quote:

Originally posted by 400m:
Our Kane-less Blackhawks are now without Toews as well.

The end of an era. It was a great run.

Not much of a hockey guy. But go Kraken since no one has mentioned them. Might be the sleeper team.

Seems the Bruins didn’t tighten up ANYTHING on either side of the red line last night. YIKES!

quote:

Originally posted by old rugged cross:
Not much of a hockey guy. But go Kraken since no one has mentioned them. Might be the sleeper team.

They are not to be taken lightly at all. Only 4 wins separate the Kraken and the Avs in an 82 regular game schedule. They are the real deal. I know the Avs have won the last two, but injuries are starting again which has been the worst season in that regard. The only reason we won our division is our stars got white hot since the All Star break. Now white hot stars can carry you far in the post season, but that's not enough to win a Cup. Right now the Avs are double shifting their top six to protect a weak bottom six. Which has on any given night two or three players that have no business playing outside of the AHL. Our top six is missing three players we had last year, and an untried playoff goalie. This is going to be a brutal series for them.

My B’s have bounced back after the wake up call of the game 2 abomination. Kick that ass!! Now let’s FINISH THIS ROUND at home on Wednesday!!

The officiating for the Wild/Stars game last night was junior level; on both sides.

I don’t even know what more to say right now.

Unbelievable.

After game 3 Valeri Nichuskkin left the team for personal reasons. Its been reported that "an incident" happened at the team hotel. Lot's of other speculation. So, now this team is without 4 of the top 6 forwards we had last year, and Cale Makar was suspended for one game due to an ill advised hit.

Well, looks like I picked the wrong time to quit drinking.

I’m lucky to have a tv left in one piece……

quote:

Originally posted by erj_pilot:
I’m lucky to have a tv left in one piece……

As a Caps fan I got to the point I didn’t want them to win the presidents cup.

I think Boston will take the next game.

Since it’s not my team I’m happy to see any series go more game.

Avs are looking horrible. Lack of depth they had last year is really showing. I'd like to address MacKinnon's tantrum with the ref after an obvious trip that was not called. He got back up and had the puck right in front of him has he looks up to yell at the ref. Kraken player pokes the puck past MacKinnon. MacKinnon then slams his stick into the glass taking himself out of any meaningful back check effort, and the puck ends up in the back of his net. That goal was MacKinnon's fault not the ref. Get your head out of your ass and back in the game.

Now Eliot Friedmann has suggested Makar's one game suspension was a super star discount. Makar's reaction to his suspension was perfect. Paraphrasing Makar said it went from a no call. To a major. To a minor, and then a suspension. I'm fine with the one game suspension given he has no priors, but I hope he had a fine time at home watching the wheels come off of his team's cart. I'm almost wishing the Kraken put them out of their misery. I can't help but wonder if this sudden change in the Avs play have something to do with the Valeri Nichushkin incident. I would love to know what happened, but no one is talking.

For my money, I LOVE the 1st round of the NHL playoffs. So many excellent matchups. Love hockey!!!! This is the best time of year for me.....it's finally spring up in Alaska, and there's hockey on every night. And my bees are doing well.

My rating of the series':

1. Oilers & Kings - These guys genuinely hate each other, and every time they play it's a good game. One of the best current rivalries in the NHL, maybe THE best. I like Edmonton in 7 here.

2. Stars & Wild - Another excellent matchup, though neither team has great depth they both play good defense and are the closest thing to an Eastern Conference team in the Western Conference. They won't stand up in the end to a deep, bruising squad like Boston has, but they'll make a good go of it if they make it. I like the Stars in 6.

3. Maple Leafs & Lightning - Everyone loves to hate the Bolts, but they are built for the playoffs. Yes, the Leafs are stacked and scary fast, but they also let Tampa live rent-free in their heads. This one is to close to call for me. Toronto is the more talented team this year, but Tampa may pull it out. Still, pressed to make a pick - the Leafs get the monkey off their back and take the series in 7.

4. Hurricanes & Islanders - I'm honestly surprised the Isles are still in this. Carolina was the best team in the league after Boston coming into the playoffs. They've looked lost a couple of times during this series. Still, I think they get it together and win in 6, and watch out for them next round.

5. Bruins & Panthers - See description of Hurricanes & Islanders above, but replace Carolina with Boston. They are scary when they're firing on all cylinders, and I still think the Cup is theirs to lose this season. But they seem like they're trying to avoid losing rather than playing to win.

All of the remaining 3 series hold little interest for me personally, so I don't really care who wins them.

6. Devils & Rangers - Hate the Devils, so I'm pulling for the Rangers here, but they always seem to play below expectations. Devils in 7.

7. Avs & Kraken - Hate the Avs, so pulling for the Kraken, who have been surprisingly good at foiling the Avs vaunted offense, scoring first in every game to put the Avs on their heels. The Avs haven't helped themselves and have lots of drama going on as well. If they hope to advance they better get it together, but I'm saying Seattle in 7.

8. Golden Knights & Jets - Vegas outclasses Winnipeg. More complete, more depth, better offense, better defense. They win this going away in 5, and I wouldn't want to be facing them in round 2.

Anyway, that's my take on it.

President's Trophy curse raises its ugly head once again.

quote:

Originally posted by goose5:
President's Trophy curse raises its ugly head once again.

Was about to post the same thing.

In the last couple of games, Florida has been winning 5 on 5. Take away PP goals and FL has been killing them. You can't win playoffs relying on PP goals.

I'm disappointed from the stand point that a Boston/Toronto series would just would have been spectacular.

Not a Boston fan. Can't deny that they are the most obnoxious fans when they come to Anaheim and Philly is close or maybe slightly ahead.

This is the biggest choke in modern playoff history.

