Brush with Greatness 0 Report post Posted December 24, 2005 (edited) RE: the debate over who made the Olympic team ... using a guy's NHL season stats as the be-all/end-all way to decide is a poor way to think things through. From what I've seen, Crosby isn't killing himself on D, and hasn't shown a huge willingness to drop and block a puck. In a tourney like the Olympics, you need the best all around players, and right now he's not that great of an all around player. There were so many big omissions this time around that I could arguably pick a team that could beat this Olympic team. Prove it. Name a team, of players that are willing to go (so you can't use Yzerman or Lemieux) and show us how you could name a team that's better than the one that was assembled. RE: the Bruins game last night. I wish the B's could play TO more often. Something about the Leafs brings out the best in the team. A win tonight would give them a ton of momentum going into the holiday break. (small rant: it kills me to hear their announcers say that the games versus Washington or Florida are winnable. The B's aren't much better than either of those teams, so the announcers for the Caps or Panthers could be sayign the same thing about the Bruins.) At this point, I'm not yet ready to be a fan of the Bruins again. There's too many players that I either don't like (Zhamnov, Gill, Fitzgerald) or am apathetic about (Isbister, Primeau, Tanabe) to really put my support behind them. Having said that, though, if MOC can get rid of some of the dead weight and replace it with players I care about ... and keep the nucleus of Boyes, Bergeron, Boynton, and re-sign Stuart ... I might find myself bleeding black and gold again next year. Well, it is somewhat dependent upon giving me the taxi squad, which takes the team from good to great. Here is what it would look like in that case. Goal Turco (because I consider him part of the taxi squad, omit if you so choose) Theodore Joseph Notes: Just going from this year, and counting Turco, I think this group of goalies is much better than the Brodeur/Luongo tandem. That's not to say that those two aren't excellent goalies, but I have two guys on top of their game at the current moment. Defense Boyle McCabe Phaneuf Brewer Hannan Bouwmeester Phillips Notes: A case could be made for those top three players to all be on the team. And the bottom three have all been there before. And Chris Phillips is very underrated. I would honestly say that this group of defencemen is definetly comparable to the current crop. Sure, the real team have the bigger name guys (as they should) but quality wise, I think we stack up. Hell, there are a few more quality guys such as Boynton, Stuart, Souray, and Staios that a case could be made for. Forwards Spezza Staal Savard Shanahan Kariya Crosby Madden Marleau Morrow Murray Primeau Tanguay Sullivan (or Briere, take one of them) Notes: I'm sure that lineup would look a lot more impressive if you took the time to put together some line combinations (Madden-Primeau-Morrow could make a hell of a checking line if you so choose) but I don't have the time at the moment. However, we would boast 3 of the top 10 scorers in the NHL at the moment (not to mention 7 of the top 10 Canadians), a feat which no other team at the Olympics could say. Honestly, I would say that this group of forwards is marginally actually better than what they have. Even this team leaves off some good players, such as Horcoff, Briere, Stillman, Allison, Lindros, etc. Overall: There you have it. My secondary Olympic team. And to quote me, I stated "I could arguably pick a team that could beat this Olympic team" and not that I could pick a team that's better. Big difference. Although, in a game I would have no hesitation in picking this team to beat the current "Team Canada". Hell, put it to a seven game series and I bet it would be a toss-up, and I can't comprehend how anyone could argue differently. Edited December 24, 2005 by Brush with Greatness Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted December 25, 2005 I'll agree to that. He never said they were a better team than the actual Team Canada, but they could at least stay competitive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 25, 2005 I might put together my 2nd & 3rd Canadian teams on here sometime if I get bored enough. Even the 3rd team might possibly have a chance at Gold. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 25, 2005 (edited) Well, I didn't put a great deal of thought into it, but here goes: 2nd TEAM CANADA Tanguay - Marleau - Justin Williams Kariya - Crosby - Knuble Morrow - Savard - Sullivan Shanahan - Morrison - Ryder Stillman RESERVES: Murray, Turgeon Bouwmeester - Aucoin Stuart - Boynton Brewer - Phaneuf Rathje RESERVE: Sarich Joseph Fernandez Theodore 3rd TEAM CANADA Whitney - Horcoff - Cheechoo M. Bell - Brindamour - Recchi Hartnell - Briere - Dumont S. Thornton - Fisher - Madden (checking line & penalty killers) Arnott RESERVES: Stoll, Tucker Morris - Van Ryn Phillips - Boyle Hannan - Desjardins Seabrook RESERVE: Staios Biron Fleury Garon Edited December 25, 2005 by KGB Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted December 25, 2005 Oooh, Garon gettin some love? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mike546 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2005 What in the world was Renney thinking starting Weekes over Lundquist against the Sens? Terrible, terrible decison. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Ghost of bps21 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2005 Sabres win again. No superstars and very few olympic picks. I guess we'll have to settle for 51 points on December 26th. