How about them Canucks!

[talloola]

Should be lotsa Canuck fans in LA tomorrow.

Certainly the Canucks draw large crowds everywhere now-last night was Anaheim's largest crowd of the season to date-SRO.

its very exciting, I love it, and next year I want to be on this trip down the west coast,

they have so much fun, spend time in the warm weather and cheer for their team, what could be better

in the middle of the winter.

its very exciting, I love it, and next year I want to be on this trip down the west coast,

they have so much fun, spend time in the warm weather and cheer for their team, what could be better

in the middle of the winter.

_______________________________________________________________________________
watched an intense battle between detroit and chicago tonight, chicago came out the victors, so
they are on top again by two.

Canucks will have to win tomorrow to keep pace.
The league is beginning to heat up, one can feel it, the top teams are right up there challenging for
the lead, and that is exciting.

Canucks go to boston next saturday, a morning game, and their first meeting since the playoffs.
The way both teams are playing it should be quite a battle, although it is at 10;30 in the morning,
kind of a wierd time for canucks to play, but it will be fun to watch and they both will try to
make a statement to one another, and all of the top teams who are watching them.

which ever team wins/loses doesn't decide anything but will definitely set a tone.

maybe luongo will take some memory loss pills, so he doesn't remember how bad he
played in boston in the playoffs. lol

They were #2 and #4 in scoring in last years playoffs. They showed up a lot.

pay no mind to him, he usually drops in here when he forgets to take his meds, and has a spaz lol

 

[Cannuck]

They were #2 and #4 in scoring in last years playoffs. They showed up a lot.

They were a combined minus 20. Ehrhoff was the only player with a worse rating out of all the teams in the playoffs. I'm not surprised that Canucks fans think this is good. Hockey's a two way game. Maybe somebody should tell the sisters that.

By contrast, Boston's top scorer (David Krejci) was a plus 8. Bergeron and Marchand were plus 15 and 12 respectively. Those guys knew how to play in their own end.

 

[JLM]

They were a combined minus 20. Ehrhoff was the only player with a worse rating out of all the teams in the playoffs. I'm not surprised that Canucks fans think this is good. Hockey's a two way game. Maybe somebody should tell the sisters that.

By contrast, Boston's top scorer (David Krejci) was a plus 8. Bergeron and Marchand were plus 15 and 12 respectively. Those guys knew how to play in their own end.

My we really are reaching far down in the barrel. As anyone who knows anything about hockey +/- is not a really important stat for offensive forwards, more a yardstick for defensemen. Anyway WTF don't you get with the times if you are really adamant about putting stock in +/-. The Bros. Sedin are currently at +15 each this season. To give you an idea how fickle +/- is Wayne Gretzky who holds pretty well every other record, does not hold that one.

 

[Cannuck]

... if you are really adamant about putting stock in +/-. The Bros. Sedin are currently at +15 each this season....

So what? My point is that they are soft players that can't handle playoff hockey. You can point to all the reg season stats you like. You are aware that the regular season and the playoffs are two different things???


BTW, the regular season record for plus/minus is held by the greatest hockey player to ever step on the ice. Incidentally, Wayne led the league four times.

I'm having a hard time remembering when a soft player finished in the top twenty in playoff plus/minus. Maybe you can enlighten me.

 

[JLM]

So what? My point is that they are soft players that can't handle playoff hockey. You can point to all the reg season stats you like. You are aware that the regular season and the playoffs are two different things???


BTW, the regular season record for plus/minus is held by the greatest hockey player to ever step on the ice. Incidentally, Wayne led the league four times.

I'm having a hard time remembering when a soft player finished in the top twenty in playoff plus/minus. Maybe you can enlighten me.

Plus/minus is an incidental stat. Which trophies are awarded for plus/minus? You are missing one really important point. Every game/series has a winner and a loser. Being a loser at that level doesn't translate to weak players. How long have Sedins been in the N.H.L.? Twelve years? What other forwards have matched Sedin's records in their twelfth year?

If you want to check out some real numbers re plus/minus, you will notice Hank's lifetime is +173 and Dan's is + 161. Much more convincing than 7 games in a playoff series. :lol:

 

[Cannuck]

Plus/minus is an incidental stat. Which trophies are awarded for plus/minus?

If you are one of your teams top players and you finish the playoffs with the top plus/minus, you generally get a trophy called the Stanley Cup. It's not a hard and fast rule but generally speaking it is the case.

You are missing one really important point.

No I'm not.

Every game/series has a winner and a loser. Being a loser at that level doesn't translate to weak players.

