All Hockey talk all the time

marakh wrote:
I think we do. I think guys like Foligno, Regin, Winchester, Shannon, Campoli etc. give their all every night when they see alfie leading the way. Look at the MTL kids. Price, D'agostini, Pacioretty, the Kostitsyns... They were awesome when they played their first games with the team. AS the games went on, the lack of leadership has cooled them off. I think the opposite is happening in Ottawa. Rookies are a bit stressed with their first games, but the get more confidence and more "tutelage". Jason Smith and Chirs Philips are HUGE IMO. Just doesn't get much talk in the media.

Winchester's a guy that might turn out to be a heck of a leader in the near future. Same with Foligno.

Oh my. Habs are tied with Carolina (with a game in hand) and just 1 point up on Florida. All the Canes need to do is get one point either tonight, against the Isles, or Saturday night against the Caps -- that would slide Montreal down into 8th heading into HNIC against the Leafs. Scoreboard watching (seeing how Florida does against Columbus) might take their focus off the game they are playing and before they know it they're outside lookng in.

Could happen. If not, Buffalo is only 5 back with a game in hand. They play the Flyers, Rangers, Panthers and Leafs before the big showdown against the Habs next Saturday. Unless the Sabres completely fold that could be a huge game. Miller time!

All the games are huge from here on in...

Buffalo is praying it is Miller time...they are slippin' away. Sabres have to beat the Flyers tonight. The Canes are gaining strength and can put a nail in it--and blow by the hapless Habs--by icing the Isles.

In the West, the race is getting tighter and tighter. Watching the Nucks blast the Blues last night--and Bobby Lu in the zone--this meat-eating Vancouver team is now targeting Calgary. One flicker, like a loss to a desperate St Louis tonight, and the Flames' division title hopes may be smoked.

Desperation will also be the name of the game in Jersey, Pittsburgh and Chicago tonight. The Wild have to stick it to Lemaire's old team to cling to post season life; and the Kings, fresh from hunting bears in Boston, need to put a lid on The Pingu Posse if they hope to write their own Hollywood movie starring Stanley. At the UC, the hungry Hawks will seek to stem the flow of Oil as they claw their way to their first playoff series since 2002.

Oodles of great hockey on tap...and more this weekend. Stock up on the beer and nachos, and disconnect the phone.
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504Heater wrote:

marakh wrote:
I think we do. I think guys like Foligno, Regin, Winchester, Shannon, Campoli etc. give their all every night when they see alfie leading the way. Look at the MTL kids. Price, D'agostini, Pacioretty, the Kostitsyns... They were awesome when they played their first games with the team. AS the games went on, the lack of leadership has cooled them off. I think the opposite is happening in Ottawa. Rookies are a bit stressed with their first games, but the get more confidence and more "tutelage". Jason Smith and Chirs Philips are HUGE IMO. Just doesn't get much talk in the media.

Winchester's a guy that might turn out to be a heck of a leader in the near future. Same with Foligno.

you are definitely right on Foligno Heater, Winchester, he may be a slow developer, but he could blossom into a role like that. This is his first year I believe in the NHL, big difference from college (I believe that is where he came from)

you are correct SF. Winchester played in for Colgate I believe (NCAA).

And yeah, I had said in around September of last year that Foligno would have a break-out year; and luckily I don't appear to be that far off, although Hartsy certainly seemed to have stiffled a LOT of our guys, but under Clouston, he seems to be chompin' at the bit to his share and just wreak havoc.

I can't help but wonder what this team would have looked like if Clouston had been here from the word go...

this may sound a little ridiculas but under clouston i think foligno has something like 8 goals if clouston had been coaching for a full year there is a chance foligno could hit 30 ....he has 15 right now and could possible hit 20 this year

whoa... What a feat that would be if Foligno hits 20 by mid-April.

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:this may sound a little ridiculas but under clouston i think foligno has something like 8 goals if clouston had been coaching for a full year there is a chance foligno could hit 30 ....he has 15 right now and could possible hit 20 this year

queue the instant secondary scoring that we desperately needed. Vermette wasn't doing it here, so maybe it wasn't a bad idea at all to let him go, he is making the most of his chances in Columbus and good on him for doing it. Foligno will hopefully be at least a 20 goal scorer next year, as long as they hire Clouston.

