Tell me about it. The ratio between talent versus hard work has gone upsidedown in this team over the lockout. I just hope they can keep this up :)

I'm optimistic that the Dolans will screw this team up again.

Best description on what if feels like to be a Rangers fan at the moment:



As posted on the HFboards tonight :)

I want to kick this guy in the balls!

It's only ok if he is bigger than you though.

King Henrik is awesome.

LOL at the Mark Messier constellation

How is the 'crackdown' going in your neck of the woods? The last two games the Flames have played has seen a worrying trend. Several blatant obstruction/hooking/holding penalties that would have been called last week were let go (both ways). I'm hoping it's an anomaly.

Couldn't really say. Last two Thrasher games, there hasn't been much to crackdown on as far as I can tell. About the only thing we've done defensively is hope for a flag to be thrown for "moving unimpeded toward the goalie" or something.

really from day one, I've felt it's been inconsistent.

they definitely are calling plays that they wouldn't have called last year..er, 2 years ago. that's good.
but then they also will miss some blatant stuff, while at the same time calling stuff that's borderline (at best). I don't feel the refs really have gotten the feel for this crackdown at all - I think they are too used to letting stuff like that go, and are having a tough time adjusting.

and this is a critical time - if they don't get it fixed quick, they risk going right back to the old ways...just like we've seen in the past.

I think only certain refs know how to handle things... the old vets like Fraser, Koharski, etc. seem to be doing very well and I think they are doing a great job.

But when I went to Saturday's Flyers/Isles game, the officiating was TERRIBLE. Streaks of 5, 7 and then about 4 penalties were called on one team, and VERY borderline calls were made while more obvious penalties had to be let go. At one point they called four tickey-tack penalties on the Isles in a less than 2 minute span (there were 4 non-coincidental minors in the box for the Isles).

The guys reffing the game I had never heard of before... seems like when I watch a game with real refs, they do a pretty good job.

I watched Mon-Bos and Phx-Edm tonight, and the officiating seemed ok. Inconsistent officiating has always been a problem in the NHL. It's still better than the NBA, though.

Anyone watch the Isles-Rags game tonight?

Great early season game, good hockey all the way, great goaltending, and best of all, the good guys got the shoot-out win! :D

Y'know, I kinda like this "SuperStats" scoresheet thing.
http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreport...6/ES020100.HTM

A quick scan of it & I can tell why the Thrashers are getting blown out without having to suffer through watching it.

26-8 shots? ;)

Penalties don't seem to be helping either.

And let's not overlook the Giveaways (which probably relates well to the SOG disparity).

The Shift Chart thing is kinda cool to look at too, can't say that I remember seeing those on nhl.com in the past (but then again, don't know that I really looked for one either).

Leafs extend streak to four games... Lindros gets another goal... Joe Canadian is happy.

Isles with another win... Satan & Yashin really starting to click.

Satan looks like our best player out there, and has actually (*gasp*) even started passing the puck when necessary. The 1st goal of the game was outstanding... Yashin to Asham to Satan on a bang-bang-bang goal.

Atlanta continues their dirty ways vs Tampa.

Boulton, not surprising gets kicked out for a vicious elbow.

Only had 4 minutes of ice time the whole game, yet is out there in the third when they're obviously not playing for a tie.

Tortella went off.

His best line was saying Bolton should be in the ECHL, ha.

If Hartley begins to hurt the franchise more than he helps, it might be time to kick him out the door as well. Both him and Don Waddell should share the blame for this abomination they put on the ice. This team that is struggling (outside of the two Washington games) is also about $2 million under the cap, so it isn't like they are sucking because they are cheap.

I still can't help but feel like there's more than coincidence between Atl's struggles & Ilya's return. Maybe there's animosity towards him that hasn't peeked out in the media yet or something, but to go from a well-oiled machine one weekend to the abysmal performance of the 4 games since is bewildering to see.

We've got tickets for tomorrow night (vs NJ), hopefully the switch is turned on between now & then, else it could be a very long night indeed.

That certainly could be part of it, but it seems that their poor play has coencided pretty closely to lose Dunham. While Dunham isn't the greatest goalie in the league, he's a NHL quality netminder. The guys Atlanta has playing right now Garnett and Berkhoel don't seem to be there quite yet. While bad netminding can't explain all of Atlanta's struggles, it plays a big role in how a team plays. If you can't trust your goalie, your entire mindset on the ice is different. It effects a lot of things on the ice. I can't see how the Thrashers have any sort of confidence of anyone they have between the pipes right now.

