WCSF: (1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (3) San Jose Sharks | VGK Leads Series 3-2

[missingjibbsclub]

That defense is still prone to stupid lazy plays. All it takes is a team quick enough to capitalize on those mistakes.

Anaheim would get to the mistakes but wasn't quick enough in there decision making or counters to take advantage of them. If the kings/vegas series was any indication then vegas could be able to capitalize on them.

The sharks defense and forwards in the defensive zone will have to be even better in the vegas series then they were in the ducks series.

I'm routing for the Sharks here. I love burnsy, I wanna see the guy go deep possibly even win a cup.

 

[tsnTpoint]

About time Vegas gets a solid test here. Sharks will probably take it to em with that lethal defence of theirs. I don't see how any team can match up with that SJ defence with Jonesy in net. Should be interesting.

I could be wrong but didn't LA allow the least most goals against in the NHL?

Vegas beat LA in 4 games with 7 goals, let that sink in...

 

[Herschel]

I could be wrong but didn't LA allow the least most goals against in the NHL?

Vegas beat LA in 4 games with 7 goals, let that sink in...

While both San Jose and Vegas played great lockdown defense in the first round neither team faced anywhere near the level of offense they will in round two. I highly doubt that either team will be able to continue to hold their opponent to a 1 goal or less average.

Vegas is going to be facing a better top 6, legitimate depth scoring along with a blueline that was near the top of the league when it comes to 5v5 scoring (this is often highly overlooked).

San Jose is going to face a true 4 line team. A team that scores off of the rush, as well as off of the cycle. And a much faster and more offensive blueline.

 

[TomasHertlsRooster]

People talk about Vegas' depth and how they have 3 2nd lines and win by committee, but statistically speaking, they actually rely on their top players more than the Sharks. I would be willing to wager that the biggest difference maker in this series will be the Sharks superior 3rd line. Vegas should have got a legit 3C at the TDL instead of Tomas Tatar lol

 

[Johnny Tomala]

Sharks in 6.

 

[HanSolo]

It's a great story I get that but I can't be the only hockey fan who is over the whole Knights thing can I?

It just feels like they haven't had to pay any dues yet, no growing pains, anything. I mean I'm not gonna weep if they win the Cup, it will just feel all kinds of wrong, and yep FOR ME it will definitely chip away at the whole "the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy in sports to win" thing. Apparently not.

This is such a ridiculous requirement in the minds of some fans. Vegas will have to pay their dues eventually. But they're earning their success now. It's not like this is a team of guys that never played in the NHL. Everyone on that roster is a veteran. Things came together in a way that is giving them a very solid chance and they are all going for it. They're all working together as a strong and cohesive unit. They're hustling on every shift. If they win the cup, it's because they deserved it. All these players paid their dues. The only ones who haven't paid their dues in this organization are Bill Foley and the fans. What dues do they have to pay.

And what Vegas is doing isn't easy.

 

[Barrie22]

Colorado didn't pay there dues either. But nobody complained they went and won a cup right after moving.

But i forgot its a new team they can't be good. They need to do the 20 years of hard ships before finding success.

 

[CokenoPepsi]

Vegas in 5

But pulling for Sharks

 

[Sleepy]

While both San Jose and Vegas played great lockdown defense in the first round neither team faced anywhere near the level of offense they will in round two. I highly doubt that either team will be able to continue to hold their opponent to a 1 goal or less average.

Vegas is going to be facing a better top 6, legitimate depth scoring along with a blueline that was near the top of the league when it comes to 5v5 scoring (this is often highly overlooked).

San Jose is going to face a true 4 line team. A team that scores off of the rush, as well as off of the cycle. And a much faster and more offensive blueline.

San Jose is going to play a team not coached by a cro-magnon.

 

[member 151739]

"Haven't paid their dues" is the worst argument I've ever heard regarding a sports team being successful.

What even is the point? Why does a team need to suck for a decade?

 

[tiburon12]

People talk about Vegas' depth and how they have 3 2nd lines and win by committee, but statistically speaking, they actually rely on their top players more than the Sharks. I would be willing to wager that the biggest difference maker in this series will be the Sharks superior 3rd line. Vegas should have got a legit 3C at the TDL instead of Tomas Tatar lol

This, and the fact that Vlasic and Burns on different pairings means hell for the top two Vegas lines. Let's not forget that Vlasic, in his last few playoff series, has shut down Getzlaf (2p, 4 games), McDavid (4p, 6 games), Crosby (4p, 6 games), Tarasenko (2p, 6 games - and those were two garbage time goals in game 6 with the game already lost). Secondary scoring will be critical for Vegas

 

[traparatus]

I think Vegas has enough speed and applies enough pressure with all four line to make Burns look like the worst possible version of himself. Burns is a key cog for San Jose and he is in now way infallible. Make him play in the defensive zone under relentless for-check and he will make plenty of mistakes.

