NHL (2020-2021) v. Draft, sign, & trade.

[romdrums]

Yeah jingle, Marner getting paid center money as a winger is ridiculous.

[jingle.boy]

Yeah jingle, Marner getting paid center money as a winger is ridiculous.

I'm not so stuffed about that, but tying up almost 1/2 the cap in four guys - ALL AT FORWARD - is what's killing them, and will continue to kill them. With only $40M for the remaining 19 players, the only thing they can afford for the rest of the forwards is a couple of decent $3M-$4M guys, and then a bunch of league-minimum contracts - which means one of three things - A) young kids still on ELCs, and hoping they can step up; B) old fuck's that have already made their money, and hope they can keep up; C) players that should not be NHL starters.  They'll never be able to afford a Top 15 / stud defenceman, and have to hope they can fill a goaltending tandem for under $5M combined.

I said it when it happened, there was no need to sign Tavares with the talent they already had in Matthews/Marner/Nylander.  JT's best years are behind him, and the Leafs are paying him like he's still got a few 100-point and/or 50-goal seasons in him.  Spoiler alert - he doesn't.

[TAC]

I said it when it happened, there was no need to sign Tavares with the talent they already had in Matthews/Marner/Nylander. JT's best years are behind him, and the Leafs are paying him like he's still got a few 100-point and/or 50-goal seasons in him.  Spoiler alert - he doesn't.

I thought the same thing when it happened.

[KevShmev]

Petro with the game winner as well. I'm enjoying the fact that he's playing incredibly well right now, I like it as a little F U to the Blues and particularly Armstrong...... I really wish there had been a way for him to remain a Blue and retire with them, but there was no way they could have pulled the trigger on that contract he wanted. He's 'worth' every penny right now and maybe for the next two....three years.....but man, that's a brutal contract past that point.

I totally get this, and I think last year I was on the "do not pay Petro that much money" bandwagon, but in hindsight it now feels like letting him go slammed their Stanley Cup window shut.  Gotta take advantage of chances to win it all when they are there, and they now seem light years away from being good enough to actually make a run any time soon and win it again.

[KevShmev]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

[TheCountOfNYC]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

Let’s be honest here, between the Celtics, Red Sox, and Patriots, the sports gods have been pretty kind to Boston sports fans in the 21st century. Throw in three Cup Finals appearances with one win for the Bruins, and I don’t think there’s anything to complain about if you’re a fan of Boston sports.

[KevShmev]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

Let’s be honest here, between the Celtics, Red Sox, and Patriots, the sports gods have been pretty kind to Boston sports fans in the 21st century. Throw in three Cup Finals appearances with one win for the Bruins, and I don’t think there’s anything to complain about if you’re a fan of Boston sports.

True. but Joe and Tim are good guys, and I don't want them to think I am rubbing their noses in this since the Blues win came over the Bruins.  I am just celebrating the anniversary! 

[gmillerdrake]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

    What a fun couple months that was!

[KevShmev]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

    What a fun couple months that was!

Fun, stressful, yeah.

[Anguyen92]

Well, found another Youtube video from Urinatingtree about more hockey history.  This one involving the Expansion Draft of the Senators in 1992 which is timely given the upcoming Seattle Draft.  Expansion rules back then were different and the price to pay to get a team was a hella lot smaller as well. $45 million compared to like the $500+ million that Vegas and Seattle paid for their teams.  On top of that, holy crap, did the Senators screw up how they drafted that day.  Apparently, they stored their notes on a early version laptop and did not charge the battery or found an outlet to charge it or had any hard copies of those notes.  As a result, they ended up picking players that were not eligible to be drafted to the Senators for various reasons and had to repick which involved the GM saying "Ottawa apologizes."  As a result, naturally, they had the worst season in the league, winning only 10 games and letting in almost an average of 5 goals a game. 

The Tampa Bay Lightning was also born that year along with the Senators and they weren't as craptastic (but still had the struggles of an expansion team back in the 90s).  It's funny on the paths that those two teams have despite being created at the same time.  The Bolts would have their two cups and in the hunt of a 3rd one now, while the Senators are nowhere near that hunt and had like two great years of deep playoff runs in history.

Heritage: The 1992 Ottawa Senators Expansion Draft

[TAC]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

Losing in the Stanley Cup Finals will make you appreciate every previous early round exit.

[Nick]

Watching tonight's game with my fiance and heard Pierre say something to the effect of: "DeBoer has so much experience in the playoffs".

I immediately said: "Yeah, but most of that experience is choking with the Sharks, peak DeBoer would be beating the Avs in 6 only to lose to the Canadiens in 5."