No, it's generally the other way round. Being a weak player translates into being a loser (remember, I'm talking about top players here)

How long have Sedins been in the N.H.L.? Twelve years? What other forwards have matched Sedin's records in their twelfth year?

Too many to mention them all. You don't even have to look very far though. Trevor Linden is less than 100 points behind the Sedins after his first twelve seasons and he was playing on much weaker teams.

Glenn Anderson had 200 more points than the sisters in the same amount of games (plus he won cups). Lets see...Jean Ratelle, Jacque Lemaire, Ted Lindsay, Mark Messier, Iginla has done it practically by himself, hell even Patrick Marleau, the poster boy for soft players, has managed to match the sisters. I really could spend all day...Oooh...Patrik Elias on a much more defensive minded team.

 

[TenPenny]

My we really are reaching far down in the barrel. As anyone who knows anything about hockey +/- is not a really important stat for offensive forwards, more a yardstick for defensemen. Anyway WTF don't you get with the times if you are really adamant about putting stock in +/-. The Bros. Sedin are currently at +15 each this season. To give you an idea how fickle +/- is Wayne Gretzky who holds pretty well every other record, does not hold that one.

That's interesting, because I'm pretty sure that on this thread we were told that Vancouver lost because the Sedins weren't allowed to play their style of game.

And if they did so well in the playoffs, why did every hockey commentator make mention of how poorly they were playing?

If you are one of your teams top players and you finish the playoffs with the top plus/minus, you generally get a trophy called the Stanley Cup. It's not a hard and fast rule but generally speaking it is the case.

But I believe the big test of a team is winning the President's Trophy anyway, or so we've been told.

 

[talloola]

Canucks Sat 31/12/2011 7:00 PM Kings Canucks

Preview Canucks-Kings Preview Associated Press Stats

Nov 2011 VAN@LAK VAN, 3 - 2

After a slow start, the Vancouver Canucks are closing the calendar year back among the elite teams in the Western Conference.

The Canucks look to win their fourth straight when they visit the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night.

Vancouver won the Presidents' Trophy last season, but seemed to suffer a Stanley Cup loss hangover to open 2011-12. On Nov. 19, the Canucks were tied for 11th place in the West with 19 points (9-9-1).

Vancouver (24-12-2) has gone an NHL-best 15-3-1 since then, and has won six of seven and three straight to move to the top of the Northwest Division. The Canucks won 5-2 at Anaheim on Thursday, behind two goals from Daniel Sedin and a goal and two assists by Henrik Sedin.

"We're as good as last year (at this stage), but we're a different team," Daniel Sedin said. "We had a lot of new faces coming in, and different kinds of players. But we have a deep lineup and we've got everyone contributing on the back end. (Thursday), three of our lines scored and the fourth was playing extremely well."

Goaltending has been key to the turnaround. Through their first 19 games, the Canucks were giving up an average of 2.9 goals. They've allowed just 1.9 per game since then, with Roberto Luongo winning nine of his last 11 starts (9-1-1) to improve to 16-7-2 on the season.

Cory Schneider started Thursday's victory, but Luongo made 28 saves in a 3-2 win over the Kings on Nov. 10. He improved to 6-1-1 in his last eight starts versus Los Angeles, including three playoff outings. He has a 2.10 goals-against average during that stretch.

The Sedin twins have also played well against the Kings. Daniel has a nine-game point streak versus Los Angeles with six goals and nine assists while Henrik has 20 points in his last 17 games in the series.

The Kings (18-14-6), tied with San Jose atop the Pacific Division with 42 points, have also gotten solid play from their goaltending tandem of Jonathan Quick and Jonathan Bernier, giving up a total of 10 goals during a 4-0-2 stretch.

One night after Quick shut out Chicago, Bernier made 26 saves Thursday at Winnipeg but wound up on the losing end of a 1-0 score after Evander Kane beat him 1:09 into overtime.

"We were moving the puck, but we just couldn't finish it off," said Los Angeles forward Anze Kopitar, who has 10 goals on the season but none in his last 17 games. "You've got to work hard to create chances, and then you have to bear down on it. That's all there is to it."

The Kings are searching for offensive consistency. They're 0 for 21 on the power play over their last six games although they have managed 13 goals in that span.

Quick could be back in net Saturday, but has lost his last three starts against Vancouver - all versus Luongo - while allowing eight goals. He is 5-11-1 with a 2.64 goals-against average in his career versus the Canucks.

This contest begins a stretch of six straight for the Kings at Staples Center.

 

[JLM]

But I believe the big test of a team is winning the President's Trophy anyway, or so we've been told.

