Nothing Personal: Toronto Maple Leafs @ Florida Panthers ... Eminger IN, Boynton OUT ... Looking for Answers ... Scoreboard Watch, The Standings

Trying to get into the hockey mindset what with all the basketball going on today.

Spoke to a couple of the guys about their picks for the NCAA tournament and it's a wildly varied bunch. Anthony Stewart is picking Marquette as his dark horse, Nick Boynton is going with UConn because they are a No. 1 seed and he likes those top seeds with New England connections, and Craig Anderson is going from Illinois because he's a homeboy and is representing the ILL.

Tried to get Michael Frolik to admit to picking Akron in the tournament, but he didn't know where Akron was. Two words Michael: Go Zips.

-- Nick Boynton is out of the lineup again tonight, and Pete DeBoer says ''you have to believe me'' that it's nothing personal. DeBo says he likes the way the six D have been playing of late, although he couldn't tell me what Steve Eminger brings to the table that is better than Boynton. Says it's a real tough choice.

From my perspective, it just seems a little strange that Boynton has only played three games since that blow up with the coaches in New York, and only then because Bryan McCabe was hurt. DeBo says he likes what Eminger has brought to the table since coming over in a trade on March 4, but I haven't seen it. Eminger helped out on the power play when McCabe was out, but I haven't seen a whole lot out of him since he's been here.

For his part, Boynton says he believes he and DeBo have cleared the air and he believes that his lack of playing time has nothing to do with the blowup.

My take: The Panthers weren't real happy with Boynton's play before the New York game, and he was benched in the third period of that game for a reason. Eminger is a guy DeBo knows from their junior days together and they are giving him a chance to show what he's got. Eminger will probably be with the Panthers next year, Boynton, probably not. We'll see how this develops.

-- Anthony Stewart also out of the lineup.

-- The Toronto media had some fun with the 'Playoff Promise' deal, a good number of them noticing the billboards with DeBo on them. Asked if he's now the face of the franchise, the good-humored coach responded ''I hope not. It's not that good looking if it is.''

-- McCabe has gotten rid of his full plastic shield and is going old-school with a full metal cage. Says it's much easier to breathe in. He adds that he hasn't worn a full face mask since he was 15, and probably last wore one when he was in world juniors as a 19-year-old. ''It sucks,'' he said.

McCabe, you might recall, had three plates inserted into his face after taking a slap shot off his mug a few games ago against St. Loo.

Wednesday's Game (and how it affected the Panthers): Carolina won. Three points up. 'Nuff said.

Thursday's Games (and who the Panthers would be rooting for if they weren't so busy watching the Akron-Gonzaga -- Zip 'n Zag -- Game)

Canadiens @ Senators, 7: Panthers need to start picking up some ground and doing so soon. They like the Sens and their celebrity girlfriends in this one.

Leafs @ Panthers, 7:30: Cats have lost four straight and the Leafs are playing like they have nothing to lose. Which they don't. Florida is a tight, desperate team. This, friends, is a must-win.

The Standings (presented by the MAC champion Zips, Bryan McCabe's cage and courtesy of tsn.ca/nhl)

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	Boston	71	45	17	9	99	237	167	24-6-5	21-11-4	4-5-1	Lost 1
2	New Jersey	70	46	21	3	95	218	173	25-10-1	21-11-2	8-2-0	Lost 1
3	Washington	72	44	22	6	94	232	210	26-9-2	18-13-4	5-4-1	Won 1
4	Philadelphia	69	37	22	10	84	220	199	21-10-4	16-12-6	4-5-1	Lost 2
5	Pittsburgh	72	38	26	8	84	228	218	20-12-3	18-14-5	8-0-2	Won 2
6	NY Rangers	71	37	26	8	82	181	193	21-10-4	16-16-4	6-3-1	Won 2
7	Montreal	70	36	25	9	81	208	210	21-7-6	15-18-3	5-3-2	Lost 3
8	Carolina	72	37	28	7	81	204	205	20-13-1	17-15-6	6-2-2	Won 1
9	Florida	70	34	26	10	78	194	199	18-10-6	16-16-4	4-4-2	Lost 4
10	Buffalo	70	34	28	8	76	205	197	20-12-3	14-16-5	3-5-2	Lost 2
11	Toronto	71	29	29	13	71	213	252	13-13-9	16-16-4	6-3-1	Won 2
12	Ottawa	69	29	30	10	68	181	200	18-12-6	11-18-4	6-3-1	Won 2
13	Atlanta	71	29	36	6	64	216	240	14-18-2	15-18-4	7-3-0	Lost 1
14	Tampa Bay	70	23	32	15	61	184	231	11-14-10	12-18-5	3-4-3	Lost 1
15	NY Islanders	70	24	38	8	56	176	224	16-14-5	8-24-3	6-2-2	Won 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-Detroit	71	47	15	9	103	264	209	26-5-4	21-10-5	7-2-1	Won 3
2	x-San Jose	69	45	14	10	100	222	171	27-3-4	18-11-6	4-5-1	Lost 1
3	Calgary	70	41	23	6	88	231	215	23-8-4	18-15-2	5-5-0	Won 1
4	Chicago	69	37	22	10	84	225	185	18-8-6	19-14-4	3-5-2	Lost 4
5	Vancouver	69	37	23	9	83	210	191	21-11-4	16-12-5	7-2-1	Won 3
6	Columbus	71	37	28	6	80	198	199	23-11-2	14-17-4	7-3-0	Won 1
7	Nashville	71	35	30	6	76	182	196	21-12-3	14-18-3	6-2-2	Lost 1
8	Edmonton	69	33	27	9	75	194	211	16-12-6	17-15-3	4-2-4	Won 1
9	Minnesota	70	33	29	8	74	180	174	19-11-6	14-18-2	3-4-3	Won 1
10	Dallas	71	33	30	8	74	202	217	19-13-4	14-17-4	4-5-1	Lost 2
11	St. Louis	70	32	29	9	73	196	207	19-13-5	13-16-4	6-3-1	Lost 1
12	Anaheim	70	33	31	6	72	194	204	17-16-3	16-15-3	5-4-1	Won 1
13	Los Angeles	69	29	30	10	68	182	203	16-14-8	13-16-2	3-6-1	Lost 3
14	Phoenix	70	29	35	6	64	172	215	18-14-2	11-21-4	2-7-1	Won 1
15	Colorado	71	31	38	2	64	187	221	18-16-0	13-22-2	3-6-1	Lost 2

