NHL Trade Deadline Options

[ThunderEvermore]

Well, I'm calling a sweep.

Meanwhile I'm thinking the Rangers FINALLY come back to the great playing I believed them capable of. Lundqvist is a jedi right now. I'm calling a shutout. 2 mins left in the third.

[Teesa]

now, that was just embarassing.

but to be honest, i liked the responses of babcock and some of the players after the game. maybe detroit isn't THAT bad.
and i know it's definitely not an excuse, but i just can't help thinking about those unfortunate injuries

dallas v. detroit..winner, not sure yet.

[ThunderEvermore]

Its going to be a close call in the west. The Stars knocked off the former champs, and are damned close to taking out the cup favorites. I'm thinking the Stars go to the finals. Turco is on top of his game, while Hasek has been sub par and Osgood has been better, but it's hard to measure when he just finished up a series with a team where most of its major shooters were out on injuries. Meanwhile BOTH teams offenses have been relentless. This should be an amazing series.

I want to believe the Rangers and the Habs will come out on top. But it looks as if the Pens are going to the Conference finals. The Habs are getting better, but it may be too little too late. Not to mention they can't seem to find a good ground for their goalies. They just keep coughing up easy goals. It's terrible. The Rangers got a LOT better in last night's game and I'm glad they god a shut out. If the King can stand on his head and play like a jedi like he did last night and the Rangers can keep the give aways to a minimum, and bring their fantastic PP and PK into the mix, I think we could see a game 7.

[JokeInsideJoke]

now, that was just embarassing.

but to be honest, i liked the responses of babcock and some of the players after the game. maybe detroit isn't THAT bad.

clean sweep!

and of course detroit isnt bad! we rock! the avs played a few good games the last four of them just.....wernt.

but i still hate the avs, no offence

round three here we come

[Teesa]

none taken, i still dislike detroit =)

but on another note, can you please check your spelling before you post? *weren't, *offense

[JokeInsideJoke]

sorry
i've always sucked at spelling

[Teesa]

aw, i didn't mean to make you feel bad! it just irks me sometimes :/

[JokeInsideJoke]

alot of people are like that. and i cant find the spell check tool for the tool bars and its pising me off.

okay... so about hockey....

[ThunderEvermore]

So the Washington Capitals Fans Facebook app is having a little contest. You post a blog predicting who will win the Cup and why. Sooo obviously I had to put mine in. Here it is:

As we grow nearer to the third round, and conference finals, the
predictions are going to begin to fly. The problem is that at this
stage of the show, the predictions are going to be far harder to make.

In the West:

The
Stars look to seal the deal tonight as they take on the Sharks in T
minus ten minutes. So far they have eliminated the former champions, and look to crush the cup favorites coming into this tournament. Throughout the first round Dallas kept a steady advantage on the offense, out shooting the Ducks by leaps and bounds. That hasn't been nearly the case in this series with San Jose. Marty Turco has, however, been consistently amazing, showing great numbers in these playoffs, and combined with the amazing offense of the Stars, something they didn't have in years past, Dallas could go all the way. The Sharks have a beast between the pipes as well, his name being Evgeni Nabakov. Bring Patrick Marleau and Brian Campbell into the mix and you've got the ingredients for a comeback of epic proportions. If Nabakov can find a groove and the Sharks can shake up Turco, do a little more screening, crease crashing, then San Jose could come back from this 3-1 deficit. Chances are, however, that it may be a bit too little too late, and
unlikely that Turco be anything but dazzling. Look for the Stars to
take this one, probably tonight.

Ahem, I just heard "Great save by Turco!" Could be my predictions are already coming true!

In the East:

Flyers look to have all but tied up this series. While the Habs have put up a splendid offensive effort, gobbling up two goal deficits like their cupcakes, their goalie situations has been less than stellar. Biron, on the other end, has been fantastic, however, playing incredibly in his first playoff foray. The Canadiens have done far too little to shake up Biron, and sadly the Flyers haven't done too much on the other end. But here we are with Carey Price becoming swiss cheese in his second round. Halak too the crease in the last game, the Habs hoping to renew their chances and tie up this series. Much to their dismay, however, the Flyer's offensive prowess in their first line proved to be too much for Halak just as much as it was for Price, and they lost. Look for the Fly Guys to bypass another shaky team who may get their bearings a little too late.

Yeah, I said it, we were shaky, you know it as well as I do.

The Rangers and Pens are much closer than the scoreboard alludes to. The Blue Shirts, however, seemed to attain a higher level, one more suited for their star studded roster, in this last game, shutting out the Penguins by a margin of three. Out of the remaining series, I believe this one is the most likely to reach game seven, and I believe the Rangers are the most likely to make a comeback. In a series with two teams with big rosters, it's unlikely this will be a short show. The King has played amazing games, only matched by Fleury, who seems to pull pucks out of the air with the force. Being realistic, the Pens will probably pull his out. Odds are that the Rangers are in too deep a hole, and the match too even, for them not to lose one between now and game seven.

So to be clear, here is my round 3 predictions:
Flyers Vs. Penguins
Stars Vs. Red Wings

Who do I foresee being in the finals?

