10 years ago: the 2009-10 season

[SotasicA]

French-Canadian stop sign:

The East saw the number 7 and number 8 seeds play for the Prince of Wales Trophy. That was after the Flyers completed a reverse sweep on the Bruins, after being down 0-3 also in goals in game 7.

 

[Beville]

Ovy had to miss a few games to attend his grandfathers funeral... otherwise he'd of swept the awards just like he did in 2008. His 3 season peak would be one of the best ever.

I loved this year because Canada won Gold then Chicago won the final.

One of my favourite parts of the finals -

This rivalry is all I can think of when I look back on this season... seeing as we got beat 4-2 by the Penguins in round 1.

 

[RussianRifle27]

That's called Nostalgia.

That's true, but I also believe the quality was better. There was a greater variance in playing styles by team and more passion from the players.

 

[Tad Mikowsky]

Fall for Hall, as the Oilers finished in the bottom, starting the rebuild that didn’t result much success.

 

[Varan]

Halak

OV got screwed in Game 7

 

[HabsQC]

I have Halak of words to describe those playoffs.

 

[TheGoldenJet]

Malkin had his first Mr. Hyde year.

Despite his injuries, Malkin actually paced for 95 points that year. A very good year by any standard.

 

[End on a Hinote]

Hockey was much more exciting back then.

It like literally hasn't changed in the last 10 years....

 

[HisIceness]

Hurricanes were expected to build on their ECF appearance in the previous season but instead got off to a shit start in typical Hurricanes fashion and never got anything going until late in the season, again in typical Canes fashion. The off-season was kind of meh, lost Seidenberg but gained Stephen Yelle, who ended up on waivers and was traded at the deadline. On the other hand, this was the season that Brandon Sutter stepped in and was developing into a budding star. We also had Twitter legend Zach Boychuk and Jamie McBain get call-ups and they performed admirably.

 

[EichHart]

The Sabres were good? It was so long ago. Vezina for Miller and Calder for Myers. Where did it all go wrong?

 

[Rusty7550]

As a Slovak, I have to say ... this season was really fun:
- Great results by Slovakia at the Olympics in Vancouver
- Halak in playoffs
- Hossa has finally won the Stanley Cup
- Gaboriks great first season for Rangers

 

[Satoru Gojo]

Ovechkin was destroying the league that season up until the Olympic break. Once they were done he came back and didn't really look the same again until 2013.

 

[Paradise Circus]

Ovechkin was destroying the league that season up until the Olympic break. Once they were done he came back and didn't really look the same again until 2013.

The whole Russian team was rattled after Canada whooped them in the Quarter Finals.

 

[x Tame Impala]

Beating the Canucks in the second round was sooooo satisfying

 

[JaegerDice]

Obviously winning the cup was an amazing moment and is an amazing memory, but the most vivd memories I have of this season were two regular season games. Cause it was during those games that, as a long beaten-down Hawks fan I finally started believing, definitively that 'yes, this team is going to break the drought'.

The first was a game against Calgary. Where Calgary went up 5-0 early. And then the Blackhawks just 'turned it on' and just dominated the ice, put up goal after goal after goal and made it look easy, before ultimately winning 6-5 in OT.

The second was Hossa's first game as a Blackhawk, against San Jose, who were really the only competition as far as 'best team in the west' by that point, and the Blackhawks just kicked the crap out of them, and Hossa was a machine. They scored almost as many goals shorthanded that night as they did 5v5 or on the PP.

The 2010 team didn't perform as well top-to-bottom over the course of the season or playoffs as the 2013 team did, but after those two games, it really felt like whatever their flaws or habits of taking a game or period off, they had the raw fire-power to beat anybody.

 

[JianYang]

What halak overshadowed was that cammalleri had a guy Lafleur type of playoff run.

They knocked off Washington, but the Pittsburgh win was even more impressive, since Matt Cooke took out Andrei markov in game 1 for the rest of the post season.

