No hockey last night. I'm in withdrawals here this morning. Either that or not enough coffee. Or both.

:(

You might only have to hit yourself once then. Those new-fangled $200+ dollar composite sticks they use are shattering like side window glass in the wake of a car thief. :1orglaugh

I don't recall the old wooden sticks breaking at anything near this rate. Oh, but guys get "more flex", and harder shots is it? Right. There were several guys over the 'wood' years who had 130+ km/hr slapshots. Al MacKinnis, anyone? Dennis Hull, hello? Maybe a stick or two would break per game back in those years.

These days it's more like three per period that snap, shatter, blow up on a crucial point shot, etc. Are they affecting the outcomes of games? You bet at times they are.


I never paid more than $20 for a goddammed hockey stick when I was playing. Now it's $60, $100, $225, etc. Along with the equipment and enrollment fees a parent needs to cough up about $1000 to get their kid into hockey. They've priced the game out of reach of a lot of kids who will now either take up soccer or will wind up stealing your car.

/rant. Time for more coffee...

lol, yeah, you got the joke. I would only want to smack myself once or twice - no need to beat myself up - it is just a game after all, even if it is the Greatest Game...

Those wood sticks weren't likely to break in the cross checks either... :winkwink:

Thus the term "layed the lumber on 'im" was born. :D

You used to be able to stick-check a guy, forcibly lift a guy's stick to steal the puck, or thwack yours across his to prevent him from controlling a pass or take a shot, etc, back in the wooden stick days, without getting a penalty.

But in today's game

if his pussy $200 stick breaks
if your stick touches his sissy hands with those short sissy gloves they wear
if he tucks your stick under his arm and fakes a hook
if he accidentally-on-purpose drops his stick when you thwack him

you end up in the box doing time.

Seriously, when I played the coaches all used to say "keep a solid grip on your stick for chrissakes!"... because if a guy knocked the stick out of your hands it was YOUR fault, not his. (as is the way it should be). Nowadays a guy can just float around the ice gingerly holding onto his stick (like a wimp) and basically inviting someone to tap his shaft.

Don't get me started on the diving.:mad:

Personally I think it's a blight on any sport but has no place in the sacred sanctity that is hockey.

I agree 100%.

Well... almost... I feel a stick in my ribs and I am going to clamp down with my arm. Maybe I get the call... maybe I get the stick pulled out of that ginger grip... :winkwink:

Ok... time for a prayer...


Dear Lord Stanley,

I am sorry I hate the Rangers
a team of talent bestowed with luck
and if my comments angers
then i accept I'm fucked

Please don't let them move on
to win the next round
for their fans will prattle long
a burden to hang around

BURN!

And then there were four...


Caps GONE.
Habs GONE

Round 3 predictions, anyone?


I'll say this;

Rangers-Lightning --- The masses will say NY in 5, or 6, something like that. But Tampa is playing well right now, so I'm going against the grain and say the Bolts win this series in 7.

Blackhawks-Ducks --- Ah what the hell, I'm probably wrong but Chicago in 7. Couple of Winnipeg boys on the Hawks' roster, and I hear they're pretty good :D so I can't go against them. As much as the Ducks seem invincible if anyone can beat them it's Chicago.


Far-L, sorry your nightmare came true. :(

Just heard a guy on the radio say this...


What do you call a White Russian with no cup?




a. Ovechkin

Even the Pitt series was close game by game score-wise for the Rangers, and you know the Caps took a piece out of them in very close games. At a certain point, all the saves King Henrik makes won't be enough because Tampa is a team that likes to pound pucks like a relentless scoring machine. I see Tampa taking it in 5 or 6.

Ducks vs Chicago is going to be good. They both had enough triage and sojourn to be ready for anything. Regardless who wins in the west I believe the Cup will set in the west at the end of the day. Rangers you can see are starting to get pretty banged up. If they make it to the finals it will be on crutches and sled skates.

I think Ducks have it this year.

Sound enough reasoning. I don't know about Tampa taking it in 5 or 6, but anything is possible. What I do know is that this series is going to show everyone exactly how much of a true Stanley Cup Playoff team the Rangers are. Being the President's trophy winner means expectations are high.
All I know is if my pool picks have any hope at all I need St. Loo-ey to get about 5 points per game, but still have Tampa win (because Bishop is my one remaining Goalie pick). :D

That's the popular concensus. But if there's one thing I've learned about the NHL in the last 10 years it is to never, and I mean ever, underestimate Toews and Kane.

