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  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    What an off season this promises to be! Leafs part ways with Dubas. Wow I didn't think that would happen. So now Pittsburgh, Calgary and Toronto are looking for a GM.

    In the playoffs a 4 OT game comes to an end with a brilliant goal and some fatigued players. Who will have anything in the tank for game 2? Can the Canes rise up and blow the Panthers away with a win? Or will the cats scratch and claw their way to a victory?

    In the West Stars versus Knights! DeBoer gets to come back to Vegas and perhaps bust their Stanley Cup dreams!
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    I'm very eager to see who becomes the next GM for my Pens. I'm guessing Sully is sticking around as head coach for the time being.
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    I'm very eager to see who becomes the next GM for my Pens. I'm guessing Sully is sticking around as head coach for the time being.

    Yes I heard the Flames blocked Trevling from interviewing for the post. That seems petty if true. That GM is going to have to make some interesting decisions.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    Sounds like they just got permission to speak with Dubas. That should be interesting.
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    The scuttlebutt around Toronto is that Dubas wants Ottawa ideally with the new ownership. But then he's going to have to wait for that to play out and for the new owners to fire Dorion.
  • Last_Rat_StandingLast_Rat_Standing Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart
    edited May 2023 Posts: 4,591
    I have nothing to say so I'll just make some inarticulate Florida man noises in celebration
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    Just like everybody figured, Florida sweeps the third round. No, wait a minute...

    Congrats to the Panthers. I'll be shocked if they don't win it all at this rate.
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    One could argue that Round 1 and Round 2 featured more exciting series then the Conference finals.

    The Panthers have the look of a team of destiny. They are on an incredible roll right now, though the Knights are also rolling so that might make for an interesting final.

    Provided the Knights finish off the Stars.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    I'm rooting for the Stars to come back with four straight but I don't see it happening. My mom's loved Dallas all her life and has been rooting for another Cup win for nearly 25 years now.
  • Last_Rat_StandingLast_Rat_Standing Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart
    Posts: 4,591
    I'm backing up to 2007. I was an Anaheim fan since 1994. While I was happy to see them win the cup then, it didn't seem like the same franchise. They dropped the Mighty and went with a whole new look that just didn't vibe with me.

    From 2001 to 2006, I would go to games in Sunrise but was either when the Ducks or Devils (my dads team) were playing and obviously was rooting for them. I joined the Air Force in 2006 and got out in early 2010 and came back to South Florida. I bought a cheap Panthers jersey in 2008 when they came out with new ones and always wore it around while stationed in Texas.

    When I got out, I would go to random weekend games. Tickets were cheap and I didn't have anything else to do but was always watching on TV as well. They had a flukey 2011 team in which I really went on board and won the division. I went to like 20 games that year and experience Panther playoff hockey for the first time. Then mediocrity set back in and I was basically going to games for free. But I stuck with them through today. All of the attendance jokes, curtianed off sections of the arena, relocation rumors and batcrap awful teams has led to this.

    Now I don't know how the Finals will go. But I'm really enjoying what they've done this postseason. I still feel like it's all a dream. Boston had us on the ropes and if it wasn't for the Penguins and Sabres losing in the final week, they wouldn't even be here. I never thought I'd ever see this.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    edited May 2023 Posts: 40,978
    I'm glad the Penguins could help you!

    I'm still glad they completely crapped the bed in those final two games and got a bunch of higher-ups fired as a result when their playoff streak finally came to an end. Some major changes were needed and they probably weren't going to happen with another swift and pointless first round exit. Still an embarrassing way to wrap the season.
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    As the playoffs loom I thought I would throw out a line and see how everyone is feeling about their team this year?

    For me the Leafs it's another, can they get past the first round? Why oh why do I put myself through this crap. LOL!

    What is everyone else thinking about as we head into the final 12 games of the season?
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    thedove wrote: »
    As the playoffs loom I thought I would throw out a line and see how everyone is feeling about their team this year?

    For me the Leafs it's another, can they get past the first round? Why oh why do I put myself through this crap. LOL!

    What is everyone else thinking about as we head into the final 12 games of the season?

    The Pens went from a lengthy post-season appearance streak to missing two in a row now. Dreadful season - it was the most optimistic I had felt in a few years now but somehow wound up being one of their more miserable returns in a long while.

    Look no further than them going up 4-0 on a killer Colorado team riding an eight game win streak, only for them to lose 5-4 in OT. That couldn't sum up the Pens' season any more succinctly.
  • Last_Rat_StandingLast_Rat_Standing Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart
    Posts: 4,591
    Hockey in south Florida has never been stronger. Gone are the days of empty seats, relocate to Quebec and teams coming down for a vacation and an easy win
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    @thedove … our Leafs are in tough. Boston or Florida, who’d you want to play against?? Either/or, damn hard first round. And I don’t think we can beat either won, not without some serious luck.

