2007-08 NHL season discussion thread
 

Certain circles of people believe that being too greedy is bad luck. So I hereby blame Capo for the Penguins getting thrown out in 5 by the Senators (who yet again proved my theory that teams who beat the team I root for in the playoffs eventually lose it all...fucking Colts). Still, the Penguins did get Malkin (2006-07 Rookie of the Year) and the Penguins are moving...down the street from where they are now. So since that's no longer an issue, how about this:

2007-08 Penguins: Stanley Cup runners-up.

The Penguins defense notwithstanding, there is reason to believe offense league-wide will get a shot in the arm this year. There will likely be another "crackdown" on obstruction this year, and there's actually been an interesting amendment to the penalty shot rule:

First, let me nip this in the bud: the NHL's past may be getting shoved out a window, but the league really could use the rule changes we've been seeing. I'm still holding out for a goal-widening or goalie equipment shrinking.

Second, I love this change. They should've done it when they eliminated the two-line pass infraction.

This year, the NHL is utilizing a new jersey "system," and while for some teams that simply means doing the old copypasta with their current designs, a few teams are coming out with new logos and new jersey designs altogether. So far (as of the time of this writing) no one has officially unveiled their new looks (the Bruins didn't really show off everything about their new jerseys), but by this time tonight we will have seen at least three teams slather their draft picks with brand-new duds (the Blue Jackets, using their old third-jersey logo as their main one; the Bruins, who already unveiled their updated logo and kinda showed off their new jersey; and the Capitals, who will going back to red-white-and-blue). For me, this is the most exciting part of the offseason: who's going to change their look?

The problem with the league wasn't a lack of goals it was a lack of offense. If anyone actually thinks that making the net a bit wider so what was before a shot ringing off the post is now a goal will improve the game, they need to have their head examined.

Increasing the tempo of the game and allowing skill players to use their abilities, that is what makes the game exciting. Not the same boring clutch and grab bullshit with an extra goal here and there. Some of the most exciting games I've seen have ended 1-0 or 2-1.

I don't really have a problem with changing goaltending equipment because it should be about protection first, not increasing surface area for stopping the puck. Changing the dimensions of the net, though, ugh. I hope the game is never ruined like that.

I totally support the penalty shot change, now to see if their "crackdown on obstruction" actually remains one through the entire season and the playoffs, unlike last year.

So I cannot believe Cherepanov dropped so far down the draft, but I am absolutely loving that he's now a Blueshirt, well after the almost certain contract dispute that is.

What are they planning on doing with penalty shots?

I here by declare this thread to be named "Sergei Gonchar Appreciation Thread"


http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7623/gonchartl8.gif

How about reading my post.

I skipped the second quote then when I read it yesterday.

Goal widening would be bad. Equipment shrinking by a little bit would be good.

I disagree with the penalty shot idea. It's called NEUTRAL ZONE for a reason.

The thing about penalty shots is that in order to have one occur, there has to be a penalty. How often do you see people getting penalties (interference, mostly) on breakaways that are in the neutral zone?

So you mean it might help clear up the problem of people interfering on purpose? Maybe, yeah.

My Orange and Black signed Briere to an 8 year $52 million deal.

Rangers got both Drury(5yrs/35.25mil) and Gomez (7yrs/51.5mil.) I'm a little worried about us signing our RFA and Shanahan but hopefully Sather has a plan.

I must say I'm not really digging this Flyers player stacking. This sucks ass for the Pens.

I am sure they will still be kicking the flyers ass as usual, next year too dopefish.

Don't feel too bad, though, Wojo. Pens need defense. They'll get Rafalski, I'm sure.

I wouldn't be so sure now.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=212429&hubname=nhl

Which is also, ironically, a move that in one day, turned him from a hero to probably the most hated person in Buffalo.

Pitts just locked up Darryl Sydor to a two year, $5mil contract according to TSN. Apparently they also just picked up Sykora for two years as well.

It is nice to finally have a GM that has a vision of how he wants to build a team. Clarkie was abysmal.

Homer!!

"Alright Ray, you did a pretty good job as GM in your first year. We weren't sure you'd get us to the playoffs, but you really did a good thing landing a defensive veteran forward like Gary Roberts. I think, this year, we could use a little improvement on the blue line."

"MORE DEFENSIVE FORWARDS"

TSN : NHL - Canada's Sports Leader

Canucks new jerseys!

Aside from the "Vancouver" wordmark, they're nice looking.

Yeah, they've definitely got a much better color scheme, but that lettering can get out. Actually I'd prefer the stupid whale go with it but I know that will never happen.

It looks like everyone who was planning to change their logo has done so. A lot of teams will still be changing their jersey designs (including the Penguins :().

I am getting worried about the Ducks. If Nied's returns, then Selanne is reported to return with him, and as a Wings fan I'm screwed.... as is every other team in the league.

I guess I'm not the only one who thinks the Penguins are Finals-bound: The Sporting News is predicting a Penguins-Red Wings Cup Final, with the Penguins taking home Stanley's Shotglass.

Seems kind of unlikely to me. I saw that pick in the magazine at the store. Another hockey mag is picking Calgary against Ottawa with Ottawa finally winning it.

An all-Canadian Cup Final? ahahaha

Why doesn't niedermayer just announce retirement already? Pronger was named Captain of the ducks and Scott hasnt played the first games.

I'm very excited to hear this. I've been a Pens fan since I was little and I'm glad they are finally out of their losing streak of the the early 2000's.

I'm looking forward to the new season, and I really like the new jerseys too.

GO PENS

New 60" Plasma Widescreen HD TV? Got.

NHL Center Ice? Got.

Satellite provider who carries it in HD? Got.

It's shaping up to be a good season.


Also:

...Are you fucking high? They are HIDEOUS.

Go Wings; Go Assimilators.

It's still an improvement; at least it's only the design that's horrible now. It used to be the design and the color scheme.

Yeah, in improvement like going through one bout of anal surgery, instead of a bout of anal surgery and a kick in the balls.

Man, too many people are predicting the Penguins in the Finals this year. That's always bad news.

Well Deni, next time you have anal surgery I'll give you a kick to the mean bean machine and we'll see how much worse it is!

http://www.getdigital.de/images/acti...a-meanbean.jpg

Robotnik. NOOOOOOOOOOO!

Oh dear.

Don't google image search "Gary Roberts" unless you want a bunch of weird S&M type cartoon porn.


:gonk:

Best custom user title ever. I mean it.

sup penguins buddy

What a third period explosion by the Rangers. If this keeps up this will be a awesome season to watch.

Slipped under the radar but the Flyers signed Rory Fitzpatrick.

Are you kidding me?

They know his abilities almost got him to the All-Star game last year.

Seems the Penguins are of the most popular teams in the entire league. When I look at an NHL poll that asks "who will win it all" most voters did Penguins. I'm glad to see the sport flourish over there as Detroit did here for many many years. I think Buffalo looked amazingly full last season, too. Hopefully more teams can increase their popularity.

Most of Buffalo's big name players all left town, so I don't think they're gonna be as big a factor this year. Pens got alot of young talent, so we just gotta get some strong leadership and we'll be alright. :)

Screw you. You have the best leadership out there.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/coyo...tosized258.jpg

Leads with FIST(s).

Also Roberts

http://bigmarketing.files.wordpress....e_for_rory.jpg

Aw, fuck you, Colorado. Thanks to you, my rating in fantasy hockey will go to shit.

So I was bored and clicked on Stars at Kings game which was in the third period.....

4-0 Stars. Audience bored....

7 minutes left in the 3rd.....

FIVE GOALS IN FIVE MINUTES BY THE KINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But it wasn't over. Powerplay Stars.

Stars score! 5-5.

Overtime: Kings win!!!!!!!!

Insane.

This thread needs moar Sens.
http://cdn.nhl.com/images/logos/75/ott.gif

Why would you want more sens when your GFF name is the slogan for the Red Wings season?

Couldn't be because I like the Sens and chose the name based on something completely unrelated, could it? Not my fault that this season they chose my name for their slogan. I've had this name for years.

Sens ftw. Craptacular goals from Buffalo but what are you gonna do? As much as I'm enjoying winning all the time, I'm seriously hating all the media hype around it. People are talking about playoff spots and Finals match-ups and it's only bloody November. Look at the standings last season, Ottawa was doing terribly and we were the Eastern conference Champs.

Couldn't make it onto irc though ;_; Mom wanted to watch TV together.

