2023-24 NHL Season Thread.

[Zeoni]

Are we really believing in Colorado already? Member that insane start Minnesota got off to 2 years ago, and then they missed the playoffs? I feel like the same will be coming for the Avs. They might make the playoffs, but it won't be pretty. Their corsi differential isn't very good and now they might have lost Varlamov for... who knows? But it's bad.

I'd say it's a different story than Minnesota. Colorado's forward group is actually pretty damn good. Their defense isn't good enough to make a deep run but they're looking like an early playoff team. I think they'll come down to earth soon enough but they're just kicking ass so far. I also still think they should have taken Seth Jones instead of Mackinnon, Oilers syndrome is gonna haunt them if they dont beef up their blue line quick enough.

Duchene, Landeskog, Paranteau, O'Reilly are all really good. Stasny is solid but way overpayed I'd say, and Mackinnon is going to be a damn good player.

[Greeney]

I'd say it's a different story than Minnesota. Colorado's forward group is actually pretty damn good. Their defense isn't good enough to make a deep run but they're looking like an early playoff team. I think they'll come down to earth soon enough but they're just kicking ass so far. I also still think they should have taken Seth Jones instead of Mackinnon, Oilers syndrome is gonna haunt them if they dont beef up their blue line quick enough.

Duchene, Landeskog, Paranteau, O'Reilly are all really good. Stasny is solid but way overpayed I'd say, and Mackinnon is going to be a damn good player.

Oilers should have taken Reinhart, Rielly, or Murrary over yakupov a couple years ago (or better yet traded the first overall for all of the Islanders picks like they offered the Blue Jacket's for the second), but MacKinnon was way too good to pass up IMO. Colorado made the right move; centre, power forward, mvp... you need to take that when it's available.

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Am I missing the joke here? He got a suspension?

Speaking of, Carter Ashton needs a suspension for that hit last night.

Yeah, I'm guessing he'll get 2 or 3 games for it.

[Tradewind]

Yeah, I'm guessing he'll get 2 or 3 games for it.

Which imo doesn't even seem like enough. For a square to the numbers crosscheck into the boards. Only getting 2 Minutes was a joke as well, since that just ended up being offset by Jackman's instigator. The only thing that worked in his favor discipline wise, was that Smith isn't made of paper and shook it off. Otherwise it would have been 5 and a game and a suspension (3+) easy.

[VanillaO]

This is the problem with the NHL. Ashton might get 2 games... he might just get a fine since it's his first incident. Anything more than 2 games, though, will largely be viewed as excessive because they seem to like to work off precedent.

Instead of giving more games, they should increase fines... a $5k fine isn't much, even for a guy making league minimum.

[vickvinegar]

I still can't believe JSG is still in the league. That feels so long ago when they made their run.

I miss him, I root for the avs when he's in net

[Rennadrel]

Oilers should have taken Reinhart, Rielly, or Murrary over yakupov a couple years ago (or better yet traded the first overall for all of the Islanders picks like they offered the Blue Jacket's for the second), but MacKinnon was way too good to pass up IMO. Colorado made the right move; centre, power forward, mvp... you need to take that when it's available.

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Yeah, I'm guessing he'll get 2 or 3 games for it.

The Oilers should have drafted Murray or Reinhart, but Reilly would be a weak defensive player in that system with the way it's been coached the last few years. And to that extent, I still don't believe that Eakins was the guy for that team, not with his hard nosed approach and defensive mind. Edmonton is too soft, they lack size, grit and the ability to out muscle other players for the puck. I'd say Toronto is the prime example of how to do that, even if they get out shot, the majority of those shots are single chances because they are able to recover the puck if play continues or the goalie stops the play. If you let teams gain the opportunity to score and give them multiple shot chances, you are going to get scored against.

[Elgefar]

The Sedins signs a 4 year extension carrying a 7 million $ cap hit.

[Rennadrel]

Enjoy 4 more years of mediocrity Canucks fans!

