NHL '17/'18 Thread (2017/2018 National Hockey League)

[Jagger69]

Just to echo what Rod stated, I too have not "dismissed" the Knights' accomplishments thus far by any means. In fact, I went to great lengths to point out just how exceptional their performance this year has been, especially as it relates to comparisons with other expansion franchises in their first seasons. Good for them....a job well done so far.

I'm actually a little surprised by the level of offense taken, Monder. I'm more than happy to give the VGK their props but I'm also not going to be favorably comparing them to the '84 Oilers anytime soon either. Lots of teams have had significant stretches of either outrageously good or horrifically bad performances during any given season that took a major turn in the other direction before the year was up. As I stated in previous posts, we'll see how things play out the rest of the year. Good for them and their fans but there's a long way to go before we write the story of the 2017/18 season and I think that's really all anyone is actually stating here. Vegas may or may not keep this level of play going. Whether they make the playoffs or not is really beside the point. Fact is, NO ONE predicted this and anyone who isn't shocked by the Knights' success thus far is flat-out lying. It is completely unprecedented and without parallel.

Also, for what it's worth, the Caps' failure to ever win the Cup is and always has been driven by their notoriously poor playoff performance so I would question a correlation between goals scored and failure to win the Cup as having merit. I'd also have strong feelings about Ovechkin's place among all-time NHL goal-scorers but that's fodder for another thread. This much can be said however....teams that score a lot of goals tend to win more games than teams that don't so a high goals/game average is unquestionably an indicator of the probability of success in the NHL. If the Knights keep scoring 3.38 gpg, they will keep winning games at a high rate regardless of who is tending goal for them.

 

[Jagger69]

Lots of teams have had significant stretches of either outrageously good or horrifically bad performances during any given season that took a major turn in the other direction before the year was up. As I stated in previous posts, we'll see how things play out the rest of the year.

To wit, my St. Louis Blues, now losers of 4 of their last 5 and a team that has scored only 7 goals in the last 6 games. It's hard for me to imagine that losing Schwartz had this big an impact....perhaps were not quite as good as we showed in October? :dunno: :eek:

 

[Monder]

They keep rolling!
Ovechkin up next.

 

[Jagger69]

They keep rolling!
Ovechkin up next.

Incredible run so far for sure and just keeps getting more amazing. If this continues it will unquestionably be the sports story of the century. Everyone is waiting for the coach to turn into a pumpkin but so far it ain't happening. Gotta be fun in Vegas right now....for hockey reasons this time!

In the meantime, the Blues keep sinking with a heartbreaking final-minute loss against the Oilers so just bear in mind the bottom can fall out without warning so....

 

[rodfarva]

Incredible run so far for sure and just keeps getting more amazing. If this continues it will unquestionably be the sports story of the century. Everyone is waiting for the coach to turn into a pumpkin but so far it ain't happening. Gotta be fun in Vegas right now....for hockey reasons this time!

In the meantime, the Blues keep sinking with a heartbreaking final-minute loss against the Oilers so just bear in mind the bottom can fall out without warning so....

And meanwhile the Oilers have won 4 out of their last 5 and three in a row (for the first time this season), and they're currently up 2-0 after the 1st period against Montreal. We have Cam Talbot back (Laurent Brossoit was utter shite) and Andrej Sekera (arguably our best defenceman) just returned as well. Things could be starting to finally turn around. I can hope anyway...

 

[Monder]

The Golden Knights have defeated the following teams over the past 2 weeks.Pittsburgh,Washington,LA,Anaheim,and Tampa Bay.
Please keep in mind that I was the only one on this thread that labelled the Knights as a top team in the NHL and was met with the usual,”they are an expansion team and they will fall back.”
Wrong!!!!
It is now beyond the point of they’re an expansion team.There is no “they haven’t defeated any of the top teams.”
Wrong!
Keep in mind that the Knights defeated the Ducks and the Kings back to back on the road.The Knights have also played less games than any other team that has over 50 points.
Please post a reason that any team is above the Golden Knights.You can’t do it!
The standings prove you wrong and myself right.
The usual posters will come on here and state - “well,I said they had a chance to make the playoffs.”
Wrong!
There is a big difference between posting that a team is a top team in the league and that they have a chance at making the playoffs!
If your team is St.Louis,Pittsburgh,Tampa Bay or Washington,Are you confident they can beat the Knights in a 7 game series?
Please post your reasons if you can come up with any.