Boston wins the Cup, based on the Awww-c'mon-they're-trying-their-best rule.

Ottawa will run out of gas for playoffs. You have a huge target on your jersey and since #1 seeds or pres. trophy winners never win championships, its time to say goodbye. #2 seems to be the magic number for winning it all.

Now, if only everyone stuck to Borg's theories of the numbers decide what happens, we wouldn't even HAVE to play the season! Saves time for everybody!

Way to completely miss my point, Borg. I was just talking about why the playoffs are not something to concern ourselves with yet. I'm gonna pick a team at total random and stick to my guns about how they'll win the cup until it becomes relevant. Toronto :tpg: Ok that doesn't count. Dallas. Dallas will win. Just go with me on this one, I got a good feeling about them Stars, they've got it figured out.


Although I'm slightly inclined to agree with Deni here. Poor, poor Boston.

Goddamn rights. Look at us. With our 40 year old awesome goalie. We're like the plucky underdog with the floppy ears and the big huge brown eyes. Sure, we might not be a purebred greyhound or anything, but damnit, people like us. And we're loyal. And hey, Lucic.

Maybe we should just let Boston hold the cup for us for a while. I'm sure that'll remind them of the glory days and give them at least one season of for-old-times-sake energy, right?

Well that or drugs.

The Dropkick Murphys are our anti-drug.

Also, the only thing that will bring back Boston's glory is the complete overhaul of the front office, maybe a brand spanking new owner. At least we have a good coach.

That's right, staying positive'll do the trick. That's how you'll bring it home again. BELIEVE.




Just don't fuck with the uniforms, there's enough ugly going around this season we don't need to lose the Bruins too.

God no. That jersey will never change. Black and Gold never quits. (Not entirely true... but still, the jerseys are pretty.)

3-0 loss to Toronto.

Ow, my pride :(

Hi folks...

It's been a while...

Sorry I ditched for the remainder of the playoffs, I would have liked to continue our contest. Who ended up winning, anyways?

Can we get the ol' NHL thread going again? You know, since FH has nowhere else to post...

I won, and I think it was by a single point. =D

I thought gyorgy cziffra won by a point or two.

All I know is I barely lost. :(

Winter classic today folks. I really like the retro look of both teams I really can't wait to watch this game today.

Lets go Pens!

I'm still pissed at my friend who managed to get tickets to the Winter Classic, yet I absolutely love how he basically swiped them from Pittsburgh fans.

Finally something worth watching at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Anyone know of an online feed for the game?

The Pens blue jerseys are ugly. Not Canucks ugly, but ugly. And no, Dope, I don't. I know it's an NBC feed, so you might try nbc.com?

Also, this game is going to take forever because of the ice maintenance.

You know, the Canucks jerseys aren't as bad as they first appear. After a few games, I was able to swallow them...and after a few more, I actually started liking them. They sure do look purdy in game action.

And plus, I guess it doesn't matter if we keep winning... :D

I just slept through the first period of the winter classic, I'm gonna watch the last two. I don't really see how this is much more attractive than any other NHL game, though...

The outdoor thing has been done before, although it is pretty cool to watch...

Maybe that's just coming from a Canadian? I'm more watching for m'boys Vanek and Malkin...

Man, I wish I knew an online video feed of the game. I'd try and check the SomethingAwful thread on it (like I did for the Giants-Pats NFL game,) but they disabled guest threadviewing privileges (this is what I get for waiting too fucking long to buy an account.) I would encourage anyone who does happen to have an SA account to take a look in the NHL Gameday thread for today.

So far, I've turned up nothing. I'll keep on trying, though.

also(2:30 ish); http://spcows.ae2t.net/kareha/src/1199215971238.gifSABREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLhttp://spcows.ae2t.net/kareha/src/1199215971238.gif

2:50 ish update: LOL GOALTENDER ICING

4:10 ish update: OVERTIME is this game epic or what. Sabres have a powerplay to start, so let's see if that hurts the Pens or not.

4:27 ish update: Now it's into a shootout.

4:35 ish update: goes 2-1 to Pittsburgh in shootout.

Great game, seriously. Aside from the end result of the game, I think it went the way it should have, taking all available time in a hockey game.

The game was great, the length was not. It went over 3 hours. What is this, a baseball game?

I loved the Penguins blues. Totally need more of that action.

Man, the Penguins are playing out of their minds right now. Ty :gonk:lin can't lose for once in his life.

That would be pretty insane if this one issue of an NHL magazine of some sort that I saw last summer that said "2008 FINALS PREDICTION: Detroit Versus Pittsburgh" ended up coming true!

At this point the Pens are playing great.

The Sens have very strange weaknesses (giving up 8 goals to the crappy caps and then 6 more the next day!!!!), the Canes have more goals against than for, and the Devils always choke.

That would be cool if the Pens went to the finals. And to think I laughed at that summer issue of the hockey magazine. Now it seems feasible!

Wow, I thought this was abandoned for sure. Figured you guys were tired of Sens Update 07.

I much preferred the Montreal-Edmonton Game a while ago. That, to me at least, was actually less about getting media attention then about watching the old guys play again only to be followed up by the current generation of players. The Pittsburgh game just seemed like more "hey other NHL franchises, we've got fucking Crosby. IN UR FAYZ" again and I am just not a fan of that guy in any way.

lol@:gonk:lin

Well it's too bad you can't appreciate some of the best talent you'll ever see on ice, Fire. Also, you completely missed the point of that game. It wasn't a fuck you to the other franchises, it was a push to get US viewers. And, I might add, it worked. Highest ratings on an NBC hockey game in a long time.

Also, Pittsburgh won't make the finals. Look, I like the dream as much as anyone. I'd like nothing better than to see my boy, big Georges Laraque hoisting a cup alongside some of the best young talent in a long time, but without goal tending, defense and a sudden return from Jordan Staal, it's not going to happen. We all know :gonk:lin is a flash in the pan, and he'll slow down. They're fun, and they'll be a power for a long time, but they're not finals bound this year.

Oh I can appreciate his playing, I just don't LIKE him. Yeah, I was probably blinded by all the Crosby hype. So I heard about the ratings, most viewers on a sporting event in over a decade. I guess it pays to wear powder blue?

Well It's a fairly young team, right? Their time won't come for another two or three years. The rest of the NHL is going to have to face the music eventually. I'm content my franchise being in their prime though, very reluctant to give it up anytime soon.

You're already on the cusp of it. Internal strife, no real goaltender. Even as it stands now, I'd take Detroit over Ottawa. And I'm a Sens fan. I love boys like McGrattan, Neil, Spezza and Fisher. But there is a LOT of inconsistency in that team, from top to bottom. And with Emery being a fucking joke, and Gerber being streaky, I can't see a cup this year. Deep run? Probably. But not a cup. You need goaltending for that.

I know, they've always had goalie problems. It's been forever since they actually had a goalie we could for sure rely on. Even if they don't get a cup this year (or ever :gonk:) I'd still say this is their prime. They've got a great range of players who are all in the right age group and most are at the height of their careers or close to it. I'd say we have this season, maybe the next too before things take a nosedive and we settle back into obscurity.

Also, poor Volchenkov :(

Volchenkov is an underrated player. Very Perreault-like in his role playing for that team.

And yeah, now is definitely the Sens time to shine.

I'll ignore how dumb it is to put any serious faith into cup final predictions halfway through the season based on how a team is currently playing, let alone predictions made before the season even begins.

Come on though, the Devils always choke? Are you serious, or just 14? They won the cup three times in a decade not that long ago.

The devils probably had Scott Neids all three times. And Rafalski is with us now -- Detroit.

The devils always choke? You realise the reason the Devils won championships was overall team defense and one of the greatest goalies of all time. Not because of any individual player. Jesus, Borg, you're as fucking useless at hockey talk as you are at talking video games. How old are you, like, 14?

I will concede that Niedermayer is an fantastic defenseman. There really isn't any debating that. Rafalski is excellent as well, though pretty underrated until recently. However, two good defensemen aren't going to make a team win cups.

As already mentioned, Jersey has had a long-time commitment to defensive-first play which, coupled with one of the greatest goalies to ever play the game, has made them a good playoff team. They're a team built on everyone knowing and accepting their role on the ice.

Awww did I pinch a nerve?

I find it pathetic that people have to resort to "Oh, oh! You're 14 years old!" instead of actually say something.

At least Diss posted *something* in reply after being angry.

Diss just echoed what I'd already said, you putz. That's why he said the following:

Look, I even highlighted it for you, since you're apparently unable to read and comprehend.