    I think it’s time for Shanahan to go(?). We can complain what Dubas did, what Treliving didn’t do, but in the end, if Dubas cleared the cupboards, then Treliving had no assets to play with, BUT, if the cupboards are almost empty (they are, and other assets like our young players were rightfully left), then Dubas ain’t to blame. He had to get the green or red light from his boss, Shanny.

    And the Shana-plan is now a decade old with one playoff series win to show for it. One. With the core four! That’s terrible and his head should roll.

    We are wasting that small window of Matthews-prime, Marner-prime, Nylander-prime.

    This experiment is almost out of time. Before it is, fire Shanny and bring in a new President….

    And Keefe will get swooped up by another team in short order. And he will prosper. What he’s done with this team when his first string goalie got injured, the 1B had a mental breakdown, and the third stringer was placed in a tough situation, with one to three decent defensemen, and, for most of the season, goals and points only coming from three players, it’s remarkable that the Leafs are going to the playoffs. So kudos to Keefe and his coaching staff.

    But Shanny hasta go.

    Otherwise, who could win it all?

    So many teams:

    Colorado
    Vegas
    Carolina
    Florida
    Boston
    Nashville
    With a little luck, Edmonton, Vancouver, Winnipeg

    This is why this is the hardest trophy to win!
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    @peter, I'm no expert on the behind the scenes stuff with teams but I can sorta, kinda see what Toronto fans took issue with when it came to Dubas. I was excited to get him in, and I know it was impossible for him to fully right the ship barely one season later, but can't say I've been absolutely loving some of the moves and decisions he's made either (though whether they're fully chosen by him or he's hampered by the true higher-ups, that remains to be seen).
  • Last_Rat_StandingLast_Rat_Standing Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart
    Posts: 4,591
    Toronto is one team I don't want to face first. Perhaps it's because florida hasn't played them since earlier. We play each other twice so we'll get a litmus test of how they stack up
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    @peter, I'm no expert on the behind the scenes stuff with teams but I can sorta, kinda see what Toronto fans took issue with when it came to Dubas. I was excited to get him in, and I know it was impossible for him to fully right the ship barely one season later, but can't say I've been absolutely loving some of the moves and decisions he's made either (though whether they're fully chosen by him or he's hampered by the true higher-ups, that remains to be seen).

    Oh I still pin some of the dirt on Dubas, and; the Pens are my other favourite team, so, I wasn’t happy seeing him jump from Toronto to Pittsburgh, but; we know that Shanny greenlit or put a stop to deals. That was part of Dubas’s reasons for leaving, apparently: he wanted more autonomy.

    So Dubas isn’t without sin, in Toronto. But he very much didn’t make decisions in a vacuum. He had to clear everything with the boss. And the boss, who’s been on the job for a decade has only been able to put together a full organization that’s only come up with one, playoff series win. That’s just abysmal.

    And when it happens again this year, where it’s likely we exit in the first round, and Dubas is no longer here, but Shanahan is… I hope he just exits stage left as fast as possible.

    I mean, this is the Stanley Cup Playoffs and we’ve seen crazy stuff happen every year, but if Toronto’s going to do damage, they’ll need some of that luck (I mean, our PK is something like 26th in the league!! That doesn’t forebode a strong, championship type team).

    @Last_Rat_Standing Florida is such a beautiful team. Built for the playoffs, they compete like they hate everyone’s guts. They stick together and have adopted an us vs the world personality.

    And Paul Maurice is one of the most wily coaches out there. No matter how far I think Keefe has come as a coach, Maurice is a Master.

    I see Toronto going down in five or six games.
  • Last_Rat_StandingLast_Rat_Standing Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart
    Posts: 4,591
    Last years series could have gone either way. With the exception of game 1, all were 1 goal games. Felt the same way when they played Carolina in the ECF. I hope Florida can win the east and play a Detroit or Washington to play an easier team on paper. Let you guys and Boston battle it out again
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    @peter, teams really can only change or alter so much before it's clear where the real problems lie. Same goes with my issue with the Pens' PP this year - it's been one of the worst I've ever seen. You can shake up the lines all you want, alter strategies, but when it's still that abysmal nonstop, the issue clearly lies in the PP coach. I genuinely think they would be in a playoff spot right now if not for the powerplay work this season.
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    @peter, teams really can only change or alter so much before it's clear where the real problems lie. Same goes with my issue with the Pens' PP this year - it's been one of the worst I've ever seen. You can shake up the lines all you want, alter strategies, but when it's still that abysmal nonstop, the issue clearly lies in the PP coach. I genuinely think they would be in a playoff spot right now if not for the powerplay work this season.

