I Just Hocked Up a Gooey Hockey Thread

[Tom Cashel]

Rangers beat the Isles 4-2. YES!

 

[Teflon Billy]

How's your team doing?

Amazingly. Top of th NHL when I last checked.

Marcus Naslund got injured against the Calgary Flames (what a stupid, nothing contest to lose our superstar captain to!), but all things considered we still have Todd "The Raging Bull" Bertuzzi, Brendan Morrison, "Special Ed" Jovanovski, Mattias Ohlund, a string of powerhouse lowbies (Jason King, Matt Cooke, the Sedin Twins and Bryan Allen), Cagey vets (Mike Keane, Brad May and the incomparable Trevor "Captain Canuck" Linden) that I think we will be able to hold on until Naslund gets back on the ice.

 

[DMScott]

So, howzabout all of you hockey heads out there? How's your team doing?

Well, the games don't really start to matter until about March, so it's early days yet. But my team's doing surprising well at the moment... that team being the Toronto Maple Leafs. The team's still in dire need of a stud defenceman if they plan to go anywhere in the playoffs, but right now they're playing some nice old-time hockey - good transition game, scoring spread around the lines, and a real mean attitude. Heck of a lot more exciting than watching a pure trap team, anyway.

Life is always good when hockey's on. Might as well enjoy it while we can, since the apocalypse is next September .

 

[Welverin]

Hey, Welv...here's a picture you might like. The caption is "BOOSH!!!"

I'm actually one of the (seemingly) few Flyers fans who doesn't have anything against Eric, I blame Bob Clarke.

I dislike that second attachment, the wrong guy is getting hit!

Amazingly. Top of th NHL when I last checked.

Check again, they're a few steps below the real number one team in the league (at the moment).

 

[Tom Cashel]

Well, the games don't really start to matter until about March, so it's early days yet.

I couldn't disagree with you more, Scott. Although you can't win a championship in November-December, you sure can lose one. Playing catch-up in the Spring just doesn't work--ask the Rangers for past six years.

But my team's doing surprising well at the moment... that team being the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Curse them! They swept us in the home-and-home. But we'll see you again next Saturday, and I'll be at the match-up at MSG on the 26th.

 

[DMScott]

I couldn't disagree with you more, Scott. Although you can't win a championship in November-December, you sure can lose one. Playing catch-up in the Spring just doesn't work--ask the Rangers for past six years.

Well, there's very little historical correlation between the top teams at Christmas/New Years and the teams that go far in the playoffs, so I'll stick to my guns. One reason for this is that a lot of good teams are still working out lineup issues, getting playing time for young players, evaluating goalies, etc., so they're artificially low in the standings.

I agree that bad teams can dig themselves into too deep a hole to make the playoffs, but so many teams make the NHL playoffs that a team has to be really bad to take themselves out of the running this early. Much more common is for average to bad teams to overperform early and then limp into the playoffs in seventh or eighth spot - growing up in the 70s and 80s, I saw my beloved Maple Leafs do this many times. Though back then it was fourth spot in the division.

 

[Teflon Billy]

...Check again, they're a few steps below the real number one team in the league (at the moment).

Man, shows what I miss when I don;t check the stats for a few days

I had no idea that the Flyers were credible again, but Christ; look at that lineup. there is some real talent there now.

• Tony Amonte
• Keith Primeau
• Mark Recchi
• Jeremy Roenick
  
  And of Course...
  
• John LeClair

I have no idea who most of the Muckers are (other than the Cement-Fisted Donald "The Basher" Brashear), but that is one hell of a lineup.

 

[DMScott]

The Flyers have had a monster lineup for a few years now. I think they might be getting a bit frustrated - they've done a lot of things right, but still can't get out of the conference. Similar to Ottawa in that respect. I dunno how their farm system looks, but none of those guys are getting younger - I expect there's a lot of pressure to win now.

 

[Welverin]

Well, there's very little historical correlation between the top teams at Christmas/New Years and the teams that go far in the playoffs

Success early in the season doesn't guarantee anything, but a win in November is worth just as many points as one in March. Games late in the season only seem to be more important because teams didn't do a good enough job of taking care of bsuiness early.

Man, shows what I miss when I don;t check the stats for a few days

I had no idea that the Flyers were credible again, but Christ; look at that lineup. there is some real talent there now.

• Tony Amonte
• Keith Primeau
• Mark Recchi
• Jeremy Roenick
  
  And of Course...
  
• John LeClair

I have no idea who most of the Muckers are (other than the Cement-Fisted Donald "The Basher" Brashear), but that is one hell of a lineup.

Top three lines:
Roenick-Amonte-Recchi
Handzus-Williams-LeClair
Primeau-Gagne-Kapanen

Gagne and LeClair may switch places a bit, and I'm not sure which line actually qualifies as second. Then they have Brashear and Lapointe (at least when he gets back) for the fourth line, both of them probably deserve a little better than that.

Their defense finally looks non-crappy for the first time in years as well (o.k. so they weren't too bad last year), which has been the real problem with the team all the way back to their finals appearance against the Wings.

The Flyers have had a monster lineup for a few years now. I think they might be getting a bit frustrated - they've done a lot of things right, but still can't get out of the conference. Similar to Ottawa in that respect. I dunno how their farm system looks, but none of those guys are getting younger - I expect there's a lot of pressure to win now.

Actually Hitch said Williams was his best player the first month of the season and Gagne the best the second month. You can check ages here, and while most of their key players are on the wrong side of thirty, they do have some good young guys as well. They've done a good job of acquiring good young player, especially considering how late they draft each year. Now if Clarke would stop subverting that with stupid trades (Oates), they'll be less chance of them falling apart.

 

[tetsujin28]

Hockey is one of the few things trhat I really miss over here in the UK (all they watch is that pansy 'football' rubbish). I do know that the Sharks are mighty mediocre, but that poor team's been disassembled to the point where there's no hope, really.