NHL 2008 Playoffs

[Mojotronica]

NHL Hockey Playoffs Update - includes the standings and game times for next games.

http://www.fantasysportsheroes.net/index.php/site/nhl_playoffs_update_24apr2008/

 

[SuperBeaverInc.]

(1)Montreal 4 vs. (6)Philadelphia 2
(2)Pittbsurgh 4 vs. (5)NY Rangers 2

(1)Detroit 4 vs. (6)Colorado 2[/b]
(2)San Jose 3 vs. (5)Dallas 4

Good occasion to cheer for the habs

There is never a good occasion to cheer for the Habs

(Well, I guess if they were against some team from the south, then maybe)

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Iggy's Prognostications

Eastern Conference
Montreal Canadiens over Boston Bruins in 5
Pittsburgh Penguins over Ottawa Senators in 6
Washington Capitals over Philadelphia Flyers in 6
New Jersey Devils over New York Rangers in 7

Western Conference
Detroit Red Wings over Nashville Predators in 6
San Jose Sharks over Calgary Flames in 6
Minnesota Wild over Colorado Avalanche in 4
Anaheim Ducks over Dallas Stars in 7

Well, I was correct in Montreal, Pittsburgh and San Jose, and perfect in Detroit. Is someone going to keep track of our accuracy?

Anyway, next round predictions:
Eastern Conference
Montreal Canadiens over Philadelphia Flyers in 7
Pittsburgh Penguins over New York Rangers in 6.

Western Conference
Detroit Red Wings over Colorado Avalanche in 7.
San Jose over Dallas Stars in 7.

 

[SuperBeaverInc.]

Is someone going to keep track of our accuracy?

I might if no one else does and I feel like it.

 

[Evie]

Well, that was one odd game.

Both teams got really lucky goal (Philadelphia's first and Montreal's nick-of-time goal), both teams got doubtful goals (Philadelphia's last and Montreal's second, and ultimately, I'm not sure the better team (for tonight) won.

But you know what? We'll take it anyway :-D

(Also, the Kostitsyn brothers managed to have their two names together atop the Habs' scorecard for a second serie in a row. Gotta like those guys)

 

[pawpaw]

Well Av's rode Jose into the second--you can burry that horse now.

 

[Raisin Bran]

Okay, First and foremost, The Habs lost that game. Fortunately Biron did not win that game, only the Habs lost that game.

But now here is my gripe

Reffing. The refs don't want to directly influence games with calls. Well boys you are influencing the game way more by not calling anything. I just wonder why they don't call anything exept when its uber evident or they call something stupid cuz they "omitted" to call a real penalty.

I've always been a advocate of fair reffing. Calls made both ways.
If your team is diciplined and plays without taking penalties and the other team is undiciplined, the rules of the games makes so the undiciplined team should get penalties, helping the diciplined team get scoring chances.
When this happens the refs did not influence the outcome of the game by calling penalties, Its the other team that has influenced the game by TAKING penalties.

I just hate when I see games where the refs sit back and drink tea during the game, Damn it make the goddamned calls. Yesterday I was pissed seeing all the penalties that the refs did not call on the Flyers, sticks in the face, hooking, tripping and roughing.

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHh sure yeah they called a 5 minute Major in the third. Man the Flyers should of played on PK for more than half of the game. I hate to see a talented team that plays within the rules being bullied without intervention. Hockey is a rough sport, players will be hit, players will always try to play on the edge of the rules its a given, But The game looses its appeal when the refs don't call what is supposed to be called. It ruins it.

Heck, if the Habs play a undiciplined game, are in the box for half the games and its genuine penalties and end up loosing the game, I'll never complain cuz The Habs did not play within the rules and got penalised for that. I expect the same for any team in any game series or not. Heck reffing should be even tighter in the series.

I don't know what a reffing meetings looks like, but from what I'm seeing they must be talking on how to give the less penalties in a game, looks like its a contest between refs to see who misses the most calls.

Seriously, win or loose, the reffing sucks.

 

[Evie]

Halfway competent reffing with regard to the Flyers would have the Habs against the Rangers and the Penguins against the Caps, to begin with - the refs in the seventh game let Philadelphia get away with murder on that game-tying goal. But, hey, refusing the goal would have *gasp* been a case of deciding the game against the Flyers! Surely they couldn't do that! Surely they had to let the teams play it out! (/worthless referee mindset)

That said, I'm not sure the reffing is so very much to blame in Phi-Mon. Mostly, it's Biron suddely turning into a Magic Brick Wall and all those strange missed shots that are beating the Habs (one has to wonder how exatly the Habs manage to systematically miss the net every last time it's wide open - I mean, did they all suddenly turn myopic?)

That said, the reffing in the playoffs - all the playoffs, far from only Habs-Flyers - has indeed been one long stretch of bad jokes. We could put real zebra on the ice, and it wouldn't make a difference.

 

[Raisin Bran]

That said, I'm not sure the reffing is so very much to blame in Phi-Mon. Mostly, it's Biron suddely turning into a Magic Brick Wall and all those strange missed shots that are beating the Habs (one has to wonder how exatly the Habs manage to systematically miss the net every last time it's wide open - I mean, did they all suddenly turn myopic?)

He he, I am not trying to say that the PHI-MTL games were stolen by the refs. That damn Biron did it by himself.

BUT the refs are shutting their eyes on multiple penalties, not only in this series in all series right now. Not that it guarantees a win for MTL if the calls are made right, but at least we would see real hockey being played.

TBH I rather see a series like Habs-Bruins with ALL penalties called BOTH ways, mind yall the MTL was in the box as much as Boston was.

BE CONSISTANT bazwell!

 

[Nylan]

I think more penalties should be called against the Sharks. They score more goals that way.

