Who Will Be 'Canada’s Team' competing for Stanley in '09?

504Heater wrote:

wprager wrote:What's wrong with Kipper? If it's because he's not Canadian then we'd all better root for the Devils, then.

Nothing wrong with him. I've always thought he was a glorified Gerber though, letting in back-breaking goals, but he should be fine. However, you can't argue that Luongo's a (much) better goaltender than Kipper...

Question was (paraphrasing) what team should Canadians cheer for. That doesn't necessarily mean the team that's most likely to win. Right? I mean we're (mostly) pretty much united in our Habs Hate?

I just want to see the Red Mile again.

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:Vancouver... Stnaley cup finals man.

So you have them winning all three preliminary rounds...wow. That's confidence.

One of the best and most consistents teams since all star break.
It is usually how it works IMO:
Amazing two lines, good veteran player, elite goalie, young guns stepping up big time...
THe recipe is there.

Yeah, but what would you rather see? Vancouver fans waiving white towels or young ladies waiving their, well, you know?

marakh wrote:

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:Vancouver... Stnaley cup finals man.

So you have them winning all three preliminary rounds...wow. That's confidence.

One of the best and most consistents teams since all star break.
It is usually how it works IMO:
Amazing two lines, good veteran player, elite goalie, young guns stepping up big time...
THe recipe is there.

Gee, that recipe sounds like the Columbus Blue Jackets, their potential first round opponents, who beat the Canucks three of four meetings this year.

For me, it's always Calgary once the Sens are out of the running. I was born there, so I'll always have some link to the Flames.

Calgary... Nothing like there last run it was awsome...

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:Vancouver... Stnaley cup finals man.

So you have them winning all three preliminary rounds...wow. That's confidence.

One of the best and most consistents teams since all star break.
It is usually how it works IMO:
Amazing two lines, good veteran player, elite goalie, young guns stepping up big time...
THe recipe is there.

Gee, that recipe sounds like the Columbus Blue Jackets, their potential first round opponents, who beat the Canucks three of four meetings this year.

I dont need to tell you this I think, but Regular season's wins and losses dont mean anything at all. Montreal beat Boston 8-0 last season, then went to 7 games to beat them in the Playoffs.
You remember the Pens from 06/07? That is how the Blue Jackets will look like in the Playoffs. Lack of experience to face adversity. Their PP will be figured out also in a 7 game series. All this IMO of course.
Also the Mason factor, Ill wait to see how he handles forwards rushing him shift after shift in the playoffs before comparing him to Luongo.
I think Sundin will make a difference, the kind of veteran who will win faceoffs at key moments. I dont know for sure, but I also think Van are a lot meaner.

This is all based on games I see of course, Im not a fan of Vancouver by any means, in fact Calgary is the team I am cheering for.

marakh wrote:

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:Vancouver... Stnaley cup finals man.

So you have them winning all three preliminary rounds...wow. That's confidence.

One of the best and most consistents teams since all star break.
It is usually how it works IMO:
Amazing two lines, good veteran player, elite goalie, young guns stepping up big time...
THe recipe is there.

Gee, that recipe sounds like the Columbus Blue Jackets, their potential first round opponents, who beat the Canucks three of four meetings this year.

I dont need to tell you this I think, but Regular season's wins and losses dont mean anything at all. Montreal beat Boston 8-0 last season, then went to 7 games to beat them in the Playoffs.
You remember the Pens from 06/07? That is how the Blue Jackets will look like in the Playoffs. Lack of experience to face adversity. Their PP will be figured out also in a 7 game series. All this IMO of course.
Also the Mason factor, Ill wait to see how he handles forwards rushing him shift after shift in the playoffs before comparing him to Luongo.
I think Sundin will make a difference, the kind of veteran who will win faceoffs at key moments. I dont know for sure, but I also think Van are a lot meaner.

This is all based on games I see of course, Im not a fan of Vancouver by any means, in fact Calgary is the team I am cheering for.

Well, if the Canucks face the Jackets, we will see if you have correctly assessed their respective strengths and weaknesses.