[King Postwhore]

This post is in no way meant to needle Joe and Tim (honest!!), but two years ago today, the Blues won their first Stanley Cup!!!

I'm more hurt you don't like Lawrence Gowan. 

[TAC]

Who in the hell is Lawrence Gowen?

[KevShmev]

That man masquerading as Dennis DeYoung in the current incarnation known as Styx.

[King Postwhore]

That man masquerading as Dennis DeYoung in the current incarnation known as Styx.

 


See!  Kev cuts to the bone.  LOLOL

[XeRocks81]

Montreal Canadiens head coach tested positive for Covid-19,  wtf 

https://www.tsn.ca/montreal-canadiens-dominique-ducharme-covid-19-game-3-1.1656737

[pg1067]

What an absolutely horrible muff by the future HOF goalie!  Go Habs!!!

[KevShmev]

Fleury turning into Osgood in these playoffs, letting in some horrid goals.

[Anguyen92]

Holy f***.  Fleury flubbed his end that led to the tying goal.  Then there was a no-call even though Corey Perry clearly got high-sticked and was clearly busted.  Then the Habs got the winning goal.  Jebus.

[KevShmev]

Wait, the refs can look at an OT goal after the fact to see if a puck was knocked down by a high stick, but they couldn't look at the OT goal two years ago to see if the Sharks made an illegal hand pass in the offensive zone that led to the winning goal? 

[jingle.boy]

Wait, the refs can look at an OT goal after the fact to see if a puck was knocked down by a high stick, but they couldn't look at the OT goal two years ago to see if the Sharks made an illegal hand pass in the offensive zone that led to the winning goal? 

[KevShmev]

Wow, what an incredible finish tonight.

[XeRocks81]

I'm curious, my twitter and facebook bubble of french canadians are all screaming at the officials tonight(even though the Habs are leading 1-0 at the moment),  what's the american perspective?

[XeRocks81]

edit: double post

[TAC]

I'm curious, my twitter and facebook bubble of french canadians are all screaming at the officials tonight(even though the Habs are leading 1-0 at the moment),  what's the american perspective?

That they're always screaming at the officials.

[KevShmev]

Looks like the refs are letting them play, but I know that Habs fans are out of their minds thinking there is a conspiracy to tilt the calls in favor of Vegas, but I think it's just a combination of incompetence (like missing that slash to the face in OT of the last game) and letting a lot go.

[Anguyen92]

Despite what's going on with the refs and whatever, I'm thoroughly enjoying both series.

[TAC]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nhl/minnesota-wild-assistant-gm-tom-kurvers-former-hockey-great-dies-of-lung-cancer-at-58/ar-AALhr8k?li=BB15ms5q

Wow. Damn.

[pg1067]

Awards finalists are coming out now.  Vasilevskiy, Grubauer, and Fleury for the Vezina.  No surprise there.  I'd give it to Grubauer.

My predictions:
Hart - McDavid, Matthews, Rantanen
Norris - Fox, Makar, Hamilton
Adams - Quennville, Brind'Amour, Evason
Calder - Kaprizov, Robertson, Nedeljkovic
Selke - Eriksson Ek, Markus Foligno, O'Reilly

Nailed the Adams.  Not so much on the Calder or Selke.  We'll see about the other three.

[jingle.boy]

Huh?  Those were the 3 Calder finalists, and I got 2/3 for the Norris (missed Headman over Hamilton).  Selke... I was way off.  I don't see that they've announced the Calder winner yet.

I hope that pounding that Tampa laid on the Isles last night doesn't come back to haunt them.

[pg1067]

Never mind...my bad.  I was looking at the wrong year for the Calder (and was only looking at the winner).  Calder winner hasn't been announced yet, so I'll go sit in the corner and think about what I've done.

[KevShmev]

No clue why Vegas keeps swapping their goalies, but I can't help but wonder if that has affected the team's psyche.  They should not be losing to this Montreal team.

[jingle.boy]

No clue why Vegas keeps swapping their goalies, but I can't help but wonder if that has affected the team's psyche.  They should not be losing to this Montreal team.

Said every Winnipeg and Toronto player, coach and fan.

As Babs would constantly say, will beats skill.

But yeah... why they went away from Lehner baffles me.

[Anguyen92]

I would think that Vegas thought what happened in Game 3 with Fleury was a rare mental lapse and think after resting him for four days, he would be fine.  Although, if the guy that came in on Game 4 won and made solid saves, you would think they would ride that wave on Game 5.  Now they put themselves in this tough decision in an elimination game.