President's Trophy winner by a long shot. No question about that and the series against the Panthers wasn't supposed to be anything other than a speedbump on the way to Cup finale.

Up by 3-1 in the series, Panthers win 3 in a row and defeat Boston on their home ice. Ouch.

Some say Ullmark should have started but he was tired, as shown by all the goals he's gave up in the first 6 games. He played the last 6 games of the season and that makes 12 consecutive starts. No goalie can do that and not be tired but even if he had started, I don't know that he would have stopped the SWG. It looked shielded to a degree.

Boston now starts a serious rebuild. They mortgaged the future for this season and it didn't work out. 5 of their best players are UFAs, they are still paying off salaries for other trades and their next substantive draft pick comes in 2025.

They are in a generational rebuild that will be painful for some time.

I am thankful that the lost season of the Colorado Avalanche is finally done. They lost two top six forwards to free agency. They lost another top six forward the captain to injury for the entire season. They lost one second pairing D man to injury to most of the first round. And, they lost another top six forward to some weird hotel incident and "personal reasons." And, they lost a key bottom six forward on a boarding which was not called, and player safety didn't suspend the offending player, and oh yes this play resulted in a C5 lamina fracture. A bridge to far for this team. And, this marks the 8th consecutive game 7 this team has lost. Jared Bednar has signed an extension and I'm fine with that. This team is just a shell of what it was last year. This team should have a very different look next year.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: goose5,

Happy Boston is out of it. I'd say that puts Carolina as the new favorite, but this is why I love hockey!

Damn. Just.... Damn.

I'm actually not even upset. When Ullmark choked with the play behind the net in game 5 OT, I pretty much conceded that the Bruins were done. When they didn't win game 6 in Florida, I was further convinced this was gonna be one of the biggest chokes in NHL history. Only thing worse is when the Bruins have been up 3-0 and lost the series. At least in those years, they hadn't broken all kinds of personal, team, and league records on their way to a President's Cup.

Another year of snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory...

JSMH. Damn.

Well...after several days to let this series digest and pass through my lower colon, here's the analysis I sent to my Uncle and cousins:

OK. Where do I start with THIS analysis??? Been watching this team for 53 years.

The good:
Brad Marchand – led the way in points; was at his usual energetic level.
Tyler Bertuzzi – a VERY unexpected successful addition to the roster at the trade deadline; played damned good!!
Taylor Hall – I was ready for him to be traded mid-season based on his play. That dude woke up, played with confidence, and poured it on after coming back from injury the last couple of games!!
Charlie Coyle – that guy gives 110% every game and did a GREAT job filling in on line 1 in Bergeron’s absence.
Jake DeBrusk – I’ll give him an honorable mention.
Dmitry Orlov (#81) – you nailed it, Uncle Tony. Orlov was about the only positive in the D and another good addition at the trade deadline.
Charlie McAvoy – I’ll give him credit….he might not be able to hit the goal if it was 10 x 20, but he delivered some MASSIVE physical component to the series.
David Pastrnak – Florida covered that dude like a blanket, but he did manage to score some important goals. Missed a couple, though…

The horrible:
Line 2 – Zacha-Krejci-Pastrnak…didn’t have the usual impact they had during the season. I don’t think Krejci was 100%.
The “Defense” – had more turnovers than a mite team. McAvoy’s hitting and Orlov’s play were the ONLY things that shined. Meh…I’ll give some kudos to Brandon Carlo. Hampus Lindholm was INVISIBLE.
Goaltending/Ullmark – Oh holy CRAP!!! I personally think Ullmark was playing hurt. Should have put Swayman in goal in game 6 after Ullmark crapped the bed in game 5 OT.
Bergeron – Once again in the playoffs, I don’t think he was 100%. I would have kept him out and played the roster that won the previous 3 games. Think he came back when they were up 3-1, correct?
Penalty Kill – What in the name of ZEUS’S BUTTHOLE happened to the #2 penalty kill in the league????? But again, your goaltender MUST be your best penalty killer and Ullmark wasn’t it.
Overall play – It was crystal CLEAR the Panthers were playing a full 60-minute game with a MASSIVE sense of urgency every game. There were only mere sporadic FLASHES of that from the Bruins.
Power Play – well…it sucked during the season, so that carried forward into the playoffs. I wanna say in 2011 when they won the cup the power play percentage was just as dismal or even worse.
3rd period scoring – led the entire league by a MASSIVE…MASSIVE…margin all year. That dried up and withered away.

OVERALL:
Yet again, this team found a way to snatch defeat outta the jaws of victory. Just unbelievable!! Simply put…The Bruins didn’t play to WIN. They played to NOT LOSE. And it bit them in the ass. Obviously on paper they should have won that series either 4-0 or 4-1.

I think Sweeney and Neely put together a helluva great team, ESPECIALLY at the deadline to ready for the playoffs…the regular season stats show that. Montgomery SHOULD get the Jack Adams, but won’t, because the players let him down. Ullmark will probably (and should) still get the Vezina, but after that DISMAL display in the playoffs, if I were him, I’d be EMBARRASED to even show my face at the ceremony, let alone on the stage!

Have to give Florida credit…they were a problem team for the Bruins during the season and they got hot at the end of those 82 games and started firing on all cylinders for the playoffs. Bobrovsky got hot and got up for the big games…what can you say?

I don’t know what this team will do next year. I would be VERY surprised to see Bergeron and/or Krejci coming back. BUT…hope the B’s enjoy the summer and reflect on their season. I’m sure there’s gonna be a TON of “shoulda, woulda, coulda”. I don’t think ANY team will ever repeat what the Bruins did this season. Proud of them for that, but at the end of the day, the goal is to drink the sweet nectar of victory from Lord Stanley’s Cup, eh?

Oh in case any one is interested the Minnesota Wild suck and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.