The Flyers sport a heavily physical game, and if anyone can smother the offensive fireworks that is the Penguins top six forwards, it's them. Both teams have a slew of shooters, and both teams are about equal in goals per game (both are seconded by Detroit, duh). Both have near equal success on the power play, at about 25%. Pittsburgh's PK however has been astounding, ranking first among tems still in the tournament. Philly's hasn't been fairing nearly as well, sitting at second to last among teams still in it, and last among the teams listed above for this round. The special teams are going to be the big decider in this series, and if the Flyers' PK percentage rears its ugly head against the Pens, it will be a huge weakness, and possibly the tilt for them to take it. The Penguins are overall a more solid team, far more than the Fly Guys have been playing against so far. Look for the Penguins to go to the finals.

The West is where the magic happens though. Stars will have knocked
off two huge teams walking into the conference finals against the Wings. The question is can they do it again? The Wings have shown some big offensive strength, and the Mule has posted multiple hat tricks in the rounds so far. They have, however, so far, faced against less than stellar goalie situations. And when Ellis, the man between the pipes for the Preds, showed some real resolve, Detroit dropped two in a row in Nashville. Their goalie situation seems to reflect as much also, as Hasek has performed to less than usual standards. Osgood, since taking over in the crease, has shown some real strength, and is first in GAA for the playoffs. Turco doesn't sit too far behind in either GAA or SV% however, and both have played outstanding to get those numbers. In terms of offense, however, the top ranks seem to be painted red. Look for the Wings to assert their already established dominance from not only the playoffs, but their regular season series against the Stars. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Marty Turco, but with the Mule, Zetterberg, and Datsyuk, that's clutch.

Finals: Red Wings Vs. Penguins

Both teams have been consistently dominant in thier conferences. Both teams are topping in scoring, saving, and just about any other statistic you can think of. In the end, however, the Red Wings offense is just far too potent, and the defense far too strong. The Wings take 3/10 for the top point scorers, and an astounding 7/10 for top plus/minus. Not only do they excel in defensiveness, but in defensive offense. The Wings are essentially the perfect team, especially with Osgood shutting down the net every night.

So, for the first time in six years, I see the Detroit Red Wings taking Lord Stanley's Mug.

Maybe that was too long of a prediction?

[JokeInsideJoke]

..... wow. yeah, it was very very very ver very very very very very LONG. but i like the way it ends up
..soooo do you just lay in bed at night, thinking up all of these predictions?
and if these come true, i am im going to be truly shocked

[Teesa]

whoaa, i thought the habs had it there during the second..but the flyers had a great three minutes, haha.

[ThunderEvermore]

Haha I pretty much just sit there and check on game histories and watch the games I can and just go from there.

I thought the Habs were gonna take it there for a second but yeah, unfortunately it was a no go for the Canadiens. Oh well, the Flyers are going to get mauled in the East finals.

[Teesa]

OUCH, i feel bad for the rangers. that was whack how the penguins got that 4 min penalty when drury was bleeding all over the place.

[ThunderEvermore]

Yeah really. Should have been a double minor, hands down. And yet the blood EVERYWHERE wasn't enough I guess. I hate the officiating right now.

[Teesa]

^SERIOUSLY.

so, gotta admit, i stayed up watching the 4OT game (thank goodness i don't have an early morning final today!)

there wasn't any penalties from the middle of the second period until like the the second OT (i think)..and that call was a dumb hooking call which had been going on ALL night! but anyways, i thought dallas looked great in the first ot and san jose looked better in the second. but i felt SO bad for them because they looked so freaking tired (obviously), especially the goalies.

nabakov and turco should make their own team or something. they were/are seriously amazing.

[ThunderEvermore]

I only stayed up through three OTs because I had an 8AM final, haha. But yeah, Turco was ridiculous. He was like a jedi out there, drop kicking the puck out of mid air like that. Laying back on the puck on that one shot. Ridiculous.

And Nabakov with that HUGEEEEE glove save. Wow. Wow.

[Teesa]

haha, there were like 10 times i was like, "this game is ov-never mind!" i turned it off after the third OT ended, but i couldn't sleep so i watched the fourth and thank goodness it ended then!

turco has made some kickass saves in his career and that one was so great! so, what's the rule with the puck crossing the line? does it have to be the ENTIRE puck, or just some of it? i had the game on mute (so i could study), so i didn't hear what the announcers were saying. but nabakov's reflexes on that one were like

[ThunderEvermore]

The entire puck must be over the line. But it also has to be very clear that it is over the line. So like it was in his glove, pretty much the entire glove would have to be over the line for them to count it as a goal.

[Teesa]

ahhh, i see, thanks.
that would have sucked so bad if they had called it a goal. you know, with how bad the officiating has been lately.

[JokeInsideJoke]

Thu May 8, 2008 - 7:30 PM
stars vs. wings

[ThunderEvermore]

Ouch, Did not expect the Stars to get crushed.

[JokeInsideJoke]

i did. i only saw the last period, but i think that the stars will be our toughest team to beat

[Teesa]

^how did you figure that one? dallas looked pretty awful. maybe it was because of the 4OT game or something, but they had a few days off! i think nashville has done the best job with them.

[JokeInsideJoke]

damn, did anyone else see the wings game last night? the way Ribeiro two handed Osgood was so f**king cheap. damn that pisses me off. there is no f**king reason to hit the f**king golie after the buzzer.


here is the clip if you didnt see it http://youtube.com/watch?v=gwteGUN0sUY&feature=related

[Teesa]

^it was a cheap shot, but to be honest, osgood totally put on a great show.

OHSNAP. dallas is doing a great job keeping this series alive!