Official NHL Thread

[Kid_Roll]

I know only like 10 people on the board like hockey, but I love talking hockey so any chance I get to talk about it rules.


Soooooooooooooo, who is going to be moved before the trading deadline?

I thought Belfour would go to Toronto for sure, but with Schwab playing pretty good, I dont know if they will go that route. I am pretty sure Belfour will be gone for sure.

I think Bure will go to the Rangers, cause they have been buying their teams for the last 10-20 years, I see no reason for them to change now. Even though as a Canucks fan I hate the man.

As for the Canadian teams, I think the Canucks may need to make a move to take that next step trying to become Cup contenders. It really sucks that the 3 western based Canadian teams are all on the outside looking in. :( If my dream trade went through it would be the Sedins to Anaheim for Paul Karyia, and Ohlund and whatever the hell they wanted to NJ for Broduer. But Broduer will be a Devil for life probably, so I will be stuck watching Ohlund suck and the Sedins do nothing as usual. Yay.

So, who is going to be dealt before the deadline? What are your thoughts, all 10 hockey fans out there on Rajah.

[Rajah]

I'll talk hockey anytime, so let's see...

- I was never really a believer of the Belfour-is-gonna-get-traded theory because I always thought that Dallas wants him around for their playoff drive since Marty Turco has like zero experience. But Eddie is a free agent this summer and since Turco is ready, Belfour's day are probably numbered either way.

- Toronto won't trade for a goalie. As you said, Schwab is playing pretty good, at least good enough to keep them fairly close to the top of their division. I think if Toronto went on a huge losing streak after Joseph went down, they'd go get someone like Tom Barrasso or Belfour.

- Pavel Bure? Who cares...I hate that guy. Such a selfish hockey player. If he goes to the Rangers, it won't even matter cause there's no way he'll help them get past the first round IF they even get to the playoffs. If he goes to Dallas or Colorado or something, then that would suck cause I'm a Red Wings fan. :)

- Canadian teams...Edmonton needs to get rid of Poti ASAP but even still I am saying they will miss the playoffs. Canucks will make it but they need to sharpen up their goaltending. Cloutier is way too inconsistent. Calgary won't make the playoffs and probably won't make any major deals. Toronto will probably not make any major deals either unless Schwab self-destructs this week. Ottawa I think will make a deal or two. I heard Chris Philips is on his way out. And finally, Montreal. Jose Theodore is the fucking man, but they need tons of help up front.

Laterz.

[Kid_Roll]

Theodore is the man. I still think he should have gone to the Olympics instead of Belfour. And did anyone notice that Belfours Gold Medal broke and fell off his neck a couple of minutes after he go it? Sign from god! lol

As for my saddened Canucks, they need help in goal. Cloutier has been good at times, but never ever consistent. Hell, Skoudra played more consistent then him during the 9 game winning streak, and half his saves were made by the post. Bert played great last game, and he will need to keep that up and Naslund will have to pick it up again real soon for the Nucks. And for the record, I want Klatt of this team. I hate this man so much.

Flames won't make it. Signing Turek was iffy, since he is also up and down, but it is kind of nice to see a Canadian team get a so called big name goalie signed. As for IGinla, I hope the Flames can keep him, cause it looks like the disturbing trend of talent fleeing to the border will continue, even if the price is 5 first rounders. Just means 5 more first rounders for the Flames to develop so they can send them south again.

Poti is so gone. Everyone their seems to hate him, much like Murphy was hated in Toronto. Maybe he can go to the Wings and be as successful as Murphy was, lol. I heard the OIlers had a deal involving Milan Kraft, but they don't want him. I would hope the OIlers wait until a perfect deal comes along, cause Poti does have lots of potential. But Jovo is better :)

Toronto, I hate them, but I want them to make the playoffs. Seeing Broduer play instead of Joseph at Olympics ruled.

Ottawa, didn't know Phillips was on the way out. Would be nice to get him in Vancouver, since I don't like seeing Brian Helmer play on the ice.

As for the Wings, damn them. They took away Hasek from Buffalo! But that's ok, cause my Devils, my second fav team, will rebound and fly in the playoffs and will knock them off. They will! So what if they re-hired a fired coach within months! It means nothing!

[Lateralus]

Paul Kariya is rumored to be heading elsewhere. If he didn't make so money freaking money, I'd say the Devils could possibly pick him up.

The Rangers almost traded for Teemu Selanne last week before it was nixed. No matter what they do, they suck. Can't they accept that and just rebuild for a few years?

[Quinn]

Tony Amonte of the Hawks has been rumored to be on the move since the season started and our stupid owner won't pay him what he's worth. What a freaking suprise. Belfour, Hasek, Roeinck, Chelios were all Hawks all at one time....and they were all traded/signed away cause our owner and GM's are retarded. :mad:

Despite all this, the Hawks are playing well and will hopefully do well in the playoffs.

I wouldn't put it past Dallas to trade Belfour. Isn't he a bit of an arrogant guy in Dallas? Maybe he is causing some problems with the other players in the locker room? Who knows....there are some funny hockey GM's out there that will trade just about anyone.

[Lateralus]

Man... whoeve gets Belfour has a geat goaltender for the playoff run. I could see San Jose pulling some strings and offeing maybe Teemu Selanne for Belfour.

[Kixx]

I don't think Belfour's going anywhere too soon but he'll go eventually. There's just no need where Toronto's concerned (in my mind Schwab's the man) as long as everything's going relatively well there, but he's obviously going to go in due time. Bleurgh.

I can't even think about Bure, the man makes me want to vomit. Moving right along...

What oh what does Vancouver need. Well, they need to start by trading the Sedins, who spend most of their time doing a sprawl show on the ice, which is funny but doesn't win hockey games. We need goaltenders who aren't blind. Cloutier's technique is more holy than the pope. And yeah, I want Klatt gone too...maybe he should be given and not traded if that speeds things up.

I'll have more on the other Canadian teams later when I'm more pleasant.

[Yoel]

I can't see everybody's problems with the Sedin twins :cry:. They aren't having the best year of their career.... But their NHL career has only been two years! I say give them a chance. Look at how young they are, and look at how solid they were last year. Have a little faith, people.

As for Cloutier, I think he should go... He's been good in the past, but he's not the play-off kinda goalie. I think that he's buckle under pressure. I think one of Vancouver's biggest problems has been golatenders, and it has gone beyond just this year or last. They haven't had a truly strong goalie since McLean, and even then, I still think that was his only good year (the year where McLean and Canucks made it to the Finals... '93 or '94?).

Anywho, they desperately need a golaie, but I don't think they can truly offer for anybody... Or nobody can offer a goalie. Brodeur is in NJ... for good. I don't think Belfour will move, at least not yet. And if not yet, I don't see the Canucks giving up a person(s) for Belfour, or Dallas excepting what the Canucks are willing to give... :dead:.

Erm... As for Edmonton, I really do want them to make the playoffs... Of course not over my beloved Canucks, but it's always really exciting to watch the Oilers. You could tell that their young guys have a passion, and it only magnifies in the playoffs. I think they will make it, because they are so determined. But I also think that it will be a pretty hard road.

The Flames... I can't really see them posing a threat to the playoff race. Mind you, they could bring anotehr team down from the playoffs. Overall, they don't have a strong team... Iginla... Then what? No real strong golatender... Turek and Vernon are both aging, and although Turek can pull victories outta the bag... It only happens sometimes.

This is getting long. I'll do the Eastern teams later. But for now...

What's everybody's opinion on Theo Fleury? The guy played great in the playoffs, but when he plays in the NHL, he digs his own grave. I don't understand this guy... He seems old and bitter. He wants to go play in Europe, where the refs are conspiring against him :rolleyes:. And to that I say, good riddance :yes:! The NHL doesn't need trash like that littering the rinks.

And I must say, it's about time the management in New York got a back bone and said enough is enough. Suspend, that's the best move possible. Guy needs to grow up.

~J_R~

[Kid_Roll]

I laughed my ass off so hard when Fluery just left the arena in the 3rd period of that game when he got called for tripping again. Yeah, it was unproffesional, but I would rather see that then another sports star going out and killing someone, or be accused of raping someone, etc etc. At least his craziness is directly related to the game. Plus, he helped win Canada the gold, so yay for Fluery. I for one think he should go back to Calgary, might as well. Or go to Detroit and win the cup like everyone else is doing.

And sweet news! The PPV game between my two fav teams, the Devils and the Canucks, also includes with it a re-showing of Game 6 of the 94 finals! it was honestly one of the best games I have ever seen. And J_R, how could you not know what year they went to the cup? :(

And Mclean is still a free agent, sign him now! lol

[Zen]

....

Hey man, I love fleury!
That guy plays his heart out, with a lot of passion. For such a small guy he even gets physical too. That guy is a player, and I'd rather see him in the NHL whining, then seeing utter useless trash like tie domi, and the other fighters who wouldn't make the nhl if there were less teams.
The NHL needs to maybe cut some teams.

And what do you guys think about the nhl perhaps adopting some international rules next year? I'm all for it..the olympics ruled, and the nhl would be better off with those rules. Especially no red line.

BTW, ever notice the habs always acquire great goaltending? I think french goalies are the way to go.

[Kid_Roll]

French goalies, or wherever the hell the Sharks keep getting their goalies from. Nabakov, Hedberg, and Kiprusoff, all goalies with lots of potential. Damn them!

[Yoel]

K_R, I'm only 15 :cry:. I was only 8 then, I can barely remember yesterday... But I :heart: you :blah:.

As for Fleury, the guy doesn't play his heart out. He gives up, and he whines. If he doesn't get what he wants, and then the refs call a FAIR call on him, he whines.

But you're right, K_R, at least his temper is directed at the NHL.

~J_R~

[Rajah]

I highly doubt Belfour will get traded now. Last week, there was a chance, but Eddie has taken back the #1 goalie spot in Dallas and even had a good win this week over Washington. Unless he falters again (and bad), he probably won't be moved. Plus, with the trade deadline next week, there isn't a lot of time for it to happen. I still think that Dallas always had intentions of keeping Belfour for the playoffs and then either letting him walk in the summer or working out a trade then. He definitely won't be traded to San Jose. They already have a great young goalie in Nabokov. Ultimately, I wouldn't be surprised if none of the so called big free agents weren't moved. It seems all the teams these people play for are making the playoffs and they probably wouldn't risk disrupting their team.

You know what I've always wondered and maybe someone can answer this because I might have the rules mixed up or something. Some players are restricted free agents and for another team to sign them, they have to give up five 1st round draft picks, provided the original team doesn't sign them. So for example, Jarome Iginla is a restricted free agent this summer and if Colorado or Detroit or whomever wanted him, they would have to sign him to an offer sheet and give up 5 1st round picks and hope that Calgary doesn't match it. So what prevents a good team with deep pockets from doing that? If I was St. Louis/Colorado (I think one of the richest teams in the league), I would sign Iginla and then just give up the 5 picks...I mean they'd all be like in the 20-30 range because these teams are always near the top of the standings. You'd be guaranteed a future superstar and you'd be giving up five picks who could all be busts down the road since they aren't in the 5 or even top 10. Ya know what I mean? Why doesn't this happen more often?

Zen, I don't want to see most of the Olympic rules in the NHL. I doubt it will help anything. What a lot of people fail to realize is that the Olympics ruled because there were tons of great players playing. It was like a bunch of all-star teams playing competitive games. If they used Olympic rules in the NHL, there are still teams that are so untalented that they will find ways to totally negate the lack of a red line, maybe just by lining up at their blue line or just behind it.

[TheGame93]

Originally posted by Rajah
You know what I've always wondered and maybe someone can answer this because I might have the rules mixed up or something. Some players are restricted free agents and for another team to sign them, they have to give up five 1st round draft picks, provided the original team doesn't sign them. So for example, Jarome Iginla is a restricted free agent this summer and if Colorado or Detroit or whomever wanted him, they would have to sign him to an offer sheet and give up 5 1st round picks and hope that Calgary doesn't match it. So what prevents a good team with deep pockets from doing that? If I was St. Louis/Colorado (I think one of the richest teams in the league), I would sign Iginla and then just give up the 5 picks...I mean they'd all be like in the 20-30 range because these teams are always near the top of the standings. You'd be guaranteed a future superstar and you'd be giving up five picks who could all be busts down the road since they aren't in the 5 or even top 10. Ya know what I mean? Why doesn't this happen more often?


My thought is that the team doesn't sign the player because they will never know if the players will blossom in the future. Even though the draft picks may be lower in the order, that doesn't mean that they will not be good. A lot of the better players in the NHL were drafted lower in the draft. So teams don't take the risk in signing the players because they would probably want 5 good players than one superstar player...
Also with the restricted free agent rule... It's not always 5 first round picks... The amount of draft picks depends on the salary of the player... For example, if the player makes below $750,000, the team would only have to give up one draft pick... and i think that the draft picks go up by one for every $500,000 or $750,000 of salary to a maximum of five draft picks.

[BoSox Rule]

Just wanted to say:

BRUINS RULE!!!

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
I know only like 10 people on the board like hockey, but I love talking hockey so any chance I get to talk about it rules.


Soooooooooooooo, who is going to be moved before the trading deadline?

I thought Belfour would go to Toronto for sure, but with Schwab playing pretty good, I dont know if they will go that route. I am pretty sure Belfour will be gone for sure.

I think Bure will go to the Rangers, cause they have been buying their teams for the last 10-20 years, I see no reason for them to change now. Even though as a Canucks fan I hate the man.

As for the Canadian teams, I think the Canucks may need to make a move to take that next step trying to become Cup contenders. It really sucks that the 3 western based Canadian teams are all on the outside looking in. :( If my dream trade went through it would be the Sedins to Anaheim for Paul Karyia, and Ohlund and whatever the hell they wanted to NJ for Broduer. But Broduer will be a Devil for life probably, so I will be stuck watching Ohlund suck and the Sedins do nothing as usual. Yay.

So, who is going to be dealt before the deadline? What are your thoughts, all 10 hockey fans out there on Rajah.

Belfour won't go to Toronto... they don't have the money. Then they'll have to unload Joseph at the end of the year. He may leave anyways, if we don't make it to atleast the conf finals I'm guessing, but it's too risky. We should just try our luck in the playoffs. We need him.

Schwab is doing okay... he's definitely used to the pressure. He played some important games for Vcr in 1994 when McLean was out. I think he may have played a few playoff games too.

Tellqvist should be called up... he's like, 8-0 with St. John's lately.

Most of the big money players will go to the Rangers... except I think Bure would be a nice addition. He would make a nice line with Nedved, and when Dvorak comes back, they can make another Czech line.

I can see the Nucks getting some semi-stars... but no impact players. And they won't part with the Sedins either. Not after they've invested so much in them.

In conclusion: GO LEAFS GO!

[Kid_Roll]

WTF? Schwab on Vancouver in '94? No no no. It was McLean and Whitmore all the way in 94. Thought to be one of the best goalie duo's in the NHL at the time, sadly enough. Whitmore was trash. But Schwab was selected by Jersey and played his first games for them, I think around 94-95. Schwab played for Vancouver within the last 2 years, but in no high pressure games.

[Psycho]

Ahhhh yes, I remember Kay Whitmore.

He sucked :blah:.

Maybe Schwab was a third Goalie?

As for the trade deadline, I'm hoping the 'Nucks can lose Strudwick and maybe someone else and get a new defenceman.

Besides getting into fights, the man as useless.

I think the Sedins should be given another year. I agree that they have not lived up to their expected play this year, but hell, Naslund wasn't so hot in his first little while here either. Remember when he was number 22?

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
WTF? Schwab on Vancouver in '94? No no no. It was McLean and Whitmore all the way in 94. Thought to be one of the best goalie duo's in the NHL at the time, sadly enough. Whitmore was trash. But Schwab was selected by Jersey and played his first games for them, I think around 94-95. Schwab played for Vancouver within the last 2 years, but in no high pressure games.

You're right... but but but... Schwab is on my video game, which was made in 1994. That's weird. Maybe it was another Schwab? But his name is Corey and all too... :wtf: :confused:

Maybe he was called up from the minors? It doesn't show up on his ESPN player profile, but I swear, Schwab is with the Nucks on my game... and there's no trades either.

I dunno.

I can confirm that he has experience with T-Bay though... he played a little over 30 games when they were pushing for the playoffs, and he was only a game under .500. Then Tabaracci came back.

[Kid_Roll]

I remember when Tampa made the playoffs, lol. But that was with Puppa leading the charge against Philly. Aside from that, T-Bay sucks. Way to have two teams in Florida, :rolleyes:

Sedins annoy me though. Even if they do get good, I don't see them being exciting good. They will be boring good. Cycle, cycle, cycle, cycle, score. They are slow, can't hit, and did you see when Daniel got into a fight? He threw a punch, realized he shouldn't have, then turtled. The other guy pummeled him. Why did he fight? I think they may turn out to be good players one day, but I would still rather have Karyia instead of the twins. Swedes can't play hockey, look at Salo ;).

Yeah, we need to dump Strudwick. The man is a tool. He can only get into fights, and even then he can't win half of them. Useless! Mike Brown better! Yay BC boy. But yeah, the Canucks need to make a deal to cement their path into the playoffs, but not a stupid one like Berehowsky of last year. I don't want Marshall on the team.

Brian Burke has to realize that Linden needs a cup. Linden is my fav player of all time, all I want is for him to win a cup. And if Naslund wants to give up the C, so be it. j/k, I wouldn't want to ruin the chemistry of the team, a la major jackass Messier.

Hey! Maybe we can trade Ohlund for Poti! Same player, just one is faster, the other one hits better! Seriously, we should deal Ohlund and Klatt!


P.S. S_S, your game lies! Lies! Schwab was drafted by Jersey in '90, and he didn't play until 95. Why would you game put him on the Nucks? :confused:

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
P.S. S_S, your game lies! Lies! Schwab was drafted by Jersey in '90, and he didn't play until 95. Why would you game put him on the Nucks? :confused:

*shrugs*

Don't ask me... I didn't make the game. But you're right... since he was never with the Nucks, apparently, his only pressure experience was with T-Bay. He did pretty well though... if Tabby didn't come back, they might've made it. They were 8th in the conf when Schwab got kicked out... 11th at the end of the season, after 10-12 more games.


Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Swedes can't play hockey, look at Salo ;).

That's 1 Swede.

...Well, 3 Swedes I guess.

But last time I checked, we beat you 5-2 in The Olympics. And last time I checked, we had some pretty damn good players: Forsberg, Sundin, Naslund, Renberg, Lidstrom, Alfredsson, Axelsson, Arvedson, etc.

I'm not saying we're better than Canada... no one is.

But we're definitely close, and we can definitely play hockey... :p

[Kid_Roll]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15



...Well, 3 Swedes I guess.

But last time I checked, we beat you 5-2 in The Olympics. And last time I checked, we had some pretty damn good players: Forsberg, Sundin, Naslund, Renberg, Lidstrom, Alfredsson, Axelsson, Arvedson, etc.

I'm not saying we're better than Canada... no one is.

But we're definitely close, and we can definitely play hockey... :p [/font][/size]


Last time I checked Sweden lost to Belarus, ;). And I could go on and list the Canadian Olympic team as good players from Canada.......But I know Sweden kicks ass at hockey, they very good. I like watching them play Finland, good rivarly. But I hate Sundin. sorry, but I do. Aside from him glaring at Canadian fans at the Olympics, his face seems to melt during games. He scares me. :scared:

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Last time I checked Sweden lost to Belarus, ;). And I could go on and list the Canadian Olympic team as good players from Canada.......But I know Sweden kicks ass at hockey, they very good. I like watching them play Finland, good rivarly. But I hate Sundin. sorry, but I do. Aside from him glaring at Canadian fans at the Olympics, his face seems to melt during games. He scares me. :scared:

Sundin's my favorite player... :( :mad:

And yes, we did lose to Belarus... and I'm not looking for scapegoats, but, it was Salo's fault. It was partly the rest of the team, for making it so close as to let 1 bad goal change the outcome of the game, but there's no excuse for letting it in from centre ice off your helmet.