    Absolutely @Creasy47 !!! Crosby plucked every single player and places them on his back and was willing their way into the playoffs. But their PP is bloody terrible. It killed their chances, with the final nail, trading Guentzel… it’s sad. I don’t want to see Crosby have a painful last few years playing on less than average teams. He deserves better. He’s still my favourite player. And ideally, I’d love for him to greenlight a trade to Colorado to play with Nate. Those two would bang out at least one, if not two more cups together. Who could stop those two on the PP??
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    I do like Bunting (another sorely missed feature from the B2B Cup wins: a proper netfront presence) and have hopes they could get Guentzel back by next season, but my optimism has pretty much drained and now I'm ready to fully embrace the tank and the rebuilding years.

    I wouldn't mind any player being traded at some point except for Crosby. I hope he stays a Penguin for his entire career.
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    @Creasy47 — good chance of Crosby choosing exactly that.

    And yeah, we let both Bunting and Hymann (who just scored his 50th last night), just go from the Leafs… we could have afforded to keep them (not both of them, but we could have afforded one. Now we pay ‘ax Domi 3 million, and Bertuzzi 4 or 5 million…. God, I shake my head)…
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    Hell, I won't be shocked to see Sid pick another, even cheaper contract to sign up for so he can heighten the prospects even further of one last possible Cup run. It devastates me to see his level of play this season be ultimately wasted by incompetent coaching and some terrible lines.
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Hell, I won't be shocked to see Sid pick another, even cheaper contract to sign up for so he can heighten the prospects even further of one last possible Cup run. It devastates me to see his level of play this season be ultimately wasted by incompetent coaching and some terrible lines.

    I agree. I think he will do exactly that. His play this season…. 🤯
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    peter wrote: »
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Hell, I won't be shocked to see Sid pick another, even cheaper contract to sign up for so he can heighten the prospects even further of one last possible Cup run. It devastates me to see his level of play this season be ultimately wasted by incompetent coaching and some terrible lines.

    I agree. I think he will do exactly that. His play this season…. 🤯

    It's really, really something, especially at his age. He carried the entire team yesterday and still couldn't get the W. It's painful to watch.
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    peter wrote: »
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    Hell, I won't be shocked to see Sid pick another, even cheaper contract to sign up for so he can heighten the prospects even further of one last possible Cup run. It devastates me to see his level of play this season be ultimately wasted by incompetent coaching and some terrible lines.

    I agree. I think he will do exactly that. His play this season…. 🤯

    It's really, really something, especially at his age. He carried the entire team yesterday and still couldn't get the W. It's painful to watch.

    He’s a genius in the sport. My favourite player. A true captain. Unselfish, 200 foot player. The description of Crosby is: first line talent with a fourth line grinder’s mentality.

    I think that’s accurate. That’s exactly what he is.

    An adjacent thought: I’m not a fan of McJesus. He will never be to me what Crosby has been (humble, respectful, a grinder and win-at-all costs passion; my son was just entering the GTHL while McDavid was just in his last couple years. He was always the talent you see today, just light years ahead of anyone, but my god, precocious and entitled. And he still hasn’t shaken it).
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,978
    I feel the exact same way with both of those descriptions. Still eager to see if McDavid's talents can rise up enough to actually win his team a Cup or if he inevitably gets traded elsewhere after years of early exits. There is something about him that strikes me as a little bit arrogant, but that's just my own personal take.
  • peterpeter Toronto
    Posts: 9,509
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    I feel the exact same way with both of those descriptions. Still eager to see if McDavid's talents can rise up enough to actually win his team a Cup or if he inevitably gets traded elsewhere after years of early exits. There is something about him that strikes me as a little bit arrogant, but that's just my own personal take.

    Your take seems to be bang on, unfortunately…
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,434
    Great discussion gents! It is a great time of the year. Each game seems to mean more for some of the playoff bound teams. The also-rans are usually up for being spoilers and some, Blackhawks last year, can impact the playoffs. Still amazing to think the Blackhawks beating the Penguins got the Panthers in. The Panthers make it to the finals!

    As for my Leafs, it's going to be weird. They are going to likely be the lower seed in their match-up which means we are expecting an upset for them to win. If they don't win, Keefe will have coached his last game. Tinkering will happen. They've committed to Matthews and Nylander. You could trade Marner but he has a full no move contract now.

    We should do some playoff predictions once the playoffs roll around.
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