the hockey thread

[joey_rogo]

Rangers fan here. Won 3-2. Aaaaand I'm not in a very good mood. Why? The ending of that game just SCREAMED soap opera bullshit in an attempt to make more excitement for fair-weather fans.

There were bad calls both ways. I don't feel like listing them or getting into a tit for tat argement... but those 5 minutes were just total bullshit.

[Jaimoe]

Rangers fan here. Won 3-2. Aaaaand I'm not in a very good mood. Why? The ending of that game just SCREAMED soap opera bullshit in an attempt to make more excitement for fair-weather fans.

There were bad calls both ways. I don't feel like listing them or getting into a tit for tat argement... but those 5 minutes were just total bullshit.

The penalty shot was totally the right call. Do yourself a favour and watch the doc on the 1972 Summit Series on NBC or Versus (it has some Rangers in it). One of the most fascinating sports stories ever.

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

Rangers fan here. Won 3-2. Aaaaand I'm not in a very good mood. Why? The ending of that game just SCREAMED soap opera bullshit in an attempt to make more excitement for fair-weather fans.

There were bad calls both ways. I don't feel like listing them or getting into a tit for tat argement... but those 5 minutes were just total bullshit.

Flyers fan here. Your team just won an excellent outdoor hockey game and are in first place... so cheer up.

[capt. scotty]

Holy shit, playoffs start tonight and no posts in here for 4 months?! Yinz guys are slipping!

I am about as excited/nervous for this Pens/Flyers series as I was playing DET for the cup a few years ago, AND THIS IS A 1ST ROUND SERIES!!! First off, I think the seeding system is BS with each division winner getting the top 3 seeds. Sure, every division winner deserves to make it to the playoffs, but seed according to total points. No way this should be a 1st round matchup. It will be a tough series, but I think as long as the winner gets out of it healthy (or at least their top handful of players all healthy), they will be the team that makes it out of the East. I take the whole Philly being 5-1 at Consol with a grain of salt, and I dont think home ice will matter much either team. Wouldnt be surprised to see us play better on the road. The one thing that would worry me would be game 7 at Consol though, as weve blown that the past 2 years albeit under totally different circumstances (Halak standing on his head which I dont see Bryz doing, and not having Sid&Malkin last year). Im predicting Pens in 6 but wont be surprised if we lose, which would be a major disappointment considering we finally have the team healthy and are the favorites at 5-1 to win the cup. Even more frustrating is those back to back losses to NYI a few weeks ago where just winning one gets us the 1 seed.

Rags in 6
Caps in 7 (probably not happening, but its an upset no one is picking and I think the
                most likely upset of a top 2 seed in either conference)
Devils in 6
Pens in 6

Canucks in 7
Blues in 6
Hawks in 7
Preds in 6

[Jaimoe]

Toews isn't healthy and for will be sure rusty, so I think the Hawks are toast in the first round.

Some insiders think the Sens will win in 7 against the Rangers. I'm not sure about that, but it'll be a tight series.

The Bruins in 6, Preds in 7 and the Pens in 7, but the latter could go either way. Daniel Sedin is injured, so the Canucks are by no means a first round favourite anymore. FLA vs NJ? Who cares? Booooooring.

Watch those Blues. Chris Stewart had an injury-plagued year, but he'll play a big role in STL's success.

[peafunk31]

Crazy excited for the Pens - Flyers series! It should be a super tight series. I'm thinking Flyers in 7 but I'm a homer so we'll see. This series has potential to turn into a bloodbath. Best of luck, Scotty!

[capt. scotty]

Toews isn't healthy and for will be sure rusty, so I think the Hawks are toast in the first round.

Some insiders think the Sens will win in 7 against the Rangers. I'm not sure about that, but it'll be a tight series.

The Bruins in 6, Preds in 7 and the Pens in 7, but the latter could go either way. Daniel Sedin is injured, so the Canucks are by no means a first round favourite anymore. FLA vs NJ? Who cares? Booooooring.

Watch those Blues. Chris Stewart had an injury-plagued year, but he'll play a big role in STL's success.

Do the Yotes have the scoring to win that series though? Clearly they will rely on Mike Smith, but CHI was 6th in goals/game, PHX 18th. PHX 3rd highest in shots against/game. Vrbata, Whitney, Doan are nice players but they arent exactly Kane, Sharp, Hossa. Toews will be rusty but its still Toews. I think most people are overlooking PHX it seems, but Smith is going to have to play as good in the playoffs as he did in the regular season if not better for them to win IMO.