...And when did he glare at Canadian fans? I never knew that.

He's still my favorite... :p And I admire how he nearly pulled his team through the NJ series last year. I'd never seen him that serious. I'll always remember that scene in Game 6 when he scored to put them down by one and he skated away without celebrating or high-fiving and he yelled "ONE MORE GOAL!"

I also love how he's blending with Renberg. Swedish pride.

...And yeah, I know Canada's better. :cry:

[Kid_Roll]

I love the Devils and the Canucks, so I was happy NJ did, and will continue to beat TO every year. Although I do want the cup to come back to Canada, I don't want Toronto to be the one to do it. And I thought trading for Renberg was stupid, but it seems to have worked out well. I still think they should have kept Berezin. And you bastards have Moginly now. Gomez can do shit all without Moginly. They were perfect together. One can only pass, and one can only score when set up perfectly in the slot. Of course Moginly could score 50 if he wanted to, but he is lazy hockey hating bastard. :(

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
I love the Devils and the Canucks, so I was happy NJ did, and will continue to beat TO every year. Although I do want the cup to come back to Canada, I don't want Toronto to be the one to do it. And I thought trading for Renberg was stupid, but it seems to have worked out well. I still think they should have kept Berezin. And you bastards have Moginly now. Gomez can do shit all without Moginly. They were perfect together. One can only pass, and one can only score when set up perfectly in the slot. Of course Moginly could score 50 if he wanted to, but he is lazy hockey hating bastard. :(

I seriously hope Toronto calls up Tellqvist for the playoffs and he blows everyone away... including the Devils... :evilgrin: Probably won't happen though... but Sundin really likes him, and is hailing him as the next Joseph, after Joseph leaves or retires. He was the Swedish goalie in the WJHC.

Trading for another Swede, and a semi-star Swede at that, to support Sundin, is smart. Just like NYR's Czech line last year. Who was on that line anyways? It was Dvorak, Nedved, and who?

It's Mogilny... :lol: Not Moginly. They call him Al-Mo in Toronto... dumbest nickname ever. And Berezin pissed me off... he tried to go through the whole team. *sigh* Just get over it buddy, you're no Davey Keon.

[TheGame93]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15



Trading for another Swede, and a semi-star Swede at that, to support Sundin, is smart. Just like NYR's Czech line last year. Who was on that line anyways? It was Dvorak, Nedved, and who?





New York's Czech line last year was Nedved, Dvorak and Jan Hlavac

[Kid_Roll]

I always spell Moginly's name wrong. And yeah, he was Al-mo here as well. And the Czhech line had Hlavac on it if I remember correctly, now a Canuck :D

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
I always spell Moginly's name wrong. And yeah, he was Al-mo here as well. And the Czhech line had Hlavac on it if I remember correctly, now a Canuck :D

5-1 :yes:!!!

I hope this is the beginning of another 8 or 9-game winning streak :).

Then again, from what I read (remember, I don't get any TV coverage of the Canucks over here :cry: ), the Blue Jackets were playing awful anyway?

But anywho, a win is still a win.

Woohoo!

~J_R~

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by TheGame93
New York's Czech line last year was Nedved, Dvorak and Jan Hlavac



Thanks... :D


Originally posted by Jacqueline_Rulz
5-1 :yes:!!!

I hope this is the beginning of another 8 or 9-game winning streak :).

Then again, from what I read (remember, I don't get any TV coverage of the Canucks over here :cry: ), the Blue Jackets were playing awful anyway?

But anywho, a win is still a win.

Woohoo!

~J_R~

GO NUCKS! I love that team... next to the Leafs of course... ;) I loved how they came together in last year's playoffs... how they guys all bleached their hair and stopped shaving. Now that they have playoff experience, hopefully they can pull together like that and actually win a series.

Schaefer's gone though, so it won't be the same... :( :cry:

...And yeah, the Jackets looked like they weren't even trying.

They have good system play right now... they're not doing anything fancy, just sticking to the game plan, and it looks like it's working. Just 3 points out of 8th.

Now you guys got Atlanta, NJ, NYR and NYI left on your road trip. You'd better beat Atlanta, you'd better beat NYR. And you should probably beat one of either NYI or NJ, if you keep up the good work. That'd probably put you in 8th and kick Dallas out... :evilgrin:

[Kid_Roll]

Yeah Canucks! Sweet win, even though it was on T.V.

Linden got a point, yay. Naslund scored too. Hopefully they rattle off some more wins now, putting the heat on the Stars. Although every other single friggin team in the West is winning right now too. :( Hopefully the NUcks make it or else it will be a huge step backwards for them.

Schwab shouldn't be winning! Damn you Scwab! Heh, is funny to hear people on TSN say Schwab should start in the playoffs, lmao. Riiiiiiight.





Hey, does anyone in Canada know if TSN buying the hockey rights means way less Canucks games on TV? Cause Sportsnet at least recognizes cities west of Toronto, while TSN doesn't, so I don't really want to see 82 Leafs games, with no Canucks games to be found anywhere. John Shorthouse, the radio guy for the Nucks, is godawful, I don't really want to have to listen to him. :(

[Rajah]

Nice action of NHL tonight. I wanted Bertuzzi to score a couple goals. He's on my fantasy hockey team (by the way, how many of you guys are in that - I know isuqinndog and Zen are in it but I bet a couple others as well cause it's basically all forum guys) and I was hoping he'd maintain his average of 2 goals, 2 assists. Cloutier is playing damn strong after he got pulled this past weekend I think it was. The game where he kinda blew up at Crawford. One thing about Clout, that guy is fucking badass. I wouldn't want to get into a fight with him. He is probably the toughest NHL goalie...anyone remember how he brutally beat up Tommy Salo a few years ago?

[Lateralus]

The Devils are getting back on track now. They're four games above .500 and only four points behind the Islanders for second place in the division.

I don't know about anybody else, but if the Devils get their act together and avoid playing the Flyers or Leafs in the first round (so they can get some momentum with a first round win), they could go to the Finals.

[Zen]

.....

Rajah, reeks of awesomeness is in it too, and so was trouble..he made it, but he's left the boards for a while.:)
I believe tazmission is also in on it.

Personally, I have a winning record, and it's good enough to contend for the damn wildcard spot, yet I'm in a division that everyone has a winning record, so I can't even get lucky in that respect.
My last place spot in my division is better then the west division leader I think..I'll have to recheck. No luck I tells ya.

Anyway, back to the NHL..too damn much canucks and leafs talk here..:)
GO HABS GO! GO HABS GO!
I believe we'll shoot for cup number 25.:)

And I see what you mean raj, about too many crap players in the nhl which wouldn't make the international rule adjustments that great, but it would open up the ice more for the really skilled players to work around those trapping systems, thus forcing teams to find new ways of stopping teams with alot of skill. No matter what it would speed up the game though and make it slightly more exciting.
If you don't wanna make any rule changes, why not just make the rink wider like the olympics have? More room to roam....I think it would work anyway.

[Kid_Roll]

I am in the hockey league too. I traded Ohlund for Jovo my first day, and that's about it, lol. I dropped Cloutier, and then he started playing good, but Thibault has made my life happy again. Of course the one league I get Jagr in and he plays like shit for me, as is Karyia. What are the odds.

And Barrasso just got traded to the Leafs! Wow, I didn't think they would do that with Schwab playing so well. I can only assume they are worried that Joseph won't be back in time for the playoffs, because I don't see any other reason to nab a goalie. Kind of a slap in the face of Schwab if Joseph is ready to be back for the playoffs. BUt he is only a backup, oh well, ;) .

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Rajah
Nice action of NHL tonight. I wanted Bertuzzi to score a couple goals. He's on my fantasy hockey team (by the way, how many of you guys are in that - I know isuqinndog and Zen are in it but I bet a couple others as well cause it's basically all forum guys) and I was hoping he'd maintain his average of 2 goals, 2 assists. Cloutier is playing damn strong after he got pulled this past weekend I think it was. The game where he kinda blew up at Crawford. One thing about Clout, that guy is fucking badass. I wouldn't want to get into a fight with him. He is probably the toughest NHL goalie...anyone remember how he brutally beat up Tommy Salo a few years ago?

I'm in SmallWorld... I'll post my players in a bit. My team has been tanking for 2 months and I'm still in 4th place in the div. I used to be in the top 5000, now I'm in the top like, 40000... :( :cry:

And yeah, I have a clip of Cloutier destroying Salo... he also kicked a guy in the head when he was with T-Bay.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
I am in the hockey league too. I traded Ohlund for Jovo my first day, and that's about it, lol. I dropped Cloutier, and then he started playing good, but Thibault has made my life happy again. Of course the one league I get Jagr in and he plays like shit for me, as is Karyia. What are the odds.

And Barrasso just got traded to the Leafs! Wow, I didn't think they would do that with Schwab playing so well. I can only assume they are worried that Joseph won't be back in time for the playoffs, because I don't see any other reason to nab a goalie. Kind of a slap in the face of Schwab if Joseph is ready to be back for the playoffs. BUt he is only a backup, oh well, ;) .

:lol: Thibault... I was at a game here against the Hawks a few months ago and me and my friends got 1st row seats (we jacked them... some season ticket holders didn't come) behind Thibault for the 1st and 3rd periods, and we heckled him so badly... he flipped us the middle finger atleast 3 times. Then at the end of the game, after they lost, we started heckling him again and he just ignored us, so my friend was like "what cha gonna do... flip us the middle finger?" and he was just about to go into the dressing room, he turned around to flip us the middle finger again, and he tripped... I was laughing the whole way home.

I hope they don't throw in Barrasso right away... Schwab is improving... give him a chance. It's a good thing Perreault's not there anymore, or there would be some major heat between him and Barrasso... Barrasso's the f--ker who slashed him and put him out for 4 months.

[Swedish Sensation]

How about this... everyone who's in a hockey pool, post all your players and your division standings... I'll start first...

1) natas43 (23001)
2) Corner Stuffers III (22795)
3) mashers (21084)
4) Albanian Assassins (20404)
5) Fantasm (19135)
6) bhonpooo (18935)

There's about 20 more teams in my division, but just gives you a good idea where I stand.

W

Naslund, Markus | VAN | 2658 pts ($7,370,000)
Bertuzzi, Todd | VAN | 2266 pts ($4,390,000)
Doan, Shane | PHO | 1640 pts ($2,600,000)
Heatley, Dany | ATL | 1687 pts ($2,200,000)

C

Sundin, Mats | TOR | 2692 pts ($7,210,000)
Lang, Robert | PIT | 1858 pts ($3,960,000)
Morrison, Brendan | VAN | 1926 pts ($3,570,000)

D

Chelios, Chris | DET | 1735 pts ($3,390,000)
McCabe, Bryan | TOR | 1513 pts ($2,650,000)
Aucoin, Adrian | NYI | 1536 pts ($2,570,000)

G

Theodore, Jose | MON | 2756 pts ($6,120,000)
Thibault, Jocelyn | CHI | 2330 pts ($5,580,000)

World rank: 38132
Roster value: $51.61M (we start with only 50)

[Rajah]

Zen, we're facing each other this week in fantasy hockey! You're going down boy. Anyway, yeah your division is fucking tough, whereas mine is the easiest. Katie (Leetah) is in my division and I think she gave up a while ago. :(

Swedish Sensation, our league is different than yours I guess. We had a live draft and then each week go head-to-head against another team. Based on how our players do, we either win, lose or tie and at the end of the season the top three teams in each division, plus one wild card go to the playoffs. Anyway, here's my team...tell me it doesn't rule:

F - Steve Yzerman
F - Adam Oates
F - John LeClair
F - Jeremy Roenick
F - Owen Nolan
F - Todd Bertuzzi (free agent pickup too!)
F - Brendan Shanahan

D - Nick Lidstrom
D - Scott Niedermayer
D - Al MacInnis
D - Kim Johnsson (steal of a deal, and I drafted him too)
D - Mathieu Schneider

G - Jose Theodore
G - Brian Boucher
G - Tommy Salo
G - Marty Turco (I picked him up last week cause I thought he was gonna be Dallas' starter. :()

[MTR]

My league is different as well. We have a draft and team and then you get points depending on your standing in different categories. Like if my players have the most goals then I get the top amount of points for that. But if they are last then I get the least amount of points for that category. So each day the standings could change depending on how your players are doing. I did a basketball league like this one time and finished first. I neglected this hockey team at first due to fantasy football so I am in the middle of the pack. We don't do playoffs or anything. I am in two fantasy baseball leagues. I know that one does head to head but I am not sure about the other.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Rajah
Swedish Sensation, our league is different than yours I guess. We had a live draft and then each week go head-to-head against another team. Based on how our players do, we either win, lose or tie and at the end of the season the top three teams in each division, plus one wild card go to the playoffs. Anyway, here's my team...tell me it doesn't rule:

F - Steve Yzerman
F - Adam Oates
F - John LeClair
F - Jeremy Roenick
F - Owen Nolan
F - Todd Bertuzzi (free agent pickup too!)
F - Brendan Shanahan

D - Nick Lidstrom
D - Scott Niedermayer
D - Al MacInnis
D - Kim Johnsson (steal of a deal, and I drafted him too)
D - Mathieu Schneider

G - Jose Theodore
G - Brian Boucher
G - Tommy Salo
G - Marty Turco (I picked him up last week cause I thought he was gonna be Dallas' starter. :()

The way ours works, is that we get $50M to draft players at the beginning of the year... and they earn a certain amount of points every night based on a specific scoring system (which I'll get to in a second). And we get 5 trades each week, so if a player gets injured or starts to suck, we can trade them. Except we don't trade with other teams. We just sell them (to nobody... you just sell them and get the money for them) and then buy another player with that money. And players aren't exclusive to 1 team... so say another guy in my division has Sundin, I can still buy Sundin. Players are unlimited resources in this pool.

For forwards and d-men, the system is like this...

Goals (25)
Assists (25)
Hat Tricks (30)
Shorthanded Goals (20)
Power Play Goals (10)
Game Winning Goals (20)
Game Tying Goals (10)
Overtime Goals (5)
Penalty Minutes (3)
Shots On Goal (2)
Plus/Minus (10)

For goalies, it's like this...

Wins (50)
Ties (25)
Shutouts (50)
Goals Against (15)
Saves (2)
Penalty Minutes (-3)
Goals (25)
Assists (25)

[Rajah]

Our scoring system is like this:

Forwards

3 pts for a goal
2 pts for an assist
5 pts for a PP goal
4 pts for a SH goal
0.25 pts for a penalty minute
1 or -1 for +/-

Defense

5 pts for a goal
3 pts for an assist
7 pts for a PP goal
6 pts for a SH goal
0.25 pts for a penalty minute
1 or -1 for +/-

Goalies

5 pts for a win
2 pts for a tie
3 pts for a shutout
3 pts for an assist
0.2 pts for save
- pts for goals allowed
0.25 pts for penalty minute

There's probably a couple more insignificant categories that I forgot.

[Swedish Sensation]

Sounds like a pool I used to be in. What pisses me off about pools is that there's no points for defence... so you gotta get a d-man that scores and they're all superstars and cost a lot.

You use officepools.com, right?

[Rajah]

Nope sportsline.com

[Zen]

....

Rajah, sorry man, the week ain't done yet.
I'm predicting a stellar weekend from quite a few guys..it'll be tight. I need the win though or you can pretty much officially eliminate me from the playoffs.

Since I'm lazy at the moment, I'll try to remember off the top of my head my team.

Joe Sakic
Simon Gagne
Teemu Selanne
Mark Recchi
Marion Hossa
Ilya Kovalchuk(free agent pickup)
janne ninimaa
patrick elias
brad stuart
tom barasso
nikholai khabbibulin
vince lecavelier
i'll add the rest when i look my team up..my memory is shot.

[Rajah]

*Deletes Zen's team* :lol: (inside joke)

But in all seriousness, Zen your team worries me. I look at your forwards and it's like I'm looking at a mirror reflection of my team. I have LeClair and Roenick, you have Recchi and Gagne which comprise 2/3 of Philly's top two lines. You have Selanne, I have Nolan, the top two right wingers on San Jose. You have Joe Sakic, I have Steve Yzerman. I just hope Tom Barrasso doesn't play for you this week, but seeing as how he just got traded, he probably will. :(

[Kid_Roll]

Ronning was traded to the Kings. Damnit. Was hoping the Nucks would pick him up to play with the Sedins, maybe get them going. I really didn't want LA to get any more help this year. Damn Kings.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Ronning was traded to the Kings. Damnit. Was hoping the Nucks would pick him up to play with the Sedins, maybe get them going. I really didn't want LA to get any more help this year. Damn Kings.

Ronning used to play for the Nucks, during their championship run... so did Linden. They would be good on a line together.

The Nucks need to trade for veteran leadership... someone to look after the young guys, and make sure they're on the right track. They've got so much talent, but it just isn't coming together.

I have no idea who the free agents are at the end of the season, so therefore I have no idea who's gonna be up at the trade deadline... but I think Nieuwendyk would be a great addition, or someone a little younger, like Barnes.

[RoCkPuNk17]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15


Ronning used to play for the Nucks, during their championship run... so did Linden. They would be good on a line together.

The Nucks need to trade for veteran leadership... someone to look after the young guys, and make sure they're on the right track. They've got so much talent, but it just isn't coming together.

I have no idea who the free agents are at the end of the season, so therefore I have no idea who's gonna be up at the trade deadline... but I think Nieuwendyk would be a great addition, or someone a little younger, like Barnes.

Barnes is the sabres captain and leader, therefore I won't let the Nucks have him, sorry.

[Swedish Sensation]

Ha... you guys are too poor to have him.

The Nucks are ri...

...oh. :blah:

How do you know who's a free agent at the end of this season? There's not one site that I can find with contract info.

[RoCkPuNk17]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15
Ha... you guys are too poor to have him.

The Nucks are ri...

...oh. :blah:

How do you know who's a free agent at the end of this season? There's not one site that I can find with contract info.

I am pretty sure Barnes said he wanted end and probably stay here for the rest of his career, so I doubt anyone will pick him up

[Swedish Sensation]

Yeah, so do I... I just used his leadership and age as an example.

But do you, or does anyone else, know any sites that show contract details, or just who the free agents are at the end of the season?

[RoCkPuNk17]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15
Yeah, so do I... I just used his leadership and age as an example.

But do you, or does anyone else, know any sites that show contract details, or just who the free agents are at the end of the season?
No, sorry

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by RoCkPuNk17
No, sorry

Thanks anyways.

Boston 2, Detroit 1 *waits for BoSox Rule to come in and brag* :p
LA 4, Pittsburgh 3
NJ 3, NYR 1
Colorado 2, Philly 1
Montreal 3, Carolina 2
Ottawa 4, NYI 3
Vancouver 4, Atlanta 2 (That's your cue Kid_Roll)
Columbus 3, Calgary 1 :lol:
Toronto 5, Dallas 5 :mad: Stupid Hatcher.
Edmonton 1, Washington 0 (1st period)
San Jose 0, Chicago 0 (1st period)

Anyways... discuss...

