2023-24 NHL Season Thread.

[Zeoni]

Lots of people here are saying they might take Brent Sutter. He's a really good coach and got criticized a bit too much here in Calgary. Expectations were too high for the quality of team by a lot of the fans.

Does anyone even think Rangers/Devils have a chance of beating the Kings? L.A. looks so dominant, more dominant than any other team so far. They're getting production from everywhere now, especially Dwight King, where did he come from? 3 possible Conn Smyth nominees as well in Brown, Kopitar, and Quick - though I think Brown will win it unless Kopitar or Quick has an incredible cup final. Sad to see Mike Smith eliminated but it's time for that Cinderella story to end. Have a feeling L.A. is just gonna roll whoever they face in 4-5 games.

PS Does anyone remember someone linking an article about the Kings winning the cup and a whole bunch of people saying "lol what an idiot"?

*edit: Although playoffs hadn't even been set yet, kinda funny that he ended up being right on the Kings. They're finally playing the way they should have all year long, such a deep strong team. Kopitar, Brown, Richards, Carter, Doughty, Quick, Williams, Penner, Stoll, King, Mitchell, Greene, Voynov. They have their top 6 forwards, top 4 defensemen, goalie, and then all the rest in between playing at a high level and it just seems unstoppable.

[conscript]

Lots of people here are saying they might take Brent Sutter. He's a really good coach and got criticized a bit too much here in Calgary. Expectations were too high for the quality of team by a lot of the fans.

Does anyone even think Rangers/Devils have a chance of beating the Kings? L.A. looks so dominant, more dominant than any other team so far. They're getting production from everywhere now, especially Dwight King, where did he come from? 3 possible Conn Smyth nominees as well in Brown, Kopitar, and Quick - though I think Brown will win it unless Kopitar or Quick has an incredible cup final. Sad to see Mike Smith eliminated but it's time for that Cinderella story to end. Have a feeling L.A. is just gonna roll whoever they face in 4-5 games.

PS Does anyone remember someone linking an article about the Kings winning the cup and a whole bunch of people saying "lol what an idiot"?

*edit: Although playoffs hadn't even been set yet, kinda funny that he ended up being right on the Kings. They're finally playing the way they should have all year long, such a deep strong team. Kopitar, Brown, Richards, Carter, Doughty, Quick, Williams, Penner, Stoll, King, Mitchell, Greene, Voynov. They have their top 6 forwards, top 4 defensemen, goalie, and then all the rest in between playing at a high level and it just seems unstoppable.

I never ever would have guessed the Kings would show up, especially to this extent. They're 11-1 in the playoffs, 7-0 on the road. That is insane. I think I saw on ESPN prior to the game that the 10-1 start was the best in the playoffs since 1980. With how much parity the league has who would have guessed they would just be rolling through people. Phoenix played great yesterday and still lost. How on Earth are they possibly going to comeback, let alone avoid a sweep.

[Irony]

Lots of people here are saying they might take Brent Sutter. He's a really good coach and got criticized a bit too much here in Calgary. Expectations were too high for the quality of team by a lot of the fans.

Does anyone even think Rangers/Devils have a chance of beating the Kings? L.A. looks so dominant, more dominant than any other team so far. They're getting production from everywhere now, especially Dwight King, where did he come from? 3 possible Conn Smyth nominees as well in Brown, Kopitar, and Quick - though I think Brown will win it unless Kopitar or Quick has an incredible cup final. Sad to see Mike Smith eliminated but it's time for that Cinderella story to end. Have a feeling L.A. is just gonna roll whoever they face in 4-5 games.

PS Does anyone remember someone linking an article about the Kings winning the cup and a whole bunch of people saying "lol what an idiot"?

*edit: Although playoffs hadn't even been set yet, kinda funny that he ended up being right on the Kings. They're finally playing the way they should have all year long, such a deep strong team. Kopitar, Brown, Richards, Carter, Doughty, Quick, Williams, Penner, Stoll, King, Mitchell, Greene, Voynov. They have their top 6 forwards, top 4 defensemen, goalie, and then all the rest in between playing at a high level and it just seems unstoppable.

I think the Devils have a much better chance of beating the Kings than the Rangers do. LA has dismantled two of the best defensive teams/goaltenders in the league. The only team to win a game had a "high powered" offense, and even then they were missing their top goal scorer. The Devils at least have a health pretty good offense.

I see the Kings sweeping the Rangers, I see them beating the Devils in 6.

[Rennadrel]

Tom Renney won't be returning to Edmonton.