Round 3 starts tonight.

EAST
Tampa Bay Lightning @ NY Rangers

WEST
Chicago Blackhawks @ Anaheim Ducks

Place your bets, smoke 'em if you gottem. We're in for some great hockey.

9 down 7 to go.

On a side note, fuck NBC for making me have to be downstairs in the sports book at 10am to watch a hockey game. And fuck them for making Shelly Long leave Cheers.

Okay so it's Chicago-Anaheim on right now, and Tampa-NY series starts tomorrow night.

And Canada is hosing Russia 4-0 in the 3rd at the IIHF Worlds over in the Czech Rep. :D

Tampa hoses the Rangers in their own house, and I come here to find no comment from GFY?

Something's amiss.



Blackhawks need to take note of that game last night and do the same to the Ducks tonight. (if they have any hope in this series)

Chicago 3, Anaheim 2 in triple overtime.


Longest NHL game in 7 years.

A combined 113 saves between the two goalies.

Series tied 1-1



Rangers @ Tampa tonight.

NON-Playoff News.

Babcock joins the center of the hockey world and signs on as head coach of my beloved Maple Laffs.

I KNEW IT


Well I suspected it. Nearly two months ago I said, out loud, to several people, not just one or two, but SEVERAL, that if any coach could step into that hornet's nest in TO and have a shot at righting the Leafs' ship it would be Babcock. I just wasn't sure he would WANT to. (I mean why would anyone? Babcock was going to get paid massive bucks no matter where he went, so why not somewhere that isn't Toronto?)

Mclellan was my other guy, but I had him pegged as ending up in Edmo, which of course he did.

As I recall, everyone I said the above to disagreed with me, said it'll never happen. People need to learn to stop disagreeing with me. My hockey pool picks suck but my predictions over the past while have all been spot on.

Babcock deal; $6.2m/yr on an 8 year contract.

The Leafs are obviously going to win the cup next year. :D


Great game last night. Unless you're a Rangers fan.

Game 3: Andersen made 27 saves, Anaheim killed five penalties, Ducks beat the Hawks 2-1 and now lead the series 2-1.


Rangers-Lightning tonight?

A whole different Rangers team showed up last night.

Series tied 2-2 heading back to NY.


In other news I'm noticing a few differences around the league with regard to hockey fans in Winnipeg. For one, and this one has sort of bugged me for some time, but what's with all the morons in nearly every arena around the league (except Winnipeg and a few select others) who BANG on the glass? I see no purpose to it at all, and all it seems to do is cause a lot of loud thumping to shoot out of every TV set tuned in to the game.

Then there's those stupid horns. I'm looking at you Washington, as well as Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and even Calgary does it. That annoying hornblowing idiot in the crowd. I can assure you we in Winnipeg don't need some twat blowing a horn to get us to cheer on our Jets. Thank gawd they don't do that shit here.

Speaking of thanking gawd for not doing shit here, I'm also quite happy that nowhere over here in N America do we do that stupid annoying whistling thing they do over in Europe, their equivalent of booing or razzing the other team. I find it not only annoying but it's bad hockey etiquette and flat-out bad manners, and it's the one thing I really loathe about international games.


Back to the playoffs -- Game 4 Ducks @ Blackhawks tonight. Very likely a must-win for Chicago.

Your prediction on NY-Tampa has a shot of coming true tomorrow night. :thumbsup I predicted it goes to a game 7, but the more likely scenario is that the Lightning win this series in front of their home crowd.

But as you know I do love me a good game 7. :D


Just as you said the Anaheim-Chicago series is in fact "good". The OTs, double OTs, even triple OTs have been awesome. I'm very much looking forward to game 5 tonight. Each team took one in the other teams' rink so tonight is not a given for the Ducks by any means.

Round 3 is gettin' good though.

Yeah, that series keeps getting better and better. I don't think the Blackhawks will take it but the Ducks looked almost invincible through one and two and at least they are getting a chance to feel what other teams have been feeling.

Rangers... I keep getting this sense when I see soon to be deposed Lundquist that he is pretty disappointed that his subjects are not paying proper tribute laying goals before him.

Looks like the curse of the President's Trophy will bring a blight upon that kingdom too.

Ducks will face a very desperate band of brothers and they will be down in the trenches fighting harder than ever. Looking forward to some excellent playoff hockey tonight!