The Leafs game was really good... offence was incredible, and the Leafs are finally starting to click on the PP. They're compensating in just about every area for the loss of Joseph, and where people thought they wouldn't even make the playoffs a few weeks ago, we're still challenging for 1st in the division. Sundin is really carrying the team, and Schwab's holding up pretty well... good to see he hasn't been replaced by Barrasso right away. Now with Mogilny and Renberg back, we're a force offensively. They did a lot tonight. The Sundin/Roberts/Hoglund was -3, but Renberg and Mogilny really held everything together. As soon as they get the 1st line going again, if they don't screw with anything in net, I think we have a good shot at the Sabres for tops in the division.

[Rajah]

Blatant plug:

http://www.hockeyinformer.com/web/index.shtml

That's my new hockey site! It's not nearly complete but I hope to have it up by the time the playoffs start. I'm just trying to get up to date with the stats and then fill up the rest with editorial content. I have some cool ideas in mind, so we'll see how it goes.

If anyone wants to help out, we may be able to work something out. :)

Anyway, visit it and give me some suggestions.

[Kid_Roll]

Um, Rajah, I don't see nearly enough Canucks pics on there, ;)




Wooooo! Canucks 4-2! It was only the Thrashers, but hey, any point is a good point. The tough part of the road trip is still ahead of them, the trip through the 3/4 New York teams. New JErsey is winnable, as is the Rangers game, Islanders game will probably be tough, though. Hopefully Fluery freaks out or something and gives us lots of powerplay time. Nazzie got 2 goals, that was nice. But I want Linden to take over the lead for most goals for a Canuck ever. He is only behind Stan Smyl by 4 goals, I want him to break the record at home. Linden rules! And I really hope Edmonton loses. It sucks having to chear against the Canadian teams, especially when all 3 western teams are out right now, but I want the Canucks in. It would be huge setback for them not to make the playoffs. Still waiting for that trade deadline to pass.....Ohlund, I think I hear your name........

And the Stars got a point. :mad: Come on S_S, I expected your Leafs to destroy them! ;)

[Kid_Roll]

Hey Rajah, if you ever want a sports columnist type person, I am majoring in sports journalism, (I join the journalism program in 1 year) so it would be sweet to get practice. And I love sports and could talk hours and hours about hockey. But if not, ignore I said this, and just pretend this never happened. NEVER! :D

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Rajah
Blatant plug:

http://www.hockeyinformer.com/web/index.shtml

That's my new hockey site! It's not nearly complete but I hope to have it up by the time the playoffs start. I'm just trying to get up to date with the stats and then fill up the rest with editorial content. I have some cool ideas in mind, so we'll see how it goes.

If anyone wants to help out, we may be able to work something out. :)

Anyway, visit it and give me some suggestions.

When you click on the "News" link on the side, it shows an "HTTP 404 Not Found," error thing. I'm not sure if it's just mine, or it would be a probem for everybody...

Or if you even have that part of the site up :blah:.

As for the games tonight... Well, I was at Kelsey's and they were showing the Leafs/Stars game, so I looked up and watched bits n' pieces.

Shame about Schwab. He's been playing great, with only 4 goals in 4 games. Barasso comes along, and the guy probably feels pressured. So he lets in 5 goals. I just hope they give him another chance, but if that were the case, they probably wouldn't have acquired Barasso.

Naslund socred two goals for Canucks tonight. Hopefully this signifies the ending of his recent scoring slump. Now, out of all times, is when he is neede the most. The Nucks need him to be one of the best players in the NHL that he is for their playoff hunt and/or run.

Cloutier let in two goals on 16 shots... Kinda worries me, but as I've said in the past - I get no coverage of hockey over here. And so I just read all of the reports. So I'm not sure if they were hard shots, or what kind of goals they were.

Oooh, I just read something on www.TSN.ca:


Vancouver C Trevor Linden has 31 points in 51 games since being traded back there. He is four goals behind Stan Smyl (262-258) for the franchise goal-scoring record.

First of all, I didn't realize how well he had been playing.

Second of all, I hope he gets it. He deserves it. From interviews and how he shows himself on the ice, the guy has respect for the game, and seems to be a great guy. Good luck, Trevor :yes:.

~J_R~

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Um, Rajah, I don't see nearly enough Canucks pics on there, ;)

Wooooo! Canucks 4-2! It was only the Thrashers, but hey, any point is a good point. The tough part of the road trip is still ahead of them, the trip through the 3/4 New York teams. New JErsey is winnable, as is the Rangers game, Islanders game will probably be tough, though. Hopefully Fluery freaks out or something and gives us lots of powerplay time. Nazzie got 2 goals, that was nice. But I want Linden to take over the lead for most goals for a Canuck ever. He is only behind Stan Smyl by 4 goals, I want him to break the record at home. Linden rules! And I really hope Edmonton loses. It sucks having to chear against the Canadian teams, especially when all 3 western teams are out right now, but I want the Canucks in. It would be huge setback for them not to make the playoffs. Still waiting for that trade deadline to pass.....Ohlund, I think I hear your name........

And the Stars got a point. :mad: Come on S_S, I expected your Leafs to destroy them! ;)

Like I said, you guys will win 2/3 games. Both Rangers and Isles suck this month, but when NJ gets on a streak, they're unstoppable. Refer to last year, when they won like, 17/20 games.

Vancouver has 73 points, and I'm guessing they'll win 2/3 on the road trip. So 77.

Dallas has 75 points... they'll lose to Chicago, then beat St. Louis and Phoenix. So 79.

St. Louis has 75 points... they'll lose to Dallas, beat Anaheim and Nashville. So 79.

Edmonton has 77 points... lose to SJ and Calgary. So 77. Then they play Vcr.

I think Dallas is gonna pull away... they have an easy remaining sched. It's really between Vcr, Edm, and St. Louis for the playoffs. The Oilers are falling and you can guys can put them out. I think it's gonna be between you guys and StL... StL is a really good team, but they've won 2/10 games. You guys have got it together. I'm predicting you'll pull 5 pts ahead of them, they'll start coming back, then lose their last 2 games of the season to Detroit and you guys will take the playoff spot.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Jacqueline_Rulz
Shame about Schwab. He's been playing great, with only 4 goals in 4 games. Barasso comes along, and the guy probably feels pressured. So he lets in 5 goals. I just hope they give him another chance, but if that were the case, they probably wouldn't have acquired Barasso.

Wasn't Schwab playing? I'm pretty sure he was. They've shown a real commitment to Schwab, or they would've called up Tellqvist from St. John's based on Sundin's reccomendation. But they're letting Schwab develop.

They're doing the right thing with their goalies... Schwab, Barrasso, Centomo, and Tellqvist in the minors. Plus Joseph. When he leaves, they've got a huge talent pool. It's up to them to develop it.

Barrasso is already established, Tellqvist is kicking ass in the minors, Schwab is kicking ass in the NHL, and I believe Centomo just played a game.


Originally posted by Jacqueline_Rulz
Cloutier let in two goals on 16 shots... Kinda worries me, but as I've said in the past - I get no coverage of hockey over here. And so I just read all of the reports. So I'm not sure if they were hard shots, or what kind of goals they were.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/scoreboard and click on Game Log under the Nucks game... you can see where all the shots were from, who took them, and I think what kind've shots they were.

BTW... are you a guy or a girl? Just curious... I always thought you were a girl...

[Yoel]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15


Wasn't Schwab playing? I'm pretty sure he was. They've shown a real commitment to Schwab, or they would've called up Tellqvist from St. John's based on Sundin's reccomendation. But they're letting Schwab develop.

They're doing the right thing with their goalies... Schwab, Barrasso, Centomo, and Tellqvist in the minors. Plus Joseph. When he leaves, they've got a huge talent pool. It's up to them to develop it.

Barrasso is already established, Tellqvist is kicking ass in the minors, Schwab is kicking ass in the NHL, and I believe Centomo just played a game.

After tnoight, chances are Schwab won't play. I don't think they'll keep Barasso as a back-up. I think they should, but when you get a vet who is established like Barasso, he seems to get the nod over Schwab - a back-up all his NHL career.


http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/scoreboard and click on Game Log under the Nucks game... you can see where all the shots were from, who took them, and I think what kind've shots they were.

BTW... are you a guy or a girl? Just curious... I always thought you were a girl.

Thanks for the link.

And I'm a guy :mad: :blah:. That's ok - I always thought you were a girl :yes:.

~J_R~

[Rajah]

Swedish Sensation: If you didn't see my message above, I'm sorry for accidentally editing your earlier post. I was trying to add the stuff below but I accidentally hit edit instead of quote or something. I dunno, I confused myself and messed it all up. Apologies again.

Anyway this is what I wanted to say...

I don't know what you're going by, but Tellqvist is not exactly kicking ass in the minors. He's actually struggling and has been totally outplayed thus far by the other two goalies on his team, including Centomo. Only one of the three to have a below 500 record and he also has a GAA of over 3. There is no way, even if Sundin is recommending him, that Toronto would call him up unless Schwab got injured. He's simply not ready.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Jacqueline_Rulz
After tnoight, chances are Schwab won't play. I don't think they'll keep Barasso as a back-up. I think they should, but when you get a vet who is established like Barasso, he seems to get the nod over Schwab - a back-up all his NHL career.

Thanks for the link.

And I'm a guy :mad: :blah:. That's ok - I always thought you were a girl :yes:.

~J_R~

Yeah, the vet usually gets his shot... or else he just gets pissed off and demands a trade. I think getting Barrasso was a bad move... 'cause either way, 1 guy's gonna be pissed off. It's gonna be either Barrasso or Schwab.

Ha... yeah right. You knew all along that I'm a guy... you just said that to get back at me... :p

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Rajah
Swedish Sensation: If you didn't see my message above, I'm sorry for accidentally editing your earlier post. I was trying to add the stuff below but I accidentally hit edit instead of quote or something. I dunno, I confused myself and messed it all up. Apologies again.

Anyway this is what I wanted to say...

I don't know what you're going by, but Tellqvist is not exactly kicking ass in the minors. He's actually struggling and has been totally outplayed thus far by the other two goalies on his team, including Centomo. Only one of the three to have a below 500 record and he also has a GAA of over 3. There is no way, even if Sundin is recommending him, that Toronto would call him up unless Schwab got injured. He's simply not ready.

:lol: That was a pretty big mess to sort out... but I got it fixed. No worries... :)

...And WTF?! I heard that Tellqvist was doing awesome in the minors, and had won 8 games in a row. My friend Mike gets Leafs TV... and he said Tellqvist was kicking ass... :confused: And from what I've seen of him, he's wicked. In the WJHC, Sundin was hailing him as the next CuJo.

He was wicked with MoDo... he averaged 2.08 GAA his last 2 seasons there, and for a 13 game playoff year, he had a 1.54.

3.24 GAA, 7-10-5, .909%.

Maybe my friend was talking about Centomo... he has a .932% and an 8-4-2 record. Probably just got the names mixed up.

Still... Tellqvist has an awesome save %, and I'm sure he would fit in, being Sundin's golden boy and all.

It'll be interesting to see what they do with Centomo, now that they have Barrasso and Schwab. He'll probably get lost in the mix.

[Rajah]

Yeah, don't get me wrong - I am definitely not doubting Tellqvist's ability. It seems there are a lot of young goalies who take a while to break into the NHL. Rick DiPietro, Maxime Oullette, Tellqvist and a few other young guys are still there and have yet to earn NHL jobs. But in like 5-6 years when the likes of Hasek, Roy, CuJo, etc. are gone, these guys will be kicking ass.

By the way, have you heard of a young Swedish goalie in the Detroit Red Wings organization? I can't remember his name, but he's supposed to be really good as well. If I find it out, I'll edit.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Rajah
Yeah, don't get me wrong - I am definitely not doubting Tellqvist's ability. It seems there are a lot of young goalies who take a while to break into the NHL. Rick DiPietro, Maxime Oullette, Tellqvist and a few other young guys are still there and have yet to earn NHL jobs. But in like 5-6 years when the likes of Hasek, Roy, CuJo, etc. are gone, these guys will be kicking ass.

By the way, have you heard of a young Swedish goalie in the Detroit Red Wings organization? I can't remember his name, but he's supposed to be really good as well. If I find it out, I'll edit.

It's funny you mentioned Ouellet... my friend Jacy is actually a good friend of his. She's also a good friend of Norm Maracle. She owns the rights to both www.maximeouellet.com and www.normmaracle.com.

See, the thing is, half the goalies are over 30... goalies last longer, 'cause they do a lot less physical play. So the young guys just have to wait their turn. Yeah, that stat on Tellqvist was a little faulty... I actually pulled up a report and it said he had lost 8 in a row... :$ I guess that doesn't help his case.

The guy in the Wings organization I think is Holmqvist. That name ring a bell?

[Psycho]

Yesssssssssssssssssssssss


Tuzzi = Awesome.

I expect to see that goal on your website, Rajah ;)

I am worried about the Canucks and their chances of getting into the playoffs. They may be playing well, but so is Phoenix and others. Not to mention that Vcr only has 12 games left, when Dallas and other teams have 14 and 15.

:\

I guess we'll just have to see...

Did you know that Ohlund got the most shots on goal last night? :wtf:

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Psychosport2000
Yesssssssssssssssssssssss


Tuzzi = Awesome.

I expect to see that goal on your website, Rajah ;)

I am worried about the Canucks and their chances of getting into the playoffs. They may be playing well, but so is Phoenix and others. Not to mention that Vcr only has 12 games left, when Dallas and other teams have 14 and 15.

:\

I guess we'll just have to see...

Did you know that Ohlund got the most shots on goal last night? :wtf:

Yeah, but St. Louis is slipping, and the Calgary Flames are also on a downward spiral. Really it may come down to St. Louis, Edmonton and Vancouver for the final play off spot. If Vancouver keeps this up, I think they may get into the playoffs.

As for that final play, that was incredible... And all because of Bertuzzi. Ohlund may have scored the goal, but Bertuzzi did all the work.

Actually, during that final play, there was a third guy who scraped the puck lose near Vancounver's blue line, and then Bertuzzi got the puck because of that. That guy deserves a :yes:.

~J_R~

[Rajah]

Pavel Bure just got traded to the Rangers.

I got it up at http://www.hockeyinformer.com before any of the big sites. WOO!

[Yoel]

This was just reported on TSN's SportsCentre. Pavel Bure HAs been traded from the Florida Panthers to the New York Rangers.

To Rangers: - Pavel Bure
- 2nd Round Pick 2002 (Not official. They reported this at first, but now they have taken it down from their website during the recap, they didn't mention it :\)

To Florida: - Igor Ulanov
- Filip Novak
- 1st Round Pick 2002
- 4th Round Pick 2003
- Option of switch of 2nd Round Picks in 2003

Mike Keenan is now on the line with SportsNet. He says:

- Great fit for Pavel to go to Rangers, which was his #1 choice.
- Something about moving towards the future and spending 10 mil/year on one person isn't part of the plan
- Now looking for one or more vet players, but also looking at young talent over the summer with the un-loading of all this money
- Ulanov is a great addition to Panthers, and hope to decrease their shots against. (Ulanov is a defenceman)

So what are you thoughts about it? I'm actually surprised that Mike York wasn't involved in this trade. But I gues the Panthers may be looking more towards the future than here and now.

As for the Rangers... I don't think this will help them all that much, really. They already have a lot of solid players - some of the best in the league. Yet they still aren't winning. Bure, as good as he may be, can't do it. Especially if the likes of Lindros, Leetch, Fleury, Nedved, Richter and more, can't get it done COMBINED!

~J_R~

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Rajah
Pavel Bure just got traded to the Rangers.

I got it up at http://www.hockeyinformer.com before any of the big sites. WOO!

Are you sure www.tsn.ca didn't get it up sooner, because that's where I went just after it was announced on the evening edition of SportsCentre :\ - which was around 6:45.

You lie, Mr. False-Advertising!

~J_R~

[Kid_Roll]

New York teams make me sick. All they ever do is buy teams. :(

With Bure on the team, New York just got way more dangerous. I think it totally opens the door for a Fluery trade for a good d-man though.

[Rajah]

TSN announced it on SportsCentre yeah, but they don't get it up on their website instantaneously or anything. I checked. I didn't say I was the person to break the news, just said that I had it up online before anyone. :p

[Yoel]

On a less-exciting side-note - Cloutier was named player of the week this week, going 3-0. I'm sure that's gotta be a confidence booster for him heading into what is already a playoff race :yes:. But he's still not at that level that will make the Canucks that much better :$.

And seeing as how most people in this thread seem to either live in or near Vancouver, or support the Canucks (myself included), I thought I'd ask a question.

Who do you see as the backbone of the Vancouver Canucks, especially with the playoff race going on right now:
1. Todd Bertuzzi
2. Markus Naslund
3. Dan Cloutier
4. Ed Jovanoski
5. Marc Crawford :wtf:.

~J_R~

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Rajah
TSN announced it on SportsCentre yeah, but they don't get it up on their website instantaneously or anything. I checked. I didn't say I was the person to break the news, just said that I had it up online before anyone. :p

I just can't be sarcastic out of the Asylum, or to the webmaster :cry:.

[Kid_Roll]

Canucks backbone?

Linden!!! lol


1.) Cloutier
2.) Naslund
3.) Bertuzzi
4.) Jovanovski
5.) Supporting cast


Goaltendind will get us into the playoffs, so Clouts better damn well play good. And Nazzie needs to keep up his play, and if Bert keeps playing the way he has, we stand a good chance to nab a playoff spot.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Jacqueline_Rulz
On a less-exciting side-note - Cloutier was named player of the week this week, going 3-0. I'm sure that's gotta be a confidence booster for him heading into what is already a playoff race :yes:. But he's still not at that level that will make the Canucks that much better :$.

And seeing as how most people in this thread seem to either live in or near Vancouver, or support the Canucks (myself included), I thought I'd ask a question.

Who do you see as the backbone of the Vancouver Canucks, especially with the playoff race going on right now:
1. Todd Bertuzzi
2. Markus Naslund
3. Dan Cloutier
4. Ed Jovanoski
5. Marc Crawford :wtf:.

~J_R~

He's improving... I seriously hope the Nucks aren't giving up on their young players. The future dream team that everyone was talking about last year, of developping 20-25 year olds, just doesn't seem the same this year. If anything, that's the one mistake they're making... patience. Let Clouts do his thing... no more Skudra. Let him carry the team as far as he can take them... hopefully into the playoffs. Give him a leading role and he'll develop. The problem with young players is that they're not used in pressure situations, they come to the NHL, and everyone says "oh, they can't play under pressure, so we're not gonna give them a chance." If the Nucks are patient, in 3-4 years, they're gonna be champs.

They should've tried to keep Schaefer too... :( :mad: He was a Swede.

1) Tuzzi
2) Jovo Cop
3) Linden
4) Clouts
5) Nassy

The vets are pulling the reins right now... then it's Clouts 'cause he plays such a pivotal role, being the goalie and all. Then, of course, Naslund. He just needs to get an edge him... like Sundin did in last year's playoffs... :D

[bionic_wolverine]

Darius Kasparaitis Just got sent to Colorado from the Pittsburgh Penguins for Ville Nieminen and Rick Berry just now.I f you want to check the story nhl.com just put it up or tsn.ca.

[Rajah]

I can't believe that Philly gave up so much for Adam Oates. Two thoughts now that this deal is complete:

- Philly probably will sign Oates to an extension or has already verbally agreed or something. He's an UFA after this season and they'd never give up that much if there was a chance he could walk? Right??

- Roenick and/or Primeau may both be seriously injured, or at least more so than everyone is letting on. In case you didn't hear, both guys went down last night and I bet Philly was desperate for a #1 center. Maxime Oullet is gonna be a bonafide starter in a couple years! Weird how earlier in this thread we were talking about him.

