NHL 2013-14

[Lord Cameron]

Shea Weber? Hey, now THAT'S a great D-man... playing for a team not in playoff contention even. That's tough to overlook, despite his doing everything in his power to get there.

Weber should win the "I listened to stupid advice from my agent award"  :-\

If he was smart, he would have signed a 1 yr or 2 yr offer sheet, play out the year(s) and then go into free agency where he could play where he wants, probably for what he's getting now.
'
Instead, he's locked up his career with a team that's got little chance to win the cup in the next few years.
Worse yet, he has no NTC so he could see himself wind up in Edmonton or Buffalo or anywhere.  :o

[JadeHellbringer]

Weber should win the "I listened to stupid advice from my agent award"  :-\

If he was smart, he would have signed a 1 yr or 2 yr offer sheet, play out the year(s) and then go into free agency where he could play where he wants, probably for what he's getting now.
'
Instead, he's locked up his career with a team that's got little chance to win the cup in the next few years.
Worse yet, he has no NTC so he could see himself wind up in Edmonton or Buffalo or anywhere.  :o

To be fair, that advice got him a long-term deal with the Flyers. It's just that the Preds answered the call and matched it.

And really, if Weber wants to point fingers at management for letting top players like his BFF Suter leave town, or not bring in top-flight replacements... He can look at the cap hit that he and Rinne put on the Preds and maybe understand why the team isn't exactly dominating the West these days. That's not to say the staff in Nashville has done a great job with what they've got left- it's kind of a dull team with little to be excited about, right now. But there's not a lot of room to help them right now in terms of cap space. He and Rinne got paid, and that's great- but it almost guarantees that they'll never win a Cup.  :-\

[Peter Smith]

Just avoid the comments section. In general, avoid that stuff.

But those are the best parts!

I have to wait until FRIDAY to watch the Bruins. This is displeasing. ;) Fortunately, NBC is seeing to it that EVERY GAME is televised nationally again, so we sure aren't going to lack for hockey to watch over the next couple of weeks!

I'll be in Toronto next week, thankfully the PHT schedule shows both the US and Canadian broadcasters. I hope to catch the Blackhawks games, and I hope that CBC includes the Anthem. Nobody does it better than Chicago. Nobody.

[GhostBear]

Nobody does it better than Chicago. Nobody.

Agreed, though I'm more of a fan of the Wayne Messmer era, myself.

[JadeHellbringer]

Agreed, though I'm more of a fan of the Wayne Messmer era, myself.

Call me a homer, but I do enjoy the enthusiasm that Rene Rancourt brings to the start of a Bruins game. Fist-pumps for ALL!

The guy that used to do it in Denver was Jake Schroeder, who was the front man for a great local band called Opie Gone Bad. The band has sadly broken up (great music, if you're interested), and Jake no longer does Avs games, but that guy could freaking SING. Take a listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJWnqTUV-tE

[JadeHellbringer]

We have our first canned coach of the offseason. Barry Trotz is out in Nashville.  :-\

[ItsTehPope]

We have our first canned coach of the offseason. Barry Trotz is out in Nashville.  :-\

I'm still not buying it.  Trotz was given between fart and all to work with this year due to the massive contracts of Rinne and Weber, and Rinne has an excuse this year for not being that great.

[Peter Smith]

We have our first canned coach of the offseason. Barry Trotz is out in Nashville.

Not really a firing, he contract was ending this season and it didn't get picked up. He was offered a position in the team's Hockey Operations group, so it's not like the team is kicking him to the curb. The question is what will Barry do?

[Peter Smith]

...but that guy could freaking SING. Take a listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJWnqTUV-tE

It's not bad. Here's what Chicago gets to hear before every home game. It's from a few years back, but I wanted to find a game where Jim Cornelison sang both O Canada and the Star Spangled Banner. I was hoping to find a recording of the recent game against Montreal, Cornelison sang the French lyrics rather than the English lyrics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_nQ-GNdo3E

[Firesprocket]

I'm still not buying it.  Trotz was given between fart and all to work with this year due to the massive contracts of Rinne and Weber, and Rinne has an excuse this year for not being that great.

So if Weber wins the Norris, which he probably won't, is he still massively over paid?  Seems as long as he doesn't nose dive his contract would be on par with any other star in the game.  Lord knows he is a big reason why instead of the Preds being horrible, they are at least mediocre.

[rebs]

And so we bid goodbye to the regular season, and to fourteen teams that just didn't quite cut the mustard. See you all next year.