SensFan71 wrote:

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:this may sound a little ridiculas but under clouston i think foligno has something like 8 goals if clouston had been coaching for a full year there is a chance foligno could hit 30 ....he has 15 right now and could possible hit 20 this year

queue the instant secondary scoring that we desperately needed. Vermette wasn't doing it here, so maybe it wasn't a bad idea at all to let him go, he is making the most of his chances in Columbus and good on him for doing it. Foligno will hopefully be at least a 20 goal scorer next year, as long as they hire Clouston.

'Instant Secondary Scoring'...hm. :KJK:

Foligno could very well become a 20-goal man, but it's Fisher who really has to earn his salary. He has zero points in the last four games and is going nowhere on the scoresheet, with just two goals in the last ten games. Since Clouston took over over the February 1 debacle, he has only four goals, and is on pace for just 13, less than Nick The Quick.

A Hurricane's win tonight over the Isles and a Leafs win over the Habs (in regulation) on Saturday night will find the Habs in 9th spot... out of the playoffs. But they'll have a game in hand.

EDIT: Florida also has to win over the Jackets.

shabbs wrote:A Hurricane's win tonight over the Isles and a Leafs win over the Habs (in regulation) on Saturday night will find the Habs in 9th spot... out of the playoffs. But they'll have a game in hand.

The way Montreal is playing right now they'll need more than fistful of games in hand...

davetherave wrote:

SensFan71 wrote:

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:this may sound a little ridiculas but under clouston i think foligno has something like 8 goals if clouston had been coaching for a full year there is a chance foligno could hit 30 ....he has 15 right now and could possible hit 20 this year

queue the instant secondary scoring that we desperately needed. Vermette wasn't doing it here, so maybe it wasn't a bad idea at all to let him go, he is making the most of his chances in Columbus and good on him for doing it. Foligno will hopefully be at least a 20 goal scorer next year, as long as they hire Clouston.

'Instant Secondary Scoring'...hm. :KJK:

Foligno could very well become a 20-goal man, but it's Fisher who really has to earn his salary. He has zero points in the last four games and is going nowhere on the scoresheet, with just two goals in the last ten games. Since Clouston took over over the February 1 debacle, he has only four goals, and is on pace for just 13, less than Nick The Quick.

maybe Foligno's success could somehow magically trigger fish waking up? if that was true however, you think that would be done by now. that being said, I have no issues with Fisher clearing the way for Foligno and Shannon, then they can pile up the goals (provided Fish does get some assists)

SensFan71 wrote: maybe Foligno's success could somehow magically trigger fish waking up? if that was true however, you think that would be done by now. that being said, I have no issues with Fisher clearing the way for Foligno and Shannon, then they can pile up the goals (provided Fish does get some assists)

Fisher 'clearing the way'? For 15MM over the next four years? It's more like Nicky and Ryan are clearing the way for him these days...PS he has just five assists in The Clouston era. Not exactly value for money.

Calling Peter Regin?

And when Cody Bass comes back, does Fish become expendable?

davetherave wrote:

SensFan71 wrote: maybe Foligno's success could somehow magically trigger fish waking up? if that was true however, you think that would be done by now. that being said, I have no issues with Fisher clearing the way for Foligno and Shannon, then they can pile up the goals (provided Fish does get some assists)

Fisher 'clearing the way'? For 15MM over the next four years? It's more like Nicky and Ryan are clearing the way for him these days...PS he has just five assists in The Clouston era. Not exactly value for money.

Calling Peter Regin?

And when Cody Bass comes back, does Fish become expendable?

I definitely see your point about fish being a bit overpaid, not to mention the NMC he has, which could handcuff us in the end. If he can keep focused, there are very few better forecheckers than fisher, so it may be very true that fisher could become expendable with the emergence of Peter Regin (more bang for the buck definitely), then Cody Bass being healthy, however, that NMC determines it all, if Fish wants to stay here, and he is a fan favourite, no matter what he does, plus he is huge in the community, then he will not go anywhere.