And you haven't hit a nerve, you lackwit. I hate the devils. I've always hated the devils. You just clearly have no idea what you're talking about. You're sitting here, trying to argue against what is common knowledge to any hockey fan. You're just an idiot. Which is why I accused you of being 14 and not having the experience with the game. It's either that you're too young, or it's that you're too stupid. Either way, go slam your head in a door until you knock some sense into yourself.

I'm not really sure what nerve you think you hit, and I'm not really sure who's getting angry. You can insult the Devils all you like, I don't care. I think they're a boring team to watch and their style of play is bad for hockey.

I brought up your age because for all I know you're young and weren't really around to see the Devils win all their cups. Am I wrong?

Nevermind, I just checked your profile and I see that, somehow, you're 25 years old. I was trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, man.

I'd assume that's pretty obvious. Because you don't.

It doesn't really matter, because no matter what you meant by choke, you were painfully, painfully wrong. Which is why I went after you for it. Because you were, you know, wrong.

Maybe you shouldn't have sent an insulting message in private like a backbiting bitch, expecting me to let it slide. You're wrong, son. Sorry that bothers you.

You're absolutely right. I failed to let you make a completely idiotic statement without it being refuted. What you mean is: "You could have let me just have my horribly flawed opinion without comment" and yes, I could have. But I didn't, because there is a difference between an opinion and an informed opinion.

No, you choose to only pay attention to my personal attacks, and completely ignore the points I made. You know, the ones you lauded Diss for making. Not my fault you got butthurt. And you know what, someone, in fact, one of the two of us, was stupid enough to say they were chokers. And it wasn't me. So it must be you. Don't get upset with me because you lack the clarity of thought, point, and precision of language necessary to make a decent point with other people. I refuse to apologise for your having no grasp of what you're talking about, or being unable to get your point across in an intelligent manner.

You're a complete fucking moron. But don't reply. You'll just prove my point.

To reply strictly to the point at hand, the NJD's have had very good seeds in the last 4 years and have failed to go past either round 1 or 2 every time despite that. This year, I have a gut feeling that the Flyers could put them away (If Flyers face them)... or a few other teams. They will likely end up with #2 seed again but IMO won't make the conf finals. If I end up being wrong it won't matter to me one bit who makes the finals in the east.

As for the Penguins situation that was brought up... obviously they'd have worse odds to go to the finals (check sports odds sites) than Ottawa or NJD but if they can exploit Ottawa's weaknesses or if NJD chokes before the conf finals again, the long shot could come true.

It's fun to speculate.

So, basically, you're just using the word "choke" to describe any team that doesn't win the Stanley Cup?

"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

I'll be surprised if the Pens can ride :gonk:lin any actual distance in the playoffs, or even TO the playoffs. It's like the golden age of the Pens. They could get by with a shoddy goalie because they could produce the sort of offense necessary to overpower other teams. But Crosby and Malkin do not equal Francis, Lemeiux, Jagr, Trottier, etc. They need some defense, and man, is it ever not there. Though, god would I love the Cinderella story of a team carried by role players like Laraque and Roberts supporting the youth brigade on a cup run. I'd be giddy if it happened. Just very, very doubtful.

See how much the world is a greener place when you actually explain your position in a coherent way?

conklin c o n k l i n .... Are smilies on or something?

Doing that on purpose I guess?

Yeah, I know what his name is, champ. GONKlin would be a running joke about the guy.

: gonk :

:gonk:

:gonk:lin

Ty :gonk:lin.

Indeed.

Again, worse odds for the Pens to win. Let me go look it up. I'll edit this post when I'm done.

Edit: The odds are closer than I thought. They give Pens 8/1 to win the conf finals and NJD 7/1 and Ottawa 5/3.

I went to the game against the Panthers yesterday.


I dont care what you guys say :gonk:lin is fucking awesome. He shut them out like it was his job......oh right.

Just so we're clear on the reference, here's a video summary of Game 1 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals between the Oilers and Hurricanes, a game Ty Conklin played in net for the Oilers for.

YouTube Video

So :gonk:lin is an accurate nickname.

More Youtube yumminess, this time from a Russian hockey game.

YouTube Video

If this EVER happens in the NHL, it would be the most viewed hockey video on Youtube of all time.

I saw this on tv the other night and can't say I was really that impressed by it. There were a few flurries of activity - though none of them were good fights, really - but the majority of the time spent was just everyone standing around hugging each other. I can't really blame the video too much for that 'cause that's what always happens in bench-clearers, but I can think of a lot of hockey videos I'd rather watch.

Diss....Vancouver just picked up the ULTIMATE NEXT ONE

Kris Beech!

Almost as good a pickup as Samsonov being claimed by the CAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANES!

:gonk:lin is now 9-0-0. WHAT HAS SCIENCE DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE

Wings could still win a best of 7 against the Sens :)

Winning streak comes to an end. And by who of all people? Mark fucking Recchi......good grief.

Beginning of game

Deni's Friend: "I bet Recchi scores the winner."
Deni: "Oh shut up, this isn't a soap opera."



End of game

Deni: ":gonk:"
Deni's Friend: ":D"

Aw man, there goes a big part of my fantasy team in Heatley. =(

I suppose the best positive of getting out of Ottawa is absolutely no injury to any Red Wing player even though it was a loss. I'd rather take a loss & no injury compared to a win and Zetterberg being hurt for a month.

Early last season the Penguins weren't in the playoffs then in January they went on a big streak. Same exact thing is happening now, but it will cool down. NJ should win the division.

Looking sharper day by day.

Everything is crap for the Wings now. 6 injuries, all minor league defensemen. And now today not even a contender for the cup against teams like Dallas, Anaheim and SJ.

So Sens ditched the coach. 'Bout time we did something. Come on, 5-0 to Toronto? Ouch. Hopefully Murray will have something special hidden away for such a disastrous slide.

How about the Habs this year! They're surprising everyone now! And my favorite player ever is back on the team! Go Breezer Go!

Hey Guys,

The NHL Playoff Contest sign-up is in Community Commons:

http://www.gamingforce.org/forums/co...8-sign-up.html

Apparently the Sens were talking to Lalime about playing in Ottawa again. That would have the best and worst thing to happen.

5-4, in your face Pittsburgh.

Yeah, we'll see what's up once we actually have our top players back in the line up. Say hi to Ray Emery for me. :cool:

To be fair, Ottawa could've easily had another couple goals on that Malkin high stick that went uncalled.

I feel the need to state that had someone told me at the beginning of the season that Boston would be in playoff position, I would have laughed. Had they said they'd do it sans-Bergeron, I'd have cried. I love this game.

Had someone told me at the beginning of the season the Penguins would be in first place in the Eastern Conference by the beginning of March and they did it without Marc-Andre Fleury, Sidney Crosby and Gary Roberts for months, I'd have laughed too.

(BTW, I went to Thursday's Bruins-Penguins game and GTFO with 5 minutes left in that tardfest. They just weren't playing hard that night.)

Just watched the Pens-Caps game...exciting! Everyone was playing like this was a playoff game. Niklas Backstrom buried the game-winner...into his own net.

YouTube Video

Hes my favorite penguin! :D


Also destroyed the SAAAAAAAAAABREEEESSSSSS last night 7-3 what up.

That d-man's head when Laraque and a hard place caught it with the elbow. Yeesh. That had to hurt.

Watching the Eastern Conference standings, you look at it one day to the next and it's totally different. Right now:

1. Penguins (87;1A)
2. Senators (87;1NE)
3. Hurricanes (81;1SE)
4. Canadiens (87;2NE)
5. Devils (86;2A)
6. Rangers (83;3A)
7. Bruins (81;3NE)
8. Flyers (79;4A)

I think this is how the standings will end up, or at least the teams. I feel a lot more comfortable seeing the Penguins in the 1 spot facing the Flyers in the 8 spot instead of the Penguins vs. the Senators again.

Dope, if my Bolts somehow take the divison, I will go apeshit. We've played like complete shit all year and I dont see us even coming close short of us winning all our remaining games.

Well, someone has to win that division. And it won't be the Caps.

(See, now I'm looking again and the Devils are in first, the Habs in second and the Pens in fourth.)

This is the most exciting race to the playoffs I've ever seen.

My guess is that the Penguins will probably stay at the head. But the Canadiens have promising team. I didn't really expet they were going to be THIS good this year...

