Tampa will win in six.

I am not sure I actually believe that but I like the sound of it.

Tonight they should have kept up the the energy and attack of the first period but they went into defensive mode and forgot their best defense is their relentless offense.

Not only is it a young team vs an older squad, but it is new school hockey against a more old fashioned type of game. Cooper is definitely impressing me as a coach and I think he is going to make adjustments to counter like he did so well to neutralize NY.

I think it will be a great series if Bishop locks it down and doesn't blow his cool.

Hossa to me is amazing and I think he spends a lot of time in the shadows of Kane, Toews and Sharp but considering that it is the twilight of his career that is just life and the way the puck drops. He plays up and down and two way players like that are always the kind that really make the difference at this point. Morrow impresses me the same but of course for Tampa.

Wow, we've got some really diverse predictions so far.

Chicago in 5 (me)
Chicago in 4 sweep (Spunkster)
Tampa in 6 (L-pink, FarL)

Anyone think it will be a Tampa sweep? :evil-laug


Like I said before, the Blackhawks just seem to find a way. Game 1 was a perfect example of that. And they are notoriously slow starters in playoff games but always finish strong. I would have loved to see how the Jets might have fared against them, perhaps I'll get the chance one of these years.

Well my love, Bishop is 6-foot-nine on skates. Plus he's uncommonly quick and acrobatic for a guy his size.

Big, yes, covers much of the net... but I can only imagine the size of his five-hole. :1orglaugh

The Jets?

Isn't that a team in the WHL or CHL or one of those?

Oh hold on... I live in WA.

We don't even get to have an NHL team.

Going to shed a few more tears in my beer league...

Ha ha. Wait... not sure if serious. :eek7

What am I thinking, of course you're not serious. :winkwink:


But if you don't know them by now you soon will.

http://l.yimg.com/iu/api/res/1.2/ije...165431-686.jpg


You might get one. I've heard 'Seattle' mentioned on several occasions during expansion conversations. It's remote, but there's a slight chance. If Bettman would stop being such a dink about it both you and Vegas would have a team, rounding out the league with 16 teams per conference.

We should get one here. Lot of fans. Second biggest beer league in the States is here. Two WHL teams that have respectable fan bases. Hockey is solid here. Lots of fans that get turned around at the border if they want to see a Canucks game... :winkwink:

Nice pic of Byflutterin... (and you know I am j/k there... that man has a serious slapshot) Like that is is mid blow up on Stepped-on.

Exactly. All you Seattle-onians could then stop being damned 'nucks fans. :D

Stepped-on, like a lot of guys, figured he would try a hit on big Buff mid-ice and ended up paying the iron price for it. He didn't just get stepped on, he got steamrolled over. :1orglaugh
(I love it when he does that)

Mark Stewart is known for levelling guys at the blueline too. Gods but I can't wait for the fall.

yeah, I could never get my head around being a Canuckle-under fan at all but I have plenty of friends here that all feel like that is the only NHL option for having a "home team" to root for. Shame I tell ya...

Nice game by Tampa. Fun to watch but wondering what happened to Bishop. I know he was hit on that last clear from behind the net but couldn't tell if that was the reason. He was looking pretty rattled though before he left regardless. Never a good sign when a goalie is bitching out his d.

Bishop, from what I could tell from the commentator comments and other clues, needed to run off the ice because he got an attack of the wet shits. There was a flu bug running through some of the team recently, and he may not have escaped that as unscathed as some thought he had.

Whatever the reason, the moment he first ran off the ice happened to be during the game-winning goal, and once he was back if he had have stayed in for the rest of the game (which as we now know he didn't... or couldn't) he would not have been credited with getting the win. lol

And the really funny part of that is... he was my one remaining goaltender pick in the hockey pool. Meaning it's just my luck, and the way my luck has gone this whole playoffs, that he leaves the ice for thirty seconds and his backup gets the win. Oh man, you can't write this stuff. :D


Next two in Chicago.

5 games the Hawks have home ice now !!! Go Hawks!!!!

There's talk that Bishop might not even play tonight. Coach isn't talking.

Mind game or is something up?

Tampa is particularly dangerous in away games.

I consulted my Ouija Board right after I got done polishing my crystal ball while I was enjoying a nice cup of tea so I could get a leaf reading and I have determined that Stamkos will score two goals tonight, including a game winner.

It's in the stars.

Of course the hockey Gods could curse him and or me and none of that would come true...

"Obvious Guy says 'you're obviously covering your ass there'" :winkwink:


Tampa are good on the road, but Chicago is a tough arena to win in.

'Hawks 4
Bolts 2

lol, covering my ass is probably a good thing considering how hairy it is...

TAMPA!

Ok none of my predictions bore themselves out except Tampa winning tonight... Bishop is tripping me out but I am rolling with it. At least he didn't crap the ice.

What a crazy back and forth topsy-turvy game that was. Amazing response from Tampa coming back in mere seconds to even the score after going down 2-1. For a while there (more than a few times) Blackhawks threw everything at them and Bishop kept it out of the mesh at every turn.

Hossa needed to score on that empty net (as he was falling from a trip).

Quenville's head nearly exploded when Bishop dove to the ice as... who was it, Richards?... passed by him. It was the right call of course, as his gloves got in Bishop's face, but there was a bit of embellishment there as well. I fucking hate embellishment.

I'm starting to believe now. Tampa can actually pull this off. 'Hawks need to win like they've never needed to win before, in game 4. Going back to Tampa down 3-1 would be... bad.

Everything is stats, stats, stats nowadays and they pointed out in the broadcast last night that the winner of game three in a 1-1 tie situation goes on to win 80% of the time. Take it or leave it for whatever it is worth.

I think this might go to another game 7. Every game has been fun to watch so far so I cannot complain.

No secret who we're pulling for...

Naughty Alysha vs. Chicago Black Cocks





.

Checked out the link and now I am pulling for Alysha...

I was just coming here to post that very thanggg... that this series now has game 7 written all over it.

I predicted Chicago in 5, but now of course that's not possible. If they win the next 3 straight they can do it in six, but I'm thinking that's not likely in light of how this series has gone so far. Tampa can do it in 5, but I'll again stick my neck out and say that that's also unlikely.

More likely is Chicago ties the series 2-2, and if they do the likelihood of a game 7 goes way up.

You should rename all her samples as "Two minutes for high-sticking" :1orglaugh

We'll know the truth of that one way or the other on Saturday. Or at least the possibility of it. They'd still have to win back in Chicago.

Amazing series though. So close, every game thus far decided by one goal, yet not a shred of overtime.

Hawks in 7 i think no one winning this in 6 :2 cents::2 cents:

Game 6 should be good. Chicago will be motivated to win it at home, Lightning will be motivated to keep the dream alive.

I think Patrick Kane may be playing hurt. He hasn't been much of anything in this series so far.

That first goal last night by Sharp was hilarious. Bishop and Hedman collide mid-ice. Then later Crawford almost gives away a goal, then one player (a Blackhawk I think) gets pounded into the boards, the door to the penalty box opens and he crashes through it. Then the commentator asks the priceless question ---- "Is it a full moon?" :1orglaugh

Later a fan gets his arm bumped and spills a full beer all over Canadian sports interviewer Scott Oak.

Hilarious night.

3 Lord Stanley's in 6 years. Not bad, not bad.

We'll see how the 'defending champs' do against the Jets next season without some of their star players. :D

(for those that don't know, Chicago will be lucky to keep 70% of what they have due to salary cap restrictions)


As Toews & co. hoisted the Cup I couldn't help but see all the Anaheim players looking on saying "that should have been us."