Surprised considering he's only been there 2 seasons and they had shown some improvement the second season. Wondering when Edmonton will ever be a playoff team again. 4 years of rebuilding and 3 number 1 overall picks and still dead last in the NW division. At this point in time Toronto looks to be in better shape; they're a goaltender away from the playoffs... The Oilers are a coach, a third line and 3 d-man away. Don't worry though, they'll draft another forward.

Not his fault they struggled. Their goaltending has been absolutely horrid and they have no defense to speak of. They need to make a trade big time and get a top pairing D man and build up their blue line. The problem is that there aren't a lot of choices, and doing so will mean a financial investment or getting rid of one of their top 3 forwards. I wouldn't be surprised if there are teams going after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins this summer, in exchange for one of their expendable d-men. They need a couple of bonafied shut down defenders more then anything, they can get one by drafting Ryan Murray in this years draft, but he is going to take a couple of years to really solidify himself in a top 6 role. With Suter available this summer it looks like they could make a run at signing him if they are willing to pay the money, but they really need to get rid of one of their future big ticket forwards for some blue line help.

[Irony]

I never ever would have guessed the Kings would show up, especially to this extent. They're 11-1 in the playoffs, 7-0 on the road. That is insane. I think I saw on ESPN prior to the game that the 10-1 start was the best in the playoffs since 1980. With how much parity the league has who would have guessed they would just be rolling through people. Phoenix played great yesterday and still lost. How on Earth are they possibly going to comeback, let alone avoid a sweep.

I change my signature to the Kings!

---------- Post added 2012-05-18 at 10:57 PM ----------

Not his fault they struggled. Their goaltending has been absolutely horrid and they have no defense to speak of. They need to make a trade big time and get a top pairing D man and build up their blue line. The problem is that there aren't a lot of choices, and doing so will mean a financial investment or getting rid of one of their top 3 forwards. I wouldn't be surprised if there are teams going after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins this summer, in exchange for one of their expendable d-men. They need a couple of bonafied shut down defenders more then anything, they can get one by drafting Ryan Murray in this years draft, but he is going to take a couple of years to really solidify himself in a top 6 role. With Suter available this summer it looks like they could make a run at signing him if they are willing to pay the money, but they really need to get rid of one of their future big ticket forwards for some blue line help.

Well, I doubt Smyth will be welcome back in Edmonton for 6.25M at his age/playing level, freeing up enough cap space to make a run at Suter. Honestly if I'm Edmonton, I attempt to dump Hemsky's contract on some cap floor team. By the time Edmonton is a contender, he'll be on the downward slope of his career.

As for their goal-tending, Dubnyk was alright and could be a filler until an exceptional one becomes available through the draft.

[Rennadrel]

I change my signature to the Kings!

---------- Post added 2012-05-18 at 10:57 PM ----------


Well, I doubt Smyth will be welcome back in Edmonton for 6.25M at his age/playing level, freeing up enough cap space to make a run at Suter. Honestly if I'm Edmonton, I attempt to dump Hemsky's contract on some cap floor team. By the time Edmonton is a contender, he'll be on the downward slope of his career.

As for their goal-tending, Dubnyk was alright and could be a filler until an exceptional one becomes available through the draft.

The thing is though, there really isn't another Quick, Smith or Price in the draft in the foreseeable future. They need an elite goalie, I think if they could weasel Cam Ward out of Carolina, they would be an instant contender with a couple of defensive upgrades.

[Sykol]

Wishful thinking, but Luongo for RNH. Gogo.

[Irony]

Wishful thinking, but Luongo for RNH. Gogo.

If Edm makes that trade, they should just stop being a franchise.

[Zeoni]

Dubnyk isn't that bad of a goalie, they have such awful defense. It's been a rocky road for him, I'm assuming Khabiboulin isn't exactly the best person to be following in. Can't imagine he's a very good mentor but I could be wrong. That team is just sitting on a couple bad contracts of players that should be playing better than they are. Horcoff is such a joke, lol. I really don't see the Oiler's getting anyone's elite goalie, let alone Cam Ward. They're losing that #1 pick and probably Dubnyk for any sort of a decent goalie. There's also the fact that most Canadian teams not named the Canucks aren't exactly a desirable location for an elite goaltender. Does anyone even see any Canadian team making a run past the 2nd round in the next 3 years? I don't, personally.