My question to all is: who is your Hart trophy candidate for MVP? Evgeni Malkin has made a strong case for himself, but if the Capitals do end up making the playoffs it's all Ovechkin's fault. He's going to be the first player to hit 60 goals since 1995-96 (Mario Lemieux, 69) and one of an increasingly short list of players to notch 100 points in a season (as sad as that is). He's quickly becoming the Wayne Gretzky of this generation.

Additional Spam:
I should note that I confused the Canes for the Bolts in making my standings and just noticed it. :tpg:

I think the Hart Trophy will come down to who makes the playoffs and who doesn't. If the Caps make it in, Ovechkin gets it. Sundin might get consideration if the Leafs manage to move into the playoffs. Getting a team into the playoffs is sure to influence the voters, but I think Ovechkin might deserve it either way.

I'm also glad to see the Red Wings have turned around that slump from a few weeks back and are now on a winning streak. They've got the division all locked up already. Now I just want to see everyone come back from injuries so they can be ready for the playoffs.

KnightOfNee: I'm not so sure many people here or national analysts will be picking the Wings to go far over the Sharks or Ducks or Stars or something. That's the unfortunate part...

I can easily see the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals. Everyone else in the conference is mud.

Going to the Penguins last home game tonight of the regular season against the Criers.

I will take pride joining in on the FUCK THE FLYERS chant tonight for sure.

I'll be on my couch, chanting along in spirit.

I'm not even a proper Pens fan, and I'll be chanting that while my Bruins play the New Joisey Devils.

Ahahaha... Laraque knocked off Rowdy Riley Cote's fucking HEAD. That was -awesome-.

I just hope beating the Flyers doesn't mean we'll have to face them or the Caps in the next round.

Goddamnit, Marty Brodeur can be fucking frustrating. Luckily so is Timmy the Tugboat Thomas the Tank Engine.

Fucking goddamn Devils.

Oh. My. God. Crosby tip between the legs, back of the net. The kid isn't human.

Penguins clinch at least the 2 seed. It's looking like the Penguins and Flyers will be seeing a lot of each other in the near future.

God damn it, I'm never around when the thread picks up again.

8-2 against Toronto. Well I'd live to think we're back on track but I can't for the life of me put my faith on a team that has so harshly declined in the last 3ish months. AND the nasty, not to mention dirty hit Alfredsson got will most likely keep him out for the rest of the season. I am quite convinced that it was an intentional hit, he was looking right at him when he went for it.

Either way, it looks like it's going to be a very short playoff run for us this year. Not that we didn't see it coming at all or anything.

God, the end of the season just DRAAAAAAAAAAAGS. Anyone else dying for the playoffs to begin?

If there are still others that want to sign up for the 2008 NHL Playoff Contest:

http://www.gamingforce.org/forums/co...8-sign-up.html

Ugh, Nashville is in the playoffs for sure, and Vancouver is now out. Who wants to watch Nashville in the playoffs?

And even worse, Detroit will probably face Nashville, which is one team they haven't done well against this season.

There's a lot of stuff in the air regarding placement over the next couple days, and I'm eager to see how that turns out. Most teams are already in playoff mode now, so those games should be exciting to watch.

Good lord, the NHL must have read my predictions and said, "You know what? LET'S DO THE OPPOSITE." Carolina's losing, Philly's winning, Boston's winning...and I didn't say anything about the Rangers but I thought they'd be winning and they're not.

They won't be around long. Sorry.

Oh, I expect them to get bounced in the first round, depending on who they play, either in 4 or 5. Maybe 6 at the outside. But I don't care. POST SEASON!

I can't believe Carolina lost that game. The penalties were 9-0 for Florida too.

Well, any points for Washington, and they take the division. Considering how Washington was dead last in the NHL two and half months in, this will be a crazy turn around if they finally complete it.

Well, with the Penguins loss to the Flyers just now, here are the Eastern Conference seedings:

#1 Montreal Canadiens vs. #8 Boston Bruins
#2 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. #7 Ottawa Senators
#3 Washington Capitals vs. #6 Philadelphia Flyers
#4 New Jersey Devils vs. #5 New York Rangers

Montreal vs. Boston will be entertaining, but I don't think the Bruins have a chance at all. I would be scared of the Senators but they're missing Daniel Alfredsson so that shouldn't be as tough a matchup as usual. I think Washington will cruise through the Flyers and the Devils won't have much issue with the Rangers.

The Western Conference will be decided later tonight, but all that's to be decided is who will be seeds 5-7.

Wow, Montreal actually finished first in the conference. Go Habs! This city is going to be ridiculous when the playoffs start...

Here's the Western Conference playoff tree:

#1 Detroit Red Wings vs. #8 Nashville Predators
#2 San Jose Sharks vs. #7 Calgary Flames
#3 Minnesota Wild vs. #6 Colorado Avalanche
#4 Anaheim Ducks vs. #5 Dallas Stars

Knowing little to nothing of the Western Conference, I see no reason the top four teams can't win their series, with the exception of what I will anticipate to be a competitive Wild/Avalanche series.

Hey guys.. i thought we were going to do that playoff guessing pool of who wins and in what series?

Wasn't there a thread for that?

There already is. It is in the community commons. Vivi is gettng ready to send pm's to all the people that are going to participate. Just go to community commons and it'll be one of the first threads you see.

Disses go to the NHL for their poor US television schedule. I'll only be able to catch the Penguins TWICE in the first round. But I'll be able to watch at least 3 games of every other series (including the local Bruins games). Really clever guys.

Games tonight:

NYR@NJ G1 (TSN)
OTT@PIT G1 (CBC, Versus)
COL@MIN G1
CGY@SJ G1 (Versus)

http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/6005/senszh1.jpg

(lol. Go Pens.)

Yeah, that's right. We need all the fans we can get.


I still believe, however foolish it may be.

Pens win so easy a caveman could've done it.

Sens in 9?

I really need a Sens av/sig combo, although the Nu is showing enough displeasure to fit tonights game.

To win 4 games against the Pens, you'd have to hope for about Sens in 48.

Oh I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. Until then, I cling blindly to my loyalty and go down with the ship I have chosen.

I completely forgot Hossa played for them :/

Yeah, you might want to reconsider. A team can deserve loyalty, but when they're utterly lacking in heart and are widely regarded as the laziest team in hockey? Might want to rethink that.

Nah. I'm a Sens fan through and through, one poor half-season won't change that.

And think if we actually capitalized on all the chances we had. =)

Great game. Can't wait for another one like it tomorrow.

I'M NOT HERE TO PLEASE YOU, TRITOCH!

Very impressed with the Av’s last night. I don’t think any goalie could have stopped those redirections and top shelf shots they were pulling off. Still, this is going to be a very disappointing season if we lose to a team we’ve beaten 5 of 8 games in the regular season, and especially if we lose in the 1st round when we are the division champs.

Step it up, Wild.

Penguins and Capitals win in a pair of thrillers. Marty Gerber saw 54 shots and stopped 50.

Ovechkin's game winning goal in that game was amazing. Both games were very exciting.

I'm watching Colorado/Minnesota now, I hope this series stays close.

Ovechkin is cute. Literally bounces off the walls.

I wouldn't be surprised if Ray Emery was between the pipes for Game 3. Martin Gerber looked as rattled as possible after giving up that 4th goal.

Alright... off to Caps Game 2. Hope it's as epic as the first one was.

GO CAPS.

2 overtime games tonight, and after San Jose scores three times in the first four minutes, Calgary rallies back to win. Today was a very exciting day of hockey. These playoffs have been fun so far. We still need a marathon overtime game though.

I got to say that all the playoff games last night were pretty exciting. I only managed to catch two of them.

Denicalis must of been having a fucking orgasm yesterday evening after boston winning in overtime last night. If you ask me I think Boston might give montreal a good run for their money.

I was really ready to give up on that calgary game last night with three goals by san jose in the first 5 minutes and just as I was about to change the channel. I seen that hit to marleau, that guy got owned last night. I glad to see Calgary pull through. I hope the rest of the series is just as interesting.

Boston isn't a playoff team because they can't win games. They are a playoff team because their chemistry sometimes makes big plays and Tim Thomas can be lights out at times. However, I think they've only momentarily thrown the monkey off their backs. If they do come back to win the series there will be riots in Montreal and cheers in whatever city plays them next because they're still not going to go all the way.

Additional Spam:

YouTube Video

Never happening again without a 2 minute unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

My desire to beat Capo in the standings demands I take Montreal in 5 games (on track), but the fan in me is all "We have a chance now. :D"

Also, yes. Fuck me, that game was great. God do I love Lucic.