[bionic_wolverine]

I can't believe NY dealt Mike York to Edmonton. They got some good players in exchange ,Tom Poti and Rem Murray, but he was one of the best players in the organization IMO.

On the Oates issue Philly would definately want to keep him after all they gave for him. If JR and Primeau are injured Oates could be a great choice for the #1 center. He's got the leadership, experience, and skill to do it.

[Mr. Perfect 2K1]

I didn't think the Rangers would trade York either, but they needed help defensively and Poti is pretty decent. I just hope Bure can give them a spark. His contract wont be that big of a deal because Florida probably paid most of it anyway. And I doubt the Rangers will resign Fleury in the offseason, so its basically a wash. I can't believe that Colorado got Kasparaitis. I thought that Detroit would get him all along. Colorado is gonna be a big threat to Detroit now especially if Forsberg comes back for the playoffs.

[Kid_Roll]

Primuea and JR both out for about 2 weeks each. But still, Ouellette, and 1,2, and a 3rd rounder? If they were going to give up that much, why not have tried for Bure. Clarke is insane. Oh well, if it means more Hlavac for Brashear trades for Vancouver, let him stay. The man is crazy.

Poti for York, this could end up being another Weight trade. Years from now York will have played amazing for the Oilers, then will want big money and leave Edmonton, lol. Poti could be good in the future, though, as well. Stupid Rangers. Good thing their first opponent they face is the Canucks tonight.

And Kasparitis on Colorado. Damn. Lacroix is the deadline man in attaining UFA's.

[bionic_wolverine]

Did anyone hear about the deal the devils and stars made?

They sent Jason Arnott Randy Mckay and a 1st round pick to the stars for Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner. Does anyone else think that was a f@#$ed up trade or is it just me?

Personally I would have dealt Mckay, but Arnott?He's a great forward, has alot of skill and power, can score, a leader, and is fairly young. Nieuwendyk is a great player and can score but he is getting old.Langenbrunner is young and has potential but I still think it was a bad trade for the devils.Anyone else think so?

[Mr. Perfect 2K1]

I also think it was a bad trade for the Devils. When I first saw that I was like wtf? I don't know what they were thinking, but Dallas definitely got the better part of that deal. I hate the Devils so I really don't care, but I think they got shafted.

[Rajah]

Holy shit, Bertuzzi rules. He's almost single-handedly winning games for the Canucks. I'm glad the Canucks beat the Rangers...I REALLY want Montreal to make the playoffs in front of New York. It'd be funny especially since the Rangers just picked up Bure for their playoff drive.

Bure and the Rangers suck.

That is all.

[MadRyan]

Originally posted by Rajah
I can't believe that Philly gave up so much for Adam Oates. Two thoughts now that this deal is complete:

- Philly probably will sign Oates to an extension or has already verbally agreed or something. He's an UFA after this season and they'd never give up that much if there was a chance he could walk? Right??

- Roenick and/or Primeau may both be seriously injured, or at least more so than everyone is letting on. In case you didn't hear, both guys went down last night and I bet Philly was desperate for a #1 center. Maxime Oullet is gonna be a bonafide starter in a couple years! Weird how earlier in this thread we were talking about him.

Hell yes. First my Raiders rob the Bucs...and now my Caps rob the Flyers. Its just a shame that they couldn't get things rolling this season...and they'll more than likely miss the playoffs.

Don't get me wrong, Adam Oates in an amazing player...and even though he's the assists leader so far this season, he is past his prime. And you're right, Oullet will be a solid starter in a few years, cuz Olie isn't getting any younger...and with the way he's been playing this season, who knows. I'm just happy the rumors of them dealing Bondra to the Stars didn't come true. *whew*

[Mr. Perfect 2K1]

Bertuzzi trashed the Rangers like Kariya beat the Red Wings tonight. Sorry Raj I couldn't resist. I don't know if you saw it, but he blasted two rockets past Hasek. The first one he could have stopped, but the second one he had no chance on.

[Rajah]

Bah, I refuse to watch highlights of that game.

The Red Wings aren't the same without Yzerman...plus they said today that he'll be out for another two weeks or so. :cry:

[Mr. Perfect 2K1]

That sucks about Yzerman. I had him on my fantasy hockey team, but I dropped him a couple of weeks ago when he got hurt. I was up by 300 points so it didn't matter too much. So Raj, who do you think is gonna win the East this year? It's pretty wide open, I think either Boston or Toronto is gonna win. And in the West it will probably be Detroit and Colorado in the Conference finals, which should be a great series.

[Rajah]

The three contenders in the East from where I sit:

Boston: Tons of firepower upfront and decent goaltending, but I think their defense isn't too mobile and they don't have that guy who can pass the puck or at least get them out of their zone efficiently on a regular basis. My prediction: Boston won't make it past the second round.

Philadelphia: Great all around team with a good blend of physical and finesse defenseman, and an explosive group of forwards. Their own weakness is goaltending, because even though they have a great 1-2 punch in Cechmanek/Boucher, they don't have that top tier goalie who can steal games night in and night out. If Philly can get healthy in time (Roenick, Primeau) and Oates makes their powerplay work, watch out! My prediction: Philly makes it to the conference final.

Toronto: Great bunch of forwards, a serviceable group of defenseman and some great goaltending. I think by the time the playoffs hit, Toronto will have everyone healthy but I think to win they have to start shortening the bench a little, ie. give Sundin more icetime. Kaberle and McCabe are a formidable one-two punch but the rest of the defense corps tails off. They're lucky they have CuJo and either Barrasso/Schwab. My prediction: Toronto makes it to the finals.

In the West, come on, get real...Detroit all the way! Even though I wish they would have added a physical defenseman. They ended up getting Jiri Slegr...didn't he play for the 'Nucks way back when?

[Rajah]

Originally posted by Tazmission


Hell yes. First my Raiders rob the Bucs...and now my Caps rob the Flyers. Its just a shame that they couldn't get things rolling this season...and they'll more than likely miss the playoffs.

Don't get me wrong, Adam Oates in an amazing player...and even though he's the assists leader so far this season, he is past his prime. And you're right, Oullet will be a solid starter in a few years, cuz Olie isn't getting any younger...and with the way he's been playing this season, who knows. I'm just happy the rumors of them dealing Bondra to the Stars didn't come true. *whew*

Bobby Clarke is an idiot sometimes when it comes to trading. I think he needs to stop letting his emotion get the best out of him. He probably saw Roenick and Primeau go down yesterday and then shit his pants and made up his mind to go after a top center no matter what.

And as for Olie, is it just me or has he taken a step backwards in recent years? I guess it could be a reflection of the team around him. Who's on the Caps defense again? (Not including Gonchar who thinks offense like 24/7).

[Mr. Perfect 2K1]

Yeah Slegr played for the Canucks from 92-95. Detroit missed out on Kasparitis and Odelien. Either of those guys would have given them some toughness. But they will still probably make it to the finals anyway.

[DrEvil]

Those were some interesting trades... I've always thought Oates was the most underrated player in the league but he is past his prime and Phili gave up more for him, than NYR gave up for Bure :wtf:

Hopefully Leclair will score a ton getting setup by Oates though.

The Dallas-NJ trade is a tough one to understand too... I guess NJ just wasn't happy with Arnott, but still Nieuwendyk is in the later years of his career and Jamie Langenbrunner seems way too injury prone even though he is a good player...

Colorado make a good pickup and would be my favorite is Forsberg was playing but even though their still a great team with him out, I have to say Detroit is still the favorite...

[bionic_wolverine]

About the NJ/Dallas trade I am formulating a theory that it is possible that Lamoriello is going to use Nieuwendyk possibly to trade him over the summer with a few others in order to get a bigger star. I remember several teams were making offers for Nieuwendyk before he was traded to NJ and the devils have scored very few goals this year so maybe they will try to land a sniper to fill in for the abscence of Mogilny.

On the subject of trades who do you think will benifit most from the trades they made?

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by bionic_wolverine

On the subject of trades who do you think will benifit most from the trades they made?

In the short term, Philadelphia & NYR. They both gave up very almost no talent from their current team, while getting all star caliber players.

For the long term, maybe Washington if they use their picks right...

[steviekick]

Well I guess now my fave team is Philly because wherever Oates goes thats my team. Good call on whoever said Oates is underated because dammit he is. I never see him in any All-Star games in the past couple years, to my knowledge he wasn't on the Canadian olympic hockey team, but the guy is always leading the league in assists and always among the leaders in points scored, he's like Dangerfield, I tell you he gets no respect. Also Oates passed his prime? Granted he's not a 25 year old spring chicken, but when I think of somebody passed their prime I think of somebodiy whose skills are now a shadow of what they once used to be. Oates is 39 years old, he's going to lead the league in assists for the 2nd straight year, he's in the top 5 in scoring, to me there doesn't seem to be any skills diminishing or passed his prime, he's just age impaired

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by steviekick
Well I guess now my fave team is Philly because wherever Oates goes thats my team. Good call on whoever said Oates is underated because dammit he is. I never see him in any All-Star games in the past couple years, to my knowledge he wasn't on the Canadian olympic hockey team, but the guy is always leading the league in assists and always among the leaders in points scored, he's like Dangerfield, I tell you he gets no respect. Also Oates passed his prime? Granted he's not a 25 year old spring chicken, but when I think of somebody passed their prime I think of somebodiy whose skills are now a shadow of what they once used to be. Oates is 39 years old, he's going to lead the league in assists for the 2nd straight year, he's in the top 5 in scoring, to me there doesn't seem to be any skills diminishing or passed his prime, he's just age impaired

I still don't think a couple of months of Oates is worth what Phili gave up for him... if he signs right away I'll change my mind on that though...

[MadRyan]

Originally posted by Rajah


Bobby Clarke is an idiot sometimes when it comes to trading. I think he needs to stop letting his emotion get the best out of him. He probably saw Roenick and Primeau go down yesterday and then shit his pants and made up his mind to go after a top center no matter what.

And as for Olie, is it just me or has he taken a step backwards in recent years? I guess it could be a reflection of the team around him. Who's on the Caps defense again? (Not including Gonchar who thinks offense like 24/7).

I guarantee that is exactly what Bobby Clarke was thinking. Its fine by me though...especially since Oatesy was going to be an unrestricted free agent after this season anyway.

I'm not so sure about Olie though. Yes he has had a lackluster year...but not terrible by any means. And yes a lot of that has to do with the Caps defense(or lack there of).

They lost Calle Johannson early in the season, which really hurt since he is basically the backbone of their defense. Then Steve Konowalchuk(their best defensive minded forward) went down. Those two loses combined pretty much left the defense in shambles. They've got Brenden Witt(who only seems to play well when he's paired with Johannson), vets Ken Klee and Sylvain Cote...and a few other guys(Rob Zettler, Frantisek Kucera, Jean Fortin).

Add that to Olie's woes this season and the fact that it took Jagr three quarters of the season to get settled in Washington...and its no suprise that the Caps will most likely miss the playoffs.

They did look damn good last night though. And Olie was spectacular.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Tazmission
I'm not so sure about Olie though. Yes he has had a lackluster year...but not terrible by any means. And yes a lot of that has to do with the Caps defense (or lack there of)

Yeah, that's why they got Ouellet, to cover for Olie when he's doing bad. Poor Ouellet... he's kicked ass in WJHC, kicked ass at the Flyers' junior camp, and he's not doing anything in the NHL. Too many goalies... and they stick around until they're 40, like Roy and Burke, so it's hard to make it as a young goalie these days.

Straka broke his leg. The Pens are fucked.

[Kid_Roll]

Straka is out again? OMG what a horrible year for the Pens. Mario, Kovalev, Straka, then Straka again, the Jagr trade, getting Kevin Stevens. They won't be able to survive much longer with all the crap that has happened to them. I, for one, am happy, because there is nothing worse then a listening to a Pens fan who refuses to see reality. I had an argument all last year with a Pens fan about how they weren't strong enough to win the cup. He insisted they would. I said NJ would take them out. He said no way, Pens new style of offense would kick the Devils ass, Hedberg was going to outplay Broduer. Then my Devils showed him who was right. That was a great moment. Havent heard back from him since then. I should be any day now, though, so he can rub that god-awful Arnott deal in my face. :(

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Straka is out again? OMG what a horrible year for the Pens. Mario, Kovalev, Straka, then Straka again, the Jagr trade, getting Kevin Stevens. They won't be able to survive much longer with all the crap that has happened to them. I, for one, am happy, because there is nothing worse then a listening to a Pens fan who refuses to see reality. I had an argument all last year with a Pens fan about how they weren't strong enough to win the cup. He insisted they would. I said NJ would take them out. He said no way, Pens new style of offense would kick the Devils ass, Hedberg was going to outplay Broduer. Then my Devils showed him who was right. That was a great moment. Havent heard back from him since then. I should be any day now, though, so he can rub that god-awful Arnott deal in my face. :(

Was this friend named Mike by any chance? I had the same argument with a friend last year... he said Pittsburgh would tear apart NJ's "stupid trap" with their amazing offence and then kill the Avs in the finals 'cause they're "just another stupid stacked team."

He refused to realize that offence isn't everything... he said defence didn't matter, 'cause NJ has none and they could outscore the Avs... :rolleyes: Let's see... no one ever gets around the trap when they're firing on all cylinders, and they have a damn good offence too. Play defence against them, you'll probably win. If you get impatient like the Leafs did in last year's playoffs and start playing offence, you're screwed.

[Clay Henry]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15


Straka broke his leg. The Pens are fucked. Let me re-phrase that for you.The Pens were fucked, now they are even more fucked.

[Freezemaster]

Originally posted by bionic_wolverine
Did anyone hear about the deal the devils and stars made?

They sent Jason Arnott Randy Mckay and a 1st round pick to the stars for Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner. Does anyone else think that was a f@#$ed up trade or is it just me?

Personally I would have dealt Mckay, but Arnott?He's a great forward, has alot of skill and power, can score, a leader, and is fairly young. Nieuwendyk is a great player and can score but he is getting old.Langenbrunner is young and has potential but I still think it was a bad trade for the devils.Anyone else think so?

Sh!t please tell me thats not true, Arnotts like my fave player. I'm a UK nHL fan so I'm a bit behind on news. What are the stars players like that they have in return?

[Kid_Roll]

Dallas Stars got: Randy Mckay, 1st rounder, and Jason Arnott

New JErsey Devils got: Joe "I have no more knees" Nieuwendyk and Jamie "injury prone" Langenbrunner.

Nieuwendyk is old, good at faceoffs, good passer, but beyond his prime. He is a role player more then anything, albeit a skilled role player. He will definantly only help the Devils short term as his knees as kind of fucked up. Langebrunner will chip in the odd goal here and there. The only thing he has going for him is that he is young. If he was an old guy, people would be saying he is a defensive role player. But if Craig Conroy can become a scorer, maybe Langenbrunner can. Maybe Lou wants to go back to all defence again.

Awful, awful, awful deal in my opinion. NJ better hope they win the cup this year so they can say it was cause of Nieuwendyk's leadership or else they are screwed. I can't believe they screwed the A-line like that. And they lost a first rounder as well. Lou Lamorello is usually so smart. :(

[Freezemaster]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Awful, awful, awful deal in my opinion. NJ better hope they win the cup this year so they can say it was cause of Nieuwendyk's leadership or else they are screwed. I can't believe they screwed the A-line like that. And they lost a first rounder as well. Lou Lamorello is usually so smart. :(

Definately sounds a dumb deal to me. I guess just how dumb will show in the cup. I was going to come over to see ther stanley cup this year but I didn't think Devils would make it, now they've made a late fight and I can't afford the damn flight now!

Theres plenty of teams who people favopur more to win the Cup this year. Philli seem the best in the east and red wings currently have 104 points after 70 games which is way more than any other team.

I think we will see Devils reach the Quarter Finals this year but will probably lose out to one of those two, or the leafs, or the avs.

[MattyC]

Originally posted by Rajah
By the way, have you heard of a young Swedish goalie in the Detroit Red Wings organization? I can't remember his name, but he's supposed to be really good as well. If I find it out, I'll edit.

http://www.fotbal.cz/gol/obr/2001/0912/hok07a.gif

The goalie's name is Stefan Liv. He was a fourth round draft pick in 2000, and is considered the best goalie currently playing in Sweden.

Along with Henrik Zetterberg, the two are showing that the Wings will have some fine home-grown (i.e.- not bought) talent to come in a few years.

Oddball side-note on Liv:


His uniqueness in the crease is paralleled by his unusual selection of mask-paintings. Liv's artist, David Gunnarsson, is the creative mind behind masks that feature pop star Britney Spears and the Swedish princess Madelaine. The motivation, many wonder?

"I think (Madelaine) is cute, and she represents Sweden, just like me," Liv said simply. "And," he continued with a laugh, "I hope she will call me some day."


Oh, and Rajah, if you need anybody to dish you scoops from the heart of Hockeytown regarding the Wings, let me know. Most days at work I flip between the Wings' flagship radio station and the other sports station (who has a great record of breaking stories).

[Kid_Roll]

Canucks lost!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH! Bad missed calls by the ref. First, they called an imaginary high stick on Bertuzzi, then they don't call the icing at the end of the 3rd period. What the hell was that? Damnit. Canucks have played 3 more games then everyone else. It is looking worse and worse for them, playoff wise. At least Bertuzzi has seemed to have finally shown the potential we all knew he had. He has played strong consitently for quite a stretch and is like 8th in league scoring. If only he hadn't been suspended for 10 games. Damn that loss hurt.

[Psycho]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Canucks lost!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH! Bad missed calls by the ref. First, they called an imaginary high stick on Bertuzzi, then they don't call the icing at the end of the 3rd period. What the hell was that? Damnit. Canucks have played 3 more games then everyone else. It is looking worse and worse for them, playoff wise. At least Bertuzzi has seemed to have finally shown the potential we all knew he had. He has played strong consitently for quite a stretch and is like 8th in league scoring. If only he hadn't been suspended for 10 games. Damn that loss hurt.

Definately a hard pill to swallow. First we had to watch Osgood save the penalty shot after Nazzy made such a brilliant move on him, then, when we have the powerplay at the end, Linden is called for interference (:wtf: ) THEN at the end, that icing not being called?

What the shit was that? There was no way Jovo couyld have gotten the puck before it crossed the red line, as he was going as fast as he could...

:blah:

Ahhh well 5/6 games on a road trip ain't bad, and now it's time to face Edmonton at home. That will be huge. I sense a physical, emotional game...

And we better fucking win! :mad: :D

[MadRyan]

Woooo. Three third period goals for the Caps to beat the Leafs.

Hmmm...The Caps trade Oates and then get back to back wins against the 'Lanche and the Leafs. Works for me...

[Rajah]

MattyC: That's the guy, Stefan Liv. I heard that Zetterberg was the like the MVP of the Swedish league last year and Liv was runnerup...not sure if that's true. Either way, Zetterberg is the same guy Sundin said would be the next Peter Forsberg. He's not as physical or big as Forsberg, but just as talented apparently. Can't wait to see him play for the Wings.

And as for tonight's action:

- Detroit wins in OT! Lidstrom three assists. God, he kicks ass. The best two-way defenseman in the league.

- Vancouver lost...they're gonna be in real tough now if they wanna make the playoffs.

- Washington...making a late charge for the playoffs. Jagr played like the Jagr of old tonight. Too bad Gonchar got hurt...anyone know how long he's out for?

- Toronto is probably counting the days till CuJo comes back. They're goaltending is good right now, but it's still a drastic step down from Joseph no matter how you look at it.