Yeah, in reality LA over VAN is probably more likely than WASH over BOS, but the Canucks are just so stacked even without Sedin. Again, not sure if LA will score enough to keep up. VAN 5th in goals/game, LA 29th. What happened to Richards and Stoll this year?!

Im rooting for the Blues for than anyone after the Pens. They have a nice mix of experienced vets and homegrown scoring talent. Getting Steen back I think is big for them as well. Great goaltending duo with Halak and Elliott if one falters. Sharks have had their number in the past though and obviously have more experience.

Im more interested in VAN/LAK, STL/SJ, and NSH/DET more than any series in the East besides the Pens.

[Jaimoe]

Doan is a born leader and big playoff/Team Canada guy, so he cancels out the on-paper line mismatch. This could be the Coyotes last season in Phoenix (with Quebec City lining up in the wings), so I hope they go out with a bang.

[ManNamedTruth]

Anything can happen come playoff time, but not surprised to see Pens as the favorite. And jaimoe thought my "easily favored" comment was off base.
It's gonna be a great series, also would go with pens in 6. I think Boston will beat up on Washington,  I don't see an upset there. Unfortunately I will miss tonight's game due to work, but will be able to watch the next 2.

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

[capt. scotty]

Flyers Can't - Because It's The Cup

[joey_rogo]

not sure if my body is ready for this. i'm more excited for the PHI/PIT series than i am for NYR/OTT   :D


edit: THE NUMBER OF THE BEAST

[capt. scotty]

Cannot fucking believe we blew a 3 goal lead. Looked unreal in the first but we looked gassed by the time the 3rd was halfway thru. Why?! Who knows, but we were skating circles around Philly in the 1st and had no legs in the 3rd.

Gonna be a long series.

[joey_rogo]

What an awesome night of hockey!!

Cannot fucking believe we blew a 3 goal lead. Looked unreal in the first but we looked gassed by the time the 3rd was halfway thru. Why?! Who knows, but we were skating circles around Philly in the 1st and had no legs in the 3rd.

Gonna be a long series.

I was also shocked at this. I watched the brawl game the other day which followed a somewhat similar plot and I figured there was no way Bylsma would let that happen again. It'll be interesting to see how PIT responds. I'm rooting for Philly for the purely selfish reason that the Rangers have dominated Philly this season and I'm ascared of the Penguins so I'd rather face the Flyers down the road. This game 1 has certainly made it possible for a long, hard, awesome series. Woot.

Had the NSH/DET game on TV2 on mute, but it looked close and exciting. Love that Nashville has such good fan support compared to some of the other 'southern' teams. It'd be nice to see them take the series.

I only watched enough of the late game to see VAN score. I am a big JQuick fan so I am pleased to see the Kings came back and won. Heard Richards was a beast last night. I really hope the Kings can pull this off.

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

Got to love games like that, just happy the Flyers came out on top. Flyers looked flat as hell during that first period, and I really thought that third goal was the nail in the coffin. So far the series is living up to the hype.

[Jaimoe]

The Flyers have been a good come-from-behind team all season, so I wasn't totally shocked they came back to win. Briere is a terrific big game performer and was the most dangerous player on the ice. I love how Philly's youngsters played too. I know some Flyers fans here (you know who you are  :) ) had serious reservations about the Richards trade to LA and dumping Carter. I know I liked the deals, but I didn't think they'd be able to improve so quicky. Schenn is coming into his own faster than expected as are all the young players not named Giroux. Anyway, fun and intense game last night. Mike Tomlin sitting at ice level in his Crosby sweater watched a great game, although the best seats aren't behind the glass. 

I HAAAAAATE the dirty, whiny, conspiracy-theory-crying Canucks and loved the result last night! I dislike the city too because of its historically smug Toronto-hating people.

Nashville kinda reminds me of a young Detroit but with a mean and physically dominating defense duo. Weber may not win the Norris this season, but he deserves many.

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

TONIGHT.

[capt. scotty]

If we lose tonight Im putting our chances at winning the series at about 15%...Huge game

[Jaimoe]

Hilarity across Canada with the Canucks losing game one. Hate isn't a strong enough word to describe what the rest of the country thinks of those pukes.

[capt. scotty]

This team is sickening. Our D is a joke. If we lose this in 5 or less, I think Bylsma needs to be fired.