Until last night I was leaning heavily toward that explanation myself but they're suddenly clueless in every phase of the game. Only 8 shots in the first 40 minutes (just 15 for the game), 12 giveaways, 10 minor penalties leading to nearly 1/3rd of the game shorthanded, it's like they've never seen ice before.

And they seem incredibly slow, even the guys that I know are actually fast skaters. If the problem is the lack of NHL experience in goal, you must blame Don Waddell for that. There are NHL-experienced goalies on the sidelines still, but he intentionally went into the season with only 4 goalies under contract for this season (Dunham, Lehtonen, Garnett, and Berkhoel). Prior to this season, Lehtonen had only 4 NHL games. Garnett had not even been a #1 AHL goalie, and Berkhoel missed a lot of time the previous season (and when he played it was primarily in the ECHL).

Dunham and Lehtonen are known to have lots of injuries. Failing to address that area of concern has to fall squarely on Waddell's shoulders.

Ugh. That's a horrible line of "SuperStats."

I'm not sure who they're supposed to have under contract though, not that they haven't already talked to. Potvin was discussed at the same time as Dunham, I doubt he's interested in playing in the AHL at this stage of his career but that's what he would have been looking at if he was signed, and his interest (and prospects) for playing is limited enough that he hasn't even bothered to order the new pads. Steve Shields is in Chicago on a tryout contract but there's questions about whether he's in playing shape & you'd still have a playing time issue as well I imagine -- I wouldn't recommend taking developmental ice time away from Garnett or Berkhoel in the AHL just to keep Shields as an emergency backup.

It was pretty obvious from comments earlier this week that Waddell talked to Buffalo & they aren't interested in making a deal (at least not with an Eastern Conf. team) & they're the only team with a real surplus in the net right now.

So, while I agree that it'd be great not to be in this situation, I'm not sure there's many teams who could go 4 deep in goal right now, nor really even three deep & be in much better straits than Atlanta.

Dola -- just saw a brief clip of the Boulton elbow from last night. Granted, it wasn't pretty but from the clip, it wasn't nearly as bad as the writeups led me to expect. The camera angle was bad, so was the video quality & it was a brief clip so I'm not exactly in a position to give it a ringing endorsement either, just saying it wasn't as odd looking as I expected it to be.

On the same subject, I think Barry Melrose was off the mark when trying to interpret Boulton's five minutes of ice time as some sort of "he was only out there for one thing" situation. Boulton is pretty clearly the bottom of the bench right now, but looking around the league, his ice time was more than the last guy that a lot of teams skated last night. Thrashers dressed him because that's what they've got left for a 3rd line LW after Anaheim reclaimed Chris Kunitz on waivers earlier this week. Again, that's not to say that Boulton is up for Humanitarian of the Year, just that I don't think you can read playing time = intent quite as simply as Melrose tried to do.

All I will say then, is that if Don doesn't, or can't, get an experienced goalie to back up Dunham and Lehtonen, the team best not trot that out as en excuse when this season blows up on them.

Ugh...do you have a link to these comments???

The rumours I've heard are that Regier is looking for Popovic and a draft pick in return while the Thrashers are only prepared to give a second rounder for Noronen.

The real problem is the fact that Darcy Regier will never allow himself to make a 'bad' trade and ends up holding on to assets for too long (ie: Satan, Peca), lowering their value or in some cases, getting nothing for them.

Noronen and Biron are both former #1 picks so Regier is likely looking for a top prospect at the very least in return. I like Noronen, but I don't think he's worth any more than the second rounder right now. Darcy likely doesn't want a 'Kiprusoff' situation happening, where his third string goalie turns into a stud for another team without him getting proper compensation.

As a Buffalo fan, I just hope they move one of these two guys (Biron or Noronen). Ryan Miller has been tremendous thus far in the Sabres cage, leading them to their best start in over 20 years. He's played every second in net so far. Noronen is running out of suits to wear in the press box and the situation could become a distraction for a team that's started the season on fire.

http://www.ajc.com/thrashers/content...thrashers.html

Waddell said the Thrashers also spoke to Felix Potvin, who did not want to go to Chicago under those circumstances. Potvin also had not been in a training camp and did not possess the new pads.