Everyone underestimates the Blackhawks. Even in both of their most recent cup-winning years they weren't taken seriously by much of the hockey viewing audience. But my own hockey sense knows better than to make this mistake. Looking to their regular season performance is a common misnomer, as the Blackhawks are that rare kind of team that "changes" when it's the playoffs. They go into cup mode and find that extra gear when other teams are falling to seemingly unstoppable teams like the Ducks.

They may very well end up losing, but I'll stake my reputation on it that it won't be by much. In fact in the event of a Chicago elimination I'll go so far as to say it will be so close that it will never be considered as a decisive win by Anaheim.

But the reverse will likely also be true if it goes the other way. The difference is, Chicago doesn't care how they win, they'll take it in quadruple OT and love it all the same. AND they'll find a little more in the tank for the Cup series, another thing a lot of other teams can't seem to do.

I will not be surprised if it's one of these two teams that wins it all though.

Anaheim is pretty clearly the best team, but Chicago and Tampa are close. Having the 4 best teams making the Conference Finals is how it should be but a Cinderella team is always a nice story. Even with Anaheim being better and bigger it doesn't mean they will win this series or the next. That's hockey.

Anaheim I think is the largest/heaviest team I've ever seen, it's very visibly evident.

Crawford was very shaky in Game 5, couldn't get out of his way.

Go blackhawks :thumbsup:thumbsup:thumbsup

Big and heavy hitting for sure but for their size they can skate too which for my money makes them fun to watch. Always been a Kessler fan and was happy when he finally got out of Vancouver where he was essentially saddled with babysitting the Sedins. Kessler is like Getzlaf - just all around good and reliable, edgy and tough, and will always step up to the moment.

It took you all that text to simply say "I can't decide who I think will win. It could be anyone"

Outcome aside that was one hell of an entertaining game last night.

Ducks inch closer to Cup Final:
Matt Beleskey scored 45 seconds into overtime, as the Anaheim Ducks beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-4 to take a 3-2 lead in the NHL's Western Conference Final. Jonathan Toews scored two stunning goals in 72 seconds late in regulation to force overtime.

Stunning. Yes. Those Toews goals were stunners. If any series has a game 7 written all over it it's this one.

Will Tampa punch their ticket to the finals tonight? Or will the Rangers, hated by Far-L, force a game 7?

Oh man I'm so giddy I could poop.

Time for the Rangers to go like a pebble skipped on a polluted lake, like a snowflake that floats down only to melt on the black tar highway, like a deceased relative no one liked and no one cared about enough to attend the burial.

Couldn't believe Toews last night, I though he was going to hattie in the first 45 seconds of OT for the win the way he was shooting there at the end. Scoring from behind the line... are you kidding? That only happens when either the hockey Gods are on your side or the goalie sucks and let's face it the latter is not even possible at this level even on the worst team in the league much less 3rd round playoff contenders.

Fuck me. Didn't see that one coming.

Not going to be a walk in Central Park for Tampa going back to NYC...

What the fuck happened?

Yeah, i really thought Tampa would close it out at home tonight. No clue who will win Game 7.

it's what makes sports compelling, there are enough WTF moments/games that you keep tuning in.

If Rangers win in game seven and the Rangers actually go on to take the Cup then Lundquist's calling it will go down in at least NY sports history and become the stuff of legend much like Babe Ruth's fabled called shot.

They got Lundqvisted-fisted.

Bishop did not bring his A game.

Tampa had a slow first period, they dominated the 2nd but failed to net the scoring.

And in the "turd" period the Rangers rose to the occasion, and for tampa the bottom fell out.

That's what happened.


If the Lightning can regroup and show up in NY with that level they had in game 5 (and maybe a wee bit more) then game 7 should be pretty awesome. Rangers will be on a super high I'm sure.



Now to find out if the Blackhawks have it in them to force a game 7 as well. That would be aw... wait, I almost said 'awesome' again. Have to find a different word. 'Great' just doesn't quit say it, 'amazing' sounds too presumptuous.

Thesaurus time...

Thinking on this win you might want to go with supercalifragilisticexpialidocious...

First time in 15 years the final 4 each have a game 7

Too ostentacious? :D

Spectacular might work though.

Indeed. I'm in hockey heaven right now.


I love it when my predictions come true.

That's gold, Jerry
http://members.shaw.ca/graphx/pics/bania.jpg
GOLD

My only consolations are:

1. This better be the last time I see St Louis in a Rangers jersey.

2. Glen Sather is about to die.

3. Ryan Callahan and Anton Strahlman (who was dumped for that useless piece of shit Boyle) win a cup. Crawford will be useless if the Hawks move on.