 

[Bloodshot Scott]

Wouldn't it be crazy if LVK won it all in their first year...and dedicated it to the city of LV after that sick shooting?



I don't think a rookie goaltender will get them there, but I guess you never know.



It would be unlikely, but not impossible.


I was always a fan of Eric Haula and was in the probably 20 percent camp here that didn't want to see him go.



How about that IIHF game the other day?


Not gonna lie, playing hockey in stadiums is pretty shit, and yesterday was no exception. That game - that amount of snow - was a complete disgrace, but the comeback and win by America was exciting and fun, no doubt.

 

[Jagger69]

The Golden Knights have defeated the following teams over the past 2 weeks.Pittsburgh,Washington,LA,Anaheim,and Tampa Bay.
Please keep in mind that I was the only one on this thread that labelled the Knights as a top team in the NHL and was met with the usual,”they are an expansion team and they will fall back.”
Wrong!!!!
It is now beyond the point of they’re an expansion team.There is no “they haven’t defeated any of the top teams.”
Wrong!
Keep in mind that the Knights defeated the Ducks and the Kings back to back on the road.The Knights have also played less games than any other team that has over 50 points.
Please post a reason that any team is above the Golden Knights.You can’t do it!
The standings prove you wrong and myself right.
The usual posters will come on here and state - “well,I said they had a chance to make the playoffs.”
Wrong!
There is a big difference between posting that a team is a top team in the league and that they have a chance at making the playoffs!
If your team is St.Louis,Pittsburgh,Tampa Bay or Washington,Are you confident they can beat the Knights in a 7 game series?
Please post your reasons if you can come up with any.

Who the hell are you arguing with?? :dunno:

If your team is St.Louis,Pittsburgh,Tampa Bay or Washington,Are you confident they can beat the Knights in a 7 game series?
Please post your reasons if you can come up with any.

Right now, I am not even sure the Blues can beat anyone the way we are playing. Their defense and goaltending have been more than good enough to win but since Schwartz went down we cannot score goals. Our PP is as limp-dicked as I have ever seen it. You can't win many games averaging less than 2 goals/game. How can the loss of a single player make such a difference? If true, the Blues are extremely thin in the top six with Fabbri and Schwartz are both out. The West is just too competitive to fall behind in the standing and even though we are still in good position I don't see us remaining a legitimate contender unless their is some sort of reversal in the near future. C'mon Army (Blues GM Doug Armstrong)....you just got a nice 4-year extension so go out and earn it and fix this things before all the wheels fall off.

 

[Jagger69]

Sorry for the typos in my previous post I was in a hurry and did not proof it.

 

[rodfarva]

The Golden Knights have defeated the following teams over the past 2 weeks.Pittsburgh,Washington,LA,Anaheim,and Tampa Bay.
Please keep in mind that I was the only one on this thread that labelled the Knights as a top team in the NHL and was met with the usual,”they are an expansion team and they will fall back.”
Wrong!!!!
It is now beyond the point of they’re an expansion team.There is no “they haven’t defeated any of the top teams.”
Wrong!
Keep in mind that the Knights defeated the Ducks and the Kings back to back on the road.The Knights have also played less games than any other team that has over 50 points.
Please post a reason that any team is above the Golden Knights.You can’t do it!
The standings prove you wrong and myself right.
The usual posters will come on here and state - “well,I said they had a chance to make the playoffs.”
Wrong!
There is a big difference between posting that a team is a top team in the league and that they have a chance at making the playoffs!
If your team is St.Louis,Pittsburgh,Tampa Bay or Washington,Are you confident they can beat the Knights in a 7 game series?
Please post your reasons if you can come up with any.