 

[JJP]

So Canadiens were eliminated by Flyers. This is a very positive surprise. I didn't think Flyers had any chance this year but they have proved me wrong.

What happened to Canadiens? I thought they were a big favorite to win the cup this year. Goaltending wasn't good in Flyers series. Maybe it was a mistake to trade Huet to Washington. Last night I saw him playing for Team France in the worlds against Switzerland and he kept France in the game making 44 saves. France lost 1-4 but it would have been 1-10 without Huet.

 

[Evie]

Well, the Habs season is finally over, after twelve more games than anybody expected to get out of them. Congratulation to Philadelphia, and especially to Umberger and Biron, who did some impressive bits of hockey.

Also, should Georges Laraque (or any other Penguins. Or any Rangers, should that come to be) see fit to stamp Daniel "little turd" Briere's face in any convenient surface he finds repeatedly, the entire population of Quebec would be suitably appreciative. (NOTE TO THE UNAWARES : This has nothing to do with how Briere played on the ice, and everything to do with his choice of Philadelphia over Montreal and countless off-ice comments of his since)

That said, I'm very optimistic with regard to the future. Not "Stanley-Cup-next-year" optimistic (not impossible, but let's not get ahead of ourselves) but I think the Habs have most of what they need to be one of the big teams in the east for quite a few years - a large pool of young players who now have invaluable experience, and who know what it feels like to win (so should be hungry to get there again), more new players waiting in the wing to shore up any losses we may take (Stewart, for a start), a coach who (despite what some whiners now say) has accomplished wonders...

Yeah. Looking forward to the next season.

EDIT : JJP - the Canadiens were, as I noted above, essentialy a novice team (and, at the start of the season, they weren't seen as a serious contender for the cup : they were seen as a serious contender for the first draft pick). They had nil playoff experiences (except a few of them) before Boston, and that hurt them now - they had a hard time adapting to the hard sort of hockey that happens in the playoffs.

As for Huet, I disagree. He has great games - and he has crap ones. Price has much less of the later, though the Philadelphia one weren't particularly good (but not as spectacularly bad as Huet can get). Also, some report have it that Price may have a few broken fingers on his mitt hand - which is the side Philadelphia scored many of its goals on. Nothing official yet (for obvious reasons), but that would sort of be one reason he wasn't at his best.

Combine that with being up against one of the league's best scoring teams, doubled with one of the league's rougher (and less sportsmanlike) teams (Though to their credit, they had no Avery moment, which automatically makes them much more sportsmanlike than the NYR), tripled with this being the playoffs where you have the time to study, find, and perfect way to exploit weaknesses in the opponent's style, and you get a few bad games as we just had.

 

[SuperBeaverInc.]

Wow, Dallas-San Jose Game 6, heading to quadruple OT.

 

[Nylan]

I know...and now I can't finish because hockeywebcasts.com dropped my feed

 

[Evie]

Dallas scores on power play to win the game and take San Jose out of the picture. Odds of Brian Campbell rising to "Most Hated man in San Jose" status : good.

And thus it comes down to the Battle of Pennsylvania on one end, and Detroit against Dallas on the other.

Rooting for a Pittsburgh-Detroit showdown

 

[JJP]

Conference finals start on Thursday and Friday. So it's predictions time.

East

Pittsburgh in 7

West

Detroit in 7


I'm hoping that Flyers could surprise me again but I don't see that happening. In the west I think it's going to be very tight and differences are small.

Go Flyers!

 

[aaglo]

EAST
Pittsburgh in 5

W-EAST
Dallas in 7 (i'm feeling lucky)

 

[Nylan]

Dallas scores on power play to win the game and take San Jose out of the picture. Odds of Brian Campbell rising to "Most Hated man in San Jose" status : good.

It was a flop, and it's the nature of the game...4OT and anyone can make a mistake...pretty much everyone did, save Turco and Nabby. I don't see Campbell getting much heat for this.

And thus it comes down to the Battle of Pennsylvania on one end, and Detroit against Dallas on the other.

Rooting for a Pittsburgh-Detroit showdown

Sounds about right.

 

[Raisin Bran]

I don't mind loosing in the series. I just mond loosing to the Flyers and ..... arrrrrg .... Briere.

Biron ... as all the quebecer goalies.... he pulled out exellent games against the Habs.
Although, I'd wait to see the result of the Pens - Flyers series before calling Biron a all-star goalie. I bet Crosby, Malkin, Hossa and Laraque won't miss the net as often as Montreal did (that and goal posts).

Against Washington and Montreal, they only had to shut down one or two goal scorers in each team. Now they will be facing a power house of talent.

Fleury has been solid throughout the playoffs and should continue his exellent work. Umberger Should have less goals in this series...... Philly's most dangerous player ......

That series should be one sided. Penguins in 5

Now Now Now, Montreal is out, time to go for my next favorite team, The Red Wings.

Red wings - Dallas will be a kick a$$ series.
Woah, exellent goaltending on Dallas's side (should of seen yesterday's 4th OT game, looked like a Habs - Flyers game, Sharks were ridicoulusly dominating the Stars but Turco managed to keep them in with uber saves "a la Nabokov") Goaltending is definitely on Dallas side.

Both teams are killers in offence, but the Red Wings are not as tired as the stars offence will be. They shot all series long on Nabokov, who only let a small percentage of those get it. That puts a strain on forwards and you loose confidence in your shots. Offence goes for Detroit.

I'd say both teams are pretty well rounded up in defence. Probably a advantage on Detroit side with Chelios and Lidstrom.
I put the defence on Detroit's side.

I say Detroit in 6 but this will be a series of Power offence against a hot goalie.

 

[SuperBeaverInc.]

Penguins in 5
Red Wings in 6