- Ottawa sucks. They haven't been helping Montreal out at all as far as making the playoffs go. Lost to Buffalo earlier in the week and now Rangers, two teams breathing down the Canadiens back. I dunno when I started cheering for Montreal, probably cause I wanna see Theodore carry his team to the playoffs. That guy rules.

That's about it.

[BoSox Rule]

My Bruins are looking pretty good, huh? Ahead of Toronto by three points in the division.

2002 Stanley Cup champions: Boston Bruins

[Clay Henry]

Hurray! You probably all don't know this, but I am a die-hard Flames fan. And even though our season is pretty well over, I am still looking forward to these final few games, and especially next season!

But the reason I'm so excited is because in about an hour I'm jumping in a car, going speeding up Highway 2 for a two and a half hour drive, and going to watch the Battle of Alberta Live in Edmonton! I have seen lots of Flames/Oilers games in Calgary before, but never have I seen one in Edmonton. I'm so excited! I got my face paint all ready, I got a Flames flag that is about 4 feet wide and 2 feet tall, and am ready to cheer my face off!

Woo-hoo!

[Psycho]

Fuck.

Canucks aren't making the playoffs now.

:cry:

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Clay Henry
Hurray! You probably all don't know this, but I am a die-hard Flames fan. And even though our season is pretty well over, I am still looking forward to these final few games, and especially next season!

But the reason I'm so excited is because in about an hour I'm jumping in a car, going speeding up Highway 2 for a two and a half hour drive, and going to watch the Battle of Alberta Live in Edmonton! I have seen lots of Flames/Oilers games in Calgary before, but never have I seen one in Edmonton. I'm so excited! I got my face paint all ready, I got a Flames flag that is about 4 feet wide and 2 feet tall, and am ready to cheer my face off!

Woo-hoo!

You're from Calgary? What part?

I live in Marlborough.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Psychosport2000
Fuck.

Canucks aren't making the playoffs now.

:cry:

Hey, you still got a chance...

The Nucks've got Anaheim and the BJs in 2 of their next 3 games, so that's 2 sure wins, and you never know, they might beat LA... that's a big might.

Edmonton and Dallas play each other in about a week, so as there's not an overtime loss, they'll only get a combined 2 points, which is good for you guys. The Stars have got the Sharks and Flames coming up, and could very well lose both.

There's still hope.

[Jason_HBK]

The Oilers are playing awesome hockey right now. It just scares me because Tommy Salo is such a hot/cold goaltender. I hope he keeps it up and carries it into the playoffs.

Can we have one year where the Leafs don't play the Sens in the first round.

[Swedish Sensation]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK
Can we have one year where the Leafs don't play the Sens in the first round.

Nope... :evilgrin:

This playoff situation is so f'd up right now... StL, Edm and Phx all tied at 82, Dal has 80, and Vcr has 79. I'm guessing since Vcr and Edm have played 74 games and the rest have played 72, we're not gonna see any Canadian playoff teams in the W conf... :(

[Kid_Roll]

Things look grim for western Canadian teams...... :(


But the Canucks won tonight, so at least I can pretend we are in the playoff hunt. With the way the west has been playing as of late, it just doesn't seem possible for the Nucks to make it. At least Bertuzzi is coming into his own, that is my only solace. That, and it was Linden's 1000 game. Yay Trevor! He is my fav player, was cool to see him getting a standing ovation at the game tonight.

[Rajah]

All together now:

Let's go Oilers...clap, clap...clap, clap, clap...Let's go Oilers...clap, clap...clap, clap, clap.

Etc.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by swedish_sensation15


Nope... :evilgrin:

This playoff situation is so f'd up right now... StL, Edm and Phx all tied at 82, Dal has 80, and Vcr has 79. I'm guessing since Vcr and Edm have played 74 games and the rest have played 72, we're not gonna see any Canadian playoff teams in the W conf... :(

If Salo can stay hot, then Edmonton will get in.

For the Canucks to get in they need Cluotier is going to have to be on his game and they will need the veterans to step up and score some goals.

Montreal is going to need help from spoiler teams to get in.

Who thinks Detroit is going down in the first round??

[Clay Henry]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK


If Salo can stay hot, then Edmonton will get in.

For the Canucks to get in they need Cluotier is going to have to be on his game and they will need the veterans to step up and score some goals.

Montreal is going to need help from spoiler teams to get in.

Who thinks Detroit is going down in the first round??
1. Salo has been the best goalie in the NHL over the past week or so. In his last five games, all of which were against teams either in the playoffs or fighting hard for playoff spots, he has let in a total of four goals. That is less than a goal a game! If Salo had been playing like this right after the Olympics, the Oilers wouldn't be in such a battle for a playoff spot right now.

2. The Canucks are pretty well screwed, unless two of the teams above them go cold. They are three points out, but give up at least two games to every team except for Edmonton. I think the Oilers will keep on playing hot and take a playoff spot, which means they are going to have to knock out two other teams to get into the playoffs. Their is always a hope, but I think the Canucks are gonna finish just short this year.

3. I don't think so. The Habs are tied for the last playoff spot right now with the Capitals, but have a game in hand on them. Plus they have a three point lead on the other teams chasing that playoff spot, the Rangers and Sabres. So as long as the Habs can win as many games as the Capitals for the rest of the season, and win that game they have in hand they have, they will make the playoffs.

4. No, no, no. Detroit will not choke in the first round, second round, third round, or finals. They have too good of a team with players who know what to do when it comes down to the important games. I can't see the Wings losing more than four games the entire playoffs, en route to the Stanley Cup.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Clay Henry

1. Salo has been the best goalie in the NHL over the past week or so. In his last five games, all of which were against teams either in the playoffs or fighting hard for playoff spots, he has let in a total of four goals. That is less than a goal a game! If Salo had been playing like this right after the Olympics, the Oilers wouldn't be in such a battle for a playoff spot right now.

I agree


2. The Canucks are pretty well screwed, unless two of the teams above them go cold. They are three points out, but give up at least two games to every team except for Edmonton. I think the Oilers will keep on playing hot and take a playoff spot, which means they are going to have to knock out two other teams to get into the playoffs. Their is always a hope, but I think the Canucks are gonna finish just short this year.

I agree


3. I don't think so. The Habs are tied for the last playoff spot right now with the Capitals, but have a game in hand on them. Plus they have a three point lead on the other teams chasing that playoff spot, the Rangers and Sabres. So as long as the Habs can win as many games as the Capitals for the rest of the season, and win that game they have in hand they have, they will make the playoffs.

I agree


4. No, no, no. Detroit will not choke in the first round, second round, third round, or finals. They have too good of a team with players who know what to do when it comes down to the important games. I can't see the Wings losing more than four games the entire playoffs, en route to the Stanley Cup.

I disagree. I don't think they will win the cup. They will have a tough time if they play the oilers in the first round. The oilers are playing playoff hockey right now. The Wings are garunteed a playoff spot. If they wan't to get far in the tournament they will have to keep sharp. They also have some good teams to beat in the Western Conference this year. I think they will bow out in the first or second round.

[Clay Henry]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK
I disagree. I don't think they will win the cup. They will have a tough time if they play the oilers in the first round. The oilers are playing playoff hockey right now. The Wings are garunteed a playoff spot. If they wan't to get far in the tournament they will have to keep sharp. They also have some good teams to beat in the Western Conference this year. I think they will bow out in the first or second round. I understand what you're saying, and you almost changed my opinion on them for a second, but I still think they are on their way to the Cup. I mean they have been guarnteed the top spot in the Western Conference for a while now, and the top spot in the entire NHL as well. But they have never really slowed down. They realize the games don't mean much, but still bring their a-game. So when they realize the games are important, I think they'll turn it up another notch. And if hardly anybody can beat them now, who will be able to beat them when they are playing even better?

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Clay Henry
I understand what you're saying, and you almost changed my opinion on them for a second, but I still think they are on their way to the Cup. I mean they have been guarnteed the top spot in the Western Conference for a while now, and the top spot in the entire NHL as well. But they have never really slowed down. They realize the games don't mean much, but still bring their a-game. So when they realize the games are important, I think they'll turn it up another notch. And if hardly anybody can beat them now, who will be able to beat them when they are playing even better?

I don't know, teams that they would have killed early in the season have either beat them, tied them, or came damn close.

If you follow canadian football you will know what I am talking about.

The Bombers had their first round bye for about 4 weeks before the season ended. After they clinched they were barely winning games and were playing horrible football. They barely beat the Ti-Cats and lost to the Stamps. They had first place for so long they forgot what it was like to play desperate football. The Oilers or whatever team is in 8th are playing playoff hockey, which is desperate hockey. Plus the Bombers were overconfident.

My question is do you think the Wings will be overconfident if they play the Oilers. I think they will. They have a team full of cocky bastards. Especially Chelios and Hasek.

[Rajah]

Detroit will NOT lose in the first or second round...I'm calling them to win it all, but if they lose, it will be at least the conference finals.

A very simple way of looking at it: There is NO team in the NHL that can beat the Wings four times in seven games given the way they are playing right now and throughout the season. I mean think about it - they just totally outplayed Colorado last week without their captain, Yzerman. Fedorov, Hasek and Lidstrom are all getting better as the season goes on. And the Wings have some young guys who are really contributing - Datsyuk, Avery, Fischer...they aren't as old overall as some people make them out to be.

Plus, the fact that they are so far ahead of everyone and have clinched the overall title means they can rest all their veterans and come playoffs, everyone will be rested and healthy.

I'm from Edmonton, but I'm sorry they aren't gonna beat the Wings.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Detroit will NOT lose in the first or second round...I'm calling them to win it all, but if they lose, it will be at least the conference finals.

A very simple way of looking at it: There is NO team in the NHL that can beat the Wings four times in seven games given the way they are playing right now and throughout the season. I mean think about it - they just totally outplayed Colorado last week without their captain, Yzerman. Fedorov, Hasek and Lidstrom are all getting better as the season goes on. And the Wings have some young guys who are really contributing - Datsyuk, Avery, Fischer...they aren't as old overall as some people make them out to be.

Plus, the fact that they are so far ahead of everyone and have clinched the overall title means they can rest all their veterans and come playoffs, everyone will be rested and healthy.

I'm from Edmonton, but I'm sorry they aren't gonna beat the Wings.

Colorado can beat the Wings. They have done it before. Toronto can beat the Wings. There are alot of teams that can beat them. The Blue Jackets almost beat them. They aren't that old but alot of their roster is getting up there. Stevie Y has been hurt. I just don't think they are as good as their record says they are.

Thats what happened to Winnipeg. Their players weren't used to playing and they got out played. Edmonton is basically playing playoff hockey. Their level of play is going to be much higher than the Wings.

Oh they will. They are ready and they will shock the NHL world.

[Rajah]

That's my whole point - any on team can beat any other team one any given day. We all know that. But the way the Wings are playing right now, no team can beat them four times out of seven. The only way the Wings are gonna lose is if they massively fall apart and after their disappointment last year, I don't think they will.

Also: There's still over two weeks left before the playoffs start. Just because the Oilers are playing "playoff hockey" right now does not necessarily mean they will be doing so in the middle of April...

I just hope Edmonton sneaks into the #7 seed and kicks the crap out of Colorado. That would be my dream come true.

P.S. Last time Toronto played Detroit, they got their ass kicked like 5-1 or 5-2.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
That's my whole point - any on team can beat any other team one any given day. We all know that. But the way the Wings are playing right now, no team can beat them four times out of seven. The only way the Wings are gonna lose is if they massively fall apart and after their disappointment last year, I don't think they will.

Also: There's still over two weeks left before the playoffs start. Just because the Oilers are playing "playoff hockey" right now does not necessarily mean they will be doing so in the middle of April...

I just hope Edmonton sneaks into the #7 seed and kicks the crap out of Colorado. That would be my dream come true.

The way the Oilers are playing, the othe rteams might as well not show up. They haven't been able to solve Salo and alot of the Oilers are picking up their game. Remember St Louis. Everyone was so sure they were going to win. I called the choke but my dad still put alot of Blues on our playoff pool, so we lost.

This might not even be the Oilers best stuff. But I agree, Salo is a Hot/Cold goaltender, just because he is hot now doesn't mean he will be come playoff time.

If you are a Wings fan then I can see why you hate Colorado. But I love when they play the Wings. There is always so much emotion.

[Rajah]

Yeah, I'm a Wings fan...but the Oilers are my second favorite team which is why it'll suck if they face each other in the first round. :(

Hopefully Salo can play well this week...I have active on my fantasy team this week. I had him benched last week and missed capitalizing on his stellar run. Ouch.

Off topic, I noticed that you're a "Jimmy Van Mark". I have nothing against Jimmy, but his site = :no: Kids on his newsboard steal Dan's results left and right and he sits there and does nothing.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Yeah, I'm a Wings fan...but the Oilers are my second favorite team which is why it'll suck if they face each other in the first round. :(

Hopefully Salo can play well this week...I have active on my fantasy team this week. I had him benched last week and missed capitalizing on his stellar run. Ouch.

Off topic, I noticed that you're a "Jimmy Van Mark". I have nothing against Jimmy, but his site = :no: Kids on his newsboard steal Dan's results left and right and he sits there and does nothing.

I hate when that happens. I can't stand it when Toronto and Ottawa have to face eachother. I hate to see one Canadian team eliminate the other.

Yeah, I figured after the OLY's Salo was gonna have a hot streak. You know alot about hockey so do you know why Patrick Roy didn't go to the OLY's.

Oh crap, you guys aren't rivals are you?? The only sites I go to are yours and his. His updates and reviews are as good as yours are. You have very similar opinions. Anyways, I don't think he knows that they are doing it. I'm sure that if he knew that they were stealing it from Dan that he would put a stop to it.

I have a site related question if you want to answer it. I was just wondering when the new columnist positions will be announced??

[Rajah]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK


I hate when that happens. I can't stand it when Toronto and Ottawa have to face eachother. I hate to see one Canadian team eliminate the other.

Yeah, I figured after the OLY's Salo was gonna have a hot streak. You know alot about hockey so do you know why Patrick Roy didn't go to the OLY's.

Oh crap, you guys aren't rivals are you?? The only sites I go to are yours and his. His updates and reviews are as good as yours are. You have very similar opinions. Anyways, I don't think he knows that they are doing it. I'm sure that if he knew that they were stealing it from Dan that he would put a stop to it.

I have a site related question if you want to answer it. I was just wondering when the new columnist positions will be announced??

Roy...he always stated that he just wasn't interested, but I think he was just offended at not being announced as being on the team or maybe even as the starter. Like if Gretzky and them named him in the original eight, I bet he would have went. Probably felt insulted that he had to "compete" with Brodeur, Joseph, etc. to gain the starter's job.

And nah, we aren't rivals or anything. Hell, I've never even communicated with him. I'd only been to his site a few times in the past but on Monday, a mutual reader of ours I guess emailed me and Dan and pointed out that some guy on his staff was ripping off Dan's stuff. So I went to his site, browsed around and noticed it happening in other posts as well so I emailed him and asked him to address it. But he never responded so I assume he doesn't care. *Shrugs*

[Duke]

Originally posted by Rajah


Roy...he always stated that he just wasn't interested, but I think he was just offended at not being announced as being on the team or maybe even as the starter. Like if Gretzky and them named him in the original eight, I bet he would have went. Probably felt insulted that he had to "compete" with Brodeur, Joseph, etc. to gain the starter's job.

Roy said he didn't want to go because he wanted to focus on the cup to help his team, but I also think thats a load of...
Like you said he was just offended he wasnt named the number 1 goaltender and didnt want to compete with the other goaltenders.

And for the record, i still think edmonton could make the playoffs, this game against dallas on saturday is absolutely monumental, we've always had trouble with the stars (obviously) but if we wanna make the post season we're gonna need to overcome that now. And i dont think i've ever been as big a flames fan as I am today... God i hope they beat the stars tonight :p

Go Oilers Go! And for tonight, Go Flames aswell :D

[Jason_HBK]

I think everyone is overlooking the Bruins. They are playing excellent hockey right now. Did they trade Jason Allison??

The Canucks need to capitalize on the opportunity of playing Columbus.

The Oilers are playing the Kings. I think this is where the streak stops.

The Habs get the lightning. Montreal needs this win. Hopefully Jersey can beat the capitals tomorrow.

Like Duke I am a huge Flames fan tonight.

[Duke]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK
I think everyone is overlooking the Bruins. They are playing excellent hockey right now. Did they trade Jason Allison??


Jason Allison plays for the Kings now doesnt he?
Yeah, he was traded for Glen Murray i believe, at last years deadline? Can someone confirm that? Cuz im not 100% sure.

The Habs have really gotta beat the lightning, theyve only got one game in hand, and games in hand mean nothing if you dont win them.

And the Oil have their work cut out for them against the Kings, but i really hope we can pull this off, we need all the wins we can get.
and for the oil, Go Ducks, Flames and Sabres!

[bionic_wolverine]

I was just wondering about which team will win the 6th place in the east? Who do you think will do it, Islanders or Devils?

On the subject of the Devils, with the way Langenbrunner and Nieuwendyk are playing do you think the trade they made was worth it?I am beginning to believe that it wasn't that bad of a trade fter all.

[Duke]

I always liked that trade from the NJ perspective,

I would say the Islanders will probably win the 6th seed and face carolina in the playoffs, not sure why, just a feeling they'l edge out the Devils.

[Kid_Roll]

CASSELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my god, he saved the Canuck's asses tonight. If the Canucks get into the playoffs, though, Bertuzzi should be named MVP of the team just based on his performance down the stretch, when it really matters. I am so disapointed in Naslund's play as of late, as this is the time you want your captain to pick up his game, and he didn't seem to come alive until the end of the game, but when he did, he looked great. He just needs to keep doing that. Go Canucks! It's going to be a close finish.

[Psycho]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
CASSELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my god, he saved the Canuck's asses tonight. If the Canucks get into the playoffs, though, Bertuzzi should be named MVP of the team just based on his performance down the stretch, when it really matters. I am so disapointed in Naslund's play as of late, as this is the time you want your captain to pick up his game, and he didn't seem to come alive until the end of the game, but when he did, he looked great. He just needs to keep doing that. Go Canucks! It's going to be a close finish. I agree with you COMPLETELY.

God the first half of the game was scary though, eh? Thank God they came alive at the end of the second, there.

Maybe we will make it after all... :\

[Kid_Roll]

Yeah, I was just sitting in my living room, freaking out, just waiting for Columbus to score the 4th goal so I could turn off the T.V. Luckily they didn't, and Bertuzzi woke the boys up. It was so vital for us to get the 2 points in tonights game, especially with the out of town scores kind of going our way, except for the St. Louis game and Turek choking again to let the Stars get a point out of their game with the Flames. :(

[Psycho]

Yeah, thank God for Tuzzi.

They really came out in the third and kicked ass though. I was positive they were going to win it after saeeing how they played in the third.

And I was SO pissed when Dallas tied it.

2-0 in the third and the flames couldn't hold on. :mad:

Ahh well, they only got 1, we got 2.

woo.

[Jason_HBK]

OK, here are the playoff standings. I will update them as needed. Not the best table but it will do.

WESTERN CONFERENCE


1 DET.......113
2 COL.........92
3 SAN.........89
4 CHI.........91
5 PHO........89
6 STL........86
7 LOS.........86
8 EDM........85

_________________________________________________

9 VAN........83
10 DAL......83
11 CGY.....73
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------



EASTERN CONFERENCE


1 BOS..... 94
2 PHI......92
3 CAR.....83
4 TOR.....91
5 OTT.....89
6 NYI......85
7 NJD......83
8 MON.....79

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9 WAS....77
10 NYR...74
11 BUF...74

[Psycho]

Well, I'm happy VAN won, but I'm upset because Edmonton pulled off the win over Dallas.