In the immortal words of Michael "Mickey" Goldmill, "Women weaken legs!"

I wonder if that's true in Fish's case. He's certainly done well when Carrie's been in attendance, at least early on, while he was still in the "No comment" phase of the relationship. Has that changed?

wprager wrote:In the immortal words of Michael "Mickey" Goldmill, "Women weaken legs!"

I wonder if that's true in Fish's case. He's certainly done well when Carrie's been in attendance, at least early on, while he was still in the "No comment" phase of the relationship. Has that changed?

well maybe it has, but let's hope she hasn't weakened his legs, if so, the relationship is over lol, now if plays better and she keeps showing up and showing off her tatas, then well, we are okay then. didn't the same thing kind of happen with Tony Romo when Jessica was at his game, he completely stunk, and Terrell said she was not allowed in the stadium anymore, guess who won that battle Terrell?

SensFan71 wrote: I definitely see your point about fish being a bit overpaid, not to mention the NMC he has, which could handcuff us in the end. If he can keep focused, there are very few better forecheckers than fisher, so it may be very true that fisher could become expendable with the emergence of Peter Regin (more bang for the buck definitely), then Cody Bass being healthy, however, that NMC determines it all, if Fish wants to stay here, and he is a fan favourite, no matter what he does, plus he is huge in the community, then he will not go anywhere.

SF71, NTCs and NMCs don't mean a player can't be moved or traded...they mean that a player has the right to approve or reject the movement or trade.

Again, yes, Mike Fisher is very active in the community. So was Antoine Vermette.

IMHO management is going to look very, very hard at what players are delivering relative to their contracts.

Fisher is a high-energy, physical guy for sure, but while Nick Foligno and Ryan Shannon have very visibly contributed, the questions about Fisher--and his lack of improvement in production under Clouston--are legitimate. "Very few better forecheckers" might be better stated "very few more highly paid forecheckers" at this point.

The unfortunate reality is that at that price, he may not trade-able. Even if he's not producing, he has more value to us than to any other team IMO.

asq2 wrote:The unfortunate reality is that at that price, he may not trade-able. Even if he's not producing, he has more value to us than to any other team IMO.

Well, if Murray got Leclaire and a pick for Vermette, who/what do you think he might get for Fisher? Interesting thought, no?

davetherave wrote:

SensFan71 wrote: I definitely see your point about fish being a bit overpaid, not to mention the NMC he has, which could handcuff us in the end. If he can keep focused, there are very few better forecheckers than fisher, so it may be very true that fisher could become expendable with the emergence of Peter Regin (more bang for the buck definitely), then Cody Bass being healthy, however, that NMC determines it all, if Fish wants to stay here, and he is a fan favourite, no matter what he does, plus he is huge in the community, then he will not go anywhere.

SF71, NTCs and NMCs don't mean a player can't be moved or traded...they mean that a player has the right to approve or reject the movement or trade.

Again, yes, Mike Fisher is very active in the community. So was Antoine Vermette.

IMHO management is going to look very, very hard at what players are delivering relative to their contracts.

Fisher is a high-energy, physical guy for sure, but while Nick Foligno and Ryan Shannon have very visibly contributed, the questions about Fisher--and his lack of improvement in production under Clouston--are legitimate. "Very few better forecheckers" might be better stated "very few more highly paid forecheckers" at this point.

very true with the NMC's and NTC's, I guess my thought is more along the lines of, will fish agree to move? he has become really attached with people in the community, yes, Vermette has as well, but with Fish, it seems more personal to him, see Elgin Fraser for instance, I bet to this day Fish still visits that family. I just don't think Fish will agree to leaving Ottawa. Maybe if Murray sat down and had a heart to heart with Mike, then maybe he could be persuaded, but playing strong arm tactics like benching him and such will not work with Fisher, not in my opinion anyway, yes he is an albatross of a contract, but I still think Mike will want to stay here, but I could be wrong. Let's hope if he does chose to initiate his NMC, which is his full right as per his contract, that he plays up to what the contract is worth.

