Re: Hockey Talk: The Official NHL 2008-2009 Thread

Thanks Bob...

I saw a couple of nice threads on-line with some good parade photos...will have to post a link...

From my Mom's report it was pretty packed - she did manage to see some of the players and wandered over and watched the post parade speeches on the jumbotron...

Looks like the crowd eclipsed the Steelers parade crowd - most likely due to school being out and it being a really, really nice June day in the Burgh!

City of Champions again!

Super XLIII Champion Steelers
2009 Stanley Cup Champion Penguins

Randy

Re: Hockey Talk: The Official NHL 2008-2009 Thread

Sacrilege! Art Rooney is rolling over in his grave.

BTW, I've been a huge Steelers fan for almost 40 years.

Re: Hockey Talk: The Official NHL 2008-2009 Thread

City of Champions - Pittsburgh, PA - SkyscraperPage Forum

Here's a link to a thread with some good parade photos...

As far as the Steelers go - I here you. The Chief probably took a couples of turns. I think that the downside of the Steelers parade was that it was in February - in Pittsburgh. Not exactly the best environment to stand around in.

Football is still king there though - anytime I am back home, I am gauranteed to see lots of Steelers gear. Some Pens, little Pirates, but lots of Steelers. I think though that the Pens runs these past to years have really turned a lot of folks onto hockey and believe that some of the younger set are bigger Hockey fans that football fans, if that is possible. The Pens TV ratings for the playoffs for through the roof - think best nationally, ever.


Randy

Here's some unfortunate news from an NHL perspective:

Former NHL player Chris Nilan arrested at South Shore Plaza

www.patriotledger.com/news/cops_and_courts/x1373174392/Former-NHL-player-Chris-Nilan-arrested-at-South-Shore-Plaza


Too bad.  That mall is in the next town over from me, and by coincidence, I actually know the guy from Weymouth who was with him at the time.  I've heard a lot of rumors that Knuckles has substance problems and has tried to get help in the past.  Even though he was a hated Hab (and once threatened to kill my brother when they both played at Northeastern U. ), I hope he finds peace with himself (and with that 'being an ex-Hab' thing).

I guess Nilan is out of practice throwing punches.

I can't find a 2009-10 thread.  Has one been created?

For fans of Boston, does anyone get the feeling that the Bruins are just going through the motions this year?  I've been watching the standings and keeping an eye on them, and don't see a team that is really playing to its potential at this time.  They seemed quite a bit more dominant last year.

Has the loss of Kessel maybe affected the Bruins? I never understood that trade. He is a young, highly skilled player, and Boston traded him away for draft picks. At best, they may get someone who would eventually develop into a player as good as Kessel. At worst, they gave away an important part of their foundation for many years. For once, the Maple Leafs actually made a good move on this trade.

The Habs have been about what I expected... which wasn't much. I did not like the hiring of Jacques Martin as head coach. He consistently underachieved in the playoffs with all that talent in Ottawa, and was just another recycled NHL coach.

As for the new players, I liked the addition of Cammalleri and Gionta, but wasn't too fond of them getting Gomez or Hal Gill. Gomez just never seems to make plays when I watch him, and Gill is slow and weak defensively (with not any offensive upside).

I thought of starting a new thread.  Maybe I will (or someone else can) as we get into the playoffs.

The Bruins are hanging on to the eighth and final playoff spot, but are only two points out of sixth.  This final couple of weeks is going to be quite interesting.

I've been watching their game against a pretty good Buffalo team tonight, hoping we might get two points out of this.  Unfortunately, Boston lost 3-2.  I realize they have some injuries, but they seem to be so out of sorts compared to last year.  I am hopeful that they will turn it on when it matters most. :)

Yes, the playoff race in the East is very tight. My Habs are barely hanging in there. Even if they do sneak into the playoffs, though, I think it will be a quick exit for them (and the Bruins, too, if they make it).  Washington and Pittsburgh are destined to meet in the conference finals, IMO.

I am also keeping an eye on Toronto, but only for draft position. The Bruins own the Leafs first round pick this year.  If it ends up being a top two overall pick, there is an excellent chance that local OHL superstar Tyler Seguin from the Plymouth Whalers could end up wearing a Bruins uniform.  He and Taylor Hall from Windsor will be the top two picks -- it's just a matter of who gets picked first. After watching this kid play over the past two years, I really do not want to see him in Boston.

Correction Scott - The Bruins own the Leafs first round pick this year and next year (plus their second). 

I knew that, Jeff.  It's the #1 this year, though -- which could be Seguin -- that concerns me at the moment.  I've watched Seguin play a lot the past two years (my wife and I go to most of the Whalers home games), and it would be harder to pull for him at the next level if he's wearing a Bruins uniform.

That Kessel trade could turn out to be quite a haul for Boston, though. If they somehow end up with Hall or Seguin, plus another high first round pick next year, they will have made out like bandits -- even though Kessel is a very good player. I think both Hall and Seguin will turn out to be very good NHL players -- they are both probably somewhere between Stamkos and Tavares (the last two #1 overall draft picks) in talent. I watched both of them play in their OHL days, too.

Phil Kessel just didn't fit the Bruin mold.  Natural scorer, but as soft as feather down and a work ethic comparable to a three toed sloth.  I could see keeping him because he is talented, but to not trade him for a 1-1-2 would have been the stupidest non-deal ever.  Simply put, Toronto got hosed.