I want to stragle Sydor for taking that stupid penalty :mad:

[Rajah]

Go Oilers! I take my words back - they will make the playoffs but it looks like it will be against my Red Wings. Grrr.

Vancouver keeps winning too, but St. Louis does as well. It would be sweet if Edmonton could wrap up the #7 seed and Vancouver could grab #8 with both Dallas and St. Louis on the outside looking in.

Also of note to Swedish Sensation: Barrasso got hurt today and I heard on TV that the Leafs were probably gonna call up that Tellqvist guy.

[Duke]

LA has not played well as of late, 0-3-1 on this road trip, they are only one point up on the Oil, we could even see them on the outside looking in, i hope both edmonton and vancouver can pull this off, and LA really seems to be struggling, so maybe we could see that happening, Any thoughts on that?

[Jason_HBK]

I love it, the Wings got beat. Dallas won but the Oilers are still 2 points up on them. But we need the Blues to beat Dallas.

Montreal is almost a lock for a playoff spot. They just need to keep playing the way they have been and they will get in.

[Rajah]

Dude, Detroit is just screwing around now. Yzerman, Chelios and Hasek all not playing. Lidstrom isn't even making the road trip to the West coast this week.

Hell, did you see Hasek sitting on the bench without his equipment vs. Toronto? They don't care if they lose all their games now...they're readying themselves for the playoffs! They toyed with Toronto and tied it up before the Leafs could even react.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah
Dude, Detroit is just screwing around now. Yzerman, Chelios and Hasek all not playing. Lidstrom isn't even making the road trip to the West coast this week.

Hell, did you see Hasek sitting on the bench without his equipment vs. Toronto? They don't care if they lose all their games now...they're readying themselves for the playoffs! They toyed with Toronto and tied it up before the Leafs could even react.

Man, that's the last thing they need to do if they want to win the Stanley Cup. I know from experience. In 1996, football's Denver Broncos won home field advantage throughout the playoff's 1 or 2 games before the season ended. So during those last games, they rested Elway, Davis, and the other and played the 2nd stringers. So then they played the Jacksonville Jaguars in their first playoff game and LOST after everyone had picked the Broncos to go to the Super Bowl. I know hockey isnt football, but if the Red Wings let their starters get lazy and only play in practices, they are going to be in for some trouble.

[Rajah]

I think what they're doing is giving everyone a rest in these past few days or weeks and then bringing everyone back for the final week of the regular season so they get their momentum going again. In football, they play once a week so if you miss two weeks, that's like a significant chunk of your playing time. It's not that big of a deal in hockey where they play like four times per week.

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by Rajah
I think what they're doing is giving everyone a rest in these past few days or weeks and then bringing everyone back for the final week of the regular season so they get their momentum going again. In football, they play once a week so if you miss two weeks, that's like a significant chunk of your playing time. It's not that big of a deal in hockey where they play like four times per week.

In addition to that, it's the whole fact it's a best of 7 rather then just one game. Detroit can come back and play the worst game or even two ever but still turn it around in the playoffs. In the NFL if your off your game for 1 hour, your out no matter how good you are.

[The_shad]

Well, I stand corrected. Well, I just hope the Avalanche and Red Wings make it to the Conference Finals and play like old times sake. I swear, the Av's vs. the Wings in the Playoffs have made some of the best games EVER. But I might be a little biased :D .

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Dude, Detroit is just screwing around now. Yzerman, Chelios and Hasek all not playing. Lidstrom isn't even making the road trip to the West coast this week.

Hell, did you see Hasek sitting on the bench without his equipment vs. Toronto? They don't care if they lose all their games now...they're readying themselves for the playoffs! They toyed with Toronto and tied it up before the Leafs could even react.

I am telling you that is the wrong thing to do. Players need to stay sharp. Nobody cares that the Wings have already clinched a playoff spot. Especially the team that plays them in the first round. The team the Wings play will be sharp and will be ready because thye have been fighting it out for weeks just to make it to where they are.

How can you ready yourself for the playoffs by not playing? The players need to stay sharp and sitting on the bench isn't helping them stay sharp.

[Rajah]

This is pretty amusing.

If the Wings play everyone and lose, people will say all their players got tired. Now that they are resting some guys, people are saying they will get rusty. My opinion: give it up. Scotty Bowman is the best coach in the history of the NHL and that's why he earns the big bucks to make these decisions. Detroit has veteran players who know when they are tired and when they are rusty. Look at the Red Wings' own Yzerman: he didn't play for a month, then walked into Salt Lake City and almost was the best player on Team Canada playing on one knee.

Why don't we all just wait and watch how it all unfolds instead of second guessing Scotty and the way he is running this team.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
This is pretty amusing.

If the Wings play everyone and lose, people will say all their players got tired. Now that they are resting some guys, people are saying they will get rusty. My opinion: give it up. Scotty Bowman is the best coach in the history of the NHL and that's why he earns the big bucks to make these decisions. Detroit has veteran players who know when they are tired and when they are rusty. Look at the Red Wings' own Yzerman: he didn't play for a month, then walked into Salt Lake City and almost was the best player on Team Canada playing on one knee.

Why don't we all just wait and watch how it all unfolds instead of second guessing Scotty and the way he is running this team.

Who would say their players got tired. Whoever the Wings play in the first round will have been playing all of their players for most of the season. I can't see someone saying their players were tired when most of the teams in the playoffs have been playing all of their players.

If Bowman is telling his players to sit then he isn't showing me that he is the best coach ever. They should be playing to get ready for the playoffs, not sitting on the bench.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah
This is pretty amusing.

If the Wings play everyone and lose, people will say all their players got tired. Now that they are resting some guys, people are saying they will get rusty. My opinion: give it up. Scotty Bowman is the best coach in the history of the NHL and that's why he earns the big bucks to make these decisions. Detroit has veteran players who know when they are tired and when they are rusty. Look at the Red Wings' own Yzerman: he didn't play for a month, then walked into Salt Lake City and almost was the best player on Team Canada playing on one knee.

Why don't we all just wait and watch how it all unfolds instead of second guessing Scotty and the way he is running this team.

Yea, thats the problem every time a team does so well that they clinch early. I guess the only way for your wings to get people to shut up is to win :D . Scotty Bowman scares me with his superior coaching. Thats the one factor the Wings have over EVERY team. But you can never tell what will happen. The top seeds may all lose and it could be an 8 seed vs. 8 seed Stanley Cup. We just have to wait and see....

[Rajah]

The knock on the Wings is that they are old...if he played everyone and they lost, people will say "ahh, their old guys were tired" etc. etc. I've been a Wings fan since I was about 10 and I've heard this...in fact, just last year when Stevie went down right before the playoffs. "They should have rested him so he'd be at 100%". Now they're doing that and still getting criticism. Please.

Either way, I don't see how you could sit there and say "they aren't getting ready for the playoffs" just cause they are resting some guys. That's a really unfair and biased statement just cause you obviously do not like the Wings. I'm sorry but you're not close enough to the situation to know who needs rest and who should play. If you were so all-knowing, you'd be a coach right now.

P.S. Don't take any of this personally. I just get riled up when talking hockey. :D

[Kid_Roll]

Detroit has enough experienced players to know when to turn it on. Any team that wins the President's Cup usually goes on to lose in the playoffs because they played too hard for the entire season. If Detroit was a younger team, and decided to rest its stars, I might say it was a bad move. But Detroit is old and experienced, Hull, Robataille, Yzermna, Shannahan, the list goes on and on. When playoffs come around, they are going to fly through their opponents. Bowman is smart enough to know he should let his older players rest, and give them some time off. He is brilliant when it comes to handling star players, and very rarely does he have a situatuon like they had in Dallas. He respects the players but in returns expects a lot, which works very well. I think Detroit will win it all, unless some of the old guys break down again, or if Vancouver makes the playoffs. :D

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
The knock on the Wings is that they are old...if he played everyone and they lost, people will say "ahh, their old guys were tired" etc. etc. I've been a Wings fan since I was about 10 and I've heard this...in fact, just last year when Stevie went down right before the playoffs. "They should have rested him so he'd be at 100%". Now they're doing that and still getting criticism. Please.

Either way, I don't see how you could sit there and say "they aren't getting ready for the playoffs" just cause they are resting some guys. That's a really unfair and biased statement just cause you obviously do not like the Wings. I'm sorry but you're not close enough to the situation to know who needs rest and who should play. If you were so all-knowing, you'd be a coach right now.

P.S. Don't take any of this personally. I just get riled up when talking hockey. :D

And if they were a young team people would say it's the lack of experience if they lost. Either way it's still the same nonsense.

Who says I don't like the Wings. I don't like some of the players but there are players that I do like. But it pisses me off when 1st place teams get ready for the playoffs by not playing all of their players. If the Oilers were in first and were sitting their players I would say the same thing. It is the same in every sport. Why do we see the best teams lose alot of the times. Why are there so many upsets. Because when a team clinches a playoff spot they don't play guys and in turn the players aren't as sharp or as ready as other teams players. The whole team should play. I don't need to be close to the situation to know that sitting games could do more harm than good.

How would playing all of my players make me all knowing. I am not singling out players and saying they should play. I am saying the team should play.

P.S. I don't. I am the same way about football. :D

[Rajah]

Because you're talking like sitting games is ALWAYS a bad thing. Tell me how it's silly for the Wings to sit out:

- A 40 year defenseman who played 20 games last year and has played in almost every game this year, including the Olympics and the all-star game? (Chelios)

- A 36-year old captain who had knee surgery a few months ago and who played through the injury and the pain at the Olympics. (Yzerman)

- A Norris Trophy winner who is apparently suffering from a pulled groin. (Lidstrom)

- A former Vezina Trophy winner who has a sore back. (Hasek)

My main point is that Detroit is using this time to let their players rest and not just making them sit out for the fun of it. There is a point to this and with Scotty running the ship, as a Wings fan, I trust him to make the right decisions.

You have to understand something - Detroit is not sitting out ALL their good players for the remainder of the season. They are giving odd guys the night off now and again as it is deemed appropriate by the coaching staff. It's as simple as that.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Because you're talking like sitting games is ALWAYS a bad thing. Tell me how it's silly for the Wings to sit out:

- A 40 year defenseman who played 20 games last year and has played in almost every game this year, including the Olympics and the all-star game? (Chelios)

- A 36-year old captain who had knee surgery a few months ago and who played through the injury and the pain at the Olympics. (Yzerman)

- A Norris Trophy winner who is apparently suffering from a pulled groin. (Lidstrom)

- A former Vezina Trophy winner who has a sore back. (Hasek)

My main point is that Detroit is using this time to let their players rest and not just making them sit out for the fun of it. There is a point to this and with Scotty running the ship, as a Wings fan, I trust him to make the right decisions.

You have to understand something - Detroit is not sitting out ALL their good players for the remainder of the season. They are giving odd guys the night off now and again as it is deemed appropriate by the coaching staff. It's as simple as that.

You never once said that the players they were sitting were hurt.

If they have that many guys hurt then they are in trouble. They won't win. If they do I will be very surprised. If they were all healthy and he was sitting them then I would have a problem. But you said alot of them were hurt. I can understand why he is sitting them but if I were a Wings fan I would be worried.

[Rajah]

Only one guy is "hurt". Yzerman. The others are getting the time off so their pesky injuries don't get worse or they don't aggravate it, etc. How hard is that to understand?

Quotes from your last post: "they are in trouble", "they won't win". And you know this how? That's what kinda irks me - you talk like everything you say is a given. I haven't once said the Wings will win it all. In fact, Detroit may lose in the first round for all I know. All I've been saying is that there is more to it than your one dimensional critical way of thinking.

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Only one guy is "hurt". Yzerman. The others are getting the time off so their pesky injuries don't get worse or they don't aggravate it, etc. How hard is that to understand?

They are still injuries. Hasek goes down the wrong way and he could seriously injure his back. Now I understand why they are resting their players. Don't jump all over me because I don't know which Wings are injured.


Quotes from your last post: "they are in trouble", "they won't win". And you know this how? That's what kinda irks me - you talk like everything you say is a given. I haven't once said the Wings will win it all. In fact, Detroit may lose in the first round for all I know. All I've been saying is that there is more to it than your one dimensional critical way of thinking.

If Hasek's back is bothering him then they could be. Plus if those nagging injuries catch up to those guys they could be. I shouldn't have said they won't win.

One dimensional? I am trying to see it your way. I don't follow the Wings very close so I am not up to date on the players injuries. If you had said they had injuries then I might not have said some of the things I did.

[Rajah]

Dude, just listen to yourself now...if Hasek goes down the wrong way, if those nagging injuries catch up to them, if Hasek's back is bothering him. If this, if that. I hate to break it to you, but the "if" game holds true for every team, every player. What exactly are you trying to say??

I don't even know what I am arguing with you over anymore - whether it's justified for Detroit to rest players (this is what I thought) or whether Detroit will win the Cup or not (which seems to be your main objective).

[Jason_HBK]

Originally posted by Rajah
Dude, just listen to yourself now...if Hasek goes down the wrong way, if those nagging injuries catch up to them, if Hasek's back is bothering him. If this, if that. I hate to break it to you, but the "if" game holds true for every team, every player. What exactly are you trying to say??

I don't even know what I am arguing with you over anymore - whether it's justified for Detroit to rest players (this is what I thought) or whether Detroit will win the Cup or not (which seems to be your main objective).

The "injured" players have a greater chance of hurting their specific body part than others. True a player can be injured at any time but if you are already feeling pain then it can be easier to hurt your self.

If the players are hurt they are justified in resting them. How is that hard to understand. At the beginning I said it was stupid to rest their players. Eventually you told me these guys were hurt. Some more severe than others. If they were just resting them because they wanted them to be fresh for the playoffs then I would disagree. But they have nagging injuries so it is justifiable.

How is it my main objective. I made one comment about it. I took it back when I realised that I was wrong to say that. But resting their players does have an effect on whether they will win the cup.

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by Jason_HBK


You never once said that the players they were sitting were hurt.

If they have that many guys hurt then they are in trouble. They won't win. If they do I will be very surprised. If they were all healthy and he was sitting them then I would have a problem. But you said alot of them were hurt. I can understand why he is sitting them but if I were a Wings fan I would be worried.

Fact of the matter is that, if your playing in the NHL & especially if your over the age of 30 or 35 your playing hurt. It's like wrestling, if Vince walked into the WWF locker room and said everyone who was injured could have the night off, he'd be lucky to have enough wrestlers their to make a 6 man tag match.

But for a team filled with younger players, it's much less of a problem then Detroit with their veteran line up.

[Rajah]

Exactly. The only different with the Wings is that they are making it public knowledge who is injured and who isn't because they are able to rest guys.

Let me put it to you this way: If every team had the LUXURY of resting their players before the playoffs you can bet your bottom dollar they would. The Wings have earned this luxury by kicking ass in the regular season.

[Quinn]

The Wings will choke, Rajah, just face it. :) Just like your fantasy team will when I win it all ;)

BTW, how far is St. Albert from Calgary?? I'm going to be there this summer.

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by isuquinndog

BTW, how far is St. Albert from Calgary?? I'm going to be there this summer.

I know that was for Raj, but it's about 2.5 hours to Edmonton, but St. Albert is on the north side of Edmonton so say about 3 hours unless the highways really busy.

[Quinn]

Ah, well I will also visit the Edmonton mall (what can I say, I'm a tourist). Just wondering. He is wayyyyyy up north then.

Anything exciting to do in Calgary for a 23 yr old single male, DrEvil?

[DrEvil]

Originally posted by isuquinndog
Ah, well I will also visit the Edmonton mall (what can I say, I'm a tourist). Just wondering. He is wayyyyyy up north then.

Anything exciting to do in Calgary for a 23 yr old single male, DrEvil?

Umm, not really. Why are you coming here if you don't mind me asking? What time in summer, if you come during stampede, (july 4th-14th) it's pretty lively here.

Theres lots of stuff outside of Calgary to visit, (West Ed, Banff, Sylvan Lake, drumheller (dinosaur museum) but the actual city is pretty drab, especially our club scene :blah:

[Quinn]

Well, I'm visiting family, actually will be staying outside of Lacomb where my mother is from. I even have citizenship in Canada (or did till I was 18.)

Actually, I have been to all the places you listed, though I'm sure I will be going back as it has been about 10 years since I was last there. Thanks for the info though!

[MattyC]

Originally posted by Rajah
Exactly. The only different with the Wings is that they are making it public knowledge who is injured and who isn't because they are able to rest guys.



But as you know with Scotty, not everybody is exactly 'hurt'. It just makes for a wonderful excuse to getting around that pesky rule of putting your 'best' team on the ice. Nick's sore/pulled groin? :D

Plus it isn't just older/hurt guys. Datsyuk didn't make the west coast trip either. He had played only 46 games last season in Russia, and he already has played 67 this season.

And somebody had to sit out to make room for Uwe Krupp to return after being hurt for like 98% of the season. Somebody else had to sit so that Ladsislav Kohn could get some ice time in after returning from Europe. It was pretty important to get both of these guys some playing time so that in case they are needed to play come playoffs, they would at least feel comfortable with their temmates.

Oh well, just bring on the playoffs...and Bowman's mindgames :D

[Jason_HBK]

Great night in hockey. Habs won and erome Iginla scored again and he still has 1 period to go. Last night was good too because the Stars lost. They got 1 point out of it but they will now need to pick a point somewhere.

[Psycho]

Holy fuck.

Whatta hockey night tonight was :dead:

Dallas and St. Louis won, unfortunately.

But Vancouver won as well, and Wooooooooo Edmonton finally lost.

Their first loss in 10 games comes to Anaheim...:wtf:

*shrug*, oh well.

I cannot believe theses standings. There are only 7 points (i think) seperating the second and ninth spot teams in the Western Conference.

Jesus...

Sabres won too, that's awesome because I do not want the rangers in the playoffs :D

[Rajah]

I can't believe Oilers lost...but they deserved it. I watched most of the game and they got dominated by the Ducks. If it wasn't for Salo, it would have been like 5-0 or something. They better wise up soon cause they have LA and Phoenix coming up.

Glad to see the Canucks win, but it's too bad Dallas won too. I think both of these teams are running out of games. They both have to hope Edmonton loses another one. One team that could be in trouble (although they are playing well right now) is St. Louis. I was checking out their last five games and in no particular order they have Colorado, San Jose and Detroit twice along with Nashville. That's a tough schedule.

As for the Rangers, don't worry. They are as good as out. I'm glad they're not gonna make it either. I just hope Montreal can hold off Washington and I guess Buffalo. Imagine if Edmonton, Vancouver and Montreal all make it - five Canadian teams in the playoffs! Wooo!

Okay, that's it for now.

[Psycho]

Originally posted by Rajah
As for the Rangers, don't worry. They are as good as out. I'm glad they're not gonna make it either. I just hope Montreal can hold off Washington and I guess Buffalo. Imagine if Edmonton, Vancouver and Montreal all make it - five Canadian teams in the playoffs! Wooo!

Okay, that's it for now.

That would be AWESOME.

I can see the semi-finals now-

Edmonton vs. Vancouver, and Ottawa vs. Toronto.

It could happen...

:blah:

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah

Glad to see the Canucks win, but it's too bad Dallas won too. I think both of these teams are running out of games. They both have to hope Edmonton loses another one. One team that could be in trouble (although they are playing well right now) is St. Louis. I was checking out their last five games and in no particular order they have Colorado, San Jose and Detroit twice along with Nashville. That's a tough schedule.