And for the remaining sixteen, the schedule is out.

http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2014/04/13/heres-the-schedule-for-the-first-round-of-the-2014-playoffs/

(Just avoid the comments section. In general, avoid that stuff.)

I have to wait until FRIDAY to watch the Bruins. This is displeasing. ;) Fortunately, NBC is seeing to it that EVERY GAME is televised nationally again, so we sure aren't going to lack for hockey to watch over the next couple of weeks!

Predictions (because I'm an idiot):

Boston in six
Tampa in seven
Pittsburgh in five
Rangers in seven
Colorado in six
Chicago in six
Anaheim in five
Los Angeles in seven

Predictions, ehh...  (if you're an idiot, I'll be idiot number one to follow you to the cliffs... )

The Beasty East:

Boston in seven.  But only because it's the game we must get to for there to any true hope of the Red and White team winning this series.  :)   Boston is the better team, and not by accident, as Babs said earlier in an interview.  Wings will have to outskate the B's and do so every game against a team that plays the game in the same team ideal that we also aim for, no matter the current talent disparity amongst the forwards, and especially amongst the Dmen.

Tampa in five games
Pittsburgh in seven games - Blue Jackets fight to the death this year.
Flyers in six games

In the Wicked West:


Anaheim in six games
Chicago in five games
Colorado in seven games
San Jose in seven games

edit:

[cavingjan]

(Montreal is playing Tampa and the Rangers are playing the Flyers)

[rebs]

I was in a hurry to get it over with for round one.  Haste makes such waste.   :-[

edit

I may not have caught that until after the playoffs start if I didn't look back.  They are hasty gut picks, but still I would rather keep them legit to see how right/wrong I am.   ;D 

I was hoping to see some other prognostications for the first round of the playoffs.  I don't usually bother until later, I think a lot of people are that way, because so many teams and fan bases will be crushed in 4 to 7 games.  But what the hey...

edit: Playoffs start tonight.  Soooo... no one else is feeling secure enough to post their first round picks on a public thread?   :)

[JadeHellbringer]

Scroll up. I had mine in to mark the end of the regular season.

[Firesprocket]

I'm fairly late to this party of picks because of work but here it goes anyhow:

Bruins in 6. Because the Red Wings just won't die.
Pens in 5. All but one game is close.
Montreal in 5.  I don't see the Bolts stealing more than one game without Bishop and it they will only win that one game because of Steve Stamkos wills it to happen.
Rangers in 5.  If Mason can't go and Emery plays multiple games they are hosed.


Avs in 5.  Yes, that quickly.
Ducks in 4.  I just can't see the Stars hanging with the Ducks at all
Kings in 7.  Quick and that defense keep the Sharks largely off the board.  The games will all be close except for one which the Sharks blow the Kings out of the water giving the Sharks a false sense of security that they have gotten over the hump.  Quick then shuts them out for the last 2 games of the series.
Blackhawks in 6.  Pick the Blues to get out of the first round?  I don't think that is conceivable.

[Firesprocket]

It is now 4 days after the season ended and Oates hasn't been fired and Mcphee is still around.  Yet Trotz is finally let go.  What's wrong with this universe.  Well I guess it could be worse, at least my team hasn't endorsed Ondrej Pavelec returning.    There must be a quota in Winnipeg for each sound decision which they make, which I don't know there has been all that many (though signing Paul Maurice to an extension is a good one) they make another bone headed one.

[JadeHellbringer]

Brief thoughts from the first night:

+ Ohhhh Ducks. For 30 minutes they owned Dallas, then they let them get back into it. They still won, but that wasn't a good effort late in that game- if they do that again in game 2, they might not be able to hold off the comeback. Benn, Seguin, and co. are too good to let them get back into a game the way they did tonight. I expect Anaheim to come out a hell of a lot better for the latter half of Game 2, or this could get ugly.

+ Speaking of teams that put on good efforts, I know they lost, but man Colombus gave the Pens a tough one. That last goal was bizarre, otherwise this could have gone either direction. At times the Jax looked dominant, and if that shorthander to start the 2nd wasn't one of the best goals you've seen this season you don't watch enough hockey. This one might be a better series than people are giving credit for.

+ That leaves the game I admit I didn't watch because I watched PIT/COL, but judging from the highlight reel we have another close one between Montreal and Tampa, to boot. Stamkos was awesome, the goalies looked shaky, we got OT... man, it's the freakin' playoffs, how great is this?

Now, let's get that burgundy colored shirt out for tomorrow... the Avalanche are back!

[GhostBear]

The COL/PIT game was brilliantly intense. Told you this series will be close.