I was shocked when I first saw what the Leafs gave up for Kessel, and it will just keep getting worse if they end up losing out on a future superstar in the draft. This was not the year for a bad team to give up their 1st round pick. Even the 3rd overall rated player -- defenseman Cam Fowler from Windsor (Taylor Hall's teammate) -- looks to be a very solid prospect.

I'd say, start one when it's playoff time.

It just seems like the 4 teams don't really want the final playoff spots in the East, as they probably know they're doomed anyway in the 1st round.

And the Bruins earn a spot in the playoffs.  I wasn't sure I was going to be able to write this a few weeks ago.  And what's with three short-handed goals?  I'm pleased that their season will be extended at least for a while. :)

A spot in the playoffs and a guaranteed top 3 pick.  Thanks Leafs.

And those three short-handed goals occurred in sixty-four seconds!

ESPN has one story that says that the Canadians, Flyers, and Rangers are all fighting for the two remaining playoff spots.  But I thought the Canadians clinched already?  Anyway, the New York - Philadelphia game is going to be a good one.  I wonder if it will be televised?

The Habs had not clinched until "backing" into the playoffs last night with an overtime loss to Toronto. Montreal will be the 7th or 8th seed, while Boston gets the sixth seed, courtesy of the Canadiens final week collapse... typical of a Jacques Martin coached team.  His Ottawa teams always fell apart at the end of the season, too. Philly and the Rangers play today for the final playoff spot. 

I really dislike the overtime loss rule that the NHL uses.  It makes no sense that some games are worth two points and others three points.  IMO, they should just award two points for a win and zero for the loss, regardless of whether the team loses in regulation, OT or a shootout. Rewarding a team for losing is silly.

If the moron commissioner Bettman cannot accept the above, at least do something similar to the Olympics, where every game is worth three points.  A regulation win earns a full three points, and OT or SO win gets two points for the winner and one for the loser.

BTW, on Wednesday evening I witnessed one of the most amazing goaltending exhibitions I have ever seen.  In an Ontario Hockey League playoff game, Plymouth Whalers backup goaltender Scott Wedgewood faced 73 shots on goal against the defending Memorial Cup champion Windsor Spitfires. Plymouth held the lead 2-1 until Windsor tied the score with 30 seconds left in regulation, then the Spits won about 13 minutes into the first OT session. Plymouth was out-shot 73-20, and Wedgewood was spectacular, filling in for Plymouth's starting goalie, who was suspended from an incident in the previous game.

Fans for both teams hung around after the game, waiting for the three stars announcement after the customary series-completion handshake, just to give Wedgewood a standing ovation. It was a terrific moment.
Edited by Scott Merryfield - 4/11/10 at 8:25am

FWIW, the Bruins defeated the 'best' team in hockey today, albeit in a shoothout.  I've not been a fan of the shootout ever since it first came into being.  Thankfully, once the playoffs start, this goes away and the tied teams play until someone wins it in overtime.  I wish that the shootout would be eliminated during the regular season as well.

And the Flyers - Rangers game is tied 1-1 at the end of regulation.  I'd love to be at this game, or at least be able to watch it on television.

Next year Bettman will announce that teams losing an OT game in the playoffs will get half a win.

The game was on the NHL Network. I was flipping between it and The Masters.

^^^

Thanks, Scott.  I was hoping that the game would possibly be on Versus.  Many of the playoff games will be on that channel as well as on at least one major network, which is good.

"Next year Bettman will announce that teams losing an OT game in the playoffs will get half a win."

You know, I thought you were serious here for a moment.  But when I let the post load in its entirety, I saw the LOL at the end.  Thank goodness you were joking!

My first round playoff predictions:

Washington over Montreal in 5 games
New Jersey over Philly in 7 games
Buffalo over Boston in 7 games
Pittsburgh over Ottawa in 5 games

San Jose over Colorado in 6 games
Nashville over Chicago in 7 games
Vancouver over LA in 5 games
Detroit over Phoenix in 6 games

Right now, I am leaning towards Washington over Vancouver in the Stanley Cup office pool. I do not have to make up my mind until Wednesday.  This is the toughest playoff bracket to predict in recent memory. No team looks like a runaway favorite to go all the way. The West, especially, looks like a total crap shoot.

You've got that right.  I would not want to bet on who is going to come out of the West.  I could see the Red Wings do it, but they could also lose in the first round.  It's pretty much that way with every team.

Edmonton and Boston won the Taylor Hall & Tyler Seguin sweepstakes, getting the #1 and #2 overall draft picks in tonight's draft lottery.  Congrats, Oilers and Bruins fans. You are each getting a very good player, no matter which guy the Oilers take #1 overall.

I'm really hoping the Sharks can go deep into the playoffs. They have great fans who are very hungry for a deep run in the playoffs.

I wouldn't count on it. The Sharks are the new Ottawa Senators -- great regular seasons, but always a disappointment in the playoffs. Also, I do not believe that Nabakov is a big game goalie.  He's come up short in the playoffs, and was a disappointment again in the Olympics for Russia this year. Solid goaltending is critical in the playoffs.

Until they prove me wrong, I will always pick an early exit for San Jose.

This is very encouraging for Bruins fans.  I hope they advance past Buffalo (Boston won the season series 4-2).  It is looking like Savard might play in the second round, assuming Boston gets there.

http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/news/story?id=5083858

Let's go Bruins!

The Bruins are hot, and their heart-and-soul (and PPG in the Playoffs player) Milan Lucic is finally healthy and making an impact.