Having watched them play each other, you'll forgive me if I find your viewpoint somewhat off the mark.

cool)

My good friend Marakh, you may also wish to consider the Blue Jackets are actually nothing like last year's Pens.

Hitch is a far better coach than Michel Therrien, and the Jackets have arguably better balance across the roster. They have, I believe, more players who have significant playoff experience.

But let's talk about the Nucks-Jackets matchup.

Luongo Vs. Mason--toss up.

D Vs D--toss up.

Forwards: Kesler and Burrows Vs. Umberger and Torres--toss up.
Rick Nash trumps the Sedins all by himself. Antoine Vermette is Mr Shut Down (aided by the still highly efficient Michael Peca) and skates much, much faster than Mr Sundin. Kristian Huselius trumps Pavol Demitra. And there's the unsung Manny Maholtra. And the superbly talented Nikita Filatov.

Unlike you, I am not ready to pop the champagne for the Vancouverites.

But I do believe such a series would one to celebrate for the quality of the hockey we would see.

:KKK:

A Vancouver-Columbus series will most certainly be an interesting one. How the team responds in their first post-season appearance will be key.

I picked Calgary, for obvious reasons. The only downfall they could have is if Kiprusoff poops the bed.

SensGirl11 wrote:I picked Calgary, for obvious reasons. The only downfall they could have is if Kiprusoff poops the bed.

Obvious how?

davetherave wrote:My good friend Marakh, you may also wish to consider the Blue Jackets are actually nothing like last year's Pens.

Hitch is a far better coach than Michel Therrien, and the Jackets have arguably better balance across the roster. They have, I believe, more players who have significant playoff experience.

But let's talk about the Nucks-Jackets matchup.

Luongo Vs. Mason--toss up.

D Vs D--toss up.

Forwards: Kesler and Burrows Vs. Umberger and Torres--toss up.
Rick Nash trumps the Sedins all by himself. Antoine Vermette is Mr Shut Down (aided by the still highly efficient Michael Peca) and skates much, much faster than Mr Sundin. Kristian Huselius trumps Pavol Demitra. And there's the unsung Manny Maholtra. And the superbly talented Nikita Filatov.

Unlike you, I am not ready to pop the champagne for the Vancouverites.

But I do believe such a series would one to celebrate for the quality of the hockey we would see.

:KKK:

Haha. I m telling you, Ill wait to see how Mason reacts to Van's power forwards before giving him any edge whatsoever.

Pittsburg went to the Finals with Therrien, he was a good coach. Wang looks so damn good now that the team is finally in the playoffs. It's because people only analyze the present and don't think past or future. Some coaches win the cup and are fired less than two years later (Laviolette, Tortorella...)

Look, the Sens looked pretty damn good pre lockout before they faced Gary Roberts and Tie Domi. Just saying all the analysis in the world about the season will mean 0 in the playoffs.
First two games will be in Vancouver, Id be schocked if Columbus win a game there.

Marakh, Hitch has already won a Stanley Cup. That's more than Mike Therrien. And more than most coaches.

Getting fired? As more than one NHL coach will sardonically tell you, "You're no good until you're fired."

And you're not actually going to compare this year's Bluejackets and the pre-lockout Senators...are you?

Now that you're backpedaling, I'll remind you that you made that supremely confident declaration about the Canucks going to the Finals.

I'm saying that is far from a given, and I've provided a few things for you to consider.

And as I said, I consider the Luongo-Mason matchup a tossup...you are the one who talks about 'the edge'...not moi.

Cheers, and here's to another unpredictable playoff season.


cool)

Let's just wait and see. I am not comparing the Jackets to the pre-lockout senators. The only point I was making is playoff success are 50/50 depending on regular season and so many other factors.

marakh wrote:Let's just wait and see. I am not comparing the Jackets to the pre-lockout senators. The only point I was making is playoff success are 50/50 depending on regular season and so many other factors.

Why, Marakh, how about that...it seems we completely agree... :D:

I voted for Calgary, they have been there, Jokinen has a lot to prove in his first playoff run, so lets hope all the boys come ready to play.