And now to completely contradict what I posted in the use-of-the-word-"gay" thread, that game was gay... shut out at home, damn. Definitely not awesome. I should have at least pre-gamed with some jager bombs or something, just to guarantee awesomeness.

Anyway, that was actually my first hockey game at the Verizon Center too (I usually just watch a lot of basketball games there), and I must say the atmosphere there is amazing. The crowd was totally into it, and not to mention the most epic movie montages I've ever seen. I tried to get some game 5 tickets, but that shit sold out quick.

ROCK THE RED.

You can keep trying to bait me, Deni, but I'm too busy riding this Pens high to even bother! :p

That being said, I'm kicking your god damn ass this year. Don't play.

You and me. Right here. *points at your eyes then his eyes* This is where the fight is. This is the real thing. The rumble in the jungle. The Treason in the Second Season. This competition isn't big enough for the two of us (in the basement).

Laraque vs. Brashear ain't got nothing on this. Just be ready.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...ot-colbert.gif

Well of course Laraque vs Brashear would have nothing on this. That would be a shitty fight. Laraque throws one punch, Brashear cries.

This is like... Lucic vs Carcillo. At least it'll be fun until someone dies.

I'd love to see the Pens in Bruins in round 2, but it will NEVAR HAPPAN.

Well, I wouldn't say never. But doubtful this season. (Sens in 7, HOLLA!)

YouTube Video

FUCKING RIGHT, WILD.

If we had lost that game after those last 2 periods of pure domination, I would have rammed my head into the fucking table. That effort by Rolston to avoid that icing was key to that winning OT goal. God, I swear - Rolston is like sex on ice.

Only when he's taking slap shots on penalty shots. Other than that, the Wild are dulll. I mean, how do you have a team with Rolston and Gaborik and still be damned near intolerable to watch?

Aw shit. I knew there was little to no hope to begin with, I just hope it's not a sweep. Stupid Pittsburgh :(

I never cared much for the Wild. I've seen them play once or twice but it didn't really do anything for me, which is weird because watching Western Conference hockey is usually a lot of fun for me.

EAST:

Looks like MTL, PIT, NYR, PHIL in the 2nd round, if all things stay as they are (Those four teams finishing their series off).

Then in that round I believe MTL will easily finish the Flyers, NYR's veteran players will give the Pens trouble but the Pens will pull through.

MTL & PIT conference final goes to PIT to me. Crosby in finals!

WEST:

If everything stays "normal" it'll be DET, DAL, COL, & CALG in round 2.
The reason why I say COL is because I think they'll tie the series tomorrow and eventually take it.

This conference is harder to pick. Calgary could use confidence of beating everyones stanley cup pick to beat Detroit in round 2. Dallas should take out Colorado. A Calg/Dal conference final would be strange! Such low seeds. Dallas has a better team so I'd say they'd goto the finals.

In this scenario I'd say the Pens could take out Dallas in the finals.

Of course if one single thing changes then none of these B.S. picks count for anything! See you in round 2 all!

YouTube Video

This has to be the single gayest introduction to a hockey game I have ever seen. The Pens will do Ottawa a favor sweeping them on Wednesday, by saving them from more embarrassment.

I unfortunately have to agree. I thought coming out of the big Shark head was stupid, and coming out of the oil rig in Edmonton even worse. Then I saw this.

Nice job by the sound guys too with his mic cutting out. And how his helmet flops around when he moves.

Man. There is just no saving things after this.

There's also the script written on the back of his shield in case he forgets his lines, which is shown many times.

And despite Minnesota being what many people would call a boring team, the series between them and Colorado has been the most exciting one so far.

Yeah, I'll be quick to admit that the Wild really are a young and sloppy team. Still, I really enjoy watching them (mostly coupled to the fact that they're my home team), but I can see what you're saying.

Of course what you state is possible, but I think it will be unlikely. Even if Colorado wins tonight to tie up the series, MN will have a huge advantage with the remaining three games being home games.

Hell yeah - 3 OT's in the first 3 games, with some sick saves from Théodore on our breakaways made for some really good hockey.

EDIT:
Fuck, they just scored :(.

EDIT 2:
Haha, ok. 3-0 in the first 12 minutes - we have no chance tonight. Whatever.

You do realize that just a few days ago, Calgary came back from a 3-0 deficit in the first 5 minutes of the first period a few days ago, and actually ended up winning the game. You never truly know whats going to happen in the playoffs.

Montreal wins in 5.

http://students.csci.unt.edu/~wng0001/Mentok.jpg

WEEEEE-OOOOOOOOOOO

So just when I thought it couldn't get any worse....

YouTube Video

Jesus Christ.

It's OK, we won't have to deal with them much longer (24 hours).

Thank god I was only drinking water, cause that shit is all over my keyboard right now. Wow that has to be the most retarded thing I have ever seen...

Oh, this is indeed Ottawa. And my god, does it SUCK.

I guess someone forgot to tell the makers of the video that the 300 Spartans got totally dominated in the end.

Additional Spam:
Crosby scores GAAAAAAAAAME

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/1...4ca48aeyf2.jpg

Slidin' on to round two.

Looking like Rangers in round 2. Not looking forward to that, honestly.

Neither am I, because I bet against the Rangers. Fuckers. Seriously, just can't support Jagr. Can't do it.

Him coming back to Pittsburgh for a playoff game will be LULZ.

Ow, my pride :(


Goooo Habs~

lol, i gave Ottawa too much credit, i thought they'd at least win one.

I'm getting the feeling that the Bruins might have their Montreal monkey in sights.

Additional Spam:
Shitty refs in Philly. Two goalie interference calls that shouldn't have been made, and now, in OT, they were going to call a high sticking call on Semin but they didn't, but stopped play anyway.

Additional Spam:
Ovechkin blows a defensive assignment on Knuble and that's the game.

AUGGH fuck beans yo.

No Caps D in that second OT there. It was just all Huet, stopping like 5 of the 6 shots. And yeah, I was kinda bitter at that interference call at the end of the 3rd... didn't matter much though.

I'll be rockin' my red at Game 5 again, but Caps might be done. >_>

Not over yet yo.

Rolston with 4 seconds left.

Too little, too late.

:(.

No, that was the beat up Bruins winning a round. HANDS UP IN VICTORY.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, if I can change, and you can change, everybody can change!

Additional Spam:
Yup, looking like Penguins-Rangers/Canadiens-Flyers now.

wtf Boston, well done. That 5th goal was perfect in every way. Everything the Sens should have played like.

BLACK AND GOLD NEVER QUIT!*






*at least not until game 7.

I fully expect the Canadiens to choke hard in Game 7. Even if they win Game 7, the next round matchup will be the end of their run, I think. Unless they play Philly.

CAPS. Still in it.

At least I got to witness a home playoff victory once. I need to get tickets to Game 7 (it's happening). That would be huge.

Aww yeah, Red Wings are moving on to round 2. Osgood is showing why he should be in over Hasek (which he definitely should).

And the Flames are looking to push a game 7 with a strong showing so far tonight. I won't be surprised if San Jose finds a way to lose this series.

No more Pronger! No more Bertuzzi! No more Niedermayer! NO MORE DUCKS!

YouTube Video

Watch it from 1:40 to 2:10 or so. OUCH, MY GROIN.

CAPS. WIN. Bout fucking time Alexander Das Great showed up.

Game 7 here I come.

The Canadiens killed the Bruins tonight. About damn time. The entire city is cheering right now. I've been hearing people celebrating in the streets from my apartment window since the end of the game. :)

The Bruins were the better team in the series, IMO. Any 8 seed that forces game 7 after being down 3-1 is pretty good in my book, even if they lose game 7 5-0. But now it looks like Montreal will have to deal with a rested Rangers team.

Impressive game from the Habs. I actually expected them to choke and lose this crucial game. I'm confident they learned their lesson about taking the opposite team too lightly, and will bounce back against (hopefully) the Flyers!

Gotta Love Those Montreal Fans

Really Guys, a fucking riot from winning the first round of the playoffs. Reminds me of what happened when the Montreal Canadiens won the cup back in 93. I can only fathom what is going to happen if they end up winning the cup this year.

Still I wanted Boston to win though, but at least they gave them a good run for their money. My dad is a big Montreal Canadiens fan so me and my brother were ready to call him and give him a hard time if they ended up losing last night.

