leno in primetime.

The Brent Sutter era is over in New Jersey and it’s a sad thing, because he’s a great coach. In fact, he’s so good, the Devils should consider not letting Sutter take a job working under his brother, coaching the Flames. If I’m the Devils, and I’m not, I would hate to have another coach that good in the league, even in another conference.

Jacques Lemaire could return to coach the Devils. Former Devil player, current assistant coach John MacLean is also in the coaching mix, which is kind of funny since MacLean didn’t get along with Lemaire when he played for him. A system-oriented coach like Lemaire would be a step back for a Devils team that often thrived under Sutter’s uptempo, aggressive system. I hate to see the Devils walk away from a coaching direction that seemed to be paying off.

Also, it doesn’t seem like Ottawa, the city, is having a good reaction to Dany Heatley’s trade request. I can understand fans being upset about a star asking out of a city and off of a team, but does anyone really think Heatley was working in Ottawa? He struggled to understand his role under two different coaches. His offense, while impressive, wasn’t great enough to compensate for his often lax work in the defensive zone. The Senators could get some really good stuff back for Heatley. This is an opportunity for the Senators and the fans should be excited. Unless Heatley can’t be moved. Then, it’s going to be a long season next year.

I’m not sure tonight’s game six is going to be the Detroit cakewalk everyone seems to think it will be.

The big factor working in Pittsburgh’s favor? Getting away from those Joe Louis boards, which they never seemed to adjust to or to be prepared for.

The big difference in Detroit’s game five rout was how the Wings used those crazy, spring-loaded boards. Every time a Red Wing missed the net, the miss turned into a centering pass. And yet the Penguins never collapsed around Marc-Andre Fleury nor purposely missed the net to set themselves up in the slot.

The Penguins have a decent enough chance to win game six in Pittsburgh. But at this point, I don’t see how they could ever win a game seven in Detroit. Unless they have a man on the inside putting pillows behind the Joe Louis boards.

Also, I really hope we see Chris Chelios tonight, in case the Wings do win.

And if things don’t go well for Pittsburgh tonight, Bleacher Report has a list of the NHL’s top 20 free agents.

If/when the Flyers sign goalie Ray Emery, it will represent a tremendous step backwards for the franchise.

The Flyers’ Marty Biron goalie years represented a recognition that a modern, post-lockout NHL franchise needs a strong presence in goal. And to be honest, you really needed a strong goalie before the lockout, too. One of former Flyers GM Bobby Clarke’s greatest failures was his pathological denial of the need for solid goaltending.

Emery represents a return to that direction. Sure, he’s had his personality issues. But ultimately, that’s ancillary to his playing. And his NHL game hasn’t been strong in quite some time. It’s possible his time in the KHL has made him a better goalie, but not probable. While the KHL has some NHL talent, it’s more the exception than the norm.

One of the reasons the Flyers want Emery is to save salary to sign Jay Bouwmeester, an offensive defenseman who, ironically, requires the use of a strong goalie to save his mistakes.

It’s not a certainty that Emery will fail in Philadelphia, but I don’t think it’s a given he’ll thrive, and I’m not sure what the Flyers plan B option will be if Emery doesn’t work out. Even if he’s on a one-year contract.

So what did Pittsburgh do right in their win over Detroit?

Quite a few things.

Their powerplay was finally effective against the Wings.

They managed to get pucks deep in the Red Wing zone.

They kept the Zetterberg/Lindstrom match-up out on the ice for longer shifts, plus lots of ice time in general.

I think getting the Crosby match-up forced the Wings to cheat in their own end a bit. No one played very deep, since they were often waiting for Crosby to come over the boards. As a result, Detroit was frequently caught playing up ice, which let the Penguins chip the puck behind them.

Game four should be great. So far, both coaches have done a huge job of adjusting.

Also, Tim Panaccio reports the Flyers were in talks with Florida GM Jacques Martin for the rights to defenseman Jay Bouwmeester. With Martin gone, that deal isn’t a sure thing. Bouwmeester’s rights could also wind-up in Edmonton. Bouwmeester is an Edmonton native, otherwise, I’d just assume he would never sign there.

Finally, Mike Heika has a nice piece on Les Jackson, the forgotten second-half of Dallas’ one-time two-headed GM monster. Jackson did all of the work while Brett Hull got all of the attention and brought Sean Avery to Dallas. Now, Jackson is expected to help new GM Joe Nieuwendyk transition into the job.

Brent Sutter is starting to look like another successful graduate of the Mats Sundin Rapid Decision-Making Program. He’s still not sure he wants to coach the Devils next season.

The longer Sutter waits, the less effective he’ll be as a coach if he decides to return. Would you play hard for someone who was that unsure he even wanted to coach you?

I’m guessing the indecision might also be related to a job-opening in Calgary.

Devils GM Lou Lamoriello said he won’t rush Sutter, so I’m curious just when everyone will know next season’s coach of the Devils. At this rate, it could be November before anyone knows for sure.

Speaking of coaches, how about Jacques Martin leaving the GM job in Florida to coach the Habs? George Richards likes the move because it gets Martin out of any fallout from not trading Jay Bouwmeester at this year’s trade deadline. That’s pretty slick since I didn’t see a way for the Panthers to save face if/when Bouwmeester left.

