2013 - 2014 NHL Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Ockeghem]

Scott,Doc Emrick described Emelin's absence as having to do with an 'undisclosed injury.' He said he wasn't privy to the details. And he eventually said he wasn't even sure if Emelin was injured.

"Canadiens defenseman Alexei Emelin, who appears to have been playing on a hurt knee, sat out with an undisclosed injury. Rookie Nathan Beaulieu played on the third pairing, while Weaver moved onto the second pair with Markov. ... With eight playoff goals, Bourque is only one short of his total in 63 regular-season games. ... Prust served the second of his two-game suspension and can return for Game 6. ... With Stepan back, J.T. Miller sat for New York."

http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=400559011

Game six should be a lot of fun. One advantage of not having a dog in this fight is that I can relax while watching the games. Of course, I'd rather not be relaxed and have my team still playing.

 

[Richard Travale]

According to the Habs twitter, Emelin did not play due to injury. I recall a play in game 4 where he looked hurt near the end of the game. Oh yeah, I was driving home from work so I didn’t see the spray on the little guy carrying the flag, but saw it later. Super classless of Dorsett.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Scott & Richard,

Thanks for the info on Emelin. I never heard anyone on CBC mention why he was out of the lineup, but I didn't watch any of the pre-game or between periods coverage. Hopefully it's not a major injury and he'll be back for Game 6. Those defensive pairings last night made me very nervous.

 

[Ockeghem]

Scott and Richard,When the Rangers scored three relatively quick goals to tie the game at 4-4, I was very concerned for Montreal.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Scott and Richard,When the Rangers scored three relatively quick goals to tie the game at 4-4, I was very concerned for Montreal.

You are not the only one. The Habs were in complete control of the game at 4-1, and all of a sudden they just stopped putting pressure on the Rangers when one more goal would have ended things. Instead, Josh Gorges gets caught daydreaming in front of his own net and scores on his own goalie, and it's game on again. It's very frustrating to watch that type of hockey.

 

[Ockeghem]

"It's very frustrating to watch that type of hockey."

Agreed. But it's better watching your team than not. A little sympathy for the Bruins and their fans, please.

Spoiler

What, no sympathy?

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Spoiler

No sympathy

 

[Scott Merryfield]

So, the Habs season ends with more of a whimper than a bang last night. While the Rangers played very well defensively, it was still a rather disappointing offensive effort by the Canadiens in an elimination game. They couldn't generate any pressure for almost the entire game.

On a positive note, the team advanced farther than I thought they would, and the rookie goaltender Tokarski played as well as anyone could have expected in this series, considering the circumstances. While I think the Habs may have pulled this series out with Price in the net, no one can put any blame on the rookie for losing this series. He kept Montreal in the series when things looked completely lost after Price went down. In the end, too many defensive breakdowns and lack of scoring by the top line doomed the Habs.

I would offer congratulations to the Rangers fans, but I do not think we have any that have been active in this thread.

 

[Ockeghem]

Scott,The Canadiens had a good year. But like teams that are dynasty-driven, that is never their goal. I've been a fan of the Celtics since the mid-1960s, and I know that having a good year is rarely their wish.

I don't know what to make of the Rangers and their chances against either Chicago or Los Angeles. My gut feeling is that New York would thrash Chicago (better goaltending); however, I'm not sure anyone will defeat Los Angeles this year (both goalies are excellent). It's a bit hard for me to believe that the Kings came back from 0-3 (San Jose) and 2-3 (Anaheim) to have a chance to play against the Blackhawks.

 

[DavidJ]

I was pulling for the Kings tonight, but I'm not at all disappointed that we get a game seven. The third period of tonight's game was fantastic.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I would offer congratulations to the Rangers fans, but I do not think we have any that have been active in this thread.

I'm from the NYC Metro area, therefore, I root for those local teams to do well. I'm not a hockey fan and now I have to hear from Ranger fans over the next two weeks whenever i watch or listen to a channel from back home. It's been a long suffering fan base so I do wish them well as they deserve it.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Scott,The Canadiens had a good year. But like teams that are dynasty-driven, that is never their goal. I've been a fan of the Celtics since the mid-1960s, and I know that having a good year is rarely their wish.