By the end of Oilers-Sharks series last year Sharks' defense looked completely spent and were not able to deal with Oilers' speed. Have they gotten better since then?

 

[hockfan1991]

I think Vegas has enough speed and applies enough pressure with all four line to make Burns look like the worst possible version of himself. Burns is a key cog for San Jose and he is in now way infallible. Make him play in the defensive zone under relentless for-check and he will make plenty of mistakes.

By the end of Oilers-Sharks series last year Sharks' defense looked completely spent and were not able to deal with Oilers' speed. Have they gotten better since then?

Much better, this is a different team. In pro sports things change year to year. See oilers last year, division favorites who miss the playoffs. Then Sharks who lost Marleau made 0 upgrades were expected to miss playoffs.

Not only did they make it but without Jumbo for half the season. This team this year would have beaten the oilers last year.

Also keep in we just looked dead tired last year from our previous Finals run, this year they look much fresher and have an influx of youth who is contributing to help with that.

It has been talked about on Sharks board but Wilson and Deboer changed there strategy in how they attack and overall game play around December. This is the time when Sharks went to playoff bubble to cementing a playoff spot. Playing a faster transition game, d jumping in and many have had career years along with our defense being top3 5vs5 scoring team.

Now to make these necessary changes you cannot simply just say so, you have to have the personnel and the Sharks do. Sharks lead the league with most players over 30 pts this year i believe 14 or 15. The sharks are deep. They have had big jumps from players like Donskoi, when healthy is a good contributor. Boedker the second half the season was playing as well as any shark and was on a 55 point pace last half, he has bounced back. Meier who has gone to the next level and is a beast possession player driving play, has been our best player on a lot of night. Throw in a 40 point 3 center who has improved his overall game, can cause matchup problems. Players like Fehr, goodrow sorenson who have suprised along with labanc to a lesser degree, still had 40 points this year but most the impact on the pp. Point is our 4th line scored more then the whole ducks team combined.

We have speed from the back and sprinkled in on every line that can come in waves shift after shift.

This while not even talking about Kane Couture Pavs Hertl and potentially Jumbo

Point is much has changed since last season and even in the last couple months, in my mind, this team is better then the one that went to the finals a couple years ago.

That is without Jumbo and Patty, who would have thought?

 

[Juxtaposer]

If Burns is healthy, the Sharks win, if he isn’t, Vegas wins. Really as simple as that. He wasn’t playing Norris level hockey for the first two and a half games of the Ducks series. He left the game halfway through the game 3 rout and then looked pretty bad in game 4. Hopefully it was nothing major and a week is long enough to recover.

 

[traparatus]

Much better, this is a different team. In pro sports things change year to year. See oilers last year, division favorites who miss the playoffs. Then Sharks who lost Marleau made 0 upgrades were expected to miss playoffs.

Not only did they make it but without Jumbo for half the season. This team this year would have beaten the oilers last year.

Also keep in we just looked dead tired last year from our previous Finals run, this year they look much fresher and have an influx of youth who is contributing to help with that.

It has been talked about on Sharks board but Wilson and Deboer changed there strategy in how they attack and overall game play around December. This is the time when Sharks went to playoff bubble to cementing a playoff spot. Playing a faster transition game, d jumping in and many have had career years along with our defense being top3 5vs5 scoring team.

Now to make these necessary changes you cannot simply just say so, you have to have the personnel and the Sharks do. Sharks lead the league with most players over 30 pts this year i believe 14 or 15. The sharks are deep. They have had big jumps from players like Donskoi, when healthy is a good contributor. Boedker the second half the season was playing as well as any shark and was on a 55 point pace last half, he has bounced back. Meier who has gone to the next level and is a beast possession player driving play, has been our best player on a lot of night. Throw in a 40 point 3 center who has improved his overall game, can cause matchup problems. Players like Fehr, goodrow sorenson who have suprised along with labanc to a lesser degree, still had 40 points this year but most the impact on the pp. Point is our 4th line scored more then the whole ducks team combined.

We have speed from the back and sprinkled in on every line that can come in waves shift after shift.

This while not even talking about Kane Couture Pavs Hertl and potentially Jumbo

Point is much has changed since last season and even in the last couple months, in my mind, this team is better then the one that went to the finals a couple years ago.

That is without Jumbo and Patty, who would have thought?

Sounds good. I haven't seen very much Sharks' hockey this year and it was hard to get much of a read from Anaheim series because Ducks misplayed it to such a great extent.