Several teams also have had injuries to goalies, so a trade is unlikely. Buffalo, with Mika Noronen and Martin Biron backing up Ryan Miller, is the only team with a surplus.

"Nobody's got goaltending," Waddell said.

"Only one team does, and they're not making a deal right now."

It could be more likely that the Sabres deal a goalie to a Western Conference team instead of helping a team from the East.

That Boulton elbow was awful......is this all that goon does, try to hurt people when the game gets out of reach...twice in a week now.....I really hope the NHL sends a message to Boulton and Hartley.....trying to hurt people like that really pisses me off

Ah yes, the whining contingent from Toronto is heard from.
:rolleyes:

If you can classify this as whining, fine, i was whining....i thought i was making a comment about an incident last night....one player trying to hurt another......maybe you dont read so well

Maybe Toronto fans only see what players wearing other jerseys do.
It was whining last week, it's whining now.
Maybe you don't see so well.

Maybe you enjoy seeing Boulton take shots at players just playing the game after his team is out of it....I dont....i made a comment about an incident last week, and i did again this week.....im allowed to do that, thanks.....I think i see well enough to recognize a team that can't do a thing on the ice, and a coach who seems to be encouraging thuggery...enjoy the game tommorow....7-0 NJ probably

That's a tough indictment. Jon's right, Buffalo really is the only team with a surplus of goalies. They are probably the only team that could lose their #1 and #2 goalies and still have a quality goalie between the pipes. If the Wings lost Legace and Osgood, they would be relying on 20 year old Jimmy Howard. Howard has a great future ahead of him, but now is not the time.

Who do the Oil have after Markanen and Conklin?

Maybe I'm just being a homer, but I really don't recall Hartley being a dirty coach in Colorado. In fact, I think he really cleaned up a lot of the crap from the Crawford era.

I'm sure some Detroit fan will be along shortly to refresh my memory though.

He was a dirty coach. :D

I guess so. I watched really, really closely, and I just didn't see a single Leaf player do anything wrong during the Atlanta/Tampa Bay game we're discussing.

Nothing. They also only have 4 goalies under contract and 2 of them have no NHL experience.

It is about having a third guy who has at least played a few games in the NHL or is on the verge of making it. Quite a few of those goalies that would've been great third options went to Europe instead this past summer, presumably because NHL teams were lowballing them.

I knew about Potvin. Maybe Don could have signed him in September, or at least tried to invite him to camp. He only had the 4 contracted goalies in training camp. He wasn't even trying to lure another one in until the injuries, from what I recall.

I agree. It took me by suprise that Hartley apparently has such a ban rep around the league...

Dear Kevin Lowe;

Thanks for not getting a number one center. You were obviously right, we didn't need it. Thankfully you didn't waste time getting a number one goalie either, despite some fans (ok, me!) saying we really needed one. Our recent 5 game winless streak only enforces your brilliance. And thanks for sticking with Craig MacTavish for another season. I'll enjoy playing golf with him while the other teams in the NHL are playing for the Cup.

Love always,
klayman

While just over half of the league will be playing for the Cup. You make it sound like 29 teams will be challenging for the Cup and only Edmonton would be out of it. ;)

Dear klayman,
Don't despair about your Oilers. They get to play an Avs team tonight who think the new rules have changed games to just 30 minutes in duration. Meanwhile, their defense is giving up more backdoor chances than Little Richard at a men's prison. And, of course, right after tonight's game they will be headed to Vancouver where they should feel about as welcome as a foot fungus. So not to worry, that winless streak is going to be a thing of the past in no time!

Love always,
Draft Dodger

Redwings are 7-1.

Just give them the cup please. ;)


(We all know that when the Wings do well in the regular season, they automatically win the Cup)

poetic license :)

Off to a fantastic start. :(

Peca's contract makes him the de facto #1 center. Unfortunately, as much as he brings to the game, he just doesn't have the offence.

I'd make a serious run at Noronen. Scoring by committee can work but not if the team has no confidence in the man inbetween the pipes.

1995-96 Detroit Red Wings 62-13-7 Did not win the Stanley Cup. :D