I think the main problem with Edmonton is there was no real building blocks set in place pre-Hall/RNH/Eberle era. Usually, teams can build around a really solid player. Shawn Horcoff? Ales Hemsky? There also wasn't a true veteran presence to help guide the 'kids that first year. Sure, Smyth is a good mentor and leader for last year but they never really had anything else. Eberle seems to be blossoming into a great player as expected but I'm a bit worried about the durability of Taylor Hall. He plays such a hardnosed game that I feel the injuries are eventually going to be too much. Anyone remember that OHL playoff highlight? Doesn't seem like he's slowed down that pace a whole lot. RNH is going to be good as well but I don't know if it's enough. They don't have any real 3rd line like Irony (I think) said. Starting to question their decision to do this huge rebuild. Hopefully some new leadership behind the bench will bring them more structure. As much as I hate the Oilers it really sucks seeing a Canadian team in the bottom of the league for so long.

At least if the Flames decide to do a similar rebuild, we'll have tons of 3rd liners, team is full of them! I also don't even think an elite goaltender could carry them out of where they are now. I really hope they actually develop this next first round pick if they do decide to not trade it. Just throwing their last 3 have been great boosts to the lineup but 1-2 years in the minors can do wonders for a young player.

[Sykol]

If Edm makes that trade, they should just stop being a franchise.

So then win-win for everyone?

But yeah, I obviously know that'd never happen, but there have been some pretty lopsided trades in NHL history and it's nice to dream.

[Irony]

Horcoff

The Horcoff contract has always been baffling, after the guy scores 53 points, they give him 5.5M a season. Horcoff is a solid, hardworking player, who seems to be a great captain, but signing an aging player to that contract, was baffling.

As for Dubnyk, I do think Edmonton is comfortable enough to start him, but will keep their eyes open for prospects. Honestly getting a starting goalie in the third round is common place in the NHL. I mean your nominees for the Vezina this year are an undrafted free agent, a 7th rounder and a third.

[conscript]

If Edm makes that trade, they should just stop being a franchise.

They should just stop being a franchise anyways. I feel bad for the fans having to deal with a team that is that wildly incompetent from the top on down.

---------- Post added 2012-05-19 at 08:29 AM ----------

Shawn Horcoff? Ales Hemsky? .

They must consider those guys pretty serious building blocka considering the contracta they gave them that caused massive inflation in the market and are going to be a real big reason there will be a lockout. Their GM kicked the beehive with that contract, then smashed it open, and started chucking honey and bees at all the other teams in the league.

[Rennadrel]

Wishful thinking, but Luongo for RNH. Gogo.

Why would they trade a young talent who would rot on the second line?

[Sykol]

Why would they trade a young talent who would rot on the second line?

It's Edmonton. They'd trade their entire first line for a ham sandwich if Tambellini was hungry enough.

[Zoma]

For those who may have missed today's game (at 1pm et, 10am pt, who schedules this stuff?), Rangers won 3-0, taking a 2-1 lead in the series.

[BicycleMafioso]

(at 1pm et, 10am pt, who schedules this stuff?)

This is so the rest of the world can actually watch these games! ^^
Personally, I really think there are way too few of these, but, should mostly occur on days where there are several games played, not just one. Or any Saturday.

[Rennadrel]

For those who may have missed today's game (at 1pm et, 10am pt, who schedules this stuff?), Rangers won 3-0, taking a 2-1 lead in the series.

Stop complaining. Think about what's going to happen in 2 years when the Olympics are in Russia. How the bloody hell are we going to watch the games? They are like 9 or 10 bloody hours ahead of us, which means that a 7 PM game time in Russia would be an 11 AM game time for us.

[conscript]

For those who may have missed today's game (at 1pm et, 10am pt, who schedules this stuff?), Rangers won 3-0, taking a 2-1 lead in the series.

Ya I missed the game not because of the time, but because I honestly thought they wouldn't air a game today with the Preakness this afternoon. I figured that would eat up coverage on every NBC station like the Derby did. Why not have a game last night rather than Saturday afternoon?

---------- Post added 2012-05-19 at 05:12 PM ----------

Stop complaining. Think about what's going to happen in 2 years when the Olympics are in Russia. How the bloody hell are we going to watch the games? They are like 9 or 10 bloody hours ahead of us, which means that a 7 PM game time in Russia would be an 11 AM game time for us.

I live in Murica. Our television stations will only be airing US game anyways (fuck you NBC) and they will almost always be at the best possible times for American tv audiences. Thank god for internet streaming allowing us to watch every single event or game of the Olympics as it is happening. Yay for watching hockey at work and attempting to stream which basically breaks my office computer it is so terrible.

[Fuzzzie]

Missed the game too, although the Devils lost so I'm kinda glad I did. 1pm is far too early on a gorgeous long weekend for me to sit in my living room watching TV. I did that all winter

[Rennadrel]

rofl no kidding Fuzzzie. 27 degrees today, absolutely beautiful. I have been chilling all day with cold brews and enjoying the sun shine, god knows I don't get any of it being trapped indoors all day at work.