Finally, game three of the finals is tonight. People are making a big deal out of Pittsburgh getting the last change, but Detroit often takes defensive draws with two centers, sending the extra one off after the faceoff is won. The Wings know how to get players on and off the ice. Detroit will be able to get the Zetterberg line on against Sidney Crosby. So Pittsburgh needs a plan B if they want to win tonight. I’ve got nothing. Hopefully, for Pittsburgh, Dan Bylsma does.

I love Joe Nieuwendyk taking over as GM in Dallas.

First of all, just the move to a single GM model is pretty huge for the Stars. That alone makes this a great move. But you also have to love Nieuwendyk’s pedigree. He’s a player who knows how to win. Not only did he win the Stanley Cup with three different teams, but he had different roles with each of the three teams, from offensive force to calming veteran to defensive specialist. And even at the end of his career, when he was injured more than he was healthy, he still found ways to be effective. He’s got a tremendous hockey IQ and I’m guessing it will translate to the GM’s office. I’m also guessing Dallas coach Dave Tippett will be on a very, very short leash to start the season. I imagine Nieuwendyk is watching the playoffs and seeing the value of a strong, aggressive forecheck — a style Tippett has fairly consistently avoided.

Allan Muir also likes the move in Dallas, but cautions that Nieuwendyk could stand a bit more seasoning.

Also, Bucky Gleason has a terrifying theory that the Blackhawks could be the Sabres of the Western Conference in terms of an inability to retain key players on a successful team. Of course, I kind of think the Blackhawks will at least extend offers to players they’d like to keep, while that was never the style of the Sabres.

So this year’s Stanley Cup finals will be a rematch of last year’s. The Blackhawks magical run through the post-season finally ended last night.

It’s interesting how close the Detroit-Chicago series actually was. Chicago had a decent chance to win games two and five. Another season or so of experience and the Blackhawks might have won those two and the series is still being played. Plus, Cristobal Huet played his pads off, setting him up to take over the starting goaltending job next season.

A Pittsburgh-Chicago finals would have been pretty amazing, but you really can’t complain about Pittsburgh-Detroit. I wonder if Pittsburgh has the personnel to keep Detroit out of the crease, though. Chicago sure didn’t.

Finally, over in Colorado, Pierre McGuire tells Adrian Dater Avs coach Tony Granato can come back from having his job offered to Patrick Roy, who then turned it down. Having just watched the season premier of JON & KATE PLUS 8, I can report that some things are just too awkward and uncomfortable to rebound from. But if Granato really wants to come back from this, step one needs to be to throw a party for as many five-year-olds as he can get his hands on.

The Penguins are going to the Stanley Cup finals thanks to last night’s impressive win over the Penguins. Puck Daddy had a nice look at how the Penguins did it. I’d like to add one other reason to the pile, though.

Penguins coach Dan Bylsma had the Penguins play an aggressive defense, with players pinching ever so slightly and the Penguins always making the first move in their own zone. Contrast that with Paul Maurice’s more traditional defense, which had his players constantly backing up, letting the Penguins make the first move, waiting to capitalize on a mistake. The only flaw in that plan was that the Penguins didn’t make enough mistakes. All the defense did was give the Penguins enough space to make plays.

I’m curious how Bylsma’s defense will work against Detroit, a fast and tricky team. If your defense is too aggressive against them, you’re going to give up an odd-man rush.

Oh. And could hockey have its own steroid scandal? A pair of alleged steroid dealers in Florida are saying they dealt to members of the Washington Capitals. This will be something interesting to keep an eye on. But given the dealers also say they dealt to the Washington Nationals, I can’t imagine the alleged steroids were very good or helpful.

Speaking of the Caps, Sergei Fedorov to the KHL is not a done deal. Yet.

I’m shocked Washington’s Sergei Fedorov would leave the NHL for the KHL.

Sure, his best days are behind him, but he was a pretty important part of the Capitals playoff run, serving as a calming influence on the ice. I really thought Washington would try and keep him and Fedorov would try and stay. After all, he hasn’t been a factor on an NHL team since he played with Detroit. His exile(s) in Anaheim and Columbus saw him all but lose his NHL relevancy. He was reborn in Washington. But apparently, it seems like he’s ready to move on.

Tim Panaccio has a nice tribute to Chris Osgood that reveals something fascinating about the Flyers:

Many years after the Summit Series, the first competition between the Russian and Canadian national hockey teams, Russian goalie Vladislav Tretiak told Bob Clarke that the secret to the Soviets’ success in the 1970s was that the team built around him, and not just him in goal.

We think Tretiak’s rationale was a major reason why the Flyers never placed the same emphasis on having a stud No. 1 in net as other clubs have.

Can you imagine how different the Flyers’ fortunes would have been if Tretiak explicitly said what he probably considered too obvious to say aloud to Bobby Clarke: ‘But of course, you need a decent goalie in goal. You can’t just ignore the position for years. The goalie is still an important position.’

Finally, Larry Brooks’ Sunday NHL column was a bit strange, with Brooks suggesting the Devils release coach Brent Sutter from his contract so he can coach for his brother Darryl in Calgary. Sure, Sutter doesn’t seem happy on the east coast, but isn’t hockey a business? Can you really afford to turn a great coach loose? Can you imagine the fallout if the Devils just let Sutter go and then somehow manage to meet Calgary in the finals? I get that Brent Sutter is a person. But before I let him go, I’d see if there’s anything that can be done to make him happy in New Jersey. Happy and inclined to stay past this season. Because coaches like Sutter aren’t exactly easy to find.