Who is the better team?

I like the Sharks this year. I can't argue that Detroit is the best team, but with Boyle and Blake on the backend...it makes them very, very different - and a heck of a lot more confident.

I think Detroit loses a 7 game series against the Sharks - if they don't choke-a-doodle-doo that is.

504Heater wrote:I like the Sharks this year. I can't argue that Detroit is the best team, but with Boyle and Blake on the backend...it makes them very, very different - and a heck of a lot more confident.

I think Detroit loses a 7 game series against the Sharks - if they don't choke-a-doodle-doo that is.

i voted SJ

Me too Tukker. I'm (slightly) convinced that they can go all the way this year.

BigRig77 wrote:
I think Murray...or sorry , Melnyk didn't want to tie up that much money in a Dman when our Goaltending is still so suspect. I, for one, agree with that. No point in having Boyle or anyone if shots are going in from every angle...

you look at Goalies around the league that could come available...

Look at how Lehtonen would only sign for 1 year....he wants out of Atlanta
Look at Bulin (Trade deadline only so the $$ works)
Look at Backstrom in Minny

all free agents next year...the year AFTER is of course better, but wouldn't it be worth it to finally go into the playoffs with a stud back there?

I see your point, I suppose, but only to a point.

OTT only has about $44 mil locked up in players next year, and the only guys who aren't signed are Neil, Kuba, and McAmmond. Slot Boyle's $6.7 mil in there, and add another $2.5 mil (?) for Alfie's raise, and you're at something like $53 mil. Hypothetically, as long as the cap goes up a modest $4-5 mil (but who knows in this uncertain market how that will pan out), we still would have had room for a quality goalie.

There are some 'ifs' there, I grant, but I can't imagine that we'll get Bouwmeester (if he becomes available and wants to sign here) for a better deal than the one Boyle's on right now, although I grant Bouw's got the age advantage here. I guess it's a question of where we spend the money... can $8-10 mil in space bring in a quality D and a quality goalie? I dunno. Looking around the league at recent signings, $4 might get you a D of about Mark Streit quality, and a goalie of about Leclaire quality...

I don't see how Dallas' D is B+ but SJ's is A.

Sergei Zubov is IMO the third best defenceman in the league. Niskanen is a great young d-men, Boucher is like a better Kuba IMO, Robidas might be the NHL's best kept secret, and they have a plethora of other top notch young'uns on the blue-line.

SJ has an over-the-hill Blake (Boucher is better), a good offensively but meh defensively d-man in Boyle (Zubov is much better), an inconsistent young puck-mover in Erhoff (Niskanen is better) and a good young shut-down guy in Vlasic (I think Robidas is better).

The depth on the blue-line isn't even remotely comparable IMO.

Fair enough. I keep thinking that the makeup of the Dallas D is based way too heavily on aging and oft-injured players - thus, they're at a disadvantage to SJ's top 6. But then again, Boyle was out the entire year last year.

Plus, I did that on kinda a whim. I was gonna make it just SJ vs Detroit and I got overly ambitious.

On principle, I just don't want it to be SJ.
They have to suck this year - we have their 1st.

Nice analysis of the teams Heater but it's gotta be hands down Detroit right now. Even without Hossa. Add him and it's a no brainer. Those other teams need to prove to me there better. I'm a little surprised Anaheim didn't even hit your radar screen though. The do still have Pronger, Neidermeyer, Perry, Getzlaf and Selanne right? I think despite their poor start they'll be a solid team OR I could be way off and they pull a Carolina and have a couple seasons of futility after a Cup win. BTW I'd take that any day for the Sens if we won a Cup.

Detroit is the obvious call for so many reasons. They have the intagibles to be the best, and a talent riddled roster to back it up.

PS, I second the hopes for SJs tanking.

Cap'n' Clutch wrote:Nice analysis of the teams Heater but it's gotta be hands down Detroit right now. Even without Hossa. Add him and it's a no brainer. Those other teams need to prove to me there better. I'm a little surprised Anaheim didn't even hit your radar screen though. The do still have Pronger, Neidermeyer, Perry, Getzlaf and Selanne right? I think despite their poor start they'll be a solid team OR I could be way off and they pull a Carolina and have a couple seasons of futility after a Cup win. BTW I'd take that any day for the Sens if we won a Cup.

I took them off because I ran out of room for the poll.