You're trying to call people out here for not calling the Golden Knights a top team (and acting like you're the only one who has) and for just saying that they have a chance at making the playoffs. But look at what YOU posted just a couple of weeks ago:

"I don’t think the Golden Knights are an elite team but I can’t ignore the facts.They are currently 5th in the entire NHL.That to me is more than saying something.There are 26 teams that are below the Knights.
I also don’t get your dismissal of the fact that the Knights have played over a month without their No.1 goalie and a few games without their No.2 goalie by pointing out teams that score at a high rate.
I agree with you that goalies don’t score but goalies win Stanley Cups.The Carolina Hurricanes were the last team that won a cup without a true No.1 goalie.
Tell me this,if goals are so important then why have the Capitals with the greatest goal scorer over the past 20 years,and arguably ever considering the style of play today compared to other eras,have not won anything when it has really mattered.
I just think you are too easily dismissing the fact that the Knights more than held their heads above water without their No.1 and No.2 goalie.I don’t think the Blues or any other team other than the Lightning,would have the amount of points that the Knights have.
Since people that regularly post on here are dismissing the Knights accomplishments so far,let’s make a bet.I’m very confident that the Knights will make the playoffs.The bet is that if you disagree with me then the loser cannot post on this thread from the time the Knights have officially made or have been eliminated from the playoffs until the Stanley Cup has been won this season.
Anyone want to take me up on my challenge?
“Don’t be scared,homies!”."

LOL! Man, you are not the sharpest knife in the drawer, are you?

 

[rodfarva]

How about that IIHF game the other day?


Not gonna lie, playing hockey in stadiums is pretty shit, and yesterday was no exception. That game - that amount of snow - was a complete disgrace, but the comeback and win by America was exciting and fun, no doubt.

Dude, I was there!!! It was so fucking sick!!!

P.S. You can't control the weather, so I don't know what you could possibly mean by calling the snow a disgrace. And while it made the game take much longer and made it much tougher on the players, it added to the incredible atmosphere, so I was all for it.

 

[Jagger69]

I'm glad the USA won but they should not have played that game under such conditions. They did not allow for the players to show their true talents since they were all busy dealing with the elements. Likewise, I absolutely HATE the shootout format in this tournament. Imagine Stanly Cup games decided in such a manner....no way!!

Back to the salient issue, the VGK won again, this time taking out the Leafs (rather easily too I thought) at home with a barrage of goals and a 6-3 score. Several things are going on here that might be unique to this team. On paper, this is not an outstanding lot of players by any measurement. There are a few recognized names like James Neal & Marc-Andre Fleury but the remainder of them are cast-offs, 3rd & 4th liners & healthy-scratch regulars from last year. David Perron was quoted as saying that the Knights have the tightest clubhouse he has ever been a part of. These guys, these discards from the other NHL teams, have coalesced around the theme of dedicating themselves to proving how wrong everyone was. Thing is, you can have all the attitude in the world but unless you have some talent to go with it, it is just a lot of hot air. The season is half over and so far the VGK are the top seed in the West. In fact, they presently appear to be separating themselves from the pack just a bit with 54 points, a 3-point lead over LA with 2 games in hand. Everyone keeps waiting for them to crash and burn and yet they just keep winning. I've never seen anything like it. If this keeps up and the Blues drop out of contention (which appears possible now with their present issues) I will be hard-pressed not to be rooting for them in the playoffs.

Trivia question: What is the only NHL expansion team to make it to the Stanley Cup finals their first season?

Happy New Year to all!

 

[rodfarva]

I'm glad the USA won but they should not have played that game under such conditions. They did not allow for the players to show their true talents since they were all busy dealing with the elements. Likewise, I absolutely HATE the shootout format in this tournament. Imagine Stanly Cup games decided in such a manner....no way!!

Back to the salient issue, the VGK won again, this time taking out the Leafs (rather easily too I thought) at home with a barrage of goals and a 6-3 score. Several things are going on here that might be unique to this team. On paper, this is not an outstanding lot of players by any measurement. There are a few recognized names like James Neal & Marc-Andre Fleury but the remainder of them are cast-offs, 3rd & 4th liners & healthy-scratch regulars from last year. David Perron was quoted as saying that the Knights have the tightest clubhouse he has ever been a part of. These guys, these discards from the other NHL teams, have coalesced around the theme of dedicating themselves to proving how wrong everyone was. Thing is, you can have all the attitude in the world but unless you have some talent to go with it, it is just a lot of hot air. The season is half over and so far the VGK are the top seed in the West. In fact, they presently appear to be separating themselves from the pack just a bit with 54 points, a 3-point lead over LA with 2 games in hand. Everyone keeps waiting for them to crash and burn and yet they just keep winning. I've never seen anything like it. If this keeps up and the Blues drop out of contention (which appears possible now with their present issues) I will be hard-pressed not to be rooting for them in the playoffs.