Will NHL hockey come back to Canada and Quebec? According to former Nordiques TV analyst Claude Bedard interviewed by Yvon Pedneault on CKAC Corus Radio Sports today, "an NHL franchise may be back in Quebec City sooner than we imagine".

Given the rivalry between Quebec and Montreal, that might explain Habs President Pierre Boivin's declaration today that Les Canadiens "will everything we can to get a francophone Quebec-born impact player." Hints of Lecavalier...

People may not remember former Nordiques President Marcel Aubut's statement that the Nordiques were actually a more valuable franchise than the Habs at the time they were sold to investors from Colorado.

There have been other rumblings of franchises moving to Canada in the near future...such as the tacit endorsement by NHLPA President Paul Kelly of a franchise in the GTA (read Hamilton/Kitchener)...

...worth keeping an eye and ear out for them...

davetherave wrote:

asq2 wrote:The unfortunate reality is that at that price, he may not trade-able. Even if he's not producing, he has more value to us than to any other team IMO.

Well, if Murray got Leclaire and a pick for Vermette, who/what do you think he might get for Fisher? Interesting thought, no?

Eh, I don't know. $2.7M is more palatable than $4.2M, Vermette's career numbers are better and Vermette's younger. Also, Columbus desperately needed centremen.

I think we'd have to take back a fairly substantial contract to move Fisher. And in that case, albeit depending on who owned the contract, I'd rather not.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=272023

Geez, I didn't even think there would be 100 rookies. Elliott is listed at #33, two spots *below* Brian Lee. This is what they have to say about them:

31. Brian Lee, D, Ottawa
Age: 21
Stats: 2-9-11, minus-4, 18 PIM in 42 GP
Comment:
May not live up to being drafted 9th overall, but has good size and can
move the puck well enough to be a defensive regular for many years.
...
33. Brian Elliott, G, Ottawa
Age: 23
Stats: 14-4-3, 2.70 GAA, .905 SVPCT in 25 GP
Comment: Proving that he's NHL-calibre, but will likely be battling for backup job next season.

Just for a quick comparison, this is what they say about Luke Schenn (at #15):

15. Luke Schenn, D, Toronto
Age: 19
Stats: 1-8-9, minus-13, 50 PIM in 60 GP
Comment:
Aside from Doughty, the only rookie getting more than 20 minutes of ice
time per game. It's been a learning experience with the rebuilding
Maple Leafs, but Schenn still looks like he will be every bit the
shutdown defenceman one day.

I know it's become fashionable to crab on Lee, but he's got very similar numbers to Schenn -- just a little better. Stays out of the penalty box more, as well. And is that correct -- Schenn is a shutdown defenseman? I thought the way he skates he was definitely supposed to have offensive flair.

To be fair, Schenn was drafted three years later. And he's more physical.

asq2 wrote:To be fair, Schenn was drafted three years later. And he's more physical.

Lee looks like Big Bird out there sometimes -- and not in the cool Larry Robinson way. Does he have a ridiculously small head (for his body) or am I just being mean? He still looks like a gangly little kid out there. He needs to gain about another 20-25 lbs. I just hate giving up on a right-shooting D-man.

Carolina just came back to beat the Isles. The Habs are in 8th (funny, NHL.com has updated their points total but not their Conference standings -- so they are at 83 points, 2 ahead of Montreal, but still in 8th).

Edit: Ah, there you go. They just updated it. Carolina vaults ahead of the Rangers into 6th; Habs in 8th.

Brodeur's 101st shut-out.

Another cringe-worthy night for Tank Nation though. The Isles, Kings and Thrashers all lose.

Blues win in Calgary after a 3rd period come back. Just like that, they jump 3 spots and now sits in 9th in the west.

wprager wrote:Carolina just came back to beat the Isles. The Habs are in 8th (funny, NHL.com has updated their points total but not their Conference standings -- so they are at 83 points, 2 ahead of Montreal, but still in 8th).