Your wisdom knows no bounds. It certainly isn't rocket science to realize that beating 29 teams is more prestigious than beating four teams. But our "resident hockey expert" can't seem to grasp that minor detail! :smile:

You're scraping and scratching again as usual. Anderson played almost 300 more games than the Sedins. "His" Stanley Cups had more to with Gretzky and Jarri Kurri and Messier. The three guys you picked from the 1940s and 50s don't even count, it was a totally different league and rules. I'd say Messier the iron man of hockey (albeit a real A$$hole) is ahead of the Sedins by quite a margin. Iginlas points per game is barely ahead of the Sedins. No mention of Gordie Howe!!! So I'd say the Sedins safely rank in the top 5% of all players who have played for five years or more. AND THEY ARE NOT FINISHED YET BY A LONG SHOT. :smile:

 

[talloola]

Canucks have made changes in their team this year. With everyone playing, (injured players back), they
have 4 solid lines to roll over without having to cut down to three at any time.

that is the key, and the number 2 and 3 lines can and do contribute with goals, and create a situation
where the opposition has to worry about all lines, and not just one or two.

when playoffs come, the sedins are double teamed, lots of pressure on them from opposition, which of
course makes it harder for them to produce, but when #2 and #3 lines are in top form, opposition will
not succeed in shutting down the scoring.

that is the key for any team to succeed.

and lastly, the goaliekeeping must be on top of their game at all times, which seals the deal. This
season with cory schneider playing a more important role, if luongo packs it in, then schneider can
pick it up and continue on without the team becoming weaker, and vineault is much
more comfortable throwing schneider in there anytime, and schneider is much more
comfortable playing against anyone.

injuries and goalkeeping are so important.

can you imagine if tim thomas was out of the game injured, boston would be lost, he is the key to their
success, he is a great goalie and proved it in the playoffs, and is proving it all season this year.
He is very hard to score on, he saves everything, and his defense immediately clear away any rebounds,
they set up their strategy for that type of game, and it is very successful.
Boston have no stars, (with exception of saigan,) (sp?), but he isn't really at the peak of his career
yet, but he will be soon, then they will have a legitimate star.
chara is a big force on defense, but in my opinion, not a superstar, but definitely
is like trying to skate around an octupus.

They are having a very good season, and I am looking forward to next saturday when canucks play them, as
it will be good for luongo to stand in there against them without becoming paralized, and remember how
to play against them the right way.

 

[JLM]

Canucks have made changes in their team this year. With everyone playing, (injured players back), they
have 4 solid lines to roll over without having to cut down to three at any time.

Sounds good Talloola (as always coming from you) What was the score with Thomas at the start of the season? Seems to me after the 10 game mark, the Beaners were last in the Eastern Conference. Of course every team has patches where they are down or up and last year the Canucks were unlucky enough to be down during the 7 game stretch that counted the most. I kind of wish if they are going to have another slow stretch this year, they'd get it over with before the All Star game, then they can gather momentum to crash through every one. Canucks 5 L.A. 2 JMHO :lol:

 

[talloola]

Sounds good Talloola (as always coming from you) What was the score with Thomas at the start of the season? Seems to me after the 10 game mark, the Beaners were last in the Eastern Conference. Of course every team has patches where they are down or up and last year the Canucks were unlucky enough to be down during the 7 game stretch that counted the most. I kind of wish if they are going to have another slow stretch this year, they'd get it over with before the All Star game, then they can gather momentum to crash through every one. Canucks 5 L.A. 2 JMHO :lol:

yes, boston had a horrible start to the season along with the canucks, and its understandable after such a
late finish, and not a long enough 'down' time before training camp, but both teams are rolling now at a
very high pace, along with a few others, chicago is playing very well right now, detroit as well st. louis and
maybe philly as well, its beginning to show now, as some teams are fading big time, and others holding their
own, becoming very interesting.
its very hard for teams to climb back up the standings now, if they are near the bottom, and gets harder with time.
its interesting to watch l.a. now after 'darryl sutter' took over as coach, they
have immediately improved, time will tell if it is a permanent thing or just a
quick adrenalin rush with a new coach, and will flat line soon, maybe, maybe not.
just one look at his facial expressions would make me want to play better, so as
not to get him madder.

 

[JLM]

yes, boston had a horrible start to the season along with the canucks, and its understandable after such a
late finish, and not a long enough 'down' time before training camp, but both teams are rolling now at a
very high pace, along with a few others, chicago is playing very well right now, detroit as well st. louis and
maybe philly as well, its beginning to show now, as some teams are fading big time, and others holding their
own, becoming very interesting.
its very hard for teams to climb back up the standings now, if they are near the bottom, and gets harder with time.
its interesting to watch l.a. now after 'darryl sutter' took over as coach, they
have immediately improved, time will tell if it is a permanent thing or just a
quick adrenalin rush with a new coach, and will flat line soon, maybe, maybe not.
just one look at his facial expressions would make me want to play better, so as
not to get him madder.