4. Glen Sather is about to die.

5. Dan Boyle is going to die a few days after Sather because he is 3 days younger.

6. Rick Nash goes back to Brampton and is beaten by the new residents of Bramladesh for bringing shame to hockey and being softer than a marshmallow for the 3rd straight year.

7. The 6 strands of hair I have left won't fall out until next playoffs.

8. I live in Toronto where I can go back outside and be surrounded by a bunch of people who are disappointed year round about their sports teams.

9. Glen Sather is about to die if he hasn't by the time you are reading this.

10. I don't have to worry about not having a first round pick until 2020 because thanks to Edmonton I see they are useless.

Great series,NY will get there again
Anaheim 2-0
Anaheim over Tampa in 4 for the cup is my bet

This is so damn funny that I almost felt guilty about the hiring of that Puerta Rican Santeria priestess to lay the hex of the lackadaisical soft little lamb on Nash.

St Louis, still love the guy because he gives all short old guys like myself the hope and courage to face yet another day of young guys getting younger and faster than the rest of us.

Boyle, I would agree but thought he looked pretty strong last night, but of course all great old knights like one last battle to perish honorably in.

King Henrik has been deposed. Welcome to America. Register to vote and enjoy life liberty and the pursuit of getting your golf game better. At least now you have more time to find the right outfit to wear that goes with that new tie.

Goodbye and fare thee well Rangers. May the tears in your fans beers not be too salty to ruin the bitter brew of defeat.

So much for my prediction lol. The Ducks didn't show up at all

Gad Dayum I'm good.


I don't know if I'll ever be able to top that one, but I'll try, so here goes nothing...



CUP FINALS:

Chicago vs Tampa --- I'll say Blackhawks take the cup in 5. I don't see this one going the distance. The Lightning are a good team that does have what it takes to win, but I believe that the 'real' Stanley Cup series was just played, by Chicago and Anaheim. The 'Hawks will be too strong for Tampa. I don't see this being a sweep, and honestly I hope it isn't. And as much as I'd love it to hit game 7, because game 7 in a cup series is the best hockey in the known universe, I see it ending befor that. If I'm wrong about 5 they'll take it in 6.

If I'm right, they'll be touting Chicago as the greatest dynasty of the salary cap era. Which might be good for Winnipeg, since the Jets all but owned the Blackhawks in the regular season this past year. :D

I hate to quibble about small things but did anyone else find it a bit tacky that NY fans booed the Lightning as they were awarded the Prince of Wales conference trophy?

Then there was those very honorable Anaheim fans who thought it a good idea to toss litter on the ice as Chicago was awarded the Clarence Campbell.

I just hate seeing that lack of respect for the game going on. For shame, especially on NY which is an old school hockey market.

Sportsmanship is becoming a lost language/art/manner/skill/etc.

Let's not even get into honor and respect.

If anyone should have had trash thrown at them it should have been the home teams in both towns since both home teams played like garbage, allowed too many garbage goals, and just pretty much took their best records and President Trophy to the dumpster of broken dreams.

Would like to see Tampa take it ,although the Hawks look too good
Hawks in 4

Care to make a final prediction?

Did you know?

-- Tampa Bay Lightning are now, thanks to these playoffs, the only team in NHL history to eliminate three orginal six teams to get to the cup final.

-- if this series goes to a game 7 Tampa will have the record for the most games played post-season (27), surpassing the existing record of 26, giving them the longest season in NHL history.

-- Conversely, if the Lightning LOSE this series they will set a new record for most playoff losses by a single team.

-- 22 Canadian players, no Canadian teams. It's been 22 years since a north-of-the-border team has won a cup, and coincidentally there are a total of exactly 22 Canadian players playing in this year's cup series.

-- The Lightning and Colorado Avalanche are the only two teams in the league to play in a Stanley Cup Final having never lost a series. That is the smallest number among the major sports. The Blackhawks of course look to cut that number in half.



Only hours now until puck drop. Enjoy. :thumbsup

I never understood why a hockey team didn't find a giant sumo wrestler to play goalie and cover the entire net so no one could score ever.

http://i.imgur.com/91QwCCb.jpg


"In 6 ......."


.

Like this guy.

http://www.zuzanadesigns.com/gfy/fatgoalie/01.jpg