I still think that Sharks are top heavy on defense and if this series goes long, as I think it will, with plenty of overtime, they will be exposed. There is a major drop off after Burns and Vlasic. Also, when Burns has to handle over about 26-27 min, he tuns into a pumpkin or at least he has in the past.

I voted Vegas in 7 for that reason.

 

[Barrie22]

Sounds good. I haven't seen very much Sharks' hockey this year and it was hard to get much of a read from Anaheim series because Ducks misplayed it to such a great extent.

I still think that Sharks are top heavy on defense and if this series goes long, as I think it will, with plenty of overtime, they will be exposed. There is a major drop off after Burns and Vlasic. Also, when Burns has to handle over about 26-27 min, he tuns into a pumpkin or at least he has in the past.

I voted Vegas in 7 for that reason.

When has he turned into a pumpkkn playing 26-27 mins a night? Was it in 2016 when he had a conn smyth worthy playoffs on route to the cup finals?

Or when has it happened?

 

[deadinthewater]

I'm rooting for VGK. With that said, I hope the winner of this series wins it all.

 

[PrototypeX85]

I'm probably gonna cheer for whoever comes out of this series to win it all.

My guess: Sharks in 6. But at this point I won't be surprised to see Vegas win it. They've done nothing but defy expectations since the beginning of the season.

 

[TomasHertlsRooster]

This, and the fact that Vlasic and Burns on different pairings means hell for the top two Vegas lines. Let's not forget that Vlasic, in his last few playoff series, has shut down Getzlaf (2p, 4 games), McDavid (4p, 6 games), Crosby (4p, 6 games), Tarasenko (2p, 6 games - and those were two garbage time goals in game 6 with the game already lost). Secondary scoring will be critical for Vegas

Vlasic has been stapled to Kopitar, Forsberg, Tarasenko, Crosby, McDavid, and Getzlaf over his last 6 playoff series. Throughout those entire series, those players have 7 goals and 10 assists in 34 games; 3 of those goals in garbage time.

Of course, it would be so Vegas for their top forwards to finally break through and torch the Sharks after those 6 legitimately superstar (maybe not Forsberg in 2016) forwards were mostly shut down by Vlasic.

 

[BRUINS since 1995]

Book it.This is the end of Vegas. Was impress by San Jose

 

[GKG18]

I think VGK stole at least one win vs SJ in the regular season, particularly the first one (it was very chippy). The last couple of games the Sharks looked different (better/faster) and I think this series will be decided by the play of Kane. He scares me. I voted VGK in 7, but, hey.. I'm a Vegas guy. What do I know?

 

[AaronDellForPrez]

Vegas is in an interesting position with the league, because, if they win it all it essentially makes them illegitimate, casting extreme doubt on the fairness of the expansion draft.

It would be seen by the rest of the NHL (IMHO) as "They got too much, we have to adjust the rules for the next franchise", at which point any cup win by them would be seen at best an "asterisk" win caused by the league's mistake. If they do not win, the league is off the hook.

I guarantee you that while the league wants the franchise to succeed, it also absolutely cannot allow them to win it all. (That's not saying they shouldn't try their best)

 

[CanadienShark]

Fairy tale ends now. My roommate is a Vegas fan, so this is going to get messy haha.

 

[HanSolo]

Vegas is in an interesting position with the league, because, if they win it all it essentially makes them illegitimate, casting extreme doubt on the fairness of the expansion draft.

It would be seen by the rest of the NHL (IMHO) as "They got too much, we have to adjust the rules for the next franchise", at which point any cup win by them would be seen at best an "asterisk" win caused by the league's mistake. If they do not win, the league is off the hook.

I guarantee you that while the league wants the franchise to succeed, it also absolutely cannot allow them to win it all. (That's not saying they shouldn't try their best)

At this point I'm hoping Vegas wins the cup and Edmonton wins the draft lottery.

This narrative has been tiresome and infuriating since January.

You people just refuse to see Vegas is doing something remarkable by any objective standard. I mean yes. The roster is much better than originally believed but we're moving into a territory where, in the interest of not giving Vegas any due credit, their talents are being overstated to a ridiculous degree. Vegas got solid, hard-working NHLers. Not a broken set of superstars.

Vegas is defying the odds with what they're doing to a high degree. Seattle will have to face the same odds and need everything to go similarly perfectly to replicate this to show that the rules are a surefire contender maker.

 

[Tage2Tuch]

Has anyone pointed out the obvious?

Evander Kane around Vegas for a week or two.

Yikes.

lol

Or maybe the team stays somewhere closer to home.