I said it before when I came back from Montreal, and I'll say it again here: Montreal's police force is the laziest I have ever seen. Not to say that I, as a police commissioner, would ever have expected a riot from a first-round victory in seven games against a team you were expected to sweep (honestly, I would have thought Habs fans to be more concerned than anything else), but just because your team's been out of it for a while doesn't mean you don't have contingency plans.

Additional Spam:
That's it, game over. Even though it's 2-2, Ovechkin just scored. What a beast.

Additional Spam:
STUNNED. Flyers beats Caps in OT, setting up an easy series win for the Habs and a heart-racing series between the Pens and Rangers.

FRACKING FUCKING BULLSHIT FLYERS INTERFERENCE BULLSHITE FUCK DEVORSKI AND CREW FUCK THE FLYERS

Sorry I'm a bit wasted right now, but it was fun to totally decka Flyers dan on the way out . :tpg:

I like how Huet just sat there after making the save before Lupul's goal.

I MADE SAVE HURRR

Montreal against Flyers in 5 or 6.
Detroit against Colorado in 6 or 7.
Rangers against Pens in 6 (Don't think Crosby can get past a veteran team quite yet).
Sharks against Dallas in 7.

Sharks over Rangers in 5 in the finals...

Night!

...and upon seeing the ratings for the entire SCF, Gary Bettman commits suicide. And so do hundreds of hardcore Bruins fans.

Besides, where were you when the Pens swept the Senators? You're telling me last year's Stanley Cup finalist isn't a veteran team? I understand they were hurting but they still have way more experience than the Pens.

To put things into perspective, the Rangers only have three players with Stanley Cup rings: Scott Gomez, Jaromir Jagr and Brendan Shanahan. Their average age is 27.67 years. The Penguins average age is 27.68, and they have 3 players with Stanley Cup rings: Darryl Sydor (2), Gary Roberts and Petr Sykora. Overall playoff experience is slanted toward the Rangers, but apparently that doesn't matter all that much to you if you're so willing to ignore the Senators recent history as well as the recent history (nevermind the overall history) of the San Jose Sharks.

Penguins win in a thrilla.

Wow fuck Sean Avery seriously what a retard. Too bad that ref had to get in the way other wise Gill and Laraque would have destroyed his bitch ass.

Also fuck Jagr too and his faggy looking soul patch. 2-0 in the series woooooo!

I would pay good money to see Georges punch Avery until he died.

The Penguins got damn lucky that Rangers goal was whistled off. But they otherwise outplayed New York, so they still deserve that win.

I'm also eager to see if Theodore will start again in game 3 for Colorado after being pulled two straight games.

Penguins are not messing around. Will they make it 8 in a row Thursday?

Penguins have a great shot at winning the Cup this season.

The Penguins became the 11th team to start the playoffs 7-0. Only two of those 10 teams failed to win the Cup.

So, yeah. I have a great deal of confidence in my preseason prediction coming true.

Detroit's the first team to move on to round 3, as they win game 4 in kind of an embarrassing fashion, 8-2. Poor Colorado.

The other three series are all sitting at 3-1. I think Montreal has a small chance at coming back, but really, those should all finish up how they are right now.

Penguins will take it on Sunday.

Montreal blows a 3-1 lead and ends up losing 5-4 (not counting the empty net goal). Flyers win it in 5 games and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals...goddammit.

At least the fans in Montreal cheered for them in the end, letting them know their appreciation of how far they went this season.

What a way to end it by Hossa.

Yeah. Losing 7 games over two series to teams they swept in the regular season. Oh yeah. Great playoff showing. If I was a habs fan, I'd be fucking embarrassed. You literally pulled the best possible match ups you could have had, and you fucked it up. Pitiful.

Ahem....

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c2...ill/Flyers.jpg

http://f3.yahoofs.com/ymg/ept_sports...oNhW_CqTKUSpdo


LOL owned your Rocky statue so hard you Philly fuckwits.

Do they, um, realize that Rocky isn't, you know, real?

If the Pens make the Finals you'd be hard-pressed, win or lose, not to consider Malkin for Conn Smythe. The way he played tonight (2-1--3, some good hits) he is just playing out of his mind.

Slap Shot on a breakaway = immediate Hart Trophy.

I think Ovechkin will win the Hart, but the Conn Smythe is much more important.

If the Red Wings make the finals, Franzen will get strong consideration for the Conn Smythe too, assuming he keeps this up. Him and Malkin have been absolute beasts these playoffs.

Penguins should be up 2-1 right now. I'll just quote this:

Which the puck sure as hell was before Biron had it in his possession.

Additional Spam:
OK, it should be 3-2 now.

If that goal is the difference, I'm going to be fuming.

I'll be fuming anyway. At the very least this should silence anyone who thinks the NHL is trying to keep the Penguins in the playoffs.

The playoffs aren't rigged in any way this year, the refs have just been sucking terribly. I think every team had some kind of major botched call against them these playoffs. And today is the Penguins turn to receive a bad call.

But they're the in the lead now, so hopefully it won't be a deciding factor in the game.

YouTube Video

Georges Laraque. Point scoring man. I've been saying it for years. He's going to score 100 some year. Or have 100 assists. One of them.

No, the NHL is trying to keep the Flyers in the playoffs. I still haven't forgotten what happened in Game 7 between the cheaters and the Capitals. Now to see something like this happen...maybe the refs do suck but the Flyers shouldn't have even gotten this far because of that cheap goal.

It sucks that nothing can be done about either event now, I just have to hope the Penguins can get the job done.

To the video posted above, in the middle of it is the Downey/Boulerice(sp?) fight and I can't tell you how many times I've watched that awesomeness.

Christ, you all sounds like Canadiens fans. "OH MY GOD. REFS OUT TO GET US!" No, sometimes they just blow calls. It's how it works. It's how it's always worked. It's called the human element; it exists. There is no grand scheme to keep anyone in/out, there is only blown calls and poor decisions. Let's all get over it and stop sounding like crazy people.

P.S.

Downie is a pussy. All hail Lucic.

YouTube Video

Nighty night, Tarnsasky.

Fine, I'll say one good thing about the Flyers. They were involved in the best hockey fight EVER.

YouTube Video

Penguins win 5*-2.

Nah, goes on too long.

Krys Barch meet Danny Carcillo.

YouTube Video

I cannot wait for the Pittsburgh/Detroit final. It'll be like two freight trains charging into each other at full speed.

Penguins have outscored the Flyers 12-5 in this series and all their postseason opponents 43-22.

Still, I'm worried about the Wings.

http://www.ladyduff.com/pens/downiedouche.jpg


lol.

cya sunday :(

I really thought Pittsburgh or Detroit would sweep...

5-0 Pittsburgh before the third period.

WHERE'S THE WALES TROPHY, BITCHES

Additional Spam:
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Additional Spam:
http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/8b/fu...ladelphia_.jpg

If he lost the mustache I'd have no problem.

And the Flyers still have not won a cup since 1975....Broad Street Bitches really.


I'm super excited for the finals. Pens haven't been in the finals since I was five. I really don't know how to handle this honestly.

William Penn!

I'm actually quite impressed with the flyers this year, they did have a good run even though a lot of people felt they shouldn't of advanced when they played against washington and that controversial goal that happened in game 7.

I'd say thats quite an improvement since the flyers were the worse team in the NHL during the 2006-2007 season. I'm still hoping detroit will knock out dallas. Even though pittsburg and detroit are my two least favourite teams in the NHL, I would pick the red wings over the penguins any day thats if detroit adavances (at least I hope so).

If for any apparent reason if Dallas knocks out Detroit I would definetely pick the penguins over Dallas, but if it ends up being the penguins and red wings I would definetely go for detroit.

With Detroit, the only thing I worry about is our defense versus their offense.

BTW, I like how it's almost 11 months ago to the date I predicted the Penguins would be at the very least Stanley Cup runners-up. Pretty good, huh? Now, all they need to do is win and prove me wrong! :D

The thing is if it ends up being between Detroit and Pittsburg. It will definetely be a very entertaining series. It'll pretty much be back and forth. I could see that series go to 6 games possible 7. If dallas ends up being one of the few teams to come back from a 3-0 deficit, I could see pittsburg possibly taking the series in 5 games.

It'd be great symmetry; the Penguins first Cup win was against the Minnesota North Stars, who moved to Dallas and became the Stars.

Wouldn't that only be symmetry if this was the LAST cup Pittsburgh ever won?

No. :mad:

You're just mad you've been hoisted on your own petard.

