zeke
The Dube Abides
- Mar 14, 2005
- 66,937
- 36,957
definitely there have been some stumbles against those middle teams that are the reason we're not right near the top of the standings.
It's crazy to think we are 2nd in the NHL standings, and yet you look at our division standings and can think, man we suck, we're 15 points behind the friggin Lightning!! Talk about machine like. Wouldn't it be something if Tampa Bay got saddled with Pittsburgh in the first round?
Interesting observation. What jumps out at me is how tightly packed the standings are. By PTS% were tied for 2nd and Boston who's one point behind having played just one more game is 7th.
TB deserves to be considered the best team in the NHL at this point, putting the next dozen teams in order however, you could pull names out of a hat and do pretty well IMO. The playoffs are going to be interesting to say the least.
It is very 'tiered' this year for sure .. Based on the standings:
Cup Favourites: Lightning
Cup Contenders: Leafs, Jets, Flames, Sharks, Preds, Caps, Isles, Bruins
In playoff no-mans land: Golden Knights
The bubble: Habs, Blue Jackets, Pens, Canes, Sabres, Blues, Stars, Wild, Canucks, Av's, Hawks
And then there's the rest.
Some interesting playoff races heating up. The Blues have come on strong as have the Hawks in the West. The Canes are pushing in the east .. The Pens could easily heat up again. While teams like the Sabres and Av's are sinking.
There are some teams that should be in that contender status but other teams who are still proving themselves to be in that bracket like the Isles and Bruins.
That looks about right. Only questions to me are does PIT really belong in the bubble group and is NYI really a contender, which only goes to show how muddy the waters are. The playoffs are going to be so interesting, the mere thought of us not still being in the mix after the 1st round make feel a bit ill. No reason that should happen of course, but it could.
Kyle Dubas does walk into Mike Babcock’s room post-game. He mostly listens and nods. He agrees with Chayka: Leave the on-ice strategy to the expert; the next morning is best for a deep discussion; and the scoreboard doesn’t always align with how well the team played.
“There are games where we don’t play well and we win that aren’t pretty,” Dubas said. “One of the things I’ve been most impressed about is how [Babcock] handles losses.”
Dubas said he and Marlies coach Sheldon Keefe would occasionally engage in blowups post-game, and they were both fine with it because of their long working history and an inherent understanding that both men were working toward the same goal.
As long as GM and coach are on the same page when communicating with players and no one is going around the other’s back, it’s all good. Things get ugly when the messages are mixed.
“That’s when the organization starts to crack,” Dubas warns.
I have a hard time not considering the Pens a contender but we're nearly 3/4 through the season and they're still lingering in that bubble area. That's why I say they could easily heat up and be a contender. they're only 1 point up on a playoff spot with a hot Canes team nipping at their heels.
The Isles I also agree with. It's hard to see them as a contender but again through this mark in the season, they're still playing strong. Vegas has shown that these underdogs can prevail through the stretch. I have a hard time counting them out right now.
Boston needs to stop winning. They do have a ***** of the schedule the rest of the month. Hopefully that helps us....
I had a quick peek, not sure what's so tough about their schedule. Maybe I'm missing something but I do know that they've played two more games than us so that's in their favour. Wasn't is last season at about this time when people said Boston would slow down and we'd pass them because of injuries or whatever?
The last time Boston lost a game in regulation was a month ago. They've won 6 in a row and ATM, this "one line team" is doing it without one third of that top line. Scary team.
I just meant for the rest of Feb. 2 SJ (they’ve pulled off a win since), 1 Vegas, 1 STL, 1 Tampa. Pretty tough 5 game stretch. Didn’t look at their March, but if it’s light, that’s further trouble for us. Our March looks “easy”, which at this point seems like “Let’s get comfy and coast”.I had a quick peek, not sure what's so tough about their schedule. Maybe I'm missing something but I do know that they've played two more games than us so that's in their favour. Wasn't is last season at about this time when people said Boston would slow down and we'd pass them because of injuries or whatever?
The last time Boston lost a game in regulation was a month ago. They've won 6 in a row and ATM, this "one line team" is doing it without one third of that top line. Scary team.
you want to see "scary" look at how many PPs Boston has had in the last 30 days , it's huge.
It's frustrating that even after adding JT and Muzzin, the Leafs may not get home ice in the first round still. f***ing sucksI had a quick peek, not sure what's so tough about their schedule. Maybe I'm missing something but I do know that they've played two more games than us so that's in their favour. Wasn't is last season at about this time when people said Boston would slow down and we'd pass them because of injuries or whatever?
The last time Boston lost a game in regulation was a month ago. They've won 6 in a row and ATM, this "one line team" is doing it without one third of that top line. Scary team.
Thanks but I'm scared enough as it is.
I am not scared brother
I would be afraid if i thought we was the favorites and could suffer a upset
I only give us a 35% chance against the Bs if they have HIA
and 45% if we have HIA
the "stars" are just lined up way way way too poorly
take on the Bs AND Tbay both with HIA JUST to make it to the CFs???? bahahah, ummmm nope
It's frustrating that even after adding JT and Muzzin, the Leafs may not get home ice in the first round still. ****ing sucks
If that's what you think the odds are then you're way more scared than I am.
Common gary, you know me by now, i only post what i think
I am not scared , not winning the cup is something that i don't fear.
The path we need to plow is pretty clear and full of boulders.
BUT our key core is very young , lots of time for them to turn into men and tweek the roster.
Boston will flatten out in a couple of seasons
and Tbay "should" run into their own cap hell
unless , what Dubas "saw as the new RFA market" was actually his own inability to bargain well
we could get wrecked if the other GMs get their prime RFAs back inline.