As for the Rangers, don't worry. They are as good as out. I'm glad they're not gonna make it either. I just hope Montreal can hold off Washington and I guess Buffalo. Imagine if Edmonton, Vancouver and Montreal all make it - five Canadian teams in the playoffs! Wooo!

Okay, that's it for now.

Oh yea, that Nashville is a killer :p . When is the last time 5 canadian teams got into the playoffs anyway? They haven't been doing too well in the last decade. Hmmmm, when is the last time a canadian team won the cup anyway? I know it was Av's last year, then the Devils, then Stars, the Red Wings in 2 straight, Av's again and then im not sure. Never was really into hockey until I could actually see a game of it on TV :D. Stupid networks.

[bionic_wolverine]

The_shad, the cup history goes like this:

2001- Avalanche
2000- Devils
1999- Stars
1998- Red wings
1997- Red wings
1996- Avalanche
1995- Devils
1994- Rangers
1993- Canadiens
1992- Penguins
1991- Penguins
1990- Oilers
1989- Flames
1988- Oilers
1987- Oilers
1986- Canadiens
1985- Oilers
1984- Oilers
1983- Islanders
1982- Islanders
1981- Islanders
1980- Islanders
1979- Canadiens
1978- Canadiens
1977- Canadiens
1976- Canadiens
1975- Flyers
1974- Flyers
1973- Canadiens
1972- Bruins
1971- Canadiens
1970- Bruins
1969- Canadiens
1968- Canadiens

That's all I can remember so far. I'm pretty sure it's right.

[Quinn]

Well, the Hawks are all but giving away their first round home game where they have won like 27 games. They played like absolute shite tonight vs. St. Louis, a very important game. Talk about stress....:dead:

[bionic_wolverine]

The NJ and NYI race for sixth in the east is getting more tense. Devils won yesterday and pulled within one piont of the Isles.
I still can't decide who's gonna win the 6th spot.:confused:

[The_shad]

Originally posted by bionic_wolverine
The_shad, the cup history goes like this:

2001- Avalanche
2000- Devils
1999- Stars
1998- Red wings
1997- Red wings
1996- Avalanche
1995- Devils
1994- Rangers
1993- Canadiens
1992- Penguins
1991- Penguins
1990- Oilers
1989- Flames
1988- Oilers
1987- Oilers
1986- Canadiens
1985- Oilers
1984- Oilers
1983- Islanders
1982- Islanders
1981- Islanders
1980- Islanders
1979- Canadiens
1978- Canadiens
1977- Canadiens
1976- Canadiens
1975- Flyers
1974- Flyers
1973- Canadiens
1972- Bruins
1971- Canadiens
1970- Bruins
1969- Canadiens
1968- Canadiens

That's all I can remember so far. I'm pretty sure it's right.


Wow, thanks dude. So the Canadiens are the last Canadian team to win it. Makes sense that the historic Montreal club with more cups than anyone would win it. They are the Yankees of hockey except for more people like the Canadiens :D.

[Clay Henry]

Originally posted by Rajah
I can't believe Oilers lost...but they deserved it. I watched most of the game and they got dominated by the Ducks. If it wasn't for Salo, it would have been like 5-0 or something. They better wise up soon cause they have LA and Phoenix coming up. They played a horrible game in Anaheim last night. I can't really blame though. Knowing they got two games in two nights and the harder and more important game is the second one, the first one would be easy to overlook. But you think when you get absoutley run over for the first five minutes that you would realize you're in a game, and gonna have to work as hard as you can to try and get some points out of it. Things like this are usually the only things I blame on the coach.


Glad to see the Canucks win, but it's too bad Dallas won too. I think both of these teams are running out of games. They both have to hope Edmonton loses another one. One team that could be in trouble (although they are playing well right now) is St. Louis. I was checking out their last five games and in no particular order they have Colorado, San Jose and Detroit twice along with Nashville. That's a tough schedule.The Blues are a team that could be in trouble, but after seeing them absoutley run over Chicago last night without Pronger in the line-up, I'm having second thoughts about them being in trouble. I mean they may haev a tough schedule, but every game but one is at home. And really at this time of year it doesn't matter who you play, it matters how you play.


As for the Rangers, don't worry. They are as good as out. I'm glad they're not gonna make it either. I just hope Montreal can hold off Washington and I guess Buffalo. Imagine if Edmonton, Vancouver and Montreal all make it - five Canadian teams in the playoffs! Wooo!I have the Rangers. Hate, hate, hate. They are without a doubt my most hated team in the entire NHL, with the Leaft close behind in second. So seeing them not make the playoffs with the highest payroll in hockey would bring a big smile to my face. And I am really liking the Habs lately. They have a young team without a lot of talent, but are riding their goaltender to the playoffs. Remind me a lot of the Coyotes. And with Koivu coming back tonight, how can you not be cheering for them?

[MadRyan]

Originally posted by Clay Henry
And I am really liking the Habs lately. They have a young team without a lot of talent, but are riding their goaltender to the playoffs. Remind me a lot of the Coyotes. And with Koivu coming back tonight, how can you not be cheering for them?

Easy. You could be a diehard Caps fan.

[Clay Henry]

Originally posted by Tazmission


Easy. You could be a diehard Caps fan. I thought a die-hard Caps fan was one of those make-believe figures like Bigfoot. :confused:

[bionic_wolverine]

I just wanted to finish the list I started:


1967 Toronto Maple Leafs
1966 Montreal Canadiens
1965 Montreal
1964 Toronto Maple Leafs
1963 Toronto Maple Leafs
1962 Toronto Maple Leafs
1961 Chicago Blackhawks
1960 Montreal Canadiens
1959 Montreal Canadiens
1958 Montreal Canadiens
1957 Montreal Canadiens
1956 Montreal Canadiens
1955 Detroit Red Wings
1954 Detroit Red Wings
1953 Montreal Canadiens
1952 Detroit Red Wings
1951 Toronto Maple Leafs
1950 Detroit Red Wings
1949 Toronto Maple Leafs
1948 Toronto Maple Leafs
1947 Toronto Maple Leafs
1946 Montreal Canadiens
1945 Toronto Maple Leafs
1944 Montreal Canadiens
1943 Detroit Red Wings
1942 Toronto Maple Leafs
1941 Boston Bruins
1940 New York Rangers
1939 Boston Bruins
1938 Chicago Blackhawks
1937 Detroit Red Wings
1936 Detroit Red Wings
1935 Montreal
1934 Chicago Blackhawks
1933 New York Rangers

[Jason_HBK]

The Oilers are basically finished. They are only up 2 points and have played 2 more games than Dallas. Vancouver has played one less than them so I think the Oilers may be out of luck. Unless Dallas goes on alosing streak, I think the Oilers will be golfing very soon.

[MadRyan]

Originally posted by Clay Henry
I thought a die-hard Caps fan was one of those make-believe figures like Bigfoot. :confused:

Nope. But to make it even stranger...I'm a die-hard Caps fan from Wisconsin. Figure that one out.


Anyway...I think the Caps are done. They lost 5-4 to the Isles last night(the first time they've lost to them since '97 btw) and Montreal got a win over Columbus. So now the Caps are three points behind Carolina for the lead in the Southeast...and three points behind Montreal for the 8th spot...with only three games left.

While Montreal has a game in hand, as does Carolina. Not to mention Carolina's last four games are all against non-playoff teams.

So its not looking good.

[Psycho]

Worst possible scenario for Vancouver fans:

Someone in the ED/LA game wins in OT.

It happened...

Fuuuuuuckkkkkkkkkkkkk...

[Kid_Roll]

What are the odds of one of them winning in OT.........stupid exciting-easy-to-score-in 4-4 overtime. All the bottom teams in the Western playoff race keep winning. Why do they do this? Just let the Canucks in!

[Edges of Twilight]

A big thank you goes out to Anaheim tonight!! Good job guys...I so badly want to see Dallas miss the playoffs, and mostly I would love to see both Canadian teams make it (Edm & Van)....it's more possible with the Stars loss tonight.
Good job too by the Habs winning...one more win guys and you're in!! whoooooo!!!

[Psycho]

OMG YES.

STL loses, DAL loses, and VAN wins.

Woooo

it's about damn time.

[Y2Jay76]

Montreal beat Ottawa 3-1 last night. It's official now. The Rangers are mathematically eliminated from the playoff race.

Quite the fall for a team that was leading the Eastern Conference on New Year's Eve. It looks like they'll end up 10th or 11th now. Oh well, maybe next year. :(

By the way, does Carolina (or whoever wins the Southeast Division) automatically get the #3 seed if they win their division? Right now, Carolina has the 8th best record. That would be cheap if they get home ice advantage in the first round (and maybe more) with such a lousy record.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Y2Jay76
By the way, does Carolina (or whoever wins the Southeast Division) automatically get the #3 seed if they win their division? Right now, Carolina has the 8th best record. That would be cheap if they get home ice advantage in the first round (and maybe more) with such a lousy record.

Yup, the 3 division winners get the top 3 seeds and the last 5 get seeds based on their records. So my team, the Colorado Avalanche, has clinched a 2 or 3 seed by clinching their division even though it is possible that at the very worst, they could have the #7 record in the whole conference. Same thing with Carolina/Washington.

[Rajah]

What's even shittier with Carolina (at least as of this writing) is that if they were in the West, they wouldn't even make the playoffs, let alone be the third seed!

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah
What's even shittier with Carolina (at least as of this writing) is that if they were in the West, they wouldn't even make the playoffs, let alone be the third seed!

Every playoff system has its flaws. Football has one game deciding it all. Basketball (and hockey) have slots for the top half of the league. Baseball has too few spots. And in the college level, its even worse (my Buffs were screwed :D). Carolina is just slipping through one of the loopholes. At least its not a less-deseving team. Carolina has had some bad luck with 15 ties!!! :eek:

[Y2Jay76]

Originally posted by Rajah
What's even shittier with Carolina (at least as of this writing) is that if they were in the West, they wouldn't even make the playoffs, let alone be the third seed!

I guess it isn't too bad after you think about it for a bit. It's not as if the NHL plays a balanced schedule. I mean, if a team's schedule is weighted more toward divisional opponents, then it makes sense to make the division winners the top 3 seeds in each conference.

Your argument would be 100% valid if teams played against each other the same amount of times.

Still, it doesn't seem fair when you are in the same division as Florida, Tampa Bay, and Atlanta. And Washington is only barely in the picture because of their late season rally, combined with Carolina's recent struggling.

[Rajah]

Yeah, I know. I wasn't saying it as a way of suggesting that Carolina didn't deserve to be in there. It was just a little and I guess irrelevant observation.

Anyway, thoughts on tonight's action:

- Carolina won which means that Washington needs a miracle to make it to the playoffs. I think one of Carolina or Montreal need to lose like all their games and Washington needs to win all theirs to make it. That won't be happening.

- LA outdueled Dallas which puts the Stars in a real precarious position. They are now two points behind BOTH Vancouver and Edmonton with the same amount of games I think. Vancouver is sitting the best since they theoretically control their own destiny from now on. Edmonton is decently positioned, but Dallas is gonna need a lot of help. Also something to consider is that I think St. Louis is not out of the woods yet. Apart from having a tough remaining schedule, their #1 goalie Brent Johnson is injured. Backup Freddy Brathwaite looked brutal on Sunday.

[Kid_Roll]

Canucks have a much harder schedule the Oilers though. Nucks face the Kings, Avalanche, and the Flames while the Oilers face the Flames, Wild, and one more chump team I believe.......All the NUcks have to do is win the last three.....PLease dear god let them do it.



And Theodore for MVP, I don't care how many goals Iggy scored, Theodore led his team into the playoffs. Iggy still rocked this season though. Is nice to see Canadian teams doing well, and someone besides Jagr winning the scoring race.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
Canucks have a much harder schedule the Oilers though. Nucks face the Kings, Avalanche, and the Flames while the Oilers face the Flames, Wild, and one more chump team I believe.......All the NUcks have to do is win the last three.....PLease dear god let them do it.

Well, your dream is part way there. The Canucks beat the Avalanche yesterday and if the Cunucks make it, they may be playing the Av's again. But mark my word, the Av's will not be denied the Stanley Cup. Well, unless they lose :p.

[MTR]

I forgot who it is but if a certain team loses tonight the Blues clinch a spot. If that does not happen all the Blues need to do is get a win in one of their last games to clinch. Not totally out of the woods but they should get in and keep their record streak in tact. They have been in the playoffs for a record number of straight years and yet to walk away with the Cup. That just plain sucks. Two years ago was their best chance. Best team going in and lost in the first round to the 8th seed. Then last year they made it to the conference finals and even swept Dallas on the way. So should be interesting to see how they do this year.

[Rajah]

Probably Oilers. Edmonton is in 8th right now with 88 pts and 3 games left. St. Louis has 92 pts so if the Oil lose, the best they can do is tie St. Louis but the Blues would win the tie-breaker (most wins). St. Louis will probably make the playoffs barring a total breakdown but if they could fall to the #8 spot and draw the Red Wings in the first round. Coincidentally, St. Louis plays their last two games of the season against Detroit so if they lose those two games, imagine the psychological hurdle they will have to overcome to have any chance of advancing beyond round 1.

Speaking of the Wings, the man, the myth, the legend - Steve Yzerman returns tonight. Detroit will probably put all their top guys in this last week too to get firing on all cylinders. Wooooo!

[Psycho]

:wtf:.

Uh, Rajah...

VAN is in 8th place with 90 points.

EDM is in 9th.

And if Phoenix can take care of Edmonton tonight...

Woooooo.

[Clay Henry]

Oh my god. Go out of your way to watch the highlights to tonight's hockey action, and make sure to watch the ones from the Coyotes/Oilers game extra closely. And be on the lookout for Comrie's goal.

I've seen plently of pretty goals over my life, but this one is defintley in the top ten or so. Just such a thing of beauty. Used his speed coming in, waited until the perfect time to make his move, then showed the finish of a player who has played ten years more than him to put it away.

Just wow.

[Rajah]

Originally posted by Psychosport2000
:wtf:.

Uh, Rajah...

VAN is in 8th place with 90 points.

EDM is in 9th.

And if Phoenix can take care of Edmonton tonight...

Woooooo.

I meant 9th obviously, since if they were in 8th, the whole discussion would be irrelevant.

Anyway, Oilers win! The pressure is back on Vancouver with that huge game in LA tomorrow cause Edmonton has two relatively easy games left.

And yes, Comrie's goal was a thing of beauty.

[MTR]

Well St. Louis still has not clinched but they should hold on and keep the record alive. They pretty much own all tie-breakers that they may come across.

Okay thoughts on the whole playoff thing. I have always hated any sport that lets division winners have higher seeds. Look at Toronto. They have the second most points in their conference but are looking at a 4th seed. For various points this season St. Louis had more points than the other two division leaders in its conference and was standing 5th in the playoff picture due to being third in their division. Now that is not true now though. I think that it should go by record no matter what. Now I think that the division leaders should be guarenteed a spot but not a top spot if some one is better during the season.

Before they changed the system one year Ole Miss' baseball team was screwed out of playing in the SEC tournament. Only 8 teams play in it instead of all 12. They finished 6th(last) in the West but they had a better record than the third place East team but at the time the top three teams from the two divisions were in as the top 6 seeds and two wild cards. They have now changed that where it is the top two teams from each division and 4 wild cards. So one whole division can get it in if there is another case like that year that Ole Miss got screwed. And in fact one year that happened again but all six teams from the West got in. Still not the best system but at least now the top 8 teams can get in.

But basically each playoff system has flaws but when you have three divisions per conference it should be record that gets you a seed and not winning a easy division. A team with the second best record should not have to be a 4th seed.

[MadRyan]

Well thats it. Montreal beat Ottawa Tuesday night to clinch the 8th spot in the East...and last night Carolina beat Tampa Bay to lock the Southeast. The Caps are officially eliminated from the playoffs.

Motherfucker.

Go.....Kings I guess.

[Images and Words]

New Jersey has the lowest GAA in the NHL since Constantine took over as head coach. :yes:.

Brodeur is the first goalie in NHL history to win 35 games in six straight seasons. He could challenge Roy's all-time win record.

The Devs beat Philly 1-0 yesterday to jump in front of the Islanders. They'll likely stay in sixth place and play Carolina, which should be an easy first round victory.

Hooray.

[bionic_wolverine]

Originally posted by Images and Words
New Jersey has the lowest GAA in the NHL since Constantine took over as head coach. :yes:.

Brodeur is the first goalie in NHL history to win 35 games in six straight seasons. He could challenge Roy's all-time win record.

The Devs beat Philly 1-0 yesterday to jump in front of the Islanders. They'll likely stay in sixth place and play Carolina, which should be an easy first round victory.

Hooray.

Hooray is coorect.:D :yes:

But unfortunately Carolina might not be an easy first round victory. They are a much better team than they were last year and have beaten the Devils this season. Also the Devils are a different team than the were last year too. I don't know if it is for the better quite yet.

I think it should make an interesting match-up. However I do believe the Devils will win and advance, but i don't believe it will be easy for them.

[Rajah]

First of all, screw the Eastern Conference. The West is where it's at.

Anyway, Vancouver kicks LA's ass tonight to not only position themselves even better for a playoff spot, but to leapfrog over Phoenix to jump into 7th. It's still a dogfight near the bottom so here is my summary of how things fall into place:

1) Detroit - 115pts (2 games left)
2) San Jose - 97pts (1 game left)
3) Colorado - 96pts (2 games left)
4) St. Louis - 94pts (2 games left)
5) Chicago - 94pts (2 games left)
6) Los Angeles - 93pts (2 games left)
7) Vancouver - 92pts (1 game left)
8) Phoenix - 91pts (2 games left)
===
9) Edmonton - 90pts (2 games left)
10) Dallas - 87pts (2 games left)

First things first, with Vancouver's win, Dallas is officially eliminated unless I screwed up somewhere. They have two games left which means they can get 91pts tops, but they would lose the tiebreaker to Phoenix. Vancouver has only one game left; if they win it, they're in. Anything less and they no longer control their own destiny and can't have Phoenix and Edmonton both win their games left. Edmonton has two games left. If they win both of their games, they still need either Vancouver or Phoenix to lose a game or in Vancouver's case even tie to slip into 8th. Suffice to say, it looks it will all come down to the last day of the season. I can't even remember a playoff race so close and exciting in ANY sport!

Did I miss anything?

[Psycho]

In the eight years that I have been following the Canucks (or hockey for that matter) I can't remember being this into it. Even in the '94 playoff run, I don't think I was this much into the game. This, quite simply, is awesome. Very exciting, very intense, even if the Canucks don't make it in, it will have still been an amazing finish to their crappy start.

Hopefully Iginla will have a great game tomorrow and Cal can knock off Edmonton, then we'd clinch baby! An added bonus if Calgary then sucks the night after.

Woooo I'm lovin' this. An awesome playoff race, and Canada winning both goals in the Olympics. What a year for hockey. :D

[MTR]

Whoooooooo! St. Louis has clinched a spot in the playoffs and jumped up to 4th with two games left to go. Way to go Blues!

[Quinn]

Don't get too excited MTR, the Hawks are going to get that 4th spot, if it kills me. At least they clinched for the first time in 5 years. Now, they need to get home ice for the first round!! Should be a good series with the Blues though.

[Rajah]

Hey Quinndog, it's me and you in the finals of the Rajah Hockey League championships. You're going down, boy!

[Quinn]

Yeah, I see I'm losing.....I hope my team comes around and makes a come back!!! You dang Canadians think you own hockey or something! ;)

[bionic_wolverine]

Originally posted by isuquinndog
You dang Canadians think you own hockey or something! ;)

They do......:( :cry:

[Rajah]

Well Oilers lost, which means all the teams in the playoffs in both conferences are now determined.

