NHL season thread : 2011-12 - Page 5

Sohel · #**101** May 19, 2012, 02:05 PM

Girardi scores, 1-0 NYR in the 3rd! Marty beaten stickside.

Sohel · #**102** May 19, 2012, 02:09 PM

2-0 NYR as Kreider scores! They came out hard and produced quick results early in the 3rd.

Sohel · #**103** May 19, 2012, 02:33 PM

3-0 NYR with the ENG! Lundqvist ...

Sohel · #**104** May 20, 2012, 08:51 AM

Looking forward to the Russia-Slovakia world championship final in a few hours. Semin-Datsyuk-Ovechkin ... what a line!

Sohel · #**105** May 20, 2012, 12:34 PM

Chara scores! 1-0 Slovakia at the start of the 1st.

Sohel · #**106** May 20, 2012, 12:50 PM

Malkin scores, 1-1

Sohel · #**107** May 20, 2012, 12:53 PM

Sloppy play, lots of unforced turnovers in the neutral zone

Sohel · #**108** May 20, 2012, 01:27 PM

2-1 Russia in the 2nd

Sohel · #**109** May 20, 2012, 01:40 PM

3-1 Russia, on its way to becoming a slaughter

Sohel · #**110** May 20, 2012, 01:44 PM

4-1 and still in the 2nd

Sohel · #**111** May 20, 2012, 02:20 PM

5-1. Feeling sorry for the Slovaks now

Sohel · #**112** May 20, 2012, 11:23 PM

Smith and Doan bring one back from LA and trail in the WCF 1-3. Russia, 10-0 in the tournament, thrashes Slovakia to win the IIHF World Championship. Malkin was by far the best player of the tournament finishing with 19 points (11 goals). Sweden really missed Lundqvist, Canada's early exit was no surprise to anyone, but the US going down to the Slovaks was. We missed Parise and Brown among others now playing in the CFs.

Beamer · #**113** May 21, 2012, 12:47 PM

Can't believe you were following the worlds !! you are a real hockey fan dude...kudos..

Sohel · #**114** May 21, 2012, 10:18 PM

The pendulum swings again in the NY-NJ area as the Devils win 4-1. The ECF is tied at 2 and going down to the wire as expected.

Sohel · #**115** May 21, 2012, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beamer
Can't believe you were following the worlds !! you are a real hockey fan dude...kudos..

LOL, I also do KHL and SEL when I get the chance.

Beamer · #**116** May 22, 2012, 09:31 AM

Its actually fun watching the big ice of intl competition. More skating, more offense, more skill.

Devils-Rangers should go the distance. Its a very evenly poised series. Watching Tortorela blow his lid from game to game is priceless. He is a quirky little guy that Torts.

cricman · #**117** May 22, 2012, 12:33 PM

Been outplayed badly this series, it's only 2-2 because of Hank.

Torts needs to separate Gabby and Richards, they just don't mesh and they've played much better without each other all season, or he needs to put Krieder on the 1st line with Gaborik and Richards.

I heard a NY/LA final would increase the cap by 5 million

Sohel · #**118** May 22, 2012, 10:50 PM

3-3 after 3 and we're going to OT with the Kings on the PP.

Sohel · #**119** May 22, 2012, 11:42 PM

The Kings do it again on the road and advance to the SCF! California Uber Alles baby

Sohel · #**120** May 23, 2012, 02:34 AM

I know quite a few NYR fans who think Tort's negativism (refs are morons and the league is out to get him) and rudeness (if you're all about one sentence and one line answers, then why bother talking to the press?) costs his team several close calls during a game. That being said, they appreciate his honesty and the passionate ability to get underrated performers players perform in a team with an ultra expensive tradition of underperforming superstars (Gretzky, LaFontaine, Jagr, Bure, Lindros, Kovalev, Shanahan etc) who failed to deliver for the Rangers when it really counted.