Everyone is missing the point of this outcome between the Flyers and the Penguins: justice has been served and the Flyers are out.

That said, I look forward to tomorrow night's game. If Dallas manages to pull a series win, I'll be amazed and look at the Red Wings in disappointment. Seriously, any team that manages to go 3-0 only to lose the next four games in a row deserves to take a walk of shame. On top of that, the Red Wings to NHL is like the Patriots to NFL...only, I don't hate the Red Wings and they're not evil assholes...or cheaters.

I don't nescessarily think thats a fair statement Supersonic, but its your opinion and I'm not going to hold you against it. No matter how rare it is for a team to come back from a 3-0 deficit especially in the NHL playoffs. I think only two teams have ever done it, but I could be misinformed it can still happen. It all really depends how bad the team wants it. How hard they're going to play to accomplish it.

Detroit has been knocked out by quite a lot of teams in the playoffs that was a lower seed then them and even when they were ahead in the series, I would put anything past dallas. If dallas beats detroit in 7 games I guess they wanted it more. I'm still cheering for detroit because I think they can beat the penguins compared to dallas.

I like the way people are already talking like Detroit isn't a ridiculously dominant force that only needs to win once out of the next two games to go on to the Stanley Cup. The Wings aren't a ridiculously young and inexperienced team. They'll settle down and get the job done. Dallas is going to get buried I'd wager.

Detroit'll do to Dallas what Pittsburgh did to Philly.

...or what Detroit did to Vancouver in Game 4. Basically, it was a close game in game 3 and then the Red Wings are like "Alright, no more screwing around." and just completely dominated Game 4, 8-2.

Okay, maybe my statement about the Red Wings is unfair and yes, Deni is right, they only need to win one game. It's just the I see the Red Wings as a really good team that makes the playoffs nearly every year. They have a different coach and a lot of different players since their wins with Scotty Bowman years ago, but they still manage to be a very tough team in the playoffs. That's why I'll be completely shocked if Dallas manages to pull it off. A team like Detroit shouldn't lose a 3-0 lead in the series, that's just unreal.

Yes, I've known Detroit to get knocked off by lower seeded teams. Hell, my LA Kings pulled it off about 7-8 years ago so I know it's possible. I know it's also possible to come back from a deficit like 1-0, 2-1, 2-0, 3-2 and win the series, but just the fact that you win 3 games in a row and you only need to win one more to advance but you don't and the other team wins 4 in a row, you've got to wonder what the hell happened especially with a team like Detroit.

Well seeing how it's only happened three times in the history of North American top-level, professional sports, I would say you would be right to wonder. But I doubt it'll become an issue.

Looks like Dopefish's prediction is coming true and Detroit is done screwing around. 4-0 with a little over 2 minutes left in the 2nd. Dallas can still come back, but it's not looking good for them.

Dallas fans cheer wildly as their team loses. That's class.

Additional Spam:
Here's the schedule for the Final.

Saturday, May 24: Game 1 (PIT@DET)
Monday, May 26: Game 2 (PIT@DET)
Wednesday, May 28: Game 3 (DET@PIT)
Saturday, May 31: Game 4 (DET@PIT)
Monday, June 2: Game 5 (PIT@DET, if necessary)
Wednesday, June 4: Game 6 (DET@PIT, if necessary)
Saturday, June 7: Game 7 (PIT@DET, if necessary)

I have my Penguins ava/sig combo ready for the finals. I believe it shows off my team spirit greatly.

I'm really looking forward to this one as it seems both teams are evenly matched. It may come down to home ice advantage.

Good job Red Wings. Just three more games to go. I'm actually more excited about Detroit winning because a fellow Newfoundlander plays with Detroit, and I didn't really notice until watching the game tonight on CBC.

There are actually not a lot of Newfoundlanders that actually play professional sports so it is a big deal to our province since people take athletics very seriously in that province. If Detroit actually does win the cup he'll be the first newfoundlander to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup, so thats an extra incentive for me to see them win. Franzen has a good chance of being cleared to play for game 2 since the doctors have already cleared him to play a full practice with the team and then he'll get re-evaluated again.

Two games, and no goals for the Pens. As a Red Wing fan, I'm thoroughly enjoying these finals, but I think Pittsburgh will have to figure out how to score on Detroit before it really gets interesting for most people.

The series does shift to Pittsburgh now, perhaps the home crowd will get the Pens a boost.

I'd like to know where Chris Osgood got his diving skills from.

Hasek, duh.

I see the Pens winning 2 games at home. Home for us changes everything since we haven't lost at home since February. However, I think you guys will ultimately still be victorious. Which makes Wojo a sad panda :(


Also I think I speak for all American fans. Fuck Versus I'm so glad that was the last Versus telecast for the playoffs. I swear if I saw that edge shaving gel comercial anymore I'd murder babies.

Pens need to get their act together. Honestly, I wasn't expecting Detroit to shut them out in both games but rather it'd be a one goal game for both games. Hopefully Pittsburgh can bounce back and make this exciting.

I wouldn't necessarily say fuck Versus, but I do prefer NBC more. They have a better announce team. It's good to see that they'll be covering the rest of the playoffs.

It's too bad we can't go back to the old days when we could hear the great National Hockey Night theme every week, but what they really need to bring back to hockey is where the puck was lighted blue and when it was shot, it turned red with a trail behind it. It might have been annoying to some, but it was freakin awesome to me.

Not to call you out there chief, but Versus has the same announce team for the finals that NBC will have.

And that's Mr. DRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE and our old shitty coach.

Seriously?! Good lord, I always thought it was different people...or maybe that was the case in the games I watched that jumped from different series.

Wow, my bad.

Because the NHL should be taking cues from NHL Hitz. :rolleyes:

Please stop watching hockey.

I was actually referring to when the NHL was on Fox. They used it in the regular season games, but then they restricted it to the All-Star games. I've never played any of the Hitz games, are they any good?

You can put up with me for another week or two. After that, other than the PGA tournaments I don't watch any sports until College Football and NFL seasons start. You can rest easy.

You realise the blue pucks got FOX made fun of mercilessly by hockey fans everywhere, yeah? Like... laughingstock of the sports world.

Also, no, the Hitz games were terrible.

Actually no, I didn't hear about that. I never knew people disliked it THAT much, I just always assumed it was costing Fox too much and that's why they stopped doing it. Thanks man, that cleared up some things.

The FoxTrax puck was regularly lambasted by hockey fans. Now people are saying left and right that they want it back.

I have heard probably one person in my entire life say they want it back, and it was right up there^

There are even beer commercials ridiculing that horrible idea.

Looks like it was followed to NBC. Sorry to ruin your night.

There is ever only one real way to watch Hockey on television and thats watching it on the CBC for Hockey Night In Canada.

I do remember the the whole glowing puck hockey games that use to come on Fox and it was literally a big fucking joke. Hailey's Comet over to Messier (that was taken from a canadian comedian on Just For Laughs).

What in the hell was up with that puck. People had a hard time seeing the puck when watching the game (Jesus Age Christ) is your fucking attention span really that bad when you complain you can't see a puck and you need a blue circle around it and it turns red if shot or passed very fast to enjoy the game. You can't get more of a colour contrast than a black puck on a white surface. I hope that puck never makes its way back into existence.

Anyway Detroit has the cut the lead in half, lets see if they can come from behind and win it.

Edit:

Never mind, Pittsburg just extended their lead.

Game 3 was pretty damn exciting. I hope Game 4 can produce the same results as that's the kind of game I was hoping 1 and 2 to be, a one goal game. I wouldn't mind an overtime actually.

I like how for 30 seconds in the third Brooks Orpik doled out four big hits. MONSTER

http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/374...285pensmg7.jpg

I WILL DESTROY YOU!

Red Wings lead 3-1 in the series, and they'll go back to Detroit and win it. Great effort, Penguins.

What was Reason 1B they had to lockout a season? I forget.

*sigh*


It's not over till it's over.....but I'm thinking it's over. :(


Well in any case at least we got to beat the Flyers in the conference finals. But this is a tough pill to swallow.

I'm pretty bummed about tonight's game as well, but I think we still might have a chance.... but it's a longshot. :(

I am so sad to think that the Red Wings are going to win the cup... My cousin loves the Wings and I hate it....

I will always be grateful to the Penguins for taking out the Flyers this year. You're right though, it's not over till it's over. As long as Detroit doesn't pull another one of those "Alright, we're done screwing around" games, then the Penguins still have a shot. They just need to rally together and score some goals on Osgood.