I think Chicago could be the biggest threat this year, hopefully (someone else) eliminates them early in the playoffs! :lol:

 

[Cannuck]

You're scraping and scratching again as usual. Anderson played almost 300 more games than the Sedins.

Yes he did. Unfortunately for you, I mentioned Anderson and the rest in response to your post aqbout the first dozen years. Anderson score almost 900 points in his first 11 years, easily eclipsing the sister's numbers.

"His" Stanley Cups had more to with Gretzky and Jarri Kurri and Messier. The three guys you picked from the 1940s and 50s don't even count, it was a totally different league and rules. I'd say Messier the iron man of hockey (albeit a real A$$hole) is ahead of the Sedins by quite a margin. Iginlas points per game is barely ahead of the Sedins. No mention of Gordie Howe!!! So I'd say the Sedins safely rank in the top 5% of all players who have played for five years or more. AND THEY ARE NOT FINISHED YET BY A LONG SHOT. :smile:

I could mention Gordie Howe. As I said, I could mention quite a few players. The Sister's 0.84 career points per game on a winning team may impress you but given the hockey knowledge you continue to show on this thread, all I can say is you are easily impressed. Iggy's 0.90 on a perennial loser is is far (and I mean FFAAAAARRRR) more impressive

 

[JLM]

Yes he did. Unfortunately for you, I mentioned Anderson and the rest in response to your post aqbout the first dozen years. Anderson score almost 900 points in his first 11 years, easily eclipsing the sister's numbers.



I could mention Gordie Howe. As I said, I could mention quite a few players. The Sister's 0.84 career points per game on a winning team may impress you but given the hockey knowledge you continue to show on this thread, all I can say is you are easily impressed. Iggy's 0.90 on a perennial loser is is far (and I mean FFAAAAARRRR) more impressive

The Canucks have enough depth now that if the Sedins can score 1.75 points per game every game that is enough to win with the likes of Burrows, Kesler, Hodgson, Higgins, Malhotra, Raymond chipping in the odd goal. Sedins have reached the stage now where their value lies in other areas besides scoring. The scoring part is a bonus! :smile:

Hank & Dan are such cool dudes that they can settle the team down in tense moments when everything is on the line.

 

[Cannuck]

The Canucks have enough depth now that if the Sedins can score 1.75 points per game every game that is enough to win with the likes of Burrows, Kesler, Hodgson, Higgins, Malhotra, Raymond chipping in the odd goal. Sedins have reached the stage now where their value lies in other areas besides scoring. The scoring part is a bonus!

Hank & Dan are such cool dudes that they can settle the team down in tense moments when everything is on the line.

For the benefit of Nuck's fans, I hope you are right (I doubt it because you haven't been right about much). I do find it interesting that you keep bringing up the regular season stats given that the biggest criticism of the sisters on this thread has been their playoff performance. I'm guessing that is because there really isn't much you can say in defense of their playoff stats or performance.

 

[Kreskin]

For the benefit of Nuck's fans, I hope you are right (I doubt it because you haven't been right about much). I do find it interesting that you keep bringing up the regular season stats given that the biggest criticism of the sisters on this thread has been their playoff performance. I'm guessing that is because there really isn't much you can say in defense of their playoff stats or performance.

Presidents Trophy, Hart, Art Ross, getting to game 7 of the final ..... Not many others on that list.

 

[JLM]

For the benefit of Nuck's fans, I hope you are right (I doubt it because you haven't been right about much). I do find it interesting that you keep bringing up the regular season stats given that the biggest criticism of the sisters on this thread has been their playoff performance. I'm guessing that is because there really isn't much you can say in defense of their playoff stats or performance.

And you keep bringing it up because the team had one sh*tty round, so they were a few goals shy of a Stanley Cup -get over it and move on. Even Wayne Gretzky had dry spells, but of course those are forgotten. This is getting ridiculous- ANY player in the N.H.L. who scores over 25 goals in a year or gets 50 points is a damn good player, let it go at that and F&CK OFF!

 

[Cannuck]

And you keep bringing it up because the team had one sh*tty round,

No, the sisters were criticized from all corners because of their playoff performance...and not just last years nor just the last series.

 

[JLM]

No, the sisters were criticized from all corners because of their playoff performance...and not just last years nor just the last series.

If you remember the Canucks had 3 winning rounds, so nothing to criticise there!