Those of us who remember the Bolts winning the Cup with him at the helm, have seen those abilities shine already this season before the playoffs. He still has Richards in the playoffs, but it'll be a tough feat to repeat winning the Cup without the aggressive and relentless forechecking from supremely skilled guys like Vinny (especially in the SCF) and St. Louis he doesn't have in NYC. Guys like Gaborik won't do it and he knows it. That's why he's making do with what he has and sometimes it doesn't work the way he wants it to. While Callahan's a very good player, they need more like him, he's no Messier. Messier could lead and motivate by example, spark and his legendary "or-else" attitude. They don't make them like that anymore but captains like Vinny, Doan, Morrow, Brown and Parise come close.

Purely skilled captains (though some have solid 2-way ability as well) like Gretzky, Mario, Yzerman, Lidstrom, Niedermayer, Crosby, Toews and Chara have always had key alternate captains freeing them up to lead by doing what they do best with the stick.

Everything being said, Ludqvist is actually good enough to steal the ECF and the Cup. So is Quick BTW and I want that duel.

Beamer · #**121** May 23, 2012, 09:12 AM

Kings win ensures that for the first time since '99 when Derian Hatcher of Stars lifted the cup, an American captain will lift the Stanley this year. Kings, Rangers, Devils- all have US born captains.

I am still in disbelief how quickly Kings became so good. I am telling you only about two months ago they were an average team. Confidence is such a booster in playoffs.

Sohel · #**122** May 23, 2012, 09:19 AM

USA:Hockey::Bangladesh:Cricket

The Quick factor notwithstanding, they've had the basic ingredients for the last 5 years or so. Richards and Carter added missing pieces of the puzzle, and Brown, Kopitar and Doughty became seriously mature contenders this year to add even more punch. Then there's the timing. Talk about peaking at EXACTLY the right time!

California Uber Alles baby!

Sohel · #**123** May 23, 2012, 10:03 PM

Jersey blows a 3-0 lead but still wins 5-3 to take a 3-2 lead in the series. REALLY tough loss for the Rangers. I'm still hoping for an LA/NY SCF although a series versus the less tired and more motivated Jersey may be more competitive. The Rangers must get the forecheck going from the start to win game 6 in their building. Gotta create good chances in their zone and take smart shots at Marty. NYR's D simply cannot allow Parise any room to skate at speed and Kovalchuk any lane to shoot through. Lundqvist will show up but a relentless effort in front of him must be there also.

Beamer · #**124** May 24, 2012, 09:40 AM

I still think this series goes to Game 7. Rangers actually played well. Lundqvist, not so well, though some of the odd bounces were difficult to stop. The third goal was bad. Marty has also been goofing up playing the puck lately, which is a huge surprise, because he is considered one of the best at doing that. But, I must admire this Devils. They are always under the radar in East, yet if you look at the last twenty years, they have had as much success as anyone in terms of wins, playoffs appearances and Stanley Cups. They draft well too. Of course, having a hall of famer in goal doesn't hurt, but they rarely deviate from their approach. Sandwiched between NY and Phi really hurts them in terms of being a financially viable team. Most of their games are not well attended. The arena is in a dump of a neighborhood and nobody likes to go there. Its a shame really. They don't generate enough revenue. Top of that, they will lose Parise this summer, regardless of what happens next.

Sohel · #**125** May 25, 2012, 10:08 AM

I hope it goes to game 7 also. The Rangers need to play well from start to finish, and not run out of gas after coming close. Lundqvist will show up today. He's a great goalie, and as such hypercritical of himself and mentally strong (unlike Luongo for example). Naturally goalies like him don't have too many bad games in a row, especially in the playoffs. If his defense plays well in front of him, meaning not allowing Parise space and Kovalchuk good shooting lanes every shift, they'll have a good chance to win. They're more than capable of getting their forecheck going and generating scoring opportunities at Jersey's zone, but it has to be pretty much relentless. Jersey's tough to beat in their own building when Marty's on song, but the Rangers have already done it this series.