 

[Jorma Heart]

Olli Jokinen missing the crucial penalty shot in last regular season game. Kimmo Timonen watching Kane to score decisive goal in game six. Sad season for KalPa players

 

[BHD]

As far as the Pens go... Acquiring Alex Ponikarovsky before being Halaked in the playoffs. The team had issues (as mentioned by @Jill Sandwich), but they were a win away from the ECF. Although, maybe it's a good thing they didn't considering the Flyers probably would have smoked them.

However, I just remember at one point thinking the Pens would be facing off against the Bruins in the final four.

 

[Matty Sundin]

Leafs were still terrible. Of all our bad seasons since 2005(there's a lot) that one and the 2014-15 were the most frustrating to watch that year.

 

[Frank the Tank]

Halak

OV got screwed in Game 7

I remember Ovechkin taunted Halak as being scared of the Capitals halfway through the series. That was a tough lesson to learn.

It was also the end of Boudreau's run and gun era of hockey. Too many goals, including a few game winners, were scored by the Habs while Backstrom and Ovechkin floated at center and/or made poor changes.

 

[DearDiary]

Despite how good they usually are, the Penguins were actually pretty bad this year and only Sidney Crosby got them in the playoffs. Malkin had his first Mr. Hyde year, Gonchar was never the same after his injury the year before, Letang hadn't progressed into a #1 yet... points go Crosby 109, Malkin 77. Gonchar 50. It was a surprisingly Tavares-like year for Sid.

Then the playoffs happen, the Pens actually draw some pretty kind matchups, but then they get Halak'd in the second round and thus 09 is the only Pens Cup win that isn't back to back.

94 point pace isn't exactly Mr Hyde

 

[Frank the Tank]

The whole Russian team was rattled after Canada whooped them in the Quarter Finals.

I believe the term was "caged gorillas." It was also a harsh reminder for Team Russia that the KHL remained inferior to the NHL, especially as their confidence grew with 2008 and 2009 WHC wins.

Overall, Canada's depth won. Datsyuk's line did their job matching Crosby's to a basic standstill. Canada's bottom-6 ran through their KHL opponents. The vaunted Russian "green gloves" line featuring Radulov & Kozlov was torched by Canada's Getzlaf-Perry duo and the Sharks line. Perhaps most surprising was how the Nash-Toews-Richards line owned the Ovechkin-Malkin-Semin line, forcing consistent offensive blue turnovers with a tenacious backcheck. Doughty and Weber pulled a page from Canada's 2005 WJHC final and physically dominated Ovechkin into mistakes and turnovers.

 

[Midnight Judges]

It was also the end of Boudreau's run and gun era of hockey. Too many goals, including a few game winners, were scored by the Habs while Backstrom and Ovechkin floated at center and/or made poor changes.

Hooray for lies.

Ovechkin was +5 that series. Backstrom was +7.

 

[Midnight Judges]

On the eve of another NHL season, let's turn back the clock ten years.

Division winners: Chicago (Central), San Jose (Pacific), Vancouver (Northwest), Buffalo (Northeast), New Jersey (Atlantic), Washington (Southeast)

President's Trophy: Washington Capitals (54-15-13, 121p)

Awards
MVP - Henrik Sedin, Canucks
Art Ross - Henrik Sedin, Canucks (29G-83A-112P)
Richard - Sidney Crosby, Penguins / Steven Stamkos, Lightning (51G)
Calder - Tyler Myers, Sabres (11G-37A-48p)
Norris - Duncan Keith, Blackhawks (14G-55A-69P)
Vezina - Ryan Miller, Sabres (41W, 2.22 GAA, .929Sv%)
Selke - Pavel Datsyuk, Red Wings
Adams - Dave Tippett, Coyotes

Stanley Cup Final
Chicago Blackhawks 4-2 Philadelphia Flyers
Conn Smythe - Jonathan Toews, Blackhawks

What are your memories of this season? How'd your team do?

Was there no Pearson awarded that season?

 

[abo9]

The Flyers made the finals with the tandem Brian Boucher - Michael Leighton thus , none of them ever being elite if I recall correctly