In the West, we find out over the weekend who gets to play and lose to the Red Wings. :p

[Psycho]

THANK YOU TUREK!

Woo. Thanks to this man's awesome performance tonight, in by the way, an awesome game, the Canucks are now in the playoffs guaranteed.

Awesomeness.

Bring 'em on, bring 'em all on, we're ready to sweep Detroit, baby :D

[The_shad]

Man, school must be taking up too much of my time. I eat, drink, and sleep sports yet I didnt see that Colorado tied an NHL record Tuesday by being the division champ 8 times in a row. Talk about a dynasty. Anyway, sorry about the Oilers Raj. At least your Wings or even worse, my Av's, didnt have to eliminate them. At least your Canucks are in Pscyho. But I've said it once and ill say it again Red Wings vs. Avalanche 2002 Western Conference Finals. It has to happen. We didnt get to meet up in the playoffs last year because someone *hint hint* got eliminated in the 1st round :p.

.....Please dont ban me:D.

[Rajah]

Don't even start with last year man. But there were perfectly good reasons for the elimination last year that won't be repeated this year:

Not enough offense
No Hasek
No Stevie!

This year will be different. I have never seen Detroit have a deeper team than this year and they have lots of young guys chipping in too. I just hope they don't face the Canucks in the first round. I'd like the 'Nucks to slip into 7th and battle the Avalanche.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah
Don't even start with last year man. But there were perfectly good reasons for the elimination last year that won't be repeated this year:

Not enough offense
No Hasek
No Stevie!

This year will be different. I have never seen Detroit have a deeper team than this year and they have lots of young guys chipping in too. I just hope they don't face the Canucks in the first round. I'd like the 'Nucks to slip into 7th and battle the Avalanche.

We will have some stuff we were lacking last year too. Peter "the Great". Peter Forsburg's return is sounding imminent (as long as he doesn't hurt his foot again :mad: ) and soon we will have that star center back that we lost last year eliminating the kings in 7 games. And in place of Raymond Bourque we have Kasparitis (sp?). Plus we have Roy doing his same old thing. God if they don't play this year, I'm going to have to shoot myself. Now watch the Av's go and lose. It'd figure:p .

[Kid_Roll]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! CANUCKS IN THE PLAYOFFS!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought we were out for sure this year a few months back, but little did I know we would go on to be the hottest team in the NHL since christmas and rival the Red Wings in goals. Insane. And now that first rounder we gave up for Linden doesn't hurt nearly as much had we not made the playoffs. I just hope we make it to 7th in the conference and face Colorado. San Jose and Detroit would be too much for us I think. I don't know if anyone will be able to stop Detroit. If we do face Detroit I hope Yzerman goes down with an injury like last year, ;).

But for now, I can remain happy, cause the Flames actually came through for us. Go Nucks! Linden back in the playoffs in Vancouver baby!!!!!!!!


One question Raj, how long have you liked the Red Wings? Cause if its only been since Detroit won in 97 that would make me sad.

[Rajah]

Okay, I'm doing the rumors right now but I can take a break and talk some hockey...

I really want the Canucks to play the Avalanche. Both teams will beat each other up bad and whoever wins will probably make it a lot easier on my Red Wings.

Man, I feel like walking up to you and giving you a big whack up side of the head for that wisecrack on Yzerman and getting hurt. Don't even think that in my presence! :mad:

And as for me liking the Wings, I basically liked Steve Yzerman first and then the Red Wings but I would estimate it was since I was about 10 or 11 (which was like 1988ish). I remember doing my Grade 7 speech on Stevie (we had to do like a public speaking thing each year through Junior High) so it was definitely before that. Don't worry, I went through all the heartbreak of the late 80s when they didn't even make the playoffs and the early 90s when they'd get knocked out in the first round like virtually every year. :(

Anywho, back to the rumazzzzz.

[Kid_Roll]

Good good. I just hate people that only like the good teams. Good to know you had to suffer through with the Red Wings all those years. At least your team got a cup. :(

I remember laughing about the wings for having two guys having their name start with Y. Yzerman was one, but I can't remember for the life of me the other........I also remember when Federov came to town and stole the hearts of a lot of the fans, and then the trade rumors around Stevie started, about how he wasn't a good enough captain. That pissed me off cause Steve Y is way better then Federov IMO. Yzerman is one of the best captains the NHL has ever had, and even had the season where he was right behind Gretz and Lemiuex in points. As for the playoffs, I think the Canucks could give Detroit a run for their money, so they would want to face L.A. or Pheonix, but probably L.A. L.A.'s top line has been choking as of late, and Potvin is always suspect in net, but that being said, they did kick the Wings asses last year. In any case, the Wings shouldn't have gotten Hasek, because Osgood was just as good. Wings don't need anymore stars to help them win the cup. Although Hasek needs a ring since he was screwed in Buffalo by Hull's skate in the crease! Anyways, time to go back to my dreams of the Canucks winning the cup........At least I get to use "towel power" again this year. :D

P.S. How about Shannie, Lidstrom, and Hasek go down with injuries instead, then? Deal? Good.

[Rajah]

The other guy was Paul Ysebaert. Decent player, but only really had one or two good years. I certainly think he put up stats like he did cause he was on Fedorov's line.

And the Fedorov thing really did piss me off. It all started in like 1993-94, Yzerman went down with a knee injury (poor guy has two fucked up knees) and missed like 30 games. Anyway, Fedorov stepped up and totally dominated the league and even challenged Gretzky for the Art Ross. I remember after that, a lot of Wings fans were actually suggesting that Yzerman be traded so that Fedorov could be the #1 center full-time. It really annoyed me I swear. Second time that Detroit considered trading Yzerman away; the first was in the early 90s when they pitched Stevie and a bunch of draft picks for Lindros - thank god that never happened! But anyway, yeah Yzerman has kicked ass his whole career. Back in the 80s, he used to score a bucket load of points (in 88-89, he scored like 155pts - only Gretz and Mario have scored more, EVER.) but his team never really got anywhere. When Scotty came in, he convinced Yzerman to play an all-around game cause it would help the team. And of course, he obliged and instead of scoring his 100+ pts, he dropped down to the 80s but totally shut down other teams' top lines. He finally got his due by winning the Selke a few years ago.

Okay, I'm gonna go to bed now, but one thing to remember: Nick Lidstrom is as tough and dependable as they come. That guy is incredible. He's a machine - plays 30 minutes a night, plays impeccable defense (almost impossible to beat one-on-one), doesn't take any penalties and almost always is in the top 5 defense scoring. And he never gets hurt (knock on wood). Can't really ask for anything more.

And I'm out. I be back tomorrow or Sunday to talk hockey.

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! CANUCKS IN THE PLAYOFFS!!!!!!!!!!!

Organic.

[RoCkPuNk17]

I feel that the wings have the edge, but they are going to choke on their opprotunity.

[Jason_HBK]

:( :( Damn you Calgary. Damn youuuuuuuuuu :( :(

Oh well, Go Habs.

[Psycho]

I hope the Nucks will get to face the Avs in the first round. Every game these two play is awesome. The series last year was excellent (even though we got sweeped :( ). But, whoever does end up facing the Canucks better not underestimate them, or they are fucked :D

[Yoel]

Originally posted by Psychosport2000
I hope the Nucks will get to face the Avs in the first round. Every game these two play is awesome. The series last year was excellent (even though we got sweeped :( ). But, whoever does end up facing the Canucks better not underestimate them, or they are fucked :D

They can still get home ice advantage with a little help from above :D.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Psychosport2000
I hope the Nucks will get to face the Avs in the first round. Every game these two play is awesome. The series last year was excellent (even though we got sweeped :( ). But, whoever does end up facing the Canucks better not underestimate them, or they are fucked :D

Yea, that was a great series last year. I'm hoping for another Av/Nuck series too. Isn't Marc Crawford still the coach? It's always fun to see former players (or in this case, coaches) playing against you. And you're in luck, the Av's are sorta slumping. We need Forsberg back fast.

[Rajah]

Detroit lost today to St. Louis in OT. But the funniest/stupidest thing was the way the OT goal was scored. With the play in Detroit's zone, Hasek left his crease to like push Doug Weight and Chris Pronger just shot it into the empty net. Stupid stupid Hasek.

And Yzerman didn't play! Whassupwitdat?!

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Rajah
Detroit lost today to St. Louis in OT. But the funniest/stupidest thing was the way the OT goal was scored. With the play in Detroit's zone, Hasek left his crease to like push Doug Weight and Chris Pronger just shot it into the empty net. Stupid stupid Hasek.

And Yzerman didn't play! Whassupwitdat?!

Hasek is just copying Patrick Roy. Last year in Game 3 or 4 of the Cup finals, Roy tried to play the puck from behind the net and got scored on for it. Does that mean Detroit doesnt get a point though? If you pull your goalie in OT and lose, you get nothing and Hasek was out of the crease. Its one of those controversy calls :p or maybe not. Ah well, to Detroit its just like Who's Line Is It Anyway? The points don't matter:D .

[BoSox Rule]

Woooooo! Boston Bruins 2001-2002 Eastern Conference champions. YEAH!

[The Justinator]

:D

[The_shad]

One game left until the playoffs begin. The teams that are in are in and the teams that are out are out. Only a little fight over the seeds and then it happens. The season is wiped and we start a new season. 4 loses and you're gone. The most intense hockey is played now for one goal, the Stanley Cup. All I have to say about that is........................

Whatchagonnadooooooo when the Avalanche run wild on youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu. :D Man, I can't wait. *sits in the same place waiting for the playoffs to begin*

[The_shad]

Well. the Av's are slumping still, as is apparent in their being down 1-0 to Dallas (a non playoff team) as of the start of the 3rd period. And the Red Wings are losing near the end of the first period against dallas. How demoralizing would it be if the Wings lost 2 straight to the Blues at the end of the season. If they were to play each other in the playoffs, St. Louis would have the definate mental edge. I want the Wings to win tioday, just so we can have Red Wings vs. Avalanche 2002 Western Conference Finals happen easier. :scared: I just said I want the Red Wings to win. :cry: What's wrong with me!!!!!!??????

[Kid_Roll]

Oh my god! Pheonix was down 4-2 and came back and is now winning 5-4 over Nashville with 10 minutes left in the third, and I don't see Nashville coming back! Which means instead of facing Colorado my Canucks face Detroit. AHHHHHHHH! That's the one team that could easily dismantle my Canucks. Now I really do hope Stevie Y goes down with a knee injury. :(

[Rajah]

Holy shit, this is gonna be an interesting first round. Arguably the two most dangerous "underdog" teams, Vancouver and LA, face off against Detroit and Colorado, respectively. :eek:

[Kid_Roll]

I don't see L.A. beating Colorado. I dunno, I just think they won't be able to beat the 'Lanche. But I still think the series will go to 6 or 7 games. As for the Canucks, I say the beat Detroit in 4. You heard me. Might as well go all out on this one. :)


I can't wait to go the games!

[Rajah]

Detroit will take Vancouver is six games. If the Red Wings do lose, which wouldn't surprise me given the way these two teams have been playing as of late, it certainly will not be in four straight.

[Kid_Roll]

I know it won't be in four straight, but if for some reason, like Crawford made a pact with the devil, and they do win in 4, I will look really really smart, heh.


But yeah, this series hopefully goes more then 4, I don't want to see the Canucks getting swept again. It all rests on if Cloutier can raise his level of play to meet Hasek's, and if the other lines for the Canucks keep scoring.

[The_shad]

So my team is against the LA Kings. How cool would it be if Peter Forsberg came back against the team that put him out of action for a year. But of course it is just the 1st step in the route to the Red Wings vs. the Avalanche 2002 Western Conference Finals.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll
I don't see L.A. beating Colorado. I dunno, I just think they won't be able to beat the 'Lanche. But I still think the series will go to 6 or 7 games.

I'd normally agree with you on the Av's game, but they are in a slump right now. If they get out of it quickly, they'll win, but if they stay in the funk too long, they are history. *prays to the hockey gods to bring the Av's away from the funk* :D


edit: O yea, I almost forgot. Rajah, you must be hoping that St. Louis doesn't get far enough to play the Wings. They've proved themselves this week, even if the games didn't matter.

[Kid_Roll]

Originally posted by The_shad


I'd normally agree with you on the Av's game, but they are in a slump right now. If they get out of it quickly, they'll win, but if they stay in the funk too long, they are history. *prays to the hockey gods to bring the Av's away from the funk* :D


edit: O yea, I almost forgot. Rajah, you must be hoping that St. Louis doesn't get far enough to play the Wings. They've proved themselves this week, even if the games didn't matter.


They've proved nothing. They still have no goalie, which is what is going to kill them. St. Louis will never win a cup until they get a proven goalie. Phillie was amazing back in the 90's, but they had no goalie, so they lost, too. Goalies are everything come playoff time. Only Detroit was able to win with no goalie, but that's cause they were special. Stupid Osgood and his stupid Hasek-wannabe mask.

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Kid_Roll



They've proved nothing. They still have no goalie, which is what is going to kill them. St. Louis will never win a cup until they get a proven goalie. Phillie was amazing back in the 90's, but they had no goalie, so they lost, too. Goalies are everything come playoff time. Only Detroit was able to win with no goalie, but that's cause they were special. Stupid Osgood and his stupid Hasek-wannabe mask.

Their goalie, Brent Johnson, may not be proven, but this is his first full year in the NHL. His stats aren't that bad and its an improvement, I think, over their goalie last year who was brutally destroyed last season by the Avalanche. Philly may not have done anything because they had no proven goalie, but its too early to tell with Johnson whether he'll work out for the team. Anyway, look at Pittsburg last year. Super Mario, Jagr, and Kaspiritis (sp?), but can you name the goalie. If only the Devils weren't as dominating as they were (they ALMOST won the Cup), Pittsburg would have been in the finals without a goalie.

[Kid_Roll]

Johan Hedberg was their goalie, and he was pretty good. But not good enough which is why the Devils with Broduer went on to beat them. And then lose to stupid Ray "buy me a cup" Bourque. God, CBC shoved him down our throats last year, I hated that. :(

[The_shad]

Ok, so you can tell me who the Pittsburg goalie was. *thinks* Ah, I'm all out of ideas. MTR will defend the Blues sooner or later anyway. I'm sensing some hostility against Ray "I retired on top like John Elway" Bourque. Boston was nice enough to trade one of their favorite and best players so he could try to win a Stanley Cup. The Av's general manager (one of the best in the game) picked him up and then a year later, Bourque got the Stanley cup he was missing for 22 years. It's an inspirational story. The news networks may have made a little too much out of it, but Bourque is a sure fire Hall of Famer. What if Gretsky (the real great one, not The Rock) had won his first cup after 22 years. It was just a little less than that would have been. Why not ignore CBC anyway if you didn't like the Bourque stuff? I mute my TV when those damn Toyota soap opera comercails come on. They annoy me. They EXTREMELY annoy me.

[Kid_Roll]

It was the whole over-hyped media frenzy about the whole thing that annoyed me. I was glad he won the cup, but barely happy for him after having to listen to "Misson 16 W" five million times. I mean, give me a break, who doesn't go into the playoffs with "MIssion: 16 W" on their minds? Everyone has that same bloody mission. It wasnt like Colorado was like "Oh, Ray wants a cup, lets try winning 16 of our playoff games this year instead of 11." Anyways, Ray won his cup, but I still think it would have been cool had he come back and played one more year for Boston, heh.


And Elway won his superbowl on his own team, and did it afer struggling on that team for a long time, so I have to give more credit to John just for that.

[The_shad]

Yea, Mission 16W was overhyped and yea, Bourque didn't win the cup with his own team, but at the time, Boston was horrible and Ray's only chance was this. He was getting old. Even if the Av's didn't win, I think Bourque would have retired. The years were catching up on him. But I loved all the hype. :( O and kudos (sp?) on the John Elway comment. Anyone who respects Elway is cool in my books. :D

[Edges of Twilight]

Okay here are our playoff matchups for round one....predictions anyone?



(1) DET v VAN (8)
Detroit in 6....I like Vancouver quite a bit and think they'll be tough, but the Wings will be too much for this good young team

(2) COL v LOS (7)
Should be an awesome series....I see the potential for an upset, with Felix Potvin going up against his childhood idol in Roy.
LA in 7

(3) SAN v PHO (6)
San Jose in 5 ...Phoenix played really well to get in the playoffs, but the Sharks will be too much, a very underrated team the Sharks are.

(4) STL v CHI (5)
Awful series...boring to me anwyays.....St. Louis in 5...neither team will go far though

Eastern
Quarterfinals
(1) BOS v MON (8)
Boston in 7...Montreal will be tough, they have a lot of heart but the Bruins are too deep at forward

(2) PHI v OTT (7)
Phili in 5...sorry Ottawa another playoff loss, they just don't have the size at forward to match up with the Flyers

(3) CAR v NJD (6)
A re-match of a decent opening round series from last year...I see the Devils as the Eastern conference favourites....Carolina hasn't played a big game in a long time....they'll be overmatched...New Jersey in 6

(4) TOR v NYI (5)
I'm so happy being a lifelong Isles fan to see them back in the playoffs...against my hometown team as well. My two favourites in the first round....ahhh. The Leafs will be too much for the Isles...Leafs in 6

[The_shad]

Originally posted by Edges of Twilight
Okay here are our playoff matchups for round one....predictions anyone?



(1) DET v VAN (8)
Detroit in 6....I like Vancouver quite a bit and think they'll be tough, but the Wings will be too much for this good young team
I agree with the decision, but I say 5 games.

(2) COL v LOS (7)
Should be an awesome series....I see the potential for an upset, with Felix Potvin going up against his childhood idol in Roy.
LA in 7
*shake fist* Av's in 4. *glares*

(3) SAN v PHO (6)
San Jose in 5 ...Phoenix played really well to get in the playoffs, but the Sharks will be too much, a very underrated team the Sharks are.

Phoenix in 6.

(4) STL v CHI (5)
Awful series...boring to me anwyays.....St. Louis in 5...neither team will go far though
St. Louis in however many just so I don't contradict myself by believing in the Blues.

Eastern
Quarterfinals
(1) BOS v MON (8)
Boston in 7...Montreal will be tough, they have a lot of heart but the Bruins are too deep at forward
Boston in 5.

(2) PHI v OTT (7)
Phili in 5...sorry Ottawa another playoff loss, they just don't have the size at forward to match up with the Flyers
Flyers in 6.

(3) CAR v NJD (6)
A re-match of a decent opening round series from last year...I see the Devils as the Eastern conference favourites....Carolina hasn't played a big game in a long time....they'll be overmatched...New Jersey in 6.
I have faith in Carolina in 6.

(4) TOR v NYI (5)
I'm so happy being a lifelong Isles fan to see them back in the playoffs...against my hometown team as well. My two favourites in the first round....ahhh. The Leafs will be too much for the Isles...Leafs in 6
Toronto because the ouija board told me. It forgot the games total.

[Rajah]

I was actually going to make a Playoffs prediction thread but I guess there isn't enough people to do that. So here go my predictions. I was gonna throw in commentary but I'm gonna reserve that for my hockey site (cheap plug: http://www.hockeyinformer.com) which officially opens next week. Go visit it, okay?

Anyway...

Detroit over Vancouver in six.
Colorado over Los Angeles in seven.
San Jose over Phoenix in five.
St. Louis over Chicago in five.

Boston over Montreal in six.
Philadelphia over Ottawa in six.
New Jersey over Carolina in five.
Toronto over NY Islanders in six.