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the max 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 Nice win for the B's tonight. They fell down 3-1 after Ovechkin scored, stormed back with two goals in :49 and won in OT on a Stuart laser. They need to start winning games. The "they need time to gel" excuse is aging quickly and they have a favorable schedule upcoming (after @Florida and @Tampa, they're home for 10/14 in January). Time to start getting hot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 Agreed, Max, the B's players looked good last night. The team as a whole, not so good. Other than Bergeron, I don't see that many pretty passes or well-orchestrated teamwork. It seems to be a never-ending stream of solo-work & 'right-place-at-the-right-time' that generates their offense. And did you watch the OLN between-periods coverage? Pierre Maguire gave about the most damning evaulation of a GM & Player that I've ever heard from an international sports reporter, slamming MOC and saying "Zhamnov? Was he even in the league still?!?" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 Pierre Maguire gave about the most damning There's your answer. He's, by far, hockey's most slanted, annoying colour man. Watch the Juniors during any Canadian game, you'll notice it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 He was on-point with this one, though, CG. They were having a 'roundtable' discussion about the most disappointing 1st half teams, and he picked the Bruins and just slammed them with brutal honesty. (MOC let a lot of good players go and replaced them with average-at-best players, signed Zhamnov and overpaid for him, and then on-top-of-it-all traded a very good -if not great- player for three "pedestrian" players.) In summary: I agree that he's got his weaknesses & biases, but I respected that he called out a GM rather than just pussy-foot around out of fear of offending MOC. Lastly: I'd KILL to watch the Juniors. But I'm here in the US, where we don't have the option of watching the games. Maybe if the US gets to the finals, I'll be treated to watching the games on delay at like 2:00 am. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stahl 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 Since I live in Canada I get the treat to see Pierre all the time. He really is annoying and bias, he always over analyzes things which of course it's easy to do after the fact. I guess if he was even a decent coach, he would still have a job in the NHL. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the max 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 I missed Pierre (who I enjoy because he's not afraid to give an opinion. Overanalyzation is one thing, but calling someone out on a mistake is something I like) because I'm still not used to OLN covering games. I looked for it on Center Ice and saw it wasn't there so I figured it wasn't on. We found the game at 9 and watched it and the tuesday lineup on NBC. I'm glad someone finally called MOC on his Zhamnov signing. It's pretty frustrating that nobody will just come out and say "that was a terrible signing, he's on his way out of the league but making 4 million". Wish I would have seen it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 The thing that kills me about the Zhamnov signing is the fact that MOC seemingly won a bidding war with himself. I don't remember hearing that any other team was even after him, let alone willing to overpay by that much money. The worst thing about it: this combined salaries of Knuble & Rolston is almost 1 million LESS than the combined salaries of Fitzgerald & Zhamnov. Ouch. Lastly: the big rumor that I'm hearing around here is that the SJ trade was originally Samsonov for Stuart, but MOC upped the ante by asking for more players ... and thus SJ counter-offered that they'd want Thornton. Sammy/Stuart would have pissed me off, but not nearly as much as the Joe trade did. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brush with Greatness 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2005 In regards to Pierre MaGuire, I would say that he is probably one of the best colour commentators out there. I'll agree that a) he's sometimes too over the top b) he harps on the same issues too much sometimes (no touch icing, no redline in the past, etc.) although the stuff he is mentioning, he is usually right about c) he is a homer for the World Junior Games, but who really gives a fuck, because only Canada is watching With that said, I'll take Pierre before almost anyone else. Glenn Healey may be the worst, most imcompetent individual on the planet. He's terrible and I'll skip watching a game because of him. Greg Millen isn't much better. Harry Neale's washed up and a terrible homer (which actually count's in his situation because, NEWSFLASH, more than just Toronto is watching. The only other one that I like as much as Maguire would be John Davidson, who at times can be a bit dry. A Maguire/Davidson clone would be great though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted December 28, 2005 I don't like that Pierre always yells during video highlights. I hate that shit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 Pierre has a better combination of knowledge and honesty than any announcer in any sport, except maybe Johnny Miller. It's a shame he was forced to cut back on his radio segments, because that's where he really shines. He's not as loud as on TV, and has the most intelligent conversations about hockey that you'll ever hear. