2016/2017 Hockey Thread

[Toe]

That Montreal / New York match up is bullshit. What a fantastic reward for winning your division - you now get to face a team that finished only one point behind you and with a better goal differential!

[Hewey]

2 hours ago, Toe said:

That Montreal / New York match up is bullshit. What a fantastic reward for winning your division - you now get to face a team that finished only one point behind you and with a better goal differential!

The whole format is bullshit, two of Pittsburgh, Columbus or Washington will all be eliminated by the 2nd even though they were the top three in the East. 

[gunnar hendershow]

I hate the Eastern & Western Conferences. If they want to do the format like this, why not do like baseball or football and have geographic divisions in each conference? That way it feels a little more natural to have this format. That would be a compromise I would be fine with.

[Pizza]

I don't mind rivalry based divisions, but the crossover kills that. It's one thing if the divisions get split five and three for one team to go over, but when four teams from each division make it, they should stIck together. Either go full on division playoffs or do 1 vs 16 and so on. 

[gunnar hendershow]

So glad we get the NBC-selected playoff games. I mean, really, who wants to see Connor McDavid's first ever playoff game as well as the return of playoff hockey to Edmonton? No one, right? St. Louis-Minnesota is what you all want and what you all will get!

[Hewey]

5 hours ago, damshow said:

So glad we get the NBC-selected playoff games. I mean, really, who wants to see Connor McDavid's first ever playoff game as well as the return of playoff hockey to Edmonton? No one, right? St. Louis-Minnesota is what you all want and what you all will get!

Oilers/Sharks are gonna be on USA following the Pens game

[gunnar hendershow]

2 hours ago, Hewey said:

Oilers/Sharks are gonna be on USA following the Pens game

Oh good. Earlier today I was looking on NBC's website and didn't see it listed for broadcast.

[Hewey]

Fuck, Murray looks like he's out for the next few games, Fleury is gonna have to be lights out like he was tonight, what a performance! Come on, Flower, finish your run as a Penguin with more games like that.

[oldskool]

Leafs/Caps is pretty much the perfect playoff hockey series: everybody's beating the hell out of everybody else, interspersed with ridiculous offensive and defensive plays & a ton of scoring, and both games have gone to overtime.

[Ruki]

Roman Polak out for the year. 

[Hewey]

Leafs need to win at least another one and make this interesting, Caps have not looked like the best team in the NHL so far, gives me hope if they play the Pens.

[gunnar hendershow]

I genuinely would not be surprised to see winner of MTL/NYR lift the Cup in 2 months. Washington is supposed to be the team without flaws, but through 2 games they've been played even by an 8 seed. It's an extremely deep playoff bunch this year, whereas last year it basically felt like Washington or Pittsburgh was winning it all.

[Toe]

On 2017-04-16 at 00:06, Ruki said:

Roman Polak out for the year. 

That was just ugly. The Leafs were already down Zaitsev too, although he might be back from Game 3.

[Hewey]

Pittsburgh is up 3-0 on Columbus, who saw that coming? I am so hoping Leafs take the Caps to 6 or 7, and damn, did not see St. Louis beating Minnesota like that either.

[gunnar hendershow]

I am surprised to see Minnesota down 3-0 as well, but then again Boudreau seems to regularly shit the bed as a playoff coach. Prior to this one every full season he's had as a head coach his team has won their division, but he's only made the conference finals once. Weirdly bad track record.

[gunnar hendershow]

My Facebook timeline right now:

"Oh god it's happening again"

[Meacon Keaton]

How is it not just expected that the Caps will choke in the playoffs? It's like the Browns missing the playoffs or water being wet. 

Also, the Blues have looked really good so far in the playoffs. I've somehow found myself watching all three of their games so far.

[Ruki]

But for real...the Leafs.

[Hewey]

Leafs need to win the next one to put the dagger in their hearts. And even if the Caps win the series, they can't hang with Pittsburgh.

[gunnar hendershow]

It doesn't help the Caps when literally every interview involves asking them about their legacy as the ultimate chokers. Even if they're not thinking about it, the media is making them think about it.

Shocked that the Blackhawks are basically toast, doubly so the Wild. Thinking we're looking at Anaheim-St. Louis and Pittsburgh-Montreal as our conference finals.