Poor Wolfie ! :cry:
NHL Regular Season 2016-17
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Unfortunately, come playoffs it will be the usual: slash, grab, punch, hack, hold, and everything to prevent skilled players from utilizing their skill, while refs stand there with their whistles up their arseholes, saying “That’s playoff hockey…. duh.”
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Playoff hockey has always been tighter and grittier than the more free-wheeling regular season. I don’t see anything wrong with that. The truly great players still shine through and make a difference. Crosby, Malkin, Coture, Burns, Towes, Kane, Kucherov, Backstrom, Getzlaf… all these guys are stars who routinely perform at a high level in the more physical and suffocating playoffs.
McDavid is going to be the exact same way. I don’t know how he will adjust to it this year. But it will only be his first time. He may be the best player in the world right now. Tighter play doesn’t keep a guy of his caliber down.
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I’ll admit I have an East Coast bias, but does Connor McDavid have a Marty McSorley type of enforcer to stick up for him like Gretzky had?
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The entire Oilers team will stick up for him en mass. The thing about McJesus is that nobody can catch him to contain him like any other skilled player. His first 2 strides separates him from the pack and then when he is full flight it is only a lucky stick check that keeps him from getting a scoring chance.
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Zack Kassian, maybe? The NHL is different now from the 80s and 90s. How many teams actually have enforcers anymore who’s job is to stick up for the stars? The Matt Cookes and Chris Neils of the world have mostly gone away. Teams can’t afford to give active roster spots to one dimensional players that lack offensive or defensive acumen, particularly when some teams are deep enough to be true scoring threats on all four lines. San Jose couldn’t have competed the way they did last playoffs with one or more John Scotts in the lineup.
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While the classic enforcer has gone extinct I feel there’s still room for the irritant/cheap shot artist forward, with Claude Lemieux being the patron saint. He’s the guy who can repay a big check on a star player in kind or get under the skin of the opposing team to draw a penalty. Of course he also brought some skills to the table, justifying his presence.
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While the classic enforcer has gone extinct I feel there’s still room for the irritant/cheap shot artist forward, with Claude Lemieux being the patron saint. He’s the guy who can repay a big check on a star player in kind or get under the skin of the opposing team to draw a penalty. Of course he also brought some skills to the table, justifying his presence.
Andrew Shaw is like that, though somewhat less talented. Wayne Simmonds is a tough guy, but he also scores 30 goals a season. Brad Marchand may be the ultimate version; a well known pest but also one of the most talented players in the league.
Alex Killorn has always struck me as being semi-dirty and pest-like but a capable player. He annoyed the crap out of me watching Detroit play Tampa the last couple playoff series.
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After the Habs win the whole thing this year, Mcdavid and Co can win as many as they like.
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Speaking of irritants, I wonder what kind of welcome Chris Kreider will get at the Bell Centre…
For the record he leads the league in goalie interference penalties this season.
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Speaking of irritants, I wonder what kind of welcome Chris Kreider will get at the Bell Centre…
For the record he leads the league in goalie interference penalties this season.
That’s ok, we won’t need to interfere with Henrik, he’s been letting em in on his own.
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Careful tugging on the King’s cloak, he just needs to get his sea legs under him (all the time missed this year is a reality of his advanced age).
Also the Rangers will benefit from being the road team in the series despite probably finishing with a better record than the Habs.
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Speaking of irritants, I wonder what kind of welcome Chris Kreider will get at the Bell Centre…
For the record he leads the league in goalie interference penalties this season.
:lol:
:x Oh no… not my beloved Carey Price.
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Careful tugging on the King’s cloak, he just needs to get his sea legs under him (all the time missed this year is a reality of his advanced age).
Also the Rangers will benefit from being the road team in the series despite probably finishing with a better record than the Habs.
You can have the overall points, I’ll take the season series.
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I’ll take the club that didn’t need to can it’s coach midseason.
EDIT: As silly as this playoff format is I’m glad the Rangers get to avoid Pittsburgh and Washington until the conference finals (a big leap to be sure), they’ve played so many series against each of them the last ten years that it’s good to have a fresh matchup (albeit a rematch of the controversial conference finals three years ago).
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I’ll take the club that didn’t need to can it’s coach midseason.
EDIT: As silly as this playoff format is I’m glad the Rangers get to avoid Pittsburgh and Washington until the conference finals (a big leap to be sure), they’ve played so many series against each of them the last ten years that it’s good to have a fresh matchup (albeit a rematch of the controversial conference finals three years ago).
I’ll take the coach that won the cup when they last met.
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Unlike two season ago when the Habs couldn’t find an answer to the New York Rangers’ speed, there’s more trust this season that the bench boss will be able to evaluate the situation, adjust for deficits in his team’s play, and help them overcome whatever tactic their opposition employs. The Canadiens have already shown that they can handle the Rangers, defeating them on each occasion this season, mostly before they had adopted this system that sees them outplaying the opposition on a virtually nightly basis.The biggest thing will be protecting Carey Price from a team that likes to get in his crease (or millimetres outside of it). Hopefully the additions of the physical Weber and vocal Julien can carry the clout to ensure their star performer is protected.
*from eyes on the prize website
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The encouraging thing is that this was supposed to be a consolidation year for the Rangers since they were integrating young players like Vesey, Buchnevich and Skjei (with varying degrees of success) but comfortably clinched a playoff spot. One huge element that was missing last year was a forward who could lead odd man rushes like Carl Hagelin, and Michael Grabner has filled that role and then some. While there’s no killer line all four lines can score.
Also one other thing, the Habs have had the Rangers number the last several years, including three years ago. Playoffs are a different animal.
This is all moot if McDonaugh is not 100%.
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I don’t feel sorry for you one bit if McDonaugh is less than ready, we took ya to 6 games which we only lost 1-0 with a less than AHL caliber goaltender. I do agree with you that the playoffs are a whole other animal (what hockey fan wouldn’t?), and we should probably stop talking about the past… after all, neither team has won a cup recently.
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Us Red Wing fans are officially experts at living in past glory now.
:roll:
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It is too bad they couldn’t close the Joe with a playoff series, it was nice for the Islanders to have a moment in their old barn. Of course the Wings have played so many playoff series that what’s one year without one?
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