Comments

[AG]

OMG. You knew youd here from me GR, its pure outrage and disgust. Dont believe him, for his talent eval is questionable if he sees eminger at -3 the better choice.

If he was up North the Papers would have fried PD over this...

[Tee Spot]

Jock martin sucks. Im still thrilled we got an average defenseman for a average defenseman and a pick, who got the better end of that deal.....

Maybe the fans should all get torches and meet outside of the BAC by the Admin Offices and request the front office resign.

[Bo]

I don't see Boynton or Eminger as a big deal. Boynton adds some muscle, Eminger adds a little better playmaking and skating. Both are better than Welch. It doesn't matter which one is in the line-up. If Panthers wins depend on either Boynton or Eminger then the team is doomed. It is time for Booth, Weiss, Stillman, Zednik and the rest to SCORE. If the forwards can't score this team cannot win, period. Boynton or Eminger is irrelevant. Getting shutout is a disgrace. The forwards need to score or time to forget about playoffs.

[George Richards]

I agree with you. this is not the reason the panthers have lost four straight. far from it...

[alex]

i like eminger. i watched him with tampa alot and he was playing #1 minutes and doing well. solid defensively and on pace for about 40 points. he's a guy whos going to have a bigger role next year when bouwmeester leaves so i have no problem with getting him accustomed to the team and the system.

aside from his first game against pittsburgh, i think he's played well too. no problem with him being in the lineup at all. he's not the reason we're losing.

[Salty Dog]

I am going to third or fourth this. I was at the Tampa v Toronto game. Toronto won that game similar to other Panthers opponents. They played a good 3rd period. This is a 60 minute game and the Panthers need 20 guys to play the full 60 and hit and establish home turf. No excuse tonight as the Leafs will have Cujo (past his prime) or Gerber (so bad he was playing in Binghmapton a few weeks ago for the Sens) in net. Time to put the puck in the net.

Excited to be making the trip on Sat for the CBJ game from Orlando!!!! Got a team playing in the USA Hockey tourney in Coral Springs.

[George Richards]

word is it's gerber....

[Johnny B]

Not to bash Eminger, he seems decent, but if you look at the two shootout losses, Boynton had points in both, and Jay Bouwmeester was on the ice for the tying goal in both. Boynton is producing, Cullimore (another guy who will be gone next year) and Eminger aren't.

Twelve games left and three points out of a playoff spot is not the time to get someone "accustomed to the system." That's what training camp is for. They all made a big deal about not changing the chemistry of this team at the deadline and, like it or not, Boynton was part of that chemistry all season, and this team's problems started when he got sent home from that road trip.

I don't think this team's fate rests on Eminger or Boynton, but I think the situation is a bigger problem than anyone is letting on. Or maybe it's coincidence. All I know is I got a bad feeling when I saw the headline.

[season ticket holder since day one]

it really shouldn't be between Eminger and Boynton but between them and Cullimore who is not having as good a year this year as last.

Also, Ballard doesn't appear to be playing as well since the Boynton incident happened

There are a lot of players on this team that will not be here next year.

No matter how we look at it the team will need to get to 93 points to make the playoffs.

[Karl]

Boynton v. Eminger, not that big of a deal. I like Boynton, but probably 'cuz he's been here all year, Emmy hasn't shown anything yet. Not saying he can't, just don't know him thatw ell. But the defense has played well enough to win. Zednik, Stillman, Weiss, CPR line, scoring in general has disappeared. 0 SOG in the 3rd period of a game they KNEW they had to work hard to win? Awful. It's win or pack it in tonight...

lol, what's up "Salty Dog". good luck this weekend.

[mekker23]

like most of yu guys have said, the reason for this run has undoubtedly been a lack of offense - yes, weiss booth etc. tht means you!!
our defense is not an issue (although I would prefer to see both eminger + boynton in the line-up with cullimore scratched...experienced but not mobile enough!)but our D is the best its been for years, so regardless of who plays they still give us a great chance to win every night.
the 3-0 loss against the caps would not have happened if our top offensive guys would just step up to the plate!! scoring four should not be a problem for players with the undoubted talent of stillman and zednik in their as well.

[mr. obvious]

Cullimore has been out of gas for nearly 3 weeks. He's done.