Trivia question: What is the only NHL expansion team to make it to the Stanley Cup finals their first season?

Happy New Year to all!

It was your boys, the Blues. They lost to les Canadiens in the Finals their first two seasons and then lost to the Bruins in their third. I'm sure you don't need me to tell you, but for the others in the thread, the NHL made the playoff format so that one of the expansion franchises of 1967 made the Finals each of those years. The Blues were badly overmatched and swept all three of those seasons. But that's still the answer to your trivia question. The St. Louis Blues (thanks to the playoff format of the time) made it to the Stanley Cup Finals in their first three seasons.

 

[Bloodshot Scott]

Dude, I was there!!! It was so fucking sick!!!

P.S. You can't control the weather, so I don't know what you could possibly mean by calling the snow a disgrace. And while it made the game take much longer and made it much tougher on the players, it added to the incredible atmosphere, so I was all for it.

Nice. I liked the Yanks' jerseys - maybe I'm in the minority on that, but I loved 'em. USA has always had classy ass jerseys.


How much were your tickets?

I'm glad the USA won but they should not have played that game under such conditions. They did not allow for the players to show their true talents since they were all busy dealing with the elements. Likewise, I absolutely HATE the shootout format in this tournament. Imagine Stanly Cup games decided in such a manner....no way!!

That's kind of what I mean.

Though...you can't reschedule such a spectacle when you got 40-60K people who came out for the game (and it is a Winter sport after all).

The outdoor/stadium series/WC games are great in theory but the ice has many times been in unacceptable condition, not to mention snow and on occasion been so warm it these games have almost been canceled as I recall.

Maybe I'm just cranky that after all these years the Wild haven't gotten a WC, though at this point I gave up on that idea 5+ years ago at this point.

 

[rodfarva]

Nice. I liked the Yanks' jerseys - maybe I'm in the minority on that, but I loved 'em. USA has always had classy ass jerseys.


How much were your tickets?

So the jerseys were actually Buffalo Bills jerseys. It was Team USA's way of paying homage to the city of Buffalo and the fact that the Bills stadium hosted the outdoor game.

The tickets were about $80 each (I went with my sister), which isn't bad at all for pretty good seats. But we also flew in from NYC and booked a hotel room for the night before, so all told it was not a cheap venture

 

[Jagger69]

OK....I was kind of waiting for Nashville to bring the Knights back to earth last night since the Preds seem (to me at least) to be the best team in the West so far this year (despite LVG's gaudy record). The Predators are aptly named....they have the speed of a cheetah and the bite of a rattlesnake. Pekka Rinne just might be the best goaltender on the planet right now so I figured they would go into the T-Mobile Center last night and lay some instant karma on the ragged collection of castoffs from the other 30 NHL teams that make up the roster of the upstart expansion Vegas Golden Knights. Instead, Marc-Andre Fleury puts on a clinic, stops all 28 shots, the Knights score twice in the 2nd and add an empty-netter in the waning moments of the game as they shut out the Preds, 3-0. It was their 8th straight win. They are 12-0-1 in their last 13 games. They have the best record in the Western Conference at 27-9-2 with 56 points.

Fuck me....this is way beyond anything I've ever seen in the world of sports! First-year expansion teams are supposed to be terrible. I guess the guys that skate for the Knights didn't get the memo. I look at their roster and simply shake my head. Outside of a few skaters (James Neal, Reilly Smith, Cody Eakin, Jonathan Marchessault) there is probably not another legitimate top-6 forward on the team. Their defense is a collection of untested rookies, frequent healthy scratches and second-tier journeymen. Their goaltending has Fleury and P.K. Subban's little brother minding the net. A lot of pundits were singing George McPhee's praises for the way he dealt his way to a roster and some of them actually thought the LVG were going to be competitive their inaugural season but no one....and I mean no one....predicted anything like this when the expansion draft was over. It was generally concluded that McPhee had assembled a pretty good roster for an expansion club. Now, what they are doing is nothing short of unbelievable.

They pay a visit to Scottrade Center in St. Louis tomorrow night to take on my Blues.