[BicycleMafioso]

I don't think you can blame anything in Vancouver on the Sedins, to be honest. Them and Kesler are the only consistent players they have. And I'd rather have only one Sedin than one Phil Kessel

[Rennadrel]

I don't think you can blame anything in Vancouver on the Sedins, to be honest. Them and Kesler are the only consistent players they have. And I'd rather have only one Sedin than one Phil Kessel

Considering how much they have a tendency of vanishing in the playoffs, I wouldn't exactly call them consistent players. Let's not forget that Kessel stepped up his game to another level against Boston last year and his start already has him on pace for a 40+ goal season, while the Sedin's and Kesler disappeared against Boston a few years ago and couldn't man up enough to win more then one game in a series where they were offensively supposed to be the better team.

[BicycleMafioso]

Considering how much they have a tendency of vanishing in the playoffs, I wouldn't exactly call them consistent players. Let's not forget that Kessel stepped up his game to another level against Boston last year and his start already has him on pace for a 40+ goal season, while the Sedin's and Kesler disappeared against Boston a few years ago and couldn't man up enough to win more then one game in a series where they were offensively supposed to be the better team.

In post-lockout years, Sedins has close enough to PPG that it shouldn't matter. Disappear? Not really. They are producing. Leading the team in every instance of the game? No, but then again, they are only two players. Kessel managed close to PPG as well, so kudos for that - but not really much impressive.

Either way, sure. Vancouver only managed one win. Which was probably why the series ended in game 5, right? :P At least they didn't throw away a sure-fire win because they started celebrating a period early.

[Rennadrel]

Whereas Toronto hadn't seen the post season in 8 years, while Vancouver has been in it every year for the last 5, yet have failed to do anything :P

And no, I won't make excuses for Toronto's shitty efforts in the last 10 minutes of that hockey game, nor will I ever forgive them for it, but at the end of the day, we all move on and try to learn from the mistakes of the past.

[BicycleMafioso]

Sure. That's a fair enough assessment and I can agree with that.
But I'd still want to poke at "have failed to do anything" being a bit of a stretch. There are 30 teams in the league. Even though not every team can be considered a cup contender, all teams not making the play-offs and all teams in the play-offs not winning the cup cannot be considered total failures. Making a final appearance isn't a bad thing.
The drop-outs surrounding/since that, however is. I'm not trying to make excuses for them; they're not close to being my favourite team (I'm still a Ducks-guy because of Lindholm and to a slightly lesser extent Fasth).

[Zeoni]

Oh man lookout redwings JOEY MAC takes the crease

[Reg]

Wow, that's kind of bullshit letting Emery go after Holtby when Holtby clearly didn't want anything to do with it.

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154 combined penalty minutes in the game.

[Zeoni]

7-0 lol flyers are so bad

[VanillaO]

Wow, that's kind of bullshit letting Emery go after Holtby when Holtby clearly didn't want anything to do with it.

So many things that went wrong with that...

First, the ref should've broken it up like he was trying to do.

Second, the ref should NOT have stopped another player from going after Emery. Give him a 3rd-in penalty, and be done with it. Any player would gladly take Emery off their own goalie and take any suspensions that come from it.

Third, Simmons went out there to clearly fuck some people up, including a late hit (if you rewatch, the puck was gone a full second before the hit on Wilson) which sparked everything - no instigator.

Remember how Philly used to intimidate people with their brute force? Ya, they aaaaaalso used to do that AND score goals. This team is a fucking mess, their fans are notoriously deadbeats, and they seem to have no clue what the fuck they're doing in any part of the game anymore. Here's hoping their season just keeps getting worse.

The crazy part is that before this blowout (7-0 for those not keeping track), their defense was actually the one halfway respectable part of the team.

That entire division... my god. One single .500 team one month into the season. Two if the Islanders manage to win tonight.

[Elgefar]

And it all comes down to Holmgren and his shitty work as a GM. How he still has a job is beyond me.

[VanillaO]

And it all comes down to Holmgren and his shitty work as a GM. How he still has a job is beyond me.

Him and Sather both, man...

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I just took a look, and the only players that Holmgren has drafted who are still with the Flyers and have played an actual decent amount of games are Couturier and Ronaldo. So... thaaat's pretty bad.

[Greeney]

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