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 KABLAMMO! DOUBLE DION! DION PHANEUF IS MY MONSTER PERFORMER OF THE GAME! Pierre's more tolerable in the studio. He gets way too excited when doing the broadcast, and will gush over line changes (seriously). If he would just tone it down, I wouldn't have to keep muting the tv whenever he speaks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 Pierre has a better combination of knowledge and honesty than any announcer in any sport, except maybe Johnny Miller. It's a shame he was forced to cut back on his radio segments, because that's where he really shines. He's not as loud as on TV, and has the most intelligent conversations about hockey that you'll ever hear. I'll grant you about Johnny Miller, who seems to be beloved, even though I don't care for him. He's just an idiot, sometimes. Anyone remember when he said Craig Parry's swing would make Ben Hogan puke? Parry, by the way, holed out from 185 yards to win a tournament 10 minutes later. I have to admit, though, I never heard his radio show, and maybe I wouldnt hate him as much having heard it. HABS WIN ON THE ROAD! For the first time since, what, 1996? History may prove me wrong, but I've always found them to play pretty well against Tampa in the regular season. They could be the Ottawa to our Toronto. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fartsauce 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 You would think Pierre and Phaneuf were having a sexual relationship. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 You would think Pierre and Phaneuf were having a sexual relationship. He just about climaxed when Phaneuf hit two guys at once last year during the WJC (DOUBLE DION!). Don't know how I forgot about that. Stop with the catchphrases, Pierre, and don't interrupt so much while the play is going. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 I'll grant you about Johnny Miller, who seems to be beloved, even though I don't care for him. He's just an idiot, sometimes. Anyone remember when he said Craig Parry's swing would make Ben Hogan puke? Parry, by the way, holed out from 185 yards to win a tournament 10 minutes later. I have to admit, though, I never heard his radio show, and maybe I wouldnt hate him as much having heard it. HABS WIN ON THE ROAD! For the first time since, what, 1996? History may prove me wrong, but I've always found them to play pretty well against Tampa in the regular season. They could be the Ottawa to our Toronto. Except Toronto usually sucks against Ottawa in the regular season (2003-04 being the exception). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2005 I'll grant you about Johnny Miller, who seems to be beloved, even though I don't care for him. He's just an idiot, sometimes. Anyone remember when he said Craig Parry's swing would make Ben Hogan puke? Parry, by the way, holed out from 185 yards to win a tournament 10 minutes later. I have to admit, though, I never heard his radio show, and maybe I wouldnt hate him as much having heard it. HABS WIN ON THE ROAD! For the first time since, what, 1996? History may prove me wrong, but I've always found them to play pretty well against Tampa in the regular season. They could be the Ottawa to our Toronto. Except Toronto usually sucks against Ottawa in the regular season (2003-04 being the exception). Oh, my bad. They could be the Toronto to our Ottawa? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGB 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2005 Could the Hartford Whalers be coming back? http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=148651 Developer hopes to bring NHL to Hartford HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Eight years after the Whalers left Hartford for North Carolina, a developer wants to bring another NHL team to the Connecticut capital. Lawrence Gottesdiener is head of Northland Investment Corp., which owns $500 million US worth of property in Hartford. He would like to put the team in a $250 million arena he hopes to build. ''We've got our own money, we're willing to invest in an arena and we're willing to buy a team,'' he said. ''It would be an important entity and symbol of the city, the region and the state.'' Gottesdiener's plan calls for a publicly subsidized, 16,000-seat venue that would be home to a major hockey team. The University of Connecticut men's and women's basketball teams also would play some games there. The new arena would replace the Hartford Civic Center under the proposal, which was announced Wednesday amid talk of the Civic Center's future. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2005 Oh, man, I'd mark the fuck out for the return of the Whale ... especially if my Bruins lockout continues past this year. I'd just get a weekend ticket pack, and spend as many weekends in Hartford <shudder> as possible. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the max 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2005 I'm going to the game tonight Bruins @ Bolts. I'm not looking forward to the drive, especially since I don't really know where I'm going up there. Ah well, it's my first NHL game in years. Maybe some of my screaming at Zhamnov will actually be heard. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2005 Max, I'll give you $1-million e-dollars to scream "TRADE GILL" at least once for me. And you're in for a real treat: if you think Gill sucks on TV, you ain't seen nothing yet. He makes so many bad plays that would be off-camera for the viewers at home, that you'll get the treat of seeing because you're there in person. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2005 Max should bring in a sign that says Fire MOC Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted December 31, 2005 I missed Alfredsson's injury, what happened? All I've heard is that he's at the hospital. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mike546 0 Report post Posted December 31, 2005 He got with a slapshot by Chara on the arm or somewhere around that part of the body. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