I don't know what to make of the Rangers and their chances against either Chicago or Los Angeles. My gut feeling is that New York would thrash Chicago (better goaltending); however, I'm not sure anyone will defeat Los Angeles this year (both goalies are excellent). It's a bit hard for me to believe that the Kings came back from 0-3 (San Jose) and 2-3 (Anaheim) to have a chance to play against the Blackhawks.

Scott, I think whichever team comes out of the West will win the Cup. While the Rangers played well against the Habs, I think that loss had more to do with what the Canadiens lacked than what New York had -- mainly poor play in their defensive zone, struggles with puck possession, and missing one of the best goalies in the game. Both Chicago and LA have playoff-hardened teams, while the Rangers have a some speed and a great goaltender. I do not think that will be enough against the West.

On a selfish note, I will be pulling for the Blackhawks in Game 7 - if they win this round, I win our office playoff pool and a little cash.

 

[Richard Travale]

I’m pulling for the Blackhawks…but only so that Gary Bettman doesn’t get his dream Stanley Cup final between the two largest markets in the US of A.
Yes, I’m that petty.
Go Habs Go! Fierte pour Toujours!

 

[Walter C]

I’m pulling for the Blackhawks…but only so that Gary Bettman doesn’t get his dream Stanley Cup final between the two largest markets in the US of A.
Yes, I’m that petty.
Go Habs Go! Fierte pour Toujours!

I doubt Bettman will get upset if the Blackhawks get in. In fact, I think it would be even be better, for both for NBC and hockey fans, since it involves 2 US Original Six teams. At least on paper.

That's 3 Game 7's for the Kings. It has to be pretty demoralizing to lose Game 6 the way they did, and the fact that it was done at home makes it even worse.

 

[Ockeghem]

I agree Walter (about the Kings). I don't know if they can win game seven in Chicago. I picked the Blackhawks to win the series, but I would be very pleased if they lost tonight.

 

[Ockeghem]

Whew! I love that the Kings defeated the Blackhawks. The Stanley Cup Finals should be excellent.

 

[Ockeghem]

I picked Montreal and Chicago in this round, so I went 0-2 (10-4 overall). I'll post my Stanley Cup Finals prediction later.

 

[Carlo_M]

Cardiac Kings are killing me. Crazy to think that if the Kings weren't so banged up last year vs. the Hawks this might be their third trip to the finals in a row. Still three Conference finals with one cup (and working towards potentially a second) isn't bad. I know everyone grabs the cash, but Gaborik really needs to consider taking a little less to stay with the Kings. Kopitar makes him a better player.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I picked Montreal and Chicago in this round, so I went 0-2 (10-4 overall). I'll post my Stanley Cup Finals prediction later.

I got both my picks correct, but I am not happy about either one. The Kings cost me the playoff office pool at work, and the other series is obvious.

I'll take the Kings in the Finals. Lundqvist will have to be amazing for the Rangers to have any chance in the series.

 

[Ockeghem]

Scott,I really don't dislike either of these teams / franchises. The Bruins nearly owned the Rangers when they won their two Cups in the 1970s (4-0 and 4-2 in the playoffs), but I still respected the Jean Ratelle / Brad Park / Rod Gilbert / Vic Hadfield / Walt Tkaczuk / Eddie Giacomin years. (Walt Tkaczuk was kind of my Yvan Cournoyer of the Rangers. He was a superb defensive forward, his ability to produce assists was excellent, and he got under my skin when he played the Bruins. )

The 1971-1972 Rangers team defeated the Canadiens and the Blackhawks en route to the Final against Boston. And this year the Bruins played them very well and didn't lose to them once. But during the past two or three years or so the Rangers have played the Bruins very well.

I really don't know all that much about the Kings (relatively speaking). I've watched them for a few years in the playoffs, and I know two things. Quick can be incredibly stingy in goal when he's hot, and although the focus this year has been on the wonderful defense of Drew Doughty, I would love to have Kopitar on my team any day of the week. I'd like to see the Rangers win this series. But I do believe that the Kings will take it.

My pick:

Los Angeles over New York