2008/2009 Hockey Thread v2.0

[Reddaye]

Ovechkin finally scores on King Henry...but it may be too late to stop the bleeding now.

[Toe]

The Blues just did not have the fire power to get past Luongo and the tough Vancouver defence. Chris Mason played just as well as Luongo. The Blues just lacked the experience and the skill.

[jrtdot]

I swear last night in the post-game interview the St. Louis Blue coach looks like he is about to burst out into tears...

[Plubby]

I don't blame him, he obviously had..

..The Blues.

YEAAAHHH!

[SeanDMan]

Mason was good, really good. A lot of the goals were the direct result of traffic/screens. In the last game for example. of the 3 goals, 2 he had no chance on; the first was off a brutal defensive zone giveaway, and the second he couldn't even see because he was screened thrice over (plus the puck was tipped). The last goal is one I'm sure he would love to have back, but those are the breaks.

St. Louis outshot Vancouver by a fair margin, so while he wasn't as busy, he was still good.

[Toe]

Hopefully the Canucks don't end up matched against Detroit in the next round. I think they match up well against Chicago and we know that a Calgary/Vancouver series would be very entertaining. I do think Vancouver could beat Detroit, I just would rather see them face the other teams.

Edited April 23, 2009 by Toe

[SeanDMan]

Detroit is probably their best matchup. I think they'd have issues with Chicago and Calgary.

[Hajjhowe]

You better hope you don't play me.

And that I make the next round.

[Gabriel]

I think, in the West, anyone who advances is going to want to play Detroit. I know how dominant they've looked against the Jackets, but I still think the holes in their armor are bigger than most people would like to admit. San Jose, Anaheim, Vancouver, Calgary or Chicago would all look favorable, to me at least, against Detroit.

The Jackets just suffered from being new to the post-season, I believe. Too many young guys who just weren't ready for it yet.

I know I rag on the Wings a lot, but I just don't see them repeating as Champs. I think they're far too vulnerable. They're biggest strength is their net presence, but over a seven game series against a team with some experience, that's going to either be matched, or worse, those players who crash the net, will end up getting served up a nice big helping of board.

Of the teams left, I don't see anyone who's going to put up with the constant goaltender interference employed by the Red Wings. Either the refs will have to start calling it, or Osgood will end up getting it right back in return. Either way, I think Detroit's done after Round 2.

Fuck...I have to wake up at 8 am to see Canada Vs Belarus on Friday... just... fuck.

[SeanDMan]

You better hope you don't play me.

And that I make the next round.

I think Canucks/Ducks is an ideal matchup for the Canucks, but it's more or less impossible for round 2. Round 3, if the Ducks make it that far, maybe.

[Toe]

I want to see Vancouver vs. Calgary purely for the entertainment factor.

[Reddaye]

UGH...just fucking UGH.

Columbus has Detroit on their heels in the last minutes of a tie game. They're battling like warriors to keep it in Detroit's end, Osgood was playing shakey...the game was just fucking electric. The crowd was going nuts, it was amazing. So what does Columbus do?

Take a STUPID FUCKING PENALTY! Too many fucking men on the ice. What a complete fucking brain fart of a penalty to take at such an important time. What happens? Detroit score on the power play in the last forty odd seconds, and I'll assume won the game after that point.

Ugh.

[Toe]

San Jose is not having a good time right now.

[Hajjhowe]

BUT I AM.

YIPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[Toe]

If they fail here, what do you do with Thornton and Marleau? They just have no delivered in the post season.

[Plubby]

Nobody has, you can't really pin that specifically on those two.

[Gabriel]

Nobody has, you can't really pin that specifically on those two.

The idea is though, that neither man has delivered in the post-season in... ever.

Being the top team in the league during the regular season is awesome... except when you fail to show up for the playoffs.

I think, if they go out in the first round, some of the bigger names could be on their way out. They have a good crop of young guys, and you could get some decent picks, prospects, and even roster players, for some of those veterans on San Jose's roster.

[Hajjhowe]

They need more size that can hit. Anaheim has been bullying them pretty easily, although their cup run saw them bully everyone on their way to the top anyways. I know it'd be an upset, but in some fairness Anaheim was going to be a tough draw for anyone. Lot's of experience and a good team to deal with.

[Jerichoholic23]

Ovechkin scores the goal of the playoffs so far.

I think the Caps are going to win this series now.

[Gabriel]

Penguins win in amazing fashion. Awesome.

Terrible game from the Flames tonight... but I look back at the first three penalty calls of the game, and having disagreed with them at the time, still disagree with them, and have to wonder if the game would have gone an entirely different way had they not been called. It just completely killed any momentum we could have had from the opening, and there's a legitimate gripe on all three of them.

Regardless, they didn't play well enough to win under the circumstances, and they'll need a far better effort on Monday night.