Fleury looked solid, too - 2 of the 3 goals were nowhere near his fault; that shortie he could've stopped if he hadn't been overcommitted...but then again, Letang blew the pooch with the turnover in the first place. I'm glad Bylsma sat his butt down for a while after that; Letang had a horrible night.

Last night really showed the Pens need to resign Niskanen no matter the cost, and trade off Letang. (Yes, I finally said it.)

[rebs]

All three games were a great start to this years tourney, a great reason to go to work tired! 

Columbus looked awesome.  Dallas also looked good, and what can be said about any playoff OT game like TB vs Montreal?  I'll say all that too, then!  ;D

And the Red Wings are surely scouting Niskanen, as well as about fifteen or twenty other teams, probably.  Reliable defense is a commodity in such short supply.

Scroll up. I had mine in to mark the end of the regular season.

I know, man.  I was being an arse about trying to nudge more predictions out of people.  I'll keep it to myself. 
 

[GhostBear]

I know, man.  I was being an arse about trying to nudge more predictions out of people.  I'll keep it to myself.

Late, but I'd told these to Hellbie on Tuesday, so not really late.

Pens in 6
Habs in 6
Bruins in 7
Rangers in 7

Ducks in 5
Kings in 6
Avs in 5
Hawks in 7

[JadeHellbringer]

The COL/PIT game was brilliantly intense. Told you this series will be close.

Fleury looked solid, too - 2 of the 3 goals were nowhere near his fault; that shortie he could've stopped if he hadn't been overcommitted...but then again, Letang blew the pooch with the turnover in the first place. I'm glad Bylsma sat his butt down for a while after that; Letang had a horrible night.

Last night really showed the Pens need to resign Niskanen no matter the cost, and trade off Letang. (Yes, I finally said it.)

Part of me almost wants to give Letang a mulligan- I mean, he's just now getting back after a freaking STROKE!- but yeah, that was an AWFUL play on his part.

[Firesprocket]

Crazy sob Roy pulls his goalie with a face off in the neutral zone, yet it worked.  Now I might be up all night watching the hockey.  Well at least I don't have to be into work until 1230  O0

[JadeHellbringer]

Crazy sob Roy pulls his goalie with a face off in the neutral zone, yet it worked.  Now I might be up all night watching the hockey.  Well at least I don't have to be into work until 1230  O0

Dude, Eric Johnson stopping the empty-net goal was INSANE. That the Avs then scored to go to OT? Priceless. This is great.  O0

[Firesprocket]

So I hear this Paul Stastny guys is pretty freaking good eh?

[rebs]

With a name like Stastny...  wait, that might be rule four territory  ;)

Yesterday's hockey was some good hockey.  Tonight was way freaking better! 

Rangers took control of Philly, then the OT's happened in St' Louis.  Ryan Miller proved his worth tonight.  He kept the Blues alive agains the 'hawks and deserved First Star honors, I thought.  And Roy reinvents the wheel, or at least puts his spin on it, and it works with seconds left.  What a game that was, too...

I can't repeat last night  :-\  The Battle of Cali will have to wait for another night.  High scoring early periods have trended to light scoring defensive third periods tonight, let's see how that ends up tomorrow. 

[JadeHellbringer]

*twitching after one of the most amazing endings to a hockey game I've ever seen*

AVS!!!

[Peter Smith]

So the Blackhawks lost last night in a marathon game, 48th longest NHL game ever as it turns out. There was a chance it would have ended in the 2nd OT, when the Blackhawks went on the power play. During those two minutes, St. Louis chipped the puck over the boards without any other contact. The refs ruled that a Blackhawks player also touched it, waiving off the penalty and preventing the Blackhawks from going on the 5-on-3. Coach Quenneville was suitably upset, as he indicated with a hand gesture. So he decided to apologize:

http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2014/04/18/quenneville-apologizes-for-bush-league-move-in-ot-vs-blues/

Did...did...did he actually use the term "bush" in his apology? Did he snicker too, hide a grin under the 'stache of his?

[rebs]

That was a good game.  Didn't expect a Wings win going in to game one in Boston, but we needed to steal one, obviously.  Howard suddenly looks like he hasn't looked since last spring.  Unbelievable defensive effort on part of both teams, too.  The B's stayed composed, even after Datsyuk's goal.  But for some reason, I suspect next game to be a bit more edgy.  Because it's the playoffs.   :) 

[JadeHellbringer]

Paging the Bruins' forwards... B's forwards, please report to the Red Wings' goal and put some pressure on in game 2 please. Again, paging Boston forwards...

[qc mech3]

And Montreal got a second win tonigh [watch] [rockon] [cheers] [cheers] [cheers]