Edit: Ah, there you go. They just updated it. Carolina valuts ahead of the Rangers into 6th; Habs in 8th.

ESPN.com's NHL pages are the best at giving real time standings and score updates.

marakh wrote:Blues win in Calgary after a 3rd period come back. Just like that, they jump 3 spots and now sits in 9th in the west.

Several really exciting games tonight.

The Hawks-Oilers contest was a heartstopper...and so was the Blues-Flames thriller. It's like the playoffs have already started for these teams.

I LOVE hockey on HDTV.
:D :D :D

davetherave wrote:

marakh wrote:Blues win in Calgary after a 3rd period come back. Just like that, they jump 3 spots and now sits in 9th in the west.

Several really exciting games tonight.

The Hawks-Oilers contest was a heartstopper...and so was the Blues-Flames thriller. It's like the playoffs have already started for these teams.

I LOVE hockey on HDTV.
:D :D :D

For alot of teams they are in playoff mode with so many important games.

So, tonight could be the night... a Leafs win over the Habs in regulation and a Florida win over the Blue Jackets will pop the Habs out of the playoff seeds and into 9th spot in the East.

shabbs wrote:So, tonight could be the night... a Leafs win over the Habs in regulation and a Florida win over the Blue Jackets will pop the Habs out of the playoff seeds and into 9th spot in the East.

Looks like Gainey is going to sit out Komisarek and Kostitsyn. It's getting close to 'pull the plug' time for the Habs.

Panthers-Jackets should be an awesome game as well.

Oodles of great hockey on tap...and more this weekend. Stock up on the beer and nachos, and disconnect the phone.
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I like your style dtr

Fisher 'clearing the way'? For 15MM over the next four years? It's more like Nicky and Ryan are clearing the way for him these days...PS he has just five assists in The Clouston era. Not exactly value for money.

Calling Peter Regin?

And when Cody Bass comes back, does Fish become expendable?

Maybe expendable, but I would like the Sens to keep him. He's having a terrible year. I think it's just that, one terrible year. I'm not sure if he'll ever earn his full contract value, but I think he will be a key member of this team moving forward.

Lee looks like Big Bird out there sometimes -- and not in the cool Larry Robinson way. Does he have a ridiculously small head (for his body) or am I just being mean? He still looks like a gangly little kid out there. He needs to gain about another 20-25 lbs. I just hate giving up on a right-shooting D-man.

You're right IMO wprager, at least he's just 21. Schenn is 19 so he's obviously going to be a beast of a dman but the fat lady hasn't sung for Lee yet. He is still growing. I still don't see top 2 potential, but hey, I'm not a professional.

beerandsens wrote:

Oodles of great hockey on tap...and more this weekend. Stock up on the beer and nachos, and disconnect the phone.
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I like your style dtr

Indeed.

Get those BEERS on ICE!

asq2 wrote:Brodeur's 101st shut-out.

Another cringe-worthy night for Tank Nation though. The Isles, Kings and Thrashers all lose.

Am certain Brodeur has that record broken by the end of the year, the team is playing well, and when they are not, it's Brodeur, the best goalie out there right now.

Leafs were blowing by the Habs 4-0 until Lapierre scored two in less than three minutes. I still think they're going down tonight.

Carolina is ahead of Washington? Didn't they play last night? Green has another goal -- amazing.

Florida is ahead -- albeit not by much.

If the scores stay the way they are now, the Habs will be in 9th. Will Gainey get the boot if they miss the playoffs?

Bah. Blue Jackets have taken a 2-1 lead with seconds to go...

Make that 3-1. Oh well. Habs will hold on to 8th tonight.

Perhaps this is even better this way. They continue losing but have not hit bottom yet. Kind of like the Sens last year. If it wasn't for that ridiculous start they had BM may have pulled the trigger a lot sooner on Paddock and, who knows.

Bottom line, if they continue losing they will get caught by someone. Perhaps even a team from Ontario

Do you guys realize that if the Habs and the Panthers win only 5 out of the 10 remaining, same with Buffalo, The Sens and the Leafs can still catch them?

Can the Sens win 10 out of 11?