 

[Jagger69]

Carter Hutton made what I would consider to be the save of the year last night in OT against the Devils. The Blues eventually went on to win the game in a shootout but they never would have gotten there without this gem from their awesome backup goaltender. :surprise::eyeso::surprise:

I'm guessing he'll be back between the pipes tomorrow night against the VGK since Allen is still shaking off some cobwebs after getting his bell rung against Dallas last week. Hutton has been lights out for the Blues so far this season, posting a 1.70 GAA and a .944 save percentage. He's the best backup goalie in the NHL in my opinion and, even without Jake's injury, if I was Mike Yeo I would ride the hot hand in net and right now that's Carter Hutton.

 

[Bloodshot Scott]

So the jerseys were actually Buffalo Bills jerseys. It was Team USA's way of paying homage to the city of Buffalo and the fact that the Bills stadium hosted the outdoor game.

The tickets were about $80 each (I went with my sister), which isn't bad at all for pretty good seats. But we also flew in from NYC and booked a hotel room for the night before, so all told it was not a cheap venture

Well you will never forget it. Though you didn't get the result you wanted you still saw a classic.

OK....I was kind of waiting for Nashville to bring the Knights back to earth last night since the Preds seem (to me at least) to be the best team in the West so far this year (despite LVG's gaudy record). The Predators are aptly named....they have the speed of a cheetah and the bite of a rattlesnake. Pekka Rinne just might be the best goaltender on the planet right now so I figured they would go into the T-Mobile Center last night and lay some instant karma on the ragged collection of castoffs from the other 30 NHL teams that make up the roster of the upstart expansion Vegas Golden Knights. Instead, Marc-Andre Fleury puts on a clinic, stops all 28 shots, the Knights score twice in the 2nd and add an empty-netter in the waning moments of the game as they shut out the Preds, 3-0. It was their 8th straight win. They are 12-0-1 in their last 13 games. They have the best record in the Western Conference at 27-9-2 with 56 points.

Fuck me....this is way beyond anything I've ever seen in the world of sports! First-year expansion teams are supposed to be terrible. I guess the guys that skate for the Knights didn't get the memo. I look at their roster and simply shake my head. Outside of a few skaters (James Neal, Reilly Smith, Cody Eakin, Jonathan Marchessault) there is probably not another legitimate top-6 forward on the team. Their defense is a collection of untested rookies, frequent healthy scratches and second-tier journeymen. Their goaltending has Fleury and P.K. Subban's little brother minding the net. A lot of pundits were singing George McPhee's praises for the way he dealt his way to a roster and some of them actually thought the LVG were going to be competitive their inaugural season but no one....and I mean no one....predicted anything like this when the expansion draft was over. It was generally concluded that McPhee had assembled a pretty good roster for an expansion club. Now, what they are doing is nothing short of unbelievable.

They pay a visit to Scottrade Center in St. Louis tomorrow night to take on my Blues.

Vegas got some good players. Wild made it to WCF in our third season - we just got good solid players. Florida Panthers made it to the Cup Finals in their...third season? I can't remember.

LVK did their homework and brought in solid hockey players. Or it appears that way..

 

[Jagger69]

Vegas got some good players. Wild made it to WCF in our third season - we just got good solid players. Florida Panthers made it to the Cup Finals in their...third season? I can't remember.

LVK did their homework and brought in solid hockey players. Or it appears that way..

OK. If this were their third season, they made the playoffs and somehow managed to make it to the Cup finals I would not be so blown away. The fact that they are a first-year expansion team that is the top seed in the West halfway through the year is what makes this so extraordinary. If they manage to beat the Blues tonight it will be the longest winning streak for a first-year expansion club in any professional sport EVER.

 

[Jagger69]

OK, we took care of them but it sure wasn't easy! Man, they are one helluva hockey team! They are fast, well-coached, make crisp passes, play solid D and get excellent goaltending. I was really impressed with the play of Karlsson, Marchessault and Smith up front. They were buzzing all over.....a really tenacious lot over there in Nevada. I do believe they are more than vulnerable, however, considering their lack of size. The Blues were pushing everything to the outside last night and then clogging up the middle with big guys like Edmundson & Parayko down low and then having 2 forwards backchecking like crazy. You have to be willing to battle hard for pucks along the boards against the Knights if you are going to beat them. We were able to do all of those things last night and held them to but a single goal. Hutton was awesome in net for us again. It was a very entertaining game to watch....the fans in Vegas are very lucky to have such a team coming right out of the gate!