I'm quite happy with the way the playoffs have been going this year, and am so excited for tomorrow night. The Wings have played great team hockey all season, covering for each other when needed and stepping up when others falter. Aside from Hasek (thank god he got benched when he did) and Lilja (you can count on him for one serious mistake per game), this team has played to every expectation I could have, and then some.

I hope the Wings can close out the series in front of the home crowd, but I also hope for another exciting hockey game. I feel sort of bad for Crosby, with his team being down like this, because he has played his heart out all series, and all playoffs. I've gained a lot of respect for him in the past week.

Y'know, I have no real reason to bitch about the Penguins because I said they'd be Stanley Cup runners-up and that's the way the chips are falling at this point. I'd like to hope they'll win in 7 and I'll be ecstatic if they do, but they've gotta find whatever they did in Game 3 again and make it work in Detroit. It's not impossible, but we're going to pretend for the moment that it's not going to happen.

That being said, my disappointment doesn't lie with Evgeni Malkin, who's playing like he's either tired, injured, or both. It lies in the officiating, which is frequently overlooked by players, coaches, and fans in the playoffs.

The primary reason the NHL locked out an entire season was so there would be economic stability and long-term viability. The first step to changing that was changing the economics of the league up front, putting a hard cap on the league and allowing teams to buy-out contracts and cutting off a percentage of the rest. The second step was putting a more entertaining game on the ice for the fans, by cracking down on obstruction and just generally changing the way the game was to be played.

In the recent history of the NHL (e.g. since the last lockout in 1994) the NHL playoffs have been a bastion of hope for teams who would otherwise be lit up by more talented teams by all but allowing the most egregious acts of obstruction. Much to my disappointment, this Stanley Cup Final has been full of slipshod officiating in this regard and it pains me to know that the playoffs could be much more competitive if the officials called them like regular season games.

Of course, the argument against this is that the game would be slowed way down by penalty calls, but I personally would prefer to know that the teams who are given the opportunity to win are the ones following the rules and taking advantage of their opponent's lack of discipline.

Not that I'm saying the Red Wings aren't a talented team, but I am saying that with proper officiating, we would know who the more talented team is because they would be given the opportunity to demonstrate their full skill set.

I don't know dope.

Pens had a 5 on 3 to easily tie up the game last time and didn't do dick with it. I don't know if the officiating really has a whole lot to do with it.

I think the 5 on 3 is a good point, but when you play an entire season and 3 round of the playoffs being able to dump and chase and not be pinched off at the boards or impeded otherwise (read: interfered with) and then you can't in the Final, it really explains as to why the Penguins are being so widely outshot. You can't take shots if you don't keep possession. You can't get possession if you can't dump and chase. You can't dump and chase if you're being interfered with most of the time you try it.

Yeah I agree with you there. The dump and chase needs to fucking stop now.

NERVOUS WRECK. Third OT coming up.

Additional Spam:
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

That was a hell of a game...I honestly thought the Red Wings had it won several times. Hell, I don't know how the Penguins pulled it off. They blew a 2-0 lead, managed to barely score with 34 seconds left in the 3rd period to tie it 3-3. Red Wings had a lot of chances in those three OTs and the Penguins couldn't even get a shot in on the power plays.

I said many times if the Penguins couldn't convert on the Power Play, Red Wings had it won. Fleury is a beast, I will give credit where it's due. That 4 minute high stick finally did the Red Wings in, we'll see you in Pittsburgh for Game 6 on Wednesday. Pens are still alive, I hope all you Pittsburgh fans are happy.

DOESN'T IT LOOK LIKE I'M HAPPY. :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Gonchar came back at the right time, and Sykora made good on his promise.

Hey, that was a sincere comment man and I meant it. Pens are still in the playoffs and there will actually be something on TV Wednesday night for me to watch. It's a great day.

If the rest of the series is as good as tonight's game was (and by which I mean the Penguins win the rest of the way) then I'll be happy for DAYS.

Disappointing finish to that game. Fleury had a great game, as the Red Wings should've won a handful of times, both in the third period and overtime. I'm still confident in the team though. Next game should be a good one.

Wow, Game 6! It's not over yet! GO PENS

Man, that sucks for the third goal for Detroit. Fleury thinks he has it, puck is sliding behind him, he sits down and his ass accidentally knocks it in. Sorry Pens fans, I don't think it's gonna happen this time.

Edit: THAT was freakin close and they almost pulled off another tie to take into overtime. The fans were chanting "Let's go Pens" and "Fleury". My respect for Pittsburgh has gone up, thanks for keeping the finals interesting and thanks for knocking out the damn Flyers.

ugh, I hate being right

Well I think I'm pretty much going to be bummed out for the rest of the month....



Fuck :(

Saying it right now: Marian Hossa will be a Penguin again next season. The way he played in the postseason (especially to keep playing in the dying seconds tonight...imagine if he scored there? Penguins god for life~) was very impressive.

God you better hope youre right Dope.

I just have a bad feeling about him leaving.

BTW, I think we witnessed the first time in NHL history that a goaltender took a shit and a puck came out.

Frankly, I thought Marc-Andre warranted more of a nod for Conn Smythe than Zetterberg, though I may be biased.

Why Therrien didn't call a timeout before the last series is beyond me.

I'm not yet ready to make my excessively-early Penguins prediction for next year, but I'm sure it will be far dimmer than "Penguins in Finals". Of course, I'd love to be optimistic about these things, but going back to back is tough enough and 12 months is a long time for things to change. That said, I wouldn't be surprised if a big name from this year's team is back but traded next year (Malkin? noooooooo).

I think everyone hoped Pittsburgh would win, but the majority of us knew they just weren't good enough yet.

Also, Dope, the fact you just said Marc-Andre should have been the Conn Smythe winner? Yeah, you are biased. Because no. Goalie of the losing team? Not gonna happen.

It's a shame the number of zeros such a performance demands in the open market. With all of the players the Penguins will be trying to hold on to, fitting Hossa in will be a difficult task. The only way I can see him sticking around is if the two parties work out a discounted one year deal, so both have another shot at the Cup.

But, before I get ahead of myself with off-season chatter, I just wanted to say congratulations to the Wings for winning the Cup this year, and thank you to the Penguins for fostering such a wealth of exciting, young talent in my own back yard. I've been a fan of hockey my entire life, but up until this year I've only known limited playoff success. The two championships the Penguins won consecutively in the early nineties were a wee bit to early for me to consciously appreciate, so seeing them even get this far is a real thrill.

You can complain about the bandwagon fans all you want, but if it wasn't for all of them jumping on board in the last couple years, we'd be without a team right now. With the first wave of excitement coming to a gradual recession, the true fans will be the ones to stick around, and with the roster of young talent the Penguins have it should be an interesting next several years.

Ah, I am ecstatic. Seeing your team win is amazing, especially when they win the Stanley Cup. The Wings set the pace for the rest of the league from the start, and I'm glad they kept it up all the way through the finals. I love the team effort they all put forth, and the way they could just control a game for long stretches. I'm just as excited as I was the past couple times they won (though nothing will top 1997, for various reasons).

The Pens put up a hell of a fight, putting up wins when they were assumed dead and making a series of it after that start. I tip my hat to them, and I hope they can keep most of their team together so I can see more of them in future years.

It happened in 2003. And a couple other times.

Except it (losing goalie = Conn Smythe) happened four times in NHL history, most recently in 2003 by Jean-Sebastien Giguere (2.30GAA, 92% save, which both Osgood and Fleury bested in the playoffs). Were you under a rock when that happened?

And I still don't think Fleury carried this team enough to earn it.

Are you going to leave it at that or would it hurt you to elaborate?

I don't know how else to expand on that, mate. His stats were stellar, sure. But I never got the sense the kid put the team on his shoulders and carried it. He was solid, but nothing more.

So you're saying that between him and Zetterberg you could make a definitive decision between the two of them? How about Fleury against ANYONE from the Red Wings? Fleury was definitely the standout player on the Penguins in the postseason, and he was the best goaltender in the postseason, bar none. First in wins, second in GAA, first in total saves (by a wide margin), second in save percentage, tied for first in shutouts. He certainly and quietly carried the Penguins.

Very quietly. And then they very loudly lost. Want me to make a distinction between Zetterberg and Fleury? A stanley cup ring.

You're not nice. :(

I'm just saying. Yes, Fleury played fantastic. But I never felt like he'd picked up the team and ran with it.

Fucker deserves a raise, though.